photos of the good bye Hammonds

Saying good bye to the Hammonds. We went to the roof top pool and had ourselves a little pool party, our last evening with them before they left for the states and then for Japan.
We miss them a lot but have lots of great memories stored up!

precrime

Tom reminded me that i told him a story about Sarah so here you go.
We were at Tilly's and Anna's house and Tilly and Sarah were both being naughty and climbing on the coffee table then jumping on the sofa. Tilly got told off as did Sarah, she was put on a time out as per normal, so she sat with her hands on her lap for a few minutes then i say ok what do you say, she says sorry and we kiss and tell each other "i love you". So then 2 mins later Tilly climbs on the coffee table again, Sarah see's her and says "no no Tilly", looks at me and i say don't do that you've been told, and Sarah sits down with her hands on her lap on a time out...she didn't even do anything wrong. but i am guessing she thought about it!! haha precrime working at its best! (Of course i told her to get up and she'd done nothing wrong)

Just got a text from Anna saying that Sarah sung herself to sleep after eating all of her lunch..every last bit! so cute. I gave her loads of food too, she's really on a growth spurt.
this is sarah's new bedroom. before she'd always sleep with me but now she's in a big girls bed and a big girls room. Thanks to miss Heather for the lovely bed. Yes Sarah is banded from climbing up the ladder...does it stop her? not really!

Quack, quack, Quaaaaccckkk!

ok so the pity party has been over for a while..but still i can't upload my photos from my sd card to the computer...and thus can't get it on line. will have to solve this problem soon as it's driving me mental.
Sarah has been loving the new summer arrangement, she has been going to Anna's house on Monday's wednesdays and fridays. She gets to play with he friend Tilly and have Anna as her nanny, i mean what more could she ask for. She loves playing here and its so good for her. i totally 100% trust Anna..unlike most of the nannies that Sarah really has. its also nice to be able to hear what she's been up to and know if she was having fun or not. it makes a big difference being able to talk to the person that is looking after your kid! She wrote about Sarah on her blog so cute. i love my daughter's clean ways...i wish i was nearly as neat as her! it can be a tad embarrassing to say the least when she points out mess...as if my place is spotless....far from it. At least her real nanny doesn't understand what she is saying as there house is a Tip! to say the least!
i took a cute video of sarah saying I love you to the camrea...which sounds like i lu loo. its cute. She has stopped calling Tilly Titty...which she did all the time, she now says Tilly quite clearly. I miss Titty, it was so cute. She also never says wherwher for water any more, she says it quite clearly Water...
Today at church a kid couldn't have a toy for some reason Sarah gave it him and his mum gave it back to Sarah, and he cried. Sarah said quack quack Quaaaaccckkkk...like in a cartoon, you know when its tough luck. it's hard to write what she said, but its a well known sound a bit like a duck but three times and the last time is very long....
I don't know where she got this from but it was sure funny to listen to her use it in this situation! She also stated that oh a lot of stuff...when packing away her toys from Church ..all four of them!
Ok best go, got to fix this sd card somehow its annoying!

inadequate

This weekend i had Asher again, and got tons of things delivered from Heathers old place. A new bed for Sarah (she now has her own room,she's a big girl and i post on that later).
However this whole weekend has me now feeling darn inadequate as a person as a mother as a well every aspect that i think about.
And no this isn't just so people will say oh your not so terrible.
I just have to get it off my chest and this is the best way i can.
So as you all know, or should. i started my PhD and almost finished...to the point that i had written 95% of it...then i became a mother...
And not it will take a lot more than 5% to get it finished. this is weighting rather heavily on my mind of late as i am hoping to go back to England in the Autumn and thus meet everyone again that knows full well that i gave up so easily.
I hate it. i hate myself for giving up, i have no one not one person to blame bar my own darn self...
My good friend has just finished his and this makes me realise that i am so incredibly rubbish as he started 3 years after me... aggghh
I hate it.
I also feel really rubbish about work, i can't quite believe that i am teaching English when i can't even spell. i also was almost late today for the lesson as i didn't bargain on traffic at 8am in the morning...yes i know its really stupid of me and everyone knows there is traffic then..i forgot.
I was looking for my keys this morning, and couldn't find them anywhere...then i thought maybe they are in the front door..and low and behold they were there. so super safe i am! I've done this before back in Nottingham, but normally i was drunk, out late or stressed out as my nan died...but this time..well nothing really.
I went in to buy a drink today for 7 -11 and picked it up and just walked out of the shop...then walked back in the shop as i realised i didn't pay for it. what a idiot.
I was carrying Sarah in the sling as she was rather sleepy and it's just quicker a woman stopped me and said wow she's really big she can't walk??
Agghh go away. i just smiled like i didn't understand and walked away.
i was teaching newbies today so teaching the ABC, i forgot how to right the A..i forgot that you go down up and down and then across....so i first taught them up down across..then my co worker/boss said isn't it down up down across?? oh yes.
But answer me this...why? why do we do that its a waist of time. also with the B down up around around why not up around around??
I don't know. its all Greek to me!!
and i am the native speaker...i am, i am just not a native writer, speller, reader...speaking i have down!
ok enough moaning and groaning...sleep deprivation has got to me. i have told the orphanage that i can't take Asher this weekend. poor little thing. i just need a break before i break the law or get broken in to...wow a play on words when i am half asleep is quite an achievement..i feel better about myself already!!
ps can't be bother to check it if it doesn't make sense sorry...i will go shot myself. :P

Hammonds Head Home...

So the Hammond family are leaving at 4 today and i don't know when we will see them again. Soon i hope.
As much as i love having online friends, physically present friends are way nicer. It's been so lovely to hang out at her place, really we just chill out and relax. Its like we've always been friends. Our daughters play together like they are siblings...ie they laugh have fun then hit or bite each other!! they bath together, even when it wasn't planned...(Sarah takes off her clothes and tries to get in..)
Last night we went to the hotel that they are staying at and said our good byes. We stayed over for swimming and food. Then the kids when to bed and Sarah and i chatted with Heather (Sarah still bouncing around happy as Larry at 10:30, her kids didn't nap..what a difference it makes!)
I decided that i didn't really want to reminisce and think about all the fun things that we have done and the not so fun things that have happened in the past 2 years. We just chatted. When i think about i probably talked way too much and should have listened more..but i often think about that. Sorry heather.
So we inherited lots of cool things from the Hammonds, i don't know how i will repay them for all that they have done for me. Sarah will have bunk beds, a toy cupboard and a chest of draws. This is on top of the hundreds of things they have given me over the past year. Even if you don't think of all these "things" they have given me SO much more. really i can't even put it in words. I pray that i will be able to stay in touch and meet up again soon, as it would be just too sad to never see them again.
Sarah hasn't worked out that they are gone gone, i tried to tell her and she said no no, miss heathers house. go miss heathers house? needless to say this will not be the last time that she says that.
So i am just trying not to cry, and not to think about it. God has a plan and who am i to question that. :)

As much as i would love to share the photos i took last night...they won't upload. i don't know why but they won't.

The deep blue

Kelly and Nik showed us a museum in a park that we offen go to but had no idea that there was a museum there too. There was a cool excibition on about the deep blue sea. So we went and it was way cool. Lots of photos taken at the ocean bed, and some formaldihided fish in boxes..that was not very nice but the photos were amazing. i've lived in the city three years and didn't have a clue that there was this little science museum right there. I suspect i will be going again as it cost just 20nt to get in...that's less 40 pence. It was however overly airconed but the kids didn't seem to care. they had fun running about looking at bright luminated pictures of strange animals.

Air con...not Con Air!

So Essie asks if it's getting hot here...well yes you could say that.
Last week i buckled under the heat and finally gave in and put on the evil Air con (AC i think you call it in the USA?).
I hate air con really i don't like it and avoid it if i can. many people put it way to high (that should be low surely), that it's a big change from outside and you find yourself putting a cardie on to go inside. not the best. The other thing that happens a lot is that i get headaches from the air con (OK no scientific study was done but there is a correlation i tell you!). The BIG thing i hate it for is that its such a massive waist of electricity that my heart sinks to think how much green house gas is cause by people wanting to sleep with a big duvet and thus put the air con on full blast...this happens, and it's incredible selfish. It drives me bananas when i get on a bus in the middle of summer, therefor wearing summer clothes, and the bus driver has the bus air con set at 16 C!! seriously this really happens, OK rare but none the less how mental is that! often it's at 19c which is just as crazy really. So i sit on a bus freezing my arse off when its 38 C outside. It does however remind me of my many trips in England on freezing buses ...but at least i was wearing the correct clothing!
SO needless to say it was a big stretch for me to put the air con on. Sarah was hot and sweaty and she insists on wearing her Knees as she calls them (shorts/or trousers). So i put it on, i set it to the low hights of 30 C. Then guilt set in and i up'd it to 31. like that makes much different. I have to say it really is amazing how much cooler it is with the air con on, i just don't know why people set it to 25C when 30 is quite cool really...maybe my termostate is broken, but i doubt it as its a brand new and never been used air con...well until last week and again three times this week. I put it on a timer so its not on all night long but i still feel guity like i need to go out there and plant some trees...maybe i will do that and just OFF SET my carbon foot print...
Here's some photos from our day out to the botanical gardens in Taipei...which i never new about but are very beutiful, and the water lillys are all in bloom. so nice. Nik got into the water and had some serious fun splashing about..can you see what Sarah thought about all that!