Maguire Hometown? Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire UK

Warren and I finally MADE it to RAF Alconbury to meet up with the immigrants. It was a jolly good moment to see them again.

The Britannia Inn, which is both the hotel and TLF (temporary lodging facility), was comfortable and homey. The Boys got to open packages that had been sent to their new home! They went at it with gusto.

One of Brian's new co-workers dropped by with a Welcome Bag, which included this darling Christmas tree - with lights! We remembered to water it occasionally, too. Good for us - as we are not noted for our green thumbs. It was such a nice gesture from the people in his office!

Grandpa got right to work assembling the LEGOs. I, as grandmother, always passed on the chance to touch those crazy things. I must admit, having raised daughters, that I'd never seen the all-day-hold a room full of Legos has over boy children. Tim and Brian both laughed when I told them that. (I think Legos still have a powerful hold over them, if you want my opinion! LOL)

 Here is the sign that indicates where Brian's new base is located...if you can find it in the fog...

Katharine, Warren, McColley, Brady and I decided to take the bus into Huntingdon to explore the town center. What a cool place! First, we stopped for lunch at a cafe. I tried Celebration Chicken over a pocket potato. Baked potatoes with various toppings are available all over the place. The chicken was a mix of chopped chicken, mayonnaise, and mild curry with raisins served cold over the hot potato. Surprisingly delicious.

We are at St. Benedict's corner in the middle of the town square. Quite a lot of nice shopping to do here.

Then, there is always the reminder that this town has been here for MANY years. This is a church in the square. We also visited the tiny Cromwell museum. It was small, but very impressive - not only for the amount of personal items in it, but for the nice way they included children in understanding what life was like back in the 1400's. (from Wikipedia: Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex, KG, PC (c. 1485^[1] – 28 July 1540), known as 1st Baron Cromwell of Wimbledonbetween 1536 and 1540, was an English statesman who served as chief minister of King Henry VIII of England from 1532 to 1540.)

McColley was our constant companion, even at bedtime. We made him his own little trundle next to our bed with the cushions off the couch. He loved it!

Being incredibly efficient, our immigrant family found a fabulous house in the Stukeley Meadows development in Huntingdon. On 12/31/10, Brian and the landlord met to sign some papers. Adrian (?) was kind enough to let McColley and me take a look through the house.

Here to show you his new house is your tour guide: McColley!

Welcome to 3 Windermere, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire UK...

Here is our serious Officer McColley, in his front yard - part of a very cute neighborhood...

 By the fireplace in the living room (New light fixtures throughout the house are modern and cute)...

 At the top of the stairs...

 In the ensuite bathroom for the master bedroom (New tile and flooring, too)...

In the main bathroom, which features an American sized bathtub (not typical)...

 In a bedroom...

 In the multi-door landing upstairs (Note the transoms over the doors)...

And with Dad in the kitchen, which features an American size dishwasher (also atypical)...If you look beyond the kitchen windows, you will see another set of white windows. These are part of the glass conservatory that goes the length of the dining room and kitchen. The dining room has a set of glass bi-fold doors to get into it. These rooms are common around the area. It has a tile floor, glass ceiling and glass walls - so it is cold out there! However, the landlord has installed a number of outlets so that space heaters can be used, if desired. This house has a CUTE factor of 10/10!

 This is the sign on their street...

After signing the papers, it was time to head into London to celebrate the new year and Katharine's 30th!
That is the next installment in our cliff hanger!
TTFN.

Christmas Day 2010 and We're Off to Jolly Old England!

Good Old Santa! He found us. The Boys were so excited to find their presents waiting for them.

 A Policeman Nutcracker for Officer McColley!

 Trucks for Truck-Guy Brady!

 And Legos and Duplos for them both!

We finally made it to the airport, where we located an NYPD hat for McColley. Thanks to Warren and Brian, we were able to get seats on the same plane - all back row, but, together!

Transportation on Boxing Day was expensive and inconsistent. Warren and I had a London cabbie who will be celebrating 50 years of driving a cab in March! We all had reservations at the Lancaster Gate Hotel. KC and the Boys were supposed to check in at the base and then return to London. Without cell phones, it was impossible to tell them to stay at the base. Thankfully, they figured that out themselves.  That left Warren and me alone to explore London for a day and a half before heading out to the base.

This was our short street, close to Hyde Park, Oxford Street and Marble Arch. The hotel itself was covered in scaffolding because they are repairing the exterior, which was in pretty sad shape.

On the 27th, a Monday, the Underground was on strike. The workers were upset that they did not get the observed Boxing Day off, so took it anyway. We needed to stay close to our hotel. We walked through Hyde Park, down the street past Selfridges Department Store (another ZOOOOOOOO!!) and got ourselves a cell phone. Then, we went to St. Paul's Cathedral - WOW! We climbed to the very top on a windy day.

There is quite a fabulous view from the top of the Cathedral. It was a most inspirational place to be during the holiday season.

 Then, off to the British Museum. Another amazing place on this planet.

Warren in front of the Warren Cup. It's actually kind of a weird cup, but, hey! Who else has a cup named after 'im? I have an entire portion of England named after me!! Or, am I named after it? The chicken and the egg...If you look at the area around his belly button, you'll see the iPod tour guide. The headphones on the exhibit indicate the number you push to hear more about what you are looking at. It's technology at its best!

It was, overall, a tiring and fabulous day exploring a fantastically interesting city. We ended the night with a literal FEAST at a Lebanese restaurant close to our hotel. We were not sure what to expect when we walked in, but it was DEElicious!

TTFN

Christmas Eve 2010

Christmas EVE! "Let's head to Central Park to try and find a familiar figure, OK?"

Here's Officer McColley standing next to his police storage bin at the AirTran station - note the badges.

 And his hearty helper, Rookie Brady...

It was a GORGEOUS day in Central Park as we headed off to Belvedere Castle to find someone special.

 Keep looking!

 There he is!! It's SANTA! McColley had no difficulty telling Santa just what he wanted.

Brady, on the other hand, was NOT interested in talking to Santa and quickly made his escape.

 A Maguire family portrait in the tower overlooking Central Park...in a very chilly stone chair.

Here's one happy boy! And his delighted Grandma!

We went to the Museum of Natural History, which is very close to the park. Warren, Devon and the mountain goats say "Merry Christmas".

Brian, McColley, Brady, Katharine and the mountain goats say "Happy New Year!"

 This is Times Square - before the masses congregate on New Year's Eve.

Want to really feel like a real New Yorker? Go to ToysRUs on Christmas Eve at about 6 p.m. It was a ZOO! Apparently a lot of New Yorkers were as unprepared for the next day as we were.

They even have a ferris wheel inside this store! We finally got everything we needed and headed back to our hotel rooms to wait for Santa.

TTFN

We Celebrated Our #32 in Style!

On the 22nd, we started our day with a sobering look at Ground Zero. 

We took the ferry out to Ms. Liberty's island and walked around with a variety of people.

Next we went to Ellis Island, where the Boys practiced sticking their tongues out. "Why?" you ask. Don't really know - but, it was quite funny!

We got a feel for what it must have been like to be an immigrant coming through Ellis Island.

We have discovered the joys of iPod audio guides. It was especially nice because they have one geared for children, so they can stay interested all the way through the exhibits.

 Here are some immigrants who are heading for England...Cute, huh?

We got something to eat and this was our delicious dessert, although I can't recall what it was.

The 23rd of December rolled around and it was time for Warren and me to celebrate 32 years of wedded bliss! We got really good at reading schedules and getting on / off the trains quickly.

 12:23 on 12/23!! I had to scramble to get my camera out, once I realized what the sign said!!

At Rockefeller Center, we stood before the big Christmas tree. Being from the Pacific NW, it wasn't quite as spectacular as we'd expected, but then again, we didn't see it at night.

All the Boys on the streets of New York.

About 2 hours before the Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall, we decided to see if we could score some tickets. Not only did we get tickets, we were FRONT AND CENTER. We were in the 17 row! Considering the hall holds 6000 people, that was quite a wonderful surprise! It was a fantastic show and seeing the Rockettes in their own environment was amazing.

There are 2 of these huge organs in the music hall and they have an impressive sound, especially when both are being played at the same time.

The Maguires went back to our hotel, while Warren and I stepped out for a romantic Italian dinner close to the the theater district. All in all, a most delightful accidental anniversary celebration.

I had a lot of mushrooms in my lamb dish - yummy!

 Warren had a fish dish, which he found delectable.

More to come...
TTFN