Hey, wanna see the lovely photos I took of our Easter Egg Hunt this year?

You Missed A Spot

Look at that. April. If I keep this up, I will have completely caught up by the New Year. Ugh. But anywho…

We’ve started a bit of a tradition here. Just as we did last year, Emily and Cata celebrated the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ by painting a few dozen eggs and then we hiding them the next day in “Charlie’s garden.” Lots of eggs, lots of paint, lots of messes, cute little designs, hunting through bushes, chocolate treats, and eggy destruction. Just click on the following link and be whisked away – you’d swear you were in Nazareth:
**Fancy-shmancy full-screen slideshow**

You know me; I like the theater thing. I try to do it often. Whenever I can, really. It makes me happy. These past seven years have seen me producing and directing, but I still get to do the acting thing on a semi-regular basis. Two shows a year has been the goal (and the average). I’ve been on quite a roll recently and thought that I’d be directing a new show with my company this fall. I even invited my cousin Marli to come all the way from Boston to Spain, stay with us for a few months, and stage manage this next production.

But before I had a chance to make anything official, I received word from the marvelous Jo Marvel that she would be directing an original play of hers this fall and wanted me to audition. Sweet! So I went to the audition last week – which was tons-o-fun – and promptly heard back with the good news that I will be playing Man 2 in the upcoming original production, “The Snapping Turtle’s Lament,” which opens on Friday, November 26. Marli will be stage managing 🙂

We had our first rehearsal this weekend and the group is fantastic – all people whom I know and love, except for one new actress, who fit right in. The play itself is quite surreal, very physical, and deliciously funny. The rehearsal process promises to be challenging and rewarding. I have to eat lots of different things onstage over the course of the show. I hope you all get a chance to see it in November and December when it goes up.

Look for Jocular Theatre to come back with a vengeance in the spring!

Every year at Emily’s school, each nursery class (3, 4, and 5 year olds) gets a cool name. Last year, Emily’s class was known as The Dolphins (Els Dofins, in Catalan). And that’s all we knew. It was only at the end of the first semester that we received, amongst the pack of goodies that made their way home, a description of the class name selection process. We didn’t even know there was a process. It apparently goes like this:

Each kid in the class gets to propose a name. Along with the name, the kids draw a picture of their proposal. The drawings and suggestions are shared with the whole class and the three names that appear most often move on to the next phase. The class discusses each option in detail and then the kids vote on which of the finalists they like best.

I was very impressed to receive a bound booklet describing last year’s process. The booklet included:

• Emily’s original proposal – The Dolphins
• her drawing of a dolphin – which looks more like a bunch of red balloons than a dolphin
• a list of each kid in the class and what they had originally suggested, including The Monkeys, The Penguins, The Butterflies, The Chicks, and The Moons
• the list of the three finalists – The Motorcycles, The Lions, and The Dolphins
• a detailed transcript of the conversations the class had about each finalist – that was hilarious
• a tally of the final vote – Motorcycles: 10, Lions: 4, Dolphins: 11

Yes, Emily’s proposal of Els Dofins reigned victorious and, for the rest of the year, that is how that class was known.

As I said, we had no idea that this process was in place. We were just told one day that Emily’s class was called The Dolphins. They had done the whole process in school. Well, this year the kids were told to go home, think of a proposal, and bring it in the next day. So we got to help.

The Pirates? The Fairies? The Tigers? The Princesses and Princes? The Airplanes? There were so many options! In the end, we settled on The Hedgehogs (Els Eriçons, in Catalan). We are convinced that this is an awesome name and will be so much fun if it gets selected. In retrospect, I don’t think there is a very good chance that any other kid will come in with the name Hedgehogs as their original proposal. So, to sweeten the deal, I sent Emily in to school with her proposal formatted in the following manner:

And if that weren’t enough, I attached this photo to knock it out of the park:

Let’s hear it for The Hedgehogs!!

Hey, wanna see the lovely photos I took when we went to Florida this past February?

Wedding Down On The Farm

Yes, February. I know, I’m a few months behind in uploading my photos and sharing them with y’all. I’m working on it!

Florida provides us the geographically-best vantage point from which to visit most of our family while we’re in The States. I wish it was New York, but it’s Florida. I certainly can’t complain about the winter weather, though. And staying at the homes of my mom, dad, and grandmother is always a treat.

The highlight of our trip (and the very reason for going) was my sister Amanda’s wedding. What a fantastic event! Not only did we get to share in the joy of seeing my little sister get married to a heckuva guy alongside our wonderful family, but the wedding itself was… one of a kind. I’ve gotta admit that, when I heard that they would be getting married in a field… in the middle of nowhere… with pigs and horses… and that some guests would be arriving by ATV… while everyone sat on bales of hay… ending with a huge bonfire… I was a bit skeptical. We’re city folk! But Amanda and Mark’s wedding was one of the most beautiful and personal weddings I have ever had the pleasure of attending. I was even presented with the honor of presiding over the actual wedding ceremony. That was a delightful first for me.

So, anyway… Florida. February. Family. Pools. Sebastian’s first birthday. Wedding. Bales of hay. Just click on the following link and be whisked away:
**Fancy-shmancy full-screen slideshow**

Happy 4th birthday, Emily.

Southern Belle

That is one of my favorite photos. Ever.

Watching Emily sleep in her bed tonight makes me feel all at once proud of the independent little girl who has accomplished so much, and scared to death of the big girl who is growing up so damn fast. She’s a delightfully stubborn and cheeky little girl who knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to tell you what that is.

Bathing Bonkers

Here’s a short set of four-year-old bullet points to give you a glimpse into some of the things our little girl is up to these days:

• Emily is getting much better at adapting to different situations. Whether it’s going to a new class, meeting new people, eating in different restaurants, or sleeping in hotels, she’s much more able to just roll with the punches than she was just six months ago.
• Sebastian will throw toys at Emily. He will wake her up by smacking her head. He will calmly walk up to her, look her in the eyes, and then shove her with all his might. Emily is very patient with Sebastian’s violent tendencies. She’s very good at telling us when Sebastian goes rogue. She’s not so good at actually getting herself out of these dangerous situations.
• As I mentioned in my Mallorca live blogging, Emily is finally getting her head around the whole swimming concept. The fear is diminishing as the confidence and enjoyment increase. She is very proud of herself now that she can swim through the deep end on her own (with a swim belt) and we are very proud of her. She still doesn’t want to get her face wet, though. One step at a time.
• While waiting for the bus the other day, Emily started swinging around a pole – as she does. And then she started counting. To a hundred! Well, she actually gave up at 91 but I’m pretty sure she knew the next few numbers. I had never heard her count past 25 on her own before. That was awesome.
• Emily is eloquent. I forget how well she expresses herself until I see her around other kids her age doing the whole kid-talk thing: poor vocabulary accompanied by lisping and stuttering. I guess I just forget how young she is in general.
• Emily can whistle. She just showed me for the first time while I was writing this. I have no idea how or when that started.
• Taking a shameful page out of her daddy’s book, Emily still isn’t into reading. Sure, she very much looks forward to her bedtime story every night, but that’s probably more of a sleepy routine now. Very rarely will she ever ask to hear a story during the day and I can’t remember the last time she picked up a book to flip through by herself.
• Emily was sooooo eager to be four. For the past few months (a third of her being three), she has been asking us (over and over again) “When will I be four?” “When is my birthday?” “When is September?” “When is the summer going to be over?” She tells us that she’s gonna be a big girl now. Kinda like she was when she turned three. Except now she won’t be the youngest at school. Being big to her means sleeping in a bunk bed and losing some teeth. We told her she can have a bunk bed when Sebastian is old enough to sleep on the bottom bunk. I don’t have the heart to tell her that losing teeth might be a six-year-old thing.

My Bronze Girl

We’ve got a big year ahead of us. Emily will probably be taking swim classes at school. She might begin ballet classes after school. She’ll probably start sharing a bedroom with Sebastian (which means a bunk bed!). She’ll be riding bikes and, if she has her way, rollerblading. She’ll be traveling to Florida, England, New York, and who-knows-where-else. We hope she doesn’t start losing any teeth for another couple of years.

Blushing Bride

Wanna see a couple dozen beautiful photos of our little carrot-top taken over the course of this past year? Well you’re in luck! I just so happen to have a link all prepared to show you just that. Quick, click here:
**Fancy-shmancy full-screen slideshow**

And finally, here’s a video of Emily rocking out to some Beatles while Sebastian joins in on percussion – and wears boots.

Though not officially four years old until Monday, we celebrated Emily’s birthday today as we do every year. And it was just as much fun and just as much of a success as always. Hurray!

Instead of listing the many ways in which this year’s party was the same as every other year, it would be easier to point out the few differences that were noticed. First off, it was much hotter. Note: plan next year’s beach party for 4pm instead of 3pm. Second, there were many more people on the beach around us. This is probably because this is the earliest we have ever celebrated Emily’s birthday and the hordes of tourists have yet to end their summer holiday and travel home. And finally, Jan and I found ourselves spending much of our time and energy chasing (or searching for) Sebastian. That boy is fast and mischievous – a dangerous combination that I would rather not have to chase down the beach.

I’m sure I’ll upload the photos from the party sometime within the next four months. But expect the full Emily birthday blog sometime this week. Four years old!!

Let Them Eat Cake 4

We’ve been back in Barcelona for a few days now, but I have yet to close this chapter of our summer. So here goes. I took fewer detailed notes during our last couple of days in Mallorca so I don’t have as much to blog about. I guess it was about here that I really started to relax.

Saturday

2:00pm – We’re back at the same little beach as Thursday. Today we’re here a little earlier so the sun is actually stretched across the whole beach and not blocked by the impressive cliffs on each side of the cove. Sebastian just knocked down every sand castle he could find and is now happily sitting in a hole that some kid dug. Emily and Cata are watching some little French girl catch fish with a butterfly net and I just spent 15 minutes with Jan’s goggles, watching the schools of fish dart between everyone’s legs in the crystal-clear waters.

5:30pm – The shortest route back from the beach cuts through the pool deck of a neighboring hotel. There are four girls in what appear to be four giant hamster wheels trying to run in the pool. They’re mostly falling down. Emily wants to try it but this isn’t our hotel and we probably shouldn’t stay too long. I want to try it, too.

8:50pm – Inspired from the night before, we’re back at the kiddie disco. Emily and Cata are both up on the stage having a grand old time. It’s funny watching them wiggle their little bottoms.

10:30pm – The week’s debauchery has caught up with me and I have happily volunteered to stay at home tonight on kid patrol while Jan, Isabella, and Andrés paint the town red. I’ll catch up on some work, update my fantasy baseball team, and go to sleep early. I need it.

Sunday

8:00am – I’m already down by the pool with Sebastian and the hordes of German early-morning deckchair claimers are mysteriously absent. They must have gone home yesterday.

10:30am – This is our last full day in Mallorca so we’re gonna try and make the most of it. And by ‘make the most of it’ I mean do absolutely nothing. Just chill by the pool. All day long. Nice.

4:00pm – I couldn’t resist one final game of volleyball on the sand court across the road. The hotel staff count on me now to play any time they schedule a match. I’m happy to oblige. I haven’t played (for real) in such a long time. I can’t wait until everyone gets back from their summer holidays and the games start up at HP again. It really is one of the only things that keeps me from working from home all the time.

Monday

8:00am – Every morning, I take Sebastian down to the restaurant for breakfast at some ungodly hour and he usually eats five bites before needing to run around the entire hotel from pool to playground and back again. I usually have three minutes to eat my own breakfast. Why on Earth have I not thought to eat outside on the terrace where I can comfortably eat and watch him run around at the same time? Oh well, I’ll know for next year. In the meantime, I’m enjoying my breakfast. For once.

12:40pm – The restaurant opens for lunch in five minutes. We’ll then have 15 minutes to eat (and feed the kids) before the bus arrives to bring us to the airport. On your marks…

1:15pm – We’re standing on the sidewalk outside the hotel with all our bags while the kids run everywhichway. The bus is five minutes late. I could have had dessert after my lunch! I’m off to the bar to take final advantage of our “todo incluido” wristbands and get some drinks for the bus ride. One piña colada, one white vermouth, one Cuba Libre, and one orange granizado with rum coming right up!

4:00pm – Our flight is experiencing a slight delay. None of the restaurants in the airport appear to have a corkscrew to open the bottle of wine I just bought in the duty free shop. It was much easier finding a corkscrew in the Barcelona airport when I bought a bottle before we left. Mmmmm… airport drinking!

4:10pm – Never mind, I found one. Crisis averted. Wine is flowing in the waiting area of Gate 86. And we’ve got an entire box of After Eights to get through.

6:00pm – We’ve landed in Barcelona. It’s a beautifully pleasant summer evening. In the immortal words of Emily from the end of our last trip to England, “It’s nice to go on holiday. But it’s also nice to come home.”