Trip 22: Scotland

Last weekend was a bank holiday - I guess the UK version of Labor Day.  We were fortunate enough to see Grandma and Grandpa in Edinburgh, explore a whisky distillery, and a National Park.

Edinburgh is a beautiful city, and wonderful to visit in August when The Fringe is happening.  We been there twice in August (both last year and this year), and it has easily become our favorite city in the UK.

Trip 21: Peak District National Park

Saturday exploring in our new country...we drove to the Peak District National Park today and braved some majorly windy roads.  We only had to stop once as Jeryn became car sick.  She was a great trooper, and hopefully this was a one-time occurrence.

Mara was a brilliant explorer for her first official hike on her own:)  We also had lunch with the most tame ducks we have ever seen.  We made a great day of it.

Trip 20: Home

Wow, what a wonderful week at home.  Everything is easy, comfortable, and familiar.  We are so fortunate to have a loving family and amazing friends who came to visit us.  We also won the weather lottery with 9  days of picture perfect MN cabin weather.

A special thanks to Benjamin and Janessa, Grandma Pam, and Grandpa and Grandma Anderson.  Here are a few picture highlights:

 

Trip 19: Snowdonia National Park

Yesterday, I drove two hours to Snowdonia National Park since the girls are in Tennessee.  It was a beautiful day for a hike, but I cheated and took the train to the top instead of the 3,000 ft vertical path.

It was a super interesting train ride, and I had the opportunity to talk to a few local Brits and snap a few picts.

This seagull photobombed me and messed up the autofocus:)

Trip 18: The Open

Sunday at The Open was a lifetime experience.  What a fortunate opportunity and a great day of golf.  It was only a short drive from our house (35 minutes), and it wasn't difficult to get tickets at all.

On our way out, Dustin Johnson put one into the far rough on 16.  We had a front row look before we had to put our phone away.

Outing's selfie with Rory photobombing on the 9th hole:) 

Summer Solstice

Yesterday was the "longest day" of the year, with a whopping 16hr and 58minutes from sunrise to sunset.  Which means it is basically dark only from midnight to 4am.  In fact, there are parts of Alaska that are further south than we are.  We're also further north than: Winnipeg, Calgary, and Edmonton.  It's great during the summer, not so great during the winter.

We spent a good few hours outside in the back garden enjoying the day.

Trip 17: Palma de Mallorca

We were really lucky to take a cheap Easyjet flight to a Spanish beach this week to celebrate Christina's 35th Birthday!  It was a very culturally interesting experience, and relaxing at the same time.

Some interesting cultural highlights from a couple days in Spain:

1. "Speedos" outnumber attractive people by about 4 to 1.

2. Swimsuits are optional if you are under age 10 or so.

3. However, swimsuit tops can be removed at any age.

4. The hotel had welcome books written in 5 languages, and we met some Swedes, Germans, Brits, and locals.

Thank you for all the birthday wishes for Christina.  It was a nice break to enjoy some of the benefits from an international assignment: