Bringing Up Brits » cookies

It’s the little things that make you happy when living in England

Meg — Fri, 29 May 2015 08:10:22 +0000

Living in England as an American is mostly good. It takes a long time to learn how things are done, adapt, fit in, find friends, feel at home, and love the way of life here. It’s not easy, but it does get easier. I love talking to newbies, people who are struggling, people who need to hear the positives. My life and outlook on life has definitely changed since I first moved here.

Things that make me ecstatic that I never thought would even factor in, let alone make me happy and add to my enjoyment of life.

Doing a wash and bringing in dry clothes from the washing line, within 6 to 8 hours only
Not having to turn the heat on to heat the radiators in order to dry clothes
Buying peanut butter from Marks & Spencer
Buying Kraft Macaroni Cheese from Ocado
Being asked in a shoe or clothing store if I need any help
Being smiled at by staff pretty much anywhere
When our food order comes all together and no one has to wait
When my youngest child’s food order comes first (instead of very last)
Public transport
Watching Britain’s Got Talent with my children
The splendor of the Royal Pavilion in Brighton
The view of the sea while I watch my children do their swimming lessons
Discovering new books about cross culture, TCKs, CCKs, language, mixed race and cultural differences
Meeting other Americans
Always having an extra sweater or jacket when out and about, even in August
People asking me where I’m from and not being surprised at my response
Really good pub chips (french fries, not potato chips)
Online Tesco delivery
Meeting people from Romania, Bulgaria, Russia and Holland (and probably many other countries too)
Talking to other parents about raising children in Britain
Talking to other parents about raising children in America
Being called ‘love’ by taxi drivers
Being called ‘mum’ by my children
When my husband makes me a ‘nice cup of tea’
Discovering short breaks to places like Amsterdam and Bruges
Visiting Spain, another foreign country that is nearly becoming my third ‘home’
Business lunches in London
Street food
Finding a place to park our car in front of our house
My dishwasher
Keeping in touch with family and friends who live all over the world via Facebook
Meeting amazing people who share my sense of global entrepreneurial spirit through Twitter and Expats in Biz
Pinning on Pinterest
Afternoon tea at Bill’s (actually, afternoon or cream tea anywhere!)
Asking “What do you fancy…”
Saying “I’m knackered”
When my neighbors smile at me
When my children smile at me
When my children’s friends ask for a ‘cookie’ instead of a ‘biscuit’

I could go on! The joy (or should that be the trials and tribulations?) of living in England! Of course there are plenty of things that make me unhappy (such as having to bust a gut to bag up my shopping quickly so as not to anger the checkout person or annoy the next customer by taking too long) but I wanted this post to be full of all the wonderful and somewhat weird discoveries that have become so much a part of my cross-cultural life within a cross-cultural family here in England.

#MyGlobalLife link up

******************
Meghan Peterson Fenn is the author of Bringing Up Brits and co-author of Inspiring Global Entrepreneurs with Heidi Mulligan Walker. Meghan is also the Director and Chief Designer at her own design company, White Ochre Design Ltd. And, she is an award winning expat blogger.

Share this!

The post It’s the little things that make you happy when living in England appeared first on Bringing Up Brits.

Understanding how to be British but still American through and through

Meg — Fri, 13 Mar 2015 06:29:40 +0000

Inspired by a blog post by Amanda van Mulligen, a British expat in the Netherlands, this post is about the fact that while being American through and through, I mostly (probably not completely just yet) understand and really get what it means to be British. And, shock horror! I sometimes really love it! From the British ‘paranoia’ to their love of Branston Pickle to their tendency to drink a ridiculous amount of builders’ tea – I get it.

I’ve been here since the very end of 1998. I came intending to stay for just a few years with a desire to only live in London and then move back to my home country to get serious about my life. Well, turns out I’ve never lived in London, never left England and definitely got serious about my life – British style! I have a successful career as a designer and company director, I’ve written and published two books (both about being an expat), I’ve given birth to and am raising three amazing cross-cultural children and am married to a very British husband. So here’s an insight into my life as an expat American in Britain who’s been here long enough to understand how to be British but still isn’t:

I’m no longer offended by British humor, however I don’t necessarily understand what is happening
I say ‘sorry’ way more than I ever used to, especially when it’s the other person’s fault
I smile and say hi to strangers I pass on the street or in shops and I don’t care any more when they look at me like I’m weird. It’s up to them if they want to smile back – and sometimes they do
I teach my children that American spelling, pronunciation and vocabulary is not wrong, it’s just different – it’s American English and that even though it’s considered wrong in school here and they get marked down if they use American spelling etc to just secretly know that they are right
I love the expression ‘cream crackered’ because I am this a lot of the time and in order to understand it you first have to know what knackered means which I didn’t for most of my life
I drive down small roads thinking they are much wider than they actually are pretending I don’t hear the sound of the wing mirror being bashed off (I’ve had to replace many wing mirrors on all the cars I’ve owned!)
I love going to London pretending to be a savvy local when actually I squeal (inside my head) with delight when I see a guard with the big furry hat and strap way too high up their chin
I understand it and can empathize when Americans who visit Britain for the first time tell me living here is like camping but cringe when I know how offensive that can be to a British person even though it’s not meant to be offensive at all
My children are all very British – this makes me feel proud and sad at the same time, inexplicable and slightly irrational, but true
British TV is way better than American TV (fewer commercial breaks, weird and wacky TV ads)
But American crime dramas are way better than British crime dramas
Sunday dinner tradition British style is part of our cross-cultural family life, although if we sometimes skip it I don’t mind. On the other hand, if we miss it, my husband feels scarred for life
Getting measurements wrong is a common occurrence for me, confusing lots of people along the way
I still sometimes go to the supermarket expecting to find exactly what I want and then when it doesn’t exist because it’s an American product I have a mini tantrum setting a bad example to my kids who are very understanding and do a great job of consoling me telling me we live in England, not in America
The weather here is wonderful and I’ve grown to love it. No tornadoes, hurricanes or ice storms, just damp, rain and sometimes glorious sun
Train journeys are generally comfortable, convenient and enjoyable (compared to car journeys) and I love the English countryside and lush green everywhere – a thing of real beauty

Our cupboards are stocked with both British and American products such as HP sauce, Branston pickle, English mustard, JIF peanut butter, Aunt Jemima, Hidden Valley, Heinz baked beans and PG Tips – I know and understand that running out of tea bags can traumatize my husband so I always always make sure we are stocked up!
I never have nor ever will say or write ‘cheers’ as a substitute for ‘thank you’ or ‘bye’ and I still do a hidden double take when people say ‘cheers’ to me to say ‘thank you’ or ‘bye’
My son’s best friend asks me for cookies now (instead of biscuits) which I love and think is adorable

Share this!

The post Understanding how to be British but still American through and through appeared first on Bringing Up Brits.

30 things I love about my cross-cultural kids

Meg — Wed, 08 Oct 2014 10:27:01 +0000

They call cookies cookies and not biscuits.
They love peanut butter even more than I love peanut butter, and I love peanut butter. I recently watched a movie about an American family who moved to France. They asked where the peanut butter was in the store and were met with scorn. So the British are not the only ones who dislike the American obsession with peanut butter!
They enjoy eating meals together as a family and equally love my husband’s British Sunday roast dinner and my American bean bake and macaroni cheese.
They have a great deal of tolerance for my ‘weird and foreign’ ideas.
They get excited about Halloween – yay!
Two out of my three children like ‘Friends’ just as much as I do.
My daughter’s favorite dessert is Eton Mess – something I had never heard of until a few years ago.
They know who George Washington is (because I teach them American history lessons on the sly) and what he did and why he did it. This is something that none of their school mates know.
They have quarters and dimes mixed in with their euros and pence.
My two older children can translate for me and do so very willingly.
My eldest has a desire to live abroad when he’s older and is intrigued by my childhood years in Texas.
They know way more European capitals than I did when I was their age.
Although they often mock my accent, they are actually quite good at ‘speaking American’.
They understand that their American grandparents sometimes struggle with their accents and things they say so are good at being patient and explaining things.
My daughter is proud of her mixed heritage and although sometimes gets confused, she’s not afraid to talk about it.
I love their accents and sometimes I have to stifle a giggle when they say something that sounds SO British.
My eldest and I shop online together for American snacks and drinks and salivate over junk food from my childhood.
They are happy to walk in the rain for an extended period of time without a raincoat or an umbrella. It does not phase them.
My daughter’s role model is Emma Watson.
My 5 year old’s favorite cartoon vacillates between Tom and Jerry and Sponge Bob Square Pants.
For all of my kids, Florida Disney trumps Chessington, Lego Land and even Alton Towers.
My older two have read and re-read every Harry Potter book and love the books over their film counterparts.
They say zed instead of zee.
They lecture me on my misuse of the word pants.
They lecture me on my ‘bad’ spelling.
They share my passion for good customer service.
Sometimes I can’t actually understand what they are telling me because of their accents.
My older two recognize the British reserve and are proud to be British but they don’t let their reserve inhibit or limit them.
They are learning how to be naturally resilient and optimistic. Not all the time, but I’ll never give up leading by example.
After years of relentless training, writing ‘Thank you’ cards is something my older two do without me reminding them (well sometimes I have to remind them).

Share this!

The post 30 things I love about my cross-cultural kids appeared first on Bringing Up Brits.

Christmas cookies

Meg — Tue, 24 Dec 2013 08:47:30 +0000

Ten years ago at Christmas, my mother gave all her children a recipe book that she made from all her most favorite recipes that she used when we were growing up. It is a wonderful present which I use on a regular basis. It contains recipes for casseroles, salads, cakes, pies and cookies and more, plus special breakfasts and things like granola. I just love it because I know I’m making something for my own children that came from my mother and some from her mother as well.

It contains a recipe for sugar cookies which I always use at Christmas to make Christmas cookies. It takes ages to decorate them because it makes 36! My ten year old daughter Anna Grace does an excellent job with the decorating part. Much much better than I – you can tell how much she enjoys it and her creativity really shows through. Mine are indicative of someone who is enjoying it but knows there is a lot of mess to clean up and there is also dinner to make and laundry to do! Each year I get messier and each year Anna Grace gets more clever with her decorations. Jonah, who is four, did an excellent job of eating his so I didn’t get a chance to photograph any! Samuel, who is twelve, declined this year, preferring his computer game to decorating (but not to eating!).

Merry Christmas mom and thanks so much for everything you cooked and baked for us when we were little, your British grandchildren are now eating and making what you made for us.

Share this!

The post Christmas cookies appeared first on Bringing Up Brits.

Chocolate chips are not a food group

Meg — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 18:17:22 +0000

Jen, my American friend from college asked if we could get chocolate chips over here in England – the answer is both simple and complex! So this post is for you Jen. When i was a child, my mother bought chocolate chips like they were a staple or a food group. This is probably why I love them so much – all those memories of baking with that wonderful just baked cookie smell that made my mouth water. Then there were the cookie dough parties where we’d sit around and eat uncooked cookies! Sounds repulsive but it’s actually incredibly yummy. Anyway, since I’ve become a mother, I also wanted to bake cookies with my children and create ‘chocolate chip’ memories for them. The big problem is how and where to get the chocolate chips!

Yes, you can buy them here in the grocery stores but they only come in small bags. The chocolate chips themselves are smaller as well and don’t really taste the same. I love the weightly feel of the bags of chocolate chips and being able to eat a handful here and there while baking with them. You can’t do that with chocolate chips here – you’d eat them all before they went in the oven! So, the best and quickest way to get them is to order them online from www.americanfooddirect.com or www.skyco.uk.com or also from www.americansoda.co.uk You can get butterscotch as well. It’s not the cheapest way of getting them but it’s the real deal and I just love the smell of them and the memories that the packaging trigger. I sometimes ask my mom to send over a box of 10 or so but I know it’s expensive to send so I don’t like to ask. And before anyone thinks it – yes I could just buy 4 of the small bags and then I’d have the same amount but the thought of doing that depresses me and it’s just not the same. And yes, I do realise chocolate chips are not a food group, but in our household they are just as important as the fruit and veg (so in a way they are sort of like a food group). Needless to say, all my children love them just as much as I do. Next time I’m in the States we’ll be stocking up!

Here is my mom’s chocolate chip cookie recipe. Please feel free to try it but be prepared for LOTS of cookies.

Cream together
3 sticks of butter (1 and 1/2 cups)
1 cup crisco (shortening)
2 cups brown sugar (dark brown, packed)
2 cups white sugar
2 Tablespoons vanilla
1 and 1/4 Tablespoons baking soda
4 eggs
3/4 Tablespoon salt

Add
7 cups flour

Mix and then add 1 to 2 (12 oz) packages chocolate chips.

Stir together – you need a large bowl for this. You can add oatmeal/raisins/nuts/rice cripsies etc. (You can divide the basic dough in half or thirds and make two or three different types of cookies). Use a teaspoon to drop them on a greased cookie tray.

Bake at 350 for 10 to 15 mins (depends on size).

Have fun!

If you like this blog, then buy Bringing Up Brits BUY HERE or buy from AMAZON.

Share this!

The post Chocolate chips are not a food group appeared first on Bringing Up Brits.