Platypus = Hat?

For some reason, all of Mom's friends got confused. They thought I was a hat instead of a platypus. Very weird.

Group Photo

Here's a picture with Bill and I creeping up behind Charlie. On the left is Louisa, then Dad, the Mary behind Charlie. The dinner was yummy!

Thankgiving Dinner

Mom invited a bunch of her friends over for Thanksgiving dinner. Mary is holding Bill. Don't worry, she held me much more throughout the evening. I think she took a picture with him because she felt bad about not paying enough attention to him.

Goodbye Birmingham

Finally the conference was over, and I got into Dad's backpack for the trip home. I'll definitely go back to Birmingham if I get a chance: it was wonderful.

Bath Time

After all that exercise, I was all sweaty, so I took a bath. Luckily, the hotel room had a platypus-sized bath. It was perfect!

Pumpkins are Heavy

It was a long trek pushing the pumpkin back from the store. Turns out they weigh a lot!

Getting a Pumpkin

While dad was at the second day of the conference, he asked me to go get a pumpkin from Tesco. He wanted one to make pumpking pie with for Thanksgiving.

Sleep Time

After all that food, I fell fast asleep.

Room Service

I didn't tell Dad, but I ordered lots of room service desserts too. They were scrumptious!

An Educated Platypus

Being an educated platypus, I also read the newspaper. I love reading the business section of the paper.

Relaxing in Bed

Dad was busy at the conference most of the day, so I tended to stay in bed and relax. Of course, there was much TV watching too.

Trip to Birmingham

Since Strange Panda got to go to work with Mom, I got to go to a conference in Birmingham with Dad. We stayed at the Novotel hotel, which had really nice rooms. I had the big bed all to myself, and Dad slept on the floor.

SP Phone Home

Later I called Dad to tell him to come meet us at the pub. I fell asleep after that and didn't wake up until the next day.

Beer, Take 2

I couldn't get my nose in the glass though.

Beer, Take 1

Mom wasn't looking, so I tried to drink some of her beer.

Teacher Mary

Mary, another teacher, gave me some of her coffee since I gulped all mine down.

Teacher Sarah

Here I am posing with Sarah, one of the teachers training with Mom. It's not the same Sarah that calls me Suspicious Panda.

Starbucks

We went to Starbucks, and I drank some coffee. It was frothy and milky.

A Small Adventure

We haven't had many adventures since Mom's been busy working on her teaching course. I got to go with her to university one day and hang out with her friends. Here I am at a cafe.

Giant Cows

Mom and Dad went with Vernon to Heeley City Farm today. We had a nap while they were gone. I was glad I didn't go, because they met a humongous cow that might have licked me like it did Dad.

Hanna, Isobel, Sienna and Us

Here are our cousins, Hanna, Isobel, and Sienna posing with us in our room. They have grown so much since Christmas, but we are the same size still. How strange.

Hide and Seek

Our cousins kept taking us out to play when we were supposed to stay in our rooms and nap, so Mom and Dad had us play hide and seek in the drawer.

Aunt Fiona in Norwich

After Mom's friends left, Aunt Fiona and our cousins came to visit from Jersey. Aunt Fiona took a picture with us in Norwich with the castle in the background.

Kate and Us

Kate hadn't met us before, so she wanted to pose for a picture with us. It's tough being so famous!

Gathered Around the Campfire

Some of the other people who came included Uncle Richard, his girlfriend Kate, Sarah, and Kate.

Becky and Us

We also got to see Becky again. She is Adrian's mother. She pretended to throw us in the campfire. Strange Panda was frightened of getting burnt, but I knew she was just getting.

Us Too!

We wanted to go with him, but Mom and Dad said they would be lonely without us, so we agreed to stay with them.

Adrian Goes Home

But Adrian couldn't stay forever. He got in the car to go home at the end of the weekend.

New Friends

We also made some new friends, like Adrian and Bear.

Camping in Norfolk

We went camping in Norfolk for August Bank Holiday weekend. We got to see lots of our old friends there.

BA Executive Lounge

On the flight home, we got changed to a BA flight where we got to go to the Executive Lounge and eat croissants.

Sand Panda

Mom and Dad built a sand sculpture of me! Finally, proof that they love me more than Bill!

Lobster Red

For the last week of the trip, we went to the Beach. Mom became redder than Bill because she got burnt outside.

Mom's Dress at the Wedding

Mom had a lovely dress she wore to the wedding.

Wedding

Once we were back in Raleigh, Mom and Dad went to Dad's cousin's wedding. They said it was really nice.

Dad's High School Reunion

Dad went to his 10 year high school reunion in Raleigh, and got to see some of his old friends.

Glen Falls with Mom

We got to pose at Glen Falls with Mom

Glen Falls

That afternoon we had a hike to Glen Falls. It was a big waterfall, but very pretty. The next day we drove back to Raleigh.

Rocking Chair Cuddle

Here's another picture of Daddy with me and Bill in a rocking chair.

Dad with a View

Dad also had a sit down with us for a photo with the valley behind him.

A View and a Cuddle

Mom got us for a cuddle in front of the view on top of the mountain.

Overdoing It

But I think he drank way too much...

Bill Drinks Wine

Bill decided he wanted to drink some wine that night.

Dinner in the Room

One evening all of the restaurants closed before we got there, so we had to buy food at a store and eat it in the room. This meant Strange Panda and I got more food.

SweetTreats!

We went to Dad's favorite ice cream place, SweetTreats. They mix candies and fruits into your ice cream. Strange Panda and I shared an ice cream by the river.

A Nice Pillow

We had so many good sleeps with Mom and Dad in that lovely room.

Our Room

We checked into our room at the Mountain Camp, where Dad used to work. We had a nice view, so we stared at it for hours.

Sunset Rock 2

Dad was just happy to not have to drive anymore (and to be able to cuddle us finally).

Sunset Rock

After a long drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway, we arrived in Highlands, NC, where Dad used to be at camp. Mom was grumpy after the long drive.

Ice Cream

After D.C. we drove the car down to Virginia. We stopped in Fredericksburg for some ice cream in an old-fashioned parlor.