The countdown clock is ticking and the excitement is building . Justin and I are working double time, both at work , with the house completion ( we are in the middle of a house remodel), and with the family and their activities and needs.

What to pack ?

What to leave behind ?

We have to make sure that the freezer is full of ready made meals for our eldest son who will be staying behind , arrange for the animals to be situated and cared for ( eldest isn’t that great at the kitty litter management) and secure our belongings.

It has been two years since we were in Thailand and I remember needing silly things like cupcake liners and couldn’t find them anywhere and the sunscreen is incredibly expensive there . Thai clothing generally doesn’t fit a curved Western gal like me so I have to pack all the clothes . The kids will be fine as it’ll be shorts , bathing suits and flip flops everyday.

My father is very reassuring telling me that there are new stores with all modern commodities in his town now, including taco shells and seasoning ! This is big news.

Paperback books in English are hard to come by and expensive if they can be found .I usually go to the local library and buy their books at 50¢ a piece and fill half a suitcase. I do have kindles for everyone but a book by the pool is safer to be paper ( less expensive if it gets wet and replaceable)

I have weighed the kids schoolbooks and combined I have 20lbs split into 3 large binders and that’s not all of it . Justin will have to bring the 2nd installment in one of his return trips . I am looking up homeschool apps for the kindles.

My biggest dilemma is whether or not to take my Cricut cutting machine that I use for 90% of my crafting . The machine will work with 220v but it’s bulky and the Thai customs might choose to confiscate it ( for themselves , yes they might) or even ask me to pay a tax on it . I also have to hand carry it into the plane for safety and explain what it is to each security member. I will miss it for the time we are gone but perhaps it is time to learn a new skill? I’ve always wanted to learn pottery or to crochet more skillfully.

We aren’t allowed to work in Thailand during our stay and so we will be looking for volunteer opportunities within the community. We may clean the beach once a week or help at the local elephant sanctuary . I’d like to visit the local orphanage and teach the kids something . We have to make these seven months count for something and not make it just about a long vacation .

The days are slipping by and I have butterflies!

*Arlene*

All of this planning has come to fruition, we have booked our plane tickets !

We had to wait for Emmalynn’s passport to arrive but thankfully it appeared this week after a unacceptable photograph was denied, then replaced. There are so many rules and directions about these passport photos that it is no wonder we all end up staring into the camera, non smiling, with a blank look on our faces and having to grimace with the same facial expression at each immigration officer the world over just to match our passport.

It was strange booking one way flights for the four of us and a return ticket for Justin, but as stated earlier, he has to earn the money to finance our trip.

I, Arlene, am an avid organizer , over-thinker , last minute panic packer of forgotten, non essential items and so will commence the packing lists immediately. After all , I only have four and a half months to stuff ten 50lb bags full of bathing suits, stick blenders and decent tea bags. Thats 500lbs of clothing and objects that most likely will never see the light of day.

The airline allows 2 bags per person of 50lbs each plus hand luggage of 20lbs or so. These will be placed on the luggage belt at Ontario airport and we will , fingers crossed, reunite in Bangkok 19 hours later.

Our flight transits in Taiwan but will likely be a quick wander around the airport , dragging 3 sleepy, grumpy kids behind us. A stretch of the legs, a real bathroom break and an ice cream to cheer the kinder up then back onto the next plane.

I do not enjoy flying but I suck it up and grit my teeth , white knuckling the arm rest and hoping to get a few hours sleep whilst my ankles and feet swell out of my shoes.

I am excited and this is real!

For anyone choosing to take their child out of mainstream education , it isn’t to be taken lightly. The onus is now on the parents and suddenly those teachers are superheroes for teaching our children for 12 years (they always have been in our opinion).

In our experience, children are bored and hungry 18 hours per day. 3 meals and 15 snacks per day will be expected, with much whining and grumbling when actually expected to complete schoolwork and it isn’t on a laptop or iPad. We have homeschooled for 5th grade before but that was only for one child, this is 3!

Structure will be our main focus and we will probably get our written work done in 3 hours per day , or less. Field trips will be to the beach for exploration, science and physical activity. History lessons will be about Thai royalty and traditions and hopefully Yai can teach us a few Thai phrases to get by. There are temples to visit and monks to feed in the early hours of the morning. All of this showing the children that life is different and they need to learn to accept change.

The school district have been amazing with us, officially we aren’t supposed to receive any assistance as we are unable to meet the requirements of traditional home school (meeting the teacher once per month and attending state testing in the Spring) but these admins rock. They have provided us with all of the resources necessary, workbooks and personal email addresses to assist us in our ‘Morgan Academy’. We had to buy a few (very heavy) textbooks but that’s on us for being different.

In California a simple signed affidavit agreeing to educate your child from the state’s website is all that is required and you can take them out of school. We asked if we have to provide proof of completion of work and the school said no, we will just fit them in age appropriate , where they should be. We cannot in our hearts have the kids fall behind and have to catch up and so we will follow the syllabus, albeit loosely. We will also keep samples weekly of the work completed to show if the district policy changes.

Overall the children will be receiving an education rich in culture, social awareness, life skills, more physical activity than they probably get here due to a lack of internet and cable TV there , family time, and volunteering hopefully within the community.

We have no qualms or concerns that our children will be enriched and educated during our year away from traditional school. Now whether we, the parents, will be frazzled and whining is another matter!

Making this trip to Thailand ,or even to the local beach for that matter, takes a lot of planning with 3 kids (10, 9, 6). We work hard to be a team and support each other , sometimes it takes a lot of shouting and redirection , but we generally get to where we need to be on time and pop a smile on our faces.

We are the Morgans.

Justin is the head of the family and the one that truly is making this happen. He will commute back and forth to California to fulfill his work obligations and keep our income flowing. He enjoys flying and will enjoy sipping a gin and tonic , racking up air miles with no other distractions ( the kids).

Arlene is the planner, organiser and general caretaker , as well as the main home school teacher . She does not enjoy flying and so is happy to stay put , although will miss Mr Morgan immensely.

Alexander is the oldest of the bunch and very excited to be taking a year “off school” . Reality is going to be a kick to the head for this one when school starts at 8 daily in the classroom downstairs . He loves science and reading so he will revel in scouring the beaches and ocean for life forms . We won’t have TV , so reading it is!

Andrew is next in line and he is our sporty kid . He will be in the pool at every chance and will be found climbing the mango tree in the front yard , that is, until he comes face to face with the big green snake that lives up there!

Emmalynn is our little one and is head in the clouds happy. She will enjoy the puppy we are going to get on arrival ( and leave with the grandparents when our trip is over) and exploring the different bugs in the yard.

Cesare is our eldest lad, but he’s an adult looking for a high paying job to pay off his school loans , and so will stay home at Morgan Acres.

We hope that our antics will amuse and inform you.

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Welcome to our travel blog , Seven Months in Siam. We are the Morgan Family and 5 of us are making a fantastic Edventure to Thailand for about 7 months, hence the title. We hope that you can join us and enjoy our nonsense and escapades as we navigate being away from our Californian home for this extended period of time. Homeschooling, exploring, sharing more family time together and hanging out with the grandparents who already live there.

We will be leaving in early September assuming we can get flights booked (already had a hiccup with one of the kid’s passports stalling our flight purchase) and will be basing ourselves in Khao Takieb , near Hua Hin in the Gulf of Thailand. Many thanks to Opa  and Yai for allowing their beach home to be taken over for the duration of this trip.

We wanted to start the blog a little early as to allow anyone who is considering traveling out of the country to be able to follow our planning. If you’d rather not hear about this initial part of the process, join us in the first week of September 2019.

Again , welcome to our journey and may it be a smooth one!