Christmas 2000
As we approach the start of the next millenium, we look back at 2000 and wonder how it was for you. It was a mixed and rather unsettled year for us and we look forward to a new year full of purpose and direction.
There was a sad start to the year as Phil’s Dad died suddenly of a heart attack at the end of January. His passion, enthusiasm and heart on sleeve principles are fondly remembered.
Fortunately the year had some lighter moments ... eg. Sabrina ... a Barbie girl ... in a Barbie world ...
The terrible two’s of a toddler transformed mid-way through the year into a child full of confidence, character and energy. It’s strange how things change slowly, almost imperceptibly over the days. The hug as you pick her up after nursery gets less intense; the cuddle after her bath in a morning is for a shorter time ... she’s just becoming more independent! She does understand most things now and copied phrases are adopted and re-cycled, although the mistakes are always the funniest. She learned to sing early this year; coming back in the car from a friend’s on a dark, clear night we were treated to a wonderful rendition which came out as “minkle minkle little star ...” Occasional howlers include a song which sounded like “it’s a long way to tip/kiss a fairy ...” Fairies and angels are her favourite types of people; purple has given way to pink as her favourite colour and she has become more picky with food, fish fingers in warm milk being a particular favourite. She had her tonsils out in June, is at last potty trained and can count to five in German, see later.
This year has seen little change with regard to Katie’s employment status, ie. she works full-time at home but is looking forward to the challenges the new year will bring, see later. Unfortunately, her Dad had a bad year through illness and 2 courses of treatments, plus a knee replacement but seems to be recovering slowly now. He has a comical walk with one leg straight and the other bent but it doesn’t seem to bother him.
Phil’s work has taken him to Paris twice, Sellafield and Iceland (the supermarket firm not the country!). The trips to Paris managed to combine business and leisure by ensuring that the family came over for long weekends. Cité des Enfants on the NE periphery is definitely recommended for kids 2-10, it’s a mini-town where the kids roam around exploring things, there’s a car to be dismantled and even a mock building site.
Later ... well all this galavanting about has led us into thinking that we’d quite like a short spell abroad, say two years and after considering that whilst, the food and drink are superior in France, the welcome, culture, job prospects (and erm beer) are better in Germany, we have opted to try for the latter.
Phil has been applying for various jobs on-and-off but so far nothing definite. We visited in early November and Phil had a couple of interviews, both of which turned up with “offers”. He turned down one to concentrate on the one he really wanted, and as luck would have it, hasn’t heard anything since! So, we’ll wait a few more days and then the job application process begins all over again. We have set a deadline of Easter.
Holidays this year were one week in Tenerife and the one in Germany (Wiesbaden, near Frankfurt). We shared an appartment in Tenerife with friends and that was a real hit, great fun for us and especially Sabrina. We were on the island at the same time as a Jazz Festival and this meant a couple of nights listening to music in the warm open air ... delightful. We also discovered Cuban music big style this year, courtesy of Buena Vista Social Club and we saw them perform at Manchester’s Bridgwater Hall during a Cuban week in August. It was a real thrill to see the likes of Ruben Gonzalez playing magical piano pieces and then taking bow after bow of appreciation, an 85 year old musical genius, with arthritis in his fingers from playing non-stop in the 50s heyday. Another recommended musical joy is Gloria Estefan’s Alma Caribeña (Caribean Soul): a contender for best album of all time (well for Phil anyway!).
Determined to be organised for a change, we’re looking forward to a New Year party at a country pub with dancing to live music.
yearly reviews
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