Wednesday, August 29, 2012
After the rain...
Today, from the comforts of our cozy flat, all the boys and I watched our first Scottish storm. There was thunder and lightning, rain and even some hail! And then, it stopped. The sun came out and I took these pictures:
Settling in to our new city
We are loving Edinburgh. The first few days we felt like tourist on holiday, but now we are getting into the groove a little- running errands and cooking at home, the sort of thing you don't usually do on vacation. Here's a hodgepodge of our last few days:
Our new * temporary* place-
Matt's takes in the city centre for the first time- (and in case you are wondering about my last questions to Matt, there was a huge group of strangely dressed protesters marching and shouting "Free Pussy Riot!" Check out the link to know more)
Matt, nervously trying haggis (first meal in Edinburgh! What a champ.)
And wandered around the narrow closes in Old Town-
And got ourselves a few local refreshments-
We checked out Grassmarket-
And the Parliament building-
And posed in front of Arthur's Seat (can't wait to climb up there! Might have to get new shoes first though...)
We walked behind Holyrood Palace-
And admired the castle at dusk-
The inside of our building-
Out running errands in Morningside-
And playing pitch and put on the Bruntsfield Links-
My first time playing golf-
Gorgeous day. And look at the form! ;)
Even Sherpa has decided he likes the place!
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
The tail end of the Fringe
Matt and I arrived in Edinburgh during its busiest and most festive month, August. This city hosts a month long festival for the arts, music, poetry, comedy, books, and more. Unfortunately, we came when there were only 4 festival days remaining, but we made the most of them. We saw several amazing bands, some of which were playing on street corners. At the Guildford Arms, we heard "Yard of Ale" and "F.C. Ukulele"-- both amazing! We also laughed our arses off watching the University of Edinburgh's Graduate Student Comedy Club perform stand up at a pub in Grassmarket. We saw fireworks and even caught a glimpse of the famous Edinburgh Military Tattoo as they marched by us as midnight.
Here are a few highlights. Can't wait for next year when we get a full month of this!
Here are a few highlights. Can't wait for next year when we get a full month of this!
Friday, August 24, 2012
The 3 weeks leading up to our big move...
We are now in Scotland! It's still pretty surreal. We've planned this move for so long, but we still can't really believe we're here. I mean, it's not hard to slip into "tourist" mode and feel like we are here on vacation, but then we come to our flat and we have to get our mail and scoop out the cat litter... like we live here or something!
Of course, I have tons to share about getting here and how wonderful our flat is and how fun it was to take our first little jaunt around the city- but I'm not really set up to blog yet (I can't find the cord that uploads my pictures from my camera... our bags are still full and there's not a whole lot of organization to them, so I probably won't find it until everything gets unpacked).
But I have a post that I wrote in pieces over the last 3 weeks and didn't get around to sharing, so here it is now. After Matt and I left LA on July 30th, we drove to Redwood Valley and spend 3 whirlwind weeks at my parent's place. The days flew by- there was so. much. to. do! But we managed to throw in a lot of fun times to the mix.
So... anyone curious as to what Matt and I did the 3 weeks we were in Nor Cal? Here's more than you wanted to know about the time in our lives we lovingly refer to as "the countdown"!
1. We celebrated my birthday with cake and presents!
2. We got mani/pedis
3. We visited with our siblings
4. We enjoyed a nice dinner with new friends.
5. Most days, we swam in Lake Mendocino.
6. We broke some rules.
7. We took multiple trips to the Goodwill.
8. We ate Kemmy's pies. Lots of Kemmy's pies.
9. We took bubble baths outside (complete with light up rubber duckies!)
10. We had a kick-ass garage sale.
11. We hung out with the Walkers out on Greenfield.
12. We had a fun farewell party.
14. We drank Frey wine and Mendo beers.
15. We hung out with our besties.
17. We fell in love with Sarah's baby girl.
18. We talked about having babies of our own and both said what we usually say, "eh... maybe!"
19. We got massages and acupressure treatments.
20. We took the boys to the vet for their big "health certificate" check up.
21. We heard a lot of meowing.
22. We witnessed lots of dog love.
23. We got our papers in order, and made copies- so many copies- of everything.
24. We applied for many jobs.
25. We packed, and packed, and packed.
27. We stayed at a villa at Arden Hills Resort (more on this later, too)
29. We swam and played tennis.
31. We got a special visit from Byrd & Ilona, and had a night out together in Ukiah!
32. We got our fill of great Mexican food.
33. We helped a vet take a foxtail out of Greta's precious puppy paw.
34. We soaked in the hot tub.
35. First we scared Archie, then we kissed on him.
37. We sat outside naked, played ukulele and watched an amazing meteor shower!
38. We checked out the museum in Willits, and saw the old hippy van.
39. We read this:
41. We used a lot of sun block.
42. We got haircuts. Bangs!
43. We rode the Skunk Train
44. We drank Skunk Train beer.
45. We saw millions of blackberries ready to be picked!
46. We posed for this picture:
47. We decided we want to spend more time outside.
48. We had train fun.
49. We ate BBQ with the folks and Pat & Bonnie in Northspur.
50. We ate fresh blackberries and ice cream.
51. We saw hawks.
52. We saw wild turkeys.
53. We saw jackrabbits.
54. We saw giant Redwoods.
55. We enjoyed warm California evenings.
56. We convinced Uncle Pat to buy this big rooster for his yard.
61. We went to the gym with papa.
62. We ate fresh from the garden.
63. We grilled all the time.
64. We Skyped with Julie & Brian.
65. We played with Greta.
67. We bought shoes.
68. We sang songs to Sherman.
69. We said many goodbyes.
70. We miss everyone!
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