kate and graeme

It started off well, in that we sold the car last Thursday night. The car had been a bit sick and sorry for a while and we had got used to not using it. So it was good to get some money for it and not have the worry any more. We sold it to the first guy that came to see it also, which meant a lot of hassle was also avoided.

However things took a turn for the worse, as you know on Saturday morning we woke up to a sick Lily and ended up spending the day worrying over her, including a trip to the local hospital (we’ve done it once now, got the story, no harm, so never again). Luckily Lily was over the worst of the stomach virus pretty quick and by Sunday morning we were sure she was on the way to full recovery.

Not to be out done by Lily, first Kate (Sunday afternoon) and later Graeme (Sunday night / Monday morning) came down with the virus also. We both got it much worse than Lily I might add, both remarking on not remembering when we were last that ’sick’, if ever at all. Monday, therefore, wasn’t the greatest day ever and we were both glad to see the back of it and begin the road to recovery. Graeme was home from work Tuesday and Wednesday as we all recovered (albeit slowly) and Kate recovered a bit slower as she was doing the recovering for two.

So basically the week was a bit of a write-off and you might get your Christmas Cards a bit later than we wanted. Though it was good it was last weekend, as this weekend we are off to Copenhagen to enjoy the Christmas Markets there, and rack up Lily’s 5th country already.

Oh and a big Congratulations to my Mum for finishing her degree!

Want to have actual conversations with us, but get thrown by the whole time-zone difference and the fact we have a baby and you don’t wanna wake her by making the phone ring? Want to talk to us over the internet for free? Want to see Lily in real time?

Go here, download Skype, then add kate_and_graeme to your contact list (uh, and if your username isn’t going to make it obvious to us who you are, please include a message - we are unlikely to add any random person). You need at least a microphone and speakers, plus a webcam is good too (these days, a lot of computers, especially laptops, come with both - ours did), but otherwise it’s just a download and install deal. We even have a spare headset/webcam set we can send to someone, assuming Graeme knows where he put it - email me if you’re interested.

We’re trying to keep it turned on if we’re anywhere near the computer and able to take a call. Plus, we’re planning to definitely be on a fair bit around Christmas. You know you want to…

So, we had grand plans to get a bunch of stuff done today, including, but not limited to, updating the blog. None of this got done.

Instead, we spent 3.5 hours in Accident and Emergency, plus the hour or so it took us each way to get there by public transport, since we no longer have a car. Basically, Lily had vomitted a couple times this morning and I rang NHS Direct for advice and in the process, remembered the nasty knock she’d taken to her head when she momentarily forgot how to sit up yesterday. The nurse pretty much said that it was unlikely the two were related, but we should take her in to get checked out in person - better safe than sorry and all that.

Of course, while we there, she perked up immensely, didn’t puke once and was generally having a great time. So by the time someone finally saw her, they came to the same conclusion we had about 2 hours earlier - that she must have some sort of virus/stomach bug. This has pretty much been confirmed for us since coming home, as she’s still in a fantastic mood, but just happens to explode out one end or the other every now and then. Our only worry now is keeping some fluids in her - if you’re the praying type, please say one for our little girl. We’re lucky, in a way, that we’ve made it to almost 6 months without any real illness, but this is far from a fun experience for these new parents…

(apologies for the massive silence and then the not so exciting news, we’re really going to work on that, promise)

For the August long weekend, we decided we should go away for the first time in forever. Since Lily doesn’t have a visa yet, we couldn’t leave the country, for fear that they wouldn’t let her back in, so we spent 4 days driving around Wales.

I wrote my notes of what we did in point form and if I spend too long lengthening it out and such, this post may never get finished, so notes and photos…

Saturday morning, August 23, we woke up, finished packing, and were soon out the door and on the M4 headed west.
Crossed into Wales.
Tintern Abbey - fed Lily in amongst the ruins, very cool thanks to Sharon for the suggestion.
Headed to Cardiff which wasn’t all that exciting but we grabbed a few things in the shops and wandered through the park near the castle, deciding that the castle itself wasn’t worth the entry.
Bus back to the Park n Ride.
Drove to “Llanelli” for the Travelodge which isn’t actually in Llanelli at all. Considered going into an actual town or something for dinner, but too exhausted so just went to the Little Chef at the motel.
Lily slept great - about 7 1/2 hours, so no issues with the change of environment.

Sunday 24th
Woke up earlier than planned by a hungry baby. Fed her and decided to just start moving, so slowly got sorted while Lily played.
Drove to St David’s, the smallest city in Britain (a city because it has a cathedral).
Too late for church and felt weird walking in halfway through, so admired that and the Bishop’s Palace from the outside. Again fed Lily in a beautiful outdoor setting.
Back up the hill to the town - much busier now - then headed to car and on the road again.
Aberaeron for lunch - apparently the best fish and chips you’ve ever tasted… not convinced but probably the best I’ve had in Britain, a walk along the Cardigan Bay, some world famous icecream (according to our guide book) then back into the car.
Longest drive of the day saw us arrive in Holyhead at precisely the right time to feed Lily.
Room mix-up (as in, someone was IN the room we were given a key for) quickly sorted
Total vege - all very tired - Graeme went and got takeaway and we ate it in our room.
Watched some tv and sleep.

Monday 25
Out to South Stack, a reserve run by the RSPB. Main place to see puffins in Wales, but we were too late in the season for that. Very, very windy. We were able to use the binoculars in the viewing tower to see some birds sitting on the water below but determined that it would be good to come back in spring, if possible.
Drove on to Caernarfon, where we went into the Castle. Impressively situated on the water. Where Prince of Wales are invested. All in all, interesting - they had a medieval band and re-enactments but overpriced for what was there. Graeme climber to the top of one of the towers to take photos of the view but the weather turned for the worse, and we didn’t stay long after that. We left Caernarfon and headed up to do a drive around Conwy and Landudno (beautiful old sea side resort). We also took a scenic drive around the head, which was a nature reserve though the weather wasn’t super by this stage, so we didn’t get out of the car - the views were good though.
Went on to Bangor where we stayed the night.

Tuesday 26
Turned out to be a more eventful day than we anticipated, as the car overheated 15 minutes after leaving the hotel. By this stage we were in the middle of the Snowdonia National Park. AA guy turned up and said car was risky to get back to London, but should be OK if we stop every hour to refill the water and avoid motor ways. By this stage it was nearly lunch time, so we changed our plans of stopping in a few places to just stop at a place called Llanfair Caereinion. It was a small village but has a steam railway (that went to the nearby Welshpool) and more importantly for Kate a wool factory, where she purchased some bargains from their sale bin. From here we had a long, and slow trip home stopping regularly to keep the car cool, thankfully making it home in one piece in the late evening.

OK, here’s the photos…