Blog Whiplash... The days after Thanksgiving

Well. I'm feeling the need to apologize for blog whiplash right about now. My blog timing is sort of resembling that of a new teenaged driver learning how to drive a standard. stop. go. stop. go back. stop. lurch forward. throw back into high speed reverse.... 

However. I just cannot leave out some of these days from our year. My future self is already thanking me... 

So, back to the Days after Thanksgiving, 2012... Some of my favorites out of the 366 this year. It was a leap year, right?

Beckham got his own Christmas tree, and of course, he put all of the ornaments on the same side, in the same quadrant... 

This girl looks like this pretty much all the time.... 

Please pause to appreciate the sweetness of baby girl pajamas...

We have a lot of Christmas traditions, and the Elf on the Shelf has become one of our favorites. We read the book again because everything was new to Beckham this year since he was just turning 2 last year. Our elf's name is Mickey...

The Madison Christmas Parade is also something we love - This year, it was so cute - Jane Bradley said, "Mom! I finally got to see Mrs Claus! She was riding the fire engine with Santa - I've ALWAYS wanted to see her!"

Here are the kids securing our spot on the corner...

Here's to Mississippi's finest, who also rode in the parade... 

The cul de sac friends sitting on the curb waiting for the parade to begin. We love this spot because it's right across from the judges tent so we get to see all of the performances. 

Later that day, Beckham was invited to a birthday party at an awesome park. Well, the playset has this super high part in the middle that makes me ease towards the symptoms of a panic attack. I restrain myself from climbing it to hold his hand, and he proudly gets up to the top. One of his friends who was older than him yells, "Beckham! The top is only for BIG boys!!" Beckham yells back (so typical), "I AM a big boy!" It was sweet. And I was nervous...

This also happens in the days after Thanksgiving. Brad and I have called ourselves the Aspiring Griswolds ever since we started dating. We add a new Christmas decoration every year, and one day, it will really be obnoxious...

Before bed, Beckham has to check out all of the lights on the street...

So I'm done with this post now, and Brad says, "What are you doing? Writing a happy?" I say yes. He says, "What's the subject?" I say, "The day after thanksgiving..." He says, "You're going that far back? People are going to be like 'What are you doing'?" 

So. He hasn't read the blog yet, and my assessment is confirmed. But at least blog whiplash has photos of cute babies :)

Wrapping Up & Heading Out

Just in case someone is not tired of this never-ending blog post (I only wish my trip lasted as long as this post!), here's the post about Monday, my last full day in Bogota. I was up super early on Tuesday and travelled all day to get home. 

This is Nikki's nanny, Hilda (pronounced Ill-dah) - she is super sporty and perfect for the boys. 

She loves to take them to the park and outside to play, and she made us the greatest lunch while we were there - i have no idea what it was called, but it had rice and fried salty plantains with meat on top. Here's a picture - I've been craving it since I got home!!

Monday morning we went by the Kines place to see Emily and her kids. I hope Emily reads this because, let me tell ya'll, I don't know how she does it. She is pregnant with her 5TH!, which pretty much knocks out all of my brain cells anyway, home schools, learns spanish with a tutor, and keeps a cute house! I salute you, Emily Kines. I was only there for a few minutes, but I was seriously impressed :)

Here's another girl with whom I am impressed :) I may be biased, but I would argue that LOTS of people agree with me...

On Monday, Hilda came and kept the boys while Nikki took Mom and I shopping on 53rd street, where there is a long strip of shop after shop. I wanted to take so many pictures, but Nikki said it was more likely here that I could get my Iphone swiped, so I shouldn't. So I didn't. 

This is where I got lots of souvenirs because I better not even THINK about coming home empty handed... And because when you are away from home, all you can think about or talk about is your kids anyway, so I usually tend to overdo the souvenir thing...

Nikki bought us some chicken and cheese empanadas... I approve. Deep fried chicken and cheese pockets - what's not to love? (You should have seen me hiding behind the wall and Nikki to get this photo... I took her warning seriously...)

Later that afternoon, it rained and the power went out. So Nikki and I went to the mall so I could pick up a couple of other souvenirs that I wanted. And we picked up a chocolate mocha shake - I definitely would not starve in Bogota, that's for sure...

I made Nikki pose while we were waiting for our shakes because I told her people would be interested to see what she looks like when it rains... I am sort of laughing at myself right now, but I figured I will just post it anyway...

Thankfully, the power came back on right as we were headed over to have dinner with all of the missionary wives and kids. Dinner was so nice, and again the food was fantastic. 

When we got home, I had to tell the boys goodbye when we put them to bed because I would be gone before they woke up the next morning. I hate goodbyes - especially when I don't know when I'll be back. So Nikki, Mom, and I cheered ourselves up with some wine and 3 episodes of Downton Abbey... 

And there it is. My trip to Bogota! All that's left to talk about is the incident where I spilled my coke on myself about an hour into a 4 hour flight and had to ride wet all the way back. Nice. Oh, and Brad joined my dad at the airport to pick me up because he knows that's on my list of my favorite things in life... When someone actually comes in and greets you as you get off of a plane - it never happens anymore! It's a lost art. And that reminded me that although I was sad to leave, I was happy to be home :)

Still trip-blogging... Now it's Sunday!

Back in November, I mailed the Bonhams and Kines a big box of greeting cards that I collected from anyone I could find that would send one - they ended up being from all over the country!! Well, Nikki has put them up all across the back wall of her dining room.

They are still opening them!!  

I noticed a family portrait hanging up there. They happen to be from Jane Bradley - here's the Bonham family:

Nikki, Nate, Noah, & Barrett

The Maddens:

Jane Bradley, Lacey with baby Brooke, Brad, and Beckham

And The Travis family:

Janie, Grandaddy, and Nanny  

 Remember those flowers that Nikki picked up yesterday? Here's the arrangement we whipped up on Sunday morning:

Nikki has made such a cute house! Here's her living room - It's super cozy and very nicely decorated! Notice the Marguerite Travis originals on the walls - they look even better in person!

On Sunday morning, I went to church with Nikki. It was all in Spanish, of course, and even though I only understood a couple of words, I really enjoyed it. It's so cool how people can worship together in all different languages, and everybody gets it. 

And since I was still a tourist, I took a photo of the hymnal... We sang "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus" (right there on the left page #440) and "Oh Sacred Head Now Wounded." The tunes were the same, and I could pick out some of the words I knew, so it was fun to try to sing along.

After church, we went back for lunch and naps. Then we dressed up in our rain gear and headed out to a little artsy market. 

These two in rain gear might be one of the cutest things I've ever seen...

This is the way they roll on the rainy days... 

After the market, we went to El Corral, a super fast food restaurant with awesome hamburgers. The boys love to ride taxis, which we did since it was raining...

And after that, we went back to the house, where Nikki, Mom, and I took our first steps towards a Downton Abbey addiction... 

Hasta mañana!

A Big First Day In Bogota

I love being a tourist. I mean, seriously, no shame... everything becomes a hilarious or silly photo-op, and I love to take advantage.  So, Day 1 in Bogota - I'll just get right to the silly, photo-op story:

Nikki lives in this really cute townhouse with 3 levels that's connected to several other little townhouses that are all grouped together in a big group of townhouse strips with a gate that's right down the street from this big highway and a little strip-mall with a cute little coffee shop and a fruit stand. Simple, right? So after we got dressed, we went out to show me the sights. And the first stop was Nikki's little coffee shop that had lots of fresh pastries and this cool orange drink - I think it was called Zumo? Something like that - Nikki, correct me if I'm wrong... Here it is...

Here is Nikki placing our order in her coffee shop. I was so proud of her Spanish! She's a prodigy, for sure.

We stopped after our walk at Nikki's little flower stand. Did you know that Colombia is one of the top 2 leading producers of fresh flowers in the world? Definite plus.

Mom and Nikki choosing the flowers that would go in this week's bunch... 

Here I am being a tourist again. This is the big street right outside Nikki's flower stand and townhouse complex.... It's the local road cone/ fire extinguisher stand. Apparently these are all over the place? Not sure why the market would be so big for something like this, maybe they are expecting a lot of vehicle emergencies? Or maybe they are just trying to be super prepared? I didn't get it. But I took a picture.

Here's Nikki post-flower-purchase...

Nikki in her cute little fruit stand - It was full of the normal fruits and veggies, but also lots more that they don't have at the Madison Kroger. They also had a humongous aloe plant in the back that you could buy a cut of... 

Back to tourist photos - Here's a shot of the normal cotton-candy salesmen walking up and down the busy street selling to the drivers stuck in traffic. Because they are most likely thinking, man, I would love a huge bag of spun sugar to get all over my car while I sit here in line before work.... 

I just didn't quite understand this one... But I made lots of jokes, and of course, took a picture.

The first night, we walked across the huge bridge over the highway to the mall across the street from her complex. Here's a shot back towards her house with the mountain in the background.

Of course, it made my heart happy to hang out with my favorite nephews. These two are always a load of fun!

At the mall, Nik took us to Archie's, an Italian restaurant. Nanny, of course, is also a load of fun :)

I enjoyed pretending that the menus were in dollars instead of pesos, and the Whisky was $180,000 and I was absolutely outraged at the unbelievable prices... And so, as a true obnoxious tourist, I took a photo of the menu.

Nikki ordered this great hot wine with a sugared rim... Neat drink, for sure...

And then we went home. And it was an awesome first day! 

The One About The Ipad...

There are two kinds of people - some are plane talkers, and some are not. I am a plane talker, for sure. I love sitting next to a stranger and learning all I can before we land again, and that's it - the relationship is over, and we start our lives again right where we left off. I've met all sorts of people on past flights - and this one was no different. On the first flight I met a movie producer from Virginia who made documentaries about labor unions. On the second leg, the person didn't speak much English, which may have been their luck :)

I carried my carry-on off of the plane and followed the other passengers through customs where the officer spoke English and everything went smoothly. As soon as they stamped my passport, I started to turn the corner to get to baggage claim, and I realized something was off. I looked at my carry-on, and I noticed that my bag was unzipped. Then I knew. I had left my Ipad on the plane. At first, I thought, well, I guess that's what I get, but then I decided to at least try to get it back. My sister had said that the people in customs speak English, so I tried to tell the security guard next to me what had happened. Problem was, he did NOT speak English. The next passenger to walk by happened to notice what was going on, and the security guard asked him to translate. After explaining, the security guard told me I could try to go back to the plane, BUT I had to leave my suitcase with him. Well, sounds simple enough, but really, I was  reeling from the issue that I didn't know this guy, and I was in a foreign country, and I didn't want to lose my bag. But then I realized that it would cost me more to replace my Ipad than everything in my carry-on, so I decided to chance it. 

I tried to go back, but the customs people stopped me and said I had to find the Delta representative downstairs in the baggage claim so that they could radio the plane.  Funny thing was, when I went back to the security guard, he was gone. Another security guard was there with my bag, and he let me just walk up and take it.  Hmm... 

Heading down to baggage claim, I didn't see anyone from Delta. Then I ran into the guys that translated for me earlier, who asked if I found my Ipad. I updated them and told them that I was still looking, and they helped me find the Delta representative who started working on it. Meanwhile, the two guys who helped me wanted to know what I was doing in Colombia. I wasn't planning to tell them any personal details, because, you know I was not a naive lady traveller who thought everyone in the world was good or anything. 

So I said I was in town visiting my sister. Then they wanted to know if she was studying in Colombia. I said no. Then they wanted to know why else she would be in Colombia? I said she moved here with her family. Well, why? Did she marry a Colombian? Flashes of the Taken movie were standing out in my mind at this point, and Liam Neeson was nowhere in sight. I decided to tell them she was a missionary. 

Instantly, the guys said, "Christian?" I said yes. Then they cheered, "We're Christians!!" It was SUCH  major relief, and I was so happy to hear them say that! At that moment, the delta representative told me they had found my ipad, and I should wait here. I got my luggage, and I saw Nikki through the glass barrier. The lady brought my ipad, and I left happier than before. 

And then I met up with this girl, who I hadn't seen since September! 

So that was the rest of the story of the way to Bogota. More to come!

A Big Bogota Surprise

Okay, I know I'm not alone here, so I will just go ahead and admit it.... I feel buried under a tidal wave of guilt and hesitation when I consider leaving Brad at home with the kids for any real length of time. Not that he can't handle it - he repeatedly assures me that he is completely capable of caring for (and actually treating any possible medical emergency for) OUR children... It's just that I know that the routine is harder when it's only one of us, and if I leave for my own enjoyment, that means he has to pull my slack, and I dont like doing that to him. I'd rather just stay with the team most of the time. I'm sure I'm not the only mom in the world who has felt this way - no shame. 

So, naturally, when Nikki called me at the beginning of January and asked me when I was going to visit and could I come soon, and could I come with her best friend in 3 weeks, I was all "I don't know... I don't think I can... (I really cannot fathom leaving my kids and new baby at home while i LEAVE THE COUNTRY)... Way too many complications... sorry, sis, don't think it's gonna work right now... I'll think about it." 

Then my friend came over and told me I should really think hard about going. A few times. And she would help with my kids while I was gone.  Then Brad said I should go, and he didn't know why I hadn't been yet in the first place. So, I started feeling brave, and I called her friend, and I bought a ticket. But I didn't tell Nikki :)

Because that's the lens I look through most of the time.. Is there any POSSIBLE way to turn whatever it is I am doing into a surprise? That's the way I take...(Surprise! I bought you a new toothbrush... Surprise! here is the new shirt you asked me to buy for you... I'm sure it gets annoying.)

Thankfully, I don't think this surprise was one of the annoying ones :) I had planned to just show up at the airport with Nikki's friend, but sadly, she had to cancel at the last minute. I called Nikki to check on her because I knew she was disappointed, and then I told her to check her email where she found, SURPRISE!, a copy of my itinerary, and she was all, "What is this? Whaaaat??!! I'm So EXCITED!" And it was still a great surprise. And she would be there at the airport, which was the most important thing. Because she speaks Spanish. And I don't :)

So here's Nikki at the airport. This was the pic I took while I was trying to get my luggage and fumble through the hand motions of explaining to airport staff that I left my Ipad on the plane. Which is an awesome story to write down. Tomorrow :)

Since I have so much to remember about this trip, I'm spreading it out over a few days/ posts. So, stay tuned... More surprises to come ... Annoying, I know :)