That crazy little thing called 'life'...

Wow.  This blog is in serious need of a good, long update.  Its amazing how crazy life has been lately and how "keeping the world informed" has just fallen by the wayside.  Sorry to all of you faithful readers!  Considering we are just weeks away from our little family addition, I anticipate having a lot more time at home, and hoping that will mean a bit more time for frequent updates... even if they have to be short and sweet.

View from our hotel room in Penang, Malaysia

We actually just returned home after a 2 week hiatus.  As many of you know, we had more than a few visa problems this time around and ended up having to leave the country in order to get new visas.  Seeing as we had an upcoming retreat with our fellow Thailand missionaries (TRAC-- Thailand Retreat and Consult) in Phuket, Malaysia was the closest option.  We were actually set to take our 1/2 year mark vacation around the same time, but unfortunately, instead of celebrating 6 months in Thailand, we had to get visa stuff done instead.  Oh well.  We tried to make the most of our time in Penang and did the best we could to make it our "holiday."

Much to Callie's delight, our hotel had the Disney Jr. channel in English.
Much of our free time was spent cuddling and watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse :)

Thankfully, we got our new visas with little to no hassle and were relieved to know we could actually return to Thailand in time for TRAC.  But, just a few days before we were set to head to Phuket, an earthquake hit Indonesia, consequently affecting us in Malaysia as well.

It was the CRAZIEST feeling!  Jon and I were sitting in our hotel room (on the 20th floor, might I add) one afternoon, watching TV while Callie napped, when all of sudden, our room literally starting rumbling and moving back and forth.  We stared at each other in total disbelief-- quickly realizing that we were both thinking the same thing-- "Is it just me or are you feeling that too!?"  We both jumped up and sprang into action.  I grabbed our passports and went to get Callie while Jon grabbed the backpack and our laptop.  The movement was intense enough that it had woken Callie from a dead sleep.

We grabbed her and ran into the hallway towards the elevator, feeling unsure about what to do.  Do you use an elevator during an earthquake?  Well... we sorta had to because I wasn't about to walk 20 flights of stairs at 34 weeks pregnant :)  So, we hopped in the elevator and prayed that we'd get to the main floor safely.  When we got downstairs, people seemed fairly calm and no one was running around panic-stricken, so we sat down in the lobby to wait to see if any of the hotel staff would say anything.  Jon finally asked a staff member that was walking by and he informed us that an earthquake had hit the coast of Indonesia and that we had just felt the after shocks of that.  He reassured us that everything was fine and that we had nothing to worry about.

So, rather than sit around and have Callie start to wonder what was going on, we decided to take her swimming to distract her (and ourselves, to be honest).  Jon ran back upstairs, got our swimsuits and we headed to the pool.  The pool was right on the beach and after being in the water for no more than 10 minutes, a staff came up to me and said, "I'm sorry Ma'am but I'm going to have to ask you to get out of the pool.  A tsunami warning has been issued and we need everyone to return to their rooms until we give further directions."

WHAT!?!?!  A tsunami warning!?  All I could think was, "Are you kidding me!?"
So, out of the pool we went (Callie was not very amused after having only 10 minutes in the water) and back up to our room on the 20th floor.  And we waited.  And waited.  And waited.  Until finally I told Jon that we needed to get supper.  He went down to the lobby to order McDonalds (isn't Asia amazing... fast food delivers here!) and find out what the status was on the potential tsunami.  The man at the front desk informed him that IF the tsunami was going to hit, it was estimated to come around 8-9pm that night.    So, we ate supper in our room, Callie watched cartoons and Jon and I sat out on our deck and watched the ocean all night... just waiting to see if the tsunami would come.

Well... thank the Lord, it never came.  Although that would've made for a pretty exciting newsletter, we're very grateful that we didn't have to experience something that scary :)

We spent our last couple of days just enjoying some family time at the pool and park.  Our hotel was very "kid-friendly" and Callie had an absolute blast splashing in the kiddie pool and sliding on the beach front play structure.

Now that we had our visas in hand and had had a few days to rest, it was time to head back to Thailand and join the rest of our fellow missionaries in Phuket for our annual conference/retreat.  

  

Flying into Phuket

The orchids in this country are INCREDIBLE... they grow like wild flowers everywhere!

We had an awesome week in Phuket, spending time with our Thailand MB Mission family, enjoying the beauty of Phuket and taking in lots of sessions/meetings.  The hotel was great, the company was great and the food was great!  We're so thankful for the friendships that were developed/deepened during TRAC and look forward to the next time we'll all be together again.

And that brings us to now.  We're back into the regular routine of life which includes language school everyday and lots of preparing for the little one that is due to join the family in a little over 4 weeks.  We'll be writing another module exam early next week so we continue to appreciate your prayers as we press forward with this language.  We have really enjoyed the reading/writing aspect and are finding that it opens a whole new world now that we can begin to read signs, menus and other written paraphernalia.  I'm hoping to get in at least another 2 weeks of language study before the baby comes-- we saw my doctor last night and she's thinking I'll likely be early, so we'll see what happens.  We'll be sure to keep you posted!

Evening picnic...

What better way to spend a summer evening than having a picnic at a soccer game...

But, instead of traditional "North American" picnic food (i.e.: sandwiches, salads, etc.), 

good ol' "phat mama gai" was on the menu (stir-fry noodles with veggies & chicken)...

Mmmm... delicious!

Thanks for such a fun evening Auntie Carmen! 

Safety first...

Hot season has officially hit here in Thailand, which means, we're always looking for ways to cool down.  Jon got up at 4am this morning to catch a "March Madness" game with a friend and when he left the house, shortly after 4, it was already 24 degrees celsius.  Needless to say, temperatures and humidity are "gettin' up there" during the heat of the day.

So, here's how Callie spent part of this evening.  

This kid isn't taking any chances.  

Safety must come first ;)

Baby Callie vs. Baby #2...

= a very different picture. :)

Here's what I looked like at around 26 weeks when I was pregnant with Callie...

And here's what I look like now at 28 weeks with Baby #2...

Today marks the start of the 3rd trimester and I can't believe that we're already on the "home stretch" of this pregnancy.  The exhaustion has set in again (though I'm not sure it ever really left) but other than that, I'm feeling really good overall.  Thankful for the disappearance of the "phantom pain" and looking forward to the arrival of this little bundle. :)

Our Callie-bear...

Many of you have been asking how Callie is doing these days so I thought I'd give a little update and share a few pictures of our ever-growing, ever-changing "big girl."  She's 2.5 years old now and definitely keeps us on our toes :)

One of the most incredible answers to prayer, that we've seen since being in Thailand, is that Callie feels totally comfortable with her nanny.  Not only is Callie comfortable with her nanny, Boh, but she absolutely adores her!  Boh comes to take care of Callie 3 days a week while we go to language school and I have to say... nothing warms my heart more these days, then when we arrive home on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings, to the sounds of sheer joy and laughter as Callie plays in the backyard with Boh, or we find them playing toys inside together.  And without fail, each time we return home, Callie comes running to me, declaring, "Mommy!  I had SOOO much fun with Phii Boh today!"  Its incredible and we truly see Boh as one of God's biggest gifts to us here.

Callie's other favourite person here in Thailand is "Auntie" Carmen.  Our dear friend and fellow teammate, Carmen, takes Callie the other 2 mornings a week while we're at school, and its never hard to get Callie out the door in the morning when she knows she's going to Auntie Carmen's house.  Here is just ONE of the many beautiful pieces of art she's crafted while with Auntie Carmen :)

Carmen has a daughter, JJ, who is just 6 months older than Callie.  Although the closeness in age proves to make things "interesting" at times, they're learning how to play better together everyday and I can see that a friendship is blossoming between them.  I mean... what says friendship more than a shirtless painting session, right!? ;)

As I've mentioned in another post, Callie absolutely LOVES the outdoor playground at the Chiang Mai Night Safari.  It truly is her "happy place."  Here she is enjoying the climbing structures/slides on a morning out with Auntie Carmen and JJ...

So. much. FUN. :)

Other than that, Callie continues to show us the terrible/wonderful sides of the age of 2.  (Those who have kids or nieces and nephews will understand this very well :))  And although there are moments where I contemplate pulling my hair out, I have to say that the good far outweighs the bad and she brings us SO much joy.  She's constantly talking our ears off and telling us the funniest stories (if only I could daily videotape the crazy stuff she says) and we're really trying to savour these last couple of months we have with just her (before the baby arrives).

So that is just a really brief update on our little monkey.  Thanks to those of you who have faithfully pray for this little one... she has adjusted quite well to life here in Thailand and we know its been a true answer to prayer.

Repeat scenario...

As many of you have probably heard through the grape vine, 

I spent 3 nights here last weekend...

Chiang Mai Ram Hospital

... and it definitely wouldn't have been my first choice for weekend plans. ;)

I don't really have the energy to rehash everything that happened but let's just say, it all started with excruciating acute lower back pain (that made its way to my lower abdomen as well) and eventually had me (almost) incapacitated.  A complete repeat to what happened during my pregnancy with Callie a few years ago.  The Thai doctors were equally as "stumped" as the North American doctors were the last time this happened, simply because the pregnancy made everything more complicated when trying to get answers.  They couldn't do a CT scan (obviously) and so they had to work with what they had-- ultrasounds, urine samples, blood work and observing me.  I saw an OBGYN, a surgeon, a urologist and my maternity doctor.  At one point, they were fairly certain it was appendicitis and were prepared to do an appendectomy, but thankfully, the ultrasound and bloodwork ruled that out.  Then they figured it was either a kidney infection, kidney stones or a ureter obstruction and were thinking of doing a minor surgery in which they insert a stint into the ureter to clear any type of blockage.  But again, thankfully, they didn't go ahead with it.  I wasn't exactly keen on the idea of surgery just a couple of months before I will be delivering a baby.  And thankfully, the results they had weren't conclusive enough to go ahead with it.

Anyway... after 3 nights and almost 4 days in hospital, the pain had subsided enough that they were able to send me home.  They still weren't sure what the cause was, but gave me some (baby-safe) muscle relaxants and told me to come back if the pain came back worse than the last time.

I'm happy to say that I've been feeling much better (though I have had a few more "pain episodes" since being home).  Overall, I'm hoping and praying we're "in the clear" now and have tried to get back to normal life as much as possible.

I also just want to say thank-you again for everyone's concern and all the prayers that were prayed on our behalf. Both Jon and I feel richly blessed to have such a strong support network behind us.  Although its tough to be away from loved ones in situations like this, there is comfort that comes with knowing how many people care about us and are interceding for us.  So, thank-you!
I'm now just 1 week shy of being 7 months pregnant and would definitely covet your prayers for a healthy remainder of this pregnancy and a safe, smooth-as-possible delivery when the time comes.  I'll continue to keep you updated as much as I can.

Hope you've all had a wonderful weekend!  Blessings for the week ahead.

Celebrations

Yesterday was a happy day. 

We completed our Module 2 Thai exam and it went amazingly well!

Trust me... when you're learning a language as tough as Thai, its important to celebrate the successes.

So, we figured it was only fair to celebrate another milestone in our language learning journey.

And nothing says "YES! We did it!" quite like a big ol' juicy burger from BK...

Oh yeah...

And then today was another day to celebrate.

We finally got our couch!

After months of sitting on nothing but wood and tile surfaces, 

today, our butts are celebrating to say the very least :)

And.......

 to finish off an already great week, our wonderful (future) teammates are here for the weekend!

Looking forward to hangin' with the Sanchez family for the next few days and watching their girls rip up the basketball court at Chiang Mai International School.

Have a great weekend everyone.  We know we will!

I'm telling you...

... everything is prettier in Thailand. 

FYI:  We actually, truly saw this car in the parking lot at the Chiang Mai Night Safari last night.

It just adds something special... don't you think?? 

You decide...

Here in Thailand, we get delicious, yellow watermelons-- but, here's what I want to know.

Based on this picture we took the other day, which would YOU classify as a yellow watermelon?

Do you judge this 'book' by its cover or by its inside? 

Tricky question, isn't it!? 

Its the small stuff...

When you live away from "home" and can't get familiar foods as easily, it really is the small things that make all the difference.  For us, home cooked dinners are an incredibly comforting thing these days but really don't happen all that often.  As I've mentioned in other posts, it doesn't always pay to cook at home when our whole family can eat Thai food for $3 total.

But, nonetheless, I've really been craving good-home-cooked-meals lately and so I've been doing a bit more in the kitchen these days.

I made BBQ chicken, mashed potatoes and veggies for supper last week and we all enjoyed it so much, I'm going to make it again tonight.  This may seem funny to you, but let me just say again...

Its the small stuff that makes ALL the difference. :)

Lions, tigers and bears, oh my!

Our very first Thailand house-guests arrived this weekend, (some friends from Jon's old stomping grounds, Prince George, BC) so we ventured out with the Owen family last night and enjoyed the Chiang Mai Night Safari.  This place is a MUST-see if you come to Chiang Mai.  It costs a little under $2 per adult (young children are free!) and there is SO much to see and do.

Callie has been a couple of times before with the Owen's but Jon and I had never been.  It definitely 'made the cut' for both of us and we plan to visit again and again.  I mean, when your little girl gets THIS excited about a place, you know its worth re-visiting.....

There are animals EVERYWHERE and most of them can be fed for a small fee of about 60 cents.  Callie was pretty eager to feed the elephants... until she actually had one grab the banana right out of her hand.  Then she figured she'd hand the job over to Daddy... :)

Many of the animals just roam around the grounds and are free for petting.  This part was especially exciting for Callie...

If I'm not mistaken, she named one of the goats "Charlie."  

Hey little fella...

But the tigers were, by far, her favourite animals.  She kept rushing us along so we could get to the tiger cage.

The stare down.

It was actually a bit creepy how much these tigers "eyed her up."  When she moved, they would follow her.  I think they thought she would be just the right size for their supper.  Sure glad they had a double fence up...

Even the garbage cans were cool at this place...

Starbucks... is that you??

There's an enormous playground, completely covered by giant white tents, so its perfect for a hot or rainy afternoon.  This playground is definitely Callie's "happy place."

Not to mention the indoor playground, ball pits, digital video games, a huge lake to walk around and see more animals, paddle boats, and oh so much more... this place pretty much has it all.

Wanna come for a visit?? :)

Post Christmas adventures...

As I mentioned in my last post, we went on a little "adventure" just 2 days after Christmas.  Let me just say... "adventure" is a kind way of putting it :)

Let's just say that after:

an 18 hour train ride (which was supposed to only be 15 hours), 

plus a ride on the subway,

plus a ride on the BTS (sky train),

plus a 4 hour bus ride (during which Callie threw up ALL OVER Jon, with just an hour left to go),

plus a 10 minute boat ride (to the wrong location on the island),

plus a 1km walk up hills with luggage and a very tired and hungry 2 year old in tow,

plus a 2km VERY bumpy songtaew ride,

and FINALLY arriving at our resort (over 24 hours later)....

we were pretty relieved to see such a beautiful sight... :)

We spent 3 nights at Samet Ville Resort...

We swam in the ocean...

We ate our dinners on the beach, complete with live fire shows...

We walked to the beach every morning...

... and stared at this gorgeous landscape....

We built lots and lots...

... and LOTS of sand castles...

... and enjoyed the view some more... :)

We warmed up in the sunshine after swimming in the cool water...

... and re-hydrated, of course.

We went for walks and enjoyed the scenery again and again...

We took pictures of pretty flowers (for Mom) :) ...

We played at the "playground"...

We searched for seashells...

... and other sea treasures...

We enjoyed hour long massages in this little cabana on the beach...

(did I mention it only cost about $12 for said massage?)

So... although our trip started out stressfully and definitely 'less-than-ideally,' we did have a very relaxing time in the end and will always remember those white sandy beaches and gorgeous blue ocean waves :)

---------------------------------------------------

After Koh Samet, we made our way to Chonburi (where we'll eventually serve, upon completion of language school in Chiang Mai) to apply for our visa extensions.  We had a good week in Chonburi and enjoyed lots of things about our time there.... such as....

Our first Starbucks Christmas drinks in Thailand...

... so good... like coming home to an old friend ;)

We spent time playing with the most incredible kids at the Abundant Life Home orphanage...

Lots of sand tea parties...

"Mmmmm.... nii aroy maak maak!"

(translation: Mmmmm... this is so, so delicious!) ;)

We made some pretty awesome new friends... :)

We also enjoyed time with our future teammates (though, sadly, I don't have any pictures)

... AND, we had a successful visa run!  In and out of immigration within half an hour.  We were totally amazed and grateful!

So, all in all, a great week in Chonburi!  

But I have to admit, after 2 weeks away, we were SO happy to come "home" to our house here in Chiang Mai.  And it was great to finally feel like this was home :)