Monday we just stayed around the hotel room, although David did take her out for lunch and to a park. These pictures were taken in the hotel room...Addie was such a cutie this day!
Addie's singing here...
She's such a big girl and wanted to hold the HUGE water bottle all by herself - struck us as pretty funny.
We went out to a local park to get out and get some dinner.
Jake Patton, this picture was taken with you in mind (by David, not Sarah)...
Tuesday I had to go back to the hospital - not good news. I just walked the 15 minutes to 'home' in the rain which felt good. We made calls to arrange our travel - first reasonable flight back home was on Thursday. Ryanair was not willing to work with us, which was frustrating, but just about everyone else did. There was a little confusing about Addie's flight on Delta, but we got that resolved after an hour long phone call and a few faxes. Ariel House staff was SO understanding and giving.
After Addie's nap, we headed back into town.
One of the DART stations...thought it was pretty cool looking.
Oscar Wilde's house.
We had just a little time at the National Gallery before it closed. Then walked around and went to Bewley's Cafe - a 'must' in Dublin.
We went back to St. Oliver Goherty's to enjoy their great music there and some final pints. Addie loved these big girls that came in. With all the talk of the baby in mommy's belly, she was quite used to looking at bellies. She showed them hers, then asked to see theirs. The girls weren't quite up for that!
Wednesday morning we woke up way too early at 3:30, so early i don't think I ever went to sleep because we weren't sure if we were on the 6:30 Ryanair flight back to England. They were so rude and non-negotiable on the phone and we really hated to have to pay for another flight, but that seemed like our only option. THANKFULLY when we got to the counter at 5:30 am, the lady looked us up on the computer, looked at the letter from the maternity hospital, and oked us for the flight without any charge! AMAZING - we thank the Lord for that.
The flight alright, just all of us very tired. Back at Stansted, through customs, got our left luggage, bought tickets for the bus from Stansted to Heathrow, and waited for the bus. Heathrow was pretty confusing as to how to get to which terminal, especially with all our luggage and a tired little girl. But we managed and found the Hilton at Terminal 4. We settled into our room and then David went to get lunch while Addie and I rested. I don't think we got much sleep in, but at least some rest. By 3 or 4, we decided to head into London, taking the tube - David's first ride, and quite a long one. We did NOT take the stroller this time! We went to Kensington Gardens because I had read they had a nice playground. Well it was all sand and water, and that didn't sound fun to David or I that night. The grounds were huge - this is Addie watching all the pigeons at the lake.
Addie and I in front of Kensington Palace (where Princes Di spent most of her time).
David and Addie by the Sunken Gardens - beautiful!!!
Then we went to this Thai restaurant that a friend recommended (thanks Katie!) and it was SO GOOD and reasonably priced, especially for London! It's a quirky place with tons of plants and butterflies mounted in frames on the walls (even had butterfly stickers on the toilets!), located in the back of Churchill Arm's pub near Nottinghill. I loved the pad thai, and David enjoyed his even though it was super spicy. Addie didn't have TIME to eat because all the ladies wanted to hold her and play with her. She loved the attention!
Just went home and went to bed early that night - our last night in the UK.
Thursday morning we had plenty of time to pack and make sure our bags were under the weight limit. We made it to the terminal in plenty of time and had a pretty good flight over. Thankfully the lady behind us didn't mind playing peek-a-boo endlessly with Addie! And heads up to anyone flying in to Atlanta - it's CRAZY! It took us 1.5 hours to get through all the lines, and the people are so unfriendly. I felt bad for any newcomer or tourist to the US - not a great place to be welcomed. David's brother Robert picked us up, drove to Montgomery, dropped him off, picked up my sister Lauren from Montgomery's airport, and got home about 10 pm that night - 4 am to us, and Addie. She wanted to be put right into her crib. Our house feels huge! It's good to be home, especially after all of the craziness this week.
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