With the variety of CDs and songs that we listen to on a daily basis, there is one that I have found to be one of the kids' favorites. We sing along to California Dreamin' while we take Brett to school as well as on our way home (by their request). They like singing the song because it seems that the "sky is grey" alot in England and I explained to them that L.A. is in America. So with as much as they enjoy singing this song and as much as I enjoy listening to them, I wanted to share it with you. ;o)
Monday, April 28, 2008
Visit to Knebworth House
The weather in England was absolutely beautiful this past weekend -- I know, very hard to believe -- so we decided to go visit the Knebworth House which is near Stevenage (one of the towns between Peterborough and London). While it was gorgeous in Peterborough when we left Sunday morning, during our drive to Stevenage the weather began to take shape and look more like England (lots of clouds and rain). Since it was raining when we arrived in Stevenage and we didn't want to walk around the estate in a terrential downpour, we decided to drive to the Galleria Mall which is located about 10 more miles down the A1 to enjoy lunch. We really didn't know what type of restaurants to expect at the Galleria; however were very pleasantly surprised to see they had a Chili's Bar & Grill. ;o) After we enjoyed a delicious lunch and realized that the rain had finally stopped, we headed back to Knebworth House.
Knebworth House is one of England's stately homes. It is famous for its rock concerts (Rolling Stones, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Oasis, Robbie Williams to name a few) as well as the home of Victorian novelist Edward Bulwer Lytton (author of the words 'The pen is mightier than the sword'). While the tour of the house was interesting (albeit very long with 3 kids that were ready to go outside to play), the kids were more excited to keep an eye out for Batman (as Knebworth House is where a portion of Batman was filmed). ;o)
We had made a deal with the kids that as long as they were good during the hour-long tour and didn't disturb anyone in our tour group, we would let them play in Fort Knebworth, a really nice outdoor playground area (also equipped with a couple of huge slides). ;o) The kids behaved as well as we did during the tour so it was soon off to Fort Knebworth for some playtime.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
I'm back....
Sorry I haven't updated the blog in over a week -- Mike was in Belgium all last week and the kids were keeping me more than busy. ;o) Just a brief update on what we've been up to this past week...
Brett started coach pitch baseball at the Alconbury Royal Air Force Base. He did very well at practice but his first game on Saturday, April 19, left a lot to be desired. He didn't even try to hit or catch the ball -- which is totally unlike him. Ended up, this week he has had a sore throat and a fever and has had to stay home from school so I'm sure he wasn't feeling 100% at the game. His baseball game scheduled for this evening was cancelled due to rain, so we look forward to seeing him enjoy playing the game next Tuesday. Brett also started participating in an after-school Multi-Sports program at Elton. (I called it "mult-eye" sports one day and he corrected me and said, "Mom, the proper way to say it is 'mul-tee'." Those simple little comments definitely remind me that he is using the English terminology and accent more often than not.) ;o)
Kendall & Kameron enjoyed their weekly Gymmies class. We enjoyed lunch with a few of our friends prior to going to the class so the girls were not only able to burn off some energy after they ate lunch in the play area at the restaurant/pub but also at the gymnastics class. It made for a nice quiet afternoon before we went to pick up Brett from school. ;o)
I have been fighting off a cough/cold for about 8 weeks now. After my Mom and Mark visited -- and my Mom heard how bad was cough actually was -- she talked me into going to the doctor. ;o) For the past month, I have been going to the doctor once every week for them to do a variety of tests and chest x-rays. At first they thought it might be pneumonia or bronchitis...but ends up that I'm 33 years old (can't believe I just admitted how old I am) and have lived in England for just a little over a year -- and they are saying that I have now developed asthma. Unreal! I went to the doctor yesterday for him to discuss the chest x-rays with me and while I was there (since I also had Brett with me since he had to stay home from school because of his fever), I asked if he could briefly look at Brett's throat (since I thought I saw swelling and possibly a few white spots -- although I really don't know what I'm looking for)...and he told me that doing that is not their standard and he couldn't do it then. Alrighty then...I need to gently keep reminding myself that we are not in the U.S. and the NHS (National Healthcare System) doesn't operate the way the doctors do in the states (especially since it would have only taken him about 30 seconds). Can you tell I wasn't a very happy mom?! Anway, today I went in to see a nurse to have a spirometry test (to test my lung capacity). After all of the testing was through I asked if she could quickly look in Brett's throat just to see if she saw anything (I thought "second time is a charm", right?! Wrong!). She told me that nurses can't do that...it has to be done by a doctor. When I asked a few more questions, she simply said that if it is tonsilitis or strep throat, they can possibly put him on an antiobiotic after a doctor sees him either at the end of this week or the beginning of next week -- depending on whether he gets to feeling any better in a few days. Until then, I just need to keep him home and give him Calpol or Paracetamol (the English version of Tylenol). If I recall correctly from the states, the doctor wants to see you almost as soon as the swelling or spots show up in your throat. Again, just another gentle reminder to me that the NHS is a bit different than what we are used to in the U.S. After experiencing this side (while most of the care here is fairly good), I can honestly say that I was definitely spoiled in the U.S. (and I loved it!) ;o) More updates to follow (I promise!)...
Brett started coach pitch baseball at the Alconbury Royal Air Force Base. He did very well at practice but his first game on Saturday, April 19, left a lot to be desired. He didn't even try to hit or catch the ball -- which is totally unlike him. Ended up, this week he has had a sore throat and a fever and has had to stay home from school so I'm sure he wasn't feeling 100% at the game. His baseball game scheduled for this evening was cancelled due to rain, so we look forward to seeing him enjoy playing the game next Tuesday. Brett also started participating in an after-school Multi-Sports program at Elton. (I called it "mult-eye" sports one day and he corrected me and said, "Mom, the proper way to say it is 'mul-tee'." Those simple little comments definitely remind me that he is using the English terminology and accent more often than not.) ;o)
Kendall & Kameron enjoyed their weekly Gymmies class. We enjoyed lunch with a few of our friends prior to going to the class so the girls were not only able to burn off some energy after they ate lunch in the play area at the restaurant/pub but also at the gymnastics class. It made for a nice quiet afternoon before we went to pick up Brett from school. ;o)
I have been fighting off a cough/cold for about 8 weeks now. After my Mom and Mark visited -- and my Mom heard how bad was cough actually was -- she talked me into going to the doctor. ;o) For the past month, I have been going to the doctor once every week for them to do a variety of tests and chest x-rays. At first they thought it might be pneumonia or bronchitis...but ends up that I'm 33 years old (can't believe I just admitted how old I am) and have lived in England for just a little over a year -- and they are saying that I have now developed asthma. Unreal! I went to the doctor yesterday for him to discuss the chest x-rays with me and while I was there (since I also had Brett with me since he had to stay home from school because of his fever), I asked if he could briefly look at Brett's throat (since I thought I saw swelling and possibly a few white spots -- although I really don't know what I'm looking for)...and he told me that doing that is not their standard and he couldn't do it then. Alrighty then...I need to gently keep reminding myself that we are not in the U.S. and the NHS (National Healthcare System) doesn't operate the way the doctors do in the states (especially since it would have only taken him about 30 seconds). Can you tell I wasn't a very happy mom?! Anway, today I went in to see a nurse to have a spirometry test (to test my lung capacity). After all of the testing was through I asked if she could quickly look in Brett's throat just to see if she saw anything (I thought "second time is a charm", right?! Wrong!). She told me that nurses can't do that...it has to be done by a doctor. When I asked a few more questions, she simply said that if it is tonsilitis or strep throat, they can possibly put him on an antiobiotic after a doctor sees him either at the end of this week or the beginning of next week -- depending on whether he gets to feeling any better in a few days. Until then, I just need to keep him home and give him Calpol or Paracetamol (the English version of Tylenol). If I recall correctly from the states, the doctor wants to see you almost as soon as the swelling or spots show up in your throat. Again, just another gentle reminder to me that the NHS is a bit different than what we are used to in the U.S. After experiencing this side (while most of the care here is fairly good), I can honestly say that I was definitely spoiled in the U.S. (and I loved it!) ;o) More updates to follow (I promise!)...
Friday, April 11, 2008
Kids' Activities
During our time in England, Brett, Kendall, and Kameron have been keeping us quite busy.
This year will be Brett's second year playing baseball (last year was actually t-ball while this year will be coach pitch) at the Alconbury Royal Air Force Base. He is very excited that Spring is finally here and he can begin playing baseball outside. ;o) Practices will be every Tuesday night at the Base while the games will be played on Saturdays. He's going to play for the Cubs when he gets older... ;o)
This year will be Brett's second year playing baseball (last year was actually t-ball while this year will be coach pitch) at the Alconbury Royal Air Force Base. He is very excited that Spring is finally here and he can begin playing baseball outside. ;o) Practices will be every Tuesday night at the Base while the games will be played on Saturdays. He's going to play for the Cubs when he gets older... ;o)
Kendall & Kameron have been participating in a gymnastics class ("Gymmies") at Sims Gym in Peterborough for about six months now. They attend one session each week for about 45 minutes and absolutely love it. As you will see from the videos, Kendall doesn't mind swinging around and flipping over the bar; however, Kameron is still quite hesitant. Both girls will do all of the other activities without any hesitation. So when Kameron let Miss Karen flip her over, it was a very big deal in which she was then able to go "ring the bell" (so everyone would clap for the good job she did). ;o)
Monday, April 7, 2008
Luck of the Irish?!
We left Holyhead, Wales, on Saturday, March 29, to head to Dublin, Ireland, for the week. While we were very excited to be travelling by ferry for the first time, little did we know (okay, little did I know), that the water was going to be so choppy that some of the waves crashed above the boat and we should have taken Dramamine before we got on the ferry. Key word there is definitely BEFORE. ;o) Needless to say, the kids and I were showing a bit of green before we even arrived in Ireland. Definitely not a great way to start a vacation!
(Getting ready to drive onto the ferry to Ireland -- they didn't know what was in store for them!!!)
(Driving onto the ferry...)
After we arrived in Dublin, we drove to The Maltings Guesthouse in Birr County (a wonderful bed & breakfast that was built in 1810 and used to store Guinness Malt for many years) which is in the center of Ireland. While it should have only taken us about 2 hours to get there from Dublin, our wonderful GPS system "Jane" decided it would be nice to take us through extreme country one-lane roads in a very harsh rainstorm -- so unfortunately it took us about 2 1/2 to 3 hours to get there instead of the standard two.
(The Maltings Guesthouse -- our B&B for the week)
We decided on staying in the middle of Ireland so each day we could drive to a different section of the country. On most days, we only drove about 2-3 hours to get to our first destination. We visited a ton of great sights on the trip -- Giants Causeway, Blarney Castle (and the Blarney Stone), Cliffs of Moher (closest location to the U.S. without being in the U.S.), Dunluce Castle (kitchen literally broke away from the castle and fell off the cliff in a terrible storm), Kylemore Abbey, Ha'Penny Bridge, Guinness Brewery and Storehouse, Dublin Castle, Hill of Tara, Powerscourt Waterfall, Waterford Crystal Factory, Cahir Castle, the Rock of Cashel, Bunratty Castle and Durty Nelly's Pub, Birr Castle, Trim Castle, Glenmacnass Waterfall, etc., etc., etc. As you can see from the list, we saw a TON of sights while in Ireland; however I won't bore you with details from each (only a few) -- but I will post pics for you to view. ;o)
(Giants Causeway)
(Giants Causeway)
(Birr Castle -- right next to our B&B)
(Cliffs of Moher -- the kids were waving to all of our family in the U.S. from this location hoping they could see them.)
(Powerscourt Waterfall)
(Dunluce Castle looking down where the kitchen fell from the cliff)
(Blarney Castle -- and after seeing the Blarney Stone at the top of the castle, there was NO way in the world we would be kissing it!)
(Waiting at the Guinness Brewery for their "free soda")
(Hill of Tara)
The weather for the first few days of the trip made it seem like we were still in England (overcast, breezy, and rainy). The only horrific weather day was the day we drove to Northern Ireland (about a 4 1/2 hour drive from our B & B). We stopped at a store to purchase new windshield wiper blades (they call them "windscreen blades" here) and I stood outside attempting to hold an umbrella ("brolley" here) in a freezing wintery mix of rain, sleet, snow, etc. with this poor person that was changing the blades for me. Giants Causeway was the first sight we went to in that area and the kids had to hold onto our legs to ensure they didn't blow into the ocean. Thank goodness the weather perked up for the most part for the rest of the week and it was fairly nice for the rest of our trip.
We ate some great food while we were on vacation (Durty Nelly's Pub, Hard Rock Cafe in Dublin, etc.), but I have to admit that luck was on our side when driving back to our B&B one night as we found a Papa John's -- one of my favorite American pizza places. After that, we searched out a second Papa John's restaurant to enjoy one more pizza before returning to England.
While in Dublin, we took a tour of the Guinness Brewery and Storehouse. The tour itself was very informative; however with the purchase of a ticket for the tour, each adult visitor receives a pint of Guinness while the children get a free soda at the end of their visit. I figured that since we were in Ireland I should at least give Ireland's favorite beer a shot...but after tasting it, I definitely would have preferred to have received a free soda instead of the beer.
The kids got very excited everytime we saw a rainbow as they were sure we would be finding a leprechaun with a pot of gold since we were in Ireland...but unforunately on this trip, the luck of the Irish wasn't with the Manwaring lads and lassies.Since we had a horrific ferry ride to Ireland, I think we were all dreading the return trip on April 5. With that being said, the kids and I all took Dramamine an hour before we got on the ferry. To our surprise, the sun was shining and the water wasn't as choppy -- although I wouldn't really know as the medicine knocked me out and I slept for the almost 3 1/2 hour trip back to Wales. The kids, on the other hand, were awake for the entire trip as the medicine seemed to have the opposite effect on them. Gotta love that medicine...
Once we arrived in Wales, we thought about doing a bit more sightseeing in that area...but all decided just to go straight home since we were exhausted. It was a long drive amongst tons of very curvy roads (thanks GPS "Jane") so it took about 4 1/2 hours to get home. Once we returned home, it didn't even seem like we were gone for an entire week; however we thought about all we had done over the past week and can't wait for our next trip. ;o)
(Getting ready to drive onto the ferry to Ireland -- they didn't know what was in store for them!!!)
(Driving onto the ferry...)
After we arrived in Dublin, we drove to The Maltings Guesthouse in Birr County (a wonderful bed & breakfast that was built in 1810 and used to store Guinness Malt for many years) which is in the center of Ireland. While it should have only taken us about 2 hours to get there from Dublin, our wonderful GPS system "Jane" decided it would be nice to take us through extreme country one-lane roads in a very harsh rainstorm -- so unfortunately it took us about 2 1/2 to 3 hours to get there instead of the standard two.
(The Maltings Guesthouse -- our B&B for the week)
We decided on staying in the middle of Ireland so each day we could drive to a different section of the country. On most days, we only drove about 2-3 hours to get to our first destination. We visited a ton of great sights on the trip -- Giants Causeway, Blarney Castle (and the Blarney Stone), Cliffs of Moher (closest location to the U.S. without being in the U.S.), Dunluce Castle (kitchen literally broke away from the castle and fell off the cliff in a terrible storm), Kylemore Abbey, Ha'Penny Bridge, Guinness Brewery and Storehouse, Dublin Castle, Hill of Tara, Powerscourt Waterfall, Waterford Crystal Factory, Cahir Castle, the Rock of Cashel, Bunratty Castle and Durty Nelly's Pub, Birr Castle, Trim Castle, Glenmacnass Waterfall, etc., etc., etc. As you can see from the list, we saw a TON of sights while in Ireland; however I won't bore you with details from each (only a few) -- but I will post pics for you to view. ;o)
(Giants Causeway)
(Giants Causeway)
(Birr Castle -- right next to our B&B)
(Cliffs of Moher -- the kids were waving to all of our family in the U.S. from this location hoping they could see them.)
(Powerscourt Waterfall)
(Dunluce Castle looking down where the kitchen fell from the cliff)
(Blarney Castle -- and after seeing the Blarney Stone at the top of the castle, there was NO way in the world we would be kissing it!)
(Waiting at the Guinness Brewery for their "free soda")
(Hill of Tara)
The weather for the first few days of the trip made it seem like we were still in England (overcast, breezy, and rainy). The only horrific weather day was the day we drove to Northern Ireland (about a 4 1/2 hour drive from our B & B). We stopped at a store to purchase new windshield wiper blades (they call them "windscreen blades" here) and I stood outside attempting to hold an umbrella ("brolley" here) in a freezing wintery mix of rain, sleet, snow, etc. with this poor person that was changing the blades for me. Giants Causeway was the first sight we went to in that area and the kids had to hold onto our legs to ensure they didn't blow into the ocean. Thank goodness the weather perked up for the most part for the rest of the week and it was fairly nice for the rest of our trip.
We ate some great food while we were on vacation (Durty Nelly's Pub, Hard Rock Cafe in Dublin, etc.), but I have to admit that luck was on our side when driving back to our B&B one night as we found a Papa John's -- one of my favorite American pizza places. After that, we searched out a second Papa John's restaurant to enjoy one more pizza before returning to England.
While in Dublin, we took a tour of the Guinness Brewery and Storehouse. The tour itself was very informative; however with the purchase of a ticket for the tour, each adult visitor receives a pint of Guinness while the children get a free soda at the end of their visit. I figured that since we were in Ireland I should at least give Ireland's favorite beer a shot...but after tasting it, I definitely would have preferred to have received a free soda instead of the beer.
The kids got very excited everytime we saw a rainbow as they were sure we would be finding a leprechaun with a pot of gold since we were in Ireland...but unforunately on this trip, the luck of the Irish wasn't with the Manwaring lads and lassies.Since we had a horrific ferry ride to Ireland, I think we were all dreading the return trip on April 5. With that being said, the kids and I all took Dramamine an hour before we got on the ferry. To our surprise, the sun was shining and the water wasn't as choppy -- although I wouldn't really know as the medicine knocked me out and I slept for the almost 3 1/2 hour trip back to Wales. The kids, on the other hand, were awake for the entire trip as the medicine seemed to have the opposite effect on them. Gotta love that medicine...
Once we arrived in Wales, we thought about doing a bit more sightseeing in that area...but all decided just to go straight home since we were exhausted. It was a long drive amongst tons of very curvy roads (thanks GPS "Jane") so it took about 4 1/2 hours to get home. Once we returned home, it didn't even seem like we were gone for an entire week; however we thought about all we had done over the past week and can't wait for our next trip. ;o)
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