The Hart Family

#febphoto day 8

2012-02-08T22:23:00.004Z

Sun. Or should I say, the major lack thereof. And dang you all OC peeps for posting the beautiful CA sun while basking in its rays on Instagram!

{Sigh}...Despite the bitter cold outside we have been quite busy inside. (Oddly enough, I have been doing a lot of baking. Not sure what I am thinking there.)
While getting a few things ready for our night time routine I found this little lady on top of the toilet busily dolling herself up.

She gave me no notice other than matter-of-factly saying, "I putting on make-up."
And no worries, there is a cap on the contact solution bottle.

"I pretty." - Natalie

#febphoto day 7

2012-02-07T21:01:00.001Z

Button.

4th floor. The button I press everyday in our lift.

#febphoto day 6

2012-02-06T21:34:00.001Z

Dinner.
I'm eating my favourite cupcakes. I ordered 3 red velvet cupcakes (sorry Sprinkles but you've got nothing on Sweet Couture) and 1 chocolate with red heart sprinkles (Marisa's personal request). Happy Birthday to me!

And thank you all who have wished me a Happy Birthday via FB/texts/FaceTime! Very grateful for technology and amazing friends and family. And a special thank you to my sisters in Colorado who made brownies, lit candles, and sang to me from across the pond! It made my day feel like a real birthday.

#febphoto day 5

2012-02-05T22:59:00.001Z

We must have stared out the window for a good half an hour last night watching the first snowflakes of this winter season! It was calm and peaceful and the snow quickly silenced the hustle and bustle of London.

This morning we were {this} close to skipping church. It wasn't until we were passing the National Maritime Museum and watching a hand full of people sledding down the massive hill behind it where we regretted our decision. Next time, for sure!

Today's photo a day challenge is 10 AM. This is what it looked like outside at 10 AM while we were inside at church.

London is even more charming in snow, isn't it?

After church we quickly ate lunch and headed straight for Greenwich Park. Shauna graciously offered her sleds and snow gear to us. My little snow bunnies looked so stinkin cute.

Once we entered the park, Tim and I put the girls on the sleds and dragged them around for awhile trying to find a good hill for us. The girls giggled the entire time.

I can't even begin to say how much we love living right next door to one of the best parks in London. We can honestly say we absolutely love where we live. Everyone at the park today was so happy and the happiness filled Greenwich Park so much that you could feel it. Such a change from the normal attitude felt in this big city!

Greenwich Park is filled with hills. It was easy to find many that weren't packed with people. The really huge hills had already lost its snow from so many people going down it already but we still found plenty of really good ones.

It was funny to see Marisa and Tim going so fast on a particular hill because Marisa's eyes were closed due to their speed and snow flying in her face, and yet, all the while she had the biggest smile! Marisa did not want to stop going down the hills. Whether is was by herself or with one of us, she kept going. Natalie just enjoyed being dragged around or dragging the sled herself.

When it came time to head home Marisa was not ready. So Tim and Natalie went ahead whilst Marisa and I stayed behind a bit longer going on a really sweet hill twice! We loved it!

After some hot chocolate, and a warm dinner, we suddenly began to hear fireworks outside (nothing unusual, I swear we see/hear fireworks every weekend) and it quickly dawned on me that today Greenwich becomes a Royal Borough!
I was so side tracked by today's fun activities that I totally forgot about all the events taking place in the city centre. We quickly turned off the lights and watched a fantastic 20 minute firework show. What a perfect way to end a perfect day!

And yes, living in a Royal Borough now makes us royalty. Would you kindly refer to me as "Your Royal Highness" in your best possible British accent. Cheers.

#febphoto day 4

2012-02-04T21:58:00.002Z

Just a few days ago I read a post of when Marisa turned 2 1/2 years old. And now, my baby Natalie is there.

***

When Marisa turned 3 I vividly remember thinking that she could stop at that age and I would be perfectly happy. It was hard for me to manage when she turned 4 and it will be hard once more as she turns 5 in a few months. Even worse, thinking that my baby will be 3 this year, I'm WAY sad!

I can't get ahead of myself though. For I'm truly eating up each day I have with my two lovely girls and watching them blossom. I can honestly say that I feel lucky that my full-time job is to be a mother. A mother of the two most precious gifts I have here on earth. They are my world, my everything.
This is my little spunk in a nutshell at 2 1/2:

Natalie is a spunky, sassy, sweet, curious, and darling 2 year old. She has her daddy's sillyness and teasing personality and her mother's sassyiness yet tender heart. And boy, does she know what buttons to press when it comes to Marisa! She is a very passionate person and my child of extremes. She is either WAY sad or WAY happy or WAY spazy/energetic/bubbly or WAY destructive. No middle ground when it comes to emotions.

A small example of this is during bedtime when I kiss her good night. She almost always responds to my kiss on her lips with a yell, "No! Harder!" and then wraps her hand around my neck, pulls me in and lands her kissy lips as hard as she can on mine. And if that one wasn't hard enough she yells again, "No! Harder!" and the cycle continues on until she is satisfied.

But at the same time Natalie is so tender. She loves to cuddle with mommy and she likes to caress me whilst telling me that she loves me. She is always ready and willing to smoother me with kisses. I totally baby her and she loves being babied. She is still a momma's girl. Except when I put her in time-out she yells for daddy.

A bit about Natalie:
Favourite animal: cat
Favourite food: la-luh-low-lee = ravioli (butternut squash to be exact)
Favourite book: Madeline in London by Ludwig Bemelmans
Favourite game: playing dress-up; she probably wears 3-4 different outfits a day. She has quite the imagination.
"Miss-a" = Marisa
"maddie" = mad
"saddie" = sad
"mank-you" = thank you
We love you so much, baby girl. Daddy and I feel so blessed to have you in our lives. You are so precious to us and we are lucky to call you ours. Kisses, sweetheart!

And of course, on to today's photo a day challenge:

A stranger.

Strangers on the bus. Oh, except for that cute little girl sitting in the front.

(I was going to post a picture of Tim since lately it seems like he has been a stranger around here. Thanks for all your hard work, love. Hang in there.)

#febphoto day 3

2012-02-03T22:45:00.002Z

Hands.
Marisa waiting for her third ballet class to start.

Marisa has been looking forward to the day she could start ballet since we promised her in CA that she could begin lessons in London. I, on the other hand, have been looking forward to this day since I knew she was a girl still in the womb.

I am a second generation dancer. My mother and I have danced our whole lives since age 3. It's in my blood.

After Marisa's first dance class a few weeks ago, her teacher came up to me to discuss the fact that Marisa needed to move up a level because of how well she did during class. She said she was amazed at her technique and ability to really focus. When I told her that it was her first dance class ever she was floored.

"Wow. I thought for sure she had classes before!"

Marisa did Momma proud!

And how rad is it that Marisa can say that she was London ballet trained??!

P.S And what is even more rad is that at the end of class all the little girls line up and do a slight bend at the knee all whilst saying, "Thank you, Miss (Insert teacher's name)." How proper and so freaking cute is that!

#febphoto day 2

2012-02-02T21:23:00.000Z

Words.

I could seriously bear testimony of Marisa's reading program, "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" by Siegfried Engelmann. Ok, kidding, but not really. Here is Marisa reading at lesson 24 and the picture above is her reading lesson 66.
The program really is easy and designed almost flawlessly. I take so much pride in the phenomenal job Marisa has done so far and I take pride in the fact that I, ME, HER MOTHER, am the one teaching her how to read.

I am so proud of you, Marisa. Keep it up, big girl!

February photo day challenge

2012-02-01T20:54:00.003Z

I saw this photo a day challenge on Instagram in the beginning of January, but I was a few days late to start it. I guess I could have easily started it but I wanted to do it from beginning to end with no days missed. So I decided to hold the challenge for the month of February instead.

So, Day 1: My view. One of our views of London from our flat. Canary Wharf, Thames River, and the O2. Good Morning, London!

Do you have Instagram? Isn't it so fun?! Happy photo-taking!

British slang

2012-01-30T12:19:00.000Z

Within days of moving to the UK I quickly adjusted many of our everyday terminology to the British ones. Words like; bin, nappy, and rubbish, were among the few that were instantly put into practise. I can't even remember the last time I used the word diaper...

But, of course, words and phrases continue to surprise us. At church yesterday, during our Sunday school lesson, our teacher used "gobsmacked" in a sentence. Using context clues I think I figured out the meaning of it, but our American friends and Tim and I were sitting in the back corner still left a little unsure.
At first I thought she said, "DOGsmacked" but when we googled "dogsmacked" on our iphones up popped YouTube vidoes of dogs being smacked by cats. Not it. So we typed in "gobsmacked" next. Bingo.

gobsmacked- utterly astonished or astounded

Pretty funny word, huh?
(Read with British accent): "I was literally gobsmacked to bits!"
hahaha. Brilliant.

Also, many times women have asked me if I was "broody". I had no idea what they were talking about, but again, I used context clues and kinda figured it out, but I still hesitated when anwering with a shy, "Yeah..." not exactly sure if I should be saying that or not!

broody- having a strong desire to have a baby

OH! Ok in that case, "Yes! Yes, I actually am!"

Here are a few more British slang we have learned along the way...

love- a friendly form of address (informal)

Brits use this ALL THE TIME. Even when a bus driver and I got in an argument he still addressed me as love. Ha.

knackered- exhausted

Tim said people at work use this a lot and he had no idea what they were talking about.
On the flip side, I would love to ask a Brit to say "Boo-yah" and "Ba-donka-donk" and ask them what they think it means.

I know there are many more examples of British slang, but these are the only ones that come to mind right now. I'll post some later I'm sure. In the meantime, "Mind the gap!"

Lazy.

2012-01-27T23:14:00.003Z

I loved being busy and having to be somewhere everyday for Marisa's last term and a half for school. It really helped me dive into my community a bit better and really live a London life. It was fun while it lasted, but now I am really enjoying the change of pace homeschooling brings. Nowhere to be, set our own pace, and not have to fight the cold winter. (Which has been really, really mild for London, but I still don't like it.) And with Christmas and our Venice trip and New Year's and Tim's birthday and all the chaos in a row, I have really vegged out the past few weeks! I have been SO lazy. Literally, for the first week I never left the house except for church on Sunday. Wow. Lazy.
The start of busy season didn't exactly help my couch potatoness either. No matter how hard you brace yourself and no matter how many years of busy season under your belt, it is a huge adjustment getting back into it. It took the first week to really adjust, much faster than ever, but just because I have adjusted doesn't mean it is easy.
Even the girls have felt the shift of things in our home. After the first 4 days of not seeing Daddy Natalie asks clearly with much confusion in her face, "Where's Dad?" as I'm tucking her into bed. Not fun.

But life must go on and despite being completely lazy we have done something. We are really loving homeschooling so far and all 3 of us have been learning a lot. Marisa's reading lessons have been miraculous to watch. I can't believe at 4 years old she is reading! Just a couple days ago she grabbed a book of hers and read the first 2 pages on her own. Marisa looked up at me with amazement and quietly, yet shockingly said, "I'm reading!" I will post more on her progress a different day.
Natalie loves joining our lessons too. Her new favourite word is "buoyancy". She always wants to take new objects in the house and practise "buoyancy"! And when we studied Paris I showed her a picture of the Eiffel Tower and asked her what it was and she replied, "Eiffel Tower I went!" Love it.

So cheers to not being lazy anymore! I woke up this morning determined to start a different attitude. I simply started my day blaring my newly downloaded songs on my phone while stretching and working on my flexibility again. I'm getting stiff and old! Yikes!

THIS is my new favourite song right now. I basically put it on repeat while I cook. Yes, I almost always dance while I cook.
What?!?!
You should try it...

And I also sometimes walk into the girls' bedroom and dance on their beds all while Natalie especially looks at me with such curiosity and wonder. = )

Funny side note: While Tim and I were dating, Shakira's song "My Hips Don't Lie" was his ringtone for me. Now he said it would be THIS song. All I have to say is, "You married it! It's not like you didn't know!"
And P.S. I used to be kinda known for my body rolls and hip movement in my teen years, I know scandalous, but every time I watch Shakira I want to bow down to her. Good gosh woman!

And the award...

2012-01-24T21:01:00.000Z

for the "World's #1 Worst Baker" goes to...

Yours truly.

It was meant to be Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookies.

the small successes

2012-01-19T22:31:00.006Z

I think as Mothers we tend to be too hard on ourselves sometimes. I would say almost daily I plop myself on my bed after putting the girls down for the night and I lay there thinking of all the things I didn't get done, or moments where I should have been more patient, more understanding, or more fun.

Raising small children is no easy task. Duh. But how often do we sit back and say, "I did really good at this today" or "I did really good at that today"? I think not enough.

Today I actually had a proud Mommy moment. A moment where I felt, "Ok. I'm actually heading in the right direction. I don't totally suck!"

Before I had children I knew I wanted my kids to be good healthy eaters. None of this short order chef stuff, none of this dummying down adult food for kids. My kids eat what we eat. End of story.

For dinner tonight we had a meal we have pretty frequently; baked salmon with goat cheese and lemon, quinoa, and stemmed carrots. I was so happy to see my girls eat away with no complaints and such pleasure. And then I thought about all the things my girls eat that most kids don't;

Breakfast: Spinach smoothies, oatmeal.
Snack: Snap peas, red peppers, wholemeal crackers with goat cheese, yogurt and granola, tomatoes, (yes, Marisa can eat it like an apple).
Dinner: Quinoa, couscous, lentils, salmon, squash, broccoli, cauliflower, soups, and pizza with toppings like: black beans, red peppers, kale... not all those 3 at once of course, but name a veggie I have probably have put it on pizza, and the list goes on and on.

Some of my favourite go-to meals lately:
-Curry Rogan Josh: (Recipe from Jamie Oliver. Loaded with cauliflower and butternut squash. Mmmm.)
-Homemade Black Bean Burgers
-Sweet Potato Fries: (I adjust the ingredients so it is not so much oil and salt.)
-Salmon and Strawberry Salsa
-Flourless Brownies: secret ingredient, black beans!
-White Bean and Kale Soup: (Minus the sausage.)
-Pizza: (The sky is the limit when it comes to vegetables!)

And trust me, my kids were not born miraculously loving veggies, especially Natalie. It took being consistant and persistant on my part as a parent.
For example, Natalie has always hated veggies, especially carrots, even as a baby. But I have always put veggies on their plate and on the table during mealtime. No matter what. Even if I knew she wouldn't eat it and just throw it off her plate, the veggies were placed on her plate regardless. It wasn't until recently she got curious again, tried it again, and now hasn't stopped eating her veggies. No forcing, no pressure, just plain "this is what we eat and this is how it is".

So today I'd like to give myself a pat on the back. I think I'm doing alright.

High tea

2012-01-17T20:48:00.012Z

I had a lovely afternoon with my lovely friend over lovely high tea at The Ritz. Can that sentence get any lovelier?

One more thing off my bucket list.

And to my CA friends - be ready to come over to my house for tea loads of times upon my return! Love this daily British tradition.

{Flashback}: Day 4

2012-01-14T10:27:00.005Z

Our last day was by far the coldest day. Gray, overcast, cloudy, and even rainy as we approached the airport. Although it was cold outside today, we had been really lucky to have the sun shining all the other days during our trip. The sun really makes a difference no matter how cold it is.
We saved Piazza San Marco, the Basilica, and Doge's Palace for our last day even though we had walked through it and passed it many times before. It was right next to us so impossible to avoid.

Pigeons provide endless entertainment for my girls. Loads of pigeons in plazas; so European, huh? And pigeons in Europe are not scared of people. They are so accustomed to being fed by humans that they will go for it to snatch it from you. Same with the squirrels here too actually.
Natalie tries tirelessly everytime to catch one in her hands, but after no success from a 2 year old she has once not only stepped on one forcefully but pinned it to the ground hard and long! Poor bird. We teach animal cruelty in this house.

Our little stinker also likes to run. Run, run, run, non-stop. Can you imagine what she does to her mommy in busy European cities? Gives me mini heartattacks along the way. Runs all through London, licking light posts along the way, all through Barcelona, all through Edinburgh, weaving in and out of crowds of people, all through Paris, run, run, run, with her brown curls bouncing everywhere. And now Venice. And she knows she is being cheeky by running away from us as fast as she can. See?!

Last minute we decided to go to the top of the Campanile tower before heading back home. It was no Eiffel Tower, but it was still neat to see a bird's eye point of view of the city.

On the plane ride home Marisa turned to me and said, "Mom, I miss Italy." Me too. Me too...

London Prepares 2012

2012-01-12T15:28:00.001Z

At 11:00 a.m. yesterday morning I was purchasing tickets for me and the girls to watch the gymnastic qualifiers for this year's Olympics for yesterday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. Talk about spontaneity!

Shauna's husband works for the Olympics and has told us ahead of time when to purchase the tickets, but I totally spaced it, which is not like me to be spacey, and they all sold out. Luckily, Shauna didn't give up on me and her text in the morning allowed me to check for availability and bingo, there were tickets being sold!

I got a little teary-eyed, (I'm such a cry baby), being at such a special event with my girls. It was quite the experience to watch such an official thing for the Olympics. And it is gymnastics! One of the biggest events!

We saw gymnasts from Hungry, Switzerland, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Italy, Slovenia, etc. etc. perform. Shauna and her kids got to see Canada in the morning session and even got autographs. Italy was by far the best in the afternoon session. I cannot imagine watching U.S.A, Russia, Romania, and China gymnasts perform! Wow.

We didn't stay long to hear them announce which 4 countries will be making it to this years summer Olympics in London but it was one of those once in a lifetime experiences I think I will never forget.

{Flashback}: Day 3

2012-01-11T13:08:00.026Z

The nice part about having kids is that because they wake up early we get to start our day earlier than the other tourists. It's great. We hit Rialto Bridge and the Rialto Market, one of the most touristy places in Venice, first thing this morning. It was neat to see the Venetians already hustling and bustling getting ready for the flow of people.

You know me. I love me some food and I LOVE me some European markets even more! Tim has once said to me, "You and your pictures of food...." Oh! The happiness it brings to me...

The Rialto Market is where all the locals buy their food and where restaurant owners buy their food for the day.
You better believe I bought some food too! This is one place in Venice where the sellers don't really speak English and yes, loved it!

I bought uva, pere e mele and stuffed it in our backpack for our day.
{P.S. Markets are a great way to cut down on costs of food when traveling. Eating out for every meal can get really costly plus not to mention kinda gross. And a major plus, how can you say no to fresh food and an authentic experience abroad??}
Marisa was so squimish and scared of the seafood section. She kept saying she was scared of the octopuses and crabs. She doesn't like seeing some of them still moving either.
In general, Venetians are so warm and friendly, which I will talk about later, and these seafood sellers were no exception. When they saw that I was taking pictures they immediately hugged each other, looked at my camera, and said, "We are the most handsome men in Rialto!"

After the market we decide to wander over to Santa Maria della Salute. Along the way we some pretty interesting things.

I happened to look over and down at the girls when I saw this...

I quickly fell to the floor flat on my stomach to get this shot. I wonder what they were talking about...

Salute is located directly across our hotel. It is a stunning sight at night from the hotel's quaint dock. We walked around inside a bit and casually hung out outside for awhile. Fun place for the girls to climb, wander, and run to their little hearts content.

{Side note: Since Barcelona, and out of necessity, I have grown a hard outer shell here and I can now dish it back like a European; with a little room for improvement, of course. In Shannon's words, "You have found your mojo!" Yep, I think I have. There were, of course, gypsy beggars here and there in Venice and of course, right at the entrance of the Salute. Looking straight ahead and ignoring the gypsy I walked through the door only to have her reach out her arm to casually bump into my legs so I can stop to give her money. She was fake crying, moaning "Senora...Senora...", and being so annoy. I suddenly had this really, really strong urge then to turn around and ... kick her cup.
I know, I'm a horrible person what can I say.}

I like the water bus stops in Venice. Way different than our red buses in London! It was fun to stand and wait for our boat to take us right across the canal to our hotel.

For dinner tonight we ate at a really yummy restaurant called Le Cafe. It was the best place we had eaten at so far. Nothing in Venice, food wise, blew our socks off, but it was still definitely really good. Italians can't mess up pizza and pasta!
On another side note, I kind of wish I was Italian. The language is gorgeous and imagine all the better eating I would be doing... oh, pinch me.

Tis the season...

2012-01-09T08:00:00.001Z

For someone who is married to a CPA, who has a Father-in-law who has his own tax firm, who has a sister-in-law in the tax practise as well, this is hilarious.

Here is to another year of a busy season!
It'll be different to experience a busy season here since Europeans DO NOT work as much as Americans, which has its pros and cons. But so far, since living here, I have zero complaints with Tim's hours and time off! I will for sure miss this lifestyle when moving back to the states. Fingers crossed and bracing myself for another busy season. Season #5!

{Flashback}: Day 2

2012-01-05T12:53:00.006Z

Chi lavora con le sue mani e un lavoratore. Chi lavora con le sue mani e la sua testa e un artigiano. Chi lavora con le sue mani e la sua testa ed il suo cuore e un' artista.

San Francesco D'assisi

He who works with his hands is a laborer. He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman. He who works with his hands, his head and his heart is an artist.

Saint Francis of Assisi

***

Every trip I go on I buy something that is unique from that place. No rubbish bits and bobs, but nice things I can display in my house. I want my house decor to tell a story about our family. So in Venice, Murano is known for their Murano glass. Very artistic, very expensive, and very beautiful.

Our hotel offered for a private taxi to pick us up and take us to a factory that makes Murano glass, and watch a glass-making demonstration, free of charge. The hotel has it's own quaint little dock where the private taxi picked us up. Water taxis are just as expensive here as a black cab in London, a yellow taxi in New York, etc. so to have one privately was quite the experience! One I highly recommended to anyone whether you pay for one or get access to a free one!

This picture below cracks me up. The taxi started speeding up and going fast and this was the girls' reaction!

After buying my Murano glasses, (thank you hubby), and walking around a bit the taxi then took us to Burano, which is known for their colorful homes. Burano was literally breathtaking. Every corner I turned I kept saying out loud, "Oh my gosh, this is gorgeous. Oh! Wow."

Before heading out to Venice we read one of Marisa's homeschool books called Papa Piccolo. A great and educational book about a stray cat in Venice. Little did I know that there are actually a lot of stray cats in Venice! Right when we arrived to Burano we saw about 5 stray cats at the little park area, and 2-3 more lounging right on top of a wall. Talk about the perfect homeschool experience! I can't believe I didn't get a single picture of a stray cat. Everywhere we walked we would see a stray cat pass by from time to time. My girls were in heaven. (They are strangely obsessed with cats.)

After having lunch in beautiful Burano, we took public transport, the water bus, to Fondamenta Nuove so we could get off and walk through the narrow sidewalks of Venice and get lost on our way to Piazza San Marco. That is another must when visiting this beautiful city. Get lost!

Our concierge recommended a yummy pasticceria this morning where we actually had our breakfast so on the way back to our hotel we had stop by again for dessert! Ever since Paris, my girls are in love with macarons so they had those of course. As for me, un connolo per favore!

30 sucks

2012-01-02T21:34:00.012Z

Happy 30th Birthday to the love of my life! The BIG 30! When Tim turned 29 he had some apprehension about getting older. It was the first time he really showed any sort of emotion about something so I realized it was a big deal to him. It has taken him about 1/2 a year to get over the fact that he was turning 30. I don't blame him...
To add to his ease of getting older, I decided to throw a surprise party for him! It was a blast and quite the surprise for him. A lot of people in our circle of friends are turning 30 this year so we were able to really laugh and celebrate it. Jana made hilarious cupcakes for Tim. Good fun!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T23:15:00.027Z

2012 is going to be a fab year! I just feel it! I don't know what it is but I have a great feeling about this year. I'm ready for a new year, a new beginning, and a new outlook.

All my New Year's goals this year are personal spiritual ones so for that reason I won't be posting them like I normally do, but I'm excited to get started!

This year we rang in the New Year at our flat with our dear friends and it was phenomenal. I'm not kidding when I say that we have a killer view of London from our flat and boy, London did not disappoint us!

I'm convinced that Brits are obsessed with fireworks and New Year's proved my point yet again. The entire city skyline, from East London to West London was sparkling with beautiful colors that went on spectacularly for about 15 minutes straight non-stop. We all couldn't get over how amazing it all was. London Eye was the most spectacular. London Eye itself would change colors through out the night and when midnight rolled around it was bursting with the biggest and brightest fireworks out of the whole city.

The entire 30 minute experience was truly breathtaking and as we watched all the fireworks it actually became a tear-jerker. Yes, I got teary-eyed because there is no other place I wanted to be at that moment than in my own home with our dearest friends in London.

Cheers to 2012!

{Flashback}: Day 1

2011-12-31T11:55:00.001Z

Arriving in Venice was like having a dream become a reality. Even at the end of December I could feel the warmth of the Italian sun on my face bringing out the inner smile of my heart. Being near the water made me realize how much of a California girl I am and how much I miss openness. It was refreshing and rejuvenating to hear waves crashing against the dock; it was peaceful and calm to look out and see nothing but open water.

After our boat ride into Central Venice we dropped our suitcases off at the hotel and immediately left to find a gondola. We don't mess around!
Our gondolier, Fabio, was fantastic. I requested mainly only back canals and it was perfect.

I'm so glad Tim got video of our gondola ride. It really captured our experience.

Ciao!

2011-12-29T22:11:00.000Z

We are back from our amazing holiday in Venice! It was everything I hoped and imagined it would be. And I'm happy to announce, we arrived back to London robbery free. ;)

It's been a long day of traveling back home but I will for sure tell you all about it. Buonanotte!

Wishing you a Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T20:20:00.001Z

What a beautiful Christmas Day it was. My heart is full. I am one blessed girl.

Another year, another hit. In Marisa's words, "This is the best Christmas EVER!" I'm looking forward to another new year and what it may hold in store for us. Life is good. On that note...

Partiamo per un'altra avventura! Torno presto!

an English Christmas

2011-12-24T21:51:00.001Z

Merry Christmas everyone! I really hope you all have a merry weekend! Our fun has only barely begun but we are loving it so far.
This year is our very first time having Christmas just us. Our little family. As much as we wish we were back in the states celebrating with family it is actually super nice to have Christmas Eve and Day all to ourselves.
One of the highlights is planning my first Christmas Eve dinner entirely.

Menu:

Maple-Roasted Duck

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

My mother-in-law's famous stuffing

Pear Hazelnut Salad

Rolls

Sparkling Apple Juice

Homemade Pumpkin Pie

Vanilla Icecream

I have to toot my own horn for this dinner. It was seriously so DE-VINE. Tim thinks this dinner may be a tradition for us from now on.

Speaking of traditions, I wanted to incorporate English Christmas traditions this year as much as possible, and probably will do so from here on out. We will always carry London in our hearts. It is customary here in the UK to have "Christmas Crackers" before the Christmas dinner. I was at the grocery store when I first came across these Chrismas Crackers and my thought was "Wow, that is fancy wrapping for crackers. They must be some fancy, tasty crackers."

It wasn't until Tim told me when he himself learned about them at his work Christmas party when I figured out what they were. The "cracker" is actually short for "firecracker". So they are these small packaged tubes that are pulled by everyone before Christmas dinner by everyone crossing their arms, sitting around the table, then pulling your neighbours cracker with the free left hand. The packaging allows the tube to make a fire cracker sound when opened and out pop 3 things: -A paper crown, -A joke, and -A toy.

You can read the history here.

I of course jumped on buying these when I realized what they were. It is British tradition! And they have these everywhere. At the luxury department store, Harrods, they even sell some for £599! What's in it? Gold?
It was hard for the girls to pull so Tim and I had to do it ourselves.

Of course, we had to keep our American tradition of Christmas pajamas on Christmas Eve.

Another tradition in the UK is for the kids to leave mince pies instead of cookies for Father Christmas. That is one tradition I can happily leave out. :) Santa likes cookies in this house. We are excited to see what he brings tonight! Good night!

Last day of school

2011-12-16T17:03:00.141Z

Today was Marisa's last day of nursery. She has really enjoyed going to school and it has been really fun to see her blossom even more by making new friends, from literally all over the world, and exploring new boundaries and adventures. (With an added bonus being her picking up a British accent every single time she asks questions now.)

We are almost always the first ones to enter the classroom every morning and when Marisa registers herself she at first would always put her name and picture on spot 4. Then when she realized she could be the driver of the bus, that became her new spot of choice for awhile.
But of course, all the children want to be the driver and when kids started being competitive for that spot Marisa changed to always putting herself on spot 14 for the remainder of the year.

This is Oscar. Oscar was Marisa's first real friend. The first friend whose name she remembered and we heard about. He is from Romania and speaks Romanian but has a cute British accent and speaks English really well. Oscar and Marisa really complemented each other and the teachers said they played so well together.

Natalie loved being able to play around the school area before and after school even if it was for a few short minutes while we dropped off/picked up Marisa. Isn't this bike so neat?!

This past Tuesday was "Stay and Play" in Marisa's shelter and Natalie loved being able to stay the entire time instead of having to leave. And Marisa was so excited to show me and her litle sister around.

Luckily Tim was able to experience Marisa's environment at school last Friday. He had a work Christmas party that was an all day event and didn't have to be at work until noon so he took her to school in the morning and picked her up! Marisa was smiling from ear to ear when they left for school in the morning and Tim said she was bouncing all over her classroom with excitement when she was giving him a tour of her shelter.
I don't have pictures of that day, but I do have pictures of pictures of Marisa and things she has done at school all around her classroom.
(Side story, one day her teachers excitedly told me one morning, "Look, Marisa is famous! Her picture was printed in a book for a teachers conference we all went to and you can buy the book at any bookstore!" I still need to go pick up that book but they showed me the picture and indeed there she was! So she has pictures truly everywhere!)

During parent teacher conference a couple weeks ago her teachers had nothing but nice things to say about Marisa...

-A great example to the other kids
-Confident and independent.
-lovely to have around
-amazing at small world play

I actually really liked all her teachers. They were fantastic. Zaida, Gill, and Siobhan...

Almaz...

and Mandy. And not pictured anywhere are Toyen and John.

Lots of teachers and lots of love! Marisa was given a book that was signed by all her teachers and nearly made me cry. We are going to miss all her lovely teachers! I'm so glad she, and we, had such a fantastic experience!

Les Miserables

2011-12-14T15:23:00.011Z

Last night was yet another first for me. My first theatre show! Les Miserable at the Queen's Theatre!

It was a date night with my hubby and our lovely friends. Thanks Blanchards and Schmakovs for a wonderful evening!

Another item crossed off my bucket list...
And Tim surprised me with red velvet cupcakes from Sweet Couture to eat afterwards. My favourite cupcake shop here. What an amazing man I have...

i'm a foodie

2011-12-11T21:07:00.002Z

I love food. I mean, I really love food. I never understood girls during college who would order small, tasteless salads on a date. I mean, really? You better believe I ordered big meals and ate it all! I need a man who can satisfy me and my tummy too!
But what I really love is darn good, really good healthy food. Over the years I have really fallen in love with cooking and it has been a fun creative outlet/hobby for me. My cooking has slowly evolved over many, many years ago but has especially picked up in most recent years. Partly due to my many amazing OC foodie best friends.

Rachel made this dish I want to share with you all as a side dish for Thanksgiving and I melted when I first tried it. DE-LISH. I made it tonight to go along with my homemade spinach pizza. If only I had a bigger stomach. MMMmmm...

Spicy Squash Salad with Lentils and Goat Cheese

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Serves 6 as an appetizer, 3 as a main

3/4 cup black or green lentils

6 cups peeled, seeded and cubed butternut squash (about 1 medium sized butternut squash)

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

4 cups baby arugula (I skipped this)

1 cup crumbled goat cheese (I use a little more because I love goat cheese)

2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar (I use just a little more of this too)

Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss squas cubes with 3 Tablespoons of oil, cumin, paprika, chili powder and salt. Arrange in a single layer on baking sheet and roast 20 minutes. Flip pieces and roast for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until tender. Cool.

Meanwhile, soak lentils for 10 minutes in a small bowl, then drain. Cook lentils in boiling salted water until tender but firm, about 20 minutes. Rinse with cold water, then drain.

Combine lentils, butternut, any oil you can scrape from the baking sheet, goat cheese, vinegar, and 1 tablespoon oil. Season with salt and pepper and extra vinegar, if desired.

Bon Appetit!

Oxford St. shopping

2011-12-10T23:00:00.001Z

One of the things on my bucket list is to go shopping down Oxford/Regent Street. One of the most famous streets for shopping. This morning I got to do just that ALL BY MYSELF. No kids. Just me and London shopping. Ahhh...

For some reason Oxford street became closed to cars so it was so pleasant to walk down the street with Christmas filling the air from lights and displays galore, and music playing from all the stores and small bands in the street. I really did have a smile on face walking down central London this morning. I live in a pretty cool place.

A Harrods Christmas

2011-12-09T23:00:00.003Z

You will not believe what it takes to see Santa at Harrods. I had to pre-book him mid September! And only because I had to become a Harrods Rewards member in order to be able to book earlier than non-members. And even then those that are higher members than me get first dibs on time slots. But I figured it was worth it. Santa at Harrods is probably the ultimate London Santa experience, right?

With our tickets in hand and arriving at our specific time slot, we walked through sparkly gingerbread men and candy with no queue at all!

Santa gave each girl a Christmas book, a big chocolate coin, and a button during a private visit with him in a room secluding us from everyone coming to see Santa. No private pictures were allowed once we got to Santa. (Upscale Harrods wants you to buy their photos, of course.)

Truth be told, I think seeing Santa at Winter Wonderland was the best all around. But nothing beats the city lights at night. Especially, this time of year.

Dear Santa,

2011-12-05T20:55:00.003Z

It is oh so cold outside! We really have to bundle up now!

Natalie and I skipped playgroup today to chill at the cafe, look out to the busy city streets, all nice and warm in snug at our cafe table, sharing a blackforest hot chocolate. It was actually her idea. She is addicted to hot chocolate.

Perfect morning. I love my hot chocolate morning buddy.

We sent off Marisa's letter to Santa Claus (or as they say here, Father Christmas) this afternoon. She was so cute skipping across the street to the post box. Oh the magic of Christmas.

This is what was in the letter.

I believe Santa thinks she was a very good girl this year.

Christmas Market at Southbank

2011-12-03T18:13:00.002Z

Today we hit another Christmas Market at Southbank. The Big Ben (my most favourite monument in London) was my highlight for the day. Beautiful every time.

After an Ostrich burger and sweets at the market we took a leisurely stroll across Westminster Bridge to the Westminster Abby Shop to check out the Christmas tree ornaments that will soon grace my tree. (I'm a copy cat, Shannon.) I can't wait!

P.S. I love The City.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-02T09:31:00.000Z

Merry Christmas to all our family and friends! As we reflect on our many blessings this season we feel overwhelmed with joy and gratitude by the special people we have in our lives. We are truly blessed and love you all. May God bless you all with peace, health, and happiness.

Life would not be as sweet as it is without our faith and knowledge of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. We treasure our testimonies of what we know to be true. That He lives, that He loves us, and that He is ever so real and evident in our lives today.
May we all reflect on His humble and miraculous birth and strive to be more like Him.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Love,

The Hart Family

Tim, Tanya, Marisa, and Natalie

2011

Greenwich Christmas Market

2011-11-30T20:15:00.003Z

With a strike going on for who knows what reason, school was cancelled for today and we had great plans. Lunch with friends and Christmas in Greenwich!

So, the Greenwich Santa did not compare to the Santa in Winter Wonderland. This one had an Italian accent who lectured me the entire time I was trying to take a picture of the girls with him. He never once asked the girls what they wanted for Christmas or even really talked to them for that matter. "I need to tell Mommy off. I need to tell Mommy that you need socks... I hope you don't catch a cold! Naughty Mommy... Mommy is very, very naughty." blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. I was so close to punching him. Seriously.

Christmas lights in town and a lantern parade were to start soon after it got dark, like around 4 o'clock, can you believe it? To enjoy the show we stopped at Starbucks for a talle classic hot chocolate (with whipped cream, please) for me, and two Babyccinos for the girls. (Psst..., they are free!)

Now we are ready! It was nothing spectacular, but the girls and I loved it nonetheless. I love hanging out with my girls in this town.

reading lessons

2011-11-29T21:50:00.001Z

So Marisa is still on the waiting list for the schools I want her to attend. I could reapply this December, but I have decided for various reasons to hold off and take an alternative route.
I have decided to home educate.
And I never thought I would do that in a million years.
Shauna actually home schools her 3 children, her oldest being almost 11, and is a fantastic resource for home schooling as she is a school teacher herself and has done this for many, many years. Plus, she is a full blown home educator and has immersed herself in so much of this especially in the US and in the UK.
She gave me some great resources to home school for the Kindergarten year and to be honest, I am SO excited. I ordered two curriculum from the states: Five In A Row (FIAR) and Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

I fully plan on Marisa attending school here next Fall but for now this is our plan. In UK standards she is supposed to be in Reception (Kindergarten) right now and start Year 1 (First grade)next fall. But obviously in US standards she isn't supposed to start Kindergarten until next year!

So obviously I'm not worried for her for when we move back to the states. And I'm not even worried for her here either honestly. She will start Year 1 next fall and be right with everybody if not still a little ahead.

We are going to start the main courses in January, and even swap a couple days with Shauna so Elyse and Marisa can "school" together, but we have already started on the reading lessons as Marisa is naturally begging to be challenged more. According to the SRA DISTAR Reading Program Marisa should be able to read on a solid second-grade reading level after the 100 lessons!

Here is Marisa reading on only Lesson 24.

can't wait!

2011-11-28T22:29:00.000Z

Today we are on detox mode. One holiday down with another major one to go.
After today's vegging session I can begin to think about the best time of the year. Christmas!!
I'm really looking forward to the whole month of December and our endless Christmas possibilities in London.
Wahoo!!

Thanksgiving 2

2011-11-27T22:00:00.001Z

Rachel (my NYC friend) loves this time year. Thanksgiving especially. And she really loves throwing parties and fussing over details. I love a gal that likes to party! No matter what the occasion!

I have to admit I was a little unsure before the event because of the amount of chaos it was going to take to pull it off but it turned out to be a great evening with our friends!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-26T21:24:00.018Z

Today really felt like Thanksgiving. We all slept in a little bit, no where to be first thing in the morning. It felt great, lazy, and Thanksgivingish.
I have been looking forward to eating and celebrating Thanksgiving with Shannon and her family since they invited us over. She has been such a blessing in my life in so many ways. Seriously. I'm thankful for her this Thanksgiving!

When we first arrived to the Ashton home one of Trevon's first words to us after we said hi was, "I have a big head!" haha Love it. We felt right at home with them instantly. Thanks again Ashtons!

Marisa and Trevon reunited again since less than a year old!

Madeleine was so sweet to the girls. Here she is braiding Natalie's hair whilst watching a movie. And needless to say the girls ate up her attention. They didn't want to leave!

Natalie graced our presence with her majesty. She was so stinkin cute all dolled up as a princess.

It was a Happy Thanksgiving!

Now after a wonderful night, we are preparing for round 2 tomorrow. Thanksgiving with all the Americans in our ward. I am cooking two turkeys through the night as we speak.
This is my first time having to prepare a turkey. And I must say, that I don't blame people going vegetarian. I was actually pretty sickened by the meat. Tim had to do all the giblet, neck, who knows what, to prepare it. I just seasoned it from afar. And can I ask...

What the CRAP is that???

Those look like scales.
If I didn't have the picture of a yummy delicious tasting turkey as the end result I would have become vegetarian right then and there.

I'm setting my alarm clock for every 3 hours through the night basically. Tomorrow I have to make gravy, stuffing, and cranberry sauce for almost 30 people. Wish me luck!

daddy's work

2011-11-25T20:37:00.008Z

Tonight we visited Daddy's work for the first time. We get to see Daddy's work everyday right outside our window with all the many tall buildings just right across the other side of the river Thames. It's beautiful to see at night. Well, London is beautiful to see at night period.

The girls were so excited. Especially Marisa. It was actually great insight for me to see Tim's everyday atmosphere and compare it to mine. Very different! The mass of grey and black suits, jackets, and skirts scattered about busily working like ants on a hill in really fancy and modern buildings.

Once we walked into the actual office area Tim works in it got pretty hilarious. Everyone Tim worked with simultaneously stopped what they were doing, stood up in front of their computers, and stared at the girls with huge smiles on their faces and couldn't stop "ooh-ing" and "ahh-ing".
They were super friendly to the girls, asking them questions about Thanksgiving and American football (as if my 4 year old and 2 year old care). One lady even asked out loud, "Which one is the one with the cat food?" Grrreeeat. Tim has been sharing hilarious/embarrassing information apparently.

The girls then sat at Tim's desk where Tim handed them chocolates from his cabinet. But just when they thought their Daddy was cool the lady who sits behind Tim pulls out these huge, fancy, expensive chocolate bars and allowed the girls to pick one each!!
AND THEN, several men came walking together and handed the girls bags of chocolate like MnMs and Malteasers balls. I was laughing. You would have thought baby Jesus had arrived and they were all taking turns walking slowly toward the honored guests bearing gifts. hahaha Very nice gesture though. Just hilarious to see.
The girls were given stickers, paper to draw on and were absolutely adored on. Their presence is now requested every Friday.

During our dinner out at Nando's (addicted), Marisa asked Tim, "Dad, can you teach me how to make money at your work?" I believe they had a great time at Daddy's work. Do you blame them?

Thanksgiving day

2011-11-24T19:53:00.003Z

It doesn't feel like Thanksgiving at all around here. Yet, today I wanted it to feel somewhat festive. So I told Marisa's school that today was an American holiday and that she wouldn't be in today and we invited the Blanchards over (our new NYC expat family) for Thanksgiving lesson and crafts.

A wink from a pilgrim...

many tongues out from the kids whilst creating...

an unhappy Indian who's mother made her wear her pigtails while wearing her headdress...

and a fantastic view of the city equals Happy Thanksgiving from the UK!

And have I mentioned how much we love having these people around? We really, really do.

simple

2011-11-23T23:50:00.002Z

It wasn't until later this afternoon when it hit me that Thanksgiving is tomorrow! While everyone is gathered together for the holidays we will be at home eating leftover chicken pie and peas. :) We do have two Thanksgivings this weekend to make up for it though. Mmmm...

Today was a very productive day. I got so much done that when Tim came home around 7:45, I had everything cleaned, everything ready for tomorrow's activities, and both girls asleep in bed.

It is rare that Tim I have hours all to ourselves. It was great!
I love that our life is so much more simple in many ways, (not in other ways), here in London. And tonight is proof.

We sat on our simple couch, looking at our simple yet quite amazing "big screen tv" views of the city, Michael Buble playing in the background, our little Christmas tree twinkling in our flat,

and hot chocolate in my "her majesty" mug I got from Wales.

Oh, and I can't forget my Yankee Candle filling our flat with the sweet aroma of Christmas!

Simple. But this is what I am loving about life right now.

hokey cokey??

2011-11-22T21:54:00.001Z

Today Natalie and I had "Rhyme Time" at the library. It is basically 30 minutes of singing nursery rhymes. I have gathered that nursery rhymes are huge here. I mean, after all the nursery rhymes we all grew up learning most likely started on this side of the world. I have learned SO many new ones which has been really fun and can't wait to share with my American moms, but there is one song that drives me crazy.
It is "The Hokey Cokey". Better known to us Americans as "The Hokey Pokey".

I'll never forget the first time we sang the Hokey Cokey at a playgroup. My first thought was whhhaaat? The Hokey Cokey?? But, the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about!

Here are the lyrics.... (You must sing in British accent)

You put your left arm in,
Left arm out,
In, Out, In, Out,
Then shake it all about,
You do the hokey cokey and you turn around
That's what it's all about.

Oooohhhhh, hokey cokey cokey (x3)
Knees bend, arms stretch, Ra! Ra! Ra!

At the chorus part everyone holds hands in a circle and rushes into the middle and out again.

It is SOOO annoying. The chorus part is so annoying I should say. Listen and watch this youtube video I found.

I don't know what it is. Call me Mrs. Grump but it rubs me the wrong way! hahaha

baby it's foggy outside!

2011-11-21T21:09:00.002Z

2 days in a row we have had some really thick fog. Yesterday morning when I walked out of bed and walked past all the front windows I had to do a double take because I literally could only see a grayish/whitish color fill the whole view outside. It was as if our flat had been transported inside a cloud in the middle of night. It was pretty weird to see.

Up close though this is what we saw right outside our window. Only one street over and that was it.

This morning it wasn't too bad but still pretty foggy. I'm glad we went on an afternoon walk around Greenwich Park yesterday afternoon in this thick fog though. I so wish I had my camera then. It really was quite the sight. iphone photos had to do.

I love that Londoners take walks through the park regularly. It is so refreshing and relaxing. No matter how cold or foggy, it is quite lovely. Especially with my loves.

Family Pics 2011

2011-11-20T13:57:00.001Z

For family pictures this year I wanted to capture us in the urban, London city-life that we live in, but also the very place we call home.
Greenwich Town Centre. Our new home.
On our second day of flat hunting, while completely still jet-lagged, we walked off the DLR to the middle of this centre and immediately Tim said, "I want to live here." We just feel in love. It was the very thing we were looking for.
Now we can always look back fondly at these pictures to the very place and details that captured our hearts at first sight.
This is our new life!

Winter Wonderland

2011-11-19T17:41:00.001Z

Today we had our first of many Christmas activities in London. Christmas in London is going to be no less than spectacular if it keeps going like this! We literally have every single weekend booked with something to do from here until the end of the year. Can't wait!
Anyways, first, we went to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park. Absolutely magical and mesmerizing for my girls and even pretty amazing to see for me and Tim. All the lights aglow, the sounds of Christmas bells and music filling the chilly air, German bratwursts roasting... It was fantastic.

When you first enter Winter Wonderland you enter "Angels Market" where there are loads of Christmas stalls and food stalls. The girls thought the talking mouse head was pretty cool.

Once you pass the markets the endless carnival games begin. And of course, loads of food and candy. I can't think of anything more magical for a kid than carnival rides and the girls love carousel rides to be exact. And nothing makes me happier than to see their excitement all over their faces when on rides!

SantaLand is of course where Santa awaits. While we waited in line to see him Marisa told the elf that she wanted a pony for Christmas. A real one. Yikes! When she replied that she only makes toys Marisa settled for a toy pony instead. Phew!

I like Natalie's facial expression in the picture below. Her face reads, "You are not Santa. You smell like beef and cheese." Actually, Santa was pretty legit looking and sounding. He was super nice to the girls and gave them each a whistle for coming to see him!

It naturally doesn't take much to distract Marisa, but all the sights and activities in Winter Wonderland were pulling her in all different directions at the same time. She was so easily distracted by seriously everything we saw. She couldn't even take her eyes off this huge talking tree!

It is not a proper outing unless there are treats involved. A sugar coated donut break by the German village is a must. And don't forget all the German beer and German bratwursts! (For everyone else of course.)

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire....

Already looking forward to our next Christmas weekend! Merry Christmas everybody!

looking french

2011-11-18T17:39:00.001Z

I have never had to cut Natalie's hair yet. I can't believe it. With Marisa we have cut her hair at least once every year of her life since less than a year old because she has always had SO much hair.
But Natalie's has reached to a point that although I like the length, it is getting stringy, thin at the ends, and you can just tell it needs some trimming of the baby hair to continue to grow healthier. So first haircut here we go!

Natalie has this cute little petite face and features so I thought I would try a new do with her. I wanted a cute bob. Like a longer bob. I told the lady I wanted it to go to her mid neck but she straight up gave her a real bob! To the end of her ear!

Marisa has responded to her sister's new do as, "Her hair is weird." Oh well. Hair grows and she will have her head in a hat all winter anyways. Tim and I are both sad to see her little curls go. The little brown curls we have grown to love seeing bounce all over the place as she runs the streets of London, Barcelona, Edinburgh, Paris...

It is a fun little change though. Doesn't she look French chic?

there is a first for everything

2011-11-17T17:24:00.000Z

Marisa and Natalie are obsessed with cats. They pretend to be cats all. day. long., at home and in public, they reply back to us with their cat voices, and they ask us if we can have a cat of our own in the house. Answer: Never.

But I don't mind friends who have cats so that the girls can get their dose of cats in their lives. My good friend Jana has two cats. Perfect. She has told my girls for months now to come over and see the cats and we finally did.

Jana even opened up cat treats for the girls so they can have fun feeding the cats. No less than 2 minutes after we arrived and after she opened the cat food....

Natalie ate the cat food.

I just see her quickly walk by me with her jaw moving and I grab her arm to ask, "What is in your mouth?" With no hesitation she opens her mouth and I see orange stuff all in the inside of her mouth. "Kitty!" was her reply to my disgusted face.

I even thought about reminding her that we don't eat cat food when Jana first opened the treat box but I thought, "Nah, she is getting old for that. She knows better now."

So sick. Now we know she likes chicken and cheese flavored cat food!

worst chore ever

2011-11-16T20:56:00.001Z

I'm pretty OCD about my house being organized a certain way. And even OCD about my house being and staying clean. I totally get it from my mother. I am getting better though. I'm learning to let go a little more, especially since/with kids, and not expect to have a picture perfect house all of the time.

Hi, my name is Tanya and I have OCD. haha

Anyways, but the ironic thing is there is one little thing I don't care about when it comes to my house. In fact, I believe it is the worst chore ever.

I hate cleaning the bathrooms.

I have told Tim numerous times that when we have the money to do so or as soon as he lets me, I am hiring a maid JUST to clean my bathrooms. Don't touch the house. I can and want to clean my house. Just do the bathrooms.

My second worst chore ever is...ironing.

I hate ironing.

I just finished ironing 4 of Tim's shirts and the whole time I'm thinking, "I hate ironing"..."I need to text Tim at work telling him I hate ironing."

Do you have a worst chore ever? If so, what is it?

And P.S. Look who fell asleep in the buggy while walking back home from the park and is now my late bedtime buddy tonight...

a typical day

2011-11-15T21:36:00.001Z

Today started out like any other day.
Wake up,
get us ready to take Marisa to school,
start walking down the hill where we see the same lady riding her really squeaky bike with her son, see the same people in their tight European suits and tennis shoes with skirts walking to the train to head to work, watch the same red bus go pass us up the hill, see the same two kids on their scooters right outside their door as they await for their mother to take them to school, and see the same bus we take come around the corner.

I've been asked before, so what do you do all day? I'll tell ya.

Every morning is the same as mentioned above. But once I drop off Marisa it is just me and Natalie and London becomes our little Oyster. I love this one on one time and really looked forward to it when Marisa started school here. Just me and this cute little girl for a couple of hours.

It is really hard to find a balance to pay attention to each child. I have felt awful for Natalie being the second child and naturally getting lost in things that I focused so much time on with Marisa. And even vice versa. How am I going to divide my attention with more kids? It makes me nervous thinking about it.

I've mentioned before that London has SO many things for children under 5. So much so that just in my little town alone, I go to a different playgroup every single day and even each day I have many options. And lets not forget that I have all of London too! So my options could really be endless.

9:15 we drop Marisa off and we head to a playgroup/activity for the day. And we have fun.
See!

I will forever treasure these moments with Natalie. Love her.

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas...

2011-11-14T22:29:00.000Z

~~Christmas gifts for the family~~
~~Christmas Eve pajamas for the girls~~
~~Stocking stuffers~~
Christmas cards

And it is only mid-November. Wow.

I confess that I have already started listening to Christmas music. I got Michael Buble's Christmas CD on my phone and it plays through every night as I cook. Something about music, holiday music to be exact, while cooking is so soothing.

Our Christmas tree arrived on Friday and the girls could not wait to put it up. The lights I originally ordered were a flop and it bugged Marisa so much that our tree didn't have a star so on Saturday we all went out and bought proper Christmas tree lights and a glittery red star that Marisa picked out.

Now our tree is complete, for now at least. I thought it would be a better idea to decorate our tree with meaning rather than buying ornaments from a department store that have no personal meaning and that will only last us 2 years anyways.
In London there are many Christmas markets, which actually hails in Germany, where basically there are loads of Christmas stalls with everything Christmas you can imagine and apparently quite remarkable. So I thought we would go to these markets and each pick out an ornament. That way our tree will slowly come together with ornaments from London, obviously meaningful, that we hand picked, obviously meaningful, from a memorable family outing, obviously meaningful, that we can always have! And we will do it again next year but hopefully in actual Germany!
We have the same exact size tree back in California so we will just transfer our Christmas decor on to the one at home and we will always have our "London" tree. I'm excited!
But I'm not the only one around here who is ready for Christmas. All of London was ready beginning of October. After all they don't have Thanksgiving so why not?

Actually, let me side track a little bit. I went on Ocado today to check if they had a particular item and much to my surprise they had a Thanksgiving tab with all Thanksgiving related items right there!

I couldn't believe my eyes! They are totally catering to all the Americans here who basically only use Ocado. They even had pumpkin pie spice!

Yet I'm not that excited. That is $8.45 people! So happy I brought pumpkin pie spice from the states before moving here.

And the funny thing is, on the page of Thanksgiving items they also listed Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. Bahaha! What do they think? That Americans eat mac-n-cheese all day every day?? Hilarious.

Anyways back to Christmas, today Natalie and I went to Canary Wharf to run some errands and we were graced with beautiful Christmas trees around the entire area! They were beautiful. Natalie even tried to pick one up to take home. She just couldn't get over their sparkle and shine either.

I'm getting so excited for Christmas in London. Even Londoners say that Christmas is pretty spectacular here. Or as they would say, "Quite lovely."

bedtime battle

2011-11-13T21:24:00.003Z

Marisa stopped taking naps right when Natalie was born. (Around 2 years and 4 months old.) Perfect timing, eh? And I remember thinking she was way too young to be ending naps. Aren't kids suppossed to take naps until Kindergarten? I remember she just wouldn't go down after lunch but would end up crashing always around 4:00 o'clock in the afternoon. Remember this post? Hilarious.

So here we are with child number two. Aka: The worst sleeper ever since birth. At 2 years 3 months old she no longer wants/needs naps.

But here is the dilemma. If I don't let her nap because she refuses to or flat out unable to, she crashes at exactly 4:00 in the afternoon as well, which results in a bedtime nearing 10:00 o'clock at night! But if I some how am able to get her to take a nap at her usual time which is 12:30ish in the afternoon, she still ends up staying up until almost 10:00 o'clock at night with us! Neither is good.
And there are times when she doesn't crash at 4:00 o'clock, but as you can imagine, she is a nightmare by bedtime and overly tired. On the other hand, when she does manage just fine with no nap at all, I am able to put both girls in bed and asleep by 7:30. This is ideal.

Sigh. The bedtime battle.

I was hoping to capture Natalie crashing in funny positions like I did with Marisa, but like I said, she is not a good sleeper and incapable of crashing just anywhere. This girl has energy and determination to stay awake like you will not believe. If Marisa is tired she will lay herself down, put herself in bed (yes, even at 2-3 years old she would put herself to nap without telling me if she felt tired), or just let herself fall asleep wherever. Not Natalie.
When she has crashed at 4:00 o'clock it is only because she was so wound up that I made her watch a movie.

Another problem with my little worst sleeper is the "battle of getting out of bed". Do any of you have this problem? It is annoying.

Every night, with tonight being no exception, results in Tim and I consistently putting her back to bed anywhere from 3-15 times. Marisa never gets up and almost every time we come back in with Natalie in hand Marisa says, "I never told her to get up" or "I didn't get up".

Oh yeah, did I ever tell you that Natalie is always the first one up and last one asleep between the two girls? The child needs very little sleep! I blame Tim. No, I blame the Hart genes. The curse of needing little sleep.

I'm a LOBO. I NEED SLEEP!

after pictures

2011-11-12T21:09:00.001Z

Family pictures went smoothly. It was laid back and fun. The photographer showed me a quick preview on her camera and I'm very optimistic! I can't wait to show you all.
The leaves are piling up as we get ready for winter. So after pictures, we played in them some more!

I love my family.

could have been worse

2011-11-11T20:53:00.000Z

Tim and I have been married for almost 5 1/2 years now. And I'd like to have you know that I have only successfully made chocolate chip cookies once.
Yup, believe it.
And that "once" was literally a couple weeks ago.
(And did you know that Tim's favourite food is chocolate chip cookies? I'm such a dang good wife.)

But to my defense?, maybe?, I hate baking. I find no joy in it. The only thing that I think is ok to bake is cookies, but apparently, it is not even in the stars for me to do that.

Tonight we were expecting all 4 of our missionaries over for dinner and so of course, the first thing to go wrong were the cookies. Check them out...

Flat. Runny. Sick. A quick text to hubby, who was still at work, saying, "Get ice cream."

Next thing to go wrong tonight...
While I'm cooking I have Natalie at the kitchen counter using the kids' scissors to practise cutting. No problem, I'm right there supervising. Marisa then calls for me for some help in the other room. I leave for literally 10 seconds and come back to Natalie's head tilted forward, locks of hair in one hand, and Natalie saying, "Mommy, cut hair."

My instant reaction?
I scream.
Why?

We are taking family pictures tomorrow.

Of course, this would happen right?!!!

Luckily...the hair in her hands and counter initially looked worse than what it really was.
And when I told the missionaries that we were having ice cream and not chocolate chip cookies as planned they pleaded to see the cookies despite my protest and literally devoured it all leaving only 1 1/2 cookies left in the bag.

All is well, again. Whew.

binkie free

2011-11-10T19:47:00.001Z

It has been about a week since Natalie has been binkie free! Woo-hoo! I've been mentally planning and preparing myself to ween her off for a little while now, but it just sort of happened on its own actually.

Natalie is at the stage where she is getting rid of her naps (I know, way too early, that is a completely different issue I'll address another day) so one day when she skipped her nap she was so exhausted by bedtime that she didn't even ask for her binkie and I had completely forgotten to give it to her. It wasn't until the girls were asleep when I realized she did it on her own!
Repeat the events again the next day and eventually it just sort of happened. She eventually just forgot about it!

She has only mentioned it a few times when she has woken up in the middle of night and asks, "Mommy, where's my binkie?" and I just reply, "I don't know, sweetheart." And she just goes right back to bed saying, "Oh. Ok."

My original plan was to cut off the nipple and have her still be able to hold the binkie at night in bed with her.
With Marisa I did the whole "binkie fairy" thing where we explained that if she left her binkie out on the table for the fairy the fairy would leave her a present in return. She totally bought it and it worked. Easy.
But those of you who know my second child well, can you imagine me trying to say that to her?? I could just picture Natalie staring right back at me with a face that reads, "Whatever crazy lady. THAT ain't going to fly!" So that is why I had in mind a different approach for her.

Today was the only time she asked during the day for it and our conversation in the kitchen went like this,

Natalie: "Where's my binkie?"
Me: "I don't know where your binkie is."
Marisa: "You are not a baby anymore. You are a big girl."
Natalie: "Not a baby a'more? Big girl? Ok."

Too easy!

and yet another...

2011-11-09T20:07:00.001Z

We were oooo-ing and ahhh-ing all this afternoon while playing at the park with friends as we felt the warmth of the sun on our faces on another cool, crisp, and colorful Autumn day.
The girls got such a giggle from playing in the piles and piles of leaves. I totally joined right in as well!

Need I say more? Another beautiful Autumn day to add to our diary.

(And Happy Birthday to my beautiful sista! Kisses from London to Hawaii!)

our red buses

2011-11-08T16:37:00.002Z

(waiting for the bus)

My kids are going to have a serious complex when we move back to the states.

Tim and I always joke that whenever they are going to hear the word "bus", they are just going to take off sprinting!

Why?
That is pretty much how we roll here. Especially when trying to catch the bus that goes by our house because it only comes every 15 minutes and Marisa doesn't really like walking up our steep hill to our house if we do miss it.

I couldn't help but laugh this afternoon when I saw our bus come right by us as we were approaching the bus stop and I tell Marisa, "There is our bus! Run!"

Without thinking twice she instantly goes into sprint mode and she yells, "EXCUSE ME!" really loud to the many people in front of us on this very narrow sidewalk. haha I started laughing as all the people look behind them to see Marisa holding on to the buggy and me pushing Natalie in the buggy sprinting full speed ahead! haha I was so surprised at Marisa's assertiveness! That a girl!

Everytime we successfully catch our bus, and after we find our places, we always exchange smiles in accomplishment and I give her a thumbs up.

And yes, today we caught the bus.

my American stash

2011-11-07T16:23:00.003Z

There is a Trader Joe's bag in my house,
There is a Trader Joe's bag in my house,
There is a Trader Joe's bag in my house!

When Shannon asked me to make a list of things I wanted for her to bring over to London I was quite surprised when I reviewed my list that it was mainly rubbish I wanted. It is not like we ate these things regularly in the states, but we just wanted a few one-of-a-kind American treats. Something to keep us going for the next 2 years.

It felt like Christmas morning when I unpacked the loot today. I had totally forgotten what I even put on the list so it was extra special getting my American stash.

My American Stash:

- Strawberry yogurt O's cereal (Marisa and I had a huge smile when we saw these boxes. Marisa even almost cried when she said, "I miss these from California!")
-Puffins cereal
-Enchilada Sauce (You will not believe how disgusting "Mexican" type food products are here. Example: Tim once ordered a carne asada burrito that he said, "...tasted like roast beef." How's that for a major disappointment?)
-Mac-n-cheese
-Poppy seed dressing (You literally only have 3 types of dressings here; Ranch, Ceasar, Balsamic. All disgusting. Now I can eat loads of salad again!)
-Whole Wheat Goldfish
-Chocolate chips
-Chocolate covered pretzels
-Captain crunch (Tim's one and only request. Really??)

Yes, I took a picture of the TJs bag. Don't judge unless you have been in my shoes. :)

Natalie doesn't even remember Goldfish but Marisa sure did! All smiles come snack time! Thanks again Shannon for bringing the loot and hanging out with us!

The Book of Mormon

2011-11-06T21:18:00.002Z

Love this new video on MormonMessages! Holla, London! (Funny to think that we looked into living in the area he is bishop for.)

Bonfire and Fireworks

2011-11-05T21:14:00.002Z

Reason #210 why I miss America:

In the words of Rick Perry, "Icecream. That is cheap. Fact." (If you haven't seen this video yet, you should see it so you know what I am talking about.)

Ok, but seriously, food is much cheaper in America.

I wanted to make homemade macaroni and cheese for dinner this week. When I typed in elbow macaroni on my online delivery service, Ocado, nothing shows up. But when I typed macaroni and cheese this is what shows up...

I hardly ever bought mac-n-cheese in the states and I would never buy it here because in American dollars that is about $3.53/box. People! I can get mac-n-cheese from Trader Joes for $1! And can you believe Ocado was sold out!

Second example: So I'm thinking ahead for Christmas and I want to make pumpkin pie. I had previously heard that they do not have pumpkin puree here. Can you believe it? What a shame. I thought I may have to travel to Kensington to buy canned pumpkin at the one and only Whole Foods in London and pay an arm and a leg for it, but I'm happy I don't have to anymore because Ocado has it! But the bad news still is....

In American dollars that is $3.65/can!
Agh! Stab in heart.
But you better believe I ordered several cans of those. :) Oh, the things you do for American food. If you only understood!

On another note, today was Guy Fawkes Day.

I'm not going to go into depth what it is, but basically all you need to know is that it is a pretty big celebration here with bonfires and fireworks.
Right behind Greenwich Park they were having a huge firework show. We thought about going to it but instead we watched Shauna's kids while her and her hubby went out on a date. But honestly, I think we had the best seats just from our house!

We watched out the window as floods of people were walking up to the heath to watch the show. Taxis and cars were all dropping off people and trying to find parking spaces. My first thought was that it was going to be a pretty cool show.
It looked very promising in the beginning but then it just suddenly ended and people were already started to walk back!
Lame. All that work to see that?? Even happier that we saw it from the comfort of our own homes. Plus, our neighbours were setting off their own fireworks for hours and they were just as great! I love the sound of fireworks.

From our flat actually we saw fireworks from Central London to Blackheath. I love our city view. So, Happy Guy Fawkes day!?

youtubing

2011-11-04T18:48:00.003Z

Tim and I have been on a youtube kick recently for some weird reason. People keep posting and sending me the funniest videos and Tim and I like nothing more than laughing. Like crying hysterically laughing.

Check this one out (which is what my brother wanted to be for Halloween),
and this one,
and this one,
and this one, which I think is the best one.
Oh yeah, and I can't forget this one. (Tim's favourite.)

The political ones had me and Tim shedding tears and left us both unable to breathe. I guess we have a weird sense of humour. Especially at one clock in the morning.

This morning, I saw on FB this video. So funny.

NaBloPoMo

2011-11-03T18:49:00.025Z

November is NaBloPoMo month.

It means National Blog Posting Month--and you're supposed to write a post a day for every day this month.

And for whatever reason I'm taking on the challenge so it will be interesting what ramblings and nonsense you will learn about me/us.

So in lieu of Thanksgiving I'll begin this challenge by posting what I am thankful for today.

I am thankful for my husband. He always makes me laugh. He says the most random stupidest jokes, but I can never stop laughing when he does! And I like it when he laughs at my dorkiness too. :)

autumn love

2011-11-02T21:48:00.014Z

Autumn has been way better than summer in my opinion. It hasn't been really that cold except for only a couple days that got me a little worried for the upcoming winter. I'm going to die come winter by the way.
But today was beautiful.

It was cool, we met up with friends at the park, the sun was out from behind the clouds, and the leaves were BRIGHT yellow. I just had to step back and soak it in. Beautiful.

bah humbug

2011-11-01T21:45:00.004Z

Halloween is quite a disappointment here. As soon as October rolled around the grocery stores had already put out a good sized Christmas section and only 1 type of Halloween candy out. Bah humbug.

And no pumpkin patches for me this year either. The girls and I just had to choose 2 from 8 small pumpkins at the grocery stores. Bah humbug.

It wasn't until literally 3 days before Halloween did stores decorate with bats, spiders, and cobwebs and have more of a selection of Halloween sweets, none which were appealing to eat anyway. And sadly, there is no such thing as candy corn here. (Very, very select stores/store in Central London. And super pricey.)
And if the Halloween festivities increased a bit you better believe the Christmas festivities increased 10x more.

This had Marisa absolutely irritated that Christmas was going up at the same time as Halloween.

"They are crying wolf!",

was her response on the bus one day to the injustice of it all.

But we sure did make our situation into a better one though. Our Halloween weekend started out with Halloween festivities at Greenwich Market. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw every single seller dressed up and every booth decked out! Halloween music was playing loudly on speakers and there were plenty for the kids to do!

Right after our local market we went cookie decorating at our new NYC expat family's house. Meet the Blanchards. We love having them around.

On Saturday, we carved pumpkins as a family from our little store bought pumpkins.

Natalie was turned off by the slime and goo instantly but did choose what face she wanted on her pumpkin. Hello Kitty and Jack grace our window sill.

Lastly, Halloween night. I was determined to make it wonderful for Marisa's sake. I was told by one of my British friends that the reason why Halloween is not a huge holiday is because there is no sense of community here. Bah humbug neighbours! So we went to where all the Americans live. St. John's Wood!
We dragged Shauna and her kids with us and we had a great time!

It really felt like home in SJW. A little America. Everyone was so friendly and so open. An American lady in her car even pulled over on the side of the road while driving just to hand our kids candy and shouted, "Happy Halloween!" Oh, you should have seen me and Shauna's faces! The things we take for granted in the U.S. It was such a nice break to just relax and enjoy talking to complete strangers. A very much needed break from the cold British city life. Now to quickly find a way to make £15,000 a month to live there... ;)

Happy Halloween!

The Lost Purse

2011-10-30T21:30:00.000Z

A video of the wonderful story about our youth in my home stake in California! Oh how I hope and pray my daughters will be valiant young women themselves.

it's a date

2011-10-24T20:01:00.002+01:00

We have a perfect set up with Shauna. We watch her kids while her and her hubby go on a date and then she watches our kids while Tim and I go on a date. Can it get better?

Shauna insisted that we go first and so for our date Saturday Tim and I hired bikes and rode around Hyde Park on an absolute gorgeous fall day here in London. The scenery was near breath-taking, the ride was relaxing, and the company was fabulous. ;)

We stopped once to eat some candy from our favourite sweet shoppe and after our ride we walked down to Piccadilly Circus since Tim has yet to see it. Central London scenery never gets old. Wandering around Fortnum & Mason, jewelry window shopping, local artist awing, old city bus sighting, all hand in hand with my love. It was a perfect date.

On a different note, Marisa's very first primary program was yesterday and she did an amazing job!
This was taken while waiting for our bus to church.

She had her part memorized for weeks now. "The scriptures teach us about prophets" and when it was her turn to say her part she confidently, and with a smile on her face, walked over to the pulpit said her part, and walked back with a smile still on her face.
There was no two step stool for her just a small single one so all we saw was the microphone go straight down and heard her cute voice from behind the pulpit. Love her.

obsessions

2011-10-16T21:41:00.000+01:00

Natalie has recently become obsessed with Marisa's "Jasmine jammies" lately. It has gotten to the point that she franticly cries when getting dressed in the morning or has to take a shower at night because she has to take it off. The worst, I think, is when I tell her we have to wash her pajamas. You will not believe the shear loudness of her crying and drama productions on the floor when this happens.

Today I forced these cute pink glow-in-the-dark Halloween pajamas on her as we waited for her "Jasmine" to be washed. She was so eager that during snack time she opened the door and sat down to watch while eating her apple.

I don't recall ever having obsessions as a child like my children do, but I sure have plenty as an adult.

First, not only is it my new favourite British cookbook, but also my new favourite cookbook of all time. Yes, Jamie Oliver.

I could go on and on about him, his revolution (which I'm a part of), and his cookbook. But to sum it up: 30 minutes, complete meals (meaning main dish, side, AND dessert), all completely healthy and fresh, totally do-able, makes my house smell divine and makes me feel like a fancy cook, and no fancy ingredients you will only use once and never again like other cookbooks I have tried. I need to find an American version of this cookbook when I move back to the U.S. LOVE.

London is known for their amazing Indian food. I haven't had any yet because I'm waiting for a few more recommendations before I pick a restaurant to try it, but I did make my first Indian dish, thanks to Jamie. It was seriously, delish.

I'm sure I made my neighbours jealous and when my American friend, Shauna, across the street (remember I met her on the bus), brought her boys over to pick up her daughter from a playdate at my house, one of the boys exclaimed, "Can I pay you to eat here? It smells good!"

Second obsession, pinterest.

This is my 'home inspiration' board. I pin things I like and I can forever have them. No more folder files on my computer, no more bookmarks on my computer. All properly saved with its source on my boards. You should try it if you haven't already. Obsessed.

The British Museum

2011-10-15T19:59:00.021+01:00

Did you know The British Museum is the 2nd most visited museum in the world next to the Louvre? Neither did I!

We leisurely took the 188 all the way. We love sitting front row on the double decker bus!

The famous Rosetta Stone. Just like at the Louvre, I was able to weave my small body right to the front of the crowd within seconds to take a picture.

I wanted to see the mummies. When I explained to the girls beforehand about mummies and mummification to the best of my knowledge Natalie replied, "Ok, see mummies. That's you!" Not that kind of mum, Natalie! haha

The horse head that Marisa was adamant about seeing.

We planned a small fun outing to the museum and then did some shopping in the city for some shoes for Tim and Marisa. Christmas is in the air already here. Stores have been filling quickly since beginning of October with Christmas sweets. The streets of central London already have lights and huge stars beginning to be hung across the streets and covering the departments stores. I'm so excited for Christmas in London...

Happy 60th Birthday, Elaine!

2011-10-12T18:52:00.002+01:00

Remember how Marisa's Jessie doll was stolen in Barcelona? When I was retelling my mother-in-law, Elaine, how our robbery happened just soon after the incident, I began to tear up when talking about the part of Marisa's reaction to her doll being stolen and my heartache of hearing her sadness and fear. Elaine knowing how much it not only affected Marisa but me as her mother, without any hesitation quickly reacted and said, "Do you want me to send her a new Jessie doll? I can send her one." Such a simple act yet spoke volumes to me. She still manages a way to serve and love from even far away.

So those of you who have asked me if Marisa was able to get Jessie replaced; she did. Thanks to Grandma. :)

So, Happy Birthday to the best mother-in-law ever! I really hope you had a wonderful birthday!

The family got together in Colorado and threw Elaine a big 60th birthday party. We sure wish we had been there!
Thank you for being the kind, thoughtful woman that you are. Thank you for your righteous example and sweet hugs. Thank you for raising a wonderful son and being an amazing mother and grandmother. Despite the fact that you have 16 grandkids you never, never, miss a birthday and you are always aware of what everyone in the family is doing. You make each grandchild, child, and in-law, even those across the pond, feel so special and loved and I admire so much about that in you. Our girls are so lucky to have you as their Grandma!

We think of you often and look forward to our weekly chats on skype. At random times Marisa has cried in the middle of the day for no apparent reason and when I ask her what is wrong she says, "But, I just love Grandma and Grandpa", or "I miss Grandma and Grandpa." We can't wait to move back and be close again. We love you!
I asked the girls what message they wanted to say to Grandma and they said,

Marisa: "I love you."
Natalie: "Grandpa!" (I'm sure she wanted to say "Happy Birthday".)

Happy Birthday!!

chore chart miracle worker

2011-10-10T21:14:00.039+01:00

I've been meaning to get this done forever ago and I have finally come around to doing it. All I have to say is, chore-charting is fabulous. Miraculous really.

The girls have really stepped up to the plate willingly and have loved taking on big responsibilities. They genuinely find so much pride in contributing to the family and look forward to their weekly reward. Reward: £1/week if their charts are completely filled with sparkly stickers! And with that £1, at the end of every week we go to either the many local charity shops or sweet shops in town for treasures.

Natalie got a great, practically brand new, children's book for under a £1 for the 1st week and a pink sprinkled donut for the 2nd week, which was today's reward. Marisa found a Jessie hat (you know, Jessie from Toy Story) just her size, which she decided to be for Halloween this year, at exactly a £1 for her 1st week reward and for the 2nd week reward today she was actually the master mind behind getting a pink sprinkled donut. Success all around!

P.S. Recently Marisa has taken the liberty to give her parents a chore chart as well. Tim only has two things on his chart: "1. Poop in the toilet. 2. Clean up your clotheses." And I had 4 things on mine. I can't remember all of them, but they were not as funny as Tim's. haha

{Flashback}: Day 1/Day2

2011-10-08T20:53:00.089+01:00

We love that we are slowly checking off our list on things to see. And this particular trip pretty much finalized everything we really want to see in the U.K. Now we have the rest of Europe to see!

But before I begin retelling our most recent trip, I must mention that this time around when we rented our car, we rented a manual car instead of an automatic like we had done for our trip to Scotland. Manual cars are not only way cheaper than automatics, but also more accessible. Automatics are harder to come around. We figured we, basically Tim, might as well sooner or later for all the above reasons.
Tim was GREAT! He only stalled 2x getting out of the parking spot. hahaha But after 5 minutes he was completely comfortable. I must say not having driven a manual in 5 years and now having to shift with the left hand is quite impressive! Tim said that driving an automatic, on the left hand side of the road, and knowing traffic laws from beforehand helped greatly. Well done, hubby!

So, first on our list this weekend; Stonehenge! When we first moved here locals were saying that the Stonehenge may disappoint us and that it wasn't all that it was cracked up to be. I was actually really sad to hear that! But I very much appreciate the honesty. I'm glad people warned me about the Mona Lisa years ago.
But of course, we still wanted to see the Stonehenge despite contrary opinions. And I must say, that I highly disagree with everyone! I really liked it!

Above is the "Heel Stone". I learned before our arrival that when one stands within Stonehenge, facing north-east through the entrance towards the heel stone, one sees the sun rise above the stone at summer solstice. Cool.

After a pretty quick stop we kept on in our journey toward Bath, England. A major tourist attraction in Bath is The Roman Baths. Basically, it is a well-preserved Roman site for public bathing. You can see The Baths and the museum, but you obviously can't go in the water. We didn't see it. Instead we wanted to lesiurely enjoy the amazing 80 degree weather we were having for a whole week in the U.K. in another little English town like the other ones we have seen.

While eating icecream, as usual, on a huge lawn, we saw many huge hot air balloons fly away. And the sun felt oh so good on our skin as we watched.

That night we arrived in Newport, Wales. The location was pretty much central to Tintern Abbey and Cardiff, Wales.
The next morning we headed first to Tintern Abbey. Not only was this Abbey amazing, but we had it all to ourselves for awhile. Per chance we arrived right at opening. It was still a little cool and the sun was still rising. It was quiet. The Abbey was gorgeously surrounded by trees turning fall colors. We couldn't have asked for a better scenario.

And what did we do with all this perfectness? Play hide-and-seek, of course!!

Oh, I caught someone running from Daddy!

After a lovely morning we headed to Cardiff. It was another fun city where we did some Cardiff Castle viewing from the outside, sucessful shopping (I had to go all the way to Wales to find Yankee Candles! Red Berry and Cedar for Christmas!), and more ice-cream eating along the water front.

We saw some pretty interesting Welsh words during our trip. I'm so curious how the words are pronounced. They seem to have more constantants than vowels. Tim and I shared some great laughs trying. Try saying the word for litter...

When I told Marisa that we were getting down and seeing Mermaid Quay, she. was. elated. She totally thought we were going to see mermaids. Did you know she thanks Heavenly Father for mermaids in her prayers? Yes, she does. haha
At least, the icecream wasn't a disappointment.

daddy's little girls

2011-10-05T20:50:00.054+01:00

Wasn't General Conference amazing? It was great. The questions I had going into it were unsurprisingly all answered. One question in particular, which had been on my mind a lot, was completely answered in Sister Dalton's talk. I know it was meant for dads, but it very much pertains to mothers as well and to what I needed to hear. I immediately started crying when within the first sentences she said, "How do I raise a girl?" Wow. Complete answer to my prayer. This talk was written for me. The Lord and his tender mercies.

The talk also reminded me of my own daughters and their complete adoration for their daddy, even though they have been pretty cheeky with their daddy lately. How lucky they are to have a daddy like they do.

Here is a very typical evening in our house:

Tim buzzes in.
Natalie yells out first, "Is that daddy!? Mommy, that's not groceries?"
I confirm that it is not groceries in which both girls then go into hiding.
Tim walks in pretending to have no idea where the girls are and goes on a man hunt.
Both girls scream in delight when found with Marisa also yelling, "Daddy!" and Natalie pleading, "Prince, dance with me?"
The Prince then dances with Princess Natalie.
Then both girls physically cling on to him all while daddy is eating his dinner.

I must say, not a bad way to come home! Like I said, the girls absolutely adore their dad. And I adore their precious relationships.

Their love for him is not only evident in the evenings but throughout every day, all day, as well.

-If you were to ask Marisa who she wants to marry she will always reply, "Daddy."
-Even Marisa's teachers know Tim's name.
-I picked up Marisa after school one day to have the teacher hand me about 10 drawings she did that day and every single one, except 1, had daddy and her. Here is the only drawing with me in it. (T is for Tanya and N is for Natalie. I'm holding Natalie in my arms.)

-She also tells her teachers that she is making decorations for daddy's birthday, every day. (His bday isn't until January.)
-Marisa decorates the house for Tim's birthday every day. One time she was even so excited that she even paused in the middle of decorating and yelled so loud, "I LOVE DADDY!" while jumping up and down.
-Natalie will ask at random times during the day, "Where is Prince?"
-One time on the bus while eating an orange Marisa saved the very last slice, cupped it in her hand carefully, and told me she was saving the last slice for daddy.
-If at home we are eating a treat, she will also take one and put it aside on the counter for Daddy for when he comes home.
-Marisa especially wants to always be near daddy, walk by daddy, copy daddy, wrestle with daddy, be just like daddy.

Even on the tube she wants to read the paper like daddy.

You can see their eyes literally light up when daddy is around. I'm so thankful for Sister Dalton's talk to guide me in raising girls in this life, but I'm even more thankful that I have a husband who is one rockin' dad.

"there is sunshine in my soul today..."

2011-09-30T21:31:00.037+01:00

Today was a beautiful day. While Marisa was at school, Natalie and I shared a warm butter croissant while walking in the gently cool park. It was perfect.
Then after playing at the park we sat ourselves on a bench for a snack and soaked in the warm, very warm, sun rays. It felt so good to close my eyes and tilt my head back to physically feel the warmth. Yes, it is hot and sunny over here! I really needed to feel the sun today. It totally lifted my spirits.

And I'm so excited for General Conference weekend tomorrow. My soul is in need of major uplifting, reenergizing, and heavenly guidance. Spiritual sunshine for my soul.

For the past several General Conferences we have used this site for Conference packets for the kiddos. Highly recommend it. They have them for all ages.

And another major plus, because the past couple of days have been and will continue to be for the next several days in the mid to high 20s, (celsius, that is), we made a last minute decision a couple nights ago to rent a car and spend the weekend in Wales! We are going to try to soak up as much sun as we can!

Happy Conference weekend!

life lately with our two girlies

2011-09-29T22:11:00.005+01:00

If I had to pick my favourite age so far for my kids I would pick 2 years old. Marisa was a riot at 2. She said the funniest things and was an absolute doll. Natalie is the same way now. She's still my baby yet her vocabulary and comprehension is exploding and it is so fun to watch her blossom.
And the girls are at the perfect ages too right now. They love playing with each other and can entertain each other so well. They are more independent than ever yet more manageable than ever. Just everything about them right now is plain great. I'm having so much fun with them.
Today they were pretending to be superheroes together.

On the flip side, Tim and I have suddenly fallen victims, well I should say mainly Tim has, of their new independence and cleverness...

For example,

-While lecturing Marisa...
Tim: "Now when are you going to start listening?"
Marisa: "When I'm 6."

-While trying to get the girls to bed...
Tim: "Natalie... (Totally interrupted midsentence by Natalie putting her hand out to stop him from talking and said...)
Natalie: "Hold on, hold on, Tim. Hold on."
She paused, blinked her eyes, then walked away.

-While all 4 of us hanging out on our bed...
Natalie: "Mommy, bite."
Me: "I don't want to bite Daddy."
Natalie: "Ok...kick!"

What is going on???

And then there is Marisa's lying...

Tim: "Who made this mess?"
Marisa: "The squirrel did it."
Tim: "Marisa, the squirrel did not do it."
Marisa: "Yes, it did."
Tim: "Don't lie."
Marisa: "I'm not lying."

On the flip side again...

Natalie never turns down an opportunity to pray. She loves to pray and never requires help. She knows exactly what she wants to say. Every time she prays her voice becomes really soft yet high-pitched. So tender and so sweet.
This was her prayer several nights ago. One of these days I want to record it because it is one of the sweetest things to listen to.

"dear heavenly fathers,
thank you my day,
daddy strong,
daddy work,
thank you strawberries,
and grapes,

(and church), (<-- Tim actully interjected here for a moment)

and castle.

name of jesus christ, amen."

As for Marisa, when I walked into the girls' room soon after putting them to bed, I see this sweet girl asleep, hugging her beloved Georgie.

I have countless pictures of these two together since they meet each other when Marisa was 8 months old. For second, I thought her Jessie doll permanently replaced him but not too long ago when we asked her who she wanted to sleep with Marisa said, "Georgie. Because he misses me." I don't want the time to come yet where she will get too old for him.

tube rides

2011-09-25T18:07:00.001+01:00

Yesterday we were missing the city and decided to go in for dinner. There is never a dull moment on tube rides.

Doesn't she look like the pigs from angry birds?? hahaha

{Flashback}: Day 5/Day 6

2011-09-21T15:44:00.003+01:00

If you want to see a cute little English town go to York, England. Everything about it is cute, cute, cute.

But before we arrived to York we stopped to see the Rosslyn Chapel. Tim wanted to see it. I didn't care. And we only saw it from the outside. It was a quick stop but again it allowed the girls to get their wiggles out a bit at a really, really, really old graveyard. I'm not sure that was appropriate. Oh well.

Tim is the one in the relationship to "stop and smell the roses", which he inherited from his mother, and which has been passed to Marisa, and so he will always be the one to point out how amazing things look, especially in nature. I on the other hand don't really notice unless it is pointed out to me or I just plainly don't get as excited about sights like that as much as Tim does. But I have to admit, we saw some really pretty sights on our drive down England.

Once we entered York, Tim and I kept saying, "Wow, this is so cute!" It was a lovely little town with so much character.

When we told people we were going to York just about everyone mentioned that we should eat at Betty's Cafe. We love food recommendations. Recommendations on any matter over here is really great.

We were serenaded by a piano player just a foot away from our table while we ate a proper English dinner; I had lamb and Tim had Cumberland sausage. And the meal was rounded off with some pasterries from the bakery inside Betty's. Yummy.

After dinner we went off to see The Shambles. When researching what to see in York before our trip I read that it was "Britain's Most Picturesque Street". So I thought, ok, cool, it will be fun to see really old architecture and take really cool pictures. Although it was cool to see medieval architecture where the building hangs over the street by several feet and the buildings are all warped looking, Tim and I agree it was not THAT cool. I guess I envisioned that I would be transported to a long medieval street. And I wasn't. There were a few cool looking buildings though.

On our way back to the car we saw Clifford's Tower, the keep of York Castle. It is so bizarre to see something so stinkin old surrounded by more modern buildings. It is so weird and neat at the same time!
The original motte and bailey castle on this site was erected by William the Conqueror in 1068! Amazing. This tower was built somewhere between 1245-1262 by order of King Henry III.

Our local trip is now complete. And Tim can proudly say he was never honked at. (Except in Edinburgh Tim asked how he was doing on his left hand side when trying to squeeze in between a car and the median and I said, "Oh, plenty of room," and he accidentally barely nicked the mirror of the car next to us. The driver honked at us to just get our attention but nothing happened to his car. So he blames that honk on me.)
The car rental place told us we could return the car the next day if we wanted which was so sweet because the next day was Sunday which meant we could drive to church! It's all in the little things people! And since it is on my bucket list to drive on the left hand side...

{Flashback}: Day 4

2011-09-19T20:51:00.022+01:00

We had one more full day in Edinburgh. But what to do? I've always envisioned Scotland with super amazing green grass flowing endlessly in all directions with castles at the edges of lochs. So I wanted to see just that.
Unfortunately, the really amazing sights were another 4 hours from Edinburgh. I did not want to get in the car for more driving. We are just going to have to come again and visit when we are older. Like an old people cruise or something. ;)
Instead, we only drove 2 hours to the Trossachs to find something similar.

Two things went very wrong during those couple of hours. The roads were windy and we ended up not exactly where we wanted to be. And this is where I started to get grumpy.
First of all, I don't like long car rides. Second of all, I get motion sickness really easily. I can't even read in the car for just a few minutes without feeling really sick. So it is no wonder I hate car rides because I have to literally sit for hours and do nothing but stare in space! (Or talk someone's ear off.) And it is no surprise either that my morning sickness with my pregnancies are pretty bad too.

Well, combine these two, and you get, bingo, grumpy me. Hi.

Unfortunately, my girls have inherited this motion sensitivity from me as well. Marisa has thrown up twice from reading in the car and this trip was so windy that although she wasn't reading, she still threw up. Count is now #3 for her in the car. And Natalie has only thrown up from the round-about at the playgroup here in London. Luckily, not on this road trip. She was asleep.

At this point now I had had it. I'm now yelling in the car, "I HATE NATURE!"

Yes. Hi.

My wonderful dear husband just remained all-around pretty calm with all things considered and never said anything the entire time while I am going on about how awful this is.

Tim joked at the end of the day that I am no longer allowed to go back to nature because I said I hated it just like his mom shouted out, "I hate Hawaii" when she lost her wedding ring and his dad and siblings all joked that she is not allowed to go back to Hawaii because she said that. haha But quite frankly, I'm totally ok with not going back to nature!

Anyways, at this point, what to do? Nothing we wanted to see was in view, I wanted to barf, Marisa already did, and we had all been in the car for too long. We luckily and randomly found a little resting/picnic area to eat lunch and take a long break before heading back home for a failure of a trip. But while walking around a bit once we parked we realized there were a few trails up the hill. So we decided just to walk a little bit and let the girls wander and get their wiggles out. As we are walking a steep foresty hill I now say, "Great. Hiking. My next favourite thing." :)

Fortunately for me, it ended up being a really easy trail and a lovely one at that. Check out the view from the top.

Bingo! Just what we wanted to see. It wasn't the lochs I wanted to see, but it was close enough.
Completely peaceful, amazing view, sitting on a bench with no care in the world.
I can settle for this for now.

After awhile, Natalie and I headed back down to the car because the little thing was getting hungry.Tim and Marisa kept on hiking just a little bit more to see what they could see and got some more cool pictures.

first week of school

2011-09-16T16:21:00.046+01:00

School started this past week!

According to U.K. standards Marisa should be starting Kindergarten or "Reception" as they call it here, this fall. But because of the timing of our move over here we were considered late applicants when I applied for Marisa to attend the top 3 public or "state schools" nearby so we didn't get into the schools I wanted. So while we remain on the waiting list for them, and as I refuse to send her far away to a crappy school they allocated me in the meantime, I instead have her in a really good preschool or "nursery" which has accepted her to attend until the end of December this year because she is considered a young 4. (Her birthday is in April.) I think I mentioned all this before.

What I didn't mention is that the school was even nice enough to let her attend mid-term this past June! So technically Monday wasn't Marisa's "first day of school" but it kinda was at the same time. She had a good introduction into the school, her teachers, and how things run over here beforehand so she was such a pro entering the school on Monday.

She marched right into the gates of the school with her red school bag in hand with so much confidence, leaving me way behind, and waited for her classroom or "shelter" doors to open with a huge grin on her face. She "self-registered" which is like a way of an attendance sheet, and placed her bag where it belonged with that smile still on her face. It was never a problem leaving her the first time we went to school, (ok it was a little hard for me, not for her though, to actually leave her) but it was 10x easier leaving her this time around because she was SO excited to be back!!

After the first day of school, on the bus ride home, I turn to see Marisa laying herself across an entire row eating her grapes. This is the "Good Life"!

I asked Marisa what her favourite part about school is and she said, "Umm, reading books, playing with toys, making maps, making a friend. Yes. All of it."

{Flashback}: Day 3

2011-09-15T15:47:00.005+01:00

There were really only two things on our must-do list for Edinburgh; Edinburgh Castle and the Royal Mile. So, we just took the bus and dropped ourselves off at the city centre. No set plans, no real agenda. (Which is not like us.) How did we know where to start? We followed the sound of bagpipes of course!

Listening to bagpipes play authentic Scottish music was so neat. As I was taking pictures of the bagpiper the girls just stood there listening totally mesmerized. We gave Natalie some money to throw in his box, which she did willing, but she was so shy that she slowly approached the box and then quickly threw it in, missing the box actually, and then ran back to us. haha

This old man was really nice. I never asked to take a picture with him but he totally offered. Sure, why not? And like I mentioned before, he played "Wheels on the bus" on his bagpipes for the girls as we sang along a bit. He works hard for the money! ha.

We knew the direction of the Edinburgh Castle (obviously not hard to miss) and as we walked toward it we walked through a small garden area and saw the Scott Monument, which was right behind the old man bagpiper.

Continuing our walk we got a good glimpse of Waverley Bridge between Old Town and New Town...

a bottom view looking up at the castle above (top right corner),...

a cute glimpse of some quaint Scottish homes,...

and lastly at the end of this steep climb, the entrance of Edinburgh Castle.

It was not one of my favourite castles, but it did offer a beautiful view of this part of Scotland and the Firth-of-Forth.

And what's a proper castle without cannons, statues, and guard booths?

After lunch inside the castle walls we walked down the famous Royal Mile where there were loads of stores selling kilts and cashmere. It was a fun little atmosphere and funny to see really nice stores selling really nice expensive kilts. I can't imagine grown men shopping for skirts. :)

Along the Royal Mile we saw St. Giles Cathedral and the statue of Duke Buccleuch.

We took a quick detour from the mile to take a picture of where Harry Potter began.

I totally walked in just so I can say I was inside the very cafe J.K. Rowling started it all. Don't you wish Hogwarts was real?? Seriously! Such amazing books! Love them.

At the end of the mile we saw the Palace of Holyroodhouse. We didn't go inside, but we enjoyed it from afar.

We then looped around and did a lot more walking back to the city centre. We took it easy so Natalie could continue her nap in the buggy and so Marisa could stop and smell the flowers, literally. We stop many, many times during our long walks on all of our holidays because of her. She is pretty pokey. But isn't this what life is all about? Stopping to smell the roses? Taking it easy and enjoying life's little moments? Thanks Marisa for the constant reminder.

You can see so much during a simple walk in Scotland. We even saw many people trekking along toward the edge of Arthur's Seat. I'm sure the view is incredible at the top.

Aside from the stark Medieval architecture we also saw a huge Greek architecture influence.

I don't know all the history details, but Tim says that Edinburgh is considered to be the "Athens of the North". I didn't take a picture of it but we also saw the National Monument which was intended to be a full-scale replica of the Parthenon in Athens, but only the west side was completed before funds ran out leading it to be known as "Scotland's Shame".

Right at the top of the road we took another steep walk up Calton Hill where we saw the famous Dugald Stewart Monument. This is where we plopped ourselves near the edge and ate grapes while overlooking the city again. It was such a quiet atmosphere and the view was so lovely.

Once Natalie woke up we walked some more to see the The Balmoral Hotel, which is where J.K. Rowling finished the 7th book of Harry Potter. Wikipedia wrote, "Rowling left a signed statement written on a marble of bust of Hermes in her room saying; 'JK Rowling finished writing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in this room (552) on 11th Jan 2007.'" I wonder how much that room costs now!

At this point is was nearing dinner time and we had seen everything we really needed to see. BUT, we can't leave Scotland without eating Haggis!

Tim ordered it for his meal and I just tried a couple of bites. I'll let you click on the link to see what it is. I shouldn't have read what it is before hand because I wanted to barf at the sound of it, but I have to try it. I'm in Scotland! It wasn't bad at all. I had chicken pie though for my meal which was yummy in my tummy on this cold day in Edinburgh.