Snippets of home & sick at the airport...again!

She's alive!

Who's alive?

Me.

It's amazing that my last post was only three weeks ago, because of the sheer amount of stuff that has happened in between.

First up, Christmas.

Christmas is my absolute favorite time of year to be home. My family takes all of our traditions very seriously and even though we broke a few this year due to how hectic it was, it was still wonderful. We stayed at home (in our new home, to boot) for the first time in my life because we would be seeing the entire extended family the next week...for a wedding! However I was pretty fidgety throughout the day simply because I had no idea how to sit and do nothing on Christmas.

I hand carried this dog toy of a London Taxi from Selfridges all the way home and Audi loved it! And then proceeded to rip it to shreds in record time.

The fury.

RIP.

Bonus photos of a fish I caught (not pictured: the five my dad caught which totally out shined me) and Audi, just because everyone enjoys a cute dog photo.

Next was New Years Eve! Party time!

source

Yeah, just kidding. I was in bed by 11pm and gave my pillow a big kiss.

The next morning my family and I celebrated the start of my dad's new job after 25 years at his previous one – which is longer than I have been alive so that kind of blew my mind. It's also really fun to be the cheerleader for one of your parents and their careers, because up until this point it's been them supporting my sister and I every step of the way, encouraging us, asking me repeatedly when I'm going to get off the couch and find a job, etc. ;) But on a serious note, I am a very proud daughter.

It was a good thing I got my beauty sleep on NYE because from there it was all uphill! It was my sister's wedding weekend which I won't go on too much about because well, few of you probably want to hear about how pretty the flowers were or how chokey-upy my dad's speech was, so I'll just say it was one of the most beautiful and funnest weddings I've ever been to, and yes I'm biased. I spent the majority of my time at home helping out with planning or designing the paper things, so it truly was a labor of love. I'm impatiently waiting on pins and needles to see the photos and video so I can relive it all over again.

Shameless bridal selfie and the bizarre power of airbrush makeup. Seriously, where did our freckles go?!

The day after the wedding was the day I needed to pack for my departure back to England the following day, I wasn't joking when I said this trip home was a whirlwind. I was bummed to be leaving my family after all of that excitement but I had to return so I could crack down on all my final term papers with the deadline looming.

And then history repeated itself.

I haven't got the best track record of Texas to England flights this past year. Back in September, I had a terrible case of the nerves and got sick the entire drive to the airport. This time, I started running a 102 fever the night before leaving and ended up crawling in bed with my mom at 3am like I was 8 years old again. My fever refused to die down but after talking with a doctor and making sure it wasn't anything other than an annoying virus, I loaded up on medicine and had a miserable flight to London.

But on a positive note, I have confirmed that my special gift is clocking in directly under the weight restriction.

The flight itself was fine, we actually had such an intense tailwind that we clocked in at a ridiculous 8 hours which was so early that Heathrow didn't even have a gate open for us. But, a fever on top of not being able to breathe, on top of not being able to swallow, led to no sleep and an exhausted Elle. I was so out of it when I got to London that I hardly remember trudging from Heathrow to Paddington to Bristol, I was out the entire train journey and broke the cardinal rule of international travel and took a nap when I got home – eep! I know. I've been paying for it ever since.

source

I'm currently absorbed in wrapping up and editing three massive term papers as well as conquering my messed up sleep and eating schedule (so my initial reaction was to write a blog post during my break, right?) Receiving a few comments from some lovely ladies reminded me A) Hey, you have a blog remember B) I know a place where you can write about fun things that don't have to be constrained to academic jargon!

source

Next time y'all hear from me, I'll be 12,000 words lighter.
Catch ya on the flip side!

London snapshots + a weekend recap.

I'm back on Texas soil! The weather is great and cuddling with my dog is even better. Today is actually the first day I've properly cracked open my laptop in a week, which is pretty unheard of for me.

Let's recap....

Last Wednesday I spent the day in London having tea at Kensington Palace with my friend from home and her family, wrapping up Christmas shopping with the hoards of Londoners and tourists on Oxford Street, and popped over to Homeslice to stare at the dreamy waiters...and eat pizza.

The next day I headed over to Heathrow Airport via Paddington + the Heathrow Express with plenty of time to spare, letting me enjoy a leisurely breakfast and "watch the world go by" as the waitress said while she plunked me into a cushy seat. I boarded the United Dreamliner, enjoyed my 3 extra inches of legroom, and spent the next 10.5 hours forcing myself awake and having a movie marathon.

Upon returning home, I was wrapped in a whirlwind of acquainting myself with my family's new temporary house, running errands, wedding rehearsals, the happiest and funnest wedding day for my best friend, finding my dress for my sister's wedding, and collapsing into my bed for as long as humanly possible. I'm happy to be home and can't wait for all the exciting things happening while I'm here!

Did I mention I also kicked jet lag's ass? Thankful for wedding weekend adrenaline keeping me alive.

Happy Christmas to those who celebrate it, and Happy Holidays to everyone wherever you are in the world! 

Wreath Wonderland in Lacock

A little over a month ago, I visited the charming village of Lacock for a short lunch break and jaunt around the area. Between the quaint streets, beautiful countryside, and Harry Potter landmarks around every corner, it was love at first sight and before I had even left I knew I wanted to go back for a longer visit.

Although the village itself is tiny, with 4 main streets that you can circle in less than 15 minutes, it's the perfect place to spend the day exploring. And y'all know by now that my daycation partner-in-crime is Sara.

We had been wanting to take a mini vacation before I went back to the states for Christmas break because come January, I'm going to be living in the library frantically finish up my papers, and Sara is currently dealing with an impending visa expiration date plus job hunting. With a time and money crunch on our hands, we decided to go somewhere nearby – enter Lacock. She had never been so it was my turn to play tour guide! (She has multiple history degrees, it's hard to compete)

After an easy-peasy train journey and speedy taxi through the English countryside, we arrived just as the town was waking up and had the entire abbey cloisters and grounds to ourselves for a while. The abbey rooms are only open on Sundays, so unfortunately I still have yet to see them – but I'll take any excuse to return here!

The abbey was founded in the 13th century, but most importantly – it served as Hogwarts for several of the Harry Potter films including a potion's dungeon, housing the Mirror of Erised, and several corridor shots, among others. If you're a fan of the movies, you'll instantly recognize scenes as soon as you step into the cloisters.

This time around, the village and abbey were decorated for Christmas! Not a door to be found sans-wreath...

Not wanting to leave out any Harry Potter sites, we strolled over to the Potter's home (from Sorcerer's Stone, not Deathly Hallows), and paid Slughorn a visit too.

Sniff, right in the feels.

We got there by apparating of course...

One of my favorite things about Lacock is how much of a bubble it is. As I mentioned in the previous post, the village is owned entirely by the National Trust and in order to live there, you have to have proven lineage of your family in the village. After hundreds of years of the same families living there, it's hard to imagine that they don't know a thing or two about their neighbor! At the same time, the vibe is extremely warm. Lots of homes and businesses promote their goods for sale on their front porch and simply ask buyers to slide their payment through their letter box. Honor system at it's finest.

We decided to venture out past the main roads and check out the surrounding streets and fields. We were greeted with bubbling streams, picturesque back gardens, rolling hills, and lots of sheep.

On our way out of the village, I spotted this precious pup tucked away on top of a sofa, curiously watching passerby's and probably wondering why a girl with a camera was squealing at them.

I love you lots, Lacock. Now I just need to find a local to marry so I can live there when I'm old and grey.

Do you have a favorite village or tiny town you like to escape to?