Breathless

What I most loved about the last months is the routineness of it all. Living life in Oxford and not feeling like we were tourists. Grocery shopping, attending church, working (some days more than others….), cooking, etc.

And yet, there have been moments this semester that have taken my breath away, ones that I want to treasure away in my memory forever. (I linked each one to their original post if you want to revisit them with me.)

1. Candlemas at Westminster Abbey.

2. Eating Gelato outside the Pantheon and then seeing Trevi Fountain.

3. Seeing the Eiffel Tower for the first time — and it was twinkling!

4. Eating lunch at Cafe Panis and admiring Notre Dame (both times!)

5. Playing Pooh Sticks on the same bridge that Christopher Robin did.

6. Riding in the Carriage in Salzburg.

7. Our walk in the cold our first afternoon in Oxford.

Team Tatum, Oxford Edition

Yesterday in Abilene, there was a fundraising run for Make A Wish for my little friend Tatum.  I was so sad to be missing it, that I thought it would be fun to run here in her honor, and some of the sweet, sweet students joined me.

Before the run — in the pouring rain.  They were troopers.

Molly determined to outrun Wilson

Bill and Jane Anne coming in.

The first two coming in to the finish line!

Will Lizzie or Michael win?

Photo finish!! Lizzie holds on!

Michael still got best overall male.

The next group walking

Oh, wait!  Running in.

So much fun!  I love these students!  Glad we don’t have to leave them behind in Oxford!

Petals, Punts, and Pancakes

It had been a while since we went to the botanic gardens.  Out last visit was lovely, but not nearly as colorful.

Then we decided to try our hand at punting.

Molly was ready to paddle in case we need it.

Our accomplisehd punter!

Then, yesterday evening, the students prepared a breakfast “cookout.”  You know, with sword fighting.

The days are long here — both in the sense of light levels, which is lovely and in terms of my longing to go home — but I can’t imagine a better way to spend such a day.

Blenheim

Today some students and our family headed out toBlenheim Palace.  You might remember we were there last week to not watch and not listen to the Royal Wedding.  Today was much more fun and warm and not crowded.

The first Duke of Marlborough, John Churchill (yep, related to Winston, who was in fact born in the palace) built the palace at the turn of the 18th century.

The girls perfecting their Churchill imitations.

What I loved most about Blenheim is the gardens.  Beautiful, beautiful grounds.

Very fun day — trying to relish every moment of these last days in Oxford.

The things I love

On facebook, Bill has been listing 3 things a day he misses about Abilene since he’s not quite feeling ready to leave.  I’m ready.  I miss my home and feel so blessed by the deep roots we have there.

That being said, I have loved our time here and there will be things that I miss very much.  Here’s an incomplete list.

1.  Walking everywhere.  I really do love that I walk to church, to the store, to the museums, everywhere.  I have been in cars very few times since we’ve been here.  Yes, I will enjoy certain things about having my car back, but I will miss walking.

2.  Living in community with 35 incredible students.  I have loved the way they have loved on me and my children and they way that our relationships have grown deep.   I am excited that we get to continue those relationships back at ACU.

3.  Jacque and Mike.  I will miss them dearly.

4.  The food.  I’ve had some great meals in Oxford, but that’s not what I’ll miss.  I’ll miss that when I go to the grocery store, much of the food is local.  It is very fresh.  There is no corn sugar.  There is very little processed food.  I haven’t had to read labels in months.

5.  Walking up Queen’s Lane, under the Bridge of Sighs,  to the Radcliffe Camera.  You can see St. Mary’s, the Bodleian, Radcliffe Camera.  My absolute favorite spot in Oxford.

6.  Museums.  They’re on every corner.  And most of them are free.  And kid friendly.  And beautiful.

I’m sure that as I return home there will be many, many more things that I miss.  This is a beautiful city, full of history, and culture, and a love of learning.  And yet, the relationships that we have in Abilene continue to draw us homeward.  Blessings abound.

So Long, Farewell (the last Salzburg post)

Our last full day in Salzburg was Easter Sunday.  We took a bus outside of town and then took a cable car to the top of the Untersberg, a mountain just outside of the city.  The summit is 1.8 km above sea level.  From there, we hiked about a kilometer to another summit, a hike that included me sliding about 12 feet down in the snow, and my beloved trying hard (and not succeeding) not to laugh.

At the top.   A lovely Easter reminder of empty graves.  And stones crying out.

the view of the rest of the Alps

the trail markers

Unfortunately, we realized after snapping quite a few pictures that my memory card was NOT in my camera, but back in the hotel room.  Luckily we realized in time to pull out our trusty iPhones for a few pics.  I was so disappointed though.  Fantastic memories, none the less.

We decided to end our trip as we had begun it, with a carriage ride.  The first one had been so very magical — and Molly loves horses so very much — it was worth a second trip.  Equally as magical.

We ended the evening with ice cream in the garden of our hotel.  Too bad the girls didn’t like it.

Salzburg was the absolutely perfect last trip.  I loved every moment of it, and it was so much more than I could have even imagined.