DAY 36: Queen Swans

This picture reminds me of you because few creatures are more beautiful and graceful than swans. It's hard to see, but there are two swans swimming together in this picture. They reminded me of you and Kate. I learned that it is illegal to own or harm a swan in the United Kingdom because every swan, no matter where it is, is owned by the Queen. The swan is one of her symbols, I suppose. It all makes sense now that you and baby Kate rule the bed, leaving me a peasant's portion at the edge, if I beg for it.

DAY 35: Ancient Forest

These pictures remind me of you because you love fantasy novels. This is Moseley Bog, the area that supposedly inspired Tolkien's Ancient Forest and Dead Marshes. It looks quite a lot like the books and films depict those places. You can almost picture Sam and Frodo hiding in the bushes from the encroaching orcs, or Merry and Pip sitting on that log eating 'second breakfast' or 'elevensies'.

DAY 34: Tolkien's Childhood Home

This picture reminds me of you because you love the Lord of the Rings. One of my favorite things we have done is have a marathon with the extended versions of the films. I walked a total of about 15 miles today, during which I saw the home Tolkien grew up in and several other areas that inspired aspects of the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit. The home is now privately owned so I only saw it from the outside, but it was still neat to try and picture little Tolkien sleeping upstairs and dreaming about hobbits.

Just a side note: I walked the long way so I could stop by and see our bench. It was sunny and the clearing in the glen was beautiful. As promised, I didn't sit down, but I assure you that we will sit on this bench together one day.

DAY 33: The Clothes Dryer

This picture reminds me of you because you seemed so fascinated when I described this to you. This fancy contraption is a pulley-operated rack to hang and dry clothes on. I know what you're thinking, why did we pay 450 dollars for our dryer. The answer is because this is heavy, it stains my clothes yellow, my garments are hanging out in public like the American flag at the Capitol building, it takes 36 hours to get clothes dry, if the weather is reasonably warm, and it always feels like these are going to fall on my head when I get something out of the fridge. Other than that, I think we should look into switching over.

DAY 32: After the Rain

This picture reminds me of you because you love the rain. It poured all afternoon. Then right before I left for home (with no umbrella) it stopped and the sun came out. It was cool and you could smell rain in the light breeze. All of the flowers were covered in shimmering droplets and you could see the clouds in the puddles. I thought about you the whole time. As a matter of fact, I think about you whenever I see anything beautiful. You're gorgeous, I love you, and I can't wait to see you soon!

DAY 31: Neighborhoods in England

These pictures remind me of you because we love to wander through neighborhoods together and talk about life and our future. During those walks we also talk a lot about the type of house and yard we want to have. Well, as you can see from these two pictures, there wouldn't be much to talk about if we went on those walks here. No yards and all the houses look just about the same.

DAY 30: The River Severn

This picture reminds me of you because the other day you were telling me that you are excited to go whitewater rafting. I think that will be a very fun tradition for our family when the kids are older. This is a lookout point several hundred feet above the river, and if you squint you can see kayakers in the river below.

DAY 29: Train Ride

This picture reminds me of you because you would have loved the train ride I took on Saturday. It was a 45 minute trip through the countryside at about 90 miles per hour.

DAY 28: Nutella

This picture reminds me of you because Nutella is more popular in England than peanut butter. It is a milk chocolate hazelnut spread. I had never tried it in my life before yesterday, and it was delicious. The people her could not believe I had never had it, and I don't think you have either. You would absolutely love it.

DAY 27: The Forest of Dean

This picture reminds me of you because this is the forest where a lot of the last Harry Potter movie was filmed. I still remember ordering the 7th book for you weeks in advance and waiting in line with you at midnight to pick it up. The next day, to show your gratitude, you told me I was not allowed to talk to you once while I drove us down to St. George so you could read the book. We were about halfway there when I asked if we could talk to help me stay awake. You replied, "Jesse, you promised!" So, I figured Harry Potter's most devoted fan might appreciate seeing where he found Godric Gryffindor's sword.

DAY 26: Homemade Oreo Cookies, Made with Love

This picture reminds me of you because we normally make these cookies together, and because the cookies in the middle molded together serendipitously to show you how I feel about you. Making them was a  bit of a nightmare. They don't have shortening here, they have lard. Everything is in grams, and the oven was a little weird. Plus, it just wasn't the same making them without you.

DAY 25: Mums Bums & Tums

This picture reminds me of you because you're working on losing baby weight, and this is a weight loss program especially for that. The British word for Mom is Mum. I thought this was a clever rhyme. I pass this almost every day and think how glad you should be that your kids don't call you 'Mummy'. And when I get home I will help you continue your 'Mums Bums & Tums' fitness program. I love you. You are gorgeous.

DAY 24: The Clent Hills

This picture reminds me of you because it looks just a little bit like parts of the hike up Mill Creek Canyon in Salt Lake. I'll always remember our day-long date up there. We had a great hike, a delicious picnic, and lots of time to talk. I was about halfway through Pride and Prejudice when we went. I was trying to impress you by reading your favorite book. I quoted a couple of passages from the book, and you looked at me like I was speaking another language. When I realized you weren't impressed, I stopped reading.

DAY 23: Home Away from Home

This picture reminds me of you because you spend more time at the hospital or doctor's office than anyone I know. This is Birmingham's new medical center. In 5 years you've had 3 babies, which have included pre-natal check-ups, deliveries, and post-partum appointments. You've also had hernia surgery, several exams with thyroid specialists, strep throat, and immunizations for our Fiji trip. That was all just for you. Including Landon's speech pathology appointments and our recent string of dental appointments, you are in a doctor's office almost weekly and sometimes several times a week. Thank you for all you do to keep yourself and our family healthy!

DAY 22: Penny?

This picture reminds me of you because you love Penny so much! Okay, that's not always true, but I think you love her deep, deep down even when she annoys you. This was a big poster in front of a booth in downtown Birmingham where they were giving out free dog food samples. I did a double take when I saw it because it's almost exactly life-size and it looks just like Penny.