15

today (wendsday) me and laura hopped on a train to london. when we got there we stayed at the premier in. then we went on the underground (subway) to leicester square which was beautiful, it has a huge tower with a statue on top, 4 lions around it and 2 fountains on either side. there were a ton of people and street performers. we went into the national art gallery, were there were michelangelo's, raphael's, picasso's, van gogh's, and a da vinci. it was one of the most incredible experiences ive ever had to actually see all these famous pieces. for lunch we went to the big M (mcdonalds) and i had a mcchicken and fries. we then went to the national potrait gallery, which was also great to see all the portraits from many a years ago. then we went to simons work so we could go get dinner but he still had some work to do so we went to a cafe and had some hot chocolate and tea. then we stopped into the bruno movie premier. (yea ive been to a movie premier... its like whatever.) then we waited for simon outside his office, which did i mention is on top of a KFC...hahahaha. then we went through china town and into soho and had dinner at a niccer resteraunt. i had a burger and fries, and tried simons buble and squeek (i dont know whats in it but it like deep fried cabbage and crap.) it was pretty good. for pudding we had this ice cream that was soooo rich and flavorfull, it was a little much but it was ok. then we had a long walk back to the hotel, (but it was a great walk). we went to bed (oh and i got my own room, woowoo)...

14

now i havent been able to email for 3 days so im giving less of a summery...today (tuesday) i was with crosby and took the kids to school then went to her work, which is a big museum house thing with a huge garden. and she does research on different pieces and repairs textiles and things. but i took my sketch pad out to the gardens and drew one of them. theres a traditional garden with all the plants completely trimmed so it looks like many sculptures. then theres a big rose garden, and theres a greek/mediteranial garden. they were all so stunning. then me and cros met up at the cafe and had baked potatoes and cake wich were ok at best. then simon and laura met us and laura bought me and simon a stick of rock wich is a candy that looked like a candy cane stick (the ones that are not curved) but in the center it was a chewy airy thing and was sooo good. we got back and that night me laura and simon shared a cider and simon showed us google trends (do it) were you put something in and it tells you how popular it is how fun...

13

today me and crosby went out shopping and to some art galleries. we went to the theatre to see if we could have a peek in the auditorium and the security guard gave us a whole tour of the stage and everything it was great. and before we left i asked if she though i should take my jacket (even though it was sunny and beautiful) and she said no we will just take a couple of umbrellas just in case... and half way through our walk it started to pour heavily. but it stopped about 30min later. we also went to a cathedral... not very exciting anymore now that ive been to like 10. we then went to the "sheffield scene" were they have alot of things made in sheffield. (which did i mention sheffield is a city pretty big like KC size, and it has a large steel industry) so we got some gifts... more info when you get them. we just mozzied around a little bit then got back on the bus and went home (and no it wasnt double decker). we picked up lucy from school but adam had some club meeting so he stayed. then for dinner we had this italian dish that was made from that same italian woman that made the tiramisu at the bbq. but i guess she comes over every tuesday and makes 3 or 4 dishes and freezes them. but i was delicious. we thought it was lasagna, but when we dug into it it was big huge shell noodles stuffed w/ cheesy herby something in a butch of red sauce. then we all just kinda hung around...

12

today i woke up and we started preparing things for a big street party bbq today. me and lucy made brownies wile adam made the burgers and kabobs. and in all the burgers here they put onions and crap in it, its ok i guess but i prefer i all beef patty (special sauce, onions pickles lettuce....on a sesame seed bun...idk if thats how it goes but you catch my drift {mcdonalds?}) but any whozal. lucy took me for a walk up to the botanical gardens by there house and its huge and soo beautiful, we did a riddle hunt were there is a riddle on a stone or something that tells you were the next riddle is and so on and so fourth. but i offered to get her ice cream and se declined so we went home after the hunt. i then chopped up some veg (no1 here seems to want to say the whole word vegetable, its just veg.) and we ate ham sandwiches for lunch. then joe and his wife idk her name and issac came over (jessi was on a school trip) by the time 3 arrived every1 got some thing and we headed down the street were they had blocked off a section. it was booooillinnn (as scarlet would say) and there was sooo much food adam cooked of course, and it was pretty good. and the house next to the one we were set up at had a bunch of college people that were all drugged out and passing weed around to eachother. it wasnt very good seeing that there were so many children around. but all the kids had a water fight and it was funny. for pudding we had ice cream marshmallows and tiramisu (made by a real italian). it was so good then we all sat and talked for a wile and munched on the left over food. we took everything back and now im just sitting here and will go to sleep soon...

11

today i slept in then had some rice krispies for breakfast and scarlet had a complete melt down because her rice krispies were soggy and she wanted more (which happens every morning then she gets more then they go to waste cause she doesnt eat them.) but today she had a melt down because laura wouldnt give her more cause she knew they were going to go to waste. but then for lunch i watched the girls for a bit wile laura ran to the butcher about 10 houses down, to get some ham and roast beef for peta bread sandwiches. it was pretty good. and we had pineapple for pudding (or puuddiiiinnnn, as scarlet would say). then i strapped the girls in there car seats as laura got jackets and such (which was dumb because it was beautiful out today. and we were off to /some park somewhere were we met crosby. but we got ice cream and sarlet and zena got it all over themselves. then we went for a walk around the ruins around the park (and scarlet didnt want to go so to persuade her to go laura said she could be the leader, very regretfully) zena went her own way which royally pissed scarlet off and she started screaming at the top of her lungs "im the leader!!!" and it all turned bad and we headed toward the car and i grabbed my bags and said my good byes and me and cros left. it was about an hour and a half ride and crosby is THE MOST soft spoken women. i could bairly hear a word she said. then we picked Lucy up from here very very rich friends house. and went home as lucy talked and talked and talked. but they live in a very nice home and i like adam he is very tall. and nice along with bob. we made pizzas (well adam did most of the work, making the dough) and we watched a movie filmed around these parts, which was good then we are all headed to bed now, but its been a good day...

10

all right well laura's internet broke down last night so i couldnt email, but i will tell you what happend. . . i woke up early and we took the girls to school then we went to the pub for breakfast, (and i know what your thinking, ohh a pub getting drunk at the beginning of the day that sound great...) but it was me this 2 year old boy and about 15 middle aged mothers who couldnt shut up. i had scrambled eggs, which were terrible and soggy and i almost threw up. then after about 2 hours of that me and laura went shopping and oh my god there are a ton of shops down this almost a wall hill. and i bought a jacket well i wanted to buy the jacket but laura forced her way to the cashier and said it will be the last clothing she will buy for me. and we almost had a fist fight to see who could pay first. but anyway, we went to a candy shop and the pound store were we bought way more than needed. then we went to this clothing store, and i wish soooo bad that we had one because there were a ton of cool cloths that were very cheap and i got a t-shirt. oh we went to a museum that wasnt that cool but hey it was alright. and all the cloths i saw were so much cheaper than at home it was great. for lunch we got ice cream and cheese straws. i loved the ice cream, toffee , its very popular here got little bits of toffee in it. /the cheese straws tasted like a cheezit but it was philo dough with /shredded cheese in-between most of the layers the baked and cut into strips. then we got my rail pass which i was told will save me $ when we go to london. then we walked up steep hill (not a good idea) and picked the girls up plus 2 others. i sat in the boot (trunk) and it was so hot (finally) but when we got home all the girls ran a muck and another mom showed up to help so i bee lined for the flat, (i miss you dad), to many girls in one day. then i guess the girls made pizzas and i had ice cream and a ham sandwich, (good thing i told laura about my ice cream addiction) i need ica (ice creamiest anonymous. but any way i packed watched big brother (me and laura are hooked) and took a shower. then went to bed.

email home from newark 8

today i woke up early and we took the girls to school then after ward we were going to go around lincoln and shop, but we had to stay w/ scarlet for zoolab, were a girl came in w/ a bunch of animals (small ones of course) and showed them to the kids. you could pet them or hold them if you wanted but every time she came around to scarlet she didnt want to. then when she came around w/ the snake scarlet decided that that one was going to be the only 1 she was going to touch. me and laura were very proud and so laura took us to an ice cream parlor, which was very old and very good, and i had to sneak the bill up to the counter so i could pay. then we went home and met joe for lunch were we had soup and sandwiches, which were ok but the soup was gross. joe looks like dannies feternal twin, and there alike in many way. i liked him alot. then me and laura went to dottington hall which was great because it didnt involve the history of politics, and had an amazing garden, i got alot of pics. we got home and laura made a really good cheesy pasta and meat balls. oh for pudding for both lunch and dinner i had eden mess, which is strawberries, marange, cream, and rasberry jam all mixed together and it was great. and i gave the girls there presents and they loved it. but nowe i think im gonna have some more milk and cookies then go to bed. . .

email home from newark 9

today for breakfast i had a crumpet and it was very very good. then me and laura went into newark. we went to a couple of small museums then to some shops and we went into a small old cafe (yes another one), and laura said she took mom there and they have a ton of old china. then we went to the supermarket and laura shoved many odd things into the cart that i needed to try (one of which was spotted dick) and she did this with that mischievous look on her face. oh and the carts are all hooked together at the return by a chain on one hooked into a thing on the next cart and so on and so on but you have to put a pound coin in the cart to unhook it then when your done you hook it back and it pops you coin out. but any way we went to a new tea shop to have lunch and i had a ham and chesse panini that was amazing and an ice cream cone for pudding. then i went on a walk and drew a picture of the church wall. then when i got home hannah had made lasagna and it was ok but zena didnt like it and scarlet had 4 helpings. and for pudding me and laura split a beer (which was subteler than american but still not good) and a chocolate bar...

email home from newark 7

today me and laura went to her friend kates house who is very much like mom. we had hot drinks (and me and laura took a tour around the house, which used to be a farm house and shop. it had a bread oven in the bathroom too, one of the big ones that you see in commercials like w/ pizza, and theres a cellar were they kept all the milk and meat.) then some other ladies dropped in and we all went to kates shop out back in her shed, it was a great little shop with things that she made such as jewelry and things that mom would make. and i bought a couple of gifts. then we met hanna and scarlet at the pub around the corner for lunch. and i had pork something on a potato cake, and its the most flavorful thing ive had yet. for pudding me and scarlet had ice cream. after we got back i took a walk around by myself and popped into the little shop by the house and had a little look around and the lady working there looked very mean and was cold to me when i tried to be nice but hey you cant win over everyone. a also went to the butcher which was very cool. i went to the store and got some candy, one called bounty which was like a mounds. very exciting!. then for dinner we had pork chopps mashed potatoes and corn and it was very good. now for pudding im in the flat having milk and cookies watching big brother and trying some of the things laura has put up here for me to eat and i have to say i HATE jaffa cakes!!!...

email home from newark 6

today we took a tour of newark (the other tour was just of there little village, which at the time i thought was newark but , its just a small part of it.) in newark we saw the castle ruins were the castle was burnt down, and the outside was stone but everything inside was wood so it was very venerable. and the river runs right in front of in so we had a terrific view from a window in the castle. then we went to the market and went to the bank to exchange $ --> €, because i havent bought anything, laura wont let me pay for anything she wants to buy it for me which i find quite terrible. we went into a shop to find some trousers (trousers because pants are girls underwear, which i didnt find out until today, so i have been telling people about my girls underwear, not my "pants" all this time)(oh and you dont even want to know what a fanny is, which makes fanny packs sooooooo funy to the brits) but anyway... and we went into a shop and , i must say the english have style, i wouldnt have a hard time spending hundreds of $s in that place, and everything is reasonably priced not $55 for a pair of trousers. but i found a pair of (well im going to say pants for emails because it more familiar and easier to type) pants i liked and was going to try them on and went into what i would not call a fitting room at all more of a " i can barely move in here room were i change cloths" but in the end the pants fit and of course laura and i fought because she insisted on paying, but she won. we went to a coffee shop for lunch and i saw on the menu on the wall that they had a baked potato with cheese and bacon and i lit up thinking of it as a delicious shredded cheddar and bacon bit potato, so thats what i ordered. when it came it was a potato with torn up pieces of a white cheese of sorts and thick pieces of bacon on a potato, the cheese wasnt very good but otherwise ive had worse. we went to the church there which i got a lot of pics of, because simon let me borrow a digital camera so i dont have to buy so much film. and it was old as well as everything here. then we went to waitrose, the supermarket, and shopped for thing that i might like, and when we got around to the drinks she bought me alot of sodas and juices that she gave me that look on were she knows they are very bad but they are traditional drinks and wants me to try them, and i say hay i only have to have it in my mouth once. i havent tried them yet but prolly tomorrow. oh and that alcoholic drink i had at the party last night was pimms, which people put cucumbers in. but it wasnt my fancy. when we got home laura broke the iron and shorted the cirut, but we fixed it and went to get a new iron. hanna looked after the girls most of the day, and made sausages and buns for dinner, which i was scared of the sound of it. but it was like little breakfast sausages ( with a different taste, really good though) on a hot dog bun, mine w/ ketchup. but it was much better than a hotdog, and it actually had flavor unlike most foods here. then me and scarlet had a hula-hoop lesson from zena. then it was bed time for the girls. then me and laura had a long nice chat, i really like talking to her shes such a great person...

Email home from Newark 4

today we hung around for a bit then went to a work house. the work house is a victorian poor house were poor people came to live but they all got seperated into different sections so they couldnt see there family unless they left. they did this because it was law that they had to accept any poor person in and that would mean more money to bee spent on food and such, so they didnt want it to be an enjoyable thing. obviously by the name you can tell that they had to work ver hard and for a long time with no pay (except for stay and meals). it was pretty cool and zena was very excited becaused she had been learnig about it in school. then for dinner we had mcdonalds wich was quite different because they had the burgers and mcchicken and fries (chips) but everything else was different they had a deli section with all sorts of wraps and crap and instead of cookies like mom usually gets there are muffins,brownies, and get this dougnuts. so zena got fish sticks, scarlet got chicken nuggets, laura got some bean wrap, and simon got a burger, and i had a mcchicken wich had a a diffent crust on the chicken then in america, at home its spicy and flavourful, but here it was plain, but still good, i think it was better quality meat though. Oh and for lunch we had tomatoe soup and peta bread and the tomatoe soup was different it had more spices and things in it and was good even though i dont like luiquid lunch. earlier in the day me and the girls did some draawing and it was fun i think laater in the week i will go out to the churches and draw. but at bed time i read the story again, then watched some tellie with laura as simon packed for his trip to LA tommorow. oh and laura added that one of the guys i went to the movies with who was american, his aunt was audrey hepburn, she thought mom might like that...

Email home from london...well really its Newark aboout an hour away

today i took a tour of newark and saw the post office, butcher, chemist, police station, and grocery store. and for dinner we went to pizza express, look it up it is soooo good. laura picked the girls up then me and simon before hand and scarlet was dead asleep with chocolate all over her face, it was hilarious. scarlet bumped her knee at the castle ruins when me simon and the girls were playing tick (tag) and it was cute watching her run around laughing, she never stops laughing, except when she scraped her knee, then she didnt stop screaming. we got a plaster (band-aid) and went back home. and since then scarlet warmed up to me and was cuddling with me during story time (were i read the story tonight) but, before bed time we played hide and seek outside but scarlet cheated and went in every time. one time me and scarlet went in to hide and she ran up stairs (she is very very fast) and took her shoes off in front of a closet that she hid in and i hid behind a door next to it, and i was thinking, scarlet you really dont think zena is going to know that you are in there since you have gone inside every time, you announced in the car that that was your favorite hiding spot, and you have your shoes right outside with your very heavy breathing. apparently this didnt occur to her and zena found her easily. but it was very fun. me simon and laura just finished watching americas got talent and we ripped apart every act it was quite humorous...

email to home from london 2

today i went to lincoln with laura and we went to the chapel which was amazing then to the tea shop were mom alex john and karen all went and had a hot chocolate and a scone, which i didnt think i would like but i thought it was pretty good, oh and did i forget to mention for the last couple of days it has been really cold and cloudy, but i didnt like the whipped cream on the scone or the hot chocolate, but i made do. and i signed my name in the guest book / the last one to do it to. then we went to the castle were we saw the fake magnicarta, because ironically the real one was on tour in the states, i walked the walls of it and was amazed in the size of both the castle and chapel. after that we picked up the girls which made me laugh because zena has to wear this odd straw hat and blazer, and scarlet ran ahead of us the whole way to the car which set me on edge, cause i was scared that she was gonna get run over. we went home and had pie, witch just the thought of scared me half to death, thinking of a pot pie, but it was good, there were no vegetables in it and i had chicken not minced meat, which scarlet thoroughly enjoyed more than 3/4ths of, she cant EAT. after dinner the girls went to brownies (girl scouts) and simon returned soon after that. one of simons friends picked me and him up and a few of there other friends and we went to see startreck, which was good but i thoroughly enjoyed them and have come to like simon a lot. and hes leaving for LA on sunday and getting back saturday and on sunday theres a bbq after church...

Email home from london

well surprisingly i slept through most of the 9 h flight and missed the meals but had some pringles and oreos that i ate. looking out on the topps of the clouds was outrageous, i spent most of my time on the planes sleeping or with my face glued to the window. when i got to chicago i was lost for a little but asked people and found my way, the flights were great and amazingly i enjoyed them a lot. when i arriver i had to go through customs and the guy was angry (cross) haha, because mom and dad didnt write a letter saying simon was infact there to pick me up and that i didnt know there address, but they called simon because that was the only contact info i had of his and it was all sorted out. i dropped my bags about ten times before i actually saw simon (and i had to hold back my laughter) him standing there with his crazy hair and big sign. but we got on the trains and eventually made it to , well were we are i dont remember the name but its like whateva, where laura picked us up. when i got to the house she showed me around and hanna, the nanny, came home with scarlet and we had some lunch, and during lunch scarlet was sizing me up and staring me down. then i took a nap and got up to dinner, which was very good. we had roasted chicken with green beans bread mashed potatoes (which scarlet had a great time of mashing, not very well though so had to help) and yorkshire pudding which isnt pudding at all, really nothing is specifically pudding, its just the dessert but yorkshire pudding wasnt a dessert it was a bread that was very good and scarlets favorite but zena couldnt have any because she cant have eggs, she allergic. so she ate about five pieces of regular bread. also zena went on and on about maddy and when they could see each other again and if she could come over next year or if they could go to the states. then we had a bean eating contest and scarlet cheated every time so they had to start over. it was quite cute. for pudding we had roulade or like a jelly roll, it was good. but zena and scarlet had jellys, there kinda like jello. then they took baths and read a story and went to bed and i watched a little tv and me and simon figured out how to connect my laptop to the internet. and even though the sun set at 9:30 its 11:30 and i think ill watch a little bit of telly the go to sleep, and surprisingly there are a lot of american shows and music over here...