The last two months have been jam packed with lot of activities!!! We have barely had time to take a breath. For thanksgiving this year we hosted a dinner for a number of Americans (and some other nationalities as well) that we have met since moving here. We provided the turkey and others pitched in with sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, stuffing and even pumpkin pie. It was a great feast and everyone had a great time! We had invited some of our Thai neighbors to join but they didn't come as the atmosphere was English for the most part and they didn't know any of the guests. So, Chris and I thought we would host a Thai Christmas dinner with our neighbors in December.
A few days after Thanksgiving, Chris went to Bangkok to find a car for us. We had been looking here in Krabi but the prices out here were crazy expensive. So, Chris ended up being gone for a little over two weeks. During that time a number of neighbors helped us out with rides to school and grocery shopping. We even had an invite to do the 4 Island Tour, which we gladly joined. The scenery around Krabi is AMAZING!!!!
As Christmas slowly approached we talked with one of our neighbors about hosting a Christmas party with those in the neighborhood that we knew. She thought this was a great idea and began to invite some more neighbors!!! It was suddenly getting too big to host under our car port so we organized it in front of another neighbor's house. Altogether we ended up having over 40 people. I cooked a turkey, made mashed potatoes, gravy, homemade applesauce and pumpkin pie. The neighbors brought food as well (enough to feed an army) and we did a present exchange with the kids and played the game Gestures, which was the hit of the night!!!
Since Christmas we have been invited to so many social events it seems like we are eating out with people every night. We were invited to celebrate New Year's Eve with our friend Nam Kang and her family in Nakorn Si Thammart. So we made the two and a half hour trip to visit with her relatives and brought in the new year with Luke Tung Karaoke and Thai dancing. The next day we explored the city and returned home to make it back for a neighbor's son's birthday party-- which lasted till 3 am.
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| This is Nam Kang's Family. She is one of 9 children, which is very unusual for Thailand. |
Our Thai neighbors are so sweet and we are so thankful for all the relationships we've made since we have moved here. We are slowly adjusting to drop-in visitors all throughout the day and unexpected dinner guests. You never know what a day in Thailand will bring!!! We were looking forward to some down time after the holidays but it seems that the Thai holidays don't stop... There is a festival in our city that ends Monday night and then there is Children's Day next Saturday, which is HUGE here. After that, Faith's Birthday. We might just be living in "party" mode for the foreseeable future!!!
On another note, one of our neighbors, Phii Daeng, sells pearl jewelry at the night market in town. She has invited us (well really Hope) to go sell jewelry with her. Hope has a blast being her little advertising tool by wearing the jewelry and inviting (in Thai) potential customers to try something on. She even helped set up the display. I've been helping Phii Daeng with her English and translated for her with some customers. Phii Daeng has made Hope and Faith their own bracelets and necklaces too!
Wish I had more time to write about the kitty that died in our ceiling, the kitty we rescued on Thanksgiving day, my 8 hour hair salon appointment or the m-80 that hit Chris on New Year's Eve but don't have time and this is too long as it is! :) Hope you all had a great holiday and will have a wonderful new year!
