My new niece

While I was gone, a new family member entered the world. Little Ms. Jett Ann Joplin, born on September 14, weighing in at 7lbs 6oz, and 20 inches tall. I was so sad to not be there to greet her on her first day in the world, but so very happy to come home to her. And what a cutie pie! She looks exactly like Barbie. Exactly. Heart shaped face, dimples, big beautiful eyes, perfectly arched eyebrows, dark fuzzy hair. She even has Barbie's fingernails.

I'm so proud to call her my niece and I just love, love, love the little cutie already! When we went to visit, I didn't put her down the whole time we were there, except for a couple of minutes when I let Brian hold her.

Europe 08 trip highlights - Espania

Day 7 - Arrival in Spain
Our flight from Zurich to Malaga was broken up by a layover in Madrid. The airport in Madrid is quite dirty and, frankly, their security is a complete joke. We let Trent run around the airport and blow off some steam. At one point he found a toy car in a vending machine, and being the sweet boy he is, he went over to another kid, quite a bit older than him, and tried to play with him. The kid snatched the car away from Trent and took off leaving Trent screaming his head off. The kid's mother was on her phone and completely uninterested. Trent was screaming right in front of her and interrupting her conversation. Normally I'd pick him up and pacify him, but under the circumstances, I figured I needed to make a point. To her. So I let him scream and I said "It's ok Trent, maybe that was HIS toy. You can't keep it if it belongs to someone else". The woman gave the evil eye, but did nothing. I picked up my screaming kid and left feeling disgusted. The flight to Malaga was uneventful and Trent, as is becoming quite usual, was a complete angel, watching his "baby". He started associating the sign for baby with his DVD player during this trip, and so whenever he wanted to watch it, he would sign baby. Sooo cute.

We took a quick cab ride from the Malaga airport to the hotel. It was a nice hotel and on arrival we were offered a choice of orange juice or champagne. I took champagne, of course. Not two minutes after checking in, mum and dad appeared! Oh it was sooooo great to see them! Mum and dad had already hooked us up with a great room with a view, and had already set up the high chair for Trent in the dining room.
We took our bags up to the room and got settled in, then headed down for dinner. We went what they call "half-board" for this trip, which means that your breakfast and dinner are included. The dinner buffet was really good. I got Trent a bowl of pasta with tomato sauce, his favourite, and he devoured it in the usual manner, grabbing with his hands and smearing it all over his face in the process of shoving it into his mouth. People around us were highly amused. All the waiters and waitresses, and the hotel managers made a huge fuss over Trent. He just lapped it all up.

After dinner we went for a walk along the promenade and Trent fell asleep in his stoller.

Day 8 - First day in Spain
Breakfast was fabulous. A buffet of practically everything you could possibly want. You could choose from a full-English, to a continental, to just cereal or yogurt. There were so many types of breads and pastries, and the coffee was sooooo good. I don't even drink coffee but I did in Spain :-)
We spent the morning by the pool. Trent seemed to enjoy just sitting on the edge but had little desire to actually get in. Mum told me that their had been a scantily-clad water aerobics instructor the day before, and that he had a nice bum. He showed up again today and I goaded mum into doing the water aerobics with me. She was a good sport. Eventually, more people joined in. Such trend setters, we are.

We ate lunch at the poolside cafe, then let Trent take a nap. Later that day we headed down to the beach to let Trent run around. He really loved playing in the sand with Grandad. Mum and I took him down to the water's edge and he wasn't very enthusiastic about getting wet, so we let him be. A little later, Grandad brought him down to the sea and he slowly got brave and started to play in the surf. All he needed was his Grandad. Awh.

Dinner was awesome again. We learned from the previous night's experience that we should put a napkin over the table cloth in front of Trent. He practially ruined the one from last night. During dinner you could see people all throughout the restaurant commenting on Trent and how he used sign language to communicate with us. He signed milk, then when he was finished with his pasta he signed for more. We discovered that he really loves creme caramel (Flan to you Americans).
After dinner we went for a walk along the promenade again. This time we let Trent walk all over the place. He had so much fun. Every time he saw a dog he would get excited, sign the word dog, and make a bee-line for it. The dog owners were all so sweet and always stopped to let him pet their dog. So many people stopped to comment on how cute Trent is and ask how old he is.

Day 9 - 10 mile walk, anyone?
Today after breakfast we decided to take a leasurely stroll to the next town via the promenade. It turned out to be about a 10 mile walk, round-trip. We walked all the way to Benalmedina where we ate lunch at the marina, then we made the 5 mile walk back to Torremolinos. After a brief rest on our room we went down to the beach and spent the remainder of the time playing in the sand and running in and out of the surf with Trent.
We cleaned up and headed down for dinner at our usual time, and then out of our customary stroll along the promenade. We were now developing a routine. While we didn't do a whole bunch of exloring or sightseeing on this portion of our holiday, I was so happy to be just relaxing and spending time with my parents. I wanted to stay for so much longer than the time we had.
Day 10 - hanging around the pool and fun on the beach
This morning we booked an excursion to Africa for Saturday. It's such a shame to be so close and to not actually set foot on another continent. Mum, Dad, and I had been before, 24 years ago to be exact! YIKES! so it was time to go back for a visit. After that we took a walk and found a place to eat some lunch. Mum and I had Paella. I'd been dying to try it. I wasn't disappointed, either. After lunch we headed down to the pool for a while and mum did her marathon of 80 laps while we all hung out under the parasols and Trent napped. Then we had a coffee and headed out to the beach where Trent and I played in the surf and built sandcastles again. Brian, for the most part, just napped whenever we were on the beach. I guess he's not really a beach person.

As is our routine now, we ate dinner and went for a stroll. The hotel did provide entertainment in the evenings, but it wasn't very good. Trent would walk onto the empty dance floor and steal the show. At one point he walked in, danced on the dance floor to the lady singing. She got a huge kick out if it, and then when he was done, he started to clap and walk around, it looked so much like he was asking the crowd for applause that they all started clapping. In the middle of the song. How funny!

Day 11 - Train to Fuengirola
Today we decided to find the train and head out to another town along the coast. We thought we had an idea of where the train station was and headed in that general direction. We got lost. No worries, though, we had a map and were able to eventually find our way to the train station. It took us about 2 hours to find it.
The ride to Fuengirola was about 20-30 minutes with all the stops inbetween. When we arrived we made our way to the sea front and walked along till we found a suitable place to have lunch. All of the beach front towns on the Costa del Sol look the same. Fuengirola looked like Benalmedina, which looked like Torremolinos. There's not a whole lot to do but walk the prom, lay on the beach, eat, drink, and shop for souveniers. So after having our fill of that, we made our way back on the train. Trent is such a great traveler. During all of our journeys he was a model baby. Barely ever complained, and told us what he needed using signs so we were able to ensure all his needs were met and avoid tantrums.
After we arrived back in Torremolinos we made our way back to the hotel, wich was much quicker since we now knew where we were going.
We returned to the beach for an afternoon of playing with Trent in the sand. How he loves the beach. He and Nana would walk along the water's edge and Trent would find pebbles and throw them into the sea. He looked like he was having a blast. I know Nana and Grandad thoroughly enjoyed playing with him. Trent really took to his Grandad. He would go and snuggle up to him to play and build sand castles. Awh. I was in heaven. All the people I love most in the world all together having fun. What more could I want?

We rounded off the day with dinner and a quick walk and off to bed early because tomorrow would be a very long day!

Day 12 - Africa, baby!
Up at 5:30! ACK! This is supposed to be a holiday. Why the hell am I getting up at this ungodly hour?? because we're going to another continent! That's worth getting up for! Ok, so it's only Tangier, the very northern tip of Africa, but it's still Africa and it counts. Our main motivation for taking this trip was for Brian. Mum, Dad, and I, as I've mentioned have been to Tangier 24 years ago. We were curious to see the changes that had been made since we went, though.
The coach (glorified bus) picked us up at 6:30am and we made several other stops along the way. Our guide, Michelle, was wonderful. She was so very friendly and we were amazed at how easily she switched from one language to another. She spoke 4 languages: French (her native language), Spanish, English, and German. All fluently. Amazing. Michelle really liked Trent and played with him whenever she wasn't adressing the group. People in Europe are so friendly.

We took the fast ferry from Algeciras to Tangier. The fast ferry is a hoverfoil and it really did go fast. A regular ferry left a good 20 minutes before we did and we passed it in no time flat! After about an hour on the ferry we arrived in Tangier. The approach to Tangier was cool. You could see so many Moroccan-style houses cascading down the hillside. It looked like they were practically built on top of each other. When we got off the ferry, we were immediately swarmed by men wanting to help carry bags, etc. One man tried to take Trent and his buggy from me to help me up the stairs. I damn near broke his arm wrenching it off of the buggy. Nobody is treating my kid like a piece of luggage. I'll carry him my damn self thank you very much!

We got on a new bus and took a tour of downtown Tangier, stopping briefly for a camel ride. Then we headed to the Casbah where we would tour around the narrow, labrynth-like streets and soak in the culture. Inside the Casbah we were treated to a snake charmer show and I got to hold the snake... Afterwards we went for lunch at a local restaurant and treated to a traditional meal. The meal was actually quite good, and I imagine it contained more food in that one meal than most of these people ate in several days. So spoiled we are. During the meal there was a band playing traditional African music and the band members saw fit to entertain Trent doing peek-a-boo with thier instruments. Funny how peek-a-boo is so universal.

After lunch we went to the local market where we could buy souvineirs and chachkas. Brian and I aren't really souvineir people so we just enjoyed taking it all in. In the market place, children as young as 7 or 8 were pedalling goods. Prices started around 20 euros and very quickly dropped down to 5 euros the longer you said no. Everywhere you went someone was waving some unneeded item in your face. It was actually quite stressful. I don't like to be harassed like that. It must be successful, though, or they wouldn't do it. Nobody likes constant rejection and I imagine it can wear a person down. Interestingly, there were no women pedalling goods in this manner. In fact you scarecely even saw a female unless you peeked into a doorway into one of the many tiny sweat shops where they were busy working on sewing machines or other equipment to bang out these chachkas and nick-nacks.
Not much has changed in Tangier in 24 years. My memory of my original trip is somewhat hazy now, and I do recall the terrain being a little more rough. Perhaps they've improved their roads with cobblestone streets now, or perhaps we were in a different area of town the last time. Who knows. What I didn't see this time, though, was people upright begging. This time they were selling things. Although one child did say to my mum "you give me your loose change? just for me?" She would have if she had any, I am certain.
We got to see a demonstration of Moroccan rugs, which was very interesting, and the man presenting was cracking Brian and me up (unintentionally) with the way he spoke and his choice of words. The rugs were beautiful and all hand made. But it's completely impractical to buy one there when they are so readily available at home. Next we visited an apothecary (pharmacist) who demonstrated all of the homeopathic remedies they carry. Trent took a nap for this so I skipped the demo and hung out with our tour guide and mum.
Trent just rolled with everything the whole day. He was such a star! On our way back to Spain we had a small delay with the ferry and Trent made friends with some children in the terminal.

Back on the ferry, we all took turns chasing Trent around. We let him run around to his heart's content since he had been strapped into his stroller for many hours today. I chased him in and out of the empty seats and he was cracking up. So many people on the boat stopped to talk to him in all different languages. Upon arrival back on Spanish soil, we got back onto our bus and made our way back to the hotel. Trent passed out on his Nana. Such a good boy!

Day 13 - Relaxing day at the beach & a parade
Today (Sunday) we thought we would take a stroll into downtown Torremolinos. We stopped at a cafe and had a beer while Trent ran around in the plaza, then we went in search of somewhere to eat. We accidentally stumbled across a festival/parade. We don't know exactly what it was, but there were a lot of tractors and farm-type equipment, and people riding on wagons. Everyone in the parade was dressed in traditional spanish attire. Shot glasses could be purchased and as the parade passed by, people with large watering cans full of sangria would pour you a shot and also pour sangria down your throat!
After having our fill of the parade, we made our way back to the promenade in search of a lunch spot, picking up a couple of souvineirs for people at home along the way. After a frustrating search for a place with a high-chair (most places did not have them) we had to settle on a place that didn't have one, and pretty much tied Trent to a regular chair with a belt. Hey, it works. It might have looked a little barbaric, but it worked really well. So always wear a belt :-)
This being our final day in Spain, we had to round it out by giving Trent his, now much loved, time on the beach. And of course he had a blast. Running in and out of the waves, smashing my sand sculptures, and digging for pebbles to throw in the sea.

As is our routine now, we had dinner and went for a walk along the promenade. Of course, stopping to pet every dog that passed by until Trent got tired and passed out in his buggy on the way back to the hotel. I was wishing we could stay longer, and Brian was ready to go home.

Day 14 - NY here we come!
Lucky for us that our flight didn't leave Malaga until 2:40pm today, so we were able to spend time having breakfast together, and mum and dad took Trent for a walk while Brian and I finished packing. Then we checked out of the hotel, said our goodbyes, and headed one step closer to home. New York City.
The flight over was uneventful. Trent watched his DVD player, ate and took naps, and we arrived safely in NYC around 5pm that evening (which was around midnight to our body clocks). Unfortunately, there was a problem with our hotel reservation and I had to call Viji (0ur awesome travel agent) to fix it. Which she did. So after about an hour delay we were able to check into our hotel. Surprisingly, when we got there, the front desk was kissing our butts. I assumed it was because of Viji. Turns out that by some weird twist of fate, there was another person with our last name checking in that day, and he was a Hilton rewards member. It was HIS butt they thought they were kissing, and it was HIS room they gave us. They had lost our reservation, and even though Viji called to sort it out, they still didn't get it right! They woke me up at midnight to tell me that there was a problem with our room.
Having been on a trans-atlantic flight and was dog-tired, I wasn't feeling very friendly and as politely as I could, told the manager that this would have to wait until the morning. She finally backed off. But for the remainder of our stay, the front desk staff were incredibly rude to us!

Day 15 - Homeward bound
Having a few hours to blow in New York, we decided we would take the train down to Manhattan, have lunch in Central Park and let Trent run around since he'd be spending 4 hours strapped into an aeroplane again. We took the sky train, then the subway, and walked a few blocks to the park. Trent had a blast chasing the birds and petting dogs. Unfortunately he took a spill on a ramp and hit his head, resulting in a nice lump, bruise, and graze. It didn't seem to phase him much, though. Our little tough guy.

Finally, it was time to make the last leg of the journey. Home sweet home. And how glad we were when the plane's wheels touched down on Texas soil. There's no place like home :-)

Not the face!

Brian came home last night with a very nice lump and bruise on his gorgeous face. Right on the cheekbone under his right eye. It looked pretty grusome last night, but he iced it down and this morning it's not looking bad at all. Shame really, it was kinda hot ;-)

How did he get it... well, that's a story only Brian can tell. I wouldn't want to steal his spotlight.

the ancient art of reading tea bags?

Ok, don't freak out, but I saw something pretty spectacular in my morning tea today. I know that for centuries, psychics the world over have used tea leaves to read people's fortunes. This morning, as I was making my morning cuppa, a face appeared to me in the tea bag. Perhaps I've just discovered a new medium for post death communications with the living? Could it be Jesus? Elvis, maybe? my dead grandmother? What does it mean???

Here's a picture. Please note that I have adjusted the lighting using software to make it more visible, but I have not altered the image otherwise. Who do you think it is?

Regardless of what it means, it was a delicious cup of tea!

Glad to be home

I'm working on a trip report from our recent holiday - it's taking longer than anticipated because a) I have a lot to talk about, b) I am busy catching up at work, c) I'm a starter but not a finnisher, so it's half done, and d) I'd rather spend time playing with Trent.

But rest assured it's coming.

I went to the gym for the first time in several weeks yesterday. It felt so good to work out. Unfortunately, when I got done I got to the car and the security system malfunctioned and immobilized the car. I guess the anti-theft system works a little too well. I had to run home from the gym and today, a whole 24 hrs later, the car still won't engage. Stupid alarm. The silver lining is that I got an extra few miles of cardio in. But now poor Brian has to figure out how to get the car to start or we have to tow it somewhere to get it looked at. BAH!

Europe 08 trip highlights - Switzerland

I'm very glad to be back home after what can only be described as a very cool, interesting, and surprising holiday in Europe. Normally when I travel I keep a hand-written journal, but since this time I was traveling with a baby, I assumed I wouldn't have time for that, and I was right. So let's see if I remember all the key things I wanted to remember about this trip. I think perhaps breaking it up into days might help me. So here goes:

Day 1 - Travel day
We got up EARLY, after no sleep at all for me. I can't sleep before a trip. I think most people suffer from this. You know the one where your brain won't let you sleep because your alarm might fail and you'll miss your flight. We got Trent up around 5am. I put him to bed the night before in the shirt he was going to travel in so that I wouldn't have to wake him. I did a stealth nappy change and put trousers on him, then put him in his car seat, but the act of picking him up woke him. He was super mellow about it, though. Just sleepily sat in his car seat and looked out the window. Then we took a bus from the parking area to the terminal. We thought he'd go back to sleep but he never did, which was kind of ideal really since we wanted him sleepy for the plane ride.
We played in the airport and let Trent walk all over the place to tire him out. Then when we boarded the plane, he politely went to sleep for most of the flight to Atlanta. In Atlanta we had a few hours before our next flight so we ate lunch at Chillis and again let Trent walk all around exploring and playing. In Atlanta, we plugged his DVD player into a wall outlet (so as to not drain the battery) and he was happy as can be.
On the long flight to Zurich, Trent had his own seat so we were able to use the CARES harness, which worked like magic to get him settled. Because he'd worn himself out at the airport, he was very accommodating and sat quietly playing or watching his DVD until he fell asleep pretty much for the remainder of the flight. Since this was an overnight flight that worked out quite well. One thing to note about the CARES harness - if the seats on the plane are vinyl (which they are on Delta), then you need to put something on the seat to stop the kid from sliding and strangling himself on the harness buckle. Some of the non-slip pads you put under rugs or in drawers works well.

Day 2 - Arrival in Zurich and dinner at Chez Dupre
We arrived in Zurich as scheduled and Benoit was there to meet us as we came out of customs. Ben so kindly traveled to Zurich on the train to meet us and accompany us back so that he could help with luggage and to ensure we get the right ticket, etc. Then, Nadia met us at the station in Fribourg with their car, and she took all our luggage to the hotel while Ben, Brian, Trent and I all walked from the station to the hotel (about 1KM). Fribourg is a very small place. We checked in and Trent took a nap while Ben and Brian returned to the train station to greet Brian's parents who were arriving from their trip to Amsterdam and Lucerne.
That evening Ben picked us all up in a car he had hired that seated all of us, including a baby seat for Trent! What a thoughtful guy! We made our way to Ben's parents' house, which was just a few KM away from the centre of Fribourg. There we met Ben's parents and Nadia's parents. Ben's mum made a fantastic dinner with several courses, made with vegetables fresh from their garden. Neither Ben nor Nadia's parents spoke any English, so when I was able, I translated and conversed with them. Nadia's dad, Jean-Paul was so great with Trent. He and Trent seemed to really like each other - they played with blocks and played peek-a-boo and Nadia's mum was so very sweet, even in a different language. Ben's parents were just so warm and friendly that the language barrier seemed so nonexistent. We had so much fun that evening, gesturing, speaking in broken French and English, and laughing when we finally did understand what the other was saying. That was one of my favourite evenings of the trip.

Day 3 - Trip to Gruyere's Medieval Town
Ben and Nadia picked us up bright and early after breakfast in the big car, and we drove about 20 minutes to Gruyere, the origins of the cheese. We first went to the Gruyeres Castle, which was built in the 13th century. The castle was small, but impressive in it's construction, especially given the date it was constructed. We had fun roaming the rooms and took in the multi-media experience that educated us on the area and the castle. In the darkened room, Trent very respectfully took a nap so as to not disturb anybody. What a good boy! After the tour of the castle, we ate a fantastic lunch of Fondue at a restaurant just outside the castle. After lunch we took a tour of the cheese factory where they make the Gruyere cheese that you buy in the grocery stores today (that is if you don't settle for a bad immitation, and believe me, after tasting this, you shouldn't).
After the cheese factory, we spent some time relaxing in the Swiss Chocolate store where we bought a whole variety of chocolate and shared it between the 7 of us. This was Trent's first time to taste chocolate. At first he didn't like it, but he went back and tried it again and before long we had to cut him off! Afterwards, we all went back to Ben and Nadia's and hung out on the balcony drinking wine and chatting, while Trent played with all of Nadia's stuffed animals and tried to terrorize their rabbit, Merlin.

Day 4 - Discovering Fribourg
Today we all slept in late, which was such a treat. Though we did manage to miss breakfast. As we were making our way to the hotel where Brian's parents were staying, which was about 1km away, we bumped into them in the town centre. Then as we were standing there outside this bakery, an american guy came over to us and said "Hey, are you guys from Texas?" and I was for one second quite mortified that it could be so obvious. Then he identified himself as the Todd, the guy from Vermont, that was also attending Ben & Nadia's wedding. He was having a coffee with Pascal, one of Ben's brothers, and Pascal's 2.5 year old son Edgar. What a small town this is! We hung out for a while chatting with Pascal and Tood, then we all met up with Ben and Nadia for lunch, except for Pascal and Edgar who went to the doctor because Edgar was a little bit unwell and he was to be the ring-bearer in the wedding so they wanted to be sure he would be ok.
After lunch Ben and Nadia went to take care of some final wedding prep, Todd headed for a coffee shop, and we (the Baumans) went back to Brian's parent's hotel to give Trent some play time. We drank some wine and watched the news about hurricane Ike. After that we went walking around Fribourg to find the church where Ben and Nadia were to be married, just so we knew where to go on Saturday. On the way back, we stopped off at a little bar for a beer. That evening, we had dinner in a highly recommended fondue restaurant. We had goat cheese fondue, herb grueyre fondue, and a really cool beef dish that cooks in front of you in a pan over a flame on the table. After dinner we went back to Brian's parents' hotel room and let Trent play a while longer, then we walked back to our hotel as Trent fell peacefully to sleep on the way.

Day 5 - The wedding
The weather took a turn today from relatively cool and a bit overcast, to rather cold and drizzly. We slept late again and of course missed breakfast, so we took a stroll over to the bakery I had spotted near the Train station when we first alighted the train in Fribourg. Mmmm, freshly baked pastries. There's nothing better than that. We took them back to our hotel room and spent the morning playing with Trent.
Brian's parents came to our hotel around 2 or so and we took a cab over to the church. The wedding was beautiful. The church was so old and quaint. We could really see why they chose this place. The church was packed with so many family and friends, it seemed like the whole town was there. Ben later told us that the choir, who were up in the balcony and out of my line of sight, was comprised completely of his aunts, uncles, and cousins. Although I couldn't understand what they were singing, since it was all in French, they were amazing. The depth of the harmonies was breathtaking and despite the fact that the wedding was quite long, I found myself hoping they'd sing again. And they did. I can't recall how many songs, but definitely more than 5.
Nadia looked so beautiful in her dress, and I loved her dress. So funky and so very French. I can't do it justice to describe it, so I'll have to rely on pointing to pictures when Ben sends them to us.
After the ceremony we all left the church and went outside and the bride and groom took pictures with everybody. There was one really cool shot in particular with the whole group assembled on the little bridge over the Sarine river, with old Fribourg on the hills in the background. I can't wait to see how that one came out!
After pictures, we Ben's parents drove Brian, Trent, and me to the next phase of the wedding celebrations, which was an aperatif at the youth centre of the Church near Ben's parents' house. Here we all drank wine/beer, ate appetizers, and socialized. We mingled with many people, and Ben introduced us to his boss and wife who were from England. Trent played with the other children, chasing balloons together and laughing and I discovered that there's no language barrier when you're a child. It was so cute!
During this portion of the evening, postcards adressed to Ben and Nadia were given out, and people wrote down a gift and some advice on them. Then we tied them to a balloon and as we were all leaving, we all let them go at the same time. Whoever finds the postcard is asked to mail them back to Ben and Nadia. Those that get returned to them will owe Ben and Nadia the gift that they wrote on the card :-) what a cool idea!
Ben's parents drove us over to the restaurant that was hosting the wedding dinner. The Hotel Schiff am See in Morat. You can see France across the lake from here. It was such a nice place. The dinner was amazing. Four courses of what can only be described as gourmet cuisine. The dessert buffet was to die for! The festivities lasted well into the wee hours and Trent did an amazing job of rolling with everything we threw at him. The hotel staff were so kind and got Trent his own little plate. They didn't have to do that and we were so grateful and very impressed. Around midnight, the little guy passed out and fortunately, Ben and Nadia, being the wonderful hosts they are, had reserved a room right next to the party, where people with children could go and take care of their needs. Trent and I spent the last 2 hours in there. Trent passed out, and me just laying next to him relaxing. During our time there a couple of other mums came through to change a baby or to breastfeed. Around 2am Ben's parents took us back to our hotel, which was quite out of their way. They are so very sweet.

Day 6 - Dinner with Ben and Nadia
Today, for the most part, we did our own thing and Brian's parents left for Ireland. We did a little sight seeing around town, took Trent to the park where he played and chased dogs. Then we bought a baguette and some cheese and ate lunch in our hotel room while playing with Trent. Trent did something remarkable today. As Brian and I were lying down hoping to take a nap, and we'd spread out a blanket on the floor for Trent to play on... and after a while of playing, he got up, picked up his blankie, laid back down with the blanket over him and went to sleep!!! I know this doesn't sound like a big deal to you... but to us it was completely priceless. So we all took a nap.
That evening we made our way over to Ben and Nadia's house, consulting a map and relying on Brian's memory... we eventually found it. We sat around, chatted, and ate Pizza. Trent did a little more terrorizing of the rabbit. After dinner we took a leisurely stroll back to our hotel and Trent passed out on the way.

Day 7 - Departing Switzerland and going to Espania!
This is the day I've been looking forward to most of all. Visions of my parents greeting us in the hotel lobby as we arrived danced in my head all night long. So much so, that I wasn't able to get much sleep. Lucky for us, though, because I had thought our flight left at 2:30, but at 6:30am I had a bad feeling, so I got up and checked our itinerary. Sure enough, we were to depart at 12:30! ACK!!! We had arranged to meet Ben at 9am and go to the train station to get the 10:08 to Zurich. Change of plan! "Brian, you need to get up! I've made a mistake and the flight leaves 2 hours earlier than I thought!" Lucky for us that we had 2.5 hours before our designated meeting time with Ben and plenty of time to catch the 8:04 to Zurich. We called Ben, then called a taxi.
Ben and Nadia met us at the train station and helped us buy our tickets. Then we were off. A quick goodbye to our fantastic hosts.

Summary of Switzerland
We really enjoyed our stay. Fribourg and the surrounding area is gorgeous. We wished we had more time to go to Zurmatt or some place in the Alps, but the things we did get to see were beautiful and I can totally see why people live here. The people in Switzerland are so friendly. We loved our hotel. The De La Rose, part of the Best Western chain, but you wouldn't think so. It was nothing like an American hotel - very European, and in an old historic building. We felt completely safe walking around in Fribourg. Even at night. There was a park by the hotel that Bri's parents stayed in (and a strip club next door) and that was the only area of town we found to be a bit dodgy, but even that wasn't so bad that you wouldn't walk through it at night. Transplant that park and the people who frequent it to any city in the US, though, and wild horses wouldn't drag me through it, day or night. There's a reason why nobody's at war with the Swiss :-)

Goodbye Sasquatch, hello Europe

ok, this is my final post before we leave for our much anticipated trip. Over the last week I've made the transition from freaking out a little about taking a toddler on a plane for 10 hours, to being actually excited about the trip. Good news, Benoit is coming to meet us in Zurich and will ride the train to Fribourg with us. That will take some of the stress out of trying to find your way around a foreign land. I'm quite looking forward to exercising my newly polished French language skills with Ben and Nadia. Hopefully I will do ok.

Today I opted to take a vacation day. It wasn't part of my original plan, but I realized I needed to have a somewhat relaxing, work free day prior to the trip just for my mental well-being. So we spent the weekend prepping the house and doing last minute shopping. On Saturday, Aunt Tara took Trent for a few hours and Brian and I busied ourselves with cleaning up the house. I hate to come home from a trip to a messy house. Brian, being a huge slob, doesn't mind it, but he's been humoring me by completing his honey-do list with no complaints.

I found the time during my busy weekend to get one last Suede show in. Michelle and I met up at Cuba Libre for drinks and appetizers, then made our way over to Cedar St. a little after 11. We closed out the night there and as always, had such a blast dancing and oogling the eye candy on the stage. Usually at Cedar St. you don't get many stupid drunk people, but that night I had to threaten a very drunk guy with bodily injury if he touched my arse one more time while I was dancing. Lucky for him he got the message. He and his friend later apologized to me. Ok, I was a little feisty that night.

On Sunday we spent some time at the outlet malls picking up the final things we would need for our trip, then ate lunch at Chilli's. The remainder of Sunday was spent playing and hanging out with Trent, then dinner at my favourite sushi place, Sushi Sake, with Mike, Tara, and Austin for Mike's birthday. I feel like all of my friends are catching up to me now. I might still be the old lady in the group, but at least I don't feel like it! Oh, you'll all be happy to know that I slayed the sasquatch last night in a fury of hot wax and tweezers. RIP sasquatch.

Today Trent is spending the day at daycare while Brian and I pack. I'm taking a break right now and having my second cup of tea of the morning. Today is definitely a 2 cup morning. I was sleeping so hard this morning and when I woke up I felt so groggy. The fog is lifting though. I'm feeling a bit sloth-like, though because I haven't ran or been to the gym in many days. Just not enough time. I'm going to try to get a run in this evening, which will likely be the last time I work out for 2 weeks. Hopefully I won't be smuggling any extra arse back to the US in my trousers when we come back ;-)

I taked to mum and dad on the webcam yesterday, and they are very excited to see us in only one week! They'll be waiting in the hotel reception when we arrive in Spain. I can barely stand to wait! The only bummer is that it will all be over too quickly, but mum and I will remedy that by planning our next trip almost as soon as we get back! We're thinking Mexico next year.

The rest of my day is looking quite leasurely and right now I feel a sense of calm. Barbie has exactly 16 hours to push that baby out before I have to leave for the airport, otherwise I'm requesting that she (the baby) politely waits for my return ;-)
All kidding aside, I'm extremely disappointed that I won't get to meet my new niece when she's born, and that I can't be there to be moral support and bouncer for Barbie while she's doing her thing. But I know she's in good hands. The good news is that I'll have something to look forward to when I get back. I can't wait, I can't wait, I can't wait to meet the little bugger. I hope she has Barbie's dimples :-)

You ladies be good while I'm gone. I love you (smooooooooooooooooch!)

~Amanda out

you are what you eat

If we are what we eat, then today I am utter crap!

Here's what I've eaten so far:

• Pomegranate Danactive
• Fruit & Grain Bar
• Starbuck's grande non-fat chai latte
• Snickers bar
• Bag of jalepeno crisps

And it's only 1:30. This evening I intend to eat pizza and drink wine. I guess I shouldn't feel bad because I don't eat this much crap usually. In fact, ever, really. Today was just unusual. And today is my final day before.... HOLIDAY! YAY! I guess I'm just preparing my taste buds for airline/airport food :-)

It's the final countdown!

Ok, for those of you old enough to remember the rock anthem by one hit wonder "Europe", the devil in me hopes that song gets stuck in your head for a bit.

What I'm referring to, of course, is the countdown to our trip. After reviewing my progress on languages, for French, I can say I am at least at an intermediate level. For German, which I haven't been brushing up on, I'm still a beginner, and for Spanish, I am very much a beginner. But hey, it's progress. I highly recommend the podcasts on the www.radiolingua.com web sites if you're looking to learn a new language. They will definitely get you started.

This week I'm putting all the checks and balances into place at work. Prepping people for my absence, writing a list of things that should be done while I'm away, and where to find everything they will need. My goal is to have everything wrapped up by the time I finish tomorrow so that I can spend my weekend and one day next week focusing on things at home. On the home front, keys have been issued, instructions written, and there will be a human presence every day to love on the cats and fish. Sweet! A big thanks to Jen and Mike, and our wonderful neighbour Jim for all their help.

Today I met with our awesome travel agent, Viji Krishna, at Tramex Travel. I honestly don't know what I'd do without her. She's very detailed, and extremely sweet. She even told me to call her at 6am at home on the day we fly if we run into any issues. Note to self: When I get back, I will send her a thank you gift.

I have so much left to do and I can't quite get my head around it! Luckily for us, Aunt Tara so kindly offered to take Trent for a while on Saturday so we could focus on what we need to get done.

And in all this madness, tomorrow I am making time to get a pedicure. Over the weekend I am making time to remedy the sasquatch issue that Brian's been a bit freaked out about lately - yes, my hairy legs have actually started to freak him out. Note to self: check to see if you still have wax and strips :-)

Eeeeeeeee! I need a massage!

5 party weekend and a shy half...

This weekend was jam-packed with fun. You know it's a good weekend when all your days have blended into one big one, and you can't remember half of what you did. There were many, many parties this weekend. Some of which I was able to attend, and others I had to regrettably forgo. I would have liked a time machine this weekend, that way I could have attended all of them, and perhaps even repeat some of the highlights. Aside from socializing, I did quite a lot of moving my body this weekend. On Sunday I did a grand total of 12.5 miles. Just shy of a half-marathon... ok, it sounds impressive when I say it like that. Truthfully, though, I only ran 7.2 of those miles. Trent and I did our usual Sunday morning run, then later in the day, Brian suggested that we walk to Home Depot. We needed to go there to get some keys made, and it's just over 2.5 miles from us, so that made for a good walk there and back. We saved money on gas, did something good for the environment, and burned a few extra calories.
Sunday night was an absolute blast and Michelle and I are still smiling about it. Monday morning came too soon for me. As I told Joe on Sunday night "my alarm clock has no snooze button". And after a few brief, but enjoyable, hours of sleep, Trent was up and ready to play! We spent some time at the pool on Monday morning, followed by running some errands, which included a trip to the Learning Toy Store, and then we attended one last party to cap off the weekend. We feel so lucky that our friends have welcomed Trent into their lives and are so happy to see him at parties. Of course, he's in his "fun" phase right now, where he's still cute, and very funny to watch as he discovers his world. Another reason why I would like a time machine. I'd freeze time so he could be this age for just a little while longer.

Only one more week until we leave for Switzerland! So much to do, so little time. Why am I spending time blogging??? because it's distracting me from the mountain of work that piling up that I just simply don't want to do! I have a case of the idontwannas!