Seasons Greetings and such...

We had a good time, a quite Christmas Day and a very, noisy Boxing Day!

It was good to have friends over, with their children...just a buffet type meal with the 'standard' chocolate fountain, English crackers, throwing "snow" on the Christmas tree, and watching the log fire glow (except when stuff added to make the flames turn blue, purple and turquoise).

Ha, I thought this was beginning to sound too much like a Christmas song....

Of course you can also bring your own entertainment......

Decorations and other stuff...

Finally finished decorating the Christmas tree, normally would have had it done by the 2nd of December.

Michael's birthday was yesterday, he was such a happy boy.....

umm

Starting to look alot like Christmas.....

This is Sharp Top Mtn at sunset, taken from a moving car (not by the driver though!)Nov. 26th.

Cats, cats, cats

Just out of bed, well two beds actually....huh? first had to get out of my own bed because a little cat was meouwing at the bedroom door. I tried to open the door, stick out my leg and swing at the cat, but he was too fast! So the next solution is to go sleep in the guest room leaving the door open so that the little meouwing cat and the big naughty cat could come in, leaving me to sleep some more. Fat chance!! Little meouwing cat jumped on the bed and settled down to sleep - great! Big naughty cat was just that! Jumping on and off the bed, chewing lamp cords, scratching at closet doors...aaarrggghh (actually other words were spoken). Finally kids came in to stroke the "lovely" cats....So here I am typing instead of sleeping..see photo of the offenders above. (Note the "evil" in the eyes!)

On the way to school....

This is really what we see every morning on the way to Michael's school!

Picture right...all I hope is to see these piggies again after Christmas!

Big Otter River

Not all the same day of course!

Winter and all that

(Couldnt find my photos on this new computer...but this does look a bit like a white-tailed deer!)

It's getting cold...bbbrrrrrr or something like that. Now is the time to do some blogging, well at least I'll try. Not a good weekend, had some bad news, then Michael got sick (throwing up) Saturday morning, then I got sick Saturday evening (even went to bed at 7.30!!) Sunday felt fine until just after lunch, Michael then I had the uumm you know what tummy illness! Still seem to be OK now, going to stack a pile of wood later and do some housework..YES.. well it hasnt happened yet so maybe there's still time to think of any old excuse. The wood is for burning in the open hearth, got from a local fella, its about 2 cords or pickuptruck amount, only for 85 dollars too! Love the fireplace, makes everything seem warm (duh!) and cosy. Paul's finished building his new computer, so I'm going to try and find my photos and perhaps add some new ones. I've been taking pictures when on the way to school and whenever I see something which looks interesting (to me).School is out for all of next week, crazy -- of course Thursday and Friday being Thanksgiving, then they added Teacher Look at Thyself Day, or something and Teacher Conference Day. Got to get my 7 kids to do research on the Labors of Hercules; this for the Odyssey of the Mind competition. Its great fun coaching them and seeing what they come up with...
Tomorrow Michael is going to audition for a Christmas play, run by a local theatre group. He was in a play this summer and enjoyed it a heck of a lot.
This bloggin stuff is beginning to become just a diary, well thats OK cos itll help me to remember what I did, the mind is going you know.. Now where was I?

Reading to kids

I've just started reading to the 4th and 5th graders at my sons' school. I did the same last year with the 3rd and 4th graders, they seem to enjoy my strange accent (nothing like a southern drawl). To the 4th grade I'm reading Wolf Brothers by Michelle Paver, and to the 5th graders, Spirit Walker by Michelle Paver, 2nd in series (having read Wolf Bros to them last year).
This series is about a boy of 12 called Torak, an Indian, set a few thousand years ago. It depicts how he lives; food, wildlife, tools etc., his beliefs, and the many adventures he has.
I would totally recommend this series for children 9 and older.
It also links in nicely with the 5th grade corriculum on Native Americans.
Just thought to mention this if anyone looking for kids books that actually further their education a little while being exciting to read.

Nederlands proberen...

Ik ben door mijn vriendin verteld, dat ik zo in 't Nederlands moeten proberen te schrijven.
Dat allemaal kan, maar, als ik foutjes maak, en iets vrieselijk verkeerd schrijft, (iets met een dubbele mening bv) dan is het jou de schuld! Dus Miranda je bent nu gewaarscheuwd!
OK en spelling is also a bit double dutch! So, ik have decided om bijda talen te gebruiken.
Then, I kan Nederlandse mensen en English(ok Americans ook) bereiken, well dat is the plan anyway. Ik kan ook naturlijk Engels naar English vertalen, and translate from Dutch to Nederlands, of is dat onders om? I forget, it is erg confusing. Het was in 1979 dat I first set foot in Bergen op Zoom, en weet je where I lived? Yes, de Engelsestraat!! HAHA dat was een coincidence zeg!
In 1982 heb ik een huisje (very "je") on Goudenbloenstraat gekocht, daarna met my now husband moved to Ossendrecht, (naast een boerderij met cows and schaapen).
Dit was very gezellig (this word translates to "cozy" in English, maar eindelijk betekent "small").
My man is ook geen Nederlander, but kan understand heel veel (I like words with dubbele letters).
Well, I'm uit of puff nu,
totziens or how they say in BoZ - ouwdo

Is this the last year of childhood?....

It's been a long summer, a very pleasant one.

We had a vacation, and lots of fun.

It's been friends and laughter, not going slow,

We had excitement, rollercoasters, all go, go, go..

Now, coming home to these blue blue hills,

Is more heartfelt as those fast day thrills,

Now, the fifth grade is here, well for those that know,

(Please tell me.)

Is this the last year of peace? or no?

Paintings of mine..

May Day

Not sure if this is a good photo or not....it's very difficult to get them to keep still!!

Photo above the one above is on a golf course in Phoenix, Arizona.....

(I'll get the hang of adding photos in the right order soon..)

Wednesday day of Woe?

Today is the day for doing not thinking,

today is the day for rising not sinking.

So, I'm not having a day of woe,

I am in fact going to Lowe's!

Buying plants, soil and lots of other green things,

Hoping not only the birds will sing!

To make me happy, perhaps others too,

This is the very thing I really have to do.

But, first I have to go to the Dump and get rid of all the smelly garbage! YEUK!!

Well, there you go....

Here I am again, can't believe I'm doing this! Hopefully someone will read it, although it's just nice to ramble on by myself. Perhaps if I add details of my life, it might help me remember later on........now what was I talking about?


I'm a Brit, although not lived in the UK for nearly 30 years, yes that does mean I'm quite old!


I lived in The Netherlands for 18 years and then moved over here; first to Massachusetts, then Michigan and now here(Oh, you don't know where I am??) clue is in the name of this blog...


But that could lead to a number of States. I'll leave that for you to ponder on, perhaps giving clues later. (Funny, if no-one else reads this I'll have to try and guess where I am without any help). Trying to get a photo again....wait and see...
HA! it worked, this was Balloon Fest in Michigan in 2006, going to try another one now.....

not working this time...still that makes it all the more exciting, well sort of..
I do that alot I've noticed.......yes those things.......is that good ??? oh now those are starting to appear, aren't they????
Going to soak my head for a while...........aaaaaahhhhhh

Trying to get started

Well, here I go with a blog thingy, dont like the grey letters will change to this colour, perhaps a little better.....what about the font?? I think I'll try another one...this is Georgia, looks the same to me...how about..trebuchet, hhmmm this seems to be more modernish, lets try another colour and font...Lucida Grande and getting brighter...
I have no idea what to write on this blog, perhaps will try to add a photo - hang on a bit..
Well now that didnt work! and I like the trebuchet better, now to find the right colour...how about---------yeuk, maybe this one.
I'm going to look at the actual posting now, so see you later..