Dear Blog,
I miss you. I'm sorry for neglecting you for so long. Between being a mom, pre-med studies, and life, in general, I just haven't been able to keep up. I will keep trying. Love, Kim
May 8, 2008
March 11, 2008
Do Fish Sleep?
We bought Kapono a betta for his birthday and since it's definitely past my bedtime, I've been looking at our new pet and wondering if it might be past his bedtime, too.
On my "to do" list (after ace-ing my finals next week) is to catch up on my blog. The most significant recent events were Kapono's first and my thirty-first (!) birthdays. Kapono turned 1 on February 9 and I turned 31 on March 9. (When I was in 9th grade, I decided on 9 as my favorite number for no apparent reason that I can recall).
More photos to come of Kapono in his glorious traditional Korean birthday gear (along with details of the ceremony, i.e. how my son is destined to have nice handwriting and become an emcee), but in the meantime, visit new momma Liza Bean's site for some beautiful pictures.
On my "to do" list (after ace-ing my finals next week) is to catch up on my blog. The most significant recent events were Kapono's first and my thirty-first (!) birthdays. Kapono turned 1 on February 9 and I turned 31 on March 9. (When I was in 9th grade, I decided on 9 as my favorite number for no apparent reason that I can recall).
More photos to come of Kapono in his glorious traditional Korean birthday gear (along with details of the ceremony, i.e. how my son is destined to have nice handwriting and become an emcee), but in the meantime, visit new momma Liza Bean's site for some beautiful pictures.
January 20, 2008
Why Do We Live in Chicago Again?
I ask myself this question every time we go home (Arizona) and during every winter season ever since we moved here 4+ (!) years ago. I just looked at the forecast for the week and every day is more than ten BELOW ZERO DEGREES. So, I'm asking myself and my husband, why? Why do we live in Chicago? Remind me please.
December 26, 2007
Dreaming of a Desert Christmas
When I first moved to Arizona from Minnesota in 1992-ish, I thought that I would miss having a white Christmas. Little did I know that sunny skies with temps in the mid-70's in December is pure bliss. We arrived into Phoenix on Christmas Eve. Kapono was an angel on his first flight -- no joke. I told Emiliano that I couldn't have scripted a more perfect travel experience. We had the bounty of running into an honored friend, Ms. Erica Toussaint, who regaled us with inspiring stories from her recent travels to the Baha'i SED Conference in Orlando, while we waited for our (thankfully) on-time flight. We sat in the front row (economy) which meant just enough legroom for Kapono to sit/stand/stumble around at our feet. He began to nurse during take-off and was asleep before we hit our final cruising altitude. He slept 2 hours, played the final hour with our Filipina neighbor, and was a wide-eyed gem Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. Of his many gifts of books, clothes, and toys, he most enjoyed the shimmery gift-wrap bows.
December 18, 2007
Winter Wonderland
One good thing about snow in Chicago is getting to see Kapono bundled up in a snowsuit :-)
November 21, 2007
Should Be Studying
This has been my mantra since I began classes in September. I feel like there's this omnipresent shadow of "should be studying" looming over me this quarter. These classes are insane. I'm going through my chem getting the right answers not even understanding the questions let alone how I actually got them correct! So, I played hooky today from studying to visit Shedd Aquarium with, as Husayn put it, our village of Husayn, Amia, Katie, Elsa, Liz, Olivia, Kerina and crew, and me and Kapono. Hands down, those beluga whales are always my favorite -- I learned that their lumpy heads are actually called melons, how endearing. And, they had a bonafide "baby beluga", which Liz and I hummed throughout the day because we're moms and that's what moms do, hum silly, sweet songs that you pick up along the way and never imagine you'll sing in public without caring who hears you as long as it brings a smile to your baby's face.
Speaking of, in the car last night driving home from the Arboleda's, I told Emiliano that in the next world, what I know I will most from the "material" world, is my baby's face. I will miss the physical experience of being able to look at him, at least I think I will. I remember telling Rachel when he was a newborn that I would miss him if he napped too long...I can still relate to that feeling, like I need my hourly Kapono fix. I know this feeling must change or transform in some way as your children grow, otherwise how would parents make it through the day when their children grow up and move on and move out and move away? I look back at earlier Kapono pictures and I'm already aching inside at how much he's grown.
I always thought it was almost pathetic (I know that sounds terrible, but true!) at how some parents' worlds seemed to revolve around their children, but now I get it and I know now that the only way to get it is to become a parent. People have compared parenting to natural disasters, which oddly enough, is maybe the best comparison I've ever come across (i.e. the difference between learning/hearing about parenting vs. actually doing it is like the difference between watching a tornado on TV vs. having the roof actually blown off your house), but I was thinking the other day that maybe an easier comparison to relate to is a rollercoaster ride. There's no way to know what the ride is like unless you've done it and it's really hard to try to describe it to someone who's never experienced it. And maybe in the beginning, when you're ascending that first steep climb, you're wondering why you ever got on in the first place...and you're hanging on for dear life when you take that first 90-degree drop, and you keep hanging on because you have to but, at least for me, you're also loving it and by the end, you can't wait to get back on.
A former colleague told me that raising his 3 children is the only part of his life that he would re-live if he could and I totally didn't get it because I was thinking of months of sleep deprivation and messy diapers followed by potty training then puberty, etc. but I'm starting to get it now. You just love them so much it hurts and it breaks your heart to see them growing so fast and so beautifully and you just want it to last somehow because there is so much joy. I once read that happiness in life really comes from feeling happy often vs. feeling really super happy every now and then, i.e. the frequency vs. the intensity. And I think as a parent you get both, feeling really super happy A LOT.
Random fact, rollercoaster rides are actually addicting and therapeutic, on some kind of physiological level, something to do with the adrenaline rush and the intensity of feeling. Kind of like laughing really hard, you're feeling intensely in the moment and you're experiencing both a physical and emotional response which is apparently addicting and therapeutic. Kind of like loving your kids.
Speaking of, in the car last night driving home from the Arboleda's, I told Emiliano that in the next world, what I know I will most from the "material" world, is my baby's face. I will miss the physical experience of being able to look at him, at least I think I will. I remember telling Rachel when he was a newborn that I would miss him if he napped too long...I can still relate to that feeling, like I need my hourly Kapono fix. I know this feeling must change or transform in some way as your children grow, otherwise how would parents make it through the day when their children grow up and move on and move out and move away? I look back at earlier Kapono pictures and I'm already aching inside at how much he's grown.
I always thought it was almost pathetic (I know that sounds terrible, but true!) at how some parents' worlds seemed to revolve around their children, but now I get it and I know now that the only way to get it is to become a parent. People have compared parenting to natural disasters, which oddly enough, is maybe the best comparison I've ever come across (i.e. the difference between learning/hearing about parenting vs. actually doing it is like the difference between watching a tornado on TV vs. having the roof actually blown off your house), but I was thinking the other day that maybe an easier comparison to relate to is a rollercoaster ride. There's no way to know what the ride is like unless you've done it and it's really hard to try to describe it to someone who's never experienced it. And maybe in the beginning, when you're ascending that first steep climb, you're wondering why you ever got on in the first place...and you're hanging on for dear life when you take that first 90-degree drop, and you keep hanging on because you have to but, at least for me, you're also loving it and by the end, you can't wait to get back on.
A former colleague told me that raising his 3 children is the only part of his life that he would re-live if he could and I totally didn't get it because I was thinking of months of sleep deprivation and messy diapers followed by potty training then puberty, etc. but I'm starting to get it now. You just love them so much it hurts and it breaks your heart to see them growing so fast and so beautifully and you just want it to last somehow because there is so much joy. I once read that happiness in life really comes from feeling happy often vs. feeling really super happy every now and then, i.e. the frequency vs. the intensity. And I think as a parent you get both, feeling really super happy A LOT.
Random fact, rollercoaster rides are actually addicting and therapeutic, on some kind of physiological level, something to do with the adrenaline rush and the intensity of feeling. Kind of like laughing really hard, you're feeling intensely in the moment and you're experiencing both a physical and emotional response which is apparently addicting and therapeutic. Kind of like loving your kids.
October 17, 2007
Fall in Chicago
My pre-med (chem and physics) classes are a lot harder than I thought they would be, hence, the lack of new posts for the last couple of months. Although this picture is already outdated by about a month, yes, it's a real pumpkin. We're debating between a bumblebee or a green dragon for Kapono's first Halloween. Decisions, decisions...
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