Fall fun

Last weekend we took a trip to the Wildpark with some friends to take a few pictures in the fall leaves. We did this last year with the babies, and we loved it! This year Jenn & Addie weren't with us but we added some other friends. It's amazing to see the difference in the kids from year to year. Last year, the boys weren't quite sturdy at the walking yet, so we could plop them in a pile of leaves and snap away. It proved more difficult this year, but we had a blast on the playgrounds and checking out the animals in between shots. I even convinced Jay to take a few family shots, and I think everyone left happy.

Plans, plans, plans!

We still have a lot to do before we're back in the states! Tomorrow I fly to the states for Lizard's wedding in Myrtle Beach, SC. Just me, since Jay wasn't able to take leave to come with me so he'll be back here with Hayden and Oscar. I leave Thursday and am back in Germany by 7am Tuesday...whirlwind trip! I fly into Charlotte and am not even heading to Greensboro because there isn't time!

I get back on Jay's birthday, and hope to have a fun day with him on Tuesday. The big 2-6! He's more excited about moving home, so he may even forget about his birthday! That Friday we have our annual Halloween party with our friends, despite the fact that all the husbands aren't home yet. But not too much longer! We expect them to return in time to see them before we go, so here's hoping!

We pack up UB on Oct 30th and then of course, trick or treating for Halloween the next night! Hayden is going to be a Tyrannosaurus Rex! He's got the roar down pat, and we got his costume in the mail yesterday. It's so cute and perfect, I just hope he'll keep the head on! Into November Jay will be going through the clearing process to leave, and we'll just be doing what we do. Hayden turns 2 on November 15th so we're planning a small birthday party for him the weekend prior. My last day of work is November 17th, Hayden's last day at school is November 18th and we fly on November 20th! We'll be back in the states in time for Thanksgiving with Jay's family in Virginia, then a quick trip to NYC before heading home to find an apartment and settle in for our new lives as civilians. We can't wait!

Packing up

Time is flying by as we prepare for our return to the states! They packed up our household goods on Sept 30th which was quite the adventure. The Army contracts movers to come in and pack everything up, which is nice because it saves us the trouble. Also, anything we pack isn't covered by the Army so if it gets broken, we're out of luck! But everything packed by the movers is covered. Jay was walking out the door to take Hayden to school as the movers arrived, so the first hour was definitely the most stressful. We had separated some things out to not be packed and wouldn't you know it, those were the first to be packed! Once we rescued the "PCS box", the passports and my work clothes, we were good to go.

 Holy cow did we have a lot of stuff! We didn't come over with much, but four plus years in a foreign country when you add in a dog and a baby adds a lot to what you own! We didn't want to just toss Hayden's clothes when he outgrew them since we're planning to have more kids, so there's all that. Plus every baby toy he ever played with. Then there's the clothes and dishes, the keepsakes from our travels, the books and DVDs we picked up and the scrapbooks I've completed. Did I mention the new furniture and the antiques? We were amazed at how much stuff we had! The movers did a great job and we tried to keep them happy with food and of course, by staying out of their way!

That evening we slept on our air mattress and Hayden enjoyed running around in our furniture-free house. The next day they dropped off government furniture, so now our house looks a lot like it did when we got here in 2006! It's definitely challenging to cook the things we're used to with limited kitchen ware, and we only have four forks so there's always dishes to be done! It's kind of nice to live simply, and it made us realize we have a lot to throw out once it all gets to our house! We've held on to a lot of stuff that we really can do without, and less is definitely more in our house! I kept a few dvds, a few books and some scrapbooking stuff and it seems like we have more time to do the things we enjoy when there's not as much other stuff hanging around.

Speaking of scrapbooking, I have finally FINALLY finished Hayden's one year album! And just two months shy of his second birthday :-) I have a few things to work on for his next book, and I'm mid-October 2009 in our family album. I'm hoping to be finished with 2009 before we leave here, but that remains to be seen!

The next step is to ship our car, which is made much easier by having our 2nd car that will be sold just before we leave here. That way we can ship the good car early and have it waiting on us when we get home. That should be done next week, and then our unaccompanied baggage goes on October 30th. UB consists of the things we need here longer and need sooner in the states, like our air mattress, one of the TVs, Hayden's crib and a few kitchen items. We've thrown away a lot, recycled a lot and taken a lot of things to the Thrift Shop for consignment. It's starting to happen!

A weekend away

Thanks to our good friends the Bakers, Jay and I got to spend a weekend away in Paris! We spent the night at Ramstein and got to stay in the new KMCC, which has a new hotel with fancy rooms. No kids allowed, which is why we've never set foot in it up until this point. We enjoyed a little dinner at Mac Grill, a movie at 8:30 (wow!) and dessert in the room. Not a bad start to our vacation!

We got up early and headed to Paris. We've now decided there's never a good time to drive into or out of Paris, but we still had a good time. We got checked into our hotel, did a bit of exploring and enjoyed a lazy, leisurely afternoon walking around the city of love. We toured the Louvre and the Pantheon, and barely missed the catacombs; they stopped taking people in while we were in line.  I even had time for a bubble bath before we went to the Eiffel Tower! These are things a working mom only dreams of. We had 9pm reservations for the tower, so we took an evening stroll to see it, all lit up and pretty. We made our way to the third level, despite my recent fear of all things cable car, and were nearly ONE THOUSAND feet above solid ground at the top. Insane! It was pretty amazing to see the city all lit up at night, and to be doing it without the fear of my toddler tumbling over the side. There are just some things kids are not meant for; mainly, moms with overactive imagination.

On Sunday we set out to visit the beaches of Normandy, which did not end as we expected. We got very close, but after a day of train travel, we arrived an hour after the buses stopped running. Any other means of transportation would have made us miss the last train back to Paris, so we turned around and went right back. Another reminder that in travel, it's not the destination but the adventure you have along the way and who you have it with! We made it to the Hard Rock and after a midnight stroll down the Champs Elysees, managed to catch the very last subway and bus back to our hotel. A little luck was nice after our long day.

Meanwhile, Hayden had a blast with the Baker girls! Despite an impending ear infection, he had a blast traveling and even went to a football game! The girls spoil him with love and attention, and I'm certain he didn't miss us at all! After we picked him up he fell asleep instantly in the car and slept the whole way home. I think this may officially end our travels in Europe, as we're about to leave! We pack our household goods and ship our car soon, and we'll be back in the states for good just in time for Thanksgiving! We have had an amazing four years here, but we're ready to get back to the good ol' USA!

Potty progress, and other things Hayden

I swear Hayden grew 3 inches while I was gone! I was in Mainz Kastel for training for my job and Jay & Hayden were left up to their own devices from Sunday to Friday. I came home early Friday afternoon, stopped by the house and Jay & I went to the commissary and to pick up Hayden. While he recognized me and hugged me immediately, it was clear that I had missed out on some serious boy bonding time as Hayden ran straight to his dad. It was strange to be without either of them all week, and school was exhausting so it was nice to get home to my boys.

Hayden is making leaps and bounds in the potty department! He went poop on the potty every day this weekend and is getting really good at telling us when he needs to go. He usually pees at least twice a day at home, and sometimes at daycare. We are so proud of the progress he's made and are continually amazed at what he can do.

He's working on multi-syllable words, phrases and practicing what he already knows in the vocabulary department. He's got "not nice" and "go 'way" down pat; we tell him something was not nice when he's being ugly to Oscar or us for instance, and he tells us to go away when we're keeping him from getting into trouble, also known as something he wants to do. Typical toddler behavior, but man if it isn't still cute! He gets better by the day at using utensils to eat and big boy cups in his chair. Where did my baby go?

Last weekend we took Hayden to "his" first movie, as in, one that was for him and not just one he tagged along for. We went to see Toy Story 3. Hayden has a Toy Story toybox and dinosaur flashlight, so we figured he'd recognize the characters. I think he enjoyed about the first 45 minutes, shouting "Ah-guh" (Oscar) when he first saw the dog. After that he just wanted to play in and out of the doors, crawl on the floor, etc. so we left a little early. But not bad for our first attempt at a movie with our almost-two-year-old. He loved the popcorn though!

Channel hoppers

Last weekend we took our very first visit to London! We were excited to get away for the weekend, especially to somewhere they speak English! We flew Ryan Air for the first time, which is one of Europe's low-cost airlines. Not a bad way to travel for three of us, definitely saved us about $200 on tickets. We headed out early Friday morning to drop off Oscar at the farm and head to Frankfurt Hahn. We arrived, in the rain, and found parking after about 20 minutes. 20 euro for the whole weekend? Yes please! Only because the 10 euro lot was full. We headed in, checked my bag (hey, it was for me AND Hayden, I couldn't carry on), checked our passports and got through security seamlessly. An hour-ish wait and we were on the plane!

Hayden was a lap child for this flight, and did very well in his special seatbelt attached to daddy's. One quick hour and we were landing in London. Most excitingly, they still stamp passports in the UK so Jay got his first stamp (!) and Hayden and I got one as well.  We figured out the train pretty quickly and took the 40 minute ride to London proper at the advice of some friends that had flown into London Stansted before. Thanks Jaime! Once at Liverpool Street station, finding our hotel was a bit tricky but as usual we prevailed. By 4pm we were checked into our hotel and unpacking. Well, two of us were; one of us was jumping on the bed. Three guesses.

After our long day of travel, we decided against much sightseeing and opted instead for dinner across the street at a cute little pub. I had fish & chips, Jay had chicken and a Guinness and Hayden had a blast! We got in bed early and woke up early to our little alarm clock (Hayden) at 5am. Breakfast was a wonderful event in the hotel and Hayden enjoyed baked beans with his breakfast. Silly Brits. We took the Overground to the Underground to get our train tickets and soon were on our way to Salisbury in southern England.  While waiting for our train, we did get our first glimpses at the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, the Thames river and the London Eye. The weather in London was gloomy and wet but we were pleasantly surprised by the sunshine in Salisbury.

Our first stop was the bus stop, literally, to Stonehenge! We rode through the town of Salisbury on a bus with commentary to fill us in on the history. We were dropped off at Stonehenge and fast-tracked through the line to get in. What a magnificent place to visit! Hard to imagine that these stones have been around for thousands of years and are still in pretty good condition. Hayden enjoyed a little run through the grass and took our audio guides to talk on the "whoa" or the phone. After taking as many pictures as possible we headed back to the bus and went to Salisbury.

Salisbury is home to a 13th century cathedral and also the best of the four surviving copies of the Magna Carta. We weren't allowed to photograph it, but it was amazing to see. The cathedral has the tallest spire in England, and the spire itself is actually leaning 29 inches to the west! No worries, it doesn't look like it will fall any time soon. It was beautiful inside and out, and the grounds were full of people just enjoying the August sunshine.

We awoke early Sunday to take our trek around the city. By then, we were pretty good at the Underground even with its construction and re-routes. We headed to the Big Bus to take the tour, and Hayden fell asleep in about 20 minutes. We toured London and Westminster with another set of audio guides, and got to see most of the big sites. We stopped off at Buckingham Palace to see the famous guards, but missed the changing of the guard as it only happens every other day from spring to fall. We went to the Hard Rock for lunch, and headed to the Tower of London. There we saw the 1000-year-old White Tower as well as the rest of the fortress. We also got to see the Crown Jewels of the royal family and boy was I disappointed that this was another photography-prohibited site. They were amazing! Glittery and sparkly and gold and jeweled...my kind of place!

After the Tower we headed down to the pier to take a cruise down the Thames River. We saw some great views of Tower Bridge, the London Eye, Shakespeare's Globe Theater and much more. We were heading to see Westminster Abbey when Hayden got a little sick, so we decided to end our tour for the day and head back to the hotel room.

For our last morning, we got up and packed and ate breakfast and headed to the nearby Abbey Road, made famous by the Beatles. I walked across the intersection along with the rest of the tourists, and that made our trip complete. Soon we were making the return journey back to the hotel, the train station, the airport, the parking lot and finally, home! We had an amazing weekend and I wish we had enough time left in Europe to go back!

A trip down memory lane

Normally, my blogs are about the recent past. But today I'd like to talk about the not-so-recent past.

Ten years ago this weekend, I moved my stuff into Salem College. More correctly, several cheerful and helpful orientation leaders moved my stuff in, and all I carried was my purse. I remember about 100 things about that day, a day that would literally change my life. Two months ago, I didn't get nostalgic about the fact that I'd graduated high school ten years ago. I feel like what really made me who and where I am today started ten years ago this weekend.

I remember Jen Pounders, carrying her purple cinder blocks with the fish painted on them. I knew instantly that was someone I would be friends with.  I remember Monique Farrell and the rest of the seniors, looking impossibly grown up and thinking there's no way I'd look like them in four years. I remember meeting my roommate for the first time, and seeing Kelly Delaney bounce from person to person, introducing herself. I remember the first look at my new dorm room and wondering how I could share a room so small. I remember meeting my "hall advisor"(now known as RA's) Piper Williams and feeling instantly comfortable. I remember meeting Shirley Southerland and thinking wow, this old lady does not know what she's gotten herself into with all these wild girls.

I remember standing on Clewell patio with Susan Jacobs, the one person I knew on that campus other than a girl that I went to high school with. We stood and talked, and met a new friend, Courtney Barron. Courtney was pissed that her mom made her wear a skirt, and after that day I only ever saw her in Abercrombie running pants and a ponytail. Susan still had her long, multicolored hair and years later I would find out that the sight of us terrified Heidi Schneble. I remember meeting Nan Tilley, the sweetest and most wonderful lady that would guide us through our first year. I remember being in awe of the amazingness that was Staci Lewis, a feeling that I would get for the next two years every time I saw her.

It seems impossible that this happened ten years ago, because I could swear it happened yesterday. I knew instantly that to be a Gramley girl was going to be something special. I had no way of knowing that, even with all the people I'd met, I hadn't yet met Liz Smith and Katie Burge, and how important that would be. I didn't know Lizard, but I heard she won a dance contest in her first 24 hours on campus. My roommate and I didn't work out but seven years later, we reconnected and became friends again. Girls came and went, for a semester or a year. Eventually we all moved away from Gramley (some of us after a second year) and one day we were all seniors, wearing caps and gowns and saying goodbye to our dorm rooms for the last time. But it all started ten years ago this weekend, and I can't imagine where I'd be today if a single thing were different that Saturday morning.

"And sing we of Salem ever,
As proudly her name we bear..."