We’re just back from a weekend in Cambridge. AC’s colleague’s parents offered us the use of their flat for the weekend while they were away. Flat does not do it justice. It was a three-story house–enormous– with large and winding carpeted stairs, which prompted Sam to remark again that “England has a lot of stairs.” …

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I told the wife of one of AC’s British colleagues that I am getting to know English culture through the playgrounds. It’s really true. Being in a foreign country with a small child means that we do fewer adult touristy things and more hanging out in parks and gardens. So what have I gleaned so far? Playground …

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Tonight while I was making dinner, Sam came into the kitchen with her backpack on. She explained that she was going on a trip. Me: “Where are you going?” Sam: “To the United States.” Me: “Oh, I’m from the United States.” Sam: “This is a different United States.” Me: “Oh?” Sam: “Yeah, it has an east coast. It’s called …

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Here they are– my version of the British “Bubble and Squeak.” All in all they were pretty tasty. Similar to a potato cake, but with cabbage mixed in. Definitely an easy way to sneak cabbage into one’s diet. You can find the BBC Food recipe I loosely followed here: But I am incapable of following a recipe exactly. So …

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This was on the label of a bag of seasonal vegetables I purchased the other day from Waitrose– our nearest grocery store. I love browsing the aisles of grocery stores in other countries. Food is probably my favorite gateway to culture and you can learn a lot from a grocery store. In France, for instance, the yogurt …

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It feels like it’s been a long week, even though we did lose a day. I’m remembering now that on the day we arrived, I told Sam that it was Monday and she corrected me, “No Mommy, it’s Sunday.” Alas, in the UK it was indeed Monday. So here’s what we’ve been up to since we arrived, bleary-eyed and wired, in Brighton: …

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This was Sam’s first observation about England. Not that it’s grey and cloudy nearly every day. Not that the driver’s seat is on the other side of the car, and certainly not the linguistic differences that amuse her parents so much (we live in a flat not an apartment; we take the lift not the elevator, etc.) No, the …

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Three years old, that is. Today is Sammy’s birthday. Her parents are happy and proud. At age 3 Sam is toilet trained, she can legibly write two of the three letters of her name (the “A” and the “M”), she can reliably count up to 10 objects, she is chatty and charming and friendly. Also, she exhausts us like no other …

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A tender moment between father and daughter. AC picks Sam up and says to her: “Sam, I’m so happy that you are in my life.” Sam squirms out of the embrace and says: “I wanna ride your foot!” {Beat} “That’s MY life.”

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We captured Sammy singing the French song “Alouette” on video about two months ago, back when she was obsessed with French children’s songs. “Alouette” is a bird-plucking song, though Sam doesn’t realize that. It’s a useful song for learning and reinforcing body parts, and so you see Sam tap her father’s head (la …

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