About a 20-minute walk from our guesthouse is a huge mall, Terminal 21. The mall is supposed to be a giant airport and each level is set up like a different famous world city: the Caribbean, Rome, London, Tokyo, Paris, Istanbul, and San Francisco (has two levels). The amazing thing is the bathrooms. They are beautiful and each patterned after the city.
Before Ezra was born, Becca and I took a special Mommy/Daughter trip to visit the mall for the first time. We were amazed. We rode lots of escalators and visited every bathroom! We stopped in San Francisco to eat ice cream at Swensen’s Ice Cream. Becca and I shared The Earthquake a 8-scoop sundae. (This was my last time to eat ice cream before Ezra was born…no more dairy products for me.)
Two weeks after Ezra was born, Anna and I took a Mommy/Daughter trip to the same place and enjoyed walking around for a bit and Anna had some ice cream.
We’ve been to the mall two other times to eat at Sunrise Taco (kids eat free on Mondays). And Brooke took the kids there two days after we got back from the hospital.
Since Isaiah turned six this month, we now have 2, 4, 6, 8 in our home! Life is full of excitement! For Isaiah’s birthday, we bought sports outfits and had them lettered for our little team.
We’re in the midst of rainy season – which means…lots of rain and mud. They other day, during a sunny spell, some kids filled a pit with water and turned it into a mud pool. Anna came in before I got out to take pictures. Clara just watched, but had mud splattered on her. Lots of fun! I’m very thankful we have a washing machine!!
Last week Josh was away at the Pastor’s Bible School in Ban Lung for five and a half days, from Sunday afternoon until Friday evening. We’re thankful for the smooth week we had without him (minus the toilet getting backed up from an accidental discarded spoon going down it). Each of the three old children got to have a special sleep-over with me on the nights Josh was away (I took Monday and Thursday nights off).
Each child got to plan his/her special evening. Becca wanted to do mineral face masks and play Monopoly. Anna wanted to paint our toenails, eat popcorn, and read books. Isaiah wanted to make a number chart on the computer, drink decaf coffee (we added whipped cream and Hershey’s chocolate syrup0, and read books. Clara didn’t need a special sleep-over, as she got up every morning before 5:30 (sometimes before 5!) to spend extra time with me. It was a busy and full week!
Last week Anna got a new big bike as a reward for quitting her night-time thumb sucking. We’re so proud of her! Anna was thrilled to ride her new bike and it’s so fun to watch her. The bike came with a cushioned seat in the back, a basket, and a bell – everything that Anna wanted.
Last week we also had a young sparrow visit us for several hours. His nest had fallen from a tree and some kids brought him to our house. He was quite friendly and loved sitting on Becca’s shoulder. After a night of rest, he flew out the window and we haven’t seen him since then.
Last week we celebrated Anna’s 4th birthday. This year she was pretty excited about her birthday. We started off with a week countdown calendar including gifts, snacks, and a movie night. For movie night we watched Disney’s Snow White. Snow White is a favorite book in our house for the little girls and it was a blast sitting with Clara while we watched the movie, since she was very involved in the story, repeating phrases and saying “I found her!” whenever she saw Snow White.
Anna’s cake order was a bit complicated. She went between wanting a Mymy (her small stuffed panda) cake, a flower cake, and a butterfly cake. Then she settled on wanting a round cake with a picture of Anna, Mymy, and Mymy’s Little Sister in a stroller. Then it got more complicated and she also wanted Anna making a cake and Anna in a house included on the cake. I told her that I could only draw one Anna on the cake, and that was hard enough, since my smallest tip is still too big for tiny detail. The result was tasty, and Anna was pleased.
Taking Anna’s birthday picture this year was a breeze and she kept asking me if she could do different poses. That was quite a change from the years I begged her to look at the camera.
Anna had big plans for her birthday morning. She wanted to get up really early and put on a pretty dress. All the kids ended up getting up early and getting dressed up. They then played Legos together before breakfast. We had decorated Anna’s door the night before, so she got to see that first thing in the morning. For Anna’s birthday we went swimming in Ban Lung and had a pizza and French fries lunch at the pool we swam. Then for supper Anna ordered hotdogs and macaroni & cheese.
Gifts were pretty easy for Anna – she wanted a new mosquito net, a backpack, and some Little People princesses. Her siblings enjoyed buying/making gifts for her.
Four is a really fun age and Anna is one very bright and fun little girl. She can talk non-stop about the things her dolls are doing and she’s full of expression as she tells you every little detail about her dolls. I just love her hand gestures that go along with her stories. As our middle child, she did get lost in the cracks with her nighttime thumb sucking. A few weeks ago we started working on that and we’re so proud that she has, as far as I know, dropped sucking her thumb altogether. Anna also stopped taking a afternoon nap and has joined her older siblings during afternoon rest time, where they hang out on the porch and do projects and listen to books on the iPod. Our little girl is growing up.
Anna is pretty excited about having a new sibling and is praying for a baby sister. Before we told the kids we were expecting another baby, she told me we were going to get a baby on our trip (last March) to Phnom Penh.
We had a great time celebrating Anna’s birthday. She’s such a bright part of our family. We’re so thankful to have been gifted with her to our family.
The last picture makes me laugh. I told everyone to make grumpy faces and Anna who is usually my straight faced girl is pictures smiles while everyone else masters their grumpy look!
Every morning Anna and Isaiah get extra play time together while Becca is working on her reading lesson. Sometimes they’re the best of buds and sometimes they love annoying each other. Love them!
One advantage of living out here is all the insects we get to observe. Some are quite amazing. Some we could do without! A few weeks ago, Anna came in with this large praying mantis on her hand. We have two kinds of praying mantis here – green and black. Becca once said, “if only one kind of animal can get to heaven, it will definitely be the praying mantis, because they are always praying.” Also “you know what they are praying, Dear God, give me victory over my wife so she won’t kill me.” (Female praying mantis kill the males after mating with them.)
A very happy 3rd birthday to our dear Anna Grace! Three is such a fun age and we’ve loved seeing Anna get ready to turn three. She’s been talking about her birthday for weeks…a big change from last year when she didn’t even allow us to sing happy birthday to her and told us she didn’t want a party.
We spent the day having birthday activities: a water tea party inside, a real tea party on the porch, splashing in a blow-up pool, and her evening family party. Anna’s party included pizza, limeade, cake, and gifts.
Lately Anna’s been talking up a storm and loves to tell stories, dance, and do plays. She’s just discovered all the books her siblings enjoyed at the same age and it’s so fun to watch her hear them for the first time. She’s also started enjoying listening to catechism and Hide Them in Your Heart when she takes her nap. We often hear her singing the songs.
Recently she’s started using the pedals on her tricycle. The day before Anna’s birthday she decided to start wearing underwear and using the toilet. (This is an answer to our prayers for many months now, as she’s been quite obstinate about using the toilet. We’d ask, “Anna, when are you going to use the potty?” Her steady response, “tomorrow!”)
Anna is full for enthusiasm. Loves life. Is very clever with her jokes. She loves playing with her siblings and is very kind to Clara. We’re so very thankful the Lord blessed our family with Anna three years ago. Happy Birthday, Smiles!
Last month while driving around town, we spotted a Cozy Coupe at a rundown “consignment” store (not sure that’s the appropriate word for them). Josh returned later and found out they had two: one with a broken wheel and one without a roof. For $5 extra dollars they graciously let Josh take the roof from the broken-wheel car and put it on the roof-less car. Our kids were thrilled. I’m not sure which one was more excited.
Last month Anna started taking steps on her own. She still prefers crawling–or walking while holding on to something. She loves driving the car . . . backwards.
Life here is pretty normal. We’re living life and trying to learn Khmer. I’ve started packing for our move at the end of July. If I can pack several boxes a week, our last days in Phnom Penh shouldn’t be too hectic, I hope.
Saturday Anna celebrated her 1st birthday. We had a low-key day doing things Anna likes to do. Anna was quite excited to have a mango–banana–passion fruit smoothie for supper and she especially enjoyed the mango on her cake. (Anna wasn’t too thrilled with her birthday crown.)
Yayyi bought Anna a beautiful birthday dress. It was cute to see Anna’s face light up when she saw it. I had been wanting a fancy dress for Anna’s birthday (this is atypical for me) and it was a blessing to see God use Yayyi to answer that desire. Anna loves Yayyi and Dta (her husband). It’s so sweet to see her greet Yayyi each weekday morning. She’s one excited little girl when Yayyi comes through the door.
This past month Anna’s two lower front teeth came in. Anna weighs 19.4lbs (19th percentile) and is 28 inches (13th percentile) long. Guess it’s time to pack away the 0-3 month size clothing. (Anna is close to the size Isaiah was at 9 months, and to what Becca was at 15 months.)
We’re so thankful for God’s gift of Anna Grace to our family. In her birth we saw God answer many prayers: a safe pregnancy after two miscarriages, and a VBAC after two c-sections. She is the sister Becca prayed a year and a half for. She continues to grow into a sweeter blessing to our family. She has had the perfect disposition for our transition to Cambodia.
For Anna’s birthday Becca gave her a bunny purse. Becca was given this purse by her friend Amaris when we lived in Texas. A few weeks after Anna was born Becca decided she wanted to give the bunny purse to Anna for her first birthday. Yes, somehow the purse made it all the way to Cambodia and Becca was delighted to give it to Anna. Anna seemed pretty pleased with it.
We gave Anna a doll for her birthday and she already seems attached to it. It took me a while to find one with brown eyes and we were very thankful that the Dersch family brought it over for us.
In the afternoon Becca, Isaiah, and I looked at pictures from their first birthdays. So blessed to have these three precious gifts from God.
No matter how hard I try I can’t seem to capture how cute we think Anna is – oh well! Anna is starting to smile and coo more often. She has a lot of hair coming in on the top of her head and we’re looking forward to braiding soon. She’s done great with the last two weeks of travel. Today we travel home from PA – last partnership development trip until we visit from Cambodia!
About a 20-minute walk from our guesthouse is a huge mall, Terminal 21. The mall is supposed to be a giant airport and each level is set up like a different famous world city: the Caribbean, Rome, London, Tokyo, Paris, Istanbul, and San Francisco (has two levels). The amazing thing is the bathrooms. They are beautiful and each patterned after the city.
Before Ezra was born, Becca and I took a special Mommy/Daughter trip to visit the mall for the first time. We were amazed. We rode lots of escalators and visited every bathroom! We stopped in San Francisco to eat ice cream at Swensen’s Ice Cream. Becca and I shared The Earthquake a 8-scoop sundae. (This was my last time to eat ice cream before Ezra was born…no more dairy products for me.)
Two weeks after Ezra was born, Anna and I took a Mommy/Daughter trip to the same place and enjoyed walking around for a bit and Anna had some ice cream.
We’ve been to the mall two other times to eat at Sunrise Taco (kids eat free on Mondays). And Brooke took the kids there two days after we got back from the hospital.
