But, once again, I/we resolve to give it the ol' college try and do the best we can. So forgive us for being remiss with the postings, and I know it's cliche to say "we've been busy" but honestly, WE'VE BEEN REALLY BUSY. Such is the nature of every family juggling school, work, activities, errands, friends and everything in-between. The beginning of the school year is hectic - any teacher will tell you that - and when you have two parents who are teaching, and two children who are in school, and all four of you are at the same school keeping up with teacher obligations and activities and events, it is often overwhelming and before you know it... one, two, four, six weeks have gone by and suddenly: it's October!
I never posted about our summer, but friends and family who read this (and that's who this blog is for) know the details anyway. We kicked off our summer vacation with a trip to Croatia. W O W. What a gorgeous country. We drove six hours south to Plitvice Lakes... truly God's country. The pictures don't begin to do it justice but gives you a pretty good idea of the incredible landscape and 17 lakes.
We then headed back towards the Northwest corner of Croatia to the Adriatic Sea, and spent four days in the quaint (former Italian) sea town of Rovinj. Again... W O W! The weather was perfect and the water was like bath water. This was the first time the kids had actually swum in warm ocean water! We spent our days on the rocky, shallow beaches and ate seafood each night, brought to the restaurants straight from the boat.
Rovinj is a place we will visit again, and again, and...Five days after returning to Hungary from Croatia, we were on a 14 hour airplane extravaganza back to Portland! We had a GREAT visit back to the U.S. for four weeks, but the time was too short. Still, we managed to squeeze in some wonderful, quality time with our parents, my sister, good friends, as well as the obligatory doctor and dental appointments. We were able to check-in with our renters who are taking excellent care of our house, and for that we are fortunate.
We traversed much of the west coast and I was able to celebrate my 20 year high school reunion with really awesome, really old friends (a definite highlight for me!). The kids loved spending time with their grandparents (as did their parents) and their aunty, and we were grateful for two dear families and their friendship who let us bunk on their couches and pull-out beds, each a week at a time. My dad always says that "fish and company smell after three days" but these friends never once asked us to leave... that we know of ;-) We ended the last week of our trip with a few days at Cannon Beach with my mom, sister and in-laws. The 'smores and campfire songs on the beach were a fitting farewell to our wonderful family and the good ol' USA.
Once back in Budapest, we settled into our new home (which we love) and before we knew it, were back to the daily grind. Amongst all the happenings of school and work, I managed to take a long weekend in Florence, Italy for a reading conference with two teachers and dear friends. We ate amazingly well and managed to see the sights each evening and the morning before our flight left (see photo here at the Ponte Vecchio).
TB traveled to Solanta, Romania with 14 high school students and two other teachers for a 4-day visit to an orphanage (sponsored by our school) and a side trip to Timisoara to expose the students to Romania's war-torn history. It was his second visit to the orphanage and Romania, and his stories are pretty incredible. A blog devoted to this unique opportunity would be really interesting to our family and friends... but until then, a few pictures will have to do.
Our family took a much-needed break from the frenetic pace of our life and drove two hours to Eger, Hungary last weekend... what a darling town! We enjoyed the many walking lanes and sights, including the castle that overlooks the hills and valley surrounding this premier wine region. We topped off the weekend with a visit to the Salt Hill Thermal Baths/Aqua Park, a real treat for the kids AND mom and dad!
Our kids, in the meantime, are keeping busy with soccer (LB), yoga, ballet, choir (SB), swimming lessons (both) and loving their teachers and friends in PreK and grade 3. We couldn't be more proud of our daughter and son, and their parent-teacher conferences last week confirmed our pride and admiration with how well they have settled into their new life here. It's been a very rich and rewarding experience for them and they have friends from all over the world and a definite appreciation for new cultures and places. Thanks to everyone who's taken an interest in our adventure and offered many words of encouragement, support, kindness and friendship. Year Two is upon us and it feels MUCH better, but still, living overseas in an eastern european country continues to have its challenges.... we're just a little better equipped to handle them now. Budapest and Hungary are slowly etching their way into our hearts. We have a genuine fondness for the people and traditions of this fascinating place. Reméljük, hogy megosszák a csoda Magyarország veled az elkövetkező évben!
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