We caffeinate like Bangkokians – or at least we’re trying. There is a hole-in-the-wall shop run by two young guys around the corner from where we are staying and we’ve thoroughly enjoyed starting our days there. Mercifully, Thais drink their coffee iced. There’s very little place for hot coffee in this humidity! Cold caffeine has become our weapon in the war against jet lag and overheating.

As Sunday comes to a close here in Thailand, we reflect on another full day. We attended a church service to get a better understanding of the community we are engaging with. We cannot express how much we value these moments as they provide us with glimpses into what our soon to be new normal could look like. Our thoughts turned towards our little humans quite a bit as we explored what children’s programs looked like at that particular church. We’ve continually mused about what it will be like for our children as they begin to call Bangkok home.

Having our children in the loving care of friends and family in Canada has made this trip possible. We wouldn’t have covered nearly as much ground with them here. Additionally, it would just seem cruel to force them through a 15 hour time change twice in 10 days. We don’t want to do that to them or to ourselves (the self-preservation side of parenting).  We imagine what walking from place to place will be like with our little wanderers. Will they be intimidated by the crowds and commotion or will they be leading the charge through the intersection on a red? Will the new foods be “what is that” or “can I try some”?

When we moved to Europe we did so as a very young married couple and we returned to Canada as a young family. Now we prepare to engage life in Thailand as a family and it is so incredibly different. We look at Bangkok through parent eyes. The well-being of our children being our priority as parents and recognizing that when our kids are loving life, then we too will be better able to delve deeper into why we have come to Thailand. All that said, without our children actually here, it is simply an exercise in theory. For now, we pray into what life here could look like

We also enjoy the fact that our day can start with a coffee date – we don’t get a lot of those moments with the little humans around!

PS – we also had Pad Thai today and we must report that until now, our tastebuds have been living a lie!