Tom and I have been watching it for about a week and a half now. Our kids cry a little easier, fight a little more, and it is apparent that something is missing. They don't have their friends and they miss them. Olin is having more of a hard time because he is so socially driven. Alta finds her 'recharge' in solitude: playing in the sand, watching ants, working on crafts or weaving grass. Olin finds his in moving his body and being with his buds. We bought him a $8 scooter at the Salvos (Salvation Army) down the street, and that has helped a lot. Today though, he needed his friends. And then in swooped Jena! She and I have been trying to Skype for about a week now, and today was the day it happened. We connected, said 'hi', talked about some recent things with where we lived, and then handed the computers off to the kids. For about 20 minutes Olin had her son all to himself, and for about 20 minutes, Alta had her daughter all to herself (Well, kind-of. Her daughter had a friend over so they both Skyped) It was EXACTLY what they needed. Thank you Jena! Tomorrow we hope to Skype with the Olin and Alta's other good friends. One day at a time until they can meet some kids at school. They start the 30th. We've also signed Olin up for a weekly parkour class with other boys and will be signing Alta up for gymnastics. Hopefully that will help with their need for 'kid time' as well.
After Skyping, we headed to the Somersby Waterfall. It actually was more of a trickle because it hasn't rained a lot in a while, but the kids had fun playing in the water they could fine. It was interesting watching them maneuver the woods and boulders around the falls compared to some of the other Aussie kids. You could tell our kids knew nature and how to interact with it - Alaskan grown. In the evening, Olin made $5 (Aussie dollars) mowing the front lawn, and Alta watched ants as they waited for their dad to make a fantastic dinner. A good day. Not as packed with big events like yesterday, and that was just fine. The kids got what they needed: friend connection.
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AuthorThe Liljemark's enjoy exploring the world. This blog chronicles our adventures. Archives
December 2017
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