Sometimes I question my life direction…I think we all do. One question that comes up for me, is “Why do we live here?”. Mostly this question arises from being on the other side of the world to our family, but sometime it comes up because of other personal values. For example, I like rural country, […]
Thursday the Girls and I spent the day in the city. I planned on taking them to the Whitney Museum to see the 2012 Biennial, and part of this plan was that afterwards we would walk in Central Park. Once finished looking at the exhibition we bought some pastries from an upper east side bakery […]
This trip we had reason to stay on the Gold Coast as we were attending my cousin Susan’s wedding and I am happy to say, we really enjoyed our time there. The Gold Coast, or the Goldie as many happen to call it, is the coastal area of QLD about 90km south of Brisbane, stretching […]
With two recent posts displaying warm weather attire, you might be thinking that I am in denial about my mid Winter existence. I have to say though, this is just not (entirely) the case. I certainly look forward to warmer weather days – oh yes I do, and my mind is bubbling with images of […]
It was a stark contrast leaving the Australia Summer and landing in cold barren New Jersey Winter. Thankfully we had Christmas to look forward to, which made leaving tropical paradise much easier. Since then we have settled back into life here and embraced the season, which means that we try and do the same things […]
We are starting to repeat some of the hikes we have been on previously, and while the tracks are technically the same, the scenery is starting to really look different because of the change of season. We are in the midst of Autumn now and the colours of Fall are all around. Yellow, orange and […]
On our Wednesday Hike this week (that was actually on Tuesday because of predicted rain) we went to the South Mountain Preservation. This is a little further away than the hikes we have been doing and involved a 20 minute drive from Montclair to get there. As usual we left straight after school pick up, […]
Here we are pumpkin picking for the first time! I have often thought how fun it would to wander through a farm and choose a pumpkin on a sunny Autumn day, and yesterday we did exactly that. In the almost four years we have been living in America, I have had my eye out for […]
On our Wednesday Hike this past week we went to the Alonzo Bonsal Wildlife Preserve. Nina suggested it as a fun spot because it has a stream and a bridge. It was my location choice this week and so I mentioned it to Anneliese. Anneliese has been there before and said it was one of […]
On Maya’s First week of school Elle and I made friends in the playground with a lovely lady and her 2 year old daughter. As it turned out, she also had another daughter in Kindergarten with Maya. The fact that we each had two daughters the same ages is a good recipe for a friendship…that […]
With Autumn Equinox this week we felt that it was time for apple picking. Once again we went to Masker Orchard, in up state New York, about an hour from New york City. Last year we went apple picking a month later than this, which was the end of the season so the Orchard was […]
So off we went to the woods to look for a stick/branch for the leaf mobile. This agenda lasted about two steps into the Reservation – that was until I trod in a big mud slick. From the recent torrential rains there was a small constant flow of water down the mountain, and while it […]
I have some exciting news – and as I am one to easily spill the beans, most of you already know – the Girls and I are going to be in Australia for a month during November and December! It has been two years since we saw our Family in Australia, and when your children […]
I have become a little fanatical about finding mushrooms – and with good reason, they are so beautiful. After my first post about Moss & Mushrooms, I have continued to photograph my fungi friends in all their glory. I have two great mushroom spotters to help me find them on the forest floor (or at […]
A few days of rain and some summer time warmth and the moss and mushrooms are alive and flourishing. Popping up all over our yard, and hidden in the woods, we have discovered an eclectic array of toadstools, fungi, mushrooms and moss. Some of which look like they belong in the pages of a fairy […]
On Thursday morning the Girls asked to go to the woods again. The deer sighting of Tuesday was still fresh with them and they wanted to explore the woods further. I love a walk in the forest and on a hot day it is such a cool spot. We had bright sunshine instead of the […]
A slight walk uphill one and a half blocks from our home, we come to a shaded cul-de-sac. At the end of the cul-de-sac is the beginning of the woods. The road leads into a small grassy clearing and then the combination of domestics and native brush gives way to solid old wood growth. On […]
To celebrate living in Brooklyn, and to commemorate leaving, my friend Rieke and I walked across the Brooklyn Bridge at Sunset. I just love walking across this Bridge, it is truly one of New York’s finest landmarks. It was a lovely evening with a dusty pink sky and soft breeze cooling the hot Summer’s day. […]
Our last days at Neponsit Beach. Goodbye beautiful beach, we had so much fun!
Pastries on street steps in Soho… Beautiful installations in our favourite boutiques… A giant helium balloon because she was so cute and the sales assistant could not resist!