Good Bye Ezra

This post was supposed to be up 2 days ago but I was not feeling well and was on MC for 2 days!! Finally was awake enough to blog abt this.

Ezra left for Hong Kong together with his Yeye, Nai nai and Nadine jie jie. They left on Monday 28 June 2010 and will be away for 7 days, returning only on 5 July 2010.
Ezra was very excited and was so so looking forward to this trip. We have been prep talking him... must listen to yeye nainai, must keep close to them, must greet relatives etc!

While we were waiting for daddy to come home before heading to the airport, aunty Jose dropped by with a little but meaningful survival kit for the 2 children. In this kit, there are 7 food items, one to be taken each day so by the time the bag is empty, they will be home!!
I also wrote a short letter to Ezra and packed a family photo so he can 'see' us in case he miss us on the trip *crossing my fingers*
When we got to the airport, Ezra was so excited and jumpy that we almost needed to get a rope to pin him down!!

Here's Nimrod giving them last instructions, telling them to look out for each other etc...Here is our hugs hugs n kiss kiss before they walk through the gates!
Look how happy and excited the kids were!!
Enjoy the trip my son and daddy and mummy will be missing, thinking and praying for you everyday.

"Dear God, we ask of you to prepare the way for Ezra as they arrive in Hong Kong. May you send your angels to watch over their minute on the trip. Grant them good health and protection. Allow them to enjoy each other company and the nature you have created for them. In Jesus name Amen!"

Ezra

It has been awhile since I wrote abt Ezra's progress. Our son is already four and he is every bit a boy. He is very good at remembering places. This morning we drove by orchard central and he pointed out to us that's the place he has his kiwi lesson! He would always ask me if I am driving the correct direction or am I lost if it's an unfamiliar road or place.

It never fails to melt my heart when I walk thru the doors and he runs to hug me saying "mummy you are home I miss you!" When I give a shout or scream in pain he never fails to ask "mummy are you ok?" I was out with some friends for dinner last evening and when I got home, I tried to put him to bed. While we were laying down, he asked "so mummy how was your dinner?" My gosh he is only 4 n asking such as a matter question! So cute!

He is an expert at reasoning and would give you an answer that is difficult to fault him! There was a time where he refused to stayover at my in laws place and when we asked him why, his answers were "cos I love you and will miss you so much!" another answer was "it was very uncomfortable sleeping on the floor in nai nai house, I like my cosy bed!" There was a period where he was constantly scolded by us and Jac once told him that we were very disappointed in him and we were not proud of his misbehavior. These days he is much better and he just asked Jac "daddy, I have been quite a good boy and are you proud of me!" yes son we are proud of you and love you whatever.

Ezra is also showing his child like faith in God. He knows that when he needs help, he can pray to God. In Phuket, after a dangerously sea ride and when he landed safely on shore he told his yiyi "we better pray to God to protect us!" Again, last evening during our chat, Ezra asked to pray to God n his prayers goes something like this "dear God, pls take away daddy fever so he can be well. Also the tooth decay in mummy n also my cough in Jesus name we pray amen!" It's our prayers that Ezra will walk n live in God's ways.

Ezra enjoys playing with his cousins especially the chuang girls. This holiday, they just had too much fun having sleep over parties like tonight!

Son, daddy and mummy thank God for you and thank you for bringing so much joy into our lives. We are going to miss you so much next week when you go for holidays with yeye and nai nai but we will be praying for you everyday. We love you darling.

Hun Family Phuket Holiday

This started off as a simple small group holiday for Joanne and our family. When Lydia got to hear of this, she also wanted to come on flight. Another surprise was mum agreeing to join us as well. When we casually mentioned this trip to Nancy (all the way from Shanghai) she also want to join this trip!! So our family of 25 persons got all excited and off we went to Phuket Thailand! We are only short of a flag to gather the group!!
Day 1 - 16 Jun 2010

Our flight was very early at 8.20am on Wed 16 June 2010. But all the kids were so excited and they had no trouble getting up at all but gathering this troop is no joking matter!! Just look at all our faces on board the flight!!
As we arrived at our hotel, Marriott Mai Khao Beach, we are welcomed with garlands, very nice gesture. We hang around the hotel lobby while waiting for our rooms to be ready.
After checking into our rooms, we headed out to a recommended local Thai restaurant, Kin Dee which is built on silts. This rest is owned by 2 sisters and the food is good but it took a while for the dishes to be brought to our table. We easily spent 2-3 hrs at lunch.
After lunch we headed to a local mart to buy all the snacks and breakfast for the next few days. We also stopped by a road stall to stock up on our supply of fruits. NICE!
Next the kids plunged into the swimming pool and had a splashing good time.
It has been a long day and we decided to dine at the restaurant for Iltalian buffet. We were too busy eating which explains the no pictures!! Hahaha but Ezra had his 1st sip of white wine... Now that explains why he was totally knocked out that evening!
Day 2 - 17 Jun 2010

We booked a day trip out to the sea with Phuket Sail Club. We were picked up from our hotel to the jetty and we board the boat and off to our sea adventure. The sea was a little choppy as this is the monsoon season. We set sail to Koh Phanak to explore caves and limestone formations. We were served fruits, some local sweet dessert in banana leaves and the most popular fried chicken wings!
Along the way, we saw beautiful mountains and cliffs. The kids got a little bored until they spotted some giant jelly fish, there were so so many of them!!
Finally we got to the caves!! We were transferred to canoes, each canoe takes about 2-3 of us including the paddlers. The sea was very choppy and the ride was really rough and scary for us especially the younger children. As we rolled into the caves, some portion was really low and we had to lay down to avoid getting our heads bumped. The caves were very dark and the waves were splashing all over. It was quite dangerous and Ron's canoe even capsized with Rene and Healin thrown into the waters.
While most of us went canoeing, dad, mum, Linda, Nan, Nana, Nadine and Ricole were transferred to a dingy and brought to a small shore. It was a horrifying experience cos the waves were very strong and the dingy rocking terribly. At one point, dad almost slipped off his seat and the dingy almost capsized. We were at a distance from the dingy and having to witness this scene was a nightmare for me. I could only pray to God and asking Him for grace, mercy and protection. God was good and we were all safe. After this, we all agreed that such adventures are better kept to teens and adults... not young children and elders.
We sailed to another spot where the sea was much calmer and there the kids had a chance to canoe on their own and even plunged into the waters. We had a simply but yummy Thai lunch on board the boat.
Our final stop is the bat cave which is pitched dark and really smelly. We saw hundreds of bat hanging in the caves!

Day 3 - 18 Jun 2010

More time spent in the hotel room and swimming pool. In the evening, we made our way to another local Thai rest at Sarasin Beach. While the ladies were ordering the food, the kids had a wild time trying to catch crabs on the beach. It was a very quiet beach but with our arrival, thousands of foot prints were left on the beach.
The thai food was so super delicious... tom yum soup, different kind of salads, squid, prawn, morning glory, pork ribs, curry, and a special mention of the curry flower crab which was out of the world... so super fresh and yummy!
After dinner, we gathered and played Taboo. Some classic exchanges were....
Amelia - "you know you know you know" whenever she gives clues.
Aaron - "a name of mattress n pillow" when the word was dollop.
Viv - "not dolphins but .... and only the guys have it" = sperm whale

Nancy cut a plate of super sour pineapples and it was used to forfeit whoever can't get more than 3 guesses!! Poor Andre, he had the most and had to even downed it with beer!! We had so much laughter and FUN!!

Day 4 - 19 Jun 2010

Today, we travelled from Mai Khao to Patong and checked into 2 super small but clean rooms. Most day was spent shopping, eating and doing different massages. NICE & relaxing. At 7pm, off to the airport we go and home sweet home

Family Picture Time