London Trip

We're back! We enjoyed every minute of our trip to London. I'm listing our full itinerary below, but for now enjoy the pictures:



We started off Thursday with lunch at a little pub near our hotel, the Hog in the Pound. The traditional lunch of fish and chips was delicious! We did a little shopping, and then it was time for the evening festivities. We had a pint at the pub next to our hotel, the Barley Mow, along with some of the guys Nick had been working with over there. We moved on to the top of the National Portrait Gallery, in Trafalgar Square, for cocktails. It was a great place for a drink, as it looked out over the square - what a view! We finished up with dinner at Waggamama's, a favorite noodle spot from my time in London during college.

Friday morning we woke up early and started at Westminster Abbey. I'm glad I took lots of pictures last time I was there because now there are no cameras allowed! I've been there a few times, and it's one of my favorite spots in the city. From the breathtaking Lady Chapel, to the coronation chair, to, let's face it - my favorite, poet's corner, full of memorials to famous writers, it evokes such a sense of history. From there, we strolled past Parliament and Big Bend to the Cabinet War Rooms. I decided that these were a must-see for Nick since it depicts people doing his current job during WWII. From there we stopped near St. Martin's in the Field for some lunch, then on to Covent Garden. Then we walked over the Buckingham Palace. If you look closely at the pictures, the flag was flying on top of the palace, which means that the Queen was there! After that we took the tube over to the Tower, only to find it closed to visitors. We snapped a few shots of the London Bridge, and took the tube back to the London Eye (the big ferris wheel looking thing). We tried to get some good pictures from there, but it was moving too quickly and they are all blurry. We finished off the day with a traditional Indian dinner.

Saturday we started off a bit more slowly. We began the day at Harrod's which was terribly crowded because of the "January sales." From there we walked along Hyde Park to Kensington, where the Imperial College is located. I showed Nick where I lived during my study abroad trip, my favorite coffee shop, etc. From there, we headed over to a tiny neighborhood in the middle of Mayfair called Shepherd's Market. This spot has been preserved in much of its nineteenth century character, and we were definitely off the beaten path. I had traditional bangers and mash (sausage and mashed potatoes) for lunch, and Nick had pie, both of which were tasty. After lunch we headed back to the Tower, and this time we were early enough to tour it. We ended our touring after that excursion because we had theater tickets for that night. We went back to the hotel, got cleaned up, and went for pre-theater drinks and snacks at a little place in Chinatown. We saw a great production of Chicago - we really wanted to see Wicked, but at $100 a person we decided against it. After the show we had dinner at a little French restaurant in Covent Garden called Cafe des Amis.

We woke up Sunday and headed to Paddington Station to catch our train to Heathrow. As you can tell it was a whirlwind adventure, but it was enough to confirm for us that we can't wait to take another international trip together as soon as possible.

Best of the Rest

Here are some pics from the rest of our Christmas visit to Texas. Enjoy!

With And and Drew at their wedding spot

All the Reitmeiers and Halls at Barkin Ball benefitting Fuzzy Friends Rescue

Mike and Ede enjoying themselvesThe kids

Feeling a little sheepish at the Baylor/South Carolina basketball game. We've got our bear claws and our spurs up. We're glad we went, but the game last year in Columbia was much better.

This is it from Christmas. Next week, look out for London pictures. Nick and I will meet up over there on Thursday for a fabulous weekend.

Christmas Part Two

Daddy's new reindeer PJ's

Mom and Dad fixing Christmas dinner

Nick, me, and my new Canon Rebel!

The Halls, waiting on the food, the brother, and the sister-in-law

Finlay was worn out by the end of the day.

Christmas Break, Chapter 1

We're baaack! After two weeks on the road, Nick, Finlay, and I arrived home at our apartment in Columbia last night. Two weeks of fun, family, and friends produced lots of pictures and stories so I'm going to take the break a few pieces at a time.

Chapter 1, Part 1: Sunday School serves dinner at Salvation Army

Sunday, December 21st, our SS class served dinner at the Salvation Army. It was fun to see everyone in action, and Nick and I got to wear hairnets as we worked on the serving line!

Chapter 1, Part 2: Fire at Kensington Place

On our way into town, on day two of our 16 hour drive from South Carolina, Mom informed us that there had been some "excitement" since we'd last spoken to her from the Texas-Louisiana border. Excitement indeed! Mark, my little brother, had narrowly escaped a fire at his and Lauren's apartment. Fortunately he caught it before things got really ugly, and, in what may come as a surprise to some of you, he took their cat, Rocky, to safety before he went for any electronics. These pictures are of us trying to repair the hole in their wall, in the dark.

Stay tuned for pictures from Christmas Day, our visit to Austin, and New Year's Eve!

A Cascade of Misfortunes

Time: 11:00 a.m.
Event: Cut-out cookie failure. Lindsay's traditional cut-out cookie recipe turned out too dry, sweet, sticky, and crunchy. Cookies were inedible unless the cookie-eater needed a serious and painful jaw work-out. No cut-out cookies will be had by any Colvin/Reitmeier/Halls or any History department employees.

Time: 12:00 p.m.
Event: Diva Dogs is not answering their phone. They did not answer yesterday either. Finlay is forced to take a last-minute grooming appointment at the Petsmart on Harbison, possibly the biggest traffic debacle at any given moment in the city of Columbia and 20 minutes from home. Appointment time: 5:00 p.m.

Time: 12:30 p.m.
Event: Nick takes Lindsay's car to be washed and detailed for the big trip to Texas. It has now rained off and on since 3:00 p.m. It is now 9:00 p.m.

Time: 2:00 p.m.
Event: Photo-op for someone's Christmas gift (a picture frame). We are already so behind schedule that we are having to miss a friend's Christmas party. Boo. However, this picture is essential. Cloudy skies, wind, humid temperatures, and uncooperative Finlay led to a hot temper on Lindsay's part and severe frustration for Nick. The final picture featured only Nick and Lindsay.

Time: 3:00 p.m.
Event: Last minute errands. We got in the Gourmet Shop and Three Dog Bakery, but forgot the most essential stop - the pharmacy. Didn't realize this until later. It would later involve an extra hour on the road, a pharmacy which closes at 6 p.m. and a locked cabinet which further complicated the process.

Time: 4:45 p.m.
Event: We tried to develop the picture we'd taken previously while Finlay was being groomed. We'd been told it would take from 4:30 until 8:00. We had lots of time to kill. Publix, despite advertising photo services, did not in fact offer photo services of any kind. We trekked a few blocks down to Target, which did offer services. They were just slow to render them. We finally got the picture printed, paid for it, and then looked down to realize that I had lipstick - bright red lipstick - on my front teeth. Picture is now worthless and all effort spent in procuring it is an utter waste.

Time: 6:00 p.m.
Event: Following a nice dinner, we decide to return to Columbia proper to pick up my prescription, which must be filled no later than today. Arrive at CVS at 6:30 to find the pharmacy closed. Recognizing our predicament concerning lack of prescription's benefits, we seek out alternatives. All alternatives are locked in a glass cabinet which must be opened by an "associate." It wasn't worth it.

Time: 6:45 p.m.
Event: Returning to check on Finlay at the groomer's we pass no fewer than 4 wrecks. One was a flipped car. One was a car with its entire back crushed in. We feared for our lives as we headed back to the gauntlet that is Harbison Blvd.

Time: 7:00 p.m.
Event: Checking in on Finlay. Thinking that 2 1/2 hours is always more than enough time for Diva Dogs to complete the job we decide to check in with Fin and see if he might be finished early. He was not. We were told so in no uncertain terms. Our anxiety and frustration was not quelled when we were told that one reason he would be ready, actually later than expected, was that the groomer "didn't actually know he was there." Not kidding. He, in fact, would now be ready not a minute before 8:30.

Time: 8:30
Event: Rescuing our precious baby from the evil Petsmart groomers. Finlay is brought out to us smelling like cheap gas station coconut car freshener and still quite damp. Are you kidding me?! They had my small dog for 4 and a half hours and couldn't bathe and dry him completely?! Petsmart groomers. You are worthless.

We're going to bed now, before anything else can happen.

LONDON!!!

I have hesitated to post about this until everything was in order for fear of jinxing it. However, our flights and hotel are booked so I guess it's time to spill the beans. A few weeks ago, Nick was requested to attend a business meeting in London during the second week of January. At first we thought that this would blow our plans to go skiing in West Virginia over that MLK long weekend. I was very disappointed since I'd already planned to take Friday off and was getting very excited about a fun trip with Nick. Then it occurred to us - why not turn our ski vacation into a London vacation?!

So there you have it. Nick will arrive on Wednesday, and I'll follow him, arriving at Heathrow on Thursday morning. I'll have Thursday to settle in and visit my favorite London sights from my summer studying at the Imperial College. Nick and I will have Thursday night, all day Friday and Saturday, and Sunday morning to hang out together and explore one of the coolest cities in the world. We're staying at the Marriott Grosvenor Square, which is very nice and very close to Hyde Park and other neat spots. I've linked their website. The best part is that since Nick's job is flying him there and putting us up on Wednesday and Thursday nights, we're doing this trip for not much more than we would have paid to ski in West Virginia. Pretty cool, right?

I admit that jetting off for a long weekend in Europe is a little over-the-top, but Nick and I had agreed to take a really cool vacation together before his deployment this summer. It seems like this is the perfect opportunity! You can expect some cool pictures from this trip, especially if Santa brings me that new camera I asked for...

Last thing, those of you who have made the trip before, please give me your ideas on the absolute must-sees for a weekend in London. Thanks!

You'd better watch out...

You'd better not cry. You'd better not pout. I'm tellin' you why...Nick and Lindsay are coming to town! One week from today we will arrive in Waco, and if you've been really good this year we just might have something for you under here:
Go ahead. Look a little closer. See if you can figure out which one might be yours!

Santa's elves have been hard at work the past few weeks, as you can see. Sorry for the lack of posts! We can't wait to see all our family and friends in just one short week!!!