What a Day!

Here's what happened: To get the full effect of this story, read it as fast as you can with your heart beating very quickly!
I was a little late picking up Emily after her after-school club yesterday. I was late with another mom and her son was in the office waiting. My thought was, 'The school must have put her on the bus when I didn't show up!' Instead of asking the school to call the bus driver to let him know I wouldn't be there, I went into panic mode. I ran back to my car hoping I could make it to the bus stop at the same time as the bus. We live 15-20 minutes away from the school, traveling mostly on the motorway (freeway). As I hit the long queue to get on the motorway I remembered I had forgotten my cell phone when packing for the day. So there I sat, not moving, feeling very bad, realizing there's no way I'm going to be there in time to pick up Emily. Hannah starts in with her series of questions (Why are you not going? Where's Emily? Why are you not talking? Why are you going so fast?) and Rachel is too quiet. I try to stay calm and look like I know what I'm doing, but Hannah and Ray think I have lost their sister forever. Lizzie's starting to fuss because it's time to feed her. I'm out of bottles, though, because I used them all during the day-long field trip to the farm with Ray's class. As I'm driving, I fill up one bottle with water hoping to pacify her as long as I can.
The late bus drops the kids off at the entrance of a different neighborhood, a few blocks from us. At the beginning of the school year Em and I set up a back-up plan that if I wasn't at the bus stop she was to go home with some kids we know from church, and thankfully we had reviewed that plan a few weeks ago, so I just hoped that the kids were on the bus and that Emily spoke up to one of them. It took me 35 minutes to get to the bus stop. She wasn't there. I'm embarrassed to say I didn't know the address of the family I told Emily to use for our back-up plan, so I drove home to get it and see if there were any messages from anyone who knew what happened. There were 5 messages from Jon, so I called him, but he was only calling for passport info. I called the family and YES! Emily had come home with them and the 16-year old daughter was walking Emily home. I drove over to meet them and I was so relieved. I could tell Em was shaken up a bit, but I am so proud of her! When I wasn't at school to pick her up she figured she was supposed to get on the bus. When she didn't see me at the bus stop she asked the oldest girl in the family we know to walk her home. She was very brave and forgave me easily saying, "We all make mistakes, Mom." Thanks, Em!
I will now be accepting my Lame Mom of the Year Award!

Brussels the Movie

Our last European trip (for awhile) had all the makings of a great movie: cool scenery, likable characters, good plot. Our 'movie' would fit into several different genres:

• adventure (2 adults, 4 young kids traveling in a place where we don't speak the language);
• action (lots of walking and running after kids and carrying a double stroller up and down many, many stairs);
• drama (we have 4 girls!);
• comedy (Manneken Pis);
• horror (trying to find a path out of the city center to get our young kids away from a huge, loud, rated R gay pride parade that circled us on every side)

There are a several movie titles we could use for our 'movie':

• "Rachelle, Rachelle" (what the passport control man called Rachel--very cute)
• "Is that Our Hotel?" (asked about every building we passed on our way to our hotel)
• "Cinderella's Ugly Step-Sister" (what we told the girls a drag queen was)
• "Trapped!!" (what we felt like as we tried to find a place to get away from the parade)
• "Girls and Chocolate" (It's all we--the girls--wanted!)
• "Rain, Rain Go Away" (Saturday's weather, which unfortunately stopped during the long parade)
• "Where's Hannah??" (asked a few times)
• "Where's Emily??" (asked a few more times)
• "Where's Rachel??" (asked several times)
• "I Want to Go Home!" (I think everyone said this!)

But the best title is from Jon--said on the train ride home:

• "We Should Have Gone to Paris"

The Grand Palace (the market place) was nice to hang around: Belgian waffles, a wedding, more Belgian waffles, lace shops and innocent pigeons to chase.

Rachel's 1st Tooth!

The first tooth is sooo exciting!

I said good night to girls and went downstairs. A few minutes later I hear, "My tooth came out!" She sounded half-excited, half-panicked. When I got upstairs her face looked like her voice sounded. Em was a fantastic doting sister. It was a great moment.

Things That Make Me Chuckle #4

UK road signs make me chuckle.

How does a person know the speed limit in the UK? Just look to the sign for the answer:

It's called 'The National'--and it really is a speed limit sign for the nation. It's very clear as to what the speed limit is, isn't it??? The answer is 50, 60 or 70. To know which one just look at the painted lines on the road, how many street lamps there are and how far apart they are, how many lanes there are going each way and if there is a divider in the middle and what kind.

That's why this sign makes it to the top of the list.

We call this one the 'No Picnic Tables Available'.

The next sign is a public footpath sign that shows a great walking path. There are many beautiful areas to explore, but sometimes the path the sign points to is just not worth a sign:
This one goes right through the middle of a farmer's field. I just hope it's not time to harvest.

One for tired and homeless horses wandering around:

It reads: Home of Rest for Horses

Here's a drawing to explain roundabouts:

And here's a sign showing how they really work sometimes:

Weekend Walks

With the weather so beautiful now, all we want to do is be outside. We played at the park yesterday, then fed the swans.











We had to capture a picture of what some of the old buildings are like. The girls are in front of a row of flats (townhomes).


Fields of gold











Old churches are just everywhere. They're so peaceful and beautiful.




An old cemetery







I love driving through roads like this one! They're narrow, windy and a bit like a thrill ride--you never know when another car is going to appear around the bend and then it becomes a game of how to let each other pass. Jon used his windshield wipers today (instead of flashing the lights) to let one car pass. It's still hilarious!



Old part of town










Cute kid we picked up on the way.







Hannah had fun blowing dandelion seeds







It's days like these that make me fall in love with England all over again. I sometimes feel like I can't get enough of the views, the old buildings and just walking around thinking, 'I'm in England!'

Things That Make Me Chuckle #3

Before

Rachel makes it to my chuckle list tonight. Around 9:00 I was finishing up the 'Mommy Tag' post and in walks Rachel with a brush stuck in her long hair--wrapped around a very non-forgiving round brush all the way to her scalp. I was afraid the brush was going to win this battle, but thanks to a lot of conditioner and 30 minutes of patience she was back in bed with most of her hair still intact. I think I like it better when she just sneaks in some late night reading. After

I'm It

MOMMY TAG
1. On a good night, what time do my kids go to bed? I start around 7 and by 10:00 they are all usually asleep (See above post for explanation)
2. Fav. chore? This question doesn't make sense! If it's a chore it means I don't like it!
3. What are my fav. things that I do with my kids? Being outside doing anything, reading to them and playing games
4. What are the 5 things that make me smile while being a mom?
-Their smiles and laughter
-Their friendships with each other
-Hearing them talk on the phone to anyone
-Hearing what other people say about them
-Watching them succeed
5. Where do I want to take them someday? I'm excited to take them to Utah this summer
6. Fav. quality that my mom has? Her strength and knowing just what to say when I need a pick me up
7. Why I like being a mom...I like what someone said to me after watching me with my kids: "It must be so wonderful to spend your energies on making their life good."

7 Week Countdown!

Things to do in our final 7 weeks:
1. Count how many times Hannah asks: "Did Daddy buy our tickets to America?" and "Is Granma coming?" (My Mom is coming out to stay with the girls while Jon and I do a house hunting trip.)
2. Take a trip to Brussels. (This fun trip came about because of an issue with our visas!)
3. Check off the rest of our list of 'Things to See and Do While in England'--only 173 to go!
4. Try not to think of all the things I'm looking forward to in America: spacious lanes, wide parking spots, understanding what people say to me, American vacations, quick check outs at stores, seeing my things that have been in storage for a year, stocking my fridge with food that lasts more than 3 days, and SHOPPING!)
5. Enjoy the things that I'll miss about England: London, the Tube, the beautiful English countryside, the girls' school, the Model Village, walking around my little town, having an accent, European holidays, going round the roundabouts, Wagamama, looking at things that are just really old!)

Tour of London

Jon, Lizzie and I did a walking/boat tour of London on Saturday. Here's a little quiz to see how well you know London!1. Who was the cutest member of our tour group who entertained everyone with her cute sounds and great smiles?








Tower of London and Tower Bridge
2. Why did the moat around the Tower of London get filled in?











Houses of Parliament
3. How many years was Oliver Cromwell's head displayed on a pole outside Westminster Abbey? (His body was taken somewhere else.) (Cromwell is credited with the current set up of Parliament--House of Lords and House of Commons.)




Big Ben
4. What is Big Ben?

Westminster Abbey

5. Who of the following is not buried in the Abbey?

a. Charles Dickens

b. Lewis Carroll (Alice in Wonderland)

c. William Shakespeare

d. Charles Darwin

e. Laurence Olivier

St. James's Park

6. How in the world did pelicans end up in London?

Trafalgar Square
7. How many lions guard Admiral Horatio Nelson's column?

ANSWERS:
1. Sweet Lizzie
2. It got too stinky (It was their sewer system.)
3. 24
4. A bell
5. Shakespeare
6. A gift from Russia (Norway gave a polar bear.)
7. 4