Happy Faces

There is lot more going on at kindy for Oliver this year. Every week they have different class work displayed outside their classroom. Like these ones.

He is so happy his hair sticks up and eyes pop out  - very charming!?

It is coming towards the end of the term. We have only a week and a half to go now. Luca is enjoying being at kindy, even though he tells me "I did nothing at school, I talk too much mummy". Somehow Oliver is finding it very hard. Lots more learning and serious stuff, homework every weekend etc. But he is coping well and everyday he tells me all the new things he learned. Especially he is talking Chinese very well. I think the topic "traffic police" was the best thing ever for him.

Let the days roll, we are ready for a nice quiet school holiday!

I can stand up

Ok, it's time to pull the side bar right to the top. Ashley can pull herself up. She looked so proud of herself. Well done Ashley!

Already time to say good bye

Merryn and Dennis's flying visit has came to an end already. On the last day we picked up the boys from the kindy and went to Katong Mall for lunch and water play with friends from kindy. It was a good gathering as James (Nicola's husband) was off, Ben (Gabi's husband) was also off and his mother has just arrived from England. So it was like a big family gathering!

We went to Nando's chicken:

Unfortunately Luca's little friend Rafi had his Spanish lesson in the afternoon so him and his family had to go home. But the rest of us went to the rooftop playground.

While the boys were running around some adults went back in the mall for some browsing. Nicola and I stayed to watch the kids go wild!

 

By the time we got a taxi home it was almost time to get back in a taxi to go to the airport. Quick showers and last minute checks for Merryn and Dennis and we were on our way.

We were at the airport nice and early 3 hours before the departure time (we wanted to make sure they got business class seats if possible and they did straight away!). Everything went very smoothly so we went on the Sky Train to Terminal 3.

The playground and Starbucks are next to each other which always works well for us. On top of nice coffee we had a voucher to redeem at Dunkin Donuts next to Starbucks - even better!

Last minute poke and cuddle time...

It certainly was a very quick visit. We hope we will be seeing them a few more times this year. Here or there we don't mind. It is wonderful to see the kids are comfortable with their grandparents. Thanks again Merryn and Dennis for visiting us xxx 

Crafty boys

Luca was sooooo proud of himself making this "finger eating octopus" at kindy.

Of course Oliver wasn't too happy he had nothing to show off, so we had to sit down and make a "rattlesnake" when we got home. Lucky I saved enough toilet rolls for this kind of occasion :) 

Happy crafting boys!

Breakfast @ Sky57

The time is running out. Merryn and Dennis have only two more days with us and we haven't had a chance to do something "different" so far. They know Singapore well and they don't need to do any touristy things but I thought it would be nice for the 4 of us (and the little one) to go out for a nice breakfast somewhere special.

So after dropping the boys off at kindy we got a taxi into Marina Bay Sands. I knew they do a pretty good breakfast from last time I was there with Isabel. Merryn and Dennis have been on the 57th floor before but only at night time and we didn't have a meal, just a drink each at the Sky Bar.

The lift took us straight to the 57th floor. We had a lovely welcome by a staff member who recognised Ashley straight away and I also had a chat to another lady who also remembered Ashley. It certainly made me smile. I think we have a very special daughter :)

It was slightly hazy but I still enjoyed being high up. 

 Ashley had lots of cuddles from Merryn and Dennis and loved being part of the group!

It was buffet style plus you can choose two items from the a la carte menu. I love this system! You get something cooked in the kitchen nice and warm and still be able to enjoy some extra bread and fruits etc. I had slow cooked eggs and french toast just like last time, Matthew had a Spanish omelet and eggs benedict with smoked salmon. They were so yummy!

I also enjoyed dressing up for the occasion. I bought this dress maybe 6 months ago or so but had no chance to wear it until today. Ashley also got to wear her new dress :)

By the time we had to leave for the school pick up we were all so full. Merryn and Dennis stayed in the city and went to explore some of the changes in the Orchard and Dhoby Ghaut areas while we went to collect the boys.

It is always great to start your day with a good breakfast. To me it sets the mood for the rest of the day. I hope we will have more visitors to go and have breakfast on 57th floor with.

IKEA again?!

Yes I know, by now you all think that I have nothing else to do but going to IKEA. This was my 4th visit to IKEA this month. The first two trips were to decide and purchase the boys new bunk bed. Then it was with Isabel last week and of course yesterday Merryn wanted to go to IKEA!

I was a little annoyed with their big sale. I got the IKEA Family newsletter and knew a big sale was on this week. I really wish I knew about this BEFORE we bought the new bed for the boys. They only had small things listed as sales items in the newsletter :( Oh well... looking at which items were discounted made it more interesting for me to look around the shop even though this was the 4th time.

Other than that I honestly didn't mind it at all. The kids got to play in the playground and I got to exercise from walking around.
To make their burden less, we left the men behind and started off just the three of us girls.

Ashley surely enjoyed shopping with us.

Later all the boys joined us and we had lunch together. Yap, I still managed to come home with a full bag. Merryn and Dennis bought a lot for their family and kindy. Watch out! New Zealand, they are coming back with full suitcases!!

Sunday outing

What a busy day we had! Matthew was away flying most of the day unfortunately but we got to do a lot with Merryn and Dennis.

First we hopped in a taxi and headed to Holland Village where Merryn had some shopping to do. When we were going past the Marina Bay area we noticed we were using a newly opened Expressway. It is called the Marina Coastal Expressway which took 5 years to complete. It is 5km long, has 5 lanes in each direction and has a 3.5km underground tunnel!

I've never been to Holland Village before, it had a really nice atmosphere. Lots of expats were having lunch in nice looking cafes and restaurants. We also enjoyed our Mexican lunch. To be honest the service wasn't too great and the portions were a little conservative but I guess it is a sort of high end district for dining.

Merryn showed us where Matthew used to work when he was a teen.

After lunch it was time for serious business. We went to this magazine shop to get some quilting magazines.

Then we went into Lim's to see some cute dresses and nicknacks.

We then got on the MRT and went to the Marina Bay area to see the Extreme Sailing which was on over the weekend. We weren't sure where to go exactly, but managed to find the perfect area to watch the race.

Oliver straight away spotted the Team NZ boat!

Then daddy's team - Red Bull.

We waited about 30 min then the race started. It was wonderful to view. They were racing in quite a small area. I don't really understand the techniques or tactics that were involed in these races but it was exciting to see! NZ came in 4th at the end of the competition. If you are interested you can read more about it here.

The blue sky and Marina Bay Sands for sure added an amazing backdrop to the race!

I knew we did lots for the day but it was too hot to sit in the lounge when we came home. So we got in our togs and enjoyed paddling and splashing in the pool. Such a nice way to finish the day :)

Hand me downs

I often (almost always!) dress Oliver and Luca in the same tops or the same design but different colours. Recently the boys have been going through growth spurts so I have been putting some aside.

This morning I realised some of Luca's old ones are a good size for Ashley to wear now. Like these ones. Don't they look cute in matching tops?

Oliver was a little bit upset why he couldn't be in the same shirt. I don't think I will dress them all matching. If I do Ashley will end up wearing the same design for a long long time!

Rugby debut

We have been thinking about putting Oliver in a rugby team here in Singapore for a while. We decided he could start this year but there weren't enough under 5's until a couple weeks ago to start the season. Plus I wasn't too sure how keen Oliver was so ended up postponing it until this Saturday.

It was a great day to start him in the team as the Super 15 season started on the same day. We gathered in front of the TV and watched some rugby before we went out. Oliver was very confused why the players on TV weren't in All Blacks uniforms (we were watching the Crusaders and the Chiefs).

Anyway watching the rugby certainly added some extra excitement for him.

I was worried he would go all shy and not wanting to join in with the team but he was brilliant! He was listening, paying attention to what the coaches were saying and was trying to do his best.
He looked so happy - he just could not stop smiling!

Under 5 teams are focused on ball skills so they won't be playing proper rugby just yet but I think being a part of a team is good for him.

Oliver's friend TJ is in under 6 team and they were practicing defense and offence:

While the big brother was busy running around, the little ones enjoyed playing in the fresh air.

Luca? He was just being Luca and entertained himself 100%.

We were so pleased Oliver enjoyed it very much so straight away signed him up for the season. We got his Dragons Rugby Club uniform too. 

It was also nice to have Merryn and Dennis to see him practice for the first time :)