First let me make apologies for not updating the blog very frequently this week. BT (I think this might stand for British Telecommunications) cut our phone lines last week in error, cutting us off from the world around us. As it turns out, when you are the only phone company in town, you don't have to care about your customers, and therefore can leave them without service for weeks at a time. We finally got desperate and purchased a "pay as you go" Broadband service which allows me to write to you. Alas, however, we still have no way of calling the states until BT gets around to getting us back online. Blerg...
Anyway, in the past week, we have seen three birthday celebrations around here. The first being an early celebration of Brian's May 5th birthday while his parents were still in town. In recognition of his birthday, we took him to dinner at a UK chain restaurant Frankie and Benny's or Benny and Joon's, or Frankie and Johnie's; I can't really remember the name. It was a very kid friendly restaurant, touting a New York Italian 50s style. It was kind of a strange take on an American styled restaurant. The majority of us ordered cheeseburgers, since they are known for them there. I thought it was ironic that they proudly advertised Irish beef, when everywhere else in Scotland praises their Scottish Angus. In any case, the food was good, but the burger had a microwave dinner salsbury steak taste to it. I didn't mind it, but Brian and his dad thought it strange.
After dinner, we took the kids to a video arcade next to the restaurant (all located at Fun Beach in Aberdeen) where I amused myself with a 2 pence arcade game, losing about a pound in an hour. (I'm too cheap to ever try real gambling.) Since it was a school night, we headed home early while I prepared myself for the next birthday celebration, Bryson's 5th birthday.
Thursday morning, I began preparations for Bryson's birthday. He had requested a Thomas the Tank Engine cake. I didn't bring a large enough sheet pan to bake and carve my own train, so earlier in the week I had ventured out to a local cake shop for some supplies and ended up "hiring" a 3D cake pan. (As a side note, the cake supply area of this cake shop was smaller than my laundry room. There is really only room for one customer at a time to browse. Needless to say, I didn't tarry, picking up the sugarpaste I needed for the project and going about my way.) I didn't care for the look of the 3D train, and apparently neither did Bryson, as he proceeded to tell me throughout the day on his birthday of all of the ways the cake did not look like Thomas. I have to admit, it was certainly the ugliest cake I have made in a while. Oh well, I was limited. Still, he (and all of the neighborhood children) liked the taste of it, so I was satisfied.
For Bryson's birthday, we of course bought him a few more train pieces for his every growing Thomas set, but I also ordered the kids a couple of Didicars.
(http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/images/B000HDQ24I/sr=8-1/qid=1240921454/ref=dp_image_0?ie=UTF8&n=468292&s=toys&qid=1240921454&sr=8-1)
Our next door neighbors have these little scooter cars and Aubrey and Bryson just went crazy over them. Now, that is all I hear in the afternoons, the roaring sound of racing Didicars.
The final birthday of the week was actually our neighbor's birthday. Aubrey and Bryson were invited to the party where they had a giant bouncy castle set up in the back yard. They had so much fun and the party lasted all afternoon. I finally told the kids they needed to come home because I was afraid that they had overstayed their welcome. As it turns out, it was just a really long party. They didn't even get to stay for cake! I don't know if this is indicative of parties here, but they sure make the most of them. :-)
The only other bit of excitement of the week, was an afternoon trip to Crathes castle. It is about 20 minutes drive from here and has a beautiful estate with gorgeous landscaped areas for the children to play. They also had a fun little playground for the children to play. While the castle itself is not as beautiful as Balmoral, the grounds were impressive and the kids were able to work out a lot of energy there. I would recommend a visit if you are ever in the area.
We also had to bid farewell to Bill and Jan this past weekend, as they ended their visit and headed back to the states. We had a really nice time with them and I already miss them. I know the kids do too.
Well, that is all I have to report for now. I apologize for the length and the disorganization of this post. Perhaps if I had internet access over the weekend, you would have had the opportunity to read about this in a few different more cleverly written posts. But, for now, this is as much as my jumbled brain can do!
Missing you all.... W
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