Bangkok Week 767

March 9, 2023

It’s the first long weekend of the year, and what a packed one it was! We met with several families after a long time away, celebrated the birthday of one of Arlo’s friends, went skating, drove an offroader… and even got 3 new cactus paddles! Phew! Time for a rest.

Good morning, Lucy. Enjoying the early light?

Arlo's got his game face on: it's a special day at school today.

Carnival!

And we definitely under-estimated the scale of the event!

Arlo preferred to play in the sand, away from all the noise and chaos.

Thankfully, Arlo took to this Purim Gragger, and so I was able to extract myself.

Later, there was a magic show. We *think* there was a real bird under this cloth.

Back at home, Lucy is enjoying the quiet morning to herself.

Stop the presses. We see *three* new cactus paddles on top of this guy!

Today, Lucy is enjoying lunch in her Abu (the monkey) hat.

I had to hype up this tiny "classic" pick-up truck, in order to get Arlo to leave school. Thankfully, it was still parked there!

And icing on the Friday cake: the cactus was in bloom again! This flower lasted only one afternoon.

Someone's happy that her brother is home, and is here to read with him too.

Coming to check on her brother.

Is everything okay, Arlo? Why are you lying there like that?

Oh my. Is that what the kaleidoscope is for? Not for biting?

Someone's up late Friday night. Time for bed, Lucy!

Not quite ready yet.

Greeting the long weekend with optimism and energy!

Excited for the 3-day weekend. But what does that really mean, Lucy?

First things first: a nail trim.

The mats are really fun to play on lately.

And off she goes.

Lucy's inviting herself into Dad and Arlo's house.

Oh sorry, this is the garage.

The reading room.

It's fun to have a reading room!

P'It and P'Att came over for lunch; we hadn't seen them since pre-Lucy.

Arlo and P'Att are still tracking.

We see you cheating, Arlo!

The Pigeon books have never been so popular!

Scrabble got abandoned, so Arlo's trying to finish the game by himself.

And learning how to play Uno with the big kids.

Time to relax and recharge.

Who's the monkey?

Arlo's doing a good job having abandoned his naps last week.

And it's a late-afternoon visit to Alba and Ines's house.

We'd been hyping up the pool to Arlo.

Lucy managed to soak herself just by sitting at the poolside.

Happy Sunday morning!

Lucy is really into reading books herself these days!

And she's practicing for when she'll do her first official tree-in, in a few short weeks only!

Enjoying ourselves while Dad and Arlo are out at swimming.

A monkey waiting for his lesson to start.

And a bonus detour on the way home.

Someone wanted to play in the car for a while...

... but safety first!

"Picking coconuts".

Did I mention that the mats are all the rage these days?

Enjoying the mats together.

How cute and peaceful, for one split instant.

More fun on the mats.

Forehead bump!

Making a birthday card for his friend Georgie.

Enjoying ice cream in the house, while Lucy naps.

Someone's up to no good!

Looking at photos together.

And here we are at the birthday party!

Inspired by some of the bigger kids, Arlo tries to pick up his little sister.

Playing musical statues!

Just taking everything in. (And nibbling falafel.)

And getting ready for the package-unwrapping game.

Lucy discovers watermelon -- yum!

And it's cake time. And goodness me, the cake's got a front loader on top!

Lucy snagged a balloon, and it's all the rage!

Back at home, Arlo has an idea!

Someone really enjoys playing the piano!

It's Monday... but there's no school today!

Lucy doesn't mind!

The obstacle courses are back in the middle of the room.

Look at that goofy boy, trying to do a somersault up a hill.

Monday morning entertainment!

Another visit to the rink! Seems lots of people had the same idea...

... including several young learners, probably not much older than Arlo.

We finished early enough to change into shoes and dash up to watch the Zamboni from the balcony.

Live Zamboni-watching and strawberry-filled koalas. Isn't life great?

Our little skater boy, getting better with each outing.

And if that weren't enough, it's time for more obstacle courses back home.

The Boss is here to see what's going on.

Where did everyone go?

Resting at the base of the mountain, while Arlo tries to crawl through the tunnel.

Noodle soup break!

Dad promised Arlo a trip to Donki after lunch -- so here we go!

Get ready for the sun, Lucy!

We're here to drive another offroader!

Thank goodness Dad also has his license in remote controlled driving, too!

What a driving duo.

Lucy is really not sure what's going on, but she's patiently playing along.

Arlo's enjoying himself! Lucy's still in a daze.

Stretching her legs and practicing wearing shoes.

Very questionable beauty product available for sale at Daiso.

Showing off our Daiso purchase...

... Lucy-appropriate hair ties!

And Mr. Helper is assisting in the kitchen, chopping the roots off these morning glory stems.

Looking beautiful, Lucy.

Are you secretly happy that Arlo goes back to school today?

Still enjoying herself with the obstacle courses.

Crawl through the tunnel, Lucy!

Why is Arlo dressed so handsomely today?

It's school photo day!

And he's dressed to match his father!

More obstacle course practice before school.

Spotted on the way home from my annual health check. I guess Christmas is a year-round holiday here now.

Recreating the pose the photographer used for Arlo.

Apparently, he took one in the tree, too!

The goofball who loves climbing trees.

Speaking of trees, this one is in full bloom!

And the new cactus paddles are visible to the naked eye now.

Lucy, what is your brother doing?

Morning exercises?

Arlo's old helmet fits Lucy now.

It fits quite nicely... and she's quite happy to wear it!

Arlo's got a matching black one too. (Looks an awful lot like Dad's though...)

And we leave you with this Helmet Hug. See you next week!