A day in which we swim and picnic...

Well, we've had a wonderful weekend. The Abroad Kids (the big kids) "graduated" on Friday, leaving us with just the Little Ones. Esther decided to take us all on a field trip to swim. I did not bring my bathing suit, because I didn't think in a million years I'd be swimming. So I just wore "hot pants" and a t-shirt, and armed myself with my trusty new Korean phrase "mope-she tup-kuun-yo"... "it's awfully hot, isn't it?"

Right after lunch the Little Boys and TA Henry were having a soccer match. Joy and I cheered along the side, like the soccer moms we are. :) Then one of the boys dropped out of the game, so I asked if I could take his place. Henry said no. :( I think they thought I would cheat like Joy did when they let her play last week! So I begged a little, and finally Henry said I could play, if I played for the OTHER team.
What a can of worms that boy opened.
Of course, I had to win and show off... a little. :) The kids were all yelling and screaming and everyone was VERY shocked that I could actually play. It was so fun!! Justin and Phillip and Pat joined in shortly thereafter. Henry, I think, is eating humble pie that he didn't want the girl on his team! Hahaha!

Once we were all sweaty and covered in pieces of turf, it was time to get into the cars to go to swim. Justin, Pat, and Kevin took all the boys in this WICKED GHETTO van. It was pouring black smoke out of the exhaust pipe, and it took Justin several minutes to even get the engine going. 

This is how the boys felt about the van....

Henry, Joy & Christina took another car with some girls; Esther took Sarah and some of the bigger girls in her car... they look so cute windblown! 

Phillip and I took his car with Lucy, Lucy and Sunny. They sang every pop song EVER all the way there... Korean pop and American pop. Phillip and I were no match for their overwhelming knowledge of every lyric ever written, but we did our best.

These little pagoda things were for families to sit in or have lunch in. It had a beautiful little lotus pond in front!

This is Phillip about to get a closer look at the lotus pond...

All of us in the creek....

...which flowed into a pool-type thing before flowing BACK into a creek. Very cool.

This is me losing the Game. We hit a volleyball around and if you put it over someone's head or didn't catch it, then you got put in the middle and splashed. Obviously, I am losing and Henry is loving that fact.

Justin lost quite a few times....

The most epic picnic. We had brought GIANT rice cookers to boil water in so the kids could have ramen. Who brings ramen to a picnic?!?!

Serving up some ramen... we have very serious picnics in Korea.

It began to rain.... A LOT.

I am not sure that ladle is going to keep you dry, Phillip!!

Everyone running for cover. 

I love the towel, wrap, Princess-Leia thing that Miles has going on....

We ended the day with Pat's birthday party!

We decided to go back to school to not get the party rained out....

Obviously from Kathereen and Emily's faces, having fun is lots of hard work.

So, that was our fun day at the park. It was one of the best days of my summer. 

-elie