Sewing Saturday!

Yesterday, Aaron brought his comforter over and I spent the day hand sewing a duvet for it! This was my biggest hand sewn project yet! 1 sheet, 2 pieces of bolt fabric, approximately 3,000 stitches, 6 button holes, 6 buttons, tons of measuring and marking, and 6 hours of hard labor (wink wink) it's finished, looks awesome, and is a PERFECT fit! :)

Today, the pillows and wall art will begin for the big apartment make-over at Aarons!

*** A HUGE thank you to Rachel Shin for my new little sewing kit which proved to be a huge help, and to the Korean lady down the street who owns the alteration shop... She let me have some brown thread when I ran out!!

Dear John

Last night I took myself on a date to the movies! I've been dying to see the new Nicholas Sparks book turned movie, Dear John!


Going to the movies in Korea is a WAY different experience than in America!

I took a hidden escalator up 2 levels to the ticket office where I paid 7,500 won. As I was buying my ticket, the clerk turned her screen towards me and I had to pick my seat!


Then, I was told to go down the escalators and to walk over to the Mcdonalds down the street and that my theater would be next door! hahaha!


So, I left the building, walked about 100 meters down the steet, saw a small door that said theater 1 and 2, walked up the stairs, and whala, I was there! (I guess that's just a testament to the lack of space in this country that even a movie theater is spread out across the city!)

When I walked in, it was completely bare! I guess no one else was interested in seeing Dear John at 6pm on a Thursday! I had the whole place to myself! It made me laugh thinking back to when they made me pick my seat prior to entering as if all of the seats would be taken!


I really wanted to treat myself to some popcorn, but they only had caramel! Don't get me wrong, I'm always a fan of caramel popcorn, but it's just not the same as the fatty, buttery, salty movie popcorn we all love! so, I settled for these stale nacho chips and cold cheese! :)



When the movie was over, a man came in and hung a trash bag on the seat closest to the exit door! There are no movie theater cleaners in this country... Everyone simply cleans up after themselves! What a concept, huh?!


As a side note, the movie was less than mediocre, which could explain the bare theater! It still made for a fun date night with myself though! Sometimes we just need those, don't we!?

Inspiration!

Those of you who know me well, know about my innate passion for home decorating (the cheap and creative way!) I could spend hours in thrift stores, searching the isles for inspiration, and turning even the ugliest thing into something beautfiul again, for the measley price of oh, $2.00!

Going from a 2,200 square foot home in Arizona to about a 250 square foot apartment has seriously cut down on the space I have to be creative, so I've moved onto Aaron's apartment! He has given me full reign to decorate and organize his new place! I can hardly contain my excitement! FINALLY, A NEW PROJECT!!!

For those of you who are big fans of home decor like me, here are some of my favorite websites of women who have the ability to morf the yuckiest of things into centerpieces in a home! ENJOY!

http://www.fleamarkettrixie.com/

http://www.allthingsthrifty.com/ (I especially love her pillows and flowers)

http://missmustardseed.blogspot.com/ While I don't love everything she does, I'm still inspired! She created this entry table from a headboard for goodness sake! Now that's my kind of transformation!

http://www.theshabbychiccottage.net/ She is a thrift store Queen like myself! She re-created this $159.00 Pottery Barn lamp for $10.00, and not to mention, she can tell all her friends she made it!

Last but not least... This is actually a blog of one of my old college friends, Jodi! Not only is she a wife and a mom of 3, she's gorgeous, creative, talented, an incredible photographer, and a huge inspirtation to me! These are some pictures of Scarlett's nursery, the newest addition to the Mockabee family!

http://mockabeenews.blogspot.com/

I hope you're inspired to make your home beautiful too! :)

Welcome 1st graders!

Yesterday was my 1st day of school for the 2010-2011 school year! :) Here's my 1st day of school picture!


Okay, now to the real reason why I'm writing this blog... Yesterday was the "Welcome 1st Graders" ceremony! I loved this day last year, but loved it even more this year, because most of the students were my old kindergarten kiddos! They're getting so big! :)


After the Principal has spoken and the 6th graders place candy necklaces around the 1st graders necks, the talent show begins! The 1st graders are allowed to showcase their talents in front of their peers, teachers, and parents!

This little boy showed off his Tae Kwondo routine!





This little girl played the piano really well...

This little girl was my FAVORITE! She raised her hand and said she had a talent. When she got up on stage she said that she could play piano, so they walked her over to the piano, and she started banging on the keys, pretending like she was playing a real song! It was one of the funnier things I've seen in a while!

After the ceremony was over, they walked in a single file line to their new classroom! If they only knew what was ahead of them for the next 12 years! Good luck little ones! :)

Gyo Gam Sun Seng Neim!

Remember my Vice Principal? ...the one who treated me like a daughter, but would say really awkward and sexually offensive things to me?! Well, he's gone... and no, he didn't get fired! They moved him to a different school so he could eventually take over for the Principal there.

So, this is my new Gyo Gam Sun Seng Neim! (Vice Principal)

You can always tell if someone was liked at their old school by the gifts they are given when they come to a new school! I can tell he was VERY MUCH LOVED, because he received tons of these beautiful orchid plants...

expensive rice cakes...

and REALLY EXPENSIVE oranges! These boxes (the red ones) go for $50.00 a pop!

Today, after lunch, he came and sat next me and Ella and chatted for a while! His English is REALLY good! It's probably the best in the whole school.... Long story short, he's been to 32 countries, lived in Egypt for 3 years, and already invited me to dinner with him and his wife! Guess what we're eating??? DOG! Yep, he invited me to have dog! You can't refuse a dinner invite with an elder in Korea, especially if they are your boss... so looks like I'm going to be giving dog a 2nd chance! eeeehhhh!!