An Update on our Chaotic Lives

WOW! Nearly 5 months have passed since my last post! Where has the time gone....

I'll begin with our family vacation to Thailand. The last week of march we went to Phukett Thailand and had the trip of a lifetime! We stayed in a Mariott hotel in a "family style" suite equipped with a mini kitchen and two bedrooms. It was just across the street from the ocean so the kids got plenty of beach, waves and sand castle time. The highlight for the the kids was a day trip to an island off shore called Phi Phi Island (pronounced pee pee- maybe that's why they liked it!)

We took a speed boat about 1.5 hours off-shore to the exotic island where we snorkeled, swam, saw monkey's and did some local shopping.
We did another day trip to a local "safari" place and rode elephants 30 minutes up the Island hills and enjoyed a breath taking view of Phukett and the ocean surrounding it!

All in all it was a much needed and enjoyed vacation that we will remember for the rest of our lives.

In April I took a mini vacation for 3 day's to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with a girlfriend who was attending a conference for work. It was a beautiful "clean" city with fun nightlife and great shopping.....did I mention the shopping was great!

June 1st we moved into a house approximately 1 mile from the apartment complex we have lived in for the past year. It was great to get into a house where we all feel more at home and have more livable space as well. It is a much safer place for the kids to ride their bikes and after only 3 days in the new house Tayton had his training wheels off and was riding a "big boy" bike! At 4 years old, he seems too small to do that!

In June the kids finished up school and on the 17th we were off to America to spend the next 6 weeks with friends and family.

Our first stop was in South Dakota where we enjoyed fresh mountain air and quality time with Trent's family in the Black Hills. We stayed in a cabin while everyone else stayed in their motor home's.

Next we headed to Denver and stayed with our friends Tara and Tim Sisneros while Trent worked back at corporate headquarters. The kids had fun seeing old friends as did Trent and I.

The third week back in the states we met my parents in Breckenridge and celebrated the 4th of July there in a condo. The weather was gorgeous and we did lots of biking, hiking and walking through the mountain towns. Every night Trent and my dad cooked amazing meals while my mom and I sat back and enjoyed quality time.

After the Mountains Trent headed back to Shanghai and I left for Oklahoma with the kids to stay for a week at my parents house.

The final (6th) week in the states the kids and I went to Wyoming to see Trent's family. I had an awesome week there not only enjoying quality time with family but relaxing as well. I hope everyone is lucky enough to have in-law's like me where you really do feel at home in their presence.

Thank you to everyone who housed us, fed us and put up with us this summer. We really appreciated the kindness and hospitality that we were shown. Our family and friends back home mean the world to us. We promise it's only a matter of time until we'll be back and everything will be as it was. Hopefully at some point we can repay the love we've been shown.

Now we are back in Shanghai enjoying being back in our new home. I was only back 2 days and Trent was already on another plane to another country. He has been in Turkey for 2 days but is expected to be back home in 2-3 days. It's good to be together again after more than a 3 week separation! Absence makes the heart grow fonder!

Well, that's all for now.....until next time!

God Bless