Hello again! Wedding plans have been keeping us pretty busy (but we're enjoying every minute!), so I haven't had much free time to get on here, but...I'm back! ;)
Day 5 took us to Bev's sister Lauren's for Mass and Sunday Roast; we weren't quite sure what that was, but it turns out that Sunday Roast is simply family dinner, served at the pub of your choice! Let's start from Jeannie's and head to the Old White Horse!
Jeannie just had a major reno done in her lovely home. What's cool about this tidy kitchen (except for our mess all over the counter) is that you're looking at a convection cooker (that's "stove" to us Yanks) washer/dryer, dishwasher, fridge and freezer (all hidden in the lower cupboards)! Isn't that amazing?! Just don't buy too many groceries at a time...
I had to add this beautiful view out Jeannie's kitchen window into her green garden. (and dish liquid here is called "fairy liquid", too cute!)
We had to get moving pretty early since Lauren & Steve's was an hour away; we met her son, daughter-in-law and grandbabies, Georgie & Alfie (THE cutest twins you've ever seen!). Then Lauren took us to Mass (in her Jag! my first time ever!) at Our Lady & St. Joseph's, where we discovered Mass really is universal! No difference here!
Blessed Mother statue in the church. See? It's the same :)
Tabernacle & baptismal font. Feels like home :)
Jack had a nice conversation with the pastor, who gave us an interesting book on the parish. The author happened to be at Mass that day, and autographed it for us!
Prayers now said, let's get to the eatin'!
Prayers now said, let's get to the eatin'!
Side note: this is Tilly & Teddy ♥ We loved them! Now I want a bichon.
Yippee! Dinner! Pubs are THE place to eat in England. Excellent food, good service, great atmosphere, and super family friendly.
Here we go! I played it safe and chose just turkey (Linds & Jack had mixed meats of lamb, beef, pork & turkey), served with potatoes, parsnips (yum!), peas & carrots and Yorkshire pudding. The gravy is heavenly, and I ate every single bite.
Time for dessert! Linds & I ordered Bailey's cheesecake (above) and treacle pudding (below) to share; she liked the cheesecake and I loved the pudding, so we each ate our favorite!
The dessert pics aren't great, but the pudding is actually sponge cake (which is extremely popular here), with syrupy brown sugar and butter topping. Oh. My. Goodness. I usually pass up desserts for an extra glass of wine ;) but I'm so glad I had this! Desserts are served with custard or cream, so of course we chose cream (oops, I thought it was whipped cream), and I thought I'd died and gone to heaven!
These two photos are just a portion of the area around the pub. Like I mentioned earlier, most pubs seem to be extremely family oriented, and have lots of play areas for little ones. C'mon US, let's get on board with this! ;)
Folks just relaxing, kids playing, sipping a cider...now THAT'S the life! (kinda like this vacation!)
Since our bellies are full, we're going back to Lauren's for a nice visit with family. And a nap!
Day 6 will take us to Brighton Beach, so bring your suits!
