London calling

While Carrie was here visiting, we took advantage of some sister time and spent a full day in London. It was all-too-short but really nice to get into the city for a bit of time. I have not spent any amount of time in London since Crosby has been arrived and I miss going into the city to shop and sight see. Scott was traveling again for work so Crosby had a day at home with our nanny and Carrie & I took to London. Although it was rainy (a constant theme here this April and spring), we had a great day eating and shopping.

On the train into the city....sisters not to be missed in bright orange!

At the train Marylebone train station there was a movie being filmed. There was a sign posted that anyone walking around the area could be in the future movie. I am still unsure what movie it was but I will keep my eyes peeled for our big screen debut.

For lunch, we headed to the Notting Hill neighborhood to a pizza place called Otto. Since Carrie is celiac, she had read in advance that Otto has a gluten free cornmeal crust pizza. Celiac or gluten consuming, this restaurant is not to be missed! We had a bbq pulled pork pizza with cheese, coleslaw and onions - a bit different but it was utterly delicious and tasty. 

It even felt like we were close to home with the beverage selection available from Goose Island Brewery in Chicago!

After lunch we wandered around Portobello Road in Notting Hill and made a stop at the Hummingbird Bakery. They even had a gluten free cupcake selection which was great.

London was decked out for the Jubilee and the Olympics. Oxford Street was flying the Union Jack all over - and the taxis were festive too.

To continue on the theme of eating, after a bit of shopping around the city, we headed for a full proper afternoon tea at Claridge's Hotel. When we arrived there was a crowd of papparazzi and also a crowd of teenage chidren standing out front. While we did not spot any celeberties, I think my online research was correct to hint that Johnie Depp was staying there that day.

The hotel offered a full afternoon tea for celiacs too so it was perfect so we could both enjoy nearly the same things. 

Tea sandwiches, scones, desserts and of course lots of tea! 

It was definitely one of the best splurges for a wonderful day out for these sisters who don't get together as often as we would like!

Shopping til she Drops!

Crosby has been happily riding in various shopping carts since we have been back in the US. I realized she has not been in a shopping cart in the front seat bit until now. We don't really go to the grocery store too often in the UK (since we do the online grocery ordering) and when I do nip into the store, I usually just take Crosby in her car seat and place it straight into the cart. Besides the grocery store, we don't really go shopping as often in England because A/ there are not nearly as many big box retailers in the UK as there are in the US and B/ if we go to the store, we usually just walk to our town's high street and so Crosby is typically just in her stroller.

Since we have been back in the US, Crosby has fallen in love with riding in shopping carts. Strange? Possibly but she seems to be a very social baby so she enjoys being in stores, sitting up high in the carts, and people watching until her heart's content. I really cannot get over how much attention she gets at every store we enter! She is one happy baby when she is riding in the shopping cart....

Riding in the shopping cart at Kohl's. She had so much fun watching the other shoppers and trying to reach out to touch all of the clothes, towels, etc. from her little shopping cart!

More American Food Products

Since we were just back in the US, I again used the opportunity to stock up on more American grocery items....

As you can see, the most recent bounty of goods filled up about half of one suitcase but I had the space, so I took advantage of it!

On the shopping list this time ---- Malt-o-Meal (I Love it and I think it could be a pregnancy/ cold weather craving), cans of diced chilies, cans of Rotel, Kosher salt, Ranch Dressing, Dill Pickle slices, Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce, oyster crackers, Club Crackers, Chex Mix (a must-have for the holiday season!), Baker's Joy spray with flour (since holiday baking time is upon us), mini chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, and yellow cake mix (and no you did not read that incorrectly - I did purchase a boxed cake mix - I usually scorn cake mixes, but I do want to make some STL gooey butter cookies for the holiday season and they require yellow cake mix in the batter....and so my secret is out). I can officially say I am running out of cupboard space at the moment to house my American "stash." I also picked up a few containers of the disposable tupperware containers because the selection over here is just dismal...

I think I should be able to make quite a few of our American favorites over the coming weeks for the holidays with all of these goodies.

The Ladies do London

On Saturday, I went to London with two girlfriends for the day. My good American friend, Lauri, who has been here in England for the same amount of time as we have, is due to move back to the US very soon. It will be so sad to see her go home! Her husband works with Scott and he has taken a new job back in the Chicago headquarter office, so their family will be repatriating to the US. 

We took advantage of the ladies leaving their kids at home with their husbands, and we took the train to London for the day to do some shopping, eating and some sight seeing too....

We started our morning with shopping on Portobello Road in Notting Hill. I just love all of the antiques and bric a brac on display by the vendors. Plus the sunny weather made it the perfect Saturday for shopping outside in the sunshine!

A stop by the Hummingbird Bakery was an essential stop for us while shopping on Portobello Road. Although we visited the bakery in the morning, I still indulged in a delicious chocolate whoopee pie! 

After Portobello Road, we wandered around Soho and made our way to the Liberty Store.

I love that the back of the Liberty store is wallpapered in some of their famous floral print. 

Liberty of London recently launched a special line for Target in the US, which I have perused many times already online....so I was quite surprised to find the Liberty for Target goods in their UK store. I wonder if any of the British really know what Target is??? (There is nothing of equivilance over here as far as I have found.) These items on this line cost a fraction of the price compared to the rest of Liberty's fabulous signature items, so it is no surprise that this line has sold out very quickly in all of the Targets in the US. I just hope they still carry new items in this range by the time we move back to the US. 

After a lovely leisurely lunch in Soho, we did a bit of the tourist thing, and wandered down to the EYE of London...

From this area, we then took [what we thought was going to be] a little boat tour down the Thames. However, it turned into probably the shortest boat tour EVER. Think 10 minutes cruising down the Thames with a commentator on speed. 

Despite the speed boat instead of the leisurely tour, we still enjoyed the view of the city's main sights along the river. It was a great day out with the ladies in London! 

Let's Make a Deal

Shopping in Marrakech is an experience....and is a negotiator's dream! Within the souks, everything and anything is up for bargaining, if you can sway the local salesman, who can be quite persistent. 

Ask the price of an item and you will be given a figure about 3 times the final amount you should hope to pay. We had great fun navigating the souks of Marrakech and enjoyed "window" or stall shopping to see the vibrant colors of the berber rugs, the leather goods, scarves, tea sets, lanterns, and more. The continuous hassling from the local salesmen started to wear on us a bit during our trip, but it was all part of the experience and the fun of shopping in the souks. 

Walking through the souks - people and items everywhere. No street signs or arrows in there so I was thankful to have my navigation system with me (aka Scott - he always seems to know where we are without a map!). 

Watch out! A biker might just run you over....they do sometimes sound a horn, but you best move quickly to step out of their way. Better yet, if you are not quick on your feet, a donkey might just run over your foot as they trot through the winding souk streets. 

Navigating our way through the souks - stalls are every which way surrounding you...

All of the items for sale throughout the souks make the stalls vibrant and colorful. It was great fun to shop and bargain for the local treasures we purchased while there! 

Local Berber quality made carpets are for sale.

Spices....

More spices....

Scott tries to buy some Amber.....little did he know he was being charged about double the amount we should have paid! 

Lanterns....

Pottery....

Straw bags....

Handwoven scarves and blankets...

Leather goods...

Traditional tea sets and painted glasses...

More lanterns (my favorite item we saw during this trip)...

Shopping for Spring

Shopping for clothes here in the UK is expensive. I often find the prices of clothing are the same in GBP as they are in dollars, thus making them (at the moment) 1.5 times as much more expensive than US items would be. Furthermore the quality is not always the best for middle of the road brands (comparable to Ann Taylor and AT Loft, J. Crew, Banana Republic, etc - my "regular" US stores). And then to add more personal woes to this subject, I find it near impossible to find TALL pants over here, which I need due to my height. 

While I do moan a bit about the lack of clothing shopping I do here, I have found one UK based brand that I have fallen in love with......BODEN. They offer TALL dresses, LONG Pants (Trousers here), size 42 shoes (11 US size women's), and overall offer a preppy but classic look that I just adore. I am hooked! Boden does actually have a US arm now as well so I am very pleased to know that when we return to the US, I can continue my shopping habit with them. 

Last week I was invited to a Boden "shopping party" locally and so of course I attended, ready to make purchases from their new spring line, and ready to scoop up the savings offered at the event. The box of my purchases (3 out of the 4) arrived the other day and I am quite pleased. Boden is one UK clothing company that has made a repeat customer out of me! 

My most recent purchases - a fun print tunic top, long white trousers, and pewter colored sandals. These items are being packed for our Moroccan trip so I am sure they will surface in photos soon! 

These new sandals arrived in a box with this adorable green & pink shoe bag. I love such practical extra touches...it makes me a happy customer! 

English Tea

I have decided to start a china tea cup collection while we are living in England. The number of antique shops and markets are plentiful and there are SO many pretty antique patterns to be found! 

I found my first tea cup for my collection this past week at the Portobello Market in Notting Hill while Carrie & I were in London. And I cannot wait to find the next addition to this soon-to-be growing collection....

My first tea cup purchase. A pretty pattern in circa 1920's English china.