It's Not Soccer, It's FOOTBALL

Okay, so if you look at the picture, you'll see an instructor in the middle of all these preschoolers. He was the coolest instructor we had there in our league and great with kids. But he's teaching PRESCHOOLERS. It was a riot.

When we first moved here, we were hesitant to join any sports groups for the kids...we wanted to focus on travel. Well, after a couple months, we gave in and put all three boys in soccer. We heard it was a really low-key organization and you could get away with missing a few weeks if you were out of town. It was an incredible experience to start off with: first, they have several vendors who sell food to the players and their families, one of which was called Texas BBQ. I got quite the kick out of that one. Good food, but only if you'd been out of the South for a few months. Secondly, it was so wonderful to hear so many American accents in one place. Doesn't happen around here very often...

Well, it was low-key in a sense. I mean, they didn't take attendance, the parents were the coaches, and the kids really didn't get THAT competitive. But the first hour of each Saturday play was spent receiving instruction from the leaders. (not professional players, but very good skill-wise) All age groups received the same instruction (to a certain extent) each week. I was sooo amused at the skills they were teaching preschoolers. One-touch, two-touch, passing, goalkeeping, out of bounds, etc... Any of you who have had a young child in soccer know that at that age, all that's taught in the states is simply "Don't touch the ball with your hands!!!" Well, some kids caught on to the advanced skills and others didn't, but it was amusing to watch.

And you play "football" on a "pitch", not a field, and it's a "match", not a game.

Go figure.

Safety First!

When we first moved here, we noticed an unusually large number of insurance commercials. They present themselves on television, newspapers, internet, and anytime you make a major purchase. Just the other day, I was persuaded to take out health insurance for my pet (which I don't have). One of the most common insurance policies here is trip insurance, protecting you from things that may occur on your holiday (vacation). Many of you know I am married to a statistician and I have been made fully aware the profit that is made on insurance in general. I am not poking fun, but just pointing out general differences in here and my home country.

In one of the local newspapers today, Dave and I came across a British tackling a subject very near to insurance--risk assessment. Apparently, the British have gone so far limiting any risks to themselves that people are denying themselves even the simplest of pleasures. Amuse yourselves:

Teachers told not to hand out plasters (bandaids) in case of allergic reactions

Manufacturers of peanuts must stamp bags with a warning that they "may contain nuts"

Children forced to ride inflatable sheep at a donkey derby

Hanging baskets were banned in case they fell on people's heads

Children told to wear goggles when playing with nuts from fallen trees

Children banned from using egg cartons in art class in case they catch salmonella

And a personal experience: We had a guy over to look at a leaky roof, but he wouldn't go up there because there weren't handrails to hang onto

Way too risky, don't you think?

Trip Report: Paris

We left on the Eurostar train on Friday evening. This is the high speed train that travels from London to Paris. Reportedly, it travels as fast as 180 mph and you go under the English channel for over 20 miles. However, since it was dark, it was hard to tell how fast we were actually going. We did make it from London to Paris in 2 hours and 15 minutes, which is pretty darn fast.

We had rented a vacation apartment instead of a hotel. We have done this on most of our vacations here in Europe as it allows us to all stay in one room (most hotel rooms have a max of 3 people) and is usually cheaper than two hotel rooms. It is quite easy to find a vacation apartment. This one was attractive as it could sleep 8, had a cool loft, and we could rent it for 3 nights (lots of them require 4 nights or more). However, what the online site did not say was that the apartment was built in 1650. Yep, you read that right, 1650. Now I don't know about you, but to me, that is an old apartment building. Well, apparently they didn't have so good of plumbing in 1650 so there were "special instructions" for all things to do with plumbing. Instruction one "please do not put any toilet paper in the toilets as this will certainly block the toilets and cause them to back up in the shower". Let's just say none of us were tempted to push the boundary on this instruction. The first night involved using the trash can liberally for toilet paper disposal and dealing with the outhouse smell that created. After that, the number one criteria for our evening restaurant became, "Do they have a good bathroom" as everyone wanted to take care of any business involving toilet paper before returning to the apartment for the evening. Next there were the "special instructions" around the hot water situation. Apparently, there were not reliable pilot lights in the gas water heater in 1650 as ours was in fact extremely unreliable. In Europe, they don't have hot water tanks, they have inline gas water heaters, similar to a boiler, that heat the water as it comes through. No flame, no hot water! In any case after a few cold water showers, we learned that we needed to station someone by the boiler who would begin to work frantically to restore the pilot light if it went out. It was quite the morning routine. No toilet paper and occasional hot water.

We went to the Louvre, which is the most incredible art museum in the world. The Mona Lisa is there as well as quite a few other famous art works. The building is huge. It is an old palace in the shape of a giant U. If you were to walk the outside perimeter of the U it is 1 km. It is 3 stories high and packed, absolutely packed, with all kinds of art from all over the world. Definitely worth a visit if you are in Paris.

We also went to the Eiffel Tower. By the time we got to the top at 905 feet, the weather had started to change a little and a cold front came in. When you are standing at nearly 1000 feet above Paris on a metal frame, that means about 60 to 70 mph winds. The kids and I had a great time trying to walk into the wind and getting blown around (there is safety fence completely enclosing the top level). However, they then closed the top due to high winds and we went down to the 2nd level where we looked for a bathroom. Imagine that. Even the Eiffel Tower, a bare metal frame, has a bathroom that accepts toilet paper.

We went to a great restaurant on our last night where you have to be there by 6:45 (they open at 7) or you don't get a table. They don't pass out menus as they only serve one thing, salad, french fries, steak and dessert of your choice. The food was incredible as it is a not a tourist restaurant and was full of locals. We got there at 6:45, got a table for eight. The waiter asked us one question, "How do you want your steak?" After that, it all happened on it's own, which is good when you can't speak French. After that, we went to Haagen Daz for ice cream and to check out the public bathroom...

Americans say the Darndest Things

Some of you may know that the healthcare system in England is very different from what we have in the States. It's a national healthcare system where everyone is covered free of charge. Of course, you pay for it in your paycheck via taxes, but technically it's free. Undergoing this process last month was not too difficult. I applied for coverage and simply had to give proof of address here in England. Kylie and I went in to get some refills on our medications and found it to be quite efficient. I was also impressed to see that the healthcare center had a pharmacy on the ground floor. Earlier that morning, I noticed there was a circle drive in front of the building, next to the window of the pharmacy (see picture). I guess I got too comfortable with the idea of convenience, and I just couldn't resist commenting on the window. I nodded in that direction and asked, "So, is this a drive-thru?" Kylie practically melted in embarrassment next to me as the cashier gave me a blank stare and simply said, "Pickup in 45 minutes." Are we the only ones that appreciate never having to get our of your car??? (and does that window NOT look like a drive-thru???!!!)

Clothing Optional

We came across this sign at the Princess Diana Memorial Playground on Friday and had a good laugh. Thinking it was a joke, I snapped a picture as we were leaving. Saturday we decided to take the kids into London for a cultural day of museums. We visited the Museum of Natural History and absolutely loved the Dinosaur Exhibits. The kids loved the life sized blue whale and the many things this museum has to offer. Across the street was the Victoria & Albert Museum, so we went there as well. They happen to be having a Fair in the Garden Center and after embarassing the children by walking through the "Naked Hall" (a wing of the museum with nude statues), we thought it would be a welcome break. Kylie and I decided to look around at the many booths and games, while Dave offered to watch the boys float the boats they had made across the fountains. We noticed that this happened to be a "Clothing Optional" swim area for little children. I'm not totally naive, and understand that Europeans frequently allow their children to swim this way, but it's still a surprise to see it. Our older children weren't very happy with the situation, but Dave and I had to laugh. Kobe wanted to play, so we allowed him in to play. Well, after a while he got his shorts and shirt a bit wet and complained about it. Next thing I know, Kobe is running around in his European bathing suit (underwear)! It was an interesting day to say the least, but I know now why they post signs in the park...

Learning the Three R's

Reduce, reuse, and recycle! I've never been to a country where such a high priority has been placed on recycling. It's a good thing, but it's taken some adjustment as well. For starters, when we first arrived here we discovered three trash cans on the side of the house. We thought, "A-HA! We are in luck!" That is exactly what we needed back home in Glen Allen. C'mon, four kids and someone who loves to shop (*ahem*), we put out a fair amount of trash. AND, we did actually recycle there as well. For me, it started out as a job to give to our oldest son. Instill pride, value of work, blah blah blah.... Afterall, it was he who lectured me on not producing so much trash and "killing the trees". After a year or so I really enjoyed the fact that we were doing what we could to help Mother Earth. After living in London for a mere 3 weeks, I laugh at how little we did. Okay, so some of the three R's here are forced upon you from the government, but honestly, people seem to truly enjoy taking better care of the environment.

So, back to the story of the three trash cans. We did put them all out to the street on our appointed trash day. That afternoon, two were still full and one emptied. Hmmm.....a few calls to the county and we were told that only trash can is allowed and the other two are for recycling (these are HUGE trash cans). Well, after laughing at our American sized attitudes on trash pickup and doubting our ability to follow these imposed regulations, we thought we'd give it a try. Two weeks later, we are loving it. We recycle everything we can, and produce so little trash. We hardly fill up the one trash can each week. Grocery stores encourage you to purchase reusable bags (quite stylish, too, I might add) to carry into their stores to prevent so much plastic in the landfills. I'm having fun with the stylish bags, too! I recently read that a local designer put out some of her own bags (they're called "I'm not a plastic bag") and they are quite the hot item. I located a few of them at ebay this morning going for nearly £200 pounds. Crazy, isn't it?

So, it's been fun learning and encouraging healthier habits here in England. Kudos to the government for forcing it on us all! It may not be a bad thing after all!

Air Conditioning and Bidets

Have I mentioned that we do NOT have air conditioning? For those of you who have frequented any home of mine have discovered that the ideal temperature for me is approximately 68 degrees Fahrenheit. If it happens to get above 74, my brain shuts down and my body kicks into overdrive trying to cool me off by sweating profusely. It usually works but for some reason related to the brain shutdown, my moods drastically change for the worse. This does not apply to Girls' Camp where, after two days, my brain dehydrates completely and allows me to take over in my usual silly moods. How does this all relate to London? (or specifically Weybridge?) We do not have air conditioning!!!! Yesterday the thermostat outside crept up to 24 degrees Celsius. Go ahead look it up, that's nearly 76 degrees Fahrenheit. Now, to most of you that is downright comfortable, but inside a three story home with only a few windows open, it's miserable. I know I have NOTHING to complain about when the US is in a heatwave right now, but I have to have something to blog about....which brings me to bidets.

Totally unrelated subject, but we have found it an interesting discussion in our family to talk about bidets and their interesting uses. When I asked Zachary what the purpose of a bidet was, he replied, "It's a little sink where you rinse your hair". Kylie just shot me a dirty look (teenager), Tau gave me the correct definition, and Kobe, well, let's just say he is completely in the dark on this one. The first few days here were sleep-walking, in-a-daze crazy kind of days. Dave and I came upon Kobe in our bathroom drinking water out of a cup. While this is not unusual, I did wonder where he got the water from (can't reach the sink yet). He replied, "Out of the water fountain!" He was so proud of himself. We didn't say a word...