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Sent from my iPhone
Sent from my iPhone
A Belgian waffle is a must! Delicious!
Sent from my iPhone
Yesterday we had some very unexpected drama during a day out in Bruges, Belgium. Evan went missing for about 45 minutes. We were all out walking to lunch and one minute he was right with us and the next... he was gone. We backtracked to the most obvious place we thought we lost him, by a few carnival-type rides set up in the square, but no sign of the little guy.
Michael and I then split up, with Michael sprinting up and down the streets and Julianna and I staying close to the spot where we had last seen him. A man running a small sausage stand suggested I go to the police. Thoughts running through my head at this point were along the lines if...What? The police? Surely he has to be right around here. We didn't actually lose our 7 year old on the streets of a foreign city where the main language is Flemish! Julianna also has the tendency of becoming worst-case-scenario girl in these situations and this was not entirely helpful. She listed for me all the possibilities...kidnaped, stolen, never to be seen again. Ok, but he knows my mobile number, right? Surely some savvy traveler knows the country code for the UK and can call me! Why is my phone not ringing! The minutes drag on with Michael running back to the hotel to alert them of our situation and Julianna and I trying to find the police station. We knew Evan had a hotel umbrella with him and maybe someone would call the hotel. Julianna and I walked in a big circle, no police station. We were back at the sausage stand and the guys had not seen any signs of Evan. Just then a police car drove by and the guys flagged them down. The police wanted his photo...ugh, this is not happening, this is not happening...I'm flipping through my iPhone and nothing looks like a good enough face shot. I show them a silly photo Julianna recently took of Evan turned to the side and they look. Then they tell us to get in the car. Ok, darn it. I should have a better photo then this one! Just then Michael calls and tells me Evan has been found! He is at a chocolate shop and he rattles off the address. I quickly tell the police and they say, "yes, we know, we are taking you there now!". WHAT? You are and you didn't tell me! I was too relieved to be too upset. We drive for what seemed like forever. How could Evan be so far away from where we last saw him? The police explained they were dealing with one way streets, but this was unusually far. We finally arrive and there he is. Shaken up, but eating a chocolate lolly pop. I was crying, Evan was crying, Julianna was crying, the lady who owned the chocolate shop even had tears in her eyes (she told me later she has a 6 year old son). Michael practically sprints there from the center of town. When we pieced together what had happened, we figured out that right before the restaurant Evan had gone down a street without us (photo of street above). He soon realised we were gone, but kept walking on, thinking we were ahead of him. He had walked for nearly 20 minutes before entering the chocolate shop and asking for help.
So the longest 45 minutes of all of our lives comes to a happy ending! We all finally went to lunch and the rest of the day was not nearly as exciting. Will share some additional photos from Bruges soon!
Sent from my iPhone
I love using the Shakeit Photo ap on my iphone. The photos come out with a dreamy quality and a great polaroid border (they even sound like a polaroid camera when the photos appear). This past month I came across a photo-essay in a magazine called Intelligent Life and the photographer only used his iphone. The photos were taken in Cairo during the political uprising and the photographer wanted to be "under the radar", free to capture what was really happening in the streets without a giant camera in front of his face. The photos were captivating and I was inspired to use my iphone to take more everyday photos our own day-to-day lives. Here is what I have one month later...
We live just around the corner from this row of rental cycles and the kids are always jumping on them when we walk by.
Skyping with Nana...what did we all do before Skype?
a visit to the penguin beach exhibit at the London Zoo
this church is just a few minutes away from our house and we pass it often...it's just stunning and dates back from 1847
Julianna and friends from 4th grade Roman Day
a throw-back sign lisitng tube stations at the Maide Vale station (I wish they were all writen like this, the modern signs just do not have nearly as much character)
Michael at our favorite restaurant in Chinatown. The staff actually noticed we were away for the summer and welcomed us back...
practicing the serve at Paddington Recreation Ground
A few shots of the Olympic Park in East London. I had the chance to have a walking tour of the area this past month and check out the progress. The first picture is the Olympic Stadium (would you believe this structure will be completely wrapped in fabric for the games).
and the construction of an 377 ft obversation tower called "Orbit" and designed by Anish Kapoor.
Evan and his "best girl" just happened to be dressed exactly the same one day before school...
the view of the back of Buckingham Palace. Yes, I did get to finally see the inside of the palace this past month and view "The Dress" along with "The Shoes", "The Jewlery" and "The Cake"...I would have to say "The Cake" takes the cake! It was amazing!
and a few from an absolutely gorgeous morning in Regent's Park. It was 80 degrees last weekend! Here is Evan hard at work at soccer practice
ok, that's all for now! I'll have to work on getting in more shots in October...
