'This Week Just Keeps Getting Better' or 'Happy Kansas Day'

Last night K and I went with the youth group to snowboarding lessons. (it was excellent, by the way) However, the events of the evening soon took a sharp turn. When we returned home to flat 19, the plate for the lock on the door was removed and the key did not fit. We called up Barry and Paul and they called the police for an attempted break in. While we were waiting for the police, our neighbor upstairs started pounding around and being very vocal which led to bottles being thrown out of his window along with 'flaming shreaded paper,' as K recalls. After a few minutes he came outside and started to talk to Barry and Paul with 'negative, threatening enthusiasm.' All the while K and I were huddled up attempting to comfort each other as we tried not to listen to all the yelling coming from the neighbor. Finally the police arrived and tried to calm our neighbor down along with taking an account of flat 19. K and I are now staying with Paul and Ruth for a few days until we get 19 sorted out. We're going to meet with Tim Foley as well tomorrow to discuss what has occurred. It was such a strange and scary evening. As of right now we are okay but still shaken.

Guess What

Last week Kristen and I went on holiday to Tenerife ... don't hold your breath. About halfway through the week Kristen decided to check her email and discovered that our little flat 23 had been burgled. As of right now we are camping out in 19 and waiting for the police to come by so we can see the damage that has been done in 23. We've no idea what has been taken, but according to our neighbor who reported the break in, the place is pretty trashed. 

K and I have talked about what has happened and we aren't surprised that this has occurred, as break ins are typical for this neighborhood. But more than anything I think we're just annoyed because it is a huge inconvenience. So please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. 

Oh yeah, and today is Kristen's birthday! (despite all the burglary, hopefully she'll have a good day)

Christmas and then some

With the holidays now over, I shall recap. 

Christmas time in London was magical. We took

the bus for the ride down so when we first pulled into the city limits there were so many lights and sights to take in and people bustling around on the sidewalks all bundled up. After braving

the tube train and walking a few blocks we finally

came upon the Mennonite Centre where

Ed and Phyllis Shirk awaited our arrival. Ed and Phyllis are actually from the states and are serving a 3 year term as hosts for LMC. So after Kristen and I settled in we decided to try our foot at ice skating. We hopped back on the tube and headed to Hyde Park for the holiday festivals only to discover the ice rink was sold out ... of course. So instead we meandered around the carnival eating Danish pancakes and German sausages, which were almost better than skating. 

The rest of the time mostly consisted just of shopping! Well, more like browsing. We made our way to Covent Garden and Oxford Street and spent all day in and out of stores where I found the infamous kangaroo jumper!! On skies, no less. And if it wasn't for the price, that little jumper would be mine. I resent my frugal upbringing. 

Christmas Day was spent at the centre with Ed and Phyllis, Dora Marie (from Canada, think brunette Dorothea and 5 inches shorter, oh yeah) a family of 4 from London and a couple other random guests. We chatted with Phyllis and the ladies in the kitchen while preparing food and talked about the much missed states and Kansas because that's where Phyllis is from, too! The meal was magnificent, minus the brussel sprouts. and the christmas pudding. After the meal we sat around the christmas tree and played Dutch Blitz and scrabble. It was a really lovely day and I felt very safe there at the centre. Plus, all the company took my mind off home and made it easy to enjoy myself. 

New Years

Well, New Year's Eve was quite uneventful because I was ill with another cold. Kristen and I had plans to go to Chris Howson's Mamma Mia! sing-along bash, but I think Kristen was a little grateful for my condition instead. On New Year I slept half the day away, thanks to my cold, and then that evening the Bilton's invited us over to share New Year's dinner with some friends and family of theirs. Goose was on the menu so I took some, but later I changed my mind and so I cleverly slipped it onto Paul's plate when he got up to get some more wine. 

This week we are headed back to work and I'm looking forward to having a full agenda again. But not for long because K and I are headed to the sandy, sunny beaches of Tenerife in two weeks! 

Still scraping paint

With Christmas only days away, Kristen and I are pondering what the new year shall bring for us. Will it bring spiritual growth, more rain, boyfriends perhaps? (right Darrell?) 

Last week Darrell, Lyz and Arloa came to visit and it was such a delight to entertain them. On Saturday we took a trip up to Leeds to do some holiday shopping with the three of them ... despite the rain. We also took them to see our school's holiday program and to the cafe where we work. I had so much fun just laughing and engaging with them for the three short days they were here. I'm an eager beaver for Lyz's next visit in the spring!

We leave for London on the 23rd and will return on Saturday. We plan to spend New Year's Day with the Bilton's and some other friends eating goose. 

This evening we attended a carol service at Great Horton Methodist. We listened to the Christmas story and sang carols and it reminded me a lot of back home and all the Christmasy things my family would be doing around this time. Because this is my first Christmas away from home I am so anxious to see what awaits us in London at the Mennonite Center. 

Christmas countdown

Today is already the second week of December and our Christmas countdown is flying by. This afternoon Kristen and I ventured to Cineworld to see 'It's a Wonderful Life.' Kristen had never seen it before and I was so glad to watch it once again. However, since its an old movie, the theatre crowd mostly consisted of gray hair which would comment and snicker endlessly. It also brought back memories of home and made it hard to return to our flat. 

This evening we had the Biltons over for dinner and we cooked a lovely Mexican meal complete with apple empanadas. We love having company over to entertain and to show off our kitchen skills. So of course we are thoroughly looking forward to Darrell and Lyz's visit to our abode this coming Saturday! I can't believe we're going to be in the presence of other Americans once again, but sadly only for a short while. 

Last Friday we set up and decorated our little Christmas tree. Memories of Charlie Brown's Christmas tree are starting to form, but ours is fake so it'll last till Christmas... and probably longer, as those fakers tend to do. Kristen and I are also doing daily Advent devotions together. It's a wonderful way to start our days and prepare us for Christmas.  

Christmastime Is Here

Today is the first day of December and it snowed this morning! It was a perfect start to this month. Kristen and I have been working on making Christmas cards while listening to holiday music and watching the snow fall outside our window. We've also been keeping up our baking and have lots more to come since we are going to bake plates full of Christmas goodies to give to our neighbors and people from church. 

We are still scraping away at our living room walls trying to get them ready for paint. Our goal is to have them ready in time for when Darrell and Lyz arrive in two weeks! Things aren't looking too good, though...

Just a few more weeks and Kristen and I are headed to the London Mennonite Center for Christmas! It will be so nice to spend the holiday with some of our kind. :) 

the Veggie Cafe

On Tuesday Kristen and I started volunteering at Treehouse Cafe. I spent all of my time in the kitchen helping prepare the food and Kristen did both preparing and running the register. It was a really good start to that environment. We worked with college kids and also some graduates living in the area. However, the food is all vegetarian and 90% vegan which means we made veggie sausages for that day. Yes, yikes. But some good connections were formed and hopefully this is just the start of becoming more involved with this culture.