Thursday, December 27, 2012

Thailand Photo Dump Part 1

The thing that keeps me from making blog posts is my lack of confidence with writing.  I never know what to say and often I end up phrasing it fairly awkwardly.  My solution to this when it comes to Thailand posts is to do photo dumps with captions.  


 This is Lola and Lily and Hua Hin (a beach town fairly close to Bangkok).  I never made it down to the beach there as I choose to sleep instead (jet lag with a toddler is rough).
 I am pretty sure this is bowl number 3 of whatever noodle he was eating.  He just couldn't be stopped. 
 The afternoon after we arrived Lily and I were able to meet Khunya for the first time.  She is a lovely lady.  I wasn't able to communicate very well with her but I didn't need words to feel her love. 
 This is the whole gang from dinner that first night.  
 Before we contemplated this vacation I was pretty anti-leash.  But when it came down to it I knew that Lily would want and need to walk around while we were out and about in Thailand.  It relieved a few of my crazy worries to know she was on a tether and couldn't wander far and run away through busy crowds.  We got some strange looks but honestly who cares.  She loved that thing, dragging it out when she wasn't wearing it and we had to hide it away when we got home or she wanted to wear it constantly.  
We were so glad to be able to spend time with Khunya while we were in Thailand.  We are told that her spirits were lifted so much when we were there and after our trip.  We were really glad that she was able to meet her only great-grandchild.  


 Lola and Myself outside a "retro market"

This market was in what used to be an old train station.  It was fun to walk around after Lily recovered from her full-blown melt down that occurred when I attempted to leave her in the air-conditioned van with Wor. 

Pretty fun looking place but not a whole lot we wanted to spend money on. 


 Just so you know behind each photo is this scene of hot, tired, yet still happy people. 
 This is a pretty realistic representation of how we looked about 80% of the vacation.  Hot, confused and waiting for someone to point me in the right direction.

 We were a very stylish bunch during this particular outing. 

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Thailand Part 1- Oh the Places You'll Go

While the trip to Thailand really started months ago with an unbelievable amount of prep I will skip that part except for saying that over planning really is necessary when dragging a clingy 18 month old across the world.  Research Research Research.  I am so glad I did.

The night before we left for our trip Wor and I got a grand total of 2 hours combined sleep.  Wor got 2 and I got 0.  Just keep that in mind for later.  Our flight took off early on Wednesday morning and we flew into Newark, NJ.  Up until Newark our trip was pretty OK.  I pretty much thought that I was superwoman and that everyone who had expressed seemed shocked that we were going to attempt this were overreacting.

Cue the 13 hour flight from hell. Backpacks stuffed at our feet and a toddler sleeping in our laps.  Lily was an angel and did better than I could have ever expected but the flight was just simply horrid.  Having a baby asleep on us meant we couldn't change positions to get as comfortable as possible in those tiny airplane seats, when she was awake it meant that we were trying to keep her contained in about 2 square feet of space or from repeatedly kicking the seat in front of us simply because we said the word no the first time.  The only reason I want to remember any of those 13 hours is so that I can be reminded that I never, ever, ever want to travel internationally with a child again.  And Wor and I are seriously considering waiting to travel abroad until we can afford 2 Business First seats.

When we landed in Tokyo I had this wonderfully exciting and scary feeling of being 100% out of my comfort zone.  English wasn't being spoken, US dollars weren't being used, we had the option of using a squatter toilet, a regular toilet or a bidet and last but not least I was a tall, white (and I mean transparently white), blond, blue eyed girl in a sea of Asian people.  I planted Wor and Lily in a little play area and went off in search of some food.  This is when I realized I was in real trouble, I went to 2 stores that I am pretty sure carried food as people walking out were eating stuff but if you asked me to point to something that I would eat I wouldn't be able to.  The labels were all in Japanese and I fled!  Wor didn't fare any better and I was pretty sure that once we reached Thailand we would starve if I was the one in charge of figuring out the food.

To skip over the next flight and get to the landing would probably be best.  I was thrilled to be done and have the prospect of a bed in my future.  We survived. Barely.  By the end I wanted to melt into the pile of mushy, screaming, temper tantrum throwing toddler that Lily should have been but wasn't.  Instead, I bucked up and met Wor's wonderfully gracious and kind family.  They put a genuine smile on my face and somehow it was as if someone had given me a shot of caffeine and the trip didn't seem so exhausting.

This post will be the only one without pictures because honestly airplane pictures are kind of boring.  I promise that the rest of the posts will have as many pictures as you could want.


Sawadee Ka
(The Hello and Goodbye of Thailand)






Monday, May 28, 2012

The Sticky, Splashy Memorial Day

We have had a really wonderful Memorial Day weekend.  The past few months have been incredibly busy with a few weekend trips to see Wor's family, constant home improvement projects, lots of paper work and decision making and not a whole lot of time for fun.  This weekend was just what the doctor ordered.  

We decided to spend the weekend at my parents house because our house is currently picture perfect and I want to keep it like that in case we have a showing.  So far we have had 2 and those sent me into panic mode.  I think a 3 day weekend would have ruined our clean little home.  

 We spent the weekend splashing in the pool both at Grandma's house and at the YMCA.

 Eating sticky popsicles with Cousin Brooklyn.

Reading the Sunday paper.
And doing away with a Nectarine a day (all by herself each time!)

As far as the highlights of the weekend for Wor and I:

- I ate at least 3 BBQ sandwiches
- Wor played as many games of whatever he wanted with my brothers
- We went on our first morning of new home tours together and we definitely surprised each other with our attitudes towards the process

As the weekend ends we are trying to avoid going home as long as possible so we don't mess things up (this doesn't mean we are trashing my moms place!  I am just afraid to even use a dish at our place at the moment).

Sunday, April 29, 2012

Dear Future Lily

Dear Future Lily:


You are so beautiful and sweet.  Everyone you come into contact with is instantly charmed by whatever mood you are in.  Even your grumpy "don't touch me" face wins you lots of loving attention. I want you to know just how adorable you are so here is what you are doing now:

-      You learned to walk at 12.5 months. 
-       You walk with your little (big) belly poking out in an almost waddle.
-       You are still bald in front but you are forming quite a mullet in the back
-       You LOVE broccoli but also like green beans, asparagus, brussel sprouts, peas, cucumbers, snap peas and really any green vegetable we put in your eyesight.
-       You started to take a bottle now and your preferred method of intake is to walk around drinking it while exploring.
-       You love to sway and bounce to music.
-       When you get grumpy we put you beside a pile of books and you surround yourself with them and read them with the most adorable expression on your beautiful little face.
-       Your best friend is Brooklyn
-       If Brooklyn takes something from you try to bite or pinch her (not so good).
-       You love to use your little singing voice when you are happy.
-       If we say “say cheese” you scrunch your entire face up in a squishy little smile.
-       You gabber on in your own little language but you can say a few words (shoe, eye, that).
-       You like to eat on the run.
-       You are in love with your “Banky” and will cuddle it when you are sleepy, sad or just need a little comforting reassurance.
-       You drag your Banky around with you.  Sometimes it is wrapped around your shoulders, sometimes its swung over your shoulder and sometimes you drag it from the front and trip all over it.
-       You like to stuff as many goldfish in your mouth as possible before chewing, we call it your chipmunk face.
-       If we hand you a cell phone that is not connected to a call you put it to your ear and go “hi” in a cute high pitched voice and then gabber on to an imaginary person.  If someone is on the phone and talks you do your tickled smile and push it away.
-       Recently you are very curious with how people snap and you move your fingers like you are snapping but of course that takes a little too much coordination for you right now. 


 This is you on your first weekend walking.  We took you to Pullen Park to practice.
 You and Brooklyn love to play at her new house.  You especially love to explore her new porch.
 Daddy was showing you a duck for the first time in this picture.  It took off and skimmed across the water and you thought it was amazing.
 I just wanted you to have a picture to blackmail Brooklyn with someday.
 Your first trip to Pei Wei.  You loved your lo mein.
 We brought the baby pool out on a hot day and didn't have swim diapers.  Your diapers almost exploded and you ended up running around completely naked.  I think that diaper weighed more than you did when you were born.
 You got a little thirsty.
Wearing your Thai outfit during your trip to Norfolk for Thai New Years.


You make us smile and laugh everyday.  We love to comfort you and to play with you and show you how much we love you.  Because we love you very much and are so glad you are ours.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy.

Monday, April 9, 2012

Walking Just In Time

I had dreams that Lily would be walking for the Easter egg hunt this year and she decided to make her move right in time. She had been taking little steps here and there for a month but last Friday I was in the living room with John and Dani (who were over helping me paint) and all of a sudden I notice Lily is toddling down the hall after Darcy. At the end of the hall she turned around and came back. She hasn't stopped since.
Lily didn't quite understand that she was supposed to pick the eggs up but she would put them in her basket if Daddy picked them up for her.


Tuesday, March 20, 2012

The List

Wor and I made the decision last week that we are going to actively prepare to move to a new home. We want to be settled in a place where Lily can play outside and where we can spread out and not feel cluttered. We want to move to a home where we can stay forever if necessary. The only thing standing in the way of us fulfilling that dream is for us to sell our condo. And it is NOT ready to sell. We want to have it on the market in May...YIKES! So the following is the list of things we need to do in the next 2 months:

Finish painting the hallway- that this was started a year ago and never finished- note that this is a pattern in our home makeover attempts.

Finish painting the upstairs bathroom but in a neutral color.

Install crown moulding in the upstairs bath to hide the horrible seam between the walls and ceiling.

Paint the bathroom doors

Replace all door knobs in the house

Fix closet doors so they stay on their tracks

Replace ceiling light fixtures to ones that aren't from the 70's

Replace the bathroom fan/light

Plant flowers and put a few nice looking chairs on the patio

This list may seem pretty small but I am now working between 10-20 hours a week from home which takes up all the time I used to use folding laundry- forget about painting a wall. Driving around neighborhoods we want to move into is our motivation!


Monday, March 5, 2012

Lunch at the Park

Last week we had some incredibly beautiful days here in Raleigh and Lily and I took full advantage of them. One of the days Wor decided to join us for a picnic lunch at the newly renovated Pullen Park. It was awesome to get to see Wor in the middle of the day and Lily was in a better mood than normal- meaning she was in a super duper good mood- the rest of the day after seeing her Daddy.
We picked a spot next to the Carousel to eat our lunch and Lily had a blast watching it go round and round. After we ate Wor decided to take her for a close up look and she just stared at it enthralled.

It was a lovely day that followed a few really rough weeks for me as a Mom. It was really great to be reminded how wonderful my little family is and that our lives really are awesome.