July

Riley and I spent a Saturday by ourselves in London. We loved it all...The Oxford Tube ride into London, chasing pigeons, crossing bridges,walking and walking, the rain, counting clocks, ice cream, acquiring Riley's "Simba", and the highlight was an afternoon performance of The Lion King. Riley loved the first part especially, but got a little tired by the end. It was an incredible show...music, costumes, and having each other for company!

July 17th was the last day of school. Sophie, Dylanie (friend) and Riley in front of their Primary School, Orchard Meadows. I'm so proud of them all for making friends, adapting so well to a different system, and for being so clever!

We had all of their friends and classmates/teachers sign a T-shirt for each of them to have a fun keepsake of their time spent in school in England. They still love to wear them!

By pure accident and happy mistake, My sister Crystal and husband Pat had a layover at London Heathrow airport for about 8 hours. They were on their first leg of their journey to visit my parents in Africa. We picked them up from the airport and drove them back to Oxford to our house where they could take a shower, have a bit of lunch, sleep a tiny bit, and see our neighborhood. Alright, so it probably wasn't totally accidental...thank goodness for tender mercies! We loved the surprise vist and seeing family...even if it was for just a short time.

Leave it to Michael to find a honey hole in England to fish! He paired up with fellowsportsman, Rob, and spent the day following his 2nd love...fishing! (He assures me that I am still #1!) Beautiful scenery, weather, and fish!

Michael's supervising professor treated us to a week in his holiday home in Scotland. The next few pictures are from our time spent up north. We absolutely loved it!

Our first part of the journey was to Preston, England where we were able to each attend a session in the Preston Temple. We also walked the grounds and visited the distribution center there...such a treat!

The heather was just beginning to bloom when we arrived in Braemar, Scotland. And we lucked out with very agreeable weather! It was fun to walk around the small village and to get a taste of the local lifestyle. We took a few daytrips, hiked, and watched an authentic Highland dance performance!

What a memorable birthday for Michael. We celebrated his 34th birthday while visiting Braemar. He was surprised and happy with the gifts we had packed with us to give him. Definite highlights were: a yummy venison dinner, relaxing in front of the fireplace, late nights with "Jack Bauer," walks in the woods, and spotting red deer and other wildlife in the back woods.

Just a few hours away was Loch Ness. It was such a beautiful drive! We went to the far western side of the Loch to a castle, Urquhart Castle, that had been initially built in the early 1200's. It passed back and forth from clans and the crown and was ultimately destroyed by it's protectors to avoid becoming a stronghold for threatening Jacobites. Very interesting history. Largely left in ruins, yet some parts restored. And talk about location! It is strategically situated on a piece of land jutting out into Loch Ness. The views are so amazing! Looking for Nessie!

On our way home we stopped to explore two more castles, Stirling Castle and Edinburgh Castle. Being there almost made me want to have lived in the medieval time period. I think Stirling Castle was my favorite. I especially liked watching the restoration process for a number of tapestries...the Hunt of the Unicorn series. Michael and I had enjoyed these unrestored tapestries in The Cloisters museum close to our first apartment in NYC.

Very near the border between Scotland and England is Hadrian's wall. This represents the northern extent of the Roman empire in Britain...around 122 AD! So much history on this vacation! We walked along the wall and enjoyed a break from the car! You can see how it stretches out behind Sophie and Riley, for miles and miles! I was surprised at how thick the wall was ...4-5 feet in some places.