Group Riding Lessons

Elisabeth is in a group riding lesson with a couple of her friends from school. 

Doves Assembly

Aaron Michael's class, Doves, had a school Assembly where they participated with other classes in a play about pirates.  It was absolutely adorable!  Aaron was so proud to be on stage and had 3 or 4 lines.  He was a pirate.

Our Friend

There is an abundance of rabbits here.  Our kids think they have a pet rabbit named Peter who comes to our backyard frequently via a small whole in our privacy fence.  It may have something to do with the carrots we fill our yard with to make sure he keeps coming back.  The rabbits here are not small either.  Aaron says to keep feeding it so we can eat it and the kids get mad at him.  I guess Daddy's not getting an Easter Basket this year. 

Gloucester Beatrix Potter Store

Elisabeth was doing a project for school where she had to create a scene from a Beatrix Potter tale inside a shoe box.  We found out there was a Beatrix Potter store and museum in Gloubcester, so we decided to take the kids there for Elisabeth to get a little inspiration for her book.  The store we went in was the actual store where Beatrix Potter got her inspiration to write The Tailor of Gloucester.  They had a small museum containing Beatrix Potter memorbillia from over the years.  The back room was set up just like the room where the Tailor of Gloucester lived. 

New Years Eve and New Years Day

Our friends/neighbors, Scott and Nicholle, invited us over to their house for a New Years Eve celebration.  There were drinks, food, kid makeovers, guitar hero, dancing, flying lanterns, and all kinds of fun.   Nicholle had bought some lanterns which the kids decorated by writing a wish on them and we let them fly up into the sky to deliver their wishes.  It was a fun night/early morning as we didn't leave there until 4AM.  The kids were even still going strong at 4AM.  Elisabeth even made a new friend, Meghan from Northern Ireland, and the next day Elisabeth, Amelia, and Meghan played dress up. 

Lacock Abbey

Lacock Abbey is another place where they filmed the first two Harry Potter movies.  The Abbey's cloisters and side rooms were transformed into the classrooms at Hogwarts School while the location was also used for Harry's discovery of the Mirror of Erised.  In reality, Lacock Abbey was founded in 1232 and comprises:  cloisters, sacristy, chapter house and monastic rooms, courtyard, brewery and bakehouse.  I have to say this is one of the most beautiful and exciting places we have been.  The grounds around the Abbey were beautiful as well. 

Gloucester Cathedral

We decided to set out to visit one of the many places here in the UK where they filmed scenes from the Harry Potter movies.  The kids have really gotten into the Harry Potter movies since we have been here.  They have now seen every one.  Aaron and I on the other hand have only watched the first and last.  The corridors of Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizadry were filmed at Gloucester cathedral.  The movies you will see these corridors in are Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.  It was really fun to walk down the corridors and visualize the different scenes in the movie.