American Woman

Passports for Mom, Dad, and Abbey

Since Abbey was born in the UK, we needed to report her birth to the US Embassy and get her a passport before she could fly home. We bravely made her appointment for Pioneer Day, July 24, when she was just 8 days old.

The US Embassy in London near Hyde Park

We were worried because she's so new, and mom is still recovering, but it could not have gone smoother. What a blessing! She slept the ENTIRE time, from when we left the flat, to during lunch, to the 3-hour wait at the Embassy (why did we make an appointment months ago if you just wait in line DMV-style?), and then the ride home. She won a million good kid points that we will let her redeem when she is a teenager for a later curfew or something. And she can also join the club of people who hate their passport picture - it looks nothing like her!

Abbey was so good we even had time for "tea" and scones!

Here is a mix of pictures from "jaunts" we've taken her on since she was born, around the block or up to the High Street, including a famous London black cab ride. Ben sports a "new tired dad" beard, and tries out both the sling and the baby bjorn. Abbey loves both of them!

She was quite pleased with herself after a long but successful day.

Introducing...

Abbey Heather Lawrence was born via c-section on July 16, 2009 at 12:07 pm. She was 8 lbs. 10 oz. and 21" long. We are delighted to have her join our family!

Thank you to everyone for your love and support. Without further ado, here she is:

With dad, a few minutes old, in the "operating theatre"

With mom, a few minutes after that in recovery.

1 day old in her first outfit!

Enduring the trauma of the first bath (actually, she liked this part)

Abbey will be getting her first U.S. Passport this week. :)

Harry Potter and the Half-Wet Premiere

Well, the big HP world premiere finally happened yesterday. It was insane. There were far, far more people crowded into Leicester Square than at the James Bond premiere back in October. I seriously underestimated how early people would get there. Although I am definitely a fan, I am not a big enough fan to have waited all day, from 7am until 6pm, as the people at the front row did! This shot from a webcam gives you some idea of the size of the crowd:

This is the best shot I managed the whole day, and it wasn't until after the event was over and some of the crowd had dispersed:

There was no way to get close enough to see any of the actors, but I did see Dan Radcliffe for a few seconds. He was being swiftly escorted by two bodyguard-looking guys and they brushed right past me. I tried for a quick shot, but was thrown off balance by a security guard and almost dropped my camera. Here's what I got:

Nice, huh? Although it would have been cool to see lots of the great older British actors, it was still just fun to be there. There were a lot of screaming/crying girls in red and gold face paint, looking very tired from jet lag. I was surprised, actually, at how many Americans were there. It rained off and on throughout; at one point it was a genuine downpour. There was so much rain, in fact, that the barricade posters were ruined. So, sadly, I don't get to add to my collection of stolen Leicester Square movie posters. Oh well.

As soon as it was over, a huge number of black T-shirted people started dismantling everything, taking down the displays and barricades and ripping up the 'red carpet':

One really funny thing to watch was the groups of teenage girls circling the black T-shirts like vultures, waiting for them to turn their back long enough to run in and steal whatever part of the decorations they could get their hands on. My favorite was a little Indian girl who, with surprising strength for her size, nabbed a huge canvas like this one, with the Gryffindor colors on it:


The irony, of course, is that Heather and I won't actually get to see the film here in England when it comes out next week. I've heard newborns are not the best moviegoers...

Cruel Summer...

I don't think I ever understood the difference between "dry heat" and "humidity heat" before this past week. It was so HOT. The temperature was 80s/90s, but paired with the humidity & pregnancy, it was bad. Luckily, it's supposed to rain on Monday.

We watched some Wimbledon matches on TV, including the one between the Williams sisters. It's strange to think they were playing just a couple neighborhoods over from us. The crowds and the players were dripping with sweat.
On Thursday we had arranged to go to our school's graduation ceremony for dental students (I know, British dentists, I don't get it either) to get pictures in those cool wizard-esque outfits. Ben even wore a tie. There was some miscommunication - the short story is we'll have to wait to post official pictures. For now, check out Ben in the white shirt/tie/shorts/sandals ensemble.
And happy 4th of July! Oddly, they don't really celebrate America's independence here, so instead of a BBQ, fireworks, and the Star Spangled Banner, we had to settle for ordering out for Chinese food. And no baby today, so I guess we'll have to hold out for the other cool date in July - 7/11. Then Ben can take the kid for free birthday slurpees every year.