Let it snow!

It was the season for our latest issue of Grade School magazine.

3 times a year, I would bring my materials to the school's library, where I work on the latest cover. As usual, the cover is inspired by my kids & their friends - this time, it was Elina & Raimon.

Summer Fun, Reports & a Wild Boar.

The few last days of school before summer break. A hectic week with school plays, class picnics, farewell lunches & this : At the kids' school, I volunteer by drawing. Here's my latest illustration (with colour pencils & water colour) for our Grade School magazine. My most "exciting" task today - photocopying 12,000 pages for the newsletter (200 issues of 60 pages) from 8am till 3pm !!

As a "corporate" identity, Fuji-san is present each time. So are the different washi border, the masthead & that bird which is a "Spatz" (sparrow) hence "Spatzenpost". This season's issue is dedicated to the Summer Olympics. You can see past covers here.

This cover is dedicated to my son, who missed jumping into the outdoor pool at the Swiss Club Singapore & my daughter who dreams of doing handstands. In real life, she can't do any handstand but she sure love her braids! In real life too, there are no goldfishes in ponds but who cares...these look like they belong! Dancing in the background are friends, Timo, Elina & Raimon.

Niklas wrote out an interview with a faculty member, in German & in English while his co-reporters asked the questions & took photos.

Annika found an article in our English newspapers & translated it into German. It was about a wild boar that ran amok in a kindergarten. The funny part is that she had added "And 23 people died in the end”. We were shocked & asked where she got that info since no one had died. She said she put that in to make the story more exciting & interesting! She did it because that is the general instruction she gets from us or hear Niklas say, whenever she is writing essays! Yes...we did remove her "exciting" statement.

People come & go.

When you are on the move as much as we have, there are some things which you wish you can get used to...but you don't. June is also the last month for both class teachers, in my children's classes. These are the goodbye collages that Niklas & Annika did, for their respective teachers. Annika loves her teacher, Frau Jakob so much that she emails her during school holidays.

Tschuess Frau Klotz - Niklas' teacher, a wife & a mama-to-be.
Tschuess Frau Jakob - a memorable & kind teacher to Annika.

This summer also marks the departure of a very good friend, Margret Tanaka, who is also the mother of Caren, a lovely girl in Niklas' Grade 4 class.

Their family is re-locating to Germany. Margret is German & has lived in Japan for the past 17 years! She is the one I call for translation help when I'm standing at a store & cannot communicate with the Japanese sales staff. We will miss them.

Back to school.

I've always tried to be involved with the children's school & was able to be very involved, in the German European School in Singapore, since everything there is bilingual in English & German.

Since living here, it has been difficult to volunteer for anything & I get rejected because of my lack of language proficiency in German & my non-existant skills in Japanese.

Then, there was this! A artistic project that I can be useful in. Each quarter, the Grade School has a newsletter, with contributions from the children. A small group of mothers put this together. And I'm really happy to have the chance to do the Cover & Back, 4 Activity pages & 1 Craft page, all in English!

Here's our past Winter issue & this Spring's cover. "Spatzenpost" is a 3 issues a year, mini-magazine, for Classes 1 to 4. Spatzenpost means "Sparrow's Post". I joined last year & did the Winter Issue - a cover featuring Mt Fuji, with 3 children carolloers (Niklas, Annika & Isamu, who is one of Annika's classmate).

Now I am working on the Spring issue. We leave tomorrow for the mountains, for a week of skiing & my reference material have to come along too. For this isuue, Niklas is one of our junior reporter & wrtes a report on the Medieval Ages. He loves to write so this is fun for him.

Sweets in the Garden, by Annika

Sweets in the Garden,
by Annika, Age 7

Annika's Houses

The recent cold blast which brought snow to the city & ice to our windscreen, was the inspiration for the "Ice House" by Annika Xue. Now she would like to list this on my Etsy shop, for sale together with her previous "Candy House"...we'll see. She is saving for a cool pair of roller blades

When I grow up ...

... I want to be like Mama, my 7-year old Annika says.

Well, she also wants to be a ski instructor in winter & a park ranger in summer. Together with Niklas, who has the same career ambitions, they will then both live in Whistler, British Columbia.

Annika wants to be an artist too so she's been busy drawing. This is a favourite of ours, from her "House" series.