This year's memories almost gone

I hope everyone had a great Christmas with those you love. Gina, Ashley, Kalli, and I went down to Marti's Christmas afternoon and spent a couple of days with her and the kids. I really missed Darrell and family this year, but it was good to be with "most" of the grandkids anyway. I've been sitting here this afternoon listening to the rain. Boy, did we get it last night! The dogs woke me up about 2:30 whimpering because of all the lightning and thunder. That Ranger is a mess. He cannot stand bad weather. So, I spent the rest of the night with him trying his best to lay right on my face. Kind of hard to sleep that way, if you know what I mean. Dang, my TVs are messed up again. I can only pick up a few channels and cannot get FOX News at all. I'm about to go through Fox DTs. I went in a while ago and fixed Ash and I a hot dog and came back to the computer and she had been on YouTube. I found a video that I have been sitting here for about 30 minutes watching over and over. It is a hoot and thought I'd share it with you. Brings back lots of memories. Hope you enjoy it as much as I have. One more day and 2007 will be gone. Gosh, where does time go to these days?



And, for those who can't relate to the video, there is THIS:



When I saw the first video, I was sure that I had dated him at one point in my life, but after seeing the second, I realized that I dated the second guy and we just watched the first.

A Trip to the Coex Aquarium

I got some pictures yesterday from Darrell. They had made a trip to the Coex Aquarium with the boys. And, of course, I had to do some searching and see what was said about the aquarium. A couple of sites I looked at made reference to the extrememly high cost of admission. For the 5 of them, the admission was 57,500 Won. Of course, I had to find a money conversion table to see how much that was in US dollars. I was expecting something outrageous, but the conversion said that 57,500 Won was equivalent to $61.14. Dang, one person can't go anywhere around here for that amount. Here's what I found about Coex Aquarium.

Regarded as the greatest theme aquarium in South Korea, Coex Aquarium is a massive facility with more than 2500 tons of water. With a variety of 650 species, the aquarium houses over 40,000 marine animals. If this seems impressive already, wait, there is much more to disclose. The theme exhibition at this aquarium is the "Journey of Water". The journey of water begins from mountain tops as snow and glaciers melt; then passing through the deep and inaccessible curvatures of rain forests, the journey ultimately ends in the deep blue sea. This theme is a great way to know the lifecycle of water.

After you acquire knowledge of the lifecycle of water, it is time to know more about spectacular marine life. There is an undersea tunnel at Coex Aquarium that passes through 2000 tons of water. Enveloped by durable Optical fiber glass wall, walking through this tunnel you would discover and be amazed by spectacular looking marine animals including fearsome sharks.

The Coex Aquarium is unique in another respect. Blending pleasure with learning, the section called "Lectures at Sea" provides a holistic knowledge to the visitors about spectacular marine life. Commonly regarded as ruthless predators, this park aims to eradicate misconceptions about sharks.

Coex Aquarium has a sea food restaurant too. So after getting a lot of knowledge about different marine species, enjoy some great tasting sea fish and squid at "Deep Blue". To add more to your pleasurable eating experience, the restaurant has one of its walls shared with the main aquarium. So enjoy seeing marine animals elegantly swimming by as you eat.

An adult ticket at Coex Aquarium, Seoul costs around 14,500 Won but a children ticket can be purchased at 9,500 Won only. There is also discount available for a group of over 20 people.

From Darrell -- "Today we took our first family subway trip (about 10 miles from post) to the COEX Aquarium. (That 10 miles on subway took about 30 minutes, where if we would have driven, it would have taken probably an hour - and we would have probably gotten lost)... Pretty neat aquarium and mall complex. After about 3 hours, the boys were falling apart and it was time to come home."

Here's a picture of the Subway system and the main station. (And I thought that Marta in Atlanta was confusing! HaHa!)



And, now, some pictures from the aquarium. Looks like there is some pretty neat stuff to see.

Beware of Donkeys

You know, sometimes I wonder. I wonder about so-o-o-o-o many things but, mostly I wonder about why bad things happen to good people. A couple of weeks ago, my granddaughter, Ashley was attacked by a donkey. Now, I am sure you are sitting there waiting for the punch line, right? Well, there is none. This is no joke. Ashley, who is in the 4th grade gets picked up after school by a neighbor, Cassy. Cassy helps Ashley with her homework and they hang out till Gina gets off work. Sometimes Ashley and Cassy run errands or they go out to Cassy's sister's. That's exactly what they did on this particular day. Picture this. It's a nice day in Georgia. Two good kids decide to go out and visit. While they are at the sister's house, they decide to go out to the pasture to see the horse. Cassy is quite a horsewoman and has been very good in teaching Ashley to ride. They weren't bothering anyone. They just wanted to see the horse. No big deal, right? Wrong. They had been petting the horse when they looked across the pasture and see the donkey coming toward them. The grandfather who was with them said not to worry. The donkey wouldn't bother anyone. Was he wrong! When the donkey came up, he headbutted Ashley, knocking her to the ground. While he had her on the ground, he reached down and bit her in the stomach area. Cassyi and the grandfather began beating and kicking the donkey trying to get him off Ashley. They drug her out from under the donkey and got her away from the pasture. They jumped in the car and took off for home. Ashley has about a six-inch bite on her stomach. The donkey broke the skin in about 5 or 6 places. You can count 17 individual teeth marks. Ashley was a wreck; Cassy was a wreck and Gina became a wreck. She immediately called the "Call a Nurse" for her insurance company. Gina kept telling them that Ashley had been bitten by a donkey. Not understanding what she was saying, the nurse kept asking, "Mam, what did you say bit her?" After several times of saying, "A donkey, a donkey, a donkey", the nurse said, "Mam, are you trying to tell me that a Jack Ass bit your daughter?" "Yes, that's exactly what I am telling you -- a jack ass bit my daughter", exclaimed Gina. She was told that since a donkey is considered to be livestock and because livestock bites can cause such problems, she should immediately call Ashley's pediatrician. The doctor finally returned Gina's call and it was determined that since Ashley was up-to-date on all her shots, and because it was now after hours, they should just clean the bite very well and apply some anti-bacterial ointment to it. She was told to contact them again the next day if the bite looked bad. Well, Ashley didn't end up having to go to the emergency room and she is OK, but she'll definitely have quite a scar that is sure to be the topic of conversation as she grows up. Can you imagine the horror of laying on the ground with a crazy donkey biting you? I would absolutely lose it! We have pictures, but I haven't gotten Gina to download them yet. I will try my best to get that done tomorrow and post them so that those of you who still believe this is a joke can see -- my sweet granddaughter has already had to suffer because of a stupid jack ass. Bless her heart; she should be a LOT older before this happens to her. Don't you agree?

The Man Cold

During this Thanksgiving season, I am trying to forget about all the things in my life (my house) that don't work. I am trying to forget about the fact that I must go back to work tomorrow. I am trying to be thankful for the good things and dwell less on the problems that people in my life are suffering from. I am trying to be thankful for all that I have -- wonderful children, three great sisters (one who watches over me from heaven), wonderful friends, two great brothers-in-law, wonderful nieces and nephews and of course, my precious grandchildren. I am thankful that my children are healthy. I am thankful that my foot is better (I hope I'm not jinxing it by saying that). I am thankful that Bella's hair seems to be regrowing a little around her ears. I am thankful for the fact that Michael brought me a TV yesterday to replace the one in the den -- I sure was tired of watching Dr. Phil on a 3 x 19" stip. But, I just found one more thing to be thankful for -- I must stop and say "Thanks!" that I no longer have to deal with the Man Cold. This is just too funny.

Any Mom's "William Tell Overture"

OMG, I had no idea that someone had been writing down all the little things I'd been saying to my children as they grew up! This is just too dang funny! I hope this lady has gone back to her hotel room to rest. She deserves it! Enjoy!

Honeymoon Package

This video is so-o-o-o-o funny. A good friend at school, Heather, gave me a copy of this CD and I think I listened to it continuously for about a week. What a boost I got each time I listened to it. I found this on You Tube and thought I'd share it with y'all. It's a way to listen to some good clean laughter and I absolutely love Chonda's sense of humor. Hope you Enjoy!

A little early thanksgiving thought

I've been sitting here this morning thinking about my children. Aren't we lucky to have them? I am so thankful for mine. My son, Darrell, is the best son any mom could have. I must admit, though, there were a couple of years when I really didn't like him a whole lot. 13 - 14 were tough years for us. I guess he was busy trying to figure out how he wanted to act and he wasn't real successful at times. But, once he got things figured out, he became a really caring person. He's tough, (I guess that's what a soldier has to be, right) but he has a heart of gold. God truly blessed me when he sent me Darrell. My daughter, Marti, is a jewel. I laugh when I think about her growing up. I used to say that if I just got her dressed and put her on the bus, she would bring home an A. Marti has always been a hard worker and I always knew she'd be a wonderful woman. Marti's an Occupational Therapist and has such a good heart and really cares about her patients. Gina, my youngest, has always been my social butterfly. Give her an opportunity to have fun and she will go at it 100%. She has really surprised me, though, in the past 10 years. Although she still loves to have a blast, she has turned into such a responsible person. She is truly admired at her job at our local college and is always willing to go that extra mile to help someone. I am truly blessed that God gave me these three souls to be my children. Thank you for being there for me, kids. I truly love you.

Veterans' Day

Today is a special day in the lives of those of us who have freedom. In honor of our military, I salute all of our Veterans. A friend, Lorie, had this touching YouTube Video on her site, Live-Love-Laugh-Create, and I wanted to share it with all of you, also. Thanks, Lorie.



May God Continue to Bless all our soldiers and their families.

OMGosh! My baby's feet are hurting!

MANCHU March --
I wanted to share with y'all some pictures I just received from Darrell from a 25-mile road march that he participated in in Korea. Beautiful beginning -- lousy ending. If you have a queasy stomach, you might not want to look at the ending pictures. Bless his heart. Hope Denise and the boys are taking care of him. (Not sure what a MANCHU is, I'll have to ask him.)

From Darrell:
2-9 IN conducted our MANCHU MILE in honor of all the MANCHUs that have come before us and for their sacrifices. It is designed to be a 25 mile road march resulting in MANCHUs earning the MANCHU Belt Buckle. This time, we decided (or our BN CDR decided) to incorporate the Korean Terrain to give all current MANCHUs an appreciation of the sacrifices the 9th IN RGT MANCHUs endured fighting in Korea - earining 6 Medal of Honors throughout the Korean War. Attached are some pictures from it (both of the march, as well as results of the march on my feet). I can honestly say this is the most challenging foot march I've ever been on. 25 Miles - started at 0950 and completed at 1615 (6 hours and 25 mintues). The march had three rest breaks for 15 minutes each.

The Beginning:

(From Darrell)
Went to the hospital yesterday. They are treating them like burns - wrapped with dressings on them. On crutches to help walk now. 2-4 weeks to heal. (got to go back to work on Tuesday - going down to Camp Humphreys in the South for a NEO exercise next week, don't know how I'm going to do it now---)

The End:

Anyone up for a MANCHU March? Not me; that's for sure! I just hope that if this means that Darrell is now a MANCHU, he at least got the darn belt buckle! And to think, I've been complaining about some dad-gum broken bones. I'll hush now!

Today's Darrell's Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Darrell. Gosh, it sure doesn't seem like it's been 37 years since I first saw you. Lots has happened in those 37 years, hasn't it? Little did I know back then what a wonderful man you would grow up to be. I'm so proud to say you are my son. I just wish I could see you and give you a big birthday hug. {{{{{{{{{{{HUG}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}. I guess that will have to do until I get to see you again.

Love you,

Mom

UGH! I hate this new time!

Seems like I've been up forever and it's only 10:30. Had a busy day. Gina's significant's other, Chris, just became a granddaddy on Friday and they spent the day at the hospital with the new baby, Mary Elizabeth. So, Ashley spent the day with me. Late this afternoon, she came into the craft room holding Bella, my Chihuahua. Guess what Bella had on her head -- Duct tape. What in the world was Ashley thinking? She had put a piece of 3-inch duct tape across the top of Bella's scalp. I almost had a heart attack. I tried my best to get it off without yanking it, to no avail. Finally had to just yank it off. Well, of course, most of Bella's hair came off with it. So now she looks like a bald Chihuahua. After I got through scolding -- not really, I think I was screaming at her -- in walked Lex. And he had duct tape all the way across his nose. I almost went ballistic. What was that child thinking? I'm still mad that she did that. Dang, Lex almost ate me alive when I pulled it off of him. Thank Goodness she had not taped it all the way around his mouth. I think I need sedation next time she comes for the day!
When Gina got in tonight to pick her up, I told her what had transpired and the idiot just laughed. No wonder Ashley thought it was OK to duct tape a dog!
Hope everyone had a great day. Next time you need some excitement, give your 10-year old granddaughter a roll of duct tape and a couple of dogs and see what happens.

I've done it AGAIN!

Will someone please make a trip to Georgia with their magic wand? I've had my cast off for two weeks now and I've screwed up my foot AGAIN. Not sure what's happened, but it sure does feel like it's broken again. Going to try to get in to my doctor's office tomorrow and see what I've done. I am so-o-o-o-o-o-o-o sick of my darn foot! I'm trying so hard to put off the actual surgery that must be done until at least Thanksgiving or Christmas or it would be wonderful to be able to wait till summer so I won't have to use so much sick time from work. But, if it's got to go in another cast, I might as well go on and have the surgery now. UGH! I can't stand the thought!

Last Saturday I got a package from Korea. D, D, and the boyz sent me some Korean crafts for my birthday. Pretty cool. I have a place in my hall with momentos from places they have lived -- Korea, Georgia, Kentucky, Texas, Mississippi, Georgia, Kansas, and Korea again. Pretty cool. After all, in military lingo -- Home Is Where the Army Sends You. In addition to the fun Korean stuff, they included two squeeze toys for the dogs. Denise said that they had been playing with the toys and sleeping with them and just plain rubbing on them to get their scents on them before sending them. Well, it worked. The dogs have definitely not forgotten their mommy, daddy, and brothers. Lex carried his fluffy bone around for a solid 24 hours and slept with it between his legs. Ranger guarded his stuffed hot dog from Bella and was ready to fight for the death if Bella got too close to it. Quite a site!

Gonna head off for the tub to soak for a while just in case I end up in another cast tomorrow. Wish me luck!

Too Cute!

I'm sure many mothers with young children can relate to this. We should all be careful of what we say.

So, how fast can YOU stack?

I was watching Fox & Friends this morning and they had a segment on Speed Stacking which made me think of my World Champion Speed Stacker, Ryan. Ryan was only 4 when he went to Denver, Colorado to compete and HE WON! I finally found some digital pages I had done on his accomplishment and thought I'd share with you. If you haven't ever heard of Speed Stacking, don't feel badly. When Darrell called me to say that they were going to Denver, I had NO CLUE what stacking was. It didn't take me long to find out, though. Many of the DOD schools around the world include stacking in their PE programs because of the fact that it helps children learn the art of concentration. I kidded Darrell about the fact that Ryan had evidently picked up his skill from his dad who had practiced stacking "cans of some sort" while in college. Darrell denied it, of course, but moms always know best, right?

I give up!

Well, yesterday was a good day, kinda, sorta. It was my birthday yesterday, so that was good. But then, Ashley and I had to get ready to take the dogs to the groomer and to the vet. Lex, 90 pound bull dog; Ranger 12 pound Maltese; Bella 3 pound crazy Chihuahua. Lex and Ranger were good. They understand the concept of leashes and following commands. Bella is like a fighting marlin on a leash. Finally give up on her and just carry her. Of couse, Ashley had said that we ought to put her in the carrier and I said there was no need. HaHa. We get in the truck and start out. Lex is trying to get comfortable in the back seat of the truck and keeps getting up and laying back down. Each time he does that Bella goes crazy. Ranger just wants to be held. Bella then decides that she must ride behind my neck. But, remember, each time Lex moves, Bella goes crazy. We finally get to the groomers which is attached to the vets and there are 400 people with their dogs walking around in the parking lot. Well, maybe not 400 people -- maybe it was 30. But, it was a LOT of people and a LOT of animals. I try to hold Lex back and Ranger just wants to bark and Bella wants DOWN NOW. We finally make it INSIDE the groomers. Thank goodness we are behind closed doors. After the groomer takes the dogs, we go next door to the vet to let them know what to do with the dogs. Another hour to sit and wait and to top it off, I had made a huge boo-boo. That was the first time at that vet and I, evidently, didn't know the rules. I had walked to the door and opened it and walked in. Well, it was before 9 and they don't open till 9 and you are not allowed inside until 9. (Well, why'd they have the darn door unlocked before 9?) Anyway, when I walked in, so did 20 other people. FINALLY, someone came out to the counter and asked how I had gotten in. I said, "I walked in." And, then I got the lecture about not being allowed in until 9 and all that other stuff. And, to make matters worse, I had not signed the sheet OUTSIDE. See, this vet works on a first-come, first-served basis. I found out that they put the sign-in sheet outside at NIGHT and people come all during the night to sign-in. Well, even though I'd been there for an hour or more, I HAD NOT SIGNED IN so I had to wait for all those other people to be seen before he would even talk to me about what I wanted done. FINALLY, I got to tell them what to do when the dogs were finished at the groomers and Ashley and I left to go back to Milledgeville (did I mention that the vet was in another town?) to get some groceries and take them home before it was time for my doctor's appointment. But, that was good. Food in the house and then I GOT MY CAST OFF! WOO-HOO-YIPPEE-YAY. I now have to just let him know when I want the surgery done to my foot. (Not yet, that's for sure!) Then, after the doctor's appointment, we headed BACK to Gordon to pick up the dogs. They were beautiful -- Ranger had a short, short, short haircut and is so cute. They all had on their halloween scarves. Now, it's time to go back and sit and wait to talk to the doctor. Lex had to have two shots -- allergy and an anitbiotic. Time to pay -- dang! And this doctor is known to be VERY reasonable! After I removed my right arm to pay him, we loaded the dogs back up and headed BACK to Milledgeville. I had to take Ashley into her mom's work so they could attend a wedding shower immediately after work. Then, I took the dogs home. Got them inside and did a couple of household chores and then I got in the tub at 5 and at 7:30 when Gina called, I was still in the tub. It was wonderful! I have not been able to get in the tub for a month and I'm known for living in the tub. So, you can imagine how happy I was. Lex, Ranger, and Bella made themselves at home in the bathroom while I soaked, let the water out, filled the tub back up, soaked some more, let the water out, filled the tub back up and soaked some more.

THEN....................................

Have you ever had one of those days when you know you should have just gone back to bed? Well, the last 6 months have been like that for me and today was no different. I woke up this morning and found out I have a stopped up sewage line. (Wonder if all the baths last night had anything to do with it?) The plumber is on the way. What else can happen? I am so-o-o-o-o sick of this house. Where the heck is that old, sick, rich man that was supposed to be here to take me away from all of this junk? Did HIS truck break down, too?

So, I have a zillion clothes to wash before going back to school on Monday, my cast is off and I SHOULD be able to soak in the tub today, and MY DARN PLUMBING IS BACKING UP ON ME. I GIVE UP! DO YOU HEAR ME? I FLAT GIVE UP!

Have a good day. (Ooh, I feel like Melinda from American Idol saying that!)

It's Nic's Birthday!

Nic, my first born grandchild, will be 10 tomorrow, October 10th. OMgosh, I can't believe it's been 10 years since Denise, Darrell, and I were out walking around the hospital at Ft. Stewart. Darrell had called me the night before about 10:30 saying Denise was having contractions and they were on the way to the hospital and that he'd call me and let me know what the doctor said. Well, gosh, I was almost 4 hours away and he thought I was going to sit here and WAIT for him to call? No way! That was my first grandchild who was about to be born and he actually thought I wasn't going to come on down? Get real, son. You couldn't keep me here if you had tied me down. So, I called Gina and said I was leaving and I took off. Now, keep in mind that I HATE driving at night -- almost as much as I HATE driving in the rain -- but what do you do when it's going on midnight and you have a chance of being there to see your first grandchild be born? Silly, you get in the car and you leave. Well, a few hours later I drove up at Darrell's house and his car was there. What in the world? I walked in the front door and there sat Darrell and Denise. She had been sent back home, but was told to be there the next morning. So, I got to sit up and talk with Denise and Darrell about everything they were about to do (and not do any longer), and all the wonderful things they could look forward to. The next morning, we got everything ready and took off for the hospital. Denise was checked and they told her to go walk around the hospital for an hour or so. So, here we go! Finally they admitted her and then the crowd started showing up -- Denise's Dad and step-mom, her mom, her brothers and sisters, Darrell's two sisters, and me. We had the room full! And an Atlanta Braves' game was on tv the whole time Denise was in labor. I won't go into all the shananigans we got into, but rest assured, we had a blast waiting for Nic to be born. When he finally arrived, I was so excited. I was finally a Grams. That's what it's all about! And now, that little boy is 10. Wow! How time flies when you're having fun!

Happy Birthday, Nic. Grams loves you! I wish I were in Korea with you so I could give you a big hug!

Oh, I forgot something.......

I forgot to say that I've moved all my Stampin' Up! stuff to a new blog. This one will be devoted to my crazy life. So, scoot over there to see what happens in the normal part of my life.

So, Did you think I'd died?

Wow! What a time my computer has had! And me, too, for that matter. Things have been really crazy around here and I've been MIA from the Blog world for a while. I've finally gotten my computer worked on and I THINK I may be back in business. (Can you see me crossing my fingers and saying, "I hope."?) Anyway, I'm going to try to get back into the blogging mood. And, I've got some catching up to do with some stamping friends who, I am sure, think I kicked the bucket. My computer died, my house got hit by lightening AGAIN and I lost telephones, answering machine, a tv (dang, it's the one in my den and now if I watch tv out there, about 3/4 of the show shows up in a 19 x 2 inch line. You ever tried to watch Dr. Phil like that? It's a pain.) And, of course, let's not forget about my bum leg. Got it BACK in a cast trying to get the tendons to reattach and to mend some bones that were broken.

I'm out of school for the week, but have some plans. My sister has been having some real medical problems and I'll be spending some time with her while she's in the hospital. Her heart has been going crazy and they ended up having to do surgery last week. They found an aneurysm in her neck (caused by a previous surgery she had last month) and when they opened her up, the aneurysm burst. It was touch and go, but she made it and is slowly recovering. So, I'm off to Macon in a bit to sit with her for the afternoon. Then, on Thursday, I'll be heading back to the doctor myself to "GET MY CAST OFF"! Yeah! I can't wait. So, Thursday night, I'll be soaking in the tub All Night Long! I can't wait! I've missed my tub for so long! One of my favorite things to do is to soak in the tub while I'm watching TV and of course have not been able to do that since this cast has been on. We'll decide on Thursday what the next option is for my foot/leg. My doctor seems to think that I'm hard-headed and am just putting off letting him fix my foot and you know, he's right. It's been a real true-to-life extemely hard/aggravating/painful/clumsy/pain-in-the-butt to try to crawl around on the floor at school hooking up computers with this thing on my leg. But, it is pretty. I tried to get a camouflage cast in honor of Darrell, but they were out of it, so I opted for a pretty light pink. Problem is that our school colors are red and black, so my cast has really not gone with anything I have worn lately. Oh well, a model I am not! So, I'm putting off another foot surgery as long as I can. Maybe next summer will be good so I won't have to worry about work. But, then I'll have to worry about being hot, so maybe it's not such a great idea, after all.
Anyway, I'm back. See y'all soon!

Yeah! I got to talk to Darrell

Hooray! Darrell and Denise called tonight - even though according to their time, it was 9 o'clock in the morning! LOL. This 13-hour difference is going to be fun to keep up with. But, I don't care what time it is -- when he gets a chance to call, I'll talk! He and Denise had gone and taken their driving tests and they were trying to get a few things straightened up. They got their house and will be moving in tomorrow. They have a park right behind the house and it's in walking distance to the school where the boys will go. That will be great for them. Their car won't be there till sometime in September, but Denise said the taxis and the bus are working fine for them when they need to go somewhere.
They all went up to Camp Casey one day to see where Darrell will be working and took the neatest bus up there. Darrell was telling me that it's $5.00 per person for the bus from Yongsan to Camp Casey (about 2 hours away). Now, how many of us can hop on a Grayhound for a two-hour trip and only pay $5.00? Quite a deal, huh? And the bus is so cool looking -- I told him that the pictures of it look like some type of "French Hoor Bus" -- so colorful with curtains on the windows. Check out the picture of the bus. Fancy, huh?
Denise got to talk to Ranger, so I think it made her a little less worried about how he's doing. And it was so cute to watch him as I put the phone to his ear and let him hear his Mommy. When I put the phone to Lex's ear, he got all excited and ran around the coffee table and then went to the back door and sat. It almost made me a bit weepy to see him do that.
Once they get settled in their house, Darrell will be leaving to report in at Camp Casey and will be out in the field until sometime toward the end of August. Guess he's back in the real Army now, huh? I think the year of schooling at Ft. Leavenworth kind of got him out of the "field habit". He complains about being out there for so long, but in reality, he's excited, I think.
Been rambling a bit, but that's kind of how our conversation went. Life as usual, huh? Now that I've finally gotten to talk to them, I think I'll head to the tub and soak for a while and then go to bed. Going to Macon in the morning and I'm certainly not used to getting up early. It's going to KILL me to go back to work on Friday. Wonder if they'll let me change my hours to go in around noon? Think it's worth a try in asking?
The pictures are from their trip from Yongsan to Camp Casey. There's a beautiful picture of the mountains with the morning mist, a tire store in Seoul (need a tire?), some high-rise apartment buildings, the fancy $5 bus, and one of the street corners in Seoul.

A few new pictures

The winner of the shopping trip -- Denise and her new Coach.

"Hey, Dad, we're hungry!" Seems like a long way to go for a steak, doesn't it?

While Nic looks like he's enjoying the shopping trip, Ryan and Jake are much less impressed. Bless their Hearts!

Street crowds in It'aewon. I bet the boys were amazed at all the people.

Here are the boys burning off some steam at a Korean Burger King. (Come on, fella's, you are supposed to be eating the local fare, not something from BK! Geeze!)

Standing outside front door of the Dragon Hill Lodge, looking toward downtown Seoul.

Picture looking out their room window.
The boys are konked out at 4:30 one afternoon.

Got a few new pictures yesterday from Darrell and thought I'd share them. The kids are staying at the Dragon Hill Lodge for right now. Looks like a dad-gum fancy-schmancy place if you ask me. I'm not sure that I'd be wanting to move into a house if I were Denise -- if you know what I mean. I think they've begun to wake up a little bit; hopefully in the next few days, they'll figure out Korean time. They took off on their first shopping trip. I think Denise had the most fun based on a couple of the pictures! Guess they chose not to try dog on their first trip out and they ended up at Outback! Funny!

Here's what I found about It'aewon.
Dating from the 14th century, Itaewon was the first gateway to Seoul for travelers coming from the Yeongnam area of Korea. Being adjacent to the Han River, it formed a major trading area. That tradition continues today as Itaewon attracts thousands of foreign shoppers. The Itaewon shopping area covers a 1.4 km length, stretching from the U.S. 8th Army Base eastwards to Hannam-dong and contains over 1,000 different stores. The area has a vibrant night life scene with many bars and nightclubs. Many street vendors selling shirts, jackets, and caps also stay up late to cater to nocturnal shoppers. Most vendors speak some English and Japanese, and most will take Won, Dollars, or Yen for transactions. Most larger shops will take most credit cards as well.

The kids made it to ......

Yongsan, Korea. 17 hours in the plane, lost some luggage, but it was found and was being brought to them, thank goodness. I love the fact that they could follow the path that the plane was taking and had no idea that they would be leaving Atlanta and heading out over Canada and over the top of Alaska. Darn, no wonder it costs so much to fly these days -- they go by way of their elbows to get to their butts! LOL Anyway, they finally got to their room last night around 10:30 and Darrell had to check in this morning at 7:00. From what I understand, Denise and the kids will be at Yongsan temporary housing for a while until they get their permanent housing. Darrell will be leaving within a few days for Camp Casey -- about 40 miles away. Supposedly, he will be able to come down to Yongsan a couple of times a month. Bless Denise's heart -- is she a good wife, or what? It will be several weeks before their housing goods or their car will make it to Korea, but she says that she and the boys will take taxis or ride bikes around post. I can just see her now -- off to the commissary on a bike with a little red wagon behind it and the boys trailing along. Here are a few pictures of their trip. (Isn't the limo cool?) They said that they boys were pretty good on the long trip, but that they sure were excited to finally get somewhere on land where they could run around. I can't wait to hear from them again.