365

At the end of today, we will have lived in England for 365 days.  It has been a long, hard and amazing year.  I have learned a lot about myself, my marriage, and British culture.  I still stick my foot in my mouth more than I would like to admit, but we are learning as we go.  Here is a brief summary...

Favorite thing of living in the UK...walking to do all of my errands...seriously, I dread moving back and having to get in and out of the car...

Least favorite thing (besides missing family and friends)....the customer service...

Pantry staple I miss most...Rotel, or Velveeta, ooh, or ranch...people here really don't know what they are missing...

Something I buy here that I didn't at home...cheese scones...just wow...

Favorite restaurant in Norwich...Zizzi's...we are there often enough that the waitress recognizes when we get hair cuts...

Restaurant I miss most in Wichita...Bella Luna...

Fashion look I really don't understand here...shorts with panty hose...no, not tights or winter shorts...jean shorts (usually with the pockets sticking out the bottom)...with panty hose...

Parker and I's favorite weekday spot...hands-down, the library...

Our favorite coffee shop...Costa...is it sad that I catch P trying to order a 'skimmy cappucino' everywhere we go?

Favorite fish and chips pub in Norwich...Wig 'N Pen

Number of small kitchen appliances I've ruined trying to use the converter...3...I know you're thinking how I got past one, but two of them worked for a while before burning out...

Number of frequent flyer miles in the last year...69,390

And now some changes for Parker...

Number of months he's been potty-trained (big-boy underwear only during the day)...almost 9 exactly

Number of months we haven't had to buy diapers at all (big boy underwear at bedtime too)...4

Number of words he was using in a sentence when we left...6 or 7

Number of words in a sentence now...I admit, I've lost count and now I get excited when he puts multiple sentences together...

Favorite song when we left...Baby, Oh!

Favorite song now...Firework or 'I'm sexy and I know it' (shoot)

Bed he sleeps in now...queen

Favorite item of clothing before...socks...usually as mittens

Favorite item of clothing now...K-State jersey

Here are a few now and then photos...oh how things change!!

and then...