My Loves

Its back to tank tops and sundresses for us now…

…but we did our “winter thing” in honor of Valentines day.

check!

We whipped up some heart-shaped cinnamon almond French toast for breakfast.

Nothing warms my heart more than a table full of my chattering pajama-clad loves.

Then it was off to the ice-rink bundled in the only warm clothes we own.

Team USA!!

Literally, we were scraping to find a sweatshirt and long-sleeved clothes for everyone.

Good thing the rink was barely cool enough to maintain the ice.  And by maintain, I mean….there was a half inch of standing water on top of the ice.

We just don’t “do” cold here in Thailand.

This resulted in some very soggy bottoms after spills.

And, I knew that one day my obsession with matchy-matchy would pay off.

Today was that day!

When we arrived, we were told that their Valentine special was “Buy one get one free” when you bring a friend.

Deal for the 6 skating Smiths!!

But then, we found out that if you dress to match someone, you get the second hour FREE!

Guess who just happened to be sporting matching outfits!?!?

Evie who has been infatuated with the movie Frozen was living a dream to be on ice!  Think she may have found “her thing”.  Sorry babe…if your mommy any say in it, we will never be living somewhere cold again:)

So wish this girl could be watching the Olympics – she’d be smitten!  What a bummer to not have coverage here!

Valentines Day forever after holds special significance to us because of her little heart!  Loved watching her so full of life today!

Little loves of my life.  Full hands.  Full heart.  Blessed!

McDonalds hot fudge sundaes after skating – “Im lovin’ it”

And then my Valentine whisk me away for a romantic night out…..but he’s not as keen to have his picture taken 🙂  So here’s an oldie but a goodie.  Love this guy more each day!

Paradise and Puke

In the past 5 days, Ive changed more sheets, moped up more puke, made more trips to pick up sick kids at school, stirred up more electrolyte concoctions and administered more midnight baths than I can to count.  Everyone is sleeping with buckets beside their beds.  C is currently laughing at my stall techniques not wanting to go to sleep because I know as soon as I lay my weary head down, Im going to hear retching from another room.

Every night the same routine!

The mother of all stomach bugs has hit our family with a vengeance.  At the same time, Evie (yes…the child who doesn’t got to school and shouldn’t be the one contracting germs) picked up Hand, Foot & Mouth Disease and has passed that around.  Then tonight, we noticed Tristan has a random rash all over his torso.

…what in the world!?!?!?

We are lying low and I wish I could say we were chilling watching the Olympic games.  However, since there is reportedly only one Thai olympic athlete in the winter olympics (not much opportunity to practice in snow here), there is no hype and no televised olympic coverage.
The only sporting event I care to watch – bummer!!!

13 months later, Im having my very first “I might hate Thailand” moments.

No Olympics

And no Lysol to be found.

….humph!

Remembering back to a much happier time merely a week ago.  Last weekend, we had a team of US, Indian and Dutch colleagues coming into town and staying with us.  When C’s sister told us she was coming to visit at the same time, we realized there was feasibly no way to house everyone and host the 10 team members that would be convening all weekend in our apartment for meetings….not really conducive to having 6 kids in and out while they are trying to work…right?

Benevolently, I volunteered to take the kids to the beach.  Strictly to keep the kids out from underfoot and provide the team with peace and quite mind you.

…..I mean, somebody had to do it 🙂

How considerate of me, right?

C’s sister Rebecca and I had a great time with all the kiddos at a beach only a couple hours from Bangkok.  We took in some rays and of course my camera got a little workout.

Aaaahhhh….that golden hour when the sun kisses the horizon and bathes everything in color.    When brown sunburned shoulders shiver in the cooling breeze and pink cheeks glow reflecting the setting sun.  Wish I could bottle it!!

Can we just rewind please?

"Bye Bye Baby, Baby Goodbye"

Posting this quickly before I loose my nerve and go and scoop her up and put her back in her crib.

Look who is in a big girl bed!!

For the first time in 11 years!! we are going to bed tonight without a “baby” in a crib in our room.

Yes.  I know how ridiculous that will sound to some of you.

What can I say? I love the baby stage and have hung onto it as long as I can!

Granted, I am 100% sure that she will wander into our room sometime between 11:00pm and 2:00am dragging all her paraphanalia and wedge herself between C and I (she’s rotten!).  

So this shouldn’t be a big deal.

But it is…..

Today I was having a particularly difficult Mommy day.

3 kids home sick (hand foot & month disease + a stomach virus = no fun!)

Tired mommy.

Needy kids.

One of those where I just felt like none of my kids were getting what they needed from me.  I was spread thin and feeling inadequate to meet the incessant needs of many small children.

I was feeling like a failure.  

So when Gigi decided to gather her lovies and march herself to the big girls room all on her own tonight, I gulped over the lump in my throat and let her call the shots.

Last week she decided she was done with diapers and potty trained in a day.

Today she ditched the crib and climbed into a big girl bed.

And my heart sings….and cries at the same time!

I have relished every, single, precious moment of her “baby-hood”.  Gigi has been such a redeeming gift and blessing to get to “do a baby” one more time with a sense of “normalcy” that was lacking with our last baby.  With great joy I watch her growing and thriving and maturing.  But its also with a welling sense of “empty nest syndrome”, I watch her stepping out in independence.  

Ive grown so accustom to having a baby on my hip and a toddler tugging at my hem…this is new territory, and Im not sure I know my place.  Feeling a little lost.  Sure I still have littles who need their mommy, but this is a new stage for me with more freedom….that Im not sure I like.

(goodness….Im going to be a mess when its time to let them go to college!) 

Needing fresh grace today for the unique challenges that are arising with children entering a new stage of life.  I have pre-teens now (when did that happen!?)  Determined to embrace the demeanor of the Proverbs 31 woman who is “clothed with strength and dignity and can laugh at the days to come“.

Don’t want to loose sight of the joy of today because I am looking back and wishing it could be so again.  Falling on grace to equip me for a new season…a new chapter of mothering.  Blessed beyond measure to take part in this high-calling of nurturing these precious 6 lives Im blessed to have call me “Mom”!

Clearly, she doesn’t share any of my inhibitions!!  

Special thanks to my sweet friend Kathleen for making and sending Gigi her lovely “memory quilt” pieced together from all her outfits from her first year!  What a special gift!!