Me 'n Taylor

I love country music. I love the lyrics and the melodies and the sing-along-ableness(?) and the combination of it all put together.

So a couple months ago when I knew the kiddos and I would be traveling to the states for a quick visit I decided to spend some of my birthday money on a new CD (what am I, ten?). I chose Taylor Swift's Fearless album (repeat: what am I, ten?).

I have no shame.

Now, the beauty of living overseas and being waaaaay behind on music and movies is that we can buy other people's 'old' music and and movies that have been out for years and it still feels brand new and cutting edge to us cause we haven't heard the songs played a trazillion times on WNCI.

So, I happily did some online shopping, dropped Taylor Swift's album (the special edition with DVD! Hooray!) into my virtual shopping cart, paid a few bucks for it, sent it off to my parent's house and got excited to listen to it when I would arrive on American soil.

One bad thing about living in a city of four or more million people is that I don't get to drive around for long amounts of time on country roads in a comfortable well-climate controlled vehicle with a CD player and decent speakers. I think we have a radio in our vehicle, but what do I want to listen to?... Arabic news?  Middle Eastern disco tunes?

Um. No thanks.

Sometimes I do grab my iPod and portable speakers, throw them up on the dash and try to imagine the long car ride in a comfortable well-climate controlled vehicle with a CD player and decent speakers. But I never can quite imagine away all the traffic jams, staring men and clouds of pollution and turn them into gorgeous trees, open country roads and fresh crisp air.

But in the U.S., I didn't need to imagine any of it. It was real.

Wow. This story is waaaaay longer than I planned.

Can you believe I'm not to my point yet?

Actually, I don't know if you could actually say that this post has a 'point.' Can you call something a 'point' if it is trivial, silly and useless?

Aghh. Who cares.

Getting on with it...

Me and Taylor rode everywhere together. I must have listened to that album fifty times.

Wait. Let me check that math.

50 x approx. 79 mins = 65.8 hours of listening

Hhhmmmm. That's probably a little high. But I think you get the point. I drove a LOT. And if I was driving, I was listening to her (me) singing. Or me mumbling along with her singing. I never did quite get all the lyrics down. But I tried... oh I tried! At one point in a moment filled with hope I did turn on the radio. After five minutes I became frustrated at the amount of commericials and remained faithful to my CD from that point on out.

Anyway, I loved all my drives with Taylor. There is something about that open road, about good music, about tall trees and a comfortable seat that is so refreshing and freeing and wonderful. It's a privilege to enjoy those things. I enjoyed every moment and hopefully I didn't harm my children's tiny ear drums in the process. I never did ask them what they would like to listen too...

I love that music has the ability to transport me, to conjure up feelings that have been absent a long time, or even feelings that I never really had in the first place. Singing along, I was fifteen again taking a big breath before walking through the doors of the high school for the first time. I was having flashbacks of getting pebbles thrown at my window, of a first kiss, of feeling geeky in the bleachers and remembering when I was told 'forever and always'...

Music brings up what's inside. It brings the raw and the honest and the beautiful to the surface. I like that about music. I like that about Taylor.

The Journey Home

It seems that it takes me awhile to get around to posting about our long plane journeys.

I think that is cause it takes me awhile to get my feet underneath me. And get them steady. At least partially steady.

Oy Vey.

I mentioned that my girlie wasn't quite herself as we were leaving. But I assured you that we'd make it. Failure was not an option. Well, I was right. We made it.

Just barely.

We did arrive stinky. And sick. But somehow I managed to avoid grumpy. Don't ask me how. Okay, do ask me. The answer is Jesus.

Turns out my baby girl was just at the beginning of her sickness as we flew out of U.S. airspace. And we know now that she had/has a nasty virus. That would explain why she puked during our journey. Twice. And it would also explain the increased diarrhea. I can't even count how many diapers I changed. Sometimes I would literally just have finished changing her in the tiny bathroom at the back of the plane, 'excuse me-ed' my way all the way back down the aisle of economy class, squeezed back into my seat with my girlie in my lap, smell something funny, take a deep breath to calm myself (well, not too deep... it's stinky, remember), tell H that I had to go change N's diaper again, listen to him say "again Mommy?", say "Yes, again.", stand back up, 'excuse-me' my way back to the lavatory at the end of the plane and change her again.

She was really sick.



Here she is during our layover in Frankfurt.



This is how she looked the whole way. So tired. So weak. So sick.



She's not blinking here. This is just the way her eyes looked. So sad.

I was getting worried. Good thing we were almost home at that point. I use the term 'almost' loosely, considering we still had a couple hours of layover, five hours on the last plane and a ridiculous amount of time waiting to get through passport control in our city.

Oh, AND she broke her second tooth on the airplane. So now that makes two teeth for her. And she broke them both on long airplane rides. What is with that? Someday when she can understand what I'm saying I'm gonna tell her how not cool that was.

I'm not gonna lie... the whole ordeal was pretty challenging and stretching for me. I kinda laughed about it all at some points. A little. I also cried.



In other news, H did great. Here he is enjoying his fave airport activity... watching out the window! We talked a lot about all the various kinds of trucks and tractors and buses and planes and carts, etc that there are to see! It's a small boy's dream come true to see all so many forms of transportation all in one place and one time.



And here is is snoozing on the last flight. He's so cute all curled up in ball. I was so thankful he slept.

Anyway, we made it. But by the time we were home at 2am on Wednesday, it had been days since sweet N had eaten or drank anything and kept it inside. Not good. She was so weak I was getting really scared.

We had her at the doctor later the same day. That is when he told us she had a virus and that there was no medicine for her. And that if she didn't get re-hydrated we'd have to admit her to the hospital.

Oh no.

We really wanted to avoid that.

SO... we got as much Oral Rehydration Solution in her as we could for the next twenty-four hours. She still isn't eating much, but she did give us a couple smiles last night, have some wet diapers and eat approximately seven cheerios. So I think she's just starting to bounce back.

Whew!

I think we'll stay here for awhile.

:)

Here We Go Again

This afternoon (and evening and night and morning and afternoon and evening) we are flying home!

We have enjoyed every moment we have spent in the States. As you probably noticed, we have done many special and fun things and spent time with many who love us!

It's been wonderful. Simply glorious.

I am returning home with a full heart, full suitcases and an eagerness to get the kids back on a schedule and get settled back into life as we know it.

AND I can't WAIT to see my Mikey. I haven't mentioned how much we have missed him during this time.

Boy. Have we missed him?!! Ohmygoodness. Yes!

I'm so excited that he'll be waiting for us in the airport in a day and a half. I get kinda giddy thinking about seeing him again!

But before I get to see him, I have to take the kiddos on three more flights.

I was feeling fine about this. Excited, even.

'Was' is the important word in the previous sentence. Did you catch that?



This girlie was grinning and happy two days ago. See?

But yesterday she pooped up to her armpits twice. And she was lethargic and sleepy and floppy and sad.

Oh no.

I think all the sweet baby girl's food is going right through her. Or at least what she previously ate has gone right through her. Now she refuses more than three drops of milk. She doesn't even want Gerber Strawberry Kiwi Puffs - and those things are like candy.

I think she might be trying to get some more teeth pushed through. Or maybe she has a stomach bug. Or maybe...

I actually don't know what is wrong with her. But we're gonna go for it anyway.

Poor thing.

Now, don't worry about us. A few prayers would be nice. But I'm still not too worried. We'll make it. We'll be just fine.

The way I figure... failure is not an option, right? No one is gonna kick us off the plane or anything. Even if we arrive stinky and grumpy and sick - we'll still arrive.

And that is the goal.

:)

See ya on the other side!

Pet Peeve

Why can't coffee served in this country be hot?

It's too many lawsuits, isn't it?

Each time an establishment is sued for a burn from their hot beverage, do they take the temperature down five degrees or something?



Cause this coffee from Tim Hortons was just warm. Like, luke-warm.

I blame that lady who sued McDonalds years ago when she spilled her coffee on herself and got burned. She won. And then McDonalds paid her millions of dollars.

And now I have to drink luke-warm coffee.

Boo.

Romp 'N Stomp

Earlier this week we went up to visit Aunt Julie and Uncle Curt in Medina. We had a great time at the cheerleading competition... where Medina won!! Whoo-hooo! (Sorry no pictures of that.)

And the next day the kids were treated to a couple hours at Romp 'N Stomp!!



Think bouncy-paradise meets a glorified-library-story-time!

It was so fun!

But don't take my word for it.

Let me prove it.



Baby girl loved the 'just her size' ball pit...



See?



H had four big bouncy 'things' to play on.



This was his fave... the big slide.



He'd climb up like a champ,



slide on down,



and fall into the pit at the bottom.

He'd land happy.

Every time.

Then he'd climb up and slide down.

Again and again and again.



N still happy in another 'just her size' play area.



"Playtona Speedway"

Ha!



After an hour bouncing, there was circle time!



The letter of the day was 'I'... they learned about igloos, iguanas and ice cream.



Thank you Aunt Julie!!

H's 3rd Birthday Party

The paper cups are cleaned up. The hot cider mugs are washed. The leftovers are in the fridge. The streamers are torn down. The house is quiet.

The party is over.

But my heart is full!

You'd like to see some pictures? I thought so. Even though I took 131, I'll only post a few. Candid shots of big parties are not generally blog-post worthy. Usually someone is mid-word or has a fork halfway to their mouth or is only showing the back of their head or has their fly down.

Alright. So no one had their fly down.

Wait. I have one exception to 'no big-party-candid-shot' rule. The exception is my cousin Jen.



Isn't she looking so photogenic for a candid? Is it technically a candid if she is looking at the camera and smiling? Maybe not. But I still award her best candid shot for the evening. Congratulations! And her prize is her picture posted on my blog. Her second prize is the leftover birthday cake. I'll ship it to her in the mail. I'm certain she's a-gonna LOVE that. Or not.

;)

Okay. Moving on. Or moving backwards.

Oh wait.

First let me show you one more.



Me and Dave. You know... my brother in law with the new (used) heart. Doesn't he look great?!

I know!!

Okay. Now I'm moving on. 'On' as in backwards...

Here's my boy before the house filled up. I'm gonna be honest and admit that I meticulously arranged this photo shoot to include the cake and card and the streamers and balloons and my boy. I spent quite awhile on it. Just ask my Dad and my Father-in-law. They watched me and quite possibly thought I was going a bit overboard.

But I think it was worth it...



He's the cutest!

And do you like that cake?

Speaking of meticulous...



This took some time.



But this was also worth it! I think it turned out so cute. I call it "Thomas the Racing Airplane".

Cause it kinda looks like Thomas the Train, it has racing stripes and numbers and it's an airplane.

Did I need to explain that?

I dunno.



Here's one more for those of you in cyberspace who were wishing on a star that you'd see one more shot of the birthday boy and the cake from just a slightly different angle.

You got it.



I'm a proud Mama.



I don't know what the finger in the mouth is about. This is when approximately forty of our closest family members were singing to my boy.

By the way... whoever was singing harmony... you sounded great! I always appreciate a good harmony.

:)



Huff and puff!



Blowing them out! (I helped.)



I asked him which piece he's like. He chose to eat the H! (I edited his name out).

It was such fun! We had a house full. With a capital FULL. I loved it! H loved it too. I'm fairly certain he is an extrovert like his Mama.

I love you H! The last three years have been wonderful, I am so blessed and honored to have you as my boy.

Happy Birthday!

Abbra-ca-dabra!

or as my boy says:

"Apple-doodoo-dada"

"Apple-da-poppi"

"Apple-ki-mama"

"Abba-ta-mama"

"Apple-da-dada"

"Abba-ga-mama"

"Apple-di-gabga"

Say those 5 times fast. Ha!

I do believe he had a great time! Thanks Grammi!

Magic

As we speak As I type, These two are off on a date. Maybe 'honey-date' if you would ask my boy.



They are at Disney Live! Mickey's Magic Show. In fact, this very moment they are probably oohing and aahing at Princess Jasmine levitating. Or Donald Duck jumping out of a locked cage. Or singing along to "It's a Small World After All" waving their arms in the air.

Who knows really what they are doing?

Everything I know, I learned from the internet.

See?



I have to resort to these methods cause I wasn't invited.

Humph.

;)

Meanwhile... can you guess what I'm doing? (Okay, I'm blogging. Duh. You got me there. But I mean what I was doing BEFORE I sat down to blog about what I was doing?)



Uh huh. Baking.

I am magically trying to transform



this



and this



and this



and this into a fun airplane birthday cake for my boy.

Check back later this weekend for final results.



P.S. This was my lunch.

Quote of the Day

This morning my boy and I were snuggling and chatting a bit. I've missed this lately.

I told him (like I mentioned in the previous post) that he is one of the best things that ever happened to me.

He liked that.

And then... you ready? This is where it gets good...

He told me "You da best ging dat eev-er happened ta ME!"

Wow. Now that is a good feeling.

Three Years Old

Today my boy is three years old.

Three?

Three!!!

I can hardly believe it.

Three year olds are, like, kids. They're babies no longer. *wiping tears*

Also... moms of three year olds are, like, old. No offense other Moms of three years olds or older. You know what I mean.

Aaaanyway...

I have been thinking about it and I think I can honestly say that these last three years have been the best of my life. Never have I had so much joy in my heart since I gave birth to this incredible little boy.

I tell H daily that he is one of the best things that has ever happened to me. And he knows it. If I ask him "Do you know what H?" He acts all silly, gets a goofy knowing grin on his face and says "Nooooooo." Then I say "Yes you do!" and he says "I da best ging dat eev-er happened to ya."

My heart melts.

Every time.

Just like it does when I look at this photo of him...



...as a wee newborn. Okay. He was wee compared to grown-up humans but not so wee compared to other newborns.

Do you wanna hear the story of how he got stuck on the way out?

Didn't think so.

Okay. Maybe another day.



And on his first birthday. Ohmygoodness.



And as he turned two. Wait. Wasn't this picture just taken last week?

Where has time gone?



And now. My little man.

Oh how I love him.

Halloween!!

Before I officially begin this post, I feel the need to warn my virtual readers that this post is not for the weak. The weary. The bleary eyed. The sleepy. The inpatient. Or the easily bored.

It's a doozie. There are enough pictures to bore anyone besides a dear grandparent or auntie.

So either take a deep breath and settle in for awhile or just skip it altogether and move onto another website to see how your stock did today.

Okay?

Now you can't say I didn't warn you.

*** Post Officially Beginning***

I was so excited that our U.S. trip lined up with Halloween!!

You already know that all things fall are fun for me! So of course I was thrilled about putting my kiddos in costumes, visiting the pun'kin patch, riding in a hay wagon and taking them out to beg candy off strangers.

Sunday was the day!



This is Lehner's farm. Lehner's farm filled with all things 'harvesty.'



Like wagons and pun'kins, and *gasp* lions and unicorns?

Wow. That is one magical farm, wouldn't you say?

Fancy seeing them here!



Grandma managed to catch herself a pink fuzzy unicorn and hold her down for a photo shoot on a bench carved from logs with a red barn and pun'kins in the background. How harvesty!



And Grandpa put H in the bouncy farm(?).

Also very harvesty!



Boing. Boing. Boing.

*grin*

Kid + Anything bouncy = Happy



Cute little lion climbing through a bouncy barrel (?).

Harvesty? Not sure.

But still cute.



HAYRIDE!!

Yes. I was wearing a hat. And gloves. To my delight the air was a bit chilly!



I took about a hundred photographs of my kids to try to get 'the one.'

And I got one 'one' of each of them. This is Sweet N's 'one.'



and here is H's 'one.'

And now I'll show you the other ninety-eight. Just for fun.

Just kidding.

Wow. Now that would make me psycho.

Instead I'll show you three of my boy feeding the goats.



Twenty-five cents for a handful of goat candy?

Yes!



The goats were most interested, and my boy wasn't scared even when they licked him all over.



Well, okay. Not really all over. Just his hands.



Weren't you hoping I'd post another one of the furry pink unicorn?

You got your wish.

I guess maybe I got two of 'the one' photos of my girl.

Wait. Does that even make sense?

Ugh. You know what I mean.



Then we went home for a short while before the appointed time for the begging to begin.

N had a snack. Unicorn was trying to get herself a bite too.



And H and Grandpa carved pun'kins!

This picture was taken before the power tools came out.

I'm not joking.



Yay! Time for trick or treat! Grammi and Poppi chaperoned the first trip around the block. It took forty-five minutes. Extra large city block you wonder? Nope. Normal block. Just some short little lion legs.



H would 'rroooaaar' at most candy-passer-outers.

It. Was. Adorable.



Speaking of adorable...

Don't worry. I knew you'd be ready to see another picture of the unicorn. So I pre-empted your request by just going ahead to post another one.

I know you so well...



He loved the ghosts. I'm not sure how I feel about this as a parent. Whatever.



It was super funny watching H try to grab candy with his little lion mits on.

Don't worry. He always succeeded.



Running running running!



"Are you coming guys?"



Still running!



"Oooohhhh. What's dat?"



"It's Frankenstein. Can you say 'Frankenstein'?"

"No."



Short pause from the unnecessarily long coverage of the lion and the unicorn to bring you an attempt at creative photography by moi.

Do you like it?

I do.

Please note the bokeh.

What? You don't know what bokeh is? Don't worry. I didn't either until the Pioneer Woman explained it to me.

What? You don't know who the Pioneer Woman is?

C'mon people.

Google 'em.

Back to the unnecessarily long coverage...



Oh! And here's our pun'kins after dark. Notice the perfectly round holes in the pun'kin on the right?

Uh huh. That's where those power tools came in. You've never held such a hard pun'kin in all your life.

Seriously.



Okay! We're done begging! Look at the loot!



Now comes my favorite part.



Dumping,



surveying



and organizing! Can you believe all that chocolate? These were not stingy candy-passer-outers!

Recession shmecession.



And the final picture. My girlie just before she ate Nerds and Swedish Fish.

Just kidding.

I did not feed my daughter candy. There wasn't any left.

*burp*

;)