On your mark, get set, GO!

My company made the official announcement of our exPat assignment this week...that, for some reason, makes it feel so much more real (and pressing). It's been a mix of emotions recently. Excitement about the change. Anxiety about where we're going to live there and ALL the todos that come with moving your family across the world. Sadness to think of saying goodbye to dear friends. Happiness for the adventure ahead...

One of the immediate todos for us is to start preparing the house for sale and packing of our stuff. We spent most of last Saturday going through our attic and closets for a big garage sale in two weeks. It was therapeutic to be doing something to prepare as well as get rid of stuff we've been holding onto since college - always thinking we'd "use" it some day. This is a good reason to get rid of it all! Candace has been amazing this week. Her constant optimism and support is truly wonderful. Life changes have a way of amplifying your love for those around you...




We started teaching the children how to count in Thai. They've picked it up really quickly! We can all count to 10 now..and Joseph even can count in Thai! It's pretty cute. The kids pick it up so much quicker than Candace and me. I've got to say I love Google Translate on the iPad. You can talk to it in English and it translates and responds in Thai. Wow.

With the work announcement going out, we finally felt like we could tell all of our friends about the move. We made the announcement on Facebook a few days back and it's been heartwarming to see the response from our friends. I think everyone should have to move at some point just to feel the love of those around you...

So here's to week 1 of getting ready to move. I'm under no delusion that the next few months will be easy. We're prepared for them to be a bit crazy, but we're facing it with a sense of adventure and even fun.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Telling the Kids

We wanted to have some fun in telling our kids we were actually going overseas.  We wanted them to think about all the good times they've had here as well as the exciting opportunities of living abroad.

Candace did a great scavenger hunt around the house for the kids.  Each clue took them to another place our family loves to spend time.  Once they got there, they had to each write down a favorite memory of that place before they got the next clue.

On the trampoline

 Suitcases in the bedroom from our vacations

The music room 

 In the kitchen

 Favorite places we've gone in the van

Finally, in the play room to watch the video.  This is everyone right when the video started:

And here's the video telling them where we're going:

It was really fun watching each of their expressions.  Our daughter was jumping up and down in her chair the whole time with a huge smile.  Our 2nd wasn't quite sure how he felt and our oldest was obviously quite sad. We talked about it after they watched the video about how it's perfectly OK to feel excited and sad.  Those are normal feelings and that we'll have this great adventure together.  

We also showed them a 15 minute video from a school they might attend.  They cheered up at that and were anxious to call their friends to share the news.

Preparing the Kids

Candace and I have thought we'd likely go overseas for some time now.  We've been telling the children that the day would come when they'd have to say good-bye to their friends, their home, and everything they know.  The first reaction was what we expected - Are you kidding me??  Over the years, they've grown accustom to the idea and used to the thought that we'd move at some point.  I'm glad we laid that foundation early on.

Over the last few months, work indicated that the possibility was much more likely that we'd go soon.  So about a month ago, Candace and I starting talking to the kids about us leaving in more real terms.  During one Family Home Evening, we did 2 activities with the kids.  The first one was where the family stood in the circle, everyone grabbed someone else's hand, and then you try to untangle it into a straight line without letting go.  The first one went easily and the kids had a blast.  The second time we were much more tangled and a few of the older kids begged to give up.

The next activity we had 2 family members lock their arms together and carry another family member down the hall and back.  We showed how just 2 people could actually carry up to 3 more if we needed to.  They loved that.

After the activities  we sat them down and explained how going overseas was very much like the 2 games we just played.  At first, it's fun and exciting.  As time goes on, you will have some hard times and may feel like giving up. Just one bad player in the team can make it harder on everyone.  We talked about how there will be times when we'll need to carry each other...each of us in turn.  There will be days when Mom has a hard time and we need to lift her.  Days when a child or two really misses home and will need to be carried.  But that as a family, together, we'll always make it through and be stronger for it.

Recording the Journey

Our family recently found out that we'll be moving from Texas to Bangkok, Thailand.  We created this blog to share with others our adventures, ups and downs, happy times and sad times, and the journey it is to move a family from one culture to another.

We hope you enjoy reading our story as much as we enjoy living it.