NEWSFLASH !!

Hello friends.....just a little notice here to direct you to the "New and Improved"  Silly Chaps website!

http://web.me.com/sillymum

It is still a work in progress.... so please let us know what you think!

-Kel.

Boston 2008

I have a few more pictures to share from our holiday in Boston.

Here are Grammy Dames, Andrew and me at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, upper level.

Grammy and Grandpa treated us to a morning at the museum.

Here is our "Pink Marine".  This is my favorite photo from our trip.  (He's holding Beth's purse for her, while listening to the dictation at the art museum.)

 

Cousin Caroline and Andrew looking out into the harbour before entering the aquarium.  We spent the afternoon inside the huge aquarium.

Andrew wasn't too sure about this........ it is the touch tank at the Boston Aquarium.  This is the stingray tank.  But as you can see (he is in the red shirt), he finally got up enough nerve to stick his hand in.

Stephen & Rebecca's Wedding 2008

I know what you're thinking.  You are thinking I have forgotten about all of you out there.  Well, I haven't.  I have just been spending my time doin' other things than uploading pictures.

We had a wedding in the family.  J.D.'s cousin, Stephen, was married in Boston last month.  We decided it would make a great beginning to our summer vacation.

So off to Boston we are....

Here are Great Grammie and Great Grampa Roberts at the reception. It was held at the Peabody Essex Museum.  Gorgeous.

Back at the church.  Sorry this is out-of-order, remember, I haven't done this in a while!

Anyways, here are Tommy Chris, Beth, and cousin Caroline.  I got to sit next to them.

Here is a fantastic photo of all of the kids.  (big and small)  Outside before the reception.

Alex and Andrew dancin' up a storm.  The band was brilliant.

J.D.'s cousin Rex with girlfriend Kylie.

Cayman with baby Ethan.  It was a long day for him!

The beautiful bride and Mom and Dad Dames.  Great Grampa is satisfied just smilin' for the camera!

Summer, here we come!

It is officially summer here in London.  Alex had his last day of school on Thursday.  I took a couple of photos to show you how beautiful his school was on that day. 

It was a perfect 75 degrees with hardly a cloud in the sky.  If you look to the left in this picture you can see the Moms waiting outside for release-time.

Not a school bus, for sure.

This particular programme was started 20 years ago.  However, the building has been around since 1821 and has wonderful architectural bits both inside and out.

Here's Alex with his buddy Patrick and assistant teacher Ms. Bell.  She said she wouldn't dare miss the opportunity to say goodbye to her American students.

Oxford here I come!

Wimble-de-don 2008

Hey, look where we've been recently.  You know you are spoiled when you wake up in the morning and say, "Andrew, let's go to Wimbledon today, okay?"  And then you can get there within one hour.

We are sooooo lucky.

Wimbledon is one of the first things I thought of when we were talking about moving to London.  I knew it would be something I would see.  But then, we get here and find out that you have to sign up/be part of lottery starting in January, OR be related to Her Majesty in some form or fashion.

Which we ain't, for sure.

It also costs an arm-and-a-leg.  I really need mine these days so that is not an option at this point.  

However, we now know how it works......and next year John and I will go sans kids.

We lucked out this year with walk-up tickets.  We chose (1)a Wednesday, (2)a day slated for rain, and (3) a day that is not part of the finals.  In other words, cheap tickets; or at least cheap for London standards.  (I'm not converting, I'm not converting...)

Here is Andrew with his giant Wimbledon tennis ball.  It really is bigger than his head.  The grounds are beautiful with purple, lavender and aubergine flowers.  Hanging baskets everywhere.   Gorgeous.  Absolutely gorgeous.

And in keeping with tradition we had the obligatory strawberries and cream.  I had to explain to Andrew that "cream" was the same thing as melted ice cream.  He was quite willing to give it a try after that.

Scoreboard full of names I don't know.  (except for a couple of course)

 

With our ground-entry tickets we were allowed to hop in and out of matches.  Any match, that is, except Centre Court, Court 1 and Court 2.  Bummer.  Those courts actually had guards in full military uniform standing at the entrances so there was no sneakin' in.   This is an American in the Juniors league....Bradley something-or-other.

This is our first rain delay.  (we had 2)  The game was stopped and then all these little elves appear and work magic within seconds to cover up the grass courts.  It was just as fun to watch as the games;  amazingly organized, quick, and regimented.  

You've probably seen this view on t.v.   It is "the hill".  They run documentaries and live games on the big screen.

Note to self: 6 year olds are not entertained by tennis.

Andrew survives the day.  (pre meltdown) 

(see the hanging baskets above his head?) ( I've just got to get a telephoto lens....)

Tu parles fran§ais?

Guess what......

Alex won an award last night at Abercorn's Annual Prize Giving.  (yes, that's actually what they call it.)

An annual ceremony held at the end of the school term, the Prize Giving Ceremony is a BIG deal.

Unbeknownst to us.

At first we weren't even going to attend because John had another commitment with work and we had not been told we were even "in-the-running" for any award.    The ceremony was held at the beautiful Landmark Hotel and even included tea and biscuits prior to starting.

Quite posh and British, I say.

Luckily, I had dressed smart.  I had even been able to convince Andrew to change his shirt, which is an effort that deserves it's own award these days.

We were able to sit next to the McGee clan, who also had been through the same "change-your- shirt-or-you-will-loose-your-wii-privileges" discussion.

The ceremony started with a song which was sung by the entire TOGS (The Old Grammar School) student body and the upper school (Wyndham) campus.  

Don't forget, these kidos are in uniform......coat, tie, etc.

...singing in Latin!

It couldn't get any more "Harry Potter" than that.  Molly and I were stunned.

The TOGS campus includes Levels 4,5, and 6.  (grades 3rd, 4th, and 5th)  The Wyndham campus includes levels 7 and 8.  (grades 6th and 7th).  

Awards were given in each Level, for each subject.  Geography, English, Maths, Science, French.

You can't imagine how my heart jumped when they were naming the Level 4 awards.  "Alex Dames- French"

 I almost dropped my teacup.

So, out of approximately 30+ students in his Level, Alex was nominated by the French teacher for the award.  

I am immensely proud.  I think it says ALOT.  Yes, we did work at home on his pronunciation and spelling.  (My 1 semester at Purdue did us some good!)  But don't forget......the majority of the students had already had a couple of years of study!

I think his private Spanish lessons last year in Richmond may have had something to do with it.  But don't tell him that.

He received a certificate and a French dictionary, not to mention a handshake from the Chairman/Board of Directors.  All of this in front of 300+ people.

We're not in Kansas anymore, my friends.

The picture above was taken this morning, begrudgingly.

And I guess it confirms we know a little bit more than "croissants". 

School is Out! (at least for some of us)

Andrew and I have had alot of one-on-one time recently.  He is done with school and is out for the summer holiday.  

His brother is still in school, however, and has gone on a school trip this week for 5 days.  FIVE DAYS.  This is the longest period of time that he has been away from us.  He was so excited about this trip, I hope he is having a great time.

However, I think his little brother is homesick for him.

I have never in my life listened to a kindergartner talk as much as he has the past couple of days.  It has been NON-STOP.  blah, bla, blah, chatter....

I kid you not.

So I thought I might add a post to the blog showing you another insight into the mind of a kindergartner and exactly what I am dealing with at the moment.

This piece of artwork came home on his last day of school.  It' s a picture of his Dad.  The kids were to make pictures of their parents to post on the wall at school.

John's wardrobe (besides his business attire) is 50% hawaiian/jimmy buffet themed button-downs.  Though I must admit it, because he honestly doesn't read this blog, that percentage has gone down in the last couple of years, mysteriously.

A few of the shirts have gone to the "luau in the sky" with the big Kahuna under unforeseen circumstances.  Ahem.

Anywho, enough of these shirts have been left to make an impression on his son, because clearly you can see it in the depiction above.

Well done, Andrew.

We also read the dictation and it gives a warm and fuzzy feeling.  Well, at least it states his father does show a little involvement in his life by taking him to the park and all.

No such luck on my part though.

This brings us to the portrait of me.  

In other words, my Mom has no involvement in my life.

Let's start with the hair, or lack thereof.  

For those of you who know me, I have been fighting a hairloss battle for the past year.   Those 2 strings of yarn at the top are a perfect picture of how I feel some days.  I am at least glad that he did get the color right.   

 The color of my shirt is spot-on.  Thirty % of my current wardrobe is that color.  Which means at least 3 (higher maths) of the shirts hanging in my closet are of that color.  

In case you have forgotten, I am a true "Spring".

Yes, I probably only own 10 shirts at this time, TOTAL.  I did a BIG weed-out before the move and am now regretting it because I refuse to pay £25 for a t-shirt ($50).

Anywho, the interesting part to me is the dictation.  Is this how he sums up my  relationship with him?  It's funny.  I don't like to shop for food at the grocery store.  The only reason I do is because I know if I don't their dietary repertoire would consist of Coco Pops and "chips" (french fries).  Or worse, I will come home one day to find shriveled up people in my flat.   

So, somebody's got to do it.

I just love his honesty, though.  

I mentioned his gift-of-gab that has come out the past couple of days.......let me share some of the questions he has proposed to me.  There seems to be an extraordinary number.

"Mom.  Is a frog a bug, a reptile, or a animal?"

"Mom.  Which is hotter:  fire or lava?"

"Mom.  Are we the more famous Dames'?"

"Mom.   Did you know that ketsup goes good on any American food?  Well, it does."

"Mom.  Can you die from playing too much rugby?"

"Mom.  If you are death (I think he meant to say deaf), can you still hear your voice inside your head?"

Ahhh....inside the mind of a kindergartner.  I just luv it.

Happy Fathers Day!

Today is Fathers Day - And I've been instructed to learn a new trick.  Yes, this is Dad actually writing a blog!

This morning I was presented with a puzzle from Andrew titled "The Dad Powam"

I thought that it would be pretty neat to share this gift with the wider blogging world.  So after putting it together, the finished product is on the right.

If you have any difficulty reading it, it's translated as follows:

The Dad Poem

Dad eats tacos

Dad is fun

Dad has black hair

Dad plays with me

Happy Fathers Day

Andrew

To my two dad's - happy fathers day to you as well!

End of Baseball Season

We have come to the end of another baseball season.  Hallelujah.  There's nothin' like spending your entire weekend at Wormwood Scrubs.  Here are a few pictures I took last weekend.  Alex did extremely well.  And Andrew, well, he hit 'em out of the park.

Strike a pose, Alex.  Vogue.

He gets his sense of fashion from his father, for sure.

Up at bat, Alex Dames number 9.

It's a hit!  (notice fashionable Dad in the background.)  (brown shirt, blue shirt, red cap)

Handsome guy on 3rd base.

Running, running, running....

Home!

Why is this picture in my camera?

Greenwich

We went to Greenwich this past holiday weekend. Luckily, we picked the right day as the weather was beautiful on Saturday.

We ventured to Greenwhich via tube, boat, and a long walk. We have really become pros with public transportation. I remember last summer thinking how inefficient public transportation seemed to be. I don't feel that way any more. It was quite a pleasurable trip down there.

This is the Old Royal Naval College, located in Greenwich, complete with scaffolding and cranes. It was designed by Christopher Wren.

The 24 hour clock located at the top of the hill at The Royal Observatory, also in Greenwich.

Here are the Silly Chaps standing along the prime meridian line, the imaginary circle of the earth passing through both poles.

That red ball at the top of the observatory has something to do with time. John has only told me umpteen million times what it does......but I continue to forget. (selective memory?) The ball would be raised and lowered so the sailors could tell what time it was by its position on the pole. It doesn't seem to work nowadays.

Looking up from the Queens House towards the observatory.

This is the Queens House designed by Inigo Johnes for James I's wife orginally. However, it wasn't completed until 1637 for Henrietta Maria the queen of Charles I.

It has been restored to its original state and now houses great artwork.

It was voted (not unanimous) that we would not go in the Queens House........"because all it had in it was "art stuff"."

Exterior tunnel through the Queens House.

Alex is practicing his liturgical dance.

Why do I even try to take "scenic pictures" ? Ansel Adams I will never be.

It was a long day for us but it didn't matter because we could lay out in the sunshine, finally!

recent outings

We've had a wake-up call around here. We found out that our best buddies "the McGees" are being transferred back to New Jersey. It is an unexpected turn of events. Their arranged arrival and departure times were much like ours. They moved in a couple of weeks after we did, and were slated to return back stateside about the time we were. However, because of the banking crisis, they are going back early.

It is sad because there is so much more they wanted to see and do. They are frantically enjoying as much of London as they can and hope to see other parts of Europe if time allows.

Which brings us to todays post. I have learned from their experience.......and I am trying to keep up with Molly and do as much as I can with her before she leaves. We recently toured The Globe Theatre. It is an accurate recreation of Shakespeare's original. The tour left much to be desired....not exciting at all. I think it would be better if a play or maybe even a rehearsal was part of the tour. We were not even allowed to go backstage and see the "insides". It is just not part of their tours.

Which is exactly what Molly did when the tour was over. She bought tickets and will see a production before they leave.

I am not that organized. Maybe we will get there later....

Here are a few of the photos I was allowed to take. I admit they are not that exciting. But it does prove I went, right?

The trap door you see in the picture above is the culprit of the downfall of the orginal structure. Evidently, a canon was shot-off as part of the production and it caught fire to the thatch roof. The entire thing burned down within an hour.


I am on the upper deck taking this picture. There were preparations underway for the evenings performance of A Midsummer Night's Dream. (hence, the scenery is all black).

Our next outing was with the local women's club. We had an alfresco lunch high above Kensington High Street in Richard Branson's Roof Gardens. It is a magical setting beyond description-a beautiful mature one and a half acre garden atop the city, complete with koi ponds and flamingos. (SJWWC newsletter, May pg.7) Our buffet lunch came from the same kitchen as Branson's Babylon restaurant one floor below. http:/www.roofgardens.com