Royal Wedding Day!

Throughout the morning, I'll compile all my tweets and post them here. If you want to cut out the middle man, just follow me on twitter @mastapleton.

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Fabulous hat: a wedding cake with a bride and groom on the top. Fantastic. She was in Hyde Park, not the Abbey. Obviously.#royalweding

2 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Baroness Thatcher was invited, but is "too unwell" to attend. Make sure that obit is in good shape. #royalwedding

4 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

I have to say: No one does hats better than British women. I was born to live in the UK. Oh, wait, I do. #royalwedding

6 minutes ago

fuggirls Go Fug Yourself

by mastapleton

Piers just noted it's sad Diana's not here because parties were "right up her street." Also, IT'S HER SON'S WEDDING, dude. -H

8 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Elton John has arrived. He and David DID NOT bring the baby.#royalwedding

8 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

BBC now interviewing the hairdressers. I have to say, the quality of the filler is a little depressing. #royalwedding

9 minutes ago

Queen_UK Elizabeth Windsor

by mastapleton

Hat on. Had to wait to the last minute to prevent The Queen of Denmark seeing it and nipping out to place a bet on the colour.

11 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Guy Ritchie now chatting with Victoria and David. "Can you believe they're making us wait with these plebes?" they're saying.#royalwedding

12 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

@

@CamillaAHerrera Gotta watch it live. Let me know if you want any half-price momentos, which I'll be able to get soon.

13 minutes ago

simonpegg Simon Pegg

by mastapleton

The streets of London are thin with republicans.

26 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Love the ongoing debate about whether David Cameron and other politicians will wear morning dress. We all know he's a toff. He might as well

19 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Tara P-T looks stunnying. Love the dress, hat and colour she picked. (US friends: She's a socialite here) #royalwedding

21 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

@CamillaAHerrera This is payback for all my late nights at the Oscars. Welcome! It's bright and sunny here.

22 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Just swtiched over to ITV coverage. In 5 minutes, they screwed up twice in that time. Bush league. #royalwedding

23 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

BBC interviewing mad Canadian who SLEPT OUT OVERNIGHT WITH A BABY along the route. She also has a replicate ring. Insanity. #royalwedding

36 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Victoria Beckham wearing navy blue. Guy behind her keeps sneezing. David just said "Bless You" to him. Class act.#royalwedding.

37 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

BBC showing map again of the route for #royalwedding. More bullshit filler.

39 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

BREAKING: BBC says "The Beckhams have arrived." We assume she'll be wearing one of her own designs. #royalwedding

40 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Huge crowds already gathering in London for next Thursday's referendum. (From @Aiannucci)

43 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Prince #royalwedding gets pile of titles, including Baron Carrickfergus. Kate gets one: Duchess of Cambridge.

44 minutes ago

mastapleton Maureen Stapleton

Already loads of news to share about the #royalwedding. "This is already bullshit filler," says Anne. Have to agree.

46 minutes ago

DianaInHeaven Princess Diana

by mastapleton

Wedding guests received an etiquette guide so they know what’s appropriate to say & do. All they have to do is get Prince Phillip to read it

11 hours ago

FakeAPStylebook Fake AP Stylebook

by mastapleton

Note that your "didn't we fight a war to get away from this bullshit" Royal Wedding editorial may not go over well.

16 hours ago

»

FakeAPStylebook Fake AP Stylebook

by mastapleton

Keep comparing Kate Middleton to Princess Diana. Every bride enjoys hearing how much she's like her mother-in-law.

27 Apr

Hilarious Royal Wedding Video

Sure, it's an ad for a mobile company. Who cares when it's this hilarious. Especially love "Prince Harry" and his exuberance.

Daffodils 2011

The 2010 edition of the annual Daffodil picture. Enjoy.

We Are British Citizens!

I am now a British citizen. In case you're wondering, I'm still an American one, too.

After two months of filling out applications, taking the Life in the U.K. test and waiting for an answer from the U.K. Border Agency, it finally happened. We all took our oaths yesterday to become British citizens.

It was all very exciting. The boys got the afternoon off from school. I even wore a new dress for the occasion. We made our way to Woolwich Town Hall for the ceremony, which in many ways felt like a marriage.

Before we left, a witty friend of mine asked, "Have you done the basic irony course or the extended course that includes mild sarcasm with resigned indifference?" No, I haven't. Nor have taken any courses on making a good cup of tea, forming an orderly queue or keeping a stiff upper lip.

It seemed right and not at all surprising that the notoriously unreliable Southeastern train would stall on the way there, but we got there in time. We even had time to stop in the U.K.'s first-ever McDonald's on Woolwich High Street. Everything seemed significant in its own way yesterday.

We passed by a very large statue of Queen Victoria on our way to Greenwich Council Chambers, where the ceremony was held. Given that they do this weekly, the process was a well-oiled machine. You waited in the queue (perhaps this was a secret British citizenship test?) showed your papers, and then signed the register, with a picture of the benevolent Queen smiling over your right shoulder.

While you waited for everyone else to do the same, they piped in music which reminded us all of the music they play at the Legoland Windsor entrance, another great British institution. At least we felt that way until they started to play the music of naturalised British citizen George Frideric Handel. Believe me, they NEVER play Handel at Legoland.

The ceremony itself was surprisingly short. You had a choice to do either a "God" or "No God" Oath to the Queen, and then you had to make a pledge to be a good citizen of the U.K. After, they handed out the certificates individually to the new citizens.

It was humbling and fascinating to hear all the places our fellow new citizens had been born. Nigeria was far and away the most called, but the new citizens also came from Zimbabwe, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Kosovo, Hong Kong, Australia, Albania, Kazakhstan, Barundi, Sri Lanka, Ghana, Vietnam and the United States (that was us). It was literally an A to Z of world countries.

We then sang the National Anthem, "God Save the Queen", which uses the same tune as "My Country 'Tis a Thee." Before we left, I had looked up "God Save the Queen" on YouTube so I could at least be familiar with the tune. I was glad I did; did you know you have to wait out the first stanza? I do now.

Greenwich Council had given us all our very own British Passport holder, which certainly will come in handy. They also invited us to stay to have our first cup of tea as a British citizen, which was nice of them. However, I was disappointed they didn't offer any Marmite sandwiches. Times are tough, I suppose.

On our way home, I couldn't stop singing "My Country 'Tis a Thee". Old habits die hard. But at least now I can legitimately sing both songs.

I'm cheating on Marathon Mum!

OK. Not exactly cheating. More like expanding my horizons.

My two friends, Kirstin and Anna, started a blog last year where they review a cookbook a month. They asked me in January if I would be interested in contributing. Of course I said yes. It combines two of my favourite things: cooking and writing!

If you haven't already clicked through via my Twitter feed, here's the address: http://cookbookamonth.wordpress.com. Check it out.

Bon appetit.