23 October 2015

So last month we enjoyed sprucing up the livingroom.  Before and after pictures.

Right before I start taking down the long curtains - actually after we had already wall-mounted the TV and moved out the big clunky TV cabinet.

Obviously also watching Wreck It Ralph and the adorable baby who is obsessed with the overhead light and the sneaky ketchup bottle next to Felicity's tea!  Note plethora of color samples on the wall....

Without the pelmet material

Exposing the shutter-like wood panels next to the window.

Covered up the chandelier with bin bags.  The entire window exposed after we ripped down the pelmet stuff.

Cracky ceiling stripped

Window wood painted.

All the cracks had to be filled, sanded, then filled again.  The room was incredibly dusty.

Some of the right major flaws in the ceiling

Wooden windows like new.

Painting finished! - no blinds.  

Furniture going back in the space

Finished painting with the sunshine on it!  (Before I brought the piano in.)

Lovely blinds - they look even better in the sunlight.

With books, toys, plants, and pictureframes

Sorry, terribly squint picture, but it gives you the idea.

And finally, F in her 'cheetah' pajamas that she *loves*  Fits her just right.  :-)

15 October 2015

Busy week with lots of people!

Monday we had the health visitor in the morning, Costco (for Community Group meal groceries), and G&S came over in the afternoon.

Tuesday we went to the museum with Natalia and her boys and had a great time riding the bus and going around the Kingdom of the Scots and eventually got to the roof terrace in the lift!  Community Group in the evening really thought-provoking and encouraging.  Phillipians 1 and 2.  Especially when I've been dealing with anger, I find myself emotionally crumbling when faced with the reality of how much God loves us....how much God loves me. Astonishing.  and Cathartic.  and healing.  I cried at least 3 times during the bible study and prayer and I don't even mind.

Wednesday, I met up with And, Hannah and Lois and the Pikes at the museum.  Natalia and I noticed a lot of the craft things they had set up for the kids to do on Tuesday, but we were leaving so we didn't get to do them.  It was great taking F to the museum around so many grown-ups and friends (on both days actually) as I was able to focus more on Titus when he needed attention.  We colored in the 'time-machine' craft they had for the kiddos, played a lot of dress-up and went back up to the glorious roof terrace in the very slow lift again. :-)

Today I met up with new friend K.P. and her lovely kids.  And then went to Dobbies in the afternoon.  And then taught my first singing lesson in months and months after picking Simon up from work.

Tomorrow morning I am taking Mr T to a baby massage class at Dr. Bells.  And then home to catch up on laundry and housework.  The Pikes are coming for dinner tomorrow.  And Agnes is coming for lunch on Saturday.

I like being busy with people.  :-)

Felicity has said some hilarious things this week...let's see...

I was explaining to her that she shouldn't give Titus her tiny little ponies because he could choke on them when he starts putting things in his mouth.  'Why does he put things in his mouth?'  'because that's how babies learn and how they soothe their mouths when they start growing teeth.'  And sooooo sweetly, she went and found the sophie giraffe teething toy with handles and gave it to Titus.  And in *such* a sweet, sincere, high-pitched, sing-song voice she started cooing....'Here you go Titus..Here's your giraffee...you can choke on this baby....go ahead and choke on it.....yes, it's yours baby Titus!'  And I about *died* laughing and hardly had the heart to tell her the verb was 'chew' not 'choke.'

We were in IKEA and I hadn't noticed she'd smuggled a fake, garish pink flower into the shopping trolley.  We had just checked out.  The queue behind us was long and growing.  Felicity had been distracted by making Titus laugh his head off, and everyone, including the cashier and the person behind us had been laughing along with the pure, infectious baby belly-laughs.  Then, Felicity noticed the flower and ran back behind the waiting line of people to grab it and bring it to me. ' My FLOWER???' She wailed as I told her we'd already paid and she had to put it back.  'but, I *LOVE* it!'  In wrenching tones.  Absolutely solemn.  She would have married the flower.  I reiterate to her that we can't take it home, and we ARE about to witness what a melted pool of 3yo toddler looks like on the floor........then grateful beyond words to the cashier who says, 'I'll look after it for you sweetheart, OK?'   Yes, we can finally part from the beloved flower to another caring soul who will look after it....

We have discovered The Muppets.  I turned on the Great Muppet caper for Felicity.  Since then, she has consistently asked for 'the frog' and 'Mrs. Piggy'  ('Miss Piggy....Miss Piggy' I keep correcting....no, her favorite is 'Mrs Piggy.')  We turned on the new Muppet movie with Jason Segal and Amy Adams.  'Where is Mrs. Piggy?' she kept asking for the first half-hour.....  She told me on Wednesday that she *was* Mrs. Piggy.... (Makes a change from Queen Elsa, if you ask me!)  She wanted her hair done up in a curly ponytail 'like Mrs. Piggy on the bicycle...'

I played Old Blind Dogs on my phone 'Kincardine lads' - I only know the first line (though having lived here as long as I have, has made understanding the words a little clearer in general!) and the chorus - hi-duma-doo-duma-daddy-o!  Each time I start singing it, Felicity's been saying, 'again!'  and she's started to do a little gig in front of Titus' basket something like 'hitiddydumdaddydidaddydum' and it sometimes sounds like Old Blind Dogs and sometimes it morphs into 'Momma's little baby loves short'nin, short'nin, momma's little baby loves short'nin bread...'

Anyway, fun times.  But after being around so many people and doing so many things this week, I think tomorrow afternoon I am going to spend some time consciously sitting down and cuddling my big little girl if I can.  Her sleep is getting marginally better with the new ground rules we're sticking to, but her concentration is wavering, especially in the afternoons.  Discipline has been difficult, for both of us.  I think her 'love-tank' needs some filling up.

Titus turned 14 weeks this Tuesday.  He is precious.  14 lbs, 7.5 ounces at his last weigh-in on Monday.  And I can hardly restrain myself from hugging and kissing him all the freakin' time.  Everyone wants to hold him.  I have to remind myself to share, because I just want him all the time too.  But people are also being very forbearing with my selfishness - I waited and worked a long time to have my little snoogly bear!

F and S - big kids!

Feet are fun!

Cool dude - nevermind the pink bouncer.

Roof terrace on Monday

D, F and L

Crafty friends on Wednesday

Dressing up!

F wanted the grownup's gloves and fan as well....

Jacobite dresses

Roof terrace on Wednesday

the dress up theme was: 'Photography - a Victorian innovation'

Good times.

Monday 12 October 2015

Yesterday I took the kiddos up to the National Gallery on the Mound in the morning.  Simon was working with Pete, so we had some time to kill.  It was the first time I've been on a bus in honestly, I don't know when!  I took the double stroller, whch *just* fit in the stroller designated area.  Fortunately, it was quiet and we were able to have the stroller spot first time each way.  Felicity was really excited about going up to town.  She kept asking, 'where are we going?!'  The double stroller was great for getting on and off the bus as I was able to keep both kids contained, even when there were a lot of other people around.  Felicity didn't like riding in the stroller on and off the bus, but I felt like it was a precedent worth setting!

We got there as soon as the gallery opened at 10am.  There is a magical 2-3 minutes when no other visitors are there and the place feels like it is breathing open.  It gets busy quickly.  I noticed a new dutch painting I'd never seen before in the stillness, at the back of the main floor.  It was a cold winter's day with such a beautiful, luminous sky.  Most of the canvas had undertones of gray and white - not your typically most exciting colors - but it was enchanting.  Felicity liked it because she had been looking for pictures of horses and this painting had both a horse drawn cart and a puppy dog.  I liked it because when you gazed at it, you started to actually feel cold.

Titus woke up just as we were finishing our fairly quick round of the main hall.  I hadn't thought to bring the sling, so I was resigned to not being able to go upstairs to the early medieval art or the impressionist gallery.  Then, a very helpful guide told me there was actually a lift to get up to the impressionist hall.  I was so excited and made the dash down to the back of the main floor again - because, sure enough!  There's still a couch in the room where they have the degas, monet, van goth and cezanne.  So, Felicity was parked in the stroller, I settled down on the couch and we discussed one of the Degas ballerina painting for 15-20 minutes while I fed Titus.  I had thought of taking that stop in the lower cafe area, but soo much better to be in the gallery!  Felicity was drawn to the ballerina pictures, I think.  She kept getting agitated and waving her hands when someone walked up to it, obscuring her view!  I was like, 'it's OK, it's OK - the pictures are for everyone to see.'  I was enjoying seeing the way the painters used opposing vertical lines and colors and light/dark to create movement.  It's an easy enough thing to copy and see when you have it in front of you, but amazing to see the mastery and creativity to bring it all together so subtly so that it's hardly noticeable, entrenched in the picture.  Your eyes are sucked in a manipulated by it before you realize that it's happening.  For example, if you analyzed it,  the ballerinas we were watching yesterday - half the canvas was practically empty!  And yet, even Felicity (who is 3) could hardly keep her eyes off of it.

The Gallery in Edinburgh is quite small, comparatively speaking.  I think there are more pictures in the Portrait Gallery even.  Yet, it's wonderful to have time to invest in the pictures and not have to rush.  The other picture that grabbed Felicity's attention was the Benjamin West, wall-sized, larger than life portrayal of Alexander III's rescue 'from the fury of the stag.'  He's painted the 'reindeer' (as Felicity called him) with an expression of sorrow, almost vulnerability, so it's easy to be on the 'side' of the 'reindeer' rather than the men and dogs about it kill it.  Felicity wanted to know what it was all about, so I told her that the stag was going to kill the king and the other men were trying to save him, but I don't think she believed me.  Somehow, I feel that West wanted you to sympathize with the deer.

It was a beautiful clear day and just gorgeous 'sweater-weather',  I could hardly believe when we arrived that Felicity remembered being in the square last Christmas.  She kept talking about the 'ponies' and 'the dragons' (two rides that we rode/saw last year at the market.)  There is nothing set up there now, but she knew exactly where things had been last year and kept pointing and talking about it.  What a memory - she'd only been 2yo then!  There were squirrels down in the gardens and I had to tell her repeatedly not to run down the very steep slope in her slippery shoes after them.  She dressed herself yesterday in a white sundress (I added leggings and a sweater!) and I could just imagine her falling and making a sticky, muddy, mess all over her nice clothes.

On the bus on the way home, I asked her what we could tell daddy that we'd seen.  I expected her to say, 'ballerinas!' or at least 'reindeer'.  'What did we see?'  'Squirrels!!'  

Figures.  Nevermind the priceless works of art (Rembrant, Monet, Titian....)  Life is too exciting.

Yey!  We made it!

Felicity figuring out that we'd been here before.  'The dragons in the garden?'

I didn't take any pictures in the gallery, not knowing what the policy on photography was.  This is on the way home.  Probably pointing out the squirrels.

Chilling baby man.  Colors changing in the trees.

This is on my doorstep!  Who wants to come visit?  (and we'll get out of the house next time, I promise, Mom!)

10 October 2015

Lazy Insular Day

This time of year is weird.  The weather is changing.  The seasons are changing.  The days are getting palpably shorter.  I remember October being one of my favorite months in Texas - it meant birthdays and cooler weather.  Here, it's also like a deep breath before a plunge.  The darkness returns.

I was describing this almost claustrophobic feeling to my mom-friends at explorers last Wednesday.  'Like we're tottering over the edge of the abyss of winter...' (might have been my exact words - and I meant it sincerely .... I guess Felicity gets her over-dramatics honestly....)

I've been getting flashes of crazy and brilliant things to do.  This morning I told Simon I want to go to London and visit the British Museum.  And in a flash of about 2 seconds, I pictured: the train journey with 2 kids, the taxi-ride to a hotel, the overnight stint with two kids in a strange room, the slow walk to the museum, the arrival at the hollowed halls and then the certainty that I would have 1/3rd of an eye on the exhibit and more than 2/3rds of an eye on the toddler dashing around the priceless wonders....and yet, I still wanted to do it?

And then I pictured just packing up T and F while Simon is at work this week and taking them down to North Yorkshire and visiting Riveaux Abbey and Fountains Abbey again.  Going to Harlow Carr gardens and visiting Harrowgate.  James Herriot country.

We drove out to Vogerie Park this morning and had a good hour and a half walk up and down the valley there.  Simon and I used to walk there all the time, and I can't remember the last time we'd actually done the walk.  There's a bench across the Tyne valley where they have cleared the trees and you can see the layers of trees and leaves going all the way up the opposite glen.  I always feel it's too far to walk, and *much* too far to walk back, but once I am there, it is peaceful and beautiful and a release.  Today Felicity was tired tired hungry got up too early tired and I was worried about her because I didn't have a snack or drink in my bag.  She'd walked the whole first 45 minutes herself and had to walk back too.  So as we sat on the bench, I asked her to imagine a huge brachiosaurous crashing and thundering up over the tops of the tall tall trees across from us.  Wouldn't that be something?  Titus was asleep in the sling the entire walk, thank goodness!  Two crying kids would have done me in.

We spent this afternoon in the livingroom watching star trek.  Or, 'the robot and the doctor' as Felicity calls it.  (Yes, next generation - don''t know why she's identified so much with Data and Crusher.)  Simon finished putting the fascias on the wooden blinds and I've been working on my chair upholstery project.

Tonight was more of a struggle getting the kids in bed.  F was too tired and chose not to eat much dinner, so very fractious until she fell asleep.  T is fighting off a cold, immunizations, gas and possibly teething....it's a hard life being a baby.  I was going to try to just get out to the grocery store once they were in bed (ha - does it *show* that I'm just wanting to *get out* anywhere?) but I've almost tidied the livingroom and put away the laundry and I think I should just go to bed.

Titus is still waking regularly at 1:30/2am, 3am-ish, 5/6am-ish for milk.  Sometimes he also has a feed at 11:30-ish.  Felicity's night time wakings have punctuated this rhythm.  I was going insane last week wondering how we can deal with her sleep issues.  The clock is helping her not come in too early, but she's still calling and waking us up in the night regularly.  So, the new idea is that 1) If she *chooses* to leave her room before the sun on her clock is on, we will have no choice but to put up a baby-gate (and we don't really want to do that.)  And 2) if she *chooses* to make a lot of noise and wake us up for no really good reason at night, we will have to close her bedroom door (and we don't want to have to do that either.)  So far, these two consequences have been very effective deterrents.  I'm determined to stick with this for the next 2-3 weeks until the idea has sunk in.  She has to learn to sleep independently.  I'm being very clear that we can't wait to cuddle her in the morning when the sun comes up, but nighttime is not cuddle time!

I'm hoping this lingering sense of being sub-human is just the effects of little sleep, an oncoming cold, and the onset of shorter, dimmer days.  Restlessness.  I've been praying a lot.  I've been watching the St. John movie (the book of John read out by a narrator and played by actors).  I've been trying to read Everyday Church.  I feel like my bank account of grace is balancing at the red - as soon as I have some, I have to spend it....or I'm spending grace I don't feel like I've really received yet.  Anything good coming out of me right now is just passing through me like a conduit, because I am empty and running on empty.  'Come to me all who are heavy laden and I will give you rest.... Those who drink the water I will give them will never thirst, will become streams of water welling up within them.... Take my yoke upon you and learn from me....'  these sayings I never understood or appreciated when I was younger.  A moon reflecting the light of the sun, though completely dark and in darkness itself.

Too honest maybe, but there it is.  I'll live to laugh at this another day.

At Vogerie House.

My great big girl.  So proud of her.

5 October 2015

Busy weeks...

Last week we had the livingroom painted and I've been on a mission of redecoration.  It's looking really good.

The kids are great.  We've started using Felicity's gro-clock again which has blue stars at night and then turns to yellow light and the sun in the morning.  It's been useful for keeping her in her room in the morning until an acceptable hour, even though she's still been waking up a bit during the night - progress in the right direction.  Titus is a sweetie-pie and has stopped having a crazy hour every single night which has made life feel much lighter and less stressful.

Big boy!

Love the sucky lower lip and owl-ish old professor hair

Sunshine at the park last Wednesday

Big girl!

Titus loves the animal mobile in the mornings when we're getting ready to get out the door.  I love the excitement in his eyes.  He's a smart boy.