Brighton in a Nut Shell

I have been in Brighton for the past 2 weeks or more spending time with Adriel, Violet and Joel as they welcome Adeline Louise into the world. What an honor to be here. What a delight to hold the babies, get to know Violet Joy and love on Adriel with ALL--I kid you not-- ALL the meals and treats I prepared when she was a girl.

Violet and I take daily walks to the sea. It’s only a few blocks down the hill and she loves to get out and throw stones in the ocean. We buy and she eats an ice cream. Which I try to sneak a few bites off and she really likes it so she doesn’t let me take much. She does let me clean it up for her and wipe the drips off her mouth and clothes.

She is learning to talk very rapidly now, trying many words and sentences. She gibber gabbers a lot, but says Korf for fork and tries to say thank you. Very little is intelligible, but she really sounds like she’s saying something. We walk down the boardwalk and go to the playground where she plays on the slide and on the rocking horses.

Violet is a lovely child and she is very sweet on her new sister. She gives her hugs and kisses every hour or so. She by the way loves the Beatrix Potter DVD I bought years ago and all the grandkids her age love it. I remember Shammai liking it as well. I found a similar one here now that has trumped Beatrix, called the Brambly something or another. It’s all about mice instead of rabbits and she really is spellbound. She listens to every word intently.

Violet lights up when she sees her mom. You can tell they have a special bond. Joel is especially good with her and lets her work alongside him while he plays and sorts through all of his man stuff, tools and such. He’s quite a sport, he now has me, Adriel, Violet, Adeline and Sandy Johnson taking up a lot of space in and around him… he utters not a word.

Adeline is a perfect baby. She seldom cries, except when she’s getting changed. She squeaks when she wants to eat. She eats every two hours, is gaining weight nicely and loves to be cuddled close. She falls readily asleep on her grandma’s heart. Her pretty little face now sports eyebrows. Adeline came out of the womb sucking and took a pacifier easily. Joel gave her her first bottle yesterday and she took it like an old pro. She is just the sweetest addition, looks much like Adriel and has a lovely disposition. These Fonnesbecks really know how to make cute babies. Dennis said jokingly that Joel being the gene hog that he was with Violet, seemed to give it up a bit and Adeline indeed is a Hanson…I say Sirotiak.

As for me, I love being here with the Fonnesbeck family and being a part of this huge event in their lives. I’ve been enjoying cooking for the bunch of us as I am here. I cook almost every meal. I’ve enjoyed that, although I will have to go on a serious detox when I get home. No sugar, no breads. I’ve made all of Adriel’s favorites. I made Pork Roast with Saur Kraut and Dumplings, one of my all time favorites that my mom used to make me on my birthday. I just loved this meal and so does Adriel. We had the leftovers the night after. I made my macaroons and fish tacos. I baked my bread quite a few times and prepared French toast every morning with the bread. I made Schmores and Violet loves it…as do the rest of us. I made my Christmas Bread, renamed September bread as it is September while I prepared it here. I made my home made fudge for ice cream and rhubarb pie. I plan to prepare chicken and dumplings, Doris’ version, and spring rolls with shrimp. We’ll also have roast duck. Joel wants to make me a Moroccan dish…I think he’s preparing himself to get his kitchen back.

Sandy arrived yesterday and we will be living in a flat nearby for the remainder of our time here. I plan to take early morning walks, come here for breakfast, plan our day and then prepare dinner in the evening. I will miss getting up to Violet calling my name: She gets up and comes in the room, “Baba, Baba…, then walks over to the movies and points, Ba, That’s rabbit. She’ll sometimes sign the word for rabbit, which involves bunny ears. At least that’s what I assume she’s doing.

I am already saddened as I think of leaving my little Violet and Adeline behind. Adeline will be 7 months when I see her next. I am getting as much hold time as I can. She just folds up in your arms and loves to lie on my chest. She reminds me of the tree frogs we have back in Minnesota, she sort of clings to me full straddle. She’s just precious. Her natural look has a constant scowl, but it’s going down as she grows.

I am so happy they will be moving to the U.S. shortly. It will be a huge adjustment for them; they will miss their English home and friends. But they are sacrificing so Violet and Adeline will get to know their extended family.

Much the same as Dennis and I when we made the decision to move back to St. Cloud to raise our family, it was a good decision and the right thing for us. We did that because of our kids as well and having family nearby was a great support to us.

This has been a momentous trip for me. I’ve loved being allowed to be a part of this lovely family.

Sandy showed up around the 18th and we rented a flat. In actuality, Adriel asked that I come to her house early morning to get Violet out of her cot. I was happy to do that and was able to see Violet’s eyes light up when she saw me in the morning. “Mama?” she’d ask…”Da?” “Ba?” I said they were sleeping and she was just fine with that.

She watched her rabbit or mice DVD and then ate breakfast. On days I didn’t make French toast or Schmores, she’d eat a common English breakfast food called WheataBix. It’s pressed wheat, in the shape of shredded wheat, but is more like flaked wheat. When milk is poured on it it turns to tasty mush. We put whole milk, honey and heat it in the microwave. She loves it… and it is pretty good.

I was able to spend my birthday in London. Adriel let me have the day off…

What a blessing this day was. Who gets to spend their birthday in London? I feel guilty sometimes that I get these delightful treats from God.

Sandy and I took the train to London a little before 10 a.m. We hopped on the tour bus, sat on the top level under a roof top, as we had decided to tour the city before getting off at Tower of London. Well, that didn’t happen. It rained cats and dogs most of the morning, so first order of business was to buy an umbrella. We were given a plastic poncho by the tour bus company and donned them proudly. Kind of funny… we deliberated on our fashion for the day, just to be draped in plastic for the day. Then we saw a park of tents with an antique show and auction that called our names. We hopped off the bus, which was a good thing, as we took a bus that had recorded tour guide that we listened to as we drove by the sites. It was the blue bus, not the red bus that had the live tour operator. So, this stop helped us find a red bus for the remainder of the tour.

The art park was our only mistake, but it helped us regroup. We also had a great lunch while the rain poured down outside and we were able to see some great antiques and art and mix with the locals. It was a detour from our plan, so we headed back and hopped on the red bus. Much better… we passed places like the small restaurant hidden away that was Princess Di’s favorite lunch place, the guy was very entertaining and informative.

The tour bus took us passed all the great spots, and we were of course drawn to the shopping district. So, if time allowed we’d go there before going back to Victoria Station. Shortly after, we arrived at Tower of London we got off the bus. We talked about going to a play as long as we were in town. We didn’t have to get back for anything in particular that day, so we decided to try to see a play.

There was a ticket office near the shops so we stopped in and Sandy bought me my birthday present, a ticket to Wicked. She’d already seen it, but wanted to see it again. I had read the book and had wanted to see it, but never had the opportunity. So, there you have it, Wicked it was.

The tower of London was a bit of ancient history right in the middle of the busy city. We made it to the last tour guide of the day and enjoyed it. We found the crown jewel building and entered with a bunch of other tourists. I had been there before, so I knew what to expect. We were told by the tour guide about the jewels and especially the world’s largest diamond, the African Star that is placed in one of the scepters.

After the tour, Sandy said she expected more. She wondered where the rest of the jewelry was and thought the star of Africa would be bigger! Yup! She was actually disappointed in the crown jewels.

We went back early to Victoria station as the theater was near the station. We walked until we found a place to have dinner, called Santinis. They only opened at 6, so they let us in early and we had our dinner in time to get out for the play. We had great seats, on the second level and the play was fantastic. The special effects and the actors were all superb. Their voices were beautiful and they all worked so well together. We couldn’t believe the performance. There were a few understudies and I can only imagine how the first string actors would have been. It was a great time. We took the train home and got in about midnight.

The next few days Sandy had a good time wandering the city by herself while I spent time with the kids… she enjoyed shopping, while I enjoyed the kids and helping Adriel. During all this time I had lost some data, all of the London days photos and all my backed up data from my external hard drive. I was distraught actually. I went to shop after shop to try to find someone who could help. No one could help me recover my shots.

We went on Saturday before we left to Lowes; the train ride was about 20 minutes. It was a lovely day; we enjoyed lunch on the terrace top with a castle view. Sandy enjoyed the city and wanted to spend more time. She bought a lovely apple strudel to devour later. Joel left early with Violet and we kept the baby. Spent the rest of the afternoon shopping and wandering then went back to Brighton.

Sandy and I left early Monday morning. We took the train to Gatwick and went our separate ways.

I especially enjoyed taking Violet on walks to the sea. She loves to explore and wander up and down the curbs, jumping off. She likes to run in the stones and throw stones in the sea. She especially likes that Ice cream and I have to admit, it’s the best I’ve had in a while.

I was so sad to leave the babies, and Adriel and Joel. It might be my last time ever in England. I miss the babies in my arms every day. It’s an ache that doesn’t go away. They are beautiful kids and I am so proud of how Adriel and Joel take care of them. Adriel healed up nicely this time, wasn’t as tired as with Violet and handled more activities faster. She healed up sooner it seemed.