Life in Singapore

Our time living in Singapore taught us a lot about life in other cultures and we are moving back to the U.S. having learned a lot of lessons about how we want to live our own life. There are many things that Jacob and I will miss about living in Singapore, such as:

1. Efficient public transportation
2. Walking distance to the MRT, the mall, grocery store, movie theater, restaurants
3. Cleanliness of the entire city
4. Safe to walk around, even at night time
5. Good sushi, Indian food and other local favorites at Hawker centers
6. The Lokes
7. Jean
8. Having a swimming pool 12 months of the year
9. Tons of activities, parks and playgrounds for Juliana
10. Warm weather at all times (but we definitely won't miss the humidity)
11. People from all different cultures
12. Being able to travel to parts of Asia in 8 hours or less
13. One wardrobe for the entire year instead of different wardrobes for each season

Singapore was our home for over a year and a half and as we transition back to life in the U.S., I'm sure we will realize that there are even more things we'll miss about it. Fortunately, there are a lot of things we're already enjoying about being back, such as:

1. Grocery stores
2. Shopping malls aren't "the place to be" at all times, 7 days a week
3. American food
4. Having a car (although this is sometimes frustrating)
5. Spending time with family and friends
6. Being able to enjoy the outdoors without being ridiculously hot

...and the list goes on. One thing I do not like is living in temporary housing again, since it doesn't feel like home just yet, but that will change in the coming months. I do hope we get to visit Singapore again when Juliana is a bit older, so we can revisit and show her where she turned 1 and 2 years old.

A day in Maine

Being back in the U.S. to stay has been wonderful, because it means we get to see our friends and family as well as our favorite places of New England. Yesterday, we went up to Ogunquit Maine with my mom and grandmother for some time at the beach, Perkins Cove, the Marginal Way and lobster! It was a gorgeous day with a nice breeze and the ocean air was just as wonderful as I remembered. Here we are in York, where we stopped for lunch and ice cream by Nubble Lighthouse...

After walking down Marginal Way, we headed to the beautiful beach on Ogunquit where Juliana had a blast in the water...

Jacob and I already know there will be many beach days in the years to come since she's such a little fish. The water was cold, but that didn't stop her from enjoying it!

The day was a reminder of how nice it is to live in New England, especially during the warmer months. I don't look forward to dealing with the snow, but the change of seasons will be nice. I wish we could just skip over the cold months though...oh well!

Home and here to stay

As many of you already know, Jacob was offered a job in Cambridge Mass, and he is finally on U.S. soil. We are officially here to stay!! He accepted the job and we are currently in Charlestown until the temporary apartment is set up in another week and a half. It feels surreal to be here to stay, almost like it's not actually happening. I think things will sink in much more once we're in the temporary apartment and Jacob starts his job in a week. I can't wait to be in permanent housing though, unpacked and settling in to truly make this our home for the months and years to come.

When we left for Singapore, both Jacob and I were excited at the opportunity to live abroad and we have learned so much over the last year and a half. One of the hardest things about living in America is remembering that we don't have to "keep up with the Joneses," a huge lesson we learned in Singapore. Material things don't bring happiness, but quality time with family and friends does.

I look forward to keeping everyone updated as the move unravels and we have many new adventures in store.

Being H-O-M-E

It's been wonderful to be home and see family and friends. There is one major thing missing though and that's Jacob. Juliana's been telling me on a daily basis that she misses her daddy and can't wait to see him and I certainly miss him too. Luckily, the days are going fast since we've been busy and she doesn't have much longer until we see him.

It was a wonderful 4th of July, with family at my aunt's house and my cousin even had a few fireworks to set off in the driveway. This week, we got to go to Canobie with my brother, sister-in-law and niece. Juliana had a blast on the kiddy rides! When I left New Hampshire to move to Singapore for Jacob's job in 2008, I was very nervous as well as excited about the idea of living in another country. I have always been close to my family and very attached to the good friends I have, but I could never have imagined that I would miss them all so much. I just can't wait for Jacob to join us.

I got to meet my niece

Part of what has been so difficult about being in Singapore has been the missed holidays and events in the family, such as the births of my nieces and nephew. I finally got to meet Riley this afternoon and see my brother and sister-in-law. Riley was precious and Juliana had a blast entertaining her and playing with her.
I look forward to spending more time with her in the coming week and I think Juliana does too!

My cousin is A-MAZING!

Sorry Jess, you're public! But I just had to share this, it was so good and I was so proud! Click HERE.

So cute together :-)

We're in the USA!

After a grueling 33 hour travel day (one late flight leading to a missed connecting flight and 5 hours in the D.C. airport) we are here! We got home last week, but have been so busy since. Juliana had a hard time adjusting to the time difference and misses her daddy who's not here yet, but seeing family and friends has been wonderful!

My mom's new place is nice and I love the weather since anything is cooler than Singapore. We go outside a lot and there's a huge playground within a 10 minute walk.
She's getting spoiled...chocolate frosted donuts!

Reading the paper to Nanny...

At the park, on the train. She kept saying "We're going to China!"

Real swings!

Trying on Nana's shoes and heading out the door...

We will actually be in the U.S. for Independence day for the first time since 2007.

More to come!!

What's been going on

It hasn't been too eventful around here since our return from Beijing. Juliana and I leave for the U.S. on June 22 and Jacob leaves June 30 so we are looking forward to seeing our family and friends. It's a much more relaxing visit than the last since there are no parties or weddings. I am looking forward to the weather too, because it's been insanely got in Singapore lately. Maybe it's just me but I think it's much hotter than this time last year!

Juliana has been attending her art classes and is becoming more talented at tracing and coloring in. When we return from the U.S. we'll sign up for some other classes.

Jacob is busy as usual with work and I've been doing some writing and recovering from a small accident. My left hand is weak, but in time, it should be back to normal.

One of her favorite things to put on is my brown shoes and walk around like she's a big girl! She added this necklace too... I'm astonished at how fast she is growing and the things that come out of her mouth. However, she is very challenging too. "No" and "It's okay" seem to be popular and listening to us? Yeah right. It's exhausting and I am not looking forward to 24+ hours of traveling and two plane switched with her by myself. But in the end, I'll be back home!

So many talents...

As soon as she could hold those large toddler crayons, Juliana has thoroughly enjoyed art, as well as many other things. We have paints, markers, crayons, stamps, stickers, stencils, etc. etc. We also came across this great Art school when we went along with some friends for Halloween last year to go to a kid's party. Juliana gets lots of attention from Teacher Paul and her art is improving so much!!

She's getting so big... Showing off her school!!!

I'm afraid she likes the idea of "school" way too much right now. Soon I'll be waving her off as she trots away to her friends and teachers...

I guess she was proud of it, huh?

I love the look of determination on her face when she's hard at work!

I didn't get the art gene, so I'm glad she's enjoying it....her Uncle Justin got the musical and artistic talents!! With all the dancing, art, swimming, gymnastics, singing, and everything else, she could be anything! Yup, PROUD MOMMY here! I love the look of satisfaction on her face too when I hang up a new drawing.

Dancing Queen :-)

So you can't hear it, but she's shaking her cute bum to Lady Gaga's Bad Romance!! She's been dancing her way along lately, through Beijing, here in Singapore and soon in the States.

Yes, we dance along, but we won't be sharing any of that, not to worry!

Take it all in!

Life is too short

Life passes too quickly,
And before you can take it all in,
It’s all over, so fast.

I wish I could experience it all,
See the entire world
And all the amazing sites to see.

But God has a different pan for me,
To use my past to help others,
To heal them of their grief.

Will I be able to do it?
Can I make a lasting effect on people?
Will I make a difference?

These are the questions that run through my head,
Because I WILL get better
And then I want to help those suffering like I did.

Life is full of opportunities,
Challenges we all have to face
And beauty that is hard to describe in words.

I have learned that judgments are useless,
Appearances are deceiving
And generally, people acre good deep down.

I hope to raise my daughter with these beliefs,
To be open-minded and explore the world,
To absorb all that God has to offer.

In order for that to happen,
I need to be healthy, happy and strong
As well as content with myself for the person I already am.

Looking back and reminiscing

As I was going through the pictures of our trip this morning with Juliana, I felt so happy to have had this amazing opportunity, not only to see Beijing, but to be living in Singapore and experiencing a completely new culture. Hard to believe Juliana has spent more of her life in Singapore than in the United States!!

She used to be so tiny! We called her "Baby Moses" in this picture!
Rooting for the Pats after their HUGE letdown in the Superbowl. UGH. But Juliana enjoyed the excitement, even as young as she was...

This was one of the first great pictures I took of a huge, straight smile, looking right at the camera. I happened to time it just right ad what better day? It was Valentine's Day!

Look at those big brown eyes and rosy cheeks!

A big tradition for those of us from New England(no, we are not hicks!) is to attend state fairs in the fall and we went to the Hopkinton State Fair in 2008, just a month before leaving for Singapore. I actually look forward to attending these again...

Birthday 1 that got pushed up due to our very quick departure (3 weeks) to Singapore after Jacob signed the contract. But everyone came, Juliana was center of attention and it also gave us a chance to say goodbye to all of our family and friends.

Juliana's first plane ride and man, it was a long one!

After discovering the water fountains and then eventually the water park at IMM, we knew we had a little fish on our hands. LOVES the water!

During our visit home in October last year, we got to celebrate once again with our family and friends Juliana turning two and she was much more into the food and cake this time around. It was a Dora theme, so that got her excited! It was the night before we left to return here though, so there were a lot of sad farewells and tears.

I can't wait for what the next year brings and I especially am looking forward to our trip to the U.S. at the end of this month. Can't wait to see everyone and share all of our experiences with them...the things you don't hear about on the blog :-)

Now that she's older, it should be interesting to see how this plane ride goes, especially since I'm taking the one back with Juliana by myself, followed by Jacob a week and a half later. I pray for good moods, lots of distractions and tons of sleep!

Checking out

Our last night was short since we had to leave the hotel by 12:30pm, but we did walk down Wangfujing street again to get a meal and take it all in once again.

I hope to someday visit China again, whether it be Beijing again or another city, because it was such an amazing trip!!

I was amazed with myself, because I have such a hard time with food, but I tried new things and was much more adventurous than normal. The food (for the most part) was good and I had a wonderful hotpot meal as well as a good meal at a hidden local restaurant on a side street. We had to point to dishes since none of them spoke English but it turned out to be very good.

Throughout our trip, people kept referring to the meaning behind specific colors, especially in the clothing for emperors as well as silk. I decided to do a little research to find out more about it and here's what I came out with.

The five basic colours of the Chinese tradition are arranged according to their equivalents:

1. Red: fire, reaching upwards, corresponds to the south as dictated by the traditional Chinese cardinal points, and coincides with the warm season of summer.
2. Black: water, delving into the depths, is in the north. Its season, winter, is marked by the absence of water, which at this time gathers in the northern "shallows of the world".
3. Green: wood, is in the east and relates to spring. Green is also the colour of the world of plants.
4. White: metal, is in the west, with its season autumn with white as its colour: a white with a blue tint. Incidentally, contrary to Western colour-systems, black and white are part of the same circle in Chinese colour-systems.
5. Yellow: earth. In the code of the five elements, the earth has a carrying, supporting function, and thus also assumes the function of primary source and nutrition: the plants sprout from the earth, from where fire, too, breaks out; metals are extracted from its mines, and water flows from its wells. The earth is the centre — the colour yellow; its taste is sweet, and its aroma is that of perfume. Mankind as the yellow race, the inhabitants of this world, stems from this equivalent.

The colors yellow (or gold) and blue were the colors of royalty, worn by the emperor and empress. Also, a lot of the buildings are colored in red and yellow. Click here to see a Color Chart of all the different colors and their meanings with differences between Eastern traditions and Western traditions.

Day 6 - Markets & Hutongs

Our last full day, we were all exhausted, so we had a late start before heading out. We wanted to check out the market street that is antiques and other goods. We didn't end up buying much except for a handmade Chinese musical instrument, but it was an enjoyable visit and Juliana kept sitting on all of the shopkeeper's stools!

The instrument is called a Xun, one of the earliest instruments in China with a history of over 7,000 years. The one below is similar to the one we bought, but a different design, however they were made with different materials over time. The sound it produces is elegant and graceful, harmonious with nature. Jia pingwa, a well-known Chinese author, described the music played by Xun as the "Sound of the Earth."

After this, we wanted to walk through the Hutongs, which are traditional narrow alleys and lanes lining both sides of the streets with courtyard houses. The "hutong" and "siheyuan", with their unique atmosphere and scenery are a major part of the city's tradition, architecture and culture. Of the traditional narrow lanes, which housed communities of close-knit families for many generations, many have disappeared, being flattened and rebuilt with markets, department stores, widened boulevards and commercial streets. Another walk through the park on our way back to the hotel at the end of the dead, ready for food!

This was the one and only day we ended up eating at the hotel since it was getting late and our little girl was so tired. I must admit though, it was pretty good food!

Day 5 - Lama Temple & Beihai Park

On our way in to the Lama Temple, a very sacred place for the Chinese people...
This temple is also known as "The Temple of Peace and Harmony." It is one of the largest and most important Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in the world. The building and the artworks of the temple combine Han Chinese and Tibetan styles.

Inside each building, where pictures were not aloud, were all different styles and sizes of Buddhas for the Chinese people to pray and pay homage to their Buddha. They would light incense and burn it as well as give money offerings at the foot of many of the statues.

This was funny, because while I posed for this picture, about ten Chinese people took my picture!!

Jacob standing in front of the beautiful buildings. We walked away wishing we understood more about the beliefs of Buddhism and the meanings of their sacrifices. Of course, now that I'm home, I've been reading about it and it's quite fascinating.

Next up was the Beihai Park - 北海公园 - is an imperial garden to the northwest of the Forbidden City which was built in the 10th century. It is one of the city's largest parks, containing numerous historical structures, palaces and temples. More than half of the park is covered with a lake. Beihai literally means "Northern Sea" and the structures and scenes in the Park are described as masterpieces of gardening technique that reflects the style and the superb architectural skill and richness of traditional Chinese garden art.

The stones lining the staircases were amazing... Up at the top...

After a late night, Juliana and I stayed at the hotel for her to sleep while Jacob headed out to see the city at night time and explore the antique market. He picked up a nice chess set as well as a Chinese chess set. For those of you who don't know Jacob, he collects chess sets from all of the trips we've taken. Someday when we have the space, we'll get to display them all!!

All of the city's buildings are lit up at night and I wish I could have seen it...