SKYNI

Linn and I made a special trip to London after the new year. The trip was to celebrate Linn passing Maths (a bet i made with her) and also at the same time, I get to spend valuable time with my sisters. I really enjoyed the trip and had great food. Thank you to Pau Ping for suggesting great eateries such as Padella where the pasta was amazing, and the best pizza in the world at Napoli on the Road. I had my Asian fix at Singapullah, Laksamania, and Royal China. It was wonderful to catch up with the family, Uncle Poon and Uncle Bok. Even the weather agrees with us granting us clear blue skies for the 4 days we were there.

Must start saving so that we can be back soon!!!

Cheers to 2026!

After Christmas, Jonathan and I had a mini roadtrip to one of his favourite location in Sweden – Kolmården Zoo and the Tropical Aquarium. We had a great day checking out the Christmas festivities as the management at the zoo needed to bring in some attractions as most animals were hibernating from the cold at the zoo. We ended the trip with a staycation at Noorköping, our little ‘venice’ city.

I enjoyed myself with Jon, we bonded over eating lunch whilst watching elephants, shark gazing, and sharing yummy burgers at Burgers and Bangers. He is really sweet, patient and caring throughout the entire trip. I am proud of you Jonathan.

Let’s do more of these trips together.

The Walls celebrate Christmas in our traditon always. …big breakfast prepared by NickE, opening Christmas presents in the morning, stuffing our face with our JulBord, watching Kalle Anka at 3 pm and wondering if when we will be able to clear the fridge of leftovers.

God Jul!!!!

Linn & Adam went to the Stranger Things 5 premiere in Stockholm, they had made a mockup o Hawkins with a lot of cool stuff, like the ice cream parlour and pizza place etc. They really liked the 80s vibe created.

Our dearest Jonathan

A really Happy Birthday to you my son. I still cannot believe you are 20 today and now, you are like you said this morning a grown up. In my eyes, you will always be our baby and I am truly proud of the young man you have become. It is definitely a great achievement.

We wish that you will continue to discover new things and enjoy all your favourite things in life. The most important is to remain happy and do your best in everything you try. We will always cheer you on. We celebrated early on the Viking Line ferries yesterday, a day of cruising and we had a relaxing great time. The celebrations will continue today.

Love you so much that you cannot imagine!!!

To My dear daughter Linn who is 18 today.

You are officially an adult today! Congratulations on turning 18! YOU must be so excited about all the new adventures and new experiences  that await you. We are truly excited for you and will be always here to cheer you on and celebrate your achievements.  Just remember, our love and  warm hugs are always here whenever you want them. Your journey will be fabulous just as you always have been in the last 17 years.

We are proud of your wonderful achievements…in school (although we know your struggles), at scouts activities, your work. Keep developing your big personality, you have and will always shine brightly with those around you, as long as you stay true to yourself. We know that you can achieve anything as long as you set your mind and have the determination to follow through. This year, you started taking a part time job managing a café all by yourself. That itself is a big achievement taking on new responsibilities and we saw great improvements in your social skills.

As your mom, I have been so privileged to watch you grow up over the years and am so proud of you. I can’t wait to see what you do next. Growing up will be an exhilarating experience! It is not always easy to ‘adult’. Making the right decisions, choices and follow-through can always be difficult but that is how we learn. Be the person you want to be. Have fun, don’t be afraid, and above all, enjoy the ride! The best is yet to be.

“Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul.” – Pamela Vaull Star

I love you,

Mom

The wonderful trip to Norway would not have been possible without the help of my fantastic sister from London. She visited us, despite great airport hassle, at the beginning of the trip. Thank goodness the airport found and delivered her luggage.

Thank you so much SPP and hope you truly enjoyed the SPPike days. I am sure Spike will miss you greatly.

We decided on another drive trip to Norway this summer and this time we decided to visit the South West following the route Oslo-Bergen-Haugesund- Stavanger-Kristiansand-Arendal- Oslo. The trip was of course very well planned by Nichlas. Every stopover, hotel and activity was carefully considered and this was not easy due to the different needs (fitness level) of every family member. Well done Nichlas!!!

We saw some amazing sights and Norway always takes our breath away with ‘random’ waterfalls’, fjords, glaciers, the scenery is really out of this world. We were also blessed with great weather throughout only a few drizzle of rain at the start of our trip and on our way back to Stockholm. Imagine 20 degrees warm sunshine every day!!!

The highlight of the trip was the climb Pulpit Rock, a steep 4 hour hike which is supposedly an ‘easy climb’ by Norwegian standards. We made it anyway and it was definitely worth every single painful step and ache (after the climb). It was really amazing and we will not hesitate to do it again.

More amazing is that we met Peter (our friend from Singapore) unplanned in Bergen. Talk about it being a small world.

Now that we had 2 great Norway trips under our belts (and a lot more poorer), we look forward to other fantastics sights and holidays hopefully in the (near) future.

To Nichlas, our truly fantastic wonderful husband, father, son, friend, everything…

We are truly proud of your many achievements, for being true to yourself and others. You have done great and we know you will continue to amaze us. There is never a dull moment with you by our side.

We love you to the moon and back. Have a really fantastic enjoyable birthday.

Happy Father’s Day to the best dad in Jonathan’s and Linn’s world. We don’t say this enough but we appreciate you very much for all the things you do for us and for always making us Priority No. 1. We love you to the moon and back. You are the best!

My dearest son Jonathan,

You look at the world with a view that is new,
so I try my best to see that way too, 

All of us here are a one of a kind, 
and I'm learning so much from your beautiful mind. 

Your little ways, the things that you do,
Thank you son, for all the stuff that make you 'YOU'.

                                               Author Unknown

Jon, on your 19th birthday, I want to thank you for teaching me so much each passing year. I learn to let go and accept your world where you laugh and play and in your heart, you care and love in your special way.  Most important, you are content and happy. Although I have difficulties understanding how you make your own rules and interpreting the world your way, I love you no matter what.  Keep dancing to your own drum beat, and I will keep dancing with you. 

Happy Birthday Jonathan my sweet son. 

  

We vowed, to take each other, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish….

For the past 20 years, this vow has kept us together and indeed it is a sacred vow that we hold through all the good and difficult times in our 20 years together.

Thank you Nichlas for being my rock and loving me no matter what. You are my person, always.

Happy 20th anniversary, my dear husband.

My dearest birthday girl,

Yes, you are 17 today. How do you feel?

No doubt, the first year of Gymnasium has not been a walk in the park. It is tough with the some subjects (Maths, Chemistry) but we know with determination you can do it . So keep on going and don’t give up.

This year you were even more active in Scouts activities and it really helped to widen your social circle. We are glad to see you enjoying activities outside school and creating a school life balance for yourself.

Wish I can do a better job at showing you ‘how to adult’, but it is never easy. I am sure you will get there and wish that you continue to create better versions of yourself each year. I have seen all versions for the past 17 years and they keep getting better. Love you for that!

On your 17th birthday, we want to congratulate on your achievements, climbing Sweden’s tallest mountain Kebnekaise and enduring the long hike, taking on the leadership role at Scouts, and pursuing your interests and hobbies with finesse and joy. And of course, not forgetting that you always stayed true to yourself. We are really proud of you.

Grattis Linn and May you always choose to be happy!

Love, Mom

Singapore does not have a lot of wild jungle left, but it does have a few jungle patches and one wetland reserve. Nick and Jon visited the wetlands and met some fabulous creatures in the wild….

Crocodile, Sea otters and Malayan water monitors…

We had a 8 hour transit enroute to home in Stockholm. We punished our bodies (after a 12 hours flight) to make our way to Munich city at 7 am. But we did soaked in some great sights of this beautiful city.

As it was so early in the morning, the city was less crowded and we were blessed with great cool weather. The family really enjoyed the delicious bread and sandwiches after eating mostly local Asian food for 2 weeks.

The Walls really looked forward to going back to Singapore in July 2024 as it has been 2 years since we last visited. Hence this year’s visit became extra special and having not seen the family and friends for 2 years, it was an extra sweet homecoming for us.

We caught up with PoPo and the lovely Queks, ate massive amount of local food until Jon and Linn came down with the cold and cough. Jon was even tired of eating local food and tried to get us to eat his favourite pizzas and burgers. Needless to say, the amount of Singapore street food and snacks really extended our waistlines.

As we stayed very near Orchard Road, we became the ‘Orchard Road family’ walking down Oxley, Killiney Road and Somerset everyday in search of good food and bargains.

Spending time with precious family and friends was also our priority. Words cannot described those wonderful sharing moments.

Thank you so much to everyone for making The Walls feel right at home and it was a great vacay.

I woke up early at 2 am today … maybe because it was 18 years ago around this time, I saw and had Jonathan on my chest for the very first time, as he came into my world. The feeling then was really special and through the 18 years, he keeps motivating me to be a better person.

Jon has a really funny goofy side that is so perfectly captured in the picture. He makes us laugh and he checks on us every now and then to see if we are ok. He is really sweet in that sense.

He keeps us grounded in so many ways and always makes us look at things from different perspective.

Jon has really simple needs. Yes, they could be special but all he wants is to be happy and surrounded by people and toys he loves. Of course his favourite food like pizza, hamburger, ice cream and cookies will make it even better.

On his 18th birthday, my wish for him as his mother, is that he will always feel love and be happy.

Love you to the moon and back, my dearest sweet and kind son, Jonathan. I am so proud of the person you have become.

Happy Birthday Linn. What a major milestone as you are 16 today. Celebrating you and kudos to some of your wonderful achievements in the past year.

• You pushed yourself to complete your Year 9 exams, achieved good academic scores with recognition from the school.
• You made it to the course and gymnasium of your first choice.
• You climbed some good walls with Dad and Jon.
• Your drawings and art are getting better and better each day. Getting an academic award for best woodwork in school is no small feat.
• You created a new electronic song. Love your Spotify Playlist that you put together for me.
• Your appetite for reading English literature is growing each day.
• We had some amazing trips together in London and Norway.
• You formed good friendship in school and enjoyed your movie outings with them.
• You have taken higher interest in scouts. We are proud that you signed up leadership training camp with attendees you never met, despite the hardship of an outdoor mossies infected camping ground.

For your 16th birthday, we wish you much happiness and that you will continue to reach for the sky, fulfil your dreams and follow your passions.

We love you very much our dear sweet Linn. Grattis!