Bangkok Week 732 — Mika's Photos

We begin this installment with a family trip to...

... Arlo's dentist! It's a long-overdue visit. All 20 teeth now though -- getting the most bang for our buck.

And of course, no visit to the hospital is complete without stopping in the mini-park.

Admiring the balloon dog that he got as a reward, from the dentist herself.

Dad and his babies, just hanging out in the mini-park enjoying the coffee and cakes.

And where to next?

"Emma's Cafe", as Arlo calls it...

... so that Lucy can say good-bye to one of her friends, who's moving back to the UK next week.

Lucy and Layla (to the left of Lucy) were born only 1 day apart!

And the mums, too.

That was a fun outing, but now she's glad to be home. Sweet smile!

And getting in some afternoon tummy time practice.

Watching as Arlo and Dad draw a face (and other decorations) on the balloon dog.

Hmm, I feel like we're being watched.

It's time for a late-afternoon walk.

Although it seems like this walk is more resting than it is walking.

Another rest.

And another rest! Arlo knows all the good rest stops.

Uh oh! What happened, Lucy? Where did all your clothes go?

Breaking out the bubbly that we were given when Arlo turned 1! It's been aging and cooling nicely in our fridge since then.

Celebrating surviving the week without K. Noi.

Oh my! Lucky Arlo! K. Wan brought so many new cacti for him today!

"Helping" her plant them.

Our new Saturday morning fave: running in the park!

And lounging Lucy is enjoying the breeze.

A perfect-sized park for Arlo to get out his energy. Bare-foot.

While Mum and Lucy just lounge around.

What a convenient setup.

Arlo brought the helicopter from Auntie Erika and Uncle Chad... but its batteries were too low.

Swap: it's Dad's turn with Lucy.

Father-daughter wefie!

Meanwhile, Mum and Arlo chase the helicopter around like sheepdogs.

Teaching Arlo all about under-hand throwing!

Lots of tree-hugging going on these days.

We spotted this blue crested lizard while he was at eye-level, but he quickly ran away from us. Very cool! (A chameleon, to Arlo.)

While Lucy practices her tummy time au nature...

... Arlo has a quick run-around the playground.

Huge grins coming down the slide.

The playground is in direct sun these days... but it does mean that he has the whole thing to himself!

No competition for the steering wheel, either!

But oh my! This calls for some cold chocolate milk!

Dad and the kiddos.

Oh! Lucy just learned something scandalous!

Still interested in -- but not yet swiping at -- the dangling toys.

Excuse me, Mum. You're encroaching on my tummy time space!

Arlo's graduated to stunt pilot now.

Sweet smile!

Story and milk time for the boys.

Wait, was that a serious moment?

Thumb's in place; get cozy!

Starting Sunday in style: Dad's trying his mouth at the snot sucker.

What a sunny personality today.

Meanwhile, this goofball is really excited that his tractor (I mean, skidsteer) is doing a hand-stand!

Where's everyone going on a Sunday morning?

To Arlo's swimming lesson!

Lucy and Dad have come along to watch this week! You know what that means? Photos!

Sometime soon, Arlo's going to be too heavy for this welcome song!

Warming up on the motor boat. We haven't used this in a while!

And enjoying the ride on the big mat.

Swimming to Mum.

Synchronized jumping!

Back at home, Lucy's getting some exercise, too.

Arlo came over to help...

... and was thrilled when Lucy grabbed the tractor! (Can she play with him now?)

Look! We hung up Arlo's school artwork! (And then it fell down, and hasn't been rehung since.)

Showing off his very stylish bed head!

Another late-afternoon walk; another rest break at Onion cafe.

And resting back at home, too.

Everyone (except poor Lucy) enjoying a dinner of gourmet grilled cheese.

Cheddar and caramelized onion on grilled brioche, to be exact.

Except Arlo. He gets mozzarella. And no onions.

It's Monday morning. The first day of 5 where Arlo's staying home! Oh no!

Let's turn this into an opportunity! It's an exclusive morning out for Arlo and Mum, together at Harborland!

Arlo discovers the wonders of the Ball Pit!

You wouldn't know it from this photo, but the ball pit was one of his favorite parts of Harborland!

I guess this is the inverse of the ball pit! It was not a success.

The climbing apparatus is really very impressive.

These photos only capture a subset of it!

Arlo was a good sport. He didn't hesitate to climb up and into the structure.

This was one of the harder obstacles he tried (with some coercion).

Tricky even for me! It's slippery rope, on a (fairly sharp) incline!

And we came upon some giant donuts.

And crawled through some tubes.

This roller slide was fun. It helped that we could both sit on the same sled.

Here we go!

Holding hands while we try a much taller slide. (It was fast!)

Oh my! And we found a glowing ball pit.

Look! The lights change color!

Again: enjoying it, despite the expression.

Managed to climb up this incline; but needed some help when he reached the top.

Uh oh. A giant Corona Virus?

The biggest slide of the day for us.

"Taking a rest."

After lots of climbing and clamoring around, it's time for some peddling!

There were an assortment of tricycles, and Arlo found several that he could pedal comfortably.

Despite not having pedals, this one was a hit because of its steering wheel.

And these self-propelling cars were fun...

... fun for all ages!

We even got to play soccer and basketball!

But oh! What's this? Trains!

Arlo even got to drive a train!

And a crane...

... and oh my! A whole fleet of construction vehicles!

It's decided! Harborland is great!

So many new vehicle-related toys to inspect and play with.

Look at this fleet! They even have road rollers!

Filling up the dump truck with... even more vehicles!

Well, he's made himself at home!

Bathroom break! Despite the body language, he was thrilled to get to wear these yellow duck crocs.

And doing some quick cooking before we head out.

Fetching the veggies!

And trying out the "agility" area. He made it once around on the balance beam, not bad.

Back at home, Lucy is having an enjoyable day.

Her arms and neck are getting strong!

Watching big brother play with his marble run.

And relaxing after her tummy exercises.

Here's Arlo -- never one to miss out on crashing a mat session.

"Look! Lucy's holding my hand!"

Good morning, Tuesday! Lucy's sporting a flattering black striped shirt today.

And getting in her exercise nice and early.

Here comes Arlo, zooming into view with his duck boat. It won't be long until Lucy can play, too!

Trying to distract with some art time; this is a big wheel!

Arlo has found a new pastime: cleaning his airplane. After exhausting all the top-facing surfaces, he's getting the wheels too.

Afternoon exercises now.

Arlo has forgotten much of his Thai alphabet. So he needs to study up again!

Late afternoon walk: this is the way to do it!

Hmm. I'm not sure Arlo's the one who needs this rest break!

Attempting to arrange a portrait photo here. Everyone's cooperating.

Aww. Well, that's a nice hug for Lucy.

Flying the airplane that Yaa used to send fruit and food to us the other day!

Oh! What does Wednesday have in store?

It's another trip to...

... Emma's cafe!

Lucy's here for "glow bugs" and baby massage.

And Arlo's here to help tidy up downstairs.

By the end of the morning, there were lots of (real) crumbs to be swept up!

Shh! Don't tell Arlo! Lucy's playing with his cement mixer, while he naps.

Enjoying some of the Thai snacks that Yaa sent.

The next morning, Arlo mimics what he sees Mum doing: pumps milk!

And then practices nursing his baby.

Sitting nicely with baby on his lap.

And Oh.My.Goodness! Stop the presses! *Another* cactus flower!

Needless to say, someone was over-the-moon!

To book-end his week off, we spent Thursday morning at Kidzoona -- another play space in Gateway.

This one is smaller, and has a different assortment of activities. This boy made a beeline for the car...

... which he drove straight into the grocery store.

He found a fire truck, with working sirens...

... and a police car, too. (Also with loud sirens.)

We're probably not meant to be driving in this "learning" area... but that doesn't stop Arlo!

He was very interested in this pin art board.

And studied how it worked.

Fine-tuning his art by the individual pin.

Did you know that the post-office has a drive-thru service?

And measuring his height at the doctor's office.

Sitting down for some cake at the bakery.

Mask down to enjoy the cake!

And scooping ice cream at the ice cream parlor.

Cashing out for the day already.

Taking a trike for a spin.

He was a good sport, but the roads were more cluttered (with trikes and other obstacles) than at Harborland the other day.

And here's the Raison d'Etre; the piece de resistance; the crown jewel of Kidzoona. The ball pit!

It took him a little while to warm up to it...

...and wanted Mum to accompany him everywhere at first...

... but he quickly realized the purpose of ball pits: to hide under the balls!

These balls are nice and deep, too.

Uh oh! Where's Arlo?

I thought we came here together...

... but I can't find him now! All I can see are balls.

Hanging from the playground.

Hurling himself into the balls...

... and walking the perimeter to scope out the best place to jump.

He certainly made himself at home.

Surfing on the balls...

... and rolling them up the slide.

A meager attempt at scaling the wall.

But really, this is what it's all about!

Oh no, I lost him again!

After upping his energy levels in the ball pit, he was ready to enjoy the inflatable running track.

You can get some good airtime on here!

He was even up for scaling the inflatable ladder and coming down the slide. (I imagine this is what evacuating via an aircraft slide is like...)

And winding down with some trains...

... and some kinetic sand.

Despite 2 hours of play, we still had to stop at these coin-operated cars outside and sit in 3 of them.

This is a premium race car; its wheels actually spin.

And a souped-up police car, ready for the chase!

Lucy's all smiles; she enjoyed a peaceful, quiet morning to herself.