My babies

People often tell me my babies all look the same. So I came up with this idea to put them all side by side for a comparison. I can tell them apart (at least at this point) can you? (And they are not in order!) Putting this blog together was fun and kind of interesting because first, I had to find baby pictures of the kids all at a similar age with a similar expression; and second, it gave me a chance to really study my babies to find these similarities and differences. Now if I put them all in black and white, and you could not use color of clothes and eyes to help, it might be even more tricky.

Busy Bodies

We have been staying busy keeping up with all the kids and their activities. Shortly after the big kids started school, Ella started preschool at a smaller school located conveniently in our neighborhood. She loves school and has a lot of fun. This picture was taken on "fancy dress day." She calls all her church dresses "princess dresses" and loves wears this dress-up crown almost daily. She also loves pink. Of all the girls (so far) she is the most "girly."

Abigail is probably the busiest of all, mostly because she has the most homework on top of her other activities. She started cello this year at school in the stings ensemble and we enlisted a private instructor for her in the evenings during the week. This picture was taken at her first school concert. (She is the one second in on the right.) Abigail is also playing another year of soccer.

Maggie started harp lessons. This decision was kind of a gamble because it involved purchasing a harp which is quite significant. We needed to find something unique to suit such a unique girl. We found a wonderful teacher here from Scotland and she had a few trial lessons which went really well. Both the girls have a good foundation in piano and so it has been smooth transferring to another instrument. So far, she still loves it and hugs the harp every night before she goes to bed.

Xander is mostly just getting used to a long school day. It starts at 6:30am when he wakes up to get dressed and eat breakfast before the bus comes at 7:00. Kindergarten here is a full 7 hour day. He does have an after school swimming class once a week. Below he is pictured in is USA costume on UN day. While the school is the Singapore American School, there are lots of different nationalities represented and it is fun to see them all portrayed on UN day.

I am still involved in the Achievement/Activity Day program for the 8-11 year old girls in the church. Our group has grown significantly now with some 28 girls total. I get to work with Abigail and Maggie, which I enjoy, planning meaningful activities to help the girls achieve goals and learn new skills. We recently had a Garden Party themed evening talent show with such a fun variety of talents from singing, to instruments, art displays and dance.

Staycation

staycation, noun \ˈstā-ˈkā-shən\: a vacation spent at home or nearby. First known use: 2005

I just thought I would clarify that staycation is actually a word in the Merriam-Webster's dictionary. It is also what we had over fall break last week. Packing up the kids and going off somewhere exotic has become a lot of work now that we have added Juliet to our bunch; and there is so much to do around Singapore that we haven't gotten to with our busy schedules that it just made sense to vacation in the comfort of our very own home. (Not to mention a whole lot cheaper.)

On Friday, we headed to Sentosa, an island just off the Southern coast of Singapore accessible by car. We went to Underwater World to visit the marine animals and see the dolphin show. Ella probably had the most fun, especially with all the "hands on" exhibits where she got to reach into tanks and touch stingrays and fish.

After underwater world, we took our picnic down to the beach and had some sun and sand time for a few hours. We remembered everything from the packed cooler to the sunscreen, hats and diapers, but unfortunately, forgot a camera. Big Bummer! Juliet experienced her first taste of a fist full of sand, and Ella wouldn't get out of the ocean. Singapore is a big port and so there are no waves to worry about. It was a hot, fun day at the beach.

Saturday, we went to Forest Adventure. I made sure I brought my camera this time. It is an obstacle course of sorts all in the trees spanning a nearby reservoir. There is a "grand course" for anybody above 56 inches (which barely included Abigail) and a similar but smaller scale kids course (which Xander was just tall enough for.) The kids all LOVED it and are begging to go back. (In fact it is at the top of their Christmas lists.) They moved from platform to platform high in the trees, completing each challenge while harnessed to a safety rope. The best part, they all said, was the zip line at the end. Abigail and Joseph got to zip across the reservoir.

Maggie is pictured below at the first challenge and the zip line at the very end of the kids' course.

Xander was super brave. He had kind of a nervous start, but quickly got the hang of it. No parents were allowed up--I just offered encouragement and took pictures from below.

Abigail and Joseph were together on the big course, which took 2 hours to complete.

First Days of School

School started here at the Singapore American School back in mid-August. Abigail and Maggie are in Intermediate school in grades 5 and 3. Note Maggie's stylish shoes. Joseph had recently returned from a business trip to China and picked up some toe shoes for her. She wore them proudly to school; and I think her teacher, Mr. Hobson, who likes to rock climb, thought she was the most adorable thing he'd seen all day because of those shoes.


Xander started Kindergarten in the Primary section of the campus just a couple of days later. He has waited a long time to be able to join his sisters on their daily trek to school. You can see the bus stopping conveniently right at our driveway in the background. What a handsome boy!