Wednesday, June 23, 2010

I awoke around 6:30am to find Drew still sleeping soundly.  I sat and gazed at him taking in all the details of his little face, every expression.  He would wrinkle his forehead, then throw his eyebrows up, scrunch up his face and search for something to suck with his mouth.  It wasn't long before he woke.

Nelle was ready as I relinquished "grandma" duties and gave mommy the reigns.  I showered and prepared for the day ahead.  Derek and Nelle had an appointment with Drew's pediatrician.  They took off for the doctor's office and I stayed behind to vacuum the carpets and clean up the house a little from the previous night's activities.  

Once they returned home it was time to feed Drew, then off to Brandon for the afternoon.  We arrived a little before 1pm to find Mike, Adam & Norma had not eaten breakfast or lunch, thinking we were coming earlier to go get food.  So, soon after we arrived, we headed off to get lunch at a local cafe.  We ate at the Central Cafe on High Street, just a short walk up the road.  It was an enjoyable time sitting and visiting together.  The strawberry shakes were fantastic, not made with ice cream such as we have, but with real sweet cream and ice.  

We headed back to the Lodge as Drew was a little fussy from the day's events.  But Derek was able to calm him quickly.  Seems he was real good at that.  









After a short rest, the parents headed back to Barclay Bank for more "notes".  And when we returned back to the Lodge it was decided that the men folk and I would go explore the opposite side of Brandon's town than we usually had walked, while Nelle & Norma would stay behind for some time to visit together.
 
So we walked up the bridge, over the Little Ouse River to the railroad tracks, then back again.  We stopped only to take pictures and find out times for our upcoming dinner with the chef Jean Paul at Jean Paul's Restaurant owned by our Lodge owner, Christine Arnold. 

Now let me write just a little about Ms. Chriss, as she was called.  She is a precious lady who checked on us often to make sure all we needed was in place.  Though their custom was to allow only one towel per couple, and I never saw 1 washcloth,  I could not complain.  Ms. Chriss would ask us if we would like our rooms cleaned today, or if we would be taking breakfast the next morning.  She was full of hospitality, and always smiling.  Such a pleasant person who loved to tell us facts about growing up in England, and the surrounding area of Suffolk.  She offered suggestions on activities, giving locations of sites to explore, and modes of transportation to get there.  It actually wasn't until the last day of our stay that we found out her name.  But we were all very pleased with her, and had grown quite fond of our Lodge hostess/owner, a true English lady.

Derek & Nelle decided to skip the evening meal, having just eaten our lunch around 2pm.  They were both very tired from the weekend's events, and the new routine they were trying to adjust to, as well as having parents in to entertain.  Derek was coming off his adrenaline rush, and crashing hard and fast.  So, they went on home to get some sleep, when Drew would allow, and would return the next day for us to go to Bury St. Edmund's to see the great cathedrals.

This would be an early night for us as well.  The only one I would get this week. 


The evening began around 6:30pm with dinner across the road at Jean Paul's Restaurant.  The food was, once again, fabulous.  We had "starters" as they are called here, of brushetta and olive oil and bread.  The brushetta was really good.  I'm not usually fond of this, but I ate every bite of it.  Our main course for Mike and I was Chicken Roma - chicken in a creamy white sauce over noodles and a side of thinly sliced salad vegetables layered on each other, not mixed as our salads at home.  The vegetables were all very fresh and tasty, no need for any salad dressings on them.  This meal was by far better than Olive Garden.  We followed with desserts, banana toffee pie for the others, and I had a chocolate roll bread, which was dipped in heavy sweet cream.  The entire meal was a great experience to eat.  

We sat in the restaurant with real grape vines completely roofing our heads.  The bunches of grapes were scattered throughout the vines, more than we could count.  Most were green, though some had begun to turn.  They would be a deep purple grape when ripe.  The waiter told stories of times when the ripened grapes fell from the ceiling over night.  The next day when they came in, the floor, tables and counters were covered with grapes, and many had smashed upon the fall.  Red goo was everywhere.  We all laughed as he described the chore of cleaning such an incident.  

After dinner we decided to take a walk.  We started at the "Riverside Trails" which were dirt paths between rows of weeds as high as my head, and went back as far as to the "Locke" (similar to a dam) of the Little Ouse River. (Left picture-looking down on the white, foamy water through the locke rail)

Continuing on, we went through a park we found which had carved trees, similar to the trees from Lord of the Rings.  And in the distance we could see the town cathedral.  Something we wouldn't want to miss seeing.  So, it was off to find the cathedral.  Walk, walk, walk.

The oldest graves were closest to the cathedral.  These had foot stones, as well as unreadable head stones.  The cathedral was beautiful.  We moved around the building looking at it's ornate structural details.

 We noticed that gargoyles were used to disguise the drain pipes of the buildings.  These were strange looking little creatures built into the walls.  Their open mouth's were used for the rain to flow through.  

After pics, we headed over to London Road to run by Tesco for water, then back up the road to High Street to head back to Riverside Lodge.  This whole trek, along with the walking from earlier to and from the cafe and the bank, down through the opposite side of town to the Norfolk border, brought our total walking today to, at the very least, 5 miles, and the men agree it is closer to 6.

All the walking seems to be getting more and more each day.  I'm eating well, and losing weight, and I'm sure I'm getting health points with my body.  Who would have thought I would be walking in England, and able to do it so well, after my 6 months of thyroid issues where I couldn't move off the couch without breaking into a sweat.  Jesus' blood was shed and stripes put on his back for my healing.  What an awesome work he has done in me.

After returning to the Lodge it was time for a shower, relaxation, and journaling.  Hopefully I will sleep well tonight to help catch myself up from last night's ventures with Baby Drew, my pride and joy.  He has smitten his grandpa's heart too. Nelle got a pic of Mike, Derek, and Drew together.  I haven't seen it yet, but I expect it will be a great shot.  Goodnight for now.