And we've got snow people!! SNOW!!!

Anyone have a car snow brush for your car I can borrow cause I certainly didn't bring one to the UK. Instead, two days ago I was forced to improvise. And can you guess what I used? Yes, that's right folks...a spatula. I stood outside my house and scraped the snow off of my car with a spatula normally reserved for inside jobs like flipping burgers. My neighbors think I've gone and lost my mind. But then again, they probably just shrugged and said "stooooopid American."

Regardless of what an arse I was about to make of myself, Avery, Sloane and I were so excited when we woke up and saw the beautiful snow on the ground. It was awesome, sparkly and gave us a nice little winter wonderland. Wet and sticky, the perfect snow for snowballs and snowmen had fallen on London. Actually, it was the perfect snow to be removed with a spatula come to think of it. Lucky me. Unlucky however were the folks traveling on the tubes that ran above ground, those waiting for a bus or anyone else reliant upon a form of public transportation. Delays were upwards of 50 minutes and many busses just stopped running their routes. Happy was I with my years of upstate New York and Colorado snow driving experience...I laughed in everyone's general direction when I saw all the hazard lights on and the speeds well below 20 MPH. I giggled when thinking about how many Brits probably enabled the 4 wheel drive on their Range Rover after eyeing the roads. For once, since we've been here, I felt mildly superior to those around me merely because I didn't bat an eyelash when checking out the one measley inch of snow.

The girls and I had big plans after school to make our own snowman but alas it was not to be. In a few hours after the snow fell it was gone, only to be replaced by hideously large mud puddles and a random patch of ice here and there. I should probably bring the spatula back to the kitchen but for now I think I'll keep it in the car, just in case the weathermen are right again and we get another inch.

One easy lesson learned the hard way...

And that is...don't bother traveling to places of history and elegance with a child under the age of 3.

We decided at the spur of the moment last week that we wanted to go to Paris. Take the plunge, get out of backwards country and head to the romantic city of Paris. The kids in tow should have given us ample warning that the city of romance would be more like the city of misery...but we're truly optimists at heart, I swear. And, looking back...it wasn't THAT bad.

We hopped on the Eurostar at o-dark-thirty Saturday morning...arrived on time, didn't forget any major must-have items and overall were excited for our adventure. The trip was quick and the girls were dreamy. Once we arrived in the Gare du Nord train station things went a little askew. For some reason we thought that Paris was going to be as self-explanatory as London and c'mon...I'd been there before. (14 years ago mind you but who was counting?) We finally figure out where we're going and with my spotty french, we were able to get a taxi to our hotel. Well, that's not quite true. I got him to take us to the train station NEAR our hotel...he let us off and because I had no clue how to say "Excuse me sir, I must have spoke incorrectly...we need to get to the HOTEL...not the METRO", all I could muster was "Merci beaucoup [thanks alot]" with a big smile on my face. He drove away and Matt just shook his head. After rummaging through my "Teach yourself French" book I managed to find out where our hotel truly was.

The hotel was awesome! Checking in was interesting but we figured out quickly that if we just said "Parlez-vous Anglais [do you speak English]?" they almost always said "Yes" and we were free to ramble on with our questions. I know...we're wusses. Ah well. It was off to Chez McDonalds for us...truly we were venturing out of our comfort zone!

So there are a few things we've learned about Paris and well, travelling with children in general. Don't ever think for one second that you will get to really do the things you want to do. Don't buy into the fact that you'll eat at all the local places. And finally forget about learning about the place you're visiting. For us this time, it was more about how could we NOT get kicked out of certain places and how will we time the day so we don't have a major Sloane meltdown in the midst of lots of foreign company. By the end of the trip we still didn't have it all figured out. But we did see quite a few amazing things and we're pretty damn proud of ourselves for sucking it up and pushing through...meltdown or not.

We were able to visit Notre Dame which was incredible. Avery was amazed at all the windows and faces in the facade...she was also curious as to why one gentleman had his head in his hands...literally.


Avery even wrote in the Book of Life what she wanted to ask of God and here is what she wrote.


And here's the only shot of the entire family that actually came out.

After Notre Dame we were heading to the Louvre but decided to take a Bateau Mouche ride down the Seine River. It was nice and warm on the boat and we were able to learn quite a bit about the city while chasing the girls around the boat. After the ride we started off to the Louvre but were sidetracked by an incredible downpour that came from nowhere! We were DRENCHED and could not for the life of us find a cab. You can't just hail a cab in Paris...you have to go to a Taxi stand and wait for one but unfortunately the ones we were finding had taxis waiting with no drivers. Lovely. So...we got a crepe and got out of the rain for a bit. It was about that time to go back to the room...we were drenched, cold and downright miserable at this point. So we headed back to the hotel for a nap and then we were heading back out to the Louvre. Needless to say, we got nowhere and fast. We managed to get to a Pizza Roma restuarant after our quick and painful naps. Thankfully it was close to the hotel and we were able to use a little French while ordering so we didn't get the nasty looks like our English neighbors at the next table. Sloane was having none of sitting down to dinner therefore she and Matt spent most of the evening outside. Family bonding at it's best.

Sunday morning promised to be a better and sunnier day so we headed out and immediately found ourselves waiting in a long line for Le Tour Eiffel. But boy was it cold and windy! Avery couldn't believe that she was actually standing next to it and boy was it H-U-G-E!!





Check out the Arc de Triumph....of which we didn't get to see up close but that's okay...we liked this view anyhow.



Finally after checking out the city from far above, we managed to get ourselves over the Louvre and there wasn't nearly the lines that we were told there would be. It was fabulous!! We quickly headed up to see the Mona Lisa and then off to see Nike and then we managed to get to the Venus de Milo. Avery wondered if we got to all the rooms and all we could do was giggle simply because we managed NOT to see 99% of the museum. C'est la vie!




But when we get down to it, all we really wanted was the pictures of Avery and Sloane in front of these unforgettable landmarks. So they could, one day, say I was there! I saw that! Even if they don't really remember it. In the end it wasn't about learning or teaching history to us or our girls...it was about experiencing it. Experiencing and making our own history. Experiencing it in the midst of beautiful surroundings and among things that most people never get close to in their lifetime.

And for that...despite the language barrier, the horrible luck in finding a taxi, the pouring down rain, the McDonalds food and the Sloaney-Baloney meltdowns...we are thankful.

One back asswards country

With all due respect to those that have been born and bred in the UK...I think your country is awesome and I've enjoyed the opportunity to become part of it for awhile. Thank you for welcoming my family and I with open arms...err...well, how 'bout a sideways glance and an abrupt and not-so-subtle "Harumph." Of course I'm making an incredibly broad statement and there have been a very pleasant few: for instance, our neighbor in #7 who so graciously made me aware that it's 5pm and our trash isn't allowed outside until 7 pm. And...there were a couple of neighbors that swung by one evening to tell me that they "didn't see anything" the night the thief broke into our car and robbed us of our latest technological toys. So, I guess it's not all bad. *sigh*

As you may have guessed, the transition has not been as easy as we had originally anticipated. We knew that when we arrived we'd immediately have to learn how to look the opposite way before crossing a street. We also expected that driving on the "wrong" side of the road would be indeed a challenge. What we didn't realize before coming over here were the following...and this is just a mere sampling:

1- We pay an exorbinant amount for rent per month...the agents list the rent per week instead of per month. We've reached the conclusion that they do this for one simple reason. It makes it sound like you aren't financing a third world country. What's so backwards about this? Our house, instead Huxtable-esq looks more like we live in the projects of lower Manhattan. And no, I'm not kidding.

2-Not only do they drive backwards but they walk on the wrong side of the sidewalks. Please excuse me, I meant to say pavements. Whatever you do...don't even think about moseying your way to the right-hand side. You.Will.Get.Run.Over.

3-It takes forever for you to convince someone to take your money. Here's an example: "Well, Mr. Car Salesman, here's a really large lump of cash (when converted to dollars that is), now I want THAT car." "That blue one with four doors?" "Yes, that one." "Right. Fine. Let us begin the paperwork." ...15 minutes goes by... "Sir, I'm sorry but you have no credit in the UK, we can't take your cash, so you can't have that car." "You mean...you won't take this money because I don't have credit yet?" "Yes, come back when you have a proper UK account." Lovely.

4- There are video cameras everwhere! At times it feels as though we're living on a huge set of Big Brother. I read in the paper that a Londoner gets caught on camera 300 times a day on average. YET...when your car gets broken into or you get robbed on the street, no one seems to see anything and the police don't even bother. (no, we haven't been robbed on the street yet but our day is coming...I can feel it).

5- I dial 999...a woman answers "Hello this is EMERGENCY services...what's your EMERGENCY?" "There is a man having a fist fight with his wife/girlfriend on their balcony while she's holding her screaming baby. Hurry, he's escaping down the gutter!" "Can you hold." "Uh...do I have to?" "Yes, you do have to hold, there's a queue." Click. 20 minutes later they return my call. "Hello this is the police...what was your emergency again?" "Ah....nevermind."

6- Customer service. What customer service??

7- Traffic lights. Yellow comes BEFORE green...AND...after green. Here are the rules: you jump the yellow if it's before the green but you stop at the yellow if it's after the green. Confusing? Try driving a manual, sitting on the right, driving on the left while checking your blind spots which are now...backwards.

8- You have to pay to use a shopping cart. I mean, trolley. You get your pound back but still. Do they honestly believe you're going to walk off with it? You can't possibly because you had to go through pay-gates to get into the parking lot in the first place.

9- Actually, I take back #8. Thieves will take absolutely ANYTHING here. If you have to leave your buggy/push chair/pram (i.e. stroller) outside, I highly suggest you remove one wheel and chain it to a tree.

9- TiVo...don't even get me started on TiVo! It's sooo backwards that it's depressing.

10- Being friendly is at times considered being obnoxious. Being cold is being friendly.

11- Who decided that it was okay to start television shows 10 past the hour...better yet, 17 minutes past the hour?? And speaking of TV...why are you bleeping out 'crap' and yet allowing people to drop 'F-bombs' like it's 1942? And who put ER, Third Watch and Cold Case on at 9 in the morning? Helloooo??

12- Personal space people. Please quit breathing in my ear...whilst (see I'm learning their verbiage) I might smell very nice, I don't really appreciate your coffee breath. Please back up or for the love of pete, get in front of me if it makes the queue faster for you. You're from the UK...you invented the queue! At least do it properly please.

13- Why can't I put all my outgoing mail in little box outside my front door. Can't Mr. or Ms. Royal Mail Officer pick it up as he/she drops off my incoming mail? PLEASE?? I'm tired of walking to the post office in the rain.

14- "Private" schools are free and public schools cost money. And based on the car that the headmistress at our school drives...teaching pays quite a bit more out here.

And last but not least (for now that is)...

15-Umbrellas. Umbrellas are backwards because if you put them up to protect yourself from the nasty rain, chances are the wind will turn it inside out and backwards for you.

So....anyone up for a visit?

The first of many firsts...

My heavens...

I, never in a million years, thought that I would have the time, the effort or the desire to start one of these things. However, seeing as how we are thousands of miles away and 6 hours off in time difference now, I thought it was about time to start. Here's how I see it...if I keep up this journal, not only will our friends and family be able to stay "connected", I won't have to send out 10 different emails to 50 different people saying the same thing. And...we'll have a great journal of our UK adventure. Time will only tell if I can keep this up but as mom always said...you never know until you try.

I hope you join us on our journey in the UK...I'll do my best to keep up with this do-hicky if you all promise to check it out now and again. Hopefully I'll be able to give you a glimpse into our life out here and perhaps from time to time you'll get even more than you bargained for (apologies in advance!). So...join us on our adventure! Off we go...


And no fellow zoomies, not "into the wild blue yonder"...it's too damn cloudy out here!