To introduce our new space to all of you, we decided to play a little game called "Where's Aaron?" Enjoy these fun pictures from around our home.
Picture 1: The Living Room
Here you see our new, and much smaller living room. We are not exactly sure why there is a big hole in the coffee table, but we thought of some ideas.
Picture 2: Aaron's Room
Now that Aaron has a big-boy-bed, he has more space to lose toys under it. And he has more space to keep all his buddies on it!
Picture 3: Aaron's Room
The other side of Aaron's room is a wardrobe with a full length mirror. Lots of space and funny faces!
Picture 4: The Storage Room
Yes, our storage space has been reduced by over half. However, God gave us wisdom to use the space available. Yeah, it is very full!!
Picture 5: The Kitchen
Mommy is very happy with the new kitchen space. It is small, but the overhead space is more clear than the old kitchen. She doesn't feel like she has to duck under the drying rack to wash the dishes. Another plus: Piped in gas for hot water at the tap!!! That includes the shower as well!!!! No more flipping switches and heating dishwater in the tea kettle!!!!!! Yeah, this makes her very happy!!! Can you see Aaron? He is there!
Picture 6: The Kitchen
The stove top is a bit of a puzzle. Mommy is guessing that maids like to stirfry more on their level. So even though the counter tops are low, the range is even lower! But Mommy is using every bit of the high space for storing the appliances! Also, the kitchen can be closed off from the rest of the house, which can be air-conditioned! Mommy discovered a very important reason to close the kitchen doors: The clothes dryer. She ran it twice in one day (Wah!! Soooo hot lah!!!) Yeah, that is a last resort. Expensive too!
Picture 7: The Dining Room
Family meals are much more efficient now that we have a proper dining room. What you can't see is the cabinets and counter top Marvin. Setting the table is a breeze. Having the extra table will be handy when we have guests. Can you see Aaron?
Picture 8: The Master Bedroom
Here we have the room with the "Man-eating Bed". Yup, most of the room is the bed. It is almost like everything else is an afterthought. But we also have a big wardrobe like Aaron's, and at last we have a working air-con unit. Yeah, they fixed it yesterday!!! Nighttime is quite comfy-cozy.
Picture 9: The Study/Guest Room
This is the best angle for the study. It has so much space for computers (yahoo!) and even scrapbooking (wahoo!!!) Are you a scrapper? I am going to be again!! Gigi, can you see a bit of the Narnia poster? It looks so cool in this room!!! Oh yeah, the red rolling chair is cool too (a gift from the previous tenets). Out of the frame is (you guessed it) another big wardrobe. No more clothes on a little flimsy rack!!
Intermission Story:
The view from our windows has been most extraordinary! The first day we came to view the place, rented at the time by some friends of ours, Paula, wife and mom, showed us this beautiful, scenic, open, grassy park. The prospect was gorgeous (a little Jane Austin there)! We seemed miles from the nearest apartment buildings. What a lovely view each morning. Paula said, "This whole area is slated for development. We've enjoyed the view the whole time we've lived here. I can't imagine that they would start developing for several years."
Each time we came to see the place, meet the landlord, check on furnishings, etc., we enjoyed our grassy park. Even the landlord proudly claimed this unique claim upon rare open spaces.
This is absolutely true. The day, I mean the absolute DAY we moved our furniture in, a construction crew walled off the entire space and began loud, obnoxious, heinous, assaults on that fine park. And they mounted this attack right under our window!! Oh, the humanity of it all. But there is a silver lining. Aaron has always been fascinated with giant machines. His view has expanded greatly in the last few weeks. Even Danny has had a touch of nostalgia. Today, these fine wielders of expansion and destruction began cutting down almost all of the evenly spaced trees. Chainsaws can certainly bring back memories for one who grew up in Roseburg, OR.
Without further ado, our final shots for today:
Picture 1: The Leaning Tree
The tree in the middle is not reaching for sunlight. It is falling. Another one bites the dust (or turf as the case may be).
Picture 2: Construction Orange
The excavators greet us each morning at about 8 am. They take a break for lunch for an hour in the middle of the day, then they rest for the night at about 6:30 pm. There is also construction blue and a lovely sea green as well.
Picture 3: It Used to Be Green
We think this is a washing station for vehicles exiting the site. They dug a huge hole, let it rain for a day, dropped bricks into the pool (huh??) and put a grate over the top. All I have to say is they better not be breeding mozzies! This is a dengue free zone!!!!
Picture 4: All is not Lost
The good news is that there are plenty of great playgrounds in our new neighborhood. Our little monkey loves flitting from one to the other. You can see the MRT tracks in the background. More good news, we are very close to Clementi MRT. Yeah, that is important. Green line!! Gets us a lot closer to everything! Less waiting for buses and trains!! Only 3 bus stops to school. About 15 minutes, with the wait!!! Or Danny can walk it in 25 minutes. That is about as long as it used to take him to ride a bike.
Closing Argument:
Okay, so I guess since we just had devotions with Aaron, and it talked about not hating, but loving your brother, I better not start an argument now. In short, we are blessed beyond measure at the grace God has poured out on us repeatedly. Here He has once again shown His provision by providing us just the home we need, at just the right time, and gave us a Christian landlord as well. What an honor it is to serve the Most High God!! Thank you all for your prayers and support!
