The Han Dynasty

On Christmas Day, we went to Disneyland which is supposedly the happiest place on earth. I might argue that it is the craziest place to be on Christmas Day bar none. Nevertheless, my whole family flew in from Chicago to spend the holidays at our home and we wanted to show them as much of L.A. as possible. It was a week full of Disney, Seaworld, visiting other family, the beach, crab @ Redondo Beach pier, and lots of good Korean food. Despite half the world being at Disneyland, we had a blast. More importantly, Jude & his cousins had a very memorable holiday. They loved driving their own cars, seeing It's a Small World, meeting Buzz Lightyear and the Disney princesses, watching the amazing parade, and capping the night off with spectacular fireworks. So really, being there with my boys, my parents, my sisters, and their families made it the happiest place for me.

 

Don't the boys look great in their Chicago Bears jerseys? They were a gift from my younger sister & brother-in-law: 

 

#54 Brian "Ooohlacher"

 

Before my family flew in, we celebrated Christmas with Kwang's family.

 

"Wait just a minute, did I agree to give this Tot Rod to Justin hyung?"

We also got to meet Micah, the son of our friends Ma & Jen Somsouk:

Thanks to my mom, Jude ah-juh-shee and Eli ah-juh-shee would like to formally wish you a happy new year. Doesn't Jude ah-juh-shee look absolutely thrilled to be wearing shiny pink pants? What a good sport...

 

 

 

Housing so many people meant that my little family of four had to share one bedroom. We moved Eli's crib into Jude's room and had ourselves a slumber party. It was great to be there for those special moments like when Eli sneezed so hard in his sleep that he let out a noisy little fart at the same time. I suppose only at this age is something like that so cute.

 

 

I miss my family already.

 

To the Left, to the Left...

The kids caught a nasty bug this past week so things were pretty uneventful at the Kim family home. Just your normal activities like bathtime, which is always a hoot:

How about we never tell Eli of this pic when he grows up, yes?  Even when he's not feeling well, he is still a chunky monkey of adorable goodness. Feeling less than 100%, however, may have been the reason his older brother, Jude, wasn't a star performer at his school's Holiday Program. Jude's class sang "Jingle Bells" while each child held a bell to jingle during the song. Being the terrible parent that I am, I didn't think anything of this production... the production that would mark Jude's very first and very memorable performance of his academic career. It was scheduled for a weekday morning when Kwang and I would both be at work. But Kwang, being the more wonderful parent, was so sad about missing it that I decided at the last minute to try and make it. Good thing I did, because I was able to get excellent, thrilling footage of Jude up on his school stage... NOT singing a note of the song... and NOT jingling a single bell. That's right, he was too busy checking out all the faces looking back at him to be doing any sort of singing or jingling. The parents behind me looking at my camcorder screen must've been thinking, "Why does she keep filming the kid that's not doing anything?"

My son is already a slacker in school.

 

Happy Feet

I can't say enough (or maybe to you I can) how very happy I am to be Jude's mom. Not so much for times like when he ran full speed into a clear glass wall at the Gap store in the local mall... although I have to say that incident brought quite a giggle to my belly (after I made sure he wasn't hurt, of course). But apart from typical toddler behavior, he possesses a maturity I often say surprises me. This past weekend, we attended another wedding and Jude was the ringbearer. However, we didn't know he was going to be the ringbearer until after the rehearsal dinner. We got a call that night asking if he would do it last minute, because the first two boys that were asked wouldn't.

You want me to do what?

Fortunately, without even going to the rehearsal he made it down the aisle. Unfortunately, he didn't walk in the most charming fashion... he instead had a funny waddle. So in his too-big-for-him tux he resembled a penguin. We're not quite sure if it was because of the large tuxedo or what, but because we knew it wasn't a comfortable situation for him, we're just thankful he delivered. He's clutch, as his father would say.

Now Eli, Eli makes me laugh as well. But not so much for reasons that would make a mom "proud". Whenever we're in public, he gets a lot of attention from strangers. As all parents have experienced, strangers will make you feel like your child is the cutest baby on the planet (even if he isn't). The only problem is, whenever people stop and adore him, Eli stares at them for about two seconds and then suddenly begins wailing as if to say, "Why?! Why are you looking at me?!" No joke. EVERY SINGLE TIME. He brings new meaning to the term "stranger anxiety." The person feels so bad for making a baby cry that I have to explain to them that he is like this with everyone, not just this particular kind stranger. It's really quite hilarious. Very opposite of Jude, who even to this day will go with the first stranger that asks. Eli is my lovable, snuggable, sensitive one. I'm thankful to the Lord for giving me such wonderfully different children, because it makes this go-around even more interesting and enjoyable. Eli received a new hat this weekend that, while totally age-appropriate, is too small for our growing boy. When I put it on him, he reminds me of the animated character Mashi Maro:

   

 

"Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday to New Year!"

That is Jude's holiday greeting to you all. He's having a little difficulty with "Happy New Year". Funny how a two year old can have a deeper voice than his mom:

 

I was telling Kwang the other day that I think I've become an anomaly. A couple of people I know who just had their first child have been telling me lately that although they originally wanted three or four kids, they are now considering having less. Lunatic Lisa, on the other hand, has a growing desire to repopulate the earth. If I were younger, I think I'd want at least two more kids. Must be the sleep deprivation induced delirium talking. But Jude & Eli are just so much fun right now. Very tiring, but very fun! Those close to me are probably thinking this is SO NOT Lisa... and they would be right! When people think of women who have that wonderful maternal instinct, they think of my older sister and not me. I take no offense, that's just the truth. She's the type that enjoys creating nice crafty, educational projects for her kids to work on at home. Me? Well, our family passes the time by playing "Pest Control: Find And Kill Ants That Have Raided The House." Seriously, if this xanga site has taught you anything, it is that they will let anyone be a parent.

But really, if you heard Jude proudly say "Geh-mee! Geh-mee! I killed it!" every time he found an ant, you'd get a kick out of it, too. Unfortunately, our hope of Jude learning Korean as he spends time with my mother-in-law has sort of backfired on us. Instead of having a bilingual son, we now live with a two year old FOB who doesn't really know Korean but pronounces English words with a Korean accent. Milk is now "meel-keu", orange is "orange-ee", and the letter "V" is sadly no longer "veee" but "boo-eee".

Cousins Justin (8½ mos) and Eli (7mos):

Our friend Elsie & her daughter Kate were in town from Chicago and stopped by for a visit. Jude immediately took to Kate and enjoyed sharing his toys:

Eli is also making leaps and bounds in the developmental process. The following clip was uploaded for my parents back in Chicago who have become my #1 xanga fans because they miss their two grandsons so much. My mom told me that my dad watched last week's 8 second video clip for an entire hour. Eli loves doing "jahk-jahk-goong"-- this is the phrase koreans say repeatedly in a giddy voice to teach their baby to clap on command. He's even learned to clap when he hears music thanks to the many Jude And Lisa Band concerts he's attended. A friend of mine likens Eli to a squirrel storing nuts in his cheeks for the winter. But another friend recently told me Eli is finally thinning out. I'll leave it to you to decide. Whatever the case may be, he is still my constant bundle of adorableness.