On the Road Again

Our family's never had much talent for holding still.

Despite our recent move from overseas, we are already on the road again. With the help of some good friends and loving parents, we moved our loot out of our storage unit on Friday, July 3rd. Fortunately, we beat the non-stop rain that dripped all Fourth of July, canceling the fireworks. On Sunday we made our way back to church, meeting many old friends and missing some others since the boundaries of our local congregation have drastically changed.

On Monday morning my parents took Brooklyn and Talia back to Nebraska with them where they enjoyed a few days of Camp NomiAnn and Papa Kay. They had a blast going to the zoo, playing at the children's museum, doing crafts, swimming, even spending two days camping at the cabooses at Nebraska's Twin Rivers State Park. I originally worried that the kids might get homesick, but in retrospect I'm more concerned by the fact that our girls didn't miss us at all. They simply can't wait to do it again.

In the meantime, Jason and I had our very first "vacation" as a couple since Brooklyn was born. It was wonderful to have some time just for the two of us, even if our days were thoroughly consumed by digging our way out of the mountains of boxes. In hindsight, I wish I'd taken pictures of our box maze, but at the moment it was simply too depressing. I seriously have no idea how we ever fit so much stuff in our place the first time, and felt lost as to how we could ever make it all fit again. Overwhelmed by the clutter, I seized the opportunity to de-junk. It's amazing how liberated I feel after a couple of trips to Goodwill. With my belly feeling ever more crowded, it's nice to feel like we've got a bit more space to welcome the little guy who will soon be joining our home.

These few days in Illinois were filled with both challenges and miracles. Despite the challenge of unpacking, we were miraculously able to get everything sorted out and switched with health insurance remarkably quickly. While we got the green light to travel from my new midwife, our mini-van unfortunately had other ideas. The air conditioning decided to betray us and give out, leaving us with a very expensive repair bill--an ouch, owie, better-charge-that-in-case-we-run-short-on-funds sort of repair bill. While we considered making the trek to Utah "pioneer-style" without air, my pregnant body just wasn't sure it could handle the July heat. And now for the miracle--when we logged on to do finances and figure out how to cover the expense, we discovered an unanticipated deposit into our French bank account. After factoring in the exchange rate, this "miracle money" came within ten dollars of matching the expense of our car repair. Wow.

And so, we joined my family for a night of caboose camping in Omaha before leaving early the next morning for Utah. Our next evening was likewise spent camping, albeit this time in the gorgeous mountains near Bear Lake. We surprised Jason's Dad for his birthday by showing up at the Wheeler family reunion where we had a great time hiking, swimming, and hanging out around the campfire. For the girls, the best part was undoubtedly getting to meet so many of their "cousins"--technically second-cousins, but we think they all count. Brooklyn was in heaven with so many playmates.

And so now, we've finally made it to Hyde Park, Utah where we hope to spend a relaxing week with Grandma Susie and Grandpa Charles. After being on the road so much, it certainly feels wonderful to slow down enough to enjoy life--and a couple slices of homemade cherry pie.