Our Social Butterfly

Carston, our quiet and often timid 7-year old, has blossomed into a social butterfly here in Thailand.  I can't help but chuckle every time he asks for yet another playdate (which is every single day multiple times).  Of course I prayed that all of my children would make good friends here in Thailand, but my biggest concern was Carston.  He is very easy to get along with and never argues with kids, except his brother and sister, but he is very quiet and had to leave his best friend and cousin behind in the US.  As Jesus took the 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish and fed thousands, He answered my prayer for Carston 10-fold.

Since I expressed concern to his new teacher, she has shared the following about Carston.  Carston is so blessed to have such a sensitive, caring teacher who shares special moments of his day with us!

School Day1: Carston had a good first day.  He was really quiet but he did not seem upset.  I am going to be very mindful of his needs and keep an eye on him.  Sometimes when boys are quiet and soft spoken it is easy to miss when they are having a hard time.  From what I could tell he did not have any issues today and he seemed happy.  During math exploration time he was building and sharing with the other boys in his class.  He really enjoyed listening to stories and his face just lit up when there was a surprise ending to "First day Jitters." 

School Day16:   Carston is doing so great!  He is raising his hand in class, chatting with his friends and working really hard.  My best moment with Carston this week was yesterday.  We were doing  reading groups and we were reading the book Milwaukee Cows.  I told the kids a joke about cows going to the mooovie theater.  Then another little girl told a joke about pasta.  It cracked Carston up! He was trying so hard not to really break into a tummy laugh.  I am such a loud extroverted person it is always fun for me to work with more introverted kids.  I love the way they share their personality on their own terms.

Here are some pics of Carston with some of his new friends.  

One of his first friends here

Playing basketball with neighbor

Two classmates he talks about all the time (I made it a point to get their phone numbers at back to school night)

First sleepover (cracking up to America's Funniest Videos)

Dining with friend at Que Pasa before sleepover

No pictures on the wall = Bouncing the ball off of every single wall in the house

Ready, Set, Bounce!  Who can bounce it the highest?  And remember how high our ceilings are.
Carston is very blessed to have many other 1st grade boys on our street.

It's Not all Massages

For those of you who think I'm becoming completely spoiled and inept living a life of leisure, I want to assure you that I am remaining productive and involved in meaningful activities.

Last week at a glance...

Monday - After the Boxes 

This is an outreach of the church I attend that assists in helping newcomers adjust to life in Bangkok. They disseminate very helpful information and take us on outings as a way of making us feel comfortable in this new environment.  More to come on our first outing on River Taxi to Bangkok.

Tuesday - Volunteer in Camryn's Class

Camryn's teacher welcomes parent volunteers in her class, so I thought it would be a great opportunity to help out since prior to now, I was unable to with little ones at home.  At the age of 9, Camryn was less than thrilled to hear that.  Upon overhearing me tell someone about this opportunity, she emailed me her feelings regarding it, emoticon and all.

I heard you because i'm in the other room and your not goingin my class.

After I had been there about an hour cutting and organizing papers, she approached me and asked, "Are you going to stay here the whole day?" (I think you can figure out her tone) without me saying)   Fortunately, I was with another mom, so I wasn't the only crazy parent in the room.  She did survive the 1.5 hours I was there, so hopefully she'll get used to my presence once a week.  

Wednesday - Bible Study

I have already thoroughly enjoyed studying this week and then spending time discussing God's word with a group of women.  Plus, I don't feel as guilty sitting around reading the Bible while someone cooks, cleans, and does my laundry, as I would sitting around reading a Danielle Steel novel :)

Thursday - Skipped PTA Meeting to go to Dumpling Making Class 
I had planned to go to the PTA meeting that morning, but when the opportunity arose to learn how to make dumplings in someone's home, I couldn't refuse!  The woman who hosted the class is from China, and while her parents visit, her dad offers a class on how how make authentic dumplings.  He instructed us in Mandarin, while his daughter translated.  Totally worth skipping the PTA meeting!  

Our wonderful teacher!

Pork and cabbage to fill the dumpling

Instructing me on proper technique for kneading the dough.  Apparently I need to use a lot of muscle!

And Voila!  All we need to do now is boil them.  Austin and Camryn especially like the finished product!

Friday - Visit Camryn's class for Writing Celebration and stay to help with reading time.  I think she was okay with me visiting this time, since many other parents were there.

Camryn wrote about our trip to Bangkok.

We toasted their achievement with a brownie.

So as you can see, my mornings were so full (I did also grocery shop twice), I did not have time to exercise this week before the kids got home from school.  Once they get home, it's homework, playdates, pool, soccer practices, gymnastics, etc.

After a week this hectic, I really need a massage!  Oh, and here I am with my friends getting an hour long foot massage for 250 Baht (that's 8 whole dollars!)  I should confess, this actually happened Thursday.

I felt awkward taking a picture of the masseuse while she was actually massaging my feet.  Oh, they also come to your home and offer the same service for the same price.

Fruit Glorious Fruit

We are thoroughly enjoying the variety of new fruits here in Thailand.  Below are a handful that we've eaten on a regular basis.

Mangosteen - (Jason and Camryn love this) comes from a tropical evergreen tree.

Longan or Lamyai – The consistency reminds me of grapes and we’ve had two different kinds, so I am honestly not sure if both pictures below are in fact lamyai.  One has a little black pit or seed and a crisper shell, while the other has no seed and a softer skin.  I read that though Longan originated in China, Thailand is now the largest producer.

Bowl full of mangosteen and Lamyai

Mangosteen

Looks kind of like a brain when opened

Lamyai

Dragonfruit – To me this looks like white kiwi when opened and is very mild in flavor, but Austin and I like it.

Pomello –  This fruit reminds me of a grapefruit except it is not tart.  It is a little sweet, but very mild and a healthy source of energy.  Austin loves pomello!  Pomello is very difficult to open and peel, which is why most people just buy it already prepared.

Opening pomello is an arduous process...there's the tough green skin, then the thick white layer under the skin, then the additional thin peel (kind of like on an orange) that covers the fruit.  Sharp knife required!

Pomello

Rambutan – Jason would describe these as red and green sea urchins.  Personally, I think they look like a character from Fraggle Rock.  They have a pit that looks like an almond and are the consistency of a plum, but similar in flavor to longan.

Can you pick out the rambutan (or one that most looks like a character from Fraggle Rock)?

Rose Apples – These come in three colors:  white, pink and red.  They have a lighter apple flavor, but have a higher water concentration and are very crisp.  The picture above has a white rose apple.

Mangos – I think everyone knows what these look like, but they taste so much better here!  I don’t really have a picture because Jason devours them.

Bananas – We all know what these look and taste like, but have you ever seen them growing on your street?

Exploring Restaurants

Where to begin!  We have thoroughly enjoyed eating the food here.  Where else can you get a delicious Thai dish for $2?  Below are some of the restaurants we’ve been to our first couple of weeks.

River Tree House (May be one of our favorite places)

This restaurant is situated by the Chao Phraya River which makes for a great atmosphere.  We were shocked when the bill came and saw that all 16 of us, eating family style, ate for $100.  We had wing bean salad (my new favorite salad), numerous Thai dishes, and steamed red snapper.  Oh and many of the kids got delicious watermelon drinks.

Wing Bean Salad (my new favorite salad)

Coconut soup (delicious!)

Red snapper (head included)

Hard to capture the beauty of this restaurant since there was a huge storm and all the shades had to be pulled down.

Cabbages and Condoms (I really must explain this one)

Needless to say, we did not bring the kids to this restaurant, located in the heart of Bangkok.  When Jason told me that he visited this restaurant back in March, I was appalled.  It’s a very nice restaurant with a pretty atmosphere, and not at all some sort of brothel as the name might suggest.  Many know that Bangkok is sadly a place where sex trafficking and prostitution is rampant.   This restaurant’s mission is to promote and provide safe sex, and while we know that abstinence is the best choice and God’s design outside of marriage, many of these women live a life with no hope and limited choices.  Many of the restaurant’s proceeds go towards the prevention of HIV and other venereal diseases. 

Can you guess what the chandeliers are made of?

And this is why they do feel their mission is important...

This girl was doing the hula hoop in a side alley, which I thought was kind of fun, until I found out her real purpose.  Apparently this is her way of soliciting you know what.  It's very sad.

Paradise Dynasty

This Chinese restaurant located in Siam Paragon Mall in Bangkok was such a fun experience complete with our own sofa for relaxing and a lazy susan to rotate the food.  We enjoyed the extra perk of being seated in the center room, though we’re wondering if the intent was more to cage in our children and protect the rest of the patrons.  This place specializes in soup dumplings that were out of this world.

Resting before our big meal

Our own private room

Experimenting with chopsticks

These noodles are really long!

Austin loved all of the food!

I loved the mango dessert!

Speaking of out of this world…this is how the boys used their chopsticks.

Sushi soup place (Can't remember the actual name)

This is a really cool buffet style place in the local mall, which is a short golf cart ride away.  How they prepare the soup reminds me of a fondue style for preparing meat and vegetables, though each person has his/her own individual bowl.  You can request basic chicken broth or a spicy broth, and then just start grabbing plates of meat, veggies, fish, and some other unidentified foods off of a conveyor belt.

The options snake around the room on a conveyor belt.

Soup is cooking!

Not just a soup place...you can choose shrimp tempera, wantons, and california rolls from a food bar

Hyatt 

Though this does not sound as exotic, since most people have probably stayed in a Hyatt at some point in their lives, Jason and his coworkers would not stop raving about a dish called khao soi.  In fact, we he visited in March, he came home and did a pretty good job making the dish himself.  Since then, he has frequented the Hyatt just to eat khao soi.  So, I had to taste what all this fuss was about, and I concur that it is delicious.  Jason describes it as "velvet in your mouth."