Did everybody have a good fourth of July? This is the first year of our lives that we have not celebrated the fourth - and no BBQ ribs - that hurt. We hope everyone is enjoying the nice warm summer over there. It doesn't feel like summer here - we've had a few hot days, but most have been pretty cold. I've been wearing long pants and long sleeve shirts all this week. We've even had wear our jackets over the last few weeks too. It's just not the same - add this to the list of things we miss - nice, warm, sunny weather.

We're keeping ourselves busy over here - we went to the Royal Ascot towards the end of June - this is the biggest horse race in the country - maybe even in all of Europe. The day starts off with the Queen riding down the track in a horse and carriage - all of the women dress up and wear big fancy decorated hats - actually, a hat is required for women sitting in the Grand Stand. We stood by the fence right on the track - as close as you could get. They have bookies all over the place - we finally won our last bet, but we lost a few pounds overall. We had lots of fun - we're looking forward to going to the Kentucky Derby when we move back home.

Amy and Clarke came and visited us a couple of weeks ago. They did the usual sightseeing around London, and Amy took Clarke to Oxford as well - during college, she went to school there for a few months. Jill went out with them to the Ivy for lunch one day - this is a popular restaurant where celebrities often go. Steve and Chance were in town for some meetings, so we all met up a few times. I finally found a good steak over here at a place called Navajo Joe's.

Steve took us all out to the Atlantic Bar and Grill - one of those clubs with a red-velvet rope outside - he had to work his magic to get us all in. One of Madonna's videos was filmed in there. I think Chance met some nice people there - ask him about it.

The next day, the women went shopping and the men hit the links. We went and played golf at the Richmond Park Golf Club - the course is a few miles from our flat, right in the middle of Richmond Park. We saw all kinds of deer on the way. We had lots of fun playing, but getting started was tough. It started out with the "Queen's Rule" of all players having to wear golf shoes - so not only did Steve, Chance, and Clarke have to pay to rent clubs, they also had to rent shoes. And nothing is cheap in London. Now I know why everyone walks when they play golf over here - the carts cost 20 pounds PER PERSON! This is about 36 dollars each - this cost more than the round of golf. I think the total bill was around 400 US dollars - the course was fine and all, but it was no $400 course. To top things off, a pencil - a PENCIL - to keep score with - you know, the short ones without erasers - they cost 20 pence each!! If you broke a tee on your drive, you lost some serious cash! A recent survey came out and London is the second most expensive place to live in the world! Tokyo was number one, and NYC was way down at number 13. This golf outing showed us first-hand why London is ranked where it is - Jill and I are getting used to it, but it is tough! I'm pretty sure we spent more than the girls did that day.

Jill and I went to the West End play "Oleanna" last weekend - Julia Stiles was the star of the play - and you know Jill - of course we went and found her after the show and got our picture with her.

Congratulations to Bill and Melissa Wilbourne (proud parents of Mary Ashlee) and Trey and Ashley Haley (proud parents of Anniston Christine). Mary Ashlee was born on June 28, and Anniston Christine was born on July 2. Everyone is doing well and are all in good health - I think they are all tired though. We have seen pictures, and these little girls are beautiful - we can't wait to see them. Congratulations to you all!

We are heading to Scotland this weekend to meet my sister (Ashley) and her husband (John). We will be there until Monday evening, then we are all coming back to London. Ashley and John will be staying with us for the rest of the week. We are very excited and we can't wait to see them! We'll tell you all about it on the next update.

We have new pictures up, so check them out when you get a chance (new ones are London and Unique). I've also changed them so you can click on them to make them larger - most also have a "description" about them as well. If you get a chance, check them out - just click on the first one and then you can scroll through quickly by clicking the arrow buttons. As always, if you have missed an update, you can view our past updates here. We love and miss you all! Ashley and John - we hope you have a great flight - we'll see you soon! Take care and God bless!