Expat parenting

My 3-year-old: What do monks do?

Me: They care for people.

My 3-year-old: Mama! You're the best monk EVER.

Yesterday, after the monk conversation, the desire to kick back at the local coffee house and have a lazy start to the day overtook me. So, with my husband out of town for business, the kids and I headed to our favorite coffee house to meet a few friends. My bag was full of all the typical mama stuff-- puzzles, coloring sheets, snacks. The sky was overcast and the air was humid.

We arrived at our favorite coffee house, met up with friends, ordered drinks, played, chatted, sipped. And, then... the torrential rains started.

We eventually reached departure time, but the rains were still coming down and we were umbrella-less. With their kids melting down, my friends eyed the humid rain and chose to make a very wet dash for home. No amount of convincing was going to make my kids budge. Rather than fight it, we retreated back for a cup of hot chocolate, froze in the now cranked up air conditioning and waited out the storm. The storm turned to a heavy drizzle and, well past the point where we MUST leave the coffeehouse, I convinced the kids that it 'wouldn't be too bad'. This was our window of escape.

The drizzle continued and on our walk home, my daughter asked to stop at a street vendor's covered stand of little trinkets. She proceeded to negotiate in elementary Thai and her efforts were rewarded with a sparkly new key chain, paid for in baht from her coin purse. We continued our walk home, past the many spirit houses that dot our Bangkok neighborhood. The kids waved and wai-ed (bowed, Thai-style, with palms of their hands pressed together). A hilarious discussion of how tiny the spirits must be to live in such tiny houses made the walk go quicker than usual. Three-fourths of the way home, the skies opened and poured once again. My heart clenched as I anticipated two already wet kiddos complaining. But, instead, they frowned and then started laughing. The remainder of our walk took twice as long as it should have due to the splashing through the giant puddles that had already accumulated.

We returned home to meet a neighbor who looked at us curiously and then proceeded to greet us in Thai. Not missing a beat, and hyper from the morning's wacky twists, the kids answered back with big goofy smiles: Sawadee-kah/kab! They continued to weave the Thai words they knew together in order to impress our neighbor.

In this moment, soaking wet and happy, I realized that my children are having a completely different childhood than I ever imagined for them. Sure, I thought we'd get caught in rainstorms and splash our way home. And, yes, I thought we'd meet up with friends for coffee and I'd pack my bag full of 'kid-stuff'. But, I never expected to stroll with my three and six-year-old past spirit houses, have conversations about monks, watch them interact in a foreign language and negotiate for toys in a foreign currency--- AND, have it seem completely normal to them. There are times that are trying and there are stories to tell that point to the negative of parenting overseas. But, in this moment, I recognized that we have created a rich, vibrant, happy childhood full of adventures and love. After all, isn't that what every parent, regardless of where they live, dreams of for their little ones?

Cooking in Thailand, entry no 84:

Rainbow cookies

Named by my daughter ("they look like they got stuck in a rainbow"), these cookies are a fun recipe to cook with the kids. Make the batter and roll the cookies, in advance, then let the kids in your life help with the sprinkle application. Perfect for a rainy afternoon.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of butter

1 cup of sugar

1 egg

1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

1/4 teaspoon of Cream of Tartar

1 tablespoon of vanilla

1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

approximately 1 cup of tiny multicolored round sprinkles

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together. Then, proceed by adding the rest of the ingredients one at a time, stirring well in between. Form the dough into small balls, about half the size of a golf ball. Roll in the sprinkles to cover entirely and place on a silicone lined baking sheet. Press gently with a fork, once. Bake 8-10 minutes until flattened. Watch closely as the cookies should not brown at all-- do not overcook! Remove from oven, allow to rest on the cooking tray for five minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.

Kind of like gummy fish

When a local friend presented our family with three bags of dried fish, I wasn't quite sure how we'd eat them all (or even what I'd do with them). I thanked her for the gift and then eyed the little bagged fish suspiciously. Their beady dried eyes stared back, equally as suspicious.

My five year old daughter said, "Ooh those are shiny and pretty." Now, you have to understand that my daughter has always been an adventurous "try-er" of food items. Only cautious to check for peanut products, due to her allergy, otherwise she'll usually give most things a try. So, I wasn't surprised when she showed interest in trying the fish immediately. Reaching her hand in and carefully selecting "the prettiest one", she slowly popped the head of the 1/2 inch creature into her mouth, chewed and walked slowly to the garbage can to spit it out. Making a face and smacking her lips together, she said, "Hmmm. That was actually kind of good. Kind of like a gummy fish, but not really gummy and not really sweet and not really candy." She reached for a second, a third and a fourth. It was during her fifth attempt that she realized she could eat the entire fish (previously she was licking the "meat" off of the little skeleton and depositing those into the garbage bin).

She's continued in her tiny dried fish eating ways for two days straight now, eating them as a supplement to dinners, for after school snacks and trying out a recipe I created for her. Tomorrow, she's requested that a few go in her lunch box. I'm a fan of the little guys for her, but can't quite enjoy the flavor myself yet. And, my three year old, a not so adventurous try-er of foods, has pinched his nose and said "pew" whenever he walks close to the air-tight container holding the fish.

Cooking in Thailand, entry no. 75:

Spicy sour fish

Here's a recipe, based on a traditional Philippine serving method for dried fish, that I created for my daughter. Make sure you really like the flavor of dried fish before embarking on this journey though.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of small dried fish, unseasoned (sardines, anchovies or other equivalently sized fish)

2 tablespoons white vinegar

2 tablespoons lime juice

1 pinch red chili flakes

1 shallot, diced finely

1 chive, diced finely

Method:

Mix the above ingredients together in a small container, cover and place in the refrigerator for at least one hour. (will keep well for several days, although the fish will lose their shape). Serve desired portion over hot rice as a condiment.

Christmas Decor in Bangkok, part 1

With the holidays in full swing, I thought I'd take a couple posts to share Bangkok's Christmas decor. Like everything here, presentation is key. The scale is massive, the glitter and sparkles are abundant and, in some cases, the tackiness over the top. The following images are all from within one of Bangkok's "lifestyle" shopping centers. The tree towers over four stories tall and the toy soldier sits next to it towering three stories tall. The bells swing festively overhead as classic carols trumpet over the sound system.

And, another glimpse at Bangkok's Christmas decor coming up in a couple of days. Get ready for the wackier side of holiday life in the Big Mango.

Happy Holidays (more recipes coming in the New Year... the kitchen is churning out Christmas cookies now!).

A birthday party and a pirate ship

After one day in his new job, T returned home for a day of rest (tough life!). Although, let it be said that he loved his first working Monday in Thailand and he was a tad disappointed to not return to the office early the next morning. Yesterday was Queen Sirikit's birthday, partnered with Mother's Day. And, what a birthday it seemed to be. The Queen was honored with a celebration that included a candlelight ceremony, in which it looked like thousands gathered after dark to sing and be together as they honored their Queen. The ceremony was followed by fireworks that exploded over BKK's high rises. Point to Bangkok. The kids are hard pressed to find something that they don't like about this place! The city seems to deliver at every new moment, even after dark. 

And, while our shipment has supposedly arrived at port, we're still awaiting its arrival at home. So, whenever there's a natural opportunity to provide entertainment for the kids, we jump on it! Which leads me to yesterday's torrential rainfall. As soon as it began, I smiled in eager anticipation of an afternoon on the decks. In case you're not following my reason for excitement, let me explain further. Our home has several great balconies, but I've been a bit squeamish to set foot on them as they are covered in unrecognizable filth. So, rain, a dash of detergent, some mops and a quick tapping into the psyche of two young children with a new found fascination for pirates makes for a surprisingly entertaining (and productive) afternoon. We now have sparkling clean decks, filth-free.

And, in honor of yesterday's birthday, here's a gift for you:

Cooking in Thailand, entry no. 2:

Pad Thai, made in traditional Thai-style*

After a day of running around town (or swabbing the decks!) this makes for a comforting, filling main dish. We, unfortunately, omit the peanuts because of family food allergies.

Ingredients:

1 package dried rice noodles (thickly cut, about 4 oz)

2 tablespoons veggie oil

Your choice of protein (about two chicken breasts, cubed, two hand fulls of prawns, half block of tofu, cubed, or a combination) seasoned with garlic powder

3 eggs, blended with salt and pepper to your desired taste

2 cups bean sprouts

2 cups green onions, cut into approximately one-inch pieces

1/8 cup fish sauce

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

5 teaspoons brown sugar

red pepper flakes, to taste

lime wedges, chopped cilantro sprigs, sliced white radishes and crushed peanuts, for garnish

Method:

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and add rice noodles. Cook until al dente (do not overcook... they'll get mushy and ruin the dish) and drain under cold running water. Set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon veggie oil in a large saute pan and add choice of protein. Saute, on low heat until chicken is cooked through, prawns are opaque and/or tofu is golden (cook each item separately if doing more than one). Set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon veggie oil over low heat and pour eggs into pan. Swirl around the pan and allow to set into a flat omelet. Flip, cook for 20 seconds more and remove from pan. Place onto a cutting board. When cool to the touch, slice into thin strips and set aside.

In a saucepan, heat fish sauce vinegar, brown sugar and pepper flakes to create desired heat. Bring to a rolling boil and remove from heat. In your saute pan, add noodles, sprouts, green onions and pour hot sauce over top. Stir until well combined and heat until sauce is absorbed by the noodles (should only take a few minutes). Add meat/tofu and egg, stir and pour onto serving platter. Garnish with lime, white radish, peanuts and cilantro sprigs. Serve hot.

*Thai style does not involve the use of ketchup, as most American recipes do. In addition, the egg is pre-cooked as an omelet, rather than scrambled as you'll more typically find in the States.