Mikey's hair do

Jessica asked the kids who wanted their hair done before going to the Korean Folk Village saturday. Muriel wanted her hair braided so Jessica braided a heart design. Mikey then popped up and said he wanted his done too. So, Jessica started putting "tails" in his hair. We all thought he'd rip them out 5 minutes later, but to our surprise he left them in ALL DAY LONG! Every where we went people noticed him. We heard "look at that little boy's hair, isn't that cute" all day long. One guy even took a picture with Mikey because of his hair! BUT then again, some guy took pictures of my back side while I was waiting for the kids!

Haunted House

Muriel begged and pleaded and whined to go to the Haunted House. Jessica gave in and let Muriel buy the ticket. She gave the man her ticket, took a few steps toward the door then ran out like a flash of lightening! We have yet to let her forget she was too scared to even make it to the door!

Pottery

The pottery collection at the Korean Folk Village was really cute. Here's a few of them. Look closely at them because the details are amazing!

Tobacco and Corn

Here is a braid of tobacco leaves and corn hanging out to dry. It's hanging over the window of the house so I imagine the house had a lovely aroma!

See Saw

Lillian and Muriel decided to try their luck on the see saw. They didn't do very well since both girls kept jumping at the same time!

Grass Sandals

For those of you who are going green, here's a shoe for you. It's made from 100% home grown GRASS. Yes, folks grass. Don't know how comfy they are but they're cheap!

Making tie dye hanky

Lillian is seen here making her very own hanky all pretty using the natural ingredients God gave us. It only cost 1,000 won to do one hanky.

Muriel's hanky

Here is Muriel and her finished product. She got to help die her very own hanky using natural dyes.

What happens to bad people

When people were bad way back whenever, they were tied down to this contraption and beat with a big stick. Now, Muriel volunteered to be the "bad" person and Mikey and Lillian offered to beat her.

Corn

Here ya go, corn and lots of it. Now, I don't know about ya'll but this would really be a pain to have to do over and over again. Not to mention, it's probably HEAVY!

Mikey on foot bridge

Since Muriel went across the foot bridge, Mikey decided he could too. Terry went across with Mikey and let him play on the other side a few minutes before coming back. The bridge is literally big enough for your feet. It is made from trees and mud only.

Foot Bridge

Muriel wanted to cross the foot bridge so Jessica went across with her. On the way back, Muriel went by herself while Jessica stood on the other side and watched. She was so excited to do this all by herself.

Goats

Now, here's an animal my kids know. Muriel was more than willing to pick grass to feed the goats and pet them. She liked these animals.

Horses

I really thought these were colts but apparently they are full grown horses! Mikey wanted to go pet one but I kept telling him NO.

Pumpkins

The pumpkin vine grows up the pole and on top of the house in the Korean Folk Village. Gardens are every where and so are the pumpkin vines. Pretty but who is the somebody that picks the pumpkins when ripe?

For all the stupid people

That's right, I said stupid people. The waste basket HAS to be marked so "everybody" knows WHERE to put their trash while in the Korean Folk Village.

Maple Tree

The seeds on the maple trees are about to fall. The maple trees in Oklahoma released their seeds early in spring so I was pleased to find these. My kids love to pick up the seeds and play helicopter with them by tossing them into the air.

I can do it

Lillian had so much fun using the grinding wheel that she wanted to pound some rice into flour too. Great way to wear out a kid!

Muriel makes rice flour

Go, Muriel! Pound away and work out those frustrations! I think she liked this one.

Mikey pounding rice

Here's the old time version of the mortar and pestal. This was used to pound rice into flour. Thank the good Lord for grinding mills. Mikey had fun trying it out but I think he would get bored if he had to do this all the time.

Kimchi Pots

Here's the best place to keep your kimchi! You put it in a huge pot and bury it. When ever you need kimchi, you go outside to your little kimchi hut and put your arm in up to your armpit to get the good stuff on the bottom. Don't forget to fold back the top layer that's molded. That's the layer that keeps the rest of it "good" and flavorful.

Here's Piggy Piggy

Check out the fly on the piggy! I couldn't believe I took a picture of these cute little wooden pigs with a fly on one of them. I think the pigs were around 15,000 won each. They are cute but not cute enough to pay over $10.00 for one.

The Grinding Wheel

Who needs an ox when you can get kids to do it??? Lillian, Muriel and Mikey decided to grind some grain while at the Koren Folk Village. They could make a complete rotation if they all worked together.

Wooden Spoons

Here is an very nice assortment of wooden spoons. We tried them all out too...for spanking that is. The kids took turns seeing if a spoon was the right size for whoppin' each other with. It was funny to watch and the people around us just watched with a look of confusion on their faces. Spoons are for mixing and eating right not spanking, right?

Anybody HOME?

Mikey takes a cautious peek into a hen house at the Korean Folk Village. The birds are allowed to be free range during the day but at night are kept in a little house like this one.

Dried Produce

Here are some peppers, garlic and I'm pretty sure there are some herbs too. The peppers are dried for a very long time, usually nearly a full year before being crushed and used to make a sauce out of them. You can see all sorts of stuff being dried on people's front porches. And if you're lucky, you'll see squid on the clothes line!

It's not what ya think

Of all the crops I came across, I thought this one deserved a closer look. Now for those of you who have seen this plant, you know what it is. For the rest, well, it's hemp. You can't smoke it and get high. You can however, make some really great things out of it like rope, clothes, towels, coffee filters and anything else that is made from cloth. This fabric holds up really well, is very strong and lasts nearly forever.

The Construction Site

Here's the house next door that we all woke up to cement blocks being sawed through. The crew gutted the house from the back to the front and even knocked out the balcony. Here you can see the balcony has been bricked in. All of us ended up sick during the demolition. Not sure if it was all that dust or just a cold either way it was bad. We are hoping they will be done soon. The worst of it is over. At least I don't have to hear that jack hammer before 7 a.m.

Mush Muriel Mush!

Mikey kept saying "I think I can" but Muriel had to push him up the hill. Mikey loved the ride down and then turned around to go right back up the hill again. All I could think of was "MUSH Muriel MUSH!"

Song do Fountain friends

Lillian made some friends while playing in the fountain. The new friends even let her and Mikey ride their bikes. This was a good afternoon for the kids.

The sand box

We found a sand box at the Song do park with diggers! They loved it.

It's a Pony 2

Now, I've never seen a Pony but here's a Pony 2. Apparently, these vehicles aren't the greatest. And I have to say, yellow isn't a fine color for this thing either.

It sucks to be left out

Last night Lillian just wouldn't do her phonics assignment. So, this morning I told Mikey and Muriel to get ready to go for a walk while Lillian did her homework without any distractions. Once out of the house, I informed my children we weren't going for just a walk. WE were going to Incheon Grand Park to have a realy good time! Lillian was told later that IF she had gotten her work done then she could have gone as well. She was upset but did her work and spent the day with Jessica and Terry.

Mikey, Muriel and I met Eddie, the girls' korean teacher, and went to the park. The kids got to go through an interactive building where the effects of pollution and the advantages of recycling are shown. There was also this really cool shadow interactive video. Muriel stood in front of the screen and waved her hands and the flowers bloomed, the tree grew leaves and butterflies flew all over. There were also games- one had you touch and drag trash to the garbage can. Mikey would say 'ta-dah' and then get another piece. The kids ran around a bit and once calmed down we told them we would rent a "bike." We rode what we call a car-cycle. It looks like a golf cart sort of car but with wheels. The kids had so much fun driving it while I pedaled away. Pedaling wasn't easy either. I pedaled so much my legs hurt and I swore my rear end was numb! We did stop for a break and let the kids play on the playground while we adults rested. Then it was time to return the car-cycle. After that it was lunch time, so Mikey and Muriel got some good old fashioned ramen noodles. Now I have to point out that you don't get spoons or forks-just chopsticks. Muriel can eat well with them but Mikey has yet to master them. I helped put noodles on Eddie's lid from his container of watermelon so Mikey could eat the noodles. He was happy and stuffed himself.

Muriel was good to Mikey and had a lot of fun with him. They ran around in a wooded area looking for flowers and just having fun. They ran up and down the trails stopping to look at all the different sites. Mikey had fun playing with some of the toddlers passing by with their moms. Mikey even brought his Thomas the train bubble set! He blew lots of bubbles and then chased them too. I on the other hand, sat in the shade talking to Eddie. He has been very insistant that I stay in the shade because I have a serious sunburn as it is. Everyone here makes sure I put on sunscreen faithfully. I nearly blistered last week while at Sondo Park where there's not enough leaves on the trees to protect me- I stayed in the shade but it didn't help. I burned the tops of my arms and legs. My skin was hot for 3 days and that was after using ice packs to help draw the heat out. I suppose it is total shock and awe here for people when they see me burned. First, Koreans don't burn like I do so they are shocked to see me. THEN it's the complete awe of the burn as they take a second and third look at me. The students at the school laid their hands gently on my legs and felt the heat of the burn.

After a full day of fun, we headed back to the school. Lillian was glad to see us and had to put in her two cents about wanting to go to the park too. I told her she should have done her homework when it was time and she would have gone with us.

Playing in the rain

What a wonderful day to play in rain puddles! We didn't let the rain stop our fun while visiting the Suwon Fortress.

Suwon steps by wall

If it wasn't raining so much, I may have been more inclined to go down them. The kids could have really benefited from all that climbing. The wall goes all away around the city so we could have really gotten a good walk in. Instead, the kids played in the rain.

Suwon Sign

Which way, left or right. Left goes down the steps and along the city wall of Suwon. Right just goes on and on. It was raining and I never figured out where it lead to.

Suwon City Wall

You can see the treeline, then the buildings and finally there's the city wall. Looks like a line or maybe a road. Interesting that it's still there after all these years. The city wall have been repaired and sometimes even torn down and rebuilt.

View from Suwon

Within the city walls of Suwon, you can see trees, flowers, walking trails etc. Then beyond the treeline there's the vast expanse of the city.

Suwon

Here's an outpost at Suwon. You can go up to it but you have to take your shoes off to step up onto the floor.

Ring that Bell

Suwon has this huge bell that you can pay to ring. So, we did.

Listening to the hum of the bell

The kids got to ring this HUGE bell after entering the city gate at Suwon. Then we got them to listen to it hum. They all put their hands on it first then leaned forward and listened to the hum.

Sushi

We visited a very nice restaurant and here's one of the many dishes we were served. On the left is a shell with some green stuff on it. NEVER decide to eat this by itself. You'll be breathing fire! It's wasabi. Great in tiny amounts only. The carrot is shaped like a butterfly and the cuts of fish are sitting on piles of fake noodles. I give this dish an A for appearance.

Nine "hole" dish

You take the little pancake in the middle and put just a bit of each of the 8 items in the middle. Roll it up and dip it into some sauce then eat it. Don't know the name but it sure was good.

Chickens outside Korean Restaurant

Of all the things I've seen, this has to be one of the more interesting ones. Outside the restaurant, there was this pen. There's chickens, doves, parakeets, pheasant looking birds etc. We even got to see the hen call her chicks to her and she lifted her wings to cover them for bed. You could only see their little legs sticking out. We had a nice dinner here. Kids really liked it too.

Birthday Party Gifts

Muriel is admiring her new fan and Mikey is showing off his Thomas trains. They got a few gifts and had some much needed fun.

Tae Kwan Doe Kids

These are the TKD kids that came to the birthday party. We were a bit surprised to see them come. It was nice to have them share the fun.

Blowing out the candles

You can see Lillian leaning over to help blow out the candles. I even brought the sparkle candles from home. Lillian will get her party in August so she is looking forward to it.

Here's the cakes

I whipped up a couple small chocolate cakes, gluten free of course, for Mikey and Muriel's birthday party. You can see the round one is lopsided because the oven is "off" and this is the best I could do. Tasted good regardless of looks.

Bingo at the Birthday Party

After cake and ice cream cake with all the cookies and chips and salsa, the kids played bingo. For some reason, English bingo is popular with these kids.

Birthday Party for Mikey and Muriel

Check out the chop sticks! Even tortilla chips are eaten with chop sticks. Lillian is cheesin' and enjoy herself. 16 kids showed up to enjoy the fun.

Song do Park

Here is the fountain in Song do Park near where we live. Big park, lots of room to run around or even ride a bike. There's even a fish pond there.