A Terribly Long Exciting Day

Saturday!  This was what we felt in the morning at all the amazingly exciting things we were going to do!  Jump up and down with overwhelming excited joy!

We started the morning with a huge breakfast buffet!

We ate a huge breakfast and then went up to the play land where we played....

Made some new friends....

And took some mighty goofy pictures of ourselves!

Then we went down to the pool - some of us watched...

While some of us swam!

We then all got dressed up to go to a play at the international school.

We got on the Sky Train 

took a little rest on the way...

and headed to school where we then ate some lunch and headed in to our seats 

We got to see the Wizard of Oz...

Fun thing - on the way back on the Sky Train, we had a little projectile baby vomitting... Just flew right out - Jonathan got the majority of it but the floor had to be cleaned a little too...

But then we got to come back and watch more tv with Burger King we picked up on the way back.

A good end to a long, fun-filled day!

This Is My Excited Face!

These are the faces that you get when you put a kid in a ball pit!

Yesterday we left the normal and the heat of home and went downtown to an air conditioned,  kids zoned, fabulous pooled, in room dinnered hotel!

After school pick ups we headed with luggage and kids to the Sky Train where we travelled downtown and to our hotel (sounds easy but it was quite long, hot and tedious... In fact, were probably just doing a taxi home!).

We excitedly explored the hotel, taking a quick peak at the pool...

spending some time in the kids room playing...

And then off to the rooftop pool!

We all got nice and tired and headed back to the tool where we ordered room service and then some of us got in the

tub and waited for the dinner arrival which we then ate while watching tv.

Thank You!

I'm not sure what time I'll have today so I'm taking a few minutes...

Rachel is walking to school to do a drop off with the last two remaining kids and I stayed back to finish hanging laundry and tidy up a bit so Mike isn't flabbergasted by the remnants of a hurricane when he returns.  We got a new mattress pad from IKEA yesterday too so I put that on along with the new sheets from Melanie!:). I washed them before I left home so they smell fabric sheet fresh:)!

We're headed to the hotel this afternoon for a weekend of splashing in a saltwater pool (indoor and outdoor!).  Sleep in air conditioning and order room service!!  I figured they all deserved a little break and I love that I can give it to them!  What kid doesn't enjoy a weekend in a hotel pool!  

Rach is also going to try to find more butterfly bandaids for the wound from my trunk attack!:).  What a great story for a scar -- I was mauled by a springless trunk in Thailand!

And I need to thank all of you so much for the notes you sent!  It makes me so happy to look at the pile that Rach is slowly going through and smiling at!  You have blessed them and you've surely blessed me!  Thank you for not thinking "I can just send an email!" Because an email is not a note that you actually thought about and took the time to write with your hand and a pen!  Extra special! Thank you thank you!

Now back to hot house chores!  Next post - from the pool!

How To Find Your Better Half In Thailand

Busy, but fun day today!

An early early morning that found us all in the car and going to school for international day.  Jonathan's country was Cuba.  Every student was assigned a different country and they had to have a display board and then a food and/or an artifact.  This is what we made the mango bread for (which was amazingly delicious!)

We hung out at the playground for a while after the classroom visit.

And then we headed to the mall because Rachel needed to go to IKEA.  Ah - IKEA!  I couldn't wait to see what Thai people do at IKEA.

The answer to that is ...

Nothing but shop!

No napping on the sofas!

The beds were all well made and unoccupied 

In fact, the only ones who were laying on their backsides on the displays - were us!

So boring!:(

So we had to go over to have some fun at the ice rink!  It's FROZEN fever with my little buddy Sarah so we had to do our own version of Elsa and - whatever the other ones name is!

We skated for a while with our skating helper Mr Penquin.  We took a break....

And then went again!

We bought some sparkly shoes!

And then headed home to meet the a school bus and hang out with some neighborhood friends!

A full, happy day that included tacos...

Amusing bathroom signs:)

Ice cream (btw - this is how to distract babies from their moms!)  Play lands!  Friends!  Air conditioning!!!!!!

Oh - and head gashes due to springless trunks!

One way or another - I'm makin memories in Thailand!

Oh - and if you ever need to find yourself a girl or a guy to share your life with....

Just come to the shoe stores in Thailand!

Two Hot Days Down!

And I'm not counting how many are left because I don't want the time to go any faster than it is!

Monday was my first day here - it was just adjusting and survival in the heat.  Rach and I just sat around unpacking all day and catching up.  We went down to the corner and picked up dinner from a little place  - of course rice:). And then a stir fry that was excellent!  Then bed not long after.

Tuesday - today  - we brought Sarah to school and then took the baby to the hospital for her shots.  It was cool to see inside the hospital that they go to as it is a hodgepodge of nationalities because it's a tourist hospital.  

There's a specific section that you go to just for baby shots.

After, you go out to pay and they have these amusing little sealed cups of water you can take.

We then ate lunch and got coffee (love their drink carry "bags")

and then let the baby play in a play area while we just sat and caught up on life.

My favorite was the little toilet in the bathroom but there was no indication of what it was until you swung the door open on the adult sized stall and were greeted by this mini toilet...

We then picked Sarah up from school.

And headed home to make Mango bread for international day at school tomorrow!

I'm A Little Behind (excuse the pun)

I've been naughty and haven't posted any of my exciting adventure which, they actually have been exciting!

I was back on the road again last week for a conference in Denver (where I saw NONE of the city as we were in the conference hall - but been there done that before so no loss.  Denver is a nice city to visit if interested).  I actually got to meet up with my friend Patti and attend an event at her church the night before I left.

Then I got home and did some office meetings Thursday morning and met Sean to go to this opera at the Lyric that I had really been wanting to see called The Passenger.  It was written back in the 50s but no one wanted to perform it due to subject.  It was based on a true story.  About a woman who was an as guard at Auschwitz and it's like 5 or so years after the war and she's on a cruise with her husband and thinks she sees this woman who was in the concentration camp.  It was a pretty good opera - ended a little strange - felt unconcluded.  But the music and all was good!  The staging was awesome!

Oh - and the company was even better!:)

Right now it's Monday morning in the U.S. And I'm passing time blogging while sitting on a plane in Tokyo waiting to go to Bangkok.  I had about an hour between flights (13 hours from Chicago and now another 7!  Sheesh!) so was able to hit the ladies room (the little behind pun now comes into play:).  I LOVE Japanese toilets!  They're so high text and unassuming - God forbid you ever let anyone know you actually use the toilet!

So you have all these options ... Music, scent, rinsing... oh - and the seats are always heated to just the right temp!  No cold butt shock in this country!!!!  

Right by my gate was a cafe so I got to get a quick Gyoza!  Love it - and it's always way better in Japan!

Now another 7 hours!  At least I'm on another aisle and another bulkhead so no one puts their seat back in my lap!!!!

Happiness Is....

Happiness is when you have a crappy work week because you can't think or breathe and you're miserable because you're so sick and all you want to do is go home...

And you finally get on an earlier, blessed direct instead of connecting flight home and you get home early and your amazing boyfriend has left this for you...

And then Sunday comes and he knows you're still sick and so he makes me breakfast after church...

Happiness... I feel better just being waited on and thought of ... And even more so by whom I'm waited on and thought of!:)