Hey everybody,

Here we are in Chipping-Campden, England. We started our vacation in NYC after the Today Show. I have never really had any time in NY where I don't have to work or keep some kind of schedule! Took the girls to Dylan's Candy Bar... got big points for that. Went to see Shrek on Broadway. Really fun. Did a little shopping. Ate at Angelo's on Mulberry Street in Little Italy (a favorite of ours). But the highlight for us was going to see Paul McCartney at CitiField, which used to be Shea Stadium. We found our seats and were blown away to find out the were 6th row, dead center! Perfect seats. Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins were sitting RIGHT BESIDE US. She is one of my VERY favorite actresses, but I didn't want to bother her, so I didn't say anything. Should have, but oh well.... Needless to say we were excited to see Sir Paul, and he did not disappoint. Opened the show with Drive My Car. It just kept getting better from there. It started to rain, but it didn't even matter. Ava was tired so I made a "bed" on the seats out of our shirts and she slept through most of the concert, rain and all. (Of course I covered her as best I could and she stayed pretty dry!). The concert was so emotional.... I think I felt every emotion. I laughed, I cried. It was just wonderful. At one point I realized I was dancing and singing and smiling and just HAPPY! It was really inspirational to me as a performer. I want my audiences to feel like THAT and I'm going to work my butt off to make sure that happens! Not that I don't. But I really felt a connection to what my fans must feel when they come to see one of my shows. It's weird, because when I come out on stage, I just feel like "me", you know? I don't really think about how special that experience must be for my fans. Because I don't really set myself apart, if that makes any sense. But now I get it. It was really life-changing for me. Anyway..... thank you Paul McCartney for, once again, inspiring us all.

We flew to London.... got a little sleep on the plane. Drove to Thornbury Castle where we stayed for 2 days. It was so cool. A real castle.. and Henry the VIII and Anne Boleyn actuallly stayed there! I've read alot about that piece of history, so that was fascinating to me. We went to Bath one day.. stunning. I thought, "what if you got up every day and this was what you got to look at?!". Visited the ancient Roman baths. Then we drove to Chipping-Campden where we are now. Utterly charming. John and I got to go out and have a bit of a pub crawl last night, which was fun. We just walked up and down the main street and hit the pubs. Met a couple of new friends. Today we visited Stratford-Upon-Avon and had afternoon tea at the house where William Shakespeare's daughter once lived! (now it's a Caswell-Massey tea house and store). It was fun. Came back and we all watched a movie together in our room. Now getting ready for bed. Our hours are a bit turned around, but getting better.

What a great life we have. Thanks to God for all the blessings.... and thanks to you for being such great fans.

Martina