"I Came To England Just to be on the Blog"

That's what David said as he happily posed for many a picture when the West

ergreens came over the the pond to Merry Ole England.

Our first stop once they arrived Tuesday was the outdoor adventure center of England, Keswick in the Lake District. Derwent Water was gorgeous and the kids were just happy to finally be here after a very long 18 hour trip. All were hungry and wanted to try fish and

chips.

Dennis' boss was back in the States so he was in charge and had to be in the office Wednesday during the day but in the evening he and Jeff hit the Whinlatter Mountain Bike Trail. While the guys were riding,

Beth and the kids and I were at the laser tag

and bowling.

We enjoyed messing around at St. Bees beach

and walking them around 'the B' as Jeff liked to call St. Bees School.Having

4 teenagers and one ten year old boy requires tolerance for noise and motion so we tried to keep active. Anna Catherine's friend Josh came to give a rugby lesson so David could go home with a new sport. Being a sports family we thought they might like to see a Whitehaven Rugby match. (That was the match where Nathan lost his shoe, remember?)

We were all set on Saturday to go for a hike up Catbells once Jeff and Dennis finished the harder Bike Trail but all plans changed when Jeff awoke in pain. On the Friday prior to their leaving Augusta, Jeff had been grippe

d with the familiar pain of a kidney stone. He had one very painful episode 5 years back while they were in the Grand Canyon so this was not a new addition to their family vacations. Inspite of the medicines he came with, the pain would not subside so he

spent the upstairs in his room. Finall

y Dennis and I took all of the kids over to Keswick to give Jeff some more room in the house to wander around. We all enjoyed a good laugh during a competitive gam

e of pitch n putt which is a par 3 golf course. However, the laughing was over when we drive up to the house and were met by Beth who said Jeff needed to go to the hospital. Thankfully, Dennis was well acquainted with the hospital and knew just what to do.

Jeff got to experience something none of our other guests have 'enjoyed' ... an overnight stay at the hospital, and a taste of England's Nationalized Health Service.

After church, while Jeff recovered in the hospital with Beth to keep him

company, we took the boys

up

Catbells for a splendid mountaintop view. The video clip at the top gives a glimpse of the beautiful scenery.

Thankfully Jeff was released that evening before we were back from the hike so they took to the streets trying to get home. We all got home just in time to head back to church for the evening youth service which Anna Catherine had been rehearsing for most of the day. We are always glad to share St. John's Church with friends.

Jeff and Dennis were able to go on a tour of Sellafield Nuclear Site on Monday which they both thoroughly enjoyed since they are engineers hailing from Savannah River Nuclear Site. Meanwhile, the rest of us walked down into town to picnic on the harbor. The day ended with the adults getting to go out to eat leaving the kids at home watching Brian Reegan comedy clips.

All in all, the Westergreens got to enjoy a day trip

to Edinburgh (in the rain) several days in the Lake District, two days in London with a bonus trip to the hospital for Jeff and lots of Thompson Time. There was plenty of Guitar Hero, ball throwing, Swing Ball and laughing. We're so glad they made the trip and know that they left with lots of good memories and photos!