Kyle and Vanessa,

We are all very excited about seeing you guys again, especially after the recent excitement created by North Korea! As far as a Christmas list there is none. We've chosen to do a "white elephant" gift exchange again this year. It isn't truly a "white elephant" exchange in that it isn't suppose to be "gag gifts". Instead each of you are to buy general gifts that anyone might enjoy, or at least someone in the group might fight for. The price limit is about $30. Everyone who wants to play is to bring a gift for the exchange. Any questions, just let me know. Anxious to see you guys, and very jealous of your time in Hawaii! Crystal and I loved our visit there 10 years ago now! Wow, time really does fly! See you soon!

Keith

Christmas time!!

So christmas is approaching- and WE ARE EXCITED!!  Especially since we get to be there this year for Christmas.  Yippee.
BUT....
we have yet to see the list- of gift recipients yet.  Can some one post that on here.  Also, I loved seeing the pictures from Thanksgiving.  Were there others as well?  Can't wait to see you guys!

Waco Rogers aren't so Waco anymore...

Everyone is on the move.

I guess I've been moved for almost a year now. It is so hard for me to believe I have been in Houston for almost 10 months. Where does the time go? Things at my job are great! I am officially on my own and on the night shift. I thought I would enjoy night shift (thanks to some insomniac tendencies developed in nursing school) but I like more than I thought I would. The overall atmosphere of the night shift is so much more relaxed because "Big Brother" isn't there to care about things that don't really matter....like jackets with hoods. Being out in the world during the day makes me feel funny though. I feel like people think that I am a bum with no job because I can lay out all day - but I don't let it stop me from doing it. ---- I'm sure you guys all remember my emotionally disturbed puppy, Scout. She went to rehab. Her utter fear of, and eventually violence toward, strangers became more than 2 hired trainers and I could handle. Scout currently lives in Paradise, Texas with Roy and 30+ other Ridgebacks. She has had her broken leg removed and Roy can already see improvements in her behavior. Trace and I visited her last week and we were amazed that 1) she seemed to remember us and 2) she seems like a happy puppy, who moves around like she has 4 legs instead of 3 and a half. We hope to get her back someday, but only when we are all ready..... In the meantime, a replacement dog has melted my heart. I am now the proud owner of a 2 year old Great Dane/Lab mix. He is the most gentle, well mannered, friendly, giant dog I have ever met. He loves everyone and can sleep all day on days when I need to sleep. He is wonderful - and just what I needed!! We are all very happy!!


As for the rest of my family, who is all much more exciting than me, I will do my best to update.

Dad is working on packing up our home. The plan is to move into his new position/home in August. Dad is going to be some sort of "Faculty in Residence" at a Baylor dorm. To be honest, I don't know exactly what he will be doing except hosting events at his apartment, at the bottom of the dorm - and possibly getting a dog, because college freshman miss their dogs. The School of Education bought him a house warming present - some massive flat screen TV. He is getting to pick out new furniture and all sorts of other things. I'm so excited to see it!

Austin is gone - far far away! Austin left for Poland with his best friend about 2 weeks ago. He wasn't sure exactly what they would do, but I'm sure they will not have any problem getting into some shenanigans. Dad talked to him the other day and said they were headed to Spain. I'm sure he is loving this much better than folding towels at Target.

Travis is also on the move. Trav is planning to move to Denton in the fall and start school at UNT. He is currently slaving away at Starbucks, not exactly loving it because coffee-aholics aren't always pleasant.

Well, I hope that summer time finds you all happy and not melting. I hope we can find a time to all get together soon. I love you all and miss you incredibly!!

Smarty Pants

Caleb got commended performance on his Math and English TAKS tests! I'm pretty proud, just thought I'd share!

Whew Lardy, it's been a while!

Ok, first things first. I made a big stink about how we don't keep in touch a while back and here it's been almost 4 full months since I've seen any of you and I haven't posted a thing on our clan blog. I apologize. I'm not gonna make another big deal out of the silence here but I sure would love to hear from the rest of the fam to see how things are going with all of you. I've come to realize that for me, getting updates means a little bit more than just a newsflash. For me it's a way of saying, "I like you. I want to keep you in the know and I'd like to know how you're doing."

So here's my quick update to try to get the ball rolling again;

4 months down and Korea is still A OK. I'm not gonna lie about it and say it's been nothing but smooth sailing but all in all, our lives are pretty dang good at the moment. For those of you who have been following V's blog this won't come as much surprise but we just got notice that our Director "Ronny" may have put in for his resignation. It's all still rumor but I can't say I would be disappointed to hear it. The dude's never around. He's spread way to thin. Honestly I think we all are these days.

As of last Friday, I am now the Foreign Teacher Coordinator, which is a nice little boost to the paycheck, resume and ego and so far, it's looking like a pretty easy gig. As of now, my responsibilities consist of getting info from the Korean staff and conveying it to the Foreign staff, then hearing what the Foreign staff doesn't like and taking that info to the Korean staff. To be honest, it's one of those entirely superfluous jobs that would get cut in a heart beat in any well run western company but here in good ol' SK, it's a very important gig. I have taken on quite a few other responsibilities that my new title allows so that I can ACTUALLY alleviate some stress in other areas that have been needing attention for a while so I can't say it's NO extra work but playing mediator is not only something I'm trained in, it's also something I consider myself very good at. We shall see when things actually start moving a bit more. For now, the waters are relatively calm.

In other news, V and I went and played paintball last weekend with a group of around 20 from Meetup. Our "instructor" was a bit unnerving with his lack of safety precautions and one of our friends actually got shot from point blank by an accidental discharge. She was fine but a few centimeters over and she would've taken one right in the ear. It was a little discouraging to say the least but she was fine after a few minutes and we actually had a blast the rest of the day.

Other than that, there ain't much else to tell you guys. I'm still loving Korean food, we're making better money than we've ever made and in general, I'd say we are more content than we've been in a while. Just wish the weather would settle down a bit. I'm tired of layers!

Love and miss you guys and hope to hear from you soon!

Fink Family Happenings

Just thought I'd give a general update on the goings on around here for those of you far far away.
Let's see, well we have been having major vehicle problems since before Christmas and as we speak are waiting to hear if Asher is approved for a new (used) truck. We are getting rid of the Land Rover in hopes that he can get something easier (and cheaper) to work on. Also, we have acquired a work-in-progress truck for Caleb that he and Asher can fix up in the next few years for his first vehicle. It's a 1973 Ford pickup...big, ugly, and HEAVY...perfect for a teenagers first ride!

Speaking of Caleb, he is doing well. School is going good for the most part...if he could just stay organized...it might be great. ;-) The youth group at our church is busy practicing for the big LTC (Leadership Training for Christ) Convention in April. Caleb is once again doing puppets and chorus and loving it. He even recruited a friend from school who is now coming with us every Sunday and participating in LTC as well for the very first time.

Cody....WILL BE A YEAR OLD ON FRIDAY! I can't believe that he's growing so fast. We will take lots of pictures and I'll try to remember to post a link on here. I'll for sure get them up on facebook.

For those of you who hadn't heard, my grandmother had surgery to remove a cancerous mass from her colon last week. She is home and doing very well now. We thank God that the doctor "mistakenly" scheduled her for a colonoscopy after the normal cutoff age of 80. She wasn't even supposed to have that procedure but if she hadn't they wouldn't have found the cancer. She had a colonoscopy 3 yrs ago and they didn't find anything at that time. It's so important to get these tests and exams on a regular basis. The standard age they start giving them is 50 so for any of my family out there around that age - Don't put it off!

Other than all that there isn't much going on. Asher and I are still at our same jobs and doing well. So that's my quick update. Now hopefully others will follow my lead and let us know what's going on in their neck of the woods.

Love you all!
~Chrissi~

Remembering Christmas 2009

It was wonderful seeing and spending time with everyone this Christmas. I think everyone will agree that the video scavenger hunt was a fabulous success! I am posting a few of our favorite video moments and a link for the photos taken this past Christmas. Especially because Kyle and I are out of the country, we often feel separated or out of the loop, and updates on your lives really bring us a joy that is indescribable with words. We want to be part of your lives and it is hard when we are so far away. We hope to hear more of what is going on with you and yours this 2010! Blaine, that means you! (tell everyone the funny nerf gun story!!)


ok, so I don't know what the Korean message is saying to me, but for some reason it won't post the second video. I will try it in a separate post.

Who is this cutie pie?