Another month gone by...

Some of you have probably heard through the Facebook grapevine that our family has been sick for the past week... and I mean SICK.  All 4 of us.  Absolutely awful.  Tricky trying to keep your kids occupied when you feel terrible yourself.  Thank goodness for laptops which make for great in-bed movie times.  This was a common sight around our house last week...

But thankfully, after several days of antibiotics, we're all starting to feel human again.  

What a relief... 'cause I've missed seeing these two monkeys feeling happy and healthy!

I can hardly believe that the month of September is almost over already.  Life is definitely busier with 2 kiddos and the result is often a feeling of having life in fast-forward.

Marek turned 4 months old on the 15th which totally blows my mind.  He's such a happy boy and brings all of us so much joy.  He's a noisy little critter and is often heard "exercising his vocal chords" with screeches and giggles and coo's. I love the stage he's at and the fact that he'll smile for anyone.  He's getting a TINY bit better at sleeping at night (though the sickness has changed all of that again).  He started rolling over last month and I can tell he's enjoying that new found freedom.  Its been interesting having a boy this time around and seeing the differences between him and Callie.  I can tell that he's going to be much more of a "mover and a shaker"-- Callie was so laid back and didn't do much moving til about 8 months old (rolling, crawling, etc.) whereas he is already rolling, does 360's in his crib and has even attempted to shimmy himself along by pulling with his arms and getting his knees up under himself.  I fear that crawling will be upon us far earlier than I would like :)

Callie continues to entertain us with her random thoughts and antics.  She is constantly babbling about something and makes us laugh with some of the stuff she says.  The other day, she went to play at Jason & Corina's and apparently when Uncle Jason asked her what they were celebrating, she responded with this: "Its not going to snow today in Thailand.  Its going to rain.  At Christmas time we went on a train." :)  Gotta love the randomness.  A couple of weeks ago, I was helping her onto the toilet when she, very dramatically, put her hand on my shoulder, furrowed her eyebrows in a sad expression, and said, "Its OK Mommy... its not your fault."  We've quickly realized just how careful we have to be with what we say because she is a SPONGE and mimics just about anything and everything she hears.
Last Friday, she and Jon went to the doctor for their follow-up appointments.  When it came time for the doctor to check Jon, Callie handed him her blankie, and said, "Here Daddy.  Take this.  It'll help."  She then instructed him, "Now sit niiiice and still Daddy."  I can already tell how "mothered" poor Marek is going to be as he grows up :)
She is extremely dramatic and almost always talks with her hands.  She loves to dance and quote long lines from movies and books.  I have a feeling we've got a little movie star in the making... yikes ;)
And as trying as this age of 3 has been, I still love the times when I can leave Marek with Jon for a couple of hours and spend some good one-on-one time with her.  Its amazing how much she'll tell me over an ice-cream or while she helps me with grocery shopping.  I sure do love this girly...

As for Jon and I, we're finishing up our last month of formal language studies at Araya Language School here in Chiang Mai.  At the end of October, we'll be making the big move down to Chonburi to begin ministry (and continue with language studies through a language helper).  Corina and I will be taking a little scouting trip down to Chonburi this weekend to see if we can find housing for all of us.  If you think of us, please pray!  Finding housing down there isn't as easy or accessible as it is up her in Chiang Mai so we're a bit worried we'll come up empty-handed.  Please pray that God will lead us to the right houses and that they'll be available for move-in when we move at the end of October.

It really is hard to believe that we're just a couple of weeks away from our 1 year mark.  If I'm completely honest, its been a tough first year but at the same time, its been amazing to see how God has come through for us again and again and again.  We serve a faithful God who cares deeply for us and for every aspect of our journey and we're so thankful for the ways He's protected, provided and comforted us over these past 11.5 months in Thailand.

Our Chiang Mai team--
Us, Jason & Corina, Jesse & Chase, and Andy & Carmen, Connor, Isaac & JJ

We're going to miss a lot of things about life here in Chiang Mai-- Andy & Carmen and Lauren & Steven, just to name a few. ;)  We feel deeply thankful for the friends God has given us while we've lived in Chiang Mai and hope that even though there will be a bit of distance geographically, that the relationships will stay strong and visits will be possible as often as we can make them happen.  A&C and L&S... thanks for making this a great year!  We love you guys more than you know!  Come visit as soon as you can! ;)