Sunday, December 22, 2013

FAMILY NEWS....

this post is far too long overdue, and i've finally found some time to sit down and write it....

something very exciting happened in our family 2 weeks ago and seeing as its been so hard living across the atlantic at this time i felt entitled to share it with everyone on this here small blog! 
on the 11/12/13 (for any americans...12/11/13, which doesn't have quite the same ring to it!) i gained a new love in my life. my brave brave sister gave birth to their second child, a gorgeous little boy, josiah william. 

my niece, beatrice (featured here) is now a big sister and i'm so excited to see her take on this new role, showing josiah the ways of the world, learning to assert her big sisterly authority, burning off their energy together and caring for each other. my brother in law can induct his son in the world of football,  how to play (although beatrice is already pretty good, she has a mean kick!) and the trials and tribulations of chelsea football club. my sister can dress her child up in baby braces and bow ties, although to be honest that is probably more of my desire than my sisters! 

i so enjoy watching my niece grow up into a little young lady and can't wait to see josiah grow into a young man. 

for those of you interested in his name, josiah, means 'the lord heals' which is very meaningful to my sister and brother in law. 

we're so sad that we haven't met you yet josiah, but we cannot wait to have big cuddles with you one day and spoil you rotten! so heres to you josiah, welcome to this world. love from auntie lizzie and uncle nick.




Tuesday, December 10, 2013

WEEKENDERS

this weekend was probably one of my favourites. we've been getting really busy with work and life recently so we took saturday out to just have fun. heres our saturday in pictures......

nick was super romantic and told me during the week that he wanted to take me out for breakfast before all of new york wakes up! now the idea of waking up early on a saturday might not be romantic, but the fact that nick would sacrifice his lazy saturday morning for me was super romantic. so all before 8:30 we were up and out breakfasting at the 'grey dog'.

isn't it just the best? nick comes here every wednesday morning before work to meet with some guy friends from church and is always on about how great this place is. i love that he wanted to show it off to me!


we chatted, ate a scrummy breakfast and played scrabble! needless to say nick won, but i gave him a good run for his money and he only won by 7 points! well played, well played!

we popped into the pet shop on the way home and ended up in a playpen sitting on stools playing with a fluff ball puppy!

we were diverted one final time by the christmas tree stands on the side of the road and bartered with a 10 year old for a metre tall tree!
nick was ever so strong and carried this heavy tree all the way home!



the decorating took all of 5 minutes, even with a rather intrigued kitty! but it was fun with the christmas music on and hot apple cider in hand.

oh, and the obligatory fairy light fixing also took place!




after our lazy afternoon of snoozing and decorating we carb-ed out on bread and pasta for dinner whilst watching bridget jones' diary. that film bought back so many teenager memories. its a great christmas movie!

we also got to snuggle with oli. don't you just love the way that he crosses his arms over like this. he does it all the time and its just the cutest!


p.s im so excited for christmas. theres something about new york that makes christmas all the more magical and exciting, it might be all the lights and the big rockefella christmas tree, or the christmas tree stands on the side of the road...but new york really knows how to do christmas!

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

THANKSGIVING

i'm a little late in posting this, but last thursday was thanksgiving. this was our second thanksgiving in the city, last year we watched the macy's thanksgiving parade which was just outside our apartment at the time. we then went for a thanksgiving meal at our church.

this year we decided to go and see the macy's thanksgiving balloons being blown up the night before thanksgiving. it was fun seeing all the balloons that we recognised from last year. then on thanksgiving we had dinner with friends at their apartment where we got to taste traditional delicacies such as sweet potato mash with grilled marshmallow topping!

this year i'm so thankful for friends that we've made since being in nyc. friends that have invited us to be their friends. friends that have made living here so much more fun. friends that have shown us how to live well in nyc despite all the sacrifices of the city. friends that have even taken on some of our british words. friends who have loved us so well and friends that we will be so sad to leave when we move back. 



diary of a wimpy kid



can you imagine living in one of those apartments? a rather surreal view!

























and heres a few snaps from last y ears parade-i presume its the same each year!!




have you heard about 'elf on the shelf'? he's a little ornament that comes out at christmas and sits on your shelf, but each day leading up to christmas he moves around the house, and the kids have a fun time finding him each morning in a new place!

Monday, November 25, 2013

SIR OLIVER WINSTON


nick has wanted a kitten since forever and finally after two years i gave in and oh my i'm so glad i did. we adopted a little kitty from an animal shelter up in east harlem and named him sir oliver walters (full name), or just oli for short, he's such a cutie.

this weekend we got to know him a little and found out that he:
1. sleeps with his arms crossed
2. can play fetch
3. can turn music on and off, the sound up or down and the brightness down on the laptop
4. enjoys a run around in the bath (an empty bath)
5. can swipe on the i pad

he;s so much fun to be around and snuggle with. here are a few snapshots of his first few days..














Thursday, November 14, 2013

WHATS ALL THIS FUSS ABOUT FALL?

we have been away for a week and when we got back to the city it suddenly felt like winter. i got my boots, gloves, hats and scarves out of hiding, but i'm saving my 'big guns' (my winter duvet coat) for as long as i can hold out. i know that i'll be wearing that coat day in day out for months on end and so i want to enjoy having a choice of jacket/coat to wear for as long as i can even if it does mean i go slightly blue in the process!
as excited as i am about winter approaching with all its christmassy lights and decorations,  i'm sad to see the end of fall. i have loved fall, its my favourite. it totally trumps autumn in every way, the colours, the end to the blistering heat and humidity of summer, the pumpkin scones, the layering of clothing, the crunchy leaves...i could go on and on! i just wish it lasted longer. 
earlier this week i grabbed my camera and headed over to central park for a long stroll so that i could capture some of fall's beauty before it faded and to have some memories of my favourite season. aren't the colours just perfection?





big bird and elmo catching up on their lunch break