Out and About

Spent a very fun night at Fujiyama on Monday with the NCT girls.  Good to see them all on such good form, I miss them now I am back at work, so good to catch up and have a chatty night powered by white wine and raw fish.

Then the last night of the pub quiz season on Tuesday.  Not our finest week, but no matter ... we are raring to go for the next season.  Yoshi's Island had a spectacular win, with Team Science in second place.

Mum and Dad kindly looked after Penny for Fish and I to go out to the cinema on Thursday.  We saw the Avengers Assemble, which was quite fun really.  Action packed, and also entertaining, we were also joined by Ryan.

And today we joined Alex, Norris and Liam at the Tate Modern for the Boetti exhibition.  Some great patterns, and intricate embroidery, including the fantastic maps embroidered with the colours of the respective country's flags.  After a painfully long lunch at Pizza Express we made our way to Beckenham for Greg & Kate's housewarming.  A lovely place, with fireplaces and stone steps, we had a relaxing time while the rain beat down outside.  And good to spend some more time with Penny after such a busy week.

And tomorrow is a day of rest ... ahhhhh!

A spare second ...

Ahhhh ... a reasonably free weekend, and a chance to catch up on the bloglett.

We had a fantastic Easter, last weekend we had a fun time at Patrick's housewarming, then went to Alex's to play board games, and making things at Norris' on the Sunday.

Penny and I braved the rain on Thursday to go to the London Aquarium, lots of fun, especially the glass floor over the shark tank!

Oh, and our Vauxhall Griffin pub quiz team finally won last Tuesday ... yay!

And this weekend is fairly unbooked, so I spent today charity shopping in Balham before having a treat ... an Indian Head Massage at the Aveda salon.  Fab!

A Whole 5 Days off! And a Birthday Girl :)

So, a month back into full time work, and I now merit a day off.  Oh, wait a minute, and I also get a long weekend off as it is Easter ... hooray!

After our fun Saturday in Guildford, we spent Sunday with Keith, Danni and the family at their new house to celebrate Bettie's birthday.  Was a lovely sunny day, and lots of fun to scamper and play in their garden.

A fair performance (joint 3rd) in the Vauxhall Griffin quiz on Tuesday, which was preceded by spending some time with Penny-Wenny to celebrate a special day.

So my little girl is a whole one year old!  Was surreal to think of being in labour a year ago, and lovely to think of the long, happy year we have all had together.  And she is so big now, standing and sitting with ease, chattering happily (especially favouring the 'row row row' bit of the song) and still making friends, at nursery and wherever she goes.  What a special little girl I am honoured to be such a blessed Mummy.

And so tomorrow we will spend the day together, having fun and pootling about.  Can't wait!

A Guildford Wander

After a morning doing a few jobs, headed off to Guildford on the train to meet with James and Clare F.

Had an indulgent and very yummy lunch at Cote, always goo dot have steak tartare and frites.  Then we went for a wander by the river, so we could get to know Guildford a little better.  Some fantastic views from the top of the hills, but hard to get to the top!

Dashed onto a train, and then onto a bus at Clapham Junction, to get home for a chilled out evening in.

All Sunny and Well!

Wow, is it really Friday again?  Seems that full time work really makes time fly!

We had a fun weekend last week with King of Games on Saturday, with its epic finale that saw Jane B become Queen of Games (I do love it when there is a Queen of Games!).

After losing an hour, we had a relaxing Sunday catching up with life. Then work, a quiz at the Vauxhall Griffin for me on Tuesday, then dinner with Mum and Dad on Weds and Thurs (with Dad cooking on Thurs).

A relaxing but sociable weekend awaits, meeting up with James & Clare F in Guildford on Sat, then Bettie's first birthday on Sun.  :)

The New World Order

A peaceful Friday night at the end of a very different week.

Penny spent two full days at nursery and, although very tired after her first day, she was completely herself after the second.  And she had a lovely time with Mum on the Thursday and Friday, going to the park and playing with toys, so it seems like everything is coming together nicely.

And, unsurprisingly, Fish and I are now pretty tired after a busy week.  But no rest for the wicked ... King of Games tomorrow!

Another week goes past ...

Phew ... it really seems like time is flying at the moment.  Work is going well as I get to grips with my new role, can barely believe that this is my fourth week back!

Spent Saturday making lots and lots of Fairy Cakes for Penny's Welcome to the World ceremony on Sunday.  Such a fantastic day, no need to reiterate what Charlie put on the Penny blog here.

Penny had her first full day at nursery today.  I felt a bit emotional last night and this morning, fortunately Charlie was doing the top off and pick up today, but she was apparently fine ... only crying when she spotted that Daddy had come to pick her up!

Birthday Board Games

Such a board gamey weekend!

Had a lovely lunch with the NCT gals, guys and babies at the Lido Cafe.  They were on good form, and seemed pleased that I was getting on well at work.

Then to Norris' for her art sale, where P and I also saw Dan, Erika, Mink, Dave and Alex (clearly the place to be!)  Mink and Dave came back for a veggie pasta bake dinner, along with Charlie's uncle Elias, who is staying for a couple of days.  Lovely to see him :)

Charlie's birthday today ... after tackling the start of his treasure hunt (yay!) he came out for lunch with P, and then brought her into work.  She was very sweet and cuddly, made lots of friends, and joined a few project groups on the way.

Quick handover for C to go out to Board Games & Beyond.  Spent the evening cuddling P, cooking, and chatting with a visiting Norris who came round to pick up teacups.

Hiatus

Ok, so no excuses, I am just not quite finding the time to blog at the moment.  Oh well, let's just hope I find a way to fit it in!

So, in summary:
- We had a fantastic weekend for Dad's birthday, though I was not very well.  We wandered round the Olympic park, went to see a stupendously fast and impressive magician (Hans Klok) and had a lovely family birthday lunch in Dulwich Cafe Rouge.  Lovely to see Mum and Dad, they were on good form even though Mum had a bit of a cough.

- I am now feeling much more energised as my tummy is better, though we all still seem to be a little snotty.  No matter, but at least I now feel capable of carrying out the many roles (wife, mother, colleague) that I have.

- Work is great, Fairtrade Fortnight has been a tremendous time to come back, with happy empowered staff running about making a lot of noise about Fairtrade.  There have been some developments about which role I will actually be doing, so watch this space.

And now we are starting a fun board gamey weekend to celebrate Fishy's birthday.  Yay!  So we are expecting Alex, Andrew and James C, followed later by Greg and Kate ... and for now we are pooling along doing jobs and being jolly.  Hooray for the weekend!

Norovirus

Was uncomfortable, with a hurty tummy, throughout the night.  So was not feeling my best throughout the day.

P seems to be improving though.  C took her to the doctors, and apparently it is the norovirus.  So, with Calpol and dioralyte, we are hoping she will be ok within a few days.

A lazy evening in with Penny while C went to see magic!

Infinite Improbability

So, normal life has resumed.

I am back at work.  It feels like I never left, or rather that I left last Friday and that I am now back in, only to find that my notepad is gone, my diary cleared and my accounts managed by someone else.  Not in a bad way, it is good to refresh, but I look forward to being a little more established with clearer responsibilities.  And it is great to see everybody, they all seem pleased that I am back.

Penny has seemed not to miss me, but she has been very ill.  After being sick (exorcist sick) twice on Sunday night, she has had very little appetite and everything has gone through her in quite an explosive fashion.  She was a complete mess in her cot when I woke her this morning, though at least she had slept. On Sun night and Tues night she was up for most of the night, sometimes crying inconsolably.  Charlie has done an amazing job nursing her and staying up where needed, and he still seems to be full of beans from his paternity leave.

Mum looked after P today, sort of in rehearsal for her upcoming childcare duties, but Penny is not herself so it was a little different to how we all expect it to be.  But they had a pleasant walk in the park, and P was apparently fairly jolly, considering.  Perhaps a visit to the docs tomorrow.

The house is still fairly tidy after the swapping.  I made a new rug out of carpet offcuts for the lounge, and got some colourful washing baskets for P's toys to keep them tidy.

As for now?  I am tired and a bit coldy, and about to be sent to bed by Nurse Fishy ... goodnight!

Home

Tired and carrying 3 small bags, 3 massive bags, a stroller, a carseat and a baby, we dragged ourselves back to Brixton. P bore up very well in the day, having a couple of naps and yet staying awake when she was supposed to.

Once the suitcases were emptied and the washing on, I however fell asleep in the bath.  So C let me grab a couple of hours in bed, as I clearly couldn't function.

So when I got up I was pretty productive, especially in completing a massive sort out of Penny's clothes (well overdue!)

Uncle Andrew popped round in a very jolly mood, and shared some fajitas with us. 

Going Home

Said goodbye to David at Austin Bergstrom Airport, having said goodbye to Justina earlier as she had left for Louisiana for work.  P was a bit grumpy on our 40 min flight to Dallas airport, but we were hoping she would get it all out of her system before the big trans-Atlantic flight home.

A very quick transfer at Dallas (duh duuuuuh, duh duuuuh, du duuuuh dennannaaaanaaa etc.) which was helpful as we only had 40 mins to get to our next flight.  Pleased to see that we were put just behind the business seats, giving us lots of space.

Charlie slept a little, P slept a little more than that, and I slept zilch.  A grumbly tummy and general discomfort was enough to keep me awake, so instead I watched a documentary about Pearl Jam.  Very interesting, but would have been better off sleeping.

Sunshiny Birthday

Awoke at about 7am to see the burning sun just outside our bedroom window ... perfect 32nd birthday weather!

Charlie looked after Penny so I could have a lie in, then popped downstairs to open cards and let Penny play with the envelopes.  So kind of people to send cards, plus various nice online messages.

Justina couldn't bear the idea of us having cereal, and so made biscuits (southern US style biscuits, kind of like English muffins) with mushroom sauce and egg style tofu ... again, so yummy!  Charlie also popped out with David to have a ride on his Ducati motorbike, and I think he really enjoyed the adrenalin.

Then we spent the day driving round in the sunshine, with the boys playing ball in the park, popping into a few shops, seeing where D&J will soon get legally married, then finishing high up at the Oasis to see the burning red sunset.

A great day, finished off by watching a film 'Friends with Benefits' (cheesy but fun) in the hot tub with beer and birthday cake ... oooooh yeeeeeeah!

The Rain in Texas falls mainly in the Hot Tub

CHUCKING it down with rain, are we really in Texas???  Though David made it all better by cooking yummy choc chip pancakes with raspberries!

Saw various bits and pieces in Austin, from the Farmers Market to Anthropology, to Paper Source.  Lots of fun shops, and we stopped for a rainy lunch in Wholefoods, where they had amazing ice creams (mango & avocado ... mmmmm!) and Charlie and I shared a slow roasted brisket sandwich ... yum!

Got a kind Skype from Theresa, Erika, Demetris and Anna while we waited for Justina in the car, I was totally weirded out that it was already my birthday in the UK ... had not even occurred to me!

More great food from Justina, this time a vegan Thanksgiving dinner (again, totally delicious).  Then we watched the film 'Rio' before bed ... very sweet!

I Left my Heart in San Francisco

Although very excited about seeing David and Justina in Austin TX, I was very emotional on leaving Pam's in the shuttle bus, and of course leaving San Francisco.  An excellent choice of home for our little adventure, and everything went so smoothly and calmly.

All the emotion drained away at the airport as they said our bag was very overweight and so we had to pay $100 ... eep!  We had expected this, and had almost decided to just pay it, but at the last minute we bought another bag for $30 as we would still be within our 4 bag allocation.

The flight was ok, though Penny flickered between being good as gold (especially with the friendly stewardess, very impressed with United) and being a whingy noise-bucket!

Pleased to arrive, even though we were met with rain, and so great to see David and Justina who are still as bright and sparky as ever.

Justina had made some fabulous tortellini, so we spent the evening tucking into that and a delicious salad. She makes being a vegan look both easy and delicious, I think maybe they must have better vegan ingredients in America!

A Glimpse from the Bridge

Once we had gotten our heads around the big Expedia/US Airways/United Airlines debacle that seemed to be our flight to Austin, we finally got out of the house and wandered along the Golden Gate Bridge to say our last good byes to the city of San Francisco.

Such amazing views, we had glorious conversations about the engineering and the art deco, along with more morbid ones about the many people who jump from this bridge every year.  Does the beauty of the bridge add to their depression, or does the fantastic setting actually dissuade lots of people who otherwise were intending to jump, but instead turn back to their cars and go back home?!  Who knows!

We wandered along the coast for a bit, exploring the western edge of the Presidio and gazing out over the ocean.

Spent the remainder of the day finishing off the tidying, eating pizza, and watching more Lord of the Rings.

Second-Hand SF

For all those who know me, I am a second hand addict.  A great way to get quality clothes, unique items, both at a lower price and in a more sustainable way than the normal high street routes.  And coming to the US is a chance to get my hands on some great bits and pieces that would simply be nabbed or overpriced back home.

So below is just a precis of what I have discovered during my short stay here in San Francisco:

Community Thrift
The store I remembered from my last visit to SF almost 4 years ago, on Valencia Street.  Loads of fun little bits and bobs, or Tchochkes, to delve through.  Clothing is hard to decide on, as there are no changing rooms, but items are priced very reasonably.
http://www.communitythriftsf.org/

Crossroads Trading
My first lucky find on this trip, I ran across the larger of the two stores I went to as it is right by Church Station, where I was getting out on my way to Valencia Street.  Well selected, a wide variety of quite special clothes at both shops.  The other is on Irving and 8th.
http://crossroadstrading.com/

Goodwill
I spotted this one on a bus journey to Van Ness (it is at the intersection with Mission), and came back another day to investigate.  Mostly shopped for shirts for Mr Fish, so didn't really get to grips with the ladieswear section.
http://sfgoodwill.org/

Thrift Town

Certainly the best organised thrift store I have ever been in, racks and racks of well labelled very organised clothes.  A real treat upstairs, which is full of furniture, frames, vases, anything you might want.

http://www.thrifttown.com/

Out of the Closet
Although their standard orange labels were disappointingly close in colour to their $1 only red labels, this was a fun little shop with plenty of rummaging to be done.
I visited the store on Church Street, San Francisco, but they have plenty of locations shown at their website below:
http://www.outofthecloset.org/

Chloe's Closet
Great second hand kids clothing, divided neatly into age and gender.  Irving and 8th.
http://chloescloset.com/

Alameda Flea Market
The king of all second hand markets and shops everywhere, this is held monthly on Alameda island over the other side of the bay.  Worth a visit even if only for the spectacle, rather than the bargains (hard to pack in a suitcase.  Especially for furniture and 'Americana'.
http://alamedapointantiquesfaire.com/

The Best Aquarium in the World Ever?

After about 5 independent recommendations, we finally decided that driving the 2.5 hours to Monterey to see the renowned Monterey Bay Aquarium would be a good day out.  And what a day out!

After a quick Skype with Granny & Grandad, we headed off into the rain.  We took Route 1 south, as there would be no point in driving along the beautiful Pacific coastal highway after dark on our return, and it was blowy but still wonderful as always to see the vast crashing waves.

We stopped for a hamburger lunch at a retro diner in Monterey before going in, a bit of a treat!

Then inside.

Favourites were the big red octopi, jellyfish, seahorses, the big wave machine and the hands on section, where you could touch a starfish, a crab and a squooshy sea cucumber!  We thought P would be best off with a piece of kelp to investigate, and she seemed pretty happy with that.

And of course the incredible Open Water exhibit, with Hammerhead Sharks, Sea Turtles and even a Sunfish!  They are so weird and wonderful.

I love aquariums for the beautiful patterns in the marine world, a plethora of unique colours and textures!

A long drive home through the dark and fog, though a little quicker as we went the direct route.  Not keen to drive off the edge of the continent into the Pacific!

For more aquarium pics, see my Tumblr page.

Downtown!

Penny was lovely in the night, yelling for milk at 7am, then happily sleeping with us till 10 ... yay!

Went for a run around the nearby reservoir, was impressed by the unexpected views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Sutro Tower and the white crested waves rolling in from the Pacific.  Made it much easier to keep going :) Not quite like running up to Stockwell tube, then to Clapham North like I am used to ...

Charlie went out to his board game club for the afternoon, so P and I went downtown to check out some of the mainstream shops.

Love love love Anthropologie and Sur la Table.  Very underwhelmed by Macy's, was like a bad John Lewis.

Then over to Oakland on the BART to have Mac 'n Cheese with Keller, Joe and Kristina at Homeroom, along with their friends Steven and Vanessa.  Delicious food and wonderful company, really good to see them all again ... a really lovely evening.