The Sour Patch Week

In the few weeks before we left, I was talking to Graham a lot about what it means to feel bittersweet about something. We were excited for our new adventure in London, but it was hard saying goodbye to everyone and everything we're used to. On the day we had to say goodbye to Gryff (he's living his best life in the suburbs with Ben's parents), we were all crying and he looked at me and said, "this is the bitter part, huh?", which of course made me cry even more.

Since those talks he's decided he likes the term Sour Patch more than bittersweet (we often call Elise a sour patch kid because she can be a bit of a menace but then gives you a big hug and kiss, hence sour then sweet). All that being said, I would say sour patch week is a good description for our first week here.

We have had so many sweet times and new experiences already. We went to Hampstead Heath and played on a huge playground next to a little zoo (which, weirdly seemed to mostly have a bunch of different kinds of deer?). We have tried some really great new restaurants, went to a fantastic farmer's market, and took a walk through our new apartment that we are hopefully moving into next week. We got Graham a new bike because he only recently learned how to ride a two-wheeler and was very worried he'd forget how (apparently the old saying, it's like riding a bike did not resonate with him). And after a succession of very rainy days, we found a really great trampoline park for the kids today that burned off a whole lot of energy. All in all, some pretty awesome times.

We've also had some growing pains as we navigate a new country and get used to a new time zone. Graham said he was ready to go back to visit Chicago now and I was vividly reminded of when my mom wouldn't let me come back home on the first weekend of college (You were right, Mom). I do already miss air conditioning, ice in my water, and real actual coffee, and I'd like to say we're working on embracing our new culture and all that comes with it, but in all honestly I'm just very thankful for amazon where I can buy a coffee maker and ice trays to be delivered in 24 hours. We'll work on the embracing the culture in other ways, just discovering what our non-negotiables are (and apparently they are mostly about beverages).:)