Windsor Castle

A couple of weeks ago, we ventured out to Windsor Castle. An easy train ride (that Wiley loved!) from Paddington, it was such a perfect day trip. We could have spent a lot more time wandering around the little town. The Castle itself was incredible. Hearing about the knights was so cool. And all over the city they have exhibits about Henry VIII, including one at Windsor. So, we saw paintings, sketches, old books of his, and even portraits of Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, etc etc. (and if you read any of Philippa Gregory's books, you are fascinated by it even more!) St. George's Chapel is there as well, where Catherine of Aragon (Henry's 1st wife) used to sit for services. Henry is also buried there (along with some other monarchs) with Jane. It is barely noticeable, and I almost literally walked right over the plaque without noticing it! Moral of the story, go to Windsor Castle. It has been my most favorite thing we have done so far, and we have done some pretty great things.

Obviously, you have to take a picture with the guard.

And one with your son who is wearing guard-printed pants (thanks Barnes Boys!) and standing at attention.

My boys outside the castle. St. George's Chapel is on the left.

Close up of St. George's. So pretty. And notice the blue sky!

Picnic lunch on a beautiful fall day, gazing at fall colors and a castle, yes please!

Marching...duh.

And this is why I love London.

Sounds like Someone has a Case of the Mondays

to lighten up your "case of the Mondays," live (kind of) from London...

Um Wiley, did you say you wanted to go to Buckingham Palace?

I feel certain that you just said you wanted to go to "Buckling-ham Palace."

oh, and I have to add, I am the happy owner of these happenin' kicks.

You will either:

a) be proud of me because you know how I have wanted to add these to my shoe closet/rack

or

b) laugh, thus continuing our feeble effort to ease your "case of the Mondays."

or

c) all of the above.

["case of the mondays , trademark Office Space, see memorable quotes]

In the great green room

Who doesn't love Margaret Wise Brown's Goodnight Moon. Recently when we have read it at night, Wiley has been fascinated with "mush."

"And a comb and a brush and a bowl full of mush."

"Goodnight nobody. Goodnight mush."

So. We made mush this morning for breakfast. Mush, as in porridge oats, as Tesco calls it. Wiley was so fascinated, he wanted to see it, smell it, and then obviously taste it!

On a rainy morning with a bit of brown sugar, the mush was surprisingly comforting (particularly with hot tea and pumpkin bread). (Although it reminded me a bit of Camp Nakanawa's oatmeal.) And, Wiley actually liked it!

"mmm...mush!"

If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.

Oh. My. Goodness.

You there, with the Sainsbury's delivery truck. Yes, you bringing crates of food to my door. That's right, you, as you carry my bags of groceries up 3 flights of stairs (first time order, only). Are you sure you are not Santa Claus?

Today has been brilliant.

Just look at this:

And look at this:

And then look at this:

My kitchen is coming together. There is something more than Nutella and Peanut Butter, both of which are almost gone and both of which I forgot to order. I have beer (keeping it real here, Michelob Ultra, duh.), Diet Coke in my spare refrigerator, along with extra apple juice. Considering our main refrigerator is about the size of the one you might have had in your freshman dorm room, I am beyond thankful for the extra space. I think it will come in handy when I cook at Thanksgiving and Christmas when our families are here!

I ordered my groceries on Monday night and today they are here (note to self: order ahead of time, so you don't have to go to store before groceries come). Delivery was free. And all of my items arrived. I checked them off, sort of like when I worked at Table Matters and was making sure all of our precious Tag items and beautiful Good Earth and Juliska items arrived in good order. I did not have to lug them in the stroller (buggy), the Tube, or the bus.

So here I am, doing something so London-y, or at least big-city-ish.

I tried to find a fun kitchen quote on thinkexist.com, but had trouble finding one I love. (However, the blog title is taken from my new coffee mug and apparently from Harry S. Truman as well!) There were some hilarious ones that were not quite appropriate for the blog, some sentimental ones, and a couple (one from John Piper) reminding me that my identity and satisfaction is not tied up in my well-stocked shelves, appliances, and gadgets--that my identity is instead based in the Lord who has so graciously continued to be faithful to us in our journey here whether it be in finding a place to live, a place to shop, a kind neighbor, or welcoming people at a Woman's Bible Study.

He is so good...or as the British might say: He is so brilliant!

Not much to say...

Hello!

I wish I had lots of fun things to say, but sadly we have been a bit dull here. We have made the trek a couple times to Oxford Street to buy things for our flat. Yes, we are moved in. Maybe I will put some pictures up here once I have it looking nice, but right now, I have 2 full trash bags in the kitchen, about 5 boxes in the hall, and a very bare reception room. But I do have a pumpkin. I found the pumpkin near our High Street (the main street with stores in the different areas of town). As soon as I walked in my building's door with Wiley in tow, my sweet neighbor (an American) and her friend (also American) exclaimed that I had found this grocery store and that it was probably the most expensive pumpkin in all of London! Hooray for the London learning curve! I have found that at times like that I just cannot get stressed out about how much I paid for the pumpkin, and must just laugh. It is a nice pumpkin. I now know where to avoid shopping (although when desperate for American brands, they have a nice selection).

And while I mention groceries, that is one comfort from home I think I will miss. I really love shopping at the grocery store. I love coupons, I love BOGOs. I love finding the deals. It is a game. But here, it is like a survival game when I go shopping. I feel so out of sync, as different products have different names, and it is confusing and frustrating when I can't find something I am accustomed to having (Ranch dressing powder packets and Lipton onion soup packets) for cooking. There are not any big grocery stores in walking distance that I know of, so we go to these little "express" ones which is basically like shopping in a gas station with slightly more selection of fruits and veg. I miss loading Wiley in my grocery cart with a rocket on it and casually walking down the big, wide aisles. However, hope is on the horizon, as I have a load of groceries (including basics like flour, sugar, oil, etc) being delivered (yes, delivered) tomorrow. There is also a Costco here. I think I would like to just spend my day in that Costco.

The picture above is Wiley playing putt-putt--a frustrating experience for Wil and a fun one for Wiley. Wiley preferred playing with the spinning wheels, etc than putting the ball in the hole. It was a neat little course in a courtyard of an office building in The City. Businessmen would come and play I guess as a break from their work.

We have also started a behavior chart for Wiley. It is rudimentary and basic. It is simple. If he obeys, is sweet, general good behavior in the morning, he gets a smiley face in pen. Then, at the end of the day, if he had a good afternoon (and good morning) he gets to put a sticker below that day. If he gets 5 stickers (out of 7 days) he gets a surprise. He is working towards an airplane, as he broke the little plastic one we got him Saturday about 10 minutes after we put it together. I think this is helping him. However, he doesn't understand that I won't give him 5 stickers in one day. Maybe after this first week he will understand. He was so excited though last night about getting to put his first sticker on.

Well, I suppose I did have something to say! Just wanted to let yall know we are still well. London is really nice in the fall (I have beautiful trees turning colors outside my window), we have great neighbors, and once I have a grip on my kitchen I think I will feel much better (although I feel great now!). Isn't it funny how important feeling "at home" in a kitchen can make such a difference?

Maybe the saying should be "Home is where my tupperware, aluminum foil, baking sheets, and 9 x 11 pyrex are."

Pigeons

A short post because, well, we are just taking it easy and don't have too much to share. (Although we think we are moving to our flat on Saturday, but I won't make it official until we are actually in it.)

There a pigeons everywhere. EVERYWHERE. They come dangerously close to hitting you in the head, too. These birds are fearless. However, thankfully, I have 2 wonderful (and handsome) pigeon chasers who have been going everywhere with me.

As seen in previous post, the stroller (buggy) is often the best line of defense as one drives and the other tries to use a dinosaur toy to snap at them. Yesterday, the process evolved into using a stick.

Sitting in Regents Park, a whole bunch of pigeons kept coming to our picnic table. It may have been because Wiley was spitting out/throwing up an apple turnover he did not like. Wil continues to try to get Wiley to swallow some apple turnover (to avoid him being a picky eater). Pigeons are circling. Tensions are rising. A nearby stick is suddenly grabbed by the father. Boy continues to spit out apple turnover. Pigeons make a bad choice and come too close.

THWACK!

Father whacks 2 pigeons with stick.

Mother is laughing too hard at this whole scene and forgets to grab her camera to document the experience.

The pigeons were fine and returned about 2 seconds later. Father was very proud. Very very proud. He recently got a fabulous coat for his birthday that is technically a hunting jacket. He informed me that the pocket in the back (literally the very bottom, on the back of it) is for birds when you go bird hunting. Now if he says he is taking Wiley to the park and wears this "hunting" coat I will be very suspicious. Particularly if he has a stick in his hand.

So now, in addition to fending off pigeons with the stroller, and dinosaur toy (they are really quite afraid of Dinosaur Dinosaur, as Wiley named him, and if you so much as point Dinosaur Dinosaur in their direction they fly away. His pigeon chasing skills are legend in London, apparently.), we can add sticks to our arsenal.

Life Lately (in pictures)

{Professional pigeon-chasers}

{British sweater, American boots.}

{Kensington/Hyde Park from our park bench}

{Souvenir from Museum that goes with us everywhere; he eats leaves, chases pigeons and the occasional passerby.}

{Picnic in the Park}

{Elephant at the Natural History Museum}

{Natural History Museum: T-Rex}

Observations

Here are a few observations we have made about the country/city/people/culture thus far, hopefully they make you smile or laugh and give you some insight into our experience:

- TV is sub-par. Since we are friend-less, at night Big Dubya (go ahead...) and I watch TV. Thankfully, they have American movies (although I think they all are American movies all over the world because who can compare?). We have watched Sliding Doors, part of the Departed, and America's Sweetharts. However, the latter movie was cut short for whatever reason or another and they started the Blair Witch Project. So weird.

- They have an obsession I think with really old Friends episodes and Gilmore Girls. While I love Friends and Wil is beginning to appreciate it more and more (We have seen the Thanksgiving one, the one with that food critic that is high, and the one when Carol has the baby that I may or may not have teared up at in the end, and a few others), I do not particularly care for when they play the same GG episode back to back. I tried to watch it again, but I just couldn't.

- People that know you here (The people who Wil is working for/with) are extraordinarily nice. Really. And sincere. Sincerely nice. That is jolly good.

- We cannot figure out how to walk down the sidewalks. We thought you did as they do when they drive, but every time we try that, someone undoubtedly goes out of the way to go around us.

- the Tube during rush hour is miserable. Positively miserable. It feels like a cattle car. I cannot imagine what it would be like in the summer seeing as the Tube is like 100 degrees hotter than the outside world.

- I don't like Centigrade temperatures. Sure it makes sense that 0 degrees is freezing and 100 is boiling, but I can't convert what 17 degrees is when the weather girl (again, no James Spann) tells me that is the unseasonable high for the day. I thought that meant it was warm, then had to run up to the flat to grab a coat. Is there a Centigrade to Fahrenheit converter calculator out there? If so, I need it. Oh, and the washer and dryer is on temperatures too, leaving me a bit unsure on how hot the water actually is. Ugh.

- Everything here is smaller. Everything. The fridge in the flat we like reminds me of the fridge in my Barbie playhouse. And one of the flats we looked at had a mini-fridge. Like you might have in a dorm room! Really?

- British accents are really nice. Particularly when your son tries to imitate it when he tells you what tube stop is next. I think I am going to practice mine for times when I don't want to stand out as an American (Like if I bump into someone, and say "sorry." If it is British, I think they will forgive me, as opposed to silly Southern drawl that screams tourist, when in fact, I am not.)

- I think I will go to Buckingham Palace when I want to see Americans, or play "Spot the American." (I successfully found an American couple to take our picture that second day. She looked like she might have just stepped out of the Piggly Wiggly, and she smiled congenially to boot!)

- It is fun to look at buildings and be like "Oh that was built before our country was even founded." It puts things in perspective. Or when admiring Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, Wil observes "It is funny to think that when our country was founded 200 something years ago that we hated everything that building stood for." Yep, perspective.

- Bring your "brolly" wherever you go. And I think they should offer a class on how to walk with one. I am concerned that due to my height, the sharp ends will be at eye level of fellow pedestrians.

- Parks are amazing here. This city has the best playgrounds. I think zip lines are the standard. Little Dubya is going to be so spoiled.

- I may or may not practice my accent walking down the street.

It's raining, It's pouring, but...

I have internet, and a blog. And wonderful friends who leave equally wonderful comments that make me want to cry in this little Starbucks because I am so grateful. How did you all know that I needed to hear your "voice" even if only by a comment box?

And now for an update (without pictures, I'm sorry.)

I am sipping my tea. Earl Grey if you must know. I read that the English take their tea with milk (I always had English Breakfast with Splenda), and that they will leave you room for it should you order hot tea. Thus, if you don't want milk then tell them that. I was delighted to see the book is right and when I did order my tea, there was quite a lot of room for milk. So in went the skim milk, and I must say it is good. More mild, for sure. I'm letting the tea bag soak longer because I am used to it being strong, I think. And another thought about Starbucks: for all those who hate it and prefer their local brews and shops, I think you will reconsider when you are a foreigner in a strange land. While I love Simply Yummy as much as the next girl, I have never been as thankful for a Starbucks as I am now. To see one on every street corner just reminds you that home is only a corner away...sort of.

Anyway. We haven't any pictures (I think that sounds British typed out, don't you think?) because we have been all business the past couple of days. Looking at schools/nurseries (nursery=MDO/Day Care and some include reception = PreK) and flats(!) has kept us busy during the day and tired at night. We have had luck in both, we think. It is still a bit nerve-wracking to not know for certain about an area, but we are fairly confident in the one we chose/narrowed it down to (Am I being vague? Yes, on purpose. Want to know? Shoot me an e-mail, then I know you know me and are not a rando.). We have an "offer" in on it (sounds like buying, but we are not.) The kitchen is about the size of my sister's closet including the counters/refrig/combo washer and dryer/etc. (note: B's closet is smallest in my parent's house) and I don't really think I am exaggerating at all. However, the storage is wonderful, the charm and character is evident, the beautiful floor to ceiling windows are amazing, and the furnished furniture is not half bad. We are praying simply that His will be done, and we know that He will provide the perfect place for us to live and for Wiley to learn. As far as school, well we really only have had one option because nowhere else has openings. But luckily we like the one that has an opening. It is tiny. But really sweet. And I have plenty of friends who went to tiny schools for real (elementary, middle, high) so surely a tiny nursery won't hurt! (To my tiny school friends, you know who you are, and yes, I surely thought of you today.)

Last night, Little Dubya (I'm testing out "code names.") slept through the night! Praise the Lord! After a rough night the night before for me especially, I can say we all three had a good night last night. I have been so anxious about my perfect sleeper suddenly becoming a night-waker.

We are still hoping to take Little Dubya (Laugh, go ahead, I know it is odd.) to the museum to see the dinosaurs. Hopefully, we will get some good news and be able to not be quite as frantic. If not, it is still okay, we have time.

I hope that soon we will find a rain cover for Little Dubya's stroller, or "buggie" as they call it here. He gets rained on whenever it rains (which is often these past few days). The Brits have these plastic things that you put over the stroller. I'm pretty sure he will hate it, but at least he will be dry.

Cheers!

from a London Starbucks

Hello from "The Queen's House!"

{First day, visiting Buckingham Palace}

{Also, the first day, visiting the Royal Mews! This is a special carriage. The horses are plastic, as is the man who is riding it. The Queen will ride this carriage again in 2012, I believe is what I overheard a tour guide say. She will be bling-blinging.}

{Wiley in front of Buckingham Palace, "the Queen's House," where he found ample squirrels and pigeons to chase}

It is Day 3 in London. After a nice day yesterday with partly cloudy skies, it is drizzling and sweater-weather. The temperature is really quite nice, it is just the dampness that is not as nice.

Our flat is very nice, across from a wonderful park with a playground complete with a zipline.

Oh, the flight--didn't I think there would be funny stories? Well, unless you call the cabin lights being on full blast the E-N-T-I-R-E flight funny, then I can't say it was particularly funny. The ample light certainly did not help Wiley get to sleep quickly or stay asleep the majority of the flight. We are still trying to adjust to the time change. Wiley has had quite a lot of trouble with it, waking up in the middle of the night, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. I'm not sure how to amend this problem, nor what to do with his nap. We skipped yesterday, thinking that would help, and it did not. So today, we put him down a little later than usual (we were late returning from the grocery store). We will see if it helps.

{the boys in front of Big Ben. Note the partly cloudy skies! I actually was surprised to see blue!}

I have gradually become less surprised at hearing British accents everywhere I go. Silly I know. But our first time out, I felt like I was in a Hugh Grant movie with everyone talking like him. If only everyone looked like him. Hah! Now, I am used to it, but surprised at how sometimes someone will answer a question and I will have no idea what he or she said, although they are speaking English...I guess I need to learn all the new words. Like at the grocery...Sour cream is soured cream, which makes it sound much less appetizing. I am trying to integrate some easy terms like "brilliant" and "clever" into my vocabulary so Wiley is less taken off guard when he hears those! Here is an example: "Wiley, you are so clever." or "This grilled ham and cheese is brilliant!" Advanced uses of the terms, I know.

Well, cheerio good fellow! Or whatever they say here! Maybe I will just stick with Bye, Y'all!

We're leaving on a jet plane...

We used to do interpretive dances to that song at camp. You probably did too. It was just too easy.

But today, we really are leaving on a jet plane.

Thanks to the flu, I kind of holed up at my parents house all week, which was really for health reasons. However, I have to admit, it might have been a defense mechanism (denial). (If I don't get out and see what I will be missing, then maybe I won't miss it as bad.) But yesterday, I talked to some dear friends who are far away and saw some dear friends who are here. And it is going to be hard.

But, it is going to be good. So good.

If I get repetitive about the verses on the left, I'm not sorry. It is the truth and possibly the only way I am going to get through this move.

We would love your prayers today and tomorrow (and longer, if I tell you the truth) for safety and getting our little family adjusted.

And on my end, I promise to bring you funny stories of Wake Forest Mama...goes to London. I'm pretty sure you will have one from our plane trip.

{and many many thanks to MF for making my beautiful header...and to Liz and "Mom" for helping us choose fonts. I know my colors are all off, but maybe yall can advise?}