RollingStones

Sorry Brandy. To answer you question; my son will be going into Grade 6 at Devon Prep, and my daughter Grade 8 at Notre Dame, which is in Villanova.

Brandy07

You're not going to be too far from where we will be. Let me know how you get on with finding a house (my husbands not found anything yet) and if you fancy meeting up when we're over there and settled.

RollingStones

So our rather fantastic relocation consultant has helped us secure our second choice house in Bryn Mawr. It's a beautiful house, just a bit further away from a hub.
We should definitely meet up, Brandy, once we get over there.

Now we have to furnish this house, ours is going to disappear in it.

Brandy07

That's great you've got a house! One less thing to worry about! There's nothing where we want to be but am still hoping something will come up before end of July!
Let's keep in touch and meet up once over there.

hmvsdog

I've said this before, but worth reiterating. I live in Malvern, PA so very close to where you two are moving to. If you need any British "local" knowledge, please ask!

Brandy07

Thank you!! How long have you been there? My children love Cubs and Rainbows - is there something similar near there? What foods do you miss the most? This is not the first time I've lived abroad (my children were born in Sweden and I've lived in Holland and Canada before I met my husband) but as the time is getting nearer starting to feel more daunted about it!

hmvsdog

Girl Scout Cookies and the like are a huge thing over here. There's definitely opportunity for your kids to get involved in movements like that. I don't have children so it's not something I've personally looked into, but I know plenty of families where their children are in the Scouts and Girl Scouts.

I badly miss proper Fish'n'Chips. Nothing I've had here comes even close. Then there's Heinz Salad Cream, you can get it from Wegman's (which you'll love, incidentally) but it's expensive.

But saying that, I totally love living here. Been here 18 months now and we get 4 distinct seasons. Yes it's cold in the winter, and yes it's hot in the summer. But in between, it's perfect transitions in temperature and the trees in the fall/autumn are spectacular.

RollingStones

I'm excited and apprehensive, but I know the apprehension will all be over in a few weeks because..we'll be there.

I expected the Americans to have a better idea about us, I was a little surprised at the blank looks we were getting when my son was asked what sport he enjoyed and he answered with "cricket".
Also I was asked if we came from England or the UK? Many seemed confused by that. At the hotel, a staff member asked me where we came from. I responded with England, and she said "Oh we had some people in here who sounded like you a while ago but they were from the UK".

I will ask hmvdog because I don't know anything. Although we did visit Wegman's near KOP when we visited and I really liked that supermarket. Oh My!

hmvsdog

That one is a new one. There's a very cool area around it with lots of bars and restaurants too. Very good hang out spot for a warm evening.

I'm a little obsessed with Wegman's.

RollingStones

I think I can understand that one.

We're going to be about 12 miles away from KOP in this place. I was looking forward to walking and taking the bikes to Valley Forge but we're going to be a good bit further away now. Where is closest to us now in Bryn Mawr?
It looks like it's Ridley Creek State Park, about 6 miles.

Rete

Granddaughter is a member of the Girl Scouts. She joined as a Daisy at age 6 and then graduated to Brownie and this year is a full fledged Girl Scout. She loves it. They have many activities - socializing, community interaction, trips, etc.

hmvsdog

Ridley Creek and Valley Forge are about equidistant from Bryn Mawr I think. Either are great spots. They're a bit further away, but Marsh Creek and French Creek state parks are beautiful too. Brandywine Creek, just across the PA/DE border is lovely as well. White Clay Creek near Wilmington, Delaware is stunning, but quite a drive. You can actually walk around in a circle around a marker, going through 3 states (Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland) there. That's pretty cool.

Brandy07

Thank you. My 6 (turning 7 in September) year old daughter loves Rainbows. As soon as we find a house and get settled I'll look into Scouts for both my children

Brandy07

I'll make sure I check out Wegman's once we're out there!

My son is looking forward to snow! He was disappointed when we moved back from Stockholm and realised that we wouldn't get much (if any) snow here!

I'll check out Scouts once I'm over and settled in.

hmvsdog

He won't be disappointed here. The first weekend I lived here, we got about 4 feet worth. Quite a shock to my system that was! Had to walk to the nearest Walmart to buy a Blu-Ray player and a bunch of movies as my cable wasn't hooked up at that time, and I was going stir crazy!

This year wasn't quite as much, but we still got about 2 feet total snowfall. Seems crazy to think now, when there's beautiful blue skies outside, it's 9.35am and already 84F (nearly 29C).