Park Trip wih Oompah, Mariam, and Sharif...in Photos

"Walking" to the park

Oompah to the rescue

Love the sand

Don't know about this slide

Cheer leading from Mariam

Don't like the slide

Okay, maybe not so bad

So What's Been Going On in June???

Lots of stuff, that's what!
Hamilton's continued his work with randomly connecting audio cables to places where they do not go.

We took a trip to central Illinois and saw Ryan and Tricia.
And went out on the boat with Uncle John.
And Hamilton tried to give strange gifts to Aunt Tabby's dogs.
And had a much-belated birthday cake with Grammy and Granddad.
And walked around Millennium Park while Mama did a Pilates work out.


And expressed his love of hummus after going out for bike rides.

Last Day in Turvey and Back to Home

Our final day in Turvey was spent with Veronica and her old friend Sherry in the village of Olney, a few miles away. Veronica was allowed some free time to spend with us, something for which we were very thankful.

We walked around a bit and saw the town.
And visited the church where John Newton served as a curate in the eighteenth century. As any good evangelical knows, Newton was the author of Amazing Grace and really was a slave-trading wretch before he moved from being lost to being found.


Unfortunately, the church turned out to be emblematic of the Christian faith in Europe right now . . . rich in historic curiosities, but strangely empty on a Sunday.

After Olney, we headed back to Turvey for a final night. The next morning saw us Veronica driving us into Bedford to catch a train to Gatwick airport in London. From there, we went to Dublin, then on to Chicago to find Jim and Sharif waiting for us at O'Hare--a very welcome sight indeed.

The Big Day in Turvey

The several days we spent with Sr. Johanna and the other sisters and guests at Turvey were peaceful and relaxing (especially after the hyperactivity of our time in Ireland and London). We were not quite sure what to expect of our time there, although we were sure that if the community received the Veronica Melnyk seal of approval, that it must be all right. While we did manage to catch up on our rest, the days went by quickly and enjoyably.
Jenny, Brian, and Amie put together party favors for the guests.

Hamilton, of course, chilled out and made sure he looked good while doing it.
Veronica took us on a tour of the grounds.
Saturday was the morning when Veronica took her vow of solemn profession . . . an event we had been told about years ago that marked her full entry into the community. While we did not take any pictures during the ceremony, you can be assured that it was carried out with reverence, solemnity, and great depth of feeling. Freeman was privileged to be asked to help out by reading Genesis 32:22-31, the story of Jacob wrestling God and receiving the name of Israel. A highlight of the occasion was the bestowing of a ring and garment upon Veronica.

A reception followed the ceremony . . . .
And a lunch followed the reception . . .
And a visit into town to the pub followed the lunch . . .
We did some final catching up with old DePaul friends, knowing that some people would depart the next morning.

Turvey Abbey: Arrival

Freeman has known Veronica (aka Sr. Johanna Marie) since his freshman year in college. In fact, they were in the same group for their first college project. So several years ago, after Veronica decided to pursue her vocational calling to monastic life at Turvey Abbey, she asked us to be at her Final Profession. We are so excited that we were able to join her for the event, and visit with her for a few days.

(So, the original purpose of this trip was to visit Turvey Abbey for Veronica's ceremony. How we ended up biking across Ireland--who knows!?)

We arrived at the Abbey on Thursday afternoon and after settling in, joined some fellow Blue Demons for dinner.

Hamilton and Jenny called it a night pretty early...but Freeman wanted to check out the town before turning in. He discovered that Turvey is a very pretty town that looks like this...



At the edge of town, there was a field of cows who were very interested in Freeman. As he went to take pictures of the sunset (at 9:30 pm), they got closer...

...and closer......and closer.

London Sightseeing: Days Two and Three

On Day 2 in London, we aimed for three of the biggies: British Museum, St. Paul's Cathedral, and the Tower of London. What we learned is that we could have been in London for a week and still not seen all three of them thoroughly. (p.s. I am not posting all of the great photos Freeman took of the cool artifacts, etc. but you can trust that he saw some pretty cool stuff).

Hamilton enjoying a ride after the British Museum.

Hamilton getting his "nappy" changed on the lawn of St. Paul's Cathedral.
Tour Guide at the London Tower.

Hamilton napped while Freeman toured the London Tower, but woke up just in time for a photo op before heading back to the Lams.

For Day Three, we opted to stay in the Lams' neighborhood, since we were heading up to Turvey that afternoon (more on that soon). We took a little walk through Hampstead Heath and ended up at a cafe for lunch with Janice.

We got off of the bus at Kenwood House, which is a beautiful old stately home built in the early 17th century. We arrived too early to take a look inside, but really enjoyed the grounds.

We continued walking through the Heath (asking for directions several times, since we kept getting turned around).
It was all very picturesque.

By the time we got to Golder's Green Park Cafe, Hamilton was ready for a snooze. We enjoyed a nice lunch and then...

...we were off. Here we are on our way to Turvey on the First Capital Connect line.

London Sightseeing: Day One

We spent 2 1/2 days sightseeing in London. We really enjoyed the city and all felt a little more "at home" with getting around by public transportation and walking. It was very nice, after full days of sightseeing, to have time to catch up with the Lams (thanks, you guys, for everything)!

Heading to the Golders Green Tube Station from the Lams' for the first day of sightseeing.

First stop: National Gallery. Perfect timing, too, since it was beginning to rain.

All of the excitement put little dude to sleep. We were then able to catch lunch at the Lams' recommendation, Pret a Manger. We enjoyed it so much that we had lunch there the next day (and in the airport on the way back).

Then we did a bit of walking...down by Parliament and Big Ben...

...across the river to check out the Eye...
...then we looped back over the Golden Jubilee bridge and back towards Westminster Abbey (if you are familiar with London, yes, we did pretty much do a double loop).

After Westminster Abbey, we headed to St. James Park where we did some grass therapy. I am happy to report that Hamilton doesn't seem nearly as scared of grass anymore!

Family photo op at St. James Park.

We went to the front gate of Buckingham Palace...
...where Hamilton tried to find his way in.

We pried him away and took a stroll through Green Park and ended at Piccadilly Circus.

All in all, a very enjoyable day.