A Winter's Walk

The weather has been pretty good for this time of year. It's been a bit cold but if you wrap up in warm clothes, it's nice to get out for a walk in the fresh countryside air.

On Monday we did just that. While the girls were with Nan and Pop at Rug Rats, an indoor play area in Yeovil, Lisa and I took to the footpaths around the outskirts of Martock.

We met a friendly horse and were surprised to see llamas in a field.

We walked passed Madey Mill, an old water mill no longer in use.

In the back of one of the sheds was an old Mini in need of some TLC. A true barn find.

Family Time

Spending time with family is one of life's simple pleasures, made all the  more precious by distance.

Stace, the girls and I love seeing Sue and Gord, Dean, Jen and the children as much as we can when we come over.

Euan just turned five, and is enjoying school, tractors, and his cool new hat.

 He and Cora are getting along so much better this time around! They have been having a really nice time together.












A family freeze dance party is a good way to expel the wiggles - or ramp them up!

 On Saturday, we walked through the village to the big rec. This might be the best photo ever taken of these two!

And, this is definitely the best photo yet of the four cousins together.

Violet and Cora both love entertaining their youngest cousin.

Christmas 2014

Our Christmas morning dawned clear and crisp, beautiful, if not white.

Amazingly, we'd all slept fairly well, considering it was our first night since flying.

Sue and Gord made a yummy ham dinner, and afterwards we went to see the home they'll be moving into in a few months.

After checking out the home, we walked around the village, stopping at the nearby church. Old
English churches have such character and majesty to them.

 We then went into the village park, or rec, and played on the exercise machines.

On Boxing Day, we celebrated the holiday again, this time with the addition of Dean, Jenny, Euan and Olivia.

Nan and Pop cooked another feast, this time with turkey and Yorkshire pudding (Violet's favorite). Cora joined us at the big table, mainly because there wasn't another miniature chair for her.

I don't think she minded too much. Just look how grownup she looks!

Later on, we opened presents - oh what fun! The girls were pleased with everything, such nice books and crafting kits and Hello Kitty jammies.

 Later, after 16-month-old Olivia joined us from her nap, I helped her get started on her little pile. Isn't she adorable?

 Euan's big present of the day was a real train set, from Nan and Pop. All the children, young and old, loved helping set up and play with this gift.

 We pulled Christmas crackers, too.

In the evening, Father Christmas made a surprise visit, apparently on his way back to Lapland after delivering his gifts.

See Violet's face? That's happiness. She must believe with all her heart that the real St. Nick comes complete with a Somerset accent.

Cora, standing on the other side of the Santa story, did her best to encourage the belief of her sister and cousins.

A beautiful Christmas it was! May the joy, and BELIEF, of the season light up your heart, into the coming year and beyond.

Flight into London

And away we fly!

On Tuesday, we packed the suitcases and headed back to LAX, for our long flight across the Pond.

Although our anxiety always is high on our day of travel, things really couldn't have gone any more smoothly.

The girls were well-behaved at the airport and on the flight, and our night in the air passed quickly enough. Both girls slept three to four hours, and Stace and I were able to doze a couple of hours, too.

I still marvel at how easy it is now, compared to a few years ago. There are many things I miss about having babies around; but I'm happy to be past the days of taking them on long flights and going through the sleepless jet-lagged nights.

 When we arrived at Heathrow, we met up with Dean and Gord, who had shared the driving into the airport.

After loading the girls and cases into the car, Stace and I went back inside to catch the Tube into the City.

 We got off the Tube and emerged at Picadilly Circus, where one of our first stops was to get me a latte. On just a couple of hours' of dozing, there are priorities.

 We made our way to Buckingham Palace, but our friend the Queen wasn't in.

 No matter - the garden near her humble abode was well worth the walk. Lots of interesting waterfowl frequented the pond, plus some cute squirrels.

 Not far away was Horseguards' Parade, where the London Eye giant ferris wheel is visible in the background.

 Here, we admired Admiralty Arch...

... and a gorgeous skyline with the setting sun. We had great weather - cold, yes, but no rain and plenty of blue sky.

We walked through Trafalgar Square, where Lord Nelson stands proudly atop his namesake column.

 As the sky darkened, we entered the shopping district of Regents Street, pleasantly lit for Christmas. The street was packed with last-minute shoppers out on Christmas Eve.

 The store windows are beautifully, and seasonably, decorated, including this Hamley's Toy Shop display. Given our girls' love for Beanie Boos, we had to photograph this for them.

We also spent a few minutes watching these performers at a Christmas carnival in Leicester Square. They roused our Christmas spirit with the genuine bells of St. Nick's reindeer!

After all the walking, we were ready for our train to Somerset, which we caught from Waterloo Station. As always, our beds in Martock were incredibly inviting.

Ice Skating!

For the first time, our mall has installed an ice skating rink outdoors. The girls and I were excited about this, especially Cora, our skating queen.

As a last hurrah at home before heading to the UK for Christmas, we took the girls on Monday night.

It also served as a reward for Cora for her improved behavior. We've had a up-and-down few weeks with her lately, with too much attitude and not enough cooperation.

We made it clear that she needed to demonstrate improvement to go skating before Christmas, and she rose to the occasion.

We had an enjoyable couple of hours on Monday night, though it was very expensive, at nearly $40 for the three of us. Stace stayed on the sidelines, with the camera.

Cora is a proficient skater, and Violet is learning. I held her arm much of the time, because we didn't want to spend another $5 to rent a bar for her to hold. It was slow-going, with quite a bit of falling.

When a Men At Work hit came on the loudspeakers, I couldn't help but laugh at the irony: "Ain't nothing gonna break my stride, nobody's gonna slow me down, oh no, I've got to keep on moving."

Christmas Traditions

There are certain things you have to do each Christmas - decorate a tree, eat too much, and buy, wrap and open gifts.

This week we've taken part in some of our own family's favorite traditions...

We've walked around our neighborhood with hot chocolate and clipboards, for tallying how many houses on each street have Christmas lights on. We started this when Cora was in kindergarten, and this year Violet graduated to carrying her own clipboard.


In the evenings, we've been doing a new family tradition: hanging special ornaments that tell different aspects of the Christ who came at Christmas.

We've had this set of ornaments - called "Adornaments" - for years. But this was the first year we've used them, now that both girls are old enough to grasp more of the glory of God's greatest gift.

This year, the girls alternated choosing an ornament, and Violet would sound out and read the Biblical name of Jesus. Here, she's reading "The Door," since Jesus said He is the door into God's kingdom.

Then, Cora would read the Bible verse and explanation, while sitting in the reading "throne" and using the "scepter."

We also went to our church's Christmas service, which were held Christmas Eve, but also in the days leading up to the holiday (handy for families like us who travel).

Here, we're posing in front of the giant tree in the amphitheater.

And, carrying on the tradition passed down from my grandmother, we baked cookies. I made half this batch for our California Christmas, and the next day, found the girls busily sugaring the rest of the dough, on their own.

Dates

It doesn't get much cuter than kids and puppies.

On Friday afternoon, the girls visited Benny and Jake, while Stace and I had some time on our own. (Home Depot, here we come, as usual!)

While Grandma and Grandpa took the girls to Scooter's Jungle, Stace and I headed to Bricks, a newish Newhall eatery we hadn't tried before, where the burgers are bigger than your head.

And speaking of dates, Violet was very excited to have one with Daddy on Saturday night. Cora was out at Magic Mountain with friends, and I was helping in the church nursery. Violet got dressed for her date after morning soccer, and had to wait hours while Daddy worked in the garden. She asked often about when he was going to hurry up and get ready. They ended up eating at the Habit, getting Menchie's, and playing on the mall playground for their big night out.