The Big Half Moon is miles from anywhere , except the Little Half Moon . But nobody lives there , so that does n't count . We live on the Big Half Moon . `` We '' are Father and Claude and I and Aunt Esther and Mimi and Dick . It used to be only Father and Claude and I . It is all on account of the kite that there are more of us . This is what I want to tell you about . Father is the keeper of the Big Half Moon lighthouse . He has always been the keeper ever since I can remember , although that is n't very long . I am only eleven years old . Claude is twelve . In winter , when the harbour is frozen over , there is n't any need of a light on the Big Half Moon , and we all move over to the mainland , and Claude and Mimi and Dick and I go to school . But as soon as spring comes , back we sail to our own dear island , so glad that we do n't know what to do with ourselves . The funny part used to be that people always pitied us when the time came for us to return . They said we must be so lonesome over there , with no other children near us , and not even a woman to look after us . Why , Claude and I were never lonesome . There was always so much to do , and Claude is splendid at making believe . He makes the very best pirate chief I ever saw . Dick is pretty good , but he can never roar out his orders in the bloodcurdling tones that Claude can . Of course Claude and I would have liked to have someone to play with us , because it is hard to run pirate caves and things like that with only two .
But we used XXXXX quarrel a good deal with the mainland children in winter , so perhaps it was just as well that there were none of them on the Big Half Moon .
Of although at except in near over since to with