England Day 50: The mice just keep coming

When we woke up Sunday morning, the girl was already gone and Paul was still passed out. We tried to be really quiet as we got our stuff together and got ready for the morning. While we were packing, Paul woke up and was surprised that we were already up. And he was surprised that he didn't hear us when we came in the night before. We felt like we were being so loud but apparently he was so tired from the day before that he was passed out the whole night. After our chat with Paul, we went down to have breakfast and then checked out of the hostel.

We did a little shopping before going to church. The service was definitely nice and the people were so friendly. We headed to the train station afterwards and then found out that our train was cancelled. It wasn't too bed because we were planning on taking the train one station over so we just took a taxi instead. We got dropped off a Conway Castle, which we had seen Friday night and it looked so gorgeous that we wanted to stop and see it. It looked like a legit castle. It was so cool.

After the castle, we headed to the train station to catch our train home. Of course, the train was late so we would be late catching our next one but lucky for us, that one was late as well. We had a bit of a wait after those two trains but we made it home around 830 which was really nice. We usually get back around 1030 so it was nice having extra time to unpack and then relax before going to bed. I was able to unpack and call my family and relax. While I was hanging out in the day room, I heard the girls in the kitchen scream. The mouse was back. They decided to get a broom and a bucket to try and catch it or kill it, not really sure, because while all of them were in the kitchen, I stayed in the day room. Didn't feel the need to go in there. lol. They, unfortunately, did not catch it. Darn mouse was too quick.

After the excitement in the kitchen, I was ready for bed. Another week of camp and a big week since King's Camp would be joining us.

Cheerio.

England Day 49: Hiking in Wales

Pictures from Wales HERE!!! :)

Saturday in Wales was simply beautiful. We woke up to a lovely sun shining day and went down for our continental breakfast. We then got packed some snacks and put on sunscreen and headed out to the Great Orme. We took a tram up to the top of the Great Orme where we got off and hiked around. We met a really nice older couple that told us a lot of the history of the Orme and chatted with us about why we were there. They were the nicest people. :)

After our chat, we headed out for our hike on the Orme. It was beautiful up there. Words can not even describe it. IT was so much fun walking up there and just relaxing. It actually felt like we were on vacation. We stopped on the edge and had a snack and took some cool shots. We then continued our hike and then took the tram back down the bottom. It was such a nice morning/afternoon.

When we were done with the hiking, we went to the pier and got some ice cream. We then walked up and down the pier and did a little shopping. While we walked along the pier and saw this placed called fab fish. It's a place where you get a pedicure from little tiny fish. It was the weirdest thing ever. The fish are tiny and they suck off all the dead skin on your feet. So we decided to do it. lol. It felt so weird on our feet, especially since a few of us our ticklish. I was freaking out for the first 5 minutes and then it was fine. It actually worked too! My feet were really soft.

After the Fab Feet, we went to beach to sit and relax and take in more scenery. We took some pictures on the beach and then headed back to our hostel to shower and change before going out for dinner. When we got back to the hostel, we noticed that one of the empty beds now had stuff on them but the person wasn't around. So one of our roommates was here but not around. While we were getting ready, another person came in that would be sharing the room. It was an older gentlemen named Paul. We were concerned at first being in a room with a guy but he was very kind and apparently goes to hostels all the time cause he's always traveling. So we finished getting ready and then headed out for dinner.

We went to this place called Weatherspoon. It was a beautiful restaurant that used to be an old theater. It was really gorgeous. And the food was cheap and really good. It was the perfect place to go for dinner. After dinner we decided to walk around town and stopped at a pub to relax and hang out. We sat around and talked for a while and had some heart to hearts before heading out again and going back to the beach. We decided to walk along the beach and in the water. It was a nice evening. We also took a lot of random jumping shots along the beach. It forever to get the pictures but it was funny trying to take them. lol.

After the jumping around, we went back to Weatherspoon to chill and get dessert. We meet some random guys that were interested in talking to us because they liked our accents. It was definitely interesting. And one of the guys told us that he loved the shows Sex in the City and Glee. Definitely funny. :)

When we were getting tired, we headed back to the hostel and quietly got ready for bed. Our two new roommates were already there and passed out so we went to the bathrooms to change and brush our teeth before crawling into bed. It was definitely a great day in Wales.

Cheerio.

England Day 48: God's Waiting Room (aka Llandudno)

Friday was a fast past, crazy day. We finished our last day of cheer club and added some half pyramids and perfected the routine. It went so well. I can't wait for them to perform again at Camp A Presents. They've been working so hard so I know they will do amazing! When cheer was over, we had lunch and then break. I always have a nice relaxing lunch and break and it makes the day go by faster with a little break in the middle of the day.

After lunch we had rotating activities and free time. During free time, I got to leave early and get the cheer club ready to present. Shekka and I helped the kids paint their faces and practice one last time. We had Camp A Presents early because we needed to catch a train in Ely so when everyone came out and got settled, we had our performance. The kids did great! I was so proud of their awesome performance. They worked so hard and it paid off.

When the performance was over, we had cream the counselor. I got creamed by two sisters that were in cheer club this week. I was like, really!? lol. They were so funny though so I didn't mind. After we got creamed, we were heading inside to wash up when the fire alarm went off. So we had to stand outside with whipped cream on our face while we waited for the alarm to be set off. Great timing for the fire alarm. lol. When it was over, we headed inside and got washed up and changed to get int he car to catch the train in Ely.

We hopped in the car and drove to the Ely station. It was a fast drive and we were on the train in no time. The train rides were only 4 hours so it wasn't too long. On one of the trains, we met a guy when we couldn't find any seats. We got to talking to him and told him we were going to Llandudno for the weeked. And he said, "Oh. You mean God's Waiting Room?" Apparently Llandudno has a huge hospice and is also the place where people go to retire. Oops. Oh well. We knew there were lots of places to hike and it had beautiful nature so we didn't care.

When we got of the train in Llandudno, we walked to our hostel to drop off our stuff and then headed out to get some food. Apparently nothing is open past 10 on a Friday night. in retirement towns. Who knew? lol. We walked into twon center and found a pub and as soon as I walked in, my glasses fogged up. Along with being really hot, it was really loud and full of older people drinking, singing karaoke, and dancing with each other. The song that was playing was La Baum Ba and that was stuck in our heads the rest of the night. Since the pub didn't serve food past ten, we left to find another place. Maryanne hadn't eaten in a while and was super hungry and getting very cranky so we had to find somewhere to eat.

We found a late night fish and chips place that had other food as well. We all got a little something since we were kinda hungry. Brittany order a side of mushy peas and the guy asked, "That's it?" It was the funniest thing ever. The couple that was standing in there was laughing along with the guy behind in the counter. Apparently mushy peas is supposed to be order with other things but Brittany just wanted to try them since we'd heard about them before. They weren't anything big, just mushed up peas. Makes sense right? lol.

We grabbed our food and decided to walk along the promenade while eating our food. It was gorgeous. So many lights and beautiful hotels. Definitely a nice night to stroll along the beach area. When we were done eating and walking, we headed back to our hostel and went to bed.We had a long day of hiking the next day so we wanted to be well rested.

Cheerio.

England Day 47: A day of emotions

Thursday was definitely a day of emotions. It started off well with a great blitz. We moved into our clubs and the cheer club had an amazing rehearsal. We were performing later in the day for Dessert Fest. Dessert Fest is a chance for parents to come and see their kids perform songs and skits that the counselors usually perform during the week. The kids will perform them and then desserts will be served after. It will be fun. By the end of cheer practice, I felt like they knew what they were doing. It was definitely nice to see them working hard and practicing with such integrity.

After cheer club, we hand lunch and break. It is always nice to have a little break in the middle of the day to collect ourselves and get ready for the afternoon of activities. When we got back, we had crazy afternoon of Dessert Fest practice. Carlie led most of it until she had to leave and then I took over. It was definitely crazy and hard to keep the kids quiet but we got through it.

After practice we had free choice until the performance. All the parents and kids piled into the gym and we got ready to start. The little kids performed first and it was super cute if not a little sloppy. But it was still so adorable. The middle aged kids went next and had an amazing skit. We then had the preteen go and perform. After they were done, the cheer club got to show off what they practiced. It went so well. I was so proud of them for working so hard. I had to step in and hold up one of the signs since we had someone that had to leave early. It was so much fun! Then the kids went to Room 3 with their parents and devoured desserts. I was surprised that I got any. There was only a few things left over. But it was so much fun and we had an amazing time getting the kids hyped up for it and practicing.

We cleaned up the room and headed home after dessert fest and when I got back, I had another package from home along with a few other girls. Apparently Brittany had emailed our families and asked them to send homesick packages and we'd have a homesick party. It was such a nice surprise and I couldn't wait to open it. We went one at a time and opened our packages. When it got to me, I was so excited. I opened it to find a ton of stuff from home. I got a few stuffed animals that were from my room, a coloring book, some snacks, pictures of the family and a princess book. I also got a deck of cards from the Quicks. So nice of them and I definitely can't wait to play cards with them when I get home. I also got a lovely card from Bev, a very nice lady from my dad's work that always calls down to my dad when I come visit him at work. I feel like I visit her more than I do my dad. She's just so nice and always gives me a hug and smile when I walk in the office. :)

After everyone had opened their packages, I went back to my box and pulled the princess book out again. When I first saw it, I thought it was really corny. Then I saw that it said recordable and I was confused. So I opened it to the first page and heard my family's voices. Well, then I started crying. All the girls gathered around and wanted to listen to it. I tried to close it because I didn't want to keep crying in front of them but we kept on listening. It was the best present ever. It was my parents and brother reading this Disney Princess book out loud to me and adding fun comments to it. It was definitely a great book, even if they did make me cry. I was doing so well being away and I hadn't cried once until I got the package. It was ridiculous, but I loved it. :)

After we opened our packages, we made pizza and then started working on posters. We had a lot of great posters and had lots of fun making them as always. After posters, I finally finished my programming for my week. It was so nice to have that all done and finished. After this hectic and emotional day, it was off to bed.

Cheerio.

England Day 46: Package with $30 worth of contacts is no longer MIA

Wednesday was a very good day. I had a nice relaxing morning and a fun energetic blitz. Our project coordinator, who is stationed in Germany, sent a co-worker to come by and check on us and see how things were going. Her name was Ebony and she stayed for the whole day. It was definitely a little nerve racking having her around at first but she was super nice and just wanted to make sure we were doing all right and that we were taking care of. She was so sweet and definitely made us feel like we could have a normal day and not stress about her hanging around.

We had a fun cheer club with the girls and Ebony stopped by to taking some pictures and record a little of our routine. She was really impressed with cheer club and had fun watching the kids learn the steps and cheers. We had a lot of fun and then heading to lunch. Mr. Marlon was back today! It was definitely a great lunch and I could tell he was back before I even saw him. :)

During our break, I got the package from my mom that I have been waiting for. It took four weeks to get here! I thought I was going to lose $30 worth of contacts. I would have been so upset and would of had to wear glasses for the last month of camp. lol. It had cookies in it that would have been good if the package came sooner but it's the thought that counts. I also got a lovely letter and some sweats and a jacket. It gets a little chilly over here. lol.

After break, I went to rotating activities where I was in charge of craft. The kids made these really cute lion masks out of paper plates and cut up strips of paper. They were adorable. I definitely loved this craft. When rotating activities were over, we had free time and then closing.

When we finished closing, we headed home where I once again went to programming for the week. I was also really tired so after programming for a while, I headed to bed. Wanted to be up and ready for Dessert Fest on Thursday.

Cheerio.

England Day 45: Tuck and Roll

Tuesday was also very hectic. I came to camp thinking I was going on a field trip in the morning only to find out it had been switched to the afternoon. So I wasn't prepared for blitz and had to learn the order of the songs quickly and get ready to walk out in about 5 minutes. It was craziness! I also had to practice a skit that we call Midget skit and perform it right after blitz. Also crazy! It was really funny though. One person was behind another and put their arms through the person in front so it looked like their arms on another body. Then they had to perform morning rituals like brushing hair and waking up and brushing teeth. It was so funny.

After a crazy blitz, we went to our Clubs. The kids did a lot better in Cheer Club then the day before. They were learning the steps quickly and starting to straighten their arms. I am having a lot of fun in that club and think the kids are too. We went to lunch after cheer club and then I was able to go to the BX and shop a little. I had a few things I needed to get during our break.

On the way back, I saw the kids and leaders had already started walking for their field trip to the bowling alley so I had to hop out of the car and catch up with them. I thought I was gonna have to tuck and roll to get out but she slowed down enough. lol. :) Brandy forgot they were leaving earlier then when I'd get back from break but it was alright. I had a lot of fun bowling with the kids and had a nice walk back.

When I got back, I worked in the gym and played a couple games with the kids before closing. We sang a few closing songs and then headed out for the commissary. I got all my groceries and headed back to the car to go home.I had a lovely dinner and after the hectic day, I was in a grumpyish mood so I put in the movie that always makes me laugh: Tommy Boy! Definitely love that movie and it can always put a smile on my face. When that was over, we decided to watch Cars before heading to bed. But after the crazy day I couldn't stay up for the whole movie so I went to bed about halfway through.

Definitely a crazy day and I hope the rest of the week turns out to be a little less chaotic.

Cheerio.

England Day 44: Lunch just isn't the same without Mr. Marlon

I just want to apologize right now and say that I had to program a week of camp over the past two weeks and have been unable to blog as much as I would like. I will be catching up this week and hopefully won't fall behind again. Thanks! :) If you want to see pics from Wales, here they are!

Monday was a pretty hectic day. We started off with a blitz and then went into clubs. I got to be in Cheer Club this week! I have never done cheerleading in my life so I'm glad Shekka had been one before. She was so great at teaching the kids steps and cheers. I caught on quick but I'm definitely not a cheerleader. But the little kids were so cute and worked really hard to get the steps. It was awesome.

We then had lunch which was not that great. Definitely miss having Mr. Marlon in the kitchen. Can't wait for him to come back. We definitely miss him and his AMAZING cooking!

After lunch, we had rotating activities where I was in charge of Dessert Fest practice. It was so stressful and hectic. The kids were off the walls and would not listen at all. I'm we rotated every 20 minutes but it was still craziness. When the craziness was over, I got to make a wax giraffe out of those little beads. I still need to finish it but it looks cool right now.

When we were able to go home, we went to our dorm and had our regular Monday meeting before cleaning the place down. It always feels so nice to be in a clean place. After I cleaned I worked on my programming that's due on Thursday. I get to plan for Outer Space week and I have found so many awesome activities and I can't wait to show the kids. After programming I headed to bed.

Sorry again for the late blogs. More to come. :)

Cheerio.

England Day 43: It all ends today

Sunday was an exciting day. WENT TO HARRY POTTER!!! Before we got there, we had some mix ups with the trains. Apparently the train didn't run to London King's Cross until the afternoon so we had to go into another London train station. But we eventually made it to London and took the tube to the O2 where we would watch HARRY POTTER!

HARRY. POTTER. WAS. AMAZING. That's all there is to it. I loved the whole thing. I definitely cried most of the movie. It was so good. I just can't believe the movies are over. They were so good. I don't want them to end. I was so excited for the last movie but sad at the same time. But the best ending ever. So great! :)

After Harry Potter, we decided to do some souvenir shopping. We all found some cute stuff for our friends and family back home. It was definitely a long afternoon of shopping and I didn't buy much until the end of the day. I found a few things for people back home. Can't wait to show them to everyone.

After shopping we headed back to the train to go home. We got back around 1030 and I unpacked and went straight to bed. It was an exhausting day. Got a lot to do this week so I needed to get to bed.

Cheerio.

England Day 42: Today I don't feel like doing anything...

Saturday was definitely a nice day. I slept in which was needed. nice and a half hours of sleep. :) Halfway point and I'm getting exhausted all the time. Sleep is essential. A couple of girls decided to go to Newmarket and see horse races and the rest of us stayed in. I wanted to go but I really wanted more sleep and wanted to save my money. Plus it was nice to stay in and relax and work on some homework and programming.

During our homework and programming, we watched a few movies. It was nice to just relax and not have to worry about money or travel. I needed a day to kick back and rest my body and brain. While we were watching one of the movies, I moved in my chair to get more comfortable and the mouse decided to run out from UNDER my chair to under the couch across from me. SO NOT COOL! This mouse needs to get the heck out of our house. It's driving me crazy.

When the girls got back from the races, it was almost time for bed and I was finishing up a movie. The girls walked in and sat down and the mouse ran by the TV. It just likes running around all the time. This thing is so brave. I was not happy with that mouse. But the girls had a fun time. They looked so fancy in their dresses and they said that everyone looked so nice. They met a few guys that were sitting in front of them and had a fun time talking with them and hanging out. Sounds like a fun time.

I'm definitely bummed that I didn't go to the races because I've always wanted to go but I needed the day to regroup and relax. And I had to be well rested for our day trip on Sunday to see HARRY POTTER 7 PART 2!!! So excited!!!! It will be amazing. :)

Cheerio.

England Day 41: Milton Maize Maze

Friday started off crazy but ending up being a fun day. When we got to the youth center, we found out that one of the chinchilla had gotten loose. Not good! So they had a few people looking for it and checking the cameras to see how it got it. Definitely a crazy way to start the day. Then I got to go on the field trip with a few of the groups and we went to a corn maze. I definitely love corn mazes. We used to go to one almost every year when we would go to Wisconsin for family trips. They were always so much fun and could last for hours.

On the way to the maze, I was in the weirdest mode. I sang Disney songs the whole way there, to myself. Not out loud, just to myself. I'm a weird one. lol. When we got to the Milton Maize Maze, we let the kids play on the cars and blowup castles and playhouses. They definitely had a fun time. We then had lunch before going on the tractor ride around the grounds. The guy driving the tractor was definitely a cutie and had the best teeth I've ever seen. So English guys can have nice teeth, Dad! :)

After the tractor ride, we started the maze. It would have been more fun if we could have wandered on our own without a map but we only had a limited amount of time before we had to drive back so we had to stay together. We had a girl in front leading the way for the whole group and after a while of being lost, I was told to go to the front to lead the way since I'm good with directions. Definitely worked a lot better and the group leaders weren't as frustrated. I think the girl that was leading was a helper from the high school and she just wanted to be at the front. But that changed real quick. lol.

When we got back from the field trip, I was giving a break before we had to go to closing. When closing started, each club presented what they did throughout the week and then it was time for cream the counselor. We each choose two kids to go this week, for a total of TWELVE kids creaming counselors. I only had one kid that was going to cream me but I asked if he wanted to cream one who wasn't being creamed. So he switched but another little girl said I had to be creamed too and switched to me so everyone would be creamed. Thought I was gonna get out of it. Oh well. It's lots of fun anyways and the kids love it so I'm happy to do it. :)

After cream the counselor, we headed back to the dorm for a nice relaxing evening at home. Maryanne had another date so the rest of us made dinner and watched some chick flicks, 27 dresses and Grease. Definitely a fun night and nice to sit back and relax. After the movies we realized the internet was down so I decided to go to bed early. I definitely went to bed at 1030 and passed our right away. This week had just been so busy and it was the halfway mark so I felt exhausted. I guess I needed the sleep. :)

Cheerio.

England Day 40: Who spiked the lasagna?

Thursday was a fantastic day. Started like any other with a fabulous blitz. We then moved to clubs and had a fun exploration club. We were a little unorganized when we started because we were switching our schedule and adding new things because the kids wanted to write in their journals about all the things they had found. So the kids wrote about their findings and then we had them do some coloring rubbings with the leaves. The pictures looked really neat. After that, we had the kids make some funky bugs with puff balls and pipe cleaners. The kids had so much fun with that and they looked so cute! I loved them!

After clubs, we had lunch and then went on break. After break I spent another lovely day in open rec. Got to play some UNO flash of course pool and video games. It's interesting to get to know the preteeners. They are so different from the younger kids. Worried about boys and how they look. This shouldn't be happen. Not until high school. lol.

When open rec was over, we headed home for what was going to be an interesting night. We made lasagna and started our normal Thursday meeting. I don’t know what was going on with us or if had spiked the lasagna but we were crazy. We kept throwing out ideas for the African Safari theme the next week like singing songs from the Lion King, out of tune might I add. We also picked a new song to sing one of the days but no one knew the tune so we made one up and we were adding crazy movements to it. It was a ridiculous night. We were all laughing so hard and we sounded crazy. I’m not sure if it was lack of sleep or if there was something in the lasagna but it was silly. Lol.

After our meeting and the craziness, we moved to the hall to work on our posters. We made some beautiful posters and had more fun chilling in the hall with each other listening to crazy songs. It was just a fun night with all the girls and we all got a little closer. I feel like by the end of this trip I will not want to leave these awesome girls. I have so much fun with them and they are becoming my family. It will definitely be sad saying goodbye. But we’re already planning trips to see each other so hopefully we’ll be able to do that when we get back to the states. :)

Cheerio.

England Day 39: Duck Pond

Wednesday was a pretty good day. We preformed our blitz and moved on to clubs. Clubs were a lot of fun. Exploration club got to walk to the Duck Pond. The kids really enjoyed it. We walked on base to the duck pond and had the kids look at nature and try to find things they recognized. We then had them walk around and pick a few leaves, flowers, and plants to bring back and put in their exploration journals. We quickly gathered some of nature and headed back to the program center.

When we got back, it was time for lunch and then I headed to open rec. I did the usual; played pool, watched kids play video games, and walked around outside. Pretty uneventful, although I did witness young love. A boy ran up and gave a girl a hug goodbye while all of her friends were watching. So cute. Lol. During open rec I got a banana with a note attached to it that said, "Don't spilt after closing. Meet me in the diner after camp." I was so confused as to who it came from. I had no idea what was going on. So after open rec I walked to find the other counselor and all of them had one. When we walked to the diner after closing, we found our group leader Brittany had bought stuff to make banana splits! It was such a nice surprise and definitely a nice treat. :)

When we got back to the dorm, we made dinner and put in the seventh Harry Potter part 1! I had only seen it once so it was nice to get a refresher. It is such an amazing movie. I have loved all the movies and I am quite sad that it will be ending. We are going to see the last one on Sunday in London. Excited, but at the same time sad.

After the movie, I did a little programming and then headed off to bed. We have another long work day so I had to get some sleep.

Cheerio.

England Day 38: Volcanoes

Tuesday was a pretty easy day as well. We got up and performed Blitz. We performed a skit about being a leader and not a follower. It was cute. After that we went to club. We learned about volcanoes in Exploration Club. They kids loved it! Seeing ingredients react like that. We tested it so many times and each time the kids were more and more excited. We tested using little amounts and big amounts. Also seeing if we added water if it would slow it down. We also tested it in a closed container to see how the pressure worked. The kids then wrote in their journals about everything the saw, smelled and heard and about all the reactions. It was so awesome to see how interested they were.

We then went to lunch and break. I went again to Open Rec and started learning everyone's names. I played pool again with the same kid and played a fun uno game with a couple kids. It was nice to get the kids away from the video games and play a board game.

After open rec, we came back and worked on some programming before heading off to bed. It was a pretty chill day and not a lot happened. Sorry so short. :)

Cheerio.

England Day 37: Halfway Mark

This week marks the halfway mark of camp. It does not feel like it all it. It's crazy. It feels like I just got here. Having fun makes the time fly. Although I definitely miss my family back at home. Can't wait to see them.

Monday was a pretty chill day. Blitz went well and we then moved into clubs. I am in Exploration Club this week. We had the kids make science journals to write down all of the predictions and conclusions and explorations. We had the kids test paper airplanes by making them out of different materials. They made airplanes out of construction paper, computer paper, and tissue paper. They had so much fun flying them around the room and testing to see which ones worked better. They wrote down what happened in their journals and said they felt like scientists. It was lots of fun.

We then had lunch and then went on break. For this week, I am working in Open Rec from 1-5. Open Rec is a place only for the preteen kids. They get o sign out from camp and go to Open Rec and then they get to do whatever they want the rest of the day. There are tvs, wii, xbox, snack bar, pool, crafts, outside, and computers. I am mostly there to make sure they all get along but the adults that work there mostly just get to hang around. I played pool with one boy and watched Harry Potter and video games for most of the day. It's a pretty laid back environment and it's nice to relax a little since it's the halfway mark. I can re-energize and then be ready to roll the next week when I'm back in full camp days.

After open rec, we headed home and had a meeting. We talked about getting in a halfway slump and staying energized. Brittany then had us write little notes to each other about what we liked about each other and how we love working with them. It was really nice to read all the lovely notes and from everyone.

After the meeting and notes, we watched the 6th Harry Potter. We are almost done with the movies and we plan to see the 7th part 2 on Saturday in London! It will be so much fun! Can't wait! When the movie was over we headed off to bed to get ready for the next day.

Cheerio.

England Day 36: A Spot of Tea

Definitely did not sleep well last night. The bed was super hard and I woke up a few times. The light from the bathroom was shining through a crack and reflecting off a mirror onto my face so I had to get up in the middle of the night and turn it off. Just a difficult sleeping experience but I was still happy to be in a hotel for the night. It was nice sleeping in though and definitely made up for the hard bed.

We got up and had a nice slow morning to get ready and have breakfast. We then hopped on the train to drop off our backpacks at Carlie’s parent’s hotel. Carlie and her parents decided not to go with us to the Titanic exhibit and were instead going to do a lot of shopping. So we dropped off our stuff and headed off to catch a tube to the O2 to see the Titanic exhibit.

The O2 is a huge complex of concert arenas, cinemas, and restaurants. It was huge! It was definitely an interesting place and we are thinking of coming back to see the new Harry Potter movie. WE went to where the Titanic exhibit was and went on in. It was truly amazing. I learned so much more about Titanic and how the ship was set up and such. It was truly amazing but it was also said. I knew what happened but reading about it and seeing some of the actually artifacts found from the Titanic was so inspiring.

After the exhibit, we had lunch at one of the many restaurants at the O2. We went to a Latin place La Iguanas. It was really yummy and very filling. It was the perfect lunch and it was pretty cheap. When we were done, we headed to the tube to meet up with Carlie and her parents and do a little shopping and have afternoon tea. We did a bit of shopping and then went to have tea. It wasn't at a real tea shop because we didn't have enough time but we plan to another time. It was still pretty good.

After tea, we headed back to get our backpacks and get on the train home. We said our goodbyes Carlie's parents and headed to the station. We had such an amazing time with them. They were so much fun and super nice. IT was nice having a few parents around to protect us and hang out with us.

When we got back home, Shekka was waiting for us with Chicken Alfredo! It was so yummy, probably the best I've ever had. It was so nice to come back and not have to think about making dinner. :)

When dinner was over, we started talking about a trip to Wales that we wish to do. I started looking up train times and tried to figure out how we'd get there. It takes about 5 hours or so to get there so we want to go a Friday after work so we can have all day Saturday and most of Sunday to see Wales. It looks really amazing. Hope we are able to get there. After train times, we headed off to bed.

Cheerio.

England Day 35: True England Weather

Woke up in the wee hours of the morning to take the train down to London. Only five of us went on the trip to London because Shekka had gone to Wales for a field trip last week and had fallen and twisted her ankle on Thursday. We didn't think it would be a good idea to walk on her swollen ankle and she wasn't up for it either. So we left her to the mouse infested house and headed to the train. On the second train, we all fell asleep which was nice because we had a long day ahead of us and needed the sleep.

When we got off the trains, we caught the tube that would take us to Carlie's parent's hotel. We dropped off our stuff and caught the tube north towards the British Museum. By this time it had started to rain so we all had umbrellas. We got off the tube and started walking the wrong way to the British Museum. That was my bad. Got confused with the map. But we got turned around and headed the right way to the Museum. When we got there, a huge line was waiting to get in. We decided that standing in the rain to get in was not something we wanted to do. So we did a little shopping and decided to the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch.

At this point, it had been raining all morning all our jeans and shoes were soaked. My shoes were soaked all the way through and the bottom of my pants were also soaked. The best part about the rain was seeing Carlie and her mom with umbrellas that were falling part. Both of the umbrellas were flipped in the rain and were then broken. It was so funny seeing them walk around with broken umbrellas trying to stay out of the rain. Definitely made my day. lol. :) By the end of the day, we were laughing the rain off because otherwise we would of been grumpy. We just had to be light hearted about it and figured we needed the experience of true England weather.

We caught the tube to Hard Rock and sat down for a nice lunch in the first Hark Rock ever made. Pretty cool to be in a historic place. They just celebrated their 40th anniversary. Pretty sweet. I had a really good meal as well. The food was delicious.

After Hard Rock, the rain had let up for a while so we decided to walk through Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. Hyde Park was beautiful and is comparable to Central Park in New York. It's big and had stands for food, a river, and memorial statue/fountains in the area. It was beautiful. One of the memorials we saw was for Princess Diana. It was a fountain that was in the shape of a necklace. We almost missed it because it didn't know what it was. It was very gorgeous though, especially by all the flowers.

We then went on to see the Peter Pan statue at Maryanne's request. She is a HUGE fan of Peter Pan and loves all the books and movies. I had wanted to see it as well because I knew it was a pretty famous statue. When we got there, it had started to rain again but that didn't stop Maryanne. She was climbing all over that thing, wanting as many pictures as possible. It was really cool to see.

When we were done there, we decided to head to Harrod's, a huge department store in London. Harrod's was definitely the biggest store I've ever been to. It was 5 stories high and even had a store guide to pick up when you walked in so you could find where everything was. It was quite ridiculous. We mostly just walked around to see what they had but didn't buy anything because it was ll super expensive. Carlie's dad and I saw a baby's leather jacket that was worth almost 200 POUNDS! Ridiculous! We also got to see puppies that were for sale. They were so cute, and expensive. lol.

After Harrod's, we went to a few shops that were in our price range. I found a beautiful ring that looks like a giraffe. I had seen it in Bury St. Edmunds but didn't buy it because I couldn't find the right size but I found it here so I bought it. I absolutely love it. :)

When we were done shopping, we went back to the hotel to change and go to a pub. We went to a pub called the Shakespeare. It was a really cute place. There were two guys sitting by us that kept whistling at us but we couldn't acknowledge them. They went on for about a half hour. It was really annoying. I mean really? If we weren't looking at you or acknowledging you, why would you continue? We aren't interested! We were glad when they finally left. lol.

After the pub, we headed to Carlie's parents hotel to grab our stuff and head to our hotel. We got on the train and then caught a cab to our hotel. When we got there, the guy at the front desk was in a bad mode or something because he was snappy with Alix about having her email confirmation. But we got it figured out and then went to our room. We had two single beds and a double. Not as nice as our last room from last weekend but definitely better than a hostel. So we headed off to bed and looked forward to sleeping in a little since we didn't have to be to the Titanic Exhibit until 11. Definitely another fun day in London.

Cheerio.

More London Photos

Here's more London photos from this weekend. Didn't take many but it was still an amazing time. Blogs to come. :)

England Day 34: Relaxing Friday with the girls

Today was a good day, although it didn't feel like a Friday. The week just flew by and I still felt like it should be the middle of the week. We had a fun time with our blitz songs and I couldn't help laughing during one of the songs. The kids were up on their feet and in our face for one of the songs. It was so cute and they were so into it. Loved it!

After blitz, we had clubs. I was in craft club again and we were going to make castles. They were fun and easy to put together and the kids enjoyed it. We then got the game boards back on for them to play with and finish. One of the boards was a preteeners and he realized right away that someone had drawn on his board. There were pictures in the middle of his board and he got so upset. I seriously wanted to cry. Those kids had worked so hard and for someone to just come up and draw on it after all the hard work broke my heart. I promised to address the problem during lunch to inform kids of the hard work that was put into it. He made a new one but he definitely didn't like it as much as the first one. He had spent 3 days on the it and then had to remake it in one. So depressing.

After clubs, we had lunch. When the kids had washed their hands and sat down, I addressed the problem. I told the kids that in craft club, the kids had worked really hard on making game boards and that one of the boards had been drawn on by someone other than the creator. I told them it really upset him and all his hard work was gone now. I asked them to please remember that when things are not theirs, they need to leave it alone and not mess with it. If they want to help, they need to ask permission. I then asked if they would want someone to ruin something they worked hard on and they of course said no. So I reminded them not to touch things that aren't theirs. I almost had tears in the middle of it because I just though about how well they had worked together on Wednesday and all the hard work. I was so upset for them and hoped I got my point across. The counselors said I did a good job at addressing the problem without outing anyone for ruining it or trying to get kids to fess up. I just wanted to make it known that if it's not yours, don't touch it. I hope it doesn't happen again.

After that, we had a yummy lunch and then I read books to a few kids. We went on break and worked on bucket fillers for the kids. When that was over, we had rotating activities. I got to work with the kids on making crests about themselves. It was divided into four parts and the kids got to draw pictures about things that were important to them or their favorite things. They definitely turned out really well and the kids had a fun time with them. They all wanted to show them to me when they were done and I learned a lot about all the kids.

When rotating activities were over, we had snack and then movie day. We watched Muppets from Space, which always reminds me of my brother and I when we were little because we loved watching that movie. We watched the movie and then I got stuff ready for cream the counselor. We had closing where the craft club presented their game boards and oragami, the Quidditch Club showed off their brooms and uniforms, and the counselor in training club performed a blitz and skit. They club were so awesome this week and the kids had lots of fun. After that, we had cream the counselor. I picked K to cream this week because he was so awesome and I wanted him to feel like all this good behavior does pay off and that good behavior makes others smile. He, of course, choose me to cream which I expected but it was worth it to see his face. He had so much fun and loved it. :)

When we got back into the room after closing, we finished the movie and they had another one after that. K's mom showed up and he told her all about creaming and we told her why he got to. She was so proud of him and we could tell that K was happy and proud of his behavior. His mom was so excited to be getting so many good notes and comments about K throughout the the week. Things were hard at home, she said and hearing all the goods things made it all so much better.

After closing, we headed home for a nice relaxing Friday at home. We decided not to go to London right away because we needed the sleep and wanted to relax. We came home, made dinner, and then put in Harry Potter. We only have 2 more movies to watch. The girls are getting caught up which is good. We definitely had a nice day and I was able to get caught up on blogs which is good. We are going to London tomorrow and seeing more of the lovely city. I will definitely keep up on my blogs when I get back. It sucks to write 3 in a day. So many details and I always feel like I forget something. But can't wait for the weekend and definitely have to go pack and get to bed. Can't wait for London again!

Cheerio.

England Day 33: Bewilderwoods Field Trip

Check out field trip photos here! :)

Thursday was definitely one of my favorite days this week. Although it rained the whole day, it was still my favorite. I got to go on the field trip with the Preteens and 7-8 year olds. We went to Bewilderwoods. It was a great park with tons of amazing tree houses and bridges and I got to go with Ms. Michelle's group which K was in. I was paired with him as my partner and got to hang out with him the whole day because they wanted to make sure he wasn't acting out.

I had a blast with him! We sat on the bus together and got to play games and such. Then we walked hand in hand through out the whole park. He was so good and very helpful. He made me go on the high stuff and said I could hold his hand when I was scared. He was adorable. Little kids are so cute when they want to help out adults.

We did a lot of fun things. We climbed in tree houses, on long rickety bridges, and went down steep slides. The kids had a blast and so did the adults. I would definitely go back if I had the chance.

We went down a lot of big slides which were lots of fun. One was really steep and one of the group leaders, Mr. John, who's a pretty big brave guy, screamed like a girl all the way down the slide. It was pretty funny. We also went in a fun maze and the Mr. John was saying how he knew where to go. He definitely did not. I followed him for a while and then left him and found it before he did. lol.

When we left, all of the kids fell asleep on the way home. I had K leaning on my shoulder the whole way home and I almost passed out a few times. I mostly just rested my eyes. When we got back, I made sure to have K sing a song again and told him what a great job he did on the field trip. I just love seeing him light up and try not to smile. He's so gosh darn adorable. Ms. Michelle even sent a note home with mom saying how good he'd been doing this week. We wanted to make sure he was getting the recognition he needed.

After closing, we headed home and had a nice relaxing day catching up on programming and blogs. I definitely went to bed early because I was so cold from it raining all day but it was an awesome day.

Cheerio.

England Day 32: Despereaux strikes again

Wednesday was crazy day. When we got to work, we reminded the maintenance guy that we had a mouse problem and he had a guy come out and set traps in the morning for us. It was definitely a relief to know the traps would be up. After a fun blitz and skit, we went to our clubs. I had to run craft club by myself but it was the best day for them! They were making Harry Potter board games. I was so impressed with the group. I helped them start but they took off and made awesome games. At the beginning, it was a lot of "I want to add this to the game," but by the end it was "What do you think we should add?" They learned teamwork and cooperation. I had the hugest smile on my face the rest of the morning because I was so proud of the group and what they had done.

After clubs we had lunch and break before heading to rotating activities. I was in the gym playing a game called streets and alleys. The first two groups were terrible. They would not listen when I gave instructions and some didn't want to play because they couldn't understand the game. I made them sit on the bleachers for the last 5 minutes and had a talk with them. I was really upset that they were not listening and being disrespectful. I talked about how they needed to try new things and not complain if it was a game they didn't like because it could be someone elses favorite game. I told them they had to try playing and they might like it. I also told them that the counselors are trying to play new games with them so that they will try new things because they think the games are fun and know they would enjoy it and that when they talk during instructions, it makes it hard for everyone to hear how to play and makes us sad that they don't want to learn new things. I think it helped get my point across. The third group was really good though and had a lot of fun with it, which made things better.

After rotating activities, we had free play in room 3. I got to hang out with a little boy, K will be his name for now. K tends to be a little bit of a trouble maker but I think he can be so stinking cute sometimes. I wanted to try to get through to him and try to figure out why he acts like he does. He can be so nice sometimes and give hugs and want to play nicely. K came up to me with a book and we sat for an hour playing this I Spy book. He was so excite about it and kept making me find new object that he would find on the page. It was adorable. Then he went and played with the moon sand and was so nice to kids that came up and wanted play. He shared his moon sand and helped kids make fun shapes. Total turn around from the past few weeks. You just have to get to know him and sit with him a while.

During closing, I had him come up and sing a song because he had been so good that day. I just think if we give enough positive reinforcement that he'll hopefully see that by being good, good things will happen. I think he really enjoy standing with the counselors and singing. He always tries to hide his smiles and looks away when he starts to smile. It's so stinking cute! lol.

After closing, we headed home. When we got back, we walked in and it smelled terrible. We figured it was the trash and took that out. Maryanne went to grab a bag from under the sink and then realized there was a mouse trap with a mouse in it! We were all freaking out and not willing to touch it. But Maryanne, who we should now call Papa Bear, put some gloves on and took care of it. She's such a brave girl! :)

We were so realized that the mouse was gone. That mouse was freaking us out. Everyone went about their own business, skyping and facebooking while I was in the day room by myself. While I was sitting there, I saw something out of the corner of my eyes. Right under one of the lounge chair was a little mouse about 3 inches long coming out and running back under chair. I did not like that at all. This little thing was brave. He's now known as Despereaux. He would come out about a foot, stop, stare at me, and then when I moved, would run back under. He did it like 10 times! It freaked me out!

Then Maryanne walked in as I was staring at him and when I told her she was freaking out. Then everyone else came in and I told them. While we were all sitting there, this little mouse came out like 5 more times before finally running under the door into the hall! NOT COOL! We went out to see where he went and decided we needed shoes on. Two of the girls put on HEELS and the rest of us put on tennis shoes. It was definitely a site. lol. We went back towards the day room and Carlie walked into the kitchen only to scream and run out as the mouse ran across the floor. It would definitely be a site to see girls in 5 inch heels screaming and running from a 3 inch mouse. So funny.

We definitely kept an eye out for the rest of the day and then headed to bed. The day was definitely eventful and pretty funny. :)

Cheerio.

England Day 31: Girls will be girls

Tuesday was a interesting day. It started like any other with being picked up for work and a fun blitz with the kids. Carlie was on the field trip so I took over Counselor in training club for her. The kids had such a blast. They get to learn songs that we sing for blitz and also a skit that they would perform at Camp A Presents. It was a good morning and they definitely liked learning on the songs.

After clubs, we had a yummy lunch and went on break. When we got back, I got to do a rotating activity with the kids that they loved. They got to do magic with ice. You put a piece of ice in water and then lay a piece of string across it and sprinkle salt on it. The salt makes the string stick to the ice cube and you can pull the ice cube up with the string. The little kids were so amazed by it and loved it.

When rotating activities were done, we had free time and then headed home. When we got back, Maryanne got ready for her DATE! We were all so excited for her and couldn't wait to hear about it when she got back. While she got ready, we kept checking the windows so we could see him pull up. When he finally did, he looked so cute and we all got so giggly. We ran down the hall to tell Maryanne and then went to my room to get a better view of them leaving. When they left, we all went back to the day room and were all so nervous and anxious for her. We wanted it to go well and hoped they would have a good time.

Around 9, they came back and we again ran to my room to get a better view. We were like little girls all giggly and trying to see what was happening. When she got out of the car, we ran to the hall to see her. She came up the stairs and we all made her sit right at the top of the stairs in the hall so we could hear all the details at once. We were such girls and giggling the whole time and saying "Aww" and had huge grins on our faces. She had grins because she had a grin on her face. It was definitely a fun night with the girls. :)

Cheerio.

England Day 30: Cleaning Day

Monday was a very interesting day. Waking up was definitely hard. It had been a long, fun weekend but we definitely had early mornings and late nights so we needed more sleep. I was definitely beat the whole day. This week Shekka will be in Wales for a field trip and we're all a little jealous. Although she has been missing out on a lot of things that went on, as you'll see in my blogs, when I get around to writing them all. :)

This weeks theme was Magical Myths and Ancient Adventures which Maryanne and I programmed. It's definitely focused on Harry Potter since the movie comes out at the end of the week. We were both very excited to plan this week. We started off with a fun blitz to wake us up a little and then went into clubs. This week I was in Hermione's Craft Club. We started the with origami broomsticks and Snitches. The kids LOVED it, and they listened so well. It was a really fun craft for them.

After craft club we had lunch and break. When we got back, I was in a rotating activity where the kids got to make color Harry Potter bookmarks. They had a lot of fun with that as well and I liked making them too. :) When rotating activities were done, we had free play and closing before heading home.

When we got home, we decided that the mouse situation had to stop and we needed to clean up. So we first moved all of our food to another part of the kitchen and cleaned out all the shelves. After that, we divided cleaning jobs up. I was in the day room cleaning up the table and vacuuming, two were in the bathroom, and two were in the kitchen defrosting the freezer and cleaning some dishes and the counters. While I worked, I decided to rearrange the room so that it would be more open and a little cozier. It looks really cute now and has a lot more space. And it's so clean!

When cleaning was over, we made dinner and put in a Harry Potter movie. I definitely had a hard time watching the whole movie and went to bed before it was over. I had to get to sleep and couldn't keep my eyes open. It was definitely a good day and we all feel a lot better living here now that it is super clean and tidy. Gonna be a good week.

Cheerio.

England Day 29: More London Sights

London Photos HERE!!! :)

Sunday was a magnificent day! We woke up extra early to get started with our day and see all that we could. We took the City seeing Bus Tour so that we could hop on and hop off at all the place in London that we wanted to see. It was definitely the best way to see London. We got on our bus at a stop close to Carlie's parents hotel. We drove to northern London and saw some neat architecture and fun buildings. We got off in Trafalgar Square (picture below) and went to the information counter so that we could go on the walking tour to see the changing of the guards.

We went with our tour guide to Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guard. We stood in front of an old Castle where Queen Victoria used to live. She was the one that started the trend of wearing a white wedding dress. Definitely a lot of interesting information at that castle.

The changing of the guard was awesome! I truly felt like I was in London, England at that point. The Royal Band came out and started playing and then the Royal Guards came out to change with the guards at Buckingham Palace. We walked down the street with the guards until they got to the palace and then we watched as the other guards came on duty. It was so cool.

After the changing of the guard, we took some pictures of the palace and then continued our walking tour back to the information center. When we got back, we went to Trafalgar Square to check out some of the sites. We got to take a tour of the National Gallery. It was extraordinary. I got to see paintings I've only seen in books. Quite interesting. :)

After the National Gallery, we were hungry so we went to a little pub called Sherlock Holmes. It was really neat. It had awesome decor and decent food. When I was getting my food, apparently the girls were trying to open a ketchup bottle and it exploded, 3 times. I came back with my food to a table of ketchup and many napkins trying to clean it up. It was so funny to see them all sitting there trying to clean it all up. It was EVERYWHERE. lol.

After we finished lunch, we wanted to go on the boat cruise up the Thames River. We hopped back on the bus to go to the river boat cruise. We got to see a bunch of neat theaters and monuments. One of the monuments was for the fire that happened there. It was beautiful. We also saw the Tower Bridge that you think of when you think of London. We drove over it and got to see the beautiful architecture. It was magnificent.

When we got off the bus, we had to run to catch the river cruise. We missed it so had to wait a half hour for the next one. During that time, Maryanne had to pee REALLY bad. She could not stand still and had to go right then or she would pee her pants. So she ran back up to a coffee shop to pee while we waited for the cruise. I felt bad for her because she really had to go but now it's just funny to think about. She looked like she was gonna cry. Poor girl, but she made it. lol.

We hopped on the river cruise and headed west on the Thames River and got to see some of the great architecture along the way. There were more beautiful bridges, Shakespeare's globe, and the London Eye. We want to go on the London eye the last weekend we are here. It's the biggest Ferris wheel. Looks like fun.

When we got off, we were next to Big Ben. We decided to stop and take pictures before heading back to the bus. Only problem was that we couldn't find the bus pick-ups. We went to a few places where the map told us to go but we would wait and no buses would come. Or we'd wait and then walk off and see one come 3 minutes later. We were all a little cranky at that point. We just wanted to catch our bus so we could get our bags from the hotel and catch our train home.

We eventually got back to the hotel and waited around until it was time to catch a train. We got on the train without any problems and made it back to Feltwell at 1030. When we got back, I started unpacking and getting ready for bed. Then I heard screams from the hall. I didn't know what was happening so I walked out to see the girls standing outside the kitchen door. Brittany had walked in to the kitchen to grab something to eat and had opened the cabinet door to find a MOUSE on her food!!! She was so scared and freaked out by it. I would be too if I was her. She decided not to get food and we went back to unpacking. Then Maryanne went to grab food in the same cabinet and the mouse was still there. Darn mouse. It was freaky. Got to get more traps. lol.

After the mouse scare, we all got ready for bed since we had to work in the morning. It was a great weekend and I needed the sleep before the next day.

Cheerio.

England Day 28: Sights of London

Saturday was a marvelous day! We woke up around 7 to get ready for the day of sightseeing. We called a taxi to take us to the station and go to the Tower of London to meet Carlie and her parents.The Tower of London was a beautiful castle! We got to go inside and tour around the old castle and she lots of history.

We started by walking around in the torture area. There were a few contraptions that were used to torture people. One was called the Scavenger's Daughter. The person was folded into three and placed in this contraption and squeezed. It looked really painfully.

There was also one where people were tied at the wrists and ankles and stretched apart. I would not like either of those.

After the torture part, we walked along the top of the outside walls and learned about where the king's stayed and different armor used in battle. We then walked down into the center where we got to see the crown jewels! (Below is a picture of me standing in front of the building with Brittany, our group leader). I was bummed I couldn't take pictures but it was definitely a sight to see. We got to see plaques of all the kings and queens that have been in reign and see history and video on some of the crownings. We also got to see a lot of the jewels that have been worn by royalty. We saw the biggest diamond in the world on the sceptre of a king. and we saw beautiful crown and plates made of gold. It was truly amazing! I loved it all! :)

We stopped for lunch at a cafe inside the castle grounds before going on with our tour. We then toured the White Tower which stands in the middle of the castle grounds. It had a lot of neat armor and swords. Lots of history but I was tired at that point so I didn't read a lot of it.

After touring the Tower of London, we hopped on the tube to check out Westminster Abbey. I was so pumped to see this because that's where the Royal Couple was married! So exciting!!! We went on a tour of the church and saw where a lot of kings and queens were buried. We also got to see different memorials and statues. It was incredible. I couldn't believe I was standing in Westminster Abbey. It was so cool! We also got to stay for an Evensong service! SO INCREDIBLE! The choir was made of all boys and they were awesome. It reminded me of hearing my brother when he was in boys choir. The service beautiful. I loved it.

After the service we walked around and took some pictures of Big Ben before heading to the tube back to Marble Arch. We went out to dinner at a Burger Place and did a little shopping. We then walked down to Piccadilly Square where it was said to be like New York City, Times Square. It definitely was like that. Lots of people, huge crowds, tons of shops. It was neat but not my cup of tea. Crowds make me anxious and I tend to get cranky and annoyed with everyone walking around me. If people could hear the things I say in my head when walking those streets. I get so mad at the people walking on the street that all of a sudden STOP right in front of you. I just want to punch them in the face. It drives me crazy!!! And the people that walk by and run into you or that are walking towards you and see you there and still plow into you. So annoying!

After walking around Piccadilly, we were going to go sit at a pub but since we had an early morning and had another early morning on Sunday, we decided to head back. It definitely was a good plan because all of our feet hurt from walking around so much and we were exhausted. We made it onto the train and tube and caught a taxi back to the hotel. The day was definitely amazing and Sunday would be even better.

Cheerio.

England Day 27: Cream the counselor and London travels

Friday was the start of a really great weekend. We had our usually blitz with a fun skit. We went into our clubs and I had to work in the free play area because we were short a few people. Lots of field trips and such. I had a fun time though and got to teach some kids how to make friendship bracelets.

After that we had lunch and then moved on to rotating activities. I played a fun low active game with the kids called Detective. One child would stand with their eyes closed against the wall while I would pick another child to be "missing." They would hide and then the detective would come back and try to figure out who was missing. It was a fun game and the kids really enjoyed it.

After rotating activities we had free choice and then closing blitz. For the last two weeks I have not been creamed. Well it finally happened this week. One of the girls from my group, Carlie, told the kids they should all cream me. Only one of them did and three others creamed her because they said I was too nice to cream and that they wanted to get Carlie for trying to tell them to get me. Serves her right! :) Carlie and I have a love/hate relationship. We mostly like to pick on each other and be sarcastic all the time. Definitely makes life in England interesting. I'd be pretty bored with her being here to pick on. :)

When the creaming was over, we cleaned up and got ready to catch a train to LONDON! This time we caught a later train so that we would be sure to catch it. We made our train and had a nice easy trip down to London. When we got to King's Cross, we hopped on the tube to Marble Arch where Carlie's parents were staying. They are amazing people! They remind me of my parents. Very kind and easy going. Love to have fun and I felt very protected with them. It was nice to have a mom and a dad for the weekend. They traveled everywhere with us. They thought they were cramping our style but I didn't mind at all. I rather liked having them with us.

When we met up with her parents, we headed to our reservation at the Icebar of London. We had heard that every year they change the sculptures and carvings in the car and that they are spectacular. So we went on a forty minute reserved stay and got to see the beautiful carvings. Everything was made of ice, even the glasses. It was extraordinary.

After that, we headed back to Carlie's parents hotel to get our bags and go to our hotel, which was about a 30 minute train ride from them. On the train, we were trying to figure out where our hotel would be from the station and a girl sitting by us told us we should get a taxi because apparently the train station we would get off at was a bad area. So she gave us a number to call for a taxi. I'm so glad she did. We would not have been able to find the hotel and it was definitely a scary neighborhood off the train station.The hotel itself was awesome and cheap. The part of the hotel we stayed in seemed like it was newly refurbished and so cute. Very modern and cute.

When we were all settled and changed for bed, we finally went to bed around 130. Definitely a long day and knew it was an early morning so we needed our rest. Couldn't wait to explore London the next day. :)

Cheerio.