Nobody got Fleas or Rabies

A couple of weeks ago I chaperoned a field trip for Cora's class to an animal exhibit at Sindong subway station - seems like a strange place to have an animal exhibit, but there it is. We loved it so much, I knew we had to go back with all the kids, and luckily, our Seoul Searchers group decided to go last Friday, when the kids had the day off of school.

This exhibit isn't like anything you'd see in the States - Korea doesn't have very strict regulations when it comes to stuff like this. I guess that can be both bad and good, but it was all good for us - hence my title, because nobody came away with any diseases or anything;)

This was a very hands-on exhibit, meaning you could pretty much hold anything there, minus a few things like the alligators and piranas. There was a large reptile section with lizards...

turtles of all sizes....
and Snakes galore! They had several huge glass cases with all the LARGE snakes, and if you'll notice in the picture below, the keys were in all the locks - Only in Korea!:)Then there was an area with the more furry-type animals. There were rabbits....
guinea pigs, ferrets, hedgehogs, hamsters, mice....

a skunk, minus his stinker (I don't think JT believed me that's stinker was gone, because he kept covering his nose with his shirt when he was around it)....a few dogs (Alex was getting this little black one to chase him all over the place....and there were some really cute little puppies that Cora fell in love with....and a couple of cats....and more - enough to entertain for hours.

There were also two things there that I have always been too afraid to hold, but this time I decided to conquer my fears and just go for it. The first one - these HUGE ugly grub things. Ewwwww.....except they weren't as bad as I imagined. But I wouldn't eat one;)And a tarantula - also not as bad as I imagined. I held it one time, and then a second time when the guy who was working there tried to put it back into it's case, and it scampered up his arm super quick and onto his back where he couldn't reach it, so I obligingly pulled it off his back for him. Yeah, I'm a super hero;)Last of all, we got to see one of the big snakes eat a rat. We all circled around the case, breathless with anticipation....they put the rat in the case - he didn't have far to run....and *BAM* in a split second the snake grabbed the rat....and started to coil itself around it. Everyone kind of jumped when the snake attacked - it was kind of funny to see.As quick as the initial attack was, the death and eating thereof was painfully slowwwwwww. Poor little rat. Oh well, circle of life and all that.

I'm pretty sure my kids would go back in a heartbeat.

Let Me Introduce You

Somehow, along the way, I've developed a liking for K-pop (Korean popular music). Why? I don't know. Well, there's a few reasons. One of the reasons is because I can't understand the words. That might sound weird, but I like that I can just focus on the music without getting distracted by stupid lyrics. It is also fabulous for dancing, which I love, and there is great dancing in the videos. The videos are crazy, weird, colorful, and fun, and there's not an overabundance of boobs (yes, that's what I said). K-pop might not be your cup of tea, and that's fine, but you should give it a try, just in case. Let me introduce you to a few songs. After you've listened to them all, maybe you should listen to them again, because the first time you might be like, "What the?", and the second time you'll be hooked....I dare you not to dance;)

Roly Poly by T-ara. This one is really popular right now, and plays everywhere. A great one to dance to.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jtz0yVnDd1U

Right Now by PSY. I just heard this song for the first time today. It's an older one, but I was kind of diggin' it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6f-8I1pb8k

A-cha by Super Junior. I really like this band, and have several of their songs. I don't know if this is their best one, but it's the first one I chose.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvTaLTTanJc

Love&Hate by Clazzi. This one has a little bit different feel than the other ones. Doesn't look or sound like Korean at all. Even Joe actually likes it;)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63BUgshzXIU

Tick Tack by U-Kiss. This is a Korean band, but for some reason they've only been putting out Japanese songs lately. This is my favorite one. But because it's in Japanese, and not Korean, it's not available on iTunes like all the other songs - Ggrrrrrrrrrrr.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOeZsTS4-n8

Well, what do you think? If you like these, I can give you some suggestions for more. In fact, if enough of you like these, maybe I'll just do another post on it later:) Do I like ALL K-pop? Don't be ridiculous. I probably don't like MOST of it, but that can be said of most American pop music as well. And there's some REALLY goofy stuff. Just for the fun of it, I'll add one more video on here that might scare your pants off. I've never been able to watch the whole thing myself - it's just too painful (in a cutesy Korean kind of way). Have fun;)

Balloons by TVXQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdTVb64pfMs&feature=player_embedded

Eleven

Eleven years ago I had this beautiful baby.

Ten years ago, newly walking.Nine years ago, big sister.Eight years ago, sittin' pretty.Seven years ago, a new sister.Six years ago, a budding artist.Five years ago, last addition.Four years ago, loves soccer.Three years ago, new haircut.Two years ago, loving Korea.One year ago, strawberry princess.And now today, all of the sudden she's eleven. Eleven girls at a tropical-themed birthday party.Love you Cora!

Photos: Day 26-29

Last installment. It's been fun folks.

Day 26 - Night

Day 27 - Something You Ate

Yummy homemade hummus and naan bread - all gone.

Day 28 - Money

....if you were wondering what Korean money looks like.

Day 29 - Something You're Listening to

You can listen here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cgovv8jWETM&feature=relmfu.

Feel free to do this photo challenge yourself. It doesn't have to be in February, ya know.

Photos: Day 21-25

This was definitely the most challenging set of photos for me this month - really tough.

Day 21 - A Fav Photo of You

This was hard because at first I was trying to decide what photo I looked the best in. But then I just decided to choose the photo that made me laugh really hard and brought back good memories. We were, and still are, the biggest geeks. Sorry girls, but don't be mad that I posted this picture. It's not like I'm naming names here;)

Day 22 - Where You Work
I'm a stay-at-home-mum, and I feel blessed that I am able to be one. My home is the where - and this is the where, looking its best. I wish it always looked this way, and I'm not brave enought to post a picture of what it looks like right now.

Day 23 - Your ShoesIf you know me, you know that flipflops are my shoe of choice. But I also have some boots for winter, running shoes for working out, and some nicer church shoes that are falling apart, and don't go with everything anyway. I did have a pair of sketchers that I adored, but they were ruined in the mud of last year's Strawberry Festival. I got over it. I actually do have another pair of sandals that I've worn twice in the past 3 years, and another pair of church shoes, but I couldn't find them. I need some new church shoes.....and a pair of Converse. I hate shopping for shoes.

Day 24 - Inside Your Bathroom CabinetI can't imagine why anyone would want to see a picture of this. Yes, there are 3 things of women's deoderant in there. I don't know why either. My favorite perfume is CK one. The contact solution makes me sad, since my contacts broke and I've been wearing nothing but my glasses for almost a year now. I love Fructis curl sculpting cream-gel. Up top is all about Joe.....'cause I'm shorter.

Day 25 - GreenKorean pottery - Leftover flowers from Valentine's day - My church bag that I got from Disneyland - One pair of JT's glasses.

Wow, only one more set of pictures, and the month is over.

Photos: Day 16-20

Day 16 - Something New

I love to dig through the big stacks of fabric remnants - here are some of my newest additions.

Day 17 - Time
Joe bought me this cuckoo clock the first time we lived in Korea. It's quiet, and most hours I don't even hear it. But when I do it makes me smile.

Day 18 - Drink

I like it when I can get my own refills.

Day 19 - Something You Hate To Do

Sure, I could of put a picture of the dishes or laundry, but that seemed too obvious. So here's my bed - I hate to get in it at night, and I hate to get out of it in the morning. It's a complicated relationship.

Day 20 - Handwriting

This is a postcard from my Grandma Petersen. She used to send them to me whenever she traveled, whether that was to England, or China, or Samoa, or wherever. She was a real globe trotter back in the day. I sure miss that lady:)

Photos: Day 11-15

Oops, I'm late. Oh well, you'll get over it.

Day 11 - Makes You Happy

Nothing in the whole world makes me happier than this man.....nothing.

Day 12 - Inside Your Closet.

This is where I usually keep JT. Okay, not really. I have about 1/2 the closet space I had in our last apartment:( Maybe that's why I always have a pile of clean clothes on the floor of my bedroom, because they don't fit........No, it's just because I'm lazy.

Day 13 - Blue

Today is very cold, and I'm looking at our pool, and wishing that it was warm enough so that they would repaint it with the cheap blue paint they use every year, and fill it up. A clear blue sky to go with it would be nice too.

Day 14 - Heart

Ever since Cora was born we've called her Corazoncita (Little Heart). The only problem with that, is that she has the biggest heart I know:)

Day 15 - Phone

This is my phone photo because it is the first photo I took with Joe's new phone. We went to the flower market together for Valentine's Day, at my request.

The flower market is more overwhelming to me than the fabric market, even though the fabric market is a whole building, as opposed to a whole floor of a building. Even before you get to the floor, you smell it in the elevator. It is like heaven. HEAVEN! There is SO much to choose from, row after row after row after row, and I just never know where to start. I usually always get daisies though;)