Busy Week - Photo Frenzy

Monday was Steven's appointment, it was an awful day. I won't say what procedure was done for his privacy but he was put under general anethesia. I was told it would only be 40 minutes from start to finish before I could take him home but that was not the case at all. When Steven was wheeled into Recovery he was groggy but seemed to be doing well. Within 20 minutes he was in pain. The nurses had him walk around which made things worse, he became very nausea and after a few minutes was in agony. Two doctors and 3 nurses swarmed around him and in a flash he was being wheeled away to xray. I sat stunned waiting for someone to return and explain what the heck was going on. At this point Avery started freaking out because she was in a wet diaper. I had only brought enough diapers to last the "40 minutes max" timeframe and didn't have anymore in my backpack. The hotel we were staying at is only a minute drive from the hospital.

One of Steven's nurses finally returned. I was told he would be in xray for 20 minutes which was more than enough time to run and get more diapers from our hotel room. The nurse then casually told me I couldn't leave because Steven may need emergency surgery to fix a possible mistake the doctor made during his procedure and if so I would need to sign consent forms. So there I am with a screaming infant, completely alone, waiting to hear if my husband will be okay. I really wished I could have had someone, anyone, there with me for support. Thankfully Steven didn't need surgery and after he insisted on being discharged I was able to take him "home". The 3 of us were exhausted after being in the hospital for 4 hours and went straight back to the hotel room. I was given strict instructions to keep Steven in bed for the rest of the day which wasn't hard because he fell asleep almost instantly. Avery was still fussy, I didn't want to risk her waking Steven up so I took her to the food court. It was 4pm and I hadn't eaten anything that day but I wasn't about to complain about being hungry when poor Steven had been on a liquid diet for 2 days.

Photos from our hotel stay:

The Lyon Family

The next morning Steven was feeling better. We got up at 7 to check out of the hotel. Steven had agreed to pick up a fellow soldier from the airport at 930. We drove an hour to Incheon Airport. Steven was never given a flight number or itinerary so when the soldier didn't show up by 1pm he decided to take Avery and I home. It took us 2 hours to get back to Humphreys, we quickly checked the mail room and had 3 packages waiting for us :) Steven went back to the airport to wait for the soldier. Steven then found out that the soldier got in at 930 PM not AM..... so he drove all the way back to Humphreys. At 7pm he left again for the airport. He didn't get home until almost 1am. For those that lost count that is roughly 11 hours of just driving to and from the airport and a lot of gas wasted....

Steven was given the next day off of work for obvious reasons which worked out because I needed the truck that day. It was the first day of the spouse's bowling league. Each Wednesday we play 3 games. I got a 101, 108 and an 89 (I think). I wasn't very good to begin with but Avery wanted to be held the entire last game so it was difficult to bowl haha. A kid tickled her foot while she was sleeping so she was not a happy camper. Avery, Pagi and I rocked our matching team shirts (we were the only team actually wearing team shirts haha). After bowling we went to the water park for this week's Lunch with the Ladies. Avery and I played in the kiddie pool for a bit. We went to the mail room afterwards, Steven's reticules for his G36C came in, then quickly grabbed Starbucks. I took Pagi home but there was a giant hole where her drive way used to be so she had to walk through someone's garden to get to her apartment.

Watching mom bowl

XOXO our awesome bowling team

Thursday and Friday were very mellow. Avery and I took the truck one afternoon to do laundry and grocery shopping. Avery tried rice cereal for the first time. She seemed confused at first but enjoyed eating like a big kid. Avery has also been trying to sit up the past few days, its adorable. She can lift her head, shoulders and arms off the ground but can't get any further, she looks like a turtle stuck on its shell.

She had a tough time keeping the rice cereal in her mouth

Ready for combat

The wicked witch of the west

Saturday was another long day. Steven had his paintball tournament so he was there by 7am to set up. Avery and I showed up at 10 when the tournie was supposed to start but the first shot wasn't fired until noon. There were 9 teams and each team played 8 games. I had intended on staying for the entire tournie but the first round lasted an hour and a half! I wasn't going to keep Avery out in the heat for 7 more rounds, good thing too because they weren't done until 6pm. Steven's team (The Commandos) placed 4th. That night we went to Kendig's house (a woman Steven works with) for a BBQ. Several other soldiers Steven works with where there, it was a lot of fun. Avery has been boycotting naps lately so she was pretty tired at the party. I was able to get her to sleep and put her in Kendig's bed. She slept through the whole thing, loud music and all. It was so nice being able to have some baby free adult time with Steven and everyone else. Lately I've been feeling like Avery's caretaker instead of a person so this was much needed. Avery made me pay for it by getting up 6 times that night :/

Avery & I stick out in this crowd

Keeping my baby cool :)

Steven being awesome

Loving the bean bag at Kendig's

Sunday was extremely uneventful. It was just one of those days where you don't want to do anything but stay inside. I wasn't feeling well and stayed in bed until 11am. I did however come to find out how quiet the fire alarms in this apartment building are. While watching a movie Steven and I hear a faint alarm, I stuck my head out of the door and realized our neighbors were all leaving. Just as we were going to grab Avery (who was already in bed for the night) the alarm went off and people started going back into their homes. Needless to say, in the event of a fire we are probably going to end up extra crispy. It has been a very long week for the Lyon family.

Avery Quinn - 5 months

Friends

Sorry that is post is a few days late, Monday and Tuesday (the 4th&5th) were extremely eventful (but you won't find out why until next week's post :D).


Steven had Monday and Tuesday off for Memorial day. On Monday there was a big lightening storm which caused us to lose power for a bit. I stood in the window and watched the sky light up, it made me homesick. It reminded me of how my dad would always get excited when a storm would roll in, he would sit out on the porch and watch it. My mom and I would peek out the window for a moment before getting bored and watching The Closer or Ghost Hunters (one of those shows was usually on during a storm haha). 


We went to Pagi and Eric's house after the power came back on (I didn't want to risk our food in the fridge spoiling). Eric BBQ'd ribs on the roof of their apartment while Pagi made mashed potatoes and corn on the cob. Pagi had also prepared some fresh homemade salsa, it was delicious, I had to go into the other room so I wouldn't eat it all haha. We played Mario Kart on the Wii and Battle of the Sexes (girls won). It was a great night. 


The next day we went with Pagi and Eric to Lotte Mart. Afterwards we got lunch at Chilis and visited the Osan thrift store. We got a very expensive microwave for $12!

Avery trying some celery

She does not approve

On Wednesday Pagi and I went to the bowling alley to join the spouse's bowling league (luckily you don't have to be good to join). After the bowling meeting we met our husband's at Starbucks while they were on lunch. This week's Lunch with the Ladies was at either Happy Teriyaki or Yummy Teriyaki, I can never remember which place is which haha. It was pretty good. Avery grabbed a handful of rice so she had sticky teriyaki fingers. 


Steven had 24 hour CQ on Friday so I had the truck. I grabbed Pagi for some lunch at the PX where we ran into our friend Jess. The three of us ate together then Pagi and I bought some supplies to make our team shirts for bowling. I also made Avery a team onesie :)

Front

Back

Avery helping :)

Saturday morning started very early, Avery is not the type to sleep in unfortunately. We were up early enough to go pick up Steven when he got off of CQ at 7am. He took a short nap before the curtain guy came. The guy quickly installed our new curtains and we enjoyed the darkness, the house instantly felt cooler. That night we were invited over to Widener's house (who you may remember from a previous post about paintball). Steven and Widener are also involved in airsoft so they worked on their guns. Steven had bought a G36C a few days prior so they were getting it ready for an airsoft tournament in a few weeks. Widener and his wife took us to a Korean BBQ place that was delicious! Afterwards Pagi and Eric came over to Widener's house and we sat on his roof around their fire pit. 

Enjoying the fire

Our wonderful week unfortunately ended on a bad note. Sunday was a miserable day. Steven had another appointment at 121 (where Avery was born). He was on an all liquid diet that day to prepare for his appointment on Monday so the 2 hour drive was miserable. I felt awful eating in front of him when I knew how hungry he was. That night Steven had to take a horrible "lemony" (the bottle actually said the flavor was lemony) drink but it didn't agree with him and he ended up dry heaving for hours. It was bad. I stayed by his side rubbing his back and trying to soothe him but I felt absolutely useless. Thankfully the dry heaving subsided after a while. We watched a few episodes of Game of Thrones to distract him from the nausea. 


Tune in next week for the exciting conclusion.

Avery Quinn - 21 weeks

Lazy

This week was really mellow. Avery was having teething pain so we stayed home most days. We decided to skip out on Lunch with the Ladies because they were traveling by city bus to eat. Pagi and I had our own LWTL at the PX food court instead.

Friday was exceptionally boring. Pagi's husband had CQ and Steven was stuck in some boring lecture. Pagi picked Avery and I up and the 3 of us had lunch at a teriyaki place in the ville. We went to Starbucks afterwards and ran into our friend Jess (she is in our LWTL group). Jess and Pagi are both pregnant with boys so we sat chatting and swapping pregnancy stories. Steven had gotten out of the lecture earlier than expected and, not knowing I was out, went straight home. Pagi was kind enough to give me a ride.

Caught napping

Steven got up bright and early to take his friend (Widener) to an air-soft tournament on Saturday. He is now super interested in going to one of these competitions. They apparently play in abandoned buildings with underground bunkers, it was described as a real life Call of Duty. Steven was tempted to enter the competition that day but it was overnight and he knew I wouldn't be pleased getting a call saying "I know I said I'd be back by 8am but I'll see you tomorrow night" lol. In the mean time, Steven and Widener are working together to set up a paintball field on base. They have been given a small plot of land and are now tasked with designing the layout. They have already recruited their team so hopefully they can bring home a trophy :)

Avery and I got some cleaning done while Steven was on the road with Widener. She was in a "hold me" kind of mood so strapped her to my chest and we did chores. I managed to soak her while doing dishes and wrap the cord around her ankles while vacuuming but she seemed pleased. When Steven got home we went to Osan to grocery shop. Our commissary is so small and limited that we rarely shop here anymore. I was exhausted by the time we got home. I decided to take a nap with Avery and we slept for 4 hours! It was 8pm when we woke up so I fed Avery and put her back to sleep. Nothing extraordinary happened but it was still one of those days where you sit back and realize how wonderful your life is. 

Steven and I didn't go to bed until 1am but that didn't stop Avery from waking us up at 7am. All in all it was a very lazy Sunday. At 745pm Steven left to go pick up Widener, he said he should be back a little before midnight but I don't intent to stay up that long again.

Avery Quinn - 20 weeks

During my trip to Idaho in Sept 2011 my mother in law was gracious enough to take a few maternity pictures. Here's a few:

Trip to Seoul

Another week of firsts for little Avery. On Monday we drove to Yongsan and made great time (1 hr 15 min). Steven had reserved us a room at the Dragon Hill Lodge (Avery's first stay in a hotel), after check in we went to the PX. It was weird being back there considering I went into labor at Yongsan's PX. Back at the hotel room Steven and Avery took a nap in bed while I Facebooked and enjoyed Starbucks :) After their nap and dinner we headed down to the pool. Avery went swimming for the first time! The water was a little cold so she didn't stay in very long, she seemed to enjoy it though. Steven and I took turns holding Avery so that the other could soak in the hot tub. 

Swimsuit model

Snuggles

The 3 of us got up bright and early the next morning. Steven and Avery went and got me breakfast and coffee while I got ready :) We checked out and headed to 121 for Steven's appointment. While he was with the doctor I pushed the stroller around the hospital so that Avery could nap. Avery was born at 121 so it was strange wandering the halls again. Our drive back to Humphreys was long and boring. Avery and I dropped Steven off at home and went on base to check the mail room, we got two packages! It was a good day but that night I had a bad reaction to antibiotics :( Within minutes of taking the first pill my tongue and throat got tingly and breathing became difficult. I sat up for two hours regretting the fact that I waited to take the first pill until bedtime. 

Not happy about the 2 hour drive

Why must you taunt me Korea?

Our home

Wednesday I was feeling pretty miserable. The TMC gave me new antibiotics. I had the same bad reaction to these new pills :( I decided to skip this week's Lunch with the Ladies because of it. I was pretty bummed about being stuck in the house until Avery completely made my day. My baby girl rolled over for the first time!! She went from her back to her belly while laying in her playgym. I don't think Avery fully understood what she did because she started crying almost instantly lol. 

Love her expression when she touches something cold

On Thursday Avery got her first car/walker. We bought it off the flea market page on Facebook. The page is awesome! It is a place where you can buy and sell things from other families in Korea. We bought Avery's crib, bassinet, swing and several other items off that page all for cheap :) We picked up the walker from a family at Osan AB and had dinner at Chili's. 

The TMC had given me yet another type of antibiotic to try and a set of EpiPens since the reactions have all caused breathing problems. I had to take this pill with food so I took it on the drive home from Chilis. This one made my upper lip tingly and made it slightly difficult to breath. My doctor and I are both frustrated by the fact that since Avery's birth I am suddenly allergic to everything. I've been reading up on it and apparently developing allergies/intolerances after pregnancy isn't that uncommon. Rather than play the guessing game my doctor has asked me to wait a week while the lab pinpoints what is making me sick so we can narrow down the needed antibiotic and has written a referral for me to go get an allergy screen done at Dankook University Hospital. I'm nervous about having anything done at a Korean hospital but I have no choice since 121 doesn't have an Allergist. 

On a brighter note, we have a new addition to our family (no I'm not pregnant ;D). We adopted a kitty cat from a fellow military family. We named him Sterling. 

Avery Quinn - 19 weeks

My First Mother's Day

This week Avery had her 4 month well baby visit. She weighed in at a whopping 13lbs 14oz! The pediatrician seems very pleased with Avery's development and for the first time she didn't cry during her check-up. My poor baby girl had to get two shots and one oral. Steven was the bad guy and had to hold Avery down for her shots, I really wish they would let us hold her during :( She cried, of course, but still managed to be braver than me since I had been freaking out since the night before. Pagi had the car that day so she picked up Avery and I that afternoon. We killed time at the PX and got Starbucks. Since Starbucks (well AAFEES) jacked the price of coffee up $0.25 they are temporarily offering a free upgrade so we took advantage of that. 

Chomping on her teether

We've had a lot of cherished family time this week. On Thursday, Steven had to take a co-worker and his wife to the airport. Since the drive is roughly 2 hours there and 2 hours back he ended up getting the rest of the day off :D 

So sleepy

Friday was family day (or something) so Steven had the entire day off. He got a birthday card from my parents with a $50 gift card which was spent immediately. Thank you parents for buying him a year of xbox live.

On Saturday I "slept in" until 10am. Steven made me an egg over easy (I always end up ruining it) then we went to Spring Fest on base. It was a lot cooler and less crowded than last year which was nice, we met Pagi and Eric there. We had brats, fried oreos, chicken tacos, orange julius, and a caramel apple (which sucked). Steven boxed a co-worker of his in an inflatable ring with huge comical boxing gloves, they went 3 rounds and both were exhausted afterwards. 

Avery's Spring Fest dress

We took Pagi and Eric to Lotte Mart (sort of a Korean Target/Walmart) its nothing special but got us out of the house. Avery got a pink/white heart play mat, a new teether and a giant plush bee that I've had my eye on since I was 3-4 months pregnant. We also sold our iPad for a profit that day :) Once I got Steven's old iPhone 4 I never touched the iPad so it was a logical move to get rid of it. 

"I can haz da bee?"

My first Mother's Day! Avery woke us up nice and early so we skyped our moms. Steven got me an "I <3 Mom" picture frame. I am searching for the perfect photo to put in it. Upon reading the heartfelt message in the card he gave me I began to tear up. Motherhood has turned me into a sap lol Avery signed the card too so its definitely a keeper.

Daddy & Avery at Starbucks

We took our iPad money and bought Steven a new bicycle, it is awesome! We plan to start riding as a family once we get a trailer for Avery. In the mean time he is going to ride to work a few days out of the week so I'll have the truck more often :D Steven rode his new bike home while Avery and I went on base.

Hanging out with mom

It was a mistake to go on base without my hubs because things started going wrong. I hit up Starbucks for a delicious Mother's day beverage and was pleased to find that I was the only one in the store. As I sat waiting for my drink a guy came in and ordered. When my drink was called out I gathered my things and went to the counter but the guy got there first and grabbed the coffee. I told him it was my drink thinking he would realize his mistake (since I have a very specific order and well I was there before him) and hand it over but I was wrong. He told me it was his drink and walked out with it and wouldn't you know I ended up getting what he ordered :( I grumbled for a moment then let it roll off my shoulders. A bunch of other things went wrong while I was at the PX but messing with my coffee is where I draw the line so I left.

Don't mind me, just wearing 6-9 months onesies

 I got home to find that Steven had done all of the dishes and cleaned the kitchen :D It made my day! My wonderful husband then made us a delicious Mother's day dinner which consisted of tri-tip, mashed potatoes & gravy, corn on the cob and Hawaiian sweet rolls. Avery sat in her bumbo so the 3 of us could have dinner at the table. After our little one was down for the night we watched Game of Thrones, The Office and played MW2&3.

Avery Quinn - 18 weeks

Happy Mother's Day!

Lots of Photos :)

I did a lot of driving this week (well a lot of driving for someone who hasn't had her own car in over a year lol). Wednesday Steven was gracious enough to give me the truck all day! I fully understand what a pain in the butt it is to be car-less so I am eager to give rides to those without a vehicle. I dropped Steven off at work then picked up Pagi, we ran a few errands while waiting for the USO bus to get to Humphreys. Earlier in the week I had offered to pick up a woman and her son who were taking the bus from Yongsan (2 hours away where I delivered Avery) to Humphreys just to have Lunch with the Ladies! We picked them up, had lunch at La Pasta, then got them safely back on the bus. It was a great day :D

The next day Avery and I stayed home all day. Avery was exploding from both ends. She pooped on me, threw up in my hair and then peed in her play gym lol. She went through 6 onesies! I'm glad we stayed home, dealing with that in public would not have been fun.

Avery & I caught napping

On Friday I ended up having the truck all day again. I dropped Steven off at work, got Starbucks then went back to the hanger (he wanted Smart water - its actually really tasty). Steven's co-workers admired Avery for a bit before we took off. Avery and I took our clothes to the laundrette on base. I forgot to put detergent in the washer and ended up spilling it all over the floor instead haha. The Tangos (Steven is a 15T - T for Tango) all went to lunch together, Avery and I got to hang out with everybody. After eating Steven bought a Kinect for the Xbox and a new game. Pagi and I hung out at the PX for a bit until all the Tangos came back to the food court for ice cream (it was some kind of team bonding day). It was awesome. Steven was released after that so we went home.

While messing around on FB I saw an announcement that AAFES (Army and Air Force Exchange Service) was increasing the price of gas by 23 cents!! $4.10/gal is horrible but $4.33/gal is just outrageous! The increase was due to take effect the next day so I went and filled up the truck. There is only 1 gas station on base so it was a mad house. I left Avery with Steven. I came home to find Steven feeding Avery with a bottle. She actively refuses to take a bottle let alone formula so this was a big step for her. Once Avery was down for a nap Steven and I tried out the Kinect. It was a blast and we were exhausted after only a few games (it involved a lot of jumping, crouching and side stepping). Avery woke up shortly after and proceeded to throw up all over me, my jeans, the carpet, and herself :( I guess the formula didn't agree with her. I put her back to bed so that Steven and I could watch 21 Jump Street, it was hilarious!

Baskin Robbins

Earlier in the week Steven got the new iPhone 4S and I inherited his iPhone 4 (YES!!). I had been using a very crappy Korean cell phone for the past year and am so happy to have a decent piece of technology again. On Saturday we went to Osan to get phone cases. Steven made me drive to Osan :/ Driving around base is one thing but driving on the highway is completely different. You have to be an extremely aggressive driver to survive in Korea, I ended up white knuckling the steering wheel the entire drive. We made it to Osan in one piece.

I finally got my ring back!

Steven and I got awesome cases then did our grocery shopping at Osan's commissary. Steven drove us home thankfully so that I was able to enjoy a delicious deli sandwich :) That night we had dinner at Pagi and Eric's house. We had such a great time!

As per Grammy's request (Avery's great Grammy) a picture of the famous Pagi :)

Sorry its blurry haha

Avery Quinn - 17 weeks