The BBC TV

I have been requested by a friend to talk about the TV differences in the UK.  I am, of course, happy to oblige!

In the UK, everyone has to purchase a license to watch TV.  It does not matter how you watch TV, either on a TV, computer, or any electronic device.  It is the one of the ways that that the BBC receives funding.  The house that I am living in, they canceled their TV license when they moved out and it took the TV licensing department approximately 2 months to catch up with me.  Earlier this month I received a notice that our home was not licensed and if I did not purchase one by 22 Dec an investigation would be started.  I assume that if I was found to be watching TV without a license that I would have been fined.  After trying to pay for my license at a branch, I ended up just purchasing it online and I can say that I am now watching TV legally!

In the US, we used to have satellite.  About 6 months before we moved I had canceled the service, mainly because we were paying a whole bunch of money for a lot of TV that we were not watching.  So, when we got to the UK, I had only intended to stick with the regular brand of TV and I have to say that it is pretty good watching, for the most part.

I do hear on the radio about SKY TV.  They seem to be similar to our satellite companies that we have in the US.  You need a "magic" box to watch what you want and if you can't watch something you can "sky+" it, which is digitally record it.  There are many, many stations and many of them are familiar stations that we see in the US (FX, syfy(scifi) MTV) but there are also many stations that we don't see in the US, exceptions are maybe the people that have the huge channel packages from their satellite.  Especially the sports stations with all the football (soccer) and rugby.

As you know by now, we have opted not to get the SkyTV package.  What we have is appropriately called Freeview.  I think that we have around 40 channels.  The BBC is very prominent among the stations, I think that they broadcast on about 8 of them.  At least where we are, we do not see the regional things like news.  Here we see the news that not only affects us but the world.  Christmas Day, we saw a message from the HRH Queen Elizabeth II, it had been pre-taped earlier in December.  She had a really lovely message.

One things that we have found is that they play a lot of movies on regular TV.  For instance, they have been playing the Shrek movies, one every night since Christmas.  Other movies that we have seen are: Transformer I, Ratatouille, Emma, Pride and Prejudice, Princess Bride, some James Bond flicks, The Mummy, Nanny McFee, Agent Cody Banks, Star Trek.... you get the idea.  Not bad stuff and some of them pretty recent flicks.

As for the TV shows.  We love a show called TopGear.  One our favorite channels is Dave.  Dave plays the old TopGear shows.  There is also a show that reminds me of the British show Coupling and the US show Friends (I totally recommend Coupling if you have not seen them, grab the DVD's and you will laugh and laugh!), anyway the show is called Not Going Out.  Let's just say that it is growing on me.  The other show that just ended it's season, but is being shown in the US on PBS is Downton Abby.  It totally sucked me in (when I was in the US) and it is very popular here, it even has a decent following from the men.  One of the DJ's (a man) on the morning show that I listen to on Absolute Radio even had a lunch at one of the big, fancy hotels in London and invited fellow fans.  He has a club that he has dubbed Manton Abby and often discusses it in the morning!

One thing that I knew moving here was that British comedy is different then US comedy.  They are in some ways more vulgar and a lot less slapstick, they also use irony very effectively.  Another thing that I knew moving here was that after 10pm, things get, well.... you know Skinamax?  Let's just say, that it a great comparison.  There is a definite change in programs and in what you see, skin wise.

If you want some more suggestions on show/movies to watch, here are a few that come to mind:  Blackadder (stars Rowan Atkinson who play Mr. Bean), Dr. Who, and Shaun of the Dead (stars Simon Peg who play in MI3 and Scotty in the last Star Trek movie).   You will have to wait for some more suggestions later.  :)

We really don't watch a lot of TV here, I know that they seem to have quite a few of the US TV shows on, but I can't seem to catch the recent episodes of the few shows that I did watch in the US, like Glee. Because I am not in the US, Hulu has determined that I can't watch shows on it's site now either, I am not happy! We also maybe behind the US schedule for shows (like a season behind?), I am not sure.  They do have their own versions of some of our shows, like Wipeout.  We loved Wipeout in the US.  It is not quite the same here as they only have one host (who is also a TopGear host).  Interesting fact, they tape Wipeout in Buenos Aries, something to do with the laws and injuries apparently.

We have noticed that when shows cross the ocean, that we do not care for the show that is not the original.   Contrasting the American version of TopGear with the UK version, we prefer the UK version.  The three men that host it do such a good job, and the American hosts just do not compare.  Sadly, the UK version really just talks about UK cars, so the American version is more relevant if you want to know more about American cars.   We also like the US version of Wipeout better.  Regarding Wipeout, I think that the US hosts do better together as a team (there is only one host in the UK version). Also, you can't forget about the closing line in American Wipeout (forgive me if you have not heard it!)  "Goodnight and Big Balls!"

A Tale of 5 Christmas cakes and no cookies.....

I had not planned on spending Christmas in the UK.  Before we moved to the UK, we had made reservations to spend the week before Christmas at Disney and Christmas and the week after in the Florida keys which we canceled for obvious reasons.  I told Super Handsome I wanted to spend Christmas in Spain.  Sadly, that did not happen either....

So, now we were going to be in the UK and I had a bit of a tantrum.  I really wanted to go to Spain!  So, I started looking in the grocery stores to figure out what I was going to make and what I was going to cook.  I looked at the gammon (pork) joints and I was very confused at what I needed to buy, how was I going to cook them and what if they tasted wrong?  I could not find the lovely spiral sliced hams that we usually bought in the US for sure!  So, in a fit I ordered our gammon (ham) from Marks & Spencer (M&S) (one of my favorite stores, think Kohl's with food, expensive, designer food!)   I also ordered some food for Christmas Eve and two lovely desserts.  When Super Handsome saw the cost, he was not happy, well, neither was I, and I certainly was not going to COOK!  At least not much....  :)

I was still able to get out of making cookies this year.  I have decided that I really may have a secret hate for making cookies.  In my defense for skipping the cookies, I did not have a mixer.  Who wants to make 12 dozen cookies and mix them all by hand.  Is your hand raised?  Neither is mine.  I also had in my favor that the British make cakes or puddings around the holidays.  At the present moment I have 5 cakes, ready to eat, in my house.  I am not joking!  I have two Italian cakes, one Christmas cake, one Christmas pudding (cake) and a Yule Log!  We also have some profiteroles (like eclairs) that are sitting on some absolutely tasty chocolate mousse.  So, I skipped baking the cookies!  (Wouldn't you?)

A quick story about the Yule Log.  Kids 3 is taking French and his French teacher apparently highly recommended to the children that if they went to Paris during Christmas, they should have one.  At one point it was up for discussion about going since the trip to Spain was off.  So, when I was picking out desserts from M&S, I couldn't resist getting it!

On Christmas Eve, we usually gather with my family and have appetizers with soup to eat.  Well, the appetizers are not really the same here and I can't find all the ingredients that I have in the US.  We made do with the local cheeses and spread on biscuits for cheese (crackers).  I found some very delicious cheese with brown mustard, it was awesome with pretzels.  We also found some smokey spreadable cheese and herb cheese.  I bought some additional things from Marks and Spencer.  We got prawns with dip (we had to make our own version of cocktail sauce with creamy horseradish sauce).  I also purchased sausage and stuffing balls, bacon rolls, party sausages, pigs in a blanket (bacon wrapped sausages) and sausage and stuffing balls wrapped in bacon.  Most of the items that I picked up from Marks & Spencer I had to cook, there were a couple of exceptions.  Super Handsome and  I also picked up some bread from a local bread maker on Saturday (market day) in Bishop's Stortford.  We ate it with olive oil and pepper.  It was a decent feast, but the kids did not like everything.  We ended the day with a quick chat with Super Handsome's family.  We missed my family when we tried to ring them.  The kids headed to bed without dessert, they were anxious for Christmas morning!

On Christmas we woke up and had a typical day for us.  The kids opened presents, Super Handsome made breakfast and we just took it easy.  For dinner I made baked beans, gammon from Marks and Spencer, brussels sprouts and we had more bread from market day.  The gammon was good, it did not smell the same as it was cooking, but it was tasty and more salty.  Super Handsome had to actually cut it (gasp).  Just kidding, he did great.  We have plenty left.  I choose the gammon with a bone in it so that Super Handsome can make our traditional New Year's Day bean soup.  For those of you who know Super Handsome's hate of green veggies, you would be proud.  I even got him to eat a Brussel sprout.  I told him if he wanted me to play card games after dinner he had to eat one!  So, guess who played cards Christmas day?  This girl!

We ended our night playing 7Up.  I stopped playing when the Downton Abby christmas special came on.  Dessert were the profiteroles!  Yum!  And we still have 5 Christmas cakes to eat....

My Birthday--my time to whine.

Well, my birthday was the second birthday that we celebrated.  My day, while was not craptacular, sadly, it was not one of those days that I would rate in my top 10 either.  Honestly, my birthday is not really a happy time for me and I can't remember many that were.  Having a birthday that is close to Christmas is never any fun for obvious reasons.  Who wants their two major holidays to open presents from loved ones to be 10 days apart????  And if you are blessed (or cursed) to have them so close together, who wants gifts that serve as both holidays from your family?  I have had those gifts too often and it tends to be a double edged sword, one that I tend to dislike more then I like honestly.  Sure you can get a bigger gift sometimes, but is it worth not getting a gift for Christmas?

Before my birthday, Super husband told me to go and buy what I wanted because he would not have the time to go and do any shopping for me.  Not only does he not have the time since he generally works until 9pm at night, he also does not have access to the debit card.  We basically only use our debit card for all of our purchases since all of our American credit cards change us a fee.  He has cash generally, but not enough to really buy much.  As my birthday approached he managed to complain to me that I was sure buying myself lots of things, to which I replied I thought that was what he wanted me to do since he did not have the time!

I went to dinner on the 14th with some of the other mom's in Cian's year.  He had intended to the store to buy a cake, but I have not even seen a regular lemon cake mix in the stores.  In the UK, they must make most of their cakes from scratch.  We can buy some cake mixes, Betty Crocker is available, but it is pretty costly.  I told him that I would prefer to try and find cupcakes in a bakery that I had seen in Bishop's Stortford.

The night of the 14th the kids had a disturbing revelation as well.  When they asked Super Handsome what they were giving me for my birthday, he said nothing!  They were apparently alarmed because he always had something for them to give me for my birthday!  He was a bit incensed at them because as he pointed out to them, when did he have the time to do any shopping for me....

This year, my birthday was just not destined to be a good one.  I got on the road at 9am to pick up my mother in law at the airport.  I drove to Heathrow to pick up her up.  We had discussed having her take a train to us, but with her being on the plane all night we thought it was best that I picked her up.  I listened to the traffic all morning and sadly confused where the day's traffic snaffu's location.  I thought that it was not located where I was going, unfortunately it was, and my trip to the airport was lengthened by a good 45 mins.  So, overall I probably spent over 3 hours in the car.

Thankfully, she was on time, though worried about where to meet me. Luckily, I saw her quickly and we left the airport in a record amount of time.

We stopped on our way home for a quick bit of shopping and to get some gas for the car.  We stopped to try and get the cupcakes and found no success, sadly.  We made it home in the twilight, which here is early since the sunset at 3:50.  The boys were thrilled to see her and Super Handsome even made it home earlier then normal.

For dinner we went to the a pub just down the road, The Lion and the Lamb.  It was a really nice pub and we found that the owners lived very near us.  It was an overall nice experience and the food was tasty.  I think that we will make it back again soon.

We came home to no real birthday dessert.  Super Handsome decided that since we had frozen eclairs, that we had to have them, I would have been fine to skip them and in fact I was so full from dinner that I did!

I guess that it is good that I have low expectations for my birthday, and really overall, this was definitely not the worst one that I have can remember.  I do enjoy protracted celebrations.  We went for drinks with my friend Mrs Innuendo and her husband Saturday evening.  The kids also picked out a few things from them when we went shopping on Friday afternoon.  Kids 3 in particular was very sweet about finding something that I would like.  My MIL bought me two cute sweater dresses on my birthday when we did our little shopping expedition and she found me the cutest pair of earring when she was in Paris!  We were also lucky enough to find a cupcake shop while we were in Windsor on Saturday.  We got caught in a traffic jam on the way home because of a horrible accident and just enjoyed them in the car!

All in all, a birthday is just the marker of my time on this earth.  I am just happy that I have another year to spend with everyone.  My highlights were there though.  My phone call from my Mom and Dad (Mark), my birthday wishes from my kids and husband, my homemade card from my youngest and a sweet and thoughtful gift from my BFF in the UK, Mrs Innuendo, and all my wishes from Facebook and I was honored in a mention in my sisters status, it does make a nice little party in your email.  Cheers.

Windsor Castle with Dumb and Dumber

I have been very bad at updating my blog lately, sorry (or so'y as the English would say).   A lot has happened.  I celebrated a birthday and my mother in law arrived from the US.  More about that later.....

With my mother in law visiting we decided to head down to Windsor to visit Windsor Castle, the place where the royal family spends their weekends.

We arrived in Windsor easily enough.  Finding the castle proved to be another issue.  Super Handsome drove around and I tried to help him.  First, we tried the GPS, our first attempt landed us down in Windsor in sight of the castle and frustrated.  So, the second attempt with the GPS took us to a a nice little pub called the Windsor Castle.

Super Handsome gave up on the GPS and started driving around.  We could see it and were determined to go!  So, we started following following the little signs and FINALLY pulled into a car park and walked.  He parked very close.  The castle is right near the shopping district of Windsor.

It was right around lunch time, so we grabbed a bite to eat before we went through the castle.  The tour was suppose to be around 3 hours.  Super Handsome and the boys grabbed McDonalds.  My mother law and I split a little panini and we each got a pastry from a little patisserie.

After lunch we headed up to the castle and purchased our tickets.  Since it is the Royal Families residence, we were required to go through security.  It required our pockets to be emptied and our bags to be x-rayed.  As we got into the line, Oldest Son told me that he had his pocket knife (dumb).  What?  Super Handsome asked Oldest Son why would he ever bring his knife to what Son 2 replied rather loudly "To stab people with!" (Dumber) So, I took it intending to send it through the x-ray in my purse.  As the other kids emptied their pockets, we figured out that they had dragged all their DS's with them, instead of leaving them in the car.  Super Handsome and I were divided with these two incidents going on and not happy.  Super Handsome was stuck with lecturing the other kids and as Oldest Son emptied his pockets, I decided to stick the knife in his tray.  I showed it to the security person.  They asked to examine it, asked a few questions and then gave it back to me and asked me to keep it in my purse and send it though the x-ray.  After I went though, I was asked for the knife again and this time they told me that they had to confiscate it as it is a locking blade and they are illegal in the UK.  I had to sign a release form and Oldest Son's blade is now on it's way to the police station to be destroyed.

We went on to start our tour.  Oldest Son was so angry and upset he declined the audio tour and sulked his way through the castle.  The rest of us had a great time.  Youngest Son's has a special audio tour just for them and they were given a scavenger hunt.  They were provided clues and they had to find presents in the different rooms that we went though!  They had a great time and at one point, Kid 3 had forgotten to mark off one present so we waited while they went back to confirm what room it was.

We started off the tour as we walked up to the castle.  We heard about the castle's defenses, the dry moat, and why the castle was built where it was on the hill side to afford a view from all around for easier defense and early detection of enemies.  The view of the country side was fantastic!  We also found out that since the flag was flying, HRH Queen Elizabeth II was there!

Once we got into the castle we could not take any pictures and we were very disappointed.  We saw so many fantastic things!  We started with Queen Mary's doll house, and then moved through the state rooms.  We saw many of the royal treasures that had been won as they conquered territories.  We also saw the part of the castle that had been destroyed in the fire of 1992, it had been restored beautifully!

We ended our tour at St. George's Cathedral where we saw where queens' parents and here sister were buried.  As we left the cathedral we found out that Liam had dropped his DS somewhere.  Super Handsome took him back to find it.  We then grabbed some cupcakes to celebrate my birthday and ran to the car park because our time on the pay ticket was up. (paying to park stinks!)

So, we left the castle with out meeting the queen and with out going to jail (thanks Oldest Two Sons, but thanks to my Dumb and Dumber kids, I am probably on some list of the government's somewhere....

Why the English wear robes or smoking jackets and slippers...

Oak Lodge is an old house, no denying it.  But it has been updated and added onto.  The current owners have done a lot in the 30+ years that they owned it.  One thing that they did not do was add forced air heating, I am not even sure that they had the option.  The way that our home is heated is considered central heating, even though is it is done with radiators.  They have a boiler that heats that radiators.  The boiler is usually powered by heating oil as is the case in the case of Oak Lodge.

Oak Lodge also still has the old single pane windows.  So, the one thing that we notice is the condensation that builds on some of the windows.  Our bedroom and the kitchen seems the worst.  On warmer days I will open the windows a bit to try and let the wetter air escape.  We also wipe the windows down to prevent the moisture from ruining the wood on the window sills.  Wiping them down was recommended to us by the letting company as well to prevent mold growth.  Ick.

In our home, the heat kicks on in the morning at half 6, I can hear the water bubbling up into the radiators and it usually wakes me.  Then, it kicks off at 9am and stay off during the day.  When we get up at 7am, even though the radiators have been on, it is still cold enough after I put on my fleece pants, sweatshirt and warm socks (note I am getting sheepskin slippers ASAP!).  I pull on my fleece robe as well.  I have been telling the boys to do the same.  My Younger Two usually come down first and they have taken to wearing their robes (thanks Nana!) because they are cold.  The boys often start off their days with hot chocolate for breakfast.

The nice thing about the weather in the UK, so far is that we have not seen large temperature changes from day to night.  Often there is usually a less then 10 degree change in temperature from day to night for example we have had a high of 47 with a low of 44, all in Fahrenheit (remember though we use Celsius in the UK).  Even though there is not a great difference in temperature, the house does cool down, especially when the heat is not on through the day.  When the sun is out the days are quite pleasant, but when it goes down, it cools off fast and the temperature difference is very noticeable, especially if the wind picks up.  Super Handsome and I both have been told that this nice weather is not usual and that the last couple of years they have had snow on the ground at this time.

It is strange because the weather can be quite balmy and almost warm during the days, which is unusual for this time of year.  My friend mentioned that she still feels like it is October and she needs to get herself into the Christmas mood.  Where I live in the UK is currently one of the drier parts of the island.   They were announcing on the radio that we are in a "drought" and that the officials need to start taking precautions and planning for next summer when the Olympics come to the UK.

This weather has made it hard to get into the Christmas mood, and I don't envy my friends and family back home with the cold and snow (and rain) that they have been getting.   I am glad for the warmer weather that we have and I am not looking forward to the cold when it does start to arrive.  Hopefully though, by that time I will be prepared with my soft, warm robe, fleece pajamas and sheepskin and sheep sheering lined (from the UK) slippers.  Along with some more beautiful cashmere sweaters!

Of course this morning was one of the coldest mornings yet.  We were at 0 degrees Celsius.  It was chilly running and I have now determined that I need the warmer fleece gloves when I run.  It seems that the cold snap may have begun, despite the sun shine outside.

On Strike

In the UK, we are having one of the largest strikes in decades.  The media has been talking about it for weeks.  The strikers are from different parts of the workforce.  There are border workers, hospital workers, teachers and weather forecasters.

How has it affected me personally?  No much at all.  When I was out shopping today, it was busier then normal.  There are a lot of kids out of school right now, I heard that about 1/2-3/4 of all state schools are out.  I don't think that my kids know that, and since their school is a private school we are not affected by the strike and for our teachers, it is a business as usual kind of day.  It has affected Super Handsome more as some of his co-workers have had to take a personal day if their kids are not in school.

The workers are striking in protest at measures that the government is taking to shore up its debt.  The government is pushing back the retirement age to 67 starting in 2026, and the workers are also being required to contribute more money into the pension fund and receive less.  Their current wages have been frozen for 2 years and now pay raises will be 1% until 2014.  The government made these decisions because the UK economy did not grow at the 2.5% that was predicted, instead it only grew 0.07%.

The strike really seems to just a way for the workers to make a point that they are unhappy about the cuts.  It will be interesting to see what happens in the future between the government and the labor leaders.  The labor leaders in the 80's battled with Margaret Thatcher and it being wondered if it will happen again.  The UK has a large debt load and is second in the world to the US.  The government is trying to make good, yet unpopular decisions to shore up their problems and stabilize their economy.  Which is really a good thing, especially with things in Europe looking so bleak right now and two major governments are asking for bailouts again.  There are now talks that the fiasco with Greece and Italy may set the world economy back into recession and affect other nations like France.   Spain is projected to have problems again as well.

I think that the next year will be interesting.....

When the Rubber Band Snaps....

Long time friends.  We all have them.  The person that you haven't talked to in ages and then you pick up the phone and you just fall into easy conversation with, like you have never been apart.  I refer to it as the rubber band phenomena.  You go on with your life with your family and other friends and the bond (or rubber band) that separates you and your friend stretches.  At some point it can't stretch any further and you pick up the phone and call them, write on their FaceBook page, text them or whatever you need to do to communicate with them.  If you are not able to communicate with them, like I have not been able to with my friend from Sweden, you just think about them.  I am lucky that I have a few of them.  I was also lucky to see H yesterday (28 Nov 2011).

H was an exchange student that came to Belmond when we were seniors.  She's from Stockholm, Sweden.  We became instant friends, it was just that simple.   We have been in and out of contact through the years as life has taken us on it's winding path.

I had always promised myself that I would make it to Europe to see Hanna.  I did not quite make it to Europe, but I made it across the pond and she made it to England.  From there, with a little help from the school (for me) and with a little help from her wonderful in-laws, we were able to spend a few hours together in the afternoon.

H took the train to meet me.  I really had not let myself get too excited for our meeting, because my plans to Paris got nixed and I was very disappointed.  I could not bare another disappointment.  But, as I was in the car on my way to see her, I got very excited.  I arrived at the train station and sent her a text and figured out she was running late.  So, I parked the car and then got lost trying to get back to the station.  I finally figured out where to go and as I was walking up the ramp to the station, I saw her.  I have to admit that I started crying a bit, it was just that amazing to see her again!

We wandered a bit and finally settled on a little coffee shop.  We just sat and talked until reality and our kids became to large to ignore.  But, we left with plans for us (or maybe just me) to come and see her in Stockholm during the summer months.  I can't wait to see her again.  The impact that we left on each other's lives is still very evident and I am so thankful that she is my friend and that we are back in contact again.   Now, that we have better ways to keep in contact, I plan to get my rubber band firmly in place!  

Oldest Son turns 15

Oldest Son had the honor of being the first Beary to celebrate his birthday here in the UK.  We decide to have a party for him and invite the kids in his year.  The problem then became that there were kids that he really did not want to invite, but because the school was so small we felt that it was not a good option.  We instead assured Oldest Son that those kids would probably really not come anyway.  (and I might add, we were correct!)

Little did we know that when Oldest Son handed out the invitations, that the party would go viral.  The invites were intended for year 10's only.  There are a few year 8 girls that are a bit, umm, crazy.  They somehow got a hold of the invitation, copied it and distributed it.  The funny part of it all was I had inadvertently put the wrong phone number on the invitation.  I had also purposely not put the address of our home on it either, figuring that I would give it to them as they RSVP'ed.

That day I received an email from Oldest Son's form teacher, she requested a meeting with me.  I met with her that day and I have to say that when I left she had me wondering what I was getting myself into!  Apparently, there are at least 2 boys that are very wild in his year.   Oldest Son had also been talking to several of the guys and drinking seemed to happen at some of the parties as well.  He went back to school the next day and told the kids that asked that there would be no drinking or drugs allowed at his party.  Then, we sat and waited.

As the party grew closer, very few kids had RSVP'ed.  I had one call from a concerned mother, she would only let her son come to parties if she knew exactly what was going on.  I did not blame her after what I heard from the teacher.

The day of the party arrived and we were nervous.  We had a total of 5 kids that had RSVP'ed.  One then canceled and another was not expecting to make it.  The morning of the party, 4 other girls emailed me to let me know they wanted to come.

So, as the evening approached, we started preparing for the kids to come.  I cooked up a storm.  Oldest Son's favorite cornflake chicken, kale chips and baked beans.  The start time for the party came and went.  So, we sat and started to get a little nervous.

Apparently they had all coordinated to arrive late, as at 6pm, cars started rolling in and kids started arriving.  We ended up with Oldest Son, one other guy and 6 girls.  I served the food that I had prepared and Super Handsome started on the pizzas.  Meanwhile the kids had started with watching The Sorcerers Apprentice, which ended after about 30 mins.  They all just joked around and ate and fought with the balloons that were all over the room.

They played a bit of Rock Band and then giggled their way through one more movie (Princess Bride) before it was time to go home.  All and all I think that it was a good time had by all.

Happy Birthday to my Oldest Baby!

Thanksgiving

I had not really planned on celebrating Thanksgiving while here in the UK.  I really do not see the point, here it is just another day.  The boys don't need to miss any school, they have barely been in school one full month!

So, as the day as gotten closer, I have found as I have read on Facebook about all the preparations that my friends and family has been making, that I am kind sad about missing it.

I was asked to talk to the 4 year old's at the boys schools about our Thanksgiving traditions.  I think that it might have been rather boring for them to hear.  The teacher has described it of a Christmas time without presents.  Which as many of you know, isn't exactly right.  It is a time for a lot of preparation of food.  In particular with my family, I share the cooking with my mother and I cook most of the side dishes and a pie or two.  This year, I have turned to making a pumpkin pie from scratch, which is particularly interesting since I am not a fan.

I did bring the kids a bit of the pumpkin pie to try.  All of the kids were brave little souls and tried it, even without the dream whip.  It was wildly anticipated by the staff and I passed out little pieces to them as well.

I am not exactly sure how we are going to celebrate this American holiday.  We had talked about going to Toby Carvery for dinner.  They serve turkey, gammon, roast beef and pork with yorkshire pudding (which is kind of like a biscuit).  The dinner will be missing some of the traditional things, like yams with marshmallows,  cranberries and the pies (here they are called tarts or crumbles, pies are savory).

We are also planning on trying to Facetime with our families in the US.  We look forward to seeing them at their gatherings, if we can catch them!

Quick update on our friends’ daughter:  She is out of surgery and settled into ICU.  Keeping my sparkles on and fingers crossed for some good news about the surgery now.

The Sadness in Life....

This really has been a great experience so far, even with all the financial headaches (that are still ongoing).

The boys and I have been really, really lucky and we have found some very wonderful friends so far along the way.  Along with joy, sometimes you find about the sadness.

Yesterday, was a shattering day, particularly for myself.  I found out about our friend daughter, who is the same age as Youngest Son has brain tumor.   I have been in tears on and off.  I heard the news from a mutual friend.  Her friend has been keeping me informed of what is happening.   The little girl is currently at Addenbrooks in Cambridge because there were no beds available at Great Ormond in London.  Her tumor is quite embedded and entangled in her brain so the consultants are carefully plotting the surgery.  She is taking steroids to help reduce the swelling in her brain and to build her up a bit for the surgery.  The surgery will be next week.

Her brother  is Son 3’s  good friend, is currently in Oxford with grandparents.  But he will be back this weekend and back in school next week.  I hope to be able to help the family out more, anyway that I can.

As many of you read on my FaceBook account, I am also planning a birthday party for Oldest Son.  Here at our home, it now, now referred to as the party gone "viral".  More about that in another post.  Yesterday, we have our first RSVP.  It was from a really nice Mom who really cares what her kids are doing.  In talking to her last night, I found out that her husband died last year.  He went in to the hospital for back surgery, during surgery the doctor severed a major artery and he died a week later.  With already an emotional day under my belt, lets just say, tears flowed.

In talking to her, she shared a lot of wonderful things with me not only about her and her family, but also about her son.  Last night after I got off the phone her I went to talk to Oldest Son about what she shared with me.  I know that Oldest Son has a different perspective about her son now, particularly since Oldest Son had categorized him as a troublemaker, because he hangs out with the kids who cause trouble. The boy also got more points (at least in our house) because apparently, as he handed the invitation to his mom, he said that she needed to call me because he could go to this party as their would be no alcohol served!  The drinking age here is 18, but parents are already allowing their children to drink at parties in their homes.  Something that his mom (and this mom) does not support.  She shared with me that he is not allowed to go to parties where is it served.  She talks to the parents to ensure that underage drinking will not be happening at the parties and if it is, he does not go.

She also shared with me that her husband was Canadian and that they lived in Canada for awhile when her son was young.  She has 4 children, and her son that is Oldest Son's age is her 3rd, her youngest daughter has cerebral palsy.   She shared with me that loosing her husband has been hard in the ways one would except, it has also been hard because he was an equal partner when it came to the care of their youngest daughter.

This morning in the car Oldest Son and I talked a little bit about what a somber day yesterday was, today, like yesterday is a sunny day.  I am so, so grateful for the sun right now, without it I am not sure I would be able to pick myself up with all the sadness.  But, really we all do it, my friend is staying strong for her daughter and family.  The other mother, is staying strong and moving on without her husband.

We all hear the stories about the sad diseases and tragedies of those among us and around us.  We are all affected and it touches us, individually.  I know that I am just not able to read all the stories because emotionally I can't bear it all, none of us can.  We all have our own emotional well to delve into and when it runs dry, it is dry.  We all have these moments where we look around and are very glad for what we have and we fiercely hug our family members and love them extra-specially.  This is definitely one of those moments for me.

I know that you will all be doing the same.

Dinner--Pork and Bean Pot

Dinner tonight!  I was lucky enough to have my landlady leave me her cook books.  This is the second recipe that I have tried, the first was Shepard's pie.

It actually was much darker after it cooked, but it received thumbs up from the boys.  Super Handsome kept asking where the meat and such was (inside, honey, just eat it!)

I served it with crusty bread.  I had a salad and the boys munched on some raw carrots.

Here is the recipe:

1 bag of pinto beans, soaked in water overnight
1 pound of pork
1 pound of bacon
8 oz of pork sausage (not Italian, I used a sausage that was flavored with onion, I would recommend using a summer sausage or kielabasa)
3 celery sticks
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons each:  fresh thyme, rosemary, parsley
OR
2tsp of each dried
16oz can of chopped tomatoes
salt, pepper and garlic salt to taste
1.25 cups of stock (I used a pork bullion cube, I suggest beef or chicken if you can't find pork))

Drain the beans.  Chop the sausage, bacon and pork into pieces.  Brown them in a pan, scoop all the meat out and leave the grease in the pan.  Add the onions, garlic and celery to the pan and cook until they start to become translucent.

Combine the herbs with the chopped tomatoes.

In a casserole dish layer 1/3 of the meat, 1/3 of the onion & celery, and 1/3 of the beans and 1/3 of the tomato mixture.  Repeat until you have used all the ingredients.  Pour the stock into the pot. Make sure your beans are covered (you may have to add more stock)

Bake at 350 2-3 hours.

Somethings that I did different, I used 2 14oz cans of tomato.  I cheated and did not soak the beans long enough.  So, I cooked it twice for about 2 hours each time.  I checked on the beans to make sure that they were done and I had to add additional liquid twice.  Upon tasting it, I found it rather bland and added quite a bit of garlic salt at the end.

It was a hit and the boys asked me to "put it in my book”.  Oldest Son who has an endless stomach, actually filled up after 1.5 plates full.

We followed it with homemade pumpkin pie for dessert.

I am on the hunt for a recipe that will be similar in texture and taste to Mrs. Smith's frozen pumpkin pies, which are Super Handsome's favorite in the US.  My quest is further complicated by the fact that canned pumpkin is almost impossible to find (I have not found any).  So, I had to start from scratch with sugar pumpkins.

 The pie recipe that I made was not quite what Super Handsome was looking for, but I am going to try a different recipe with 2 eggs instead of 3.  He felt that it was not the right consistency, he prefers his pies creamy.

  

Remembrance Day

November 1, the kids and I noticed that the news anchors on the BBC and people on the talk shows were wearing a red flower.  Then, on Monday I looked it up online and then one of my sons came home with one pinned to his blazer....

In the UK the red flowers that they are wearing are poppies, it is worn in preparation for Armistice Day, or what we call Veterans Day.  It is observed on November 11 as the end of Word War I. The armistice with Germany was signed on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.  The poppy has become the symbol of the day due to the following poem called In Flanders Field:

In Flanders fields the poppies glow
      Between the crosses, row on row,
   That mark our place; and in the sky
   The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
   Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
         In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
   The torch; be yours to hold it high.
   If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
         In Flanders fields.

It was written by Major McCrae a Canadian solider after a nasty 17 day battle at Ypres.  After the first World War, poppies were observed growing on the freshly dug graves of the soliders in France and in Belgium as well.  Major McCrae died in 1918 due to injuries sustained during battle.

An American Ms Michael was inspired by his poem and wrote her own poem.  She resolved to wear a "Flanders Poppy" every year in remembrance.   Ms Michaels' idea was taken back to France by Madame Guerin, and the tradition spread quickly through Europe.  The two women met at a YMCA conference in New York City.  Ms Michaels gave then gave them out to ex-service men and her co-workers at her office in the YMCA of New York.

"We Shall Keep The Faith"

Oh! You who sleep in Flanders’ fields,
Sleep sweet – to rise anew;
We caught the torch you threw;
And holding high we kept
The faith with those who died.
We cherish, too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valour led.
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies,
But lends a lustre to the red
Of the flower that blooms above the dead
In Flanders’ Fields.
And now the torch and poppy red
Wear in honour of our dead
Fear not that ye have died for naught
We’ve learned the lesson that ye taught
In Flanders’ Fields.

The poppy was officially adopted 2 years later by the American and British Legion.  But now, it is mainly seen in Commonwealth countries.  The funds raised are used to help disabled and injured soldiers.  This year the British Legion is hoping to raise £40million.  There is a poppy  factory that was started in 1922 in the UK, and it has been moved once.   It is still in production today.  The factory only employs former serviceman.

The poppies are sold for 5p in the schools and at the local supermarkets.  Because the paper flowers are not very robust, I went to a local grocery store found the pins that are not paper and I bought all of us one to wear and to take home for our own remembrance.  I bought my poppy pin from a little gentleman, who is part of the British Legion.   I was rewarded with a M'Lady and as you may know, I was completely delighted to hear that salutation!

In the US where the tradition started, it has been greatly diminished, I am not sure that I have seen one worn or sold in my life time.

Thank you to the all soldiers that have served and still are serving....

Carpool Monsters are Universal

 Apparently, the Carpool Monster is a common phenomena. I am not sure why I was so surprised to see that the mums here are just as crazy as they are in the US.  I think it is because the English seem so polite.  I have noticed a dad or two in the fray, but they tend to park on the street and walk up to the school, along with the other mums who apparently do not want to have to deal with the daily trauma.

I am not sure what about a carpool can turn a seemingly pleasant woman into such a thoughtless monster! It is quite amazing if you think about it.  Put a woman behind the wheel of a hideously large and expensive car they apparently mistake it as Game On!

At St. Nick's there are challenges, parking challenges.  People come onto campus and depending on their arrival they may have to wait a bit before drop off or pick up.  If arrival is not timed correctly, then the said parent is waiting in the carpool line.  Occasionally, there are cars abandoned in the drive as a mom hurries to get her child, and I am guilty of doing that myself.  The funny thing was, I get myself and Youngest Son back to the car before traffic starts moving again....

The parking lot of the school is very small.  I am not even sure the exact number of cars that it holds.  But I get infuriated every day at how people park.  Just this morning, there were at least two separate instances in which, if the offending driver had taken the time to park straight and in their space, there would have been one other space available.  If the carpool line was not such a big deal or there were more spaces then, really who cares how they park.  Unfortunately, neither is the case!

Some of the cars are also ridiculous!  In the US you seen Escaldes, big GMC's and an occasionally Mercedes.  Here, the status symbol is the Range Rover or a Land Rover.  Personally, I think they are ugly.   But hey, if you want to pay extra to drive around a gas guzzling car shaped like a box, have at it.  I will stick with my cheap, bare bones little Skoda (The Tin Can) or my The Tank, er Renault!  By the way, they both get over 40mpg! (and when I come back to the states, I am getting the most fuel efficient car that I can, even if it means sardine time for the kids when we vacation!)

The other interesting issue seems to be that even though they drive these big cars, they apparently live by the same principle as Evelyn Couch in the movie Fried Green Tomatoes, "I am older and I have more insurance".  They must have more insurance....

Guy Fawkes Day--November 5

Well, they don't celebrate Halloween here like we do in the US.  It is starting to become popular but really just in small pockets. The kids typically only trick or treat at houses where they know people.

The UK celebrates Guy Fawkes Day, every year on November 5th.  Who is Guy Fawkes you may ask and why do they celebrate him?  Surely he must be a great man....  great is an adjective that could be contested, for sure.  He was either very stupid or absolutely brilliant.  I am not exactly sure which.  I will let you, my dear reader decide!

Guy Fawkes was an English man that converted to Catholicism at a time when Catholicism was not popular in England.  James I was king and he was Protestant.  Fawkes eventually moved to Spain to fight on the side of the Catholic Spain against the Protestant Dutch Reformers.  There, he met up with a gentleman, Thomas Wintour and eventually moved back to England.   Wintour introduced him to another man, Robert Catesby who was plotting to assassinate King James I, in hopes to restore a Catholic to the throne.  The plot later became known as the Gunpower Plot.

The men planned to blow up the House of Lords.  They letted a space under the chamber and began to store explosives in the space.  Shortly after midnight, November 5, 1605, Fawkes was guarding the space when he was caught due to an anonymous letter that was written to a Catholic member of Parliament.  Fawkes was subsequently imprisoned and tortured until he revealed the names of the co-conspirators.

He was found guilty of high treason and sentenced to be hung (almost to the point of death) and then (while still alive) drawn and quartered (ouch!) with the other men.  He was the last in line and watched the other men have their sentence carried out.  Before they could execute him in the same manner, he stepped off the high scaffolding and fell to his death by breaking his neck (brilliance!).  It spared him the physical torture of his sentence, but the sentence was still carried out on his dead body.

November 5, 1605, the citizens of England were encouraged to light bonfires to celebrate the king escaping assassination. An act of Parliament was created to make each November 5th a joyful act of thanksgiving. The tradition of lighting bonfires has continued and in the 1600's fireworks were added to the festivities.  Effigies of Guy are also burned.  For many years it was celebrated with an anti-Catholic sentiments.   Now, it is a peaceful celebration to be enjoyed by all.

We are going to celebrate the evening at the school.  I plan to take the camera and take lots of pictures!

Our First Month

Well, we have been here for a month.  Actually, a tad bit longer.  But really does it matter?  The time has flown by!

I have gotten a house, we are picking up one car today and hopefully the second car by tomorrow, but most likely Monday.  I have learned to drive on the opposite side of the road for the most part and we are all still adjusting to the cultural differences.  This post is really intended to be a highlight of some of those experiences.

Driving has been interesting.  I need to thank Super Handsome for letting me drive the little BMW 1 series from the rental company.  If I would have had a big car like what I drove in the US I would have been in trouble.  Even the car that he drives would have caused me problems.  Sometimes I have problems with the small car that I get to drive now!

When I first started driving on the wrong side of the road, it was a crazy for me.  I would have anxiety attacks wondering what side of the road I was suppose to be on.  Then, I would have convinced myself that I was on the right side of the road and I would look at the cars parked on the side of the road and panic because some of the cars would be facing me and some would be facing the other direction.  Talk about making someone crazy!  I learned from the security guards at Super Handsome's work that the cars parked opposing traffic probably meant that they got home late from the pubs!  I learned quickly that when I drive, I am closest to the center line, just like I was in the US.  It completely stopped my panic attacks!

We love our house.  It is a great house and the space is fantastic.  Sunday night, we had a complete panic moment when the Kid 2’s bathroom leaked while he was taking a shower.  He had moved the shower head up to prevent the water from going on the floor and the wall, instead water leaked down into the sitting room.  The next morning, with a heavy heart I called Jan to tell her.  Thankfully, they had had it happen before, and they could not figure out where they leak was coming from.  Super Handsome thinks that he may have it figured out where the leak came from, so he is going to caulk the spot up and hopefully between the caulk and knowing what causes the leak we won't have it happen again.   Jan was thrilled that he maybe able to stop the leak.

TV and radio is different here and we are slowly finding things that we enjoy as well as ways to keep up with some of things that we watched in the US.  So far, we listen to Absolute Radio, you can stream it if you are interested.  They do repeat some songs, but they are certainly not like some of the US stations that repeat songs every hour.  I like the blend of music that they play, it is a nice blend of old and new.  Most importantly I like the 80's punk influence and some of the 90's music that it seems to have.  The DJ's are fairly entertaining as well.  I have been watching Downton Abby in iTV.  We also really enjoy Top Gear and Dr. Who.  I am sure that there are others that we may find as time goes on as well.

We are in the midst of fall here.  The trees seem to be near peak, the colors are not as vibrant as what I am used to in the US, but they are still pretty.  It has been a marvelously mild fall.  We have been blessed with some rain, but it always seem to clear off and we still see some sun,which is totally delightful.  There are days that the rain and or clouds do not clear off, but it is manageable because the temperature is not so bitter.  I have noticed that the end of the days are much cooler here then they were in Indiana.  The high temperature peaks earlier in the day, probably more around noon, unlike Indiana when the temps peaks around 15:00 (3pm).  When I am picking up the boys, I am finding that the warm coats that other mums wear are more comfortable then my lighter weight coats.  The climate is damp here, yesterday started out foggy and then cleared.  I hung blankets out on the clothes line around 13:00 (1pm) and I noticed that the grass was still damp.  I think part of the reason is that the grass may only receive morning sun.  When it rains to also seems to take awhile for all the pavement to dry, especially if the sun is not shining.

The weather in the UK is milder then what I am used to in the US.  They don't have deep freezes like we do and I noticed that many fields have broccoli planted.  Also, the rhododendrons are 9 feet tall here!  I could never get one to grow that tall back home!  I am looking forward to a milder winter.  Last year the UK had one of the worst winters ever.  They are saying this one is suppose to be bad as well.  We were suppose to get snow here by the end of October, but for now we seemed to have missed it, apparently the US east coast got it instead!  Last year, the UK was not prepared for the winter and they quickly ran out of the grit to put on the road, this year the counties have all said that they are much better prepared.  The radio DJ just pronounced the whole thing a "hysterical mess".

I love the expressions and different phrases that they use in the UK.  Some examples are: tidy, brilliant, lovely, smashing, happy day, cheers (Thanks and or good-bye), nicked (stolen), boot (back of the car), cloudy (referring to lemonade that is not clear), still (no fizz in the drink), biscuit (cookie), crisps (chip or cracker), cracker (little gift given at Christmas), bird or birds (refers to a woman or a group of them) and the list could go on.  One day I will devote a post just to the language difference.  One of my favorite's is when someone calls me darling.  Today, I was talking to the car dealer, and as we were ending our conversation he called me darling.  I will always remember the first time I was called m'lady.  I was in a restaurant looking for the WC (aka restrooms) and an older gentleman standing near the bar noticed that I seemed a bit lost.  He simply said "M'Lady" and gestured gently to where I needed to go.  As I followed his instructions, I thought to myself, I need to remember this, I was delighted!  I don't expect to be called that term often.  I think that it has probably fallen out of vogue with the younger generation.

We are slowly adjusting and moving into the routine of everyday life.  I know that we will have more adjustments to deal with and we have a great deal more to learn.  There are days that it is harder then others, for sure.  Just this week, I had one of the boys saying that he wanted to go home.  Somedays are more overwhelming then others.  But together we can do this and I hope that by making it an adventure we can have a good time with it.

Misconception

I am not sure that I really like the word misconception.  It is a heavy word filled with meaning and we are all guilty of carrying them.  I have them, I am certainly no different then anyone else.  Earlier in the day, when I was talking to the school secretary, she mentioned that she had an American pen friend when she was growing up.  Her pen friend used to ask her things like "Do you have tea with the Queen?”  We giggled about it at the time, but looked back it seems an odd coincidence with the events of the day.

Last night, at our Halloween party, I heard my first misconception.  The other mums and I were all talking in a group.  The conversation ranged from silly to serious.  I was mentioning how in the UK, there is so much more information in their media about Africa, in particular because one of the mums mentioned that her son and husband were in Tanzania doing a charity walk.  The conversation lead to her commenting that Americans don't pay attention to what is happening to the rest of the world, that we are "insular".

I could have responded rudely, and when I was talking to Super Handsome about it he asked me why I didn't.  He was right, the comment was insulting.  I never did have the inclination to respond rudely and after my conversation with my teenager, I am so glad that I did not.

I explained nicely to the woman that even the local news sources in my city provide information about what is going on the the world.  I also pointed out to her that when another country is in crisis, our government always pledge money and or aid, and that does not even start to take into account how generous our citizens are when they open their own pockets or the time that our citizens devote to other countries.

This morning my teenage son and I were talking, because he felt he was having problems with some of the boys in his year.  The incidents he mentioned were small, but I can understand why he was troubled. One boy has been bumping him when they are outside playing football and it had happened enough that my son was sure that it was on purpose and not necessarily a joke.  Another boy commented that my son was in the "low" math group.  (Which, incidentally is not true, actually he is going to be working a head since he has done their math already and he is advanced).

I talked to him about how his "honeymoon" period with all the curiosity was probably over.  Now, he was probably going to be subjected to tests by his peers.  I talked to him about misconceptions and I was able to use my experience last night to directly relate for him the positive (my way) and negative way (Super Handsome's suggestion) to deal with the situation.  We talked about the implications if I had chosen to respond on a negative manner, as Super Handsome had suggested.

I know that when my teenager went to school he felt much better about the situations that we had talked about.  I tried to give him communication tools to use when situations come up and we talked about how humor or honest education will take him a longer distance then rude comments, anger or shouting.  I prepared him for the fact that some of their misconceptions are going to be insulting, but he can change them for the better, if he uses positive communication tools.

Jack O' Lanterns

Jack O' Lanterns are kind of an American invention, only kind of.....

We did partake in the activity here.  The pumpkins were smaller then we typically find in the US and we did not find a pumpkin patch to get them from... but we saved the seeds and the boys still enjoyed it!

Tonight we are headed to a get together, but it won't involve costumes.  Hamburgers and hotdogs for the kids and wine for the mums!  I am bring Grandma Beary's famous baked beans (without the liquid smoke since I could not find it) to share.  You have to remember that in the UK they eat baked beans for breakfast.  Son 3 was a bit nostalgic for home this morning when he said "This will be the first Halloween that I won't be dressing up or trick or treating."

Here is the legend, please note, instead of typing it all over, I copied it from this site:  http://www.history.com/topics/jack-olantern-history

People have been making jack-o'-lanterns at Halloweenfor centuries. The practice originated from an Irish myth about a man nicknamed "Stingy Jack." According to the story, Stingy Jack invited the Devil to have a drink with him. True to his name, Stingy Jack didn't want to pay for his drink, so he convinced the Devil to turn himself into a coin that Jack could use to buy their drinks. Once the Devil did so, Jack decided to keep the money and put it into his pocket next to a silver cross, which prevented the Devil from changing back into his original form. Jack eventually freed the Devil, under the condition that he would not bother Jack for one year and that, should Jack die, he would not claim his soul. The next year, Jack again tricked the Devil into climbing into a tree to pick a piece of fruit. While he was up in the tree, Jack carved a sign of the cross into the tree's bark so that the Devil could not come down until the Devil promised Jack not to bother him for ten more years.

Soon after, Jack died. As the legend goes, God would not allow such an unsavory figure into heaven. The Devil, upset by the trick Jack had played on him and keeping his word not to claim his soul, would not allow Jack into ****. He sent Jack off into the dark night with only a burning coal to light his way. Jack put the coal into a carved-out turnip and has been roaming the Earth with ever since. The Irish began to refer to this ghostly figure as "Jack of the Lantern," and then, simply "Jack O'Lantern."

In Ireland and Scotland, people began to make their own versions of Jack's lanterns by carving scary faces into turnips or potatoes and placing them into windows or near doors to frighten away Stingy Jack and other wandering evil spirits. In England, large beets are used. Immigrants from these countries brought the jack o'lantern tradition with them when they came to the United States. They soon found that pumpkins, a fruit native to America, make perfect jack-o'-lanterns.

Happy Halloween!  

And You Shall Have Beer!

While we were in temp housing, because we have two cars, my teenage sons were adamant that I could not have a drink at dinner, not even one.  We have been eating at lots of pubs and taverns, so it has been very temping!  But, I honored their request for a number of reasons.  First: because I was in a foreign county and driving on the wrong side of the road; second, because we always went back to where we were staying in the dark and lastly because I respect them and their need to be safe and I hope that they hold everyone that they ride with to the same standard.

I have been very interested in trying the different types of beer and alcohol here, so today after Super Hnadsome and I tried to purchase one of the cars and failed (because it was not ready).... we went to the grocery store and while looking at the squash (which would be a concentrate juice), I noticed the alcoholic cider on the other side of the aisle.  Super Handsome had heard that Bumbler's Pear Cider was suppose to be really good and as we looked we saw a bunch of other different flavors that we decided to try as well!  The picture shows: Franks Alcholic Root Beer, Franks Ginger Beer, Brothers Toffee Apple Cider, Bulmers Pear Cider, Bulmers Cider with Crushed Berries and Lime and Wells Banana Bread Beer.  I cracked open the Alcoholic Root Beer and had it with dinner, it was not bad!  We then drank the Toffee Apple Cider, which reminds me of Creme Soda.  Super Handsome really enjoyed that more then the alcoholic root beer.

As I mentioned earlier,  before Super Handsome and I did our beer run, we went to the car dealership intending to get one of the cars.  My car was not ready yet, which was a disappointment as we really need to get rid of these rental cars.  They are very costly!  In other news, we are having more issues with our credit union (first it was the debit card issue).  Along with all the feet dragging, they have decided that Super Handsome's car is not worth the selling price.  So, it looks like I have plans Monday, calling them when they open to discuss the issue.  The last email that we got informed us of the issue and then also informed us that he would discuss with us on Tuesday as he is off Monday.  Not. acceptable.

We decided to get a loan for the cars, little did we know that we should have just saved ourself the pain and just jabbed ourselves repeatedly in the eye!  Seriously, this has been going on for two weeks people.  Get on it and get on it NOW!  Honestly, I understand that I am not the first in line and everything has a process, but every time we thought we had all the information to the credit union we received emails requesting the same information again.  I am not sure what the problem was, I wondered if they were not receiving the attachments from Super Handsome since he was sending them from his UK work address.  One issue that did come up was that they apparently decided only to  deal with Super Handsome (probably because he is primary on the account or something) and left me out of the loop.  Super Handsome had to redirect her to "the boss".

After we finished discussions with the very patient car dealer, we headed out to the pottery place, PotStop to grab the projects that we did on Tuesday.  I think that they turned out rather well!

After that we headed back home to Oak Lodge.  On the way we stopped at the store and along with the beer, we grabbed some pumpkins for the kids.  They were thrilled to see them when we got back home. When we arrived home we were also greeted with a dozen yellow roses!  Our neighbors: Keeley; Tony; Emily and Christian dropped them off at the door for us with a card welcoming us!  Quite a nice welcome!  Maybe we should have them over for a beer....

Yeah! Moving Day!

Moving day finally arrived!  Super Handsome had emailed me yesterday with the information that it would happen today, but I was very skeptical that it actually would, so I was slow at getting things around and informing people, like the homeowners and the packers who had our things.

Luckily and thankfully we were able to get everything accomplished in time that we needed to, so that it was able to happen!  I found out at 9am that everything was a go and the kids and I flew into action.  Oldest Son was the chief car packer.  We figured that we were going to have to make at least two trips to get all of our things from The Shack to the house.  Oldest Son almost made it into one trip.  It was so close and there was not a lot of sitting room, he had planned that everyone had to ride with something on their lap.   If we had had a second car it would have definitely worked.  Unfortunately, Super Handsome had to go to Warminister for business, so, he was not able to help.  Not only that, but he had the packing papers with him at work, he had to send them into customs so that they would release our things After he sent them, he neglected to bring them back to me.  So, with the car fully loaded, we made a quick stop in Harlow and another quick stop to the letting agency, then we went to our new home.

We were early and lucky for us, the homeowners Jan and Ron were as well.  We were able to get the car unloaded.  The boys also claimed their bedrooms upstairs.  As per out discussion, the Youngest Sons had the biggest room, since they wanted to share.  Oldest Son let Son 2 choose his room first.  Son 2 choose a room with smaller storage space, but larger living space.  Son 2 really liked the dog pictures on the walls. Oldest Son chose a smaller room but it has nice storage in it.  He immediately started stripping beds and changing out linens.  I had to have him fix the mess that he left, because he had spread the mess into another room that had a twin bed and a trundle.  In the end Oldest Son ended up stripping and making 3 beds.

The truck arrived around noon, just as we had expected.  We got everything unloaded and then proceeded to unpack everything to ensure that things were not damaged.  Right now, Son 2’s bike frame is bent, so his front tire no longer fits.  Super Handsome and I also brought our anti-gravity chairs that also may be bent.  We finished up by 1:30, so Son 2 and I headed back to The Shack to get the last of the things.  We also made a quick stop to the store to get a few things for dinner and snacks for the never ending pit that we are affectionally calling Oldest Son's stomach!  We headed back to the house and we ate a late lunch/early dinner.  Just as we were finishing Ron and Jan came over to talk with me about a few things.  Before they got here, their 12 year old grandson, saw me in the kitchen and waved.  He was hanging out with some of his friends, as he is also on holiday from school this week.  He came to the door, and seemed delighted to see us.  Older Sons came out to meet him.  I told him that he was welcome to stop by whenever he wanted, and that I was used to a house full of boys.

It has been a rainy day here, but around after watching a bit of a movie, the boys headed outside for a little bit.  Oldest Son found Christian and his friends and is looking forward to hanging out with them again soon.  We will also be unpacking some more of our things and moving things around to better suit our needs.  We have already had to talk to the boys about keeping their things away from the radiators.  We have radiators for heat in every room.  While I don't think that they will ever get hot enough to actually catch fire, I am not planning on taking any chances!

We are all absolutely thrilled, beyond belief to be in our home, with our things! Let the fun begin!

Here is a picture of our dinner, the second night.  Super Handsome was too late to eat with us the first night.  We ate chicken stew with zucchini and root veggies.  It was pretty good!

Fun Activities

Well, it has been a bit crazy here for sure!

Tuesday, 25 October, was a rainy day, so I found a placed called PotStop.  We went and picked out pottery pieces to paint.  Oldest Son decided to do a skate board, Son 2 and Youngest Son choose a cat and painted them to resemble our kitty Tux.  Son 3 and I did a pumpkin.  It was a fun project and a nice way to spend the day since we were not able to move.

Wednesday, 26 October we headed to Lee Valley Farm which is in Waltham Abbey (south of where The Shack is located.  We left at lunch time I ended up passing the Farm the first time and going into Waltham Abbey.  So, we decided to go to McDonald's to eat, but instead I pulled into the Tesco, which is a grocery store.  We grabbed a couple of groceries and the kids begged me to get them Krispy Kreme donuts.  They have a case of Krispy Kreme in every store and they are not just the standard glazed, they are a delicious blend of yumminess!  We had them once for a late breakfast, so I decided what the heck, and we got donuts and milk for lunch!  YUM!  You have gotta have fun sometime and hey, you need to be a fun Mom every once and awhile!

Lee Valley Farm had promised an Apple Tasting and cider making activities along with the other attractions, which was farm animals.  The apple tasting was really not happening.  Instead, the staff member was making cider.  The kids got to help, below are pictures of Youngest 2 Sons shredding the apples into smaller pieces.  After that, they did not want to even stay for the cider making part so we headed out to the rest of the park.  We were able to see some baby pigs, that were very smelly!  We also saw sheep, goats, chickens and they had some great play equipment!  Youngest Son also got to try milking a fake cow!

We ended our visit with a Tractor ride to the barns where they were milking cows.  When we got in line for the ride, we did not realize that we had queued up in the wrong area.  The little boy that I thought was in front of us, rewarded us with a few nasty faces.  I exclaimed to him, "My you can make mean faces!"  His mom chided him to stop, but he was quite determined to keep it up, and gave us a couple more for good measure!  After listening to us talk the mother realized that we thought we were at the end of the line and politely let us know that we were in the front!  So, I apologized and headed to where that back of the line really started.

The little guy and his family made it on the tractor and rewarded us with a few more nasty faces.  (My oh my, I apologized little guy, really!)  We finally made it onto the next tractor after much moaning and groaning from Oldest 2 Sons.  Youngest Son in particular was looking forward to seeing how they milked the cows.  We got to see the calves that were in the building and one was even licking anyone that passed.  We did not spend a lot of time at the milking facility as it was cold and we were ready to head back for some hot chocolate.

On our way back, during our second tractor ride we encountered the same family with the little boy that had made such awful faces. We were trying to find seats on the tractor, and there were a few seats scattered here and there.  The mum had a seat next to her that she offered and then she started asking her small son in the seat across from her to let her sit with him to make room for me.  He wanted no part of it and was blankly refusing her request.  She told me that she really did not think he was going to let her sit with him.  I told her that was too bad as we were trying to all fit on for the ride back.  I really wanted to shake her and tell her that she is the adult in this relationship, but instead I told her no worries, that Oldest Son and I had been told by the driver that we could stand.  Honestly, if that little kid made one more face at me, I might have just made one back!

The day was quite chilly, even though the sprinkling had finally let up and the sun was shining, the wind was brisk.  We were definitely under dressed for the occasion with just our fleece sweatshirts and jackets. Other people had hats and puffy coats, I have to admit I was sorely a tempted to take a hat off a little kid and run, but I restrained myself.  There was really no where to run to anyway!  It was a fun time for the younger two in particular. I am pretty sure that one visit was enough for the Beary family!