How the Hers Spent Historic Noverber 4, 2008

We are so proud to say that we were part of this awesome day! Kong and I both took the day off to make the most of and contribute to this historic milestone. After taking the girls to school we got in line to excercise our civic duty and voted. At our voting station we learned that the power was out and our ballots would be scanned at the end of the day. We were very concerned that our vote would not count. We thought this might be the work of the GOP. It turns out there was a big accident down the block that caused the power outage. Hmmmmm??????

After we voted we drove over to Obama's campaign office in Frog town to volunteer. We didn't know if they needed us but we were so moved that we had to do something. The office was over flowing with people who showed up to do a last minute, get out the vote campaigning. We were given an assignment on the East side of St. Paul and coincidentally it was our old neighborhood. We talked to people we hadn't seen in years and had a really great time door knocking. I talked to a few young Hmong men who were still undecided. We discussed why I was supporting Obama. We talked health plan, taxes, education and the environment which are the issues that are important to me. The best part about this experience was that Kong and I did it together.

We canvassed for a few hours then headed over to the Kids Vote office. Our task was to set up stations for kids to vote at polling sites. We spent the rest of the afternoon manning the Boys and Girls Club site on the East side of St. Paul. After school we picked up the girls to help us collect ballot boxes. This gave them the chance to vote. Here are pictures of them casting their votes.

To wrap up the evening we enjoyed snacks at the Kids Vote polling headquarter's celebration party. We headed home around 8:30pm.



We let the girls stay up and watch the election unfold on CNN and MSNBC. Taylor was glued to the TV and each time McCain's Electoral vote count increased she stressed. She just couldn't believe that anyone would vote McCain/Palin. We explained to her the beauty of a democracy even though quietly we were thinking the same thing. Taylor fought hard to stay awake. She was able to watch McCain's concession speech which was gracious and heart felt but fell asleep just 10 minutes before Obama's : (



My only regret of the day was that the girls didn't get to go vote with us and canvass. I know they would have enjoyed it and it would have been a wonderful learning experience.

No posting would be complete without a video. Taylor was at a birthday party last Saturday so with nothing to do Ayden played in a big pile of leaves Kong and I raked together. Here are some pictures and video from that afternoon.

President Elect Barack Obama!

Okay, I'll just complain for one moment then I'll updated the blog with some nice pictures and recount what our family did the day Barack Obama was elected President of the United States of America.

Sad to say that some do not share the same sentiment when it comes to this historic event. I went to Fox News just to see what they were saying about the Obama victory. I read some blogs and comments for articles and I'm so disappointed to see so many people missed the importance of this election. How divided we still are.

First and foremost, Obama is the first African American President. This is of great importance considering our country's history. We are a nation that was built on the blood and sweat of slaves. It was only a few short decades ago that blacks were not allowed to vote let alone eat and drink in the same places as whites and that blacks counted as only a fraction of a human being. This victory is monumental. This is not to say that we have accomplished all we need to on the front of race but it speaks volume. Let us also not forget that this is not just monumental for African Americans but for all minorities.

I think just as important, Obama was elected by the people, ALL people. I've been seeing many people write and say that Obama was only elected because blacks voted for him just because he is black but that could not be further from the truth. Obama being black was significant symbolically for African Americans but he won because of the content of his character. White, Black, Asian, Latino, old, young, poor and rich all voted for him. We are all ready to be lead by someone who knows he does not know all of the answers but believes in the power of the American people and what we can accomplish when we work together. We are ready to be lead by someone who inspires unity instead of divide with fear and ignorance.

Barack's charter transcends his color. If you are one of those people who saw this as blacks voting for blacks then you should question yourself . Your unwillingness to see a person for what they offer and not what you see. Think about when you voted in the past for a white man. Did anyone accuse you of only voting for that person because he was white? Think of the double standard when whites support whites vs. blacks support blacks.

I've read postings stating that now we have a black president we need to get rid of all affirmative action. I say to those people, 1 out of 43? Is that really fair? Only once we have had people of color presidents and women that make up 43 consecutive presidential elections and when we have equal representation in the highest offices such as CEOs, Board Presidents, and Government officials could we truly say it is fair now and there is no more need for affirmative action.

Anyway, I will not let the haters taint this victory. This is a victory not just for the US but the entire world. Today we are a new America. No amount of sore loser, cry baby whining can take away the importance of this Obama victory. I was proud to be an American yesterday!

Happy Birthday Taylor!

We had Taylor's birthday party this past weekend. About 20 friends and family attended the Kuk Sool Won birthday party. Everyone had a great time. At the end of the event every child got a chance to break a real board. Here are a few pictures and video clips from Taylor's birthday party.

Olivia breaking the board on her second try.

There was kicking, blocking, an obstacle course, and face painting. It was especially fun for the kids to have heir names written in Korean by PSBN Steffen on the board they broke. Taylor's birthday party was the talk of class today.This weekend was very busy for us. We've been planning a big Sunday School fundraiser the past few weeks and we were able to pull it off with the help of many caring and giving members of the church. We cut and shredded veggies all evening Friday, woke up at 5:15am on Saturday to start rolling egg rolls and frying, then sold the egg rolls in front of Sam's Club until 4pm. It was extremely cold so I was very proud of the kids who stuck it out to the very end. We were able to make $950. We'll be sending a large portion of that to help children in Laos who are less fortunate then we are.

In addition to the long weekend, Taylor tested for her Red Stripe and passed. After Taylor's birthday on Sunday we all crashed. The girls have separate beds but often sleep together. I hope they always choose to be together in this way.

I love my kids

I was driving Taylor and Ayden home from our evening activities today and Taylor asked me a string of questions that seemed very out of the blue. Her first question, "Mom, before you and dad had me and boo boo, did you have a lot of free time and was it easier?" We had a discussion around how before we had kids we thought we were so busy but we learned after having kids that we wasted a lot of time. In order to have careers and a family we learned to become really efficient with time. Life is harder but more rewarding. This lead to a whole host of other questions until she finally let me into why she was asking the questions.

Taylor and Ayden watched the first 30 minutes of the second 2008 Presidential debate with us. Taylor brought up a specific question that was asked. She repeated the question nearly word for word then she repeated Obama's response and captured everything he conveyed. The gist of what Obama said was that he fundamentally disagreed with Sen. McCain on the economy. That for many people, wages and income have flat-lined and it is getting harder and harder to save and to retire. That a tax cut for 95% of working Americans would help those who are working two jobs, people who are not spending enough time with their kids, because they are struggling to make ends meet.

"Mom, I just felt like Barack Obama really understood the question and what is happening to people. He knows what people are going through right now with the economy." Then she got really quite and I could tell by her voice that she was about to cry. I asked why she felt so sad and she said to me, "I'm sad that parents don't have as much time to spend with their children because they are working so hard. I know what all those children feel like and how sad it must be for them. I'm just glad to know that Barack Obama understands where children are coming from and how they are being affected by this." What she was trying to confirm was if what Obama had said would hold true for our family, if things are harder now, if we would be spending less time with them in light of the economy and if so the thought of having a President who could relate to children was very important for her.

We continued to talk through out the evening until I put the girls to bed. As I retold the story to Kong all I could think was, "Man, this is my kid. I'm so lucky." I'm so lucky for one that she has a natural curiosity; two, that she would want to watch the debate (we had to force the girls to go to bed after 30 minutes) and three that she would take a debate answer and apply it to herself and other people/children. Obama must have made an impact on her because days later she was still thinking about the responses. Though she is a blessing, this natural curiosity makes it extremely challenging to be her parent. She's been asking us a lot of questions about the market, the economy blowing up and finances so ask me next week if I still feel blessed : )

I don't want to sound like I'm bragging but I am extremely proud of both my girls. Ayden is already displaying a very mathematical mind, just like her dad. She sees everything as patterns, geometric shapes and is always putting everything she sees into number context. You can't eat anything without her wanting to put numbers around the object, what it means if you eat one or two or three more. She can't look at three people sitting around without pointing out that the three people make the three points of a triangle and if one more person were to sit in a particular place a diamond would be formed. Pretty amazing for a 5 year old, right?

Maybe all kids are like Taylor and Ayden. Maybe I'm giving them too much credit. Maybe I'm just a proud parent. Whatever the case, I love them so much and I am so blessed that God gave me these two children that I think are amazing.

On another note, I read this amazing article on msn.com and thought I'd post a link in case anyone else wants to read. It's about people who love each other so much that even death can't separate them. Okay, it sounds creepy when I say it that way but trust me, if you believe in true love then you have to read it.

www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26980587

Great News!

I was accepted into the Northeastern MBA program and will be starting class in November. I am excited to get back to studying. That means scalling back and rearranging priorities. More to come on this topic.

Appalled

I am appalled. The assessment that Sarah Palin exceeded expectations because she had no major gaffes and completed some of her thoughts. Is it just me or has America sank to a new low? When someone is viewed as a success if they don't completely screw up? I just don't get it. The sad thing is that there are people out there who actually believe that Palin won the debate. She did not answer questions, regardless of the topic she continued to bring up energy and Alaska, she was condescending, spoke in generalities and repeated sound bites. Unbelievable.

What was up with the winking? It was not folksy to me, it was down right insulting. Just imagine if I went into a meeting with one of my clients and I winked at the CEO and his staff not once but multiple times. How inappropriate. Do you think it reflects well on me if I use language such as, "Do you guys think this is a good plan for your company?" or "Dog gone it, sure looks like there is an error with your account." I have no idea why this is considered a positive trait. That is not the kid of person I want representing America and speaking to foreign leaders on our behalf.

Palin was extremely unknowledgeable and could not give any details. She couldn't even speak to McCains record. I am thoroughly disgusted and it blows my mind that people can look at McCain and Palin and think these two people should be leading our nation. All Palin does is make an already sexist society view women with lower standards. She is the perfect example that women are less intelligent and expected to perform at standards less then men which is why they don't deserve equal pay. She has set women back 50 years.

I guess my expectation of people using full sentences, having knowledge about the topics they need to defend or fight for and ability to concentrate on the issue at hand makes me an Obama elitist. If you truly want to see how sad John McCain's campaign is go to his website. The first thing that pops up is not John McCain it's Palin. He knows he can't win so what does he do, he puts up his gimmick and hopes that the American people are dumb enough to fall for it.

My thoughts on Biden...My sister Stephanie said it best when she said, "Biden is a bad ass!" He is a true reflection of what a true leader should look, behave and speak like. He was Clearly speaking from experience, understood the issues, was smart and extremely personable. He was strong but soft at the same time. There were so many times he could have hammered Palin but didn't. God forbid he seem condescending by pointing out her obvious flaws and mistakes.

Put our nation, our earth and our children first. Vote Obama/Biden on November 4.

Take a look at this...

The girls and I came home from an evening activity to find two grasshoppers mating. I've talked to the girls about mating but I have only told them as much as they can (or should) comprehend. They don't know yet how this translate into humans. God I hope I don't need to have that conversation for a few more years. Anyway, as we discussed what the grasshoppers were doing Taylor kept asking me why one grasshopper was carrying the other one. My explanation was, "...that's just how animals and insects generally mate." I know that left many more questions in her mind but I was counting my lucky stars that she didn't verbalize them.

I do have a question for those few people who read my blog. Taylor will be having her 9th birthday party in a few weeks. We talked to Taylor about birthday gifts and made the suggestion that maybe we ask her guests not to bring a gift but a canned good item for donation and/or make a contribution to her UNICEF collection. She was really excited about the change. In return we told her we would take her shopping to buy "stuff" she's been wanting. Kong made a comment that people will think we are hippies. What do you think? Do you think I'm cheating my child out of basic childhood pleasures? It's not like my kids need anything, right?

This past weekend we visited the Her's in Kansas City for a celebration. We drove 6 1/2 hours to KC, stayed one evening and drove 6 1/2 hours back the next day. It was a long and tiring trip but worth it. We got to see the newest addition to our family, Baby Lola who is beautiful, and spend time with the Hers even if it was just for a few hours. Pulling in at 1:30am, Kong and I had guests at home waiting for our return. It was wonderful hosting the Hers from Wausau. We even got to spend a few hours with them today before they went back home.

Lastly, I've been working with our children at church on a big fundraiser. An fundraiser of this size with kids has never been done before. The kids and I are super excited so please keep us in your prayers. The event is scheduled for October 18 (the day before Taylor's Birthday Party) so it will be a busy weekend. I will need great patience that weekend so all prayers are welcomed.