it's snowing!

my sister called me from the hotel this morning

and we screamed like little girls ... it's snowing, it's snowing!!

from our warm, cozy bed, J and I watched the massive, feathery flakes fall in front of our window.

i literally felt like i was living in a snow globe.

then just like it started, it ended quietly.

and all that was left was a big, blue sky.

gotta love christmas in london.

!feliz navidad!

the tree has been trimmed -- our first *married* tree and our first *real* tree! it's a 5-foot noble fir -- very spacious between branches with a yummy smell. it's decked out with our homebase lights and bulbs, plus a few home-grown additions: a lonestar cookie-cutter, a newlywed ornament (from momma scott) and a black, stetson cowboy hat topper. we love it.

stockings are hung on the fake marble mantle with care.

maltesers and mars advent calendars are up to date.

christmas presents are all bought and wrapped. stocking stuffers are hidden in closet, waiting to be stuffed on christmas eve night.

christmas cards are addressed, stamped and ready to go out via *air mail* ... ok, ok, they are more like new year's cards.

the kitchen is stocked with yummy cheese, bread and, most importantly, champagne and wine.

bathroom and towels are clean.

what's the special occasion???

my mom and sister arrive today for the holidays. this is their first international flight across the pond. i am so excited to be the uber-tourist guide for the week. we're doing it all!

trafalgar square, christmas carols at st. martin's, harrod's, hyde park, big ben, the tube, london eye, museums ... and, of course, the creperie in south kensington.

weeeeeeeee ... can't wait!

merry christmas ... happy christmas ... feliz navidad!

we're having a heat wave

according to weather.com it's 50 degrees in london right now ... toasty!

and as i write, it's only 34 degrees in dallas and 38 degrees in tucson.

how crazy is that?!?

i'm worrying about my mom & sister being cold next week when they come to visit us. hah!

brrrr, wish you were here instead.

conveyor belt sushi

i love sushi.

i love conveyor belt sushi even more.

it's genius.

i could sit and watch those spicy tuna and salmon rolls roll by me for hours.

what an amazing concept. see it, grab it, dunk it, yum.

instant gratification.

follow that with a trip to the Natural History Museum. then coffee & sweets with a good friend.

pretty much a perfect afternoon in london.

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dinner: chicken tikka massala

sudoku completed: none. aren't you proud?

gym: kickboxing - love the stuff!

weather: chilly and a bit drizzly at time

highlight: IM chatting with my sister for an hour

skinny jeans and puffy coats

skinny jeans tucked into funky boots are all the rage in london.

that, and long puffy coats -- preferably in sleek black, snow-bunny white or chocolate brown.

i've got my london coat. two, in fact. one long, black, down puffer and one funky tweed number.

i've yet to acquire the perfect pair of boots. i think all UK size 39 boots were sold in july. now, all you can find are itty bitty or larger sizes. bum deal.

BUT

today i acquired my first pair of skinny minnie jeans. with coaxing from my friend SP, who claims that they suck in the fat and make my bum look good, i walked into miss sixty and bought a pair of "eden ones".

they are much too tight (J really likes them!).

and, they're begging for a great pair of boots.

i've got 14 days to make up my mind. to skinny or not to skinny?

wanted: size 39, kitten heel, pointy-toe boots

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dinner: strada -- yummy italian on high street kensington

sudoku completed: one (1) very difficult puzzle

gym: n/a

weather: pleasantly cold

highlight: the return of my hubby after a 10-day business trip ... and the welcome-home lovin'

chloe the mouse

no real update on the mouse in the house.

i haven't seen it since the incident.

except, i have decided to name her Chloe.

doesn't seem so icky anymore, right?

cozy cozy gift

my dear sweet meggie sent us a wedding gift today.

the coziest, yummiest afghan/throw blanket

and she knit it herself!

it came with the sweetest note

and the personal, heartfelt gesture of making us a "family" blanket is ...

amazing.

i'm calling dibbs on it.

J will have to use the store bought one :)

thank you so much, meggie.

the rules

i hate the rules of typography. the new rules.

actually, i'm just bitter because i found out that a) i follow old school, typist rules and therefore am old and outdated; b) i have horrible punctation (okay - i already knew that!); c) i overuse and misuse ellipses and hyphens; d) i'm not sure if typography is a career for me.

i'm trying to "find myself" in london. to discover my true career path. i thought typography was going to light the way. instead, it's slamming a door in my abilities and showing me that two spaces after a period (or full-stop, as they call it here) is just WRONG.

well, bugger off. i like two spaces after my periods.

except -- i noticed that blogger always removes my "extra" space and all the pretty white space between sentences is gone. sometimes i go in and force an extra space. but, i realize now that i need to get over it and just follow "the rules." ouch - i feel like an old lady who has to get used to seeing kids with baggy pants and pierced tongues.

pop quiz: which one of these is formatted correctly?

a) P A Baines
b) P.A.Baines
c) P. A. Baines
d) none of the above
e) a + b

one of my favorite adri quotes

"it makes me feel happy ... like waking up in globe with the noisy warm heater and cereal-on-the-brown-couch-curled-up-sniffing-your-knee-kind-of-mornings-happy..."

i think she captured it beautifully.

i do love the smell of a sleepy knee on a saturday morning. especially knees that are tucked under your t-shirt like a big set of twins ...

here's to happy days!

eeeek! i screamed like a girl

but that's okay, cuz i am one.

we have a mouse in our flat!!!

our first london mouse IN the flat.

i'm sitting quietly on the living room couch, doing my homework for tonight's class, and out of the corner of my eye ... i see it!

it sauntered out of the kitchen and into the living room.

as it started taking a leisurely stroll under the dining room table, i screamed.

actually, it more like an "eeeek!" and the lil' bugger ran underneath an arm chair.

i think its more scared than i am.

but, eeeek!

i've already called the residential company. i'm sure they're laughing at the dumb american who can't handle one little london mouse.

these damn mice are everywhere, so it was just a matter of time.

the landlords said they would get right on it. but what does that mean?

i have to leave the flat in an hour. who know's where it'll be when i get home. just waiting to run across my feet or scamper in the dark.

oh, why does my hubby have to be across the world right now?

eeeeeeeeeeek!

relationships, they get better with time

my husband and i have always loved commercials. good commercials.

during college, we used to road trip home for christmas. we'd start in colorado and wind down through new mexico, finally ending up in my hometown in globe, arizona. J would stay a few days, then continue on his way to his family in california. we had the best times on those road trips. we'd be stuck in the car for hours, and we never got tired of each other. we never ran out of things to talk about. we listened to our taped mixes and sang at the top of our lungs. we'd dance in our seats. we mastered the art of being the perfect passenger, dj and fast food feeder. he'd fill the gas tank. i'd wash the windows.

one of our favorite road trip activities was making up commercials. we developed an entire sequence of volvo commercials. the scenery, the characters, the car colors, the script. i loved those days.

J still makes up commercials. it's one of the things i love about him. these days, he records them in his treo/blackberry thingy. the ad execs for miller light need to look him up. he's got some killer beer spots.

they have great commercials on british tv. they are a bit more raw and in your face than american ads. and some are just so damn beautiful.

here's our recent fav from orange mobile. i stole this from my husband's blog -- but it's worthy of repeating:

orange ad

man, i still get chills.
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breakfast: earl grey, my fav jam, cheese & bread

sudoku completed: 3 from yesterday's evening standard

gym: the treadmill is calling my name

book: the red tent, why did i wait so long to read this?

weather: bouts of sun & cloud, 48 degrees F

highlight: chatting with J on the phone for a few secs