Well! What a week. Oh my heavens, what a week. Oh my WORD, what a week!! I don't know if I everyone would understand just what this means, but the girls were out of school this week. What a week. I am thoroughly and entirely exhausted, and am SO glad tomorrow is Sunday, and therefore my day off. Of course, living in the same house as the girls doesn't exactly give me the day off entirely. Which is why I go to the park three or four hours before church starts and read... Anyway, despite the fact that it was a much more work-intensive week, it was actually quite a lot of fun.
Monday was really...chill. Um, both literally and figuratively. The rain was coming in torrents, and everybody pretty much read or slept or played quietly the whole day. Tuesday the rain let up a bit and the girls had a tennis class at a nearby park. All the other mums dropped their kids off and left; Farran had me stay. At first I was sort of confused. I mean, I was the only adult besides the coaches that was there. I was really glad I stayed though. The coaches were younger guys, a couple of which own the company (Little Foxes Athletic Club or something like that), and they were SO good with the kids. They were patient and clear and a lot of fun. The girls absolutely loved it, especially Coach Neil. Wednesday--let me just tell you--Wednesday, we went on a day trip to the country to visit o
ne of little Maggie's friends at their country house. Was this just any house? Oh--Oh no. This house was the house where the queen's mother was born. This house was built in the 1730s. This house was INCREDIBLE. And the grounds! If I hadn't been a nanny following her family around, if I had had that place to myself for a day...or several...I would have forgotten this is the twentieth century and would have been certain I was Elizabeth Bennett or one of Jane Austen's other heroines. I mean, really. It was ridiculous. I honestly could have spent weeks there and never felt the need to leave. I loved it. It was so nice to be in the country, out of the city. The city is wonderful, but I am not a city girl. I grew up in a small town; small towns are where I am comfortable.
I love the open space, the green, the fresh air, the slower pace, the dirt under my fingernails, the freedom of being away from all the people. I think some city people are under the impression that country life is simple and quiant. Maybe so, but I think it is a beautiful and, for me, comfortable way to be. I could go on and on about my passion for being outside and for the small town life, because that is how I grew up. But I won't. I will just say that this house and its grounds were amazing and I loved it more than any of the museums I've been to so far. Thursday the girls were back to tennis and coach Neil, and yesterday we spent the entire day out with Elizabeth, Charlotte's best friend, and her brother, his friend, and their nanny, Adella.
Adella is from Slovakia and is absolutely wonderful. She's probably 23 or 24. It's been fun to talk to her. We went to St. James' gardens for a while, then to Holland Park for several hours where we all played endlessly. We played "it" (tag) on the most fantastic spiderweb-esque jungle gym. It was a lot of fun, but my, was it exhausting! Today was some of the same. We went to Holland Park for several hours, this time with their mom. The girls made a cute little friend that they played with almost the entire time, and actually let me sit and rest for a bit! Not for long, though. There was a tire swing they needed pushing, among other tasks. It was a lot of fun. Today was also the
third day in a row that we've made snickerdoodles. I've never eaten so many cookies in my life. The only problem was we had no cinnamon. When I asked for it at the grocery store, they looked at me like I was crazy. In fact, most of them didn't even know what I was talking about. The cookies turned out alright, regardless. Oh! I failed to mention last Saturday. Last Saturday I went with Robert, Maggie, and little Farran to the BMW PGA Tournament at Wentworth country club, where the family are members. I remember golf coming on after Saturday morning cartoons and instantly turning off the tv because nothing could possibly be more boring than golf. I was surprised, though, by how intense the tournament was to watch! We walked a good five or so miles around the course, following just one or two pairs of golfers to every hole. It reminded me of when we go to the sheep dog competitions at the end of the summer. Everyone is quiet and it's not really any serious action, but it is enthralling nonetheless. Plus, it was a PGA tournament! Not everyone can say they've been to a PGA tournament, right??
Well! What a week. Oh my heavens, what a week. Oh my WORD, what a week!! I don't know if I everyone would understand just what this means, but the girls were out of school this week. What a week. I am thoroughly and entirely exhausted, and am SO glad tomorrow is Sunday, and therefore my day off. Of course, living in the same house as the girls doesn't exactly give me the day off entirely. Which is why I go to the park three or four hours before church starts and read... Anyway, despite the fact that it was a much more work-intensive week, it was actually quite a lot of fun.
Monday was really...chill. Um, both literally and figuratively. The rain was coming in torrents, and everybody pretty much read or slept or played quietly the whole day. Tuesday the rain let up a bit and the girls had a tennis class at a nearby park. All the other mums dropped their kids off and left; Farran had me stay. At first I was sort of confused. I mean, I was the only adult besides the coaches that was there. I was really glad I stayed though. The coaches were younger guys, a couple of which own the company (Little Foxes Athletic Club or something like that), and they were SO good with the kids. They were patient and clear and a lot of fun. The girls absolutely loved it, especially Coach Neil. Wednesday--let me just tell you--Wednesday, we went on a day trip to the country to visit o
ne of little Maggie's friends at their country house. Was this just any house? Oh--Oh no. This house was the house where the queen's mother was born. This house was built in the 1730s. This house was INCREDIBLE. And the grounds! If I hadn't been a nanny following her family around, if I had had that place to myself for a day...or several...I would have forgotten this is the twentieth century and would have been certain I was Elizabeth Bennett or one of Jane Austen's other heroines. I mean, really. It was ridiculous. I honestly could have spent weeks there and never felt the need to leave. I loved it. It was so nice to be in the country, out of the city. The city is wonderful, but I am not a city girl. I grew up in a small town; small towns are where I am comfortable. 
I love the open space, the green, the fresh air, the slower pace, the dirt under my fingernails, the freedom of being away from all the people. I think some city people are under the impression that country life is simple and quiant. Maybe so, but I think it is a beautiful and, for me, comfortable way to be. I could go on and on about my passion for being outside and for the small town life, because that is how I grew up. But I won't. I will just say that this house and its grounds were amazing and I loved it more than any of the museums I've been to so far. Thursday the girls were back to tennis and coach Neil, and yesterday we spent the entire day out with Elizabeth, Charlotte's best friend, and her brother, his friend, and their nanny, Adella. 
Adella is from Slovakia and is absolutely wonderful. She's probably 23 or 24. It's been fun to talk to her. We went to St. James' gardens for a while, then to Holland Park for several hours where we all played endlessly. We played "it" (tag) on the most fantastic spiderweb-esque jungle gym. It was a lot of fun, but my, was it exhausting! Today was some of the same. We went to Holland Park for several hours, this time with their mom. The girls made a cute little friend that they played with almost the entire time, and actually let me sit and rest for a bit! Not for long, though. There was a tire swing they needed pushing, among other tasks. It was a lot of fun. Today was also the 
third day in a row that we've made snickerdoodles. I've never eaten so many cookies in my life. The only problem was we had no cinnamon. When I asked for it at the grocery store, they looked at me like I was crazy. In fact, most of them didn't even know what I was talking about. The cookies turned out alright, regardless. Oh! I failed to mention last Saturday. Last Saturday I went with Robert, Maggie, and little Farran to the BMW PGA Tournament at Wentworth country club, where the family are members. I remember golf coming on after Saturday morning cartoons and instantly turning off the tv because nothing could possibly be more boring than golf. I was surprised, though, by how intense the tournament was to watch! We walked a good five or so miles around the course, following just one or two pairs of golfers to every hole. It reminded me of when we go to the sheep dog competitions at the end of the summer. Everyone is quiet and it's not really any serious action, but it is enthralling nonetheless. Plus, it was a PGA tournament! Not everyone can say they've been to a PGA tournament, right??
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