Oma and Grandmike

USMC War Memorial

Netherlands Carillon

We had an amazing time last week with the first of our many scheduled visitors.  Legs's dad Grandmike and stepmother Oma came to DC and we filled their time with as many outings as possible.  We started by showing them around Rosslyn, the area of Arlington in which we live...







The Netherlands Carillon was especially cool to visit with Oma since she is from Holland.  The bell tower was a gift to the United States in gratitude for aid provided during and after WWII.  I never tire of seeing the USMC War Memorial, and I love to see people's amazement at how massive and lifelike the statue is in person.  Everything from the wrinkles in the Marines's uniforms to the expressions on their faces; the statue is a wonderful embodiment of Marine Corps grit and esprit de corps.

Our next destination was the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in the National Mall.  We saw many beautiful exhibits and here are a couple...

One statue from a Chinese Zodiac Calendar sculpture

A random bronze sculpture outside the museum

The next big adventure was when Thumper and I met Oma at the Lincoln Memorial and walked along the Reflecting Pool to the WWII Memorial and then on to the Washington Monument.  The day was absolutely gorgeous and we all had a wonderful time...all of us except Thumper that is.  He's reached a rather independent stage in life where sometimes he knows what he wants and if you tell him, "No" he replies with, "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  When we got near the Reflecting Pool I had to put him back in the stroller after a couple close calls with him trying to run straight into the water, and needless to say, that was one of those "not what I want to do" moments.  He screamed for the entire length of the reflecting pool, and then around the WWII Memorial.  He finally calmed down as we closed in on the Washington Monument, and he was right back to normal for the Metro trip home.

The Lincoln Memorial

The Washington Monument and Reflecting Pool taken from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial

The Lincoln Memorial and Reflecting Pool taken from the WWII Memorial

WWII Memorial

The last wonderful excursion of Oma and Grandmike's trip was a dinner cruise along the Potomac River.  It was absolutely amazing out on the water.  The food was delicious, the staff on the boat were extremely friendly, and it was beautiful to see Oma and Grandmike spend time with Thumper.  To be able to relax with family and allow Thumper to enjoy the luxury of grandparents was marvelous.  It was a much appreciated moment that we often miss due to our life in the Foreign Service and living so far from family.

Looking back at DC and the Washington Monument from the boat

A beautiful shot of the American Flag hanging from the back of the boat

Nationals Stadium during a night game

Frederick Douglass Bridge at night

A picture of the Capital Building on the walk back to the Metro

There you have it.  All you need to do to get a blog post dedicated to you is come out and visit us.  Thank you so much to Oma and Grandmike for coming out to see us.  We had a wonderful time, and the experience for Thumper was truly invaluable.  There are many more pictures on the Shutterfly site, with actual people in them, so make sure you check them out if you have the password.  We are excited and anxiously awaiting our next visitors!

Happy Travels!

Hawaii

Traveling to Hawaii with Thumper for our best friends', Beaver and Nurse, wedding was truly one of the most amazing and fulfilling experiences I've had.  Seeing both Beaver and Nurse for the first time in months was wonderful, and the closeness between Thumper and I certainly grew after enduring two 14-hour flights together and a vacation trip to the emergency room at 4am.

Surprisingly, the flight to Hawaii, through Dallas/Ft. Worth, went really well.  Thumper was still recovering from a cold earlier in the week, but he was his never-failing smiley and social self.  Other than his stuffy nose and occasional coughing, you would have never known he was sick.  Upon boarding the plane I was greeted by a wave of smiling faces and animated waves back at me as we moved down the aisle.  Thumper gave everyone the appropriate amount of face time as he scanned his audience switching from his side-to-side wave to his up-and-down wave, then occasionally blowing a kiss.  Although he hardly slept during the 14-hour trip to Maui, he was an absolute joy to be around.  More fun even than an in-flight movie, conversation with a stranger, or a refreshing travel nap.

We arrived in Maui around 4pm local time and by the time I retrieved all of the baby items from baggage claim (car seat, pack 'n' play, stroller) and arranged a shuttle to our hotel it was close to 5pm.  I have to say that I looked like a true professional with the car seat strategically attached to my rolling carry-on suitcase, the pack 'n' play stacked sideways on top of the suitcase, my baby backpack over my shoulders, pulling my carry-on contraption with one hand while Thumper lounged in his stroller being pushed with the other hand by papa bear.  Thumper looked exhausted as he tried to smile and wave at everyone in baggage claim and on the shuttle.  

We finally got to the hotel around 6pm and the baby supplies (food and milk) were depleted.  We checked in and arranged a ride down to the local mini-mart where we picked up some good stuff for dinner...bananas, yogurt, and milk.  I got Thumper back to the hotel room and sighed in relief that we had finally arrived and I knew that we didn't need to go anywhere else that night.  I got Thumper fed and ready for bed by around 8pm (2am our time) and he was sounding pretty rough.  Being sick, staying up for so long, and traveling so far really took it's toll on Thumper.  He had regular coughing fits, he struggled a bit in his breathing, and his voice sounded weak and about three octaves higher than usual.  I gave him some children's Advil and finally put him down hoping that he would sleep like a log and we would wake up around 10am-11am the next day fully refreshed and recovered from our long day.  My face hit the pillow about 10 minutes later without eating dinner (except what was left of Thumper's bananas and yogurt), without brushing my teeth, without even unpacking some pajamas.

Unfortunately I was awakened about two hours later by Thumper in a coughing fit and he sounded like he was struggling to breath.  I did my best to sooth him and he quickly fell back asleep, but woke up again and again coughing and wheezing.  I tried sleeping with him on my chest or letting him sleep upright with his head on my shoulder as I walked around the hotel room, but nothing worked for more than an hour or so.  Around 1am-2am I decided that I would take him to the hospital in the morning.  I just wanted to wait until normal business hours; however, at 4am I couldn't take listening to Thumper suffer anymore and I asked the hotel desk clerk to arrange a taxi to the emergency room.  

Maui Jim picked us up and had us at the hospital around 5:30am.  I explained Thumper's symptoms to about four different people, all of them staring at me like a deer in the headlights.  Finally a doctor came back and quickly diagnosed my little man with croup.  He recommended a steroid injection, gave me some papers to look over, and was on his way.  Luckily for me, Mama Hillbilly answered her phone when I called to ask her if this guy was crazy.  She said that either the oral steroid or injection were perfectly fine and work very well for croup.  To make a long story short, Thumper got the injection, I called Enterprise to come and pick me up and rent a car in case I'd need to take Thumper back to the hospital, and we went back to the hotel.  We got back around 10am and I put Thumper down for a nap.  Luckily he slept better this time, but still only for about two hours.

We took it easy for the rest of the day and Thumper continued to quickly improve.  We met Beaver and Nurse and both their families at a sushi restaurant for dinner and I got Thumper in bed at a reasonable hour that night.  I was so thankful that he slept through the night!  I was awakened by a phone call at 4am; however, I felt obligated to answer it, since it was Mama Hillbilly calling to make sure Thumper was okay.  She just hadn't quite realized the time difference :-P  I didn't really even care that she was calling so early.  I was so relieved the day before when she answered her phone and gave me some much needed advice.

After that incredibly rough first day and a half the trip got exponentially better.  Thumper made a full recovery and we were out enjoying beautiful Maui, and enjoying the wonderful company of the wedding party and their family.  They took us out to amazing dinners where we shared fish that I'd never even heard of, we swam in the ocean, lounged on gorgeous beaches, and I got to be a part of one of the most beautiful weddings ever.  As Legs already posted earlier, they even Skyped her into the wedding.  All-in-all the entire trip was an incredible experience in my lifetime, one that I will surely never forget.  Hawaii is a beautiful place, but I'm sure the experience I had was largely shaped by the kindness of Beaver and Nurse's families and the happiness I felt radiating from the two of them beginning their lives together.  They are wonderful people and I hope that they remain in our lives forever.

Without further adieu, here are some pictures!

An overcast, but wonderful view from the water on the beach in Wailea

A picture down the beach in Wailea

The view from our balcony

The view from the amazing hot tub at our hotel at sunset

A beach along the North Shore off Hana Hwy

Another picture off Hana Hwy

We don't put pictures of Thumper on here, but since you can't see our faces I figured it was okay :-P

Happy Travels!

Pancho

The Wedding

Pancho and Thumper left me this last week to go to Hawaii for our best friends' wedding.  Pancho met Beaver in school and Beaver's girlfriend Nurse and I became instant friends.  Ironically enough, I met Nurse for the first time through Skype!  They lived a bit north of us and we got together as often as we could but with school, work, and life it wasn't as often as we would have liked.  And then we accepted the offer to join the Department of State and moved to DC just after they got engaged.  We've only known them for a few years but it seems like a lifetime.  They are amazing people and a wonderful couple!

I am unable to take any leave while in language training and it just wasn't feasible to go to Hawaii for the weekend without missing a couple days of work.  I definitely looked at tickets until the night before the wedding hoping the timings would change!  In retrospect, I should have just done it.  I wanted to be there so badly and I thought that sending Pancho and Thumper was the best I could do...but I should have just bought the ticket and dealt with DoS later.

The good news is that I jokingly mentioned they should Skype me into the wedding...and they did.  Pancho and Beaver video called me, walked me through the hallway, set me on my own chair, and introduced me to guests.  I got to wave to my son, thank the family members who have been watching him, and see everything get set up.  I put my microphone on mute so no one would hear me crying or Drake barking :-)  And then the music started and the most beautiful, confident, kind, and amazingly gorgeous bride walked down the aisle to stand at her husband's side (you were handsome too B).  I got to be there...virtually...and it was unimaginable.

I know that distance is hard.  I know it because we are the ones who are far away from our friends and families.  But right now this experience and this opportunity is what we have decided is best for us.  The consequence that we have to accept is that we are going to miss weddings, babies, and other important events.  But technology is amazing and while it doesn't substitute for being there in person, I'd rather be virtually present than not present at all.  Being so far away, that's the best we can do and tonight I feel like grateful for the friends I have as well as my internet connection.

The wedding and I hung up...and then 'Love Story' by Taylor Swift came on Pandora and my night ended with lots of love, a few tears, and a full heart.

Congratulations Beaver and Nurse!

The Wedding...from my Living Room