March Madness

March was a busy month for us that just flew by.  Here are the big highlights:

The weather finally started to show glimpses of spring.  Nothing too hot and crazy.  Like where we might start to think summer is around the corner.  But enough slightly milder temps and more sun that everyone seems to smile more.  We took a couple visits to some nearby parks to enjoy the sun and being out of the house.

Regents Park

Hampstead Heath

After 2 1/2 years of living here, we finally had our first non family member visitors.  Our friends Adam and Jasmine from Houston came to stay with us for a long weekend.  Other family friends from Houston, Sarah and Aaron Barr and their three little kids and who are also good friends with Adam and Jasmine, happened to be in London over the same weekend.  While the Barrs didn't stay with us, it was fun for all families to experience a little of London together.

It was a whirlwind of a weekend, for sure, and included Borough Market for lunch, showing off our quaint neighborhood of Hampstead and pointing out where famous people have lived/currently live, the Tower of London with all the kids, afternoon tea for the ladies, the theater and dinner for the adults capped off with a day trip out to Hampton Court Palace.

The Tower of London

With the Beefeaters.  (Do you think if you are a vegetarian, you can get hired as a Beefeater???)

The next day, we hopped on a train and headed 30 minutes outside of London to Hampton Court Palace.  The palace is famously known for being one of the homes of King Henry VIII, dating back to the early 1500's.  Unlike Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle or Kensington Palace, which Queen Elizabeth and the royal family still actually reside in, Hampton Court hasn't been an active palace since the 18th century and is now simply a museum open to the public.

The gardens at the palace looked beautiful and include a giant maze.  Unfortunately, the weather was cold and starting to rain so we really didn't spend any time out there.  I would love to go back on a warmer spring day when everything is fully in bloom because the English sure know how to do gardens right.

In late March, the women's social club I'm involved with had their annual Easter egg hunt.  And consistent with the past two years we've gone, the weather was cold and overcast.  I am admittedly a little envious of all the photos I saw on Facebook from friends in the States of their kids picking up eggs in sleeveless sundresses with bright flowers and shorts while mine are bundled up in winter clothes and coats.  Nevertheless, the weather didn't stop the girls' eagerness to track down the eggs in order to discover the goodies inside.

Staying a good distance away from the Easter bunny

Poor Olivia.  At check-in, the lady in charge asked her for her name.  Olivia responded.  The lady briefly looked at her and then wrote "Oliver" on her name tag before moving on to the next kid.  Olivia took it a bit confused, but insisted on wearing it anyways.

Highlight of the hunt: the park playground!

Lastly, Olivia and I had a special mommy-daughter date at the beginning of her almost 4 week long school break that started the end of March.  I had purchased tickets to My First Ballet: Swan Lake several months ago for the two of us.  The production was specifically designed for small children, lasting only about an hour.  It would be her first ballet and she was excited.  Unfortunately, the day before the performance, there was a fire near the theater the ballet was to take place at.  While the theater itself was not damaged, it was without power and therefore the show had to be cancelled at the last minute.  Oh, she was so disappointed.

Since I had already scheduled a babysitter to keep Ashton, I decided to take Olivia to see the Cinderella movie instead.  Olivia is not into movies and the few times we've attempted to take her to the cinema, they weren't very successful so I was a bit skeptical.  However, she surprised me and all in all she did pretty well only crying and asking to go home one time during the movie!  We stopped for lunch afterwards and I so enjoyed having time with just her.  We will definitely be doing it again sometime soon.  And maybe next time we can find another ballet to go to!