Sweet Surprise

Have I ever mentioned that my husband is surprisingly sweet for a science guy? He may not buy me flowers very often, and forgets to take out the trash, but once in a blue moon he totally redeems himself in a big way. Like how he had this waiting for me when we got to the US...

WITH a pink cover. Score.

I honestly thought I would never want one of these new e-reader things.  I love books. I love the paper between my fingers, the smell, the paper cuts, and how pretty they are lined up on my bookcase. But after 30 something years of a love affair with books, I was running out of space. Enter my perfect solution. The e-reader. So far, I'm sold. But you may still see me browsing Barnes and Noble for a fix now and then. Now to find some free time to actually USE this bad boy.

Lucky In Kentucky

Even though Chris was in NY, Austin and I were able to go to Kentucky to visit with some of Chris' family.  And play on their farm. And eat their food. And I didn't even have to drive. It was seriously a no brainer for me to accept the invitation to go with Chris' mom. And even better? My mom and brother came with us! If I could make it the entire day without stepping in poo or being mauled by a llama then I would consider it a complete win.

Austin all cooped up.

Get it?

Chicken coop?

No?

"Soft touching" a baby chick.

Cousin "Coyote"

The watchers.

They have these amazing dogs all over the farm, but this one followed us everywhere we went.

I love him.

We need to get one of these pronto.

See?

Always there.

And watching to make sure you don't mess with the farm animals.

Clearly this one had Austin's number.

I may have gotten a bit rambunctious on the trampoline.

Best way to burn energy in a toddler. 

Farm fresh egg!

Austin, Uncle C and John Deere.

Austin and "Coyote" were like peas and carrots.

"Coyote" was so patient and kind with him.

Apple picking from the back of a pickup truck.

It was awesome.

I want a glass of milk and a burger SO bad right now.

The best way to get around!

And then to COMPLETELY blow Austin's mind, Chris' family took him to their local fire department where they are volunteer firefighters. I am not even joking when I say those guys don't get paid enough.

On the lookout for a fire.

Little boy heaven is in the cab of a fire truck with the siren on.

No mauling for me! I think the fence helped.

After a LOOOONG day at the farm we went to another family member's house to celebrate Chris' Mom's cousin's birthday with an awesome home cooked meal and lots of inter family bantering and story telling. After a bath (with a level of resistance that would have impressed Che Guevara) and a ton of goodbyes later we were on our way back to West Virginia. 

We definitely got lucky in Kentucky.
But I did step in poo.

Home is where the GOOD popcorn is...

It had been almost one year since my toes had touched American soil. And eaten Wendy's. I know. I had it tough over there. But in all seriousness, what I missed the most was my family. And ice cubes. It almost didn't even feel like I was in Germany for a year. Everything was exactly as I left it. I considered the possibility that the entire event had been some crazy dream. Some crazy AMAZING dream. But when I finally started unpacking, I found some beer steins. And knew that it had been real. And that I miss it terribly now. But now it's on to the next chapter for us Taylors. Starting with Austin's first trip to the movie theater!

 He heard the word "popcorn" and hauled tushy to the refreshment stand.

 Until he became distracted by the arcade area.

Which had an awesome NASCAR driving game.

Because we're in West Virginia.

 And guns. Because we're in West Virginia.

 Seriously. Eye on the prize. Time for the movie.

He's ready. Bring it on Cars 2.

I was actually very surprised at how well my little man did with his first theater experience. He only talked out loud a few times (which is less than most adult New Yorkers), and he sat relatively still (merely bouncing between the three present grandparents). Apparently he did well enough for the grandparents to take him to ANOTHER movie the following week while I was in New York scrubbing the house.  Winnie the Pooh. 

I think I'll wait for that one on DVD.

The Exodus

Leaving Dresden was bittersweet. I almost don't even want to talk about it too much, just "get over it" and move on. But I can't. I loved her. She was a beautiful city. And yes, Dresden was a lady. So you better treat her like one.

 Our last full day in the city was spent at a nice hotel next to the Frauenkirche.

I am going to truly miss seeing buildings like this everyday.

 Tram ride to his last day of Kita.

 Walking on the path towards Kita.

 On his way in!

 Austin's BFF "L". They are in love.

And since they are three that means they hit each other with sticks to express said love.

 Chris took me to a nice brunch at one of our favorite cafes in the Neustadt.

Cafe Europa.

On my way to pick Austin up. 

The Communist built housing across from his school.

 Putting a hurtin' on the playground one last time.

 His last piece of art made in Kita. A collaborative effort with "L".

 Saying goodbye to his classroom.

I cried. He didn't.

 Cleaned out cubby :o(

 To boost our spirits we had dinner at one of our faves.

The Augustiner.

 Chris loves when I take his picture.

The Frauenkirche before bed.

 All packed up.

Including the boy.

 He conveniently fits into the small baskets on the luggage carts.

 Flight change = Working hard to keep the boy busy for an extra hour.

 The waiting game.

 Finally. On our way to Frankfurt.

Frankfurt to D.C was on a super fabulous ghetto plane. With seat belts that could not be made small enough to secure a child. The flight attendant told us to "just use pillows". I'm pretty sure THAT'S not in the FAA regulation handbook. The belts were so big that I was close to not being able to secure mine tight enough. And I've got birthing hips.

At this point I stopped taking pictures. I was merely trying to survive. On the last leg Austin didn't want to put his seatbelt back on and in the ruckus ripped a huge scab off of his nose. It bled like a mother. We were in the process of landing and he was screaming while Chris (who hates blood) is holding his nose and trying to restrain him. I am sitting across the aisle trying to calm them both down and the 20 other people on our tiny plane are beating their heads against cabin walls. Finally he calmed down, the bleeding subsided, and we were able to taxi to the gate. Everything was SO much better when we got off the plane and saw our families standing there- complete with a huge poster that my Mommy made and a large 7-11 thermos complete with Nascar pictures on it full of Iced Tea. WITH ICE!
God Bless the USA!

 15 hours of travel later...

 The boy was a wee bit freaked out by all of the people trying to kiss his fat little cheeks.
My dad finally got close enough for a picture.

 I love my mama.
And no, I did not consider those bags under my eyes to be carry ons.

 Redneck iced tea! YAY!

The totally sweet sign my mom made for us.
Anyone who knows me personally can now see where I get my awesome sign making skills from.

We're Baaaaaaack

Wow. How am I supposed to sum up what we've been up to for an entire month? Well clearly the one thing I haven't been doing is blogging. Here are a few of my favorite moments to keep you happy until I can get my act together and put together one of my fantabulous blogs for you to enjoy.

* A relatively uneventful plan ride home. Except for the very bloody landing on our last leg of the flight. Literally bloody. From my child's nose.

* Seeing my little brother for the first time in 2 years. He was in Korea with the Army. He may have reached a new level of maturity. He still smells funny though.

* Seeing all of our family. Including Chris' Kentucky family who let us run around their farm harassing their cows and picking apples from the bed of a pickup. The hillbilly in me was in heaven.

* Eating. I'm gaining back my layer of "America" fat. The one that can only be created by Wendy's and Dunkin' Donuts.

* Seeing my dog. Holy stromboli I missed her.

* Going shopping with my Mama. We put a dent in Ann Taylor Loft THAT day.

* Seeing my new house. I was upset at how FILTHY it was and all the crap they left behind. But after a thorough Brandification process it is now VERY lovely. I even painted Austin's room a cool Smurf blue color. By myself.

* Going to the movies and seeing Harry Potter with my sister- in law and her hubby. I ate so much popcorn. I just threw up in my mouth thinking about it. THEN going to the movies with Austin and being there while he had his first movie theater experience. He loves the popcorn just like his Mama.

* Me possibly overreacting when I believed that our Air Conditioning had crapped out in the house. Chris discovered that someone had turned off a light switch that was apparently the HVAC emergency shut off. Why is everyone assuming that it was me?! It totally was.

All in all, I miss Germany. A lot. But I am so happy to be home. A lot. But more about that in a later post.

Hip hop will make ya- JUMP! JUMP!

(Our parents have no idea why this is funny- don't tell them)