London Day 3

After sleeping in a bit and a late breakfast, we headed to Kensington Palace.  

We took the tour and were able to see a lot of the old Royal rooms.

There were a few interactive pieces in the Palace.   Besides these heavy coats, a lady in costume talked to the boys about different jobs they could have in the Palace.

 After the Palace, we walked down to Princess Diana's playground!

It was a super hot day and the boys played hard for a while before lunch.

(while we were waiting on our lunch)

 We promised the M&M store.  You would not believe how many people were in the square and in the store!  It was sensory overload!!!

 Next stop the Royal Mews (where the horses and carriages are kept).

 Enjoying another audio tour.  We've learned if it has an audio tour, they will love it!

 He asked early in the week to go here.  He did not want us to rush him through the tour.

 The coronation carriage was spectacular.

 Buckingham Palace!

 Royal Guard.

I thought there was no way we could pack more than what we did today in a day....until tomorrow.

Windsor, Stonehenge, Lacock, and Bath.

London day 2

 A pot of porridge and a spot of tea to start the morning off.

 Are you telling me we have to walk over to that church?

 YEP!  (on the Millennial Bridge)

 They actually LOVED the tour.  They had a kids audio tour.  Ethan told me "the commentator had a funny sense of humor and they gave you quizzes." 

 We didn't plan on stopping at Trafalgar Square, but when we popped out of the metro we were there.  We decided to go to Ben Franklin's house.  I have to say it was a waste of 45 minutes of my life.  I will never get it back.  We literally listened to a lady talk about 4 EMPTY rooms of his house.

 We also happened to walk up as the horse guards were doing a parade.

 After a yummy Japanese lunch, we made it just in time to see inside

Westminster Abbey before the tours closed.  

I did not charge my camera, so I was very selective in my picture taking.  

We had to get one more of these photos, though!  

We also went to Covent Garden today.  That place was so busy/crowded.  We had burgers, cupcakes,  and bought some souvenirs.  Lincoln found a nautical store and bought pirate souvenirs!  

4th of July in London!?!?

Our hotel is only a few blocks away from the Globe Theater, so we made this our first stop!

When Marilyn and I were here 13 years ago (WOW), this one of my favorite stops.  

I have to say...it was still great! 

Next stop, the Tower of London.

We started off following a Yeoman for an hour long tour.

After about 30 minutes of being squished in this group listening to a LOT of English history, we split of and took our own tour.

By 12:30 we were shocked that we had completed the Globe and Tower of London tour.  

We had anticipated that these two might take all day!

We walked down and had Fish and Chips at a restaurant near the water.  

The Tower Bridge has a tour, and since we had extra time we decided to enjoy it.

We were able to get a good view of London.  Yes, it's grey and overcast here too!

The boys LOVED the Tower Bridge.  There were four specific stops that had stickers.  The boys were able to finish a sticker page of the Tower.  They had so much fun!

We walked by the Tower of London and these guys were fighting.  

  Leadenhall Market was Diagon Alley in the Harry Potter movies.  We stopped for a quick peek.

ALL day, Ethan asked when we were going to see Big Ben.  

Since we still had time before dinner, we metroed it over to Westminster.  

In the background, the statue is Abraham Lincoln.

MUCH happier now that he saw Big Ben!

We are all beat!  Now we have to rethink tomorrow, since we did so much today!

Bernkastel Kues

On Saturday, we headed up to Bernkastel-Kues.  It's a medieval town on the Mosel river.

There were lots of beautiful old buildings.

 The Chapins met us there to do some exploring.  

 We had some lunch and then roamed the cobblestone streets.

 Since the town is located right on the Mosel river, there were lots of vineyards.

 He totally looks real, but he is a stuffed animal!

Of COURSE, we stopped for some ice cream before heading home!  I am glad we

were able to mark this little village off our list.  We have been talking about going here for months!

Long awaited day....sort of

I have been waiting for the day that these two can sit down and play a board game together.  Ethan LOVES board games and wants us to play constantly.  Lincoln is just not into them.  

This morning, after breakfast, they got out Guess Who and started playing together.  I left them alone and ran upstairs to get ready.  Within five minutes, I hear, "YOU LIAR! QUIT CHEATING!"  Apparently, Lincoln didn't want to lose and lied about his man being bald.  

So, I am still waiting on that day!

Chapins

 The Chapins arrived a week ago.  Nate has known Patrick since college and I've known Pat and Sara since we were in Ohio (nine years ago).  They will be here for our next two years!  :)  

 They have three little girls and none of us were sure how the boys and girls would do together, but they hit it off immediately!  Each day, the boys ask if the girls are coming over!

 This past Saturday, we went to Burg Lichtenberg.  Exactly a year ago, we went to the annual medieval festival.  It was cool to take them to our first castle experience for their first castle experience!

They did NOT have this deliciousness last year!  It's grilled bread with butter, cinnamon, and sugar!  Oh my it was yummy!  

Erzenhausen Play Date

The Monday after school was out, the Erzenhausen folks met up at the playground for some playing and some snacks! 

 Tami made some homemade scones.  They were a hit!

There was a group of about 20 German kids (on a field trip?).  Our playground is not very big, and our kids were really shy and bashful.

 I noticed they kept going to the playground equipment without any Germans.

It was also getting HOT!  They kept begging to go home. 

 I think they had forgotten that we don't have AC at home!