Awaiting Winter

Change

2012-02-06T13:15:00.005+08:00

I've missed blogging. I feel like the last six months were lost in some black hole. A maniac took over while we were building the house. We just got internet a week ago after a month of not having it. I didn't even know it was humanly possible for me to go a month without internet! I must be super human. Basically, they run a racket here in Provo. And we live in some black hole where our only options were a super-slow speed from one company or pay a $600 install charge for another company that would install high-speed. We kept trying to find another option but there isn't one. Bleh. The monthly fee is the same so I finally talked myself into paying the $600 by reasoning that it's just an extra $5/month for the next 10 years.

Another racket...our area code. Apparently, they ran out of 801 numbers so ours is 385. Gross. I feel, like Elaine, cheated and so annoyed. I'm from UT. I lived here before they even had 435 as an area code. I don't want no stinkin' 385 area code. When internet and the phone line were installed it was exactly like this Seinfeld episode minus the deaths threats at the end. But then Elaine perseveres and gets her 212 area code back because an old lady in her building dies. Would it be wrong to ask any of my elderly neighbors if I can inherit their phone number when they pass away? Because I will have an 801 area code!

I created this blog when we moved to Singapore to keep in touch with family and friends back home. I found it was actually a nice outlet and great way to journal our family happenings. When we first moved back I thought, "I'll change the blog name 'awaiting winter' when the first snow falls because our wait for winter would be over." But I could never think of another name. Then the cold came but it has still barely snowed. What is up with rain in January?! Cold rain is no fun at all. And I have to admit I TOTALLY get why people don't like winter--it's COLD!! Cold is a lot more work with coats, socks, (how do you keep track of those?!) scarves and boots. I don't know why everyone considers setting the thermostat to 72 as turning the heat up. I'd turn it to 80 if Ben would let me. Thankfully, January came and we've started skiing regularly, which has reminded me why I like winter. Skiing makes my soul happy. There are fun things you can't do without the cold. And freshly fallen snow is so beautiful.

I love change. I love learning or doing something new. I've always been more of a nomad than a home body. But I also struggle with the adjustments major change brings. Singapore was challenging and a learning experience for us in many ways but it was also equally rewarding. There were definitely moments when I wished 'the experience' was over, but I tried to appreciate that the challenges were temporary and that they presented wonderful opportunities and adventures. One of the best compliments I received was in a note from a photo client/friend who wrote, "I live in Singapore, but you experienced it." I've always struggled with fully living in the now. I start to feel down if I don't have a trip to plan or something on the calendar to look forward to. And I have definitely felt that way since moving back. The day we moved into our beautiful new home I was overwhelmed with so many different emotions. We've been on this path to the professorship job with real benefits and a retirement plan and owning a home for 10 years. I thought I should feel nothing but joy that "we've arrived at our final destination". But instead I was thinking, "we really aren't going back to singapore. This this was our goal...our dream?! I have to clean this place! I have a real kitchen so I have no excuse but to cook regular healthy meals." Long before Ben and I started on our path together, seeing the world and photographing it was my dream. Easily and affordably traveling to new places, experiencing new cultures and the photo opportunities in Singapore were all so amazing and ideal. But I have to trust and know that the travel and cultural experiences I want will come again in another season. And we are very lucky to have experienced all that we have. It's been strange to think of possibly being in one place forever or at least knowing this move isn't temporary because so much in our married life has been.

I decided that I didn't need to change the name of the blog after all from "awaiting winter"-- just the subtitle from "The tropical adventures of a little family who loves winter" to "Our family adventures through every season"(or something similar but maybe not as cheesy sounding....suggestions welcome). Enjoying the now and every season of life (because there are benefits to them all, except teething) is my goal. I'm working on finding the right balance of appreciating the past and looking forward to the future but living in the present. I need to enjoy the simple happy moments of everyday life with my sweet little girls, who will all too soon be grown.

And to those who aren't asleep yet and have asked about the house, pictures really are coming. My battery charger has been lost since we moved in but I finally found it.

Our new view--I forgot how beautiful the sunsets are here!

Fighting Skills

2012-02-06T13:10:00.000+08:00

The other day Lizzie and Samara were playing. Lizzie can get quite rough with her affection. She'll poke, scratch, grab Samara's hair, etc. I hear them playing and giggling. Then I hear, "Oww. LIZZIE!" voice calms "I wish I didn't teach you so many good fighting skills. MOM! We need to get Lizzie in a more appropriate class like dance or yoga or something. No, that would be weird. Yoga is only for adults."

Fighting skills are pretty useful--something poor Samara definitely did not have when she was Lizzie's age. Lizzie just turned 18-months old -- the age when kids can start going to nursery at our church. She went for the first time last Sunday. She was so happy to have toys and snacks and not have to be confined and quiet in Sunday school. She came over near me a few times but didn't seem to need me around. Today, I explained to her she'd stay alone and when it was time for me to say goodbye, she gave me a kiss and only fussed, "mama mama" as I walked away but was totally fine when I left. It sorta...well...really blows my mind.

Lizzie's first day of nursery

excuse the low quality phone pics

Samara's first day in nursery

What a huge contrast to Samara's nursery experience. Lizzie certainly has been babysat alot more than Samara was. Ben, almost in tears, the first day Samara went to nursery went with her as a "bodyguard" to fend off any kid in a 2-ft radius. We were so worried about the nursery thugs hurting her. Samara started babbling when she was a few weeks old and hasn't stopped talking since. She would tell a kid if he/she started taking her toy, "my toy. keep." She didn't take toys. So when they didn't follow the rules, a meltdown would ensue. We moved from NC when Samara was 19 months old and we were here and there and everywhere the two months before we moved to Singapore so she never ended up going to nursery and certainly not alone. When we got to Singapore, we stayed with her the first couple weeks and one of the nursery workers really encouraged us to leave her, insisting she'd be fine. I could tell she was thinking, "what cute overbearing first time parents who think they need to stay with their daughter". But I knew my daughter. The next week we left her like the teacher wanted. About ten minutes later, the teacher came and got me and said, "Well, we normally really try to get kids to stay alone. They cry and we distract them but your daughter is very specific about what she wants. When you left she went to the door and started screaming,""Get me out of this place now! I want my mimo! Let me out!" I tried not to smile when she said, "You're welcome to just stay with her until she's comfortable." Samara has always known how to speak her mind!

So many people tell me their first born is difficult and that the second born is easy going. I know this is not always the case but it often seems to be true.

At first I worried about not being able to give Lizzie full attention like Samara got, but now I think quality time is more important than quantity. Plus not having the attention on you 100% of the time seems to foster independence. Poor Samara didn't stand a chance of not being high strung. We gave her such a phobia of being messy that she still won't eat certain things because they get her hands sticky. She couldn't spoon feed herself until she was older than I will admit. Lizzie, on the other hand, often won't eat unless she can use the spoon herself, which means she and the whole kitchen need a bath afterwards. Once she opened her diaper and played with the poop. Samara would never have done that. Samara never drew on walls or got into things but she also never left our side. At Samara's 9-month wellness check-ups we had to mark "does not do yet" to one of the questions on the "milestones" handouts they give you. We were so worried she couldn't mark that off that we picked up the one for the 12-month check-up so we could do "homework" and make sure all the questions could be answered "does all the time". We should just set up the therapy fund now! I've never even done one of those questionnaires for Lizzie. The other day I thought she should probably be stacking blocks by now. So I got the blocks out and tried to show her how to stack them. She threw them again and again and had a marvelous time doing it. It is torture for Samara to have to do anything alone. Eating breakfast alone is practically a life sentence. Sometimes, I can't even get Lizzie to play with me. She'd rather explore on her own.

The girls are so different but equally adorable and delightful. There is nothing in the world better than hearing them laugh and play together. We love having two spunky girls.

Anyone else have a first and a second child who are so wildly different? I know kids definitely come with their own personalities, but how big a factor is parenting and birth order? What about your third and fourth?

House Update

2011-12-12T21:21:00.000+08:00

Hello world, I'm building a house. Soon it will be done and I will be human again. I will actually listen when people talk to me. I will think about and do things other than house-related issues. But I will never be qualified to make another decision again. I've exhausted my decision making abilities for the year. I should not make any other pertinent decisions for at least 6 months. My brain has lost the ability to chose. I think I will write a 12-step program, "how to resume a normal life and recover your marriage after building". I'm hoping I make at least enough money to put in a yard in the spring.

It took us eleven tries to get the right color for the exterior but we are really pleased with the color.

We've lost count for the interior colors. We spent the girls' inheritance or at least Christmas money on paint samples. They are getting scrap wood from the construction and all the failed paint colors. Santa gives gifts like that, right? Samara will get to "craft" to her heart's content. In fact, she even said she wanted a craft birthday party. Perfect. Each kid can take home any color from the Sherwin Williams or Benjamin Moore paint deck. We probably have a quart of the color they want.

Thankfully, we knew we wanted the same trim color as the other homes in the development or we may have had to take out a home equity loan trying to find the right white (by white I mean off-white/ivory/ but not yellow or gray tinged.) I am POSITIVE that many a person has lost their sanity trying to find a true gray. It doesn't exist. Grays are either blue, brown, green. It's so hard to know what a color looks like from a little swatch. Once you have so many colors up, it's impossible to chose and tell the difference. We don't even remember what we put where. Having so many choices cripples you.

This is our neighbor, Holly Llama. There are goats and miniature ponies too. Our human neighbors have already asked us to feed the animal neighbors while they are away for Christmas. Samara could not be more excited! We miss the Singapore zoo and our animal feedings there. Our other neighbor is related to me. Her mother-in-law is my maternal grandfather's cousin. Small world here in UT! We don't go anywhere here without seeing someone we know.

For the record, even though I am complaining/venting, I know we are very fortunate to build a home when interest rates are at a historic low. Everything has not worked out perfectly/exactly how we envisioned it, but we are pleased with how the house is turning out. It's been a quite process, but will be well worth it. If all goes well with painting, flooring, cabinets, and countertops we will have a final inspection on the 22nd and, if we pass, we will move in on the 23rd. Many more pictures to come soon--just to warn you!

Boo! Happy Halloween

2011-11-01T12:31:00.002+08:00

Samara wanted us to be the Rapunzel family for Halloween. When we first put the costume on, I told her she was the cutest Rapunzel. She replied, "No, the one on the movie is the cutest. I actually look alot more like the kid Rapunzel from the movie." Later I saw her tipping her head back trying to make her hair touch the floor, as she muttered, "I just need my hair to go all the way to ground."

Lizzie was pascal. Poor thing was sicker than sick last week and still isn't feeling that well. She wants to be held all the time so she wasn't happy about posing for a picture. But she's so cute even when she is crying.

Lizzie was getting in Samara's stuff. Samara called out, "Can you please come get this pascal? The real pascal would NOT get into Rapunzel's stuff. "

We went to a healthy trunk-or-treat this afternoon. All the treats had to be healthy, i.e., no refined sugars, dyes, GMOs, etc. There were games and prizes at each trunk. It was great.

Then it was time to go home. "Rapuzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair!" says Mother Gothel. Samara, however, wanted to go home with her cousin Sariah and I told her, "No, not today." To which Samara replied, "Uh!!! You are mean. If you don't let me go then you are the real Mother Gothel! Really you are. I want Cheryl back. I just have to go home with Sariah." Ha! No flair for the dramatics at our house.

Still not wanting to have a photo taken

"I am not afraid to use this!"

Lizzie's a little happier now.

Lizzie is also really getting into character. She loves sticking out her tongue. One may say it's because she's teething but I know it's really to catch bugs.

My SIL threw a fabulous Halloween party on Saturday. The theme was Cowboys and Indians and it was held at Sundance Resort. The food was delicious and it was fun to get out and meet new people. Giddy up! Happy Halloween!

Toddler

2011-10-10T23:01:00.002+08:00

Baby Lizzie isn't a baby anymore. She's toddling all around now. Does anything else compare with the cuteness of a baby learning to walk? I love the cautious hunched form used to keep balance and the sheer delight and pride when they take those first steps. Soon we won't be able to keep up with her.

Thailand: Railay and Phi Phi

2011-09-23T12:53:00.001+08:00

We were able to fit in one last holiday a couple weeks before we moved. We really wanted to see Bangkok and the family had never been to my favorite place so we opted for twofer--Bangkok and Krabi.

We stayed two nights on Railay Island.

That little cave, in right of the photo, is a fertility cave with some pretty interesting carvings. I'm pretty sure visiting the cave, when I went climbing, helped Lizzie get here. :)

Unfortunately, it rained most of the time we were there. Fortunately, Samara loved playing at the beach in the rain and even in the rain Krabi is lovely.

On our first trip to Thailand, with my Sister-in-law, we learned about Phi-phi islands but didn't make it out to see them. This time, we took a snorkeling-island tour on our one full-day there. The boat ride was crazy bumpy and made me nervous with the kids. Because of the weather we couldn't stop at Maya Bay, which was the place I wanted to see most.

One of our stops was a beautiful lagoon. The local boys who were working on the boats started climbing up a ~12-foot rope and hopping off a branch. This is the kind of thing that Ben takes as a challenge. So, he hopped out of the boat and joined the young local boys, showing them that (really) white guys can do it, too. And he had to do it twice, because I didn't have my camera ready the first time. See white guys really can do it, two. Ha ha!

Long boats really are so fabulous. Someday I hope to make one my main mode of transportation. :)

This is as funny as it looks. We spotted this fellow wearing white-pink slinky speedo. Yes--he is trying very hard to strike a sexy pose. And you can see the camera in the other guy's right hand. I got some great ideas for photographing Ben in his these. Just scored a pair at Target for his upcoming birthday. Smokin'!

Oh Lizzie Bean--We love you!! But when will you understand the sand is not for eating?!

We took advantage of the sunny moments.

We finished our trip to Railay with a floating or spirit lantern. Samara had been dreaming of sending up a glowing lantern after she saw "Tangled." Thailand is so beautiful. When days are tough, I start singing (to the tune of James Taylor), "In my mind I'm going to Krabi, Thailand..." Can it be my second home, please?

Thailand: Bangkok

2011-09-23T12:49:00.003+08:00

I had a girls' trip scheduled for Thailand last year but we had to cancel it because of the protesting and political unrest. I did not want to leave SE Asia without seeing Bangkok.

The Grand Palace is definitely worth a visit.

Wat Phra Kaew inside the palace.

The Grand Palace is huge and intricate but not too goody. I normally don't like a lot of gold but the palace is so nicely done. I thought the palace is fascinating and beautiful.

The traffic is worse than everyone says!

Tuk-tuks make me happy. I wonder if they are allowed here.

The taxis and buses were all so colorful.

Sweet little girl all tuckered out. Hope no one took her toys while she slept. :)

Street vendors/food everywhere. Some things look appetizing and

other stuff wasn't so appealing.

There are so many temples in Bangkok. You'd need several days, with no kids in tow, to see them all.
We went to Wat Pho and past a couple others.

Our favorite was Wat Saket

There are 318 steps to the top of the golden mount. Samara had fun climbing the steps, which is probably why it was our favorite.

And with bells and gongs to play with along the way who wouldn't like it?! This bell caught her by surprise.

Wat Arun

ABC Bicycle Tour:
I went on a bicycle tour one morning. We rode through back streets and past businesses opening shop for the day.

We went through a make-shift neighborhood.

Offerings and a place to meditate

Million + people come to Bangkok temporarily to work and go back and forth from their towns and this is where they live. It may not look like much (because it wasn't) but they had some pretty sweet TVs and motorbikes.

We rode through plantations and stopped at the village temple. This are the graveyard/ the boxes that hold the ashes of the deceased. Paying homage to their ancestors is very important.

Serendipity smiled on me and I got to see a new monk's initiation ceremony.

I was so thrilled to witness this special and sacred ceremony.

That evening I let Ben take my two-hour Thai massage. It only cost $10 and I thought I'd be nice since he'd stayed home with the girls so I could do the bike tour. He came home and said, "NEVER make me go get a massage again. EVER. That was the most excruciating two hours of my life. I had no idea someone who weighs 90 pounds could inflict so much pain."

Sorry, honey!

Hotel:

We stayed at Sil-Q and loved it. Great hotel in nice location with fantastic service.

Our driver was named Tiger and he was honest and helpful. His number is 081-951-9953. Samara loved riding in a pink taxi. Excuse the humidity in the lens.

Farewell, Thailand! We'll be back someday.

Bangkok: Floating & JJ Market

2011-09-23T12:49:00.002+08:00

I was excited to visit the Damnoen Saduak Floating market outisde of Bangkok. Make sure you leave early. We left at 6:30 AM and I wouldn't leave any later. It's a good hour and half drive from Bangkok. I really really wanted photos like this.

Loved snapping some of the beautiful women selling fruit and other food from their boats. They all caked on the sunscreen to protect from the brutal sun.

Yummy Thai spices

It's amazing what they can make on a boat.

Our boat driver did not speak English and kept stopping at souvenir stalls much to our dismay. I tried to explain I wanted him to stop so I could get off and get photos from above. Then when Samara needed to go to the bathroom (she drinks a gallon of water at a time so when she has to go she HAS to go) he wouldn't stop. So she was screaming and Lizzie was screaming.

I drowned all the sound out with some manna from heaven, aka Mango sticky rice. For a brief moment, I was at peace with the world. And in my peaceful world, I also had a nice pedi!

The colors and the produce were gorgeous.

He drove out of the market and into the canals with homes. At this point we just held Samara over the side of the boat so she could relieve herself. She's had enough adventures to last a lifetime.

We stopped at a little temple.

This is where I needed to be to get the shots I wanted. Oh well!

Bless this woman! Look what she is selling

Be sure to check out the JJ or Chatuchak Market in Bangkok if you are there on the weekend. It's incredible. I've never seen anything like it. The market has got to be the biggest in the world. You can buy anything your heart desires.

Malaysia: Cameron Highlands

2011-09-16T12:00:00.004+08:00

Since we had a nursling babe and couldn't get away alone for our 10th anniversary, we brought our little munchkins along for a terribly romantic getaway. We found $24 (each-way) tickets to the capital of Malaysia--Kuala Lumpur. So we planned a trip to visit KL and Cameron Highlands back in May. They were both on our must-see list, so we took the chance to go, knowing there was a good chance we'd be moving. We are grateful for all our travels while living in Singapore. We were able to see so many amazing places. One lesson we've learned is that you have to be flexible. We started the trip off on the wrong side of the bed. We'd had a visitor the couple days before we left, which meant Lizzie was in our room and we'd hadn't slept the two nights before we left.

The excitement kept coming--our departure from Singapore was delayed, so we missed our mini-bus to Cameron Highlands. We said "c'est la vie", grabbed some donuts for lunch, and hopped on a taxi saying "adieu" to our cheap trip. The ride was LONG and really uncomfortable--the winding roads were threatening to bring our donuts back up.

Cameron Highlands is stunning. One of the prettiest places we've been. It's apparently great golf courses first put it on the map for foreign visitors. Locals flock here on the weekend to enjoy the cooler temperatures and to buy fresh produce. The rolling hills are covered with manicured tea plantations. Boh Tea plantation is the largest and is a "must-see." You can take a tour, sample the products, and wander around in the plantation.

We went on a hike in the "mossy forest".

This is a pitcher plant that holds a lot of water and is really important to the ecosystem.

We loved learning about the unique ecology in the mossy forest. This is a glue from a leaf.
Our guide's name was Satya. Email is yelIowfoot87@yahoo.com. His number is 013-4399635. He worked for TJ travel and tours but said he could do private. We really thought he was great. Knowledgeable about both history and ecology but entertaining and funny too. Even Samara listened in and learned some thing while we were on the hike, which was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. TJ travel company also has lodging.

Loved the school buses

One of the Highlands original agricultural exports is strawberries, and the locals have made every attempt to keep it a central theme. They have huge strawberry parties where everyone dresses up in strawberry clothes. The strawberries must have been a different species because the taste and texture was odd. They weren't nearly as good as the strawberries in North Carolina.

There are several other attractions. We also visited the insect kingdom. Ben would say it wasn't worth the visit, but Samara loved it.

There are a three small towns. We stayed in Tanah Rata. The tourist were a different crowd than most places we've been. It was full of backpackers and mainly Europeans. You can get taxis in town to get around to the places that aren't on your tour and they were quite cheap. The food was cheap and delicious! We got a huge Indian spread including Mango Lassis for $12 SGD.

Taking the leaves away for tea production.

I think Cameron Valley Plantation (photos above) is the second biggest plantation and definitely worth a visit. We would highly recommend a trip to Cameron Highlands to anyone. Just be warned--the ride is long. And you won't want to return to the muggy hot lowlands after visiting.

Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur

2011-09-16T10:41:00.001+08:00

By the time we reached KL, we felt like Horton, when he'd picked through the millionth clover, "more dead than alive". We hadn't slept in days and weren't ready to be back in the humidity after enjoying cooler temperatures in Cameron Highlands. We usually pound the pavement and walk through as much of a new city as we can. This time we opted for the hop-on/hop-off bus tour. We rode to the city center.

We wandered aimlessly, yet contentedly, around for a while and made our way back to the bus. We enjoyed the architecture of several of the mosques and government buildings.

We got very few photos, but this was my favorite of the trip. I was trying to take a photo of the "Selamat Datang", which means welcome. I didn't realize until afterwards that I was catching Ben in the act of wearing an illegal ball cap (see the sign?). I'm glad we didn't have to find out the penalty!

The needle obsevatory tower.

In the distance we finally caught a good view of our destination--the Petronas Towers. It was temporarily the tallest building(s) in the world--a symbol of the oil money in Malaysia.

The Petronas Towers are beautifully designed and just enormous. It's cliche, but these pictures simply don't do them justice.

Papa Ben, the pack mule! This is his secret to staying fit!

He's like a fine wine/cheese and just gets better with age. Happy 10th anniversary to us!

Hope

2011-09-10T11:21:00.000+08:00

I've hoped for many thing through the years. Many hopes have been realized and some haven't.

My greatest hope and desire at present is that this hole will become

this home by Christmas. Those lovely trees at the back of the lot will stay and our neighbor is a llama named Holly. How fun is that? Originally, the main part of the exterior was going to board and batten but I think we've changed our minds and will go with horizontal siding. We both really like board and batten but the more we look at homes, the more we think it's better used as an accent material rather the the main material. We will have siding shingles as the accent material. I love these and would do a whole home with them if they weren't so expensive. The color will be a slate blue-grey. The windows on the front of the garage won't quite look like the rendering above. We aren't totally sure what we will do there.

What I do know is I should NOT look through magazines. I start planning based on the pictures... then I look at how much, for example, the pictured kitchen costs (70K) and I almost croak. I had no idea cabinets and appliances could be so expensive. I had no idea my taste was so expensive. I've developed a strange obsession with stoves like this one and this one. I'm also enamored with window and ceiling treatments. While my hope that the home will be done by Christmas is (THANKFULLY) realistic, my hope that someone will donate one of those stoves to me or a carpenter/cabinet maker will want to work for free isn't. We are so eager to be in our own place and not live out of suitcases or all sleep in one room. I feel like we've been temporary for years now. Because we were, to some degree, the whole time we were in Singapore and for a good six months before we moved there. It will truly be like Christmas to go through our storage shed. We really have no idea what's in most of those boxes. We definitely won't need presents for the girls because we can just wrap the old toys that have been packed away.

My sister-in-law introduced me to houzz.com. I could spend all day and night on that site. You can save pictures you like into ideabooks. I was gathering pictures for a wish list. The only problem is you can't drag the photos off or save them. However, you can get the html coding for a website so I made a house blog. It's jumbled but I wanted a place to show the contractor, carpenter, etc. ideas in HOPE that some of them will turn into reality. Since several of you have asked about the house, check it out if you are keen.

Grandpa Cal

2011-09-05T09:08:00.024+08:00

One of the perks of marrying Ben was inheriting 4 wonderful grandparents. All my grandparents passed away by the time I was 10. I've really appreciated having his grandparents in my life. Ben's maternal grandpa passed away and his sweet grandma married Cal 17 years ago. Grandpa Cal recently passed away. We first visited this set of grandparents when we were dating and just before we got engaged. I overheard him telling Ben that I was "the one". We visited them several times a year when we lived in UT before. Grandpa Cal was always very good to me and treated me just like one of his own. Together he and Ben's grandma have 88 grandchildren, 133 great-grandchildren, and 7 great-grandchildren. Each grandchild, grandchild's spouse, and great-grandchild gets a call and a card on his/her birthday. I think that is amazing and so impressive.

Cal served in the Marines. His funeral was very neat and I'm grateful we were able to be here for it.

Ben's lovely Grandma Helen, who Elizabeth Helen was named after. We hope Lizzie inherits her goodness.

We also got to see Grandpa Bikman, which is always a treat!

Colorado

2011-09-03T11:57:00.000+08:00

Ben had a work conference in beautiful Snowmass, Colorado. Since he had the hotel and car paid for he invited us to tag along. A nomad by nature, I never turn down a chance to go somewhere.

He was busy most of the week, but did get to join us for a hike one afternoon. Ben uninvited us on future trips until Lizzie sleeps better in the room with us. He had a hard time staying awake sitting in all those meetings.

Colorado is lovely. The food was so good--local and fresh meats and produce. Snowmass is near Aspen. This was my second time visiting Aspen and I have to say I'm not that impressed. It doesn't hold a candle to Park City.

Can't get enough of this sweet little munchkin.

Samara's favorite activity of the trip. She was apprehensive about trying it but was so glad she did.

And she's becoming quite the photographer. I love seeing the look on passerby's faces as she hoists the big camera and lens, squints to look through the viewfinder and very confidently/bossily directs the shot.

Maroon Bells was my favorite destination. We went there the last day and definitely would have returned again if we would have had more time. It was gorgeous.

The little break was just what I needed. Life has been so hectic the last few months that I haven't been able to come up for air. It was so nice to have some time solely with these two little hikers.

Visitors

2011-08-29T06:40:00.000+08:00

We've been able to see all our siblings and their families and so many of our close friends since moving back. Utah is a great hub for catching up and we already know that will be a big perk of living here. Did I get pictures of everyone? No, but I did at least get a few with our visitors from farthest away.

Ellie and Juju, along with their family, came to Singapore for a couple months after the earthquake in Japan. Samara connected so easily with them and they quickly became best friends. Their mom also became a dear friend to me. They were a blessing for us and came at a time when Samara really needed some playmates. I've never seen Samara so genuinely sad as when they were leaving to go back to Japan. We parted ways during rush hour at a crowded train interchange. Samara was crying almost uncontrollably. We had to wait a while for our train and she settled down once it came. We squeezed ourselves onto our no-room-to-breathe train and Lizzie started crying. Samara cried out, "See. Lizzie is upset too. She didn't want them to leave either!"

And how cute is little brother Noah?! We love this awesome family! We are so glad we got to see them and hope we can visit them in Japan someday.

Pioneer Day

2011-07-28T10:32:00.045+08:00

My cute niece loves all things "pioneer". My sister is the music chorister for the primary kids at church. She was able to rent some great covered wagons so the kids could do a primary pioneer parade.

The babies and all the older kids loved playing in the covered wagon and going for rides.

Samara's Olive doll. Olive is my maternal grandma. My mom gave her granddaughters the doll to go along with the personal history she is writing.

We dressed up in pioneer clothes and did a little caroling parade around the neighborhood. After about an hour we passed my sister's house and I opted to sneak into the A/C with my fussy baby. I left amazed that people trekked that way for months and months--not only through heat, but trough the winter. Taking 24 hours to fly home suddenly seemed like a breeze.

I am in awe of and grateful for the sacrifices the pioneers went through to get to Utah so they could enjoy religious freedom. During our time in Asia, we were able to visit several places where people were also made refugees. My heart goes out to them.

Pioneer Day is a great reminder for me that I should be grateful for the freedoms and comforts I enjoy. I hope someday that I can be of service in some way to those who are not as fortunate.

Pioneer Day also happens to fall on the birthday of one of my favorite people. (You know who you are!)

One year old

2011-07-25T09:53:00.020+08:00

Elizabeth is one year old! We can't believe it. I must be in denial or at least I'll use that as my excuse for it taking a month to make a post about it. We are delighted she is part of our family.

We loved being able to celebrate with cousins and Grandma.

Contrary to how it looks it this picture, Samara was actually very happy to celebrate with her. Or was it that Elizabeth was rubbing it in her face..."I got presents and you didn't!"

Lizzie is a love bug. She gets so excited when she sees any of us. She especially loves when Papa Ben gets home from work. It's a mad crawl towards him if she's on the ground. Or if she's eating dinner, it's an abrupt end to eating and a mad squeal until he takes her out of the chair. She has powerful lungs and we've been told by several people that she'll be a singer.

Her favorite things to eat are rocks, dirt, sand, sticks, paper, coins, and ice cream. Everything goes in her mouth, especially anything that shouldn't.

Lizzie is friendly but still very pensive when it comes to new people. She has a sweet and calm demeanor and is very tenacious.

We thought she'd be an early walker because she has been on the verge of walking for months. But she's been more apprehensive than we expected (perhaps because of all the changes). Poor kid doesn't know where she will be sleeping from week to week. She recently started taking more steps.

I dread the day when she forms an opinion about all the kisses we give these sweet cheeks.

We love you Elizabeth Helen Bikman!

Packing up but not upacking for a long long time

2011-07-24T11:45:00.000+08:00

We have been back in the states for a month. It's been a long jet-lagged and exhausting month. I just got on to make a post/update and saw these photos in my drafts so thought I'd post them. Packing up and getting rid of most our stuff was not an easy task, but we did it. We must love the feeling of living out of suitcases because we decided to build a house, which means we won't be settled and unpacked for a while. We hope to close and start building in a couple of weeks. I have a ton of photos to go through from our last couple months in Singapore. Now that Elizabeth sleeps more than once in a fortnight, I have some time and hope to catch up on everything eventually.

We had a month to consolidate, get rid of, and pack up our stuff. It was hectic. The girls were a tremendous help. We built forts, dog houses, packed, un-packed, and re-packed. Samara promoted herself to foreman of our packing team and had an opinion on what should be packed where and when. Lizzie, though young, is an expert at unpacking everything. She left me wondering how much paper an infant can safely consume. And I'm pleased to say that Samara and I survived the month with a mother-daughter relationship still intact!

We are adjusting to life in the states. We wonder where all the people are, marvel at how cold it gets (we sleep with space heaters), and are amazed at how cheap things are and how easy it is to communicate with people. My sister is generously letting us stay with them so we are back in the basement where married life for us began. Lizzie spent the first two weeks screaming like mad for the entire duration of any and every car ride. But I am very happy to report that she does awesome in her car seat now. Samara is loving the lack of attention and manhandling from strangers. She also started pre-school at BYU and loves it. She begs to go every day and tells people that her dad got a job at BYU because she goes to school there. Ben is busy getting his lab up and running and putting together the curriculum for his course. I love the beautiful mountains, but am still mourning the loss of adventure, culture and travel. There is so much we will miss about Singapore, but it is nice to be "home".

4th of July

2011-07-24T11:42:00.001+08:00

It was wonderful to be back in the states celebrating the nation's birthday, especially because we spent the time with family.

UT county does a great job of celebrating the 4th, hosting a variety of fun and educational activities. I needed a reminder that my country too has a history and is an interesting place. :)

And what is the 4th of July without a parade and

Fireworks?!

A very happy Independence Day from my adorable 'lil Betsy Ross and her cute-as-a-button cousin.

Made in Singapore

2011-05-31T20:15:00.000+08:00

Singapore imports almost everything--food, workers, sand, and even water. You name it, they probably import it. Every once in a while they have a brilliant export.

This little Singaporean-born expat is Singapore's finest export to date!

Vesak Day

2011-05-20T21:19:00.000+08:00

There are so many things I will miss about Singapore. One of them is seeing Buddhist monks clad in their orange robes all around town. I see them on the street, at stores, on the train, and even at the zoo occasionally. I'm pretty sure I won't be running into any in Provo.

Last Tuesday was Vesak Day. The day is celebrated by Buddhists with great ceremonial ritual and commemorates the birth and enlightenment of Buddha and his entry into Nirvana. Though this is my 3rd Vesak day in Singapore, it was my first time attending any festivities. Thank you Chelsea for having me over for dinner and taking me to it!!

There was a great kids corner with games, which earned you tickets to buy prizes.

The tent was up for several days and all the rituals could be done/seen each day. The actual day itself begins with the Buddha mantra chanting. My brochure said that listening to the chanting is comparable to listening to discourses by Lord Buddha. The chanting bestows blessings and protection. It is a truly a wonderful sound and so peaceful. I've really enjoyed the several times I've been able to hear the chanting.

Bathing Buddha commemorates the birth of Prince Siddhatta.

Lotus grows in the muddy darkness at the bottom of a pond, towards the warmth and light of the sun. Hence, the lotus flower is offered to represent where devotees should turn--towards light and truth.

The devoted Buddhist apply gold leaf to preserve the precious Buddha statues and to extend the lifespan of Buddhism.

The celebration concludes with a candlelight procession through the streets.

The Ten Parami Wishing Wells. Making resolutions is to accomplish the Resolve Parami. "Be diligent in meditation, truthful in speech, the strength of our resolution will increase." I love that!

Since we are on the topic of Buddha. Remember Samara's baby Buddha friends?

Lizzie wasn't too keen about her new playmates. This is how I feel at the moment too! I'm thrilled for the future but so sad to leave Singapore. And I hate packing. And Ben's been gone all week in Ireland. To end on a positive note, I've sold a lot of our furniture. And then I cry over selling cheap Ikea coffee tables.

On the Move

2011-05-14T19:34:00.000+08:00

These little piggies are on the move.

Lizzie could not be happier or more proud of her new abilities. But can you guess what her favorite destination is?

C'est Moi! She's been so determined to move independently only find her way back to my arms. I feel like a million bucks whenever she crawls over to me and pulls herself to stand, wanting to be held. It's so fun to see her sweet little personality develop.

I started this post earlier this week but blogger has been down for a couple of days so I wasn't able to post it. Then today Ben got a job offer from BYU. The universe was trying to tell us something.

Ben accepted a position as a professor in the Physiology and Developmental Biology Department. We are thrilled and grateful.

We have a month to pack up and get to the states for my sister-in-law's wedding. It's going to be hectic trying to fit 1,000 sq feet into suitcases and a few bins that we'll ship. We have loved our time in Singapore and will be forever grateful for the adventures and lessons we've learned. It will be very hard to say good-bye. But we are thrilled to move on to the next step in life. Anyone whose been (or been married to) a doctoral or med student knows what a long (but good) road it is. We are looking forward to our new adventures and being near our families again. I know we will dearly miss SE Asia. It's an amazing part of the world and we feel so lucky to have been able to explore so much of it. But it's time to get serious about retirement so we can make our way back to Thailand! We'll probably have to change the blog name soon to "Awaiting Tropical Adventures."

Happy Mothering Day

2011-05-14T09:44:00.001+08:00

A Decade

2011-04-28T07:06:00.003+08:00

The Mr. and I are celebrat'n 10 years of marital bliss (and spats!) today. We've really moved up in the world--literally. We started our marriage living underground in a basement and are now living on the 11th floor. At this rate we have no choice but to retire in a big city.

I'm so grateful Ben is the one with whom I get to enjoy this unpredictable and wonderful ride. In the immortal words of Cosmo Kramer, "Giddy up!"

Bali: Temples

2011-04-14T07:57:00.002+08:00

I am determined to get this posted while it's fresh in my memory. I have yet to finish all the posts about Cambodia (last October) and it's easy to make comparisons between the two places. The temples in Cambodia are monumental--the scale and magnitude is overwhelming. The temples in Bali aren't as grand, per se, but I enjoyed them equally. The sheer number of them is impressive and they are living temples still in use today. One can't help but be touched by the devotion of the Balinese people.

There are so many temples in Bali that you couldn't possibly see them all in one trip. There are a few big ones we missed so I wanted to list those first.

Pura Besakih: Often referred to as "the mother temple". I read it's very touristy and opinions vary on whether it's worth visiting, but it's considered the largest and one of the most important places of worship.
Pura Ulun Dabu Bratan (Lake Bratan): This is one featured on all the guide book covers. I am disappointed we missed this one. We didn't realize where it was located and were just too far away to go to it the last day.
Uluwatu Temple: Located on top a dramatic promissory with great views, this temple looks similar to the last one in this post, Tanah Lot. I was told to visit Jimberan Beach afterwards.

Pura Tirtha Empul

I am 99% sure that is the name of this temple. Our villa and driver referred to it al the "Holy Springs" temple. If that isn't the name then it's Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu or Pura Mengening.

The source of the water is Pakerisan River (see next temple). Balinese believe the spring was created by the Hindu god, Indra. The waters gushing through it's many spouts are said to have curative powers. People journey from near and far to purify themselves in the pools after presenting a small offering to spring's deity.

Built during the 10th century. Lizzie is going to wish she remembered visiting these amazing sites when she is older. Good thing we have lots of photos to prove it.

Gunung Kawi

Nicknamed the "100-steps temple" but there were far more than that. We lost count.

The stunning Pakerisan River Valley

The natural setting of this temple was my favorite. It was a hot and sweaty trek down to it, but so worth it. We were virtually the only ones there, which is always a perk.

I loved the traditional Balinese umbrellas. Ben was meant to live in a culture where the men done skirts of some kind. He was really digging the sarong and you know how he feels about kilts.

The temple dates back to the 11th century. A complex of rock-hewn candi (shrines), facades, and monks' alcoves are well preserved and were carved out of the ancient rock.

Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave)

This temple also dates back to the 11th century. These pools were excavated in 1922 by the dutch.

The figure above the cave is a Boma figure that frightens away evil. The statue to the left of the cave is a demonic goddness Hriti, who converted to Buddhism and became their protector. The Balinese call her Men Brayut, a woman who had 18 kids. Villagers pray here to be blessed with offspring of their own.

Speaking of offspring...cute Lizzie and her BFF. They syncro nap. How cute is that?!

Puri Saren Agung

The palace of the royal family that ruled from the late 1800s until World War II. Most buildings were designed by Bali's most famous architect. This is conveniently located opposite the market in Ubud.

The kids all got a kick out of this dog--they joked that he thought he was royalty. Apparently, guests can book these sites at the palace if they want to experience life in Balinese palace.

Pura Taman Ayun (Floating Palace)

I have no idea what Samara is doing, but she kept clapping like this for pictures. Ole!

This temple was built in the 18th century by King Mengwi as a temple for the royal family.

The Balinese architecture is distinct and so beautiful. This type of entrance is very common.

The temple grounds are protected by a moat. The temple itself, which is a series of soaring Meru (pagodas), is open only to worshipers; visitors are only allowed to walk around it. Gorgeous, isn't it? The architecture at Lake Bratan is similar.

Pura Tanah Lot (Sunset Temple)

Tanah Lot is located on a picturesque rocky islet just offshore. When the tide is out (as it was in these pictures), you can walk across to the temple area (though climbing to the temple is not allowed due to severe erosion). The founding of the temple is attributed to a 16th-century Hindu high priest who fled to Bali from Java due to the rise of Islam.

This was a special moment for Ben. Earlier that day he had been expressing his regret that he'd never seen a black sand beach before. Needless to say, he was delighted by this stop.

Unrelated, I think this is probably the 2,000th picture of the two of them walking away from me.

Catching our dinner! I really did have fish and chips for dinner. But I'm not so sure it wasn't stray dog to be honest.

We had dinner on the coast overlooking the temple--we had a beautiful view and horrible food. The indigestion was worth it.

And I end with Samara's favorite thing about the trip...Lizzie's princess fairy bed (with signature mosquito netting).

Bali: Landscape

2011-04-10T21:01:00.002+08:00

The natural landscape of Bali is quite diverse and so beautiful. From black-sand beaches to rice terraces to volcanoes, there was always something to 'ooh' and 'awe' over.

Tegallantang Rice Terrace

Say that fast five times! This is the don't-miss rice terrace near Ubud. It was our first stop on our first day. There were pushy vendors so we only stayed a few minutes and didn't get a decent picture. It was so bright and hot. We didn't realize until later that you can walk down it. I'd definitely recommend spending more time here and making it past the vendors.

Plantations

There are several coffee and spice plantations you can visit. Samara is feeding a bat coffee beans from the tree (she is fearless when it comes to animals). In the cage next to the bat, there was some animal that eats the coffee beans then poops them out. This pooped-out coffee is supposedly the best and people pay pretty high prices for it. We stuck with the hot chocolate.

Batur Volcano

We had lunch at a cafe on the volcano's rim--the food was sub-par, but view was wonderful. We were told to avoid the rim as it's a tourist trap, but we enjoyed it and saw nothing to suggest it being too touristy. You can hike the crater and bike down it. River rafting is also very popular and we've heard it's amazing. Lizzie wasn't quite ready for any of that yet.

Rice Paddies

We stayed in a villa 15 minutes outside of Ubud in the middle of the rice paddies. We loved it and are so glad we did. It gave us a good feel of what Bali is like and we were out away from the touristy hotels. It was peaceful and so pretty. I am fascinated by rice cultivation. It is back-breaking work and makes me more grateful for the rice I eat. These fields were being harvested. Since I'm always awake at the crack-of-dawn anyway...

I left my little family safely tucked in their beds and out I went for a bike ride two of the mornings we were there.

I love the early blue of the morning. Besides skiing, there is nothing more liberating to me than being out with just me, myself, and my camera in a foreign country or in nature. Lucky me the bikes rides included both.

Livestock was out and people were getting ready for the day.

The full-moon was on the horizon.

I love warm morning light. These cute kids were on their way to school and called out to me so I stopped and talked to them a little wishing I spoke their language.

This is an representation of a Balinese god. I think it probably evokes the same response from us as Ben did from the villagers when we was out for his morning jogs dripping with sweat and similarly clothed like this guy (people were staring at him with open mouths). I don't think non-western cultures run around like that for fun. :)

I passed people preparing offerings and produce and this village temple. Each village has three temples.

I throughly enjoyed my little bike rides. I told Ben I'd be gone an hour and when I got back it had been two but it still seemed much too short.

Bali: People

2011-04-08T19:46:00.002+08:00

I have fallen in love with the beautiful people of SE Asia and Bali was no exception. The people we met were gracious and friendly and so lovely. I could have spent days photographing them. Their culture and religion are still so living, which is what I think makes Bali such an interesting place.

Haggling or bartering is a way of life in Bali and they are disappointed if you don't join in.

Mara had her first experience with this. While shopping at the market in Ubud for her souvenir, she eyed this bracelet and HAD to have it. We hid it under the others and went to look a little more. After several minutes of her insisting someone else would buy it, we went back and I told her to ask how much. "50,000" says the seller. I tell her to say 20,000. "40,000" replies the seller. Mara, with no clue what is really going on, agrees, "OK". Quickly I whisper in her ear that we can't pay over 25,000 (~$3USD) Mara says, "25,000 and no more." The woman LOVED it! She giggled and said, "Ok. It's yours!" Ben is terrible at bargaining and insisted that I play that role as it's my strong suit, so I'm just aiming to pass those skills onto the next generation. Had I intended beforehand to have her do the buying, I would have pulled out the video camera to record the transaction.

Ok. Back to the beautiful people of Bali....

Girls at a temple. Their bindi are so unique. I'd never seen ones like these before.

Is it wrong that I thought these little poker players are the cutest thing ever?! They were so darling and very methodical about their game. I'm pretty sure the little guy in the orange shirt is spying for his friends. :)

Like all important events in their religion, wedding dates are based on the Balinese calendar. We happened to be there during the ideal time to get married. We saw many homes decorated like this. Both the groom's and the bride's houses are decorated as celebrations take place at each one and last for days. They start at the bride's house and then move onto the groom's, which is where (I'm almost certain) the official ceremony takes place. We saw a couple wedding parties en-route to the groom's house.

A maid-of-honor, who let me photograph her. I loved her beautiful attire. What you wear is determined by the groom's caste. The bride marries into the grooms caste whether it is to a higher or lower caste. Our driver then asked the wedding party whether I could take a few photos of the celebration.

I was so thrilled to have a chance to go in a see what it was like. They were all so kind and gave me a yummy cake to try. I'm not sure how I would have felt having some foreigner off the street show up at our wedding wanting to take photos. But everyone was just sitting around seeming pretty bored. :)

Does anyone know if there is meaning behind how the men where their head scarves? I noticed several different styles. I wondered if it was just a preference for a certain style or whether it had something to do with religion, i.e. their priesthood.

The bride and groom

I spoke with this sweet family on my way out of the wedding. I asked how old their daughter was and commented on how darling she is (all in Balinese, of course). They said, "Take a picture. Take a picture of her." I was more than happy to oblige.

Looks like a comfy spot to read the paper but I am pretty sure he was sleeping!

I was so impressed by how much they carried on their heads. They must have really strong necks.

Darling girls on their way to school in the morning.

Last but not least, I kept running into these two lovely ladies on the trip.

Bali: Religion and Offerings

2011-04-05T21:06:00.001+08:00

We got a steal on tickets and were able to visit beautiful and unique Bali last week. Bali is the only island in Indonesia, the world's largest Islamic country, where Hinduism is the predominant religion. The religion is a called Agama Hindu Dharma or Agama Tirtha.

Buddhism was the state religion of Bali's early kingdom. In the 10th century, Bali's King Udayana married a Hindu Javanese princess and the two religions fused. During the 16th century, high priests moved from Java to escape the encroachment of Islam and introduced the caste system to Bali.

The Balinese people are very dedicated to their religion. Their devotion is inspiring. Balinese Hinduism lacks the traditional Hindu emphasis on cycles of rebirth and reincarnation. The religion focuses on a myriad of "hyangs", the local and ancestral spirits. The Balinese have long regarded the universe as a structured entity where everything has it's place. They recognize the duality of nature: male and female, good and evil, day and night, life and death.

Balinese Hinduism is interwoven with art and ritual. Rituals and ceremonies are a part of everyday life. It is definitely not a "sunday-only" religion. We drove past this procession. Our driver said I could take a photo (so I stuck my head out the window and lost my sunglasses) but to never stop or interrupt the procession. He said this was the most sacred ceremony. I'd love to go back and see more of their fascinating religion and culture.

Order and harmony are personified by deities who live on mountaintops and bestow their blessings on humans. Demons symbolize disorder and dwell beneath the sea. Offerings (banten) are made at least daily to both ancestors and gods and demons.

We spent our first few nights in Ubud, in the center of the island, which is surrounded by incredible rice fields. Samara and her cute friend were up with me bright and early one morning. With their sashes donned, they were appropriately attired to help Made, the Balinese woman, with the offerings for our villa. Adult women require a sarong and their shoulders covered to participate or to enter one of the temples.

I read an average household can spend at least 50% of their income on offerings. The physical parts of the offerings are eaten and regarded as leftovers from the Gods. Those made to demons are discarded. Creating them is an act of devotion and a sign of their gratitude. The offerings are everywhere in Bali and are gorgeous! Ever village has it's own unique style. I'm so glad we could see how it was done.

Presenting the offerings requires incense, holy water, and prayers. The holy water and prayers, or "mantras", purify the offerings. The smoke of the incense wafts the essence of the offerings to the intended destinations.

The offerings in the blue plate are rice on banana leaves. They are ones that would typically be eaten later.

Offerings are placed according to their destination and function. Those places up high like these are for gods and ancestors. This is to ask for blessing and to give thanks. While the demons receive theirs on the grounds to keep them appeased and away.

TGIF

2011-04-04T19:46:00.002+08:00

Samara had an awesome Friday a few weeks back. She got to be a Jr. Zookeeper at the zoo. Local schools were on holiday so they were running the program all week.

I conveniently did not notice the minimum age requirement. Just-turned four is almost five, right? She was the bravest in the group, so I felt good about my decision. :)

First stop was a lesson about the different kinds of horses and ponies and learning how to groom them.

Next was learning all about grooming and feeding the rabbits.

And last, but not least, was feeding the goats.

It was a fun and neat experience for her. For those in Singapore--it's just $10 and the zoo is running the program on Saturdays from now on.

I'm trying to get Lizzie used to her stroller. She loves it in small doses and lasts about 15 minutes then she wants back in the Bjorn.

That evening, Samara and I went on a special date to Disney on Ice. Maybe I need to get out more, but I really enjoyed it! I went to one as a kid and it was a lot different than I remember.

Such a darling bunch of kids!! Thank goodness not every Friday is this exciting. I was worn out at the end of the day!

The Squatty Potty

2011-04-04T19:44:00.000+08:00

This is what Samara affectionately calls the squatty potty. "I can go in the squatty potty." She often brags. Still, we avoid them whenever possible.

The morning we left for Bali I woke up with a bladder infection. Only my second one ever and they stink! We somehow lucked out with seats at the front of the plane making my frequent trips to the toilet more feasible. We got off the plane, got our visas, and it was time to hit the loo again. Samara had to go as well, so I took her with me while Ben waited for the bags. When we got to the bathroom Samara said, "I have to go poop!" I helped her on the toilet. I HAD to go so I was left with no other choice but the squatty potty. Not an easy task with baby Lizzie strapped to me in the Bjorn. Samara's door was not closed since I'd helped her on the toilet. I hear Samara yell out, "Don't look at me when I'm going poop!" Oh my. Apparently, some poor woman walked past her stall. She tried to avoid eye contact and hurry out when I came out of my stall. I tried to hold Samara's stall closed with my foot to give her some privacy. "Mom, how can I go poop if I can still see your toes? I need privacy." It was a glamorous start to our holiday! And I think I deserve the mom-of-the-year award for giving up the regular toilet to my child.

But don't think this bathroom experience was all peaches and cream ... my squatty potty was NOT nearly this nice. I stole this from Jessie's blog.

Family Photos

2011-03-28T20:33:00.001+08:00

My sweet and very talented friend, Malia, took our family photos for us. I've been wanting to get them done for a while and am SO thrilled with how they turned out.

Thank you, Malia!!! WE LOVE THEM!!

Happy Holi Day

2011-03-27T22:08:00.001+08:00

Saturday morning we were on the zoo bus and saw a sign for a neighborhood Holi festival of Colours. I told Ben we had to go since I'd always wanted to see one. By "always" I mean like a year and a half, since that's the first I'd heard about it.

The Holi festival has an ancient origin and celebrates the triumph of good over evil. The colorful festival bridges the social gap and renews sweet relationships. People hug and wish each other "Happy Holi".

You dab color/ gulal on the forehead, cheek, arm of another person and

wish them a Happy Holi. It may seem weird to some but it was actually a really neat experience. Not to sound like the Hippy Car on Cars but "There was a lot of love out there". We are definitely the minority in our neighborhood so it was a fun way to get to know some locals.

Off we go to make some new friends.

One woman came up to them and said as she dabbed the color on, "This represents that all people are one and can be happy together." I thought that was lovely.

Even the little babes get in on the fun and make friends!

Lizzie: "Hey, what's that stuff on your face? Doesn't your mom clean it off after you eat. Mine does and I sure hate it. Your dad has something all over his face too."

Friend: "Must be your first time here. You have it all over your face too. By the way, I like the paint splotches* on your dad's face."

*freckles

Side story: a DOCTOR here actually referred to Ben's freckles as splotches once. He'd never seen them before.

Lizzie kept staring at me. I don't think she quite knew what to make of my new look.

The kids really get into it. They were throwing and dancing and having the best time. It was $3 for the bags of paint and a yummy snack. Best $3 I've spent in a long time!

I googled Holi Festival when I got home and Utah came up as a search suggestion. Apparently, the Krishna temple in Spanish Fork has one of the biggest celebrations in the states. Who knew?!

Solids, Swimming, and Sitting

2011-03-16T20:53:00.000+08:00

Solids:

Lizzie has taken to eating solids so well contrary to what this picture shows. Samara did not eat solids until she was like 10 months old. But Lizzie gobbles up almost anything. She'll press her lips closed very tightly if she doesn't like what you are offering.

Her favorite thing to suck on in black licorice sticks. She sucks on them like a pacifier. They are all-natural, right?! Then my friend pointed out the molasses probably isn't that great for her new little teeth.

Swimming:

Baby Lizzie has taken to swimming quite well. She loves splashing around in the pool. Isn't this suit the cutest?! My cousin gave it to me and my sister-in-law sent a pink one in the next size up so I don't even have to be sad when she outgrows the yellow one.

Sitting:

Sitting independently is one of my favorite baby milestones. Little babes are so cute when they first learn to sit. Lizzie has the cutest somber expressions and

the sweetest smile!

She's also learning to clap. I couldn't decide which was my favorite of this grouping so you get to see them all!

She's a keeper!

Three going on Thirteen

2011-03-15T07:29:00.014+08:00

Samara is four. FOUR! That seems so much older to me than three.

I've been so excited for her birthday because I've had the presents since Christmas. We brought them back from the states because the "made-in-china" toys here are even more cheaply made but cost twice as much. Go figure! It's been hard to keep them a secret for that long. When Samara's birthday was over, I found myself feeling a bit sad that she was four. She's growing up so fast.

She wanted a pink elephant cake again and to go bowling for her party.

Props to my friend, Natalie, who helped make the cake. I don't have any skills in that department so I really appreciated the help!

One of Mara's best friends happens to have two bowling lanes at her condo so we had a small party there. It was so fun! She's decided last May she wanted to have a bowling party after we went for her friend's birthday.

She got a strike on her first bowl. With no bumper pads that didn't happen again much to her dismay.

She told me the day after her birthday that she wants to invite all her friends next year like she did when she was three. I think the whole gift thing is really sinking in with her. :)

I stole this idea from my friend, Deborah's blog,
Four things I love about her:

1) She's a mini grown-up

Other adults tell me this all the time. In her mind, I am pretty sure she does think she is a grown-up.

2) She loves her family!

The toppers for the cupcakes and the elephant are made out of marshmallow fondant. She wanted to get her angel cookie cutter out when we made the elephants. She made five angels and said, "This is papa in heaven as an angel, this is Mimo ... , me ... , Lizzie ... , and Little Kicker (the brother she wants) in heaven as an angel. She is happiest when we are all doing something together.

I usually don't bother correcting a passing stranger who thinks Lizzie is a boy. Fortunately, I have Samara, who always sets them straight, "She's not a boy! She's my sister. Her name is Elizabeth Helen Bikman." Then she sighs and rolls her eyes.

3) Has a great sense of adventure

Samara is not brave/advanced physically but she very adventurous in other ways. She gave her first talk in primary a couple weeks ago. Oh my. It was adorable. She did an awesome job. The other day I went it to tell her quiet time was over and saw this stack of books on her side table.

She told me, "I was just reading grown-up books during quiet time. I really liked the one about Cambodia (The Gate) with all the pictures of the temples we saw there. Ya, the books were so interested (interesting). "

4) She is very quick-witted and has a great sense of humor! She has the sweetest giggle too.

After she helped me get ready to get out the door, I asked, "Samara, what would I do without you?" She replied, "Panic." Her quick responses always keep us laughing.

Her primary teacher told me that he gave out some treats in class. There were two little bags left after everyone had eaten some. He asked if anyone's parents would be upset if they had more. She replied, "My mom would be a little bit upset." He said, "OK" and tucked them away. Two minutes later, Samara raised her hand and said, "I said my mom would only be a little bit upset. Now, can I have the marshmallows?"

A Boy Girl Pattern, Duh!

2011-02-23T20:17:00.005+08:00

To say, "Samara loves to draw" is a big understatement. We bought 6 reams of paper to prop the bed up when Lizzie was breech in an effort to get her to turn. I wondered what on earth we'd do with all the paper. We only have two left. Samara has developed certain rules about her drawing. Both sides of a sheet of paper absolutely cannot be used. Once you draw something anything on one side, it's spoiled. She draws for everyone and while doing everything. I love seeing her drawings develop and change.

Last week she was really into drawing families. Here is our family:

On the left is our current family. To the right is who she hopes to add to our family--a brother (Little Kicker (her baby cousin's nickname) and a pet cat.

She brought this picture to me the same day and I asked whose family it was. She looked at me confused and very matter-of-factly said, "It's not a family. It's, you know, a boy-girl pattern."

Silly me! How did I not know that?! Boy-girl patterns: it's what all the kids are drawing these days. (You'll notice how there really is a pattern--long hair, short hair, long hair...) So cute!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-12T20:17:00.001+08:00

Samara came home from joy school with this cute card:

And we sure felt loved!

Happy Valentines Day from our house to yours!

Hong Bao and a Series of Unfortunate Outings

2011-02-09T18:42:00.001+08:00

It's that time of year when this part of the world comes to a stand-still. Families are visited, decorations put up, reunion dinners held, and these red envelopes, which contain money, are given out to those who are single and younger than you.

Samara knows all about the money! Fish and gold are both auspicious and at $5 a bag, Goldfish are a real treat (though I think we brought these back at Christmas).

Lizzie was so excited about the ...

...paper. It is delicacy to her.

Ben normally works during public holidays and takes time off other days because it is CRAZY everywhere when everybody has the day off (remember, Singapore is one of the most densely populated countries in the world). However, this holiday Ben opted to take the time off, which meant a 4-day weekend for us. We had great plans...

We thought since everyone was visiting their families, Thursday would be a good day to go to Sentosa. Ben's Chinese co-worker thought so too. Well, Singapore's Chinese residents were definitely unaccounted for but I'm certain every Malay and Indian was present. Together they make up 23.6% of Singapore's population (over a million people). It was a seriously crowded beach! And I'm not even going to mention how many pictures were taken of the girls or how we had to walk to the little island via the new boardwalk because the wait for the monorail was too long or how then the bus dropped us off at the wrong beach and we walked and walked some more.

We didn't fare much better Friday on our two outings. I opened the paper Saturday morning and saw each of three places we'd been, featured on one page, and had a good chuckle! Sadly, we didn't get to really see much of what we wanted or get any exciting pictures but we do did ALOT of extra walking. I'm not superstitious but I'm starting to think this is all because I put $4 in Samara's Hong Bao not thinking about how that is a "no no" as 4 is the most unlucky number!

On the bright side the walking meant we got to eat more of these. Pineapple tarts are a new favorite of mine!

Saturday, we headed to the Science Center for a wintry Lunar New Year celebration. We don't even have a picture of the awesome shaved iced/fake snow (to the left). We only caught the tail end of a Lion dance. *Sigh* again. But hopefully we can catch one in our neighborhood before the holiday officially ends this weekend. Because you simply can't start out a new Lunar New Year without seeing a proper Lion Dance.

Here is to hopping the year of the Rabbit brings you and yours happiness and prosperity!

Daddy Does My Hair

2011-02-04T11:42:00.002+08:00

When Samara was a baby, people told us all the time that she looked just like Ben. Then they'd make a joke, "Well it must be the bald head." Chuckle. Chuckle. Ha. Ha. We found this shirt when Samara was a baby and thought it was appropriate.

Seeing as Elizabeth is bald as well, we again get the bald comment over and over. In fact, if we had a billion dollars for every time someone said it to us, we could probably pay off the US national debt. :) But she is my baby clone not his!

Ben is very proficient at doing the girls' hair when they are babies, among the many things he does well. But my one complaint about his parenting...he can't seem to keep it straight how he's supposed to carry his young.

Thaipusam

2011-01-23T22:32:00.000+08:00

Last Thursday was Thaipusam, a Hindu celebration of the day Lord Murugan received the "Vel" or divine spear from his mother, Mariamman, so he could kill the feared demon Soorapadman. Have all those names straight? Thaipusam is celebrated during the full moon in the Tamil month of Thai (Jan/Feb). The celebration involves a procession of people bearing kavadis, which are cage-like structures ornamented with peacock feathers and steel plates displaying pictures of Hindu gods. This is done to give thanks and show gratitude for blessings received from Lord Murugan. For instance, if the devotee's son is laid up with a fatal disease, he would pray to Shanmuga (another god--they can pray to various gods during this time) to grant the boy a lease of life. In return for which the devotee takes a vow to dedicate a kavadi to him. Some spend the month prior fasting from meat and abstaining from worldly pleasures to purify themselves. Others fast during the day and eat only after sunset. Some even sleep on hard floors to prepare themselves.

Some shave their heads and cover them in saffron paste.

I read that those who had trouble having babies will carry their baby draped in saffron robes, balanced on sugar cane stems throughout the journey. Obviously not what is going on here, but I thought that was interesting.

The simplest form of kavadi is to carry a jug of milk balanced on one's head.

Others carry pots of milk and hook little pots of milk to their body. They are also skewered on their tongues and/or cheeks. Remember the Vel/spear Lord Murugan received from his mother.

Some will bear many hooks with attached objects like limes, oranges, apples and even coconuts on their backs and chest.

Kavadis are made of wood (like this one) or steel and made to balance of the shoulders of the penitent. They are decorated with peacock feathers, flowers, and other decorations. The peacock feather is symbolic of the vehicle of Murugan

The steel kavadis, which are all diversely and ornately decorated.

The Vel Kavadi is a movable altar that is pulled with ropes attached to hooks in the penitents back. First photo shows the hooks in his back. In the second, look behind him and you can see the Kavadi he pulls.

The devotees are accompanied by drummers, flutists, and

an entourage of friends, relatives, and well wishers. Along the way (which is a specific 4.5 km route) they engage in sacificial acts to thank the various gods for answering their prayers. Some did dances while others sang and said chants. Others you could tell were struggling just to make the 4.5 km walk from one temple to the other.

Watching the procession was so interesting but watching them prepare was fascinating.

They lay out everything they need to prepare.

Filling a milk pot

Adorning nails shoes

Piercing through the cheek. I don't even have my ears pierced so I'm not sure how this didn't bother me more. His eyes went bloodshot and rolled in the back of his head. Friends and relatives chant while they are doing the piercing to help distract him from the pain he feels. They also do this during the procession.

The token BW photo. There aren't too many that have reason to be BW as everything is so colorful and vivid but I loved this image.

Holy ash (saffron powder) is used to sanitize the areas being pierced. It is also smeared on their foreheads. This is common in many Hindu rituals to ward off evil.

The penitent smears it on his family's/supporters' foreheads.

I'll close with this beauty!

Thaipusam also happened to fall on my birthday.

And my sweet friends treated me to some delicious Indian grub--family style.

Then Saturday a Turkish lunch with my cute family finished off with Kunefe. It was a great birthday--one I won't forget. It will take something very unique and yummy to make my next b-day as interesting as this one. :)

Three Girls, a Guy, and a Pizza Oven

2011-01-21T21:14:00.002+08:00

Anyone remember that show Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place? Well, my girlfriends and I watched it religiously. We had a very official unofficial fan club complete with "I love Berg" t-shirts. I'm glad Mr. Reynolds broke it off with Scarlett. I'm not a fan of her.

That was random and this is my random update on us. Last year flew by for us. We knew how the whole year was going to play out--we had Lizzie's birth to look forward to, some trips, some visitors, etc. We knew what to expect and when. That is always nice. This year we have no clue what is to come. We've enjoyed so many things about living in Singapore. And although Ben's not a student anymore, we still feel like students to some degree. We are ready to be more settled and not have half our income go towards rent, especially as Samara gets older and is very ready for pre-school (the cheapest in our neck of the woods being $400+/month here means that's not affordable). Everything has been up in the air since we came back and we are finally settling in. We are going to do a joy school for her with a couple of her friends and our calendar is filling up with other activities. It's nice to be back.

We really have enjoyed living in Sinagpore, but we're beginning to feel the desire to settle down (we've never lived more than 2.5 years in any place since we were married, which is almost 10 years). Ben has started exploring options for faculty jobs in the US (and even a job in Melbourne as in Australia.). We'll hopefully have some idea of our professional options within the next several weeks. Frankly, I love the idea of spending time in Melbourne. All of a sudden I hope he doesn't get a faculty job in the US. :) All the Arnotts products we can eat! It's pretty unlikely it would happen, but fun to think about. And there you have it for the guy and here's the update on the three girls.

Though life more often than not looks a little chaotic like this:

I wouldn't have it any other way. I LOVE having two kids and am very grateful we do.

I've been busy with photography, which has been a blessing. I'm trying to make the most of all the cultural awesomeness Singapore has to offer in case we do go home this summer. And I am always on the look-out for a steal on tickets and a way to take another trip.

Samara is downright hilarious. She is SO excited and proud about being in primary. She tries to answer all the questions and would love to be chosen for everything. She even gave a prayer her second week. She's into empowering others, "Mom, you're in charge, right? Ya, you are. Could I please watch a movie since you are in charge?" She is always "ON" and life is never dull when she is around.

Sweet Lizzie is almost six -months old. How has a half a year gone by? She's a wee lass at 6.15 kg and 68 cm--in US terms that's the fifth percentile. Contrary to how it may appear in this photo, napping is simply not her thing. She rocks the 2-3 naps per day schedule. But they are never longer than 20 minutes. She is cuter than cute though and we are glad for the extra chances it's gives us to smother her with kisses. She is starting to eat solids and is taking to it very nicely.

The Pizza Oven:

Ben's brother built an outdoor kitchen complete with a wood-burning pizza oven. And now I know I NEED one.

The pizza is tres-delish and we had so much fun making pizzas when we were visiting. Our kitchen does not close off to the outside. So, I guess I'll be content with my "outdoor" Singapore kitchen for now.

In conclusion, I want to live here:

No, I will live here someday! I will retire in Thailand.

Our landlord was going to raise our rent substantially so we were looking into other housing options. Rates in Singapore are at an all-time high and we realized when we started looking around that we got a steal on our place even if it seems like a lot to us. We looked into a great affordable place available to University faculty. The only problem was it is literally on the edge of Singapore. As in there was a fence at the back of the property, a little bit of jungle and then the Johor Straits. And it was a good 15 minute walk to anything, which is not ideal without a car. And we'd have to find somewhere to live in the month interim of our lease ending at our current apartment and that housing becoming available. I had that part all planned out. I started searching online and found it would be cheaper to rent a condo in Krabi then anything we could have found in Singapore. The guy could have flown up on the weekends and the three girls could have lived on the beach. But it wasn't meant to be. We decided living on the cusp of the island was not the right thing for us. We were able to negotiate with our landlord (through the realtor of course who gets a whole bloody months rent in for exchanging a few emails) and we are going to stay where we are...at least until this summer. Then who knows where in the world we will be. We may just end up being your neighbor!

You Can Thank My Mother

2011-01-21T20:38:00.000+08:00

My sweet and very talented friend, Heather, made these darling dressed for the girls. She sent them over when Lizzie was born. I love the dresses. Both the style and fabric is beautiful!

I finally got a few pictures of the girls in them. Lizzie was happy for exactly 3.2 seconds so we unfortunately only got a few. :(

Check out Heather's blog and Etsy shop. She is super creative and has so many cool items and gift ideas. Her prices are really great too!

The girls' favorite part of the dresses are the ribbons--they both loved chewing on them. :) Props to Samara Lou for the great photo.

Thanksgiving

2011-01-12T20:28:00.001+08:00

We hadn't planned on going home this year for a visit. But Ben's brother called us a few weeks before Thanksgiving and offered to fly us out to a big gathering at his place. We very gratefully accepted the offer.

So....Instead of cooking Thanksgiving dinner in the glorified sauna/closet that is our kitchen,

we got to spend it in this kitchen, which is literally the size of our whole apartment. :)

The best part was that we got to be with 40 other members of Ben's family, some of which we haven't seen since before we moved here. It was wonderful to see everyone.

It's never dull when Ben's family gathers. This was a pressurized canon that catapulted things into the air.

Samara loved the cooler weather and being able to play outside for hours without sweating. It was everything we could do to get her come inside.

Grandma and Grandpa

Lizzie loved all the attention she got from her sweet cousins.

Aunt Shanna hosted a PP party. Pajamas, treats that start with a P, and fun games. I believe the other "P" stood for princess but that changed when the boys wanted to join. When it was Samara's turn to be Simon, I overheard her from the other room, "Spank your booty. Spank your booty." Oh dear. What happened to jump up and down, pat your head, etc.?

Then there was duck, duck, goose. She chose her goose and

then she was off.

The game has lost much of its appeal here at home. But we're still keeping it real. :)

Our girls are so LUCKY to have so many wonderful cousins. We loved seeing everyone and are very grateful we got to visit the states.

P.S. This trip was a great way to relive the newborn phase or at least the sleep part of it. I was only semi-coherent this week...ok I've been in this state for a while now.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T20:50:00.001+08:00

Mara Lou sure loves

sweet baby Lizzie.

And I think the feeling is mutual.

Lizzie lights up whenever her big sister is around.

I hope you are surrounded by people you love and adore this Christmas!

Santa

2010-12-14T11:26:00.001+08:00

Letter in hand,

we set out to visit Mr. Claus last Saturday. The verdict according to Lizzie: Whatever... just another strange person holding me. According to Samara: He's fine but the candy cane made the visit!

My verdict: These two are scrumptious.

Happy Winter Everyone!!

Four Months Old

2010-11-21T07:35:00.000+08:00

We sure love little Lizzie. She is a sweetheart. We can't believe she is four months old. We are so glad she is part of our family.

Can you tell which side Ben was standing on?

Cambodia: Ta Keo, Banteay Srei, and Kbal Spean

2010-11-15T19:40:00.001+08:00

Ta Keo

There are lots of temples to blog about, lots of info to record...mostly for our own records and book. Ta Keo was built as a state temple by Jayavarman V in 968 A.D. and was dedicated in 1000 A.D. it has five sanctuary towers arranged in a quincunx, built on the uppermost level of five-tier pyramid consisting of overlapping terraces (a step pyramid), surrounded by moat, as a symbolic depiction of Mount Meru. Ta Keo was never completed because it was struck by lighting and considered unlucky. We didn't go in and climb it, but you can.

Banteay Srei

Temples were built by/for kings and teachers of kings. If the latter, the temple was built at ground level, i.e. no big staircase. This one was built at the same time as Ta Keo by Jayavarman V's priest and mentor, Yajnavaraha. Banteay Srei means "citadel of the woman or citadel of beauty."

This was our "unlucky temple". We arrived the same time as two bus loads full of tourists who thought our kids were more picture worthy than the ruins! This temple is built of red sandstone, a medium that lends itself to intricate carvings. It is nicknamed the "pink temple".

We traveled with three other families. This was a fun clipboard with treasure hunts and games courtesy of Miss Jessie. Mara loved it.

Hiding from the tourists. We really don't worry about this little miss being kidnapped. Her scream is very piercing and she has NO problem letting strangers hear it if they pick her up, squeeze her cheeks, look at her the wrong way....

Kbal Speen

Kbal Speen is an Angkorian era site on the southwest slopes of Kulen Hills. It is commonly known as the valley of a 1,000 Lingas. There are stone carving in and around the Stung Kbal Speen River.

The hike went a little like this. Baby falls asleep in the car seat 10 minutes before we arrive.

Ben: "I'll stay with her. I'm sure she'll sleep for a while"

Cheryl: thinking "Ok. See you in 20 minutes. No newborn of ours is naps more than 30 minutes." It's sad but true. They don't. And I'm totally serious.

We spent about 10 minutes getting ready to leave. Ten minutes into the hike, Ben meets Samara and I on the hike with Lizzie in Bjorn. Lizzie poops. Ben has diaper in pocket. We change her. She is still blazing mad. Lizzie and I head back down.

Then, when I was nursing her, and our friend was nursing her baby in the van along with me, people stared in at us through the windows from outside, wanted to hold the babies, and asked if they were twins. Huh? It was great to have another family along who was also traveling with a newborn.

Ben and Samara finish hike with the rest of the crew.

Notice the cool carvings in the riverbed to your left.

Cambodia: Floating Village and Silk Farm

2010-11-15T19:09:00.002+08:00

Floating Village

We spent our first day visiting the floating village located on Tonle Sap. It is the largest freshwater lake in all of SE Asia. The lake is unique in two ways. The flow of the rivers feeding the lake changes direction twice a year and the lake portion expands and shrinks with the seasons. Most of the year, the lake is around a meter deep and an area of 2,700 sq km. However, when monsoon season approaches, the river portion, which connects to the Mekong River reverses its flow and the lake portion increases its area to 16,000 square km and its depth to nine meters, flooding nearby fields and forests and providing needed nutrients. It is one of the most productive inland fisheries in the world.

A church in the village. We had to leave for the airport at 4:00AM, so it made for a very long first day. Perhaps because of that, we weren't that impressed with the floating village. If you need to skip something this would be the thing.

However, it was very interesting to see the countryside on the drive out to the floating village. And we can now say we've visited Tonle Sap. Cambodia, unfortunately, has been experiencing a lot of flooding recently. The end of wet season is thankfully approaching.

Artisans d' Angkor

We stopped at a craftsman village. Artisans d' Angkor was created to help the young rural population find work in their home villages by providing them with high-skilled training and a vocation from which they can earn a living. It was created in 1998 and today it employs over 1,000 people. This program/company has helped rural depopulation in Siem Reap surroundings.

Silk Farm

Next stop-- the silk farm, which is also part of Artisans d' Angkor. First, you have the little silk worms

who molt four times. Then the worms enclose themselves in cocoons. Each cocoon is a 'thread' of raw silk, 300 to 900 meters long.

They boil the cocoons to prevent them from releasing proteolytic enzymes, which cause the silk fibers to break down. The boiling also makes the cocoons easier to unravel. Often, the silkworm itself is eaten (Denise, I still can't believe you ate one!).

The thread is spun. After which, the silk is dyed

and woven. It's a pretty fascinating process. I really enjoyed the visit here. They have a nice gift shop too.

And finally you finish off the long day with a fresh big smoothie.

Prom 2010

2010-11-14T12:40:00.000+08:00

We have the best ward activities committee and always have very unique and fun activities. Last night, Ben and I attended Prom.

Yea, we are a pretty hot couple. Ben is sporting a Scottish original just like he did in '96. I picked up this beauty at the local Salvation Army. I still can't believe anyone would ever get rid of this gem (or gems).

Especially with sleeves like this, which can also be used as weapons.

A Pumpkin and a Pink Pony

2010-10-31T10:56:00.002+08:00

The night before the Great Pumpkin rises out of the pumpkin patch,

Pinkie Winkie, escorted by the lovely Mulan and Snow White, headed to the ex-pat neighborhood adjacent to the American school for an early trick-or-treat. The neighborhood gets upwards of 2,000 trick-or-treaters on Halloween!

Afterwards, homemade root beer and a fun Halloween party at this cute friend's house.

Off Pinkie Winkie gallops for more treats. Her parents have sadly almost finished off her candy already. Word is they get fewer trick-or-treaters in the US military neighborhood and that they pass out lots of chocolate bars. We may just have to head up that way tonight....

Happy Halloween!!

Cambodia: Thoughts and Tips

2010-10-29T22:37:00.001+08:00

We spent five days last week in beautiful and amazing Cambodia. What a fascinating country with an incredible history--both ancient and modern. When London was a town of 50,000, a city existed here of more than one million people. The temples and ruins are awe inspiring. It's hard to put into words and photos just how incredible they are. It would have been amazing to see them a thousand of years ago at their finest. In modern times, Cambodia has endured three decades of war and an atrocious genocide that left an estimate of up to 2.5 million people dead--1/3 of the population. This was led by the Khmer Rouge. Definitely worth reading up on, especially if you are like we were, knowing nothing about Cambodia. Here is a great documentary about Angkor Wat.

I was so impressed and touched by the people. They are kind, industrious, and happy. So recently they've been through worse than hell and the country is slowly rebuilding. They still don't have much, but manage to do so much with what they have. Many people were disabled by landmines that are still a problem due to three decades of perpetual war. In so many societies/cultures today disability is looked at as a reason to get handouts. But Cambodia has programs that teach crafts from which they can earn an income. At the temples, bands like this play great music and sell CDs to earn money. We were waiting in the van on the popular "pub street (tourist street with alot of restaurants)" and a man approached us selling books. I was very touched by him and bought a book. Along with the book, he passed out a business card and a flyer telling about his little business, that he chose it instead of begging and that the business was appreciated. Samara (thankfully) was quiet while he was there, but had her eyes fixed on him. Afterwards, she asked, "Mom, why does that man not have any arms?" Ugh. Tears welled up in my eyes and I wasn't sure how to explain what a cruel place the world can be. She's too young to know about that. The people certainly don't let their disabilities define them and I think it's inspiring.

And like the rest of SE Asia, there are awesome markets,

interesting food (that's snake on top and deep-fried spiders are popular fare),

and I'm always fascinated by how much and how many people fit on a motorbike. We saw one motorbike with a family of six on it. One sweet family we met from our church's local congregation makes two trips to and from church because they can't all fit on their one motorbike. Here is where I remember to never complain again about a long air-conditioned ride on the MRT.

When we got home Samara said, "Mom, the people in Cambodia were always saying to you, 'Lady, lady a dollah, a dollah,' trying to get you to buy their birds and stars and scarves." Very true! Above are some cute girls hawking their fares. Aren't these girls gorgeous? It's hard to resist buying stuff from the kids but many of the adults are very pushy and relentless so beware. We probably would have bought more had they given us a little space. And when you are nursing your baby in the car everyone likes to come up and just stare at you for long periods of time. A little awkward.

We returned home exhausted, but grateful we could visit such a neat place. Samara got to share a room with her cute friend while we were there and did great. Samara told us on the way home that she did NOT want to sleep alone when we got back. She meant what she said.

Here is some helpful info for those planning a trip there while it's fresh in my mind.

Fees

Everything is in USD. You can even get USD at the ATMs. Bring lots of $1s and small bills to buy trinkets and tip. You will get USD in change as well, unless your change is less than a dollar.

$25 Visa on arrival at the airport, bring a passport photo

$20 exit fee at airport, $13 for kids, infants free

$20 One-day temple pass $40 for three days (doesn't have to be used consecutively) or $60 for week

Hotels

Paradise Angkor Villa We stayed here and really liked it. They have affordable 4- and 5-bedroom villas if you have a large family or that you can split with another family. The other two hotels come highly recommended from friends who stayed there.

Bopha Angkor

Steung Siem Reap

Restaurants

We either ate at the following or they were recommend to us. Definitely try the local khmer cuisine. It is very flavorful and sort of a mix between Thai and Vietnamese.

Blue Pumpkin--Fantastic ice cream for $1.50 a scoop! Great pastries too.

Red Piano

Khmer Kitchen

Pizza Company--Delivers to your hotel

Sugar Palm--Got my favorite dish of the trip here, Khmer fish salad

Butterfly Garden

Driver and Guide Info

We arranged everything through a lovely girl named Chetana. The driver is $40/day for a van and you can book a great tour guide, Lee for $25/day. We were thrilled with them. You can arrange to do a service project through them as well. They are all from the local LDS branch. You can get tuk-tuks, vans, and guides when you get there too.

Cambodia: The Six-dollah massage

2010-10-29T22:28:00.002+08:00

We told our tour guide how amazed we were when we saw that our hotel offered an hour massages for $15. He said that it was only $6 at the massage places in the city and said they'd take us to a great place. We took Friday off from visiting the temples. In the morning, off the girls went while the kiddos played with their papas. When our driver pulled up here we were a wee bit concerned. The place looked a little too much like one you'd expect offered massages for $6. We were a bit worried that the construction noise would not facilitate a relaxing atmosphere. Once inside, we were all put in one room that was peachish and somewhat resembled a prison. We sported some matching western-sized tees and PJ pants. After some challenges communicating, our three masseuses came ready for stretching and pulling and slapping. They moved right to the beat of the construction noise. It was my first thai-style massage and I loved it. We all felt limber and relaxed afterwards and were glad we stayed.

It's never boring traveling in SE Asia and we'll be chuckling about this for a long time!

Navaratri

2010-10-28T21:20:00.000+08:00

I had the chance to get out of the house after bedtime several weeks ago to go on a night tour of the Indian festival, Navaratri.

First stop, an Indian Buffet. We have grown to love Indian food since moving to Singapore. Samara begs for Briyani rice several times a week. The food and company were great and we even got a behind-the-scenes look at the kitchen's Tandoori oven.

Nothing better than hot Naan bread!

Tandoori chicken. Tandoori ovens reach up to 480 C/900 F--that's hot! A friend who was checking out the oven with me, had a recipe for this chicken but was told it would never be the same because it was the temperature of the oven that gives it the special taste.

Navaratri literally means "nine nights". Navaratri represents the celebration of the Goddess Durga--the manifestation of Deity in the form of Shakti. Navaratri is divided into sets of three days to adore three different aspects of the supreme goddess or goddesses.

First three days:
The goddess is separated as a spiritual force called "Durga", also known as Kali, in order to destroy all our impurities.

Second three days:
The Mother is adored as a giver of spiritual wealth, Lakshmi, who is considered to have the power of bestowing on her devotees inexhaustible wealth, as she is the goddess of wealth.

Final three days:
The final set of three days is spent in worshipping the goddess of wisdom, Saraswati. In order to have all-round success in life, believers seek the blessings of all three aspects of the divine femininity, hence the nine nights of worship.

The mother goddess is said to appear in nine forms, and each one is worshipped for a day. These nine forms signify various traits that the goddess influences her faithful devotees.

There was music and

lots of beautiful dancing.

This woman was the teacher for all the other girls. She was incredible. She was so expressive and completely captivated my attention.

And I loved this little girl. She twirled and twirled and was having a glorious time. She outlasted me and was probably still twirling when my head hit the pillow.

Mei Mei

2010-10-13T21:49:00.000+08:00

Samara has been very protective of her "mei mei" since she was born. In the beginning, when people would try to look at Lizzie, Samara would quickly pull the top down on the car seat or the stroller. Even when somebody who Samara didn't know well would hold the baby, I'd see Samara's stress level rise. She'd often ask, "Why is that lady holding Elizabeth? Did she wash her hands?" She tells everyone, "Her name is Elizabeth Helen. She was upside down (meaning breach)." However, Samara spent most of first couple months, like the above photo, just observing and not too interested in handling her. She'd hold her for 10 seconds and say, "Ok. I'm done."

But now that Lizzie is interacting more, Samara is all over her: "Mom, she's not saying cheese! Lizzie, say cheese!"; while grabbing her legs, saying "She's kicking me mom!"; rubbing Lizzie's hand on her face, "Her nails are sharp. She's scratching me", "she's looking at me", "she's not looking at me", etc. I'm assuming this is why second children don't have the same 'personal space' issues as first children?!

Mara can't wait for Lizzie to be able to play more. I'm sure they will be best friends and worst enemies as they grow up. We sure love these sweet faces!!

Two Months Old

2010-09-25T19:37:00.000+08:00

Lizzie turned two months old on Tuesday. We can't believe it's already been two months. We had her wellness visit today. On the way there, a gecko crawled out of her car seat and scared me to death. I do NOT like geckos. She is growing well and we hope she will soon be chubby like Samara was. Poor Lizzie has had troubles with reflux and gassiness. She's quite active and strong. We have to watch her close on the bed. She's already rolled over from her tummy to back and can push herself forward quite far when she is on her tummy. She loves a good snuggle and being in the baby bjorn and moby wrap. That makes using public transportation a little easier. :)

I found this basket on Arab Street right before she was born and had high hopes for the newborn sleeping pictures I'd get of her in it. Since we don't make the kind of babies that stay sleep, I'll have to use it for someone else's photos. Lizzie was happy for the first 90 seconds while I let her suck on the basket.

But when I tried to prop her up on her arms she got angry. And I can't blame her. I'd be mad too if my mom put a wool hat on my head in this weather and made me sit in a basket. Even her crying face is cute...most of the time.

And the best part about month two is the smiles! She is so scrumptious. I'm glad I get to spend my days and nights kissing these sweet little cheeks.

Lizzie's three-in-one Blessing Dress

2010-09-22T13:23:00.001+08:00

Where do the weeks go? Lizzie was blessed over three weeks ago and I finally took a few pictures of her in the dress. They aren't what I wanted, but blogging must go on or it will never get done.

I'd hoped to get a family picture of us in front of the chapel (since I've never posted one of our meeting house) but that morning was pretty hectic and after church is always crazy. This was the only picture we got that day. We were able to do the blessing before my mom left. We are so glad she was able to be here for this. In our church, babies are formally given a name and a blessing after they are born as declaration of sorts before putting their names on the records of the church. Members of the church are baptized when they are eight years old. The blessing Ben gave Elizabeth was beautiful.

The beautiful dress that a very kind and talented friend generously made for us (thanks, Sally!). I wanted Lizzie to have a special dress that represented her being born in Asia. Notice the little mandarin collar and buttons.

Darling bracelets that Ben's sweet Grandma sent. Lizzie got her middle name 'Helen' from Ben's Grandma Clark. Lizzie is lucky share a name with such a wonderful woman!

Oh, we love this sweet face! She is perfection.

Enough with the spiritual and on to the comical. Now for the real story of the dress. Like I mentioned, I wanted her to have a special dress. I'd been to chinatown with a friend and found a few cute styles of dresses I liked. Tailors are everywhere here, but finding one who would make a newborn dress was tricky. My friend found a cute older lady who said she could do it. We settled on a style she felt she could make. I explained what I wanted and she confirmed that she understood it was for a brand new baby. She even promised to be quick about it so I wouldn't have to go out of the house during my confinement period to pick the dress up. Her shop is near Ben's work so he picked it up one evening on his way home. I told him to text me a pic and tell me how it was. He said it was lovely but kept indicating it may be a little big for the baby. He got home with the dress, which was very nice and well-made...

...for a five-year old.

I'm sure Ben was trying to gently prepare me, but the word 'little' in Ben-ese apparently means 'enormous'. In fact, just for fun we had Samara put it on and she was swimming in it. Ben wisely and intentionally forgot to tell me until we had the new dress that the little tailor lady (let's call her 'madame Foo') told him, "I make dress to fit a newborn baby to age three." Chego?! (that's Russian for 'did you smoke crack for breakfast?) All too often that's how it's done here. They like to do you favors by deciding for you what you really want. Really, it makes it worse that she actually intended a newborn to wear it when she made it. It's hard not to giggle when we see the dress. We've had fun thinking of how it could have been used on a newborn, a swaddle blanket? sheet for the basinet? Wait...

...I know...she's seen this illustration and read the poem,

My Three White Dresses. She was doing us a favor by making us a three-in-one dress. The back is elastic so you could easily just add some fabric to the bottom to make it a baptism dress and then alter it somehow to be part of a wedding dress. Brilliant!!

It would have been one thing if the dress actually did fit a three-year old. I sent it home to my niece who is six (NOT newborn to age three size). I should have sewn a tag in it that says "made with love especially for the Western baby (that's mandarin for 6-yr old)".

Happy Birthday Grandma!!

2010-09-02T21:35:00.003+08:00

Happy Happy Birthday Grandma Dear!!!

My sweet Mom came over to help us after Elizabeth was born. Getting around with no car and a colicky newborn has proven to be much more of an adjustment than we all expected. My Mom's help has been invaluable. We're so glad she flew across the world to be with us. I think the snuggles and extra naps have made it worth it for her. :)

We've enjoyed showing her a little bit of Singapore, albeit a mini version compared to what our visitors usually get. We had a little dessert with glutinous rice a couple weeks ago that my mom really enjoyed. I told her if she liked the desert she'd love mango sticky rice. I said, "In fact, you'll never go home if you have it." A few days later Samara said, "Mom, let's get grandma some mango sticky rice today so she'll not ever go back to America. It will stick her in Singapore."

Samara treated Grandma to an elephant ride for her birthday. My mom loved it. We were so glad we were able to celebrate her birthday.

I tried to do both video and photos while bouncing to keep the baby asleep in the bjorn. I, unfortunately, thought I was recording when I wasn't and vice versa. So, neither really worked out.

We love you Grandma!! We don't know what we'll do without you.

Sweet Pea

2010-08-11T19:50:00.000+08:00

These are my reward for having to take a passport photo of a baby. It's not easy to get a newborn to look at you straight on with eyes open, ears showing, and hands away from their face! We get to spend the morning at the embassy tomorrow getting the baby US citizenship, a passport, and a social-security number. Then we get to spend the afternoon at the Ministry of Manpower getting Lizzie her Singapore greencard. The joys of reproducing abroad!

Baby stretches are my favorite!!

Alert

2010-08-04T15:18:00.005+08:00

Elizabeth is two weeks old now and is more alert and aware every day. We can't wait to see her personality develop!

The Colors of Heaven

2010-08-01T19:16:00.000+08:00

Last night when I was putting Samara to bed, she asked what color heaven was. I told her I didn't know but that maybe it was all the colors of the rainbow. Then she asked, "Can you go get a picture of papa's mom so we can see what color heaven is?"

Elizabeth Helen

2010-07-26T13:50:00.006+08:00

Announcing....

We got to the hospital and had an unexpected surprise when they told us there were no single rooms available. Had we been in a double, Ben and the baby couldn't have roomed in with me. Not to mention just sharing space and a bathroom with a stranger. The sweet nun (it's a catholic hospital) saw the little devil in me... So, thankfully, that resolved itself by noon the first day when there were discharges and we were able to get into a single room.

It was so wonderful to see her for the first time. We couldn't believe she was finally here. We've been worried about so many things and it was such a relief to have her safely here. She is lovely!! She doesn't look much like Samara did when she was born. Samara was more "Bikman" and Lizzie is more ''Richins".

This was taken just a couple minutes after she was born. She wasn't messy at all and her head was perfect, because she was breech and hadn't spent any time in the birth canal. Her one leg was up by her head but they are both normal curled-up baby legs now. I didn't cry when I was born and neither did she, until they started wiping her up. My dad always told me how they were so worried because I wasn't crying. The doctor said that he could pinch me and make me cry if they wanted him to. We were both relieved to hear her cry!

It was a good experience delivering here. There were some great nurses, but the care is definitely less thorough than what we were used to. I had a more adverse reaction to the anesethia than I did with with Samara. I was really loopy all day and couldn't keep anything down. Thankfully, that passed by the next day and it's already much easier to get around. When I got out of bed, I could immediately stand upright. It was several days before I could do that after Samara. Communicating with the hospital staff was very comical. Above is the national drink of Singapore, Milo. Milo is like a drug in the maternity ward--that is all they wanted me to drink for the first 24 hours (even at the exclusion of things like broth and juice). It didn't matter how many times we declined the offer of some "delicious hot Milo", we received two warm mugs several times a day. You think they would get the hint when, after checking back on us an hour later, they found the two mugs untouched. Nope. Also, with Samara's birth, I lived on ice water--the hospital gave me (and every new mother) an enormous one liter mug that they'd regularly fill with ice water. But here? Nope. 'Ice' is a four-lettered word in Singlish. Water is ONLY served luke warm to hot. They refer to c-sections as caesars so that didn't do anything to help my hunger!

The hardest thing about being in the hospital was being away from Samara. She came to visit us every day and we missed her terribly. We could tell she wasn't quite sure what to make of everything and kept asking, "Does she like me?" She been very helpful and sweet with the baby. She's been eyeing a little doctor's kit at the toy store for months and was very excited to receive it as a gift from Lizzie. Samara reached her limit of being apart from us during our last day at the hospital, . She did not want to go back home with our friend when it was time to leave. Ben took her out in the hall to talk to her and she said, "But Papa I don't want to go back home. Families are supposed to be together". It broke our hearts and we were very glad that we could check out early in the morning to come home. After we got the baby to sleep last night around midnight, Samara woke up a couple times with nightmares about us being away.

One of our biggest concerns has been that Lizzie would have hip dysplasia like Samara did. Hip dysplasia is much more common in breech babies. The pediatrician's tests were normal and she was able to order an ultrasound that we did in the hospital on Friday. The results of that also came back normal! We are so thrilled. We'll have her checked again in a month or two to make sure she doesn't develop it. It's much easier to treat with the harness (like Samara had to wear) early on than with more invasive procedures later on.

We are overcome with gratitude for sweet little Lizzie and the miracle of life. We feel very very blessed to have two wonderful daughters.

July 21st

2010-07-17T10:13:00.001+08:00

is the day Elizabeth will make her debut. Despite our best efforts, she's insistent on making her entry into the world bottom first so we scheduled the delivery for next Wednesday. We are very excited and can't wait to meet, snuggle, and love her!

Thankfully, only weekends and auspicious dates (there were several in July) carry a 30% surcharge at the hospital. And my doctor reassured me that there wouldn't be any surcharges from his end for scheduling it. The surcharge is to discourage locals from choosing elective c-sections solely to have their child on a "lucky"day. Why someone would voluntarily be butchered if they didn't need to be is beyond me!

But I think that 21-7-10 or 7-21-10 is the luckiest day in July. Presently, we are family of three and Samara is three years old so three must be our lucky number. 7X3=21 and 7+3=10 So, 7-21-10 it is! Elizabeth being born that day is going to bring prosperity and fortune to our family for generations.

Macaroni Grill Bread

2010-07-15T19:31:00.000+08:00

Samara announced today that it was her bed's birthday and wanted to make cookies to celebrate. Since I am a fan of both her bed and cookies I was happy to oblige.

While I was looking up recipes, I came across one for Macaroni Grill Bread. Their bread is a favorite of mine so I had to share it. Yum!

When it was time to celebrate she let me know that because her bed didn't have a mouth, we'd have to eat all cookies.

The woes of delivery overseas

2010-07-11T12:57:00.002+08:00

No Maternity Insurance for Locals--We are on a local insurance plan, so that includes us. We knew this moving here. And though it's disappointing, we were happy to take a hit if we were fortunate enough to have another baby. Baby stuff (strollers, clothes, etc) easily costs three to four times what it does in the US. I just read in the paper that last year's birth rate was at record low for Singapore. Hello?! No wonder. Singapore does so many things well and have so many great policies, but let's stop and think about what's contributing to the low birth rate! And some education please about all the methods of birth control may be helpful. I was also reading how it's a problem that women are choosing abortion as a method of birth control over the pill because the pill can really wreak havoc on one's complexion. A nice complexion or an abortion?

Peeing on a Stick--I am grateful we aren't living in some backwards place without modern medical care. But there are some strange things, like not routinely screening for gestational diabetes (except for in us fatty westerners who have HUGE babies) and strep-B. The one thing though that I am so glad I only have to do a few more times is my protein/glusose test. I thought getting the sample into a cup was a challenge with a growing belly but here you do it on a little stick. Then you go back to the waiting room and stand there like a moron smelling the fresh drops of urine covering the stick while you wait for the nurse to come look at it. It feels like an eternity. After she looks at it then you and says, "Ok, normal. Throw away." Then you get to toss it and wash your hands.

Language Barrier and 30% surcharge: I'd hoped to do a VBAC this go around, but little Lizzie is being stubborn and won't move out of the breech position. So, I'm finally accepting that and thinking of the benefits of scheduling the delivery. I got a text yesterday that my doc wasn't going to be in Wednesday, so I called and rescheduled my appointment for Friday. I asked some questions about scheduling the c-section because I wanted to know how it worked to schedule one. I found out it's a 30% surcharge for the doctor, hospital, everything if I schedule it instead of waiting until I go into labor and then just having a c-section. What the hell? Honestly? Is it not more convenient for them? Is it not safer? Makes NO sense. The woman was so hard to understand and just kept saying, "yes, horoscope birth 30% surcharge" Me: "The doctor said I have to schedule it if she's breech. Can you tell me what you mean by horoscope birth?" W: "No, chose birthday means horoscope extra 30%. Maybe you have baby turn. Have natural (meaning not scheduled) birth no surcharge." I get so sick of trying to communicate with people here. English is supposed to be the lingua franca. It's the language they're educated in. They are supposed to speak it well. I'm not being some obnoxious American who thinks they should just speak English because I do. I'm hoping the woman who answered the phone just didn't know what she is talking about.

Confinement: If I had a quarter for every time someone told me how I couldn't go out of my house for a month after the baby was born, drink cold water, or shower I'd have enough to pay for the said surcharge in #3. At first I was polite, even though I think not showering for a month after giving birth is ABSURD! I mean, it was cute that the sweet little old lady who is making the blessing dress said she'd do it quickly so it would be done before the baby was born since I couldn't go out for a month after, but now it's just annoying. I'm tired of being treated like an invalid and told to be careful every step I take!! And some other facts for all you know-it-alls out there: getting sunburned will not harm my baby, swimming will not cause a miscarriage, and painting my toe nails will most definitely not give the baby birthmarks or discolorations!! And do you know what else?! We are thrilled that we will have two girls, so don't pity me for not having a boy when you ask what I am having! And one last thing--my being outside during the lunar eclipse did NOTHING to comprise my baby's health.

People walk soooooooooo slowly--Walking slowly is something that has always grated my nerves, but lately--oh!!!!!!!! Why do I, at 81/2 months pregnant with a toddler in tow, still walk faster than 75% of the population? Seriously people--kick it in gear!!

And now that I have that all off my chest, I feel much better. Soon we will have a beautiful baby here and all of this won't matter. Well, except I'll be scorned when people see me outside during that first month. I wonder if they'll turn me in. I'm off to do my headstand and pelvic exercises. Gotta relax that uterus and help this baby turn!

Five Benefits of a Good Imagination

2010-07-01T08:42:00.012+08:00

1. You save money

Samara has never had a baby doll and doesn't want one. Her pink blanket doubles as her pretend baby. She feeds, plays with, and is extremely protective of her.

2. You get to have pets without the responsibility

Sometimes she's a cat and sometimes she's a dog. We are always a family of snails. Her first imaginary pet was "Tiny" the dinosaur, but now it's the "nice mosquitos". The nice mosquitos are a wonderful resource because they not only protect us from the bad kind (that bite you) but they also have a pretend map whenever we get lost. When we don't know which way to go, we simply ask the nice mosquitos. I wonder if I should feel bad that my poor sense of direction caused her to invent help for us.

3. Naptime is always interesting

I always got the biggest kick out of the excuses our nieces and nephews came up with at bedtime. Mara is no different. I love when she insists she is not tired and then zonks out. It's so fun to listen in at the door before she falls asleep and then to go in once she's fallen asleep to see what she's done to entertain herself until she dozes off. She went through a phase (lower left photo) where she'd only nap on the floor. I'm thrilled when she naps so anywhere she wants to nap is fine with me.

FYI, that is definitely NOT a bra in the top photo. That is her BACKPACK! Even though she has two cute backpacks, she insists this is the only one she has and begs to wear it when we go outside.

4. Our travels last longer

Samara loves visiting new countries and "visits" them for months after we return from a trip. I am amazed how much she remembers. Currently, we live at the beach in Indonesia (I wish!!). One day while she was playing with the little wooden dolls from her dollhouse, I heard her tell them they were going to America and had to take three airplanes to get there. Then she said, "Ok, time to get off and go through customers (read customs) so you can get a new stamp in your passport."

5. She keeps on us our toes

Even though we may not always love the creative uses she finds for things around the house, I'm so glad she has such a vivid imagination. We never know what this little one is going to come up with next, but she keeps us highly entertained. I wish her pretend money and grocery store (she always goes to when we are missing ingredients for dinner) were real. But I'm glad her nice mosquitos aren't...

Happy Father's Day!

2010-06-19T08:10:00.001+08:00

Just over a month and we'll have another sweet baby girl to adore and to snuggle. Papa Ben can't wait. We're so grateful he is our dad and husband!

There are many things we love and appreciate about him. Samara summed up well, one of those things that make Ben such a great dad, when she asked me a few weeks ago, "Mimo, why does papa always like to watch all the kid shows with me even though he's really tall (translation: he's a grown up)?"

She's also been wondering when "kid-day"is since we had mother's day and now father's day. Isn't every day kid's day? So, to all you papas and kids out there, have a wonderful day tomorrow!