W38 of Y3

London

We finally made it to the UK!

After a VERY early flight we were on the bus from the airport into the city.


After getting to the city, the first item of business was figuring out the tube. At first it was just a big mess but we actually started getting pretty good at it.

Waiting for our train

The phone booth outside our hotel

Waiting for Daddy to check us in. We finally made it!!

We were all starving!!! The restaurant down the street from our hotel had cartoon network... in English! The kids didn't say a word all through the meal.


Fish-n-chips and mushy peas of course!

After lunch we took a taxi downtown to Piccadilly Circus, the Times Square of London.

This was one of the kids favorite shops for obvious reasons!




After buying some tickets to a show that night everyone was exhausted so we went back to the hotel for naps. The hotel was fabulous!! If anyone is looking for a great place to stay in London let me know!!

It was time to get up and get ready for the show. Whitney was SO tired and did not want to wake up so I put her in the bath thinking that would wake her up. I was standing at the sink getting ready and looked down to see she had fallen back to sleep in the tub. Poor girl!

The show was in Oxford. They had their Christmas lights up already. It was beautiful!

We decided on The Wizard of Oz. We thought it was one that all the kids (and us) would like - and we DID!!! The kids will tell you this was one of the biggest highlights of the trip!! Watching them in pure fascination at the show was the highlight of my trip!!


Checking out the orchestra before the show starts

There was a scene when the good witch made it snow in the show. Then it started snowing in the audience. The snow was pouring down on us!! The kids thought that was so amazing!!

The next morning we all woke up to a hot breakfast. Jeremy had snuck out and went to the Greek market next door to buy food and made eggs and pita bread before anyone woke up!

Walking through one of the MANY beautiful parks. I was surprised to see so many great parks while we were here. The fall leaves were gorgeous!

I had to take a picture of my cell phone!! Right when I looked down it was 11:11 on 11/11/11.


First stop was Buckingham Palace. We got there in time to see the changing of the guard - but so did thousands of other people!! I think it was extra crowded because it was England's veterans day this weekend too. It was really crowded! The crowd itself was a sight to be seen.





Big Ben! The weather was great the entire time we were in London. It was chilly and a little foggy at times but it wasn't too cold and never rained. Aiden insisted on just wearing a sweatshirt instead of his winter coat and ended up wearing my scarf with it later.
Occupy London


The London Eye in the background


Sandwiches for lunch

The London Eye and Big Ben together


Lots of activity by the Eye


The boys really wanted to go inside this "haunted house" but after looking inside decided they did not want to go. lol!

These pigeons stole Whitney's waffle!!

One of the MANY street performers


We took a Thames River boat cruise from Westminster to Greenwich where we were so excited to see our friends there!

Going under the London Bridge

Sipping on some hot cocoa at Starbucks while we waited for our friends to arrive

The boys are finally reunited!! They are wearing their school uniforms and look so grown up!

They treated us to a magic show that night

We had authentic, homemeade Paella for dinner and it was AMAZING!! Everyone loved it. The kids got a lesson about how to eat the shrimp. It was a great night!

Walking to the bus

Always racing everywhere we went

Waiting for the bus to take us to the museums: National Science Museum and Natural History Museum










After spending ALL DAY at the museums (and still didn't see half of everything!!) We walked down to Harrods.

Everything was quite fancy!!

A statue of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed: "Innocent Victims".

They had a huge section just for Harry Potter



Taking the tube back home. The kids were experts at getting around by the end of our trip. They liked all the TV's all the way down the escalator.

That night we all went to a Turkish restaurant down the street for dinner. Great food, Great friends, Great time!!

The next morning we went to the Greenwich market and the old Royal Naval College where a lot of movies are filmed


The boys started wrestling and Whitney jumps on the top of the pile! I love it!



National Maritime Museum



Leaving their mark in the world

The Greenwich Observatory, home of Greenwich Mean Time and the Prime Meridian of the World, making it the official starting point for each new day and year!!






We went to see Tin Tin in 3D for one last activity together


A quick bite at Pizza Hut before rushing off to the airport. Connor and Aiden have decided these boys are their new "brothers". They both cried all the way to the airport after saying goodbye. We just love the entire family and can't wait to see them again soon.