Parenting on Purpose

Up Close and Personal One of the great things about staying at Keller's is that it is located only a stone's throw from Caversham Wildlife Park, one of the must-see  attractions in Perth if you have kids (it's also a wonderful place to go if you have no children)! The park's website tells the story of how it was started: David & Pat own and operate Caversham Wildlife Park with their son David & daughter Debbie. When they purchased the park in 1987, the park housed a small collection of animals and birds on a modest 5 acre (2ha) property. A few years later, the park doubled in size, when the family purchased the adjoining property and the collection started to boom. In May 2003, the family designed and built a new park in Whiteman Park, once again, more than doubling in size. CWP features about 200 species, and more than 2000 head of animals, birds and reptiles. This impressive collection makes CWP the largest privately owned collection of native wi...

Since our marriage 6 3/4 years ago, we have made it a point to go away on our wedding anniversary. With our children it got harder, especially in the early years, and especially for me, the mother. I remember bawling my eyes out in our Batam resort when our oldest was still about half a year old, accusing my husband of forcing me to leave our baby behind!  But fast forward a couple of years, and with two active boys underfoot, I have really started to anticipate and appreciate these precious times away. Our anniversary also falls in December, making it a good time for us to take stock of how our marriage and family are doing, recalibrating and setting a focus for the year ahead. So it was a special treat when we got to go on a last-minute getaway to Malaysia's capital city Kuala Lumper, without the kids. We had a one night stay at a Copthorne group hotel to redeem, with Mark's American Express Kris Flyer miles card. Enjoying a substantial ramen meal at...

"RugBees is Asia's  dedicated rugby play programme tailored for children from walking ages to 5 years old [and]  adopts a 'Play & Learn' ethos, where children are taught key motor skills geared towards rugby principles such as catching, kicking, balance, co-ordination, team work and most importantly fun."  - RugBees Singapore website When we first heard of RugBees' interesting class philosophy, we got very excited! With two active boys who love to play ball, we thought that the class might be a wonderful opportunity for our sons to practice some important key motor skills, while at the same time learn how to listen to instructions in a guided fashion. So it was with a mixture of anticipation and excitement that 4-year-old Z and 2-year-old E went for their first-ever rugby class (an interesting development given that Sue and I have absolutely no inclination for sports whatsoever)! Z and E getting ready with their rugby balls. From the onset...

The House that Daniel Built We spent most of our Sunday enjoying our lovely farm and also getting a few essential items at a nearby mall. It was then time to head over to my good friend Daniel's home, where he and his family hosted us for a lovely teatime meal. We were surprised to see a brilliant rainbow as we were enjoying tea. Always a reminder of God's love for us! The Lims of Singapore and the Lims of Perth. We were very impressed by this playhouse that Daniel built from scratch!  A Time to Remember It was dusk by the time we arrived at King's Park, one of the largest inner city parks in the world. ExperiencePerth.com describes the following highlights regarding the park: Kings Park's stunning location overlooks the city and the silken blue waters of the Swan River. From high above, you can see the brilliantly coloured sails of boats on the river, the twinkling lights of the city, the distant Perth Hills and the endless blue skies for which Perth ...