Never, never, never give up!

And so I'm back!  Back at the blog, back in the UK, back in our flat in South Kensington.  It's been quite some time since I last wrote, but as they say; "Absence makes the heart grow fonder."  So at this point my faithful readers should be just overcome with anticipation and... adoration?  It does seem that the hiatus has made me fonder of London.  It is either that, or all of the little things that used to really stick in my craw... they still drive me insane, but at least there's a familiarity now.  And there have been some developments as well!  A couple of shops on our street have changed hands and there are new double deckers careening about town.  I am finding that all of my usual walking routes have come back to me with little effort, although I cannot say the same about the grocery store experience.  Every time I finish with shopping I feel like I need to lie down for an hour.  Re-acclimating to British Pounds Sterling, the metric system, and inconsistent inventory will take another week or two, I think.  Luckily, I have found a couple of stores that seem to embrace their American expat customers and carry Thanksgiving supplies!  So we will be celebrating a real American Thanksgiving on Sunday with 13 of our new London friends.  I am not sure that it is prudent for one's first Thanksgiving to be for 13 people, but I have faith that all will go just fine.  If it doesn't, I'll have something to write about for next time!
A lot has happened since I last wrote.  I believe we left off with my departure to Chicago for the 4th of July and my Grandmother's birthday.  I always love my trips to Chicago because they are family centered.  Growing up, most of our vacations were to visit family and I am so grateful for that.  To this day, my favorite trips are those in which I can catch up with friends and family.

Chi-town!

In July J came to visit for two weeks.  We had a lot of fun in the city, even if it was during the hottest three days all year.  We spent our time catching up with friends, visiting Century 21 like good tourists, and on a Monday we... got married!  I've been debating with myself whether to include this in the blog, but most of my readers are probably already aware of this, so I don't feel like I am revealing anything too surprising.  But for those of you who didn't know-now you do!  We are legally united by the State of New York.  The Church, however, is another story.  About a week after J returned to London we finally got permission to be married in the Roman Catholic Church!  I was quickly on the phone and email and got a date booked.  So while we may be married in the eyes of the law, we will not be married in the eyes of the Church until May 2014.  And so the planning began...

141 Worth Street, New York, NY

The planning began and the paperwork began.  Visa paperwork to reflect my new married state that would also allow me to live and work in the UK for as long as J is here.  All went relatively smoothly.  And while we did have a bit of a wait while we gathered all of the necessary evidentiary support, the actual visa was issued in 1 day!
Amidst all the wedding planning and visa getting I was training for the ING NYC Marathon.  On November 3, 2013 I woke up in the wee small hours of the morning, geared up, and hopped on a bus at the New York Public Library headed for Staten Island.  What an amazing experience.  There just aren't enough words to explain what that day felt like and I could probably write a very long blog post on just the marathon alone.  The feeling of crossing the finish line is indescribable.  The amazing thing is that at about mile 22 if you had asked me if I wanted to ever run another marathon again, I would have punched you in the face.  But not even 24 hours later I was already thinking about things that I could have done differently and how I could improve my time.  So we'll see what the future holds!

18,050; Boyanovich, 32F; 04:05:28

The following Sunday I had the pleasure of attending my bridal shower.  My mother hosted a beautiful afternoon luncheon during which I visited with the many wonderful women who have become so important to me over the years.  I am so glad that I got the chance to spend time with them all before my return to London.  The timing really couldn't have been better!

What I learned from my shower photos is that I make ridiculous faces ALL.THE.TIME.

My beautiful sister-in-law (and bridesmaid), Diana, who couldn't be there.

On Friday, November 15th I boarded Virgin flight VS010.  This is the same flight number that I traveled on my way to London that fateful trip in December... you know the one.  The difference is that this time, I stepped off the plane and sailed right through immigration.  I've been here a little over a week now and have been keeping very busy visiting friends and exploring London at Christmas.
You know, it may not be the most profound thing that Winston ever said, but when I think back over the last year I think the quote above really describes it best: "Never, never, never give up!"

Had to include this one of the flowers from the shower.  
They were so beautiful!