More weird things about California - 1)you can buy maple syrup flavoured sausages, easy to buy by mistake and as rank as they sound!
2)California state law requires that all children in preschool up to the age of 6 should nap from the hours of 1-3 in the afternoon - therefore Phia will never go to preschool in the afternoon as we will be paying for her to stare at the wall for 2 hours whilst someone tries to force her to go to sleep, something she has not done in the afternoon since 18 months of age!
Its been another weird week. Easter sunday started pretty crappily this morning as we had a few skype conversations with you all and everyone looked happy in the sunshine with their chocolate easter eggs. Here it was raining and not a chocolate easter egg in sight (they don't do them over here, just as well really as the chocolate is horrid!). All we had to look forward to was dragging the kids round car shops to try and find ourselves a car. (Easter sunday is not observed around here at all and all the shops are open until around 8, usual practice for all sundays) However, after a trip to a pizza place (where everyone else's kids were so badly behaved it made me yearn for Whale of a Time!) the car thing was sorted out quite quickly. We've decided to lease a new car and much to Phia's delight it's red! Then the sunshine came out in full force and we all went to a funfair for little kids, little gullivers world, and we've all had a lovely day.
The past week itself has been ok. Steve started work and is enjoying it so far (which is a bloody good job really!). He's already busy with plenty of stuff to do and is excited about the prospect of getting his teeth into it. The kids and I also had a busy week. We went egg painting with a group of American women, all of who are not from this part of America, so everyone was new in a way. We also met another English person, yay!, and were invited to hers to play (she has 2 boys, 4 and 3). We also did the library, Spanish class, park visits, Walmart! So we have found our feet a little bit, hopefully as the weeks go by it will get easier.
This Saturday we went on the traditional American easter egg hunt which involved hundreds of children spilling into a field scooping up little plastic eggs full of candy, easter really is all about the candy out here!, and piling as many as possible into their baskets. Phia was great, she got her elbows out and went for it! I was quite scared as couldn't see her in the sea of children and parents weren't allowed in with the 4 year olds so I found it quite uncomfortable. T didn't really get it, Ste was at least allowed in with him, but he was happy with just the one egg! Not surprisingly neither of them liked the candy inside!
On Saturday night we were invited to a bbq at the house of one of Steve's new colleagues. Of course we had to take the kids and they don't have any so we were a bit worried about how it would all turn out. They live up in the hills overlooking the bay (we really do live in such a beautiful area, will be great when we actually have the time to get out and explore) and their house is enormous! Even with the kids in tow and the fact they had 2 enormous dogs (that scared Phia a lot) we had a really lovely evening. It helped that they are British, although have been here for 14 years, our children were very well behaved until 9.30pm and they gave us a bag of tetley teabags to take home (albeit the America version!)
Next week its preschool finding week as really need to get Phia sorted with something to do. She's been a bit all over the place and has been finding it difficult to sleep. Might be something to do with its so hot at night here (god only knows what august will be like, the a/c will so be needed!) but I think its lack of routine and normality so we desperately need to find her some!
Missing home lots especially due to things we're missing, Easter, birthday parties, babies being born! etc etc but determined we will have a good time in the Bay for the time we are here. Lets see what this week brings.....
2)California state law requires that all children in preschool up to the age of 6 should nap from the hours of 1-3 in the afternoon - therefore Phia will never go to preschool in the afternoon as we will be paying for her to stare at the wall for 2 hours whilst someone tries to force her to go to sleep, something she has not done in the afternoon since 18 months of age!
Its been another weird week. Easter sunday started pretty crappily this morning as we had a few skype conversations with you all and everyone looked happy in the sunshine with their chocolate easter eggs. Here it was raining and not a chocolate easter egg in sight (they don't do them over here, just as well really as the chocolate is horrid!). All we had to look forward to was dragging the kids round car shops to try and find ourselves a car. (Easter sunday is not observed around here at all and all the shops are open until around 8, usual practice for all sundays) However, after a trip to a pizza place (where everyone else's kids were so badly behaved it made me yearn for Whale of a Time!) the car thing was sorted out quite quickly. We've decided to lease a new car and much to Phia's delight it's red! Then the sunshine came out in full force and we all went to a funfair for little kids, little gullivers world, and we've all had a lovely day.
The past week itself has been ok. Steve started work and is enjoying it so far (which is a bloody good job really!). He's already busy with plenty of stuff to do and is excited about the prospect of getting his teeth into it. The kids and I also had a busy week. We went egg painting with a group of American women, all of who are not from this part of America, so everyone was new in a way. We also met another English person, yay!, and were invited to hers to play (she has 2 boys, 4 and 3). We also did the library, Spanish class, park visits, Walmart! So we have found our feet a little bit, hopefully as the weeks go by it will get easier.
This Saturday we went on the traditional American easter egg hunt which involved hundreds of children spilling into a field scooping up little plastic eggs full of candy, easter really is all about the candy out here!, and piling as many as possible into their baskets. Phia was great, she got her elbows out and went for it! I was quite scared as couldn't see her in the sea of children and parents weren't allowed in with the 4 year olds so I found it quite uncomfortable. T didn't really get it, Ste was at least allowed in with him, but he was happy with just the one egg! Not surprisingly neither of them liked the candy inside!
On Saturday night we were invited to a bbq at the house of one of Steve's new colleagues. Of course we had to take the kids and they don't have any so we were a bit worried about how it would all turn out. They live up in the hills overlooking the bay (we really do live in such a beautiful area, will be great when we actually have the time to get out and explore) and their house is enormous! Even with the kids in tow and the fact they had 2 enormous dogs (that scared Phia a lot) we had a really lovely evening. It helped that they are British, although have been here for 14 years, our children were very well behaved until 9.30pm and they gave us a bag of tetley teabags to take home (albeit the America version!)
Next week its preschool finding week as really need to get Phia sorted with something to do. She's been a bit all over the place and has been finding it difficult to sleep. Might be something to do with its so hot at night here (god only knows what august will be like, the a/c will so be needed!) but I think its lack of routine and normality so we desperately need to find her some!
Missing home lots especially due to things we're missing, Easter, birthday parties, babies being born! etc etc but determined we will have a good time in the Bay for the time we are here. Lets see what this week brings.....
Sian, if you do send Phia to the afternoon pre-school slot, you may be surprised to find her sleeping, particularly if the days are really hot and she is not sleeping at night...though it would be an expensive gamble!!!
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I am very proud of Phia's elbows and as a reward the Easter bunny will be sending her a baby chocolate bunny next week along with her twin for Tommy
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