Trailing Tidbits

The girls have had a great start to the week:

Sunday after church they got to play in a park with some brand new yet fast firm friends all afternoon as the Moms and Dads talked.

Monday morning our new homeschooling books arrived and they enjoyed unpacking and exploring everything.  Jasmin immediately wanted to do all the science experiments in the box, and Grace sat down an read straight through a dinosaur book. After that, the boxes and packing paper were more attractive.

Monday evening we went to some friend's house for supper, where they got to play with old friends until nearly 10 pm - which was when Moms surfaced from adult talk long enough to realize the play was becoming rather hysterical...

And today they got an extra play at the mall's playground as well!

The rest of us?

Mommy has finally seen a doctor and has a referral to an OB-Gyn for June 5 if Hu3 plans to stay put that long (he has already dropped).  She is also trying hard to work out a good daily schedule that encourages the girls to play outside in the sun instead of the basement bedrooms!

Daddy is a busy as usual with reconnecting with people and still trying to keep up with his computer work schedule too.

Comparison Just for Kicks

May 3, 2006 Waiting for Grace, born 2 days later.

 

 May 21, 2012 waiting for baby Hu #3 - due June 16.

(Jasmin came a week earlier than the earliest due date given, so we don't have a "hand on tummy" picture of waiting for her birth.  At least I know I didn't wear the same overalls since we were in Chiang Mai and it would have been far too hot!!)

Monday we went to Dow's Lake for the last day of the tulip festival.  We had planned to simply picnic and then walk along the lake front to see the tulips.  Unfortunately, most of the tulips were gone, and the remaining ones definitely past their best.  This was a new thought to Grace, that flowers will only bloom for a short time. Both girls were quite disappointed, until we looked around and found other fun things to do.

We started off with our picnic so we wouldn't have to lug it around with us - and it was more or less lunch time! 

 

 The girls didn't eat all that much, they were more interested in the inviting pine tree nearby...

 ...and it got even more fun when others joined in

- especially when they finally got Daddy in the tree with them!

And then better still, flying leaps from the tree to Daddy. Almost as good as jumping into a pool Jasmin whispered to Mommy afterwards (they miss being able to go swimming any time).

 We kept seeing kids with face paint and Canada flags, so we went looking for the source - and found loud dance music from around the world, and tucked into a little back corner a craft tent where the girls painted wooden tulips.  True to form, Jasmin came out with paint only on her hands and one spot on her shirt but Grace had paint up to her elbows and all over the front of her shirt!


After a clean up, what else to do but eat "ice cream"?








 We looked at the paddle boats, but the line up was too long to bother waiting. We were more than ready for home, so home we went.  A nice day out.

 And perhaps all that walking was useful - baby dropped the next day so now Mommy can breathe and eat better :o)

Ottawa First Days

  

 Other than finally getting over jet lag with late nights, early mornings and naps, we have been enjoying the not-too-hot sun, lots of green space, and reconnecting with people.  

 

Although Jasmin had had more than enough of meeting people on Sunday at church by the time we left for lunch!

 Finally being allowed to chalk was a great success! Mommy had bought the chalk in Bangkok, thinking that the parking area left for kids play would be perfect for chalking.  But the first time we tried, we were stopped and the small bits drawn immediately washed away.  So to now be allowed was special.

The girls drew a long picture of flowers, mountains, forest, animals, sun, sky, all sorts!  We had planned to add to it a bit at a time, but it rained yesterday so now we have to start again.

THE Trip and Toronto

THE Trip was uneventful in all ways - the best kind :o)  Mommy was pretty uncomfortable most of the way, but the girls traveled extremely well. Even Grace, who was pretty miserable at times with a cold.

Arriving in Toronto, Mommy wanted nothing more than to lie down instead of sitting and standing, and the rest were more than ready for proper sleep in beds also.

Grace managed to stay awake on the drive from the airport,
but Jasmin didn't.

If fact, we all slept the day away, setting us off on a wrong foot for beating jetlag quickly, but there was no way we could stay awake for the whole day.









But after that, we had a busy few days enjoying family and green Canada. Grace had lots of chances to practice her new-found skill of eating with chopsticks, Jasmin enjoyed foods that we usually don't eat, Mommy enjoyed not having to do much of anything, and Daddy spent a busy few days catching up with people and with as much sleep as possible.

One afternoon we went to a nearby park to feed the ducks.  Only we didn't find many ducks, but this Canada goose family kept us entertained.  Especially the dad, who kept chasing off another 2 geese and any other bird that dared to come close.  So this family got a lot of bread :o)  We managed to get pretty close, despite the vigilant dad, though we did get hissed at.

Perspective changes things a lot. I never thought I would consider Toronto as a beautiful, green, quiet, spacious place, but coming right out of Bangkok does make it look that way to us!

One evening TaPo treated us to a Japanese meal that is cooked in front of you.  The chefs do some interesting tricks, including this onion volcano.  Jasmin wasn't to pleased to have fire flaring that close, but we all did enjoy the show and the food.







We took the bus up to Ottawa instead of driving a rental car.  A very good move as we could sleep, use wifi, and move around as we wanted.  It was so good to know that we are done with packing and moving on in a few days!

Last Days in Bangkok

 

We took a day out of our last week to take the girls to Ocean World with friends for the last time.  They needed something focused on them for a break!  That day there was a few class trips going through, and when one from an international school showed up, the class gained 4 more students as Grace, Jasmin, Ari, and Ella tagged along.  Grace especially wormed her way in, asking and answering questions and stuck with the class until almost the end of the tour!

It was a particularly good day to visit, as there was also an underwater dance show to see.  All the interaction of characters (there were some not in the water) was in fast Thai, so we didn't get the story line at all, but the underwater dance was pretty neat to watch.

Enjoying the empty cupboards

Grace is 6!

Friday we make the cake - bought cupcakes and iced them ourselves.  Grace wanted a turtle cake, so we tried.  But we were rather limited in color choices, so I'm not sure if anyone noticed that it was an animal, let alone a turtle!  Still, the girls had fun decorating it and showing it off - and eating it of course.

Interestingly,  Saturday we had a rainy day.  Mommy never dreamed of having to deal with a rainy day party in early May in Bangkok, but there it was: all morning sudden showers and grey cloudy skies.  With so many guests, and a mostly packed up house, and indoor party wasn't really a possibility.  So we prayed and went ahead with the pool party planned.  At least is was nicely cool :o)
The kids all played in the pool for about 2 hours before the sky threatened rain again so we called them out to have the cake and presents.  We got most of the way through eating before the rain came... then it was a mad dash for cover - the first place available was the ground beside the playground.  Even though there were picnic tables a little further on, the eating resumed right there on the ground and it wasn't worth moving again.

 

So, presents were opened right there in the middle of people passing to and fro - but the kids didn't mind (and there was plenty of room for people to go around), so why not?  As usual, Grace had plenty of curious help in opening presents.  She got some great gifts - and everyone remembered that we are leaving on Saturday so no big gifts.

Grace's proclaimed favorite gift was the Bible Daddy gave her.  A real "grown-up" Bible with her name in the front.  She told us "I'm going to read it all, and when I'm done I'll read it again all my life"!  May she do so indeed.

Last Stop Before Home - Cambodia part 3

Day 12

On the road again.  Somehow, despite it being the same van company and the same roads, the trip back to Phnom Penh doesn't seem to be quite so long or bumpy.  Still, the girls sleep/drowse most of it.

The afternoon is once again spent with friends in the fish-pond-turned-swimming-pool as the power goes off minutes after we arrive. Daddy spends the afternoon trying to catch up with people we missed last week.

Day 13

Back to the all too familiar world of airports and airplanes.  We get to the gate an hour early so the computing begins - I guess we all missed having the internet readily available?  Mommy was quite content to lie down and rest though!

We almost missed our plane though!  As boarding time approached and the lounge stayed empty, Mommy got suspicious. And sure enough, we were at the wrong gate - and the agent there couldn't tell us where to go! So we had to rush back to where the halls divided to read the monitor, and then hurry off to the new gate.  That was when we discovered just how hard it is for Mommy to run or even walk fast :O)  But we made it - just about the last ones on the plane.

Day 14 - 17

Last stop before home:ThangThorn Retreat Center for a working retreat - 45 min up in the hills above Chiang Mai, so deliciously cool after the cruel heat of Cambodia.  It might have been around 30 at noon, but even that seemed quite wonderful to us. A great place for the girls to spend a weekend! There were:

Butterflies to follow and admire

fish to feed (and to try catch barehanded!)

A mantis that we found in our cabin - it jumped on Jasmin's front - as big as Mommy's hand

rabbits to try touch and to feed

a river to play in

with sand to build with too!

and even an extraordinary bathroom to explore.

Not to mention the tree house, the tame parakeet, huge rocks to climb, and lots of staff to treat them to drinks and snacks :o)  Daddy had to work most of the time, but we did get in some fun family times as well.  We all came home with a new kind of insect bite, but it was well worth it.

Night of the 17th day

We traveled back to Bangkok on the overnight sleeper train.  That was a very good move!  It is a great way to travel and get home rested.  The girls were pretty excited about the whole experience - until we took an extra hour and a half to get through Bangkok to our station going inch by inch, it felt.

Then, home!  It felt so good to be home! 

Cambodia part 2

Day 6 and 7

 

 It turns out that this is the hottest hot season in years, not just an occasional unusually hot day.  It is wonderful to be welcomed into the McCollough's home before we head up to Siem Reap. Their three girls and our two played hard all day each day - often for hours in their fish pond-turned-swimming pool, especially during the times the power cut out!

The only thing we really don't enjoy is their roosters' tendency to crow periodically from 3-7am right outside our bedroom!

Day 8

We took a minivan bus up to Siem Reap.  A simple enough, "smooth" journey.  Smooth in happenings and whatnot, but the road was anything but smooth! Grace was particularly frustrated that she couldn't easily use the Kindle, read, or even sleep because of the bumps, weaving in and out of traffic, and the sudden slow downs, etc.  Mommy was more than relieved to arrive - the last hour or so was just endurance.  Again, it is wonderful to be welcomed into a friend's house! This time with two boys and a dog to keep the girls occupied. Again, water is a major pastime in an after school water fight.

Day 9

Late afternoon church and supper out for Sunday.  We learn that the recent temperatures have been hovering around 45C.  Not sure if it is good to know or not!  We are drinking so much that we are quickly depleting the Bowden's water supply.  We call for another delivery only to discover that the water company is out of water for a day or two!!  So we boil water for the next few days. We arrange transport to Angkor Wat for tomorrow, all the while thinking we must be crazy in this heat.

Day 10

God is most gracious to us and the day dawns over cast and an estimated 20 degrees cooler than yesterday.  So much so, it is almost cool in the tuktuk on the way to the national park.

The girls start off with much curiosity and much enthusiasm,

 but soon it is hotter and massive, repetitive ruins are only interesting for so long.  The best part for them was rock hopping on the fallen stones laid out for rebuilding.

 It is hardly a place to visit comfortably 7 months pregnant in the hot season, but we are glad we went.  It was fascinating to see the expansiveness all the way down to the minute detail of wall decorations carved into the rock.








We had fun with one building full of small doorways.  Mommy almost didn't fit through!

We made it until just after lunch, and then went home to escape from the heat much to the relief of the girls who were past appreciating yet more ruins!