apple picking

Fall is finally starting to come 'round these parts, and in an effort to explore more of the area where we live, and to make connections with Dexter's classmates, we went apple picking!  I had thought I'd never been apple picking before, until a friend reminded me that I went in kindergarten.  Seriously, who remembers those things?

We met up with Sirisha and her husband and daughter, and Seungah and her husband and daughter. (Side note: Kyalo's only friends here are girls!)  Sirisha is Indian, and Seungah is Korean, so it was a nice international mix.   It was fun to be on a farm. I'm always surprised by things. . .this time it was by how short the trees were. Shouldn't apple trees be tall?  Still, it was just the right size for little hands to do the picking!

 for some reason, I love pictures of Kyalo from behind

 and here, he looks like such a big kid!

After apple picking and a little rest at the picnic tables, we headed to the pumpkin patch, of course.

 and of course, Kyalo was more interested in DIRT

 Here he is, introducing Rua (13 months) to the joy that is dirt

 check out that sky!

our lil pumpkin

Still, the fun was not over.  There was still a hay ride through the farm, which was fun because we learned a lot about the 40-acre farm which is a Farmland Preservation Farm, meaning it will always and forever be a farm.  

Kyalo loved it. What he did NOT love, however, was the chicken.  This really surprised me, but when the farmer stopped us at the chicken coop and brought one out for all the children to pet, he really shied away from it.  Dashing my dreams of owning chickens some day!  I'm sure we'll get him to warm up to them . . .

This little cutie is Rua, Seungah's 13 month old daughter.  Happy girl!  She loved the hay. 

But I think Kyalo wins the prize for getting into the hay. . .

See those bumps on his forehead and cheek?  Mosquito bites!  And the bruise on his forehead?  That's from running into the wall during a game of chase with papa.

It was a great day. I really enjoyed getting to know a couple of Dexter's classmates. We ended the day with ginger tea at Sirisha's, and then we went out for Indian food with Sirisha and her family.  A perfect ending.  We have already planned an international dinner for the end of the moth where everyone brings something traditional from their culture.  One question: what should I bring?

fire chief in the house

I may have mentioned a few times that Kyalo likes to be outside.

No?

Well, you're in luck, because here I am to do it again!

Being outside is obviously a great thing...fresh air, expending energy, exploring, etc etc.  There's one problem.  Kyalo doesn't understand that a rainy day means spending the day at home in your sweats with a good book.  We had a day of rain last week and he was still clamoring at the door to go out. So, out we went. I finally had to drag him in when it basically became a down pour, and he looked like this:

Since he was soaked and basically covered in mud, into the bath he went.  And I was quickly searching for rain gear online (read: boots, jacket, pants), since a little rain isn't going to slow him down.   Winter is not too far away. . .but I think I'm mostly ready for that.

Then this weekend my parents were in town and stopped by a cute consignment shop in cute Montclair, where my mom scooped up this cute rain coat for $8.00

No, it wasn't raining this particular day, but we had to try it out.  Obviously!

 the chief and his assistant checking the neighborhood. . .

 . . .and the hydrant!

 

I feel safer knowing there's a fire chief right near by.  

And now we're ready for Halloween, too!

Win-win all around.

a grand weekend

I like it when our weekends include things that stray from the norm, and this weekend was full of them.  First, my parents came to visit. Yay.  They hadn't been here in a while, and I think the last times we were exploring NYC or jetting down to Baltimore.  Now that we're getting a little more settled here I wanted them to see our life and this area.  So the visit included trying out new restaurants, a trip to a local farmer's market, a lot of shopping {more on a good find in another post}, helping Dexter get a bike {Merry Christmas, dear}, and just generally enjoying each other and the spectacular weather.  After church on Sunday we walked to a little bagel shop for lunch.  I needed to get a few photos of them to prove they were here!

 {Kyalo found a stick! and we could not get him to put it down.  Dexter had to wrestle it from him when leaving}

 finally, some pictures with me in them!

{ready for church}

The park where we took the pictures was very pretty, but a little more shadowy than I would have liked.  Oh well, the memories aren't shadowy!  And just like that, off they headed to Massachusetts.  Instead of heading home ourselves, we hopped in the car and headed west a couple of hours through rolling country and farmland of Pennsylvania to see this girl:

Since the last time we saw Jenny was February in Kenya, we weren't going to let a little two hour drive get in the way of a chance to see her.  It was a short, but sweet visit.  I love reconnecting with friends, especially ones I knew in Kenya.  And seriously, the drive was pretty spectacular.  I don't know if you can really tell from the pictures, but the area was SO BEAUTIFUL.  Dexter's ready to hang up dentistry and go into farming.  I'll keep you posted on that.

 The lighting in PA was so awesome; I wish we had gotten a lot more pictures.  These will do, though.

{shadows}

I will live in hope for more impromptu, unexpected visits from friends to brighten our weekends!

books worth reading

I like to read, and one of the big perks of being back in the US is being within walking distance of the library.  No longer do I have to pick my books ahead of time and schlep them with me across continents.  No longer do I have to wonder what to do with them when I'm done reading them.  The library is a brilliant thing!  Because Kyalo & I go to the library more or less weekly, I've been able to pick books up for myself.  Those, in addition to books I had on hand or borrowed from others, have made for some {mostly} happy reading hours.  I thought I'd share the best I've read in the last few months.

Here's what I'm currently reading:

{Amazon Link}

A friend of mine whose family owns a farm in Maine recommended this New York City journalist-turned-New York State-farmer book to me, because I'm always asking her questions about the farm.  She thinks I have it in my blood.  I like the idea of scattering grain for chickens in the morning and collecting eggs in the evening. I do NOT like the idea of every 12 hour, do-or-die milking of a cow; I'm not sure I'm cut out for the work involved.  This book is a wonderful and inspiring read. And maybe someday, I'll get those chickens!

{Amazon}

I'd heard about this book for a while, and when Covenant had it for his required summer reading for high school, it put it back on my radar.  I'm not too far along, but am awed by this true story.

And now for the Do-I-really-have-to-feed-and-clothe-my-child category:

I'd seen The Historian for years on shelves in airport bookstores, and always wanted to read it.  When I saw it sitting -- unread, apparently -- on a shelf at my mom's I snatched it up.  Somehow I missed the fact that it is, essentially, a story about vampires and Dracula in particular.  There were a couple of freaky moments, but it was SO GOOD. I could hardly put it down, and the house may or may not have gone unswept while I read it.  Once I saw that Elizabeth Kostova had another book, I knew I needed (needed!) to get it.  I'm often wary about second books, but The Swan Thieves did not disappoint.  Go pick up either, you will not regret it!

And lastly, another book that I'm reading. . .and have been for a while.

 

{Amazon}

 

This book is kind of a companion (or little sister?) book to Nicholas Kristoff and Sheryl Du Wunn's Half the Sky {another worthwhile read, by the way}.  This book focuses on the women of the Christian church, how we've been overlooked, underused, and have so much potential to be true partners with men to change the world. . . especially for the women {and children} of the world who have no voice.  I am not doing this book justice AT ALL.  Seriously, this is a pale and weak synopsis of this powerful and enlightening book.  I think every Christian woman should read it!  I'm actually hoping to suggest it as the next book the book club I have not yet joined will read.  I'm also hoping that isn't too presumptuous on my part! :)

 

There have been a few disappointments along the way, but ultimately, books and I are becoming nicely reacquainted.   So here's my question.  What are books that you recommend? A favorite fiction?  Spiritual?  Parenting? Marriage? A favorite author? I'm always looking for another good read.  Also, if you have toddlers, what books are you reading with them?  Kyalo's books are seriously lacking and I need to start changing that.

Here's hoping I get a lot of suggestions!

settling in

September marks six months since we've been in the US which is hard to believe!  I have a lot of thoughts floating around in my head about the transition, and I thought I'd get them down to paper - or blog, if you will.  The thoughts are changing regularly, and had I written this post even a few weeks ago, I think the outlook would have been vastly different; things are beginning to come together for us, and it is making a world of difference.

The first months here were marked by an over all feeling of loneliness and being overwhelmed by everything.  That's when Dexter was in school all the time, so I never saw him, either.   The shelves at the grocery stores packed to overflowing and I couldn't decide what to get.  Yogurt had more ingredients than I knew what to do with (I got lemon yogurt once that had NO lemon in it. what?), there were so many choices I often left in despair.  I'm getting the hang of that now, though from time to time I think it is all a little ridiculous.  My days were long, slow, and lonely.  Kyalo and I spent a lot of time wandering the neighborhoods just to fill up the day.

But we started going to the local library's story hour, and made a friend - she has a 10 month old daughter and happens to live around the corner from us.  So the two of us go on walks to a local park now, and let the kids play as we chat.  Each day that relationship gets a little easier and more comfortable. 

Just last week we decided on a church that will be our church home for the time we're in New Jersey.  I hadn't realized just how difficult it would be to find a church - and what a difference it is making in our life.  It is the most warm and welcoming church I think I've ever been to.  Dexter's already joined the men's Bible study, I'll be doing the Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) program there once a month (hello four hours of child care!), we're joining a small group, and, I hope to do a women's book club.  We're really jumping right in!  But after living an hour away from a church for so long it is nice to be able to actually participate in things and get involved.  I hope we'll make some great friendships there.

I miss Kenya. Every day.  This weekend there was a baby shower for Evelyn (who, yes, is having their first baby in October), and I cried a little when I realized I couldn't be there, helping with it, or just being a part of it.  I'm sad when I hear about the Mulandis all getting together, I'm sad when I hear about the changes and developments that we're missing.

But you know, I missed out on a lot in America for the seven years I was gone.  I guess it is my time now to enjoy what I can here in America.  Like being close to my family.  Fall.  Winter. (? can I really enjoy this? I will enjoy watching Dexter & Kyalo experience snow for the first time!) Holidays.  Being able to call people who are basically in my time zone.  Safety and security.  And so on.

And so, it is good.  The days are gorgeous right now...we're in that in between time: not quite summer any more, not yet fall.  I love it!  We continue to see God's hand in our lives.  These two years will be hard, of course, for a number of reasons, but God is bringing us friends, community, and continued affirmation that this is the right thing for us at this time.

twins, again!

On the last day of vacation we were able to take a detour on the way home through Connecticut and see a friend of ours from Kenya.  Lily and her husband, Jonathan, actually live in Texas where she's a medical resident, but he was graduating from a school in Newark and so they camped out at a friend's house in CT.  We wanted to have more time with Lily (Jonathan was gone for pre-graduation stuff), but it was ridiculously hard to get out of the house in a timely manner. There were lots of people to visit with, a leisurely breakfast, the chaos of packing up the car, and drawn out goodbyes.  It is a wonder we ever traveled to Kenya!

I hadn't seen Lily since our wedding, and so was meeting their youngest son, Zaki (14 months) for the first time, and seeing Wema since he was a wee baby.  He's a very very active four year old now, so much so that I could never get a picture of him.  I thought Kyalo was non stop energy.  HA.  Or perhaps, that's my future. 

Anyway, before they came east, I saw a picture of Zaki in the same green Kenya shirt that Kyalo wears.  Remember when he and Bo wore them in May (back when Evelyn was visiting & Matt & Erica still lived in Long Island.  Eons ago!).  Here's a shot to remind you:

awww

And here are Kyalo & Zaki, in August:

 holding hands! so sweet

 all smiles

August 22, 2012

But it is never easy to keep two one-year-olds in one place for long, and so we have a lot of pictures like this:

Now, how awesome would it be if we could somehow get a triplet picture! Hilarious.

The children of the family Lily was staying with had a drum set, and Kyalo got pretty into it.

here, he's asking if he can have his own set

No.

It was a fairly quick visit, but wonderful to catch up again. Perhaps we'll get out to Texas some day for a proper visit.  I've never been to Texas!