It took a while but I finally went through the Thailand photos and put them up.

Jacob officially turned one today. Celebrations were held this weekend in Thailand with his buddies Conor, Zara, Maya, and Dino (Ariana had to leave early and Maxwell sent regrets). Tons of photos from the weekend will be added later but here are a few of the party by the pool with a big chocolate cake. We’re back in Singapore today for a Malay style picnic with the grandparents to celebrate some more this afternoon.

I can’t believe it’s been almost 2 months since the last update, loads of fun photos. Since end of April when things were “a bit crazy” it’s just gotten nuttier and busier. Family events, job events, and some borderline silly injuries on the sporting fields for me have rounded out the last two months. Even when the curveballs are flying the Olivers pack in some fun times as well. May and June have had plenty going on with Mother’s Day, Fathers Day, trips to Malaysia for Grandma and Grandpa’s new grass, Jacob going from crawling to walking, trips to the zoo and beach, and backyard parties at the Mullanes. Jacob’s new favorite activities are being chased around the table, playing in water anywhere and anytime, making random noises, and throwing the ball like a pro. Ok, like Chuck Knoblock but it’s improving. Far from important but super annoying is the recent demise of our carry everywhere Casio Exilim. Likely impact is that June photos might be a bit on the thin side.
The summer is really looking promising. To start the boys are off for a week of sailing next week off the Thai Island of Phuket for a week. The wives and kids, should be about 10 of us in total, take over a Villa Thursday in Phuket. The sailors arrive Friday to tell highly improbable stories and on Sunday we celebrate Jacob’s first birthday. Difficult to describe how much I am looking forward to this. Expect some good picts. Side note: Yes his first birthday is in Thailand. Mine was probably in Temperance, Michigan. He is spoiled beyond repair already.
Paul and Cass Ashton are out to visit us in Singapore for a couple weeks with their kids at the end of July which will be great fun. We’re also trying to plan a trip back to Minneapolis, God’s Country, before the end of summer. It’s nearly 2 years since the last visit so that will be excellent. Of course work will have to make a place in all this somehow. Christina is now part time which is great for Jacob and I am close to getting newly immersed in something or other which should be sorted in July. Ahh yes and I went a bit mental in the IT purchasing department recently and got two new Macs (iMac and Air). It’s really just meeting basic requirements and is actually for Jacob, he loves the iMac so I had to get him one. That’s my story and I am sticking to it.

For lots of reasons April has been a bit of a crazy month. The good part is that Christina started part-time in April so is spending more weekday time with Jacob. They’ve even enrolled in a music class which comes with songs as homework. I have had a few chances during the month to take a few cool photos to share. The album linked on the left is of the kids when Ian and I took them to the Singapore Zoo. There is an area called the fragile forest where small animals roam around freely in a large enclosed park you can walk through. Jacob is a massive fan since he can get up close with the butterflies, mouse deer, and ducks. There are bats, tree sloths, and lemurs as seen in the photos but he doesn’t really see things in trees yet. That is until they come to meet you. I only wish I had the camera out when the Ring tailed lemur decided to use Conor Mullane as the first step and myself, holding jacob, as the second step in a running leap into a nearby tree. Nothing like an interactive Zoo.
My favorite photo of the month is below and comes from the Jacob Ballas gardens and a big wet hug.

Christina went on a long weekend away with the Girls to Sydney at the end of March so Jacob and I got some guy time to hang out. I took the day off on Friday and we set out for the beach. Jacob isn’t overly impressed yet with the feel of sand but is starting to come around. The waves, even small Singapore ones, make a noise he really doesn’t like. He really clings to the shoulder as you get close to shore and wade in them. Each trip to the beach he gets a little more comfortable with the whole scene and I expect in 6 months he’ll be running into the waves having a blast. Later we were out on the town and picked up some cool new shoes and car to ride in. Jacob is way too cool behind the wheel and he loves driving. We drove straight out of the store and all over Singapore. We hit the pool a few times and an afternoon at the Zoo to see the mouse deer and ducks. We hit pretty much all of Jacobs Singapore favorites. All in all a pretty fun boys weekend together. Next time football, cigars, and poker!!

Some picts Christina took on the girls weekend away!!