Across the Pond...: Our Lovely English Summer

Tomorrow, we are off to California for most of August. But before we leave, I wanted to recap the last couple of weeks since school broke up for summer...

The weather has been warm. Time with friends has been plentiful. We've had some lovely little adventures.

Whereas last July I was dying to get to California, this year it doesn't feel quite so urgent. Not that I am not desperate to see our family and friends, but I think I will miss our lazy days and our balmy summer evenings...

School finished up on Friday the 12th of July. That Saturday evening, we enjoyed a wonderful dinner out on the patio of a restaurant in Cookham with our friends Stuart and Louise. Sunday was warm enough for the kids to set-up a fun lemonade stand in our front yard. We had invited our neighbors ahead of time and had quite a few people turn up and pass the afternoon in patio chairs on the green.

The next day, the Andersons arrived. We all loved having a full house and spending quality time with them. When they left just a few days later, Lane was in tears over the silence in the house.

With John that weekend, we all ventured to Cliveden and Hever Castle, and then spent another afternoon on our green for the annual Cadogan Close potluck BBQ. Lovely.

Last week included playdates and sleepovers with friends from school. I realized how nice it is for Lane and Ryan to spend time with their friends, and how hard it is to find that time during the jam-packed school terms.

After a thorough clean-out this last weekend, we started packing for our trip! On Saturday afternoon, though, we snuck into London for one last little adventure - a visit to Kew Gardens followed by a family dinner at Santa Maria (a truly authentic Italian pizzeria in Ealing). You know how sometimes you get the perfect table and it just makes the meal all the better? Yep, that happened to us.

The last couple of days have been lazy, chilly and rainy. If it clears enough, the kids and I may make one last trek to the Holyport Green to feed the ducks before we begin our highly-anticipated trip to the States tomorrow! (The kids are literally about to burst with excitement! If you are reading this, you can pray that they hold it together at Heathrow and for 11+ hours on the plane!)