If at First You Don't Succeed, CRY, then try again

OH boy! Did I ever learn a lesson the hard way.  If you have ever thought shopping at Walmart was a terrible shopping experience, OH HONEY do I have news for you... IT CAN BE MUCH MUCH MUCH WORSE!!!  The other day Tyler showed me where a big grocery store is that is pretty close to our house.  I thought I was in paradise when I checked out the inside!  It actually had more than 4 isles!  What a luxury that would be! We are used to these gas station size grocery stores.  I decided right then and there that I would be willing to walk the extra 10 minutes to go to the bigger grocery store for our food from then on.  So yesterday was the big day.  It was time to go for a refill on groceries.  Ady decided to take a nap (for the first time since we moved here), so I planned to head out once she woke up, which turned out to be after 5 pm.  No big deal, right?  I packed her in her stroller, grabbed my purse and keys and we set out.  After the first 30 seconds into our walk, all the people walking in front of us that were smoking away helped me quickly remember that we do not live in a kid-friendly place.  As we got closer to the store, the streets became more and more crowded- which should have been my 1st clue to turn around and head back home NOW.  The store was no different- which should have been my 2nd clue.  By the way, so far I see no sign of such a thing as a cart in the heart of London, and you are straight dreaming if you thought maybe a device existed where you could collect your food and also contain your child all in one.  No NO No!  That could have been my 3rd clue, I suppose.  No, I held a little shopping basket on one arm and pushed the stroller with the other arm.  I picked an isle on the far side of the store to start on. As I parked the stroller to ponder what items we would want to eat, more people started filling the isle.  I would grab one thing then have to move to get the next thing, but couldn't because there were people already there.  The shopping basket I was holding was getting heavy and was in peoples way, so I tried hanging it on the stroller to consolidate our space, but as it became filled with more things, it stuck out further off to the side of the stroller- & was in the way again.  I decided to put the basket back on my arm.  This made me realize what that mystery bruise on my arm was from- a crappy heavy shopping basket from my last shopping excursion.  As the minutes ticked by, the store became more and more crowded still.  My stress & frustration level was rising FAST!  People were in front of me, behind me, bending in front of me and completely invading my personal space.  Then Ady wanted to grab things as we would move- and started whining and complaining.  I kept thinking, "I am here, I have made it this far, just get what we need, and get the heck out of here!"  So I kept pushing forward.  The basket filled very quickly- and we still didn't have half of what we needed so I started filling the stroller.  I was balancing food on all sorts of places on the stroller.  I am sure people were looking at me like I was some crazy American- and they were so very right!  I was completely out of my mind to go shopping there at that time of day and bring along my big stroller and my 3 year old- and expect to get the things we needed.  What the crap was I thinking?!  On our way home, we found Tyler- and I was in far too terrible of a bad mood to even care about anything.  I think there was steam coming out of my ears.  I felt like I had just been run over by a train, then kicked by a horse, then had water dumped over my head... well, you get the idea.  On the way home, I was just saying, "I am so very mad" and Ady was sweet.  She said, "Mama, don't be mad.  We will help you be happy."  When we got home Tyler unloaded the groceries and cooked up some dinner.  I sat on the couch and stared at the wall for a few minutes and had a little cry.  Ady brought me my iPod and put on (accidentally and luckily) my favorite songs list.  Then she sat in my lap and colored me a picture.  I eventually cooled off and came back down to Earth- but I learned a very valuable lesson: I WILL NEVER EVER EVER EVER DO THAT EVER EVER AGAIN!!!  Mark my word!  From here on out, I will order groceries online and have them delivered.  I don't know how else people can fit enough groceries to last them more than 2 meals in that silly little basket, let alone have a child (yes, and that is only 1 child) accompany you to buy groceries, and leave the store in a decent mood.  I am completely flabbergasted.  Walmart would have been a dream shopping experience compared to that, I assure you.  So one of the big lessons I have learned from this is that "If at first you don't succeed, have a cry, then try again, but try a completely different approach."  Online grocery shopping, here I come.

A Good Life

Take a listen to the song at the link below.  I think it was written just for us.  :)  I find a lot of strength from it.  It is a good reminder for me to let go of my fears and worries and be confident that life is going to be good here...  as if there was any doubt about that, eh?  Silly me.

Good Life by One Republic

When the Dogs are Away... the Cats Shall Play

Tyler started work yesterday.  It was a big day for him... and us.  Doesn't he look handsome in his new suit?!  He has new employee orientation all week.  People from all  over the world were joining him at the orientation.  He also met the Partner and the group that he will be working with.  His workspace will be on the top floor of his building with a breathtaking view of the Tower of London, the Thames, the beautiful bridges lining the river way, and the horizon of the cityscape all around.  Today he is attending an all day special area wide conference at the London film museum right next to Westminster Abbey.  When he called me today, he told me that the clocks in the conference room weren't working, but he could see Big Ben standing tall right outside the window- so he could keep track of time just fine.  I couldn't resist asking if he ever imagined that he would be in a situation where he relied solely upon Big Ben for the time.

...And yes, it was a big day for Ady & I because it was our first attempt at facing the city without a confident guide to lead us around.  I feel pretty confident about navigating maps, the tube, & finding our way home by myself, but I get nervous about running about the city with a little 3 year old at my side.  I have no doubt that it will be easier once we get into our own place where the pace of the area is a bit slower and better for families with kids, but for now, we are in the heart of the business world- and there just are not kids- or anything remotely kid-like anywhere around here.

Today I threw caution to the wind and decided we would bust out of our flat to head for the Princess Diana Memorial Playground at Hyde Park.  I researched out the closest & easiest route on the tube, packed up our lunch, camera, & umbrella and Ady & I embarked on our big journey.  It was worth every bit of effort.  The playground was absolutely amazing!!!  It contained about 8 different sections to it- including an area with a mini neighborhood of pint-sized log cabins that Ady could crawl all over and inside of & wooden play equipment, an area with a huge nearly life sized wooden pirate ship with several mini ships nearby that were suspended by chains in the air, a water play area with rock alligators and rock islands all around, an area with 3 big canvas teepees, an area with musical playground equipment- to make all sorts of interesting sounds, and much more.  It was the best playground I have ever seen!  We spent hours there just playing and having a ball.  I think we will head for the Tate Modern tomorrow.  It is FREE to the public & is supposed to have a great kids section.

 



 


                     


                                                    

                                              

And this familiar friend was waiting for us when we got near home...  so I was sure I hadn't gotten us lost on our big day out.  PHEW!

Week in Review & Random Thoughts

Good News!  Our new laptop computer has a slot for our camera memory card... so I don't need to wait for the usb cable after all to upload our pictures!

A fun day at St. John's Wood and Regent's Park

 


We have now been here one full week.  It has been really great to spend some time together.  The weather has been sunny and hot everyday, which is completely abnormal for London this time of year from what we are hearing.  I am confident that it has made our transition much easier than if it had been rainy and cold, which should be the trend starting tomorrow.  Umbrellas HO!

Over the past couple days, a movie has been being filmed right in front of our flat.  Despite some minor inconveniences of getting in and out of our place as we would like, it has been fascinating to watch the filming.  So much effort and time goes into perfecting a 20 second long shot.  Imagine all that has to align to make a movie scene with several 20 second shots work together seamlessly; the time of day/consistent lighting, the weather, the surroundings, the noise of the city, etc.  So they have been working extra hard all day long while the weather is so nice.  The movie is supposedly titled "Charles" and has a few stars even Tyler and I recognize.  We saw Vincent Cassel yesterday.  He is the ballet teacher in Black Swan.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001993/  Check out this website for a picture & description of him.

We have been given a full month of temporary housing in this flat.  From here it is only a short walk to Tyler's office.  The proximity to his work is extremely convenient.  Ideally, we would like the more permanent housing that we choose to have a similar commute time; although, the neighborhoods that we are interested in so far are about 30 minutes or so from his work.  We swore that after Stansbury Park we would never have a 30 minute commute again.  We are most interested in Kensington & St. John's Wood.  Both areas seem safe, charming, have good access to shopping for day to day things, and are close to some really great parks that Ady would enjoy.  I guess we will see what happens.  It is way too tempting to accept certain things you had sworn off when you are standing inside a place you love.

Our current Apartment building

The park across the street from us

This link may not work, or if it does, it may not work for too long...  but here is an example of the type of flats we are looking at.  

http://www.foxtons.co.uk/search?location_ids=994-22&price_to=1000&prop_type=flats&property_id=787612&search_form=map&search_type=LL&submit_type=search

We will be going out with a "letting" agent soon to see inside some of the properties.  I am anxious to get into a place of our choice and to make it our home.  The day that our ocean shipment arrives will no doubt be better than Christmas to us.  I am especially wanting it to get here for Ady's sake.  She has so few toys and things that are familiar to her.  I just want her to feel comfortable and happy.  For now, she continues to work on her amazing coloring skills, enjoy a bit of fresh air and take an occasional "rumble train" ride.

These are pictures from a park in St. John's wood.  The playground there was a blast!

 

Sweetly Stated

I love to hear the British people talk.  The way they describe things is so delightful and sweet.  Here is an example taken from the baking instructions on our frozen potato wedges:

"Spread your wedges evenly in a single layer onto a baking tray and pop it into the top of the oven.  Bake for 18 minutes, turning them every now and again, until they're lovely, crisp and light golden."

I know it is just potatoes, but doesn't that melt your heart?

Welome to London

St Paul's Cathedral

A big HELLO to you from London!  We arrived in one piece, including all our luggage.  Amazing!  The flight was long, but good- because for the first time in about 8 months we all had more than 2 minutes to sit together and enjoy some free time, albeit restricted free time.  Tyler actually had to sit separately for the flight from Salt Lake to New York City, but we all survived.  We supposedly had a 50 minute layover in the JFK airport, however the second we stepped off the first plane, we heard the final boarding call for our next flight.  We ran "Grapes of Wrath" style to our gate clear across the airport with our 5 carry on bags, the huge ace luxury car seat of Ady's, a stroller, & a little girl all in our arms, but made it just in time.  PhEw!  The flight from New York to London took about 7 hours.  The airplane was huge and they served us dinner and breakfast- and each person had their own TV in front of them, which made the time pass much quicker.  We landed in London at 7am Greenwich Mean Time, midnight Mountain Time, fresh and ready to start our new life.  Or, I mean, completely exhausted and trying so hard to stay awake on our drive so we could get a glimpse at this new place.  A driver was waiting for us at the airport with a sign that had our name on it, which was quite thrilling, surprisingly.  I mean, how often does that happen?  It is like stuff you see in movies, right?  Because of heavy traffic, it took about 1 hour to get to our apartment.  Ady was gone to the birds in the first 2 minutes and I kept finding myself nodding off and waking up with my mouth wide open.  I'm quite sure it was one of my finer looks.  In between naps, I tried really hard to soak in the scenery and try to imagine what the next 2 years would hold for us.  The weather was drizzly and gray as is to be expected here.  The architecture of the old buildings was beautiful.  Each building has its own character and ghostly feeling.  It is instantly evident that most everything here is old and has a story.  As we drove, we saw places like Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, the River Thames, & St. Paul's Cathedral, to name a few.  It is mind boggling how much history we are surrounded by here.  It is clear to me that there is no shortage of things to do and see here.  We wonder if 2 years will even be enough time to see it all.

We arrived at our flat, which is only a 5 minute walk from St. Paul's Cathedral.  It is very comfortable and nice.  It has a big living room with all the comforts of home, a tiny kitchen with a teeny little fridge and a teeny little washer/dryer combo ( who knew you could have both in 1?), 2 bedrooms (Ady has the same size bed that we do), & 2 full bathrooms.  There are big windows throughout the flat to look out and see the city. The front windows overlook a little park and beyond it, building after building (all old and beautiful).  Old churches are everywhere and it is not infrequent that we stumble upon them every few minutes as we venture out into the city.

Much to our surprise, the food here has been nothing short of AMAZING!!  Despite our extremely low expectations, we have been blown away by how delicious and authentic the food is here.  The strawberries are small, ruby red & full of flavor, like ones you would pick from your own home garden. The cheese is strong and real, not full of powder and wax.  The chocolate is to die for.  We ate out at a restaurant the second night we were here, and hands down, it was the most delicious pizza Tyler or I have ever had in our lives!!!  We literally found ourselves holding the food on our tongue to savor the flavor and enjoy it just a little longer before it went into the big dark pits of our stomachs.  The grocery stores may look like gas stations, but every food we have tried here has completely exceeded our expectations.

The time adjustment has been difficult for all of us.  After 5 days, we finally feel like we are about there.  The public transportation is extremely easy to use.  With an Oyster pass, we have full access to the underground system, light rail, buses, trains, river ferries & even bikes.  It is amazing.  The shopping is limitless.  Stores are everywhere around us.  The people are diverse & VERY fashionable here.  We probably look like hobos to the people here.  I am not kidding.  But it seems that as long as you own your look, you can pretty much pull off anything, even a big coffee stain running right down the front of your white t-shirt.  Everyone here is polite & very formal.  People are more than willing to help you find your way.

Unfortunately, I completely spaced putting my camera to computer usb cable into our luggage- which means I can't post pictures until our air shipment arrives in 3-4 weeks.  Not too happy about that, but I will still post my thoughts over the next month & fill in the picture gaps later.

...and this was only the 1st day!  More to come soon.

It appears we may have a fourth member of our party.  Drowsy is yet to be seen, but is suspected to be with us.  A reward may be offered to anyone who provides us with information on his whereabouts.  A trail of photos has been followed and each one is undergoing an in-depth analysis to extract clues on his current location.    

Ady did really great through both long flights

Our 10 seconds of fame

To Sell, or To Rent. That is the Question???

After an intense summer of OCD house cleanings, a roller coaster ride of emotions and a near complete dissolution of the Baron family as we know it; alas, we have survived... and decided to RENT our house instead of sell it! Phew. Here is a tribute to our little house that we love in Stansbury. We have many great memories of this house, although, we are looking forward to trying something new in our life.  (I'm going to try to kid myself that renters will NOT trash our house while we are gone)  Oh well.  For better, or for worse, we are on to other things for now.  We will cross that bridge if (not when, you pessimists) we get there.  :)