A Week of Celebrations

It was another action packed weekend for the family ... which included Riley coming down with a 24-hour stomach bug, two holiday parties, the last soccer practice before the winter vacation, a Hanukkah presentation in Riley's class, the first night of Hanukkah, taking family photos for a friend, and an engagement party for our former driver. Whew, stick a fork in us 'cuz we're done!

Here are a bevy of photos to showcase the latest ...


Sheridan's holiday party

Lighting the menorah at Riley's Hanukkah presentation

Consulate Holiday Party

Paddy's Engagement Party

Left: The processional into the ceremony. Right: Paddy

Left: Putting the engagement ring on her finger. Right: Photos with her family

I also participated in the ceremony... putting "stuff" on her cheeks, bindi, hair.

The gang with Paddy

The Latest In Indian Securty ... X-Ray Specs

Most of the hotels here in Chennai perform some sort of screening prior to entering. Some of the security techniques are Chennice, others are downright laughable... like screening vehicles with a hand-held metal detector. Duh?

I thought I had seen it all ... until I pulled into this hotel. Holy laugh out loud batman! A scuba mask? To give the guy some credit, it WAS raining...

All I Want For Christmas Is My Five Front Teeth...

We went to our first Christmas brunch last Sunday ... the first of many this upcoming holiday season. It was a wonderful morning with good food and special friends. Santa showed up as well bearing gifts for all the kids, though we were thankfully forewarned that he'd be doing so. On the way to the brunch, we feebly attempted to teach the girls a life lesson about Santa bringing gifts only to the kids who celebrated Christmas; how they should be happy for those kids, that they'll be getting their gifts for Hanukkah, and sure they could still sit on his lap for photos... yada, yada, yada. Of course it ALL painfully backfired when the four other Jewish kids there received gifts from Santa. Try explaining THAT one to a sassy six year old.

To add insult to injury, the girls complained the entire ride home about the gifts, with Riley even adding in that maybe Santa would bring her gifts when she was older if she married someone who wasn't Jewish. Um... yes, she did say that.

We had an enjoyable time, despite leaving five minutes too late. For in those last five minutes, all the kids were running around having a grand time, when Riley came up to me bawling. She finally caught her breath and opened her mouth to ask if it was bleeding. Why, yes it was. Apparently, during their game of wild tag, one of the boys ran around flailing his arms, and without knowing it, he clocked Riley in the mouth, all but knocking out her tooth. Once I cleaned up her mouth, we saw the tooth was hanging by less than a thread, and with a light tug, I pulled it out. Now it was really time to go.

In the end Riley really did get a gift that day ... the tooth fairy made her fifth visit in less than a month. And Sheridan? She opened a pack of new underwear ... in hopes that she'll decide to stop wearing pull-ups to bed at night. I told her that if she could go 3 nights without peeing in her pull-up that she could wear her new panties to bed. She was very excited, though she sheepishly asked me before going to bed if she could push it back one more day. In the less than ten minutes she had it on, she already peed in her pull up.

Photos of all the kids and their first time on Santa's lap.
L to R... Riley in 2004, Sheridan in 2005, and Grady last Sunday

Yup... It's Official ...

... the gardener now has more teeth than Riley.

Story of how she lost tooth #7 in tomorrow's update.
A small hint ... it included a game of tag, a boy's hand, and a lot of blood.

Latkes and Concerts and Goose Eggs Oh My!

Last Friday I did a two hour Hanukkah presentation in Sheridan's class. Did you know that two hours is a LONG time to fill with 4 and 5 year olds? I read stories, taught them a dreidel song, taught them how to play dreidel, lit the menorah while singing the prayers, and made latkes. The afternoon was a lot of fun, and the kids had a blast. But I was pooped... and exhausted after preparing for the day. But I didn't get a chance to relax...

... because the Elementary School's Winter Concert was right after school ended on Friday. I'm sparing you the 4 min 53 second video of Sheridan signing Save the Earth. Seriously, you should be thanking me right now. Okay, who am I kidding? I'm sparing myself the frustration of loading a 100 MB video onto my blog... which would take hours and hours, causing me angst, agita, and the need to wash my mouth out with soap after I scream obscenities at the internet, which is as slow as molasses in January!

There's not much to say about the concert ... except .... well... there's just not much to say. Both Riley and Sheridan's classes were adorable. The Kindergartners sang two songs; Save the Earth and Santa Clause is Coming to Town. Riley's class sang just one; The Twelve Days of Christmas. Other than that, let's just say that I have nothing to say ... except that I voiced my opinions in an e-mail to the principal and the Head of School. Okay I said it. Enough said.

We had a lazy day on Saturday, and had planned on taking the girls swimming in the late afternoon. That is ... until Sheridan did a header off the last step at the bottom of the stairs, and fell forehead first into the door leading into the living room. Poor girl! She was helping me pick up a shirt that I dropped, and when she grabbed it, she didn't realize that she had two steps to go. Within minutes her head swelled up and we were on concussion watch. We sat on the couch the rest of the afternoon icing her forehead. The swelling did go down by the end of the evening... but her forehead is now a nice shade of pink and purple. Thankfully, they're her two favorite colors!

at the concert ... sheridan on stage

riley with her friends justine and carter

sheridan and her swollen noggin... minutes after head met door

Name That Rash... PLEASE!

So here's what we know about Grady's never-ending rash. It's absolutely environmentally related. That's the only thing I'm 100% sure about.

It started about three months ago as a light rash around his left eye. A couple flesh colored raised "dots" that looked like milieu. Then it spread to his right eye.

A few weeks later it migrated down to underneath both his eyes and a little on his nose. This is when I took him to the dermatologist, who insisted it was sebhorreic dermatitis. He gave him some Nizral cream for his cradle cap, and said that once that was gone, the sebhorreic dermatitis on his face would go away as well.

Ten days later I brought him back to the dermatologist with a cradle cap-free head, and a face that looked like a twelve year old boy's. While the head got better, the face got worse. And then he changed his mind, said it was a "fungus" on his face, and prescribed a fungal cream to use for a week. He still insisted it was sebhorreic dermatitis, and said that by the time he's 6 months old, it'll go away.

Now we're almost three months into this rash. Grady is close to 7 months old, and it's as bad now as it's ever been. It's predominantly under his chin, but it's also on both sides of his face, under his nose (though it's exacerbated today because he's had a runny nose for the past week), and occasionally migrates back up towards the eyes. The fungal cream worked for a few days, but the rash never completely went away. It's gone down, it's flared up, it's faded, it's come back with a vengeance. There's no rhyme or reason why he gets it, and Grady's poor little face never looks 100% clear.

Until we went to Bangkok.

In the four days we were there, his face entirely cleared up. I thought maybe we turned a corner and we passed the imaginary six month hump when his face would magically clear up.

And then we came back to Chennai, and by Tuesday his face was horrible again.

I know now it's something here. But what is different here than in Bangkok?? Nothing has changed.. he's still teething, he still drools. It's not the detergent or his whole body would be broken out (not to mention it's environmentally friendly and has no chemicals in it). I've been on a cleaning frenzy since Tuesday washing his sheets, crib bumpers, all blankets, fabric toys, bouncy seats, anything he could possibly put into his mouth.

We have an appointment with a different dermatologist on Monday. Any suggestions on things to try, things to wash, what it could be before then are greatly appreciated!

Summer Teeth ...

... some are here ... some are there.

Apparently, Riley and the gardener are in a race to see who could have fewer teeth. Right now the gardener is in the lead. Just barely.

He's missing these same ones too...

An Awesome Thai'm

What a fantastic four days we had in Bangkok. Four way-too-short days. We managed a nice balance of relaxing and touring, eating and shopping, kids activities and adult entertainment (um... no, not THAT kind of entertainment).

We got back late Sunday night and have slowly been getting back into the swing of things. Of course, I already have a bevy of school and holiday activities on my plate, so I'm lagging a bit on photos, updates, return e-mails...

I couldn't possibly recap the entire trip, so I won't even begin to try. Instead, I'll give you the highlights as agreed upon by the girlies.

Friday we went to the Siam Center Mall where we took the girls to the Siam Ocean World Aquarium (conveniently located inside and underneath the mall). The girls had a blast ... seeing the myriad of sea life, taking a glass bottom boat ride, watching a shark feeding, and sticking their feet in the water and letting the fish nibble off the dead skin. Three hours well spent in the aquarium. Then onto the shopping!

The mall, in and of itself, was nothing short of fabulous. Granted, when you're used to malls anywhere else in the world, it's nothing special, but for us, we were pretty much in awe. The food court? Spec.tac.u.lar! Not only did they have an unbelievable Asian cuisine which left me paralyzed with choices, but the American restaurants had Matt and the girls giddy; Au Bon Pain, Dunkin Donuts, Subway, Starbucks, Haagen Dazs, McDonald's, Swensens to name a few. To top it off there was a gourmet market in the back that the girls had to drag me out of... I could have stayed there all day. We walked around the six floors of the mall afterwards, looking at everything from the car dealerships selling Porsche's to Maserati's, to the Luxury Brand floors selling Cartier and Burberry. I was right at home! Our day wouldn't have been complete without a trip to Hard Rock Cafe where we all ate our body weight in more tasty, greasy, American foods. Awesome!

The highlight of the girls trip was taking the water taxis on Saturday to the Grand Palace and Reclining Buddha, about 45 minutes north of the hotel. They really didn't care about the Palace ... to them, it's just one more flashy temple outside in the hot sun. Nor did they enjoy the thirty minute walk from the Palace to the Buddha, where they whined, complained, and begged to take a tuk tuk the ENTIRE way. But once we got back to the dock where we waited for the water taxi, and subsequently had to smush our way onto one as it was entirely too crowded, they were just fine.

Our last day was spent by the pool, lounging around the lobby, and sending the kids to play in the Kids Club. We had a late check out, we leisurely made our way to the airport, checked-in, and walked around. The two hours flew right by, and soon enough we were on a flight back home. Back to the dog. Back to the grind. Back to the normal chaos.

The transition back to reality hit me about two hours into the flight when the guy next to me started letting out SBD's (silent but deadly farts). Welcome home Perlmans. Welcome home.

Ri and Sher in front of the spider crabs.
Matt and the girls having their toes nibbled by the fish.
The family at Hard Rock Cafe

Our hotel ... On the water taxi



The Grand Palace









A guy touching up the wall paintings at the Grand Palace.
The Reclining Buddha.



This is how Grady spent a majority of his trip to Bangkok.

Bangkok or Bust

It was almost the latter. Though this wouldn't be a Perlman family vacation without a little drama, right? Hey, don't I always say that whenever we leave town?

It all started on our late night drive to the airport when our newly repaired car stalled out in the middle of the road ... no less than five separate times. Clearly exasperated, our driver was once again quick with the excuse that the stalling was due to a "cold" engine. He did have a point. The mercury did plummet to a crisp 87 that night ... with humidity. I stopped counting after about the fifth time stalling, and as far as I knew we glided in neutral into the airport, with sheer momentum and frustration pushing us forward.

Following a few choice words and ultimatums, we entered the airport and negotiated our way through the masses and chaos to the Thai Airways check-in counter. What should have been a matter of mere routine, turned into a debacle of mass proportions when the agent couldn't facilitate nor issue Grady's lap-child ticket. Apparently Thai Airways had to deal with Air India's reservation agents to process the 10% fare balance for his ticket. Ten minutes ... twenty minutes ... thirty minutes went by and we were still waiting for the ticket. In the meantime, we also had to fill out a waiver for Sheridan as they took issue with her passport expiring in less than six months.

It was in the midst of this animosity and ire where we experienced another of those rare introspective Foreign Service moments. Matt muttered through clenched teeth, "The next time we leave this G*D* airport it will be to go home." When Riley turned to him and sincerely inquired, "Exactly where is home?"

Crickets .... Crickets ....

Matt was so dumbfounded he shook his head and for once didn't have any response. It kind of put this whole lifestyle in perspective. There really are no roots, and the fact is these kids really don't know where they're from. Sure, we always tell them that home is where you hang your backpack... but when you're almost seven and you have perspective, you want to have that connection to your home.

Of course, the self-pity was clearly a fleeting moment, as we were snapped back into reality when the bill for Grady's ticket finally came through, and it was double what it should have been. With little time to argue, and nobody who cared, I thrust my rupees at the ticket agent, snatched the ticket out of her hand, and stormed up to the gate. Getting through security no was easy feat either as Matt went through the male screening line, and I was stuck with the kids, stroller, four carry-on bags in the females line, and five security agents staring at me not offering a lick of help.

We finally boarded the plane, and it departed almost an hour late due to the failure of the ground radar system. Typical. By the time we were airborne and the seat belt signs were turned off, the flight attendants were coming around to serve a full dinner. Can anyone tell me why they need to serve dinner at 1:30 am? What are we at, a Manhattan wedding? The lights were finally turned off around 3 am, for the hour or so of sleep we could grab before descending into Bangkok.

When we arrived in the terminal, Riley remarked that she remembered the airport, and mumbled a few, "Wow, this is so clean" comments under her breath. I agreed. We quickly made it through immigration, grabbed our bags, and hailed a taxi to take us to our hotel. Upon pulling up to the entrance, Riley (who is clearly on a roll today) started saying, "This hotel is so fancy shmancy." Of course it was, compared to the hotels in Chennai where people are outside begging and sleeping on the ground. Again... that perspective thing...

For the most part, we enjoyed a relaxing day napping, hanging by the pool, and inspecting all the bathrooms (which the girls are proud to announce are "Awesome!"). However, I had to deal with car issues and the bevy of text messages my driver sent throughout the day while at the Toyota mechanics. I gave him strict instructions to have my car working by the time we get home Sunday night ... which it should .... unless there's another cold snap.

Despite our mishaps getting here, we're thrilled that we made it safe and sound and are relatively no worse for wear! For the next three days we'll be experiencing utter bliss as we go sight seeing, head to the zoo and aquarium, take the kids on a water taxi, and eat delicious food. We are going to enjoy this vacation to its fullest!

Wherever you are in the world, here's wishing you a wonderful Thanksgiving... filled with love, laughter, and Starbucks Caramel Macchiattos.

Friday Fragments ... On Sunday

Because life (and illness) took over and I just couldn't get to the computer to update until today.

Let's dive right in and talk about the Silver Bomber. The car. The bane of my existence. It was discharged from the Toyota dealership's ICU on Thursday, though sadly without any scheduled follow-up appointments, fluids, or answers. Seriously, all I was told when my car was delivered was that it works 'fine', and here's your RS 12000 ($250) bill. The itemized bill showed that they 'cleaned' the fuel injectors and muffler, and 'repaired' the nozzle to the fuel pump... they also washed the car and did an oil change. That's it. They ONLY looked at what my driver suggested was wrong, and that's after he went back to the dealership to 'look' at the car with them. Nothing more, and almost certainly, everything less. They didn't look at the fuel hose (which my dad said probably needed to be changed as well), nor did they re-fill any of the fluids. So until I get answers I'm withholding payment, and even better, I'm sending my car back on Monday to be re-checked. I'm still trying to figure out how my car goes from needing $5000 worth of work to being released with just a $250 bill. Why am I so skeptical... what is wrong with this picture?

During the great car catastrophe, I came down with a nasty head cold that just kicked my tush. I made it through Tuesday, and even kept my volunteering commitment on Wednesday to help during the school's Bubble Festival. But Thursday I was down for the count, and sadly, so were the girls. They both had fevers and coughs, my head was congested, and what was left of my voice sounded throaty ... a la Kathleen Turner. The girls quickly rebounded, so Friday I sent them to school, but I ended up housebound and in bed most of the day. And guess who got sick on Saturday? Why does this always happen right before we go out of town?

On Friday afternoon Matt finally got Grady's Indian visa issues resolved. When you are assigned to a country as a diplomat, you're required to have a diplomatic visa. However, due to a number of extenuating circumstances, including the bevy of issues we encountered getting him added to Matt's travel orders, little support we received from both post and headquarters, and lack of guidance from the Indian Consulate in San Francisco, Grady entered India on a 6-month tourist visa. Without going into any of the sordid details or pointing blame, let's just say that Grady is now legally here.

After all this (and a wee bit more) we decided we needed a break, so we're heading out of dodge for a few days. Thanksgiving will be spent soaking up the Thai sun in Bangkok... Four full days of Starbucks (that's at least eight caramel macchiattos), eating at American chain restaurants, malls, zoos, river taxis, Buddhas, palaces, parks, shopping, dinner cruises, and more! If 'one night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble' ... just imagine what three nights can do!

Six For Six ...

... photos for months that is.

The munchkin is six months old already. 6 months old!! I love watching the amazing transformation from baby to toddler. He's changing right before our very eyes.

His stats:

* 18.5 pounds
* 27 inches

He eats:

Everything ... almost. He LOVES green beans, peas, squash, sweet potatoes, bananas, and pears. He despises peaches... with a passion. He won't even open up his mouth after he takes that first unsuspecting bite.

His tricks:

Eating his toes. Rolling all around. Playing like a madman in his exersaucer. Holding his own bottle. Screaming on the top of his lungs ... followed up by giggling. Trying to sit up. Attempting to get onto all 4's. And yes... sucking his thumb. Sheridan does have a nemesis after all.

Patience Is NOT My Virtue

My parents are probably nodding their heads right now... as are my in-laws. And Matt? Well, he would normally be smirking in agreement, though after the last few days without our car, coupled with the plethora of incomprehensible conversations with the Toyota mechanics, he feels my pain.

I am well aware that I am ye of little patience. I own my irritability when things don't go as quickly as I'd like them to. Like right with my car right now. I am beyond frustrated.

We left off last Thursday with the understanding the Toyota dealership would send the "broken" fuel injector pump up to Bangalore on Friday in an effort to refurbish it, and save us the hassle and money of purchasing a new one. However, we got a call on Saturday morning letting us know that the Bangalore mechanics couldn't fix it, and the only way to move forward was to purchase a new fuel pump... to the tune of 1 Lakh (or around $2500). But wait, there's more! The tax, importing, shipping, and sea freight charges, in addition to the two month car rental fees, (as that's how long it would take to get here) would bring the entire transaction closer to the 2 Lakh range.

Are you freakin' kidding me? We only paid a smidgen more than 2 Lakh for the car! And to add a cherry to this sh** sundae, the dealership actually told me that it's too expensive, and they didn't want to order it... instead leaving me to either fend for myself, or enjoy the 4000 pound paperweight that would forever sit outside my front door.

Matt and I spent both Saturday and Sunday afternoons researching where in the world we could purchase this fuel pump. We found the exact model on eBay in Australia, though it was a two year old listing. We e-mailed four manufacturers in Singapore. We called the Toyota dealership in Sri Lanka. After hours and hours (and hours) of investigation, we confirmed that all roads to a new fuel pump lead to Japan.

Yesterday's and today's phone conversations with the Toyota mechanics were nothing more than an exercise in futility. Yesterday they told me that they were waiting for the part to return from Bangalore. Today they told me that the part never even WENT to Bangalore... rather they only sent a xerox copy of what the fuel pump looked liked. What? So they could perform "virtual tinkering?" Can you imagine what a faxed copy of a xerox of a greasy, dirty fuel pump looks like? Probably like a Rorschach inkblock test. If I wasn't so pissed, I'd find this uproariously funny.

So I sit here waiting. As patiently as I can. For the Toyota dealership to give me a concrete answer of what's wrong with my car. They switched their story again late this afternoon when they called to tell me they cleaned the fuel injectors, and muffler, and it's working just fine.... though they still want to attempt to fix the nozzle of the fuel pump. Why they didn't attempt this last Wednesday when they took the car is beyond me.

Breathe in ..... breathe out .... breathe in .... breathe out...

Nope, doesn't work. Patience is not a virtue.

The Tooth Fairy Is Working Overtime This Week ...

In the last five days, Riley has lost 3 teeth! She's starting to look like a hockey player.

November 14, 2009

Left: November 9, 2009 ................ Right: November 12, 2009

Another India Moment...

This is the e-mail exchange between Matt and the maintenance crew at the office yesterday. Nothing ever surprises me anymore...


From: Chennai Motorpool
Sent: Thursday, November 12, 2009 11:31 AM
To: Matthew Perlman
Subject: RE: Mongoose in My Engine


Dear Sir:

As instructed by you the vehicle was checked by our transportation staff, the mongoose was removed from your vehicle and the engine was hereby water washed. This is for your kind information.

Thanks.

Chennai Motorpool


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


From: Matthew Perlman
Sent: Thursday, November 12, 2009 9:38 AM
To: Chennai Motorpool
Subject: Mongoose in My Engine


Motorpool:

During the security inspection of my vehicle this morning, the guard observed a live mongoose in the engine compartment under the hood. Having already experienced the foul stench of one dead animal in my engine, can you please thoroughly inspect my vehicle to ensure that it is animal free.

Thanks.

- Matt

The Silver Bomber Is On Life Support ...

... we're not sure if she'll make it. She's undergoing a fuel injector pump transplant... and they have to bring in a specialist from Bangalore.

The issues began early Monday morning when the car wouldn't start. Velan couldn't figure out what was wrong, so he called our trusty mechanic friend who hurried right over. After an hour of tinkering, the mechanic realized he couldn't fix it, and the next call was to bring in the big guns; the Toyota mechanics. It took the three guys who came (1 to translate to my driver, 2 to work on the car) about an hour and $20 to diagnose and fix the clogged fuel pump / injector. The car began working again. And off they went.

Until Tuesday morning, when Velan attempted to start the car. Nothing. He tried again. Nada. He tried a third time. Boom ... Boom ... Boom. We realized the end was near when thick acrid black smoke blew out her exhaust pipe. Velan valiantly performed mouth-to-hose resuscitation as he sucked fuel from the fuel pump into the injectors... in attempt to start her. True story.

The Toyota mechanics rushed right over. Five men showed up to see why the car wouldn't work. They were there for almost two hours. Tinkering. Conferencing. Tinkering. Conferencing. Tinkering.

Eventually they were able to get her started just long enough to get her to "limp" into the Toyota repair shop. They told me they'd have an answer by the end of the day... Wednesday morning at the latest.

Around 4pm today I got the news. After "diagnosing" the problem (and I use that term VERY loosely), they think they've narrowed it down to the fuel injector pump and nozzle. Of course, they don't have the technology here to fix it, so they're going to ship the part to Bangalore to be rebuilt, since a new one could not be located anywhere in India due to the age of the vehicle... though I have to wonder if they really tried.

The mechanic is estimating that it will cost upwards of $500, and it will take a week to fix. So in layman's terms, that means it will be at least $1000, and a month before I have my car back.

We hope that at the end of this drama, she'll be as good as ... well... old.

I Got Nothin' ...

... except for a little complaining, though I'll spare you the agony of listening to me kvetch. Lucky you. Seriously.


Like sands through the hourglass, this was the past week of our lives....


Grady's 6 month immunizations ~ split up over two separate days

A cooking demonstration and lunch at a fabulous Mediterranean restaurant

Two trips to the Apollo Children's Hospital to visit our good friend's little guy who was there for observation due to a horrible drug allergy.

Riley started her swim club practice twice a week

We had parent teacher conferences, with Sheridan's lasting twice as long as Riley's

And Shabbat dinner with a small group of other "Members of The Tribe."

We were house-bound for almost three days due to the monsoons that finally rolled in

... though we did make a quick escape to dinner Saturday night with friends.


And Riley finally lost her tooth. Which reminds me that I need to ensure that the tooth fairy doesn't forget to stop by our house tonight ... which would be bad if she did, considering Riley wrote her a personal note, and I promised her that if the fairy had trouble deciphering what she said that I'd call her and explain ... as I have her number programed in my iPhone.

Riley asked how to spell 3rd ... to which I responded "it's three with an 'rd'.
I thought she'd write the number three, but instead she spelled it out and added the 'rd'.
It took me awhile to figure out what she wrote ...

Visiting Carter in the hospital. Sheridan LOVED looking at his IV and everything he was connected to. Riley was just afraid he was contagious and quickly jumped off the bed after the photo.

The back patio after the monsoons. This area is MUCH larger than our last home, and thus it takes a LOT longer to flood. The water is still about 10 - 12 inches in some areas, though it pales in comparison to last year's floods. Not that I'm complaining...

My Caramel Macchiatto Runneth Over ...

I just got word this afternoon that my little blog here, this space in which I write about the chaos of our family of five, was recently recognized in the November edition of the Foreign Service Journal. I had no idea they were going to be mentioning my blog. No clue they would be reviewing our family's journey. I didn't know they knew of me.

But they did. They do. And the author has great taste! In his overview of my blog he writes ...

"Updated frequently and written with an almost brutal honesty - "follow the chaos as we tell our tales of life abroad" - this blog directly addresses some of the hardest issues relating to Foreign Service family life. But the author never displays undue angst and tempers her views with a healthy dose of hope and fondness for the mundane. Her ability to inject sass and emotion into a family letter is incredibly endearing."

Oddly enough, if you remember, about two and a half months ago I really struggled with the decision of making my blog private. I vacillated about it for weeks, truly unsure of the direction in which to turn. Despite the updated disclaimer, I still find myself holding back on occasion. Not always calling a spade a spade due to the fishbowl community in which we live, and the large number of local people who we know read about our lives.

The blog has chronicled everything from fertility issues, to babies, culture mis-identity, moving, and exotic vacations, to vomit ... and more vomit, consumables shopping, funny things that kids say, monsoons, struggles of overseas life, from finally adapting to the local culture, to saying good-bye to an old friend.

While the recognition is nice, and it helps remind me that many people enjoy the blog, this truly is a just cathartic experience for me. It's a place to write my feelings, and document our journey for our children ... though through the years I've realized it's also struck a chord for people who've experienced similar things.

So thank you for letting me share our lives. Thanks for coming back day in and day out with your comments, personal e-mails, and stories ... because even though it sounds uber fun to live in a 3rd world country about 10,000 miles from "home", oftentimes we really miss having our family and dearest friends near us to help support us during good times as well as bad.

And most importantly, thanks to my friend Donna, living in Beijing, who let me in on the secret about my blog ... as hers was also recognized in the journal as well! Another mom whose chaos rivals ours, (like the recent story of their maid who was recently hit by a car which left their family stranded without help for several weeks). Seriously, you can't make these stories up!

Here's the entire article in the Foreign Service Journal. It starts on page 43 ... with my highlight on page 47. Enjoy ... as my five minutes of fame are now up.