Under the Thaiscun Sun

One major bummer about baby girl's end of July due date was that my plane travel was halted just as Forest was getting out of school in early June. Luckily, we had two sets of friends offer to fly to us and we even planned a last hurrah road trip with one of the couples up to the Khoa Yai national park area. My friend Natalie was looking for a good golf resort to commemorate her hubby's birthday, and I had heard of this bizarre little place called Toscana Valley 2.5 hours north of Bangkok that supposedly instantly transported you from Thailand to Tuscany. 

I was intrigued and felt comfortable with the proximity to Bangkok in my 35th week of pregnancy, so we hatched a plan for our first road trip in Thailand. 

didn't make it out of the neighborhood without stopping at Starbucks 

Typical Thai rest stop. BYOTP (Bring your own toilet paper)

Since our family, plus Natalie and Matt and their two kiddos couldn't all fit in one vehicle (especially when you factor in the fact that we have a driver) we hired and extra car and driver to follow our car up there. This was fairly inexpensive. Like $120 bucks round trip (and he was driving there and back each leg while our driver stayed nearby for baby emergency purposes). 

We didn't have many plans for our two night stay. The husbands were going to golf on our first morning, and we were expecting cooler temps in which to enjoy the many resort pools and amazing 'adventure playground' with the 3 boys (5, 5, 2.5). 

While we did enjoy the resort amenities, the temperatures were not cooler! When I plugged in Khoa Yai into my weather app, it must have sent readings from the top of the highest mountain peak, because where we were located was in the 90s and pure sunshine. 

Oh well. We're used to it. 

I will say the resort was beautiful. And if you could ignore the scorching temps and mosquitoes, it did look just like the Tuscan countryside. Very picturesque with lots of cute photo ops. 

The gelato and pizza weren't quite up to snuff but we enjoyed our fair share anyway! 

The pools were gorgeous and Forest especially loved the playground and racing with his friends down the cobblestone streets. 

Trips like this make me slightly sad he doesn't have a twin brother. Eli and Forest had a blast together, and almost-3-year-old year old Ethan is getting to an age where he's pretty fun for the older boys to hang out with as well. I was just excited that Forest had someone besides me with which to converse about Octonauts and LEGO for hooooours. 

One funny cultural observation was at the adventure playground there was a sign saying the playground was only for the 10 and over. 

Now, while I admit it wasn't suitable for toddlers and Ethan needed occasional parental assistance, the 5 year olds were entirely capable of doing everything independently and safely. Also, I don't know a ton of over 10 year olds hanging out at playgrounds. But Thais are inconsistently concerned about safety. Playgrounds here have SO many rules. But a baby riding on a motorcycle without a helmet? We'll allow it! 

Anyhoos, the second day we were there, we took the boys to play for a bit and there were a ton of young teenagers actually playing on the playground. So perhaps it's just American kids who lose their playground love once they enter the tween years... 

(Clearly a certain 34 year old enjoyed his time on the playground with the kiddos.)

After a bit of playground time and a gelato break, we loaded into our cars for the drive back to Bangkok. Since we live on the northern side of Bangkok and Khoa Yai is also north of the city, it was a seriously easy drive. No traffic and smooth sailing the entire way. We will definitely go back, maybe when my parents come later this month. It would be a good first little experimental travel outing with the baby. 

Jonathan said it was once of the nicest golf courses he's ever played. And he's lived in Scotland and Northern California, so I'd say that's high praise! 

We were sad to send our friends back to Singapore after a great weekend, but love knowing the are just a quick flight away. Visiting them will be one of our first excursions once baby girl has her passport, visa, and vaccinations. #expatbabyproblems 

The next weekend, our friends from Chiang Mai came for a short visit (Forest was slightly disappointed that they came without their cat but his excitement quickly overshadowed that). 

I felt so bad because by this time I'd started having prodromal labor (more on that in the next post) and was just exhausted and not wanting to be out and about all day. George came on Friday so we just took him to Sweet Poppy for brunch and then he and Jonathan went to run errands and go to the driving range. Just giving them a glimpse of that exciting Bangkok life! 

George and Jonathan played golf the next morning before picking Heather up from the airport and the 3 of them headed for a fancy adults only lunch experience at Issaya Siam House. 

We actually had other friends in town house hunting for their upcoming move to Bangkok so Forest and I met up with them at a more kid friendly establishment. Since we all had a long day and huge lunches, we just Netflix, leftovers and chilled that night. Heather had flown straight to Bangkok from Myanmar (where Jonathan technically works) so there was lots of discussion about Burmese culture and food which lead to the boys donning their Longyis and drinking whisky while watching Anthony Bourdain's Myanmar Parts Unknown special. 

Anybody else's coffee table eternally covered in LEGOs? 

Again, just trying to show them how exciting Bangkok can be. Ha! 

We loved having quality time with them, even if I didn't have much energy to tour them around town. And Forest seriously loves them! I'm sure I've mentioned it before but Forest is about the most sensitive kid I've ever met. He warms up to some people right away and others he flat out refuses to speak to. Personally, I think he gravitates to the energy of certain people. He's like a puppy and needs people, especially grown ups, to be what Cesar Milan would call 'calm-assertive'. 

Well George and Heather instantly wormed their way into his heart and he bonded with them immediately. My heart just about broke when he actually cried big ole teardrops when they left for the airport. Not like a tantrum. Like pitiful, silent, tears streaming down his face. 

I agree, dude. They are good people and it was good for all of our souls to get to hang out with them for a few days. Next set of visitors: my parents!!! Arriving this weekend! EEEEEEEKKKKK! Who'll get here first- Baby Girl or her Nana and Pops??? Stay tuned to find out!