No, we haven't fallen off the face of the Earth....

I can't hardly remember what has happened since the last time I updated..... The boys were busy with with program practice for the Sunday School Christmas program. The kids did a great job putting on a musical. Since they had to be there for all the services, I got to watch it 3 times. I pretty much knew the songs myself : )

We lost our dear Pongy-boy on the 12th. We brought him home at just 5 1/2 weeks old. He was so tiny!! Pongy was a good dog to us. He hated having his paws touched, had chronic ear infections, and wasn't particularly fond of strangers. In his good days, he LOVED to run and made a great running companion. However, his passion was to go with Travis for bike rides. He's always loved food....even most vegetables. He was a vigilant protector of his family and home, and would bark if he heard someone walking a block away. We sure will miss him.

We left for ND on Thursday, the 20th, to be with our families for Christmas. We stayed at a hotel on Thursday since the drive is about 11 hours, and then drove the rest of the way on Friday. The boys had a great time swimming. Min realized that there are great benefits to be the 3rd child. We let him eat chicken nuggets and french fries for supper (something Henry would have NEVER gotten to do at 14 months...and likely not Charles either). And, then he managed to raid the bag of Cheeto's and tried to horde as many as he could. As you can see, it is doubtful that he could have held on to too many more. We got to my parents on Friday afternoon and were so glad to be done travelling (Trav's parents live in the same town). Charles had been asking my dad for weeks if they could build a birdhouse (my dad does a lot of woodworking). This is a picture of them in my dad's workshop finishing the bird house. Charles is helping my dad drill the screws to hold on the roof. It is a very nice birdhouse that is shaped like a barn. Charles has been wanting a barn in our yard for the past few months. He decided to paint it blue with a white roof.
Christmas Eve was spent at my parents. Our whole family (my sister, brothers and all their family) was together. This is a picture of all the cousins. Only my great nephew, Noah, is missing. He's 3.
In order, Min 1 yr, Jacey 17, Tianna 4, Trista 2, Lane 11, Henry 6, Clay 19, Charles 4. This was the only picture I had where Min wasn't screaming...he's not very pleased, but at least you can see more than his open mouth. It was a crazy night, especially when it was time to open the presents. I don't know that I've ever seen paper fly so fast but what can I expect when you have 5 kids 6 and under.
Trista and Min were having a lot of fun playing with a bag of scarves. Only a 1 and 2 year old can find such great fun in scarves. They are only a year apart in age.

My brother, Lance, and Henry. Henry got a guitar for Christmas and was serenading Lance with a very long, ad lib song. Lance laughed and said it was longer than the 'Flight of the Bumblebees.'
Charles is playing back-up to Henry.

On Christmas morning, we went to Travis' mom and dad's for Christmas there. This is a picture of the boys with their cousins. Georgia 9, and Ella 7. Min and Charles were not at all liking to have their picture taken.
The rest of the week was fairly quiet and the boys got some much needed rest. They were all sick while we were there, and with the excitement of Christmas they didn't get enough sleep. We left for home on Thursday, stopped again for the night, and got back to Rochester on Friday afternoon. We were all glad to be home. We spent today just doing things around the house. Min found these glasses and actually WANTS to wear them. He has brought them to us many times to help put them on.
Tonight, Charles started yelling, "Mom! Dad!! Come quick! Min's in big trouble!" We couldn't imagine what must be going on as we ran into the family room. There was our dear Min, smiling at us with his face and hands covered in soot. He had found the fireplace tools.
He's so proud of himself that he's clapping.

Lots of pictures!!

Life has been a little crazy since getting back from ND. It took a few days just to get settled back into a routine, and then to prepare for Christmas. It seems to take a little longer with the boys since they are always so helpful and Min is turning into such a busy boy that you can't get much done before he needs to be rescued. He's always liked to sit at the piano and 'play.' But, not he's
learned that actually crawling onto the piano is so much better. Now, he would climb up to the very top if I let him. He zooms up the stairs with no trouble, but still isn't much interested in coming down. Thank goodness!! We have just one step into our family room and he stands at the top of that and yells 'bow' (down) until we come to get him. Interesting, since he knows how to get down off the couch.
We did get the Christmas tree up and decorated....FINALLY!! We had it up and I went to string the lights (which worked perfectly BEFORE I put them on the tree), strung them and then had to take them down and restring them with new lights. UGH!! Then the boys helped me decorate as you can see above. If you look carefully, you can see that most of the ornaments are toward the middle of the tree. I gave the boys directions as to whether an ornament could go toward the bottom (meaning it was safe for Min to take off the tree), or at the top. So far we've done okay with no broken ornaments.
Min found some glitter in the box. Thankfully, the cap stayed on until I could rescue it.

This is the newest stunt of our little mountain goat. I had left a box of wet wipes next to the toy box and he used it to climb on top of the box and stand up to look out the window. Imagine my surprise when I turned around and saw him standing up there!!
Henry had his first tae kwon do tournament on Saturday. It was here in town at a local school. Henry did great!! There were three competitions--board-breaking, form, and sparring. The competitors were grouped according to belt color and general age.

Henry got a silver medal in form and board-breaking, and a bronze medal in sparring. He looks pretty serious but he was very proud.

Charles and Min with some much needed play time in the school lobby.
This picture is for Gramma Marsha so that she can see how well her grandson is protected. This picture doesn't show the mouth guard, shin protectors, or 'nut cup' that he's wearing. Henry was pretty proud of that protector, apparently, since we heard him tell 3 other students (girls) from his TKD class that he had one.
Henry with his 3 medals.

We went to the TKD school Christmas party afterwards which was a lot of fun. Great food, music, games, and goody bags for the kids meant everyone had a lot of fun. Min entertained a few with his dancing.

Not very creative today so....no title!

Just stuck on a couple pictures taken on a really nice day this fall. I've not had time to download any recent ones. The past three weeks have been simply unbelieveable, and is the major reason I haven't updated for awhile. Hmmmm.... let me see if I can even remember....

I had my yearly appointment with my hematologist. I always look forward to it. Partly, because we really my doctor, and he gave me quite a bit of advice on raising 3 boys. Thanks!!! Also, since I've never really been quite normal since my transplant ( especially on paper : ) ) it is a good reminder for me to really live every day and not worry about the details.

Then, Travis went out of town and left me with the boys for 6 days. He returned home the Tuesday before last, and we were so very glad to see him. The next day we found out the my sister-in-laws two nephews had been in a serious car accident leaving one dead and the other in very critical condition. This particular family lived in a nearby town and we had known them through my sister-in-law. Her nephew is now in Rochester for surgery and trauma care.

My parents came for a visit on the Thursday before Thanksgiving. The boys had a great time and talked Grampa into taking them to the grocery store. This is a tradition for them and they always come home with special treats. They told me before Mom and Dad got here....'Grampa really likes kids, and Gramma really likes kisses.' My parents visit got cut short when they were called in the middle of Friday night (early Saturday morning) that my dad's brother passed away. They left for home that morning so they could help with funeral plans. My uncle and his wife had moved to Colorado a few years ago, but the funeral would be in our home town where my uncle had grown up. My cousins and aunt arrived at my parents on Sunday and Monday. Andrew and I flew to ND on Tuesday morning for the funeral. Of course, all funerals are sad but this one included a lot of laughter as well. My cousins asked people in the congregation to share memories and stories. My uncle always managed to get into some crazy scrapes which, of course, leads to some really great stories. Uncle Allie was like a second dad to us. He and my dad were close in age and they lived near each other until their move to Colorado. My cousins were close in age to us and we spent quite a lot of time together. They were more like brothers. I even have a twin cousin!! They were all boys which is probably why having 3 boys has never really seemed so scary to me. I was well schooled on 'cops and robbers,' sword-fighting, and could make roads in the garden for matchbox cars with the best of them. My 'twin' and I had the most fun riding the ponies through the woods and playing cowboys and Indians. Not so appropriate these days, but quite acceptable when I was 8. Andrew and I got to stay for Thanksgiving dinner which my sister had at her house. And we flew home on Friday.

Andrew is having a horrible time resettling into a regular routine and is needing a lot of comfort at night. It doesn't help that he's getting another tooth. He picked up a few new words while we were gone which include the oh-so-approrpiate words for a baby; pop and chip. Thankfully, he's also saying 'wa-wa' and 'eat.' We're not sure what happened with him since he's seldom read to. It must be the brothers who never stop talking. He's also loving to play 'chase' with the big brothers. This has the brothers crawling around pretending to chase Andrew while he tries to 'run' away. Yes, he is trying to run....and jump which usually ends in him sitting. He'll be 14 months old on Friday. We had a nice visit with my great-uncle and his wife this evening. She is here for diagnostic tests and treatment. Now it is time to return to the real world and start preparing for the holidays.

And update for Dad!!

So far...all has gone well with my by being home alone with all 3 boys. They spent part of yesterday at Ja Neal's which was a godsend because I got some housework and laundry done. Friends with kids the same age as Henry and Charles came last night for pizza and movie so the boys were so tired they absolutely crashed at bedtime. This morning we went out for breakfast which was a request of Henry's before Travis even left. They were very good at the restaurant and then Henry had his tae kwon do test this afternoon. He did great!! He broke his board on the first try with a step-behind-sidekick. Andrew got to see his very best friend, and Charles crawled back and forth under the chairs pretending he was a train going through a tunnel. At least he wasn't disrupting anyone. We're having a quiet night tonight with spaghetti and playing. Henry is busy drawing right now and CHarles is playing with the Little People. Andrew is sleeping. Tomorrow is church and then I don't know what else. Henry this afternoon dressed up at Spiderman
At the test this afternoon.
Charles making a scary face
Last week, Andrew helped Dad install the baby gate at the bottom of the steps.

THis is Henry's form, tae guk il jong.

Happy belated Halloween!!

I have become terribly slow about updating the blog and adding pictures.... oh,well. Here, finally, are the Halloween pictures. The boys were so wild that day that we barely got them to eat supper. Travis headed to the store to buy some extra candy (you never know if you'll have a lot of kids and run out. Even if you don't have many trick-or-treaters the candy never really goes to waste now does it?) Charles had had a Halloween program with his preschool at the Charter House on Monday. That is always a lot of fun and the kids did a very nice job. Charles even held the microphone and told his name and age. When the lady asked who he was dressed up as, he said, 'Just Charles.' Henry had a Fall Festival parade (apparently, they can't really say they'll have a Halloween parade at schools anymore either) but he brought his costume and the rest of the classes dressed up and they had a parade around the school. He was so excited it was like trying to talk to an empty bucket. Just imagine....18 kids all putting on Halloween costumes with the excitement that can only be shown by 5 and 6 year olds on Halloween. It was incredible! We FINALLY got our pumpkins carved the day before Halloween....after the boys went to bed. I tried to do it while they were still up, but it is awfully hard to cut a face into a pumpkin with a sharp knife and three faces within inches of the pumpkin. And, let me ask....who ever got the idea to hollow out a pumpkin and cut a face into it?

Andrew as Tigger, Henry as a Clone Warrior (from Star Wars), and Charles aka Buzz Lightyear.
Here is my little Clone Warrior!!! Who couldn't be proud of their 6 year old, machine gun toting son?
Here is Just Charles. He managed to make it to quite a few houses before I had to carry him home.
And, Tigger!! All the boys have been Tigger for their first Halloween. We certainly couldn't break the family tradition this year.

Henry didn't have school on Friday and went to Ja Neal's with Charles. He has been wanting to go so he could play with his friend, Mikka. She's in kindergarten, too, but goes in the afternoon. They had a great time. Min and I spent awhile in the social security office applying for his social security card, and at the Credit Union opening up a savings account. Now, we just have to get him a passport and we should be set. On Saturday, we went to the Park Institutes open house and demonstration which was a lot of fun. Henry, actually all of us, enjoyed seeing what the instructors can do, along with the older kids. Of course, this meant that Henry spent the rest of the afternoon trying to break boards with punches, kicks, and yes....even with his head...though only one time... along with about 20-30 runs through his form. Thankfully, we talked him out of trying to break a glass bottle. We managed to get quite a bit of wood cut for the fireplace. And, the boys started practicing for the Christmas program at Sunday school. Life is going to be VERY busy from now through Christmas. Travis leaves early Thursday morning to travel back to ND for hunting. He won't be back until the following Tuesday. I will be home with the boys. If anyone feels inclined to pray for my sanity during these 5 days, I'm sure the boys, and I, would very grateful : )

Blood, tears and chocolate

Why would I possibly title a blog that way? If you lived in our house, you would understand. My pictures got a little out of order so I'll just revisit our week in the order of the pictures, which is....backwards. On Sunday (yes, I know...we were supposed to be in church, but we all COMPLETELY overslept). To our credit, Henry asked at about 11 if we were going to church and we said we weren't going today. He and Charles were both very disappointed. Instead, we unloaded and stacked wood. The boys would load up their wheelbarrow and wagon and then we would go stack it by the fence. It looks like we worked them to the bone, but it was only our second trip. They weren't able to fit many logs in their wheelbarrow and wagon so we hadn't worked very hard. We were having fun though. The weather was gorgeous and the boys were helping each other by carrying each log together. Now, only if they could be like that all the time...wishful thinking.
We went to the park in the afternoon. Henry and I are at the top of the rock climbing wall. That's Min at the bottom. It helps put the height in perspective. It wasn't terribly tall...at least looking up at it. But, when we got to the top it looked a lot higher than it really was.

Actually, the 'blood' part of the title comes in at the park. I was going to go down this long tunnel slide, and as I was taking off, I said to Charles, 'Here I go!!" He jumped on me from the back and held on around my neck. At the bottom, it got a little steeper with a bump. When we bumped, he whacked his nose on the clip I had in my hair. Of course, he screamed bloody murder and got a bloody nose. This was shortly after we had watched another boy cough so hard that he threw up in a garbage bag.
The park we were at was right next to Soldiers Field Memorial Park. We walked over there and this is the boys playing on an Iraqi cannon. Doesn't that sound like a nice, safe way to spend a Sunday afternoon, playing on an Iraqi cannon?
This is Charles from today. His preschool went to a local nursing home to sing for the residents. They were all dressed up for Halloween and did a really great job. The residents handed out bags of candy afterwards and treated the kids (and parents) to juice and giant pumpkin cookies. No, I didn't start my diet today.

Here comes the tears part of the title. Last Sunday, we finally did Mins' toljabee, which is part of the first birthday celebration. It is where the child gets to pick from a variety of objects. The items he picks are said to predict his future. Mins' first choice was the pencil, predicting him to be a scholar. His second choice was rice which predicts prosperity. His third choice was jujubee's which, in Korea, are dried dates. We used raisins. This indicates many children. So, I guess our son is going to be a prosperous scholar with many children. Hmmmm....maybe he gets it from his smart, rich parents....Ha Ha Ha!!!!
Here he is a little happier and eating the raisins.
Our own Elton John. Charles found these somewhere and loves to wear them.

Now, for the chocolate part of the title. On Saturday, we went up to Minneapolis for an anniversary celebration and fundraiser for a magazine we subscribe to and love that targets the Korean-American community. First, we stopped at a Korean market in St. Paul to get some groceries. Of course, we had to buy some candy and a favorite of the boys is a long, thin cookie stick covered in chocolate. We left the market and drove to where the celebration was. When we were parking, Charles said, 'Who's going to help Min?' We said, 'Help him with what?' Charles, ' He has chocolate on his hands.' 'Oh. We can just wipe them off.' Well, little did we know what he would ACTUALLY look like. I guess it is our fault for putting him between his two older brothers who are both eating chocolate covered cookies.

This was what we found when opened the back door, and yes, his hands were covered in chocolate. Thankfully, his clothes were pretty good and I was able to wipe the chocolate off of them. We had a great time at the celebration but didn't get to stay as long as we had hoped. We DID get to eat a great lunch of Korean food and take in some of the traditional Korean drumming which the boys had been so excited for. We also ran into the lady who started the Korean adoption program at our agency. She even remembered us!! I couldn't believe it! We had seen her as we walked in the door, and when she turned around and saw us she came right over to visit. She waited at the airport with us when we were waiting for Henry. She was so excited to see the boys. She's retired now.
We were outside playing before we left the celebration and Min thought the leaves were so funny. Charles would throw them up in the air and he would laugh and laugh!!

That's the end of the saga about blood, tears, and chocolate.

Futility

We learned the meaning of the word futility on Sunday as we tried to get one decent picture of the boys to use for a Christmas picture. We've decided that maybe we've set our expectations too high. These were a few of our favorites. Charles getting ready to hit Henry with a stick.
Charles after he hit Henry with the stick and now listening to Dad say that he's going to take the stick away. Henry is pretending to be mad because Charles didn't really hit him that hard. Notice Min who seems to think its a little bit funny.
And, Dad taking the stick away.
Charles trying to feed his baby brother a pine needle.
And, Andrew crying because he didn't really want to eat a pine needle.

No other news here. We've been leading very boring lives the past few weeks, but have been so busy with daily things that it's been hard to blog. People really just want to see the pictures, so I'll try to be better about posting those ; )

Finally...blogger is letting me upload pictures

I've been trying to upload these photos for a couple days, but something was wrong with Blogger and I haven't been able to post any until today. This was us last Thursday at Andrew's finalization court hearing. Yes, the poor boy is stuck with our family forever and ever. Little does he know that he's become a member of the family who hopes to post a sign at the door that says...nope, not 'The Paul Family,' but 'Where the Wild THings Are.' It is a family joke, and when we go down to our unfinished basement in the winter so the boys can ride bike, inline skate, etc....we say, 'Let the wild rumpus start!!' Now, everyone is going to have to go out and read the book, 'Where the Wild Things Are.' Anyway, the court hearing was pretty short and sweet. We answered questions from the judge, and Henry would whisper, 'Ugh,' every time we answered 'I do,' because it made him think of people getting married.

This is Min at our traditional finalization supper. I'm not sure why we ended up at this particular restaurant after Henry's finalization, but the 'Hunan Garden' is where we have celebrated all finalizations. This is Min with a spoon in his mouth.
On Friday, I drove the Paul Bus to their preschool so I could transport 3 other kids to Tweite's Pumpkin Patch. Their preschool tries to do this every year or two. We had a really great time. We had never been there before, and it was like a kids paradise. There were so many things to do that we didn't get time to do them all before having to go home. This is Charles peeking out of a little door on a castle tower.
Henry pumping water on an old pump. Both boys loved this, and I told Travis we should have one at home. Charles absolutely adores any running water and would happily water the trees, grass, and sidewalk all day.
And, this is our very curious, just 1 year old who thinks climbing into the refrigerator is a lot of fun. I hesitated putting this one up because then everyone can see the inside of my fridge, but I couldn't pass up on showing you what a little monkey he is. He also loves it if I hold him up so he can stand on the window ledge to look outside. Thankfully, he hasn't tried the stairs yet.

The boys and their (borrowed) Hawg

Just a few photos to post tonight but not much news. Min in his new winter cap. Who can resist a cap that looks like that? It was pretty chilly today and I realized that I don't have a winter coat for him. Though he came home in the winter, he was younger and smaller than the other two. Their first snowsuit will fit him this winter, but I didn't want him to start wearing a snowsuit now and sweatshirts aren't quite warm enough. I ordered him a coat that, hopefully, will be here in a couple days. A good friend let Travis borrow his Harley for a few days while he was out of town. The boys have been begging for a ride so Travis took them around the neighborhood this evening.
Charles was pretty excited to go. He loved it when Travis revved up the motor. Andrew was not so impressed. He cried.
Travis and Henry riding around the neighborhood. Henry has been wearing Darin's helmet all week when he rides his bike. He pretends its his motorcycle.

Henry was all prepared. Note the welding gloves he's wearing on his hands : ) He's also wearing a black, Jolly Roger adorned dew rag that he got from his friends' pirate birthday party.