Where have I been?

Time has raced past and it has been an shamefully long time since my last post. Partly because the weather has improved and my free time has been outside during nap, and mainly because Mum came to stay last week and time on the computer was put aside.

We had a lovely week doing all sorts of things. The first half of the week was wet and quite cold on one or two days. Then by Wednesday the sun appeared and the rest of the week was glorious....as it still is (today is 75 degrees!). We did some shopping and eating out, went to a pitiful Easter egg hunt in one of the parks in town, and despite rain one day we went out for ice-cream at a new parlour that opened up a few months ago. Yum! Mum kindly looked after Lucy a few times for Joe and I so that we could get some time together in the evenings, and one day I headed to Longwood for a meeting while Lucy and Granny stayed at home for stories, lunch and nap.

Lucy loved having her Granny to stay. They bonded over books and jigsaws, and thankfully the princess phase that Lucy is currently going through didn't 'phase' Mum too much (not being especially into princesses herself). It was lovely to hear the two of them chatting to each other, as last time we saw Mum, in August, Lucy wasn't talking nearly so much as she is now.

On the sunny days we headed to the beach (Ocean City NJ) one day for a walk along the sea and lunch on the boardwalk. Lucy LOVED the beach and running in and out of puddles and waves. She is a beach lover. Mum bravely hired a car one day and took herself off down to the Delaware estuary area for some birdwatching. She got on well with the car and enjoyed seeing some wildlife.

On Friday we had a day out to Lancaster - to visit the city itself rather than the Amish area and outlets. It was a surprisingly hip and cosmopolitan city with a really quite European feel to it. We had a yummy lunch at a hip cafe and watched the world go by from our window seats. We walked through the market which was fascinating....much like Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia but without the crazy crowds. We left Lucy and Joe at home so it was great to get some adult time.

Mum left on Saturday evening and made it back in one piece. Her first day back at work today after the long weekend, so I am sure it was hard going with the jet lag. I have been tired since she left and I didn't have to do the travelling!

Back to the three of us now, with life back to normal and school open again. Lucy had a great morning and enjoyed herself no end. I left her wearing a pink princess dress and when I returned to pick her up she was standing at the gate and was so excited to see me, it was lovely. I enjoyed the break on my own and got some shopping and jobs done. I could do with a whole week of that really, but squeezing them in between Lucy's awake time and sleeping myself will do.