Tuesday, June 29th - back to England!

I know the last post said that I was going to talk about the opportunities we've been given - and I will, but not for several more posts. I didn't take good notes and I want to capture our summer vacation before I lose my memory completely (always possible these days)! I WILL post about all of the opportunities we've had, because God has been so active, and it's only because of Him that we have had so many neat experiences.

We did not expect to return to England so soon after moving, but there was a family wedding! One of Paul's sisters was getting married. Paul and I discussed, thought about and finally prayed and prayed about what to do. God knew the timing of everything, and He is in control of our lives. He could have made this wedding happen while we were living in England, but He didn't. We talked about Paul and I going on our own for a quick weekend, or Paul and one or both girls going, or Paul attending on his own. Paul's family was very understanding of our circumstances and his sister, the bride, was wonderful about patiently waiting and never putting any pressure on us regarding how many of us would attend. We prayed, discussed, and waited some more. God answered our concerns when God provided through a more generous bonus than expected. I want to do a whole separate post about this because over and over, since we obeyed God and did what we believed He desired, God continually provided and constantly showed His power in our lives. If anything, I can look at things like this and say that I may not understand, but I can be at peace with God's will for our lives.

So, while I thought we'd finally take the kids to Disney World, we scrapped that plan and made plans to return to England for a family wedding. Who would have thought?

A side note, I want to be extremely clear on this point because I'm jetlagged and tired and this could be interpreted the wrong way. It was ALWAYS our desire to be with family and celebrate a family wedding. When I talk about things not going the way I planned, I mean all of the moving around that we've done. I am not a mover. I don't like to say, "goodbye". I still love all of my Austin friends. I still miss all of my Austin friends. Now I miss my English friends, too. I don't like to start over. I like to plant and reap. When I reference not understanding what has happened to us, I mean with the starting over part. God continually provided OVER and OVER, and He even gave us far more than I ever expected. He is so good....but that is for a future post. Living a couple of hours from Paul's family was FANTASTIC. I'd do that all over again - but I wish it was possible to do that and not start all over. Now we are starting over again in California. Sigh. But back to today's subject.


Today was the day and we had a surprise for the kids. A stretch limo was taking us to/from the airport! Again, something I had not considered or expected, but a fun surprise that worked out in the scheme of things. Once the funds were in place to get us to the wedding, it didn't make sense to spend them and stay for the weekend. We were able to cobble together a plan to stay for 2 1/2 weeks with minimal expense for lodging.

Our first thought was to drive to the airport and pay to leave the car, but upon research, Paul discovered that it was roughly the same cost to have a driver take us to/from the airport. Paul made the arrangements and we told the kids that we were taking a taxi to the airport.

When the limo arrived, the girls were SPEECHLESS!














I think it's the first time that has ever happened!!!!

The driver had filled the inside with cokes/fantas, etc, but we didn't drink anything. We weren't sure if they had a cost, and once one person had one, everyone else would follow suit. There were stars on the ceiling that were pretty neat, and plenty of space for us to sit.














Everyone was excited and moved all around, trying out all of the different seats.















Although it was a lot of fun, it was NOT comfortable! Paul, Kathryn and Andrew had the best seats - their legs could go straight down. I had to sit with my legs at a slant (look at Megan's brown leggings and see that they are angled out the way), and the seat was not made for at least my body at all! Still, the novelty was pretty fun, it saved Paul the extra stress of driving, parking and taking the shuttle to the airport, and our van stayed safe in our garage. It also allowed Paul to work on the way there!














It was a pretty fun way to start vacation!

Once at the airport, I was reminded of the benefits of having a husband who travels a lot. We bypassed all of the "general" lines, and went straight for the "frequent flyer" lines. Look where we are - next to be assisted, and look at the line for the general flying population. It's nice to have perks, especially when traveling with a lot of children!


















The kids were great travelers. Paul had 3 of them with him nearer the front of the plane, and I had Kathryn with me in the VERY LAST (full) ROW. Despite Paul's status, we were unable to have 6 seats together. It was not that bad, and I felt lucky to draw the straw to have one child with me, but the very last row is NOT the place for resting! The flight to the U.K. is a night flight. Paul and his 3 kids were in "premium economy", which has slightly nicer seats with more leg room. The very last row has very little leg room. That didn't really matter to me; however, the last row is near the bathrooms, and it's VERY NOISY! I couldn't count the number of times that I drifted off to an uncomfortable sleep, only to be awakened by people loudly talking near the restrooms to while away the 10 1/2 hours. Worse than that, a French family was behind us in a 1/2 row and they talked and talked and talked LOUDLY. They got a lot of dirty glances from people around them, but to no avail. When they finally fell asleep, the people who didn't want to sleep, or those who had rested before but now wanted to talk, congregated at the bathrooms and talked LOUDLY. Sigh. My need for rest was submitted to God, and only by His grace was I able to get through the next day without being grumpy or short tempered with the people that I love. Why don't we do this more? Why do I always think I have to have things a certain way to keep me feeling good?

Here we are just outside of Heathrow. Notice the skinny sidewalks? We're back in England! It was only fitting that it spit a few drops of rain as we waited for the shuttle bus to the rental car place.


















We truly didn't have any glitches in traveling though. Paul was a STAR in switching to the right side of the car and driving on the left, all the while navigating to a new place. We weren't going straight to his parents' house, but to our own cottage in the Cotswolds. We had not visited the Cotswolds while we lived in England, and I found a great deal on a cottage there for 3 nights. Our plan was to have a few days together as just our family on vacation before going to the wedding and then spending a week visiting Paul's family.

Tomorrow - the Cotswolds, a really beautiful part of England.