Imagination

Such a delight having children with big imaginations...

On Wednesday a package arrived from some dear friends in Iowa. Thank you so very very much Avitt family! Inside were "Birthmas" presents for the kids and boy were they thrilled!

 For D there was a fun craft activity and C received a Melissa & Doug Sushi set. C loves sushi of various types and has been serving the family California rolls with ginger slices and wasabi for the last 5 days. D got in on the fun too and combined C's Japanese restaurant with her own current interests.

ISB kids had Thursday and Friday off from school so we made sure to spend some of that free time in the pool. The kids took their floating pirate island and water toys and had an elaborate pretend-play session going on with pirates and mermaids. T and I laughed at the names they've given to the pirates, "Dave" and "John" were the cleverest of pirate names don't you think!?

Finally, as I was washing D's hair today and offering a free scalp massage, she informed me that she and her friends spent some of their recess time this week playing "spa." 3 of the girls took turns laying on the playground bench and receiving a massage from their friends. Hilarious! I wish I could have been there to take a photo. I wonder if it's time to take D in for her first official foot massage. :) Will be a great way to spend some QT together!

What a Weekend!

Ever heard someone say the need a vacation from their vacation? Well I needed a weekend after our weekend today. It was all really fun stuff, but it was all back to back, only spending enough time at home to make a mess of the place. But boy did we have fun!

Saturday was spent fishing with friends at Bung Samran Fishing Park. This was a fun family excursion and we were all glad we braved the heat to sit by the water and catch some whoppers!

 The bungalow is staffed with 2-3 men that bait your hook (with a ball of bread crumbs, see above) and cast for you. We sit a few minutes, wait for the bite, and whoever cares to have a turn brings the fish in. The bungalow men then help you scoop the fish out of the water with their net and they remove the hook.

We pose for photos and then they toss him back in. Awesome!

The day ended at the Schottlers house with a bbq. 9 happy kids ate, played and watched dvds together while 6 tired (and happy) parents shared beers and laughs. Awesome night guys!

Sunday was church downtown and a great reunioin with a friend from our Oklahoma days. JR was in town for a few days and we were able to catch up with him and enjoy a great dinner out at the Hajime Robot Restaurant. Japanese buffet served by robots! LOVED IT! Order your food on the touch screen and the robot delivers to your table and takes away your empty dishes! We made sure he came plenty of times to deliver our dinner!

Bon voyage JR! Until next time!

What Am I Doing Instead of Blogging?

I keep meaning to write a new blog post to keep you readers up to date. But, there's this new thing I've been doing. Reading! Well, I've always been reading but I downloaded The Help by Kathryn Stockett, last week and I can't stop. It's sucking up all my free time! It will end in a couple hundred more pages and I'll be back to blogging more regularly, but until then go buy, borrow, or download this fantastic novel!

Oh, since I'm sitting here and the camera isn't far away I'll include a couple of fun photos from our dinner out with friends on Saturday night. We feasted on delightful Thai cuisine!

And, if you must know, while I waited for the photos to upload, I read my book. :)

Fabulous First Day

It was hard getting out of bed this morning, and her new shoes felt a little stiff, but D has begun first grade!

En route.

Beside the bulletin board.

With Mrs. Hardman.

 And, who's hot stuff this year getting to hang the big playground before the bell rings? First graders!

The report from D this afternoon- She could tell me the names of all the kids who sit at her table. The best thing was seeing a familiar friend when she went to Spanish class and the worst thing was that her new Spanish teacher isn't as funny as her old Spanish teacher. Not too bad! She did come out of the classroom this afternoon frowning and declaring, "MOM! I have HOMEWORK!" (This was her biggest concern with starting 1st grade.) She is thoroughly enjoying her "homework," searching the house for 5 things that tell about her.

It's going to be another great year!

Play Date

Tomorrow is the first day of 1st grade. So, today D had her friend Jeah over for one last summer play date. Jeah is a great kid who has appeared in previous posts. Delightful to have around because she is funny, polite, and she and D have a great time together. Once she was asking us if we had ever seen "those machines that grab animals with their claws...and you can keep the animal. Some people call them money-wasters." I thought that was hilarious and showed one of the best things about sweet Jeah, she has no idea how funny she is!

C was at school so the girls had the toys to themselves. They played Littlest Pet Shops, read a book, admired the rabbit, and then consoled each other for a bit over not being in the same class this year. Each was reassuring the other that they would still see each other around the playground and at lunch. And they could still have play dates and sleepovers.

We then decided to watch a movie and have an indoor picnic lunch.

Another thing that cracks me up when Jeah comes to play...

the girls are convinced that Thumper will fall in love with this stuffed toy rabbit. I let them keep trying. It's hilarious. Once they petted Thumper and then rubbed their hands all over the stuffed rabbit to spread Thumper's "scent." Ha Ha!

Finally, we wrapped up this last summer play date with a tea party. We made real tea and put sugar in the little sugar dish and served little biscuits on the picnic rug outside. Happy girls shared their snack and said good-bye to summer.



Final Week of Summer Break

D is having a fun and busy week, her last week before the school year begins. We've shopped,

and we've baked and lunched and today, we focused on riding that bike, with just 2 wheels.

D has been very much against this but it really is time. I raised her training wheels a few months back hoping she would smoothly transition to balancing on the 2 wheels in the middle. But she instead transitioned to pedaling along, completely tilted to one side. Backfire!

So today, off came the training wheels, and the pedals, and we're working on coasting on 2 wheels. We watched a youtube video together about it and she was excited about the plan. It's working, slowly.

We were lucky to have a beautiful evening last night before bed and we took Thumper outside and the kids played together on the playset. I was hoping to make that our new evening routine after dinner. Tonight, however, it's storming and very wet outside. But no worries! Plan B is a disco party in the living room!

Rock star dress? Check!

Kidz Bop? Check!

Light up Disco Spinning Heart? Check!

Microphone with Amp? Check!

 We're rocking over here!

Cool Day!

C was ready to go this morning. First day back to preschool. We packed his new Toy Story backpack, hopped on the bike, and pedaled off to school. He was excited to show off the new backpack and see his friends.

I really thought a few tears were a possibility after a lovely summer with lots of togetherness. But, all I heard on the ride there was:

     "Cool day, cool day, I yove cool days!"

     (That's school day, school day, I love school days)

 He posed for photos, kissed me good-bye, and joined his friends. Awesome- but I missed him so much!