Flat Stanley, making 2D cool again

Have any of you ever helped

with a Flat Stanley project?

This was our first time.

A friend of mine in Utah is a teacher,

and one of her students needed

someone to send "Flat Stanley" to.

Our task was to take pictures

of Flat Stanley doing various activities with us.

We kind of spoiled Flat Stanley.

Here are some of his adventures:

There are a few adventures that

I didn't document.  Like, the 

time I lost him in the parking garage
(for a whole day)... 

Or that time he blew out of my 

hands into the ocean...

But Flat Stanley is a survivor!

I think we showed him a good time.

London oddities

Just a little fun with the camera

and some eye candy for you.

"Fried-egg flowers," if you will.

And then there's the shredded tulip.

We bought this box of "Man Tissues,"

and Jake's life will never been the same.

I was hungry enough to eat the strange

brown stick in my McDonald's ice cream cone.

And lived to tell the tale.

Don't worry, I used my persuasive 

wife skills and convinced Jake not 

to buy the British driving cap 

(as much as I'm sure he would have 

worn it in the States).

"Vegetarian Fish and Chips"

 Yep, that's what the menu said.

And Jake quite liked the battered and fried cheese.

I'll stick to the real stuff.

With bits!

(Doesn't that sound appetizing?)

One pound will get you a kiss from

the gold glitter man.

You know your room is small when

it includes a decimal point.

And let's be honest.

Where else would I be able to display

the picture Jake took of the electrical outlets?

That's all folks!

Minding the Gap

Although we were only in London for 3 days,

those days were jam-packed.  

Here is the highlight reel.

We stayed in the South Kensington area, and 

this was our tube station (pronounced "Gloss-ter")

We picked our hotel after reading 

several reviews which said that it was a 

good place to stay, so long as you are

not claustrophobic or have an aversion

to the color orange.

The reviews were accurate on both accounts.

This was our "room" (good thing I had

training in those cruise ship rooms!):

And our "tiny loo."

 But it was just enough space for us.

Our first night in London, we met up

with our DC friend Katie Younger to

see Les Miserables at the Queen's Theater.

In the morning, the first place we visited 

was the London Eye.  Jake likes to look out over 

each city he visits from its highest point.

The sky was clear and we got some great views.

Including the best view (I think) of Big Ben

and the Houses of Parliament.

 The next way we saw the city was 

from a double-decker bus.  Our ticket was

good for 24 hours, and we made good

use of that time!

We saw Buckingham Palace...

And went inside Westminster Abbey

(one of my favorite parts of the trip):

This is the entry that the new Duchess

of Cambridge used for the Royal Wedding.

But this is the closest we got to Will and Kate.

The Tower Bridge:

And St. Paul's Cathedral:

JK Rowling's apartment!

(the white one with the dog-shaped 

plant on the balcony)

The British Museum,

one of our only activities that was FREE!

We spent several hours inside, but easily

could have spent several days.

The Rosetta Stone:

Real mummies!

We took advantage of the gorgeous weather

and hopped on bikes to explore Hyde Park.

And Kensington Palace.

On our last night in London, we met up

with our Poulter family friend, Hazel.

We had a lovely dinner in Covent Garden.

Cheerio London.  

Hope to return again someday!