Happy 11th Anniversary to us!

Eleven years ago today, I got married!  Tae and I changed our plans last minute due to Hurricane Sandy.  We canceled our dinner plans in the city and instead tried a restaurant in Syosset called Cafe Testarossa.  The food was delicious.  We wiped our plates clean!  Afterwards, we tried to get gas (woohoo!  Fun, I know!).  There is a gas shortage in the tri-state area and there has been a 1-3 hour wait for gas.  Many gas stations are roped off because they don't have any supply.  The shortage is a result of many factors including a closed harbor, no power, jacked up roads preventing gas tank trucks to deliver fuel, more demand as many people are still relying on their gas-powered generators, etc.  After moving two car lengths in 25 minutes, our patience grew thin and we left.  Tae had just under a half a tank left so there was no urgency.  There were several police cars blocking the roads, officers out on the street, and even a national guard!  The impact of the storm is literally impacting every aspect of our lives. We're not complaining.  We will eventually get over these inconveniences.  Others will never get over losing loved ones or their homes. 

But back to our anniversary...

Happy Anniversary Seedy.  I am so proud and happy of the extraordinary life we created together.  I believe that anything is possible with you by my side.  I love you!  I hope Lauren and Elizabeth find a great man like you as life partners one day (in the very distant future!).  

Having a supportive husband - a true partner in life - is the key to having it all. I won't get into details tonight though.  There is plenty of time for that.

Hurricane Sandy

All the news outlets called Hurricane Sandy a once-in-a-generation hurricane.  We'll see about that.

About a week and a half ago, Hurricane Sandy was becoming a big threat.  It started in the Caribbean, destroyed homes, took lives, and she was moving towards the Northeast.  I am a huge skeptic when it comes to weather forecasts and I hate weather dictating what I can and cannot do.  I never let thunderstorms, snow, or other "severe" weather impact my plans.  While folks in the tri-state area began their storm prep, I remained aloof and went about my days.  I was having work friends over on Sunday, October 28th and I was too busy preparing for that.  I also had Lauren's first solo ice skating performance on my mind.

The girls playing in the puddles before Sandy's arrival.

We ended up doing just two things as Sandy drew near.  Tae secured the deck furniture and he went on the roof and shut the oven hood ventilation flap.  (Water came through this flap during Hurricane Irene last year.)  Sandy was dubbed Frankenstorm because there were three key factors molding this hurricane into a never-seen-before storm.  First, there was the hurricane itself.  Second, there was another storm system coming from the west that would essentially collide with the hurricane in the tri-state area.  Finally, on the day these two systems were set to collide, a full moon was in effect, bringing high tides.

Sandy landed in our region at approximately 6 PM on Monday, October 29th.  I never experienced such high winds before in my life.  The house shook. The windows rattled.  The girls were scared but miraculously, I convinced them to go to bed per usual by reassuring them that the wind and rain couldn't possibly get inside the house.  I was right about that.  But wrong about everything else.  This was a serious storm.  People lost their lives and their homes.  Losing power, phones, and internet were nothing compared to the amount of devastation experienced by so many people.  All subways, railroads, bridges and tunnels were shut down.  The NYSE had an unplanned closure for the first time since 9/11.  Almost everyone south of 42nd Street lost power.  Today, on Day 4 since the hurricane, there are close to 8 million homes/apts without power.  And it's starting to get very cold.

Grocery store shelves are barren.  There is a 2-3 hour wait at gas stations.  Many gas stations simply don't have the power to pump gas while others are unable to replenish their supply as trucks are unable to get to them.  There are countless numbers of downed trees.  Huge trees.  Wires are all over the place.  Streets are closed and many traffic signals are off.  

I am just incredibly grateful that my loved ones got through this with minor (though today it may feel major!) inconveniences.  It's now time to give back in anyway I can.

Happy Halloween 2012

The Trick or Treating Crew 2012

Despite Hurricane Sandy, my dear friends and I brought some Halloween fun for our children.  It has become tradition to get the kids together for trick-or-treating at our complex and have dinner afterwards.  Now that the kids are older, we covered Wilkshire, Hathaway AND Kensington.  We typically bypassed the smaller streets and went straight to Kensington but there were tons of fun to be had all around.  We saw a good group of trick-or-treaters this year.  Everyone had SO much fun.  I love these kids!

Elizabeth as Belle

Lauren as a Winx Club Fairy

The Princesses

We made sure our kids got to celebrate Halloween!

Lauren's first ice skating performance

On Sunday, 10/28/2012, just as Hurricane Sandy was brewing out in the Atlantic, our Lauren had her first ice skating performance!  It was part of Iceland's Halloween fundraiser supporting the Ronald McDonald House.
Lauren was naturally a bit nervous, but I downloaded some new cartoons onto my Kindle Fire and used them as an incentive to not be nervous, rock it, and have fun!  I was so- proud of her.  She went out on that big ice by herself and with the guidance of her coach Priscilla, had an awesome first performance.  She had a fall towards the end but it didn't seem to bother her too much.  She noticed that the crowd let out a collective gasp (a subtle one!) but Tae and I assured her that the most important thing was to simply get up and move on when it happens.  We went to one of her favorite Italian restaurants Umberto's afterwards to celebrate.  More than anything, I'm thrilled that she simply loves to ice skate. 

Stretching (not really!  Just looks like she is.)

Warm-up.

My BIG girl!

My Reader!

This morning at drop-off, Mrs. Lavey whispered in Lauren's ear, "Did you tell mommy...?"  And I thought it had something to do with her tooth but then Lauren acted all shy and I knew there was something more to it.  Mrs. Lavey told me that Lauren moved up two reading levels in an incredibly short period of time!  She is now at Level D, which Mrs. Lavey informed me is the benchmark for Kindergarten students at the END of the year.  Now mind you, this is all new to me and I know nothing about reading levels but you bet I'll be researching this very topic tonight!

Lauren enjoying a book w/ her dad at five months.

And at 13 months.

Though I am so proud (I called Tae and my mom to break the news right away), I am not entirely surprised.  Lauren always had her nose buried in a book since she was an infant.  She would be happier going to a book store than a toy store.  I am so thrilled she is thriving and enjoying school.  We're so proud of you Lauren! 

Lauren loses her first tooth

I first wrote about the unexpected sadness I felt when I learned Lauren's tooth was wiggling during a routine dentist visit a few months ago.  Well, on Sat, October 13, 2012, while watching TV after lunch at around 1:00 PM, Lauren lost her first tooth!  She wasn't freaked out by it.  In fact she was very proud.  My mom and brother were over and we all congratulated her and gave her big hugs.

As far as the tooth fairy's visit, I sneaked into her room at ~9:30 and replaced her tooth with a $10 bill in a snack-sized Ziploc bag and left a bag of coins (10 quarters and three golden dollar coins) in a cute Tiffany & Co pouch.  When Lauren came down this morning, she was THRILLED to show us what the tooth fair left behind.

I kept staring at the tooth, in disbelief that it was the same tooth that pierced through her tender gums at just ~four months of age.  I'm so proud of her bravery this weekend.  I love her so so much.

Starting my 38th year

This year, my birthday fell on a Monday, Columbus Day.  The kids were off from school but I had to go into work because Mondays are my meeting days.  I took an early train though and was home by 4:45!  I wish every day could be like that...

Yesterday on Sunday, October 7, I celebrated my birthday with my fam, my mom, bro, MIL and FIL with dinner at NHCC.  (HJ was in Hawaii.  Lucky!)  Afterwards, everyone came back to the house for cake.  A custom-made 4-layer decadent and ever-so-delicious red velvet cake by Du Jour Bakery.

  
My mom doesn't come over on Mondays but she called to wish me a Happy Birthday and apologized for not making me mi-yuk-guk (Korean seaweed soup traditionally eaten on birthdays).  I told her not to worry about it but she felt so badly!  So she said she would make it for me tomorrow.  That's my mom for ya.  I love her so very much and appreciate her more and more every day.
 
So today, on my birthday proper, I celebrated with Tae and the girls.  They got me gift certificates to one of my favorite stores - Paper Source!  We had Du Jour Bakery cupcakes and we put the girls down before enjoying our take-out dinner consisting of fried dumplings, black bean noodles (you have to eat noodles on your birthday for 'long life!') and fried rice.  Perfect birthday.  Now officially a year older and wiser, I am reminded yet again how much less I 'need' each year.  The simple basic things in life are truly all that matter.  Everything else is gravy.

I am looking forward to living my 38th year to the fullest and to the very best of my abilities!  Happy birthday to me!

The girls know my favorite color is blue.

My lovies with me on 10/7.

My lovies with me again on 10/8.

Bday gift from the girls to my fave store - Paper Source!

And with the man who created this extraordinary life with me...my love, best friend, partner, Seedy!  (Taken by Lauren - on my SLR by the way - who was trying to delay bedtime as much as possible!)