Happy Birthday to Matan!

Today would have been my brother Matan’s 30th birthday. Even though he is not physically with us today, we still celebrated. My mother and I (and Fiona and John) went to the local nursery and bought a tree to plant in Matan’s honor in the front yard. Right now, it is very close to the Jewish holiday Tu BiShvat. To celebrate Tu Bishvat, we plan trees. I remember growing up in Israel that we frequently planted the trees with little signs to honors people, especially those that passed, so it seemed fitting that for Matan’s birthday, we would plant a tree to honor him. We chose a Holiday avocado tree. It is a dwarf avocado, so hopefully it won’t grow bigger than eight or ten feet, and it produces fruit in the fall and early winter, when avocados are not as plentiful. We are going to plant it next week when my dad can be there too.

 

To Matan, I miss you sooooooo much! There is still not a day that goes by that I do not think of you or see or hear something that reminds me of you. I really wish you were here to meet Fiona, because I know that two of you would love each other. The rest of the post is about what we have been up to in the last week.

Here is Fi, having a little tea party in the backyard, drinking Chamomile tea and eating cookies that she made in class last Thursday:

Fiona uses John’s little espresso cups to drink her tea and if you are not holding your cup by the handle, she will remind you to do so:

Here is Fi riding around on the back of the Toddler Towncar with her friend Nano driving:

 

I’m sorry all the photos are fuzzy, John took them all.

Here is, Fi sitting at the table in John’s usual seat, without the booster chair:

 

Fi grabbed a calendar and lay down on the couch to read it like a magazine:

Then she posed with her glasses:

Ever since Sophie visited, Fiona is very interested in wearing her sun glasses.

That thing she is lying on is the cushion from the bench in the front hallway. Fiona likes to remove it and put it somewhere in the living room, then pile lots of blankets on top and call it a bed.

Well, that’s my recap of the last week. You can see Fi is not only growing into a sweet and polite little girl, she is also very silly and full of fun. I wish you were here to see that for yourself.

I love you Matan!

What I Am Going to Miss About My Vacation

Well, it’s Sunday night and I go back to work tomorrow. I’m not looking forward to getting up when it’s still dark outside, being jarred awake by my alarm rather than the natural end of sleep. I will miss leisurely mornings drinking tea, doing the crossword puzzle, chatting with John, and playing Fi. I will miss hiking on a weekday and eating snacks whenever I want. I will miss visits from friends and making dinner every night.

I will miss scenes like this:

And this:

 

Yes, I am in her crib. Occasionally I get in after her nap.

I will miss John being home all day, because once we go back to work, he won’t be home until 6 (or sometimes later). I will miss wearing clothing made from stretchy fabrics all day instead of work clothes, that tend to be stiffer and less snuggle inducing. I will miss working out with my dad at the gym in the middle of day, because I will be at work when he goes.

I will even miss that long day I had in Pasadena, where I got to sit and chat with students outside of class, and get to know them as people other than students.

This vacation felt longer somehow, probably because the last day of school before it started was so unusual. I had so few students that we didn’t do anything academic. We watched movies in another teacher’s classroom during two periods and made angels that I mailed to Connecticut during another. So my last day at work wasn’t spent actually working. Now it’s going to be “back to business” time. At least every week brings me closer to summer vacation.

I will miss doing picture worthy things and having time to blog about them.

Winter vacation time always seems surreal to me. It’s like time is suspended for a couple of weeks and all the responsibilities of work and life disappear. The first day back is always jarring, to say the least, like being tossed into an icy cold lake without warning. Winter vacation is a warm and fuzzy place, where I don’t get paper cuts from grading too many papers and I don’t have to judge a person based on their mathematical ability or lack thereof. Things don’t feel rushed during winter vacation, and everyone seems happy and smiles and says things like “Happy Holidays” or “Happy New Year”. Life is slower, whereas during work, I feel a sense of urgency all the time, and there is not enough time to do everything; I feel like I am running around like a chicken with my head cut off.

OK, I’m going to stop complaining now and be thankful I have a job to go back to.

I hope everyone else had a peaceful and restful holiday season. Real world...here I come!

More Visits from Friends!

This week we had the pleasure of hosting Krista, Dan, and Sophie, who we have not seen since April. Krista and Dan used to visit around New Year’s Eve every year but they missed last year. I think they more than made up for it.

They arrived on Tuesday and left Thursday. During that time we shared meals, laughs, lots of coffee and tea, and time outside. Here are the girls eating a snack on a hike we took:

 

Both girls are fantastic little hikers. Fiona also squatted on her own twice and had no accidents. She loves going outside and does not need help from at all.

Krista and Dan holding hands on the trail:

Looking out at the islands:

  

It was an amazingly clear day, and if I look at the photos full sized on my computer, I can see the arch of Arch Rock on Anacapa Island:

  

Another snack break:

The girls took off by themselves because the adults were dawdling:

 

What a funny family!

Krista read to the girls:

A trip to the park:

We were treated to a lovely chorus when Sophie began to sing and Fi imitated her.

Swinging:

Walking on the pylons:

During the visit, Krista and I had a chance to get away. We got our nails done, shared a biscotti and tea lattes, and went to the supermarket. Those activities seem so mundane until you realize how rarely a person with a child gets to do them alone. For example, I had a pedicure the weekend before Fiona was born. My next pedicure was this August in Texas and this one is the next one. I so rarely get time away during the day, and it was really nice to do it with such a wonderful and close friend.

After Krista, Dan, and Sophie left, the house was so quiet and seemed so empty. I think we were all sad, as we are whenever friends visit and leave. I keep consoling myself with the idea that I will see them again sometime this year and that in the meantime, another friend is moving much closer (I’m looking at you Jen).

Fiona and Sophie got along really well and I think they had a good time. Fiona has asked about Sophie and Krista (sorry Dan) several times today. She always has fun and learns so much from Sophie.

Safe travels dear friends! Enjoy your family vacation and have a safe trip back to Hamburg! (for Krista, at first I accidentally typed HUMburg) And Stay warm!