I have a dream...

This is our second World Cup that we have watched while living in England. And this one is extra special because England and USA are scheduled to play each other in the first round.

In fact, this was the impetus (well one of them) for us getting our own television. Up until this point, we have lived happily without a television. But we really wanted to watch the England v. USA game in our own home without our beloved English friends with us. We would hate to cheer too loudly when the USA creams them tomorrow night. I mean when they see Charles and I they constantly have to be reminded of the War of Independence and how we threw all their tea into the harbour. We want to be a bit kinder tomorrow.

Just kidding, it is probably because we are fearful that it will be all English cheering, and we want to be able to sit in silence if this is the case. But I like to dream the other way. You know, we Americans, we're dreamers, and only time will tell....

As an extra note, I ordered the special World Cup edition nappies for Theo thinking they would have footballs on them and that he would really like wearing them. When they were delivered to our door I found out that they actually have the English flag on them! Here he is modelling them. You can be assured he will not have one of these on tomorrow! We are happy to root for England every night but tomorrow.

England and BBQs

We had our end of the year Fellowship Group BBQ on Saturday. It was a gorgeous day. Charles spent a good part of the afternoon tidying the garden, setting out chairs, getting the grill ready. We were expecting about 30 people at four o'clock. At three fifty I came outside and looked up and then immediately said, 'Charles, it isn't going to rain is it?' There was no rain in sight until three forty five at best. At four thirty, this is what our BBQ looked like through the forty eyes staring out our living room door:



Thankfully, the pouring rain (and I do mean pouring, even from the perspective of someone who grew up with real rain storms and not just constant drizzle) only lasted about twenty minutes.

And Praise the Lord - the rest of our BBQ looked something like this:

A phone call home

Charles calls home from work today and the following conversation takes place:

Erin: So I walked into the computer room today and found Theo sitting on top of the printer (which mind you is on top of the desk).
Charles: On top of the printer?
Erin: Yes, on top of the printer.
Charles: Why on earth would he want to do that?
Erin (wondering if this was a rhetorical question answers anyway): Because he is a boy, nearly two years old, and it was the highest point he could climb to in the room.

Erin and Charles: [laughter]

Every girl knows...

Every girl knows that a great denim skirt is an essential to a good wardrobe. That is why I took Addie out to get her first one today. Here she is modelling her new skirt. As you can tell she is very chuffed with the purchase (editorial note: I just noted that the word 'chuffed' in the dictionary is defined as 'pleased, puffed with fat' - I will let the reader discern which I mean!).

Jack and his tidying skills

I asked Jack to tidy his room a few days ago. He happily said he would. An hour later he came out of his room and this is what I saw:



Clearly, he had played for an hour and then took all his toys and piled them on his bedside table. I decided I would just let it go as it was better than his toys being all over his floor as they had been an hour before. I didn't want to squelch his independent effort and good attitude. I decided that I would have to critique his tidying another day.

The story gets funnier because four hours later Charles came home from work and saw the same picture above. I heard him sincerely say, 'Jack nice tidying on your room today.' I held my tongue then too! Maybe I will have to give them both a tidying lesson. Too funny!

Here is a picture of my 'tidy-er'. He sure is cute, just like his Dad!