New Home, New Year

I hope everyone is enjoying their last day of 2013--I know I am! So far, I've gotten up at the crack of dawn to beat the rush of people heading to Waitrose for last minute food, bought really expensive blueberries, attempted to bake (and burn) a Paleo Blueberry Crumble, ate 6 sausages, and found two seconds to write this before heading up to get ready for our New Year's gathering with some friends. What a day!

I know everyone tries to lose weight at the start if the new year, but my attempt at the Paleo way of life is a bit more involved (and hopefully long-term!). Cutting out preservatives, gluten, etc. seems to have quite a positive impact on the human body! I'm definitely not trying to be crazy about it, but I'll give it my best shot! Here's to a new year of less migraines and more shiny hair!

We started ordering a weekly box of organic veggies from a company called "Abel & Cole" this week. 

Here's what got delivered:

They were the only ones who seemed to sell spaghetti squash, which I love...and apparently so does Stegen!

We also ordered some grass-fed meats from them--their unconventional cold-packing techniques were interesting...and the aroma was a little too special!

Well, it looks like my two minutes is up. Have a safe New Year's Eve, everyone! Cheers to a happy and healthy 2014!

Christmas in Henley

We hope everyone back home had a wonderful Christmas (and if you don't celebrate, we hope you enjoyed your day off anyway!). Father Christmas made it to our house and must've used his magic key, since our fireplace is (shh!) electric. We had a nice morning of opening presents and around noon, we headed out to a charming pub around the corner from the house called The Bull on Bell. 

We met up with fellow "North Americans" and Brits married to North Americans and had a nice gathering. Here are the kids, some a little too Christmas wasted, but all successfully facing the camera!

Since I didn't want to show off my mad cooking skills (ha!), we went to a store in town called "Cook" where they freshly cook amazing meals and flash freeze them for you to take home and try to pass off as your own cooking! For Christmas Day and Boxing Day dinner, we went for a nice beef Wellington. Stegen really enjoyed himself!

Today we took a stroll up the hill to the other side of Henley and had lunch with one of the families from school. After a full day there, we followed Henley Christmas tradition and went to see this year's pantomime of Alladin, at the Kenton Theatre near our house. 

I guess I should've looked up what a pantomime was before sitting down to enjoy what I thought would be a nice musical of the Disney Classic. Instead, we were surprised with some strange song choices (Bad to the Bone), inappropriate jokes, and a verrrrrry loose Alladin story line. This version takes place in Peking, China (seriously), and the princess has a group of girlfriends, each with names that made my eyes bulge: Sushi, Karaoke, Origami, and (get this) Feng Shui. Oh, British humor.

Bad jokes aside, the kids had a great time. Thank you to everyone who sent us Christmas cards--we have them up in the kitchen and love seeing them everyday. Aunt Jennifer, if you're reading this, we got yours in the mail safe and sound! The mail notice wasn't for your card. Merry Christmas again and a very Happy New Year next week!

Drinking With the Kids

The last few days leading up to the end of the school term were cuh-ray-zee. Thank goodness that's over! Audrey's school nativity play and completion of the Mayor's house painting project landed her in the Henley Standard newspaper! What a fun souvenir to take home when we leave Henley. Here she is:

The last day of school ended at 1pm for Audrey and we (me, Audrey, and Dorian) ran home, changed, and ran again to the train station to catch the 2pm train to Maidenhead for another birthday party. We barely made the train, but after the most hectic journey of narrowly missing another train in Twyford for the connection, we made it in one piece. Here's Audrey with the birthday boy and her other boy (space) friends:

We met Stegen after the party and went to grab a quick bite to eat. Little did we know, Pizza Hut in the UK isn't a quick pizza joint--it's a full-service restaurant! It's just a shame that their pizza still tastes awful!

Two course meal at Pizza Hut...?

 Anyway, these last few days have been the coldest that I've experienced since the move. The crazy wind and rain storm that we've been dealing with today really didn't do much for my hair, but it was okay for my bones. Last Friday's "calm" frost was a different story--it hurt! The cold went down so deep that I felt my body go into survival mode...basically, all of my energy went to maintaining body warmth and all brain function was lost. When brain function returned, I realized that I seriously need some new shoes with triple fur lining and major traction--"ice-skating" to school is dangerous!

 
 When we were back in the bay area, I encountered quite a bit of clique problems--people had their groups of friends and there was this weird need to exclude. Maybe keeping people out made their circle of friends more exclusive, or maybe it just kept things predictable. Whatever it was, it was dumb. Anyway, I can't speak for the rest of England, but I will say that the people that we've met in Henley truly believe in "the more, the merrier." We've been invited to the local brewery with several families this past weekend, Christmas Eve with a Swedish family, lunch after boxing day, and a "North American mid-day drink" at the pub around the corner for Christmas Day. 

That being said, being with these new friends makes me miss the really good friends that Stegen and I made back home. One of those friends sent us a card, but it couldn't be delivered! 

Oops! We'll be taking care of the extra postage online so that we can figure out whose card we're missing. How strange that USPS allowed it to even go through and make it all the way to England without the right postage!

Anyway, I hope everyone is ready for Christmas! We love you all.

 
(Side note about pubs and breweries here: everyone brings their kids and "grabbing a drink" is a 5 hour family affair! I might just be able to have more than one alcoholic drink when I come back to the states...without turning beet red and passing out!)
 

The Alpha Mum Problem

So before we moved to England, I read a book set in the UK about a group of "mums" and the woes of one of the "slummy mummies." In the book, there are detailed descriptions of one of the mums in particular--the "Alpha Mum", perfect, rude, and suffering from a major stick up her arse!

Well, unfortunately, the "Alpha Mum" is real--we have one at Badgemore! And even more unfortunate, her kids are in the same classes as Audrey and Dorian. I've literally said hello every morning since we've moved here and this lady cannot be bothered to glance my way! Well, that is until she needs me to donate money to whatever silly event she and her minions have come up with. Sorry, Alpha Mum, this Yankee Mum won't be playing your game!

Anyway, aside from the "Alpha Mum" problem, we've had a beautiful week of pouring rain in Henley. I met another mom for a walk along the river today and had lunch at a pub. My lunch special came with chips, coleslaw...and a beer! I'm not a drinker, but the English drinking habits might just make me one before we move home!

Audrey is finishing out her last week at school before their term break. I was watching a video that we took of her reading skills in July--goodness, she's grown leaps and bounds as a reader! Tonight, she sat on my lap and read me "The Little Old Woman Who Was Not Afraid Of Anything" with perfect fluency and just the right inflection! I am more than amazed. Here she is in her very first school photo in the UK:

We've been invited to several family pub outings on Christmas Eve and Christmas day. It's so strange! Back home, it seemed like everyone celebrated holidays with their families and extended families, but because so many families here have moved away from their families in various other countries, people tend to celebrate with friends--another family of sorts! It's exciting to start a new tradition...and even more exciting to wake up on Christmas day in our own house for the first time!

 

Do We Really Live Here?

We've been in England for over 2 months now...crazy! When I wake up in the mornings, it still takes a moment for me to remember that we're not "home" anymore. Then we walk into town and along the river and I have to ask myself again, "Do we REALLY live here now?!" Even overcast and rainy, this town makes me smile.

We made our way to the Henley Cricket Club (right across the Henley bridge) for the first birthday party of the weekend. It was lots of fun for the kids and Stegen and I managed to make a few adult dates too! 

As we left the party, we took a little walk along the other side of the river (away from the rowing museum) and got to see some rowers at work. There's no crossfit gym here...maybe I just need to join the rowing team?

Stegen also found a house that he loves...with a tiny door!

Today's birthday party turned out to be geared towards the little guys, so Stegen took off with Dorian by train and Audrey and I went around town for the "Henley-on-Christmas" scavenger hunt. 

On our way home (in the rain), we randomly came upon a group of people caroling in the maketplace. 

Well, our weekend came and went in a flash, but I feel good knowing we spent it making friends and getting to know the town. Tomorrow is Dorian's Christmas performance...apparently his Christmas Classic goes something like this: "We wish you a merry Christmas tree, we wish you a merry Christmas tree, we wish you a merry Christmas tree, and a happy new YOU!"

We've Got Mail

We got our first piece of mail in Henley all the way from the US today! My aunt, Tyler, and baby Max showed up at our door and brightened our day. Thank you for thinking of us, Lamb family! We miss you guys.

After spending most of the day on the phone trying to negotiate gas and electric prices (so weird!), I got to spend a good amount of time chatting with our good friend Sandi on Skype. Not that Sandi is "improper" in any way whatsoever, but our easy conversation was a reminder that I have yet to find a relationship similar to it over here in the UK...everyone is so...proper! It felt good being loud and dramatic, laugh with my mouth wide open, and say things like "heck" and "seriously?!" I love you, Sandi--seriously!!

Well, we won't be traveling anywhere this weekend, but it's for a good reason--Audrey's been invited to two birthday parties! I usually wouldn't be this excited about a weekend filled with sugared-up kids, but I'm happy for Audrey to build relationships and for Stegen and I to work on some too. I've had quite a few "mum dates" so far and some more scheduled for the new year--hopefully I don't let my cackle slip!

Gospel Angel

It's been quite a busy week in Henley--GG and Grandpa left on Monday after spending an awesome three and a half weeks with us. It was a sad morning for all of us, but Audrey took it the hardest. Here's a shot of the family right before the taxi whisked my in-laws off to Heathrow:

Today, Audrey had her "Hey Ewe" nativity musical at school. The kids in Reception (4 year olds), Year 1, and Year 2 have been rehearsing non-stop for the last 2 weeks--and it all paid off! I got to attend the 2pm show and Stegen made it out to the 6pm show to see Audrey perform as one of the Gospel Angels. 

One of the things I love about living here is meeting people who have relocated to England from all over the world. I've met moms from Sweden, Germany, Romania, Argentina, and even California! The little girl that Audrey is hugging was born and raised in Marin. Her mom is British, but lived in California for 13 years. They recently moved back to the UK and Audrey is excited to have a friend who "talks the same way!"

It's been extremely cold and foggy here in Henley the last few days. It's also getting lighter later and darker much earlier--exactly what Paul said would happen! The cold and the shortened hours of daylight sure won't be helping my gas and electric bills…we got our first one today and it was a whopping $500!! This obscene bill may explain why so many people choose to line dry their clothes rather than tumble dry them for 3 hours at a time. Well, that settles it--I'll be spending my days by the River Thames, doing our laundry the old-fashioned way! Speaking of the river, Dorian and I took a walk to the River and Rowing Museum on Tuesday…this view takes my breath away every time.

I'll end with a funny tidbit that I've been meaning to share here (mainly so I won't forget about it in a few years!). The currency here is GBP or £ (pounds) and cents are called "pence". Just as we sometimes say "bucks" (as in "that costs 5 bucks"), the Brits use "quid" as slang for "pounds" (as in "what the…my energy bill was 500 quid!!!"). Anyway, while playing "store" with Audrey one day, I went to check out at the "till" and was told that my total was 98 "squid".  First of all, what in the world did I buy?! And second of all, what in the world is a "squid"?! You say quid, I say squid…tomato, tomahto!

Henley-On-Christmas

Tonight, Henley shut down its streets for its annual night shopping and festival event. The crew started early in the day to get things in place for the night's festivities.

There were carnival rides in the town centre and down the side streets, mince pies and mulled wine at every booth, and familiar faces everywhere--it was like going to the Fremont Art & Wine Festival without having to call anyone to meet up! I volunteered at the Badgemore booth later on in the evening to help break things down and Stegen took the kids to one of Audrey's teacher's house on the main drag for an impromptu dad and kid playdate. I think we may have kept the kids out a little too late...?

Yesterday, Stegen got to take the train out to London after work and meet up with our friend, Chao, who was on the tail-end of his European vacation. Chao is officially our first friend to visit us in our new home country! Here are the guys having dinner at a pub and checking out Big Ben...again:

Our awesome friends sent over a little package with Chao and really made us miss home--thanks again for the shirt, Bill! Will and Anne, you definitely make life twice as good...we miss you both!

Speaking of awesome people, our landlords strike again! When Peter and Louise were over fixing the fence on Wednesday, Louise and I began chatting about Christmas and all of our preparations. We got onto the topic of Christmas trees--specifically about where to get one and how to huff it home since we still don't have a car. She had been under the impression that we had recently purchased a car, but when she found out that we were still carless, she immediately dropped everything and drove me to the beautiful Toad Hall Christmas Nursery, helped me pick a tree, and stayed until we found the perfect spot for it to surprise the kids. If I were in a Disney movie, Peter and Louise would definitely be our fairy godparents! Here's our little tree in the conservatory:

I think there might be more to say about the happenings of this week, but the mulled wine (which I've realized I'm not a fan of) and the exhaustion are making the words swim on this page. As I type this in the "warmth" of our house, my fingers are freezing and I'm pretty sure I can see my breath in front of me...and according to the folks of Henley, it's not even cold yet!

Henley's Living Advent Calendar

I realized something today--I never want to leave Henley. The people are kind, the town is charming, and everything is just a short walk away. Even better, Henley hosts its very own "Living Advent Calendar" every year! Starting December 1st, a real door in Henley is opened each night, revealing a special performance treat and counting down one day closer to Christmas. We missed last night's big reveal because we got home late from London, but the kids and I were able to walk out and meet Stegen at the Henley Fire Station (Door #2) tonight. About 40 people gathered around to watch as door number two opened and the firefighters of Henley performed a comedic rescue to pull Santa out of a tight chimney. 

The best thing about living in a small town is running into people you know just about everywhere.  We got to chat with some of the school governors and discovered that we've been walking right by their front door almost everyday. People walked around serving sausage rolls and mini mince pies (delicious!), and Santa even met with the kids afterwards to pass out presents from his bag. Here are Dorian and Audrey with one of the firefighters:

What was in the package? Children's books about fire safety!

 Aside from waiting anxiously for the our first living advent experience, Audrey had a great day at school while Dorian and I tried to figure out the healthcare system. Back home, depending on which insurance provider you had, you were likely given a list of "in-network" doctors to choose from. Within the network, you could choose a pediatrician for the kids and you'd more than likely (well, hopefully) get an appointment either right away or within a couple of days. 

Here, the process is a little different. There is no dedicated pediatrician, but rather, you register at a surgery center (sounds scary), and a General Practitioner (GP) is assigned to the entire family. You're usually given an appointment to see your GP about a week out. There are two surgery centers in Henley and strangely, they're situated with their front doors facing each other. Dorian and I visited both and decided to go with The Bell Surgery Center--hopefully we'll never actually have to have "surgery" there!

If you'd like to follow along with our Henley-on-Thames Living Advent Calendar adventures, you can check out the full program here!

O.M.H!

Oh my Harrods! Harrods is more spectacular than one can imagine from just admiring it on the outside. GG, Audrey and I had a little girl time getting lost their never-ending showrooms--is there anything they don't sell? More importantly, is there anything I can afford to buy?! Here are Audrey and GG in front of Harrods, all decked out for Christmas:

We visited their gift shop to see about getting their reusable trademark green bag, but after seeing the £18 price tag (for a bag!), I decided I could live without it.

Before our Harrods experience, we grabbed the last gate spot at Buckingham Palace and watched the Changing of the Guards Ceremony. It's definitely worth seeing once and if you plan on visiting, I'd recommend you get there around 10:15 (an hour before it starts), in order to get a spot on the gate. Any later and you might not see a thing! It seems like the best spot at the gate is on the right hand side of the main gates--that's where all the action was.

We popped into the House of Fraser, one of the department stores in England. My father-in-law says that you can always get a grasp on how expensive things will be in a country based on how much they charge for Levi's and Dockers...well, I'd say things are pretty dang expensive here! (That's roughly $135!!)

Anyway, GG, Grandpa, Stegen, and the Dude (Dorian) took off to the Tower of London today, while Audrey and I took a nice trip to Oxford Street to do some shopping. 

The streets were over-crowded, but I was with my girl and we somehow managed to switch trains three times without getting lost! Our little family is heading back to Henley tonight while GG and Grandpa stay to explore London for a few more days. Audrey is very excited to get back to school...especially since she's been recognized for settling in so well. 

Night Train

This week flew by! We're currently sitting on a high-speed train to London--it's 8:29pm! We'll be spending two nights at a bed and breakfast with my in-laws and visiting some more of what London has to offer before they head back to California in a little over a week. 

Today was the first day in almost two months that Stegen was able to work from home. His VPN isn't quite set up yet, but he made do on his laptop and got some nice visits from Dorian at his home office.

Audrey has settled so well into school life and has made quite a few little friends. I've met many wonderful "mums" on our morning walks to school and run into them often around Henley town centre--I really enjoy small town living! 

GG has been busy walking into town during the week and getting us ready for Christmas--thank you, Mom! Here are Audrey and Dorian snuggling in the lounge.

 Turkey's are obscenely expensive here, so for Thanksgiving, we cooked up a nice, little chicken instead. The pastry shop in town made a beautiful cake for our celebration. It wasn't pumpkin pie, but it was delicious!

We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

To Be, Or Not To Be...Blogging

I'm starting to get lazy with my blogging...It's a little like my many attempts to maintain a diary--I start strong, lose my way, start a new book, lose steam again, and end up with 5 diaries with an entry each. It's a good thing this blog is on one continuous page!

The last 4 days have been spent settling into the house and getting used to getting the kids ready for school (and hopefully not leave the house late and have to run uphill to Badgemore). Audrey is getting the hang of dressing herself in school uniform in the (freezing cold) mornings and changing into PE clothes (a burgundy Badgemore t-shirt, black bike shorts, and black plimsolls). She will be having her first day of Forest School this Tuesday where the kids change into their outdoor gear (warm trousers, jumpsuit, waterproof jacket, and Wellingtons aka rain boots) and go into the forest on campus to explore and learn. Dorian's preschool is in the process of building an outdoor learning area, which will include an outdoor mud kitchen, reading space, and bug hotel--he'd better get over his fear of spiders soon!

One of the main attractions in Henley-on-Thames--other than its picturesque beauty--is the wonderful River and Rowing Museum. GG, Grandpa, Dorian, and I walked to the museum this week and got to enjoy their beautiful "Wind in the Willows" exhibit, as well as their extensive collection of all things rowing. I'm very excited to experience my first Royal Regatta this summer, as the race takes place right through Henley's expanse of the River Thames. Here's my father-in-law brushing up on his trireme rowing skills:

This weekend, my in-laws rented a car for us to take a leisurely drive to Oxford and Stratford-upon-Avon--Shakespeare's hometown. The kids found another opportunity to play in the red phone booths of England:

In town centre was the home where Shakespeare was born and spent most of his early childhood. Here we are at the entrance to his beautiful home:

The best part of the tour was when Audrey and I unexpectedly walked in on three actors reenacting Romeo and Juliet--Audrey's first encounter with Shakespeare's work and she really enjoyed it. The actors would act out a scene from any Shakespeare play that the visitors asked for...Macbeth was amazing! Here's Audrey taking a picture with them after they completed their Romeo and Juliet scene:

During the tour, we learned that beds were quite a sign of wealth back in Shakespeare's time. A bed would usually cost about £8 and while that doesn't sound like much, learning that their annual pay was roughly £20 really put things into perspective. Because of this, only the rich would have beds in their homes (including William Shakespeare's family) and many would have one at the window of their downstairs living room, to show off to neighbors passing by. Here's a picture of one of the beds in the house:

If you look closely, you'll see that there is a rope coming through the side of the bed frame and also a bit under the mattress. Rather than having wooden or metal slats under the mattress as many modern beds have today, the mattresses of these beds were held up with a weave of ropes. A special wooden stick would be inserted into the holes on the sides of the bed frame and twisted to tighten the ropes and keep the mattress from sagging--hence the term "sleep tight."

As part of the tour ticket, we got to drive a mile out of town to visit Anne Hathaway's home. Anne Hathaway (not the actress) was Shakespeare's wife and lived in a beautiful cottage with her family. 

After touring around her quaint living quarters and freaking out on the thin, creaking floorboards upstairs, we made our way around her massive gardens. Stegen found his favorite quote and sculptures during our walk:

It was a nice weekend of taking in history and I'm hoping Audrey will have a deeper appreciation for Shakespeare when she gets to that unit in high school. For now, she can just enjoy the ride.