Truly British

This past weekend we took our "regular" trip down to England to check our American mailbox. Never exactly the most fun trip, but always a little fun, as we are in "Little America" for about all of 24 hours (yes, we drive 5 hours, check our mailbox b/c the post office is not open on the weekends, go to dinner, stay in a hotel, get up, have breakfast, do an American grocery run and products run and then drive 5 hours back home)...and we come home with most of the comforts of home...you know, Wheat Thins, Special K, Graham crackers, Tortilla chips, Rotel (we Texans must have some salsa now and then!!), new shoes and a few new clothes. All in all, it was a successful trip...and, the English countryside is always a welcomed and beautiful sight on the drive! We live here!!

We had another "we live here" moment on Sunday. We went out to a castle (of course) and ... with the castle in the background ... watched the International Horseriding championships and walked through a Country fair. Can I just say, it was so cool. Clearly, we were tourists, walking around in our normal shoes while just about everyone else had on wellies (uh...rainboots)...and for good reason. We're still washing the mud off our shoes! Jackson loved seeing all the "horsies" and "goggies" there. He also enjoyed a ride on a genuine steam train run by coal and all!! It was neat! Here are some pictures.






And, with the "Luck o' the Irish", we will be landing in Ireland on Saturday afternoon for a week of exploring and relaxation in Dublin and the Eastern shores of Ireland. I'm hoping that brings some more pictures to share.