The Holiday Rush

I have outdone myself this time. I am having roughly 19 people (a mix of Americans and Brits) at my house tomorrow for Thanksgiving (assuming everyone shows up) and have I got anything prepared. Nope. My house is a slight bomb site. I have the food, but none is prepped. Thankfully I am not doing the turkey or the ham (yes we are doing a ham too) so there is that small reprieve. So today is all about cleaning and prepping.

Ahhhh the holidays. This is my favorite time of the year but I have found that they aren't nearly as fun as when I was a kid. It seems like they just sneak up on me and the amount of stress they generate is astronomical. Not to mention that I am in the UK, which I love, but since Thanksgiving isn't a British holiday there are already Christmas ads on the TV. So, it is a weird mix of Thanksgiving and Christmas at the same time at my house. I already have pulled out some of my Christmas decorations but the weather and my calendar are shouting Thanksgiving. I should come up with a word for this time of the year.

Thanksmas?

Happy Thanksmas Everyone!!

Things to Do While On Your Summer Holiday

Visit Family.


Play with bubble gun.


Meet your new cousin.


Visit a tourist attraction.



Walk across a gap in the mountain on a rope bridge and in the process give your mother a heart attack.


Enjoy the view.


See a waterfall.


Learn to swim!!

The Pose

As we were walking about Hampton Court Palace on Saturday I noticed that KiKi has acquired a specific pose that she uses in almost every photo taken of her.



Foot back (or up), hands to the sides flipped out at the wrist like she is wearing a dress.










She must think it is the way princesses pose.

We're In For A Rude Awakening

We (we, meaning LaLa and I) are in for a rude awakening once school starts back up. She and I have both been staying up entirely too late at night. I have to admit, she is doing worse on the bedtime front than I am. She has been stalling bedtime until nearly 11pm for the last week. I am an adult, so I am allowed to stay up til 1am if I want. She is a child and should be in bed no later than 8:30pm tops (in my perfect world where there are unicorns, rainbows, pink kittens and sparkles all the time).

To say that we have been sleeping in a little would be an understatement. We haven't been getting out of bed until the God awful entirely too early hour of nearly 10am for the last week. I haven't been setting my alarm clock and I don't get out of bed until one of my kids prods me if my alarm isn't set. KiKi has been getting up at her normal weekend time of about 8:30-9am. However, KiKi isn't a kid that will prod me to get out of bed. She prefers to play quietly in her room until I get out of bed (the child is an angel, seriously, doesn't get into things, just plays in her room). So, I sleep. Then I get a crack of daylight peeking through my blackout curtains and know that it is entirely too late in the morning to be sleeping. Let's face it folks, I live in England, if there is light coming through your curtains on a winter morning, it is well past 9am. Then I prod LaLa out of bed, with her moaning about how she is "exhausted" and needs "just a few more minutes" .

So what I am basically trying to say is....Tuesday, January 4th, when the kids go back to school, LaLa and I are going to be in a world of hurt at 7am when the alarm clock goes off. Who wants to bet we are late to school?

America's Finest

This post was written by my husband, The Man. If you were not aware my husband is a member of the United States Air Force. He has been in the Air Force for eight years and he has been to war in Afghanistan. He asked to write a post for the Bungalow so he could express his gratitude for those who served before him and remind other Americans about the purpose of our national holiday "Veteran's Day". In the UK and Canada it is known as "Remembrance Day". A day to remember the sacrifices that our service members and the civilians who supported them during times of war. Please take a moment to remember the service members who have tried their best to keep you safe, no matter what country you are from.

As many Americans take this Veteran’s Day off from work, I want to remind all Americans of the importance of this day. It may be a well deserved break from the daily requirements of your job, but it serves a much higher purpose. As Americans, we live and breathe the freedom that many take for granted. This liberty that we all value has come at a steep price for many families and generations of Americans. We have persevered as a nation on the backs of ordinary men and women that have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation. From our nation’s “War of Independence” to the battles in Afghanistan and Iraq today, thousands of our military’s greatest have paid the ultimate sacrifice. Our nation’s “finest” have continually fought for America’s freedom through the generations. People who values consist of God, nation, family, integrity, and service before self. People who consistently bear the awesome task of defending America. People who put individual desires to the side for the good of all Americans. These are the people who should be remembered on this holiday. America is the greatest nation on earth because of these people who sacrifice to defend freedom and liberty. As you go about your day, please take a moment to reflect and remember the lives of “America’s Finest,” who gave it all to make our nation what is it today.

Photo credit: U.S. Census Bureau