Bumps, Bugs Under Rocks and Art

The West End Festival just finished up in Glasgow and we had a fabulous time at some of the activities for the little ones. Last Saturday we took Soren to a Puppet show and yesterday Jason took him to a family arts and crafts program. They were told to bring used glass or plastic containers to paint and there would also be other things to make beautiful. Jason even learned how to make recycled paper.

In the middle of the week I taught 2 dance classed for the festivities and they were loads of fun (and so many showed up)!

weekend update with me

My sleeping schedule is off right now and despite getting so tired during the day, sometimes I just can't go back to bed even when I know I need to.

More rainy days in Glasgow. My friend sent me an email the other day entitled "Another Blustery Day"--and now I'm thinking of Winnie the Pooh and the wisdom of Eeyore. I always felt a bit bad for him but he's such a stalwart and keeps on trucking along. If I were going to take a personality test based on the characters of the show I think I'd be a combination of Tigger and Piglet and a bit of Roo. If you lived with me my choices will probably make more sense (Megan, Michelle and Charla). What Pooh character(s) best describes you?

A couple of months ago my friend Jane graciously gave me some books she had ready for the charity shop. They're awesomely 70's and totally handy for kids. One book is entitled Sculpture and I found a section for making twig art. Soren loves finding twigs and sticks outside and he has a need to use tape whenever he remembers! We gave it a go and made some really cool stuff. He's also been really impressing me with some of his play dough figures. Check out the elephant (my favorite) and the kitty cat.



Soren still has a strong American accent and that doesn't surprise me but it's pointed out to us quite often because people enjoy hearing it (although he has been picking up some really fun sayings). In May I took him with me to the Museum of Religious Art and he said we were going to "pop in for a spell" -- I couldn't believe my ears. He also calls pants "trousers" once in a while and says it's time to "tidy" up (or it's not time for that matter). The other day he said his idea was brilliant!

And. . .at the beginning of this week I was so happy to see my friend Antonella again. She moved to Dublin a while back but came down for a visit. Here's a photo of our lunch at the Loft. Living in the west end of Glasgow is really mom and dad friendly and this restaurant is a perfect example. It's an old theatre turned restaurant--very spacious, hip and there are little cars for the kids to drive around in. Anyway, it was a wonderful time and I miss my friend. Ciao ciao!

Surprise!

I'm 18 weeks pregnant! The icky sicky first months are through and I'm feeling healthy and happy (and tired). My dance classes are winding down for the summer and during July I'll be doing the very minimum with teaching. Hurray!!

Happy Father's Day

We love you, Jason!! Thank you for being such an amazing dad for Soren. He loves you endlessly and is excited every day when you come home from school. I love watching you play with him and hear him laugh so heartily with you.

Happy Father's Day xo

All the ladies in the house. . .

OK lovely ladies, Jason just introduced me to a site called Moms Rising and it's fantastic. Below is a paste from the site that tells about one of their projects. If this interests you, please go to the site and prove McCain wrong with all of your experience and education!

Equal Pay for Equal Work. It's Only Fair.

Yesterday, the Senate failed to pass the Fair Pay Act. What was almost worse than that defeat, were the out-of-touch, old-fashioned--and downright insulting--statements about women. Senator McCain, who didn’t even come to vote, said that instead of legislation allowing women to fight for equal pay, they simply need "education and training."

Lilly Ledbetter, whose Supreme Court case led to the creation of the Fair Pay Act, didn't need "training". She needed Fair Pay. Women today make up 56% of college graduates and nearly half of the labor force in this country. Yet women make only 73 cents to a man's dollar, and mothers only make 60 cents, for the exact same job.

Click here to sign the petition in support of the Fair Pay Act, and to send Senator McCain your resume. Their goal is to send him 100,000.

before and after

Ta Da!! I cut my hair a about a month ago and never got around to posting about it. I hadn't cut it in a very long time (besides the occasional trim and those were minimal). This is the forth time I've gone from long hair to a really short do so I'm over the nervous phase but I always feel bad for the stylist who cuts my hair because I have tons of it. I know it doesn't look incredibly thick but don't be deceived. I've got loads of hair and when I get it cut I feel so free.

PS. The park I'm at in the last photo is Kelvingrove Park near our flat. Isn't it magical? The pink, red, yellow and orange flowers fill my heart with happiness. I'll have to post more photos so you can see all of the vibrant colors.

This weekend was a marathon of fun. I was part of a dance company that put on a baby rave in Edinburgh for families and tailored for the 0-4 age group called Wee Dance Wee Groove. It was such a party for the whole family and I was so tickled to see moms and dads groovin' to the music with their totally cute kids. Seriously, if you want to smile and be happy, bring your little ones to a mom and tot dance class or dance event. There is just something magical about little rockin kids and parents dancing together without inhibition. I love the sort of work I do. Our company was a perfect mix for the occasion with dancers from an array of backgrounds. We had contemporary dancers, hip hoppers, capoeira dancers, break dancers, a drummer, a DJ and even a wonderful girl from the Netherlands who is a hospital clown for ill children. Our group was eclectic and groovy.

Jason brought Soren to the opening session and he was a delight--so excited and full of energy. I wore a scarf in my hair and that made it really easy for him to always spot me in the crowd. He would run back and forth to me and Jason giving us hugs and soaking up the energy of the crowd and giving it right back. After their time at the dance party, Jason took Soren to the Edinburgh zoo and they had stories to tell me of penguins marching and lemurs and more. . .

We met up after I was through for the day and hung out at a beautiful park before taking the train home. . . And we forgot the camera!! If I get some pictures of the event I'll make sure to post them.

Italy Trip Video

Here is a video from our trip.

Pisa and More

Pisa is a perfect place to visit when traveling with children and it was only 2 and a half hours by plane from Prestwick! Our flat was in a fantastic location in the old part of the city (photos below) and it was about a 5 minute walk to the Leaning Tower.

A picture from the window of our funky, artsy, bohemian flat.

I heart old Italian streets.

Above is the street where are flat was located (on the 5th floor mind you--we got a workout to say the least). My manly husband did such a good job carrying all of our luggage up those many flights of stairs.

Our kitchen was fun and colorful too. Below are photos of

La Marina di Pisa.

Florence for the day.



Below are photos of the coast of Cecina and Bibbona. We road our bikes through an amazing forest and arrived on the beach. The ride and the arrival were quite wonderful because while on our journey we had tall pine trees for shade and as we arrived at the beach it was so sun filled and kissed with blue skies.

This is what our beach bungalow looked like in Bibbona (below) and we were about 5 minutes walking from the coast. The town was so darling and family oriented with bikes to rent, forests to ride through, parks for kids and tons of great gelaterias. Seriously, we had the most luscious decadent gelato-- from chocolate to cream and strawberry to baci we were in gelato dreamland. Our time at the bungalow was our favorite part of the trip.

This was our first walk on the beach after we arrived and it was just perfect. At 6pm at night the weather was still nice!

I was in pink and peach terracotta heaven.

Looking out the window at the coast while on our train to Cecina I felt as if I could have cried I was so happy. Going to Italy was like coming home for 2 reasons. First, it is so much like California where I grew up with sunshine, flowers, the beach, friendly people and fresh produce. And secondly, because I lived in Italy and it was my home for a while. I love Italy and the Italian way of life (even the fact that just about everything closes from 1 to 4 pm for lunch). They have a great reverence for lunch, digestion and rest. It was also great fun speaking Italian and meeting people from all over. I heart L'Italia!

PS. Stay tuned for some videos!

We're off to Pisa in the morning! I have more to say but not enough time. . .

Check out the songs below by a band called Golden Shoulders. My sister Charla is singing backup and Get Over is one of my favorites (there's also a song by them on our playlist! They're a really cool band that cute April grew up with (so they have to be cool). Enjoy.