Day 150: Traveling to Vienna

This morning started around 5:30 for me. Maddie didn't find her way to our bed in the middle of the night (praise the Lord) but she woke up early needing to use the bathroom. She managed to go back to sleep but I did not. 

We made our way downstairs a little later and Maddie got Caleb to fix her a bowl of cereal. She then enjoyed it along with yogurt and anything else she could find. 

Caleb worked on his rainforest project and completed the second one. He still has two more to do. He loves to procrastinate, and unfortunately, he gets that honest. He also had Maddie distracting him. She was all about her Caleb today! 

We began packing our bags and getting ready for our next trip. We have friends in Vienna, Austria that we planned to stay with before they moved. Since they'll be leaving sooner than later, we decided to go ahead and go. 

We got everything packed into carryon bags and arranged travel from the airport. We walked to the bus stop and took it to the airport. Once there we walked to security where Maddie had fallen asleep on me. I set the buzzer off (apparently it's my thing) and I had to be searched along with Maddie. That woke her up and she never looked back. 

We were early at the airport so we found a playground and let the kids play. They had a great time and burnt tons of energy. I got everyone a snack and we walked over to our gate where we ate and then boarded. 

After getting on the plane we found out that we would be delayed for 25 minutes. So much fun! Maddie was mad at the world so she was a terror for a good 5 minutes. Finally she calmed down. I thought she'd go to sleep, but she didn't. She decided to fight it and not give in to the temptation. 

With about 15 minutes left Daniel and I switched seats. 

Our flight was a bit bumpy at times but overall it was great. It was about one hour long and pretty easy overall. 

Once we arrived to the airport we met our driver and departed for the restaurant where we'd be meeting our friends. 

During our ride, Maddie fell asleep. She finally gave it up at the last minute. We arrived to the restaurant where Maddie pitched a fit and Caleb complained of how tired he was. So much fun! We also got to meet some new people and eat some amazing food. The ribs and fries were amazing, and the wine was good too!

During supper, Maddie and Caleb warmed up to the other kids and began playing with them. They played outside until it started to rain, and then they came inside and played with books. The couple we are staying with has the sweetest kids. The oldest took Maddie under her wing and read to her and shared stickers. 

We finished up supper and came back to the house. The kids played for a bit and then got ready for bed. Our kids were exhausted so it didn't take them long to go down. 

We're looking forward to a day in the city tomorrow. 

Goodnight y'all. 

This is of Maddie playing the piano. She loved it!!

Day 149: It's Friday!

This morning began as most have recently.  Maddie was in our bed bright and early, and woke us up with various demands, such as milk.  I ignored her and hoped she'd go away, but she did not.  Daniel took a shower and kept her company for a little while and I slept in a little longer than I normally get to.  I have felt awful lately, so an extra 30 minutes was nice!

We made it to work a little earlier than we normally do and got started on our days.  Neither one of us stopped.  We each had a lot going on and stayed busy until after 5.  Thankfully, Caleb was able to go to  a friend's house and play for a few hours until we finished up.

Caleb had a great day overall.  He played with his friends and was surprised to learn that he was going to a friend's house after school.  Madison enjoyed her day at daycare.  She smiled and kissed me goodbye this morning and ran to me this afternoon when I picked her up.  She is growing up so fast and her personality is growing.  She talks non-stop.  Just tonight she sat in her high chair with her supper and she talked about Teddy (a boy at school) and some other jumbled stuff that I couldn't decipher.

Our night was spent doing a few chores, but overall it was lax.  Caleb and Maddie hung out with each other after dinner and before bath/bedtime.  She watched Baby Einstein on the iPhone and Caleb held it for her.  She wanted to sit with Caleb which then turned into her lying on his back.  Because we had spaghetti tonight and she was in a white shirt, she was stripped down.  After supper she had spaghetti and blueberries all over her pants so those had to come off, too.

After Maddie's bath I read her a few books.  I was on the last one when she started to doze off, so I read it again even slower.  She passed out in my arms.  It was so nice not fighting with her tonight during bedtime.  She did wake up for a minute when I laid her down, but I played with her hair and she didn't stand a chance.

Daniel went back into work to finish up some stuff that he didn't get to today.  Hopefully he'll be done with that soon and can rest.  He's been exhausted lately.

We have a fun weekend planned, so I'll write more on that later.  Love you all.  Goodnight.

Day 148: Fun with Kids

This morning Maddie made her way to our bed. I'm not sure what time it was, but it was sometime in the middle of the night. She will get right underneath us and toss, turn, and cry. It's really quite lovely. 

We all got up around 6 and began getting ready for the day. Caleb got everything he needed and headed off to school and I carried Maddie over to hers. 

Daniel and I made it to work and stayed busy all day. The fire I caused yesterday messed up my phone so that kept me and a lot of other people busy today. 

We got home and the kids were at the park playing. They came home about 5 minutes after our arrival and told Ms. Anna goodbye. 

Caleb had baseball practice this afternoon so Daniel took him to that. Daniel said Caleb did great and played hard. Daniel had to talk to Caleb in the beginning due to some behavior issues from him and his fellow teammates. Apparently the kids were a bit rowdy tonight and used inappropriate language more often than not. I'm not saying Caleb wasn't part of it, but if he was Daniel didn't hear it. Had he heard Caleb drop the "F bomb", that man would have either drug Caleb off the field or made him run laps until his legs couldn't carry him anymore. 

We definitely miss baseball in the states. This league is great for the kids to play ball, but it's nothing like either of us recall growing up. We miss the leagues and whatnot, but we can't have it all! 

While the boys were playing baseball, Maddie and I were hanging out around the house. She sat on my lap as she held her baby. We took pictures, played patty cake, made faces and then ate dinner. She ate a lot of raw peppers and steamed broccoli for dinner. She also enjoyed some peanut butter as her source of protein. We had a great time. 

After baseball. 

By the time the boys got home I was getting ready to read Maddie her nighttime books and then tuck her in. She is such a good girl until the last book is read. She then knows it's bedtime and loses it. She screamed for a while and then got up to use the bathroom. Once she used it she was back to bed and asleep within 10 minutes. 

Daniel went back to work to finish up some stuff and I'm off to bed. 

Goodnight all. 

Day 147: And then there was Fire

This morning Daniel left around 4:30 am to get to work. He took an early shift and stood post. I got the kids together and out the door on time (thankfully).  

Daniel and I had simple days overall and tried to keep up with our emails. At some point I began looking around my office for a European plug so I could plug in my space heater. I couldn't find one, but in the midst of my search I moved my transformer over and sparks began to fly. The plug caught on fire and there was smoke everywhere. Thankfully I had a few coworkers close by that came in and saved the day when they heard my squeal. One unplugged everything and made sure nothing else was near it. The other told me who to contact in order to get it taken care of.  I was terrified! For the rest of the day I was without a phone and one of my computers. Hopefully it'll get fixed soon, but it's not looking good! 

After that fun, I worked on getting a few other things done before I left for the day. 

When Daniel and I got home the kids were playing. Maddie was pretending to feed her baby and Caleb was throwing around a ball. Caleb and Daniel then wrestled around for a bit. Maddie joined in a little but she decided against it. 

We enjoyed some supper and got the kids bathed and ready for bed. Maddie went down great but decided to be a mess. She started getting up and started screaming. Daniel laid with her for 5 minutes and she was out!! He then crashed!

The rest of my evening was pretty uneventful. Goodnight all. 

She is a vulture! Always eating whatever someone else has. Here she enjoyed some cereal. 

Day 146: Back to Work

Maddie woke up around 2 am and was pitching fits off and on until 5am or so. Needless to say, we were all a bit behind this morning. Caleb didn't wake up to his alarm clock and Daniel and I tried to ignore ours. 

The kids were soon dressed and fed, and then out the door for school. Daniel and I then left for work. We haven't worked in a week or so, so we knew we had a lot to catch up on. 

Caleb enjoyed school and mentioned how he was the class clown today. We explained why that's not necessarily a great thing, and left it at that. Maddie went to visit an ostrich farm. I'm not sure how she did when she saw them so I plan to ask daycare in the morning. She's not a fan of many animals so I can't imagine her liking them. 

Today is Mother's Day in Poland. Caleb wrote out this sweet letter for me. He told me how thankful he was to have me as his mom and how much he loves me. It was definitely one of the sweetest things he's ever written. 

While Daniel cooked dinner (I worked late) these two monkeys watched a show on the iPad. They both enjoy watching it together. 

Goodnight y'all. 

Day 145: Happy Memorial Day!

This morning was bittersweet. Bitter because we had to get up. Sweet because the kids had to go to school. So, Daniel and I got up and got the kids off to the places they needed to be and began running errands. 

We started out our morning by going to a local glass shop. I had my hopes pretty high to find some Kate Spade glasses that matched my other wine glasses. I wasn't successful but I got some cute glass canisters instead. 

We then went by the frame shop to have our new Prague picture framed. Once we found the shop we realized they didn't open for another 30 minutes or so. So, we went off to Anko's ceramica shop to exchange some (pottery) plates. I bought two that I already had, so I traded those in for a casserole dish. Daniel laughed at my craziness and continued to tell me that he couldn't care less what I purchased.

Once we left there we went to the mall and found Daniel some casual clothes. We also enjoyed lunch and coffee before heading back to the house. 

Caleb got home from school and told us he had a great day. In PE they practiced for field day. He was timed in the running portion and said he had to work on his speed. 

Daniel picked Maddie up and she started out in a great mood. Then the moon shifted and she began throwing anything she could put her hands on. She also threw herself in the floor and screamed. I wish I could say that the night got better, but unfortunately it did not. 

Supper, bathtime, and routines for everything else went smoothly. However, when Maddie was laid down to go to sleep she began throwing a fit and got out of bed. That's normal, so I walked in and laid her back down. After a few more times she calmed down a little. I got in the shower and Daniel handled her shenanigans during that time. 

She started climbing out of the bed from the top end above the bed rail and would sneak out by her nightstand. She got stuck once but continued to do this for a while. She made it to the door once and when she opened it Daniel was standing there. She closed it on him at that point. Another time she tried to run around him. 

When I got out of the shower I took over and got her to calm down. I then made her mad again by leaving her room. After two more attempts to get out of bed she crashed. It only took an hour and a half. 

Needless to say, we're beat! We cleaned up the kitchen and got the house in order for the most part. We go back to the real world tomorrow, so that'll be its own kind of fun. 

Goodnight all! 

Maddie and Daniel playing in the floor. He held her up like a bird; she then took a turn to lift him up like a bird. We were all laughing. 

My casserole dish. 

Day 144: A Day of Catch Up

This morning began with a happy little girl waking us up around 9 am. She climbed into our bed and told us to get up. 

This was Maddie wanting to sleep in Nana's bed. 

After eating breakfast Caleb came downstairs. He slept in a little later. Once he finished his breakfast he went to work on his school projects. He is about half way done. 

Maddie crashed around 1pm but took a short nap. She woke up ill and grumpy. She cried, screamed, and threw temper tantrums periodically. She was quite the upset toddler for the later part of the day. 

We FaceTimed Nana and got to say hello to Winnie before she left. They were still pretty tired from their adventure back to the states, so we didn't talk for too long. We also had a ton of laundry and dishes to finish so we completed most of that. 

Daniel went outside to play catch with Caleb and Maddie. She tried to throw the ball and tried to put Caleb's glove on at one point. They had a good time, but Maddie ended it with a fit over something. 

After the kids went to bed Daniel and I watched a movie. Now that it's over and it's past midnight, we're going to bed! 

Goodnight y'all. 

One of many fits. 

Day 143: Baseball and BBQs

This morning we sent Nana and "Winnie" off with well wishes, hugs and kisses, and hopes for safe travels. Their flight departed at lunch, so they should be in JFK soon. 

All morning Maddie would ask for Nana or Winnie but I would respond with they're on an airplane right now. So, she began saying, "Nana and Winnie are on an airplane." She cuddled up with me around 10:30 and we both napped. Caleb even crashed for a few hours, too. 

When Daniel got home (he worked for a bit) it was time for Caleb's baseball game. The boys went to that and got back a couple of hours later. Caleb's team lost, 14-12. He had a blast though and had some great hits. 

When the boys returned we got ready for a BBQ at a friend's house. It was nice seeing so many people that I haven't seen in a while. Maddie had fun and loved playing the game Hungry Hippos. 

When we got home the kids took baths/showers and got dressed for bed. Maddie walked by the extra room where Rhonda stayed and asked to sleep in Nana's bed. It was precious. She loved having her Nana and Winnie around and I could tell that she missed them today. 

Now it's time for bed because the hubs and I are exhausted! Goodnight y'all. 

Day 142: Wandering Warsaw

This morning we all slept in and took our time getting ready for the day. We decided to go to one more pottery shop to find a few goodies. Rhonda and Wendi found a few more things they wanted so we left as happy campers. 

We then picked up everyone else and ventured to Old Town. The weather was great overall and we had a good time. We took pictures and saw everything we hoped to. 

When we got into Old Town we stopped and ate an early dinner. We enjoyed more traditional Polish food and enjoyed some wine. Maddie was asleep and took a great nap. She woke up to eat and then chased pigeons for a bit. They had a large time. 

After dinner we left to find the tomb of the unknown soldier and see the beautiful park that was near it. It was nice seeing all the freshly planted flowers. 

We then walked back to the bus and made our way back home. We then observed and helped Rhonda and Wendi pack their suitcases. 

The kids enjoyed their night and played all over Nana's bed. The iPad was a popular item for them to play with. 

After a bit longer, the kids went to bed and the adults did, too. 

Goodnight all! 

Day 141: More of Barcelona

Last night we went to bed with a storm raging outside. This morning when we awoke, we realized how much water came inside our apartment during the night. 

There was a leak in the roof so the water leaked in and ran down each wall. On one side of the room the items on Daniel's nightstand got wet. On the other side, all of our dirty clothes that we had in the floor got wet. Thankfully, the company we rented from handled drying our clothes so we could take them back in our carry on bags dry, not soaking wet. 

After we talked with the company and found out what we were doing we decided to have breakfast. We went to a nice place and enjoyed eggs and bacon: the choice of breakfast all week. We then decided on what we were doing for the day. 

We started out by doing some souvenir shopping and then walked to one of the main squares. There, we got on a bus and went back to the church, La Sagrada Familia. We decided against waiting in line to go inside, as we didn't have a ton of time to spare. So, we took pictures from all sides of the church and then went to the beach. 

By the time we arrived to the beach Maddie had fallen asleep on me, so the two of us stayed on the sidewalk area while everyone else stuck their toes in the sand and their feet in the Mediterranean Ocean. The beach was beautiful and cold! There were tons of people lying around in the swimsuits, but I couldn't stop shivering. 

We had lunch close by in a restaurant that served seafood.  We weren't sure what to expect at first, but the food was delicious and we left happy!

We took a cab back to our apartment and picked up our dry clothes and bags. We then took another taxi to the airport. When we arrived we got in line and proceeded to check in. To our surprise, we couldn't check in earlier than two hours prior to boarding. So we had about 30 minutes to spare. 

We waited around for a bit, checked in, and then rushed through security. We made it to our gate and we discovered the play area close by. I took the kids to play and everyone else went to pick out dinner. 

We then boarded priority, thanks to the kiddos, and sat on the plane for a bit while everyone else got seated. Before take off Maddie had fallen asleep and slept most of the trip. Our flight left at 8:45pm and landed in Warsaw at 11:50pm. We're exhausted to say the least, but we are blessed with two kids who do so great through the craziness we put them through. They each had a great trip and we all made memories to last a lifetime. 

Goodnight all.