My Herbs and other projects

Herbs are just one of those things that I can never get enough of.  I love the strong aromas, the textures, the usefulness and variety in these beautiful plants.  Just the smell of any herb brings me back to my girlhood and the herb garden I was so passionate about in my yard growing up. After 4 years of trying to grow herbs and failing, I finally came up with a workable plan.  It was definitely not easy, but I dug out 9 inches of red, clay and rocks from my small garden bed.  (Most of our yard is tile with a few grass patches.)  I replaced it with bags and bags of dark topsoil and organic compost.  Then, the fun part.  Shopping for herbs and planting them in the garden.  I am proud to have 14 different herbs growing: aloe vera, fennel, rosemary, dill, lavender, basil, oregano, thyme, parsley, chives, sage, mint, tarragon, and lemon balm.   Keeping them alive is another task that I do lovingly.  Most of these herbs are not naturally tropical so I have had figure out how to shade them and water them as they get a lot of rain from tropical storms.  In any case, it is a fun hobby.  I have used the herbs to make arrangements, soaps, braided bread, lots of different butters, in cooking, oils, vinegars and tea.  Next I am going to try hanging them and drying them for various things.  

There are no stakes here; or Home Depot.  That would make life too easy.  We have bamboo poles and a plastic mesh to help filter the sun.  

Herbs drying in the dining room for potpourri.

 This is the guava tree we planted in the back of the house.  I love looking at the fruit on the vine.  because there are no seasons here, watching the fruit grow outside my kitchen window reminds me that time is passing and life is changing.

During the summer, I started a project for our bed.  We have never had a bed frame and I had this idea to create a canopy with silk and arrange these photos of my ancestors behind.  It was fun collecting the frames this summer in the US (and then trying to get them here without breaking all that glass.)  My brother gets the credit for doing the research and coming up with all these photos and dozens more.  Five generations on both sides are represented on the wall. There are so many genealogical lines to explore, it is impossible to represent them all.  I love looking at the pictures though as I get ready for bed.  They remind me of the great heritage I have, a noble progeny that have gone before me and set good examples of faith and courage.  As I worked on this project, it inspired me to learn more about my ancestors and their lives; and I believe they are angels looking over me and my family now.  This has also led to many conversations with my kids about who these people are and how they relate to them.  I love these types of questions and conversations.  I want to continue the project and learn more about Joseph's family.  I'll need help from Joseph's parents to do that and they are occupied right now on their mission. Oh, and I made the pillows on the bed with my mother's help a couple of summers ago.  I just bought two bedspreads and cut one up for pillows.   

Dogs

A lot of our life lately has revolved around these puppies.  We have been diligently training them and teaching them not to bite, chew on anything but their toys, not to bark, to do their business in the same spot in the yard, walk on a leash properly, only allowed in the family/entry way inside, sit, and so on.  We have to thank the Dog Whisperer for a lot of our ideas and technique.  His shows are amazing and very insightful to dog psychology.  People have asked if the kids are tired of the dogs.  Not at all.  It is a lot of work but also fun to see how attached they are to the children.

 Joseph takes the girls and the dogs for a morning walk almost every morning after the big kids get on the bus.  Because he is into walking barefoot and the whole Born to Run philosophy, he allows the children to be barefoot a lot now.

 Speaking of running, I love this picture for 3 reasons.  Everyone in it, dogs included, have a foot in the air.  I love the movement it captures.  It is on our street and it is the final race to the house we all do with the dogs at the end of a walk: run down Melrose Drive.  I know one day it will bring back memories as we won't live here always.  Notice the bare feet. . .

 This is great.  Maggie and Conrad almost have the same expression.

 Ella and Vinka.  Vinka is by far the sweetest of the pair.

Conrad loves Abigail above everyone else.  He is even devoted to her when she practices cello.  

Some other cute shots.

Universal Studios

 Universal Studios is truly universal.  There is a very small piece of it here in Singapore at a place called resorts world on Sentosa Island, an island just south of Singapore accessible by car.  The kids had 3 days off for student conferences, so we used this chance to visit the theme park and to celebrate their hard work and accomplishments thus far in the school year.

 Abigail and Maggie enjoying the potion ride together.

 Ella in old Hollywood

 Ella's very favorite place was the castle.

It was a hot, hot day, but we all had a good time together.  The park is small enough that you can really see all of it; and go on the rides, multiple times.

Mid Autumn Festival

We had the chance t o go to the Chinese Gardens for the Mid-Autumn Festival of lights this year.  It was kind of memorable because it was one of our first experiences 4 years ago when we first arrived in Singapore.  I was hugely pregnant with Ella and pushing Xander in the stroller.  My how things have changed.  The theme this year was Myths and Legends.  Below Xander and Ella are standing in front of the rabbit--it is the year of the rabbit.  Joseph and Abigail are actually the rabbits in our family though.

We met up with Cami and Craig for a hawker style dinner on the lake before seeing the lights.  We don't often tour Singapore together so I thought this was a good opportunity for a group picture.

First Day of School

The kids all started school in mid August. They were all really excited and eager to get going again. Abigail started middle school and was a little nervous the first day; but she came home super happy and said, "Mom, I LOVE middle school!"  Maggie is going by Magdalene this year in her 4th grade class.  And Xander started 1st grade.  Vinka and Conrad were there to see them off.  

There they go.  Picked up at our driveway at dawn.  

Dogs

I'm not quite sure how it happened, but we have added two American Cocker Spaniels to our family: a brother and sister named Conrad (with the brown ears) and Vinka respectively.  They are a bundle of fun and energy.  The girls all adore the dogs but Xander doesn not so much.  He is a little jumpy around them and tries to avoid them altogether. 

  Ella is constantly with the dogs and has no fear.  She is a natural around animals.  We think she will be a vet when she grows up.

Photo Shoot

I have been wanting to get photos taken of the kids for quite some time. I decided that since Joseph has such a good camera I might as well try myself. It is just getting everyone picture ready that seemed so daunting. Well, I just did a kid a day and that made it more reasonable. All I did was some cropping--no editing at all. I printed 8 X 10 and they are all up on my wall now. I am so proud of myself for getting it done. Here are some of our favorites (it was so hard to pick just one to print and frame.)

Juliet--19 mo--the sweetest thing to ever come to us. Her first words out of her mouth were "tank ew" (thank you.)

Xander--6 yrs--my favorite little guy in the whole world. His photo shoot took about 5 minutes. Very cooperative and positive kid. He is in first grade this year. He loves dinosaurs and sharks (anything dangerous with big teeth).

Ella Marie--3 yrs--so full of life and energy and quite loud. She is always getting into some kind of trouble, but she is so affectionate and sincere, and quick to say "sorry." She LOVES to draw and is always drawing somewhere.