Lesli's Live Long and Strong WISH Journal

[pearlieq]

Just dropping by to say we're thinking of you!!!

Hope you're having a great time!

 

[Lesli54]

I'M BACK!

Is summer over yet? When I look at all the things that I need to get done, it sure feels like summer just flew by.

Anyway, we had a great time in WDW! When we pulled into town at 3am this morning, I realized that vacation was actually over. The buildings were partially empty and not as cute, I couldn't find Pluto or Donald Duck, Main Street didn't look as clean (although its not really dirty either), and someone forgot to pack the Castle and bring it home.

Still in my dreams I was back at the Epcot resorts.

It is going to take me some time to catch everyone up and to get caught up with everyone, but I will.

The good news is that I didn't gain any weight. Actually, the scale read 209, the same as when I left. Even better is the fact that I will probably lose about 3-5 lbs in the next few days as I am retaining some water from traveling and not drinking enough water while vacationing. Can't wait to get back on track with eating and drinking (water, that is ). I am not giving up this plan, I am more motivated than ever to get to my goal so that I can feel fantastic on my next WDW trip.

Another note to mention. My feet didn't hurt while we were down there and don't hurt now. What a wonderful feeling!

Gotta go catch up on some work around here and I will be posting and reading the boards as I take some breaks. I am glad to be back amongst friends.

 

[TigerCheer2009]

Long time no see, Lesli, but glad you're back!!! Are you gonna write another trip report? How was the food and most importantly, why didn't you take us with you????

 

[rcyannacci]

Welcome back!!! Take your time, get back into the swing of things, and then let us know how great your trip was!

I hate it when my feet get tired-I'm already planning for our next WDW trip in May, and I can't wait to experience the parks with my leaner, toner, more energized body.

 

[pearlieq]

LESLI!!! I missed you!!! Glad you made it home safely and had a good time!

Congrats on staying steady at WDW! Can't wait to see how things shake out after a few days back home!!!

So glad to hear you didn't have sore feet! Didn't that just make every day for the past few months worth it?!?

Good to have you home! Have a great weekend!

 

[Lesli54]

I have to get myself back on track today, as yesterday wasn't all that great. The "I'm back home, but want to be at WDW blues."

Yesterday, we rolled in at 3am and we all slept until about 9am. Well, the older DD's were closer to 11am. Breakfast was 1 scrambled egg w/ cheese, 8 oz grapefruit juice, and 1 slice 7 grain w/ jelly. Boy did I miss my juice. I had a hard time getting my water started, but managed to finally drink 96 oz. Would have liked another 24 more. After not drinking as much water as I was used to, it was quite difficult to get it started again, but once I got going my body was really craving it.

I got caught up on a few journals, email, and snail mail. Going away for two weeks leaves a lot of mail to look through. For the most part, I didn't do much of anything. We did get most of the things from vacation put away and I will tell you that it is nice to have laundry facilities available in the villas as I didn't have tons of dirty laundry coming back home. Did get some other cleaning done around the house as well. Lunch was 1 hot dog w/ bun and too many chips. Then I ate 2 cookies, 1/2 candy bar, and some more chips. Don't really know why. During our trip, I usually ate pretty decently. I think it was the combination of being tired, not having the right groceries in the house yet, and trying to jolt myself back to reality. Then I sat for a little bit watching GH and trying to catch up a little (haven't seen it in over a month).

Back to doing some computer work. Then for supper, DH and I both were thinking steak and salad. That was really pretty tasty. I would have been fine with just that, but DH baked some garlic cheese bread (yes, I ate a piece, didn't have to, shouldn't have, but I reasoned that it was a splurge before getting back on program ). Then he poured a wine cooler for me. It was only 1/2 a bottle, so I thought that would be fine, as I don't drink often, then he went and poured more. He is quickly derailing my plans. But I took it in stride, knowing that I don't eat that way all the time and starting today, I was going back on track.

After dinner, I played a computer game for awhile. Haven't done that in a long time. I guess you could say the day was not very productive and I was enjoying the relaxation a little too much. Like I said, the "I'm not in WDW anymore blues". Oh well. Went to bed early and didn't wait up for DD17 to come back from her date. Something new we are trying, after all, in less than 2 months, she will be gone and she has to learn how to manage this new found freedom. Although house rules still have a curfew that she must abide by to set an example for the younger ones and out of curtesy for those who are sleeping.

On to today. Still weighing in at 209. Although, I have lost some of the water. I figure it's the heavy supper and alcohol that I ate a little late. Not to mention that yesterday wasn't a great day for food. Oh well, must keep pushing forward.

Breakfast: 1 scrambled egg w/ moz, 4 oz grapefruit juice, 1/2 slice 7 grain toast w/ jelly
AM snack: None.......breakfast was a little late
Lunch: 4 oz chicken breast w/ bun & onion
PM snack: yogurt
Supper: ?????? Haven't figured that out yet, but I want green beans and a salad. It will be late since it is Saturday, so I will try to keep it light.

Of course, if DH decides to go see Star Wars, that might throw off the supper plans. I can't believe we have waited this long to see it.

Goals for the day:
1. Exercise (maybe some dancing, I really miss that)
2. Bookwork caught up
3. Bill paying (ick)

Well, I better get going. I will finish my trip report for London. Tried before I left, but for some reason, it didn't post. Then it will be on to post my WDW trip and my 3 month progress report. It may take a few days, but I will get it done.

To those who are new reading my journal........Wellcome!

Gotta go and get some more water down. Have a great day!

 

[pearlieq]

Yesterday sounds like a nice, relaxing day. It's so hard to make that transition between "I'm on vacation" and "I'm home and have all of my regular responsibilities". It's really a jolt! Don't worry about taking it easy for a day or two!

Hope you have a great day! Have fun at the movie if you decide to go!!!

 

[Lesli54]

Drum roll.........206! That makes another 3lbs down. That WDW water weight is finally losing ground. Still looks like there may be just a bit more to go (I hope). Too bad I can't lose weight like this all the time. It sure is a great motivator though and at least I know my scale isn't broken.

So that makes me 1 lb from a new clippie and only 6.5 til ONDERLAND. I actually saw 202 on the scale today for a brief fleeting moment. Boy what a great sight. Much better than 222. This is really going to happen this time and it feels so good.

Yesterday was an ok day, but not great. I spent too much time on the computer and didn't get my exercise in. That is a really big problem for me. Now since the kids are out of school, maybe I should try getting up earlier again to exercise, it seemed to work better that way. Also, I think I might try walking or biking with the family in the evenings.

Lunch ended up being a brat w/ bun. They ran out of chicken at the cookout and I didn't really want a hotdog and the pork chops were pretty good sized. Not a great choice, I should have just come home and made a salad. It seems that having a brat brings on cravings for chips (which I did have). I think it is mainly because it is an old habit and the combination goes well together. So looks like I will have to keep that in mind next time. Of course, the salt from the chips brought on a sweet craving and I ate about 2/3 of a candy bar from London. So I skipped the PM snack, which was going to be cottage cheese and pineapple since there wasn't any light yogurt at the store. Should have stuck with the plan it sounds much more tasty and much more worth it than the chips and candy. Later, I ate a small package of Ritz Peanut butter sandwiches. So needless to say, I wasn't very hungry for supper and DH decided that we would have pizza. Funny, he didn't really eat any of it. I ate one small square of cheese pizza then made myself a scrambled egg w/ mozerella and sauteed mushrooms & onions on top. It was very good and very tasty. So not a great day, but I did manage to salvage it somewhat. Water was 96 oz.

Breakfast: 1 scrambled egg w/ moz., 2 strawberries, 1/2 slice 7 grain toast w/ jelly, 2 slices ham, 1 c. green tea w/ jasmine (Twinings tea from UK in the WS at Epcot, very delish)
AM snack: will probably skip as breakfast was late
Lunch: Tuna wrap and a small salad
PM snack: cottage cheese and pineapple
Supper: chicken?, green beans w/ onion, salad (maybe I will get ambitious and make Jello )

Goals for the day:
1. Exercise (just get up away from the computer, take more breaks and move)
2. bookwork
3. Clean my office (I swear everything in the house lands here when people don't know what to do with it.)

Well, I better get going. I have a lot to do, one of which is to get those trip reports done before I get too far behind. Have a great day.

 

[rcyannacci]

Congrats on 206!!! That's wonderful! Coming back from vacation is hard...it always takes me a day or two to get my schedule back on track.

BTW- I always bring back candy from Europe...and I'm usually glad when it's finally gone. But it's so good! Really, there's just no comparison. (And, I've heard it has less sugar.)

Have a great weekend!

 

[Lesli54]

He's trying to derail me and he doesn't even know it.

DH has no special suggestions for his Daddy's Day Dinner, so I am making chicken breasts (boneless & skinless) marinated in honey teryaki sauce, green beans w/ onion & salad. Nice choice I thought.

THEN, he says the only thing he wants is to go to DQ for a treat! This, of course, will happen closer to 7:30pm, I am not that hungry and don't really want ice cream, but it is his day. Not sure what will happen when we get there. If I am lucky, I might just have a few bites of DS's sundae or something.

Does he think I am made of steel?

Of course it didn't help that the last of the really good chocolate from England found its way into my mouth earlier.

I shall overcome this. Thanks for listening.

 

[pearlieq]

You will overcome! You are stronger than the DQ! A taste of someone else's will be great.

Congrats on 206! ONEderland is just around the corner. Congrats on all you've accomplished.

I hope you have a great day today. You dinner sounds awesome!

 

[Lesli54]

I think that I am finally ready to tackle real life now. Coming back from extended vacations is tough. This year made tougher since I had that London trip thrown in the mix right before.

Yesterday wasn't too bad, but could have definitely been much better. Exercise? Well......same story. I don't know why I can't seem to get motivated on that. Last night when I went to bed I told myself that whatever time I wake up, that is when I would get up and exercise. However, I woke up about 4:30am. That was a good hour too early, so I went back to sleep and then slept until 8am. Something has to change.

Spent alot of the day on the computer and got some work done, but not enough. Still trying to get my Dis fix. But today, I must limit that.

You think I would know by now to not skip the AM snack. Just before lunch, I had a small handful of chex. Lunch was a large salad w/ ham and craisins. PM snack was as scheduled, then I went and ate the last of the good European chocolate (I really hope it has less sugar ). Wasn't really hungry for supper. I had a small salad, green beans w/ onion & almonds, and 2 oz of chicken. Cooking the chicken turned out to be almost a total disaster. DD17 brought it home from the store frozen and said that is all there was. So into the microwave (very short on time) to thaw and the stupid defrost is obviously set too high since a good part of the chicken started to cook. Cut all the cooked parts off and marinated the chicken in honey teriyaki sauce (KC Masterpiece). Got the grill ready and threw on the chicken. It was looking so good. I had both sides cooked perfectly and turned down the heat some more to cook the inside a bit more. Ran into the house to finish up supper. Only gone for a few minutes, when I came back, one side of the chicken was burnt. Now DD15 was outside next to the grill and I asked her why she didn't tell me that it smelled like it was burning? Her comment was that she didn't know what it was supposed to smell like. Burnt smell? Oh yes, I thought all food should smell that way. So into the kitchen to thinly slice off the burnt parts. Let's just say that I lost quite a bit of chicken. Good thing we were going out for a treat.

At DQ, I ordered a strawberry shortcake for DS and I. Should have ordered a small sundae, as he nibbled off of everyone. I think I ate 2/3 of the treat if not more. Won't do that again. It just doesn't have the same appeal that it once did and after coming back from Beaches & Cream just a few days ago, it really lacks a good quality taste. Not worth the splurge, if you will.

Breakfast: 1 slice 7 grain toast w/ PB, 2 slices ham, 8 oz grapefruit. (thought I would change things a bit, but it is not as satisfying as my staple)
AM snack: cottage cheese w/ pineapple
Lunch: tuna wrap & small salad
PM snack: banana smoothie
Supper: maybe taco salad

Goals for day:
1. Bookwork
2. Pack for college orientation
3. Exercise (take 15 minutes at least 2x today to dance or take a walk)
4. Stay with the plan, no additional snacking

Today will be busy. I have lots to do, before I leave early tomorrow morning w/ DD17 to go do her orientation. It's a two day event and she will be sleeping overnight in the dorm. I could have choosen that (on a different floor than her), but I have no desire to live dorm life at my age so I am staying just down the road in a hotel by myself. I haven't done that in awhile. I am wondering what I should take along with in order to occupy my time for a few hours before bed. Anyway, I won't post tomorrow, but will be back Wednesday late to post.

Dang, just thought of something else to fill my day. DSis and BIL are coming down this afternoon. He is going to start work on our roof. It seems that things have mended, but I have this huge fear that it will not turn out as we had negotiated. He gave us the best deal by far (a good 2K less than everyone and he does great work) and is putting most of the labor towards paying us for our pop up camper that they want. It should work out. I just need to remember to stay away when he is grumpy. If it doesn't, then it is his loss in the long run as we were planning to have him help put up our garage (he knows this), but we can change that and we will just sell the camper outright to offset expenses on the house. One or the other, can't have it both ways.

Well, I better get going as the day is slipping away and I have lots of deadlines today.

Have a wonderful day.

 

[pearlieq]

Wow that does sound like a busy day today. Sending that tensions with BIL are low and that all the work gets done well. Sounds awkward, but it also seems like you've got it in perspective!

Can't say I blame you for wanting to skip dorm life! The hotel sounds much more relaxing...

The story about your DD and the chicken just cracked me up. It just sounds sooooo like a 15 year old! Glad you were able to salvage the evening. You did well at DQ--it could have been a whole lot worse. I totally hear you about it just not being worth it. I'm finding that more and more--lots of things just aren't worth the calories.

Hope you have a great day today and you get some exercise in. It may be a challenge to wedge it in with everything else going on, but it will feel great!

 

[Lesli54]

OK, a little vent.

Called DSis to see what time they are coming out and she acted as if BIL told us it wouldn't be until the weekend. Now she was there the day before we left for WDW when all this was set up. I even called and arranged for the dumpster to be delivered tomorrow morning while I was on vacation! It was so important to BIL to have it tomorrow so that he could tell them where he wanted it. However, now it has all changed. He says it doesn't matter where they put it. She says it isn't her fault that they guys who were coming to help BIL got jobs when we were away. I didn't say it was, I just wanted to know what was going on so that I could take care of things around here before leaving tomorrow.

It would have been nice for someone to tell us that they had to put the job back until the weekend. I talked to them last Thurs for 5 min on the way home from WDW. They could have told me then. No big deal. But, no. It felt like I was being unreasonable just because I wanted to know when for sure they were coming and if I needed to call and put the dumpster delivery back (who wants to pay for that sooner than necessary?). It works out better for me, since DH won't have to deal with all this while I am gone and I will be around when they do arrive. But I still didn't like the feeling that I was being unreasonable just asking.

I have a bad feeling about this. Family is so hard to work with and you think I would learn, but no, I am trying to give them a break since they are trying to get back on their feet. DH is getting the feeling that BIL thinks we are the cash cows. Oh how I wish. I'm sure we will feel the constraints after that college payment kicks in. Good thing we went to WDW when we did.

Ok, enough. I am done.

 

[rcyannacci]

I'd choose European chocolate over DQ any day of the week! I hear you about treats; the Sonic cream slushes that I drank many times last summer have no appeal to me now. If I'm going to splurge, it better be darn good!

Have fun at the orientation! Why don't you grab a good book to read on the way there? I bet you will have a lot of down times while your DD runs off to some activity.

Have a great Monday!

 

[Lesli54]

Back to finishing up my London trip reports and so that I can start on the WDW trip.

I did try this once already, but it didn't post, so I will attempt again.

It was the last full day and I wanted to get up early. DD17 however, was in no big hurry, so we were off to a late start AGAIN! She really thinks vacation is for resting and relaxing. Not me, I want to see it all.

I really wanted to start the day by going to Pax Lodge, the GS World Center in London, but that didn't happen since we were running short on time and there was lots to do. It is probably the one thing that I really regret not seeing. Oh well.

We went down for breakfast. Guess. I ate 1 1/2 c. bran cereal, 1 c. milk, 1 sm croissant, and 8 oz grapefruit juice. Then we went back up to the room to grab cameras and other stuff. We didn't have anything left for lunches, which was good since we really wanted to find a place with pasties and eat those as our last lunch.

We took our final walk to Lancaster Gate. I will really miss seeing Kennsington Gardens everyday. We bought our last TravelCard for the Underground. . The plan was to go to Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guard at 11:30am. This was going to be tight since DD17 wasn't moving fast. We took the Central line over to Bond Street, where we switched to the Jubilee line and went to Green Park. At Green Park, we took the Piccadilly line to Hyde Park Corners. From there we walked across Green Park to Buckingham Palace. Again another large park (but much smaller than Hyde Park). Of course, I now realize that it was probably much closer to get off at Green Park and take the walk over. Oh well.

We were really getting close to missing the ceremony so I did a real fast walk (almost run) through the park. Of course, DD17 can do it much better than I and not be worn out, but I will get there.

Finally, we got to the Palace and actually we had just missed the first few minutes, no biggie. There was a huge crowd. We watched for awhile and were able to see the horses march by, but it was really hard to get any really good pictures. Also, it is a long ceremony and there are long periods when there are but only one or two men moving around. After we had seen enough, we decided to leave. It was nice to see, but I wasn't staying for the whole thing, not that impressed. We also weren't very impressed with the Palace. It looks like a rectangular building with very little character, if you ask me. The gates outside are more interesting. Of course it has 600+ rooms, but if it were my residence, I would wan't it to look like a castle (maybe Cinderella's ) or a palace like the Taj Mahal or maybe Versailles (I love that place). But that's my opinion. At least we can say that we saw it.

Then were off to go to the Victoria and Albert Museum, but first I needed to mail the postcards that I had finally written out. Last day and DD17 thought I was nuts, but the cards just had to have a postmark from England or it just wasn't the same. Lucky for us there is a post office not too far from the V&A Museum. (side note: poor DS's postcard was torn in half we he got it. never got the other half. it was a cute card in the shape of a bear and some "idiot" ran it through the machine that puts the bar code on. HELLO, a shaped card is not going to fit in a machine that is designed for straight pieces of mail! I'm done now.)

We walked back through the park to Hyde Park Corners. On the way we took a picture of the Wellington Arch and the statue of the Duke of Wellington. He is the one who defeated Napoleon. His statue has him on his horse and pointing across the street to his house, the Apsley House. Not too proud was he?

Then down to the Underground. We got on the Piccadilly Line and took it over to South Kensington. There we went to get stamps for the postcards. It was a bit of a wait as the post offices over there seem to have a few extra services to offer. Then we walked up Thurloe Place towards the museum. Along the way we found a little deli that had pasties (these are kind of like a hot pocket, only much better and come in many flavors, it's a Welsh thing). It was past lunch time and so we stopped. Both of us had a Chicken Samosa (kind of like a very large eggroll, but wrapped differently) and they only cost about $1.50 each. Cheap lunch. It was good, but a little too spicy for me.

On to the museum, which is free, but you can make a donation. We saw beautiful dresses from different time periods, gorgeous furniture, silverware, place settings, you name it. The museum was began by Queen Victoria, who needed a place to house all of her treasures. She amassed alot since she reigned for 60+ years. I wanted to see tapestries, but it was closed off. I wanted to see renaissance England, but it was closed off. The museum is undergoing some renovations and it looks like they are adding to the courtyard, so some things were moved around a bit.

We did see Medieval England. Lots of plaster casts of tombs from various kings, plaster casts of other stone artifacts, and a very large round tower. Yes, this tower was so large that it was cut in half (I would say easily 3 stories per half) and is placed side by side in this room. It was the real deal. I can't remember where it came from, but it was built around 900. The outside of the tower had carvings that spiraled all the way to the top, probably depicting some type of story. It was very neat. I am guessing it was some type of observation tower as there were small slits for people to look out and shoot arrows through. DD17 loved this, it was up her alley of study.

Then we went to see Renaissance Italy. DD17 didn't think she would like it, but she did. Many plaster casts of various artifacts, a really ornate pulpit, and statues. They had a plaster cast of Moses (really neat) and a plaster cast of Michaelangelo's David (at 14' tall, that is one big guy ). Very interesting.

After leaving the museum, we contemplated seeing a show to end our trip. Since it would take time to go get dressed up and rested a little, we decided not to see the "off Broadway" shows, but instead to go over to the Globe Theater and get tickets for Pericles. So back to South Kensington station to take the District Line over to Mansion House. We went across the river over Southwark Bridge to the theater. Luckily, there was still a chance to get some decent seats. There are a couple of options. Standing next to the stage ($10) or sitting in seats. We chose to sit as the play is 3 hours and those standing in the yard are not allowed to sit on the ground during the performance. I spent about $36.00 per person, so not bad.

Since we had time to kill, we decided to go get DD7 a book as a souvenir and went back up to the Marble Arch were I saw it. DD17 insisted that we take the Millenium Bridge back across the river (pedestrians only). Nice view of St. Paul's Cathedral as you walk across. It sits almost in line with the bridge. So we decided that since we were so close, I needed to get a few pictures. We didn't go in as that has a price. But at least I got to see what I studied about in one of my classes a few years ago. Then we went to St. Paul's station and took the Central Line over to Marble Arch. Went to the bookstore just down the street and picked up the collections of Peter Rabbit. Very fitting for that book to come from England as a gift, I thought. This was our last trip to Marble Arch.

For supper we were going to eat at Cafe in the Crypt. DH found it online and said that it was reasonable and DD17 would just love to eat in a crypt. We took the Central Line over to Oxford Street, then got on the Bakerloo Line to Charing Cross. Just outside Charing Cross is Trafalger Square. I don't know why they call it a square. Looks more like a pentagon to me. Well the cafe was just off the square a bit, so we went to find it. Very interesting. It is definitely a crypt. Dark, very low lighting, under a building, etc. It had an atmosphere and I thought this will be interesting. However, once DD17 saw what was on the menu, she didn't want to eat there. Claiming that there wasn't anything there that she would eat. Now come on, this is the last supper in London, live a little. I wanted to try the tuna salad on mango, but that didn't appeal to her either. Well, when DH and I go to London, we will eat there.

So back to find some food. There was a Pizza Express close by, but not knowing how long that will take, we decided to go to Subway instead. Yes, I know, I can get that at home, but what do you do when your kid won't try anything new? We just got sandwiches, which cost about $10.50 for a 6" sub and a wrap. No chips or drinks. We drank our water. I had a turkey wrap w/ lettuce, tomato, gr pepper & cucumber. There was a Ben & Jerry's and we thought about getting a treat until we saw that it was at least $6 for something small.

We really wanted a treat and I remembered seeing a vendor just up the street selling Italian ice cream. DD17 had wanted one since we landed. So we ran over and both got one. It was soft serve in a cone and included a flake (Flake is a candy bar, looks like shaved chocolate smushed together). It was really good and only cost $2.20 per cone. Not bad. It was so nice to have a treat, especially since we had done so well on the trip.

Then it was back to Charing Cross to go to the theater. We took the Bakerloo Line to Embankment, then switched to the District Line and went to Mansion House. DD17 insisted that we walk back across the Millenium Bridge because it was shorter (not really, but it was hard to argue the point). Luckily, the bridge is just outside the theater. We ran into the bathrooms real quick to clean up a bit. That London wind will do wonders to your hair. We rented cushions at $2 a piece since the seats are wooden benches (thanks to a couple we had met on tour to Cantebury). I am so glad we rented the cushions. I am also glad we sat instead of stood in the yard. It was much warmer it the seats, more protected from the cold night air.

The play was really good, a little modernized, but the story is the same. We only had two times that we couldn't see one of the acrobat performances due to a very large stage column in our way. They used the entire theater to give you the feel of the story. Some of the actors were up on ropes swinging back and forth along the balconies to give the allusion of being tossed on the upper parts of a ship. It was really cool. Sometimes the actors at times would walk through the audience and mingle a bit as they went up onto the stage. Amazingly, it is very possible to hear the whole play without any sound equipment or speakers. The accustics, due to all the wood, were wonderful. It was a great end to the trip.

After leaving the theater after 10:30pm, since we poked around in the shop a bit, we walked back across the Millenium Bridge. St. Paul's Cathedral was all lit up. Very beautiful. There were some stairs that went a good length along the walkway to St. Pauls, so I had fun running up them and walking along the top. DD17 thought I was strange. It was my last night in London and you have to have a little fun. I swear, some days she is older than me.

We wanted to catch the bus and ride it a little ways back towards our hotel, but the bus schedule is so hard to figure out and none of the buses that should have stopped were stopping. Oh well. So we went over to St. Paul's station and took the Central Line back to Lancaster Gate. That was our last Underground ride.

As we walked the last walk from the station back to the hotel, DD17 wanted some chocolate, so we stopped into a kiosk along the way. They didn't have what she was looking for.

Back at the hotel, we relaxed a bit before turning in. Thank God we had done most of the packing the night before. It was our last night to sleep in London.

I think I walked about 8 hours that day, maybe more.


I will post the rest of the trip a little later tonight.

 

[Lesli54]

Still finishing up the London trip report.


Ok. Well, you know I had been wanting DD17 to get up early all week to go check out the sites and she wouldn't, but on the day we LEAVE, she is up and out of bed, no problem.

We finished packing up the last few things and then went down to that wonderful staple of a breakfast. Actually, I was glad that it was the last day of this breakfast, because all that bread and grain gets old real fast. I had 1 sm croissant, 1 1/2 c. bran cereal, 1 c. milk, and 8 oz. grapefruit juice.

We then went back up to the room to grab our things and do a final look out the windows and around the room.

The plane departed at 12:30pm and I didn't know how soon we needed to be at the airport, so we left in time to arrive about 2 1/2 hrs early, just in case the check in line was long. We left the hotel and made our final walk down Lancaster Gate. Before turning the corner, I had to get one last look. Then we walked up and over to Paddington Station so that we could take the Heathrow Express out to the airport. Yes, it is expensive and I considered taking the Underground, but that can take will over an hour, and I didn't really want to mess with transferring luggage from one line to the next. I guess you pay for convenience.

At the station we bought our tickets and boarded the train. About 5 minutes later, we pulled out of the station. It only took about 20 minutes for the train to arrive at Terminal 4 at Heathrow Airport.

We checked into British Airways. I must say they have much more staff in that airport, so check in went fairly quickly (considering the number of people). Also, we were not asked to remove our TSA luggage locks. I was really amazed at how few times, they actually checked our passports. At O'Hare, they are checking them every 5 minutes. (And some places there, I am not sure why they check so many times, since the area is restricted and that is how you got there in the first place. Ok, I'm done.)

We had no problems getting through security. They have screened off areas for people that don't make it through and have to be double checked, also for those that they randomly pull aside. I thought it was nice to have that added privacy.

Well, we found the gate easily and we had time to kill, so we were going shopping in the duty free shops. Let me tell you, they have a lot of shops. Again, unlike O'Hare that only has a few and some small kiosks. We bought, chocolate (the good kind), cookies (biscuits, I mean, so the family could try), a tea cup for my display cabinet, and a few other things. There is even a Harrods duty free shop. It is much cheaper to shop in these shops since there isn't any tax and that 17% VAT tax will kill you.

The plane started boarding about an hour before departure. That surprised me. Of course DD17 and I were prepared for this trip and we wore short sleeves. I wasn't roasting again. Well, this trip was cold. Thank God, British Airways provides socks and blankets. Again, I had a person who wouldn't put up their seat. At least it wasn't as bad as the trip there.

Once in the air, they started serving lunch. I had chicken w/ gravy, seasoned potatoes, carrots & green beans, a roll, very small salad w/ basalmic vinegar dressing, a small bottle of red wine, 150 ml Sprite, and water. The chicken was ok, but not great, so I didn't eat all of it or the veggies. Oh yes, it was followed by a chocolate/raspberry torte, which I ate most of. Very good. The snack was a mini Twix and I saved that for later in the trip. We also were served small packets of Walker's fruit cake, but I just took those home to the family. DD17 and I watched Phantom of the Opera and unfortunately, I missed the end since I was very tired. Then I watched Ray and unfortunately, there was a problem with the in the final 1/3 of the movie, so I didn't finish that either.

Since we were landing in Chicago at 3:15pm, we were served a snack. I had egg salad on a medium sized wheat roll, water, tea, and a tiny bag of pretzels. Not bad. That is when DD17 and I noticed that everyone on the plane had practically inhaled their food before I was halfway done with mine. Slower is better, I will eat less then.

Going through customs at O'Hare seemed to take forever. We filled out the forms on the plane to make the process quick and really didn't have anything major to claim, so it shouldn't have taken so long, but it did. Once through, we went to the car and realized that we were having a bit of a culture shock again. People just weren't as polite. It was also hot. Not really, but compared to London, it was. Of course, it cost me an arm and a leg for the extended parking, but live and learn.

Back on the interstate and heading home. We got home about 6 pm. Everyone was glad to see us, but DS wouldn't have anything to do with me. Guess he thought I had abandoned him. It's different now.

DH had attempted to have supper prepared for us and it wasn't turning out well, but we ate anyway. I had water (I was desperately thirsty), 1/4 c. chicken, 1/4 c. noodles, a biscuit, and 1/2 c. green beans. Just wasn't very hungry. Later we tried some of the goodies that I brought back. I had a shortbread w/ chocolate. Very tasty. I love shortbread.

The rest of the evening was spent catching up, telling stories about the trip, and giving the gifts that we brought back. It was really nice to be back home.

I was glad to have spent the time with DD17. There were a few things that I would have liked to have done that we didn't get to, but then I think that is always the case. It will definitely be a great memory for years to come.

That's all there is, there isn't anymore.

 

[Lesli54]

I had to do bloodwork, which included a 12 hr fast. After that, I stopped by McD's for breakfast. I ate 1 sausage/egg biscuit, 1 hashbrown (they screwed up, didn't order it, shouldn't have ate it, but I did), and 12 oz OJ. After putting that into Fitday, I decided that it definitely was not worth all the calories. OUCH!

Then I had to take DD17 for a math placement test for college. It was over an hour away, but thankfully, it was close to the GS Council office so I was able to run some errands over there. DS went with us. For lunch, I went to McD's and intended to be good. I ordered the apple and walnut salad, but then I saw the philly steak sandwich and thought I would try it. ICK! I ate about 1/2 and then just couldn't stomach any more. As far as the salad, it is fine, but I don't like paying $3 for 1 large apple and some grapes. I don't care for the candied walnuts, why not just use regular ones?

When I got home, I ate 2 shortbreads w/ chocolate

This was the day that BIL signed the final papers on his house, so later we went over and began to clean it. Just what I needed right before our trip to WDW.

Supper was taco salad. Followed by 3 shortbreads with chocolate.

Water was 120 oz. I was so thirsty after that trip to London. Oh yeah, later I had 1/2 c. Kix (dry). Not a great day. In fact one of the worst I have had in a long time.

That should pretty much catch me up. Now on to start the WDW trip reports.

 

[pearlieq]

I hear you about those Fruit & Walnut salads--so overpriced, and really, why the sugary walnuts? What's wrong with plain?

I've really enjoyed your trip reports and can't wait to hear all about your adventures at WDW!

Hope you have a great day today! I hear there's a chance of rain for this weekend! Fingers crossed!

 

[rcyannacci]

What a great end to a great trip! I'm so glad you saw a show at the Globe. I bet you will be the only two people you run into for a while who's ever seen a performance of Pericles! Your DD will be so glad she had that experience once she's in college; she'll be able to contribute to so many discussions based on everything she saw.

BTW- Flakes are my favorite!!! We bought many tins of them in Heathrow before we left, as well as the Curly Wurly's, which were my DH's favorite.