Sheril, My New Friend : )

I met a new friend today, Sheril, who's a good friend of one of my dear friends, Maria. It was great to meet someone who I'd met a bit through emails. After lunch in the park, she treated us to hot drinks at Starbucks! We haven't had Starbucks since leaving the States. : )














Sheril needed to go back to work, so the kids and I walked around Hyde Park. We came across a marker that read:The Diana ~ Princess of Whales ~ Memorial Walk. It was a beautiful walk, one that is difficult to put into words. It was very special to experience something in honor of Princess Di. Imagine how gorgeous these pics would be if it were Spring!

To our surprise, we spotted a park in the distance. Not just any park, but one with play equipment! This is our first playground since arriving in London. C and Q couldn't contain their excitement and ran ahead to take full advantage of our discovery.
We had a fabulous time and it was great to hear them laugh and giggle all the while we were there! It started getting dark, so we had to leave and head back to find a bus that would drop us off near home.

Look at this cute trash can ~ it's a Litter Bug!

We found Marble Arch, which meant we were close to the bus stop. The days are staying lighter now, so we took advantage of the daylight and continued on to one of my favorite memorials.





















I wish I knew what this memorial is called. It's very artistic, compelling, and intricate. One can only see it's intricacy up close; otherwise, it's purpose may go unnoticed. On one side of one of the eight sides of one of the posts it reads: This memorial commemorates the enduring bonds between New Zealand and the United Kingdom, and our shared sacrifice during times of war. It is a symbol both of our common heritage and of New Zealand's distinct national identity.

When you click on the last few pics, you can see up close what another of eight sides reads. I've taken one pic of the whole post, then three pics of its words from top to bottom. One of the things I like about this post are the red poppies.

My kids were great all day and they were so awesome to be with. I love sharing these experiences with them and later finding out four different view points of the day. Each one sees things so differently and I love hearing about them. Each one is a treasure.

We found the right bus and boarded. Funny thing is, whilst I was unloading and folding the strollers, a beeping was going off. It was quite annoying and very loud.I looked around and it didn't seem like it was because of me, but once I got the strollers folded and put in their proper places, the bus driver yelled something that I thought was at me for not paying yet. I walked up to the front (we entered in the middle section of the bus where those with strollers are supposed to) and tapped my Oyster card to pay for our ride. When I got there, the bus driver snapped something at me.I told him I was sorry, but I didn't hear what he said. I guess I said it nicely because he calmed down a bit when he told me he almost crushed me in the doors trying to close them. I had NO IDEA I was the reason the bus was beeping so loudly and for so long!

One thing I've noticed is how much Londoners keep to themselves and are so incredibly quiet on public transportation (with the exception of school kids who practically make a performance of their presence). If I knew why the bus was beeping, I would have told the poor gal trying to pack up four kids worth of stuff so she could sit down. Oh, well. I smiled and apologized, then climbed to the top of the bus for our hour ride home.

Here's a pic of my view from the back seat up top. The fun thing was finding out most of us got off at the same stop AND walked home the same way!

I love days like this.