Memorial Day Weekend

We took at trip to Inverness today--and it's beautiful! It's a gorgeous town on the River Ness with lots of restaurants and guest houses along the river. Definitely a great place for a weekend getaway--even without a trip to Loch Ness. We fed Kort a picnic lunch on a bench near the river, strolled til he slept and then stopped for a lovely lunch outside (with chilly breezes) at a hotel restaurant named "Contrast". It's common for places to serve a Sunday roast, which Andy and I enjoyed--and we got to eat 95% of our meal with the little man asleep, which was a treat. After wandering to the castle and around the old town, we headed back to the train to go home. Wanting a sweet treat, mom was tempted to walk in to the local pub to see if they'd do an Irish Coffee for "take away", but realized there were too many men at the bar and she'd definitely stand out as the American. So we decided to divide and conquer: Andy headed to Marks and Spencer to buy a little bottle of whisky (that's how they spell it here) and we went to Costa (a UK -version of Starbucks) for coffee biscuits (cookies). Later, on the train we were spiking our lattes with a "wee dram" of whisky. It was a great idea, because Kort has decided he likes to show off his new high pitched scream on the train. Oh, the folks around us loved us...


What else???
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of last week, mom, Kort and I did lots of exploring in our little town, Inverurie. I love this town--it's small but has tons of stuff. And, it is BABY CENTRAL. Went to the restaurant at the Garden Center for tea and scones-- 6-7 moms with babies. Went to the coffee shop on High Street--3 moms with babies. Went to the butcher--same mom with baby that was at the Garden Center. So, we definitely picked the right place to live. But, it's almost spooky how many kids are here. And, after the newness wears off, I bet it will start to feel pretty small, with the same people everywhere. But so far, so good. I keep telling Andy, he did a great job picking the town, the house, AND the car all on his own.

Thursday mom and I took the train to Aberdeen. It's only 20 miles away, but it has such a different feel. Aberdeen isn't even a very big city, but if feels so big and bustling--and crowded with a stroller on cobble stone streets! We only spent a few hours there, walking on the main thoroughfare, Union Street (where there is an H&M) and then wandering on the beach promenade. After realizing I messed up our train home (the train didn't stop in Inverurie), we had to have Andy pick us up in Dyce, which is where his office is. Oh well, I've learned that every trip has to have some mixups.

Friday our furniture arrived! We're so happy to have beds to sleep on and furniture to sit on. Though, I realized I don't need much of the stuff we brought. When you're used to living out of a suitcase and using only a few kitchen utensils, it's hard to make choices when you have so much more to choose from. We spent ALL day Friday and Saturday unpacking and getting settled. It is a very, very tight squeeze in this little house. Our American furniture is much bigger and bulkier than what people use here. And, I guess we're now like all the other Scots on our street--we use our garage only for storing our crap and not for our car. But, it's been great to make dinners at home and finally feel like we have a normal life. It's a totally new normal, but I like it so far.

TGIF in Aberdeen--I bet we'll be hitting this place one day...