Our Little Juhee

Maybe for this one I should just let the pictures speak for themselves... But I feel like I need to mention a few things...

Our little Juhee's so bubbly, outgoing, loves singing & dancing, and is growing up so fast! She talks a lot and is speaking mostly in English but sometimes in Korean and Japanese too. One very diplomatic person :) commented just a few minutes after observing her with other kids (all older) that she has "leadership skills" (she's bossy). She likes being the center of attention and loves doting on smaller kids (except for when they want her toys).

At SFO, on November 3rd, the day we left the US, she was very excited and jumping up and down, being her usual happy self. :) Little did she know that her world was about to become very different. I think she thought we were going on another trip, soon to return to San Jose.

When we first arrived in Japan, we stayed at the Murray's for 8 days. She observed big sisters Sydney & Taylor help set the table at every meal and now she loves helping me set the table at every meal! She's pretty good at it too and know who gets which plate, and which spoon and chopsticks are daddy's favorites. She enjoys picking out which utensils she's going to use that meal too. :)


Soon after we moved into our place, Juhee had a playdate with a half-Korean half-Japanese boy that attends one of the churches we partner with. She had trouble sharing her toys at first but they eventually got along. When we met to go to the Korean market together earlier this week, they were holding hands! :)


There are a couple of recent developments that concern me. She's starting to act out a lot more and I know she's at the boundary-pushing/testing age so it's somewhat to be expected, but I know that 1) our stress levels being higher = us being pretty short with her, 2) not attending school and being cooped up at home all day with stressed parents, 3) all of the other environmental changes that have taken place recently are causing her to be stressed too. Instead of allowing her more grace and being more patient & understanding with her, we have been doing the opposite. It's easy to forget that she's going through a lot of change and cultural stress too...

Juhee's mentioned more than a few times that she wants to go back to San Jose / grandma's house / to see certain people in the US. She told me that she wants to go back to San Jose for her birthday. But yesterday, for the first time, she said that she doesn't want to be in Japan anymore and that she wants to go back to San Jose. She doesn't want her new house in Japan anymore and wants to go to her grandma's house. She wants the green car (the car I drove now and again in the US)...

We're pretty sure that attending school will help. One person recently described her as an extrovert with a capital 'E'. :) School will as she's such an extrovert and she's always loved school but also because she'll be intellectually stimulated, will be able to interact with other kids, and will get some exercise too! We have to wait till April but our current situation is not optimal so we might have to explore our options a bit more...

Pray for our sweet little Juhee please. I know she'll adjust soon as she's always adapted quickly to the many different living arrangements we've been in and all of the traveling, but until then... Pray for us too that we'll be wise, that we'll be able to discipline her when needed but also love her and pour out extra measure of grace and understanding on her during this transitional phase.