Although I enjoyed the gal moments during the weekdays of mom’s visit, I happily shared her with Ken on the weekends. The three of us made the most of our time together and experienced some fantastic adventures.
Our first weekend together began in Brussels. Ken and I try, at least once a month, to make our church small group which meets on Friday nights. Having mom with us meant that we could introduce her to some of our Brussels friends including our pastor. He loved that mom joined our group for the evening and that she even participated in the discussion. He asked if he could call her Gran, since that is how Ken and I refer to her, and that is how he introduced her to the church on Sunday morning…very cute!
While in Benelux, we took mom to one of our favorite springtime spots located in The Netherlands…Keukenhof. Each year between the end of March and the end of May, thousands of tulips in hundreds of colors, shapes, and varieties are spread across 80 acres creating a colorful, floral wonderland. The sight is like candy for the eyes!
The next weekend, we managed to get box seats at the Royal Albert Hall for the “Filmharmonic” concert in which the orchestra played many of the theme songs from movie greats including “Rocky”, “Star Wars”, “Harry Potter”, and a couple of James Bond themes. The evening also consisted of a selection of western greats which brought back many memories of my dad as he loved watching westerns. Simply sitting in such magnificent surroundings, while listening to accomplished musicians playing numerous familiar pieces, left the three of us floating by the end of the night.
On Saturday, we hopped on a train to visit the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth I, Hatfield House. Although only a portion of it remains today, we could easily imagine her playing in the gardens or running around the great hall. The following day, we booked tickets for a special exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum on the life and style of Grace Kelly displaying much of her sophisticated and elegant wardrobe from her Hollywood days through her years as Princess of Monaco.
Mom’s last weekend with us once again found us hopping on trains, touring castles and taking in the local entertainment. After visiting Stratford-upon-Avon earlier in the week, seeing a Shakespeare play at the Globe Theater seemed only fitting, so we bought tickets for the less well know play, Henry VIII. We also surprised mom with a trip to Belvoir Castle. This was the castle used many, many years ago for the filming of “Little Lord Fauntleroy” starring Ricky Schroeder and Alec Guinness. As mom absolutely adores that movie, she was thrilled!
And a trip to England would not be complete without a traditional afternoon tea. 9 years ago, Ken and I introduced mom and dad to our favorite spot for teatime, Brown’s, and we have returned numerous times together since. We couldn’t have asked for a better way to end our time with mom. We truly cherished her visit and love all of the wonderful new memories we made while she was here!
Our first weekend together began in Brussels. Ken and I try, at least once a month, to make our church small group which meets on Friday nights. Having mom with us meant that we could introduce her to some of our Brussels friends including our pastor. He loved that mom joined our group for the evening and that she even participated in the discussion. He asked if he could call her Gran, since that is how Ken and I refer to her, and that is how he introduced her to the church on Sunday morning…very cute!
While in Benelux, we took mom to one of our favorite springtime spots located in The Netherlands…Keukenhof. Each year between the end of March and the end of May, thousands of tulips in hundreds of colors, shapes, and varieties are spread across 80 acres creating a colorful, floral wonderland. The sight is like candy for the eyes!
The next weekend, we managed to get box seats at the Royal Albert Hall for the “Filmharmonic” concert in which the orchestra played many of the theme songs from movie greats including “Rocky”, “Star Wars”, “Harry Potter”, and a couple of James Bond themes. The evening also consisted of a selection of western greats which brought back many memories of my dad as he loved watching westerns. Simply sitting in such magnificent surroundings, while listening to accomplished musicians playing numerous familiar pieces, left the three of us floating by the end of the night.
On Saturday, we hopped on a train to visit the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth I, Hatfield House. Although only a portion of it remains today, we could easily imagine her playing in the gardens or running around the great hall. The following day, we booked tickets for a special exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum on the life and style of Grace Kelly displaying much of her sophisticated and elegant wardrobe from her Hollywood days through her years as Princess of Monaco.
Mom’s last weekend with us once again found us hopping on trains, touring castles and taking in the local entertainment. After visiting Stratford-upon-Avon earlier in the week, seeing a Shakespeare play at the Globe Theater seemed only fitting, so we bought tickets for the less well know play, Henry VIII. We also surprised mom with a trip to Belvoir Castle. This was the castle used many, many years ago for the filming of “Little Lord Fauntleroy” starring Ricky Schroeder and Alec Guinness. As mom absolutely adores that movie, she was thrilled!
And a trip to England would not be complete without a traditional afternoon tea. 9 years ago, Ken and I introduced mom and dad to our favorite spot for teatime, Brown’s, and we have returned numerous times together since. We couldn’t have asked for a better way to end our time with mom. We truly cherished her visit and love all of the wonderful new memories we made while she was here!
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