Dear friends in Casper,
I apologize for the delay in updating you on Teddy! He has been very busy and has become very attached to our family. I am sorry to say that Teddy seemed to be a bit camera shy when first joining our family but seems to be overcoming that fear with each adventure!
So a little bit about us, we are the “Olson family,” which consists of; me (Amber), my husband (Shawn), and my two sons (Ethan and Tanner). Ethan is 5 years old and is in kindergarten, Tanner is 5 months and just beginning to crawl. We live in Balikpapan Indonesia! We lived in Casper Wyoming before moving to Balikpapan and I taught with your fabulous teacher last year!
As for Teddy… he’s been busy! Teddy has been to Singapore, Jakarta, Bali and numerous places around Balikpapan.
While in Singapore we visited a “Night Safari,” which is a really neat zoo designed to visit at night. We had a chance to see all sorts of nocturnal animals. We also took cable cars across the ocean to an island called Sentosa. Here we watched a pink dolphin show, saw sharks in a neat aquarium and butterflies from all over the world. There was also a great beach to play at. Singapore has great shopping and great food. Many of the stores and restaurants are also in the United States (such as Tommy Hilfiger and Outback Steak house).
Jakarta was mainly a business trip for us although we still had time to swim at a great pool, shop, and go down a few waterslides. Jakarta is the capital of Indonesia, and is located on the island of Java.
Bali was a great vacation. If any of you have been to Cancun Mexico, Bali was quite similar to me. Teddy loved snorkeling, as did Ethan. Shawn and I even tried out scuba diving but didn’t think Teddy would do well going 5 meters under the water. Parasailing was also a great experience. Teddy was a bit scared as he watched us climb atop elephants.
While in Balikpapan Teddy enjoys spending time with Ethan and Tanner. Ethan takes him for visits to his school quite often. Ethan attends Pasir Ridge International School (PRIS) which is located on the Chevron compound in Balikpapan. Ethan has 10 kids in his class so Teddy is able to get some attention. Teddy has also made some visits to the local market where fish and fresh vegetables are sold. Tanner loves to give Teddy baby hugs and kisses!
Teddy plans to “hang out” with us a little bit more and I will try to be better about sending updates! For now I will attach a few pictures and let you see what he’s been up to.
Keep up all of the hard work at school and have a great holiday!
Amber Olson
Ethan with Teddy
Teddy with Tanner
Riding the Elephants
Ethan and Teddy
Going kayaking
Ethan and Tanner
Snorkeling with Ethan
