What wonderful weather in the pacific northwest - we brought along a Mongolian sky! Just so you don't think that we are finished having fun, every day is a blast at grandma's house - bike riding, hot tubbing, picking flowers and strawberries, sprinklers, speedboats and more!
Also our kids have been going to swim lessons twice a week at the local Y. Eden is finally getting over her aquaphobia! The boys have a pretty good flail too...
Does the fun never end?! Our kids think they are on an extended vacation (while everyone else is still in school!). First we went bowling on cousin Kaden's birthday... they should hand out knee-pads along with those shoes! The whole ground shakes when these guys play! Zeke took home 1st place with 120-something (no trophy, though). The week after that we caught a new movie in 3D!!
This week we all went to the Enchanted Forest. The kids flew through the Fairy Tales ...I don't remember them being so scary. They were even a bit scared of Alice's rabbit hole (maybe I overdid my evil cackle?). The kiddie rides were great, especially the bumper cars and boats, but they REALLY loved the big rides! They went again and again on the bobsled, log ride, and Challenge of Mondor (side note: I am now a "Champion of Mondor"). It was a gorgeous day and there were almost no lines!
As if Hawaii wasn't enough sand, we recently spent a lovely weekend with Grammie & Papa on the Oregon coast! We had some great pine-cone fights, experienced some wildlife (note our fearless "croc hunter"), and tromped across the sand dunes. Our boys climbed up and slid down to their hearts' content, along with Papa's great dog Amos. They even burrowed together and took a quick nap! Different from Hawaii, but still lots of fun and beautiful.
What a great place to thaw out! While our friends are still getting snow (end of May!) we were surfing, snorkeling and castle-building in Honolulu!
Every year we probably get a little more Mongol... for example we eat some pretty weird foods, have no fashion sense, and have really tiny space cushions! But we get to learn and do a lot of neat things too... like wear cool hats and hang out in round tents,
and eat some pretty weird foods! Isn't the world full of intersting things?! As we get used to the Mongolian things, and bring them back to America with us, some people might think us strange... and maybe we are! Wasn't Abraham a "pilgrim on the earth" and Moses a "stranger in a strange land"? Wasn't Paul made a "spectacle to the world...a fool for Christ"? As for me I am very much looking forward to some of the quirks and flavor we will bring home with us next month!
Here she is, almost 4! She sure is growing up... although you can't tell it much from her height. I think she is still wearing some 2T clothes!! But she is chattering away - in BOTH languages - and twirling her way around the house. Notice also how she manages to get chapstick or even make-up from any female within a 20-foot radius.
Every once in awhile she gets a bit tired from her busy schedule... the other day she even fell asleep at the snack table!
It is that time of year again, as we come to the end of the nine 9's of winter - the White Moon, Mongolian new year. There are all kinds of traditions associated with this ancient holiday... most of which aren't done anymore. Here are the kids enjoying one of our many home visits... you can probably tell by all of the smiles that they get ALL the candy they want!
Although still quite crisp outdoors (sub-zero nights) some of us are looking forward to the beginning of the archery season... no, not hunting. The Urianhai, an ethnic group known for their archery, shoot from 50 meters at a row of leather balls - the object of which is to knock as many out of the square as possible. Larry, Zeke and I are still a bit rusty... can't hit a thing at 30 meters. But we'll get there as long as the neighbor kids (and adults!) stand back long enough to let us practice! It's surprising how many "modern" Mongolians have never ridden a horse or shot a bow...
Our kids sure are growing up! All of them will have birthdays again in the next month or so.
The Yeller: superpower includes both piercing high-pitch and tremendous volume. Unfortunately his powers do not seem to have an "off" switch...
The Wacky-Tackler: demonstrates a variety of curious interests and skills - kung-fu, memorizing songs, drawing strange creatures, and tackling dad from behind...
Santa was NOT pleased with these kids last Christmas! That's a big lump of coal. Or perhaps, in Mongolia, that means you were a really GOOD child... it could keep our house warm for days! Especially with the heat wave we have been having lately... 
Every other week or so we keep some strange company... the Lains! We feel so sorry for them in that horribly warm apartment, with all that running water, that we invite them for an overnighter on occasion (plus we usually make lattes when they come!). The kids have a blast even though we confine them to the upstairs (except for Edie who prefers to hang out with adults). It is very nice to spend time talking about our backgrounds (theirs much more interesting than ours!) and our dreams (surprisingly similar!), and get the chance to pray meaningfully with one another. It's all good... well, except for the small lice incident...
