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So, all of a sudden, life is a lot better. Yesterday we finally moved into our new home, and today is such a gorgeous, sunny day, and I have a garden, and happy children who run around like crazed little donkeys. Of course we haven’t got our furniture yet and are making do with blow-up Read more

Oh what a week… this whole move is really testing us: Monday morning we learned that although our container had arrived in port, it was “randomly selected for x-ray inspection”, which means it won’t get to us until Tuesday next week. As we have to vacate our apartment in 2 days, we’re looking forward to Read more

What a day yesterday! We got the keys to our new mansion and excitedly ran around for an hour, imagining our things in every corner. It’s big, and gorgeous, and has the biggest bbq ever. As we’re still waiting for our furniture, we couldn’t really do much there, so decided to make the most of Read more

This last week was mostly spent…. getting a tan, and getting my head round children’s after school activities. It seems that American moms spend the whole day driving their kids from appointment to appointment and managing their kids’ schedules. There are so many activities, clubs, societies, volunteer organisations…. it’ll take a while to figure it Read more

Not much to be said about the last few days – except sun, summer, suntan lotion, swimming pool. Aaaaahhhh… We’re conserving our energy for the big move next week. I’d almost forgotten we have to move AGAIN. Read more

F’s Mom’s Day celebration at pre-school. Ah bless….. After pre-school and school pick-up we go up into the hills for E’s horse riding lesson. She is in a group with 3 other girls, all at least 11 or 12, and the horses are quite a bit bigger than the ones she’s used to riding. She’s Read more

Went to see author Isabel Allende last night, in the local Books Inc. bookshop just down the road. She came to present her new book, “Island Beneath the Sea”, read parts of it and answered a few questions and signed autographs. What a beautiful, warm, intelligent, inspiring woman! I have read a few of her Read more

The kids are doing really well now. E loves her school and seems to mingle well. She even went on her first “play date” yesterday. These are different than in the UK: as school finishes at half past 2, the afternoon is longer, which means the play date usually ends at 5, or before dinnertime, Read more

First day of school and pre-school today. After a bit of a mad dash this morning (we have to leave the house half an hour earlier than back in the UK, which doesn’t sound much, but believe me, it is crazy), we drive to school. It’s fantastic how the roads around the schools are so Read more

Went over to the coast to Santa Cruz today. A stunning day, and only 45 minutes’ drive. I’d read in the guide somewhere that Santa Cruz has a huge amusement park along its famous boardwalk, and it is just that: huge. And noisy and straight out of an 80s teen movie. Fantastically corny, and so Read more