Andrew and I are unsure exactly how long we will live in England.  We are here to help his parents so we are def here for as long as they are but after that who knows. Both of us have agreed that while we are here in England we def want to take advantage of the opportunity of being able to travel and to expose Will to as many countries and cultures as possible.  Our first opportunity will be in one week! We are taking a family vacation to Germany! We will be taking the Eurotunnel le shuttle and will drive through France, Belgium, and Germany!  Seeing as German is part of my heritage I am very excited about seeing parts of this country!! Along our way we are also going to try and visit areas where my grandfather William Hoffman fought in battle during World War 2, which will also be exciting and a bit special to explore these areas!  The main part of our vacation will be at a Center Parc which will have swimming and lots of other activities that will be great for Will!  There are also plans to go explore parts of the Moselle Valley and take Will to the F1 Nurburgring Track which will be his 3rd race track visit after his first being the Daytona International Speedway and his second the Indianapolis Motor Speedway!  Here is a link to the Center Parc we will be staying at in Germany.  http://www.centerparcs.com/EN/GB/villages/park-eifel (link is blow or copy and paste into browser)

When we return from our vacation Will officially starts pre-school!  He will go Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 7:30 am - 12:30 pm. While he is at school Mommy will be at the gym!  I am hoping to try out an aerobics class!  My Mom's Group at the Church hasn't been meeting for the summer but will also pick back up in September on Thursday mornings!  I am very much looking forward to getting into a routine, for Will to make some friends, and to have time outside of the house! 

I am sure I will have loads of pictures from our vacation when we get back, in the meantime here are just a few from the past couple of weeks from Will seeing his first movie at a movie theater, a new indoor playland we discovered in the area, and just some total Will cuteness!  As much as we are enjoying our time here we def miss our family and friends back home! We were sad to miss our nephew Ben's baptism and big sister Ava's birthday bash.  We are very disappointed to have to miss the wedding of Andrew's long time friend Richard Mills to the beautiful Hayley Harnish, and the many other events to come in the next few months no doubt.  We are getting quite good at Skyping and Facetime with family and friends so let us know if you have an iphone or ipad or if you are on Skype and would like to catch up soon via one of these outlets!! We are very fortunate to live in a time when technology is as great as it is!!

It is hard to believe that it has been about 2 months since we moved to England!  I will say this as of July 22nd it has def warmed up! It is nice to finally see some sun and enjoy some warm temps but it STILL is not quite what I am use to in the States though I guess it's a good thing.  Even on the hot days there is usually a nice cool breeze. The other day I was at the playground at the Outlet Center where Andrew works and it was def a bit cooler and breezier then even the English expected as the kids where all running around in shorts, t-shirts and sandals but the parents had put jackets on all of them as they realized it was a but nippy!  We are trying to get out and enjoy the sunshine as much as we can!  Andrew bought a grill and we have even grilled out in the garden a few times!  Andrew also recently had a week off of work and we got out for a few adventures.  One day we went to Walmer Castle and Deal Castle! Will mostly gets excited for the cannons!! :0) The gardens at Walmer Castle were lovely!! We also went to the Port Lympne Wild Animal Experience. We enjoyed it so much we even got the season pass!  The tigers are amazing and there is still lots for us to explore there!  Another day had adventures at The Historic Dockyard Chatham which was a day filled with exploring boats, trains, and the park! There was also a day in London and I got the chance to meet up with my old boss and friend Amy Gnagy - she's the first friend we have gotten to see since we have moved here. Unfortunately, she was here for work so there wasn't much time to visit but at least we manage to squeeze in a lunch with her! 

When Andrew is working our days are pretty low key - mostly just staying home.  Have been working with Will on trying to ride his bike - he can't figure out how to pedal forward!  Also trying to prepare him for school which will start in September and practice writing his name - just has a little trouble with the W!  His Oma bought some great work books for him which he really enjoys!! We are really excited about the school we found for him!! The best part is it is FREE - all 3 and 4 year  olds get 15 hours per week of free preschool in England!! We are also very lucky because there is a gym and spa right next to Will's school so on the days Will has school Mommy can go to the gym!  Andrew has been working really hard at trying to get into shape.  He's been dieting and really hitting up the gym 3-4 times a week! I am very proud of him! 

After a few weeks the Schuler family have made it out for a few adventures!  One trip to London to some museums (that were FREE!) so Will could see some dinosaurs, planes and explore a bit. A visit to The London Aquarium which was one of the first dates Andrew and I had when I first visited him in England.  We also celebrated Father's Day by riding a train down the tracks to a Bodiam Castle.  The country side here is quite pretty - very green!  Even when the sun isn't shinning the scenery  still is a site to see. Here are a few of my favorite pictures from our adventures! 

It has been a slow process getting unpacked and the house set but slowly but surely we are getting there.  Andrew and I finally got our new bed for our room and Will's bedroom is starting to come together. I really wanted to paint Will's room but after putting a few things up in the room it's not too bad! Def not what I would have chosen but we can work with it!!

More pictures of the house to come soon.  It's nearly July now and it is just starting to warm up a bit though yesterday on our day out to Dover it was still a bit breezy and called for a light jacket at times!! When it is nice out I try to get Will outside to practice riding his new bike or kicking the ball about in the garden.  I don't think there are any parks or playgrounds near by so that is a bit of a bummer.  There is a nice playground area at the Outlet Mall Andrew works at though so a couple of times we have played there for a little bit when going with Opa to take Daddy to work.  Stay tuned for my next entry!! :0)

We have officially been in England for 2 weeks now! I am still not unpacked!  Waiting for our bed to arrive next week and the chance to get some wardrobes and chest of drawers!  Hopefully by the end of next week the houses will be a bit more settled!! It really has been a slow process!  Many people have asked to see pictures! for now the best i have for you is pictures of the outside! 

The town house is 3 stories. On the first level is the kitchen, a half bath, and a room that will eventually be Will's play room but currently it's more of a storage area! the second level has our bedroom and a sitting room. The third level has Andrew's parents room which includes a small master bathroom which in England is called en suite, a family bathroom and Will's bedroom.  It's actually a pretty good size home for our family but could use more storage! Thank goodness for the garage! Eventually we hope to get a grill and be able to enjoy the garden a bit more.  Though in order to be able to enjoy the garden more then a grill we need some warmer weather!! I think it's been in the 50s the majority of the time I have been here.  Seeing all my friends back in the US pictures on FB of Zoo trips, swimming, going to the beach, and just enjoying some good old summer sun really makes me jealous as we are still bundled up in blankets, sweaters, and winter jackets. 

Meanwhile back home in the US these are some of the pictures I have seen on facebook from friends that def makes me miss SUMMER!  Thanks for letting me use them Kellie Swan, Carla Hopfinger, Sarah Flatt! 

Oh how I am missing "HOME"  They were not kidding when they said England is cold, wet, and depressing!  Guess this pale white girl can expect to stay that way for a long time! No suntanning for me! 

Other then the weather not being that great though it's really not been so bad!  I have found a Catholic Church to go to and get involved in! There is a Mommy and Toddler group that meets once a week that I attended last week at the Church and though it was a small group it was a great group of ladies and a place I think I can see myself fitting in and hopefully will find a good group of friends.  Trying to find out of some preschool options for Will.  Andrew and I are hoping to get out and have some adventures soon - Will has been asking to go to the ocean everyday for a week so hopefully the sun will finally find it's way to the UK and we can make it to the coast! We also hope to make a trip into London one of these days to hit up some of the museums and show Will some dinosaurs!  All in all it's slow going but starting to get use to life in England and making it home!!

We landed at London Heathrow Airport on Monday, May 27, 2013 in the morning!  The plane ride with British Airways was awful!! Our flight out of Newark was delayed and it was nearly midnight by the time we were settled on the plane.  It was crowded and loud.  Luckily, Will was not too bothered by it and managed to sleep most of the flight but I think that was just because he was so exhausted.  Andrew and I did not get any sleep.  I was extremely uncomfortable in my seat and I think concerned and worried about Will.  Andrew said he had no leg room and the lady in front of him rammed her chair into his knees.  For a little while it really felt like time was going backwards.  Eventually, there started to be daylight and London was in sight!  Had some slight delays at boarder control but no problems at customs which I was thankful about!  Here are a few pictures from our journey to the airport and on the flight. 

We finally arrived at our new home in Ashford!  Many people have asked me where is Ashford! Here is a map for you so you can see!  Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth-best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the River Great Stour, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways.

We have not had the chance to venture out much yet because Will and I have both been under the weather, and Daddy has been working.  Slowly but surely I am trying to get unpacked. It's a big job.  Lots to do to set up home.  Once we are a bit more settled will post pictures of our new home!!

Yesterday we received an email that "a decision was made, and my passport was being sent." The email included a tracking number for the UPS package and it stated delivery was expected for TODAY - May 10th. It has been a very looooong day of waiting! This has been my view ALL day!

The door has been opened all day and with every sound of a truck or brakes or anything remotely sounding like it could be the UPS truck I would go to the door ready to receive the package and would be disappointed, again and again.  It was starting to feel like it was all a joke and it really was not going to come today! 

Here is Will and I after more then 8 hours of waiting and still no package! We both were starting to go a bit crazy!!!

Finally, HE is here! Not Andrew but the next best thing! The UPS man has arrived with my package!!! I open it up to find.....

My visa!!! I got it and I can travel anytime we like!!

We Skype with Daddy to tell him the good news and he is very happy!!! No plane tickets have been booked yet but looks like in about a week or 2 we should be together in England ready to start our life and our adventures!!! We are READY!!

And now we celebrate!

As I sit here in NJ waiting for my visa to arrive so Will and I can finally join Andrew and begin our life as a family together in England I find something very funny.  This is actually our second time applying for the visa.  The first time we were denied and the reason given was because since neither one of us had a job in England we were unable to prove financial stability - even though we had a significant amount in cash savings we submitted proof of and had provided a detailed work history for Andrew showing he has never been without a job in the more then 10 years he has lived in the states. Despite all of this they still denied us.  Now Andrew has a job in England and with our application provided proof of this new job and further evidence of financial stability and yet the UK Boarder Agency still ends up contacting Andrew this past week and asking him to provide proof of his work history in the US. It wasn't good enough last time but yet NOW even with him having a job in England they ask for it!  It's been a month now that we have been away from Andrew and we miss him terribly.  Hoping we have the visa soon and very soon!!