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....

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!

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.

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??

Baking Ingredients

I bake quite a bit during the weeks leading up to Christmas each year. It's become a new little tradition for us in that I bake huge trays of cookies for Scott to bring in to his office for all of his co-workers to enjoy. Then, I make bags filled with homemade treats for co-workers, neighbors, friends, etc. I used to do this before Scott & I met and then once we got married, my list of people to bake for has expanded to include his colleagues as well. I love planning the items I will make, and I do try to plan the list out in advance, so I can then go shopping to stock up on all of the baking supplies to ensure I don't run out of some important ingredient in the middle of my baking frenzy.

This year I was contemplating making these chocolate mint brownies as part of the assorted baked goods / cookies on the trays for Scott's office to enjoy, but I wasn't sure if I had seen peppermint extract on the grocery store shelf here before. I looked in my pantry and did not have any, so I went to the local Sainsbury's to see what I could find.

I was surprised of course to see the peppermint extract labeled as "AMERICAN" peppermint extract. Why is it American and not just Peppermint Extract? I did find it amusing from my standpoint, because of course I am an American who would be using it to make an American brownie recipe!

Waffles

Every time I pass the "waffle" sign at the grocery store here, I think I am going to see some frozen type of Eggo waffles here, but I don't (I should know better by now).

The "waffle" sign refers to all of the potato waffles for sale in that aisle.

I have no idea if these waffles are supposed to be eaten at breakfast or dinner, but I finally bought some and we had them as a side dish for dinner last night.

My verdict is that these are the equivalent to American tater tots or something quick along those lines. They claim to be made of mashed potatoes in the shape of a waffle and that is how they tasted too. I have no idea if these are sold in the US or not, but I am always surprised that frozen waffles are not sold in the UK, since they are so popular in the US.

Anglo-American Halloween Celebration

As I have mentioned before, Halloween is not as much of an event in the UK as it is in the US, although traditions we know as Americans, such as trick-or-treating, are increasing here in England. We probably had only about a dozen trick or treaters in our neighborhood, and I thought that was quite light, given that we are in a pretty family-friendly area.

Since this was Crosby's first Halloween, I thought it would be nice to have a little party with her British baby friends and their parents so we could celebrate the holiday in more of an American style!

Crosby trying out her first Halloween costume, a cute little duckie!

The Saturday before Halloween, we hosted about 15 people at the house for an early Halloween pizza dinner. Since our guests were all British friends, I decided it would be fun to introduce them to Chicago deep dish pizza and American Halloween candy, both of which none of them had ever consumed before.

I brought back a few decorations from the US on my last trip there and decorated the house with some festive things.

I was a busy baker before the party, making both chocolate "ghost" cupcakes and vanilla "jack-o-latern" cupcakes.

The table was set with the food spread including: caramel peanut apple dip, hummus & veggies, cheese & crackers, deep dish Chicago pizzas, parmesan pizza bites for the babies, frosted sugar cookies, and chocolate & vanilla cupcakes - everything homemade from scratch of course! The center of the table had lots of American candy for our guests to enjoy and take home in their goodie bags : tootsie rolls, nerds, sweet tarts, Ghost tootsie roll pops, reeses pieces, candy corn, marshmallow pumpkins, laffy taffy, and sixlets.

The sausage, veggie, and sausage & mushroom deep dish Chicago-style pizzas. They were a hit with the guests!

We tried to capture a photo of all of the babies in costume in one sitting on the couch. It was nearly impossible to do! For some reason, Crosby was not a happy camper during this photo shoot and as soon as she started crying, the others followed suit.

Then on Sunday, we attended a Halloween party, this time with the American Club in our area. Although Crosby was probably a bit too young for the activities at this event, it was nice to celebrate the occasion with our American friends.

Crosby at the party in her fancy Halloween bib I made her.

Scott has fun swinging the little duckie around upside down!

At the party, taking a photo in the decorated area.

Trying out Mom's silly Halloween sunglasses for size.

American "Loot"

Scott about croaked when he helped me unpack my suitcases when Crosby & I returned back to England this week. I had almost an entire suitcase full of food - namely Halloween loot and candy! Ooops....

We are planning to host a little Halloween party for some of our British friends who have children within a few weeks of age of Crosby so I figured that was the perfect excuse to bring back lots of American Halloween candy so they can all try the American sweets we like.

Now that Crosby is eating food in full force, I also brought back a few baby items that she enjoyed in the US that I cannot find here - "puffs," plain Cheerios, Rice Rusks, disposable place mats for eating out at restaurants (love them), etc.

It's a good thing we have status with the airline so I am allowed plenty of extra baggage! :)

The Food Adventure Begins

Today Crosby started solid foods. I gave her sweet potatoes as her first food. As you can see, her reaction was not one of immediate love....

It was rather difficult to capture her very vibrant expressions but I was laughing with each bite she tried to eat and then spit out. You would have thought I were trying to feed her dirt with her uncertainty of the food!

Baby Food

In less than just two weeks Crosby will be six months old and it will be time to start introducing solid foods into her diet. I cannot believe she is nearly 6 months old! I remember thinking I had so much time before I introduced her to food and here it is upon me now. Some people do introduce food a bit earlier to their babies (between 4-6 months) but we have decided to wait the full 6 months because there are some dairy, fish, and egg allergies on Scott's side of the family and my sister was just recently diagnosed with celiac disease. While there is no way to prevent Crosby from inheriting any of these genes that could cause the allergies, I have been advised that breast milk only for the first full six months is the best shot at protection against such issues. So, I have stuck with it and hope it is giving Crosby the best start at a good healthy diet.

We are headed on another family holiday soon and so as soon as we return from that trip, I will begin the food adventures. In order to prepare for Crosby's first foods, I have been scouring the shelves at the grocery store and doing quite a bit of reading online. When I took Crosby to the pediatrician back in the US (at 3 months of age), the doctor gave me this leaflet as a guide to introducing foods into Crosby's diet:

There is quite a list of items to avoid - some until she is ONE year old and others to avoid until she is TWO years old. The other bit of advice listed there (and also given here in the the UK) is that babies should be introduced (early on) to only one food at a time, most especially if there is a history of allergies in the family. I have seen various advice on the "wait time" in between foods - anywhere from 2-4 days before introducing the next "new" food is what I have read.

Now comes the confusing part for me. Here in England, I have not found any plain baby food at the grocery stores - just one food item at a time in baby food form. So, unless everyone makes their own baby food, how is it possible to introduce just one vegetable or one fruit at a time???? (*Minor exception - Ella's organic pouches have just released plain apples, plain pears, and plain mangoes)

As seen at my local grocery store:

The Plum Brand foods - no plain foods there - all mixed varities!

Ella's Kitchen offers a mixed strawberry & apple pouch as a "first food" which is another point of confusion for me since the US pediatrician said no strawberries until age 2. Here, a first food is between 4-6 months. Confusing, right?

And then beyond the "First foods," come the stage 2 foods which are more like little meals for babies. I never thought about the foods in the US before until I started looking at the foods here. These baby foods seem to be very culture specific.

Hence the Fish Pie with mash (very British) and the Beef Stew with Spuds. Sounds like pub fare to me!

Annabel Karmel is considered to be one of the baby food "experts" here in the UK. She is widely known and her books are all over the baby shops and bookstores here. After reading her website, I am now just more confused on which standard I will follow for introducing foods to Crosby. As a prime example, the first photo from my US pediatrician says fish should be avoided until a baby is over 1 year of age. However, Anabel's website has this recipe and information under the foods for 6-9 months age:

It’s important to encourage a liking for fish early on. This Salmon Puree baby food recipe is quick and easy to prepare and combining it with root vegetables is a good way to introduce fish to your baby. Oily fish like salmon, trout, tuna and sardines are especially good as they contain omega-3 essential fatty acids which are very important for visual and brain development. Tinned tuna however does not contain omega 3s only fresh tuna.

Ingredients

200g carrots, topped and tailed and sliced
125g salmon fillet, skinned
60ml orange juice
40g grated Cheddar cheese
a knob of butter
2 tbsp milk

And of course then the baby foods contain fish and other items that I am not sure are in US baby food....

Personally I am a bit disgusted by baby food. My thought is that I don't eat meals out of jars or little packets, so why would I want to give my baby her first foods from them? Fish or lamb sitting on a shelf in a packet? Can it really be that healthy?

So, I am making all of my own baby food so that I know what goes in it and can control the quality of food she eats early on. It is simple to make and I have already made and frozen: peas, sweet potatoes, pears, apples, and mangoes in anticipation of Crosby's first foods. This way I can also introduce one food at a time to ensure we are able to catch any food sensitivities when they occur. There is no guarantee but I hope I am giving her the best start possible. Plus, I want my little girl to be a good, healthy eater which I think includes lots of fresh fruits, vegetables and proteins. We will forge through this next stage as best we can but it is a bit confusing that different countries have different advice for such tiny people. I guess both are probably right and wrong to some extent - after all, both countries continue to grow their population so something is working!

Online Grocery Shopping

This past winter I embarked on a new adventure...online grocery shopping. I had heard about this idea of ordering your groceries online and then having them delivered to your house soon after we arrived here in England but I never felt that I wanted to try the service because I love going to the grocery store. I could wander the aisles for a long time (and sometimes I have done so!) and I enjoy looking at all of the products, especially the British products over here. I like to see the various placements, packaging of products and more.

However, the thought of having to go grocery shopping when I was going to be home with a newborn started to panic me a bit. Before Crosby arrived I kept thinking about the out of town visitors we would be having right after the baby arrived and I kept wondering how I would manage to shop for them and for us, with a newborn in tow, when the grocery store is always such a zoo by us? Because of the driving differences, I knew our house guests were not going to be willing to drive out to the store at a moment's notice - plus, they don't know how to get around over here. So, I decided that it would be worth trying the service before I "needed" it to see how it was, and then if I liked it, I would continue on with it for the first few weeks after the baby was due to arrive.

Well, I tried it and I fell in LOVE with this service. I have been so pleased that I do not have to fight the parking lot mess at the big retail park by us on a weekly basis to do my shopping for food! (the parking lot woes with a baby in tow will be covered in another post) Plus, I don't have to spend the money on the petrol to get to and from the grocery store either! The groceries now come to me.

I order them from the comfort of my living room, I then select my delivery time slot (an hour's window), and then voila, on the day and time of my order, a nice delivery man in a fancy delivery truck shows up at my house and unloads the grocery bags for me. He even walks them into my kitchen if I want him to do so.

The nifty part is that when the groceries arrive, the bags are color coordinated so I know which items go in the freezer (Green bags), which go in the fridge (red handles), and which items are to be left out for the cupboard area (purple handles). Genius!

The one challenge with the online grocery shopping ties back to the English language. As an American shopping online at a British grocery, I sometimes cannot find what I am looking for. I have become to realize that when I was physically shopping at the grocery store I knew where the item might have been located within the store, but now when I am searching for it by name, I do not always know the proper name of the product.

Some examples:

dishwashing soap = washing up liquid

diapers = nappies

tomato sauce = passata

tomato paste = tomato puree

sour cream = soured cream (not a huge difference, but interesting, isn't it?)

popsicle = ice lollie

garlic powder = garlic granules

zucchini = courgettes

chips = crisps

french fries = chips

I know this service is one part of British life that I have already become attached to in a very short period of time. I am surprised that this concept is not more popular in the US, given that there are so many customer service centric stores there. Hopefully by the time we move back, our local grocery store will have adopted this concept because I would sign up again in a heart beat!

The Fish Finger Sandwich

The longer we live here in England, the more food I find that I think I will actually miss once we move back to the US. Shocking I know since the English are not known for their food, but there really are some good treasures to be found over here.

The most recent food item to be added to my favorite food list is the FISH FINGER SANDWICH. This sandwich is typically found in a pub, usually on a lunch menu and really there is nothing fancy about it but I have fallen in love with it. I have ordered it quite a few times at one of our local pubs, and although they claim to make homemade fish fingers, I am still a bit skeptical about that part of it.

Tonight, I decided to embrace the fish finger sandwich at home to try something new for dinner. While I did not make my own fish fingers, I did make these hamburger buns from scratch for a homemade touch.

Basically, the fish finger sandwich is just a "bap" (aka a sandwich roll) with tartar sauce, fish fingers, and then tomato and lettuce on top to make it a hearty sandwich. Some may say places like McDonald's sell fish sandwiches....and maybe they do - but I think this one is best eaten at the local British pub around the corner.

Lunching with the Ladies

One of the expat American women's club activities that takes place every month in our area is called "Pub Lunch." It's a good excuse to try out a different pub once a month for a nice lunch out. I enjoy trying the pubs for lunch because then if they are good, Scott & I will often go back for dinner on a weekend evening. Today Crosby attended the pub lunch with me and so she went "lunching with the ladies."

Crosby before we left the house for lunch. She was dressed in a pretty little dress and cardigan, and outfitted with bows!

Crosby on the end with one of the ladies at lunch. She was the perfect little baby and didn't utter a peep the entire time! She smiled and cooed and sat up nicely at the table for a while before she took a short snooze during the main course.

A Garden Tea Party

This afternoon I attended a proper English Tea/Garden Party with a group of expat ladies for a fundraiser for a local charity. It was great fun and reminded me of some of the great perks of being an expat wife. Hats or fascinators were required since it was a proper tea and it also coincided with Ladies Day at Ascot today, which is another place where hats are part of the attire for women. I opted for a fairly small fascinator by English standards but still felt a bit like a fish out of water since I am not used to having such large things in my hair!

An attempted self portrait to capture a picture of my fascinator before leaving for the tea.

The tea was full of sweets, cakes and tea sandwiches to enjoy.

I had volunteered to bake a cake for the tea. I baked this strawberry cake (not a proper English tea time cake, but yummy all the same!).

With Anne & Michele in our hats and fascinators at the tea.

There was traditional victoria sponge cake (one of my favorite British cakes).

And plenty of delicious finger sandwiches! Salmon, cucumber, egg salad, and ham & cheese.

And of course scones with real clotted cream and jam. Talk about leaving on a sugar high!

When I returned home, I arrived to find my little Crosby fast asleep after being a good little baby for the sitter. It was a lovely afternoon for a good cause!