Edward on Holiday

It's time for Edward to have a blog entry for himself.

I've been meaning to post about Edward for a while however we have been quite busy.... So.

At his 14 month check, Edward had grown an impressive 3.5 cms to 78.5cm (since the 12 month check) but gained only 100 grams (to 9.4kgs). So, when we left for our holiday, Edward was a slim baby. Well! A week of French food and he is covered in a layer of fat like a little seal. It is so nice to have his chubby little thighs back and even a little round tummy.

Some Edward highlights of our holiday:

Edward running by the swimming pool:



A lovely video of Edward playing with Daddy on a swing in the garden:



And some photos:

France Holiday

Forget England. France is lovely. The weather is great, food tastes like food, lots of things to look at. It reminded us of Australia, but without the beach and of course, people speaking French.

Our holiday in St Cyprien, Dordogne, France.

Grandpop cheers on the Tour De France

We are just back from France and had such a busy week!

Adam's father realised a life-long dream of watching the Tour de France. For all those T d F enthusiasts, here is a video to watch:



Edward was impressed with the great stream of floats that preceded the acutal bicycles, but by the time the cyclists came past, he was soundly asleep.

Urk

Urk is a town in the Netherlands that used to be an island. Then the Dutch drained away a lot of water in the 1970s and what was once an island became a lake-side town.

Urk is quite a strange place to visit - it is something that is centuries old, in the middle of soul-less modern polder. The water-side of Urk has lighthouse, seagulls, old town with winding streets etc. The rest of Urk is like the rest of the Netherlands.

Urk

Jelly Bean

Some very exciting news. Amongst all the chaos and excitement of British travels, we are also delighted to be able to announce that in January we are expecting Magee Baby Number Two.



Currently named the Jelly Bean, we are hoping that it arrives safely and in good health.

Dorothy is having a real cross-cultural experience with Dutch midwifes.

Jaunt to Ye Olde England

Last night we returned after 10 days in England. It has been really hard to come back to the Netherlands. Adam and I have a pact that we are going to try and stay positive.... Oh dear.

England Trip

About England. English people are so nice! Pleasant, good manners, no pushing etc. Strangers carrying Edward and the pram up and down underground steps. I've never been offered so many seats to sit on... The contrast to the Netherlands is huge. OK I'd better stop now before I make myself too upset about coming back to the Netherlands.

We started out in London and on the first day visited Adam's old friends Steve and Sarah, who are enjoying their (georgous) little son, Harry. Harry is lovely, talkative and friendly. Our little one is quite shy in comparison, but that's OK Edward darling, we love you. Edward didn't know quite what to make of friendly little Harry and so had a good time playing with Harry's toys. A particular favourite was a toy drum that played music.

Then we returned to the hotel and had Greek takeaway from As Greek As It Gets for dinner. Oh my goodness! After seven and a half months of Dutch food I almost cried (with happiness).

The next morning Adam set out at 6.30am to collect his father (Stephen) from Heathrow. I thought they would be back at the hotel by 9am or so. When 10am came and went, Edward and I explored in Earl's Court on our own. Well Adam and Stephen eventually arrived - minus Stephen's luggage. What a shame. Joys of Qantas /BA.

Then Edward met his Magee grandfather for the first time since November. Grandpa was very tactful and nice.

Then we had a frantic day sightseeing - went to Harrods, then walked to Buckingham Palace, then to Westminster, then back to the hotel. That doesn't sound like much, but it was. Late in the evening, Adam collected Damien who was finishing his Europe tour. We had Thai food for dinner. Again - absolutely delicious and quite unlike any Dutch food.

Then next morning we had a great trek over London to fetch the hire car, then drive to a village near Bath. Adam did a marvellous job of driving.

Settled into our holiday cottage and Edward had a lovely explore of the house (I think he'd forgotten what carpet was) and rediscovered it.

Over the next few days we explored Bristol, Bath, Stonehenge and Blenheim Palace. Adam had to work in London one of the days, which was a shame but means this week will only be a 4 day week for him.
In terms of food, we had a roast one night, a curry another night, some apple strudel with Real Cream (the Dutch don't do cream), went to a real supermarket which reminded me of Coles and Woolworths at home. We even had crumpets for breakfast one morning, with strawberry jam that tasted like strawberries. OK I need to stop now or I'll cry. Only a week until we have a holiday in France.

The trip home was quite exhausting. Edward ate so many dried apricots that he had a very squirty bottom just before we were boarding the flight back to the Netherlands. Luckily there was a public loo right by our gate, so I changed him (standing) underneath a hand-drier.

Snorty the pig

Snorty is our name for a pig who lives on a neighbouring farm in Eemnes. We've been worried about Snorty because he has been missing from his yard for a month or so. I (Dorothy) was convinced that he had been cruelly murdered. Adam was hopeful that Snorty was merely on holiday.

To our delight in late June, Snorty came back. With a wife. Welcome home Mr and Mrs Snorty.

Adam's Dad on a train

Stephen loves trains. He has a big shed at his house where he builds trains. Here he is fulfilling a life-long dream travelling one of England's great railway routes - The Great Western Railway from Bath to London.