Christmas in Bangkok

From our far away home to yours, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Celebrating in Bangkok was surprisingly no different than celebrating back in the great US of A. Of course, we missed our family and friends so much, but once the Christmas cards started arriving we felt very loved and not forgotten.

My hun labored for weeks to decorate the house in a way that would delight the kids and get us into the spirit of the holidays. Luckily, several of our neighbors did as well, and the effect at night was really cheerful and festive. I LOVE our neighborhood and our neighbors, I can't say that enough. All of us do our own thing most of the time, but we still have a little time and consideration for each other. It appears that, for the second time, we have fallen into a great place with some great people.

A few days before Christmas we had a lot of preparations to do; parties to attend, gifts to buy or prepare, donations to be made, and a wonderful houseguest to keep us company. So to create gifts baskets for our neighborhood guards, we hopped the klong shuttle down to my favorite basket shop over by Wat Saket. For 15baht it drops you right by the Wat and my shop is a mere five minute walk from that. plus, as long as you don't mind the smell, the boats are a fun ride for the kids. Just remember to shower and change when you get home. That water is pee-yew!

Christmas Eve we ate cookies, watched The Grinch, and read "The Night Before Christmas" from a book given to me as a child from my dear Aunt Priscilla and her family. We still read it every Christmas Eve as a tradition. Then the cookies, milk and a carrot were set out..

And I might have snuck down to see what Santa did. This is what I saw:

Or I should say, this is what Nate saw, because he went into full-body joy mode at exactly 6:25 the next morning. Behold, this is what ecstasy looks like on a two-year-old:

 

 You might want to take a closer look to get the full effect of what happened here:

 Yup, that is what happens when Santa comes to town. Full body shock, sudden intake of breath, and frozen look of joy and surprise. You can't fake this folks. This is why I love a child's second or third Christmas. Its priceless.

 

There were a LOT of great surprises on that morning. Street hockey set, Legos, clothes, and action figures. Our supply of Red Sox hats and Patriots shirts was replenished. Gorgeous clothes, accessories and cosmetics, and gifts for our fantastic nanny and houseguest. (Santa doesn't leave anyone out, dontcha know?)

The best part was that it was gorgeous weather, so we could take the fun outside and play with most of it already.  Which is totally necessary after you pump your kids with bacon and baked french toast with syrup and put them in a room full of brand new toys and noisemakers.

 What is also pleasant about living in Bangkok during Christmas is how Thais embrace all holidays with welcoming arms. No one gets offended by religious differences-if it involves eating and partying and celebrating, they love it. Why not? So we also went out with our Santa hats on a few nights earlier to check out the spectacular holiday lights on our own little independent foot tour.

Taking the BTS to Rachdamri, we walked up to Central World and along the skywalk to see the gorgeous lights and giant Christmas trees. And to get little P into the spirit, we brought a ton of candy canes with us and told him to give them out to any kids we saw.

My little man loved doing that, running up to kids, wishing them a Merry Christmas, and handing them a candy. He's sweet like that.

So now we head into the next batch of fun; New Years Eve, then Little P's sixth birthday, and at last an anniversary escape to Krabi for the whole family. I can't wait to see what January brings. The birthday party is just two weeks away, and I am full of plans and projects to make it the best "Little Artists" party ever! (Not to mention someone goes back to school in just a week!)

Krabi is going to be incredible too-its a remote, picturesque island with very few drivable roads and some of the most spectacular beaches. The kind I used to dream we would spend our honeymoon on. Hey, its only 12 years later, better late than never! And I know someone who got his first set of fins and a snorkel and is ready to use them.