Deep Fried Turkey

This year we decided to host the Mooney family Christmas at Dearbourne as well.  While it wasn't the entire extended Mooney clan (Dirk & Karen, Brett & Nancy), it was still occasion enough to warrant a special turkey.

Firstly, Mer ordered a fresh, locally sourced, organic turkey.  Then, it was decided (with a fair amount of lobbying on my part) to deep fry that bad boy!  I had been researching how to deep fry turkeys since before Thanksgiving and had spent the better part of the preceding 2 weeks trying to find all the equipment I'd need to deep fry that 15 lb bird.

I have to say, that for the first time, things went remarkably well.  By what measure do I make this claim?  I did not burn myself, the house, or any property.  It was a bonus that the turkey seemed to come out fine :-)  Everyone seemed to agree that it was a delicious first effort and good enough to warrant future deep frying of other poultry for family gatherings.

If you'd like a deep fried anything for your next function, I'm offering my services for the low, low price of 2, no 3 beers.

Lee Family Christmas

The Lee clan gathered on December 22 at Dearbourne to celebrate the first of two Christmas get togethers - the other would take place in London with Penny Popham.  Anna and Spence did a tremendous job preparing most of the dinner, with delicious appetizers from Nancy.

This was the first Christmas gathering of the season for Samara and she had plenty of fun opening the many gifts that she received.  Her grandad and Nan gave her the third book of the Knuffle Bunny series, and also included an actual Knuffle Bunny!  This may not sound terribly exciting to the rest of us, but this series happens to be one of Samara's favourites, so to actually receive a Knuffle Bunny was a bit magic.  Talia didn't miss out on scoring great gifts too - the only difference was that she slept through it ;-)

Samara Gets a Big Kid's Bed

Shortly after Talia was born, I took both girls for a car ride, both to give Mer a chance to rest and also to pick up some groceries.  During the ride, Samara declared that she would like a big kid's bed.  Now this may not sound particularly important to you, but Mer and I had been pondering how to get Samara out of her crib and into a bed, in order to use the crib for Talia in the coming weeks.

We didn't want Samara to start making negative associations with Talia (e.g., Talia gets all the attention, Talia gets my bed, etc.), so when Samara requested a bigger bed, it was like a gift fell into our laps! 

We struck while the iron was hot, and took her to IKEA the next day so that she could pick a bed.  Unfortunately, she was more interested in jumping on the beds, than in picking one.

So the following day, Mer and I made an executive decision, picked up an extendable bed, took down her crib and set up her new bed while Samara was at daycare. 

To make things more fun, we also strung up flags that Elspeth made for Samara and some ball-lights that Sara gave us a while ago.  The "doll" on the bed is Talia! 

 

Now Samara wakes up and says "Look at me, I slept in a big kid's bed all by myself!"

Samara's Impression of CN Tower

Samara's been a real treat lately - lots of fun and silly times.  I'm going to suffer some withdrawal when I return to work next week.

We were having a bath the other night, when I got to messing with her hair - was noticing how long it was getting and thinking about haircuts and other things when I noticed my hands were slowly pulling her hair up to a point - and it held!  I started to laugh and Samara asked what was so funny, so I lifted her out of the tub so she could see herself in the bathroom mirror.  She had a laugh too, so we called Mer to come see.

Those 10 minutes had more entertainment value for me than any movie I've seen in the last while.  It makes me greedy - I feel like hoarding as many of these moments as I can because I know that our girls grow each day and before we know it, they will be young women excited to forge their own paths through life.  

Of course we will always celebrate and cherish their accomplishments and milestones in life whenever and wherever they are - it just feels perfect right now.  They are the perfect size for hugging and tickling; they say things just right, even when it's wrong (like when Samara says aminals rather than animals), their heads fit perfectly under my chin or in my neck when I hold them.  I never understood when Mer used to say she missed Samara, even with Samara in the room - I finally get it.

Talia Meets Her Great-Grandparents

 
 

We took Talia to see her GG (great grandfather) and her Wang Halmuni (great grandmother) this past week.  She got on well with both of them.  She was very polite and did not interrupt while her great grandparents were speaking - in fact, all she did was listen ;-)

Never having met or known my great grandparents, it was very poignant to see two people separated by over 80 years of life connect and share an experience together.  I have no doubts that Talia will have little memory of her meeting, but I hope she has many more of these in the next couple of years, so that some memory of her great grandparents stays with her.

Sisters

Samara's taken a real shining to Talia - she likes holding her and asks to do so quite regularly....sometimes the timing isn't so great because Talia is in the midst of nursing, but Samara usually waits until it's her "turn".  She knows to wash her hands before holding her and always gives her kisses on her head instead of her face, so that Talia doesn't get catch anything from her.

I just hope Talia is equally enthusiastic about Samara - hope that these two kids will grow to be friends, and not just sisters.  Although with names like Samara & Talia, they may be mistakenly taken for a folk/roots band (as one cousin remarked) or as trapeze artists (I've got my fingers crossed for that one!).

Snippets of Conversation with Samara

I've had so many fun and funny conversations with Samara recently - at home, in the car, during a meal, pretty much any place and all the time.  I am sad to say I can't remember them all, but I always end them thinking, "I've got to remember this one - too funny".

For example, one day, Samara and I were in her room - she just woke up from her nap.  We were about to read a story, and Samara said that I should read it "properly".  It prompted me to ask, "Samara, what does "properly" mean?"  She replied, "Properly is when you do something and your mommy and daddy don't say 'do it properly'."  I think that's what the dictionary definition should read.

Here's one conversation we had recently...

Introducing Talia!

In case the change in blog title didn't make it obvious, we'd like to officially introduce Talia Sabine Jahyun Lee Kim!

Yes, her name is long, but we figured we set a precedent with Samara and did not want to short change Talia.

Her Korean name, Jahyun (pronounced Jah-yun), means nature, natural, genuine, intrinsic.  This ties in nicely with Samara's Korean name, Haneul, which means sky, infinite, heaven, as well as with Talia, which means "morning dew" or "dew from heaven". 

Her middle name, Sabine is the french form of Sabina.  Turns out the Sabine tribe were an ancient people who lived in central Italy, their lands eventually taken over by the Romans after several wars. According to legend, the Romans abducted several Sabine women during a raid, and when the Sabine men came to rescue them, the women were able to make peace between the two groups. While I'm sure the actual proceedings were far messier than this synopsis, I like that this element ties in with one of the meanings of Samara's name (peace maker). 

That said, I think the photo evidence indicates that she will be more combative.  I placed a photo of Talia beside her ultrasound image to show just how much she appears to love holding up her hands by her face.  From her womb to her room, Talia has not dropped her fists....potential makings of a good boxer...can hear the promoters now....Talia "will maul ya" Kim goes undefeated with a record of 23-0!

Little Bean Joins the Family!

Well, I'm sure Little Bean doesn't see what the fuss is that's being made about her - mostly because her eyes are generally closed ;-)

However, we've taken a shining to her and very happy that she's part of our little family. Like all newborns, she has does little besides eat, sleep, poop and pee.  However, I've been impressed by her singular focus and dogged determination in tackling each of these tasks.

For example, she had 2 poops in one day - both so voluminous that it spilled out her diaper and onto her clothes - that's not absurd....it's abturd!  In any event, I've included a video of her first day in the world - mostly uneventful, but if you're like us, absolutely riveting.

Samara Explores her Korean Side

Samara has been showing some interest in Korean things lately.  She has been gobbling kimchi, regularly "reading" Mer's Korean phrasebook (even while on her potty!), and singing Korean songs!  

We've only heard her sing one Korean song previously and didn't know she could sing others.  She used to ask me to sing to her in Korean when it was bedtime, so I'd sing the only songs I knew.  I had no idea that she was learning to sing them herself!

I recorded her singing them so you could enjoy them too!

Count Down to B-Day!

With only 2 weeks left until our due date, our friend Natalie came by this weekend to take some portraits of Mer in her final stages of pregnancy.

Can't wait for little bean to arrive!

Super Sister to the Rescue!

In advance of LB's arrival, Samara's aunt Anna sent Samara a very special package - a Super Sister costume!  She made it by hand and incorporated Samara's favourite colour (purple).  Needless to say, Samara's been having a blast wearing it to daycare and around the house.

Check out the video below for a sample!

Pumpkin Carving

Samara was very excited about helping to carve the Halloween pumpkin....okay, mostly helping to clean out the pumpkin.  Still she had a great time emptying the pumpkin of its seeds and "guts" (as she called it).

We ended up with a Dora the Explorer jack-o-lantern (see next post).

Guelph Thanksgiving

This year was a departure from our typical Thanksgiving weekend.  As a birthday gift to Mer, we decided to take a road trip to Guelph to enjoy the beautiful fall weather and foliage. 

We stayed at a hotel on Saturday and with Dennis & Mary (in the coach house of their new home) on Sunday.  We took a lovely walk through a conservation area, enjoyed wonderful company and all pitched it to get Thanksgiving dinner ready.

While we missed our family gatherings, we had a great weekend!

Happy Birthday Meredith!

In honour of Mer's birthday, Samara and I made her a 'video card'.  

Gymnastics

Samara goes to a gymnastics class for kids on Saturdays.  She seems to really enjoy herself and why not?  Running around, jumping, climbing, rolling around, crash mats, trampolines....what could be better before lunch?!  Here's a short video montage of Samara doing her thing.

Piano? Piayes!

 

We were recently told that Mer's great-grandfather's piano needed a good home and jumped at the chance to reconnect with a piece of Mer's family history.  Unfortunately, an old piano and an old house don't make for a good moving situation!

Upon measuring the piano and the width of the doors and stairwell that we would need to negotiate, the movers were very reluctant to try and bring the piano into the basement as we had planned.  There were all sorts of reasons why it was a bad idea:  could damage the piano, could damage the walls, could get stuck, might not get past the bay window at the side of the house.

After much coaxing, the movers agreed to try.  We pushed the piano on a skid, along the side of the house, through the back yard, through the back door, down the stairs, around the corner and into its new spot!

While the movers and I were oscillating between pushing, repositioning, pushing, repositioning, out of the corner of my eye, I could see Mer's hand holding her Blackberry and snapping these pics.  It was all worth it - the piano may be old, but it's quite handsome and it feels like a friend that's come home.

We'll let it rest for several weeks before getting it tuned.  Hope that Hoseok, Michael, Grace and Jessica can help make it sing this summer!  Samara and Little Bean now have no choice but to take lessons and to learn on their great-great-grandfather's piano ;-)

Apple Picking in Milton!

This past weekend, we decided to take Samara apple picking, with Michelle, John and their kids (Jack and Stella).  Awesome does not even begin to describe how good a time Samara had!

We picked apples and pears from the orchard.  Samara loved carrying her basket between the rows of trees!  We climbed onto bales of hay.  We fed the goats, swung on swings and went on a tractor ride.

She has a great time when she's around kids - she particularly enjoyed following Jack around.

Samara had so much fun running around and could not sit still (and rightly so!).  The only reason she'd run back to our picnic table was to take a bite of her roasted corn on the cob, and run back for more action.
 
Great Sunday afternoon - thank you Keefe family!

Mother-daughter Time

While the weather seems to have cooled off somewhat in the last couple of weeks, we used to enjoy having Saturday morning breakfasts on the back deck when it was still warm and sunny!

One Saturday morning, we had no plans or obligations - no errands to run, to engagements to attend.  So we did what we love to do - we hung out!  Mer and Samara got comfy with a magazine, but Samara eventually felt the draw of the phone and had a pretend conversation with who knows who, about who knows what.  

She's not even three, but loves to use the phone and Skype....if she could, I'm sure she'd be all over texting too!

Weekend at the Market

Samara's aunt Anna was visiting from Montreal this past weekend, so we thought a Saturday outing to St. Lawrence Market would be fun, especially since Toronto was hosting a busker's festival there as well!

So after some breakfast to fuel up, we wandered around to watch street performers & buskers (the aerial acrobats had Samara's attention...I think mostly because of the white balloon!), as well as stopped by to sample some cheese and pick up some groceries for dinner that evening.

Before leaving, Samara was treated to a soft cone ice cream that she loved!  She nursed it all the way back to the car and barely made a dent in it.  She eventually had to say good-bye to the ice cream and gave it one last kiss before getting into the car.

Anna cooked up a storm for dinner, and we ended a very fun day with a lovely meal in the back yard, with the sun setting.  Thanks for the great visit aunt Anna!

Dinner at Ceili Cottage

Fridays are special.  They signify the end of a school week or work week, so kids and adults alike look forward to Fridays.  We are no exception.

This past Friday, we took Samara to dinner at the Ceili Cottage in Leslieville. It's a nice Irish pub...absence of animal references (e.g., the fox and hound) in the name of the pub was a good sign!

We sat on the patio on a sunny summer evening and enjoyed the atmosphere.

Cottage Weekend with Grandad & Nan

We took Samara to see her Grandad and Nan at the cottage this past weekend.  The weather was much better than we thought it was going to be, and a steady breeze off the water made the heat and humidity quite bearable.

We set up a tent so that we could have a family nap - Samara was excited by the idea, but didn't really manage to get to the nap part.  So she took her nap inside the cottage, leaving the tent for Mer and me.  After what turned out to be a 2 hour nap, and a little snack to get our energy up, we were ready for a ride in the newly acquired Doral, which was powered by a 90 hp motor.  

As you can tell from the video, it can really move!  Samara loved it, but also enjoyed the kayak (with Mer), some skinny dipping (no photos as I was sleeping then), and just hanging out on the deck.

Wish we were staying longer, but we had to say our good byes and say our thanks to Grandad and Nan for inviting us up and showing Samara such a great time.

Cuzzins

It was my cousin Phillip's birthday, so the entire Kim/Lee clan met for eats, treats, and gossip deets.  

The baby makers (Mer and Diana) were seated on a reclining couch, with foot rests up, while Samara sat like a demure lady in between.

Samara and Charlotte seemed to enjoy catching up with one another ;-)  Unfortunately, we had to dine and dash in order to get Samara home for bed, but it was great to see everyone!

Morning Musings

For the last while, we've had a bit of a morning routine in the house - as I imagine most households with children do.  Nothing out of the ordinary, but a well orchestrated dance of mom in the shower, dad gets breakfast on; mom gets Samara, dad gets in shower; mom gets dressed, dad dresses Samara; mom packs Samara's stuff, dad gets dressed; we all leave the house together.

Well we decided to break up the routine today so that Samara and I could take things a bit slower.  Here are some memorable bits:

Wake-up
This morning, Samara woke up and called for Mer (who was in the shower), but rather than yell out "Mommy!" as usual, she kind of sang out "Where is mommy?", varying her cadence and intonation with each line. 

Hard to convey through text, but it went something like this (I was standing outside her door giggling):
"Whhheeea is my mom?"
"Where is mah-meeeeEEee?"
"Where IS my mumeeeeee?"
"To-getha"
"To-ge-tha?"
"Together with my mom"
"Mom?"
"Mommy?"

Oddest conversation to have before your morning coffee (this really happened):
Samara:  "Appa, when I am older, then I will be the daddy and you will be Samara!" 

I've heard her say similar things to Mer and always thought it was a thoughtful and caring thing to say - kind of like, 'when you get older, it will be my turn to take care of you, mom and dad'

Me: "that sounds great monkey".

Samara:  "Yeah, I will be the Appa.  I will have a peee-nis and you will have a va-Jie-na" (she always places the emphasis and extends the "gi" in "vagina").

Me:  "Hmmm, well I don't think that will happend"

Samara:  "Yes, daddy, you will have a va-Jie-na"

Me:  "Okay, sweets, let's get dressed"

Samara:  "Va-Jie-na!" (as she ran off squeeling)

Swimmin' in the Lake

We had the good fortune of visiting our friends Dave & Lisa and their brood (Jake and Ben) at their cottage.  Samara was nervous about heading into the lake at first, but after getting in, she took to the water like...fish to water...nice.

Music Video

 

While we were in Maryland visiting Catherine and my nephews - Hoseok & Michael - Samara discovered that Hoseok, had a kid-sized guitar.  

She started to play with it, and while we're pretty sure she won't be up for an MTV or MMV award, here's her first music video!

The Incredible Growing Woman!

Here are some shots of Mer as she's progressed through the pregnancy.  Samara and I think she looks pretty great!

Kissing Bandit

So Samara was feeling particularly affectionate one day last week. She was giving out kisses like it was a liquidation sale!  

She has 2 types of kisses:

1.  Normal kisses - these are either kisses given by Samara to you on the cheek, or on some occasions, where she will offer her cheek for you to kiss instead. 

2.  Special kisses - these are great!  This is when she takes a hold of your face, neck, hair or whatever she can get her hands on, and firmly plants one right on the kisser!

The crazy hairdo was courtesy of Mer.

Little Bean

So this is "little bean" at 20 weeks.  In case you aren't sure what you are looking at, the profile of the head is shown, with LB's left hand just under her chin - you can see the thumb is up, with her fingers curled.  LB and Mer are both doing great.  LB's been very active with lots of kicking and moving around.

 

Samara's Personality

As parents we know that Samara has an entire lifetime ahead of her in which to develop her personality and self.  However, the monkey continually amuses us with the things she says and does.

Take for example the photo above.  I was taking a nap this weekend, and I must have been tired because unbeknownst to me, Samara decided that my back side looked like it would make a good reading chair, so she got her book, got set up and snuggled in for a read.  If it weren't for Mer taking the photos, I would have never known.

Here are two snippets of conversation that also stand out in my mind, from this past weekend:

#1 (when I arrived to the cafe that Mer and Samara were, and sat down):
Samara:  "Appa, you look diffent when you wear your hat"
Me: "Really, should I take it off?" as I took my hat off.
Samara:  "Appa, you look bettuh with the hat on"

#2 (I recently taught Samara how to make farting sounds by blowing on the back of her hand or forearm.  I was on the second floor calling for her to come up for a diaper change.  She wasn't interested, so here's what happened):
Me:  "Samara, can you come up now?"
Samara:  "No thank you daddy!"
Me:  "Okay, then I guess I'll have to burp and fart by myself in your room"
Samara:  (sound of feet running on hardwood) "Wait for me Appa!  I want to buhp and fawt too!"

Wall Flowers

Hello world!  This is the first official post on Samara's blog, so there may be some growing pains as we figure out what this blog thing can do ;-)

We put some plastic flowers from Umbra on Samara's wall this weekend. She helped put them up, by handing me the flowers and telling me where they should go.  We put one up, then stepped back to take a look, then Samara would run and leap onto the mattress and laugh.  This process took much longer than it would have taken me to simply slap these suckers up, but it was soooo much more fun!