A quick trip "home"

Where is home exactly?

Is it where you live? Where you are from? Chris and I often say home is simply each other.

Or if home is indeed "where the heart is," then I have 4 places that are home to me on this earth...Illinois where I was born and raised and where my roots and family remain...Kenya where my eyes were opened and my heart was shaped...California where I went to college, met the love of my life, and now raise my own family...and Colorado where we learned to be a couple and a family, furthered our educations, and started careers.

We recently returned from a visit to CO, the place we called home for the first 7 years of our marriage...

This trip wasn't about doing, it was about being. Being in a very special place with very special people. 

The special people who knew us before we had kids. People who were in our house a lot and people who opened their homes to us. People who were there when we welcomed our first child, and joined us in saying good-bye to the child we never got the chance to know. People who we have walked and prayed with during joys and struggles and journeys of their own.

It was a quick trip so there were people we didn't get to see as much as we would have liked (or at all), but it was simply wonderful to be face-to-face, even briefly, with so many dear people.

During our visit the adults spent a lot of time on back patios and porches just talking, while the kids spent a lot of time in backyards and basements playing (ahhhhh, I miss basements!). It was so special to see Samantha with her "first friends." Just like the adults, the kids picked up right where they left off.

We had a mini-reunion with our "Game Group" of 5 years. It's hard to believe that when we started getting together once a month with these four couples there were only 3 kids...and now there are 11 (and 3 on the way!). Our reunion wasn't quite complete this time and we greatly missed our friends who recently moved to Wisconsin. Here are 8 of the Game Group kiddos together...

We got away into the foothills to visit a place very special to us. A place that represents loss and gain.

We were reminded of so many things we loved about our years in Colorado... those magnificent Rocky Mountains always present in the distance, the UNBELIEVABLE parks, the "light rail" that would take me to school and deliver us to the city and baseball games, our first official home and neighborhood, that crisp mountain air, the long and warm summer nights, the endless bike trails, the trees!, the "workplace family" I had for 3+ years at Chinese Children Adoption International .

And just to "keep it real" I will also mention that we were reminded of things we don't necessarily miss about Colorado....the DRY air (that left Abby and me with straight hair), the air-conditioning, the really passive drivers (we even got to witness one of our favorite CO driver moves where someone who wasn't aggressive enough on the on-ramp came to a complete stop and signaled in order to be let in to the traffic flow...yeah, good luck with that).

It was such a great trip that we were easily able to overlook "the little inconveniences" like kids getting altitude sickness, or the 2 year old who spiked a fever on the plane ride home, or the fact that our really good deal on Priceline for the rental car was completely negated by the cost of adding that dang carseat (what a rookie travel move...note to self, NEVER click the little box that says "add a toddler car seat," just lug yours through the airport for crying out loud!).

The only disappointment of this trip was that the two places I wanted to eat at most were both closed down. WHAAAAT? Come on Spicy Pickle and Tokyo Joes...give a pregnant woman a break!

A BIG thank you to these fine people, our incredible hosts and friends who spoiled us rotten!

Hopefully we will be back to CO sooner than later, even when we become a family of five.

And hopefully friends will keep coming out west to spend time with us in the newest place we call home.

Until then we have the phone, the computer, and the memories of this trip to keep us connected.

Rocky Mountain High

It's been 3 years since we moved, and 2 years since we've been back to visit.

I am SO EXCITED to see the people we love and the magnificent place we called home for 7 years.

I can't believe we got to go places like THIS on any old Sunday afternoon...

I loved being able to do THIS right outside our front door with friends...

To think that this is the LITTLE girl we left the state with...

And this is the BIG girl we are bringing back for a visit...

And let's not forget about Sam's not-so-little-anymore nutty younger sister,
and the 28 week stowaway coming with us too.

A lot has changed in the 3 years since we said good-bye to Colorado rocky mountain high,
but the friendships we maintain and the beauty of the state remain.

I CAN'T WAIT for this upcoming trip!!!! 

Some little highlights from a big month

April 5 through May 6 will probably go down as the busiest (and most fun) 4 weeks we have ever had. I am still recovering. Although those weeks were full of really good things (Easter, celebrating 2 birthdays, Disneyland vacation, family visiting, final MOPS of the year, Coldplay show)...it was WAY TOO MUCH.

My mantra for June and July is "slow down...boundaries...just say 'no'...rest!"

Amidst all the fun of the big events of the past month there have also been little moments - the moments where normal life happens. Here are some highlights...

Simple plain old life with these two is always a highlight.
Here are the girls' "too cool" faces.

One in a dog costume. One with sunscreen all over her lips and tummy. 

Yep, you look really "cool" girls.

Thanks to the Coldplay show we got to catch a soccer game and track meet of our favorite CA cousins.

The "enthusiastic" spectator and the very enthusiastic trampoline jumper.

Add a sprinkler underneath the cousins' trampoline and it is even more exciting!

 This week we had a great playdate at a little local nursery/farm. 

I'm becoming very aware that my one-on-one outings with Abby are numbered and I'm trying my best to get some more in before preschool gets out in June and she becomes the middle child in August.

Sam has been doing soccer for the past 6 weeks or so. 

The greatest challenge with soccer is keeping little sister off the field. 

Please note in this shot that the "player" on the left is a 2 year old who swiped a jersey and joined the big girls. And you should have seen the pregnant woman have to "run" on the field to pull said 2 year-old out of the game when Sam's team switched back in. It wasn't pretty. Neither was the tantrum that followed.

Last Saturday I returned from a walk with a dear friend and found that THIS is what they had been up to when I was gone (Abby's not in this video, but she had her turn too)... 

 I am always striving to be OK with Chris doing things his way when he is with the girls. While this particular activity makes me nervous I am so happy for my girls that they have such a FUN and adventurous dad. HOWEVER, I am also glad that parenting is a partnership full of balance, and think it is a really safe good thing for my kids that their mother is a bit more cautious and a little less "fun."

Claire from Modern Family said it best, "When I met your dad I was fun too, but I had to give all that up because you can't have two fun parents. It's a carnival. You know that kid Liam who wears pajama pants to school and pays for things with a hundred-dollar bill?  Two fun parents."

Mother's Day: What no one ever told me

No one ever told me...

What it would truly feel like when they handed me my child in the delivery room...probably because you can't put words to that experience.

That from the minute I locked eyes with each beautiful baby God entrusted to me I would be changed, forever changed.

I wouldn't mind having spit up on my shoulder, changing horrible diapers, or cleaning up after a sick kid in the middle of the night (well, I wouldn't mind that much).

No one ever told me...

That sleeping 8 uninterrupted hours in a row would become a distant memory.

That my boobs would never be the same again.

That love can take the shape of fear, guilt, fierce protection, or overwhelming tiredness.

That my senses of hearing, smell, and sight would become more acute than I really wanted them to.

No one ever told me...

It would cost so much to make so little ($).

That I would do anything...ANYTHING...for my child.

That my greatest source of entertainment would become those little people who live in my home.

That my prayer life would go to a whole new level.

No one ever told me...

How much more in love I would fall with
my husband after enduring pregnancies, deliveries,
and seeing him daily in the faces and personalities of
our children.

That I would suddenly understand how my mom felt about me.

That in giving so much of myself to my kids I would have to make sure I didn't lose myself completely.

But no one NEEDED to tell me...

how much I would LOVE being a mother.

I always knew that.

Happy Mother's Day to all the amazing mothers out there!

What love can look like

Sometimes love looks like flowers for no reason or "time off" from the kids.

Sometimes it takes the form of the little things...an emptied dishwasher, laundry folded, a floor mopped.

Sometimes love looks like this...

We call it the "picker-upper." I'm not sure what it is really called, but I am pretty sure it is meant for people over the age of 80.

This is actually the second one my hubby has brought home for me as a hilarious loving surprise. The first one appeared when I was 8 months+ pregnant with Abby. It was a life-saver then. But we let the kids play with it and it eventually broke. Earlier this week Chris came home with another picker-upper.

I thought it was WAAAAY too early for me to need its assistance again at only 6 months pregnant and it has been sitting in a closet...until today. After having 10 kids under the age of 5 in my house today for a playdate I MOST DEFINITELY needed and greatly appreciated the picker-upper. Cleaning up was a breeze and this blessed thing saved me from bending over about 100 times.

I am 6 months along, but I am feeling about 8 months pregnant lately, and I decided today that I am not too proud for the picker-upper. It could be a long last few months and I need all the help I can get.

And truly, whenever I use this thing I smile at what love can look like 10 years into marriage.

Coldplay at the Hollywood Bowl...in review

The great thing about Part 1 of our 10th year of marriage celebration being mostly free is that we could do a Part 2. Friday night was Part 2 of our anniversary...a sold out Coldplay show at the Hollywood Bowl. And it was aaaaaaaaaaaaaamazing!

In 10 years of marriage we have been to 5 concerts. 3 of those have been Coldplay. We love their music and they put on quite a show.

We were totally exhausted going into this event because we were coming off of 12 straight days of birthday celebration, Disneyland, my sister and fam visiting, the stomach flu, and my last MOPS meeting of the year. At one point last week I actually suggested that we sell our tickets on Craigslist. But for Coldplay we decided we could rally. My sister and brother-in-law who live in LA County watched the girls (THANK YOU!) so we also got to spend much of the weekend with much loved family and our girls thoroughly enjoyed the cousin time. Win-win. Love that.

Here are a few things worth sharing about the night...

•  If you live in Southern CA and you haven't been to the Hollywood Bowl (we hadn't), find an excuse to go at some point in your life. This venue is REMARKABLE. Even though you are steps from the heart and chaos of all that is Hollywood, you wind through paths and trees and find yourself nestled in the hills of Los Angeles feeling like you are in a secluded location. You can even see part of the HOLLYWOOD sign from your seats. If we ever go again we will bring a picnic (since that is what everyone else was doing).

• What do you get when you have a seemingly unlimited budget and major creativity to put on a concert...you get an awesome light show, fireworks, human-sized bouncing balls above the audience, gallons of confetti, and everyone in the audience has a light up bracelet to add to the show...oh yeah, and COLDPLAY is performing their hearts out the whole time. We smiled and sang the whole night.

• This is an unbelievably grateful band. At all 3 shows we have been to Chris Martin never stops thanking the audience. He thanks us for coming, for giving up a Friday night (anytime Chris), for getting babysitters, for sitting very far away (that's always us), for giving them a good time, and for allowing them to have the best job in the world. They are gracious and they give each show 110%.

• The light up bracelets....for all 17,000 of us! What were these things? I still don't understand how they worked. The bracelets (lots of different colors) were somehow controlled to go on and off during certain songs and created the coolest twinkling lights effect. Here are a couple videos (12 and 6 seconds) showing the bracelets up close and the effect they created. Wow, wow, wow. Thanks for letting us be part of the show guys.

• The flawless weather and nearly full moon were an incredible bonus to the night. We can't stop thinking or talking about the evening. It was a perfect way to celebrate US!

• The only "negative" to our night was the fact that I am 6 months pregnant...and exhausted. After standing and "dancing" for 2 hours (at 9-11pm) I ended up feeling like I had been hit by a train the next day, I definitely required Starbucks on Saturday (which only kind of helped), and this morning we are "playing hooky" from church (I am still on the couch in jammies at 10am). Good thing it was all TOTALLY worth it!

Here is the mandatory self-portrait from the night...complete with blinding flash and a "photo-bomber".  

Although our anniversary celebration isn't going to be a big trip in October, like we had originally hoped/planned, I am really liking celebrating throughout our 10th year. And who knows, maybe we will think up a Part 3 to our anniversary between now and October. If there is ever an occasion to celebrate in a big way it is 10 years of marriage!