Two Months Down

Two months of my time here in London are over and gone. I was thinking about it this morning and was mulling over how sad I will be to leave this place. How dreadful waking up to Provo will be in comparison, and yet, I am so lucky that I was able to spend three months in London. I have had such an amazing past two months. I feel so beyond grateful. I feel undeserving! I didn't think someone should be able to have such a flawless time for so long. My biggest problems are the annoying people in the tube who push and bump into you, or the weekends when the tubes are down and it takes forever to get anywhere. But my goodness, I live in London! And this experience has been so great and informative, pleasantly informative in fact. I love London. 

Last Sunday not a lot happened besides Church. The boys had a Stake priesthood meeting and had to go somewhere else and wouldn't get home until later, so Angus gave Kate and I the keys and we hung out at his place without them, playing guitar and eating fish finger sandwiches.

Monday I ran 3 miles. I shipped a box of sweets to my dear friend Paige. I went through the National Gallery (saw the famous painting of Cardinal Richelieu). I went through TopShop and Uni Qlo looking at clothes for my brother and found clothes for myself... BUT something amazing happened at Uni Qlo. I found a pair of men's trousers that were on sale for £15 or so. And they fit me and I loved them. I figured it was worth it since I have like 3 pairs of trousers here. So when I was checking out and the cashier rung up the trousers, they rung up for only 99p! I got really nice trousers for £1!! Amazing! I was really happy with my decision to get them.

Fat Tuesday. It was Pancake day today. I went over to visit with Hilary around 12.30 and at 2 we decided to head to Portobello Road for pancakes and tea. 

We both looked darling, if I do say so myself, and the pancakes and tea were delicious. They were thinner than our pancakes but not as thin as crepes, and they were wrapped around bacon! So good. We sat there talking for 2 hours. It was so nice. I love the little moments I have to spend with Hilary. How sad that I wont have very many more of them. 

That evening the Ostler's had an extra ticket to see the Minnesota Orchestra play at the Barbican. Leslie, Katherine, Trey and I got a cab. It was fun. On the way I saw the tent for London Fashion Week! Oh la la. 

The orchestra was great. It was such a nice relaxing experience to listen to the music and let my mind wander. It made me miss being in orchestra a little. But on the way home I took the wrong train twice - two times. I ended up in this really dodgy train station in East London and felt very uncomfortable, standing there in my pearls and fine attire. I did finally get the right train home safely. 

I was up until 4a talking to different people online. And a friend from my childhood finally contacted me! We haven't seen each other for 11 years. It will be quite fun to get to know him once again. Amazing how people can live in Redding and never cross paths. It's not that big...

Ash Wednesday. To kick off Lent, Katherine, Kiri and I went to Westminster Abbey for an Ash Wednesday service so we could get into the Abbey for free. We didn't get to see the whole Abbey, but for all the things I see and do, just seeing the Nave was good enough for me. We did see the statue of Sir Isaac Newton featured in The DaVinci Code. Going to mass was an interesting experience. I still remember all the things to do. :) It was a lot of fun. 

Many LDS girls I know here are celebrating Lent. I usually do, just as an excuse to give something up and test my will power. This year I'm giving up meat, and I'm going to try to not indulge myself and eat smaller portions. Kiri is also giving up meat, and I don't think Katherine had decided what to do at this point. 

I was intoxicatedly tired by the end of the evening and could barely stay up past 10. I don't think I should stay up until 4a very often. Though I do love talking to Lauren late at night, it reminds me of last semester. Some of our best conversations have been featured in the wee hours of the morning. 

School is finally getting to be challenging. That is to say, I haven't been doing everything perfectly, but it's becoming more and more difficult. Today we made Chocolate Bavarian sponge cake. I had some troubles with the Bavarian, I didn't cool it properly... And please, I don't want to talk about the chocolate 'ribbon' we were supposed to have made. I couldn't get it, and my chocolate design looks like a pile of kindling... However, it was delicious.
My former French 102 teacher Irene Kim was in town for the evening. I met up with her at Trafalgar square and we went to institute where we socialized until nearly 11p. It was really good to see her. And I really enjoyed hanging out and talking with her. I wanted to let her sleep in my bed, but she took the floor, and I felt like a poor host. But since I had to leave early for school she just took my bed when I left. I don't think she was technically allowed to stay the night, but no one was hurt by her presence and I was happy to give her a place to stay that was free.

On Friday school was difficult again. We made a Strawberry Charlotte cake today. The sponge part was fine, no real troubles there, and the mousse was fine, but I didn't apply the glacage correctly and I was rushed with my piping so it looks messy and unprofessional... I was a little embarrassed by it. Plus I was sous chef and kept forgetting things, and putting things away improperly and I just wanted to leave, but kept having to do something else. ugh. 
To make it all even better, on my way to Paddington station to meet up with David, I was bumped trying to go through the ticket barrier and dropped my cake. Yes. I dropped it. It was still edible, but completely destroyed. I wanted to cry. It was a frustrating ending to a frustrating cake. 

David and I went to Kensington Gardens though, and that place always makes me happy, so I didn't stay frustrated for long. We saw the Peter Pan statue:
I fed pidgeons and a rat some of the scraps of my cake. I wanted to feed the squirrels, but they weren't interested. 
I fed the swans and the geese. They were very interested in my cake.  I was a bit afraid of being bitten, so it made the whole experience a bit more fun. Plus, I looked super cute today. It's an unrelated topic, but it was definitely a plus. As well as the absolutely gorgeous and warm day. I didn't need a jacket until it was dark! 
David and I walked around the gardens until about 7 when we met up with Angus and ate at a Thai Buffet. It was pretty good, definitely only worth the £5 though. Then we all went back to Angus' house for Arrested Development, The Mighty Boosh, and Yes Man. I didn't leave until 2.15a, and the buses were really terrible tonight and I didn't get home until nearly 3.30a! Rubbish. 

Saturday. The Last Day of February. I was going to be lazy today but around 2 I just couldn't take it any more and decided I needed to go for a run. I only have 28 days until I run in Prague! So today I ran the 6 miles to Angus' house, hung out there for about an hour resting, and then I ran the 6 miles home. 12 miles! Amazing! I brought my oyster card incase I couldn't make it the 12 miles and needed to utilize public transportation. I did not. I am so very pleased with myself.  Now I just need to be able to run a little more than that and all in one go. I'll totally be able to do it! 

I spent the late evening with Hilary. The tubes were complete rubbish today and it took me way too long to get there. But we ordered Indian food and it was so delicious. We sat around talking and stuff for a few hours and then found out that the centre had a guitar! So we pulled that out and played and sang until 10.30 when I went home. It was so fun to sing with her again. She is really good at finding the harmony and it's awesome! I found the low harmony on a couple songs as well. I'll really miss that. She is fabulous, and I'll definitely miss her. 

This is the end of February. So what's in store for March? Scotland, next weekend for Hilary's birthday, Oxford the next weekend, my birthday the following weekend, Le Cordon Bleu graduation, and a Half Marathon in Prague. 

When the sun shines, all of London can be found in Kensington Gardens

I feel bad that I don't have a lot of photos or exciting stories for this week. I became ill on Sunday and I pretty much stayed in bed, Monday through Wednesday, rekindling my love for Arrested Development. 

Monday I did go through the Tate Modern with Hilary and I stopped by Shakespeare's Globe Theatre and looked in the gift shop. 

That was pretty cool. 

They also had Croque Monsieur at the cafe and it was my lunch. I fell in love with these super cheesy sandwiches while I was in France. Here's a photo of the first one I ever had. Delicious.

 I was really tired after going into town so I rested for the duration of the evening. I did finalize my travel plans to Scotland though. It's going to be awesome. 

Tuesday I stayed in my room. I napped between Disney movies. I was invited to attend the Superior Pastry Tea Party at Le Cordon Bleu because a friend of mine is in that course. So I went to school around 3 and had the most amazing tea party experience ever. Everything was amazingly delicious. It's too bad I wasn't allowed to take photos because you would never believe how beautiful everything was. Something I thought was really neat though was that the things they were creating had foundations in what I'm learning in Basic Pastry. It gave me a glimpse of what it means to be a Superior Pastry student. I was so imbibed with sugar though that I had to stop to get something salty and delicious on my way back to bed: Marylebone Sausage from a tiny sausage shop.

Wednesday I felt better off and on. I decided to do an easy run to the grocery store (1.5 miles) and then take the bus back. But the sun was shining and I walked home. London is so beautiful when the sun shines. It's hopeful. I was planning to send a box home of a lot of my extra stuff, like extra uniforms and clothing that I no longer need, but a 7kg box to be sent to the states would have cost me £80 or $120! Ridiculous! Though I'll probably have to do it anyway because with my knife set, and uniforms and other little things I've purchased, there is just no way it will all be able to fit into my suitcase under the 70lbs standard. I had class this evening and we just talked about how the final will be set up. We have a written portion and a practical portion, in which we have to have 3 memorized recipes and when we enter the kitchen they will tell us which one to make. It will be a little scary, but fun, I think. 

Thursday I was finally feeling better. Though my alarm didn't go off and I woke up at 8.15, and had to literally run to the tube stop to make it to class in 30min. I did make it on time though. We made genoise spongecake with raspberry jam and buttercream frosting. It didn't look too complicated, and honestly it wasn't. But I was behind, so I didn't whisk the eggs just enough and then i folded in the flour too quickly, so my spongecake was dense and dry. Sadness. It looked beautiful, though I couldn't get that stupid buttercream frosting to spread just right!

 It was just altogether frustrating. And when I got home I put it away and went on a 3 mile run to dispell myself of my annoyed/frustrated energy. It was a good run, and it definitely made me feel better, though my foot fell asleep and I don't think that's a good sign. 

And my cake was pretty good... with milk. 

Friday was a better day. I was planning on going to the temple, but the people who were going were just endowed members, so they didn't have room for me... sad. But because I thought I was going to go I was able to take the early class and get out at 4 instead of 7. We made Black Forest Cake today.

 I thought it was going to be difficult, so I worked efficiently and carefully, but I was fine! My cake was beautiful, moist, delicious, and I frosted it perfectly. I was so very pleased. My only complaint is that the cherries we used for the filling were soaked in alcohol. And even though I rinsed them, there was just no getting rid of that flavor. I know that when I recreate this at home I'll just make a simple syrup with cherry juice and tinned black cherries. Or just use frozen cherries and make a quick jam. Either way it will be less alcohol-y. I had a piece when I got home, and if I just picked out the cherries it was fine. Actually, more than fine. It was delicious! There was a miscommunication though between my landlady and myself. She wanted to know if she could feed the Elders some of my cake when they came over for dinner. I told her to feed the chocolate one to them and just have them pick out the cherries. She thought it had a lot of alcohol still in it so gave them the dry genoise one! Ah! I was embarrassed. Good thing I didn't have to be there to see them try to choke it down. 

I didn't have any plans for the evening but a friend called and said she had an extra ticket to Twelfth Night if I wanted to go. Heck yes I did! It was in the gorgeous Wyndams Theatre, and it was really really enjoyable. I love seeing Shakespeare performed live. The actors were quite famous, some have been in movies I've seen. And it was absolutely hilarious. We had booth seats and I felt so special. It was really quite the experience. 

 When I got home I stayed up a bit and talked to dear friends online for a bit before falling into a very happy sleep. 

Saturday I woke up to the sun shining over London. I did laundry and prepped myself for a real run today. I ran 3 miles to Hyde Park and then spent a little over an hour walking through Hyde Park and Kensington gardens (2.5 miles) then I ran the 3.5 miles home from Kensington. When the sun shines, all of London can be found in Kensington Gardens. It was lovely to see children running and laughing and dogs romping about playfully biting each other. I think every person who enjoys running was in that park. I couldn't look at people enough. I just wanted to soak in their joy over the sunny day. It was just a picture of loveliness. And there were flowers starting to spring up from the ground. The sunshine was warm, and there was a feeling of spring coming. Too bad it's only February still and a month until spring (and my birthday!). I always get my hopes up in February about spring. 

On my way home the Elders stopped me and introduced themselves and the Church. I laughed and told them I was Mormon too! They were really excited because one of them is from Virginia and went to the highschool that was featured on the track shorts that I was wearing that I received from a friend last year at BYU who also attended that highschool. Hah. Small world. We talked a bit and they were the ones who had eaten my cake. They assured me it was good, but they're missionaries and very polite. 

Even over double the length I usually run I maintained my 10min mile and I'm very pleased with my performance. My shin acted up a bit, but it is healing and sometimes stretching helps it. I've now reached the halfway mark of what I need to run for Prague. And I have 5 weeks to get up to the full 13 miles. 

Tonight I'll head to Reading for a date. Should be fun. :) 

Mid February -already

I’m sick in bed, so I might as well post. I woke up sick yesterday and only stayed for Sacrament meeting before heading back home. I tried to have soup, but when I was done I felt worse. I fell asleep for an hour and when I woke up I felt even worse. I was online talking to friends in and felt better so I had some toast with nutella and a banana, and I felt even worse. I couldn’t sleep for hours because my stomach was revolting against me. I think the bread I had for breakfast and snack was slightly mouldy… that may have contributed. So today I’m going to just rest. Watch movies/Arrested Development, sleep, and generally not do much. The only thing that sucks is that I don’t have wireless internet and I’ll have to be sitting at my desk to do anything instead of snuggled up in bed. :(

 Remember that photo I told you all about, where I had to draw from the deck of cards? Well there it is. I really like it, and it was super cool that I got to take part in that project.

But here’s what happened to me this week.

 

Monday was a normal not-too-much going on day. I ran and did sit ups, but I was not feeling particularly happy about myself since I now have two pairs of trousers that I cannot fit into. I’m not ok with this. For FHE we did a funny skit like ‘The Dating Game.’ It was all good, but the boys were definitely funnier.

 

Tuesday something bad happened. First I ran over 3 miles and got ready for my day. I had every intention of going to Westminster Abbey, but I got lost and ended up in TopShop, then Zara, then H&M, then Schuh, etc. I also bought some makeup for the first time in like forever. I told myself I wouldn’t buy clothes whilst I was here, but that all went out the window today. I was very good about it though. I took pictures of everything I tried on and went home to think about it before I spent any money. Then I spent the evening talking to friends online. 

Wednesday was a good running day. I ran 3.7 miles, at least. And during my half way break I stopped to watch the Changing of the Guards. It wasn’t super exciting, but I saw some people standing right outside the doors of Buckingham Palace, so they were probably famous or something. I went back into town to buy the things I decided upon and I only spent £100. And I got a lot for that, so I’m pleased. I hadn’t, however, eaten because I was planning to eat in town, but I didn’t get around to it. And on the train home imagining all the delicious things I was going to make when I got in I realized that it was 3.30 and I had to get on the opposite train and run to make it to class on time. I didn’t make it on time, but it was fine. Chef made Saint Honore, and so that was my lunch… I didn’t feel well afterward. I talked online to a few people, and felt sad because Hilary wont come back to BYU with me and I will miss her dreadfully. I don’t know what I’ll do without her.

 

Thursday. It is amazing how comfortable I am living here. Sometimes I have to step back and think, goodness, I’m in London! I live in London! If I don’t, walking down Oxford Circus or past the Tower of London or Buckingham Palace doesn’t really phase me. And I’m definitely not scared. But it’s amazing that I am here and thank you to everyone who helped me come. During class we made Madelines and Lemon Cake. Both were fabulous. 

 I brought them to institute and they were devoured. I went home with Angus and Jake afterward and we watched Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. It was a rubbish film, but I always enjoy spending time with them. Though lately Jake has taken to tease me about/encourage me to be more interested in Angus’ best friend David Perry, with whom I went on a blind date a couple weeks ago. I don’t mind so much. Jake treats me like I’m his little sister, and that’s fun for me. He kind of looks out for me. And David seems pretty cool, and I quite enjoy talking to him online, but he lives in Reading, so… 

Friday, the 13^th. Today wasn’t particularly unlucky being an unlucky day and all. We made Gateau Alhambra in class today. It was intensive, though not difficult. That marzipan rose? Yeah, I made that! And it was surprisingly easy. It looks just gorgeous, and mine was the best rose in my group! 

I messed up slightly with the frosting and piping of the cake, but I was so proud to be the first one finished with the best rose that I didn’t mind at all. It tasted pretty good, though I was a bit heavy handed with the rum ‘imbibage’ just around the outside. I think if I recreate this at home I’ll use hazelnut liquor and cook that in the syrup so the alcohol cooks out and it isn’t so strong. That evening I met Angus and David on Oxford Circus. We had dinner at Nando’s and I got ‘Extra Hot’ but it wasn’t even spicy. I’m disappointed in the British idea of spicy. I’m looking forward to some spicy Mexican food, since you cannot get good Mexican here. Which is understandable, but unfortunate. The three of us tried to shop a bit, but I don’t think anyone was really feeling it, so we went back to Angus’. Seb and Rob were playing some shooting game so we couldn’t watch a movie for a bit so the three of us alternated playing guitar until they were done. We watched Once Upon a Time in Mexico, I had no idea what it was going to be about, and it was too intensely violent for me. Plus rated R, for really good reason, which again I didn’t know. I didn’t get home until almost 2.30a, which was awful since I had to get up early the next day for… 

Saturday. For Valentine’s Day I hopped a train to Salisbury and then a bus to the ancient mythical site of Stonehenge. It was an absolutely gorgeous day and it was amazing that I got to be there. I may have appreciated it more if I had slept a bit more the previous night, but it was awesome nonetheless. I was lucky to go on a day that wasn’t too crowded and it was such an experience. The place was lovely, smaller than I imagined, but so cool. 

There were tons of crows there all the size of chickens. One walked right up to me and gurgled at me for a bit. I had nothing to feed him but jelly bugs, and he didn’t appreciate that very much.  

When I went back to Salisbury I stopped in this pub that was first erected in the 1300s and I had lunch: Steak and Mushroom pudding, mash, and peas in an onion gravy. De-wait for it-licious. 

I sat near this snooty old British couple that were too funny. They were so stereotypical in every aspect. The things they talked about, the food they ordered. They were very condescending about the place and were ‘surprised’ at how good it ended up being. The best part about them though was the way they laughed. Probably none of you know, but Squilliam from Spongebob? Yeah they laughed just like that, this really nasally condescending, ‘Ah, hm, hm hm” sort of laugh. It was so funny to me. 

I slept the entire train ride back to London. Iron and Wine put me out completely. 

See banner for 'Wedding Fayre'? Yeah, I guess that's not just unique to Utah! Also the archway in the background was the original stone archway built when this city was established hundreds of years ago. 

The lovely English countryside. 

I napped for a bit when I got home and talked to Becky as she got ready for her Valentine’s day. Then around 8, I met my friend Leslie at South Kensington Station and we were going to make our way to Angus’ for movie night, surprise, surprise. When we arrived (later than they told us) they hadn’t even returned from dinner yet! So we walked around a bit until they showed up. I hadn’t expected to see David since he was spending the whole day with his ex, going to see Wicked and then enjoying London, before heading out in the evening, but he was still there. It was a pleasant surprise, though I was a bit sore because if she hadn’t been there I would have had a date for Valentine’s. Jake and David ran to the store for sustenance and all the rest of us kind of hung out and watched some Flight of the Conchords and The Mighty Boosh. Apparently Jake went on a date with 4 girls from the BYU centre. Haha. Oh Jake. He’s such a joker. But he is also the sweetest pseudo big brother I’ve ever had. He returned from the store with a dozen tulips in tow for me! They were beautiful tulips as well.

I gave him a big hug. Later when I asked him about it he said that he would have wanted someone to do the same for his little sister. He comes off as an immature jerk, but there is something good about him. Plus, I know he was disappointed that David had to spend his night with his Ex, who obviously was discontented with the situation, instead of me. It was great. Most people left before we started any movie, and I played the guitar and sang ‘Dream a Little Dream of Me’ for everyone. We watched some of Labrynth before Leslie and I left around midnight. We only just made the Night Bus. And it was uneventful as usual until we were almost at our stop. This drunk guy got on and sat just next to us and he kept trying to talk to us… He told Leslie how great her glasses looked with her whole ‘look.’ I started to engage her in conversation in French so he would leave us alone. It worked. We got off at the next stop. Poor thing had to take a taxi the rest of the way home because her bus wasn’t stopping anywhere near. But she got home safely. I had to wait 30 min for the 24 to show up. I don’t know what it was about Valentine’s Day, but EVERYONE was drunk. The city was just teeming (or tottering) with drunk teens and adults alike. It was quite disconcerting.

 

I got home around 1 ish and before I went to bed I checked my facebook, and who should be on, but David Perry. I let him keep me up until past 2. This whole weekend has seemed like one long day with little naps interspersed. But it was a good weekend. Very good.

 

Sunday I woke up sick. 

Half Way

I've now been in London for 6 weeks. My time is half up. I have mixed feelings. 

I'm completely in love with London... it's not hard to be. But I do miss being with my friends. They seem to be having more fun without me than I would like. :) Also, now that half my times is over and I'm on the downward end of things, I'm trying to enjoy this as much as possible, but also I feel like I'll be home so soon! I don't want to leave, but I also am looking forward to going home... Or Provo... It doesn't help when my friends here tell me that they want me to stay, and my friends back home tell me they wont let me stay. Oh the troubles of being in London; it's such a hard life. 

Tuesday 03.02 My mom's birthday. I got to Skype her briefly. I spent the entire day in my room catching up on things that I had missed being snowbound. I also decided to start taking more trips around the UK whilst I can. So I bought a train ticket to Dover. 

Wednesday 04.02 I spent the whole day in Dover. It was awesome! Hilary was down there too, but I didn't run into her. Because I was there during the day on a weekday, the town was deserted. I bought a Polish candy bar. 

I went down to Dover Beach 

 and saw the beautiful white cliffs.

 I then climbed to the Castle and had the grounds to myself.

 The main keep was closed, but the grounds were beyond cool. It was first built in 1181! 

There was also a Roman lighthouse (Pharos) that has been standing since 650 AD.

 It was incredible. The Castle was so medieval looking and it was outfitted with WWII battlements around the outside. 

There was a moat, and the Castle was built up on a false hill, and there were medieval tunnels under the Castle, which I explored alone, and it was very creepy.

 I freaked myself out a bit. I had to film myself so I could talk aloud and not be scared. Then a pidgeon flew out from nowhere and I definitely lost it for a moment. I bought a bag of sweets and some fish and chips (£3!!)

 and watched a group of preteen girls shoplift. :( I wasn't sure if I would enjoy traveling by myself to Dover, but I really did. I got to talk less about how excited I was, but it was brilliant. I got the train back around 4 and I slept very well that night, having walked around the town for about 6 hours. 

Thursday 05.02 School. We made puff pastry desserts: palmiers and open tarts. 

 Then I had institute. Not a lot. I was still super tired. But I did cut my bangs today. It's February and it's such a nothing month and I was feeling down on the way I looked so I decided to do something different. I haven't had straight across bangs in over a decade so I decided to give it a try. So I pulled out my scissors and chopped them off. I'm happy with the result. Plus I like looking a little different. 

Friday 06.02 Today we made bread: soda bread and dinner rolls. 

During my break I went to Platform 9 3/4 

(I couldn't contain my smiles) and then I went to the Tate Britain with Hilary. 

After class I went to the BYU centre and a group of us devoured my bread and other snacks as we watched Pirates of the Caribbean. On my way home I saw a homeless guy and I gave him the leftover bread. 

It was really fun. I could have used the bread, I'm poor and haven't purchased bread in a while, but how often would a homeless guy get gourmet, freshly-baked bread? He seemed happy about it, and it put a skip in my step. I stayed up way too late talking to people online. 

Saturday 07.02 Laundary day. I stayed in for the morning and did all the housework that I've been neglecting. Then I met Hilary at this 'rare book' store. It was incredible. They had first edition first printing copies of some of the greatest things. Anything you could imagine from Sinbad, to Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, Dante, Beatrix Potter, Sherlock Holmes. The list went on and on. The prices were outlandish. I saw some books that were worth more than my entire course at Le Cordon Bleu... Hilary and I got fish and chips from a pub and hung out for a little more. One of the BYU teachers saw me, and well she didn't make a big deal of anything, but I hope Hilary doesn't get in trouble. 

Then I went to my friends' house the Ostlers for game night. We played signs and psychiatrist -the usual. Most people left around midnight, but a few of us stayed to talk. Before I knew it, it was 3a. I had no desire to take a night bus alone, so they graciously pulled out an air mattress and let me sleep on their floor. 

Sunday 08.02 I was woken up at 11 by Leslie's King Charles Spaniel. He wanted to get cosy. I left their house around noon and met up with my landlady and her daughter at the Hyde Park Chapel. The Sybrowskys were in town. They are the kind people who gave me the name and number of Carol McCormack. I worked with their son Manly (Jared) at the MTC.

 I hadn't met them and I felt that I probably should, to thank them properly. They were lovely people. I had to rush home to get myself ready for church and then rush back. Church was good, and afterward the boys (my boys, since I suppose I've adopted them) decided to have movie night. I dragged Alana to come with me because she needs to get out and just wont unless forced. She's so self conscious, poor thing. BUT she had a good time, just as I knew she would! And my boys are so friendly and accommodating that it made everything easy. We watched Benjamin Button, and I got home before midnight -shockingly. 

Monday 09.02 Another day spent to catch up doing what I should have been doing all week, like scripture study, writing in my journal, blogging, making plans for my travels. Last week there were loads of spots on this Stonehenge half day tour on Valentines, but there was a glitch on the website and I couldn't reserve a spot, until today, but guess what, No more spots. So now I'm taking the train and then a bus to get there, and I get to take photos of myself again. Woot. But I'm not complaining, I'm going to Stonehenge this weekend! Awesome! Now I have to go iron my laundered clothing...