In August me and Scottie got to travel to Ho Chi Minh City ON OUR OWN!!! Woo hoo! (where is that little emoticon blowing the party kazoo when you need it?) My angel sister, Sunnee, offered to watch Maverick for us- and we immediately snagged that opportunity. 
Four days of pure, adult only, bliss. Not 'adult' in a gross way. Just- no baby, no diaper, no fighting naps, no having yogurt rubbed into my clothes.... you get the picture. 
The first day we wondered around Ho Chi Minh City. People were very friendly, and everything was cheap, cheap, CHEAP! Seriously. The food is fresh and delicious- lots of cilantro, fresh veggies, and small amounts of oil. It reminded me of Thai food. Anyways, we would eat every meal with about 5 different entrees, and it would cost us $10 USD. Food vacation. 
BUUUUT- and this is a big but, walking around the city was scary as poop. Everyone drives motorcycles/scooters, and there are thousands of them on the road at all times. If you want to cross the street you just have to step into the road and pray that they stop coming at you. I was really bad at. We eventually figured out that Scott should walk on the side that the motorcycles were coming from, so that they saw him/hit him before me :). Scott also swears that if you make eye contact with the drivers they will stop. I preferred to stare straight ahead and get out of there as fast as possible. And roads are no problem for the Vietnamese. Because apparently traffic laws mean nothing and they can drive and park wherever the h--- they want. Truly, I got HIT by a motorcycle. While in a park mind you! Me and Scott were in a park in front of the Reunification Palace, when Scott started yelling "Kelsey! Kelsey!" I started panicking because I had no idea what was going on down and then BAM- I fell down. I had been hit by a motorcycle that was using the huge park as a shortcut. The driver didn't stop, and the police man 50 yards away didn't say anything to him! I had tire tracks on my shorts and shirt for the rest of the day, and a rockin headache. Needless to say I was on my toes the rest of the trip when we went outside. 

Enjoy the pictures, there will be more in the next post on the Vietnam series!

War Remnants Museum
Outside the War Remnants Museum (remnants from the Vietnam War). It was a very interesting and informative museum, but so anti-American we were left feeling very uncomfortable there. I feel so lucky I get to see history from different points of view. 
A little bit of a hippie picture
Some real 'war remnants', bomb shells from the Vietnam War. 
Nixon's Peace, with Nixon riding a fighter plane and waving a Nazi flag. If that doesn't make you feel self conscious as an American in Vietnam I don't know what will.
 Food

We loved the Banh Mi sandwich. The South Vietnamese learned their baking from the french, so their bread is spot on. Bahn Mi has meat, cucumber, cilantro, and carrot, on a mini baguette. Our favorite lady made tiny pork patties in an Barbecue sauce. O.M.G. At .75 USD we may have bought some every day. And by some I mean 6. 


Ho Chi Minh City Sightseeing
Saigon Notre-Dame Basillica










This is a replica for the Opera, but this is a traditional Vietnamese cart used for transporting all sorts of goods. You can still see them riding around today, often packed crazy high just like this. Another reason I am terrified of traffic in Ho Chi Minh. 
Saigon Opera House


The People's Committee House. There is always a crowd in the plaza in front. 




Cho Ben Thanh market. Complete with motorcycle traffic in the roundabout in front. Almost cried when we had to cross this. 


A communist propaganda poster. Which I knew what it was saying!
The Reunification Palace, or the Independence Palace. This was the home/workplace for the South Vietnamese President, Diem. At the end of the Vietnam War the South Vietnamese army crashed tanks through the gates to overtake the palace, and symbolically, the whole country. 
The water fountain in front of the Reunification Palace. In front on the right and left are parks, where I got hit by a motorcycle. 
A shot of the motorcycle traffic. In the top right you can see some drivers up on the sidewalk. 


One of the best parts of the trip was that the currency exchange favored us. We felt like ballers running around with our fat wallets, full of thousands of 'dongs'. Yes, the Vietnamese dollar is called the 'dong'. 

So, once again it has been months since I posted. Eeek! Sorry about that. 
But here is a little recap of our July, with a tooooon of pictures. 
I am not sure if I already mentioned, but I recently took a photography course. My friend from church, the sweetest and most talented and creative person I know, Ai Lau, knew a photographer and asked him if he would teach some lessons. So, my now friend, Baljit, taught her. Then she started posting her pictures on Facebook and they were SO incredible. She had just gotten a DSLR about six months before and her pictures were good, but now they were just stunning. So I asked her about the course, and took it myself. Along with three other ladies in our branch. :) 
I loved everything I learned, but I still have a long way to go. Sadly, my autofocus on my camera has gone as well. But that is a sad tale I won't go into. 
And- that is the explanation of why there are suddenly even more pictures than normal. 

July in Hong Kong is hot hot hot and humid humid humid. 
Maverick loves his bike! He says "bike bike bike" and sits on the seat even in the house, waiting for me to push it around. 

Maverick loves the beach and the pool, but he is apprehensive about cold water. This is us at the rock pools just behind my sister's building. There is a big waterfall with granite boulders that goes up into the hills behind the house. It really is gorgeous, but momma only stays for a little while because there are mosquitoes like CRAY!
Momma save me!







Mom was playing with the shutter speed, trying to freeze the water drops. 

More shutter speed changes to show the water moving.

We have also been working on potty training Mav. He had started to take off his own diaper whenever it was dirty. Or he would pat his crotch, say "do do do do",  bring me a clean diaper, and lay down on the ground to get changed. "Do do" apparently means 'diaper' or 'potty'. So we took these signs to mean he was ready for potty training.
He is pretty good while he is in the house, we haven't started working on outside yet. We did a "naked week" where me and him hung around the house (IMPORTANT NOTE- only he was naked), and he got to eat and drink anything he wanted (meaning lots of juice, crackers, and candy). He got a little potty seat that he adores. And whenever he goes potty he gets a treat- a Skittle or M&M. Sometimes he gets tricky and sits on the potty, gets his treat, and runs away without peeing. Drives me nuts, but it is also kind of impressive!

He also loves to flush the potty himself. Repeatedly. He runs in there randomly and flushes until I catch him. 
This is his 'cheezer' face. 
So happy about apple juice- he never gets juice normally. 
Mean mommy took a picture before she helped Mav out of this potty seat headlock. Classic. 
Naked week success!






This boy also turned 18 months in July!
Other than working on potty training, and having full blown toddler temper-tantrums all of the time, the biggest achievement of the month was that he can now attend nursery at church! WOOOT! This means that I only have to chase him through church for one hour every Sunday, instead of three! Running up and down the aisles, screaming, racing up to play keys on the piano while there are speakers, hitting, throwing everything in sight- just one hour instead of three, glory be! Plus I can get more spiritual enlightenment when he isn't with me because I can focus. That too. :) 




Another favorite thing to do is to go to the splash-pad in nearby Tung Chung. It makes Maverick super happy, which is adorable. But you have to watch him, or he will stick his head directly above the holes the water shoots out of, and those things are highly pressurized! He is one curious cat. Wherever we go people tell me how 'handsome' he is, and love his 'big blue eyes' and that he is 'happy' and 'curious' and 'clever'. I agree with them all- but that cleverness and curiosity often lead to trouble. What a little boy he is! 

Cousin Hazel is Maverick's best friend. All day every day he asks for "Haza and Lola". If we ever go outside and don't head towards their house, he cries hysterically. They are great with him! Always playing with him, feeding him, and protecting him. Here Hazel is carrying him so sweetly. 






One of my favorite daddy-son pictures of all time. Pure happiness. Plus, Maverick still looks so small here. 

Uncle David, Maverick, and Scottie. 




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