I’m sitting in Newark airport right now waiting for my connecting flight to Detroit.  Happily, I’m through all the security I points now.  Apparently today is my lucky day because I’ve been stopped and patted down so many times today I’ve lost count.  I think I’ve been through a security point 3 or 4 times today, and each time I’ve been picked out of the crowd, and paid some extra special attention.  Gotta love it when they say, “Please taste the water from your bottle.”  Seriously?  I bought it AFTER the first security point, after I got a full pat down, yet I still needed to drink it in the presence of an agent to prove it wasn’t some clear explosive liquid.

My flight to Detroit is FULL and they are offering $200.00 in travel vouchers if you will offer to get bumped to a later flight.  I can tell you one thing for sure… I’m not offering.  I can’t get out of here fast enough!

I miss home….

~j

We have spent the last few days in Bath, England and the Royal Crescent Hotel.  Apparently the weather in Bath is a bit nicer than in London.  No rain here… a nice switch from the everyday rain in London.  I love rain, but walking around it in everyday can be a bit much.

Anyway, the best part of Bath is probably the Roman Baths.  It really is a fantastic sight, and it gets more amazing the more you think about it.  I took a ton of photos, 99% of which were taken in RAW format, and I don’t have the software to convert them to something I can share on this machine.  So, for the vast majority of photos, you’ll be waiting until I get home.

We are leaving Bath today and moving on to Thornbury Castle for the night.  Then from there onto Bristol, where we will depart from on Sunday.

Happy Thursday…
~j

First let me say that day two in London was accident and injury free.  Compared to yesterday, that’s fantastic news.

We went on a Bus Tour today all over the place.  The one we had originally set out to do got canceled, but really I was just as happy with the one we switched to.  The other had a lot of outside walking and with todays wind and chilly weather, I welcome the bus. 

Anyway, we saw all sorts of things today, specifically Leeds Castle, which was impressive on the outside, and really not at all what I expected on the inside.  The decor was FAR more recent than I had anticipated and no where near as pretty.  That being said, I didn’t take any photos of the inside.  LOL.  So you missed it.  But here is the outside…

We also went to Kent and saw a few things, specifically the Canterbury Cathedral.

I’m keeping track and today is my third day in a row eating fish and chips.  I’m pretty sure the same is in the cards for tomorrow.

Happy Friday!

~j

Today was our first day staying in London.  We got to our hotel early and were not able to check in so we went walking around and had lunch… at McDonalds, lol.  Odd getting the different cup sizes here and they have some things on the menu that we don’t have at home.

Anyway… the after lunch part was the exciting part, and hopefully the most excitement we have the entire time we are here.  I’ll just say that we had an injury, a hospital visit, and a visit to the local police station.  England has the “National Health Service” here and emergency and accidental services are free, even to non-residents.  What shocked me was walking in and no one saying where is your id and insurance card, etc?  There was only, (brace yourselves), one piece of paper to fill out with your name and address and primary complaint!!!  I wonder how many Americans walk in there with a minor scrape and walk out with a concussion from hitting their head on the floor when the pass out from the shock of it all.  1. Free care and 2. One form in the emergency room.  Seriously.

Prior to all the excitement I did get a couple of photos, and mom got one of the police cars.   Here are just a couple…

I think I’ll sit now and enjoy the peace and quiet.  We have a tour that leaves early in the morning and it’s pouring rain outside.  Should be interesting to see how that works out.

~j

Today we spent the day doing a little Genealogy hunting.  My mom had two churches she wanted to visit that he ancestors attended way back when.  I was basically around for the ride.  It’s rainy day here, (which I’ll gladly take over snow any day), so it wasn’t all the wonderful walking around town.  Thankfully I remembered to pack my umbrella.

We had a late lunch at a Pub, The Goose, in Romford right across the street from the train station.  They have a doorman in there that just sits at the door and watches it.  I’m not really sure what on Earth for, but he sure gave us an odd look when we walked in.  There was only one other Woman in sight, so maybe it’s odd to see two women walk into a pub.  Who knows, but I felt like I had, “Out of her element American,” written on my forehead.  Then I see a sign that says, “Ladies this way,” well feeling totally lost I’m starting to wonder if the women are sent to a different room, lol.  (Stupid American moment.)  The second functioning brain cell I have kicked in and said, “Duh.  It has to be a bathroom sign.  Sit down already.”  Yeah, I’m a little slow to catch on apparently.

I’m back settled in to our hotel room.  We leave tomorrow morning for London and start our stay there.

Happy Wednesday… it is Wednesday right? LOL

~j

It’s almost 9pm here in England and nearly 4pm back in Michigan.  I left Michigan Monday morning and haven’t been to bed since Sunday back at home.  Hopefully that is going to help me quickly get on England time.  All I can say is I NEED A NAP.

Today we finally landed here at London-Heathrow Airport at about 9:30am local England time and then took an hour or so ride to where we are staying for the next two days.  Once we were able to check in to our room and set our bags down, we left right back out again to his the Essex Records Office to look at Microfilm.  I need to note that Microfilm just doesn’t get me all excited like it does for my mom, so I was nearly asleep hunting though.  Apparently we can across some good stuff… all I remember is the heavy eyelid feeling. 

So we finally get back to the room and sit… turn on the tv… and…. wait for it…. it’s Tim Holtz on QVC UK.  LOL  Right now he is selling his technique book.  I must be totally out of the loop because I wasn’t aware that he had one.  FYI – he is just as good on tv in the UK as he is at home.

~j

I hope everyone is having a great Valentines Day!  Denny and I were able to go away for the night, the first time in 8 years, and enjoyed a date and some much needed quiet time.  Thanks to Michelle for spending the night here with the kids and holding down the fort.  It was much appreciated.  Good friends… can’t say enough about them.

The rest of the day is going to be filled with cleaning, laundry and cards.  Card kit registration is open and I’m working on getting the samples up.  Due to my trip, registration is open until the 22nd of February vs. the usual 15th.  Kits will not ship out until the 8th of March.

Enjoy Valentines day with the special people in your life.

~j

Welcome to Michigan!  I’ve been wondering when exactly the real winter weather was going to hit, and frankly crossing my fingers that it wasn’t going to hit at all… my luck ran out.  Yesterday about 10am, it started snowing, and snowing and snowing some more.  Last I looked at 3am this morning, I could still see the outline of the sidewalk, but by morning everything was covered.  Yuck.  I do dislike snow.  Now that I can’t ski anymore, there really just is no need for it.    All that being said, the kids are thrilled that they finally got a snow day.  I’ve spent the day catching up on laundry and they have spent the day playing. Ahh, to be a kid again.  (On the upside, I’ve only got one more load to go.)

I did help the boys get valentines ready.  I had been sent a link to some printable ones and they worked out great!  Popped some Prism Cardstock into the good old laser printer and in a matter of minutes I was done!  It was a much better way to go than heading out in the snow to track down valentines.  (Yes, I could have done this a week ago, but clearly, I’m a procrastinator, and I work better under the gun.  I’m a fan of the phrase, “If it weren’t for the last minute, I wouldn’t get anything done.”)  Here is a link to the printables.  They have boy and girl versions and each are super cute.

Ok, now for the news… I got a call today out of the blue from Sharon at Ninabrook Designs.  They are a kit company based in Canada and were looking for Design Team members.  Apparently, Carrie, my Editor at Michigan Scrapbooker, gave them my information, (Thanks Carrie).  It’s a great opportunity, and I’m so happy they took the time to contact me.  I’m also honored to say I’m the only designer located in the United States.  Woo hoo… I’ve gone international, lol.

Countering that, those of you that know me pretty well know what a big fan I am of Deadliest Catch and Captain Phil Harris from F/V Cornelia Marie.  I’m saddened to say that he passed away Tuesday after suffering a massive stroke two weeks ago.  Phil was only 53, and left behind two sons, a crew, and countless friends, and I’m sure all of them are devastated.  He will be missed.

~j

The card kits for January shipped out yesterday.    So for those of you that ordered, they should arrive on your doorstep soon.  We also sent out the mini  kit to our Prism Cardstock Giveaway winner.  (Hope you enjoy it!!)

I totally missed my blog anniversary this past weekend.  Denny has switched to a four day work week and with his work load here at home, I’ve been trying to do a lot more to make his life a little easier.  For example, I made a stop at Mt. Clemens glass over the weekend.  Ummm hello, I know nothing about car glass, templates and shading.    The guy asked what thickness and I was like, uhh, dunno, and had to refer to my notes.   Light gray or dark gray, polish or no polish.  Good grief.  That being said, I did figure it all out, and saved Denny a trip, which felt good.

On to card related news… February registration is now open.  I’ll be posting a sample in the store today.  Registration will stay open until the 22nd this month as I will be out of town from the February 22nd to March 7th.  Kits will ship out on the 8th or 9th of March depending on my level of exhaustion!  Andrea and I thought this would be the best way to handle it.  I’ll be prepping plenty of cards before I go and she can drop hers off with Denny while I’m gone.  I’m the one that handles the packing, so this seemed like the best solution for everyone.  I will have internet access while I’m away, so feel free to email any questions should you need to.

That’s all for today!  I’ve got a big “Tuesday To Do List” that I need to get working on!

~j