Living it Up

I feel a little guilty even showing the pictures of where we have been staying the last few nights. After 4 nights of getting our blood sucked out by killer mosquitos at the last place we decided that for Cari's birthday we should up the ante a little and stay somewhere nice, but this was not going to be easy. First of all it's high season and second of all I'm cheap. Well when Cari gets motivated she can do almost anything as I am finding out. She marched into a 4 star hotel that was being opened that day and realizing they had no customers yet cut a great deal that allowed our family to stay in one the nicest places we could find in Krabi. Maybe she should be selling cars???
Our visit at Orchid Resort was simply amazing. We were their first guests and the whole place was ours. They even set up a table at the pool for Cari's birthday as if it was national holiday; presenting her with flowers and a birthday cake.
Monday we left for cheaper but still nice accomodations just down the road. They have a sea kayak that the guests can use free of charge so Meghan and I took a 2 hour journey to a private cove. We had a great time together and made it back before the lightening and rain storm hit hard. Well all in a beach day. Enjoy the pictures and try not to resent us.
God Bless,
Kurt

Counting My Blessings

Its Easter Sunday and I can’t think of a better way in remembering the sacrificial love of my savior Jesus than by counting my blessings. This trip to start is an answer to prayer. It is almost unbelievable how many things had to be put into place to pull off a 4 month trip around the world with a family of 5. There is so much to be thankful for I will simply make a list hoping to touch on some of my praises to God.
 I praise God for Cari, my partner, friend and wife
 I praise God for my children Jessica, Meghan & Cole
 I praise God for my brother Craig’s support in running the business while I’m away
 I praise God for the love of grandparents for my children
 I praise God for the many people in ministry overseas who have opened up their homes and given of their time to our family
 I praise God for the prayers and encouragement of so many friends
 I praise God for my co-workers
 I praise God for the medical treatment Cari received
 I praise God for the finances to make this trip possible
 I praise God for opening my eyes to the day to day lives of people in third world countries
 I praise God for intense family time that has revealed some of my shortcomings
 I praise God for giving me the time to just be and see from another perspective
 I praise God for His amazing creation and all the beauty we have beheld
 I praise God for His love for mankind and how it is demonstrated through others
I have one short story to add to my praise. Yesterday Cole and I took off in the morning for a day of rock climbing at the famous Railey Beach limestone rocks. Our time together was off the charts. To see my son climb 75 meters up a rock wall and really give it his all was something to see. I realized that even though as a family we do almost everything together that I rarely do the one to one time which is so badly needed with my kids and with Cari. Needless to say it was a day of praise.
To God be the Glory,
Kurt

Sunburnt beach bum by Cole

These last two weeks were full of fun. We went to the beach snorkeling, swimming and hanging out. I went rock climbing with my dad. I have been able to play with monkeys.
The beach in Phuket was great for snorkeling. It took me a while to get used to using the snorkel. It was a long swim to get to the rocks where the fish were. I went with my mom. I saw all sorts of different fish. There were really long fish that were dull except for colorful fins. I saw yellow and white and black fish and schools of tiny silver fish. It was a lot of fun. The water was warm and turquoise. It was really hot outside and we got sunburnt like nobodies business. We spent time indoors at a big mall where we saw a movie, Spiderwick it was a good movie. It was nicer to see a movie in Thailand, it was a really clean theater, you got to choose your seats, popcorn and m&ms and drinks only cost 99 baht which is just $3.00. It was nice to kill time in an airconditioned room.

We moved to a different town called Krabi, the beach area is Ao Nang. The town is nicer because you don't have to run across streets for your life from the traffic. The beach is not as good the water is cloudy. The good part about the beach here is that there is monkeys at the end of the beach. They live there by a stream and you can buy bananas and peanuts to feed the monkeys. They grab the food from your hand and jump on you.

I went rock climbing with my dad today. We took a long tail boat to a big rock climbing area Railay. Then we put on our gear. We got a harness, climbing shoes and a bag full of chalk for our hands to make us climb better. It was my first time climbing a real rock. It was fun, once you got on the top it felt like you conquered the rock. I did 4 climbs.

Our last couple weeks in Thailand have been a great time in Thailand!

Sun, Malls and Taxis

Have we said how hot it is here? It has been a cooker and yes I realize there are hotter places and that my poor friends back home would love some sunshine their way, but this heat is not for me and by looking at Meghan and her sunburn I think she would agree.
We are currently finishing a week at the beach in Phuket, Thailand before we head to Krabi to visit some World Concern projects carried over from the Tsunami disaster. The place we are staying is nice, but their advertising is a little misleading when they say the sands of the beach are at our doorsteps. Its actually a 25 minute walk on a busy, no sidewalk street, which is why we take taxis everywhere. With a family of 5 a Corolla size car is pushing the family personal space issue, but these taxis have air conditioning and is better then walking so we focus on that.
When we do arrive at the beach its beautiful, especially when you look at tropical blue water and the beautiful white sand and not the crowded beach of topless and speedo wearing Europeans that find way too much personal freedom in their retirement years for my liking.
After our first day of roasting ourselves to a nice shade of lobster red we take the tight fitting taxi to a bigger town for Cari's follow-up blood test at the hospital. Within an hour Cari has had the blood work done (everything looks good)and results sent to her doctor in Bangkok for the whopping total of $16. We then go to the nearby mall to enjoy 2 hours of aimless walking in the midst of air conditioning.
The rest of week takes on the same routine. One day getting fried at the beach, and the next finding something to do in a cooler environment. We did get some snorkel gear and have had a blast swimming with the kids and looking at the fish. Jessica for the most part has stayed in the shade and read any book she can get her hands on, making her reading habit as costly as our daily taxi service.
I have to confess this week has been the hardest. With no clear focus and so much downtime I am really at a loss. I miss work or at least a sense of purpose which is a sad state I realize when I have my amazing family by my side.
-Kurt

Cambodia

Last week I went to Cambodia with my dad, brother and sister we left my mom in Bangkok National Hospital.
The trip there was not too bad, three hours in a van. We had a long wait at the border. We were busy the whole 4 days there visiting some really awesome ministries. I will tell you some of what Cambodian Hope Organization is doing in Cambodia. The first day we visited six schools on a mat that C.H.O. has started. I helped pass out school supplies to the students and the teachers. Kings’ Children’s Center students raised money to buy these and we delivered them to all 6 schools. At the school I also blew up balloons, sang songs like “Father Abraham “ and the “hokey pokey” with all the kids. It was fun and the kids really enjoyed it. The students also preformed songs for us. I took lots of pictures.
The students at the school had very little, just a notebook and a pencil. They had school outside on a tarp. There was a white board but nothing else. There was not even a bathroom. The kids went to school 2 hours a day five days a week. The teacher goes to 4 different schools everyday to teach for 2 hours at each school. The teachers are very dedicated
My favorite thing I saw was the community house. C.H.O. has built this home for Cambodian children that have been in really bad situations across the border in Thailand. The people at C.H.O. work with them, their families and their villages so that they can go home again. While we were there visiting we were able to play a lot with the children. I had a couple girls that stayed by me and we played duck, duck, goose and other games including a banana song I just learned that day.
I really like C.H.O. and what they have done to take care of their people. We were tired, dusty and hot everyday but enjoyed seeing and doing what we did.

~Meghan