Belated birthday wishes to Jim! Hope it was great!

Happy birthday Rene!

Happy anniversary, Shawn and Jeremy! Hope you two have a wonderful day!

Much love,

~Holly and Ryan 

The place we're staying has internet! Yay!

This morning when the internet at our house was turned off, I felt like I'd been cut off from the world! All better now.

Actually, our new temporary digs are quite nice. We're staying in a "self-catering apartment" called Ashness. (Once we were checked in, I discovered they had a website. If I had actually visited it, I would have realized a long time ago they had internet, and I wouldn't have had to worry!) We've got a kitchen, living room, one bedroom, one bathroom, and a tiny dinning area. The apartment is fully stocked with flatware, plates, pots, pans, etc. It's right down town, so it's close to everything.

Last night Ryan slept the whole night through (for the first time since the movers came). Yay! And now we're moving out. *sigh* He's generally a good little guy, and adjusts fairly well to things.

We're waiting for the media people to come and get our box (it isn't really cable anymore, is it?). Today and tomorrow will be major cleaning fests.

For a long time now, I've been trying to figure out just how I am going to say goodbye here. I have such mixed feelings about leaving. There are definitely things about living overseas that I won't miss, but those seem so minor compared to the things I will. I'm not sure how to sum up two years in just a few sentences, and really get the experience across. Right now, what I can say, is that I've been incredibly blessed to have gotten to live here. I've gotten to do and see some really great things. Above all though, I've met some wonderful people. They will be what I miss most. 

Tonight will be our last night here. Tomorrow we'll be checking in to our hotel. We lost our internet tomorrow, too, so I'm not sure how much I'll be able to check e-mail between tomorrow and when we leave (the 9th).

We are now without a car - well, at least until we pick up the rental tomorrow!

Hello again. Just wanted to let everyone know we had our daylight savings time here today.

Also, the movers are coming tomorrow, Tuesday, and (if needed) Wednesday. Things are about to get hectic (or more so than usual). We're out of the house by Nov. 5, and lose our internet and phone that day (we'll still have our cell phones, or as they call them here, "mobiles"). We're flying out on the 9th, visiting Larry's family for a couple of days, then you'll be able to get a hold of me and Ryan at my parents' house in CA. (Drop me a line if you need our phone number and/or address there.)

I'd like to keep updating here as long as possible before we leave, but in case I don't, you'll know why!

I'll be keeping my same e-mail address, and also have my myspace http://www.myspace.com/hkvl and facebook accounts. Please keep checking this blog, because I plan on starting a new one once I'm in the States, and I will post a link to that here.

Hope everyone's had a great weekend, and hope to be back a few more times over the next couple of week. Stay tuned!

Just wanted to let everyone know we're going out of town today through Friday. We're going to Cardiff and London. We hadn't made it to Wales yet, and there are a couple of things left in London we'd like to do.

Yesterday we dropped the cats off to be shipped back to the States. It's a little weird without them around.

We've still got about three weeks left here, but it's flying by. In a week, the movers will be coming for our stuff. It still doesn't seem real. 

Dear Sierra,

Wishing you a fun, happy birthday!

Love,

~Holly and Ryan 

Happy birthday, Jordan!

Love,

~Holly and Ryan 

It's definitely that time of year where the shortened daylight hours become noticeable. There have been a few mornings where it's been hard to get out of bed for all the gloom. Today, however, it's been sunny! This time of year the weather can really go either way, rainy or sunny. You never know. (And it can go back and forth between the two several times in one day!) It's also definitely cooler now. Last night the boiler went out (it does that a lot) and we woke up to a quite cool house.

Things have been hectic, with preparations for our move back to the States. Friday was spent in a flurry of last minute doctor and dentist appointments. Last week I was still coughing, so I went back to the doctor. I was told I was fine, and to give it a few more days. I'm happy to report the doc was right, and I'm all better now.

Friday night was my going away do with my British friends. We started the night by meeting for dinner at La Tasca, a tapas bar. There were about ten or so of us, and my friend Kirsty ordered for the whole table. It was quite the communal dining experience! I loved that tons of little tasty dishes of this and that were floating about the table, being sampled by everyone. We also had two big dishes of paella, which hit the spot.

After dinner, we went next door to Banyan's, where I had my very first cider. Very British! I was told I couldn't leave England without having one! It wasn't bad. I normally don't go in for anything remotely carbonated, but this was somehow different. I don't like beer, so cider was a perfect alternative. At Banyan's I also had my first raspberry mojito. I enjoyed it.

Eventually we made our way down to another club. A few of us wound up staying out rather late. It was fun! I had a great time hanging out with my friends. It didn't seem like goodbye, since I'm still going to be running with them a few more times. However, I'm glad we got a chance to have a night out before I leave.

We didn't do too much over the weekend. Larry and Ryan and I went to York and walked around.

Monday a vet from another American military base came up to Menwith Hill. I took the cats to get their shots and health certificates. It's weird to think that Monday we're sending them back to the States!

Tuesday I tried running again. (The week before I tried to run, and it did not go at all well. My friend Ellie kept asking me if I needed to go to the hospital!) This time I ran pretty much cough-free. Yay! It felt good to be running again, since I hadn't run much since the half marathon.

Today movers came to pick up a few odds and ends of Ryan's, so they'll be in the States shortly after we are. The rest of our things will be picked up the 29th through the 31st.

Only three more weeks here to go. I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it again: weird. 

Happy birthday, Iain! Hope you have a fun day!

Love,

~Holly and Ryan