The touch and smell of the green grasses of summer....
First let me start off with an apology. We wholeheartedly apologize to anyone we missed this past summer on our 6 week stint in the USA. We tried. We tried hard. 2 coasts, 12 different beds, over 50 relatives visited, oodles and oodles of friends (lost count), the world record for amount of BBQ's attended and thrown in one summer, etc, etc. It is not an easy task to try and see everyone that we hold dear in our hearts and thoughts but, damn, we tried. Secondly, we'd like to thank everyone who was able to make efforts to track us down, come to a BBQ, have a dinner/lunch/drink/play-date, or whatever you were able to do. We know it is not easy to disrupt your routines and go out of the way to see us when we had such a tight schedule that sometimes there were only a few hours of availability on a particular day.
TOUCH DOWN
A highlight of our trip - Miss Sienna!!!
We touched down after an uneventful (trust me, you want it to be uneventful) trip back over the dateline. A bit weird to get in a car and hit the freeway but great to see the smiles and hugs from Nan and Poppy waiting for us at the airport! Aunt B and Uncle J conveniently live next door to Nan now and was a joy to see Miss Sienna running towards us as we pulled into the driveway. She gave Erin and I a quick hello and her rapidly swinging tail and kissing tongue bee-lined if for the door of the car. Graeme was still in his car-seat and she couldn't wait to kiss him. Seeing her so happy was pure joy. Aunt B and Uncle J have been so good for her....she lost 12 lbs, the Vet was always on me to get her to lose some weight to help out her hips but she is all muscle and I just couldn't see how to pull that off. Well, B and J figured it out and her Vet checkup this summer came back as "Ideal weight and health". Knowing she is in such good care and loved so dearly is very important to us. One of the hardest things we've had to endure is her absence and knowing she is in such a good place with people who love her so much means the world to us and makes it a bit easier.
DELTA LIVING
Lazy dayz on the Delta
Such great smiles! Uncle J!
"Aunt B, I will show you the way!"
What do you do in the Central Valley of California in the summer? Well, you go to the Delta, of course! We set sail for a fun weekend with Grandpa and Wicki on their luxury liner and stayed docked out at their private island. Super fun kayaking, swimming, eating, laughing.
Delta Livin'....
Learning how to drive with Captain Grandpa!
Graeme snuck in some private Captaining lessons from Grandpa...great weekend with Aunt B, Uncle J, Grandpa and Wicki....not much more you can ask for out here....
CHRISTMAS IN JULY
What else do you do in Northern California in July? Well, Christmas of
course! In an effort to make up for a missed Christmas last year and an
impending missed Christmas this year, we had Xmas in July up in
Jenner....Cousins, Aunts, Uncles, G-Pops, you name it. It was a feast
for the ages. Nan and Aunt Shazzy even managed to decorate a tree in
all Red White Blue in honor of the 4th. Pretty incredible.
Merry Fourth of July!
Look out for the left hook G-Pops!
How we roll on the North Coast....Gà Nướng
Một, Hai,Ba, ...YO!
"How many carrots do you have to eat?"
Fireworks on the coast!
Summer in Norcal on the coast = Bundled up!
Goofy cuzzins'....
Love this shot - and do not want to know what they are planning b/c just means work for me!
Think she'd fit on our carry on?
DA BAY AREA
We got to meet some newcomers to our extended family and spend some
quality time in the Bay at Casa De Holmes. Graeme was taken aback by
baby Isla Rye. She's a cutie and will break hearts in years to come,
that is for sure!
Casa De Holmes in action
The Holmes' graciously hosted a BBQ for us at their home so we could connect with our Bay Area peeps....didn't get too many pictures that day, was busy re-connecting with friends and American beer ;)
OFF TO THE RIGHT COAST
We came in hot on the redeye to stay at Aunt Donna, Uncle Keith and Cousin Noah and Sammy's house....Straight away to Diggerland, USA (maybe the coolest place on earth?) and swimming at the local pool, Downs Farms. So much cousin love it was almost too much to handle!
Look Ma, one hand!
"I will show you, Cousin Noah"
Downs Farms love
What's not fun about this?
Cuzzin Toss!
"Ssshhh! Don't tell Noah I can swim!"
"So, show me how this Snapchat thing works"
One of the coolest things we did has sort of become a tradition. My cousin, Casey and her family (Eric and cousin Rielyn) have generously hosted a family BBQ the past 3 summers or so at their house. Their backyard is beyond ideal for a great time to be had by all. Grill, fire pit, blow up pool, more then one type of sprinkler to jump through, full on play set like you find at a really good park, bocce ball, you name it. We were lucky enough to have our entire family attend. Some had to fly in, some had last minute changes in schedule that made them available to be there; whatever the case, all 29 Hawken's were there....somehow we were able to wrangle a group shot and it's pretty epic:
The Hawken's Rule!
Gramcracker was able to hang out with all 8 of her Great Grandchildren, 7 Grandchildren and 3 sons along with all the rest of the family that comes along with it. Just epic.
Graeme and Gramcracker!
The grass in NJ is killer!
Duck walk....
Incoming!
We scooted over to Long Valley, NJ (yeah, I had to googlemap it too!) to hang with Erin's Auntie Mim, Uncle Bob and Cousins Ashley and Emily (2nd round for Emily as she was in Jenner with us!). Cousin Jake couldn't make it from North Dakota, we will just keep warm thoughts for him ;) More BBQ, balloon launch fights over the house, Jersey Corn, games and tons of laughter. Always a good time with this crew.
One thing NJ is really good at...
Graeme with a couple of dinosaurs....MNH, NYC
MNH, NYC
GOING BACK HOME
We limped back across the country after a jam packed 2 weeks on the East Coast. A few more weeks of BBQ, family and friends and before you know it we were out shopping for goods to smuggle back with us to Vietnam. Another uneventeful trip across the dateline (I think that is # 5 in a year, are we a day older or younger?) we made it back home in Vietnam, along with all of our overweight luggage.
There is a Melissa & Doug Market in there somewhere...
We arrived to a spotless house, fresh flowers spread throughout the house and fresh fruit cut up in the fridge to snack on. Not too bad of a way to land....
Considering that about 1/2 of the 300lbs of allowable luggage was toys for Graeme, we figured we had better jump on teaching him about GIVING versus RECIEVING (I swear not a day went by in 6 weeks that he didn't get a gift from someone).....We made a trip the first weekend to an orphanage run by Monks in a pagoda (Phap Vo - you can check out a video HERE). It was a treat to see the kids smile and play with us, themselves and each other. We got a tour of the grounds and seeing as it is only a 10 minute bike ride we will be going back often to hang out with the girls (90 girls, 2 boys - aged from 5 months to 22 yrs old, and one bad ass cat).
The only blue eye in SE Asia....
Well, that wraps up a full year! Where did the time go??? Our first year abroad, in a country where English pretty much isn't spoken, everything is different - I mean everything, and we survived! I'd say we more than survived. We have been loving it. So many great adventures, so many great people we've met. No regrets on the decisions we made about a year and a half ago, that is for sure.
Remember how we kept saying all last year "When Graeme starts school next year..." Well, that is tomorrow! (stay tuned for a quick blog on that in a day or so..) Erin is full on entrenched at work, Graeme and I have been running around getting us reacquainted with things we need to restock on or gather for his upcoming school year. Change is in motion....
Thanks again for everyone making our summer trip home so special. We really had a blast and enjoyed so much seeing everybody (and meeting newbies!). It's always so great to go back and see Family and Friends and realize that you just pick right back up where you left off from as if no time has passed.
You can check out all the pictures from the summer by clicking HERE.
In the life of Education "years" end in June and begin in August. So, where did this year go???? How can 10 months go by so quickly? How can so much happen in 10 months?? When I think back of things we did last August and September, it seems like they were a lifetime ago! To think of where Graeme was developmentally last August compared to now is unfathomable. He went from not being able to use his Skuut bike because he was too short, to now adjusting the seat to its highest setting. From grasping his English vocabulary to now singing counting songs in perfect Vietnamese with our housekeeper (Erin and I are still struggling with hand signals just to get home in a taxi). I mean, just look at how much younger Graeme looks in this picture from September compared to now:
Tiny Tots Class September '13
Who, Us? May '14
THE LAST DANCE
Living a life in education it all comes down to the Graduation....Erin, being a High School Guidance Counselor, was entrenched in the development and execution of the ceremony. Nothing she could not handle, but there was one responsibility that had her worried - announcing the students names correctly as they were awarded their diploma's! Imagine - 46 students representing 17 countries, all of their extended families in the audience - and it is up to you to pronounce their name properly. No small feat mind you. Erin had their names on a sheet spelled out phonetically and studied it for over a month! Well, when the time came she knocked it out of the park! Here is the video of the ceremony - skip to about the 44 minute mark to hear Erin owning her students names! CLICK HERE I've written in the past about the merits of Saigon South International School and the honor Erin has of working there as well as the accomplishment she has achieved to do so. I've also written about how excited, proud and humble we are to have Graeme start his formal education there. So, where does it all lead? What does this fine institution produce? How about for starters the location of the Graduation Ceremony. It was in the Saigon Opera House. A french colonial building built in 1897. It has lasted 5 wars, held seats of assembly for governments, sheltered refugees, and also put on a few shows along the way. I am not sure about you, but I graduated on a sad excuse for a football field while sitting on metal bleachers.
Saigon Opera House
The Senior Class had 48 students in it. They represented 17 different countries. 100% graduation rate. 100% acceptance rate to 4 year colleges and universities. This class was accepted to 146 colleges all told. Think about that one for a minute. I graduated with just over 300 students. The final number is tough to tell because as we rehearsed the ceremony the afternoon of the graduation they were still pulling students from their seats to let them know they did not make the cut. I am going to take a guess and say that out of the 300 graduating seniors in the class of 1990 at Lakeland Regional High School we may have not met the same statistic that SSIS's graduating class did (insert snicker). Do you know how there were a few students in your class who wore some sort of sash over their gown because of National Honor Society or some other extra curricular accomplishment they overachieved during their 4 years? Well, in this class good luck finding someone without a sash. Just an amazing group of students about to embark on life and become an amazing group of adults. Congratulations class of 2014!
When you are this smart, they let you throw your cap!
Erin with Principal Paul Johnson
GRAEME IS STARTING WHAT???
These are the types Graeme will start rubbing his elbows with next year. Wait, did I just say "next year"?? TRY IN 8 WEEKS!!! How did that happen?? All along we have been saying "next year" when referring to Graeme starting EC3 (Early Childhood Education) at SSIS. Well, about a week ago I had a minor anxiety attack when I realized that "next year" meant in about 2 months, immediately following our return from the USA. Gulp. How did this happen? What am I going to do without my little sidekick? He is already talking about how cool it will be to take the school bus to school, without me :(
Erin and I had to go to a Parent meeting for an introduction to the program. I went to the school store to sort out his school uniforms. We need to say goodbye to all our friends at Kids Club. I take Graeme to the EC library every Friday to read and take out books. Today was the last day we did that as Father/Son. The next time he does it will be with his Teacher and Classmates. How did this all happen?? Too quickly, if you ask me.
We are officially parents of a student
ONE LAST HOORAH
With no breaks in the school calendar since last April, we managed to sneak away for a weekend with some other families to Ho Tram. A stretch of beach with nothing around for miles that they decided to build a "Vegas Style" mega hotel, casino, golf resort at. It was an easy 2 hour liesure bus ride away and they were running really good rates so we went. The sand on the beach was too hot (dry season) so we hung hard in the pool. As a matter of fact, Graeme spent 9 hours straight in the pool the first day. His hair turned green from the chlorine and I don't think it was possible to have more fun than he did that day. While of zero cultural value, it did not suck.
His hair matched his goggles by days end
Up Up and Away!
This is hard work...
Stealing a kiss at the swim-up bar
Mot, Hai, Ba, YO!
WEATHER REPORT (Hey, I am a Hawken!)
As of 4 days ago, rainy season has arrived. What a pleasure. What a relief! We can now count on a massive thunderstorm every afternoon and enough breeze and cloud cover throughout the day to make being outside possible again. The past 2 months have been indescribable in terms of quality of life outdoors. We are once again creatures that can be active outdoors. All I can say is Thank You to the Rain Gods!
In just under 2 weeks we head back to the USA for a summer break stint. About 6 weeks all told. We will spend the first 3 weeks in Nor Cal, 2 weeks in NJ then the remaining back in Nor Cal. We are all very excited! It will be interesting for sure. Even though we are not moving back and just visiting, there will be some repatrioting to be done I am sure. There are new routines, daily expectations and an overall general quirkiness that we have become accustomed to. There will be things we miss for sure. Like seeing the most amazing things that can fit on a motorbike, each morning watching fisherman from our balcony fishing as they have for hundreds of years on old wooden boats with nets and their hands, watching the most unbelievable sunsets from every window in our apartment (reference past blogs headline photo's for proof), eating new foods almost daily that we not only have no idea what they are called but usually no idea what they are, communicating with our hands versus our words, getting morning coffee off of ladies on motorbikes for 33cents, drinking 50cent beers (and complaining when a restaurant tries to charge over $1usd for a beer!), having our laundry done for us and everything being ironed daily (yes, even our underwear).
Some things we will have to reacquaint ourselves with:
driving a car - Erin nor I have driven a car since September
wearing closed toe footwear. At this point we cannot even keep sandals on Graeme and I cannot stand the thought of wearing a proper "shoe"
organization - form a line (aka a "queue") at any establishment (especially an airport), drive in a lane, drive on the correct side of the road, drive on the road (not the sidewalk). These things will be foreign to us.
Travel without worrying about ferry times, train times, bribing border agents for visa's, when the pick-up truck leaves/returns, etc.
Going more than 2 km to do something and not riding our bike there. The idea of getting in a car to go run an errand seems daunting to us right now. We do have cruiser bikes in Lodi so hopefully we can utilize them properly.
Car Seats for Graeme. He has been freewheeling it since we got here. Hope he likes the idea of restraints!
Being able to order food (and get what you ordered), ask a question, go to a bank and it is not out of money, mani/pedi's that cost more than $5usd, massages that cost more than $10usd (what, you don't get massages weekly??), a manly haircut/pedicure/facial/full body massage/shampoo/ear cleaning/straight razor shave for $7usd....good thing we are only home for 6 wks and we can do these things right before we leave and be ready for the next session when we return ;)
The other day I was shopping for some gifts to bring back home and in a
market I saw a T-Shirt that really says it all: "VIETNAM IS NOT A WAR,
IT IS A COUNTRY". I'd take it even one step further and say that it is a
"PEOPLE". Such an amazing place, such an amazing culture, such amazing
people. We would love nothing better than to share it with you, just
get here and we will do the rest
A beer, pizza or coffee to the first person to tell me whats wrong in this picture (answer in comments below) Hint: it's not the amount of people on the scooter.
Why are we looking forward to coming home? Simple answer. Because of YOU. We want to see YOU. As many places as we visit here. As many new experiences as we have. As many new friendships we forge, we still are missing YOU. "YOU" are our Family, our Dearest Friends. We will be home only a short time so please help us in making our time there efficient and meaningful. Hopefully relationships pick right up where they left off as if we were never gone (we are sure you do not want to sit through 10 months of slide shows??). If we haven't been in touch, or you haven't been in touch - now is a great time to reach out. While 6 weeks seems like a long time, it is not. Make a plan now or forever hold your peace....Email, Facebook, Skype, Whatsapp, Kik are all best. If you are using our old US cell #'s you are out of luck.
Oh, and we really, really, really, really, really, really want to see SIENNA!!!!!
