We made it!

So we made it home!

The flights were actually both ok and uneventful. Kate is a nervous flier, but I discovered very early on that it's amazing what a difference a seat back tv makes. Instead of screaming every time the plane banked she was just happily plugged in to a show and not even noticing. She didn't even notice turbulence. It was so magic, in fact, that I bought her her own earphones during our layover in Toronto because she was having trouble keeping earbuds in. $20 was totally worth it to me to keep her happy for the next seven hour flight!

When we got here nobody had slept much overnight, which was perfect. By the time we got to Nana and Grandad's house they were exhausted, and slept through the night. And that was that for jet lag. Nobody has really jet lagged at all! The kids didn't notice, and I have not had time to jet lag with all that has been going on!

We arrived on Wednesday night, and had a lovely day on Thursday playing with new cousins. I have lived in California for far too long - the kids all started having a water fight with the hose and a giant water pistol, and I actually had to turn my chair around so that I couldn't see such a colossal waste of water! It was making me so uncomfortable! (And the toilets! A flush practically sets off a fountain!)

More new cousins arrived on Friday, which was the day of the wedding. Despite an incredibly stressfull day on Friday (Ellie broke her arm (yes, the same arm, in the same place) and we spent the whole day in A&E at Poole Hospital), we were able to get to the wedding on time. That was a minor miracle in itself! Given that two and a half hours before the wedding they were talking about admitting her for surgery, it was amazing that we made it out of there. I barely had time to jump in the shower and there was no time for make-up, so I looked a right state, but we made it to the church on time! Result. The bride was traditionally late, which was perfect for me, because I sat and played prelude music for quite a while and was able to calm down. The wedding itself was lovely; I wish I had a way of getting pictures off my camera!! These posts will have to be picture-less until I get home...

Not quite all the little cousins

At the wedding the kids met even more cousins and also Great-Grandad Alf, which I loved. I took a great picture of them all together, and it was great that they got to meet him!

The kids had never experienced a proper wedding before, and it was a real experience! I had to drag Ellie off the dance floor to go home that night.

I lost count of how many times Nicholas raided the sweets bar. They had a lovely time.

And despite the fact that I spent most of the weekend in the hospital with Ellie, I still think that it was worth every penny that it cost to get over here just for the chance to see lots of family. Ellie and I didn't get to spend loads of time with everyone, but the other kids spent three days just playing with cousins, and if I had to pay for it all over again for them do just that and nothing else, it would still be worth it.