Introducing: Baby Girl

She is the cutest thing I have ever seen, and I've seen baby elephants play-fighting, so I am no novice when it comes to judging cuteness.

I've kept her alive and mostly healthy for nearly seven weeks, and am tremendously proud of myself.

Also, THAT LITTLE MOUTH!!

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

After making a tremendous amount of progress on the nursery (I made a DIAGRAM ONLINE! With REAL MEASUREMENTS! - See!!)...

...Our household goods arrived: All of them. Including our gigantic American washer and dryer that were supposed to be left in storage (guessing they will now become hampers/hiders of contraband items when company comes over):

Glorious Stuff!

After about two solid hours of unwrapping cups - I swear we have six million of them - I came across my first broken dish:

Hallelujah! The angels rejoice that I have one less cup to fit into my teeny tiny scullery kitchen. 

(not kidding, the ad for our house actually called it a "scullery" - it makes me feel like Daisy from Downton Abbey every time I walk in)

Now baby girl's room looks like the world's smallest end-table store:

 Seriously! Why so many tables? I have no idea why we own all of these - and this ISN'T EVEN ALL OF THEM!! There are at least two lurking in corners downstairs.

***********************

On a side note, I think baby girl is playing Prison Break in my stomach right now. I swear she is trying to kick her way out through my ribcage.

#pleasestayputtilldaddygetsyourcribassembled
#onsecondthought #mommywantssushi #youcouldsleepinacardboardboxforatleastafewdays

News Flash: I Am Not Good At Changing Up My Template

In case you hadn't guessed, I am no good at this. So, to all my readers (that means you, Sara), I apologize.

The header is way too big, but at least the picture is pretty.

Now, excuse me while I go attempt to make dinner on my stove that is older than your parents (and possibly grandparents). 

Better luck tomorrow (fingers crossed!)

Progress, and a Few Fun Facts about our lovely new abode

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and I'm really not inspired with words right now, so...without further ado...a few pictures of our magnificent British home:

First up: THE STOVE. This is what I cook on. For real. There isn't another, slightly more modern stove lurking around the corner. This is it. It has two temperatures: hot, and hotter. Also, please note that because I am legit immersing myself in the culture, I have not one, but TWO kettles. Oh yeah. Be impressed.

Two: The Guest Room. Why, yes. That is a shower. In the bedroom. In front of a glass door to the garden. Makes perfect sense. There is also a sink, but if you want a toilet, you're going to have to go to the toilet sized closet in the hallway. I hope you aren't fat (or really pregnant, like me), because if so, you are really going to have to squeeze to get past the protruding sink that is almost-but-not-quite hanging over the toilet.

 And an update: The nursery. We have a baby wardrobe, and I am feeling slightly less like the worst expectant mother on earth. Pretty sure this closet of newborn gowns on hangers downgrades me from first place to first runner-up.

On A Less Whiny Note...

Cambridge is pretty. Like, really pretty. Even if I didn't like her, I'd still have to admit that she's pretty.

We Live Near A Castle

Not that I've actually seen one, but I'm sure we do. Or that there are some castle ruins under our crummy house - maybe that would explain our topsy-turvy flooring and walls.

We've been in England close to two months now, and it has definitely been an adjustment. After 2-3 weeks of house-hunting, we got tired of looking, and settled on a quaint little rowhouse. We've definitely had some renters remorse - on move-in day, we discovered it was half as big and twice as ugly as we had thought when we signed the papers.

We have about five weeks until the munchkin makes her debut in the world, so I'm thinking it may be time to buy a crib and pick out a name.

Here is a sneak peek of our ADORABLE nursery...

Ahahahahahah, worst expectant parents ever. Please note that we DO have a carseat to bring her home in, but as of right now, it looks like she may be sleeping in a dresser drawer. OH, WAIT - our dresser hasn't arrived yet. Cardboard box it is!

And in case you were wondering if I have been selfishly prioritizing my own comfort and putting all my time into a luxurious master bedroom oasis, here is our lovely bedroom...

Why, yes, that is a mattress sitting in the center of our living room floor. The master bedroom was painted the most lovely shade of batcave maroon/purple, which made it look approximately five times smaller than its actual very-small size. I'm pleased to announce that after five coats of primer, it might almost be time to slap on some real paint. Of course, our bed frame is still stuck in customs, and could be delayed till October. I LOVE OVERSEAS MOVES!!!

Enough whining for now, time to call my landlord again and plead with her to send someone out to turn our stove on...

Sad Times

I've finally left South Korea, and am feeling oh-so-blue about it. Our year there flew by, and I was completely unprepared to leave.

That's not to say I'm unhappy to be back in the US, visiting family, prepping for my brother's wedding this weekend, and catching up with friends. All these things are great - but there is a melancholy little part of my brain reminding me that I might NEVER BE IN SOUTH KOREA, EVER AGAIN, and that's just really too sad to think about.

My long-suffering husband stayed behind to finish up paperwork and supervise the pack. This is something he has informed me will never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever happen again. The stress of prepping the house and watching the movers shove all our possessions into a wooden crate was just too much for him. I will admit that when I heard his martyred "I was up at 3AM WASHING DISHES and taking things off the walls", I'd have had a little more sympathy if I didn't have the consolation of knowing that I left him with a clean kitchen and only four things on the walls (two were posters - easy peasy).

On a side note: Jetlag + pregnancy = AWESOME. I was already getting up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, and now I just stay awake for HOURS. It is AMAZING.

Not.

Is It Just Me?

Or does anyone else spend their evenings listening to classical music while reading "A Short History of Rudeness" aloud to their developing baby?

Also, it's NEVER too early to learn good etiquette.

How To Use A Toilet

Jeju

I can't recommend it highly enough. It's pretty rightly called "the Hawaii of Korea" - at least I assume it's pretty rightly called that - I can't exactly confirm the sentiment, having never actually been to the Hawaii of the United States (that's Hawaii, in case you were wondering).

After a glorious long weekend of hiking in a sundress and flipflops because I'm stupid (also, my feet were a little too swollen to stuff into my sneakers after the flight), getting a pretty magnificent sunburn, and just generally checking out one of the New Seven Natural Wonders of the World, it's good to be home.

Side note - the next time I'm on an airplane, it will be to the US - weird.

What I Missed: The Great Photo Recap

We took the most crowded subway ride ever.

We saw fireworks. They were awesome.

There was a lantern festival.

It snowed.

A lot.

Christmas came.

We went skiing. I spent more time laying down than I did standing up.

We saw North Korea.

North Korea saw us.

Brandon practiced his archery.

We went to the Cherry Blossom Festival. It rained.

We hiked. A lot.

We went to China. It was dirty. 

And that's what you've missed!

Stay tuned for another one of these...next year?

What I Missed: Visitors

We had three! Yay, people like us.

First there was Hannah:

Then Sara:

And our last visitor - Dani:

Best Blogger Ever!

Our time at Osan is winding down, and I am the worst blogger ever. I went from "I'm going to post every day!" to "once a week is good enough", and now am at the "well, every five-and-a-half months is better than nothing at all" point.

Life is good. So good that I forgot all about my blog.

South Korea has been a crazy amazing adventure, and we've loved every minute. The people are friendly (And honest! Unlike in China! Which is another story for another day!), the food is delicious (with a few notable exceptions), the scenery is gorgeous, and the transportation is cheap, cheap, cheap.

Seriously, if you are going to ever visit ONE Asian country, go to Korea. Not China. Definitely not China.

If we weren't moving to another really cool place (England!), I'd be way more devastated about leaving South Korea. I'm still pretty distraught, but visions of antique bookcases and wrought iron prams are dancing in my head and softening the blow.

Tomorrow we head to Jeju Island for the long weekend, and I will attempt to update at least a couple more times before I have to change my blog name from "We Live In A Castle" to "We Live Near A Castle".