Baby Boy George!

Photo Credit: US Weekly

Well, the name is finally out - and I got one name right! HRH Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge officially made his debut yesterday outside St. Mary's Hospital's Lindo Wing in London. And what a beauty he is! We found out his name today - rather quickly in the royal scheme of things! I couldn't help but get choked up watching William and Kate present the new little Prince to the world. It was truly an historical day, three living heirs to the throne alive while the reigning monarch is.  Looks like we'll all be saying "Long Live the King" after Queen Elizabeth for quite some time! Congratulation to the new parents!

Q&C xxoo

Waiting for Royal Baby...

I've been up since 5:30 pst - when my phone went off to let me know Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge is in the early stages of labour. I can't imagine how it feels to know the world know's you are in the early stages, but how exciting! I'm now watching the door (yes, the door) of the Lindo Wing at St. Mary's - I've got to say, I'm really excited. Almost on par with the wedding day, which, yes, I took off from work. Keep watching everyone! The next heir to the throne is on his/her way!

A Bit of Thrifting - and a Severe Butt Kicking

I met the lovely and talented Ginny when she was helping out with Blog Shop here in L.A, she's totally fab and creative and just fun! Yesterday, she introduced me to the thrift shop world - and I loved it! Apparently, there are all these amazing little stores in the area, and I had never given them a second look. But if you look close enough, you'll find some amazing things! Royal Doulton China, paintings, furniture, lights, literally everything! Check out Ginny's post here..I was so distracted, it didn't occur to me to take photos. Total sensory overload. I'm so looking forward to spending more time and seeing new bits and bobs every time I go. L.A. is also known for amazing flea markets including Pasadena and Long Beach, so those are on the list too! You never know what you might find!

On another note, I had my first Pure Barre class today, and I can officially say, I am so totally, 100% out of shape. If you are up for some serious excercise - go! They are located all over the country, and you will feel it immediately. I can't walk tonight and sitting up is a task, but it can only get better, right?

Q&C xxoo

Cherry Cobbler Time!

I've never really seen a cherry tree up close. Back in Connecticut growing up, I would get the strawberries, apples, blueberries, raspberries - but never cherries. My in-laws have two gorgeous trees in their backyard, and this year they had a bumper crop.

On our last day, I got the urge to bake, and lucky for me, my father in law loves to bake! It took us about 20 minutes to pick the amount of cherries we would need for our cobbler...taking care to look for the dark red ones. They are pretty sour on this particular variety of tree, Mount Morcy.

Into the sink they go for a little scrub....

And the tedious process of pitting begins. Apparently, the best tool for this is a a bobby pin....this started as being kinda therapeutic, and then got kinda boring!

The mixing of the dry ingredients....

I got the pleasure of mixing all the dry ingredients, cherries, vanilla, nutmeg, and lemon juice to a boil...it smelled amazing.

The topping is complete!

The finished, delicious project!

Recipe:

1 1/4 cup of Sugar
3 tablespoon of Cornstarch
4 cups of Cherries
1 teaspoon of Lemon Juice
3 tablespoons of Shortening
1 cup of All Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon of Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons of Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon of Salt
1/2 cup of Milk

We also added a dash of vanilla extract and a dash of almond extract

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Mix 1 1/4 cup of sugar and 3 tablespoons of cornstarch in a sauce pan. Stir in the cherries and lemon juice. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils. Here's where you can add your vanilla and almond extract... Boil and stir for one minute. Pour contents into ungreased 2-quart casserole, pop in oven to keep hot if you wish.

Cut shortening into flour, 1 tablespoon of sugar, the baking powder and salt until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in milk. Drop dough by 6 spoonfuls onto hot cherrie mixture.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until topping is golden brown. Serve warm, and if desired, with some vanilla ice cream!

Enjoy!

Q&C xxoo

Chicago on My Mind

The hubs and I haven't been back to Chicago in a loooong time. Like four years. Which isn't really that great, when you think about it. We haven't been the best son and daughter-in-law in that respect! So it was so good to be back for the engagement party for his younger brother and his fiancé.

We spent Friday in Downtown Chicago soaking up the city and some shopping. Shopping in Chicago is legendary, and I hit up all my usual places, as well as some new ones. The weather was fabulous, not your typical Chicago summer day, and we enjoyed a little gelato and some people watching...I forgot how much I love Chicago in the summer. The city has such a vibrancy to it. And so much culture. 

Saturday brought the engagement party, and spending time with family and friends. Most of whom I hasn't see since I got married 5 years ago! As you can see, the food was phenomenal, and I spent a ridiculous amount of time at the dessert table. Those cookies aren't going to eat themselves!

Cute new brew, done especially for the couple. 

My father-in-law has grown some amazingly beautiful cherry trees in his back yard...they look sweet, but trust me, they aren't!

No trip to Chicago is complete without a trip to see The Bean in Millennium Park.

We also popped into The Art Institute of Chicago and checked out the new exhibit, Impressionism, Fashion, and Modernity, which is not to be missed if you are in the area!

All in all, an amazing trip, so much fun and so many good times with family. Till next time, Chicago!

Fun in the Warm California Sun

I love the fact that when faced with the question, "what do you want to do this weekend?",  the hubs and I no longer stare at each other and respond, "whatever you want to do?" There are so many things to do in the Los Angeles and the surrounding areas, it's more a question of what to do first! The hubs had been to Paramount Studios on business and noticed they do tours! I love theme parks, but unlike Universal Studios, this was a real, working studio. Our guide mentioned he regularly runs into stars! I was in!

After meeting up with our tour guide, Michael (who was fabulous, by the way), we were directed to the building where all the producers had their offices and got to see some real Oscars for Best Picture! We also got to hold one! (not the real one's of course) Those things are HEAVY!

I loved that the tours were small and intimate. All eight of us piled in a golf cart and were whisked around from spot to spot.

I loved seeing the theater were the producers do their editing and were studio premiers take place. And I would be remissed if I didn't show this photo of the incomparable British actress, Audrey Hepburn.

This is one of the benches used in the movie Forrest Gump. Apparently, Tom Hanks came across it one day and laughed because he had no idea one was there. (there's one in the Smithsonian, too) He came back the next day dressed as Forrest Gump and was handing out chocolates to tourists! He then proceeded to drive off with one group of tourists in a golf cart!

Filming on location in ocean's is tough, and we were told directors are allowed to use every square inch of the studio for taping. That means parking lots too! This one is flooded for water scenes. It takes a day to fill and a day to drain. This particular lot was used for the Ten Commandments, in particular the scene were Moses parts the Red Sea!

Filming on location in cities is also very costly. To close down a whole street and pay merchants for a day's wages lost, costs a lot! So instead, you can pay $15,000 per day and rent out the New York / Chicago back lot and do you filming there. We were told someone just had a Bar Mitzvah there for his kid! Remember the Friends episode where Chandler and Joey loose Ross' baby? It was filmed here!

I love this shot because it's from a favourite movie of mine, Bridesmaids. This is the famous Cake Baby! And our lovely tour guide, Michael.

The subway to nowhere.....

I loved every second of this tour. From the history, including Lucille Ball, who owned part of the studio at one point, the where the Godfather was filmed. We did get to visit a sound stage and I so wanted to get a photo of Scott Baio's chair, but alas, photos were not allowed. :-( I couldn't even sneak one. 

Nights Like These...

It's nights like these that make it all worth it. Seeing the sun set over LA, all the other stuff just doesn't matter.


Q&C xoxo

Putting the Wheels in Motion

Image Credit: Pinterest

I've been thinking about this blog for a few days, and I decided I can't really have it be true to me and what I love, if i'm not really true to whats going on in my life at any particular moment. The past few weeks have been intense, and I've only been able to focus on recovery and getting our new place in order. So, I hope you don't mind if I go off on a bit of a tangent and talk about things that aren't necessarily UK related, but feel important none the less. 

This isn't to say I haven't already scoped out all the UK goodness Los Angeles has to offer. And they do have a lot to offer. I'm going to be dragging the hubby kicking and screaming to see the Queen Mary docked in Long Beach. And I've already mapped out the local Uk goods stores, as well as tea at the Huntington Library - all to be reported on in due course, I promise! 

Disaster Strikes....

I've been MIA for a while, and I'm finally resurfacing, now that we have completed our move to LA! This week has been an emotional roller coaster ride to say the least! We finally got everything packed up, including the pups and the kitty, and made it to LA. I am in love. LA is so fabulous, and there is something going on every second. It's so inspiring. Not to mention the weather and all the amazing places to eat! But wednesday of last week, we got the call that would change us. Our moving truck had set out, but never made it. Instead, it had engine trouble, causing a fire that destroyed everything. I really, truly thought I was on a radio station being pranked when the moving company called. Everything except us, the clothes in our duffels, our animals and a few precious items were on that truck. And all of a sudden, everything was gone, in an instant. I remember feeling deflated, sad, angry, relieved, all at the same time. It was like grieving. I still had everything important, I had to remember that. 

I spent the new few nights falling asleep while thinking of another thing or two that was lost forever. And then this past weekend - I attended Blog Shop. To say it was life changing would be an understatement. I was debating whether or not to even attend. I mean, I didn't want to be a total downer, and I still felt fragile. But as soon as I walked in, I knew it was a good idea. The energy in the room was amazing, and the people were creative, inspiring, and fun. And I learned some amazing new things to incorporate into my blog. 

I'm taking this time to view the move to LA as a true fresh start. New beginnings. New friendships. New opportunities. After all I could dwell in past, spending everyday thinking about things I'll never see again, or I could focus on the future and making new memories. I think the former is too draining, and isn't the way I want to spend my days. My perspective has certainly changed this past week. So looking forward to sharing this new journey with you!

It's been a LONNNNG time!

So, I know I've been gone forever, but life's been kinda hectic! I'm currently in the full throws of a move down to SoCal. I could not be more excited, but I hate moving. I repeat, I hate it. I'm a bit of a collector, and my hubby is not. So it's been a lot of him donating and throwing out and me getting sentimental over stuff from my childhood. Yes, I still have the program from my high school graduation.

I'm also debating whether or not to expand the focus of my blog. I've been finding I have so many different interests, but I don't want to totally alienate people who don't want to hear about it. Ah, dilemmas.

What are your thoughts? Would you all be open to more topics other than UK? With the focus remaining the United Kingdom? I need your help!

Queen & Crumpet xoxox

Praying for England Tonight

Keeping those affected by today's tragedy and the citizens of the UK in our prayers tonight.

Latest Lustings - The Home Office

I've decided to start putting together ideas for my home office - I'm currently sharing one with the hubs, but am hoping that changes soon. I've always wanted a more feminine space, something bright and cheery. It's quite difficult to get inspired and creative in between Premier League scarfs and Guinness Signs, much as I love them both. I'd love to change out my desk to something lighter, perhaps white. Dare I say perhaps include a chandelier!? And maybe a cute sitting area for reading? Here are some of my ideas from my Pinterest boards....I am loving all these lovely, feminine looks!

The Simple Things

Those who know me well, know I have an addiction to magazines. My husband will attest to the stacks around the house! Much to his dismay, I discovered another fab read this week while at my local Whole Foods. And much to my delight, it's a British publication! I knew I loved it for a reason :-) But seriously, it's much like a British Real Simple, called The Simple things. The focus is, you guessed it, on the simple things in life and how much pleasure these things can bring if we just stop and smell the flowers...

It made me think, what are the simple things I love? Here are some of mine....

- a new read on my Kindle, a cuppa, and my bed

- coming home to my hubby and pets

- receiving cards by snail mail

- fresh, new lippy

- a perfect outfit

- a freshly done manicure

- my favorite song on the radio

What are some of your simple things?

Q&C xoxo

 

A Wet and Windy Day at the Tower and the London Eye

Our final full day in London, we decided to hit up an old favourite and see a new one! Unfortunately, the entire French public school system had the same idea, so the Tower was a bit crowded, but things moved along quite well. It's always lovely to see the Tower, so much having taken place there, not to mention those little Crown Jewels! 

I hadn't been able to get the hubby to go on the London Eye in all our trips - but the BFF was ready and willing, so we got our fast track tickets and cruised right to the head of the line. Despite it being a bit overcast, we were able to see a lot - and it was absolutely beautiful!! Stumbling back to Westminster Tube station, exhausted, one thing is for sure, we were happy. It was amazing to have the chance to share such an amazing week together - and it's a trip to England we will remember forever.