A Bali Thanksgiving

We had a very non-tradtional Thanksgiving holiday this year.  We boarded a plane and headed to Bali, Indonesia.  Since our stay in Singapore is temporary, my plan is to try and take advantage of all the holiday breaks from school to travel around the area.  Afterall, once we return home travelling across the world for a holiday is highly unlikely. So this year, we are thankful for the beautiful beaches of Bali.

The beach water was so clear,  you can see our toes through the water.

Thanksgiving night dinner on the beach listening to Elton John songs.

Bryce and Pina

Pina and the kids swimming in the ocean.

Low tide at night.  The kids were able to wade pretty far out.  I let them get wet since we were on vacation.  They thought it was great to swim in their clothes!

One day we took the kids on a glass bottom boat to snorkle and then to head to Turtle Island.

Layne loved everything about the boat!

Graham

Bryce loved the boat ride but could have done without the snorkling.

This is the only picture with all 5 of us in the water.  Bryce did not even get her hair wet.

Layne, on the other hand, stayed in until it was time to go!

Next stop was Turtle Island.  We were able to hold and feed the turtles. Plus there were other animals to entertain the kids.  The kids were also an attraction as well.  Several other visitors requested to take pictures of our kids.  Graham was actually more sought after than the girls this time around.  I think it was his messy wavy hair that drew the attention to him this trip.

Later in the day, Brian took Graham to try out the Flying Fish.  This attraction is basically an intertube that is pulled by a boat and then the boat flies into the air.  Graham was just tall enough to do it at the second place we tried...I told Brian if Graham falls off into the ocean he better be right behind him.  Thankfully, it was a success and there were no injuries!

Heading out to sea

Hold on tight!

That little speak right above the cruiseship is Graham and Brian flying through the air.

We have so many things to be thankful for this year...family, old friends, new friends, and much much more!

It's not all glamorous!

Pneumonia found us in Singapore.  So, although I blog about all the fun things we do here it's not all glamorous.

I really hoped and prayed that with the warm weather all year round that we would see the last of the "lung" issues we have had in the past with Bryce. 

I was wrong.  Pneumonia  not only found Bryce but put her in hospital for a couple of days. 

Fortunately for us the medical care here in Singapore is excellent so I was never worried that she was not going to be taken care of.  The doctors and nurses were very thorough and professional.
I often found myself referring to our stay there as a hotel instead of a hospital.

I just hope we never have to return to the hospital again for an extended stay.  I am pretty sure we would all much rather lead a glamorous life than a hospital life.

The High Life

Singapore had yet another public holiday and what better way to spend the day off but by heading straight to Marina Bay Sands.   Check out the link.  It shows just how spectacular this place is and all the amenities. 

View our from hotel room.  44 floors up.

The big attraction here at least for kids is the top floor.  57 floors into the sky.

But the biggest hit of all was the infinity pool.  It is heavenly.  At first glance the kids were afraid to get to close.  They worried about falling over the edge.  We walked the entire deck and they still were not convinced of the safety.

However, it did not take long before they all put on their swimsuits and headed straight for the edge.  Graham and Layne loved it.  Bryce was feeling under the weather so she was not getting in the pool no matter how enticing it all looked. She preferred to soak up the sun on the lounge chair.

My hope for the day was to get a nice shot of all 3 kids in the pool with the Singapore skyline in the background for a Christmas card.  It did not happen...3 kids with 3 different agendas.  They are to busy living the high life to stop for pictures.  Oh well, I tried.  At least they had fun.

Modge Podge

November is half over and I am not sure where it has all gone.  This is a busy time for everyone as the holidays approach.  For some reason I feel like the time will go by even faster as the new year comes upon us.

Graham had a field trip to Little India to celebrate Deepavalli~the Festival of Lights.  It was quite an experience.  The  students got to experience Indian food, Indian shops, a temple and the wet market.  It was a jammed pack day full of new experiences.

This is a view of the shops as you enter...CROWDED with people and items.

Graham and 2 of his classmates at the market.

Temple

While Graham was in Little India, my parents and the girls took a field trip of their own to the Botanical Gardens to feed the swans.  It was quite a hot day so we lasted until lunch time.  Then headed off the Chili's for a quick bite.  My parents flew half way around the world for Chili's!  Crazy, I know but the girls love it and so do I!

Halloween

We kicked off Halloween this year with a party at Graham's school.  This was a first for Graham because in Texas the public schools in our area did not celebrate Halloween.  Halloween had always been a home holiday but not this year.  SAS had a full blown party with a parade of costumes, food, games and music.  It was very enjoyable.  Luckily, Graham does not get scared of costumes because some of the costumes were a little gory.

Graham decided he wanted to be Mario from the video games.  Thankfully my parents were in Singapore and brought one from home because I never saw one in the stores here.  His costume was a big hit.  All his classmates wanted to pull his moustache off so we opted to keep it off most of the party.

Graham's 1st grade class...everyone dressed up including his teacher!

On Sunday, an American friend of ours organized the first ever Halloween and Trick or Treating in our condos.  It was a HUGE success!  We have just over 160 units and I would say over 75% participated in the event.  For most of the people it was their first experience to trick or treat.

It was definitely a different experience to trick or treat in Singapore.  We did not have to worry about crossing roads and cars zooming by, no trekking across large neighborhoods with complaining children about being tired on the way home, and the ease of "knowing" everyone. Plus, they got to trick or treat barefoot.  They would never do that back in Texas.  I am not sure my kids, especially the girls, will even know how to wear shoes when we come for a visit in December.  The girls don't even wear shoes in school. 

However, my kids are chocolate fanatics.  Chocolate type candies are not the main treat.  It is just too hot here for most people to keep chocolate...it melts quickly and quite expensive.  Any chocolate we get always goes straight to the freezer.  Also, no gum.  It's against the law.  They don't sell it in the stores.  Although the kids know this they were still bummed.

When all the trick or treating was done the kids watched The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown and drifted off to sleep...

Mario, Belle, and Aerial

Bryce was telling her friend, Riley, who was quite frightened at first by all the scary costumes, to never give up so they could get the candy.  It was very sweet.

Girls helping daddy pass out candy to the big kids.