Christmas Number 1 for Toby (Hallelujah), Number 4 for Izzy, Number 93 for Gi Gi...but the excitement never ends.

In Devon for Christmas Day. We arrived on Christmas Eve. It was lovely to see Gigi. And of course we should not forget, its the first time she has met Toby.

Had a lovely Christmas day in Devon. Father Christmas paid a visit, as promised in his reposnse to Isabelle's letter. He left Christmas Stockings on the doors and lots of lovely gifts by the tree. She was in awe of the whole thing....

Izzy was so sweet in respect of the whole Father Christmas

Toby, well he was just chillin, as normal.

Isabelle was more that happy to pass out gifts, aswell as open them all...

BABY SOUP

Children have had a lovely time in Manchester. ...Somewhere in there is Isabelle, Toby, Thomas and Georgina..You try and work out who is who...

All of them seemed to be happy with each other, most of the time. The days have been great fun....

Sleeping at night was less fun though...Again, Toby unsettled at night (poor lad) and Isabelle not happy to be put to bed and left alone....

It's a real treat to be in the countryside....and the view from the Oddy's home in Yeavely is true country side.

It's nice to be here, just a shame (as with everywhere we will stay) that we cannot stay longer....

Next stop Yeaveley....phase two of our visit....

Had heard so much about the new shower and spa room at The Rowans.

Was mildly disappointed.....

Lovely to see Mum and Dad again, and this time on their turf. Isabelle was excited by the new location. Again, Toby a little overwhelmed, but he did settle quicker this time. I guess he's getting used to the gypsy lifestyle..

(Obviously I'm kidding about the bathroom....it's top notch)

Time Zones....a killer for the children.....not sure if this is 2.30 am or pm....ah, who cares....

Sleep when they do....well, thats the plan anyway...

Fortunately, as with last year, there is some test match cricket to catch up on. Toby seems intrigued.....

Not the best start to the trip - 6 hrs at JFK waiting for a plane to be repaired...

But once underway, we managed pretty well. Children were amazing.

Toby did manage to keep a few business class passengers awake. We'd had a chat about that before we left and he upheld his part of the bargain...delighted !

Anyway, 1st stop, Bewdley to see Grandad Martin and Grandma Andrea. Lovely to see them both. Isabelle was very excited and had a great time in new surroundings. Toby took a little longer to settle in...a bit overwhelmed I think....

We were able to pop down to Teddy Gray's and show Izzy the best sweet shop the world.

Twisted....

Presents - check

Wrapping paper - check

Ribbons - check

Children - check...

Then lets go..England here we come....

Hey, Izzy....

You ready for your big trip home and for Christmas ....??

Long, Long Weekend

We've just ended a very enjoyable long weekend....been at home with the children enjoying extra time off work for Thanksgiving.

But I tell you what - Now shattered.....Its been a long few days, with early starts and non stop activity.....

Fun though, just exhausting (as anyone out there with children understands)....Bring me a G&T...

Ey up, am headin t' fields for ploughin....

I'll be back fe supper...

Went down to a farm outside Princeton. Its a working farm with lots of lovely stuff to do...

Animals for the children to feed, tractors to climb on and basically lots of room to just run around...

Happy Thanksgiving......

So, we broke from tradition by not having turkey, but we certainly had pie.....(seems you cannot have thanksgiving without having pie)

Absolutely fantastic......

Apple Pie, with cream of course....

Probably watch "Biggest Loser" later...reality weight loss...love it....

Long day at work.....the answer....

Get the kettle on.....Cup of Tea...Milk, 1 sugar....

Nice, solves all problems....

Oddy, You've Been Slacking....You said you would post daily...

Hey, back off man, I'm short of time.....I've got two children you know....

That's no excuse, so have I. You don't see me getting all defensive....

Ok, ok,,,,,I've thrown in some updates....there mixed in with the other posts......you need to scroll down to see them....Just relax man...

All the Leaves ....Almost gone.

Autumn feels complete. Temps getting very cold.....winter coats have replaced summer jackets in the wardrobe.....Winter is on its way.

Once thing this instantly means - it now takes us about 25 minutes longer to get set to leave the house !

Coats, scarfs, gloves, on....then, oh surprise....Isabelle needs the bathroom ....Coats, scarfs and gloves off,

Then back on again....You get the picture....

No real update to speak off. Haven't taken any pix for a few days.

So thought I would just add another Montauk pic.

Ditch Plains

We were lucky enough to be out in Montauk at the weekend. Its right on the end of Long Island....drive any further east and we'd all be pulling on bandies (that's armbands in Izzyish)

Its off season at the moment, which was actually excellent since it was uncrowded and very peaceful.. blue skies, but a little breezy.

Some friends (Bill, Jenny and Emma) have a fantastic home out there and they asked us to go out and stay the weekend.

What treat. We all had the best time.....Bill had to miss out, unfortunately though as he was away on business....

Monday Already - Really Don't Feel Like Going to Work Today

11 o'clock, November 11

Pleasantly surprised to hear the national anthem at 11 am this morning, the English one at that !!
Looked out of the window to the park below. There was a short ceremony in the public gardens in front of the office. Turns out the garden was named for the House of Hanover, which came to power in the person of King George I. In 2006-2007, the park was renovated to become the British Memorial Garden.

Hooray, its the weekend......

Been an interesting week, to say the least....

I wouldn't consider myself to be big on politics but this week was different....

In the run up to Tuesdays election, I devoured anything written about the possible outcome.

On Tuesday evening, like many, I felt slightly nervous that the pre election polls would be proved inaccurate.

The rest of the week was spent thinking...'who would want that job !'.....

I wonder if either candidate anticipated stepping into the role in the current climate.

Interesting times....

In his element .......California here I come........

Well actually, we just got back. Lovely trip with the whole family including Grandma and Grandad.

Weather - outstanding,

Scenery - gorgeous

Wine - plentiful....

Fun - Yes.....Lots.......

Not too much more to be said really.

Nothing But Blue Sky Ahead....

Looking forward to this Holiday....

Make Way...Here Come the Oddy's

Hey Pumpkin Boy.....

Its that time of year again. This time its the Tobster who is happy with the large mysterious round orange objects.

He's possibly got his first seasonal bug...runny nose etc....And I think its keeping him up at night....

Granddad and Grandma are in Brooklyn at the moment, so they have been able to help us out ....It's great to see them...

House Hunting.....

So we have started the house hunt in earnest, though its difficult to find the time with Izzy and Toby in tow.

We have identified Ridgewood in New Jersey as a possible spot to settle for a while...

Quite simply the space in Brooklyn is just too small with two mobile children. Toby is almost on the move. He's limited at the moment to rolling and spinning 360's on his tummy....sort of like a 80's backspin, but without the lino, and shiny jacket (and obviously, not on his back)

Izzy, however, is like a caged animal some days (a lovely animal though). Just full of energy and happiest with no boundries.....

So.....watch this space......

Not looking forward to a commute mind, so delaying as much as possible !!!

Early morning on Wall Street.

Seems strange, but while nothing is happening in the stock exchange in NY, Europe is in meltdown....

Though it appears everyone is sleeping, I just wonder how many people are having sleepless nights....

Difficult times indeed...

We survived !!!!!

Caroline is in England until Sunday, which leaves me home alone. I am being looked after by Toby and Isabelle.

They have done terrific job, they woke me up, reminded me to eat breakfast, (and lunch,with snacks), taught me about Noah and the Ark. They also made sure all our blood pressure was ok and we were up to the task (see pic)

And that was by 9am.....

From there, Isabelle spoke to me at length about the importance of education, and nutrition while studying..and then promptly showed me how to make a packed lunch...

Meanwhile Toby showed me the importance of relaxation , how to chill, and generally take it easy...(Don't think he actually got up to help all morning.)

After school we spent the afternoon making Carrot and Walnut Muffins with Aiden (Master Chef and Musician)

Then headed back home, via the bottle shop. (Picked up a nice Malbec, Selected by Lady Isabelle, she liked the bear on the label)

Izzy co ordinated the evening clean up, with guests arriving at 8pm.

Toby decided to call it quits at about 7ish.......lazy bugger......that boy needs to start pulling his weight around here. He still hasn't found a job.

Izzy and I prep'd for diner, along with Mr Hunan Delight, who by a stroke of genius arrived with everything cooked, in nice little boxes and ready to eat...Amazing...he even brought chopsticks. He left, taking some of my money, saying he would invest it wisely...Smart man....

Peter and Sarah arrived from Bermuda and were promptly shown how to strut to "Don't Stop Me Now", by Queen....(Izzy's typical bed time, wind down routine !!)

She was quick to secure us an invite, (the whole family) to the beach in Bermuda next year...(nice work Iz)

A good day...Some tired bodies though !

We all wished very much that Mummy / Caroline / Wifey was with us..........Not quite the same without her.

She would have been incredibly proud of her daughter, Isabelle who was centre of the party, until she crashed around 8pm. One too many Milk Cup's, I believe......she needs to pace herself......

She would also be proud of Toby who was incredibly calm despite daddy's stress, over simple things like cleaning bottles at 6am......

Theme of the day, described best by a new book Daddy and Toby found while Izzy was at school....

In "Cargo" at the weekend. That's Chicago to you and I, but Izzy hasn't quite got that one mastered. Not yet anyway.

Out there for some RGL Training. It went very well and was a lot of fun. Managed to catch up with a number of people I haven't seen for a while.

Got back late Saturday night, so it felt like a very short weekend.

Those were the days.....AIG's share price whizzes by at $45.81... today closed at $3.75

Another day of financial incertainty today for AIG. Hopefully the stories of a financial rescuse are not merely speculation....

Fall is Under Way...

The leaves are falling and the birthday parties have started.

Some of the things happening in September are obvious, Leaf Peeping, Izzy's birthday, early casualties of the premiership !

But there's also a string of birthday parties for Isabelle to attend...All her friends are virtually the same age, so each weekend there are various events ...She's quite the socialite ! Its exhausting for us though....

Got back from Baltimore on the train late last night. On the way home from the station I was reminded of the date by two shining columns of light projecting from ground zero.

I never did see the actual towers themselves. My first visit to the US came shortly after September 11, 2001. But this image certainly serves to show of how they must have dominated the skyline.

Once I made it home, I decided to go down to Brooklyn Heights to look more closely. A large number of poeple had the same idea. It was a strong reminder to cherish what we have since we don't know what lies a head. A humbling experience.

Amazing how time passes by.

I cannot believe it is 7 years since we were all watching the television, not believing what was being shown. But the most unbelievable of images are still strong in our memory.

A Sycamore tree had protected St Pauls Chapel from the blast caused by the falling towers.

An artist made a mold of the stump from that tree and with other tree segments made a large sculpture called Trinity Root to stand as a testament to life, humanity and the positive response to the catastrophe. This sculpture stands in Trinity Church on Broadway.

Look who's 3 today !

Happy Birthday Isabelle

Lots of Love

Mummy, Daddy and Toby

xx

Mrs O

Here's To You....
Love You.....xx

Hey, would you mind stepping back a little....you're in my sun....

Gone to the Beach

We'll be back next week !

Izzy gets into Olympic spirit...

Here she is competing in the Equestrian event. Naturally she is competing for GB.

Not sure about the wave to the crowd.

Oh hang on, news just in ...she's only gone and won the gold....

In all seriousness, coverage of the GB success has been limited...I have been resigned to the BBC website (which is great) and "Refresh" (and it won't even auto refresh, so my thumb is sore)

Look who turned 6 months yesterday!

Wow, sounds a bit odd.....it feels like he's been with us forever.

We love him to bits (Isabelle too, of course) - Just let us get some sleep !

Anyway, Happy Birthday Tobes

New and Old...

It's amazing how much of this contrast there is in NY. And everywhere you look, there is a new buidling going up, usually squeezed between two old ones.

Young Oddy makes his debut at the Big Table..and he makes the grade.

Solids !!


He loved it......nice and messy, 3 of us waiting on him, hand and foot....
Off to a great start...Not sure about the pink spoon though.

Another Oddy in Brooklyn....

Rebecca is in town. Lovely to see her. Izzy was very excited.

She's with us until Wednesday eve, when she zips off to Chicago....., then Vegas, San Diego, San Fran etc....(Jet set, very jealous)

Sorry.....we had some computer technical problems, viruses, bugs etc....not sure how they got there, but caused a right mess...

Anyway, appears to be all clear now....so will start posting some pics again...

Spent some time out and about this weekend...went to Downtown Manhattan on Sunday for a mooch around....Wall Street, Seaport area, Ground Zero and Battery Park (to a playground with Izzy)

All exhausted by mid afternoon

T is for Toby..It's also for Teeth...

We have two teeth visible

Both came about the same time. Naturally Toby is quite literally getting his teeth into everything

The Sprinklers Are On !!

And it's hours of fun for one person in particular......Back and forth through the spray not a care in the world.....

Soaked, but happy !!

July 4th weekend.

We decided to go upstate and get a break from the city. Everyone enjoyed it. A nice break.

We managed to sneak in an amusement park on the way home.....much to Isabelle's delight (and our's too actually)

Anyway, she seemed to enjoy the whole thing. Bit nervous about February when we head for Disney. This was just a warm up I guess. We are going to need to extra energy...

Today Izzy learned to throw the Frisbee...

pretty impressive she was too......



A great backhand in the making, a terrific double handed wind up......quite appropriate during Wimbledon Finals week.....

We are working on direction next week ! Baby steps ....

Where have you been ! Thought you'd given up on us.....

Sorry for the lack of postings...its been a funny couple of weeks.....pretty busy at work, very hot and humid in NY so have spent most of the evenings sitting / lying as still a possible....

Lucky enough to have business trip to Bermuda...thought it was literally 24 hrs !

The extra heat from the laptop is not welcome here...so have left it off as much as possible....

Anyway....some catch up pictures...

Isabelle is developing into a cracker....along with full mood swings !!














Toby - always grinning ! Until Izzy whacks him !














Caroline - still doing a top job........and I have to add back into all her pre-preggers clothing !!! (She tells me a lot does not even fit ! - but i think thats a rouse to get to the shops for July 4th sales !)

M&M's Training Program

We have Isabelle on a potty training program. For every sucessful wee-wee on the potty, she earns a sticker for her chart.

At the end of the day she can exchange the stickers for sweeties !! She has been amazing with the training......very few accidents.

I think she's figured out a loophole though. She seems to be drinking much more water ! The result, more potty visits leading to more sweets !

So far so good though....she deserves every sweety...