Anyway, today was Nikos' second day of preschool, and it was another big success! It was warm enough for them to end the day playing outside, and it was so fun to see him running around all rosy-cheeked with the other kids. And as we walked to the car, he kept saying, "I sure love this place! I'm going to miss it so much!" And in talking with one of his teachers, it sounds like he's transitioned really well into the group. Hooray! I couldn't be happier!
While our favorite boy was at preschool, Maya and I met up with my friend and her daughter for some coffee (for the grown-ups) and pastries. It was nice to just sit and chat, and Maya had fun sitting with her little buddy on the couch and watching the cars go by on Main Street. It was a lovely way to spend the morning, and we might just do it again next week!
After our coffee date, we still had a little time before going to pick Nikos up from school. I drove by the house to get my camera, and then Maya and I went on sort of a photo-taking tour of our neighborhood. Have I mentioned just how beautiful it is here? Well, it is. Allow me to show you the neighborhood, hehe!
Where we live is essentially an old farming community. One minute, you are surrounded by dense forest... the next, it opens up onto these sprawling New England farms. Or lakes. There are lots and lots of lakes (though the locals seem to mostly call them ponds. They're lakes to me!). Our town's population is very small... under 10,000 people. All the kids here go to the same elementary school, middle school, and high school. And yet we have a good-sized city only about 20 minutes away, with all the conveniences that affords. Not bad, I say!
Anyway... the pictures! We live on a corner, and this is the road on one side of our house. No joke.
If you keep driving along that road, these are a few things you'll see... a frozen creek:
A horse farm (along with several other farms)
The "pond" that is less than a mile behind our house
More farmland, with a stone wall. There are stone walls EVERYWHERE!
And much more of the same! It really is so rural and peaceful. I just love it!
A little farther away (a few miles), there is a really cool-looking old farm that I couldn't get a decent photo of. I did, however, hold up my camera and snap a quick photo of the Highland cattle they raise there. Highland cattle are furrier than standard cattle, and do well in the cold climate. I think they're cool! And they like to hang out right by the road. :)
Anyway, that's all I was able to get for today, but thought I'd share. I'll have to do it again in the spring/summer when everything is green again. And there's plenty more, too... lots of neat farms, huge old houses, churches, cemetaries, etc. I can't get enough!
Back to our day, though. We got Nikos, came home for a quick lunch, and then headed out to run some errands. And on the way back, it really started to snow. We'd seem the occasional flake throughout the day, but it started to really come down. It was light and fluffy and swirly, and very exciting! As soon as we got home, we ran out in the back yard to try and catch some on our tongues, haha! The kids were a little amped up and somewhat unclear on the concept, so they mostly ended up running around like chickens with their heads cut off. No real snowflake-catching occurred. But they had fun! And I did catch one picture of my crazy-happy boy. With a snowflake on his head. Yay!
So, then I got the kids inside and grabbed my macro filters. I love trying to take pictures of snowflakes, but BOY is it hard! I have an incredibly shallow depth of field to work with, and the slightest movement of the camera sends everything out of focus. Factor in the wind, the cold, and the weight of my camera (it's heavy), and getting a decent shot is really tough! These aren't perfect, but I like them nonetheless!
And one last one for the night! I just thought this was funny. Maya was whining at me for a while, and I couldn't really hear what she was saying. I told her I'd come up in a minute (figuring she was upstairs in the playroom). I walked around the corner and saw this. And no, she wasn't stuck-- she can work the gate just fine. Just lying on the stairs and whining, haha! She wanted me to help her find Boots (Dora is on the steps there). Funny girl! And yes, these stairs need carpeting... one of these days!
And that's it, for today! Tomorrow's mission: paint the living room!
1 comment:
Wow, you guys picked a really beautiful place to live! I loved all the photos!! Would love to see it in the spring/summer, too. And, I'm amazed by all the painting that you've been able to do with the kids around. Very impressive!
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