The Thorn In My Side...

First of all, I just have to say that Europe was wonderful! I highly recommend it to anyone who needs a vacation from the mundane. There's a wonderfully rich history there that Idaho just doesn't have... *sigh*
There was, however, something that just rubbed and rubbed and rubbed the wrong way and now I have a chapped hide.

These two creatures are Flat Stanley and Cuddles. Flat Stanley came to us from my nephew's kindergarten class in Burley, Idaho and Cuddles belongs to Ian's kindergarten class. For those of you who don't know, these little guys are supposed to go home with someone and join them on their various adventures. They take lots of pictures and then go back to school when they're done. We were asked to bring Flat Stanley and Cuddles with us to Europe. At first it was fun and kind of a challenge to see how many people we could get to pose with these little things. I think it started rubbing a little when the police man at the London Tower made fun of me for "being a little too old to carry my teddy around with me." Yeesh. We pretty much accosted anyone with a uniform on to take a picture with them. First it was the concierge, Zoheir, at our hotel, then it was the Beef Eater at London Tower, next a Bobby at Parliament, some of the queen's guard at Buckingham Palace, our tour guide for the bus tour we took and, finally, our poor family members in Holland.
I love Cuddles and Flat Stanley but will be exceptionally grateful to hand them back over to their classes on Monday.