Sacramento Chalk It Up Festival 2016

Chalk It Up is a three day festival held in Fremont Park, Sacramento every year to help raise money to fund children's art education and activities in the area. There are sponsored (paid) squares and community (free) squares, music, vendors and food, covering the entire park. We went on the first day and I was impressed by how much talent there was compressed into one small area! It's a fantastic way to raise money for a great cause and gives all kinds of artists and kids a place to showcase what they can do. You can see all of the photos HERE.

Sacramento Mural Festival 2016

I‘ve photographed a lot of street art over the past ten years, mainly in NYC, often just random shots during my walks around, camera around my neck or in my bag. There is so much freedom, diversity, and talent in this art, paintings that sometimes appear overnight under the cover of a darker sky, or sometimes just commissioned by a company. I love walking around a corner to see a mural staring back at me, or finding a tiny little sketch in a corner, hidden by a colourful tag. Streets shouldn’t be perfectly bland and clean, they should be flamboyant, dusty and loud, full of each and every one of us. Streets should represent us all and streets should change over time, capturing our thoughts and actions, portraying what we are and where we are going. Art isn’t meant to be kept behind lock and key, art is for us all to appreciate, take in and assimilate, look at and smile. We have so many forms of expression and visual art is one of the most evocative and also the one most open to interpretation. It always makes me happy to be in a city that allows artists to freely express themselves on walls and railways and bridges.

It’s sometimes hard for me to walk around Sacramento. I still feel a little disconnected, slightly lost, and wonder why everything is just so quiet. I’m slowly getting more used to it, and continue to walk around hoping to find that part of me that I left back in NYC 7 months ago. I may never find it, as it’s probably just waiting for me to come back, but I am finding that there are more and more things that inspire and motivate me. The Art Hotel 916 back in February for example, and just recently the Sacramento Mural Festival. The festival took place between August 20th and 27th and involved 11 artists (and some assistant artists) and 11+ walls around the midtown and downtown areas of Sacramento. During the week the artists each created a mural (or more than one mural) for us, the people who walk around the streets of Sacramento. These 11 artists (Add Fuel, Alicia Palenyy, Andrew Schoultz, David Fiveash, Dog and Pony, Drew Merritt, Irubiel Moreno, Jake Castro, Kristin Farr, Michelle Blade, and Nate Frizzell), were picked earlier in the year (thankfully they made sure to represent some local artists too) and all went out of their way to really make some buildings and alleyways look spectacular. You can find more information on the official website, including a map of locations and artist bios.

I walked around the area on the 20th, the first day of the festival, where some of the artists were just starting up, laying the foundations of their work. I then went back again on the Tuesday, August 23rd, and took more photos, walking around the J, K, and L streets, and then over towards Old Sacramento, and shot some of the works in progress. And then back again during the day on the 27th to see some of the pieces getting their final touches and others already finished and dried. The only mural I didn’t manage to get to was Dog & Pony’s over on C Street, and as soon as I do I will add some pictures to the album. Other than that I have seen every mural in some form or another, and most of them more than once. While I have my own personal favourites, every single piece of art is super original, beautiful and inspiring. To take an idea and to recreate it over such a vast canvas takes such skill, and it was amazing to see it happening in real time.

I chatted briefly to Irubiel Moreno about just how beautiful I found his mural to be, and he was so humble and friendly, explaining that it was all for us, people of Sacramento. He also told me that he didn’t know exactly what he was going to do or how it was going to turn out until he had actually finished it. The pastel colours were a wink to the name of the location, Lavender Heights, and I found that the sheer amount of work that he put into the mural over the space of a few days was just spectacular. I’m really looking to go back and see the final, final result, and again, stroll through the streets of Sacramento and discover more.

Sacramento is all-in-all a beautiful city, still hovering between small town and big city, and for its size has a huge amount of artistic incentives, festivals and exhibitions. I need to get out and about more to join in. You can find the full album of photos taken last week HERE, as well as a collection below. If you know of any events that you think I would enjoy around here I would love to hear about them, and maybe even join in! All photos taken with a FujiFilm XE-1 and a Canon Rebel.

Jake Castro

Andrew Schoultz

Kristin Farr

Andrew Schoultz

Michelle Blade

Andrew Schoultz

Nate Frizzell

Irubiel Moreno

Alicia Palenyy

Michelle Blade

Andrew Schoultz

David Fiveash

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Jake Castro

Drew Merritt

Nate Frizzell

Irubiel Moreno

Irubiel Moreno

Drew Merritt

Nate Frizzell

David Fiveash

Alicia Palenyy

Alicia Palenyy

Drew Merritt

#SMF916

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Drew Merritt

California State Fair Highlights!

You can find my first state fair post with photos from the first week HERE, and a full photo album from the entire fair HERE. I can't pretend that we managed to see everything but we did get to see and experience a lot, even though the temperatures soared way over 100 degrees Fahrenheit during the last weekend! If I had been alone it wouldn't have been too much of an issue, but with two small children we had to work our way around the hottest times and places and find shade whenever we could. All in all we really enjoyed the fair and I can't wait to go back next year! Here are my main highlights from the 17 day event:

The Petting Zoo: We went there nearly every day. I only wish that it were a little bigger because it could get a little crowded at times, especially where there were too many adults inside. Luna absolutely adored being with all of the animals, especially the baby goats and pigs. I loved how sweet all of the animals were, even the deer who try to eat your clothes, and how happy the children (and adults) were inside. 

The horse racing: This was my favourite! The anticipation, that short moment when the horses fly by, the roar of the crowd when the winner crosses the line. It was so much fun to photograph too, trying to get them all in the frame before they are gone. I do wish that the races had been earlier in the day though, mainly due to the heat!

The fairgrounds: I'm not a big fairground ride person, I usually feel like I'm going to die and that takes away any fun for me. However, I LOVE walking around, the lights, the smells, the happiness and watching all of the rides in motion. Cesar tried the newest ride, this insane spider-like contraption that holds you upside down high in the air before whipping you down to the ground and back up again... He loved it. Luna screamed at it and I took photos of him high in the air, arms and legs spread out in glee and a look of pure happiness on his face.

The pony rides: Mainly because Luna loved it SO MUCH. I think she has developed a pure love for horses thanks to the pony ride and won't stop going on about it! Trigger was her favourite little pony, he was sweet and made funny faces. We are now going to look for a place where she can start taking lessons.

The FOOD: SO MUCH TO CHOOSE FROM. Even for a vegetarian there was loads. My only regret is that I didn't get any funnel cake or churros! 

The exhibitions: I really enjoyed walking around all of the different art and photography exhibitions/competitions. It was wonderful to see all of the amazing work that children and teenagers had produced. So many talented artists! I may enter the amateur photography contest next year for fun. 

Special mentions: the incredible motocross guys, the adorable lamas and sheep and goats, the music, and the skilift. 

All in all we had huge amounts of fun and next year I will be making to-do lists so that I can do much, much more! 

California State Fair 2016

A week into the California State Fair already and still so much to see and do, and most definitely eat. This is my first year living in Sacramento and also my first state fair ever (NYC is a fair in itself I suppose), so I was really looking forward to covering the events and going as often as possible - and I think we have already accomplished the latter in the first week! Every day when we come home I say that I can't wait to go back again, especially because it's so super family friendly and the girls really seem to enjoy it.

There is an awesome petting zoo full of adorably friendly goats, sheep, lamas, chickens, ducks, pigs and deer (that love to eat your clothes when you aren't looking) as well as other animals. There are also pony rides and you can even try your hand at milking a goat or a cow. The kids fairground is pretty spectacular with a great array of attractions and games, but be advised that all of the attractions, apart from the carousel, are only for kids of 36 inches and above. Over the past week we have spent a lot of time over by the horses, watching some competitions as well as some shows (although I want to see the Clydesdales as I keep missing them), and paying a visit to our friend Lazarus, the wonderful rescue horse. 

Over on the racing track there are 7 or 8 horse races through-out the day over the weekend, and it was so cool to watch the horses and their jockeys trot by, all riled up ready for the race, and then speed past us again, so focused and concentrated on the finish line. Some of the races are so fast that my camera had trouble keeping up and I can't wait to go back and take more photos from different angles. Maybe even place a bet too?!

The "adult" part of the fairground is amazing! Huge and full of some insane rides that I will never try even if you paid me. Yes, I am a wimp. Although I did promise Cesar that I would go on the Magnum with him next week, so there is that... And one of the big wheels! And I went on the pretty swings the other day, luckily without realizing how I would actually feel on them! I might try the ski-lift out though as I bet the view is spectacular, especially at the end of the day when the sun sets behind the largest Ferris wheel. I've always loved the lights, the sounds, the smells and the general atmosphere of a fair, and I could walk around for hours just enjoying myself.

There are some wonderful exhibitions (one of my mother's photos was actually placed in the Fine Art division with a merit), stores to walk around and a ton (literally) of food to try! I was worried there wouldn't be many vegetarian things to find, but no issues there! I still need to find a vegetarian corndog though, and maybe try a deep-fried something or other too. You can actually grab dinner and go and sit on the bank and watch the crazy motocross guys perform their insane moves while flying through the air, or run over to the diving pool and see some guys dressed as penguins dive from an 80 foot high pole. Both events take place three times a day every day and are worth watching more than once.

I still feel like I have SO much more to see and I can't wait to get back there again. My advice to all is to bring some comfortable shoes, wear light clothing, bring sunblock, hats and sunglasses and stay hydrated. There are loads of places to sit in the shade and relax but it's Sacramento so it gets really hot during the day. I also think it's a good ides to bring cash. A lot of places take cards and there are some ATMs around, but I found it was just easier to have cash handy for the rides and for the petting zoo. And if you want to go on as many rides as possible without breaking the bank, go on Tuesday (July 19th) as all rides are $2. 

I'm working on a collection of photos, but in the meantime here are some highlights of our past week at the fair! You can check out the California State Fair website for more information on daily events and their Instagram feed for some cool photos.

Photography: Western States Horse Expo 2016

Horses have always fascinated me, these beautiful, beautiful animals in all shapes and sizes, trainable but still completely wild, or perhaps unpredictable, capable of understanding and caring, and literally bearing the weight of mankind. I was lucky enough to be able to accompany my mother to the Western States Horse Expo a few weekends ago and had the chance to photograph all different types of horses, from stunning Friesians, beautiful gypsies and sleek Arabians to an array of rescue horses as well as slightly trained wild horses, with many, many others in between. (I'm not too keen on the words "breaking in", so I'm just going to use trained instead). I learnt a lot over the weekend, both about horses and my own photography, take aways to improve and things to focus on over the next couple of months. I would now love to go out and take some showjumping and dressage photos, and also shoot some wild horses somewhere. The girls loved the expo too, and I have to say that the mini horses that Parelli were giving out at the entrance were an amazing touch - Luna refuses to be separated from her "horsey" and he goes everywhere with us!

I will let the images speak for themselves (a selection below and the full album HERE), but I want to mention of few notable organizations that I feel should have more coverage. Hope 4 Horses is a formidable horse rescue center in the area, as well as the awesome wild horse program that is in place at the Rio Consumnes Correctional Center. Imagine Pitbulls and Parolees but with horses instead of dogs. Horses seem to have an incredible ability to heal and love. They really are formidable and amazing and deserve our utmost respect.

Photography: Memorial Day Photos

Memorial Day, on the last Monday in May, a day to remember those who have served this country in the military and have fallen in combat. A day to remember people who put their lives on the line for something they may or may not have believed in, a day for us to put aside our thoughts and beliefs and to think of those who have died while serving this country (and any other country). In my mind a very solemn and sad day. We went to Mount Vernon Memorial Park and walked around right after the end of the ceremony. Bikers and veterans, children and adults, families helping their elders visit other family members' graves and lots of hushed voices paying their respects. It was already over 90 degrees Fahrenheit and the sun was beating down, but it was lovely to walk around and contemplate the sheer amount of people who have served and died for this country in this region alone. 

I've been determined to only use my DSLR on fully manual since I moved here, and I'm quite proud of how OK these photos came out, especially seeing as I was carrying Aurora in the Ergo, pushing Luna in the stroller and Taking photos with one had, adjusting my settings pretty much blindly. All photos taken with my Canon Rebel T1i (I would have used my FujiFilm XE-1 but the charger is buried in one of the boxes in the garage and I don't want to buy another).

Ramblings: Luna Marlena's Two Year Summary

The latest photo album is up on Flickr HERE.

It’s hard to start from where I left off three months ago as these past few months feel like a mini lifetime really! Three months ago we were prepping for our move across the country and I could tell that Luna was really feeling all of the changes. She has always been very sensitive to change, whether it is physical, mental or emotional so there was no way that she was going to go through a cross-country move without issue. Thinking about it now the poor kid had a couple of life-changing events happen within 6 or so months of each other, first the arrival of a little sister, then a move. Neither of the events being traumatizing of course, just a bit of an upheaval in the world that must have seemed a lot simpler before!

Ah, two years old… A milestone for Luna and for us too! No longer a baby, but a child, growing so fast and changing on a daily basis. I remember writing about some of the everyday difficulties of raising a high needs baby and toddler back in January, and also mentioning how communication is the key to helping a toddler avoid a tantrum. And it’s very true – I have found that once Luna actually started speaking real words we actually noticed a significant decline in her tantrums and outbursts. Not that they have stopped happening, but there are so many more times when I can actually talk her out of a pending eardrum-shattering scream. It all kind of clicked a month or so ago and now words are pouring out, things that I don’t even remember teaching her but that she picked up somewhere along the way. It’s a whole new world for us all and so much fun! Like when she opened a box of toys and exclaimed “oh my god!” in my voice, or when I ask her what she wants to wear and she responds “pink!”. She can now tell us that she wants her auntie to come back and that she wants to watch Peppa Pig, or that she wants to go to the park, or drink water, or eat a cookie. We have a long road ahead of us of course, but I’m so happy that we are seeing some progress!

We had Luna’s two year well child check-up this week and for the first time in, well, ever, she let the doctor examine her without screaming. We have obviously changed doctors and Luna’s new doctor listened to my concerns about her not handling doctor’s appointments very well and was so gentle and attentive that she actually stayed calm. She wasn’t so calm for the weighing and measuring portion of the check up, and the assistant wasn’t very helpful, so we ended up getting a measurement that was way too high (35.5 inches long!), but her weight was about right (I weigh her with me at home). In any case she now weighs a little less than 25 lbs and measures just over 33 inches. She’s not a tiny toddler anymore! But she is definitely still very much underweight and we have to go in for some routine and not so routine blood work just to rule out any thyroid or blood sugar issues. But, as the doctor said, it is most likely just the way she is and we aren’t worrying about it. She’s shot up over the past few months and although she’s so picky about her food, she still nurses around the clock, so I know she’s getting the nourishment she needs. She definitely has more than enough energy anyway!

As you can probably see from the photos Luna has beautiful curls, and I have had a hard time working out what to do to keep them from becoming a tangled mess. Combing them out has always been a nightmare, and even when I tie her hair back it is still all knotty when she wakes up in the morning! After one particularly horrid combing out process where I had to actually leave globs of hair conditioner in it for an hour and then comb it out amidst bribes of going to the park with cookies if she let me finish, I realised that I needed to brush it without fail every day, even if she screamed… But now it is long enough to be braided and it has changed our lives. One or two braids before bed and no more knots! And it looks so cute too, my little Pippi Longstocking! It’s amazing how fast baby hair grows too - it will be all the way down her back by her next birthday. I had long, long hair for most of my youth, and even though it annoyed me in my later teens, I definitely don’t regret it now. Of course we are going to have to cut her hair at some point, and if she wants short hair then she will have short hair, but I am totally going to have fun with it before that happens!

Talking about birthdays… I am really happy with how this one went! I made a pink cake with white frosting and drew a big goth Peppa Pig on it in black and pink icing. I used to love baking cakes for birthdays and realised how much fun it was again. There I was, all alone in the kitchen giggling to myself at 11pm while everyone was sleeping, drawing this ginormous Peppa Pig on a cake. And it actually turned out OK as she recognized Peppa! For once I didn’t feel like I had failed on the whole Pinterest worthy mummy thing (ah who am I kidding, I couldn’t care less about all that!). Cesar and I put her little red tricycle together and added an old-fashioned horn to it (regrettable addition if you value your ears). I snuck out in the morning with my mother and got some balloons and treats and we had a little birthday party for Luna when Cesar came home from work, including of mini burritos made of her favourite foods: cheetos, guacamole and black beans. She also had a surprise visit from all of her new friends who sang Happy Birthday to her. She took everything surprisingly well, no tears and a lot of laughter, even though she was a little overwhelmed at times! My mother always used to make sure we had lovely birthdays so I hope I can pass that along to my little ones. Especially my cake decorating skills! (Kidding).

I’m very proud of how Luna has worked her way through all of the changes over the past few months. Yes, children are adaptable beings, but that doesn’t mean that it’s always easy! Going from being with her mummy 24/7 to having to share that time with a little baby, and then having more people around her hasn’t been a picnic in the park for her. But she seems to be navigating through it all quite well. Yes, she still has some pretty epic tantrums, and yes she does get upset and even aggressive if Aurora dares to touch her toys, but those moments are also peppered with happy, sweet and adorable times of play and hugs and conversations. She is now learning how to deal with the fact that Aurora can move around all by herself (and very fast too), so the concept of sharing is becoming more of a reality. “NOOOOOOO BEEBEE” has become a constant phrase in this family, either followed by her patting Aurora on the head affectionately or kicking her in the chest. I’m sure they will learn to play together one day. It won’t be much longer before Aurora is the same size as Luna anyway, and with the way she is intent on standing up and walking, they will be running around together before long!

It’s been wonderful to see her get to know her Grandma and Auntie on a day to day basis (and this goes for everyone really). I didn’t realize how much we were all missing having family close by until we moved. I think Luna will always take a little time to get used to “new” people, and it takes a while for her to be completely comfortable, but once she is she doesn’t forget! I was also able to leave her with our friend Tiffany for a few hours while I went to the dentist, and she only cried a little when I left. And while we did have very supportive friends back in NYC, it really does make life a little easier having family close here. And of course it’s so heartwarming to know that my kids will grow up having their grandma, aunties and uncle close by.

And now for the next steps on the journey, actively moving towards full potty training (she’s in pull-ups and knows what a potty is so I just now have to encourage the use of it), learning the alphabet and building up Luna’s vocabulary. Possibly even getting her nursing sessions down to a couple a day for my own sanity. We are currently reading The BFG together and it reminds me of how obsessed my little brother was with it when he was young. It’s like revisiting an old, old friend. Reading all of my old favourite children books, Dahl and Blyton amongst others has been inspiring me to take those ideas I had when Luna was born and really do something about it!

So… I’ve been writing these posts for two years now, and I have found that what I have created is better than any baby book, and will therefore be making a book for each child out of each post, including the photos. But this also means that, apart from yearly posts, from now on I will not be posting on a regular monthly or every three month basis for Luna anymore, but more on a random basis, after a big milestone or change, or just because I feel like it. It feels so bittersweet, looking back on the past two years, remembering the blur of those first few months, never sleeping, ever, watching her grow and change and become this little being who is so unique and special. This won’t ever stop of course, but sometimes I would love to stop time for just a little bit and hold these moments for a little bit longer.

Review: Art Hotel 916

When my sister mentioned her trip to something called the “Art Hotel” last week and sent me some pictures – I knew immediately that it would be something I absolutely needed to see. A building full of art from bottom to top?! Amazing! It really was amazing, and I feel like I was actually lucky to see it in person. The idea was to take a building scheduled to be demolished (in this case the Jade apartment building in downtown Sacramento) and for different artists to transform the insides into a literal art house over the space of a month. The temporary exhibition was only open for a week, from February 5th to the 13th, and we went on the very last day. All of the ticket timeslots were sold out when we got there, but thanks to my mother we were able to get in for a 15 minute visit. I had Aurora strapped in the Ergo so she also got to see some of the amazing artwork, although I doubt she will ever remember!

The concept really is incredible. I don’t really know the history of the building and the hotel next door, but from what I have heard they weren’t in the best part of town (although to be honest I wouldn’t have had any idea, coming from a decade in NYC many places you walk down don’t seem to be the most salubrious but that doesn’t really mean anything). In any case 14 artists from all over the world got together and transformed the entire insides of the building into multiple pieces of art: full apartments, rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, windows, halls, staircases, you name it, everything was decorated, painted, and used as part of a prop to capture the visions of each artist. Beauty, nostalgia, love, hate, blood, fear, angst, humour, dirt, purity, horror, smiles, death, life – all separate concepts and emotions that seemed to come together quite seamlessly. I loved walking through the building, feasting my eyes on each room, hallway and staircase. I love how the entire concept displayed how art really is universal and dynamic, a beautiful mix of talent, space, vision, tools and timing. Art cannot be explained or neatly fitted into a box; it is at times stunning, beautiful, grotesque and outright weird, altogether or separately.

I’d love to see some more of these temporary exhibitions and check out more of the different artists’ work. I’ve posted some photos of what really stood out to me below, and you can find out more information on the individual artists on the M5 Arts website and on the Art Hotel 916 Facebook page. My cameras are unfortunately still stuck on our moving truck somewhere halfway across the country so iPhone photos are all I have (and this is only a small sample of everything that I took during my visit). But you can check my mother’s much better images on her blog. Really excited about seeing what other cool and inspiring events Sacramento has to offer!

Ramblings: California, here we are!

We have arrived! After a few weeks of stress, packing, working through a list of endless tasks that needed to be accomplished before we left, planning without really having a plan, we have made our way to California. And while that part seemed hard, the hardest part really starts now with job hunting and house hunting and getting settled in an area that couldn’t be more different to NYC. Neither of us have a license, and I’ve actually never learnt how to drive so that’s going to be a major task that needs to be accomplished. I have already taught myself how to install a car seat properly, both rear facing and forward facing, so I’m kind of a little proud of that! I have to admit that I’m actually a little scared of driving and even more so of driving with the girls in the car, but that is a fear that I am going to have to get over because otherwise we will be stuck at home for forever. Luna loves car rides now and Aurora hates them, just like Luna did at her age. Hopefully she will grow out of that soon enough.

I think we were all a little shell shocked when we arrived last Sunday. We spent two nights in a hotel on the Lower East Side and tried to see people and places as well as rest all at the same time and it ended up being extremely chaotic and tiring and a huge upheaval for the girls. I’m sure the owners of Dorian Gray will be adding a sign stating “no children allowed” after our few hours there last Saturday as we managed to turn the place into a kid’s play area and breastfeeding station. Thank you to everyone who came out to see us and to those who contacted us – I’m sorry if I couldn’t chat for long or was a little unresponsive, but I really, really appreciate all of your messages and words! I had told myself that I had really detached myself from the city already, but that wasn’t really true. I think I will always love NYC and will always consider her home. Sometimes you just need to make choices that help you move onwards and upwards and I think this was one of them.

We boarded our flight at 8:30pm, and luckily JetBlue have direct flights from NYC to Sacramento. There is however a federal law that doesn’t allow more than one child under two in one seat section, due to there not being enough oxygen in case of an emergency. So we were seated on the same row, but with the aisle in between us. As the flight wasn’t too packed we ended up having 6 seats to ourselves which sounds awesome, but when you have one toddler who only wants to nurse and an infant who had to nurse on take-off we really needed to be next to each other. Luna was OK while we were taxiing to take-off but that took forever and the moment we actually took off she started to scream and fight Cesar… I could already hear all of the poor passengers’ thoughts, but luckily one of the flight attendants came over and allowed us to switch kids mid take off. After that Cesar moved over with Aurora and the rest of the flight was completely uneventful. Luna actually slept longer than she usually does without waking and Aurora wasn’t fussy at all. We were absolutely exhausted though, and it’s not something that I would do often. Traveling with one now seems like a piece of cake, two is OK if there are two adults, and I really don’t know how people travel alone with two tiny kids!

Of course, as soon as we arrived I got a horrid cold that has made me feel like a zombie for the past 5 days. Then Luna got it and now Aurora seems to be a little under the weather. And for the first few days the weather wasn’t too good, but now winter has said goodbye to California and spring has come in with a blast! This is the California that I’ve always considered “my” California: bright sunshine warm and then hot on my skin, palm trees in gardens and streets, blue, blue skies and the smell of warmth and fresh soil, and occasionally skunk. I can’t wait for the trees to blossom and the oleander to flower and for the ground to feel warm on my feet. I can’t wait for us to settle, find jobs and eventually have our own little house with a yard. We have so many dreams and it’s going to be exciting to make them all become reality, one by one.

My mother’s new house is beautiful. She’s only been here for three weeks now but she has managed to make it feel like a home already. Joey has met his new friend Muffin and I think he is trying to befriend her, but Muffin isn’t having any of it right now! She’s just a grumpy old lady anyway and he seems to have realised that it’s best to just leave her alone and maybe she will come around at some point. In any case he has settled in like the cat king he is. He may even get to venture outside at some point, we will see how I feel about that when we have settled into our own place. My sister’s home is also gorgeous and it makes me so happy to see her all settled in her own cozy place. Both Cesar and I love her neighbourhood – it’s quiet but still walking distance from shops and restaurants, and very close to the downtown area where Cesar will most likely be working. Houses are a little more expensive there, but I suppose we would be saving in gas and would only need one car there, so that’s good. At the same time there are not that many rentals going. So we will see! Not going to get ahead of myself yet! But I would really, really love to live within walking distance of amenities.

The girls are settling in more or less, as I expected Luna is having a harder time than Aurora but she is getting there. She has already learnt how to unlock and open all of the doors in the house, find her way to me from our room, and she has the most gorgeous play room to play in with tons of toys. Now if she would just start talking to me again instead of saying “eh eh eh” that would be great!  Sometimes it feels like every time we make a little progress we do something that causes a regression. All I can really do is continue to provide her whatever comfort she needs so that she feels ready to communicate via all of the words that she understands and can say. It didn’t really help much that she has had this awful cold too and barely wants to eat any food and wants to nurse around the clock. We will get there; it’s just a matter of patience and perseverance.

I’m going to finish off now and try to post this today. I need to get back into writing every day again – the past three weeks have been an insane whirlwind of tasks and packing and arriving and settling in, and I need to find my own routine and gather up my inspiration again. I have a long list of travel posts to write as well as a few ramblings and as soon as our belongings arrive I will be able to start on some photography posts again too. Nothing like a few palm trees and early spring blossom to inspire one to document in photos!