The Last Day in KL ...

On our last day in Kuala Lumpur (before flying out at 5:30 p.m.) I had the chance to go to the Melawati campus to see Reeve "graduate" from 5th grade (it was actually called "A Moving-on Ceremony."). The picture above was when Reeve and others were recognized after spending 6 whole years at ISKL, Melawati Campus (Reeve began school here in "Prep Senior," or kindergarten.).There were actually 6 different 5th grade classes, with about 20-21 kids in each class. However, each class was recognized individually, as was each student in each class. Reeve is shown just before he walked across the front to receive his "diploma." After his name was read, the vice-principal read a short piece that Reeve had written regarding an outstanding experience from 5th grade -- something that was done for each of the over 100 students! - rw

A last "Preaching Date" at SAPC ...

On our second-to-last Sunday at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church (5/26), I had the opportunity to preach on "The Parable of the Minas" from Luke 19. A special treat for me was that Doug was asked to be service leader (presider at the service) and was also the one to "do" the childrens' story (Reeve is on extreme left while Rania is the blond (also left side) and Gabi is the one with brown hair right below Rania).Following the second service I was honored by being given an I-Pad Mini and being treated to a meal for Nancy and me at a nearby restaurant. All in all, it was a good day! - rw

Days are limited in KL!

On Wednesday, May 15th the packers came to our apartment at about 9:30 a.m. and proceeded to pack and carefully wrap our Malacca furniture and all of the plastic bins of personal items that we're shipping back to Keizer. At about Noon the crew book a break for lunch, and when they returned they were ready to haul all the boxes and other wrapped items down the elevator from our 3rd floor apartment, and into the truck.The shipping crates will be loaded onto a container ship at Port Klang to be transported to Long Beach, CA, and then to Portland, OR before the journey by truck to Keizer. The estimate is that our shipment should arrive just about the time we return from the D.C. area on July 5th! (We fly out of KL on Friday night, June 7th via Hong Kong, Tokyo and PDX) - rw

Rania's First Grade Class Project

On Friday, April 5th, Rania's 1st grade class had a 9:00 a.m. "Presentation" on a project each of the 17 kids had been working on for several months. Rania's project was on Orcas, and had a nice formal "table of contents" on the first printed page, followed by the sheet that's pictured ("Diet").

In the picture at the top of this blog, all the kids were in a group singing enthusiastically a song that proclaimed that "Everyday is Earth Day Around Here."

The picture below was taken by the father of Daniel, a student in Rania's class who came from Russia three years ago. - rw

Easter Dinner in KL

As custom dictated, Nancy created another one of her "Easter bunny cakes" for dessert after our Easter Sunday dinner. Needless to say, it was enjoyed by all. And, the ham dinner itself included hash brown potato casserole, green peas, relishes, fresh fruit salad and rolls. -rw

Spring Break 2013 at Port Dickson

On the Monday of Easter Week Tracy drove us all (except for Doug who was at a tech-conference in Bali) down to a nice beach resort-hotel in Port Dickson, where we stayed for three nights. The hotel had a huge swimming pool -- with very warm water -- and several nice restaurants to choose from in regard to evening meals. (Nancy had bought all kinds of "lunch stuff" at the grocery store prior to the trip down.) Reeve and I played ping-pong, pool and foosball -- with Reeve consistently besting-me in the latter two games. - rw

Nancy in Manila

Due to a unique selection process Doug and I both ended up serving on the same accreditation team for Brent International School in Manila. Doug served for The Council of International Schools (CIS)and I served for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). We spent a week in Manila, Philippines but only saw the school and our hotel. It was a privilege to serve with a panel of outstanding educators from international schools from around the world. - Nancy