Little Gym

For Anastasia's 1st birthday my parents, Aunt Pat and Uncle Don got Anastasia some sessions at Little Gym. At first she wasn't so sure about it, but now she loves it. At Little Gym they learn basic gymnastic moves: rolls, hanging on the bars, balancing, etc.

Here she is with her teacher learning the basics of a back-handspring:

Although the teacher looks concerned in the picture, she was actually very impressed with how Anastasia looked for the ground and flipped her legs over all on her own.

Bubble time.
This is a random picture. After Little Gym I had to use the bathroom (TMI I know) and I was wondering how I was going to keep Anastasia from touching everything- this was the solution:


In the family bathroom they had this little chair just for toddlers. I had seen them before, but never had A with me. I worked like a charm! I think they should have these everywhere!

Castle

Guess what wonderful thing we got today! I'm not sure who's more excited, me or the girls. I picutre the girls hanging out in there, playing, and reading books. Doesn't it look like fun!?



Elyse asked to sleep in the tent, so we said she could as long as she actually slept in there and didn't play. It's all quiet in her room now, I hope she is enjoying a good night's sleep.

Rawa, Malaysia

Thanks to a polling day public holiday (Singapore elected a new president), Toby had a 4 day weekend. We took advantage of it at went to Rawa Island, Malaysia. It took less than 4 hours total travel time to go from our door to this wonderful little island.

From our house we were in Malaysia in about 20 minutes and then continued for another 2+ hours to the city of Mersing. From there we took a 30 minute ferry to Rawa. The only "hiccup" we had was that Anastasia threw up (yuck). She might have gotten a little carsick, but she was fine after we stopped and got her cleaned up.

Elyse waiting for the boat:


Our boat getting loaded with the luggage:


Toby ready for vacation:

RAWA! (I took this on the way home so that's why it's out the back of the boat.)

We were in a waterfront room. This is our neighbor's room, but ours looked very similar:


View of our deck:


View to the other side:
If you look at this picture of the island, the white spots are waterfront chalets. Our's was the second from the left,


Our shower opened up to the outside:

After we settled in, Anastasia went down for a nap and Elyse and I went out to the beach.


Toby and Anastasia joined us a little later:

We were on the beach most of the time, but we did take a break from time to time.

Guess what Elyse had for snack:


Elyse met a friend while jumping on the trampoline. They kept finding each other (which wasn't hard since we all ate at the same place and played on the same beach). She is from Singapore too. (didn't get a good shot of her friend's face- oops, her back will have to do.)

Anastasia wasn't a huge fan of the sand on her feet. She did like the waves washing away the sand as she sat in someones lap though.

At the very end of our trip Toby tried out the slide. I should have too. Next time...



The beach had soft sand and gentle waves. We got to float in the South China Sea while seeing fish and baby sharks. We got to visit another country and got to spend time as a family. We had a great time.

Social Painting

Last night a group of us met up at Arteatiq to do some painting. When we arrived they had paint, brushes, a canvas and "inspirational" artwork for us to look at. The rest was up to us. I had never painted like this so I had a lot of questions, but in the end I think I did all right (for my first time).

We were set up right by the window, so we had a lot people stop and check out how we were doing. Here is Gillian and Camile sketching out their artwork.


Jennifer and Carrie getting started on their masterpieces:


Gillian's painting (she went to art school, can you tell?)

My finished work. I picked this kid in the rain because it reminded me of Elyse when she holds an umbrella.
Gillian and Camille didn't get done so they are going to go back to finish.

Me, Jennifer and Carrie with our finished work.

I had a great time. It's always fun to go out with friends and try something new.

My Girls

Elyse and Anastasia love hanging out on this chair:

Getting ready for the Lantern festival:

Hanging out at Jurong Lake:

Creating an airplane in our apartment:

I love them so!

Last Day with Eric and Kristen

On Eric and Kristen's last day in Singapore we had planned to go to the zoo. As we got closer and closer to the zoo, the clouds got darker and darker so we decided to go to the Science Centre instead. We were all a bit disappointed (Elyse did very well though and didn't throw a fit), but it turned into a fun day.





We had such a good time with Eric and Kristen while they were here. I am so glad they were able to come and visit. Thanks to the Grandparents in CO who watched Cate and Ashton so they could make the trip. Can't wait to see you again- we love you and miss you!

A Night Out with E and K

After we got home from the Southern Ridges walk, the girls had naps and Eric and Kristen headed out to explore another area of Singapore (Raffles?).

Toby was nice enough to get home early and watch the girls while I went out at met up with Eric and Kristen for dinner.

We wandered through the few stores at Chijimes and then picked a place to eat. It was fun to hang out with my brother and sister-in-law without the kids for awhile.

I love the atmosphere at Chijimes at night.

It was a fun night.

Southern Ridges Walk

For some more outdoor fun and a different perspective on Singapore, I took Eric and Kristen along the Southern Ridges walk to Henderson Waves. We started at Hort Park and then after Henderson Waves we took a taxi to VivoCity for some lunch. It was a HOT, HOT day, but a good one :)

A friend we met on the way. He grabbed at Anastasia in the carrier which was a bit scary, but didn't get her thank God.

Henderson Waves



The view from the street as we waited for our taxi.