On the day of Christmas Eve, we returned to Huntingdon.
First things first!
Get on the Tube and lose your Oyster card...
...which you only discover the next time you go to use it.
This is a picture of WB, right before losing said card.
There will be no picture of when he discovered it missing - 'tis too traumatic for tender eyes!
Once we got to the Maguire house, Grandpa needed to wrangle a couple o'busy guys.
McColley was easy to prepare for the upcoming Crib Service at Ely Cathedral.
Brady? Not so easy.
Slippery, like an eel, that one.
By the way, Ely Cathedral was named after the town of Ely, which was famous for its eels!
Apparently, eels were a popular dish back in cathedral-building days.
We were impressed with the cathedral, the Christmas tree, the child-oriented service (which included a live donkey, named Dorothy, walking down the main aisle) and the boys' behavior.
Ely is a big cathedral.
When we got there, it was only partially full.
By the time the service started, it was standing room only.
Arianna and Tim:
Grandpa and Grandma Hopkins, McColley, Brayton and Pearson:
Katharine, Brian and their boys:
"Back to the house!" the boys shouted.
"Time to open presents!"
Aunt Arianna documented every move Uncle Tim and their nephews made.
Pearson kept a watchful eye on brotherly activities from his new stander.
After Brian's deliciously prepared dinner of Prime Rib and Yorkshire Pudding,
it was time to sleep so Santa could come.
On Christmas morning, the boys were intrigued with what Santa had put in their stockings.
Santa must like Wii, because he gave one to the boys!
Later in the day, we drove to London for High Tea at The Ritz.
Driving into London isn't all that difficult (when no one else is on the road).
We were almost always in two different cars.
Brian took Tim, Brady and me in the Camry.
Katharine took McColley, Pearson, WB and Arianna in the Volvo.
Or WB, Brady and me OR Arianna, me and...oh, forget it.
The adult configurations changed all the time - except for the drivers.
In England, only KC and B were allowed to careen about on the wrong side of the road!!
But, I digress.
Back to the main story...
The Ritz was extravagantly decked out.
We all dressed appropriately for the occasion.
(Historical note: Warren and I once tried to get a cocktail at The Ritz,
but, were politely thrown out because he was not wearing a suit coat.)
There were mirrors all over the room, so some decorations can be seen in the reflections.
Brady loved the cakes, but was not so much a fan of cucumber sandwiches.
McColley tried just about everything, but, not much of any one thing.
Pearson didn't give a hoot.
All the men gave their tea a try, although Timmy is the only connoisseur.
The ladies delicately devoured everything.
Look!
Who's here?
Santa!!!
Santa gave each boy a specially selected toy and talked to them for a bit.
On Christmas night, Brian made fondue for dinner -
cheese for the main course and chocolate for dessert.
Yum, yum, yum.
The final challenge of the evening was to complete a 1000-piece puzzle.
We got 'er done!
Next up: Castles, secret codes and fireworks!
Cheerio.
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