simple goals: January

Happy New Year to one and all !!!! NO resolutions for me this year. I already have my 101 in 1001 days list keeping me busy. Instead I want to continue with my simple goals - December was the first month I attempted something like this and it worked out so much better than having one big chunk of over ambitious resolutions that I forget soon as the holiday season is over. I managed to do all except one - I think that's pretty neat right? So here are my goals for the month of January:

spend a day without technology

make sure that my sisters have a memorable experience in Korea 

finish a book or 2 or 3 readers are leaders 

try a new recipe

start selling and giving away stuff in my apartment before my big move back to SA end FEB

reduce phone bill substantially from last month

spend a week in detox mode to help recover from the festive season eating

Final thoughts

I can't believe I only have 2 months left in this country I have come to consider a home. I am going to miss it like crazy. I know it. There is no running away from it. Better to have loved and lost than not to have loved at all - they say. Couldn't be truer. So much has happened in the past 2 years that words and pictures can't capture on this blog or any other platform for that matter - there is so much I will miss, but without a doubt I will miss my kids the most. They have challenged me, made me laugh and cry. I have experienced a whole range emotions and a love and care I never thought I could feel for children that were not my own. I have been truly blessed.

more awesome things

1. having the exact amount of credit on my transport card for one more ride home
2. blowing air on a cold day - pretending to smoke
3. experiencing the first snow fall of the season (if  you come from Africa possibly first snow ever)

sending love to the BF from the east :)

4. reading/finishing a good book (Read The Help - even though I had already seen the movie the book was still worth it)
5. reaching the top of the mountain on a hike and being rewarded with an awesome view
6. crunching fallen dry leaves as you walk- got to love the sound of Autumn

sand festival

Coming from South Africa, I always took our beaches for granted. And now I realize our beaches are world class - no seriously, they are. And while Korea isn't famous for its beaches (although Hyeopjae Beach in Jeju is gorgeous), we do need somewhere to cool off from the heat of Daegu. And for that, we hit Haeundae Beach in Busan, probably the most popular beach on the mainland. On one of our trips to the coast we were lucky to find out that there was a Sand festival happening. On Durban beach front you often find artists building very creative Sand castles but Asians take it to a whole new level:

Laurentia and I on the train ride to the beach - excited much?

Some Alice in Wonderland

And these crazy people I call friends

Impressive right? I mean the Sand Castles - not my crazy friends :)