Journey of our lives

Crying over spilt milk.... literally!

2010-10-11T18:10:00.000-07:00

On the way to school, a friend of Sydney's noticed something leaking from the bottom of her back pack. After investigating, it was indeed Sydney's thermos of milk. This is all mommy's fault for not putting the lid on correctly. As a result, her school folder and papers got wet along with her beautiful family tree project that she worked so hard at over the weekend. She was terribly upset, and so was I !! I'm disappointed that her lunch bag didn't contain the milk. Her teacher sent me an email in the middle of the day indicating to me what had happened. As you can imagine, that was the first thing Sydney told me when she got home. Tonight, we worked on her homework again and Sydney did a better job with it, this time round.

I suppose it's really no use crying over spilt milk.

I have a doodler

2010-09-26T19:03:00.000-07:00

Does the word "doodler" exist? That's what Sydney is, anyways. I think, she likes to doodle on her worksheets at school when she's done with work and is a little bored. She had a spelling test last Friday. She came home grinning as she showed me her perfect score. I wasn't too pleased to see that on the top of her spelling worksheet, she had written "I love Tegan". On the back of the worksheet, she had time to doodle some more. The teacher hasn't said anything to me, but I think it could be a sign of boredom. Her 1st grade teacher did say that she would be sending Sydney home with more challenging and appropriate homework. I hope she isn't bored because BORED could lead to not-so-positive behavior and other stuff. She still loves school and her class, so that's positive. Parent-Teacher conferences will be happening in a few weeks so it will be interesting to see what comes out of that.

I'm not a Jew

2010-09-20T20:07:00.000-07:00

There's just not enough time to record every story and every funny moment in our family. At the dinner table today, John was telling us a story about a co-worker and something about Jews. Sydney asked what a Jew really was. John explained that Jews and Christians both believe in God but Jews don't believe in Jesus. She looked at him (while you could see the invisible brain wheels spinning) and in a few seconds responded with "well, I'm not a Jew!"

That's right, Sydney! You're not. Glad we got that clarified.

Never a dull moment at the dinner table. Maybe I should start up a separate blog that only journals dinner time moments with the family. That would certainly make an interesting blog, if only I had a secretary.

MY little goat

2010-09-02T13:54:00.000-07:00

In the past few weeks, Sophia has been busy crawling around and we've learned that she likes to chew books. The other two kids didn't really do much of that so I had nothing to worry. However, once I started seeing corners of pages missing, I knew I was in trouble. The kids usually alert me to this and I run to drag the scraps of chewed up paper from her mouth. She is SO good at hiding them in between her gums too -- it's amazing. When I think I've gotten it all out, I'll see her chewing like a little goat, and that's my clue that she still has more in there. Even the tiniest little speck of paper, she'll be chewing for a long time. Sophia has lots of nick names around here....and the most recent is "little goat".

Reviving my Blog

2010-09-02T13:47:00.000-07:00

Ever since summer started, I simply lost track of time and forgot about my blog. At one point, I decided to give up on it because keeping up with Facebook and the Blog was getting to be too much. I like jotting down thoughts and stories, especially about the kids that I decided to keep it going. So, here's a cheers to reviving my blog!

What's the latest with the family?

* John started teaching again at MSU today! 3 classes from 10-4 p.m. with little breaks in between. (Let's hope he drinks lots of fluids and doesn't loose his voice with all that teaching)

* Sophia started crawling on her knees about 2 weeks ago.

* Sydney starts 1st grade the day after labor day and Caleb starts pre-school 2 days after her. We're feeling like an older family already.

* Vivien is busy planning Sophia's 1st birthday / halloween party already....thinking of some fun family costume ideas. As a family, we're going to all 5 dress up this year.

I'll have to write some other things in a separate blog item. More to come....

Expecting dead birds

2010-05-31T08:03:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, we decided to do some long-awaited spring cleaning around the house. One of the big tasks on our list was to wash and clean all windows including the screens. That job alone took up half the day while watching all three kids in between. It's such a nice feeling to have the job crossed off our list and to feel like the house is cleaner. It really makes a difference to look out of our windows and see through it so clearly. Of course, it doesn't help to see so much cottonwood fluff flying around the neighborhood and sticking to the window screens when we open up the windows. The windows are so clean that I'm starting to prepare myself for birds flying into it, as they often happen around this time of the year. At least if I expect dead birds, then I'm not so disappointed when my windows get dirty again. Sigh.

We're no different than Adam and Eve

2010-05-29T22:11:00.000-07:00

We rented the movie "Dumbo" from the library and the kids watched it for the first time Friday night. Along with that, they had popcorn, which they absolutely love. The only person in our family that doesn't really enjoy popcorn is John. We'll see if Sophia grows up to be a popcorn fan or not.

Anyway, the movie ended and the kids went to bed happy. There was some leftover popcorn in the bag and I threw it in the garbage bin.

The next morning, I saw my little boy with some crumbs on his face even before we started breakfast. I asked him what he was eating. Apparently, he found the popcorn bag in the trash can and decided to eat some. He said that Sydney ate some too. Sydney immediately in defense said "well, he leaded me to eat it". John responded in laughter by saying "boy....this is sounding all too familiar".

We're not too far off from Adam and Eve, are we?!

Catch Phrase

2010-05-17T04:23:00.000-07:00

Have you heard of the game called "Catch Phrase" ? It's a game where there's usually two teams of people competing and there is a word that you need to have your team guess by giving them clues so that you can pass the game device (its' like a mini computer) to the next person before the buzzer (timer) goes off. Whoever is caught holding the device looses and the other team gets a point. Since Sydney can now read, we were both playing it by ourselves -- couple of days ago. On one of my turns, my word was "Grape Soda". So, I started giving clues to Sydney by saying...

"it's a purple round fruit and it comes in bunches".... and Sydney said "Grapes". Then I continued to try and get her to guess the word "soda".... so I said "it's a drink that has lots of bubbles and fizz in it and very sweet and mommy doesn't usually like you to drink much of this".... and Sydney immediately shouted out " Carbonated drink ".

My jaw just dropped..... wondering how on earth she knew what a carbonated drink was. Of course, I quickly went on to say, "yes...but another word for it is ? "..... she couldn't guess.... So I ended up telling her the answer was Soda. She was disappointed for not knowing the correct answer but I tried to cheer her up and encourage her that I was so proud that she knew the word "carbonated" AND that was a better word than Soda. I don't think she was impressed like I was.

Spring Break

2010-04-13T17:43:00.000-07:00

So much happens in the Macdonald family from day to day that it seems like this is getting harder to keep this blog updated. It's April? Where did January, February and March go? I try to "live in the moment" and "savor each day as they come" but it sure is hard to do with three kids. That said, Praise God for every new day that comes and the opportunity to start over.

Sydney had Spring break last week so I scheduled a couple of fun things for the family to do. She also came home with a project from school, to be done over Spring break. Apparently, her teacher has been reading them a chapter book in class each day and they finished a book called "Flat Stanley". Each kid brought home a picture of Stanley to color, cut out and decorate and they are to take Stanley with them everywhere they go on their break and then write about what they did.

Monday: We took Stanley outside in the evening and did yard work as a family. Stanley was happy to sit on a rock while we weeded.

Tuesday: The kids had gymnastics class but Stanley was sadly left behind at home

Wednesday: Elisabeth came over for the day and had a sleepover. Sydney made Stanley some pajamas and he slept with the girls.

Thursday: Impressions 5 is a wonderful Children's Science Museum in Lansing. Mommy took the kids to visit the Museum and they had a lot of fun discovering fun things there. Their favorite was the Bubble Room and moving magnets with an electric machine.

Friday & Saturday: As a family, we went to Zehnders Splash Village in Frankenmuth, MI. The kids really loved this water park...so much so, that Sydney wants to come back here for her birthday! Flat Stanley was happy to stay in the backpack so that he didn't get wet!

This was a full, busy and fun-filled Spring break.

4 month old Sophia

2010-03-19T17:21:00.000-07:00

What is Sophia up to these days?

* well, she's been rolling over this week - that's fun to watch. She doesn't like being on her tummy, so she has motivation to roll onto her back. But not vice versa.

* started on some baby rice cereal, but not too thrilled about it yet.

* enjoys sitting in her bumbo seat and watching everyone around her.

* if you put a rattle in her hand, she loves to shake it and tries to put it in her mouth, every time.

* Caleb and Sydney have been taking turns playing "peek-a-boo" with her and love to make her laugh over and over again.

* Sophia has gone for walks in her stroller (for the first time) this week. Temperatures have been in the 60s all week, so Caleb has enjoyed going to the parks with her.

* If the TV is on while she is drinking milk, she will turn her head towards the TV. She's probably wondering what's so interesting that everyone else is starring at.

* At dinner time, she has to be in a bouncer right by the table or be held, otherwise she'll start to complain. She wants to be with us!

* She's already starting to hold her bottle by herself. Good, strong grip!

* Enjoyed sitting in the baby swing at the neighbor's play center this week.

Piano lessons & Tumbling

2010-03-19T17:15:00.000-07:00

Sydney has already had a one month of piano lessons with her music teacher from school and she is doing very well ! Ms. Nielsen gives her private lessons every Wednesdays after school and says that Sydney is very musical and has great finger movements on the piano. A few months ago, I was told that Sydney might be a little too young for piano lessons but Ms. Nielsen thinks that Sydney is very ready and keen on learning. She will ask me if she can practice the piano almost everyday but she doesn't like to practice the difficult pages. I can relate to that. We are so proud of her. Now, Caleb asks if he can practice the piano as well. I love the way the "positive" things rub off on him as well.

Caleb is doing tumbling / beginners gymnastics at Twistars in DeWitt. He loves it...and he's always bouncing around and asking me to look at him doing all his fun flips and kicks. His favorite is the trampoline and doing donkey kicks. I hope to enroll him in kids soccer this summer because I think he'll enjoy that too.

I wonder what Sophia will be interested in.

Sunday school humor

2010-03-07T10:54:00.000-08:00

After church, we came home for lunch as usual. I often like to find out what the kids learned or did in class. Sydney had a lot to say about her lesson....she even went as far as saying that Abraham lived in a city called "Ur".

On the other hand, Caleb learned about Daniel in the lion's den but he wasn't interested in talking about his class. Mommy still decided to ask questions and the conversation went like this:

Mommy: Caleb, did you make a lion puppet today?

Caleb: **silence** (but nodding "yes")

Mommy: Who was in the lion's den ?

Caleb: Noah

Mommy: Noah? Noooo.....

Daddy: "Was it David in the Lion's Den?"

Caleb: Nah....

Mommy: Caleb, who was in the lion's den?

Caleb: ** still no answer**

Sydney: (she always has to try and say something on behalf of little brother) It's Daniel !

Mommy: Caleb....why was Daniel in the lion's den?

Caleb: Uhm....because Daniel liked the lion's den.

** rest of the family laughing... **

Mommy: Did Daniel pray to God when he was in the lion's den? What did God do?

Caleb: God spanked the lions.

** Daddy, Mommy and Sydney burst out laughing **

Needless to say, I stopped asking questions after that. Looks like Caleb's learning a lot!

Fighting over the broom

2010-03-02T19:52:00.000-08:00

I don't think it's too early to start a 5 and a 3 year old on chores around the house, right?! After dinner, John usually does the dishes and Mommy ends up on the couch feeding the baby. Somehow, we came up with the idea that Sydney and Caleb can help clean up as well. There's usually food crumbs that surround their chairs so we've asked Sydney to use the big broom to sweep the crumbs into piles and Caleb takes the small broom and sweeps them up. They usually fight over who gets to do what and both seem eager to clean up. Caleb has to learn to stop running to the trash can with the little dustpan as he often drops everything he cleans up. Sydney has to learn to stop giving so many directions to little brother, who's only concerned about sweeping a little here and there and running to empty it out. Mommy has to learn to be patient as she steps onto little crumbs that have fallen all over the kitchen floor because she's got to do the job all over again with a vacuum cleaner instead. If only the excitement about cleaning kitchen floors could last till they become teens!

March is Reading Month

2010-02-27T09:52:00.000-08:00

March is 'Reading Month' at Kindergarten and this year's theme is all about the ecosystems. Sydney's class theme is "Rainforests" and we helped decorate the hallways and classroom in that theme. I have to say that it was so much fun that it makes me want to go back to Kindergarten. One of my ideas for the class was to create a rainforest tree in the middle of the room and that be the reading corner:

I found some carpet rolls in our basement that we were able to make use in the class. We used a large carpet roll to form the trunk of a tree (with brown butcher paper crinkled up and covering it) and there was a large green carpet that was used for the base, where the kids can sit and read their books. Kids brought in various stuffed animals (monkeys, snakes, birds, frogs, etc) and put them around the tree and some dangling from the tree branches.

As soon as Sydney learned about the rainforest theme, she immediately said "Well, I've seen a rain forest in Malaysia". And she's right. She has had the wonderful experience of throwing bananas to the wild monkeys near my parents home and she has seen what the thick rain forests look like. I thought it was cute that she also thought my mom's backyard was a type of rainforest. There are a lot of banana trees and other trees that are foreign to her in that backyard.

Another lesson on "life's not fair". Sydney sometimes tells me of projects that the other kids in her class got to do while we were in Malaysia, and that sometimes she feels sad that she didn't get to do those projects. Once again, life's not fair, but not every kid gets to ride on an airplane and visit a foreign country and see a rainforest!

All because of Ginger cookies...

2010-02-27T09:38:00.000-08:00

One day, Sydney whined about not wanting to go to school. She thinks that she's missing out on fun things while she's at school. I suppose, at times, Caleb has shared something FUN that he did while she was at school and that makes her feel left out. Well, this week, she used the words "not fair" because Caleb got to help me bake cookies for her school event. It doesn't matter whether she gets to eat just as many cookies as Caleb because she's still upset that Caleb got to make the cookies with me. And, oh......, it still didn't matter when I told her that Caleb only helped for 10 minutes and then took a 2 hour nap right before she got home from school.

Here's something I hope my kids learn.... and the sooner the better. Life isn't fair, and I have to say that over and over again. I'm sure glad my parents never treated us kids the same ALL the time.

A lesson on "Life isn't fair".........all because of ginger cookies. (and Mommy rolls her eyes)

Scientist of the Week

2010-02-09T17:43:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, Sydney was the "Scientist of the Week" in her class. This means, she has to choose a simple science experiment from a book, practice it at home and then present it to the class. The other kids will observe and are encouraged to ask "I wonder why...." type questions. I think this a very fun and exciting project for kids.

When she was 3 years old, we did an experiment in our apartment that shows which items float and sink in water. Sydney remembered that and she immediately decided she wanted to present that same experiment to her class. We tweaked it a little by adding two other components to it:

1. She had a bowl of water and an orange. She asked the class whether they thought the orange would float or sink. Then she used a peeled orange and asked the same question. She learned the concept of "density" and how an orange skin peel contains a lot of air bubbles that causes an orange to float. However, a peeled orange is a lot denser than water and thus it sinks.

2. She poured soda water into a jar and then put some raisins into the jar. The raisins first sank, but after a few seconds, a few raisins floated up. The teacher asked her why the raisins came back up and she confidently answered "because the air bubbles from the drink attached itself to the raisins and that's what makes it float".

Sydney learns a lot from various Science experiments in the class and now she often asks questions by saying "I wonder why?"

The Circle of Life

2010-01-25T19:35:00.000-08:00

As quickly as I typed the last blog entry, there was a sudden change in life's plan for our family. Little did I know that a single phone call later that night (Friday December 18th) would change my life. A very shocking and unexpected phone call came from home saying that my Dad had a stroke and was in the hospital with severe brain injury. It seemed like seconds after hearing those words on the phone, my world became a blurry mess.

We made flight bookings, packed our bags, got to Chicago to file Sophia's passport and flew out to Malaysia. The entire journey from beginning to end felt like one big nightmare and it came with so many roadblocks and challenges of its own. Somehow, by God's grace, we arrived in Malaysia on Christmas eve.

I will never forget the emotions I felt when I stepped into the hospital and never forget the sight of my Dad just laying there on the hospital bed - unconscious and on a breathing tube. I've never seen him so thin, unshaved for days, and just laying still. Words could not come out of me. Only tears. He had spent a beautiful 5 weeks with our family and now, only a week after returning home, this had happened. Unbelievable. Speechless.

Tired and fatigued, everything seemed like a fog to me. Long story short....5 hours after seeing him, he passed away on Christmas morning, slightly after midnight. I cannot even describe the emptiness I felt for days since that day. Christmas will never be the same for me. Christmas will always remind me of my Dad. Christmas day will be a reminder to so many people, of who my Dad was and all the wonderful memories we have of him.

People say that I just need to take one day at a time and let myself grieve and be patient. I feel that I can only take one step at a time. There are places in my home that are hard for me to go to, particularly the basement where my Dad slept and played with the kids a lot. Sometimes I smile to myself, thinking of how precious the time my Dad spent with us. Sometimes, I cannot help but feel sorrow and gloomy - where I don't even feel like talking to anyone. It's just strange. Never thought I would even be like this. The circle of life is interesting. We know that people are born into this world....people come and go from our lives. You anticipate that it's going to happen at some point, but when it does, you're never really prepared for it.

Life is precious. One minute we're here and the next minute, we're gone. We're like the grass of the field. I suppose, life has to go on. So much to be thankful for. So many memories to hold on to. So many lessons to be learned.

I hope my next blog article isn't too deep. I must keep blogging about the family as this will help us to move on. Thank you for all your prayers and support during the past month. The amount of cards and phone calls have been overwhelming and yet so filled with love. Thank you.

Family update

2009-12-18T12:19:00.001-08:00

It's hard to believe but Sophia is already 7 weeks. She is such a good baby. She's already sleeping about 8 hours a night and some good naps in the day time. We've had the pleasure of receiving some cute smiles and cooing when we talk to her. She often feels uncomfortable in her stomach in the late evenings so we've had to give her some Mylicon to give relief. Sydney and Caleb continue to adore her and have enjoyed feeding her with a bottle.

This is Sydney's last week of school before the 2 week winter break. Today, she learned how to tie shoe laces for the first time and she's pretty proud of herself too. She got some new tennis shoes this week from Stride Rite and she wore them to school to show her friends. I'm so proud of her too because it took me awhile (I think I was in 2nd or 3rd grade) before I wore shoes with laces to school. It seems like she picked it up so quickly and she was eager to learn.

Caleb turns 3 on Saturday (19th). Hard to believe that my little boy is not a baby anymore. He's got a lot of energy these days. His attention span is pretty short, but he enjoys playing with his trains in the basement. He's also been potty training and improving each day. Last week (I think), he told me that he wanted to wear his Buzz Light underpants and said he did not want to pee in those. He kept his word at it too, which tells me he can now hold a few minutes before making it to the potty.

This is also John's last week of school. He has been grading the finals and is looking forward to the semester being done. He's had a full load of classes, and looks forward to having a small break. He doesn't have to teach in the Spring but will be very busy catching up on his research writing.

And for me.... well....what can I say. I'm a happy mom, but a tired mommy too. It seems like the minute I wake up, there's always something to do. It amazes me that there are always dishes to clean or put away, or laundry to fold and sorting through the mountain of papers and mail on my desk. Now that Sydney is in school, she comes home with paper and information that just sits on my desk until I have time to read it and sort through. I like to take a few minutes each day to look at Facebook or catch up on email - it's ME time, to relax a little.

Christmas is next week and the kids are more than excited to see what Santa will bring them. We are teaching the kids more about the meaning of Christmas this year, and that is helping us stay grateful as well. So much to be thankful for this year and so much to look forward to next year.

Sophia Ruth is finally here

2009-11-03T12:45:00.000-08:00

Sophia Ruth Macdonald joined our family on October 29th at 2:18 p.m. weighing in at 6 lbs 13.6 oz. She has a head full of hair (like her other two siblings) and makes the cutest gurgles and squeaks. She comes with her own set of cute birthmarks that include a couple of stork marks on her nose. It makes me want to call her our little red-nose reindeer. "Sophia" means wisdom, and it was a name that Sydney first suggested several months ago. "Ruth" means Companion or Friend, and we chose it because it's John's Grandma's middle name as well as a biblical name. The pregnancy journey seemed short and long at different times, and it's hard to believe, but that journey has come to an end. Now we begin a new journey with her here in our arms. I only hope we can treasure each moment as it comes.

Adam and Eve

2009-10-19T13:33:00.000-07:00

Caleb was working on a project in our art room and he was supposed to do a piece of coloring for Uncle Adam and Aunt Anne (John's sister). When I asked him if he was going to finish his art work, he said

"Yes, I want to make this for Uncle Adam and Eve."

Too funny. I guess it's just easy for Eve's name to follow right after Adam's.

My Birthday

2009-10-13T06:01:00.000-07:00

I just cannot believe that this is October and my birthday has come and gone. It used to be that when I was 10, I couldn't wait to be that magical 12. Then when I turned 12, it seemed like sweet 16 was the next age to look forward too. Then not to mention turning 21 - seemed like ages ago. Now I'm 33 and who's counting anyway. I had to actually think about the year I was born and count my way up.

John bought me a vase full of white and purple Daisies, the weekend before my birthday and they have just made the kitchen area so pretty and lively. Those flowers still look so fresh and bright that I feel like everyday must be my birthday. ** smiles **

John took the kids and I out for a birthday meal to a new restaurant called Clara's. It's on the way to downtown Lansing and next to the train tracks. The restaurant is a converted train depot with amazing features like a cathedral ceiling, bronze and crystal chandeliers, fireplace mantel and of course the amazing view of trains going by. The food choices were an excellent assortment and everything tasted great. The kids loved running up to the window when a train came rolling by and before we left the restaurant, they both received some colored mints and balloons - which made the experience so worthwhile.

Then we came home to have some cake and open presents. It's always fun to see the kids eyes light up when they see candles on a cake and they are so ready to blow them out too. Caleb couldn't wait for the Happy Birthday song to begin and started digging into the cake with his fingers. It was a wonderful Birthday week, and thank you everyone for the cards, gifts and kind wishes.

Homework

2009-10-05T17:01:00.000-07:00

This past Friday, Sydney brought home homework from school for the first time. I didn't think Kindergarten had homework for 5 year olds but they do. On Sunday evening, Sydney asked to play Chess again. I told her she had to finish her homework first. Then it occurred to me that this is just the beginning. She didn't mind sitting at the table to finish some math/counting worksheets. Caleb quickly joined us at the table and asked if he could do homework too. Poor guy, he just doesn't know what he's asking for.

I guess Sydney isn't the only one with homework. Parents do homework too. I'm supposed to make a "Me Book" for Sydney that allows the other kids to read and get to know Sydney better. It's like a mini scrapbook with simple statements of "I like my family" or "I like PB & J sandwiches"...on and on. I'm still working on getting pictures for her book and need to get it laminated. I want to get it done before this baby comes because I won't be doing any scrap booking for a LONG time. I just find this a little strange / funny because my parents certainly didn't do homework with me at this age. Times have changed! Apparently, she will soon be bringing books home to practice reading and to complete comprehension sheets as well. Yikes.

My Indian Boy

2009-10-01T19:27:00.000-07:00

Teaching two different cultures to the kids can be very confusing at times. Take eating for instance. The food choices between Asian and Western meals are as different as the east is from the west. I teach my kids how to use forks and spoons from the time they are about 18 months old. Fingers are fun for only some foods, but a no-no for things like spaghetti. Tonight, I served Indian food - typical rice, curry, sambar and a spinach dish (that is Sydney's absolute favorite). John and the kids were happy to eat using a spoon and I was happy to eat with my fingers - as we traditionally do back in Malaysia.

I could see it coming and sure enough, Caleb politely told me that it's not nice to eat with my fingers and that I should use a spoon instead. Sigh. How to explain this to an almost 3 year old, whom I often remind to eat with his spoon? (like his cereal, for instance) So, I tried to say that this is a special meal that tastes better with fingers. After looking at me (several times) with confusion written all over his cute little face, he put his spoon down and joined me by eating with his fingers - even using the correct hand, and only the right hand. John says he's definitely my little Indian boy. Sydney ate her meal with much joy but didn't join in the fun of using her fingers. She didn't care to get them dirty like that. It was so nice to see the whole family enjoy the meal and even ask for seconds!

Daylight Robbery

2009-09-25T10:18:00.000-07:00

When I told my mom this story, she immediately laughed and called it "daylight robbery". This is referring to Caleb.

We had all the trims around the house painted, some wood replaced around the garage door and back door and John bought some nice maroon window shades (to replace the beige ones), which really brightens up the house. Anyway, Caleb has been intrigued with the painters working outside and they let him play with some of their tools - which he thought was a real treat. On the first day, he tried to climb up the ladder and imitate the painters who were trying to get to the roof. Then he would get into their paint and see if he could have a go at painting. Two nights ago, Sydney came to me and handed me a tool, (that looked like it was for scraping old paint off or something) and said she found it in Caleb's room behind the rocking chair. He obviously found it interesting enough to take it for himself. Thankfully he didn't hurt himself with it. Who knows what he's been doing using that tool. Sigh.

My mom tells us the story of my brother who once "stole" a box of matches from a contractor (who smoked) and who was working on our home and tried to strike a match in his room. But my brother was a few years older than Caleb, though. This gives me very little hope that this sort of mischievousness is going to go away anytime soon.

Sydney News Station

2009-09-22T18:02:00.000-07:00

Sydney's Kindergarten had a Curriculum Night tonight and I got to meet the teacher again and learn more about what they will be learning in the school year. It was also fun meeting the other parents and having a chance to connect. It was good having a babysitter/friend at home to watch the kids so that I could have some productive conversations. What I learned from the teacher, is that Sydney loves to talk. I told the teacher that Sydney comes home with lots of stories about what she did in school and about the other kids. Two other moms overheard me and said that their sons don't tell them anything ,even when they ask all sorts of questions. So, we exchanged phone numbers and if they need to know what's going on at school, they can tune in to the "Sydney News".

Apparently, Sydney also told some kids in her class that she has an uncle named Grant, because there is a kid in her class with the same name. Then she said that another kid that sits next to her at the Red rectangle table, has the same skin color as her, and she told him that she thought that was pretty cool. And before she went off to bed tonight, she said that some kid (I'll refrain from using names) was running around the gym and wouldn't stop to listen to the teacher and she thought that, that made the teacher sad. Then she ended like this : " and I imagined that my teacher sent a letter home to tell you that I wasn't being good either". I assured her that the teacher thought she was doing great in class and she had nothing to worry about. Her reply was "well, I know mom, that's why I said I was imagining".

Kids Sudoku

2009-09-21T19:55:00.000-07:00

Sydney loves doing maze puzzles and crossword puzzles, so I thought she might enjoy a bit of Sudoku as well. It's fun to find these puzzles online but it's more fun to watch her doing it.

http://funschool.kaboose.com/images/printables/sum_sud.pdf

Stories of Kindergarten

2009-09-20T20:14:00.000-07:00

Since Sydney started Kindergarten on the 8th, and it's been nothing but sheer fun and loaded with stories every day. She is someone who comes home with details. I love it. I know not every child is a talker, so I'm grateful I get to enjoy this stage. Who knows if maybe someday she stops telling me things, right? So, here it is:

Day 1: She comes home on the school bus - is the last one to be dropped off because of a drop-off location miscommunication - but is very happy because she gets to ride home with her neighbor buddies, Lily and Teagan (and gets to sit next to them every day). She says that the best thing about Kindergarten is riding the school bus.

Day 2: She comes home and tells us that she thought of a word at school (Fantastic) and spelled it "fantstik".

Day 3: The teacher read the same book twice and she helped another boy in class open his snack bag.

Day 5: She is tickled pink that she gets to bring home a book from the school library every Monday. She gives me careful instruction that she needs to return it the following Monday.

Day 6: The teacher asks her to be the helper of the day and take some papers to the school office. She gets to pick a friend to go with her. The girl she picked out to go with apparently thanked Sydney, for choosing her. How nice!

Day 7: oh , i can't remember, but i know there's a story in there somewhere.

Day 8: Came home with a backpack full of leaves that she picked at the playground during recess.

Day 9: As soon as she got off the bus and gave me a hug, she started off like this: "Something sad happened today. A boy hit his head on the bar, going down the slide. So the teacher told me to go get an ice pack from the school office and help put it on his head. I was a good helper today". Oh, and she also asked me if Oklahoma has 3 'O's in it. (Her mind is constantly thinking. ) I had to stop and think before I answered her, because I wasn't sure if I knew how to spell Oklahoma correctly. Quite embarrassing.

And so on and on....she tells me about which kid says what in class and how others react and what she likes to do at the different centers. Sometimes, I wish I was a fly on her classroom wall, because it must be very interesting to watch her grow to be this little ms. independent.

Cucumbers

2009-09-20T20:10:00.000-07:00

Did I ever say that I've been addicted to cucumbers these last 2 months? Nice, cool cucumber slices make me go crazy. I never had a strong craving with the other two pregnancies, but I have to say, I'm going nuts with cucumbers. I go through a cucumber a day sometimes. I end up cutting a few slices for the kids at lunch time too, and Sydney is starting to complain about them. I can't blame her for it, but I can't help to think of how good they are for her. So so yummy, ....I could grab a cucumber right now! Thank goodness they are low in calories and a loaded with goodness.

Chess is back on the table

2009-09-20T19:56:00.000-07:00

I never thought that a five year would be interested in a game of Chess. But guess what?! My daughter is! A few days ago, we brought out my wooden chess set that John gave me for my birthday some years ago. I have not played the game in ages and had lost interest in it. I first started out with the names of the pieces and then where they should be placed on the board. That was easy. Teaching her the movements of each piece was tricky. I didn't feel confident in teaching her and wondered if this was way too early. Even John said I should start with Checkers. We're talking about a 5 year old here. Even I've forgotten to play Checkers.

Anyway, I am just impressed with this five year old's mind. We've played it twice and she remembers where all the pieces start on the board and how they move. The knight's "L" shaped movement is the hardest for her to understand and of course there's no understanding of strategy quite yet. What's amazing is this: In playing the game only the second time around with me, she spotted (several times) of a good move she could make, that I had totally missed! How is this possible?

Now she talks about playing Chess every evening and I'm starting to wonder if it won't be long before she masters this game and starts beating me at it. I never learned to play chess till I was 13 and it's hard to believe that my 5 year old is interested in this game.

Is it Christmas?

2009-09-03T09:21:00.001-07:00

The kids have been playing the "Polar Express" soundtrack in our home almost everyday and I hear Christmas songs while I work in the kitchen. It's bad enough that I think the year is quickly coming to an end, that listening to Christmas music this early only makes it feel like it's speeding up the process! Then yesterday, I took the kids to get their winter gear and school clothes for Sydney so that I don't have to run around after the baby arrives. Caleb now wants to wear his boots and mittens and keeps asking if we're getting snow today. I'm not quite ready for cold weather yet, but I guess in the words of Sydney "ready or not, here it comes". (or, it will come) Let's just enjoy Fall weather - is what I keep saying.

The Purple Crayon Story

2009-08-29T07:13:00.000-07:00

In July 2009, Sydney read a book titled “Harold and the Purple Crayon” and really enjoyed the story. One day, she decided to write her own story and I told her she could use a purple crayon, like Harold, to illustrate her story. She drew the pictures and told me what to write on each page. Here’s her story that she would like to share with everyone. Can you guess what the surprise is at the end of the story? (Hint: It’s in her drawing)

Elmo returns to the Mac house

2009-08-28T11:09:00.001-07:00

Elmo used to be Sydney's favorite and since she turned 3, Elmo was out of the picture for awhile. Caleb has been too interested in Bob the Builder, Thomas the Tank Engine and Dora the Explorer, and whatever else Sydney is currently interested in. Caleb has been working on learning his ABC's but just doesn't have much of an interest. Not until we introduced him to Elmo on the computer and now it's all about Elmo. It's amazing how a little fuzzy creature combined with computer technology has made the ABC's more fun and exciting. He likes to spell his name and also try writing letters - thanks to Elmo! http://www.sesamestreet.org/game_player?p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_id=gamePlayer_WAR_sesameportlets4369&p_p_uid=7d1b0f7b-1646-11dd-995c-3d52ab3e4656&t=1224734808325&

My Father's Dragon

2009-08-28T10:55:00.000-07:00

Sydney just finished reading her first series of 3 books called "Three Tales of My Father's Dragon". We borrowed this book from the library and it has over 200 pages. The story involves a boy called Elmer, who rescues a baby dragon and visits different animals in the forest. The book is creatively written and keeps the reader wanting more -- which is exactly Sydney wanted! Every day we read several chapters and it was amazing to me that Sydney remembered specific facts about the story - i.e. how many lollipops Elmer carried in his bag, or why Elmer saved all the Tangerine peels in his knapsack, and what Elmer used from his knapsack to distract each animal on Wild Island. She definitely increased her vocabulary with this entertaining book. With only a few but fantastic black and white illustrations, she was able to use her own imagination and follow the story all the way through. It was fun using the map on the first page of the book to show her how Elmer worked his way through Wild Island.

August Stings

2009-08-28T08:21:00.000-07:00

I've heard of people getting stung by bees, but I've never experienced anything like it till earlier this month. First, Caleb got stung by a wasp. It happened when he was playing at the neighbors playset and we didn't realize that there was a wasp nest under the slide. He got stung 4 times on the neck and armpit. Trying to ice the area with an ice pack and also a wet tea bag (that we learned about from researching on the internet) was not fun at all. A trick that helped calm him down was to let him lie down on the couch with the movie "Nemo" on. After 20 minutes, the swelling seemed to have come down and by the next day, there was no swelling or redness left. Lucky! The next day, I was clearing out our deck chairs at the back of the house when I didn't realize that I had gotten too close to a sweat bees nest. Wouldn't you know it - but I got stung twice on my left leg! Caleb had sympathy for me. Oh well -- August seems to be a time to watch out for bees, especially when the weather is hot.

Let me hold you longer

2009-08-15T12:40:00.001-07:00

I can't help it, but say it again - I really love Karen Kingsbury's novels. When I visited her website this week, I learned of her section on children's books as well. So I have to share with you a video of her narrating one of her books called "Let me hold you longer". By the end of the video, I had tears (of joy) in my eyes and I've now decided to buy several copies of this book as part of giving gifts for my friends and especially to any new moms.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQeDfcvTRnA

Aldi's the best!

2009-08-04T11:42:00.000-07:00

I love a good bargain! It gives me the fuzzy, nice, warm feelings, when I find the best deal out there. Back in Maryland when we had to watch our finances pretty carefully, I would do everything I could to use coupons and only buy groceries on sale, etc. Since moving to Michigan, it seems like our food budget keeps going up. I decided that if I could make it work in Maryland, then I could surely save money now.

The ALDI's store that's closest to our home is the bom! (unlike the one back in MD, that made me feel like I was shopping at the ghetto store). This one is clean and well stocked and not crowded. I couldn't believe it when I bought milk, blueberries, strawberries, and some other veggies for only a buck each!! Of course I don't think everything is worth buying there, especially when I'm trying to avoid the hydrogenated food items. Whatever produce I do buy is definetely worth the savings though. This makes me feel good and I'm definetely planning on doing more shopping at ALDI's.

New favorite author

2009-08-04T11:29:00.000-07:00

Since the beginning of the year, I have fallen in love with a new book author - Karen Kingsbury. She writes Christian novels and has such a way of writing that is so inspiring. I'm not into long novels so I started out with her Christmas series called the "Red Gloves" books and those are short and easy to finish. Reading her books usually encourages me to go do something about my own faith and to actually practically live it out. At the very least, it gives me something positive to think about.

This summer, I tried one of her other longer novels and am just in love with it. The title is "Like Dandelion Dust" and I can't seem to get enough of it. I read before bed (that's the only time I have) and as a result have been kept awake longer than my usual bedtime. It's kind of a nice habit to have reading before bed instead of my usual spacing out in front of the TV, which usually ends up being the Food Network channel because there seems to be nothing else satisfying to watch. I just love the library because I can get most of the Kingsbury novels there.

Where is the summer going?

2009-08-04T10:07:00.000-07:00

The summer is quickly flying by. How could it be August already? The reality of this kicked in when John told me that we only had 4 more weeks left before he went back to teaching and Sydney starts Kindergarten! The weather has stayed around the high 70s and low 80s, so it really hasn't felt like much of a summer. We're not complaining because it really is pleasant weather.

Let's see - what's happened since my last blog? Oh yes! A lot!

1) Vivien's parents and brother's family came over from UK and Malaysia. John's family drove here as well for a few days so we could all meet up. It's so very rare that both our families are able to get together, so that was a memory.

2) We took Vivien's parents sightseeing around Michigan. We drove up to Mackinaw Island and made a stop in Traverse City as well. It was a nice relaxing time and the weather was nice too.

3) Sydney had Vacation Bible School towards the end of June and she really enjoyed the Go Studio Go theme of Go Share, Go Lead, Go Risk and Go Tell.

4) We traveled to Iowa on the 1st of July to visit with family. We celebrated our 10 year anniversary on the 10th of July and had the opportunity to leave the kids with grandparents in Ames so that we could take a little vacation to Seattle and Vancouver. (only made possible by the awesome grandparents!)

5) Sydney and Caleb are currently taking some swim lessons at the YMCA pool. This is Caleb's first time taking a lesson and Sydney's second. I'm so proud of Sydney and the way she has progressed! She used to not like getting her face wet in the pool, but with her new goggles, she comfortably puts her head under water and even counts to 5!

6) Oh yes, and of course my belly continues to grow quite a bit. It's fun to compare the stats of this baby's growth with the other two. Even though I feel the biggest and heaviest than I can ever remember with the other two, my journals of the past two pregnancies show that my weight is just about the same at 26 weeks!

Neighborhood Summer Kick-Off

2009-06-06T07:47:00.001-07:00

One of the things we love about the Springbrook Hills Neighborhood is the social fun. In April, they had an Easter Egg Hunt for the kids at the park. Yesterday (June 5th) was the last day of school for all the kids, so they had some fun inflatable activities and a water slide at the Crofton park. Some friends of ours from Detroit came to visit, so we had a nice picnic for lunch and then the kids had fun bouncing in the inflatable set-ups and water slide. This is a picture of Sydney with the neighbor kids that she often plays with in the evenings. I couldn't get Caleb to take a picture and as you see, he's in the background, trying to get back into the bouncy house.

Pregnancy update

2009-06-04T13:02:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe it's June already. And yet, I'm not even half way through the pregnancy. This pregnancy has been different in more ways than one. I get easily out of breath and am tired more often than not. I'm starting to wonder if my stairs has anything to do with it. I go up and down the stairs countless times in a day, doing this and that. I guess that's one way to get exercise. My doctor says I need to slow down, but that seems impossible some days. I'm about 18 weeks now, so looking forward to the ultrasound in two weeks time. I don't feel any baby movements yet, but then again, maybe i'm not slowing down enough to really "listen".

Sydney and Caleb now sleep in their own rooms and I'm so pleased that Caleb has adjusted rather easily to that. It helps that he is sleeping in the same bed. Sydney prayed this week for a baby sister so that she can have someone to share a room with. Funny how feelings change quickly though. She's ready to kick Caleb out of her room at times when she feels like having it all to herself. Time will tell with all things.

Our Princess and Outdoor Boy

2009-05-27T11:52:00.000-07:00

Sydney just turned 5 this month and we had a grand birthday party. She was overjoyed to have a princess birthday cake (that she personally chose from Meijer) and received lots of princess dolls & accessories as gifts. It's not that she ignores the other toys, but she is REALLY in the princess mode. Everyday, she wears a tiara, neclace and princess slippers and trots around the house carrying her magic wand. Everyday she insists that she wears a dress, even to play outside on the swings. She has quickly made new friends with the neighbor kids and looks forward to playing with them every evening. Somedays, she doesn't get to bed till 9:30, because these kids are so busy playing outside.

Caleb, on the other hand, is really into the outdoors. As long as it's not raining, he wants to be outside. He loves chasing the birdies across the lawn, throwing rocks across the street, picking mommy's flowers and throwing them all over the lawn and pushing his lawn mower toy. When it's time to come inside, he gets very upset. He plays hard outside that he doesn't wake up till 9 a.m., some mornings (that includes having a 2 hr. nap in the afternoons). Sometimes, when Sydney is busy with the neighbor kids, Caleb and Mommy will take a walk around the neighborhood and he likes to wave at the cars going by and will usually bring home a handful of rocks.

Little Joys of Life

2009-04-23T11:49:00.000-07:00

There are little things (that feel like big things) that bring smiles to my face and joy to my heart. I'm taking the time to write them down to remind myself at a later time:

1) Today was my 12th week checkup at the OB and John brought the kids along. It was fun to see Sydney's eyes widen and pay very close attention to the sound of the baby's heart beat. Caleb just said "Baby?" Joy! Joy!

2) Since I was feeling good in the morning, I took the kids to the Oriental market after the doctor's appointment. I bought so many yummy snacks and food that reminded me of home. Then I came home and made us some Won Ton noodles with dumplings and the kids really enjoyed it too. Joy!

3) Watermelon

4) Sunshine JOY! joy! JoY!

5) Sitting outside watching Caleb playing with rocks, while I was able to read my Bible and actually take a few thoughts captive. I hadn't been able to read my Bible much while I was sick and I missed that. Oh Joy! oh Joy!

6) The ability to actually eat and enjoy what I'm eating. To feel good and active again. Joy!

...and those are just some of the simple (and yet BIG) joys of life!

April updates

2009-04-22T09:26:00.001-07:00

So, I haven't been very good about updating the blog. A few things have happened since last month. I was sick and everything got pushed to the sidelines - including this blog and email. I found out that we are expecting our 3rd child. Great news, but not so fun for mom. But thanks to many friends who helped me out with the kids, I was able to get rest and start to feel much better as I enter the second trimester. I have never understood the term "morning sickness". To me, it seems like I was nauseated all day. Oh well, that's another discussion for another time.

The kids had a fun Easter and now we are busy preparing for the summer. Caleb's room needs to be painted; there is need for furnishings in the house and John wants to buy a volleyball net and badminton set.

And there's the yard work too. It's nice that we have some friends who work for a Landscaping company that are helping us learn more about our trees and flowers. Unfortunately, our grass doesn't look great from all that snow mold, so they are treating it for us as well. Our neighbor next door has several bird feeders so it's nice to see a variety of cardinals, bluejays and other birds that I'm not familiar with. Since the weather has started warming up, the kids have been outside playing everyday. Caleb never wants to come back inside no matter how tired he seems. Sydney has quickly made friends with the neighbor kids - including some young teens, which I find interesting.

I'll have more to update as we move into the summer. Oh, how nice to have warm weather!

The little story-teller

2009-03-12T17:16:00.000-07:00

Sydney has told a few stories that I've typed up lately. She's likes to make up stories as she goes. I print them out and let her illustrate them. Thought they are fun to share.

Story #1: Once upon a time, there was a girl named Holly and a boy named Jack. One day, a big scary dinosaur came to chase them and eat them up. But they ran away into their house and closed the door. The dinosaur couldn’t get in. He was too big to fit through the door. They locked the door. The dinosaur ran away to his family and cried all day long and all night long. The End.

Story #2: There was a girl named Sydney and today is her birthday. She turned 5 years old. She was so excited for her birthday. Her mother said “Sydney, you are going to have your birthday party tomorrow.” When Sydney heard that, she ran upstairs to her bedroom and she cried. Mother heard the crying and she went upstairs. She said “Sydney, I just made a mistake. I just forgot that today was your birthday. I just called everyone that was your best friend. All your friends will come to your party. Sydney had a wonderful birthday party. She ate so many sweets that all her teeth fell out and she got smaller, and smaller and so tiny that she couldn’t have her birthday on May 17^th. The End.

A nice compliment

2009-03-12T17:13:00.001-07:00

John had to dress up for the Logistics Symposium at the University today. When he was ready to go, he asked Sydney for her comments on his formal apparel. She replied by saying "Daddy, you look like the President". Then proceeded to give him a hug before he walked out the door.

Yearly Photo Shoot

2009-02-28T05:53:00.000-08:00

I'm a bit slow at getting those yearly studio shots for Caleb. He turned 2 in December but I'm only now getting around to it. My initial thought was to get only one potrait done at the studio. However, JC Penney Potraits said they would take more than 1 so that I could be free to choose and I got conned again into doing lots of shots and then having a tough time deciding which ones I wanted. She started me on a package that costs $80 (which to most people is pretty reasonable) but I had no intentions on spending that much. My final decision came down to a handful of shots and the cost was around $25. Yay. Due to my membership with JC Penney Potraits, they also gave me a link to be able to download all their pictures for free and to be able to post them on my blog. Extra Yay!

Swiper lives here

2009-02-21T10:27:00.000-08:00

If you've ever watched "Dora the Explorer" with your kids, you'll know what I'm talking about. Swiper is the little fox that shows up and takes things and then Dora has to go looking for the item. Caleb loves Dora and we borrow the movies from the library whenever we can.

In the last few weeks, we have seen him swiping things that belong to other people. Mostly food items - go figure! Once, I distributed Valentine treats to everyone in the family. Even Daddy had a piece on his plate. As we were all busy eating our treats, Daddy got up to go do something for a few seconds and when he came back he wondered why he didn't get a treat. I looked at Sydney and asked her if she took Daddy's treat and she looked around and said No. (Poor Sydney - the oldest child seems to be the first to be blamed for most things around here). Then we looked at Caleb and he innocently pretended like nothing happened. We started laughing as a family because he said yes to eating Daddy's portion. We told him that he couldn't have any more milk and he had to get down - which he happily complied - he knew what he had done.

Another time, I was baking chocalate chip cookies in the kitchen and was letting them cool off on the kitchen counter. Without me realizing, Caleb was "swiping" cookies one by one off of the counter and sneaking into Daddy's office to eat them. Until Daddy came home and found crumbs on the floor along with his son eating cookies happily.

Poor Sydney can't eat her food fast enough. If it's something that Caleb really likes, he reaches over and takes things. It seems like I have to have my eyes on him a lot lately. Hence, his new nick name is now Swiper! and you'll hear us saying "Swiper, no swiping!"

Pat on my back

2009-02-17T11:45:00.000-08:00

I've been running at the YMCA by our house - it's so convenient and I like to work out with others. I've always hated running and don't like that feeling of being out of breath. Not to mention the way my legs and thighs feel the next day. I have so many friends that love to run and I always wish I could do the same. Well, I'm glad to say that I can actually run close to 2 miles straight now!

Now that I'm used to it, I'm inspired to run a small race here in DeWitt in May. It's just a 3 mile (5 K) family race and I'm going to do it with a few other families in town. I feel like I should be able to train easily for a 10K race in Lansing, but I'm not pushing it. I just need to be happy about what I can do to begin with. I give a pat on my back for it.

A Mom With Some Time

2009-02-15T18:40:00.001-08:00

I realized this evening as I was in between checking emails and looking up some information online that I actually had some time to myself again. The kids went to bed early. They had a full weekend with Grant and Robin visiting us. I think their dog Bruno is worn out too. Anyway, I realize that I have about 2 hours to myself before going to bed. What should I do? Too many choices. I could...

a) finish replying to 4 or 5 emails from friends abroad

b) blog away, like I'm currently doing

c) finish reading a book my mother sent me

d) start reading a new Karen Kingsbury Christian fiction book

e) scrapbook in the basement

f) watch some episodes of LOST online

g) make cards

....and the list goes on. There are too many things that I want to do, need to do and should do. 2 hours doesn't cut it. So, I'm just going to end the blogging and go to bed. Smart, huh?

Alive and Transported -- Toby Mac

2009-02-15T18:27:00.000-08:00

Often times when I'm working out, I'm wondering what people listen to on their ipod. You don't have to wonder what John and I are listening to these days. TobyMac has taken over the house. Even the kids are jumping around and dancing hip hop to TobyMac. If you watched the SuperBowl at all, you would have noticed that they played "Ignition" by TobyMac. That's a rocking song. If that doesn't get you going in the morning along with your cup of coffee, then I don't know what will. Who says that Christian songs are boring? They need to tune in to SmileFM and I think they will find out that they are sorely wrong.

On his Portable Sounds soundtrack, my favorites are Ignition, No Ordinary Love and Made to Love. Get the CD or get on his website if you haven't heard it yet.

Caleb's 1st Full Sentence

2009-02-13T17:12:00.000-08:00

Sydney can talk - that must be in the genes as well. Must take up after her Mother. (smile)

Caleb is not much of a talker, but since turning 2, we hear him a lot more. Very encouraging. In any given sentence, I usually understand at least 2-3 words and can make out what he wants. Last week, I was busy looking for something in my office drawers and he came up next to me and asked "Mommy, what are you doing?"

I stopped rummaging through the drawer and stared him in the face. I said "Caleb, that was your first full sentence!". He said "yah" and walked away. I was still amazed and quickly wrote that in his childhood journal. Since then, I feel like I'm always waiting and listening to see what else he will say. I value his words.

It simply amazes me how he is learning so much at 2 and how he is progressing in so many ways. We are so lucky to have a boy like him.

Sydney Reads

2009-02-13T17:01:00.001-08:00

I have often made comments about Sydney's love for reading. We attend the DeWitt Library once a week for their special weekly program and the kids love it. We borrow an average of about 15-20 books at a time. If you were a fly on our wall, you would notice Sydney reading books on her own at any given time of the day. A few months ago, we realized that Sydney was reading very well and it wasn't from memory. Her preschool teacher thought that she was reading about 2nd grade level. Note: She's not even in Kindergarten yet. I didn't really know what to make out of that. Since that comment, I have repeatedly gotten comments about her reading from pretty much anyone on the street! Even a 5th grader at the library stopped to ask me how old Sydney was because Sydney was reading so loudly in a corner this week.

We have friends at church who are teachers and they have made comments to me about talking to the principal at the Kindergarten that she will be attending - to make sure that they have programs that will meet her needs because of her advanced skills. I was a bit hesitant to follow their advice just because we are talking about just Kindergarten here. Right?

We have a parent meeting with the Principal next month to discuss these matters and we shall see what happens. Sydney also started doing Math worksheets that I found online and she is doing 1st grade Math level as well. I am shocked and don't know what to do anymore. John says that he remembers having to do extra things in Kindergarten at some point because the teachers realized he was advanced too. This must be in the genes.

The most amazing thing about Sydney's ability to read is not the reading in itself (although it is amazing and encouraging). It's the fact that she loves to read AND has started reading her Bible in the mornings. She shares with me different Psalms that she reads and I am just baffled at times. Yesterday, she asked me what "astounding" and "confounding" meant. I could explain the first one but said we had to get the dictionary for the other. With my daughter around, I feel like I'm back in school !

Peace and Quiet

2009-02-12T09:41:00.000-08:00

I'm always mumbling to myself about peace and quiet around here - the need for it, that is. Then I finally get it and I'm at a loss. Let me explain more:

Sydney had a special Valentine party at her preschool this week and all the Dad's were invited. Being a Thursday and John had to teach 2 classes on campus, he could not get out of that. The teachers said it was fine for me to come but that I should get a babysitter for Caleb. Right. I asked everyone I knew (about 3 people) but no one could help. I just resolved to take Caleb along and not stay the whole time.

God is awesome. I love the way he works things out. The day before Sydney's party, I received a packet of info from MSU. Apparently, as an employee or student of MSU, we get up to 5 emergency child care at the Spartan Childcare Developement Center on campus. The amazing thing is that it is absolutely free! Could this be too good to be true? I called SCDC and they said they had space for him. Bottom line, Caleb spent the whole day there and did very well (to the amazement of the childcare workers, who noted it was Caleb's 1st time there) and I was able to attend Sydney's party.

While Sydney was at school, the house felt too quiet. I had to laugh at that one because I thought is was so ironic that I often wish for peace and quiet and when I get it, I don't know what to do with myself. Silly me.

Kids tell it all

2009-02-04T14:16:00.000-08:00

It's never happened before, but I left the van lights on while I was at the library with the kids last week. So you can imagine what happened once I tried to start the van? Yup- battery dead. Luckily, I had my cell phone on (which I often forget to bring along) and it's a good thing John was at home - only 5 minutes away. I took the kids out of their car seats and went back into the library to wait for John to come and jump start the van. As soon as we stepped back into the library, Sydney started proclaiming to everyone telling them about our van situation. Even Caleb joined in and found it funny. His words are not as proficient as Sydney's but nevertheless, I saw him walk up to someone and say "Uhh.. we stuck"...and proceeded to chuckle. Great! An embarassing situation for Mommy to be in and if it was just me, I would have quietly waited in the library and no one would have ever had to know. But nooooo..... instead, I was showed quite a bit of sympathy and had to tell each person who offered help that I was waiting for my prince to come rescue us all. Kids tell it all - no secrets hidden.

Steelers seize Super Bowl

2009-02-02T06:45:00.000-08:00

Needless to say, we are more than excited about the Pittsburgh Steelers winning the Super Bowl last night. We had a few friends over and it was fun to watch it together. The kids were up until half time and they had fun being with everyone. Before the game started, I reminded Sydney to pray for the Steelers - that they would win. She was all excited about rooting for the Steelers, as she has done many-a-time before. We also reminded her that her good friend Josiah was a Steelers fan!

Sometime during the game, Sydney changed her mind and started cheering for the Cardinals. I thought maybe she was influenced by some of the boys in the room who were cheering for them. Later on, I asked her why she rooted for the Cardinals and she said "because they are the red team and that's my favorite color". Well, I told her that the Steelers won (since she went to bed after half time) and she responded with this: "In the next Super Bowl, the Cardinals will win!"

One of our favorite plays was watching Harrison get Warner's throw and running down the sideline to the longest play in Super Bowl history. And Roethlisberger's passes were just amazing - what an arm! And there was little said about Troy Polamalu but he is just the best. He just shows up when you least expect him. Love it!

Whittard Tea

2009-01-24T09:08:00.000-08:00

When our family traveled to UK two summers ago (June 2007), we took a few days to sight see London. While we were there, John and I discovered some of the best tea we've ever had. We like a variety of tea but John prefers the sweeter kinds. We discovered a store called Whittard of Chelsea. They had beautiful teapots and teacups, but also an assortment of coffee and tea. We tried a few samples and immediately fell in love with their Dreamtime Instant tea. Once you make it, the smell just draws you in and makes you feel so relaxed. John likes to drink it cold but I prefer to have it nice and hot. The thought of drinking something cold in the winter is not comforting. The other nice thing about Dreamtime tea is that it is low on caffeine.

At the time, we were unaware that there were any Whittard stores in the U.S. So, the next time we saw my sister-in-law, we had her bring more of that tea to us. However, when we were visiting Boston last October, we ran into a Whittard store and we were absolutely delighted! We bought more and tried two other instant teas as well - Hot Chocolate Dreamtime and English Fruits.

We have become great fans of Whittard but unfortunately they only have a handful of stores in the U.S. Whenever we have guests come over, we offer them this tea and those who have tried it instantly fall in love with it. I have found Annie's Tea Time that carries Whittard tea products and they will ship them to your home for a reasonable shipping fee. Now, I don't have to bug my poor sister in law in UK to send them to me. I'm also happy because I can now point my friends to the site so they don't have to ransack my beverage cupboard.

Chicken Cigars

2009-01-24T08:53:00.001-08:00

So, I've been trying a few new things in the kitchen lately. I tried Racheal Ray's Chicken Cigars. Delish! The first time, I tried to edit her recipe to make it more Indian style. I subsituted some curry powder and chopped cilantro for the parsley and grill seasoning. It turned out a bit too spicy but we didn't mind. The second time around, I followed RR recipe and it turned out super as well. Here's what I love about this recipe:

It's versatile - you can add potato chunks in it if you'd like, or chopped spinach
It's a great appetizer or you can make a meal out of it, esp. if you add a veggie in it
Pretty inexpensive

First time sledding

2009-01-22T11:06:00.000-08:00

A lesson to share with the world - by John Macdonald

When taking your child sledding for the first time, don't be over zealous. Try a small hill first.

We apologize for the video shaking quite a bit because Vivien laughed so hard - it felt like I was watching an American Home Video. It sounds mean to laugh at your own daughter and husband who came down a large sledding hill with such speed, but Sydney quickly joined in the laughter after she stopped crying. It was amazing to see how brave she was after that experience to try the small and medium hills. However, with that said, I think it will be awhile before she goes on another big hill sledding adventure!

Did I hear "Jesus"?

2009-01-21T11:35:00.000-08:00

It's funny what a kid says and it's another thing as to what a parent hears. I was in the kitchen (as always) and Sydney at the dining table. As I'm wiping up dishes waiting for her to finish lunch, I hear all of a sudden "Oh Jesus!".

It sounded like she was sort of swearing and I thought maybe she was imitating something she heard. So, I leaned over and asked her to repeat her statement. It came out loud and clear again, with much gusto this time "Oh, Jesus!". She smiled sheepishly and said that, that's what Brother bear said in the Berenstain Bears book titled "Trouble with Friends". What? "No, Sydney, I'm sure there's no mention of Jesus in that book", I added confidently.

I stopped doing dishes and went over to find the library book. We found the page she was referring to and lo and behold, to my relief, she was quoting the statement "Aw, gee, Sis" (when Brother bear apparently didn't want to join in on the tea party invitation).

It definitely reaffirmed that I should be always aware of what my kids read and listen to. But, I should not be too quick to jump to conclusions either and be careful to put on my parent ears!!

The Ph.D. race is completed!

2009-01-09T10:25:00.001-08:00

John graduated on Sunday, December 21st 2008. It was a glorious day to celebrate all his hard work and we couldn't have done it without the help of 1. GOD and 2. the help and support of FAMILY & FRIENDS (esp. from Montgomery County Church of Christ). We are very proud of John completing his doctoral program, through the ups and downs. I feel like I should write a book about our 4 year or something. Well, actually I have published a book through blurb called "Journey Days in Maryland" and it has all our highlights and challenges while living in Maryland. It's great to have something tangible that we can look back at from time to time. As we start the next chapter in our lives, the book reminds us of God's continual blessings and promises to us.

Rachael Ray Fan

2009-01-08T11:53:00.000-08:00

Yes, I'm a Rachael Ray fan and I'm not ashamed to say that at all. I know some people think she's too goofy and crazy with all her acronyms, but I think it's cool. It defines who she is. For my birthday, my wonderful brother & sister in law gave me a Barnes & Nobles gift card which I used to buy a Rachael Ray cookbook. Up till then, I just printed out RR's recipes from Food Network. Her cookbooks are so well written and they make me want to cook everyday. I told John that he's going to look forward to 2009 because I'm going to spice up things in the kitchen. I have a favorite recipe to share that the kids love too - It's called Honey Nut Chicken Sticks. I even made up the honey mustard dressing to go with it and it's YUM-O! With my new cookbook and a new appetite to try some different things this year, I think our family will be going out to eat less. Yippee - good bye to large portions of boring food and hello to YUM-O food.

Artists at work

2009-01-08T11:48:00.001-08:00

The kids got several great Christmas presents this year. One of them included a Melissa & Doug Art easel and accessories. The kids are enjoying drawing and painting on the easel. Of course, mummy has to supervise so that Caleb doesn't take his art work all over the basement. It's great fun! Thank you to Uncle Leslie and Aunty Christina atthai. And thank you to Grandma Macdonald for the art smocks.

No traffic story

2009-01-08T11:12:00.000-08:00

It was another afternoon where I was driving Sydney to her preschool. Prime Time preschool is literally 5 minutes down the street from where we live. After two minutes of being on the road, Sydney asked me why there were no cars on the street. Well, I didn't know what to say and then we saw a car coming down the street as we approached her school. Sydney continued saying "Mommy, I like Michigan. There's no traffic here". As Anne (our friend in Maryland) would say, John and I must have talked about the traffic a lot in Maryland. Even if we made a long stop at a traffic light, Sydney would complain about the traffic from the back seat.

A little boy turns 2

2008-12-19T10:19:00.000-08:00

Caleb can barely use his two finger to point out that he is two but he can say the word "two", at least. He didn't really know what all the fuss was when I got him a Thomas the tank engine helium balloon and a candle to put on his cupcakes. It didn't matter to him - he still enjoyed eating his cupcake. Unlike his big sister, he rather eat his cupcake without frosting. Personally, I think he prefers my homemade frosting to the Betty crocker store-bought type. I don't blame him. :-)

It was fun to have Grandma and Grandpa Macdonald there for his birthday and to see him open up all his gifts. I think the big hit was the green John Deere tractor that they bought for him.

Ho Ho Ho

2008-12-18T11:26:00.000-08:00

Our library had a small Christmas program on Dec. 18th where they had story time, some snacks and a chance to meet Santa. Sydney had written a letter for Santa telling him of the toys she was interested in getting and was looking forward to the day to meet him. However, when Santa showed up on the scene, Sydney fled -- not interested on sitting on his lap at all! We waited at the library (Grandma & Grandpa Macdonald were visiting at the time as well) until Santa was done with all the other children and then she changed her mind and was willing to visit with him. When she opened up the card to read to Santa, we heard people in the room comment on how organized Sydney was and that she might be a CEO someday. John just shook his head wondering, could it be that his little girl is just like daddy. Caleb showed more enthusiasm in the beginning to visit with Santa but then refused to sit on his lap. But he would boldly point at santa and say "Ho Ho Ho!". It's the cutest ho-ho you've ever heard. Anyway, the library took a similar picture and got our permission to post it in our local area newspaper.

Winter is here

2008-11-18T13:55:00.000-08:00

We're all excited about the snow, but I don't think the excitement will last for too long. I do have a little Sydney-story I would like to share, though. I try to cook Indian / Malaysian food as often as I can. The last time I made a curry, it was a little too hot for the kids. Caleb just eats it all up and then drinks tons of milk to cool off his tongue. I usually have to persuade and urge Sydney to eat up and I keep telling her that she's my little Indian girl, so she needs to get used to spicy food. Well, a few days ago, she said "I am your little Indian girl and Caleb and daddy are your Indian boys." John turned around and said "uhhhhh, not quite". I had a good chuckle. Okay, pictures of the kids enjoying the snow...............

Moving In

2008-11-15T12:25:00.001-08:00

It's been awhile since I updated the blog site. I've only been a tad busy you know....with packing and moving our family to a whole new state! Yup - Michigan, here we are. We had a light snow fall on the first day of our move-in. I guess it was a "Welcome-to-Michigan" present. The kids were so excited about the snow. It melted away after a day or so and Sydney was already disappointed. Oh boy, is she in for a treat this winter.

So, we're still busy unpacking and getting settled in. So nice to have so much space. The basement is finished and kid-proof so that makes a nice, spacious playroom for the kids. I can't find my camera-uploader, so can't quite upload pictures yet.

Be patient, everyone!! :-)

Closing of our home

2008-10-31T13:46:00.000-07:00

October 31st will never be the same for us, because we closed on our home in DeWitt, Michigan today. Being Halloween an all, thankfully nothing spooky happened with the closing process. Now we just need to finish packing and get moved. Thank you to everyone for your prayers and encouragement as we finish out the moving process. People have been asking us for pictures of the home so here they are:

New England Fall Leaves

2008-10-25T21:29:00.000-07:00

John is done with his dissertation. Defended on Friday, October 10th. He received all 5 signatures from his committee members and has a few changes to make to turn in his book, but we are so thrilled and can't believe he's done! The next day, we left for New York. We decided to take a week off and celebrate the fact that John is done. We had a great family vacation. Let's see....we went to Albany, New York, drove through Vermont and New Hampshire; stopped a few days in Maine (absolutely gorgeous with all the Fall leaves); drove through Rhode Island and then on to Connecticut. I think my camera took over 200 pictures. Crazy, I know. Here's a few and the rest are on the kodak gallery site.

Checking off our list

2008-10-04T06:08:00.000-07:00

When we first moved to D.C., John and I made a list of all the things we would love to see and do in this area. As we were making plans for our vacation to Boston and Maine, it was fun to go back to our list and see what we've done and crossed off our checklist. Thought it would be fun to share. We've definetely seen and done a LOT while we've been here for 4 years - not to forget 2 trips to UK and 2 to Malaysia. Crazy! We're a world traveling family, I tell ya ! But it's so much FUN! FUN! FUN! We are also in the midst of creating a book together on blurb.com, that tells the story of our last 4 years. Anywho,.....here's the list I found... the ones in green are things we have done/ seen.

Pentagon
Harpers Ferry - Fredrick
Arlington Cemetery – Nov 2004
Air Space Museum – Nov 2004
Capitol – Nov 2004 - John
Supreme Court
Library of Congress
Capital Children’s Museum
National Building Museum
Bureau of Engraving and Printing
WWII Memorial - 2004
Korean War Memorial - 2004
4th of July Fireworks in D.C. - 2005
Vietnam Memorial
Washington Monument Tour
Jefferson Memorial –2004FDR Memorial – Mar 2005
National Museum of Natural History – Oct 2005
Botanical Center – Sept. 2004
Brookside Gardens
Cabin John Park – Sept 2007
Lincoln Memorial – Mar 2008
Embassy Row – John - 2006
International Spy Museum
National Zoo- 2005, 2006 2007
Thomas Dixon Aircraft Observation Park
White House
Smithsonian
Ford’s Theater
National Christmas Tree
Winery
Horseback
National Geographic Museum
Holocaust museum - 2005
Union Station
Hard Rock Café
B & O Railroad Museum – John - 2005
Downtown Baltimore
Mt. Vernon
Georgetown
Baltimore Aquarium
C&O Canal
Great Falls National Park – March 2008
Sea Kayaking on the Chesapeake
Maine - October 2008
Philly
Virginia Mountains (Shenandoah Valley)
New York – Feb 2006
New England – fall leaves October 2008
Gettysburg – July 2006
Cherry Blossoms - Mar 2005, 2006
GW Bush Inauguration – Jan 2005
Sailing in Annapolis – Summer 2006, 2007Ocean City/Rehoboth Beach
Easter Egg Roll at White House Mar 2008
Baltimore Zoo April 2008
Atlantic City, New Jersey August 2004

Phelps Fan ?

2008-10-04T05:53:00.000-07:00

When the olympics was on, it was fun to watch it with Sydney. She took some swimming lessons this summer and it was neat for her to see how people swim in the races. She definetely enjoyed watching Michael Phelps win. The strange thing is that just a couple of weeks ago, she woke up one morning telling us that she dreamt of Michael Phelps. I thought she was kidding and asked her if she knew who he was. She said "yes, he's the swimmer!". And proceeded to say, "and he smiled at me" and then started laughing.

Is it possible for a 4 year old to be a Phelps fan or have this kind of cute infatuation?

This is definetely one for the books.

Exciting Days Ahead

2008-10-01T06:02:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that we finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. John finally gets to defend his dissertation October 10th !! He actually turned in his 220+ page book in 2 weeks ago. I keep telling him that I can't believe we're actually at this point, after 4 crazy years.

After his defense, we plan on traveling to Boston and Maine for 6 days as a family. We want to see the New England Fall Leaves and take a scenic train ride with the kids. Oh...and Maine will be so beautiful this time of the year.

When we get back, we will seriously start packing and getting ready for our move. We close on our home on October 24th (God willing!) and then move to Lansing November 8th. YAY! Absolutely cannot wait. Once we close on the home, we will send family and friends pictures of the house. Sydney cannot wait to move either. She keeps talking about painting her room red and green. Right! I don't think she knows what she's asking for. HA !

Funny story about "SPACE"

2008-08-12T20:32:00.001-07:00

I was getting ready today to go for a baby shower and had a lot on my mind. Caleb wasn’t feeling well so I put him down for a mid-morning nap to get some extra rest and then decided to jump in the shower. Sydney wanted to play a computer game but I told her she had to wait till I was done with my shower. As soon as she heard the tap get turned off in the bathroom, she came running to the bathroom to see if I was ready for her to play her game. I repeatedly told her “not yet” and told her to wait. While I was combing my hair in the bedroom, she came in and complained that I was taking too long. It had been a long week and part of me needed her to be patient and part of me just needed some space to be by myself to get ready, to think of what all I needed to do for the day.

So, I turned to Sydney and said “Sydney, you’re going to have to wait a little longer AND you need to give Mommy some space”.

Sydney looked at me with a confused look – looked around the room and said “but mommy, there is lots of space for you and me in here”.

I thought to myself, I’m not even going to try and explain this to a 4 year old who cannot wait any longer.

I had to write this one down and maybe someday when she’s a teenager and she tells me that she needs her space, I’ll have to remind her of this line she once said and see what she thinks of that!

I'm loving it

2008-08-12T20:16:00.000-07:00

Caleb had his first corn on the cob this summer. I think he's lucky that he doesn't need to floss after eating corn (like the rest of us) because his teeth are all quite spaced out. Sydney can chow down at least 3 heads of corn. She must have Iowa genes somewhere in there. I'm surprised Caleb didn't try eating the cob either, but he does a pretty good job eating every kernel he can get his teeth on.

Jeanne Jugan Nursing Home

2008-08-12T20:06:00.000-07:00

I'm so grateful to my friend, Katie, who introduced me to a nursing home in D.C. that she volunteers at. I've been taking the kids for several months now and it's wonderful meeting the residents there and spending time with them. Some of them don't have family; some have alzheimer's and dementia. Sometimes, the kids play bowling with the residents and help put the bowling pins in the middle of the room and hand them the ball to roll. Other times, they have tossed balloons to them. Sydney likes to bring a book with her so she can read to them. Mr. Brown, Kathleen and Paul are some of the kids favorite residents to visit. We always feel so grateful whenever we come.

Grant comes to town

2008-08-11T11:24:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, Grant (or should I say "Uncle Grant") came to town. On Sat. afternoon, we went to the Spy Museum in D.C. John wanted to take the GW parkway so he could show Grant some of the scenic sights in town, but he got so excited that he kept missing his turnoffs, and we ended up in Georgetown - stuck in traffic - and worried if we were going to make it to our 4 o'clock show at the museum. Luckily, we made it through all that traffic and got there in time. Phew! After the museum, we had dinner at Kopitiam (The Malaysian Restaurant) and John took Grant to see the Lincoln Memorial while I played with the kids on the lawn by the Vietnam War Memorial. On Sunday after church, we just stayed indoors and the kids had fun with Uncle Grant. While the kids napped, we three played Settlers of Catan and Grant won. Before he left that night, we sang sang Happy Birthday and had some brownies. Yum yum. Happy 25th Birthday Uncle Grant!!

Dissertation Progress

2008-08-01T20:40:00.000-07:00

So, the last 4 years are slowly coming to an end and John is still cranking on his dissertation. The goal is for him to defend in mid-September. He's working his tail off and hoping to finish the race soon. We're heading to MI in mid-August to look for a house and hopefully we can find one that fits our family needs. We are all very, very proud of the way John continues to persevere and do his best everyday. I don't know how he does it but there is a secret in there somewhere. This is a picture of the Cherry Hill trail that we have often gone on (these past 4 years). Lots of tears, and lots of laughter as we talked and prayed about big and small decisions. The kids have been apart of it all as we have walked on this trail as a family. When we first started on this trail, Sydney was a baby in her stroller. Now, when we walk as a family, Sydney rides her bicycle and we push Caleb in his stroller. We will miss this trail after we have moved, but hopefully we will find a new trail in Michigan to make new memories on.

Annual Dean's Undergraduate Awards Banquet

2008-07-28T05:49:00.000-07:00

On May 8th earlier this year, John had the honor of receiving the Krowe Teaching Award at the R.H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland. He was nominated and recognized for genuinely caring about students, taking initiative in improving software in supply chain applications, and a “great job of lecturing supply chain design”.

Summer Blog

2008-07-16T18:20:00.000-07:00

Caleb & Riley enjoying snacks after playing in the fountain downtown Silver Spring
Sydney takes a swim class

Summer is here and I've been enjoying myself too much, that it's been hard to update this blog with everything going on. We were in Iowa for a few weeks in June. It was fun to catch up with friends and family. While in Iowa, we visited friends in Waterloo. Sydney had fun at the Miller pond - catching fish - going on a boat - and having her 1st Smores. We also saw our good friends, Chris & Alicia and their kids who happen to be in town the same time we were. They live in CO so we don't get to see them too often, but we hooked up for lunch at Hickory Park in Ames. Yum-O! Celebrated Father's Day in Ames with Jim and went home with Anne & Adam to Harlan that evening. Sydney loved riding the John Deere tractor with Uncle Adam and thought that was pretty cool. It was a wonderful trip.

John has to finish up his dissertation in the next two months and hopes to defend in mid-September. Our goal is to move to Lansing, MI in late October. We are very excited about this next adventure.

Sydney also started taking swim classes for 2 weeks. She doesn't like getting her face wet, so hopefully going to the pool everyday will slowly give her more exposure and experience.

Sydney and Caleb's summer favorites: Playing in the fountain downtown silver spring; Popsicles; Lemonade; PB&J sandwiches; playing in the sandbox; Playgrounds; Library summer events

Fun! Fun! fun.........

Caleb's Haircut

2008-07-07T18:36:00.000-07:00

This isn't Caleb's first haircut BUT it is his first at-home haircut. His fringe was getting a little too long and started getting into his eyes. The other motivation for the trim was that he was repeatedly called a "she" while we were shopping at IKEA. I said "That's it!" He's getting a hair cut. At first, I put him in the bathtub, sitting on a stool. The experience was completely misreable for the both of us. With a lot of crying and Sydney helping to keep him still by feeding him some goldfish, I only managed to trim his front.

When Daddy got home that evening, we put him in the kitchen sitting in his booster seat and we brought out the razor that we use for daddy. While John did a funny dance to keep him entertained (and that worked -- imagine that!), I was able to give him a quick buzz all over. YAY. Now, he looks like an older kid. Boy oh Boy.

Let's get into paint

2008-06-28T18:45:00.000-07:00

The kids were a bit restless one day, so I brought out the paints, art paper and brushes. Then I realized that Caleb hasn't had a chance to show his art skills yet. And he sure had a lot to show. He liked getting messy in the process.

Two steps at a time

2008-05-22T09:41:00.000-07:00

Family Tradition

2008-05-22T09:33:00.000-07:00

Ever since moving to MD, we have made it a family tradition to go to the beach before the peak season of summer. Warm enough to enjoy the sand and space on the beach. We don't like crowds. Plus, we love shopping at the Tanger Outlet mall at Rehoboth beach. We always buy the kids Stride Rite shoes there because it's 1/2 price - can't beat that. This year, I bought a pair of Wilson leather gloves there- in preparation for our move to winterland - MI. I got these $60 gloves for only $9. Can't beat that either.

Time for the beach

2008-05-19T18:52:00.000-07:00

Maryland Day 2008

2008-04-29T19:01:00.000-07:00

Univ. of MD celebrated it's 10th anniversary of Maryland Day. We decided to take the kids and attend the event on campus and we are so glad we went. It was a gorgeous day - low 70s - lots of kid activities and games. The first thing we saw was the balloon man and he made Sydney a flower and made Caleb a monkey on a tree. Then Sydney wanted to jump in an inflatable castle. We got to see the 50,000 cupcake give-away and that was neat too. Sydney couldn't get enough of the icing and Caleb just gobbled up his cupcake. The Student Union had an indoor Kids Carnival that had a variety of games for young children. Everytime Sydney participated in a game, she received a ticket that entitled her to win some prizes at the end. At around noon, we started walking back to the parking lot because the kids were getting a bit tired. As we were walking back, we saw a tent set up where some students were doing some free caricatures of people. When we got to the tent, the artist was just finishing up another girl and we were next in line. After Mike finished drawing a picture of Sydney as a princess, he offered Sydney a chance to draw himself. Sydney took the offer and did a great job. Mike said he would put the picture on his refridgerator at home. This was Sydney's first time drawing a person with facial hair - so that was interesting and amusing to her.

When we came home, we had lunch and the kids took a LONG afternoon nap. To learn more about the event, you can read http://www.newsdesk.umd.edu/scitech/release.cfm?ArticleID=1650

Baltimore Zoo

2008-04-29T18:33:00.000-07:00

The Jackson family invited us to go to the Baltimore Zoo with them because Josiah's school was having a field trip there and it was free. I was supposed to go pick our friends up in our van but when we arrived there, Josiah's sister was sick. I decided to take Josiah along with us - and we had a great time. In my opinion, the best time to visit a zoo is in the Spring. It's not too hot in the day and you can see more animals out and about. I was impressed at how many animals the kids got to see and learn about. Here were some of the MANY pictures we took:

Schedule

2008-04-24T16:24:00.000-07:00

April 22, 2008 (Funny Moments)

We were on our way home from church on Tuesday night when I started briefing Sydney on what needs to be done as soon as she got home, because it was late – 9 p.m. She answered me by saying “I will need to check my schedule to see what is next”. I said “schedule? There is nothing else on the schedule. It’s bedtime!” She insisted on checking her little schedule that we have on the refrigerator door to see what is on her schedule for the next day. We said OK. Does she sound like a daddy’s girl or what?! :-)

The next day (Wed.) in the evening, we told Sydney that we were going to have a family devotional together. We normally have them on Monday evenings but we didn’t do it this week because the kids were quite tired that evening and both went to bed early. Sydney’s response was “What? No, No, we only do devotionals on Monday. Come look at the schedule”. John proceeded to tell her that schedules are just a guide but they don’t control us and we need to be flexible sometimes. Sydney ended by saying repeatedly “I don’t like that. We need to wait till it is Monday again.” I don’t know if that schedule thing I made for us is helping or not. Hmmmm….

Easter Egg Roll 2008

2008-03-24T18:30:00.000-07:00

We camped out (literally) in D.C. on Friday night to get free tickets for this annual event - The White House Easter Egg Roll, which is an ongoing American tradition that dates back to 1868. FrToday, we took both kids along with some friends to the Easter Egg Roll on the White House lawn and it was so much fun. It definetely was a memory for our family and we would definetely bring the kids back if we had another opportunity. Sydney's favorite moments were : taking pictures with Curious George & the Easter Bunny, participating in the egg roll and egg hunt, and riding on the metro train with her best friend, Reese. The kids received a gift bag that contained some fun items but the best thing Sydney liked was a colored wooded egg that has the President and Laura Bush's signatures on the back.

Easter

2008-03-23T21:47:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Easter by going to church Sunday morning. After lunch, we went to John's campus for a little while to have an Easter egg hunt with the kids.

Caleb's 1st haircut

2008-03-17T15:44:00.000-07:00

Overall, it was a good experience for Caleb. He sat still for maybe 2 minutes, but in order to keep him sitting the whole way through, I had to feed him cheerios and snacks and that kept him happy and gave the hair dresser ample time to get a decent trim.

Petronas Twin Towers Completed

2008-02-17T17:46:00.000-08:00

Yes, the actual Petronas Twin Towers was completed back in 1998, but John finished putting together his Petronas towers as of today. He received this 3D glow-in-the-dark puzzle from his brother for Christmas and I'm amazed that he managed to put it together so quickly. 1st picture is the actual twin towers and the 2nd pic is the puzzle completed. It sits in his office right now and it's been hard for the kids to keep their hands off of it!

News from Sydney

2008-02-13T14:00:00.000-08:00

Sydney woke up on last Sunday and spotted this beautiful rainbox from our window. The first thing she said is "Look Mommy! God made this rainbow." Her friend Reese (who spent the night) and Syd were SO excited about the rainbow.

Sydney also made a bird feeder in class one day, as part of their art project. We hung it outside our window on a branch and waited. We waited for a few days, but no bird in sight. She was a little discouraged that the birds were not eating the seed stuck to her little pinecone. Then, one day last week as we were sitting down for lunch, we saw a few sparrows come by for lunch too. She was thrilled to bits!

February Cheeky Monkeys

2008-02-13T13:00:00.000-08:00

Caleb says "ta ta ta brrrrrrrr". You didn't understand that?! Okay, let me translate. He wishes everyone a HAPPY VALENTINES DAY! Oh wait,...Sydney wishes you all HAPPY V-Day too! Here's Caleb's 13th month update:

- loves to open drawers and cabinets in the kitchen, and try to investigate every nook and corner of the house!

- searches the trash can daily for food :-)

- enjoys throwing his toys away in the trash can
- acts all cute and innocent when he's caught doing something he shouldn't (like touching an outlet)
- follows Sydney everywhere she goes, only to try and destroy anything she tries to build

- loves to snuggle and slobber our faces with drooly kisses

- has two teeth in the bottom and his 2 front teeth are starting to peek a little
- He's so busy during the day that he still takes 2 good naps

- He still is a good eater, and currently eats about the same portion size as Vivien. When he's done with his food, he tries to look over at Sydney's bowl to see if she's finished - hoping to steal some of her food as well. He usually finishes his lunch and dinner before she does!

Update on Sydney:
- loves to check out about an average of 20 books from the library every week! And makes us read at least 10 books a day!
- made a cute, Valentine Dog card at pre-school for Mommy, Daddy and Caleb
- still fits into some of her clothing that says "24 months" - she is pretty petite

- currently learning the days of the week, and how to write her name

- is quick to tell on Caleb and makes sure that justice is served fairly in the home

- favorite food still remains to be PB&J sandwiches for lunch and sweets of any kind

Wedding Pictures

2008-02-12T14:08:00.000-08:00

Ramona sent me some new pictures from her wedding taken in Malaysia - Jan 12th, 2008. I was so honored to be part of her wedding. I (Vivien) have known her since we were 13 (Form 1 - Assunta). We've been best pals since then and I absolutely miss her. :-(

Chinese New Year

2008-02-10T19:37:00.000-08:00

So they say this is the year of the Rat. The Rat?!?! I don't like Rats. Period. Or "full-stop" (as we say it the British way). Well, anyway....my experience with Chinese New Year is visiting my Chinese friends' homes (back in Malaysia) and eating good food. If I walked away with a red packet ("ang pow") in my hand, I was pretty fired up. Watching dragon dances, seeing fire crackers go off and tasting Chinese cuisine is all part and parcel of enjoying the CNY - in my experience.
It just dawned on me, that I should introduce my children to some Malaysian festive seasons. So, I decided to teach Sydney how to make little chinese lanterns using red construction paper. On Thursday, the 1st day of the Lunar new year, we gave Sydney and Caleb red packets with a $2 bill in it. And, yes, we had chinese food that night. Nothing too elaborate because Sydney is a picky eater and I didn't have much time to prepare. I made fried rice and chinese egg soup. On Saturday, we took the kids to go see a dragon/lion dance at a mall that was promoting the CNY celebration. Sydney thought that the best part was feeding the dragon some money and having her bestfriend Reese with her.

December quickly turned to February!

2008-02-06T06:33:00.000-08:00

Okay, so i'm a little slow on updating our blog. December and January are such a blur for our family. We celebrated Christmas and New Year in Malaysia with Vivien's family and we returned to the States on Jan.15th. Ever since, we have all been playing catch-up with our schedule. In between, John's been to California for a week for work and last week, he was in Iowa for a week. We sadly found out that his dad has 2 tumors - in the brain and lung. Today, he's going in for surgery to remove the tumor in the brain and for them to run tests on it. Keeping Jim in our prayers!

Back to our vacation, it was wonderful. Some of the highlights from our trip:

Caleb celebrated his 1st birthday with about 80 or so guests at my parents house
Vivien, her best friend Ramona and Ramona's sister went for a Thai body massage and had dinner at Hard Rock Cafe in KL to celebrate her bridal shower
We took a trip to Langkawi (an island up north, close to the Thailand border) with the whole family
Caleb started walking at 12 months and Vivien's family got to witness it!
Vivien was matron of honor at her bestfriend's (Ramona) wedding at that was an incredible day!!!

Big Hole in the Ground

2007-12-10T10:59:00.000-08:00

John and I had a little get-away right before Thanksgiving. We flew to Phoeniz, Arizona where John had a conference to attend for 5 days. We dropped the kids off with his parents in Iowa, who graciously watched our kids for us so that we could have a little time to ourselves. The conference was held at the Desert Ridge Marriot Resort in Phoenix and the place was absolutely beautiful. I (Vivien) came home feeling refreshed and relaxed after being there. It was the perfect vacation. All I did was read, sit by the pool, swim and enjoy the facilities at the resort. Towards the end of the trip, we took a day trip and drove to the Grand Canyon.
I was expecting to just see this big hole in the ground but turned out to be more than that. GC was absolutely breath-taking and left me speechless. Took some pictures, but we feel that even the pictures don't do any justice for what we really saw and how we felt about the GC.
The 1st picture was taken in Sedona Valley, on our way to GC. The rest were taken at the GC.

Trick or Treat

2007-11-10T07:07:00.001-08:00

Sydney was of course a Care Bear (to be specific "Cheer Bear") and Caleb was dressed in a giraffe outfit. We went out trick or treating on the 31st with some friends and came home with more candy than we know what to do with. We had a great time as a family!

Shenandoah National Park

2007-10-28T16:50:00.000-07:00

After John returned home from his CSCMP conference in Philladephia, we took a couple of days and went away to the mountains of Shenandoah in Virginia. The weather wasn't too great (too much rain!) but it was nice to be together as a family and away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Sydney enjoyed staying the night at a hotel and kept getting out of bed to look outside. Cute! Besides the skyline drive, we also visited the Luray Caverns, which are the largest caverns in Eastern America. That was amazing to see and learn about.

Time to pick pumpkins

2007-10-17T17:40:00.000-07:00

We went to the Butlers Orchard this year to pick out pumpkins. Sydney had fun with Matthew and Jack today. Caleb was sick (boo hoo) and had to stay home with Daddy (who was also not feeling well). I'm determined to get a photo of both kids with pumpkins, but have to wait till Caleb is better. The hay ride was one of Sydney's favorites.

It was perfect day to go pick pumpkins. Now, we just need to carve them !