memorial weekend

Memorial weekend came as a surprise to me. I just forgot that the weekend was a 3 day weekend and everything - like ballet - was cancelled. First I had a feeling of disappointment. What do I do 3 days?

Saturday was a the beach with Tena and Dave and Dave's parents and sister and her family. Then BBQ at their house. Fun fun fun. Sunday was a day to be home...finally. Then we realize how little we are home. I cleaned up the guest room for the approaching summer and we went for a long bike ride with the girls. F biked all the way herself. It was a very good job of her. Monday, the extra free day, we first went back to Dave and Tena's to paint their 2 patio chairs. Some hard work, but also fun. The kids did some painting, too. A was probably the best one. If you also add some drinks to the equation, that's fun fun fun as well. Then dinner at Annemieke's. When was that not fun fun fun??!! The long weekend is over, and I have no idea where all that time is gone. Thus: fun fun fun!!!!

Sump pump blues

I was just turning off the computer, but I have to add this: the sump pump broke down. Well, it didn't stop working, it just started to work non-stop. So we have a new one installed, just couple weeks before the anniversary of the flood we had last year. Lucky us, it was still under warranty!

Still keeping up with the new tradition

This week, my babysitter was sick. She couldn't come on Thursday. But the tradition is kept! I had two friends over and we had some wine...life is fun when you're having wine!

How pleasant is Pleasantville?

We live in Pleasantville. At least that's what I call it. A small community of people who will greet you on the streets, have a chat with you at the village market, little kids well dressed and well behaved, the police looks bored and has some extra pounds - probably no need to move much, except for writing traffic tickets to people who doesn't properly stop (read less that 3 seconds) at a stop sign in a deserted rural street. I can go on and on. What also makes it Pleasantville is the beautiful houses, stainless streets and the smell of wealth that fumes out of every - almost every - door.

Where wealth is, the fumes are sometimes to cover up the bad smells. So the Pleasantville is not so pleasant. It took me more than a year to finally see through the perfect front yards. The backyards has some garbage. At least, that is what I heard. Of course, I didn't experience any of these or got the info from the first hand. This is what I heard: The x club is not accepting any African people. So the president can forget about coming and living here and playing a little game of golf at that club. The w, y z clubs will not accept Jews, people from far east Asia or south Asia, and of course African Americans. Still I have the feeling that those clubs are far enough for us - not physically but mentally and wealth wise. I just heard these things. I didn't meet anyone who was thrown out of a club because he was born as he was. It is out of my apprehension, but it also feels like hearing about a movie.

This is also what I heard: there is another group that is more subtle and closer. There are people who choose their friends among the the people who are 'chosen'. There are close groups, they test you - if you are at the first place considered as a 'Maybe' - , and decide if you are OK to include in the group. You know how it feels like? It feels like the high school movies: (I am into movies today) You have to have the right looks and clothes to be included. Isn't it a bit sad actually? How old are we, people?

A friend's daughter wanted to play with some other girl. She got a "yes" but the play date was canceled in a weird way. The other kid couldn't have a play date but she was at the end at the park playing. I find that strange, and not so nice towards my friend. Maybe something else was playing in the situation, but it feels disturbing to witness this. Then I ask myself: "are my kids accepted?"

Hey, I will stop writing about these stuff, it entertains me too much - I feel like the regular guy finding himself in the middle of a big conspiracy - . There are still sooooo many just regular and genuinely nice people around, that it still feels like Pleasantville. The rest is a rumor that took more than a year to come to my ear.

Reading at age of 5

F is learning her letters in a Montessori way. She doesn't know the ABC, but the sounds of the letters. I bought yesterday couple books in English for beginner readers and guess what! She can read. We know she has been practicing a lot of stuff, sand letters, phonograms (or whatever they are called), all Montessori stuff. She still has to learn and practice a lot and reading in a language other than her mother tongue doesn't help either. But the first steps are taken. Go girl!

Such a nice day!

Finally, we celebrated A's 3rd b-day. I say finally, because she turned 3 a month ago, and I was postponing the date. Saturday, we had the crowd over for the celebration. 10 a.m. sharp, the first guest came to the door. It was a bit awkward that the b-day girl was at the supermarket to pick up some I wine and the b-day cake. (that we almost forgot - so expected with us!). Oops. As the guests started coming one after the other, I felt the urge of calling P and asking where the h... they were. The answer was, mmm, a bit alarming: "The cake is not ready yet, they are still making it." Couple minutes later though, they arrived and the party started. Friday, it was raining dogs and cats, so I was prepared to pack all the kids and parents inside the house - which would be doable, but not as nice. But then, the weather turned out beautiful. The sun was shining and we were all outside.

I had mainly invited A's old classmates (she switched classes couple weeks ago) and 2 friends outside the school. Her two best friends didn't show up, 1 I knew, the other one... well, I hope they have good reason for breaking my daughter's heart. But her third best friend, Lydia, was there and A was so happy and thrilled to have her over, that she forgot about the others.

When we were planning the party, I was trying to find some theme, some activity to do with the kids... something special. I came up with the idea of making "fishing sets". I bought little figures (fish, sea horse, shell, boat, etc...), painted them, put thumb tacks in them. I made little fishing rods with a magnet at the end. We had a big inflated pool in the yard and we put the forms in the pool. All the kids got a rod and they fished for the figures. They had little goody bags to put their "catch" in it and at the end, they got to keep it - and of course the rod -. It turned out to be a big success, the kids had a blast! (I was very happy for that because I spent so much time, so many evenings making the toys...) After the cake, and playing, it was the end of the party. It was so relaxed and nice, I think everyone had a good time. I know A did. After everyone left, A and F wanted to get in the pool. Well, it was under 20 degrees, so P pt a lot of warm water and we opened the swimming season!

The rest of the day was slow and just fun. In the afternoon, we decided to call Dave and Tena and we had a nice BBQ with them. A and Beck played for hours. A was first not so happy that Beck came, "I want to play with my sister without Beck" she said. But then, she was playing next to them and I think she had a nice time, too.

After the guests left, we brought the kids to bed. I asked A if she had a nice party. She said "I want to have Peri, Ameena and Lydia for my b-day." But, she didn't look like she had trouble with the fact that 2 of her friends were missing, she didn't look sad. When we asked her what was the nicest thing of the day, she said: "Playing with Lydia, eating cake with Lydia, fishing with Lydia." (mmm, how about the other kids?) I think it just made such a big impression on her that Lydia was in our house, it just made her day. And of course the other kids, the attention, the party, the cake. Ohh, it was such a nice day!

New tradition

New tradition is that I go out with Tena on Thursday evenings. (I'm just home from the 2nd) Oh, it feels so nice, and it is so much fun. And how the girls are excited about their sitter! It's miracle. Keep up with the tradition!

A's challenge

A is now 3, so she is going to an upper class. She was the oldest of the 18 month-3 year olds, now she is the youngest of the 3 year - 6,5 year olds. This morning, she was reluctant to walk to her new class, she said she would go tomorrow. But her locker was empty and her teacher was not expecting her. So she had to walk to her new class. I needed her teacher to smoothly take her inside the classroom. (Normally the children are supposed to open the door and walk in.) At the end of the morning, she came out of the class with such a proud face. For the first time, she told me what she did at school. Everybody tells me that they grow so fast after moving up. I have to say I kinda like it. She is still our baby, but it is nice to see that she is getting more and more capable. Go girl!

F lost her first tooth

At a party in our neighbours' house, someone told F that if she just turned her loose tooth a bit, it might come out. So she did it and there it was! She was so proud of herself! Now she can whistle through the gap in her lower jaw....