Modern Inconveniences

Amazing how much joy I get out of the mundane, remedial "chores" of this lifestyle.

I thought I would miss my dishwasher and my washer/dryer, and I do. But honestly, line-drying the clothes and washing the dishes by hand is something, I'm sure, that people all over the nicest parts of the nicest cities in the world do everyday, and it really isn't that bad. Especially when I open my windows and listen to the sounds of sweet giggles and playing girls coming from the garden. Or sometimes, if we're really lucky, our Portuguese neighbor will sit outside and sing while he plays his guitar. He's a Coldplay fan and throws in the occasional Jason Mraz billboard hit, but I digress... Truthfully, though, something deep inside the human spirit finds some sort of unexplainable feeling of rest in work of this kind.

Laundry-- I especially love the smell of clean laundry over here. If our house wasn't furnished with a washer I would be sitting in a corner crying somewhere, but washing is the HARD part -- air-drying isn't half bad! In some ways it's a little fun... especially when good-smelling laundry is draped over hot radiators inside and it makes the whole house smell clean! :)

I thought that living without the conveniences of life would be torturous for one, such as myself, who has become accustomed to having these luxuries. Drive-thru windows, owning a car to go to and from places and being able to carry heavy loads back home in the trunk, dishwashers, washers, dryers, sink disposals... All of these short-cuts that were a regular part of my daily life. I was sure by now I would be missing my army of home appliances and all the extra time they helped to provide me with.

Surprisingly, I'm surviving. :) And I think that this season of life, like all others, will provide several opportunities for me to learn -- through work -- rather than convenience. There is no one more vulnerable or more susceptible to learning a lesson than one who is placed outside their comfort zone. And that's me. OUTSIDE the zone. But yet something about this lifestyle and the slower pace of it all really resonates with me. There's immense satisfaction in pulling dry laundry off the line and clean dishes from the drying rack. (Why is that?) There's a primal feeling of security in watching fruits ripening in the garden and in spotting several other varieties of fruit in our neighbors' gardens while peering over the fence, because then it gives a reason to go knock on the door and introduce ourselves. ("We have apples... you have grapes! How about a trade?") Perhaps it's just the feeling of settling in or the feeling of growing familiar with our new surroundings and our new way of life... Not exactly sure which, but it's truly a beautiful beginning to the season.



Julia having a biscuit on the patio while she "helped" me. (By the way, biscuits are not just what they call cookies, as I thought before. They're a certain kind of cookie-ish treat, and they're addictive!! All but the name... they're actually called "digestives biscuits." Odd name for such a good snack!) We're all hooked. Must start looking into shipping some of these to the States.)

Transformers

Turning this place into a home, one room at a time...


Below, the dining room is starting to take shape but is still VERY rough! We decided to embrace the blue :) and to use the random blue table (that was originally in the sitting room) as our dining room table. I found a pretty storm blue colored duvet cover at a significant discount (7 pounds!) and thought i could cut it up and use the fabric to line the back of the built-in shelves. I still need to pull it tight and secure it more permanently, and then we will go back in with the shelves... but this gives an idea. The mirror was our favorite find! It was 50% off, making it cost the same as a burrito dinner! (Actually a little less!) It makes the room come together a little better. I'll keep working and post better "final" pictures if it looks much different, but progress pictures are kind of fun too. :)

After dinner excursion

We love exploring our new city, and it seems like everywhere we turn there's another surprise or something fun to find. This little park in Summertown was a fun place to stroll past after dinner one night last week! The girls loved the tire swings, slide, "treehouse" and see-saw in the sand box. I loved that they wore themselves out and went to sleep easily! :)

Odd Bits...

An icon tries to remain relevant - See sign at top. It's okay, little red English phone booth... Because of mobile phones and wi-fi, you're pretty much just sculpture now, but you're still going to have plenty of people taking pictures with you!


Ummmmm... Hmmmm... *Most of you probably saw this one on Facebook already, but it's still worth posting here. Although, I HAVE become very familiar with Zebra Crossings now. And it's "zebra" pronounced like "Deborah." Say "ZEE-bruh" and be prepared for several sideways glances.

This is proudly posted on the wall of Mission Burrito, the ONLY Burrito served in Oxford. Loved how it aims to educate the masses with a little Tex-Mex vocab. "toe-mah-tee-yos" ...classic.


Avery's favorite way to sit in the stroller: Backwards, looking down on Julia. (insert eye-roll here.. cute picture, though)

...Then Avery asked for the camera so she could make a picture of US. Not bad, Aves!


And later that night, she made this one of Jules that I happened to love, distorted angles and all. :)



Despite the look on Julia's face here that I happened to catch on camera, the girls seem to really enjoy getting to play with toys and kids their size while I attend Monday Mums. So glad they have each other, but also happy their making new friends. (Notice my sweet Texas girl with her gigantic bow... Local little girls DON'T do bows.)


iLuv iPad

Weekend Review: Part 2

Which is worse: That it's taken me nearly a full week to give a report on the second half of our weekend or that I am sitting in a quiet house choosing to sacrifice sleep in order to achieve my self-set deadline of posting "Part 2" before the new weekend begins? (One of my shoulder-Angels says, "Get a grip, Steph... Your true blog-followers would excuse a little blog-slacking if they knew you were getting a good night's rest." And the other shoulder-Angel says, "Blog followers? ...you truly do live in your own little world, dontcha?"

Well, ultimately it's head-over-shoulders tonight in my cozy cottage and here I sit at the strike of midnight (Oxford time) entering a new weekend and blogging about the last... but it was a great Sunday and well worth blogging about.

Our first Sunday morning in Oxford looked vastly different than our typical Sundays in Texas. Sure, it's always rush-rush-rush on a Sunday (Why is that?) and that one element remained the same for us here in England. The main difference was the mode of transportation. It used to be easy: Load up in the Jeep, hit southbound 75, exit, park, see several familiar faces on the walk in, everything familiar and comfortable. The UK version was quite different! It involved lots of walking and stroller-pushing, a couple of bus rides changing routes in the city center and then walking into Headington Baptist as first-time visitors, not really knowing a single soul and only hoping not to completely stand out! Were we nervous? Honestly, No. Curious? Absolutely. Collin and I were both ready to see how church operates here and if it's much different from home, and this sweet church was recommended to us by friends of ours who attended here for a number of years so we were anxious to take a peek inside.

We were instantly greeted and welcomed with a choice of hot coffee or tea (or "squash," which Collin and I both thought was a strange thing to serve with tea and coffee until we found out that it's actually just juice... Not squash, or squash juice or anything having to do with the vegetable called squash.) We stood and spoke with several nice members of the church as we waited for the start of the late service. It wasn't long until the Johnson family found us and introduced themselves. Our friends, Lindsay & Jonathan Arnold, had introduced us to them via Facebook and we had been invited to their house for lunch following the service. They truly took us underwing and made us feel perfectly at home.

The worship service was wonderful and refreshing! This is a congregation that loves the Lord and loves each other. Profoundly. The girls really enjoyed getting to play with toys and other people their size as we attended the service and they were SO proud to show us what they had made when we returned to them.

Following the service (and more tea, coffee & squash!) we hopped into a car with Becky and her son, Bruno, and headed to the Johnson's home for Sunday Roast. Our folded stroller filled the entire boot (boot=trunk) of the car and nearly didn't fit! Riding in the backseat of the car was a fun adventure as we rode on the "wrong" side of the road. I kept having near panic attacks, but we were always perfectly safe! I just kept forgetting how different "opposite" can feel. We arrived back home a little before Becky's husband Andrew and daughter Nadia, but killing time was EASY for the girls as they made friends with the Johnsons' sweet Golden/Lab mix, Leo, and also found a trampoline in the garden! (garden=backyard) The girls were in jump Heaven... and then it got better! Nadia came home and helped the girls feed cabbage and carrots to the family's pet rabbit, Honey. (Does a Sunday afternoon get any better for a couple of kids?)

Lunch was amazing- Think Thanksgiving feast, but it was just an every-Sunday thing for them. "Sunday Roast," they call it, and they do this EVERY WEEK! Not just the Johnsons... The British! And we think we work hard on Thanksgiving?? Seriously. Every Sunday. Becky is a genius with roast chicken and stuffing. The roast potatoes and parsnips were a treat and the cabbage and carrots were such fun for us as a family who doesn't tend to make those for ourselves. Smothering everything in dark brown gravy was the best part. ...Well, actually the BEST part was dessert: Warm pineapple upside-down cake with warm custard poured-over. And coffee. (...can you read me smiling as I type this?)

I must admit, there was a specific time at lunch that I had to take a step back and allow myself a little out-of-body feeling of, "Am I really here right now, eating with this positively fabulous British family and being spoiled with an incredible lunch? Is this really happening?" Of course it was happening, and it was the best way possible to spend our Sunday afternoon.

Sometime around 4pm we were back at our Summertown flat. Gotta love it!... A long, leisurely lunch wrapping up just in time to start thinking about dinner. :) Sunday Roast: I think they're onto something there. America should think about incorporating this tradition. (So long as I don't have to cook it!) :)

Thank you, Johnsons! You are wonderful!!

(Everyone together! Andrew, Bruno, Nadia, Collin, Julia, Steph, Avery, Becky & Leo)

Weekend Review: Part 1

Our first weekend here in Oxford was eventful and fun!
(Left: Avery found her name! Right: Jules & Collin finishing a yummy Saturday morning breakfast at Nosh 2 Go)


(Below: The Eagle and Child, where writers including C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien -who were also Oxford University professors/faculty- met together in a club. It's affectionately termed "The Bird and Baby" by the locals.)


We began with a visit on Saturday to Green Templeton College (the College Collin belongs to here at the University) to pick up the keys for a peek inside our house. The College grounds here are phenomenal and Green Templeton (GTC) is no exception. We were greeted by Burbank, the College mascot Cat that has been "adopted" by GTC because he always just hangs around. We strolled across the grounds and then through the gate to Observatory Street, making our way to #15... Home, sweet home! (Disclaimer: It hadn't yet been cleaned from the last tenant when we visited, so keep that in mind when viewing these pictures.)

(Left: Collin outside the GTC Courtyard and Porter's Lodge. Right: The girls slept through meeting Burbank, but I think we'll see plenty of him as we live VERY near this courtyard.)

(Below: On the grounds of GTC, in front of the Radcliffe Observatory.

(Below: Walking down our street, Observatory Street.


(Left: Turning the key! Right: I'm only going to show pictures of what was semi-clean for now, the rest can -and SHOULD- wait until you see it in better shape! But you can get the idea. It's itty-bitty and old, but we *heart* it!)


(Below Left: Dining room, and the "washer/dryer" looking things in the corner are actually our refrigerator and freezer! Below Right: Tricky stairs. Yikes.)



(Below: The "wow" view out the girls' bedroom window.)


...Sigh... As with any house built in the 1830's, it has several "projects" to complete before it will feel like home, but it is wonderful. The location is absolutely fantastic. We are near everything! A market, (grocery store) a chemist (pharmacy) a dry cleaners and hair salon are just on the corner, PLUS the yummy Jericho Cafe is at the other end of the street and is surrounded by other thriving shops, theaters, etc. Our garden (backyard-- here "yards" are for chickens) overlooks the beautiful Radcliffe Observatory which was built in the late 1700's. It's surreal to look out the kitchen window and just see it standing there. AND we have apples in the garden! A gorgeous, healthy apple tree stretches from our neighbor's garden to ours and is bearing apples on it's branches... too many to count. We picked two and ate them-- they were impressively sweet. I have plans to make an apple pie to celebrate our first week in the house.

(Below: We have APPLES!)



(Below Left: View looking back towards the house, and Avery practicing her best Harry Potter "leviosa" move with the apple. :) Below Right: Girls with Collin at our back gate leading to walkway towards the Observatory/College grounds.)


We have a washer (which is a HUGE deal-- Most houses here don't) but no dryer, so I'll be using the clothesline unit in the back which you can see in the pictures. (It looks like a satellite or something.) The furniture is pretty institutional, but it will be fine for a year. It's what you would expect of college-owned housing I guess. The kitchen and bathroom are hilariously sad, but they will do the trick! :) The bedrooms are perfect-- we can easily make those homey. The stairs are scary!! Narrow and very steep. Baby gates will go up for sure. We are thrilled with the location, the neighbors, the community, and the garden... The rest of the house just needs a little love. :)

(Below: The shops around the corner)


After seeing the house, we ventured off to shop and explore the city center a little. The girls needed a snack, so we snacked in style with two cookie pops which they loved. And as the day wound down and dinner approached, we hit the jackpot. Avery had been asking for a burrito since Day 2! (Ahhh, my little Texan.) We really didn't think we'd EVER find a burrito here in Oxford... Until...... :) With full tummies and after a FULL day, we took the bus home to our "flat" for a good night's sleep.




(Below: Manna from Heaven for Avery in the form of BURRITOS!! They were GOOD, too. A mix between Freebirds & Chipotle. This TexMex family gives it our seal of approval.) :)