Almost another half-term

Next week, the kids will be out of school for the May half-term.   Monday is a bank holiday, so we are heading to Scotland for the weekend!

Here is what the kids have been up to lately:

Lauren twisted her ankle (the same one) in PE two weeks ago, so now she has a boot on her ankle.

 It has not slowed her down one single bit...she has been climbing trees and running around with Alison and Drew and her friends.  Although, she is not able to do swimming, which doesn't seem to upset her too much.  She is doing street dance, drama and art club as her after school activities, and she will do gymnastics after the half-term.  She decided to get some fringe (read bangs) when the kids got haircuts on Sunday.  She looks so grown-up!

Alison is fanatic about doing the monkey bars and skipping rope!  

Her record so far is 24 skips, and she is doing a skip-a-thin at school tomorrow to raise money for her coach trip to the beach next month.  And she does the monkey bars over and over and over anytime we are at the park.  It's pretty amazing because I can't do it.  My upper body strength is gone!  Alison is doing street dance and multi-sports as her after school activities.

Drew is enjoying school.  

He has made a new friend, Hugo, who is bi-lingual in Spanish and French. They like to play cars together!  It's really cute to see Drew making friends.  School has made him very tired; he took a two hour nap yesterday.  He is also really enjoying his music class on Thursday and we are going to a football (soccer) class starting this Friday.  He is a great dribbler.

And I am working on my entry about Poland!!  There's a lot to report, but I need to get it out there.  What a great trip that was!

First trip back to America

I just realized that I never posted about out trip back to America last month!  We had a great time, and it was so great to spend time with Mum Mum, Nana, Papa, Sarah, Ian and Pat!

Mum Mum arrived on Sunday, and I picker her up at the airport since we had been awake since 4:45 AM!!  (London time 9:45 AM.)  Not long after she arrived, I needed to run out to Target to get some groceries and just because I could!  Mum Mum sent the kids a little something in their Easter cards that said she would take them shopping with a $20 budget, so Lauren asked if she could go shopping too, so off the three of us went to Target.  Lauren and Mum Mum found some super fun things: face paint, modeling clay and candy!  I loaded up my cart with not only groceries but things I forgot like goggles.  When we returned, Drew, Alison and Brad were ready for the pool so we quickly got ready and went to the pool, which was awesome!  The temperature was perfect!  Drew is not quite ready to swim on his own, but the girls were racing and flipping and having a great time.  Alison was very intent on making sure she got her shopping trip as well; so Mum Mum, Alison and I went to Wal-Mart.  Alison found an Elsa doll, a Frozen key, a necklace and a fish key chain.  

The girls decided to have a sleep over at Mum Mum's house on Sunday night, woo hoo!!  And Mum Mum taught Alison how to play spite and malice.

Monday, we decided to drive down to see Pat in her new house.   She moved to a smaller house in the same general area, and it is very nice.  Unfortunately, the pool was closed so the kids, Brad and I took a picnic to the park.  The kids had a great time at the park and then we headed back to Pat's and Pat an my mom took the kids for a walk to the lake.  All 3 of the kids were LOVING Pat's dog, Kayleigh.  

I am sure Kayleigh was SO happy when we left; they just would not leave her alone, but it was very cute to see how much they all loved her.   We headed up to the outlet mall; I wanted to get a few things for the kids since clothes are so much more affordable in America.  Pat and my mom came along to keep the kids occupied while Brad and I shopped.  Drew ended up coming with us since he can't bear to be separated from his Daddy for more than 5 seconds, but he was great.  Our first stop was stride rite so the kids could each get a new pair of shoes.  And the girls' favorite store was Justice of course!!  Lauren even used some of her own money to buy a shirt from Justice.

Tuesday, Nana and Papa arrived!  

Hooray!  Brad, Mum Mum and Drew went to Wal-Mart before they arrived for Drew's shopping trip, and he bought the cutest little mini Thomas trains!  We spent some time at the pool, and Lauren got some pretty painful sunburn under her eyes.

 Later in the afternoon, we went to the sand pit and the kids had a great time burying their legs in the sand (under the umbrella!).  Sarah arrived in the evening, and Brad, Sarah, Nana, Papa and I met one of Papa's so-workers and his wife for a lovely dinner at the Chart House.

Wednesday, we just relaxed so Lauren's eyes could heal, and then the girls and I went with Nana to get pedicures.  My toes really needed that!  The girls got manicures as well, all very sparkly of course.  And Nana gave then each $20 to spend in the mall so we went to the Disney store, and Lauren bought a minnie picochu, a Sofia the first necklace and some flip-flops.  Alison bought an Elsa wig and a minnie picochu.  Claire's was right next door, so or course we had to go in there as well, and the girls each bought a tiara for the show they were preparing for Papa's retirement.

Wednesday night was the retirement party,

and it was very fun to see Papa in a business setting and hear all the nice things his co-workers said about him.  There were a couple of slideshows and speeches and gifts.  The most interesting gift was selfie stick!  Brad and Sarah gave the last two speeches, and Brad went first.  He interviewed the kids and asked them different questions about Papa.  The best line was Alison said the best advice Papa has given her is "Life gets easier when you are mad."  And Drew thinks Papa is 3.  Brad talked about Papa's visions and his "OCD calendars" which the family can all relate to.  He finished up with the "Top 15 things Brad already knows but Dad wants to tell you anyways."  And then Sarah got up and gave a heartfelt speech off the cuff.  I know that his co-workers really appreciated hearing from the two of them.

Thursday was our last full day in Florida.

 Nana treated the girls and I to "Cinderella" which was very well done, and I think the girls enjoyed it as well.  She had also seen it with Annabelle, so it was nice she got the chance to view it with all three granddaughters.  For dinner, we found Red Robin of course!  Followed by a yummy dessert of DQ!  And when we returned, the girls performed for us.  Lauren wrote a song called "Do Not Disturb," which was inspired by what else what the Do Not disturb sign you put on the door.  It was a creative song, and then she gave a very sweet speech in honor of Papa's retirement.

Friday, we went to the Tampa Sea Life Aquarium.

 What a cool place!  We got to touch stingrays and anemones, and we saw several sharks, jellyfish, and snakes.  But the most incredible thing we did was the "Penguin Encounter," where a small group of people gets to see penguins up close.  They were really, really cute!  We got to touch them and sit next to them and watch them waddling around.  The penguin lady said they poop every 15 minutes; and they make a noise that sounds like a donkey.  Their "fur" is actually really soft because their feathers are so small.

 That experience was definitely worth it!  After the aquarium, we had lunch at Chick-Fil-A, which was the last place I wanted to make sure we went to while we were in America.

The flight home was not too bad.  Drew and Brad had three seats to themselves, so Drew was able to spread out on the seat to sleep.  The girls and I, however, were smushed in the seats.  Alison was in the middle and Lauren was pretty much draped over her, but I think we all managed to get a couple hours of sleep.  We arrived home around 10:00 AM and everyone promptly took a 5 hour nap!  Shoo, that was needed.  And so thankful for the grocery delivery I had set up to come at noon so we had some good in the house.  Lauren went to her friend Skyla's sleepover, and managed to stay up until 1 AM, but she had a good time.

I am so thankful we were able to have the time with the family.  I know it meant so much to Brad's dad especially that we were there, and we wouldn't have missed it for anything!    

Note: the girls loved their new clothes so much they wore them almost non-stop!  Alison wore her PJs and sneakers every opportunity and Lauren was the same with her baseball shirt, which is why they are wearing the same clothes in almost every photograph!

My trip to Poland!

Wow, where do I even begin.  About a month after we moved here, a couple of the PTA moms were talking about a trip to Poland (my friend Yvona is from Sopot and she wanted to show everyone her hometown).  I jumped at the chance to go a new place!  Part of the reason we moved to London is to experience Europe, and what better way to see Poland than with a native Polish-speaking friend!

There were 8 of us that made the trip: Yvona and Marzena (our Polish translators!), Tatiana and Faye (the 2 Brits), Elena (Irish), Debbie (Taiwanese/Australian), and me and Jane (the 2 Americans); we were quite the melting pot!  It was such a great group!!  We were all flexible to just go with the flow and just experience whatever came our way.  We learned a few Polish words which I am sure I don't know how to spell: Czech (Hello), Gencoolye(Thank you), Nostrovia (Cheers...we used that one a lot), and Pah Pah (Good-bye).  Elena, Marzena and I arrived late Friday night, while the other 5 took the morning flight and arrived early afternoon on Friday.  They went around Sopot and saw a few additional places, but they saved most of the good stops for all of us!

I am so thankful that I experienced bank holiday travel on my own the first time because now I know what to expect when the kids are traveling as well!   We took a RyanAir (low fare airline) out of Stansted Airport, which is pretty far north.  It took about 1.5 hours by train, and it was CROWDED!!!!  And if you do not have an EU passport, you have to have it checked by the check-in desk before going through security.  And the security is very through.  I haven't carryed on my luggage in quite sometime, and I forgot to take the shaving cream out of my suitcase.  Low fare airline means no seat back pockets and no free food.  It was a quick two hour flight, and Marzena was able to sit next to me.  Elena was in the back.

We arrived around 11:00, went through customs ( I got my first stamp after the border guard studied my passport very carefully.) and with Marzenas help found a great driver to take us to the apartment in Sopot where the rest of them were waiting with wine and tales of their adventures!  Marzena was so excited to speak in Polish that she chatted with the driver the whole way.

The apartments were perfect! Two four bedroom apartments connected with a common entryway.  We heard all about their day..... They did a lot of walking, drinking and eating!

Saturday, we had arranged for Chris (our driver)

to pick us up and drive around Gdansk, to be picked up at 10:30.  I was up way too early considering there were no kids!  But it worked out because Jane, Marzena Elena and I went out and got some food for breakfast: tomatoes, bread, butter, cheese, ham and fruit.  

The shop owner was so thankful when Marzena started speaking to her in Polish!  The bread was Amazing!!! It was brown bread with seeds and it was so delicious, especially with tomatoes and herbed cheese.

Chris arrived to pick us up at 10:30 and we were off to explore Gdansk.  

Our first stop was a beautiful church and we were lucky enough to arrive just in time for an organ concert.  Yvona said it was the biggest organ in Europe!

Next stop was the Solidarity museum,

which documented the solidarity movement in Poland in he 1970s and 1980s.  It was really well done; we didn't really have enough time to see the museum to its fullest, but I had no idea of what the Polish people endured to become a democracy.  

And hearing Yvona talk about standing in line for hours at the grocery to get just butter was sobering.

Then Chris drove us into Gdansk, and showed us a wonderful restaurant for lunch.  

We sat at a table that was a favorite of Len walesa, who was the leader of the solidarity movement.  The food was so yummy!!!  The special was cabbage soup, meatballs, potatoes, carrots and cabbage.  Dessert was compote, which was like a raspberry smoothie.  

We were all stuffed, but happily stuffed!!

Next stop was a church that has a staircase that you can climb to the to for amazing views of the city.    Wieza Mariacka in the Mariacki Church.  

Yvona said "only 200 or 300 steps," which in reality was 400 steps!!!  The strangest part was when we could see the domed top of the church, and it looked like we really shouldn't be there, but it was worth the climb because the view from the top was amazing.  And thankfully, there was a different staircase for going down.

We did some more exploring around Gdansk, and found this little candy store where we got some candy for the kids.  It was a cool place, and there were kids behind the counter making candy!  We also went into a shop selling Amber.  The Baltic Sea Amber is very well-known in Poland, so it just wouldn't have been right to come home without some Amber! And they even gave us a bulk discount. There are so many different colors and shapes of the Amber jewelry, it was hard to decide.

Last stop in Gdansk was the patio of an Italian restaurant for some dessert, Prosecco and coffee.  It was the perfect temperature and we were sitting in the sun and watching all the people walk by.  The architecture is very unique and the buildings are all very colorful.

Chris drove us back to the apartment and we got ready for dinner and went to the hotel and restaurant where Yvona and Marek met, Irena.  Their old friend, Derek, took great care of us.  I tried the famous Zabrovka vodka and apple juice, which was good but a little too sweet to drink more than one.  Derek brought us some perogi appetizers, as well as beef tartare, which I tried for the first time.

 I was hesitant after seeing them mix a raw egg into the raw beef; but I was glad I tried, it was not bad.  I also tried the duck, which was amazing!!  Then Derek brought us some shots: wsciekxe psy (crazy dog), which is raspberry syrup, Tabasco and vodka representing the Polish flag.  

It was very good.

Last stop for the night: the disco.  

What a fabulous way to end the night!!!!  I felt like I was back in America!  They playef almost 100% English music, pop songs, classic rock, and even "sweet home Alabama."  It was so, do, so much fun to dance!!  And the greatest part was that all of us enjoy dancing.... I was impressed by the moves of the girls!  We didn't go to bed until 3 AM!

We slept in pretty late and once we were all ready, we headed for the beach in Sopot.  We walked down the beach amd Elena and I were finally able to put our toes in the Baltic Sea (we had been anxiously anticipating!!).

It was cold, but they said not as cold as Friday.  We had lunch an amazing, very popular is restaurant, Bar Przystan.  The girls had fish soup that was amazing, and it was the perfect spot right on the beach.  Yvonas sister Magda and her son and husband met us for a bit.

We asked a lady to take our picture, and she said "I think I took your picture yesterday," and as she was taking the photo, we all said "Czech!" And she smiled and said "yes, I definitely did!"  We are famous!!!

Debbie went for a spa treatment at the Mera Spa and Hotel, so while she was being pampered, the rest of us enjoyed a bottle of Prosecco on the beautiful lawn of the hotel.

 The best part was when 2 waiters brought us the bottle!  

One carried the ice bucket while the other carried the glasses and bottle, both wearing their long black aprons.  Yvona disappeared for a bit, but Tatiana and Marzena discovered he in the bathroom using the hotels free  "wee-fee."

We took a stroll down to the end of the pier, where we took in a beautiful view of the Grand Hotel, as well as a pirate ship the journeys out onto the sea for a pirate adventure.

Our last dinner as a party of 8 was at a French/polish restaurant, which was very beautiful!  

The gave us our own room on the second floor of the restaurant ( I guess they thought we were going to be a little rowdy!). The food was pretty good, and we got pate as our starter, compliments of the chef.  It was a nice dinner to end our fun times!!

Tatiana, Faye and Debbie flew out pretty early Monday morning, while the remaining 5 of us were able to enjoy one last day in Sopot, and we decided to pamper ourselves at the spa as well.  We met one of Yvona's friends for a breakfast pastry and then we were off to relax!  

The spa was amazing and the massage was a perfect ending to the weekend.  After the massage, we got to sit in the "relaxation room," which is a room on the second floor, just windows,

overlooking the sea.  So relaxing!  We decided to go up on the rooftop terrace to check it out.  All we could say was "WOW!!!!!!!!"  

The most breathtaking view of the Baltic Sea, as well as an infinity pool.  If only we had just a couple more hours......

We grabbed our last meal at the blue poodle, the oldest pub in Sopot.

 I had delicious beetroot soup, as well as periogi (Jane and I split two different kinds).  And although I was stuffed, I had to end the meal with a gofry(waffle) topped with toffee syrup.  Yum!!!  We walked down to the Grand hotel and went inside just to say we did it. 

It was a long journey home!  I think I stepped through my front door at 2 AM!!  I am so thankful for the friendships that were deepened on this trip, as well as the opportunity to see a place I didn't know much about and try new food.  So thank you, Yvona for taking us to your hometown and thank you to the rest of you for including me in your travels!!!  Can't wait for out next trip.

And of course, thank you to Brad for taking care of the kids so I could get away for a few days!!