Saturday

Our Saturday castle trips have given way to adventures closer to home, now that classes have begun at the University. Since the kids went back to school in early September, things seem to be growing busier by the second.

Fortunately, the picnic ground just down the road is perfect for a Saturday romp. Thomas is ecstatic over his new football (that's a soccer ball, by the way, if you're in the US) and everyone likes throwing the frisbee, though none of us are especially skilled at it! A couple of weeks ago, in fact, we met some friends of friends in the park. The boys were kicking the football around, and Thomas's new friends' dad picked up the frisbee. Let's just say we weren't well matched! The poor man threw it with such accuracy, and there I was, hardly able to throw it as well as his 5-year-old!

But today it was just the 5 of us, kicking and throwing happily, and chasing the ball (or frisbee) as often as not. Iain took off for the tree, and has begun to climb: soon he'll be making it up to the lower branches and smiling down at me. I can't say that we've worked out all the kinks: we still end up late to school because of the unpredictable traffic, and the morning rush tends to make us all a little edgy. But it is starting to feel like home--in a bittersweet way, of course. We still miss our friends back in Atlanta, and wish we could meet for coffee and catch up!