England 2022 Series (Pt 4)

July 25, 2022 The Ameri Brit Mom3 Comments

Our fourth week in England was a lot more chill than the others. We still traveled a lot and made the most of each day, but the pace was a little slower. Most of the week, it was just the four of us doing our own thing, but we still had some larger family outings too. The girls went to Puxton Park with their auntie and uncle while Sam and I enjoyed an afternoon tea in Yeovil and some drinks at a local pub. This week we also went to an indoor play park in Eastleigh, shopping in WestQuay (Southampton), a steamfair in Lyndhurst, and a bootsale and a traditional roast dinner in Bishopstoke.

As we enter the final week of our trip, it’s been fun to look back on all of the adventures we’ve had so far this summer with our English family and friends.

Check out Part One, Part Two, and Part Three here.

The Ameri Brit Mom

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Chance: Five Minute Friday

July 22, 2022 The Ameri Brit Mom11 Comments

It’s Friday, and finally the heat spell has broken in the UK! This week the weather broke records and while it felt like we may all just melt we have survived in a country lacking the infrastructure to stand up to excessive heat. I’m joining my positive writing community at Five Minute Friday for this week’s theme: Chance.

What are the chances that I will make it home next week without delay?

I’ve been following the news out of London Heathrow, and things are looking grim. So many long-haul delays and flight cancellations flood my newsfeed. I’ll be heading home at the end of the month, and I am not looking forward to all that is involved with airport travel.

Security can take ages when you travel with a family of four. I’ve stood in lines at Customs for over an hour with a whining toddler in tow. Airports are not always the most efficient at moving people from Point A to Point B.

The chances are pretty high that we will spend more time than at the airport next week.

And if I am stranded in an airport next Friday, chances are that I’ll not be able to join in on the weekly link-up.

Here’s to hoping my chances are better than I’m predicting for arriving home without interruption. If all goes to plan, I’ll be joining you all next week from AMERICA.

The Ameri Brit Mom

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England 2022 Series (Pt 2)

July 11, 2022 The Ameri Brit Mom2 Comments

It’s the second week of our family excursion to England to visit family and friends. We will be here the entire month of July and each week I’ll be checking in with photos and short descriptions of what we’ve been up to. Our time has been filled with making memories with those we love so we can store those up in our hearts until we meet again.

Check out Part One here.

During this second week, our itenerary has taken us to The Play Shack in Hedge End, Bognor Regis beach, Itchen Valley Country Park, and the historic city of Winchester. We’ve visited with my mother-in-law and her partner along with my soon-to-be brother-in-law. My husband’s aunts visited from Dover as well and enjoyed being worn out by our energetic children at the park. Our menus this week have been filled with the customary British foods: fish and chips, sausage rolls, picnic sandwiches, and I tried cockle for the first time on the seafront (not sure I’d ever order again, but it was fun to give it a go!)

Week Two Photos

The Ameri Brit Mom

england · Family · Uncategorized

England 2018: Week 1 Review

July 18, 2018July 17, 2018 The Ameri Brit Mom6 Comments

I cannot believe that we’ve been in the sunny UK for one week now. Packing a year worth of visits into one month really makes time fly. Watching the girls connect with their British family and heritage makes all of the hassle of travel worth it.

This first week was spent adjusting to the time difference and reacquainting our family with those we love in England. While here we stay with my father-in-law in the house where my husband grew up. Along with us for the week my sister-in-law and brother-in-law are also staying in the house. It’s a packed house, but we enjoy the company. We stay in Eastleigh which is a suburb of Southampton along the south coast of England.

A major difference between life in Eastleigh and our home in Ohio is that everything we could possibly need is within walking distance. We travel by foot as often as we can and we log well over 10,000 steps per day throughout our stays. It’s nice to have the option to travel by car, but with a metro center less than a mile from the house we take advantage of the opportunity to move our legs and get outside.

Life moves at a slower pace here. In America, life is packed so full. It’s the American way. But in England, most shops and venues close for the evening around 5pm. This encourages families to spend more time together in the home. We’ve done so much during the days while here, but our evenings are generally spent around the dinner table, playing games, and just hanging out with the people we love.

Some of the things we did during our first week:

-went to a new cinema in Southampton to catch the release of Uncle Drew (a basketball movie which was totally my husband’s choice)

-swam in the Fleming Park paddling pool

-signed Arianna up for her very own Eastleigh Library card

-swam at Romsey Rapids, an indoor water park

-participated in my first ever cycling class is Twyford

-met up with students and teachers from the school where I work. They are currently traveling abroad for a foreign language trip and part of their itinerary brought them to Portsmouth, a fifteen minute drive from Eastleigh. An added bonus, my cousin was on the trip!

-attended the Cheese Festival in Portsmouth and walked along the sea

-worshipped in the town square during the annual Eastleigh Churches Together service

-drove through the lovely New Forest to pick up my brother-in-law. (Side note: In the New Forest horses have free reign of the roads and town. Wild horses are beautiful!)

-shopped in Eastleigh’s Swan Center

-watched on television as England lost in the semi-finals of the World Cup

Some foods we’ve eaten:

-Cottage pie

-Fish’n’chips

-Traditional English Breakfast (fried egg, sausage, bacon, beans, chips)

-Paninis

-Lots of Costa coffee

-Traditional Roast Dinner

-Mac’n’Cheese waffle from the Cheese Festival

Milestones

My girls also had some big milestones during this first week. Arianna learned to ride a bike without training wheels. She enlisted the help of an elderly neighbor, but within thirty minutes she was off! I cannot believe how quickly she picked it up. Aleah started belly laughing and can now roll from her back to her belly. Aleah also splashed in the water at Romsey Rapids for the very first time.

I am looking forward to all we have planned over the next few weeks. I will share weekly recaps so stay tuned to see what all we get up to while staying with family in England.

The Ameri Brit Mom

Family

“The British Are Coming; The British Are Coming!”

October 17, 2015 The Ameri Brit Mom1 Comment

As Paul Revere rode through the countryside announcing the arrival of the British Troops he struck up fear and called the men of the colonies to arms. Today, I run through the house borrowing the words of Mr. Revere. I’m calling out, “The British Are Coming; The British Are Coming…” but these words are met with a much different response. It is not a call to fear and defense it is a call to relax. It is a call which warrants the cheering and jumping of my toddler. One which makes her scream and dance with joy.

Today as these words echo through my home I am not announcing the advance of a tyrannical group of men, but rather the arrival of my dearly loved and admired mother-in-law. Now, before you think I am likening my MIL to the forces of the British Troops who sought to stamp out the independence of the colonies, please know that I am only jesting. I’m a history nerd who oftentimes misrepresents historical events for my own amusement.

My mother-in-law currently lives in Eastleigh, England. She is a nursery worker and she does a fabulous job in this profession. She is a kind-hearted British woman and every moment I get to spend with her is a blessing. This week happens to be the Pumpkin Show, a famous festival in my hometown. For years my MIL has been wanting to attend the Pumpkin Show so in an act of spontaneity she booked a flight this week and is arriving later today. I’m really looking forward to a week off of work with my family and MIL. There are so many wonderful and fun things that the Pumpkin Show brings every year and so I am looking forward to sharing those things with her.

Now, it’s off to finish setting up the Guest Bedroom.

“The British Are Coming; The British Are Coming!”

england · Fashion

British Summer Style

July 8, 2015July 17, 2018 The Ameri Brit MomLeave a comment

Experiencing summer in Ohio and summer in England are two completely different things. I’ve come from 80-90 degree temperatures to ones closer to the mid sixties. A typical British summer is often similar to early spring in Ohio. With this massive change in temperatures I’ve been on the lookout for a fashionable pair of pants, or trousers as the British would call them. I’ve brought quite a bit of spending money this year because one of my favorite activities is shopping in England. I don’t often splurge on myself, but while in England I enjoy a couple successful shopping ventures. This week I visited the West Quay in Southampton and scored this outfit. I love the pastel colors and I’m very fond of the mint/pink combination.

I wore this new ensemble to our first date since arriving last week. My husband and I woke up this morning and walked in to town for a coffee and lunch date. As always I’m having my fair share of coffee in England. Eastleigh, where I am staying, literally is lined with coffee houses I could go to a different coffee shop everyday for the entire stay and never repeat a visit. I quite fancy Costa coffee, but there are other enjoyable places as well. This outfit was fun and comfortable for the date. It was light and airy during the ten minute walk to the town center.