Edinburgh, Scotland

Last weekend we took a trip up to Scotland, stopping first in York to break up the drive. We found that York was a nice little town, with a ton of history, dating back to Roman times. We headed into Yorkminster and both Tom and I agreed that we have seen one too many churches in the past two years. But, not wanting to miss anything, we decided to head into the crypt this time. We saw the first layer - Roman built in the 6th century. That was torn down and a Norman church built on that, and then Yorkminster, which took 250 years to build!! A trip through the park for the boys to run about and then lunch. It was a great morning.

On to Edinburgh! 3 hour drive and we were in this lovely city. Although the arrival wasn't so pleasant since we discovered a chocolate candy that we didn't bring with us. Aiden literally sat on that little secret ever since the stop at the gas station 2 hours earlier! We are hoping he learned his lesson!

Edinburgh is a great town and easy to get around in. We headed up to Edinburgh Castle first. A medieval castle built on an extinct volcano, with tons of treasures within to explore. Our favorite was the crown jewels of Scotland - which were hidden from the English for over a hundred years! At lunch we were highly entertained by some Japanese tourists who were in awe of the boys. As usual, they took pictures. As usual, Aiden ignored them, but Jeb ate it up.

On to walk the Royal Mile, a street filled with old Georgian buildings and loads of souvenir shops. At the bottom end, we hit the Queen's current Palace of Scotland and Scottish Parliament. We took the bus over to Princes Street Gardens and climbed 250 spiral stairs to gorgeous views of the city. It was the highlight of the day for the boys! My highlight was getting a bit of peace and quiet when Tom took them back to the apartment and I shopped and took it all in.

The following day we headed to the other extinct volcano in Edinburgh - King Arthur's seat. At the bottom we debated on which path to take. We took the one with more people, only to find out that we climbed up and back down the wrong mountain and now we were at the bottom of the right one. The kids were doing great, so we hiked up to find some stunning views as well as a gentle slope on the other side leading to a parking lot. Our hour hike could have been 15 minutes with a stoller! Oh well, it's the experience that matters.

A quick and expensive stop at a very boring aquarium followed by the beach, which the kids had wanted in the first place. Why don't we listen to them?! Rocks, shells, sand, and water - all a boy needs to be happy.

An 8 hour drive back. I won't lie. It was hard. The van was trashed. Take a look. Good times.

Halloween

Halloween - not sure I can even say that we celebrated this year. Third year in a row of not trick or treating thanks to being gone. The boys had a week off, so when that happens, we hit the road!

We did, however, do a bit of celebrating. Jacob is now in Beavers - the first stage of cub scouts and they had to dress up. So, we went out and got a Batman costume. Here is the funny thing about Halloween here - it's not about just dressing up. It's about dressing up as something scary. So, when J announced that he was going to be Batman, the usual response was: "That's not very Halloweeny." Good thing my boy is sure of himself because he stuck to it. I now know why churches here are so against Halloween - I think that I like the way we celebrate in the US!

We did carve our pumpkins. With a kit this year! Wow, makes a difference! We had two pumpkins and I got another small one with the kit - good thing because we didn't think Jeb would get into it. He did. It would have been a nightmare had he not gotten to help carve one for himself. I did Aiden's and am quite proud of my skeleton (his choice to choose the hardest one!) and Jacob designed his himself. Not bad boys, not bad.

Did I hear that right?!

This one I just need to write out so I don't forget...not that I ever will. My mouth is still hanging open.

Last Saturday, Jacob and I walked to town to grab a few items at the grocery store. We were walking back and I asked Jacob to switch sides with me on the sidewalk. My words exactly: "Jacob, you need to walk close to the hedge so that if something happens, the car will hit me and not you." (Sounds pretty morbid now that I'm writing it!) His response: "Oh no! If a car hits you we won't have any milk!" Ummm...ok. So much for mom.

Raspberries vs. LegoLand

Last weekend we decided to take a trip to the local farm, since they had advertised a pumpkin grotto. We were a bit leery considering they don't do much for pumpkins in England, but it was a beautiful day, so off we went. When we got to the farm we realized we could pick raspberries and apples - the kids were so excited! We then went to the "grotto" and they picked out their pumpkins. We drove home with such happy boys. Jacob and Aiden kept thanking us for such a great time. So, I asked them if they liked it better than going to Disney or Legoland. The answer - "About the same." Hmmm, a £20 trip to the farm vs. Disney...obviously we've been spending our money in the wrong place!!!

So, this Friday we decided to test the theory and we went to Legoland. We had an inset day at school, so we figured no one would be there. It was packed - we went on 5 rides the whole day plus I ran into at least 5 people I knew! Tom and I were a bit miserable, but the boys loved it. Of course a trip to Legoland always ends in the shop. It's more Tom's desire than the boys, but you don't often get to Legoland I guess. Funny, not as much thankfulness on the way home as the pumpkin grotto!

But, Tom and I did get our reward the next morning at 6:20 am. Both boys at our bed with Jacob announcing that Aiden had a lego stuck up his nose. You'd think he would have learned from the last time he shoved a lego up there, but I guess there was the curiousity of seeing if this one would go up further. 6:23 -Tom is up with his huge Maglite and the sharpest tweezers in the house, not to mention he is on a really short fuse. It scared me a bit, so I can only imagine the horror that Aiden was feeling. Tom would say to blow out and Aiden would suck in. 6:28 - lego still stuck. Tom, so frustrated, has walked out of the room. I'm imagining the laughter of the staff at the ER when I bring Aiden in and tell them what happened. I can't do it. 6:29 I hold one nostril and tell him to blow it out. 6:30 - Lego out after a few good blows. I don't think we'll be visiting Legoland anytime soon.

Jacob at the Lego Driving School

Jeb picking apples (he ate quite a few too!)

Girlfriends, Already?

The last person that I expect to be talking about a girlfriend is Aiden, but two weeks ago, the truth came out. I was at coffee with a friend whose little girl is in Aiden's class and she said that Ruby told her Aiden was her boyfriend. Shocked, I hurried home and told Aiden that I heard that he had a girlfriend. He turned red and wouldn't look at me. Then, I heard a quiet whisper..."Ruby." Wow. The boy who can't remember anyone's name has a girlfriend.

Fast forward to Friday of last week. Aiden gets in the car. "Can we pleeeaaase have Ruby over?" So, plans were made and it all happened today. Pick up was easy. Ruby followed us with her mum home. On the way, Tracy and I both learned of the kiss that happened at school. I'm hoping this was as innocent as I am imagining it! But the real news was in watching them. Ruby took Aiden's hand and pulled him where ever she wanted him to go! My stubborn, independent boy was being led like a dog! Hmmm... Cute today, but I'm not so sure that it will be cute in 10 years.

I'll be thinking this one over for awhile. I'm just not ready for the girl thing. Maybe girls will soon return to being stinking. I can only hope!

A Day Away Without the Kiddos!

"Two ships passing in the night." Seems that has been the story for Tom and I lately. We both needed a day to catch up and relax. And if you are a parent, you know that this cannot be done with children tagging along. So, today we got our babysitter to come early and we headed out to London for the day.

Yes, I was feeling guilty as we headed into the Tower of London. "Jacob would love to see the Crown Jewels, " I thought to myself. Really? Does a 6 year old yearn to see some stones on a crown? Nope, it's simply a mother's guilt. The guilt faded fast as we walked the cobblestone roads and through the jewels, the bloody tower, prison, etc. We would have never been able to stay as long as we did with kids. Tom got to read everything there was to read so he was happy (oh, was I bored! Seriously - he reads everything!!). And we even had time to go to Covent Garden for a wander around and a leisurely pub lunch.

It was a great day out. Now we need to work out the next one...we will be able to sustain a monthly date day? I hope so!

First Day of School for Jeb!

Last week was the first day of "school" for Jeb. He is attending Squirrels Nursery School one morning a week. I, of course, have been a bit nervous sending him, while all my other Beaconsfield friends think I'm a bit crazy only sending him one morning a week. He's my baby!

So, the big day arrived and he was so excited to wear his Thomas the Tank Engine backpack. He slipped it on and fell over. Guess there were one too many diapers in there! We walked into Squirrels and he saw his key worker, whom had come over for a home visit the week before. She took him over to the train table and I was forgotten. I got in the very empty car and felt a bit weepy, but then I remembered it's only 3 hours. Thus begins my three hours of freedom per week! We're all lovin' it!