The Monday Blues / Our Super Fun Weekend

Does anyone else have the Monday Blues? I wouldn't describe mine as navy blue, or even a lovely turqouise. Just a nice, muted, baby-boy blue. I blame my Monday Blues on my awesome weekend, which I shall now recap for you, my devoted readers.

If you'll allow me I will start with Thursday, which, while not a usual part of the traditional weekend, really kicked off the fun for us. Even though we had already been invited to a large Thanksgiving get-together taking place this past Saturday we just couldn't let the day pass us by without some sort of celebration. As you know from my previous post, our neighbors joined us for a small Thanksgiving dinner, but the fun began much earlier in the day. My wonderful parents sent us two boxes filled with home goodies and it felt like Christmas! The great thing about boxes is that they also make excellent toys:

Friday saw the OFFICIAL start of the Christmas season in Oxford! Will and I braved the cold (and I debuted my long underwear!) to join the crowd in city centre for the lighting ceremony. As a Christmas connoisseur I must be perfectly honest--the lighting ceremony was rather unimpressive. Pretty sure Baylor's Christmas tree is bigger and prettier than the shabby looking spruce that drew most of the attention Friday night. But Jamie Oliver (the Naked Chef, anyone?) was there to flip the switch (although we didn't actually see him. I got tired of being pushed around by the hoards and voted we retreat ever so slightly away from the main stage) and along with the wimpy tree some other very pretty street lights came on. Armed with a ridiculous amount of hot chocolate and marshmallows we then checked out the Lantern Parade. Luckily for you all, I took a video. Please pardon the antlers that periodically interrupt the view.

I love window shopping at Christmas time

Saturday was Thanksgiving dinner at the Followwill home. For those of you who haven't heard of the Followwills, they are a lovely American couple that took us to their home for lunch our first Sunday in Oxford. They had invited a large crew over to celebrate this American holiday and we had such a great time playing games, making new friends (some of them with amazing Irish accents!) and celebrating the Lord's goodness to us.

Before the feast.

Beautiful table filled with beautiful people.

Our thanksgiving turkeys!

Sunday was another super cold day which had us in town for church in the morning and back in town for the symphony at night! Will was given ridiculously cheap tickets through the Clarendon Foundation and so we experienced live music in the Sheldonian Theatre for the very first time. I forgot to bring my camera (I blame the ridiculous cold. It's all I can think about these days) so Google images has once again saved the day:

We returned home from the symphony to a Skype "double date" with the wonderful Chris and Megan Stevens. My cup runneth over. :)

And now it's Monday, and Monday has brought me loads of laundry, dirty dishes, messy apartment and the early signs of a chest cold. Monday, you are such a let down! Oh well, counting down until next weekend...

Thanksgiving Eve

Twas the night before Thanksgiving and all through the flat

Not a creature was stirring, not even a rat...

...And I'm going to end that gem of a poem right there. You're welcome. :)

I have been the Scrooge of Thanksgiving for as long as I can remember. As a kid I was always underwhelmed by Thanksgiving. Considering the perks associated with all the other national holidays what did Thanksgiving really have to offer me? Halloween had costumes and candy, Easter had egg hunts and candy, and Christmas with its presents, lights...and candy in my stocking (noticing a theme yet?). Thanksgiving had orange foods, dead birds, boring football (ok, it was boring at the time), and no presents. Not to mention all the messy dishes the huge meal left. And pilgrims? Really? Thanksgiving was lame.

In college Thanksgiving became a little more agreeable--mainly because it signified that Christmas break was almost here! I forced my roommates to let me put up Christmas decorations before we went home for Thanksgiving break so that we could enjoy them that much longer. I considered the last Friday of November to be a larger cause of celebration because I was FINALLY allowed to pull out all the Christmas decorations (usually around 8 am in the morning, Thanksgiving dishes still in the sink and on the counters. Sorry, Mom!).

It's interesting what living in a foreign country will do to you.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day and I couldn't be more excited or nostalgic. Will and I are hosting a small Thanksgiving dinner at our place and our American neighbors, Josh and Erin, and their two kiddos, Jackson and Ella, are helping us celebrate. Erin and I have planned Thanksgiving crafts for the kids, I'll be spending most of tomorrow whipping up some Thanksgiving treats, and I have spent a large portion of time today perusing the internet looking for a Thanksgiving playlist to set the mood. All of a sudden it feels so important and so home-y and so wonderful to have this holiday. And I have so very much to be thankful for.

For the beauty of the earth,

For the beauty of the skies,

For the love which from our birth

Over and around us lies,

Lord of all, to Thee we raise

This our hymn of grateful praise.

The Seven Week Itch

Warning: This post is comprised of 99.9% estrogen. Proceed with caution.

Readers, I've got the Itch.

No, Mom, not the Baby Itch. Geez.

The Seven Week Decorating Itch. The Seven-Weeks-in-a-new-home-and-nothing-has-been-done-to-truly-personalize-it Itch. This is a powerful itch, my friends, and I'm doing all that I can to resist scratching this itch until I have some means of employment.

In the meantime I have (somewhat) satiated my desires to overhaul this dorm-apartment-thing by looking at decorating websites. I know it doesn't make any sense, but somehow it helps. Promise! In some strange way, marthastewart.com and younghouselove.com (just to name drop) have soothed my soul while filling me with ideas for that futuristic date and time when I can release my inner (though definitely wimpier) Martha and transform this place. Indulge me, if you will, in some digital drooling as we gaze upon these fantastic palates and decor ideas.

I could read for hours here, preferably with a doggie stretched out on the floor in that sun spot. Man I need a dog...

Aren't you just soothed by the tranquil turquoise?

This one I may really have to try. Good eye, Martha, good eye.

Another DIY photo idea. Love the original matting.

So yummy. I want to eat it with a spoon.

I have found that I love birds and bird pictures. And to top it all off, Martha glued dried beans to her bird frames! Preschool art project meets posh decor. Love it.

How to go about convincing the landlord that I should be allowed to put up some wooden beams... that is the question.

So there you have it. Quite possibly the most girlie post that you will see on this blog for quite some time. This has been a test of the Emergency Broadcast System. We now return to your regular blogging. :)

Man Plans...

And God laughs. Or so the Yiddish proverb goes. I do not want to speculate on what tickles the Trinity, but I will say that we planned... and then it all fell apart. Our lovely plans to visit this lovely place definitely did not happen. And I blame Willis. :)

Blenheim Palace. Or so I've been told.

Ok, not blame blame him. Poor guy can't help it that his gums decided to revolt against all his maltreatment! On his birthday this Thursday he essentially had sugar (in the form of my delicious peanut butter pie!), meat, and bourbon for dinner. This might have been fine, except for the fact that he forgot to brush his teeth before going to bed. The next day he complained of his gums hurting him but, of course, he tried to tough it out. The following night we went on a double date with our neighbors, Erin and Josh, to a local Indian restaurant as part of Will's birthday celebrations. Being the extraordinarily silly man that he is, Will felt compelled to order the spiciest item on the menu. He then woke up Saturday morning in some serious pain. After a medical consultation via Skype with our very own Rachel Walley (bless her!), it was decided that his mouth (more specifically, his swollen gum line) had met it's match.

Talk about family love. Will showing Rachel his gums with the help of his Kindle night light.

Poor guy spent Saturday and Sunday mostly mute, ingesting only soft bland foods (cottage cheese, scrambled eggs, yogurt, etc) and miming his needs to me. Being the wonderfully sensitive wife that I am, I had a pretty good chuckle... and then made him some mac and cheese. :)

As a result of this affliction we (and by "we" I mean "I"--Will isn't up to talking just yet) have made some new life resolutions:

1. When we have children we will live within a 45 minute drive from The Rachel Walley.

2. Will will never again tempt the pepper gods (or the Indian chefs) by asking them to make his food "as hot as possible." At least not when his mouth is already hurting from something else.

3. Should Will ever have to lose a physical ability, it should not be his ability to speak (assuming we have the choice). I'm terrible at charades.

Weekend Plans and a Short Video Treat From Yours Truly

First of all I have to wish my wonderful husband a very happy 25th birth week! That's right--7 days of (inexpensive) birthday celebration! We had originally planned on topping off the festivities with a trip to London this Saturday, however, after taking a good look at our finances we decided to save that very expensive city for a later time (i.e., when I have a job). Instead, we will be stretching our legs (and not our pocketbooks!) by experimenting with another countryside walk. This walk is supposed to be 17 miles long, winding through several old villages and cutting across Blenheim Palace grounds, but we have tinkered with the directions ever so slightly in order to lengthen our time at Blenheim (seeing the inside and outside) and shortening the mileage for a certain wimp in this marriage that shall remained unnamed. Need another hint? This wimp has NOT run two marathons. Ok fine, it's me. I have all confidence in my legs up to about 12-13 miles but after that I really cannot be sure. The husband readily agreed with my suggestion to shorten the hike, seeing as how he did not want any whining and/or requests for piggyback rides to dampen the experience. :)

And now, because I love you, my faithful good-looking readers, a video for your entertainment and enlightenment! Because Brits do this better, too.

Before and... In Between?

I promised myself that I would fight the urge to post pictures of our new home until I could do the whole "Before & After" thing. I envisioned your shock and revulsion by the before shots and then the wonder and amazement that the after shots would surely bring! But I have come to the realization that the before/after scenario might be a while and I should be more generous with my posts. Or less prideful about my current living condition. Po-tay-toe po-tah-toe. So here they are--the "Before & In Between" pictures of our new abode. Welcome to Summertown.

The lovely Summertown sign

Before: the view as you walk in our front door.

Unpacking is so much fun.

Before: our closet.

Before: Our living room/dining room/Will's office.

Another before shot of our living room/dining room/Will's office.

"How can one room be so small and yet fulfill so many purposes?!?"

Good question, Willis. Good question.

Before AND In Between shot of the bathroom. Not a ton happening here!

Our itty bitty kitchen. Left side...

Right side! Again, still looks the same.

And now for the In Between pictures. If you cannot see a great difference, have no fear! It's not your eyes. It's my lack of decorating. But the day is coming... :)

Will's new workspace--humidor and all.

Our rearranged living/dining space

Our bedding, courtesy of one marvelous Peppy Smeaton.

The only framed picture that escaped Will's packing fervor. Favorite sister. :)

I obviously did not rearrange this! This is our beautiful view.

And there you have it. Flat #28 in a glance. Of course, I have high hopes for this place... something along the lines of this. I adore the yellow/gray combo:

A girl can dream, can't she? Just wait and see.

Air Raid or Number Two?

This just in: Brits are CRAZY about fireworks. Capital C-R-A-Z-Y crazy.

I'm not exaggerating, folks. The first time I heard them I thought "gunshots?" but then I remembered that I wasn't working in Central City New Orleans anymore. Fireworks just seemed like an illogical guess because it was mid-October. What could we possibly be celebrating in mid-October?? I decided to investigate. So far all I have found is British Apple Day (Oct 21, I kid you not), Daylight Savings (Oct 25), and Halloween. While I am pro-apples, I don't think they are exactly firework-worthy. Maybe the British like them a lot more than I do. Daylight Savings time I could maybe get behind with a little more enthusiasm--I am, after all, a big fan of sleep--but fireworks wake people up! Counterproductive. Halloween is highly uneventful here, so that can't be it. The only two logical explanations that I am left with are 1) The Germans are bombing England again, or 2) Uncle David's toilet training technique has crossed the Atlantic.

For those of you unaware of the David Dueland potty training method, let me assure you that it is a highly successful strategy. Parents would be wise to attempt it as they broach this stage with their 2 year olds. It is a very simple 2-step process. Step 1: convince your toddler to use the toilet. Step 2: reward successful toilet use with fireworks. I myself have witnessed this technique on one family vacation. You just can't make stuff like that up.

Personally, I'm leaning towards explanation number two. There are a lot of little munchkins running around Oxford (more so than Germans, anyway). What else could explain the 2 hour show that has been going on this evening? Guy Fawkes Day was yesterday and Stir Up Sunday (the traditional day to make your Christmas pudding--don't even think about trying it before November 22nd!) is about two weeks away. No, gentle readers, I believe I have reached the logical conclusion to this riddle. It would explain the random bursts of explosions we hear for a few minutes almost every night. And tonight's ongoing event? Most likely an anti-diaper rally.

Things Brits Do Better

Since our arrival I have been compiling a list of the wonderfully unique pieces of life that Oxford does so well. Actually, Oxford does them better. Most of them are silly and trivial little details but I have very much enjoyed noticing the beauty in all things great and minute in Oxford. I hope you do, too. These are not the only things Brits do better--just five? Come on now, let's give the redcoats a little more credit than that! I plan to sprinkle these successes throughout my blogging entries. Enjoy Part 1.

1. Doors. Nothing says "Home Sweet Home" like these beauts.

Secret Garden?

Emergency Access. Seriously?

2. Chimneys. This is Peppy's chimney. How delightfully Mary Poppins!

3. Street Signs/Street Names. So friendly that I almost don't mind getting lost.

4. Public Service Signs. Not only are they much more elegant than our gigantic NO SMOKING monstrosities, but in the case of this littering one they also show you what TO do! Or which direction to go after using the emergency exit. How very helpful of them.

5. Bus Stops. Could it get any happier?

Public transportation--tres chic!