Birthday!!

I am now 30! The celebration has finally ended after lasting about 5 days. It began Saturday with a bbq (above). Monday my classroom had been decorated and a whole cake was sitting on my desk, so every class I taught got cake (left). I went to dinner with some friends, opened some gifts, but I couldn't find all the hidden ones. Tuesday - Travis concert!! (below) and I found a couple more gifts. Wednesday - I found the last two gifts and my birthday is officially over.

Danger!

I went for a jog on a narrow dirt road around this little lake by our house. I was about half way around the lake, dodging some weeping willows that were blocking the road when a large white object crashed into me and I went flying through the air, landing awkwardly in the dirt. It was a car. I was just hit by a car. Am I dead? I thought. No, I'm alive.

The guy, whose name I later learned was Trevor, quickly got out of his car and made sure I was okay. He kept saying he was sorry and sorry and sorry. After a few moments, the bruises on my leg started to show. Trevor drove me to a very nearby wake board park. I sat on a bench and waited for him to come over with the first aid people. My only thought was, at least I get to sit and wait in the sun. The first aid man asked if I could feel my toes, if I was dizzy, and if I wanted to go to 'emergency.' Miraculously, I felt fine. I was in shock, of course, but nothing compared to the Vespa crash.

Trevor then drove me home, apologizing pretty much the entire ride until he started making small talk, which I wasn't really in the mood for. I assured him that I was fine and walked up the gravel driveway to our cottage. I was so grateful that Chris was home. He was supposed to be at paintball, but the other guys bailed out. He put ice on my legs, cleaned the few small cuts, and took care of me for the next few hours.

What a day! I never thought I'd be hit by a car and am so thankful to God that my only injuries are some bruises and sore muscles. The real bummer is that I have to wait for the white flash to disappear every time I close my eyes, and I have to find a new jogging route.

LOtR...musical!?

So, they've made a musical of the Lord of the Rings and we saw it Friday night in London. Supposedly, it's the most expensive musical ever made, but I don't think they put the money toward the acting. Gandalf spit out his lines like Speedy Gonzalez without any emotion. The songs weren't too bad, but the choreographer got a little out of control when it came to hand movements. Every time the elves spoke, sang, or were just standing in the background, they made funky moves with their hands almost like sign language, but not quite. It was so strange and cheezy that we had to laugh, even at the most serious moments. The set was pretty cool, probably where they spent the most money. The stage revolved in just about every direction. As for other special effects, the spider was super cool - an oversized puppet on strings. Overall, we had a good time, but I definitely do not recommend the show.

Before we saw the show, we grabbed dinner at a yummy sushi restaurant and then coffee at Cafe Nero where Chris became friends with another one of nature's creatures. This time it was a ladybug.

Another Cute Little Doggie

I've just finished my third little doggie and was a bit lazy with this one. Another friend had a baby around Easter. She had seen the last little doggie I made and mentioned it every time I saw her during the last few months of her pregnancy. When I found out she had a girl, I decided to see what a variegated doggie with a pink nose and paws would look like. I also added a bow to make her look a little more feminine. Like I said before, I got a little lazy and there are quite a few flaws in this one, but I won't reveal the unfixed mistakes. I was just looking at the original link for the pattern and realized that my doggie looks completely different than the pattern creator's. Oh, well. She's still a cute little doggie.

Hever Castle

A few weekends ago, when the weather was dry (unlike the last two weeks), we took the Vespa on a mini-trip to Hever Castle, the home of Anne Boleyn, queen of King Henry VIII (until he had her head chopped off). It was about a 2 hour ride and just chilly enough for my toes to be numb by the time we got there. We sat in a cafe and drank tea until I defrosted. The sun was shining off and on for the rest of the day, so we were able to enjoy a picnic lunch of hummus, pita chips, and fruit. We wandered through the gardens and found a nice place to nap near a fountain. Well, we weren't the only ones who liked the spot. Chris awoke to a tapping on his leg. It was a duck! There was a pair of ducks who decided to keep us company. They came right up to us and were so friendly that one of them let Chris pet him. I fell asleep again and when I woke up a second time the friendly duck was sitting right between my leg and Chris's. I've never had a "wild" animal come so close and feel so comfortable. Eventually, we had to say goodbye to our cute little friends.

Hats!

Two more hats are finished!

The first is my second knitted hat, and I was pretty impressed with the finished product, even though it looks a little imperfect in the photo. The most important thing is that Chris loved it! He wore it almost every night when we were in Bulgaria. The second is for a girl in my dorm who had been asking me to make her a hat for months. I had planned to crochet on the plane to Bulgaria, hoping to finish before we arrived. I hadn't planned very well, though, because I ran out of yarn before the hat was complete. I tried it on and it somewhat resembled a yarmulke. So, it sat and waited in my suitcase for one week and then another two in my house until I finally had a chance to get to the yarn store. Then it was finished in no time and Adrianna loved it!