Isaac's 7th birthday

Our little boy is growing fast. Isaac is 130cm tall and weighs 30kg. He is quite a big boy (just over 90 percentile on the growth chart).

Isaac didn't want a party (as usual).  He requested the new PS3 game from us as present and has been so looking forward to opening it. He also got Star Wars lego from Nan and Opa, and Star Wars stuff from best friend Lucas.

Isaac didn't want a cake either. He said he hated sweet things. However he did want pan cakes for breakfast. According to him, "mommy is my number one love and pan cake is number two...". So sweet!

For dinner Isaac requested pizza. So we went to a small local Italian restaurant and enjoyed a lovely meal. The restaurant had great ambience and we would definitely become regulars in the future.

Last Friday Isaac received his first class merit award this year for "being very helpful and responsible in class". We were very pleased and rewarded him with a Star Wars toy. Overall Isaac seemed happier this year and more settled in school.

New bed at last...

Today is my 13th anniversary of arriving in Australia.

Also today our latest big purchase was delivered. We got a grand ultra plush king size mattress and ensemble! It's the most expensive bed at Myer and we got it 50% off, a good deal. It's so soft and comfortable! After more than 11 years of putting up with the old bed, we can finally enjoy a gorgeous bed. We are super excited!

We love Fiji!

We are back from Fiji two days ago, but still in holiday mode - meaning we don't feel like cooking and have been going to food court in Westfield to solve our meal problems; and we are still drinking lots of yummy drinks at night just like we did in Fiji; and we are feeling tired perhaps our body clock is still in Fiji time? ......

Fiji was so good. We are already talking about going back, definitely. Mark and I agreed next time we will not bring Nan and Opa, haha. And we will be enjoying a lot more cocktails!

We stayed at Sheraton Denarau Villas for 10 nights. Our room was a 2-bedroom lagoon villa. It was so spacious and so clean. The amenities of the hotel were excellent and the service was second to none. Fijian people are super friendly and relaxed. We felt very safe, very welcome and very relaxed - exactly what it should be for a holiday.

Isabel loved it so much that she didn't want to come back to Sydney. She was in the pool so much that she got such a tan! For Isaac, the best part was watching the cartoons on TV as much as he liked. Mark's highlight was "doing nothing, just relax!". As for me, the best thing was no cooking, no dishes, no stress...

Photos are uploaded here

View from our room

Master bedroom

Living room (with fully equipped kitchen)

Second bedroom (with bathroom as well)

Our 2011 Christmas will be spent in ...

In two days time, we will be flying to Fiji and celebrate Christmas there. At the moment Mark and I are thinking of surviving the 10 days without internet... so our iPad and iPhone will be for the games only. It might be a good opportunity for me to finally read a real book! I'm also thinking about catching up with beauty sleep and learning how to swim (kids can be my teachers now).

The special thing about this holiday is: Nan and Opa are joining us!! So it's a fairdinkum family holiday!

Mark and I have one thing in common in regards to "holiday": our ultimate holiday is to laze around and do nothing!! With Nan and Opa coming along to entertain the kids, it seems Mark and I can finally enjoy a perfect holiday! :)  I shall report back on this one.

2011 end of year school presentation

Tomorrow is the last day of school. Isabel will be in Year 1 and Isaac will be in Year 2 when the school starts next year. Time has gone so fast!

Last week we attended the end of year school presentation. Children went on the stage to receive their awards and the proud parents were cheering for them. We also watched kids perform some songs - they look really cute!

In this video, Isabel is the one right in the middle in the front row. She certainly knew what she was supposed to do. Actually she told me today "Mommy when I grow up, I'm going to be someone famous!" I said "a famous doctor?"  She said "No! A famous singer!" ......

Both Isaac and Isabel received good reports for the year (although I would have loved to see Isaac's "effort level" higher). Now they are really looking forward to the school holidays.

Piano recital 2011

This afternoon we attended the piano recital. Isaac and Isabel both did a good job. However a little accident happened to Isaac and he got distracted for a while. Never mind we do know from his daily practice that he is an excellent performer. On the other hand Isabel was not so perfect at practice time, however she did really well at today's performance. Some people always got good luck...

P.S. When Isabel was performing the first song, her best friend Annabel was humming next to me which can be heard on the video. And when Isaac's book fell down, the only person in the audience who laughed was the daddy Mark (he thought it was really funny) and it was also recorded...

And here are some practice videos:

Overall we are very proud of our children's progress. It's great to see them learn, improve, and enjoy.

Just Dance at home

We were not allowed to take photos or videos at Isabel's annual dance concert. But at home, I was free to film the kids while they were having fun dancing away...

Just realised that Isaac is pretty good at dancing. Perhaps we should send him to the dancing class as well next year? :)

Isabel's 2nd dance concert

Yesterday and today, Isabel had her annual dance concert. It's been a very busy weekend, but we all enjoyed it.  I think Isabel's favourite part might be having all sorts of make up putting on her face. :) 

Attending Lucas' 7th birthday party

Two weeks ago Isaac and Isabel went to best friend Lucas' birthday party. It's a Star Wars themed party because Lucas is having a Star Wars phase at the moment (and therefore Isaac is crazy about it as well).

Hyewon made the birthday cake herself. She is a genius!