Auntie K's Last Week

Yes, it happened a couple weeks ago. I'm just now getting to posting. My sister finally had to leave us. :(  I know she has to get on with her life and plus, the English government wouldn't let her stay any longer without a visa, but we were sure sad to see her go.  We had a fun final week together as one of our lifelong friends came to visit.  I have known GG since we were born and she is more like a sister to me than anyone else.  I mean a real one, as in we've had fights, but always are friends in the end, have gone for LONG periods of time without talking but when we do it's just the same ole same ole. We actually have always referred to ourselves as "eternal sisters" because we figured we probably knew each other before we came to earth, and we hope to see each other on the other side as well.  So because we knew GG was coming, we waited to do a few things until she arrived.  We went to Blickling Hall, Bury St. Edmunds, Thetford Priory, London, Weeting Castle, Oxburgh Hall, and Cambridge. It was a full week!  But tons of fun (though we were all pretty tired at night--I even fell asleep putting the kids to bed at least twice that week).


The gorgeous blossoms on the trees near our house.  Just getting in some more pictures with Auntie K before she had to leave.



Blickling Hall.  Goofy and Minnie were the only children with us, and they loved running around the gardens.  They were huge!  There was a secret garden, a dell, several ornamental pieces, an orangery, a "temple," and then just these main gardens with a double walled border.  It was a lot of fun.

  

Westminster and GG--I hadn't done Westminster yet and it was really neat.  My favorite part was searching for some of my favorite author's in the poets corner.  Also, Mary, Queen of Scots tomb was neat because we are direct descendants.


 

Buckinham Palace with my sista




Hard Rock Cafe in London. The original Hard Rock and what fun it was! We had an original waitress as well which was the neatest part.  (Oh, and there were a quarter million people outside protesting in the streets of London while we were there. It was crazy! And made the tube trip home very packed.)

 

The Tower of London




Tower Bridge

  

We stopped at the Thetford Priory after church. One of my favorite places in Thetford.





Goofy at the chapel in Weeting. We stopped to show GG the Weeting Castle ruins. I just love the round towered church.




Waiting for our food at the pub (The Bird in Hand). They were just making silly faces.




Oxburgh Hall and Auntie K.  This was a cool one with the moat, a priest's hole, tapestries by Mary, Queen of Scots, and original handwritten letters from Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.  Very neat!




Punting on the Cam River in Cambridge. King's College in the background.



On the green double decker bus from the park and ride into Cambridge.

We had a lot of fun that last week.  I was so glad GG could come and visit and will be forever grateful for Auntie K who came and stayed for 6 months! It would have been a much colder winter had she not been here. We already miss her smiling face, singing, and dancing!  Love you K!