South Wales

Pembroke Castle

This year Pedro's annual birthday trip involved a foray into South Wales. We wanted to take his 4X4 vehicle on its first roadtrip through somewhat rugged territory. Our plans were a bit spoiled by a brakedown that lasted almost three days and extended our trip by an extra day. But despite the car troubles, we did a bit of hiking along the coast and probably sat around a bit more than we would have otherwise.

Pembroke Castle moat

When we got restless we took taxis. The villages are pretty close together so it wasn't too bad.

Welsh cheese: Caerphilly, Welsh Brie, Red Devil (spicy!), and Harlech (with horseradish)

We stumbled upon a gourmet food shop in Pembroke; it had a huge selection of Welsh cheeses so I had the lady behind the counter put together a little picnic selection for us.

We stayed at a self-catering cottage (no-frills country house) in a village called Freshwater East. The local pub had delicious food (local fish, mussels, and pork) and put together a special ice cream sundae for Pedro. Plus, they had a huge fish tank that kept Isabella absolutely transfixed.

We only managed to get in a good coastal hike once - and it was absolutely stunning. Pedro had Isabella on his back in the child carrier and we hiked up and down the rolling hills along the coast from Freshwater. There were spectacular views. The scenery reminded me a lot of Cornwall, and also of how much I want to go back!

Our last day was spent wandering around in the village of Tenby - in the rain. Thank goodness the child carrier closes up like a little capsule and keeps Isabella out of the wind and the wet. To matters more uncomfortable, the place we were staying had closed, so we couldn't even go back just to get out of the rain. After enduring too much frustration from the mechanic ( who could never give us an estimate of when the work would be done), we decided to take a taxi to the garage and give them the evil eye until they got moving.

In all, the trip had plenty of high points and at least we were never at each other's throats! I'll post a slideshow in the margin soon.

Isabella the Flower Girl

We have been planning my good friend Kathryn's wedding for the last year. My role as a bridesmaid included making the flower girl dresses so that they would match the bridesmaids gowns. So I sent swatches of fabric and Pedro's mom was able to find just the perfect material in Puerto Rico.

Kat and I made the crowns for the girls and the end result was totally adorable. They looked like two little fairies flitting about the church and the field where the reception was held. My friend Amanda graciously offered to do my hair, even though she was dealing with a house full of boxes only one day after moving.

Instead of a traditional wedding cake, the couple opted for a cheese tower, using traditional British cheeses. Isabella kept robbing it of its grapes throughout the reception. We were experiencing one of the hottest days of the summer and this cheese tower got pretty ripe before the night was over.

It was one of the most beautiful weddings I have been to. The weather was unbelievable. Isabella was a perfect flower girl - she spent over three hours dancing on the dance floor, up WAY past her bedtime, but happy the entire time. Seriously, we couldn't have asked for a better experience.

Easter - A Very Late One

But better late than never, I say! Because we were gone for Easter, I stubbornly wanted to celebrate it anyway and made big plans for an Easter get-together three weeks late. Odd, I know, but that's my personality for you!

So today we had a few of our friends with families over for a potluck lunch and egg hunt. It turned out so well that we'll just have to do egg hunts for the kids more often (just kidding). But it was really great - we had tons and tons of empty plastic eggs that we filled with jelly beans, chocolates, and other tooth-rotters and we hid them all along a trail next to our house. We had eggs up in the trees, in the bushes, and under leaves. Isabella was confused at first, but once she caught on she kept saying "huevos! more huevos!". There were five little kids running around frantically seeking out those little colored eggs - it made me so happy. Have I mentioned how much I enjoy holidays with kids?

As for the food...my friends went all out - there was moussaka, coconut chicken korma, mini-cheesecakes, treacle spongecake with custard, lobster salad, and nettle and feta savory pastries - to name a few.

Current Doings

these are some happy faces!

We went to a little wedding this past weekend. I think this was actually the first wedding Isabella has been to as well. She was so well behaved the whole time, even inside the ancient church where the ceremony itself was held.

Hemingford Abbots village where the wedding was

how sweet - i might not have caught this had i not been straggling behind in 4" heels

my girl and me

barely 7a.m. and she's already prepped for the paparazzi - thanks Auntie Lisa

We are about to leave for Scandinavia from this Saturday. I have been rushing around packing, finishing up taxes, sewing up last-minute orders, cleaning, and everything else that happens around here. Pedro and I are really looking forward to traveling again and this year may just be shaping up to be full of it (I hope!).

Anticipation

from the barren looking earth, these tulips will soon explode into color

the tiniest iris I've ever seen

I threw this rutabaga into a pot a few months ago before it went bad - now look!

We had a "dinner party" that wasn't intended to be a dinner party last night. It just grew quickly. I was feeling partied out from hosting so many get togethers in the past few months and didn't want to do much cooking and prepping...but that's exactly what happened! I have absolutely no regrets - getting together with friends remains high on my list of things to do no matter how much work goes into it. And I always wish I could have had more people around the table. We had a couple of giggly little girls chasing each other around past their bed time, who shortly went down and let the adults sit and eat until well past midnight. It was the kind of evening that makes you feel so fortunate - which we are, and I am grateful every day.

This weekend I intend to do very little. Maybe a bit of tinkering with my sewing machine, maybe some reading...because the rest of the month is going to be pretty busy for us. Pedro has been incredibly busy at work and will be for some time. In addition to that, my birthday is coming up next week. There is a plan in the works to spend the day in London with my girlfriends next Saturday. The following weekend we have a wedding. And the following weekend we're heading to Scandinavia! More on that to follow soon.

In other news, Isabella seems to be in the middle of a growth spurt. She's suddenly taller and lankier, and is eating quantities of food fit for a teenager. Her energy levels are also oddly higher than normal - she's been climbing on the dinner table and getting into other typical mischief I thought we had just skipped over. She continues with this obsession with singer Rosemary Clooney (Mambo Italiano, and such) - I started it with over-the-top dancing and singing along and she really latched onto that! I'm hoping to get some video soon.

I hope everyone is experiencing as sunny a transition into Spring as we have been!

Happy Anniversary! Nine Years!

the decor was...interesting

Typical European dining at its best (close tables) - our neighbors kept watching us eat!

lucky the restaurant rides on Jamie Oliver's celebrity, otherwise no one would know about it - it's in the middle of nowhere (if that's possible in London)

Isabella spent the day with my friend Karalee and her daughter Kathryn. She had a blast - no tears all day. Parks, play dough, and awesome toys - she wasn't ready for us to take her home!