Pre-School Games Day

4 years of wonderful

It is hard to believe that Amelia turned 4 years old this past week.  She has turned into such a funny, observant (smart), loving little person who makes me proud to call her mine.  We were so lucky to have my mom here in Thailand (more on that to come) to help with her party and celebration.  That night we sat and decompressed and she said it was a very American birthday and you would have never guessed we were in Bangkok.  It was bitter sweet not having all our family or friends there from back home, but the house was filled with new friends and laughter.

4 going on 14 here!

Having an "American" party was not an easy task.  Amelia requested a Princess Tea Party with a princess cake.  It sounded easy, but with everything being a production to do here, it took time and some creativity.  I aimed for an easy bash, but it got a little more complicated then planned.  Amelia seemed to love it. 

My birthday princess

We had about 17 little kids and their parents at the party.  It was loud and crazy.  Here are a couple princess friends and the most expensive cake I have ever made.  The Betty Crocker mix cost me over $5 because it is a USA import.

 

Being in Thailand you take your shoes off before you go inside.  Our pile of shoes.

Leave it to the kids to have the most fun just playing on a golf cart.

Art class

The art teacher at RIS had a Valentine's art class for staff children after school one day this past week. Liam was able to join and was so excited to wear an art smock and be one of the big kids.

Each kid was given a hunk of clay and were able to use it however their imaginations guided them. Liam made one piece, while Amelia got really creative.

Teacher Appreciation

This week I was able to be part of a ceremony in honor of teachers. This was a first for me; A ceremony honoring me! Teacher appreciation in the past  has come from the building PTA. They would arrange lunches, coffee machines and at one school I taught at a massage chair in the teacher's lounge. I have also worked at schools where the day goes unnoticed due to no one wanting to organize it. The biggest difference between my past teacher appreciation events and the one in Thailand, was this one had a huge emphasis on respect.

The profession of "teacher" in Thailand is held in the same consideration as doctor and lawyer. Parents and students hold a high honor for what we do and have to say. One way of showing this regard is through the wai (bow).

Orchids. Love them.

Part of teacher appreciation is the Wai Kru. This is a special ceremony in which students present flowers to their teachers by sitting on the floor with a bow in deep praise. They then promise to try their best and be good students.

It was a special thing to be able to be apart of this custom. I wish my fellow teachers in the States could feel the way I did after the day.  Maybe I need to bring this tradition back to the American school system when I head back.

Jasmin leis.  My house smelled awesome.

I have decided I need to have fresh flowers around more often.  They are also cheap to buy.  Less then a $1 for a bunch.

Sri Lanka

Children like predictability, schedules/routines and familiarity. When you travel, all of that goes out the window. It can cause some pretty stressful moments where you no longer like them (love them of course). But when you live in an area where getting places you can only imagine is super easy and fiscally reasonable, you book trips in hopes this time will be different (the definition of insanity).

j

Just call Wade and me crazy, we just took our two little ones on a nine day trip around Sri Lanka. We had the time off, we were looking for an adventure, so it all made sense. With late nights, missing naps, changing hotels and traveling the kids did great okay. We survived and one day we will look at the trip with fond memories. In the meantime, we are taking these next couple of days to lay low and recover.

We started our trip in Columbo. From there we headed south to the beaches ofHikkaduwa and Galle/Unawatuna. We saw aDutch fortress, went on a safari and found our safe haven to be the beach. Our best day of the trip was learning to surfin Weligama from my cousin Josh and spending the night eating, laughing,singing and dancing with family. The highlight of the trip was meeting our newbest friend Sampson, a tuk-tuk driver in Galle. He took awesome care of us for four days. He waited at our guest house each morning,took us where ever we wanted, arranged tours and was always there.

By the end we longed for Bangkok and everything we knowthere. It was like when we longed forthe US when we first moved abroad.

Absence truly does make the heart grow fonder.

More pictures from the trip:

Beach time.

Oh some of the thing we saw...

Being blessed at a temple

Sea turtle hatchery.

A hike to a hidden beach then lunch at a popular one.

Having fun with cousins. It was so nice to see family!!!!

Safari in Yala National Park.

Thai Price

Most visitors to Thailand probably don't realize that most things here have two prices: one for Farangs (foreigners) and one for Thais. As an expat living here, it can get discouraging knowing that you are paying 50% or more than your Thai neighbor. I just remind myself that an average Thai does not make much and it helps to keep it fair (maybe).

However, there is a silver lining to it all for us. We were told to wait until I got my work permit before doing some of the local attractions. It was because you just show a copy of that and you got the Thai price.

It is true.

For the cost of one outing, we have been able to go on three and have still saved money over our holiday break. I feel that I am in some secret club when I go to these attractions (water park, zoos, aquarium,...) and get a better deal than the Farang beside me.

The little joys of living abroad.

Enjoy some pictures from the water part of Siam Park. It cost us $10 to get in, instead of the $33 ;).

He LOVES Magnum ice cream bars.

World's largest wave pool.  It is in the Guinness Book.

Wade's softball teammates call him Mr. December.  I wonder why?  (the guy doesn't wear a shirt unless he has too).

We took our neighbor Anna with us.  Wade was glad to have a friend to go on the big slides with :).

Curls for the Girls.

Liam finally got his first haircut. I was going to just let it grow, but it wasn't growing as even as I hoped. He was starting to develop a curly mullet.

Our neighbor's nanny is a trained beautician. She came over after dinner one night and trimmed up the back. I had to bribe him with marshmallows to keep him still. She was able to trim the back and sides, but he got sick of eating and sitting and the top stayed longer.

He still has some curl left on top. What a handsome boy!! He is turning more boy eveyday.