Where Am I?

I guess if you read this blog regularly, you have noticed that I have not posted in quite some time....December 15th to be exact.  I attempted to write that day, only to lose my entire post in the touch of a button.  I was frustrated and decided to walk away for a little bit.  Then things began heating up here in South Korea.  If you have watched the news during December, you have probably seen many things on TV and in the newspapers.  Since we live so close to the border, life became a little uneasy.  Even though we were told to go about our day as normal, the stress of the uncertainty of what North Korea might or might no do, was wearing on our family.  If you remembering reading my post earlier this summer about NEO, military families need to be prepared in case  something would happen between North and South Korea.  If something negative would take place that would trigger a NEO, we would be evacuated with only a suitcase per person.  With the military drills that the ROK (Republic of Korea) Army was performing, the threat of North Korea responding was a probability.  I just really    couldn't focus on blogging.  It was enough to get through the day with sick children, homeschooling and keeping my home functioning.

Since North Korea did not respond negatively during the military exercises that South Korea did, I am feeling a little better.  I am hoping that as this New Year begins, I can be more focused and planned with my blog and my life in general.  I can’t believe today is New Year’s Eve and 2011 is around the corner.

I am not one for New Year’s resolutions but I am hoping to make some changes in my life this coming new year.  With God’s help, I know that I can be all He has created me to be.  I pray that you have a blessed New Year.

Our girls on Christmas Eve

UGH

I had my entire post typed and was proofing it when poof...it was gone.  I am a little overwhelmed and need to walk away from the computer right now.  I hope to come back later and rewrite my entire post from scratch.

My Christmas Wishlist

I am the type of person that would buy something for my children or husband instead of myself.  There are many times that my husband has to tell me, "please go and buy something for yourself."  At times I am overly frugal and will cut corners even though we have the money for the things that could make the project or life a little easier.
I don't collect anything.  I hate clutter.  I'm not big on impractical things.  Most of what I would choose would make my life easier in the kitchen and around the house.

So this year I decided to dream big...LOL I am not asking for any of these things but they are on my wishlist. After the holidays, if I end up deeming that they might be necessary, I might save up for one of them. These are in no particular order.

1. SLR Camera

2. BOSCH Universal Mixer Plus

3. Pasta Maker       I have no idea what kind of pasta maker is good.  I have never made pasta from scratch, so if you have a pasta machine that you like, please let me know.  I am open to suggestions.

4.  I Touch

5. House - We are living in an apartment here in Korea.  Almost every week, Breanna (4) will ask, "when do we get to move to our house?"  I try to explain that this is our home, but she is thinking that we should have our own house.  One day I would like to have my own house too Breanna!  I have begun to save toward this one.  Maybe by the time Angel retires in 20 years, we'll have enough money put aside to pay cash for a home.
6. New Family Room Sofas - The set we currently have used to be my grandmother's . It's not super old (only 10 years old) but it has seen it's share or wear and tear.  I would love to get something that is comfortable, cozy, and large enough not only for our family of 6 but for guests also.  It needs to be able to be easily cleaned and can take constant moves.
What's on your Christmas wish or dream list?  Have you had your eye on something?  These material things I have chosen will eventually fade away or be destroyed.  Tomorrow I will share my Christmas wishlist of those things which neither moth nor rust will destroy.

Good Intentions

At the beginning of November, I came across some wonderful ideas on the internet.  I went through the different blogs and bookmarked the ones that I wanted to do with the girls this holiday season.  I was excited!


The next thing I knew, it was already Thanksgiving and I had not taken the time to gather what I needed to carry out my great ideas.  But I still have time...at least that is what I told myself.  I pulled up a few of the blogs and made some notes.


Then it was December....and here I am with these great plans in my head and good intentions  of things I wanted to complete, yet I have not done a single one of them.


WHY did I start off so strong and yet end so poorly?  I am in the process of evaluating why I have not followed through. I had an interesting conversation with my husband today about how together I was during his year long deployment to Iraq last year yet I seem to be lacking enthusiasm lately.  And it's not just with putting together some great projects and things for our family to do together.  


It is in my parenting....staying on top of my kids chores....my role in the FRG....our homeschool schedule and more.  


I don't want to blame it on the craziness of our lives the last year because even though it may have contributed to things, it is not entirely to blame.  Maybe it's because I am not entirely content living here in Korea and miss my family back in the states.  I've noticed that my husband and I have not really had the time necessary to reintegrate our lives since he returned from deployment.


I know that there is probably not one single thing that has contributed to my good intentions only being that...just good intentions...but a compilation of things.  I guess it's time to get serious with myself and make some changes.


Ah, the magic word....CHANGE.  I really don't like that word, even though I know it's a part of life.  Do any of us like that word?  When we first got orders to Korea, I was so excited about the upcoming change.  BUT now that I am here, I wish I was back in Texas.


Since life is about learning, growing and changing and we are all lifetime students, I should kick it in gear and stop fooling around in class and get serious.  I am a mom, a wife, a sister and a friend.  I have a job to do and no one is going to do it for me.  So it's time to take those good intentions a little further and make them a reality.

Winter Wonderland

The view outside my window.  A winter wonderland of sorts.  

My Day

Today has not been the day I had hoped for...to say the least.  I finished my post for today and the saved button was highlighted, so I assumed that everything was saved...but clearly it was not and I am now typing a shorter post since I am exhausted and need to head to bed.

My original post was about ice skating. Hopefully I'll have the time to finish it tomorrow.  But while working on the post, I found out that my video camera had an HDD Error and lost all the videos that I had on it.  I also opened my camera to find my touch screen cracked.  Not my day!

Since things come in threes, I am waiting to see what the third thing is that has gone wrong but I haven't found out about yet.

Caramel Apple Muffins

I came across this recipe on another blog a few weeks ago (please don't ask me which blog because I can not remember) and I put it in my "try later" file.  Today became "later" and this evening I made these muffins.  I must say, they were pretty good.

Caramel Apple Muffins


2 cups of flour
3/4 cup white sugar
2 tsp baking powder
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1 cup of milk
1/4 cup of melted butter
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup chopped, peeled tart apple
12 caramels


Topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup oats
3 Tbs. melted butter
1 tsp cinnamon


Combine the dry ingredients.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well.  Fold in the caramels and apples.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.


I made a few adjustments to the original recipe.  I omitted the butter in the topping, hoping to cut a few calories.  I also did not put the caramels in the dough.  Instead I filled each muffin tin halfway with the dough and then placed a caramel in the middle and covered it with more dough.


I  think this recipe will be a keeper.  If I can remember where I found it, I'll post a link to that blog.  Enjoy!

Happy Birthday

This past weekend, we celebrated Breanna's 4th Birthday.  She has been waiting....and waiting....and waiting for her birthday.  She was so excited when we finally started planning.  She wanted a pink cake with a tiara on top and her two friends to come over to play Wii.  Since her request was quite simple, we made it happen.  Except that instead of putting the tiara on the cake, I just put it on her head.

I did my best to make the cake to look like the picture she saw in a cookbook.  We had a nice dinner with her friends' family and afterwards, we all played Wii bowling. 

Here are some pictures of Breanna's special day.

A Walk In My Shoes Trailer

Living overseas, I am a bit out of the loop in regards to television and movies but this upcoming movie, being shown on NBC this Friday, December 3rd was recently brought to my attention. It is being produced by Walmart and P&G (Proctor and Gamble) as a part of thier Family Move Night Initiative.  "A Walk In My Shoes" reveals what life is really like when one woman ends up in the shoes of the woman she has not only judged but also criticized. This movie deals with struggles that the military communities are facing today and that is why I am posting this on my blog. Even though we are overseas, I am hoping to watch this upcoming movie in the very near future. Check out the trailer and if you get a change, watch the movie this Friday at 8:00PM EST. Don't forget to come back here and post your comments and opinions on this new release.