Norah Update

Norah is breathing much better these days. Unfortunately, she seems to be having a reaction to one of her medicines (the one for reflux). It seems to be upsetting her stomach to where she either (1) doesn't really want to eat or (2) eats and then vomits. Both options are fairly unpleasant and unfortunately for Norah, it took me until today to figure things out. I'm calling the pediatrician tomorrow. On the bright side, she is breathing much better than on thursday.

A bit of a scare

We had a bit of a scare on Thursday. Norah's been having a bit of a hard time with her "reactive airway" issue (since technically, she's too young to be diagnosed with actual "asthma"). Long story short, by late that evening/early friday morning, Norah ended up in the ER again. Unlike the last time, the doctors decided to keep her there because the treatments weren't clearing things up. We ended up staying friday night as well. Finally got home this morning. Norah's home with considerable variety of medicines (one of which is to control her acid reflux....one of the studies done on her was to see if she had reflux...which the doctors say can aggravate wheezing.....and all this time, I thought her reflux got better around 6 months when the projectile vomiting stopped).
Lucky for us, PoPo was able to catch the first flight out to come help us this weekend. Jim's on call this weekend and couldn't watch Lolo on friday or the evenings. We're so greatful for the help....but emergencies like this sure do make me wish we had family in town....Unfortunately, MN seems to be a tough sell to just about everyone we know.

What Lolo wants to be when she grows up

At preschool, Lolo is learning about different occupations. Yesterday, they learned about bus drivers; today they learned about doctors and nurses, etc. At breakfast this morning, we were talking about what they were learning in school. Lolo asks us "Do you know what I gonna be when I grow up?" Jim and I ask "what?" Lolo replies, "I gonna be a lover."

Still jetlagged

We're all still jetlagged. I don't know why, but coming back home from asia is always harder than going the other way. The girls woke up about 3am this morning but managed to go back to bed and to stay "quiet" until almost 6am.
It's been a rough transition back for everyone. Lolo didn't want to go to swim school yesterday and today she wasn't really pleased about going back to preschool. And then, she fell off the monkey bars at the playground. It's been a rough day for her. Norah is on a rampage and has been hitting and hair-pulling to try to get her way....unfortunately, she's becoming increasingly familiar with the naughty step.
We're headed back outside after quiet time for some sunlight. I'm hopeful we'll be back on track in another day or two.

Firsts for Norah

I forgot to list a "first" for Norah on her Thailand list....she managed to land on the "naughty step" for the first time...Norah purposefully whacked Lolo with a toy....and then later when I was recounting Norah's time on the naughty step to Jim, she started to cry because she didn't want me telling on her!
And, another "first" for Norah....she threw her first tantrum in a store today. We were shopping for a new bike helmet for Lolo because the old one wouldn't stay on her head anymore (ie her noggin's getting bigger). Norah was so ticked off that I didn't get her a helmet too. She clung to my leg and just howled.

Wild Things!

I had to bust up my first party this morning.
Norah and Lolo are still on Thailand time. Lolo woke up at 2am. Got her in bed by 3am. Soon thereafter, Norah was crying and so was Lolo. Then, after a bit, we hear noises....Lolo had gotten out of bed, gone into Norah's room, turned on the lights, thrown a bunch of toys in Norah's bed, put on her tutu, and both girls were dancing, singing, and having a wild time in the room. BUSTED! Everyone back to bed. Boy, you should have heard the crying.
Before Jim left this morning, he instructed "Make sure they pay."

Visit with Gongong

We had a nice visit with Gongong and Julia. Thanks for meeting us in Thailand. We were glad they could join us and see the girls. (Notice that Lolo has started fixing her own hair on certain days).

A bunch of firsts....

This trip was such a big trip for the girls....they both experienced so many "firsts" on this trip. Here's just a partial listing...
- The girls try an amazing variety of fruits....rambutans, mangosteens, dragonfruit, etc. Norah can't get enough of the mangosteens...Lolo prefers the standard mangos (which were beyond outstanding) and asian pears.
- Norah discovered that the housekeeper was leaving us chocolates by the bed...she learned to climb up and help herself. Not good.
- Norah and Lolo explore the delights of eating like a local from various street stalls. No, I don't know exactly what we were eating, but it was all good.
- The girls take their first tuk-tuk ride. Highly recommended...though mildly frightening...given my irrational(?) concern over the girls falling out.
- Norah transitions into the same room with Lolo. YAHOO!
- Both girls perform exceptionally well on an long haul plane trip. DOUBLE YAHOO!

Here's something we found interesting...it seemed that Thai people and Japanese people were entralled with our mixed babies...they just couldn't get enough of our girls. Everywhere we went, strangers were wanting to touch the kids, wanting to hold the kids, taking pictures of our kids and/or wanting to get their pictures taken with them. Highly unusual experience.

Misc photos

Here's Jim, teaching our girls to prey on the "defenseless" from the relative safety of our car during the Songkran festival. I'm wondering if part of the reason Lolo loves Thailand so much is because she thinks that she can spray everyone with water. Actually, we ventured out on bicycles one day during the festival...whoa....we got drenched! Poor Norah was actually napping behind me in her seat on the bike and got a very wet awakening. Here's me and my girl embarking on our wet and cold raft ride. And, Carolyn, I recommend a ride down the river in the pouring rain for you ;-)

We loved feeding the giraffes. They were so gentle and seemed so sweet. The girls really enjoyed them.

From the snake farm...

Lolo with a king cobra....and Norah with a python. Lolo didn't want to have anything to do with the python. Norah didn't seem to distinguish much between the two...she would reach out to the snakes and give them a good squeeze. I doubt the python has felt a squeeze like that very often!
Actually, the show was fascinating....gimmicky and entertaining....definitely worth the 200 Baht entrance fee. Jim's been trying to use the snake charmer's king cobra moves on Norah...LOL!

A few more pics

Our housekeeper made these leis for the girls. Of course, Norah promptly went to work on the flowers....by lunchtime, her lei had only about a quarter of the flowers left. These photos were taken early in the morning ;-)

Rough transition

The transition last night was a tough one. Norah woke up at 8pm and I put her back down at 9pm. Then she woke up again around midnight and I put her down around 1am. Then Lolo woke up a little after 2am and I got her down a little after 3am. And then she got up and crawled into our bed at 4am, and I was too tired to protest. Then Norah woke up at 4:30 am and, kindly, Jim helped me out. Ugh. I'm hoping the girls will be back on track tonight.

33 hours later

No, that's not a typo....after a 33+ hour trip and a lost carseat (somewhere between NY and MN), we're FINALLY back home. Despite a few tantrums/meltdowns, both girls did exceptionally well....Lolo collapsed in exhaustion on the way home and they are both napping soundly. I expect everyone to wake up sometime around midnight. We're all completely off schedule now. Hopefully, things will correct out by monday.

Last day in Chiang Mai

It's our last day here in Chiang Mai. Jim's got a last half day of class and I'm heading off to a full day of cooking school. The schedule seemed a little ambitious, so my sous-chef and Norah are staying at our place with a babysitter and Khun Nui. Anytime you're up for some Thai food, come to our house ;-)
The girls had their very first tuk-tuk ride last night after dinner. Very fast, a little scary, but completely enjoyable. The girls just giggled with delight. Wish I had gotten a picture.
Our flight leaves tonight at 9pm and we'll be in MN around 2pm on saturday....Norah has developed and grown up so much this trip. We're just in awe of her. She has transitioned to sleep in the same room with Lolo. I'm optomistic about getting the girls in the same room when we get home.
Will post more upon our return.

Chiang Mai Update

Jim has started his classes and has been taking his computer with him....therefore, I've been unable to borrow it during naps for photo uploads. I think we'll have to wait until we get home before I will have a chance to get more photos up.
It's been a very relaxing few days here. Lolo is getting reacquainted with her Gongong. Norah is still a mama-and-daddy's girl and is just now starting to warm up to Gongong and Julia. We've been spending lazy days by the pool and eating our way through Chiang Mai. Absolutely delightful. Lolo spent yesterday at the kid's club here; while Norah and I did some serious shopping (ie., we're getting things shipped to our house).
We'll be back in MN saturday afternoon. It will be tough going back to reality.

Snake farm

We're taking out the bicycles again and heading to a local snake farm with the girls later this morning. We're trying to teach the girls not to be "scared" of the things girls are normally squimish about....frankly, I'm not terribly excited about this expedition today.
Jim starts his neuro class here tomorrow (which is the real reason why we're here). My dad (the girls' Gong-gong) and his wife, Julia, are flying in this morning and will be joining us for a few days here. I expect the next few days to be relatively quiet and peaceful (i.e., we'll be spending a lot of time by the pool).
Lolo has decided she loves Thailand. It seems that every day she asks me if we can live here. Previously, Mexico was always her favorite (it's hard to beat the sun, sand, and swimming). She's decided she likes Chiang Mai much better than Mexico...much better than Bonaire....much better than Jamaica. Hmmmm.
Will try to get more pictures up in the next few days....though it's slow going. The connection here is slow comparatively and it's helpful to wait until the girls are both down for their afternoon nap.

Songkran

It's the start of Thai New Year...a three day water festival...an all out water war in the streets of Chiang Mai. Basically, anyone who is outside is fair game. People line the streets with supersoakers and buckets of water from the river and just dump it on everyone who goes by (especially targeting foreigners).

We took the girls to the old city to see what was going on. I bought little squirt guns for the girls the other day (Jim was disappointed that I didn't buy him a super soaker). From the relative safety of our taxi, we embarked on soaking the "weak and defenseless"...that is, we told the girls to target motorcyclists with their hands full. Even with such a strategy, we all got quite wet...you'd be surprised at what good aim Thai folks have with water. Lolo can't wait to go out and spray more people! It's the best festival we've ever encountered!

Chiang Mai Zoo

We went to the Chiang Mai Zoo today. It was so much better than either Jim or I expected. There was a very nice giant panda exhibit. And, best of all, from Lolo and Norah's point of view, the girls got to feed giraffes! Both girls really seemed to enjoy feeding them. They were both very relaxed and enthusiastic about it. Seems like we've been feeding animals every day here.

Bamboo Raft Ride

Before we got on the raft, the guide recommended that we take these hats with us. We thought they were cute on the girls and brought them so as to not hurt anyone's feelings. Boy, are we glad that we did! After about 15 minutes, it started pouring down rain. I can't recall the last time I was so wet outside in regular clothes. We were all beyond cold and wet by the end of the slowest 4km river "ride" ever. It was a relief to get off the raft.

Ox Cart ride

Elephants

Jim said Norah was shaking all over as they tried to feed an elephant. She must have thought she might become a snack.
Norah and I took a "trunk" ride courtesy of the elephant....only in Thailand! I love it!

Pictures as promised

The girls encounter a black buffalo on our morning walk.

Lolo and her crocodile.

My sous-chef and our fish with coconut red curry sauce....outstanding....but now we know the secret to making mango with sweet sticky rice.

Exciting couple of days

We've had an exciting couple of days. Lolo and I attended a cooking school together. The instructors were enchanted with my sous-chef and how much she could eat. At the end of our lesson, they asked her what her favorite part of the class was...Lolo answered "eating!"
Yesterday, we took the girls for an elephant ride, ox cart ride, and a ride down a river on a bamboo raft.
Lolo was mildly terrified of the elephants and completely disgusted by the fact that she got slimed when feeding the elephants. Norah was completely terrified. Her whole body just shook when she got close to the elephants. On the flip side, I think she's probably one of the few people to have ever fallen asleep and napped soundly while on the elephant ride! As Lolo told me later, the elephants were so much bigger than she thought they would be. We saw a baby elephant and she said she thought all elephants were supposed to be the size of the baby elephant.
Photos to follow.

A few more photos

Here's a photo of Lolo with a white water buffalo...the first day, she and Norah sat on its back but when we encountered it again, the girls didn't want to get on....it must have been scratchy and uncomfortable. Lolo calls it her pink buffalo.

And a comment on the monkey...we thought the monkey would sit on Jim's lap for a picture....instead, it climbed on top of his head. Jim was a little shocked to say the least. This monkey was a little outrageous. Norah had a piece of fruit in her hand, you can see in the last picture that the monkey now has the fruit....Norah and the monkey had a tussle over the fruit (which we had actually bought for the girls to feed the monkeys)! You should have seen them fight over it. Clearly, Norah lost out.

Photos from Chiang Mai

We've been having a wonderful time here in Chiang Mai. Yesterday, Jim and I borrowed a couple of bikes, put the girls on the back, and went out for a ride. I can't recall the last time I got so hot, but as Lolo said, "I don't mind being hot and sweaty in Thailand." We stopped at a "monkey center" and bought baskets of fruit to feed the monkeys. The girls got a real kick out of feeding the monkeys...rather, Lolo fed the monkeys and Norah held on to the fruit...essentially teasing the monkeys with the treats.

It's a little tricky posting pictures from here. I'm not able to do much as far as viewing and editing pictures....something goofy about the computer that I'm borrowing. In any event, I'll try to keep posting every now and then while we're here. The pictures above are pretty self explanatory, so the only comment is regarding Norah's elephant...as we walk to our room, we pass by elephant statues that Norah insists upon visiting with ;-)

Greetings from Chiang Mai

We've arrived and settled into Chiang Mai. The girls did exceptionally well on the flight over. It was so encouraging that we're already discussing future trips to Asia....although, we're still a bit jetlagged and getting used to the time change.
Our first full day here was relaxing and full of "firsts" for the girls. We took a morning swim, lunched by the pool, took a nice afternoon nap, and went out to the night market. Lolo and Norah also both got to sit on the back of a white water buffalo, who we encountered while on our morning walk. I so regret not having my camera on hand for that! At the night market, the girls also encountered street food for the first time and eating lots of yummies from various vendors. It's such a different experience traveling with our girls here. The Thai people have been so gracious and friendly to both girls. Everywhere we go, people are smiling at the girls, wanting to hold them, touching Norah's chubby cheeks....Norah is eating up all the attention. She's just charming her way through Chiang Mai....our little social butterfly!
Lolo encountered her first asian squat potty. Shocking for Lolo. As she said, my "pee pee is stuck". As much as she tried, she just couldn't go potty. I couldn't believe she held it until we got back to our room.
Tomorrow, Lolo and I are scheduled to attend a Thai cooking school. I'll try to post pictures sometime later this week if we have the chance.

Can't Fool Lolo

This afternoon, we were picking up a few last minute items for our trip. I spied a pair of pink "crocs" for Norah, so she could match Lolo (and me...yes, now all the girls have matching pink shoes). Norah was proudly modeling her shoes when we got home and I said something about how our shoes matched. Lolo remarked, "But Norah's shoes don't have crocs on them." Oops. I bought Norah off-brand shoes and got busted by a three year old. It brought flashbacks of when I was a kid and wanted name-brand items, my parents would try to convince me that the no-name off-brand was the same. Didn't work with me then....and it looks like that's not going to work with Lolo either.

Budding Picasso?

A moment to brag on Lolo's artistic abilities...Lolo drew this lion the other day. Jim and I were immensely impressed. While discussing her art, she explained about the lion's food on the bottom left portion of the drawing and, on the lion's lower midsection....Lolo explained patiently to me "this is where pee pee comes out." LOL! The kid is keenly observant.

Leaving Saturday

We're just about packed and ready to go. Just a reminder, we'll be gone for two weeks - starting this coming saturday....posting from Thailand is iffy. I'll most likely just update once we return.

Our littlest angel

Now Norah has wings just like her sister :-)

Happy Easter (a bit early)...

The girls (with a little help from mom) worked on Easter eggs this afternoon. As an FYI, "glitter" eggs are a very messy proposition with a one year old and three year old. You should see the girls' hands....I couldn't wash all of the dye off their hands....they now have "rainbow hands" to match their "rainbow eggs."

Primping already

This morning I catch Lolo helping Norah primp as we get ready to start the day. I thought they were brushing their teeth; instead, Lolo is fixing Norah's hair so she can have barrettes....just like her sister.

April Fools

This morning I was explaining to Lolo about April Fools Day, so we decided she would try to "fool" her daddy. When he got up this morning, she told him "Daddy, we had ice cream for breakfast....April Fools!" She got such a kick out of the ice cream for breakfast story that all day she would tell people that she had "ice cream for breakfast...April Fools!" She even had to tell me again before bedtime....giggling the whole time.