Czech countryside

Today was a beautiful day so I headed out on my bike to explore some of the area around were we live. The Czech countryside is beautiful. I am looking forward to biking in spring when the rape flower is in bloom and in summer when the sumflowers are blooming. Now all the fields have been cut and some have already had the dirt turned over but it is still stunning. It is so hard to believe when I am biking that I am so close to the city. Here are a few pictures from my ride today.

Happy Anniversary!

Today is our 12th wedding anniversary! It is hard to believe that 12 years have past. We have moved four times, owned (and sold) two different homes, gotten a dog, had two children and moved to the Czech Republic. Through all the changes we have remembered to compromise, be understanding, forgiving and loving. I am blessed to have Jason as my husband and best friend. We went out on Friday night to celebrate and we had a wonderful dinner alone. Today we celebrated by being together as a family. We went for our first family bike ride. The kids did great riding their bikes. We capped off our bike ride with a stop at the nearby restaurant for a snack before heading back home. Once we got home we hopped in the pool. Well, all of us except Ali. We couldn't convince her that the 65 F (18C) pool water was warm enough. We did have a great day today. I'm looking forward to the next 12 years. I'm sure they will go even faster than the first twelve but no matter how fast they go we will always take the time to enjoy each other, our family and the world around us.

Running and Biking

Well, I took a full three weeks off of running and then went easy for a week with only running 2 miles and then 4 miles. Since I had no pain I increased my run to 5 miles and then 5.5 miles. I am happy to report that I still have no knee pain. I'm hoping that the knee pain is a thing of the past but I'm not planning on going on a really long run just yet. Which brings me to biking. I have really been enjoying riding my bike. I have replaced my long runs for now with long bike rides. Yesterday I decided to go for a ride, after my morning run with friends, with only a general direction in mind. I wasn't going out for exercise but rather just to be outdoors in the great fall weather. It is so enjoyable though that my ride ended up being 17 miles long and very hilly. By the time I was home I definitely felt like I had had a good workout and I got to see some places I hadn't seen before. One of the great things about my friends here is that a lot of them like to exercise and be outdoors so this morning I headed out with two of my friends for another bike ride to check out some woods nearby. I love being able to mix socializing and exercise. It makes exercise fun and really just a byproduct of having fun with friends rather than a chore. Here I am with my friends, Inge and Natalie. Fortunately we came across someone walking a dog and were able to get a picture together. I'm looking forward to riding with them every week.

Walk in the woods

This weekend we enjoyed the fall like weather. Jason and I cleaned up the yard and put all the summer stuff away. We went as a family to a garden center and picked out decorations for the fall and halloween (the kids were really excited about halloween). It was a lot of fun to be in a garden shop again after a two and a half year hiatus. Today I put all the plants in the window/fence boxes as well as the planters in front of the door. I put the small pumpkins out and the little gourds in the house. This afternoon we decided to go to a harvest festival or something to that extent. To get to the wine cellar where this festival was happening we walked through the woods on a trail that links our village with the next village. We weren't sure exactly where in Unetice it was but it is a very small village so we figured it would be easy to find. When we arrived in Unetice we saw a wine cellar but didn't see anything resembling a festival so we walked all the way through the village to the other side only to find out there was nothing there either. We headed back to the wine cellar we had seen. I'm assuming we got there late and that is why there really was no festival but I could be wrong. The aim really was just to try out the new Burčák and that we got to do. It was really fun to go to the wine cellar and get Burčák becuase we also learned that they sell all kinds of wines there right from the barrells. It was fun to see it all and the people were very friendly. After sampling a couple wines we left with only the Burčák. The kids had had enough of being in the wine cellar so we paid our 40Kc ($2USD) for our bottle of Burčák and left. We followed a different path through the woods to go back home. The kids really enjoyed this path too since it had 3 waterfalls along the trail. At the end of the trail back in our village is a small pub where we stopped for dinner. The food gave the kids the burst of energy they needed to make it the rest of the way home. Sofia biked about 6 Km ( 3.8 miles) and Ali had a combination of walking, running, piggy back rides and shoulder rides. I was very impressed with their stamina. We got home just about bedtime. It was a great way to spend the end of the day.

Cold water swimmers

When we came back from Spain the girls did not want to go in our pool. All I heard was, "It's toooooo cold mommyyyyy!" They were too spoiled from the water in Spain. Not only was the air temperature in the 80's everyday but the pool water was about 82 degrees. I thought, "have I ruined my girls for cool water swimming?".As the summer went on they finally accepted the cool water of our pool and really started to enjoy it. Our pool temperature hit a high of 71 degrees (21 celsius) but for the most part it hovered around 70. Unfortunately this summer was not that hot and our pool is in the shade from about 11-2 everyday so even with the solar cover there was really no warming to be had. One night we forgot to put the solar cover on and the temperature fell to 68 degrees but when the girls jumped in and I asked, "Is it cold?" they quickly responded with, "NO!". I was surprised but very pleased since I grew up swimming in water that was not warm and I would like my girls to enjoy the same expereince. Today I am confident I did not ruined the cold water swimming expereince for my children. On the way home from school they asked if they could go in the pool. I said yes but figured they would hop in and get out immediately. Ali in the end didn't go in b/c having her clothes off outside made her chilly but Sofia jumped right in. She did get out right away but only so she could jump back in and play around. I really was shocked since the pool was only 65 degrees (18 celsius)! She was probably only in for 5-10 minutes but I guess I can finally say bye to my girls who only swim in the warm waters of Spain.

Air in the Tires

I had another new experience in the Czech Republic today. I noticed that the air in one of my car tires was low so I decided I needed to put air in it. I thought the air pump things at the gas station would be the same as they are in the States so I pulled into the gas station to fill it up. As I stood in front of the air machine I realized it was NOT the same as in the states. This one was computerized. Since I didn't know the words on the screen I called Jason for a little google translate help. We figured out what the machine was saying and I gave it a go. It worked just fine. Other than getting my hands dirty from the tire everything went smoothly.

Back to school

Today was back to school day for the girls. Ali entered the Reception class today (preschool in the U.S) and Sofia entered Year 1 (Kindergarten in the U.S.). Both kids were excited to head back to school and see their teachers and friends. Jason and I got everything ready this morning and the kids did a great job getting dressed. We headed off to school with spare clothes, indoor shoes, lunch bags, and book bags all in their little back packs. As we dropped them both off in their classrooms they easily settled in and didn't give us a backward glance. When I picked them up at the end of the day I was greated with "I'm playing". Which meant, they didn't want to go yet and I could just move along. Fortunately it was a beautiful afternoon so I let the kids play in the school yard for a while. A succesful start to a new school year.

Karaoke

It was our friend Sarah's birthday last week. She invited us to join her for her party. We happily accepted the invite and headed out to our favorite pad thai place for dinner. The restaurant in small so our group took up most of the restaurant. After a yummy dinner we headed to BeKaraOK! for a little karaoke. This was our first karaoke expereince and I was grateful for the private room. It was a lot of fun though to sing. We had group sing a longs as well as individual. I did feel a bit old though since there were a number of songs that our friends didn't know. It's these times that I realize the mid twenties crowd really isn't my age anymore. Oh well, I'm still young at heart (which is, of course, something only old people say!) Even with the gap in age we still had a blast. Maybe there is more karaoke in my future!

My Bike

I finally bought a bike! Jason and I had thought about it for a while but it just didn't make sense to buy them while we lived in the apartment. We also put off buying them since it is hard to spend the money on something that you already have. Our problem is that our bikes are sitting in my parent's basement in the States and therefore don't do us any good. I was hoping to not spend much money on the bike though but of course that just isn't possible when you are short! I'm happy with my bike because it fits me and is a good bike but it was basically the only bike that was short enough. It seems most bikes come in a size 16 frame and maybe occasionally some will be a size 15 but I had to go with a 14.5. The only reason that even fit me was because the middle bar is slanted down! In any event, I went for my first ride this morning. I covered 13 miles in an hour and 5 minutes. I was able to check out some paths I had wondered about which was nice. There was hardly any traffic when I was on the road and the paths through the woods and farmland where bumpy but fine to ride on. I was happy to have my front shocks to absorb some of the bumps. I think if I can combine bike riding with running I think I will be quite happy (and fit).

Playing with the big kids

Today my friend Julie sent her kids over to play. This is a treat for the girls because Remi and Eden are "big kids". My girls love playing with them and Remi and Eden are so good with kids. It also means I don't have to entertain my children either since they really want nothing to do with me with the big kids are around. I got in on the playing too since Eden and I had a lot of fun playing with dive sticks in the pool. It makes me look forward to playing those games with my girls when they get a little older.

Dinner with friends

Last night we had friends over for dinner. It is so nice to be able to entertain friends in our new house and to have the space to have more than one set of friends over at a time . We have so much more space and the way the kitchen is set up to face the dining area and the way it looks out to the patio makes me not feel rushed to finish so I can join our guests. I can be part of the fun while I'm getting everything ready. I'm still on my asian kick so I made sushi as well as a salad with an asian dressing, a ginger garlic hummus, and asian grilled salmon. It all came out really good (if I do say so myself). Since I don't know any asian desserts, I kept the asian theme until dessert. For dessert we finished up with Pavlova and brownies. The brownies were an afterthought since I realized we may need more dessert for the kids but the pavlova is my new favorite dessert. My australian friend, Kirsty, taught me how to make pavlova as it is an australian dessert. It is delicious! It is essentially a meringue topped with whipped cream, banana and berries. I wasn't sure if I would make it for dinner since I wasn't sure if I could make it as good as Kirsty but since it is my favorite now I decided to give it a try. Luckily it came out good and Kiera (Kirsty's daughter) gave me her approval. In addition to all the yummy food our friends, Radek and Emily, brought us two bottles of burčak. It is the first time Jason and I have had burčak although we have heard about it before. It was quite good and very sweet and doesn't taste a lot like alcohol. While I was finishing up a few things for dinner the girls were playing with their friends, (Kiera, Annalee, and Oliver) our neighbor sent her granddaughter over to play as well. This struck me as funny and odd since we did not think this neighbor particularly liked us. Who knows, maybe we are winning her over. Her grandaughter seemed to have fun playing here and we fed her along with our children. Here is a picture of the kids with their friends and the neighbors granddaughter whose name I still don't know.

Mommy Day Off

It doesn't happen often but when a mommy day off happens it is a splendid thing. On Saturday my friend Laura (a fellow mommy) and I took the day off from being mommies and headed to Dresden for the day. We laughed at the beginning of our adventure that we hadn't come laden with bags filled with drinks and snacks. It was so nice to just walk out the door and not worry about forgetting anything. I had read about this milk shop. It is in the guiness book of world records as the most beautiful milk shop in the world. Now, I don't know how many milk shops are up for that award but I was curious so we went to check it out. The ground floor where the cheese shop is is really stunning. It is floor to ceiling villeroy & Boch tiles. It is actually a bit overwhleming. The upstairs is a restaurant which we decided to try for lunch. We each got a cheese plate that had cheeses from around the world which were delicious. We also both had a vanilla milk shake which was to die for! It was really all I could do not to just drink it down in one gulp. After a great lunch which was leisurely without worrying about getting the check before the kids melt down, we headed into town. We took a peek at the old town and then hit the shops. To browse, I mean really browse, was great. I did find a few nice things but the enjoyment wasn't in the buying it was really in the leisurely looking. We decided to have dinner before heading home since we wanted to make the most of our day off. We ended up at a pizza place that was basically a pizza hut knock off. When I first walked in it had that pizza hut smell but I just figured it is a pizza place but when our pan pizzas came they tasted just like pizza hut! It was a great day off and I am looking forward to doing it again!

Going to the Zoo

We hadn't been to the zoo in quite a while so when my friend Elizabeth suggested it we deicded it was time to see the animals. I was actually interested to go since the zoo had recently opened a new sea lion exhibit. The kids had fun running from animal to animal together. It ended up being quite hot that day too so the kids had a good time playing in the little water fountain area. Ali did slip twice so I had to dry her dress in the sun and then once she was done swap her semi dry dress for her wet underwear but she didn't care. We spent some time in the petting zoo which the girls loved. I wasn't sure if the girls would like it since goats can be a little forceful but after some inital uneasiness they settled right in and let the goats eat out of their hands. (Don't worry, I properly sanitized their hands once they were finished in the petting zoo.) After the petting zoo we waiting in line for the pony rides. I was surprised that Sofia wanted to ride the pony since just last week she announced that pony rides were boring but she had a good time. I guess when you are five, things can seem boring one day and exciting the next! After seeing some animals, having ice cream, riding a pony, and feeding the goats we decided it was time to head home. I think the kids could have kept going but the adults were tired!

My own sushi!

I have made sushi all by myself now! My first attempt was good although the rice was a little drier than it should have been. My second attempt was very good with the appropriately sticky rice. I am really enjoying making sushi. I also like the heath benefits of seaweed. I bought cookies at the Japanese shop the other day that were wrapped in seaweed. That was stretching it a bit for me. I like seaweed but I have decided I need to drawer the line with my desserts! Here is a picture of my sushi...not perfect but not bad for a beginner!

Quick swim with daddy

The girls have really been enjoying the pool. We swim almost every day now that the weather has been nice. Yesterday the girls and I played a lot in the pool after dinner since it was still so warm out. By seven o'clock I had gotten out of the pool though since I was chilled from being in so long with the kids. It was also time to start wrapping up play time so the kids could go to bed. Luckily for Sofia, Jason came home just as we had gotten out of the pool. After commuting home in the heat Jason was definitely ready to go in the pool. Sofia had a little extended pool time with Jason. It was nice to see them having so much fun in the pool together.

Dresden

We headed to Dresden today. I love that the car offers us the freedom to just up and go to Germany for the day. Anyway, Jason had never been to Dresden and the girls and I had gone once but only to the children's museum so we wanted to really see the city. We decided to go this weekend since it is the Dresden City Festival. We were able to walk around the old town of Dresden while seeing the festival at the same time. I'm curious to go back and explore the old town a little more when there aren't quite so many people so that I can get a better look at the amazing buildings. It was fun to see all the huts selling things for the festival. It was mostly food but they also had quite a bit for kids. Ali rode a pony. Sofia loved watching people go into the dive tank. They both had their face painted and of course they both enjoyed yummy treats like donuts and ice cream. A festival isn't a festival without junk food! After a fun day of walking around the city festival we headed home for a swim in the pool. It was very hot in Dresden today so we were all longing to cool off. I love coming home to our new house but especially today when I knew I could not only come home to the house I love but I could also jump in the pool.

Knee Update

So I went to the orthopedist on Wednesday. Of course by Wednesday my knee was no longer hurting. I was tempted to go for a run to make it bad again so the doctor would see it but since my appointment was across town at 8:40am I didn't really have time. Anyway, he moved my knee all around and pressed on it and took an xray but couldn't find anything. I could have told him that! Even when my knee is so painful it hurts to walk I can still press on it and not find one spot that hurts. I figured it wasn't a bone problem so there was really no need for an xray but I went through the process anyway. In the end he told me he didn't see anything but gave me some pills to take for 2 months and told me no running for 2 months. I can bike and swim. Since our pool is so small that trying to swim for exercise is out of the question my other option is bike. I do not have a bike. Well, actually I should say, I don't have a bike here since my bike is back in the States. Jason and I have talked about getting bikes for a while so this might be the reason to finally get around to it. At any rate, I will take a little bit of time off from running but hopefully not 2 months. I am hoping i will back to running after a month.

Painful knee, Sushi making and Dinner with friends

Today the girls and I headed to my friend Sung Soon's house. We had planned to go there for 2:30 but unfortunately I had some pretty bad knee pain from the run this morning and ended up making an appointment to see the doctor. Fortunately for me I have good friends who can take care of my children at a moments notice. I dropped the girls off with Sung Soon and headed to the doctor. The doctor talked to me for a couple minutes and gave me a referral to an orthopedist that I will see on Wednesday. (I will keep you posted.) It was a quick doctor visit and I headed back to Sung Soon's to make sushi.

I had never liked sushi until I had Sung Soon's sushi. Her sushi is excellent! One day I was craving her sushi so much that I bought sushi from the grocery store. This was a bad decision and left me sick all night. I vowed never to have store bought sushi again. I asked Sung Soon if she would teach me how to make sushi so that I could have it whenever I craved it. Today she taught me. She also lent me one of her rice cookers and gave me some of the ingredients so that I could get started by myself at home. It will be interesting to see how well I paid attention to how she cooked some of the ingredients. I hope I can make it as good as Sung Soon or at least good enough to fill my cravings. Anyway, Jason got out of work early and came over and enjoyed the sushi as well. After gorging ourselves on sushi, Sung Soon also made us dinner. She made typical korean food for us that was very good. The meal included things like sesame leaves from Korea that I have never had before. They were quite tastey with the beef she made. We also had seaweed which is different than the seaweed you use for sushi. I had no idea there were different kinds of seaweed. The one we had for dinner was a salted seaweed that we placed rice in and ate. Jason enjoyed the soup but I decided to skip the soup since I couldnt' possibly fit anything else in my stomach! We had a great time and I feel like I learned a lot about Korean cooking and the girls practiced using chop sticks. Her is a picture of Sung Soon teaching Sofia how to hold chopsticks. Ali had beginner chopsticks and was doing great with them. I think I needed the beginner chopsticks as well!

Okoř

We had another beautiful day here today. Jason, unfortunately, had to work today but the girls and I took advantage of the day and headed to Okoř. Okoř is an old castle or really it is a castle ruin. The girls and I started out with lunch and then we walked through a field and took some pictures. That was the most I could get before the girls were off to the bouncy castle that was set up on the path up to the real castle. Oh well, I let them take their three minutes in the bouncy castle and then they were ready to explore the ruins. We had to wait a few minutes for the tour to begin which I wasn't thrilled about since I knew the tour was in Czech so it wasn't really going to help me. To my surprise I did understand some of what the tour guide said and was able to explain what some things were to the girls. We had fun walking around the castle and the girls seemed to enjoy it. They thought the old castle toilet was disgusting since it was just a hole in the seat that opened up to the ground far below. I can't say I blame them. I'm just happy we don't live in the time when that was the way of making toilets. After walking around and exploring the different areas of the castle we headed out of the castle and I got the girls some ice cream.

Fun in the pool

Today was such a beautiful day. The sun was shining all day!! We had friends over for most of the afternoon and the kids all played so well together. There was plenty of time spent in the pool and plenty of time for dress up in the playroom. Ali is really doing an excellent job with her swimming. She really has no fears about jumping in the pool and swimming around. Today she even swam the length of the pool twice. Granted, our pool isn't that big but it is still a huge success for Ali who wasn't even able to swim at the beginning of June. Sofia is still a little scared of our pool and thinks it is too cold so she mostly goes in with her noodle although she did swim a tiny bit today on her own. We all had time to really relax and play today. In between swimming and dress up we enjoyed watermelon and popsicles. All in all a fun filled beautiful sunny summer day!