So the last few weeks have been one long hoot. We had the Nate Wilson clan visiting for Thanksgiving - and thus we had NINE children all sleeping in the same room - four of them jet lagged. This actually turned out to be ridiculously easy, considering. The kids had a blast together and basically picked up playing right where they left off this summer. We trooped them all over Oxford and adjoining counties, made them taste mince pies and clotted cream, took Nate and Heather to dinner at Christ Church, cooked a 28 pound Thanksgiving turkey in a miniature oven, drove them past and made them wave at Stonehenge, visited the major Oxford museums, picnicked on the Thames, saw the remaining earthworks of several iron age hill forts, one ruined castle, one cathedral, and one palace. They also metal detected in our pasture and found, among other things, bits of wire, old bolts, a yogurt lid, and half of one Georgian buckle (like the kind the Pilgims wore on their hats.) All in all, a very productive 12 days. They also contributed greatly to the smooth flow of the household. After the first dinner where Brooke had to eat with the Tablespoon (as in, the cooking apparatus) and I had to use the teaspoon, Heather took me straight out and bought 2 large sets of silverware and now I feel downright opulent!
