Today was the last day of school; our time here is coming to an end.  Here is a list of things we will miss about England and living abroad...

Rapeseed

Public Footpath

* Everything English: the narrow roads, the sheep that dot the countryside, the thatched roofs and quaint houses, tea and biscuits, rapeseed (brilliant yellow fields that randomly pop up in the spring and can be seen for miles) the lack of service, the pound coin, no doggie bags (foil, really!), the accents and words (everything is "lovely" and "brilliant"), waiting hours to see a doctor (NHS), biking through the heath, London and traveling abroad (Paris for a weekend!), the weather (it's always fall here with a spot of rain), High Street (every town has one), Cobham (feels just like Madison but with British flags), the parking (pay and display), the speed cameras that send you tickets in the mail, all the English foods (steak and ale pie, mince pie, sausage rolls, English breakfast (eggs, ham, fried tomatoes, baked beans, and hash browns), yorkshire pudding (popover) and sticky toffee pudding (OMG, delicious!), horseback riders on public footpaths, the postal carrier who arrives by bike, queuing (the Brits will queue forever!), Bucks Fizz (a.k.a. Mimosa), Union Jack (its everywhere), Oxshott Train Rail - so quaint!, and perhaps most of all...roundabouts because you never need to turn around when your lost!

*Our Friends: Alfonso (who owns a cheese farm in Spain and sells to Waitrose), Matthew (who is American but has lived in England all his life), Rio (who has taught us things about Japan we never knew), Oscar (from Denmark who has an elevator in his house), Justin (from Germany, who's mom was interrogated and searched when trying to enter East Germany as a teenager), Lorenzo (from Argentina and loves football), Remy (from NY who has a deep Brooklyn accent), Philip and Henrik (from Norway who have moved back home), our British neighbors who have made our experience here wonderful and taught us everything we know about the English, all the international ladies who live in the neighborhood - they span the world - and so many others who are staying and/or moving on.

High Wycombe (Daws Air Force Base)

*Everything in between: our house and the woods that surround us, the BUS!, our wonderful school ACS, FOOTBALL (my boys are crazy about it and wear their kits everyday), Fulham matches at Craven Cottage ("He kicks with his left, he kicks with his right, that good 'ole Dempsey, he's alright"), baseball at High Wycombe (and the 7 hours we spend there each weekend!), John Wells and the American hamburgers (breakfast, lunch, and dinner at High Wycombe), OLD MAN'S FOOTBALL (Mac's favorite pastime on Sunday mornings), English Experience and all the castles I've seen, PUBS (there's one on every street corner), the lovely English gardens, Oxshott Royals, Cub Scouts and all the fun we've had, and Barclay's Bank...because for 3 years we got free withdrawls from our US account!

Fulham match at Craven Cottage

Its official ~ Mac is off to the Scottish Highlands to take the Caledonian Challenge ~ 54 miles in 24 hours.  The race begins Saturday at 7 a.m. and ends Sunday morning, Father's Day.  Hopefully, we'll receive word when he crosses the finish line.  Maybe we'll even get a picture!  Stay tuned for more info...