Just a bit of silliness. ^
Ok, I've handed out enough prizes, sent enough emails, and described enough products to last me a lifetime! :) Holy beans, my hands are tired! These are all the ladies who won something:
comment#9 barbara, comment#8 jenny, comment#35 geoi, comment#36 scrap evangel, comment#17 mandy r, comment#37 lacie, comment#49 laura, comment#31 michelle adams, comment#40 kim, comment#7 michelle b, comment#15 jana, comment#22 SMJ, comment#11 jenni, comment#38 chengie, comment#13 teresa, comment#43 gina, comment#3 sandy, comment#32 connie, comment#2 jaime, comment#14 lor, comment#23 kirsty b, comment#27 sara
I have emailed everyone and you have either received a GC, gift, or instructions on how to get it. Sorry the emails are not a personal as they usually are...I was in a rush. I didn't yell at you or anything, but I didn't ask about your grandma and her corns, either. Next time, though. Promise! ;)
Thank you all so much for playing along! I had a lot of fun and it was nice to get to "chat" with all of you! And thank you for all the birthday wishes!
Ok, so let's get to the weekend rundown:
Friday was busy, busy, busy as I dealt with the grab bag goodness and the outpouring of GC's from other designers and just trying to keep my ducks in a row. Hit the sack sorta early and got super jazzed about Saturday at the Portobello Market in London. Probably should have gotten more sleep than I did...but at the time I didn't know just how long and tiring that Saturday was going to be! :) You might wanna tinkle and grab a snack before you settle in for the day to read this gargantuan post.
We drove to the nearest "park and ride" so we wouldn't have to pay so much for the train. As soon as we were on the tube, I realized that this was the first time the girls had been on the tube. Commence clicking!! :)
Noodle was bored out of her mind:
We navigated our way to Portobello Road which is located in Notting Hill and made our way through the neighborhood to get to the market which was packed. And considering this thing is in the street, that's sayin' somethin'. Poor Noodle looked at everyone's knees all day. By the end of the day we hated the stroller.
I didn't get much...I wasn't planning on it, though. Browsing through junk and treasures is a pretty good way to pass the time, so I was pleased as punch just to be there. However, I did find some goodies for myself (and maybe a friend *wink*). I got antique copies of Emma, Sense & Sensibility, Mansfield Park, The Wind in the Willows, and A Midsummer-night's Dream. I am a true fiend when it comes to antique books. I like them just short of crumbling. :) After we browsed the antiques, we came to the foodies area and stopped to poke our nose in and see what we could find.
One man stopped in front of this big pan and said, "That's looks delicious." The cook replied, "Odelay. Stick around. It gets better." And then he winked. But how?!?! HOW could they get better?!?!
Across the street, we found a piggy. One of our family rules dictates that we must stop for any and all porcine-related paraphernalia and pay our respects.
SALUTE!!
I loved this tent. The olives looked absolutely amazing and the woman was too cute. And I loved all her ladles and buckets.
While I took this photo, Colin was at a baker's stall getting the most heavenly thing I have tasted in a long time. She appears shortly in her own portrait.
We shimmied on up the road and found this:
Then we took an excruciatingly long and maddening tube ride to Westminster. The Circle line was closed, so we had to circumnavigate. Got lost, didn't care, way too tired, went an extra stop just so we could sit for 5 more minutes. But we finally got there.
We unpacked the tarts that Colin bought at the market, and lo and behold. The Treacle Tart, Ladies and Gentlemen. If you have not tasted one of these, you are truly missing out. If you like honey and if you like tarts, this is the treat for you. It was baked by a genius at POPINA. I just ordered some and I can't wait til they get here. I am going to stalk the postman til they come.
Don't really know what's going on here, but Lara's face is priceless.
Just to orient yourself.
So we turned a 180 and walked past Big Ben and headed for Westminster.
Although there are lots of sights around Parliament, my favorite is St. Margaret's church. I could look at it all day. I don't know why I'm so enamored of it...it might be the blue dollop.
Yes. Yes, it's definitely the dollop.
We carried on towards Westminster. It was closed for the day, so we just admired the exterior.
Stopped to snap a sweet pic of Lara.
The first rest during a very long day.
Taken from the front of Westminster looking towards St. Margaret's and Big Ben. If you notice, Noodle has a shoe in her mouth. This was the general theme of her day. Unbuckling the shoe, throwing the shoe, chewing the shoe, hugging the shoe, taming the shrew....wait...
Had to take a peek at the Tudor dolls in the Abbey Shop window.
Stopped to snap a shot of Colin and Mia.
Stuck my camera through the gate to take this. Almost got arrested. Well, ok...I didn't almost get arrested. But I could have. That's the point.
Walked back past Big Ben and across Parliament bridge. Turned around to take this. This kinda sums up what most tourists see of London. Big Ben and a bunch of crap. I should know. I live here and this is all I've seen. That'll change, though, as soon as the weather gets nicer. LOTS of shows, museums, faires, and restaurants to visit.
Ok, so the sun was in my eyes. That's the only excuse I have for this sorry excuse for a birthday photo. I really was having a good time. I promise. I don't know what I was thinking about at this point...probably the fact that I gave my last bit of treacle tart to Noodle and I wanted it back... The kids look dang cute, though.
Talk about tooting your own horn. He even played "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star", which is Noodle's favorite song. We got all excited and she couldn't have cared less. Classic.
The "reggae" singer in the tube station. He was singing "No Woman No Cry" and I use the term "singing" loosely. But he was jolly and peppy enough, so he got points for that. A large group of drunks was singing along with him just behind us, so that added to the parTAY flava.
It was a very, very long day. After the tube ride to our car (1 hour) and the car ride home (hour and a half), we decided there was no way we were going to cook dinner at home. But we weren't about to spend a thousand dollars on take-out because the dollar is so bleepin' weak right now, either. So, we decided to go to the bowling alley since they have good burgers and we can pay in pesos dollars. So, we're sitting down and I look over and Lara and Mia are holding huge rifles that go to an arcade game, we have given our baby Sprite because that was the most benign thing they had, and on the big screen we're watching a documentary about truck drivers....in a bowling alley. My pre-birthday day was now complete! :)
On Sunday, I got my wish and slept in for as long as I wanted. Colin made us lemon pancakes and we had a little lunch party later in the day. He made this cake. I was so excited, I almost cried! He worked his little fingers to the bone and did such a good job! :)
It was a happy cake, to be sure. I had an Egyptian themed birthday. I got The Ten Commandments and Cleopatra on DVD as well as an out of print book (Silent Images) I've been wanting for 4 years. I saw it at a Tutankhamen exhibition forever ago and haven't forgotten about it. And neither did Colin. :) So, we watched Charlton Heston part the Red Sea yesterday and hung out with the kids. The best birthday yet, I'd have to say.
