24 - 30 December 2007

There she is! 27th torch from the back. Justine was very relieved to learn that this was all that was required of her in the weekly Maria Alm ski show. Now that Simon is recovered and back on skis, next week you can spot them both in a very similar photograph.

17 - 23 December 2007

The holiday is over, all 5 months of it. Both Justine and Simon started work this week. The shock was too much for Simon and after 6 days of work is now signed off with an injured back.

10 - 16 December 2007

This week Maria Alm, international centre of sporting excellence, hosted the Skibob World Cup. Skibob is skiing sitting down, (maybe you could balance your drink on the handlebars). Among the six nations competing, Britain was represented with high quality but low quantity (British team pictured here with us). We reckon that if you fancy representing your country at international level, with a top 30 world ranking, then this sport offers a real possibility. Simon and Justine plan to put in a bit of practice over the coming year and see if they can realise this ambition!

3 - 9 December 2007

St Nicholas does his Austrian rounds on Nikolaustag (6 December). He is jolly, kind, gentle and bearded but always accompanied by a very intimidating mob of hideous Krampus. They are huge, hairy, smelly and horned. They will beat, on request, wayward children with horsehair whips, put them in a big basket and take them away. Our children have been sufficiently terrified into pliable submission and we expect no trouble from them herewith.

26 November - 2 December 2007

This week Caspar turned 7. He also turned into a toothless ski maniac. (There he is, half way down the slope, terrible conditions, too impatient to wait for us.) Justine is reminded of skiing 'holidays' with her Dad; turned out of bed before the sun has risen to be first on the lifts, ski all day with a bread roll on the chair lift for lunch and take the last lift to the top at the end of the day. They would have made great skiing partners and we could have warmed our toes and watched from the window!

19 - 25 November 2007

The glue was on our fingers, the glitter was in our hair, the crepe paper was all over the floor and the warming drink was all drunk but we did manage to produce a huge advent calender for all the children at the Kindergarten's Bastelabend.

12 - 18 November 2007

This is Simon and Jane. Simon has just spent 12 days with Jane and other members of the British Adaptive Ski Team as a 'buddy', carrying equipment and helping the skiers. He found it a completely awe-inspiring and humbling experience and has since stopped complaining about his hurty thumb.

5 - 11 November 2007

St. Martin was a 4th century Roman soldier who was holy and compassionate but didn't want to be bishop, so he hid in the goose stall when the deputation arrived to appoint him. The geese gave him away by gaggling loudly. So on St Martin's Day (11 November), all the geese get killed and eaten and the children sing songs about geese and carry goose-shaped lanterns. All in all, a very jolly old festival (if you're not a goose).

29 October - 4 November 2007

A rough estimate indicates that Mary has used about 8000 of Kindergarten's HAMA beads in two months. We wonder if we should raise funds to feed her habit, or get her checked into a rehab clinic and treat her repetitive strain injury, a nasty side-effect of her addiction.

22 - 28 October 2007

Justine, Simon, Caspar, Mary, Elizabeth, Steve, Charlotte, Liam and Rebecca - captured momentarily standing still during a marvellously jam-packed week.

15 - 21 October 2007

Winter has arrived. For the last week we have sat in the warm sun watching the world go by and wondering why everyone was so busy. Now we think perhaps we should have got the winter tyres on the car before the snow came.

8 - 14 October 2007

The high points of this week were 2504m for Simon and 1752m for Justine. (Breithorn and Peter-Wiechenthaler-Hütte). We finally began exploring our local skyline with new friends Jim and Jan. Simon climbed twice as far and took twice as long to stop hobbling afterwards.

1 - 7 October 2007

Mary, from Maria Alm, four years and ten months, is modelling her favourite pink ski suit and NEW ski boots and helmet. Helmet (5 euros!) and boots (2 euros!!) from the bi-annual Maria Alm bargain second-hand clothing crush. We were there, queuing with the other mums at 8.00am, elbows at the ready and didn't we do well for bargains!

24 - 30 September 2007

In a village full of farmers, Erntedankfest (Harvest Festival) is a big deal, celebrated extravagantly with an abundance of people of all sorts, fruit, vegetables, hats, flags, guns, whips, bells, brass instruments, drums and horse manure.

17 - 23 September 2007

Simon has been putting in some 'leg work' for his new job which starts in December. He hopes a little pedal preparation may help him cope with skiing at least six days a week for three and a half months. This map shows some of his rides.

10 - 16 September 2007

A week of news. New school for Caspar, new kindergarten for Mary and Elizabeth, new bike for Justine and new legs and bum required for Simon who cycled 16.6km up 1337m in a race. New marmite and teabags too provided by new visitor Nina.

3 - 9 September 2007

And just to make us feel right at home, it has rained and rained and rained. And then it snowed and snowed and we wore woolly hats to bed. And now it is raining and raining and raining.

27 August - 2 September 2007

Finally persuaded out of their ski suits, a lack of toys, television and friends forces the children to be creative. Anything that can, is now wearing cardboard angel wings.

20 - 26 August 2007

Simon, Justine, Caspar, Mary, and Elizabeth moved to Maria Alm in Austria on 20th August 2007. Balmy, summer days and Mary has decided she is going to wear her ski suit every day until the snow comes.