NYC and sleepover

I resisted going to NYC for a while. I'm not very energetic and where do I leave the kids when we are gone??!! Well, it was Tricia who convinced me that I just had to go. That one night we were planning became two nights and last friday, we were at the Big Apple!! It took me a while to get used to the idea that the kids would be OK. But of course they were just looking forward to the sleepover. Miss A said in this proud tone,

"Am I not too young to have a sleep over?" ("Yes baby, you are actually, but mama-papa are ready to bend some rules to please themselves!!!>>>")

Miss F was staying not one but two nights at her best friend's house, she couldn't be happier. She did make sure that I put one of new school pictures of both in my valet and she made me order copies of family pictures for them to take to Tricia's.

I realize how hard I found it, look how much time I spent just writing about leaving the kids home. Now it's time to go further, because we went to NYC and that is something!!!!

We arrived to LaGuardia in the evening, took the taxi to the hotel I found in 5 minutes on Internet. Honestly I was a bit nervous about it. Because of us Eddie and MA had changed their reservation. But the New York Manhattan hotel was quite OK. The nicest thing was the location, it was on the Korean street, always full of young people, lively and full of restaurants. Since Eddie and MA were at a musical, P and I decided to go out and eat something - which I do continuously lately, it's almost scary!! We found a Korean restaurant where the BBQ is in the middle of the table. Before we ordered, Eddie and MA arrived and it was a blast. Good food, good friends, what more can I say.

From there, we walked to the Times Square. A little disappointment, it is busy and surrounded with colorful screens, but further??... Then of course we had to go to a bar. Without a local, the best way to find a decent place is to ask a local. So we asked a police guy where we could have a drink. (I just couldn't come up with the word decent, so I said "family bar" to the policeman. He probably thought I was stoned or something...) We ended up in a street where Irish bars were lined up. We entered the most cosy looking one. When we arrived back to the hotel, it was around 3am. I ended up sleeping around 4am, something to pay for later!!

The next morning, of course getting up was hell, but we managed. We made an attempt to have breakfast at a nice looking bakery just under the hotel. Unfortunately they had nothing without milk or milk products. Disappointed, we left for the Central Park. Ah, what a beautiful day and what a beautiful place. Autumn colors and the sunshine just made it. People were jogging and biking on the streets, jazz musicians were giving little concerts, families cruising around... We saw the carousel and the ice skating rink. I just had the book club back at home about the "Catcher in the Rye" and scenes of the book came to life. Then we found (again asked someone) for a place to sit and eat. We ended up at the boathouse, which Sonja was telling me about. We had a fancy brunch.

After brunch, we walked through the park a bit more, and went to the 5th Ave. We walked to the Rockefeller Building. We went to the observation deck and had a great view of New york and the surroundings. It was good for the orientation, to see how Manhattan is an island and New Jersey looks so different and greener than NYC. The Central Park is really is a jewel in the middle of the concrete forest.

Eddie and MA were planning to do some shopping. We decided to take a cab and try to see the Statue of Liberty. Well, the taxi drive was much longer than expected, and when we arrived to the dock around 3.40, the last ferry to the Statue was gone. The seashore was beautiful though, so we walked around a bit. By that time, I was dragging my feet behind me, the tiredness was unbearable. We decided to go back to the hotel after seeing the Ground Zero. It was something to see where the Twin Towers were standing and the plans for the new building. We walked through the financial buildings, saw Deloitte's nice spot at the Big Apple, and of course all the hot shots in exactly same suits, like school kids in uniforms.

At the hotel, I wasn't the only one exhausted. P and I both fell asleep. When we met with Eddie and MA at the lobby, I was still not feeling fit. However, the story the came up with did cheer me up. They had the most hilarious story. After we went to Statue of Liberty, they ran into a crowd. The police was keeping people away from a movie set just on the street. So the two somehow ended up inside the police line and all of a sudden, they were the part of the crowd (all casted and paid actors) acting in the "crowd" scene. I can't remeber which movie it is, but we'll find it out. They had to act like they were watching someone climb or jump from a building. They had to give facial reactions to the command from a speaker. It's so funny that the people around them were paid actors and were seriously acting to the commands. I wonder if someone will realize at the montage the tall guy and the little girl with the backpack. And they were just next to the "star" of the scene. Hilarious!

To celebrate the breakthrough of Eddie and MA, we went tout for dinner. Well, actually the dinner arrangements were done by my assistant Tricia (in the car while I was driving to IKEA) couple days ago. I wanted to keep it as a secret, but P had to tell something and before I knew Eddie knew all about it. So we took a cab (that's what you do in New York) to "Lucky Chengs", a restaurant where the waiters are travesties in sexy lingerie. The guys (or women, or bitches as they kept on calling around) did little gigs, shows and a competition. (Six ladies from the restaurant guests had to do a lap dance for a guy, again, a restaurant guest. We were supposed to select he best one.) It was an experience. I liked the food but I understand that not every one's food was as good. It was quite loud, though. It just sucked the energy out of me. Ah, this little baby must be thinking the world is a horribly loud place. Even before the end of the dinner, I was exhausted. After we were done, MA and I decided to take a cab to the hotel. Oh, it was such a good night sleep!

Sunday morning, we had just enough time to have a breakfast and P and I had to say goodbye to our friends. Of course Eddie and MA went back to the city for some more shopping, I think they filled a whole big suitcase while in NYC for almost 4 days! P was actually not ready to leave, he still wanted to see more of the city but I think I was quite ready to see our babies. I knew they had great time, but still, they belong by us.

We picked up the girls from Tricia around 4pm. They had a lot to tell. Well, the first night, Miss F was a little sad and had to take out our family pictures. The next evening, it was Miss A's turn. It's good to know they did miss us, because Miss A said she could have stayed another 3-4 days. Nice to hear! Of course the top moment was when Miss F, at Rowan's b-day party, got to choose her own American Girl doll. Seven girls and Brooke went downtown in a limo, had dinner at the American Girl place and each girl got her own doll. Brooke found it over the top herself, but it was a Grandpa treat for Rowan.

It was a dream come true for Miss F, who wanted to have such a doll for the longest time. We have been very strict about it. She was always allowed to buy one with her own savings, but she realizes that it would cost her all her savings, so she didn't want to buy one herself. Oh, so many tears I had to wipe from her face in the last months. And now she has her own doll (and her savings!!) The funny thing is, she came home with her doll and the pictures of 4 other dolls. Both girls want one doll from the pictures from Santa. What happened to being happy with the one doll she got at the b-day party?? The whole situation is a bit sad for Miss A, I really think she believes she will receive a doll for Christmas. Back from NYC to tough parenting issues. But still I'm rather here then sitting at a loud restaurant with dick shaped balloons sticking from people's head around me.

Greetings to Eddie and MA, it was fun and see you soon!

It's a girl!

It's a giiiirl, it's a giiiirl, it's a giiiirl, it's a giiiirl... (sing it please...)

Independence in Montessori

Very now and then, there is a presentation of teachers at our Montessori school about a subject important for the education of our kids. This time it was about independence. Of course Montessori education implies a lot of independence, what why is it so important.

The presentation started with the class of 3-6 year olds, called primary. With examples from the class, we saw how the kids are gently maneuvered to be self sufficient (tying shoes to choosing their own work) and how they are let free to make mistakes and learn from them. (breaking a glass to spelling phonetically.) Especially the spelling was very interested. When a kids is trying to spell a word and asks a teacher how to make the "u" sound to write America, the teacher gives the letter "u" instead of "a". This goes on until the kid is ready to learn the proper spelling of words.

In the lower elementary (6-9), we saw how the children are give a general story about a part of history and tools to dig in whatever is interesting for them. They have freedom to choose their work partners, pursue their interests and work independent from teacher and a curriculum.

In upper elementary (9-12), they are allowed to do research on subjects they are interested in. After doing research at school, they can organize a trip to a museum or a college, where ever they can get more information about the subject. They have to plan all the trip details, get permissions, contact the authorities and people in question, find a parent to drive them to the location and after the trip, send thank you notes.

These were interesting, but the creme de la creme was the presentation from the two secondary level (12-14) teachers. At that level, the independence really finds its use. The children are self sufficient, as individuals and as together as a group. They follow a tough curriculum with the freedom to choose their own pace. Next to the studies they do, they also plan these trips (3 per year.) They literally have all the responsibility, choosing the place, getting the directions, planning cooking, finances, everything. I wouldn't be able manage such a complex process, it's so much work. The trips aren't without purpose. They build, they help, they discover... They use everything they learned from all the way from primary to that day. They are self sufficient, independent and harmonious as a group.

when we started Montessori education with Miss A at the Young Children's Community (18 months to 3 year), we would say with other parents that it would be so nice to be in that classroom. We wished we were at that age and in there. Now I prefer Secondary. The only problem is, even though I would manage Young Children's Community without problem, I am not so sure about the Secondary level. I doubt I have the life skills the kids get from all those years at the Montessori School.

Back to life

Last weekend was "back to life". Friday evening, we were invited to Melinda's house for a dinner with her and Tony's family. This time, we said "yes". I tried to rest during the day to be able to make it, and I did.

When we arrived, I loved the expression on especially Lillian and Amelia. They were genuinely excited. Tally to Miss A from the hand and they were gone for the rest of the evening. P had a nice conversation with Tony's husband and we got to know their families better.

Saturday morning, Miss F had her b-day party at the bowling place. 9 girls and 1 boy bowled for an hour. Then we had some cake in the party room. It was great, the bowling place arranged everything for us, we hardly had to do anything. P has a video of the kids literally screaming a song - all of them!

Even though it was all well arranged, I came home exhausted. But there was no time to rest. P went to play tennis with Paul for a short while - which probably looked like anything but tennis!! Then we left for Deniz's house. We saw them one whole year ago. The little Alexander was not so little anymore, more like a giant 2 year old. The girls had Alexander had a blast. They are so welcoming and nice, we ended up leaving pretty late. Of course in good old days, late would be 1 am (with the kids) or later (without the kids.) It was 10.30 when we arrived home. Still I had to pay for it the next day.

Sunday, Paul came for a crepe breakfast. So I got up, made crepes and had a major bleeding that scared the sh.. out of us. Now we know that it's all OK, but at the moment, I literally screamed when I saw what was happening. That same day, after quite some doubt, P left for Europe. This is his first trip since 3 months!!

Looks like I'm OK, the baby is OK and I manage the household - not without hiccups- without P. I even went to swim today, for 12 minutes!! 12 long minutes. Had to sleep on the couch for 1,5 hours after that, but I did swim!!

What was he thinkig!!

P wanted a manly dinner yesterday. Me and the girls had drumsticks from the over, one for each, two for me. P BBQed for himself, a huge, I mean HUGE steak. He put delightedly half an onion on it and took a glass of wine. Fine!

When it was bed time, and don't forget about my extreme smell sense thanks to the pregnancy, he decided to chat with me in bed. Chat? It's more breathing to my face - which became purple in no time. I had to jump out of the bed to not to puke. He was approx. 1 meter from my face but Gosh, I can smell a burb from 3 meters!... So P is not so happy with me because I just cannot stand him smelling to my face - he says he will get a new wife -, but I think he should be happy. I almost moved myself to the guest room last night, but I didn't do it. (and seriously a new wife? who would ever stand that smell and take him??) He just had to turn his back to me.

This is not a complain posting. I am actually doing so much better - knock on the wood -, I didn't puke for 7 days. I celebrated this by going to the pool and swimming like an 80 year old lady for 10 minutes. But well, it's an achievement. I even went to have lunch with Fauzia and didn't fall asleep at the table. We will go to the doctor tomorrow, I am very excited about it. Miss A will be with us, she is out of school then. When F heard this, she had to cry so hard!.. Luckily, she has a playdate with Dagny after school, that was enough to cheer her up.

Just before I finish, I just wanted to say how sorry i am to hear that Hester and family will move to Singapore. I think it's great for them, but it's just so sad to see another friend leave. Well, I wrote it before: who ever we become friends with tends to move away, to a far far country. So beware!

Nausea

I wish I didn't make a posting like this. I was actually planning to write couple things that I still have to put here, like the trip to Yellowstone or my mom's visit. But the nausea and the dizziness is just taking my days over. I cannot function at all. Poor P, he has to do everything. He's like a single dad. And he tries so hard, I feel bad for being the weak one. Normally I am the one who "takes care", and I like that role. I cannot cook, it makes me puke. I cannot even think about going to the supermarket. The idea of all the food around makes my stomach upset. The only thing I do is to sleep. Today, I brought the kids to school - yes I managed that! - then I slept from 9.30 until 11.00. Then I picked up Miss A. After her lunch, I somehow managed to position myself on the couch around 12.30pm and when I checked the time, it was 3.00pm. I didn't really sleep, I could still hear the little one walking and talking. I even remember giving answers to her questions, but oh boy, I was in another world!

I'm almost in my 12th week. That means almost the end of the 1st trimester. I hope this time, unlike the other pregnancies, I will really feel good in my 2nd and 3rd trimesters. I am looking forward to it! Cross your fingers!

Sting at Ravinia

I had to get up at 4.30am to get those lawn tickets. Sting was sold out before the tickets were available for non-members. We wanted to have pavilion tickets, sit and listen... No hurry to get a nice picnic spot - not meant for us. But it's Sting at Ravinia, we were lucky that we could go!!



At 4.45pm, Chris came over and picked me up. I had the blankets and the portable chairs. We went to Ellie's. She had this heavy picnic basket and some great cheese and other nibble food. Chris brought us to the door of Ravinia. Well, not without a hassle. The police held all the roads and Chris rolled down the window and said everyone that I am pregnant to get us as close as possible - not a lie, but quite embarrassing!!. The doors were open at 5.00 and Ellie and I entered Ravinia at 5.20 to find out that it was as packed as possible, already! It was so busy that we had to squeeze by a garbage can and steal some space (6 inches) from a poor guy who would wait another hour for his party to arrive.



Then Ellie started putting up our picnic. Real plates, real glasses, a vase with flowers, candles, etc. I tried to lift her picnic basket later, it was as heavy as a dead horse!! Wonder why... I have to give it to her, though. We had the best looking picnic around!



Just before 7.00, P, Chris and Steve arrived. 7.30 sharp, Sting started to sing. We sat there and had good food and talked to good friends for the first half. Then P and Steve left t take a look at the stage. After them, left Ellie. After she came back, the three of us left for the stage while "Every Breath You Take" was playing. We got to the edge of the lawn and peek through heads to catch a glans of Sting. Ellie was dancing and trying to keep this one gut away from her. In the mean time, Chris was making her way to the fences that separate the lawn and the pavilion seats. Ellie didn't follow. All of a sudden Chris and I were standing in front of the gate. Chris said to the girl who was checking the tickets something about me being pregnant(!!??) and tried to get us in. The girl said something back which I didn't hear. Nevertheless, I knew she wasn't letting us in.Couple minutes later, the girls turned away for a second and I felt Chris pull me forward. The girl did a last attempt to stop me, but I didn't even look at her (if I did, I would have gone back) and we were in the pavilion. Half way through, there was a guy from security checking tickets. We said we were sitting behind somewhere and that we left he tickets with our party. Chris literally held the guy's head and said "Everyone is taller than me, please let us through." He smiled, but didn't move away. We listened to couple of songs there, half way to the stage. Sting was already so close, I was happy where we were. But then the unexpected happened and the security guy said his colleague to take over and left. The other guy didn't understand what he was supposed to do and followed the first one to ask him what the matter was. Before they could secure the path, we moved forward. We were now in front of the stage, just couple people before us, left to Sting. We could see the orchestra, the sweat on the faces of the musicians and all the expressions. The guitarist was playing right in front of us.



This was still not enough. Slow by slow, Chris made our way to Sting and at the encores we were literally standing in front of him. There was nothing but the security between us. It was truly amazing. And Sting came back for 5-6 times. He sang all those beautiful songs while we were watching him from 1,5 meter distance!! Too bad the end had to come and he and the CSO (Chicago Symphony Orchestra) left. Later we heard that P and Steve got tickets and were sitting in the pavilion, somewhere close to the fences. They didn't want to believe we were so close to Sting and of course we didn't have any camera - or phone with a camera - with us. But well, the memory is clear and fresh in our minds and we will always remember how we made our way to the stage, Chris and I. Chris, you are the crazies and really awesome!!

Too much

Yes, finally we did too much. The kids cannot sleep, Miss A. has a cough and they are both not sleeping! I wish I could say we will have a nice and quite day tomorrow. No way! I cannot go to bed while the girls are both awake, so I will write.

Yesterday we had the cutest phone call. It was Pippa, a friend of Miss F. I first didn't understand who it was. It's the first time a friend of the kids calls us. She wanted to ask if Miss F. was available for a play date. We had the swimming and Ravinia, so I said no. "But", I said, "tomorrow morning, she is available." Pippa had to think a minute. "Sure" she said. I suggested that she asks her mother. "OK", she said "I will ask her and call you back in a minute." and she hang up. It was so cute that it didn't occur to her to put the phone down, ask her mother and come back. Of course we had to leave, but her mother called this morning. Miss F has a playdate tomorrow morning. She is so excited.

When Pippa hung up, Miss F. said "was that Pippa? I can't do that!" And I know she can't, my little shy daughter. Just so funny to hear it from her. I think after this, she might actually consider calling someone. She knows that it's possible.

We celebrated Sheila's birthday today. Other than that, we didn't do too much. Still the kids are very tired, and somehow not ready to sleep. I just hope nobody gets sick.

I saw the first firefly in the backyard. The beauty of summer!!

The Chinese Acrobats at Ravinia

Some people have flexible bones. That's what it is. How can you otherwise explain those acrobats' tricks. Try to put your chin down on the ground, reach over with your feet and touch the top of your head. That's what they do, those acrobats.

I took the kids tonight to the Chinese Acrobats at Ravinia. Their first Ravinia experience, and it was spectacular. (oh, how missed P, too bad he couldn't make it!!) I watched as much as possible those two little girls with huge eyes, laughing, clapping, jumping on their seats in total excitement. I told them how me and daddy came to Ravinia for concerts, had a nice picnic with friends and listened to music. Miss F. asked if there was also a guy standing on one hand on six chairs. No, we had just music. Ohhh... How am I ever going to bring them to one of the classical music concerts, their expectations is more of visual spectacle. At 9.15 pm, on Skokie Highway driving home, Miss F. said she can do a trick herself. Totally proud of herself, she crossed her legs like a fakir and put her nose against her shoes.I guess I will see a lot of strange acrobatics from the girls in the coming days.

Just a short recount of the day: last night's storm faded away for just a while. In the morning, we saw a piece of the sun. Then the rain started again. We were planning to meet Fauzia and her kids at the park, but instead they came over and brought some bagels. Yam! She came with Kareem who ended up playing with Miss. F. and Ameena who re-discovered her old friend Miss A. After they left, we had dinner for lunch - it was most logical thing to do since we were having PBJ's for dinner! Then we went to Chiro and then to the girls' last swimming lessons at our gym. Miss A. and her friend Tristan were amazing. They were probably showing off to the new teacher who will take over from our Tom. Tom is leaving LifeTime. He is the one who thought both Miss A and Tristan how to swim, so we will miss him! Anyway, the two, just like it was no deal, started swimming doggy style and half way turning on their back. No problem. The proud smiles and the laughter... Two weeks ago, I remember seeing a little girl crying in the pool, saying she didn't want to swim. She did remind me to Miss A., but probably it was another girl! Since it was Miss A.'s last lesson with Tristan, I let them play together in the pool. This means that I didn't have the chance to sit closer to Miss F. Well, I know she does quite well, and I can still see her from distance. However, she had a short lesson. A storm was approaching. Everybody had to leave the pool. I didn't mind it a lot. We still had to go to Ravinia. We had dinner (PBJ's) in the car and just after the rain stopped, arrived to the Ravinia parking lot. Then we are back to the acrobats... What a day!

Barrington Youth Dance Ensemble

We added a new favorite to our little adventurous outings. We went to see "Sleeping Beauty" ballet produced by the Barrington Youth Dance Ensemble.

Our day started with a visit to downtown Lake Forest to bring some food to Miss A's teacher who just had a baby. We saw the baby! Then to Panera for some bagels, P's wish. We were to celebrate Fathers' day today, so his wish was my command. Than we had a short trip to Libertyville. It was time for the Libertyville Parade, out 3rd. We went late because we didn't feel like rushing to Libertyville at 10 am. It was a good decision. The sun was hot and the parade was long. It took a while for Miss F. to open up and run after candy. Miss A. had less trouble with it.

After the parade, sweating and hot, we left for Barrington. It started just like expected, we couldn't find the place. The address was not good. From some other people who made the same mistake, we heard that we had to go to the high school. 5 minutes before the start time, we entered the building. I was surprised that our tickets, bought online 2 weeks ago were there waiting for us.

The atmosphere was more like the ballet recital of the girls. But the show proved me wrong. The Ensemble presented two scenes from Sleeping Beauty: one when the prince kisses Princess Aurora and wakes her up and one from the wedding of the prince and the princess.

The little dancers came on the stage first, and did their part without a flaw. They looked cute and well prepared. Then the teenagers came on the stage. It looked very professional, very beautiful. The dancers did very well, all well prepared, good choreography, beautiful decors... It all reminded me the Little Mermaid of Christian Youth Theatre on our first year in USA. When the fairy came on the stage, I looked at Miss F and saw the sparkles in her eyes. She applauded so hard after every piece of the show. Miss A just kept on asking if there was more and wanted to stay in her seat after the show. These girls might be ready to see a whole ballet production! It's so much pleasure to share these moments with the four of us!

A crazy week

The first week of June... Miss A. started her summer school and Miss F. started her school drama week and I started one of the busiest weeks of the year!

Monday, May 31: the week started with a free day. So what am I complaining about!! It was the memorial day weekend. It was fine having P home especially since his parents arrived the Thursday before memorial day.

Tuesday, June 1: Brought Miss F. to Gorton center and Miss A. to school. Then I went home to assist - read following all over the place like a little nosy old lady - Anderson Pest Solutions. Haha, he found 4 dead mouses, probably trapped in before he closed the hole. That's what he and I and all of us are hoping. Those dead mouses can stink!!

Wednesday, June 2: I this was the day I stayed at the Gorton Center to help with the costumes. It was so much fun being there, seeing Miss F. with her friends... She saw me and I could see the excitement in her expression. I smiled and then ignored her. I didn't want to be a distraction. I think she understood it. We smiled each other each time I saw her, and that was it. It felt so good to be involved and be close to Miss F. I know she'll never forget that. That's the reason I love being home with the kids.

After picking up Miss. A, I took her home, left her with my in-laws and went back to the Gorton Center for a short while. After school, I brought Miss F. to Charlie's b-day party and went to LifeTime for Miss. A's swimming lesson. Tristan didn't show up and there was an older busy boy in her class. Miss A. decided that she didn't want to have a lesson. Meester Tom did every thing he could, I used all techniques including the bribes I knew, but no way!Too bad for the grand parents who came to watch her. After the struggle, we left he lesson and went to pickup a happy Miss F. From there, the grand parents brought me to my Chiropractor and left with the kids. P was supposed to come there, too. Unfortunately he changed plans. I had to walk from the chiropractor to Barnes & Noble in a cold weather with light rain, to my SCBWI meeting. I had a story with me, my first story in the States actually, version 25. I have a love/hate relationship with the story. The readers had the same, too - different though, some liked it, some hated it. At 9pm sharp. P came to pick me up!

Thursday, June 3: Thursday was the day of the technical rehearsal for the ballet. After F's pickup, we went to the Rec Center. I was the room mom for F's group, with 2 other moms. I ended up staying with another group which had no room mom. Ballet tech rehearsal is nothing exciting. All the kids practice the grand finale, twice. this means a lot of waiting. At the end, they do their routine once, and they are done. The whole process tool like 2 hours, way too long for the little ones. I was tired at the end, the little ones were exhausted! Oh well, it was one down, two to go.

Friday, June 4: Shweta, the new girl from school invited couple people from school for a little morning coffee. Always fun! Close to the 3 pm, we went to the Lake Forest Library with my in-laws. It's a beautiful building, very nice to see. After Miss F's pick up, we went straight to the Lake Forest High School for the dress rehearsal. It's the first time the kids do their ballet routine on the stage. It's so much fun to see. The confusion, the overwhelmed look on their faces when they see the big room... They did so well, all of them. That same evening, I went out with Shelley to chill out at bit. We had a very nice evening, I had never talked to Shelley so much, I'm glad I did!

Saturday, June 5th: Miss F. had drama rehearsal until 1pm. We had strict instructions from school about the following hours. The kids were supposed to rest. At 6pm, they had the real thing! Kids from 5 year and older are allowed to go to the school drama. So Miss A. had to stay home with a sitter. For weeks, each time I mentioned her this, she started crying. I was really worried about it. I remember how upset she was when we went to see Mary Poppins. She had cried for the whole time we were gone and she had slammed the door on the sitter's face - poor Kerrie! I was waiting for the same reaction!

Well, after crying many times, she told me that she was afraid the sitter wouldn't understand her. She is so much used to have her sister as the talk! It's easier for me when I know the exact thing she is worried about. I said to Miss A. that she can watch a movie (we got a movie at the library the day before), and she might even see another one. She wouldn't have to talk at all. Somehow, this seemed to sound good to her. She actually had something to look forward to! When the sitter came - Veronica -, she just went off with her. She was totally OK - they did watch movies for hours, but well, she wasn't slamming doors or crying!

The play was at 6pm. We all got prepared, P wore his leather slippers against all my objections, and we went to see the play. The whole production was so well done, so cute... Miss F., who was saying that she will not go on stage, took her place and sang her songs as confident as a person can be! The little ones were in a choir, they sang 3 songs. The older kids had real parts with words. It was amazing how those kids put on stage a whole production in three weeks of partial repetition and then one week full time practicing! We saw the movie of Miss F. probably 15 times already.

oh yes, at the intermission, Duncan said "P should let me know when he will wear his flip flops again, I will do that, too!" Just too funny!

A little note about the play: the school does this for couple of reasons:

• the kids build confidence for being on stage - think about giving speeches, talking or performing in front of a crowd of people.
• it's a good experience to work together and produce something together. The older ones help the younger ones, the younger ones see the process the older ones go through.
• The kids get to know each other in a different way, in a different environment than the normal school.

I love our school!

Sunday, June 6th: We had the seats right in front of the stage for the ballet recital. Some people said the seats were too low and too close by. They probably just wanted those seats and couldn't get it. We were basically nose to nose with the kids. We could perfectly see them, and they could see us.

Miss A. was too occupied with Miss Sarah, her ballet teacher. She didn't see us at all. Miss Sarah was on the stage with the them and Miss A. was, as usual fully focused on her. They didn't present their best performance, some kids got a bit confused, but with the little ones, everything is just too cute!! After the intermission, Miss F. came on the stage and her class put on stage their best performance. The ballet movie is also watched many many times!

And this was the end of the crazy busy week!

Miss A's book club

Miss A is doing "Book Club" at the park district. It is the cutest class and she loves it! They read a book and then do activities related to the book. They made kites, petted a Guinea Pig, and all other fun stuff. She feels so big and she is so proud that she goes to her "Book Club." I love the enthusiasm!

In Bartlett with Dave and Tena

I keep on saying how much I miss Dave and Tena. Luckily, they try to keep in touch as well. They were staying with Dave's sister Anissa and her husband Todd. They invited me and the girls. Of course they would have invited P, too. However, he was out of town. What's new!!

When I left home, I had no idea where Bartlett was. I was actually thinking I would go to Wisconsin. At this kind of moments, I love my GPS! It send me to the opposite direction, right to Anissa's.

In a second, the kids were best friends again. The girls played most of the time with Tamsen, but I could spot Beck and Miss F playing as well. We went to the swimming pool - which gave me a lot of itch the day after - and then to some dinner at their church. Nothing religious, it was for scouts or something.

On the way back to home, I realized that the reason why I miss Dave and Tena so much: there is no other couple here that we like both the wife and the husband and vice versa and hang around together. There are families we like, but somehow I see my friends, P sees his friends, we hardly ever see couples. I don't know why, it's just he way it is. Well, enough about these deep thoughts, I hope to see Dave and Tena soon, the rest of the family likewise!

Caroline's birthday

Such an exciting day for Miss A. She was preparing for the party for three weeks. She draw, she wrote letters, she made me do crafts. When we arrived to the party, we had one bought present and a big bag full of Miss A creations. So much fun! The party was nice. A managed to sit next to Caroline during the pizza and cake. The look on her face was telling "see, this is my best friend's birthday party".

I should just mention that the same day in the morning was the parent teacher conference for Miss A and her teacher said she was doing beautifully! Of course Miss F is doing just fine, too. My little happy lady!

Miss A loves her friend!

Miss A's new friend Caroline celebrated her b-day today. (the party is this Saturday, this was the school celebration.) I spent a big part of the afternoon singing for Caroline. Not that she was here, or we were with her. Miss A decided to have a "pretend" party for her in our living room. We also wrote letters to Caroline. One goes like this:

Dear Caroline,
I love you. Can you come to my birthday party. Do you love me? (all told in English by Miss A!)

We'll give the letter on Saturday. I wonder what Caroline will say!!??

We are jinxed!

If you need a new job in a new, cool place, come and be our friend. Check this list:

Ale and Martin - to Uruguay (we knew that, though!)
Anne - to Germany (OK, we knew that one, too)
Dave and Tena - to Denver
Leo and Carla - New York - oh so unexpected!
Padraic and Anitra - Boston - we were just becoming friends

All happy to be gone, all to a new challenge. If you become friends with us and you have ambitions, we somehow - don't know how - make it possible for you! And we were supposed to be here for a short time. We were supposed to leave and have everyone wave us good bye! What is happening here?

Someone said to me today how wonderful it will be to visit New York and Boston and all the other places. Yes it's true. Denver was great. Still, it's not the easiest thing to find new dear friends in a new country. Then they keep on moving so far away. The only thing I can say is: we are jinxed!

Oh mine! What a week!

Spring break is fun for the kids, a bit of a stress for mothers. i decided that I will have as much fun as the kids this time. We are staying home, so I need planning.

The week started with a party at pump it up. Brook just invited a bunch of people from school, for just fun. The kids and some grown ups jumped around. Miss F won twice at the obstacle course from me. Although I did like I let her win, I stood no chance.

The next day, I met with Jacqueline and Hester from the Netherlands. We had a "Dutch party". We met at the Old Orchard Mall and had lunch. The shopping before and after with Hester was really fun! The kids got along so well. It still amazes me how the language makes them feel comfortable. Miss F is very fond of Koen and vice versa. She sure likes Dutch guys!

Wednesday was the only regular activity that did go on. We went to the pool for the swimming lessons. On the way to the pool Miss A kept on saying that she has a surprise for us. The lesson started as usual. She said right away that she doesn't want to put her head in the water. The instructor threw her couple times in, and she didn't cry. this was already quite a surprise for me. But after the lesson, while waiting for her sister, she went to swim at the shallow end of the pool and... there she went right underwater, she started swimming. it was so funny to see her trying free stroke, but the arms turning the wrong way round. Her friend from the lessons, Tristan saw Miss A and guess what. Before we knew, he had his head under water. What a wow evening!

We finished the spring break in the city. The four of us got a hotel room and spent 2 nights downtown. Thursday, we took the train and after checking in, we just cruised in the city till my feet were hurting like crazy! We had dinner at South Water Kitchen at Hotel Monaco. I had great expectations after the review in our guide book. The entourage was very nice, just what we imagined it would be. The food, though, missed the final touch. It was OK, but not great. We were disappointed.

We spent Friday at the Lincoln Park Zoo. The first time I was there with the kids was two years ago. We went with my in-laws. I remember the animals looked sad and neglected. It reminded me to the old zoo in Izmir. I used to find those animals sad and neglected, too. But recently I hear many people talking about how much they like the Lincoln Park compared to Brookfield. So I thought we will give it a try. Well, the difference of this experience to the first one was like black and white! The zoo looked fun, nice and well kept. (I always find the zoo animals a bit sad, even if they have space and friends.) I don't know what was going on last time, but I remember that a part of the zoo was closed because of some event. We probably didn't get to see the nice stuff then. P enjoyed the day, too.

In the evening, we had dinner with Padraic and Anitra. I was first thinking that it was too bad to go to somebody's home for dinner. How often are we in the city anyway! Of course, Anitra had prepared a lot of nice Indian dishes and the dinner was delicious. The kids played nicely. After dinner, we went to this cookie place that was open till late and bought cookies. We sat at the patio of a bar. I really had a great time. It felt like tasting the city life!

Saturday was the museum day. My choice was the Field Museum. After feeding P to some coffee - otherwise he is unbearable - , we walked through the African and Egyptian exhibits. We will have to return to see more. That museum is just huge. We will never be able to see everything or get bored!

I forgot to mention that we went to the pool at the hotel for a couple of times. honestly, P went with the kids, I just joined them for once. Miss A was excited to show her swimming to P. We also found out that she is very dangerous around pools. She just jumps in and thinks someone will take her out of the water anyway. I just couldn't watch it too long, I left the pleasure to P!

7 mother 14 children and a trip to downtown

We have successfully completed our first trip to the city with the ladies from school. (Sunday March 21st) We went to see Peter Pan at the Emerald City Theatre in Chicago, 7 mothers and 14 children. It took a while to make the arrangements, but we managed. It felt so nice to look at the seats around and see all the known faces. Hardly any kid sat with his/her mother, they looked for their friends and sat with them. Even Miss A sat next to Peri and her mother Sonja. I was curious how she would react if she gets scared. The moment Captain Hook came close, she jumped on Sonja and made Sonja keep the arm around her for the rest of the show.

The show was very well done. It was definitely not a big production. The stage is small, the cast is small, probably the budget is also small. Peter Pan was not the greatest singer either. But it was still very well done, with humor and passion for theatre. Especially the mermaids made us all laugh. Some of the kids were at a show for the first time. Emerald City Theatre is very child friendly, so it was the perfect experience.

Now the next step is to get the ladies to downtown Chicago without the kids. Wish me luck!

(oh, thanks to Brooke for driving me and the girls to the show.)

March 18th

I looked at the clock on my cellphone. It was 3.18 on March 18th. I just couldn't believe that P is not here with us on his b-day. We miss you Paps! Come home soon!

Happy birthday!

Miss A's new friend

Caroline started in A's class at the beginning of the year. Since she is in the class, Miss A tries to do everything with her. After school, she says;
"I had crackers with Caroline,"
"I cleaned the table with Caroline"
"I did sand paper letters, but not with Caroline."
I had to invite this Caroline here to meet A's new friend.

Last Sunday, Caroline came here with her mother. The hour before their arrival, A ran about the house and gathered "presents" for Caroline: necklaces, rings, stickers, a bag ... all A's belongings. I was amazed how much she wanted to give Caroline. I like it when the kids can say goodbye to their possessions, so I just watched her. (I did make sure that she try to give away her sister's stuff.)

Caroline arrived with her mother. Such a cute girl! The two friends took off right away. We didn't see them much for the next two hours (at least.) Well, we were busy, too. We spent the whole time chatting at table tennis - he he, one of my favorites!

The end of the wart!

Yesterday we filed away the last bits of the wart! Sorry, I really had to share this.

Coyote sighting

Wildlife always fascinates me, before it scares me. I wrote before about the coyote screams and cries we hear at nights. Last weekend, on Sunday morning at 8 am, we were still in bed, playing with the kids. We heard the cries. I jumped out of bed. Between the trees bordering neighbor's house, I could see something moving. Then they came, three of them, looking like skinny wolves. Three coyotes. We all stood at the window, watching them. They looked mighty and scary. They looked capable.

I watched the woods for coyotes many times, hoping to get a glans. Now I saw them, they make me nervous. If they want, they can easily get one of the kids. Three of them can even get me.

The village next to ours sent a newsletter warning about coyote sightings. People around apparently see more of them and sometimes encounter one or two. (A friend just said that she came face to face with one at the beach, when she was running.) The letter said that you should make yourself look bigger and keep eye contact. Don't run, don't scream. If they attack, hit them. If I ran into one, I would be so scared, I would forget all those things. What are the kids supposed to do!?

Here are two of the three coyotes. As I said, skinny wolves.

New wart remedy

Miss A invented a new way of getting rid of plantard warts. She talks to her wart. She says "Go away. Don't grow anymore. You have to get smaller." The thing is, she also says what the wart tells her. It says "I want to grow. I want to stay here." The wart in her imagination became some kind of an animal. Sometimes she says that the wart is moving and trying to come off. It's supposed to feel like a worm - or "worms are coming out of it."

I have to confess that I am a bit responsible for this "creativity". After all the doctors (lots of crying), medicines, filing etc, I might have started talking to the wart while putting on the medication. I hope it will come off soon and we will all forget about it - and all the imagination around it. I don't want Miss A's imaginary friend to be a wart - yuck!

Miss A's new friend!

Mark and Susan from Canada visited us. Miss A found a new friend: Sue!

We picked Susan and Mark from the airport together with A. It took us a while to get to home, I took all possible detours. THe reason: our house stinks again. Since the snow started melting, the smell came back. P and I were quite not happy. P even went the morning of Susan and Mark' arrival to get some air freshners. (also smelly stuff!) After lunch (of course at a restaurant) we came home. We could smeeeel the air fresheners.

When it was time pick up Miss F, A decided to stay with Sue. Then I knew they were friends. It did take another day for Miss A to learn Sue's name, but the first night she asked me if Sue was sleeping over.

Luckily, Mark and Susan didn't have to spend all their time in the smell. We got the plumber here and found out that the sump pit was not sealed properly by another plumber - if a plumber doesn't understand what "seal the pit" means, what can I tell more@?! The house got better. Basement is still a problem area, but who uses the basement anyway! We should pay rent for 2/3s of the house.

OK, enough of the smell. We had very nice two days with our visitors from Canada. Miss A will never forget them!

The "Mother of the year" award

Two weeks ago, our school had "Father's visit day." They send us a letter home, they put up signs and Miss A came home with a reminder. I made sure that P knew about the event, taht he was signed up and was not away on business trip on that Saturday. F was very excited to show daddy her work and her class. A accepted that it was for her older sister, not for her.

I thought I would use the opportunity to take A to our Gym, bring her to the child care there(she is used to be there with her sister, but not without her.) I would like to make more use of the Gym - like more than once in two moths - and it's easier if A likes the child care. And guess what, she absolutely didn't like it. I spend 20 minutes trying to convince her to stay there, finally left her behind crying and still missed the class I wanted to follow. It was NOT a success!

Then...

Oh no! I realized the father's visit was also for A! How could I ever make such a mistake??!! All those reminders and posters! I just didn't get it and made my little girl cry! I am up and running for that award. Gooooo Mommy! (sorry my little baby!)

The weak gender?

The kids are playing nicely (well, I will not complain about the mess in the living room) and husband is back to work, so I feel like blogging - and I have time for it!

When I was telling friends about P's approaching surgery, they had some funny comments. We are in the States for two years and P was hospitalized 4 times, twice for a surgery. Our American fiends know him as "that guy who is either in hospital or on a business trip."

One friend said "did he want to try another hospital?" It was P's third hospital, so she had a point. I'll give thumbs up for Condell in Libertyville, nothing like the black hole of hospital (once you get in, you cannot get out, I wrote about it a year ago).

"There is a reason why woman over live their husbands" said Carla. I always thought that husbands were mostly couple years older than their wives, that's why the husbands "went" first. Even though all the statistics show that woman live longer, I always found it comforting that P and I are just a year apart. But Carla might have a point. Oh, no! this blog is getting depressing, it was supposed to be fun!

"See" said Brooke, "that's why woman give birth to children. Man are weak, they wouldn't survive it!" So true, sorry guys! But we still love you! Let's say, it's nice to have a hubby around.

Where does this mess come from??!!

To prove that I am the best nurse ever, husband is back to work exactly one week after surgery. Now that life seems to go back to normal - nobody asking me to join him for a cup of coffee that I don't drink or telling me that I should come home fast from grocery shopping because he is so lonely - I can blog about the, well, "normal" stuff.

Last week we spent a lot of time at home and I had to face the fact that we have tooooooo many toys. In no time, the kids take everything out of the boxes and closets, and they let them lay around while playing with something completely different. I have to admit that they have been quite good with cleaning up, meaning, after we told them to do so like 10 times. Still there is a theory saying if there is less toys, there will be less mess. Or, is there such a theory? Am I making it up? The ultimate test is to get rid of toys and see the result. And that was the story of my Sunday.

At the end of my desperate quest, I ended up collecting a big garbage bag full of old toys that hopefully will make some other kid very happy. They were baby toys that act like a magnet. Whenever Miss A laid her eyes on them, they had to be spread out all over the place, like an impulse.

At the end of the day, I was quite proud of the big black plastic bag. Gosh, finally those toys were gone! With that satisfied feeling, I looked around to see my nice blankets, that I use on the couch on cold winter evenings, spread out on the ground; cushions used as bed for dolls and the bar chairs lined up as a train. What a mess! The result of this test shows us that less toys is not less mess. This conclusion takes us to the next theory: less stuff is less mess.

I am not testing that one. I want to keep my blankets, my cushions and my bar chairs. Since I am also keeping the kids, I think I will also keep the mess!

Nursing the husband

P made it to home from the hospital just fine. He had the surgery last Tuesday and he's been home since then. It's quite weird to have him home full time, normally he's never home. Amazingly, his biggest love - the Blackberry - didn't get too much attention and we really had the chance to enjoy his presence at home.

Since Miss A was home most of the time, she had all the time with daddy. They sat together, hand in hand as A always does, and read books. The kids sense when there is something wrong, nobody jumped on P or hurt him in another way.

We had good wishes from friends from school and his work. Paul stopped by one evening. We have now this half tree in our foyer, a present from P's colleagues. Chris and Fauzia were very nice to take care of the girls when P was in surgery.

P has been good patient, except his continuous request of coffee and thee. Ha ha, I'm teasing! Just couple more days and he is going back to work. Just couple more days...

P's call from Paris

A conversation you don't want to have in the supermarket is about your husband going into surgery. Almost, I should say. When P called, I understood that he had a surgery. A misunderstanding! Made me shiver!

He just found out in Europe that he is suffering a double hernia and he will have to be operated. He didn't have an acute operation, as I thought. Hopefully he will come home and have it. So I was at the supermarket, getting groceries with A, and talking to him. I got looks from the people around when I made weird exclamation sounds. Poor P, works so hard and gets all those health problems.

Looks like we will continue this story. I look forward to write that it's all behind and we are safe, sound and healthy.

Wild life getting close

Lately we hear screams in the night. Coyote live in the nature preserve close by and they hunt, probably in packs. I tell the kids it's dogs, trying to hide how the sounds disturb me.

This afternoon we went to the backyard to play with the snow. I saw a hole just 2 meters from the deck. The hole was full with hair and pieces of skin. No blood. I couldn't believe that the screams from last night came actually from our backyard!

I think it was a rabbit. Now I come to think of, because there was no blood, maybe the rabbit had escaped, or the coyote are very efficient. Anyway, it didn't look pleasant. I had to scoop the rests so that the kids didn't end up near or on the spot of crime. Yuck!

Kids on Olympic Games

I introduced the kids to Olympic Games. We were watching men's figure skating. I was telling them how best of the best come and compete for the gold medal. They were amazed with all those incredible things those men perform on the ice. Miss A looked and looked and said "when you are the best of the world, you can jump like that." Well, the way she said it, it sounded very ... deep and spiritual!

Then came the women's luge. Miss F couldn't figure out what was so hard about it. It's just sliding. They saw soon how fast they were going. F started explaining A that it was about the speed. A asked "when is Luge coming." She thought it was a person. Cute!

Denver! baby

Last year at winter vacation, we were probably the only family staying at home. The whole school was gone out of state. This year, we joined the club. Ha ha! We went to visit Dave and Tena in Denver, the mile high city.

Denver is at just 2 - 2,5 hours flying distance. We are so used to fly overseas that it felt weird and great to be at our destination in such a short time. Even with the delay due to de-icing of the plane, we were at Dave and Tena's at the beginning of the afternoon. Leaving the snowstorm in Chicago, we were in sunny Denver! Date: Feb 10Th.

The mountains in Denver are gorgeous. I realized how much I miss mountains as I saw the snowy peaks. From flat Holland to flat Chicago... I miss mountains. We spent 3 of the 4,5 half days vacation visiting them. I didn't get enough!

Beck was waiting for us at the neighbors. We could see that he was excited to have F over. He asked if F could bring him to school (he has pre-school in the afternoons). Dave was helping at Beck's class that day and F was allowed to stay. P and I had an afternoon with A. We decided to take a walk in the neighborhoods. We walked for two hours, got some flowers and wine for Tena and Dave, had a drink at a French style coffee place (we sat outside!) and went back to Dave's. Miss A had a great time, getting all the attention from us. It was cold, snow on the ground, but the sun shone and it felt warm.

That same day, we also met the altitude sickness. We felt lightheaded and nauseous. I suffered a bad headache. The only way to get rid of altitude sickness is to drink lots and lots of water. It took me that whole first day and night to get better! Luckily, the kids didn't seem to be affected.

F slept in Beck's room and A with us, in her little bed. We could hear F and Beck giggle for hours (which went on every night!).

The next day, Dave took us to Evergreen, a picturesque village on the foot of the mountains. After a nice lunch, we went ice skating on a frozen lake. The kids had a blast! even Beck who, as we heard, not so confident about skating, did very well. I was on skates, too and I didn't fall a single time. Gosh, I was proud of myself! I know nobody is interested in how I did but the kids. They did great! F is getting quite used to skating. P gives her sometimes instructions and she is following them. She dares to speed up, she has good balance. A is very cute on her double-blade skates. She runs couple steps and then slides for a meter, then runs again. She keeps on going.

I think we spent almost 2 hours skating. We all were tired when we came home. We were lucky that Tena had dinner ready for us. What a treat!

Friday was our big day of skiing. Yes, we went skiing. We left at 7 am to Winter Park, a nice ski area 1,5 hours from Denver. F and A had lessons, so we brought them to the ski school right away. I was so nervous, I could hear my heart pounding. The kids were, though, excited. It took us a 40 min to get their stuff and set them off at their classes.

Miss A went to her class (called "just because I am three") like she was going to school. Her program was to ski for a while, play, have lunch, ski a short while again and play etc.

Miss F was nervous, like me. she was going to ski the whole time, except for lunch.

They both had class till 3 - 3.30. A whole day!

After we dropped off the kids and got our stuff, we went to join Dave Tena and Beck. Beck goes to ski quite often, so he can join his parents.

We are not good skiers, so Tena and Dave took us to green and blue runs on those beautiful mountains. We did miss the sun, but it was a nice day for skiing. Too bad after a while Tena felt sick and decided to stop. Beck wanted to stay with his mother. So we continued with Dave. He took us to different runs. All of a sudden, it was 2.40, almost time to pick up the kids. We had to rush to the base - bad parents! - We unfortunately didn't get to see the kids with our own eyes - very bad parents! - And I had said that I was stopping early to see F. We just lost track of the time. To our surprise, Tena had taken pictures of F and we even had a short film taken by Beck. Thanks!

We found both the kids at A's class. They looked super happy. A had all the time over "at my ski class..." F wanted to go to the mountains with us. I think it was a bit too early to get her on even the green runs. We didn't do it. A was very disappointed that she was not coming back the next day. I was a bit sad, too. It was such a good start and just too short for both. We have to take them skiing again, I hope we can soon. We finished the day watching the opening ceremony if the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

Saturday, it was P's turn to feel sick. He looked miserable the whole day, fighting a headache and feeling nauseous. He did join us, though, at our visit to downtown Denver, the"Red Rocks" and the Dinosaur Ridge.

Downtown Denver is small but looks friendly. We went to the 16th street, a street closed to cars. we had a nice lunch at the Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurant. Good food and nice entourage. Lunch potions were huge. My salmon fish and chips were one of the best I had.

Red Rocks is a stage, an amphitheatre set up between a natural formation of rocks that creates great acoustics. Many well known performers, Beatles, Santana, U2 gave concerts at the Red Rocks. In the winter, people climb the stairs for training - and we are talking about a lot of stairs - It was quite impressive.

Dinosaur Ridge is just couple minutes further from Red Rocks. At one spot, the rocks forming the side of the hill are covered with dinosaur foot prints. Pretty cool! It is quite hard for kids, especially for A, to understand that the dinosaurs are extinct. She wanted to see them, she was quite sure we would see at least a baby dinosaur. I don't know what she understood of the foot prints, but when she grows up, she can look at her pictures next to them. F has of course a better understanding and she is lately interested in dinosaurs. Such an interesting place to be for her.

The kids also enjoyed climbing on the rocks. They proved us that they are little monkeys!

Just a hundred meter from the dinosaur foot prints, starts a trail going to the top of the hill. Beck and F went up right away in such a speed that Tena and Dave had to follow them. I though we would have to carry A all the way up, but she was amazing. She went all the way up, almost running on her small feet, and all the way down. I am supposed to tell he teacher at school that she climbed a mountain top and went back all by herself. She repeatedly asked me to tell her teacher. Maybe I will write a note to her on Tuesday. P and I were so proud of her endurance. It was quite a climb for a little girl and she did it!

Sunday morning, Beck was sick. Looks like we had a virus going around, first Tena then P, then Beck. That was too bad, because the kids couldn't enjoy the last morning before we left. Our plane was at 12.40.

I think most of all, F is going to miss Beck. The kids played so nicely for the whole time, without any fight, it was amazing. The two older ones were sometimes picking on A, but she was okay with that - or she simply didn't understand. Dave and Tena were great hosts. Good food, good friends, what can we ask for more??

We arrived to Chicago on time, which was good, too. P didn't even come home but left for Paris. He brought us to our car parked at long term parking and we brought him back to the Departures. Back to normal life!

The Californian girl who never had fresh orange juice!

My dear friend Chris was at our house for lunch. I made crepes for the kids and a salad for us. I know she watches her calories. I was squeezing fresh orange juice as a little treat. Chris asked what I was doing. "Making fresh juice" was my answer. "Don't you have juice in your fridge?" she asked. Well, I had 3 packs, but...

She never had fresh juice before. The girl from California had her first fresh squeezed orange juice from my hands! Thank you dad for the fresh juice you prepared six mornings a week when I was growing up! Love!

Restaurant weekend

We dedicated this weekend to checkout new restaurants.

Abigails in Highland Park: close to the Ravinia train station - do not look for it in downtown Highland Park - is this tiny little restaurant packed with people. They don't take reservations, so you might want to get there early and put your name on the list. The sitting area is very small but the tables are set up in a nice way that doesn't feel crowded. The menu is... different. I will not talk about all the food we had and how they were, I am not a restaurant/food critic anyway. I just want to say that the stuffed dates with bacon (whatever they called it - it was a special) was OMG!

We had a very nice company, P's boss and 2 other colleagues with their spouse. By some weird luck, the spouses work for the same company, so I was the only one who wasn't a colleague - of course also the only one who didn't work!



La Casa de Isaac in Highwood: do not try to call them to make a reservation. I tried Friday evening and Saturday afternoon, I couldn't get a hold of them. They are Kosher Mexican, if you really want to talk before you go, try calling after 6pm, that's what they told me. Again a small restaurant but also packed. They didn't waste a square meter, there are tables everywhere. When you are waiting for your table, the people at the tables around literally have to stare at your bottom while eating. It's not fun to wait, and we had to wait long. Then finally we got our table, luckily at bit further from the people still waiting. Huh, after last comment, wouldn't it be funny to see us staring at some bottoms.

I don't exactly know what Mexican kosher is, but I definitely liked my salmon. I think our whole company would agree with me that the food was delicious, good Mexican. I was a bit disappointed that the waiter looked at me confused when I wanted to finish the meal with a Drambuie. He had never heard of it. Oh well, next door at Miramar's the knew exactly what it was.

I could go there again, but that waiting part kind a turned me off, I would think about it twice. Such good food though! Maybe I will try it again, but not to fast.

When we will visit more restaurants, I will continue my "restaurants we went to" stories.

How to survive when husband is gone over the weekend

If P is gone during the week, I am so busy with the kids, I don't really think about it. Weekends can get long, though. As the end of the week approaches, and P is on some trip at the other side of the world, I feel this slight panic coming up: what are we going to do!

Here's is my last husband-less weekend:
Saturday:

• Wake up at 7 and try to stay in bed another five minutes (beg the kids, get angry, try to hide under the blankets, try to ignore the kids jumping on my head)
• Get up grumpy, but well, it's weekend so feel relaxed and happy
• Bake pancakes (because I love them)
• Go ice skating with Fauzia and her kids
• Go to Brook's for delicious home made pizza (which I didn't make!)
• Drink a lot of wine, because the weekend makes me nervous
• Sleep

Sunday:

• Wake up at 7.30 and try to stay in bed for another five minutes (beg the kids, bla bla...)
• Talk to husband and say that we are having great fun
• Take the kids to Church school. They love it and I get to read my book for 45 minutes
• Come home and make pancakes for Fauzia and her daughters
• Eat, watch the kids play, play some table tennis with Fauzia
• Wave friends goodbye and clean up the kitchen
• Take the girls ice skating - of course Fauzia, her kids and other friends are there, too
• Meet Kerry and Shelia, go out to dinner
• Kids are exhausted, but after eating some food, they get an energy boost and they almost cause us to get remarks from the tables around us. Shhhhh.
• Drink some wine, I am still a bit nervous about the weekend
• Hey, it's already time to go to bed? What happened to the weekend?

Monday morning:

• The kids are still exhausted from the overloaded weekend, because their mother had this panic attack!

The Dutch Blood

Our number one is a real Dutch girl. She is a copy of her father in so many ways, like their identical mouths, and hair and they are never cold... She is on the ice skates and she skates like a little Dutch would do. She is on the bike since she is one year old, plus she learned biking on two wheels on her first try.

Number two is "my daughter", I say. First of all, she is cold all the time. She walks into tables and doors, just like her mother. Biking....disaster. I took her ice skating with F and a friend of hers, she sat on a chair and let other kids push her for an hour. I also think she more looks like me, but I wouldn't dare writing that, we don't want to hurt daddy's feelings.

But... of course there is a but, otherwise, why would I bother posting this in my blog. But, last week, I took Miss A to ice skating, while her sister was at school. It was a beautiful sunny day, no wind at all. So even I wasn't cold! The first ten minutes, she was holding my hand and making little steps on her skates. After that, she was at the other side of the rink by herself, running, skating, falling and getting up - all with a big smile on her face. Last weekend, we went skating twice. She was doing so well! It's definitely not my genes, after all A has some Dutch blood.

By the way, I tried it too and I didn't fall, not even once! I should ask my parents, maybe I have some far Dutch ancestor??

Name change

I just realized that, husband travelling all the time, I am not "O. the expat wife", I am "O. the expat mom". So I just changed my name! I know husband's voice quite well, but I have a hard time remembering his face. Would he remember me next time he walks into the house?

Oma (Grandma) is out of hospital

Oma has a new hip since last Tuesday and she is today out of hospital. We are very happy to hear that she is feeling better than the last hip operation and she is getting better sooner! Big hugs to Oma.

How to dechipher kids

Sometimes they are so upset about something that I almost get angry. It's so hard to understand what is the matter. However, if I can say one magic word and solve everything, I feel great. Why am I talking about this? Since we are back from Europe, A is having trouble adjusting back to her life in USA.

It all started with the swimming lesson. She doesn't like swimming, but she tried and she was improving. That's before we left. The first lesson after vacation was 1/2 hour crying. She just cried and cried and cried. The teacher - a young guy called Tom - had to carry her around during the whole lesson. The second lesson was quite the same. She did agree to go to the pool with F's teacher - a young girl, Jessica -. Jessica's students hadn't showed up, but of course next week she had her own class. Then, after talking for hours, Miss A told us what was upsetting her: she didn't want to put her head in the water and she didn't know how to say that. Last week, her third lesson after we came back, I told Tom that she was upset about going underwater. Miss A didn't go under water but she did float on her back for more that 5 seconds without holding and she had a fun lesson! That was it!

School had its share, too. Now, Miss A LOVES her school and her teacher. I just couldn't figure out why she was crying the second day of school. Why, why, why! It breaks my heat to send her to the class crying. Net day though, I knew what was happening. Her foot was hurting - she has a wart that just doesn't want to leave her, and she didn't know how to say it. The whole morning before school, I repeated her "my foot hurts, I want to go home." Obviously it was enough for her, she went to school as happy as usual. Her teacher told me that she said couple times "my foot hurts" but she didn't want to go home. Solved!

Happy kids, happy mother!

Govern-mental

Govern-mental agencies want us to do some pretty weird stuff sometimes. I had my share.

We got a letter from a Dutch authority that pays child allowance in the Netherlands. We are not talking about big amounts here, it's really REALLLY not much. Anyway, they check every two years if the kids of the families living abroad are still alive and living in the country in question - I can imagine it.

An authority in the host country (for example: Dutch embassy, police, post office..) is asked to fill a form (just a piece of paper which states the names of the kids and there are dots for date of death, in case it has to be filled in). Even the idea of it gives me chills by the way, I will get to the point faster, I am not enjoying this parts of the story!

I went to the post office, kind of shy and feeling stupid, but trying to look confident. "I want to get this thing done and at once!" The clerk at the post office was very friendly, I was hoping he would just sign the paper. He read the letter from the Dutch government and ... sent me directly to the Village Hall. "Mmm, it is not going to be done at once. " A the Village Hall, I got two clerks who looked at me like "What is she talking about?" The nice thing about the Americans is that they seem used to deal with these kind of strange stuff, they almost always take it serious. Finally, after talking a while, they sent me home with the promise that they will call me to let me know which papers I need to present.

That afternoon, I got the phone call. P had to go to the Village Hall himself with his passport and drivers licence- I didn't understand why (why am I never enough????), plus we were to show the kids. So after school, I literally brought the kids to the Village Hall, with their passports, to show the clerk that they are alive. The funny thing is, the pictures on the passports are pictures of kids growing up like crazy. A's passport picture is from when she was 4 weeks old! Luckily, the visa pictures were a bit recent. We passed the test! The paper is signed and on its way to the Dutch Government. We're done for the next two years!

Belated Welcome to 2010 - Izmir

I finished the photo album of 2008 just before we left to Europe for the Holidays. The result was so nice that my New Year's Resolution was undoubtedly to keep up with the blog. Of course the events and experiences are not so exciting anymore, but when I combine the story with the pictures and make a yearbook, the result is quite precious. And I forget things, who, where, when of events. It is nice to have a record and be able to go back. Such a treasure for the kids for later!

December 5th, I left with the kids to Turkey. The whole week, P was gone to some meeting I don't know where. I was driving the kids to the school and to their activities while I was packing for the trip and preparing the house for the coming weeks. The last one is not the least of the tasks. Last January when we were back from our vacation, the house was a mess and we had to live in an apartment for four weeks. The day before we left, I had Richard here to make new holes in the family room ceiling (nice hobby!) to insulate the pipes above in case it got very cold while we were gone so we didn't get frozen pipes.

The first snow of the winter came 2 days before we left. Although it was very nice to see snow, it also meant that I had to unpack the winter stuff (boots, hats etc) for the kids. I did try to resist, telling the kids that they could perfectly survive two days without them, of course the kids won.

In previous years, packing went on till midnight the night before the trip, but this time, I was ready without loosing sleep. It sometimes pays to be a house wife! The day before we left, We went to have dinner with Hester and her two kids. (I met Hester couple months ago at the Dollar Tree Shop, she is a Dutch girls who lives not too far from us). After dinner at IHOP, where fruit flies were clouding the pancake syrup (slightly exaggerated), we went to drive through the Winter Wonderland. That was so cute! The Saturday, which is the day we left, I took the kids to see Santa at the library in our town with Chris and 'Little' Lauren. It is amazing that I was doing such things with the kids on the day of our trip. It's a new concept for me! The limo came to pick us up in the afternoon (a Mohawk with tattoes, Chris was worried for us!), we got at O'Hare and flew - thanks to my loving husband - business!

I will tell not too long about the two weeks in Turkeys and the two weeks in the Netherlands.

The first two days, the weather in Turkey was great. We were out in t-shirts - of course only us, it is still winter for Izmir standards. - We went to the parks, let the kids play with other children. The weather got less warm after that, it didn't stop us enjoying our stay. F and A were totally crazy about Yanki and Arya, their cousins. Yanki was mostly at school, but we still got to see quite a lot of him. It was funny to see that Yanki was enjoying playing with A and F was spending her time running after Arya, making jokes and laughing with her. My parents enjoyed spending time with the girls and I used every opportunity to give them some private time - going shopping, seeing friends etc. Everyone seemed happy and in good spirits, which honestly not always the case. My parents were seeing more of my aunt and uncle and Burak's kids were very close to my parents, happy and excited to see them each time.

What did we do? I went to the Wednesday bazaar and came home with a bunch of stuff that I could live without. It was very fun, though. The second week, I took F with me in the afternoon, for a short visit. I wanted to show her what a real bazaar meant. We looked to the clothes section first. She was trying to see everything, her eyes open wide: men making funny noises to attract customers, the socks sellers with pairs hanging from their heads like a hat, sellers walking on the stands by their goods... We then went to see the food section. I think the most interesting was the cheese and the fish stands and of course the stand holder with the wooden leg. I think A would have been too young for it, but F is at the age that she can understand - a bit.

The first week, we went to have dinner at Hesna's. Asli came with her son Atahan. F played nicely with them, though sometimes the boys had their thing. Cem is a monkey like F, that made me feel home. Funny, I can't remember what A did, I think she was between Cem's room and the living room, playing.

One nice day, we went to the zoo. Arya was the guide, she walked the whole time without even looking at us, and we had to follow. The Izmir zoo looks so nice, I am quite proud of it. The girls were talking a while about going to a petting zoo. so we did. We were lucky. There was almost no one and the guy who was working there brought carrots to the girls and they fed the rabbits. Then they were allowed to go inside the fence and sit by the goat, the sheep and the donkey named "Sucuk" - some kind of spicy sausage. F and A were by this, the first kids to go over the fence! I wanted to take P to the zoo but we didn't have time.

I went out on the first Saturday with Aylin Y, Ayse's college friend whom I met last year. We had nice talk and I am glad to get to know her better. She is an incredible talented artist, unfortunately she is not doing enough about it - yet! I felt humbled by her talent, my writing seemed so beginners' work. At home, 2-3 am, my parents were still awake. The kids were not very easy on them, so my thought of going to Istanbul for one night was out of the picture.

On Sunday, there was a puppet show. It was in the context of a cultural festival. The group was from Indonesia and it was absolutely nothing for little kids. The puppets were shadow puppets (sorry if there is a special name for it) and the play was accompanied by loud music and sound effects. Oh, I almost forgot the some kind of ancient Indonesian dialect that boosted through the speakers. But, never the less, F got interested in behind the scenes while A sat on my lap, closing her ears. Yanki is a bit older, so I think it was more interesting for him. After the show, there was a workshop about making puppets from a special leather the group brought from Indonesia. Of course my mother managed to get the kids to sit and make holes and shapes in the leather. We couldn't produce any puppets but well, the experts make it in at least a month! The real puppets are gorgeous I have to say and the amount of work is immense. Aylin came to join us at the theatre and she got to see her little love A.

I spent one night at Filiz's house with the girls. They live at the other side of Izmir, somewhere close to Cesmealti, not too far from where we got married. She has a dream house for the city people. A house with a big yard, sharing a swimming pool and other common places. The only thing is that it's far from the city. She picked us up with her car from Bostanli port and took us to the other side on the ferry. We picked up her son from the daycare/school run by a German woman and went to her house. Her dog scared the girls for a while, but they got used to it after a while. We talked about the education systems (Timur just started the school) and I was surprised to hear that she knew a lot about Montessori. There's supposed to be good Montessori school sin Turkey, an info that I didn't know. Later that evening, Deniz A, Serkan O and his wife Aylin joined us for dinner. I was happy to meet Aylin at last. I think last year she hated me for holding Serkan up and making her wait at her friend's house. I think now we are good! It is always so nice to see the old friends but one evening is just nothing. I don't know how fast it all went, the evening was over on a dime. Of course the girls who couldn't sleep in the different environment didn't help it at all. I spent quite some time running and trying to shush them.

Last Thursday of Izmir trip, P was supposed to come to Izmir. He missed his connection from Munic and ended up flying to Istanbul. He was supposed to arrive at 3.30 pm, he arrived at 3.30 am! From Istanbul, their plane took off and had to go back to Istanbul due to heavy fog in Izmir. According to my father who was waiting at the airport, the fog was only over the airport. Go figure! An American lady in P's plane actually thought that they arrived to Izmir and wished P a nice vacation with his family. P pointed out the sign on the building saying 'Welcome to Istanbul'. After waiting couple more hours, the plane took off again. I wasn't at the airport waiting, my parents didn't think it was a good idea. They were worried about me driving alone to the airport for a plane that maybe would be cancelled anyway. Well, P did arrive to Izmir, but it was hours later than P expected.

P made a friend on the plane, a Turkish business man. He was at a trip to Heerenveen, where P is born. They got to talk and the guy translated the announcements to him. That's how he didn't end up like the American lady! I told P to take a taxi and call me so that I could give the directions to the driver. His new friend suggested to take him to Bornova, half way from the airport, but he ended up driving him to us - so Turkish, even though P does not accept, I would have done too. At 3.30-4.00 am, we went to have soup with them. They were hungry and P wanted to pay them back for their help. It was good soup in good company. I was sorry for the American lady for she still had to go to Bodrum the next morning to the house where she was going to cat-sit! Yes, she was going to cat-sit for 3 or 4 weeks at people's house tat she didn't know. There's supposed to be a website only to match cat lovers to sit their cats when they are taking a long vacation.

We spent Friday with the kids, they were do happy to see P. Saturday evening, my brother was invited to a wedding. The guy who gets married is from Saint Joseph, and I sort of remember him. He was in the oldest class when we started Saint Joseph and I really think he was the guy who dated the most beautiful girl at the school. Burak asked him/told him that we were going to the wedding dinner, too. He had an 'only friends and young family members' dinner at a fancy beer house. The evening turned out to be a success, on my part at least. I talked to friends of my brother that I know from the time we (my friends and I) hanged around with my brother's friends and I also met guys from Saint Joseph. I am one of the first graduates from lycee (before us, it was a middle school, with us, it was extended to high school). We talked about students, teachers (mostly freres) and volleyball. I found out the the groom actually thought me how to serve at volleyball. After the beer house, my brother took us to a club close by. I had wilder nights with y brother, but this was definitely a lot of fun. I was hoping to go to have soup after the bar hopping, but Pinar kind of cut through and said good night to us, dragging Burak to home. I didn't have a headache the next morning but I could feel it just trying to come. Burak was sick the whole day!

Our Sunday plan was to got to the mountains. The girls see the smallest hill and think that it's a mountain. Living in under sea level Holland and then totally flat Illinois could be a reason! Anyway, the weather didn't really allow us to join the mountains, but we got to stand half way to the top and look down to the beautiful view of the city and the bay. We spent the rest of the day with the family, enjoying the precious time with each other. Monday, we left to Holland.

to be continued...