Christmas playtime

With some of the prezzies opened, it was time for boys to play Dr. Who..

...girls to go all DS...

...and dinosaurs to roam the hall-way....

More at Picasa

Christmas Dinner

Good grub & fine wine

The company of family...

...and loved ones

Oh. And a pudding on fire....

Christmas Morning

This was the tree before the chaos started.



Check out Picasa to see how things continued....

Waiting Patiently???

Just before retiring to bed on Christmas Eve three excited children put a mice pie and whiskey out for Santa, and a carrot for Rudolf.

We do hope they'll drop by....

The O'Reillys Track Santa...

With the help of NORAD we're keeping an eye on where the big man with the red suit is; minute by minute.

Treading the boards

Pinky & Perky prove to be a couple of thesps as they join the rest of the school for the Christmas Panto.

Rosie as a narrator, Thomas as a shepherd.

Cheesy Grins

With the festive season around the corner, the troublesome trio practice their gurning*, with the view to improving the prezzie count


*A gurn is a distorted facial expression, and a verb to describe the action.

Flood. Again.

Another down-pour, and another excuse to go paddling in the ford, whilst we await a passing idiot drowning their car.



We had fun paddling, in near darkness, but the idiots failed us this time.

Brrrr

Nuff Said..



(and yes, that's 10 am)

Mike Wazowski

Thomas' homework for the weekend - cover his new phonics book. When asked what he wanted to cover it with he said, over & over again, Mike Wazowski.

And so it was. Mike Wazowski, Mike Wazowski, Mike Wazowski.

http://www.disney.co.uk/DisneyVideos/monsters/

Suffolk Hols

A great week in Suffolk.

Such great places

Aldeburgh, Orford, Snape, Soutwold, Stowmarket, Sutton Hoo, Thorpness, Walberswick

Nanny and Grandad were worn out due to the daily activities; and the early morning alarms calls from their Grandchildren.

For more photos see Picasa.

Joseph Walks

here he is; streetwise and struttin' to his favourite rap!

Two Stroke Sunday. Again.

...or should that be scooter Sunday??

An unusual number of small-wheeled Italian strokers at today's gathering. Along with a fine selection of RDs and the like. Plus a fair few diesels, including a genuine ex US police force bike.

For more pictures go to Picasa Two Stroke Sunday

Rosie & Joseph enjoyed the commotion - Thomas stayed at home!!

On Two Legs

There may be trouble ahead....

...Joseph is walking!

A day-trip in the air

Thomas was fortunate to win first raffle prize at the school summer fair. And the prize?? A pleasure flight in a light aircraft back over the school.

So today was the day. Daddy, Thomas & Rosie drove down to Wellesbourne Mountford Airfield and climbed aboard a Cessna 172M Skyhawk, flown by Chief Pilot Ian Sixsmith of British Eagle. Thomas got a seat in the front, so was co-pilot for the day.

After pre-flight checks we taxied out to RWY 18, and were cleared to take-off.

The route took us from Wellesbourne, past Southam and Leamington Hastings (right over the school), and up to Grandborough where we circled our house. Then we flew back past the school, and even spotted Joseph's nursery in Bishop's Itchington.

And around half an hour after take off, we bounced gracefully back onto the runway at Wellesbourne.

A big thanks to the Friends of Leamington Hastings School for organising such a cool prize. And thanks also to Chief Pilot Ian Sixsmith and British Eagle.

More photos can be found here

A Summer Morning

"Woke up, got out of bed
Dragged a comb across my head
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup
And looking up, i noticed i was late"


....then I got to the car.

Ah; the joy of an English Summer Morning....

A night in Guardamar

This evening we slipped into Guardamar to go to the fair. The first challenge was finding a parking space - given half of Madrid are in residence.



Then yet another Chinese meal.

And then onto the fair to shake all the noodles up on the rides. Surprisingly the kids weren't sick!!

El Pinós

A trip inland brought us to the town of El Pinós, about ½ hr drive from Alicante.

The town was preparing for it's fiesta (well, it's that time of year).

We had an explore, and on top of the hill found the Torre de Reloj

Fiesta!

It's party time in Quesada, and fancy costumes are all the rage, as is dancing in the street

It may be very late, but Rosie doesn't mind..

On The Beach

At Playa de La Marina we discovered that Joseph is quite partial to a dip in the briny....

Phew

Just another July evening; the town prepares for the fiesta and temperatures still swelter.

On The Beach

A day in the blazing sun at Pilar de la Horadada, where the water was more than warm enough for a dip.



Pinky & Perky indulged in that great British habit of building sand castles. Meanwhile, being on a day off, uncle David went all rastarfarian.



Wat gwaan?

Another BBQ

Another sunny day; another barbecue. The food went down well, despite Thomas & Sam fighting over the last sausage !


Grandma had just the one glass of vino, whilst the kids tucked into yet more ice cream.

Ni hao ma; ni hao ma; ni hao ma; zaijien *

I like Chinese.
I like Chinese.
Their food is guaranteed to please,
A fourteen, a seven, a nine, and lychees.

Click on picture to see the whole table-full

* Ni hao ma; ni hao ma; ni hao ma; zaijien = "How are you; how are you; how are you; goodbye" in Chinese

One Boy And His Dog

Overcoming his fear of canines, Thomas took command of Dodger the Dog, for a trip into the woods, including a picnic and a bear-hunt.

Tooth Missing

Another first; Rosie lost her first tooth today. Later in the evening the tooth fairy cam and left €1.25.

Wo ai zhongguo ren*

No trip to Spain is complete without a visit to the Chinese. This time Joseph extended his appetite beyond just prawn crackers.

All together now...
I like Chinese food.
The waiters never are rude.
Think of the many things they've done to impress.
There's Maoism, Taoism, I Ching, and Chess.

*Wo ai zhongguo ren = "I like Chinese" in Chinese