Today was another 'getting organised' kind of day! After spending the morning sorting out what we would leave in England and what we would bring to America and then packing, it was time to venture into the beautiful sunshine! Calvin and Kate drove into Chester (the first time driving on the left side of the road in a long time). Kate didn't want to drive as she wanted to only remember how to drive on the right side for America. In Chester we bought a few bits and...

We spent the day mostly sorting, clearing and packing our stuff up in preparation for our departure in a few days time. Fiona was out for lunch and Richard was back at work after the Bank Holiday so Barnaby was left at home all by himself as Calvin and Kate strolled into Heswall (stopping by The Jug and Bottle). We had lunch (toastie for Calvin and a sausage bagel for Kate) at Thornton's cafe. We were definitely the youngest there among all the pensioners! Then o...

Early morning wake ups are a little bit better when there is some daylight around. Iceland offered a drawn out dawn at this time of the year so a 3:30 am alarm didn't seem so terrible! The hostel offered included breakfast which came with a good variety of very edible goods and beverages which were much better than Weeta-Bix. All packed up and ready to go by 4:45 am to get to Keflavik International Airport.  Returning the car to Blue Car Rentals was easy eno...

Nothing much to report from today. Kate used Fiona's car to get herself from one hiking boot shop to the next (as her 'new' hiking boots) aren't particularly comfortable! Kate visited 4 shops (no success in any of them) but she did manage to familiarise herself with the English roads and countryside. Meanwhile, Calvin stayed at home unpacking his bags (finally) and moving photos from his cameras onto a hard drive. A short afternoon walk to Tesco to get some items...

The last day of 2016! Can't believe how much has happened this year - it's gone fast with all the planning and preparation for our year abroad. Today, Auntie Fiona and Uncle Richard were hosting a New Year's Eve dinner party with their long time friends, Jo and Andy, and their daughter, Caroline.  Andrew left today to go to Kent to bring in the new year with his friends but he did give a suggestion of having a murder mystery party for dinner (as he was doing...