The Achmadis

The birthday party menu: sparkling grape juice, mini quiches, fruits fondue, vegetables crudites, cocktail sandwiches, orange almond sour cream cake.

Mummy's birthday party!

Holding up his head

Trying to suck the celery stick.

Hello everybody!!

Three, as in multiplicity we are differentiated,
Two, as in binary oppositions we complement,
One, as in wholeness we are.

We've gone through One nice,
And passed Two great,
And within Three, we live.

In One we were united,
In Two we were identified,
In Three we shall live.

-Danu Achmadi, 3 July 1999-

Dear my beloved husband,
happy 3rd anniversary! It's been a wonderful and amazing three years for me. Thank you for your love and your affection. Thank you for your presence and your smile. Thank you for your understanding and your wisdom. Thank you for being just you. I love you so much!

PS: Well, as you've said before, we've got many ahead! :)

Angkat kaki gaya 1 (sambil bengong :P)

Angkat kaki gaya 2

Angkat kaki gaya 3

Will lagi serius

Akhirnya setelah 2 minggu ngga di update, mood untuk update datang lagi. He..he.. :P
Jadi begini nih ceritanya...
weekend 2 minggu yang lalu kita makan siang di Legend Restaurant. Ngga ada acara spesial sih, tapi udah lama aja kita ngga keluar makan bareng. Setelah nyampe langsung deh kita pesen makanan. Menu makan siang kita kali itu adalah Warm Chicken Salad dan Lambs Fry, sementara itu Will beli Kids Lunch Box yang isinya Ham Sandwich, pisang sama potato chips. Dan untuk minumannya kita pesen Apple Juice dan Baileys. Hmmm... enak :) Setelah selesai makan kita langsung ke Embassy 3 Cinema nonton Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. Kocak banget deh filmnya. Oya, pas nonton itu ada kejadian lucu. Di filmnya kan ada adegan yang pas Wallace-nya berubah jadi kelinci tuh. Nah, pas buntut kelincinya keluar, plop! Eh, Will langsung teriak, "Uh, ee!" dengan kerasnya! Untung ngga ada yang ngerti. He..he.. :P Paling ya gue ma Danu aja jadi geli sendiri. Setelah nonton kita jalan2 bentar ke Marybank, ngecek property. He..he.. :P Udah gitu pulangnya mampir ke Thai Express 2 untuk beli Spicy Fried Noodles (yang pedes edaaan! Tapi enak! :P) sama Roast Duck buat makan malam. Yum..yum..
Weekend kemaren sih kita ngga kemana-mana. Sempet pergi bentar ke Resene Colour Shop buat milih-milih warna cat rumah sama wallpaper yang bakal kita pake untuk rumah kita nantinya. Tapi pas disana Will muntah banyak banget, jadi aja kita pulang lagi. Ternyata dia agak masuk angin gitu. Tapi setelah muntah itu dia langsung sehat lagi. Dasar... Malah tadi aja pas beli Subway dia ngabisin 6-inch sendiri! Maruk banget ngga tuh? He..he.. :P
Sementara Nic, sekarang dia udah makan macem2. Nic udah makan labu kuning, jagung manis, wortel, kentang, broccoli, kacang polong, pisang, alpukat, apel, dan pir. Tapi dia ngga begitu suka makan apel sama pirnya sendiri, mungkin agak2 asem kali ya? Jadi kalo ngasih apel dam pir harus dicampur, misalnya sama wortel atau labu kuning, baru deh dia mau makan.

Weekending 26 August 2005
*Art & Craft Activities
Lots of fingers in the paint activity this week.
*Dough
William used scissors to cut the play dough.
*Water Activities
More and more adventerous with the water. William is going to love this summer.
*Carpentry/Construction
Helped to build a ramp to ride the motor bikes on.
*Books & Storytelling
William is excited about the new books - carried them around.
*Science/Exploration/Sensory
Making volcanoes from baking soda and vinegar. We did this in the sand pit.
*Sand play
Mud pies and digging holes to China were popular this week.
*Climbing/Balancing/Sliding activities
William is developing good skills in these activities.
*Wheeled ride on vehicles
LOVES the new tractor trailer unit. Gets very possesive of it.
*Mat Time participation/experiences
Always a joy to have in mat time.
*Others
Bubble blowing day - William got so excited.
*Work sheet/scrapbook focus
Squares - finding squares, cutting out squares, gluing squares.

Weekending 15 September 2005
*Art & Craft Activities
Flitted aroung the glue and scissors but didn't settle to anything.
*Music/Dance & Movement
Lots of country hoe-down music this week - blame Melissa.
*Water Activities
Lots of transporting water from one area to another. Great help in washing the chairs. Well done William.
*Blocks/Construction/etc
Loved building a skateboard ramp with the older boys - also huts were a favourite this week.
*Books & Storytelling
Thomas still the favourite story. Our pop-up book is number one!
*Science/Exploration/Sensory
Was really interested in the volcano making - baking soda and vinegar - would have fallen in it he was looking so close.
*Climbing/Balancing/Sliding activities
William is not afraid to climb anything at Kiddicare now.
*Wheeled ride on vehicles
Still loves his tractor and trailer unit - has a good friend in Nathan who will push him around all day.
*Work sheet/scrapbook focus
Great worksheet - making a robot with different sized squares.
*Learning and Development outcomes recorded
Developing friendships.

Weekending 9 September 2005
*Music/Dance & Movement
Enjoys all these activities.
*Water Activities
Loves getting wet and can find lots of ways of doing this.
*Swings n things
When he gets someone to push him he makes the most of it.
*Science/Exploration/Sensory
Liquid to solid and back to liquid again - we made and ate jelly. William really enjoyed this.
*Sand play
William loves digging and working the trucks with the older boys.
*Climbing/Balancing/Sliding activities
The fort and hut making are favourites of William.
*Wheeled ride on vehicles
The bigger the bike - the beeter William likes it - even tried the two wheeler without trainer wheels.
*Mat Time participation/experiences
Loves the dancing/music period of mat-time - always joins in.
*Work sheet/scrapbook focus
More work on squares and rectangles. Also it's calendar time again. So any ideas you might have let me know.
*Learning and Development outcomes recorded
Working on William's portfolio again over the next three weeks. My focus is his great problem solving skills and his logical thinking.

Weekending 16 September 2005
*Art & Craft Activities
Scissors and sellotape today.
*Water Activities
Lots of pouring water through pipes and catering it in buckets.
*Blocks/Construction/etc
William helped to construct a wooden roadway, using planks and ladders. Well done.
*Manipulative/Puzzles/Games
Spider puzzle again this week. William hasn't forgotten.
*Sand play
Lots of digging tunnels and making 'roads' with the trucks.
*Wheeled ride on vehicles
William had a friend in Nathan whom pushed him around everywhere.
*Mat Time participation/experiences
Lots of action songs - Jack n box, etc.
*Others
Birthday parties x2. Yummy.
Sleep: Tuesday 1.10 - 4.20 pm, Friday 12.30 - 4.00 pm.
*Work sheet/scrapbook focus
Finished up on squares/rectangles - well done William.

Weekending 23 September 2005
*Water Activities
Not the weather for water this week - we tried drier things.
*Carpentry/Construction
William loves to practise with the hammers and saws. Found a level and watched how the bubble moved.
*Books & Storytelling
Thomas, Thomas, Thomas.
*Painting/Finger-painting
Too busy outside but I have managed to get him to attempt a calendar.
*Manipulative/Puzzles/Games
William loves his puzzles and always attempts any that are out.
*Science/Exploration/Sensory
Made a volcano in the sand pit. We add vinegar to baking soda.
*Sand play
The big truck and a shovel - William is happy!
*Climbing/Balancing/Sliding activities
William follows the'big' boys (4 yrs) around on the obstacle course. Loves to try.
*Wheeled ride on vehicles
Set up the slot car set with Denise - showed real interest and was really adapt at putting it together.
*Mat Time participation/experiences
Thomas the Tank Engine was picked both days as William's favourite story.
*Others
Sleep: Tuesday 1.40 - 4.10 pm, Friday 1.30 - 4.00 pm.
*Work sheet/scrapbook focus
Calendar work this week.
*Learning and Development outcomes recorded
Exploration.

Weekend kali ini kita ngga kemana-mana, soalnya lagi pada sakit. Pertamanya sih Will, dia sakit dari hari Senin minggu lalu. Terus akhirnya dia udah agak sembuh, eh giliran Nic ketularan, terus orang tuanya ikutan juga deh. He..he.. :P
Karena ngga kemana-mana jadi aja semangat masak deh. Sempet bikin macem2, mulai dari appetizer sampe dessert. He..he.. Kalo mau liat resep lengkapnya ada di Kitchen.
Hari Jumatnya gue ma Danu sempet pergi date sebentar pas jam makan siang. Hari Jumat kan Will sekolah tuh, jadi ya lumayanlah dimanfaatin buat berdua. He..he.. :P Date kali ini kita pergi ke taman di belakangnya perpustakaan. Soalnya hari itu lagi ceraaah banget. Terus udah berasa anget, pokonya rasanya summer banget deh *bahagia :P* Makannya sih beli KFC Popcorn Chicken, mashed potato, kentang goreng, dan 2 potong ayam *kreatif banget ngga tuh? Ha..ha..ha.. :D*. Terus ya udah deh, kita piknik di taman itu. Terus sambil makan kita ngobrol2 gitu, kita ngomongin tentang how lucky we are. Maksudnya lucky tuh bukan berarti lucky karena menang lotre, bukan, bukan itu maksudnya. He..he.. :P Kita memang ngerasa beruntung banget soalnya bisa tinggal di New Zealand ini nih, yang pemandangannya bagus, udaranya bersih, taman2nya terawat, aman, gitu2 deh. Coba bayangin, kalo di Indo kan ngga mungkin banget bisa piknik di taman tengah kota. Terus ya kita merasa beruntung aja karena bisa ngegedein anak2 di lingkungan yang seperti ini. Yang bikin kita salut banget terutama keamanan disini. Dulu kita pernah lupa nutup pintu mobil semaleman. Pas paginya baru nyadar. Padahal tuh mobil cuma ditaro di driveway dengan pintu yang terbuka selebar-lebarnya. Kalo di Indo sih aduh ya udah dicolong kali tuh mobil. He..he.. :P Selain itu kita juga ngerasa beruntung karena bisa memulai rumah tangga dari bawah *cieee :P*. Maksudnya tuh kita bener2 mulai dari ngga punya apa2 sampe ya bisa kaya sekarang ini nih. Inget banget deh gue jaman dulu *waaa, jaman dulu... kesannya kapaaan gitu...* pertama masuk flat yang kita sewa, kita cuma bawa 2 koper yang isinya baju2 doang. Itu flat kosong melongpong deh. Terus kita juga sempet tidur dempet2an di 1 kasur single selama beberapa minggu *eits... tapi romantis duong... he..he.. :P*, sempet juga uang belanja untuk makan sehari2 cuma $20 seminggu. Kalo dirupiahin sih $20 emang kesannya banyak. Tapi disini tuh daging sekilo aja udah $10. So, yang ada kita selalu beli daging cincang, soalnya murah. He..he.. Terus makannya juga diirit2 gitu, dieman-eman kalo kata orang Sunda mah :P. Tapi akhirnya dengan berkembangnya waktu *yaelah...nih bahasanya kaya mau bikin skripsi aja. he..he.. :P* ya akhirnya kita bisa jadi kaya sekarang ini nih. Terus ngerasa beruntungnya tuh ya karena kita dapet pelajaran yang berharga banget. Kita jadi tau gimana ngehargain kerja keras, ngehargain satu sama lain, ngehargain hidup. Emang kalo baca ceritanya kesannya dulu sengsara banget ya? Tapi kita sama sekali ngga nyesel ngalamin hal seperti itu, justru karena itu kita jadi bisa lebih dewasa dan karena itu juga kita sadar bahwa life is not all about money and luxury. Waktu ngalaminnya juga kita merasa seneng2 aja kok, karena kita juga diajarin untuk content dengan apa yang kita punya. Life is complicated for some of us because we want more and more. So, why don't we just be content? It makes life a lot more easier to live. I guarantee :)

Really excited ;P

First solid food: Farex baby rice

Mom & Will squeezed together

Cruuuzin' along

William on the trampoline

Enjoying springtime in the backyard

Weekend kemaren cuacanya ceraah banget. We got heaps of sunshine. Berasa udah kaya summer aja deh. Waaah, jadinya bersemangat nih. He..he.. :P Karena jarang banget cuaca cerah kaya gitu akhirnya kita memutuskan untuk piknik. Tapi kali ini pikniknya di backyard doang. He..he.. Sambil nunggu makanannya jadi Will, Nic sama Danu main2 duluan di halaman belakang. Will sih asyik loncat2 di trampolinnya sementara Nic nontonin Will. Akhirnya setelah makanannya jadi kita gelar selimut dan piknik deh... :) Menu pikniknya adalah chicken burger, kentang goreng, dan orange mango juice. Yum... :P Will suka banget chicken burgernya sampe2 dia bilang, "It's berge king." He..he.. :P Well, I'm flattered, disamain sama Burger King. He..he.. :P Akhirnya setelah makan kita main2 lagi, sampe2 Danu kecapean dan sempet tidur sebentar di bawah pohon. Emang enak banget sih, gimana engga, matahari cerah, angin sepoi2, perut kenyang, apalagi deh... Pastinya langsung deh mata jadi berat. He..he..he.. :P
Minggunya kita puter2 keliling kota (tapi ngga naik delman loh... :P). Hari itu ada acara kitchen tour ke 11 rumah di Wanganui. Karena kita lagi pengen cari ide juga untuk dapur rumah kita, jadilah kita ikutan. Cape juga, baru selesai jam 5 sore, padahal mulainya jam 1 siang gitu. Tapi lumayan juga sih dapet ide2 bagus.

Mengenai rumah nih...
Sekarang kita masih dalam tahap design, tapi kita juga udah nentuin warna tembok, ceiling, dan wallpaper (untuk kamar tidurnya). Sejauh ini sih denahnya udah fix, tinggal yang detail2 aja. Kita juga udah milih model tapware yang bakal kita pasang. Luas rumahnya sih nantinya sekitar 200m2. Ada 3 kamar tidur dan office. Terus kita pengennya open plan untuk dining, lounge sama kitchen. Terus kita bakal bikin exposed ceiling di lounge. Di master bedroom kita bakal bikin walk-in wardrobe dan ensuite. Terus halaman samping rumahnya bakal dibikin barbeque area gitu, dan halaman belakangnya kita pengen pesen mainan panjat2an buat anak2. Kalo mau liat modelnya ada disini. Yang jelas kita pengen nantinya rumah ini bener2 jadi rumah impian kita, dan pastinya kita excited banget. He..he.. :P