Let the games begin!

Hello there!

Okay, so the kids are fine!

Emma's convinced she's a 'georgeous princess' and Jack is as happy as ever on his bike, and all the more so because he can now pedal freely around the garage underneath our "new" house.

We've now started work on our "new house." We haven't done much so far. We've only pulled the wallpaper off the walls in the stairway and a bit in the living room. Goodness, though, it feels good to have started!

Emma and Jack are helping as best they can... soaking the old wallpaper with water so that Ben and I can tear and scrape as best as we can. Reassuringly, this first task is moving relatively quickly... and that's a good thing because we have a lot more left to go before we're done.

The electrician should hopefully be starting up soon and then from there the plumbers and builders should follow suit. If everything goes to plan, that is....

Hoping your plans are going, well, to plan where ever you are in the world,

Robynxxxx

Happy New Year 2012

Hello there!

I just wanted to take a minute to wish you all a very happy New Year!

I hope 2012 will be a peaceful and meaningful year for you and that you'll be able to fill the hours, days, and months with both projects and quiet moments of rest.

For our part, our BIG project is the house... as we returned from our holiday with Ben's parents, we swung past the house to collect the mail and to say hello to its quiet walls. As we drove away, to come back to our rented home, we couldn't help imagining how good it will be one day to come home to our true home.... for that dream to become a reality, though, we have to wait... and realise the hours, days and months of 2012 will also be spent being together as a family, working madly, and resting peacefully. At least, that's what I hope for us!

And so, however you spend 2012, I hope you spend it well!

hugs,

Robynxxxx

Snow is falling, all around!

Hello again,

Okay, smile, when Ben read my blog yesterday and realised that I didn't think that it felt like winter, he packed us all in the car and took us for a drive.

I would like to say that it was a long drive.

But it wasn't.

We were only in the car for 20minutes or so but, because we live at the foot of the Vosges hill range, we quickly gained altitude and came to the Champs de Feu . Only the fields were anything but on fire... as they and the roads were filled with snow!

We didn't stay for long (as I hadn't brought the right clothes....) but we we had enough time for a snowy walk, to make snow angels and to realise, yes, it truly was winter in the Vosges.

Then, after a change of clothes and some hot chocolate back home, we met up with friends in Obernai to visit the Christmas Market... and so, after cups of hot wine, watching the kids going round on the carousel, petting Santa's donkey, snacking on bredele and mannele, and visiting the local church with all it's Christmas decorations, I finished the day well and truly feeling we were in the heart of an Alsacian winter!

Love n snowy hugs,
Robynx

Moving Times

That's it!

Our lives have changed. We are no longer living in our apartment in Mutzig and we've bought an old house to renovate in Molsheim. As the renovations will take at least 6 months, we're renting an apartment (just next door to our old apartment) until the summer holidays. There's so much to be done that it's hard to imagine that we'll be able to live in the house by July but then, as my dear friend Melanie recently wrote, "if your dreams don't scare you, then they're not big enough!'

In the meantime, all is well. The Christmas holidays have just started, though it's so mild that I'm having a hard time we're realising that we're actually in December. One sign that the months have passed is that the kids have changed again. Emma can now get out of her cot, go to the loo, and get dressed by herself. It's really funny to get up in the morning and to see her living her own wee life. I told her recently that she was my "sweet pea" and she replied curtly, "No, Emma, Princess Gorgeous. No Sweetpea!" Also, she'll tell anyone who listens that she'd like a "bigger, better bed." For that, though, she'll have to wait until we're in the 'new' house. Thankfully, she has her big brother to distract her until then. Jack is doing grand and has written a full list of requests to Santa Claus, via one of Santa's helpers.. who, helpfully, also works at Jack's playschool. He's still living in the world of Flash McQueen but, now Cars 2 has been released, his world goes far beyond Radiator Springs. The upside is that he can recognise the French, English, Japanese, and Italian flags. The downside is that he looks at me strangely if ever I try to tell him that the 'Stars and the Stripes" is the flag of America and not of Flash. Mums, what do they know?

Well, what I do know is that we're going down to Cagnes sur mer to spend Christmas with our French family! So, if I'm having trouble believing it's December now... just wait until I arrive in the land of palm trees and walks by the sea. I can't wait, though, and I'm sure Santa Claus will find us wherever we are and despite the fact we rather seem to be on the move at the moment!


And so, wherever your home is right now, know that I wish you the very best of Christmases and a very Happy New Year :-)

love n hugs,
Robynxxxx

Rock the Statue Green!

I am really (really) proud of my high school students who made this video so they could enter the 'Rock the Statue Green' competition, a competition which calls upon French and American schools to produce art to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Statue of the Liberty. The theme? The Statue of the Liberty and the Environment.

I hope you enjoy it!

Smiles,
Robyn

Happy Birthday Jack

This is Jack's "YES, I'm FIVE" smile...

and

"yes, I've got a Cars' sticker stuck to me forehead but I don't care" smile :-)

Jack had a grand birthday, with presents and cake and a cool party with some of his friends... but he also had a cute wee sad moment. It was the end of the day and he was getting ready for his bath when he caught sight of himself in the bathroom mirror and starting crying: Maman, look, I'm not five... I'm still four. You lied to me, I can't be five...LOOK, I'm the same as yesterday. I'm still four!"

Then, one week after his birthday, we moved from our apartment to the apartment at the other side of Jack's bedroom wall. The reason is simple, our apartment is sold and our new house is just about bought (we should get the keys in the next couple of weeks). As we've about 6months renovation work to do in the house, we're going to be renting until (at least) the summer. So far, so good as our new apartment is very similar to our old one, cosy, comfortable and a complete mess of kids toys most of the time.

:-)

hugs n all that,

Robynxxxx

October Holidays!

Hello there,

Some of you might be wondering if I've stopped this blog.... but, no! It's not true! It's just that the days are so busy that I just don't have time to scribble down the details (at least, that's how it feels at the moment).

Stop shaking your heads... I'm not being slack, honest. The days really are that busy. Let me explain...

To start with, we've sold our apartment and so we're in the midst of packing up our things and getting things ready for the BIG move.....

Next door!

What? Yes, we're moving into the apartment next door... or, rather, across the wall. That is, we're going to rent the apartment which is located at the other side of Jack's bedroom wall until....

The old (read: 1759) house that we're in the process of buying in Molsheim is renovated... or, at least, is in a fit state for us to live in safely and happily. I'll tell you more about that 'project' once all the paperwork is finalised, as I don't want to jinx anything.

In the meantime, life continues at its usual hectic speed!

For instance, can you believe that Jack will be 5 in just a few days time? I can remember writing the blog announcing his birth as though it were yesterday and so I can hardly believe our big kid really will be, officially, big. And not just big, grand too. For I continue to adore him in all his proud and joyous daftness. The best thing is that he's (finally) discovering Emma as a friend and not 'just' as a little sister. Of course, what that really means is that he's discovered that he can boss her around and position her as his 'underling' in all things game and play.

Emma, though, doesn't care... as she loves feeling BIG, too. She loves dressing herself, going to the loo, and generally being Emma. She so different (and yet also somehow similar) to Jack. She goes to bed with 2 babydolls, 1 talking doll, Noddy, Lala, and an armful of other teddies and toys. She can spend an afternoon dressing them up and feeding them... but is equally happy playing with Flash McQueen as Jack plays out life in Radiator Springs (from the film Cars). Emma's sitting beside me now, colouring in a 'beha' (bear), as Jack watches Tinkerbell on TV. The fire's on and the trees outside the window are as orange and brown as the flames licking the charred wood that's warming us all on this cold, clear day.

Later on today we'll go for a walk... or, at least, I'll walk while Emma and Jack take their bikes. We have time for such fun this Wednesday because we're on school holidays (myself like the kids) and, goodness, it feels good to forget the alarm clocks and packed lunches for a week or two!

So, wherever you are in the world, I hope you're doing well and that your days are as busy and as rich when you want them to be and calm and quiet when you're ready for a bit of rest!
hugs,
Robynxxxxx

Trees

In honour of the trees which have grown

when we weren't looking!

Summer's Close

Hello there,

I guess for all of us (except you over there in New Zealand, Australia....), summer's drawing to a close. Not in the sense that the nights are drawing in and the leaves are turning, but in the sense that it's time to pack school bags again and to quietly realise that time will no longer, entirely, be our own again.

Yet, I know now that however busy and mad the months ahead may be, we've got memories to keep us going and to energise us when the going gets tough.

As I write, we're still in New Deer where, and here you may think I'm mad, the weather has just been perfect : 20*C cloudy with sunny spells. Now that's what I call good summer weather! We can sleep easy at night under cosy blankets and yet go out and play during the day. And each day has found us outside, not only doing the tour of the local playparks (there are some good ones), but also having barbecues on different beaches.... and that has meant the kids have discovered the fun of splashing in the sea, digging around in rockpools, and how the word 'sandwich' got its name!

In the last couple of weeks, I've had the chance to catch up with a number of great friends. Incredibly, 20 years have passed since I left school and 30 years have passed since we moved into the village. Yet, I still feel about the same as I did back then... and so the only way I can really 'sense' that time has passed is by looking at groups of children playing - for they contain my children, which seems incredible - and by looking at the trees. What? Yes, it's the trees which give the game away... for those trees which were young and spindly and not worth climbing when I was younger have grown tall and handsome. They're lovely to see... but they are the final signposts that so many years have truly gone by... and I do need them for I do still feel much the same as I did when I was six!

So, here's to the six year old inside all of us,
hugs,
Robynxxxx

Kite Flying Days

Ben and Jack, flying their kite

Jack's in the bottom right, filling his bucket with sea water.

Emma's watching her Dad's kite

Emma heading out to sea!

Print your Photos

Hello there,

My brother-in-law - Régis - recently set up a photo printing company: Tirages Pro.

They print professional photographs which can render your images absolutely and simply beautiful!

At the moment, he's running a competition from his facebook page which would allow you to win a 40*60 copy of one of your photos!

To me, that sounds like a great excuse to go on over to his site....
hugs to one and all,
Robynxxxx

Annette's Patchworks

Hello,

While we were in Les Omergues, Ben's mother - Annette - ran a week long exhibition of her patchworks.

As you'll see if you follow this link and this link, she designs and creates her works of art in a quite breath-taking fashion!

hugs to one and all,
Robynx

Summer Holidays!

Hello there,

Just wanted to let you know that we're enjoying our summer holidays!

So far, we've spent 2 weeks in Provence, a long weekend in the Alps, time at home in Mutzig, some days in the Wirral in the north of England, and now we're in Scotland for 3 weeks!

Yep, French summer holidays are long and brilliant!In the meantime, we've also just put our apartment in Mutzig on the market, as we're in the process of buying a house in Molsheim (just a couple of miles away). I'll tell you more about that project later on, but for now... if you're looking to buy an apartment in Mutzig, you know where to look :-)

Hoping your own projects are going well, wherever you are in the world!

love n hugs,

Robynxxxx

Almost Free....

Hello there,

I just wanted to let you know that I did my entrance exams to become a high school teacher in France last week. The results are due out next Wednesday....

In the meantime, I'm savouring the first taste of freedom after a very busy year.

And, what a delight - to wake up in the morning and eat a lesuirely breakfast (you know, the kind where the cup of tea isn't left to go cold as I dash out the door) and then to curl up with Emma and Jack in front of the morning's cartoons before planning a picnic in the park.

Yep, if this is what the summer holds for me and for the rest of our family - whatever the results of the teaching exams - I'm looking forward to it.

Hoping your summer is looking promising, too!

love n hugs,

Robynxxxx

Be sure to buckle up!

Hello again,

As spring warms into summer, life continues in its daft and wonderful way :-)

Emma following in her brother's tyre tracks :-)

Brother and sister!

And Jack continues to enjoy drawing ..... roads and cars! His description of the picture above? "So, Maman, here are two race cars (tractors?) and, see, the two people are wearing their seatbelts!"

So, although things are as daft and as wonderful as ever, at least Jack's making sure we stay safe!

love n hugs and hoping you are safe wherever you are!

Robynxxxx

Firing into June!

Hello,

Just a quick word as we go into June to say that life is, as usual, firing on all cylinders. The Master's degree in Teaching is 'done', insofar as the exams are behind us and we're waiting for the results. High school's drawing to a close, after a wonderful year. And the CAPES (National Teaching Exam), gulp, let's just say that I'm due in Lille in 3 weeks. And the kids? Grand, grand, grand! Jack's busy drawing people in cars, complete with their seatbelts, and Emma is learning to speak. Heaven help us! And all that, as usual, means that Ben and I are hanging on for dear life as the roller coaster continues!

hugs to one and all,
Robynxxxxx

ps/For those of you being irritated by spam sent from yahoo, I've closed my account with them and so things so should start calming down.

May Madness

Hello there,

This is just a wee message to say that all is well and , ouf, my Master's exams are now behind me and that my CAPES (national teaching) exam is now scheduled for the end of June. Until then, we'll all be lying low... but, don't doubt, we're all good!

Emma is full of garbled chat and trouble while Jack is learning how to draw cars, complete with aerials, radios, engines, lights and, you know, all that stuff boys see in cars that girls don't!

So, as the sun comes back into the world, I hope your days are full of light and happiness,

hugs,

Robynxxxx

Decorating Life

Hello there,

We've just returned from a wonderful week spent with my sister-in-law, Juliette, and her family at their house in the Alps.

While Emma had great fun running around their garden, climbing onto chairs, touching all she shouldn't :-), Jack had a shot at both downhill and cross country skiing and at building snowmen and sledging!

I've really enjoyed spending time with 'my family' and collecting some of Jack's funnier little insights, dreams, and experiences.

For example, the other day he announced at the dinner table that "life was hard and so we had to decorate it." When we asked him how he wanted to "decorate life," he said with "red oil that we can buy at the supermarket. I would paint all the trees and grass and walls and telephone lines red!"

Then, the other night, he dreamt about fixing a problem. The problem was pretty sad, as last time we were in the Alps we say a baby marmot being run over. Don't worry, though, in his dream, Jack chilled his magic sword in the fridge before going with the marmot's mum to find the baby marmot, which he duly transformed into a witch so that the "witch" could then transform herself back into a marmot! Cool, huh? I wish I had such powers.

Just now, as I've been typing, he told be "we have to work hard as life is so beautiful!"

For that, I have to agree with him. So, wherever you are, I hope you are working hard (but not too much) for life is, indeed, a beautiful thing!

hugs,

Robynxxxx

Our Growing Kids!

Hello,

I do know its been a while but things have been 'oh-so-busy!'

Now it's the holidays and I've two weeks to hang with the kidz :-)

As you can probably tell from the pictures, they've been agrowing up. Jack no longer lives in Mutzig but in Radiator Springs with all the crew from Cars. He lives and breathes the world of Flash and Sally but still manages to keep those of us in the 'real world' laughing at his insights and antics. Even as I'm writing Jack is telling me 'I love Flash too much. He's my best friend!' Emma, meanwhile, is over a year and a half old and is a cheeky chirpy little chimp. She's trying to potty train herself at the moment, so that she can be big like her brother, and is pretty cute about going to bed ('Bye, bye, Maman. Bye, bye Papa,' she'll sing out while cuddling down with her baby-doll and its milk bottle).

Meanwhile, Ben and I are running to keep up with them, and life, and are looking forward to spending next week with Tata Juju and Tonton Régis and cousins Antoine and Charlotte in their house near Albertville.. and who says Albertville says the Alps and snow and maybe even some skiing.....

Hey, I love the holidays!
Hoping you're all loving life, holidays or no holidays, wherever you are in the world!
Robynxxxx

Merrry Christmas!

First of all, Merry Christmas!!!!!

Second, goodness, it's been a while, hasn't it?

Most of you were probably thinking that I'd got lazy and given up on this blog. The truth is that Ben and I have just been so darn busy lately that I haven't had the time to do anything but the essentials in life.

Thankfully, kids grow by themselves and so, while Ben and I have been running around like mad things, they've gone and got all big.

Jack's now 4 and can draw basic pictures, recognise letters, write his name, and count - and all while charming the pants off anyone within a ten mile radius! He's currently in love with Selenia and Katy Morag.... as there are worse girls out there, I'm happy with his choices so far.

Emma's now 1 year and about 4 months and is a cheeky wee dafty! Although she doesn't say much for the moment, trust me, she makes herself understood and completely gets whatever we tell her. She's still a 'baby', though, and so quickly left the toy babies she received today so that she could 'feed' herself the bottles of pretend milk and sit in the toy push-chair herself. Obviously, she doesn't think she should be looking after anyone else but herself yet!

I'm glad she's still a big baby because these days are flying by and time just seems to be disappearing. For the moment, then, I'm very very glad to be back home in New Deer for Christmas. We're deep in snow and enjoying every minute....

because every minute does count at the moment!

Hoping your moments are counting, too.

love,

Robynxxxx