sort of like a field trip

Posted on 15/06/2012 by monica @ transplanting me

…but without the adult chaperones.

this summer the kids headed to their grandparents’ house in america. and to get there they had to fly. unaccompanied. by themselves. without parents. i would say without adults, but one of them is an adult. (wow – i have an adult child). but he’d never flown alone, much less with his siblings in tow. to get to my parents house they had to manage four different airports, in three different countries. but at least they were together.

ticket counter in chiang mai

security

passport check

one of the airports was in frankfurt, germany. where the drinking age for beer and wine is 16 and hard liquor is 18. and since they were flying lufthansa that was the drinking age on the plane, too. go c18.

they were there five weeks. five weeks. that’s a long time to be childless. and it seems a long time for my parents, who have been childless for quite a while now, to have kids around. but i wasn’t worried about that. they all coped. and they made memories. and then they returned.

the oldest two returned together. they left d/fw a little late. which put them into washington d.c. a little late. a little too late to catch their connecting flight to germany. so they stayed overnight. the airlines put them up in a hotel and gave them vouchers for food. but at 1am they decided it would be a good idea to head out looking for a 7-11. i haven’t heard a lot of positive things about the streets of our nation’s capital. but they were fine. got some snacks. made their flight the next day. instead of germany they went to tokyo. and instead of about 8 hours in the air they got to fly for 14. and they got to spend the night in the airport in bangkok. they arrived in chiang mai a day later than planned, but they arrived.

the youngest returned with michael. they had flight issues, too. but nothing major. their biggest problem was arriving without luggage. but the luggage had all made it by the time we picked the big kids up.

all three kids made great memories. my parents were awesome. they really tried to find something that each kid would enjoy. however… if the occasion every rises for us to send the kids to the states again, we will definitely ask permission before booking the flights. but i sort of think this was a once in a lifetime kind of thing. next summer we’ll all be in the states and we’ll most likely be leaving one behind. and then who knows what summers will bring.

april break

Posted on 18/04/2010 by monica @ transplanting me

april break is coming to an end. and we did a bunch of nothing. or at least i did. the oldest two, c16 and c13 went on a mission trip. they spent a week in two villages in northern thailand. they played with kids, assisted with vbs and returned with packs full of stinky clothes. c16 also got sick. he spent a day and a half puking his guts out. probably better he was there than here. because a) i’m not one for the puking. and b) there he had aircon and tv, neither of which he would have had access to here.

april break is 2 weeks here. two very hot weeks. for the first week and a half, michael was home. that meant for the first full week it was the five of us home. it’s been a while since we’ve all been here, together, with not much scheduled. we played games. helped michael with some projects. finished getting a music room together for s10 and slept in. the second week started with the c16 and a13 headed out for their trip. leaving 3 of us here to play songkran. what could be better than the biggest water fight in the whole wide world? especially when they are very fond of using ice water. and throwing it on you by the bucket full. wednesday michael left. that left s10 and me. alone. s10 was certain that the few days between michael leaving and the return of his siblings would be the most boring time in his entire life. i proved him wrong. we made a day trip to the flight of the gibbons – where we had our fill of ziplining and waterfall hiking. and we were not bored at all.

c16 and a13 have returned. monday it’s back to school. and then the countdown to the end of the school year begins.

and none of the same symptoms

Posted on 10/11/2009 by monica @ transplanting me

it’s 9p on nov. 10 and i have to post something because of noboplomo. so here’s nothing something.

today all three kids were home sick. two – a12 and s10 – stayed home and the nurse called to ask me to pick up the the other – c15 – before i’d made it off the school campus. i think a12′s is sinus related. c15′s is maybe tired related and s10? i think it’s best if you hear read it in his own words.

i have a stomach ache and my head hurts. but it’s definitely not a food thing because i ate breakfast and it’s stayin’ down.

i didn’t let it alter my plans. still did coffee, ran to the store and went to the orthodontist. and only had 4 calls to “report” the happenings at the house. of course, i was only gone 2 hours.

i get real jittery when i think about it

Posted on 07/06/2009 by monica @ transplanting me

this time last year the summer loomed in front of us. a tortuously long summer with no idea what we would do with ourselves. we did have that trip to penang to be excited about – we were wrong to be so excited. but this summer! this summer i can’t even think of the goings on we’ve got going on. this week will be all about holiday bible club – hbc is just a fancy name for vbs - preparation. but that preparation time is going to be slightly interrupted by a 2 night/3 day girl trip to pai. we leave wednesday and get home friday. saturday there are meetings to attend and a 17 year anniversary to squeeze in… oh, and i start single parenting it again. i’ve been a bit spoiled. michael’s been home 3 weeks. 3 whole weeks.

the next week will be holiday bible club. monday through friday every morning. i hear there are like 200 kids and i’m heading up the crafts. should keep me busy.

the following thursday c15 and i get on a plane for india. india. i can’t believe we’re going to india. 10 days there and then the states! texas and colorado. friends and family. and we’ll probably discover 4 weeks is not enough time. especially since that 4 weeks might have to last us another 3 years.

if i believed in to do lists – or rather if i were capable of making one and keeping it – i would have to include get visas for india (c15 and me). get reentry permits for kids and me – so we can return to thailand. locate backpacks for c15 and me. pack for all of us. and all that intails… i’m trying not to think about what that could be. and – because it’s not going to do itself – get the stuff for hbc crafts. but it is sort of cool that once i get it it will sort of magically get sorted and prepared. and by magically i mean all those hbc helpers will do what i didn’t finish while i’m gone!

busy summer ahead, but sure beats a boring summer stretching out into eternity.

i’m not a sentimental person

Posted on 29/05/2009 by monica @ transplanting me

i’m the kind of mom who thinks kindergarten graduations are stupid silly. i mean, i didn’t see my children’s completion of their first year of school as a reason to go all cap and gown crazy. i sort of expected them to make it into first grade. i know there is alot accomplished during kindergarten, but really, a graduation? this could also be because only one actually went to kindergarten. the other two spent several years being tortured taught by me. perhaps they deserved a celebration of sorts when they gained their freedom reported to a regular classroom.

so when the kids’ school had a meeting for the 6th grade families about the upcoming bridging ceremony (bridging ceremony: a ceremony to mark the end of the elementary school years and the moving on to secondary school) i might have rolled my eyes and i’m certain i thought, “really? that’s stupid silly.” because i don’t see the completion of 6th grade as that big of a deal nor the moving on to secondary school – which, i think it is important to note, is on the very same campus as the elementary school and not only that it’s in the very same building. but because i’m an involved parent – which is really not true, i’ve only just recently gotten involved and i have a whole other post all about that (it’s a bit of a downer) – i volunteered to head up the food bit of this shin dig and to try to find someone to take on the decorations – since noone else seemed to be willing.

i think it’s a little funny that the person in charge of getting the ball rolling on the parent end of this thing doesn’t see the point of doing it.

so today was the day. the program was kicked off by the whole audience standing for the king’s song. which – i believe – is how it goes at all public gatherings.

then the students performed a virtue rap they had written themselves.

there were performances by a few students – including a12 on the harp. no picture, batteries were very low. speeches were given by the top student from each 6th grade class, they were very funny and charming. much more confident than i remember being at 12.

the final thing was the actual crossing of the bridge. the leaving behind of elementary school

she seems pretty determined about getting across that bridge

into the jasmine lei bearing arms of secondary school.

then all the other elementary kids were kicked out – unless they were a sibling of a 6th grader – and the party began. many parents volunteered to bring in finger foods from their country. we had swedish meatballs (switzerland), suishi (japan), chicken tandoori masala & nan bread (india), chicken satay (thailand), custard (europe – don’t remember the nation), brownies (america), chips & queso (texas – which is totally a nation), sticky rice (thailand), tempura veggies & spicy dipping sauce (burma), some crusty bread topped with veggies and ham (germany), some pickled veggies – not kimchi (korea), sliced roast beef (america) and there was more, but that’s all i remember. there was also a very lovely cupcake set up.

this amazing 100 cupcake cupcake creation was made even more amazing by the price. baht 700 – which when converted into u.s. dollars came to $20.35.

and as silly as i think the notion is – i will admit it was a lovely ceremony. and the purpose was better explained to me by the person who thunk the whole thing up. (whom i happened to be sitting by and it’s very possible i mentioned that i thought it was an unnecessary (and i might have even said stupid) thing to do – but, of course, that was before i know it was her brain child.) she told me the purpose wasn’t really a graduation but more to allow closure and to make for a better transition for the students into secondary school. it seems that tck (third culture kids) have difficulty with transition so anything that can be done to assist them is a good thing. i’m not sure what i think about that. i guess i’ll see as my kids become third culture kids.

oh, and i just have to share with you what i think is the most fascinating tidbit from the tck wiki link – dr. ruth hill useem, the sociologist who coined the term third culture kids, named her three children flopsi, penny and dipsi. it’s possible the whole third culture kid thing wasn’t her children’s biggest issue. or maybe i shouldn’t believe everything wiki has to say (you can find her obit at that link. and it seems her kids aren’t the namesakes of the teletubbies.)

medieval day

Posted on 28/05/2009 by monica @ transplanting me

today was the fourth grade’s big end of school year hoorah. they celebrated with a medieval festival and spent much time preparing. they’ve been studying this time period for a while.

they’ve broken into groups and built castles.

*s9′s group’s castle had octopi in the moat and a lovely pond inside the walls – excellent for fishing and picnics*

they picked a play and assigned and memorized parts and presented it today’s audience of parents and family friends.

*s9 was the king. and a very fine king was he*

they researched the foods that were eaten during that time and brought a list home of dishes that parents could provide for the feast.

*i’m not completely convinced that tropical fruits would have been the fruits of the day, but i could be wrong*

and – my favorite part – they even made sure to have an authentic serving wench on hand.

it was an afternoon enjoyed by all and a lovely way to celebrate a year of hard work.

there was still an hour of school left at the end of the feast and what better to do than a few hands of cards.

no, they’re not playing poker. they’re playing slave. it involves kings and queens and noblemen – a very appropriate medieval day game.

today we songkran!

Posted on 13/04/2009 by monica @ transplanting me

as soon as michael told me he was going to be out of town for all of songkran i started to dread it. that meant i would have to escort the kids out and about all on my lonesome. and i didn’t want to. i was coming up with any and all excuses not to have to go. like today we were going to make deviled eggs. i was certain that the kids would find that to be a suitable diversion. and they did. they were all for making deviled eggs and completely distracted from the water fun to be had.

but then the c15 and his friends decided to make a day of songkranning. and it was my job to get c15 to the meeting place that was only about a 10 minute drive from the house. it took me an hour to get him there and to return back home. traffic was horrible, water being tossed everywhere, roads backed up – or just flat out closed down to try to help control traffic. and it looked so much fun. and that’s how we ended up soaked today. soaked and exhausted.

last year – yep, it’s another annual celebration that we’ve now taken part in twice – we took far more pictures. we had two cameras and felt brave. of course, we michael drowned one of our his cameras and it had to be replaced. and just over a week ago i killed my camera. i know, we thought it had been resusitated, but it breathed it’s last breath while we were at flight of the gibbons. so i was uber protective of our only working camera – that would be the one we replaced after songkran last year. so here are the few pictures i managed to take. i think you still get the idea. if only i could have gotten one of the kids being doused in ice water. that would be worth a thousand words. or at least a silent scream.

the crowd at thapae gate. you can’t see it, but there’s actually a game of musical chairs going on in that mess.

walking home. a breather between dousings.

everyone has a role to play.

and an awful picture of me. i’d almost dried off on the way home… and then the neighbors got me

hoppin’ down the bunny trail…

Posted on 11/04/2009 by monica @ transplanting me

today was our second easter egg hunt here in thailand. i think it’s pretty impressive that we’re starting to repeat annual activities – makes me feel like one of the old timers. sort of. okay, not really. but this year i was wiser. the hunt was held at the same venue as last year – the abbots’ house. last year i thought abbot was a title. see, the pastor of our church is british. and i, being not british, but knowing just enough british phraseology to be dangerous recognized abbot as a term for some kind of religious leader in england. so, i assumed that the house belonged to the abbot of our church. i should have thought, but now know, that the house belongs to the family abbot. it’s their surname. not a title. silly me. anyway…

the biggest difference between this year and last year is that last year i went as a basic unknown nobody. it was just something for our family to do, a way to maybe meet some people, make some friends. this year i was in charge of the hunt and the kids story. so, i was up early to boil eggs. 100 of them. and because i’m the best delegater ever – or maybe because michael recognized how badly in need of help i was – he prepared the story/activity for the kids. a rousing game of easter bingo. and it was a huge success. no surprises there.

so eggs were hunted and colored. activities participated in. donuts and fruit eaten. coffee, tea and water drunk. and no complaints were heard… or at least noone complained to me.

easter-22 easter-7

easter-4 easter-20

easter-30 easter-12

easter-33

flight of the gibbons

Posted on 10/04/2009 by monica @ transplanting me

we saw no gibbons. not one. but if we had, i don’t think they could possibly have flown as well as we did. we were awesome.

started out bright and early. we met the bus at 6:30am for our one hour drive up really steep and really windy and really bumpy roads. we sat in the very, very, very back of the bus. and bounced and winded and rocked and swayed until a12 said, “i think i’m going to be sick.” and she was. and maybe two milliseconds later the driver said, “we’re here.” and we were.

first job – signing waivers. then we were off to get harnessed up.

then a quick trip by van (a few of us started turning green at the mention of getting back in the van) and we were ready to go.

we had an introductory talk/safety lecture from one of the spotters. the only one who’s name i cannot remember.

one of the things he explained to us was the brake system for zip lines. it’s very, um, low tech. but it did seem to work, when we could actually remember to use it.

bamboo brakes.

and then we were ready for our first zip line. i have to do a little bragging on my kids here – they deserve it. we’d spent quite a bit of time talking to and at the kids about how expensive this little outing is and how very, very nice it was of grandad and nanny to pay for it and how once we signed up and paid the money there would be no. backing. out. and i fully expected to have to push at least one kid off a platform. maybe all the platforms. but other than a few nervous jitters and the initial “i don’t want to go first, you do it, so we can see if you survive” moment they were totally psyched and all systems go! not one time did anyone mention being scared or not wanting to go or even needing a few moments to gather their strength. nope, they were amazing!

as we progressed through the ziplines they held onto their harnesses much, much looser and their smiles became much, much broader.

after the first zip line s9 became adamant that he go first. always. he finally acquiesced to letting the spotter go ahead of him. but he really did not want to.

next was the first sky bridge. i’ve got no problem admitting it was a little bit unsettling. i might have been the only one who felt that way, but i didn’t let it show!

then we really started flying – the confidence was building so the whole gripping the harness thing became unnecessary.

a few times we were lowered from one platform to another so we could continue our journey.

and we even zipped in tandem once. but since there are 5 of us, one had to go it alone.

a12 & s9 applying their brakes. c15 & i almost mastered the brakes, almost.

it ended well before we wanted it to be over, but we were ready to get out of those harnesses. two hours is along time to be so bound up.

thanks nanny and grandad!

we took many, many more pictures. if you want to see them head on over to my flickr page.

khun tan

Posted on 04/04/2009 by monica @ transplanting me

i just got back from 3 days roughing it with 31 6th graders. and had a blast. and learned some things. we went to khun tan, a mountain here in northern thailand. we spent 2 nights in cabins and even managed to hike to the summit (when i say mountain i know all my colorado peeps are thinking 14er and they would be almost right. if you take away that 1 in the front. yep, i’m saying it was a 4er.)

we started out the day at the school with a small getting started speech – and poorly executed april fool’s day joke – by the principal. then loaded up into cars for the drive to doi khun tan national park.

at the park we had a welcome and educational talk from a park ranger. translated for us non-native thai speakers by ajaan supaporn.

after the welcome it was time to begin the 4k (2.49 mile) hike. up hill. we stopped part way up for a picnic and then continued our forced march lovely hike. where we encountered the first injury of the trip.

as we hiked it began to feel a little land of the lost-ish. it was one of many times when i’ve had to pinch myself because it is sometimes shocking to me that i live here.

our stuff arrived at the camp before us. it traveled by motorbike. on impossibly thin trails.

after we arrived at camp, bunks were quickly claimed and shortly after the rope swing was discovered. actually, the rope swing was discovered first, but the kids were put on hold until everyone could get settled and instructions could be given.

the first swinger is a12, doing a mighty fine job. the second picture is a chaperon. the school librarian. proving that anything students can do librarians can do better!

my camera broke on day 1. which was a bummer, but also a little exciting because that meant a new camera for me! woo hoo! of course, as soon as we got home, michael used a little force and managed to make the lens go back in and it’s working now. so no new camera, just missed photos.

the rest of day one was spent settling in and getting the lay of the land. with a few other educational things thrown in for good measure. day 2 we hiked to the summit, had a nature hike, more swinging, bon-fire time, roasted marshmallows, skinned some knees, fractured a wrist, and told some ghost stories. day 3 we found a dead rat, cleaned up the cabins, packed our stuff away and headed down the mountain. that 4k hike up turned into a 7k (4.3 mile) hike down. no parent drivers, we hiked down to the train station. then we road the train – 8 baht (.23 us) per student and 15 baht (.42 us) per adult. an hour and a half later we were home and ready to spend april break recovering.

or at least that’s my plan. the kids’ seem to have other ideas.

oh, yeah. and i skinned both my knees.

transplanting me

rooted and established in love

Category Archives: kids