Dinner with Fred and Judy

Last night we had a visit from Fred and Judy (of Wingsail) who are in Bangkok for a few days to pick up their visiting granddaughter Candice. We are very fortunate to be here at the same time. They came to visit us at the Ascott and helped the kids decorate the christmas tree. They also very kindly brought early christmas presents with the kids which they were delighted with - thank you again Fred and Judy.

Later we went to dinner round the corner at Le Lys which is a homely Thai restaurant run and owned by a French man and his Thai wife. We first went there with my parents back when we were living here and found the home cooked thai food fantastic. And we weren't disappointed last night. We had a duck red curry and a massaman beef curry which were both winners but what I really enjoyed was the carrot som tam and the smoked eggplant salad which we had to get seconds of.

The restaurant is both outdoors and indoors and has a lovely bohemian feel to it. They even have petanque / boules at the back - look closely at the back of the restaurant on the picture below. This place is a real gem and a must visit for visitors who want to stray from the tourist trail.

First Day in Bangkok

Donncha is spending the day in the office so this morning I loaded the girls and the kids into a taxi and headed to Carrefour and Tesco Lotus on Rama 4 to get things that we will need for the week. The traffic was heavy by the time we left and it took us ages to get there. Then the shopping was hectic with the kids running all over the place. But we got all we needed including a christmas tree so to make it feel more like christmas. I also stocked up on yogurt and fresh milk. Thai dairy is fantastic ad even Jack was excited to see the yogurt in the shop. And the fruits..... it was nice not having to pay a fortune for a pack of jambu rose apple, guavas and a couple of Thai mangoes! It's great to be back.

The apartment is really nice - very spacious, clean and homey. I will take some pictures soon and post them.

All thoughts are on Donncha's Dad who is having a triple bypass this morning. Hopefully we will have good news tomorrow that the operation has been a success.

My own parents and Amin are in the second day of the pilgrimage rituals. I hope they perform their tasks without any complications.

Right I must get on with the shopping!

City of Angels

We're Back - Landed and just settling into the Ascott which by initial impressions is excellent. It will be nice to return to familiar places, restaurants etc and catch up with some good friends.

Sarah & Nick Bersanding

Sarah and Nick had their bersanding wedding reception at the Empire today. It was an enjoyable event. I sat on a table with my sisters and Sarah and Nick's friends from the UK so we had a laugh. It was a full sit down meal with starter, soup and dessert served. Main course was help yourself from the dome on the table. I've never been to the Empire for a wedding and I thought the formal setting and service was great.  

Unfortunately I did not take a single good picture of the couple but here are some pictures anyway.

The menu card. The design on the front was by Sarah.

Well done to Zimar for decorating the beautiful pelamin with fresh flowers

Gift with orchid added by Iman

The bouquet - also by Zimar

A Late Dinner

A normal evening for the kids and I would be dinner by 6 and start winding down for the evening. But the reader will note that if last night was anything to go by the kids are not too keen to wind down too early. I therefore welcomed an invite from my sister Jasmine to have dinner at her place with her in-laws and Hanna's family. My guess was the kids would have a hoot and tire themselves out. But as it turned out the kids were tired by 8, went home ahead of me and crashed into bed - at least Iman and Ayden did.  

Perfect....I was able to have a peaceful meal without anyone on my lap or wanting this or that. Dinner was steamboat which I have not had for a while. A tom yam broth, loads of seafood, vegetables, noodles, soya sauce and a heap loads of chilli. For me it was a late dinner but well worth the wait.

And for dessert....local yellow durian. I am no longer a big durian fan as I used to be. I think I used to eat too much and not feel too good afterwards. I also reckon it has a high GI. I did have two small pieces this evening and enjoyed it.

I got home from my saturday night out by 9:15 and no points for guessing who was still awake!

Smile....We're Wide Awake!

Donncha's missing the boys but I'm sure not the bedtime battle that we have most evenings. During my first pregnancy I read "The Contented Baby" book at least twice to try and "master" the art of making your babies sleep when you want them to. Nearly 5 years on my kids - especially Jack - have mastered the exact opposite sometimes putting me to sleep first.

By quarter to 9 this evening Jack and Ayden still had no intentions of going to bed still bouncing around the room. I was starting to loose it and made them both lie down in front of the tv in an attempt to wind them down and they looked very cute together. Probably not the best thing to do but I grabbed the camera and took these pictures. 

Mr. & Mrs. Rawson

This afternoon we went over to the Ibrahim family home to witness the Nikah of Sarah and Nick Rawson. I have known Sarah most of my life and it was great to see her very beautiful and radiant. It was a lovely nikah ceremony and not like any I have been to before - not that I have witnessed too many. 

It brought me back to our own Nikah in 2000. Donncha said our vows and the talak in english (and he did them very well) and the ceremony to an extent was conducted in english. The difference today was that the sermon was also conducted in english which I found very helpful - and I am sure most of the guests there did too.

It was also very nice that it was a small intimate gathering which one almost craves in Bruneian weddings. I think there's an extra special feel to it when it's a small venue with just your close family and friends witnessing your vows.

The bride with her mother Datin Ludwine, her mother-in-law and niece Nadiya.

Congratulations to the happy couple

Splash Afternoon II

Apologies for the recurring theme but this holiday the paddling pool has become a big part of the kids' afternoons. Today Jack was not interested in joining the girls lying down for the picture but he quickly spotted something else he could do!

Our Racetrack

And that was what it felt like this afternoon. It was raining outside and the kids were bored of the tv so they turned to the cars. 

This was Ayden's birthday present from Hanna and family except Jack has claimed it as his. Most of the time they are fighting over it but this afternoon Ayden was kind enough to let Jack ride with him. Thankfully they are both still small enough to fit (but just).

Jack then thought it was a good idea to help push Iman round and round on the tractor going as fast as his little legs could take him.

Ayden was all along following them from behind and when Jack got bored thought he would have a go as well.

Splash Afternoons

It has been very hot here in the afternoons giving the boys excuses to go for the garden hose. Ayden makes a break for it every time he's out the front door and Jack Mr. Cuci-Cuci (washing up man) does not need to be encouraged. The pictures of Ayden and Jack were taken yesterday afternoon.

The theme this afternoon was hujan (rain). They initially wanted umbrellas but I was by the front door to stop them and Fatin had the idea of using the buckets which we had used to empty the paddle pool of rainwater from last night. And this was all after a swim at the pool.

A Special Request

This is my niece Zahra who on several occasions has expressed wishes to be featured on this blog. Zahra is 5 years old and will turn 6 in February. Her favourite food is pasta and her favourite drink in this house is milk from a special glass. 

This is for you Zar. I hope you have a nice day. 

Hazel and Lim

Today I went to a wedding with my sisters and friends Tina and Hani. I am not usually a keen wedding goer but I enjoyed this one especially as I caught up with some old friends. The bride Hazel looked lovely. A friend of a friend, we are also related - her Dad and my Dad are cousins.

Off with the trainer wheels

For a couple of weeks now Iman has been cycling with only one trainer wheel. On Saturday she insisted that Donncha take it off. Donncha spent about half an hour holding on to her before he eventually let go and she cycled off. We had one very excited little girl. She started practicing first thing this morning and very soon was able to get on herself and cycle away!

Another Barbeque

The plan was to have a quiet early evening barbeque with the kids but with 16 of them altogether it was far from it. We were joined by my sisters and their children, our good friend Tina and her children, Roy & Santhi and their girls and lastly David. Donncha has aced on the barbeque and in addition to the skewers and sausages we also had chicken which was barbequed perfectly. This week to go with the lamb and chicken skewers I also made tabouleh which turned out quite well. But Jasmine once again stole the show for dessert with her fantastic profiteroles and chocolate sauce. 

The kids had a hoot playing together.

Jack with his new friend Alani, Tina's youngest. Jack also discovered that she has sharp teeth.

End Of Term!

There is always a buzz in the air when its the last day of school especially during the festive season. Iman's class year had their party with plenty of food and games. Ayden, Jack and I turned up in time for the games. There was also a lot of dancing involved and I can say that it's probably Iman's first disco. I took the picture as she bopped to "Dancing Queen".

We now look forward to four weeks of no school though I will most probably be looking forward to it again in the new year. It was a big surprise for Iman, Jack and Ayden when Donncha turned up just arriving from Chennai. Unfortunately he goes again Sunday but in a week it will be no travel till first week of January - apart from our holiday to Bangkok.

Another Party

Two birthday parties in a week?! I wouldn't mind but tomorrow is the end of term and no guesses as to what is happening in the morning. At least with Iman still in Reception siblings get to come so it will be an outing for all of us.

It was Timotee's birthday party this afternoon. Iman and Timotee are in the same class. It was a lovely little party but inevitably with boys' parties it does get a bit rowdy. I guess it's what happens in the playground everyday except us parents are not around to say "... careful", "... share" or the famous last words "... be gentle dear".

 

Jack's Chores

Jack is now very keen to "help" with chores around the house. Top of his list is the washing up. Lots of soap and water and an hour later he is soaked. I'm delighted to say after a week of indulging him, he has not been too keen to sit at the kitchen sink this week.

 

Both himself and Ayden are also keen on the ironing. Below is Jack trying to show Ayden how to iron properly.

Happy Birthday Dad

Happy Birthday to my Dad who today celebrates his birthday in Medina, Saudi Arabia. I am not sure if they have internet access at the moment to read this but hopefully they will at some stage.

We did celebrate the birthday before they left and Dad shared a fantastic birthday cake with Fatin. Jasmine's chocolate cakes are always very good but that particular one was so mmmm..... that I will do a Jack and say "I want....I want...". Dad was of course flanked by the usual suspects that hang around birthday cakes in the compound.

 

A Birthday Party

Happy Birthday to Caitlan who turned 6 today. It was a great birthday party. The kids swam and played lots of entertaining games directed by a fab games master. Iman for the first time at a party won a game and was very pleased with herself! 

Barbeque Training

Yesterday evening we had our good friend Mr. David Abberton join us for an early dinner. I took a couple of recipes from the Lebanese book (I did it!!!) and we had a barbeque of marinated lamb and chicken kebabs. I prepared everything on Saturday afternoon so all that was left on Sunday was to skewer the meat and barbeque away! I also made a wicked garlic sauce and coriander chilli sauce to go with the meats. It wasn't exactly Beirut Restaurant in Bangkok but we were close to it. Just to make sure that Donncha's barbequeing skills are up to Australian standards (and that I can reproduce the same meal twice) we shall be doing this again next weekend.

The kids always love barbeques and we had Hariz join us. Iman was feeling festive and donned on her Santa outfit. We later put up the Christmas tree and Iman put down the presents from the Cowleys. I will take a picture once the tree is completely decorated.

Jack was more interested in my new toy. Donncha surprised me with a macbook this weekend. I am learning and it can be a little frustrating but I love it. What's great is I don't have to wait for the kids to go to sleep before I can use the computer so Jack is watching Bananas as I am writing.