More good times

Happy Birthday, Jesus! As children, we always checked in the manger scene to see if little baby Jesus had arrived on Christmas morning. He's always there! Adam, Robbie, and Reuben enjoyed perfecting their football skills on New Year's day. Fires have been warm and inviting throughout our visit. And this last picture says it perfectly. Adam loves his sleep!!

Moments to Remember

Why am I flinching? Adam shot his first deer--on his first hunting trip! Yes, that is the blood of the deer smeared on his face. A hunter's tradition so I am told. Gross, but I was still proud of my husband! Wouldn't the Londoners be shocked? :) Other fun moments--Teddy in his new sweater, posing for the camera. Listening to my mom as she read "The Best Christmas Pagent Ever," another yearly tradition for my family. If you've never read the book, get it! It is a classic!

Old and the New

Some traditions just have to stay the same! How many years have we taken pictures of the "kids" hanging up their stockings on Christmas Eve? I'm not sure, but this is a first with Adam as the new "kid." It was fun to re-live the old days with my family and introduce Adam to the way we do things. :)

Merry Christmas!

The whole family together again!!

6 months??

The last time I wrote I was in the States, and I'm back again. If I keep up this pattern, I will never become a true blogger. I didn't realize it'd be so hard to keep up with while in London...I won't make any promises from now on cause I'm sure I couldn't keep them! But here I am now, sitting in my parent's living room while Adam and my dad watch American football behind me. This was my first Christmas and New Year's to spend with my family in four years. We weren't even supposed to come this year, but about a month and a half ago Adam came up with the idea of going to surprise my parents for Christmas. I laughed and said, "In my dreams!" He looked at me and said, "I'm serious. Do you think we could?" That's all it took--I went from there and spent hours looking for tickets. My passport even arrived the next day with my new Indefinite Leave to Remain posted inside! Adam's one condition was that we not tell ANYONE about our trip. So we didn't! About a week before we left I did tell my friend Elise so she could pick us up from the airport in Jackson and drive us down to Brookhaven...I was dying to let someone know by that point! We arrived on Tuesday night before Christmas and everyone in the house was asleep. Whoa were they surprised!! It was really interesting just seeing all the different reactions (my parents, Reuben, Liz Anne, and later Tina and Rob). And such fun!! We had a wonderful Christmas together and Adam and I have just been soaking up every day. Lots of rest, good food, great company. We have one week left before we head back to the Big City. I'm not ready yet. Tried posting a picture but it didn't work so will try again...

Thanks for those of you who have remembered me and checked my blog! Sorry I am no fun with this thing!

My Special Place

Montrose, Pennsylvania.

This town has so many happy memories that I could fill a whole blogsite with them. I am sitting in the basement of our cabin in Montrose as I write this. What better time to tell you about it? I am in the States for three weeks, visiting lots of family and friends. A week has already flown by, but I don't want to think about that. The only thing that makes this trip less than perfect is the absence of Adam. :( He is busy working with the youth in London (and watching the World Cup). Holding down the fort--I think. :) I was reading my Aunt Jan's blog just now and saw her perfectly-written historical account of how Montrose came to be our Special Place. Since she is sitting upstairs, I popped up to ask if I could "borrow" her blog entry on Montrose. She very graciously granted her permission. If you have time, check out her site www.motherofbridebyjan.blogspot.com. I'm almost afraid to send you to her site as well as her daughter Torrey's because they so put me to shame with their wit! :) Anyway, back to the purpose of this entry. Here's a little about Montrose, thanks to Aunt Jan.

"It is a small Pennsylvanian town in the "foothills of the Endless Mountains" as my mother was fond of describing it. "2000 population and 2000 elevation..." (I'm not sure of either, but it sounds good and is easy to remember). One thing we do know is that it was a summer enclave for rich Philadelphians who wanted to get away from the heat of the city. Drive down Lake St and the white Georgian homes of yesteryear will conjure up the clip clop of horses and buggies, ladies in lawn shirtwaists with large hats going to take tea with a neighbor, butlers and maidservants bustling around, and, of course, Mary Roberts Rinehart mysteries.

Our family (Mother, Daddy, Rosie, Rick, Lyn & I) went there for the first time in 1960. We stayed in the upstairs apartment of a huge house on High St. Daddy was visiting missions in South America, and he wanted to get us out of the heat of Detroit. Lao Lao (old old -- or the mother's mother in Chinese) and Granddaddy were going to be there as they had come home permanently from Korea. They would be living in Torrey Lodge so we would get an entire summer with our grandparents.

The upshot of the whole thing was that Mother and Daddy purchased an old (very old) log cabin (REAL log cabin) that Mother had lived in the summer of her 13th birthday. For years we came back to that falling down log cabin the day after school ended, and didn't go back to Michigan until the day before school started.

Mother and Daddy eventually bought land and built a home there where they lived until Daddy went home to be with Jesus, and mother married Amos, then moving to Bethany Village in Mechanicsburg, PA. Mother had the old cabin razed, building a new, modern, winterized one on the very spot.

Our families went back, summer after summer. Rosie and I and all the children would meet up there for two to three weeks, never missing the Blueberry Festival. It is Lyn and Tim's home when they are in the U.S. on home assignment from Berlin.

The fall of 2001 we rented the cabin -- and lost it to a fire.

We had it rebuilt by the same builder that did the second cabin.

Rosie has been the prime mover and shaker for getting it built, with Lyn putting many of the finishing touches on it this year when she was home."

I hope that gave you a picture of our place here in Montrose. I'll definitely have to add a picture of the cabin when I get the chance. I have been here every year of my life since I was 3 months old--except for one, last year. Some trips have been very short, others lasting for half the summer. Adam had a whirlwind trip here during our engagement. We came for my cousin Maren's wedding. I do hope he can come before too much time passes and have a "proper" visit. One of my favorite things is just sitting on the porch swing reading a novel. I love looking out over the luscious, green trees rather than the busy street or brick wall that faces my windows in London. The quiet and sweetness of the air is just what you need as you take a break from the daily fullness of life. Being here with family is what makes it the most special. Growing up, we only got to see our extended family once a year, and that was on our long trek to and from Montrose and during our stay here. I have a wonderful, loving family so this was the most exciting time of the year! (well, probably next to Christmas) What a blessing it is to be here this year. I thank the Lord for this special gift.

A Boy at Heart

Adam's favorite day while we were in Wales was the day we went to Oakwood Theme Park. It was a perfect, "queue"-free day. (queue=line in British English) It was funny coming across a section of the park labeled "New Orleans." I saw some familiar signs, like Cafe du Monde and fake adverts for Pralines...Unfortunately it didn't quite feel like home!

Ok, just a few more!

I couldn't resist adding a few more pictures of "the castle" and scenes from The Hookses. Adam is climbing the fence on another of those famous English walks. This one was much more do-able as it was only a couple of miles!

Roots

A mere five-minute trek off of the road back to London led us to this special place...Coity Castle, in Coity, Wales. How neat it is to think some of my family came from here! I don't know the history (though I have visited the place twice now--think it's about time for me to learn some facts!). I'd like to say our family owned the castle, but they probably took on the name as servants who worked and lived there. I did take a picture of the ruins of the chapel--maybe our ancestor was the clergy? :) Coit was my grandmother Nonnie's maiden name (my father's mother). Both my father and brother Rob have Coit as their middle name. Wouldn't you guys love to visit here? Just one more reason why you need to come back and visit...!

As we walked into the front yard, we ran into a large group of teens playing soccer! Some of them were also scaling the walls--no ropes or anything. The ruins are very high so I was thankful no one fell! They may have died from the impact. The sun was shining gloriously and it was actually warm. What a beautiful day to explore. Could you imagine playing in the local castle ruins for fun as you grew up?? It would have been my dream...Those of you who know me know that's no exaggeration! It was fun sharing a part of my family's history with Adam, as well. I think he was impressed. :)

Sun and Rainbows

Finally! I'm still here. Thanks to those who haven't given up on me and have checked my blog site once more. Where does time go?? London is still kicking, fast-paced as ever. Everyone is getting excited about summer and I'm still wondering, "where is it?" It has been in the 50s this week and the rainiest it's been all year. At least the days are long--for the times the sun does shine. (Sun rise is before 5am and sun set after 9pm.) Several weeks ago Adam and I made a trip to The Hookses in Wales, on the Pembrokeshire Coast. This is John Stott's special place that he has given to the church to rent out to people. Our friends Meg and Jonny Greatrex rented it out for the week while Meg's parents were visiting from South Africa. They kindly invited us to come for a few days, which we very gladly did! It feels a million miles away from London--the only sounds at The Hookses are the waves crashing into the cliffs, the birds, and the wind. We had gorgeous weather (though still windy and quite cold!). One day the four of us went to a theme park and enjoyed riding all the rollar coasters--without having to wait in line at all! Adam, Jonny, and Meg ended the day with a splash as they rode the wettest ride possible. I was freezing in my normal clothes so I can't imagine how they made it home without getting hypothermia! I think I still have too much Southerness in my bones for such things...

One evening we had a rain storm and afterwards an amazing rainbow appeared. We could see each end. It was amazing! God's promises still hold fast today! :)

Washing

Washing. Why is this such a tedious chore in this country? Thankfully we've got a communal washer/dryer set in the entryway to our block of flats. Many people have to go to places like the laundrymat a few doors down. But the washing routine still has its oddities. The "short" cycle on the washing machine takes TWO hours! At least I've learned to time it now so I don't have to keep going out in the hall to check if it's done yet (which is no fun at all in the winter cause the non-heated entryway is FREEZING)...Of course size is an issue, as well. We've supposedly got the extra-large washer. I can't even imagine what the small must be like. I usually end up cramming as many things in as possible and quickly slamming the door shut to keep it in. That's probably about 1/2 to 3/4 a load in a normal American washer. Then there's the drying. At least we have a dryer, which many people don't have. Of course, some things I line dry and that doesn't take too long cause I leave our little heater on all the time. I think there were a couple of months in the summer last year when I could actually turn it off. It's still on the highest setting at the moment. Although I can tell the days aren't quite as cold as they have been, because it's more bearable to go into the kitchen. In the middle of winter the kitchen is as cold as it is outside. Hey, I guess I could use it like a great big fridge! I know this isn't terribly interesting, but I just thought I'd share one of those glimpses of normal, daily life here at 139.

Another fave spot

WALES! Thanks to generous friends from All Souls, we've been able to enjoy the lovely, peaceful, friendly Welsh coastline. They have a very nice home in a cute little town called Borth. The picture of the birds was taken on the shoreline in Aberstywyth, down the windy country road from Borth. If only I could capture the lyrical accent of the lovely Welshmen on this site...

Does this sell it to you?

More views of the Cornish coast. I had my first proper English walk here. You may wonder what the difference between an American walk and an English walk is. Well, I'd say you'd have about 4 or 5 hours across the rugged English countryside to each American 30 minute meander through the neighborhood. I mean, some of these English walkers are hardcore! Our walk/hike this day was about 11 miles or so. We made our way through cow-patty-filled pastures, through ancient gates, between people's homes (all made of stone and hundreds of years old), narrowly missing bulls and horses, past the ruins of an old, old church, and then along the dramatic coastline with cliffs dropping into crystal-clear blue water. All the while, we only passed a handful of people. The walk ended with a dip into the FREEZING cold ocean at a beach in St. Ives (the cutest artist town you've ever seen). I seriously thought I'd get hypothermia if I stayed more than 3 minutes, and all around me were little English kids splashing around and having a grand ole time. I'm beginning to wonder what their skin is made of...Maybe I could get some of that home-made insulation!

Land's End...

...is not just a clothes catalogue! Little did I know (showing my ignorance here) that Land's End is the most southwestern point of England. It's a bit of a cheesy tourist trap these days, but the surrounding countryside is incredibly beautiful. Adam and I visited with our friends Ali and Andy last summer on a short camping trip. I felt like I was in the middle of the Mediterranean! Travelling tip: make time for Cornwall in any visit to England! Also, to give you an idea of just how far away we are, check out the distances posted. (Wollongong is the closest city to Adam's parents.)

My Neighborhood

Here's the front door to our set of flats. Ours is on the ground floor, not first as we'd call it in the U.S. (If something here is 5 floors, don't be fooled--it's actually 6, and yes you'll probably have to climb narrow stairs all the way up.) The other pics are scenes I see on my runs around Regent's Park. The tall tower is the BT Tower and is right down the street from us. Can you see "The London Eye" beside it? It's a huge farris-wheel type thing that was built in 2000. Good touristy thing to do as it gives you a good view of the city. The picture of the big green patch is taken on top of Primrose Hill. I noticed the other day that all these people were on the hill as the sun was setting. It was a strange sight because I've been running there all winter long and it's usually been deserted. What are these people doing invading my park? It will only get worse as summer approaches...1000s of people fill the park each day in summer (when it's not raining of course). In the dead of winter you could go through the whole park and only see a handful of people. Shouldn't we handful get some kind of special park privileges for sticking it out all year long? :) Joking aside, it is nice to see people out and about and all cheery. Keeps the run a bit more interesting.

Then and Now

Cutest Animals!

Dorigo National Park, Australia

And I thought Australia would look dry and scruffy...This park is full of beautiful rain forests!

View from the bottom...

Adam, Mum, Dad, and I walked across the bridge on the "ground" level before hiking to the top. It really is an impressive structure. I thought we were high enough over the water at that point!

The top!

Mum and Dad gave Adam and me an awesome combined birthday present--a trip to the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge! We went on a perfect warm, sunny day. The climb was a bit unnerving at first as we started out by walking across grates with cars flying by far below us. The further on we went the easier it got and I was able to really enjoy the amazing views across the city and water. Sydney is a beautiful city--very clean, with the bluest water in the harbour and striking beaches.