Monday was pretty normal - I went to work, went to the gym at lunch, then worked late finishing off a training website.
Tuesday I worked from home. First thing, Mike and I went to Hannah's publishing party at school to see her work on bugs. I learnt more than I ever needed to know about cockroaches - 'They like to eat dead stuff' 'They can live a week without their head.'
Then back home, where I got a lot of work done. At lunchtime Mike and I went out to Home and Hearth to look at stoves and learn everything we could about gas vs wood. We were just about convinced we should get a gas stove for the sitting room, then the guy mentioned the tax credit on wood stoves, which brings the prices to within $1000 of each other. Now I'm well and truly convinced we should get a wood stove.
Here are a few we like:
Rais Rondo
Rais Bando
Morso 8142
...and a few others that are similar.
Then we had Bingas Wingas for lunch. After school we had June over, so Ellie was the happiest girl in the world.
Wednesday - I woke up feeling rubbish and stayed that way most of the day. A migraine I think? I tried to work but struggled. Later Mike took the kids swimming at the Clarion (or as Mark called it, the Clarion-A which is a bit like the YMCA), then we went to the Great Lost Bear for a yummy dinner with even yummier beer. My migraine eased off for a while, then hit back with a vengeance when we got home.
Thursday was Thanksgiving! A beautiful day - it's very mild here at the moment. Mike put the turkey in the oven and par-boiled the spuds while I lay in bed still feeling sick with a migraine. Then we headed to Wolf's Neck where we enjoyed the misty scenic views from the beach, then walked along the Casco Bay Trail, then back along the Old Woods Trail. Ellie and I walked on ahead, and she chat chat chatted the entire way. She loves hiking and talking.
Afterwards we went to LL Bean to get the children's feet measured. Mark is a 13, Ellie is a 12, Hannah is a 4.5-5. So Mark has now officially overtaken his big sister, although really it's because his big toe points out more, while her toes are all an even straight line. We got great shoes for them all, and even better everyone fitted into cheaper Beans rather than more expensive Merrills. The kids enjoyed the new kids area - it's SO much better there now.
Back home, we had a delicious turkey dinner with very successful gravy (made by me), followed by 'English Pumpkin Pie' from Nadja (it's actually lemon meringue pie, my favourite).
Friday - it rained and rained and rained. We met up with the Brennans at the Children's Museum, then moved on to Flatbread for lunch, then took some very very weary children home.
Once home Max and Maddie came over for a playdate, then later Hannah went over to Max's for her first sleepover since we moved to America. I wasn't sure how much sleep they would get, and felt a bit sorry for Jen...
Saturday - no more rain, just unbelievable wind. Went to pick Hannah up from her sleepover, and sure enough she was exhausted - I imagine Jen was too! We did boring things like supermarket shopping, toy shop exploring and coffee drinking, then we took Hannah home for a nice nap. I took the other two off to the library, where as usual I gave quiet prayer to Yarmouth for having such a child-friendly library - they have a beautiful children's room with train table, games, books, comfortable couches, and free coffee.
We played, read books (Mr Magee Goes to Sea), checked out two DVDs of the Wire, then headed back home. Me feeling a bit sick after a cup of coffee - I'm not coping well with coffee at the moment.
Hannah's life is a social whirl - after lunch her friends Pie and Lulu picked her up to take her to the Nutcracker, lucky thing. I dressed her up in a great outfit, will post photos, and sent her off looking beautiful but exhausted. Apparently she was in tears by the time Mike dropped her off, and he told Mitch to call us if she needed picking up. In the end she had a great time from the sounds of things.
The little two have been playing together so well, it really makes a difference not having your big sister around, apparently. And Mike has been really sorting out the basement, so now it's a bit of a wonderland down there for them. So while Hannah was out, they all played, and I went for a bike ride. Then just sat round, relaxing. Weird.
Sunday - a beautiful day. Hannah wanted to go to church, and it was Mike's turn to take her. She loves Sunday school, and I suspect we're going to have to get used to spending the occasional Sunday at church while she enjoys herself.
Afterwards we met up for coffee at the Royal Bean, where Ellie met a little girl from her school and they made friends while they drew, and Mark and I played.
From there we drove to Two Lights State Park in Cape Elizabeth - I've had a hankering to run on the beach while the weather is still warm enough. We had lunch at one of the picnic tables, then we ran all over the rocks. Two Lights is about 5 minutes walk from the house we lived in when we first arrived in America, so it brings back some very happy memories for me. We spent our first July 4th at Two Lights, and I used to take all three children there when they were 6, 4 and 2. Of course Hannah was like a gymnast climbing all over the place, but I remember being surprised at how nimble Ellie was on the rocks age 4. Now Mark is that age and is climbing all over the place.
Then we walked to the brand new playground, and the children competed to see who could swing the highest. There's a pond there that reminds me of Mum, we must have taken you there when you visited Mum. We'll go again when you're over next. It's such a lovely spot.
Then home, to find the Wallaces back from Connecticut, so the children had a lovely hour or so over there. I came over all poorly - no idea what but I felt dizzy and sick. After a lie down I felt fine, but I think I've had some kind of virus or something. I really haven't been all that well the last few days.
After tea, I watched the children making Christmas decorations up in their room, and supplied pictures of Christmas trees for them to colour in and decorate. They're getting to be so big and independent now, but they still love mummy and daddy to be involved in whatever they're doing.
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