Foxy Lady

London has a high population of urban red foxes. Some estimates put as many as 10K in the capital city. When coming home after dark, it is not uncommon to see one prowling around the neighborhood, looking for food. Foxes have even snuck into the Houses of Parliament, where one was found asleep on a filing cabinet. Another broke into the grounds of Buckingham Palace, reportedly killing some of Queen Elizabeth II's prized pink flamingos. One time, we went the park and there was a fox hanging out in the middle of the afternoon, just chilling. Totally not bothered by all the loud children and people around him. I was surprised at how bold he was.

Lately, we have had our own personal fox peeking into our garden every morning.

Here (s)he is on the back wall of our garden:


In the above photo, he was actually hanging out close to dinner time. So the kids were up to see him, and Kate was most intrigued. We have read a lot of Beatrix Potter books featuring the sly fox, and Kate thought he might be looking for Jemima Puddleduck in our very own backyard.

Things I Will Miss About London, #2

Cheese. Fromage. Formaggi. However you say it, it is delicious and will be sorely missed.



I could devote several dozen posts about food items we will miss, but I think that cheese is at the top of the list for all members of our family.

There are many shops devoted especially to cheese, and even the selection at our regular supermarket is phenomenal.


(above photo courtesy of The Guardian)



Fresh unpasteurized cheeses are illegal in the US (must be aged for 60 days to be legal), so most of you dear readers do not get to experience the joy of eating fresh St. Tola goat cheese (Kate's favorite), Normandy Camembert, lancanshire, St. James (laura's favorite) and stichelton blue (Danny's favorite).

One of our favorite things to do is go the cheese shops or farmer's market and spend too much money on new cheeses to try. Kate loves to go because they give out samples, and people are usually a bit surprised to hear a 4 year old asking for "a really, REALLY blue cheese", which is Kate-speak for a strong blue.

But, they don't sell Velveeta here to make queso, or Kraft Mac & Cheese, so I think Danny might almost call it an even trade.

A Little Piece of America, Right Here in England

While my parents were here, we took a day trip up to Cambridge.
This is the place of truly brilliant minds and ideas I think there are something like 83 Nobel Prizes among the alumni, which is more than some countries have received. It is where DNA was discovered, where Stephen Hawking lives & teaches, where Isaac Newtown discovered gravity, the atom was split, and where Charles Darwin found his love of natural sciences, leading to the discovery of natural selection. And of course, where Laura & company spent the day. :)

One thing I did not know about Cambridge is that there is an American Military cemetery located there. American soldiers are usually sent back to the US to be buried on home soil. However, during WWII there was such a massive number of soldiers being killed in Europe that this became financially and logistically difficult. So Cambridgeshire donated a sizable plot of land to the USA, making it officially US Soil. A little history, courtesy of Madingley American Cemetery :

The position of the United Kingdom within Europe and in particular it's proximity to Nazi occupied areas of France, the Netherlands and Belgium made it an ideal staging post and logistical hub for the American armed forces that were assigned to combat Nazi Germany during the second world war and the allied invasion of mainland Europe that was to follow. More than two million servicemen and women and 17 million tonnes of cargo passed through the United Kingdom during world war two.

Britain's success as a logistical centre for the allied operations in Europe was in no small part achieved by the heroic actions of British and United States Merchant and Naval Sailors who fought daily battles against the German U Boats between 1939 and 1945.

As the war in Europe progressed, airfields in Britain were both expanded and constructed to facilitate additional United States air force bombers and fighters that were to support the RAF in their bombing campaigns against enemy positions throughout Europe. The first American bombing raid staged from Great Britain took place in 1942 and by the end of the war over five hundred thousand bombing missions had taken place.

By the end of 1942 American troops were involved in fighting in North Africa and within six months, the enemy their had surrendered. Operations against enemy targets in the Mediterranean resulted in allied landings in Sicily and Italy. In June 1944 allied troops entered Rome and the events of the D-Day landings in Normandy commenced which combined with Russian offensive against Germany eventually resulted in the overwhelming defeat of Nazi Germany and it's eventual surrender.

The American contribution to the war effort came at a great price. Total American Military World War II casualties exceeded 290,000 and over 600,000 wounded. Many of those buried at Madingley American Cemetery are the crews of British based United States Air Force heavy bomber crews, some died in combat in the North Africa campaign, other in the Mediterranean areas of Europe, the North Atlantic and the training grounds in and around the United Kingdom.



(not my photo)

There are over 3800 soldiers buried here, and there is a wall of the missing for soldiers whose remains were never found, with 5000+ names on this wall. On this wall are three famous people: Joseph Kennedy Jr. (JFK's older brother, who likely would have inherited the family's pressure to run for office), Glenn Miller, the band leader, & well, I forgot the third one. But he is someone famous, take my word for it.

Ding Dong...

Things I Will Miss About London, #1

When I say "I", I really mean Kate and Danny.
If you have spoken to Kate in the two years, you have undoubtedly heard her wax on about Nando's, her favorite restaurant. Nando's is a Portuguese restaurant that serves grilled chicken along with some side items. There is one located on our high street, and every time we walk by Kate runs in hopefully. Ask her what she wants to eat, and it is invariably "Nando's!!". When Danny & I get a sitter to go out for an evening, Kate is convinced that we are going to Nando's without her. She can not conceive why anyone would even think to eat out elsewhere.

An added bonus to the delicious chicken is that they also have marinated olives (both Kate & Michael can power through olives like you would not believe), mashed sweet potatoes, corn on the cob, and chips (fries). The cherry on top is that it is a very kid friendly restaurant, which are few & far between around here.


Kate has told us that she doesn't want to leave England, because there are no Nando's in the USA.

A Poem for your Tuesday Reading Pleasure

My aunt recently sent us this poem in a card, as she knows how excited we are to be heading home soon. She wrote it from memory, from when she had to learn it in grade school. She is now in her 60s.
Makes me feel quite inferior that I can only remember snippets of all the Robert Frost and Tennyson I had to learn. Danny & I both really liked it. Being far away is fun for a time, but something about home shores up the soul. Even though we are not yet heading back to our beloved Texas or even Arkansas, we'll be back in the land of the Stars & Stripes, and that is close enough.



America for Me
Henry Van Dyke

'Tis fine to see the Old World and travel up and down
Among the famous palaces and cities of renown,
To admire the crumbly castles and the statues and kings
But now I think I've had enough of antiquated things.

So it's home again, and home again, America for me!
My heart is turning home again and there I long to be,
In the land of youth and freedom, beyond the ocean bars,
Where the air is full of sunlight and the flag is full of stars.

Oh, London is a man's town, there's power in the air;
And Paris is a woman's town, with flowers in her hair;
And it's sweet to dream in Venice, and it's great to study Rome;
But when it comes to living there is no place like home.

I like the German fir-woods in green battalions drilled;
I like the gardens of Versailles with flashing fountains filled;
But, oh, to take your hand, my dear, and ramble for a day
In the friendly western woodland where Nature has her sway!

I know that Europe's wonderful, yet something seems to lack!
The Past is too much with her, and the people looking back.
But the glory of the Present is to make the Future free--
We love our land for what she is and what she is to be.

Oh, it's home again, and home again, America for me!
I want a ship that's westward bound to plough the rolling sea,
To the blessed Land of Room Enough, beyond the ocean bars,
Where the air is full of sunlight and the flag is full of stars.

Sorrento

I wanted to post a few more photos from our most recent trip to Italy (Sorrento).

The view of Mt. Vesuvius from our hotel.



Look how narrow the streets are. It was amazing to watch the cars maneuver down the tiny little roads.



I really love Italy Mom: