Occupations

Dominic's occupations have changed with what is happening at the moment.

When he broke his arm he wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon.

When he read a book about turtles he wanted to be a marine biologist, except he wanted to study the dolphins. (This one has lasted the longest and comes back frequently.)

He wanted to be a cab driver when we were in Thailand.

And the list goes on.

So it was no surprise, that at breakfast this morning, we talked about occupations.

"Mom, I want to be a teacher when I grow up."

"That's a great job. What grades do you want to teach?"

"I'll teach three through eight."

"You don't want to teach Kindergarten?"

"No. I'm going to let my wife teach the lower grades."

He's aware that a couple of years ago Mr. White taught the lower grades, but this is the set up now and he wants to duplicate it, I guess. =)

I'm not going to break it to him that his wife might not be a teacher.

Funny kids

Caitlin -

I was driving home with Caitlin and a little friend of hers, Charlotte.

I overheard this conversation.

"Charlotte, did you know that my neighbors live NEAR me?!"

"Wow, my neighbors live near me too!"

Dominic -

"Mom, will you miss my cute face when I grow up? 

Cause did you know that your face changes when you grow up? 

Your face changed A LOT from when you were a kid."

Motorcyle Rides

I had picked up a friend, Leslie's kids from school so she could take her younger daughter to a doctor appointment. They returned at the same time as Jon, who was riding the motorcycle.

Charlotte (the five year old) was enthralled. She ran up to Jon begging to have a ride.

Leslie's first words were something along the lines of -

"I'll never speak to you again if you take my child on that motorcycle."

I guess she changed her mind. =)

We have a child's helmet and thankfully it fit.

 She's five, but she looks incredibly small on the back of that bike.

 Off on her great adventure.

 Caitlin was in tears when we told her she'd have to wait a year or two until the helmet fit. So Jon sat her on the front while he turned the bike around in the yard.

 Naturally Dominic had to have a turn. This is the first time he's ridden with a helmet on the actual road. Before it's always been in the driveway and yard. I sense a trend beginning.

 Hi mom!

 Can you see the grin splitting his face in two?

 Two of Leslie's three children opted for a motorcycle ride.

I think it was a hit!

Fun in the sun

This weekend was a bit packed for us, but still very fun.

Jon had a Pathfinder backpacking trip (photos soon) so I decided to head to my parents with the kids. It helps us not miss Daddy so much if we throw off the routine.

Dominic is cutting all four six year molars at once. Ever since he's been a baby he's run a small fever right before he cuts his teeth. A couple of nights ago he was moving a bit sluggishly and was running a very slight temp. By the next morning he was fine, but I felt I had to warn my mom since she's still recuperating, just in case it wasn't teeth related. 

She gave me a typical grandmother response -

"I'll take my chances so I can see my grand kids."

I'm so glad we went. It was a wonderful trip and the kids had so much fun.

My dad is great fun!

 

My mom and I were content to sit and watch all of the rough housing and reprimand when needed.

Caught in the act! Don't they look so innocent?!

My parents haven't finished the addition that they were working on earlier. Some rather major things have impeded its progress. But it's enclosed and connected to the house. This makes it a great play area for the kids and their cousins to go play.

 

Here are just a couple of pictures that I took while outside with them this last week. Not really enough to write a separate post about, but certainly cute.

 

Caitlin was pulling her leg up beside her in a way that Jon and I wouldn't have thought possible. I tried to take a picture, but she wouldn't really be still.

School Presentation

Just in case you didn't know - I'm immensely proud of my little man!

He had a presentation at school and it was precious.

All of the children did so well.

They gave an hour long presentation and it was fun and interesting. I was actually surprised to note the time when they finished. Dominic's reading skills seem to be improving so quickly and it's nice to see him enjoying reading and writing.

Dominic showing off his artwork that went along with his stories.

Dominic was so excited to show his sister his desk and have her sit by him.

It was around the time she use to take naps so he gave her his jacket for a blanket and his elephant that he'd brought for toy day so she could hold something and suck her thumb. He is such a sweet big brother.

 Caitlin eventually got bored and went to play with her friend Charlotte.

Good job, Dominic!

Singing

Caitlin woke up in a very good mood today. She's been singing about everything. I thought I'd write down a few of her lyrics that I've heard throughout the day.

"I have big bones, bones with guts in them. Lots and lots of bones in my legs"

(This was sung while sitting on the potty.)

"My children aren't coming. Oh no, what am I going to do? My children aren't coming and obeying me so I'm just going to leave them and get them later. Why won't my children come to me?"

"Oooooooooooh, I'm singing about stuff, lots of stuff. Ooooooooooooh!"

The weather is beautiful and she's been playing outside in the dirt by herself for hours. Every once in a while the singing will stop and I'll hear a frustrated squeal. It means one of the dogs have either licked her or sat on her dirt "project". She'll pet them and then push them away and resume playing and singing.

Our final Thailand moments

We came back to Bangkok with Laura and Madeline for our last few days in Thailand before heading home. We tried to fit as many things in as possible.
We stopped at this ice cream shop for the kids to try tiny ice cream cones. It was Madeline's birthday and this was one of the ways we celebrated.

We stayed at a more "upscale" hotel from the last one. I thought I'd taken pictures and when I got home realized it was only in my mind. But it looked, for the most part, like a hotel here in the states. The lobby was open to the outside, as were the hallways. But once in the room the air conditioner and lights would turn on if you put the key in a slot.
The breakfast buffet with American/Asian food

The kids sitting on the steps by our breakfast table

Family portrait in the elevator

 We went on a boat ride on the river. On the way to the river we walked through China town.
Dominic eying the octopus

Stopping for some orange juice

 It was a holiday and for some reason feeding the fish was part of this. Everyone had bread crumbs or dog food to feed the fish. Quite a few people offered to share their food with our kids.

Our boat

 I had no clue that Caitlin was losing her skirt until today when I went to add the pictures to the blog I'd written earlier. Who knows how long it was like this. =)

Caitlin talking with Ms Laura. She's still talking about her.
Laura must have really made an impression.

 Our driver stopped the boat so he could buy his lunch from this lady.

Some of the homes on the edge of the river. The poverty was sad. But these people are so incredibly happy and unselfish. They smiled and waved at us and when given the chance were more than willing to share what ever they had.

Visited some temples

 My kids think they are so cool. Guess they're right. =)

And of course, more shopping, eating and massages.

A ride in a tuk tuk

 Some of the ice cream while shopping at the mall.
Jon had the mango and sticky rice ice cream. The green rice weirded me out.
 

I chose a more traditional one.

Sadly we had to end our trip eventually. But it was a wonderful experience that hopefully our kids will remember forever. I fell in love with Thailand and hope to return some day. The people are so sweet and when I return I definitely plan on returning during mango season . =)
I'll be posting more scenic pictures on my blog It's My Life.

A huge thank you to our friends who served as amazing tour guides and hosts during our wonderful stay.

Riding Elephants

One of the major things that I wanted to do while in Thailand was to ride an elephant. I’ve always wanted to do that, but my recent foray into collecting elephants certainly inspired this as well. We drove to a place that the Ashlocks felt was humane towards the elephants. I wouldn’t have enjoyed the ride if they yelled or beat the elephants so I’m glad they were conscientious about this.

We fed some of the elephants while we waited on ours to be “saddled” up.
The kids were a bit tentative at first. And it was mainly because the elephants were a bit snotty. =)
I got sneezed on a couple of times. It's a very strange sensation.

 Jon and Dominic got on first. Caitlin and I climbed on next. And by climbed on – I mean literally stepped on the elephant’s head to get to the seat. Jon and I each had cameras so we could take pictures of each other.

Caitlin and I got on and the elephant started backing up. I was a bit dismayed to realize that our seat didn’t have a bar across the front like Jon’s. But Caitlin hung on very well and we enjoyed out trip. The only scary part was when we went down a super steep section on the trail and I had to wrap my arms around the bars and Caitlin to keep from slipping off. But it was all part of the adventure and a definite highlight to the trip, in my opinion.

After we left the elephant place we headed to Khao Yai Park. Caitlin kept asking when she would see the monkeys. Before we left Caitlin kept telling everyone that we were going to the jungle. And in her mind that consisted of three things – elephants, tigers and monkeys. And since we’d seen the first two, then we must be going to see the last ones soon.

We were going to go up the mountain into the park and eat a picnic lunch. We stopped at a scenic overlook on the way up and Caitlin got her first glimpse of a monkey. We opened the door and he tried to steal our food before we could even get out.

We saw them quite frequently on the road our entire time in the park. We even stopped the van to feed them bananas from the window once.

 While eating our lunch we also fed the local deer. Caitlin is getting quite good at attracting the local animals. =)

After lunch we headed to a water fall. In the rainy season it’s rushing over the ledge. But since we had arrived during the dry season it was just a trickle.
 

We stopped for ice cream and Thai food on the way home.
 
 

Another couple of random odd things -
We drove through a movie set in the park as they were getting ready to film a motorcycle scene. The actor and actress were getting their makeup on and they were getting the camera ready. It was mounted to a remote control helicopter. So cool.

As we were leaving the park they were setting the fields on fire. We saw this frequently while in Thailand. I guess, even though it's incredibly dry, they don't have to worry about it spreading.