Sunday, November 24, 2013

It's Bath Time!

With Meredith visiting, we took a weekend trip to Bath, about an hour car ride away.  The town was bustling with visitors, and for great reason.  It's adorable! 
A visit to the Roman Baths
Great Britain's only natural hot springs
This 'Roman' agreed to make the kids finials for their roofs. 
Using crushed limestone as make-up powder
Visiting the Royal Crescent, Bath
Royal Crescent
Street performer kept us entertained
Connor forgot his hat, so Meredith loaned him her new one
Hope, shopping in the market in Bath
 

Appliances


Life is beginning to return to a new normal.  We're doing the 'normal' things now:  homework, school work, work-work, housework, cooking, cleaning, and drinking tea.  For now, it's less exploring and more time on everyday experiences.


You might enjoy a look at our appliances, which are a tad different that we are accustomed:
We chose not to have a TV, which is working quite well.  NetFlix does the job!


Yes, the dishwasher runs for 2.25 hours!  At least there is one!
The dishwasher, for which we are very grateful, runs for over two hours. 
Yes, this load takes 2.5 hours!
The washer takes between 2 1/2 hours and one hour per small load. 
The dryer.
The 'dryer' takes 12-48 hours. 
Manual version of 'weed wacker'.  Allen is trading in his lawn service for 'manual' labour- literally!
Allen's manual weed eater.  He did about .01% of the garden before he took a break/gave up.
Note that when using the hedge trimmer, one must be careful to avoid cutting the cord.  At least it's electric and works quite well...when the cord is intact!
On the positive side, the stove can bring a pot of water to boiling in just a few seconds and the oven works quite well. It's been quite an adventure and we are having fun learning how everything works.

Friday, November 22, 2013

Girl's pub hopping in Henley

 Welcome, Meredith!  We are so glad Aunt Meredith will be visiting for the next month. Girl's road trip to Henley!

Who knew dogs are allowed in pubs?  Eiffel loved it when the waiter invited her in (after she barked outside). Meredith loved her fish and chips and we are both huge fans of mulled wine. Yum!
First pub visit for Eiffel...and Meredith!

Thursday, October 31, 2013

The Good Witch and the Garden Gnome

Trick-or-treating on Halloween!  Much tamer than what we've recently been accustomed, but still loads of fun!

Sword fight!
"Will it ever be time to go trick-or-treating?," they ask at 3pm.
Garden Gnome, are you real?
The Garden Gnome in his real English garden.
The Good Witch casting spells.
All smiles.

Saturday, October 26, 2013

Christmas festivities...already?

So, here's what happens when there's no Thanksgiving to serve as the start of the Christmas season- it starts before Halloween!  Reading is already decorated and the temporary Christmas store is open.

We joined in the premature festivities today at Mapledurham House's Christmas Craft Fair.

We'll keep our decorations put away until after Thanksgiving- oh, wait- we don't have any.  We'll be making our own- Martha Stewart style.  Maybe an early start is ideal...


Mapledurham Estate, Reading UK.  26 October 2013 Mapledurham Estate, Reading UK.  26 October 2013 Mapledurham Estate, Reading UK.  26 October 2013 Connor threw leaves on us, just as Hope took this shot.  Mapledurham Estate, Reading UK.  26 October 2013 Autumn leaf play.Mapledurham Estate, Reading UK.  26 October 2013

Here's a slideshow of this month's album: