Greece

During the first week of the term break, we went to Greece.  We knew it was early in the season, but we knew it would be warmer than the UK!  It's surprising how "warm" the high 50's and low 60's feel when it's been a long winter.  (It just snowed again here two days ago!) 

We stayed at an all-inclusive resort... which meant it was a nice, relaxing five days.  I actually read three books while the kids played in the indoor pool and at the kids' club.  :)  We made one day-trip into Thessaloniki to see the sights.  Because there were so few tourists in the area, it was hard to find a tour group (the city was about 45 minutes away - expensive by taxi and not advisable by car), but we managed to join on a German tour! 

Here are some of the highlights...

The first day was sunny and lovely!

The kids couldn't wait to go to the beach!

 

Look, Dad, a giant pineapple!

We saw The White Tower in Thessaloniki...

... and the Byzantine acropolis...

... and the catacombs in St. Demetrius...

... and the market.

Anyone want a bird?  On a plate or in a cage?

It has become a tradition to find gelato wherever we are!

View of Mt. Olympus from our room

Easter

After a relaxing week in Greece (will post later), we enjoyed being back in town and at Jubilee for Easter Sunday...  

He is risen!

We were looking at pictures of Ryan sleeping IN this Easter basket when he was only weeks old.

Egg hunt for Legos and Jelly Bellys.  (Um... he's eating the latter.)

I can't get over that porcelain white skin!

Off to church...

We enjoyed the afternoon with the Otto family.

End of Easter Term

Wow... the second half of this term has been BUSY!  The last two weeks alone, the kids seemed to have activities at the school every day!  There were a lot of fun opportunities but, in all honesty, it left the kids exhausted!  We are more than ready for the Easter break!  Here are some of the highlights...

Year 4 Presentation

Cross Country Clan Race (Go South!)

Cross Country

Clan Netball Tournament

Year 2 Swimming Gala

Ready to go!

Easter Hat Parade

Ryan's 7th Birthday

Over the weekend, my baby boy turned SEVEN!  Unbelievable.

We kicked off the weekend with a family dinner on Friday night at the birthday boy's choice... Pizza Hut.  Honestly, it was one of the nicest family dinners we've ever had.  The kids dressed up and were so sweet with each other, and so polite at the restaurant.  We all filled up on salad and dinner and ice cream before heading home and tucking in my six-year-old for the last time.

On Saturday morning, we all went out for a birthday breakfast and then Ryan had a Lego party at the house with just three good "mates" from school.... Charie, Dilsher and Alexander.  The weather was lousy, so I was happy that there were only four of them in the house, and appreciative of the brief break in the rain so that I could send them all outside for a "Leggo" hunt on the green.

Conducting our rendition of "Happy Birthday" at Pizza Hut

Thinking hard about his wish....

Our British boy ordered an English breakfast!

Lego Party

Pin the Smile on the Minifigure

Getting a little out of hand...

Dilsher, Ryan, Charlie & Alexander

Heading back to the house with their loot from the "Leggo" Hunt

Lego Building Contest - Tallest Creation

Lego Building Contest Awards

Another round of "Happy Birthday"

Bear Photo

Year 2 Rugby Match

Ryan played in his first rugby match last week.  It was a fun, "friendly" (meaning, no keeping score... yeah, right...) tournament with the boys from St. George's and Bishopsgate schools.  Here are some highlights from the game...

Ryan's team was the "Sharks"

He was so proud of himself for getting his first tag!

Going in for another tag...

His favorite thing was having his dad there to watch!

Daddy/Daughter Date

There are a couple of perks to working at Mattel.  One of them, for our Barbie girl, is going to see the premieres of the Barbie movies.  This weekend, John took Lane to see Barbie in the Pink Shoes in London, followed by a special lunch date.

She was so excited to go out with John!

Lane & Barbie

Barcelona

With the kids off school for the half term break and the winter seeming to drag on a bit, we headed with John to Barcelona - where he worked for a couple of days at Mattel's office there while the kids and I did some exploring.  In the evenings, we headed out for some delicious dinners together, and he took the last day off so that we could do some sightseeing as a family.  Here are the highlights of our trip...

On the first day, we went to see the Olympic Village, built for the 1992 games.

The kids and I took the tour bus to get an overview of the city.

And they really enjoyed the "rickshaw" we took to the Picasso Museum.

We found some amazing gelato!

We all visited La Sagrada Familia, which has been under construction for over 130 years!

The church was designed by Gaudi.  (We also visited Guell Park.)

The kids loved going down to the beach to play in the sand.

We stopped at the famous La Boqueria food market before heading to the airport.

Roald Dahl Week

Last week was Book Week at school and the theme was Roald Dahl.  While a few Roald Dahl books are common children's lit in the States (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach...), his books are much more popular here.  Lane felt the need to get "ready" for the week, so she increased her intake of the author's works... reading The BFG and The Magic Finger.  Ryan and I also worked our way through The BFG over the last couple of weeks.  The kids were treated to special assemblies and extra treats (including various "revolting recipes") and had the chance to dress up on Thursday.  Here are a couple of photos of "Matilda" and my Big Friendly Giant. 

Just four days of school this week, then the kiddos are off for half term (and we get to spend a couple of days in Barcelona)! 

The BFG and Matilda

Ryan eating his snozzcumber!