Yi Hong's Early Birthday

Since us and Steve and Laurie are going to be gone in the States over Yi Hong's birthday, Min wanted us to be able to celebrate with him a little early.  Tyler and Yi Xuen are in the same class and Bryce and Yi Hong are in the year ahead of them.  This was also kind of a going away party for them as well since they won't be back from the States before the Wong's move back to Singapore.

We had lots of fun.  Harrison always steals the show with this giggles and charm.  He's really growing up and looks so much like Kevin.

Addison enjoyed eating the chocolate birthday cake.

Danny is all about the wine.  We brought over one of our bottles of wine that we got from Germany since it was such a special occasion.

Yi Hong is a HUGE Manchester United fan so we hooked him up with some gear - a Man U gym bag and wallet stocked with 5GBP to start a savings to get Ronald0 back from Spain (he was a really good player that left the team to get paid 80 million GBP) to play for Spain...Yi Hong was crushed.)  His friend Tyler is a Liverpool fan so there is a bit of banter going on between them.

I'm Legal Now...

Well after 22 months of living in the UK I finally got my UK driver's license.  Technically I think we are supposed to have it within 12 months of moving here for insurance purposes, but last year didn't work out so well since I was about 8 months pregnant.  Back in March I took my theory test which was a 50 question multiple choice test that I studied several evenings for.  Also there was a hazard perception test which was a driving simulation that you had to click a button every time you saw a potential hazard and based on when you click it you get a certain number of points.  I failed ever one of my practice tests so was quit surprised when I did so well on the actual exam.  Next I had to prepare for my driving exam.  I didn't get to take it until June because I had to find time to leave my kids with someone so I could get driving lessons and take the actual exam plus there is about a 6 week waiting time in order to take your driving test in Peterborough.  You essentially have to drive around for 40 minutes and do two of four backing procedures.  The two I had the toughest time with at first were the backing into a parking bay and backing around a corner, but since I practiced them so much to figure them out they were the easiest to do.  The no brainer ones were turning in the road (3 point turn but since the roads are so flipping narrow here you get as many turns as you need as long as you don't hit the curb) and parallel parking. 

Well the day of my driving exam I wasn't too nervous, but left myself plenty of time to get to the testing facility.   It was a good thing too because I needed it.  Before I left I attached my L-plates (learner plates...to the common lay person - Loser plates).  I had problems with them flying off so I taped them on as well.  I drove off an about a mile down the road as I picked up speed the front one went flying off the car.  My mouth dropped and I about died because you NEED to have these on your car or you can't take the test and they are not very forgiving if you aren't ready.  I drove until I could find a little field gate to turn around at which I guess gave me really good practice for my turn in the road.   I drove back looking all over the road for it but I couldn't see anything and this really wasn't a road that you can pull over on to took around.  I went back down to the round about and came back and still couldn't find it.  I had 25 minutes to get to the testing facility and it took about 15 minutes to get there from where I was at...how in the heck was I going to get another L plate.  So I preceeded to break every driving rule and I sped to the Werrington Tesco, physically ran into the store, found where they sold the plates, through down my money at the till and ran out.  I sped all the way to the testing facility with one plate on the back praying I wouldn't get stopped because I was technically illegal to be driving at the time.  I got the the testing facility at 12:27 and my test was at 12:38.  I stopped just outside so I could double tape on this plate and when I got there....I was the first person to get in the office.  I was so nerved up and out of sorts but tried laughing it all off with another lady getting ready to take the test with me.  As I waited about 5 other people showed up to take their test but they all had people who came with them since on a provisional license (what you get when you pass your theory exam) you need to have fully licensed driver with you.  I felt kind of odd not having anyone with me.  Then precisely at 12:38 a door opens and all these grumpy looking men with clipboards come out calling names.  I kept praying that none of them would call my name, then finally a lady walks out and says my name.  My nerves go down but I worked so hard to "brown nose" this lady because I was bound and determined to pass this test.  I was thinking that maybe if I did screw up a few times that she wouldn't mark them as bad if I killed her with kindness.

At the start you get asked two safety questions....so the night before Kevin had helped me go through the entire car to understand how to read all the levels and check my tire tread and all sorts of stuff.  I got asked how to check to see if my horn was working.  I asked if she really wanted me to honk it which was yes.  So I pressed on the horn and nothing happened, then I said, "oh, excuse me, I forgot the car needs to be on for the horn to work" so I turned it on and the thing finally honked...duh!  Next she asked me about tread depth and I knew that one from the practice material so that was easy.  I also had been advised to back into my parking bay so that I could avoid having to do that procedure and it made it easier getting out of the very tiny car park they have.  My first procedure was to parallel park which made me nervous because one of the no brainer moves had been kind of hard on me lately because half of the time I would end up hitting the curb when I practiced (remember I'm parking on the opposite side of the road people - it's tough learning that all over again).  Well, it took me three attempts to get it right but each time I thought I was going to hit the curb and apologized and said I needed to pull up again.  Thank goodness she didn't mark me down bad for that...that killing her with kindness really worked out.  Now they don't tell you if you pass or not until you get to the end, unless you know you did something really bad.  But she did tell me that I passed and when through my marks with me.  Apparently I sped through some round-abouts and she said to watch it...since I did slow way down for the last one she let me off the hook.  Finally I got two marks against me for not using my hand brake...okay, I drive an automatic car and I have NEVER used my hand brake.  I know I was supposed to try and use it which I thought I tried to, but apparently I didn't and using your hand brake is a HUGE deal over here since they have such problems with fender benders and are high on safety.

Long story short...I PASSED and it's good for 10 years!!!!

Fishin' on Father's Day

For Father's Day we took the day pretty easy. After discovering where the "Nine Bridges" area was just outside of Glinton we decided to head down and dip our toes in the nice cold water on this super hot day.

There were a couple of other families down there at the same time and they were trying to catch little minnow-sized fish with little nets. One little boy let Addison borrow a net so her and her daddy could fish together.

It was super cute to watch and Addison was a little startled at first by the little fish but then she jumped right in to grab them and put them in the other kids' little bucket.

What a cute little fisher-girl in her little swimming pullover...she must have grown quite a bit from last year because this barely covered her bum.

Harrison and I hung out together while Kevin and Addie fished. We went wading in the water and attempted to walk up into the little falls area. I don't think he liked the cold water too much when I dipped his toes.

The video isn't the greatest but enjoy watching Addie during one of her fishing adventures.

Tea Time at the Pub

Since it was a beautiful day we thought it would be nice to join the Wong's for dinner at the Blue Bell (our local pub).  The back garden at the pub is so beautiful in the summer time.  They have picnic tables all around and this huge willow tree that we like to sit under.

There are swing sets further back for the kids to play on and Addison found a wonderful little stick to pretend fish with.

The food was really good and the company even better.  

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Tonight we got a taste of some English arts and culture.  Just north of where we live in Stamford is an outdoor theatre that in the summer time has showings of a few different plays.  We went with friends to see A Midsummer's Night Dream by William Shakespeare.  It's a story of how the king and queen of fairies play tricks on each other and on humans.  It was amazing to experience but very hard to understand because it was performed in "Old English" so even the "English" had a tough time understanding, but you got the jist of it with the actions and animations. The open woods set was amazing and it was really fun because we got to bring our own wine and snacks to enjoy while we watched.  Normally you are able to bring a picnic to enjoy ahead of time out in the surrounding gardens, but since everyone had kids to get fed we showed up just ahead of the show.  I stole this picture off of Danny's Facebook page because I didn't get to take any pictures.  They said you weren't supposed to take pictures but I think he was a little on the bored side of the production because he played with his iPhone most of the time.  He actually compared this type of theatre to the Chinese opera which is kind of like a pantomime that you really can't understand.  Danny is so silly...

Chinese Cooking Lesson

The other day Min brought me to Janson Hong's which is an oriental supermarket in Peterborough city centre.  Our goal was to have her point out a lot of the ingredients that she regularly uses in her cooking.  The main things I picked up were items to make spring rolls and some seaweed wrappers and rollup mat to make sushi.  I also found some "American" favorites of Hunt's tomato sauce, A&W rootbeer, and graham crackers, all imported from Singapore!!!!  Other things I got were really good soy sauce, rice wine, satay sauce, black peppered beef sauce, coconut milk, garlic chili sauce, hoisin sauce, dried Chinese mushrooms, and bamboo shoots.

Today Laurie and my neighbor, Jane, came over for a cooking lesson from Min.  We made spring rolls, PF Chang's lettuce wraps (amazing), a recipe that said it was like Panda Express' orange chicken but was not very close at all, and fried rice.  Also Min showed us how to steam cook a barbequed pork roast.  She has this amazing layered steamer that allows you to cook loads of things, but the pork roast takes about 3 hours to steam done as it sits in his marinade.

Min had me show the other gals how to make the fried rice.  It's really unnerving to make food in front of your teacher, but she is very patient.  The one lesson that we all learned was that there is a TON of prep work involved with Chinese cooking.  You need to chop, shred, dice so many things before you actually turn on the heat on the wok.  We had a lot of fun and really enjoyed getting to eat what we made.  

Yi Xuen's Wedding

Today was a very big day.  Our little Yi Xuen got married!!!! It's not that they marry off children over here but it's more for educational purposes only.  Most schools in the UK are affiliated with the Church of England so Religious Education is actually required.  I think this is great because they actually educate children about different religions, their practices and beliefs so they grow up understanding others than prejudicing them.  In Year 1 (kindergarten in the US) they do a mock wedding, but it feels pretty real.  They all get dressed up and do the ceremony in the parish church which is across the street from the school.  The reverend goes through the vows, they exchange rings and they sign the register.  Some of us are still trying to figure out how this is not a legal wedding and hopefully (hee hee) Yi Xuen doesn't have any trouble getting married later with records of her getting hitched at 6 years old.

So Addison, Harry and I got dressed up and joined in the fun.  I think we may have been the only people there who weren't parents of the kids who were in the class, but we definitely family of the bride.

Yi Xuen was such a beautiful bride and I got to help Min in making her veil so that was a lot of fun.

Look at all the parents taking pictures.  This so felt like the real thing.  How cute are they??!!!

Addison and Auntie Min at the reception enjoying fairy cakes, cookies, wedding cake and squash.

Addison had a special gift for Yi Xuen, a card that she drew of Yi Xuen with her wedding dress on, and a pound coin.

I'm so excited that in 20 years (give or take) I can get another picture just like this one at Yi Xuen's real wedding. Addison adores Yi Xuen and we love her so much and were so excited for her big day.

Making Cookies with Min

This morning the kids and I went over to Min's to help bake sugar cookies for the Year 1 Wedding to be on Thursday.  It was a special event for us all since Min's daughter, Yi Xuen, was to be the bride.  So apparently the mother of the bride is in charge of cookies for the reception.

Addison jumped right in to help us and I think got more flour on the floor than on the counter for the cookies.   Min is so wonderful with Addison and so patient, so much more than I tend to be and that's probably why she likes going to "Auntie" Min's house more than being at home.  (Plus I think Min slips sweeties to her a little more often than I do to).

We all had such a wonderful time and it ended up taking us about 4 hours to make 70+ cookies from start to finish.  We are trying to get in as many of these special moments with Min before she leaves.  We have taught each other so much about life, our different cultures, motherhood, cooking, dealing with husbands who work for CAT, and much more.  I will miss her soooooooooooooooo much!!!!!

Future Quarterback

I can hear the announcer now... "And here comes our star quarterbacker... let's give a big Cyclone cheer for Harrison Michael Dea!!!!"

Making Daddy Some Banana Bread

I've been trying to make a conscious effort to do some "life skills" with Addison throughout the week whether it be cooking, baking, playing with playdough, painting, etc. Cooking definitely seems to be one that we both like a lot and do a lot.  She wanted to bake some cookies one morning, then it switched to pancakes, then it was muffins.  We got out her little cookware set that she got for her birthday and found a little recipe for banana bread.  She was pretty excited about that and insisted that we make it for Daddy.

First she mixed up the flour and other dry ingredients.

Then she cracked her egg in  a different bowl and whisked them up (this is one of her most favorite things to do and she does it pretty well).

Next she mixed all the batter together and we put it in the little bread pan but soon noticed that not all the dough would fit in the bread pan so I got out the muffin tin and we loaded that full as well.

She gets very impatient during to cooking/baking process because she thinks that as soon as you start cooking it should be done and ready to eat.  Well, the muffins were done first so I let her have one of those and she proceeded to eat all of the muffins (there were only 6 little mini-muffins).  I reminded her that the loaf was for her and Daddy to share and I had to physically hide it on her.

The next morning we cut up the loaf and Addison and her daddy got to eat the banana bread she had made for him

Building Sandcastles

Sometimes when Harrison is napping, Addison and I get some mommy/Addie time and today since it was so nice out we decided to make sand castles.  We started out not being able to make a proper sand castle because our sand was too dry, so we loaded up the water cans and made ourselves some good building sand.  Every time I got a good pile of sand up dear Addie would knock it down, but we did have lots of fun playing together.  We talk about castles a lot since we go to see one almost 1 a month it seems so she's going to wonder where all the castles have gone when we move back home some day.  

Boys go to Airsoft

Since the girls got to go to London for a day the boys went and played Airsoft.  I guess you could compare Airsoft to paint balling but without paint and using more realistic looking guns with little pellets that you shoot at each other.

This morning as Kevin was getting ready we couldn't find much of his camo because it is all sitting in a tub at my mom and dad's house in the States.  

They all look like a bunch of commandos!!!  In the back from left to right we've got Joe (Sarah's son), Danny Wong, Kevin, Simon Clayton and down front on the left is Mike Beales and then two other friends of Joe's and Simons went with them.

After the guys got back we did a BBQ at Simon and Sarah's.  

I tried out a new/old recipe of mine.  Sarah taught me how to make Eton Mess (a very traditional English pudding).  It consists of sweet whipped cream, strawberries and broken up meringue nests.  This past Wednesday I went to a Jamie Oliver At Home party and learned how to kick up this simple favorite by adding basalmic vinegar to some crushed up strawberries, adding vanilla bean seeds to the whipped cream, and topping the whole thing with toasted almonds.  It was so pretty after I put it together that I had to have Sarah take a picture of it.

Captured by Laurie

A good friend of mine is starting to turn a hobby into a prospective new business.  Laurie is an up and coming new photographer who is amazing and so creative.  She took some pictures of our family, the Gorman/Claytons, and the Wong's check them out here.

http://www.capturedbylaurie.blogspot.com/

Girls Day in London and Dirty Dancing

Today Min, Sarah and I got away to London for the day for some shopping and a West End show.  We had so much fun taking the train down and just chit-chatting away.  We planned on visiting a few shops before our show, but we ended up spending 3 hours in Primark.  I've never been there before and my babysitter Emily told me that it was "mad" in there and I didn't understand until now.  I've never seen anything like this place in the States.  The clothes are really cheap so the quality is not the best but I did find a few things that were pretty nice.  Actually I filled up my shopping bag with probably 25+ items to try on but found out quickly why I saw people trying clothes on top of their clothes in front of the mirrors scattered all over the place.  There were only 2 dressing room areas and queue for the one in the women's department would have taken you seriously 2 hours to wait in.  So we all moved to one corner of the store I started trying skirts, dresses and tops on over my clothes and running off to see how it looked.  The things that were pretty difficult other than actually trying on the clothes properly were that I'm not totally sure what UK size I am, but even knowing that they skimp on the sizes so you really need to add on 1 or 2 more sizes to what you think you are.  We split up to pay for our stuff and I waited over 1/2 hour in line to check out and ended up with one shopping bag where as Sarah had 2 and Min had 3 bags!!!

We grabbed a quick bite at a cafe and then made our way to the Alnwych Theatre to watch Dirty Dancing.  It was amazing.  Almost exactly like the movie and I think I had almost every line memorized and when the in famous songs would come on everyone would start screaming.   There were 3-4 "hen parties" (bachelorette parties) there and they were very cheeky.  Everytime "Johnny" had his shirt off they were cheering and when he put on his jeans back on after only having on a pair of boxers they all boo-ed.  

The actors looked just like the ones in the movie and when the last dance number came on to "Time of your Life" the place went crazy.  The actress who plays "Penny" was so beautiful and she had legs that went all the way up and you could hear all the women gasp when she came out the first time and started dancing around.

After the show we headed towards Covent Garden where we heard a load of people singing "Rock Star" by Pink.  I made mention that it reminded me of those T-mobile commercials where they are dancing all around at the train station and stuff.  It so happens that as we were walking away someone put a microphone in our faces and asked us to join along.  I asked what was going on and she said they were taping some footage for a new T-mobile video to be posted on You Tube...lucky guess huh?

We made our way back home and had a wonderful BBQ waiting for us at the Beales'.  Kevin had spent the entire day alone with the kids for the first time and they had a wonderful time.  I do have to admit that I was horribly nervous to leave but we had a marvelous day!!!

Danny (Wing) Wong's Birthday

Birthday's have been pretty fun to celebrate over here amongst our group of friends because we try to have a lot of fun with them.  Danny's birthday is today and Min surprised him by having all of us meet for dinner at the Royal China restaurant that we have frequented with them several times.  We essentially had the whole place to ourselves so the kids were able to run around and have fun as the grown ups got to visit.

It was a complete surprise to Danny and you could tell that he was genuinely really happy to see all of his friends there. Min said the only time he got a little suspicious was when the only cars in the parking lot were all of us from Glinton.

We went in on a gift for Danny which was an England rugby shirt with "Wing Wong" on the back.  Danny has been tagged this nickname from Simon during a football match on the green, when Simon saw Danny out on the wing and yelled for him to get open for the ball by yelling, "Wing, Wong, Wing!" 

What's done in London, Stays in London...

This morning the boys and I ventured down to London.  They had found a youth hostel just a half block off Piccadilly Circus to stay at so we got them checked in and some lunch in our bellies from TGI Fridays (that was more a treat for me than them because I don't get to eat there much).  Next we headed out to Buckingham Palace, St. James Park, Parliament Square, and  Westminster Abbey.

Like always it's hard to give everyone who comes a full appreciation for the city of London because we've lived here for almost two years and we haven't seen everything there is to see and we head down at least every other month.  I did give them a little taste of things and for something new to me we actually got to go inside the little chapel next to Westminster and we did a nice walk down the opposite side of the river from the Eye which I quite liked as well.

I thought this T-shirt was super cool, but the shop owner didn't think it was super cool to be touching his stuff and taking pictures if we weren't going to buy it.

The boys gave the Eye a standing "O."  I only stayed with them for about 4 hours in London, enough time to get them oriented with the center of things and how to navigate on the Tube.  It was really weird standing there at Leicester Square station saying goodbye to my brother and just leaving him in London.  He and Sawyer were big boys now and I need now worry, plus it would 4 short weeks and we'd get to see them again when we head back to the States.   

I'm really not sure what they ended up doing for the rest of the time in London, but they did make it to the airport okay because I got a call from Casey that night saying they were in Chicago.

So glad to have you both come and visit and we hope you can do it again some time!