Dinner at the Sheraton

Last night, we went out to dinner with our landlords at the Sheraton and it was delicious!! They brought their two girls over with their helper to hang out with Jean and Juliana while the four of us had an adult night out. The girls were so excited to see Juliana, but she only made it until 8:30 before needing to go to bed, so we'll just have to get together with them more often.

Both Jacob and I ordered the tenderloin of beef with vegetables and mushroom sauce...YUM! It was probably one of the best steaks that we've had out here and the dessert buffet, WOW! I normally don't eat dessert, but I have a weakness for mousse and they had both chocolate and raspberry. Jacob was a lot more open to trying new things, so he had the carrot cake, chocolate & butter bread pudding, a local desert that we can't remember the name of, a spice cake and lots of fruit. I know, sounds like A LOT, but it was all bite sized, so all four of us had seconds!!!

We always have such a wonderful time with our landlords and we probably never would have thought to eat at the Sheraton had it not been for them. We will definitely be returning to try some other items on their menu!

Just another day in paradise

Hello everyone. Well, with an insanely busy week ahead of me, I wanted to take a moment to relax and write. I've had a lot on my mind and the best part of having a blog is that I get to share it with all the readers!!!

Juliana went to Gymboree with Jean yesterday for the Play & Learn class while I worked. Just wanted to share a few of the pictures Jean took.

There have been some big changes in our lives recently, some good (really good...new niece or nephew coming at the end of the year!), some bad. But as I've said before, it always helps me to put things into perspective. I've realized how important it is for me to take care of myself, my husband and my daughter. Of course, I adore my family back home and my friends (both from the States and the new ones I've made out here), but our little family of three is priority #1. As things change in our lives and the lives of those surrounding us, we learn and grow from all of the obstacles God presents to us.

I can only speak for myself, but I am becoming more aware of who the "Real Me" is. I feel like I have wasted so much time trying to figure it out, mainly because I was constantly struggling to meet the expectations of others, being the "people pleaser." What a waste of time that was, because even if they chose to accept me, it wasn't real. Never mind the fact that trying to make people happy at any expense is a sad way of trying to bring them into my life. I got sick of wearing masks, trying to pretend to be someone that I'm not and made a choice to STOP.

I've found that being me is not only okay, but acceptable. My time here in Singapore has led to the beginning of some wonderful friendships, with woman who accept me as I am, flaws, mistakes and all. I find myself being open and honest about my life and my past, not worrying about what they'll think of me. The truth is, we all have "baggage" and we all have our own share of mistakes and it's unfair to judge someone based on those. I feel accepted by people I've know for such a short period of time and it's empowering! I look forward to getting to know them more, through play groups, MOPS and some guilt-free adult time!

As I look ahead at my week, it's nice to see how quickly it fills up with work, play dates, Juliana's classes and swim lessons. And in less than three weeks, I will have my mom, grandmother and cousin here! We have so many places to show them and so much to do with them in the short time that they're here.

Life is full of blessings...sometimes they're just disguised behind trials and tribulations, but there is always a silver lining.

Back to IMM

I absolutely love going to IMM with Juliana...as I'm sure you've noticed from the numerous posts about our fun there. It's close, free and she always has a blast. Today, for some odd reason, she took a bit to warm up to the idea of the water park, which she usually can't get enough of. But once she got soaked, she was fine!!

I remember the first time I brought her to IMM, way back when we first moved into Summerdale. She was so weary of all the structures spurting water all over the place, but also excited to try something new. I look at this picture and realize how much she's grown in the last several months...she's so tall now!!
As you can see, she was perfectly fine with the water after a few minutes. She loves putting her face in it.

And tries to drink some!
This is usually her favorite spot of the park, but the water pressure was very low today. Still having a good time though!

Here she is with Elyse, trying to figure out why the water isn't coming out like it usually does...so cute!
Once they all had enough of the water, we dried then off and headed to the dry playground for more fun. Juliana has been enjoying the tunnels a lot more lately.

Elyse, Salma and Juliana in the background. They were all looking at the camera, but I missed it and Juliana turned around!
I adore this picture!! Just chilling out with Elyse...
Another wonderful time with the ladies and their kids. I know there will be many more visits to IMM! I'm looking forward to showing my grandmother and cousin (my mom saw Juliana play there during her last visit) how much fun Juliana has there.

Fun in the playground

One of the great things about the condominiums that we live at is there are two great playgrounds for kids and a huge kid's pool. We have spent lots and lots of time downstairs, especially in the late afternoons, after nap time and when most of the kids are back from school and out to play! Juliana has made some friends too and people that I don't even know call her by name!! Popular little girl she is :-)

On the way, of course she had to stop and check out the flowers. She almost always picks one or two and brings them back upstairs to give to Jean, daddy or myself, depending on who wasn't with her downstairs.

She loves the shapes and numbers on one of the boards at the playground, especially now that she knows what they all are!

She's very confident on the slides, both these and the ones in the pool. The only time she puts her hand out for help is when she's climbing back up one of the steep slides.

There are two playgrounds, but we've found that she likes the one with stairs better, because it's easier for her to get up to the top.

Ready to go!

Yesterday, Juliana made a couple of new friends while we were playing. She found a ball and she was playing with a little boy. He kept teasing her, running away with it and chasing her down the slide. She was laughing hysterically, loving the attention! She also met another little girl who was kind enough to introduce her doll to Juliana and let her hold it for a few minutes. Amazing, considering how protective Juliana is of Pooh...I don't think she would allow another kid to hold Pooh!

Gymboree all to herself!

Juliana had the entire place to herself today when she showed up for the play gym. Basically, she had an hour to run around and enjoy all of the toys as much as she wanted. What else could a little girl want??

Up and over she goes...Through all the tunnels and structures...

Climbing up the ramp...Through the rope maze...Adoring herself. Can't blame her, she's absolutely beautiful!

On top of the basketball net... Playing basketball...won't daddy be proud?

She's loving the hula hoops a lot more lately and getting good at it too!
She loves this table, because she can make the frogs and lizards move around with a little magnet.

Finally, if she sees a bar, she has to hang on!

My little musician

It makes me so happy to see how much she loves music...I just hope that interest sticks around as she gets older. We shall see!!

Who knew a trash bin was so much fun??

Isn't it remarkable how simple household items can be the greatest toys for our little ones? Juliana plays with all kind of things, like the measuring cups and spoons or tupperware containers in the kitchen, folders and notebooks at our desk and trash bins! Doesn't bother me, because we line them with bags, so at least they're clean.

As always, Pooh needed to be in on the fun too!!

Ahhh...class!

Today was not my very first class for my new teaching job, but I thought it was about time to write a little about it. During the month of June, the students here in Singapore are on break, so the classes are actually part of a holiday program. There are two age groups, 4-6 and 7-10. So far, I have been part of two of each age groups.

Let me start by saying how amazed I was this morning with the intelligence of such a young group of student!! The activities were created by the teachers (and moms) that developed the enrichment school to help motivate younger children to use and develop their thinking skills. Their programs are based on dialogic thinking, where teachers are there to facilitate the learning process. Students work on their creative and critical thinking skills, decision making skills and problem solving techniques.

This morning, I got to run my first two classes completely on my own and it was a lot of fun! Both groups were easy to engage in the activities, although there are always a couple of shy ones in the group. I even had a little girl draw me a picture and specifically ask me to take it home and hang it up where I could see it. She couldn't have been more than five years old!! It's the best thing when the students leave class with enthusiasm, saying they had fun..

Well, more holiday classes to come and then the centre I was hired for begins their weekly programs next month. I'm looking forward to it and hope this job works out in the long run. It's only been a couple of classes so far, but I feel like I have already learned so much from the students and the founders of the program.

Back to Jurong Bird Park!

We decided to return to the Bird Park today and as soon as we told Juliana, she kept saying, "birds" over and over again. On our walk to get a taxi, she was pointing out all of the birds in preparation for the park! I guess Juliana wanted Pooh to experience the park as well, because she barely let him go the entire time we were there. She actually had him clapping at the shows too. Here they are saying hello to the penguin...
Last time we went to the park, we visited all of the animal attractions and didn't have a chance to catch any of the shows, so that was today's goal. First stop was the Bird of Prey show, featuring "nature's most ferocious flying predators" (JBP web site). Juliana seemed to enjoy it, as she was laughing, screeching along with the birds and jumping up and down on daddy's lap.
Jacob wanted a closer look at the end...
The next show we wanted to watch was the Birds n Buddies show, but we had a little bit of time to kill, so we headed to the Magic Show area (not always at the park). I decided to have a tarot card reading. Here were my cards...
From left to right is Going with the flow, Completion and The Creator. I won't bore you all with the details, but they were actually quite fitting for where I am at in my life right now. In fact, he asked me a couple of questions that shocked me, so it got me thinking about how to move forward in certain areas of my life.

After I was done, Jacob tried it too.
His results...
From left to right, Stress, Playfulness and We are the World. Again, very fitting for some of what Jacob has been dealing with in his life and what some of his aspirations are for the future. It was the first time either one of us had a tarot reading, so it was interesting!

Having a few more minutes before the show, Juliana wanted to play for a little bit on the animals. There were three of these and she kept going back and forth to each of them, but the horse ended up being the favorite!

Finally, it was time for the Birds n Buddies show to begin!! Juliana sat on daddy's lap at the beginning with Pooh and watched in awe as the birds came out. It started with a flock of flamingos and some other birds flying around the theater.

The birds fly really close to the crowd, so they warn everyone not to stand up. It's amazing to watch.This lovely picture with my reaction is due to the fact that there was a gigantic bird inches from my head!

Juliana was getting more excited towards the end when all different types of birds were flying around above us.

Finally, at the end, she cheered for the show!

Daddy and Juliana got up close to admire the birds after the show was over.

After all of that, it was definitely time for a lunch break. Juliana was in a pretty good mood until about halfway through the meal and then the exhaustion began to take over.

We had planned to stay at the park longer, but unfortunately, it began to pour and after about twenty minutes of waiting for it to clear, we decided just to head home and put the little one down for her nap.

Another wonderful family day!!