Videos of Connecticut life

The last few days have been very cold here, and the water in our garden amongst the trees is frozen into what Bluet regards as an ice skating rink:

Meanwhile, Wilder is continuing to learn everything about the world. First, here is how he says goodbye to his sisters every morning when they board the school bus:

And here is how I entertained him for half an hour whilst his sisters were in German class:

And finally, Wilder shows you how to enjoy music: First, get the volume and sound right, and then you can dance, putting your hands in the air like you just don't care

The Beach

This weekend we were at the beach in Florida with the American half of Bluet and Ilona's family. On the plane the stewardess asked Bluet where she was going, and she replied 'the beach' - she had a great time playing with her cousins and in the sand, and particularly seemed to enjoy throwing a small ball around. Ilona isn't quite big enough to appreciate the beach, but she did get to spend some time lying on the beach, and enjoyed getting held and fed by various different people.

Storm? What Storm?

Approx a year ago, the media cried wolf over Hurricane Irene, which supposedly was going to wash New York out to sea (or something) but in the end did very little. This year we have eschewed stockpiling candles, water, food or guns, so keep your fingers crossed for us. Also, there is a miniscule chance that everything you see in the next few photos will be dramatically altered by the oncoming onslaught. But probably not.

So yesterday we began in the park....

Then we headed downtown to the imagination playground to meet with some friends for brunch.

The place where we went for brunch is apparently 5 feet under sea level, so they were quite justifably concerned that they might get flooded. They also put blue tape on the windows for protection (the cobwebs are unconnected to the hurricane).

Bluet discovered that she had a kindred spirit in the appreciation of straps on prams. This could keep them entertained for hours.

Then because she is all grown up, Bluet had her own seat on the bus home.

So to today; the morning began with a trip to the supermarket at 8:30 AM to beat the panic shoppers. As you can see there were plenty of panic shoppers, although when we walked past later there was a huge queue out the door, so all things considered, this was a successful plan. NB I wasn't panic shopping, I was doing regular shopping. For the record.

We, like several other families, decided we should visit the ancient playground one last time before it was washed away by the big storm. 

It is a shame it is about to be washed away because Bluet is getting good at swinging on the tyre swings, a valuable life skill.

We also spotted something that Bluet will not be getting for Christmas, even if she writes Father Christmas a really really nice letter.

Onwards to the great lawn.

The New York skyline, as it is today.

Bluet found a ball lost once by a dog. That was nice.

And then we went home to await the storm. I think it arrives in about 24 hours.

Proof

That Bluet is now trained to go fetch a ball if and when required