The Dreaded Lurgy....

I have gone very quiet on the blog lately. There are a variety of factors playing into that bit but it mainly stems from having a very active toddler (a full-fledged two year old!), a spouse who seems to spend most of his time on airplanes these days, no family support here, my desire to attempt to continue a career outside the house which requires a terrible commute, and general life obligations and house upkeep that seem to keep me busier than I could have ever imagined right now. 

Most days I feel flat out by the time I put Crosby to bed so unfortunately the blog (among quite a few other things) have fallen out of daily or weekly activities for the moment. I hope this lapse in posting, just like my toddler's constant need of "mummy, mommy, mama, mommy," and her ever-so-repeated-and-demanding-but-others-tell-me-is-endearing-whining is short lived and will some day be a forgotten lapse because in the grand scheme of life it is a rather small time frame. One can hope. 

Today, however, I received an email from a work acquaintance that made me chuckle at life abroad here that I just had to pull myself together tonight to post the happening! 

Last week, I thought I might die. Not literally, but I got sick and I can't remember being that poorly in a long time. I got very sick very quickly and it seemed to come out of nowhere. My parents were due to arrive for a long weekend visit so timing could not have been worse. Two days prior to their arrival, I woke up and showered for work and couldn't make it past my bedroom door, I felt so miserable. A sudden raging fever hit me along with a chesty cough and aches and pains I can't remember even during childbirth. I crawled back into bed and attempted to phone in for a conference call meeting because I couldn't fathom the idea of driving to work, let alone sitting in a meeting room with others. And then that night the sickness seemed to get worse, with my fever reaching 104 degrees F (40 degrees C) and the other symptoms multiplying. I was miserable. 

Thankfully Scott was in town and he tended to Crosby, proving to be Super Dad, getting her dressed and taking her to nursery or getting things ready for the nanny to arrive at the house, along with re-routing my parents on their flight when they missed their connection and driving to the airport to collect them. He even managed to take some direction from me to bake a batch of bar cookies for my parents' visit. It was all a bit of a blur but two days into the illness I managed my way to the GP (doctor's office) and she said I had a chest and respiratory infection so she put me on a course of antibiotics to try to knock it out of my system. 

So, my parents were here and I was feeling miserable, not even wanting to surf the web or stare at the TV, just wanted to rest in the hope of feeling better. Consequently, I have fallen behind at work. An email of some immediate attention came through to me today and when I responded I began by apologizing that I had not been in touch earlier and explained that I had been unwell.

The response was the part that really made me chuckle. Frankly at first I thought it was a joke.

The email began with: "Cassie, Thanks for the note, sorry to hear about the lurgy."

Lurgy? 

I thought that was a joke of a term that I sometimes heard Scott say but I have yet to hear it by anyone here. So, when Scott came home from work tonight I asked him if he really knew of the term or if he just used it as a joke. His response was that it was an actual term and he hears people use it here, and in fact since he has caught part of my dreaded cough, he said he has been telling people to stay out of his office because he has the dreaded lurgy. 

This lead me to the world wide web for research on the term. Guess this is a British term and it is an amusing one to me! When I hear this word, it makes me think of an illness when you have a lot of phlegm, which is strange, but it's just what comes to mind, but apparently it is more general than that. According to Urban Dictionary: 

Lurgy

125 up, 48 down

Approximate British equivalent of the American playground term cooties, meaning a fictitious, yet highly infectious disease. Unlike cooties, now used by adults to refer to an general undefined infectious malady. Normally used in the form "the dreaded lurgy". The term originates from an episode of the 1950s radio comedy "The Goon Show" in which an epidemic of "The Dreaded Lurgi" was said to be about to sweep across Britain. It turned out that the lurgi was in fact a ficitious disease created by brass instrument makers who had claimed that no brass band player had ever died of the lurgi (thereby increasing sales hugely). "The Goon Show" was an anarchic and surreal radio comedy series that starred Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan and Harry Secombe. It was written by Spike Milligan and Eric Sykes. I think I've got the dreaded lurgy. He's not coming into work today, apparently he's coming down with a lurgy. I'm not quite sure what's wrong. Just some form of lurgy. Urgh. You've got the LURGY!

The Olympic Torch

The Olympics are about to start here in the UK. Technically they are "in London," but actually there are a few events spaced throughout the country. Some events are happening fairly close to where we live but they are not sports of great interest to us so we did not go out of our way to obtain tickets. 

However, one of the really cool parts leading up to the Olympics here has been the torch relay that has been taking place throughout the UK. The torch was lit in Greece and then made its way to this island and has traveled to over 1,000 towns throughout the UK and has been carried by nearly 8,000 torch bearers. It has been on tour for the past 70 days. It has traveled within 10 miles of everyone in this country which is pretty remarkable. 

A few weeks ago the torch was coming straight through our little town - and not only through our town, but it was being carried down the street at the end of our block! It was a very neat afternoon and much to our surprise, it seemed the entire surrounding area descending upon our town to see the torch in person just as we did too. 

We did not expect the masses of crowds for the route through our town so by the time we made it to the end of our block, we unfortunately did not have great views because of the crowd. 

Crosby got a lift from Daddy and she had the best view out of the three of us....if only she were as interested in watching the torch relay as we were! 

There was a large procession that came before the torch bearer, starting with the police squad. 

Then there was a torch parade with fancy buses, music, dancers, and lots of Olympic paraphernalia. 

Major Olympic sponsors such as Coco-Cola took part in the torch parade. It was quite festive and lively as these big floats went past the crowds. 

Crosby's attention span was of course that of a toddlers - very short. She seemed more interested in walking around and looking at the crowd of people rather than the parade for the torch. 

Now can you see the flame? Look carefully - it's near the left side of this photo near the Union Jack flag. It was a brief moment and it was difficult to capture on camera due to the crowd, but it was cool to see it whiz by us in person....and now tonight we will watch the opening ceremonies (from the comfort of our living room via TV) with the rest of the world where the flame will arrive and light the start of the games. 

American jackpot!

I went to our local ASDA the other last night (the Walmart of England, literally owned by Walmart) and as I was sauntering through the aisles (because I was by myself after dinner, and didn't have a screaming child in a shopping trolley!), I came across this new display at the store. I stopped in my tracks. All of these American goodies in one spot, in England, in a local grocery store, and not cost prohibitive!!!

Hershey's Chocolate items - bars, kisses, cookies and cream bars, Reese's Peanut butter cups and more, Tootsie Rolls and real American Marshmallows! I do wonder how the store has chosen these specific candies and products to sell. 

I only wish they were selling real graham crackers, I would have stocked up so we could be enjoying s'mores this weekend....

The great British Celebration

In honor of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebration and also the upcoming 2012 Olympics in London, British pride and Union Jack paraphernalia has been at an all time high throughout towns, decorating the high streets, and in stores everywhere. In the US, I would say that American pride with stars and stripes is always very pronounced from a merchandising angle around the 4th of July, however we have not seen such an explosion of British pride since we have arrived here in the UK. It has been so festive and fun to see right now!

At our local Sainsbury's grocery store, a union jack outdoor display with Pimm's as the featured product - such a great British summer drink! 

The toilet paper rolls have even gone festive....

Union Jack Wellies!

Instead of a Kit-Kat, you can now buy a Brit-Kat here.

Jubilee street party

Our street hosted a traditional British street party this past Sunday in honor of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebration. Although it was SO soggy and VERY cold, it was really great fun to experience a local tradition for such a joyous country-wide celebratory occasion. We felt like one of the locals this weekend since we were able to participate in all of the festivities, although every time we met a new neighbor the first comments made was always something along the lines of "Well you're not from around here....." Yes, the accent is a dead giveaway!

It was nice to meet more of our neighbors because even after living in our current house for over 3 years, we have not met many of our neighbors on that side of our house. 

The road was closed for our street party.

All of the men on the street went early in the day to set up the tents for the food and dining areas since the rain was really terrible that morning. Even with the overhead cover, we still were soaked from the sideways rain!

There were two food tents - one for savory side dishes and one for "puddings" (desserts). All of the attendees were asked to bring their own meats (most everyone brought British sausages) to grill, and then each family brought one savory side dish and one sweet dessert. 

For our contribution to the dessert table, I made two desserts. One was a large cookie cake with buttercream frosting. I decorated the "cake" with a crown to celebrate Queen Elizabeth's 60 year reign. I found a photo online and just tried to replicate it with the icing. It was fun to make and was a sure highlight to the dessert table! (Plus the Brits seem to go nuts over cookie cakes whenever I make them for events - they are not very common here). I also made brownie with homemade strawberry ice cream and hot fudge sauce cupcakes. Scott found me a fancy disposable union jack cake stand in anticipation of the party.  

Crosby & Mom with the cookie cake and fancy Diamond jubilee sunglasses pre-street party.

Crosby & Dad slightly soggy but enjoying lunch at the street party. 

One neighbor made jacket potatoes for everyone at the party. Such a fitting British side dish - and it was quite warming for the cold windy day outside.

Crosby, aka bubble baby, trying to stay warm and dry under her rain cover for the stroller. I had to turn the heat on inside our house when we got home from the party. So much for the weather being nice for summer but it's a true British Summer now! 

Mothering Sunday Weekend

Another small advantage about being an American Mom (or Mum as they say here) in England means that I can celebrate two Mother's Days because the UK's version, known as Mothering Sunday, is never on the same day as American Mother's Day. This year Mothering Sunday was March 18th and Mother's Day in the US will be Sunday May 13th. Personally I think that since I gave birth to Crosby in England, we will always want to celebrate both Mother's Days since the British one has reason to fit into our yearly celebration calendar! (we'll see if Scott reads this post and if he agrees with this sentiment once we move back to the US someday)

Although most of our weekends seem to be consumed with just playing catch-up on household tasks lately due to Scott's busy work travel schedule, this past weekend actually felt a bit like a nice break from the routine.

On Saturday, we all dressed in our green attire (Crosby wore lots of green) in honor of St. Patrick's Day so we wouldn't get pinched by anyone. Although it looks like she might be doing an Irish jig here, she's really just practicing her snapping (she started mimicking Scott when he snapped in front of her and now she does it all the time, most frequently on the weekends when he is around). We took a family trip to Bicester Village which is probably the nicest, most upscale outlet mall we've come across. Crosby enjoyed her time "shopping" from the comfort of her stroller. We met our friend BJ at Bicester who journey-ed up from London for the weekend to come visit us. He has been without his lovely wife for a few too many weeks due to her busy work travel schedule, so we offered him the promise of some home cooked goodies and a night outside the city. I think Crosby was quite confused when we walked into the suit shop and saw her Dad and BJ dressed identically!

Then on Sunday - the actual Mothering Sunday, I went to a chocolate workshop in the late afternoon with one of my friends. When I came home from the class, Crosby was nearly ready for bed, but first we had a small little Mothering Sunday card and gift exchange.

Daddy was very clever and helped Crosby shop for a card and gift for me! She gave me a new heart tea cup to add to my English china tea cup collection! And of course, as with all things right now at this stage, as soon as she saw Mom take a sip out of the cup, Crosby wanted to try it too...

Back at it

I have been back at the work bit since January now, and it has been another learning experience I did not expect. I have learned that I like to work.

I am not sure why this has surprised me so much but it has. I knew when we first moved to England that I liked working because I was pretty close to loosing my mind for the first 6 months when i didn't have a job. Once I found my (current) job and started at it, I really was much happier. It's funny because I always thought that not having to work and having all kinds of time on my hands sounded like a dream. Once I had the option of not working and just being a lady of leisure, I actually hated it. It probably didn't help that I had (and still have) a husband who works a LOT and that is part of the gig since we live abroad for his job right now.

Being back at work has more than its fair share of challenges but it also has some advantages. Last week I was invited to the launch of the new innovation center for Kraft/Cadbury because they are now a US/UK company and I work with such companies in my job. (It's really a great fit since I fit the bill as an American living in England). Not only was it a really cool day to spend at Cadbury learning all about their chocolate (and tasting loads of it!!) but it reminded me of why I do enjoy my job - AND - how much I have grown within myself by working over here.

As I was driving to this work event I was thinking to myself that I was not sure if I would know anyone at the event but it didn't matter whether I knew anyone there or not. I know that I have enough confidence to walk into a situation where I don't know anyone and I will be able to walk up to people, will politely introduce myself, have a conversation, and hopefully make a worthwhile connection by the end of my time at such an event.

Thinking through these steps made me remember how I felt three years ago when I had just started my job over here. I was starting to meet stakeholders and other business people in the local area for my job. I met a local CEO of an organization and he invited me to be his guest at a business black tie gala. I accepted because it was due to be a worthwhile business event.

The day arrived and I was on my way driving to the event and it hit me - I realized I was about to walk into a 500 person event by myself and I knew only one person who was going to be in that room. This wasn't an event in Chicago anymore where I had gone to work functions by myself but always knew that because I knew enough people within my industry, I would walk in and would be able to recognize someone I knew - or someone with whom I at least had a connection.

This time, I was going to an event in a new city and a new COUNTRY and I did not have any type of professional network here yet! In fact, beyond my team of employees, I really did not know anyone else within a work capacity.

So, three years ago, I went to that black tie event and it turned out to be fine. In fact, it was more than fine. I actually walked away with a fist-full of business cards and made some connections to people I see and do business with now on a regular basis.

I am reminded of these thoughts and sentiments when I am off to events now where I am not sure if I will know anyone or not. And it doesn't bother me anymore because I know I have moved countries, made new connections, and built a new professional (and personal) network for myself since I had that first experience of getting thrown into the deep end here. It is good to remind myself about how I felt three years ago because it makes me realize how much I have grown and how proud I am to have established myself professionally within a new country, even though it was my husband's expat assignment that brought us over here. I know I would not have had the same (personal and) professional growth opportunities if we were still in the US, so for that I am grateful.

Cadbury's chocolate making headquarters!

They had the guests (only about 40 of us in total), tasting their liquid chocolate with various mix-in ingredients to see if we could create any flavor combinations that were worthwhile. Since it is their innovation center that we were touring, this type of activity takes place all of the time there.

And then as if I didn't consume enough chocolate at the event, they sent each attendee home with a bag full of Chocolate products to sample later.

My little taste-tester was, once again, into the bag straight away, trying to get her teeth into that chocolate! (Unfortunately for her she hasn't been allowed any chocolate).

Oatmeal

I love oatmeal in the winter months. Sometimes I eat it all year long too. My latest cooked breakfast cereal has been steel cut oatmeal. In the quest for making easy foods that can be done in advance, I found quite a few recipes for slow cooker steel cut oatmeal. I loved the concept and I enjoy steel cut oatmeal but never made it much before because I knew it took forever to cook. I knew I wanted to make the oats in the crock pot, so I began my quest to the steel cut oats in England, but could not find them here. I was perplexed - if the oats are called "Irish Oats," then I figured they must be sold in the UK which encompasses part of Ireland.

I was incorrect.

I cannot find these oats over here! When I started to look for "Steel Cut Oats" at the grocery store, no one seemed to know what I wanted when I asked for them. I was pointed in the direction of oatmeal but nothing on the shelves that resembled steel cut oats. After some research online, I did find out that they are not necessarily called Irish Oats or Steel Cut Oats over here but are often referred to as "Pinhead Oats."

According to wikipedia, Steel-cut oats are whole grain groats (the inner portion of the oat kernel) which have been cut into pieces. They are commonly used in Scotland and Ireland to make porridge, whereas rolled oats are used in England, other English-speaking countries, and Scandinavia. They are sometimes named after the grade of cut, e.g. pinhead oats; steel-cut oats from Ireland are sometimes called Irish oats.

Why do Scotland & Ireland use them but their neighbor England does not? It seems a bit strange to me.

I went so far as to email a few oatmeal distributors in England who claim to have pinhead oats within their product portfolio. One company said their brand was sold at the local grocery store chain, Waitrose. I went into the Waitrose store by us and talked to a supervisor. No, unfortunately they don't carry that type of oatmeal and weren't sure where to find it but suggested calling the local farm shops in the area. So, I called three farm shops. No one remotely seemed interested in helping me to find this type of oatmeal.

Alas, my quest for the oatmeal here was fairly unsuccessful. I have seen it now online but I have not yet ordered from the web store. Instead I took the "import" route and brought back a few heavy tins of it in my suitcase after the holidays. Two months back in the UK, I was almost out of it already so I had Scott buy more last week when he was back in the US for work.

I just find it terribly ironic that is marketed as "IRISH OATMEAL" but it is not even sold in the country that exports more goods to Ireland than any other country!

My new supply of Steel Cut, Pinhead, Irish, or whatever-you-want-to-call-them Oats directly from the US for my slow cooker breakfast recipes. Yet another food product that I would have thought would be available in both countries but apparently is not as readily available as I would have thought.

Snow!

This past weekend England got snow! It was probably the best kind of snow - it was beautiful and covered everything but by Monday morning it was fairly well melted. However over the weekend it did of course cause chaos in this country with cancelled flights, closed shops, delays, and lots of traffic problems. We did not venture out anywhere too far but we did take Crosby outside to see what she thought of her first proper snow fall.

Scott tried to put her feet down on the ground so she could (attempt to) walk on the snow (note the Tesco bags covering her Ugg boots!) but as soon as her feet touched the ground, cries began.The view was much better from up on Daddy's shoulders!Scott tried to rekindle his midwestern winter roots by building a full snowman. Crosby & her baby doll were much happier watching this activity from the comfort of our living room on the inside!Our first English snowman - the perfect place to play peek-a-boo!

How long is too long?

How long is too long to be an expat? I realize some people and families make a career out of it and are happy to do so for a very long time. I still unsure that we could be one of those families however we have already extended our tour of expatriate life longer than we ever thought we would.

This question of how long is too long is one we have discussed quite a bit lately because Scott has been offered and has accepted a new job (still with the same company) --- a promotion and a new position that will keep us in England a while longer. How much longer will we stay is the question? That answer is unknown.

We know it will not be forever. Neither one of us wants that situation, as we know we want to return to the US. However, we have quickly become one of those couples who we heard about when we were first moving abroad and both thought that would never be us.

It was the scenario we heard over and over again. "I was offered an expat assignment in X location for 2 years, and we loved it so much, it turned into 5 / 6 / 7....or whatever the greater number was." Countless tales of such assignments that extended well past their initial contract date. And now here we are ---- 3 1/2 years into an 18-24 month initial contract.

It is the right move for Scott's career for us to continue our time here, or so we hope at this point. The new job will be a great challenge for him and will hopefully allow his career to hopefully continue to flourish with his company.

But the more time we spend away, the more I grapple with the question of how long is too long to be away? Initially our answer was that when we were ready to start a family, we would probably return to the US. Clearly, I survived [the rather horrendous childbirth situation in the UK hospital] and we are still there. Dare I say, there is a part of me that has been glad to be in the UK with an infant because of the year-long maternity leave it has afforded me. (of course I am not sure that is outweighed by the lack of family within close proximity! or the really terrible hospital experience!)

Various discussions on this topic of length of time abroad now are focused on Crosby and our wants and desires for her life. Is this still the right decision for us to be abroad, now that we have a child? Is the end time for us abroad now when she is starting school? Is that primary school or secondary school? Or are we providing her with a great gift of life adaptability by being away and learning about another country/culture/lifestyle? Or will she feel unsettled because she will have not spent her entire life in one country and/or location? So many questions and concerns, and of course there is no "right" answer. People view such opportunities differently which is of course why some people accept such assignments and others do not.

We have also said we will continue to pursue the best career paths, provided that we are all healthy and well. God willing, this will continue to be the case.

Obviously with Scott accepting a this new job that will keep us abroad for a while longer, we have agreed that this decision is currently the best one for our family. However, with an end date unknown and time spent building a further life for ourselves in England, we really struggle with the debate of how long is too long and when is the right time to return home? We also realize that "home" will have a new meaning for us in the US because the variables will not be the same in our life / location / home / family etc from right before we moved abroad.

Seasonal Candy

While I was home in the US for the Christmas holidays, I noticed the shift in the store shelves from the Christmas themed candy to the Valentine's Day themed candy. Shortly after January 1st all of the red, green, and santa themed candies were cleared away and the shelves at Target and the grocery stores in the US were lined with red and pink candies, with lots of hearts all around. I started to think that there is much more of a holiday/seasonal candy market in the US than I ever see in the UK. It seems for any possible holiday in the US, there is a sugary and sweet treat to match up with the theme of the holiday.

Two of my favorite candies - Brach's cinnamon and Cherry Hearts made their way back to the UK in the nearly 200 lbs of luggage that Crosby & I flew back with. I cannot say there is anything quite like this type of candy on the shelves here in England right now...

However when I walked into my grocery store the other day, I noticed a sign for "SEASONAL CANDY" so I thought to myself, "Well, maybe there is more of a market here than I thought before." I went to investigate the offerings.

Apparently the candy market goes straight from Christmas tins of candy straight to chocolate Easter Eggs here! Funny to see Easter candy on the shelf in January but I guess when Cadbury has been the most loved sweet manufacturer in this country, the stores do everything to support their products (and I do love their mini eggs! When I think about it, the mini eggs were the only thing I had to eat last year during my 24-plus hours of labor when having Crosby, so I guess they were out on the shelves well before Easter last year too!).

I know conversation hearts do not exist here in England for Valentine's Day but I wonder, do small children exchange candy for Valentine's Day like we did when I was little in the US? Or is it another commercialized event only in the US??

Change of Travel Plans

Well, Crosby & I were supposed to be back in the UK by now....and I am sure we would be having a fight with jet lag right about now but we're not! We changed our flights (of course with Scott's permission and agreement) so we could stay an extra few days with my parents. Plus, it hasn't hurt that the weather has been 65 degrees and sunny in the midwest this week!

We spent the morning on a walk and at the park in order to enjoy the super nice weather we are having right now.

This always happens when I am about to leave my parents after a visit. I really don't want to leave them because I don't get to see them as often as I would like. When I think about it, I know I am a "home body" and maybe I am stranger than most in that I really love being back at home and enjoy spending time with my parents. Perhaps it's a female thing but Scott is good about encouraging me to spend time when I can with my family because he knows how important it is to me. If I take a step back and look at it, I am often amazed that I do so well with being in a completely different country from my family, but I know that my parents were always good about encouraging my sister & me to flee the nest so we could take advantage of life opportunities.

When I was younger, I remember my father taking out a map and drawing a circle around our city, saying "Here's a 500 mile radius. You girls can go to college anywhere outside this circle." And he meant it! At a time when most parents we knew were trying to keep their children close to home, ours were telling us to go away. Their theory was that we could always come back home again, but we needed to leave first to see what else was out there.

I feel their lessons ring true more often than not these days. My sister & I have both moved away and are making our own ways out in the world. I am sure my parents never imagined that their encouragement in fleeing the nest might lead to our current life in England, but they have been nothing but supportive of it, despite the times when the distance really is far.

Now, in time, it will be my turn with Scott to teach Crosby such lessons in life. But for now --- for one more week -- Crosby & I just wanted to be home again to enjoy some more time after the busy holiday period. Jet lag can wait another week, because I am sure it will find us upon our return to England, regardless of when that is.

Sometimes it is just really nice to be home again.

"Home" for the Holidays

We have been "home" for the holidays. I say "home" loosely because of course we have not really been back in our actual home in Chicago, but we have been traveling between various locations including time spent with Scott's family and my family in an effort to see everyone during this time of year. It has been wonderful to see everyone and Crosby has been a trooper during her various moves between hotel rooms, houses, plane rides, train rides, car rides, etc. For the most part, our time back "home" has been spent fighting jet lag, unpacking, repacking, traveling, and visiting with family (oh and eating more meat than we ever thought possible!). I think we crammed a lot into our visit this time and yet it still doesn't feel like we've spent enough time in any one location, or seen everyone we had hope to see. I know this is just often the case when traveling in from out of town, and now with a baby, time seems even more compressed.

I am not sure if it is better to have both families in one city or if it's better to have them in different locations? I am aware that either situation has its own set of benefits and challenges. For us this year, it felt like neither side of our family got a fair bit and of course we felt like we were a bit sandwiched in the middle. We were rushed on Christmas Eve to pack up all of our belongings and get everything ready for our travel on Christmas Day, and then we didn't get to stay long on Christmas Day with my family because we had to fly twice, transfer planes, etc. and drive another hour to get to Scott's family once we landed at our final destination. So, we ended up eating Christmas dinner back at O'Hare airport where we had to transfer flights. Then once we got to Scott's family's house, it was late and so we did Christmas gifts, etc. the next day. So much pressure around one day and it just goes by in a blink of an eye! I am not sure what the answer to the splitting of the holiday is - it would be a challenge even if we were just in Chicago, still but of course the international aspect makes it even more complicated. Despite the headaches of travel, we did enjoy our visit as much as we could and were very glad we decided to spend the holidays back in the US. Crosby of course probably enjoyed it the most because she had everyone's attention!

Crosby at the train station in the suburbs of Chicago. Crosby & I took a train from the suburbs of Chicago while Scott stayed on to do some work for a few days at the start of our time back in the US.

Having dinner in the city with some extended family. Crosby loved being out in public and eating at the table in a proper high chair.

Bundled up in her snow suit for the cold Chicago weather. Thankfully no snow, but it was cold!

Enjoying a dinner out at one of Dad & Mom's favorite old restaurants.

On the plane again....leaving Chicago and off to see my family.

Crosby's ride through the airport (she will have seen the inside of O'Hare airport 5 separate times during this trip back to the US alone!!).

We spent some time with my family and then flew out to see Scott's family on Christmas Day.

The three of us on Christmas.

Crosby loved playing and being with her Aunt Carrie again!

Playing with her nativity set on Christmas morning.

A brand new baby doll for Miss Crosby! She was so happy and loves giving the baby doll kisses.

Hanging with Grandpa Craig at his house.

Crosby has really become attached to her little stuffed lamb. The lamb even had to join her at breakfast a few mornings while we were with Scott's family. She would not let it go!

A gift from Grandma Cris - a motorized hamster. At first Crosby was scared of this pretend pet but by the end of our week's visit, she had really warmed up to it and was chasing it around the house instead of letting the hamster chase her around.

Spending time with Uncle Todd & Gail was fun.

A third Christmas gift opening event for Crosby. Gifts with Great Grandma!

Visiting with Great Grandma and practicing her wave.

Watching football games with Uncle Matt.

Enjoying her visit with Grandpa Craig & Grandma Cris.

On the plane again....another flight, back to Gram & Pa's house on New Year's Eve.

Ringing in the new year with Pa, Gram, Uncle Ray & Aunt Claire. Although Crosby didn't know it, she was the greatest entertainment ever for the evening.

Crosby has been busy sifting through the local newspaper and clipping coupons and sale ads while we've been back. The newspapers in England don't include such sale flyers and coupons.

Spending time with Pa and winky the lamb too.

Learning new tricks - first how to use her new snack "catcher" with Gram.

And then how to drink from a straw!

It's been a great visit but now it's time to start packing to go back to England....