Nearly there!

I have no excuses for having taken so long to write the first blog of 2011. I also have no idea where the time has gone and what we have been doing with it! It may be a sign that we are truly settled that we are just pottering along and have little to report. Just as well we have only 3 weeks left in the Gambia and another change around the corner to inject some energy!

I expect no sympathy, but January and the first half of February proved quite chilly. Aubs spent a lot of time laughing at me as I wrapped several layers around myself to get through the morning’s school run (although “someone” advised me against packing jumpers and fleeces I can now advise that a fleece or two come in very handy in Jan/Feb in the Gambia). However, even Aubs was very grateful of the bedspread I managed to get hold off to stave off the cold at night. All that is now behind us as things have started to warm up and so no one wants to be outside between 10am and 4pm because of the heat. The other notable weather feature since Christmas has been the wind. There is a strong wind which blows down from the Sahara bringing with it unimaginable amounts of dust so that almost everything turns a nice reddy-brown colour. It also heralds the end of the malaria season and start of the season for all things horrible that can attack the respiratory system!

While I am not sure that any of us took on any New Year’s resolutions, the girls are at least trying to learn some new skills. Amelie has taken up African drumming, though she seems to be limited to a single song (so I wouldn’t request a concert just yet). The drum also seems to be the perfect height to use as a pillow rest as I usually find most of the class slumped over their drums at pick up time! Amelie is also doing gardening as an after school activity, though since week two this has mainly a watering activity and a weekly competition of who can come home covered in the most mud. As the corn is know about knee length I am hoping we at least get to sample that before we leave.

Elise is mostly concentrating her energies on bouncing and swinging. I estimate she spends approximately 4 hours a day swinging – a quick go on the swings at Amelie’s school at drop off and pick up times followed by a solid core of the morning at nursery and then opportunistic visits to friends’ houses and local playgrounds. She now goes frighteningly high and has started to jump off while in mid air. This coupled with a new ability to climb up the rope attaching our tyre swing to a branch about 5m high is doing my nerves a lot of good!

We indulged Elise’s love of jumping this weekend at her birthday party by hiring a bouncy castle. I am pretty sure she will never get a party with as many children and activities so I hope she enjoyed it! Amazingly the party for 25 odd under 5s seemed to go smoothly and with nothing more serious than a few mosquito bites, though Amelie is still maintaining that pass the parcel was in no way fair!

With Elise’s birthday out of the way there are no excuses left – time to start thinking about clearing up and how to cope with the imminent fall in temperature!