Howdy, Strangers!

Oh my goodness, hello everyone! It has been nearly 2 weeks since I have updated you all on life in London. I have been away from the internet world for so long...I wish there was a section on Facebook that would just tell me who has became pregnant, engaged, or married in the past 2 weeks. Have any celebrities died lately? Any major news I should be aware of? Any more countries harboring weapons of mass destruction that I should know about?

Anyways, I have been MIA because my lovely Aunt Laura and Dianne were in town and we have been busy painting the town red. We have done so much in the past 11 days and I do not know how I am possibly going to write about all of it. What's amazing is that we crammed in SO much, and yet there were still so many things that we would have liked to have done and simply didn't have time for. There truly is so much to do in London.

Here's us at a pub before going to see a play called A Hollywood Fable. More on that later

 It was so hard saying goodbye to my family, yet I am so thankful that we were able to be a part of our life here in London. I got so used to having their company! This morning, I started making enough coffee for all of us before realizing that I alone could not consume 8 cups of coffee (well, maybe I could, but I know that I shouldn't). It's hard getting back in to the daily routine.

I promise that I will write several posts on their visit later, I just need to organize my thoughts and what not. 

This will make all of you Texans jealous...when my aunts arrived, it was still summer and reached 90 degrees. Fall decided to show up on Friday and I think it is here to stay. My aunts came wearing short sleeves and skirts, left wearing scarves, jackets, and tights. I'm talking lows of 48, highs of 60. I'm already enjoying walks with coffee and fires at the pubs. However, when I realize that it is only September and already this chilly, I believe that I didn't bring enough cold weather clothes with me. I already bought a couple of jackets at the local resale shop.

Speaking of needing new clothes, you know how you have a section of clothes for when you feel good, and another of when you don't? Yes, even my fat person jeans, the ones that I normally need a belt with, are feeling snug. I tried wearing my skinny person jeans, and they do miraculously button, but the spare tire that I have hanging over it was enough to make me quickly throw them in the back of my wardrobe with hopes that they would disappear forever. It turns out that I CAN'T eat out everyday, drink lots of beer, delight in dessert after every meal, and still wear my skinny jeans comfortably. Who woulda known... Simply walking all over the city ain't enough.  So, it's back to running, yoga, and lots of produce for this girl (oh, I wish I had a gym membership because I really do need to lift some weights, too).

Ok, will be updating a lot in the next few days, so make sure that you come back! Have a fantastic Friday and weekend!

 

Quick and Healthy Homemade Eats

When we aren't out being fat fatties, I actually cook pretty healthy meals. I try to cook with a lot of fruits and veggies to make up for the greasy, carb-loaded foods we eat during the weekend. Although I cook between 4-5 nights a week, I do find it difficult to cook like I did in Houston. My oven is tiny and won't even fit a whole cooking sheet (not to mention I have to convert measurements and Fahrenheit to Celsius). There's no microwave to heat up leftovers or to defrost frozen foods. The stores next to us don't have all of the ingredients that I am used to cooking with. However, I try the best that I can. Here are some simple, healthy meals and snacks.

Side note, I don't stick to a particular diet, I just try to eat as little unprocessed foods as possible when I'm home. Some days I try to be a vegetarian, others I do the whole Paleo thing. I feel healthiest when I stick to wholesome ingredients, and I try to make my meals have mostly veggies and lean protein.

For some reason, I call this Who Hash and make several variations of it. This one involves organic chorizo, kale, carrots, broccoli, sweet peppers, purple onion, and a bit of purple potatoes. I love cooking with sausage because it requires no other spices. Just make sure it is organic, so it doesn't have all of the preservatives and "secret" ingredients that regular sausage contains. I cut off the casing so that I can crumble the sausage, then simply add all of the veggies to the pot so that they can soak up the flavors. Really simple and healthy. If I'm feelings hungry, I add quinoa and omit the potatoes.

 



 Something else we love that spruces up meat is a marinade of lemon and whole grain mustard (About 2 T of both), then top the meat with a crushed nut (almonds, pistachios, and walnuts are all good). I usually do this to salmon or chicken, and then bake with a bunch of veggies. We usually don't add a starch, unless it's a few purple fingerling potatoes. Purple potatoes have more antioxidants in them and just taste amazing IMO.

I do make pasta once a week, but I add so many veggies that it is about a 1:1 ratio. I always use whole wheat pasta, and usually add frozen spinach, asparagus, kale, or whatever else I have on hand. I top with squeezed lemon, a few bits of baked prosciutto, and some freshly grated parmesan. In my opinion, you don't need to add more than a quick pour of olive oil. Go easy on the cheese- a little goes a long way.

One thing the UK has that I never saw in the US...coconut yogurt. SOOOO good. It is just coconut milk and probiotics. Dairy free and vegan...I believe the ingredients are just coconut cream and probiotics...it is nearly 100% fat, but still only 160 calories for the whole tub (no carbs like regular yogurt, which even if you buy nonflavored, it still has lactose). I eat is like whipped cream, and put it on top of fruit. Today, I had it with fresh pomegranate seeds and strawberries. Yum- I think I'm might go for seconds of this now!

So, those are some thrown together meals that I like to make. Nothing fancy or recipe-following, just simple ingredients that make my belly feel happy and healthy! Like I told Daniel as he was snuffing at all of the veggies I cooked tonight,  I want us to live a long and healthy life together, and I really believe loading up on produce is the way to do that!

Weekend Happies

Happy Labor Day, Americans! We obviously aren't celebrating that here, so Daniel has to work tomorrow (boo!) and I think I am, too. The American School that I applied to a million times only to never even receive a response from is by our flat, and I am most likely picking up a kiddo that I babysit for from there at 1:30 and then walking him to the park to play for a few hours while his family moves out of their penthouse suite and into their gorgeous, newly restored home (wow, that was an incredibly long sentence). That leaves me just enough time in the morning to run, yoga, and clean in anticipation of our visitors- My Aunt Laura and Dianne arrive to London Wednesday morning and I can't wait!

Anyways, this weekend was nice and pretty low key. Here's a play by play....

Friday

When Daniel worked in London a few years ago, one of my favorite things that we did while I visited was walk through a quiet, tourist free part of London to this neighborhood Italian food restaurant. It was a romantic evening that made me really like London- we went to old pubs on the river, had a delicious meal (I still remember, I had mushroom ravioli that was deliciously simple and fresh- the way Italian food should be, in my opinion), and talked about one day possibly living there more permanently. When we moved to London together in July, one of the first things on our to do list was to trek back to this restaurant, but we couldn't remember what it was called, where it was,  or if it was still operating!
After lots of research, we finally realized it was called Il Bodello and indeed, still up and running! So, on Friday, I met Daniel at work and we began the 40 minute stroll there.

Of course, 40 minutes is a long time to walk...we had to make a pit stop at a pub or two! The first one was called The Grape. It was an old, dingy hole in the wall- our favorite type!

The next...well, I forgot the name, but it had little plaques on the wall explaining the history of it. It opened in the 1500's, and has been running ever since!



 We finally made it to Il Bodello, and I kind of went crazy ordering. We started with focaccia and a mozzarella and olive filled avocado baked in a homemade pasta sauce. YUM!

I ordered the 4 seasons pizza- artichokes, prosciutto, and mushrooms. Daniel got Pasta Carbanara (it's his favorite). I can't even begin to describe how good it was...my mouth is watering just thinking about it! Italian food is one thing London does right, given that the restaurant is owned and operated by actual Italians!

Saturday

On Saturday morning, I woke up at 7am to take the bus to babysit for the family from Portland. I finished around 1:30 and went to Sainsbury's (kind of like Wal-mart's puney, more disappointing and less ambitious little brother) to buy a cabinet for our bathroom. After carrying it all of the way back home (yep, still haven't learned), I was exhausted and ended up napping for about 3 hours!

 

After waking up, we met our South African friends by the London Eye for a fun night on the town. 

 

We went to a South American restaurant called Las Iguanas. When I ordered my much fantasized about margarita on the rocks with salt, the bartender cracked up and impersonated my accent, repeating, "On the rocks?" I was like, "Yah, is that weird?" And he told me yes, nobody orders a margarita on the rocks in London, but he would make that for me. He then asked if I was from New Zealand (?!?!?) and I said, "Uhhh no, Texas. So this better be good!" And it was. The food was okay. We went with low expectations. We did have some good nachos (although I would have covered them with about 300% more cheese) and fried plantains. Side note, I know that I sound like a total fatty on this blog. I promise you that my clothes still (snuggly) fit and I am trying to eat healthy most of the time...but with that said, I've decided that it's okay if I gain a few kilos while Europe, as long as I'm still at a healthy BMI, exercising daily, and consuming whole ingredients most of the time. Because....you know, YOLO :-P 

Sunday

We used our Westminster City Save cards to tour the Apsley House, by Hyde Park. The house was the Duke of Wellington's, whom defeated Napoleon at Waterloo. The tour was very informative. I am a sucker for old, restored mansions, and this one was an absolute beauty. Gold leafed ceilings, silk covered walls, and over 100 paintings and sculptures that were either captured from the French during the war or commissioned by the Duke. Unfortunately, they wouldn't let us take pictures, but the tour is only about 5 pounds, so go have a look for yourself while you're visiting!

 

Afterwards, we walked through Princess Diana's' memorial garden in Hyde Park. I'm also a sucker for flowers, so had to take a pic!

 

OK, I don't know how actively I'll be bloggin' during these next couple of weeks...I'll probably be more consistent around mid September. Have a great 3 day weekend!

Being Present

"The only reality is now, everything else is a projection or a fantasy."

 I've been pondering a lot about being present. Living in the moment. Insert another corny phrase meaning the same thing.

So much of our time is spent either projecting the past...

..."Ugh, why did I eat a whole pizza last night?"
..."I miss my life in Houston"
..."Why did I major in education? My career field is so limited"
..."We should have gone with other renters."
..."I really regret..."

...or, our thoughts are spent fantasizing the future. Some excitement, some worries.

..."CAN'T WAIT FOR ITALY!!!"
..."What am I going to do when we move back to Houston? Will I find a job? How long can we afford me not working in Houston? When will we move back?"
..."What am I cooking this week?"
..."I need to get home and do laundry, clean the bathroom, and then I need to catch the bus to go babysit."

Now, don't get me wrong. It is great to reflect on the past. Hopefully, it gives you a thankful heart and helps you grow as a person. Also, a little excitement and planning for the future is not bad. But, how many moments are missed because we are so busy projecting the past or fantasizing about the future?

Yesterday, it looked like this for me.

I was worried. My phone wasn't working. What if the family I'm babysitting for calls me and reschedules? What if Daniel needs me and I'm not there? What if, what if, what if?

I made the choice to stop the worrying. I would call the company and see, but before that, I needed to just be there, present.

I was walking outside. I asked myself, "How do I feel?" Yes, I felt worried. But I also feel the breeze. I feel the warm sun on my bare arms. I'm safe. In this moment, this very moment, I. am. fine. I'm alive, I'm still a part of reality, and that is all that I need.

"What do I see?" I see people that are in my moment, my reality. I can choose to fantasize about what could never happen in my own little world, or I can extent a kind smile and hopefully make someone else's moment a happy one. So I did, I smiled at every passerbyer, and some smiled back, and some were so consumed in their own thoughts that they didn't notice me.

"What am I thankful for, in this moment? Not what has happened, not what might happen, but what IS happening right now?" Other than the glorious weather and warm smiles from others, I'm thankful for love. I constantly feel loved, by God, by Daniel, by my friends and family. Even though they aren't a part of that moment in time, I always feel their love. I'm thankful that I can walk the streets of London by myself and be safe. I feel love, I feel safe.


And I feel this overwhelming sense of joy, peace, and freedom when I take time to experience the very moment that I am living in. That is the only reality, the only thing that is real and present.

York, Part II

 

Hello! Sorry I never got to posting about the rest of our trip yesterday...I babysat pretty much all day on Tuesday (by the way, I cannot say that I babysat without feeling like I'm 14...hmmm I need to think of a better word)! I came home EXHAUSTED. I've decided not to write too much about the families that I am working for out of respect for their privacy, but it was all around a great day. And nice bringing home some bacon, for once!

 

On Sunday, we slept in a bit. The bed was so nice and comfy...in London, we sleep in a bed that I think it smaller than a full, yet it's called a "queen sized bed." Liars.

 

You know the TLC show about the gypsy weddings? Yah, a TON of gypsies in York and they all seemed to be by our hotel. Every time I'd see a young girl in tight shorts and a bra top, surrounded by a bunch of punk 16 year old boys, I'd be really awkward and get excited and say to Daniel, "That's a gypsy!" way too loudly. Anyways, we heard them yelling in the street all night. Total hooligans and I didn't see any adult supervision.

 

Anyways, back to our morning. As I was saying, we slept in, partly because of the comfy bed and partly because the hooligan gypsies kept us up all night with their yelling. We went to a late breakfast at an adorable tea shop called Betty's.

 



 

 

It is very popular and you can actually order their teas, scones, and coffees online. We got super lucky and arrived before there was a queue...once we left, the line was out the door.

 

It was delicious, and the details that they put into everything truly made it stand out. We started with tea for Daniel and "The World's Best Coffee" for me. Everything came out on a vintage silver tray, complete with sugar cubes, my own table side French press, and folded embroidered napkins. The perfect girly place, so I'm thankful that Daniel went with me.

 

The coffee actually was some of the best that I've ever had, and I ended up going home with a bag of it. For breakfast, Daniel had salmon eggs benedict and I had this amazing cheesy hash with mushrooms, tomatoes, and ham....and then we shared a scone called a "Fat Rascal". I pretty much rolled out of there. 

 

After we gorged ourselves, we went to the York Minster. It's ancient (ha!) and full of really cool history. Here's what I learned:

 

The basement of the church was originally Roman barracks in the times when Christians were persecuted...when you go down to the basement, you can see a symbol that looked like a CH on certain tiles, which meant Christ...showing that some of the Romans were secretly Christian.

 

Constantine was actually hailed emperor in York, a huge turning point for Christians and little after that, the area was turned in to one of the first churches in Europe.

 

 

The church was heavily damaged in the 11th century after the Norman's took over York and then rebuilt with gothic architecture to basically look like it does now (although it is constantly undergoing conservation). 

 

We got to walk up nearly 300 steep and uneven (ancient) steps to go up to the tower for views of the city. Coming down was surprisingly harder than going up...it was dizzying spiraling down the staircase, plus the steps varied greatly in both size and steepness. Might have nearly fallen a few times. 

 

Gorgeous views, and I felt like I might have worked off at least 1/4th of my breakfast.

 

Me after leaving the church...I look exhausted. Because I was. 

 

 

Afterwards, we walked along the (ancient) wall of York. It has a perimeter of 4 miles, so we only walked one length of it. It gave excellent views to people's spacious backyards..it looked more rural than the city actually is from the wall. Daniel wanted me to note that he is my photographer for nearly all of these pictures.

 

After the walk, we had MORE great restaurant look. After reading it's reviews, I wanted us to dine at a French restaurant called Rustique. We called that morning, only to be told by the owner that they were completely booked for the whole night. I was bummed...it was rated one of the best restaurants in York, had great prices, and I just felt like we would be missing out not eating there. We decided to stop in anyways, and a waitress led us to a table, without any hesitation! We were by the door, and every other couple that came in looking for a table without a reservation were turned away. The owner even scolded the waitress for seating us, worried that we would still be there when the reservation arrived.

 

They had a prix fixe menu. Daniel had this chorizo and egg starter (more Spanish than French, but really good), duck leg roasted in red wine (amazing...could be served at Mark's or Underbelly) and a banana caramel crepe. I had mushrooms in a white wine and cream sauce with bread (yummm), salmon croquettes, and chocolate mousse. It was all delicious.

 

Last words for York: It was a nice, easy getaway from London. We didn't have to deal with a currency or language change, the travel time was short, and there was just enough to do that we didn't get bored, but it was also quiet enough that we didn't feel rushed. If you were to come to Europe for a vacation, I wouldn't suggest going to York most likely because it is so similar to London, but I am happy that we went. I would compare it to living in Houston, but going to Austin or San Antonio for the weekend.

 

OK, so if you made it this far, congrats for reading one of the world's longest blog posts. This post has taken me a lot longer to write than I expected it would, and I need to go be a child care professional in an hour and a half (I missed my window for running...oops. And as you can guess, I really needed that run). Have a great rest of your week and thanks for reading!

 

York, Day 1

This weekend we had an extra, wonderful and blessed day to be together without work getting in the way, thanks to a day known as "August Bank Holiday." Whatever, despite the unoriginal name, we'll take it!

On Saturday, we slept in until nearly 10 (thanks to the landlords still being on holiday), made breakfast, and headed off to King's Cross to catch the train to York, 2 hours north of London.

 

 

You know how in Harry Potter, Mrs. Weasley is incredibly rushed to get the children on the train? That's really how it is in real life (although, ok we aren't walking through a brick wall, but still). The train pretty much arrives at the exact minute it's supposed to, and you have anywhere between 45 seconds and 3 minutes to board the train before it leaves you behind OR get off  the train before you are stuck on it until it arrives in the next town (that happened to some poor girls that were too slow gathering their belongings on the train). You do not know what platform it will be on until about 10 minutes before it pulls in to the station, and if you aren't there waiting for it...good luck.

 

The train ride was smooth and easy for us. Really, that characterizes the whole little vacation.

 

Once arriving to York, we had a 10 minute walk from the station to our hotel. The actual city center of York is pretty small and everything seemed to be a 10-15 minute walk away...a nice break from London, where you always need at least 40 minutes to get from point A to point B.

 

After dropping off our things at the hotel, we decided to just walk around the city center and absorb York.

 

 

A running joke with us during this trip was how "ancient" everything was. The ancient city (AD 71) was surrounded by an ancient wall (it was erected in AD 200 by the Romans, and then added to in the next hundreds of years. The gateways were added in the medieval times). Basically, you are going to have to deal with me reminding you how ancient everything there was. The wall was really neat though, and you could walk on top of it, imagining that you are a Roman solider, protecting the city from the Vikings (oops). 

 

Just an adorable cottage on the river, nbd.

 

 

Cliffod's Tower, by our hotel. From the 11th Century, it was a part of a now ruined castle, and then a military base, and then a prison.

 

 

We just loved walking around and taking in the ancient sites. "Look, an ancient H&M! An ancient Barclays! An ancient car phone store (because who calls it a car phone anymore?)! An ancient McDonald's!" Yah, that never got old during our stay there. We are huge dorks and that joke should have died wayyy before it did over our holiday.

 

 



 

After taking in the ancient sites, we went to some 400 year old pubs. I was smart and only had 1/2 pints...and I realized I LOVE English cider. American cider is way too sweet, but the English stuff is ohhh soooo yummy. We had a great time and probably went to 1 pub too many. One thing we noticed here is that nearly everyone is actually English. Usually, you go anywhere in London and you're just as likely to hear an American, French, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, African (yah, it's my blog and I can be politically incorrect if I want to) accents or languages. In York, nearly everyone was surprised when we spoke and would ask if we were American.

We went to an incredible Italian food restaurant in the middle of our pub crawl, where I am going to go against what I just told you about the Yorkies- everyone that worked there was straight from Italy. Ohhh we loved it and can't wait to go to Italy next month. We got really lucky- they were totally booked but after the Sicilian owner learned we were Texan, he got a table for us, as long as we promised to leave within the next hour and a half. The owner went around to every table, shaking the hands of the men and kissing the women, his staff yelling in Italian over the football match and I'm sure drinking just as much wine as the patrons.

The menu offerings were mouth-watering and nothing was over $15...so different from London! Daniel got the Carbonara, and I couldn't decide between the white pizza and Diavalo pizza. After asking the owner what he thought I should get, he started yelling at me passionately in Italian, got flabbergasted, and said "Lady, you need to order with your heart. You are trying to order with your mind!" HA! The food was to die for, and I would go there again daily if I could.

So, that wraps up the first day of our long weekend trip! I'll try and write about Day 2 tomorrow, but I *AM* a workin' girl starting tomorrow, so hopefully I'll have time.

By the way, I hope all of my teacher friends have had a wonderful beginning of the year. Y'all are in my thoughts and prayers!

 



Workin' Girl

I have some great news! Now that we finally have internet, I have been applying to jobs like a mad woman. I went through a site especially for nannies and probably sent my resume to 20 families, not expecting many responses. I instantly heard back from 4 different families! Woah!

Most of the families wanted someone 9-6 Monday-Friday, which was too much for me. I want to have time to go to yoga, explore the city, and complete my errands...I couldn't do that with those hours. I really just wanted something to keep me from getting bored and to give me a little responsibility.

The family that I am going with is the PERFECT fit. It's an American family (from Boston) who has lived here for the past 3 years. The wife has been a stay at home mom, but is going to start working again in September. She has two adorable children that I got to meet today at the park- one 7 year old boy who showed up in a pirates hat and has the cutest gap between his teeth, and a 9 year old girl with the biggest green eyes. She seems like she will be an excellent helper, too. Also, the mom was just so cool- not at all a stereotypical expat wife.

So, here's my gig: The wife's hours are very flexible and she's only working 4 days a week. So, on those 4 days, I will pick up her children from school at 3, walk them home, help them with homework and what not, maybe cook dinner, and leave around 6:30. They are a 20 min commute away from me. If there are days we have visitors or are out of town, she can change her work hours to leave earlier, or put her kids in the after school day care. She loves that I don't need solid hours/ depend on her for my income, and I love that I can basically work when I want, just a few hours a day. It's enough extra money to not feel guilty about shopping or planning vacations, too.

While I was waiting to meet the mom at the park today, I started talking to another American mom who had just moved here from Oregon for her husband's job and SHE needs a sitter for her two cute boys (2 and 6) so I am meeting with her later today to talk more and then on Tuesday, I'm watching her 2 year old while she goes to her 6 year old's orientation at The American School. She doesn't work, so will only need me the occasional date night or whatnot. She, like the first mom, was also very cool and laid back. I am excited to make some extra cash, work with children again, and make friends with some other Americans!