Sheffield-Day #3 and on to York

After all the "blowing and going", we decided to take it easy Thursday morning and let the kids just have fun around the barn while I packed us up to leave.  Original plans had been changed a bit and we were departing Sheffield a day earlier.  Andy came to pick us up at around noon and we went on a very quick shopping excursion to find thank you gifts for the Childs' for all their kindness.  After picking up a few items, we headed to an indoor playground (Wacky Warehouse) where the kids played in a giant ball pit for about 30 minutes.  At this point, we were simply trying to use up extra time because we were planning on going and picking Tim up from a business lunch a little after 2pm.  Once he joined us, Andy was going to drive us to the home of Paul and Lisa Chasney.  Paul is the current CFO of Barrett Steel and his wife Lisa is actively involved in raising and showing sheep.  They hosted us for a lovely tea and allowed the kids the opportunity to see and pet the sheep while we were there.  From there, we made our way to York where we checked into The Hedley House apartments.  This was the coup de gras of our week.  We were all excited about being in a new space after the barn didn't quite live up to all we had hoped.  Once we checked-in, we went down to the basement level and unlocked the door to a single room that was roughly 15X30 feet (about the size of a large bedroom).  There were three singles and one full size bed taking up the entire space.  I looked at Tim, he looked at me, and we both exhaled a huge sigh communicating, "Oh no, what are we going to do?"  Always the problem solver, Tim made it his mission to locate a new place for us the following day.  I certainly didn't want to add to his responsibilities, but I am so grateful he managed to get us moved because I spent most of the day on Friday with all 3 kids in that room and I'm quite certain if we had stayed, one of us wouldn't have made it out alive!  Now, we are in a two-story, two bedroom duplex and it is much more comfortable and practical for the five of us.  Having a kitchen makes a huge difference as well!
With that said, I just want to acknowledge the efforts my wonderful husband has made for us in making this trip as awesome as possible.  He spent hours before we left researching, scheduling, and booking our housing and all our activities.  He has gone to great lengths to make sure this experience is all it can be and I am ever so grateful to him for it.  I can assure you, without everything he has done for us, this trip wouldn't be nearly as wonderful as it is.  Thanks, Tim for all you do for your family!

Another one bites the dust!

It has been some time since this event occurred, but Emily lost her other tooth on the top while we were at Codona's in Aberdeen.  Love that beautiful smile!  Tim has taken to calling her the "Toothless Wonder"...she's thinks it is hilarious!

Sheffield-Day #2

I was able to enjoy a leisurely morning, sipping tea and reading while I awaited the return of the kids from their sleepover at the Childs' home from the night before.  Once they arrived, we decided we would take a trip to some caverns and then tour the famous Chatsworth House (all you Pride & Prejudice fans know the estate of which I speak - Mr. Darcy's!).  This was another of those days when a little pre-planning and forethought would have been helpful but alas, I did neither, and we ended up having a bit more of a stressful day than we should have.  To the caverns first, planning on touring Speedwell Cavern, which was done via a boat ride.  I thought a tour utilizing something other than our own two feet was going to be easier with three small kids so off we went.  Now, just last summer, the entire family was able to go to Glenwood Caverns in Glenwood Springs and it was truly impressive.  With that being our only cavern experience, I anticipated something similar.  How wrong I was!  So, we pay for our tickets, wait in line (or "queue" as they call it here), and then descend a set of 106 stairs underneath the ground.  We climb into the boat, sit in the very back, and proceed to float along the water along a very, very dark and narrow pathway (ever had an MRI? Imagine that kind of enclosure) while our guide, Joe, is narrating the story of the caves.  Keep in mind, we are in the back with 20 adults in front of us, Joe isn't using anything to amplify his voice, and he is speaking in a rapid British accent.  We heard absolutely nothing!  We are basically in the dark floating on a boat underground for a good 10 minutes or so.  Finally we come to the location where we disembark the boat and I think, "Good.  Now we'll get to see some stuff."  Well, all there was to see was one lousy room that had been carved out of the mountain - large enough for about 20-25 adults to stand, look around, take a few crummy pictures, hear a 5 minute spiel from our guide, and then climb back onto a boat that was to take us back out the way we had just arrived.  We were literally in the cave for 12 minutes before we had to go back.  It was the biggest rip-off ever!  On the way back, we did get to sit in the front of the boat, which helped us understand what Joe was saying a little better, but he wasn't providing us with any interesting information about the cavern on the return journey so what was the point?  I probably could have salvaged the entire trip simply by purchasing a ridiculous trinket from the gift shop but I was so frustrated at having already spent $30 on the lousy tour, I wasn't about to give them any more of our money.
Next we headed to Chatsworth House to see the opulent estate and gardens that are the current residence of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire.  It also had a farmyard and play area that I was certain would score points with the kids, which I needed to do quickly after our cavern debacle.  We go to get our tickets and are informed there isn't enought time left in the day (it was 3pm) for us to do everything; we would have to choose between the house & gardens or the farmyard/play area.  Now I'm in a pickle - regardless of which I choose, one or more of the kids is going to be disappointed.  I finally decided on the house & gardens because I knew Emily would love seeing all the fancy furnishings and art work throughout the home.  Important piece of information to note at this point: there are no public toilets in the house.  You are required to go before you enter on the tour.  And you guessed it, in my haste to make it through as quickly as we could, I forgot to have evereyone take care of business before we started the tour.  Not 10 minutes after we had entered the home did Maddie say, "Mom, I have to go potty."  Now, I'm caught in the middle of an enormous house, completely unsure how much further it is until the end, so we are racing our way through each room without a modicum of realization of what we are seeing.  Thankfully we made it without an accident but now have almost 2 hours to kill in the gardens before our driver comes to pick us up.  By now, the kids are simply exhausted, bored by the tour, hungry for food, and just all-around cranky.  We survive the gardens (and they were amazing) and each was rewarded with a giant gingerbread cookie shaped like a farm animal: a pig (Emily), a cow (Caleb), and a sheep (Maddie).
From there we went to the Childs' house for a traditional Sunday dinner on Wednesday; roast meat and potatoes, veggies, gravy, and Yorkshire pudding.  None of us (except Tim) had ever had Yorkshire pudding before and was pleasantly surprised to find they are little savory turnovers that are quite tasty.  Unfortunately, we had to say good-bye to the Childs family at this point, which was sad for all of us.  We are already looking forward to when we can come back to visit them again!

The kids at Chatsworth House

The fountains at Chatsworth House

Sheffield-Day #1

After a yummy spaghetti dinner on Monday night and a decent night of sleep (we had to put garbage bags over the skylights in the kids room in order to accomplish this...why we didn't do it for the adults escapes me!) Tim was off to work and the kids and I were scheduled to go see MAGNA, a Science adventure center.  Everyone we talked to said this would be a fun activity for the kids, not to mention it focused on how steel was made, so Tim encouraged us to go hoping our kids would be intrigued by what they learned about Daddy's industry.  With such rave reviews, I was excited to take the kids for the day.  Little did we know what awaited us once we got inside.  We didn't get off to a strong start because our driver (remember Andy from the last post?) grossly underestimated how long it would take us to arrive at MAGNA.  I had prepared the kids for about 30 minutes in the car...it was double that easily so everyone was a little sour by the time we arrived.  Not to be deterred, I tried to rally the troops.  This was a bit tricky because we realized there were three or four coach buses parked directly outside which could only mean one thing...a school field trip!  Not knowing how big this place was, I encouraged the kids to be positive.  We bought our tickets and headed up the stairs.  We opened the doors to this incredibly dark and very loud warehouse.  Signs were definitely pointing us to walk directly into the darkness, but each of my kids were not moving that direction willingly.  It is hard to describe this place accurately; imagine a large abandoned warehouse that has lighting along the walkway but is illuminated only by dark red lights along the walls.  The walkway is wide with sides that are open for you to peer over and look down (the main floor is a story above the ground) at the machinery displayed below.  Best way I can try to give you an idea is imagine what it would be like walking into the Death Star in Star Wars...dark, ominous, and downright creepy.  With no volunteers to offer assurance or direction, even I felt I had somehow ended up in the wrong place.  I managed to coax the kids down the walkway towards the first exhibit, but in order to get there we had to pass through a certain room.  We opened the doors (this place was dark as well) and took a couple of steps inside.  Almost instantly the entire room starts to crackle and pop with electrical currents being displayed openly all across the walls.  I believe the girls went first and as soon as the sounds went off, the girls screamed and ran out of the room terrified (I was a bit frightened myself).  It took me a good 5 minutes just to convince them to go back in so that we could go see the first exhibit.  Once we actually got to the Fire Pavillion, we saw a really cool fire tornado but not much else.  At this point, it is necessary for me to tell you about who was joining us in MAGNA that day; an entire school of kids that looked to range from around 5-8th grade were making their way through and at each pavillion we were greeted by at least 20-30 screaming kids acting a bit crazy, fiddling with the exhibits and making it almost impossible to participate in the activities available.  So, at each stop (and the lunch room, too) we were accompanied by quite a crew; I think my kids, especially Caleb, felt a bit intimidated but we pressed on regardless.  After a quick lunch, we made our way to the Air Pavillion and the Water Pavillion - some neat stuff but nothing I can recall 3 days later.  Finally, we went to the Earth Pavillion and it was there the kids truly started to enjoy the exhibit.  There was a rock quarry where you could collect rocks in a wheelbarrow, deliver them, watch them roll across a conveyor belt and then have the rocks fall down a shaft where you went through the entire process again.  By this time, the school field trip had packed up and left so Caleb, Emily, and Maddie had the whole place to themselves.  I couldn't get them to leave!  They were loving it and I was so glad to have had at least one really positive experience at this place.  The icing on the cake was a giant playground located right across the street from MAGNA and that's where we finished our afternoon.  A rough start, and I just kept telling myself, "Of all that we have done on our trip so far, this is the first thing that hasn't been all that great.  We've been so lucky!"  Thankfully it ended well but I would say if you are ever in Rotherham, England with young kids, you can skip MAGNA altogether.  You're better off just hitting the playground across the street!
Now, for the rest of our day.  I'll keep it short but was so blessed by the Childs family; John, Julie, Alicia, and Alex because they agreed to take our children and have them sleep at their home for the night while Tim and I went and enjoyed an adult evening out together.  The kids absolutely loved it; Caleb played soccer with Alex and the girls helped Alicia make "buns".  I truly believe it was the highlight of their time in Sheffield and allowed us a night to ourselves.  We got to go to a fabulous restaurant called Gusto.  Oh so good!  Just to enjoy a meal without rush or complaint was a joy and I am so grateful to this family for their kindness and hospitality.  It may have started off shaky but a wonderful end to another day in our adventure.      

Arrival to Sheffield

Quite a bit of time has passed since our last entry.  I was doing a good job of staying on top of this little project, but alas, travel, activity, and exhaustion got the best of me this week.  When we last left our heroes, they were enjoying a lovely weekend at The Cameron House on Loch Lomond near Glasgow, Scotland.  To begin a new week, the team awoke early Monday morning to hop on a train headed south to Sheffield, England.  It was an uneventful, rather quick, 5-hour train ride to our next destination.  Upon arriving at the Sheffield train station, we were met by a wonderful character named Andy who was hired to be our driver for the week.  I cannot sing his praises enough!  He was super kind to the kids, incredibly accommodating to our schedules, and worked hard to make sure we were taken care of during our stay.  If this was his professional job, I’d still be pleased, but Andy was simply a good friend of one of Tim’s colleagues (Sir Childs of Sheffield) who offered Andy the job for the week.  With that being the case, I can honestly say he went above and beyond serving our family for the 4 days we stayed in the area. 

So, day #1 in Sheffield.  We made our way to our lodging accommodations out a ways from the city at a farm that had converted the top portion of their barn into an apartment.  We weren’t exactly sure what they meant when they advertised being on a “working farm” but it didn’t take us long to realize it was up and running full force, with a very large sheep pasture approximately 20 ft. from our front door.  A horse was our neighbor, three doors down in its stable.  The farm dogs greeted us every morning and the barn cat never left its bed that was perched in the laundry room.   The apartment had plenty of space, although a bit more rustic than we had anticipated.  At least the kids each had their own bed to sleep in!  It didn’t take us long to realize, like each of the living spaces we’ve occupied thus far on our journey, the farm had a couple of “insufficiencies”.  The first being that each room had skylights in the ceiling…I mean it was a barn and you had to get some natural sunlight in there somehow.  Unfortunately the skylights poured light directly onto each of our beds every morning, which made it difficult to stay asleep for any amount of time after the sun came up (Tim awoke each day at 4:15am).  The next downside was not being able to locate dishwashing liquid or detergent to either start the dishwasher or to wash them all by hand.  I used the same coffee mug all week!  Easily fixed, I know, but we only went to the grocery store once and at that point I didn’t know we needed it.  Spending all week with a sink-load of dirty dishes should have made me feel right at home, but it is one thing to be able to do something about it and choose not to; it is a whole other situation when you don’t have the resources to accomplish the job.   The dishes literally mocked me every time I went to the sink!  And finally, being on a trip for this long, I kind of had it in my mind that I would be able to do laundry while at this location so that was my plan.  Well, while the apartment had advertised a washer and dryer there was no mention that it was a shared facility with the people in the main house and all the animals on the farm.  I went into the laundry room and was met by literally loads of laundry that were in “line” to be washed.  There was no way I was going to be able to break in there, especially since I checked one washing machine 3 different times in a 12 hour period and found the exact same load in there each time.  Again, each of these things seems inconsequential when viewed in the big picture, but recalling as much detail as I can will hopefully help bring each of these places and stories more to life when we re-read them in the years to come.  One thing is for sure.  This trip has definitely stretched me to be more easy-going and have a more “take it as it comes” attitude…I’m not sure just how much longer I can keep it up though!

Picture of the barn/apartment

Our neighbors to the left

Our neighbor downstairs

Be Back Soon!

For those who have been following, I want you to know all is well and I'll have something posted sometime soon.  We've been quite busy and the blog has taken a backseat; I was hopeful to spend some time updating it upon our arrival in York (where we are currently staying) but unfortunately our hotel room does not get Wi-Fi; I have to come upstairs to a common area in order to get on the Internet.  Plan is to write it in a Word document (have a lot to catch you up on) and then cut-and-paste when I'm able to find a moment to be logged-on.  I know you've been holding your breath...try and relax and I promise I'll do my best to get something posted within the next day or two.  Hope all is well!

Afternoon Tea

After a wonderful boat tour around the islands of Loch Lomond, the entire family was able to enjoy a proper British afternoon tea.  Each kid had to take a least one bite of everything on the plate, and thankfully each bite was able to stay down (we had a close call with Emily but she muscled through).  There were even a couple of "Uh, it's okay" comments so I consider it to have been a success.  Not every kid can say they've experienced afternoon tea in Scotland, that's for sure, so I'm glad we did it.  Personally, I am appreciating more and more a spot of tea and a scone smothered in cream and jam in the afternoon as a treat.  Need to consider instituting this into my everyday schedule when I return home.  Don't be surprised if you are invited to join me on occasion.  Baking light and flaky scones at 6,000 feet above sea level...that will be my next challenge!  Cheers for a lovely week ahead!

Caleb's Entry - Codona's

Codona's was an amazing place to be in Aberdeen for a day.  It was like Eliches but had an arcade and miniture put put.  In put put I got two hole in ones'.  The only bad part was the outside park was closed for the day so we did not get to go on a rollcoaster or something like that.  The arcade was the best part about Codona's. My family won over a thousand tickets!!!  My favorite game was deal or no deal. I played three games and won about two hundred fifty tickets.  My sister Emily hit the jackpot and got 200 tickets in one turn. There was also a game were you grab tickets out of a claw machine and the best  part was,you play till the game until you win tickets.  Codona's was an amazing way to spend the day in Aberdeen and I hope I can go back soon!!!

Archery

I think in this situation, a picture speaks much louder than any words I could type!

Loch Lomond - Day 1

Well, the weather finally turned normal for the UK and rained on and off all day.  Thankfully, there were activities to occupy us in between showers.  My kind and thoughtful husband treated me to a day at the Spa while he took care of the kids.  I enjoyed a nice, relaxing few hours away at a luxurious retreat while Tim and the kids swam in the hotel pool.  Emily and Maddie were equipped with floaties and Caleb continued to work on improving his mobility in the water.  He made a huge breakthrough this afternoon, being able to swim underwater, come up for breath, and swim some more without stopping.  He is quite proud of his accomplishment, as are we, seeing as it allows us to relax just a wee tiny bit more than before when we are at the pool.  Caleb also did something he had only done one time before and that was go down a water slide.  (The first time was a bit of a disaster and that's why he hasn't tried it again since)  There is one here at the hotel and he finally mustered up enough courage to take the plunge, literally.  Of course, as soon as he did it and realized he wasn't going to drown, he proceeded to go down about another 30-50 times before we had to force him out so we could all go to dinner.  Even though the archery classes didn't work out today (rescheduled for tomorrow) the kids seemed to have a really fun time swimming, playing mini-golf, and watching a movie together.   Another something worth noting about today was that I got up enough courage to have a taste of the famous Scottish dish, haggis and black pudding for breakfast this morning.  Surprisingly, it doesn't taste nearly as bad as it sounds!  Again, another enjoyable day on our adventure; so many reasons to give thanks for what we've experienced thus far!    

Arrival in Loch Lomond

Today was a travel day with the morning being spent trying to repack our belongings and "putting to rights" the place where we stayed in Stonehaven.  That was a good 3 hour project, including getting the kids fed, dressed, and ready for the day.  We were able to enjoy one more round of fish-n-chips from The Bay before we left, and I will just say again, absolutely fabulous!  We hopped on a train headed down to Glasgow but because we caught an earlier train, we didn't have our reserved seats.  It is possible to purchase tickets that are acceptable all day while at the same time reserving a seat on a certain train at a certain time.  We learned it is more important to have your reserved seat than to be a little early to your destination.  All 5 of us were cramped in 4 seats with backpacks crammed underneath which made the 2 1/2 hour train ride seem a bit longer than it actually was.  Again, getting on and off trains with 5 incredibly heavy rolling suitcases and three kids is stressful but thankfully we managed it without much trouble once again.  All of us packed into a taxi with our luggage (sure is a good thing we aren't a very tall family) and drove 30 minutes to Loch Lomond.  It is a beautiful lake resort with a number of lovely hotels situated around it.  We are staying at The Cameron House and it is really great.  We have some fun activities planned for the weekend (kids are signed up for archery class while I have some time at the spa) and weather appears to be pleasant enough for Scotland in June.

For today:
HIGH
1.  Having a fun room with bunk beds to sleep in (Caleb, Maddie & Emily)
2.  Arriving in Loch Lomond greeted by sunshine (Kerry)
3.  Beauty of Loch Lomond (Tim)
4.  Hot piece of deep fried breaded haddock for lunch with a glass of cider (Kerry)
5.  Maddie doing the Macarena in the Glasgow train station (Kerry)

LOW
1.  Not traveling on a train with enough seats for us all (Caleb)
2.  It took almost 2 hours for our main course to be served at dinner (ALL OF US!)
3.  The taxi ride to Loch Lomond (Kerry)

The story with dinner was simple enough but one to take all of us to the brink of sanity.  We had reservations at a casual restaurant at 6 pm and when we arrived we were the first and only people in the dining area.  We placed our order shortly after arriving and received our appetizers rather quickly.  I have to say it was some of the yummiest homemade bread/pizza crust I have ever had.  This made all of us quite excited for our main courses.  As time passed, the restaurant began to fill up with customers and we continued to wait for our meal.  Pretty soon, we realized that a number of tables around us, those who had arrived after us, had received their food and were almost finished eating and we still had not been served our dinners.  Honestly, I think Tim and I were too preoccupied trying to entertain the kids and not have them miserable while we waited to notice just how much time had passed.  We made it until 7:30pm and then the wheels started to come off.  I think what made it worse was no one even came over to discuss with us what had happened.  I was the one who had to say to the waiter, "Hey we ordered an hour ago.  Where's our food?"  He assured me it was only going to be a minute.  Needless to say, it was a half hour later when our meals actually arrived.  Even as I write this, I am thinking to myself, "Really?  Are you truly complaining about this episode when you've had such a wonderful vacation thus far?"  The answer is simply: yes, yes I am.  After a long day of packing and travel, the dinner was a bit more than I could handle.  I'm over it now, but in the spirit of trying to remember this adventure, I want to be able to look back and recall this episode and reminisce with the rest of the crew about how we managed to survive such a day.  At least we are in it together, for better or worse!    

Stonehaven-Day 3 & 4

Yesterday was more of a casual day, hanging around Stonehaven; playing at the park and the shore, strolling through town, watching a movie in the apartment, enjoying a family meal overlooking the harbour.  It is a pleasant surprise to watch the kids enjoy "free" activities as much, if not more, than events we have to pay for.  The joy and excitement they had simply by digging in the sand and playing by the water was a blessing to see.  There was definitely some complaints about all the walking, but nothing a scoop of Aunty Betty's ice cream wouldn't fix.
Today, however, was the exact opposite.  We left the house at 11am and didn't return until 8:30pm.  The kids and I made our way to Aberdeen to a giant amusement park there.  Unfortunately, the outside portion where all the rides were wasn't open because it isn't summertime for their students yet and they don't feel the need to open the entire park when the majority of their customers are still in school.  Thankfully, it didn't seem to phase my 3 - we played miniature putt-putt, endured a terrible game of bowling, played a multitude of arcade games, and climbed around on a giant pirate ship playground.  They had an absolute blast and I'm just glad I survived.  Almost 5 hours in a place like that and I understand why they serve alcohol at the pirate ship playground...just a nip to help the parents survive the day.  Caleb, Emily, and Maddie worked hard to accumulate as many tickets as they could and walked away with over 1,000 tickets for their efforts.  The highlight came when Emily won 200 tickets playing "Deal or No Deal" on her very last coin.  I wish you could have seen the sheer joy and excitement on their faces at accomplishing such a feat...priceless!  We walked out of that place with a backpack full of chinsy carnival prizes but you would have thought they just had a shopping spree at Toys "R" Us (the bow and arrow Caleb got actually works!)  Once we survived that experience, we walked along the beach and then met up with Tim's colleague and his wife for dinner.  We went to TGIFriday's and enjoyed an "American" meal...man can not live on fish-n-chips alone!  We traveled back to Stonehaven and enjoyed one more scoop of ice cream before crashing into bed.  Our time here has come to an end and tomorrow will be a day of repacking and traveling, heading to Glasgow for the weekend.  We've enjoyed the convenience of a washer and dryer this week and I think most of our stuff is clean at this point - one more wonderful thing about our time here in Stonehaven.  I am going to miss this place but look forward to what lies ahead on our journey.  Truly hard to believe we've only been gone for 11 days.  Cheers!

Recap from Day 2- Stonehaven

Yesterday the kids and I visited Dunnottar Castle and it was amazing.  It is more like castle ruins (as you can see from the picture) and it plays an important part in Scottish history.  To be able to see what remains was quite incredible.  There are quite a few pictures from our time there (the kids were getting tired of me taking photos) but I just couldn't get over the fact I was walking on the very ground where people lived back in the late 15th century; there was even a stone I found (and of course took a picture of) that had an inscription that appeared to be from 1648.  It was fascinating to walk inside the giant rock rooms and know people actually slept, prepared and ate food, conducted business, and were held captive right where I was standing.  I doubt the kids found it as such, but they still enjoyed their time there.  The highlight for them was going down to the shore and finding about 70-80 seashells that all found their way back with us via my backpack.
After our history excursion, the kids played at the playground and on the beach.  The sun wasn't shining and the wind was blowing so I was quite cold, but that didn't seem to bother the kids at all.  We had dinner at the apartment (spaghetti and tomato sauce) and brownies from the sweet shop downstairs.  Another enjoyable day on vacation - not overly memorable but definitely worth celebrating!  

kerryryan5's photostream

kerryryan5's photostream on Flickr.

Updated Pictures

Stonehaven - Day 1

What a day it has been!  Here are our high-lows for the day with explanation to follow:

High
1.  Getting to play at the playground (Caleb, Emily & Maddie)
2.  Getting to go and search for rocks/shells on the beach (Caleb, Emily & Maddie)
3.  Fish-n-chips dinner (Tim & Kerry)
4.  Seeing the kids collection from the beach upon returning from work (Tim)
5.  Eating ice cream from the sweet shop beneath our apartment (Maddie)

Low
1.  Not having a bucket and shovel while at the beach to aid in the search for rocks/shells (Emily)
2.  Not getting a taxi from the train station and having to trek almost a mile to our lodging dragging along 5 suitcases and 3 kids (Tim & Kerry)
3.  Not getting a football (soccer ball) (Caleb)

So, this morning we hopped on a train from Edinburgh and traveled north along the coast up to a seaside town called Stonehaven.  With suitcases and kids in tow, we disembark the train and start walking.  Tim places a call to at least 4 different taxi companies in the area and no one can come and pick us up for at least 30 minutes.  Seeing as we were standing on a sidewalk near a busy street, waiting didn't seem to be a viable option.  Imagine the sight - a family of 5 dragging 5 rolling bags with 5 backpacks hiking down the road in pursuit of lodging.  I feel confident we were the topic of quite a few dinner conversations this evening in Stonehaven!  Thankfully we made it, but it was almost a mile walk so you can imagine what kind of a mood the kids were in by the time we arrived.  Once we walked into our lodging for the week, all our efforts were worth it.  For the next 5 days and 4 nights we are living in an apartment above a sweet shop that looks out onto the North Sea.  The views are breathtaking (pictures later this week) and the accomodations are so much better than the place we stayed in Edinburgh.  Once settled, Tim went to work and the kids and I visited the sweet shop downstairs.  They serve a salted carmel ice cream that is to die for!!!  With treats in hand, we went to a nearby playground that, as you can see from above, the kids loved.  They also had the opportunity to play along the shore and came home with quite a collection of rocks and shells.  It was a joy to watch them receive such pleasure from such a simple activity.  As if the apartment and the ice cream weren't enough, we are literally right next door to a place that has been rated as the best fish-n-chips shop in all the UK.  After having it for dinner, I can see why it has received such an honor...fresh breaded haddock with homemade tarter sauce...delicious!  This place has all the makings to help us experience an unforgettable week of fabulous food and fun - heaven help our waistlines!

Father's Day in Edinburgh

We had a very casual Father's Day celebration this year.  Tim was fortunate enough to receive Starbucks "in bed" and after a casual stroll through the Royal Botanical Gardens, he spent some quality time with his mates John and Andy at a fabulous pub called The Hanging Bat in Edinburgh.  It was extra special for both of us because Alicia, Alex, and Abi took our children to a restaurant called Nando's while the adults had some time to themselves.  Caleb, Emily, and Maddie truly enjoyed hanging with these guys and it was a treat to watch them having so much fun with the big kids.  All in all, a pleasurable day until around 10pm when it was time for bed.  We are still struggling with bedtime,  adults included.  It seems for Emily and Maddie bedtime is when the desire for home really kicks in and there are quite a few tears shed during this time of day.  For the rest of us, it just seems we can't get to sleep.  Jet lag or incredibly uncomfortable beds?  Whatever the reason, it sure would be nice for it to change soon!  

Caleb's 1st Entry

  There have been ups and downs about my trip so far.  When we were in our taxi, Big Ben and the London Eye did not seem that exciting to see in person .  I was disappointed because it wasn't as exciting as I thought it would be.  It has been travel travel travel the first three days and nights.  Get out one place, get in another, and then do it again.  It is going to take a while for me to get used to the hotel life.  Edinburgh was the coolest place ever.  We got to see a castle and meet my Dads' co-workers' son and daughters.  Their names were Alex, Alicia, and Abi.  They were pretty awesome kids to play with.  This trip has been amazing and I can't wait to see what things happen next.

                                                                      TO BE CONTINUED!!!!

Emily's Exciting Event

I lost my tooth!  When I lost my tooth I felt very surprised.  When I was in my hotel in Edinburgh, Scotland I was eating a potato chip and when I took the first bite my tooth fell out.  It hurt a ton and bled a little bit.  It was exciting.  I looked in the mirror.  It was shocking!

High-Low from Edinburgh Day 1

High
1.  Seeing an historical castle (Caleb)
2.  Enjoying a fancy dinner at Hotel du Vin (Emily & Maddie)
3.  Having a French crepe made by Scottish folks (Caleb)
4.  The vortex and mirror maze at Camera Obscura (Caleb)
5.  Watching our kids enjoy time with John and Andy's kids (Tim)
6.  Seeing Margaret's Chapel at Edinburgh Castle (Tim)
7.  Experiencing Camera Obscura and how amazing it was to have such a creation in 1850 (Kerry)

Low
1.  Not getting to have fish-n-chips (Emily)
2.  Falling on the rocks and scraping my cheek (Maddie)
3.  Being somewhat contained and not being able to run around like a crazy person (Caleb)
4.  Inability to sleep (Tim & Kerry)

The castle was quite impressive.  To see a building that had begun construction roughly 1,000 years ago and to imagine how many people have passed through its gates, depended on its presence, the rich history it possesses...we just don't have anything like that in America.  Camera Obscura, on the other hand, was like a museum of illusions.  It was a great deal of fun looking at all the pictures and displays that tricked your mind and challenged your perceptions.  The day was a wonderful balance of experiencing history and culture and enjoying a carefree time in a place of amusement.  The day ended with a fancy dinner in a beautiful restaurant and once again, the kids did great.  We have yet to find anything that they absoutely love to eat here, other than bread and "chips", but they behaved themselves so well it is hard to give them a difficult time about their food choices.
I'd like to say Happy Father's Day to Ron, Kevin Ryan, Jeremy, Kevin Cole and all the rest of you dads out there who work so hard and give so much to each of your families.  We love you all and hope you have a special day of celebrating you!

Edinburgh - Day 2

I spoke too soon.  I knew it was too good to be true.  Just yesterday evening, right before bed, I was writing about how great the jet lag had been for the kids sleeping.  Wouldn't you know it came back to bite me just an hour after my fingers finished typing!  Caleb and Emily could not fall asleep last night, which meant Tim and I could not fall asleep.  It was a sporadic night of rest to be sure and even now, at 11:30pm, I am staring into the eyes of all three of my kids because sleep evades them.  They do pretty well during the day, although there are a few episodes of exhaustion, but those don't occurr at any time or location we can take advantage of them.  We muscle through the day, eat dinner entirely too late (which is actually normal dinner time for most folks) and then catch our second wind when we are all trying to wind down for sleep at 10 or 11 o'clock.  Hopefully things will balance out in a day or two!
We had an exciting day in Edinburgh, visiting the Edinburgh Castle and Camera Obscura.  It was highlighted by the fact we were joined by two colleagues of Tim's: John, his wife, Julie, their two kids, Andy and his daughter.  Caleb, Emily, and Maddie had a fabulous time hanging out with older kids and really seemed to appreciate not being stuck with just their parents for company.  I didn't have much of a chance to inquire of the kids about their "high-low" today or to get much of a reflection from them so for now I'll just end this post by wishing all the dads out there an early Happy Father's Day!

P.S.  Hopefully we'll have some pictures coming soon!

Newcastle to Edinburgh

As we were sitting at dinner tonight, Tim began recalling all the travel we have done in the past three days.  And even though I have been there for each and every mile, it wasn't until I heard him say it out loud that I stopped to consider just how far we have come.  On Tuesday we boarded a flight that took us almost 5,000 miles to London.  We spent one night there, woke up and traveled 300 miles on a train to Newcastle.  One night there and we were on a train once again today to travel 120 miles up the coast to Edinburgh.  We will have slept in 4 different locations in 4 days time and for all the motion and mayhem, the kids have (for the most part) kept it together.  I will say, a very positive by-product of all this has been the kids and their ability to sleep-in each morning (yes, even Caleb!).  I actually had to wake each of them up at 9:45am this morning!  Who knew jet lag could be so beneficial?
My plan is to have Caleb write an entry soon so you can get our experience from a kid's point of view so be looking for that in a day or two.  For now, I'll just say Newcastle was lovely and the kids and I did a pretty good job of keeping ourselves busy while Tim was at work.  We visited a children's book museum this morning called Seven Stories, which would have been even better if we would have had a bit longer to linger.  As it was, we had to meet up with Tim and then all of us traveled to Tynemouth right on the coast to enjoy our first experience of fish-n-chips.  Quite yummy but for as excited as Maddie was to partake, she ate very little.  (As a side note, my kids have not had a piece of fruit since we left London..ugh!)  We enjoyed a pleasant train ride up into Edinburgh, checked-in to the hotel, ate some dinner, and are now tucked in bed ready for some much needed rest.  Again, a good day for us.  Happy to have Tim with us for a few days and in the same hotel room for more than one night.  Hope all is well back home.  Cheers y'all!

Newcastle

We got up this morning in London (Caleb & Emily refused to wake up) and hopped aboard a train to Newcastle.  We got our first taste of train travel with 3 kids and 5 rolling suitcases - thankfully the suitcases are what caused us the most difficulty.  Other than Maddie really struggling because she has yet to eat her fish-n-chips meal, all three kids have done incredibly well.  I am quite proud of each of them for their attitudes and willingness to just try and make it work.
Upon our arrival at Newcastle, we checked into our aparthotel (truly what it is called) and were so thankful to see there were two bedrooms and a washer/dryer available.  After all of us were in one small hotel room last night, it is a relief to have a separate place for the kids to call their own.  Never thought I would feel like a two bedroom apartment was so spacious!
Tim headed to the office and the kids and I walked to a small Italian restaurant for some lunch.  Afterwards, we hopped on the Metro (subway train) and went to a place called Eldon Square, which was just a really big shopping area.  We wandered around there for a bit and ended up at an art museum.  We decided to go in and have a look; while all-around it was a positive experience, I confess I had not really considered before the typical subjects for most art - the human body and death.  These are two things that artists typically render rather graphically and walking through a gallery with my almost 9 year old son viewing paintings of naked women was not exactly my idea of a productive afternoon.  We made it through (thankfully with no comments or questions) and came back "home" (as Maddie calls it).  Tim came back from work and we all went out to dinner with a number of Tim's colleagues.
It's now 10pm and it is still light outside (almost like it would look around 8pm back in Denver).  Everyone is tired and ready for sleep, even though it doesn't seem like bedtime when you look outside.  All in all, I think we had a fun time in Newcastle.  We're going to try and see a children's bookstore tomorrow morning called Seven Stories and then it is back on a train to Edinborugh, Scottland.  So far, so good!  Hope we can keep this up!

London

We've made it safely and I have to say the kids did magnificent on the plane ride over here.  They actually slept a little and enjoyed the limitless in-flight entertainment that was available to them.  Such a sense of relief to be on the ground, though.
I think one of the best ways to remember our trip is to share our high-low as often as possible.  High-low is something we do around the dinner table to check-in with each family member to see what was the best part of their day and what was the worst.  Our high-lows for our first day in this journey would be:
Highs
1.  Arriving safely
2.  Getting to see Big Ben
3.  Riding the London Eye
4.  First experience with "chips"
5.  Taking a nap in the hotel
6.  Listening to Maddie sing "Go Tell It On the Mountain" while walking through the streets of downtown London
7.  The old gentleman in the Lord Nelson pub who was kind enough to give us his table and then kept shaking our hands and hugging us throughout the rest of the meal

Lows
1.  Having to wait a few hours for our hotel room to be ready while literally falling asleep in a booth in the hotel's restaurant
2.  Walking to dinner in the wind and rain (we'll just have to get used to this)
3.  Sitting down to dinner only to realize the English Pub we have chosen does not serve fish-n-chips and the only buns they have for burgers are made with cornflour

All in all, I say a very good day, especially since it is almost 9pm and the kids are still laughing!

HERE WE GO!

Here we are checking-in at the Houston airport about to depart for London.  Please notice the two suitcases in front of the kids - all of their belongings for the next 5 weeks are contained in those two tiny pieces of luggage.  What can I say?  I am a master packer! (and not in any way related to my mother in this regard...I shutter to think of how big her suitcase will be when she meets us in London in July!)  Word to the wise, however, Ziploc travel bags don't work that great.  I bought 8 of them to help with the packing and I wasn't all that impressed.  I wouldn't waste the money on them.
With electronics charged, snack-bags overflowing, and Dramamine in my pocket, I think we are as ready as we'll ever be for this journey.  Our plane departs at 6:45pm CST and we will arrive in London at 9:40am UK time (which will be around 3:40am CST).  Curious to see just how well the kids transition - hope the excitement of being in a new country will last a while- it has to because they are too young for espresso!
When asked what they are most excited about, here are the responses the kids gave:
Caleb - "Seeing Big Ben"
Emily - "Eating in a British pub and having fish-n-chips"
Madelyn - "Riding the London Eye"
Tim - "Sharing the UK with my family"
Kerry - "Making it through this adventure without killing each other!"
So, wish us well.  Cheers everyone!

DELAYED ALREADY!

What a way to start our trip!  We show up at DIA headed to Houston to visit family for a mere 48 hours before we hop on our flight to London on Tuesday and we are informed our flight has been delayed 3 hours.  We are now hanging in the President's Club, consuming our treats that were meant for the plane and sharing electronics that were also intended to entertain the kids while ON the plane, not waiting for the plane to depart.
Even better, as we are getting settled in to our "hang-out" for the next few hours, Tim's name is announced over the speaker.  He is needed at the front desk.  As a result of his standing as a person who flys all the time (United considers him to be pretty important), an airline representative wanted to contact him to let us know there is a good possibility our flight will be cancelled all together.  She is currently working to book us on another flight to Houston that will depart at 5:40pm (it is now 2:15pm).  One of those times I am very grateful for a "world-traveler" in the family!
So, my hope is that this will not be indicitive of what we have to expect over the next 5 weeks.  I understand travel is hard and you have to go with the flow, but let's be honest folks, not the best start to our journey.  Thankfully the kids haven't complained, but we are still early in the waiting process.
Let's cross our fingers and hope for the best!  Blue Moon, take me away!

THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS
It is six days before we leave for our trip.  I wish I could say I was ready, but let's be honest, is there any possible way to be "ready" for something like this?  Just trying to pack has proven to be a challenge, because while it is summer, the weather in the UK doesn't coincide with our notion of summer.  I feel ridiculous packing pants and long-sleeves but the average temperature in June doesn't get above 65 degrees where we are headed.  So, if I can somehow retrain my brain to think that summer doesn't equal shorts and tank tops, I could make good progress on filling our suitcases.
The to-do list is long, not only to prepare us for departure, but to also prepare our home for its temporary residents.  Fortunately, we have a family coming to stay here while we are away which is wonderful but has also caused me to view my home through a different set of eyes.  While I personally don't care that my refrigerator has sticky solidified liquid trailing down the inside wall or that my laundry room has enough dust and lent on the floor to knit a sweater, I am embarrassed to allow someone else to see the filth in which we normally reside.  A normal, wipe-down-the-top-layer-of-nastiness isn't going to cut it this time around.  I suppose this is what "spring cleaning" means for ordinary, hygienic people - not a ritual I participate in typically but am beginning to see the benefits of with each passing day.
With that being said, I should really get to work.  The clock is ticking and I can hear my tupperware cabinet screaming to be organized!  Cheers!