happy fourth.

This year we had an unseasonably warm mid-winter fourth of July. Lots of time in the sandpit. Lunch on the deck. Homemade pizza and games in the evening. And a touch of patriotism.

No fireworks this year, I'm afraid. They are only available in the week prior to Guy Fawkes Day in November and we didn't have the forethought to buy ahead. We'll remember this November.

Notes: The flag was used only temporarily to torment the dogs.

A few days later I noticed him waving the flag. He grew quiet and looked as if he wanted to say something profound. Out came the very enthusiastic declaration, "I'm an American of CIN-CI-NA-TEEEE!"

happy valentine's day

I got the heart, Jeremy the X, and Quincy had to have the O for oc-to-pus.

01.01.10

Hello 2010!

We welcomed the new year with a morning hike to Butterfly Creek with the same friends we picnicked with last night.

Amelia was a rockstar tramper, walking all the way in and halfway out without a single complaint. The other two kiddos impressed us too by walking a large chunk of the way in and a little bit of the way back.

Going at a slow pace, it's about a two-hour return hike. I think it took us six. No, seriously I'm not sure how long it took us, I didn't have a watch, but suffice it to say, we did a lot of exploring along the way.

Despite our naysaying, I think they were propelled forward by the visions of thousands of butterflies that seemed to be dancing in their heads. We're not sure why it's called Butterfly Creek, but oddly enough, we're almost certain that it has nothing to do with butterflies. We had a hard time convincing two-year-olds of that though.

No worries, the bright red dragonflies did not disappoint, especially when they landed on your hand when you held it perfectly still in a ray of light. The kids, and grown ups too, for that matter, were filled with wonder.

We had morning tea in the shade by the creek. Then the three amigos spent ages throwing stones into the water while Priya and I gasped repeatedly at their close calls with the edge.

It really was the perfect start to the year.

I think it should become a New Years Day tradition.

Definitely.

the end of a decade

Here's how we ended the decade...

Someone learned to pedal his brand spankin' new tricycle this morning.

Then while the little guy slept, Jeremy and I busied ourselves making a delicious picnic of roast chicken, roasted potatoes, carmelized onions, strawberry salad, tomato and mozzarella salad, and a raspberry tart with whipped cream and berries for dessert. Yum. No photos but trust me, it was good.

Then we celebrated on the beach with friends.

They left early, but Quincy was in a fabulous mood, so we stayed and played.

Despite the gorgeous evening, the beach was pretty deserted. It finally got dark at around 9:30 and we enjoyed a small firework display that some other beach goers set off.

I can't think of a much better way to end this decade.

Good night.

Christmas Morning Magic

We were awoken this morning, at a very reasonable 8:10am, by squeals coming from Quincy's bedroom. "Open it!" "It's a fire engine!" Santa had left him a fire engine train in his bed. He was not expecting that! Jeremy has such fond memories of waking up Christmas morning as a child to a sack of gifts at the foot of his bed, courtesy of Father Christmas. So we decided to incorporate that tradition by asking Santa to leave one small gift in Q's bed.

We could have called it a day after that, but instead we headed up to the tree, two flights up, at a run.

And with A Charlie Brown's Christmas CD playing and Quincy screaming, "Santa brought you (me) a tricycle!" the fun continued.

The gift opening and exchanging was at a nice and slow pace. Perfect. Although after we finished, all the presents for Jeremy's side of the family, especially those that held chocolate, were looking pretty enticing to a certain someone. Not naming names.

Notice the message Santa left for him: Dear Quincy, I think you are ready to use the potty. Love, Santa. Those undies were the only gift not met with over-the-moon excitement and appreciation!

For the last two months, his two wishes from Santa were "a tricycle and a crane to lift the cargo up and down". His wishes came true, but while opening the crane there was a minor glitch that required some quick thinking on my part... You see, Quincy apparantly left a few toys in Cincinnati, so Santa very kindly picked them up on his way through and included them in the box with the crane. His confusion and my shock were caught on video. We'll be sure to save that one for when he's older!

After my clever recovery and before losing himself further in play, there was the very important business of finishing Santas' leftovers...a half-eaten marmalade biscuit and a bit of warm milk. Yum.

A bit more tempting, in my opinion, were the waffles that Jeremy made for brunch. We took a break to fill our stomachs before attacking the stockings. We are a house of chocolate lovers, so the Christmas crackers filled with chocolates were a nice accompaniment, for sure.

Onto the stockings, and this picture has to be my favorite of the day.

A tiny bit of silliness

and a lot of chocolate and candy canes were involved.

His excitement was seriously contagious. Only 365 days until we can do it again!

recap of the holiday weekend

Our fourth (and fifth) included...

a pancake breakfast followed by donuts,

a runny nose that just wouldn't quit,

cars,

and trains,

a few rounds of This Little Piggy,

lots of laughter,

chocolate chip cookies,

a little bit of crazy,

a few tears,

a guitar concert,

and, of course, sparklers,

and fireworks. (note: Our display was not as good as my face might indicate. If you average mine and Quincy's expressions, that'd be about right. Q asked for more after each and every one. He's pretty easy to please though.)

The neighbour shouted "Happy Independence Day" during our little display and then shot off a few fireworks of his own. And then someone across the bay shot one off too. It was pretty cool that they acknowledged it. It's hard to explain why. Maybe it made it feel like more of a celebration. Like I wasn't living quite so far away from the States. Or maybe it was just nice to have my culture respected. To feel a little bit more understood.

Now I'm guessing not many neighbours of Kiwis living overseas have acknowledged Waitangi Day, the closest thing NZ has to a national holiday. But then again, there wasn't a big Hollywood blockbuster entitled Waitangi Day. And really all you need to do to make an ex-pat Kiwi happy is know where New Zealand is on the map. Talk about easy to please!

stars & stripes

We wish we were celebrating in Cincinnati with the entire family, but alas, not this year. Quincy would have loved mixin' it up with his cousins, that's for sure.

happy birthday little guy!

happy mother's day

It was a happy mother's day here...low key with plenty of time for cuddles.

And I received my first homemade card from the one who made me a mother. A treasure.

I only wish I could have given my mom a hug today.

Easter: sunny and 34C/92F

Seeing as how Quincy is still green from yesterday and we ran out of time, I opted for lazy Easter eggs this year.

Q loved his beautiful German egg from Oma and Opa. He couldn't get enough of those chickens. And I'm not sure how many times we read Spot's Easter Surprise, courtesy of his Godmama.

Easter Egg Hunt. Take two. Quincy clearly needed that trial run yesterday, because today he was a seasoned professional. It didn't hurt that he had no competition!

Some of the eggs contained little "worker guys". A big hit. Still in hide 'n seek mode, he had fun hiding them in the sandbox.

We ate a lot, including way too many iced sugar cookies, after they were used to make "biscuit traffic". Of course.

What nearly two-year-old (gasp) gives away his marshmallow peeps?? He did love saying "marshmallow peep" though.

And just for the record, Quincy ate $5 worth of blueberries this morning. Before breakfast.

And just for good measure, an embarrasing picture of the dogs. And Q, for that matter.