Our new home....take II

So yes. As the title of this post indicates, this is take II of our new home and we are no longer re-locating to Vietnam. If you think you're shocked, imagine how I (we) felt!

The phone call came in the middle of the day just as I had packed the kids in the car and was about to head to MacDonalds (my most detested of all places, but something the kids had begged me for and it was an end of holidays, good behavior reward :).

It was Chad. He had been in Vietnam for almost 5 weeks and we spoke most nights on Skype. Why would he be calling me on the phone in the middle of the day?

In a moment of surprise, my first words were  "What's wrong?" "Are we not going to Vietnam anymore". I didn't really mean it when I said it, but the simple answer was "No. We're not moving to Vietnam".

Despite all the concerns I had about life in Vietnam, in that moment, my heart was suddenly so embedded there (I know. I see the irony :)! and the news was a bit crushing! Not to mention the time wasted on school applications, hours spent at the travel doctor getting immunisations or the last 5 weeks I had been single mothering our children while Chad was in Vietnam in prep for his new position.

But unfortunately the political agenda of Chad's employer takes precedent over what a family of 6 want!

So with all that, we have been offered another 'home'! Initially, based on what I had previously read,  I thought no. But ignorance is bliss as they say, and when we actually started asking questions and speaking to the right people, our answer changed. But not before Chad spent a few days there, looking at accommodation, schools, and getting a general feel for the city we could potentially call home (and blogs like THIS one certainly helped too)!

And so with that, I give you our new, new home.....

Jakarta, Indonesia.

Was there mixed emotions? Yes. Were there lots of questions asked? Absolutely. But just like Vietnam, once the initial shock of it all simmered down, and once we knew a bit more about the life we would potentially be living there, we both feel that this is right for our family. We are again excited for the adventure that lies ahead of us, and like I said here, I can't deny the pull I feel to this part of the world!

Week-Ending

Saturday morning jobs! Oh how I love thee and those magical little lists that children {generally} love to tick off.

 

Why yes. It appears that Rylan did sleep in his school uniform Friday night???? Rest assured Grandma, he did shower on Saturday and put on clean clothes :)

 

One of the benefits of living on the Gold Coast!

Just 10 minutes from our home and because we're local, we score crazy tickets for $39 that allow unlimited entry to 3 different theme parks (until the end of June)!! That's cheaper than a single entry to any one of the parks! Go HERE if you're a local too and want to score a bargain that your kids will squeal over (it also helps them to do their Saturday morning jobs really quickly :)

My own Justice League crew!

Spending time with 'Beep Beep' Grandpa and enjoying ward hopping! 

And finally, watching an amazing sunset at the beach Sunday night to farewell the weekend.

We plan to go back as much as we can before we leave!

Sisters!

Sister love after a little concert of singing and dancing performed just for me.

 

 

How it thrills my heart!

Little Wonders

Without going into the politics of Education QLD (which I am quite passionate about :), In short, If a child turns 5 by June 30, they can attend Prep (first year of school) that year. If their birthday is after June 30, they wait until the following year to start school (which would make the child 5 turning 6 in the first year of school).

If you happen to have a 4 year old turning 5 before June 30, and for reasons other than developmental delays, you think it would be beneficial to send your child to school when they are a little bit older, 5 turning 6, In the public system your child would have to MISS the prep year and go straight into year 1 (crazy! I know).

In contrast, in NSW, if your child turns 5 by July 31, IF they are ready for school you can send them to kindergarten - which is the equivalent of Prep. If as a parent however you feel they are not quite ready for school for ANY reason, you can opt to send them to school the following year - when they are 5 turning 6. As long as they start school by their 6th birthday.

OK this is getting too wordy :)

My point for this little glimpse into the difference between State Education in Australia?

Last year our family was living in NSW. This year we are in QLD and Jasmin, my bright happy 4 year old is directly affected by these 'discrepancies of rules'.

As a parent, after months of thinking/praying/worrying about what the right thing for my girl was, It felt right to wait and send her to school in 2014. When she was 5 turning 6 (do 4 year olds really need to go to school 6 hours a day, 5 days a week?). Have you seen what the kids are learning based on the National Curriculum in Prep now? It is no longer a year of socialisation or a play based curriculum to ease the kids into year 1. It is a foundational year of learning and it is full on (don't ask me how in the world Education QLD think that children can now miss this 'optional' prep year of school?)

It was not easy finding a school that felt right or that would support my decision to 'delay' Jasmin's entry into school (the word 'delay' seems absurd in this sentence, don't you think?), but I managed to find the most amazing school that was happy for me as the parent to decide what was right for my child. Sadly in the public system, this is not an option.

As a result of this, I am now watching this girl of mine thrive in the beautiful Pre-school that she attends a couple of days a week. And I couldn't be more happy that I didn't cave into the pressure I felt to "Just send her to school. She'll be fine. She's ready. You're holding her back".

Sometimes we have to fight for what we think is right for our children. Even if others don't agree with our decisions. Sometimes we have to trust our instinct, and recognise that despite what 'everyone else is doing', we are in fact the experts for our children and know better than anyone else, exactly what they need.

What a gift mother intuition is!

ps) While I don't dispute that some 4 year old children are ready for school and thrive in that environment, I absolutely believe it should be the decision of the parents, based on the individual child and what their needs/capabilities are, NOT by a governing body that oddly seem so out of touch with the fact that NOT all 4 years are ready for school.