Georges On My Mind

Catriona's 4th Birthday

It's been a long time since Catriona started reminding us that she had the next birthday and her number would then be four.

We celebrated on the day with a visit from Granny Moira, Grandpa Nin, Auntie Jill and Uncle Mike. And then on the Monday after we had a big party at the local soft play place with all my friends. Mummy and Granny Moira made the big No. 4 cake.

One plus to turning four is that Catriona is now old enough to ride at the local stables. Her big present this year from Mummy and Daddy is a series of riding lessons.

Who's That...

sittin' on my lap?
There's someone special
sittin' on my lap

It's Dan-iel
sittin' on my lap
and he's just the one I want to play with

Halloween 2005

We hosted our second annual Halloween party this year, complete with lots of kids in very clever costumes (and Daniel, who refused to wear his).

Of course, the backbone to any good Halloween party is lots of pumpkins. Here's the pumpkin picking crew this year out in the fields at Garson's Farms.

And it looks like Lesley's got herself a nice pair, as well!

A London Day with Gran Jan

While Gran Jan was here, we also took in some of the local sights, including one of our favourtie things - walking down the South Bank.

The kids on a giant world map, pointing out their birthplaces

At Play In The Garden Of England

Grandma Jan came over to visit us this autumn and brought with her the desire to see some English history.

We made trips to Leeds Castle and to Winchester and Chichester along with Weald and Downland Open Air Museum, which we visited during their Autumn Countryside Celebration.

Catriona at Winchester City Mill

Dan with Gran Jan at Chichester Cathedral

Harvest Weekend

In September, we took a walk in the Kent countryside, following a marked route through some lovely countryside full of apple orchards.

The walk was a point-to-point walk of six miles, which was as far as we thought we could manage with the children. There were two villages with pubs en route from which we could bail, if necessary.

But in the end we managed the entire distance, covering the six miles in a little over eight hours. Thank goodness we left early enough. It was a long exhausting day, but the kids held up well and we had a real slice of the English harvest, foraging for apples, pears and blackberries right along the trail (where appropriate, of course).

The next day we visited a working hop farm on the Kent / Sussex border. We watched the whole harvest process and also visited a nearby processing plant. We bought some hops on the vine and brought them home for use as decoration and in the brewery.

Scotland Again

Lesley and the kids were in Scotland again in August, making a round of visits with friends and family before Steve joined them in Edinburgh for a weekend with Mo and Mal at the Festival.

Helping with the washing at Granny's house

Dan gets a lift from Grandad

The kids at play on the beach at Aberdeen:

Italy - July 2005

We spent two lovely weeks in Italy this summer. We figured if we were all going to decamp, we ought to make the most of it, so we had a two-centre holiday in Tuscany and on the Amalfi Coast.

The farm where we stayed grew vines and olives as well as holidaymakers by the pool.
The honour system let you pick chianti classico and extra virgin olive oil from the farm's shop.

In Tuscany, we based ourselves on a farm near Greve-in-Chianti. This was the ideal launching point for day trips to Florence and San Gimignano as well as some more rural turismo and some plain ol' relaxing (see swimming pool).

On the streets of San Gimignano

We've been to Panzano several times, but this was the first we've actually made it to their famous butcher, Da Cecchini. It's easy to go crazy in a place like that. We took away his wonderful bistecca and some porchetta, along with tummies full of samples of his wares.

The church steps in Panzano (there's a wonderful little cafe nearby).

Week Two, after a long day's drive, was spent in Ravello.

View from our flat in Ravello

Oh, there's something I ought to mention. Our travelling companion...

...chicken pox.

When we left, there was a strong likelihood that Catriona had been infected at school. She was. But she got a very mild case. You would hardly know.

Never mind. Daniel made up for it.

He had them everywhere. He had them in places you would rather not know. He had pox on pox. He had plenty of energy, but he was clearly uncomfortable.

You toy with the ethics of this... we were already there. We kept to ourselves. We let others know that he was infected. Some people were way too helpful. Others gave us a bit of space. Others were "nevermind" about it. Been there already, I guess. What we really insisted upon was not letting it ruin our holiday and trying not to ruin anyone else's.

Fortunately, most people were understanding, and we continued to have a great time.

When we were planning the trip, we had told Catriona and Daniel that Italy was the land of pasta and that they could eat it every day if they wanted to. They did...at least once every day.

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The kids' dream - a pasta shop - Naples

From Ravello, we had a day trip to Capri and another to Naples, but one thing you learn on the Amalfi Coast is that it's good to go slow. It's good to leave your car behind.

A car trip means hassles. Narrow roads. Traffic. Exorbitant parking charges.

There's a bus. It's a good deal. It always worked for us.

And then, there's, well, your feet.

Our flat was up 40 steps, or down 140, depending on your point of view. Up 40 from some of the only free parking in Ravello (park car, do not move). Down 140 from the town square in Ravello. We braved that journey with the kids nearly every day (Daniel: "step, step, big step"), and most journeys commenced there.

One day we decided to do the opposite and go down. Our hosts had told us that the only way to really see the Amalfi Coast was to walk, because the roads missed out on so much. So we did.

We set out from Ravello for the shortish walk to Minori, on the coast below (if you look at the view from our flat, it's the town you see in the hills below, at sea level).

At first, this seemed like a bad idea. Lots and lots of steps and it didn't take long for the kids to want to be carried. We wondered how long it might take to get down to the beach, and if we would ever get home. We took lots of rest breaks. We drank our water.

But it all worked out really well. We walked past lemon 'groves', lots of fresh food, farmers in their hillside fields, spectacular views. And then we came to town; the cemetery at the highest point, and then down through the market, down the high street and all the way to the beach, where we had a great pasta lunch (see above) and spent the afternoon in the sun (see below) before catching two buses on home.

Our last night in Ravello proved really special. We took in the Wagner concert at the Ravello festival. We lucked out in so many ways, finding tickets, finding a babysitter, catching a beatiful full moonrise and then walking home, just the grown-ups, down our 140 steps home to drink a toast of the last of the Tuscan wine and put the finishing touches on our suitcases before our early start the next morning and our long journey home.

A Quick Snapshot

Recent snaps from Italy...more to come soon, we promise!

Catriona at WOMAD

We went to the WOMAD festival at Reading this year. It was a chilly day and typical of the English summer it finally gave in and had a good rain.

Catriona had a lovely time, making a kite, dancing to the music and getting her face painted.

We were all there, but these were the best of the photos, all of Catriona:

Summer Harvest

Daniel and Lesley bring in a good crop of lettuces fresh from our garden