Falkirk, Stirling, and Queensferry

We have our first visitors here in Scotland! My mom and sister, Sarah, are visitng for a few weeks (squeeee!) and we've had a lot of fun revisiting some favorite spots and of course visiting lots of new places as well. 

Today, we had a grand adventure! We rented a car and drove in the left side of the road for the first time. Well, Dallin drove (and did beautifully) and I navigated (somewhat poorly).

First we drove out to Falkirk, Scotland to see the famous (or infamous, depending on who you ask) Kelpies. 

The Falkirk Kelpies were designed by Andy Scott and stand 30 meters (98.5 feet) high. They were breathtaking. 

I mean, seriously. Are you even kidding me with the sun just shining off of them and that blue sky?!

And then Deaun killed it in the cuteness department. 

The Kelpies are one of the coolest things I've ever seen. I was seriously just blown away with them. I would move to Falkirk for the sole reason of seeing them every day. Amazing. They were just amazing. 

Okay. Enough with the Kelpies. I'll stop. Even though I could go on.

After Falkirk, we continued west to Stirling, Scotland. Home of Stirling Castle and the Wallace Monument. 

Stirling Castle is set up on top of this huge hill, and from it, you can see for miles and miles and miles (strategic, eh?) and the views and beautiful. 

We went on a guided tour, and although I didn't hear much, what with chasing three girls around, I think I remember hearing that because of its location and how strategically it was placed (see, I told you) it changed hands 8 times between the Scots and the English. There was so much of the castle compound that we didn't get to see on this visit, but we will for sure be visiting again. 

(Posing!)

Stirling Castle also has this incredibly creepy collection of wooden carvings. They were commissioned by King James V because was pretty obsessed with making sure that everyone knew he was the rightful king. 

You're welcome for that. 

After we ate lunch, we also decided to drive over to see the Wallace Monument since we were so close. 

We only saw it from a distance, but it was pretty cool looking. It's set on the top of a hill, so you can see it from miles away. You can climb up to the top of the monument as well, and I'm sure the views from there are stunning. 

Then pretty much everyone fell asleep as we drove back towards home. 

Finally, we drove to Queensferry to see the Forth Bridge, which crosses over the Firth of Forth. It spans 8,297 feet (1.57 miles) and has the second-longest cantilever bridge span in the world! 

You can see the Forth Road Bridge on the left (which we drove over) and the Forth Bridge (only rail travel) on the right in this picture. There is a third bridge currently under construction to the left of the Forth Road Bridge, which will be the Queensferry Crossing when it is completed in 2016. 

Also, I might have fallen in love with Queensferry and if my plans to move to Falkirk fall through, then I'll move here instead. It was the quintessential seaside Scottish town. Tiny streets, B&B's, fish'n'chip shops, coloured houses. It had it all. Just beautiful. 

And then we drove home and got stuck in Edinburgh traffic in the rain and everyone was tired of being in the car so we made BLT's for dinner and vegged for the rest of the night. It was wonderful. Totally wonderful. 

So come visit already! If this extremely long blog post that no one reads doesn't convince you then I don't know what will!

*Visited November 8, 2014

Blackness Castle and Linlithgow Palace

Back in October, while Dallin was on his fall break from school, we took the train out to Linlithgow one day to see both Blackness Castle and Linlithgow Palace. By train, it's about 20 minutes outside of the city. Because of the Historic Scotland pass we bought, we get into these venues for free, and it has totally been worth having the membership. We've been to quite a few places that I don't know we would have visited otherwise. Both places were quite amazing.

Blackness Castle- built in the 15th century right on the Firth of Forth. This was such a fun castle to explore. There were spiral staircases and many levels of rooms to investigate. All three girls had a great time. The day was overcast, but it didn't ever rain on us, and we practically had the place to ourselves.  They even had picnic benches outside so we could take a break and eat our lunch while we waited for the bus to take us back into town. One of my favorite parts of the castle was pier that went right out into the firth, it gave a really unique vantage point to see the castle from a different angle.

Linlithgow Palace- built in the 14th century, it was one of the primary residences of Scottish monarchs for a few hundred years. By the time we got back into town, the girls were getting quite worn out and Deaun was napping in her stroller, so while I stayed with Deaun, the twins and Dallin went to explore, and then we switched places so I could look around. There was an amazing courtyard with a large fountain in the very center and all the spiral staircases your heart could ever desire. There were kitchens down a few stories underground and a huge grand hall. It was amazing, and situated right on the Linlithgow Loch. Because we had reached the saturation point of the girls though, we had to cut the visit short and didn't get to do all the exploring we wanted to. We will definitely be back for another visit.

After we finished, we went back to the train station and caught the train back into Edinburgh. Let it be known, that this fights for favorite part of the trip every time we head out of the city. All three girls LOVE the train!

St. Anthony's Chapel- Holyrood Park

Last Saturday, whilst experiencing a very tiring growth spurt, Deaun needed an extra nap in the late afternoon. Dallin and the twins were itching to go adventuring, so I stayed home with the snoring child while they headed to Holyrood Park. Holyrood Park is only a 5 minute walk from our flat, so we've been several times. It's so big that everytime we go, we see something new. 

Wandering, giggling, running, and exploring ensued. They walked about two miles across the park (and then caught a bus home) and Dallin says that the twins were just in heaven running free in whatever direction they wanted to go.

(Pushing the wind back)

During their wanderings, they visited St. Anthony's Chapel on the north eastern side of Holyrood Park. While the origins of this chapel are unknown, it's been around since at least the early 1400's. Hugo Arnot, author of "History of Edinburgh" (1779) wrote that St. Anthony's Chapel was, "a beautiful Gothick building, well suited to the rugged sublimity of the rock." Aren't these ruins just breathtaking? The stone is just gorgeous and it's so secluded. I love that even in the middle of the city, you can get so far away from people and just be alone in nature.

Dallin loved being able to have a "date" with the girls. He's been really busy with school, so I think it was good for them to be able to go out together without Deaun and I slowing them down. Dallin is such a wonderful dad to take them out adventuring and they all had a really wonderful time. (Or so he tells me...)

The Twins turn 4!!

Happy Birthday to my favorite ever twins!
Sabrina and Fiona are such special little girls. They are funny, smart, happy, forgiving, kind, and beautiful. And a million other things. It is so fun having them in our family. We love them so much.

Sabrina:

Fiona:

Birthday dinner: Sausage rolls and oven chips with apple squash to drink. (Their favorite meal, also very British. Also in this instance, squash isn't a vegetable, it's a drink mix, although it confuses me still everytime someone says it. "I want some squash!" never fails to surprise me until I realize they are just talking about juice mix. Ha)

Birthday cake: Individual double-decker cakes. (Where we learned that substituting whipped cream for frosting is apparently not acceptable. Lesson learned.)

Birthday activity: Swimming at the pool down the street. The girls had been begging to go for quite some time, and they loved every second of it once they figured out how to use the floaties to help them swim.

Presents: Too many! These girls were spoiled. They got presents from Mom and Dad as well as two packages from their Grandma & Grandpa "Truck" and their Grandma & Grandpa "Whitecar" in America. They loved every single present though and said thank you and even wrote thank you cards for everything they got.

And now a little bit about each girl indivitually, because even though they are twins, they are each very much, their own person with her own likes and dislikes.

Sabrina (pictured below): The oldest. The boss. The girliest. Loves words like graceful and lovely. Favourite colors are pink, purple, and sparkles. Wants to be a princess or a doctor when she grows up. Her favourite part of being a twin is chasing Fiona. Thinks Fiona is good at gymnastics. She is beautiful and smart and I can't even begin to tell you how much I love her.

Fiona (pictured below): The younger. the peacemaker. The daring and adventurous. Loves slaying dragons but is afraid of the dark. Favourite color is purple. Wants to be a princess or a mechanic when she grows up. Her favourite part of being a twin is always having Sabrina to ride bikes with. Thinks Sabrina is good at doing tricks. Think's Dad's kisses are good but Mom's are yuck. Is gentle and funny and beautiful and adores Baby Deaun. I love her more than I can say.

 So happy 4th birthday to my beautiful girls! I can't believe they are this big already!