~Nick's November China Trip~

On again, Nick got to fly away to China.  He tells me that most of his time was spent in meetings, but came back with pictures to prove that he did get out of the office and have a good time.  Maybe someday Nick will add his own captions to these pictures, but for now you will have to do with mine. 

Nick outside the Forbidden City. 

 Terra Cotta warrior replics?  They were miniature size, but still very very cool from what he has told me.

 Now that is a big bell.

 Nick with his awesome boss, Bob Bahr.  Bob has been such a great mentor for Nick these past four years.  They seem to work well together and get along really well. It makes me happy that Nick works with such good, ethical people.

 The lion is looking down on Nick, ready to eat him.

 Handsome Nick with some super cool sculptures and roofs.

 That stone carving is amazing...

 Rock garden.

 Golden Dragon ceiling... You can tell I have watched Kungfoo Panda one to many times when I start looking for the dragon scroll in his mouth.  

Another fabulous picture.  The architecture is so interesting and the attention to detail is impressive.

A "clear skies" day in Beijing.  Wow.

I look at these pictures and can't help but wish I could be right there with him on his next exciting trip to China.  Sigh.  Maybe someday.

~November~

Where did November go?  I feel like Halloween was last week.  Probably because I'm blocking out my memories from most of the month.  Yeah.  Honestly, November wasn't all that great.  We spent the first half of the month in our pajamas all day at home sick.

 We drank A LOT of gatorade and ate very little.  I washed a ridiculous amount of laundry and bleached my bathroom like crazy.  Despite it all I still got really sick and spent about a week trying to get back my steam.

 In the mix of all this sickness we had our first snow fall of the season.  Elyssa was actually feeling better at this point and would have gone to school that day, but school was cancelled!  Cancelled for that little bit of snow?  No.  The snow and ice took down some powerlines and there was no power at our house or at the school.  Lyssa bundled up and headed outside to play.  I was glad she was so excited about the snow.  Someone should be excited even if it's not me, right?  It was a real bummer for her when she came in asking for hot chocolate and got a great lesson about electricity... and how most of our house runs on it. 

 Have I told you Cordy love books?  She REALLY love books and spends a fair amount of her day sitting in front of the bookcase.  Her very favorite book is "Hand Hand Fingers Thumb".  She carries it around everywhere she goes like a lovie.  Though she loves books, she won't sit through most of them, but she'll spend a lot of time pouring over them by herself!

 Cordy also really turned her crawling and teeter tottering around the house into a full blown walk now!  She rarely crawls, and gets into EVERYTHING.  I turn my back for a second and she is emptying my tupperwear cupboard, or on this particular day, my plastic bags.  You've been caught red handed, Curious little girl!

I really did try to start the month off on a positive note, joining the facebook world posting daily gratitudes, but after weeks of being sick and Nick going on an international adventure without me, I just kind of lost my steam.  

While Nick was away we all got nasty coughs and Alec decided to start sleeping like a newborn.  Not cool.  Everyone was sleep deprived and by the end of the week I was spent.  I hired the first teenage sitter my kids have ever had just so I could go to the Saturday adult session of Stake Conference.  I needed that little get away and despite my anxiety the kids were just fine.  :-)  

I opted out of our two hour Stake Conference Sunday meeting, knowing Cordy was exhausted and desperately needed her nap.  She had a rough night cutting a giant big front tooth.  (Yeah for THREE teeth instead of two!)  It also happened to be my seventh anniversary that day, and all I wanted to do was relax, and make cookies with my kids.  Thanks to two video chats with my parents, kind friends who invited us over at the last minute for dinner, and a little bit of cold medicine (so my hacking almost five year old could get some sleep), it turned out to be a decent day.  See, I was the nice mom that day!  I even let the kids do my hair....

I know there is much to be thankful for.  I know there is always someone who has it worse off than I do.  I'm not trying to complain.  I'm just trying to keep it real, and it was just kind of a lousy month.  

So yeah, November was what it was... and next month is guaranteed to be much better. :-)

~I'm so glad when Daddy comes home!~

It was a beautiful 70 degrees at 8 o'clock in the morning Sunday.  Our windows and doors were wide open.  The sun was shining, a light breeze was blowing, the grass was green, and the birds were all out singing their good morning songs to the world.  

If all that wasn't enough to make us crazy excited we were also excitedly anticipating the homecoming of Daddy dearest after his 10 day trip to Brazil... again.  (My sister and I figured out that between all the trips for work and our Costa Rica vacation Nick has been out of the country 25% of the year thus far. Fun for him. Yuck for me.)

The kids were running around the deck, jumping, dancing, squealing with excitement at the prospect of Daddy's arrival.  It was perfect that I could send them out on the back deck in their jammies to release their excess excitement and energy.

 In the past my mom or sister has come out to help me or I have taken the kids out to Utah when Nick is gone for business trips, but this year I cared for the troops all by my lonesome.  I must admit it wasn't always easy.  In fact, the kids sure gave me a run for my money early on in the week, fighting with each other, being destructive, and testing my patience.  I didn't get near enough sleep and when we weren't playing or eating with friends we ate a lot of "snack" dinners.  Some days we were all a little grumpy and looked like this...

Sweet Cordy baby seemed to have a particularly harder time with Nick being gone this time around.  She has always loved her Dad, but she really seemed to sense he was gone and I could tell she missed him terribly.  When we were able to do a video chat with Nick she practically jumped out of my arms trying to get to Nick through the screen.  She sure loves her Daddy, and cried a lot when he was gone.

After checking what time Nick's flight left Chicago we watched the sky and sure enough got to see Nick's UA plane fly overhead on it's way into the airport.  You should have seen our excitement!

We're so glad our Daddy came home!  

Glad as we can be!

We all sure do love you, Nick!

~When Daddy's Away the Monkeys Will Play!~

Nick spent more of February in warm climates than Iowa, with 10 days in Brazil and 7 days in Mexico.  I tried really hard not to be jealous or bitter.  :-)  It was the first time I've been completely alone with all three kiddos, and I must admit I was nervous.  How was I supposed to meet all their needs day and night, let alone deal with snowy weather, going to the store, keeping up on the house, etc.  I decided this was going to be an experience to earn my Mommy Stripes.

Turns out the first 10 days were way easier than I had planned.  We felt so blessed and so very loved as we received one dinner invitation after another.  Add in a girls night and a movie night with our home teachers family and there wasn't a single night for me to sit at home feeling sorry for myself.  The night before Nick got home I wept as I thought of the kindness and generosity of so many for my little family.   We really do live the good life here in Iowa.

Nick's second trip out of town wasn't as fun for us.  The kids had a harder time with him leaving because he had just been gone!  Elyssa was particularly offended by his departure.  To add insult to injury all three kids were sick practically the entire time he was gone.  I was up two or three times every night with Cordy and recieved a few late night wake up calls from Alec as well.  Still we trudged on and made due, and though we couldn't go anywhere we still felt extremely loved and supported by our dear Iowa friends/family.  

Alec was particularly helpful both times that Nick was away.  He really stepped up his game as a big helper around the house and with his sisters.  I was totally amazed at the things he was willing to do and the effort he put forth to make things easier and happier around here.  He's such a sweet big brother and such a wonderful help, especially with poor little sicky Cordelia. 

Now don't get the idea that it was all survival mode while Nick was away.  We really did have lots of fun, even when we couldn't play with friends.  We had picnic snack dinners in the basement, we played games, read books, had tickle wars, took silly pictures and played with lots of fun toys.  We had a couple days where we watched way too much TV and spent the day in our pajamas.  We got in a good bedtime groove and Alec even figured out how to pour his own milk into his cereal bowl.  All that being said, we were still THRILLED to have Nick come home.  It was just icing on the cake that he always brought presents.  

Welcome Home, Nick!  

Take a load off and stay a while, okay? 

Pretty please?

~Mother's Day was Good to Me~

I went to Chicago for mother's day weekend with a group of girlfriends, and felt totally spoiled.

I left the Nikon at home and let everyone else take the pictures this time.  We ate amazing food.  In fact Pizzaria Uno's pesto four cheese pizza may be one of the best pizza's I've ever eaten.  Melting Pot's cheese course and chocolate dessert may be one of my favorite meals ever, and Ed Debevic's chilli cheese fries and homemade vanilla coke made my pregnant belly sooooo happy.

 We window shopped at all the designers of the Magnificent Mile, and hit the racks of the infamous H&M, Gap, and a number of other more affordable stores. We wandered Millenium Park, admiring the ever popular giant silver bean.  We stared up at the stars and down at the peaceful city lights from the top of swaying Hancock Building.

We wandered the halls of the Chicago Art Institute (where I easily could have spent an entire day... or possibly two).

We meandered around Navy Pier, and took a wild taxi ride back to our hotel.  Then after two days of being away we made a quick pit stop and Wrigley Field before heading home.

After a long drive I dropped my travel companions off at their homes one by one, watching their children bubbling over with excitment to see their long lost mothers.  Inside I secretly hoped my children would be equally as excited to see me, especially since I didn't really bring back "surprises".  They lived up to my expectations!  Alec saw me through the front window and the expression on his face was enough to make me feel really really loved.  The kids attacked me with hugs before I could even get through the door and were pleased as punch when I gave them part of my Trader Joe's trail mix as a treat.  In turn they proudly gave me the most beautiful homemade mother's day cards I could ever ask for and some cropped pajama pants they picked out for me at Sams while getting the tires changed on the Escape.

I left Nick with strict instructions to not get stressed about doing anything that weekend except play and have fun with the kids.  Nick had not only played with the kids, but took them shopping, had the tires changed on his car (I blew a tire a few nights before... sad story for another time), went out to dinner, and took them to a movie!  He kept the house picked up, studied for his final, mowed the lawn, did all the laundry (my one goal for the next day) and mopped and polished the hardwood floors (something I've only done twice since moving into our house).  Needless to say I was really surprised and impressed.

I spent most of my Monday on the living room couch drifting in and out of consciousness.  Luckily the kiddos didn't seem to mind.  They were just happy to have me home.  Though I was completely exhausted and have some new scary looking veins thanks to days spent walking and standing all over the city (despite the use of uncomfortable maternity compression nylons) I felt completely and utterly spoiled.  Thanks, Nick, for taking a day off work to spend at home with the kids so I could go on this trip! I know how precious your leave time is when we have so many things we want to do as a family.  Thanks, ladies, for a fabulous time!
What a way to spend Mother's Day weekend.  

~We're Off to New and Familiar Lands~

(Warning: Chrissy uncensored)
Tomorrow morning at 4:30 AM I should be rolling down my driveway, kiddos, and luggage in tow.  The kids and I will be heading off on our own mini adventure for a few weeks while Nick heads to some of the many lands in the Far East.

While he's off visiting new exciting places, meeting with interesting people from cultures half way around the world that speak an entirely different language...  I'll be walking through very familiar territory surrounded by people that look shockingly familiar and have babies just as close together as mine and drive around with bumper stickers that say things like "RULDS2?" and I will totally know what that means.  

While Nick is dining on authentic international cuisines.... I'll be living it up with Cafe Rio, In and Out Burger, Zupas, Jamba Juice, Krispy Creme (literally around the corner) and Grandma Shannon's Hamburger Soup (in my humble opinion, the ULTIMATE comfort food).

I'm not sure what my purpose is in writing this post.  I in no way mean to sound negative about "Happy Valley".  I love almost everything about that place (besides the horribly frightening drivers... I've driven in a lot of places and no where else have I ever had the urge to swear every time I get behind the wheel... not Vegas, not Los Angeles, not Washington D.C.  No place compares where the majority of people are kind and courteous in person, but are so incredibly inconsistent in their driving, conveniently forgetting everything they learned in drivers ed whenever it benefits themselves but also forgetting how to be courteous to other vehicles on the road.  Have I ever told you about the time a top BYU official, and pillar in the community, almost sideswiped my car, flipped me off, and sped away?  Yeah.  He was my bosses husband at the time and when I  told his wife about the incident she made sure I received a very nice formal apology that included a box of chocolate).  

Now that is off my chest, I really do love Happy Valley.  I love the rush of happy nostalgic feelings every time I pull around the point of the mount. I love that my parents moved into my old ward so every time I go home to visit them I see familiar friendly faces.  I love that my Grandma lives in my old house and every time I go visit her and sit in that front room with the one deep red wall I instantly think of happy times when I daringly painted that masterpiece with Nick by my side.  Or when I look at the daffodils on the side of her house and smile, remembering when I dug in that very dirt to put them there with Alec happily laying on a blanket next to me.  I love that so many of my favorite restaurants are only a few blocks from my old neighborhood.  I love that my alma mater is just down the hill and my kiddos can squeal with delight every time they walk outside and see the magnificent "Y" up on the mountains.  I love the breath-taking views, Mount Timpanogoos to the east, and the lake out to the west.

I guess I'm just jealous that my small town grown husband is traveling to new lands, seeing new sights, tasting authentic food, listening to the unfamiliar sounds of a new world, and I (his Europe traveling raised wife) can't come along.

Not that it will be all play for dear Nicholas.  He'll probably be working like a dog most of the time he's there, on top of studying for the classes and midterm he'll be missing.  Meanwhile I will mostly get to sit back, relax, play with my kids, visit with friends and family, letting someone else clean house, worry about what to make for dinner, and run this way and that to errands and appointments.

So to summarize Nick is about to embark on a fantastic journey to new places half way around the world while I go relax in a place where I feel almost unhealthily comfortable and fit in better than anywhere else (though I do loathe driving in Happy Valley).  I'm jealous of what the next few weeks hold in store for Nick, but I also imagine that a teeny tiny sliver of his soul may feel the same way about me.  I don't mean to sound negative or ungrateful.  I fully recognize that I could be staying here in the frozen prairie with the kiddos for the next three weeks, and then I would really have something to grip about.

I suppose the grass can always be greener on the other side.... and believe me when I say that both of us will be heading to places warmer and greener than where we have been for the last two months! So to that end I say "Cheers!" and "Let the adventures begin!!!"

~Adventures in Utah 2009: Day 1~

Our Adventures in Utah began Monday morning with a trip to the Monte L. Bean museum (literally full of "stuffed" animals) on BYU Campus. Alec was more than thrilled to see the Y on the mountain and proclaim his love for all things BYU. He also informed us that he will someday play football at BYU. He also listed off everyone he knows who went to BYU, including our friend Greg Welch. What a memory on that little man! Anyway, back to the animals...

Have you ever seen a goose kissing a moose? (down by the bay where the watermelons grow?)

Then we were off to visit the Provo Temple grounds.

Both the babies were a little grumpy, hot, and feeling sick, but I still got Alec to sing "I love to see the Temple" with me... at least a shortened version of the song.

Look at that blue sky...

Walking around the temple with Grandma Shannon. It truly was a H-O-T one! We stopped at every water fountain. Besides the occasional whine it was so peaceful.

Alec asked if we could go inside... a perfect segue into explaining to him in the simplest terms possible the purpose of the temple. It was beautiful and even though we were sweating like crazy and I was carrying a hot and heavy baby on my hip I could feel the spirit.

Then the little prince head butted me on the way back to the car. In all fairness he was pretty sick with a low grade fever, so what right do I have to complain... I probably shouldn't have had him out and about in the first place! Oh well.

~Off We Go Into the Wild Blue Yonder~

Last Saturday Lyssa and Alec woke up screaming around 4:30, waking their sleeping grandma in the basement below. After a half hour we were all awake and not going back to bed any time soon so we loaded up the car to head out on our journey. I had about 5 hours of sleep and felt exhausted and queasy as it was so I decided to drive, hopefully keeping myself from throwing up. With two thumbs up, hugs and kisses for Nick, and a hearty wave goodbye, we were on our way!

Parking myself behind the steering wheel keep me from getting sick, but it didn't help Lyssa. She woke up throwing up twice, had explosive poopy diapers all over her carseat, a sore throat and a fever. Poor baby. Alec didn't feel great, and had some nasty out of control diapers of his own, but seemed content to simply watch movies and eat snacks all day... the first day anyway. After a crazy evening in a hotel, a fun time swimming in the pool, and an uncomfortable night trying to sleep with Alec's feet in my back we were off on day two! More diaper explosions, a little more throw up, and babies with fevers made or an interesting ride, but we made it! I owe it all to the lady who spent two days turning around to pass out snacks, change out DVDs, give drinks, and listen to me grip about truckers thinking they own the road. Oh how I love my mother.

We were warmly greeted by Grandpa Steve and my brothers, who quickly unloaded my van and whisked away my babies to play in the backyard. My dad took me over to my Grandma Marion's home around the corner, where we used to live before our move to Iowa. I walked around with tears in my eyes admiring the gardens, the flowers, and the sweet little house where my family began. It's been well taken care of and looks beautiful inside and out. That little house will always hold a special place in my heart. What a wonderful way to come home...

~My Mini Minneapolis Marathon~

Recently I escaped to Minneapolis with two friends (and  Maggie, Robyn's Magellan GPS, who kept us on the right track even when I took wrong turns) for a marathon style shopping visit.  I say marathon because really it was a go, go, go, on your feet, sometimes literally running kind of an experience...

Our first stop was IKEA, which by the way is my new favorite store.  That place is pretty overwhelming.  We wanted to browse through and look at all the showrooms, but we also had a long list of things to grab and only two hours to find them all.  To make a long story short, we did end up making it out of the store before they had to kick us out, but it did include two of us awkwardly running through the lower level of IKEA while pushing loaded down pallet carts twice our size.  There are no pictures to document this event, but believe me when I say people were laughing.  

The evening ended in a Hilton where I was quickly educated in the different between cheap-o motels and a top rated hotels.  It's all in the down pillows, smooth sheets, and massive soft and fluffy towels.  Totally worth the extra $2 bucks (Count em' 1, 2).  Thank you, Expedia.com.

Early Saturday morning brought a visit to the Minneapolis/St. Paul Temple with Robyn, a much needed trip for me since I don't make it to the temple too often with two little ones.  My spirit was nourished and I felt so peaceful and happy.

Then the peaceful was replaced by pump it up music.  We were off to The Mall of America, the largest mall in the United States.  It's over a mile wide, has it's very own zip code, and holds a gazillion stores inside (not to mention an amusement park and aquarium).  Cool huh?  First stop was the much loved H&M.  I was first introduced to this store in Vienna, Austria back in the summer of 2004.  I love H&M for their low priced blatant high fashion knock offs.  Fabulous!  

I was also introduced to a new lovely store called Martin+Osa.  According to my fashion analyst, Tiffany, it is still in the development phase,  but basically it's the big sister to American Eagle, kind of like how Banana Republic is the big sister to Gap.  Anyway, I bought a dress... a fabulous dress at Martin+Osa with hopes of getting to wear it on a hot date in the near future (hint hint Nick).  

Little time was taken for sustenance as we had places to be, but these smoothies totally rocked.

We did take a few minutes to check out the American Girl Store and relive my 8 year old childhood dream of owning my very own Kirsten doll.  Side note: My mother was wise and choose not to invest in a $90 doll.  Instead she stole away one of my favorite blonde dolls, Rachel, and made her an outfit exactly like Kirsten. She even braided her hair like Kirsten.  What an amazing mom I have!  I loved that doll to pieces (literally... one day her head fell off) and I wish I had pictures from that wonderful birthday.

Since we just couldn't get enough of IKEA the first day, we went back a second time around to browse, and browse and buy some more.  In the end we were very glad we brought the van and very tired.  As we loaded up the back people were laughing, pointing, and making comments in a variety of languages.  Notice the vanilla Coke in my hand... that's right, I was running on fumes.  Like, this shopping trip rivaled shopping days past with my sister, Erin.  I was totally beat and Tiffany kindly drove all the way home.  

Good friends, great shopping, lots of laughs and flexibility made this trip a huge success. As we headed for home I waved goodbye to IKEA saying "Don't forget me!  I'll be back next year!"   

 I really think I might try to make this an annual event.