Summer fun

So, it was Jack's first week off of school and how much fun was I? Not much! By Tuesday night I started to feel a bit more normal, and by Thursday, I was almost back to my old self. I still tried to do most of the things I had planned for the week, although mostly tried to stay closer to home.

I decided it would be fun to really focus on some of the things that fascinate Jack, throughout the Summer. He loves to look things up online, but I've felt like we haven't had enough time to really learn enough about the things he wants to, so the summer is the perfect time! This week we learned a lot about Volcanoes. We have an awesome book about them, we made volcanoes on paper, colored pictures of volcanoes, watched eruptions online, and the highlight by far was making our own out of playdough and making it erupt over and over and over again. I'm scared to think what will happen when I decide we need to throw it away!

We started researching bugs, and even found a fun and informative bug book the other day that we've loved! Jack's the driving force behind all this stuff, but I'm loving it just as much as he is. It's fascinating to learn about a ladybug's spots, how many stomachs an ant has, or why wolf spiders are our friends. Who knew?

Our friends, the Lee family, recently found out they have to move back to Washington D.C., and they leave this week! They've only been here for less than a year, and the news was sudden, so I definitely wasn't ready to see them go! Rachael has been a good friend since they first arrived. She's one of those people who is just easy to be friends with. Easy to talk with, easy to get together with, and easy to relate to. They're leaving a big hole in our ward, but we're hoping their new ward will appreciate what they're getting!

Jack is always SO excited to get together with the Lee's because he LOVES Cameron. He always wants to hold him, walk with him, and make him laugh. Cameron is such a happy kid and just smiles and laughs at everything Jack does! Jane and McKaila are a lot closer in age than the boys, but they really don't get along for the most part. This picture was taken when we had dinner together this week, and we were all shocked at how well they did that evening, because normally there is lots of screaming, spitting, and pulling. To say the least, they don't bring out the best in each other. Sad, but true. I'm hoping this night was a turning point, as I'm watching Cameron and McKaila tomorrow while the movers are packing their stuff! This picture reflects well how much fun they had together that night.

Remember Narissa? She and Jack have been such close friends since the first day they were together. On one of my very first posts, I have a picture of them sitting together in a car cart at a grocery store. They have always gotten along perfectly and never seem to get sick of each other! Anyway... Narissa's family moved into a new place and it is beautiful! The pool area is better than any resort I could imagine. There are several different kiddy pools with fountains, a water slide, and a lazy river. It's amazing! We went over last week and again this week and we always have a fun time with them. Jane and Alena get along really well too, but unfortunately I didn't get a good shot of them. I think this is one of my all time favorites.

The next day, we had Jack's other girly friend, Scarlett, come spend some time with us. They ended up swimming in our pool in their underwear. It was so fun to watch them be so silly together, but also how grown up they've become in just their one year of school together. I wished I'd taken a picture of the two of them this time. Jack's been so blessed to make such wonderful friends here!

We packed in our playdates this week, if you can't tell! Jack's friend, Kazuya, is moving back to Japan next month, so we are trying to get in some fun playtime before he goes. It's a little bit of a challenge when he's in summer school almost full time everyday (which is pretty common here), but we took him on Saturday while his mom was working on moving stuff, and we loved having him with us! He is SUCH a good kid! We went to this fun new bookstore/library in the mall, which had an awesome area for the kids. This picture's terrible, but it kind of shows the idea of this wall of honeycomb-like structure with the tall bookshelves. They loved climbing all over this to get books.

Jane found a little "pod" for her and her friends to read in. It was pretty high, so I had to lift her, but she thought it was the best.

Kazuya is such a great kid. He and Jack are super silly together, and both really affectionate, so it was fun to see them walk with their arms around each other, hold hands, or wrestle. I love this stage, and I am sad for when it fades and they are too cool for that!

It still amazes me that here in Bangkok, I have family! Isn't it such a small world? How many of my family members are living overseas? Very few. Yet, two of us are living in the same city! We've loved spending time with Rikker and Kaw over here. It's especially been a treat to watch them go from a young married couple, to pregnant, to parents of an infant, and now experienced parents of a 7 month old! Their little Leslie is so darling and happy! They just returned from the States two weeks ago, and since they left Thailand her schedule's been off, but you'd never know it based on our experience with her tonight. She was an angel the entire time they were here, even with Jack clobbering her the whole time! I don't think he got more than three feet from her the entire evening. He loved holding her, getting her toys, crawling with her, and all the slobbery zubbers he could get! I thought this was a good one of Rikker and Kaw, but Jack was making funny faces (I wonder where he gets that?) and little Leslie's eyes were closed!

Here's one where you can see her big, beautiful eyes and cute grin. Rikker and Kaw are such sweet parents and it will be fun to see what character traits Leslie develops from the both of them. There are certainly plenty of good ones to choose from!

I've been thinking a lot this week about how our time here is quickly drawing to a close. We're starting to attempt the planning of our last several months here as we try to fit in the things we have yet to do. Thailand is not a huge country, but somehow two years hasn't been enough time for us to see it all when we have to worry about actually living, not just being tourists! It's hard for me to think about closing the door on this chapter of our life. I'm so grateful for what a fantastic opportunity this has been, but in many ways, it's made me hunger for more. Until our time here, I didn't realize it, but I was like a person who's never been outdoors before. Traveling during my college summers gave me my first peek out the window. Living abroad has let me get out on the porch, smell the air, and feel the wind. From the porch, I can see for miles and miles all the things I have yet to see and experience. There is just so much out there for us to see, so many people we haven't met, and before I was here, I don't think I realized it.

Catch up

Jeff mentioned that we had a full Sunday and that is why I am (again!) late with my usual Sunday post. Little did we know that on top of being exhausted from a busy Sunday (isn’t Sunday supposed to be a day of rest? I’ve got to work on that!), I was also getting sick. Not fun. I had about 24 hours of fever and terrible aching. As I sent Jeff off to work on Monday morning, I didn’t know how I was going to cope. Plus, I felt terrible because I was supposed to go to IDC (Immigration Detention Center) with him to take the Dhakals things they’ve been without for too long. A dear man in the ward suddenly called Jeff up, and asked if he could visit the Dhakal family with him. In no time, it was arranged for him to meet Jeff on Tuesday with all the supplies for the Dhakal family, plus some serious medication for me. Thanks to him, we knew the Dhakal family would be taken care of, and Jeff could arrange to come home and take care of me! What a blessing!

Now that I'm feeling a bit better, I'm ready to start playing catch up! Because of our fun trip to Khao Yai last weekend, I forgot to post a couple of my favorite pictures from the previous week. Jack had a short day, so we had some extra play time together and made the most of it by heading to the pool! Jane loves water, like I've said a million times, but our pool is COLD, so she mostly just plays beside it with her dishes, or around it with Jack. I don't care what she does, she has fun!

I loved this series of my two together. Very typical of trying to capture a decent picture of them together. Trying to do what mom asks...

getting a little silly...

and I've lost them completely, but who cares? I LOVE watching them together!

There have been a few things lately that have indicated that maybe we've been in Bangkok too long. For one, for a split second, while the kids were playing in the pool (above) and I was sitting beside the pool watching, playing, and reading my book, I actually thought, "I sure wish someone would come and take my order for a smoothie!". Usually, when we're relaxing by a pool somewhere in Thailand, that's what happens, but I'm embarrassed that I'm getting used to it.

Another one is that it seems totally normal to me here to take many of my clothing repairs to someone else, rather than doing them myself. I've repaired a few things, replaced buttons, fixed a seam, but almost anything beyond that, I just take it to the streets! This lady replaced a zipper, took one of Jeff's shirts down a size, and repaired some pants, all for 100 baht (~$3)! Just can't beat it.

I know I probably mention "mom guilt" way too often, but feel it when my kids are completely unaware of normal American things... like Slurpees. We were walking along and it was really hot, so I marched Jack into a 7-11 for water, but I found a Slurpee machine! I was thrilled, and immediately started filling one up. Jack stood in awe and finally asked, "Mom, what is that?". As he realized how delicious it was, he kept asking, "what do you call this again?". Sigh. I felt it again when Jack asked me the other day what hot chocolate was. Double sigh. Have we been here too long, or am I just not doing my part as an American mother?

So, moving on. Jane was invited to a trial ballet class for 2 year olds. I thought it would be a total joke, but honestly, she loved it and did really well! I was doing most of it with her, so I didn't get many action shots, but it was a fun time, and who can not enjoy seeing Jane in tights and a leotard. She was the most beautiful ballerina there!

Jane especially loved running around in circles and using all the fun props. Wings, tiaras, scarfs, and baskets with petals. She is such a girl, and I'm loving every minute of it.

These are the Flammers from Logan, Utah. They are in our ward, but we've never had a chance to get to know them because they live about 11 hours south of Bangkok. They come up when they can, but it is quite a trek! They are about 18 months into a 27 month contract with the Peace Corps, and I am completely in awe of what they are doing down there! I like to think that if Jeff and I didn't choose to start our family so soon, we would have done something as adventurous and selfless as they have, but we both agreed that we probably wouldn't have had the guts! So, here's to people who leave their comfort zones way behind!

One of our biggest adventures this week was just getting home! We got off the train and it was raining - no big deal, right? It wouldn't have been if we could have gotten a truck to take us down our soi, but they were all full! So, rather than waiting another 10 minutes, we chose to just walk it. We knew what we were in for, so Jeff put Jane on his shoulders, Jack was willing to swim, and I rolled up my pants, which just happened to be white. So smart. At one point, the water was up to Jack's behind. Thank goodness for an adventurous little boy! If you can't tell, they actually are walking on the sidewalk.

So, how do you celebrate the 4th of July in Thailand? Lucky for me, I ran into an American at the Chokchai farm last weekend who let us know about an awesome Independence Day Picnic put on by the American Chamber of Commerce. I was thrilled! We spent Saturday afternoon at a park full of Americans, which felt really weird to begin with, but eventually it felt just right. I got to eat delicious Mexican food, Jeff and Jack got hot dogs off the grill, and Jane ate free Dairy Queen ice cream. Hey, it's the 4th of July!

They had soldiers in uniform standing at attention for a while, and whether it was intended or not, they turned into picture props. Mostly for the Thais who were there, they just took turns standing with them and taking pictures. I watched these young men have absolutely no expression through all of this and wondered if they were loving or hating it. Jack was in awe, and as I explained to him what they do and why they do it, I got pretty emotional. It was nice to watch understanding dawn on my little boy as he realized these men are real life heroes.

I didn't really want to pose by the soldiers (give them a break!), but the kids were excited to salute like them!

Do you think Jane likes Jack or something?

They had a nice program with the soldiers posting the colors, the singing of the national anthem, and the ambassador reading a part of the Declaration of Independence. It was nice to have something that felt familiar on one of the best holidays of the year. I missed our usual traditions with the family, and this didn't quite replace it, but it was nice to have something to help us celebrate being Americans. What a blessing it is!

The park was full of games, treats, and blow up toys to play on. Jack did everything else, then had his sights set on this one. He waited in line for almost 45 minutes to climb this big blow-up climbing wall. When he got up there to do it, the pegs were way too far apart for him, which probably explains why everyone else in the line was at least 3 years older than he was. But, this kid was determined! He did his very best, and after getting a bit frustrated, Ming Wei, who had just shown up, grabbed the rope and pulled him the rest of the way up! Way to go, Jack!

The big finale of the day was the fireworks show, which was amazing! I thought it would be a nice, small show with maybe a few overhead. Oh, no. It was amazing! They were huge, and right over our heads, and went on forever! I was so impressed, and once I thought of it, realized I shouldn't have been surprised. Americans aren't known for doing things "small". Jeff, Jack, and I loved the fireworks, but Jane wasn't too excited about the noise, poor girl. She was so looking forward to them, but I forgot to warn her about the noise! She probably would have enjoyed them more from a little bit farther away! Notice Jack's feet in this picture. Muddy and shoeless. His shoes were nowhere to be found after the climbing wall, and the water from the dunk take flooded a good part of the park, so we were all a little muddy on the way home. It's been almost 2 years here that we have left our shoes unattended all over the place, and the place where his shoes go missing is at an event full of Americans! Someone must not know the rule of leaving with the shoes that you came with.

On to Sunday. Yes, it was busy! But, in a good way. We met a family at church from Phoenix, AZ, and invited them for dinner. It was fun to try a couple of new recipes (I don't do this very often right now!), and have some new company! Scott comes here on business a lot, but we'd never met. He just happened to bring his wife, Dana, and daughter Janice with him this time. Jack was totally enthralled with Janice the entire time and she was amazing with him! After we put a completely exhausted Janie to bed, Jeff and I were able to have a nice visit with Scott and Dana.

So now that you've spent all this time reading about our week, I hope you haven't regretted it. I realize I'm super wordy, but in some ways, I'd rather write more than less, just so I don't forget. I know myself, and I know I remember things better when I write them down. Although I am feeling better, I'm still not at the top of my game, but hoping I can be soon so I can really enjoy having Jack home with Janie and I full time for just 2 short months. I'm looking for fun science, art, and cooking ideas to fill our summer time with, so any ideas you've got, or websites you use, pass them along!

So... we're moving to Australia.

Just kidding. After the long day we've had, I'm giving Mindy an official break from the blog tonight. Check back in a day or two.