Six Years of Wonderful

It's been nearly two months since we celebrated six years old for this very special boy...two months! Not to be daunted by being so very behind in my chronicles...here's the birthday boy and the story of this milestone in marking his journey.

Cruising on the Chao Phraya River, Bangkok, January 2015

Ju's birthday story began several days before his big day, while the whole family was here and we were still at the beach. We wanted to celebrate him with everyone together, so we asked the lovely French hotel manager what we might do. Her reply? "We will do ze cake...and ze fireshow!" Thus was put into motion a super duper birthday celebration that will not soon be rivaled. Doraemon (Japanese manga robot cat) cake, a special birthday drink...

this was one continuous pour from his shaker...it's a mystery

...and fire twirlers on the beach. At the end of the show they set the words, "Happy Birthday" on fire. I hope six is old enough to remember how spectacular this was!

The real day came a few days later, with much less fanfare. According to tradition, we all went quietly into his room and woke the birthday boy with cake, the best way to wake up!

That evening we went to his favorite noodle shop for some Japanese ramen (he likes it with a jumbo sheet of seaweed...) It was also our last meal with Uncle Tom, whom we then sent to the airport to board a flight to Cambodia.

And then it was just us again for the first time in quite a while! We went home for cake and presents...the highlight of which was a magic set to encourage Ju's most recent career aspiration- a magician. He makes a spiffy one, does he not?

What can I say about this child? Tim and I shake our heads in wonder at how amazing are the children God has given us, and Julian holds his unique place in the family and in all of our hearts. He is kind, silly, tenacious, intelligent, confident, a very good friend to many...just a great deal of fun and sweetness all wrapped up together. He's so affectionate, and I'm still the happy recipient of many kisses. He has friends of all ages, from the Swedish 3 year old next door to the 8th grader down the street to the new kids he meets at the park who don't speak English. I've said already how much I'm enjoying this season of teaching him and having so much time with him...this time is a gift I'm endeavoring to savor with intentionality. I look at Julian now- tall, strong, his eczema at this point in time diminished to minimal proportions; I am so very thankful, thinking of how far we've come and how faithful God has been every step of the way. Happy birthday, sweet Julian- may your life be marked by joy as you glorify God in your journey.

The Relatives Came

Boxing Day found us cleaning, gathering air mattresses, and generally preparing for having 11 people in our home for the next ten days, as the Georgia Mills were due to arrive that night. And arrive they did, in the wee hours of the next morning; thus began quite an ideal visit...it's not often in life that you get to spend that much concentrated time with members of your extended family, and it was a sweet time.

at the Jim Thompson House in Bangkok

We spent some time resting and talking and doing our favorite things...

Scrabble with Papa Jeff

...and some time out on the town adventuring.

by the river

This picture is one of my favorite memories of our Bangkok time. We were exploring Wat Po, the temple of the reclining Buddha, when we came upon this man in the midst of painting an exquisite watercolor likeness of the temple grounds. We stopped to express our admiration of his work, at which he point he pulled out two canvases and gave them to us, saying that he loved to share his work with people who appreciated it, especially visitors to Thailand. We were quite blown away by this act of generosity and goodwill, and now each of our families has one of these gorgeous paintings to remind us always of our special time and of the kind heart that characterizes our brothers and sisters in this beautiful country.
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On New Year's Day we headed off to our next adventure...a 6.5 hour road trip that ended at a gorgeous, isolated beach near the Cambodian border.

we were treated to lovely days...

...and majestic sunsets

 

 

these best cousin friends couldn't have had a sweeter time together

JuJu gets his courage up to ride the banana boat...s-l-o-w-l-y

the 'big boys' couldn't get enough of paddle boarding!

The other thing that's worth noting about their time here is that the weather was amazing. All the loveliness of cool season was concentrated in that time period- we felt the need to tell them several times, "It's not usually like this!"

Soon enough, it was time to pack them all into taxis and send them off, and for us to get back to regular life...but the time we spent has given us memories that will last always. We're ever so thankful.

Time flies over us, but leaves its shadow behind. -Nathaniel Hawthorne

Christmas morning- traditional Christmas story time and snuggle to begin the day!

Yes, time does fly. We often think of this phenomenon with a negative connotation- where is the time going?- but I'm pondering time a lot these days, these growing days, and it's not flying by and leaving no trace. Its trace is in these beautiful faces living their childhood days; its shadow is the mark forever imprinted on our hearts and these souls bound for eternity. I choose to be thankful for these growing, changing days- the years that are piling up- thankful that I have the privilege of living them with these dear ones. The days are not always easy- we have drear and discouragement and days of ick- but they are nonetheless vibrant and important- building us in vital ways, each of them. 

So here we are, in retrospect again, because we've been busy living these days! But I think they're worth chronicling, so we'll go back to those magical days leading up to Christmas...

that's our girl- front right

There's not much that can beat a performance of strings music for Christmas beauty. Our season and our lives have been much enhanced by the addition of the cello!

In the music vein, Tim and I had the fun of spending an evening out at a jazz concert- one of my favorite memories of this season by far.

And speaking of my favorite artist, he entered a local ceramics show- a good experience and opportunity to be in the art world here in Bangkok. These great friends came to support him.

This is the closest we got to snow, but we did get some pleasant weather this Christmastime- when it dips below the low 80's around here, everyone pulls out their jackets!

We celebrated Christmas in community- here with friends at Grace City's Christmas party, and with a house full of friends and neighbors on Christmas afternoon.

But Christmas morning was just our little family, with the addition of one sweet little dog, who deserves her own post and will get her moment in the sun at some point. Lily has made our home warmer (and much more hairy)...

'twas a puppet sort of Christmas

Just a little flyover- every year I think we had the sweetest Christmas. We are savoring these golden years.

Retrospect

Does anyone else feel that life is moving at hyper speed? Probably most of us. It's good for life to be full of endeavor that gives glory to God, and it's good to slow down and savor. Our weeks have been in the overly full category of late, and we are all looking forward to a day to rest and give thanks on Thursday. As a bonus, though, we've been given a Thanksgiving break for the rest of the week (also known as a shutdown of the elementary school due to a widespread outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease). While our middle schooler soldiers on, the boys and I are enjoying a slower pace that includes two handsome boys doing schoolwork at the table again, then running off to play. Just like the good old days. I'll take it. And in the vein of slowing down and savoring, a catch up session on the life and times of this little family for the last month or so:

Starting with the most recent news...

Our Asa received his taekwando green belt yesterday! His test included breaking a board, and we were all very impressed.

With his best buddy in second grade this year

As if that weren't enough excitement for one week, Emmy had a big weekend of performing in Shakespeare's 'Twelfth Night'. The show was smashing and she attended Olivia beautifully. Her director said to me afterward, "I'm looking forward to many years ahead with this young lady!" She will gladly comply, as she has been bitten by the theater bug and is already planning her audition for the the Spring performance of 'The Wizard of Oz'.

On the evening of the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar (which usually falls in November on the western calendar), people come to a body of water with their krathong (กระทง), a boat of sorts, and loi (ลอย), or float it away, symbolizing a floating away of sins and repentance for mistreatment of the resource of water. Loi Krathong is a bright and festive holiday, and it's great fun to observe, even as we long for redemption for this culture we have come to deeply love.

This year we simply walked across the street to enjoy these sights (and sounds- wish you could hear it!)

Khrathong sellers

Loud music and ladies dancing, always

A short khrathong explanation from Wikipedia:

The traditional krathong are made from a slice of the trunk of a banana tree or a spider lily plant. Modern krathongs are more often made of bread or styrofoam. A bread krathong will disintegrate after a few days and can be eaten by fish. Banana stalk krathong are also biodegradable, but styrofoam krathongs are sometimes banned, as they pollute the rivers and may take years to decompose. A krathong is decorated with elaborately-folded banana leaves, incense sticks, and a candle. A small coin is sometimes included as an offering to the river spirits.

In the realm of wacky western traditions, we dressed up and greeted some of our neighbors on Halloween, and a good time was had by all.

Statue of Liberty, footballer and Mommy Bee

And finally, we had the chance to spend a few days at the beach earlier in October for a school break- a much appreciated time of kite flying, sand castle building and hammock lounging (see above:).

What Kindergarten Looks Like

Prepare to be bombarded by pictures of an adorable boy. I cannot express too strongly how much I'm enjoying being teacher to another 5 year old. And this 5 year old is simply a joy to be with...

Our mornings often begin in this way...Ju is the big boy amongst littles when we take big sister and brother to school. While his age mates enter their classroom, he swings and plays superheroes with younger friends. Then it's off to our morning ritual- buy milk and stop by the coffee shop for a cookie- what a way to start the day!

Coming home- we get out our books and settle down at the table. Some math, some phonics, working through the alphabet in handwriting...all while mommy straightens and cleans. This doesn't take long, and he's flying...

He finished his first (primer) math book and is on to the next. As this was pretty basic material and gave lots of practice pages, he was able to use the same book big brother used. Well done, Ju! One thing I love about laying the educational foundation at home is that we can go at his pace, spending time on thoroughly understanding things and moving on from things that are easily comprehended.

Sometimes, school days look like this. We pack up and head to the park, find a shady spot to work...

...then head out on a paddle boat for a spin and a card game on the water.

One thing we really love about the area where we live now is that we can ride our bikes down to a little food market, and we go there for lunch several times a week, uno cards in hand to play while we wait for our food...

lime shake-mmm!

If there's one word that encapsulates our days this year, I would say it's freedom. I'm free to teach Julian at his own pace. We're free to cover the basics and then enjoy the wonderful world around us. We're also free to do other things when life intervenes, believing that all of life is learning and experience and play are primary teachers at this age. I'm grateful for this gift of time with him, watching him unlock the mysteries of the written word, discover how numbers work together, and growing in relationship with him. What a privilege.

enjoying his freedom- taken when out with Daddy getting our intern settled in her new apartment...this yummy beverage was consumed, and then the inevitable tummy ache ensued!

Recent Favorites

Sometimes pictures really are worth thousands of words. Especially in the midst of family life, when the days are so full and pass so quickly, there's such beauty in looking back at moments and savoring where you are in the journey. In that spirit, here are a few favorites that tell some of our story from these recent weeks...

We live near the King's park again, much to everyone's delight. Tim took this picture on a run one evening, and it captures its beauty well. I'm not overstating the case when I say that I love this park- so many good memories for us here.

The bigger kids just acquired bikes. Because of apartment living, Asa had never learned to ride a big bike. So what did he do when he sat astride his own for the first time? Took right off and began to ride! Way to go, buddy!

The school recently had a 'caps for cure' day- wear a hat to school, give a donation toward research for a cancer cure (please, Lord- quickly!) Asa wore his Papa's WWII tanker hat, and gave his class a history lesson to boot. We sure are proud of our Papa.

Celebrating this fellow's birthday- I am so privileged to walk through life with such an amazing person.

Tim found this graffiti in the city. We'd been wondering what Emmy was up to on her late night excursions!

A moment (let's be honest, a rare moment) of brotherly bonding...

A little fun at school drop off with one of Ju's buddies- they love to be super heroes together.

"Mommy, will you help me make a mustache?"..."and a goatee, like Daddy!"

And finally, a little sample of Asa's sparring in taekwando- I think he looks like a Lego man in his sparring gear- so cute! (and fierce, of course...)