Tales of Two Tails

This Christmas, we have the enormous pleasure of dogsitting our good friend's one year old black labrador, Bentley. He is an absolutely beautiful dog and arguably a little bigger than Guinness.

The two dogs really enjoy each other's company, whether alternating bones, wrestling, kissing, fighting over balls, or simply standing together with their tails wagging in sync. So the last few days we have been thoroughly entertained by their doggy antics (like those below).




Walking through our house has become treacherous needless to say as we navigate the two 75lb wagging behemoths who follow us everywhere we go. But we are enjoying every second of having another big drooling and wagging monster man amongst us and will hate to see him go.

The Girl Effect

I was sent this by a friend today and thought it was quite powerful so I wanted to share it with all of you.

Chester and Beyond...

A few weeks ago we went to visit some old neighbours in Chester, which is just over the border from North Wales. We had a great weekend catching up, eating good meals, enjoying the Olympics and visiting the area with them.

Chester is an historical cathedral town with ties to Roman Britain. Surrounded by city walls dating back 700 years, the city centre itself is made up of beautiful tudor style buildings, some over five stories. It is unique from many English cities in that it has what they call 'The Rows', an upper and lower level of shopping.


On Sunday we took a short drive over the border into a place called Llandudno. Now you might be trying to figure out how to say that, but you will never guess how it is actually pronounced. Click here for a recording.

Llandudno is the largest coastal resort in Wales. As with most British seaside resorts, it has a promenade, pebbly beach, pier and rubbish summer weather. We let the dogs have a bit of a swim before heading up the Great Orme which is a headland overlooking the bay and town. There we had a wonderful picnic lunch with jazz band accompaniment floating up from the pier and a bit of sunshine before heading off for a bit more walking.

Taking people up and down the Great Orme are some gondolas and a tram.

On the other side also sits a quaint little church and cemetery overlooking the sea.

Phil, Julie and CW with the dogs

Thanks again to Julie and Phil for a fantastic weekend! It was great seeing you both again - and we really appreciated your wonderful hospitality!


For a few more pictures of Llandudno, click here

Darling Diane

We recently spent a week in Provence celebrating the baptism of Diane, Cora’s new goddaughter. The whole week was really one big party, as over 40 people came for the event itself, but there were various people coming and going from Thursday straight through until Monday. Lots of good food, wine and fun was had, all in the glorious sunshine and blue skies of the south of France.

The baptism was held in the little village church that our friends Adeline and Thierry were married in a few years ago. It was a simple and beautiful ceremony and Diane was an absolute angel for (almost) the whole thing despite how hot she was in her little white dress.

The Christening

A very happy maman and papa with little Diane

Cora (Marraine), Thierry (Papa), Adeline (Maman) and Richard (Parrain) - and Diane of course who was getting a bit fed up being in that big dress

After the baptism we all went back to Adeline’s mom’s house.

There we enjoyed a nice meal followed by an afternoon relaxing around the pool and evening of more eating, dancing and simply having a good time together.

Unfortunately, by the end of the baptism Adeline was not feeling well and ended up in hospital for a few days (she is now doing much better and is back home again at her mom’s house). In her absence, Cora dove right into her role as marraine (godmother) and helped take care of Diane. We both really missed having time with Adeline but we did value the special time we were able to spend bonding with Diane who is an absolutely adorable baby!

Diane with her 'marraine'

Diane with her 'tonton'

The pictures speak to the cuteness of the little one. She was all smiles and quite easy going throughout most of the festivities.

We have loads and loads of pictures from the event so it will take us a while to get them all up onto our website, so for now here are just a few of our favourites of darling Diane and family.

Post-bath wrap-up

Adeline with Diane before bed

Always alert, always looking

Daddy's little girl

Darling little hands and little feet

Thank you Adeline and Thierry for giving me the enormous honour of being Diane's marraine, for hosting us in such a generous way and for always being such wonderful friends!

We are counting down the days until we can find a way to see you all again! Gros bisous!

4 years and 4,000 miles

Actually apparently it's only 3,963 miles between London and Chicago but nevertheless, it's far. And four years is just too long. So when my friend Kandy from Chicago told me she would come and visit I was thrilled to be able to see her!

After a couple of weeks in Spain, Kandy came and stayed with us for a few days before crossing the pond back to Chicago. It was an absolute whirlwind of a few days as we dragged her all over London and St Albans so she could experience as much as possible, but we had such a great time together!

Kandy wrote a wonderful little account of her experience with us on her blog so I'll let you read about it through her eyes.

"I took a short flight from Madrid to London Luton Airport and it was like stepping into a different world. It was a world that spoke English, which, ironically, my mind could not handle. In my head I would respond in Spanish and then have to translate it to English. It was the most bizarre feeling.

A short train ride and I step out of the train station to find a taxi queue. My taxi driver was full of history and told me that St. Michaels used to be its own parish, but was now a part of St. Albans. I was dizzy driving on the wrong side of the street. I could barely listen to a word he was saying because I was staring at the beautiful flowers, all of the green, the old buildings, the little bridge, the lead pane glass, just everything.

St. Albans is steeped in history. You trip over it at every corner. Cora and I spent Friday wandering around St. Albans and trying not to step on dead people in the cathedral. She took me through the park and pointed out the Roman ruins in the distance. There are Roman ruins in the park. It is just inconceivable. There are six churches in the town. It is absolutely beautiful. There are cobblestone streets and little shops. Houses line the streets with postage stamp gardens brimming with flowers.

Cora and CW live in a wee cozy little house with a sweet garden out back. They live on Blacksmith Lane, and truly, it is a lane. I have to admit when I arrived on Friday I was sick and I'd had about 4 hours of sleep. The day is a brilliant blur of bricks, either on the street or on the houses!

Saturday we got up early and took the train into London. Cora was not kidding when she said it was a hike up hill to the train station. When we left the house it was raining. We walked through St. James Park, through Green Park and then to Buckingham Palace to watch the changing of the guard. The concept of public space is much different in London. There are little chairs for rent so you can sit in the park. Grass is meant to be sat on. By the time we got to the palace it was nice and sunny. Ironically it was the first day I did not put on any sun screen because I figured it was going to be cloudy and rainy. The trees in the park are immense. It feels like you've stepped into a storybook.

The changing of the guard was filled with pomp and circumstance, but someone definitely had a sense of humor. The band played a medley of swing music and an old 70's song. It was fun to see and get a sense of the tradition, but it was also a little confusing. If someone can explain why they walk up and down so many times that would be great!

It was amazing to watch and to think about the years of history and the fact that this happens day in and day out. While we were waiting for the new set of guards there was a line of horse drawn carriages and people dressed to the nines who drove by. One can only assume they were going to a wedding.

We walked from the palace up the Mall to Trafalgar square. We walked down Whitehall past the Horse Guards parade and a ton of big gorgeous government buildings. Everything is immense. At Westminster we decided to take a boat ride on the Thames to the Tower of London and back. There was a race between Thames watermen who were racing their boats up the Thames, against the tide, the old fashioned way. They were rowing the boats. That was a very lovely sight, because the boats were pretty, not because of the muscular men.

I love the Thames. I love the buildings, even the newer relatively ugly ones, lining the banks of the river. I love that each of the bridges has a story. I could not even quite conceive that I was at the Tower of London. I had read so much about it, including Queen Elizabeth's account of crossing under Traitor's Gate. I can't even quite explain how hard it was to conceptualize all of the history surrounding me. My little tired brain could not even take it all in.

We then took the tube to Camden Town. The moment we walked out on to the street I felt like I had come home. Imagine the Belmont/Halsted area, well, back about 5 years ago, and multiply that by 100. That is Camden Town. My people.

There is a huge warren-like-den of markets. Everything you could possibly want is for sale. When you get tired of shopping you can stop and eat, and smoke some shisha. I got my second wind when we got to Camden Town, but after wandering around for a while it was definitely time to head back home. Plus, I was laden with packages. I bought some big chunky bracelets because all the girls in Spain were wearing them. I also bought a couple of scarves because the girls in Madrid and London were wearing them. I did not buy any of the MC Hammer pants, which unfortunately were also fashionable.

We took the tube, and at Camden Station you can either take a long twisty staircase down or the elevator. We took the elevator. Then we transferred to our train station to get back to St. Albans. The long walk home, uphill again (I still cannot figure out how it is uphill both ways), just about did me in. We stopped by the house and got Guinness (Cora and CW's chocolate lab) and then off we went to the pub, the Rose and Crown, just down the street. I had a proper dinner of fish and chips and a Shandy in an old English pub. The ambiance, beer, and good company, capped off a brilliant day."

There's probably a bit more to come since she had a few days to herself before she left but for now, let's just say we had a fantastic time and we definitely won't let four more years go before we see each other again! Thanks Kandy for coming to visit!

A Night with Jack

For our birthdays, our extremely generous friends Thierry and Adeline who live in Oman gave us tickets to the Jack Johnson concert in Hyde Park. We have been big fans of 'Jack' for several years, and actually introduced Thierry to him back in Cambridge. The chance to see him in Europe was quite rare as this was his first European tour so we were extremely happy to go to get the chance to see him. We only wish that Thierry and Adeline could have joined us in Hyde Park but at least they were able to see him in Paris a week later.

It was rainly slightly (as it does so often in London) as we arrived at Marble Arch but thankfully the weather cleared by the time the first opening act was done. After a couple opening acts, including Ben Harper who was fantastic, Jack came on for a solid two hours of feel good guitar music. We were quite far away but the sound was amazing and they had some really great screens and stage animations so we were quite happy.

The sun made a solid appearance throughout his set and we even got to enjoy a beautiful sunset.

It was a wonderful day and we can only say thank you once more to Thierry and Adeline for getting us the tickets.

If you haven't heard Jack Johnson, check out his website www.jackjohnsonmusic.com and click on the Featured Music on the upper right hand corner.

For anyone interested in getting a taste of the concert, check out this clip someone made on the day (we attempted one of our own on the phone but the quality was too rubbish to post)

Up three, down three

We were expecting a challenging day of walking, obviously 25 miles and 1600 meters of ascent is never going to be easy, but we could not even begin to prepare for the inclimate weather.

Had the Challenge taken place the day before, the three peaks would have looked like those above. Read on to see how they actually looked on the day.

Yesterday was the first day of summer, however in Yorkshire it felt closer to a late November day. It started decent enough with a little bit of cloud but warm enough temperatures. We got through the first peak in good form and even were shedding clothes down to t-shirts on the way up.

The whole Communicaid clan before we set off on our big challenge (with the first peak behind us)

Headed towards the first peak

However, by the time we got to the base of the second climb, 10.5 miles into the walk, the rain had begun and the wind was strengthening.

Headed up the second peak (note the wonderful waterfall on the left)

We reached the ridgeline and were hit with a steady 30-35 mile per hour crosswind, with gusts as high as 45 mph! The wind drove rain into us and made walking in a straight line all the more challenging.

Below are a few short clips below from our brief stint at the top of the second peak to give you a feel for the weather and wind.

On the ridge of the second peak

As miserable as it was there, we could look across the valley to the third peak and see it shrouded in a thickening layer of low hanging clouds.

Determined to make it through the day regardless, we carried on with two others from our group (some had already continued while others were still behind). We were given one last chance to abandon at the 18.5 mile mark, but intrepidly turned towards the last peak and soldiered on.

Headed towards the third and final peak, which you can't even see the top of!

The ascent of the last peak was the most treacherous of the day, with one section being an almost vertical climb of stone steps, some rather larger than others (which was especially difficult for Cora's legs, not so much for Guinness who scampered up and down them with appalling ease). The wind had not slackened and it threatened to blow you off the mountain if you were not careful. We made it to the top, assumed that the views were gorgeous through the cloud and quickly turned on our heels and headed for home.

10 hours, 25 miles and three peaks later we walked through the finish line, wetter than we had even been in our lives! In the end, about 2/3 of all of the people who started the challenge finished despite the awful conditions. It was a brilliant day out, a wonderful experience and though we are extremely sore in places today, we are certainly glad to have done it. Thanks to all Communicaid colleagues, trainers and friends and family who made it so special! Well done everyone!

Thank you again so much for all your support! We are quite happy to report that though we didn't make our target we will still be donating £450 to Heart Research UK. Now we just have to decide whether we will do this again next year!

Our donation website will be open until 1 September so if anyone is interested in still helping us reach our target (better late than never), please visit www.justgiving.com/coraandcw to make your donation. Only £50 more to go so every little bit counts, even £5!

48 hours...

... from now, we will be enjoying wonderfully well-deserved pub grub and a pint (or two) in the middle of Yorkshire.

However, in less than 36 hours we will be setting off at dawn with a group of about 20 other people to walk over 25 miles and ascend more than 1500 metres in the Yorkshire 3 Peaks Challenge

Can't believe how fast the past 71 days have gone!

Thank you to everyone who has supported us so far, both mentally and financially. It's all going to a great cause!

Wish us luck and keep your fingers crossed for sunshine! We'll report on how it goes sometime next week.

Birthday Treats

Guinness has never loved the postman as much as he did today. In fact I can guarantee that from now on, he will no longer bark at the postman but sit and wag his tail as the mail comes through the slot, waiting anxiously to investigate the next packages, just in case they might contain something good.

So what's this post all about really? Here's your first clue...


Guinness doesn't do much these days to really surprise us in the way of destruction or other such mischief, but today was different. He must have thought he won the lottery. We can imagine him coming downstairs at some point today to sneak onto the couch and instead catch a whiff of something truly wonderful.

Guinness was the lucky recipient of, as the package customs form shows above, some dog treats. The only clue as to what kind of dog treats they were, is the bit of paper from the package that he didn't eat. That and all the other bits of foil, plastic and bubble wrap that he weeded through to get to them.


Needless to say, he was definitely quite pleased with his find and good work and expresses his sincere thanks to those wonderfully kind people across the pond. He will lick you crazy the next time he sees you!

This is what apparently tasted so good.


p.s. Sharon, yes, he does actually have a passport - part of the PetScheme requirements when he came over here, including the microchip, ridiculously huge kennel, shots etc...

p.p.s If you thought we were pathetic, check this one out... http://iamcappuccino.blogspot.com/

Over the hill

Today Guinness turns six - in human years. In dog years, that means he's either 37, 42 or 45*, but in truth he doesn't act like any of those ages.

In honour of our much loved pup, we thought we'd dedicate a little blog to his life so far.

A few fun facts:

• 6 homes across 2 states and 2 countries
• Fluent in two woofs
• Holder of his own passport
• Expert swimmer
• Expert kisser
• Loves picnics, people,and sadly, poo (of any variety)
• Snuggler extraordinaire
• Loves squirrels (both animal and dog toy variety - thanks Sharon)
• Sucker for bones and anything edible (he is a lab after all)
• aka: monster-man, poopy-loo, lazy git, pupalup, big brown lump, bud, guinwee, Big G, shitface (literally and figuratively at times)
  

First night

How did I get in here?

Don't I look cute

First true exploration of the English countryside

How long is she going to make me sit like this?

If you look closely, even two years ago, you can see all the little gray whiskers

Old? Never...

Are these blue things edible?

Okay, so you may be thinking now, wow, how pathetic are they for dedicating a whole blog to their dog as if he were their kid. In all honesty, he may as well be (for now).

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MONSTER-MAN!

*There are conflicting theories about how to calculate a dog's age. Some say 7 years for every 1 while others say 21 years for the first two and 4 for the rest. In truth, no one really knows.

Walk in Gloucestershire

Two weeks until the big walking challenge so we thought it best to do one more training walk. Looking for the opportunity to flex our hill walking muscles, we chose a route through the Cotswolds near Gloucester, about an hour and a half by train from London. Even though some of us were feeling rather exhausted and others had dire headaches, we set off into the rolling countryside under a beautiful blue sky.

Our walk, though not terribly long mileage wise, was quite difficult at times as we encountered several very steep, though short, climbs. It was truly gorgeous countryside with many brilliant views out over the Severn River Valley, with the Black Mountains in southern Wales on the horizon.

We had lunch on an outside patio of a country pub over looking the village and countryside in the distance, complete with cricketeers was pretty much as English as it can get!

We wandered through a few quaint Cotswolds villages, including Painswick, which featured the stereotypical stone houses often seen in Thomas Kinkade prints.

It was a perfectly relaxing day, well as much as can be expected when walking 13 or so miles!


Click here and enter 'challenge' for more photos of our walk

A day at the beach

This past weekend we took advantage of the first real day of summer (in weather terms) and went to the beach for the day! After a bit of walking, two trains, three tube lines and a bus over three hours, we arrived in West Wittering which is home to a huge and very popular beach. It's especially unique since it's actually a point so depending on where you position yourself, you can see water to your right and left and kind of behind on either side.

We found ourselves a little spot way down the beach towards the natural reserve, and away from all of these people, and enjoyed a peaceful day of relaxing in the sun and swimming in the Channel.

Guinness was absolutely thrilled the moment we got there. As soon as we let him off the lead he went running into the water as if he had just found a long lost friend. He was in and out of the water all day, and of course every time he came out he would shake furiously. Needless to say we all had a bit more sand and salt in both our lunch and clothes than we might have had without a big wet brown furry thing.

One thing you will almost always see on the British coast are brightly coloured beach huts like these below. While some have recently been replaced with newer fresh versions, the majority of them have endured many layers of paint and years of sand, salt, sun and rain (this is Britain after all). When not being used, they are simply closed with a padlock covered in plastic bags to prevent the rust from destroying them.


According to this website, beach huts really came into existence in the early years of the twentieth century. Though people accepted mixed swimming at this time, the British reserve still wouldn't tolerate changing in public so beach huts were established to provide a modest and private place to change out of the public's eye.

Since then, they have evolved and are now mostly owned by families who have passed them down from generation to generation. Waiting lists for beach huts can be years and once one becomes available the price can be pretty extravagant for a 5 square metre wood shed. The luxury and convenience they provide however make them extremely popular and almost a status symbol for many.

My favourite part of the website above is where it says, "many are equipped with small stoves for boiling kettles". This of course, is a necessity in this culture where tea is part of everyday life. Even on a boiling hot summer's day at the beach, many Brits can't refrain from having a cuppa!