Another week.

Our week has been fairly uneventful as we continue to find our groove with Jack being in school. He tells random people we meet how he loves school so much, but doesn't like the bus very much. In fact, on Monday this week, he wouldn't get on the bus without me! So, Janie and I hopped on with him and caught a taxi back. I hadn't gotten a chance to shower or change since my run that morning, so I wasn't really too excited to make an appearance at his busy school, but luckily, Jack isn't to the point of being embarrassed of me yet. The rest of the week, he rode the bus just fine, and even was disappointed when we took a taxi together on Friday morning when I came to be the "secret reader". We think he gets a little bored on the bus, poor kid, so we are working on some fun things he can do with his time.

Here are some random pictures from the last two weeks...



Last Saturday, we went to Storytime at the only English Library in Bangkok. It was fun to be there with our friends from church, and meet so many more. The highlight was when we walked in and Jack just lit up! He saw his favorite friend, Scarlett, from school! The day before, her mother had called to discuss how our two were so fond of each other, and we planned a play date. This was a nice surprise for Jack to get to see Scarlett and for me to get to visit with her mother prior to our actual play date later in the week. Our good friend, Joel Selway, was the reader this day, which Jack and Janie loved. Cyrus and Cyan (his children) are sitting at his feet. Every time Joel speaks about anything, he sounds like he's reading a book, so he is a particularly good story teller. There's nothing like a heavy, British accent!



Jack came home last week with a kite he had made at school. He tried flying it in our lobby, but was unsuccessful, so we took it to the park last Saturday and had a great time! This park is about 1 km from our home, and is absolutely beautiful. There are two different playgrounds, lots of nice grass, turtles tanning around the water, and lots of nice people to visit with.



Janie and Jack were enjoying the pigeons this day, and at this particular time, Janie had at least one other person photographing her while she went up and down the steps. This part of the park reminds me of some places in Europe I visited several years ago.



Monday night, our friend, Sherri, came over to cook for us. We met her at church several months ago, and she was so sweet when Jeff's parents were here to show us around (she's a tour guide by profession). But, we haven't seen her since! So, to repay us for treating her to a meal (which really wasn't us, it was Mom Hillman), she wanted to cook for us. The rain was so bad, which stops traffic almost completely at times, she didn't get to our place until 7:30, so we sat down to dinner at 9pm! She was so apologetic, but what are we going to do? Be mad that she made us dinner? The only sad thing was that she didn't get to see the kids!



This is the famous Scarlett I was talking about. She was the other "new kid" on Jack's first day. He came home one day and said, "this girl told me she didn't want to be my friend". Then the next day, it was a completely different story. He talks about her everyday now. Some days I skip the "who did you play with today?" and just ask, "what did you and Scarlett do today?" Are you wondering why Jack is in his church shirt and bow tie? He found this and wanted to put it on so he and Scarlett could get "married". She even put on one of Janie's pretty bracelets to look more the part. They were hilarious together. They played for 2 1/2 hours without a problem. I can't wait to have them over again, or better yet, go to their house. They have a yard and a garden to ride bikes in. Sounds like heaven!

Her parents have quite a story to tell, which I loved hearing all afternoon while they played. To make a long story short, Scarlett is a miracle child, Heather didn't want to miss her growing up, so they dropped everything, meaning Heather quit her job, and now Jim (Scarlett's Dad) only works part time online, and they can do just fine because they live reasonably in Bangkok, which is much more affordable than London. I love their dedication to their family and wanting to simply be together. They made sacrifices so they could enjoy this precious time together. What an awesome family.



This is Heather performing the marriage ceremony, which was the only way we could get them to say goodbye. Janie was giving her brother away, if you were wondering.

After Jack and Scarlett started playing together so much at school, Heather said she could hear Scarlett starting to talk "American". Oops. I can only hope Jack will adapt to Scarlett's British accent instead!



This little tricycle sits on our patio most the time, but occasionally makes it in the house. It's been the favorite activity this week. Janie can't quite do the pedals, and Jack is way too big for it, but they are getting really good at taking turns! What are siblings for, right?