My day of boring meetings, 10 years early

So, I fell asleep crying last night because I was going to have to go to the afterschool club for an extra hour while my mom was at orientation for Oxford...but, to my excitement I woke up this morning and found that I had another snow day!  & thus I went with my mom to the boring meeting all day for 8 hours but I loved it because I got to eat in an enormous and fancy dining hall with about seventy Oxford students and when I got really bored my mom let me watch Homer Simpson on her computer with headphones.  I wish I had a picture of the whole thing, but I only have this picture I took out the window at a coffee break & this picture below that my mom took of me eating.  My plan is to come back here in 10 years with my best & smartest friends and for us to do our own orientation & sit for eight hours but to get excited like my mom to get to go to the most beautiful school in the world.

I miss you guys!

Love, Naya

Third day of school--SNOW DAY!

thanks mum for packing the snowpants & downcoat!

my photo of the day--a pretty, old-fashioned, blinking traffic light

sock monkey's first ride in the bike basket

some cool snow art

The best day ever at school

It was the best day ever at school because I made another new friend & she holds my hand & we play really fun games.  One of the games we play is called "Rollercoaster" and a bunch of us hold hands and we run all around the playground without letting go.

I took my first spelling test today and my teacher said that I was the star speller because I got every one right.

(Per the mum:  Naya's so so hungry & eating everything in the house.  She's either growing all of a sudden or traveling/attending a new school makes children ravenous.  Since home from school:  salmon, rice, large bowl of granola with whole milk, four small eclairs, three spring rolls, and just asked for more.)

This photo is of my little calico critters that I have set up all over my mom's desk with their couches, beds, toilets, strollers...

My first day of school at New Hinksey Primary

Out the front gate, take a left, walk two blocks, through a secret gate via St. John's church, one more block & we're there (8:45a-3p day)

a bit nervous--what if they don't like me, what if they think my accent's weird, what if I don't have any friends at recess?

Straight to work on spelling and handwriting & did I mention that now I'm a 4th grader!

& ... 6 hours later, my mom returns to see how it went...through the secret gate,

past the church,

almost there,

& here it is, with me somewhere inside getting my coat on to come home

through another little gate where all the parents are standing talking...no drive up service like Muldown...here everyone seems to be on foot and to live in the neighborhood beside the school...

&I made it!  Yay!  It was the best day at school.  I made a friend named Freya & a friend named Maple & we played ponies at break.  Their accents are so fun.  I am ahead of everyone in math and reading.  They are a little ahead of me in spelling and geography lessons.  My teacher is very nice.  I don't feel nervous to go back tomorrow!

Cocoa with Mum before theatre

Today was a great day.  Me and my mum went to a very fancy restaurant and the building was tipping and it looked like we were going to fall out but we didn't.  And we sat in very fancy couches.  And I laid down for a little bit.  After that we went to the theatre and we saw "Jack & the Beanstalk" and it was very funny and they let my mom help with one of the parts on stage (insert from the mum:  they made me help).

I've been practicing my accent pretty much all day & I'm good at saying almost every kind of word.  I even sang along at the play with a British accent:  "How many legs does daddy longlegs got?  How many legs does daddy longlegs got?  I've got two, the cow's got four, a worm's got none & a shrimp's got more..."

My mom looking out at the backyard at our new house

My favorite thing of the day was going shopping in stores that have different things than we do, like really fancy coats, candies that I've never seen before in the candy aisle, and banana yogurt that comes with cocoa flakes--yumm!

The sidewalks are very bumpy if you are on a scooter.  And the cobblestones are all different shapes as you ride along.

Today I told my mom I didn't want to leave Oxford and that she'd have to go back and get Ladybug and bring her here, while I wait for her.  I want to stay because the accents are so pretty & I'm practicing my accent, and because my school is so cute & my mom's school is enormous and very pretty like a church.  I really want to go to college at Oxford when I grow up, especially Christchurch.

One last thing, the scones are really little here with powdered sugar on top and jam and you get to eat them with afternoon tea & it's all really good.

Around our new house

the light switch in the bathroom

artwork in our bedroom