Bangkok, DSDW hearing, learning Thai, more stories...

It is Tuesday afternoon in Bangkok, and Anderson is asleep on the couch with Daddy (as he prounounces it, Du-deee) while Alex and Aerin are watching tv.  We returned from swimming in the pool just a few minutes ago.  I was informed earlier this afternoon that it had been too long since I posted something, so I thought I would share a few things that have happened since our last post. 

We have learned some basic Thai words and phrases, and it has helped tremendously to know some things that Anderson is saying.  "Dee" means good, and when he eats or drinks something he likes he will chant it. He also says "oom" (pronouced just like it looks) all of the time, which means hold me.  He will say "Mu-mee Oom" when he wants me to pick him up. We have said it so
that when Aerin wanted to hold him today, she said, "I want to oom Anderson." We just laughed and told her that was fine.  We have learned how to say I love you, water (which they say when they want a drink), eat, big brother, big sister, little brother, sleepy, and several other simple words in Thai.  Anderson's first English word was 'Hello', which he pronounces  "Hall-o".  He loves for me to say "quickly, quickly, quickly" and he will try to repeat the word back to me. It is so funny to hear him try to say it. I am sure it is just as humorous to him when we are trying to speak Thai.

Yesterday, Anderson and I went with a social worker to both the Thai consulate/immigration offices, and to an office where they take pictures for U.S. visas. Jeff and the kids went swimming and Alex and Aerin made friends with a little boy from Japan.  Jeff got to talk to his Dad, who is a pilot. It is really neat to see how the kids instantly accept one another even with the language barrier.  The Dad spoke English, but his son did not. Despite that, Jeff said that all of the kids played together the whole time.  I had a chance to talk with our social worker, who is Bhuddist, about why we are adopting and our faith in Jesus.  It was an amazing opportunity to share what we believe in a very natural way, and I know the conversation took that turn because the Holy Spirit was working through it all. 

Aerin and Alex think it is so funny that we get to ride in brightly colored taxis.  We have ridden in a red one, a couple of bright pink ones, and a green one so far. The different colors signify different taxi companies.  You still see the yellow taxis that we think of in America, but there are blue ones, red ones, white ones, green ones, pink ones...we haven't seen a purple one yet, even though Aerin is looking for one. Speaking of taxis reminds me that I must tell all of you about the driving in Bangkok. It is difficult to describe how cars change lanes without any space, never signal, ignore the lane dividing lines completely by driving in two lanes at once, and speed up and slow down more quickly than you can imagine.  I will admit that I have never driven in New York. I have driven in downtown Atlanta during rush hour, and it is like driving on a dirt road in Chilton County compared to Bangkok. I cannot even pay attention when we ride in a taxi, or I would have a heart attack. And I would never attempt to drive in this city. 

Since I have rambled on, I will close with some practical updates and requests.  Thank you so much for your faithful prayers.  We truly have sensed God's working on this trip, and know that your prayers have been effective.  We love and appreciate all of you and cannot express how grateful we are for your support and encouragement on the blog, facebook, and by email during this time. This is an incredible experience, and we are filled with joy to finally have our son. But we do get homesick some days, and it is wonderful to hear from all of you and know that you are praying for us.

Tomorrow, we have our DSDW hearing (the formal hearing where we are asked some questions and at the end receive our final paperwork for Anderson to apply for his U.S. visa).  Please pray for us and for the other two Holt families who are here with us as we complete the last step with the Thai government on our trip.  I will share more about the other two families in a later post--we have enjoyed meeting them and are looking forward to spending more time with them over the next several days before we leave for home. 

Also, continue to pray for Anderson's health.  He is doing wonderfully, but he has been breaking out in some type of allergic reaction for the last several days.  It comes and then goes away after a couple of hours. We have used benadryl, which helps.  But we don't know the source of the problem, so it gets frustrating when he itches all over and has large hives around his neck and torso, but we cannot determine what is causing it.

Sorry for such a long post, but I guess I am making up for not posting over the last couple of days.  We haven't taken as many pictures/video over the last few of days as we did at the beginning of the trip, but I hope you enjoy the pics below. Thanks again for all of your prayers.

Coconut trees owned by foster family

View from foster family's home

Anderson's foster family's home

The kitchen

Alex and Aerin outside our hotel in Nakohn Si Tahammarat

Lin (foster mom) putting Anderson in his cradle

Anderson playing with Daddy

Brothers

Sleeping buddies

Grace, Peace and Love from Thailand,
Casey