Kelly's Wedding

Daddy and Minnie went to Greece to see Cousin Kelly get married to Glen.  The Keats were there as well as Yaya and 'Metris, and everybody had a lovely time ... playing on the beach, seeing the family, and enjoying the sea.

Mummy's Holiday and Daddy Week

I went away for a week ... a whole week!  To Thailand, with Uncle Andrew, Alex and Laura.  It was blissfully relaxed, swimming in the sea, reading in the pool in my rubber ring, eating great food, reading and having a few beers (and massages!).

I did miss you both, and of course Daddy, but you were in very safe hands.  And Daddy managed to concoct a phantasmagorical week for you both ... what fun!

Uncle Matthew's 40th Birthday

In March the whole Smithy family and friends gathered together in a cottage near Haslemere to celebrate Uncle Matthew's 40th birthday.

We had a fun and relaxing time, playing with the massive tree and swing in the garden, croquet, werewolf and all sorts of other games.  You enjoyed hanging out with Ben (Gerald and Bernie's son), as always appreciating the company of an older child, and it is fascinating to see you adjust your behaviour accordingly.

A good time was had by all, and you and Min-Min had fun collecting the eggs at the farm where Uncle Andrew and Chaya were staying.

Two little stories form Greece

We're visiting Super Papou in Greece - with Yaya and Dimetres, but without Mummy. You and your sister are having so much fun. Today we ate lunch with Hella in Loco Bus and went to the play area, which had a bouncy castle, a ball pit and a toddler climbing frame. Maybe I'll post some pictures later.

Seeing Super Papou and Minnie sitting next to each other, I imagine Super Papou being Minnie's age and sitting next to someone of Super Papou's age - who would have been born in 1833!

I wanted to tell you two funny stories from today.

You made up your first joke. You made a string of spaghetti out of Play-doh with Dimetres this morning. You put the spaghetti on your nose and said, "Look! Bolog-nose!"

Dimetres laughed so much that you kept on going - you put the spaghetti on your eye and said, "Bolo-eyes!" then "Bolo-ears!" and so on.

Later, in the play area, you were having fun in the toddler climbing maze, which was full of little padded rooms with net walls, and slides, and ball pits. At one point you shouted, "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!"

"Yes, Penny?" I said. I couldn't really see you in there, but I could hear you well enough.

"I'm a stuck princess!"

"Oh, really?" I said. "Will you be stuck a hundred years and grow old in there?"

"No!"

I laughed to myself, and went back to chatting with Yaya.

Then five minutes later you started crying. "What's wrong Penny?" I asked.

"I'm a stuck princess!"

"You're really stuck?"

"Yes!"

So I ventured into the child-sized climbing maze and found you. Sure enough, you were totally stuck! You had unzipped a netted wall, snuck behind the maze and zipped it up again behind you - but the zip was only on one side! You were huddled into a tiny space, smiling at being rescued. I know you like pretending to be a princess, but it was very funny to hear you refer to yourself as one in that situation!




Also, soupcases.

Jon and Sofia got married

At the end of May, we travelled to Spain to be at the wedding of Jon and Sofia.

Your Daddy was Jon's best man, just as he was for Daddy 7 years ago.  He made a great speech, and we had a fun time being treated to fantastic food (like roast suckling piglet and sliced jamon).

The sun shone, and everybody had a happy weekend, with lots of dancing, chatting and sharing fond memories.  You even tried to swim in the pool, but found it far too cold (we did warn you, but you needed to try it for yourself).

A Baltic Adventure!

We went on a fantastic holiday in May this year, travelling between Stockholm, Tallinn, St Petersburg and Helsinki on a big ferry boat called Princess Anastasia.  It was hard work, moving round the whole time, but we saw some beautiful buildings, ate some fantastic food and experienced some legendary Swedish hospitality.

Puppet Theatre

Minnie's honorary Uncle Alex has a very clever Mummy who can make funny sock puppets … and Daddy and Matthew G had lots of fun entertaining you and Min Min with them on the train on our way back from Cromer.

A Flying Visit to Brighton

We popped in to see Yaya and 'Metris in Brighton before Christmas, and it was very jolly to see them.  We ate some of Demetris' very yummy vegetable soup, and generally sat and chatted while Daddy picked up lots of boxes from the loft.

Lila doggy was staying with them, and you found her fascinating.  You were mostly very gentle and sweet with her, and she looked only a little put out when you joined her in her doggy bed.