Good bye Salamander

Mommy has been taking Melur to swimming classes every Tuesday since mid-May. This is Melur's second class. The first one was called "Sea Turtle" and she took it with Arman. This one is called "Salamander". Melur gets 8 half-hour lessons every Tuesday from 10am until 10:30am. Today is actually Melur's last lesson. Mommy usually spends the time during Melur's lesson to swim in the lap pool. This is better since Melur usually gets very distracted if she sees Mommy around. She'll start waving or looking at Mommy instead of following the instructor. When Melur's lesson is over, we'd both enjoy the jacuzzi together before getting ready to catch the bus for home.

But since today is Melur's last lesson, Mommy decided not to swim so that she can take pictures of Melur instead. Melur seems to really enjoy herself during the lessons. There are only 2 other kids, a girl named Emily and a boy named Emmet. Both are the same age as Melur. Maybe because they are both girls, Melur and Emily have become good friends. Melur even told Mommy she wants to take another swimming lesson with Emily. You can see a picture of Melur and Emily sharing a towel together. They look adorable...:) Just like before, Melur got a report card from Christine, the instructor. Here is what she said: "Excellent attitude in class Melur! Your front and back floats look great. Keep practicing your rocket ships without touching the bottom and remember to ALWAYS blow your bubbles. Have a great summer and good luck in level 5."

So, Melur can now go to the next level, "Sun Fish". Mommy and Papa are planning to register both Melur and Arman for the classes starting in September. They will have to take different classes but we will try to make sure that those classes are held at the same time. We'll see how that works out... and maybe expect a blog from us about it in the future.

Melur and Emily

Granville Island, Finally

Today was a GREAT day! For the first time, we went to Granville Island. It's a little island (well, I'd like to say, it's 'hardly' an island) located under the Granville St bridge. It's very quaint (equivalent to San Francisco's Peer 39) filled with great food and art, and many street performers. It also has a wet market with fresh seafood, meat and produce. Daddy had been there just a few days before with an old friend from Sapient. We had Salmon Teriyaki by the bay, and finished with some dessert. Daddy saw this little boat ride which I thought the kids would simply enjoy. So here we are, making our way to Granville Island for the first time.

We arrived with great anticipation. The number 4 bus stopped just a few blocks south of the island, and we made our way north through the main entrance. Our first stop? LUNCH... at the Kid's Market. We brought tuna sandwiches from home. We had hardly crossed into Granville, and we stopped by a nice little pond with geese, fish and turtles.

After that, we walked over to the children's park. We were surprised to find a public water park, completely free to everyone. Unfortunately, we didn't bring the kids' swim attire (even though my friend told me about it). So we had to be content with just the regular playground. This new camera takes such clear pictures.

After the park, we made our way to the wet market. I gave everyone a brief tour (just like my friend gave me). We were very tempted to buy some fresh fish to steam at home for dinner. Then, we headed out to the bay where I saw the little boat ride. We enjoyed the sun and the scenery under the bridge. As we headed over to the pier to check out the boat ride, we stopped to see the live entertainment.

The show was awesome. He was very funny, and entertaining. You see him juggling fire above. After the brief show, we headed to the Aquabus.

After the boat ride, we stopped over at a bakery for some dessert, and headed back to the playground to relax before dinner. We took a video below:

And that was that. We left the island and had a family dinner at White Spot, a nice family restaurant on Broadway. I end this entry with a very nice picture I took with Arman. He looks so cute, and mature (though he's really not) in this picture.

For more videos of the family (we took a couple from the Aquabus Mini-Cruise), check out Daddy's You Tube Videos.

To the Rescue

Hello, this is the Mommy. Finally, Mommy got a chance to blog a bit. Probably should make more time for blogging just like Papa. He's so consistent, and always making time to blog even though he's busy as well. And plus, Mommy always hogs the computer even at night. Mommy's mental note to self - will not bring work home so often, will not hog the computer at night, and must spend more time with the lovely kids... just like Papa. Anyway, today is a good start since Heba, our nanny, lost her contact lenses. No worries... Mommy to the rescue... Came home early at 4:45pm so that Heba can leave. Now Mommy, Melur and Arman have some time together before Mommy has to start preparing dinner. We all headed out to the park near Arman's future preschool. Lots of kids there, a different crowd then the kids at the usual playground behind our house. But lo and behold... we met one of Melur's friends, Elaine, and her mommy. Melur and Elaine hung out (upside down - see pictures) together.

Arman had a good time too. He climbed everything in sight, and getting very good at climbing. He climbed up to the very top, and he climbed down as well... both without help.

Just look at the pictures of the kids and you'll know what daredevils they are.

New Camera

We got a NEW CAMERA!!!! And what was the first thing we did with it? Take pictures (and movies) of Melur and Arman. So for your viewing pleasure, we bring to your our first movie production (well, it's just a video clip) of Kembara Melur and Arman

Kids playing with New Camera

Well.. the kids had fun with the new camera. We'll be posting more pictures and movies from time to time. To end this post, here's another short clip of the kids having hot chocolate before dinner. They are so adorable.

Hot Chocolate Before Bed

Fun with the kids...

Hair Cut for Arman

Today I was determined to give Arman a Hair Cut. He wasn't so eager to have a hair cut at the barber with me the last time. Perhaps, a familiar face would calm him down. And having NEVER cut ANYONE's hair before, I made a bold attempt.

Okay, so it isn't as straight as it should be, but I think it's a good first try. At least his hair is shorter now. I know some of you guys didn't like the crew cut we gave him last time (you can't count that as a hair cut). So we gave him a bath, and he looked a little better.

Today isn't just Arman's day. Melur needed to be in the picture too. So here she is...

Today, Daddy needed to buy groceries from the Halal Store and Safeway, so I brought Melur and Arman out with me. We stopped by the Dollar store to buy a cart which I could use to carry the groceries home. As you'll see later, it was a good thing I get that cart. I had a LOT of groceries to buy. The kids bought some chocolate which they had on the bus. They behaved very well after that.

Our first stop (after the Dollar Store) was the Halal Store. I made Arman try on a hat while we were waiting for the Butcher to prepare our order.

After the Halal Store, we crossed the street for some Chicken Shawarma. It was a muslim establishment. The food was delicious.

The journey back was interesting. The bus was PACKED! I wasn't sure the driver would let us on, because it so full. But he motioned us in, and we got on. If you can make out from the picture, Arman and Melur are holding on the railing in front of me.

Well, we arrived at Safeway to do the last of the groceries for today. We never take pictures at Safeway. Somehow, I always forget to. But today, I took some pictures at the checkout counter. As you can see, we got A LOT of things. And you can also see the little black foldable cart we got from the Dollar Store. It was challenging getting the best configuration which optimized cart space and bag space (which I also brought to carry extra stuff).

And so we headed home with all the groceries. Quite a productive day, if you ask me. We went to the Dollar Store, the Halal Store, tried out some Mediterranean food, and got a whole bunch of groceries, while spending time with the kids. Here's the bus ride home.

Stay tuned for more Family Fun!

Shrek the Third

Today, we made our way to Silver City Cinemas at Metrotown again, to watch Shrek the Third. We left a little late, and arrive in time for the 4:40pm show.

The movie was good, entertaining. And as usual, there always a something for the adult viewer, despite it being an animated film for kids. After the movie, we headed to the food court for dinner.

For some odd reason, Melur didn't want to get her picture taken, and so you see a picture of just her back. After dinner, we stopped over for some Tim Horton's and had Tim Bits on the train. And that was our day at the movies.

On the way home