Rambling updates...

There we were... nearly 10 months in CZ, we're really into the routine now, still have no clue what most people are saying to us most of the time, but still making friends, yes, even some natives! Turns out that the Czech folks aren't as conservative as we thought they were. Sure, they are all on formal name basis and there is some protocol, but apart from that, we found some who are really welcoming. We've canned our language lessons mainly because we have been very bad students of late, which is a bit of a pity since we had a really good (high intensity) teacher, poor girl was probably going batty seeing as how we couldn't even remember the stuff from last lesson... But instead we have begun speaking, or at least trying to speak to a local couple who we met through the school.
They've had us around to their house even, and the kids played while we racked our brains trying to remember the grammar for accusative singular... or was it nominative? what was the gender again? and eventually... "Oh my gosh nothing changes because the object was inanimate!" to the amusement of our hosts.
Milus and hubby have been very kind to us!

Our little girls continue to sprout in height and wisdom. Amber now, officially knows everything, which is great, now I have someone close at hand I can go to for the tough questions in life. Sarah is testing every limit she can in the clan, trying to figure out how to be the free soul she is while coping with being the youngest and dealing with 3 parents... the youngest of which is with her 24/7 and is a perpetual stream of guidance, wisdom and control.

Eufrat, the babies school is now well established and running well, regular kids in class, and the girls are making some friends, although, with Sarah the only observable exception, there is still some reluctance to say a word outside of the comfy (and regressing) grasp of English. Turns out though, that there's a big o'l gap between what Amber should be learning and what the school is formally treaching. So we set about research of some note to look at gap bridging things, home schooling, which is the most bewildering subject you can imagine, there are thousands of choices, and which one...? To make the long story short and fractionally more interesting, we downloaded a copy of the entire UK year 1 curriculum and compared it to the schools one, ticked off all the covered items and then had a heart to heart on the rest. This school is truly amazing - I asked them to fit the additional course material into her day even if they need to hire a teacher just for Ambee. Guess what? They're going to do it! We're in process now, with the candidate hunt on, but I tell you, what an open attitude! So cool. If anyone is coming to Plzen to live for a while with a need for an English Pre-primary School, don't even think about anything other than Eufrat, they are really brilliant.

Outside the temps are still not low enough! We've had two rumours of snow on the weather forecast but none materialised, the closest we got was to be teased by some sleet. You know, I don't actually know why we even look at the weather forecasts to be honest - there is no correlation between forecast and actuality, not even for tomorrow... Look out the window - see snow? if yes, it's snowing, if not, then it aint! There's been lots of precipitus, but its just too warm right now. *Sigh* you can tell my skiing ants are biting!

The autumn colours are unspeakably beautiful at the moment - so very very bright, like nothing I've seen before. Our river is lined with some lesser visions, but still very pretty. Every time I walk over the bridge I can look at nothing else.

Only about 10 more weeks till the clan Marais descends for the much anticipated visit. We're all itching to see them again, the kids are not going to know what hit them when everyone leaves again tho... I can hear some more homesick moments in my mind... Still we have 2 sets of grannies and grampas' coming to town over the next year, so we are all in for a solid spoiling.

Eeeee... what else can I tell the waiting world...? We've both been working hard, putting in lots of hours which has been the death knell of the travel manis that possessed the spring and summer, but this seems Ok for us esp after the Scotland trip. I think we both were all traveled out after that, either that or the visit was such a peak that nothing else seems to capture the imagination. Still, I can feel more in the wind... perhaps a nice relaxed winter on the ski's will set us up for the summer again!

Oh yes! We bought gym contracts! The only thing that made me do it was the impending sport season and I know I am horribly unfit so there was just no alternative. For 3 months before we went to Tiffendel I ran and got fit enough to cope with the exercise and not be hospitalised the next day. Predictably, getting back into it has been wonderful, but the ol' bod, descended from it's former glories, is not used to answering to such exertion. Every day I wake up stiff in some part of my body... figuratively speaking.

Yeeha! I am going to throw my aching arms and legs into the shower and go to bed.
Ahoj kamarady! Byt Zdravi!