We spent the beginning of September in Albany, where Nikita participated in a chess tournament. In the meantime, Ivan and I basically relaxed in the hotel; I was particularly zonked from our recent travels.
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| One benefit of attending a German school. |
September of course means the return to school, an event marked by both
John Green and
This American Life (I particularly like how
Act II illustrates how the way we tell stories reflect the type of person we are.). This year is special for Ivan because his entry into the first grade signals the start of "real" school. He was thrilled to see that his best friend was placed in his class after all, and loved the gifts (especially the Pixar Story Collection) in his Schultute (right).
In general, our lives got really crazy, with the boys having some class EVERY DAY of the week. I also started shuttling the boys to activities. The saving grace is being able to work or overhaul my wardrobe (thanks to a nearby consignment store) while I wait for the boys. But at one point, I worried about crashing while driving because I was so tired; Ivan assured me God wouldn't let me crash because "God controls everything."
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| Ten years later. |
Somehow, we found time to celebrate our 10th(!) wedding anniversary (above), have a wonderful dinner with a schoolfriend of Nikita's, and hang out at the apple orchard for a birthday party. I was also able to read The Cuckoo's Calling, swim twice a week, and cook; favorite recipes this month were clafouti and rustic plum cake. Finally, I learned of a lot of cool links, such as a photo history of male affection, how Van Halen talks with his girlfriend, and how Jimmy Fallon played ping-pong with Prince.
