Jin Family

Turns out I still don't like the beach very much. But the kids have had a change of heart. We didn't bring G's life jacket down from H's parents, so we had to make do with arm floaties. I didn't even know they still

After staying apart for so long because of the virus, we felt like it was probably safe enough to drive up and spend some time with H's parents. I think everyone enjoyed the trip! Turns out E didn't really need the life jacket. But

With all this time in the States, one of the biggest changes to our day to day schedules is all the extra reading! E reads to EVERYONEOf course, there are lots of other changes too, but this one is more interesting for being less

The kids got invited by my sister's in-laws to come see the baby cow on their small farm. It had only been born about 24 hours before! G was shocked that the milk in his cup is the same as the milk the calf

We usually skip our regular monthly family art night when we're in the States because it's too hard to find time and supplies to do it, and also random kid crafts happen here. Which actually I can't really figure out why that is. That

I can hardly believe the little boy is getting so big... E and I had a coffee date in the park (it's decaf)If we had gone back home when we thought we would, I had already decided to start teaching G to read

One question we get A LOT is: What's going on with the girls' schools? The girls have discovered Grandma's jewelry boxWell, the short answer is that M's school started several months ago and she's the only one not there. They've made some changes to

Well, we're still just trucking. But we had a very exciting weekend that I have to tell you about. Picnic!The exciting thing wasn't Mothers' Day. Mothers' Day did happen last weekend, and it's the first time in a long time that we got

I mean, nobody just expects a global pandemic except maybe public health policy makers. But man, I just never thought we'd be here this long. Trying to still have game nightsWe're still just trucking along, doing our home school and now making sure M

This is our first time to spend Easter in the States since we moved four years ago. It was kind of a funny Easter, what with the shelter-at-home thing and all, but it was nice to get to spend the day with family! The

Then after two and half weeks or so of quarantining with our friends, we decided to move to Honey and Pops's place. We figured since we're clearly going to be here for the foreseeable short-term future, we may as well spend some time with

We were a bit surprised when we got back from Louisiana and found that the world was a different place. There were no mandatory restrictions yet but our hosts wanted to be more cautious because of their grandparents (wise choice) and since social distancing

We made a trip to Louisiana last week, which was just what I needed! It's so peaceful out there on the old farm and I love reconnecting with my past. My uncle planted fruit trees that are just starting to bloom!Because of G's

A bonus of our trip into Baton Rouge to see my grandma is that we had just a tiny bit of time on our way out, so we stopped by an old plantation! We're always rushed seeing people when we're in Louisiana, and actually

Since we haven't left yet, we got to go see the Sleeping Beauty ballet! I had looked up the performance schedule before we came here, and was devastated to see that Sleeping Beauty (the girls' second favorite ballet, after the Nutcracker) was scheduled for

Of course, it wasn't G's first birthday in the sense that he turned one. But it was his first birthday in our family! Which means it's the first time there has been a big party with presents involved. Look at my beautiful cake (shout

We had a great time last week hanging out with my parents for a few days! My sister and my niece (the kids' only cousin!) came down too and we really enjoyed the time together. It was much calmer than when we were there

After a pretty crazy first month here (arrival, surgery, wedding, out of town), we've finally settled a little into a "normal" routine for our time here. And it's been pretty nice! The girls making their own pizzasWe've been staying with some friends,

This is the first time it's been a brother's wedding instead of a sister's wedding, and I have to say that it's a little easier on this side of the aisle. Look at those kids!The day after getting out of the hospital, we

Since we got here, H caught up with me in age and our kids have been living it up with their grandparents and aunts and uncles. I just about died laughing when they brought out that birthday hatSince we were a little overwhelmed with

G had a "minor" surgery last week, which went really well, but required him to not eat for seven days (only clear fluids). So we had to stay in the hospital for all that time so that he could be on IV

We spent one more full day in Seoul on our way back, but now we've made it to warm (but not sunny) Texas! Children's Museum in Seoul! Highly recommendFirst of all, I just have to say that I don't think I'll ever get tired

So apparently it gets cold enough here that lakes freeze. Which, I mean, if I had ever thought about it, would've been obvious. And admittedly, these are park lakes, so they're manmade and not very deep. But in case you've never stepped onto real

This is our first time to spend New Year's here in a long time, and I'm happy to say that the new year comes just the same while I'm sleeping here too. EPIC PARTYNew Year is a big holiday here, which I find kind

We all had a wonderful and relaxed Christmas, in the midst of a very busy semester! They got nutcrackers for ChristmasI was pretty nervous about M's teacher letting her miss school on Christmas, especially because it's finals season (I still get surprised about there