Halloween Week

You would think that not living in the States that there would be little options for Halloween.  This was not the case for Singapore.  I guess with over 25% of your population being expats, there would be a tendency for traditions to wear off.   This is VERY true for the area in Singapore that we live in, the Woodlands.

Once we moved here, we started hearing about how big Halloween can get in our area.  Same compared it to Mardi gras.  I was intrigued...topless women and beads?   

Trick-or-treating #1.

Halloween started early in the week for us with a private trick-or-treating event for local neighborhood kids.   This was an invite only event with a list of house giving out the good stuff.   I could have passed it off as the real thing.  That week the school also had a variety of events.  This included classroom parties and a man made "pumpkin" patch.   By the time the actual holiday came, we were already tired.

Halloween night we waited for Wade to get home.  He took a taxi, but got stuck in traffic due to closed streets.  By the time we made it outside our complex, I could see the masses of people.  On the main street we only made it to a couple house.  This was because of the lines just so get candy and maneuvering around people.  We finally found calm at a friends house where we decided to stay and avoid the masses.

By the end of the week I was tired.  So were the kids.   I was definitely Halloween'd out. 

. 

With our friends Ella and Gideon. 

Calm...my style.

Getting the good stuff, chocolate!

Liam's class party.

Martha Stuart type food.  

Pirate Liam!

Flower Fairy Amelia

Amelia's class party.

This picture doesn't give the masses justice.  Honestly...1000s of people  Buses come people in from ALL around Singapore and from Malaysia. 

Poor kid was worn out.

Legoland: Everything is Awesome.

We went to Legoland in Malaysia to meet our wonderful friends for the last weekend of our break.  They lived on our street in Bangkok and we all bonded fast and have created a forever friendship.   They moved on to the International School of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.   KL is only a four hour drive from us, but due to Malaysia law, they are not allowed to leave until the end of Dec for tax reasons. 

 Legoland seemed like the best place for us to all meet....it is just a border jump for us and still in Malaysia for them.  It is also ALL things Lego and they were the ones who turned us onto the toy.

The group. 

I was never a lego fan until I was an adult.   I had a neighbor growing up who had buckets of them, but my brother and I never understood the draw.  Having two kids who do enjoy legos, we can now spend hours building and being creative.  With today's technology, I love that it is still remains popular.  Liam loves it too and it a great builder even though he is only three.  

We went on a Saturday, but the place was not crowded and we got onto rides very easy.  There was even times when they just kept letting them go and go until we said stop.  They had roller coasters to lego displays.  Amelia liked the thrill rides and Liam liked the slow rides (so much like my brother). Malaysia is also cheaper then Singapore.  This was great for us!   

The splash ride.  

We decided to stay in a nearby hotel instead of going home that night.  The hotel was in the harbor that looked onto Singapore.   It was a cool area and one that I would definitely go back to for a weekend getaway.  The weekend went way to fast and I am already missing our friends :(.  

Yahoo for Legoland!

One of the MANY lego displays.  Liam wanted to have his picture taken with them ALL. 

Boat Quay, Singapore...Made of Legos.  This is the area Wade works.  So much detail!

Liam and Anna.  These two have a special bond.

Liam got his face painted early in the day.  It had melted within an hour and we had to wash it all off. 

This was Liam's favorite ride.   He would have spent ALL day on it.  

The infinity pool at the hotel.  It was rooftop.  

 

The plate of bacon our friend's ordered.  Malaysia is a Muslim country and most of it Halal.  They can't get pork products in KL, so they have to get it while they can.

Krabi, Thailand

Last week we had no school.   Hating to waste time off without travel, I started to search for good travel deals out of Singapore.  I happen to stumble onto a 75% off flight sale at AirAsia.  Too good of a deal to pass up and husband approval I booked a trip to Krabi with some other friends from work.

Rented kayaks for an afternoon.

Poor Wade having to work, I was traveling alone with two kids.  But the resort another family (who is also from Bham) had found, was perfect for us.  Kid's club, pools, and easy accessibility to paradise. It also offered babysitting service, so one night we hired a lady-boy to watch 4 kids while the adults played.    The resort allowed us to swim/relax and the area allowed for quick boat rides to nearby islands.  

It was a quick trip and made me miss Thailand food and people.    I am hoping to make it back once again! 

Cave of fertility on Railay.  Poor kid had no idea when I told him to say "cheese".  Amelia couldn't understand why I was taking pictures of mushrooms.

Swimming pool ocean. 

Boat to the islands. $12 total for the day.

Thai long boats

Little crew....they all got along so well. 

Kid's Club. 

One of the pools.  Way cheaper to enjoy drinks here then in Singapore. 

Holiday Inn Ao Nang

We went to this place twice to eat.  Great service.  Teaching the kids to be fire dancers. 

Kid's table.

Don't Blink

I was just looking at posts from the past and realized I never added Amelia's "3 sec" of fame.

Right before we were getting ready to leave Thailand, Amelia got a call to try out for a commercial. She had gotten these calls a couple times before, but they never turned into the real thing.  Leave it to timing, that when it finally did, we left a couple weeks later and never knew if it aired.

The day of shooting we were on set for about 5 hours.   This created 3 secs of airtime.  Amelia loved it all, but I was surprised how much ($$$ and time) goes into so little.

Over the summer we found the commercial.   As life moved on, I actually forgot about it.  This blog is meant to be a way to look back, so now I post it for property and to have something to show to future boyfriends.   With the experience, "Token" added a little money to her college account.  However, she has since been in retirement.

Here you go...just don't blink at the very beginning.  

Long Weekend

I didn't know we had Monday off until the week before.  A pleasant surprise and needed.   We had no big plans and spent the days at kid friendly places around Singapore.  

Jurong East Water Park: Singapore is $$$, but this place cheap.  $4 for all of us.  Liam LOVED the lazy river and after the 20th time in it, I started to hate it.   We will be back. 

Poor Amelia was too short for the slides.   

The highlight of the weekend was Amelia lost her first tooth.  She was SUPER excited.  Pulled it out all on her own (she wouldn't let me near it).   The tooth fairy also made a visit. 

Liam, Cecile, and I went to the zoo.   For some reason he insisted he had to get a picture (again) with the polar bear.   We didn't last more than a couple hours.  Due to it being a public holiday the place was packed. 

Amelia said that after each weekend, Mr. Lewis asks what they did.  She was VERY excited to share about loosing a tooth and I had to take another picture to show her new smile. 

Beach Day

Not sure what happened to what I wrote before...it is now gone.  No energy to do it again.   

We went to East Coast Park in Singapore looking for a play area.   No play structure found, but we did find a nice beach.  Spent the day relaxing and playing in the sand.  Great location for a beach fix, but I don't know if I will ever get use to the BIG boats in the seascape.

Boats in the background.

Sandcastle

Liam's castle.

I discovered that Singapore had wild monkeys.  I hate moneys.