Dad and BJ

Today we are celebrating Brian's birthday. Many times you think back on your past birthdays and really can't remember what you did on that day. I'm sure Brian will never forget this birthday just because of where we are :)

To honor what a great father Brian is, below are some pictures of Dad and BJ.

Playing with Mega Blocks.

Butterfly stretch.

Playing basketball.

Using the elastic band.

Piggy back ride!

St. Placid Orphanage

I love staying home with BJ. Being a stay at home mom in another country adds a certain dynamic to our relationship. There are so many life lessons presented to us daily. We have such a great opportunity to reach out to others and to experience a different culture. One of my favorite places that BJ and I have visited is the St. Placid Orphanage.

This particular orphanage has about 40 young children ages birth through 10(?). Most of these children still have one parent (or two) but the families just cannot afford to raise the children. When the child gets to a certain age they either go back home to help with income or they go to another orphanage for older children.

BJ and I went with a small group of ladies to the orphanage. We went in the late afternoon, just in time for tiffin (snack). We were there for about an hour and a half. The entire time we spent outdoors in the little cement playground area. BJ was a little overwhelmed at first since there were SO many children who wanted to see him. I did spend the majority of my time just making sure BJ was okay so I was not able to spend as much time with the children as I hoped. But I loved every minute of it!

Tiffin time!

The children LOVE when the "Aunties" come.

One of my favorite moments was when BJ was playing with the children. They would mimic every move and sound BJ made. They were all laughing and having fun!

We told stories to the children.

This little fella took hold of my heart. He was crawling around in a shirt and cloth diaper. So little and tiny. He let me hold him for a little bit too! Heaven!

BJ wanted to hold him too (hence the crossed arms...cuz that's how you hold a baby). The little guy wanted nothing to do with that!

The children also colored pictures. BJ was showing the younger children how to color!

I had to get my picture taken with these little ones.

Every once in a while BJ would need a break from the activity. This play house was his hiding place. He would shut the door and just stand there for a minute or two. I'm so glad that he recognized that he needed a "moment" instead of breaking out into a tantrum!

Most of the children have their heads shaved, both boys and girls.

Everyone wanted to show off their drawings!

This girl was so sweet. She kept covering her face with her drawing. I had to trick her so I could get a photo of her face :)

This precious sweetheart is only a month or two old. She was just dropped off at the orphanage that morning. Her father had run off and her mother could not take care of her anymore. The poor darling looked so scared. I held her for about 5 minutes but had to give her back because she was VERY frightened. Oh, my heart.

Picnic

The staff at the school have a picnic every year before the hot(ter) weather arrives. The school rented two buses and we drove about an hour to the Marine Academy (as in water, not like US Marines). The day started off cloudy and gloomy but it ended up being a blessing because the temperature was cooler! We all had a fabulous time!

I can't remember the last time I was on a bus! The Bengali staff members were SO fun...singing songs and laughing. It was quite refreshing and contagious!

We passed over a river and got to see all types of boats.

Our bus started to overheat so the driver used water from a small pond to pour into the engine.

Once we got to our destination BJ had a blast running around!

Many families attended.

BJ participated in his first competition...a race! His fellow competitors were children age 1 -5.

Getting a pep talk from daddy before the big race.

On your mark...get set...GO!!

Run, BJ, Run!!

Look at all the people who encouraged the little ones to run!!

There were also games for the adults to play.

The women mostly relaxed and chatted but did participate in a few games amongst themselves.

At this point my camera started acting up and I couldn't take any more pictures!! Fortunately, it was just the batteries but I did not have any extra on hand. Overall, we had a wonderful time getting to know the other staff members at the school.

More Basketball

As you know, the boys basketball season has been over for several weeks now. Since the season was so short the boys did not have much of an opportunity to learn from their mistakes. They ended the season on a winning streak so I can imagine how well they would've done if their season was a bit longer! Here are some pictures of the last game BJ and I were able to attend (6 of their games were in a tournament in the capital city that BJ and I didn't attend).

Once again, another outdoor basketball court.

One of my favorite photos highlighting the differences between here and the States. This is a time-out huddle. I love the fact that some of the crowd felt the need to join the huddle. I guess it takes a village to coach a basketball team....

Right next to the basketball game was an impromtu cricket match. Heads Up!

And now for some pictures of BJ during the ball game :)

BJ practicing his dribble.

Cheese! (Notice the mosquito bites on his face! The poor kid got eaten up the night before!) The man in the background kept on smiling at BJ. After the game he brought his school-age son up to us to say hi.

Although they could not understand each other, BJ and this little girl had a sweet little time of passing leaves back and forth.

February Family Fun

Here are some pictures of our family fun from February!

Flowers from my honey and a homemade Valentine from BJ

BJ sporting his new golf set. He LOVES to look at himself in the mirror!

Hello Lincoln Logs!!

On the swings at the practice basketball court.

An after-bath mohawk.

BJ's custom crib (a.k.a. the jail).

Wearing daddy's watch and glasses! He's not supposed to touch daddy's glasses but he was so cute that we had to take a picture!

A lincoln log tower (that he proceeded to kick over right after this photo).

Hiding under our furniture.

BJ's new car.

Daddy and BJ going for a drive.

Taking his turtle for a ride on the scooter.

All warm and snuggly in mommy and daddy's bed.

Hiding in the floor pillows.