Korea Memories

Market day in Seoul, Korea

Today marks the 11th anniversary of our arrival back in the United States after a three-year station in Korea. Those were a wonderful three years, and we came home with two more family members and many fond memories. Every May we celebrate the time we had in Korea and the wonderful friends and people we met there. The Koreans were so hospitable and loved children. This week we went through some old pictures, remembering what life was like 15 years ago. What fun to see these old times...we thought we'd share a few highlights with you!

One of mom's favorite stories is that she is the only one in our family
 who had the courage to ride a camel in Korea!

Cheju Island -- this beautiful picture is still hanging on our wall

Enjoying the company of military friends at Thanksgiving

Dad at the Port of Pusan  (USS Independence)

Jonathan and Mom at Cheju-Do beach

Sarah and Nathan playing "dentist" on each other

Family hike in the Taebaek Mountains

We often visited the orphanages often in Seoul and loved holding the babies.
Here we were visiting a orphanage with our grandparents.

Jonathan's first birthday

Rachael - two days old

A  layover in Japan on the way home - a very long plane ride. We were sad to leave Korea,
 but had hopes of buying a farm when we arrived back in US

Look at all familiar [9.4.10]?
 We found this picture of Nathan on our uncle George's Ford tractor, 
when we visited their farm in 1999.
So prophetic...today he drives our old Ford daily

The summer we moved to Kansas and bought an acreage,
Mom learned to brush-hog the fields in the hot July sun

Our first snow on the farm!

God has truly blessed our desire to have a family farm and we are grateful for all the things He has brought us through and taught us in the past decade of trial-and-error. You might enjoy hearing just a few of our "farm duds,"as we like to call them.

The year after we settled in, we worked hard to fix up property fences and build electric fences to hold our first two cows. The moment we let them off the trailer, they ran - right through our hard-worked for electric fence. The heifer was the first to jump, leading the steer in close pursuit. Thus, she earned the name "Eve," and he "Adam."  Of course, our cattle are well-trained and civilized these days.

Our first experiences as chicken farmers occurred the week after they graduated from our garage to outdoor barn. That night, a storm brewed "in the barnyard" while we watched with amazement through our dining room window, oblivious to the fact a tornado was overhead. 

After dinner, we looked outside to see the "chicken barn" upside down in another field...and walked outside to see all the chickens sprawled out apparently dead, soaked and chilled. Dad, being a persistent farmer, carried them back into the warm garage, and one by one, dried them with a hair dryer. Not one died! We call them "Dad's Lazarus chickens." Now, whenever we see a storm brewing, we have our HAM radios (listening to weather spotters) by our side!

The adventure continues... learning never ends on a farm and life is never lacking in  excitement.

"That ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, 
and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you."
(1 Thessalonians 4:11)