{"id":4234,"date":"2018-09-27T12:29:27","date_gmt":"2018-09-27T17:29:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/?p=4234"},"modified":"2018-09-27T12:29:27","modified_gmt":"2018-09-27T17:29:27","slug":"making-memories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/2018\/09\/27\/making-memories\/","title":{"rendered":"Making Memories"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4268\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_3595-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/>For the roughly 3 1\/2 years we lived in Asia Pacific, we were newbies. Or at least, that&#8217;s how it felt. Upon our return to the US, we&#8217;ve felt the same way, albeit to a lesser degree. I can speak English and navigate most cultural things here, but I still feel lost a bit. Where it gets really confusing is doing everything with a 3 year old. I decided early on that I wasn&#8217;t going to try to do any preschool type stuff (he&#8217;s been asking about reading a lot). He did learn to count to 10, but that happened by accident. I decided the best thing I could give him was to form good relationships with friends and family in our three homes, California, Michigan, and Colorado. Here are some things we&#8217;ve done along the way. I always think it&#8217;s kind of silly to post pictures of kind of normal things, but it helps to remind me how different things are for a third culture kid. So much of this stuff was only on the pages of books before he got here. Now it&#8217;s tangible and ready to be enjoyed! So here&#8217;s to making memories and enjoying new things!<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4272\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5470-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5470-600x800.jpg 600w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5470-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5470-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5470-83x110.jpg 83w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5470-188x250.jpg 188w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5470-190x253.jpg 190w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5470.jpg 1224w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>So, you can&#8217;t really see the deliciousness, but it&#8217;s there. Fresh pressed apple cider and fresh doughnuts from Erwin&#8217;s Apple Orchard. Pure Michigan experience for sure. You can&#8217;t really see the yellow jackets dive-bombing our faces for the doughnuts. It added to the experience.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4275\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5647-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Finn has been waiting to ride grandpa&#8217;s forklift for a really long time. He enjoyed Uncle Aaron giving him the royal tour of the lock and safe shop.\u00a0<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4274\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5640-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4267\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_3579-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Great Grandpa Jack was one of Finn&#8217;s favorites. Grandma Rita passed away while we were overseas and it was hard seeing Grandpa and not seeing Grandma there too, but we were thankful for our time together, which included a trip over to Canada!<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4269\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_3633-600x520.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"520\" \/><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4252\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4252\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4252\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2056-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4252\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Riding on a tractor with Great Uncle Jerry<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4251\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4251\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4251\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2051-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2051-600x800.jpg 600w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2051-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2051-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2051-83x110.jpg 83w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2051-188x250.jpg 188w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2051-190x253.jpg 190w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2051.jpg 1224w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4251\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Meeting horse named &#8220;Finny&#8221;<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4250\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4250\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4250\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2048-1-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4250\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The prize-winning stallion<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4254\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2081-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4253\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4253\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4253\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2079-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4253\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Family at the firehouse. Finn was thrilled!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4273\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4273\" style=\"width: 487px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4273\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_5484-2-487x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"487\" height=\"800\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4273\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Grandpa Alan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4257\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4257\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4257\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2309-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4257\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">First plate of chili cheese fries at the Coney Island.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4261\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4261\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4261\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2349-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4261\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Labor Day fun at Kensington Lake with the Aunties<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4236\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4236\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4236\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180903_124624-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4236\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">When Aunt Ruth has to haul you out of the lake because you&#8217;re throwing sand<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4237\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4237\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4237\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180906_172047-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4237\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">First date in a loooong time thanks to grandparents and auntie Hope. Brazilian BBQ was delish.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4258\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4258\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4258\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2313-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2313-600x450.jpg 600w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2313-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2313-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2313-125x94.jpg 125w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2313-250x188.jpg 250w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2313-337x253.jpg 337w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2313.jpg 1632w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4258\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">That day where he finally started to pay attention in Sunday School. Thanks to Ms. Sue for being so patient!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4249\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4249\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4249\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2022-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4249\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Riding the carousal at Greenfield Village with the cousins. Thanks Amy!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4255\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2285-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4256\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4256\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4256\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_2293-600x600.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"600\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4256\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Seeing the Thunderbirds at the Airshow. Thanks Jay and Kim for a lovely time.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4247\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4247\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4247\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_1873-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4247\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The City Museum in St. Louis was a great stop on our road trip. We might have sent him down a slide that was a little too scary, but he survived.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4243\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4243\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4243 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180919_141635-600x537.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"537\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4243\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Classic American childhood experience, the Penny Pony<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4245\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/IMG_1863-2-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" \/><\/strong><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4239\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4239\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4239\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_150525-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4239\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ice skating. Chilly, but great fun with my sisters and friends.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4242\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_155310-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_155310-600x450.jpg 600w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_155310-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_155310-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_155310-125x94.jpg 125w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_155310-250x188.jpg 250w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_155310-337x253.jpg 337w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_155310.jpg 1632w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4241\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4241\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4241\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_151319-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_151319-600x800.jpg 600w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_151319-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_151319-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_151319-83x110.jpg 83w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_151319-188x250.jpg 188w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_151319-190x253.jpg 190w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180915_151319.jpg 1224w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4241\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Only one bump on the head, which seemed like a miracle. It does seem odd to put sharp blades on a kid and them put them on a slippery surface. haha.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4238\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180909_125650-600x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180909_125650-600x800.jpg 600w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180909_125650-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180909_125650-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180909_125650-83x110.jpg 83w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180909_125650-188x250.jpg 188w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180909_125650-190x253.jpg 190w, https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/files\/2018\/09\/20180909_125650.jpg 1224w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Going through all these photos was a good reminder of how many blessings we&#8217;ve enjoyed even while it&#8217;s been hard to go through so many new transitions. God is good.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For the roughly 3 1\/2 years we lived in Asia Pacific, we were newbies. Or at least, that&#8217;s how it felt. Upon our return to the US, we&#8217;ve felt the same way, albeit to a lesser degree. I can speak English and navigate most cultural things here, but I still feel lost a bit. Where [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1068,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[20041,821,7159,83281],"class_list":["post-4234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-uncategorized","tag-family-2","tag-home-assignment","tag-third-culture-kid","tag-transitions","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1068"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4234"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4234\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ethnos360.org\/payton-downing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}