Parrish surprised us tonight

We had a really special evening and wanted to share with you the events tonight. Parrish was keeping a secret from us for quite a long time. The only reason I had the for-thought to bring the video camera to the school program tonight was because a parent called me to tell me Parrish was on the program for a solo.

She was really excited about surprising us and I can't believe she didn't say a thing for weeks. On the way up to the school she said some of the most beautiful poetry I've ever heard. I had to write it down so I wouldn't forget a single detail. She said, "There's decorations in my heart and I'm about to sparkle!" I envy the imagination of a 6 year old!

Here's her solo.....enjoy (forgive us for the videography).

Fever Parrish

Parrish spent all last week home with a fever and this is what her first grade class emailed her last Friday.  The expressions on her classmates faces are priceless!  There were a few sick kids, unfortunately.  This is only about half her class.

Bangkok, Thailand

Just before Thanksgiving I was able to join a group of friends that were going to Bangkok for a long weekend.  Rob went to Bangkok 15 years ago and had no real desire in going back, especially with the kids, so this was an opportunity to go travel at my own pace.  It was such a joy to just pack one bag and have my own time on the airplane! 

Other than visiting the temples and grand palace, Bangkok is known for its open markets of all kinds.  Here are a few pictures I took.

A scene from the Chatuchak weekend market at night.  5,000 stalls covering 35 acres and 200,000 to 300,000 visitors a day.  Selling everything from handicrafts to live animals.  The largest in Thailand.  We spent about an hour and a half here, which was plenty for me, and I was able to get some great deals on pottery, toy elephants and some spa oils.  Such a great relief from the costs in Singapore.

 A lady selling food from her "boat kitchen" at the Taling Chan floating market near town.  A floating market is where the people and the river come together for commerce and communication.  This lady sells food from her boat.  Several boat vendors jostle for position along side the canal for the attention of buyers.  The market wasn't very far from the center of town but it took us over an hour to get there because of the surface road traffic.  Taking the sky train or subway in Bangkok is the other way to get around and it's much quicker.  We learned that after a day.

The opulent Grand Palace, home of the jade Buddha.

This is a view of Wat Arun, the temple of dawn in Khmer-style.  The full name of the temple is Wat Arunratchawararam Ratchaworamahawihan.  Thank goodness they abbreviated the name.  I can't imagine trying to say this to a taxi driver!

The other temple we went to was Wat Po in Thai-style similar to the Grand Palace.  This temple is famous for it's gigantic reclining Buddha.  This Wat is also the birthplace of traditional Thai massage.  I did not get any pictures because my camera battery died, but luckily my friends have some to share.  I stole these pictures off of the internet.  What fascinated me, other than the size of this Buddha, was the mother of pearl inlay-ed in the feet.  Fantastically detailed and precious.

Care package today

WOW!  Look what we received in the mail yesterday!  Two boxes of Parrish and Sabrina's favorite chocolate muffin mix from Rob's mom.  I know it cost her a fortune to send so we thank you sincerely!! 

Happy Thanksgiving

We have had our turkey dinner this evening and we are just about ready to sign off for the night, but I was having a moment of missing family and thought I would let you all know how thankful we are for you.  I'm also thankful everyday for the experience we are able to give our children over here in Singapore.  I'm grateful for the new friendships we have made and know they will not end when we go home.  Every email, card or phone call that comes in from the US brings such excitement into our home.  I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving today and know that we were thinking of you.

Butterfly Parrish

Look what landed on Parrish during our hike last weekend....funny, I just noticed the shirt she's wearing too.

Halloween

No where on earth celebrates Halloween like the USA, but we did dress up and go to a party.

Here's Parrish as a ghost who spent the majority of her time in the bounce house at the school party despite all the other fun activities going on.

Sabrina was a little spider.  At first we didn't think she would wear the costume but eventually thought it would be fun to have 8 legs.

Mom and Dad were Dracula's.  I decided I like wearing a cape.  Sorry, I don't have a picture.