Exploring Our Children’s Potentials

I don’t usually recommend Disney movies on my blog.

But this one we watched recently, I must say it has a big impact on our kids.

It’s the latest Disney movie, Frozen.

Because, for the first time ever, Anya and Vai KEEP ON SINGING the songs from the movie!

They sing out the words, they hum the tunes, they do the actions!

They sing it at home, and during our car rides.

Every time.

(Btw, it’s our first time watching a movie in a cinema with Brie too, who was all quiet and sat on my lap throughout the movie!)

One of their favourites is ‘Love is an Open Door’.

The tune is catchy and fun, and the actions are cute =)

Oh btw, I personally thought the story line is good too.

I like how there’s so much symbolism and imagery of ‘doors’ being used throughout the movie. I like how it’s more about a relationship between two sisters, than between a boy and a girl. And I like the ending too! =)

Anyway.

I thought, I must record the moment!

Do a video of the kids doing what they do everyday these days.

You know, something for us all to remember and treasure (and laugh about!) years later! =)

Here’s the LINK to the video on Youtube!

Enjoy! =)

Hi everyone!

I thought every once in a while, I’ll feature some things that our family finds useful (or cool!=)

And, I’ll start with this bag Vai wore on his back, pictured above!

It’s Trunki Killer Whale Paddlepak!
 

This is basically a water resistant backpack!

Best used when we’re going swimming, or when we know things could get a little wet here and there when out and about.

What I love about it?

– It’s waterproof, lightweight, and is made of durable material!

(Our wet towel inside, and it’s all dry on the outside)

– It can be used anywhere!

(Vai loved this bag, and he took it with him when we went up to the mountains recently. He packed his snacks, drinks and toys in it! Roomy!)

Click HERE if you’d like to read more about Paddlepak from trunki.com.

INDONESIA
Clodi Addict

31 December 2013.

11.30pm

Jakarta.

Hubby. Kids. Sisters. And their families.

This year, we spent our New Year’s Eve with families, plus … fire sparklers, super loud horns, watching fireworks, from the roadside.

(PS : Unless you don’t mind getting stuck in traffic jams for hours, we recommend staying AWAY from Jakarta’s CBD and other main roads)

Right here in Jakarta, you’d be able to hear super loud bangs and see random fireworks practically EVERYWHERE.

Starting from around … 9pm!

Blame it on its poor government laws, I guess … because really, anyone could buy fireworks and shoot them off to the sky!

(Like that guy in the photo above! Mmm, no, we didn’t know who he was)

Yes it’s dangerous, but at the same time, I must say, it’s an amazing experience!

Fireworks, over a period of 3 – 4 hours, climaxing at 12 midnight.

Yep, that’s Jakarta on December 31st alright!

…

Anya and Vai stayed awake all the way till past midnight, and for the first time, they experienced New Year’s Eve, the Jakarta way.

They’re very impressed.

In a good way =)

It’s interesting, isn’t it …

When we wait for something, or when we are in discomfort, time seems to creep and tick very slowly.

But when we’ve gotten what we’ve wanted, or when we are in happy times, time seems to fly SO fast.

When our children waited for the day to come for us to fly to Hong Kong for our Disneyland trip, every day seemed to go by so slowly.

But when we’ve reached Hong Kong, before we knew it, it’s time to go back home!

Time in itself does not change, but time is indeed relative.

The ‘speed of time’ depends on us, our situations, our own view of life and time itself.

…

When it comes to ‘time’, God views things differently.

In God’s eyes, our years on this earth is indeed very short.

To You a thousand years
are like a day that has just gone by.
They are like a few hours of the night.
Psalm 90:4

In God’s eyes, the many decades we all spend on this earth is really ‘nothing’ compared to eternity.

So I guess, the more important question is, how are our short years on this earth spent, in relation to eternity?

What do we do everyday?

We are not mere machines.

We sure are not created that way.

We must have a purpose in everything we do, say and think.

…

You turn human beings back to dust.
You say to them, “Return to dust.” 
Psalm 90:3

…

One day, we will all be dust and dirt. But our soul will return to God, the Creator.

So, now, while we are still given the time to live, what do we do with our time, our brain, our talents?

At the start of this new year, may I share this food for thought?

Let’s purify our thoughts.

Purify our talents.

Purify our time.

This new year, let’s pray for a life more fruitful, more of a blessing to others.

A life that glorifies God.

May God help us all.

Happy New Year!

…

[Inspired by Rev. Stephen Tong’s sermon on 1 January 2014]

Everyone knows that if you live in Jakarta, you will most likely face bad traffic.

Everyday.

So this December school holiday, I told Wilson, let’s get out of the city for a couple of days, and enjoy the great outdoors!

And we did!

We decided to explore the rainforest (instead of the beach), and checked out Gunung Halimun National Park, West Java!

And why did we choose to explore this particular place? 

Because, we can check out paddy fields, mountains, streams, waterfalls, tea plantation, rain forests, … all within close proximity!

Plus, the kids really wanted to do some hiking! =)

AND we thought it’s a great idea too to leave the city and explore nature and a much simpler living.

Now you see, in the past, I’ve always been ‘idealistic’.

When we’re back from a trip, I told myself, I’ll blog about it.

I’ll get the photos ready, and I’ll share the details of the trip in a blog post.

But you know what?

80% of the time, I didn’t get to do it!

I have SOOO many photos of sooo many trips that I haven’t shared.

Too many useful info and tips that I could’ve shared, but I didn’t.

Simply because, I didn’t have the time to do it all =(

So, I’ve learned my lessons!

Within TWO days of returning to our home, I pushed myself and spared some time to upload photos of the trip on Facebook!

Yes, 71 photos!

AND, I shared all the details of the trip!

I shared loads of photos of how our road trip towards our destination was, the road signs, the places we went to, how things were at the guest house where we stayed, etc.

Oh, I even shared the driver’s phone number for you, just in case you need to book his ‘mini bus’ to reach the goest house!

Well, you see, we stayed overnight at Cikaniki Research Station Guest House.

It’s right in the middle of the rainforest (Gunung Halimun National Park), and the road towards this guest house is SUPER BAD.

And I mean, really REALLY bad.

So unless you have a reliable four-wheel drive, I’d  recommend booking this L-300 Mitsubishi (the blue car pictured above), like we did.

Anyway.

Do check out my Facebook Album to find out about this trip, and enjoy loads of photos and info! =D

…

Here’s a quick preview of the photos I shared on Facebook:

Okay.

Just in case you didn’t get to click on the Facebook Link, here it is again:

Click HERE! =D

Enjoy the photos everyone, and hope you are enjoying the last few days of the year 2013 with your loved ones!!

This is our second Christmas in Jakarta.

I took the photo above during the lighting of thousands of candles together at our church’s Christmas Service.

It was such a … moment.

We sang ‘Silent Night’. We listened to the orchestra and choir.

And most importantly, the Christmas Message ‘Immanuel’ reminded me how the LIGHT of the World had come for us, and it is the very reason for us to be thankful, and to live a life that’s pleasing to HIM.

“Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
John 8:12

…

Merry Christmas, everyone!

[High Tea Buffet at the Lounge is available from 15.00 to 18.00 daily]


[Taken by Vai]

Cosy late afternoon.

Yummy food.

Met Joris from Shangri-La Hotel and two food bloggers (Ellyna from Culinary Bonanza and Lyon from Jktgo and LyonandMia).

Kids giggled away and checked out the gingerbread house and a big Christmas tree at the Lounge.

It was all very nice.

Loved it.

There is this something that’s been bothering me for a long while.

It’s about children versus animals.

Or should I say, city children versus little animals?

Somehow (and sadly) I’ve seen too many scenarios similar to these:

A child sees a ladybird in the garden, and he attempts to crush it.

A group of children spotted a trail of ants in a park, and they all start jumping around and stepping on them.

School children spotted a butterfly on a wall just outside of school, and they started poking it with sticks and whatever that they can find.

While waiting for his food to be served, a 5-year-old boy saw a cat  under a parked car, and he starts to make noises, stomps his feet towards it, attempting to scare the cat away, in the name of fun.

…

Of course I’ve seen many, MANY children who adore animals too.

But to those who seem to be ignorant and mean, here’re my two questions:

1. Why oh why must you harm / disturb / kill little animals that are in the outdoors anyway, and are not doing any harm to you?

(Reason no. 1: sometimes it’s more about having greater power over something else and oppressing the vulnerable ones?  If this is the case, it is just so wrong. Reason no. 2: Often it’s done by city kids, because they hardly spend time outdoors, minimal encounters with nature, that they regard nature and whatever creatures they see as ‘enemies’. Reason no. 3: plain ignorance towards anything other than themselves)

2. Have we as the adults been actively teaching the children to LEAVE the creatures alone, since they’re in the outdoors anyway?

(More often than not, the adults are simply not aware of it and can’t quite see the reason why the acts are wrong or need to be stopped)

…

Now, look … I love animals, but I must say, I don’t fancy ALL of them.

I have this phobia of house lizards. And I cannot stand being too near to frogs of any type.

But, having said that, there’s this one thing that I surely teach the kids, and it is : “to leave animals alone, whenever we can”.

ie. We can kill the animals if :

1. They’re inside our home and we can’t get rid of them without killing them (eg. Despite my phobia of house lizards, if anyone can remove them safely from my home, I welcome the act!)

2. They’re pests and they’re bothering us, or are inside our home (eg. Flies, mosquitoes, ants, termites?)

Otherwise, we should just leave them alone, whenever we can.

…

A few days ago, our family went for a trip to a rainforest (Gunung Halimun National Park).

I thought it’s a wonderful time to be closer to nature, to see animals and plants all around us, and learn to appreciate them better.

And, as Wilson took a photo of a beautiful, tiny spider (pictured above), it was also a chance for Anya and Vai to see the importance of leaving creatures alone, in their own habitat, without harming or disturbing them.

…

Well, I can’t guarantee that our children will grow up to love and appreciate God’s creatures.

But we do instill the values and bring them to the outdoors when we can, and with such exposures, we hope they will gradually see nature and its creatures as less foreign and less of an enemy.

Any thoughts to share?