Still Summer in London

When you live in London you learn to roll with the weather. Be prepared, scout-like. Come what may. I wore a scarf to the school gates today (Thank you, my own Big Brother's lovely wife!). So when no homework came home in 4 tiny rucksacks and the forecast was for hot and sunny, we took the train to Broadstairs Saturday morning. A sandy English beach.  Hooray, the sand. It is somewhat uncommon here. Even more so than a real hot sunshine.

At our destination we found a quaint Victorian seaside village where Charles Dickens stayed and wrote lots. Funny thing about Dickens. In moving here, one of my biggest fears was that we would subject the Smalls to a Dickensonian school life.  Au contraire.  In fact, how funny today that we'd tell our beloved Assistant Head Teacher where we were on Saturday, and he'd light up with excitement! Broadstairs!  Turns out that place is exceedingly special for his family.  His dad (a singer/songwriter) has played there for years!  It is a favorite family spot!  And would you know I looked up from my Saturday newspaper supplements to see the Mister visiting with French friends from school along the shore.  Of course.

This is how you know you're home.  You run into people.  Even an hour or more away from home. You just start to know people. Around Europe. So fancy! But even more, so lovely and normal.

Cabanas. Quaintly vintage kids' play area. Fish and chips shop along the beach. Not quite a chirinquito, but we're still in England, so this was perfect. The sun shone and we came home with pink cheeks.  Hooray, summer still on our island!

Sunday we spent at the Hyde Park Serpentine Lido where we ran into more school friends! Then Big Sister and I snuck away for a date paddle boating. My girl's legs aren't long enough yet to push the pedals, but she's good at steering and even better at chatting in pink glitter sunglasses.  We were solo in the sunshine with lovely views of Parliament from the Serpentine. When you live here you appreciate maybe twice annually getting so warm you're sticky. Warms yer heart I tell ya.

And speaking of warm hearts, don't even get me started on the back to school crushes that have been discussed in the wee hours (which is frankly, anything after dinnertime in my book) of the night here. Be it in kindergarten or Year 6, I have the same words of wisdom (although I'm sure at some point, my counsel will run up against hormones): "If you pair up with anyone - even in selecting a best friend, you risk others thinking you're not open for being friends with them." Are you with me, friends?  My household welcomes lots and lots of friends. But girlfriends and boyfriends?  No. Not happening here. For a while longer. I had my first crush when I was about Big Sister's age, but girls are much more advanced and we had boys first. So. Also ugh.

Also on that subject.  Biggest Brother described his crush as being sort of a girl version of Big Brother in Year 6! To which Big Brother wasted no time in querying, "So. Am I being replaced?!"  Biggest Brother laughed heartily at that prospect! Impossible!  In fact, never, possible, my dear. You two are forever joined. There is no greater compliment than Biggest Brother looking for a girl version of you, but rest assured, I'm fairly certain there isn't nor could be an equal to you in his heart. Ever. You are his first and always very best friend.  I had reason to tell Big Brother recently that he said, "I love you" to Biggest Brother the first and I can still see why.  There's no greater agape than what's between those two guys.

And these two little ladies. The Mister and me. (Although I think we graduate to eros!)  We're all neatly paired. Happily so. Stuck with each other. When the six of us were on these very neat swings (Europe not being terribly litigious is always almost palpable when you're at any sort of playground), I remembered friends advising regarding family size that an even number is just efficient and neat on amusement rides. Indeed. So it was that Big Brother and I swung near Biggest Brother and Big Sister, just down from the Mister and Baby Sister.

The sun shone on us all and we were together. Happy and healthy. Seems greedy to ask for any more.

Today I told the staff at Our Sweet School that this is our last year there. I'm not sure if I should take any sort of pride in making various faculty members get verklempt, but coupled with the exceedingly sentimental notes I gave their teachers on the first days of school, I can attest to the fact that the fabled British Stiff Upper Lip sometimes quivers.  Or maybe I'm just turning them all into Yanks.

I'm not sure of the etymology of "September," but I'm fairly sure it is sentimental.

Happy First Days of School

It was a great first day and second day, too at Our Sweet School for the smalls. Baby Sister was the first bright and smiling face to appear at her Nursery room door both days. Who wouldn't be happy to see this sunny little face at the beginning of your work day?

Big Sister is so happy that her uniform is a darling dress. Perhaps sartorially emboldened, she ran for and won a spot on School Council!  That makes her big brothers (and all of us) very proud.

It won't be every year that we go to school by red bus and scooter combo.

Maybe the biggest cause for celebration was two days of dates for the Mister and me. We toured the British museum and rode Boris bikes while the smalls unpacked new pencils.

Exciting times in London, my friends and a huge relief that the first two days were such good ones. If I ever get through the mountainous pile of uniforms still awaiting name tags, I'll tell you what a lovely and sunny summer weekend we had, too.  But meanwhile, I'll say that Europe became infinitely smaller when we ran into school friends while touring the beaches at Broadstairs in Kent on Saturday and splashing in the waters at Hyde Park today. You know you're at home when you start running into friends - even a few hours train ride from your flat!

Summer's Swan Song

It has been a full week. Most of our meals were picnics, we scootered wherever we could and slept as late as possible. We also bid farewell to our last summer house guests and our beloved babysitter. Lots of late nights and lazy pajama mornings mixed with the inkling of the routine that awaits us.

We scootered to Buckingham Palace today to tour the Royal Mews and play at St James Park. We lingered way longer than we should have and felt a nip in the air, watched the sun begin to dip, and tried to make dinner out of a few hot dogs before heading home. Then we discovered that Big Brother did in fact need new school shoes. For tomorrow. Even still, it was all over too quickly and I'm still stitching a kazillion nametags onto a sea of uniforms that range from size Very Tiny But Still Too Big for Baby Sister to polo shirts for Biggest Brother that I could probably wear.

Their bags are packed and at the door and their breakfast table will be festive. There's nothing I could quite tuck into those little bags to represent all that our summer has been, so I can just hope memories of a great summer will carry them through the first day at Our Sweet School.

These four little people are undoubtedly summer's best company!  I miss them already. And not just because they introduced me to "The Fall Guy."

Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow

More soon, but meanwhile, we just said goodbye to my most loyal readers who were here in London with a great adventure to Scotland in between. I know they're tuned into the blog because they even read the lemonade stand and Olympic village posts during their travels north from our flat.

My very own Big Brother and his adorable family were here until yesterday morning. Big Sister, who had been characteristically quiet during most of their stay and almost silent the morning they left, burst into messy, noisy tears on the sidewalk as their car rolled away. She cried more than her mother, which is saying a lot. Even Biggest Brother was weepy by the time we got inside. It is never easy to say goodbye if you're in my gene pool. The cousins love each other so much and we're grateful for the time spent together in London. Even when it goes much faster than we'd like. These are days I hope they'll remember when they are teenagers, adults, and parents themselves. And I really, really hope they'll be back in Europe together someday.

It has become cliche to say so, but with our company comes sunny skies. So it is no surprise that as the smalls and I were attempting to leave the flat today (for them to busk -- the summer's top request!) a downpour ensued.

You may have heard this, but we've just decided against an opportunity to continue further east to an assignment in Asia, and instead are turning our attention Stateside after the children finish the upcoming school year. So, sometime in late summer (after school ends in late July) 2013, we'll expect to be turning our ship - literally and figuratively - towards home. If you want to visit, by all means get out your calendar (and piggy bank) because we're open and eager for company for another 12 months. After that, we'll be looking for help unpacking boxes and organizing another kitchen and countless closets.

Fall and back to school will always feel like the new year to me. Change is in the air. I think that's another reason the Mister and I embraced a fall wedding. I can almost hear the sounds of a page turning, a beginning of a new chapter. And not just because we got back to school haircuts, new shoes, and had a school uniform fashion show in our flat last night. My baby starts school next week. That's a whole 'nother post.

To all of our summer company, we bid a fond adieu with big hopes that you'll be back soon and often. And we send many, many thanks for making this a summer not just to remember, but to treasure.

Tiny American Entrepreneurs Shut Down by Royal Parks

The smalls were eager to continue a summertime tradition of a lemonade stand in Hyde Park today. They made a shopping list, purchased supplies, crafted signs, whipped up a great batch, cobbled together change and set up shop atop their Radio Flyer wagon.  They were cheerfully calling out to afternoon park goers, "Lemonade!  50 p" and having a grand time.

For a matter of minutes.

They entertained lots of folks, spread good cheer, and sold exactly 3 cups of lemonade to one family before a badge wielding Royal Parks employee approached and gave me a stern (albeit polite) tutorial on vendor permits in the park. For which we have none.

Do you know that the British call unsweetened lemon syrup "squash"?  It is also what a British bureaucracy managed to do to 4 little hearts today. Make that 5. I was torn between feeling squashed, setting a good example of obeying authority, wanting to fight the power, and staging a citrus filled mini-revolution.

Squash indeed. But we shared our surplus inventory with our porters on the way inside and are certain to be sipping lemonade for days to come. To our potential walking, bike riding and horse mounted customers in Hyde Park we say, "We'll be back. Somewhere, someday, but less likely in our giant front yard." Meanwhile, I'm serving lemon G&Ts.

Free.

All Star Days

The Olympics might be over but London and our flat are still feeling very sporty. Big Brother has become a savant of sorts about all things Olympic, Paralympic and extremely knowledgeable about flags. A future vexillologist perhaps!  He knows many more flags than I knew countries at his age.  And he is so interested in all the graphic arts and fonts that accompany the summer festivities. We're always wondering how much of what interests the children now will influence what they'll pursue as hobbies and careers later in life.  On that note, Biggest Brother, our lead musician, has spent the last 3 days "busking" and earned over £20. His most lucrative day was when Big Sister accompanied his drum beats with an interpretive dance. It may be about to get harder to convince them to earn an allowance if they think they can spend a few minutes outside playing for a hat full of money.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Back to the Olympics we go. Yesterday, we went to Stratford to see the Olympic Stadium, the Anish Kapoor installation, the aquatics center, and a fantastic John Lewis, too. I felt like a real Londoner and city girl picking up school uniform bits on this outing.

In addition to an incredible view of the Park, John Lewis also had an amazing LEGO Olympic Stadium. Complete with a crowd of minifigs and minifig athletes and behind the scenes crew. Absolutely magical. It is a wonder we're not all still standing at the top of the escalator with our mouths agape, continuing our reverent whispered sentences begining with, "Did you see...?"  If only we'd been called upon to help with the construction.

Seeing the (actual and non-LEGO) Park up close (or as close as you can get without coveted tickets) was a thrill for us all. Inspired by the view, Big Brother announced that it would take an entire six weeks (he's as verbose as his mother!) to recount how much fun he's had this summer. That's so very good to hear because we've had plenty of lazy pajama mornings that eventually segued into lunch and finally a relatively nondescript library or park outing. And on those days we typically watched "The Fall Guy" over a breakfast picnic.  I'm not ashamed. That's exactly what summer is for. At least in my book. The days of schedules and spelling lists and bedtimes will be here before too long. We're soaking up summer and each other while we can.

We're constantly pinching ourselves about the special things we see and do here. I am terribly impressed with how well the boys can navigate an urban adventure. They planned our route to the Olympic Park and a few above ground trains home just for the fun of it. They are knowledgeable and confident in finding their way around London, and when they're not, they readily ask directions. I envy their future travel companions and can attest to their abilities and sweetness, too.

It isn't every boy that would offer to carry his little sister on his back when she got tired and her tiny Converse seemed suddenly too small.

Speaking of little Converse, I glanced down on the Tube ride and saw Big Brother and Big Sister's feet next to each other while they were chatting away. Big Sister's high tops were the boys' before they were hers and now they're apparently due to become Baby Sister's soon.

Gold medals all around for our summer. Thus far!

What I Really Want

Time spent in the kitchen (and really just the interminable dishwasher loading as I'm not a significant cook) and doing endless loads of laundry and my best to keep things relatively attractive and hygienic keep me away from family time way more than I'd like.

This is not something I'm prepared either financially or socially to delegate.

In every way, I need a Rosie. C'mon science and technology, hurry!

Ladies Night

The Mister took Biggest Brother and Big Brother off on a boys' weekend (stayed in a pub! went on all sorts of cool hikes! roller coaster rides!).

The girls and I've been in London without our boys and having a grand time of it. But there's been lots of missing of the guys and little girls a bit out of sorts. It is higher pitched here without them. The girls tried to fall asleep in their brothers' top bunk reading Star Wars books last night. It wasn't the same. We had to call them at bedtime so the girls would actually sleep.

But London with the ladies has been great!  We now own two tiny pink scooters and went to the theater. The ladies had a pizza party, a park day, saw Alice in Wonderland, had lunch out and caught a show at Piccadilly Circus! Girls' Weekend was so exciting that Baby Sister slept through Mass late this afternoon. Mouth agape, snoring. She woke up at a one of her favorite restaurants around the corner from church.

Hyde Park is reeling with a big concert in the hours leading up to the Closing Ceremonies so it feels very festive in our flat.

That's nothing compared to the reunion show that will be breakfast with our favorite boys.