Sitting on Suitcases

After countless flights and numerous international flights, I would like to say that I've gotten pretty good at packing a carry on. But truth be told, I'm still trying to learn how to consolidate as much as possible. Here's what I slimmed my carry on down to for our trip to the States:

Socks- I am always cold. I've started making it a habit to bring both an extra sweater (great at doubling as a pillow) and a pair of socks.

Kindle- (with a waterproof cover...I spill a lot) I got  bunch of traveling books to cure my wanderlust for the next few months including Jack Kerouac- On the Road and Alain de Botton-The Art of Travel. Also a great travel read, Lost Girls. About three girls that leave their comfy jobs and lifestyles in New York city to spend a year traveling the globe. It will make you want to go buy a ticket for the first flight out.

Makeup and hair basics- I like to bring the basics such as a brush, concealor, powder and mascara so I can freshen up before I meet my ride at the airport. Most of the time I go straight from the airport to a place to eat so it's nice that I can at least look like I haven't been on a plane for the last few hours.

Motion sickness bands- I don't get motion sick that often but when I do, it's nice to have these on hand. They work with pressure points and I swear by them. Even when we were sailing a few years ago and had continuous six foot swells, they helped tremendously with the sea sickness.

Refillable water bottle- prices have gotten ridiculous inside the gates so I bring a bottle that can make it through security then I can fill up after I pass through.

Toothbrush- 14 hours on a plane+seeing family for the first time in a year and a half = a need for some minty fresh breath.

Korean books- we are trying to learn Korean so i am going to try to study while we're away.

Card games- skip-bo is my family's favorite game. We tend to play for hours whenever we're together, along with watching friends reruns. So I always bring a deck with me to play during long layovers. Thankfully hubs has learned to love this game as well.

Phone- this is mostly for the wi-fi capabilities and music than the actual phone service since I won't be able to use it in the States.

which leads me to what I wore on the plane...

More than anything else, I like to be comfortable. I also like to pick something that in the rare chance that they overbook coach, I could be upgraded (here's to hoping it happens two summers in a row!) So i picked a maxi dress that I just got from Modcloth that I can layer up with a cardigan but then when we get to hot and humid tulsa, I can be cool. Also, these sandals from H&M have become my favorite! Made of all elastic on top, they're easy to take on and off and surprisingly comfortable.

What do you always bring with you on a plane?

letters/14

dear insanity, i'm done! actually...i'm going to continue for the two weeks that i'm in the states because i have to do something to keep that american food from stealing my results back. dear sleep, please come tonight. i just know it's going to be tough with all the excitement of being on a plane for 14 hours tomorrow. thanks goodness for sleeping pills. dear cliffs, you were amazing as usual but can you please fill up with more water, i'm getting bored of the low dive. dear hubs, i can't believe we've lived in korea for a year and a half now. so excited for our crazy adventure that's only just begun. dear sun, wherever have you gone? good thing i live in  country where it's fashionable to be pasty and pale. dear lovely ticketing agent, it would be just swell to get a free upgrade so i can stretch my freakishly long legs during our 14 hour flight. wishful thinking. dear rainy season, you're officially finished! and of course, now that it's over, it doesn't seem as bad as i remembered last year. dear new students, i know you're just laughing because it's your first class and you want to be polite...keep it up. dear hubs, you make me smile when i see you play with our pseudo nephew. no..i don't want kids yet but that doesn't mean that i can't enjoy seeing how good you are with them.and we're off! in about 24 hours we will be on our way to the airport and heading home for a whole two weeks! i believe how fast this trip has come up and hopefully time will slow down a little while we're there! hope everyone has a great weekend and i'll try to keep you all updated throughout the trip!

letters/13

dear high school, you've been great but i'm glad that the hubs only has one more week so he doesn't have to have lunches like this anymore. p.s. he said that there were definitely still feathers on it. dear homeland, only eight more days! we're starting to get more and more excited with thoughts of family, friends and REAL mexican food! dear sister, we're now making bets on when you will pop (i have the monday the 23rd. fingers crossed!) is there any way you could convince your mini me to let me win? i hear that crossing your legs helps. dear hubs, thanks for sincerely saying cheesy romantic lines that sound like they could be in a chick flick. even though i laugh, i secretly love it. dear watermelon, our love affair is about to end. your price has dropped from 15 dollars a pop to now just 5. great news for our grocery fund but it means that you're about to disappear until next year. good thing i stocked up and have already eaten half of one this week. i have never had to pee so often in my life. i think my students are starting to think that i'm sick with how many times i go to the bathroom during class. dear grains, i am beyond excited to make bread this weekend with you. i have a friend that makes his own beer (side note: it's better than amazing. and that's coming from a gal that has tasted maybe one beer in the past that i've liked) and he's going to give me the left over grains that he used. dear insanity, i have just ONE MORE WEEK! i never thought that i would finish. it's been by far the most challenging workout that i have ever done but i have also never seen results like this before. any suggestions on what to try next? i'll do insanity again at some point but me and the two friends that i did it with got to the point that we were back talking shaun t and trying to figure out what trainers were hooking up with who. a clear sign i need a change of scenery. 

A Muddy Mess

This past weekend we headed out of town with some friends to mudfest, about a four hour drive up the west coast of Korea. can i just take a second here to comment on how fast this summer is going? I feel like i was just making our bucket list, and now we have some of the major events crossed off of it. Except my six pack, that may just stay on there. Back to the story. The city of Boryeong is a tiny little town that is known for the health benefits of their mineral rich mud, why else cover yourself from head to toe in it? Actually, the whole idea of mud fest was created in order to promote their mud cosmetics. Now, in the span of nine days, hundreds of thousands of people travel from around the country to pass through this town and roll around in the mud. We were no exception. While we were there we:

Saw my first boxing match. I've always wanted to see one and there just so happened to be a match for free between Japan and Korea. I've never seen a guy's head bounce like that.

Stood in line for over an hour to get painted up like warriors with colored mud. Definitely worth the wait. You can see the volunteers meticulously painting our bodies for us.

Got put in mud prison.

Scrubbed ourselves clean in the ocean, then realized we were all slightly stained from the colored mud.

Made some amazing fruit infused soju. Soju=not so good. Soju+fruit=a whole other story

Watched some amazing fireworks. I'm typically not a huge fan but these were like nothing I have seen before. Parts of it were literally falling into the water because it was so close.

Saw some outrageously gorgeous mountains in Jinan. We're looking at going back and trying to hike it someday, especially since there is water rafting close to the town and they  have rustic wooden cabins that you can stay in while hiking.

And as a parting souvenir, I got a tube of mud mask that left my skin feeling like a babies bum. Worth every penny.

Please excuse the blurry photos. We were using a waterproof case for our phones, which in my opinion worked great. For being wrapped in plastic, the photos still turned out decent and we didn't have to worry about any mud or water getting in the phone. Over all, I would have to say, this was by far the best Korean festival I have been to. It completely lived up to the hype in every way.

summer bucket list:

.sea kayaking
.fly a kite
.cliff jumping on the south end of the island
.discover a new beach on the island
.picnic
.get a tan (this is a hard one for me)
.mud fest
.beach camping, as much as we can!
.bbq on our roof. we're so excited that our new place has an accessible roof top and it's FINALLY good weather!
.get pictures hung in the apartment. it's time to make this place feel like HOME
.get a six pack. i think i have two, only four more to go!
.grow an herb garden
.sand castle festival. i know we already did this one but i like putting things on a to do list that i've already done. makes me feel like i've accomplished more with no effort.

I AM Powerful!

I love Glenda from the Wizard of Oz when she says, "Go away you have no power here." I've adopted that to mean... the goodness and the light coming from me is way too strong; you have no ability to affect me.

We all have dreams that we must release into the universe. There are times when people who don't wish us well try to block those dreams. But, as long as you know the power that's within you, no one can block any blessing or dream that God has for you. Just remember Glenda, the good witch or spirit, who told Dorothy that she's always had the power. It comes from within... it lives in your heart. As long as you know that you have nothing to fear, you'll live an abundant life!

The ability to manifest great things in your life comes from being grateful for what you have... and serving others in some way. It can be as small as helping someone see great potential within themselves that they may not have seen before. It could also mean using your life to inspire someone to step out on faith. We all have a purpose that's divinely connected to each other.

When you travel just remember the stranger that you meet may be someone who was sent to help you discover more about yourself. My intuition always guides me to the truth, so I've learned to trust it. On the occassion that I meet somenone who connects me to my purpose, I know that the universe is at work guiding me to something bigger than myself. Power comes when you can connect the dots.

taking the leap

the weather wasn't ideal on the day we decided to go cliff jumping but we weren't going to let that hold us back! we jumped in the car and headed to the south end of the island. funny thing about going just 30 minutes south, it starts to feel like a different island. maybe it's the fact that where we live, we are surrounded by ship yards, but the south part of geoje just seems so much clearer and cleaner. unfortunately, we arrived at the wrong time of the day and it was definitely low tide, so we had to cross the barrier and climb down the cliff a bit to find the appropriate height to jump from since the water was way to shallow to jump from the top. where we jumped is also a popular photo op spot so we had quite the audience! they were cheering on the hubs and the older ones were whispering about how crazy he was. koreans typically go to the beach in dresses and heels, rarely go into the water (and if they do, it's almost fully covered so they don't get a tan), let alone jump from cliffs. it was quite the spectacle to say the least. i let hubs jump in the water several times (boys should always go first, right?) before i jumped from the lower point. after fulfilling my prophecy of screaming the whole way down, the screams were followed by gasps. it had rained the whole week before we went and also that morning, which meant the water was so cold that it literally took your breath away. i called it good after one jump but the hubs kept going as the crowd of onlookers grew. we're planning to go again soon and hopefully at high tide so we can conquer the high point!people watching the "crazy" foreigners jump. got to love the matching couple outfits that are surprisingly popular here, right down to the shoes.


summer bucket list:

.sea kayaking
.fly a kite
.cliff jumping on the south end of the island
.discover a new beach on the island
.picnic
.get a tan (this is a hard one for me)
.mud fest
.beach camping, as much as we can!
.bbq on our roof. we're so excited that our new place has an accessible roof top and it's FINALLY good weather!
.get pictures hung in the apartment. it's time to make this place feel like HOME
.get a six pack. i think i have two, only four more to go!
.grow an herb garden
.sand castle festival.

letters/12

dear boss, thanks for not making me feel awkward at all at work when you came and had a five minute conversation about how sexy i look today and how you wish that you had my cleavage. not.awkward.at.all. dear jango, as of now you're the best alternative to pandora since pandora hates korea and won't let me listen. but when you mix in christmas music with my jack johnson, you make me seriously question your abilities. dear students, i'm glad that you like finding nemo and even more that i'm allowed to watch movies in class. dear rainy season, no amount of cute rain gear will ever prepare me for you. guess i'll be sporting the wet look this season. dear sister, thank you for reproducing so i can buy cute things like this...yes, those are trainer chopsticks for kids, or adults like my mom who can't use chopsticks.dear korea, your fruit is more tasty than i could ever imagine. case in point, the entire watermelon i ate this week ...alone. dear cliff jumping, you were amazing to say the least. even with your icy waters that left me gasping for air and my towel. i'll be posting a full story on it next week!happy weekend everyone! we're heading up to mud fest for the weekend so hopefully i'll be coming back next week with some really smooth skin!

letters/11

dear ukulele, you're proving to be more difficult than i thought but i am bound and determined to learn how to play at least one song!  dear hubs, i am so excited to hear you give your sermon at church this sunday. who better to talk about joy than one of the most genuinely joyful people i know. i am oh so proud. dear rainy season, you and your sticky gross humidity can just go away.  dear korea, i realize that you have no reason to ever celebrate america's independence, but still giving us the day off would have been nice. dear cliffs, the weather still says partly sunny, so as of now, we're coming for you tomorrow. dear thailand, we found incredibly cheap tickets for you. i realize that our vacation isn't for another eight months but we're already so excited to go! elephants, tigers and scuba oh my! dear students, thank you for being extra studious for your big school exam and not showing up to my classes. out of six middle school classes, i taught two this week. i can't help but love when the big school exam comes 4 times a year. oh and thank you boss for thinking it's an excellent idea to show movies in all my classes next week because "the kids will need a break."