Doing the County Fair

I've shared a lot of what our life was like in Scotland, and rest assured I've taken a ridiculous amount of photos there to continue to share with y'all.

But I thought I'd swap things around and share with our friends in the UK a taste of the USA.

This may come as a shock to y'all, but we aren't big city people. 

I lived for 4 years of my life in Dallas and 8 months in Houston, Texas and those experiences fulfilled any small desire I had to live in a densely populated area. 

Sure, you have your pros, like a Hobby Lobby every 10 miles, Chick-fil-a, Chipotle, Pei Wei, Starbucks, Gigi's Cupcakes, Firehouse Subs, Whole Foods 

(Ok, well, I haven't ever been in a Whole Foods, but I have been gouged for groceries before, does that count?) 

but y'all not only does my wallet and waistline hate this, 

but there's just something about the country that appeals to me.

Here in USA it's the most wonderful time of the year--county fair time!

Bear in mind y'all a county fair tends to be small.

Each state in the USA has a LOT of counties. After the county fairs the winners go on to the state fair.

But county fair time is a super fun where my husband especially travels back his roots. 

Let's start this show off with a bang and focus on the little girl in the background instead of my boys closely examining the sheep.

Sing by the Sea

Right after Holiday Bible Club in Scotland we invited all parents, participants, workers, and dogs to a fun event called Sing by the Sea.

Sing by the Sea is held the Sunday evening following Holiday Bible Club at Roseisle Beach. 

There are pine trees all around and the dunes have spread into the trees making for an almost ethereal,  Lord of the Rings type landscape.

I loved it.

I felt my inner Arwen come out.

Quick someone get me a bow and arrows.

Highland Gaming

So I have been absent from social media, this blog, and most of my cognitive functions these past few weeks. This is all for good reason. 

Namely: 

1. my mom coming to Scotland 

Read: GOOD GOLLY I GOTTA CLEAN MY HOUSE!

Sorry I shouted that, but it's a real concern of mine. Because I don't want my mom to think we live the way that we live. She says she lived with me for 18 years, she already knows, but still, I like to do "fake house" for when she comes.

2. Holiday Bible Club all week long

Read: guys I love hanging out with the kids, but it leaves little time for anything else

3. Americans were visiting

The teams from Missouri and Florida were more fun than a barrel of monkeys to hang around. So yes, I choose real people over the virtual ones. Don't get me wrong though, I looovvveee our blog readers.

4. Holiday Bible Camp

Read: Planning a church camp takes a lot of work, and attention to detail. Hint: Jordan's not a detail person.

5. Moving a family of 6 over 5,000 miles away

Read: Help.

So may I please get an excused absence?

Thanks in advance.

Or "tia," like they say online nowadays. Which bothers me because I think people are going rogue speaking in Español at the end of their sentence....and then I never find out what they want to say about their dear auntie.

Flowers, Seals, and Slimy Things

We've been exploring, as we are oft to do.
Scotland has so so many beautiful places to hike around.
Our kids ask a lot for us to take them to the ever present, ever popular indoor play areas here. Those are great--for rainy days.

But we tell them God has created an amazing playground for them outside.
We're going to walk all over it...
and they're gonna like it!

Best part of God's playground?

It doesn't cost £4 a head.

It's not far from us and...

The Great Outdoor Playground

If you're out and about (or oot and aboot)
in Scotland you may see the Anderson family wandering around.

It's what we do in our free time: explore the great outdoor playground!

This is the Buckie Harbour wall.

Foodie: UK Style Part 1

Lest you be confused:

I am NOT a foodie.

To me a foodie lives for exotic and gourmet foods, loves sushi, and can pronounce foie gras correctly.

For obvious reasons I don't appear becoming a foodie anytime soon as I:

- Can't stand the taste of kale 

- Still eat mac and cheese from a box. Living those blue box blues, for reals.

- Shudder at quinoa with the eensy "worms" that are suddenly produced by cooking it

(by the way I feel ridiculous with the "KEEN-wah" pronunciation. 

I'm a rebel and call it like I see it (read: the hillbilly way) "quinn-no-uh")

I live in the UK. 

I eat food in the UK.

I sometimes take pictures of food in the UK.

I've had the rare, the outlandish, the delicious, and the classics.

Would you like to see some?

These are a candy.

They taste just like those orange Circus Peanuts candy you get in the USA.

I liked these until I read the back of the package...

BEEF GELATIN

Touring Scotland: Monks, Cows, and Chairs

Recently we had a party here and invited a bunch of university students here to chill for a week.

Well that's only partially true. 

I don't normally use the word "chill" as it is rather foreign and chafes at this thirty-something momma who sees the value in not embracing skinny jeans, the sensibility in buying shoes for comfort, and the FOR THE LOVE OF PETE turn the stereo OFF in the car for some peace and quiet!!!

Now, for our lesson in how to avoid awkward introductions and hideously long, nearly run-on sentences.

Wow.

I think I'll begin the post again.

Once upon a time a group of students from Lincoln Christian University came to Scotland to have a Tour of the Reformation.

We welcomed them with open arms.

Dr. Middleton led the group and arrived a few days early because he loves the Anderson kids...

Janu'ry In a Few Pictures

My husband got me a new (to me) camera for Christmas.

I thought I'd share a photographic journal of January (Janu'ry, if you're Scottish) with y'all.

I think I've mentioned I want to be a photographer just take a decent picture.

I also want to be a musician. 

My husband is a musician, a gifted one. 

So I'm slightly perturbed when I pick up his fiddle and attempt to play Ashoken Farewell and it sounds like a dang racoon scratching his grabby little claws on a chalkboard.

Now that I've painted that word picture for you I want you apply that to me and photography.

Some of these photos were taken with a Canon 400D with a Sigma 28-70mm lens and some were with an old school iPhone.

I'm not telling which are which.

Y'all I'm basically a nocturnal animal carrying around a fancy camera, hoping for the best.

January in Scotland gives you a whopping 7 hours of daylight. 

So we tried to finish school at breakneck speed to get out and enjoy the day, no matter the weather.

Driving Scotland

If you ever wanted to drive in Scotland (and by "drive" I mean look at pictures.

And by "you" drive I mean Mark Anderson behind the wheel),

well, boy howdy you've come to the right place. 

I take a lot of pictures while here in Scotland. 

For one, I'm trying to be a better photographer, 

and for two, I'm a horrible photographer.

We tend to do a lot of adventuring and we do it in the car, because any other form of transportation with 4 kids tends to be pricey.

So most pictures were taken from within our vehicle.

Also, when the car stops the Anderson circus [children] think they all should abandon ship. And so we refrain from stopping the vehicle as much as possible to avoid an uprising by the natives.

Want to see what it would be like to drive in Scotland?

Our mode of transportation:

The French-made (don't get Mark started) Citroen C8, 

it's a "people carrier" and not a minivan.

And don't you forget it.

Summer Family Saturdays

Sometimes on those rare family days when we're meandering around Scotland

Our sweet children;

Those blessed little fruit of my womb ...

(Well that was awkward, 

I promise I'll never say 'fruit of my womb' again.)

(Also, it sounds like men's undergarments.)

Our precious little lambs,

 start to drive me bonkers in the vehicle...

Awa' We Go!

Recently Mark and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary. We decided to spend a few days on holiday on Europe's 4th most popular island, and I know what you're thinking,

no, wait I don't know what you're thinking...

But I do know it's NOT what you're thinking.

We went to Orkney, Scotland.

Orkney is a magical group of islands just off the northern mainland of Great Britain. We drove up to one of the northernmost points in Scotland, got on a ferry, and traveled to Stromness, Orkney to spend a few days.

We did this whilst my parents were here (SCORE for babysitters!), but we do have a baby. 

And wither goest the cow, goest thou calf. 

But we like hangin' with Airdrie, she's cool.

I will be the first to tell you, I loathe "selfies."

But I made an exception because we made a quick stop by one of my favouritest places in this country: Tain Pottery.

The reasons I am not a fan of selfies are numerous; 

one of them being I look like a gigantic pear in the curved reflection on our car.

Once Upon A Time in Glasgow...

Howdy folk!

(the term "folk" is plural so no need for folk"s" 

Thanks for that error in our education Looney Tunes.)

I haven't posted in forever and ever so when I found this half completed post in my drafts I was overjoyed!

A full post with half the effort!

Y'all just please never mind the events took place in February...

Back in February:
We found out in order to obtain Airdrie's UK visa in a timely and efficient manner we needed to book an outrageously expensive appointment in Glasgow.
So we did, and just about a month after our venture to Edinburgh, again back down through the Cairngorms we trekked.

Wait a minute...'Ol Eagle Eye Anderson has spotted something:

Do you see them?

Venture To Edinburgh

Early this month we had to make a trip to Scotland's capitol city, Edinburgh. 

Pronounce it like "Ed-in-bur-a" so you don't sound ridiculous. 

Ask me how I know.

We were obligated to go because that is where the closest American embassy is and we had to go there in order for Miss Airdrie to become a US citizen, get her report of birth abroad, passport, and Social Security Number. 

We were too worried about that last one, just the first 3; ______ insert political comment here.

While Edinburgh is just under 200 miles away, in Scotland that means a good 4 hour drive. In order to make our appointment at the embassy without hauling 4 children out of bed at 4 a.m. we went a day early and stayed the night at a hotel. This was a super awesome decision on my husband's part because it made for a nearly stress-free trip!

Here are some of the fun sights for you to enjoy a glimpse of Scotland!

On the way down we choose to take the route through the Cairngorm Mountains.

Cheater-Pants Post

This is a cheater-pants post because I'm a new mom and I ain't got the time (seriously) to sit and write posts and take pictures right now. We're watching other moms do fun Christmas cookies and parties and cards and I'm over here like, "I kept my kids alive today."

Since Mark ran back to the US the morning after Thanksgiving to see his dad in the hospital I've been running, running, running. In my week as a single parent of 4 I found that:

-I cannot sleep more than 6 hours at night not counting middle-of-the-night feedings. There aren't enough hours in the day to get things done so I have to borrow from the nighttime!

-Laundry never, ever ends. The washer and dryers here take about twice as long as the ones in the US so I'm half as efficient as I was (and to enlighten you; I am NOT laundry efficient).

-Plan, plan, plan. To get things done in a timely manner I have to lay out outfits for everyone the night before, set alarm reminders on the phone, make school lunches the night before, and even set out the toaster, Nutella, and bananas for breakfast to keep me on track!

-You might be an idiot to try and drag out Christmas decorations during all this chaotic time. ("you" means "me" in this case).

-I need lots of precious friends. People walking me home, helping me put kids to bed, doing my laundry (I know I just admitted I'm still behind despite the help, just some raw truth there). Caedmon's teacher even came and picked him up one morning for me when I had to get him to school and Nessie to her Highland Dance medal test at the same time. SO precious and SO telling that I'm not a great single parent!

So all that being said I'm telling y'all I'm going to do one giant post with lots of pictures and a few captions and say that's me done blogging for December!

Thanks for your understanding.

I'll do better when my 4 are grown and out of the house.

Maybe.

AirBear all dressed up (and hating it) at one month old.

She is a miracle and a living testament to God's goodness. 

We treasure each day.