Longing for a little sunshine...

My View Today

It's raining today... again.  And I've got a boy home sick... again.  And I think that this California girl is craving a little sunshine.

It struck me the other day that it's been a long winter.  In fact, when you consider that England saw its worst summer in years... it's been a really long grey spell.  (Although I am grateful that we all had some lovely sunny days in the States in August, that sure feels like a long time ago!)

A few weeks ago, I hit a wall... I looked ahead at our travel plans and thought, "Why the heck are we planning to go to Germany in March?!"  So I made a reservation on the beach in Greece instead.  It won't be beach weather yet in March, but it should be warmer than here!  (If the kids can play in the sand while I sit on a chair in jeans and a sweatshirt to read a book, I'll be happy!)

Then cabin fever hit last week and Greece couldn't come soon enough.  So, we are going to Barcelona for a few days in February.  (Again, it won't be beach weather there either, but we have a much better chance of seeing the sun shine.)  This was not in the original travel "plan" for 2013, but desperate times call for desperate measures...

You see, I think my batteries need recharging.  I don't mind the sweaters and scarves (and have loved the excuse to acquire quite a collection of them), but my days need a little brightening.  My skin needs to feel the kiss of the sun.  My mood needs a little lift from some light.  And while I am thankful that "The Lord is God, and he has made his light shine on us." (Psalm 118), I wouldn't mind if He would bring out Mr. Sun for a little visit...

Our Snowy Weekend

With temperatures hovering around zero and a blanket of white right outside our back door... this weekend was about snowmen, snow forts and snowballs!  (I have to say that a major improvement over last year is our gear!  With snow pants, wool socks and waterproof gloves, the kids played outside for hours without complaining of the cold!) 

Ryan went to work in the backyard building his snowman and snow fort.

Lane rolling up the icy snow on Sunday.

Snow Day

Today we had some serious snow!  It was enough that we had to pick the kids up early from school, and then it took John over an hour to get home!  There is an absolutely beautiful blanket of white outside.  Looks like we won't be going too far this weekend...

   

One Year

I love the start of a new year. After Christmas is packed away, I love cleaning up and clearing out, getting a fresh start and looking forward to what lies ahead.

Today was the day that we readied our house for 2013. We threw out broken bits of toys and made a little pile of things to pass on to others.  We tidied the playroom and cleared out the last stray holiday decorations.  And then, after I ran to the local shops (and was once again happy to discover that they had all the random things I needed - including aluminum pans and freshly baked bread), we enjoyed another walking adventure in Holyport.

We have been in England for just over one year now.  I gave myself a six month window to get "settled in" here, so I didn't think there would be more to do at this point. But it was fun today to hang a few new things (like this piece that John gave me for Christmas) and rearrange some old things in what has become our home.

Our NINE-Year-Old

Wow... we have a nine-year-old.  It's a little hard to believe.  But I do believe it... I can see her growing up every day. 

This year, she celebrated with a Monster High sleepover with just three friends - sweet girls - and they had a great time.  They played with their dolls, had dinner together, played a couple of fun games (Pin the Lips on Frankie, Guess the Sweets and Pass the Parcel), watched Monster High movies and talked until... well, talked until later than I expected.  (The last one fell at 11pm.)  In the morning, we all went to church together and ended the party with McDonald's Happy Meals. 

MH Swag

Playing with the MH High School

John borrowed these from work and we used them around the house!

"Pin" the Lips on Frankie

The girls were very good about letting Ryan join in!

How many sweets are in the jar???

Birthday Girl!

Very serious about making her birthday wish...

The Morning After

Lane - 9 Years Old

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Wow... What a fun-filled Christmastide we had!  With all of the Ludwigs arriving on Christmas Day, we were all set for a week of adventures!  We explored Salisbury, Windsor Castle and London... taking the kids to monuments and museums, pantos and playgrounds.  Here is a peek at our twelve days of Christmas in pictures...

Day 1 - The cousins arrived on Christmas Day!

Day 2 - We gave everyone a taste of some real British weather when we stopped to see Stonehenge.

Day 3 - We took a tour of the local royal residence in Windsor.

Day 4 - We opted for a quiet day with scones and tea at home.

Day 5 - We all headed into London to see the sights!

Day 6 - The kids treated us to a talent show (then the adults escaped for a dinner out).

Day 7 - The girls all went to tea and a traditional British panto (Peter Pan).

Day 8 - We went walking in Holyport and the kids did a little puddle-jumping along the way.

Day 9 - It was time to say good-bye after a wonderful visit.

Day 10 - We needed to clean the house and prep for Lane's Monster High sleepover!

Day 11 - We took down the tree and decorations.

Day 12 - We enjoyed an adventure  walk in Bracknell before Lane's birthday celebration.

Happy New Year!

Really, is it already 2013?  All of the fun activities of December and having a full house have left me a little behind of blogging about this beautiful season...

As is tradition in our family, Christmas began right after Thanksgiving.  On that Friday, I had the privilege of organizing a special Christmas coffee morning for my friends.  I was able to share some songs and treats and, hopefully, a time to prepare hearts and minds for Christmas.  About 50 ladies showed up in the back room at Jubilee from St. Piran's, my Thursday morning coffee group (Las Chicas del Cafecito) and church.  Despite struggling with my voice for the weeks leading up to the event, God was good and we had a beautiful time together.  

After my birthday in New York (which included a little bit of Christmas fun with a visit to the see the tree at Rockefeller Center) and our family trip to Lapland, we came home to England - which was covered with a beautiful layer of frost.

The kids had lots of fun activities at school in December, including the Christmas Fair (where Ryan was obsessed with the tombola - a sort of raffle for goody bags), a Christmas lunch for Lane (which she claimed was a Thanksgiving meal!) and a field trip to a panto for Ryan.  We enjoyed the kids’ carol service at St. Piran’s, our own carol service at Jubilee and a wonderful evening of Christmas music with our friends at River Church as well.

After our quiet Christmas Eve together eating our traditional homemade pizza and watching It’s a Wonderful Life, the kids went to bed and the parents got to work.  (Little did we know that the instructions for the drum set from Nana would be in German!)  And then, on Christmas Day, our best present arrived… the cousins!  We had a wonderful week together, but I’ll share more about that later… Right now, I have a desk to clean off!

Christmas Coffee Morning

Winter Arriving in Holyport

Christmas Cookie Baking with Lane's friend, Ella

Christmas Eve - Yikes!