Our trip to England

This trip was full of firsts!  The first of many "firsts" was our first flight on Ryan Air.  In case you don't know about Ryan Air it a super cheap airline in Europe, (think southwest and then tons cheaper!).  In some ways it was a crazy experience.  After getting our gate announced right before we had to board the plane we literally ran with about 100 other people across the airport to make it there in time.  The whole time we were on the plane the flight attendants were trying to sell things to us; it was like being in an informercial. Weird! But the tickets were so cheap who cares! Our good friends Harriet, Mike, Oliver, and Martha live in St. Albans about 30 minutes north of London.  We had not seen them for three years since they left Denver and it was so great spend time with them again! Mike came to pick us up at the airport and Ray and I got to ride in a car driving on the wrong side of the road for the first time.   Just when I thought we were used to it Mike had to make a turn and I swear I thought the other car was going to hit us! Also, the whole weekend we were visiting Ray and I kept trying to get into the car on the drivers side!  May I add that it felt a bit luxurious to be riding in a car!
It was so fun to introduce Lucas to Martha and see Annalise and Oliver play together.  We ate the best food and drank more red wine than we had in a long time. Mike and Harriet are the best cooks. It felt so great to be surrounded by friends and to spend time with people who really "know you." We have started to make friends in Sweden but it just takes time to let the relationships develop.  It was also great to spend time with friends who love our kids!

While we were there Mike and Ray hit up a couple of bars in St. Albans including Ye Old Fighting Cocks, which is one of the oldest pubs in England; Angela and Harriet had a night out in; we crashed a three year old's birthday party where we rode on a steam train and met a crazy Santa; and we took the kids into London for some sightseeing. Sightseeing in London with 4 kids is crazy tiring but really fun. We stopped off at Buckingham Palace to have tea with the Queen. Annalise and Oliver kept yelling, "Queen, Queen come out and play with us!" Then we caught a double decker bus and saw Big Ben, The London Eye, the Marble Arch, and some famous stuff.  We had afternoon tea on Oxford street and then enjoyed the Christmas lights and Department store display windows. Finally we caught the tube back to St. Albans at rush hour. Every time we had to stop for the bathroom while we were in London it took about 1 hour to get all people in and out. We spent more time going to the bathroom than riding the bus! Our last night was relaxing and fun as the kids got a chance to play some more and we drank more wine. Thank you, thank you, thank you Mike, Harriet, Oliver and Martha for being such great friends and great hosts! Come visit us in Sweden soon!
When it was time to go it was a little sad to say good bye to our friends, but also it was hard to leave an English speaking country.  When we got on the plane to come home I heard Swedish for the first time in four days and I have to be honest it made me sad.  This was our first trip where coming home meant coming home to Sweden and it was difficult.  There are still ups and downs but that is life.  Hope you enjoy the pictures!