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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! It is hard to believe we have entered the last week of school before Christmas break. We are thankful that it has been a quieter semester.
At the beginning of December we were able to all renew our visas without issues. We are good to stay another year!
The school has hired a new IT worker and a new IT manager that will replace Graham. Praise God that He provided two qualified godly men for these positions. Graham is excited to start Thai language learning in January. He visited different schools to pick the one that best suits his learning style. He will start at Manna Language School on January 5, 2026. He has had several people offer to help him practice. Please pray for him to pick up the language quickly.
The nurses’ office gets busier this time of year because all re-enrolling students need to complete a physical… so there is lots of paperwork. We are grateful there have only been a few minor incidents that the nurses have had to cover this semester. We have also been covering sports’ practices and games as the athletic trainer is on home assignment. We were nervous about how this would go but it has worked out well.
Austin is enjoying first grade. Other than getting distracted and liking to talk (which he gets honest enough), he is doing well and improving in areas he struggled last year. He started playing soccer for the GIS U8 team. He rode a horse at the Chiang Mai Night Safari for the first time. I was surprised he asked as he was nervous to pet the horses the first time we went. Austin was asked to be part of the international week country flag parade. He was excited to carry the Canada sign. The whole family was able to join. He has had a fantastic teacher this semester. We had his teacher and her mom over this past weekend as they are returning to South Africa at the end of the month. Please pray that Austin will adjust well back to school in January with his new teacher.
Duncan did not want to go back to preschool this year but started getting bored being at home all the time. We checked out a few new schools but decided to keep him at the same school as last year. He is slowly getting settled back in. Thankfully he has made a few new friends. In the new year, we will apply for him to start kindergarten at GIS next school year. It is crazy to think he is old enough to start school!! Please pray for him that he will be ready, as much as he can/ needs to be, for kindergarten. Please pray for healing as he has a fever and cough that just started yesterday.
In September, the Thai teachers at GIS planned for the foreign staff to visit a local market to see what shops are there. We then got lunch and visited the Chiang Mai City Arts & Cultural Center. We were able to learn a few Thai sentences to try while in the market.
Our nanny got married on the first Saturday in November. We were excited to be invited to the wedding. The service was all in Thai so we didn’t understand much but it was a beautiful service. She had asked if the boys would want to throw flower pedals at the wedding and I figured they would. Once we got to the wedding and saw the program, I realized she was asking if they wanted to be in the wedding procession! Thankfully they matched the colours and were willing to walk with her nephew down the aisle!
November is a big birthday month for our family. Graham turned 50 on the 15th. I was able to plan a surprise party for him. It was a secret until he walked into our friend’s house! I am very proud of myself and those that helped plan. Austin had his birthday party on November 22. He wanted a minecraft pool party. It was a little “chilly” but the kids had fun anyways. We had friends come visit the last week in November. We had a BBQ with them on Austin’s birthday/ American Thanksgiving. We were so blessed by our time with them. We were able to join them in some fun activities as well…. Bathing elephants in a river.
Our Christmas break is from December 19 to January 6. We are looking forward to having a break. I am hoping we can plan a few activities with friends and Austin’s class. We are planning a cookie decorating party. It will be a success if more icing ends up in their mouths or on a cookie than the floor :)
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| Enjoying Chiang Mai with the GIS Thai teachers |
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| A rare moment when they aren't fighting! :-) |
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| Austin has been a real star in school this year! |
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| Representing Canada well during International Week |
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| Parade time! |
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| Austin and Duncan got to throw flowers at their nanny's wedding |
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| Austin looking extremely excited at his Dad's surprise 50th birthday party |
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| Austin had a Minecraft themed Pool Party for his 7th birthday |
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| Getting to know the elephants at the Mae Rim Elephant Sanctuary |
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| Duncan being introduced to a Hawk at the Chiang Mai Night Safari |
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| Making smores at Austin's Birthday BBQ |
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| Austin thoroughly enjoyed his first horseback ride |
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| Then it was the animals turn to ride on the boys |
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| Duncan arriving at the GIS Christmas Concert |
Graham, Kathleen, Austin and Duncan Crawford
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The opinions expressed are our own opinions. They are not necessarily the opinions or views of SIM (Serving in Mission).
