August

We spent half of August in Cambodia.  For more on our time there, please visit Journey Towards Justice.

Mike is making me post this, but I don't want to. He made me re-write the story five times until it was right. (Seriously. He's on the couch behind me, cracking up.)
The girls and I went out today, and around dinner time, we headed home with take-out. As we rode through town in our tuk-tuk, we passed by a widow begging on the side of the road. I see this all the time here, but this one was particularly heart-wrenching. Her head was shaved, and she looked so sad. We were stopped at a light, and she held her bowl out to me. Everything in me wanted to give her some money. However. . . my lap was filled with one bag of pizza and one bag of ice cream. She looked at my food, held out her bowl, and I couldn't move. I couldn't reach my money because of the two giant bags of pizza and ice cream in my lap. As the tuk-tuk pulled away, I was sure I had lost my salvation.
'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger, and did not help you?' Mt 25:44

The girls made up a new song. It's called, "When I Eat Cheese Pizza, it Makes Me Toot."

A bit awkward relaxing in the living room while the housekeeper irons your laundry three feet away. I'm sure I could get used to it, however.

While riding in a tuk-tuk, Abby held Hannah close and said, "I'll protect you. They love your hair so much here, they might try to kidnap you and make a wig out of it."

Is your husband having trouble listening? Take him to Cambodia, where several hair salons advertise, "We clean ear holes."

We ate tarantulas in Cambodia!

 
While we were stuck in LA while trying to fly home, Hannah started crying. "I just want to be in America!" We told her, "California IS in America." She said, "No, Texas is America!!"

Still waiting for our flight home. Just noticed that we have seats in different places on the plane. One in row 12, one in 15, and two in 33. This should be interesting. They are offering a $300 voucher for anyone who gives up a seat. Would be so tempting if we had not been traveling for 30 hours already. I think we're at our limit.

Abby had her 9-year-old pictures taken yesterday. When we saw the proofs, Mike complemented her on how beautiful she looked. I was surprised when she complained that it had been a huge waste of time. She finished (with attitude), "I smiled for all those pictures, because I thought Mom was going to buy them all. Then she was saying she didn't want a bunch of them. Why did I waste my time smiling, if she wasn't going to buy them??"

The girls surprised me today by cleaning the bathroom. . . with glitter shower gel. The counter, sink, floors, and cupboards are so sparkly!

The girls tried to distract me today while we were cleaning their rooms. They had me lay down and gave me a full body massage. It bought them 15 minutes.

Hannah was very excited as she stepped off the bus today. "Mom! Today, I found out the name of my bully!"

Hannah had me watch a Lysol commercial with her. "Mom, this works gooder than bleach. Do we have it? It kills 99% of germs. It even cleans the mirrors!"

Abby got a stuffed penguin for her birthday. Now she has two, and Hannah has none. Hannah thinks Abby should share. Here's our conversation while Hannah is holding the coveted penguin.
Me: Why don't you ask for a penguin for Christmas?
Hannah: I don't always get what I ask for at Christmas.
Me: Ask Mom and Dad for it at Christmas.
Hannah: How about I keep this one and Abby asks for it at Christmas?

Hannah and a friend were playing at the park.
Hannah: Come climb this tree with me!
Friend: No, I'm afraid of heights.
Hannah: That's okay. At least you're not afraid of lows!

Hannah: (in a panic) MOM! There's a SPIDER in the hall!!!
Me: Hannah, you ate a spider! Kill it!
Two minutes later, she calmly says, "It's dead."

July

We were blessed to spend the summer in Cambodia.  For more on our time there, please visit Journey Towards Justice

Some people here believe that if you touch a white person, it will bring you luck. Hannah's as white as they come, so she often gets touched on the arm or cheek. The other day, after someone touched her, I said, "Do you think they'll be lucky now?" Hannah replied, "No. Well, actually, they are kind of lucky, because I'm here to tell them about Jesus!"

It's rainy season here, and we were trying to guess when the storm would come. Hannah won with, "According to my calculations, it will rain tomorrow or sooner or later."

Went to a pool today. Among the rules that interested me were these:
* Due to the danger of being strucked by lightning, all swimmers must leave the pool during a thunderstorm.
* No weapons or explosives in the pool.
* All spitting, spouting, blowing of noses, and releasing of any bodily waste is strictly prohibited.
Good to know!

The girls were in the bathroom together. I heard Hannah scream and start crying. Abby gushed, "Hannah! I'm sorry! It was an accident!" Perhaps I should mention that in Cambodia, toilet paper is not generally used. In every bathroom, there is a hose and squirter right by the toilet to freshen up with. When I walked in the bathroom, Hannah was dripping wet, and Abby was holding the hose.

 I saw a convenience store today that made me feel right at home. It was called 6-Eleven.

Trying to prepare a presentation on good parenting while my children are fighting and yelling at each other is a bit difficult.

Disturbing experience with a squatty potty. Pretty sure Abby will never look at me the same again.

At a hair salon, I saw several color boxes advertising "Green Blonde Hair!" The picture even looked like green blond hair. Interesting. I'll throw Hannah in a chlorinated pool a couple dozen times, and she'll be all the rage!

June

Abby celebrates her bridge crossing ceremony for Girl Scouts.

The girls with their cousin, Molly.

 

I lost my glasses today. Perfect timing since we leave for Cambodia tomorrow. I called Walmart (last place I saw them) and they have some in lost and found. The problem was, I can't drive without my glasses, and I can't send Mike, because he doesn't know what my glasses look like even though I have worn them for 2.5 years. So we got the girls out of bed and went as a family. The girls wore robes and were excited to be up late for an adventure. We looked classy strolling though Walmart in pjs; Hannah holding my hand to help me navigate. (A seeing-eye-child.) Alas, Walmart was not the solution. Hopefully they turn up in the next 23 hours.

 Abby and Hannah's dance recital.

The girls went to the zoo with cousins Molly and Titus.

 I have no idea what's going on here.

 Grammy Pammy visits from Colorado.

The girls have asked for prayer for our upcoming trip to Cambodia. Abby - Please pray that the bugs taste good. Hannah - Don't miss us too much. We're coming back in six weeks. Amen.

We were eating with friends tonight. Abby let her noodles hang half out of her mouth until everyone noticed. With the food still hanging there, she said, "I learned this from Daddy!"

 

Abby's a poet:
‘’Love mom and dad sometimes my mom is really glad sometimes my mom is really mad sometimes my dad is really sad sometimes my dad is really bad’’