Moving On

Back home in Houston for a bit, until time to dash over to London for the Olympics in a few weeks. Have you heard, London's Calling? At least that's what a US commercial announced this morning, and it was so exciting to think about the anticipation and build-up for a July 27 kick-off!

It has been an amazing and incredibly busy 5 weeks in London which have included the Queen's Jubilee, Trooping the Colour, Beating Retreat, Royal Ascot, Ryan and Allison's visit with my sweet grandchildren, packing up a home full of "stuff" and shipping it home to Houston, moving into a new place in London, and wrapping up with two amazing days at Wimbledon this week. Go Andy Murray and Serena!

Thus with all the "busyness" and this past week without the internet, it's been hard to stay on top of blogging, but now, watch out, because I have a lot to share in the weeks to come.

First, let's kick off with our new place in London. Since my husband predicts that we won't need to be in London as much as in the past, when we moved out of our townhouse, we opted to stay with my son, Jason and his wife, Cristen, in their new cute flat in Chelsea.  Mom and Dad dropping in from time to time and spending some "together time."

Above you see our front door to the Mathison building at King's Chelsea.

Located in the shadow of the infamous Chelsea Football Stadium,

and across the street from that labyrinth of antique stores that the locals will recognize as The Furniture Cave,

we are now living down Kings Road a bit closer to Fulham, about a 10 minute bus ride from our previous locale of Flood Street.

Northacres photo

King's Chelsea is a complex of 289 apartments and homes, which was formerly the King's College facility until 7 or 8 years ago when the Grade II listed buildings were converted into a residential development.

Our place is on the fifth level of the Mathison House facing King's Road

and here you see the back windows--the top left set of 3 windows.

There's a lovely view of the grounds below,

plenty of place for a stroll

or a quiet moment.

Included in the facility are some workout rooms, an indoor swimming pool, and tennis courts on the property. Cristen and Jason have done well in their search, don't you think?

And now we have a whole new area to explore: new shops, restaurants, walking paths, all just a bit further down the road from where we were. Home sweet home.

And if you promise not to tell the whole world, Daniel Radcliffe, is a resident here. Cristen and Jason spotted him on their first visit, and although Harry Potter hasn't invited us over for tea just yet, one can always hope!

Congratulations to Cathi Nunn from Everyday Adventures of a Curious Gal who is the winner of my Hello Jubilee magazine giveaway.

Sit, Stay, Love

Last spring, I mentioned that something very exciting was opening just down the street from my London home. Many of you guessed from the clues that I gave that it was Anthropologie, the American lifestyle store which is so very popular in the States. The building, located on the corner of King's Road and Flood Street, was originally a gentleman's club built in the 1920's which has seen several renovations, most recently as an antiques center. More about that here.

Guess who has left behind her career of banking in the US to work there? My own daughter-in-law, Cristen, who has moved to London for a couple of years with my son. She loves playing, I mean, working there.

The design of the new store, its second European shop, intentionally preserved some of the original architectural features, 

including the beautiful skylights and stained glass.

The design team on staff keeps it interesting, and Cristen tells me it's all for sale. See the horse laden down with merchandise?  Gone! Could have been ours for the right price if we had jumped on it sooner.

Not only is it a fashion mecca, but the gifts and housewares departments are fascinating.

Something for everyone!

The store is known for being dog friendly, with an open door policy and treats and water available for shoppers' dogs. Recently, they sponsored a Doggie Day called Sit, Stay, Love to benefit the Battersea Dog and Cat Shelter.

The competition began when a winner of the waggiest tail was selected, followed by 

the winner of the Snappiest Dressed in her teal coat who was so shy that she hid under the table, right beside the winner of the Dog that Looked Most Like Its Owner on the right.

In addition to the neighborhood dogs, some came from the shelter

and charmed us with their tricks.

 At the end of the afternoon, they left us begging for more, and a few marked their territory for a return visit in the days to come!