Naila turns 7! (months) and some other happenings

 It has been a while and we/I feel a little bad about it. The truth is we have had a semi long lasting technical issue to deal with. The computer where we keep most of our pics suddenly decided that it didn't want to have a functioning button on the trackpad.  Thanks to an awesome tech department we have a temporary fix--just enough to update the blog and back up the computer.

Anway, these first two pics are of our newest little one in the clan. Maya loved being included in these photos of Naila's big 7 month photo shoot. It was the first time that

Maya's favorite spot! I think she spends more time in our bed than we do.

 I can say that I saw Maya smile on cue. Normally she is shy for pictures or at least aloof to the whole process. This time when we asked her to 'say cheese' she was more than happy to oblige.

 This has to be one of our very favorite highlights so far this year. The Karmapa Lama came to our school for various activities and during a question and answer session Laura got up close and personal with a book signing. I didn't know before this visit, but teh Karmapa Lama is seen as the 3rd most important figure in Tebetan Buddhism (the first being the Dalai Lama and the second being another Lama who hasn't been seen since he was captured by the Chinese some 20 years ago when he was a teenager).

I had the chance later in the evening to go and play basketball with him--but somehow I let that pass me by. Next time!

 The week before our encounter with His Holiness, we were at Oktoberfest at the American Community Support Association. They put on a fun party and we were happily surprised not to have to wait in those horrible beer lines that seem so frequent at beer festivals. An army of waiters

 walked around and topped us off any chance we gave them!

To the right is a typical Sunday afternoon with the Al Morenos. We get together for lunch as often as possible, usually 3-4 times per week, but also have made it a habit to share some great company and tortilla española on Sundays!

 Here are some other pictures to help illustrate our lives here: At left is our dining room and the table set for a Sunday tortilla feast.

 Maya is still "all in" for anything having to do with water. She loves baths and depending on the day demands that we take her swimming at the pool. No more baby pool for this toddler--she has taken to jumping into the water, holding her breath and kick, kick, kicking to find daddy or mommy.

 Here is a picture of the girls' room. Laura has done amazing things with decorating--from sleeping arrangements to painting the walls, to a hand painted tree (jk), laying carpet, and finding a rocking chair. This is almost as good as it could possibly be and the girls seem to like it...unless that means that it's bedtime.

 You may think this is a funny picture to begin my trip to England, but you'd be wrong. This is how the bathrooms are identified in the airport in Delhi. Which do you fancy?

 I didn't take many photos of my trip but the highlights were: I got cold for the first time in 3 months, I learned a bit about the IB, I loved seeing the English countryside, Julie (the French teacher I was with) and I got to go and hang out with some of her English friends, I saw the bombed out Coventry Cathedral, I went running in the cold morning mist while breathing clean air,

and then we got to go to London for 2 hours before our departure.

 In London we took full advantage of our time going to the oldest pub in the city, Salisbury Pub, and then having our final meal of England at an Oyster bar. It was a bit of a mad dash to the airport but I found it to be worth it.

 While I was gone, Laura took on the Herculean task of being a single parent. To the left you see a mock up of what the community thought of her as a parent--a real GIANT.

Actually, this was, I think, an effigy of Ram who fought off a big time Sri Lankan god and helped his people in some major way...or maybe I have that reversed, how should I know, I wasn't even there.

 There were the obligatory fireworks and then as in any good celebration, they burned it down!

This is a fairly typical reaction from Maya--distressed ear covering. No, it wasn't that loud.

These two photos are some great ones that our friend Julie took. This is our ayah, Anita.






Maya has taken to transporting Rosie around liker her little baby.


That's it for today. Overall, life is great and we're very happy on our adventure in India except for two things that seem to be conspiring against us. There has been a sudden onslaught of pollution that has the city quite socked in making us think twice and secondly, the more we talk with friends and family back home and miss out on all of those wonderful community building events, the more we miss home.