Happy New Year!!!

Well Christmas 2008 has come & gone. For being half way around the world & missing our loved ones so, we managed to have a very nice holiday together & with some new friends. We kicked off our celebrating at Treetops, where we currently live, on the 23rd with the staff's Christmas carols & then a nice "set" Christmas meal at Treetops Sunshine Cafe. (Set meals out here are several pre-set courses for a set price.)

On Christmas Eve Adam came home from work with a lovely fruit basket & chocolate log cake from 3M. Then our doorbell rang & we found Santa & a small choir to sing to us & deliver us cookies on our doorstep. We enjoyed a Christmas Eve dinner at La Fondue with way too much good food. Then we strolled Orchard Road,(main drag by our place with TONS of shopping, restaurants, bars, and more shopping) as it was busting at the seams with everyone out on the town celebrating the holiday or just the fact that they didn't have to work the next day. The holiday decor & lights were gleaming and it was Christmas all around. After we hopped on the MRT (subway) & took it to St. Andrew's cathedral for a late night Christmas service that included beautiful carols. Getting home was long as the typically crowded MRT & Orchard Rd. was even more packed. Once home we did our family's tradition of opening one gift each, Lucky even got one!

Christmas morning started with fresh cinnamon rolls ala Lisa & Pilsbury, (yes, you can get them out here, but you will pay $12 SGD for the sweet treat) and room service delivery from the Sunbird Cafe of a Cafe Latte for Lisa & Pineapple Smoothie for Adam. We spent the rest of the morning opening all our lovely gifts from each other & our families. Thank you everyone for spoiling Adam & I & especially Lucky! After opening our gifts we got the true gift of speaking with all our much loved and greatly missed family. Then it was play with our gifts, hit the Treetops gym (had to work off some of my homemade fudge) & then another family tradition of "snackies" & bubbly (sparkling grape juice for Lucky). I was able to find most of our favorites out here: veggies & dip, bread & cheese, even sausage & crackers, the one challenge was cocktail sauce for the shrimp....thanks Denise for your homemade recipe. After all this Adam & I were ready to lay around & watch some sappy Christmas movies on TV, but we had the honor of being invited to some new friends home for a very nice Christmas meal. So back on the train (while trying not to be crushed in the Christmas crowd) to our friend's home in the north part of the island. We ate like kings and queens on their large balcony. We had grilled T-Bone, Chix, twice bake potatoes, veggies, bread, rice, not to forget the lovely appetizers & great wine. We spent the rest of the evening snacking on fudge & chocolate, chatting about our home country's politics/economy & all of our missed family & friends. Then we were serenaded by a Singaporean friend of theirs with Christmas music on his violin.

Once home & turning in we thought of all of you just starting your Christmas celebrating and once again counted our many blessings. We may not have physically been with you, but we were in spirit. We hope you all had a Merry Christmas and most of all a VERY Happy New Year. May you all be blessed with a bright & healthy new year ahead of you.

Lisa, Adam, & Lucky
(Below are pictures of the above holiday events)







P.S. The video is of the very crowded Orchard Road all decked out for Christmas.

Merry Christmas from Singapore!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all! We miss you all greatly and will be thinking of each and every one of you while we our counting our blessings this Holiday Season.
Much Love-Lisa, Adam, & Lucky





















*Thanks Diane & Sandy for adding a little Christmas cheer to our apartment

Night Safari at the Singapore Zoo

We celebrated Hari Raya Haji on December 8th by going to the Night Safari at the Singapore Zoo with our good friends Jeni & John.

Hari Raya Haji, or the "pilgrimage festival" marks the end of a Muslim's pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. It is also known as the Festival of Sacrifice which commemorates Prophet Ibrahim's test of obedience in sacrificing his son Ismail. In Singapore, Hari Raya Haji is a public holiday.

We got to see a lot of cool animals while riding an open tram through the park. Then we enjoyed a burger and some tribal fire dances afterwards. It was a good Hari Raya Haji!

Lisa's Bump

Hello All,

Here is the monthly update of Lisa's growing belly. We had a Dr. appointment today and everything looked great!

Relaxing in Thailand

Here are some additional photos and videos of our recent trip to Thailand. We took full advantage of the resort and the island, indulging in everything the resort and the island had to offer. Some highlights were our massages at the resort spa, doing water aerobics one morning, and using the swim-up bar at the resort. You could grab a seat and order a beer and some nuts and other snacks while still in the water...which reminds me of my favorite Thai joke: Did you hear about the two nuts walking along Patong Beach? Evidently one was assaulted.

Thank you, thank you very much. Now, on to the photos and videos....



The resort also had 2 baby elephants on site that they fed every morning. Here is a photo of Adam getting up close and personal with Amy and Sara:



After breakfast one day, we camped out by the pool for some sun and relaxation:



Right beyond the pool was the beach which was great - we both swam in the ocean and cruised up and down thatched roof "stores" looking for more bargains. Here is a picture of Lisa as the sun was setting:



There was also an open air bar that we really liked. Each night there was a band performing and they took requests, so we took advantage of that opportunity:



On our last night, we watched the sun set for a last time on the beach and Adam reflected on the experience:

Thailand Tours

After spending 1.5 days lounging around the resort, enjoying the pool, beach and great food, we ventured out on a few tours. Lisa took a Thai Cooking Class offered at our resort. She learned how to prepare 3 dishes that I hope to try soon.

Adam went on a snorkeling trip that had 3 main stops. The waves were very choppy (which is why Lisa took the cooking class instead) but the snorkeling was great. I saw tons of cool fish, coral, and sea anemones. Our first stop was Monkey Island:



The second stop was the beach where they filmed the movie "The Beach." Leonardo was not there the day I visited, but I did get to snorkel and enjoy the surroundings.



The next day Lisa and I both went on a cultural / shopping trip. We stopped at Patong Beach which is home to a lot of markets. We got a lot of great buys and really enjoyed talking to the shop owners and haggling for the best possible price. Here are a few photos of Lisa at the market and of Adam taking a break from the heat:





If you ever happen to talk to this bartender, just know that I let her win those first two games of "Connect 4" - sneaky move Supattra!

Our next stop was a temple - there are 29 of them in Phuket - for some more photos:



After the temple, we went to a Batik factory (they die cloth for clothing, art, etc.) and then to a cashew factory. They gave us a quick tour and let us try all kinds of cashews and other products. Our favorites were the sesame/honey cashew and the cashew apple juice. Here is a picture of Lisa outside of the factory and then a video of the factory / store:





Our final stop was the "World's Largest Jewelry" store where we had a lot of fun browsing.

Thanksgiving in Thailand

Lisa and I spent Thanksgiving this year in Phuket, Thailand. It is about a 90 minute flight direct from Singapore. Luckily, we arrived before the Bangkok turmoil started and our vacation was not affected at all.

We absolutely loved Thailand - our resort, the tours, and everything else were really great.

Below is a video of Lisa right after we checked in at the resort:



The next morning, Lisa snuck up on me looking out at the lagoon: