lame

Sorry for the lame blog posts this weekend. I like to give you guys daily updates but these past few days have been spent at home working on the most horrible midterm ever.(Okay I might be acting a bit dramatic but this stuff is pretty tough for me) A few tears were shed out of pure frustration this weekend. Gah I wanna be smart. I seriously envy those kids who finish stuff like this in a couple of hours. I know there will be some tomorrow who turn in there paper in and say I started this paper at 3 A.M. and they will get an A. I'm sure they are having a wonderful time right now gallivanting around the city on Halloween.Me on the other hand that same paper will take me 25+ hours and who knows what grade I'll get.

But you no what, I'm doing it. As much as I struggle with it Im going to college and no one can ever say I didn't try.


Well enough about that. Please continue to pray that I can quickly finish all my work. So that I can post interesting things for you to read!!

Miss you guys
xo
-esther

more homework

Doing homework for 12 hours makes your eyes burn and your head hurt.
Eight long questions down 40 to go...
I can do this
pray for me please.

So I don't have any cool pictures to show because my day really did consist of lots of homework.

Tomorrow I will be running a few errands in Notting Hill and then its back to the books.

Happy Friday.
xo
-esther

ugh

so I am a bit overwhelmed.
School seems to do this to me often...

I have 2 english papers
a take home economics take home midterm with 12 essays and 14 short answers
another take home midterm for history with lots of essays and short answers as well
and a ten page term paper.

Oh and then my professor said we would be getting an addtional econmonics and history midterm following our current two.

I don't know how I am going to get all this done in the next 3 weeks. There are so many distractions here in London.

It looks like i'll be spending much of my time studying...I know I can do it. I just don't want to.
So dear friends if you would please pray that I have the endurance and drive to complete these assignments quickly that would be wonderful. Because the last thing I want to be doing is studying while i am in London. There are so many better things to be done here.

Well im off to a Halloween Party!!! Tomorrow I will study study study.

I am really praying the Lord peforms a miracle and I became insanely smart and finish in a weekend.


Since I never like to post without a photo. Above is a picture of a random street performer that was in front of my favorite store ever, Anthropolgie!

Bye friends
xo
-esther

meet Harry

This is my wonderful home stay families sweet dog!

Whenever I am missing Mimi I pet Harry.

We have become pretty good friends. I am definitely going to miss him when I go back to the states.

on a totally different note...

Dear friends please pray that I don't get stressed out from all the homework I have. I can tell im getting a little overwhelmed with all the work that is expected of me by the end of my term. I know I can do it. I just need some drive to get me through it.
Alrighty, goodnight.
xo
-esther

brrr....

It's starting to get really cold here in London. Well at least for a southern California native, like me.

I found myself always wearing at least two jackets, arm warmers, and a scarf. I've been using the scarf to keep my ears warm. My face gets so cold sometimes. This is something I am definitely not use.

I'm getting use to seeing my warm breath in the cold air in the morning, at night, and even during the day. It's quite strange. The skies will be blue and the sun will be shining but the temperature will stay around 40 degrees. I find that that is alot better then gloomy rainy weather at 40 degrees. I always feel warmer when I see the sun is shining even though the temperature is exactly the same.

Well enough about the weather I got to get ready for class tomorrow. My little break is over :( Oh how I wish it weren't.
Goodbye friends
xo
-esther

afternoon tea

Today Gaby and I had Afternoon Tea at the Kensington Hotel. It was absolutely LOVELY. I wish my mama could have been there to enjoy it with us. I know she would have loved it. She is the person who introduced me to the whole tea party thing when I was a kiddo.

I have turned Gaby into a afternoon tea junkie! She was a bit unsure about the whole thing but after our first little tea she saw just how nice and relaxing it is.

Who doesn't like sitting for a few hours sipping tea and eating amazing sandwiches and desserts.







Why can't there be more tea houses back home. Hmm... maybe someday I should open one.
Well goodnight dear friends!
xo
-esther

Notting Hill

Yesterday Gaby and I hung around Notting Hill. (Oh and Joy I still haven't seen the movie. I must get my hands on it so I can go to the places you asked about) We went shopping and ate lots of yummy food. This weekend we have ate some pretty delicious foods!
First I got some tea and a cupcake.




The cupcakes are so good at the hummingbird bakery. My favorite is Red Velvet.


Then Gaby and I shared some amazing king prawns. I love seafood.

It was yet another lovely day in one of the best cities in the world.
xo
-Esther

create

I just had to create something. I miss creating so much. Back home I was always making something I mean anything from skirts to apple pie. Not being able to do things like that is definitely one of the bad parts about being away from home but... thank goodness I am still able to make some things with my crochet hook!

I made up this little pattern for these wrist warmers.

I really like the way they turned out. I think I just might make myself another pair. Thank goodness for this place.
I bought all the yarn from there. They have yarn in the prettiest colors and blends. The wrist warmers are perfect for the chilly weather here in London.

I'm coming back home in 4 weeks. I can hardly believe it. Where did the time go.

Happy Saturday.
xo
-esther

unexpected

So...today Gaby and I were suppose to be in Ireland. But unfortunately we missed our coach. We were terribly sad. Well it started off with me being extremely angry. We frantically ran round the station with our luggage looking around for our coach and we couldn't find it anywhere. Boy was I mad. I was mad at myself. Why couldn't we have got there early? We most definitely learned our lesson. We are usually never late but this time we were. It was just horrible. It is really difficult to get to the station with luggage in tow. First we had to walk to the bus station then catch a bus to the tube station. It's not easy carrying heavy bags up and down stairs when you are in a rush. Not easy at all. Oh and did I mention how crowded these stations are. I'm sure there is a reason the good Lord didn't want us to go on the trip.
It was just difficult because it has always been a dream of mine to go to Ireland. I have always wanted to see the beautiful lush land and meet awesome Irish folk. When we were planning the trip we talked to a few Irish people from the company we booked through. They were so sweet and we loved there cool accents.
After feeling terribly angry about the whole situation I called my father to tell about what happened. He was so comforting and made me feel so much better. He always makes me feel better when I extremely disappointed.
Anyways, I am so so so thankful that God has allowed me to come to England. I adore the city of London and am so grateful for my time spent here. I do pray that one day I will go and spend a few weeks in Ireland and Italy. I will continue to dream of those places just as I dreamt of England. Through Jesus my dream became a reality! He is so good to me. Words cannot explain.

Well let me tell you what I did today!! Gaby and I had the most lovely day. It was sunny with beautiful blue skies. The only bad thing was that the weather was quite cold. So we went to the Borough Market which was amazing. It was full of cheeses, breads, wines, pastries, poultry, and spices. I wish I could do my market shopping there everyday. It is so nice knowing your food is fresh. I had a delicious salad and Gaby had a yummy sandwich. We will definitely have to go back to the market.












Hang out around the Thames.




Then later that evening we went to the White Horse, once again. I had the most delicious pad thai with King Prawns. (Dad the prawns, I mean shrimp, were delicious. I thought of you when I ate them because I knew you would love them.)

Sorry for the blury picture. It was the only one I could use.

Can't wait to eat the left overs tomorrow.

Night!!
xo
-Esther

Picture Post

Here are a few pictures from my Saturday. I would tell you about each one but I am a bit short on time. (I leave for Ireland tomorrow and must prepare for the trip) But I did want to leave you with a post before I leave. Hopefully I will be able to communicate via my phone but if not I will have stories about Ireland to post on Monday.




One quick little thing. The boys below are from Eton College. It is a very expensive college for high school aged students started by Henry the VI. I wanted to take a picture of their uniforms. They have been wearing them since the 1800's.





Enjoy the pictures.
Night
xo
-Esther