Recovery

Recovery.  The word that comes to mind when I think through these past 10 days.  I've had so many different ideas for blog posts, but I feel like I haven't had the time or energy to sit down and do them.  

Playing a duet.

Prior to 10 days ago, we got to spend 12 days visiting our families.  It was a wonderful time with both families, but I'm always amazed how utterly exhausting it is traveling with 2 small kids.  Maybe I'm the silly one to be surprised it's exhausting.

Aunt Anja time (how can we have no pics with Lace?).

As I think back, overall, the trip was great.  However, scattered in the great were several very difficult days, and unfortunately, sometimes the difficult days are what comes to mind first.  Our first travel day was particularly exhausting.  We flew out of Chicago, which means we had to wake up at 4:30 (3:30 central time), drive to Chicago and fly to OKC (one lay-over).  We made it to OKC around 12:30 or 1, spent an hour or so with Kev's family, then drove 4 hours to Texas.  We made it to my parents' house around 6:30pm.  So our travel that started at 3:30am didn't end until 6:30pm with only a short hour nap in the afternoon for both kids.  Considering the circumstances, the kids did amazingly well.  But when we were in the car still driving at 5, they were done.  Little man was exhausted but inconsolable, Miss E was ready to get out, I was very near to losing my mind (or so it felt).  But we made it...praise the Lord.

Waiting patiently for their presents (extended cousins).

The other low point for me was our first night in OKC.  Miss E hadn't slept great the last two nights at my parents' house which made for a more emotional/ornery toddler and M had been running a fever off and on with a terribly stuffy nose.  The kids stayed up way past their normal bedtime playing with cousins and didn't go to bed until 10.  I slept in the room with M and he was up screaming, inconsolable from 10:30 until 3 (with about an hour of reprieve).  When I (again) felt like I might lose it, I went to get Kev (who was sleeping in E's room).  We switched...then E was up for about an hour and half being especially difficult.  I was so tired, I felt like I didn't have the mental or emotional reserve to deal with her.

Turns out, M had a double ear infection and was much improved when getting on antibiotics.  We even maybe had one night at the end of the week where both kids slept through the night.  Just 11 nights where at least one, if not both of them, was waking up.  Traveling is not for the faint-hearted. :)

I thought many times during the traveling period and since we've been back, we're SO thankful to have family and friends we WANT to visit.  But this is the price we pay by moving so far away.  I don't regret moving and definitely feel this is where God has us, but sometimes it's tough.  I'm just hoping it will get easier as the kids get a little older.  The benefit of traveling frequently is the kids are pros at flying.  We've got our routines so generally the flight goes pretty smoothly.

The little boys LOVED playing together and especially loved the door stops.

Her crowning achievement ("climbing" the pillar at Momo and Papa's house).

Hanging with Papa.

The girls.

Christmas morning.

I wouldn't change these sweet memories for the world.