The Birds and the Bees?

I would like to know how the phrase 'the birds and the bees' ever came to imply what you use it for. We've been... or actually the boys have been (because I would just as soon avoid the conversation altogether) brewing up to this conversation for awhile. It started with easy questions like, 'Do babies have blankets in their moms tummies?' 'Did I have clothes on when I came out of my moms tummy?' These questions were some time ago, but they have continued with questions that a very simple answer would satisfy. Not so the other night. Charles was in one of his question asking modes, and he can ask tough questions. Let's just say that he was NOT satisfied with simple or vague answers but demanded details. Sweet Martha...the details. Henry laughed hysterically. And, Charles...our dear analytical, detail-oriented, so serious, little boy kept on asking...and asking... and asking. Nothing was funny to him...it just was. Of course, now he's moved on from that to breast-feeding.

So, a sample of our Charles' questions.
1) 'What is under the earth?' I questioned a little thinking he meant what was under the ground in the center of the earth. No. He meant that since the earth is round, like a ball, what is underneath it... like under Antarctica.

2) 'If the earth spins so fast, why doesn't it fly off into the sky?' Apparently his preschool teacher had been discussing gravity.

3) 'Why does God make it so bad storms happen and people get hurt or die?'

When he is wondering if something really happened or is just pretend, he will ask, 'Did that really happen down in this world?'

Underwater World

We made our very first trip to Underwater World at the Mall of America today. We actually went up because there was an exhibition called 'Passport to Korea' going on at the Mall. Sorry that I didn't notify everyone but I found out about it so late that I didn't get any emails out. Anyway, we also managed to get to Underwater World too. We LOVED it!! Unlike our visit to Mystery Cave, this exhibit was loved by ALL family members. Charles was in his element as you will see in the pictures. Henry thought it was incredibly cool. And, Min... well Min at times was so excited at some of the fish that he would shake. Very much worth the trip to the Cities. Henry and Charles by the scuba diver advertising 20,000 Leagues under the Sea. I think Henry is pretending to be strangled. I'm not sure...but I didn't think you were at risk for being strangled by scuba divers. Hmmm... I may be wrong.

Charles posing by the poster for the movie.

Not sure what a 2 year old thinks about when they are sitting on the back of tortoise statue.

Quite a bit happier in this one.

And, Charles by the replica of his beloved Titanic. This boy is obsessed with ships and ocean storms and why ships sink. He has about 4 Titanic books. His favorite movie is The Perfect Storm. This was terribly worrisome to me for awhile because his favorite part of that movie is when the fishing boat sinks. He knew that I didn't like that movie much. Finally, I explained to him that when the boat sinks, the people die. They don't get to go home to their family. He just looked at me and said, 'Well, God just goes down and gets them and takes them to Heaven.' I didn't have anything more to say.

Charles by the waterfall. Another favorite of his. He loves waterfalls, rivers, hoses, swimming and anything else that has to do with water.

All in all, the trip was good. The boys had fun and so did mom and dad. The Korean exhibit was good. I wish we had gotten to go on Friday or Saturday when the performances were different, but we were happy with what we saw and it appeared to be well attended.

Oh no...a 2 year old on wheels!!

Oh yes... Min is learning to ride a trike. As you will see, he's not very fast so he isn't too dangerous yet. But, he will only get faster. And....steering is a definite concern. Thankfully, he likes to wear his helmet.

Mystery Cave

We took a day trip to Mystery Cave this Sunday. Charles has been very interested in caves ever since we looked through the gate of the cave at Quarry Hill. The tour was fun...about 1 hour. The big boys did great. It got a little long for Min, but he did okay. This is a lake in the cave. Very interesting. I was amazed at how clear the water was.

The fossil of a cephalopod. I'm no geologist so can't really tell you what they look for real, but the fossil was pretty cool.

A bat. Yes, there were a few bats. They were all mostly like this...sleeping, I think. At the very least, not flying around. We did see one bat flying but it was about 20 feet in front of me and, thankfully, flying the other direction. That saved me some embarrassment as I'm sure I would have screamed had it flown toward us.

The boys in one of the passage ways.

Min making his 'dork' face.

I really, Really, REALLY LOVE travelling with my kids.....

Oh, yes...that is laced with significant sarcasm. I was hoping that I could convince myself that it was true...but, I can't. We made a quick trip to Grand Forks this weekend. Our new neice, born right before Thanksgiving, was being baptized. And, our godchild and neice was having her first communion. So, we left Friday morning. We should have known that trip was going to be interesting before we even left the house. About and hour before we actually left, Charles was fully dressed in his winter coat sitting by the door with his suitcase packed. About 15 minutes later he was complaining about being too hot. Min was crying because he thought we were going to leave him. I really don't know where that came from because we have never left him anywhere before.... I stay home with him. We made it to Pine Island...about 15 minutes from home... and the first 'How far is it?' started. We stopped to eat on the other side of the Cities. Got in the car and drove for about 5 minutes and had to make a bathroom stop...for one of the kids. Min got about a 20 minute nap before one of the big brothers woke him up. This was NOT a good thing and mom and dad were not happy. A brother bonding moment in the big tub at Uncle Gerad's and Auntie Misty's. They were trying to be Santa Claus and Charles helped Min just a little. It was baby soap so it didn't sting his eyes...not sure about the taste though.

Back to the story. We learned that you do not drive for 6 hours and then stop in Fargo at the Japanes-Korean restaurant. Not only did the boys look like street children... they were dirty from eating in the car...but they acted like they had never been to a public place in their entire lives. Thankfully, the restaurant was part of a little mall where they could run. And, run they did. They ate all their mandu and then Min drank the cho jang sauce, the dipping sauce for the mandu, out of the bowl. This is mostly made up of soy sauce among some other ingredients. He drank a lot of water that day. We finally made it to GF. The boys had a great time with their cousins. And, we had a great time visiting. Min was homesick... especially at bedtime. He would ask, 'This my house?' 'No, Min. This is Uncle's house.' 'My house at home?' 'Yes.' He would wake up crying and scared.

This is baby Greta, our newest neice. Henry thought we should trade Min for her. She is such a good baby and has the cutest little smile. Charles thought we should trade Min for Uncle's two cats...one is quite elderly and the other is quite large... a full 7 pounds more than Min. He liked that they actually sat still so he could pet them which is not at all like our cat. The good thing for the boys...neither the cats nor Greta try to take their toys, mess up their room, or create as much mess as their brother. I think we need a little more brotherly bonding.

The trip home was a real winner. Thankfully, they all did nap...at least for awhile. Min managed a full 30 minutes. Not good for the Paul Family. He cried for nearly the last 2 hours of our trip. We heard this...'I want Min's bed.' 'Want go to sleep.' When we finally got home...at 8:15 p.m... he was so happy to be home. He just looked around and would say, 'There my Abby (the cat)' 'There my bed,' 'There my jammies' 'There my diaper.' It went on and on...and he was so delirious with fatigue and the excitement of being home that he could hardly go to sleep. Finally he just crashed.

And, here is the view of the Red River Valley in the wintertime. They have a lot more snow than we do. This is when we were nearly to Grand Forks.

Creative Play...

Charles and Min playing train. They went around and around and around..... Lucky for Charles, the box had wheels.

Henry lost another tooth.

It seems that this day I had triplets. I started out with twins....Henry and Charles in Vikings jerseys. And, no we are not some of those diehard Vikins fans who decorates their house in purple and gold and wear horned hats with yellow braids on game day. Henry and Charles decided that Min needed to join in. They took him upstairs and helped him change his clothes...all on their own. I didn't hear one complaint from Min (I was listening through the monitor). This from the child where getting dressed or having a diaper changed is like an Olympic sporting event. They were all very proud of themselves when they came downstairs.

And, it seems we have a son who has a talent for making balloon animals. We had no idea that he even had an idea of what to do....but he was making dogs, hats, and, yes.....swords.

Christmas

We spent Christmas in Rochester this year with just our immediate family. We went to church on Christmas Eve. The boys did pretty well considering the church was full and we had to sit in the second row from the front...right behind the pastor. Charles, of course, was full of questions about baby Jesus and Mary and Joseph and who is Jesus real dad...God or Joseph. Since I wasn't sure how to explain immaculate conception... Ooops a mistake here!! Thank you Chris!! What I meant to say was 'virgin birth'... to a 5 year old, I told him that God helped make Jesus but that Joseph was his dad and took care of him.

We opened a few packages on Christmas Eve after dinner. One of our family gifts was a game of Twister. If you ever want a few laughs playing a game with your kids, this is one to try. Henry did pretty good since he knows his right and left. Charles had a little more trouble...mostly because he couldn't quite stretch far enough to reach from green to red. Min tried to play---you can see on the last picture--but soon gave up and decided that riding Henry was a much better choice.

And here, are the most handsome boys I know!!

Christmas Vacation begins....

Christmas vacation began with a snow day.... I was very relieved since it meant that I did not have to be at Panera at 6 a.m. to buy gift cards for Henry and Charles' teachers before Travis left for work and I had to get the boys to school. We all slept in!! What a treat after a busy week of Christmas programs, Christmas parties, and just getting ready for the holidays. Of course, Christmas break also means that I would have all 3 boys home all day for over 2 weeks. The weather is terribly cold which means going outside is not a good choice. What to do. What to do.

We tried bowling. Henry loved it. Charles spent a lot of time figuring out how the balls come back up the machine. Also, with questions about how the pins get picked up and where the ball goes at the end of the alley so that the machine can bring it back to us. That would be Charles, our boy of questions. Min thought bowling was okay at first but soon became bored watching the ball roll down the alley. That might be because it probably took at least 30 seconds for it to make it from his hands to the pins. I wasn't at all sure that it would even make it to the pins.

It also seems that sword-fighting with wrapping paper is a great activity. The paper wasn't wrecked, nobody got hurt, and after about 15 minutes of running around the house swinging wrapping-paper-swords they had burned off just enough energy to keep them from really fighting with each other.

A Dangerous Boy

I was in the bathroom brushing my teeth when I heard Charles yell...'Mom!! Min's washing his hands in butter.' This cannot mean anything good and, sure enough, when I get to the dining room this is what I found. I guess you could say that is my own fault. I am the one who left him all alone at the table with an open tub of margarine. What else would you expect a 2 year old to do?
This is just a run-down of pictures of what a typical day with Min is like. He is relatively high-maintenance...or, like our friends told us, he's like a 2 year old on speed. He might be busy, but he has a wonderful personality, loves to laugh and be 'cited' (as Min says..excited), and is incredibly funny.

He has figured out the great benefit of chairs. Yesterday I had no chairs left at the table. One was next to the stove where he had been helping me cook. The other was at the light switch where he likes to turn the lights on and off, one was at the front door where he is trying very hard to learn to lock and unlock the doors, and the other was at the computer desk.

The next picture was accompanied by Charles yelling...'Mom!! Min is doing something dangerous!!" When I got into their bedroom, this is what I found.

No, Charles is not sitting on the roof of the bunkbed, but Min is. Thank goodness he isn't that heavy or it would have broken. When I got in here he was picking the bumps of texture off the ceiling.

Just relaxing... in a box? I guess that's okay. He was reading 'Good Night, Moon.'

And, after he managed to snag a roll of paper towels.

This is why I am seldom very productive during the day. I have to weigh the benefit of getting something done versus the potential chaos that Min could cause.

Thanksgiving 2008

Thanksgiving at the Paul house was a bust if you ask Henry. Because I thought that if I put a frozen 10 pound turkey in the refrigerator on Monday it would unthaw by Thursday and was wrong, we didn't really have Thanksgiving. This is what Henry told my mom and dad on Thanksgiving Day. With a really sad, disappointed voice that can only come from a very dramatic 7 year old, I heard Henry say, 'Well, we didn't really have a Thanksgiving.' I could just hear my parents chuckling on the other end. We celebrated Thanksgiving after a fashion that is becoming more and more our style...nontraditional.

This is Min eating the turkey drumstick on Sunday (after Thanksgiving) when we actually had our turkey because it finally thawed out then. And, after Henry had so sadly told his Sunday School teacher how we hadn't really had a Thanksgiving.
Our nontraditional Thanksgiving was spent at Kingdom Buffet where they not only have a very cool pond and waterfall..a favorite of the boys who could hardly eat because they wanted to play in it so badly...but also really great food and a decent selection of sushi.

Here is Charles eating sushi...or kimbab as it is called at our house because that is what it is in Korea.

We've decided that it is pointless to really cook a big dinner at our house anyway. This is what happened on Sunday, when we actually had Thanksgiving dinner. It took about 2 hours to prepared the meal. This didn't include the actual cooking time of the turkey. But, it did include rinsing out a raw turkey and removing the pieces they shove inside. Peeling and boiling the potatoes (this includes cleaning the stovetop after they boil over) and mashing them. Making gravy that is never quite right and veggies. Set the table, cut the turkey, and set up everyones plates including cutting the meat and pouring milk. Sit down at the table to eat. 10 minutes later the majority of the family (3 boys) are done eating and ready to leave the table. Then, it takes at least 30 minutes to clean up, put away the leftovers. I made a pumpkin pie which none of the boys liked...even with cool whip. Next year....we're going out for Thanksgiving dinner..preferably to Kingdom Buffet for kimbab and shrimp.

October 2008

A quick rundown of October in pictures.

At the apple orchard.

Boys with crazy hair.

Saying good-bye to Gramma and Grampa

My mom and dad spent a week with us October so that I could work. The boys loved it!! Min talked about 'Fleet Farm,' for weeks afterwards. They made one trip out there, but I guess he really loved it. They also went to eat at McDonalds...without mom and dad. What a thrill for the boys!!





Min and Charles in Grampa's cap.

Travis and Lexi and her husband, Aaron, pulled together a surprise party for my 10th transplant anniversary. They were very successful! As you can see from the picture, I was completely surprised. It was an incredible evening spent with many special friends. My hematologist and one of my favorite transplant nurses were also there. Wow!! I still can't believe they did that!! They managed to plan for when my parents were here so they also got to come.

Andrew pushing the recycling bin down the sidewalk. Not really sure why he was doing that. But, do we ever know why they do things?

Henry participated in a tae kwon do tournament in Wisconsin. It was a lot of fun and included an overnight stay at a hotel...with a pool.