A Birthday Surprise!

My husband, Matthew's birthday was coming up and I wanted to do something special for him, however, he is (a) very difficult to buy for and (b) more difficult to surprise. I am happy to report that this year I was successful in planning something without him finding out. Even more wonderful is the fact that Amelia kept the surprise for an entire week too - very impressive for a four year old - it was so great to see her excitement as we talked about it together.

I reserved a condo in Neskowin, on the Oregon Coast, for the weekend from a friend/colleague. I then made a "candy board", using candy to write our surprise message for Matthew. Then on Friday, I left work and picked Amelia up early, went to buy balloons (she chose a fantastic spiderman balloon for her super hero dad), and then we went home to wait for him.

When he arrived home, Amelia was stood by the sign and balloons shouting "surprise dadda!", finally Matthew went over and read the board. He didn't seem super excited at first, but I suppose he had just driven all the way back from the coast, since that's his area of work...as much as I tried to hint that he should stay local that day he didn't...and I couldn't tell him could I?) Anyway once he realized that I was serious and had already packed everybody's belongings, off we went to Neskowin.

It was later and dark when we arrived at the condo, so we couldn't see the view outside our window. We told Amelia that the ocean was right outside and opened the door so that she could hear it. At 3:30 am the next morning, she was in our bedroom, asking to go out and walk on the beach by the ocean, she was not impressed when we told her to go back to sleep since it was still the middle of the night. Eventually she did as we asked and slept until around 7:00 am. We all got up and Amelia finally got to see the fabulous view outside our window. Of course, we immediately headed out for an early morning walk on the beach, bed-head and all.

It was a little chilly, but not too bad, we brought along a bucket just in case we found any cool shells.

The waves were rather choppy...

But as the morning went on, it got a lot brighter and warmed up nicely.

Our view from the condo was fantastic, as you can see.

We got ready and went out for breakfast at "The Loving Spoonful". Next we went shopping, finding some great bargains at the local outlet stores. After stopping at the beach in Lincoln City, it was time to head back to the condo for the evening.

The condo was bright and full of sunshine when we arrived back, the sun had just begun to set and it was a just beautiful.

Amelia had the best seat in the house as she sat on the window seat for dinner, what a great idea!

By the way, this is proposal rock, how wonderful that it was right outside our window.

After the sun had set, Amelia and I played Jenga, while daddy had some quiet time (watching TV in his room), after all it was his birthday weekend and he was entitled to some R&R. After she went to bed, Matthew and I watched a movie, the condo really had everything anyone could want.

The next morning, it was just as glorious as could be and I hardly wanted to leave.

But as the saying goes "all good things must come to an end".

It was a fantastic weekend, a little break our family was truly in need of.

I cannot wait to go back!

Oh and of course the best part..."gotcha Matthew! Hope you enjoyed your birthday surprise."

On My Mind

This week my dad has been in my thoughts a lot. Maybe it's because my mum had to tell me that he has been moved to a new care home since his illness seems to be progressing, but really I think it's because I love and miss this man very much.

Alzheimer's is strange, and to the family around it, can seem a somewhat cruel disease. Although I am perhaps somewhat protected,since I live so far away, it makes me sad to know that my dad has wonderful qualities that my husband will never see for himself. I am disappointed that he doesn't have the chance to be the fabulous grandfather I know he would be for Amelia.

Tonight on the way home from work, I listened to my Bob Dylan CD, it helped me feel close to him, and I am not going to lie, brought tears to my eyes, as I remembered listening to this music as a young child at my dad's home. At the time, I didn't appreciate the music, but now, it brings so much comfort.

My dad was a story teller and honestly, I am sure there are things I believe today that are not really true, but I don't care, it's because of him that I love the Flower Fairies. It's because of him that the Disney song "when you wish upon a star" will always be important to me, as I remember him singing it to me every time he called. He did not have much in the way of fashion sense, and I vividly remember holding his hand as a child, he was wearing a purple suit (complete with waistcoat), and his brown cowboy boots, I didn't care how funny he might have looked, he was my dad and I loved him and most importantly I knew that he loved me.

Whilst I know that I grieve the man that my dad was, I also appreciate and hold on tightly to all that he gave me, after all he has given me so much, he is the best. I miss talking to him on the phone, seeing him and hearing his voice. I often feel frustrated being so far away, feeling helpless and even guilty for not being there to help, but one thing is for sure, I love this man with all my heart and always will!

My Amelia Ballerina

For those of you who know my daughter, you are aware that she has a lot of energy, not only that but she LOVES to dance. Anytime she hears music, up she jumps and the dance begins. So, it seemed only natural that I should enroll her in dance classes. A friend of mine recommended the American Ballet Academy, which just happens to be perfectly convenient. Another bonus was that my friend, Nicki, had enrolled her daughter, Rylee, just a week before I did, and Amelia and Rylee were already friends.

Her class is called Creative Movement and takes place on Tuesday evenings at 5:30 pm for a half hour. The studio is a small, older church that has been converted into a dance studio.

These photo's were taken at her second lesson, please pardon the quality, they were taken through a glass pane and without a flash, so as to not disturb our mini ballerinas. It's lovely to watch her have so much fun with Rylee, and as a bonus, I get to spend time with my friend, Nicki, win-win!!!

Aren't they all simply adorable?

The Perfect Light and a Little Understanding!

I have recently completed a short basics camera class in an effort to better capture moments in my/our life. I'm amazed that after four short weeks I can actually read (and somewhat understand) my camera manual, something that up until recently seemed like a very foreign language. Even more exciting is the fact that I can now start to venture away from the auto settings and begin to learn what my camera and I are really capable of achieving.

On a sunny afternoon our living room gets fabulous light and on this particular day last week, after watching Amelia play I wanted to capture how beautiful she looked in the sunlight. She was happy enough for me to snap a couple of shots to start with, however that didn't last more than a couple of minutes, and she was soon turning away from me, not wanting to cooperate any more. Funnily enough, that is when I snapped this, my favourite pic of the day. It's her "no more pictures momma!" face, and I loved it!

It just goes to show, sometimes the best pics are those that are in no way, shape or form posed for.

After School Fun With The Cutest Puppies Ever!

Amelia's preschool is right across from my office building, so every Tuesday and Thursday after I pick her up, we go back to my office and have lunch before I take her to daycare.

This Tuesday, my friend Traci came over to see Amelia and invited her to walk with her two new puppies, Eris and True. Amelia was so excited, the last time she saw them they were 9 days old, now they are 10 weeks old and are so much fun. I just happened to have my camera with me (imagine that) and of course couldn't resist capturing this fun. Amelia had a blast and loved every minute with her cute furry friends.

Have you ever seen a happier Amelia?

She loved running with them...

...she also loved chasing them when they got away from her.

Thank you Traci for sharing your bundles of fun with us, it made our day!