Photo Albums
Topic: Day Trips

Here is a photo album from Flamingo Land and Harlow Carr.  Enjoy! (I forgot to mention that the Monday before we went to London and Paris, we had lunch at Betty's, a mandatory stop during a visit to Harrogate!)

Flamingo Land and Garden Harlow Carr

Catching Up
Topic: Day Trips

I realize I am very behind on posting about JoAnna's visit.

The night she got here, we sat outside drinking coffee and eating flapjacks (here flapjacks are a bar cookie made from oats and honey). That was nice and relaxing.

The very next day, we went to Flamingo Land. http://www.flamingoland.co.uk/ Flamingo Land is part zoo, part amusement park. It was also the location of our monthly babysitting co-op meeting.

(I don't know why all of the sudden this blog building utility insists on double spacing when all I really want is to start a new paragraph.)

One of the things I really liked about the park is that you can bring in your own food, which JoAnna and I did. Even though it's not far from Harrogate, it took a long time to get there due to bad traffic. Once we were there though, we had a good time. The weather was warm and sunny, perfect for a day out.

JoAnna and Ryan and I hung out with Susan and her baby daughter Hannah. We walked around looking at the animals. We walked over to the meerkat enclosure, and Hannah dropped her pacifier in! One of the meerkats took it and ran around with it as a prized possession. It was funny to watch, but we were concered. We wanted to be sure the meerkat wouldn't somehow hurt itself with the pacifier. We don't think that it did. It sure became the center of everyone's attention!

There were a various play areas for all ages of kiddos. We let Ryan play in two of them and that was by far his favorite part of the day!

Towards the end of the afternoon, JoAnna very kindly watched Ryan and Hannah so Susan and I could go on one of the rides. The one we rode was like nothing I'd seen in the States. It was a rollercoaster, but it was like a motorcycle. Susan and I thoroughly enjoyed ourselves!

After our visit to Flamingo Land, Susan and JoAnna and I went out to dinner at a place in Harrogate called the Cattleman's Association. It was an American style steakhouse, and was actually very good. (I am usually very wary of going to American style places when not in America.) Susan very kindly treated us.

The next day, JoAnna and Ryan and I went to the RHS Garden Harlow Carr. I'd been there in the winter, and was looking forward to going in the summer. It was a very warm, sunny day. I think JoAnna brought the California weather with her!

We all enjoyed wandering around the gardens. We let Ryan out to wander and play, which I think is always his favorite part of any outing.

The rest of JoAnna's first week consisted of tea and crumpets for breakfast, walks around the Victoria shopping area and the Stray, errand running at MHS, and staying up late at night catching up on blogs and just chatting. (We also had a rather unfortunate trip to York trying to find an AmEx office.)

JoAnna's got a MySpace site and blog. If you would like to get her take on her visit here, go to: http://www.myspace.com/joannasark and click on her blog in the upper right hand corner of the screen. She's got photos up, which is more than I can say so far!  (I do plan on posting new photo albums soon.)

We're Back!
Topic: This and That

Hello, we're back! Before I post all about our travels, I would like to wish Teresa and Kris a very happy (and belated) anniversary. I would also like to congratulate them on the new addition to their family, Joshua! Happy belated birthday to Sabrina, sounds like it was a great one! Congratulations and best wishes to Mark Covert on the anniversary of his running streak! Happy belated (by one day) birthday to my friend Mariano. Hope it was wonderful! Finally I would like to congratulate Scott and Bridget on their new daughter, Hailey Ann!

Whew!

It took us eight hours and the Metro, Eurostar, Underground, and a Honda to get us back to Harrogate today. JoAnna and Ryan and I had a wonderful time in Ipswich, London, and Paris! It's always nice to get back home though. I will try to post as soon as I can. We have a ton of pictures and lots of cool stories to tell.

 

London Calling, Bonjour Paris!
Topic: This and That
I wanted to let you all know that tomorrow JoAnna and Ryan and I are leaving for points south and east. We'll be visiting Ipswich and London until the 24th, then we'll be moving on to Paris. I know I am already behind on Jo's visit.  When we get back, I will start updating and promise to fill y'all in on our adventures. Until then, au revoir!

Topic: This and That

For some reason I just could NOT get my blog or blog building utility to load last night. I would like to say a belated very happy anniversary to Hugh and Gretchen. Hope it was wonderful!

I've got lots I need to write about, and hope to do it later this evening. Just wanted to check in this morning though.

Jo's Here!
Topic: This and That

JoAnna arrived today. Yay! Ryan and I went to Manchester to pick her up, then we went to the Triangle Shopping Center in the city center. (I have to admit, I had to circle around a few times before finding the center and a place to park!) We were going to get something to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe there, but it didn't open for another hour and a half. Instead we got a bite at the Cafe Rouge, which is sort of ironic because there's one within walking distance from my house, but it took going to Manchester to eat at one!

After we ate, we walked around the shopping center for a while. JoAnna's Dad wanted her to pick up a Manchester United jersey, so we were on a mission for that.

After a while, we headed home. Unfortunately I am navigationally challenged, so it took a little while longer to get home than it could have. Fortunately, JoAnna enjoyed the "scenic route."

After Ryan went to bed, JoAnna and I sat outside and enjoyed some coffee and dessert. It was very nice and relaxing.

Tomorrow is going to be a big day for Ryan. The baby sitting co-op is going to Flamingo Land, which is a zoo/amusement park. Should be fun!

Birthday
Topic: This and That
Happy birthday Olivia! Lots of hugs and love from Ryan, Holly, and Larry! Hope you have a wonderful birthday!

The Most Amazing Picture of Ryan!
Topic: This and That
As a thank you for helping with the Army Ball, Sarah did a photo shoot of Ryan at Fountains Abbey yesterday. She got some great shots of Ryan (which was not easy, since he ran around the whole time!). This is my favorite!
I will try to put an album up, but I'm not sure when.
The last few days have been busy, getting ready for JoAnna's visit. She'll be here tomorrow. Yay!
The weather here has been great. It's been sunny and warm, but with a nice cool breeze. I love it!

Shower and Coffee
Topic: This and That
This has been a very good stretch. :) Yesterday was my friend Michelle's baby shower. It was a really nice one, and I had a very good time. I had to bring Ryan, but he behaved himself pretty well.
Tonight was the spouse's coffee. That was really nice too, and I had a very enjoyable time. It took place at a pub/restaurant near Burn Bridge called the Black Swan.
I ordered Yorkshire pudding with sausage. I've never had Yorkshire pudding and I figured since I live in Yorkshire, I had to try the pudding at least once! Basically the "pudding" isn't pudding at all the way Americans think of it. It's more like a somewhat chewy pastry base, or shallow pastry bowl that meat and gravy go into.
After dinner we played some fun pencil and paper games that I'd never played before. One was in the form of a poem that when read instructed everyone on what they got points for, or lost points for (such as wearing specific colors of clothing, etc.). Another game was "Have you ever..." with things like locking your keys in your car, locking yourself out of your house, or getting in your car and forgetting where you were going to go. The person with the fewest points won! There was another game called "Pass the Parcel," where a wrapped package is passed around the table, each person unwrapping a layer. There were pieces of Dove chocolate in between each layer, so everyone got a piece of chocolate. Yum! The person who unwraps the last layer gets to keep whatever it was that was wrapped.
I have to say that one of the times I am at my happiest is when I am socializing. We've got a great group of people here and I feel blessed to be a part of it.

Decent Day
Topic: This and That
(This was taken in June. My Mom got Ryan a modular "Play Hut." Ryan loves it!)
The last couple of days have been pretty good. It always takes me a couple of days to adjust when Larry leaves. Now I feel like Ryan and I are starting to get back on an even keel.
It helps so much that I know people here now. It feel so good to me that I can run into people I know while walking down my street, or running errands at MHS. It also feels good to have friends to socialize with.
Last night I watched my friend Susan's daughter, Hannah. That was fun! She's five months old and a sweetie. I can't believe how long ago it seems that Ryan was that little. Time seriously flies, especially with kiddos.
Susan and I got together this morning and went to IKEA. That was fun. She needed to return something and I needed sheets for our new bed (well, and pillows, and a duvet, and a duvet cover, and pillow cases...). Susan was a big help, helping me figure out what the heck I needed to get! Sometimes I go into brain failure in IKEA. There's just so much to choose from.
Susan very kindly treated us to lunch afterwards at an Italian place. That was really nice. I hadn't "done lunch" in quite a while.
I am really proud of myself: this afternoon I had a conversation in German, and I think I said everything right and I understood everything that was said to me. YAY!!! :D I am very pleased, considering that I haven't spoken German in over a year. (I was trying to call a friend of mine from the States who is visiting German family right now.)
Tomorrow I'm going to a baby shower, and Monday night there's a spouse's coffee that I'll be attending. I'm very much looking forward to both.
Hope everyone is having a good weekend!