Ministry of Home Affairs

That is what my next couple or few years will be about. I think it will keep me very busy and occupied. I was jokingly telling P that in our monthly updates, I should get a section that says, "From the office of Home Ministry" because I'm sure there will be plenty of interesting and not so interesting things to write about with three children under the age of three! I can tell that my mind is starting to shift more and more toward this reality of my soon to be ministry/life as I realize that there is actually a lot of think, pray, and consider in raising three kids--from physical, emotional, and spiritual development to education, social development, language acquisition, what kind of help I should seek, how we're going to rearrange our small (by American standards) living space, how we're going to keep sane, how we can nurture our marriage, etc. My life, our lives are going to be absolutely crazy and there is no denying it! (P and I celebrated our 11 years of marriage this past weekend and we half jokingly but also half seriously said it's our last anniversary celebration for the next few years! Next year, we will be ordering Domino's Pizza for delivery--most likely! ;)

I've been thinking about how I am going to manage being at home with three little kids. I really want to be able to take Elijah on outings (i.e. pool in the summer) but I'm always going to need an extra hand to either babysit or go with me. We've been talking about whether we want to hire live in help, as some friends here are telling us to. We're also talking about how we're going to put all five of us in our bedroom since it's the only one with an AC.....we're talking about interesting bed configurations. (We decided that we're not interested in moving to a bigger place until the kids are a little older.) We may have to buy another AC for the "playroom" but that requires digging a hole through the wall, and if we're only going to be in our place for a couple of more years, do we want to do that? Lots to think about.

I can tell that my "nesting" instinct is starting to kick in, and the first thing I need to do is to to go through all of Elijah's old clothes and wash all the ones with mildew and get them crisp and dry before I repack. I'm eagerly waiting for my in-laws to arrive in a couple of weeks so that they can watch Elijah and I can do all that stuff and go check out some preschools (they call it playgroups) for Elijah when he returns. I think it might be a necessity to send him to preschool. However, I also want to make sure that it will be the right environment for him. At this point, I think I prefer that he be in a good structured learning setting with other kids than to be taken care of by someone in the house. I have noticed that people here don't really know how to play with kids and their tendency is to hover over them which Elijah does not like. My hope is that I can make some of these decisions before we leave in a little over a month, but it may not be possible....

Other than these things, how do I feel about having twins? Honestly, it still sometimes feel surreal to me, but each time I see the ultrasound and see the twins moving around, I find myself excited. They're really active, just like Elijah was when he was in the womb. I wonder what they will be like. We love being parents to Elijah and we feel grateful that we can be parents to two more. But, it does take a bit of getting used to the idea of becoming a family of five in matter of few months! We're eager to find out whether they're of the same sex or not, but we will have to wait until we get back to the States because it is illegal to find out here.

My Niece, Mila is Here!

Mila Soon Ae Lech was born on March 11, 2008 at 1:26 a.m. weighing 8lbs and 9 oz. and 21 and 1/4 inches long!! She's not going to get left behind by her brothers, that's for sure! She shares birthday with her dad! What a birthday gift for my brother-in-law. We have four adorable nephews between the Graf and the Lee family, but it definitely feels different to know that we have a niece. I'm SO thrilled and excited! We're so excited that you are FINALLY here, Mila! I can't wait to hold you in April!

I'm so proud of my sister. She is a BIG time trooper. This was her third delivery with no epidural. It was a long labor and not an easy one either. She's one determined mama with high tolerance for pain. I'm so proud of you!

Also, our friends, Calvin and Judy gave birth to a baby girl, Trinity Alicia Liang on the same day at 6:11pm. She weighed 9lbs and 12oz. Congratulations, Cal and Judy!! We're looking forward to seeing you guys as a family and meeting you Trinity!

I'm completely biased...

and I can't help it. I think they are the best!! I just love my nephews and I can't get enough of them. I tried to post their photos on the sidebar of the blog, but for whatever reason, the blogger site is not cooperating. So, I'm posting them here. If you had nephews like mine, you would be posting their photos too! ;) I just adore them! Lots of kissies and huggies from yee-mo, Jeshua & Seth!

A Cake and a Cobbler

We celebrated Paul’s birthday today with Daya (FECA India director) and his family. In India, you eat the cake before dinner, we learned. We’ll be celebrating his birthday again (just the two of us) on Saturday with an apple cobbler. I’ll let you know how it turns out. My birthday gift to him by request: One apple cobbler per month for one year! I’m ready for the challenge. ;)

Update: The apple cobbler turned out great! We didn't have any tart apples (in two months we will!), so it lacked the tang, but it was still pretty good. Paul has been munching on it all day long! :)

My Favorite Ring Tone!

This was the best birthday gift ever--most original for sure (and much better than a frying pan I got for my 30th... there is actually a funny story with this.)!! Two thumbs up to Paul. He completely surprised me. I got a new ring tone reminding me that my phone is ringing! Listen to it!!

Yee Mo..Again!

I'm going to be a yee-mo (aunt in Korean) again! My sister is expecting #3!!! It's actually old news, but I wanted to give some time before I published my excitement so that she had her chance to announce hers! I am SO thrilled! They would like a girl this time around, but if the baby is a boy, that's great too. When Eunjoo shared with Jesh and Seth that they're going to have a baby brother or sister, Jesh asked if she had "4 eggs or 1 egg." I guess he was tracking with our IVF process.... such a smart little one. Spring 2008 is going to be a fun-busy time for the Lee family! My brother, Daniel is getting married in April, and my sister is having a baby sometime probably in March! I'm so looking forward to being reunited with my family again!

My favorite sister Eunjoo, Aaron, my level-headed brother-in-law, and two lovely nephews (and #3 baby invisible to the eyes!)

My brother, Daniel and my future sister-in-law, Grace. (By the way, my other sister-in-law is also Grace! I don't know what it is with women named Grace and my brothers! ) :)Doesn't he look like Asian Matt Damon?

Thailand Family Vacation

On our way to our organization’s annual conference we stopped in Thailand to meet with my family. Dad and mom were coming out to Thailand for their organization’s annual conference, so we figured it would be a good time to meet. My brother Jin, sister-in-law, Grace, and my sister Eun (along with my nephew Jeshua) flew out from the U.S. to spend a week with us. How good and fun it was to be together. I had missed them so much. Mom and dad brought for me a huge box of Korean food items to take back to India…Yummy!! Jeshua brought lots of joy and laughter. He is such a delightful and flexible kid. Too bad I couldn’t take him home with me. We definitely will do this again! Hopefully, the whole clan will be there.

First Visitors to India

My in-laws, Phil and Ann came to visit us in India in January. It was great to see them and to have them share in experiencing India with all of its sounds, smells, and complexities!

We also got to visit Delhi (New and Old)! How different Delhi is from where we are. It gave us another perspective into India.

Seeing the Taj Mahal in person was quite breath-taking! Photos don't do justice, but I guess a photo will have to suffice here.

Father-in-law and daughter-in-law having fun! Hopefully, others will follow in their steps and come out to India for a visit. (hint, hint ;)

10/11/06 Birthday Apple Samosa

Today, my dear husband turned ?! Nine years ago, when we met, he was only 31 years old. How quickly time flies….
Happy Birthday, Paul!

Paul loves apple pies, but we couldn’t make apple pie this year. As one would say in Nepali, “Oven chhaina, ke garne?” (We have no oven; what can one do?) So, our didi and I made apple samosas (like apple turnovers). With lots of cinnamon, sugar, and great local apples, apple samosa was a hit with my husband!