Life as we know it

Mother's Day:

It was Mother's day in Australia this week. All the kids and the Dads were prepared something special. It was so cute hearing them secretly plotting in hushed voices, making secret cards and getting her a treat!

Michael and Skye made me a beautiful card together which they coloured. Dinner was served by le chef Michael: Roast beef with Yorkshire pudding and lots of roast potatoes and veggies on the side...Just mouth watering even remembering it!

On Monday, at school, there was a surprise for all the mommy's as well. Their nails were polished by the kids who not only massaged her but also brushed her hair and added a million and one hair clip.
The kids made fairy bread as well ( which consists of buttering a piece of bread and sprinkling some rainbow sprinkles). They also prepared a card with a pretty photo of each child. We received a beautiful flower pot, too!
So now, I am actually walking around with some funky colourful nail polish, each finger is of different colour.

Happy Mother's Day, hope you all enjoyed it! I know I did! Can't wait for next year!

Michael the Movie star!!!

At work, Michael and his colleagues did a safety awareness video. Basically, it speaks for itself : promoting safety at work in order to go back safe, healthy and in one piece to the things you enjoy doing.

There are 2 kite surfers in this video and Michael is the kite surfer in the black rash vest and black shorts, with no hat on.

http://player.vimeo.com/external/39409060.sd.mp4?s=95120ade5cef72793dbf3131c6939979

Easter:

Here is Skye at school,

during the Easter parade with her Easter hat she made with mommy.

She will have more than 3 weeks off! Daddy is also going to have a 4 day holiday.

When asked how she wanted to spend her time with her father:; all Skye wanted was to play hide-and-seek, so we did.

Our first day consisted of a pyjama day where we actually stayed all day in our pyjamas, played dominos, hide-and-seek, watched a Disney movie, ate ice cream and made lots of crafts. All that in one day!

Tomorrow, we are hitting the town for a street art festival where we will find lots of music, circus acts and much more...

Happy Easter everyone!

Faraya Mzaar, Lebanon, March 2012

I don't think there will be any skiing anytime soon.
Awesome! As they say in Oz!
This magical place is half an hour away from my parents' place.
All I can think of is: all this snow and Skye is missing it and has never seen it.

How did I cut that Cake?

A lot of people asked me how I actually managed to cut that cake.
Well, here is your answer and luckily I have a picture too to back it up.
There was no elegant way to cut it basically. Once that ribbon was off, those Kit kat blocks went FLOP!
Everyone laughed. It was just an usual fun cake.

Happy Mother's Day.

Miss you Mum...Hope you have a great day.

To all the mothers out there, happy mother's day.

It is the toughest job on this planet, the least noticeable and yet the most rewarding.

I am going to ask for a raise from my boss first thing in the morning, after I give her her milk.

Skye is Four!!!!

Time flies by....And another birthday! I cannot believe that she is four!
It was a wonderful day in particular because Michael took the day off to spend it with us. So we went to the beach and we saw dolphins maybe 50 meters far from us!

I really think it is wise working with that age group to have birthday parties outside your house, for insurance purposes! My house is still in one piece and I kept it that way by arranging the party outdoors in town. It was so much fun and less stressful.
Skye and I have been working on the decoration and the colourful crafts for days. She wanted an all-the-colours theme birthday party.

The birthday party was a blast. The highlight of the party was the cake. You should have seen the kids' reaction! Once on the table, they could not keep their hands off of it! I have never seen such a funny reaction! Everyone wanted a piece of that cake and noone was willing to wait. They wanted to touch, to smell it, to bath in it. They were shrieking of excitement. Hilarious! I blame the candy and the colours. I am actually quite proud of baking it!
Then at the end, we had a treasure hunt and the parents hid lots of candy and sweets in the garden for them to find.

Skye had a very special day thanks to everyone who made it happen. Thank you for all your kind wishes and your thoughtful gifts.
One of the major hits other than the cake was the tent mommy and daddy bought for her and all the pretty glittery gifts, legos, toys and games she received. Thank you again.

Art on our Streets...

Sometimes, you don't have to go far or even pay lots of money to visit art galleries.

Just have a stroll in your city and you will discover a whole new world.

Can't wait for my family to visit so I can show them what I mean.

Scitech Video:

Skye at Scitech:

Scitech is an amazing place, it encourages kids to experience how life really works through play and scientific activities. Between the hot air balloon, the robotic talking head and the rescue team, Skye fell in love with the rescue raft and the pretend ocean. There even was a helicopter with a flight simulator over the city. Great place to spend the day and learn while having lots of fun!

Happy Valentine's Day:

Michael surprised me with this magnificent flower bouquet, filled with different colours.

Skye and I surprised him with this home made chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting...Yummy!

Too bad you can't reach through your computer screen to have a taste.

But the cake is too big and it was calling me again the next day through the fridge door, I had to throw it...in the freezer which is harder to reach...for now.

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Bullet and Skye II:

Bullet and Skye

This is the river: we are not brave enough to venture in the open sea. We started calling it Bullet beach after the dog. This is where we spend our weekends, when it is windy. Michael and I take turns kitesurfing and windsurfing. One of us would be on the water and the other one is playing with Skye.
Skye made friends with Bullet who adopts anyone who is willing to throw him a stick. He would go for hours. You don't have a choice, he will bark at you until you play with him. Skye does not mind, she loves it. He is so friendly and he belongs to the windsurf trainer who is always there.

Skye's First day at School:

Skye's first day of school!!! Already! (I sound old!)
It was brilliant!
I had a restless night, nervous about everything, the strangers and the unfamiliar surroundings...And what does she do? She barges in the classroom towards one of the tables, filled with colorful activities and says:
" Mommy, you can go now".
And thank you very much!
I tell myself. That's it? No tears? Not even mommy I will miss you? No, nothing.
I am the one who was a bit tearful during the day. Picked her up that day and she was buzzing with excitement, telling me all about her new teacher and classmates.
Brave child that one!

Skye's First Cinema Show:

Skye's first cinema outing with her friends was spectacular. She was glued to her seat, eating popcorn. I have not been to the movie theater for ages myself. It was a great experience, she enjoyed it.