London Was Calling

Saturday rolls around, just like any other day. We woke up, I made some yummy French Toast and some Hot Cocoa. Then we decided last minute that it would be nice to go and see London. After all I was feeling good, and we need to take advantage of it. We didn't end up leaving our flat until 20 past 11 a.m. Looking back we should of taken the train in, after all it was the same price, but we would of gotten there in half the time.

Oh well, we hit the streets of London around 2 p.m. Our first stop was Buckingham Palace. It was nice. Too bad the moment we got off the bus, it started to rain a bit.

Then after a quick bite, (baby bowerbank makes my life miserable if I don't feed him/her) we saw Westminster Abby. Well only the outside, they closed the doors at 1:30 pm on Saturdays. Oh well, we at least had a chance to admire the architecture.





We got a quick glance at the House of Parliament, and Big Ben. Walked across the river. Took the Tube at Waterloo to Piccadilly Circus. We continued to walk, walk, and walk.




I wanted to see Harrods, so we WALKED from Piccadilly Circus to Harrods. My Oh My! I did not know how far it was. The walk was a bit more than two miles I think. By the time we got there I was so exhausted that I couldn't really shop around. Since my body couldn't handle too much more, and Mike was hating me for making us go to Harrods, we took a cab to Marble Arch and waited for our bus to take us back to Oxford. I slept all the way home. We made it back to our flat at about 10:30 p.m.

Overall I learned we should plan better in trying to take a trip. They have a bus service for only a pound to London when booked in advanced. We had fun and we will go again, but for now I am glad to be able to be a bit lazy!

Nurse! Nurse!

Two weeks ago, I was admitted to the hospital here in Oxford. I had some severe abdominal pain that would not go away. It was such a blessing to know in my mind that the pain was too high for me to think it had anything to do with the baby. It almost felt like the dreaded panciaties that I had after my surgery back in September of 2008! Thank goodness it wasn't.

After some blood work and an ultra sound the doctors did not know what was causing my pain. They had planned to do an endoscopy but the doctor told me that he thought the risk was higher than what he would find out. So after a long day of fasting, no tests were done, and I was wheeled off to my bed. In my room I had the lovely company of three other women. All in their 80's. I did talk to one of them, her name was Doris, and she was lovely. My other two roomies were Kathryn and Mary. Having spent time there with them, my eyes were open and I came to like these women who I hardly knew as women who are loved by Heavenly Father. It was not easy at first but then when the nurse asked me if I wanted to change rooms, I didn't. Poor Kathryn would have to be reminded where she was and why. Every night she would wake up screaming Nurse! Nurse! Help Me! My own pain seems minimal compared to theirs.

At the end of the week our whole Ward was moved to the next floor, and I had some other roomies. I would often walk the hall wondering where my old roomies were. Two I saw, but my friend Doris(who by the way called me "Rita", I didn't have the heart to correct her.) was nowhere to be seen.

I was allowed to go home Thursday night, and they never told me what was wrong. All week spent there and no answers. I was sent home with the same medication they were giving me there. So far so good. I have felt so much better. I am so grateful for the friends we have here and their help in rides home from and to the hospital as well as for books to keep me company.

Once again I felt so bad for my dear husband. He had to write a 10 page paper that week and got behind as he tried to do it all, come visit with me, study, make me laugh, and go to class. Luckily the professor let him turn in his paper the following Monday!

Baby Bowerbank is 15 weeks along, and growing in my belly. I don't look prego at all, just a bit fat around my midsection. Time is passing by so quickly, it is a bit scary.

Halloween has come and gone.

Mike and I in Bath.

I have come to the end of my first trimester, and I feel so blessed to have made it this far. With all the complications I had at first, I honestly did not think I would get here. But nonetheless here we are. These last two weeks I have been feeling so much better. My body, it seems is getting used to the idea that I am pregnant. If it wasn't for this slight cold I have had I would almost feel like my old self again. We had our 12th week ultrasound, and all seems okay with the baby.



Halloween in England is a bit different than in USA. Not all people celebrate it, and it is looked as something dark and evil. If they do dress up, it has to be something frightening. We did not see children out in the streets trick or treating either. The night before Mike and I were invite to a traditional Halloween Party at the Bowman's home. (I have new friends, yay!) We had some yummy dinner, frosted cookies, played games, and just hung out. I carved a pumpkin, and made some pumpkin rolls, and marshmallow popcorn for the party.

(The clip above is of an old Man in front of the Roman Baths making some money.)

On Saturday Mike and I got a lovely surprise from Mom and Dad Bowerbank. We has some beautiful flower and chocolates delivered to us! Thanks! Later we went shopping at some outlets that aren't too far from our home. It was a 20 min. bus ride and there we were at Bicester Village. They had everything from Gucci, Versace, D&G and so many more. The only down side, every store (with the exception for the very nice ones) smelled. In the middle of the court yard, it reeked of dead fish. Yuck! I was in search for a maternity store and failed to find a single one. Oh well! They did have many baby boutiques which I will be coming back to, once we know what we are having.

In Recent News

Well we have been living in England for over a month now. It is wonderful, and there is so much history in every town. We have had the opportunity to visit a couple of of towns, we went up to the Cotswold's, and up to Bath! They are wonderful! We took the train there, and it was so much fun. I am getting used to the public transportation that everyone uses around here. It was tough at first, but now I can get to any place in Oxford by bus. For the most part I still have not made friends, but am working on it. The grocery stores have so much less than the states, but everything seems to be very fresh. Most of the food does not have preservatives in it so it spoils quite easily. We have to go shopping just about every other day. One of my favorite things to do on Wednesdays is go to city center and hit up the farmers market! They have everything and some things there.

(Museum in Oxford)

We are on the NHS medical system, and everything is free. It is different and a little weird, but what can you do. The way they have it set up is by location. If you live in Summertown for example you go to the Summertown Clinic and they have a variety of GP doctors. Once you have one then they refer you to which ever doctor you may need to see.

The reason we have been to the doctors much is because we are going to have a baby! That's right ladies and gentlemen, after much trying and seeing the fertility specialists, it has finally worked. On August we went and had an IUI, the last one before our move, we weren't too hopeful, but since our insurance covered it, we figured why not. Well so far, so good. I have had a little complications nothing a little bed rest cant help, but its worth it! Hence the part of me not making friends yet, its hard to make friends when you are stuck at home. Baby Bowerbank is due May 9. Let me tell you it has been a bit of a hassle to explain my IUI and all the medication I had been on to my GP and Midwife. We are excited, and he/she will be born here in Oxford.

(Me the Day of our IUI)


(The baby at 10 weeks) (The Baby at 6 weeks)

Mike:

He is working hard in school right now! The second week is almost over, and is reading so much. He has also been doing more than his share around the house, cooking, cleaning, and making sure all my needs are met. His matriculation (he has to wear the Harry Potter robes) was this past Saturday. Bought some new soccer shoes, and is playing with some of the guys in his college!







Janie:
Stuck at home, and always craving food that she cant have! She is always dreaming of Texas, and the great food that is there. Tired, and glad that there is only a week and a half before this first trimester comes to an end! Has been making tortillas from scratch to satisfy her Mexican food cravings,(wished I had learned as child, my little sister can make tortillas so much better than I can)hopefully they will eventually turn out round! Love the candy, and some food. I am still having strong aversions to their meat here, it smells funny!

See you in July

That's right, I'll see you in July because apparently, if I listen to my professors and former students, I probably won't have much of a life outside of school for the next 9 months. Monday and Tuesday we had our Induction into the African Studies program here at Oxford and they were successful in scaring all of us into thinking that this was going to be a lot of work. The program is very different than US programs. We are only officially graded on four elements: Three final exams and your thesis. Also, if you get over 70 on any paper/test that is considered great. And it is normal to get 60s and even a few 50s. Anything below a 50 is a fail. On the first day we received our reading lists of what we are supposed to read before classes and be prepared to discuss....can you save overwhelming! We're talking 15 articles/books per week, per class! Thankfully former students came in and advised us to not try to read everything. Do what you can and then read summaries/reviews of the rest (except anything that is relevant to your thesis or a final exam you need to read). By the end of the day we are all pumped to start reading/scared that it was going to be painful. I asked the last question of the day to the former students, "So is it worth the pain?" They all said yes, which was re-assuring.

I am definitely a minority (for once in my life). I am the only American but there is a Canadian. They refer to us both as North Americans, which is funny because we don't think of ourselves that way very often.

My next task is to start reading and to pick a thesis topic. The thesis topic is going to be hard because we have received various pieces of advice from all over. All I know for sure is that I want to do something that is current, utilizes my Portuguese, and can help me get a job in a more international relations/foreign affairs role after graduation. I have about 4 weeks to submit my thesis title, so please feel free to suggest topics (perhaps Who will win the 2010 World Cup in South Africa? I'm sure I could do some kind of statistical analysis of the odds).

Everything else is the same here. Janie is in love with a website that allows her to watch all the American TV shows...and it even skips the commercials. We also got a 703 area code number to make it easier for people in the states to call us. E-mail us if you don't have it yet.

Lastly, we are excited to have friends already committed to come and visit us in December. Let us know if any of you are interested, we know a great flat in Oxford that is cheap where you can stay!

Cheers! (Almost said Cheerio...OK not really)

Wow, look at the buns on that one!

That's what I think people are going to be saying about me in a few weeks. Let me tell you that my legs and butt have been getting a workout since we moved here. No car, no bike, just this fine set of legs and a bus pass.

On Monday, in order to save money, I walked from our flat down to the examinations room. To give you an idea on how far that is see below:

Okay, so it wasn't a 3.4 mile walk like the map says (I didn't have to follow the one-way streets), but it was probably a good 2.5-3 mile walk. I was dead when I got there and don't think I'll be doing that again. I definitely haven't walked this much since my mission and I'm pretty sure Janie hasn't walked this much ever, but it is good for you and forces me to exercise. My classes will only be about a 25 minute walk but I do plan on getting a bike soon. Janie will be getting her TV tomorrow, but only a 21" one...but who's counting.

A few observations from the past week and a half-

It is not easy opening a bank account in another country. I have been trying for a week now with no success. Armed with a letter of introduction from my college, I'm hoping it happens tomorrow. I have to get my student loan money somehow. Or maybe I'll just create a PayPal account to accept anonymous donations from wealthy philanthropists....

I just can't come to say "Cheerio" Nothing against the saying or anything but it just can't roll off my tongue. Cheers I will get used to but Cheerio? I don't know. We'll see if I change.

Living in a foreign country with a spouse is a lot different than doing it on your own. When we were preparing to leave, I didn't think about kitchen supplies and I laughed at Janie for wanting to bring her steak knives and potato peeler. In my mind, I was like all we need are a couple of plates, cups, and a frying pan. Evidently (and $200 later) I was wrong. We need pots, soup bowls, cutting boards, three pots, two frying pans, etc.) If I have to do it again, I'd ship a box of kitchen stuff....

It can be really confusing when you say you would like a pound of potatoes when pound can mean the weight or the dollar amount. When I said it the lady was like "You want a pound of potatoes or 4 pounds of potatoes for a pound?" I thought four pounds for the equivalent of $1.70 wasn't bad, but now Janie and I have to eat them (not to mention the 14 bananas I got for a pound, and the strawberries, and the oranges). The markets are definitely the best place to buy fresh fruits and vegetables. El Cheapo Tip #1

I have a feeling it isn't going to be easy finding Janie a job in Oxford. We have applied (actually I have done all the paperwork...it's like she isn't in a rush) to four or five places with no response. I'm thinking retail is her best bet...but hopefully something easy. I just don't want to have to dip into our savings or take out more loans.....I know I know, it will be worth it for the experience....I'm not convinced...yet.

Overall Oxford is very nice...smaller than I imagined with less shops than I imagined outside of the city centre (notice the British spell check of the work Centre, just getting ready for my thesis). I do think we will enjoy it and know time is going to fly. On the 17th I get to do my Harry Potter impression....we will be taking pictures that can be autographed for a small fee.

Across The Pond!

So we have officially moved. We got our keys to our lovely but small flat on Monday. The flight was long, and I was not feeling the best. Up until Sunday I was okay, but once Sunday rolled around, I started to get really nervous. Mike was such a trooper. He carried six bags all over London, and Oxford.

Our place is small, but the layout helps it feel way bigger that what it is. The kitchen is so much smaller than the one back home, but it is functional. We bought some groceries, and I am already missing American food. We will be doing some exploring today which I am really excited about. There is so much to do in this town.

This week in Bath is the Jane Austen festival and I am trying to convince Mike to take me there. So far he said maybe, that is way better than a no!! The weather has been sunny, and nice. No rain so far, but that can always change in an instant. There are tons of shops downtown Oxford, we live about 1 1/2 mile from the center of oxford, so its not bad. Our flat is quiet!

Well if you have skype feel free to skype us since we dont have a phone yet. Janie.Bowerbank is our skype address!