Hey, would you look at that - it's been 6 months since my last post. How did that happen? Oh, I know, it's because I'm not really much of a writer. So, how have I been? Good, can't complain, really. It's not like I haven't been busy in the last 6 months. Ever since I joined Crossfit in April 2012, it's been like a whirlwind of busyness. Well, not really, but I'm definitely busier than before I joined. I still go twice a week most weeks, sometimes more. I've been gaining strength - I can now clean 105 lbs, snatch 75 lbs & deadlift 205 lbs, so I'm definitely improving. I need to work on my mobility, my cardio &, well, everything but weightlifting, really. Not that my weightlifting doesn't have room for improvement. It totally does. I've made so many friends at my gym, though, so even though I'm still as lazy as ever, my friends keep me coming back.
So, what else has been happening? Andrew & I travelled to the UK again, in May. That was a blast! Andrew had to go for work again, so we were in London for the first 3 days. We stayed in a pretty ritzy area this time - Mayfair. It was still within walking distance of the cafe I worked at when I lived in London during the summer of 1992, so I walked up there a couple of times for lunch (once with Andrew, once without). I love exploring that part of London, lots & lots of money there! On my way from the hotel to the cafe I passed 4 luxury car dealerships (shopfronts, really) - Porsche, Jaguar, Rolls Royce & Bentley (where I saw a Bugatti Veyron, for reals - when I told Andrew that he had to go check it out for himself!), several antique galleries (really ancient Roman, Greek, oriental antiques - very very cool), fashion boutiques, a yacht "store" (just models in that one, but even the yacht models were gorgeous - and that's coming from someone who is NOT a fan of watercraft). Of course I had the same crepe I've always had at "my" cafe - chopped bacon, cheese & sour cream, folded up into a parcel of yummy, yummy goodness. I had the same thing both times I went to the cafe this time, and I was so happy to be able to finally, FINALLY bring Andrew to the cafe for a crepe (chicken & asparagus, in case you're wondering), after 22 years! After London we rented a car & drove to Birmingham for the day, so I could check out the huge security show they hold in the UK every year. It was a chance to meet my European customers & salesguys, plus it was free & had free wi-fi, so it was a chance I couldn't pass up! I hadn't told my Toronto co-workers that I was attending, so they were very confused & surprised to see me. That alone was worth the trip! From Birmingham we headed to Shitterton, to stay again at the 500 year old farmhouse that we stayed at the last time we were in the UK 4 years ago. We were able to spend lots & lots of time at Monkey World this time (last time we arrived 1 hour before closing, so we really had to rush past all of the apes & primates), it is such a wonderful place! One of my favourite places ever. It's right next to a tank proving ground (you know, army tanks, not storage tanks), so after Monkey World we headed to the tank museum next door. Had a lovely lunch, then checked out hundreds upon hundreds of tanks. Well, Andrew did - my feet gave out after the main hall. The next day we headed for Cardiff, to the Doctor Who Experience, which was totally geek-tastic! Well worth the drive! We had lots of yummy, yummy food, including a great lunch at Jamie Oliver's Italian (we'd eaten there in London too, for a "work" dinner). Really really good food! We also checked out the local Crossfit box to get some shirts for our Crossfit friends. From there we headed back to London for our flight home. It really was a wonderful trip, and I can't wait to go back.
Since we got back it's been a whirlwind of family visits, Crossfit parties & get-togethers, BBQs with friends & just general living. Andrew's mum has been here for a visit for the past 2 weeks, she heads home tomorrow. One free weekend, then I'm off to the Ladies Fall Fit weekend, which I'm pretty nervous about. I'm not fit at home, let alone in the wilderness, camping & such. Plus the current forecast calls for buckets of rain that weekend. Figures, doesn't it?
Adoption-wise, there's been no news. The program continues to evolve, which will impact us, of course, but we're not sure in what ways. It's still open, though, so there's that. Still we wait, 5 years & 4 months since we started the process. Not sure how much waiting I have left in me. We met with the agency director in July, which was a good meeting, and very informative, program-wise. He couldn't say how long we would be waiting, though, which didn't surprise us. So we continue to wait.
Well, I think you're caught up now. I can't promise that I'll write more often, but I'll try. Maybe my next post will be a really, really good one?
