It's conker season! We had spotted a suitably ripe horse chestnut in Barnton, so last Monday (which was an Edinburgh holiday; Holly was off school) we rode out and collected a few conkers from the ground. And then we collected a few more. And then some more. Holly collected 53 in total, Louis didn't count his.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Wiggly Woo
DSCF0006
Originally uploaded by Fraser Millar
More Odds and Ends
Here's a selection of snaps from the last week, including yet more cross dressing and the basket swing from the fraternal lunch-up as featured on Lightning Millar's blog.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Odds and Ends
Here's a collection of pictures from the last month or so which didn't really fit into any obvious event or category. We have - among other things - cross dressing, housework, visits from Grandma Pat and Auntie Kate, the Return of the Mac, a birthday party, a vertiginous climb, and Louis' Manchester City top. Normal service will resume imminently.
Row, Row, Row Your Sumo Suit
A couple of weekends ago saw the Duathlon World Championships come to Edinburgh, and Holyrood Park in particular. I wanted to see how proper athletes fared riding the loop round Arthur's seat so we dropped by. They had activities for kids too, including rowing machines and Sumo suits. Holly was particularly taken by the rowing, and set a good time for 400m before doing it again and beating her own time. Louis had a go too and did 100m, before Holly and Leo got suited up for a bit of comedy Sumo. Holly knocked Leo to the ground three times in a row, but we called it a draw in the interests of the pax Caledonia. Oh, and the winner of the elite women's race did her 7 laps of Arthur's seat in 1 hour and 10 minutes, kicking my feeble effort well and truly into touch.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Arthur's Seat Challenge
On the 22nd August, the Bike Station (under the guise of A Better Way To Work) ran the Arthur's Seat Challenge, a fun event in Holyrood Park to - I guess - raise awareness of cycling as a mode of transport. There were various activities on offer, I rode as often as I could round Arthur's Seat in 90 minutes (I managed 7 with a few minutes to spare - 8 was the best recorded on the day) while Helen and the kids did the "Family Quiz Trail". They were first back and so notionally "won" but nobody checked their answers! Either way, the sun shone and a good time was had by all. Helen and Holly went on to Gregor's birthday party, Louis and I hung out on the prom at Portobello. I fell asleep when we got home. More pictures of the Challenge here. There's a picture of me getting dropped by the ERC group here.
Firestarter
Towards the end of August I think, Paula had the bright idea of visiting Crichton Castle, one of her family haunts. We met her and Dave and the Evanses, walked past the castle itself into the leafy valley behind, collected some wood and started a fire. The kids were fascinated, both with the fire and the wee burn running through the woods. We toasted marshmallows and cooked sausages, and headed home (via a swift pint at the Stair Arms) tired, happy and smelling of wood smoke.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Making 22 Splashes
More summertime frolics in the back garden, stills this time. Once again you'll need to be logged into flickr to see them.
Making A Splash
One of the highlights of the post-holiday summer has been the massive pool Holly got for her birthday. It's filled with cold water which never really warms up, even on the warmest Scottish summer day. It's pretty bracing in there. The kids love it though, and especially love hurling themselves into it. Here's a wee video montage of watery summer fun (you'll need to be a friend or family on flickr to see it - click on Making A Splash to get there).
Tour de Harlaw
About a month ago, we drove up to the Pentlands for a bike ride. The kids rode along Thriepmuir reservoir, round Harlaw and back again. It's three miles or so, and probably about as far as they can go on rough paths. We had stops to poke at mushrooms, climb on fallen trees, and throw stones into Edinburgh's water supply.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Return of the Mac
After what seems like an age, our lovely insurers have finally delivered a new MacBook to replace the iBook that was nicked in July. We're back online, and - a few missing pics notwithstanding - I'll get caught up with the picture uploads and family blogging soon. In the meantime, I've been playing with AutoStitch, an iPhone app for creating panoramas. Here's a picture from Sunday, when we met the Saughtonhall Millars and the Lismore Millars down at Silverknowes. Calum and Holly had a good time wading out to the causeway, as recorded on Calum's blog. Click through for Edinburgh Park, Lochrin Basin and our back garden, knackered by the paddling/swimming pool over the summer.
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