Feeding the birds will be so much more fun when it's spring and all the baby coots, ducks, swans, geese are around, but for now we have been making do with feeding the birds in our warm clothes. Evie is very brave...even when a big swan walks towards her!
With all the rain and illnesses lately, Evie and I have had to get creative with our afternoons. The other day we made playdough (2 cups of flour, 3/4 cup water, 3/4 cup salt, 1TBS vegetable oil). I didn't add food coloring to it and Evie doesn't know how to make things with it yet, but she did enjoy squishing it around a lot.
Evie's legs are finally long enough to reach on the rocking horse we bought at our local junk store and refurbished (actually we only covered the really ugly seat with some pretty fabric, but it completely changed the look of the previously haggard rocking horse). She is a big fan of rocking on her horse and also in the rocking chair in her room. We're still working on remembering to hold on.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Culture with the masses
But first, a picture of Finchley in the cold, winter sun:
Last weekend we decided that there would be no, to quote my Dad, 'dilly dallying.' We made a plan and we stuck to it. And that plan was to go to the Natural History Museum via Green Park and back home via Hyde Park. In anticipation of large crowds due to half term week, we headed out early...but our efforts were thwarted by our need to eat breakfast and we stopped off at a cafe in Belsize Park for some yummy food. Evie and I did some cooking while we waited for our food.
I don't know what country all the fruit and flower stands are importing daffodils from, but it's not England. Although they are trying to poke their heads up, the cold weather is beating them back down on an almost daily basis.
Miraculously, despite predictions of sleet and rain, the sun was out for most of our day! Evie took advantage of the weather, gallivanting through Green Park, with only one face plant.
When we finally made it to the Natural History Museum, there was a line of epic proportions and we almost gave up before we even tried. Fortunately, it was moving pretty fast. Still, Evie was pretty much about to fall asleep, so we had to take action quickly. As soon as she was out of her stroller, she was re-energized and she and Jim headed up the escalator and into the Earth.
Strollers were not allowed, so I took the 'lift,' went to the wrong floor, worked my way against the crowds to the wrong side, worked my way back to the lift and figured out where I was supposed to go in the first place. Thirty minutes later, I was reunited with Jim and Evie, who were experiencing the various textures that lava rocks can be.
Evie was fascinated by all of the screens..
And longed to be old enough to help spin the exhibit that showed how lava came to the surface.
She pushed buttons and got her hands onto everything that she could reach.
She learned about Carbon:
And icehouse vs. greenhouse:
She observed a bunch of hummingbirds (and many other stuffed birds, which thrilled her).
She wasn't very interested at all in fossilized bones, which is a good thing for us because the dinosaur line was ridiculous.
Then she had a snack--blueberries, her current favorite-- and we headed out of the crowds and through Hyde Park. It was cold.
This sign was very interesting:
As was the postbox:
We are so lucky to live in a place like London, where there are so many museums and most of them are free. It was a fun day for all of us and we plan to have more like it! And as soon as it warms up a little, we're also going to start taking Evie on some country walks. It's time!
Last weekend we decided that there would be no, to quote my Dad, 'dilly dallying.' We made a plan and we stuck to it. And that plan was to go to the Natural History Museum via Green Park and back home via Hyde Park. In anticipation of large crowds due to half term week, we headed out early...but our efforts were thwarted by our need to eat breakfast and we stopped off at a cafe in Belsize Park for some yummy food. Evie and I did some cooking while we waited for our food.
I don't know what country all the fruit and flower stands are importing daffodils from, but it's not England. Although they are trying to poke their heads up, the cold weather is beating them back down on an almost daily basis.
Miraculously, despite predictions of sleet and rain, the sun was out for most of our day! Evie took advantage of the weather, gallivanting through Green Park, with only one face plant.
When we finally made it to the Natural History Museum, there was a line of epic proportions and we almost gave up before we even tried. Fortunately, it was moving pretty fast. Still, Evie was pretty much about to fall asleep, so we had to take action quickly. As soon as she was out of her stroller, she was re-energized and she and Jim headed up the escalator and into the Earth.
Strollers were not allowed, so I took the 'lift,' went to the wrong floor, worked my way against the crowds to the wrong side, worked my way back to the lift and figured out where I was supposed to go in the first place. Thirty minutes later, I was reunited with Jim and Evie, who were experiencing the various textures that lava rocks can be.
Evie was fascinated by all of the screens..
And longed to be old enough to help spin the exhibit that showed how lava came to the surface.
She pushed buttons and got her hands onto everything that she could reach.
She learned about Carbon:
And icehouse vs. greenhouse:
She observed a bunch of hummingbirds (and many other stuffed birds, which thrilled her).
She wasn't very interested at all in fossilized bones, which is a good thing for us because the dinosaur line was ridiculous.
Then she had a snack--blueberries, her current favorite-- and we headed out of the crowds and through Hyde Park. It was cold.
This sign was very interesting:
As was the postbox:
We are so lucky to live in a place like London, where there are so many museums and most of them are free. It was a fun day for all of us and we plan to have more like it! And as soon as it warms up a little, we're also going to start taking Evie on some country walks. It's time!
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
A blog by Evie
Thanks to me and my germs, everyone has been sick around here, so I've decided to take the reins and get this blog going again...at least for the time being.
Even though my Dad was sick, he got up with me on Saturday morning so my mom could sleep in. She thought he was just being whiny, but then he threw up and she felt sorry for not being more sympathetic. Anyway, my Dad LOVES music and he's trying to teach me all about it. He let me pick what we were going to listen to on Saturday morning. I picked The Cure, obviously. (by the way, he got me those cool pjs when he was in France. They are very comfy!)
Then I stood on my head:
On Sunday, my Dad was still sick, so my mom and I ditched him to go celebrate Chinese New Year with our neighbors. We did tell him that we loved him first, since, after all, it was Valentines Day.
Our neighbors Genista and Michael invited us over to celebrate with our other neighbors, Simon, Hua and Jack. Jack is my friend and Hua is actually Chinese. Genista and Michael's daughter lived in China for five years, so they all know lots about China. I wasn't in the best mood, unfortunately, so I spent most of our time there yelling about one thing or another until we finally had to leave, but my mom enjoyed our brief lunch.
I got to sit in a big chair like a big girl, which would have been really cool if I hadn't been in such a foul mood. Mostly I wanted to just play with all the wonderful jewelry that M and G's daughter made and which was in bowls all over the place and within my reach! They were very patient with me as I attempted to destroy their house like I do at my own.
Jack and I played under the very cool glass table. I was pretty intrigued by the fact that I could stand under it and see everything that was on top of it and above it. Michael made the table out of a glass door, which he put on two old singer sewing machine stands. Mom said it was cool.
I had duck, which I thought was quite tasty. But I wouldn't eat my dumplings and mostly I just wanted to go home, so I pitched a big fit and my mom finally gave up and took me back home again. Then I slept for about 4 hours straight, so I did have a point.
Yesterday my mom got sick and my Dad was at work, so I started the day off being really good and in a good mood. As you can see, I now know how to stick my finger in my nose, which my mom thought was funny (against her better judgment).
After that, I got to do my first independent finger painting. The last time I did finger painting I was six months old and my mom helped me a lot. But this time I did it on my own!
I worked very hard and I am very proud of my artwork and so are my parents!
After the painting, my mom tried to get me to watch the Muppets. I DID watch it for a little while, but then I wanted to play. Even though my mom was awake, she DIDN'T want to play, so that made me mad and I decided to spend the rest of the day screaming as much as possible to get her back. I definitely made an impact.
Even though my Dad was sick, he got up with me on Saturday morning so my mom could sleep in. She thought he was just being whiny, but then he threw up and she felt sorry for not being more sympathetic. Anyway, my Dad LOVES music and he's trying to teach me all about it. He let me pick what we were going to listen to on Saturday morning. I picked The Cure, obviously. (by the way, he got me those cool pjs when he was in France. They are very comfy!)
Then I stood on my head:
On Sunday, my Dad was still sick, so my mom and I ditched him to go celebrate Chinese New Year with our neighbors. We did tell him that we loved him first, since, after all, it was Valentines Day.
Our neighbors Genista and Michael invited us over to celebrate with our other neighbors, Simon, Hua and Jack. Jack is my friend and Hua is actually Chinese. Genista and Michael's daughter lived in China for five years, so they all know lots about China. I wasn't in the best mood, unfortunately, so I spent most of our time there yelling about one thing or another until we finally had to leave, but my mom enjoyed our brief lunch.
I got to sit in a big chair like a big girl, which would have been really cool if I hadn't been in such a foul mood. Mostly I wanted to just play with all the wonderful jewelry that M and G's daughter made and which was in bowls all over the place and within my reach! They were very patient with me as I attempted to destroy their house like I do at my own.
Jack and I played under the very cool glass table. I was pretty intrigued by the fact that I could stand under it and see everything that was on top of it and above it. Michael made the table out of a glass door, which he put on two old singer sewing machine stands. Mom said it was cool.
I had duck, which I thought was quite tasty. But I wouldn't eat my dumplings and mostly I just wanted to go home, so I pitched a big fit and my mom finally gave up and took me back home again. Then I slept for about 4 hours straight, so I did have a point.
Yesterday my mom got sick and my Dad was at work, so I started the day off being really good and in a good mood. As you can see, I now know how to stick my finger in my nose, which my mom thought was funny (against her better judgment).
After that, I got to do my first independent finger painting. The last time I did finger painting I was six months old and my mom helped me a lot. But this time I did it on my own!
I worked very hard and I am very proud of my artwork and so are my parents!
After the painting, my mom tried to get me to watch the Muppets. I DID watch it for a little while, but then I wanted to play. Even though my mom was awake, she DIDN'T want to play, so that made me mad and I decided to spend the rest of the day screaming as much as possible to get her back. I definitely made an impact.
Friday, February 12, 2010
For now...
Due to hand, foot and mouth disease, our week has been pretty...confined to the house. But here are a couple of videos to entertain you until we start doing fun things again.
Sunday, February 07, 2010
Boring weekend
Jim had a fantastic skiing trip last weekend, but unfortunately came back with no pictures due to a slight technical malfunction involving losing the camera somewhere in the snow, somewhere on some mountain in the Alps. So, I am forced to blog about our not super exciting weekend here in London instead.
The first major accomplishment of the weekend is that we got me a new camera to replace the one that is still off skiing. Then we headed for a morning walk in Hampstead Heath. It was foggy!
After a long nap, Evie drooled all over Jim's ipod.
Then the real fun started because Jim and I had a DATE! We headed off to a restaurant called Dans le Noir? All of the wait staff at the restaurant were blind and we ate our meals in the dark with the idea that not being able to see would heighten our awareness of the food and our other senses. Our ears certainly were aware of the people who were seated next to us. Apparently not being able to see made them feel that they should compensate by screaming across the table. But once they left and we could hear each other again, it was fun to talk about the experiences we were having trying to eat our food (with our hands, a lot, and not with knives) and attempting to identify what exactly we were eating (mostly we got it completely wrong). It was a relief to find out that I still like to hang out with Jim, even when I can't see him! Here are a couple of pictures from before dinner, since obviously we couldn't take pictures in the dark room.
Another cold and dreary Sunday, but we dragged ourselves out onto the town for some window shopping and a visit to the National Portrait Gallery. Evie walked.
And then gazed longingly at the balloons in the local toyshop. We are aware that we're going to have to start walking on the other side of the street once she can vocalize her toy store desires.
We saw Mary when we were waiting for the tube and Evie got some hugs:
She was very grown up and walked along without her buggy while we waited for the train. AND she was very responsible and held my hand without any protests or theatrics. She has been known to sit down in protest in the past, but I think she knows when I mean business about the hand holding.
o
Riding on the tube in her own seat would have been exciting if she hadn't seen a friend eating a snack across from her. So, that distracted her a little from the experience and we had to pull out the emergency granola bar.
On Tottenham Court Road, we perused the electronics stores in search of a replacement cable for our external hard drive (they don't make them anymore) and then for a new external hard drive (TOO EXPENSIVE!). We wandered towards Regents Street for some window shopping. En route, we stumbled into Liberty, which is a famous London Department store I had heard of in my sewing class, but never visited. They are known for their prints and lots of seamstresses go there to get beautiful fabric for dress making and beyond. Besides that, they have beautiful designer bags, clothing, jewelry and fun gifts (most very out of our price range, but fun to look at) and the building, with its wood floors, exposed beams, large windows and nice lighting was a pleasure in itself. We enjoyed wandering around.
Back at home, we decided to do some headstands.
Impressive, I know. We're thinking of starting a circus once we have Finchley trained. Hopefully we'll have an early spring because I need some better blog material in the form of country walks or sunny days in warmer climates!
The first major accomplishment of the weekend is that we got me a new camera to replace the one that is still off skiing. Then we headed for a morning walk in Hampstead Heath. It was foggy!
After a long nap, Evie drooled all over Jim's ipod.
Then the real fun started because Jim and I had a DATE! We headed off to a restaurant called Dans le Noir? All of the wait staff at the restaurant were blind and we ate our meals in the dark with the idea that not being able to see would heighten our awareness of the food and our other senses. Our ears certainly were aware of the people who were seated next to us. Apparently not being able to see made them feel that they should compensate by screaming across the table. But once they left and we could hear each other again, it was fun to talk about the experiences we were having trying to eat our food (with our hands, a lot, and not with knives) and attempting to identify what exactly we were eating (mostly we got it completely wrong). It was a relief to find out that I still like to hang out with Jim, even when I can't see him! Here are a couple of pictures from before dinner, since obviously we couldn't take pictures in the dark room.
Another cold and dreary Sunday, but we dragged ourselves out onto the town for some window shopping and a visit to the National Portrait Gallery. Evie walked.
And then gazed longingly at the balloons in the local toyshop. We are aware that we're going to have to start walking on the other side of the street once she can vocalize her toy store desires.
We saw Mary when we were waiting for the tube and Evie got some hugs:
She was very grown up and walked along without her buggy while we waited for the train. AND she was very responsible and held my hand without any protests or theatrics. She has been known to sit down in protest in the past, but I think she knows when I mean business about the hand holding.
o
Riding on the tube in her own seat would have been exciting if she hadn't seen a friend eating a snack across from her. So, that distracted her a little from the experience and we had to pull out the emergency granola bar.
On Tottenham Court Road, we perused the electronics stores in search of a replacement cable for our external hard drive (they don't make them anymore) and then for a new external hard drive (TOO EXPENSIVE!). We wandered towards Regents Street for some window shopping. En route, we stumbled into Liberty, which is a famous London Department store I had heard of in my sewing class, but never visited. They are known for their prints and lots of seamstresses go there to get beautiful fabric for dress making and beyond. Besides that, they have beautiful designer bags, clothing, jewelry and fun gifts (most very out of our price range, but fun to look at) and the building, with its wood floors, exposed beams, large windows and nice lighting was a pleasure in itself. We enjoyed wandering around.
Back at home, we decided to do some headstands.
Impressive, I know. We're thinking of starting a circus once we have Finchley trained. Hopefully we'll have an early spring because I need some better blog material in the form of country walks or sunny days in warmer climates!
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