McCarthy Family

On my 39th Birthday...

2012-01-28T17:44:00.002+08:00

Predictably it was an early start with kids jumping into bed wishing me a happy birthday. I was officially given my iPhone and was surprised by a Cath Kidston purse to match my handbag and this Pandora bracelet. Especially loved the charms, a "D", an aeroplane, a suitcase and moneybag especially for the CNY season.

To celebrate with the family we had lunch at the Korean and enjoyed everything kimchi thrown with plenty of chaos and a fantastic chocolate cake to finish!

Thank you all for your kind birthday wishes!!

Moshi Invasion

2012-01-26T22:52:00.000+08:00

We are eating, sleeping, breathing Moshi Monsters in the house. We get a break from it on week days but during weekends its pretty much a Moshi party from the moment they wake up!

Ong Kiat Family Gathering

2012-01-25T20:57:00.000+08:00

Last Sunday we together with about 600 descendants of the Ong Kiat clan gathered for the first time to see the launch of our genealogy book researched and collated by an Uncle and cousin Abdul Khalid Mahmood. We recognized many that were there but there were a lot more that we had never met before and it was interesting to meet so many "relatives" for the first time. We were all dressed in assigned colours, Dayang Nyachi wore blue, Dayang Tangah yellow, Awang Besar red and the largest group Awang Damit green (Dayang Bungsu did not have any biological children). What a great afternoon and we all learnt so much about the past and about each other.

Ong Kiat was born Ong Yuen Rei in Zhejiang district North China around 1840. In 1867 he had a son, Ong Fei Liang. The following year Ong Kiat had a disagreement with his father and together with several male cousins decided to leave their village and seek their fortunes elsewhere. They headed towards Kowloon, Hong Kong but only stayed briefly. A few cousins moved on and settled in Thailand and what is West Malaysia today. A handful including Ong Kiat headed to Borneo. One cousin evetually settled in Kudat, Sabah, one settled in Keningau, leaving Ong Kiat to settle in Labuan.

Ong Kiat set up a business and worked hard. His hard work was paid off and his businesses included a shop, and pepper & timber trading. By this time he had also set up home with a Malay woman by the name Hamidah and they had 5 children, three daughters - Dayang Nyachi, Dayang Tangah, Dayang Bungsu - and two sons - Awang Besar and Awang Damit. He had also become a leader in the community and was appointed to the Legislative Council of Labuan (or North Borneo) and subsequently awarded an MBE. News of his success did not please the cousins that had travelled with him from China. In July 1885 Ong Kiat was found dead, supposedly poisoned. His eldest daughter Dayang Nyachi was 10 years old and the youngest Awang Damit was merely 40 days old. (Ong Kiat was buried at Kampong Sungei Keling, Labuan on a property he owned. The grave is visited by his ancestors today).

News of Ong Kiat's death reached China and his infant son Ong Fei Liang then 17 years old travelled to Labuan to claim part of his fathers inheritance. Tragically on arrival to Labuan, he too was brutally murdered.

All five siblings lived healthily into old age. My Great Grandfather Awang Besar saw his 100th birthday. He passed away 8 months later from a fall (apparently he had a daily habit of winding his clock and one day lost his balance). Awang Besar too was appointed a member of the North Borneo Legislative Council and awarded an MBE. One of the main streets in the Labuan town centre is named after him.

Who we all are and how we are related to each other

My Dad going over faces with his cousins

Our own little clan minus Amin

A play depicting the life of Ong Kiat

Launching of the book by Grand Aunt Hajah Durah binti Awang Damit Ong Kiat, the oldest of the clan and last remaining offspring from the five siblings.

The afternoon finished off with a show. Above a dance from the Dayang Nyachi family. Our own kids did a dance representing Awang Besar family.

Junior Sports Day 2012

2012-01-20T23:15:00.000+08:00

Our kids just love Sports Day. They're always very proud to put on their blue tshirts (including bandana this year) and talk about the competition all the way to school.

As usual the little ones were indoors with their mini races with lots of shouting and fun. If Ayden didn't run so fast I could have got better pictures of him!

And Jack, always happy to be amongst his mates and doing his best.

In the meantime, outside Iman was very busy running, throwing and jumping.

And what a good morning she had. Iman came 1st place in her girls year group for the t-ball throw, 2nd for long jump and third for both 400m and 100m races, coming behind the Downey girls in both runs. And the blue house girls relay team also came first in the 4x100 event. One very happy girl especially as she missed the day last year.

Our Iman is 9

2012-01-17T14:17:00.000+08:00

Big day for Iman today, its the big 9. I love birthdays as they always bounce our of bed eager to open presents! And Iman was pleased with her G Shock and Adidas gear followed by a big pancake breakfast made with lots of love.

Nearly 9

2012-01-13T22:37:00.003+08:00

Iman had a dozen girl friends over this afternoon to celebrate her upcoming birthday and we had the first of many cakes. The chosen theme this year is Moshi Monsters with Iggy being the centrepiece - I'm new to all this so it was ?! to me. The girls swam, played and ran riot. Luckily Fatin was at hand to help entertain and calm everyone down with some nail polishing!

Ayden's other new "skill"

2012-01-12T21:17:00.001+08:00

Thanks to Aunty Mairead and Uncle Eoin, the pool table is now being put to good use and Ayden is our resident pool shark. And what a good skill to have too!

Ayden's Reading!

2012-01-12T10:13:00.002+08:00

He was very proud to bring home his first reader last Friday and did his very best to show us he can read!

Kuching Food

2012-01-02T19:39:00.000+08:00

After our Kuching trip I am hooked on Sarawak Laksa. Most states in Malaysian have their own laksa and my favourite has always been the Penang laksa with its hot sour and tangy flavours. That was until I discovered the laksa in Kuching, which is not only sour but spicy with a hint of curry - perfect for breakfast! So good was this cafe that we came here twice for breakfast. Donncha and I tucked into steaming bowls of laksa (I could have had seconds) and the kids had nasi lemak.

The cafe next door was Chinese serving mostly the famed Sarawak kolo mee, which is one of our favourite lunch staples here in Brunei. Unfortunately we never got to try the Sarawak version :(

Another dish we had which blew our minds (literally) was the Sarawak Umai fish salad, which is a spicy salad made with raw thin slices of fish, lime juice and plenty of chilli. A dish traditional to the Melanau tribe, the lime juice marinate "cooks" the fish. Delicious but should come with a warning!

Kuching Chinese Parade

2011-12-29T21:34:00.010+08:00

It was a great surprise to us on night in Kuching when we took a taxi into the city for dinner to learn there was a Chinese parade going on - the taxi driver said it was for Buddha's birthday, someone else I asked said it was a Chinese god. Well whoever it was for, it was great - such a large collection of lions and dragons and right in front of the temple. And the kids really enjoyed it except Jack who took a while to open his eyes and watch.

It was a real community thing with looked like every temple sending in their own dragon teams, carrying banners and parading their alters. It somewhat reminded me of an Easter parade in Spain. Some participants were dressed up in traditional costumes ala Monkey and Pigsie, the monkey god series we used to watch as kids in the UK before daytime really took off.

Rainy days at Basaga

2011-12-29T20:45:00.006+08:00

Don't think I have been on a wetter holiday than the one we are experiencing in Kuching which says a lot considering Ireland is on the list on a regular basis! It has rained four nights in a row and every afternoon. This evening there was no break and we just couldn't face going out and had dinner in the hotel.

So tired we were from TV and technology all afternoon that we decided to teach the kids dominos which is a first for us for a family game. It was great fun until Jack dropped one of the tiles through the floor boards below into an unretrievable pond! Donncha and I were devastated for a while - nothing worse than an incomplete game and a Smiggles set at that - sorry F & Z!

Luckily hotel area itself is lovely, built around an old house. The bar cum restaurant is based around a courtyard which is likely lovely when it's not raining. The rooms are a short walk from there albeit our room was mere 10 steps from the kitchen.

No Show for Orang Utans

2011-12-29T17:47:00.007+08:00

After checking various weather sites, we thought this morning would be the best to see the Orang Utans (or as Ayden says rambutans). As we hoped it was a dry morning and we along with dozens of other tourists (watching them was entertainment for the hour!) waited patiently but it was not to be. The kids were disappointed but we had already briefed them that this was NOT a zoo and the orang utans will come only if they need food. One thing positive from the excursion was that the kids CAN sit still and quiet for an hour!

Kuching

2011-12-28T15:47:00.014+08:00

So far our Kuching experience has been a very wet one with almost non stop rain day and night. So much so that Ayden and Jack haven't even jumped into the pool.

Yesterday morning we went for a walk in the city and enjoyed the view of the Astana and a walk through the historical buildings nearby notably the Old Courthouse which I think also housed the Rajahs' offices.

And in the afternoon we went out to the Sarawak Cultural Village. We loved the various houses and longhouses.

The blowpipe was popular with everyone with probably Donncha having the most 'go's.

Didn't enjoy seeing the ground through the bamboo gaps of the Melanau people's house. Check out the height on the picture below.

And the kids loved the entertaining cultural show

So far food has been a highlight. And there's nothing better than starting the day with a good Asian breakfast. On top of the list is the famed Sarawak laksa (which I will feature in another post). I had a good one this morning and the boys enjoyed their nasi lemak.

My Grandad

2011-12-25T11:29:00.003+08:00

When I was little Christmas Day was a day for my Grandad, Mohamed Noor Aston who was born Noel Aston on Christmas day in 1911. Today he would have been 100. Happy memories of the lovely man he was. Al Fatihah.

Celebrating their 48th wedding anniversary.

Thanks Santa!

2011-12-25T11:06:00.004+08:00

Dear Santa, the kids are really happy with their present. Is it too late for me to ask for ear plugs?!

Christmas 2011

2011-12-24T23:21:00.002+08:00

All quiet in the house now... someone's been, ... we'll share more pictures tomorrow.

Our Christmas Eve 2011

2011-12-24T15:26:00.004+08:00

There's nothing better than sharing a meal with family and today for Christmas Eve lunch not only have we had our family in the compound but also our house guests for the last two weeks, Mairead and Eoin on their honeymoon from Cork.

We had a lovely lunch of turkey and salmon (well done Donncha) but all the kids were interested in was presents!

Homemade bread

2011-12-24T11:23:00.002+08:00

It's Christmas eve and everyone is in good spirits. Nothing better to start the day than with some homemade bread. I think's its my best loaf yet but it now seems to be expected every day (gulp...)

Garden Facelife

2011-12-23T18:32:00.007+08:00

It's been a quiet couple of months for us thus the lack of updates and photos. We do though have these pictures to share. The digger came in at the end of October and we had our first swim today. The excitement on the kids faces say it all! It's going to be a true Christmas in the tropics for us this year!

The arrival of the digger did result in some complaints from our Timorese gardener as it tore up the path at the side of the house. He wasn't impressed.

December is not the best month to be trying to get a pool finished given that we get more rain at this time of the year. We also had to wait for a new type of liner to arrive which delayed the process slightly.

But all that is now forgotten, everything is more or less installed and the green light for the first dip was given earlier today. It was a lovely first dip with the kids impressed that they had plenty of space in the water.

Next challenge will be to sort out the garden but that's something we have a plan for and need to set that in motion after Chinese New Year. Thank's to our friendly neighbors for their patience with the ongoing work and we promise it will finish some time next year !

School's Out!

2011-12-14T16:53:00.003+08:00

School finally broke up today after a very long term. To celebrate the season and end of term, Ayden's class had a special visitor to their class party today. Kids are getting smarter - initially one of the kids said it's Ayden's Dad! And afterwards Ayden said to us that it was a Dad because he recognized the voice! They each got a present and afterwards there was party food with more cakes and candy canes than the kids could eat!

And of course plenty of presents for Mums to take home!

KK Swimming Dec 11

2011-12-06T21:37:00.006+08:00

It has been a very busy weekend for the McCarthy family. Whilst I was in Singapore for the half marathon (photos to follow), Donncha and the kids (together with my parents) were in KK for a swimming competition.

Only Jack and Iman were down to swim as Ayden was below the age requirement. Iman did well winning a medal for all her races bar the 50m backstroke. Jack in his first swimming competition was keen to compete but the waiting around broke him down resulting in a meltdown and refusal to take part in the relay. The back-up plan? Ayden who was raring to go took Jack's place and got his well deserved bronze medal. Thankfully this spurred Jack on and he returned back in the pool the next day and eventually won a bronze too.

Overall a great experience for the kids and adults and especially as the JIS team did particularly well coming second overall.

Liz Million @ JIS

2011-11-18T21:19:00.006+08:00

We've just has book week at JIS with two visiting author / illustrators. Sonia Leong, a Manga illustrator came for the older students and the Junior school had Liz Million, an accomplished author and illustrator. All the kids in the Junior school have been raving about her all week and this morning parents were invited to join the Reception kids when it was their session. All the kids (and parents) loved the session and not only is she very talented but also very entertaining.

Luckily, Ayden, Jack and I had a chance to meet Liz when we dropped by into the libray mid-week and the boys were well chuffed with the drawings she personally did for them.

Boys Play

2011-11-17T21:32:00.002+08:00

Jack and Ayden have been keen on making "camp fires" on week. Not great for the environment but it keeps them occupied for a while. They plan is to toast marshmallows on the fire but building the fire seems to be enough fun and they eventually forget the original plan!

International Day on 11/11/11

2011-11-11T21:30:00.009+08:00

The school couldn't have picked a better day to host International Day this year. The usual parade was in the auditorium for the first time which made a nice change from sitting in the heat. It's always so nice to see all the kids dressed in their national costumes or cleverly as famous countrymen or national symbols - gotta love the vegemite jar! The McCarthy family consisted of 2 Irish and 1 Bruneian this year. Iman did some talking to introduce her classmates and Ayden did well talking into the microphone that Mum is from Brunei and Dad is from Ireland!

Our Miss Ireland with best friend Nadiya

Jack sitting with his class

Iman's class

Great outfit from Myanmar

Jack's class

Dr Who & buddies

Jack's International Restaurant

2011-11-09T21:38:00.005+08:00

Two years ago was Iman's International Restaurant. Basically with the combination of International week and food as a topic, the year two classes host an "international restaurant" with parents providing food typical of their home countries.

Jack chose bergedil, which are beef and potato patties. We were not short of choice for lunch with various rice, noodles, potato dishes and snacks not to mention the huge range of desserts but for me the dish of the day had to be the Gambian Joloff Rice - truly amazing!

It was lovely to spend the time at school with Jack and like most of the kids that day, he was very proud.

Ayden's 5th Birthday Party

2011-11-07T11:54:00.002+08:00

Ayden had his long awaited birthday party on saturday morning. we had a big bouncer slide for entertainment and food was provided by a roti man which went down very well with parents and kids. We love stress free parties!

Ayden the first to get a roti just before his friends arrived

And the first slide down

Miri Half Term

2011-11-01T22:30:00.005+08:00

We made a brief trip to Miri last weekend for half term. It was great down time especially as the kids just spent hours by the pool messing around and playing with friends. So relaxed were we that the boys got away with going down the infamous slide all sorts!

Minibeast Madness

2011-10-26T11:45:00.007+08:00

Last week both Jack and Ayden were in a musical which involved all the kids from kindy to year 2. Written by Debbie Campbell, Minibeast Madness is a short musical especially for the younger years and the pictures show just how cute they all were in the costumes that were all so fab. Jack was proud to be one of the flies and Ayden even prouder to be a dung-beetle!

The room was packed out with parents all trying to catch a glimpse of their little ones and some were even turned away - it was very unfortunate that the show was not in the school's brand new theatre for all parents to enjoy.

Our Ayden is 5

2011-10-25T09:32:00.004+08:00

Ayden been talking about his big '5' birthday for months and it has finally arrived. We can't believe our "baby" is now a big boy. The day started with the presents and he had plenty of help opening them. As its half term, today we will have a big family lunch and Ayden can look forward to his party with his friends next week.

Halloween Kids Hash 2011

2011-10-19T19:27:00.006+08:00

We didn't have much time to rest after the football on Sunday. It was time for kids hash again and a special one too. We rushed to the costume shop after lunch to pick up something each for the kids - Iman wore a cape and hat and the boys masks though I failed to take any photographs mainly because they hardly wore them anyway.

After the run (laid fantastically by the Morley family) there was plenty of fun in store for the kids. They bobbed apples, got messy with flour and jelly babies and got wrapped up as mummies! Kids hash is always fun but this one in particular goes down as one of the best!

Iman was one of the first to bob

Much more hygenic just having one apple for person instead of the half dozen apples or so and everyone biting into them!

Jack did NOT enjoy this much to Abby's amusement

Ayden proud of his apple!

Jack being wrapped by two older older girls

They did such a fantastic job and won a prize!

Iman took the task seriously!

Time to clean up!

Only on the hash!

Football Funday 2011

2011-10-17T20:22:00.003+08:00

Just checking on past posts, its amazing how much this event has changed for us. Back in 2007 it was all about the funday more than football. 2009 gave an insight as to what lay ahead for Donncha. 2010 Iman played for the first time. And this year, it was all football, football, football. The stalls were fun and very busy but it was outside where all the excitement was.

Iman played in the JIS 'B' U11 girls though all of her team were actually U9 and the youngest girls team. But despite the age and size differences our girls managed to win 2 and drew 1 of their matches which included the JIS 'A' team (Y5) and 2 older teams from ISB. They got to the finals and did so well but were defeated by a last minute goal by the ISB team.

Receiving her silver medal from the school head.

So proud of these girls!

One for you Dad

2011-10-15T11:48:00.006+08:00

This morning my sisters and I made a special trip to UBD to attend the University's 25th Anniversary Ceremony. His Majesty The Sultan gave out special awards to past Vice Chancellors which my Dad was between October 1986 to Decenber 1988. As my parents are still away on holiday, Jasmine had to collect the award on his behalf and Hanna and I helped receive the gifts. So proud of my Dad and it was very special being there for him.

(Special thanks to the VIP who took the pictures - you know who you are!)

An Irish American Village

2011-10-13T16:44:00.003+08:00

During our trip to Ireland in the summer, we stumbled into Moneygall by complete accident. For those of you who don't know, Moneygall is the home of Barack Obama's Irish ancestors and a place he visited last May during his visit to Ireland. Poor Maria was asleep in the car and woke up when we drove into the village. Needless to say, she thought we were on a different planet once she woke up.

New Saturday Mornings

2011-10-01T10:47:00.003+08:00

With the long school hours and activities the kids do all week, we have started dedicating saturday mornings to homework. As with most households with young children, the youngest is always keenest. Ayden sets himself up on the table and goes through his new words and does some colouring. He doesn't hang around too long but at this age you have to love the enthusiasm they have for the dreaded 'H' word (note the lack of smiles from the other two on the table!)

My Omelette Boy

2011-10-01T10:34:00.003+08:00

The kids have never been big breakfast eaters before school but they are thankfully now tucking in without too much effort on out part. Except some of the requests need more attention than a bowl of cereal and toast. Jack has got into eating omelettes, not any omelette - he only wants cheese and onion! But fairplay to him he usually eats it all up and occasionally asks for another one but by then I am dragging them out the door!

Hari Raya photos 2011

2011-09-25T20:50:00.000+08:00

Before its too late I ought to post these Hari Raya pictures. Every year I vow to keep my camera handy and take photographs of the steady stream of visitors - and I only ever end up with a handful.

Collecting their envelopes

With Karli & Anna

In all my Hari Raya years of welcoming kids to the house, I have never come across a more delightful and cheery bunch as the kids below. They were all Malaysian and their stories made us all laugh. I hope we see them again next year.

And all the lovely family pictures

Amin flies the nest

2011-09-25T16:20:00.005+08:00

After talking about it all year, Amin finally left Friday on his way to Loughborough University to study Materials Science & Engineering. We are all so so excited and proud of him but at the same time sad that No.1 nephew and cousin will be away and it will be a while before we see him. We are all going to miss him especially Ayden who is a big fan. It's hard to believe the (now not so) little boy who was born when I was in my 2nd year at college is now a first year student!!

Amin, have the time of your life, study hard and above all please take care!!

For the record ........15-6

2011-09-18T00:41:00.002+08:00

15-6 Ireland - Australia ..... for those that know us, there is not much to be said .... photos to follow later.......

World Cup Fever @ Home

2011-09-12T10:41:00.003+08:00

Typical of our boys when there's sport on the tv they don't want to watch it, they want to play it! So their new rugby ball courtesy of their Dublin cousins got a good kicking around yesterday.

Rugby World Cup 2011

2011-09-09T19:41:00.005+08:00

Even though we live in Brunei and rugby is not a huge sport here, there are plenty of people with an interest in the Rugby World Cup taking place at the moment. The McCarthy household is firmly in the Irish camp as most of you will already know. However, that didn't stop Ayden's teacher from tagging a little gift onto his school bag today just to set the tone for the upcoming game (you would never guess where she is from!). Ireland start their campaign on Sunday against the States and then have Australia on the 17th which will be a big occasion in the McCarthy household.

As Brunei has a large contingent of Aussie's and Kiwi's, expectations are high for one of those countries to do something special. The English are always in there with a chance and the local support is confident as always as are the French, but we're hoping that Ireland will get a good run and give us a few good days and maybe even a few surprises (quietly confident as they say in Cork !)

New School Year 2011

2011-09-05T12:04:00.003+08:00

Finally, after a rather long holiday the kids are back at school today! And surprisingly despite weeks of being unable to get up in the morning after returning from Ireland the kids (and me) did very well this morning and we were were out of the house by 7am! - well done to Donncha.

This year Iman goes into Year 4, Jack into Year 2 and Ayden starts proper school going into Reception (and finishing at 2pm!!!).

Doonbeg .... for one night only

2011-09-02T22:37:00.010+08:00

With all our packing and unpacking during our visit to England and Ireland, Maria and I decided that we would try to make it away for 1 night together without the kids. Having been toDoonbeg previously for lunch, it was a straight forward choice when the offer of babysitting came from my parents. A relatively new hotel (2006), it is golfing lodge in Co Clare overlooking the Atlantic Ocean which makes for great views from the room and healthy walks on the beach.

Amazing place considering the hotel itself is a new build yet it looks like a building that has been there for many years.

We stayed in a lovely suite room which ended up being way too much space for just the two of us, but with a view right onto the Atlantic from the living room, what more could you ask for?

Turns out that our visit to Ireland this year coincided with the coldest July in 50 years and the coldest August in 25 so a walk on the beach meant that we had to wrap up relatively well !!

Hari Raya 2011

2011-08-30T22:38:00.004+08:00

Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri to all our family and friends

Maaf Zahir & Batin

Prayers for our loved ones

2011-08-27T12:54:00.004+08:00

Muslims the world over visit relatives' graves during Ramadhan especially the run up to Eid. This morning my family we went to the graves of my great grandparents, grandparents and Aunt. We said our prayers, cleaned the graves and gravestones and poured water scented with perfumed barks. AlFatihah..

All set for Hari Raya

2011-08-26T16:02:00.004+08:00

I took the kids out today for the inevitable fireworks shop. They were all very happy with their loot but have been warned that they are not to set off any for the next two nights at least until Donncha gets back. I think we did well not getting any 'bombs' which in recent years have got louder and louder - which all the bigger boys love. Ours are more of the 'flower' types with the exception of the rockets and the boxes.

Ayden's excited face says it all!

Cliffs of Moher

2011-08-23T14:03:00.014+08:00

Donncha and I had one outing without the kids whilst in Ireland and we went to the Cliffs of Moher in Co Clare. We had been there once before the day before Claire and Rob's wedding in 2002 but a combination of the weather and time prevented us from going for a walk. This time we paid for our 12 Euro entry and took all the pictures. The beauty of such cliff walks are breathtaking but they are also very scary which was why we were relieved that a slate stone barrier has been built to keep the over-curious tourist away from the edge which also explains the 12 Euro fee!

The closest we have come to the Aran Islands ... one day...

Note the stone platform before, I think pre-barrier days, people were able to go to the edge

These tourists have gone beyond the boundries

And some were too close for comfort

There's so much more to see and do in County Clare and unfortunately we were pressed for time so the Burren National Park is still unticked. I'm voting to come back to Clare again!

And the holidays roll on...

2011-08-23T12:47:00.003+08:00

Second night sleep back in Brunei. Donncha was back sleeping on an A380. Jack fell asleep 9:30ish and I had to force Iman and Ayden to bed close to midnight. I was dreading the thought of Jack waking up at 3:30 again and wanting a drink and a snack, thankfully he didn't though inevitably they did all manage to come into the bed (spot the space I had!). All still asleep at 10 this morning!

A Visit to Croke Park

2011-08-17T23:41:00.006+08:00

A big item on the agenda for Dublin was a visit to Croke Park, which is the home of the Gaelic Athletic Association in Ireland and where hurling and gaelic football are played. It's place in Irish history means that it's often spoken about and even Queen Elizabeth visited there on her recent tour of Ireland. English fans will recognize it as being the place where Ireland mauled an English rugby team a number of years ago (Donncha's comment)

Iman got to try on some old jerseys, complete with the hat and traditional hurley

As part of the tour, a visit to the player's lounge was included (basically an empty bar !) but interesting to know that the amateur players were at least given a free drink and some food after playing in front of 84,000 people.

No visit to a stadium would be complete without a visit to the dressing room - kids were happy to show their Tipperary heritage (Grandad was not happy about that!)

A walk on the sideline of the hallowed turf (apparently it's changed 4 times a year .... so not that hallowed these days). Ruairi was happy to come to Dublin and join the visit to Croker.

Grandad very proud to be showing his grandkids around .... meant a lot to him

Everyone enjoyed getting a tour of one of the corporate boxes, though they are not necessarily the height of luxury.

Donncha's cousin Liam joined the tour, which as usual for a person living in the city, was his first visit to the Croke Park Museum. Thank's to Liam for spending the morning with the kids.

In Dublin's Fair City...

2011-08-17T17:15:00.010+08:00

The last time we were in Dublin was over six years ago and it's been in the list for a while. We found an apartment in Smithfields (below) which is a short walk from the city centre. We stayed in a 3 bed duplex which was spacious and beautifully furnished - we highly recommend it to anyone going to Dublin for more than a couple of nights.

On the list of things to do was Dublin Zoo, Croke Park (we shall put pictures up separately), meeting family and friends and walking around the city. Donncha and the kids even managed to catch the Ireland vs Croatia friendly with Grandad and Ruairi and part of the Micallef family - though with a 0-0 finish, the kids described the evening as "BORING". Overall, a great few days in Dublin!

The Liffey

Walking through Temple Bar - nice and quiet early in the day

The quick toilet break turned into a pit-stop with music

Performers on Grafton Street

No visit to Dublin without calling to Donncha's uncle's bar

An afternoon with the cousins - the kids had fun running around the garden and messing with the lads.

And of course we had to get a few rides on the LUAS. If only the two lines were connected - Irish logic at it's best !!

An outing to Waterford

2011-08-16T19:53:00.006+08:00

Whilst at Castlemartyr we went for a drive to Waterford. We were lucky it was such a lovely day and the kids had a great time at Ardmore beach. Ireland at its best with blue skies!

The main reason for the drive was to see an old school friend of mine Sally who I went to school with in Bedford. We have't seen each other for 20 years and it was great to catch up! And it was great that the kids got on so well!

Castlemartyr

2011-08-16T17:31:00.006+08:00

From Nohoval we made Castlemartyr our base for four nights. Our accommodation was the Mews, and not exactly as the website had advertised. The bedrooms were great but the kitchen/dining/lounge left a lot to be desired - so much so I didn't even take a photograph even after some ingenious furniture arranging by Donncha. But the kids loved the open space just outside the front door and as always made friends to play with.

Lovely grounds around the hotel for walks

And the village just outside the hotel grounds

One of the things we love about Ireland is the quality of raw ingredients available here. Not much has to be done to produce a great meal. One day we headed to the English Market in Cork City - (now made even more famous after the visit of Queen Elizabeth in June) - and bought trout fillets, asparagus, samphire and salad. So simple but such amazing flavours!

For the kids the highlight of Castlemartyr has to be the pony & trap ride which they couldn't get enough of. And it was nice to see them comfortable enough to pat the ponies.

Nohoval ..... wet but no water !

2011-08-12T00:43:00.005+08:00

For the first week of Donncha's holiday, we booked a holiday home in this little village just outside Kinsale and half an hour's drive out of Cork. The little village was just as we expected and the little house was lovely except just one day in our stay, the taps ran dry for one side of the village - our side. Not an ideal situation to be in so unfortunately we had to pack up again and go somewhere else. Still we had an enjoyable couple of days in the village and surrounding area.

The village

Cosy house

The local watering hole

Nohoval Cove - too cold for the kids

So we drove on to Inchydoney which was only slightly warmer - hope the lady in the bikini caught a tan!

Plenty of rock pools which is always exciting for the kids

After a run around it was time to get wet and dirty in the sand - this is Ayden's speciality!

Followed by hurling in his panties!

On our way home we stopped by a village fair and had coffee and some yummy chocolate cakes. We love our holidays!

Mairead & Eoin's Wedding

2011-08-11T04:49:00.011+08:00

One special reason why we came back to Ireland this year was to attend Mairead's (Donncha's sister's) wedding. A number of first's involved, including everyone going to Mass so it was an experience full of questions and not so straight forward answers - prize goes to Ayden, who half way through the Mass, asked when the food was going to be served? This was followed by Jack asking why Jesus died !!

Our little men did scrub up quite well and Jack even surprised us by accepting that he should wear a jacket.

Iman had a very important role, being one of three flower girls. She loved it !!

Mairead did very well all day and didn't have too many nerves .... she did keep Eoin waiting 15 minutes but Sean (Donncha's brother who was driving the bride to the church) was blamed for that.

The boys with Ruairi ...... their best mate in Cork.

Jack being 'picked' on .... loved the attention of the older boys ......

Everyone was entertained on arrival in the hotel by a great Barber Shop group

McCarthy family minus Baby Tom

Paul below with his sisters Mary and Noreen and their husbands Gerard and Bernie together with their visiting cousin from Boston Marie and her husband Joe (couple on the left). Hopefully they enjoyed their visit - we certainly enjoyed meeting them.

The Groom's speech - he did a great job!

Cars 2 in 3D

2011-07-28T05:18:00.003+08:00

As I've mentioned before, Donncha and I are not huge cinema goers. As a couple we have only been to the cinema together once; Bend It Like Beckam in Notting Hill Gate and I don't think Donncha has ever been to the cinema in Brunei. The last time I went was to High School Musical3 in 2008 which brings my total of cinema visits in Brunei to 2!

So today was a special occasion when I decided to take the kids to see Cars 2 here in Cork (the weather played a huge part in that decision). But really we had a great afternoon and the kids were so excited (especially as Ruairi was with us) though poor Ayden fell asleep 15 minutes to the end. We all loved the movie and guess what - I think we should do this more often!

London = Friends

2011-07-26T15:31:00.006+08:00

Whether in London for a night or a week there is alway a friend to catch up with. I must though apologise to all the friends that we did not manage to meet - I underestimated the hassles of traveling round London with 3 children and always going places to keep them entertained. Mental note for next year; playgrounds work, museums not so!

We went to Chiswick one afternoon with Skye and get re-acquainted with Ben who we haven't seen for 3 and a half years. Picture below is the reading shed in Ben's school playground that Skye helped decorate.

And the part the kids loved most was the playground across the road from Skye's place.

Ben teaching them a trick using flower buds.

On another occasion we went to meet our long time friend Liz Bryant who I have known since my early teens. The London Dockland Museum wasn't such a huge success with the kids but they enjoyed chatting to Liz and it was wonderful to sit down and catch up with her. Thank you again Liz for coming to meet us!

Fish & Footy

2011-07-22T05:48:00.006+08:00

A boys evening out really. Early dinner close to the apartment and then a Europa League game at Craven Cottage. We found a lovely little diner up the road which really lived up to the image of the shop. Fish was very fresh and the chips as they should be.

After dinner, we hopped onto the bus and headed to Craven Cottage to meet with a colleague of Donncha's and his two boys. We ended up in the Fulham home end with some choice songs getting an airing - the ladies sitting next to us were full of apologies especially when they started singing some compliments of the opposition (who happened to be from Northern Ireland).

4-0 to Fulham but more importantly, at least one complete convert. Jack absolutely loved it and really got into the game and the audience participation. He also took notes on how to tackle (a current weak-point in Jack's game). Iman and Jack enjoyed themselves, but Jack wore a smile that reflected that he had found his space.

Both boys were comfortable at the end of the game to sit with Neal and his lads, enjoying the closing moments.

McCarthys land on Legoland!

2011-07-21T14:47:00.003+08:00

We have been talking about this day for months and had been a great bargaining chip for me! I'm not big on rides and it was great to have cousins Aimi and Raimi with us for the day. The weather wasn't great but I think worked to our advantage as the park was not hugely busy and the most we had to wait was between 15 to 30 minutes.

I still can't believe that Iman and Jack went on this sizeable pirate ship. They absolutely loved it though I was worried about Jack. I think I would have cried myself!

In the meantime Ayden was exploring this pirates training camp!

Gold panning seemed a great idea until they got very wet!

So they all had to get dried off.

This was tricky for Ayden. Funny how most of the people queueing for this ride were adult men and without children!

We bumped into the Kyles, friends from Brunei at this ride. Such a small world!

And lastly probably my most favorite part of the park!

London = Walking

2011-07-20T13:52:00.002+08:00

The kids learnt the hard way that London is all about walking. On Monday morning we started off at Queensway end of the park. Of course the Diana playground was still closed so we headed to Ken Church Street for a cookie and cup of tea. Back to the park and after a play, down to Ken High Street to catch the bus to The Natural History Museum.

We were then joined by my friend Bani and our old friend "Uncle" Gavin who happened to be passing through. Natural History was fun even though the main dinosaur section was closed (the main reason for going) and we instead had to pay 28 pounds to go into "special" dino exhibit which had moving dinos in. With that price you would expect a hall full of them but there was about 2 - and Jack was petrified! We went to other sections of the museum but the kids quickly lost interest.

So what to do with them now? Back though the park to meet up with Donncha and we eventually did a full square and more. I thought it was good day's walking but we had serious complaints at the end!

Belgian Parade Cenotaph

2011-07-18T13:20:00.001+08:00

We were just strolling when we came upon this ceremony which was about to happen. According to the programme, the Belgian army is the only nation allowed to march armed in London. A privilege granted by the King of England in 1934 for the Belgian's contribution to WW1.

And yesterday the privilege was ours. To see so many veterans with uniforms and medals was very moving and it meant a lot to us that our kids could see all this. They asked all the "why and what" questions (and lost interest) but hopefully in years to come the 'cool' ratings for the chance to witness the event will be higher!

Borrowing from the programme:

They shall grow not old as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them,

nor the years contemn

At the going down of the sun,

and in the morning:

We will remember them

Our first day of "summer'

2011-07-18T13:17:00.003+08:00

It all started at 4:30am. Ayden was all geared up for Legoland and Jack wanted to shop his heart out. But we managed to keep them occupied till till at least 8:30 to go jalan-jalan. First stop, an underground ride just to take us anywhere...

We tried the Diana Memorial Gardens but it was not open till 10am (?!?!) so we walked on. Plenty of cards outside Kensington Palace for Diana's recent birthday.

A bus ride on to Picadilly- only 2 hours and boy we are enjoying our oyster cards already! On to horse guards.

And we stayed for ten minutes just watching these horses standing still and we had to move on. The plan was to walk down to Westminster Abbey but we stopped at the Cenotaph instead for a wreath laying ceremony by Belgian veterans - more pictures later.

And then on to a big catch up with Mr. and Mrs. Hayes over a lovely Lebanese lunch. Thank you Bani and Sam for a lovely afternoon and letting our kids climb your walls!

Mind The Gap!

2011-07-13T14:17:00.002+08:00

Iman with Ayden's help managed to knock out her wobbly front tooth last night just in time for our London/Ireland trip this weekend. She's agreed to hang on to the tooth till Ireland so we can give the Irish tooth fairies some business!

Bridex 2011

2011-07-11T19:24:00.013+08:00

Military shows have never really been my thing but with the excitement of all the jets flying around us for weeks, I did not need much convincing to go to one of the shows. On entry the kids were really excited to see the helicopters and climb in and out of the tanks.

The first display was the Sea, Land & Air demo. It was pretty exciting with plenty of explosions. Jack and Ayden weren't too happy and had to hide in Donncha's arms. Poor Jack was so scared he was shaking!

Then came the part we really came for. What a great show! I'm no plane freak so I can't give you the names. I particularly enjoyed the Bruneian show especially as we know two of the pilots. Donncha has been trying to get me to an airshow for years and I think I have caught the bug!

And to finish off a walk around inside the exhibition for a closer look at more boys toys!

Zahra's favorite part was meeting Miss Tourism Indonesia!

not a normal sunday...

2011-07-11T17:50:00.004+08:00

A couple of Sundays ago, I left the house very early in the morning. Donncha and the kids started their day later and their first stop was the local neighbourhood roti shop which is a family favourite!

Then it was to the stadium to catch myself and Angela come in from the 10k run we were doing. It was a real surprise to have Donncha and the kids at the finish line. What a relief to get to the end of that. Think I am going to need a lot of training for December!

Ayden's last Kindy day

2011-07-07T18:25:00.007+08:00

Ayden's last day in Kindy started with the leavers assembly where Ayden had to say goodbye to his best friend Noah. We weren't there but apparently he said " Noah is my best friend. We like to play tag. I am going to miss him". We are all going to miss Noah. Annual goodbyes are part and parcel of international school and sadly its something our kids (and ourselves) have to get used to. We've had to say goodbye to many friends in the past but somehow this year seems more poignant than others.

After assembly it was back to the classroom for a combined party with Unicorn and Mouse classes.

And after some food there was a pinata to crack. It was so well made that not only every child had a go but so did some mums and dads! Get out of the way Mrs. Moran!

And then it was one last mat time for Panda class. Ayden has had such a good year in Kindy and it's sad to say goodbye to the class. But we look forward to another summer full of fun and adventure and by September we will be looking forward to the Reception year!

Another pirate completes Kindy!

2011-07-07T10:04:00.003+08:00

The end of the school year has come so quickly and today the classes will have their end of year parties and also the leaving assembly.

Ayden's theme for the class party is pirates and he literally jumped out of bed this morning and took his costume downstairs. Iman too went to school in her pirate costume back in 2007. We didn't think it then but looking at her now she really was quite little. And poor Jack never got to wear his costume because two years ago school broke up a week earlier due to HMFD.

And when we got to school all these bandanas were laid out

Check out Ayden and Noah's.

Amin's big Kilimanjaro Trip

2011-06-30T21:24:00.004+08:00

Amin finished his last A level exam on Monday this week and Tuesday he left for his DOE Gold award trip to Tanzania going up Kilimanjaro. We are all going to miss him and look forward to seeing all the pictures of the trip. Knowing Amin, providing all the pictures afterwards will be a bigger task than climbing the mountain itself! Amin, if you ever manage to log onto fb, we will all miss you and please take care. xxx

1st Brunei 6-8 yrs Swimming Competition

2011-06-26T20:23:00.008+08:00

Iman had a fantastic day at the swimming pool today. She swam in the 2003 / 7 yr age group in four 25m races and came away with 2 golds for the butterfly and breaststroke and 2 silvers for back and free. Its the best she's done so far and to top that JIS won the overall team trophy!

Best saturday night hangout

2011-06-26T12:01:00.001+08:00

Our favorite saturday nights are the ones when we have early takeout dinners with friends and our favorite location for this has to be "Madang Manor". Last night the kids had homemade pizza, an Indian delivery for the adults and best of all plenty for the kids to do while we can relax and chat on the big comfy dining chairs!

Jack's message

2011-06-25T15:36:00.003+08:00

A few weeks ago I found this in Jack's reading bag. One very proud Mum here.

Father's Day 2011

2011-06-19T09:40:00.002+08:00

Pictures say it all!

A Party like no other

2011-06-08T08:18:00.014+08:00

Another one of out highlights from the half term week was an invite to Prince Wakeel's 5th birthday party which was held at the Istana. The theme was racing cars/Ferrari and the dress theme for the guests was red, back and white. The whole party area was very well decorated to the theme as were the cakes which were amazing - I don't think I have ever seen a vertical standing cake before!

It goes without saying that the McCarthy kids had a B.L.A.S.T. There were race cars, various fun fair style games, face painting, clowns, a magician, waterslides and ice cream, popcorn & candy floss on tap. And they did all the above several times over and had so much fun.

In the car on the way home, Jack said "For my next birthday..." (and I'm thinking here we go!)..."I would like to invite..." Phew...

We all had an amazing afternoon and were very grateful to be part of the invite list!

BIT 2011

2011-06-07T16:12:00.004+08:00

Last week the kids and I went to see the Brunei International Tattoo 2011. Judging from the previous Tattoo we went to in Brunei a few years back, I was not expecting much from the show. BUT in truth, I was blown away and as were the kids and the friends that went with us. The show was short of amazing and really is probably the most well organised show I have seen in Brunei. For starters it started on time and it was full of fun and excitement without any palava - need I say more! Ayden must have been so impressed as after the show he announced that he wanted to be a soldier!

Iman's Sandakan trip

2011-06-06T22:03:00.003+08:00

So much happened over half term but I could not post due to minor technical difficulties so I will need to do some catching up this week!

Iman's highlight was her trip to Sandakan. She went all by herself with the school swim team. They left very early on Friday morning and did not get back till Monday night. She's pretty exhausted but on a high. It's Iman first trip away with school without any family and despite being away for longer to Paris with her grandparents nearly two years ago, we truly missed her on this little trip. And judging by the hugs she gave me this evening she missed us too. Unfortunately Donncha's away so she will have to save her hugs for him till the end of the week. She didn't bring any medals home but I'm told she did some very good swims and even managed a tumble turn!

Bieber 'McCarthy' Style

2011-06-01T14:23:00.003+08:00

As you have seen from previous postings, the kids have really started to get into their music and in particular, some unknown Canadian teenager! Fatin, Maria's niece and resident 'artist' in the compound, regularly avoids studying and passes time getting the kids to perform. We will have to wait for some time to see if this talent develops but you can already see from the video that they take it quite seriously. All this from kids reared todate on a diet of the Pogues and the Dubliners !!

Bieber Fever

2011-05-30T21:21:00.004+08:00

We're singing the songs, we're doing the flick, we've watched the movie (several times) and this is just the beginning. Jack now wants a drum kit... And somehow we're being absorbed into this as well and now we're starting to think "Hey... this kids's not bad at all". Of course we reserve the right to review that admission!

I ran... sort of...

2011-05-22T22:16:00.005+08:00

It was just over a month ago that Boel convinced me to join her for the 8km run of HSBC WalkRunCycle charity event. It's for charity plus there's an array of lucky draw prizes so why not?

Physically I am able to run - I manage it every tuesday evening - but somehow running outside the jungle without the hills, thorns, ants and whatever else thats chasing me to run, its a different story. My body feels heavy, lacks the drive to carry on and just plain lazy! So no, I didn't do much training for the event and last night I did go into a bit of a panic especially as our average run on a tuesday is only 3km.

But Boel has done several races before and the plan was to run for 5 mins and walk for 1 min. Predictably with the rain and whatnots the start was delayed for nearly an hour so despite being wet the weather was on our side. We started off well... and by about the 3rd km I was really into it and took off by myself. Big mistake... I got bored running on my own and just kind of lost interest and energy. So the last 3.5k was a struggle but I did it finishing the 7.5km in 50mins - for some reason the organizers knocked 0.5k off the run (?).

Bright and sparkly before the start

Not so after the race

And our "been there... done that..." photo

We taking about doing the next event and despite not enjoying the whole run and not winning a lucky draw prize, I did have a fun morning. So yes Mrs. W I think we will go for it again but next time tell me not to be stupid when I decide to go running off!

Amin is 18!

2011-05-22T13:27:00.009+08:00

Happy 18th Birthday to our Amin!!

I can't say it only felt like yesterday that he was born because 18 years ago I was only in 2nd your uni and that does feel like a long time ago! And in a few months time Amin himself will be off to uni. The picture below I took myself when JP first opened and Amin was barely 2.

We had a lovely family dinner last night and Amin was happy with his presents including a lovely surprise from Mah and Pah.

And at At Taiyib birthdays = a show and the little ones put on a special performance. Once I figure out imovie, I will do a post (but it might take time).

Even Reeham wanted to be part of it. And of course Fatin was central to all this.

Our favourite hangout

2011-05-20T21:22:00.004+08:00

Kids were off school due to Fobissea sports meet so we headed to the club for the afternoon. The kids swam, played in the sand, caught fish... and left me with little to do but relax and soak up the views.

Donncha's Birthday Lunch

2011-05-17T13:41:00.003+08:00

I surprised Donncha today with a special lunch for his birthday - tabouleh, baba ghanoush (both homemade so I have been busy!) and haloumi. And later we will have cake and much more!

Found my dancing shoes :))

2011-05-14T19:55:00.007+08:00

Dancing is not one of my natural talents. I avoid dance floors at all costs and often think I have two left feet. Then I tried Zumba. Can't say I loved it at first and I found it very difficult and frustrating that I couldn't "Zumba". So after several sessions I gave up totally and avoided it for months. But the music was too good and I hated working out by myself whilst everyone was having a party in the studio next door so a couple of months ago I started going to Zumba Toning regularly and started enjoying the sessions.

Today we had the second Zumbathon at the Empire - two hours of non-stop Zumba! I went to the first one a few months back but I was still unconvinced that it was actually "fun". Today was a totally different experience - I loved it and had so much fun. So much that I want to go to Zumba all the time - and I must have a pair of the tassle pants!

Ayden's Mothers' Day Surprise

2011-05-08T18:06:00.007+08:00

Ayden came home on Friday with this lovely little package and card and said "It's not a card and it's not chocolate!". Okay then...

I actually wanted to leave it until Sunday morning to open but Ayden couldn't keep his hands away and insisted!

The chocolate balls (which I'm sure were delicately rolled with his little hands) were lovely but it was the card that made me melt.

Swimming Gala 2011

2011-05-07T16:32:00.014+08:00

Friday was the annual Junior School swimming gala and it was a long morning at the pool with all three McCarthys participating.

Jack did very well, winning his heat and placing third overall in the freestyle

For Kindy it was all fun races and they were all so proud to be there.

Ayden always next to Alex!

Panda class getting their chocolate coin medals (which Ayden says is not a chocolate!)

Ayden was very proud telling us that he came second, fourth and fifth !!

Thanks to one of the class assistants for this great underwater shot!

Competition in Iman's year is quite tough and she had last minute nerves the evening before. However, on the day she did very well and enjoyed the competition.

The girls celebrating each other's success - always nice to see

Iman's DT Hall of Fame

2011-05-01T07:52:00.008+08:00

It was a lovely surprise on Friday for Iman to get a mention in assembly after Jack's class performance. She is one of eight to have her work featured in the Junior School's DT Hall of Fame. And the winning piece was a sandwich carton she made last term.

Jack is Ultraman

2011-04-30T22:32:00.005+08:00

We went to Jack's class assembly yesterday morning. The topic was toys and Jack had the equivalent of a dream job for any boy his age in a similar situation - its not everyday you get to dress up as Ultraman in school and get applause for it!

It was a wonderful show and these assemblies just get better and better and so amazing with such young kids. School assemblies often take me back to my own school days and I don't think any of the assemblies I took part in were ever so fun and innovative. Mind you the only prop one had 25 years ago was the humble tape recorder. Remember those? We always had to think up of a "moral" to base the assembly eg. being kind. I see that nowadays it's all at a click of a button!