August Ends With School Starting, Multiple Birthday Parties, Being Outside, and Haircare!
[Photos from 22 to 31 August 2016, posted on 13 November 2016. I’m stubborn to a fault. Also, Finnur just returned home from a two-week stay in California this morning. He spent a week+ before that in the UK (we came along for the ride for 5 days). It’s been busy. 16 November 2016. My ankle got cut up today to remove all the hardware from the breakage last January. Hello painkillers!]
Finally, school started up again! This year Bjarki’s in 4th grade, but Anna’s up to 8th grade, meaning she now a teenager according to the school system. Emma continues in daycare, and started in the room she’ll be in for the next three years.
The last week-and-a-half of August was apparently spent: Starting school, going to a concert, attending multiple birthdays, going out for walks/jogs/biking, working outside, food procurement, and hair-stuff! (47 images total!)
Monday 22 August 2016
Mr. Bjarki, about to begin 4th grade! I didn’t accompany Anna to school, she’s just too old for that now!
It’s one class of about 30 kids, but with two teachers, and two rooms. This is just before we walked to their classrooms, but after all the 2nd and 3rd grade kids had already left for their rooms. Hence the emptiness!
Tuesday 23 August 2016
The next night I attended the birthday concert of the 23/8 duo. Yes, 23rd August is the double birthday of both the singer Stína, and the piano player, Anna Gréta.
Being sort of a birthday bash, there was free cake during intermission!
There were lots of people in Hannesarholt that night.
Stina’s husband, Tommi, is a fantastic guitar player, and they did Purple Rain together!
After the concert I didn’t feel like going home just yet, so I went to Cafe Vesturbæjar (West End), and drank tea outside, at 10 pm, without freezing.
Wednesday 24 August 2016
The ridiculously good weather continued. It was so nice that it was physically difficult to stay inside working. I visited the new balcony at work during coffee breaks to take the edge off.
At 9:30 in the evening, I got the fantastic idea to go out for a walk (my left achilles tendon was too sore to run) and check out the status of the new road being built nearby. (It was opened up yesterday, on 15 Nov.)
Here is an overhead view of the road that just got built, from http://www.ruv.is/frett/arnarnesvegur-opnadur-i-dag. There are a lot of houses still to be built close by!
Looking up the hill towards the cemetery.
Looking in the opposite direction, towards my work.
Huh, a new roundabout!
They’d finished paving the lowest portion of the road.
A near-inaccessible underpass. It looks like you can walk down the comfortably, but the image deceives, as I barely made it down there in one piece!
This is a big change for bikers and pedestrians. This is the path leading from the underpass, towards work. This used to be a muddy field, which lead to a steep drop and a narrow rocky path down it.
Biking here will be lovely!
The new path meets the old path. The steep drop on to it has been removed!
At that point I’d basically walked all the way to Guðrún and Snorri’s house. I went to say hi, and found these massive piles of dirt in their driveway. Turned out they were installing a deck and a hot tub!!
Deck supports. Very exciting!
Saturday 27 August 2016
Saturday was the big double-40 year old birthday party of Halli and Adda! I took a ton of pictures, and they can be found here!
The BBQers.
CAD-ed drinks!
Drinksies!
Me and the birthday girl!
Sunday 28 August 2016
For lunch, we joined up with some 100 people to celebrate Soffia’s 50th birthday. Her husband, Ágúst, organized a surprise birthday party for her in “retaliation” after she did the same thing for/to him when he turned 40.
Kids salivating over the melted chocolate-fall.
Lunch about to be served at Vox Home.
Everything looked so good!
Showing off her newest (second) grandchild.
Later in the day, we managed to persuade Anna to bike up and down the street with Emma.
Good times!
Flowers in the sun.
Finnur hard at work, clearing out earth to refill later with sand, in an attempt to cut down on weeds in that area… or at least to make removing them easier.
An outdoorsy Finnur.
Aaah, the last days of summer.
Monday 29 August 2016
Went out for a walk during lunchtime. Tried jogging a bit, but it didn’t go well.
Cool rock formation.
Approaching work again.
Finnur helping our neighbors, and they’d just finished staining and painting their half of the house.
Sunset beginning at 9 in the evening.
Tuesday 30 August 2016
Sometimes this is the quickest way to remember what is on stock in the house.
Time to buy fish. Where did the good weather go?!
Wednesday 31 August 2016
My skin doctor decided it was time for some light treatment for my psoriasis. So that’s how I spent the first 30 minutes three times a week for the next three months.
After school, I took Bjarki and Emma to get a haircut.
Emma sitting very still.
A somewhat posed photo!
And that’s a wrap for August 2016!!
