A Video from Seth's Last Day

This is a little video of Mrs. Ting saying goodbye to Seth. Her two great gradchildren who lived in the home are with her. It is the saddest thing. You can also put "tracymcgal" in the YouTube search and get all 19 little parts of the 20 minute video. We sent a one time use video camera to Thailand for Seth's first birthday. We received these priceless videos. We bought our camera from someone on the Holt board but it is from CVS pharmacy. You turn it in like a camera and they give you a disk. The price is very reasonable. I think I only paid like $25. We know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Seth was loved. We can't put into words our appreciation...

Moving Right Along

Seth's schedule is getting a little more set. If he falls asleep in the car then he will not sleep in the house. I am going to try to avoid that at all costs. He is eating better and sleeping better. Last night he went to bed at 8:30 and woke up at 6:30. He still whimpers in his sleep and needs a little patting.

One really exciting thing that happened yesterday was when Joel came home from work. Seth started dancing and screaming when he saw Joel walk through the door. That was big in my book.

We went to the Aquatic Center with some moms from my MOPS group. Kara and Will love to swim and Seth did fine. It was nice being around my friends. I have never been so appreciative for my life.

Kara is in our church Easter production. She loves it and told me this week that it is the best part about church. The "crippled boy" was sick this week so Kara took his role for the past 2 performances. She did so so so awesome!! She limps out on stage leaning on a stick. Jesus sees her and she walks towards him. He opens his arms and she puts down her stick and runs into his arms. He picks her up and twirls her around. She is healed. I am crying just typing it. Isn't it wonderful to know that we can run into His arms?

Kara took care of Seth yesterday while I took a bath. She fed him a bottle and did a great job taking care of him. She is a little momma.

Will is doing so much better than we expected. He loves Seth and is actually GENTLE with him. He is protective too. I hope that this trend continues.

The kids are very impatient with his crying. He does OK in his car seat for a little while. Yesterday he started crying after about 20 minutes of riding. Kara and Will came unglued!! There was really nothing that I could do so we just had to endure it. Kara said "I can't take it".

We are all getting adjusted to being a family of 3. I am so glad that the kids were out for spring break. It worked out perfectly.

A Week Already

I can't believe that we have been home a week. Truthfully, it has been a blur. Jet lag really threw me for a loop. Plus, Seth adjusting to our sleep schedule has been a struggle. Until last night he was up off and on all night. He usually woke up at midnight and 3:30. It is a little like having a newborn. We try to meet his needs immediately to help him trust us. He is sleeping in the bed with us at night. Last night he woke up at 5:30 and I gave him a bottle and he went right back to sleep until 7. I feel so much better today.

I have started putting him in his crib for naps. There is a twin size bed in there so I lay on the bed until he is asleep. That's where he is now.

I am so proud of Kara and Will. They have done wonderful. They love Seth and have accepted him whole heartedly. So far so good. I did take each child out this week by themselves. I think that we will do that for a while. I love having Seth here but it is an adjustment getting used to the time required for a baby. I feel a little guilty about Kara and Will not getting as much time. I know this will pass.

We Are Home

We had a long trip home but we are here. Jet lag got the best of me today. Seth and the kids are great. We all stayed home today from school and work. I have never been so happy to see my kids, family, the mid south, and America itself. We are so blessed to be born here. I know this sounds corny but we are truly the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.

I will post later with pics and stories.

Day Three - Part Two - We have turned a corner

Chiang Rai International Community Church

Seth was all over the place!

Connie and Richard's Great Pastor

Dinner

A little girl dancing at the Sunday night walking market

Seth woke up happy from his nap. He actually sat on the bed by himself (us sitting there too). He also played with toys by himself for the first time. We were so excited. I gave him a bath before church and bath time was still stressful.

Richard, Connie, and family picked us up for church. The church was somewhat like home but different too. Seth was babbling loudly so I took him outside. He actually got down and started walking around. It is the first time that he has walked for us. It took him 5 days. When church was over he babbled and talked and cut up. He acted like a typical 1 year old. Connie introduced us to several families. We met the pastor and he prayed for us. He was from the UK and had a really gentle spirit. He and his wife foster 5 kids. I saw several Thai kids that are waiting for families. One family at the church fled from Pakistan. Their life had been threatened for being Christians.

After church we went to a farang (English) restaurant. I got the calzone and it was delish. We said good bye to our new friends. They have been terrific hosts. We then went to the Sunday walking market which was just across the street. We hit pay day. It was a huge market with hundreds of booths and thousands of people. We bought almost everything on our list. We took a tuk tuk home. It was my first ride in one and the driver took it easy on me.

Seth went right down tonight with no tears. He babbled to himself and then fell asleep. Joel and I rejoiced!!!

We leave early in the morning for our 8:30 flight back to Bangkok. Only one more night in Thailand after tonight. Hallelujah, I'm close to seeing my kids!

Day Three in Chiang Mai - Sunday

It is only 2 in the afternoon here but thought I would write about the day thus far. We woke up early and got ready to leave at 8:30. We ate breakfast outside as the weather is beautiful. Seth refused to eat a bite. We even have things that we were told he liked. He was very happy and playful. He loves to play "chay ah" which is "peek a boo". He also wei's and makes a cheesy grin.

Our driver was right on time so we headed out to the elephant center. It was one of the nicest things we did. It was very well laid out with several things to see. The elephants are amazing. We have lots of video of them. I will post pictures later tonight. We watched a great show and the elephants were able to do lots of things like play the harmonica, play soccer, and even paint. We fed them baby bananas and sugar cane. You could also take an hour elephant ride which we didn't. Seth was great all day. It was worth every bit of the 200 baht (less than $7) to get in. Our driver then took us to the snake farm. Uck! You know that was for Joel. It was gross and the snakes were kept in sad cages. We didn't stay long. Seth fell asleep on the way back to the hotel and he is napping now while I blog.

We leave around 4:15 to go to Richard and Connie's church. I can't wait!!! I will blog later.

The most wonderful part about today is that we are so so close to coming home. We fly back to Bangkok tomorrow, pack our bags, and fly out at 6:00 a.m. Tuesday. I cannot wait. Please play for us as we travel home.

Day Two in chiang Mai - Saturday

Richard and Connie's son who was dressed up like Captain Hook. Seth didn't really know what to think.


Here's a picture of Tip. Hope that she and Kara will be pen pals. She is in second grade also.


Here's the elementary school. It was very very nice.



Here's the mat that Seth loves so much.


This is the view of Chiang Mai from the temple on the mountain.

Kara, I hope you can read this before you leave for church. We came home early this afternoon so that I could blog.

Yesterday, we slept in. It was actually the first night that we had to give Seth a bottle in the night. I think that he is not getting enough calories during the day. He is having a hard time adjusting to our food. We don't eat rice soup every meal!! He also still hates the room. Cries when we get to the door and usually only stops when he is asleep. We stay in there as little as possible. TV here is the pits. There are only a couple of English speaking stations and they are not from the US. The world is obsessed with the US Economy and the presidential election.

We are staying at the Imperial Mae Ping and it is right beside the night market. We like the hotel and it has all of the ammenities we need plus more. Breakfast is included and it is a feast!! We have fallen in love with these coconut and rice flour treats. They are small like appetizers so you feel like you can eat a dozen.

After breakfast we wandered around town. I despise the Tuk Tuk and taxi drivers. They are too pushy. From our experience they get you in the car and then start raising the price or trying to sell you other things. The driving is better in CM but still crazy. Lines in the street mean nothing.

At 4:00 Richard came and picked us up. We first went to the tope of a mountain and saw a Buddhist Temple. Since I live in the Bible belt it is hard to get used to how other religions operate. The view from this temple was breath taking. It over looked Chiang Mai. We left and picked up Connie and their two daughters and a friend. We went to their children's school to watch an outdoor movie. They were playing "Peter Pan". The International School is wonderful. I felt like I was back at home. There were probably around 500 Engish speaking people there. It was set up like a carnival and all of the seniors at the school were dressed up like characters from Peter Pan. They sold real hamburgers and hot dogs. Seth loved it. Connie brought plastic mats like Mrs. Ting's so he felt right at home.

When we got back to the hotel we hit the Night Market. It was great and we found some good deals. Seth slept in the Ergo. We got home around 11:30.