English in Ubon

This is my best friend Ket. She was my roommate last year and then she became the Pastor of a church plant in Ubon. We got to spend 10 days together while I was teaching English and it was so much fun to be with her again! We are great friends!
















These are the faces of some of my students! They are so cute! Ying, me, Yao, and Bee! I had a class of 5 students and these 3 were the most faithful and came to every class.















We studied many things together and one thing was pronunciation. Many of them have studied English for a long time but a Thai teacher has taught them so their grammar is great but their pronunciation needs some work! My students improved in their confidence to speak English! That was the goal!! Kim this pic is for you!















The last day of class we had a party and all my students came to Ket's house and we ate together! This is a pic of all the girls together! It was such a fun 10 days with these students! Look at their smiles! They were great students!!















This is a picture of our dinner together! Sean came and joined us for the last day of class and one free day in Ubon. We had a great time in Ubon together! It is one of my favorite places in all of Thailand! It is a beautiful place! I will miss it, I actually already do!!

Making Cookies

Making cookies is one thing I am known for here in Thailand! Every Saturday I teach kids English for one hour. This week I decided to teach them how to make cookies! They LOVED it!!! being a math teacher we talked about the difference in measuring in Thailand and America. It was a fun time and the kids got to taste what they made! Everyone had a great time!!

Pat and Bew are mixing their dough! They had fun with the flour! Of course it got everywhere!





Here I am teaching them about the different ingredients and utensils used in making cookies! It was so much fun to have them so excited about making cookies!


Warm chocolate chip cookies! What better taste could be in the mouth! The kids all loved the cookies and they made some to take home too! What a wonderful day!!

New Years in the South

Tai Church staff members got 5 days off this year for New Years! It was great! Sean and I joined my favorite family in Thailand, James' family, in the adventure of the year! We went 9 adults, 3 kids, 1 baby, and a dog, in a van for 12 hours both ways. It was so much fun! We had such a great time together! Above are some fun pics of that time. This family is so special to me! James has worked at the church since it opened and his family has taken care of me in so many ways! They have welcomed Sean with open arms and they are a blessing to me!

Sean and Paige's Christmas

Thanks to Sean's mom, Sean and I had an amazing amount of gifts to open. We were suppose to open them on Christmas morning of course but we were stuck in Laos. So we opened them the night we got back from Laos! It was great to have gifts to open that were given with love! We got lots of snacks and lots of love!




All the gifts under the fake tree...but thanks to my best friend Kim, we had a candle that smelled like Christmas tree so we lit that and tried to make it feel real! Thanks Kim!








While my family's traditional stocking stuffings include toothbrushes, oranges, gum, peanuts, and other favorite candies, Sean's typical stocking stuffings consist of office supplies. This year Sean's brother asked to change it up a little and wanted travel supplies. So, this year we got a little bit of both! I got a real good taste of a Whiting Christmas that is for sure!










Thank you, Dianne, for making Sean and I feel at home when we are so far away! You are missed and loved from Thailand!

An unexpected Christmas in Laos

Thai Visas is the reason we were in Laos. My work permit finished on December 21st and Sean's tourist visa expired on the 23rd so we had to go to Laos. We thought we would make a vacation out of it. So after the Christmas celebration at Tai Church Bangkok, Sean and I hopped on a train and headed to Nong Kai (in the NE of Thailand). The train broke down and we had to wait about 2 hours. At this point we knew that we would not get to the Thai Embassy in time because they close at noon. We were upset but we thought we would just make the most of it. So we find a hotel and then go out for Indian food! Oh man it was so good!

This is the pic of the line that we had to wait in 2 times in the morning to give our passports and 2 times to pick up our passports! I will not tell you all the details of this process, just know that it was a very stressful experience and we did the best we could with the situations we were put in!

This is the Arc d'Triomphe in Laos. It is in the center of town and we passed it each time we went to the Thai Embassy! We walked up inside of it and took in the view! It was a great time! It is a beautiful part of the city!

So, Sean was in charge of this week. He was to research restaurants and hotels and all that stuff! He spent the past 2 years in Sweden and so when he was searching for places to eat he found a Scandinavian Bakery! We ate there 2 times and had great sandwiches and bagels and coffee! It was a great place for us to "Fika", as they say in Sweden! (It is their word for coffee break)

Another thing that Sean found as he was researching was a great salon that did hair and nails! So for Christmas, Sean gave me a pedicure! Which is one of my favorite things! Pedicures and Starbucks and I am a happy girl! It was a great way to relax as we were having a crazy time with the Embassy! There were lots of moments of love in the midst of such chaos! This was one of those moments! Sean also got a pedicure! Check out the pics to the right!

Because of some MAJOR visa problems, Sean and I got stuck in Laos for an extra day and that meant spending Christmas in Laos. We thought that we would be in Bangkok celebrating but we didn't get to do that. So on Christmas Eve, Sean took me to an amazing Italian food restaurant! We got dressed up and we ate for 2 or 3 hours! It was great, just like I like it! Appetizers, the main meal, and dessert! It was great! And the owner of the restaurant was awesome! We got to talk with him and hear his amazing story of how he got to Laos! He has been there for 16 years working this Italian restaurant! People have pretty amazing stories when we take time to listen!

On Christmas morning we had breakfast in my room and watched White Christmas! Then we went to the internet cafe to call Sean's family on Christmas Eve in CA, and then we went to the Thai Embassy to get his passport and then to the bus to the train and onto Bangkok! It was a bit crazy but even now I can look back and smile and say it was a good time!

Christmas all over Thailand

Merry Christmas Thailand! I love to travel and Tai Church knows that I love Lampang and Ubon! When we were talking about the Christmas committees for these churches I asked if I could go. This meant that Sean and I would be going together! So fun!

Our first Christmas was in Lampang. All the Christmas activities were planned and run by the youth of the church. It was so great to be apart and help where we could. We took a train up on Friday night and then took a train back to Bangkok on Sunday night! It was so much fun!
Sean and I had been to Lampang the month before so the kids were familiar with him and just loved him! He played basketball with the boys and had fun with them! This picture is of us caroling the night before the Christmas party! We went through the market and sang Christmas Carols in Thai! It was so much fun!



Then on Tuesday night we took a bus to Ubon for Christmas celebrations there! We had two celebrations. One was at the university in Ubon and we set up and had games and a show and then Pastor Kajohn shared about the true meaning of Christmas. It was great! 4 people accepted the Lord and many were interested in knowing more!

The next night we had Christmas at the church in Ubon, which is actually Ket's house! We had 60+ people there and it was awesome! We had games for the kids, shows for the adults and Pastor Kajohn shared again! It was a good time!
We got on a bus going home on Thursday night. It was fast but fun!



Our final and last Tai Church celebration was at Tai Church Bangkok. We had it on December 21st. It was so much fun! Great opportunity to share the gospel. Sean and I helped with the kids and we had so much fun! At one point, I was Mary and I talked with the kids about why we give gifts at Christmas. I got to share with them that Jesus is the greatest gift ever given and that we need to give gifts to Jesus too! It was fun to share and celebrate with kids because they are so excited and so happy about Christmas! This picture is of my friends after the celebration while we were eating! They are so much fun!!


Christmas was great and we had a fun time but we were very tired when we got home and the truth was that our travels had only just begun...

Father's Day in Thailand

Father's Day in Thailand is December 5th. It is the King's Birthday and so we celebrate the King on this day and we celebrate the fathers! My favorite Father is James! His family is like my family! They have adopted me! I love James because he gives everything for his kids! He works hard to support them, he plays with them, he teaches them, and he is a great example to them of what a father is suppose to be like! In Thailand there are many people who do not have a good relationship with their fathers but James is a GREAT father! He understands God's love for him and therefore he is able to give that love to his children!
This is a picture of James and his family and me and Sean! They have loved Sean as much as they love me! I title this picture, "Our Thai Family". They are so special to me and I absolutely love them!!

These are the boys that I love! All 4 of them! Look at how fun they are! All of them love being boys!!

After we celebrated James with a sushi dinner from his favorite restaurant, we decorated the Christmas tree, which is one of my favorite things to do! We had a great time with the kids! Check out the photos through the link on the right! There are some great ones of the tree! It is a fake tree but I love Christmas so it is okay! I would of course much rather the real thing but...well, I live in Thailand! I was sent a candle that smells like Christmas trees so I light that and it feels like (with a bit of imagination) the tree is real!

Christmas is a great time of year to share love! The greatest gift that has ever been given is Jesus! The reason we give gifts is because God gave us the first and best gift of His only Son! This is the reason for the season! May your month of December be filled with love, joy, and peace! May your family feel the blessings of God and may you experience Christmas to the fullest! Enjoy December!!

November in Thailand

November has been a super fun month! The most exciting news is that Tai Church has a new member! His name is Sean Whiting! Sean is someone that I met this summer and he decided to come visit me in Thailand for a couple weeks! Well, his plane left 10 days ago to take him home and he wasn't on it. Sean has decided to stay in Thailand with me until I come home in March! We are very excited about what our future holds!
Needless to say this month has brought many new things! But one thing doesn't change and that is the welcoming hearts of my friends! James, Meaw, Boom, Ann, and Bow have been amazing friends in welcoming Sean to Thailand! He is already part of the family here after 4 very fast weeks!! The picture was taken at a "Welcome to Thailand" party in my apartment for Sean! My friends cooked for us and we had a great time introducing Sean to some of my favorite foods that James can make! It was a fun night!! Gifts were exchanged, stories shared, and new friendships founded!


After a week of craziness and welcome to Bangkok, Sean and I got away to Chiang Mai for 4 days. We got to spend time walking the streets, having coffee in Starbucks, browsing through book stores, visiting the sights, riding elephants, floating down the river, and just has time to be together! This was an amazing four days! We travel well together and sure know how to have a lot of fun together!
While we were there, there was a festival happening! It was so much fun to be there during this time! Sean got some real Tai culture and we got to experience the excitement of the festival. It is a beautiful festival and we had fun! There are more pics if you click on the link at the right!


After Chiang Mai, Sean and I headed to Lampang, which is about an hour and a half from Chiang Mai. We spent time at the church plant there with Noi! It was great to be with her and have the kids meet Sean! They were very excited to meet him!! They have known me for 2 years and they are super excited for me! Sean played basketball with them, we eat with them, we went to a birthday party for one of the kids and we just hung out with them. It was a great 4 days there!

God is so good and His faithfulness is a blessing! November was great and I am even more excited about December and more excited about what 2009 holds!