On the eve of Christmas Eve I decided to take the kids into the city to have one last chance to find Paddington Bear statues and to visit the Science Museum.  Cameron spent the day with a friend, so I just had these three hoodlums.  We got on a train at about 10:00am and didn’t get home until 7:30pm and I have to say that the kids were troopers.  With the exception of a few hiccups (I’ll mention later) we had a really fantastic day.  

We took the train into central London and then transferred to the tube to get to Green Park.  We walked through green park and it was sunny and lovely and the kids ran around on the green grass.  Green grass in January is new to me.  

From Green Park we passed under the Wellington Arch and entered Hyde Park.  Winter Wonderland was still going on, so we made a quick stop to use the toilet and I would have bought more churros but I had no cash. (She has no cash.) 

We left Hyde Park toward the south and wound our way through Kensington.  It was hustling and bustling with last-minute Christmas shoppers, but it was as lovely as ever.  

As we searched for the next bear I didn’t realize we were approaching Harrod’s.  I still haven’t been inside Harrod’s (on Christmas Eve Eve with three kids? No thanks…) but when I saw the building from afar I didn’t know what it was.  I just kept thinking – “That building is gorgeous.”  I didn’t get a good picture- but when I go back to actually experience Harrod’s I shall.  I have mixed feelings about Harrod’s, but those for another post.  

While the kids were watching the window displays I was looking over a map at the bus stop – to figure out if it was the right bus stop and which bus we needed.  I called to them, and they followed me down the sidewalk, but then I realized we were walking the wrong direction so I told them to turn around.  When we got back to the bus stop I paused again to look at the map.  I noticed the Eli and Simon weren’t right at my side but I assumed they were looking at the window again.  When I realized they weren’t, I looked all around.  I couldn’t see them anywhere.  There were so many people – did I mention it was December 23 outside the biggest department store in London?  

My heart started to race and I totally panicked.  I couldn’t decide if I should run back the way we came, or run ahead the direction we were walking.  I couldn’t decide if I should shout for help or scream their names.  I was the most scared I’ve ever been about losing a kid, and just ask my family, I’ve lost my kids before.  

It felt like forever but at last there was a break in the crowd long enough for me to see down the sidewalk to the corner where they were huddled with a friendly woman.  I ran to the corner and both of them were in tears.  They looked so scared, and I felt so scared I started crying too.  The woman went on her way and we just kind of sat there on the busy corner for a minute, frozen.  

When I finally had my wits about me, and the boys were calm again, we walked back to the bus stop and waited for our bus.  I hadn’t decided if we needed to take a bus to our next destination or if we should just walk, but a confined space seemed like the right thing at that moment.  

We took the bus just a few blocks toward the Science Museum, which happens to be really close to our favorite crepe restaurant.  So we had crepes for lunch and then walked over to the Science Museum.  

The Science Museum was really fun, I felt badly for Eli because he had the museum map in hand, and he really could have spent the entire day there.  He was totally loving the space exploration exhibit.  Unfortunately Mim and Si have shorter attention spans so we had to compromise a bit.  There are also a lot of hands-on science activities for kids, and Eli was interested in the science behind them, whereas Mim and Si wanted to just play with it and move on.  So I’ll definitely be going back with just Cameron and Eli another time.  

We stayed at the museum for a couple hours, about as long as Miriam and Simon would tolerate, and then took the tube from South Kensington to Picadilly Circus.  It gets dark so early during the winter, that when we arrived at Picadilly the sun had already set.  

We left Picadilly Circus and walked toward Leicester Square.  (Pronounced, “Lester”. It only took me six months to learn that one.)  Leicester Square is the heart of the theatre district, where you can buy discount tickets to all the shows. (Les Miserable, Wicked, Once, Lion King, War Horse, etc…)  There was a winter carnival set up there with fake snow and music and lots of festive spirit.  

From Leicester Square we made our way to Chinatown.  There were a couple times when we would walk right past the Paddington and then have to turn around and backtrack until we found him.  You would think with four pairs of eyes he would be easy to spot, but kids can get distracted, as you know.  

Eli was totally into the Paddington hunt by this point. He especially loved looking at each of the suitcases to see what they “contained”, or how they were painted.  He also was very cooperative with posing at each bear, which Mim and Si were more fickle about.  

From Chinatown we walked to Covent Garden and the Royal Opera House.   I had been to Covent Garden with Miriam earlier, but there were new Christmas decorations up that the kids just loved.  

There was a life-size Santa, sleigh and reindeer made entirely of legos.  Eli loved it- but you would never guess by the expression on his face.  He was annoyed because there was a long queue to sit in the sleigh and I insisted that all three kids get in at the same time.  

So you can tell by the last picture that the kids were starting to get restless.  We needed to walk back to Charing Cross station to catch a train so I thought we’d go by way of Trafalgar Square to see one more bear.  Apparently it was more bear too many… 

As you can tell by the poor quality of the picture I was distracted because of this…

I had packed some juice boxes and snacks in the backpack for our day out, and at some point when I was distracted by looking at maps, Simon drank an entire juice box in about 20 seconds flat.  I only realized it just as he finished.  

Also- public restrooms in London? SO hard to come by.  

So we walked across the street to a Next clothing store and bought him some new trousers.  There was no bathroom there, and he was already saying he needed to go again.  So I changed him in the fitting room, all the while him loudly saying “I’m sorry I peed my pants Mom.  Are we changing my pants? Thanks for getting me new pants…”  I stuffed the wet things in the Next bag and off we went. 

Fortunately Next is right by Charing Cross, so we hustled to the station to use the toilet, except it costs 30p to use the toilet and I had no cash.  So I got cash out of an ATM, but it only accepts coins, so we waited in the queue and bought Eli’s train ticket to get some change.  All the while Simon whining about how he needs to go again, and me PRAYING that he doesn’t pee in his pants again.  

Fortunately it all got sorted out, and we got on our train, and I just took deep breaths the whole ride home.   

Once we got home we were in a mad rush to get in the car and go pick up Cameron from his friend’s house, and since we were already in the car I figured we could stop and deliver some treats we had made for Kayden’s family.  They kindly invited us in, and while the kids were playing we all noticed a foul odor.  Everyone blamed it on Tyler for awhile, until I realized it was Simon.  In his new trousers.  With no underwear, because I had completely forgotten to put underwear on him when we got home.  Sooo yeah.  Pure awesomeness.  

Well this post was really long.  Thank you if you are still reading.  And perhaps you are feeling as exhausted at the end of this as I was.  

On Christmas Eve of 1914, the German and British soldiers were hunkered down in trenches, separated by what was called “no man’s land;” the space between them where, should you enter, you would surely be shot.  In the darkness of the night, British soldiers recounted that they began to hear Christmas carols being sung by German soldiers.  The British responded with carols of their own, and back and forth they sang across the battlefield.  

In the morning, brave German soldiers entered “no man’s land” and crossed the ground between them.  The British responded in kind, and gifts of chocolate, alcohol, food and cigarettes were shared.  They spent the day burying their dead, playing football, and just sharing in the joy of the Christmas holiday.  It is estimated that 100,000 soldiers participated in the unofficial cease fire.  

By Christmas-time of 1915 there were strong orders from leadership that fraternisation was prohibited and by 1916 the feelings of peace and camaraderie that once existed seemed to be lost.  

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To commemorate the 100 year anniversary of the Christmas Truce, our stake organized a Christmas Truce Program.  It was a public event, and included participation from other local churches and clergy.  


We took the kids, and they really enjoyed it.  The program included audience participation, fun historical songs along with traditional Christmas carols.  There were speakers who spoke and recited letters from actual historical accounts of soldiers there, and gave background to the event and the war.  It was an engaging combination of humor and emotion.  A young man sang “Oh Holy Night”, singing one verse each in German, French and English and it was the most moving performance of the song that I’ve ever heard.  

Eli especially was touched by the service.  He sat by Richard and was completely enchanted from the get go.  He listened carefully to each word that was spoken and just absorbed the powerful feelings that were there.  When it was over Richard and I both felt overwhelmed with gratitude for the opportunity to live here and experience these things, for ourselves and our children. 

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I can’t imagine what it felt like to be a soldier then.  Everyone was hoping to be home by Christmas, no one thought the war would last that long. It must have been a welcome reprieve to relax for a day and open their hearts with love and kindness toward each other.  But then, the next morning, to resume the painful and destructive acts of war, to return to an existence full of fear and conflict, must have been such a drastic shift.  

But it gives me hope in humanity, that when given the freedom to do so, our souls long to connect with other humans, and express love and gratitude and friendship.  

I can’t remember what it was – but one day I was reading something somewhere and a voice in my brain shouted at me 

“St. Paul’s Cathedral! At Christmas-time!” 

I made note of it but then got distracted until I got a Vox from Adri the next day saying 

“St. Paul’s Cathedral! At Christmas-time!” 

Unfortunately I was too late to get tickets to any of the really amazing Christmas services. (For example, the Cathedral choir singing the Hallelujah Chorus.  Can you imagine?! NEXT YEAR.)  But I did remember multiple people telling me that Evensong was always open to the public.  So I chose a day and stressed over the logistics because the kids don’t get out of school until 3:50, Evensong begins at 5:00, and it’s easily a 45 minute trip from their school to the cathedral.  Plus- four kids, by myself, at a choir service in a sound sensitive Cathedral?

I put a little something for each of them in my bag, something to wear with their school uniform to dress it up a little bit, and made them change in their school bathroom.  Then I begged the receptionist to let me leave all their backpacks in the school office overnight and off we went.  They were pretty good about walking quickly to the DLR station, and on the train we talked about cathedrals, and how their beauty and majesty is purposefully designed as a way to express worship and respect for Deity.  I told them that Christmas was a really fun time, and there would be and have been a lot of really fun things, but this was about Jesus Christ and reverence.  They listened remarkably well, and even seemed to absorb what I was saying.  

We got to the Cathedral in time, and found some seats.  The kids all did really well for the most part.  I had to keep Simon entertained by asking him to find paintings, statues and stain-glass images of Jesus throughout the cathedral.  And Miriam fell asleep with her head in my lap by the end of the service.  (The choir voices were really soothing and lovely, and Psalms are just the kind of lullaby that might make one doze off.)

St. Paul’s Cathedral is so beautiful.  Notre Dame was beautiful too, but in a different way.  I’m not an expert in historical architecture, but I think that the Gothic style is lovely, but more dark and broody.  Baroque style is open, full of light and majesty and so brilliant and bright.  The inside of St. Paul’s is really just magnificent.  I think the kids and I were all content to just look around us, with the angelic voices singing along in the background.  

When the service was finished we went outside for a few photos but it was really cold and we were all really hungry.  I was so grateful that the kids had behaved so well that I took them to dinner at Pizza Express and they devoured their food.  (My kids have become lovers of Italian style pizza, with the really thin crust.  And I think they feel fancy when they ask for “Margherita” – which is just plain mozzarella and tomato based sauce.)  

Then we went walking in search of some Paddington bears, but didn’t have much luck as many places were closed already.  But we did see some new places that I would love to go back to during daylight.  (The Museum of London, the Guildhall, and the St. Paul’s churchyard.) 

I could have sworn I already wrote this blog post, but upon further review it does not seem to exist.  Sigh.  I’m losing my mind. 

We left Winter Wonderland and just stopped quickly at home to collect our fruit and ham and then went straight to the Catford Ward Christmas Party.  It was really fun.  These Brits know how to let their hair down…

I know that someday I will miss these people so much, and since it’s a bit awkward to snap photos at church, I’m glad I had this chance to capture their faces.  

We ate, chatted, danced and ate some more.  It was really low-key but I don’t think I stopped smiling the whole time.  I love these people.  

As a funny side note- a couple months ago one Eli told me that there was a disco ball in the primary room.  I totally didn’t believe him.  Then wouldn’t you know… they turn down the lights, play some tunes, and on goes the disco ball, for fabulous party ambiance.  

This is obviously only a handful of people in the ward- hopefully at future events I can get some other photos.  Our ward has been so welcoming and friendly.  I know that we aren’t the first ex-pat family, and I’m sure we won’t be the last, but they still make us feel special.  

I first heard of Winter Wonderland when I was reading Tanya’s blog and it immediately became my number one priority for the Christmas season. (That’s a bit pathetic now that I think about it.)  I was seriously so excited.  It just looked so festive, food-y and fun.  The only problem was I couldn’t decide if we should go during daylight at the warmest part of the day, or at night when everything was all lit up.  So I planned it that we could be there during the last couple hours of daylight and into the darkness. (Which fortunately happens at 4:00 during this time of the year.) 

It was a gorgeous day with bright blue skies.  It was cold outside but we dressed warm and we were comfortable for the most part.  (Until the sun went down.)

It was really everything I wanted it to be.  It was so festive.  Christmas music playing, everything was decorated in  Scandinavian and Bavarian themes.  The food.  Oh the food! We tried churros with chocolate, German soft pretzels with melted cheese and bacon, candy, hot choccy…  

But it was soooo crowded. I’m determined to find a way around that next year because it stressed me out a bit and one simply does not want stress at Winter Wonderland.  

We let each of the kids choose two rides and then we just wandered and ate.  

I had to ride the swings.  The swings have always been my favorite carnival ride.  But I must say- it was so cold! It offered rewarding views of the Hyde Park though. 

After we were all pretty well worn out we decided to walk back out a different way than we came in, and realized that we had really only been through a part of the whole fair.  There were more rides, more food and more fun to be had but the money was spent and the kids were getting really cold.  We had a lot of fun and I have one year to convince Eli that the high swings are safe.  

Right outside Richard’s office there is a big lawn, where they set up all sorts of fun things.  In the summertime there were giant t.v. screens where they showed Wimbledon, and I’ve also seen stages set up for outdoor concerts.  During the holidays they set up an ice skating rink so as part of our Christmas advent activities (that we ended up only doing about 1/3 of) we took the kids.  

Sadly we discovered that Simon wasn’t old enough, so Richard was the camera-man and Simon cried on the sidelines. I don’t think he was sad about not being able to ice skate, I think it was about some other trauma of some sort.  (He wanted “juice” which wasn’t actually juice at all, but alcoholic beverages he saw other people drinking and thought they looked enough like juice.) 

For the first few minutes I was having serious doubts about how smart of an idea of it was for me to go out with three kids who had never ice skated before, but we paid the five pounds for a polar bear and Cameron gradually gained some confidence,  

Cameron really got after it. He fell a lot but he would get back up and keep trying. I was proud of him.  He had pouted the entire train ride to Canary Wharf about how stupid ice skating was, but then he really had a good time.  It’s nice that he is at an age where he can change his mind about something, and he also doesn’t quite have the stubborn genes like one of my other children, who once he makes up his mind that he isn’t going to like something, he never will like it. I won’t mention any names…

Eli on the other hand was really excited to try ice skating, but I had my fears that all it would take was one fall and he would be done.  He doesn’t often like to take risks or put forth a lasting effort when something gets difficult or feels unsafe.  But he stuck with it too, and by the time we left was begging to go around one more time.  

Miriam was hot and cold.  She loved some moments and then would cry and panic a little in other moments.  As long as I kept her close to me she had a good time.  But her ice skates were either too big or too small or just generally uncomfortable which contributed to her misery. 

Despite each of their hang-ups all three kids were disappointed when it was time to go home.  So I guess it’ll be on the calendar next year too! (Except I think I’ll let Richard have the pleasure of being on the ice and I’ll stay behind with the camera and the alcoholic beverages. Ahem. Just kidding.) 

Simon is in what is called Nursery.  A child can be enrolled in Nursery as soon as they turn three, it doesn’t have to be the fall of the calendar year when they turn three, it can be as soon as they are three, the government offers 15 hours of education.  When fall comes around, if your child is 4 they start Reception, and if they are still three they do another year of Nursery.  Miriam is in Reception, which is full-time education two years earlier than in the states.  (In Kuna Miriam would have started kindergarten, which is only half-time.)  I think I’ve explained this before but it’s starting to make more sense to me.  

Nursery and Reception together, are call the Early Years, and operate under a different curriculum than Key Stage One and Key Stage two.  The Early Years curriculum is a theory of learning designed mostly around play.  But I have also noticed how it’s very effective.  Simon was writing his own name within the first couple months of school and Miriam is reading now.  I wish I could take credit for these things, indeed how I wish, but the credit belongs to the school.  

Simon’s Nursery class has no more than 20 children, but always at least four adults.  A classroom teacher, the Nursery coordinator and two teaching assistants.  He loves all his teachers, and they are all really great with the kids.  The team is a really great combination of loving, nurturing, stern and energetic.  Male and female, racially diverse, and across an age span of probably 20+ years.  Miss Julie, Miss Maria, Mr. Mickey, Miss Ahmed and Miss Evelyn.  

Anyway, I wrote all that mostly for journaling purposes.  This post is supposed to be about The Lucas Vale Early Years Christmas Program. 

Considering that at least half of the school is not Christian, Richard and I were pleasantly surprised that they had a Christmas program at all, but especially that it was entirely about Mary, Joseph and the birth of Jesus Christ.  I was also surprised to see all the parents there, snapping photos and just gushing over their singing children.  No one seemed to mind that it was a Christian holiday.  I mentioned this to another parent and she told me about how they celebrate all different types of religious holidays, and throughout the year they will do plays and performances in honor of other  religious festivals.  Eli’s class studied Hinduism last term and will study Buddhism this term.  Cameron says they are perpetually talking about world religions in his class.  It’s as comfortable to the kids as discussing what country they are from or what they like to do on weekends. 

While I understand that separation of church and state is a fundamental part of our country and constitution, Richard pointed out that there was a bit of irony, in that the way the English treat religions in the classroom now feels far more liberating than any elementary school classroom back home.   From our [very limited] experience, no one felt threatened, no one was irate or uncooperative, every parent there seemed to think it was just all about their child’s performance.  It felt very unifying and non-political.  

Miriam and Simon both love performing and so it was a delight to watch them, and all the other kids for that matter. Preschool age kids are so entertaining.   

There are so many Christmas markets in London.  There are also so many events and festivals and obligations in December too.  I’d heard that the Southbank Christmas Market was not to be missed so Simon and I checked it out.  The afternoon started out sunny enough, but don’t be fooled.  It was COLD.  

I’d never been to the South bank before, and it seems like a happening place.  It is just across the river from Westminster and Whitehall and that fun part of the city.  There are restaurants all along the river walkway and it’s close to the London Eye. Sometimes when I go out by myself I make mental lists about potential date nights, but those never happen so the list is getting really long.  

The market was really festive, there were Santa Claus street buskers (that Simon seemed to be both attracted to and afraid of) and a youth school choir singing carols.   

There was so much delicious food and I had wanted to buy a Christmas ornament but I forgot to get cash.  So we bought a waffle with what money I did have and it was divine.  It wasn’t nearly enough for the two of us though.   The waffle texture and flavor was so good and the bacon and maple syrup were a bonus.  (I wouldn’t normally have chosen the bacon and maple waffle, but I was sharing with no-dairy Simon so it was our best choice.)  

We wandered through the market for a bit, but I wasn’t having any luck finding a cash machine so we decided to cross the river and spot a few more Paddington bears on the trail through Westminster.  

We walked along the river, in front of Whitehall, which is beautiful up close.  I’d never walked there before.  And then my phone died, totally randomly.  I had no way of finding the Paddington statues without my phone and it was so cold outside that we just went to a cafe, ate brownies and hot chocolate and then took the train home.  

Flexibility is the name of the game for London outings.  I was disappointed that it wasn’t the experience I had hoped for, and sometimes going to the city feels like such an effort that I hate it when it feels wasted.  But I remind myself not to lose perspective.  Any outing in London is worthwhile.  

On the first Saturday of December we bought a Christmas tree, brought it home, and then I sent Richard and the boys back out the door during Miriam’s birthday party.  The family rule is that you get to have a party with friends when you turn five and when you turn eight.  So this was Mim’s first “friend” party.  

But first- the Christmas tree.  

Even Fancy Nancy knows that it’s always Mom who gets to pick the tree.  It was almost the shortest tree there, but my Christmas motto this year was to keep it simple, and since we  had less than ten ornaments I figured small was fabulous.  

They had this nifty device to bag the tree up for you and Richard said he wanted one to put the kids through when they got too crazy.   It was nice though, because we bought the tree at the local market, so Richard had to carry it home in his arms and this was much easier.  

I’ll pause here to say that I know that there are mothers/parents out there who are very careful to distinguish December birthdays from Christmas, and perhaps they are shuddering at my obvious lack of doing so, but Mim loved every minute of the jumbled day, whether it was Christmas or her birth that we were celebrating.  

We didn’t have time to decorate the tree before the party. So back to that later..

I saw on Tanya’s blog that she had done a little painting party for her daughter.  We live really close to where they lived so I asked her the name of the shop and called them.  The way it works is that you go to the shop, buy the ceramics you want to paint, and then they lend you the painting supplies and you can do all the painting in your own home.  It was really simple and worked out really well.  (Except I just realized the other day – weeks after the party- that I never picked up the finished products after glazing. Ha!)

We just invited four girls, and Svana couldn’t come because she was sick.  So it was just four of them all together.  I forgot to take photos of the painting, but they had a really fun time with it, despite the three of us mothers wanting them to do it our way. 

After painting we played BINGO and then had cake and ice cream.  

After the party the boys all came home and we decorated the Christmas tree.  We cut out paper chains and hung the few ornaments we’ve collected from our travels and that Baca Hall sent us.

For the life of me I couldn’t get any decent pictures.  My camera is still a mystery to me.   

Miriam turned FIVE on December 3.  She begged for a braid in her hair and she wanted it so badly she even sat still.  I do not excel in hair styling so I was really pleased that it looked nice, and it even stayed in all day.  I took a few pictures of her and I don’t often see resemblances in my children, but I think she definitely looks like me in the photo on the bottom right.  

That night when we went to dinner our friends were shocked that we made her wait all day to open her presents.  I know that a lot of people open birthday gifts in the morning, but it always feels too rushed, and until we moved to London, Richard was never around in the mornings.   

I’m a bit of a dead-beat mother when it comes to birthday celebrations at school.  But it’s hard to know how teachers feel about it, it seems like each class is different.  Not to mention the food allergies and preferences of parents about their children receiving treats at school.  AND providing goodie-bags or even cupcakes for all four of my kids in their classes could get expensive.  So I didn’t do anything for Mim at school, and she was disappointed, but I didn’t feel too badly about it.  My kids are not deprived.  

At first I let Miriam choose which restaurant she wanted to eat her birthday dinner at, but then I over-rode her decision. Poor girl. I had heard of a double-decker bus that had been converted into a pizza restaurant so I suggested that, and she was sold.  We invited our friends Mike and Cindy to come too.  (With Kayden and Tyler.) 

After dinner we went home for cake and ice cream and to open Miriam’s gifts.  Mike and Cindy were joking about how cruel it is to let her open her gifts and then send her straight to bed.  Which is exactly what ended up happening. 

“Here are some lovely toys to look at but you can’t play with them! Goodnight!”

From Mom & Dad,  Mim got a jump-rope, the Playmobil she picked out from Hamley’s, and a dress from Chinatown. 
From Kayden & Tyler she got a My Little Pony and a Melissa & Doug craft. 
From Baca & Grandpa Hall an Elsa cape. 
From Baca & Grandpa Bird a French fan.

Miriam is such a paradox.  I know I’ve written about her contradictory personality traits before, and I smile when I read through them again.  They all remain perfectly true.  Tough and tender. Sensitive and sassy.  Mild and wild. 

She will be physical and tough with her brothers, and nestled in her dad’s lap minutes later.  She will be mouthy and snarky at the boys, but devastated when they are mouthy and snarky at her.  She can be so hyper I want to lock her up and then a few minutes later she’ll be sucking her thumb and dozing off on the couch.  

Miriam is intense.  She feels things deeply, like her mom.  She loves with loyalty and feels betrayal painfully.  If you’re familiar with the color codes, Miriam would be best described as YELLOW with a splash of blue.  At school she is friendly and outgoing.  It is hard for her to sit still and hard for her when kids don’t like her, but most kids do.  The older kids at the school love to chat and play with her and she loves to be nurturing and playful with the younger siblings of her friends in the mornings at drop-off and on the bus.  At home, Mim loves her alone time.  She will play quietly in her room for long periods of time and she has a colorful imagination.  But she can also be a couch potato.  She loves cartoons and movies.  Miriam loves attending social activities! Birthday parties, church activities, play dates; keep this girl’s calendar booked!  

She has learned to read, which is one of my favorite milestones as a parent.  The delight and discovery and satisfaction that she expresses when she reads a street sign or a word or a book is so fulfilling.  

She has picked up on a few English words and phrases like “paster” instead of pasta, “tell him off” instead of tattle-taling, and she uses the word “proper” all the time, but in different context than American’s do.  I like to think of “proper” as real, or legitimate.  A “proper” birthday cake must have sprinkles.  

And she also says “Mummy.”  Boy does she say it.  She says it in a high-pitched shrieky kind of whine. “Mummy mummy mummy!!!” 

We love her dearly.  She is such a spicy addition to our family dynamic and when we are dragging our feet through the city streets, we can always count on Mim to be skipping and humming, making life a little more upbeat.