For a Sunday, I had way too many meetings! 3.5 hours of breech-related meetings.

But at least I got some time swimming with everyone but Dio (we couldn't convince him to come). The waves were huge and so much fun.

We were invited to eat downstairs with our friends (and I was in meetings all during dinner!). They both love to cook and eat good food, so it was a real treat. Dinner was delivered to me mid-meal 🙂 Zari has to make a decision on another program that she got accepted into...deadline of midnight tonight...she has to choose between 2 options and it's killing her! Eric is playing "Another One Bites the Dust." She is leaning towards turning down the License bilingue - Droit français - Droit anglais (Bilingual degree in French & English law).

Boat burning

Eric, Ivy, and Inga were gone all day at a soccer tournament. Inga's team won 5th, Ivy's won 2nd. Inga scored 4 goals plus a penalty. Ivy scored 1 goal and lots of assists.

Zari, Dio, and I had a quiet day together. They are both studying for their big exams (brevet for Dio, bac grand oral for Zari). Dio had a friend over in the afternoon to study and play games. I was hoping to paint Zari's door, but some of the wood filler is still drying. I'll let it sit until Monday and try again.

Zari and I went for a late afternoon swim and ran into some friends there.

Our new guests came over for dinner. I made green beans and Tuscan butter gnocchi. She brought dessert: good yogurt, strawberries, and two interesting varieties of chocolate. We also picked up some baked goods via Too Good To Go.

After some initial awkward moments, our kids and their niece and nephew hit it off brilliantly. By time we came back from the bakery, they were arguing about Team Edward vs Team Jacob and playing Uno.

After the hordes demolished the baked goods, we adults sent the kids off with 30 euros and instructions to walk around and buy some treats. Then we went on a walk of our own around the port and to La Reserve. We stopped by a big cultural celebration on the far side of the port, and as we were walking back home we saw why: a ritual burning of a sailboat in the middle of the port! I'm not exactly sure what or why this was, but obviously it is A Thing.

We came home to children with blue lips from eating slushies (granitas).

  

Meetings meetings and more friends

Lots of meetings today! One with someone in Bangladesh, another with Italian midwife & doctor who work in Afghanistan. At least my life is never boring!

I also had a little time to do messy renovating stuff, between my other tasks: sanding down Zari's door. I suited up in my Darth Vader respirator, HEPA shop vac, and power sander and got to work (in the basement). I also got the big wrought iron hinge pins stripped and covered with clear lacquer.

Eric's friend left this morning and new friends arrived this evening: she was my next-apartment-over roommate during my freshman year and she married someone I grew up with. They are touring around Europe with their niece and nephew.

Dio had a soccer game & get-together for parents tonight. Eric said it was lots of fun.

I think tomorrow is meeting-free but Sunday will be meeting-full. Oh well.

Zari and I went on a walk right before dinner. She told me that she thinks we are the best possible parents she could have. Awwwww...it's so nice to hear this.

The next victim

Eric is down with the same thing I had, particularly stomach pains and GI issues.

I've been having a hard time getting up in the mornings; I wake up to get the kids up and then I go back to bed. I'm just so exhausted. What's up? And Inga...well, she was totally wiped out. I tried to wake her up multiple times and finally, at almost 11 am, I insisted that she had to get up.

Today was a lot of computer work, with a Grand Rounds presentation to Baystate Health in MA in the afternoon.

I have plans to sand Zari's door tomorrow morning and lots of meetings scheduled for the afternoon.

I've started adding 5:2 fasting (aiming for 600 cal on fast days) on top of my normal intermittent fasting (mostly an 18:6 rhythm). Today was one of my two fasting days this week....so I cooked dinner but couldn't eat it since I'd already had my food for the day! I made chicken leek soup using the leftover chicken from last night.

Our guest took the kids out for ice cream after dinner.

What else is going on? Kids are writing in journals, Ivy is already in bed, Eric is gone at a dinner for Cavigal women's coaches.

Adventures in stripping

Today was the day: taking Zari's bedroom door off and stripping the paint and original wrought-iron hinges. I did it on the street outside our apartment because the paint stripper is far too smelly to use indoors.

I can't believe how many people stopped to see what I was doing, give me advice, ask for my advice, and even lend a hand! I learned a recipe for homemade paint stripper (mix wallpaper paste with white spirit aka paint thinner until it makes a thick paste and let sit overnight). Haven't ever tried or heard that one before. Another man advised me to thermal stripping instead (which I have done, but I don't own a blowtorch or heat gun over here, so chemical stripper it is). Another man asked me for advice on stripping a piece of varnished furniture. Another man asked here I got the stripper (Leroy Merlin).

One old couple walking by, right as the same time as I was chatting with Eric's friend, stopped to give congratulations to "the women doing all the work!" The man left us by saying, "I hope for the day when women are in charge of the world."

The best was a man--from Lyon, but I think he sounded Italian in origin?--who was here in Nice on vacation. He's a professional building facade painter. He was hanging out at the barber shop next door (I think he is friends or family with someone who works there). He just couldn't help himself from giving me tips...giving me more tips...supervising the progress...telling me when it was time to start taking off the layers of paint...advising me to put the door a certain way. Finally he took my putty knife and started doing it himself! I finally had to tell him, "Thanks, but I've got this!" He still came over several more times and even started helping several more times.

I worked straight through until mid-afternoon. I didn't want to leave it unsupervised. Eventually Eric's friend walked by and brought me some water and fruit, which was much appreciated. I got everything cleaned up, cardboard "drop cloth" in the trash, the street swept of any stray pieces of paint, and the door inside our hallway. Sanding and painting tomorrow.

The sun popped out towards the end of this project, and then...it started raining not long after! What weird weather.

Inga got back from her sleepover up in the mountains and had to leave straightaway for a soccer game. She came back unexpectedly because Eric misread the message and he sent her to Cavigal but the game was somewhere else! He hurried off to bring her to the right place.

She had tons of fun; they slept on the trampoline, something I did often growing up. They waded in the river but it was too cold for swimming.

Once she and Eric came home, Eric and I went out for a long walk with his friend, all the way to La Reserve and back.

Zari is writing the final sentences for her second big presentation, the one about Banksy. She should have it totally finished by tonight or tomorrow morning.

Yet another one down

Zari now has a fever. Better this week than next (her big oral presentations). Inga is at a sleepover at a friend's house up in the mountains. Ivy and Dio felt well enough to go to school.

We went out to lunch with Eric's friend, back to Peixes which never fails to please and surprise us. However, I can now say that I am definitely not a fan of wasabi ice cream, nor does it go well together with a chocolate brownie (not sure what they were thinking??). It was raining on the way there and on the way back. Such strange weather for June in Nice.

Lots of meetings in the afternoon. Eric and I went to the beach with his friend in the late afternoon, but it was overcast. He still went in but we didnt--too chilly! Ivy and a friend joined as and they were brave enough to get in. And then it started raining on us!

Another one down

Dio woke up with a fever, body aches, and other afflictions. He and Ivy both stayed home from school. He was conked out much of the day--he takes after Eric.

Ivy was so disappointed that she missed today becuase it was the "journée sportive" and she was sure she would have won it. She was crying when I put her to bed this evening.

Eric has a friend visiting; they know each other from their unversity years. She was on the soccer team and he used to hang out with a whole group of the soccer players.

What else? I installed the kitchen sink in Le Catamaran. Lots of computer work today. Did sprint intervals this morning.

It's still weirdly cool and overcast here for this time of year. I don't mind, honestly, since normally we're in hot sunny weather with nary a cloud in sight. The weather is more like March than June.

Dio describing how his brain feels right now, as he is lying across the couch with his feet hanging off the cushion:

"It feels like there's a war going on, and it's after the war and they're trying to get rid of the bodies."

(He has now fallen asleep on the couch.)

Ivy woke up with a fever, so I stayed home with her. She looked better as the day went on. However, she was complaining about a sort throat and said, "look inside!" We took a flashlight and her tonsils are HUGE! Poor girl. I had to find her soft or liquid foods this evening because it hurt so much to swallow.

Eric and I went for a late afternoon walk and stumbled across a huge parade, the Pink Parade. We cross onto the Promenade des Anglais 50 meters in front of the lead of the parage and then walked "upstream," so we got to see the whole thing. (It's part of Pride month. More info here).

 

Also a few pictures from yesterday's grand opening of the new coulee verte.

3 big celebrations

We attended the grand opening of the first part of the extension on the coulee verte. We waited for a while in the sun as the MC jabbered on and periodcally warmed up the crowd. Then finally they dropped the big curtain and let us all see and walk through it.

Once the crowd had flowed through most of the new gardens, we stopped for some pomp & ceremony. First we had a video broadcast on huge screens showing the history and conception of the coulee verte, including some of the engineering and sustainability built into the subturreanean structures (enormous rainwater cisterns to ensure that the entire coulee verte will be self-sustaining).

Then our mayor, Estrosi, gave a speech. Long, florid, eloquent, very typical of French speeches. And yes, also quite moving, especially his remarks about making this city adapt to the pressing realities of climate change and becoming a resilient, green, tree-filled place to live.

There were performers and dancers wandering throughout the gardens, dressed as giant flowers and insects. There was a free buffet of traditional Nicois foods: pissaladière, socca, tourt aux blettes, aprictot tart, pear tart, pan bagnant, legumes farcis...

We got the chance of wander up to the new lookout point, which marks the end of phase 2. The completion is scheduled for this coming September.

All of us except Dio, who was going on a bike ride with a friend, went to the beach for a quick swim and/or reading time. I had to hurry back to go to a wedding in Antibes.

Dio and his friend rode to the airport and back, stopping for a while at a park near the airport and playing volleyball. Eric and the girls had an end of the year party at Cavigal, during which they played lots of friendly matches.

I got home after 9 pm and Eric's crowd came back about a half hour later. We didn't have much to eat and the grocery stores were all closed, so Eric picked up a few pizzas.

La Fête de la musique

I have a love-hate relationship with summer solstice celebrations here, which is a gigantic loud music party, with every bar, restaurant, business, and random musical groups playing their music or performing at top volume. Love the idea of music and celebrating, hate all the noise! We're holed up with everything shut tight and the sound is still SO LOUD.

Inga and her friend brought blank white t-shirts to school and a box of markers. They came home with signatures from teachers, classmates, and of course family members go to add to it. Much more fun than signing a yearbook.

I had to do some repairs in Le Chateau--the countertop area next to the sink had warped and cupped, presumably due to water damage from a tenant leaving a lot of water on that part of the butcher block counter for long periods of time. It's weird, though, because the countertop finish itself doesn't show any signs of water damage but the wood is significantly cupped. So water is the likely culprit since that's where the dish drainer was used and there was likely water pooled underneath it much of the time.

Sigh...that then warping popped the sink loose and the sink wouldn't sit flat because the hole was no longer flat! So I had to plane down part of the butcher block, sand it, re-oil the counter multiple coats (currently in process), and then eventually re-install the sink. There will be a 2mm gap in a few places where I couldn't get all 4 sizes perfectly flush with each other but it's much better than before.

We watched the France-Netherlands soccer game this evening but it ended 0-0. Not the most exciting game.

I slept well last night and feel much better. Not quite well enough to run...but otherwise pretty good. Zari had her last written exam (English) today and she realized that it was also the very last day she would be in her high school. Her oral exams next week are in another school. And so...that's it! Just like that, it's over.

I went out with our guests this afternoon to buy ice cream and walk up to the chateau and then back around the point.

Ivy asked me to supervise her and a friend after school. They had planned to go to the miroir d'eau (splash pad) but there was no water running when we arrived! So we chose Plan B and went to the beach. They swam for almost and hour and left reluctantly when I told them it was time to go.

Dio's team had a friendly kids vs. parents soccer match tonight, and he and Eric had so much fun. The parents won most of the matches.

Sick

I started feeling icky yesterday afternoon and was down with a fever and GI issues all day today. So fun. Not much else to report on my day. Resting, reading, and computer work mostly. Normally it's my day to do sprint intervals but there was no way that was happening!

Zari had her 2nd written exam for her geopolitics specialty. She feels pretty good about her essays. She wrote 20 pages (double spaced) in 4 hours.

Tomorrow is the last written exam (English speciality). She's not at all worried about that one!

Eric and I had a nice walk this evening with light rain sprinking. It was so warm that the occasional raindrops felt great.

Hot and windy today. I did mostly breech stuff, some home renovating stuff, and had a short swim at the end of the afternoon. Dinner was merguez sausages, roasted broccoli, and roasted potatoes in duck fat.

I'm feeling a bit icky--upset stomach and all that. Hoping it goes away tomorrow.

Zari finished her philosophy exam. Tomorrow is geopolitics. She thinks she did ok--the question was "La science peut-elle satisfaire notre besoin de vérité?" (Can science satisfy our need for truth?)

Quick video of opening up the book for the first time...

My new baby!!

Zari is doing some last-minute studying for her philosophy bac tomorrow. The next day is geopolitics. English is on Friday but she isn't at all worried about that one. These are all written exams. Then she has her big "grand oral" to prepare for.

We have new guests in Le Chateau, and they were super kind and bought our kids presents (candy and plushies). What a treat.

I received 5 advance copies of the book today, delivered express all the way from South Korea! Each book weighs in at 5 lb 7.4 oz or 2478 g, which is a respectable weight for this "baby" of mine.

Eric woke up at 3:30 am, exclaiming something dramatic in his sleep. Compeltely non-sensical and non-grammatical. I couldn't get back to sleep after that. I read for a while...tried to sleep...and finally when it was time to be, I snoozed for a little.

Ivy was feeling sick again so she stayed home. Inga had a soccer tournament all day in St Lauren du Var. It ended being a huge disappointment, with the team playing terribly and them getting last place. Inga scored the only goal in all of their games combined. Eric came home super frustrated.

We didn't do much this afternoon: homework, reading, crafting. I prepared Le Chateau for the next guest, who arrives tomorrow. We need to move a huge puzzle from the table up to our apartment; it's an "impossible" 1000-piece Harry Potter puzzle.

Ivy had a friend over in the late afternoon to make silkscreen t-shirts and mandala dot paintings.

Once Eric was back, we had some time to go on a long walk. He vented all of his frustrations about the soccer tournament.

Yesterday

We watched "Yesterday," which Eric and I had seen but the kids hadn't yet. Fun movie.

No one had soccer today, so Eric went spearfishing in the morning and caught a fat loup (sea bass), which we ate for dinner. We went to the beach in the afternoon. The water was still milky with a white sediment that turns the water fluorescent blue. No jellyfish!

I did some putzy work around both apartments--painting, replacing a door latch mechanism.

Ivy had a fever again today and her cough is worse.

Kermesse

The after-school fair/concert/bake sale/garage sale was lots of fun for the kids. But whew! so much noise. I made a batch of cookies.

Ivy and a group of friends had a table of hand-crafted items such as bracelets, keychains, and origami that they made themselves. After donating some of the sales to the school fund and splitting the rest among themselves, Ivy came home with 12 Euros.

I joined the string quartet playing--last minute, since it's a group I often play with, and I offered to come play along if they wanted me. The other two violinists are a couple whose kids also go to this school and that's actually how we met in the first place. It turned into a quintet when I joined them 🙂

We watched a fantastic movie: "Catherine Called Birdie." Zari recommended it and it was 10/10.

As a side note, it actually had realistic birth scenes with the woman sitting on a birth stool, crouched on her hands and knees, and kneeling while pulling up on ropes. None of this lying on a bed on the back nonsense (which wasn't really a thing until doctors came along and took over childbirth). Certainly this would not have been happening in 13th century England.

Goodbyes

My brother left yesterday morning, after treating us to pastries for breakfast! We were thoroughly spoiled during his visit. He's back home with his dog and gearing up to go back to work.

Ivy's school is having a big kermesse (school fair/fundraiser) tomorrow and she's been making loads of origami. I made a big batch of cookies for the bake sale.

Zari's last day of classes was yesterday. It's so anti-climactic here. Classes kind of taper off since the last two or so weeks don't count towards grades and thus almost no one goes. Then there are the big exams over the next few weeks but nothing else. No ceremonies to mark the end of high school. No parties. You're just done!

Dio had his oral du brevet today and he said it went well. Zari has her oral d'anglais tomorrow, a 10-minute memorized presentation analyzing The Handmaid's Tale, 1984, Fahrenheit 451, and a few other articles and documents relating to totalitarianism, censorship, and political repression.

Ivy came down with a sudden fever yesterday afternoon, so she missed school today. I think she'll be well enough to go tomorrow, though.

Mission accomplished: Quatorze boules de glace!

We've had an ongoing joke with my brother about buying "quatorze boules de glace" (14 scoops of ice cream) at Fenocchio (said in his Russian-accented French). It only took us 4+ years, but tonight we finally did buy 14 boules de glace.

The man scooping the ice cream looked very puzzled when we ordered 14 scoops. "You don't want 14 individual cones?"

"No! All in one bowl, please!"

We hurried home and divded up the scoops into individual bowls. We each had chosen two flavors. I had cacao sorbet and pistachio ice cream.

The tourists around us were taking pictures of our giant bowl of ice cream. I wonder how many times it will appear on other social media accounts???

My brother leaves tomorrow. We'll go through Funcle (and ice cream) withdrawal. We had one last swim together this afternoon and of course lots of walks.

He's going home loaded up with French records and specialty food items.

Work in the morning...a bit of painting...bike ride with my brother then a late lunch at a bakery....swimming in some big waves...Freeze family football practice + thrift store...pizza for dinner...walk with Eric and my brother.

14,000 steps, not bad, plus all of the biking on top of that.

A day in Monaco

Eric and Dio were at a soccer tournament all day in Beausoleil. The rest of us decide to take a day trip to Monaco, since it's my brother's last weekend here. We were out the door by 9:30 and hopped on the bus to get there.

Our first stop was the Private Cars Collection of HSH Prince of Monaco, which none of us had ever seen before. It was surprisingly fun to look at the extensive collection of cars (and some old-fashioned buggies) dating back to the 1800s. My brother knows a lot about cars, so it was a great time to visit.

I took a picture of one of my favorites: a tiny little car that you get into by opening the entire front!

We then bought baguettes and made sandwiches in a park. Zari and my brother went to buy some snacks, drinks, and pastries. We were sitting underneath a pine tree and getting rained on constantly by pine needles.

Then it was time to go up to Le Rocher. We walked along the botanical gardens to the Oceanographic Museum. I passed a statue that I've seen many times and, when I walked to the back of it, realized it had another side--a nursing baby! 

At the museum, we hit a mid-afternoon slump and were ready to head home after that visit.

I called Eric to see if there were any games left for us to watch, but his team was done playing. So we caught the bus home. Several of us (me included!) couldn't stay awake. Ivy was complaining about feeling sick on both bus rides, but fortunately she didn't puke.

I made Thai coconut chicken soup and tarte au chocolat for dinner. We finished off the evening with a walk to the Negresco and back, just me, Ivy, and my brother.

I'm tired! We did over 17,000 steps today so that's probably why.

Moving crew, Pont de la Cerise, Gilette

What a fun, full day! We had an early morning departure to help some friends in St Laurent du Var move. We spent the morning loading and unloading, cleaning and packing, and disassembling furniture. We then picked up my brother at the big mall and headed up river to Pont de la Cerise.

It was overcast with a few sprinkles around 11 am, and the kids were saying, "Let's just go home." But I insisted and persisted. We are all so glad we didn't cancel the afternoon outing--it was amazing! We've never gone to the Esteron so early in the season and were worried that the water would be too cold to swim in. It was quite chilly but not as cold as I had expected. And the water was the clearest and strongest flow I've ever seen! It was amazing to play in. We didn't dare go into the gorge under the bridge because the current was so strong we weren't sure we could get back out. So we played in our usual place with the natural waterslides.

The sun almost peeked out of a hazy sky. It never got hot out, but we were able to stay in the water for at least 20 minutes.

Then, on our way home, we stopped in Gilette, a perched 11th century village that we have driven through multiple times but never explored. We wandered through the narrow, steep streets and made our way to the ruined fortress on an outcropping high above the village (destroyed by our favorite dictator/monarch Louis XIV, who also destroyed the Chateau in Nice). Inga and Ivy made friends with a neighborhood cat. I thought it was a stray because it had no collar, but it was super friendly so we think it probably lives nearby.

(This photo isn't mine, but it gives you the idea of the village and the mountains in the background).

I had a breech live session right when we got home, followed by a walk around the port with my brother and then another short walk with Inga to see if we could pick up a package at a shipping relay station that is inside a bar. It was supposed to be open until 2 am but it was closed!

Sharks in the Seine

Another bad night's sleep...keeps me humble, I suppose, reminding me that I sometimes have very little control over my life.

I did some little repairs at Le Catamaran and gave my brother a tour. He appreciated the catamaran net and is thinking of putting one in his own home.

The two of us went to luch at L'eau de Vie. He loved the food and thought it much better than La Rotonde. I agreed.

Everyone but Ivy went to the beach at various times in the afternoon. It was windy with big waves. I almost went in...but didn't. But my brother got Inga and Zari to swim!

Dinner was larb and leftover bean salad. We took a walk and then watched "Under Paris," a totally ridiculous movie about killer sharks infesting the Seine. Hearing the kids make fun of the movie was as fun as the movie itself. Eric missed out because he was off playing soccer.

We have a full day tomorrow: helping some friends move in the morning and then hiking and wild swimming in the afternoon.

Some pictures from my brother and Zari...one in which I think he is pretending to be posing for an Instagram picture. He likes to make fun of all the tourists who do these elaborate poses.

Homemade pasta and D-Day

My brother decided to make homemade pasta, with lots of participation from the kids. Zari helped him make the dough. All of the kids got a turn hand-rolling each piece into a frilly tube shape.

We watched the national D-Day celebration while making pasta and eating dinner. It was quite the event and amazing to realize that this might be the last decade marker anniversary with D-Day veterans still alive. I enjoyed the music and flowery speeches (there's a reason schools here do "concours d'éloquence" and "concours de lecture").

We ate our homemade pasta in a pesto-cream sauce, sprinkled with parmesan (the real stuff, bought from a nearby Italian food store). We also had some antipasti charcuterie plates and more lemon cheesecake for dessert.

Some of us went out on an evening walk while the others were at soccer practice.

I had another poor night of sleep and really hope that things will normalize. But...I was able to get some extra sleep this morning so that helped. I went running, too.

Eric, my brother, and I went out for lunch at a fancy restaurant at Le Negresco hotel, called La Rotonde. It was ok but actually not nearly as amazing as I had expected, given the setting and price.

Another poor night's sleep...woke up feeling more tired than when I went to bed! Oh well. We had 5 dentist's appointments today. Zari is going to get x-rays later on this week because she has wisdom teeth coming in that will need to come out. So fun.

Ivy and Eric were gone all afternoon at a beach sodder tournament. They didn't play very well and Eric was quite disappointed.

I made our favorite lemon cheesecake for dessert tonight. Yum!

Sleeping like a baby

I only slept about 4 hours...oh well. I gave up on trying to sleep and read a book. Somehow Eric took several naps but not me! This picture shows morning nap #2 or 3. Seriously, he has napping superpowers. I could never sleep like that.

My day was mostly graphic design, video editing, and course content editing. Broken up by a few doctor's appointments (sports physicals) and making dinner. We ate spicy crab sushi that had yellow and red bell peppers, cucumbers, and avocados inside as well.

Dio and Inga had soccer practice, so the other two kids and I went on a "boring" walk with my brother up and around the chateau, and then the really super boring part to buy ice cream.

We watched "Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga" with my brother because he'd never seen it. Then we watched a few real Eurovision songs and yep, just as weird as the fictional ones. I now have "Double Trouble" in my head...

My brother had a fun excursion to Antibes, taking the train and then catching a bus out to the Cap d'Antibes, where he walked on the sentier littoral. He loved it and would be happy to go back. We all had things going on so it was a solo trip.

I love the view of Nice and the Alps from Antibes--you realize how close we are to the mountains!

I exercised today, even though I didn't want to. Felt like a big win since I was so not motivated.

I took another trip to the antique/consignment store with my brother, then joined the family for the Freeze Family soccer practice. We ate Eric's barracuda and mackerel (saved in the freezer since his birthday), plus finished off the tiramisu and cherry clafoutis.

Yesterday ended late for many of us. Eric and Inga were at a tournament that was supposed to get them home by 11:30 pm, but it went 90 minutes late so they got back at 1 am!

I came down with a fever and GI bug and went to bed but couldn't sleep, so I ended up still being awake when they came home. And then I woke up again at 3:30 am and couldn't sleep any more. When I am sick, I don't sleep well whereas Eric goes into a sleep coma when he is sick.

So I read most of the night and then slept once everyone was up and out of the house. I still feel a bit icky but am on the mend.

While Eric and Inga were at the tournament, the rest of us went to a church talent show/potluck, and it turned out to be surprisingly hilarious. Ivy did a dramatic reading from the French translation of Coraline. The older kids were in a long skit involving all sorts of random anachronisms thrown in. Dio got to act the role of Donald Trump (getting booed by everyone on stage, of course, he's not popular over here!). Zari was a Storm Trooper.

My brother made dinner for us, a delicious pasta dish with sausage, cherry tomatoes, olives, garlic, shallots, feta, artichoke hearts, white wine, and parmesan. We also had steamed cauliflower and tiramisu for dessert, which we made yesterday. So delicious!

It wasn't good swimming weather today but we went on two walks. I didn't make it very far on the first one as I was feeling too woozy.