London run

Well today we hit the road in the car and headed down to London. We have booked a room on the outskirts and plan on staying over night to give us as much time as possible. Once we arrive, dump our bags we head for the tube. 

The underground train system here is awesome. Marty asks the girls if any of the stations seem familiar. Euston, Kings cross, Piccadilly, Hyde Park? They all thought they were really familiar but couldn't place them until I said maybe a game you play? Monopoly seem to be screamed out in unison. 

The girls are bursting with excitement and the minute we walk to the top of the stairs at charring cross station we are greeted with London telephone boxes the girls faces are priceless. 

We head to the Sherlock Holmes pub for lunch. It's such a cool little pub with heaps of memorabilia to look at. If you blink you would miss it but the girls all loved their food. Marty had toad in the hole, which was the biggest Yorkshire pudding I had ever seen. 

People are everywhere. Not like sydney City busy but like that times 4!  It's crazy just how many tourist are around. It's loud and crazy. We walk down the strand to come face to face with Trafalgar Square. The last time I was here it was cold and raining, so to see it in the sunshine is amazing. 

The statues are beautiful and the fountains are just gorgeous. The only thing missing were the pigeons. None! Don't get me wrong I hate them as much as mice but it was weird to not have them everywhere. 

We then headed for the open top hop on hop off buses. These are the best way of seeing as much of the city as possible. It's a audio guided tour and means you can listen or you can just sit back and enjoy the view. We get to see heaps. The cathedral, London and tower bridge, Tower of London, Big Ben and much more. 

We get off at the London eye which is bursting with people. Over 4 hour wait to get on the eye and it's 5pm!!! We opt to go to the London dungeon which is a walk through show of all the dark past of London. Jack the Ripper, Sweeney Todd, mrs Lovett and the plague just to name a few. 

I couldn't take any photos while we were in the two hour show, but let's just say Georgia has a scream built for a horror movie. The scare factor with super cool and they may have managed to get me to squeal very loudly. 

We finished and walked back out onto the promenade. It felt like it was 3 in the afternoon. Their summer time is crazy. It was actually 6.30pm. We had ice cream while people watching and took a load of for the first real time today. 

Next stop was the queens house. This we had made our last stop while heading back towards the hotel. It was getting quieter in the city which made for getting photos a whole lot funnier. We had some room to get our crazy on and the result was we ended up with a super cool photo to end the day. London was exhausting, busy and expensive but so worth it. The girls will remember it forever. 

Tomorrow takes us to platform 9 3/4. All aboard!!!!

Day 3 and 4

Saturday saw us back up in the air and arriving in London. I took a picture to show how weird it is to be able to watch the plane fly while your in it. Its super strange. 

Uncle Jaimie and Aunty Sarah pick us up. The girls ran straight up with open arms, ready for a love assault from Jaimie. The girls were a little stir crazy as the car trip home was another two hours but they remained happy so it could have been worse. 

Mostly uneventful trip until we ran out of petrol five minutes from home, after Jaimie had announced earlier he was a professional driver. I think it was made even funnier when Emerson who listens to everything, felt the need to question this statement when we all piled out of the van. The honesty of kids is sometimes the funniest of things. 

Once we had finally made it to Newark, the girls played and laughed non stop. I relaxed albeit a little to much with my duty free Cafe Patron. Whomever thought of putting my two favourite drinks together (coffee and tequila) should be given sainthood. It seriously is the best drink ever and has a silent way of kicking you up the but. 

Once we had dinner we headed over to Marty's aunts place to settle in as we are staying with them. The girls met their first of many cousins, whom is the twins age. I think they all loved her from first sight and have played non stop since. It was truly cute to watch them. 

After the last couple of days. Today was a relax and planning day. The girls slept until almost ten. We organised most of the week and took the girls to see the castle ruins in the town we are staying in, Newark. I'm buggered and believe I will be in bed early tonight as we are off to London tomorrow for two days with the girls. 

Day two

We arrived in Abu Dhabi a little tired and rough looking. After check in and a little breakfast we ventured to the roof top to do a little swimming and relaxing in the pool and hot tub. We watched the planes take off and land. Looking out over the vast flat sand landscape. Not knowing how far you are seeing due to the heat haze. 

The landscape is beautiful in its own right. We are in a desert and they haven't tried to make it look like we aren't. Infact  their buildings all blend into the surrounding. All creams and terracottas. It's actually cool that they have been so simpathetic. I imagine also it helps with the extreme heat that they live with most of the year. 

We did venture out to the marina and had a look around. Not much is happening here at the moment during the day as it is the start of Ramadan. A religious time when they fast from sun up to sun down. I can respect their way of life and beliefs. I can also admit I don't truly understand this period but am happy to be respectful to the culture. 

The people here are uber friendly. Beautiful nature and happy to talk to you and smile and wave at the girls. And you know what the whole fasting during the day was not that hard. 

We did find ourselves needing an afternoon nap which was really needed. We ventured back out at 8pm and the place was Alive with people. The food here was just WOW! After a last dip in the hotel pool sleep found us again. Tomorrow brings another plane trip. 

We are London bound. 

And we are off

Omg my eyes are hanging out my head. I maybe got 4 hours sleep. Excitment and nerves plagued my head and body. Sleep was the last thing I could seem to do. I drifted in and out of a light sleep until finally I just had to get up. The morning has been a buzzed of excited children. Stressed mummy and a very happy daddy. We seemed to have made it out of the house with everything we may possibly need and are on the road to head to sydney for our night time flight.....

We arrive at the airport with over three hours to spare and you know time seem to just fly and before we knew it we were on board an A380 bus and are in the air. The girls were happy and enjoying all that flying entails. Sleep found us at 1am and when I say sleep I mean sitting upright with multiple children leaning on me and my eyes were closed. 

At 5.20am Abu Dhabi time this morning my little family and I touched down in Abu Dhabi for the night. The people are just so friendly and the landscape is so vastly different from home it actually polarises your thought patterns. It's flat, sandy and the haze from the humidity is crazy. 

We even ran into Sunrises David Koche and his wife in the hotel elevator where I embarrassed myself to no end. As I finish this I'm watching my girls swim and play in the hotel pool. Day 1 is over and the adventure has just started. 

Hide out is over

Five months ago we sold our Main Street business in a small central west nsw town. We had been public property for four years and when we sold, I had made a packed with myself. I had decided to slip off the radar for a good period of time. I closed my Facebook for a long period and I didn't venture out much. I started writing a book, while I have read book after book. I needed this for my sanity and a massive reboot on my life. 

Selling the shop was a priority for us. It had gotten to the stage it ruled everything and it just wasn't fun. Stress rained supreme and my girls were placed last in priorities and this just wasn't right.  I was proud of what we had done but things had to change. When the shop sold so quick, I think I let out a breath I had been holding for months. Relief hit me and that's when I made the choice to isolate myself for a good period of time.

I'm sure some people have been offended but you know what? I did this for me. I needed it. I needed to have silence from people. I could not be a $4.50 coffee counsellor anymore. People   Who know me well, understood. The ones who didn't, I put no effort into. Simple but harsh, it was time to be selfish which is not a common thing for me. 

I have loved the silence. I have loved the timeout. I have loved that I have rebooted and my family are now back in the right priority place, number 1! I'm baking for them like a crazy person. I know what they are all up to and they are talking to me about everything. It hurts to think I have missed such a big chunk of their lives. A lot happens in 4 years. I mean for freak sake I have a child in high school now. How did that happen!!!

So this weekend I decided to get back out. Knowing my mind and soul are in a great place I have ventured out all weekend. Talked to people I haven't seen in what seemed like forever. I may have gotten a little wasted which when you haven't seen people for awhile, slurred speech makes for very embarrassing conversations!

Either way I feel good with me and my life. I love the people who have stuck with me while I wasn't so social. I feel this year changed so many things for us and me. I am not carrying baggage. I'm not stressed and worried. I'm enjoying everything and being 100% in the here and now. I still think my hermit ways will stick but I will force myself to get out more. Once a hermit, always a hermit.