It is hard to believe that we have been in Penang less than 2 months.  We are definitely starting to settle in, and I realized that we have yet to leave the island since we arrived.  The kids want to go to the main land so they can ride the ferry and then ride across the bridge on the way back.  I am sure we will be doing that soon, but we have stayed quite busy. 

Here are some pictures of a few things Penang Island has to offer:



Botanical Gardens



The Botanical Gardens are beautiful.  The kids enjoyed watching the monkeys run around.  You do have to be careful not to have food because the monkeys will come try to take it away. 





Tropical Spice Garden



The Tropical Spice Garden added a new children's area called Slides and Ladders.  It is a 3d version of the game Chutes and Ladders.  It was fun to watch the kids play it and they really enjoyed playing it and it was a great way to get them to tour the garden.  





Butterfly Farm



The Penang Butterfly Farm was fun to go through, too.  There were lots of butterflies, and the kids school has a butterfly farm at the campus to help in repopulating one of the local butterflies.  



Lion Dance



We arrived in Penang just in time for Chinese New Year which until we got here, I didn't realize lasted for two weeks.  We were able to see a lion dance one night.  We are all trying to catch up on our sleep still because the fireworks were nightly and lasted all night. 







Youth Park



The Youth Park is wonderful.  There are many different playscapes around the park and some pools.  The kids got to use their scooters they got for Christmas there.  I am sure we will be going there quite often. 





 







The food is great.   We are all getting use to the different spices and slowly learning what different dishes are.  I have a feeling one thing we will really miss when we return to Texas is the food over here.  I had a request for a picture of a fish we ate with the head on so here it is.  We are definitely enjoying all the seafood!  One of the other things we are enjoying is going to restaurants on the beach and the kids going to play in the sand while we finish eating and visiting with friends - it definitely beats McDonald playscapes!

So this is just a glimpse of some of the things we have been doing here in Penang while we are on our "extended vacation".  Penang is a beautiful island, and I can't wait to see what else it has to offer. 









School in Penang

As most people know, I love the schools in Liberty Hill.  The teachers, staff, administration are all wonderful.  My kids were blessed with the most amazing teachers each year they were in Liberty Hill.  I thought my kids would start kindergarten in Liberty Hill and then graduate from high school there.  Well, obviously God had different plans for all of us. 
However, God definitely blessed our obedience for moving here to Penang with another amazing school.  The school is an American, Christian school.  So, as you can guess all the teachers, staff, and administration are Christians.  Now, not all the students and parents are Christians, but the atmosphere at the school is very loving and warm.  It was a little strange to think that the school is for 3 year olds up to 12th graders, but it works beautifully.  My kids love getting to see some middle school and high school kids that they know and saying hello. Cara also likes that she gets to have lunch with Cade and some days she chooses to sit next to him at lunch.  Luckily, he hasn't complained about this, yet.  They were even playing American football together at recess one day because they have recess at the same time, too. 
The classrooms do look different since there are I believe 30 different nationalities represented at the school.  I think it is great that my kids are getting to meet people from so many other parts of the world.  Can't wait to see how God uses this later in their lives. 
I have of course found a way to get involved.  I am a lunch "mum" once a week so I get to go help out with lunch and recess with the elementary kids.  I get there early to get the silverware and napkins ready so I get to see the high school kids come in and they are very respectful and polite.  There is also a group that meets to pray each week.  Unfortunately, I had something else scheduled the past two weeks, but I have it on my calendar now and hope to be able to join them each week. 
We are very blessed by the schools our kids have attended so far.  Just a big reminder that God is in control and that I can trust Him with all the details.