A lot has happened since we last spoke with any of you and we thought it time to give you all an update. About two years ago we decided to move to Washington DC where we had an adventure and enjoyed the company of Brenn and Kim Bouwhuis and their beautiful little girl, Elle (sp?). Although we were far away from all of you it was incredibly comforting to have Brenn and Kim so close and it gave us a new appreciation for our family. We have a pretty amazing family and we hope all of you take advantage of the ability you have to meet together often. Last June we moved to Bangkok, Thailand for Elijah's work and fell in love almost immediately with the food, the fruit, and the genuine goodness of the Thai people. Frequently, when Duong is walking somewhere with the kids and needs to cross the street (which is insane as anyone who has ever been to Bangkok knows), some random person will drop whatever they are doing and go and help her cross.
We also had the privilege of experiencing the worst flooding Thailand has experienced in the last sixty or so years. Although tragic, it was incredible to see how the Thai people worked together to make it through that hardship. It was also a good reminder of the need for food storage, 72 hour kits, potable water, and flashlights.
Already we are lamenting the day we will have to leave this wonderful country.
Now for a brief update on what we're doing:
Duong -
Duong is spending her limited free time learning to speak Thai, cooking new foods, and creating fun activities for the kids. She has become quite fluent in Thai considering she has only be studying for about one year. Taxi drivers and food vendors often mistake her for a Thai. In addition to mastering Korean BBQ (as you can see here), she has also become quite good at making cookies, cakes, and rolls. Some of Duong's most memorable moments of last year were when she was able to go see her favorite Thai soap star, Ann Thongprasong, and being able to meet and shake hands with Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.
Elijah -
Elijah has become reacquainted with his love for the ocean and tries to take the family to the beach often. In his free time he has been helping the Mormon missionaries teach the Gospel. He had the privilege of helping several Buddhist friends learn of and come to accept and love Jesus Christ. One of the great opportunities he has had here has been working with the young men in our Thai ward. Many of them are the only member of the Church in their family, and yet they are faithful in going to church each week. He also enjoys eating everything Duong makes.
Kanani-
Kanani started kindergarten here and has a wonderful Australian teacher and class mates from India, Thailand, Japan, and the UK. Currently, Alex from her class is her boyfriend, but she assures us she is going to marry Ricky. She is learning to swim from a Thai man who said he learned how to teach kids to swim by watching The Dog Whisperer--because, obviously, kids are like dogs. Nevertheless, she has become quite a good little swimmer. While she does enjoy living in Thailand, Kanani often tells us she wants to move back to Utah.
Akeakamai-
Kea is into everything Michael Jackson, robots, punching his brother, and swimming. Kea misses his sister when she is at school and often tells Duong to go bring Nani home so they can play. Kea does not enjoy church here and tells us almost weekly that he wants to go to the Jesus church in the Utah world where he can understand what people are saying. Kea loved taking karate from his uncles in Utah and we're debating whether to get him into Muay Thai lessons here. Duong fears that what is now only punches to Asa will turn into knees and elbows. As Elijah has not been able to watch UFC here in Thailand, he is all for it.
Asa -
Asa loves Bob Marley and starts shaking his hips whenever we turn it on. Miraculously, Asa has been going poopy in the toilet since he was one, but he still won't go potty in the toilet. Asa enjoys eating rice, rice, and rice. For some reason he won't eat very much meat, and he is picky when it comes to sandwiches, but he loves fruit. Since Thailand has such a wide variety of fruit, he is in heaven here. Elijah wants Asa to grow his hair out, but since we have been getting comments on what a cute girl we have, it may be time to chop it off. Asa is a sweet little boy but he has started to have temper tantrums, and has learned how to express his anger in a scream.
Other than being far away from you all, life is beautiful. We'll be heading back to Utah for a couple of weeks in the next few months and hope that we will be able to break bread with each of you. If any of you are thinking of a trip to South East Asia, know that we have an extra room waiting for you.
Much love,
Elijah, Duong, Nani, Kea, and Asa
