Wish It Was July

I did it. I had a moment of courage and a second of insanity that propelled me to purchase the four of us plane tickets to Singapore for the summer. The last time we went home Grey was 2. It's been almost two and a half years, perhaps the longest I've been away from home in the whole 15 years I've lived in the US. I am homesick.

It's a terrifying thought bringing both kids on a 19 hr plane ride. I know once we get there our trip is going to awesome, but I dread the going and returning. It remains to be seen how Ella will travel, but Greyson is a notoriously lousy sleeper. As any parent knows, when your kid doesn't sleep, you don't either. The last time we flew to Singapore, he slept three out of the 19 hours we flew. I was so exhausted my entire face throbbed. I remember thinking that this was more tiring than nursing a newborn through the night because at least with that you sleep intermittently. On the plane, there was no moment to "turn off". I was awake for 19 consecutive hours. It was brutal.

But right now, this moment, I'm feeling brave and courageous. I'm excited. I can't wait to see my parents' faces when they see my children. I can't wait to see Greyson run to into their arms at the airport or wake up that first morning we are there and run to find his Gong Gong. I can't wait for them to see how big Ella is now. I can't wait for the little things: breakfast at the hawker center, local treats at the bakery, sugarcane juice, fresh durian, Yakult, grocery shopping with my mom at Cold Storage, dinner at my grandma's, chatting with my cousins, swimming everyday, watching my kids feed fish at the koi pond in my parents' condo complex, shopping for the kids at Popular, being surrounded by other languages besides English...some vestiges of my childhood, others new joys that have come with having kids.

Maybe I'm delusional but I think that this time things might be better. Greyson now has the attention span to watch movies, play games and accept the notion of down time. He now has Ella to play with and not just us. I must be delusional because I actually have the hope that flying with them might be just a little bit fun. If I can only prepare myself for the lack of sleep. I will probably wake up tomorrow and think, "what have I done?" but right now, in this moment, I find myself wishing it was July.









They say it's magic when you see your kids play together. I have to say, it's trite, but true. Here is Greyson telling Ella story. It's the perfect combination: he thrives on an audience and she is the perfect guinea pig. We are enjoying these days while they love each other and life is simple.


Joyba Girls is standing! Papa has a game he plays with her, when he counts to three and it's super cute to watch her anticipate, let go, and then beam with with pride when she succeeds.


One day I was at home with the kids and I put on my current favorite worship song, "Everywhere That I Go." Greyson and I were talking about what it means that God's love surrounds us and that He is always with us. Anyway, I was dancing around with Greyson and lo and behold, Ella starts doing the jiggy. This morning we did an encore for Papa's viewing pleasure.