Back from Thailand

Well I'll warn ya again. It is time to catch up on blogging and here we go.

Here are some pictures of what Cliff got to do in Thailand. He was also in the base newspaper for his service there at a school. (Making soup) oh yeah. He learned to count to ten and they were very impressed at his ability to quickly grasp the language. He learned the difference between the thai words of a doctor and a duck. In Thai, doctor sounds like (krun-mua) and duck sounds like (krun-ma). He got lots of laughs at him. He is definately not a duck.

He also got his butt grabbed by the head Thai guy- ohh lala for the Thai guy. Cliff thought the guy was gay, and that sealed it.

Some of the other things he did there was play golf- yep not all work- he got to take his actual golf clubs to Thailand. Yes, he landed there and departed plane straight for the green. Lovely. He actually got a caddy and did pretty well.

His first meal was fried fish. They just took the fish and dropped it in the fryer and out it came head to tail. Yummy dear, If you say so. He said he ate well and lots of it-Good thing he doesn't live there he said.

The first night he stayed there he had an interesting encounter in the elevator. As he was going down he met a guy-no joke- wearing a speedo(banana hammock), t-shirt (barely covering his hammock), black socks, and dress shoes with heel clickers. And he was sporting a pearl necklace. It was all Cliff could do not to laugh. Europeans think they set the fashion statement and they can have it he says.

He also go to see a Thai boxing.

Riding in a little car (tuuk-tuuk) was an adventure I don't want him to do really. I didn't know those little 3 wheeled carts go 70mph and don't have seat belts. The drivers weave in and out of traffic and cut through two cars, driving on the dotted lines. (oh yeah he drives crazy on a motorcycle, same thing except he has a helmet most of the time.)

He also got a two hour massage for 6 bucks! That Sure beats my 2 minute ones I give for free.

And most important He --SHOPPED for Gifts for me!

Poor kids got nothing really, little nick knacks (wiggly snakes, bracelets to share with mom,snacks from plane), while mom got a huge vase with elephants on it, placemats with (you guessed it-elephants on them), and a huge heavy thing that I didn't want to know how much it cost. It turned out to be a head to hang on the wall- (yep an elephant head- you got it). No I won't hang a deer head on my wall, but I'll hang this elephant head (made from wood- don't freak) on my wall. Especially once I found out how much it cost and I can't ship it back. Ha.

No really, it must be the elephant theme, but I like my gifts more this time (I like all my gifts dear, bc they come from you). My mom started giving me elephants while attending the U of Alabama and we seem to be collecting them without really thinking. I suggested maybe we would put the elephant head in the basement of our future unknown home-ha- maybe in his man cave and make it an Alabama themed cave, but no. Cliff seems to want it front and center upstairs as a conversation piece. I think that is great too. Maybe I'll put up picks later if the video of his ride ever loads.

Water boy!

Well during spring break we went to the zoo again, annual passes and all. The RS was having a photography group go and scavange for animals with tongues out, the most birds in a picture, animal from your native area, and stuff like that. But I'm too tired to post our pics, just this one of Kowen who while eating lunch decided to sing and clean the table with water from his cup made of corn. That is they made a plastic cup from corn. Yep, why didn't I think of that. I just thought it was cute, I don't know why, and I am posting now.

Isn't he cute!

Another use for duck tape.

Well there was a cardboard boat race at the pool and since, mom didn't let them enter and make a boat for them, they took one that was being thrown away. Who would do such a thing to a wonderful toy, a mom who wanted it out of her yard. Anyways, we got this one to the car, mom saying the whole time "it won't fit", but they were determined to ride without closing the back door all the way to the beach where it lasted 30 min and several turns. Not to mention the cool looks. Mom said carry it all the way to the left and float to the right. Well a man had to swim to catch them bc mom wasn't out there and no one would jump overboard. It was all fun til we couldn't get it off the beach. It was so waterlogged that we had to rip it to shreds in front of everyone and carry it to several different trash cans. But it was fun while it lasted. Another great use for ducktape.

Wet n Wild

Well for spring break we wanted to hit the water park several times since our annual pass was going out that week. We only made it twice for short hr or two each time. We were overjoyed that Kowen had grown enough to get close to the line and the lifeguards pass him through. Kilee decided to put her pants on thinking she was dry enough, but didn't like it when mom laughed at her for looking like she peed in her pants. So, she took them off. Oh well. She then had to laugh bc Kowen was in the boys bathroom and had pooped too soon and was complaining that he didn't want to clean it up and well Kandon didn't want to help him, so well what do you think Happened. Yep, mom had to trot off shielding her eyes into the boys bathroom-not a place I like to go- and clean up Kowen and his mess. Lovely time.

Passes out of date and Kilee is still complaining that she didn't get to ride enough bc someone had to watch Kowen and Kandon didn't want to ride. Oh well, there will be more parks I say. Where is dad when you need him--playing golf in Thailand. Bummer.

Just what I Get for Gardening

Day one (Cliff left this morning)

Well this is what I got for doing gardening on the same day that Cliff left for Thailand. We get 2 bags of soil and bird seed (grass seed- my mistake) from the base. We try and try to get some to grow in the ungrowable spots, but it hasn't worked in over a year, but for some reason I still get it monthly and it sits there for too long. Cliff hadn't gotten around to it and since our trampoline broke (with kids on it) we have to try and grow more grass where it has shaded the dirt. So, I put out like 4 or 6 bags of dirt and 4 ziplocs of seed. Kowen was playing with the dump truck. That's ok. I told him to make sure dirt stays off patio- knowing full well it wouldn't and it didn't. I put the dog out bc I had to give her a bath anyways and told her to stay out of dirt- knowing full well she wouldn't. Well, I reaped the rewards. A dirty boy and a dirty dog- turned into 2 baths, a patio to sweep and a floor to mop. So in an effort to avoid carpet cleaning as well, as Kowen went upstairs stomping his feet. I decided to just pop them both in the bath---in the kitchen sink. It was the closest. It is where the dog bathes now, anyways and Kowen said yes. Dog on one side, boy on other. Kowen loved it. Dog not so much. Mom not at all.

Then to add to that day after all was clean. Fast forward 8 or so hrs and I come home to check my email after karate and roadshow practice and find an email for a tsunami watch. Uhh. So I decide to move a few things upstairs just incase and was waiting for the kids popscicles to be finished and was going to put them to bed and slip out with the neighbors help to get gas and call it done. Nope fate had other plans.

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP-- stupid tsunami warning comes on tv. I though cable doesn't do local news. Ha fooled me. Kids cry while we wait and wait for gas. I say "no problem." Like last time. "No biggy." They cry "I don't want to drown." I say, "fine we will go to the church and sleep on the hard, hard floor like crazies." WE will take dog-- not mom's idea- ha- and run to target and get a pop up crate since we have none yet--except target is closed at 11pm. Uhh I didn't see that one coming. Thought they would be nice and open late since there was a tsunami coming and all. Nope. So the dog got to roam the car (she did good and slept in my seat-the drivers seat) .

We go to the church and ask the bishop for his best room. I Deny the first room bc of no A.C. Service needs work I joke-- haha. I Put kids to bed even after they whine that they want to stay up like the other kids playing basketball all night in the gym (church open to non-members too). I say it is 1am and they have to sleep. I checked on the dog again and again to make sure she didn't pee or hit the parking brake and crash the car. But all was well and we went home by 7:30am. I tried to take a nap but no luck.

Blessings amidst hard times (hard floors I mean). And then it took all day to empty the car and put back what we took out in one hour of packing. But that is how it always is. And we are ok. That is the good part. Adventures all the time here. Bring your humor though.

Skate Park hair do's

The kids have been begging to go to the indoor skate park eventhough they can't ride skateboards or rollerblade well, but they can scooter. And too my unbelief they allow scooters there. So off we went for an hour while Cliff bought his stuff for his trip to Thailand. All three kids, three scooters, 12 pads, and 3 helmets, water, snacks (yes snacks for just an hr and right before dinner, I know my kids- not to mention the money in pocket bc I knew they wouldn't want said snacks).

There were lots of big guys, going around, going around fast. And here are my little kids darting between and infront of said guys. And here is me yelling and chasing and telling them they can't cut in line and watch out and well laughing too.

Here is said kids in deep hole, trying to scooter and get back up ramp, which couldn't. Here is said kids who run as they might can't get back out of said hole without mom's help. Hahaha. Best babysitter ever. not. What you can't see is me, mom, lying on side of hole trying to pull out said kids without falling in herself. So much fun.

And here is said kids after one hour of helmets on, sweating, and no need for gel bc their hair just stays back on its own and is well, just hilarious. And what you don't see is the filthy butts bc of all the sliding. Thank goodness for the invention of washing machines. They can't wait til next time.

I'm Not Gifted and Talented enough I guess.

Well I've said before, the kids are only in 2nd and 3rd grade, but come on I thought I was done with homework. Nope, everyday for 20 more yrs or so, no way. I'm not smart enough to go through it again. I am under the strong belief that pregnancy, 3 to be exact, damaged braincells bc I am just plain dumb sometimes to the simple things of elementary education.

To be specific. Kilee is in the gifted program at school and well here they only do math, at the other school only writing, but anyways, she brought home another one of those block puzzles. I'm sure they are the same ones from last year that I had to do while Cliff was deployed. WEll, I tried this blue one again and again and again after I had listen to Kilee complain for more than an hour. And well, since I couldn't get it and cheating on the internet didn't help, I gladly passed it onto Cliff when he got home, thinking surely he is smarter than I.

Nope. hahahahha. He couldn't do it. He came to a different conclusion. I thought I was just dumb and the internet had not evolved enough to tackle this new harder than normal puzzle. And it was perfectly ok to go back to the teacher and say we couldn't solve it with our feeble minds. And I had dismissed the idea of well the wrong piece bc I new what the teacher would say when Kilee went back to the teacher and said "MY dad says you gave me the wrong piece and he can't figure it out. He looked on the internet and printed it out, and he wants you to solve it so he can see how it works if it doesn't have the wrong piece." Of course the teacher looked at her and brushed her off by saying "it has the right pieces, now go sit down" HAHAHAH

Oh well to blue puzzle, I won't be here next year for said teacher to send it home again. Fairwell and good riddence to puzzle and unneeded brain cells.

Strange Life!

Well, Kowen's pre-school went to the aquarium and of course 4yr olds are not interested in reading the signs or listening to the recordings about the fish, so it went pretty quickly since it is a small aquarium here. Kowen was excited to see the extremely large tank with the 4 ft shark and other fish that swim locally here. Not good to know or remember when swimming anywhere. Zebra eels were cool to mom, and the octopus. However, the coolest thing to mom was the red frogfish. Yes, they call it a frogfish although it looks nothing like a frog, but it does have 4 feet. It uses the horn on top to attract fish and then eats them when close and can stay still for hrs or days I can't remember. I liked it so much, I made Kowen pose in front of it although he ran past it to the sharks and had to backtrack. I didn't get to listen to the recording, but I wonder if it croaks. Probably not.

Got to love field trips, well on some you learn things, on others nada. Reminds me of Kandon's field trip to Chinatown a few yrs ago here where if I had pointed it out, he could have learned more than just the fact that the homeless man walking down the street was in his underwear. He could have learned about the Hooker on the corner, and the Transvestite walking by the bus. But mom didn't feel like being the educator that day, just the simple chaperone.

Anyways, love aquariums and all non-dangerous sea life, may they live on and not go extint do to me or my childrens lack of care while here.

Pregnant, not really!

I sent this picture to my dad as a joke to pretend I was pregnant and that was why I hadn't visited, not the price of tickets. But he wasn't too fooled bc there wasn't a belly button sticking out. oh well. But he passed it on to mom and well she had to call and confirm that I was or wasn't bc she thought it was a balloon, but that I was announcing something. Nope not me.

Well, Good old Balloon fun never changes. Long hair, a little rubbing, static, and voila, a new hair doo that everyone has to try. Even mom, but she didn't post her picture on the web. Ha

And nope, they aren't pregnant either, just full of hot air.

This is what started it all. Dad was laughing at Kandon who couldn't blow up a balloon very far. Mom then tried to help him, but didn't want his spit so she got a new balloon and dad thought she was going to pass out so he took both and well, blew them both up at the same time on a dare. Not once but twice. Without passing out, close though. And he had a headache before this too. And from there it turned into a ballon fight and hair do's.

Finally, Crab

Ok so beware I am weeks behind on my blog and it is catch up time. I'm going to start with the fact that we live here and Kilee has been asking for almost 4 yrs to eat crab. Well darn, crab is expensive, and well more than that, mom hates the smell of fish and doesn't eat it so why will she cook it just to torture herself. I should to please daughter but I don't remember doing that, so we finally took her to eat and they had run out of the specials--ahhhh. So, Cliff had to share his more expensive platter with her and Kandon. To say, Cliff did not get much. Kowen and I of course declined to even taste it. Another thing checked off the list--Crab in Hawaii. (same everywhere so no need to put this on anyone's to do list.)