I stripped the bed and cleaned the bathrooms upstairs, in my feeble, back wrenching way. We finished packing and Stuart vacuumed the house. We relaxed downstairs with our last bits of coffee and me with my pumpkin spice creamer, until next year.
G&P came over around 10:30 am and brought the kids. We sat around for a while and Grammie and Pop played with the kids. We decided that instead of going to Chipotle for our last meal, we would go and get it and bring it to our house. Grammie and I went to get it while the men stayed home and played with the kids.
Once we had eaten and all the baby doll playing was finished, we left for the airport around 1 pm. Once we arrived we checked in and went to the gate. We had some time so we got bagels for the kids and Starbucks for the adults. At about 3 pm, we said our farewells to Grammie and Pop and headed to security. As we were leaving, of course I was crying and Jack said, 'Why are you crying? You're going to see each other in two weeks!' Although that was true, it was hard to explain to him why I was crying. He's just all about the next adventure.
Our plane to Minneapolis was relatively uneventful. Stuart sat with Jack and Millie sat with me. We were on a plane with two seats and then three seats. We thought it was best for each of us to sit with one kid. That way no one fights, we hope. We didn't want the kids to sleep on that flight so that they would sleep all the way to London.
We only had a little over an hour to catch our plane to London after arriving in Minneapolis. It was a super tight but we made it with a bit of time to spare. The flight was fairly empty so we ended up moving to the middle seats. Between two of us we had three seats. One flight attendant told us we should move because when people noticed the seats were open they would rush to them. I was very appreciative of her information and moved immediately. Then a second flight attendant warned me that there were still people boarding the flight and that I might want to wait another 10 minutes or so before moving. So of course I had no choice but to throw flight attendant #1 under the bus by telling flight attendant #2 that #1 had told me to grab the seats quickly. It was my only choice.
Neither Stuart, nor myself slept very much at all on either flight. The kids slept for most of the 7 hour flight, which was good but not too long that they would have trouble sleeping that night a Grandma's, or so I thought. They were able stretch out because of our seat move, which was really nice.
Once we landed in London if I didn't know any better I would have thought we were on a domestic flight. It was only a 25 minute process from the time we landed until the time our club class cab driver met us just outside of the duty free shops. By far that was the quickest I had ever exited an international flight. God was watching out for the kids. He knew the wheels were about to fall off the bus and that their mama's nerves might not take much, being sleep deprived and all.
Once we were in the car, the journey was about two hours long. Neither kid slept, but allegedly I did and I was accused of snoring, which I highly doubt happened.
Once we were at Grandma and Grandpa's the kids gave big hugs to all and started asking questions. When can we get the toys out? When can we go up in the woods? Stuart took them out to the back garden (yard) to play around a bit but neither would go out their on their own. Because the woods backs up the to garden, it is a bit scary to Jack. The tree covering makes it appear dark at the back of the garden. Although Grandma has assured them there are no creatures in the woods, Jack's still not convinced.
Around 5 pm both kids got baths. My back was aching so I took some prescription-like pain medication that Karen had given me. Unfortunately I also drank a couple of glasses of wine with the meds. There will be more of that story later.
Once the kids were clean we went downstairs to have dinner. We conned Millie into thinking the pulled pork was chicken, for the second time since leaving Al Ain, and she actually ate some. By 6:15 pm, Millie was fast asleep in my arms. I thought for sure both kids would sleep through the night mainly because they hadn't had that much sleep on the plane and 6:30 or 7:00 is their normal bedtime. Clearly I underestimated their internal clocks.
Stuart and I forced ourselves to stay up until almost 10 pm. We showered and then hit the sack. The first tiny person, Millie, woke up screaming (mainly because she didn't know where she was) at 11:45 pm. I went in to sleep with her. She would not go back to sleep. She wanted to talk, eat, drink water, go downstairs, or anything else she could think of that would keep her from sleeping. I insisted she lay down and then I dozed in and out of sleep in her twin bed with her for about an hour and a half. Then she decided she wanted to go and sleep with Daddy. So, because Stuart and I were sharing a double bed, I told her she could go but I would have to stay in her bed. She agreed to that so I took her to our room, dropped her off and went back to her bed covered in Peppa Pig sheets.
She lasted with Stuart about 30 minutes, then I heard her crying. I went in there and he was trying to console her. I picked her up and started to rock her, which got her quiet but still she wouldn't sleep. By this time it was somewhere around 2 am. Fun! We finally went back to her bed and the last time I remember seeing her bug eyes was just before 3 am. Whew! Finally! And she slept until almost 9 am.
Once Millie was asleep I went back to my bed, only to be awaken around half past three by the larger of the children, Jack. He said, 'Can I have the iPad?' When I told him 'no', he almost cried. I explained that it was still the middle of the night and that he needed to go back to sleep. He then said, 'Can I get into bed with you and Daddy?' Did he actually look at the bed and think this was possible? I told him he could get into the bed, but I would have to go to his bed to sleep. He said that was fine, so we switched beds. His twin bed is in the same room as Millie's.
He did finally go back to sleep, although he insisted he wouldn't be able to do so. I got up just after 7 am and felt terrible. I had a headache and I was nauseous.
Now for the story of the winning combination of medication I have never taken coupled with a couple of glasses of wine. Naturally, since I really didn't drink that much I didn't associate my illness with alcohol. But clearly it was a factor.
We got up and got ready and headed to get our rental car. We dropped Stuart and Jack at the rental car place and proceeded to do some shopping in Bexhill. As Karen was driving on the road, I got that 'feeling', which I absolutely hate. I said, 'Karen, I need you to pull over. I am going to be sick right now.' She instantly pulled over on the road, not worrying about who was behind her. I got out, gave Mother Nature a bath of coffee, pulled pork and other lovely brown things, and got back in the car. Thank goodness Jack wasn't with me. He has sympathy barfing pains and probably would have had to joined me on the side of the road.
Oh my goodness! I instantly felt better but then had a pounding headache. I was still rough most of the day, and sadly was not good company for Karen's birthday lunch. But her Mario Andretti driving and the way she pulled over in a flash, really did save her car a lot of damage. Stuart would have said, 'Let me find a safe place up here in the next mile' and therefore would have had vomit everywhere, maybe on him out of spite. Ha!
Once we were home from the shops I went upstairs for a little while to nap. It helped a bit but when we went to the pub for lunch all I ate was a bowl of chips (French fries). I couldn't stomach anything else and there was some lovely food to have. Too bad for me. Stuart's Grandma had come with us as well. I was horrible company and felt really bad about that.
On the drive home I started to feel a bit better. The chips obviously did the trick to a certain extent. We stopped to get a phone top up card and my efforts were spent trying to keep the kids from sleeping in order to avoid a similar night as the previous one. I did manage to keep them awake and once they were at the house they played around a bit. When Grandpa had finished his work for the day they went out into the woods. We bought them some wellies because the rain had made things muddy and I wasn't willing to let their tennis shoes get muddy and gross since they were brand new. It was easier to buy them wellies and then leave them at Grandma's for other kids who might visit.
The woods was all they expected and more. Stuart didn't have to carry Millie one time. While they explored the woods, I took a nap in the living room and Karen and Audrey (Stuart's grandma) had coffee and a chat in the same room. I was clearly wonderful company. I felt so badly about it all but hated to leave the room to go upstairs. At least I was a part of the family, even though I was asleep. Ugh!
After the woods the kids took a bath, ate a dinosaur peanut butter and jam sandwich with some grapes, and we're off to bed. Millie woke up around 10:30 pm and then again at 11:45 pm, but then made it through the rest of the night in dreamland, and Jack slept through the night. Thank goodness for small favors. We needed them both to have a good night's rest in order to be refreshed for our London adventure.
Once we were all awake on Wednesday morning, we headed to the train station. We had planned to meet some of our Al Ain friends in London and the kids were very excited. We met Henry, May and their mum, Clare (the Richardsons), as well as Cathy and her girls, Kayleigh and Claire.
Here the kids are outside the Battle train station.
Train up was a fast train so there were very few stops. Once we arrived at Charing Cross Station we had to take the underground to Tower Hill. We then walked to the Tower of London and waited for our friends to arrive.
The reunion was oh so sweet. It was really great to see everyone. Jack was beside himself with Henry at his side and of course, after a bit, Millie wouldn't let Kayleigh or Claire put her down. It relieves Stuart and I of a lot of carrying for the day.
Once the tickets were purchased we headed into the Tower. Of course the kids were into all the stories of heads being chopped off and torture taking place. We went into some of the towers where famous prisoners were held. Sir Walter Rayleigh was one of those men. I told everyone the old joke 'Do you have Sir Walter Rayleigh in a can? Well, you had better let him out.' No one laughed because no one knew he grew and sold tobacco. Joke was lost on them.
We saw where Anne Bolin lost her head and where the Ravens are housed. The legend says that if the Ravens ever leave the Tower of London that the London government will crumble. No chance in that happening because the Ravens are kept in a cage and their wings are clipped.
The kids love the White Tower where all the armor was housed. King Henry VIII's full armor was also on display. The kids got a kick out of the ever so obvious cod piece that protected the king's 'parts'.
The kids had a great time. Kayleigh and Claire entertained them and carried Millie around most of the day. Since we decided that this was the trip we no longer needed the stroller, it was nice to have some extra bodies to carry her around.
After we saw the Crown Jewels we decided a meal was needed. We hit a local favorite, Witherspoons. After nourishment we headed to Leicester Square to have a look around. There was a street performer there who was amazing. In fact, between Leicester Square and Covent Garden, the next place we went, we had an amazing amount of entertainment.
This was the Leicester Square performer.
This was the creepy Alice in Wonderland guy who invited Jack for a tea party once he put a pound coin in the bucket.
This magician folded up a 20 pound note that Stuart gave him and ended up finding it in a lemon. It was crazy!
Once we left Covent Garden we walked for a bit to find something for the kids to eat. It was around 7 pm and the day had really flown by. We ended up finding a TGIFridays and everyone was rather sedated because of the exhaustion of the day.
We rushed to pay the bill and get the 8:45 pm train back to Battle station, otherwise we would have had to wait until 9:45 pm and by that time I'm pretty sure the kids would have been a little cranky. We hoped in a cab outside of the restaurant and told him we needed to go to Charing Cross station to which he replied, 'You know it's just around the corner, right?' We told him we knew, but the kids wouldn't deal with the walk and we had 10 minutes to catch the train. Plus, they got to ride in a London taxi, which was fun for them. He literally rolled around the corner and let us out. It was kind of funny!
Our train journey home was uneventful, and Millie didn't close her mouth all the way home. Once we hit the car to drive back to Grandma and Grandpa's house and her seat belt was clipped, she fell right to sleep.
We didn't wake up until almost 10 am on Thursday morning. We were wiped from our previous day. However, it didn't stop us from venturing out to Battle Abbey where the Battle of 1066 took place, where the Normans defeated the British. We walked the whole battle ground and listened to an audio of the events. Jack listened quite intently, whereas Millie listened a little less enthusiastically.
This was standing outside the Battle Abbey. You really can't go to England without having your picture taken in front of a read telephone booth.
We walked the trail of the battle.
This was the Abbey erected in honor of those who lost their lives in the battle.
This was inside the living quarters of the Benedictine Monks who lived here.
After the tour of the battle ground and the abbey, we stopped and had something to drink at the pub across the road from the abbey.
Once we returned home, Stuart and I went for a Sansbury run. This is my UK equivalent to Target. The kids stayed at home with Grandma and Grandpa. As you can see below, Grandpa managed to entertain them.
Once it got too chilly to be outside we took the kids in and I bathed them. Once they were clean we ate dinner and then they were off to bed. We followed shortly because we seemed to all be wrecked from the previous day.
We were all up and about by 8 am on Friday morning. We hung some laundry out to dry, spoke with Uncle Matt and cousin Josh from Australia, and watched Paddington for the hundredth time. I hung out some washing while the kids played in the garden. Around 1 pm we made our way to the Queen's Head pub for a bit of lunch in the garden and the kids had a run around. This was the same pub we ate in earlier in the week but I only managed to have chips. This time I had a proper meal of crab cakes. Delicious!
After the kids returned from their venture in the woods, I bathed them while Grandma got their fish pie in the oven. I'm a little bit amazed at what Grandmas and Grammies can get kids to eat. They ate on the patio, although it was a bit chilly for our little desert rats. As soon as Jack was finished eating, his second portion and ice cream on a stick, he jumped out of his chair and said, 'Are we going to read books now?' The boy knows when he needs his sleep. So up to read books we went and in no time they were both asleep.
We had a late dinner and then all retired. I stayed up checking Facebook and trying to get the last episode of the Bachelorette on YouTube, but I couldn't find the complete episode. I saw enough to know who she is engaged to...for now. It's trash. I know. It's shameful. I know.
While I was laying in bed, the one I am now sharing with Millie because Stuart and I finally came to our senses and realized her little body was better in a double bed with me than Stuart's 'little' body, I couldn't help but stare at Millie in total amazement. Saturday we had a birthday party for her with some of the extended family. That was her second of 4 parties that she is going to have. I suppose by thinking she was going to be neglected because of her summer birthday and us traveling every year, we may have over compensated a touch. As I looked at this tiny, yet sassy, little angel next to me I couldn't help but reflect on August 9, 2011 (3 days after she was born). The day we had been waiting for had arrived and we were being called to come and visit our daughter in the hospital. It was a total shock. We were called that morning and asked to come to the hospital at 2 pm. I marvel at how much love I instantly had for this little girl, even though while we sat there I told Stuart if she needed a chin implant we would make it happen. Her chin looked as if it didn't exist. It must have been the way she was laying. I totally laugh about that now, but I actually did say that. I'm happy to report that the implant wasn't necessary after all.
I never thought I would ever be a mother. After the age of 35 and still being single, I just kind of put it out of my mind. But then It was as if God said, 'Kidding!' He gave me a wonderful husband, a gorgeous son and a beautiful daughter.
I now am blessed to travel all over the world and provide experiences for my children that I could have never dreamed possible. Millie will b 4 years old in a few days. I know this blog has usually been about reflecting on our activities but sometimes I need to reflect on our love for each other. One day my children will read this crazy account of our lives and I want to make sure they know that everything we did was to make sure their lives were wonderful. God is the reason we have what we have,and His grace has been abundant to my family, for which I am thankful. May I never take for granted the little foot that digs into my lower back while I sleep, or the big boy who pounces on my lap when I have to pee. I know these days and times are fleeting and I never want to miss a moment because I'm too busy. Sorry for the sidebar, but I'm just putting my heart on this post, which doesn't seem to happen much, at least in my mind.
I did finally go to sleep on Friday night, around 1 am, so early birthday party day came too quickly. Everyone was expected to arrive around noon time. Millie was bright eyed and bushy tailed at 7 am. Yahoo!
We rolled out of bed and started to prepare for the day. The kids watched movies and played while the adults prepared food, set out dishes, wrapped presents, and tidied up.
All too soon the guests arrived. Granny came first, followed by Barnes (Stuart's step brother) and Anna, his wife, and their three children, Bella age 5, Sophia age 4 and Eliza 5 weeks old. Millie and Sophia instantly because two peas in a pod. Of course Jack was enamored with Bella's flowing blonde hair. They played all afternoon and had so much fun.
The kids performed a song for Grandma as a late birthday present. It didn't have words, only Jack played the bongos and the girls danced. So I'm not exactly sure that it qualifies as a song, but it was adorable.
Millie loved Eliza and must have held her for 10 minutes.
We had delicious food, baked Alaska pie, birthday cake, sang to Millie, who nearly caught her hair on fire because she kept blowing the candles above the flame, therefore not putting out the flame, and of course presents from Granny, Grandma and Grandpa, and Auntie Cheryl (Grandma's sister and Stuart's aunt). Stuart's cousins, Bradley, Richard, and Amy were there as well as his Uncle Ken.
It was a wonderful party and Grandma made sure it was lovely for Millie. By the time everyone left and the kids bathed, it was nearly 7:15 pm. They came downstairs and had a bite to eat and then Jack asked me if he could go to bed. The play so hard.
We stayed up for a couple of hours and then retired ourselves. Another great week in the lives of the Telfords.
No comments:
Post a Comment