My Birthday!

I turned one on Saturday! Saturday, we all slept in, then I got up and played with Daddy for a while before Mummy came downstairs. Daddy was supposed to have a race, but they cancelled it because the wind was blowing so much. Daddy's friends that row in the same boat as him decided to have breakfast at Pembroke, so we got ready to meet them.

While we were getting ready to go, I tripped and hit Mummy's computer. I bit my lip! I cried because it hurt so much, and then Mummy tried to put a cold cloth on my lip. She told me it would help stop the bleeding and make it so it didn't swell up. Well guess what, that hurt, too!

Luckily, I'm really brave. I stopped crying after just a couple of minutes, got dressed, and we headed out for breakfast.

Daddy's friends are so fun! I got to have an orange juice and they all told me how cute I am. I get that a lot, but they were all really nice. After breakfast, we went and bought my friend Lydia a birthday present. Mummy and I went to her birthday party later on that afternoon. I had so much fun! Lydia invited a whole bunch of other friends and I got to play with some of her toys. My favorite part was sitting in Mummy's lap and watching Lydia open her presents. I was so excited to open my presents!

I only got to open one present on my actual birthday, because Mummy and Daddy planned a party for me on Sunday. We Skyped with Nana and I opened up the awesome vacuum that she and Papa got for me! I already love it so much. It makes so many fun noises, and I can push it around while Mummy pushes her vacuum around! Thanks Nana and Papa!

On my birthday, Mummy made me one of my favorite dinners (Chinese Sesame Chicken!). I also got to wear my hat and a special badge that says "I am 1!" That was pretty cool--I got to wear my hat again during my part.

Oh, and don't worry: my party was awesome.

Mummy and I got all the decorations in bright yellow and blue. We had balloons, party hats with polka dots, flowers, a banner, and a really cool sign that says: Happy Birthday! Daddy hung that up behind my high chair. I also had a special shirt that Nana bought me before we left Utah. It says "Look Who's 1!" (me, that's who!)

When my friends started arriving, I got so excited. Josh and Daly Brownlow, Aimee and Jonathan Smith, Kristen and Michael Call and their two kids (Alana and Devin--they were my favorites!), and Dr. Peter Martland all came to celebrate with me. Mummy made cupcakes and we had lots of yummy fruit. Everybody wore their party hats (even Peter!) and I had so much fun. I played blocks with Alana and Devin, showed them my new vacuum, and got to show off my favorite blanket.

But my party wasn't 100% fun.

Mummy made me a really cool cake--a blue one with a blue #1 on top! She put a really pretty candle right on top for me to blow out. But right after I blew it out, I reached up to touch the candle and--ouch! It's hot! It wasn't too bad, but then when everybody started making noise I got so scared! Mummy picked me up and held me and showed me a balloon, and everything was ok after that.

A few minutes later, she took me back so I could try eating my cake again. I got my favorite fork and everything! I really wasn't too sure about the frosting, and when I got some in my eye I decided I REALLY didn't like it.

Cake is so much better when somebody feeds it to you! I'm glad my friend Aimee helped me eat a cupcake. That was much better than having to eat that big cake all by myself.

Even though my cake was kind of scary, my party was a lot of fun. I got so many presents! Aimee and Jonathan got me a cool new shirt and some snazzy shoes. Daly and Josh got me a VERY soft cow with a little blankie. Peter gave me my very first 20 pound note! Mummy found me a really cool scarf with a London Bus on it. I can't wait to wear it! Oh, and Mummy and Daddy got me this AMAZING train set. It has some of the famous London Buildings and the train looks just like the Tube train! It also came with a London Bus, a Cab, a Police Car (which is my favorite), and a fire engine. Daddy and I have already played with it a few times. It's so much fun!

I also got a very special present from the Missionaries. Elder Dickey and Elder Tan brought me a Book of Mormon! Mummy tells me Book of Mormon stories all the time, I'm so excited to have my own book. It has pictures in it, too!

So overall, my birthday was awesome. It was fun having my friends over at my house. Thank you for coming to my party, friends!

Peter and Me. :)

Family!!

My First Thanksgiving

Mummy told me my first Thanksgiving was rather unconventional. I don't really know what that word means, but I thought it was wonderful. On Saturday, we got to go over to Dr. Martland's (Mum says I can call him Peter when I'm a grown-up) and had turkey dinner with him and a few of his friends. It was so much fun!

We had turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, and cornbread, which Dr. Martland was pretty proud of himself for making. It was his first time making it. Mummy laughed because it was the boxed kind, but she was proud of him, too. Anyway, Mummy also got some sweet potatoes baked, which Dr. Martland got from the store on the American Air Force Base. Dr. Martland also found some pumpkin pie mix and asked Mummy to make a few pies.

So Friday night after I went to bed, she and Daddy made their first pumpkin pies. I think it turned out delicious, and everyone else thought so, too. Mummy and Daddy said they both don't really like pumpkin pie, but they both ate a piece at Dr. Martland's and didn't seem to mind it. I think they liked it because of the amazing white stuff they put on top--Mummy calls it "whipped cream."

Mummy told me all about the Pilgrims and the Indians and when Thanksgiving first started. She also told me what the true purpose of Thanksgiving is: to show everyone we love how grateful we are for them and to thank Heavenly Father for all of our blessings.

I've thought about it and here are the things I am most grateful for:

Mummy and Daddy
My BYU mobile that Nana, Aunt Chels, and Aunt Sam made me
Daddy's belt (it's so fun to chew on!)
The drawstring on Mummy's hoodie (also fun to chew)
Gingersnaps
The whisk that Mummy sometimes uses to bake
Puff-its (my favorite snack)
My Hedgehog
Crackers
My little Elephant that plays music
Warm milk in the middle of the night (can't get any better than a snuggle with Mummy at 3am!)

I thought Thanksgiving was a great holiday. We got to eat lots of food, play, and we got to see Dr. Martland. Mummy says next Thanksgiving we will be with our family and it will be even more fun. I can't wait!

Me being silly with Daddy at the table. 

This is me and Dr. Martland!! He is so much fun! 

Picking Out Our Christmas Tree!

While we were at Scottsdale's, we picked out our Christmas Tree!!

We looked, and looked, and looked for the best tree. Mummy found it right away, but she wanted to make sure, so we looked at a few other trees before deciding on that one. I helped Daddy look at them all! After a while, I think all the trees started to look the same to Daddy--good thing Mummy was there to help us pick one out!

 Our Christmas tree is BEAUTIFUL! Mummy said it's pretty small, but it looks big to me! It's green and smells really nice. Daddy said we'd get to take it home and put beautiful, sparkly things on it. The nice man at Scottsdale's put it in a bag for us to take home. Mummy was going to have them deliver it to our house, but Daddy and I decided we didn't want to wait a week for it to come--we could take it on the bus! What a great idea!!

This is our tree!!!

At the bus stop. It was really dark outside!

We paid £29.99 for our tree. Mummy was worried that was kind of a lot, but Daddy said "Hey, it's Henry's first tree." That's right! It is!! After we paid, we walked down to the bus stop. I was relieved, because on the sign, it said just 6 more minutes till the bus came. 

But if didn't come. 

Then the next bus didn't come, which was 20 minutes after that. Mummy sat down on the grass with me and I got a bottle. I was so tired that I fell asleep! I got to take a 25 minute nap on her lap out there before the bus came. I was glad that it took a while, because that meant I got a nap and I still got to be awake for the bus ride home!

I'm so excited to take it home and get it all covered in pretty lights and the sparkly things Daddy called ornaments!

Here we are on our way to the bus stop and then on the bus. 

Locked in the Tower

We went to London again yesterday! We took the train again, which is so much fun. Daddy fed me my breakfast while Mommy held me--I love doing that. And I got to look out the window and see England go by really fast.

This time, we went to a place called The Tower of London. Daddy has been wanting to go there for a while, and since the weather was perfect for being outside yesterday, Mummy decided it was time she and I took him to see the Tower!

The Tower of London is actually a whole bunch of towers, 21 actually. The oldest tower, the White Tower, was built in 1078 by William the Conqueror. At first, it was actually a castle, where William lived. Then it became a prison. The English held prisoners there until 1952--not that long ago!

A man called a "Beefeater" gave us a tour. Beefeaters used to be the body guards of the kings and queens. Now, they guard the Tower and tell everybody that comes to see it all different funny stories. Our Beefeater, Dickey, told us about people who had their heads cut off just outside the tower, and then a couple Queens who were killed inside! It sounded pretty gross to me.

Mummy and Daddy told me about the Ravens that live in the Tower. They are really big black birds that make kind of a croaky squawk. Mummy said that there are always six ravens at the Tower. British people are really superstitious (Daddy says that means they believe in things that might not be logical, but are important to them. Huh.), and that they believe if there aren't six ravens at the Tower at all times, then the Crown will fall!! I'm not sure if he meant the Crown with the big diamonds we saw or what, but it sounds pretty scary.

Mummy carried me in the tummy pack for most of the time we were in the Tower. There are lots of stairs, and I was pretty tired. Plus, I'm just a lot happier when I can be up high to see things. I did get really tired after our Beefeater tour though, and so I got a bottle and took a nap while Mummy carried me. Ah! That's the life!!

In one of the towers we went in, we read about a few prisoners that were kept there. Usually, prisoners that were kept in the Tower were really important people. Mummy said they must have been really important because they were still allowed to get Amazon deliveries (oh Mum...).

When we go out and see new things, I always want to touch whatever I can. The Tower had lots of really cool brick walls, railings on the twisty staircases, and funny iron soldiers. Mummy and Daddy let me touch as much as I could reach! I almost got to touch some of the graffiti prisoners made in the walls. They must have been really bored, because some of the things carved into the walls were amazing!

The soldiers that protected the Tower a long time ago were pretty amazing. But, we did read about one time when the poor people got really mad at the King, and actually invaded the Tower! If Daddy had been a soldier back then, I bet they wouldn't have gotten in. He's way too tough. 

Just outside the Tower is the Tower Bridge, one of the most recognizable bridges in the world! Lots of people call it the London Bridge, but Mummy said THEY ARE WRONG!

We had a really fun day at the Tower of London. There were lots of things to see, lots of things to learn about, and we even got to see the crown jewels (lots of sparkly things that I think Mummy would like to wear). When we left the Tower at 4:30, it was already starting to get dark. But, we did get to see the sunset over the Thames and look at some of the really cool buildings in London. 

This is the Tower of London

Just outside the Tower, is a statue of the Roman Emperor Trajan. He built a huge wall around the city of Londinium when he was Emperor (well, he made other people build it). Mummy said lots of people get confused and think it's Hadrian's Wall, but Emperor Hadrian built his wall on the border between Scotland and England. I can see how that would be confusing, but you just need to have a really smart Mummy with you to tell you those kind of things when you're traveling.

After we grabbed some dinner at Subway, we went shopping on Oxford Street. They have all their Christmas Lights up--it was beautiful.

 On the way home, Mummy let me have a piece of a Ben's Cookie on the Train. WOW--those are delicious! Mummy told Daddy we can't go in to London without having Ben's Cookies--good thing there's one near Oxford Street!

The Tube is a Great Place for a Nap. And so is Parliament Square.

I found some amazing places to take naps and scenic places to eat while we were in London yesterday. Mum wanted me to sleep while we were on the train, but there were just too many things to see and look at outside the window.

But once we got on the Tube, it was just too long since I woke up--I fell asleep right before our stop at Westminster. 

Mummy carried me for a while, then put me in my stroller with my blanket. I took a nice nap while she and Daddy got through the crowds around the Houses of Parliament. 

I think Mummy was a little bit disappointed that I wasn't awake for when Big Ben told us it was noon, so I decided I better open my eyes so we could take a family picture. 

Mum has told me all about Big Ben and how much she loves to hear the bells. I liked to look around at all the people while they took pictures and ate their lunches at Parliament Square. Watching them made me really hungry through, so Mum and Dad stopped at McDonalds and got food for them, then we headed to St. James' Park for lunch. 

Did you know that St. James' Park is right in front of Buckingham Palace? That's where the Queen lives. Mummy and Daddy said if I want to live there I'm going to have to marry a Princess. I guess that would be ok.

Just as we went through the gates into Green Park, it started to rain. I decided I was tired of being in my stroller and just wanted Mummy to hold me, so I got to ride in the tummy pack and see her pretty umbrella! 

We walked and walked and walked and walked until we finally found the Victoria and Albert Museum, Mummy's favorite Museum in London. I liked it because I got a bottle once we went inside. We wandered around and looked at some of the amazing things in the museum. My favorite part was probably all the silver they have in a big long hallway. 

The Victoria and Albert Museum is HUGE though. Mummy said that we went into parts that she had never seen before--and she's been there dozens of times! One of the places we went that she'd never seen was the baby changing room. I felt very pampered getting changed in there--the changing table is polished marble! All of the tiles in the bathroom are white marble with green in between. The white ones have a V&A on them--it was REALLY fancy. Mummy said she wants her bathroom to look like that someday, except have a D&J. I think that's a good idea!

We were pretty tired after that, so Mummy and Daddy found a bench and sat down. I got a bottle and that put me right to sleep! I'm telling you--there are lots of great places to sleep and eat in London.

After the museum, we looked outside and saw that it had stopped raining! We stopped at the Hyde Park Chapel and then Mummy said she really wanted me to meet Peter Pan, so we headed back to the park. This time, it was to Kensington Gardens. 

Peter Pan was so cool! We were lucky that there weren't a lot of people around, so got to touch the animals and talk to Peter all by myself.

Look at me! I can fly!!

I was hungry again after that (naturally), so Daddy and I sat by the Long Water and had some dinner. Well, I had dinner, anyway.

While I was eating, the craziest thing happened! The tree that was right above us decided that I needed a branch full of beautiful yellow leaves to play with. So, it dropped one right next to me in my stroller. Thanks, tree!!

I pulled of the leaves and examined them one by one. Every leaf is different, did you know that? Then I chewed on the branch. Mummy and Daddy were nice enough to let me do that. I know lots of Mummy and Daddy's aren't that cool.

After that, we went to get dinner for Mum and Dad at a place called Whole Foods. Then, we headed back to Kings' Cross Station, tried to get in to Hogwarts (see my previous post about that), then headed home. 

I was exhausted after such a long day! Mummy gave me a nice bottle on the train and snuggled up with me. The train was very full, though, with lots of interesting people to watch. So, I ate my bottle and kept myself awake. 

Overall, I really enjoyed London. I can see why Mummy loves it so much and why she talks about it all the time. I can't wait to go back!!