rainy day

April showers have begun: it's 5C (41F) and raining. A wet, cloudy, chilly and muddy Saturday morning is the perfect time for a run. (Ok, I admit that anytime I can get out of the house and onto the railway paths is a pretty good time for a run.)

Inside, things are quiet, briefly. Yesterday was a momentous day in Thomas's life. He had his first piano lesson. Amazingly, he took to it, seemed to enjoy it, and came home eager to practice and to teach Iain middle C. It is officially our first foray into the extra-curricular world, which we've managed to hold off for a ridiculously long time. Anna will be 9 in September; most people we know with kids that age have ballet and music and sports and scouts and goodness knows what else. But I am quite happy starting with an activity that can be done indoors in an hour on a Friday afternoon, during which I can sit and have a quiet cup of tea and a chat with the mother of the girl giving Thomas his piano lesson.

I know it won't be too long before I am standing in the rain, watching my sons chase a black-and-white ball down a muddy football pitch (or a soccer field, if you prefer). So I will be grateful for middle C, no matter how many times I hear it between now and next Friday.

nothing to report

spring has begun in earnest--daffodils are blooming, and the nightly frost seems to have stopped. we are all looking forward to seeing Grampa at Easter and to having some time off from our respective employments--school, creche and teaching.

I am looking forward to finishing teaching at the end of next week and hoping to get into working on the last chapter of the book I ought to have completed at the end of 2009! and, of course, to updating the albums on facebook so you can see what we've been up to!!

family walk

again--sorry there aren't photos. soon there will be a link to a facebook album--once the term is over and things settle down a little bit for me. the cold is finally letting go of us, and we went for a walk without hats or mittens today. there are buds on the trees, and spring is definitely getting ready to burst forth. I saw the first daffodil this afternoon.

we are looking forward to spring, to Easter when 'grampa' is coming to visit, and we're hoping to see more friends come over when the weather turns. Hadrian's Wall and Holy Island await, and we're ready to show you around all the local wonders...

springing

amazingly, I find myself on iGoogle, thanks to Catherine. and although I can't post photos from my homepage, I can write the quick update. for the last 4 or 5 days, the sun has been shining, and the snow seems like a distant memory: spring is coming. I spotted snowdrops a couple of weeks ago as well as buds on the trees. I know I will miss the pink dogwoods along N Decatur Road, but I am looking forward to seeing spring in County Durham.