Today I didn't wear a bra...

Today I didn't wear a bra...nobody knows me, nobody cares and honestly, on my body, it doesn't matter (I promise I am not becoming a hippie:)

Today I found out that the British make a 2 pound coin...good to know.

Today I got lost for an hour, while walking, in a new country. Thank goodness people are nice enough to get me back on track.

Today I realized that British food is much, much different than American food. I think I am going to have to realign my taste buds...gulp...

Today I discovered that Norwich has separate public bathrooms to change diapers (seriously, this is awesome).

Today I realized that having a phone would be awesome, but it is not necessary

Today I got suckered into signing up for my first piece of junk mail and didn't know my zip code...I do now...

Today I decided that I need to buy some pants...the sundresses in my suitcases are just not going to cut it...

Today I bought Parker shoes that fit his thick sausages...yay!

Today I discovered "toddler and parent" parking at the grocery store! If only I had a car...

Today I understood that I will never buy grapes again...try $6+ a pound...

Today was the start of a new adventure and we are going to be fine...heck, I didn't even have to wear a bra...:)

We Made It!

I can't help but laugh when I think back to when Brady and I first got married and our "5 year" plan. Now, three years later, we land, in England, on our anniversary. This was definitely not in the plan, but neither was just about anything else that has happened within the last three years so this is the perfect adventure to fit in to our new plan--no plan at all:)!

This is how we started our day...Brady was not excited that we had four suitcases, a baby, a stroller and a diaper bag to get from place to place, but he still had a smile on his face!

I'm not going to lie, we got a lot of looks at the airport as if to say..."are you moving or something?"...I wanted to wear a sign that read, "yes, actually we are."

Parker's mood started out on the wrong side of the bed and we were not looking forward to our long travels ahead, but he cheered right up when we got on the plane! In fact, he didn't want to get off!

I bought a CARES system to use on the plane. This was a lifesaver!! Parker is technically still old enough to be a lap child on domestic flights, but since we were flying internationally, we had to get his own seat, and he had to have a carseat on board. Well, a friend recommended this super easy alternative. It is the only aviation harness approved by the FAA and it definitely saved us from having to lug a carseat around!

Once we landed in Houston we had a planned 5 hour layover (7 hour actual). This sounds crazy, but we wanted the overnight flight to be as close to P's bedtime as possible, and we wanted to give him a chance to walk around before getting back on a plane. Because I am crazy (so says Brady), I decided to buy a harness (aka P's backpack) so that I wouldn't be worried about anyone snatching Parker. I know this sounds silly, but I felt more secure letting him walk around knowing that he was still attached to me (I feel like using the word "attached" is setting Parker up for future mommy issues, but I don't know how else to put it!) Brady literally would not even hold on to it, but had no problem taking a picture of how ridiculous we looked!

After getting delayed for two hours and listening to Parker cry, "Parker want to get on pairplane" (yes, the extra p is on purpose:), he was starting to get a little restless and tired. That is when he decided to start laying/rolling on the ground. Yep, that is my kid. I feel like I need to show you in sequence...

Luckily, this is about when they finally started the boarding process, yahoo!! Parker didn't sleep right away, but he was definitely comfortable!

Parker liked just looking out the windows and watching the movies so much that he only played with a couple of the many activities I brought...lesson learned. Thank goodness for fully reclining seats, it made sleeping so much easier...even if I did have to put P's seat back before he was ready...

All in all, we had a great trip! We are exhausted, but Parker only woke up once last night between 7 and 7 (Norwich time) so hopefully he adjusts to the time difference quickly!!

Goodbyes

Right now I am sitting in a hotel room thinking about how hard the last couple of months have been. We have literally said goodbye to at least one person every day for the last three or four weeks. Today we said goodbye to our parents. This was by far the hardest day. Brady and I are extremely blessed to have caring, involved parents and families who would do anything for us. Even more amazing is that they love us enough to know that this is a great opportunity and have tried to keep the tears out of sight when we are around. This must be why Brady and I keep our tears inside--I know, I know, most of you reading this have seen me cry at Hallmark and Folgers commercials(who doesn't when the big brother comes home at Christmas:) or Grey's Anatomy, but it is rare for me to cry in front of my family and friends about the real stuff. I know this is silly, but I think it is something that we all do to protect each other.

It is kind of funny when you really step back and look at how everyone handles grief or sadness. My dad is the strong silent type. I can always tell when he is sad because he won't say a whole lot and I have only seen him cry once (during Rudy:). Tonight, however, I almost witnessed a second time...I could hear his voice cracking and he hurried back to the car. My mom is the type to make jokes in order to lighten the mood...for example, in the car tonight she told us that she always that that "Dream Weaver" was saying "Train to Weba"--she seriously my shoot me for revealing that! She always eventually cries, but she holds in as long as possible. Brady's mom is similar to my mom; she holds it in as long as possible and then just lets it spill out at the last possible moment.

I guess I just needed to write this to let all of those who we love so much know that we are going to miss you so, so much. We have amazing family and friends and would do anything if we could just take you with us. I know that our parents are sad and I just wanted to let them know that we love them and are so proud to be their children. Please know that we have been praying for months for God to give you strength during this transition; here is a verse that I thought might help get you started...

But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31

Happy 50th Gram Gram

I am so blessed to have an amazing family who is willing to go above and beyond no matter what we need. For the last three and a half weeks, my parents have let us stay at their house until we leave for England. I know that they like having us around, but I also know that it is an adjustment for them. They have basically let us have free reign of their basement. They literally have not come down here except for once when the tornado sirens have gone off. They have endured the incessant barking of my lovable, but annoying dog, and most importantly they have respected our boundaries so we feel comfortable living in someone else's home. We are so very lucky to have them.

Last week, my mom turned 50 (I only hope that I look this good when I turn 50)! My mom is the most giving person I know. She is the definition of what it means to be a mother and I am constantly learning from her. My mom would do anything for her kids and now, Parker. One of my biggest fears about moving is that I will not be able to teach Parker everything he needs to know on my own. I am constantly amazed by something my mom or Brady's mom taught him and am petrified that I am not going to remember to do everything I need to do to help him be his best. Every day I pray that I can be as good of a mother as she is. We are so blessed to have involved grandparents and I can only hope that Skype can keep them that way!

Here are some pictures of my mom's birthday celebration. Luckily, my grandparents from Arizona (Big Dawg and Grandma) were in town to celebrate along with my Mom's mom from Udall (GiGi). I was so glad that we could all be together to celebrate!

Baby OH!

Parker finally performed a little bit for the camera...that never happens! I thought I would share him singing Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga and Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. He is truly our little entertainer!

KC Family Fun

One of our many stops on our journeys to see everyone was to Kansas City. We started the day at BRGR with Brady's Aunt Janae, her boyfriend Dan and Van, my future sister-in-law (hopefully:). After stuffing our faces with cheeseburgers and french fries we decided to go swimming--putting on bathing suits after eating that much was painful...We had so much fun! It was nice to just spend the day relaxing without worrying about anything else!

I was also so excited to spend the evening with my best friend, Jamie and her husband Drew. An added my bonus was that my friends Katy and Kaitlin stopped by too! I don't get to see Jamie very often, but just knowing that I can call her anytime I want is a comfort. It is really going to be hard to look at the clock, subtract six hours and then decide whether or not it is appropriate to call...dang it...

Here are some pictures of our day!

This is the life!

We can rarely get him to keep a pair of sunglasses on long enough to take a picture.

So...P is a big fan of using anything as a microphone...including a plunger. I seriously had to blur "little willie" to be able to post this. oops!

In the words of Parker..."Parker runs really fast"

We love Aunt Janae (do not be confused by the pretty young blonde; I promise that this is Brady's aunt...Grandma Marlys says she was a "Wonderful Surprise")

My little OCD helper

The last two weeks have been anything but normal. We have packed up all of our belongings, moved them out of our house, moved in with my parents, and prepared our house for renters (this would have been a lot easier if we wouldn't have procrastinated on the landscaping while we lived there). Now that the renters have the keys, I thought life would be easier, however, now we have to sell our cars, get international banking, and go through tax consultations. All of this has meant lots and lots of errands while I am home with Parker. I am loving spending more time with him, but I'm worried that maybe I should have let him play with his friends a little longer at daycare instead of dragging him everywhere.

Though all of these changes, Parker is always there for a good laugh. Lately, we have had some obsessions with socks ("focks,"say the singular version out loud and you will understand why this is a problem) shoes, and mittens. First, he is now overly obsessed with his tennis shoes. His first request in the morning is to put on his shoes and I can't get him to wear any other pair--update, as of this morning, P put on his other shoes when I told him they were Mickey's favorites--hooray! Also, Parker now wants to wear mittens all the time, aka socks on his hands. My favorite is when he uses his "mittens" to play in the dirt...apparently, I'm raising a particularly clean baby (last week he asked me to wash his plug three times before he would go to sleep).

Here is a picture of parker with his "mittens."

One of my other favorite parts about staying home is getting to take him to see grandmother Millie more often. She is almost 104, and I feel so grateful that Parker gets to spend time with her. When we go see her, Parker goes straight to the jar of m&ms. Friday, when I told him he could only have one, Grandmother told me, "Kim always lets him have more than one." How could I argue with that? Apparently, no matter how old I get my mom is still the boss:).

Lately, he has been very helpful around the house. For two days he said, "I mow the grass" over and over and over again. By then end of day two, I found myself in the checkout line at Target with a play mower...it even has bubbles! He was so excited! The entire way home he said, "I cited to mow grass!" Translation..."I'm excited to mow the grass!"

I couldn't help including the picture below. He has been acting so big lately and trying to do everything we do. Today, he put his napkin on his lap during lunch. This is him adjusting it after wiping his mouth.

We have also been to the zoo a lot lately. On Tuesday, the giraffe "kissed" Parker. P cried...a lot...if he was potty-trained, I'm pretty sure he would have peed his pants. After, I thought he was traumatized, but all he could talk about Tuesday afternoon and yesterday was, "I wa feed jaffes." Translation..."I want to feed the giraffes." Today we went back to feed the giraffes and he was still scared, but he didn't cry! So proud of my big boy!

I am so thankful that I have this little man to make me laugh every day. He is the absolute most wonderful part of my day. He calms me in the middle of one of the most dramatic things I could be experiencing, and reminds me that our little family is all that matters.