Sunny days in London...

Ah yes guys…I have taken another holiday over to London.  Just can't get enough of this place.  I feel like this trip was really wonderful in a different way then the others have been.  It felt comfortable, easy and much longer (in a good way) then the 4 short days that it was.  Flight was easy as was the border crossing.  It was so funny getting off the plane and walking to the crossing and I was literally the only one who went into the Non-EU passport area.  I hopped on a coach, then the tube and arrived safely at my little home away from home in St. Margarets.  I absolutely love winding my way through the little front garden and opening the door to this

Experiencing a new bit of the river….so lovely

 inviting home.  It was then a quick bag drop and out the door for dinner on the south bank with Polly and Helly.  On my way to get to them I had one of my new experiences this trip…tube delays.  I now feel the frustration that Londoners feel when there is delay after delay.  No matter how many times you try to switch.  I suppose it is comparable to LA rush hour.  I did finally make it and had a great catch up with these 2 amazing ladies.  Lauren was home when I got home so we cracked open a bottle of wine, settled in our usual spots in the sitting room and had a proper chat which was long over due.  I do love this lady and was

Beautiful Old Church

happy to hear all the wonderful things that are happening in her life right now.  Day two of this trip was by far my favorite day.  First off I got to sleep in…not that I can thanks to my internal body clock that wakes me at half 6 but I didn't have to get out of bed which was heavenly.  I strolled in through Richmond and hopped the tube to meet up with Tad to spend the day in his neck of the woods.  We headed off on our adventure and I had absolutely no idea what I was in for.  It was his world and I was just visiting.  We began our walk and we had to go through the dodgy area (not really that dodgy) first then it eventually opened up onto a beautiful path right by the river.  It was gorgeous.  We made our way along the river and I could not stop talking about how beautiful it was.  I am sure I sounded like a silly tourist but I suppose I still am one so it's ok right?  At one point I just had to stop and take in the moment.  It was just picturesque.  Half way through the walk we had an impromptu picnic because it was such a beautiful sunny day and you can't let that pass you by with out taking all the available opportunities.  At this point I didn't know this day could get better then he diverted us off the path to check out this lovely old church.  You all

Wandering through an archway

know I have a slight obsession…yes it is still classified as a slight obsession…with old buildings and pretty much anything old so this was absolutely perfect.  The dark side of me adores old cemeteries that are attached to these beautiful buildings.  I love the stories they tell about the past.  I could just walk around for hours and read about all these families and who they were to each other and what they did.  This one did not disappoint.  We weren't able to go in which was unfortunate because the combo of the sunny day and the stain glass windows would have been gorgeous.  We continued along the path and took in more of the river before heading to his  flat for lunch.  I have to say that I adore flats in London.  Everything is so unique and beautiful.  They always seems so thought out.  I suppose because they had to really maximize smaller spaces they were more thoughtful when building.  Settling into a corner of the couch in his quaint little living room we had lunch and chatted which was lovely and comfortable.  Such a lovely day but it wasn't over yet!  So Tad is an amazing musician and you all should definitely check out his brand new album that is out.  The band is called CrossHarbour.  You

Another view of the church

 will love it!  Anyway, I was lucky enough to get a piano lesson and it was such fun!  He taught me a few things and also played along with me.  I am not sure that I will be the worlds best piano player but I am really looking forward to playing more since we have one at the house.  After my lesson he needed to head out to give music lessons to some kids so I headed back to the train station leaving behind a lovely afternoon.  All my favorite things packed into a few hours and it was pretty perfect.  Since it was so gorgeous out I headed back to Richmond to sit in one of my favorite spots along the river.  It was full of people laying on blankets popping bottles of champagne or wine and just enjoying the lovely early evening.  This is another thing I love about London in the sunshine.  People here know how to take advantage of it.  I joined in with my wine, kicked my shoes off and read my book for a few hours.  I was lucky enough to be there as the sun was setting which is such a beautiful time of night obviously but add in this lovely setting and you can get some amazing photos.  I could not stop taking photos because it was so beautiful.  At one point the entire area kinda went sepia tone.  Here are a few of the photos…….

My favorite spot along the river.

  

After my glorious evening on the river bank I met Lauren and her boyfriend back at the house for family dinner which was such fun.  In all my times there I have never sat down for a proper meal with the whole family that lives there.  It was such fun chatting with all the people I pass in the hallway on all my trips.  It was a true family style evening with lots of food, wine and great conversation.  Going to bed that night I felt so content.  Grateful for all the people that are in my life.  I'm a truly lucky girl.

A day at the theater

I always try to take advantage of going to the theater also every time so I decided to stay with a music theme and go see Once.  I enjoyed the movie years ago and have thought about seeing it quite a few times.  This trip it just seemed like the right choice.  It did not disappoint.  As  I walked into the cheap seats which in my mind were really the best because I was right on the ground floor with a perfect view of the stage.  The stage was great too. It was set up just like a pub and there were a bunch of people milling about up there.  I wish I would have realized that you could go up there and by drinks.  I thought it was the cast but I was wrong.  Next time I will know better and hit up the pub stage.  Before the show started also the cast came out and started playing Irish music.  It was such fun.  The people who had bought drinks were still hanging out up there.  The actors were great, the music was wonderful and it's such a good story.  I teared up a bit at the end.  I know I can be an emotional sap sometimes but I don't mind.  It was one of those plays that when it ended I wanted more.  I believe I will go and see it again…after I get through all the other ones on my list.  Once it ended I headed back to Richmond and stopped in
to see a couple of my favorite men…Rudi and George.  These boys have grown so much and I was so grateful to get to see them this trip since I missed them on the last one.

Just some afternoon sword fighting

My superhero just defending the world

There was some serious sword fighting that occurred and I am grateful that I am still Super Girl when we play.  Best super hero ever!  These boys are growing so quickly and I miss seeing them.  Bella got home and we got to have a quick catch up but it wasn't long enough.  On these trips nothing ever is.  

Dinner by the river

Lauren and I had a lovely dinner by the river and tucked in early which was fine with me.  Leaving the next day was sad but just made me start thinking about the next trip.  The travel to the airport was uneventful but the airplane ride was the opposite.  There was a 30th birthday boys weekend  that was happening that I got stuck in the middle of literally.  I will just leave it with…boys are crazy!

It was another amazing trip to London filled with some of the most perfect days.  Sunshine and beautiful friends.  A girl can't ask for anything more.   

Easter holiday…friends and fun!

Easter Holiday was such a fun time.  Like I mentioned in my last post we had people visiting which always makes for a good time.  There were 3 visiting adults and 3 kiddos so in total we had a house full of 6 adults and 6 kids…pretty good ratio.  Also the visiting kids were the same ages as our kids here which made it even better. On the night of the their arrival all 3 kiddos and I were playing and dancing around the living room…and that was only the beginning of the fun we had.  I was a bit concerned in the beginning that it might be tricky since the kids didn't speak any English (just French and German) but the language wasn't a barrier at all.  My 3 could help translate if it was necessary but most of the time we could communicate just fine.  I am always amazed at how this stuff works out.  Now I really don't know where to start with this…we did so much and had such fun.

Getting ready for the first beach day!

 When I was gathering all the photos for this post I had so many that I think I will just let the photos tell the story of the week…..

Hello Kitty Swimming costume….happy girl!

No Beach day is complete without a castle

The water is still a bit cold…Who Cares!

Me and 6 kids hiking in nature.

Life long friendships being made

Just bouncing…yep all 6.

Easter Baskets are more interesting then my photo :)

Easter Sunday = Sunday Funday

So proud of the pink find

She searched hard for this one….Success!

Double Score for Lili

So excited hunting and finding.

Any eggs in the tree?  Yep!

The easter egg crew

We all attended a party at this lovely place

When the music moves you dance to it!

Dunes beach…a nice day to read and relax

and play intense card games

The whole crew….an amazing week of fun and friendship.

Everyday adventures in Spring….

Life here at the start of spring has been about the everyday adventures and celebrating the small moments that I tend to miss when I let life speed by.  As the flowers start to bloom I am trying to be conscious of slowing down and appreciating everything around me.  Life is truly beautiful when we allow ourselves the time to experience it and keep our minds and hearts focused in the right direction.  Sometimes that can be hard when I have a morning where it seems like everything is completely upside-down and backwards but if I just change my view and increase my patience it's all of a sudden right side up and sometimes better then I could have imagined.  The first small moment that I have grown to love so much over these past few weeks is sunday tennis lessons.  I know you are thinking what…really?  There can't be anything that exciting about taking kids to their tennis lessons? Well for

Sunday Fun-day!

  me that hour has become a very special time with a amazing little girl.  While Luis and Maxime are working on their forehands and backhands Olivia and I are exploring.  We get to just walk around and talk about anything and everything we see.  You would think it would get boring being at the same place week after week but we always find something new to see by taking a different path, or sitting on a different bench or just walking backwards instead of forwards.  I just love watching the world through her eyes as she grows.  Hearing her talk about new things each week and ask questions reminds me how quickly these little ones get big.  At the age of 3 and some change I feel like everyday she does something new that she couldn't do the day before or is experiencing something for the first time.  It is so beautiful to watch and I am grateful that I get this special hour just the 2 of us in this beautiful setting by the sea to experience moments that might seem small but are such a huge blessing.  She also has helped me to see more then I would have seen in this place had she not been with me.  I probably would just bring a book to sit and read and never see some of the beautiful things that she finds for us to look at.  She

We did it…Climbing the rock pier!

reminds me that there is more to a beach then just sand….if you dig you will find treasure and that flowers are "So pretty to see with our eyes!"  I am so thankful for the beauty this little girl brings into my life each week.  The other little lady in my life inspires me also.  My strong, ambitious Maxime encourages me to do things I don't think I can do or just wouldn't do with out a bit of a nudge.  As you all know she was my skiing teacher and definitely pushed me to try what I wasn't sure I could do.  One of the latest adventures was climbing to the end of a rock pier.  When we got halfway I said maybe we should go back and she looked

Love this little girl who pushes me to be stronger!

at me like I was crazy and said "oh, come on Sara, you can do it".  This little girl whose half my size is stretching her little legs to the max to get from rock to rock with out even thinking of giving up till we are at the end is telling me don't complain and do it.  How can you say no to that…so on we went.  We got to the end and then realized that the tide had come in a bit (which was one of my fears) and our path back was not so clear.  I got nervous but it didn't even phase Maxime.  She just pushed ahead, with a bit of hand holding on some tricky rocks and made it back to the beach dry and happy.  I, on the other hand, soaked my converse

Balloons make everything better.

and most of my pants but was still happy and loved this small moment that effected me in a huge way.  It helped to remind me that caution is good but sometimes I need to balance it out with the fearlessness of a child to have a great experience.  Maxime is daily helping me to become a stronger woman.  Now lets talk about the bus ride.  For weeks the kids have been talking about riding "my bus" into town.  It is my bus because a lot of times I will take the city bus into town instead of driving. We have been so busy on the weekends that it kept getting put off but finally we had a saturday with nothing to do so we packed up, counted out our change to pay for the bus and walked to the stop at the end of the road.  Oh man were they excited.  It was so precious watching them pay the bus driver and then carefully select their seat.  Who needs amusement parks when you can just ride the bus.  Almost as exciting and the line is much shorter to get on.  When we got into town Luis pushed the button for our stop and we all hopped off.  Each one of us had our thing we wanted to do while we were in town.  I needed to return something to a shop so we started there and they waited patiently for me to have a lengthy discussion with the cashier

Snacks on a bench to end the day…Happy kiddos!

to get my money refunded.  I honestly think part of the reason she did it was I had the kids with me who were so well behaved.  Maxime had brought some of her own money with her in the hopes that we could go to Claires (yes the accessory shop) to get some more of her bands to make bracelets with.  But in route to Claires we happened upon an ice cream shop and being that it was sweetie day we made a decision to have an ice cream to get our energy back up and continue on shopping after.  With ice cream in our tummies we braved the main shopping road  where the kids got balloons, Maxime got her loops and we

This view never gets old…love where I live.

added in some culture by going into this beautiful church that is in the middle of the shopping district. Shopping completed, returns completed, and sweetie eaten we headed back to the bus stop and waited for the bus.  We ate a quick snack on the bench and the kids counted out their money again for the ride home.  All in all a wonderfully successful day.  All these tiny adventures don't seem like much when you talk about doing them but I find they give so much joy when you do them.  Doing life here is never boring…it's full of small moments that bring joy to my soul.  I am feeling happy and content with the path I am on here and grateful I am surrounded my some great kids who inspire me.  With easter break now upon us and visitors arriving the next blog will be full of more big and small adventures.  Stay tuned…..

Feels like home every time...

London…my home away from home away from home.  Maybe I am collecting too many places that feel like home but then again maybe that is a good thing.  I'm lucky to have some many places with so many great people.  London still is the top of the list though so when I had a few extra days off stored up escaping to the most amazing city was the logical thing to do.  For once the border crossing was very uneventful and even a bit entertaining.  The guy who was checking out my passport and information asked me to evaluate his uniform, from a designers perspective, and tell him what I thought.  I gave a diplomatic answer so as not to offend the man who stood between me and that much needed entrance stamp on my passport and he just laughed and let me in.  Those guys must get really bored and need to liven things up every once in a while or maybe he was

The sign says it all

hitting on me…I am rubbish at reading those signs properly..but which ever it was I got my stamp and hopped my train into the city.  I got in a bit late that night and Lauren wasn't in so a fun phone call with a friend and heading to bed was the extent of the evening.  The next day consisted of a brunch date with Polly and then a new adventure.  Every time I head into the Westminster area time gets away form me and I have never made it into the Abby.  This time I decided to make a special trip there just to attend the evening song inside the abby.  Gorgeous can only begin to explain it.  The building itself is lovely of course but the choir was beyond words.  I did get a bit lost

Lunch and the Theater

following along with all the stand up, sit down and repeat now stuff but the singing and beautiful acoustics were lovely.  I followed up this event with a lovely dinner with Lauren and then we just hung out and caught up at her place.  That night felt so perfect.  We just flopped down in armchairs and on the bed and chatted about life and laughed.  At one point Lauren looked over at me and said "Look at you just snuggled up in Your bed.  It's like you are home now."  That was exactly how I felt.  Sharing a glass of wine and a chat with a good friend…feeling just as comfortable as if I was in my own place with people who have known me for years.  Man, I feel so lucky sometimes.  As always time was flying quickly so I had to pack a bunch of stuff into the next two days.  I had originally had plans with a friend who was supposed to be in town but unfortunately his arrival kept getting delayed so I quickly filled the time up with a stroll through Covent Garden, lunch at a pub across the street from a last minute theater decision.  Show of choice this time…Charlie and the Chocolate

SouthBank Street Art

factory.  Maxime and I had just finished reading the book together and it was a favorite from my childhood so I went for it.  It was really a cute show.  I wish it would have taken on a bit more of the dark side of this story but still was a good show.  I also ended up with an upgraded seat (from balcony to floor) which made it even more enjoyable.  My stroll to the tube station led me through the south back where I took in some art and then met up with Lauren and Claire at one of my new favorite spots in London Ales and Tails.  Great beer and really well done interior.  Good fun and randomness... As all my nights in London seem to be…was what this night included.  Great catch up with friends, a formula one test driver (fast cars and an accent…what more could a girl ask for) and a taxidermy fox at the

bar.  Have I mentioned I love London?  My last day led me to a walk through my favorite museum, the V&A where I stumbled upon some limited run fabric that was perfect to go with some of my new concepts.  The evening was dinner with Helly and a tour through her new home that she recently purchased.  It was so fun to see where her and Will were settling in.  Such wonderful people who deserve this amazing new stage in their life.  After dinner I headed back towards home but stopped for one last pint in The Pigs Ears.  As I sat there I couldn't help up think about all the memories I have been collecting on all my trips.  Some have been amazing, some painful and caused me to grow and think in ways I didn't want to but am grateful for now, also some missed opportunities that hopefully will come back around another time.  But that is what it's all about right.  Taking the time to create moments when you can, don't dwell on the ones you didn't get and look for another opportunity to make new and different ones.  Life just keeps moving and we have to get the most out of each second we are given.          

A fairytale holiday….

Have you ever had one of those moments where you have to have to keep pinching yourself because you feel like you might be dreaming?  Let's just say there might be some bruising on my arm from all the pinching I had to do on this amazing holiday I went on.  Even as I get ready to write this I can't help but smile remembering all the moments….each better then the last.  Oh, I guess before I tell you the story I should at least give you a brief introduction to what I am about to describe…in short this adventure includes football (not american) skiing, after ski partys, bogganing (I will explain later) and a dog.  It began with a early morning plane flight to Munich with 3

Flying into Germany

amazing children and their wonderful mom.  All I have to say is thank God for these 3 fantastic little travelers.  They had packed their trunki's with games and books the night before, woke up early, had breakfast with out a fuss and we all headed out the door on time with everything we needed for a week of skiing.  In my book that was a huge success, also if it was any indication of how the day would go I was ready for it….bring on the travel.  Check in was easy, flight was a bit delayed but these creative kids had no problem finding games to play, or things to look at to keep themselves happy.  There was some serious games of Sequence played...thank you Torres family for introducing me to this game.  Once we were on the plane it was

Proper football match…Go 1860!!!

smooth sailing.  Arrival and luggage was a breeze and Michael and his parents were there to pick us up.  We all piled in the car and headed off for the first part of the trip which I was super excited about….My first proper football match!  Michael had tickets to the game so we all went and got to watch 1860 (the team of choice in this household) play.  It was such a good time.  The stadium was huge and the fans were great.  It was quite fun watching.  I love anything live and football is no exception.  I am amazed at the footwork this guys have.  Pinch number one for me….something I have wanted to do since my first time over here

View from my room…just like page in a storybook. 

finally checked off the list.  After the match we all piled in the car and took off for the ski resort in Austria.  Another first for me since I have never been to Austria.  The drive was beautiful.  Winding our way through little villages felt like flipping the pages of storybooks.  When we finally arrived at our hotel I was just in awe.  All I could do was smile and say "Are you kidding me…is this place for real?"  The kids were laughing and saying "What Sara…this is skiing?"  Totally just a normal sight for them but completely amazing for me.  Pinch me again because there is no way I am really getting to do this!  We checked into the hotel and

Early risers checking out the morning view.

settled into our rooms.  The kids and I had an amazing room with a beautiful view…and lets not forget to mention the jacuzzi tub in my bedroom.  Heaven on Earth.  Let the holiday begin!  The first morning all three kiddos woke early very excited.  The came into my room, pulled back the curtains and said "Were going skiing there!"  There morning was a blur of breakfast, bindings and babies (or little kids) on skis.  Mimi was off like a pro with her parents, Luis headed to ski school and Olivia very cautiously attended her first ski class.  I dropped her off and she  seemed ok but then she wasn't.  When I came back to get her she had fallen asleep in a big inter tube…I guess it's hard work just

Ski baby…first time!

  wearing all the ski clothing and trying to walk in the boots. We got her to go to the class and try again the next day but the group lessons just were not her thing.  She loved trying out her skis with us though.  The most amazing part about our hotel was the ski in ski out factor.  We could basically skip up to the gate of our hotel, pop our skis off and go inside.  It was amazing.  This also made it easy for us to use the small hill in front of the hotel to practice with Olivia.  The second best part was that it was a kinder hotel.  That means kinder care all day.  Amazing!!!  Once Olivia chose not to ski in ski school she went in Kinder care and I got to rent some skis and throw myself down the hill.  Just to clarify here…I have not been on skis in at least 20 years if not more.  I have attempted snowboarding over the last few years (painful and embarrassing memories) but not skiing.  I wasn't sure if it would come right back but was hoping it would.  Michael and Maxime took me on the slope the first time and were excellent teachers.  After my first couple of runs I felt like I was getting it back and it would be great.  I spent one whole day (after dropping kiddos at their classes) just doing

Proof I was back on skis….loved every minute.

run after run after run until I felt like I was finally comfortable on my skis.  Everytime I was up at the top was a pinch me moment…couldn't believe this was what I was getting to do.  Never would have done it on my own but now that I have can't wait to do it again. I also had some time on the other days to ski with Michael, Diana, and Maxime (once I got a bit better).  I loved skiing with Mimi (Maxime) and letting her be my teacher.  She was really great at it.  I would really crack up when I would hear my words that I say to her all the time coming back at my while she was teaching me.  I think my favorite was " Come on little

After Ski Party…like nothing I have experienced!

monkey you can do it!"  She was so patient with me though and really did a great job explaining what I needed to do and why.  Between her explanations and Michaels exercises I had to practice I was improving minute by minute and really starting to fall in love with the slopes.  Now as the day on the slopes draws to a close the time in the after ski area begins.  I have heard about these ski parties but never experienced them.  Man have I been missing out for all these years.  You basically ski up, pop of your skis, grab a stool if you can find one, get a drink and the ski party begins.  There is a DJ playing music (all sorts of different

It's hard work building a snowman

   languages...dutch, german etc…) and people are just having a great time.  The ski instructors are the best to watch.  These 20 somethings are here to teach during the day and party all night.  They were literally still in ski boots, pushing tables together, hopping on top of them and dancing like no one was watching.  Oh to be 20  again…just kidding…no thank you!  The evenings were just as fun as the days.  I have to say one of my favorite comments of the week was by Luis.  One afternoon after I had picked him up from ski school he grabbed my hand, looked up at me and said " Sara, let's go get a drink!"  Yes please Luis…have I mentioned that I adore this kid.  He just cracks me up.  We proceeded to go meet his parents where he got a hot chocolate, I got a Gluhwein (amazing by the way)  and we did some dance moves together.  Pinch me again…this can't be real.  The trip flew by way to fast.  We skied, built snowmen, went bogganing (luis's version of tobogganing) , drank wine, took in amazing views, met some new friends and just enjoyed every minute.  I seriously could go on and on about every tiny detail about everyday of this

Early ski morning = pure joy!

trip but I will leave you with one last story.  Above I mentioned a dog and here is the story to go with it.  The hotel we were in had a lovely dog called Hexi who was kinda like the hotel mascot.  All the kids loved Hexi and would pet her and love her.  Well all except Luis. He has a bit of a fear of dogs and will run miles out of the way to not be near them so this dog who was right in his path to get to the stairs to get to his room was a problem.  Upon our arrival and realizing there was this dog Luis and I had a chat about it and he told me "Sara, I will pet Hexi at the end of the week." Each day he seemed to get a bit more comfortable with this dog being closer and closer into his space.  There were no more tears if it was close and just a small hop out of the way.  On the morning we were checking out Maxime and Olivia were saying good by to Hexi and the next thing I knew Luis was walking over to the dog and petting her on the back.  Diana and I were floored and started snapping photos and videos.  Such a huge moment!  Hexi was the turing point for Luis with dogs and he now isn't really bothered by them.  He still doesn't want to hang out with them but there isn't that fear there.  Thank you Hexi!  And on that note I will leave you…the most amazing holiday….can't wait for next year!

Spain has begun….

After 24 hours (literally no exaggeration) of travel I land back on the island of Mallorca and hit the ground running.  School run to pick up the kids, with some help from a friendly driver since after basically no sleep in 2 days I was not fit to drive, and back home to hang out.  It was great to be reunited with this lovely family and dive right back into life here.  At this point I will pause for a moment of truth about the passing of 2 months between my blog posts.  Since returning I have felt at home but also unsure of how to really communicate the feeling in a way that makes sense.  It has been the hardest of all the blogs to write.  Today I literally had to force myself to sit down and just type to see what came out.  I believe there are a few factors that are playing into my difficulties and confusion, first I have been trying to integrate into life here and come up with a schedule and routine.  That has been happening

Flying away to a new start

slowly and I love all the parts of it but getting into a routine of everyday life is very different then the life I have been living for the past couple of years.  The reality of that lead me to be a bit disappointed thinking that my days as a jet setter were behind me and I would no longer have amazing and interesting things to write.  The domino effect of these thoughts continued and the blog got left to the side until I could work it all out.  I am not saying that by writing this blog I have figured it all out but, I am realizing that I was allowing myself to close my eyes to what was around me by putting on the daily life blinders.  The last weeks or so the blinders are slowly pulling back and I am pushing to find the experiences in everyday life that will continue to make this journey a true adventure still.  In a way I suppose this is a new start to my incredible new life over here in beautiful Spain.  With all that said let me try and catch you up on what has been going on around this place.  Like I mentioned travel was great…thanks for all the prayers!  We were all excited to see each other.  Papa noel left a gift for me which the kids were very excited to pass along.  It was the perfect thing for

Good fun or a law suit waiting to happen?

me too…a new padel bag so I now look legit when I show up for my games each day.  I passed along some little things to the kiddos also…Christmas in January is always fun.
Now remember how I was saying I wanted to try and find bits of adventure in everyday life…well here is one.  Large mobile stuffed animals that kids can ride and drive.  I have never been more anxious and scared for the well being of everyone in a 15ft radios in all my life. Here is how it works…you place your small child on top of the animal of their choice, pop in a couple of euros and they are off when they press the gas pedal.  Yep that's right there is a gas pedal.  Let me tell you these things can move too.  I had to do a very quick walk/run to keep up.  Forget about being able to warn un suspecting shoppers that a pink donkey is about to run them down…just pray your kid can release the pedal in time.  Parents..how many of your kids would be able to do that?  It was like nothing I had ever seen before.  I was laughing and

My 90 minutes of hot sweaty bliss.

crying and shouting warnings the entire time.  10 minutes felt like an eternity and I was grateful the only casualty when it was over was my heel being slammed into by a short stop of the pink donkey.  Everyday life adventure…not the same as a tour of a castle but man it was funny.
One really great thing about being back here also is my lifestyle.  The family here is super sporty which I love and we encourage each other to stay fit and try new stuff.  I have gotten back into my yoga routine here which has been amazing for me.  I know it sounds silly but it really just brings me peace.  I talked Diana and Michel into trying it too.  Diana went with me the other day.  It is so fun to have people to share the things I love with.  I am still heavy into the padel playing. It has got a bit competitive here in the household too.  We have a chart where we have to write down our wins

My little skipper

and losses each day.  Nothing like a little accountability to make you concentrate more.  The kids also do their fare share of sport but the most recent one to really get going in the house is a bit of rope skipping.  Most of you know all about my passion for the sport so I am passing it on.  Maxime has really taken to it.  She is the same age I was when I started jumping.  It is such fun watching her get better and better right before my eyes.  We have started the same competition that my Dad did with me when I started. He stuck a 5 dollar bill up on our cork board and said when you can do 500 jumps in a row it's yours.  I am doing the same with Maxime (except euros of course)  So far she is up to 79 but is determined.  In just one weekend she went from only being able to do double bounces to getting over 50 single bounces in a row.  Those of you who jump or have attempted it know that is a big deal.  I am so proud of her and her determination.  She is such a little super star.  Can't wait till we can start doing our work outs together.  I have a feeling it won't be long.
In the midst of all this getting fit and running down

Relaxing and studying/sketching

shoppers in the mall I am also trying to learn languages.  Yep that's right I said languages.  There are 2 additional ones spoken here in the house besides english.  The first on my priority list is Spanish.  I have enrolled in a class at the kids school.  Don't worry it's an adult one I am not crashing the kindergarden spanish course, although that wouldn't be such a bad plan either. It is going to be really helpful plus Maxime has now declared one day a week spanish only day.  We shall see how that works out.  I am also attempting to learn as much German as I can since they also speak that.  Now German is going to be really tricky to speak however I am starting to understand.   It is actually kinda scary how the brain works.  With out me even realizing my brain is understanding.  I have found my self answering questions that are being asked in German.  I answer in English of course but I truly don't know how I understood.  I guess I am proof that just being immersed in a language can provide understanding without much effort.  Of course I am going to really have to put work in to get to a true working level with the language but I think I am off to a good start.  In between

Love, innocence, pure joy….Life!

 languages I also have begun to form a concept for a small collection of designs and the sketching has begun.  I am excited to spend a bit more time on it this coming month and maybe get a few pieces completed.
All in all life is good.  I am happy, healthy and enjoying all that has been placed before me.  I am learning how to create an new life here while pulling pieces from my old life back in to create a balanced level of comfort and challenge.
Next to my bed I have my favorite childhood photo of my brother and I.  I look at it each night when I turn out my light and it makes me smile.  My little piece of home and a great reminder of love, innocence and pure joy.  All things I strive to maintain but can be lost when we put our blinders on.