It's almost Christmas

How is it that the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is a crazy fast-paced whirlwind?  The month of September doesn't fly by like this.  Or months like February; talk about a slow month.  But the crazy pull of the Christmas season gets us every time, even in Thailand.  It doesn't really feel like Christmas, mostly because it's almost impossible that we are rounding out our 6th month here.  We've reached the halfway point; tagged the pole and on our way back.  It'll be done in an instant.

It is starting to look a bit like Christmas here, despite the fantastic Spring-like weather.  It reminds me of Texas in early October, when it's cold at night and hot during the day; the kind of weather it's hard to dress for.  We've had Christmas parties and Christmas concerts and Christmas decorating and we're slowly but surely getting into the holiday mood.  Here are a few photos of our holiday festivities so far:

Putting up the Christmas tree at Church

Christmas photo op

Huge Christmas tree in the local mall

Grace school decorated for Christmas

Decorations in the elementary building

The Schneiders get in the holiday spirit while supporting fair trade, hilltribe crafts

Presents under the tree at a party

Christmas in the park at Grace school

A Christmas performance in Chiang Rai

Christmas party at the SOLD project in Chiang Rai