Birthday Stress

My oldest turns five tomorrow (and ohh the anticipation). I had totally forgotten the focus and weeks of dreaming that goes into the expectations of birthdays at this age. He is almost too excited to sleep. 

 Was all fine sailing (apart from the fact that since we moved here he only has made friends through school- and only a few at that, and those few I really don't know very well). There is a very different culture here it seems.. not as common to have the spontaneous play dates after school. This wasn't the cause of stress though, it was the fact that it didn't dawn on me till yesterday that the party expectations are higher now

oh dear... do we really need to do the whole party favour thing..... already.. can't it still be simple...           ...think we are definitely breaking the rules here in Malta by having a casual picnic at the beach and not a Disney themed party at 'palace of dreams' .  Will he notice?? Will  those who show up be totally disappointed??!!  Are there any games I can quickly think up that will make it a perfect party to remember. 

Will I somehow be able to make the Wall-E looking cake he has been asking for, begging for.... for WEEKS. The pressure we parents put ourselves under for our children's birthday - day is.... ridiculous... (actually my husband doesn't seem all that worried) maybe its more a mom thing. 

side note

As the food obsessed parents we are, we have planned all sorts of different summer salads, dips, drinks (more aimed for the adults present admittedly). What terrible parents.

  

Perhaps

It was a mistake to name my youngest daughter Stella..  a more fitting name we have come to realize  would have been DESTRUCTO, she is so sneaky and fast! Turn your back for a moment like a did this morning and she managed to find the permanent pen and was heading (cap off) towards the clean folded laundry basket when she was thwarted from her artful vision.  Next it was dumping out first all her brothers train tracks (this was while I was washing dishes) a second later it was the box of wooden blocks and last but not least as I was trying to pick up the 101 domino blocks she escaped from view (thirty seconds) next I found her emptying everything out of the baking drawer- (while taking handfuls of prunes from the container and jamming them into her mouth) brown sugar,  nuts, flour, packets of yeast...EVERYWHERE  and the house honestly was clean for once lasted from precisely 7:30 -7: 35.

 Chaos unfolded with the help of her siblings a tent underway in one room and drawing and cutting projects begun (solo rambo style- get it yourself) by her 3 year old sister ... I think they have come to realise that when I say 'in a minute...' it means not for a long while..... 

All this just as I was pouring a cup of coffee and had my Maltese homework laid out to begin... hah ... what was I thinking??!!! Moving to a new country, three kids under five and the decision to go back for a post graduate course in teaching (a  full time course), (as well as taking evening Maltese classes) was just a little ambitious. 

Ode to Maltese 

I have decided to share a few of my favourite Maltese words- 

Zunzana = wasp

Haffef = to hurry up

Tinkwetax = don't worry

(the 'x' is pronounced like a 'sh') 

The thing about Maltese that at points boggles my mind and makes me think- I will never truly get my head around this language are words like this- 

Ghamilthomli =  did you make them for me? 

or 

bghatthulux = you didn't send it to him?

Yes, in many cases one word here is like three or four words conjugated (in more than one place) and stuck together. For a new ear.. fat chance that in hearing this I would be able to pick it all a part and understand it. But I've got to try...the kids are getting ahead of me in their Maltese by leaps and bounds! 

Am a sucker for a picture with every post so here is one thing I love about Malta- you are never more then two minutes away from fresh (and very good) ricotta, bread (delivered nearly hourly in most places) or a cannoli (this photo was taken at a very small shop across the street from where we live, actually there are three such places within our block). 

Off to try and study!

Back to University next week!

Can't help but share

Ok, so I admit every once in awhile when we lived in the UK we watched this show, not that I miss it but my other half came across this (guess it is from last week) just thought I would share it. Britain's got Talent. 

Wow

If only I could crochet! Having too much fun looking through this shop's website (The Curiosity Shop) ... ought to be writing essays... but seriously how impressed would my son be if for his birthday I made him an octopus! 

Am not organising a party but if I were - there is something I find really appealing about this woman's designs,  here is her website.  Almost reason enough for throwing some kind of special gathering.

Easter Week in Malta

Id-Duluri or Our Lady of Sorrows,  is one of the major processions to take place during the Easter week here in Malta. It is celebrated in most villages throughout the island. A very sombre affair. Following the statue are large crowds of people saying prayers.  

Pepito

Madeline and Pepito are the latest bed time requests, I do love some of the illustrations and unusual lines.

The warm weather has inspired me to make ice cream again, this time I invented a very dark chocolate ice cream with slivered almonds, prunes and a bit of orange zest, it came out really well, so well that it got devoured by our Sunday guests and thus no chance for a photo. Will certainly be making it again and will include a picture and the recipe (email me if you want it sooner).

Peach Blossoms

The smells of spring here are intoxicating, orange blossoms, peach blossoms and lemon trees exploding with fruit, lemon sorbet next on the to do list.  It is officially spring here (although it already feels like June to me) bright skies, and no more rain (have been told rain will not come again till the end of September).  With one exception- I have been assured it always rains on August 15th- on Saint Mary's feast (we'll see about that).  

If you have a few  minutes do check this out- cool little video - Her Morning Elegance by Oren Lavie here.

 

Sigh

Not mine, am afraid but oh what a fun few sites to stroll through... starting with this- apartment therapy , then on to this  here  or some fun interior design-Harlequin. 

Discovered this architect Kyu Sung Wu, I believe he is Korean. Quite a fan of his style- in particular like his stone cloud house. 

Food!

Aside from watching the kids run and planes land our Sunday afternoon trip to the cafe at the local airport also left us very inspired ( we fell for yet another cook book). Breakfast Lunch Tea by Rose Carrarini.  

Wishing I could stroll over for a meal at her restaurant. 

I suppose I must be inspired lately- have begun again to make ice cream- starting with a chocolate fig sort yesterday. M M M 

Fennel Salad

My other half ( the one with Mediterranean blood), got inspired lately and made a fantastic Saturday lunch (fresh sea bream from the local Sunday fish market)  roasted potatoes and my favourite bit- the salad. Not being so keen on Fennel in the past I was surprised how much I loved this taste-of-summer salad, a simple fennel, fresh mint and orange salad. 

Fennel, mint and orange salad

half a bulb of Fennel, sliced and cooked till tender in boiling water(3-5 min) , fresh chopped mint (7-10 leaves), one orange peeled and cut into bite size pieces, (separately mix lemon juice, olive oil, little white vinegar, salt and pepper in a jar) toss with remaining ingredients shortly before serving.  

My son came to tell me he made a picture of he and his sisters... bit alien like, I believe the square headed one is himself.  

Because I just have so much time on my hands...(not at all)  but I can't keep away from that 2 am work time- I decided to make a social studies blog for my students-complete with links (exploding volcanoes, Hindu dances etc.).  So if you have any interest in The Second World War, Tourism and the Environment, Ancient India or Globalization give it a look - (one more week of teaching practice to go) will miss my students and the school.   

Bits and bobs

No time for films am afraid, I am totally out of the loop. Books same story but here is a recent find (not a bright first thing in the morning sort of song) but lovely just the same by Roakia Traore. 

Also in my search for some second world war songs to share with my students I came across this song (It's been a long long time) pretty sweet. How hard it must have been for all those families separated by the war . 

I have been on the look out for a few good new children's books, (my sons fifth birthday is around the corner)  . This one seemed interesting, it's by the same author who wrote Blueberries for Sal (an American classic I think).

So wish I could buzz myself back to the UK

 

To meet some new babies and to go see this play - England People Very Nice-if anyone out there goes to see it, please do let me know what you thought of it! 

Thank you St. Joseph

It was St. Joseph's day on Thursday so we all had off from school, which meant picnic in the park for my lot.   We went to a place I had never been before, Mistra Bay. The flowers were all blooming  and the sky was clear, an idylic day. A break amid the rush around of the usual week. Thank god for lovely moments when you do stop and take the time to sit in the sunshine and be happy for exactly where you are and who your with. 

Oh No

We did end up buying that Andrew Bird cd and I love it! Oh no is the title of the first track, really  like the lead in whistling bit.. a nice tune to get stuck in your head... and it makes me think of my grandfather who used to be such a fantastic whistler. 

These are some old Russian propaganda pictures from the Cold War (taught a class on the subject on Friday). In my search for resources to use in the classroom (to make the subject a bit more interesting) I found a whole bunch of old posters, here are a few, I enjoyed looking through the old posters. Still running to stand still here,  sorry for the lack of posts of late! 

One other tidbit for the American folks out there- the Fresh Air NPR interviews this week on the US health care system were really good-recommend it if you have time. 

No making or baking this week sad to say... my other half has taken the cooking on lately, look forward to the end of this course and getting back to trying out recipes from some of our (recently unpacked) cookbooks. 

We have doors and bookshelves now!!! Feel like at last I have landed! 

Oh to have a bit more time!!!

Totally overloaded at the moment..feel like I am jumping rope ....any moment am sure I will trip up and land on my face.

If I did have time......I would run to the library or local bookstore and try to find one of the books mentioned in this Tuesday's Guardian -As their country descends into chaos Pakistani writers are winning acclaim.
On the kid front- Stella has learned to sayÁlbi' which crudely translated means my heart, and then this is followed by a big hug and snuggle... yes leaving for campus every morning is pure and simple torture... it really does feel like my heart is breaking. She is one and for me to be away from her all day feels terrible.
On the up side- I introduced my kids to the classic Mahamanha song- which we have been hearing from them for days now- highly recommend.. I think I have never seen Gaetano laugh so hard. The turtle episode of the Swedish chef was really enjoyed by he and Liliana.
Good ole You Tube! If you don't totally hate James Blunt by now- his oh triangle song is pretty funny too- my kids love it! James Blunt on Sesame street.

Spring!

Seems out of nowhere the almond trees are all in full bloom, wild flowers popping out in the fields and when the sun is out- it feels just like May!  

Not exactly related but I do so like this song by  Thao Nguyen-(thanks Melis) and it sounds the way I am feeling at the moment. 

The Bee

A little something I came across this week in class.... quite liked it. 

The animal school (especially good to watch if you are involved in teaching or are a parent). 

Hooked!?

I think I may be pretty into this magazine- totally new discovery for me but perhaps its been around for awhile... it covers all kinds of global current issues AND cultural going ons- film, music, design, architecture, fashion... (and has GREAT pictures)... 

It's called Monocle. Seriously feel like I want to pause all else and just tool through their site for days-weeks (admittedly I got a little side tracked while buying a course book this week and walked out of the university bookshop with the a hard copy of this magazine) it's one of those thick magazines that you want to keep- add to the library...use as a reference.  Sort of like Granta. 

Home Sick

 

Down with the flu this week, and now my husband and son are too, am sure the girls will soon follow- endless cups of tea ahead! Must admit though, after the many weeks now  (since moving to Malta) of this new routine- up early out the door by 7 and not  home till after 6 .. it's been so nice to just BE  HOME ...really appreciate it.. it's not a weekend filled up with activities. 

A totally no expectations (apart from get some rest) day. Helps that's it's a completely miserable day out- pouring with rain and howling with wind.  Glad I got to forgo lectures and be home, let the kids cuddle up in front of our one little heater, with blankets and cups of tea,  putter about .. make warming soup for lunch..... the house finally has some life in it. It does feel so wrong to come home to an empty cold house every day... I think part time work would be just the ticket.... this full time back to school business is pretty demanding.

 

Not too much else exciting to say other than it's been a slow inside day with the family.

Featured in the picture are two books the children got for Christmas... a sick day is a perfect day for endless stories.