Nocturnal

The kids are finally hooked on cereal. Seems a strange thing for us to have wanted but it expedites the mornings enormously. And we get to eat together and enjoy the finer points of consuming Frosted Mini Wheats - finding the ones with the most frosting and saving them for last, fighting over who gets the mashed up hay version at the bottom of the bag, etc.
And the conversation is relentlessly inventive -
Schuyler: "some things are nocturnal, Daddy, like cockroaches and owls and the Easter Bunny and Santa and his husband."

jammin'

 

 

 

 

When I bought this Ukulele, Liz wasn't sure it was such a good idea but, for some reason, I really wanted it.  I didn't need a great one - just a starter Ukulele at the bottom end of the price/quality matrix.  So i got this one and learned to play a few songs and really dug it.  Little did I know that it would hold an even greater interest with the offspring who have yet to learn how delicate musical instruments bought at the bottom end of the price/quality matrix can be.  They can't play anything yet but that doesn't stop them from banging away on the strings and making a chaotic sound that could only be described as "music" by Arnold Schoenberg.

first film

 

 

 

Just another manic Sunday

What a fun Sunday! It didn't start off that way... Schuyler woke up uncharacteristically early at 5:33am and came into our bed. But didn't sleep. I put her back in her bed which woke up Charlie and now we were all up for the day. So after daddy had some 19 minute naps while Super Why! and My Little Pony (hey, it's about friendship lessons!) we got to it. We raced bikes in the driveway, did arts and crafts, and had egg and marmite sandwiches for lunch (surprisingly yummy on raisin toast). Then a first: we all went to the movies - Charlie's first ever in a real movie theatre - Pixars Planes in 3D. And it went fine. They actually say through the whole thing - glasses and all. Then back to the house for a swim and Charlie finally relented and wore arm bands and loved it (as did his parents who no longer have to hold the wriggly little boy the whole time).

umbrellas

 

 

So the Back-To-School deadline was zooming toward us and we were (ahem!) under-prepared for the onslaught of having a Half Day boy and a brand new P1 girl at Somersfield.  So it was off to town with Papa armed with the endless list of necessities including a uniform for our little girl.  It was frighteningly efficient.  We got a changing room where my little girl transformed into a Big Girl as she tried on her uniforms. I almost cried.  Why?  I don't know.  Just seeing her grow up is a marvel and a reminder that I have to get even better at this parenting thing if I want to keep up!  We got shoes, skirts, shirts, socks, a headband... and the kids were really good about it.  So good, I gave into their wish for a present.  The present they so dearly wanted in this case was an umbrella.  There were two kinds of kiddie umbrellas at the store so they were lumped in with our purchase and, man oh man, did they ever love these things.  

cousins get together

Cousin Sarah and Auntie Ardleigh

Aunt Linda, Uncle Reid, and Cousin Sarah

 

 

Every now and then something draws our family together for some fun gathering.  This occasion was bittersweet: Auntie Ardleigh and most of her family were getting the most out of their final days in Bermuda before embarking on their great new adventure in Hilton Head.  This will be especially hard for our little family as Ardleigh and the Scarrington Crew have been such an important and integral part of family life for us here.  It is a great adventure though and i think it will be wonderful for all of them to get the opportunity to explore a whole new life abroad.  Fortunately, we will, for the most part, still have Uncle Jamie around which is a relief!
So we celebrated care of Cousin Sarah's fine hostessing skills with splashing in the pool, some hot dogs and fine foods, and wine and had a great time enjoying the Scarrington Crew's remaining time on the island.  We will miss you so much and wish you all the luck and fun in the world!

the last leg

 

Trying to cobble together a dinner for the kids without leaving the gate was a challenge but we found some nice popcorn (always a hit) but no real way to serve it to the kids on the flight - we needed separate bags for each of them.  Then I remembered the Motion Sickness bags!  Perfect!

Charlie contemplates the Child Free life and has an miniature existential crisis.

There weren't enough taxis.  So we ended up sharing a cab with someone ostensibly going to Tucker's Point.  Only they weren't.  It was dark and late and this woman had only been to the house she was staying at once before.  And now she was trying to find it in the dark.  With us in the back biting our tongues and regretting not waiting for another taxi to come along.  She gave vague hints ("it's near the bridge... um... there's a bridge or a tunnel") and finally we figured out she needed to go next door to Mid Ocean.  Meanwhile, the kids passed out - waaaaaay past bedtime and we finally made it back to home sweet home.

goofballs, big and small

 

 

 

 

 

Sometimes on a plane, you're just killing time.  During the flight, iPads make a great surrogate parent but before you get to 10,000 feet where such neglect-o-matic devices are allowed, it's all about finding a way to keep your child in their seat with their seat belt occasionally fashioned.  This is a harder trick than it seems at first.  We read the emergency manual a couple of times and Charlie tried to see if he could tear the stiff plastic pamphlet.  We read Sky Mall and talked about the silly items for sale and accompanying pictures.  Then we looked out the window at the men and women scurrying about.  Then what?  Well, how about a Photo Booth effort?  Here he is trying to imitate moods I'm doing.  It was pretty cute to his Dad.

leaving on a prop plane

 

 

 

 

We didn't want to leave.  We thought maybe we would.  We thought maybe it would be a little much spending a week in a confined space with the two rambunctious ones.  But it was lovely.  It took us about two days to relax about the kids' potential destruction and/or graffiti of the boat and then we had a blast.  We really wish it could have been longer.  It's so hard when your friends and family are scattered to the four corners of the globe.  Twenty days of vacation time doesn't allow for more than two visits of any length with people which means you really don't see anyone more than once every few years.  It is this thought - that I won't see the people dearest to me more than once every few years - that makes me sad but also recharges me to plan these things and makes sure these visits happen.  My friends and family are my lifeblood.  Until next time, guys - thank you, Mum and Dad!

the shadows

 

 

 

 

Peter Pan alert:  Charlie has been pretty entranced by his shadow.  On one level, he knows it's just a shadow.  On another level, he thinks it's a dark grey version of him that grows bigger toward the end of the day.  It's pretty fun.