Predjama, Slovenia

Is it weird to visit a place I learned about on Pinterest? I came across a list of the 10 Most Fascinating Castles (on Pinterest), and this one was there. So we went while we were in Slovenia. It was interesting that it's integrated into a system of caves.

The castle's legend involves a Knight, Erazem Lueger, who was besieged in the castle of a year but taunted his enemies by throwing cherries at them. They were baffled at his survival (and access to cherries); he was escaping through the caves to a nearby village for supplies.

The following photo is great. Gavin had just thrown his water down, and his body language perfectly reflects his attitude.

Overall an interesting castle, but there was a disappointing absence of information (no tours, no signs), so all we learned about the castle we learned from the internet.

Lake Bled, Slovenia

 Tucked away in the Julian Alps in Slovenia is Lake Bled, a location of supreme beauty. It's not overrun with tourists, it's just beautiful! Most of the photos involve the picturesque little island with its pretty little church.

In addition to the beautiful island in the middle of the Lake, there's also an imposing castle on a cliff above.

This view of the Lake is from the castle.

And Bled is known for its famous cake, the kremna rezina. It was pretty tasty.

We stayed in the most adorable place ever, where the owners were a cute young couple who made us breakfast and even did a load of laundry for us! They also had bikes we rented (well, borrowed, because they didn't even charge us!) and rode around the Lake on two occasions. The first time we went it was raining, and I love how cute Gavin looks in his rain jacket and helmet (Jacob and I wore helmets too, don't you worry).

And we took a boat ride out to the island. The Lake was gorgeous from that angle too!

I took SO MANY photos of the Lake at different times of day and different weather conditions, etc. It was just so pretty. But here's a photo in Bled of something other than the Lake. It was a seriously charming place!

the last Jubilee post

With so much talk of what the Duchess of Cambridge wore over the Jubilee weekend, here's the coverage of what Gavin Asher wore over the Jubilee weekend. It's all very patriotic.

And there's been a lot of coverage of what's happening in London for the Jubilee, but what about the best village in the whole Commonwealth? Here are photos from our village (it's a pretty small village) showing the immense patriotism of our neighbours.

Thames Jubilee Pageant

We had an unforgettable weekend in London for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrating the Queen's 60 years on the throne. All the neighborhoods we saw were decked out in festive flags and bunting.

Then on Sunday the River Thames was lined with over a million flag-waving fans of the Queen--including us! A flotilla of 1,000 vessels participated in the Thames Jubilee Pageant, and it was amazing!

We saw lots of great boats, and we stood at the MI-6 building to watch, which is also pretty cool. :) The following photo is dedicated to members of my Mom's family whose ancestors hail from the Isle of Man. See the Manx flag? (PS-Jacob also deserves credit for taking this photo; he had the camera while I took care of Gavin. He took the photo because he liked the boats where the rowers were standing.)

Here are a couple of photos of the Queen's barge. She wore white, making her pretty easy to spot. But the boat itself is beautiful too!

God save the Queen!

Matilda the Musical

While in London Saturday night I got to see Matilda the Musical! It was incredibly fun and clever. Photography isn't allowed in the theatre, but I did sneak a photo of the set before the show. It was adorable. 

And if you want more of a taste, here's a trailer for it. The Headmaster Trunchbull character was so funny I'm laughing out loud just thinking about it!

Kew Gardens

We spent the weekend in London for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee (more on that in a separate post), and on Saturday we visited the beautiful Kew Gardens. Gavin loved trying to climb all the trees--and anything else that looked remotely climb-able.

The flowers were beautiful! Below Gavin is herding a huge goose family. The goslings were so cute!

This tree was just asking for someone to sit in it. So we took a few photos in it (while Gavin was herding geese).

This treetop walkway was really cool and pretty high. We had great views of some of the charming greenhouses.

 We spent the weekend with Jacob's colleagues and their families, and Gavin loved all the fun girls he got to play with.

18 months

Gavin is 18 months old today!! He loves singing, still dances regardless of whether there's music, and he's developed a strong attachment to one of his blankets. He's moving nonstop and requires my 100% attention, which is great so I don't miss any of his hilarious antics. Happy half-birthday to this wonderful, sweet little man!