Almost home, painting done

Well I have completed all of the painting that I am going to. I think it came out well. I am sure that Shannon will love the colors that I chose. Shannon and the boys are on their way home right now. They are somewhere over the Pacific Ocean on the longest leg of the trip 13 hours. WoW can you imagine keeping Grayson tied down for 13 hours?

I am really excited to have my family back here in Jakarta. I also have a special visitor coming with them. My sister Teri, aka Treio, is flying back with the family. She is really excited and is going to have a really good time while she is here. She will get the usual treatment…Spa, zoo, safari, sailing club, and a lot more.

Did I mention that I am excited? This time tomorrow morning I will be at the airport waiting for them to arrive.

Don't Mess with....Larry!

It may not look like it but this dog's bite is swift and stealthy! BEWARE!!!!

Some Pictures

All Work and No Play????

So, as all of you know, I am building a new house and this was a working vacation for us all. We had to run to Lowes and get paint, 14 gallons worth and as it turned out, Lowes was having a Jr. Builders day! While our paint was being mixed, the boys got to make great little 911 signs for their house. The man working with them was VERY patient as Colin could not wait to hammer away! Here is their finished products with very proud young carpenters!



So they were bit by the building bug! We left Lowes and went to Hobby Lobby and bought bird feeders for them to build. As it turns out, they were put in the trunk of the car and put off and put off until Uncle Donnie showed up! We had a fun day visiting the Kentucky Dam Lock and watching a huge barge lock in and lock out it was great! Afterwards, we came home and Uncle Donnie helped Colin and then Alonzo build their bird feeders!

Here Comes Santa Claus...Indiana that is!

We stayed in a king size camper at Lake Rudolph and we could hear the roller coasters from our kitchen table! We arrived at the park around noon and we hit it hard. We headed straight for the Raven as there wasn't a huge line. We got up to the top, almost, and they closed it. Hummmm...

Alonzo was tall enough to ride almost all the rides but was chicken. Colin who wanted to go on everything couldn't because, sadly, he is too short! He was upset! But we headed over to Splashin' Safari and all was forgiven. The entire park was made for Colin. He could ride everything, and he did. Poor Ashley! But to Alonzo's credit, he did go on most of the water rides. At the top of the World's tallest Water Slide, Alonzo begged to go back down but mean ol Terio said no way!! He went down and said "I do not wish to ride that again." Our night in the camper with 2 other family's was interesting and fun. And Ashley and I froze! About 15 minutes after lights out, we heard load thud from the back of the camper and then a wail. I knew right away it was Colin. 8 Hours and 10 stitches later, JUST KIDDING!

He wimpered and was back asleep in seconds. Needless to say, he went right between Jacob and Bobby! The next morning as we were waiting for everyone to get up and going (Colin and Alonzo had been up for awhile) Ashley and I were sitting at the table and she happened to look out and see Alonzo going into the camper next door. I looked and sure enough, there he was, standing in the camper with two little boys looking and talking to him. I shot out the door and headed over there and I knocked on the door an about that time, here comes whom I can only assume was the two boys dad. I am sure he wondered what I was doing talking to his boys, holding Alonzo's hand. He smiled and I smiled and Alonzo cried. Boy did he get scolded! Of course the draw for Alonzo was theboys toy guns! The day was great and the weather HOT, HOT, HOT. and what comes with hot, humid weather but mean thunderstorms! And boy did we get hit! I have never heard a kid scream as load and long as Colin. He could have been the voice in any B-Movie thriller. Anyway, we made it home extrely wet. Our next big thing was "When is Uncle Kevin getting home?"

Kickin' It! In Kentucky

What a difference a year makes! First of all, all three younger boys could be in one movie and play the lead at different ages as they all look alike! SO....

We left Mainland Square at around 7:45 Am and we stopped for donuts at Krispy Kreme as we could not resist the "Hot Now" Sign! Guess What? We were back at Bandera at 9:00 as I didnt beleve my car when he was telling me I was going the wrong direction, until it was too late!

The rest of the 15 hour drive was mostly uneventful with the exception of Ashley and I beating the boys to the punch line every hour on the hour: "ARE WE THERE YEt?" Boy! Those boys were quite mad by 1:00 and then THEY started in on us asking, "ARE WE OUT OF TEXAS YET?" So when we FINALLY got out of Texas, we celebrated. We got out of the car!!!!

Ater arriving in Kentucky around 2:00 in the morning, we slept. Boy, did it feel great to get my butt out of the car seat. 7:00 AM came too early for me...

We had Relay For Life that night but we left after the lighting of the illuminaries.

Our next big adventure was Holiday World in Santa Claus, IN.

The Best Fireworks In San Antonio

Aren't in San Antonio. The best firework display in the area is at the Kendall County Fairgrounds in Boerne. Kendall County has set up a "safe zone" across the street from the fairgrounds so that while you wait for the professional fireworks to start you can watch the amateurs put on their best pyrotechnic displays. If you arrive early in the day, you can find a parking space then play Frisbee, toss around a ball, or even fly a kite while waiting for dusk. Pack a picnic to enjoy then buy snow cones to round out the feast. Once it is dark the professional fireworks show is definitely worth the wait. How much does all this cost?? Just the price of gas, and $2 for a snow cone. Can’t beat that!

Happy 4th of July

Grayson and I celebrated the 4th of July by driving out to Comfort Texas to enjoy an old fashioned small-town parade, complete with fire trucks, horses, tractors, floats, flags and of course lots of candy being thrown.

The fourth of July is just one of those holidays that seems to be best celebrated in small towms with friends and family. Our family is scattered this holiday with David back in Jakarta, Alonzo and Colin in Kentucky with Aunt Teri and Ashley, Cody in Seguin and Grayson and I here in San Antonio. I decided to make the best of it, so Grayson and I headed to the parade by ourselves. As I was setting up the lawn chair, Grayson started screaming and pointing, "Mon-ca Mon-ca!!" I looked around and sure enough across the street were our friends Monica and Eddie their kids Malcolm, Sophie and Corina, and Monica's sister Julie. We got spend the holiday with friends even though we hadn't planned it that way. Sometimes God just smiles on you.

At first Grayson didn't know what to make of the parade. Then he realized that there was candy coming from the parade and he got right into the spirit.

I thought the chicken was funny so I decided to share.

Painting

One Room Down

Simple Pleasures

Grayson and friends Malcolm, Sophie and "Aunt" Julie take in the view at OP Schnabel Park.


One of the best things about being home in Texas is the ability to get out, go hiking, and just enjoy nature. When we lived here we complained that you had to get in a car and drive to go anywhere. Now that we live in Indonesia we realize how lucky we were to have so many parks available to enjoy, and how easy those drives really were. There are certainly places to enjoy nature and the wonders of living in the tropics, but none of those places are an easy 15-minute drive from our place in Jakarta.


One of the other great pleasures for me is just driving. While David does drive on the weekends, I have not driven a car since we left Warrenton VA last August. The constant congestion combined with driving on the wrong side (to an American) of the road has left me dependent on the services of my driver Haryono. He is a great guy, the kids adore him, and he patiently puts up with me so I can't complain, BUT I MISS DRIVING! David arranged for me to have a cute little rental while I am here (see above picture) and I have had great fun just zipping from park to park (not to mention from store to store). I was worried about not having driven is so long but I haven’t had any problems except a bit of a lead foot and that’s nothing new.

San Antonio Spurs NBA Champs, Again!

We were happy to be home to watch the Spurs sweep the finals! GO SPURS GO! Minutes after the final score we stepped outside the house and all over town, from every direction, you could hear car horns blaring to announce the good news. A clean sweep!

Noise

We are back home in Texas and I just went for a walk. It is so quiet!!! The only noises were the birds, a few dogs barking, and an occasional car. No morning prayers from the mosque, no kaki limas, NO MOTORCYCLES! I think I could have closed my eyes and known I was home just by the sounds. Morning doves cooing, the hoarse raspy cough of grackles, mocking birds trilling, cicadas buzzing. Most of our lives we are not even aware of the constant background noise around us. Have you stopped and listened to the world around you today?

Time Travel, Fact or Fiction??

We flew from Jakarta, Indonesia to San Antonio, Texas. The trip covers 12 time zones. Total flight time approximately 23 hours plus layovers. We left Indonesia on Friday at 10:15pm and arrived in San Antonio at 5:00pm Saturday. Some how during the course of this journey we managed to time travel. The weirdest time rift was leaving Tokyo at 3:15pm Saturday and arriving in Minneapolis at noon Saturday!?! How do you arrive someplace before you even leave someplace else? Things that make you go hmm.

On Our Way

In about 6 hours we will be heading to the airport for our long awaited trip home to visit family. The kids had their last half-day of school this morning. David, Grayson and I went to Grayson's swim class where Grayson showed off for his Daddy, meaning that he didn't throw a screaming temper tantrum until the second half of the class. Afterwards David and I decided we deserved a lunch out before "the trip" so we left Grayson with Ibu Dwi and made a quick trip to Vietopia for some yummy Vietnamese food. Now we are going to do one last check of the luggage and hope the kids don't get too dirty. Then it is just a waiting game. In a bit over 36 hours we will be home in Texas.
On a different note Dakota has in own blog http://dakotascrazyadventure.blogspot.com. He has decided to author a blog for a couple of reasons. One he really needs to practice writing and editing. So publishing something for the general public to read once a week or so will probably encourage him to work a little harder at his writing. And second it makes it easier to keep in contact with all his friends now that he goes to an international school and his friends come from all over the world. I hope everyone will give him lots of feedback on his blog and lots of support as he endeavors to improve his writing.

Caught In The Act

May is a time of many goodbyes in the FS. People changing posts over the summer tend to leave as school ends in order to get in home leave before school starts at the next post. We had one last get together Friday night to send off our friends the Marlowes and the Hales and wish them all best wherever they go next. Matt Marlowe provided live music at the American Club Music Lounge. Dave snapped this picture of me singing along with Matt on stage.