So, Hannah got my blogger problems solved...when we got to Thailand I discovered that many websites automatically configured to Thai...including blogger. Go figure. Makes it hard to navigate! I can't believe that this week we will have been here an entire month already!! So much has happened and I only have an hour before isaac wakes up from his afternoon nap...so I will just recap the last 4 days!!
How I got a maid and lost her: The second week in the house we had thai women ringing the gate bell (like a door bell) every few days looking for maid work. Man does word get out in Thailand when a new expat familiy moves into the neighborhood! After interviewing several maids I decided I wanted to definately have an english speaking maid and not a nanny. I wanted to be the one taking care of Isaac. Problem #1 is : Apparently there are less english speaking women who want to be maids. Go figure. Problem #2, NO one has any work references, and if they do, it's from someone who has left the country and you don't have any way to contact them. Kinda convienient for thai maids with questionable histories. So I decided to plunge after speaking with several neighbors about wages, normal hours, what you can expect as to documentation and work history and etc. I hired "Ta" who was a 40 something thin thai woman with pretty good english. her husband worked for GM and she lived down the road in a thai village that is fairly prosperous (IE real homes and no garbage piling every side street). Ta started last Thursday. She walked in and dug right into the kitchen, cleaning dishes and wiping counters. Then she swept the floors and mopped the entire ground level. Then we went shopping and she helped me buy a fan and pick out thai cleaning supplies (cheaper than imported but you do need to know what does what...). Friday she did dishes, swept upstairs, did laundry, ironed 7 shirst, cleans 3 bathrooms and watched Isaac while I folded clothes. I let her go a 1/2 hour early as I was actually kinda sick of her. Apparently she felt the same...Monday morning she came in and announced she was having back pain over the weekend and needed to see a doctor and so couldn't work. She swept downstairs, I paid her for two days and she left. I checked to make sure I had all my keys, passports and money. I didn't find myself missing anything so far...so I count myself lucky.
This is my kitchen this morning, floors need to be mopped again, laundry waiting to be done, counters a bit askew with papers. I am kinda relieved...having a maid was a little exhausting. I can't believe I just said that!
Going to church in Bangkok.
I have never seen a city as large as Bangkok. I wish I could take a panoramic photo. Take this one and 360 it:
The city goes off in skyscrappers in every direction. I can't imagine how you would ever get familiar with it all. Our driver Khun Chiaporn is amazing and took us straight to church the first week even though he'd never been there before. IT is a little tiny side street off a very busy thoroughfare that you would never suspect contained anything of note. I will post pics next time we go. We attend every first and third week right now in Bangkok, and at members homes here near Pattaya other weeks. This last week, during RS, an announcement was made that a Bro Josh (something) had been atttacked on his way to church and that the high priests were going to visit him in the hospital and to have everyone pray for him. Apparently he was walking just a few streets away from the train station and got mugged over an ipad. This country is wild.
First date night in 2 months:
Saturday night David and I went to a neighborhood, adult only, dinner at this hotel called the Pullman in Pattaya:
This is the restaurant at the hotel where we ate. It was after dark (It gets dark at 6:30pm every day here) and we were seated under the tallest coconut trees in this pic, right by the ocean. There was live music and a seafood buffet. The pool lights were on and there was an amazing breeze off the ocean. We were horribly late as David spent the afternoon hawking with Thai merchants over dell laptops for Analeah and got a version of windows which I questioned as authentic. Turns out he made a good choice despite my concerns, and turns out I made a good choice of husband as he forgave me for my inquisition. But it all took time and we almost didn't go. In being married for almost 18 years though, we have learned one thing: things change. Evenings that start out rocky can end up enchanting. Days that nosedive can pull it out. So we turn to the Lord and somehow perspectives change, moods lighten and we are always grateful we went on the date. We have never claimed to have a perfect marriage, and I don't foresee that changing. I was reminded Saturday night though that we have a good marriage, and why that is--we both believe in Jesus Christ and believe Him that we can repent and change. So we try again. Date nights are the BEST.
Never. Stay. Home.
Lastly:
Isaac is a crawling fiend! He has more than adequate climbing ability to get into trouble already! His most recent accomplishments have been getting up into the dishwasher while my back was turned (I had put the empty rack on the floor and was putting glasses from the top away), climbing up three steps when I ran to grab laundry from my room (I had left him 20 feet away at the couch), and into a cupboard. These cupboards are gonna kill us both. They open way too easy and there are no child proofing systems here. (Didn't think of that before we moved). So...can't wait to get those baby gates!
He is the proud owner of 6 fully vested teeth, with numbers 7 & 8 making their way through. He bites everything and me with vigor. But cries if I gasp in pain. A sensitive vampire soul.
The kids are doing ok. Analeah has prom next week, we are supposed to go to Bangkok on Thursday for visa/ work permit completions. We are planning on shopping at the mall across the street from the visa building for a dress. We will see how the political process falls out over the next couple days. Things seem to be churning as normal, but everyone just is holding their breath I think.
I could write lots more about our asian mattress (really just think about sleeping on your boxspring and that is an absolutely accurate picture), dead cockroaches, hanging out with the principle and having seminary with all 4 kids...but I am exhausted and I only have one maid now...me! Look me up on skype family! We are open to talk Sat and Sunday nights--so your fri nights, sat mornings and sun mornings...love and miss you all!!!
