LONDON: Day Two

Traveling around a bustling city with three little kids and one baby was fun, but it was not always relaxing.  We had a lot of help- namely my parents (Mom Mom and Poppy), my Aunt Becki, and my cousin Bradyn... but we were constantly saying things like "everyone grab a hand!", "Leah, try to walk in front of us, please!", "Watch out for that bus!", and "I need a coffee from that Starbucks!!" (haha).

Steve and I also had one of two things strapped onto us:  a bundled-up Jane OR a very heavy shoulder bag holding everything a family with young children could need for a day out on the town in the winter time.  This sometimes made taking well-lit and well-composed photos a little difficult, especially when it was my turn to carry the baby and her head was in the way of my heavy camera!  I decided to focus on getting a few nice shots each day, so I hope that you get a good picture (pun intended) of what each day was like for us, despite the fact that I didn't get a photo of everything.

We landed at Heathrow on Monday morning, October 28.  After several hours spent in traffic getting to the flat, and getting ourselves settled, we decided to tour the city a bit.

Here we are at the Horse Guard's Arch, which is guarded during the day by two mounted sentries of the Queen's Household Calvary.  

Through the arch, you enter the Horse Guards Parade grounds.  This is when our first London downpour occurred and we all got soaking wet.

Next we moved on to this corner, near Westminster Abbey and Parliament. Grace and Aunt Becki took some photos of Elizabeth Tower, which houses the bell known as Big Ben (Grace won't let you call the clock tower "Big Ben", that's technically incorrect!):

At this point we were a little chilled, so we returned to the flat (apartment) to unpack and cook some dinner.  The groomsmen, who were staying with Matt at his place, joined us for the meal and then we settled in for the night.

The flat was on Villier Street, which is a short road lined with restaurants and apartments, including two Starbuck's cafes.  Heaven.  At the bottom of Villier Street is the Embankment Underground train station (the Tube) and the Thames.  At the top of Villier Street is the Charing Cross Tube and Overground train station, and a bus stop.  Just a five minute walk down the street took us to Trafalgar Square.  Buckingham Palace was a 15 minute's walk.  God provided for us abundantly with this flat!  (I wish I had pictures of each room to show you all, but alas it was one of those things that I kept telling myself I'd do later and then never got around to doing it.)

Our location was so central to Tube stations, major landmarks and historic sites, and, yes, Starbuck's coffee, that coming and going was easy.  Naps were easily accommodated, groceries and "take-away" prepared meals were steps away, and it was easy to hop on and off of the Tube.  There were several bedrooms for plenty of privacy, and a large dining room table in one of the kitchens to gather around for talk and a cup of tea.  Or a coffee from... you guessed it.

The girls slept pretty well that first night (Leah and Grace were not excited to share a bed and both accused the other of being a terrible blanket-thief) and we were all ready for more adventures the next day...