Here are two photos of Johnny Rakkar, Cousin Bump. Click the photos for bigger versions.

One from on February 12, just after he was born:

Here's one from April 13 with the blanket and blue blankie we sent him:

Today I tested for my green belt at Tae Kwon Do. I was successful! You can see photos here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=166801&id=513157270&l=3e0353719d

I quite enjoy doing TKD. It was a shame that my friend Mason doesn't do it anymore. Mummy & Daddy decided (and I agreed) that I'd do some extra classes there to improve my skills and confidence. I get to wear a black uniform now! Here's my Tae Kwon Do school: http://www.masterchins.com/raleigh.php

I had a great time today. We got about 3" of snow overnight so this morning I was very excited to get all rugged up and go outside to play in the snow. Here are some photos of us playing out the front of the house.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=150861&id=513157270&l=4e52d32c29

And you can also see a clever time lapse video of the snow falling overnight that Daddy made with his iPhone:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQDXimU6CX0

Overheard in the lounge room:

Mummy: You should go to the potty before you go outside to play the snow
Zoe: That's a a good idea, because I need to! (runs away)

Now that I'm in grade one, I have a spelling test each Friday - ten words that have the letter combinations were working on. This past week, we worked on the "ch" and "th" sounds. Here were the words we had. I got 10/10.

1. catch
2. there
3. those
4. this
5. think
6. church
7. chin
8. cherry
9. check
10. school

Today it was my class's turn to do the flag ceremony at school. The entire school assembles in our outside amphitheatre and we got on stage and said the pledge of aleigence while one of us held a flag. Then our special presentation was a Martin Luther King song followed by a song about the 100th day of the school year (which is tomorrow). Parents were invited and here's a video of us.

You can see photos at this link too: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=150557&id=513157270&l=95ea6ca9d6

Tip: This is an HD video. If it stops and starts all the time, press the pause button, the come back in 5 minutes to let it load completely.

Only a month late, here are some videos of me and Mason doing our testing for our Yellow-Green belt at Tae Kwon Do. This was a month ago - December 15. The videos are in HD so click the HD button to see them in the best quality.

Last night before bed, I put out the four cookies that I made (and decorated) for Santa, plus some milk and a chocolate, plus carrots for each of the 7 reindeer. When I woke up this morning, three of the four cookies were gone, plus the milk and chocolate and all but a half a carrot. He came, and he left presents for me!

I woke Mummy and Daddy and proceeded to open the presents Sandta left me. I got a case for the Nintendo DS that Grandpa Shiv got me, plus the Dora doll that links to your computer (I was excited by that!) plus some little things like candy, nail polish, hair clip, head band and even another DS game!

I've received some great presents but my favourite has been the DS - it's really fun to play with. Mummy suggested we start on the globe jigsaw puzzle that I got from them. It is a 3D puzzle of the earth - it looks difficult but all the pieces are numbered so I was able to help find the pieces. Mummy & Daddy kept on working on the puzzle while I played some of my DS games.

In the afternoon, we were invited over to next door to Ken & Jean's house for Christmas drinks. Ellie and Kate were there too so I had fun playing with them. We brought Champagne for everyone. Jean made sausage rolls - Daddy's favourite!

In the evening, my friend Mason and his Dad, Bob, came over for dinner. Mummy made a lamb roast. While the grownups enjoyed their dinner, Mason and I played our DSes (he got one too) plus we played in my toy room too. After dinner, we all went upstairs and played some MarioKart on the Wii.

It was a great day!

Wow, what a fantastic day. It's Christmas Eve and it's the Rakkar family tradition to open family presents on Christmas Eve. So I was very very excited about the prospects of opening presents. All day I asked if I could open a present early but alas no.

Mummy made Wiener Schnitzel for dinner (also a family tradition - Uncle Paul made Schnitzel at their house in London, and Grandpa Shiv made Schnitzel at his house in Melbourne too). It was tasty but I only had a little bit - I guess I was just too excited.

After dinner, we got to open presents! We called Grandpa Shiv on the computer via Skype and he was able to see me open my presents via our webcam. I was super excited to see that I got a Nintendo DS Lite from him. That was exactly what I wanted and I was so so pleased. Daddy got a digital camera from Grandpa (to replace the point-and-shoot camera he lost) and Mummy got a wonderful piece of Art Glass, a shared present from Grandpa, Uncle Paul, Aunty Karin, Daddy, and me.

When then connected with Grandma Dorothy and Grandad Keith via Skype, and we got to open presents from them too. I got a great set of oil pastels from them plus some art books - I'm an artist, you know - plus a pink head band. Grandma and Grandad got Mummy & Daddy a very nice gift basket - with chocolates and cheese and crackers and lots of other tasty treats. Grandad also had his webcam going so we got to see them open presents too. It was really great to see and talk to them and to Grandpa Shiv.

After that, we opened a few more family presents - ones from Germany and from London, plus a few more presents from my Mummy & Daddy. I was feeling really lucky and really thankful for all my presents. I gave lots of hugs!

I played with my new DS for a little while, but then it was bed time. I didn't argue as I was really very tired! Hopefully Santa will arrive while I'm asleep - I'm excited about that too!

Today it's my birthday! I'm six today. I've been so excited about it for a week now.

It's Saturday so I decided not to wake up Mummy & Daddy straight away but instead went to the red guest room and watched some TV. Then I came down and got to open family presents. I got presents from Mummy & Daddy (some real art supplies and other fun things) and presents from Australia too - my grandparents and Aunty Jude & Uncle Mike.

After a bit of breakfast, off we went to drama class, my usual thing for Saturday morning. Normally I go to gym class after that, but since we had a big day planned, we all decided I'd skip it. I played with the Wii game that I got from Grandpa Shiv with Daddy and had a bit of lunch.

My birthday party was at WiiiBounce, a fun place that has both large inflatables (like jumping castles but a large slide, an obstacle course and a basketball court) and a lot of Nintendo Wii games. It was really fun, and I had about 20 of my friends join me there. Even some of the grownups (like Daddy) got into the jumping. We had cake and stuff afterwards. I was even given a t-shirt with my own Mii character on it from our Wii at home. Very cool!

Then we came home (Katie came home with us) and we unwrapped all my cool presents. I got so many!

After presents, we started getting ready for trick or treat. My birthday's on Halloween, you know. Daddy put out all the luminaries on the driveway to attract all the kids that were out and about. I was a witch this year - a black witches outfit with orange edging, complete with a black witches hat and a straw broom. Katie and I went out to do some of the houses in our street. Mummy also went with me while Daddy stayed at the house to offer candy to other treaters.

Afterwards, we all sat on the steps to our front door and entertained Ken and Jean who came over for a glass of champagne. Our friends Mary Kathryn and Jonathan came over later too. The last of the trick-or-treaters came around about 9pm or so, but we were chatting on the steps and having drinks so we were in no hurry.

It was a good evening indeed. Daddy went to bed about 10:30 but I didn't go to bed till after midnight!

Miss Erin is my afterschool teacher at school and this is her last week at school. I'm quite sad about her leaving and yesterday at breakfast, I started crying because I couldn't stop thinking about her. I told Daddy that I was going to miss her. He reminded me that I'd still see her at ice skating and other times, but I'll still miss seeing her every day at school.

I did have fun with her last Saturday afternoon and evening. Mummy & Daddy went to see U2 so Miss Erin minded me. We played Wii and went to the mall for dinner, then we stopped at Starbucks where I got a brownie. I'm looking forward to the next time.

We had a great 3 days at the beach this long weekend. I spent the Labor Day long weekend with four of my friends from my Kindergarten class down at Myrtle Beach. There was Olivia (with her parents Pam and Jim), Mason (with his Dad, Bob), Sydney (with Mum Jennifer and younger sister Vivian), and Zoe H (with Beth and Ronnie, and little sister Morgan). So that's 7 kids and 10 grownups. We had so much fun!

Friday

I got picked up from school just after 12 on Friday (Ms Reilly said it was ok) and we left Raleigh just after lunch. We arrived late afternoon (it's a 3.5-4 hour drive depending on traffic), and checked in to our rooms. We brought our Wii so that mean our room was party central (which was fine with me!). So the people that were already here came to our room, had drinks and us kids played Wii. Our room was on the 10th floor of the Sands Resort Hotel in Myrtle Beach, so we had a great view down the beach. Later on, we all headed out for dinner at one of the local restaurants. Bob and Mason arrived after dinner though. We came back to our room and watched a bit of Monsters Inc while the grownups chatted on the balcony. Our first of 3 late nights!

Saturday

Saturday morning after breakfast, we set up on the beach. We rented two umbrellas each with a pair of deck chairs from the lifeguard. We had a lot of fun playing in the sand as well as in the water. I brought all my sand toys - buckets and shovels - so that was fun. Daddy and I played in the ocean - he picked me up and we waded into the deeper water. The waves were pretty rough be we still managed to stay upright. We were having fun jumping up over the waves as they came towards us. However one of them got us and over we went. Daddy kept hold of me so I was fine (although a little bit shocked from going underwater for a second or two), but Daddy managed to lose the sunglasses he was wearing (silly Daddy!). I went back to playing on the sand with my friends (we were digging a sand castle).

There's a water park in the resort (just like the Embassy Suites we've stayed at before) and some of us went to it as soon as it opened at 12. However, we stayed at the beach more and checked out the water park later in the afternoon. The water park was fun (especially the slides) but it was pretty crowded and Daddy said the water was too cold. The lazy river was warmer though (it was in the sun), so I had fun with Daddy and Zoe H in there.

We stayed a short time longer at the water park (enough to have an ice cream) then headed back to the beach. Mummy and I went straight back, while Daddy went up to the room, got the car keys then went to the car to get his 2nd pair of sunglasses (he buys two at a time in case he loses or breaks a pair - imagine that!).

Later in the afternoon, Daddy stayed at the beach while Mummy and I (and others) went back to the pool area to play there. This is another pool, not the water park. That was fun too. Mummy managed to rescue a toddler than decided he wanted to simply walk into the lazy river. Probably saved his life!

On Saturday night, we all went to another local restaurant for dinner. We had a long table but us kids were around one half, and the grownups were on the other half. We were a bit rowdy (so the grownups say) but there weren't others around us so it was ok. After dinner, back at our room, Zoe H, my Daddy and I, went down the beach to look for crabs. We had brought three torches to try and find them, but it turn out we didn't see any at all. Still, we had fun looking for them. Mummy and Zoe's parents stayed up in our room on the balcony and watch us and our search.

Sunday

Sunday, we decided to stay at the beach all day since it was generally much nicer out there. It was a bit overcast but still nice enough to be out there. Mummy bought me a bocce set so we had fun playing that for a while. Also, Daddy remembered to pack my kite so he and I got to fly that too - that was really fun. I was a bit nervous that it might hit the ground but Daddy helped me make sure it stayed in the air. We had more fun digging in the sand and Daddy helped too - he was intent on digging to China, but we wanted to dig for Australia instead. So we dug two holes. We didn't get very far unfortunately.

Late in the afternoon the wind picked up and the waves got rougher, and then it started raining. The rain wasn't so bad, it was the sand being blown. So we got all our stuff together and ran inside as quickly as we could. Us kids put our goggles on so we wouldn't get sand in our eyes.

Tonight we all drove down to Broadway on the Beach, a large shopping/restaurant/fun area in Myrtle Beach. We put our names down at a Japanese Hibachi restaurant but there's a 60+ minute wait so we got to go on the rides they had there. There was a car ride, an airplane ride, a train, and a couple of other ones. We walked back to the restaurant and waited another half an hour. Once we got in, it was fun. Our table was around the cooking surface where the chef prepared our dinner right in front of us. It was really fun to watch.

After dinner we walked around Broadway looking at all the things. We came across a place where you can climb fake coconut trees to reach the top as quick as you can. You're attached to a rope so you can't fall. It turned out that us kids were all heavy enough to do it, so we all got to have a go. Zoe H went first and she managed to climb to the top and ring the buzzer. When it was my turn I almost got to the very top but didn't quite make it. Mummy & Daddy was were very proud of me for trying and getting that far. I was pretty pleased with myself too.

When we got back home, us five big kids (not Vivian and Morgan - they had to go to bed) went down on the beach again with Daddy, Bob and Jim, to look for more crabs. We didn't find any but it was still fun. Another late night though.

Monday

Today is checkout day. We packed up the car and headed out. Sydney and her family went home directly, but the Mason's, Olivia's and my family stayed to go to the Aquarium. Zoe H can with us too even though the rest of her family went home too. Zoe H rode in our car which was lots of fun. The Aquarium was really fun - they have a walkway that goes under the water so you get to see the fish and sharks on either side of you and overhead. Really cool. We had lunch there too, then off we drove home. We saw there was pretty bad traffic ahead of us (thanks to Daddy's iPhone and Google Maps) so we detoured away from I-40 to avoid it.

A great weekend was had by all!

Daddy and I went bike riding today, however as you can see it was on our cool two-person bike. I have my own pedals and handle bars. Actually we've had this bike for a while but I've been too nervous about riding it. Daddy finally convinced me that we'd go slowly down the hill. It turned out to be really fun! We rode all the way to Shelly Lake then back again. I could barely touch the pedals but it was enough for me to help Daddy. He was impressed!

We met Mummy at the pool on the way back and had a swim. That was really fun. I got to show them all my swimming skills including my sideways breathing as I'm doing my Freestyle swimming. Afterwards, I had the option of driving back home in Mummy's car or staying on the bike with Daddy. I chose the latter because I wanted to help him pedal up the hill. I'm a good helper.

Overheard in the car this morning:

Zoe: I am so so so so happy being in first grade!
Daddy: Why?
Zoe: I love first grade!

Today marks the first 2 days of me being in first grade with my teacher Ms Reilly. It's really fun. I like wearing one of my new school uniforms too.

Unfortunately, my friend Zoe H and her family decided to not continue in my class this year but instead going to another school. I'll miss her in class but we'll try and keep up with them outside of school. Tomorrow is her birthday party so that will be fun. I'm also starting a new gym class at a new gym, GymCarolina. They do a lot more serious gymnastics with many classes for teenagers, so that will be good.

Overheard upstairs in the TV room, as David poured Kiron some wine:

"Daddy, I'd care for some milk"

Yesterday marked the end of my summer camps. I've had six weeks of fun activities at my school. Some of the fun things I did this summer were: swimming (just about every day), Tae Kwon Do, horse riding, soccer, gymnastics, cooking, and field trips to the baseball, the planetarium, Maggie Moos icecream, and a speed stacking competition. It was a really fun summer break.

Next week I start first grade! I'm very excited. School actually starts Thursday - the first three days are special stay-at-home days while they change all rooms from camp rooms to classrooms.

Mummy & Daddy bought me a new backpack plus a new lunch box. I also have some new school supplies too. My teacher for first grade is Ms Reilly and I already know her from last year - I'm really looking forward to being in her class. Daddy found out there will be about 11 kids in my class - 2 more than in my Kindergarten class.

I'm back at school now attending camp at my school. I don't actually go camping - it's just the name they give to the all-day activities we do.

I went horseback riding yesterday. Miss Erin took this photo. I really enjoyed riding the horse, although I don't remember his name.

Today was our last full day in Paris and the end of our holiday in Germany and France. :-(

After yesterday's hot day, no-one was in a hurry to get out and about. Grandma made us all a lovely breakfast of scrambled eggs on toast (Grandad went out and got bread).

We caught a taxi to the Eiffel Tower with the plan of going on one of the sightseeing tours on the river Seine. It turned out we should have looked more closely at our map because it was walking distance to it and the Trocadero from our apartment. Actually the taxi driver dropped us off on the north side of the river so we were able to walk across the foot bridge just to the east of the main bridge which gave us very nice views of the Eiffel Tower.

Our boat tour was to leave at 2pm so we had a little time for a snack and a drink.

On the tour we saw lots of great buildings and bridges. The tour lasted for an hour. Daddy took a million photos. The tour guide told us that we would go under 26 bridges so I decided to count all them.

After the tour, we walked towards the Trocadéro where we found a nice restaurant for a very late lunch. It was fun watching all the people walking by with a good view of the Trocadero. We then walked back to apartment and the airconditioning.

Since it was our last day, the grownups started packing. I watched TV. Daddy found the Nickelodean channel which was really good even though all the shows were French or were US programs with French dubbing.

About 8pm we headed out again for dinner and ate at a restaurant just a 5 minute walk away. Very nice. After that, it was home, bath and bed for me.

Tomorrow we're going to the airport to fly home. I'll really miss my Grandma and Grandad, but the really good news is that I'll be seeing Mummy again tonight - hooray!