Our Ithaka

CNY in Krabi

2012-02-12T13:24:00.004+08:00

Every year for the past few we've been fortunately to have our friends Trina and Joe and their adorable daughter Sarah come to visit us in Malaysia. The same was a possibility this year as their Chinese New Year vacation is longer than ours (theirs is one week to our four days). But we thought' "why not give them a chance to go somewhere else as well and perhaps we can fly and meet them in a neutral spot?" And so that plan was set. They were going to fly from Dalian where they live to Bangkok for a night and then fly on to Krabi, Thailand. As it turns out Krabi is just a 1 hour 20 minute flight from KL, so we opted to go see them. To spice things up, we decided to go in convoy style with the Colombian entourage in tow. So Natalia, Laurence, Irini, Amalia, Tia, Avihurik and TTmouz all boarded the plane and headed out to Southern Thailand for four nights on the beach. Aahhhh! There is little that can beat a beach in Thailand, though it was perhaps more touristy than any place we've been to in a while. Still, the hotel stood right in front of a bay, overlooking the ocean, and karst outcroppings dotted the landscape. The hotel ran inward away from the beach and our rooms (pretty large and quite beautiful) sat at the back, in a quiet setting overlooking a pool. We arrived a day before Trina, Joe and Sarah and we quickly found out how lovely the place was. TTmouz, in particular, was overjoyed by the beach and, thankfully for us, Irini and Amalia followed him and Avi into the water time and time again. The next morning we sat at breakfast when Trina, Joe and Sarah pulled up in their boat (as we had the day before) and we rushed over to say hello.

The next few days were spent hanging out with them and catching up, and watching the kids play in the water, sometimes in the sea and sometimes in the pool. Breaks were filled with a nice snooze on a king sized bed. In the distance, the real world ticked on. In our little haven there was nothing but sun, talk and down time, just like we had hoped. Of course, being with Trina and Joe, sharing stories and plans and dreams - from new homes in the planning to professional aspirations, to family life - was a great opportunity to dip into our friendship further. We miss you guys!

The Colombian extended family added to the experience, of course. Trina mentioned how strange it was to see Tia in Thailand when they had last seen her in Colombia. The world is getting smaller it seems, for all of us.

Our departure found us returning to the news that Pappou (Walter) had fallen and broken his arm. There was a sudden thrust into the 'real world' as we contacted Aleko to make sure everything was okay. While we sat and slumbered on the beach, Aleko had flown to Geneva where the accident had happened, and helped Monica help Pappou with all the medical concerns. Jarred from our vacation mindset it was a bit of a shock, but happily everything had turned out well (or as well as could be hoped for). Monica's emotional state was back to (more) normal. Aleko was back in a routine work environment. Pappou was in his usual high spirits, even with a sling around his neck and stories of necessary physiotherapy. Normalcy has been (somewhat) restored for all of us. Life goes on.

Outs and Outs

2012-01-08T13:18:00.005+08:00

The very last day of the vacation is today. Technically it's already over. The new year is here. The weekdays are done with (as far as days off, that is). The school schedule begins tomorrow. The entire vacation had its ups (i.e. special moments when Natalia and Laurence would look at each other and 'know' just how lucky they are to be together, to be the parents or these two particular children and to be living in this place) and downs (i.e. tantrums and "I want this!"). There was the week in KL (with Christmas preparations), the few days in Singapore, and the week back again. Earlier this week we took an evening/night trip to the Kuala Selangor fireflies (and Chinese dinner along the riverbanks). We took a couple dinner photos as the sun went down along the mangroves across from us, and then drove to the firefly area where we promptly got into boats and were whisked away by an oarsman. The idea was to take some photos as we got into the boats, but things happened quicker than anticipated so by the time we took our camera out, Tia, Avi and TTmouz were already on their boat and heading into darkness. We took a rushed photo, just in case, but the resulting black image leaves much to the imagination. :-) The trip itself was a big success with the kids. Irini even wanted us to read her the firefly book that we had for bedtime story.

Overall the vacation was a good one. We are happy we didn't have to fly half way around the world and though we missed our friends in Greece (and still do!) we were very content to stick it out closer to home and enjoy the warm weather and tropical yule.

About a week ago Irini announced that she was ready to go back to school. She asked if she would have the same teacher ("Will Ms. Wu be there?") and was very happy to find out that everything will be just as it was last time she was there. Laurence and Natalia have slowly begun to talk about school again (the schedule, what are we teaching, etc.) and by tomorrow they have to, somehow, have their mindset ready to great the students again. The thrust back into work needs to be instantaneous. A teacher wouldn't want his/her students to think that he/she isn't excited to be back. Happily, we won't have to fake it. Vacation is great. Work is good. We are happy. Welcome to a new semester.

I'm 4!!

2012-01-08T12:55:00.006+08:00

It's turning into quite a tradition of special vacation days. The three week 'winter' break culminating with a special birthday just for Irini. Normally this day would be celebrated in Greece followed by a post-birthday in Malaysia after our arrival, but this time we were based in Malaysia, so that's all Irini gets. Not that she worried about it, or seemed to care that there was just one rather than many. In truth, the birthday celebration was drawn out anyway...first there was that whole Christmas present opening thing (both in KL and in Singapore). Then there were the presents given by mom and dad, opened after waking up on the morning of her birthday. We talked to our family in Colombia and Sweden. Then there was a pool party with her friends and later she openend their presents. Add to that the arrival of Sammy and Erika's Christmas presents which were collected and opened that morning. Finally, after Scott and Rebecca returned from the US (yesterday) there were even more presents. Our girls have been showered with way too many exciting things that will entertain them for a long time~ we thank everyone for their generosity. They were all a big succes!

The only glitch, of course, was that silly insistence of everyone to sing happy birthday to Irini. Of course, though she loves singing it for others, having it sung to her is a big 'no no' and so it was that the extended family in Colombia and the visiting guests here all had to be told to 'not sing because I will cry'. Birthday wishes turned into a scattering of "happy birthday Irini" statements, and it worked much better, though for a brief moment there were some tears. Perhaps by next year we will perfect the procedure so that it's smiles all the way.

Happy birthday little beautiful one! You are, as you show in your pictures, four. We are sooooo happy to have shared it all with you and can't wait for more.

Kali Xronia!

2012-01-01T13:35:00.009+08:00

When you live overseas, traditions take on a larger-than-life significance for the sake of maintaining the cultural links to the 'homeland'. So it was for Laurence, who decided that, now that Irini is beginning to recognize the difference between where we live and where we're from, it is important to initiate the formal tradition of the cutting of the vasilopita in Malaysia.

For those whose experience does not include Greek (or similar Balkan) traditions, the vasilopita is a cake made specifically for the new year. It is normally cooked from scratch and in it is a cleverly concealed coin (in this case a 10 Euro cent coin from the Greek mint). Tradition would have it that the cake is divided into pieces with each piece going to a different person (e.g. God, daddy, etc.) or group of people (e.g. the poor, Scan Clan, etc.).

This year's vasilopita came fresh out of the oven as an experimental attempt at traditional baking, based on an internet recipe, though we secretly hope that our friends Stelio and Maria can give us a recipe for next year if they have one. Laurence did the research. Natalia gave the 'okay', did the shopping and preparation and Irini & Amalia helped out by decorating it after Laurence was done writing Kali Xronia (Happy New Year in Greek). That ensured that the entire family was directly involved in the creation of it, as well as the consumption of it (with the addition of the Colombian gang). A short explanation of the tradition to the Colombian members of the family, followed by a series of cuts by Laurence and Irini ended with the coin going to the Daza members of the extended Brownie (i.e. The Colombian) family!

Happy New Year! Feliz Año Nuevo! Kali Xronia!

May 2012 be filled with wonder, love and making the world a better place.

Singapore with Cousins!

2011-12-31T15:27:00.010+08:00

We just got back from Singapore. It was the first time we - as an extended family - traveled together and it was a great opportunity to get to know a new place in the company of cross-cultural family members. There were times, of course, when things weren't so easy, like the tears in the car waiting for Singapore customs to allow us into the country. Three hours later we were lost in the city with no other option than to hire a taxi just to drive in front of us and show us how to get to the hotel. There were also the moments of tears (all four children cried at some point during the trip, with the younger ones, of course, putting on most of the show) as we learned to work together, make decisions together and deal with different priorities and changes of plans, of course. :-)

But there were wonderful moments too! The Christmas presents opened at Leanne's house (where we met up with her and her mom but also our friends Jim and Jay and Jay's mother and step father) were a great opportunity for the children to open no less than four presents each, much to the surprise of the unprepared parents. Auntie Leanne sure knows how to pamper the children and the wrapping took probably no more than about six seconds to tear off. There was excitement and great food to boot! Of course one could not be in a hotel room and not enjoy the cuddle time with the children, nor the large screen TV that allowed us cartoon mornings and movie nights.

Other wonderful moments were the one day where we split up. Tia, Avi and TTmouz went to Universal Studios (a gift from us) and had a fantastic time there, returning just before midnight on the 27th. On the same day we decided to head to the Singapore Zoo (where Irini wanted to go all along). The day was perfect and Irini insisted on taking the train and bus instead of the car. Though longer it sure gave us a great idea of the Singaporean transport system. Once there Irini was intent to seeing everything, but avoiding the crocodiles and alligators, because she didn't want them to bite us. Happily we obliged and roamed around the entire zoo (and even took a tram ride for part of it!). Irini decided that the docile and friendly looking tapirs were the highlight of the zoo. Amalia decided that she liked the elephants. The colorful ones that stood happily all over the zoo and the city beyond. There's a picture of one of them above. :-) The girls spent the entire day with a huge grin on their faces until they could no longer stay awake. They slept almost the entire way back and, when they were awake, they giggled and laughed like... well, like little children!

The way back was faster (we got through both Singaporean and Malaysian customs and crossed the bridge in about 10 minutes) though we did get caught in KL Friday night traffic. Thankfully it was only about 15 minutes of desperation time as Amalia continued her pleas to be allowed out of her car seat. Upon arriving, Irini announced "Yeay, we did it!". She was happy to be home and it was obvious. On several occasions she mentioned, "I love my home" and she was beaming from ear to ear. On to the new year...

Oh, wait~Irini's 4th birthday is just a week away! She's already planning how many friends she wants to invite. Okay. So, now where were we? Oh, yes, on to the new year... :-)

Words of Wisdom

2011-12-19T18:17:00.008+08:00

Amalia is growing. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to work that one out. She's eating with a massive appetite. She runs all over the house, neighborhood, city. Her bigger lung capacity is obvious. :-) Oh, and she's starting to say stuff. It started with "this" a while back, then moved on to "no", where is sort of got stuck in second gear for a while, until about a week or two ago, when the linguistic floodgates opened and now them words are coming out faster than we can jot them down. Here's an 'off the top of our head' list of what she can say so far:

This
No
Lala (Tia, TTmouz and Avi's cat)
Coco (the other cat, whose name is Paco)
Barney
Mouz (short for TTmouz)
Nini (short for Irini)
Ka (short for Rebecca)
Sco' (short for Scott)
Ra (short for Ralph)
Go (with conviction)
Mine (with even more conviction)
Nana (short for banana, of course)
Boo (short for book)
Woof
Baa
More
Mas (Spanish for "more")
Pipi
Mama (either for mama or for any other adult in the house, in a picture, etc.)
Uh Oh
Yeay! (arms raised in the air included!)
Close

Each day there's another one, and sometimes the stick and others they are forgotten and replaced by other words. More to follow, no doubt.

The development of language has resulted in Laurence's longing for Amalia to stay just the way she is. He loves her right now. She's small enough, fun enough, animated enough, and babbled for minutes on end, with the addition of flailing arms and intonations to make a point. Laurence sits there - sometimes in person and sometimes on the phone - not wanting to hang up or listen the end. From here on things become more understood, though she doesn't seem to have any communication problems at all at the moment. Between pulling out fingers to get us to move where she wants us to, then pointing to what she wants and adding a couple high pitched sounds for effect, she gets her point across just fine. :-)

Take a look at a recent video of her:

It's Beginning to Look a Little Like Christmas

2011-11-26T21:05:00.005+08:00

Is this the third time we've done this? Wouldn't doing it more than twice count as the beginning of a tradition? It is one we look forward to every year and today's was a morning to remember. We arrived just after 9:00 am - almost exactly on time - to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and the smiles and enthusiasm of Scott and Rebecca who wanted the girls to share in the beginning of the Christmas season and decorate the tree which stood on top of a small table, waiting to look beautiful. The boxes with decorations were stacked on the floor next to the piano and Irini wanted to know if we could decorate the tree right then and there. No, not yet. We had to eat breakfast first.

The breakfast was a delightful combination of french toast (with yummy maple syrup), freshly cut apples and kiwi, bacon, and an omelet for Laurence. Served with that coffee we were talking about and a glass of orange juice, it was a filling-to-the-point-of-explosion kind of breakfast. Perfect. Amalia was allowed to roam around with a small container of blueberry yogurt, making the customary mess of things on her face, hands, and anything she touched.

Once the food was downed it was time for the boxes to be opened and the contents taken out. Amalia practically tied herself up in a knot made of lights, and Irini helped to take out the more fragile items. Each decoration, of course, had a story and largely followed Scott, Rebecca and Lizzie (we missed you!) as they traveled around the world. "This one was from Bulgaria when we did..." "That one was when Lizzie was three and we...". Irini also found a couple of Christmas books (of which there are many) to open and take a look at. The girls were happily involved in most things, interspersed with a little bickering at times, as would only be appropriate with a one and a half and a nearly four year old. Scott and Laurence largely stayed in the background, washing dishes and discussing the significance of traditions as part of culture, religion, and society. Their banter when back and forth and every once in a while it focused on the women of the house and their preparations or the girls and their antics. It was the kind of morning that family comforts are all about.

By the end the tree stood tall, surrounded with streamers and balls and decorations of all sorts and sizes. Rebecca, in honor of Lizzie (who traditionally makes the final addition), placed the star at the very top, and we rushed over to take a few pictures with our handy-dandy timer camera functions. Irini didn't want to at first, but Rebecca persuaded her that one moment of smiling in front of a camera was certainly worth a little treat or two. Rush. Smile. Flash. Tears. No more pictures for her (at least for a while until she took one more for another little treat for home).

As we pulled away we were happy to have such wonderful friends (non-biological family is more like it, really). Scott and Rebecca waved as we turned left and drove up the street toward the main road. The perfect beginning to a three day weekend and the start of the festive Christmas season. Now on to our own tree.

Travelation

2011-11-23T20:55:00.003+08:00

Irini walks into the living room and announces that she is doing "travelation". Natalia and Laurence look at each other quizzically. She walks over to one of the boxes with toys, does a fair share of rummaging and finds a small pink purse. She puts a couple toys inside and then turns abruptly to head to her little table with an adjoining 'library' area. There too she does some looking around and pulls out a small sketchbook. She puts that into her bag also.

She then happily moves back to the sofas, where Natalia is sitting, takes the sketchbook out of her bag and places it in Natalia's hands. And waits. We look at her. She looks at us with a smile and says "that's my passport!". Laurence is still confused, but Natalia understands immediately. She pretends to stamp the passport, hands it back to Irini who promptly places it back into her bag. She pulls the bag up to her shoulder and walks to the other side of the sofas. She turns back to face her parents and happily says "I'm going on an airplane. I'll be back in two days". By now Laurence is in on it as well.

Both Natalia and Laurence gasp, realizing that this is the first time ever their daughter has talked about leaving, even if it is for an imaginary trip. "Two days?!" they both exclaim. She looks back at them, contemplates for a moment and then responds, "five days". By now Natalia and Laurence are looking at each other with longing eyes, hoping the day never comes. Natalia tries to understand why, even in play, she might want to leave. "To see my friend" says Irini. So Natalia gives her an alternative. "Why don't you call your friend and tell her to come visit us for five days instead?" Irini smiles broadly and responds, "okay!".

Disaster has been averted, at least for the time being. The family is still together, with the addition of one imaginary friend. We can live with that... and hope that the real travelation won't happen for a while yet. Kisses and hugs are promptly shared for a decision well made. :-)

Any Random Weekend

2011-11-12T15:55:00.005+08:00

Any random weekend might find us roaming the streets of Ampang (our neighborhood), or visiting Tia, TTmouz and Avi... or it might find us moseying our way over to Scott and Rebecca's house. A while back TTmouz had asked Rebecca, after Amalia (or was it Irini) had demanded a huge hug from her, if Rebecca was some sort of cousin of ours. She replied that no, not in blood-related terms, but certainly a member of the family none-the-less. So, one a Saturday (we think it was) we headed out to visit them. The visit began, as it always does, with a happy set of hugs and high pitched cries from Amalia, then settled into the customary roaming of the living room, then the dining room, then the wooden stairs leading to the upper floor. Once at the top we go through a small ritual of running in and out and back again through the hanging fabric the provides a partial cover to Lizzie's bedroom. We walk though for the final assault and a set of "no, don't touch that... put that down... no, no, then, led by hand, we go back through and down (usually with a wide wide smile) and out to the garden.

On this day the garden too was not enough, so down the street we went to see what the neighborhood had it store. Soon enough (was it just a few houses down?) there was a cat, somewhat calico in coloring, which garnered out attention. The girls sat there looking down to the open drain where the cat has scurried to when confronted with the two visiting toddlers. A while later they continued down the street to look for other things. Irini, noticing that her father had his hands free, decided that it might be a good time to get on his shoulders and be carried. Laurence, always happy to oblige, picked her up and in one big swoop had her sitting on his shoulders. They two of them hummed a spontaneous (and not particularly impressive) hum as they crossed the road to the playground on the other side.

Once there the swings were an immediate success (Irini insists on being pushed as high as possible - what we refer to as "boom"). It was followed by some climbing around, a visit to the see-saw and some playing house at a small slide and supporting structure. The adults worried about the mosquitos, as did Irini. Amalia paid no attention to that, but wanted to make sure that she was being entertained as much as possible. When the time was filled and the adults were ready to return home they had to be creatively persuasive to get the girls to follow, returning to the comfort of the living room again where, almost instantly, the girls (Amalia first, then Irini) decided that pretending to fall asleep on the pillows on the floor was a fun game to play. They did as the adults, sitting on various couches and steps surrounding them, giggled and took pictures.

How children make life so much more meaningful! Why even a walk down the street becomes news to write about. :-)

Ball Girl

2011-10-17T20:56:00.003+08:00

Professionally Laurence has made a few subtle changes to his repertoire this year. Given that he is not coaching varsity athletics he has taken on some smaller roles at the school, one being that of the Middle League Basketball Coordinator. Essentially this is a Middle School intramural program which employs high school students to run warm-ups, coaching and refereeing while the younger students participate. This means that Laurence supervises the league on Wednesday nights at Saturday mornings. Wednesday are a little tricky with getting the kids to bed, which Natalia does. But Saturdays lend themselves to the girls coming to school sometimes and spending time with daddy. Irini is the observer of the family. She follows her father around, mostly wanting to be by his side. These days she participates in a Yoga for little kids program that has just begun at the same time. But little Amalia is smitten with the idea of any kind of ball. Not surprisingly, one of her first words (she's up to about 7 now) is "ball", which sounds a bit more like "boh". Anything resembling a ball is a source of excitement and creative inspiration for her.

So, when they arrive to the Panther Pit (the outdoor recreational area the back of the campus) and Laurence opens the storage room door, Amalia is in seventh heaven! All sorts of balls in there to discover and play with. The primary option, of course, are basketballs (in both girls and boys sizes), but there is also an array of other options: Tennis balls, whiffle balls. dodge balls. You name it. Heaven can be such a small space!

Letter to my daughters

2011-10-02T21:34:00.010+08:00

Some of you might know that the arrival of Irini (and later Amalia) prompted us to create ways of recording our lives together, for information, for posterity, for fun. One such avenue was this very blog. The other, more personal, was the creation of an email for each of the girls, to which we write whenever we feel we have something worth saying (tidbits, love, whatever we want to impart). The post below is such an email, reprinted with permission of the author. :-)

Amalia and Irini,

Yesterday, October 1, 2011, was the first day that Amalia slept away from us. We moved her bed into your room, Irini, just before Tia arrived, with Avihurik and TTimouz for dinner. The house filled with noises and children everywhere and, as always, you both loved it.

But when it was time to go to bed, I took Amalia to bed with a sad heart, missing her already. I have been so used to having you, Amalia, in our room and it was hard to give that up, just like it was hard to give up having Irini with us two years or so ago. Amalia, you did a wonderful job! We were worried that with the new surroundings and the light that we kept on you'd have a hard time adjusting. Sometimes in the past you've been fussy when you've fallen asleep because you tend to sleep lighter than Irini does, but when the time came, and I lied on the the floor pillows next to you to make sure that you had my finger to hold on to (as you always do when you fall asleep) you tossed and turns a little bit, then said "mama" out loud several times, and then you held my finger with both hands, before finally falling asleep in your new room for the very first time. It was sad, but wonderfully warm at that same time. You slumbered as I left you behind and went off to find your sister. You seemed so comfortable and happy as I left, that I knew you belonged there, with your sister.

Irini, you were treated to a new routine because of Amalia's arrival into your room. Since she sleeps a bit before you do, it meant that we couldn't read with you in your bed like we usually do, so mom came up with the idea of going to our bed to read with both of us! You loved it! So did we. :-) Mom and I took turns reading you books that you chose (and there were six of them) and you read one to us too (which is a new thing for you these days). In the end, after the books and after brushing your teeth, I took you into your bedroom for sleep. When we quietly opened the door and you took your first step inside you remembered that you sister was there, and watching the amazement, the happiness in your eyes and movements brought me so much joy. You looked up at me and said "my sister is sleeping here!" and you gave me a massively big smile. You clenched your fists and moved your arms back and forth with excitement. It was the innocent enthusiasm of a sister happy to be with her sibling. In that instant I realized that no matter how sad I might be for having to give up time with Amalia in our room, that it was all worth the energy, the love, the power of togetherness that would give you. You are a good good sister, and I am so happy that, for a while at least, you will have the chance to share your room with your wonderful little sister. She loves you. You love her. Just the way it should be.

And we - your mom and I - love you both!!

Love and smiles,

Daddy :-)

Chiang Mai - Take 2

2011-09-29T21:36:00.005+08:00

It wouldn't be fair to not include some of the pictures that Rebecca took in Chiang Mai. She often comes up with such nicer pictures than ours, and the two of Irini on her own above touched our hearts. She is growing up so fast!

By now, of course, Chiang Mai is a distant dream. Taking its place are the daily concerns about the Greek financial situation, the daily worries about school and the pressures of work. Adding to that, the humidity of the tropics practically guarantees an illness here and there. In the past week or so we've all gotten into 'sick' mode, starting with Natalia, spreading (happily only a bit) to the girls and then reaching Laurence just yesterday. Natalia and the girls are back to normal, but Laurence is sniffling away and coughing here and there. Nothing major, but just enough to be a nuisance.

Bedtime Hugs

2011-09-23T10:40:00.000+08:00

Laurence is putting Irini to bed. She wants him to read "Too Young for Honey Cake". In the story Little Fox, the main character, gets upset with his father because he's not paying enough attention to him. In a fit of frustration he hides from him father in a broom closet under the steps, until he realizes that he's been over reactive and now he's lonely. Just then his father opens the door and announces that he's made Little Fox some honey cake. Little Fox runs out, apologetic and hugs his father very hard, asking him if he will love him forever and ever. Of course, his father says yes and they hug a long hug.

Just then, Irini sits up and moves over to daddy. She hugs him with all her might and stays there hugging him. No words are shared. None are necessary. Laurence melts. Soon Irini falls asleep and Laurence sits there, by her side, gazing at his daughter's beautiful face.... "I'll love you forever and ever" he whispers, gives her a kiss and turns off the light.

Chiang Mai

2011-09-14T20:29:00.005+08:00

It was just two weeks ago, right? How long ago it seems, really. But we were there, walking around the 'old city', doin' the Sunday street market and the out of town trips to the 'ephants (as Irini calls them) and the tigers. It was the kind of trip we hoped for, although perhaps just a day too short. Nestled in the outskirts of Chiang Mai, the hotel (The Ayatana Hamlet and Spa, if you must know) was a wonderful, lush, small, friendly, relaxing place just beyond the university campus. Its charm outdone only in the careful attention of the staff. The place was a great starting point each and every day, and considering we were only there for three days we did a good deal of packing things into the itinerary.

The 'big' day was that of the animals. First was the visit to the Elephant sanctuary, about an hour from the city center. The last time we went to visit elephants Irini was only two, and she was 'cared or 'ephants. This time, however, she took things in stride. Despite being a little cautious at first, she slowly mustered the courage to pet a baby elephant by the time the day was over, nestled ever so carefully in Laurence's arms for good measure. She was delighted by the animals, and enjoyed watching others feeding them. Scott, Rebecca and Natalia did their share of taking care of these gentle giants' appetite! Amalia didn't seem to mind whether they were there or not. She took the whole thing in stride, looking in wonder and amazement at the oxen and elephants that walked on by. She took off after cats and dogs roaming the restaurant area and was happy to be carried when her parents become a little more concerned than she was for her safety. Smiles all the way!

There was also the visit to the Tiger Kingdom, where pictures were taken along side mostly sleeping tigers. Irini was allowed in with her mother and Scott and Rebecca, but Laurence stayed outside, doing his part to stand up to his view of unethical treatment of animals (though there was no actual evidence of maltreatment, he couldn't get over the fact that this was a largely 'twilight zone' experience and something was largely wrong with having such top-of-the-food-chain animals be so lackadaisical in their behavior. The doubt continues to this day.

Apart from that, though, there were also walks in night markets (crowded and lovely) and meals at Thai restaurants, visits to temples and the like. For two days we had a driver to drive us outside of the city, in hopes that we would make it to a natural area for which Chiang Mai in known. But somewhere between the taxi driver and the hotel staff, there was a disconnect in the 'idea' of what was wild. In each of our attempts at just getting into a natural area, we were taken time and time again to touristy temples standing to the side of roads. Needless to say it perhaps altered our originally thought experience, but none-the-less provided a great opportunity to see the cultural aspect of Thailand, of which there were many.

Along the way, small little daily learning appeared out of nowhere. Irini began to ring a bell (as she had done in KL earlier) and Amalia began to respond. Ms. Wu, Irini's teacher at ISKL, uses a bell to get the attention of her students. In growing and trying to put two and two together Irini emulates that behavior in the house, and on this trip. By playing teacher Irini rings the bell and asks us - her students - to put our hands on our shoulder and pay attention. Immediately Natalia, Scott, Rebecca and Laurence put their hands up, and their back straightens out. Their eyes slowly fixed on Irini they await further instruction. It's all fine and dandy, until Amalia, often with a few seconds delay, slowly moves her hands to her shoulders and smiles. She too awaits further instruction, it seems. But it never gets to that. The adults in the group begin to "oooh" and "aaah" all the way to a new dent in the conversation, usually with the added benefit of hugs and a kiss or two. Needless to say both the teach and the student daughters of ours are loving the attention. :-)

Snipets

2011-09-07T17:45:00.001+08:00

Irini walks up to Natalia. "Do you have a baby in there?" she asks Natalia, pointing at her tummy. Natalia replies "no" with a smile. Irini looks back up at her and says "I want another baby". Natalia asks what she would like (meaning a little brother or a sister), to which Irini replies, without hesitation, "I want a bah bah black sheep".

Amalia is being put to bed. She knows that daddy won't take her out of the cot, so she's given up trying to get out. But as she sits there, working on her vocals, she realizes that the kissing sound is gettin a smiley response. She sends kisses. She gets some back. Slowly she stands up, pulling herself up using the side railings. She lifts her head ever so slowly above the level of the top, as if revealing her face for the first time, she sends daddy a kiss. He responds with a barrage of kisses. She falls back to the bed, head on pillow, body stretched out, a broad smile on her face.

Irini now runs to see us when we get home, and sings new songs and plays 'Duck, Duck, Goose' with everyone in the house. It doesn't matter where you are, in what position (standing, sitting, crawling) or where (bathroom, living room, swimming pool) you are bound to, at some point, feel that pat on your head and a beautiful little voice announcing "duck", or "goose". Adorable.

Amalia wants to dance. She wakes up and gets on daddy's chest. He holds her hands so as not to fall. She balances as she stands up, and then rocks back and forth, and finally picks up her feet in quick succession. Is it sprinting? Is it dancing? No matter. It brings giggles to her face.

Irini comes home with artwork that resembles things now. The faces are clear. The smiles are obvious. The nose, artistic.

Amalia has learned to say things. She says "mama" with gusto when she wakes up and no one is there to greet her to a new day. She says "this" when she shows us something. And she says "no". Oh, boy, does she ever say "no". With conviction. No questions asked. We know what she means.

First Day at ISKL!

2011-08-22T21:04:00.000+08:00

On Monday, August 8th Irini woke up with the rest of us (at around 6:20 am). She walked around, realizing that this day was 'different'. Everyone was busily showering, brushing teeth, dressing and finally, out the door. Natalia was taking the family (Laurence, Emilia Patricia, Avi and TTimouz) to school and then coming back for Irini. Idah gave Irini a bath and put her into her new uniform which proudly announced "ISKL" on the breast. It was Irini's orientation to what ISKL refers as Prep Reception. It only lasted an hour (from 9 to 10 am) and Irini was taken and brought back by Natalia, but she was comfortable and happy there, especially since Carter (a good friend of hers) is in the same class. As of Tuesday she began her new task of going to the Elementary campus with TTmouz on the bus. It has been mostly fun, she thinks. After all, she loves buses!

And speaking of new beginnings, last week also marked the first day of the extended family at ISKL. Emilia Patricia had her first day of classes (noting how well behaved ISKL students are) and Avihurik and TTmouz went to their first day at ISKL. Though we didn't see them all day, we made a point of having dinner together to wind down and get 'the scoop'. All first reports were positive. Avihurik did note, however, that Mr. Fisher (her humanities teacher who lives across the hall from them) was more strict than she expected. But she did an experiment in science which was really cool. They filled a cup with water and put paper clips in it until it spilled. They were studying how the molecules stick together. It turns out, it took 331 paper clips to make it overflow. Can you believe it? TTmouz had his first Mandarin class, and found three friends who he likes very much. He seems to be looking forward to PE this year where they had a 'mission impossible' obstacle course set up.

Tomorrow is a new day. Slowly these days will blend into a routine, and the final vestiges of summer will become seemingly distant memories. 2011-2012 has officially begun.

Amalia's Day

2011-08-22T20:11:00.005+08:00

For some, it's birth. For some it's sweet sixteen. For them Greeks it's the baptism. Two years ago Irini had been baptised in the small church of Panagia ("Virgin Mary") in Kifissia. She was just six months old and spent the entire process watching and being handed from one person to another.

On July 23rd, 2011 it was Amalia's turn to be baptised in the same church. She was 14 months, mobile and knew what she wanted (and what she didn't want). She sat in Aleko and Anna's (the godparents) arms for roughly 5 minutes watching the ceremony with interest but, once it became obvious to her that the priest was just going to keep talking, she decided that perhaps it would be best to try to get down... and therein began the 'tricky' part. She swung from one side the next in a futile attempt to get down. With each passing movement - since it didn't work - she got more and more frustrated. By the time the clothing was taken off for the 'plunge' she was crying wildly. The Greeks in the crowd, seeing this as a right of passage (of sorts) smiled. Laurence was close to calling it quits, seeing Amalia in such dire straights.

Aleko and Anna were rushed through the reading of their script and finally Amalia was allowed to be removed and dressed in her new white clothing. Irini sat in wonder, perhaps asking herself what was happening. How nice that Amalia too will have no recollection of this soon enough.

Adri and her fiance Luca had flown in from Milano. Patty had flown in from Madrid (as she had for Irini's baptism). Monica and Walter had flown down from Sweden. Vincent had flown in for the weekend, also from Sweden (thank you Vince!!). Sammy had flown in from London. Aleko and Anna had flown in with him from London where they had attended his graduation from the London School of Economics. They were celebration hopping! The rest of the group was made up of Athens-based friends, young and old.

Later on, with the tears dried up and the food being consumed with gusto, Amalia would sleep soundly in her stroller. For the rest of the group of 25 or so it was a perfect chance to re-unite, to share stories and chat about life. Irini and Mikaela (Stelio and Maria's daughter) played for hours on end in the space in front of two adjoining shops, now closed, oblivious to the signs of economic difficulties.

Amalia is now, formally, Amalia Sienna. We are all happy. The tears have dried.

Island Life

2011-08-08T21:12:00.006+08:00

It was quite a while since we'd been to a Greek island. In fact, Amalia had never been, so Natalia decided that it was time to put the budget aside and head for the Cyclades... Andros to be more precise. After some logistical workings (Papou and Moca were coming too, and we only had one car) and some waiting around for the boat (sipping on frape, of course) we boarded what would turn out to be a very exciting experience for the girls. With wind blowing our hair to and fro, and with no less than 10 dogs around the deck, the girls essentially spent the two hour ride giggling, asking if dogs bit, and were offered goodies by the people close by. Everyone smiled watching them running back and forth.

Once on the island it was more of the same, but with a new beach-based location. On the small strip of Agios Petros, nestled 2.5 kilometers from Gavrio and 5 km from Batsi, we found a spectacularly clean sea and lots of Greek families sharing the sand, the small (for the most part) waves and the wind that came in gusts. Add to that the 150 meter walk to/from the apartments where we stayed, the tree-shaded back yard and a friendly couple who ran the place and you've got yourself one relaxed experience. Pappou and Moca chose to visit the beach twice a day. We went only in the mornings and spent the post-nap afternoons in the back yard playing on the kiddie swings and slides. All of us were happy.

But we couldn't get to Andros and not visit one of it's villages, so the final evening we loaded everyone into Bessie (the car) Malaysian style and drove gently across the five kilometer windy road to find a place to eat, a place to roam about and a place to have some ice cream. In the meantime, we watched the sun go down, dusk arrive and the stars shine down on our return.

It was a wonderful three days. Can't wait for next year!

The Price of Dreams and New Beginnings

2011-07-11T11:15:00.007+08:00

These are just thoughts on our goodbye celebration/get together for Pimouz, Avi and Emilia Patricia. They fly out tomorrow night from Bogota and head north to New York on a red eye flight to JFK before crossing the globe (presumably over the Arctic) to Hong Kong and then Malaysia. The trip will be a long one. On the other end they will find a new home (already worked out at Impiana, where we currently reside - what luck!) and make a new life. But before they go it is customary to have a final goodbye. And so they did.

The 11 hour day was filled with events, from watching the Colombian national soccer team compete (and win) versus Bolivia for the Copa America, to setting up a tent outside, to coffee and tea and cake. In there, somewhere, was a visit by a musical trio playing and singing songs from 'la epoca romantica'. It was an interesting cross-section of generations, culture and family and, with it, the responses were different indeed. Irini slept quietly on Laurence's lap, where she had been before the onslaught of the family and visiting players. Amalia roamed around, sometimes stopping to see people and sometimes walking up the singers themselves and working on her dancing moves, adorable as usual.

The rest of the gang, all 27 of them, were perhaps more accustomed to such music, from a by-gone era but none-the-less powerful. Natalia, who had begun to videotape the singers, had to stop halfway through the first song, tears streaking down her cheeks. The lyrics of the song (about life and one's children) and the memories were too much to bear, and so technological memory making took a back seat to mental memory making. Real life took over. Her father sat in the corner, tears welling up in his eyes, filled with a nostalgia that seemed almost palpable. Later on Natalia would walk over and hold his hand for a long while, standing by his side, their hands held at his shoulder, before heading off to chase Amalia around the house and garden. In front of them, Pimouz sat with two friends of his. He had just received some gifts a while earlier and they were playing with the cars on the table, somewhat oblivious to the emotion that was welling up behind them. Emilia sat, absorbed by the songs and invited Pimouz to sing along. He did't. She did. To her side was Emilia Patricia, who held Avi on her lap for a long while before Avi stood up and moved to her father, on the other side of the room. She then sat in his lap and they hugged for what seemed like an eternity. It was the kind of hug that said 'I love you' in so many ways. It was the kind of hug that carries with it a plethora of thoughts, and emotions and stories better left unspoken. Further back Carolina and Javi, the newlyweds, looked into each others eyes and kissed, sharing with it a smile filled with promises and companionship. The rest of the group sat and watched, respectfully, some listening to the lyrics, others singing along, others still chatting during parts. Every once in a while someone would speak too loud, or whisper a joke to a neighbor and the rest of the group would try, tactfully, to persuade them that this is no time for such behavior. Some would smile a playful smile. Others would give a knowing glare, silently, allowing the music to continue its journey to peoples ears and minds and souls.

It was the kind of event that shows the similarities and differences in family. The older generations, for whom the songs have more meaning, singing and involving themselves in the emotion, working on memories that the song represented: Long car rides to tropical desitnations, radio programs from yesteryear, parties and record players. The younger generation went along their way aware of the music, but not quite as immersed in its presence. Observing, respectful, but without the baggage of history, memories or meaning. The children sometimes paid attention, and sometimes moved on. Irini slept.

It was the kind of event that brings generations together. Three generations in one room. Music that talks of relationships and love and going away and returning, mirroring the lives of those in attendance. It was the kind of event that speaks volumes of the Colombian and family traditions. It was the kind of event that brought context to content and meant something to everyone. It was a moment of powerful discourse without as much as a word being said in public.

Tomorrow, Emilia Patricia, Avi and Pimouz will get on a plane. They will fly towards dreams and bright futures in Malaysia. They will become part of a larger world that awaits them. It is exciting, scary and promising. The children in particular will travel so much further than they ever have before. They will be challenged and they will love it. The orient awaits.

Tomorrow begins their journey toward what Laurence, Natalia, Irini and Amalia already know in many ways. But in doing so - in getting on that plane - they also give up a little of their own culture, of their family, of themselves. The chatter in Spanish. The soccer games. The vallenatos and the arepas. They will need to take those things with them in different form and hold on tight. The ropes that bind them are no longer in place through and around them. Now they must make their own. The tears, the lyrics, the memories, they need to be brought with them in whatever form they must so that they can ensure that they continue to be part of this loving family and this warm and wonderful culture. It is the price of dreams and new beginnings.

We wish them a wonderful chapter in Malaysia and hope that they hold on to their Colombia as well. The world is big enough for everyone. As we like to say, love knows no boundaries.

Even More Did We Tell Yous

2011-07-09T00:07:00.003+08:00

After writing the previous post last night, certain little 'things' surfaced, bringing to mind even more happenings in the family these days. Here is goes... Did we tell you that:

Amalia can feed herself with a spoon or fork? A little awkward, but she gets it done.
Irini is able to brush Amalia's teeth? A little awkward, but she gets it done, until Amalia bites her by mistake. :-)
Irini hugs and kisses her sister at least once a day using daddy's 'kiss till you drop' method passed down from his mother?
Amalia can climb down from a rather high bed?
Irini is able to go the bathroom all by herself in most cases?
Irini is very very handy around the garden? She spent much of this morning helping water the plants, clean the windows and making sure that the steps are clear of dust and crumbs (left for the birds to eat)
Both Irini and Amalia love Colombian juices?!!

More as we live it...

Did We Tell You?

2011-07-08T07:42:00.004+08:00

Time is running, and so are we. Colombia always brings with it a sense of wonder, and a sense of timelessness. In the time we've been here we've done many things, mostly revolving around friends and family... and there are lots and lots of them. With just a week left we are on double and triple events per day, and understandably there is little time to sit down and write a blog post. So, this one will have to be done in snipets of information, just to give you the jist of things. Did we tell you:

That Amalia's fourth bottom front tooth came out?
That Irini is rapidly learning how and when to use Spanish? She is often overheard saying 'dios mio' or 'delicioso' or 'donde esta'
That Natalia's sister, Emilia Patricia, and her two children Pimouz and Avihurik are going to Malaysia in just four days? They got their Malaysian visas today and they are ready to go!
That Amalia's molars are starting to show?
That both Amalia and Irini spent close to 10 hours on the flight from Madrid to Bogota playing, giggling, walking and discovering, but had no emotional tantrums at all? It delighted both parents immensely.
That Irini received a good deal of clothing and shoes as presents? Her current count in Bogota alone is 8 pairs of shoes. Imelda Marcos move over!
That it took just four days to get over jet lag?
That we're happy as can be in Bogota?
That we visited Villa de Leyva for the umpteenth time and were as happy as we were the first time there?
That Irini got to feed ostriches?
That it's been a long time since we took the time to enjoy a star-filled night sky?
That both Irini and Amalia are completely adorable sleeping side by side on the bed? They often cuddle each other as they nap.
That Amalia will sleep with her mother by putting her hands on the side of Natalia's face, and holding her cheeks, all the while looking at her until she sleeps? Later, if she wakes up, she'll make sure that she takes hold of her finger as she lulls herself to sleep again.

Our time in Colombia continues...

Shiny Happy People!

2011-06-18T05:05:00.007+08:00

If Greece is a place marred with concern - both economic and social - then Sweden has to be the land of careless days and short nights (at least at this time of the year). It is no wonder that the summer days are so long there... there is just so much to be happy about! No, we're not talking about the fact that we got to visit with Aleko and Anna and Vince and Sammy and their respective wonderful girlfriends (Anna and Erika). No, we're not talking about the fact that the weather was almost perfect (between 15 and 20 degrees and largely clear skies). No, we're not talking about the chance to visit Askersund, the new home of Walter (away from Greece, that is) and Monica (well, not so new for her) and enjoy the stunning setting along the lake Vattern.

What we're talking about is all the rest of it: The sheer amount of green spaces and places along the length of this admittedly long country; The amount of beautifully kept streets and sidewalks; the number of new cars; the remarkable roads; The near perfect combination of old architecture and modern amenities; The abundance of good food and shopping; The number of people who are just content with life. In every way, Sweden was impressive.

Irini and Amalia were happiest playing with everything and everyone that moved. In Malmo, visitng the "Scan Clan" they spent hours on end rumbling on the kitchen, living room, hallway or terrace floor with the dogs. Amalia would wave both her hands in sheer joy and Irini would seek them out to say goodnight. The only thing that could compete with the dogs - in energy and cuteness - was the younger generation of Myers (and said girlfriends). Vincent, Anna, Sammy and Erika were amazingly caring, sharing and entertaining. They loved being there. There were moments when Natalia and Laurence would look up and just simply smile. The light was shining in the eyes of all of them. The connection was obvious. The love for each other and for the moment was as special as it can get.

In there somewhere was also an unexpected twist: Olga. She is a law student from Russia who is spending her university life outside of school with the gang, taking care of the dogs (and Goiman the parrot). In the short time that we got to know her we had nothing less than an opportunity for Irini to have her finger and toe ("tony") nails painted, a violin recital and a Russian geography lesson. She asked that we consider leaving our children with her while we visited Walter and Monica, and we had to decline but we were happy to reconnect with her upon our return. How delightful to have another person, with a whole different outlook on life, right there to talk to and share with.

And then there were Aleko and Anna, of course! They pampered us beyond recognition and asked for nothing in return, though they were seen trying to peel Amalia out of the arms of her parents and cousins on more than one occasion. They were the superest of super hosts and made sure that all our needs were met, right down to an incredible BBQ to meet the in-laws of their boys. They wanted to make sure that everyone had met everyone. The food was awesome. The house interior make-over wowing and their sense of humor, as always, always present.

Between our arrival and our departure, largely based in and around Malmo, we had the chance to drive to Askersund, the home away from home of Walter. Well, now just home. He has now spent a good portion of his year there, and the foreseeable future seems to indicate much the same trend so we will just call it home. As it should be. The drive from Malmo to Askersund takes close to five hours. Unless, that is, one has younger children who might, theoretically speaking, want to do something other than be strapped into a seat all day long. In that theoretical situation a parent might decide, for example, to stop somewhere along the way and offer a chance for said child to run amok for a while - in a rest stop or in a park - until the child recognizes the value of sedentary lifestyles. If that's the case, the trip might take closer to 6 and a half hours. All of them wonderfully surrounded by green: Green grass, green trees, green parks, green fields, green, green, green.

Until one gets to Askersund. Oh, yes, there is Green in Askersund. But there is also the banks of Lake Vattern. Right there, just behind the rock and the tree and the grassy lawn that face it, there is a house. One of those little red wooden houses with white trim and a veranda. There is a swing here. A table there. A hammock further other. A beautiful fluffy cat walks in and out as if it is the real owner. But we know the truth. Fairy tales are, after all, based on truth.

And in this fairy tale, Walter has been given a late arriving - but albeit major - part. The wedding celebration and benediction were an impressive combination of many friends in a small place. The resulting day - Saturday, June 11th - was as emotional as positive can be. Somewhere between listening to eulogies and vows, and little children's church tantrums, just beyond the long tables with fine cuisine in unpretentious local establishments, intertwined in the conversations and meetings and stories one shares at dinner tables, nestled between the speeches (many speeches) and the singing and dancing, love stole the show. It is a love that is different than what we are accustomed to. As Walter said in his (arguably award-winning) speech, it's about the here and now. There was little talk of "growing old together" as Laurence and Natalia often say. There was talk about making the most of it. There was talk of love being an active ingredient. It was about a life without regrets.

With all these positive occasions - reunifications and unifications - we were hard pressed to find someone who was not, as the title of this blog post states, shiny and happy. Oh, wait! There was one. It was that Avis employee in the parking lot who helped us with the car seats. "Avis has a racist issue", he said. Did you know that Avis employs just two locals while the rest are all Polish and/or Moroccan? We weren't sure this information was accurate, but showed as much appreciation to his plight as we could given the circumstances. No, shiny and happy he was not. But then again, he wasn't Swedish either. He was Danish.

Chapter 1: Greece

2011-06-09T04:36:00.009+08:00

Wednesday morning. Natalia is online. Laurence opens one eye to check on the "light factor". It's morning. The girls are already up, but strangely quiet playing out on the balcony. Laurence picks himself up off the bed and moseys over to Natalia who is intently staring at the computer screen. From her vantage point she can look out to the balcony and the girls, and beyond into the park. It's another slow moving morning. But something's "up". Natalia announced that she is reading Rebecca's email to us and that, Rebecca, has mentioned that her daughter Lizzie checks this very blog every day! The pressure is on for more complete and up-to-date updates. Laurence measures his response. That's great. But really such passing statements puts one on a different plane. How can we fill so much information onto a blog without making it boring? Would we even want to? Balance. So, with that, here it is...another note of our daily doings with a few pictures to add some spice to things.

Truthfully the first few days have gone better than expected. It is amazing what a difference there has been between this trip and our last one here. By now, last December Laurence would have been to probably four different government offices and such doing bureaucratic this-and-thats'. This time it's more real. The general mood in Greece is an overriding mood of pessimism and concern. Shops line the streets with empty windows. Vasil informs us that, downtown there are areas where one in two shops has closed down. Daily strikes infuse an element of immediate impact on daily lives. News broadcasts are filled with conversations of whether Greece will default on its loans, whether it should or not, how Greece perceives the outside world, and the world Greece. On many levels it is a sad story.

But at the personal level it's often overcome with a smile, albeit sometimes forced. The woman at the bakery gives Irini a little loukanikopita (like a hot dog) because she's so cute. She jokes to Laurence that when he goes back to Malaysia, he should take her with him. He smiles and wishes her well. She smiles back and thanks him for coming to see her. They return home where Laurence gets into another conversation with Dina, the woman downstairs and over one balcony. Outside, with the sunny day facing them, they chat about the family, the growing girls, how long we will be in Malaysia. She asks when we're coming back "this way". Laurence doesn't have an answer, but he would love to. At the photo shop he has pictures taken for an international drivers license. After the trip to the bakery to fill the time and bring back some tiropita and bougatsa (yummy stuff!), he returns to another sales person cutting up the pictures to the right size. The woman asks, "Are these your pictures"? "I'm not completely sure" says Laurence. The woman, without hesitating, answers "I think the eyes gave you away". It's a playful conversation with a stranger, on the edge of rational and yet just beyond it, completely Greek. Laurence walks away wishing them a good day. The woman wishes him the same in return. Irini munches on her bougatsa as we walk down the pedestrian streets of Marousi. Some shops have good bargains.

Yesterday was a day "out" in the park. The intention was to stay much longer, but this year has been a little strange for Greece. It appears that there has been more rain than normal, so what is left is a feeling of spring (maybe more like April or early May). Laurence loves it! It means the flowers are still often in bloom, that the bushes and brushes are still standing high (and all over) and that the fields are full of color, insects and "stuff" to discover. It's in that "stuff" that we decided to venture as Irini insisted on looking at everything from the almonds on the trees to the purple flowers and dead grasses. She wanted to look at every insect in sight, and often hold it. Laurence had to oblige as Natalia snapped the pictures. The only problem with high grasses... the more chances you'll get some prickly thing stuck in your socks. Overcome by itchiness and discomfort we had to retreat to change our socks and give lessons on how some plants work. :-)

In the afternoon, they saw their friends Stelio and Maria and their daughter Mikaela. They went to a local play ground where, as the evening slowly moves toward night, more and more people show up. In there, somewhere, Natalia takes a moment to teach Amalia how to be, quite literally, a tree hugger. Parenting skills vary from supportive to uncontrolled, from trusting parents to some chasing after their children, from those who are laughing with their kids to those yelling endlessly at them giving them ultimatums they will never follow through on. One boy pushes over his cousin and she falls crying. Another boy gets dizzy on the merry-go-round and gets off, takes one step and falls sideways to the ground. With a crash His mother rushes over to pick him up and sooth him, obviously under-rested and looking haggard. Other parents are all too busy watching their own children or conversing with other parents about their children to concern themselves too much. The place is happening (in toddler terms)! For one hour in a neighborhood play ground the world's opposites come together to entertain their children and given the parents respite, and then have pizza. As we did. As we chomped away, Amalia managed to do some rounds around the tables, saying hello to a group of smoking mothers (watching their children from afar), watching a group of teenagers playing cards and hugging a pine tree now and then. She is, by all accounts, totally and completely adorable.

Tomorrow we head off to Sweden on a "biiiiiiiig eroplane" - as Irini puts it - for chapter two of our summer. Chapter one has been wonderfully slow and sprinkled with just enough to-dos to keep things interesting. From breakfast on the balcony to reconnecting friends, it has been the perfect way to start the summer.

Lizzie, we miss you. :-)

Summer At Last!

2011-06-06T13:14:00.005+08:00

It's not quite summer until the plane is landing in Athens. The trip was a long one, filled with little children (ours) crying, running, playing, and laughing. We were fortunate to share the KL to Doha flight with our friends Matt and Cat and their little son Jonathon. He loves Irini and Irini loves him, so the two (and sometimes three) of them spent a good deal of time yelling from one window seat to the other "Jonny!" or "Rini!" across the wide body jet. We were in the same row, but opposite sides. Happily for us, the middle section of four seats only had two people in it, a beautiful and very happy girl (around 10) named Oomia (meaning wish in Sudanese we were told) and her mother who fell in love with Amalia. They were happy to allow the onslaught of toddlers to run back and forth throughout the 7 hour flight and this made all the difference for us.

Once in Doha, we were whisked away from our friends (who had a four hour lay over in wait for the flight to London) by the ground crew and thrust onto our next flight. We were on the ground for probably no more than 25 minutes or so. The second flight was smooth as can be (happily for Laurence) and after lunch we all promptly fell asleep for the final hour and a half of the flight. Laurence woke up, of course, to watch the Greek islands appear below as the plane descended and, just as always happens, watching the Aegean below brought a sudden - and much welcomed - sense of tranquility and 'home' to him.

The arrival was uneventful apart from poor Irini trying to walk up the jetway and into the terminal. For the first time we didn't bring a stroller, meaning that she had to walk but, having been sleeping the last leg of the journey, she found it difficult to do so. She swayed this way and that while other passengers patiently waited behind us. She was, as always, adorable.

After a short taxi ride (the roads were empty and the taxi driver was going 150 km/hr ) we got home just in time to meet the chatter of a Greek apartment building evening. Is seemed like all the families were out on the balcony overlooking the park and Laurence found great sense of belonging instantly. This is the stuff he had been missing. The dry relatively cool (27 degrees) evening was upon them and it was the perfect time for an arrival. As they got to the apartment they found it empty, of course, for the first time ever. Irini asked where "pappou" was and was told that he was in Sweden (our next stop) but yes, this was his apartment. She was later heard explaining this to Amalia who had, apparently, missed it the first time. :-)

An empty apartment, though peaceful, means no food. So off we all went down the back streets of Marousi to find an Evga (a corner store). It was Sunday afternoon. Would it be open? It was! The woman inside was friendly as can be and immediately moved conversation to where her family is from, the content of the products that she sells (and recommends to us since we have children), the concerns about industrially manufactures products, where we were from and how she has a sister-in-law from Bogotá also that loves living in Preveza, where she is from. How wonderful for Laurence to be in this environment! That was probably the longest conversation he has had with a stranger in at least six months, AND in Greek!

The walk from the store to our local little souvlaki shop took only five minutes, but we stopped three times, once to look at the purple flowers (Irini's favorite color), once to smell the pines and once to look at the dogs passing by. It was a delightful evening with a 'nip' in the air that would prompt Irini to ask for her sweater. We are tropical beings these days. The souvlakia were ordered and devoured with a side order of french fries and tzatziki, of course, and the girls took the time to walk around sidewalk and sit with their mother on the steps and chat and look and feel the place out. Laurence sat alone to finish his meal (and the left overs) and took the opportunity to chat with the restaurant owner about the day's events and the Greek economic situation. It seems that the arrival day also marked the largest peaceful demonstration in Greek history since the demonstrations against the junta in 1974. Over 200,000 people were downtown in front of the parliament as Laurence, Natalia, Irini and Amalia flew in and took their walk in the quiet Marousi streets. The souvlaki place owner joked about everyone heading down there just to welcome us with some peace and quiet.

It was the kind of evening that Laurence has so much missed. It was the kind of evening he wants to give his daughters time and time again. It was the kind of experience that makes Greece such a major part of him and - he hopes - of them as well. Home again. Summer has begun.

A While Back... Amalia Turned One

2011-05-18T21:09:00.006+08:00

Yes, it's been a while. Yes, it was a beautiful day. Yes, we had a party with a nice mix of friends old(er) and young. Yes, we baked a cake. In fact, Irini helped to make some funky little cake balls which were an instant success with the kids, but too sweet for the adults. Oh well. You learn.

Between now and Amalia's birthday we've had quite a number of things going on. For one, everyone (except for Laurence) got sick with the sniffles and coughing, something that continues even today for little Amalia. Amalia decided (on Friday, May 13th) that she was done with all the crawling stuff and so just got up and walked around the house. She is now clapping and dancing (more like swaying with a slight bend to the knees) to a variety of rhythms. Irini has taken on more role-playing and has turned the house inside and out by taking her parents to the back room for a "time out" and telling everyone to sit down and prepare to recite a song (or sing a dance). Natalia has been working night after night to put together a picture book of Amalia's first year and, now that it is finally complete, has decided that Irini should have one too.

Things are happening. Amalia wouldn't know it, but we can see the changes in her. From the time she began walking a mere five days ago, to today she is more social, more independent and more confident in her doings. She loves to play 'peek-a-boo' by standing next to the doorway and moving her upper body so that we can't see her face, then we can, then we can't... she supports this motion with a very friendly smile and a happy "ahh" each time she reveals her face to us. She is delightful. She is now interacting with Irini in earnest. She is hugging her big sister and talking to her and following her around. She dances when her sister sings and wants to play with everything, of course.

Needless to say the birthday came and went in a whirlwind of activity. She was happy. She still is. She played with everyone (including Uncle Joe who shares a birthday with her!) and she happily sat on the table to cut the cake in true Giraldo-Moreno fashion!

Happy Oneth Birthday Amalia!!

Irini's World Debut!

2011-04-22T22:55:00.002+08:00

It began innocently enough, with Irini coming home from Buzzy Bee with little songs to sing, usually just a line of a well-known children's song like "Itsy Bitsy Spider" or "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Then things became more serious... She came home with more lyrics. Then came home with some little dance moves. Then the 'wow' moment when she began her first in-house performance of "Nobody but You". Then, at about the beginning of April, the vocal and dance floodgates opened up. If one was a fly on our wall in the apartment he/she might think that Irini was going to take part in a good 20 or so acts. Laurence was convinced she was.

When we got to the end-of-term show we realized that Irini had, over the course of the final two weeks of the term, pretty much learned every lyric of every song there was. From Waka Waka to Mr. Sun (the video of which is below), Irini knew it all!

Once her three songs were up, she sat in the front, as instructed, and listened to all the other songs, silently and in a focused manner. No dancing moves like other kids. No singing along. Just watching patiently. Then, when she got home and the door opened up, it was like we were back in the small theater across from KLCC and Irini was a one-girl show, reciting each and every song (and accompanying dance) all over again.

We are proud as can be of our little star!!

Now, before you rush to push play on the video below, let us challenge you. Pretend you don't know who Irini is, but you have been told that just one kid in the entire group presenting is of Latin American decent. Can you find which one?

You Were Always on Our Mind...

2011-04-22T22:38:00.003+08:00

As we mentioned in our earlier post, during Chinese New Year our friends Trina, Joe (and their adorable daughter Sarah) and Kate came to visit. They got ever so close to landing in Tioman when the pilot declared that the gusts of wind were too strong and they would have to return. We remember being very impressed with their positive outlook on things as they made the best of their time in KL. But we couldn't help but think of them time and time again while we were in Tioman enjoying the place, the weather and the sunsets. These few photos are not a way of rubbing it in, but rather a statement to let the know that they were there with us in spirit. Perhaps next time things will work out just right. :-)

For the rest of you out there... we're waiting for you to visit!

Timeless Vacation

2011-04-10T22:18:00.009+08:00

It's not often that one can have it all in one place... well, everything we would want or need anyway. We flew into Tioman following that would have been the footsteps of our friends Trina, Joe (and their adorable daughter Sarah) and Kate who, if all had worked out, would have done this same trip during Chinese New Year. As fate would have it, they never made it with winds that didn't allow a landing on the island. Our luck was better, and so as we approached the runway for the final hard right and bouncy landing parallel to the beach front on Berjaya Air, we were greeted by the smallness of tropical getaways and a tiny runway surrounded on three sides with with lush green forested mountainsides. We immediately understood how tricky landing here would have been in less than optimal conditions. The stewardess, smitten with our girls, had warned us of a "bumpy" landing even in the perfect weather that greeted us.

From there it was four days in our little version of paradise. The each of the girls had medical "issues" during our stay, overall there was something about this destination, this time of year, that was perfect in it's arrival. The resort was a wonderful combination of four different pools of varying depths (from 50 cm for tots to 2 meters for adults) with slides and a long, sandy beach, nearby snorkeling options - including black tip sharks - and scuba diving opportunities, not to mention short car trips to the waterfall or turtle hatching beaches on the other side of the island), westerly facing location by the beach (making for perfect sunset watching) and amazing weather (blue skies and largely cloudless night skies). Though Laurence would be frustrated by the less-than-optimal service and mis-communications at times, the experience would otherwise prove to be simply ideal for those trying to escape the world of urban jungles and hubbub. Cell phones were promptly turned off and all sources of internet connections were boycotted to begin with. Time pieces were left behind. We were on our own for five days of "our time".

Despite the stars aligning to bring us to Tioman, however, various illnesses would hinder us from being able to spend the majority of time together. Amalia spent the first two days with a fever and subsequent red hives, revealing a successful first foray into viral infections (phew). The last two days were spent with Irini having fever and a lack of appetite. It was later determined that she had a middle ear infection and a sore throat (unrelated). Natalia developed a conjunctivitis on the day we returned, just to make sure that illnesses were not confined to the minors.

In there somewhere we met a whole lotta people. First there was Julia, a five year old girl from Brazil and her very friendly father. Then there were Maya and Ania, two young Polish girls and their parents with whom we spent a good deal of time over the middle three days. Then there was Teo, a British girl and her cousins Luke and "no name" (as I called her since she refused to tell me). There was also Marina and Gordon (two international teachers from WAB in Beijing) and their children Alex and Carolina. The list included a number of supporting cast members too, but suffice it to say that it was a whole lot of community building in record speeds, from sitting at adjoining tables to sharing stories to holding hands going up the slide and celebrating the successes of reaching the bottom. Irini, for the most part, took care of herself in the pool and took it upon herself to be the 'bringer together' of groups, even when the others were hardly interested in such comings together. Her favorite pool was the second shallowest (75 cm), where she spent hours going up and down the slide and learning to swim with her head under water. We were proud as could be.

Time and time again she would walk over, take Maya by the hand, walk to the small faucet by the steps where both of them would wash their hands, walk up the steps and allow Maya the first shot at going down the slide. Maya, cautious and a little afraid (2 and a half years old and wearing a life vest) would walk down part way and then sit and slowly be taken by the water to the waiting arms of her parents. Irini would wait for her to arrive and then shoot down the slide to the open arms of the pool itself. If her timing was good she could extend her legs so that, as she shot off the slide, she would stop her head from going into the water. If her timing was off she would fly head-long into the water, with a massive spray, and then shot back up to the surface with a beaming smile on her face. She would then turn to face the steps, put her head down into the water and us a breaststroke arm movement to propel herself toward them. Her feet did somewhat of a scissor kick to help her along. Then, reaching the steps she pushed herself up out of the water, smiled again, and walked over to Maya and took her hand to start the entire cycle all over again.

The evenings were spent often either looking at the sunset or having dinner, where Irini would fall in love time and time again with the three-member Filipino band that went from table to table and took requests. As soon as they were heard singing "Twinkle twinkle Little Star" from across the dining room, they were a hit. On many occasions she would go over to watch them from up close. Sometimes she would just sit from her seat and watch from afar. On a couple occasions she went up and danced by their side (with other kids too). Everywhere she went the locals loved her. They were enamored by her features and impressed that she was lighter skinned but dark eyed and haired. Perhaps it's the Myers-Giraldo exotic gene!

On Thursday, she and Laurence went to do the "glass bottom boat" tour only to find that it was fully booked by a group of tourists who would also be going snorkeling. Too young for snorkeling and realizing that it wasn't going to happen, and after some explanation of "why" from daddy, she retorted with her now signature "it's okay" and we moved back to the pool to play in the slide. On the other side of the resort, in the hotel room, Amalia took a nap and mommy pushed further into her new book.

Amalia's trip wasn't quite so active as Irini's. Much of the days were spent with one parent or another napping in the room. Daddy and Irini even had to go the village to get her some fever medicine from the clinic. Only on Wednesday did she venture out of the room for any sizable amount of time to see what all the fuss was about. She too joined Irini at the second pool, and even tried to crawl up the slide (largely a futile effort but fun none-the-less). Daddy took her down the slide a couple times as well, but she didn't seem to enjoy it as much as her sister did, so we reverted to having her splish and splash by waving her hands about and learning that the amount of water displaced is largely proportional to the power of the arm swing. Eureka!!

Being sick did not, of course, preclude her from being very popular with everyone. She smiled a good deal and was very well behaved. It was as if she knew that if she was on good behavior people just couldn't help but fall in love with her. One many occasions one look at her brought out smiles in everyone, from scantily clad Europeans to conservatively clad Arabs. It was as if she could bring the world together with just one smile and she had lots of them to go around.

When at last we waved bye-bye to the island below us and our place steadily climbed to 16,000 feet for our return to KL, we had that "ahhhh" feeling of having been somewhere where you could take your time, do things at your own pace, focus on the pure joy of being with family and making the best of every moment, even if it was in shifts sometimes. Our bodies ached just a bit because we'd been in bed too long. Our skin was a little stiff from the sun's consistent shine. It had been a very long time since we'd been somewhere on vacation with just the four of us, and we made the best of it.

Our return to KL took us straight to the doctor for a reality check and go pick up the necessary medications (three different ones for Irini, two for Amalia). "Be here at 2:00 pm sharp". Vacation was over.

A Month of Firsts

2011-03-28T20:27:00.008+08:00

March 2011. Sounds simple enough, almost forgettable. But for those paying attention, it was a month of firsts. The smiles, the sense of accomplishment, the positive esteem gained are all obvious. In no particular order (unfortunately), here's what we can think of, off the top of our heads, that have made this month quite a special one in our household:

Amalia's Firsts

Started to babble ("da", "ba" and "ma" being the most common)
Learned to respond to her name (though there were glimpses of this in the past month, now it's unequivocal)
Stood up
Stayed standing (for over a minute... and counting)
Began to 'cruise' with ease
Took her first steps (her current record, set a few days ago, stands at 7 steps)
Developed a love for walking hand in hand with mommy or daddy (sometimes with Irini holding the other hand)
Started to initiate games with her sister

Irini's Firsts

Can count - with relative ease - to twenty (or so) in English, Spanish & Greek
Picks up Amalia and takes her for walks around the living room (not recognizing the facial features of her parents screaming "watch out!")
Was initiated to underwear instead of diapers at Buzzy Bee
Subsequently stopped using diapers at home (except for sleeping)
Had her first in-car "I have to go wee" moment, but held it for close to two minutes while daddy used his best Formula 1 driver impersonation to get off the three lane road and reach the lawn of the National Theater (Istana Budaya) where, under the shade of a friendly banyan tree, Irini releaved herself outdoors for the first time
Learned how to add 2+1 and 3+1 (at least by memory)
Displayed one-to-one number recognition (according to 'Becca) while re-hanging all the Pumpkin Patch clothing she had taken off the rack in a recent visit
Started singing/dancing her first pop single, from the Korean girl band 'Wondergirls', "I want nobody but you, choo choo" (as she puts it), dance moves and all... much to the awe/surprise/chagrin of her father who, with Rebecca and Scott in attendance, had just been listening to Irini sing such international favorites as "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" and "The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round". We have since found out that it's being taught to the students at Buzzy Bee for their end-of-term show on April 17th.
Learned how to write her first letter: I (with this development she can now write 60% of her name in English/Spanish!)
Took her first swim (okay, maybe just a couple kicks, but still) underwater with her eyes open!

Informal Family Portraits

2011-03-09T18:33:00.004+08:00

For what seems to have been the longest while, Natalia has been intent of finding a professional photographer to take family pictures. Formal pictures were out of the question...Laurence would have none of that dressing up stuff. So, as time passed and Natalia realized that the longer we wait the less the chances of having both our daughters in that 'young and cute' phase, she took it upon herself to work things out.

The photographer, Nikki, came just before 9:00am on Sunday morning. A few minutes earlier , Irini had begun her battle against being told what to do. No, she wouldn't wear a white shirt. No, she didn't like the idea of photos at all. When the photographer came she was cautious at best, and though Amalia was happy as can be to be the center of attention, Irini sat in the background being somewhat difficult. Tears flowed freely at times. Then the doorbell rang. Scott and Rebecca had arrived! Rebecca being particularly enthusiastic took over and allowed us a few glimpses of smiles from Irini. Between being told to move this way and that (so Irini's face would face the light) and trying to keep Irini interested and happy, it was an interestingly fun experience.

The shoot moved downstairs with intermittent sections of "no, no, no" with thumb in mouth (a relatively new development we are not happy to see) so you don't take a picture of me, and other times when Irini was happy to oblige.

In the end we had a set of photos that were good enough, although Irini's photos were lacking. No matter. We said goodbye and waited for the arrival of the digital prints, which happened today. The photos were a delightful mix of beautiful faces and family smiles. What isn't shown is that, especially for the group photos, between each group photo there was a falling back of Laurence - while holding Irini - and then a return to the sitting position, the movement of which supplied enough of a comical relief to get a shot or two of. Then came the nuclear family photo of the four of us. If you notice, Natalia and Laurence are smiling at the camera while the girls are looking somewhere to the right (their left). What could it be? It was Rebecca and Scott, of course, doing their version of some dance concoction - a combination of rock meets merengue. It turns out that Scott has some pretty impressive moves after all.

We tried hard to find things to keep Irini's mind off of the shoot.... "oh, there's a snail over there!", "let's put our feet in the pool and see how fun it is!", and here and there Irini would put up with our antics. But when Amalia decided that it was nap time, her early tears were followed quickly by an immediate packing and scuffling upstairs.

Enjoy the photos, and just try your best to imagine all the in-betweens. :-)

Beautiful and Growin' Fast

2011-02-20T22:57:00.003+08:00

The upper teeth are now coming out. Four of 'em. She's saying "dada" and "mama" and putting her hands up from a sitting position to indicate that she wants to be picked up. She can rotate on a dime as she moves from one direction to another, and back again. She's standing herself up and balancing impressively with just one hand. We think she can't be that far off from walking, but who knows. She eatin' solids now: Yogurt (is that a solid?), papaya, apple, rice, Cheerios, bread, cheese, mango, peas and carrots (blended), oatmeal, etc., etc. She loves the water, both bein' in it and playin' with it. She giggles with her sister all the time. She now plays hide-and-seek with her sister too. Irini will sit behind the sofa on the floor so that Amalia can't see her from her initial sitting position. But when she stands up, hands holding firmly to the sofa-back, she can peer out and see her sister smiling at her. She giggles away. Then sits down and repeats the process. Love is so simple sometimes.

Ups & Downs

2011-02-20T22:36:00.002+08:00

Yesterday:

Wake up the sounds of children crying. The day passes in a cloud of stress, with adults trying to perfect their personal forms of multitasking that go something like this: Feed the baby. She's crying. No wait! Change the diaper. No, clean the chair. The construction next door is so loud! Deep breath. Make sure the milk is ready. Is the water ready for the bath? Irini wants this. Then that. Amalia wants to be held, only to want to get down as soon as she is. Crying. Yelling. Construction. Crying some more. Exhaustion. Frustration. Emotions run high. Deep breath. Think positive. Doesn't last more than a couple seconds when the next bout of emotional outcries hits the living room. Tense atmosphere. Can I handle this? Please tell me this isn't what I have to look forward to for the rest of the my life? Deep breath. I need a break. Has there been even one decision today that has not brought out an emotional fit? I need out! No, I'm a parent and I can handle this. Turn around to face the girls again. Crying. Tantrums. No, I can't handle this. Deep breath. Sleep exhausted.

Today:

Wake up the sounds of children playing. They come in to say hello and pull daddy out of bed. We eat breakfast at the table. We go for a walk outside to look and feed the fish in the lake. Smiles all around. We have hot chocolate at Deli France. We go to Tarbush for some middle eastern food. Irini poops and we don't have a diaper, but she walks all the way home, despite the leak. She's a trooper. Amalia falls asleep with little crying. She has been eating Cheerios happily all the while. We nap for over two hours, all simultaneously. We wake up and Leanne comes to visit. We go to the pool and have a blast. Irini is happy as can be. Amalia is happy as can be. We return home to have a shower and change. We go out to Suzi's for kebabs, roti canai and tandoori chicken. Everyone eats happily. We return home, and Irini thanks Leanne for coming to visit! We wave bye bye as she drives and go upstairs. Irini thanks mom and dad for taking her to the pool and having so much fun! Mom and dad look at each other, trying desperately to keep themselves from falling over in disbelief. Amalia goes to sleep easily. Irini brushes her own teeth (with a little help) and we read four books before she turns over and slumbers happily. Daddy gives her a kiss and says "thank you" for a great day. Deep sigh and a smile. Love.

Birthday Bash... a tad late!

2011-02-20T22:18:00.003+08:00

The official birthday came and went when we were still in Greece, but given that we have quite the extensive play-group set up here in KL, we decided that a post-birthday bash would be in order. In all around 30 people joined in to wish Irini a happy 3rd birthday down by our pool. It seems that this poolside birthday bash is becoming a bit of a customary thing, and it's always a success! The pool, the day, the space, the smiles, the wishes, everything was great!

Well... almost everything. We had hoped that Irini's little crying fits in Greece when the birthday song was sung were, well, left in Greece, but it turns out that, though Irini loved the presents and the fun and the guests, she didn't really want to have a birthday party for her. We pretty much got away with it for the entire time it was being run, until we happened to stumble into the sing-the-song-and-cut-the-cake routine. Irini literally began to cry and let her body fall down so that, by the end of the song, she was crying profusely and sitting under the table while her friends (particularly Carter who is celebrating it all!) sat above waiting for her to return and blow out the candles. It was such a nice cake too. Chocolate cake just like Irini loves.

Happy birthday, little beauty! Tears of not, we love you!

The Year of the Rabbit Arrives

2011-02-08T18:53:00.004+08:00

It's always wonderful to have friends come into town. To make things better this time around a planned side trip to Pulau Tioman (off the East coast of penninsular Malaysia) fell through as the plane was unable to land due to gusty winds. In its place, Joe and Trina and Sarah (along with the ever-flexible and layed back Kate) decided to just hang around and make the best of Kuala Lumpur had to offer. So what if this was their third time in town? So what if the original plan was to head to the South China Sea to scuba dive? So what that the luxurious hotel stay was turned - within hours - to a stay at a less-than-spectacular studio in our apartment building?

In the end, this was a vacation of people, not of places. We had multiple trips to Suzie's for their now famous tenderloin steak. We had a wonderful vietnamese dinner with Leanne and Joe (of the Granzow clan from Iowa) and a short, yet positive, stay at the Saujana hotel - along with Scott and Rebecca - where everyone enjoyed the kiddie pool and Irini and Sarah got to roam around on hotel-issued bikes (Irini in the red one with the training wheels and Sarah on the blue on without them) while their dads did their best to keep up with their twists and turns.

Along the way there was a whole bunch of lot of the little things that make friendship a great thing to have. There were chats about plans and lifestyle from the parents and pulling on favorite toys from the little ones. There were tears and rules and proper etiquette and, in general, all the girls did a nice job of passing all the tests set up for them at restaurants and pools and in the playground. Oh, wait! There was also a pre-birthday party for Sarah who turns four soon (with chocolate cake!) and a spontaneous trip to an indoor mall-based kiddie fun park where Irini and Sarah got to follow Rebecca to the merry-go-round.

By the end of the trip a happy Joe, Trina, Sarah and Kate all departed with happy smiles and wishes well given and received. On to other journeys. On to more of life. But for a week of Chinese New Year 2011 (what is it in Chinese years anyway?), we are all together again, sharing moments, giggling at the children, watching them grow and learning along the way. Thanks for coming over!!

Reminiscing...

2011-01-24T21:27:00.005+08:00

Can it be that it was just two weeks ago? When we were walking through the orange groves outside Tyrinth, or moseying our way through the pedestrian streets of Marousi? Could it be that we celebrated the first (and official) of Irini's birthday's on her actual day of birth (the second such celebration took place just this past Sunday morning - poolside with a chocolate cake covered in multi-colored M&Ms)? Is it possible that we met Monica for the first time just a month ago? Can it be that just a few short weeks ago we were enjoying Christmas-eve dinner with Ralph, Anne and Maria (and Maria)?

Before heading back to Greece for this vacation Laurence was in a self-proclaimed "mid life crisis". His head was swirling in the realization that inspiration was running dry, that professional life had reached the proverbial "rut" and that the family life had reached the point of an amazing consumption of time spent preparing for, participating in, or just having come out of either naps, feeding or pooping. Was this was "mid life" was all about? And then Natalia reminded him: "You haven't been home in a year and a half". Suddenly Laurence recognized just how true that statement was.

The subsequent weeks were spent partly enjoying the social touch of friends and family and partly spent in seeming endless hours of various government offices doing paperwork that it now happily forgotten (well, not completely). But in just under three weeks Greece was able to restore a good deal of mental stability and balance to Laurence. The cool air. The Greek language. The friends so often missed for so long. The conversations on economy (and there were many of those!), and politics and soccer and corruption. Catching up for a year and a half. And now something new.... surrounded with high school friends, but only this time as parents. What a new and wonderful experience.

Now that we've returned morale, memory and mental balance have been restored, and Greece has, once again, shown itself to be more than the myriad of woes that brazenly cover the newspaper front covers. It is also the walk in Kifissia, the rizogalo at Varsos, the mediocre frape at any plateia (square). Rut or not, Laurence (and the rest of the family) is ready once again to face the future and take things in stride.

Victory Smiles :-)

2011-01-24T20:51:00.003+08:00

It's sometimes difficult to go from the quiet and relaxation of vacation back to "full swing" of essentially living on campus and coaching/teaching with purpose. Our return to KL was on Saturday morning and on Sunday at 9:40 am, Laurence was walking to school to open the gym for the first practice of 2011. On the other end, waiting outside the gym, was the team he has been happily coaching this year with Scott. Laurence loves coaching, of course, and over the years has been fortunate to coach some great girls.

This year was supposed to be a rebuilding year. Seven of the 14 girls on the roster are ninth graders. Three are 10th graders. There are no juniors. But somehow, along the way, this team worked out to be quite a talented bunch of girls. As with any team there comes a "click" moment, when the players "get it" and suddenly they stop playing individual basketball and working much more like an organized group. This happened just before the December break for these girls.... and so when January 9th came along it was back to the gym for the final dash to the IASAS tournament finish line. Running, running, running. Oh, and some shooting and a few plays scattered here and there.

The almost final (IASAS is this coming weekend) was a superior performance at the ISKL invitational cup this past weekend. The girls went undefeated and currently stand at 9 wins in their last 10 games, including a stretch of 7 consecutive wins. The girls can't believe it. Laurence can't believe it. But is sure is nice!

Obviously everyone is delighted. The girls who have been around for more than this year have never experienced success like this and it only gives them something to dream about when we head to Manila on Wednesday. Our seniors have never won a game at IASAS in their career, but we also haven't had such a good team during their tenure here. This team seems destined for a little more, even if it is a rebuilding year. :-)

Let's see what IASAS has in store for us. We dream, we hope, we run.

New Year, New Family!

2011-01-17T21:32:00.005+08:00

Way back in May, Walter came to Malaysia to visit the family and to meet his new granddaughter. As soon as he got off the plane Natalia and Laurence noticed "something" about him. He seemed more filled with energy, happier, more optimistic. He seemed like his mind was wandering more frequently, thinking of other things. He was singing, dancing. He was laughing and happy. Of course that's not to say that he isn't that way normally, but there was a distinct difference in the way he carried himself; almost a unique combination of teenage-optimism-meets-retiree-wisdom kind of thing.

After some prodding it turned out that, in fact, he had rekindled a 'friendship' with an old flame, Monica. We had known of Monica from stories of a previous life, before our family had become just that, but we soon found out that we were about to get to know her a little better...

After a half-century hiatus, the lightning re-introduction took only weeks. First through a letter from Monica. Then through emails (lots of emails!). Then a Skype meeting, followed by others. Soon enough Monica was visiting Athens, and then Walter Sweden. It was a very short (and surprisingly speedy) while before propositions were made and plans set for a wedding.

And so, on January 8th - in the presence of Aleko, Diana P., Stefan and Vicky, Alexi and Monica's son Jovo, brother and his partner - Walter and Monica (in our circles knows as "Moca" as Irini has christened her) were married under a fittingly beautiful clear blue sky, on a rooftop in Plaka, looking up to the Parthenon and the clouds beyond. It was a day fittingly filled with clarity, with sunlight and with love.

As our new chapters of additional family members of the baby sort are added it is good to know that, even after retirement and the painful loss of a spouse, the story does not quite end. There is love to be found in the past, in the present, in the future. Love, it would seem, knows no boundaries.

Uncle 'Eko!

2010-11-09T20:51:00.007+08:00

What do you get when uncle 'Eko has a business trip to Shanghai and is able to pull off a weekend in town? A great time for the nieces! Apart from coming to KL bearing some great gifts, Aleko has been one of the favorites for Irini for quite a while. But he hadn't yet met Amalia. He arrived fairly late on Friday night, and got his first glimpse of his younger niece in the bedroom. As luck would have it, she would wake up soon and start wailing for food.

The next morning, Irini woke up Laurence and whispered "Eko", pointing to the other room. Amalia was awake too, so they quietly opened the door and peered inside. Aleko was sleeping, but not for long. :-) Within minutes he was woken up, and jumped out of bed, opened his suitcase and revealed a number of presents. A Pippi Longstocking book with accompanying Pippi and Mr. Nielsen dolls and a set of play cookware for Irini. Amalia promptly took the cookware and began to eat them to the best of her ability. No pot was spared. For Amalia, Eko brought a wonderful little battery-operated car that makes sounds and moves slowly enough for a crawling baby to follow. Irini promptly took it and turned it on and watched it move back and forth across the room. It was clear that the presents were enjoyed thoroughly, but not by the niece Aleko had planned for! No matter, a visit from 'Eko is a success regardless of who's playing with what present. And besides, Amalia also got a small pair of slippers that were too small for Irini, so no mix-ups there. Natalia got a present too... she got to sleep in until 8:00 am since everyone else was in the other bedroom, a present she was very thankful for. Little things, big appreciation!

The next two days were energy-filled (though not always positive) and certainly the highlight was the dinner at Passage Thru India, a well-known and quite yummy Indian restaurant in town. Upon arrival Irini, who had spent her afternoon hanging out with uncle 'Eko looking at his iPod instead of napping (the downloaded movies were a big success), started running around the restaurant for the entire hour and a half that we were there. Amalia, not wanting to be forgotten, decided that she would wake up from her slumber in the stroller and cry for a while too. There were some tense moments as everyone tried to smile and shifts were taken with Irini and Amalia. Between bites and running around making sure that all patrons at every table were greeted appropriately by a very friendly Irini, the dinner was a bit of an afterthought for the local Myers-Giraldo clan. Aleko slurped the chicken tikka and palak paneer with a grin, however, stopping intermittently to share a "mmmm" with the rest of the family. Dinner chatting was sparse. It was the loneliest dinner he's had in KL. :-)

Happily the next day was much better, filled with time at KLCC park roaming through the playground and visiting the pool and water fall. Irini was happy as can be. The afternoon included a trip to a street market (Aleko made a point of showing his appreciation for avoiding the globalized brand marketing for a short while). By the time Aleko flew back to Copenhagen, he was happy to have been here, but also happy that his own children are grown and can take care of themselves these days. :-) Thanks for the visit Eko!!

Humble Beginnings...

2010-10-29T22:33:00.010+08:00

On the sixth floor of a high-rise building in an outskirt of Kuala Lumpur, overlooking a rather small ex-tin mining lake and the distant eastern foothills of peninsular Malaysia, a little girl takes her first basketball shot on a toy backboard attached to the side of her sister's cot. The girl walks up to the basket. She holds the ball in two hands. She gets into her ready position, knees slightly bent, balance on the balls of her feet, center of gravity allowing her a sway without falling over. Her eyes are set on the target. She eases her hands forward and, with a smooth follow-through, pushes the ball through the hoop. Instant success!!

...To her father the image unleashes dreams, hopes and aspirations that she will be healthy and active, that perhaps she will become an athlete and sport will be important to her, as it is to him. Perhaps he'll get a chance to coach her in little league, and shoot around with her in the park because she wants to. Maybe he'll watch her play varsity basketball one day. He sees himself in the stands, cheering and being proud. She'll win awards and medals and recognize the value of hard work and persistence. She'll recognize the importance of teamwork and cooperation and sportsmanship. She'll internalize the value of sport in society and learn to identify herself with it. She'll become a better person because of it. Daddy's thoughts return to the moment...

Irini smiles, celebrates and moves over to pick up the ball again. She's 100% from the line. Time for another shot. :-)

Growin' Up & Smilin' Wide

2010-10-29T21:53:00.006+08:00

Life is full of ups and downs. From tantrums to fits of laughter. From a floor full of spilled milk to a house full of giggles. From a persistent level of exhaustion forcing mothers and fathers to early bedtime, to a house filled with little footsteps in the wee hours of the morning. From tears of frustration to group hugs and shared kisses. Life is all of this. Thankfully, and happily, there is much more laughter and giggles and footsteps and kisses in our end of the world. Irini is growing into a beautiful young lady and her sister is catching up pretty fast too! Whether they are hanging out with Ida, or playing with mommy, or climbing all over daddy, life is a good one and moments come and, unfortunately, go before you know it! The girls are growin' up, but every day brings with it a new joy we never knew we could find. Irini and Amalia are amazing. Laurence and Natalia are tired (but extremely happy). Ida comes and goes and makes sure we're all in one piece. Group hug!!

Family, Community

2010-10-17T21:28:00.005+08:00

It's a Sunday morning. Natalia has spent much of the night making sure that Amalia has been breathing well. Yesterday we went to the doctor, who was out. We were asked to visit another doctor, upstairs. We did. He was delightful and spoke some Spanish. A real hit, but when leaving we were given a small arsenal of medicines which, upon review, were all geared toward adults and children over two. We deliberated, wondered, read the information sheets in the medicine boxes and decided to put four of the five medicines away. The one was a cough syrup. Amalia has bronchiolitis, we were told. It's a virus. Amalia's first. She spent much of the past two days like Irini had the few days before, coughing and slightly wheezing. Natalia and Laurence, not wanting their poor children to go through this alone, decided to pick up "the bug" as well and have spent a good portion of their days with runny noses and phlegm filled throats. Last night was better, though still with a couple bouts of cough. Today was a new day.

In the morning we were visited by Polly. Though she is leaving for Bali tomorrow she was able to sneak a few moments to share a breakfast with us and bring some yummy apple-lemon muffins. They were inhaled almost instantly and, when Amalia began to cry again, Polly's soft touch and movement were perfect to put little Amalia to her first nap of the day. Later, Laurence took Irini to KizSport where he met up with friends/colleagues Chris and his son Fletcher and Matt and his son Jonny. It was active and fun and the return home brought with it instant naps.

Then it was Skype time with family in Greece and Sweden, before Leanne finally arrived with goodies for dinner (two entire chickens - baked and oh so much more), followed closely by Rebecca and Scott, with even more things for dinner. It was great, and Irini and Amalia had some good old fashioned quality time with all of them (and some of us too) before heading off to bed. Now that we sit back and chat about how wonderful our daughters are, we realize how wonderful everything is - from community here to family across the world to the friends at KizSport to the time in the pool.

As Sunday night found its way to us, Amalia had largely recovered and smiling broadly and Irini had only vestiges of a cough. She is ready for pre-school tomorrow and Laurence and Natalia are ready for the new week to arrive. Every day is a new day. Every night we fall in love with two beautiful faces peacefully dreaming beautiful dreams.

Amalia's a-growin'...

2010-10-02T22:00:00.005+08:00

A month or more back Irini was playing with our camera and dropped it. Oops. Laurence rushed as quickly as he could and picked it up, moving it from side to side and turning it on and off. Apart from a small dent/scratch in the upper corner there seemed to be no problem. Then, a couple days later, it decided to go to sleep. It was promptly taken to the Cannon shop where they informed us that they could fix it, but it would take a few weeks. It has not come back yet and so, as little Amalia (and Irini) grows we have few photo opportunities actually captured.

But despite the lack of photo documentation, Amalia is impressing the world. Today she was picked up by a family of a Saudi man and his two wives (or was it a wife and friend, or sister?) and passed from one to the other. They are expecting their first child in the end of this month and seemed very excited. The contrast between the black-clad full-body-covered women and little Amalia in her pink shirt (and Irini who was soon picked up as well) could not be starker, and yet there was a common thrill in all of us. The two women cooed and ahhhed their way through the discussion and Natalia talked with all of them. It was a true bridging of cultural gaps and Amalia was at the forefront. By the end of the meal, we gave them our goodbyes and congratulations, they asked if they could have Amalia (presumably in jest) to which Natalia politely responded, "you'll have your own soon" accenting it with a broad smile, and we went off. How amazing that a little girl who cannot yet speak (though communication is loud and clear) can bring people together like that? If it were not for her we would have sat there in our respective tables, side by side, and chatted amongst ourselves, perhaps sharing stereotypical thoughts of the people 'next door' or attempting to decipher the intricacies of the other culture's value systems and behaviors. This approach was a whole lot more direct, interactive and completely positive. Way to go Amalia!!

The pictures above were shot not at that interchange, but last night as our friend Rebecca (and her husband Scott) were visiting. Amalia smiled broadly most of the night. She is delightful and lovable. Her parents, her family, even the people at the next table, are delighted and in love.

Role Reversal and Smiley Days

2010-09-27T21:35:00.004+08:00

It's a Monday morning. Laurence is woken up by a little girl tugging at his shorts (aka pyjamas) and making moves to push him over the side of the bed (a playful smile on her face). He opens his eye to attempt a focus on what it is causing such a commotion. Irini smiles back. She jumps off the bed, takes hold of one of his fingers, and pulls him along until he is upright and sitting, squinting with the day's light, hair disheveled, eyes trying desperately to focus on the world around him before having to take the first step.

Her little voice is clear: "You go school?". "Nai agapoula" (yes, little love) he responds and finally takes a step toward the beginning of the new day at work. Along the way, Irini helps with the deodorant, puts the toothpaste on the brush, watches and smiles, chats a bit. She brings out his socks to make sure he has a fresh new pair before heading down the hallway. She announces to Ida that "daddy go school" as Laurence and Idah share their morning greetings. Similar announcements are made to Natalia as she holds Amalia. Laurence clumsily shuffles from place to play, saying hellos and giving kisses to the appropriate people. He takes his shower, gets ready, lifts his arm to have Irini place the deo, and dresses for school. Thankfully his 'professional attire' is a simple t-shirt and pair of shorts and the only requirements from the fashion police is that they don't have the same color.

He lumbers down the hallway and stops to put on his shoes, given to him, of course, by Irini. She opens the door and locks it in place, gets his backpack, walks outside and around the corner to summon the elevator. Now fully awake, Laurence happily (and proudly) follows his daughter around the corner and into the hallway. Idah knows to follow to, to make sure Irini isn't stranded outside the apartment on her return. Irini presses the button for the elevator and they wait a few moments until the characteristic "ding" announces its arrival. Laurence steps in and Irini, anticipating the departure, says "kiss". Laurence leans down and she stands on her tippy toes and the kiss is shared briefly and generally with a smile. Laurence backs up into the elevator. Irini waits until the doors shut, waving all the way.

Laurence, now in the silence of the elevator as it descends six floors to the bottom, wonders how it is that his daughter is making sure that he's taken care of as he goes to school. Shouldn't it be the other way around? His smile accompanies him on his walk to school. Her smile lingers in his mind all day.

Growin' Up and Finding New Stuff

2010-09-08T22:52:00.012+08:00

Amalia has been sneaking up on us as Irini has been more active and vocal. It means that our time with "number 2" is not spent staring and sharing smiles and raspberries as much as when Irini was young(er). But none-the-less Amalia is growing and growing. At her last doctor's appointment - 4 months already! - she weighed in at 6.41 kilos and was 62 cm long/tall. Her little lungs are also letting us know, in no uncertain terms, that they are likewise growing in size and capacity. But more than anything her growth is manifested in her new-found ability to focus on objects, both moving and stationary, to communicate (albeit in grunts and "wheeee" sounds), to sit up more steadily, to roll from side to side and her realization that she can reach for things a bit beyond her immediate reach. It is this realization that has lead to many moments of foot grabbing and toe tasting in our home... the kinds of stretches the adults can only dream of these days. Most often these new positions - somewhere between yoga and pilates - are accompanied by broad smiles.

Amalia grows daily. She becomes more beautiful. She has all of us enamored. She is steadily becoming her own self, filled with positive energy and happiness. Irini, for one, loves the fact that her little sister is starting to respond to her in such direct ways. They look at each other, play together (okay, more like Irini playing with Amalia), take baths together and, as is standard in our family circles, Amalia is the content recipient of a multitude of kisses... well deserved, all of them.

School for the First Time

2010-09-06T20:35:00.005+08:00

Irini started pre-school on Thursday, September 2nd. After a run of visits to several pre-schools, Natalia decided that this was probably the best fit for our little one. It helped that this place had an outdoor trampoline that Irini loves to play on!

On the first day of school, Laurence was up before Irini was and he took a close look at his daughter, wished her well on the beginning of her journey to independence, pushed aside a mad rush to keep her home under the protection of the family, glanced at her once more, and slowly made his way out the door and off to work.

Later that morning Irini would wake up, take a shower with mommy, have breakfast and ask, time after time, if this was the day to go to Buzzy Bee. Natalia would smile and say "yes" and deal as constructively with her daughter's energy and inability to be patient. Finally the moment came and Natalia, as her mother before her, took pictures of her daughter's first departure to school. The surroundings were new (as Natalia and her sister and brother left from their Bogotá house), but the routine was essentially the same. Put on her clothing. Fill the backpack with little things to make the day better. Walk outside, where Irini would reach the button and summon the elevator to the sixth floor. On the ground floor she looked both to the right and the left to make sure no cars were coming, and walked out and onto the car with mommy's help.

Once at Buzzy Bee it was slow at first - the Greek-Colombians having arrived early! - and Natalia was allowed to mosey around and take pictures of her daughter with the few people that were there. Irini immediately went to play with a puzzle and a doll ('Baby') which she had played with the day before when they had come for the final pre-enrollment visit. Putting it to bed and roaming around happily was cue for the pre-school's director to patiently announce that, "when you're ready you can feel free to go". Natalia stayed a little longer, and then finally backed out, stealing one last sight of her happy daughter in her new environment.

Within minutes Irini was starting her new class, in her new group of classmates. She is happy there, it seems, and despite some moments of crying when she is being dropped off (not that first day, but the subsequent ones have been a little harder to say goodbye to mommy) she is happily involved in everything the pre-school has to offer. The director says she has become very comfortable very quickly. Now, when Natalia arrives to pick her up she has the same response as when she arrives: She cries and says she doesn't want to go home. How wonderful to be so happy with every aspect of your life that you don't want it to end. Of course, within minutes, she is happily chatting with Natalia and showing all the dance moves she learned that day.

We hope that this is the beginning of an education that will fill her with a love for life and a life of love. We hope it gives her the tools to be what she wants to be, to find something she loves, and to deal positively with those around her. We hope it equips her with imagination and dreams. We hope so much for our little Irini. She just wants to go and play and dance.... and so it begins.

Once Upon a Time (Mia Fora kai Enan Kero)...

2010-08-21T14:40:00.004+08:00

The following is the written version of the first ever bedtime (or otherwise) story that Laurence had to come up with for Irini's entertainment. In it's oral version it is said in Greek with a few words of English scattered about, and with lyrics from English childrens songs. A true bilingual affair. Previous attempts never made it to the end, but this time Irini listened, participated, requested songs to support the story line and lyrics to be sung...

Once upon a time there was a young girl named Irini. She lived in the woods with her family and spend much of her time with her pet animals. Her favoritest of pets was a five-humped camel named Alice.

[insert lyrics to "Alice the Camel has Five Humps"

introduced to Irini by her Tia who was visiting for the summer]

Alice and Irini loved playing together and soon Alice was having a birthday. Irini couldn't wait to give her a great birthday party. But as they were playing one day someone came to the forest and took Alice away. He put Alice in a big truck that said "Zoo" on the side of it. Irini was very upset and wanted to find her friend. She walked down the road to her friend Jonny's (insert any name here - Jonny is Irini's friend who lives downstairs) to see if he had any ideas. Jonny told Irini that perhaps they could go to the zoo and get Alice to come back. Irini thought it was a great idea and ran back home to ask her mother. Her mother was delighted that Irini wanted to go to the Zoo, and so Irini called Jonny up and said that her mother was going to take her to the Zoo tomorrow and he could come too!

[insert song "Going to the Zoo, Zoo, Zoo"
by Raffi given to us by our friends Scott & Rebecca]

The next day Irini's mom took Irini and Jonny to the Zoo to look for Alice. It was their first time in the Zoo and, though they were looking for Alice, they were also very impressed with the number of animals there. As they were walking by they noticed water flying in the air. They excitedly walked closer to see some huge elephants on the other side of the enclosure. The elephants were using their trunks to collect water and drink and splash each other in the river. They were having so much fun that Irini and Jonny had to stop and watch them.

[insert modified stanza from "Going to the Zoo":
"Look at all the elephants splashing in the river, splashing in the river, splashing in the river".
The song is accompanied by motions with the arms pretending
they are trunks and showering water or drinking water from the river, of course]

Irini and Jonny were having so much fun that, for a moment, they forgot that they were looking for their friend Alice. They sat there and talked to the elephants because, even though they were scared of them, they also really found them exciting to watch. But as they were talking and splashing and playing, suddenly, from behind the enclosure there was a loud sound: Boom, boom, boom!

The elephants all stopped and looked around in surprise. Irini and Jonny looked at each other and, in unison, yelled "Alice!". The elephants asked them how they new what that sound was, and Irini explained to them what had happened the day before and how she had come to the Zoo to take her friend back home and celebrate her birthday. The elephants immediately said they would help Irini and Jonny out. But Irini was confused. The elephants were in the enclosure and the door was locked. She wondered how they would get out, but the biggest of the elephants came over and spoke to her softly so as not to scare her. He explained that they were there because of the free food and that, really, they could leave whenever they wanted. In the distance they heard 'boom, boom, boom' again, and the elephant turned and went to the door, and put his head to the door, pushed it open until the entire door came off its hinges. The other elephants looked on in delight, chatting amongst themselves that they were going for an adventure. Irini was worried, but the big elephant walked over and picked her up with his trunk and placed her on his neck. Two other elephants walked up and did the same with Jonny and Irini's mother.

As the elephants walked out into the zoo's grounds people were alarmed and ran away. Soon the zoo was empty and the elephants followed the boom sounds around the bend and down the path. Finally, they turned a corner and, behind two large trees there was Alice the Camel, with all her five humps, looking at them happily... boom, boom boom!

[Insert "Alice the Camel" song again]

Irini was happy as can be to see her friend! The big elephant walked up to the gate of her enclosure and pushed the door down, letting Alice come outside and meet Irini and Jonny once again. They were happy as can be! They were so happy that the elephants decided to take them all home, and as they zoo was now empty they walked happily down the pathways. Along the way they were joined by some monkeys who wanted to continue the celebration at Irini's house the next day.

By the next day they had all reached Irini's house and the monkeys, five of them, began to find things to do in the house. Naturally they began to jump on the fluffy bed in Irini's room.

[insert song "Five little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed"
introduced to Irini by our friends Joe, Trina and their daughter Sarah]

Despite the monkeys bumping their heads, preparations were all made for the big event. Not only was Alice back home again, but it was her birthday! So Irini, Jonny, their families, their neighbors in the woods and all their new-found friends the elephants and monkeys stood around Alice and sang to her.

[insert the "Happy Birthday" song]

Alice, of course, was happy as can be. Boom, boom, boom

Sorpresa!!

2010-08-12T19:51:00.007+08:00

Yesterday Natalia brought Irini to work and surprise Laurence in his office or classroom. They arrived during a health class and he saw them through the window that separates the classroom from the office. Irini was smiling broadly and Laurence was delighted to see them both. He rushed into the office to hear Irini - now conscious of the number of people surrounding them in the PE Office - let out a soft whimper, "sorpresa". Natalia would later explain that Irini had been practicing for a good amount of time and she had been ready to yell it out until the extra people around made her think twice. By the time Laurence picked her up and carried her into his class for the spontaneous session of show and tell she was completely quiet and a bit overwhelmed. She looked around at the "ahh"ing and "ohh"ing students and was less than impressed that her father would do this to her. Laurence exited, stage left, as fast as he could, trying - successfully as it turned out - to avert a breakdown. Laurence loved it. Natalia loved it. Irini survived it. The sorpresa fizzled into a cute story.

Tonight she and Natalia decided to try again, but this time from the comfort of the dining room table... Despite Irini's little accident at the end, and the confusion in script, she was happy as can be performing for daddy this time. After the show was filmed, she watched it over and over, as she loves to do with any action moving starring herself! :-)

Note: If you're having difficutly watching the video on this post, it might work in "full screen" mode by clicking the four little ourward-moving arrows at the bottom right of the video. At least that's what it does on our computer. :-)

Irini's Phrases at 30 Months

2010-08-05T09:57:00.006+08:00

Here is a compilation of phrases (in her variety of languages and word choice) that Irini impresses us with on a daily basis. The list grows with each passing day and we love it!

1. What doing?

2. Come, I show you

3. No pepas (fruit pits in Spanish)

4. No eat pepas

5. Polla ("many" in Greek)

6. Open shoes - take off your shoes

7. Sasu (salud)

8. I want jumping

9. I want pay (play), go swimming

10. No toc (touch)

11. Two, three, sen, go! (one, two three go!)

12. No go!

13. I want see Amaia

14. Amaia wake up

15. Amaia sleeping

16. Patillas (pastillas)

17. Want see?

18. Open fos - turn on the lights

19. Be careful

20. Ok, bye-bye

21. Sagapo papa, mama, tia, taita, Palou, grandma

22. Where it go?

23. I take

24. Want carry Amaia

25. Hot

26. Come, come!

27. I eat

28. Tak you (Thank you)

29. I want majito (masajito- a masaje)

30. Come on!

31. Elephants care (scare) me

32. Bill pease (please)

33. I show you

34. I go shopping (sad, but true)

33. Ant (her word for any insect)

34. Gecko poopoo (if you live in the tropics this is inevitable) :-)

The World Through Irini's Eyes

2010-07-30T23:21:00.005+08:00

A while back Irini delicately (by her standards) picked up the digital camera, pushed the button to turn it on, directed it to her mother and took a picture. Her hand safely held on to the camera, ensuring that it would not fall. Her mother and father looked on with a mixed emotion of absolute delight that their daughter was working things out and complete terror that the said camera would come tumbling to the ground. In the end the picture was taken with only a few minor adjustments. Irini already knew to look on the other side and see what she took and, when the image came up, Irini and parents sat there with a smile on their face... A beautiful view of the sides of Natalia's face and a big finger running right through the middle of the picture, turned a bright orange-red from the flash at such close proximity.

Needless to say there were more pictures taken, of the ceiling fan and the refrigerator, or the family members from various (some not so flattering) angles, and of the various toys and pieces of furniture, all from Irini's perspective. Some, admirably, came out very nicely! This, of course, prompted Laurence to put them all together and decide that it was time to share with the world the first set of such pictures - only the finest, of course - for Irini's very own first photo collection and exhibit. We have attached them above for your enjoyment!

Water Sliiiiiiide

2010-07-20T23:05:00.004+08:00

Since we're at it, we wanted to share a fun moment between Irini and her Tia. Beto and Emilia Particia had arrived just the day before, and we were invited by our friends Dave and Jody (who have since welcomed their third baby (but first girl), Alexandra Rose into the world!) to a hotel in Port Dickson, about an hour and a half south of KL. We were happy to oblige and give our new guests a chance to relax and cool down after a long flight. As you can see from the video, getting Irini out of the water was a little tricky.

Kuantan

2010-07-20T22:44:00.003+08:00

Kuantan is a sleepy small city lying on the East Coast of Malaysia. A three hour (or so) drive across the peninsula of West Malaysia it is a rather simple affair to get to... so with the little ones and visiting ones in tow, we headed out for what will be our only out-of-town official vacation of the summer. We stayed at the Swiss Garden Resort, as we have in the past. In fact, this was the location of Irini's first entry into the water a couple years ago when we went with Sammy and Erika (we miss you!). This time it was Amalia's turn, in almost the same exact spot! It was a three night vacation filled with family time on the beach, at the pool, in the restaurants and sharing king-sized beds (always a favorite with Irini!). Add a little bit of massage time at the spa for the out-of-country guests and some batik time for Irini and you have an instant success! Irini began the time not particularly impressed with the sand (too sticky on the toes) but ended up very happy in some one's arms as they bobbed up and down as the waves came up to the shore. There was also discovery time looking at the thousands of little crabs sitting in the tidal pools in low tide. How exciting - just a little bit scary but mostly interesting - to see so many little critters roaming around, pushing minuscule balls of sand around as they push themselves onto the beach. We all watched and explained things to young minds eager to learn. Amalia smiled on, working in determined fashion on her raspberry bubbles...

On the way back we stopped at the Hyatt Hotel for lunch and a coffee. This has become our customary stop before the drive back. This time around everyone fell in love with Irini (could it be any other way?). Within a minute or two of ordering the waiter came over with an assortment of food items from the buffet lunch menu. We happily accepted and ate them immediately. This was followed up shortly by an assortment of appetizers from the buffet as well. Finding that our daughters reminded him of his own, he later brought us a third platter, this time of an assortment of deserts. Irini later walked over and received the gift of a box of chocolates. Just a few minutes after that we walked into their short, where she was given a gift of a small toy. Five gifts in just over an hour! We can only hope that our daughters don't end up being spoiled rotten. The food was great though! :-)

We returned a few hours later, rejuvenated by the salt in the air, the coolness of the water, the physical recuperation that takes place with being pampered for a while, and tired from doing nothing for all that time. Life is good.

Taita & Tia

2010-07-20T22:27:00.004+08:00

With the departure of Abuela, followed by the departure of Pappou, we had three days of quiet solitude, reflection and stillness in the house... not! Irini still ran around and Amalia worked on perfecting her smile. She had shown signs of it in the last week Pappou was here and now she is able to impress even the most difficult critic. Kisses continued in a frenetic pace but for those few days we had a rather basic nuclear family in the place. Not much to our liking we were happy as can be with the arrival of Beto (Taita) and Emilia Patricia (Tia), both off a trans-pacific flight from Colombia to Florida to Chicago to Hong Kong to Singapore and finally to Kuala Lumpur. We were - and still are - happy as can be to be with them. Irini and Amalia took the change of extended family members roaming the apartment's floor in stide and happily continue growing, laughing, tantruming (is that a word?) day in and day out.

The style, of course, is different with this new shipment of guests, as their personalities and approach to things is a personal matter, meshed to perfection with our own. Irini doesn't seem to mind and Amalia, as long as she's in someone's arms, is happy as can be. In the meantime we roam the city (and country) showing Tia the ropes and the happenin' places, (she's the only one who hasn't been here before) from the playground in Great Eastern Mall to the open pool by the Petronas Towers to the Immigration office in Putrajaya. :-) In a week or so they were up-to-par with all the great spots for toddlers and infants. By now, they are experts. :-)

Memorable Moments

2010-06-30T14:56:00.005+08:00

Growing up. It's what happens to you when the moments add up and you find yourself walking along with baggage of maturity, experience and memorable moments. The past month or so have seen their fair share of them, some when it made sense and others when we least expected them.... all of them cherished. Here are some snipets of our lives in the routine of summer predictability:

Snipet 1: Irini was crying in her sleep. Laurence went to make sure all was well. One thing led to another and he picked her up from her cot, put her on a single bed that sits across from her cot in her bedroom and then settled himself in beside her. We slept soundly until he could hear the faint sounds of Irini's voice. The sun had come through the window and there were birds chirping in the distance. The light was evident, but his eyes still firmly shut as he tried to get the most of his sleep. Then, a soft touch of a finger moved over his closed eyelid. It pushed ever so gingerly so that the eyelid itself moved up, revealing the daylight as a face filled with smiles looking back at him. It was a morning filled with good!

Snipet 2: Laurence was in the master bathroom brushing his teeth. The room was quiet with Amalia sleeping soundly on the bed. Natalia had gone into the other room to check her email. Laurence heard the bedroom door open and the sound of soft footsteps. He continued brushing his teeth, remaining ever so mindful the Irini is sometimes a little too enthusiastic in her expressions of love for her sister. He heard her get onto the bed, and move closer, and begin to talk to her. He slowed his brushing to make sure that his ears picked up all that they could, ready for a quick entrance to the bedroom. The talking continued momentarily and the sound of slapping moved the alarm level higher... but no crying. Talking and slapping continued, but no crying. Now more curious than anything Laurence moved to the doorway and peeked around to see the bed. Irini sat next to her sister, clapping her hands so that Amalia could play with her. As she slapped her hands together Amalia smiles as broadly as she has ever and Irini giggled in delight. Heart-melting replaced heart-stopping in an instant.

Snipet 3: A thunderstorm came through town the other day. It was during the afternoon nap and Irini woke up at the sound of lightning and became very concerned and scared. Laurence and Natalia tried to get her to calm down but were unable to. For about 10 minutes Irini continued to cry and be cranky until her gaze fell on her sister who, by now, had waken up. Amalia layed there smiling - for reasons unknown - and immediately Irini's crying stopped, replaced instantly with a smile, as she says "Amalia up". Already these sisters are helping each other out!

Snipet 4-7 (or so): This has happend many times. Irini often runs around the house and gives kisses to all of us, for no particular reason. Same with her sister. On one particular evening she decided it was time to bring the family together and she insisted that her mother, then her father, then her abuela and pappou, join together for a mass of kissing and hugging that made everyone giggle and smile. Love, it seems, can make a big difference. There is lots of it in this household. This same scenario played out on Pappou's last night before leaving for Athens. Emilia was not here that time around, so we was spontaneously replaced by Polly, a friend of ours who was at our place for dinner. Polly blushed in the beginning, but by the end of family hug session it was obvious that this type of bonding really works.

Snipet 8: The morning Pappou was leaving (yesterday at about 6 am) he snuck into the master bedroom. Natalia was up and about to say her goodbyes, to give him the customary Myers pen for travelling and to fill the glass of water which, once Walter would leave, would be thrown on the floor to ensure that his was is clean for his return. Walter entered the master bedroom, and slowly edged his way to the bed. He said some words of goodbye softly to a sleeping Amalia, placed his hand softly on her body and said his goodbyes. He then continued to Irini's room, where he did the same thing. His tears were few but appropriate and as he stepped away he could see their bodies moving ever so gently to the rythm of their breathing.

Snipet 9: Irini was being "difficult" yesterday when Laurence was trying to get her to bathe, brush teeth and get to bed. The bath was done and Irini decided to play in the bathroom. Laurence tried, in vain, to control her, and finally gave up, leaving Irini naked in the bathroom and a floor full of water. He stormed out of the room and into the living room where he fell onto the sofa, taking deep breaths, trying to control his frustration. He lay there for just under a minute when the door of the bedroom opened up and Irini came out. She walked over to him and said "What you doing?". Laurence explained that he was frustrated with her behavior and he needed time to collect his thoughts. Irini's response was immediate, "pana?" (Greek for "diaper"). Laurence put his arm around her head, brought it close to his, gave Irini a kiss on the forehead, got up from the sofa and walked back into the bathroom. Lesson learned: Get over it fast and move on with living.

Snipet 10: Pappou has been working on a new dresser. Ikea purchased (meaning that it's nothing spectacular in its original version) but with the touch of Pappou magic. When Irini was born he painted one for Irini - a magic tree with a variety of citrus fruit. This time it is a more somber tree, filled in with much more vegetation, with a variety of red fruits (pomagranite, cherries and apples, with one passionfruit at it's base signifying "passionate roots". There is also a smattering of blue dots, a representation of the fireflies at Kuala Selangor which we visited recently. Irini walked in, took a look at Pappou at work, decided that it was worth while, and gave her approval to the whole process. Now she walks around pointing at the dresser and stating "Amaya".

Snipet 11: Visiting the Kuala Selangor fireflies (discussed in snipet 10, above) we were asked by the local guides and boatsmen where we were from. The spoke very little English. Laurence replied "Greece". The all took a look at each other, turned to us and said "World Cup" and, just then, there was an outburst of laughter as an exclamation of Greece's poor performance against Korea in the first game. Walter's statement "I am in the middle of nowhere with people who don't even speak English and I am humiliated!". Emilia laughed to her hearts content as we boarded the small boats. Minutes later the World Cup was forgotten as we moved slowly along a dark river surrounded on all sides by the syncronous lighting of thousands of fireflies. No laughter then. Just awestruck silence.

Snipet 12: Later that night, upon returning from the fireflies, Greece defeated Nigeria. Irini sat on Laurence's lap and, together we cheered "Hellas Ole, Hellas Ole, Hellas ole ole ole ole ole". Irini would put her fists up in the air and waver her arms with every Ole. No one was feeling humiliated then. :-)

These and many more mark our lives these days. For two days we are just four once again. Tomorrow Emilia Patricia (Natalia's sister) and Beto (Natalia's father) come into town for a month. They are flying now (are probably nearing Hong Kong as we write this) and will spend the night in Singapore before arriving here in the morning. Welcome to Asia!

Abuela & Pappou

2010-06-15T23:10:00.004+08:00

Given the arrival of Amalia it was decided a while back (how long back is arguable, as memories tend to disolve from one daily chore to the next) that instead of the normal 35,000 mile round trip around the world perhaps we could bring the world to us... and so it was. Emilia (aka Abuela, "Grama") arrived on May 6th flying from Bogota to Tampa, and onward through Chicago, Tokyo and Singapore. Walter (Pappou) joined us on May 29th after flying from Athens through Doha. The cross-continental flight itineraries, and hours spent in the air and airports were certainly worth it when each of them walked through the door only to be welcomed by a "hiiiiii" from a little Irini rushing to them.

Each of them adds their own element of the life in our place now. Emilia quietly finds things to do. She works "behind the scenes" and when no one in watching. She wisks up tortilla hispaniola or corn on the cob to satisfy hungers and grumbling stomachs. She works on removing down from pillows that are just too full. She removes sofa covers to have them washed. She is the busy body who seems to make life that much easier for the rest of us. Payment? Quality time with her granddaughters, of course, but mainly time holding Amalia. Happily she holds her and smiles a smile filled with the joy of grandmotherhood. Her eyes twinkle with love and she cherishes the moments that will soon end, at least for the moment, when she heads back to Colombia at the end of the week.

Walter sits and chats and "mmmmms" his way through meals. With Emilia's prodding he also heads the creation and preparation of a pastitsio, and he notes the strangeness of an American being the one through whom the Greek culinary world is passed on to the next generation. He works with Irini on her drawing and shows Emilia online sources related to opera. He writes and writes, as he has always done. If Emilia is a doer, he is the observer. He gives his spice to the family through his words and works, his wisdom and his appreciation. He helps out with pretty much everything, from shopping to ordering frames for artwork to unplugging clogged drains. He teaches everyone a bit or two about everything and, in stride with Abuela, cherishes his time with his granddaughters. Irini, in particular, loves giving him kisses!

Though they will be heading out (Emilia in a few days and Walter in a couple weeks) the time has been worth it. How wonderful to have family provide the kind of love and support that make life worth living. To be able to share the little things, the passing moments, the daily routines that make the fabric of family that much stronger. For Amalia to be able to receive their love and for Irini to be able to spend her time with them has been just what the doctor ordered!

Generation Non-Gap

2010-06-04T23:20:00.003+08:00

There are times when one would swear that Irini is so close to her abuela and pappou that they live with us all the time! As Amalia grows and Irini realizes that she is part of a larger (than before) family circle, there is a much stronger connection between her and everyone in the family. Today, in particular, this was manifested in kisses to everyone, time and time again. Her antics often include hugs, but today it was group hugs and smootching everyone and everything in the family! Needless to say she is getting love brownie points with every passing moment. Now that Laurence is done with school (the last day was today!) there should be some extra time for bonding and extra quality time! Ah, life is good. Amalia grows with every passing minute (as she sleeps away most of the time) and Irini becomes more animated and conversational. Just today she had her first conversation with a passer by. "Hello. How are you?" she said. Upon hearing the woman's response, she replied, "Fine, thank you." Laurence stood wide eyed and open mouthed. We are ready for the summer and a whole lotta learnin'!

Grandpa & Irini drawing (from January)

2010-06-04T15:56:00.003+08:00

This was taken a while back, when Walter was in town the last time around. It was January and we had come back from New Zealand. Walter is hopeful that moments like this might make an artist out of Irini one day. Even if it doesn't, it certainly doesn't hurt to get some of them artistic juices flowing!

One Week on...

2010-05-17T15:04:00.002+08:00

The week and a half since the welcoming of Amalia has gone by faster than we could keep up. Between the two extremes of Amalia's quiet demeanor and looooong naps and Irini's exuberance and energy, it seems we are adjusting as well as can be expected. In the meantime we have had numerous visits from friends, presents from colleagues and time to ourselves as well. Our very close friend Rebecca was 'with it' enough to snap our first whole-family picture, putting a visual starting point to the new chapter of our lives together. The pictures above are all from her. So far so good as Amalia, Natalia, Laurence and Irini all learn to deal with their new realities. We are all in love, the kissed keep on comin' and the smiles (as well as the naps) are multiplying!

Learning to be a Sister

2010-05-07T20:21:00.003+08:00

Though we've been introducing the concept of a baby to Irini for quite some time, and it is obvious that she knew where that baby was - Laurence asked her where the baby went from mommy's belly, and Irini immediately responded by pointing to Amalia and saying "baby". Obviously biology isn't lost to her, even at 2 years old. Now that we've returned, and Emilia has flown in to join us, we begin a new journey. But as difficult as it might seem for the adults in the family, certainly for Irini it must be a whole new world. Suddenly she has to wait for her mom to feed Amalia before she can have attention paid to her, even if she has a slight fever. She has to look on and see how things work - to put a diaper on someone else, to bathe a baby, etc. - but she has taken it, so far, with no sense of complaint or worry. She is rather stoic, and sometimes downright welcoming of the new affair, and though it is obvious that some of this newness isn't completely to her liking, she still holds no grudges and rushes into mommy and daddy's bedroom in the morning to see "baby". She is learning, in short, how to share her life with someone new. Whether she knows that this new person is here to stay remains to be seen, but in all honesty she is showing signs of being a great older sister already. Be it her inherent caring for others, her innate wanting to share, or just a simple interest in things new, she is doing a super job so far!

Sisters Meet...

2010-05-04T20:22:00.002+08:00

We have been introducing Irini to the idea of having a sibling for quite some time. She knows to refer to her sister as "baby" and just today, as Laurence went from the hospital to the apartment to pick up Irini and Idah to bring them back, he tried to explain that the baby was not in mommy's belly any more, but was not outside. Laurence tried explaining it a couple different times, but wasn't sure if Irini really understood.

As they walked into the room Irini noticed her sister right way. She took one look at Natalia, seemingly just to make sure, and then walked right up to her sister. The experience of older sisterhood has just begun. The video below was taken withing two seconds of their meeting. Let's just hope that this is the beginning of a loving and positive relationship...

Amalia Sienna

2010-05-04T17:47:00.003+08:00

It was about 11:30 pm when Laurence rolled into bed after his last blog entry, a Facebook update and a letter to Irini. Natalia had trudged to sleep a while earlier, if you want to call it that. She had been having contractions all day, and by that time of night they were coming at ever shorter intervals. Still, she insisted on staying home. Laurence turned off the lights of the small visitors' room and felt his way down the hallway, pushed the door open and tiptoed across the floor to pull the sheet aside. With one foot up onto the bed, Natalia, feeling the movement, turned and said, "I think it's time to go to the hospital". Alas, there is no rest for bloggers, it seems. :-)

Instead of bed preparations, the pre-packed hospital bag was picked up off the floor where it had been patiently waiting for a few days. We took a pillow and the necessary toothbrushes and such, and slowly made our way to the living room, the hallway, and beyond.

The trip to the hospital only lasted a few short moments at that time of night. The parking ticket read 12:04 am upon arrival. A few minutes of additional transit time - with necessary breaks for contractions - and we were finally in the delivery room.

The nurse on staff said the contractions were too far apart and not strong enough to signal that the baby was due any time soon, but we should settle in and expect to stay until the morning. She returned a little later to check on Natalia, and changed her ming, "this baby is coming out soon" she announced and rushed off to call the doctor. The doctor arrived a half hour later, looking sleepy but happy.

By 2:16 am the little one decided to make the move and get to know mom and dad. She arrived in the middle of the night, at a time so quiet and in such isolated circumstances that her birth is still vividly juxtaposed to Irini's. Where Irini had arrived to a mass of nurses and extended family and friends in the middle of the day Amalia Sienna arrived to no one more than mom and dad, a doctor and a nurse in the quietest of moments in the deep of the night. She was placed in an incubator, with no fanfare and no extensive exclamations of jubilation. She was quiet and looked around at the world which is now her home. What she saw as a very tired but content mommy and a father filled with tears.

Welcome to our lifes Amalia.

Waiting for the Future to Reach Us

2010-05-03T22:13:00.004+08:00

It's 10:15 pm. Natalia is just now settling into bed. Irini has been sleeping for a couple hours now, this time sharing her room with Idah, who brought her little suitcase with clothing. and personal items, enough for a couple days. We went shopping this afternoon to make sure that there was enough food to keep the family in order for a while. We took a shower at 8 pm or so, and filled the bathroom with the joys of sprinking water and giggling toddler talk. We brushed our teeth in our traditional family manner and made phone calls to grandparents on other continents to tell them the news.

This is the night. The last night of our lives as we know it. Tomorrow at 6:30 am (if not earlier) Laurence and Natalia will head out to the hospital and on to a new chapter of their lives. Irini knows this conceptually, of course, but she cannot know what this might mean for her life, her future competition for that commodity which is about to get more scarce: time with mommy and daddy. Laurence and Natalia look into each other's eyes, share a thought of two... a thought about missing what they now have, knowing it will never be the same... a thought about what is to come and how they cannot possibly know how wonderful it will be until it happens.

Irini rolls over in her crib. Natalia rolls over in her bed. Laurence sits thoughtfully on the computer writing to the world. The next time Natalia and Laurence roll into bed together things won't quite be the same. But tonight the dreams will be of safe arrivals, of getting to know new people, of building on an already happy family, of making the world worth while for two little beings who, by their mere presence, make ours so much more so.

We wait for the future to reach us. We sleep dreaming of beautiful laughter, of happy children, of family giggles multiplied. Tomorrow the world begins anew, and we can't wait!

All Settled In

2010-04-23T10:48:00.004+08:00

The last blog was almost a month ago! In the meantime we've had moments of frustration, blood, sweat and tears in moving from apartment 2EB to 6AC. Then there was that few days of things piled one on top of another. How does one re-create a physical environment that feels lived in? Where do we put the bowls? Where will we keep the first aid kit? Do we want the bed facing this way or that way? What color do we want the curtains to be? Add in a couple days of painting accent walls in two bedrooms (lime green for Irini's room and a blue-grey for the parents' room) and a day of help in putting up shelves in the store room and artwork around the walls and you have a semblance of a home! Irini now happily runs from one end of the apartment to the other, sprinting around hallways corners and across the living room floor. Her little play area has been set up in the living room. Her bedroom has been spruced up and looking friendly and colorful. The rules have been re-established (e.g. no climbing on tables, play with water only on the balcony) and life has transposed itself into our new space, taking some of the old with us, and molding our life into the new. Natalia loves it. Irini loves it. Laurence finds it too big and misses the bathtub. Life begins anew.

Now settled in, all we have to do is wait for our newest family member... 12 days (or so) and counting!

A New Chapter, But Only the Beginning

2010-03-24T13:42:00.003+08:00

Yesterday we walked up to apartment 6AC. It was Irini's third time there. We looked around, played on the empty floors. Looked over locks and electrical systems. We checked faucets and talked about air conditioning and fans and plumbing. We also signed a couple pieces of paper and picked up a set of keys. It turns out, this is our new place. Larger than the one we have now (three bedrooms) but in the same condominium. The walk is a little further from the main entrance, in a quieter part of the neibhorhood. It is on the sixth floor, though the past two times we've gone up we have inadvertently pushed the button for the 2nd floor. Hopefully we'll get used to things. Higher up means a broader view to the mountains beyond. It also means more worries about Irini climbing up to areas where she shouldn't. The place is clean and beautiful. Over the next couple weeks Laurence will use a trolley to take the "small stuff" over a little at a time. April 1st (no joke) is the moving day for the "big stuff". Life begins anew. Now all we need is visitors. :-)

Friendship is Effortless

2010-03-07T14:27:00.006+08:00

Friendship should happen as naturally as the sun coming up in the morning and as effortlessly as it seems for it go back down on the other end of it's journey west. Sometimes, people who don't know each other just "click". They jump on a bed and play together. They fix each others hair. They dance together listening to the same song, over and over again. They run and giggle and frolic in doorways, down hallways, around corners in living rooms and bathtubs. They hug and they play-fight and they laugh and they enjoy the moments, naturally. Just like it should be.

Irini's Ever-Expanding Vocabulary

2010-03-05T14:39:00.007+08:00

Natalia and Laurence sat down the other day while Skyping Pappou (grandfather in Greek) and wrote down the words that Irini is able to say. It began slowly as we tried to remember, but when Irini realized what we were doing she started adding words to the list, blurting them out for us to write. At the final analysis we were up to 50 words, but the number is growing exponentially by the hour, it seems. Here they are, in no particular order:

Uh oh (first word she every learned, taught to her by our Sydney-based friend Chechi)
Mama
Baba
Chao (ciao)
Bye
Hi
Down
Coming
No (of course!)
Yeah
Kaka (Popo in Greek)
Peepee
Popo (Kaka in Spanish)
I
Want
This
Jugo (juice in Spanish)
Scott (actually pronounced "ska")
Beka (Irini's short version of "Rebecca")
Zizzie (Izzie, her best friend now in Maine)
Agua
Tete (short for "tetero"; Spanish for baby bottle; Irini's way of saying "milk")
Koko (short for verikoko, apricot in Greek)
Cold
Hot
Shoes (pronounced "shus")
Daddy
Please
Pappou (grandad in Greek)
Wet
Raining
Painting
Cheese
Baby
Ouii (when hurt)
Dos (two in Spanish)
Kitty
Danny
Pan (bread in Spanish)
Thank you
Yummy
More
Off
Con (short for air conditioner)
Money
Door
Clean
Nose
Eyes
Boom

Her latest statements:

"I want more"
"I want paint"
"I want this"
"I have money"

Out of Town. In Town. All Poolside.

2010-03-05T14:04:00.006+08:00

What do you get when long-time friends from the past come into town and old-time friends from in town are still around? Well, you put them all together and head out to some suburban Malaysian retreat for a weekend of frolicking by the pool! Trina and Joe flew in on the Saturday night before Chinese New Year and brought with them that adorable bundle of energy and beautiful hair: Sarah! It had been a while since Joe and Trina had been talking to us about getting our respective daughters together and meeting each other's next generation as well. Add a little bit of our KL extended family - Scott and Rebecca - and you've got yourself a great weekend "away" at The Saujana (a 25 minute ride across town).

The goal was to relax and rejuvenate, for the China-based friends to enjoy the warmth and sun or Malaysia, and for all to enjoy the warmth and sun of friendship re-united. It was strange how quickly we all became accustomed to having each other around, (old friends are like that, aren't they?) and how wonderfully we all did with our newly added family members. Sarah and Irini - save for a few moments of "that's mine" - did fabulously together. They played together in the water and walked around holding hands. Add a bit of that Rebecca love of children and her magnetism with toddlers and we had a winning combination in every sense.

Two days sure fly by when you have nothing to do but enjoy yourself and your friends. Wake up times moved into breakfast times which, in turn, transformed themselves into pool times. Pool times morphed into lunch times. Lunch times ebbed into nap times. Nap times allowed for more pool times which stretched into dinner. Dinner times moved into sleepy times and then happily, allowed for rest from the rest. How happy to be in that situation!

When the weekend ended (it was a four day weekend for us in KL, and a week-long vacation for Joe, Trina and Sarah) we moseyed on back to Ampang where the fun continued for a few more days. The China-based folk nestled themselves into the guest studio in the A Block while the rest of us returned to our respective dwellings. :-)

When Nature Calls

2010-02-07T21:13:00.004+08:00

Roaming around the small single lane roads of New Zealand Laurence kept thinking that there might be a highway right around the corner. It took six days to see their first truck. They didn't see any sign of industrial development until they got to Hokitika (on the seventh day). What they did see what one amazing natural splendor after another. In constant state of "wow" the family was stunned as it was in awe. Walter noted, at some moment, that New Zealand wasn't like he expected. Laurence turned to him and answered, "what do you mean, all the postcards are just like this". Walter kept his gaze on the nature surrounding them and the care veered back and forth through the beech forest, "yes, you expect that just off the postcard there is a less beautiful place, like most countries, but New Zealand is just one big postcard image". And so it is. To be there is to find joy in simple things, like a stroll along a lake, or a chat with a dog-owner (with Irini leading the way straight to her canine friend), or to just look around at a country where it is obvious that, somewhere, sometime, everyone decided that nature was important and that it should be appreciated and sustained for the future of our children. Now there is a story we could all learn from.

Cross-Generational Love as it Should Be

2010-01-26T21:06:00.008+08:00

Walter (Papou as Irini now knows him) isn't much for self-touting, but as luck would have it he was, in many ways, the star of the show. Irini loved being around him (as did her parents!) and seemed to show complete and utter support in everything he did. Peel and apple and Irini would turn, say "papou?", take a piece and hand it over to him. Open a jar of cookies or a sandwich and it was the same thing. We didn't have to worry about him, because we knew that he holds a special VIP status in the eyes, mind and heart of our little one. It was delightful to see how she treated him, and he her. It doesn't take long to realize just how close the connection is when they sit together at the table, piece of paper on the table top, a pen or marker in each hand, and both of them waving their hands wildly - he with controlled precision and she with wild abandon - putting their finishing touches on an artistic creation of greatness.

Irini would ask to see him as soon as she woke up, and go to give him a goodnight kiss just before heading for bed, rubbing her eyes. In between, they chatted away (he's the only one in the gang to "speak" her language) and giggled effortlessly. She pointed out the moon, even during the daytime, and he watched her play and run and laugh. They baaaaaaed their way by fields of sheep herds and mooooooed their way through cow sheds. It is cross-generational love of the best kind. Without judgment, simple and complete.

Mother-Daughter Time

2010-01-26T20:20:00.003+08:00

The beautiful thing about trips and vacations is the family time, the time so hard to find during the routine of daily chores and work and responsibility. In New Zealand we were able to forget about all that, and to take the time, between wows and jaw-dropping moments, to focus on each other. As amazing as New Zealand was, with its spectacular vistas and natural splendor, it was really the combination of that and our time together which made this quite the unforgettable trip.

Of particular note was the time that Natalia had with Irini. Usually Irini seeks out daddy during the course of a day, but not this time. This trip allowed her to move from mommy to daddy, and on to papou (Greek for grandfather for those needing clarification) with ease. She was a delight, as always. Natalia and Irini were seen on many occassions walking down the beach, across the brook, talking to each other about this and that, and drawing together at the table. Irini helped out with the set up for dinner (often cooked at 'home') and was happy to be part of the action for such long stretches of time. We were happy too! It was heart-warming to see the mother-daughter moments; those moments that allowed for the sharing of love and life; the moments when no one was watching but which tell a thousand tales; the moments we all hope to fill our lives with. It was touching. It was loving. It was perfect.

Natural Splendor.

2010-01-18T20:58:00.007+08:00

If you ever want to feel the juxtaposition of life's cultures, styles and landscapes, just fly from Singapore to Christchurch. Getting on the plane was a normal day in a large, somewhat overcrowded (in downtown tourist areas anyway) city experience. A taxi ride to the airport through highways and intersections, passing by large apartment blocks along the way. An unloading of luggage and such in a massive departures hall. A moseying around an airport that is as beautiful as it is filled with things to do....

... and you get off in a land of "slooooowwww", deliberate, beautiful, natural, content, "I have time for you" country. New Zealand's second city, Christchurch, felt like a small friendly town coming from Singapore. Funny. Just two weeks later, after traveling around one lane highways - through mountain passes, glaciers and across spectacular vistas with snow capped mountains overlooking crystal clear lakes - it seemed like quite the metropolis! Strange how life's experiences often dictates the way you perceive the same place.

In between our first entry into New Zealand (including the amazing Southern Alps and Mount Cook peeping out from the blanket of the white clouds below) and our departure there were two weeks of complete exhilaration, relaxation, amazement and the pure joy found in discovery and opportunities taken. What a land of contrasts? Yet it seems that each contrast has a place beside the other. One minute you are driving a long a coastal road marveling the fur seals lounging on the rocks, and the next you are driving through the rolling hills of vineyards. One minute you are overlooking a beautiful wilderness and the next you are driving or walking through an enchanted forrest whose sole purpose seems to be brigning you nothing but a day's worth of fresh air and a mind's worth of silent anticipation of what you might find next. It was no wonder that, on the night of the first day of 2010, as we sat at a playground, Irini expressing her giggling satisfaction with the swings, we saw something orange poking it's face from across the water. We watched in amazement as the moon slowly lifted its face to greet us and, as if there just for us, it gave us a show that was worthy of royalty in lives past. In all ways natural, New Zealand stole our hearts away.

More to come...

The Storm Before the Calm

2010-01-18T20:43:00.003+08:00

The 'winter' vacation (we mean, how cold can it really be in the tropics - 34 degrees celsius?) began smoothly, with a trip to action-packed Singapore. After a 5 1/2 hour bus ride (with appropriate stops at the Malaysian and Singaporean border) we arrived in the hub of Asian business, where shopping is king and visitors and locals alike are found "ahhing" and "ohhing" as they make their way down Orchard Road. One can't help but be overwhelmed by the masses, the lights, the colors, the multitudes of prospective buyers in an successful capitalist city.

We walked, bussed, trained, taxied our way around town, down to the Singapore Zoo (where we met up with Zamarit, Dean, Sabrina and Laila!) Clarke Quay, to the Merlion, over to the Botanical Garden and Orchard Garden, to Little India and China Town. We did a whole lot in just three days, before heading to Changi Airport and boarding a plane to the land of enchantment and natural splendor....

Hallway Antics: A Frienship Rediscovered

2009-12-02T21:19:00.006+08:00

Irini loves to pull out the digital camera and take close looks at the photos and short video clips on there. She is particularly fond of the images with her in them, but often she reacts to others. as well. She might turn to us and make a sound of someone's name (e.g. "papou") or smile as she points at the screen. When she watches the images of people in the pool she starts to take her clothing off and ask for her bathing suit right then and there.

With this particular clip she practically jumped out of Laurence's lap and shrieked with joy in seeing herself and Isabelle running down the hallways of the ISKL Middle School during the Thanksgiving dinner. When the video was over she whimpered softly and clasped her hands together as if wanting to hold Isabelle's hand again.

We can only dream and hope that their lives are filled with such heart-warming hand-holding and that their friendship lasts them a lifetime.

While the dad's away...

2009-12-02T21:00:00.004+08:00

Laurence headed off to Beijing for a basketball tournament last weekend. The tournament itself had the typical highs and lows along with a wonderful side-trip to the Great Wall of China, filled with blue blue sky, a chair lift up and a tobogan back down. More on that as soon as the photos are up, but suffice it to say that Laurence thoroughly enjoyed the cool weather. He made a point of waving to Trina and Joe as the plane flew over Dalian on the way from Seoul to Beijing, and he was also fortunate to see Kate for a couple days, in between games.

While he flew over the east Asian countryside, Natalia and Irini had plans of their own. It was Thanksgiving and, with it, came friends from out of town. Irini was able to meet Sheara and Kiana, the daughter of our frieds Pete and Olma (who used to work here but have now moved to Taipei) and have a great time laughing away in the living room. She also got to see our friend Michelle who, now working in Saudi Arabia, came to visit for a conference here in KL. Of course, the time would not be complete if Irini was not reunited with her bestest of friendses, Isabelle (and her mom, Melissa, of course) as they are in town for a month or two while working out the intricacies of adoption.

Natalia told Laurence tales of laugher, of jumping on maps and running around the hallways. She told him of trips to Peter Hoe (everyone who's anyone knows Peter Hoe!) for some Asian shopping and snacks. The time was busy. The fun complete. The bonds of friendship stronger still.