Cycling, kites, and swimming

The constant rain has kept the toddler indoors for many days but when the sun is out, it's time to go outdoors and use up some of that energy!!!

Justin got to show grandma & grandpa how good he is on the orange (his favorite color) bicycle that they got him for his birthday, by going around and around the pool before going to preschool, one sunny morning. He was well-behaved enough to stop after about 10 laps and get in the car without too much resistance.

Recently, he has also developed a passion for kites - after watching "연날리기 대소동" on Pororo. He doesn't like big kites (the wind might make you fly away if the kite is too big...) so we found a tiny kite that he doesn't have to worry about, and flew it at the Fair Oaks park. He also played on the playground there after tiring of kite flying in about 30 minutes.

On Saturday, persuaded by Daddy, Justin tried flying a bigger Buzz Lightyear kite, which successfully made it pretty high into the sky, thanks to the size and a decent wind.

And on Sunday, he somehow found an old life jacket in the back of the closet and insisted on going swimming. It wasn't too cold a day (maybe 60 degrees?) but still not ideal... but this time around, Justin successfully persuaded Daddy to take him, and swam (?) around in the jacuzzi for a good half hour or so (see video), before nearly falling asleep in the water.

Justin's 3rd birthday

Justin's birthday being on Christmas eve makes it tricky for us to celebrate it. You feel guilty that it doesn't get enough attention and you wind up overdoing it, or it becomes kind of a mix of everything.

People from our "flock" came over after church to cut and share his birthday cake, the weekend before the 24th. Unfortunately, I did not reserve the cake in advance and so we wound up with a cake with snowmen and other Christmas toppings. I don't think he noticed :)

Celebrating at school is also tricky. On the last day of school, we also brought cupcakes from Kara's cupcakes (the mini cupcakes) for his class. Actually, the last week of school they didn't have many children so they combined 4 classes (Robins, Quails, Owls & Eagles) together.

Still, it was fun and Justin and the other kids enjoyed the cupcakes during snack time. He even cooperated enough to pose for a shot with Ms Jenny.

Mini Kimbap

Justin has become somewhat of an adolescent. You can't really see from here, but he spends a lot of time on his/my iPod watching Pororo, Pooh, or Little Einstein videos. I foresee this turning into future arguments about how much time he spends on the phone, playing video games, etc., etc. In any case, he is very serious about his video watching and cannot be disturbed for any reason whatsoever (even food).

Justin's preschool asked me to pack a snack for 10 little ones. Everyone was bringing a dish so it didn't have to be too much, but it should be something special that Justin likes. So we picked kimbap. There's a wonderful mini-kimbap (꼬마김밥) set from Pulmuone that has the carrots, burdock, and daikon radish all chopped up in mini size, as well as the nori, so all I had to do was mix the rice, make the eggs, and sautee up a tiny bit of ground beef. Of course, I won't do this every morning, but for a once-in-awhile treat, it wasn't too bad.

I was worried that the kids wouldn't like it, but who knows, maybe the teachers finished it off - it came back empty.

In his lunchbox he got the kimbap and 유부초밥, along with blueberries and a piece of banana.

Meanwhile, lunch time is actually the best time for Justin's dad and myself to eat out in peace. We went to the Cheesecake Factory, armed with a gift card, and determined to try something other than the usual meatloaf and pasta (because those are my favorites, that's all we ever eat there). Today I chose a chicken sandwich (with lettuce, tomato, and avocado), which was surprisingly simple but surprisingly good. It may be because the toasted bread was absolutely, totally buttered up. We also had the red velvet cheesecake - of course, I'm not a huge fan of white chocolate, but again, it was our day to try something new. It was okay, super sweet, and I probably won't have it again, but it wasn't that bad. I mean, it's cheesecake, how bad could it be...

More recent developments

So the rainy season here as officially begun. The first rain came with a huge splash - it was so dark, Justin lost his sense of time and slept until noon. Hence, he spent the day with Mom making cinnamon rolls and grocery shopping, instead of going to school for naptime.



Since the weather is cooler, I'm trying to pack more "warm in the tummy" foods, too.

With the rice rolls and strawberries, I've sent japchae. He especially likes the pink fish cakes, which I'm convinced is probably the least healthy ingredient in it.


Meatloaf and potatoes with green beans, diced nectarines & Bartlett pears. Surprisingly, he ate the green beans and not the potatoes (??!!)


Creamy carrot rice (he now seems able to spoon food into his mouth), rice cakes (약식), squash casseroles, and strawberries. I love making creamy carrot rice - sauteed onions, carrot juice, and chicken stock. Super simple without the milk/cream of risotto, colorful, and flavorful. I added chicken breast for this, but for dinner, we often add cooked shrimp as well, and it works well as both an entree or a side.