Belgian friends in Melbourne

One of the highlights of our trip has been re-connecting with our dear, Australian- Belgian friends in their lovely home in Lower Templestowe. We spent a wonderful week with our Tasha, Ronny and their three beautiful girls, Inez, Mieke and baby, Liesl. We were at their home for one of the hottest days ever when my thermometer reached 50 degrees celsius in the sun and during which we tried and succeeded to fry an egg on their backyard patio stone in a frying pan. I caught up on laundry which dried in the sun in about 20 minutes. In Singapore, it would take about three days inside and smell hideous. I enjoyed taking the four older kids to the national museum and the science center and was so grateful to Tasha and Ronny for driving us around. We also enjoyed meeting Tasha's family and going to a birthday party on the Puffing Billy train. Ronny did a great job on the barbie! Another highlight was watching The Sound of Music together and singing along. Baby Liesl is named after the oldest daughter in the Von Trapp family. Most of all, it was just great to be together and the children got along so well, just like in Brussels. Thanks so much to such great friends. We hope to host y'all in Toronto one day...or meet you half way between!

 Miss you already! Thanks for such a great visit! Until the next time, adieu, adieu, adieu!

Fun with Papa in Perth and beyond...

We had a lot of great fun with Papa in Western Australia in our Wicked campervan. We enjoyed just being together on the open road, trying different Margaret River wines, camping and hot stew, the Super Pit tour in Kalgoorlie, Wave Rock, flying a kite we found in the garbage and fixed at the beach in Cervantes, north of Perth, and playing the didge at the Pinnacles! Good fun! Good giggles! We miss you, Papa!

First Day of 2014

In Western Australia, on the Boranup Forest Drive through tall stands of 100 year old, second growth karri. Pictured, are two locals with a view of the Indian Ocean in the background.

Lunch on Christmas Eve

Relaxing at lunch time on the deck of Castaways Resort, Koh Lipe, Thailand.

Happy 3rd Advent!

We had fun decorating a gingerbread house and munching it while taking breaks to pack. We are leaving for Langkawi tonight and will stop at Auntie Anitha's for a lovely Indian dinner before the airport. Got some great news that Sapphire and Ryan had their baby boy, Simon! What a beautiful start to our trip!

Our 4th Advent will be in Koh Lipe! Hope to be able to send you all happy wishes from the beach! We are at Cocos Bungalows beside Castaways. We are saying good bye now to our HDB and our life in Singapore. Luckily we made the most of our Asian sejour! Happy 3rd Advent everyone!

Our favourite twins, Abi and Jessi, turn 13!

 Two very special girls became teenagers today. Jessica and Abigail Shepherd, our Kiwi friends, turned 13! Church friends, Nola and Tanya, co-hosted a beautiful party for the girls full of speeches, toasts and lovely cakes and tea. We all contributed to a scrapbook for each of the girls that they can leaf through as they go through their teen years. It was a very beautiful party. Congratulations!

We made two pages per twin for their souvenir scrapbook. All the best for some fun teen years, Abi and Jessi! You never know where the road will take you but one thing is for sure, so many caring people will be there along the way to support you! Happy Birthday!

Christmas Lights and Cheer!

 We took our little elves to Gardens by the Bay to see the Christmas decorations and to have satays by the bay one more time. The pointsettas were out of this world! The domes were a refreshing place to cool off during our hot and bothered moments in Singapore!

 Pit and the Mommy rest and look at the beautiful foliage. "Touch neck"! Pit still loves to touch our necks.

 Gardens by the Bay has two lovely light and sound shows per night. We were lucky to enjoy one with a lovely breeze. These are the moments I will miss in Singapore...the balmy nights and the beauty of the lights.

 Afterwards we took our little elves to Somerset and Orchard areas for the over-the-top Christmas lights and crowds.

Merry Christmas, our little elves! Ho ho ho! So nice to spend some time in Singapore during the holiday season 2013. It was a very lucky Friday, December 13th by the way!