A good week.

If you thought last week's post was a little on the "down" side, then you will love this one. We have had a GREAT week full of fun and great news! We've got plenty of pictures, so I will let them do most of the talking!

First thing I loved this week was the rain. I guess we are entering the rainy season now, and if you know me well, you would know that I love the rain. I have fond memories of going puddle splashing as a kid with my mom and the kids on the street, puddle splashing with my friends as teenagers, and puddle splashing with my own Jack at our West Jordan home. Although this rain isn't really rain that I would take my kids splashing in, I still love seeing and watching it because it really is something in Bangkok!

This was taken from our family room balcony. All I could think was, "this must be how Dorothy felt". I've never heard the wind howl like that, heard thunder that loud, or seen rain where you really can't see drops, just sheets. It was awesome.

These were taken shortly after the storm on our soi. They were taken on a moving tuk-tuk, so you'll have to be understanding about the quality. This was someone's long driveway.

If you look closely, you might be able to see where the sidewalk is supposed to start.

My cute kids in a taxi this week. I love these moments.

We had a great play date at Jack's friend Omer's home this week. She has a little sister a little younger than Jane too, so there was a playmate for everyone! This is Orly (Omer's mom), Omer and Jack. At this moment, they were watching Scarlett's puppet show.

Janie showing off Omer's high heels. I think she walks better in high heels than I do!

Our friend, Faa, came over this week with some of her friends from school. Jack was in heaven.

Jack is getting pretty creative with his inventions lately. This comes 100% from his Dad, not me. Jeff can fix just about anything with a wire hanger! This is Jack's bow and arrow he did completely on his own with vacuum attachments and some surgical tubing. I love it.

A new fruit Som introduced me to last week, mangosteen. SO yummy! They melt in your mouth.

We spent Friday night at a farewell dinner for Dave with Jeff's coworkers. It was a perfect first exposure to Japanese food because we could just try a little of everything. I even tried sushi for the first time and loved it! It seems that everyone at Jeff's office is wonderful. Unfortunately, I didn't get pictures of everyone, but here is one of the tables. Notice how everyone is happy to be in a picture, it's awesome!

This restaurant was great, but not intended for children in the least. Of course, that means that my kids were being as crazy as ever. We went for several walks to get their wiggles out during the meal. This seemed to help some. At least temporarily.

You wouldn't believe how patient everyone was with Jack and Jane if I told you. But, I have to say, that it wasn't only the kids that were making all the noise! They were definitely provoked by fun playmates! They were in heaven with all the attention, and Jeff and I were grateful for people who were so sweet and understanding with them. This is one of the provokers, Sivaphong. He was flying Jack around the restaurant, lifting him up on his shoulders, setting him on tables, and tickling him like crazy.

Chai entertained Jane for a long time by eating her raisins with chopsticks. She thought this was fascinating! Me too, I'm terrible with chopsticks! To everyone at RSTL: you are wonderful!

This is us with Dave, for the last time! We will miss having our fellow Utahn here with us, but we are excited for what lies ahead for him. I can't wait to hear about his adventures as he heads off to Paris!

On Saturday, we watched the Selway kids while Som and Joel went to Chatuchak with their family who was visiting. We went to Ocean World, then headed home for lunch and playtime. We were quite a sight on the train with four children. Here's our four kids in the truck on the way home from the train.

Saturday night we met Heather, Scarlett, and Jim for dinner to celebrate Scarlett's fourth birthday. It was so fun to let the kids play and visit over dinner. Every time I am with this family (three times this week), I leave in awe. They are so sweet and loving and just seem to be full of life. Heather has become such a great friend. I feel so blessed to have her come into my life at a great time, when I am losing so many close friends. I think the Lord knew what I would need at this point. What a blessing.

The birthday girl with her "husband", Jack. They are SO silly together, I love watching it.

Other good news we received at church today. We met a new family that just moved in on the other side of Sukhumvit road, closer than any other members in the ward! They have twin 4 year old boys and a little girl (14 months old), talk about tailored for us! We are excited to get to know them better when they come over tomorrow for Family Home Evening. They are here with the Embassy along with another family we met today, the Kwans. They have two daughters and also live close by. We look forward to having them as well and getting to know more of our Bangkok family. Our cup runneth over.