THIS IS 45

England, November 26, 2009 (Day 11) - Thanksgiving

Tina and I prepared a delicious, traditional, American Thanksgiving dinner today. We had turkey, dressing (which Joe and I brought from the States), AMAZING gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans (made with pancetta!), sweet potatoes with cranberry sauce, cranberry sauce, green peas and broccoli. For dessert, we had wonderful pumpkin pie and a raspberry pavlova that Nick's mom made. We polished Tina's grandmother's silver and we washed all her great-grandmother's plates so the table looked lovely. Nick's parents and their partners (English for significant others) came over and it was a very nice evening. Of course, I missed my Thanksgiving with my family but that just makes me look forward to spending Christmas with them even more!

Lillia resting while eating her turkey dinner

Delia (Nick's mom) with Lillia

Delia, David (her partner) and Lillia

John (Nick's dad) and Alina (his partner)

Nick with Lillia

Desserts: Pavlova made by Nick's mom and Tina's wonderful pumpkin pie

England, November 26, 2009 (Day 11)

Happy Thanksgiving to my wonderful friends and family. You are so giving, loving, supportive, kind and fabulous to me! I am so very blessed!!!!

England, November 25, 2009 (Day 10)

I woke up this morning with a scratchy throat and tickly sinuses and so did Tina. So, to try to help fight it off we ate a little spicy Indian food and took Zicam (well, I had 1 bite of spicy Indian and thought my tongue was on fire so I really only ate delicious, creamy butter chicken). Hopefully, maybe we will avoid getting sick since tomorrow is Thanksgiving! Funny thing about the Zicam: Tina and I looked for it today when we were out and about and couldn't find any. When we got home, we were talking to Tori about it and she said that she had a box full that she got in the States when she got sick while she was visiting her grandparents. We were in luck! Joe took some for good measure. Keep your fingers crossed ...

England, November 24, 2009 (Day 9)

Nothing of major excitement to report for today. Joe and I never even left the house. Lots of time spent bonding with Lillia and hanging out with Tina, Nick and Tori. Tomorrow is a busy day getting ready for a good old fashioned Thanksgiving on Thursday. Tina even pre-ordered a turkey! I will definitely miss spending Thanksgiving with my family - just makes me look forward to Christmas even more!

England, November 23, 2009 (Day 8)

Tori had school off on Monday so Joe and I took her into London for a day together. We initially were going to go to a fashion museum but, unfortunately, it was closed on Mondays. So, we thought a bit of shopping in Covent Garden and then Harrods might be a fun alternative. We took the train in from Hook and we had a good time!

Covent Garden is famous for its shops, street performers, bars, restaurants, theatres and the Royal Opera House. Tori needed to look for a dress for the play she is in so that was our main goal but, despite our efforts, we didn't find a dress.

On our way to Paperchase in Covent Garden, we came across the Piazza where Sky TV was filming a dance show. We stopped and watched for a bit and it reminded me of the T-Mobile dance commercials that are all the rage on YouTube (if you haven't seen one, go to YouTube and look for the Liverpool T-Mobile commercial - it's awesome!)

We passed Russell Street and took a picture because Tori's last name is Russell!

As we were walking around the Royal Opera House, we saw Miriam Margoyles, the actress who played Pomona Sprout, the Professor of Herbology and the Head of Hufflepuff House, in one of the Harry Potter movies. She was going to the British Theater Awards that were being held at the Opera House and she was super friendly. She stopped and posed for pictures and signed autographs for people.

Harrods! Oh, what a place! Especially the Food Halls!

For a year and a half, Joe and I have been dreaming about the Parmesan Salami. We have looked everywhere for it and have not yet been successful finding it in Houston. The trip to London was worth it just for this salami! Oh, it is beyond delicious!!!!

On the bottom floor is a tribute to Princess Diana and Dodi al Fayed. The owner of Harrod's is Mohammed al Fayed, Dodi Al Fayed's father, and he has a quiet memorial to Princess Di and Dodi in one of the escalator lobbies.

After we got home, it was funny to see Lillia in her sweater and her rain boots, which she loves! She is totally adorable!!!

England, November 22, 2009 (Day 7)

We arrived safely in London and Nick, Tina and Lillia picked us up from the airport. Tori wasn't able to come because she was at play rehearsal. It was great to see everyone but especially fabulous to see our goddaughter, Lillia. Since April, she has developed so much! Lillia calls me "Aun Aman" and Joe "Unc Joe." It is so cute to watch how much she loves Joe!!

For dinner we went to Zizzi's Pizza in Farnham (a nearby town). For dinner, Tina and I split the Quattro Formaggi pizza (gorgonzola, grana padano, goat’s cheese, mozzarella and tomato + artichokes) and the Ravioli di Capra (Golden pasta envelopes of goat’s cheese and spinach with a fresh Santos tomato sauce and pesto). They were both quite tasty. Joe had the Pizza Sofia done Rustica style (spicy chicken, pepperoni, roasted sausage, tomato, mozzarella. Devilishly topped with green chilli and fresh rosemary on a bigger, thinner, crispier crust).

While at dinner, we got to witness one of Lillia's amazing tasks: she can get Tina's iPhone, turn it on, put in the password, scroll screens until she finds the game she wants, click on the game and then proceed to play the game where she spells words like "cat," "duck," and "fox." I can't believe at not even 2 years old she can do this all by herself! Smart girl!!

Oslo, Norway, November 21, 2009 (Day 6) - Opera House

Oslo Opera House. For the Opera House three main materials were specified: White stone for the “carpet,” timber for the “Wave Wall,” and metal for the “Factory.” As work continued glass was introduced, allowing the underside of the “carpet” to be visible.

Walking roof at the Oslo Opera House. The marble clad roofscape forms a large public space in the landscape of the city and the fjord. The “Carpet” was a collaboration with artists Kristian Blystad, Kalle Grude and Jorunn Sannes. The architects chose the Italian marble, La Facciata, because it retains its brilliance and color even when wet. The surface treatment of the stone, its pattern, cuts and lifts, which create a shadow play, have been designed in close collaboration with the artists.

One enters the building under the lowest part of the roofscape where the ceiling meets the floor. Further into the foyer the roof is supported by four free standing volumes. The perforated, illuminated cladding of these volumes, by artist Olafur Eliasson, is inspired by glaciers and ice crystals.

View of the marble walkway from inside the Opera House

Oak was chosen as the dominating material for both the “Wave Wall’ and the main auditorium. For the “Wave Wall,” which has a complex organic geometry made up of joined cone shapes, it has a light and varied surface.

Oak, treated with ammonia to give a dark tone, was used in the auditorium for floors, walls, and ceilings, as well as balcony fronts, and acoustic reflectors. The main auditorium is a classic horseshoe shape designed for opera and ballet. It seats approximately 1,370 divided between stalls, parterre, and three balconies. The orchestra pit is highly flexible and can be adjusted in height and area with the use of three separate lifts.

The Snøhetta designed chandelier, suspended inside an oval reflector, is the main source of illumination in the auditorium. Made of 5,800 hand cast glass crystals, through which 800 LED lights shine, the chandelier gives off a cool diffused light.

The design of the metal cladding elements was a collaboration with Astrid Løvaas and Kirsten Wagle. Because the Opera House is designed to have a long life span the selection of the metal cladding was very important. Aluminum was selected because of aesthetics, longevity, malleability and the possibility of making very flat panels. The panels were punched with convex spherical segments and concave conical forms. The pattern developed by the artists was based on old weaving techniques. Eight different panels give a constantly changing effect depending on the angle, intensity and color of the light on them.