Skiing

After spending the first day on skis pulling the kids around the driveway we decided they were ready for a slight hill. With so much snow at Jason's parents house this was easy to find. We went out beyond the driveway where the snow had built up even more from snow blowing and started the kids at the top. One of us would be at the top of the hill and one of us at the bottom to catch the kids as they came down. The kids had fun going down the hill but again after a little while asked to sled. I wasn't worried about that though since they seemed to have so much fun skiing I think it was more of their attention span rather than not wanting to ski. The following day Jason and I had to return the skis but before we were ready to leave Sofia asked to ski again. We jumped at the chance to encourage her desire to ski. We quickly geared up and headed outside. Again the kids had fun. It was a very successful first time on skis experience! Here are some videos of the girls skiing.

Bye Bye RI

The girls and I had a great week in RI. We got to see all of our family which was fun. The girls really loved staying with grandma and grandpa. We did a lot of shopping which grew old for the girls so then we just had a day of doing nothing. The girls enjoyed staying in their pajamas all day. It was nice to see the girls playing with their cousins too. They had so much fun playing together that the girls were sad everytime we had to leave them. It was nice to be back in RI and see all things familiar. I also got in a couple runs which is something I never thought I would do. I used to think running was crazy nevermind running while on vacation! IT was nie to get out and run though. It made me aware of the difference between running in Prague and running in RI. As I ran, every car that passed me would give me the quick wave. I like this and it made me happy. It makes you feel part of the local community. This would NEVER happen in Prague. It doesn't bother me that it doesn't happen in Prague but it was nice to have it in RI. Also as I was running there was a guy riding his bike that slowed down to have a quick chat! It was definitely a different experience to run in RI.

We left RI on Friday morning and headed to NH to meet up with a friend and to stop at the kids pediatrician since Ali had had a fever for a few days and I suspected an ear infections. We drove up to NH in the snow and came close to being in two car accidents but luckily my mom is good at driving in the snow and we didn't actually get into any accidents. I'm glad we went to the pediatrician though b/c Ali had ear infections in both ears. It also gave me the chance to ask our pediatrician what his thoughts were on having Sofia's adenoids out. I feel more comofrtable with making the appointment now then I did before so we will call our pediatrician in Prague once we are back.

Anyway, Jason met us in NH and we transfered everything from my mom's car to our car and headed up to Maine. We stayed at my brother's condo up at Sunday River on Friday night and skied on Saturday. It was great to be back on the slopes. I was a little shakey at first but once we headed into the glades it all came back....something about not wanting to hit a tree makes the legs work properly! Hahaha. We had a great day of skiing and the snow conditions were excellent. It was a bit windy and at one point, while on top of the mountain, the wind actually blew me backwards but other than that it was the perfect day. I think we will get in one more day of skiing while we are here. I had hoped to squeeze in 3 days of skiing but we just don't have the time.

After renting skis for the girls to start skiing on we headed to Jason's parent's house. We are here for the remainder of our time in the States. The yard is covered in snow (which comes up to about the middle of the livingroom windows!) so we have already gotten the kids on skis and pulled them down the driveway. They both seem to like it but of course grew bored of it so we switched to snowshoeing and sledding. We will get them back out there today for a little more skiing, snowshoeing and sledding. Jason and I have already hit the outlets and had good luck. Now I just have to go to the grocery store and stock up on all my food supplies. I'll have those two extra duffle bags full very soon!

Enjoying vacation

After making the plane ride to Boston and figuring out how to install new car seats from the car rental company we made it to my parent's house. We arrived about midnight on Thursday and the kids were exhausted. We carried them straight to bed and soon after found our own beds. We have been busy since we arrived. On friday morning we made the drive to NH (about 2 hours) so that we could see some friends and get my license renewed. Even though we aren't living in NH anymore I had called to see if it was still possible to hold a NH license since I don't technically have a residence anywhere in the U.S. and I was told yes that I could just use my last Nh address. I thought, great, then it shouldn't be a problem. Jason had come back in September and had done the same thing without a problem. Unfortunately for me I got the grumpy DMV worker and was told I could not have a NH license. Needless to say I was a little annoyed. People get annoyed about the beaurcracy in teh Czech Republic but I get annoyed with the US beaurcracy. I feel like we are U.S. citizens in limbo since we don't have an actual residence here. I asked the woman at the DMV where she would suggest I get a license and she said she didn't know but just not NH. I thanked her and left. At least the trip wasn't a waste since we got to stop and see my friend Melissa and her husband and two beautiful children. It was fun to talk to them and hang out. Unfortunately we didn't have that much time since we needed to make the 2 hour drive back to RI to have dinner at my brother's house at 6pm. We made it back had a great dinner and the kids had a blast playing with their cousins, Michael and Johnathon. We got home and once again carried the girls up to their beds since we got home late and they fell asleep in the car.

Yesterday we celebrated my mother's 60th birthday. It was fun to see all my aunts and uncles and cousins. The girls had a blast playing with their cousins again too. After the party we headed an hour north to Massachusetts to visit Jason's brother and his family. We had a nice dinner and the kids were thrilled to play with their "big kid" cousins, Alex and Justin. It was nice to see the new addition to the family, Kiera. She was so cute and was sleeping almost the entire time we were there. I hope that continues for their sake! Today is the first day that we have really had to just relax. It has been nice. I'm off to play outside in the yard. It is nice to be able to just walk out the back door and be in the grass.

Preparing for travel

This week has been a week of preparing for travel. While we are away our landlords are having a new kitchen put in to our flat. In case you don't remember our kitchen cabinets fell off the wall just before Christmas so we really need a new kitchen. I am really looking forward to coming back to a real kitchen. We have gotten by for 3 months with out cabinets but it has grown tiresome. In order to be ready for the new kitchen we have had to remove everything from the current kitchen. I am almost done with this task now and I will finish it this morning. I have finished the laundry, which seemed to take forever to complete. I will pack all the clothes for the girls and myself today. It doesn't seem real that we are going back to the U.S. for a visit yet this trip has required the most effort in terms of prep. I'm looking forward to this trip. In addition to looking forward to seeing my family, I'm also looking forward to the big box stores (Walmart, Target) as well as all the outlets. Jason keeps joking that I am going to need a shipment container with all the things I plan on buying. Oh well! I'm going to enjoy myself and buy the things we "need". Besides, with the declining dollar it is getting cheaper everyday to buy things in the States!

Our restaurant...

Jason and I have our favorite restaurant in Prague that we go to quite frequently. I have written about it before but I needed to post about it again. This week Jason and I didn't know where we were going to go for dinner and we pretty much decided as we were on the metro going into town on Friday night. So, we showed up at "our" restaurant without a reservation. We were surprised to see that it was quite busy so early in the night since it doesn't usually get busy until later. There was another couple who had arrived before us so we weren't sure if we were going to be able to get a table. Fortunately for us we are known at this restaurant. The owner saw us and waved us in, "Prego, Prego, Prego." He immediately brought us in and gave us a table. I love being known at a restaurant. Of course, we had another excellent meal. Jason and I are always trying different main courses on the menu and we have never been disappointed. This week we tried the veal saltimbocca. It was outstanding. I think it is the best I have ever had. We lingered over our meal and wine and thoroughly enjoyed our night. One of the many things I love about this restaurant is that we can comfortably pass 2-3 hours over dinner and not feel rushed. Here is a picture of the owner and his son (at least we think it is his son.). It is definitely a family restaurant so we usually see the son and daughter as well.

Easter Egg Hunt

Today was the Easter Egg Hunt held by Sofia's school. Sofia was excited to go to the hunt and so was I. I have never been to an Easter egg hunt so I wasn't sure what to expect. The day was beautiful and we happily headed out to the Suchdol Woods. We hopped on the bus that we take to Sofia's school but stayed on it for 3 more stops. We got off and walked to the woods. At the entrance to the woods we collected our bags (to collect candy) as well as our map of the wood trails. We met up with Sofia's friend, Elisabetta, and her brother and parents and walked through the woods together. It was fun for the kids to be together and it was nice for the parents to get to talk while we walked through the woods. At each candy station the kids had to answer questions in order to receive their candy. At one station the kids had to choose a song to sing and then we all had to sing together. Twice we came upon two different "rabbits". Two of the teachers were dressed up as rabbits and gave the kids more candy. Sofia was a little nervous until she realized the white rabbit was Mr Chisholm whom she loves. (We don't know who was in the brown rabbit costume but Sofia tells us it was a high school teacher. ) Ali couldn't be convinced though and was very afraid of the rabbits. Chocolate couldn't convince Ali to go to the rabbit so we just moved on. At the end of the hunt there was a small BBQ so we sat in the sun on the edge of the woods and enjoyed drinks and hot dogs. The kids played together and had a great time. It still makes me laugh how beer is available at any event in Prague. We would never have a school event in the U.S. where beer would be available but here is Prague it does not stand out as anything strange. In any event everyone had a great time and no one (including the parents) wanted to leave when it was time to go.

Click here to see more pictures of the Easter Egg Hunt

Sitting by the river

I picked Sofia up from school the other day and was going to let her play in the school yard since the weather was nice but another mom asked if we wanted to join them by the river. I thought this sounded like a great idea so we headed over to the river with them. We stopped at the local potraviny (mini market) and picked up some food for the girls and headed to the bench by the river. It was so peaceful. We through some bread for the ducks but mostly the girls sat on the bench and ate their snacks and Susanna (the other mom) and I got to chat. It was nice to get to talk to her. Unfortunately we won't have many more trips to the river since she will be moving at the end of the school year to Stockholm. This is a downside to being an ex-pat - friends are always leaving for their next assignment.

Sofia's Party

Sofia had a GREAT time at her party. We got up this morning and got ready to go. I picked up the cake and loaded up the stroller and headed into town. We got there a little early and had to wait for the play place to open but we waited inside at the coffee area of the restaurant while Jason went to his office and picked up more of the party supplies. My friend Joanna and her husband, Lukas showed up early with their daughter so that Lukas could help Jason get the supplies from his office and Joanna could watch the kids while I set up. It worked out great to have them there. It was nice not to have to worry about watching the girls while I was trying to set up and it was also very helpful to have Lukas there since he could translate for me. The woman who runs the play area doesn't speak English so it was nice to have Lukas there to translate. It would have worked out if he wasn't but it was easier and we appreciated his help. Anyway, we got everything set up and all of Sofia's friends started to show up. The location was perfect since the kids could all play in one room which made it easy to keep an eye on them. Sofia really liked her princess cake and when it was time to cut the cake all the kids had a request for which princess they wanted. Luckily, I cut the cake and my friend, Kirsty, just handed them out no questions asked. Once there was a piece of chocolate cake in front of them there were no complaints about not getting the requested princess. It was funny to watch present opening time. All the kids gathered around and "helped" open the presents. I was frantically trying to see who the presents were from so that we could write thank you notes. I think we managed to write down all the gifts and names. I feel like the party was a whirlwind and I didn't get to talk with anyone but I think everyone had a good time. Thankfully our friends, Phil and Shanna, gave Jason a ride home with all our stuff so we didn't have to worry about how we were going to get everything back home. We are home now and I have put everything away. (Well, not the toys b/c Sofia is playing with all of them right now.) I figured I would write this before I relaxed for the day. I'm exhausted and once I stop I'm not going to be doing anything for the remainder of the day! Thankyou to everyone for coming and making Sofia's party great!

Click here to see more photos from Sofia's big party and her quiet celebration at home.

Party Preparation

Today is the day before Sofia's party and I am in party prep mode. This is the first party I will have to have at a location other than my home. I am realizing it is a lot more work! Of course the stress is compounded since we don't have a car since now we need to figure out the logistics of getting everything to the party site. We have had friends offer to drive us over with all the stuff but that adds another layer of organization that I was just not ready for so Jason and I are working it out on our own. I have made he fruit salad and cut the veggies and have them ready in Tupperware. Luckily I had cleaned out the fridge a couple days ago and I don't go grocery shopping until Sunday so we have some space in the fridge for the Tupperware. Jason is purchasing all the drinks today and storing them at his desk so that tomorrow we can walk down the road from the party location and get them rather than dragging them into town with us in the morning. Tonight we will drop off all the party supplies (hats, blower things, plates, napkins, plastic ware, favors, etc.) in Jason's office as well before we go out for dinner. I think everything is falling into place. Keep your fingers crossed that we can get everything done tomorrow morning before the party starts so that the party goes off with out a hitch. With 17 kids I'm sure it will be complete mayhem so I'm sure Sofia will have a blast even if I don't get everything perfect. I will post tomorrow (if I'm not too exhausted) to let you know how the party went and I will post pictures as well.

Benadryl

This weekend we found out there is no equivalent to Benadryl available in the Czech Republic. They have other antihistamines like Claratin but no benadryl. Needless to say we were very disappointed. I should say, Jason was disappointed since he was the one in need of benadryl. I have always been careful with laundry soap since, as a little girl, I had issues with different soaps giving me rashes. I was relieved when we moved here and Tide was available. It costs more than local soaps but I didn't care. I didn't want to risk a rash. Anyway, the last time I went to the store they didn't have the same kind of Tide I had been buying so I decided to just choose a different kind of Tide. BIG MISTAKE!! Jason was allergic to the new detergent. We are now using baby detergent and I am rewashing all our clothes. I will also be bringing Benadryl back with us when we go back to the US for a visit.

Happy Birthday Sofia!!!

Sofia turned 4 today at 6:17am EST (12:17pm Prague time). It is unbelievable to me that she has been here for 4 years. The last 4 years have seen a lot of changes and I feel like she changes every day. I was thrilled when she said to me today, "Mommy, I'm 4 now so now I'm a big girl and will always listen to you.". I know there is no way that will be maintained but it is a nice thing to hear. I sent cupcakes in to school with Sofia today and she had a good day with her friends at school. They sang her happy birthday and she had a great day. We let Sofia choose what she wanted for her birthday dinner and she chose Pad Thai! Who would have thought Pad Thai would be a favorite food of a 4 year old. In addition to the Pad Thai request she also requested chopsticks to eat her pad thai and she did a very good job with them. We opened presents before dinner and Sofia was very excited about all her presents. It will be interesting to see how excited she gets on Saturday when we have her birthday party with all her friends.

MythBusters

Here is a nice picture of Jason with the girls. What are they doing you wonder? Well, Jason has captured the girls interest with the TV show MythBusters. Jason loves this show. I, too, think it is a good show but it is one of Jason's favorite shows. When I came back from grocery shopping today I saw the girls sitting with Jason watching a show. I assumed it was some kids show until Sofia told me it was MythBusters. I was surprised that they were so into the show but they were really seeming to enjoy it. After dinner tonight and before bed the kids requested to watch a show and what did they want?? MythBusters!! I think Jason is in heaven. :)

Happy Birthday Shanna!

Last night a bunch of us went out to celebrate our friend Shanna's birthday. Shanna is a great friend to all of us and it was a joy to celebrate her birthday with her. There were 14 ladies, including Shanna, who came to celebrate and we had a great time. We had tried to make reservations at a vegetarian restaurant which I was excited about since the menu had sounded good but they were full so we went to my favorite Italian restaurant in Prague. It is probably just my favorite restaurant. I don't think I need to qualify it as my favorite Italian restaurant. I love the food. I love the interior. I love the service with the family attitude. It is a restaurant that Jason and I go to quite often so when I walked in last night the owner looked at me and said, "Maria?" I had to tell him that I was there with my friends tonight. I had to laugh when the owner would ask me questions for the group. I love having a restaurant that I am known at especially this restaurant that I love so much. Everyone seemed to have a great time and enjoyed their food and drink.

After school play

Sofia has been going to school full time now since the beginning of January. She is so happy staying the full day and greets me at the end of the day with a big hug and smile. It is so much more pleasant to pick her up from school. With the weather being a bit warmer this week we have been staying at school for an extra 30-45 minutes every day so that Sofia can play with her friend Anna. They have a blast running around the school yard together. It is so nice to see Sofia developing friendships. Ali tries to keep up but she often goes over to the nursery section of the playground and plays by herself. It is nice for them to have time to play and burn some energy and it is nice for me too since it gives me time to talk with the other moms. By the time we leave school and get home it is around 4:15ish and the girls are ready for pajamas. It has been great to exhaust the girls since when it is time for bedtime they both go right to sleep.

Scholastic book order

I was so excited today when I was reading the info board in Sofia's classroom. The teachers will soon be sending home the scholastic book order forms with the kids. If there had been people around they probably would have laughed at my joy since it was probably greater than most. I have such fond memories of the scholastic book order forms. I remember bringing them home from school and agonizing over it to figure out what books I wanted since I knew I couldn't get them all. I am looking forward to going over the book selection with Sofia. Now, just like when I was little, I will anxiously await the order form.

Corn Flakes

In the U.S. there is an entire aisle devoted to cereal. You can have sweetened, unsweetened, corn, wheat, rice, bran etc....whatever your heart desires. Here the cereal choices are VERY limited and the majority of them are sweetened cereal. The one cereal that you can get that isn't sweetened is corn flakes. (You can get rice krispies and grape nuts at the British shop if you want to spend a lot of money) I have tried the few brands of corn flakes that are available and they are all terrible! I feel that in the U.S. when you buy corn flakes they don't really have that much flavor but here they really taste like corn. The corn flavor is really overwhelming. In any event, I have had a couple of bags of corn flakes sitting here for quite some time that no one will eat. I have finally found a use for the corn flakes. I can make a dessert with the corn flakes. Two of the British moms in Sofia's class had told me to just melt chocolate in a pan and stir in the corn flakes then drop them on balls into muffin cups and let them cool so that the chocolate solidifies again. It is really quite tasty. It gives the chocolate a nice crunch to it. I'm happy that I have some way of using up the corn flakes now!

Oscar

I forgot to post about Oscar. Who is Oscar? Well, Oscar is the Sofia's nursery class pet. Every weekend Oscar gets to go home with one student. The best thing about Oscar for parents is that Oscar is a stuffed animal! Sofia had a great time taking care of Oscar. She had to brush his teeth every morning and night. She also tucked him into bed at night. She also got to take Oscar wherever we went. This was a little stressful for me since I didn't want to be the parent that lost Oscar! At the end of the weekend we wrote in Oscar's diary so that the next child to take Oscar home can read all about Oscar's travels. Here is a picture of the girls riding their bikes with Oscar.

Beautiful Sunday

Sunday was a fantastic day. We woke up to clear blue skies, which after a long winter of gray skies, was really a treat. We decided to head out and enjoy the outdoors. We got the kids dressed and decided to go to the zoo. We took the bus to the boat crossing and then walked to the zoo. It was such a beautiful day and warm that we had to keep shedding layers on the way to the zoo. By the time we were at the zoo we all had our coats off and our sleeves pushed up. The girls enjoyed seeing all the animals at the zoo. Ali and I had been to the zoo recently but Jason and Sofia hadn't been to the zoo since last fall so it was fun for us all to see it together. The zoo was quite crowded since everyone had the same idea as us but it didn't matter since it was just nice to walk around outside. We used one of the wagons at the zoo so the kids wouldn't get too tired walking around. They both enjoyed sitting in the wagon. The kids didn't want to leave in the afternoon but after a couple hours at the zoo we knew it was time to head home. We enjoyed our walk on the bike path back to the boat crossing and came home for a little rest before heading out to church. After church we enjoyed dinner at a pizza place near our church and then home to put the kids in bed. It was a very busy day but fun. It really makes me look forward to summer.

I see the light!!

There have been signs around us that spring is coming. Every day on the way home from school we stop at multiple flower beds and see how many tulips have started coming up. They have the beds covered in evergreen branches acting as a sort of mulch, I assume, so we can't see all of the tulips that are coming up but we can see the ones on the edges of the flower beds. The girls really enjoying finding them. Tulips are such a sign of spring to me as well that I love seeing them. What really shouted SPRING to me though was when I went for my run on Monday it was light enough out to run in the park. I don't run through the park in the winter since it is too dark. I stick to the sidewalks on the roads where there are street lights and cars going by during the winter. I know that odds are I would be fine running in the park in the dark but I just feel safer in the light. So, when I went for my run on Monday I started out on my winter route and then realized it was light out. I was so excited I quickly changed routes and headed to the park. I hadn't realized how much I had missed running in the park. Watson likes the park as well since he can be off leash for a much longer period than when I just run the roads. I am happy that spring is coming. Living in a city and not being able to ski makes for a long winter!

Watson...

This morning Watson and I went for a nice long walk. I didn't feel like running but wanted Watson to have some outside time so we walked to Stromovka Park. Watson loves Stromovka and he runs all over the place. Today he got in a little fight with another dog. I find this annoying since if your dog is a dog that doesn't get along with other dogs then that dog should be on leash at all times. By letting your dog off leash you are essentially saying, "my dog is safe to play with." Well one dog that we came across today who was off leash was not nice and I quickly called Watson back to me. I gave him a quick check and saw that he was ok so I continued on my way. The other dogs owner didn't even seem to register that anything had happened and never looked at me so I couldn't even give her a dirty look. Oh well, i figured Watson wasn't hurt so I would just move on. Well, once we were home and I went out to do errands and then came home again I noticed Watson had something on his snout. That mean dog had actually bitten Watson!! I was very angry when I realized he had been bitten. I called our vet but they were closing and couldn't see him. I called a number I had for a non-stop vet and it was basically a vet on wheels. She told me it would cost 2,000Kc to have her come to our apartment. I asked her if there was any place I could bring him so that it would cost less. She was very helpful and Watson and I headed to the bus to go to a new vet. The bus trip was easy and the vet was very nice. Watson now has antibiotics and we have to disinfect his bite 4-5 times a day. I have to bring him back on Monday so they can recheck him.

The only upside of this whole story (besides knowing there is a non-stop vet we can go to if needed) was I learned a new bus route. When we first moved here and had to get our physicals done to get insurance we had to go to Motol hospital. The only way I knew to get there took us 45 minutes if we caught all the trams/buses on time. I realized today that I could have taken a bus to Motol and been there in 10 minutes! It is good to now there is an easy way to get to the hospital.

My brain hurts....

No, the kitchen didn't fall on me again. My brain hurts because I have a new Czech teacher. My previous teacher is in France for 4 months on a school scholarship and has set me up with one her friends to continue my lessons. I met with my new teacher tonight. She is a hard @ss!!!! This is good in that I will most likely learn more Czech at a faster rate but it also means I am going to have to put in a lot more effort to be ready for each weeks lesson. She made me speak almost the entire lesson in Czech tonight and my brain is hurting. I feel like even my eyes hurt from having to concentrate so hard. Wish me luck with my new drill Sargent...oops, I mean teacher!


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How to Eat Food

Not to sound like Martha Stewart but being here has made me aware of the different styles of using utensils while eating. I hope this doesn't get too boring but I need to set a bit of background. Most everyone is familiar with what I guess would be called the North American and Continental/European styles. The formal North American style would typically mean holding your fork in the hand you write with. When cutting you would switch hands and hold the knife in your writing hand, cut your food and then switch the fork back to the writing hand to bite. The Continental style is common in America but is the less formal; typically holding the fork, tines down, in the non-writing hand with the knife in your writing hand where the cutting and eating of food is done with utensils staying the same hand.

I have noticed two interesting derivations of the Continental style since coming to Prague. I find that many Americans, when using the Continental style will sometimes move the fork back to the writing hand to scoop up food while many Europeans I have eaten lunch with will keep the fork tines down and carefully push a portion of vegetable, potato, or whatever up onto the rounded section of the fork and get the full bite from there. This requires a bit of practice and patience to get the food properly balanced before moving to your mouth and it sometimes seems to me it would be easier to just switch hands, turn the fork over and scoop up a lot of food.

Well, there is also a Czech derivation of the Continental style which I suppose solves the challenge of balancing food on rounded top of a downward facing fork. I have noticed that most Czechs will keep the knife in the writing hand, the fork in the other but instead of keeping the fork tines down will actually just use the fork tines up but in the non-writing hand. Personally, I dont think I could just use my fork in this tines-up manner but in the "wrong" hand. There seems to be an advanced version of this whereby you keep the fork tines down to get a good cut on the food, and then with a bit of slight of hand you quickly turn the fork over, keeping it in your non-writing hand and use the fork as a scoop, with a bit of help from the knife. It seems not everyone is capable of this advanced style but I see it pretty frequently and find myself impressed with the dexterity required to pull that off.

Ballet

Sofia has started taking ballet lessons at school. Since she takes them during school time I hadn't been to see her dance but another mother who had stopped by the ballet lesson told me Sofia seemed to love the class. I was happy that Sofia was enjoying it. I figured she was since she would come home and show me how to do ballet. The ballet is actually offered by an outside firm that comes to the school for the lesson I had to figure out how to pay for the lessons. Noone seemed to know how I would go about paying for the lessons but Sofia's teacher told me to just come early to Sofia's ballet lesson and talk to the ballet teacher. I went to the lesson the last Friday to speak with the teacher but she also didn't know how I would pay. She told me that she would check and would bring me a form at the next class. So I am making progress on trying to pay for the class. It was fun to watch Sofia "dance". Here is a short video so you can enjoy it as well. It isn't the best video since it was hard to get Sofia between all the moving kids but it will give you something to see.

United States here we come...

Jason and I have decided it is time to come back to the U.S. for a visit. We have already bought our tickets and lined up our dog-sitter. We are excited to come back and see everyone. Jason has been back to the US for business twice since we moved here but I haven't been back at all so it will be interesting to see how I feel. It will be nice to see everyone and I will have to get my fix of Walmart and Target and Hannafords. I know, Walmart?? Target??. Yes, Walmart and Target! I have been away long enough that these two stores sound exciting to me! Jason keeps getting worried every time I say, "oh we will have to get that when we go back to the US", since he thinks I am going to be buying way too much stuff. I just say that I'm being realistic since there are things we just can't get here. I also plan on doing some major clothes shopping since I can't find anything here in the land of the skinny giant. I am going to have to make sure I bring my running clothes too since I am going to be eating my fill of all the things we can't get here. I'm not sure how we are going to fit everything in during a two week trip but we will find away.

Czech for toddlers

I have enrolled Ali in a Czech for toddlers class. It is a playgroup that Ali and I will go to once a week. We have been to one class already and Ali seems to really love it. The teacher is Czech and she speaks English very well. The entire class, however, is done in Czech. I realize that after a year of Czech lessons I have about a 2 year olds understanding of Czech! Ali likes the teacher and responds well to her. We sing songs in Czech which Ali really seems to enjoy. Since going to the class last week we have been singing one of the Czech songs before bed every night and both Sofia and Ali seem to love it. Sofia is trying really hard to learn all the words.

Not much going on...

I haven't posted in a while so I thought I would just update everyone to let you know there isn't much going on here. Sofia has been up coughing every night for the past week and a half. This means that we are all exhausted since Sofia is coughing at night isn't sleeping well which wakes Ali up and Jason and I are up a lot taking care of her. We still sent Sofia to school last week though since she seemed ok during the day. This week is school vacation week so Sofia will be home with us all week. I decided yesterday that I was going to take her in to see the doctor since her cough had been around for so long. I called the doctor today and was able to bring the girls in this morning. It turns out that Sofia has bronchitis. I'm glad we brought her in to be checked. We will bring her back in next week to have her checked again by the doctor. It is one of the interesting differences between pediatricians here and pediatricians in the United States. In the U.S. when we go to the pediatrician they prescribe medicine if necessary and then send you on your way. There is no check up to make sure you are better. They assume if you aren't better that you will call. Here, in Prague, when you see the doctor and you are sick they prescribe medicine and then they want to see you in a week for what they call "control". I'm not sure why it is called control but it is basically to make sure you are all better. On one hand I find this nice that we will be assured that our children are in fact healthy. On the other hand, I find it annoying because I don't want to make the trip back to the doctor if my kids are fine. I guess in the end I will just be happy that my kids are being well looked after by their doctor.
When we go back for the "control" visit out doctor will give me information for taking Sofia to an audiologist. I feel like she doesn't hear as well as she should. It could be she is just a toddler who gets absorbed in her playing and doesn't hear me or she could just be blatantly ignoring me but I want to make sure it is that before I yell at her! :) I'm hoping her lack of hearing is just wax in her ears that once cleaned out will make her hearing all better. We shall see.

Oh the things kids say...

"What is that?"

That question sounds innocent enough right? Well, let me put it in context. As Ali and I got up to get off the bus we were standing next to a woman with very large hair. I was holding Ali so she was in clear site of this woman. Ali proceeds to point and say, "What is that?" I am hoping the woman doesn't speak English at this point and I just quietly say, "A lady." I was hoping that would be enough but kids just say the darnedest things. Ali proceeds to say, "It's scary." while tucking her head into my neck to hide from the woman! I agree it wasn't the most attractive hair style I have ever seen but it wasn't meant to be scary. I quickly got off the bus and continued on my way really hoping the woman didn't speak English.

Avon Walk for Breast Cancer

My friend, Melissa, is going to do the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in Boston this May. She needs support in order to participate in the walk. As some of you know, Melissa and I have been friends since 3rd grade. While we were in 6th grade Melissa's mother passed away. In her mother's memory please follow my lead and support Melissa with a donation towards fighting breast cancer. Click HERE to go to her donation page on the Avon walk for Breast Cancer site. Once there just click on the "click here to support me" button.

Thanks for your help.

Welcome Piper!

My friend Shanna finally gave birth to a beautiful baby girl yesterday. Kathyrn Piper Davis (will be called Piper) arrived yesterday and is doing well. We (my friends and I) went to visit Shanna today and to meet Piper. I can't believe how cute Piper is and how good Shanna looks. As you can see from this picture she does not look like she gave birth yesterday. It was interesting to talk to her and see how different it is to give birth in the Czech Republic compared to the United States. The first thing that stands out is the amount of time spent in the hospital. For a normal delivery you are required by law to stay in the hospital for 72 hours! That is unheard on in the States. Some other things that are different is that Shanna has to take the baby's temperature and bathe her every day. The nurses do that for you while you are in the hospital in the States. Then there is of course the Czech obsession with bundling babies. The baby needs to have at least 5 blankets on as well as the heat turned up to 10 on a 1-10 scale. Shanna has continued to turn the heat down to a bearable level. It was hot when I was visiting her and the heat was only at 2.5 so I can't imagine how hot her room was at 10!! With all the differences though Shanna seemed to take it all in stride and was happy. I'm happy that she and the baby are doing well and I'm glad I got to learn something else about the Czech Republic.

Bumps and friends

Today after school Sofia wanted to play with some of her friends in the school yard so i hung out for a little bit while she played. It was nice to see her playing with her school friends. They were running around and playing chase. All was well until Sofia went to run up the ramp onto the playground. She slipped and fell and then her friend fell on top of her. She cut her lip which was bleeding profusely when i picked her up and brought her inside the school. I asked one of the other moms to watch Ali for me while I took care of Sofia. Sofia's school is such a nice community. They watched Ali for me while I and Mrs. Clarke (Sofia's teacher) took care of Sofia. Anna (who is the mom of one of Sofia's classmates and was also a nurse in England) took a look at Sofia to see if she was OK. It was nice to hear from a nurse that Sofia looked OK and what I should do if the bleeding didn't stop in an hour. We came home and Sofia is fine except for a huge fat lip. Once the kids were in bed I received two text messages, one from Mrs Clarke and one from Anna, to see how Sofia was doing. I just thought that was so nice of them to check in with me. Once again I am happy we chose this school for Sofia.

Burns Night

Tonight Jason and I went to Burns Night. Burns night is a night of dinner and dancing organized by Sofia's primary school. There are a number of the faculty who are Scottish including one of Sofia's teachers. There are also a number of students who are Scottish. Apparently, Robert Burns is a much celebrated poet in Scotland. Since I am not a big reader of poetry I was not familiar with him. You can read more about Robert Burns on wikipedia if you are interested. In any event, the night was a blast! I'm so glad we went. We tried haggis for dinner which sounds really disgusting since it is sheep's liver, heart, and lungs with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, salt and stock and boiled in sheeps stomach but it was actually quite tasty. After dinner there was dancing. The tables were pushed aside and good old Scottish dancing took place. I have never seen nor partaken in Scottish dancing until tonight. It was a lot of fun with a lot of spinning, clapping, stomping and swinging partners around. Since I forgot my camera I don't really have any pictures to share. I snagged this picture from someone who was there so you could get a sense of the revelry. The picture is of Mrs. Clark, Sofia's teacher, and her husband who is also a teacher at Sofia's school. Next year I will definitely be ready with a camera. We finally decided to call it a night at 1am to relieve our babysitter. Next year we will know that Burns night is an all night event and will forewarn the babysitter that we will be home very late so that we can stay longer if we want to.

Busy week

This week has been very busy for me. On Tuesday I had to bring Watson to the vet to have the bandage removed. He is much happier having that off his head. He also looks much better since with the bandage on it looked like he had some massive brain surgery. On Tuesday afternoon after picking Sofia up from school I brought the girls to their doctor to have more vaccinations. Having two things in one day doesn't sound like much but without a car things take longer and become more of a production. The girls were very brave with their shots and didn't cry at all. They were rewarded with a donut after the doctor visit. I have been trying to find a place that sells Trebbiano d' Abruzzo whine in Prague since I have found it is a wine i enjoy so we stopped at two wine shops near the doctors office but to no avail. On Wednesday I got together with my friend Joanna and her daughter Natalie. It was great to see them since we hadn't gotten together since before Christmas. Yesterday I had an appointment to get my hair cut. I decided to try a new place since I haven't been thrilled with the haircuts I had been getting and the guy I had been going to was no longer doing mornings or wasn't doing them for the next couple weeks. Since I have to have my appointments in the morning due to Jason's work schedule and I needed a haircut desperately I decided to try a new place. I am thrilled that I did go somewhere new. It wasn't cheap but she did an excellent job. I now have my hair cut and highlighted. I decided to go back to highlights. I had stopped highlighting my hair before I got pregnant with Sofia but having kids made my hair drastically darker. I decided I was just going to accept the new me and just be happy with my new dark hair. Well, I lived with it for 4 years and I'm done! I decided I wanted my old hair back. The only downside to my hair appointment is that it took 4 hours!! This morning I went to have my annual doctor check up. I chose to go to a doctor that could speak English even though it was going to cost me 600Kc to join his practice. I decided that that was not much ($40) and was well worth paying the premium to get a doctor who spoke English. To my surprise I didn't need to pay the 600Kc since I don't work! This is one of the things that is great about the Czech Republic...you actually get benefits for being a stay at home mom! It isn't much but it still made me happy. Tonight we are going out to dinner with friends and tomorrow night we are going to a dinner party for Sofia's school. I'll post about how that goes on Sunday.

United States OR America??

Since we moved here I have noticed that people refer to the U.S. as America. I never really thought anything about it until this past week. As you know, Jason went to the U.S. this week. At two separate times this week someone has asked Sofia if her Dad was in America and both times she said, "No. He is in the United States.". I thought this was really funny and have since explained to Sofia that it is the United States of America and that people sometimes call it America and sometimes call it U.S. and sometimes call it the United States. I'm not sure she really gets it at this point but I will keep trying to explain.

In the home stretch....

I'm very happy that it is Friday. Yes, I'm happy that the weekend is here and happy that I don't have to worry about getting Sofia off to school but mainly I'm just happy that it means Jason will be home tomorrow. Beyond the fact that I will be happy to have the love of my life and best friend home (I know, corny!), it means I don't have to parent alone and can actually have a moment to myself. It means I will have adult conversation in the evenings. It means I don't have to get the kids dressed and bundled to go outside in the morning to take Watson out or get them redressed and rebundled at 6pm to take Watson out again. It means I'm not the only one seeing Watson unhappy after his surgery and it means that there is someone to reassure me that Watson is fine. It means I don't have to cook AND do the dishes. Although Jason will be very happy to see that the house is clean especially the kitchen. I have had a real aversion to doing dishes for the last couple of years so he often is the one who cleans the kitchen. I knew that I needed to keep up with the dishes though if the kitchen was going to be clean when he got home so I have been diligent in the upkeep. It has been a long week and while I can handle everything it is nice that the week is coming to a close.

Poor Watson

With two of my nephews recently getting tubes in their ears, Watson didn't want to be left out. He had his own ear surgery today. He has had a bunch of ear infections since we moved here and 3 within the past 6 months. The last ear infection was particularly difficult to get rid of so we decided it was time to have the surgery. Once his last ear infection was cleared I made the appointment to have the surgery done. The vet and I wanted to get it done as soon as possible before another ear infection set in so I scheduled it for this week. Unfortunately, after I booked the surgery we found out Jason wasn't going to be here but I decided to go ahead with it anyway. I didn't want Watson to have to suffer through another ear infection b/c I didn't want the hassle of taking care of him myself. So like a good mom I trucked out to the vet this morning and dropped him off. After picking Sofia up from school the girls and I went to pick up Watson from the vet. With his head completely wrapped in a bandage and covering most of his eyes he was shaky from the anesthesia and bumping into things since he couldn't see that well b/c of the bandage. We made our way to the train and made it home. Watson finally settled down in the kitchen. I will have to help him back to bed tonight since he doesn't seem to like going through doorways with the bog cone on his head. I have to bring him back to the vet tomorrow morning for more antibiotics and pain killers and then again on Saturday to have the bandage rewrapped. He will be on meds for the next two weeks as well as having the cone on his head for 14+ days. I'm hoping he will feel a little soon.

Jason off to the US

Jason left for the US yesterday. It was a nice leisurely morning though since he didn't have to leave until 12:30. It was nice not to have to rush. This morning was the first morning where I have had to get both kids dressed and Watson walked before bringing Sofia to school. I was a little worried about it since it would mean having to get up earlier and rushing. To my surprise everything went very smoothly. I wouldn't want to have to do it all the time but at least now I know it isn't too bad. We actually got to school a little early! Ali had fun going to Sofia's school this morning as well. The two of them sat down at the table in the classroom and played with play dough. When Sofia was ready to move on with other thing and play with her friends Ali and I headed for home. Ali was tired so we didn't do much once we got home. We ventured out a little later to take Watson out and to meet some friends for lunch. After nap we headed back to Sofia's school and then back home again. It is strange now that Sofia goes to school until 3 since by the time we get home it is almost 4pm. That means there is only a little over an hour before the kids have dinner. I am use to having more time so the time I have now goes by very fast.

Kitchen update

Today our landlords came over to take measurements of the kitchen. They have decided to have a new kitchen installed. We are very relieved that they have chosen to replace the kitchen. I was feeling very unsettled since I didn't know if we were going to move or not so it is nice to know we can stay were we are. It will take some time to get the new kitchen installed so we will have to live without cabinets for a little bit longer but that is fine. Once it is installed I will post pictures but that may not be until March.

Back to normal life

Since Leah left and the holidays are over we have gotten back to normal life. Sofia is back at school but she is now going all day rather than 1/2 day. She seems to love being there the full day and is so happy when I pick her up. Ali is happy having her lunch at the table rather than in the stroller and she gets to take a nap on time rather than having to go get Sofia. Since both kids are happier so am I! The mid day struggle for pickup at school was growing tiresome so it is nice that this change is making such a positive difference. Jason is back at work and is busy. He is flying back to the US next week. Unfortunately the girls and I can't go with him. I think we are going to try and go back to US at the end of March (but no guarantee!) It will be a busy week for me next week without Jason here. Getting the girls dressed and Sofia to school, Watson walked, and picking Sofia up from school will be enough but added to that is that Watson is scheduled for his ear surgery next week as well. It will be an interesting week.

We are also still dealing with our kitchen. Our landlords wanted to just put the cabinets back up on the wall. We did not like that idea since many of the cabinets are broken and fixing them just doesn't seem like it will look good or be safe since I'm not sure how you fix particle board cabinets. They also wanted to just cut off the part of the counter that was broken and leave the floor with a giant stain and gouges in it. My main concern it the safety since I just wouldn't feel safe if the same cabinets were put back on the wall. We have told them that they can either install a new kitchen or we will move. I'm hoping that they install a new kitchen but if not then I guess we were just meant to move. There are other apartments out there so I'm not concerned with finding another apartment. I'll keep you posted.

I'm off to buy my new yearly pass for the public transit system. I tried twice yesterday but never got it done. I tried to do it before picking up Sofia but I didn't anticipate the line so I tried again after getting Sofia. By that time the line was very long and after waiting 45 minutes (with the two kids with me) and only getting through half the line I gave up. I'm hoping the line will be shorter this morning.

Snow!!

It finally snowed here this last weekend. Sofia was very excited about the snow. She was the first to notice it on Sunday morning. She got out of bed and went to the window and announced it was snowing. I hadn't realized that she had been checking for snow in the mornings. We had breakfast and headed outside. I thought we would go to the park and take Watson with us while Jason was sleeping in but when we got out to the sidewalk the kids just wanted to play there. Since it was so early the snow was still pretty much untouched so I let them play on the sidewalk. It made me laugh to see that my kids have really embraced city life. Who would have thought my kids would want to just play on the sidewalk. I finally convinced them to go to the park and they had a great time. I can't wait to get Sofia on skis this year. The snow has made running a little harder but I'll live with running a little more carefully in order to have snow. I ran in Stromovka Park on Sunday afternoon and it was beautiful. There were a lot of people out enjoying the snow which is nice to see. Watson had a great time running and playing with other dogs in the snow as well. It still makes me smile to see how many people just openly stare at Watson. He is such an unusual dog that people are always wondering what he is. There are times I even wonder if people know I'm his owner since they never take their eyes off him to even see me.

Leah goes home

Leah, my cousin, left last night after our family dinner of faj-rittos (fajita/burrito combo) to head back to Uzbekistan. She has a long trip ahead since she has a long layover in Moscow. At least she has a friend in Moscow so she will be able to leave the airport and see a little bit of Moscow before she gets back on the plane. It was a real pleasure having her here. She was a very easy guest. I didn't have to entertain her at all and she did all the dishes! As I have said before (I think) it was the first time we have ever hung out without the parental units in attendance. While we love our parents it is definitely a different dynamic. We laughed and joked and learned things about the family and each other. We realized we needed to clarify our "end of the world" plan. For those of you who don't know, our family has always had this "end of the world" plan . . . if something happened in the US in RI where would we meet up with the family? or if the US was not an option where would we meet up internationally? I know it is bizarre and it is of course said mostly joking but what Leah and I realized was that the places had changed and we each had different locations. So much for meeting up with the family in a catastrophe!! Also being together with another member of my mother's family makes me realize how much of that family is in me. I would notice Leah doing things that I do. For example, the kids would say something and I would start to sing and Leah would join in the song or Leah would be doing dishes and she would be singing. This is something our parents do. I remember saying to my Mom, "Why do you have a song for everything I say?". Now I, as well as Leah, do the same thing! I am also happy to report I am passing this trait down to my girls. Sofia asked me something the other day and I sang the reply back to her. To my surprised she responded by singing her answer.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! This is our second New Year's Eve in Prague. Last year we were not aware of the Czech love of fireworks so we went to bed early. At midnight we woke up to the sound of fireworks coming from all directions around our apartment and they continued for a good 45 minutes. This year, with my cousin here, we decided we would stay up until midnight (since we figured the fireworks would wake up up anyway). We kept our New Year's eve tradition alive and had Chinese food. This year we were able to make our homemade orange chicken. We didn't make it last year since we were new to Prague and the thought of trying to find all the ingredients was daunting. We thoroughly enjoyed our Chinese food and then we decided to watch a movie and play Scrabble. Nothing like shouting, "I'm old" by playing Scrabble on New Year's Eve! It was a fun game and very evenly matched throughout. Leah did win the game at the end with the use of the word "ba". Yes, it is a word but we have given her grief over it and she has been a good sport. We stayed up through the 45 minutes of fireworks and then called it a night. It was a fun New Year's eve.

Cousins day out

On Sunday, Leah and I left the kids with Jason and headed out to see some sights. It was just easier given the sites we were going to see and it also was going to coincide with Ali's nap. We had three things left to see on Leah's must see list. We headed up to Petrin tower but once we got there seeing it was enough. Neither of us felt like climbing all the steps to get to the top of the tower. Since we were up there though I suggested we check out the mirror maze. We had never been to the maze but I had heard about it so it was great to be able to check it out before I bring the kids. We had fun in the mirror maze so I can imagine how much fun it will be for the girls when we bring them. After you go through the mirror maze you come to a room with funny mirrors. They make you tall, short, fat etc. Here is an example of us looking very short. We had some good laughs and then headed out and off to the Strahov Monastery. We realized when we got there that it was closed for lunch hour so we decided to get lunch as well. We ended up in a small cafe near the castle and had lunch and hot chocolate to warm up. We decided after lunch to check out St Vitus Cathedral since Strahov wasn't going to be open again until 1pm. As we got to Hradcanske Namesti it was very crowded and there was some event. Then we realized it was skiiing! I never expected to see skiing in Prague. They had brought snow in and made a race course for cross country skiing. It was crowded but we got through and went to St Vitus. After St. Vitus we headed back through the crowd in Hradcanske Namesti. The crowd must have doubled in size since it was nearly impossible for us to get through the crowd. We finally did and made it to Strahov. After Strahov we stopped for one more hot chocolate and then headed home. It was a fun day out.

Showing Leah the sites

Today Leah, the girls and I headed up to the castle. Leah wanted to see St Vitus and didn't really care about the rest of the castle so it was going to be an easy trip. I was surprised at how many tourists were at the castle. There aren't nearly as many as the summer but more than I expected. I guess I will have to wait for January for Prague to be empty. Anyway, we got up to the castle and took pictures and got to the cathedral and I noticed the doors were closed. Unfortunately for us the cathedral had just closed. I thought, oh well, another day. We decided to head down to the Charles Bridge. As we headed out into Hradcanske Namesti we had to wait for the changing of the guard. It was interesting to watch since we hadn't seen it before. While in Hradcanske Namesti I did my job as an excellent tour guide...."that house is famous.....i think it is maybe the arch bishop's house. That house is also famous....I don't know whose it was but I like the art on it". Leah was very impressed with my guiding skills. (HaHa) Anyway, we headed down into Mala Strana and Leah took pictures while the girls and I slowly walked. We headed across the Charles Bridge where Leah stopped to buy some gifts. By this time it was getting late and it was dark and cold so we headed back to the tram and home for dinner. It was a slow start to the the wonders of Prague but we all had a good time.

Things I've learned from my cousin

When we were younger I did not like my cousin. This is for no real reason other than she was 6 years younger than me and followed me everywhere. I, of course, wanted to be with the big kids who probably hated having me tag along after them! It wasn't a big deal though since I did not see my cousin much. She lived in Connecticut, which for Rhode Islanders might as well have been Florida. I saw her at holidays and the family gathering at beach week. The last time we saw each other was at beach week 2 years ago. It was the first time that I had really spoken with Leah since we became adults. I was surprised to learn that we had things in common and I enjoyed my time with her. I regretted that I couldn't spend more time with her but I had the kids to take care of and naps etc. and she was just in for a couple weeks from Uzbekistan so she had to get in all her visiting.
Being so close we invited Leah to join us for Christmas. I was excited that I would get to spend Christmas with some family. I have realized since Leah has been here that it is also an added bonus for me since I have found out things I didn't know.

1. I like my cousin and we really laugh a lot
2. There are things about us that are just from our moms' family.
3. Even though we didn't see each other much growing up we have a lot of the same things to laugh about that happened in the family.
4. She didn't go to American University as I had been told
5. I learned my other cousin has moved in with his girlfriend and the girlfriend is having their baby in a week!!! (Keep in mind I talk to my mother multiple times a week and this had NEVER come up!!)

There is more that I have learned and I'm sure I will learn even more over the course of the next week. I'm glad she is here. Even with the cabinets falling this has been one of the best Christmas' ever.

Enjoying the holidays with a BANG!!!

You can see the picture....did you think, "earthquake"? Well, not quite. As I was walking out of the kitchen the cabinets decided they had been on the wall long enough and wanted to come down. They came crashing down with a very loud crash. Unfortunately for me I was in the kitchen when it happened. The cabinets landed on me so I was under the heap of mess you see in the picture (although not at the time the picture was taken). Luckily I was the only one in the kitchen at the time. After I found myself under the cabinets I yelled for Jason who was having his sleep in day. He was already out of bed because he had heard the crash (as had, apparently, everyone in the building). He came to the kitchen and asked where I was since he couldn't see me. The "under here" helped him out and he lifted the cabinets off of me. I got up carefully since I happened to also be at the point in the cabinets that housed our glassware so there was a lot of broken glass on and around me. I was dazed and uncomfortable but I immediately went next door to our landlords apartment. I think I was probably in a little bit of shock since looking back on it I probably could have waited a minute before heading next door. I went next door with my pants soaked in wine (which had fallen from the cabinets and shattered all over me) and covered in broken glass to try and explain the unbelievable. They saw me and new something was wrong. I tried to explain but even if she understood the words it just wouldn't make sense. How do you explain that kitchen cabinets came falling off the wall. It just doesn't even sound believeable. Our landlady came back to our apartment with me to see what I was talking about. She saw the destruction and with a "Jesus Marie" gave us hugs and said she was sorry. She went back and got her husband and her son to take pictures and talk to us. They insisted on bringing me to the hospital which I had to agree was probably a good idea. Before we went to the hospital though she insisted that we have breakfast at their apartment. It was very nice of her but unnecessary. Our landlord brought me to the hospital and spoke Czech to everyone so it was easy for me. While we were at the hospital Jason, our landlady and the cleaning lady from our building started cleaning up the mess. My x-rays showed that everything was fine. They gave me a special cream for my arm and bandaged it up. I wasn't really sure what the cream was supposed to do but I left it on for the day anyway. Sleeping was not ideal but it is a little bit better today so in a few days I'm sure I'll be able to rest my head back on a pillow.

We have found places to put everything so that our kitchen is at least usable. We will have to have new cabinets installed as well as new counters and flooring. The cabinets broke the counter when they fell and also took big dings out of the linoleum flooring. In addition to the dings in the floor there is also a giant yellow stain as well as a purple stain. I guess linoleum doesn't like wine, vodka, vinegar, balsamic vinegar and oil sitting on it. We still have to figure out how we will deal with the damage to our glassware, kitchen table and new counter/drawer thingy we just bought but I'm confident it will all work out. For now we are just trying to enjoy our Christmas.

On a happier note, Leah (my cousin) arrived on the 23rd from Uzbekistan. She will be here for 10 days. It is great having her here. It is the first time we have ever been together as adults without any parents/aunts/uncles around. We are having a great time hanging out. I'll post more about what we do over the next week.

Little Monkeys

Sofia has been learning a lot of new songs at school. She teaches me the songs she learns. It is fun for me to learn her songs since I remember doing the same thing with my mother. I also remember getting frustrated when my mom couldn't remember the words I just taught her so I really try and focus when Sofia is teaching me (and try to be understanding when she gets frustrated). Here is one of her songs...it is also one of my favorites. Just click on the picture below to play the video.

Winter Wonderland

It has been quite cold here lately but we haven't had any snow. I keep hoping to wake up in the morning to see the ground covered with snow but nothing yet. Today the girls and I had to bring Watson to the vet since his ear is bothering him again. The vet that we use is in Bila Hora which is about a 25 minute tram ride from our apartment. As the tram started to head away from our stop and further out of the city I noticed in the distance that the trees at the top of the hill looked white. I wasn't sure if they were really white or if it was just fog. As the tram continued the ground and all the trees where covered in snow! It was so beautiful I wish I had had my camera. the girls were excited as well. It was all I could do to keep them moving so that we could get to the vets office. Once we were done at the vet I let the kids and Watson play in the snow. Sofia kept trying to make snow angels even though there really wasn't enough snow for that. It was weird to see the different weather conditions but very enjoyable.

Christmas rush

Here it is, December 19th, and I have not finished my shopping. That is putting it nicely...it isn't that I haven't finished it is more that I have barely started. You would think that this isn't a big deal but I know that come the weekend my shopping will get limited. I have to get my gift shopping done and my food shopping done. I decided to cancel my Czech lesson for tonight and go into town and do some shopping. I want to finish the gift shopping done so that I can do the food shopping tomorrow. Luckily I pre-ordered the meat so I can pick that up on the 23rd. I was surprised that they even have pick up on the 23rd since most shops are closed on Sunday and then shops are closed the 24, 25, and 26th. I guess since the shop I ordered the meat at is a shop that caters to expats they are open. I will be happy when it is all done. It is not like me to leave everything to the last minute.

We have also been pretty busy this week with dr. appointments, vet appointment, and grooming for Watson. Today was Watson's grooming. He desperately needed to be bathed and to have his hair trimmed. While we waited for Watson the girls and I hung out at a playground. It makes me laugh when I think, "I can't get anything done b/c I'm playing at a playground.". I guess if that is my only complaint I can't really complain. The girls had a great time even though it was freezing out. I've learned to be wise in my dressing of the girls. They go out with many layers and when it is cold like this they go out with snow pants on. I don't want to hear "I'm too cold" so I bundle them up. Now we are home and I'm exhausted so I guess I better try to rest before my shopping frenzy tonight. :)

Photo Updates

I have finally gotten all caught up on getting our photos uploaded to Smugmug, the photo site we use. For about the last year and a half I have been uploading photos to the site for everyone, including ourselves, to enjoy but since this summer I began to fall behind. Today I spent a lot of time going through photos from Autumn and Winter and our two week trip to the Loire Valley and Tuscany. I still need to go through and add captions to the photos but now that they are uploaded I can slowly work on doing that.

The autumn pictures include photos of Sofia's first day of school, school trip to the pumpkin patch, girls' haircuts, Halloween, Thanksgiving and a variety of other photos. Click here to see our autumn photos.

In October we spent one week in the Loire Valley, France and one week in Tuscany, Italy and had a fantastic time and took lots of pictures. Click here to see photos from France and click here to see photos from Italy.

I also have our most recent photos uploaded now, including visiting friends, the girls trimming the tree and visiting Santa as well as Sofia's school Christmas party. Click here to see our most recent winter photos.

Enjoy!

Sound of Music

I'm excited because the girls are watching Sound of Music. I love that movie! I have waited for them to be old enough to watch it and yesterday I was playing the soundtrack for them and they were excited about that so I put the movie on. I told Sofia that it is in Austria and she was excited since her friend, Kiera, has been to Austria. She wants to go to Austria so she likes seeing a movie with scenes from Austria. Tonight for their pre-bedtime movie Sofia asked for the Austria movie with the kids in it. My heart rejoiced and I eagerly put the movie on. As they were watching it I started to sing along with the nuns as they were singing the "Maria" song. Ali said, "No mommy! It is only for the Muns!" It was all I could do not to laugh. Apparently the "muns" from the airport are still in Ali's memory. We will have to work on her pronunciation of Nun.

Santa

Sofia's school had Santa come to school and they sold tickets to see Santa for 60Kc per ticket. This seemed pretty cheap to me and an easy way to have the kids see Santa. Ali was a little afraid of Santa and wouldn't look at him or talk to him. She really didn't even want to go into the room with him. Sofia was a little shy but not nearly as much as I thought she would be. Santa eventually got her to talk a little. He asked her what she wanted for Christmas and she responded with, "presents". He told her that he is sure he can take care of that. After seeing Santa and receiving a lollipop and a small present we headed downstairs to the bake sale the PTA was holding. The kids enjoyed a chocolate muffin and their lollipop. An added bonus for me was that they were also selling used books at the bake sale for 30Kc a book. This was very exciting for me since I read a lot and buying books here is expensive. The cheap books are at least 180kc so when I get a chance to get 30kc books I jump at it. I bought 5 books so I won't have to venture to the bookstore this month.

Aspiring actress

Sofia had her first acting experience yesterday. (Well, I should say her first formal acting experience since she performs all the time at home!) Her nursery class put on a performance of the Nativity for all the parents. Sofia had to say, "Mary and Joseph stayed in the stable and baby Jesus was born." She was a little distracted at first b/c she wanted to know what I was holding. (I was holding the baby brother of one of her classmates.) Anyway, the play got started and Sofia stood there quietly awaiting her turn to speak but it took too long and she started to stare off around the room. When it was her turn her teacher had to say her name a few times before Sofia realized it was her turn. It was very funny. Once she realized it was her turn she did a good job. They sang some songs and then the play was over. It must have been exhausting for Sofia b/c she fell asleep on the couch after school yesterday!

Holiday Spirit

As a follow up to Mary's post I wanted to post to say that I too am feeling truly in the holiday spirit now. The last couple months have been very busy at work but now that the city is filled with lights and music and we now have our Christmas tree and decorations up I am enjoying this great time of year. It will be sad not being around all of our extended family for Christmas but being here and enjoying all the fun, and sometimes not so fun, challenges of a new country has really brought us together as a family so this will be a special Christmas season.

Dinner with Friends

After we moved to Prague two of Jason's colleagues in Maynard also decided to make the move. We finally got together for dinner with one of them. Kelly, her husband, Alain, and their children Paige and Colby invited us over their apartment for dinner. They have decided to live in Prague 2 which is across town from us so we hopped on the tram and headed over. Sofia and Ali were a little shy at first but after a little bit they had a great time playing. The girls were happy to see Paige's collection of princess dresses and shoes. While the kids played we enjoyed adult conversation with our friends. The girls were also entranced by Kelly and Alain's cat. Ali kept looking for the cat who wisely removed himself from the reach of the kids. We had dinner and then let the kids watch a movie while the adults finished eating and talking. Ali obviously was very comfortable by this time since when I happened to look into the tv room I noticed she had taken her pants, tights and underwear off! Oh well, at least she is comfortable with her body. Unfortunately she also peed on the floor. Luckily it was a wood floor and Kelly and Alain were very understanding. Paige was very cute too. She said, "that's ok, I have accidents sometimes too.". All in all it was a fun night. We will have to have them over to our apartment next. Jason and I realized that we have never had anyone over our apartment for dinner so we want to change that.

December in Prague

December in Prague is wonderful. At the end of November you see all the workers out preparing everything for December. On December 1st it is magic...all the Christmas lights turn on and the tent is set up at the end of our street with performances daily. Christmas music is played on speakers all the way down our street so you can hear music when you step out the front door. Old Town square is all decked out with lights and the giant Christmas tree as well as the vendor huts and the stage for performances (The high school kids from Sofia's school will perform a concert there this month as well.) Wenceslas square has its tree and vendors and so does Namesti Republiky and Andel. There are Christmas celebrations all around the city like the one at the end out our street. It is amazing to me how much Christmas is celebrated here. They have added more stuff to the celebration at the end of our road this year. This year they have included a nativity scene, an ice rink, a food stand, and a telephone hut to call baby Jesus. Yes, call baby Jesus. The Czech tradition is that baby Jesus brings the presents on Christmas day so the kids ask baby Jesus for presents. As we walked by yesterday they appeared to be having an old car show. It is nice to have such a festive atmosphere around.

"Wait your turn!"

You always see dads on TV who are the long suffering males in a house full of women. We have joked about it in the past that that will be Jason when the girls are older. Unfortunately for Jason the "when the girls are older" has already started. The other day Jason asked Ali if she had to go potty. She said, "no". He asked again. She said, "no". So Jason said, "ok, Daddy is going to go potty then". Ali immediately ran to the potty, pushed Jason out of the way and said, "Wait your turn!". Poor Jason. Being pushed aside for the bathroom is already happening. (The only upside is at least she did actually use the potty.) By the time the girls are teenagers we will have to make sure Jason has his own secret bathroom.

1 year anniversary

It was one year ago today that we arrived in Prague. It is hard to believe that a year has gone by. It is hard to even remember those first few days in Prague. We arrived bleary eyed off the plane and we were met and transferred to our apartment. I had no idea what to expect since I had never been to Prague before. Our apartment was empty. Our stuff hadn't arrived from the US. Everyone spoke a language we couldn't understand. We had left all our friends in the US but we were still happy and excited to be here. A year later many things are different.

We are still happy and excited to be here. Comparing today to a year ago is amazing. We were at a birthday party for our friends children and therefore we were surrounded by many of our new friends. Hard to believe we have made that many friends since we arrived. We had to go across town to go to the birthday party and we knew where we were going. We didn't have to worry about how to buy a ticket for the metro or where to get off the metro. We didn't need a stroller to get there. (We still use the stroller at times for Ali but a lot of times we can no go stroller-free). Our apartment is no longer empty but filled with our stuff. We have finally begun to truly decorate and even have curtains up now. We still can't understand a lot of the language but we can speak some and understand some. We have also learned enough to make ourselves understood in many situations. The language isn't nearly as scary anymore. We have figured out the grocery store (mostly) and where to get hard to find items (this sometimes means having it shipped from the US). I can even offer newcomers to Prague helpful hints....who would have thought I would be able to do that??

We are looking forward to our next year in Prague. We have found a place where we love to live. Yes, there are things that would be easier if we lived in the U.S., but there are a lot of things that are easier here. Coming here we have found many things to the thankful for. We have a nice apartment, great landlords, wonderful friends, a beautiful city at our doorstep, a great school for the kids, a teacher that Sofia loves, and babysitters for our children and our dog. Jason and I get to have a date night every Friday and we get to exercise in the morning without having to get up at 5am. We have children who get to experience a different culture here in Prague as well as the chance to travel to many different countries (5 in the last year). Sofia figures out how far things are by how many planes it takes us to get somewhere. For example, Spain is two planes and a car. Sofia gets to go to school and have kids in her class from all over the world. There are children from Prague as well as Mexico, Holland, Great Britain, Italy, Russia, New Zealand, and the US as well as a teacher from Canada and a teacher from Scotland. Ali will have the same opportunity in school next year. For now Ali gets to play with her friends that we have met over the course of the last year. They are also from different places...two friends who are Czech/American, a friend who is Czech/Australian, and friends from the U.S.

I will keep posting on the blog to keep everyone updated on our adventures. Please feel free to leave comments if you have questions or want further detail on a post (or if you just want to say hi). Thanks for reading about our adventures.

We are sick

There isn't much going on here since we are all sick. The girls and I have been sick for about a week. We all went to the doctor today. I was a little worried about bringing the girls to the pediatrician since I knew that pediatricians here do not deal with kids ears. I was worried that she would send us to an ear, nose and throat doctor. The reason I was worried about that was because I know that the Czech method for dealing with ear infections is to pop the ear drum. I am not on board with that method so I didn't want to go to an ear nose and throat doctor b/c I didn't want to deal with the argument. Luckily our pediatrician just listened to what we said and checked a couple things on the girls (although not the ears) and decided to write prescriptions for a lot of medicine...Augmentin plus ear drops, nose drops and eye drops for Ali and Augmentin plus an expectorant for Sofia. My doctor wrote me a prescription for Augmentin as well as some gargling solution. Jason is also sick but not as sick as the rest of us and since his just started he hasn't needed to go to the doctor yet. I went to the pharmacy on the way home from the doctor. It makes me laugh when dealing with hospitals and pharmacy here since there idea of expensive and my idea are nowhere near the same. The pharmacy was concerned about me having to pay for all the medicines. The way that our insurance works (since we have the foreigners insurance) is that we pay upfront for all prescriptions and then anything over 100Kc we get reimbursed (that is about $5.50USD). While it is nice to get the money back the prescriptions here are so cheap that I'm not even concerned about it. We got 7 prescriptions for about 1000Kc or $55. In the US that would have been a minimum of $70 if you consider a $10 copay per prescription. The reality is that I'm sure some of them wouldn't have been generic and would have cost more then $10. It is just another interesting difference between the US and the Czech Republic.

Thank you Auntie Carlene!!

The girls love getting mail. They love cards. The really love when packages come in the mail. Yesterday a package came from Auntie Carlene. It was all the girls could do to wait to get upstairs so they could open it. We got upstairs and I let them sit on the floor and tear into the envelope. Sofia knew right away that it was an apron. I don't know how she knew. I can only guess that she has seen aprons at school. She wanted to put it on and, of course, Ali wanted to do the same as her sister. They loved that it was Santa and a snowman. Sofia asked why? I told her that Auntie Carlene sent them so that they could help mommy make cookies for Christmas. The eyes lit up and she asked, "Can we make them now??" How could I resist. Here is a short video of the girls with their aprons. Just click "Play" and hopefully you will have sound on your computer as well so you can hear the girls.