Upon Our Return

cool graffiti on the wall in Thessaloniki

ye'old tire game.

happy girls.

look what i can do!

getting our chompers ready for ohio grown sweet corn

we are looking at alternatives to traveling with two young children on an airplane for 10 hours. this looks to be within size and weight limits.

Artemis asks every day how many days until we leave for The States, so Eleftheria helped her make a calendar, the back side is for Vegas

My take on Xania So Far

just a quick set of pics from Xania. i think that perhaps i have 3 or 4 pics from the christening itself, i was a bit busy. we had a very nice visit though, lots of fun, lots of sun.

speaking of which.

look at that cheek!

ooooo black and white fountain picture!

no shoulders were dislocated in the making of this photo.

the small openning in the port in the old port of Xania.

on of the innumerable beautiful walkways in down by the port.

i just don't understand how the bougainvillea get so darn big on the islands.

i like the play of the water on the walkway in this photo

is that a family photo?!

Survivor Artemis

so keeping Artemis busy is a fun challenge. survivor has become a very popular show here, and I was inspired by some dudes backyard ninja warrior set up. so I set up a quick obstacle course in the yard. pretty fun.

 1. run with the crocodile walker down the walk

 2. the log jump
                                             
                                                

 3. rope climb

 4. down the slide

 run quickly!

 5. puzzle time!

 6. knock down the shoes with the ball

 super fun way to spend some time. now I am on creative detail for the next round of competition. any good ideas are welcome. have a great day!

Emily's 1st Birthday!

we arrive under clouds, but also sun.

the big gift. thank you Yaya and Papou.

a version of ring around the rosy, but not about the bubonic plague and just generally different.

hot new ride.

we seem to want her to walk more than she does.

eleftheria's pink velvet was as good as it looks.

hitten' that sidewalk chalk.

balloons and flags

the park is really nice, the area we were in boasted some picnic tables and a very useful densely leafed tree.

when it started to sprinkle we all huddled underneath until the cloud passed.

then we escaped to blow some bubbles.

up in the tree

the kids were hiding to surprise us all on our walk. there are paved trails that lead down to a wider dirt trail where people run, ride bikes and stroll with their families.

we held out for a long while, but by the end even our tree couldn't hold the rain back.

A few Photos

we were back out at Artemis' friend's house where she got to ride a tractor and another horse riding lesson

a new purchase for the house in the village means comfy swing-time on the patio.

 Artemis and Emily both grew out of their car seats, so Emily moved into Artemis' old seat, very exciting.

the family pack mule

this is a photo from the same park where Emily's part was held. we were there a week early to scope out the area, but once again it rained on us. we hid underneath this ancient arch.