Grandma and Grandpa Come to Visit!

A few weeks ago my parents came into town. I am a little late since we took off to Germany a few days after, but I wanted to make sure I get it down since my sister arrives tomorrow! We are so lucky to have plenty of visitors this summer.

Having my parents here was wonderful, there is just something about having mom and dad around. My dad could only stay for a little over a week and then my mom stayed a few days after (where she made dinner and insisted on naps, I love her). My dad had never been out to England or Europe and we were so excited to show him around. When I was 15 my grandparents offered to take me to Europe and he paid for part of it, even though he had never been himself. All of the kids have been to Europe, and so has my mother so we were excited to share it with him.

They were such easy guests, they had a few sights they wanted to see and foods to try (yum yums, fish and chips and crumpets) but other than that they just wanted to spend time with Hadley and see where we live.

Hanging out with Hadley fighting through the jetlag, she really did recognize my mom from skype. She seemed a bit confused she was here instead of in the screen but she responded to her voice and warmed up really quickly. I am glad she is able to actually build a relationship with her even though we are so far away.

The next day we headed out to Tower of London and checked out the Crown Jewels, they sadly didnt allow pictures of the jewels but they are just as stunning as you would expect.

Part of the changing of the guards

We then headed over to St Paul's Cathedral, we loved Mary Poppin's as kids and I had "tuppence the birds" stuck in my head all day. My parents went in but we decided to try another time since there were lots of stairs involved and we only had the stroller.

The next day we headed to Stone Henge after church. We also were able to drive by Salisbury Cathedral and Avebury where there is a lesser known ancient stone area. It was really nice since we hadn't had a chance to see any of the sights we went to that weekend.

Monday my parents went to the British Museum and Hadley and I figured it would be more fun for them not to take a 1 yr old with them. They said it was really interesting and we are hoping to get there one day. Tuesday they headed to Paris, it is so close it was perfect to fit it in and they returned late Thursday night. It worked out perfectly since Hadley was running a low fever and was fussy from teething, we are now the proud owners of 2 newly cut teeth for a total of 4 teeth, it is a bit slow but at least they are there!!

We spent the down time carrying both of the "purses" grandma brought around at all times

When they got back, Grandpa wanted to plant her a little garden and we spent Friday visiting the garden store. We now have lettuce to eat whenever we want, little green strawberries and fresh herbs.

Hadley loved "helping" and playing in the dirt

On Saturday we headed to Big Ben and to check out some of the more popular London sights

Hadley is a pro at riding the metro

The one thing my dad wanted was to be able to hold Hadley on his own and have her not squirm away, and he definitely made his goal. She loved being with him! He also taught her how to throw a ball (so very him) and I spent the next few weeks encouraging her to throw just balls, instead of everything she could get her hands on.

The little finger puppets Grandma bought cracked Hadley up, she loved laughing with Grandma

We were so very, very sad when they had to leave!! We were so happy they came to visit and I am excited we go out to Austin in July, only two months away!