Home At Last

Well hi there everyone.  I am back in the good ole USA and have mixed feelings.  I am happy I get to see my family here - well I have seen everyone but my son.  He seems to be MIA and didn't come home to greet me last night lol.  I did get to see Cameron, Cole and Kenley.  It was like I was never gone.  Probably because I saw them regularly on Face Time.  I am so missing everyone over there.  I came home to a very dreary California - gray skies and wind.  As I came up the pass, I was reminded why I hate the desert so much - dirt, brown and bleary.  Where oh where are my green fields? :-(
So the flight was actually pretty awesome.  Let's backtrack to yesterday.  I got up around 4:30 so I was ready for pickup by my Aunt at 5:30.  It was light out as we made the 40 minute or so trek to the airport, so I got to see the land I love so much once last time before getting on that dreaded long flight back home.  We got to the airport and I checked in my baggage with no problems.  I was a little worried about the weight because I was pushing the limits and was concerned I was going to be overweight.  Byt I made it through ok without any added penalties lol.  After I checked in we went for a cup of coffee before I had to say final goodbyes to everyone.  Of course that is always hard.  I cant remember what I said to anyone so to my Mom and Dad and Aunt Connie - a big thank you to you all for everything you did for me. I really appreciate it and love you all.  Once I said goodbye I had to head through to security and it was backed up a little, it took about 20 minutes to clear that.  So when I got to the gate I only had about 10 minutes before they started the boarding procedure.  I didnt have long to wait at all.  The flight was practically empty - maybe about 50-60 passengers on board total and it was a big plane.  So you could stretch out wherever you want.  They also served a hot English breakfast so I had bacon, sausage, eggs, mushrooms and tomatoes.  We didnt leave Edinburgh to around 8:30'ish due to some delay, so when I got to London I only had about two hours to wait between flights and not 3 hours like initially.  I wandered around the shops.  I found the Cath Kidston booth in the terminal (yah) and bought a couple of last minute small items.  I also went in search of one of my favorite stores - Accessorize, but to my dismay they closed it about 4 weeks ago.  I couldn't find it anywhere and thought I was going crazy because I knew I had shopped at it on the way into the UK..lol.  I finally asked a nice lady in one of the stores where it was and she was the one that told me it had closed.  Bah humbug.  Oh well I will visit it the next time I return to Scotland.
So after they finally put my boarding gate up on the screen, I headed to the gate to board the plane.  They scan your boarding pass and usher you on to the plane.  Well the gate agent scans my ticket and a red light comes on and she says it appears you aren't checked in - what??? I had checked in the night before online and printed out both boarding passes for both planes so I knew I was checked in lol.  It didnt take her long to figure it out, it was because they had upgraded me to Club World which is British Airways's Business Class.  Say what?  LOL.  She said they had overbooked the section I was in so they had upgraded me for free to Business Class.  She told me to enjoy.  I guess if I had to go home, this was a good way to do it.  All I can say is I don'

British Airway Club World

t ever want to fly coach again hahahaha.  It was awesome.  I had my own little cubicle with a fully reclining seat so it stretched out like a bed.  The food was awesome, I got a glass of champagne upon boarding, china cutlery, a hot towel, a quilted blanket (not the piece of felt they give you in economy lol), a really nice toiletry kit and the attention of the flight crew was superb.  This upgrade made the flight home a lot more bearable, so a big thank you to British Airways for the free upgrade.  They made my day.
So here I am back home.  My kitties were happy to see me.  Both of them slept at my side last night.  I slept pretty well but it will probably take a few days for my body to adjust to the change.  Now I am faced with the daunting task of unpacking the suitcases.  Will be doing some laundry and settling back into the swing of things.  Once again, thank you and much to love to everyone in my UK family for a wonderful time.  I appreciate each and everyone of you, and I am going to miss you more than you will ever know.  I am still going to try and save save save and try to return in June for the Cunningham family reunion lol.  I cant make any promises and it may not happen but I am going to try.  We will leave it at that for now.
Now before I wrap this blog up, I put this question out to you all.  Do you want me to continue this blog? I already know that my brother wants me to..lol....he requested it before I left.  I guess he wants to know what I am up to on a daily basis.  Let me know if you are still interested in hearing from me and I will add you to a list.  I will start a new blog with those interested.  I wont be adding on to this blog anymore as my Scotland Adventure is over :-(  Let me know on FB if you want to continue to receive blogs.
Happy Monday everyone.  Have a great day :-)))))

All Good Things Must Come To An End

Well here we are, the day I have been dreading.  Today was my last day in Scotland because tomorrow I head home.  This whole week has been a whirlwind, and I don't know where it went.  On Monday I worked in the shop, Tuesday my mom and I went to Musselburgh, Wednesday we walked to White Sands, on Thursday my mom, dad and I went to Edinburgh, Friday we stayed home as it rained but went to my Aunt Connie and Uncle Georges for dinner and today we went to East Linton.  We crammed a lot into one week.  I have had an absolutely wonderful stay and I am so sad that it is coming to an end.  I made a big mistake in changing my ticket, I should have left well alone.  Now I get to miss out one a once in a lifetime family celebration unless I can scrounge together some more money within a month so I can come back before June 21st lol.  I think I will have a fundraiser like my niece did for her trip to Tanzania.  Does anyone want to sponsor me? LOL.  I can go home for Kenley's birthday and let my family see me for a month and then I can return home to Scotland and be here for my family's reunion.  I think its a brilliant idea...lol.

Smeaton Lake

So I am all packed.  I have two very heavy bulging suitcases.  I didn't think I was going to fit everything in.  Actually I had to leave some clothes here, so I have to come back :-)  (Are you seeing a theme here?).  My flight leaves Edinburgh at 8:00 am tomorrow morning.  Have to get up around 4:30 as my Aunt is coming at 5:30 to pick us up to take us to the airport.  I have about a 3 hour layover in London before boarding my 11 hour flight to Los Angeles.  Its going to be a long long day.  I'll be glad when its over.  Probably wont get much sleep tonight.  Headed into the bath shortly and then will try lie down for a little bit.
To all my family and friends here in the UK, I say a BIG thank you for everything you have done for me.  Especially my Mom and Dad for putting up with me for all these weeks.  Mom - I am going to miss all our walks and being able to sit and sew with you, Dad - I am going to miss hearing all the family tales.  A special thank you goes out to my Aunt and Uncle who did a lot for me too.  I so appreciated the week I spent with them and all the places they took me.  To my brother and his wife, I am sad that I didn't get to see you more but I understand you both work and live busy lives. To Val - I will miss your craziness.  You always made me laugh lol.  I hope Val and Anne continue with their sewing adventure.  I promise to FaceTime you on a sewing day even if it is 2:00 am in California lol.
Ok thats it until next time - hopefully sooner than later :-)
Night all !!!!