Snow

At last London got a bit of snow. The kids would have been hugely disappointed if the winter season had come and gone without a good tumble in the snow. And for a while there it was looking like we weren't going to see any with temps no where near 0º. But alas old man winter has arrived bringing sub-zero temps and now finally some snow.

It arrived during last night's date night, where I brought along my trusty compact camera . . .


Dear friends, Trina and Rachel . . . and our husbands at the opposite side of the table.



Then this afternoon we headed out for some good quality time in what snow was left from the previous night's storm. It was pretty slushy by the time we got to it, but still enough to have fun in.



















































And to restore warmth we topped off the day with a delicious Sunday roast with yorkshire puddings! It was de-lish!

Phyllis

A few days ago I had a day I shall never forget. I had the amazing opportunity to sit in very intimate, small class setting and listen to one of Britain's most well-known modern novelists. Detective author P.D. James came to the English Detective class I am taking to speak to all 20 of us in a small, unremarkable room in a church a couple blocks off Abbey Road. This intimate, rather unexceptional setting almost magnified how incredible this experience was. At 91 James is as sharp as a tack and undeniably articulate without any hint of a failing memory. And yet her unpretentious demeanour and honest sensible manner made her feel so approachable, and also made one feel so at ease in her presence. She is a treasure, and I could have sit and listened to her for ages.

I only had my compact, inferior camera with me, but I at least have these images to remember this experience . . .

Then today . . . . I was so excited by an email I received that I had to share. I forwarded the photos I had taken of P.D. James when she visited my class last week to my teacher attached to an email thank-you letter.

Well as it turns out my teacher forwarded them onto P.D. James, AKA Phyllis. And this was James's reply:

Dear Alice

It was a great pleasure to speak to the ladies on 25th January, and also to meet you. I too hope that we shall be able to see each other again. After the talk I did wonder whether I had left enough time for general discussion and it might perhaps have been better had I spoken less before questions were invited, so I am relieved and delighted to learn that the audience did enjoy what I said and found it helpful. They couldn’t have been more welcoming and responsive.

I think the two photographs are wonderful and it is obvious that they were taken by a professional photographer of the highest talent. I wonder whether it would be possible to have copies of them both.

When you see Jane, please give her my love and say that I hope to see her in the spring or summer when I go to Southwold. I shall be there this weekend but only for a charity event when I am speaking in support of a hospice which is being built to serve the district, and I shall have no opportunity to see Jane. I do hope that things are going well with her.

Affectionately
Phyllis



I might print this out and frame it!



Then . . . after this letter to my teacher from P.D. James my teacher asked me to contact P.D. James herself to work out arrangements for getting her copies of my photos. So I, an American commoner, exchanged personal emails with P.D. James herself! I must say I sweat a bit typing her my message and had to press send with one eye closed. To find her personal reply in my email box was such a thrill! Just seeing "P.D. James" in my inbox was pretty cool. And this is what she wrote . . .

Dear Shannon

I would love to have prints of both the photographs and I insist on paying for them, so please let me know the cost plus postage. I think they are absolutely brilliant. My address is ********************************.

I had such a happy hour talking to your class and my only regret afterwards was that I had not left enough time for questions and discussion. For me it was a most stimulating and happy experience and the photographs will provide a lasting memory for me. You are a magnificent photographer and it must be a wonderful talent to have.

yours ever,
Phyllis James

And not only do I know exactly where she lives (half tempted to show up with scones for tea), which I left off the blog for obvious reasons, but she signed it Phyllis!!!

London 2012

It is a special year for London. Ever since we returned last summer, a palpable buzz has been in the air. The festivities all started in April with the Royal Wedding. And when the clock struck midnight on 31 December 2011, the party had officially begun. Honestly much of London is a royal mess right now. I have never seen so much construction in this city. That alone has me itching for the opening ceremonies when it all must be finished. What has us more excited is that we actually got tickets to a couple Olympic events! 2012 is also the year of the Queen's Jubilee, the Diamond Jubilee commemorating her 60 years on the throne. We were also in London for the Golden Jubilee marking her 50 years as the sovereign monarch in 2002. And just as we did 10 years ago, we're using the extra Jubilee bank holiday (thank you, your Majesty!) and taking off on a short holiday. I feel so lucky to be in this great city during this exciting time. I actually got a little emotional watching the New Year's Eve fireworks display on television. And to cap off 2012, we are going to fight the crowds and be there in person on New Year's Eve this year!

Hampton Court Palace

We live less than two miles from Hampton Court Palace. Our first visit here was when Dallin was 18 months old in 2002. We haven't been back since, and now we pass it every day. Sometimes I forget where we live. It feels very comfortable and normal now, but every time we pass the palace gates I am reminded.



We haven't made an official visit to the palace since returning, because I knew that we'd be hosting interested visitors that would give us the reason to go. Now we have an annual pass.


Scott's aunt here on business from North Carolina












King Henry VIII










The palace gardens are massive. The maze is definitely the highlight for the kids.

Baroness

Today was a day I shall never forget. I had the amazing opportunity to sit in very intimate, small class setting and listen to one of Britain's most well-known modern novelists. Detective author P.D. James came to the English Detective class I am taking to speak to all 25 of us in a small, unremarkable room in a church a couple blocks off Abbey Road. This intimate, rather unremarkable setting almost magnified how incredible this experience was. At 91 James is as sharp as a tack and undeniably articulate without any hint of a failing memory. And yet her unpretentious demeanour and honest sensible manner made her feel so approachable, and also made one feel so at ease in her presence. She is a treasure, and I could have sit and listened to her for ages.

I only had my compact, inferior camera with me, but I at least have these images to remember this experience . . .


The Baroness with my teacher

Five

I can't believe my baby is five! With each birthday, I have experienced a bit of sadness. I have not wanted to let go of any of his enchanting stages. And now at five, I have to face the facts: he is not a baby anymore. For all five years of his short little life so far I have constantly been approached by friends and strangers alike expressing to me what a joyful, beautiful child he is. It's true. He is. His exuberance and effervescent smile have been like an abundant aqueduct delivering endless joy to our family. I love this little boy with all my heart.

His birthday party with friends and schoolmates . . .












Family party at home . . .

Privatisation

Well, folks I think it may be time to officially go private on this blog. I've had a LOT of suspicious activity in the last few weeks with viewers from countries all over the world. I know a lot of people in a lot of places, but there have been many dozens of unidentifiable viewer locations recently. There's enough personal family information on here that I think it's finally time to shut the door on the public platform.



So if you want to keep checking in on the blog, send me a note via email or Facebook with your email address. For those less technologically savvy folks, this means you'll need to sign up for a Google account with a password. When I send you an official blog invitation, you'll be able to use the link in the invitation to gain access to the blog along with your Google password.