Twelve Feet, Six Continents, One Year

First of all, is my math right? I know that we started on June 23rd but that was in the United States. Today is January 8th but that's in Australia. It's only January 7th in the US. Does that mean the trip is longer or shorter? Can anybody explain daylight savings time to me? Second, we've been having a really good week. Elise took the day off on Monday and regained some energy. We found a daycamp here that is effectively drop-in during their school holidays. For friends in Portland: this is like Campfire mixed with Trackers. In other words, it's awesome. We showed the kids the "menu" if activities on each day and the result was that Henry and Lily went on Tuesday, Ali and Cate on Wednesday and all four on Thursday. Arriving at St Kilda Park Primary School for TeamKids Camp We feel really satisfied and proud that our kids show up at a new venue with unfamiliar kids and adults and plunge right in. Henry made a friend, which led to a playdate and possibl...

Our Christmas morning was not very much unlike any other year: stockings with gifts from Santa, a decorated tree surrounded by a pile of wrapped gifts from mom and dad, cinnamon rolls, all the excitement done by 8am... With a smile like this... This is what the sound of wrapped lego looks like Typical Christmas morning chaos Henry got some beyblades! Santa brought Ali (and Cate) a ribbon Santa brought stick on nails to Ali and Cate Happy! If you know Elise, you know this is a Christmas morning tradition Henry's new sunglasses (aviators!), combined with some found items, equals superhero! On the other hand, the rest of the day was quite out of our ordinary. First, we drove to the highly-recommended Cottesloe Beach. Because when else are we going to spend Christmas frolicking in the Indian Ocean? One observation I would like to make is that the demographics of Christmas beachgoers was far more diverse than what we have seen elsewhere in...

Four generations of Maklers When your grandfather turns 99, you show up. When you plan a round-the-world adventure, arrange the itinerary so that you can show up. When you embark on a 30-state RV adventure, you get to Grandpa on the weekend closest so his 99th so that you can show up. So it was that we pulled into my parents' driveway on the evening of Friday, October 18th. The onboard travel calendar said, simply "October 19th: Hot Tub." This is one of the kids favorite features of the house in Los Altos and it was all the motivation they needed during the final hours of driving. So it was that the kids go to see their cousins, Theo (17) and Winter (13), their uncle Chris and Aunt Danielle throughout the weekend. There's something special about older cousins and these visits did not disappoint. So it was that the kids got to have endless snuggling with their grandparents while reading books, watching movies or jumping into and out of the hot tub. ...

There have been many firsts, of course. Henry lost the first trip of the tooth and we expect there to be many more. But because our birthdays are in March, April, June, August and December, this was the first birthday for us on the road. We had a great little party yesterday (which was Sunday) with a few kids who have become friends to Ali and Cate. If you're unfamiliar with our family, you should know that some of the birthday parties we've had for the kids over the last decade have been epic, especially in the craftiness category. The genius of yesterday's party was that the entire "party" was dispatched in about 15 minutes. The friends arrived. There were cupcakes. There was singing. There was tearing into wrapping paper. And then it was done. The kids dispersed to play in and around the house. There was water play in the sprinkler. There was the swingset. There was a moderate amount of playing with new presents. Then the adults sat around and talked! C...