Friday was our 9th anniversary. So yesterday we were able to get a babysitter and go out and celebrate. We went to a botanical garden that is just gorgeous. The weather was great, and we went swimming, rode on a paddle boat, and ate a nice dinner. We were hoping to go horse back riding too, but apparently they are only offering actual courses right now, not just letting anyone ride. That was a little disappointing, but we had such a nice relaxing time anyways.
Last Sunday, Evie turned 7 years old! To celebrate we threw a tea party for not just two, but 10 little girls. They all wore fancy hats and white gloves and drank apple juice out of crystal tea cups. Evie and all the girls loved being little ladies for the day. Here's some pictures:
Here's Winnie to tell you all about Tiger Kingdom and her adventure there:
"Well, it's so fun. And I got to play with the tigers. The baby ones and maybe you should too! But you got to clean your hands at the end. That's all."
(Evie was too scared to do it this time, but quickly regretted her decision when she saw how much fun Winnie was having, so we're hoping to take her back for her birthday so she can play with them too.)
The girls had a grand old time running all over with friends and new found friends. Here's a picture of them with Caleb and Hannah, friends from the homeschool co-op.
It was a great night and we enjoyed it with Cory's mom, Penny, and Bob, his step-dad, who are visiting right now. We're having fun showing them around Chaing Mai. Today Cory took them on a trek to see the hill tribes, ride elephants, and go bamboo rafting.
Being able to swim year round definitely helps kids get used to the water and learn to swim. Evie and Winnie like to "swim" but would not put their face in the water or go under. After swimming with friends, who could all swim like fish, for a couple hours on Friday and Saturday, they both all of a sudden decided to go underwater! And they loved it! Today I took them swimming again and they were trying to stay under for as long as they could! What a drastic change to not wanting water to touch their face. Living in Thailand is definitely helping them get over some of their fears. Here's a video of Evie:
Winnie turned 5 years old on Thursday! She got some special gifts from family back home, like an elephant ride, gymnastics classes, and a calico critter house!
On Saturday we threw a birthday party for her and invited all the friends she has made from the homeschool co-op we go to. It was a Wizard of Oz theme and Winnie was Dorothy. We had it at the Centre, where Cory works, and decked it out with a lifesize tinman, a big emerald city, and a 30-ft yellow brick road! We even threw water balloons at the wicked witch (drawn with sidewalk chalk) to make her melt. Winnie had a lot of fun and is excited to be a big 5-year-old now!
Cory has been busy at the Centre. There was a team from the Philippines in to help for one week. They did a lot of special things with the students during this week and saw three accept Jesus into their lives! It is exciting to see God working in the hearts of the students at the Centre.
