Lots More to Come

More pictures. The first is from a candy store, Thornton's, in the Trafford Center. They have this luscious chocolate fountain going (you can also buy them for about $100) and you can buy a stick of marshmallows to dip in it. As you can see, there's lots of dipping going on.

The second picture is Trafalgar Square in London - most prominent in the picture is the fountain.

#3 is Daelyn with a character from Lazy Town. In Warrington, there was a big Christmas celebration in Town Centre the beginning of December (or was it the end of November - I can't remember). Two of the characters from Lazy Town were featured, as well as a Billy Idol look-alike performing and lots of other fun stuff. The Lazy Town folks came around for pictures after the show. We almost missed it because Don had to run back to the hotel for the camera.

The fourth picture is of Clifford Tower in York. This was a huge tower that was built next to the palace and, at various times during its history, served as a palace, due to its heavy fortification and heighth. From the top, you can see almost all of York.

The last picture is our dear friend, Anne, and her daughter, Christine. We miss them terribly.

The Test Kitchen

During my career in Human Resources, I worked at a manufacturing facility where we made over-the-counter pharmaceuticals. When R&D came up with a new drug, we would test the production in a test kitchen. This meant making small batches of the product on the actual equipment that would be used for full-scale production to write the SOP's and determine if the drug could really be made with our existing equipment. If it was successful, and we received FDA approval, we would go into production, which always required some minor tweeking, but which, generally, yielded the same results as in the test kitchen. Although the minor tweeking could be frustrating to the employees, supervisors and managers working on the new line, it was rarely an unsolvable problem and frequently was something very minor, such us turning up the temp 2 degrees or cooking for longer.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if raising children was this easy? We have no test kitchen, no SOP. We go right into full-scale production from the moment of conception. The other day, I remembered a time I got pregnant and worried myself sick because I had taken some aspirin and a sleep-aide very early on before I knew I was pregnant. In the meanderings of my mind, I thought, "What are we, as women, supposed to do? Do nothing from ovulation until our periods start that may possibly harm a baby, month after month, just in case we're pregnant?" The answer came quickly, "Of course not. Life still has to be lived. " It cannot stop for "just in case" every single month for years on end. However, parenting begins in the womb. Caring for that progeny can be a daunting task - no hot tub baths, no medicines (unless approved by the doctor), strange cravings, the persistent nausea and the feeling that something has overtaken your body. With every pregnancy, I found myself driving so much more carefully and always making sure my seatbelt was snug against that little life inside me. Your mind even begins to work differently, and the baby hasn't even been born yet.

This morning, I was dealing with a child who is going through a rather selfish season. I asked for the box of cereal so I could pour a bowl for a breakfast late-comer, who was sitting patiently waiting, but the sibling continued reading the back of the cereal box and ignored my request. I asked a second time, and was snarled at because they "were reading the back of the box!"

After a stern lecture and slumped shoulders by the offender, I tried to return the kitchen to the pre-incident lightness, with cheerful banter and laughter. A few minutes later, the offender appeared in front of me, wrapped their arms around me, and laid their head against me, snuggling me. No "Please forgive me, Mama", but the change of heart was obvious.

We never know from one moment to the next if we're doing the right thing by our children. Unfortunately, we're human and frail, as well, and dealing with our own emotions and shortcomings while we try to raise these little people to be who God wants them to be. Perhaps that's His mercy for them. If we were perfect, how could they ever live up? Knowing parents are fallible gives them examples of how to gracefully (at least, we hope) pick themselves up after mistakes. It gives them something to aspire to. Aspiring to perfection is a little too much for most people, especially children, but aspiring to this person who sometimes loses their temper and cries with frustration occasionally may be do-able.

The thing I struggle with is the not knowing. I do my best, of course, but sometimes I wish for that test kitchen. It would be great to know that my children, as adults, will only have tweeking to do on their lives, instead of major overhauling because I failed somehow as a parent.

I often find myself standing on God's promise in this area - "Raise up a child in the way that they should go and when they are old, they will not turn from it." It doesn't say they will never turn from it - only that as they age, they'll see the wisdom of their parents and that formation we worked so hard to build will become their foundation.

So I keep chugging along at the foundation, trying to do more things right than wrong. Trying to be that example of graceful repentence, holding fast to God's promise. From my fingers to God's e-mail.

A Great Loss

Last night, I jumped on the computer to check out the weather predictions for West Virginia over the next week so I'd know how to pack. From our home page, Don has the weather report to Warrington, UK, as well.

After I looked up the temps at my in-law's, I scrolled down to Warrington and looked at a 7-day forecast. It's going to be getting down to 34. Don walked into the den and I looked at him with weepy eyes.

"I miss England so much, honey. It's going to be 34 there - cool weather. I miss my friends and the smells and the rain, and everything about it."

"I know," he responded. "I've been watching the weather there myself."

It's just this - everything there for us was good. I'm sure, if we lived there, we'd have some bad times and may even find we didn't like England if we lived there long-term. But we didn't live there long-term and our 3 months filled us with nothing but good things. Our family grew closer, we fell in love with the people and the land, and we made deep friendships. We had a mountaintop experience for 3 months, and it's hard to give that up.

As I sit here now, remembering, I'm choked up. I miss the church bells. I miss Kim, Anne, and Monika. For dinner tonight, Dane did the cooking as one of his requirements for Cub Scouts. We planned tortellini with creamed marinara sauce and a vegetable. He chose brussel sprouts. As we ate, we remembered England - Miss Jane at Salinger's Restaurant at the Village Hotel in Warrington (where we first ate tortellini with a cream marinara sauce, and loved it so much it's a regular addition to our menu), the hardware store in Culcheth by the Butcher's where there were baskets out front filled with stalks full of brussel sprouts ( we'd never seen sprouts on the stalk before; apparently, that's how they grow and we never tired of seeing them), and Lee at the grocery store who was the one who always got stuck helping us Americans find what we needed - we got to know him very well. Deanna misses Lucy and Meg and the cool weather and the cul-de-sac, and the bus drivers who were so kind to us, and the daily walks. Dane misses George, Lewis, and Lucy and the grocery store, Sainsbury's. He loved walking to the grocery store and home again and misses the time with his family. Daelyn's memory is already starting to fade. We tried hard to help him remember Jane and the other things we missed, but they're already fuzzy to him.

Monika, if you read this, tell Jane how much we miss her. And you and Chris, how about coming to visit. Kim and Kevin are planning a trip next March. I don't know how I can wait that long. We've only been home a little over a month and I ache for my friends and the land we came to love.

As we go into Holy Week, I'm trying to remember to lift this all up to the Lord - to thank Him for the tremendous gift He gave us and to recognize that the emptiness I feel sometimes is a poignant reminder of His sacrifice for us.

I keep expecting life to get back to normal, but it doesn't seem to happen. We long for England, long for all the things we remember the most. When we talk about it, it gets very quiet around the dinner table, each of us lost in our own deep thoughts.

A somber, grey Post today - just how I'm feeling right now.

The REALLY important things

Daelyn's 5th birthday is Sunday. However, we never thought about that when we planned the trip to visit Don's parents while the kids are out of school for Easter break.

We had intended to spend a week with them at Christmas, but the trip to England made that impossible. So we promised to bring their grandchildren in the Spring. We didn't realize until plans were well underway that Daelyn would be in West Virginia for his birthday and away from his daddy.

Don can't leave because this is a popular week for vacations at work, so he planned on working this week and giving the others guys the chance to be off. Plus, it's the last handbell practice before Easter, and he can't miss it. He gave Dane and I permission to miss if we practice REAL hard this week and take our music home with us. I gladly agreed. We're not playing anything very difficult.

Last night, I began to get a little overwhelmed. Dane's teacher sent a sign-up sheet home for their Easter party the day following Easter, when the kids return to school. I just couldn't deal with it. Overload. In addition to lots of things to do for the wedding of our dear friend, Ken, which is the middle of April, I also have Easter to prepare for before we leave and Daelyn's birthday. He's having a Chuck E. Cheese party with his friends on Friday morning, then the family party with Daddy Friday evening, and we leave Friday night. Somewhere inbetween, I have to fill and tape 18 eggs for Dane's party, buy several shower gifts for Ken's fiance, get Easter outfits and shoes for the whole family, pull together everything for the Easter baskets I do for all my family and a cousin who'll be spending Easter with us, buy gifts for the children from me and Don (we try to make Easter equally as important as Christmas and always give presents to stress the theological importance of this Holy day), get a gift for Don, do the laundry, the packing, and leave food for Don to eat while we're gone and a grocery list for what I'll need when we return.

Can you see why I'm on overload? Yesterday, I ran all day, from the time I left to take the children to school until 5:20, as we pulled in the driveway after school. I told the children that they had 15 minutes before we needed to leave again to pick up our pizza to take to our Support Group pizza dinner. Deanna said, "Mom, I've got a lot of homework."

"Why are you just now telling me this?" I asked her. But she got it all done and the evening got all done. Don and I fell into bed and I began to talk - a stress-reliever for me at bedtime. I told him about how I had let my brother-in-law down because I was supposed to take him to pick up my niece's car, but had to leave to get the kids from school before he arrived. When we came home to get him, he had already left. I told him about the busyness and how much more I had left to do. I told him that I longed for England and not having a car. I told him that I love our life but it sure is tiring. He fell asleep. I guess his life is tiring, too.

Now, I'm taking the time to post - another stress-reliever - before I jump into making dinner. I finished Dane's eggs for school and put them in his backpack. The children are hosing down my parent's car to wash off some of the pollen and playing in the water, being sure to squirt each other liberally. (It's okay. They all put on their bathing suits first.) Their laughter outside reminds me of what's really important in life.

Take time to smell the beautiful spring flowers, or hose down the pollen. Even if it's just a 5-minute Post in a very busy week, it's the little things that build the quality of our lives. Five minutes of fun and laughter can make a difficult day seem bearable and can make a fun day an absolute blast.

And pray for mercy - that only our Lord can give - in great big drops like rain falling from Heaven. Mercy for your busy people, Lord. Mercy.

The Family that's Sick Together

At least we can hold each other's head as we take turns throwing up.

It hit Daelyn first, during the night Thursday. Saturday morning, Dane started complaining and carrying a throw-up bucket around with him. Saturday evening, Deanna and Don started throwing up (on my birthday, while I was out celebrating at Olive Garden), and it hit me during the night Saturday.

Dane climbed in bed next to me yesterday. "I'm sorry your birthday was so terrible, Mama."

"It wasn't terrible, son. I got breakfast in bed, we got to go to the parade. It was a fun birthday."

Your criteria changes as you get older. We were all sick together - family time!!

Dog Scare

Over the last week, Donovan's increased his drinking considerably. Two to three times a day he licks his water bowl dry. I mentioned it to Don, a little concerned. He commented that drinking water was a good thing.

I began to notice throughout the week other changes in Donovan. Along with the increased thirst was frequent urination, which often resulted in accidents in the house (pretty unusual for him). He seemed disinterested in us and it was like pulling teeth to get lovin' out of him, even for Dane, the dog-magnet. He seemed listless, was starving all the time (beggin for food - another first for him), and would whimper for no apparent reason. Then, Friday night, he climbed up on the loveseat next to me in the den, his evening place, and started whimpering, then panting. He was just lying there, panting. I got really concerned.

Don looked up excessive thirst on the Internet and told me it was pretty bleak. I decided to make an emergency trip to the Vet on Saturday morning, just 8 days after his annual check-up. Apparently, the most common reasons for excessive thirst are diabetes, liver and renal failure. It was my birthday, and we had planned to go to the St. Patrick's Day parade as a family. We were going to take along camp chairs, a picnic lunch, and a cooler, and planned on arriving early and staking out our spot along the parade route. Then we'd feed the children so they could imbibe in the tons of candy thrown out by the riders on the parade floats. We were going to meet some family members at Olive Garden at 5:00 for dinner, then come home for ice cream cake (which my sweet husband made for me) and open presents.

I called the Vet Saturday morning and they told me all the appointment slots were filled, but I could be a walk-in, however, the walk-in wait time was 1 hr. I dressed, made our picnic lunch and the kids helped load up the van, then I headed with the pup and the boys for the Vet.

I was so worried. All week long, I had noticed every little thing Donovan did that was out of the ordinary. One night, when he didn't come to bed with me, I got really concerned and went through the house, looking for him. He's my baby. Truth be told, he's my constant companion, and I dearly love him. He's not one of my children, he doesn't rank quite up there, but there is a sense of responsibility that you have for a loyal animal that you've had since they were a puppy. I was really afraid there was something seriously wrong.

Turns out, ALL the symptoms, every single one, is a possible side-effect of the prednisone shot the Vet gave him the week before for his allergies and excessive itching. He gave me a print-out and there they were - all of them - listed on this sheet. I laughed when I realized it wasn't anything serious and my puppy was fine.

The Vet said he hadn't mentioned them because Donovan had never experienced any side-effects before. And they only last for 2 weeks, so we're half-way through the problems.

I'm so thankful to the Lord. The thought of getting into a serious illness at this young age was almost more than I could deal with. Turns out, our pup is healthy and has even begun to act more like himself since yesterday.

I complained to Don when we got home. "Not only did it screw up our whole day, but I had to pay $30 to find out there's nothing wrong with Donovan."

"Honey," he responded, "it's a small price to pay for your piece of mind."

Ain't that the truth.

Teaching a Young Dog New Tricks

I'm trying to teach Donovan to run beside my bike while I ride. In the catalog from the store I use for his chews, they have a spring that you can mount on your bike to hold a dog's leash, so it doesn't jerk your bike this way or that when the dog stops to sniff, tinkle, or any of the other million reasons dogs seem to need to stop while walking.

Before purchasing the spring, I thought I'd try Donovan out to see if it was even a remote possibility. Yesterday, after dropping the kids off at school, we got on the highway and headed to my sister's house (she lives out in the country) to pick up my niece and take her to work. Her car wouldn't start yesterday morning and my sister was in quite a predicament, needing to get to school for a test she was having. She called her husband at work, but he was on a 4-way conference call and couldn't talk with her. So, when she called me, I told her to head on our for school and I'd pick up my niece and take her to work.

After that, Daelyn and I stopped at the store for a few groceries. On the way home, I suggested the bikeride idea to him. He was thrilled - the thought of riding together, just him and Mom, was too good to believe. We unloaded the groceries, I donned my helmet and wrestled my bike out of the shed, we put Donovan on his leash, and started out.

It took him a little while to understand what we were doing. At first, he ran from side to side, nearly getting hit by my front tire. I finally convinced him that he needed to stay on my right. He got drug a few times when he stopped to smell the ground, the neighbor's mailbox, and to visit with the dogs on the corner. But he quickly learned that he had to keep up. He ran next to me at a fast trot.

Everything seemed to be going quite well, once he understood the ground rules. Until - - - we turned a corner. The problem was that I needed him on my right side. Holding his leash, braking with my hand, holding the handlebars, and pushing the lock button on his leash when he got too far ahead was just too much for my left hand to do all at once. I could handle all of that on the right, but not the left. We turned to the right, and Donovan, afraid I was going to run into him, accelerated to get in front of the bike and switched sides. I had to stop to get him back over to the right side again.

The next time we turned, I was better prepared. I made it slow and gradual, and Donovan followed suit. It was a short ride, only about 4 blocks, but he had to run the entire time and I was just testing the waters. He did well enough, I'll definately try again. And if next time is easier, we may be purchasing a leash spring for my bike.

All the reading I've done on border terriers says they're extremely smart dogs. I guess we'll see just how smart the next few bike rides.

Friends, flowers and Castles

The first picture is my children and the head of their snowman. The next is our friends, Monika and Chris, with the children at their house. There's one of our family on our last Sunday at New Parish Church, Culcheth and another of the beautiful irises that grow in the church garden. Then we have our neighbor, Sam, the morning we left - very stylish p.j.'s. The last three are Conwy Castle in North Wales.

War Wounds

Most of my children have always been good nappers. Dane will still take naps if I lay down with him. Often, of weekends, we get him down for a nap.

Daelyn still takes naps, but I've been trying to break him, because he starts school in September, and naps will become a thing of the past. So, about every other day or so, I skip his naptime. Most days, he gets very grumpy, but at least he settles down to bed with his siblings at 7:00.

Sunday, we were shopping for my bike, and he didn't get a nap. On Monday, despite our busyness, I got him down. He was falling asleep in the van. Yesterday, we met my sisters for lunch to celebrate one of their birthdays. By the time we got home, we needed to pick up the other two from school - no afternoon nap for him.

I got the children's dinner on the table last night, then began to do some cleaning. I wasn't going to eat since I had such a late lunch, so I started on some much-needed projects in the living room. All of a sudden, I heard Daelyn shriek. I ran to the table and found him lying on the floor.

He had fallen off the bench and hit his eye on the corner of it. He cut his cheekbone and had a black and blue mark, swelling as I watched it. It took some time to calm him down. Showing him the boo-boo in the bathroom mirror seemed to help stop the crying.

Today, he's got a nice shiner - the war wounds of a 4-yr. old. But I may need to reassess the nap situation. When he's so tired he can't even sit at the table without falling off his seat, a good hard look at his rest patterns is in order.

Biker Family

I got my birthday present on Sunday, really a belated Christmas present. My birthday is this coming Saturday, St. Patrick's Day. Last year, I asked for a bike as a gift. Don was planning on getting it for me for Christmas, but England nipped that in the bud. So, Friday, we're sitting at the table talking and Don says,

"Well, I wanted to surprise you for your birthday, but I don't think there's any chance of that happening, since I can't find what I want to get you and you're going to have to pick it out."

"Yay!" I yelled. "I'm finally getting my bike?"

"That all depends on if we can find one for you that you like," he responded. "I looked at Wal-Mart, and you ought to go look the selection over and see if you like any of them."

"Wal-mart? Why Wal-Mart? I picked out one I liked at Target. Can't we go there and look?"

"I don't do Target. Too many people I know have been hit in the Target Shopping Center and I don't want another car accident."

I looked at Wal-Mart. No luck. So I talked Don into stopping at Target on the way home from Church on Sunday. We parked way out in the middle of the parking lot, away from all the other cars. That made Don a little less uncomfortable.

No success. I found two that would have worked, but Don insisted that I look at "the 'other' Wal-Mart", the not-so-good, not-so-large one on the other side of town. So we went there from Target. I found a 21-speed that had been marked down. Although it's steel and not aluminum, I don't think that will matter any to me. I don't ride that often or that well. I just need something of my own to ride when Don takes the kids for his weekend bikerides.

We added an extra water bottle and a nicer water bottle cage (from Dane), a helmet (from Deanna), gel-padded gloves and a wider, gel-filled seat (from Daelyn) and checked out. When we got home, I changed clothes and took the kids, along with half the neighborhood, around the block a few times. We had fun and I got the feel for my bike.

While in Wal-Mart, I looked at bike racks. Last summer, on the way to Don's parent's house in West Virginia, we were discussing how to more efficiently load the van. We had a rooftop rack and could purchase or borrow a rooftop carrier, but our bike rack fit overtop our rooftop rack, precluding us from using both. I commented to Don that someone had to have invented a way to do both. We watched the cars on the other side of the Interstate and, sure enough, someone HAD invented a way to do both. You put the bikes on a rear-end bike rack and then put your rooftop carrier on the top of the van. Very efficient, and lots of storage.

Than we totaled our van and bought a new one - one with a significantly smaller trunk. We've had MANY discussions about how to fit the bikes and all our "stuff" into such a small trunk for our trips. I told Don we had no choice but to go with the rear bike rack and the rooftop carrier.

The salesman helping us with the bike told me that you can buy different size racks for the rear of car that hold one, two, or three bikes. If we bought one that holds three bikes, we can put Don's, mine, and Deanna's on the back rack, put Dane's and Daelyn's in the trunk, and all our luggage in the rooftop carrier. Sounds do-able to me! Don refused to even look at the rear racks, which frustrated me no end.

Last night, a huge box arrived after dinner by UPS. Don stepped outside and announced that the box was for me. "For me?" I thought. I couldn't imagine who it was from. I walked around the dining room table and glanced at the address label. All I saw was the brand name "Thule". Within seconds, I realized that my sweet husband had bought me not only a bike and all the luxury accessories, but a large rear bike rack for my birthday.

What a guy!! No wonder I married him. He thinks of everything.

A Tiny Spot in the Birthday

When I picked Dane up from school today, he told me that he's been invited to the birthday party of a friend, and it's Saturday.

"Did you get an invitation?" I asked.

"Yes," he answered, "but I forgot it and left it in my desk at school."

"You'll need to remember to bring it home tomorrow. We'll need to know what time the party is."

"We don't need the invitation, Mom," he assured me. "I read it. The party's from 2:50 to 3:00."

Wow!! Has that Mom ever learned to streamline.

The Whittler

Took Donovan to the Vet this morning for his annual check-up and because he's scratching like mad again. Our friends that kept him while we were in England had to take him once while we were gone.

He loves going to the Vet. So many smells, so many animals, so much to do!!! He gets excited as soon as he sees the sign from the road.

This morning, as usual, he ran wildly around the Vet's office, taxing me as much as possible to keep a 19-lb. dog under control. They quickly put us in a room. When the doc walked in, Donovan got so excited, he ran over to me, cocked his leg, and whizzed on my pantleg. I was floored. He's never acted like that before. Dr. Walker laughed and said that happens quite often.

Upon returning home, I told Don (who took the day off) and Daelyn about my experience on my way to the bathroom to change pants and socks. Don laughed and Daelyn acted shocked (no more shocked than I was to feel wet on my pantsleg.)

Just a few minutes ago, I was doing a computer inventory of the children's savings bonds, just in case our house burns down or we have a break-in. The Treasury Department has a nice little savings bond calculator that prints up a great little reference for you. Daelyn was getting impatient with me, because we're supposed to go to the grocery store, but I wanted to finish this task before leaving. It's something I always make a mental note to do some day, but have never gotten around to. It was high time to get this job done.

To ward off my son's frustration just a little, I explained what I was doing. He gets a savings bond from his grandparents every year for Christmas, so he knows what they are. I told him I was making a record of them in case someone broke into our house and tried to steal them.

Daelyn looked at me very matter-of-fact. "Mama," he said, "if anyone tries to break into OUR house, Donovan will either pee on their leg or jump up and bite them."

Mercy like raindrops, not tinkle, Lord.

My Friend, Kim

I called my friend, Kim, this morning. She lives two doors down from the house we leased in Culcheth. She was at her mother's house with her Mother's Day present, having her mother try it on. I asked when Mother's Day is celebrated in England. It's my birthday weekend, March 18. I told Kim my birthday is on St. Patrick's Day, thus the name, and she told me that her birthday is in April.

The day I met Kim, I casually asked if anyone was living in the house next to us, inbetween us and Kim, the other half of our duplex or, as the English call it, a semi-detached home (which means two houses in one building or a duplex!!).

Kim responded, "No. She died. And the wife of the man who lives on the other side of me died. And the people who live behind me died."

A little startled, I commented that she was a scary person to live near. She laughingly told me that's what her husband, Kevin, says.

So today, we're talking about birthdays. Kim tells me hers is in April - "the day the Titanic sunk!"

She really is a little frightening to be around. It's a good thing she has such a winning personality and such a fabulous sense of humor!!

Love you, Kim. Hope you read this soon. I miss you terribly, my friend, and our conversation this morning made my whole week.

Daelyn Strikes Again

Daelyn, upon waking from his nap yesterday and running, wide-eyed (and bed-headed) through the house:

"Have those people come home from school yet?"

Chester Photos

These are some pictures from Chester which we visited the weekend following Thanksgiving. It's a lovely city (one of my favorites) and is surrounded by a wall built by the Romans. It was used as a fortress for hundreds of years, and you'll see the plaque on the wall where one of the kings watched his demise.

There was a European Market in downtown Chester, which we thoroughly enjoyed. The wreaths are fresh floral and fruit wreaths that were being sold in the Market. The winding staircase is the Town Hall of Chester sand I think everything else is self-explanatory.

Old "What's Her Name"

Deanna has a Science test at school today. True to form, she forgot about it until bedtime last night. She studied furiously for about 15 minutes while her brothers bathed and got ready for bed. Then I tucked her in, with promises that I'd wake her up early for studying.

This morning, I reminded her to hurry and dress so she'd have studytime. She sat at the breakfast table, trying to remember the difference between herring and mackerel. Her brothers were busy eating while Deanna's food sat getting cold. I finally glanced at the clock and began fussing at her.

"Sis, put your schoolwork away and eat your breakfast. It's already 7:35. You're going to be late for school."

As she reached for her food, Daelyn asked,

"Mama, does that mean we'll need to get a tardy slip for Dane and that other person?"

I glanced at Deanna. She frowned and looked back over the top of her glasses. "I guess I'm the "other person"?

"Sorry, Sissy," Daelyn responded. "I forgot your name."

Sissy is so hard to remember, after all.

The Mall to Die For

Above are pictures from the Trafford Center, a high-end mall in Machester, about 20 minutes from our house in Culcheth. Two are of the Christmas Decorations (people come from all over England just to see the decorations) and one is of the Picnic Area, complete with an on-deck pool and lifeboats. It was really amazing, and we spent lots of time just walking around looking at everything.

Door-warmer

I've tried to Post a few short things. I know it gets tiring reading books everytime someone finds their way to my Blog. There are some that I used to read religiously that I simply don't anymore, because they just took up too much time.

Donovan is thrilled to have his family home again. Don was struggling with jet lag earlier this week, so I attended a meeting without him. When I came home 1 1/2 hours later, the entire house was dark. I opened the door and was greeted by a very vivacious pooch who jumped straight in the air as high as my waist.

"Don," I asked, when I finally found him, "did Donovan sit in front of the door waiting for me to come home the whole time I was gone?"

"No," he replied in his quiet manner. "I took him out to tinkle. THEN he sat in front of the door and waited for you to come home."

I'm not going to be able to leave this puppy for a while. Separation anxiety can do nasty things to pets.

Liverpool

Below (or above, depending on how this Post saves) are some pictures from Liverpool. The children are enjoying Fish and Chips (notice the size of the fish in this picture!!) on the street in Liverpool that we bought at a Take-Away Chip Shop. A man leaned over just after I took this picture and asked me where we found the Chip Shop. He said it so fast, I had no idea what he said. I smiled and offerred him some of my fish. Finally, after a fair amount of effort, we realized he was saying "Chip Shop" and I told him where we had purchased our lunch. Chip Shop is now a part of our vocabulary.

The next one is the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace in London. Don't know how this got with the Liverpool photos, but - ah, well. Interestingly, while we were in England, there was a long article in the newspaper about an animal rights group that is trying to get the Queen's Guards to substitute fake bearskin for the real bearskin hats the guards wear. Their first three attempts didn't pass muster, apparently because the fake fur wasn't soft enough. But the animal rights group has prevailed by encouraging the guards to recycle their hats and extend the wear. They really are beautiful but, according to the article, extremely costly.

The last is of the children with Queen Victoria. She was the longest reigning queen in all of England's history. This memorial to her is on the site of the Liverpool Palace, which was demolished sometime ago. Queen Victoria seems to have been quite portly, but the likeness to her is quite remarkable. I'm Posting in the new Beta Blogger and I can't get Queen Victoria's picture to turn the right way. I'll have to work on it a bit more later. In the meantime, hope you can turn your heads sufficiently to see it.

Enjoy!! We sure did.

Pizza on Wheels

As Daelyn and I were getting in the van yesterday afternoon to pick up Dane and Deanna from school, a black sedan passed by us with a Domino's dome sign on the top.

"Look, Mom," Daelyn remarked, "there goes a Domino's Taxi."

I guess he got used to taxi signs while in England.