Happy New Year

The year that was 2007, just a quick recap of what we've been up to...

For myself .... I remember the year starting with a big change --- part-time IT work after 6 years of home duties! Initially, it was a temporary contract for 8 weeks just so that I could get my idle mind working again and some extra shopping money. And then 8 weeks turned into 6 months, and then turned into an offer for a permanent part-time position. After much consideration, I accepted the offer and life has never been the same for me and the rest of the family. Organizing family schedules around work, home duties and school activities was a task I had to learn quickly this year. It's not easy, but getting this work-life balance is just that .... a balancing act. But at the end of the day, as long as I see that all family members are happy and healthy, I guess we are doing really well.

For the little boy .. his weekdays revolved around learning, playing and socializing with other kids at childcare and kindy . In both places, teachers have noticed how smart he is for his age in terms of reading, writing and math skills. On weekends, he looks forward to the time he can play video games like Lego Star Wars, Madagascar, Eye Toy and most recently the Simpsons. This year he also made great progress in his swimming lessons. At first, he was quite hesitant to take the lessons because he developed this fear going under the water. It was so bad he would sometimes wake up crying and say he does not want his head under the water. But with time and perseverance, he's gotten over that fear and now that he's moved up a class and now that he can wear goggles, all that has changed. He enjoys the lessons so much that every chance he gets, he goes under the water to touch the floor and do somersaults!

For my hubby .... work has kept him busier than ever. This year, he was so busy he started getting calls in the middle of the night! Good thing that now I also work in the city, we can find time to have lunch and have a decent conversation without the kids joining in. Nevertheless, all that hard work has rewarded has provided us with a couple holidays this year , one in the Gold Coast and another to our homeland. The trip back home was really special since we got to see his family from the US. Finally they got the chance to spend time with the kids. We also got celebrate Christmas a bit earlier with my side of the family.

For the little girl ... school has been very much a part of her year. She was Year 1, and did very very well as we've seen from her school report. As I look at the workbooks she took home, I've seen great improvements in her handwriting and drawings. She now appreciates art, not only the visual kind but also music. She's developed a taste in music she now has her own playlist on the Ipod. I've also noticed she's got a good sense of rhythm, especially when she dances. And if you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up: her answer is " a singer". She's also taken an interest in math, thanks in part to her wonderful teacher and an online teaching tool even I enjoyed doing with her. Wish those things were around when I was in school! Its also been a year now since we started both kids on swimming lessons. This year she has progressed a few levels up, can now do freestyle and backstroke, and is now slowly introduced to deep waters.



The year 2007 has been a very good year to us. I hope 2008 brings more blessings and adventures to us here and to you and your family. Happy New Year!