QUEEN ELIZABETH II

I have followed the Royal Family ever since Princess Diana came on the news here in America. My trip to London in 2011 was a dream come true for me. 

I was so sad to hear about the passing of the Queen. I just wanted to share a few drawings that a friend of mine posted on Facebook. I think they are so sweet. 

MISCELLANEOUS MONDAY

Anybody else loving the Olympics like I am. I'm watching the 3 to 4 hour shows each night on NBC and biting my lips a lot, especially watching the skaters.  

I have to say that I loved the opening ceremony. I'm a little tired about hearing about the ring not opening. Sure it sucked that it didn't work but the rest of the show was excellent in my eyes. I really liked the use of color and the choreography was impeccable. 

These dancers were one of my favorites. The men and 

woman in the background were amazing! 

I also enjoyed this colorful one too! 

I made some Chicken Enchilada Soup in the crockpot on Saturday. It is delicious and definitely my favorite so far. I will be making this one again and will also be eating it for dinner every night this week. My friend Alexis at Running Away! I'll Help You Pack! posted it last week.

Mine didn't come out as dark as hers or the original post but I'm thinking it is because I didn't have chicken broth so I used vegetable! Otherwise I didn't change up anything else. Give this one a try, it's so yummy......

I also spent a lot of time this weekend working on my address book. My old book must be over 20 years old and has about 100 crossed out address. I'm surprised I could even find an address in it with all the note and post its along with the little return addresses torn off of envelopes! 

So I spent time working on address labels on my computer and putting in all the important names, addresses, phone numbers and children's names, etc. Then I printed them out and put them on the proper pages under the proper alphabet letters in a new address book. It looks absolutely amazing and definitely organized. I tried to take a photo but without giving out names and addresses there just wasn't a good way to capture it. 

I'm enjoying getting my things in order....this is the year to get organized and implementing a "less is more" attitude. 

Mark landed safely in Europe at 2 am this morning and I will be spending Valentine's Day alone this year....sigh! But I'm going to keep busy and look forward to him coming home over the weekend. Right now I have sweet potato chips in the oven for the dogs and I even had some mashed sweet potatoes for breakfast.

We went to see Inside Llewyn Davis IMDb almost two weeks ago. It is a simple story about a folk singers life and we thoroughly enjoyed it! 

"A week in the life of a young singer as he navigates the Greenwich Village folk scene of 1961."

We had the opportunity to see Blue Jasmine IMDb on DVD from Netflix. We are Woody Allen fans and this movie was in true Woody form and very enjoyable........

"A New York socialite, deeply troubled and in denial, arrives in San Francisco to impose upon her sister. She looks a million, but isn't bringing money, peace, or love..."

Happy Monday!

FRIDAY FRAGMENTS

Joining in with Mrs.4444 today!


Some beautiful clouds.....

The end of our tomatoes......

 Some brownies bites with PB M&M's......

My newest canvas for my gallery wall.....

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So if you read my blog regularly you know that Mark went to Europe for 12 days and I didn't get to join him. (Yes I am still upset about it but very thankful to God for his safe travel)  This is where he stayed and I know I would have loved to stay there touring around Stratford.....sigh!

Billesley Manor Hotel

So back in August a blog friend Frau from West Family Adventures posted a picture of a tea towel her husband bought for her when he was in London. So I requested one from Mark if he could find it. Luckily he did find it plus another one that is similar but different because of the birth date and name. He also found a mug for me.

Front of mug....

Back of mug....

Also if you remember there is a co-worker who Mark hired who is originally from the Worcester, UK office and I met his parents back in June 2011 and she knows I am a big fan so she sent a few magazines home with Mark for me. Win win......

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A SHOUT OUT TO MY BROTHER RAYMOND
IN MILWAUKEE, WI

HAPPY BIRTHDAY
~I love you~

HOPE EVERYONE HAS A NICE WEEKEND

SOME FLOWERS TO SHARE + FAF

We put in some mums this Fall and I think Mark said they are hardy mums. Well they are in bloom again. The Bird of Paradise are going crazy with blooms and just look at my Poinsettia on the kitchen table still going strong! In the second picture you will see that our Gerber's are blooming and my Freesia (most fragrant flower ever) is starting to bloom.


I got a hair cut and color yesterday which always feels good. Skye is next!

Starting weight: 216
Last reported weight: 200
Current weight: 199
Weight +GAIN / -LOSS: -1
Total weight lost: -17 pounds

Hope everyone has a nice weekend. Mark is on his way to Europe today :( Prayers for his safe travels are always welcomed.

TREASURES TO MY HEART

I hope you were not too bored with all of my posts. It was definitely a labor of love. First getting all the pictures into the mosaics and then of course putting each post together. Blogger still doesn't work right for me when I post so I have to go into Html dozens of times to fix the spacing while I am reading and correcting things. I read and re-read each post several times. I am sure I still made some mistakes and I apologize for that. I definitely have a new appreciation for the writers who travel and put together those guide books!

These items were not expensive but they are priceless to me since I was able to buy them when I was in Europe. Of course my credit card would beg to differ with that statement. ($1,800) Let's remember that this included my expenses as I toured alone most of the time, our tickets to Versailles and gifts for others.

These are the four stamps I got in my passport.

Lots of goodies here. My flying saucers, a wrist band in yellow from Fat Face, Mind the Gap & French Bread magnets, little Harrods Mini Cooper, Harrods tea towel (dish towel to me) and a Eiffel Tower charm with red mushroom on it. I have always loved the little red dotted mushrooms, they remind me of my Bohemian heritage. I got my great nieces each one with a red ladybug on them to remind them of me! I bought a great Fat Face bag and had bought each couple one too. A little metal sign from the Chocolate shop I went to in Paris. Two magnets the I picked up at Harrods of the phone booths and mailbox. Got a couple of trinkets in Italy and my two ornaments, one of a taxi the other a double decker bus. Remember to click on the pictures to enlarge them.



I picked up a few ornaments that I liked and a few other little hanging items. Loved the Westminster Abbey ornament especially because it had a date on it . I gave Tristen one of the little birds and the little button heart was just too cute to pass up. I bought an ornament at Kensington Palace, one to honor William & Kate's wedding and one at Versailles. They are just so pretty.



I bought us a tiny Eiffel Tower, bought a few lavender scents at Kensignton Palace, my new pink Rotary Watch that I bought on that flight and a cute little wallet I bought in Italy. That is also the pink scarf I bought in Italy. I came across the little ballet shoe key holder at the Museum De Orsay in Paris (I collect little shoes) and a little flower hair clip that I bought. I wanted to buy a hat but I knew I would never where it. I most likely won't wear this clip either! I bought one of the little ballet shoes for Tristen and it is actually made by a ballet shoe company.



My Princess Diana engagement ring that I found at the gift shop at Westminster Abbey. I actually wore it to the Casino last week. A bag from Buckingham Palace and a large towel to commemorate the wedding. I was never able to find the engagement tea towel. I was told once they sell out they are gone. I bought two little crown pins and then they had these limited commemorative pins of the wedding at Westminster Abbey. I bought several to give to my nieces, great nieces and a few other people in my life. I bought a souvenir book of the wedding, a Kensignton Palace bag, a Buckingham Palace face cloth and a tea towel from the wedding that matches the ornament I bought.



Since I have been home I received the Hello magazine from Phil's mother. It was so sweet of her to send it to me. She just sent me a flyer from her paper the other day too. Anyway I had seen that magazine at the airport and wanted to remember to buy it before we went home. Well I never got it and was thrilled when she sent it to me. I bought a fan at Versailles along with a bookmark & pen. (I collect pens too) I have my collection of ticket stubs which I think are fun to save. I guess it's obvious I like to save things but I'm not a hoarder! The three little cards are from the Worcester Porcelain Factory. They are drawings of teacups from the past that they use to make. I had Tristen pick one out and she framed hers. I was going to have my MIL & SIL each pick one out the next time I see them. I dried the rose that Mark bought from a street vendor on our Anniversary. We got several little things from Virgin with our flights. We didn't use them so I passed some on to the kids.



I have a little story about the two little giraffe bandz. One is a ring and the other is a wrist bandz. My great niece Ashlynn gave them to me. I took them to Europe with me and wore them all the time. When I got home from our trip the ring was not on my finger. I know it was on when I boarded the plane so I assumed I lost it on the plane because I searched everywhere for it. I felt really bad about this because I couldn't wait to tell her that I took them with me. So last week when I got around to taking these pictures (which I really didn't do a good job of) I placed the Fat Face bag on the bed and suddenly there it was!!! I was so excited. What I have done is taken that passport picture above, added the little giraffe picture to it and will print it out. Then I will mail it to Ashlynn with a note telling her all about their journey.

I forgot to show you this little cutie that I bought at the airport right before we boarded our plane to come home. It was an impulse buy for sure! It was my last chance to get something in Europe which was so silly because the exchange rate just made it cost more than buying it here. But now I can say I bought it in Europe.

Something else to add. Remember Phil from Mark's office and his friend Ali who helped me so much in Europe. Well Ali came in last Friday from London and we went to dinner with them on Tuesday evening. It was so nice to see her again. It was an evening of wonderful conversation and some great wine. I just love listening to their accents.

My dinner was so delicious. There is a restaurant named Mario's Place across from the Mission Inn in Riverside. We go there for office Christmas Parties all the time. I had freshly made mozzarella on top of sliced small tomatoes. We had some delicious risotto and a steak that was perfection. You would not believe the presentation of these dishes. I didn't bring my camera because I didn't want to embarrass them at the table or look like a fool at this really fancy place.

VACATION ~ LONDON ~ PART FOURTEEN

(click on the pictures to enlarge them)

Thursday June 30, 2011

Britain Museum & Covent Gardens

Mark had the day off and since he hadn't really been to places like I had it was suggested that he would like the Britain Museum. We didn't get there early in the day because we had to switch from Gatwick airport Marriott to Heathrow Marriott for our flight out on Friday. Wow we did change hotels often and it's a lot of work. We were lucky that Phil was staying on in England and rented a car the night before when they came in from Scotland. Mark said that what he saw of Scotland that day was absolutely beautiful and they was able to have some free time to drive along the coast. Anyway Phil had the car so he was nice enough to drive us to the hotel at Heathrow which saved us a lot of time and money.

So we were able to check in early, it was around noon, and got to our room and it smelled horrible from smoke that wasn't going to go away any time soon. It was like 20 smokers just had a party in our room.So we called for a room change, took our bags outside in the hallway and waited for the porter to bring the new key. So we are standing there and about six rooms down a maid was cleaning a room. We had watched several people go by hoping they were bringing our key but it wasn't happening.

So this man who we thought was maybe the guy, he actually had something in his hand that looked like another key holder, had stopped to talk to the maid. They were speaking a foreign language and he stood there for at least 10 minutes talking. It felt like a lot more but when you are waiting you think it's forever! We kind of wondered if he was the guy. Well he was and boy did Mark lay into him. It's not like we were in the room where we couldn't see him, he could see us in the hallway! Mark asked him who comes first and isn't it always about the customer. He apologized but we didn't give in. He was definitely in the wrong here. So he takes our bags and tries to help us to our next room being extra nice. Mark said should I tip him and I said "ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! "

So we took the shuttle to the airport and did the Underground today which took us to Russell Court where walked over the the Britain Museum. Lots of construction going on around there so we actually had to walk further then normal :( They had two special exhibits going on that didn't interest Mark so we didn't buy entries into them. The museum itself was free. Before we got there we ate at the cutest little place called Munchkins. I had my last fish 'n chips for the trip. Also, maybe because of the strikes that were going on Thursday in the UK, they had other floors closed so we could only do the main floor. We did see things that we had never seen before so it was well worth our time. Mark loved it.

Mark was really impressed with the hieroglyphics, they had rooms of them.

I was fascinated with these headless statues.

So we left the museum and headed back towards Russell Square when it started to drizzle a little bit. We sat on a park bench under huge trees for awhile. Then we decided to start up again and it started to rain more so we went into a little eating area in the park that was so charming and had coffee, hot chocolate along with some pastries. It was a nice break.

Then we went back to the Piccadilly Underground station and got on the train getting off two stops later at Covent Place. That was so much fun. The whole area was shops and places to eat. It was filled with people. It was a very interesting place and some areas were kind of hippie like. That was actually the area of the main Neil's Yard Remedies store. Mark wasn't thrilled with the shopping but he managed to find a shirt at Fat Face. I mentioned shopping at one in Worcester. You should be able to find them on the internet. It was the first time I had ever seen a Crocs store and I was thrilled to find a Penguin store. It's one of my sons favorite brands to wear.

We stopped and had a nice cold beer before we headed back to the Underground to take us back to the airport, so we could get the shuttle to the hotel and get ourselves ready to leave for home on Friday. The train was so crowded with people we actually had to stand for awhile. We were on the Underground Piccadilly line that ends at Cockfosters and I couldn't help but giggle. Every stop the voice would say this train ends at Cockfosters and Mind the Gap! I am really glad we went there and checked it out!

So we headed back to the airport to get the shuttle to the hotel and it was maybe after 8pm. We went up to the lounge that Mark gets into (Marriott Club) to get some tidbits and wine. Well it was pretty low on snacks and no wine was out. The Club Lounge was really beautiful. I had never been in on before and I was impressed. Then a woman came in and got more wine out so we had some wine. I was actually hungry so we ended up going down in eat in the restaurant and I had some wonderful risotto while Mark had some rib eye steak.

I knew I had to get my bag ready for morning. Mark insisted that I try to get all the souvenirs into my suitcase. I was perfectly willing to carry them onto the plane being that our bags were within 4 pounds of what we were allowed. We put all dirty laundry in Marks bag and filled mine with some clean items, toiletries and gifts. So when we got to the airport were able to check the bags and had to move things around because they were too heavy. I knew I needed to just leave it as I had it and carry it on. I did that for our flight to Italy and it worked out well. So basically we ended up carrying most of the items anyway so I wasted a bunch of time packing the stuff into my bag when it was already arranged nicely in a carry-on bag!

So we were at the airport early and I have never seen anything like this terminal with duty free shopping everywhere. If I had know this I would have just done my shopping there. Actually that is not true because actually buying it at Harrods is different then buying it at the airport!

So finally they opened up our gate and we headed over to get on the plane. As it turned out we were delayed on the ground for almost 1 hour and the flight going home is longer then the flight heading there because of the wind currents. We ended up being on the plane for 12 hours. I watched 4 movies and was up walking around a lot. I just couldn't stand sitting that long which reminded me why I wouldn't make that trip often yet I would love to go back.

I am thankful I was able to go on this trip. It was a trip of a lifetime for me and I would go back in an instance. I am now a World Traveler! This is me before we left for the airport. That's my scarf I bought in Italy.

VACATION ~ LONDON ~ PART THIRTEEN

(click on the pictures to enlarge them)

London - Gatwick Airport Marriott
Tuesday evening June 28, 2011

We got on the shuttle at the airport which took us to a Marriott Courtyard. We got settled in, went downstairs to have a drink and wait for Phil and Ally. We had a nice dinner with them and it was an enjoyable evening. Mark was getting up early on Wednesday to fly to Scotland for the day and I was heading to Westminster Abbey. Ally was kind enough to slip informtion under my door to help me find my way around on Wednesday.

Planes Trains and Automobile - Wednesday
Westminster Abbey & Buckingham Palace 6-29-11

Okay, it's more like shuttle, train and taxi. I took the shuttle to the airport, got on the train to Victorian Station and then took a cab to Westminster Abbey. It was wonderful, I think I even sat in the chair that the Queen sat in. (well actually I checked and it was a nicer chair that she had but it was in the same location) There is so much history there and so many people buried there. It was surreal to think that I walked where Diana's body laid and walked up the steps that Kate & William walked up in April. I was beyond thrilled to be there. So I toured around for a few hours. It's really old and a little bit creepy. Then I went to see the College Garden which was something in my London guidebook that they list under hidden treasures. Luckily Wednesday was a day it was open for visitors to see. I also ate a sandwich while I was there and had a nice view of a center grassy area. There were no pictures allowed inside so I was really good and didn't take any. You will see in the first picture a door panel at the top, that was were I went in.

That is Big Ben, Parliament and the school next to the Abbey.

Then I shopped and guess what I found? The simulated Princess Diana engagement ring so I bought it of course along with several other things today. (I had looked so hard for that ring but hadn't found one the first week in London. I was never able to get the engagement tea towel) I will do a post later with all my treasures. Then I headed over to Buckingham Palace. I had been there earlier in the trip but I heard that Kate's dress was on display. Well it wasn't but it will be in July :( I did the tour of the carriages this time which I enjoyed. There was a special party going on at the Palace tonight and it was fun seeing the people going in. Lots of hats and pretty dresses.

Funny story here. It was close to closing time and they had a group of people they were training. To see the carriages you had to go through security, purse x-rayed and have a body scan. I was the only one going through so I had a big audience. She asked me if I had anything else on me and being the honest person that I am I said yes. I told her I had a money pouch around my waist so they all got to watch me take that off which was tucked into my pants and drop it to the floor from my waist! (would recommend one of those thin pouches. Every important item like passport, credit cards and extra cash was in it)

I then headed towards the Victoria Train Station and ended up walking all the way there. My feet do hurt today and are still swollen. I stopped and had a cappuccino with a scone at the station and put my legs up for awhile. Stopped to pick up something I saw for Amber. She is always in search of a great face wash that is natural, organic and not animal tested. The company is Neal's Yard Remedies and they have been in business for 30 years. You can buy it in the states through a rep which I haven't checked out yet. So I headed for the express train back to the airport, got on my shuttle back to the hotel and I am here in bed resting my legs.

Mark was off to Scotland this morning and gets in around 9:00pm which it almost is now. We ended up having dinner with Phil and Ally which was very nice.Tomorrow he is off and we may go to the Tate Britain Museum which means it will be shuttle, train and taxi again! I can see planes fly by about every 10 minutes from the room, it's so cool and absolutely no noise! Well I am exhausted. Goodnight.

Mark brought me a seashell from Scotland.

THIS WAS ONE OF MY FAVORITE DAYS BECAUSE I REALLY WANTED TO SEE WESTMINSTER ABBEY.

Guess what, there is only one more day left before we leave on Friday!