Blog
Nov 2007 to Nov 2008


November 20th - Well, nearly a year since we started our new lives in Portugal... and we have done so much since we landed here... We've got pregnant, had a beautiful baby girl, adopted a puppy and house trained her, bought a new apartment, moved, been back to the UK 3 times, Emma has started Portuguese lessons, I have had 3 jobs (the self employed job tart that I am...), Kristina has learned to walk and is all grown up, we have travelled up and down the country with my job at MBT including a trip to Madeira and various trips to Spain... etc, etc, etc. We have indeed been busy bees and all is still hunky dory in Torcato land. I am typing this blog one handed whilst holding Tatiana with the other and Emma and Kristina are finishing dinner. My job is still going really well and I am enjoying it - I've even got Emma stuffing envelopes for me... I have to go there for an hour on Saturday so the girls are coming with me to have a proper tour of the vineyard - Kristina will love the animal farm... We have all been a bit sick this last week. Started off with Tatiana getting a cold, then Kristina got it and I now have a dodgy nose and throat and Emma isn't feeling too clever either. The only one to have escaped it is Holly... he he he. Still, Kristina has nearly kicked it and Tatiana copes really well too by sleeping it off... Anyway, gotta go now - Happy 1 Year Anniversary to us for the day after tomorrow and here's hoping for another equally successful year. Take care all. "VIC"

November 10th - Hey guys, took this photo with my mobile phone today and thought I'd share it with you. This is the view from my office window. It was a bit overcast today but you can get the general idea... Also, cos the sculpture was a bit too far away for you to be able to see it, I have inserted a larger version in the corner... You can even see the little yellow tractor behind the pillar... ahhh. Anyway, going to bed now. Will blog some more in a couple of days. Take care. "VIC"


November 9th - Hey there! Well what can I say, been a busy week or so since we came back from our little jaunt to the UK - Vic's well and truly got back into work mode, and has been doing some really long days - bless him! and I've been keeping myself busy decorating Kristina and Tatiana's bedroom. Have finished off the chest of drawers, bedside table and desk drawer with a white chinese inspired flower design (just needs varnishing now) and on Tuesday I finally got around to sketching out my murial on the girls' walls (A little farmyard scene, with a guest appearance of a little cheeky monkey, because that represents K he!he!- It looks better than it sounds! Promise!:0) I've also decided that as I don't want it to be too intrusive to the room (as it is quite large) I'm going to keep it as an outline, rather than colouring it in (maybe the girls will want it coloured in when they are a bit older - but then they can help me and that would be quite special). I was undecided about what colour to paint it and a bit apprehensive that paint would remove some of the detail, so Vic came up with the great idea to use colouring pencil. I get the softness of the pencil (slightly broken up by the wall texture) and get to keep all the definition that I have in my original sketch - He's such a clever clogs! ;0) Will put a pic up once I've finished - Needless to say that it may be a while yet, as trying to find time to do that with K and T in toe is no mean feat! he! he! Although they have both been adorable so far, K sat on my lap while reading one of her books while I drew out the sketch and while I was painting the flower design Tatiana was happy to sit in her pink chair and let me rock her with my left foot - Talk about multi-tasking eh? ;0) Both the girlies have had jabs this week, T's 2 month vaccines and K's 18 months (Thankfully K doesn't have to go back for another jab until she's 5 now!) but bless, poor T is back next month! . . .but I hope for her sake she isn't soundo again when they do it. Poor thing! Tatiana has been properly smiling at us for a few weeks now (not wind) and can hold her neck up with out any bother (what is it about our offspring that makes them so stubborn and independent?!;0) and Kristina has taught herself how to say 1-10. Such clever cookies. I have to go do my homework for Portuguese in a min, so will cut the waffle, other than saying that Vic is well (and currently sitting behind me on the laptop looking for my chrimbo present) and that I'm looking forward to Friday as mum and dad are over for a few days again! wahoo! Bottle of Ribena here it comes! he! he! BIG HUGS YOU GUYS! XXXX "EMMA"

October 28th - Well, we're back home and I've been back to work for a day now. It's amazing how quickly we settle back into our old routines... Had a good time and Emma really enjoyed getting her hands dirty with the decorating of her mum and dad's bedroom. Kristina loved all the attention as usual and the Mansfield household loved having her and Tatiana around. I also had a visit from my older brother, sister in law and nephew on Saturday and then on Sunday, my little brother (well, he's bigger than me but will always be little) came to visit too. Poor sod travelled all the way from Isleworth to Romford! Still, he had some Sunday Roast in exchange for his troubles as well as cuddles from Tatiana, a brief cuddle from Kristina and of course, my intellectual conversation and amazing personality as well as Emma's good looks for company whilst he was over. Below is a picture of me and him - he does make me look rather spaghetti-like!!! he he he. Ahhh, just as I was typing, Kristina went up to Tatiana and gave her a kiss on the head with full "MWAH" sound effects... Soooo sweet! Anyway, chat soon. Take care all. "VIC"



October 25th - Hiya, we're back in the UK at the moment for a long weekend. Emma wanted to see her family and to get her hands dirty re-decorating her mum's bedroom so here we are. Weather is not very nice and just serves as a reminder of one of the reasons why we went to Portugal. Had to set the central heating to come on at various times in the night so we don't get too cold :( Still, I do have some bits to buy so am looking forward to getting in the car and driving to Lakeside and just have a wander through the shops looking for bargains... I just hope I don't give the credit card too much of a bashing... Kristina is loving all the attention once again and so is Tatiana. She was full of smiles for me this morning which was very sweet. Anyway, gonna get on with it as I am supposed to be working. I love this new job cos even though i am in the UK, I can still do my work from here and not get behind so I brought enough work with me for Friday, Saturday and Monday (us self employed people can't afford to take holidays you know...). Anyway, chat soon, take care. "VIC"

October 17th - Hello, hello, Long time no speak! What can I say?? I'm being kept very busy by my two little ladies. Kristina is such a character she has me in stitches everyday with her clever antics and mischievious little grin. She hasn't realised yet, but she actually gives me a heads up before she does something she's not suppose to. She's learnt the word 'naughty' and before she embarks on her pre-meditated mischief she yells 'naughty, naughty, naughty' and makes a very excited dash to the offending item he!he! Her latest fun is sitting on my lap whenever I'm on the computer, removing and replacing the lids on all the pens ;0) Anything that keeps her little mitts off the keyboard is fine by me! I've also been trying to teach her to blow kisses this week (she makes the 'MWahhh', puckers up, puts her hand over her mouth, but needs to take it away again and we are there!!!) I tell ya, I am inundated with kisses and cuddles at the mo and I love it! When I come back from Portuguese (something I'm actually enjoying now - fancy that eh?) she runs up to the me, shouting 'Mummy, Mummy, Mummy' and grabs my legs in a great big bear hug, waiting for a cuddle in response. . ahhh so sweet - can't they saty this age eh? On the home front all is a.o.k - I'm looking forward to Lorrainy coming for a visit for a few days next week. It's really great that she's made time to fly out and see us, even though she's only back in the UK for a little over 2 weeks. I enjoy hearing what's she is up to in Botswana and the latest gorilla in the bedroom or scorpion in the slippers stories - (If that was me - I'd be on the first plane back - don't know how she does it all! ) Vic is busy, busy, busy with his new job and I think we are both starting to notice how short the days really are. What with him working and my never ending list of necessary baby rituals - it seems like we only get to see eachother around midnight and what with our little owlette who never really settles much before 1am - it's not ideal. Saying that, I don't regret having Tatian so closely after Kristina - they get along beautifully and to be honest - I'm itching to get Portuguese under my belt (which will take a few years I think, which is fine while they are young) and get back out to work. Although life in Portugal is very easy going, back home the parents are a real worry. Mum is quite poorly and rundown and dad's kidneys are not good at all. Flying the Mansfield flag of positivity - is in fact my sister (yes, I did say that! ;0) ), who has started her job at the Post Office and seems to be rather enjoying it! It's technically only suppose to be a Saturday thing (she wanted to break herself in to adulthood nice and slowly he! he!) she's done most of this week and even got her backside back on a bicycle after goodness knows how many years - I so wish I could see that! he! he! Good for her! Tatiana is asleep in her pink chair by my feet and K is calling Holly to come get her rope of her - ahh! Gonna make a move tho, as I'm currently doing a bit of work for Vic (devising some children's animal activities to use at QuintaDosVales) and Kristina needs to go for a nap and I want it all done before 60 MInute Makeover is on!! ;0) Hope all is well your end. Ta ta for now . . . see, I am alive! ;0) xx "EMMA"

October 13th - Well, the job is still going well and I am enjoying the new role I have been given. It started off as being PA to the Managing Director and his General Manager but now I have been given Marketing and Administration instead which is great because it's something I'd not done before and is very interesting so I now have the challenge of mastering the art of Marketing. Lets see how I do... Yesterday we had a group of 7 journalists who visited the vineyard. We gave them the tour, they had lunch and we then did some wine tasting. It was great for me cos I've now had an opportunity to taste our wine and also had the whole tour which was interesting and taught me a lot about the place. I just hope the journalists now write an article about it as they represent some very big publications in Portugal and it would be great coverage for us... Other than that, not a lot has been happening since my last blog. Emma has been for her 6 week check-up and the doctor has told us she is fine and dandy. Tatiana also got a full bill of health on her first check-up at the doctor's. As we were there, Kristina also had a full check-up and she is perfectly healthy too. So, all the family is MOT'd except for me... Still, do classic cars get MOT'd? I am a classic after all... and before you say it, not a classic plonker - a classic motor which is very fine tuned... he he he... Oh, the funniest thing happened at the health centre whilst we were waiting for the girls to get seen... This 4 year old girl was trying to steal Kristina's toy and although she exercised a lot of patience over a 5 minute period, I think the girl was clearly taking the piss and Kristina's patience ran out. So, in order to put an end to the nonsense and claim back her property, Kristina decided there was only one way to sort this issue out. So, she head butted the other girl which seemed to work a treat. I tried to keep a straight face but as soon as the mother turned away, I had to laugh. Kids will be kids and a huge pat on the back for my little cookie for defending herself and claiming back her property. She is an excellent sharer but the other girl just wanted the toy all to herself and that just wasn't on... Anyhoo, nothing more to report so gonna go now. Take care."VIC"

October 8th - Hi there all... Hope you are all well. We arrived in one piece from our ferry ride back but the pills weren't as big a success as we had hoped. We took one each before we got on the ferry and it did seem to be working. Then we had lunch and that was fine too. Then Emma started to feel a bit ropey so we all went out on deck. It was nice and sunny so, once the girls had nodded off, we both laid down on the loungers and had a snooze. The sun was shining and hot enough that I took my top off for a bit of sun bathing. Then Kristina woke up and Emma decided to take her back in to the cabin. Then it all started. Emma was sick, Kristina was sick and I just kept popping pills. Then we went to sleep and come morning, the pills had gone missing and I wasn't feeling that great either. I forced some breakfast down and then went on deck with Kristina whilst Emma packed. Soon after, the ferry arrived in the Algarve and we were all very happy to be off it. I think this confirms that we will never have a cruise holiday - EVER!!! Anyway, it was a lovely break and Madeira is beautiful so there is a plus side there... Monday I started my new job and have been working from home as my boss is away all week. It is nice to be doing something different and I feel more relaxed. Emma went to her Portuguese lesson yesterday and lets say that although missing 3 lessons didn't seem such a big deal (1 for the MBT Lisbon shop launch and another 2 for Madeira), it was. She now has loads of worksheets to catch up on and had a bit of trouble catching up. However, she is now sitting at the table reading through it all whilst rocking Tatiana. She's such a trouper! From what I have seen so far, she is doing really well and I'm sure she'll catch up in no time. Tatiana's sleep patterns are better but she does still take quite a while to get to sleep after each feed and likes to have a good old cry before nodding off... I'm sure she'll grow out of it. Kristina is doing really well too and has adjusted well to her sister being around. She does like to come for a cuddle when we are feeding her sister which is sweet... Holly has come back from the kennel and is still adjusting to life back in an apartment. She moped around a bit yesterday afternoon so I took her for a walk and that perked her up a bit... Anyway, gonna go and do some work now. Take care all."VIC"

October 3rd - More news! (you know us, never stand still for too long without doing something new...) Today is my last day at MBT as I am starting a new job on Monday. My new job is at a Vineyard working as a Personal Assistant to the Director and General Manager. It is less hours and the money is more or less the same so it suits me perfectly. I get to work close to home for most of the week and can work from home a couple of days. The vineyard produces it's own wine which is for sale to selected members of the public. They also have a sculpture garden and an exotic animal farm as well as accomodation, a pool and sauna. Its aimed at high end tourism. Their website is http://www.quintadosvales.eu . Next week I will be working from home all week as the MD is away. It's just so nice to not have to travel up and down the country all the time - although I enjoyed it most of the time, at times it was quite tiring. We're still in Madeira and have driven around the island discovering some very nice places. We went to a place called "The Barçelos Peak" and it offered the most spectacular views of the island and the coast. Have a look at the photos on Kristina & Tatiana's web pages. Kristina is loving all the different places we are visiting and we atre all just relaxing and taking it all in. Today is our last day so we are going for a walk to see the ships on the port and to have a walk around near the cable cars. We talked about going on them and I was all for it but yesterday, whilst driving around and up the hills, I saw how far high up they go on those very frail looking cables and thought better of it. Emma was relieved as she doesn't like heights either. Tomorrow we set sail and are armed with sea sickness tablets for both of us - I am determined to enjoy the trip back! Anyway, gonna go out now as Tatiana is just finishing her feed. Here are a couple of pictures of the view from our balcony taken this morning at half seven. Take care. "VIC"


September 30th - Greetings from Madeira! We are having a wonderful time in Funchal and the weather is lovely. The ferry trip on the way here was horrendous and we all felt very ropey (Kristina and Emma were sick and I nearly was on many occasions). But, on the positive, we are on "terra firma" and happy to be here. I signed up a point of sale for MBT which is why I am here and am feeling very proud of myself for having found it and convinced them from a distance to sign up. Today was all about the formality of signing a contract, placing an order and training the staff. When I got back today, Kristina was sleeping in her cot, Tatiana was sleeping in her chair and Emma was sitting in the sun on the balcony overlooking the sea reading her book. It was a very serene atmosphere. Earlier, Emma had placed Kristina in Tatiana's car seat and rocked her as a joke and she nodded off whilst Tatiana was in her chair being rocked by her other foot. That's multi tasking for you!!! Later we are going out to dinner and then tomorrow we will be having dinner with the shop owner I was with today and his wife. There is also a parade of sailing ships taking place here this weekend to mark the 500 years of Funchal as a city. Although we will miss the parade, we will get to see all the ships arriving (some of which already have arrived). Anyway, gonna go now. Chat soon. "VIC"

September 24th - Well, the in-laws have gone... Kristina misses her auntie Jo Jo already. This morning I had the task of showing her that Nanaaar (Jo's name in Kristina language) is no longer sleeping in her bedroom... She wasn't pleased... Its amazing though how quickly things just return to how they were before and you just pick up old routines as if nobody has been visiting... Emma will miss having them around too but at least they have the internet to chat on and the webcam so it does help - not the same I know but better than just the old fashioned phone... Today was the official opening of the Lisbon MBT Showroom / Head Office. I went along and took Emma & the girls with me. It was really nice to see all my hard work pay off and it looked quite good (see photos below). There were loads of press and TV present as well as celebrities and they were all trying on MBTs and being photographed. It was really busy so Emma took Kristina for a walk whilst I fitted a couple of journalists in a pair and then mingled for a while before making a move. Kristina had a ball on the red carpet before everyone arrived. She was running up and down and rolling around on it - there was no stopping her... A good day all in all... Anyway, going to bed now. Check out the new photos and videos on the following links: www.torcato.co.uk/tatiana2008.html & www.torcato.co.uk/kristina2008.html & www.torcato.co.uk/videos.htm . Chat soon. "VIC"


September 18th - Help! It's like a mad house here at the moment... Babies each making their own contribution to noise polution; a grandmother who thinks every little whinge by either child requires immediate picking up or the world will collapse; anyway, suffice to say that there is a lot of activity here at the moment... But, everyone is so happy and that makes it all ok in the end. I suppose even I can see the benefits of the pandemonium so the whining is more for effect than anything else... I am a bit tired today though... Got up early to go to Setúbal near Lisbon to open another Point of Sale and that, coupled with some general lack of sleep over the past few days, it's taking it's toll I think. Still, it's good to keep busy and I'd moan if I didn't have anything to do - there's no pleasing some people, is there... Oh dear, I'm rambling now... Emma has started her Portuguese course and even though it was a bit daunting to go at first, i think by the end of her second lesson she was starting to see the benefits to being there. Tatiana is coming along nicely though she is a nocturnal baby and seems to like being awake from 11pm till 1am at the moment (hence the slight lack of sleep for the parents). Kristina is dealing well with having a sister around and likes to stroke her limbs every now and again to acknowledge her existence. Very sweet. Going to add some photos to Tatiana & Kristina's pages next so if you want to have a quick peek, it's the usual linkS www.torcato.co.uk/tatiana2008.html & www.torcato.co.uk/kristina2008.html . Take care people and chat soon. "VIC"

September 10th - Well, it's been quite a week - very busy and emotional. Tatiana is soooo gorgeous! She had her sleep paterns all wrong so she was sleeping during the day and awake most of the night. So, on her first day at home, we kept her awake for a few hours during the day and, along with a nice bath, she slept through most of the night with only one feed half way through. She seems to be keeping that up on her own now and sometimes she stays awake for a couple of hours in the afternoon just lying there of her own accord. Kristina is now getting used to seeing her around. Yesterday she kissed her head but when I offered her to cuddle, she stepped away. Today, I caught Kristina offering her telephone to Tatiana's face to chat. Its so nice to see her interacting with her sister... Emma had her staples removed today and the doctor was pleased with the healing process. The only downside this week has been taking care of paperwork. This country is too bureaucratic... First, they wouldn't accept Tatiana's second name or mother's maiden name because they are English names. They wanted us to get confirmation in writing from the british consulate that those names were acceptable in the UK. I then used the argument that her mother's name is exactly the same except for the first name and because the first name (Tatiana) is accepted in Portugal, there should be no problem. In the end, this argument worked but not in our city registry office. We ended up registering her in the neighbouring city of Tavira using this argument but this all took a whole day to sort out. Now, I am in the process of trying to get her an ID card which is essential to obtain a passport. Tomorrow I will try to get that done and then provided I get that, on Friday we can get her a passport. We need this as we are travelling to Madeira at the end of the month. All very annoying as it all takes so long and you need one document in order to get the next one. Anyway, apart from the paperwork and the fact that we are feeling a bit tired, all is well in the Torcato household. Gonna chill now cos have been on the move all day and this is the first time I am sitting down. So much for paternity leave... he he he... still, as long as my girls are ok, that's all that matters. The in laws have been and gone and it was very handy having them here for the weekend. They loved being around Kristina and Tatiana and both Emma and I appreciated the help whilst we settled back down at home. They are back again on Monday for a week which is when I return to work so that will be good too as I don't like leaving Emma on her own with Kristina for too long cos she shouldn't be overdoing it. Anyway, thank you all for your emails and cards - Chat soon. "VIC"

September 3rd - What a day! Baby Tatiana is now with us in the outside world and by the look on her face, I think she's just a little confused... he he he... The hospital staff have been amazing but I guess that's what you get when you go private - all the special treatment. Visiting hours are 10am till 11pm which is fab and the docs and nurses are great too. Can't fault them so far. Emma is sitting up in bed at the moment on Skype talking to her mum and me - how civilized... We checked in at 8am, caesarian was booked for 12 so we went down, Emma was prepped and I got into my scrubs and then just before 1pm, Tatiana was born. All very organised and prompt. I then came back to Olhão to collect Kristina from my cousin's and returned to introduce her to her sister. She was a bit tired so was not really that interested - just wanted to walk around and explore the room. Anyway, gonna go now. Tired... Check out pics of our new addition on www.torcato.co.uk/tatiana2008.html . Look at the one below - Our 2 girls... don't they look alike... Kristina had bigger cheeks though - he he he. We're soooooooooo happy!!! Anyway, chat soon... "VIC"


September 2nd - It was so surreal when I looked at the clock today and thought 'this time tomorrow I'm going to have another little girlie!' Can't get over how strange it feels knowing basically when and where baby is going to be born. In one way its good cos you know I love to plan for everything, but in another it does take some of the excitement out of the run up. I can still remember Vic's face last time when my waters broke and I told him it was his fault for shocking me as he'd just suggested going out for dinner! he he! I'm not actually bothered about the op at all, as to be honest that was the best bit of the whole labour saga with K, I just really wish they could give us the all clear and send us home to recoup in a day or 2, 3-4 is a bit excessive for me! Hopefully all will go swimmingly (as apart from some occasional bits of indigestion, pelvic and mild backache I feel pretty fab) and I'm gonna do my damnest to get home to watch X-Factor on Saturday! ;0) You can take the girl out of England . . . eh? he he! Vic is in the kitchen making me biscuit cake - yummy! I am so spoilt - but does it help if I know it??!! My darling Kristina is watching teletubbies and Holly is asleep under my feet, so all in all very serene - now how long that will last for, I can't tell you! he he! Looking forward to having Mum and Dad visit on Friday, I'm sure they are going to dote on the new addition just as much as K, so I forecast a huge lovefest in Portugal this weekend I can tell ya! he he! Anyhoo - gonna go, play with K. Take Care and chat soon. "EMMA"

August 31st - Not long now! Can't believe we're going to be parents again... wow! I'm so excited! Poor Emma is really feeling very uncomfortable now bless... I bet she can't wait for baby to be out. She is not looking forward to her hospital stay and to be honest, neither am I. Its hard not having her around but, what with Kristina and Holly, I will have my hands full and time will fly by. I will also be allowed to visit the hospital as often as I want cos visiting hours are 11am till 10pm so that helps. Also have the in laws coming over on 5th for the weekend so picking them up and taking them there will give me a bit more added distraction and then hopefully, provided everything goes ok, Emma & baby might be home on the Saturday. Emma will also have her hands full with the new baby so I'm sure time will fly by. She's going to have the laptop with mobile internet so she can surf the net and keep in touch with friends and family which is an added bonus to help her distract. Hospitals are a bore but I'll make sure she has plenty to keep her mind occupied when baby is asleep... We went to Porto this week and although the city looks pretty, we didn't get to see much of it. We arrived at about 8pm in Vila Nova de Gaia where I was working and checked in to the hotel. Then we had a quick chat with the in-laws on the internet and then went out to dinner. On the subject of dinner, we decided to go for a traditional portuguese cod dish which we hadn't had for a long time. Well, suffice to say that it was dry and crunchy and Emma's version would have put theirs to shame. They did however have a lovely chocolate mousse (even if it was a bit sickly) so that sort of made up for it. Anyway, then we went for a long walk to the bridge which joins Gaia with Porto. When I say long, it was exactly that and we had stairs, hills, slopes, etc to get through before we could get to the bridge. Then, we tried a different journey on the way back but it was just as crazy. Anyway, by the time we got back, it was gone midnight and Kristina was asleep. We put her to bed, Emma went to bed too and I stayed up for another hour doing a bit of work and sending emails. The next day, I went to work and come 3pm, we were on the motorway doing our 5 hour journey back home. So, didn't get to see much of the city but as I said, it did look quite pretty (see pictures below). Also got K her first proper pair of shoes on Monday which was a blessing cos now she can walk along the streets with us. She loves her new shoes and has mastered walking in them really well. The other day, i managed to get her to give us proper kisses which was very nice. By the end of the evening, she was properly puckering up for a sloppy kiss. However, the next day, the novelty had worn off and she was merely allowing us to kiss her forehead or cheek... he he he. She's still giving us "big hugs" like the telletubbies so all is not lost! Anyway, gonna go. Chat soon. "VIC"



August 24th - Well I'm about ready to pop and I now officially waddle when I walk, even though i'm looking quite slim (well for me ;0) apart from baby bump - he he! It's so surreal thinking how different life will be, it really hit home yesterday that we are going to have another little bubby in 10 days when mum showed me on the webcam the matching T-shirts she has bought Kristina and her sister. It's sooo exciting, I must admit staying away a few nights from Vic and K is something I can't say I'm looking forward to (So they must be doing something right ehh? ;0) but to think that we are going to have another little ickle person to join our family is amazing and I can't wait to see how this little boxer is going to emerge!!(hope she will be as curly haired as K is proving to be) Both Vic and I love the baby stage - infact, we've loved every stage with Kristina, but realise we've been very fortunate that she's been a very happy little lady indeed, even with the relocation and everything, so I'm sure she'll adjust to having a sibling with her usual finesse -the doggy however that could be another thing! Anyhoo - enough baby babble - we have been to a beautiful little place called 'Depth of the Inferno' today. It's a kind of nature reserve with a wonderful lagoony thing with a waterfall (see pic below). Very tranquil and picturesque, even with a few testosterone fuelled teenagers jumping from the cliff side! Kristina loved wading in the trickling stream and made it very clear to all of Tavira that she was not happy that we had to eventually leave ;0) We had a lovely afternoon there and it certainly is adequately named as it's a right sun trap - it was a scorcher even in late afternoon! Off to Porto next week, Northern Portugal here the Torcato's come!! Last little roadtrip before the new addition arrives, so we'll make the most of it. We certainly do get about a bit!! Which is great as Portugal is such a beautiful country, which helps dissipate any homesickness quite swiftly. Although I just wish I could move you guys here, and maybe Hobbycraft!? he he! Can't have it all I suppose. . . roll on evening courses that's what I say! Love you all. Take Care and chat again soon xx "EMMA"



August 18th - Two weeks and 2 days until baby 2 is due! ;0) Really starting to get excited now and the realisization that I will have two mini-us's running around is starting to dawn and other than the practicalities of trying to find someone who is able to look after K for a prolonged period (putting her for a nap is a skill indeed, other than Vic and I only my mum possesses it) while Vic commutes back and forth to the hospital in Portimao (about an hours drive away) everything else seems ok. I have to be in for the prep at 8am and the Op at 11:30am, Vic's going to drop me off and bring K back to his cousin's and race back hopefully in time!! We'll see. I must admit I'm thankful that they can speak a bit of English and I'm sure I'll muddle through if needs be, but I'm hoping that Vic will get back in time just so I don't have to worry about him facing the crazy A22 motorway Drivers as well!! I'm actually feeling quite calm about the whole thing, but it does make me miss not having my mum down the road a lot more - Just the little things really, but she and dad are booked to fly out on the Friday for the weekend anyhoo, so hopefully we'll both get out of hospital on the Saturday, so will get some time with them before they fly back on Monday. Although they are all back (including Jo) on the following Monday to celebrate my birthday for a week, so it's not too long to wait I suppose!;0) Other than that, we have had Vic's Brother, nephew, Sister in law & her father for the weekend which was cool. My little Runner Bean is still as lively and ingenious as ever, and bless he didn't want to go home. Even said he'd stay with us while his mum and dad go back to England and he'd see them on holidays. . . he he! Poor K has been particularly cranky this last week and we had put it down to her last two teeth coming through, but when she woke up with a nasty temperature and just wasn't her usual playful self - I wasn't so sure - it now looks like she's got measles which would explain her uncharacteristic irritability and makes sense as she had her MMR only last week - Poor thing - when you factor that in and that she's teething AGAIN! She really is a little super star. New baby is showing no signs of calming down either, my internal organs are taking a right ole bashing on a regular basis, so much so that when she kicks it is clearly visable from the other side of the room! Not that I mind - It's a lovely reassurance that she's ok. Looks like poor Vic's destined to be surrounded by feisty ladies, but I'm sure he can hold his own. . . he he! Kristina has now added 'apple', 'ball', 'no' and 'go' as in ready steady. . . to her expanding Vocabulary (that last one thanks to the teletubbies) and is so damn adorable and astute that even when she's being mischievious it's very hard not to cave in and smile. She is amazing! Anyhoo - I've dribbled on for more than long enough now - hope you liked the new video clips (www.torcato.co.uk/videos.htm) and keep the e-mails coming with all your news - I love a good chat. Take Care "EMMA"

August 12th - Well, where do I start... We have not been too well unfortunately... Both Emma and I had some fish a couple of nights ago and lets just say it didn't agree with us. One of them must have been bad and therefore, cooking them together meant no matter which one we ate, we were always gonna get sick. I don't know if its because Emma ate the bad one or because she is pregnant but she suffered more than me. She was sick all night and I sat up comforting her. Then, when we got up with Kristina, I started to feel sick and it really hit me hard and fast and before I knew it, I was also laid up. So, there we both were, sick as dogs and a baby running amock and neither of us fit to do anything about it. By the evening, I was feeling well enough to throw some wedges in the oven and thats what we had along wih a grilled burger in a bun. It seemed to do the trick cos it was plain and simple food and the carbs settled our stomachs and gave us a bit of strength. Today I feel back to myself again. Was a bit ropey first thing but fine now. Emma is feeling a bit dehydrated but other than that, seems to be ok - just drinking lots of liquids to rehydrate. Thank goodness we didn't give any to Kristina... Other than that, everything is much the same. I received my guitar which I bought on ebay and was tuning it last night whilst Emma was on the net. She said it was quite calming hearing me strumming in the background. I must admit, it had quite a calming effect on me and even though I was feeling sick, I felt a bit better just by sitting there strumming away. Just gotta learn how to play the damn thing now. Tuning it is one thing but playing it is something quite different. kristina is now walking very confidently and even attempts to run on occasions. She is so sweet and you can see how proud she feels when she is walking. In a few days time, we'll go out and buy her a propper pair of walking shoes so she can get used to those around the house before we let her loose on the streets - god help us!!! Today she said the word "apple" which was great so add that to the word "titties" which taught her a week or so ago, her vocabulary is getting quite extensive. he he he... Now, whenever she wants to be tickled, she looks at me, giggles and says titties and I give her a good old tickle under the arm pits and on her chest - clever little munchkin... We're going for our final hospital appointment Thursday before the baby is born. Had some blood tests done which cost us 215 euros so was a bit of a shock to say the least - this going private lark is quite costly but the way I think of it is that if it ensures the safety and wellbeing of Emma and baby, it is worth it. Anyway, I've rambled on for long enough now. Take care all of you and chat soon. "VIC"

August 6th - Another lovely sunshiny day - Went to Albufeira for work and Emma & K came too. I spent some time looking for a shop in Albufeira for Spain to open an MBT shop in the Algarve and then we went to lunch. After lunch, we went to the beach. I stayed for half hour and then went to view some shops and after, I returned to have a good old splash about to cool down. Kristina loved the waves. It was the first time we had taken her to have a proper splash about in the waves and she loved it (we don't normally go to the coast where the waves are strong - we normally go to the other side where the water is calmer). Every time a wave would come crashing, I would scream out "nooooooooo" and then lift her up just as the wave got to her. She was giggling so much bless her. She then had a nap but unfortunately, when she woke up from that nap, she had terrible toothache and sobbed continuously. We gave her some calpol and then packed up and left. The calpol had kicked in by the time we got to the car so we had a nice journey home. All in all, a nice day. Anyway, gonna go and watch Corrie on ITV2 now. See ya! "VIC"

July 31st - Just got back from hospital check up and the Doc was very happy with everything. She took one look at my belly and said 'Wow, this is a big baby!' and after the usual cat and mouse game she has to play to try and get the baby to stay still long enough for her to take the pics she said she is a very good and happy baby, so what with her size and all it looks like Baby 2 will make her appearance on the 3rd September now instead. So less than 5weeks to go! Wahoo! Haven't had a chance to tell mum yet, but I'm sure she won't be happy as she's not due to fly out until the 15th - oh well we'll see what I can do! Kristina has taking up licking me and making me giggle like a baby and still refuses to say mummy and takes great pleasure in calling me daddy too! ;0) She finds it hillarious, such an astute baby. She has also added 'honey' (How Vic and I refer to each other) and 'ta' to her dialogue. Still misses her roomie though, as she woke up at 7am this morning calling out for 'Nann-nnnarrr!' which is how she refers to Joanna. So very sweet! Anyhoo, I better dash as it's very rare for K to sit still for two seconds and I'm going to make the most of her watching teletubbies! "EMMA"

July 28th - Ahh my little puppie is growing up and got her first period yesterday!;0) And Kristina not one for being upstaged decided to take 47 steps across the kitchen and balcony too. The little nipper can do it so well now, but still likes to hold onto a finger and zoom around at warp speed - If she has that tiny bit of reassurance she literally runs! Very cute indeed, you should see the huge smile and satisfied look she has on her face as she makes her way over to you - priceless! "Emma"

July 27th - Well, we're back home and I must say, even though we enjoyed ourselves whilst we were away, it's nice to be back home again. Just got back from picking Holly up and it was so sweet to see Kristina following her around saying "ollie, ollie, ollie" with her pink bone in her hand trying to give it to her... She really missed her pet doggie... She has been in a great mood today giving me daddy cuddles. She's now in the kitchen with Mummy folding clothes... Anyway, gonna go now. Just thought I'd say hi. Maybe Emma will write on the blog later with more on what we've been up to. In the meantime, here's a picture of me relaxing in the pool... and, if you want to see more pictures of Kristina, they are on her usual webpage www.torcato.co.uk/kristina2008.html . "VIC"


July 23rd - Hello there people! Hope you are all well. We are having a great time here in Central Portugal. We are staying in a lovely B&B 1 hour north of Lisbon near Caldas da Rainha. My work has brought me here this week and Emma & Kristina have come with me to keep me company and enjoy the calm surroundings. It is working out really well as I am getting a lot of work done and we also have nice long afternoons / evenings by the pool which all of us love. The weather is gorgeous but to be honest, when I'm out and about during the day, it sometimes gets too hot and I just can't wait to be able to get back to the B&B to have a dip in the pool and cool down. It has been between 32 and 37 degrees these past few days and it can get quite hot around mid afternoon. I had a very good meeting on Monday and signed up another point of sale in Fatima which is great. I then received a call from someone I sent some information to in Madeira and he seems to be interested in selling MBTs too. Time will tell... Kristina is loving the new space to explore and the new faces around her. They have 3 dogs here and she calls them all Holly so I figure she must think all dogs are actually called Holly. Unfortunately, she has conjunctivitis so we have had to get some eye cream from the chemist to put in her eyes twice a day. Suffice to say that it is not pleasant or easy to do and she is not our best friend after we have done it. How she can squeeze her eyes shut so much that I can't actually prize them open to put the cream in i'll never know. Poor little mite - it must be so uncomfortable... But thankfully, it looks like it is getting better - fingers crossed. Emma is feeling the pregnancy now a lot more and her feet are starting to swell. Not surprising though in this heat... Anyway, gonna go now and relax in front of the TV. Take care. "VIC"

July 16th - Well, the in-laws have gone. I suppose it wasn't too bad really... They didn't drive me too insane which was good. he he he. I told my mother in law that I would be making a list of events that had taken place whilst they were here (breakages, damages to personal property and our sanity, etc) but, I think I'll save them all the naming and shaming! This time! he he he. No, really, it was nice having them here and Kristina absolutely adored having them around as did Emma. As much as they drive me crazy at times, it is nice to see them every now and again... (I have to say that as one of them may read this... he he). To think, next time they are all over, our next baby girl could already be here!!! Wow... Emma's mum bought us a nice little pink moses basket which looks so comfy, I could curl up in it myself... Anyway, now silence has descended upon the Torcato household again, we put everything back in it's place, fold away the sofa bed and prepare for a week away in the Lisbon area. We have rented a little villa with a pool and although I am there for work purposes and I will be out and about working during the day, we will have the afternoons and evenings in the sun by the pool to enjoy ourselves and just chill. It will be lovely. Anyway, gonna sit and chill for a bit and then we're both gonna hit the housework. I've placed some more photos on Kristina's page - there's one there of her stroking a live lobster! My brave little girl... Chat soon. Take care. "VIC"

July 11th - Help!!! The mother in law is driving me mad!!! Well, I suppose that's a slight exaggeration but she has tried to set our plant pot alight with a cigarette butt!!! We have had a good week so far and guess what, we now have broadband too!!! Woohoo! Weather is still nice and hot and we have been to the beach, for a walk (not too many walks aloud as the in laws don't like walking too much), cinema, meals out, etc. Tomorrow we are going to the Zoo Marine in Albufeira which should be fun too. Kristina is having a ball and loving all the extra attention and Emma is loving the extra company too. It's lovely to see them so happy. Kristina is trying her first steps so I think we may have a walking baby in the next few weeks. I've just placed some more photos on Kristina's photo page if anyone wants to have a look www.torcato.co.uk/kristina2008.html . Anyway, gonna get going now, just thought I'd say hi. Take care all. "VIC"

July 4th - Hi everyone! Well, we have our air con now! Phew! We certainly needed it... and it looks quite good as well, not too chunky... Weather is nice here as has been for the last few weeks which is great cos we get to go to the beach at least once a week. I'm building up a nice tan. Kristina is too even though she is lathered up with sun block every hour or so when we are on the beach. Emma is building up a nice colour too but again, being fair skinned, she has to be careful with the sun and also applies loads of sun block. Emma has painted a lovely canvas for Kristina's room of Cinderella and is yet to do a second one (cos she likes things in pairs) and also wants to do a mural somewhere in K's room. She's also in the process of painting over some of the tiles in the kitchen as they were a bit too busy and has finished painting the drawers in Kristina's room cos they were a bit bland. They just need some finishing touches with a design and then varnishing... She likes to have 3 or 4 projects on the go and keep busy... Anyway, nothing more to say for the moment, just thought I'd say a little hi and give you all an update on what we're up to. I'm a busy little bee as usual with my work and all is hunky dory in the Torcato household. Take care all. "VIC"

June 29th - Hello, hello! Phew it is HOT, HOT, HOT! Can't wait for the air con to be fitted (fingers crossed that will by this week) Kristina is wonderful as usual, although showing no inclination of slowing down to attempt those first steps yet, she has now got copying down to a fine art, often enjoying a cool glass of mango and Orange fruit juice after her evening meal and calling the doggie over to play with the bone! Ahhh! ;0) Talking of which Kristina now has added another word to her list ('bubby' which is bubbles) and can now say, Mummy, Daddy, Nanna, bye, and 'Olly' which is a rather angelic, Frenchesque rendition of the Dod's name! So, very, very sweet;0) We went to the beach yesterday and had a fab time - We were all splashing around in the water for ages and it was the perfect tonic for the heat and it was nice to see Vic unwind and looked so chilled. I am indeed now feeling considerably pregnant - (now 7months+) but have managed not to put on a single pound so far, despite the ever present mound I am carrying (and infact may actually have lost weight as I have been informed baby 2 is a perfect 1 kilo currently!! I've actually found some time (don't ask me where)to tackle a few arty bits I had lined up and have just finished the first of 2 canvases for the Babies room, have started decorating the furniture to be more girlie, have bought some tile paint to tackle the border in the kitchen (which is the only thing in the entire flat I do not like) and have planned a mural I'd like to do finish off the nursery as well. Not sure I'll get it all done, before mum, dad and Jo get here on the 8th, but I'm gonna try! ;0) Anyhoo - I'm gonna bog off as I'm feeling very hot and want to spend some awaketime with my hubby! Hope all is well your ends ---OHH CONGRATS TO MY LITTLE SIS WHO GRADUATED WITH A WELL EARNED 2.1 ON FRIDAY - You did us all proud! Ciao for now "EMMA"

June 22nd - Well, it's been nearly a month since we have written on the blog. Reason? Well, the crappy ISP I signed up to when we arrived in Portugal. This company we are with are so useless, there are actually no words in the dictionary that would fairly describe how useless they really are. I put in a request before we moved out of the old place to transfer the broadband over to the new place and on Friday, I called them to check on progress only to be told that they had not followed the correct procedures at their end and that they would have to start again. I went crazy on the phone with them, demanded to speak to a manager, threw a few hissy fits and in the end, got the manager to agree a credit to the value of 100 euros and that she will personally keep an eye on this case and report to me weekly on progress. She couldn't apologise more and basically, it means that the 6 week process to get our broadband has started from scratch! They won't even let us out of the original 12 month contract so I just have to grin and bear it! Being fed up with this, I decided to move our blog to our www.torcato.co.uk website which we have access to regardless of which ISP we are with. We are just lucky that I have a work mobile broadband which allows us internet access and at least Emma can chat with her family in the UK and they can see Kristina and she can see them (which they all look forward to). However, with mobile broadband, we can not access our emails through Outlook and have to do all our emailing through webmail. Anyway, lets just say that moving is stressful as it is but with hinderances like these, it just makes life more awkward. Apart from the usual stresses of moving, everything else is great. Emma is feeling quite pregnant now at 28 weeks but look how relaxed she looks painting on her canvas - don't get me wrong, this picture of serene bliss is not an every day occurrence in our lives but it's nice to capture on camera when it does happen... The hot weather is now starting to get to her though. We are still waiting for our air conditioning to arrive as it was delayed due to the truckers striking over the fuel prices. Should hopefully have that here soon and installed then it will be a bit better when the heat strikes full force next month. Summer started a bit later this year and we were only able to make our first visit to the beach in June. We have been twice now and I am building up a nice tan. Kristina has nice dark legs even though she is always lathered up in factor 100,000!!! Emma has a nice tan on her arms and neck-line but the rest is lagging a bit behind as she also has to take care when we are on the beach (being very fair skinned) - so, the exposed areas get more sunshine on a daily basis and therefore darken more naturally. Kristina absolutely loves the water and as soon as we arrive on the sand, she grabs our hands and just strolls casually into the water and only stops when she is chest high in water. Doesn't matter how cold it is, she doesn't care. On her first visit, she was reluctant to put her hands in the sand but yesterday, she was doing a mowgli impression all around the beach and was taking herself over to the water alone... Cheeky monkey! Anyway, not gonna bore you guys any more. Now you know we are blogging once again, check this page out whenever you get a chance for updates. Oh, by the way, I have added some more photos to Kristina's webpage so check them out on www.torcato.co.uk/kristina2008.html . Take care. "VIC"


May 26th - Hey people! We have been so busy these past few days and only now has the dust settled a bit. We have moved and are now living in our new place. It is fantastic having more space. The apartment we were in before was big compared to most apartments around but, somehow we had little space. I think it is because we have a lot of stuff and there wasn't enough storage space so we felt that the place was smaller than it actually was. Now, we have the extra bedroom which at the moment I am using as my office and I must say, it feels great to have a work space rather than working off the dining room table. Kristina and Holly love their new play space and Emma is in her element organising everything and decorating and arranging. We also have a great shower in our en suite and balconies off every room which is great. Very happy indeed with our purchase. I have handed over the keys to the other flat so from today, we are officially landlords too. It has been quite difficult juggling work and moving but I managed to pull it off. I kept on top of everything and with a struggle, got it all done. Last Thursday was Bank Holiday here so I took that opportunity to move everything over at once. It was so hard and I must have made at least 50 or so journeys each way to and from the 3rd floor on te stairs that day. My legs were throbbing by the end. Then, over the weekend, I moved the last few bits which was about 3 car loads and then on Sunday, we had some friends and family move the furniture that remained (the stuff i was unable to carry over because it was too big for little old me to do on my own). Emma is doing well although her ancles have been swelling up a bit recently what with all the time she has spent on her feet packing and unpacking boxes. She is now able to take it a bit easier now which is good. So, here we are, in our lovely new apartment and very happy. Now, all the changes of addresses need to be done... I've also got a few meetings this week on Thursday in Lisbon and loads of other stuff to sort out for work so as usual, busy busy... Hope you are all well - Chat soon. "VIC"

May 16th - K has now implemented her stair navigation expertise to help get herself up on the sofa! There goes any second I may have been able to take my eyes off her - she's so damn quick, especially when she's playing that she doesn't calculate her turning room properly and many a time I've had to hoist her nappy cladded bottom back up! "EMMA"

May 15th - Wow! what a week its been. We had a fab time back in the UK and Kristina had the most amazing birthday too. She has been very spoilt and we would just like to say a huge thank you to all who came to her party and made the day so special. It was lovely getting to see you all again and it just makes leaving the beach behind that little bit easier he he!! Special mention to the 1:30am crew (you know who you are!) God bless ya! You made my laugh so hard I cried and all that without me having a drink - very impressive! ;0) All in all had a wicked week and although I didn't really want to leave, I'm also quite happy to be home - if that makes any sense at all?!! As there's a lot going on here too for me to sink my teeth into. Vic and I exchanged and completed on our new flat today -- and although it was a saga of immense proportion to sit there for hours watching them shuffle paper about and waffle arrogantly in Portuguese Speed (near standstill), we got it in the end and I can't wait to get things moving and settled in our new pad. We've already contacted the condimium (managing agents) and had the Ok to put a satellite dish up on the roof, so 'yeah baby' English TV will be back in the Torcato household and finally Vic can get his Corrie fix, and I will be able to chat about what I see and be on the same series as everybody else - something we discovered wasn't the case currently as I gave away the next 'ooohhh' moment in Brothers&Sisters to Jo, who wasn't very happy with me - Oooopppss! Anyhoo, could witter on forever, but I'm hungry and I can smell my dinner, so Ciao for now xxx "EMMA"

May 15th - Today Kristina helped me peg out the washing by rooting through the peg bag and handing me the pegs with her little outstretched arm one at a time. Very adorable. ;0) "EMMA"

May 11th - Kristina has started to pat her chest when she coughs ('cough cough') and begins to fake cough and laugh when she is ok and when she knows she's got your attention ;0) "EMMA"

May 10th - Kristina now sways along when she hears music ('dancey dancey') and can clap on demand (when in the mood) thanks to her Eeyore birthday gift that she picked with Daddy. He claps his ears and sings if your happy and you know it . . . ! and K is mesmarised by him. "EMMA"

May 8th - Kristina learnt to climb stairs to mum, dad and Jo's dismay!! She's such a clever girl, it was the first time she came across stairs and once she navigated the first couple of steps she was away and kept going up them whenever she could ;0) "EMMA"

May 6th - Packing, organising, running around - It's holiday time... It's nice and hot here today so hard to imagine we are going to leave hot weather behind to go to a cooler climate and we are calling this a holiday. he he he... Emma is really looking forward to this break and I am too cos I must admit, after 6 months away, a week in the UK does sound nice... I also need a little break cos I'm quite tired after all the running around of the past few weeks with work. It has all been worth it cos I now have 2 points of sale and the first one which opened on Friday has already sold a couple of pairs and is really chuffed. The second one opened yesterday and I'm sure he will do really well as there was a lot of interest. I spent the day there setting it all up and helping him and got home at 9pm. Today, we went to sign some paperwork for the purchase of the new flat in preparation for the completion on 15th. Kristina is sleeping at the moment so I am going to get off and get as much work done as possible so that everybody is ok for the week I'm away. I've set my out of office on the email already so that's one job ticked off the list... Also have to take Holly to the kennel later which for some strange reason, she seems to really enjoy! She is the complete opposite to our little Sophie who hated all contact with other dogs and strangers... Anyway, chat soon. UK, here we come. "VIC"

May 2nd - Well, we had our May Day bank holiday here in Portugal yesterday so I had the day off. Today was a hard day cos it was the opening of our first MBT point of sale in the Algarve. It went well though which was great. Quite a lot of interest... There are pictures on the following link www.torcato.co.uk/mbt . Emma and Kristina met me for lunch and we went to the park afterwards. We played on the swings and slide and had a really good time. Sunday it looks like the weather is going to be nice so we might go to the beach - we'll see. Nearly time to come to London for a visit - only a few days to go. Then we have Kristina's birthday... I can't believe Kristina is nearly 1 - Wow!!! time flies... Anyway, gonna go to bed - knackered. Chat soon. "VIC"

April 28th - Today has been a pretty quiet day. Have been working from home and have just finished my work day now so thought I'd write something on here. Been doing a bit of filing of our personal stuff and came across scan pictures of baby T. So strange to think that a few months from now we will have another little one... Our flat purchase seems to be going through without a hickup so fingers crossed. It has been provisionally booked for 15th May for completion. So, we should then have the keys and be able to start moving in. Hopefully, this will be our last move for a very long time! We have bought a new sofa and that is being delivered the following Monday. Soon, we will be the proud owners of our 2nd property and also be landlords! As soon as we move out, my auntie will move in and begin paying rent. Couldn't ask for a more convenient arrangement... Also getting ready for our trip to the UK next week. Only a week and 2 days left... What with that and opening 2 new points of sale in the next week, it's going to be an interesting week or so... Anyway, gonna relax on the sofa now. Chat soon. "VIC"



April 24th - Well, today I am working from home and have taken a few moments to write on the blog. Have been working really hard and quite tired but tomorrow is Bank Holiday here so gonna relax for a change. It's nice and sunny today so hoping it will be the same tomorrow. Have signed up another point of sale for MBT's in Caldas da Rainha which is about an hour north of Lisbon. Really happy with that - that's 2 in as many weeks. So, I have the opening of the first one in the Algarve next Friday and then the other one the following Monday. Then, a week in the UK to chill... Kristina is such a good little girl and is growing up soooo fast!!! She now babbles properly and it's quite funny to listen to her having conversations with her toys. I'm so happy to be at home to see these things. She has really made me smile a lot today with her ramblings. Emma is having an afternoon siesta at the moment... this is the life... and Kristina is happily playing and talking to her doll Dora. Anyway, gonna get back to work. Chat soon. "VIC"

April 19th - Kristina clapped properly for the first time today whilst watching a variety show on TV!!! "EMMA"

April 18th - Well, yet again, another busy week. We have had the go ahead on our mortgage and have had the valuation on the flat done. In the next 2 to 3 weeks, we should be exchanging and completing. Then we will have the move and then we will have our first new home acquired as a married couple. We will also be landlord and landlady as our current flat will be rented out too from the moment we move out. All in all, very good. I have also had a great week with work. I have today placed an order for my first MBT point of sale. They are a shoe shop in the centre of Loulé in the Algarve. The owner tried on a pair of MBT's and loved them. He immediately picked the models he wanted and gave me free reign to order the quantities and add a few more other models of my choice which I believe will sell. Hopefully, his stock should arrive within the next week and then I'll go over to his shop and help him set it all up. We now have one point of sale in the north (Porto), one in the south (Loulé) and our own which we should hopefully open in June in Lisbon. I also fitted a physio today who loved them and said that although he is not allowed to sell as part of the regulations by the Medical Association in Portugal, he will be speaking to 2 people he knows who could be points of sale and see if he can convince them to stock them. He would love to recommend them to his patients but doesn't want them to have to travel too far to get them. However, if his friends don't want to stock them, he will still steer his patients in the direction of Loulé. This particular contact was as a result from a mailshot I did last week. So, all looking good. Hard work but it seems to be paying off. Kristina is growing up really quickly. She has now taken to telling us off when she is not happy with us. Funny at times but at others, because she can be quite loud when she does tell us off, it an be quite "un-funny". Emma is doing well too and seems to have really taken to this new lifestyle. She is very mellow and getting a bit of colour in her cheeks - don't quite know if that's the pregnancy or the sun!!! Unborn Baby T was hickuping this week which Emma found quite strange as she had forgotten how that felt. Along with her feeling the baby moving as well for the first time on the 11th, it has been an eventful week or so on the baby front. Anyway, gonna add a couple of photos to Kristina's webpage and then gonna go for a walk. See Ya. "VIC"

April 11th - Hi people... I tell you what, busy busy busy... I've been working so hard these last couple of weeks... Feeling quite tired and looking forward to the weekend. Have been a bit stressed recently because of work and getting the mortgage sorted out for our new place... Emma is such a saint to put up with my stresshead behaviour! She's a great influence on me though cos she knows how to calm me down and get things into perspective. Anyhoo, all is well and the fact that I am busy is good cos it is never good to be too idle. I love it really - freaky guy or what? Emma is well too and so is Kristina. She is growing up so fast and I'm just so glad to be around more to see it. If I were in the UK, i'd be out at work a lot more and I'd miss out on a lot of stuff. As it is, I work from home quite often and therefore get to see her quite a bit more than I used to. She is soooo chatty these days too, bless her, she does like a chin wag... he he he! She stood up for a full 10 seconds on her own the other day but I was in Lisbon at the time and missed that. I suppose I can't be there all the time... Holly is well too and settling down a lot more as she gets older. She just needs regular walks cos she has a lot of energy to burn. baby Torcato is also well. The scan showed everything is fine and baby is 18 weeks old. The doctor said she can not be certain but she thinks it's another girl. A little sister for Kristina - that'll be great. I wonder how Kristina will react to her? ummmm - should be fun!!! Anyway, gotta go cos the sun is out for the first time this week (been a bit rainy and windy) so we are gonna get ready for a walk and going to see my godson as he wants me to instal a printer on his new computer. Take care you all... "VIC"

April 1st - Happy April Fools!!! Hope you are all keeping well. We have been very busy around here these past few days. The "in laws" were here for a long weekend and have just left. Kristina loved having them around and it gave me and Emma a break and a couple of lie-ins. Kristina is growing up so quickly and now says "daideee" instead of "dadadada" which is a nice change. She is also a lot chattier and louder too. I tell you, when this girl learns to talk, there'll be no stopping her. As for the weather, the sun is out and we've been having some nice walks. Yesterday we were in Vilamoura at the marina. I was there for work and the rest of the family were there for the walk, drinks and relaxation. After I finished work, me and Emma went for a walk along the beach on our own whilst Kristina stayed with her grandparents near the yachts. Kristina and Emma have a nice colour on them already and it's not even summer yet. Work is going well too - I have a lot of stuff going on at the same time which is good cos it keeps me busy and on my toes. Changed the background picture for our blog too as fancied a change and this is a nice photo Emma took with her mobile phone on Faro beach a few weeks ago. Anyway, gonna upload a couple more photos on Kristina's photo page of the website and then having a bite to eat. Take care all of you. "VIC"

March 24th - Hello people... How have you all been? We have been really busy. Still really involved in all the MBT stuff and preparation for the launch which should hopefully be in May. Going to Lisbon tomorrow (I seem to be there quite regularly these days) to look for more shops. Ben came over from Spain last week and we had a look at a couple of shops. I think he has almost made his mind up but he wants to see a couple more to make sure he's making the right choice and I don't blame him really... It's a big decision and needs to be the right one. Estate Agents in this country are soooooo lazy and slow. You wouldn't think they are only on commission... They don't seem to get anything done unless you badger them every day on the phone. So, because of this, tomorrow I'll don a suit and tie (much to Emma's delight as she does love me in a suit) and I'll traipse across Lisbon and walk in to these agent's offices and actually ask to just see stuff, take pictures and then I can report back to Ben with some good shops hopefully. Bought a really good digital camera yesterday on the company credit card so I am all equipped to take some good pics of some good locations. Today is sunny so hopefuly tomorrow will be as well. Yep, just checked and it will be sunny tomorrow, Yippee!!! Wifey is sick at the moment :-( She has a bad cough which was pre-deceded by a cold last week. I feel so sorry for her cos she can't seem to shake the cough and it sounds really painful... I looked up natural remedies for cough relief for pregnant women and found the easiest and most tasty option for her is freshly squeezed orange juice with honey so I gave her some of that this morning. It seemed to help a little... fingers crossed... Kristina has had a cold and got over it in just a couple of days. She is still a bit pained with her molars but seems to be coping quite well... bless. Holly is mad as ever... She needs regular walks as she has soooo much energy to burn and when she doesn't get her walk, she gets very hyper. It's so difficult to juggle work, house, family and doggie walks as well... I think we manage quite well though and still manage to have quality time together. Feeling really settled now and just getting down to work. Weather is really nice these days so soon we will be able to start having a dip in the beach water... In the meantime, we will be popping to the swimming pool one of these days... Mother and father in law are coming over on Thursday for a long weekend (emphasis on the long..... he he he) Yeah, they are here till Tuesday. Emma and Kristina will love having Audrey and David around... I will too I suppose... he he he. No, really, it's nice to have them over every once in a while - a bit of light entertainment - someone for me to wind up... he he he. Oh, the other day, I finished having a bath and was strutting around the flat with nothing on only to be informed by Emma on her return to the lounge that the web cam was on! Audrey had aparently gone walkabout and not seen anything (at least that's her story...he he he) Honestly, can't even have a strutt in the nude any more without being spied on... Finally, Kristina has a new love for the Teletubbies. She was holding on to the side of the bath, splashing her little handies in the water next to me when I was in the bath and I said to her "bye bye la la" and she crouched down. Then I said "hello la la" and she popped back up again with a big smile- just like they do in the programme... soooo sweet. She's always crawling around the flat calling out dadadadada - she's so adorable. Anyway, gotta go. Chat to you all again soon. "VIC"

March 12th - Kristina and I had a lovely time in Madrid, especially Sunday when we went to the zoo. Madrid's zoo is set in the immense 'Casa de Campo' park and is a huge 20 hectares, with an amazing aquarium and also considered a botanical garden. As you enter the friendly sign of stalks nesting in the entrance trees is a lovely welcome (and kind of reminded me of home as we have 2 that live in Olhao and have recently returned from migration - so its a good sign that winter is coming to a close!!) By far Kristina's faves were the penguins (just like her dad) and all the vibrant fish in the aquarium, although she spent ages looking at the Great White Shark and I'm certain she was pulling faces at the miserable thing ;0) It was a long day and my gosh when you have a buggy you have to walk double unless you want to face copious amounts of stairs and any infinity I had with the Spainards from holidaying there all those years has evaporated as NO-ONE stops to help, not even when they can see you've got 50 stairs to climb with the pram and infact a few times people barged infront of us queues (particularly going through security at the airport) and let the door slam into the pram - thankfully K's tootsies never stay still and she loves to rest them on the crossbar at the front so it was always a near miss, but even more frustrating than that was the fact that they NEVER SMILE! Everybody looked so grumpy all the time. Even when the odd person was interacting with K on the metro - she may have got an eyebrow raise, but never that elusive smile! Offcourse, I'm sure there are some exceptions, but Vic and I never found them and it was such a relief to encounter people on their way back to Lisbon at the airport, where at every occasion someone offered to either pick up the front end of the pram (even the pilot helped us up a flight of stairs as the lift was out of action) or take a few bags. Anyhoo other news- Kristina has developed the art of unpacking to a tee - She managed to open the washing machine and empty it all by herself Monday and loves nothing better than sprawling the entire contents of her nappy box all over the lounge floor. On the walking front I'm open to any suggestions, She's got the leg strength in abundance and often just props her butt against the sofa as she watches tv, but has no inclination whatsoever to stay upright on the move as its far too slow and my baby doesn't do SLOW!! He he! Holly has returned from the kennel a normal sized dog this time and not an obese beast like last time. Vic found out that they had given her more than double the food that we specified and that explained why our spritly little puppy came back looking more like a sumo wrestler (he he!) However, what with our daily/nightly walks the weight soon came off and she's back to being a nice proportionate size rather than looking like a pin-headed bell ;0) Vic's birthday was ok, poor thing was at work until gone 7pm, but we did manage to go for a nice chinese around the corner from the hotel with the intention of catching an early night, however poor Vic had terrible trouble with his cards and had to traipse all round Madrid (literally) until midnight to find a cashpoint sensitive enough to read his cards which we have now found out have come into contact with some type of magnetic field which has basically rendered them useless. Not how I think he'd imagined his birthday to be - but he did get a few surprise prezzies from K and I which we trekked to Placa de Espanya during the day to acquire. Anyhoo - Gotta go wake him up with a cup of tea and a toastie - what a good wifey I am he he! Hope all is well and chat again soon XX "EMMA"

March 5th - So, you would have all received our email with our good news! Yep, we don't waste any time - right back there having another baby... well, why wait when you enjoy parenthood so much and want a big family? A little brother or sister for Kristina will be great. The scan was great too - baby waved at all of us and Kristina just stared at the screen between mini tantrums (she was very tired and it had been a long morning). Anyway, we're off to Madrid again tomorrow! All packed and ready to go. I'm attending a Fair there to promote MBT's. Then next week, we will be viewing shops in Lisbon to decide which one we want to rent to open up the first official MBT shop and also my base when I go to Lisbon. Also meeting lawyers there next week to discuss how to move forward with the company in Portugal. All exciting stuff... Anyway, gotta go. Will keep you all updated on our goings on in Spain upon our return. Olé!!! "VIC"

Feb 28th - Good Morning, Good Morning - long time no chat! ;0) Just wanted to put on record that I am still alive and Vic hasn't bumped me off! he he! Kristina is her usual happy, mischeivious self (even with a bad case of nappy rash caused by those bloody molars). I love this age, she is soooo independent that she can play on her own for hours. She's currently under the table banging her saline bottle against the arm of the sofa - she pulls herself up everywhere nowadays, but by far the sweetest is watching her crawl up to her daddy all excitedly while he's on the computer, scramble up his legs, holding on to the chair then stretching both hands to reach the top of the table and trying desperately to hoist herself up to see what he is doing - she even goes on tippie toes! Talking of Vic and K - Vic has taught his little angel a new way of communicating, so now when I go greet her in the morning I'm hissed at and have to explain that 'dad, dad, dad' is still in bed for a little longer. They are so sweet together. It was a nice day yesterday, so we took the opportunity to watch the sunset over Faro beach - quite spectacular. K puts a hesitant little hand in the sand (think she finds it a bit cold) but was captivated by the sea and listening to the waves crash. . . although she did spend the first 15 mins trying her best to get the attention of 4 teenage boys who happen to be larking about playing football on the beach a little further down - this girl is going to be a real trouble maker when she gets older. She can be in the foulest mood, mid hissy fit, but if a boy looks in her direction - all change - out come the flirty eyes and the big ole smile. She's such a flusy! Wonder where she's got that from hummmmmm?!! ;0) Anyhoo, really looking forward to popping back in May, I still really want to catch a movie with my sis and go shopping with Ma in Romford. It's amazing how its the little things you miss the most - Although ask me to swap back - - nada!! No way! The sun is back out in Portugal and Vic's new job seems to be ideal and the new flat should be ours shortly so things are really starting to settle. ;0) Hope all is ok with you all - remember to write as I miss all our little chats. Take care and speak soon XX "EMMA"


Feb 24th - Well, the week in Spain went really well. We were in Barcelona from Monday till Wednesday and then in Madrid Thursday and Friday. I had loads of meetings, visited a few of the MBT shops and we covered a lot of ground. MBT Portugal will be kicking off very soon. There will be a press release in the next few weeks and then it will all begin. I already have one person wanting to become an MBT point of sale so I am going to call him tomorrow. Then my stock and samples should be arriving on Tuesday, then brochures and literature and business cards by the end of the week. I'll also be getting my company credit card this coming week and will need to go shopping for a few office supplies. Also have a lot of planning to do and research for a shop in Lisbon so that we can open the first MBT shop in Portugal which will double up as an office for me to work out of when I'm in the area. Emma and Kristina enjoyed being in Spain and I really enjoyed having them around. I don't know how I would have coped being apart from them for a week. Kristina loved roaming around the hotel rooms exploring. The weather was not too good so Emma did not get to do a lot of sight seeing but she says she enjoyed being there just the same. We had a really long walk around on our last evening in Madrid and had a lovely meal. The next day, we had another long walk before setting off for the airport. The boss and his wife took us all out for lunch on our last day in Barcelona which was lovely. All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better business trip. Going back to Madrid again on 7th March for 3 days to a shoe fair. It's all very exciting and quite big! Can't wait till it all unravells and the work starts to flow in. Collected Holly from the Kennel yesterday and she seems to have enjoyed herself. She has put on a bit of weight so I thing they have been over-feeding her. It was lovely to get her back though and she has settled back at home quite well. She has lost a few teeth and her new ones are coming through now... ahhhh... Anyway, gonna curl up on the sofa with Emma and watch a bit of TV. She says hi to you all!!! Chat soon. "VIC"

Feb 17th - Getting ready for our trip to Spain tomorrow. Baby is in the bath, then we have to pack, tidy up, have dinner and then bed time. Early start tomorrow morning (5am). Gonna get dressed soon so that I can take Holly to the kennel. Gonna miss that crazy dog - i hope she doesn't get too lonely there - only 6 days so not too bad. This coming week is going to be quite interesting and i'm quite looking forward to it. I'll learn a lot from the guys in Spain and then i'm back in Portugal the following week to get the MBT ball rolling in Portugal. Emma has already planned a trip to the zoo in barcelona with Kristina and a few walks whilst I'm at work. We shall be having some lovely strolls and dinners out whilst we are there and then Madrid for the last 3 days. I've never been and neither has Emma so that should be fun too. Anyway, gotta go. I'll tell you all about it when we get back home. Will be checking emails whilst in Spain so if any of you want to get in touch with either of us, feel free. See ya!! "VIC"

Feb 13th - Well, just touching base with you guys today. Things are all hunky dory here in good old Portugal. Emma is sitting on the sofa chilling and doing a crossword. Kristina is in her play pen playing with her toys and arguing with the electronic story book and Holly is chewing her rope. We went to visit the kennel yesterday to book Holly in for next week and it seems really nice. They'll walk her for an hour a day, she gets to have her toys and bed with her so she feels more at home. She will have her own indoor and outdoor area so she can rest on her own and not have to interact with other dogs. So, all in all, I'm sure she'll be fine. I also found out about a local school that provides Portuguese lessons to foreigners for free. Registration will begin around May so Emma will be enrolling for that and she will start lessons in September. It will be good for her to get together with other Brits one or two evenings a week and they can all learn and help each other. It's only 5 mins down the road which is great. Anyway, gonna go and relax for a bit. Emma says hi. Chat to you all again soon. "VIC"

Feb 11th - Kristina fed herself some pear with her own fork today!! Wahhoooo! She is growing up so fast ;0) "EMMA"

Feb 10th - We've had a lovely weekend. Having the in-laws here has been nice. The mother-in-law has not been too annoying this time - he he he. She has done a load of babysitting which has given me time to do some work and hobbies, Emma and I have had a couple of lie ins and Kristina has enjoyed having her nanny about. Holly has also enjoyed having David about as he has a good way with her and she gets to play fetch with someone else. So, all in all, this has been a successful visit. We went out for dinner on Friday, went for a bite to eat and a walk along the beach yesterday and today we went for ice cream and a walk along the marina. Later we are going out for a meal and tomorrow, they fly off back to the UK. I have been doing some bits of work over the weekend for MBT just to get a head start and I must say I am looking forward to the coming weeks and getting my teeth stuck in. Chatted to my brother on msn the other day which was nice as I hadn't done so for a while - he's hardly ever online... and also chatted to my nephew who has lost quite a lot of his teeth since we last saw him... Today we took a family picture which I have posted on Kristina's photo web page www.torcato.co.uk/kristina2008.html . When I checked the camera, I found some other photos which we had taken and forgotten about. The one below I really liked - Our New Years' party photo. Didn't we look smart??? Anyway, gonna get off the comp and watch a bit of TV. Hope you've all had a nice weekend. "VIC"



Feb 8th - Well, I've been to Barcelona to see Ben at MBT Spain. We had a nice long chat and everything is going well. MBT Portugal will kick start very soon and I'm very pleased with the way it has all unravelled. The purchase of our new flat is going well too and hopefully, in the next month or so, we should be able to move in. Emma, Kristina and Holly are also good. My mother and father in law arrived today for a long weekend so at least we get a bit of free babysitting which is always very welcome. Anyway, gonna go now and get on with some work. Chat soon. "VIC"

Feb 3rd - I am indeed alive! Cheeky sod! ;0) Did you think he was hinting??? Honestly! ;0) Hope you are well - I will write soon, but just wanted to say 'We got our offer on a lovely 3-bed flat accepted today' so I'm all smiles even with a red nose and nasty cough. Mum and dad are coming out on Friday for the weekend and I can't wait - K is in fact feeling much better and lastly, as Vic will be in Spain for all of Wednesday I will hopefully send lots of e-mails that I've been planning to do for weeks now, so watch your inbox. Gotta dash a rare opportunity to snuggle my husband has arisen - - - although the dog will insist on squeezing her hairy butt between us within seconds - she's so jealous! Anyhoo - love and hugs - "EMMA"

Feb 2nd - We're all sick!!! I have had a cold for the past week and then Kristina got it and now Emma has it too. It's by far the nastiest cold I have had in a long time so i really feel for my 2 girls. Poor Kristina has had lots of trouble sleeping cause her nose is constantly blocked. Luckily, we have the bottle of saline to hand which is an instant nose un-blocker. Last night she slept through most of the night which is great considering she's feeling so rotten. We've raised the top half of her matress slightly so that she is sleeping at a slight angle and that seems to work quite well. Apart from sickness, everything else is well. I'm embarking on a new adventure (careerwise) - I'm returning to the wings of MBT. The Spanish operation have been given the rights to start up and run MBT Portugal. So, as a result of this, I will hopefully be starting up and running the Southern Portugal operation. I'm going to Barcelona on Wednesday to discuss it all with them and then see how we move on from there. This will be a great experience for me and will give me and the family the salary stability that we need. Although I liked working in real estate, the fact that I had to rely on sales to have an income wasn't ideal and this new job offers the stability we need. Also, Emma will be playng secretary for me so that I don't need to come home at the end of the day and be bogged down with paperwork as well. It suits her down to the ground as this is the right sort of mental stimulation she has been craving. On the property front, we have been trying over the past few weeks to decide what it is we want to buy. We have explored all the options. We first looked at buying up an old house and converting it, then we looked at buying a little house on the hills with a sea view and converting that but, we have gone full circle and decided that the best value for money and where our heart lies best is in fact with the 3 bed apartment in the city. So, with this in mind, we have been looking in that direction instead. We have found a couple of things we like and should hopefully have our new home sorted out very soon. Met up with my old school mate last Saturday which was great. We had a nice long catch-up and it felt good to see him again after so many years. Other than that, nothing else happening at the moment. Hope you are all well and maybe next time, Emma will write the blog - She is still alive - I promise... She just hasn't had the time to sit down and chat and whatever time she does find, understandably, she spends on the comp with her mum on video call. Anyway, all of you, take care... "VIC"

Jan 25th - This week has been an interesting one... Woke up Sunday morning to a TV that had blown up so we had to go buy a new one. Factor that in with helping my cousin with some IT at his place, the nice drive we had intended for Sunday never actually happened. However, we got a great deal on the TV. It's a 26" flat screen TV which was originally 399€ and was on promotion at half price 199€. Obviously I still asked if they could give me a discount as it was the last one and on display but the woman just looked at me like I was taking the piss and I gave in and took it... The image is great and can be wall mountable which may be something we will do in the future... Kristina is still teething and suffering a bit with it. She had a couple of weeks reprieve but now her molars are coming through and she is in a bit of pain with it. She is such a good girl though. Yesterday, she only had a short nap in the morning and another at lunch. When she got to bed at night, she conked out immediately. Holly has been good most of the time and seems to understand the whole house training thing. However, sometimes, when we aren't giving her enough attention, she wees on the floor indoors just for attention so we are trying our best to give her as much attention as possible so she doesn't feel left out. It's a constant battle between her and Kristina for toys - oh, the fun!!! Emma is ok too - keeping busy with the hustle and bustle these two create on a daily basis. That coupled with shopping for food and housework, a full itinerary. Sigrid told me that the local council do Portuguese courses for free for foreigners so I will be looking into that next week if I get time. Emma is keen on that idea cos we don't have to pay! he he he - we're like 2 peas in a very stingy pod!!! As for me, I managed to get an email address for a very good friend I used to go to school with and haven't seen for 9 years. I knew he was living close by but didn't know anything else. Through someone in my home town, I managed his email address and sent him an email. He replied the next day and we should hopefully be arranging a meet up very soon. Since we last spoke, he and his wife have had 2 boys and have bought a place just 20km from us. All in all, an eventful week. Anyway, gotta go. All of you peops, stay in touch - it's always great to hear from you. "VIC"

Jan 19th - What's new with us?... Well, I have my car back finally... it's nice to have him back and also to have been able to give Emma her one back so she can get about whenever and wherever she wants. Work is going well too - I have a few leads in the pipeline and have taken on some excellent properties and plots of land too which is always good. Emma has been reading through some portuguese grammar books my friend Sigrid lent to her. She says they are informative and very easy to follow. It's nice to see her making the effort to learn the lingo - If she likes being here now, imagine how much more she will enjoy it with some Portuguese language under her belt... She'll get there though - sooner than she thinks. My wifey is very clever like that you see... Today was a beautiful sunny day. We took the opportunity to go for a walk and have a browse for any properties which might be for sale that we might fancy a gander at. We saw a lot of lovely places but none were for sale. The area was nice too but there was nothing there for sale that really caught our eye. We are also browsing the net for property so whenever the right place comes along, we will know it and snap it up. For the moment, we are in no rush and quite happy to stay put until something turns up. We want a bigger place but for the moment, we are ok with the 2 bed apartment we have (and a lovely place it is too...). Other than that, I don't have much more to say. Depending on the weather, we may go for a drive tomorrow - who knows. If it is as lovely as it was today, most likely we will. See ya all... "VIC"

Jan 14th - It's been a while since we last wrote something here so I thought I should say a little hello. Nothing much has been happening with us these last 10 days... Strange for us I know but it's about time we took it easy... But, not to worry cos I'm sure we will be the hive of activity again soon as we don't like to sit still for too long so we will find something to occupy ourselves with - no doubt! I spoke to the garage today and the car is in the paint shop so I should hopefully have it back by Wednesday... Kristina is teething again - we only got a short reprieve from the sleepless nights of teething - she now grumbles on average 5 to 6 times a night but thankfully, with a bit of tapping of the bottom and tucking in, she nods off again. It does take it out of us though... and then, when you factor in Holly and her whining once or twice a night wanting to go out to do her business, we end up a bit tired at the end of it. However, we love them both and wouldn't have it any other way... Kristina is up and about during the day - crawling and exploring the whole flat. She opens cupboard doors, looks inside, smiles at us in triumph and then closes the door again. Occasionally, she will attempt to take some of the contents from inside but we stop her at that point and move her in a different direction. There's also a bit of a struggle for toys. Holly wants Kristina's toys and gets a bit jealous when she can't have them. It's all fun and games in our home... he he he. Emma is currently sitting wrapped up in the quilt watching TV. She says: "Hi everyone!!!" As for me, I'm fine too. Had half day today to take Kristina to have her HepB vaccine and then sat here in front of the computer sending emails to various potential clients. Have just remembered the blog so thought I would give myself a lttle brain break and say a quick hi. Anyway, gotta go. More news soon. "VIC"

Jan 5th - Hello Everyone... News from the Torcato household... well, Holly has been a bit sick - she has the runs. We've shortlisted the causes down to one - the dry food - that does not seem to agree with her. So, we are back on the expensive tinned food and tomorrow we're gonna try to give her an alternative dry food and see if she gets on with that. She has however learnt to go outside when she wants to do her business which is good. Kristina has been sleeping through the night again for the last 3 nights now so her teeth must be giving her a break... she has however been extremely grumpy today and we don't really know why - Maybe she feels frustrated cos she wants to be on the go constantly. Emma is well too - I think she is getting a bit of cabin fever as she hasn't really been out of the house for a few days as she has not been feeling up to it and also, I have kidnapped her car as I still don't have mine back. Tomorrow, we are going out food shopping and maybe for a walk if the weather is nice and if not, maybe for a drive somewhere... I want to send some time with my 2 girls as I have been working hard this week and not spent as much time with them as I would have liked. Workwise, I have a really good client who walked through the door the other day. I spent a lot of time with her yesterday and showed her a lot of investment properties and land. Today, I took her to another property and also took her to speak to some architects and then took them all to the properties she's interested in so we could talk about renovation costs. She is now thinking it all through and will speak to me about it on Monday. Fingers crossed. I have been a bit stressed what with the car being in the garage and awaiting the repair authorisation from the insurers and also, we have not had broadband for the last 3 days as the ISP's are mucking us about with the service and keep promising to repair it asap and nothing happens. So, at the moment, we are back on dial up and hoping to have our broadband back soon :-( I didn't realise how much we truly rely on it but we do. Talking to Emma's mum is so much easier on the internet and makes it very cheap to have long conversations. Anyway, lets hope they get their act together soon... So, all in all, we are generally happy but having a few new year hitches. All will settle down soon no doubt and we should be back to normal within the next few weeks hopefully. In the meantime, I should hopefully have a sale under my wing which will bring some much deserved cash into our account to offset the recent costs of car trouble and vet bills. The good thing is that, no matter what life throws at us, we are still where we want to be and that makes everything alright. As long as we are healthy and in these lovely surroundings, nothing much will get us down for too long. Hope you are all well and no doubt, we will be in touch with each and every one of you at some point or another. Take care. "VIC"

Jan 1st - HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!!!. . .Well what can I say about last night? It was a lovely evening, the grounds of the Monte do Casal hotel were beautiful (even at night). After entering the restaurant we were personally greeted by the hostess and shortly after the owner of the hotel himself. The event was rather formal and selective (only 30 guests had been permitted) with all the men in penguin suits or as the Portuguese call them a 'Smoking' and the champagne a-flowing it was like stepping into a different world for me ;0) The canapes shortly circulated and there were such delights as quail egg, prawn skewers and various other seafood delicacies to tantalise the tastebuds while we were offered the wine list to peruse. We were very fortunate on our table location as we were slightly tucked away in an alcove with a window overlooking the landscaped gardens (something also quite handy when the live music began). The food was delicious, each plate offering a different sensation and with 7 courses which were both well proportioned and timed as to not leave you cringing as the next plate was unveiled. My personal menu favourites were the scallops and baby lobster --- although the champagne sorbet also went down a treat!!! But by far my personal highlight of the evening was the company. Sigrid, Vic's work colleague, has an infectitious 'zest for life' attitude and bubbly nature which makes you warm to her instantly, giving you that feeling that you'd known eachother for years. She regalled us (between our unanimous outbursts of apreciation for the food) with stories of her travels and how she came about knowing 5 languages. It was lovely having someone else to chat to and her mother was a teacher so we also had a few things in common. Our table was certainly the most international - with Portuguese, English and a Belgian! and certainly the youngest too! The rest of the New Years party averaged about 60-65+, which was fine until they all got a bit sozzled and began celebrating the New Year 10mins early and gyrating to Shakin' Stevens!!! An experience I'm not sure I could truly convey in words, lets just say posh people + vinho provides some very interesting dance moves indeed! he he he! It was a lovely night and by the time we'd collected Kristina from Vic's auntie, she was wide awake and ready to play again for a few hours - Something neither Vic or I minded as we'd both missed her and her continious teething had given her the sniffles again, so it was great seeing her looking less lethargic and happy to see us both. Vic's Auntie also enjoyed having her, snot and all, so all round a nice way to welcome in the New Year. Other news, we dropped off Ma, Dad and Jo off at the airport in the morning (they had just 1 person in front of them at check-in ;0) mum rang at midnight to wish us a Happy New , confirming her safe arrival (not that I wasn't tracking her progress on the net ;0) so all is well there too. It was good having them here, the flat somehow feels a lot emptier now they've gone and Kristina (and Holly) especially enjoyed all the attention they received. Now my next mission is to try to convince my sis to pop back out with my parents in February! I'm going to miss them all - especially Jo - we've always been close (even though we are like chalk and cheese) but to see her enjoy her week here, even though there's not a HMV in the entire country, was extremey touching. Anyhoo - I better get off as I've gone on for forever ;0) Once again, Happy New Year to you all and may 2008 bring you all that you wish for! x x x "EMMA"

Dec 28th - Well, today I spoke to the garage and they said that the insurance guy had been and said he wants them to dismantle the front of the car so that he can assess the damage properly for his report before he approves the job. So, he'll be returning on Thursday to check it again and then the parts can be ordered. Sounds like it will be around 3500€ worth of repair and the work will commence on the week beginning 14th Jan and will take about 5 days. So, I will be handing the courtesy car in on 31st when I take the in-laws to the airport and will then share the other one with Emma - that'll be easier as driving the courtesy car only reminds me on a daily basis that my one is smashed... :-( Anyway, changing subject, we have adopted a little puppy. Because we adopted her on Boxing Day, we stuck with the Christmas theme and called her Holly. She is about 3 months old and has a wonderful temperament which is great as we needed a dog that would be good with Kristina. She is such a sweetie and an instant hit with everyone. My mother in law spends a lot of time with her and keeps sitting on the kitchen floor next to her bed stroking her... sooo sweet... We are trying to house train her so a lot of little accidents going on at the moment... Good job the floor is tiled... She hates us bleaching after her and barks at us... he he he. We'll get there eventually! It's just really satisfying to be able to adopt a dog from the pound instead of just buying one from the pet shop - there were so many dogs there, it's heartbreaking to leave them all behind... Still, we have one and have made a small difference :-) Picture of Holly is below. Kristina is still her usual self - full of character and with a very strong individual personality. Anyway, gonna go watch Shrek the Third on DVD on the projector (Cinema Style)... More news soon no doubt... See Ya! "VIC"


Dec 26th - What a Christmas!!! Highs and lows all round... Lows: Had an accident and smashed the front of my car up... was on my way to pick up the in laws from the airport on Christmas Eve and to cut a long story short, 4 or 5 cars broke in front of me and i didn't have time to brake. Car is now in the garage and should hopefully be ready to collect fully repaired by the middle of January. It's gotta be an insurance jobby and I'm so glad we're fully comp! Would have cost us a fortune otherwise but instead, we have an excess and then a small daily insurance charge on the courtesy car. Obviously, it spoilt my Christmas but hey, i've more or less come to terms with it and am slowly moving on. Can't wait to have my lovely car back and looking brand new... Then, later that day, Kristina was in the car with Emma and she was chewing on a chocolate wrapper we had given her earlier to keep her quiet. Somehow, she managed to bite a bit off the end and was choking on it. Emma quickly stopped the car, pulled her out of the car seat and managed to dislodge it from her throat! She is fine thankfully but she did give us a scare!!! It really wasn't the best start to Christmas... :-( Anyway, if you want to see a picture of the car, it is below. You must now be thinking, what about the highs? Well, the in-laws being here are one of the highs as they really missed Kristina and Emma loves being around her family. I love having them around too as I can see how happy they all are... I also got some lovely presents. Emma had a "Kristina and Daddy" 2008 calendar made for me and also a t-shirt with a picture of Kristina's father's day card printed on it... Made my day that did. I really love the personal gifts - they mean so much more to me than the expensive material things... Kristina really enjoyed all her pressies which was lovely and she just sat in her play pen and played for ages. Emma and her sister are playing Mario Olympics on Wii at the moment and are running on the spot in the middle of the lounge and getting very tired... Funny to listen to. Tomorrow we are going to the dog pound to see about adopting a doggie. Watch this space... Anyway, gonna stop blabbing on. Hope you all had a lovely Christmas and here's to a great New Year!!! "VIC"


Dec 22nd - Hurrahhh! It's stopped raining and the sun is doing its best to break through! Well, let's see what have we been up to the last couple of days?...hummmm....Oh I managed to finally think of something to get Vic for Chrimbo and both Kristina and I braced the pre-chrimbo traffic to go track it down -She was an angel the whole time, even though we were out and about during her nap time and she eventually conked out on the journey home in her car seat. Made carrying her and everything we'd bought up all those stairs veeerrrryyy interesting ;0) Bless! she loved jumping in and out of all the shopping trolleys and wherever we went people commented on how well behaved and pretty she is. She certainly makes queuing up much more bareable. The weather has been pretty rotten so I haven't really felt like going out, but I decided to take her to see Vic's Auntie yesterday and they had a whale of a time making eachother laugh for over an hour. Even though his auntie and I can only mumble the odd cohesive word in each other's language we are united by the power of smile and Kristina can certainly makes you do that! Her latest fad is to screw her face up so that her top lip touches her nose (a bit like a gurner - you know those old codgers with no teeth who stick their head through a ring thing pulling the freakiest of faces?!). . . well, she does that and huffs and puffs when she gets frustrated. This has kindly got her the new nickname 'Hulkette'. He he he! On the home front we are expecting a new addition some day soon! -- No, I'm not pregnant again -- we are going to try and adopt a little doggy. It's been a while since Sophie passed and Vic and I still feel the void she left. So we thought that we'd like for Kristina to grow up with a new friend and our christmas good deed would be to rehouse a poor mite. Hopefully we are going to see them this week - so watch this space!!! On the Job front Vic is loving his job and I'm so, so happy for him. I must admit I was a bit worried for him, because of the nature of the job I'd expected it to be quite bitchy with everybody out for themselves - wonderfully, it seems it's quite the opposite they all seem to be real team players and one person in particular has taken Vic under her wing and is doing her upmost to guide him along. That's lovely and after breifly meeting her one day that I met Vic for lunch we have all decided to splurge a little and see the New Year in in style together. So Vic's booked us in to a beautiful Hotel for a black-tie 7 course marathon and dancing to the early hours. If you are interested here is the link http://www.slh.com/portugal/faro/farest/photogallery.html . My mum is extremely jealous indeed! he he he! Talking of the family I am extremely looking forward to having them here. Vic and I are going to pick them up at Faro Airport on Monday (all being well they should arrive just before 10am) Kristina won't know what hit her! They've missed her soooo much. Anyhoo . . .little madam wants to play so I better go. If i don't blabber on before - HAVE A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!!! x x x "EMMA"

Dec 17th - We now have broadband.... woohoooo... Makes such a difference cos now we can do video calls and chat to family in the UK and see them too. They also love it cos they can see and hear us and talk to Kristina and watch her reaction when she hears a voice coming from the computer... he he he. She is doing so well. She now has 4 top teeth all out, 2 bottom ones all out and 2 bottom ones coming through... She has also discovered the fun of crawling now so as well as pulling herself up and standing up on her own, she has added crawling to that list... Oh, the joy when she really discovers the benefits of crawling above those of just standing there holding on to something and smilng... We had a really nice day yesterday - went for a walk and browsed houses and apartments with for sale signs and considered which areas we would like to live in when we upgrade... It's starting to get chilly nowadays - this morning was dismal - raining and cold :-( But, the day did brighten up and by the afternoon, the sun was out again but it was still quite cold. The evening got even colder - Think winter has arrived in Portugal... Still warmer than UK though so that's some consolation :-) We have also put some new photos of Kristina online so, if you want to have a look, click on the red link: Kristina's Photos Anyway, we're going to bed now. Toodles... "VIC & EMMA"

Dec 12th - We haven't had internet since 7th so we're a bit out of touch with what's going on out there in the rest of the world. We've been in our little bubble doing our own thing and chilling. We went Christmas shopping on saturday and bought everybody's pressies, we've written and sent out xmas cards and I've been really busy with work so not had much time to think about much else. Yesterday was the first time i got properly stressed since I arrived here. Had this massive argument with Portugal Telecom and told them various times how incompetent they are. Anyway, to cut a long story short, our phone line was finally repaired today and we're back online. Still waiting for broadband to be set up though :-( Have received the modem but awaiting an activation date... Anyway, back to my work, it's all going well. I've already made some good friends and they are treating me nicely. I've taken on a plot of land which I went to show today to a German client and it looks like he's really interested. Also took on today a 4 bedroom house in the historical centre of Tavira. Seeing as I get commission for both taking on properties and the sale of them, I'm well chuffed at how things are progressing. The guy that gave me the plot of land to sell has another house which I am going to view Saturday and the woman whose house I took on today may have another she is thinking of selling. We'll see... So, work is going well so far. Kristina had her BCG test yesterday and is going back on Friday to get the result. If all is ok, she will have her BCG vaccine and her hepatitis B one too. She's so good though - they gave her the injection yesterday and of course, she cried. A couple of minutes later, it was as if nothing happened... bless her... Anyway, I'm not gonna bore you all any more. Emma says hi and hugs to you all. More blog news soon... "VIC"

Dec 7th - Had a lovely day today - met Vic for lunch (which I made for all 3 of us) which we ate in the shade of Tavira's gardens before going for a little stroll around the town. It was such a beautiful day, nice and warm, but not stiffling and Kristina loves the effect the cobbly streets have on her pram - 1 big fairground ride for her! ;0) The drive both there and back in my car was great - windows down - stereo up - sunglasses on - - bringing a touch of Essex to the Algarve. . . he he he! The rest of the day was spent playing with Kristina (she's so wiggly, you can't take your eyes of her for a second. I even caught her today pulling herself up and knawing on the top rail of her cot - there's teeth marks and everything!!! What did she do when she was caught? - smiled that 'Oooopps - but I'm still sweet right?' smile she has then carried on ;0) ;0) I also got a chance to start Kristina's scrap-book mum bought from Hallmark - it's sooo sweet, has little silver clothes pegs, rubber duckies, stickers and coathangers as well as teddy bears and stalks!! I love doing anything creative and am thoroughly enjoying using Microsoft publisher and all the pics we've collected to make something decorative and quirky- her album will be certainly be unique and it gives me a chance to use all the other lovely photos we have. Vic's really started to get into this estate agent lark - I can see its lit a fire in his belly - Think he thrives on the new challenge and has already got 3 appointments booked for Monday, so he's making sure he gets off to a flying start! (unsurprisingly!!). I really like hearing about the properties he's seen and how much they are all worth now - where is that lottery win eghhh? The interior designer side of me would relish the opportunity to do up a home out here. Anyhoo - rambled enough for one night. Hope everyone is well and dandy - keep the e-mails coming I need my gossip fix. Take care and night-nighty! XXX "EMMA"

Dec 5th - I've started my new job as an estate agent. I am enjoying it but it is quite challenging as I don't know that part of the algarve that well. However, today, I took a bunch of keys to various apartments and houses, printed off a few maps from the internet, took my car and went on a property hunting mission. One of them I couldn't find so eventually gave up but I did find 4 others which I did view. I also took updated pictures to take back to the office tomorrow. The people I work with are very nice and the company has lots of property on their books. They have Villas, Apartments, Houses and they also sell in Golf Resorts. I have bought the domain name www.torcato.co.uk and have placed a page there about what service I can provide for anyone looking for property in the Algarve. I have also paid for this site to be advertised all over the internet so it gets seen out there and found on search engines when certain key words are typed. It will take a few days to take effect but when it does, I will hopefully get enquiries. It's a start... I will also be sending many emails to old and current contacts in the UK to see if I can drum up some business. It's all very exciting but tiring in the old brain... Emma is quite happy pottering around the house and she has actually got round to doing some of her hobbies today. Yesterday, she drove to meet me for lunch. It was lovely to have lunch with her and Kristina. She even took me a flask of tea... :-) Tomorrow, we have a meeting to talk about the Golf Resorts we have on our books and to have some training on how to sell them. Anyway, gonna log off now as Emma will be wanting to chat to her mum on MSN. Bye... "VIC"

Nov 30th - Well, the boxes with all our stuff have arrived and we have finally unpacked them all - phew! It is so nice to be surrounded by all our stuff... :-) The flat was chaos for a couple of days though as there was soooo much stuff and we had to find places to put it in... We managed in the end and the place now looks spiffin'. There are still some photo frames on the floor waiting to be put up but other than that, all is done. We can finaly relax and take it easy. Hoooray!!! We noticed yesterday that poor little Kristina actually has 6 teeth coming through - 1 is nearly all out, another is ripping through and 4 more are also very close to ripping through... Poor little mite - she is doing so well though - still managed to have a good old giggle with daddy before bedtime... :-) Emma has been fighting off a cold and seems to be over the worst of it. She is standing behind me playing Tennis on her Nintendo Wii. I feel very chilled at the moment and also very blessed to have such a wonderful wife and daughter and to finally be living with them in Portugal. The weather here is great. We went out earlier this morning to the post office and the sun was shining. We left the flat with jackets and scarfs on but soon after, we removed the scarfs and further down the road, the jackets came off too... I'm looking forward to starting my new job on Monday... I will miss being around my 2 girls but I do feel like my brain needs a challenge and I am getting a bit jittery. It's interesting that I have been so busy this last month but even though I have worked hard, it doesn't really feel like work to me - manual work at home for me is just not the same as going out to work... Maybe it's because I don't get paid for working at home - you know me and my love for money - he he he... ;-) Anyway, gonna stop wittering on and go have a play on the Nintendo! "VIC"

Nov 27th - It's official I married the most wonderful man in the world!! . . .I woke up this morning feeling a bit groggy (think I'm fighting off Little miss's cold) and all day he's runaround and looked after me. Feeling much better now as a result and am now sitting typing this while occasionally peeking over my shoulder to see him ridiculously jiggying about playing Wii Sports (it is funny and great exercise too ;0) Enough mushy stuff! --It was a beautiful day today, so when we did eventually leave the house we took a nice leisurely stroll to Vodafone to register our mobiles - apparentely if they are registered you get the odd freebee and much faster assistance, so we thought it was worth doing. As usual Kristina loved being out and about in the buggy, she was sooo tired, but would she sleep?? - heck she would! Miss K was sitting there, lounging with 1 leg over the crossbar of her pram (she has a thing for doing that) taking it all in and smiling at everyone who went by. My highlight of the trip was that while waiting for Vic outside this little girl and her Gran (like every other person in Portugal) took it upon themselves to stop and have a chat with Kristina - it's lovely seeing them all lavish her with attention, but my stomach churns as you know what's coming next - - - yep! they wanna talk too me!! Arrrrgghhh!!!. . .well the reason I consider it a highlight was that for the first time I spoke a full sentence in Portuguese to a stranger- and !!!SHOCK-HORROR!!! They actually understood ;0) It wasn't anything incredibly profound or meaningful, but to know that I could tell this lady that I was sorry, but I was English and I didn't speak Portuguese made my day!! (How easily pleased am I?? ;0) I can't wait for our stuff to arrive tomorrow, then I can start to really concentrate on expanding my dialogue. At the moment I make an effort to learn at least 1 new word a day (mainly by watching TV and its subtitles) today's was 'concerteza' which means'certainly'. Small steps . . . I keep having to remind myself! . . .Just had a giggle as Vic is playing Wii Baseball and said he thought he might dislocate his shoulder and then I said wouldn't it be funny if he went to the doctor and had to tell him he'd 'done it by playing with his wii'!! He he! - - Yep! Small minds are easily pleased. On that (you had to be there) note, I'll take my leave - - - Tchau for now! "EMMA"

Nov 26th - Yesterday we sat by the marina in Faro in the sunshine eating ice cream. Today, I got a job. So, I think I can safely say that things are going swimmingly... I sent off my CV to 4 or 5 places yesterday morning just on the off chance as I had casually been browsing and saw those few which I would be interested in. This morning, I received a call from one of them offering an interview. I went along and they basically said the job was mine if I wanted it. I said I would think about it and after doing so for the rest of the day, I have just emailed her accepting the job and suggesting a start date for Monday next week. The job is working in an Estate Agent in Tavira - one of the biggest tourist hot spots in the Algarve. I'll be selling property to Brits, Germans, Swiss, etc. I really think I'll enjoy doing that so let's wait and see how it goes. Emma was soooo pleased and couldn't wait to tell everyone how proud she is of her hubby... ahhhh, she's the best wifey in the world... :-) Poor little Kristina has a bit of a cold and her top tooth is now showing which has been giving her a bit of grief too. Quite a bad night last night so none of us slept properly... :-( Anyhoo, as promised a few days ago, here is a picture of our 2 lovely new cars - the quality is not too great as it was getting dark and it was on my mobile but better than nothing. And, in case you're wondering, the colour is Silver... So, on this note, signing off and going to bed. Over and out... "VIC"


Nov 24th - We've been here for 3 days now. It feels great! We have unpacked our suitcases, filled our cupboards with food, and most exciting of all, we have picked up our new cars. They are lovely. Once we have our computer back from the shipping company next week, we'll download pictures from the camera and post them on this blog for all to see... Weather is lovely too :-) Have surprised all the family as they didn't know we were coming to Portugal so soon - they were all really pleased and have made a fuss of Kristina. Oh, talking of our lovely daughter, she has settled in really well. She loves having her own room and to show us how much, she sleeps from around 9.30pm till nearly 8am. She has also cut another tooth so has been a bit grizzly these last couple of days. She really loves all the attention though... :-) "VIC & EMMA"

Nov 20th - Packing today! ;0) What miserable weather it is - none of our stuff is drying, so have to perform a radiator rotisserie type ritual every 30mins to ensure our clothes will be dry in time. Mum's trying, but is starting to feel real sad - I can see it in her eyes ;0( but she is putting a brave face on it, bless her. Today she is making us a lovely roast dinner which will be great after eating out for dad's birthday yesterday! (It's certainly interesting now with K, she bogs at you until you give her a sample of whatever is on the table, so she's now dabbled with rib, steak and noodles too, but definitely enjoys her veg more - good girl) Nothing quite like homecooked food!! I'm actually feeling really restless - there's nothing to do, so I'm pacing around the house like a caged animal, just want to go now. . . Ahhh, I can hear baby giggling while playing with her grandad - Ohhh talk about pull at the heart strings - Kristina has such a positive effect on everyone I just hope thery keep it together when we're not here to supervise. Our week at Mansfield Manor is drawing to a close and do you know what?? it hasn't actually been that bad at all, but whenever I have that odd second of melancholy of leaving everyone behind, I just think IT'S 20'C IN PORTUGAL TODAY! He he he!!! ;0) ;0) "EMMA"

Nov 18th - Party night is over and we really enjoyed ourselves. The turnout wasn't as good as we had anticipated but we really enjoyed ourselves anyway. If any of you took photos, email them to us please - we were so busy zooming around talking to everyone, we forgot to get our camera out to take some piccies... :-( Sorry some of you couldn't make it but to those of you who did, thanks - your efforts were appreciated. We also received loads of lovely gifts - thank you all for those too. Today is chillout day - going bowling later this afternoon and then in the evening, chilling in front of the telly... First proper day off in a fortnight :-) "VIC"

Nov 16th - Been really busy these last couple of days (as usual)... Doing loads of DIY in my mother in law's house and today, I have taken some time out to organise some paperwork. Emma, her mum, sister and kristina have all gone food shopping for the party tomorrow and then later comes the food preparation. All fun and games... :-) "VIC"

Nov 14th - 1 Week to go - woohoooo!!! Moved all the remaining stuff from our flat to my mother in law's house! Started at 7am and finished at half past midnight. Loooooooonnnnnnggggg day!!! Every muscle and bone aches... Today, the shipping company collects all 18 mahhooosive boxes and then we can sit back and enjoy our last week in the UK. Kristina was really good last night (not that she isn't any other night but was especially good last night). She went to sleep at 9.30pm and woke this morning at 6.50am. She had a bit of trouble getting to sleep on her own in a strange room so I sat there and just held her hand whilst she slowly nodded off... ahhhhhhh... Our daughter is just such a good girl... :-) "VIC"

Nov 11th - Today we took some more boxes to my mum's (while we loaded the car, Auntie Maria popped over to look after Kristina who happily sat in her nest of bubblewrap ;0) Both Vic and I were on a 'Mansfield Manor declutter mission' in preparation for our arrival - whilst he sorted out the new computer desk upstairs and tidied the room, I tackled the bureau and its many surprises! lol! Just finished talking to my mum on messenger for the first time. We've given her a webcam and showed her how to use it today - she picked it up like a pro... I'm so proud of her! Its a bit sad knowing that in just over a week I won't be able to pop round and boss her about, so its great that I'll be able to see and hear her still . . .I suppose I'll just have to nag her from afar! He he!. . . . . OOOHHH . . . . . and Kristina said 'hello' after hearing it on a new toy she's been given - total fluke, but both Auntie Jo and I heard her mimic the sound - (Vic's just laughed at me as he's just shown me how to type on this thing and I've already taken over! ! ! - He loves me anyhooo! ;0) but I can take a hint, so am going to sign off - nightie night XX "EMMA"

Nov 10th - These last 3 days have been quite uneventful... Have packed away the computer - we are now working off the laptop. Will be packing away the rest of the flat tomorrow and then on Tuesday, we move out to my mother in law's house for the remainder of our UK week. Have also burned 4 CD's for the party with a mix of old and new music to cater for everyone's taste. Kristina is growing in leaps and bounds. At bedtime, I used to rock her to sleep and then put her in her cot. For the last 3 nights, I have put her in her cot awake and she has nodded off all on her own. We are so proud of our clever little girl... "VIC"

Nov 7th - Day off from packing (Victor's huge sigh of relief ;0) Popped over to see Katie and little Megan - Kristina enjoyed playing with all her toys. Megan's such a good sharer. "EMMA"

Nov 6th - Packing complete! Well, just the kitchen and a few items in the lounge and bathroom left but otherwise, all done... Phew... The flat looks like an empty shell - just a few items of furniture scattered around with nothing on them... :-( Still, that just means we are closer to moving day! :-) Day off tomorrow... well deserved... Also, today, for the first time, Kristina pulled herself up in her cot and stood there smiling at us triumphantly whilst we lay in bed. She is growing so fast!!! "VIC"

Nov 5th - We all went to a fireworks display last night - It was great fun. Kristina loved being out and about at the funfair and then when the fireworks were about to start, she fell asleep and slept through the whole thing... The flat looks like a dossers house - untidy and boxes everywhere - a shell of it's former (tidy) self... Bedroom is nearly all packed up now with just the bed, cot and a few clothes scattered about... Next is the lounge... Oh, the joys of packing... Emma is really enjoying herself though and we are all looking forward to the big move - not long now... :-) "VIC"

Nov 3rd - Packed 3 more boxes while Kristina amused herself in a pile of bubble wrap. She has found a new way of communicating - screeching!!! Amusing at first - not so amusing after five minutes when deafness is settling in... Tired!!! Emma Packed my photos away - Victor sulking - she even wanted to pack away my father's day card - I fought hard and won that battle - The card stays with me and goes in the suitcase on the plane :-)!!! "VIC"

Nov 2nd - Packing has begun... 2 boxes down, who knows how many to go... It's great knowing we have more time to spend together as a family now! "VIC & EMMA"

Nov 1st - 3 weeks to go! Weehee!!! Boxes have arrived - OMG!!! Better get packing :-) :-) :-) "VIC & EMMA"