2/27/09

Yeah!!  We finally get to leave the hotel!!   There was no room for the bags so we ended up sharing seats to fit.  We made a little pit stop at the furniture place and then headed for the house.  We just dropped off the bags then headed to the stores.  The kids had fun picking out their sheets and blankets.  I am trying really hard to be independent and work on Spanish so I'll be able to do it when Chris is at work.  I had to ask for help with a couple of things and was able to get my point across.  It isn't very graceful or full of confidence but it gets the job done!!  

After another stop for some cleaning stuff, we decided that we couldn't fit it in the car.  Chris took the stuff back to the house while I took the kids to the food court for lunch.   We stopped at the bathroom on the way and that was an experience all of it own!!  I took the little girls in and got in line.  After being cut in front of several times, I realized that there wasn't a line.  Each stall had its own line.   We finally got a stall and then there was no toilet paper.  I thought it was quite ironic that the day before Chris asked somebody how to say toilet paper in Spanish.  That night I told him that I had learned my word of the day.  It really paid off when I had to find somebody to get us some papel de bano!!      

After the 1/2 hour bathroom trip, we finally made our way to Subway.   I had ordered there before and knew I could do it but I wanted to learn the Spanish words.  While the kids tried to figure out what they wanted, I got out my Spanish dictionary and started looking up the words for olives, pickles, lettuce, etc.   A young lady at the table next to us must have noticed my dictionary and came over and asked me in English if I would like some help.  I was so pleased that somebody was being friendly to us and not staring!!  I told her that I was trying to do it on my own and that if I got stuck I would ask her to help me. I managed to muffle my way through on my own but made sure to thank her for her support!!    By the time we sat down to eat, Chris was back from the house.  We grabbed some more cleaning stuff and headed back to the house again.  After having the exterminators bomb the place, we had a little cleaning to do before the beds arrived.   We got the bedrooms cleaned out and that was about it.  The beds were supposed to be there between 3 and 5.  At about 5:30 Chris said we'd probably have to check back into a hotel.  He left to go to the store to find out what was happening.  He gave the security guard his cell number and asked him to call if the stuff arrived.  Shortly after he left, I looked out the window and saw a little Toyota truck with a ton of mattresses on it coming.  Of course I start to panic a little that Chris isn't there and I don't know if I'll be able to communicate well enough.   I sucked it up, opened the door, and tried my best.  One of the guys said that he could speak a little English.  So, between my little Spanish and his little English we got it taken care of until Chris got back.  The guard had called Chris and he drove like a maniac to get back!!  

It was like Christmas for the kids when we opened up their beds and put their bedding on.  Laina jumped up on her bed and with a huge grin said "Thank you mommy!!"   Cole said that he is so happy to be in a real bed again.  It just got better when they got to start unpacking their clothes and the limited toys that they brought.  

We had to wait around for the delivery of the fridge, stove, and washer so it was once again very late by the time we got dinner.  It is a good thing that the beds were made before we left because everybody was ready for bed when we got back!  

2/26/09

Everything looks so different a semi-decent nights sleep and bright sunshine.  We decided to be wild and crazy and had Chris, Morgan, and Cole walk to McDonalds to get breakfast.   I am so done with McDonlds!!  

Chris was able to get us from the hotel to the house without any help from Dave!  We spent the majority of the day at the house meeting with the landlord and exterminator.  The kids were pretty happy when I unpacked their razors (scooters) and let them ride around the development.  They also had fun at the little park area.  Cole was outside so much that he got a pretty bad sunburn on his neck.....what a great mom I am!!  We'll definitely need to get the sunblock out for here!!  

Dave and the others came by the house and brought us all of our luggage/all of our possessions for the next two years!  After that they all left to head back to the U.S.  It felt like we were being dropped off at the college dorms for the first time!!  We're all on our own now!

Once the exterminators were done, we began the massive shopping.  First priority...beds!!  I have never felt so stared at as I did today.  People weren't even trying to be sly about it.  It must have been because of the kids because we didn't get that many looks when it was just Chris and me!  

After some shopping, we were once again adventurous for lunch and had pizza at Dominoes.  After more searching, we finally found a store to buy our beds.....and fridge...and stove...and microwave....and washer.  It took FOREVER!!  I don't know how many trips the kids and I made back and forth from the store to the car to the store to the popsicle place and back to the store!!  On the upside, Chris was doing GREAT with his Spanish.  He was talking more than he even does in English!!  

After the 3-4 hours we spent at the store, we were done for the day.  The poor kids were barely holding on.  We headed back to the hotel for dinner and watched a movie on the computer.  I can't get over how much of a toll this has been on us all both physically and emotionally.  There is no way that we could have survived as long as we have if the kids hadn't been so good!  

The kids have been working really hard to try their Spanish words that they know and also to learn new ones.  The only time any of them has said they want to go back to Vegas has been when they were so tired that they could barely function!  We have definitely been blessed and watched over.  (If it is any indication of how well we are holding up,  I haven't even broken down crying once.....yet!)  

2/25/09

While the girls slept in, Chris and Cole met up with Dave (Chris' boss) for breakfast and to pick our rental car.  It was supposed to be a 7 seater mini van but it is the size of a car and only sits 6.  There is absolutely NO room for any luggage!!  We couldn't even fit all of our backpacks in it!  Luckily Dave had rented a 12 seater van for himself, four others, and to help with our luggage.  I don't know how they fit it but they did.  Once everybody was loaded in the vans, we left for Quetzaltenango (Xela -pronounced Shay la)  After several U-turns, two kids throwing up, several gasps of fear, and lots of stress, we got out of the city.  The exhaust fumes, crazy drivers, and the windy roads were not a good combination for motion sickness!  About half way to Xela, we stopped for lunch at McDonalds.  Cole got spoiled when Dave bought him a basketball at a little store.  The kids have all latched on to him and Laina even called him Uncle Dave.  It has definitely been a great help for the kids (as well as me and Chris!!)  to have Dave, Tom, Brady, Charity, and Jessica helping us out.  After several more hours of driving, we got to Xela and went to see our new house.  Once again it took us several u-turns but we finally found it in the dark.  The kids seemed to enjoy the house.  By the time we got to the hotel, checked in and to dinner it was 9:00.  Alysa almost fell asleep at the table!  Everybody was ready for bed after a VERY long, hard day!

2/24/09 cont

What a day! We have definitely been blessed today!  To get the full picture, I need to back up a little.  Last Tuesday (17th) we finally got the go ahead that we would be moving in a week and to get our tickets.  The flights were either great or horrible.  They ranged from just over 7 hours to around 24 hours.  The flight that I wanted for Monday was a little bit pricier than we would probably have been allowed.  I asked Chris if we could possibly go on Tuesday instead so we could take care of the last minute details on Monday.  He was able to get it approved!  It turned out that on Tuesday there was an additional flight leaving at 11:40 am with a 2 1/2 hour layover in Houston.  We'd be into Guatemala at 10:00 (8:00 las vegas time).  Not only was it the flight we wanted but it was also $200 cheaper per ticket than the Monday flight!  The only flights that were cheaper were the red eyes that took 15+ hours......and they were only about $50 cheaper.  So, we booked the flight not even realizing that they were first class seats!  With 1st class seats, we were allowed 3 free bags up to 70# each rather than 50# bags with a $25 fee for a 2nd and $100 for a third.  Since we are moving away for about two years and all we can take is our luggage, the 1st class tickets actually saved us money!

We ended up having to have two vehicles (one was a full size truck!) to take us and all of our luggage.  When we got there and I talked to the curbside check in guy, he told me to wait there with all the bags while he ran inside and got our bag tags.  I later found out that they do not do curbside check in for international flights and that he actually went inside and did the entire check in process for us just so we wouldn't have to lug in 18 bags + 3 carry ons + 6 backpacks + 4 kids!!  What a wonderful start to the trip!

- Security point: They told us to go to the handicap/family line so we wouldn't have to wait as long.

-Boarding: First class got to go to the front of the line.

-Plane: Not only did we get the fancy plush seats, but the kids were entertained with all the other amenities.  The kids really liked that they got fancy meals.  Cole even tried the soup!!  They also liked having the bathroom just for first class.  I can not believe how well the kids did.  I don't think they even bugged the other 1st class passengers!!

-Layover: Our first flight got in 1/2 early and our 2nd flight left an hour late so our 2 1/2 hour layover turned into a 4 hour layover.  Luckily the kids did well with very limited whining.  

-Last flight: We ha the most amazing flight attendant.  I wish I had gotten her name so I could call her supervisor and tell them to give her a big bonus!!  She kept talking to Morgan and Cole about how exciting it was going to be for them, etc.  She was one of the Spanish speakers for the flight and talked to them about that also.  She brought all the kids a set of "wings" and made arrangement with the captain for the kids to visit him and get their pictures taken in the cockpit after the flight.  Even though our plane didn't land until 1 1/2 hours after the little ones are usually in bed, they did great!  Alysa curled up and fell asleep during the landing though.

-Airport: We made it through immigration with no problems.  WE got several stares/laughs/puzzled looks when we started pulling off our luggage.  I'm not sure how it all happened but we ended up with about 4 people checking our bags and loading them onto two huge carts.  Two of the men then took us to customs.  Of course the one pieced of luggage that I was worried about was the 1st one they opened.  It was a big box with m Bosch mixer, wheat grinder, as well as odd baking items that I thought they'd give me a hard time for....powdered lechithin, powdered honey, wheat gluten, dough enhancer, etc.  I think they gave up on the box after digging through the packaging material.  (Instead of packaging peanuts, I used a bunch of candy.)  THey opened several more bags and then sent us on our way. 

-To the hotel:  The hotel shuttle was a 12 person van.  The two carts of luggage looked bigger than the van but the Guatemalan people continue to amaze me with their packing skills!   I always thought I was the best Tetris player with cramming as much into one space as possible but they put me to shame!  They managed to get every single piece of luggage and all 6 of us in the van.  Granted we were traveling "Mayan style" sitting on laps!  Once we got to the hotel we were all about ready to collapse!  Our bodies were exhausted but our minds wouldn't shut down.  It was very late before I could finally fall asleep!!

2/24/09

We're on the plane getting ready to take off and I am looking out at Las Vegas.  I am so sad to leave all my friends but I am excited at the same time to see what is in store for us.  

The past few days have been a whirlwind! With only six days to do the final preparations, we have been busy.  You can't even begin to imagine how hard it has been to pack up all of our belongings and either fit it in our luggage or put it in a storage unit not knowing when we will see it again.  

Unfortunately, I ran out of time and didn't finish the cleaning.  I'm sure if we'd pulled an all nighter, we could have gotten it done but fortunately, I have a great mother in law (Sharon), sister in law (Teresa), and brother in law (David) who offered to finish the cleaning for us.   That was definitely hard for me to "just let it go" and let somebody else do what I felt I should have done.  

We still haven't found renters so if you know of anybody, let us know!  We are hoping that David and Teresa's house will sell in Mesquite and they'll move in for a while.

2/24/09

We're on the plane getting ready to take off and I'm looking out at Las Vegas.  I am so sad to leave all my friends but excited at the same time to see what is in store for us. 

The past few days have been a whirlwind!  With six days to do the final preparations, we've been busy to say the least.  You can't even begin to imagine how hard it has been to pack up all of our belongings and either fit them in our luggage or put it in a storage unit not knowing when we will see it again.  Unfortunately, I ran out of time and didn't finish cleaning.  I'm sure we could have done it if we had pulled an all nighter but fortunately, I have a great mother in law (Sharon), sister in law (Teresa) and brother in law (David) who said they would finish it for us.  It was extremely hard for my controlling personality to "just let it go" and let somebody else do what I should have done but in this instance I realize that it was needed and I am forever greatful for their willingness to help us out!!  

We still don't have renters so if anybody knows of anyone, send them our way.  We are hoping that David and Teresa's house will sell in Mesquite and they can move into our house for a little while.

Ready… Set… GO!

I just got an email from Chris in SLC and it said, "Ready… Set… GO!" We've got tickets and we are heading to Guatemala (still won't believe it until I'm on the plane!!) next Tuesday, February 24th.

For Mitch

So, my brother in law Mitch sent on a chain letter challenge. I don't do them myself but I figure if Mitch would/could do it, so will I. From his blog, it says "I was instructed to open the 4th photo folder on my computer, post the 4th picture, and then offer a brief explanation. I was then to tag 4 of my friends or family. So I now tag Blythe S, Carli M, Jan M, and Kristina W. Of course, don't feel obligated to comply or to forward this viral tagging process (that is unless you don't want to be responsible for 47 years of horrible luck, worsened global warming, rampant male pattern baldness in your offspring, and another nationwide Salmonella outbreak...)" I figure with moving to a 3rd world country, I need all the extra luck I can get....or lack of bad luck!!

I am going to go ahead and tag Tabitha S., Adaire B., Amber M., and Duncan W. (No obligations!)

So, I opened the folder and didn't like the 4th picture so I chose the 15th. This is Morgan (2) and Cole (6 months) with their cousins Kaiya, Drew, and Ryley at Grandma and Grandpa's cabin in Sterling, Alaska. They built a cabin right before I got married and later found a little play cabin that matches theirs. All of the grandkids love to go play in it. Hopefully we'll be able to get all the cousins together soon.

Getting closer

A quick apology before I post.....I just now realized that people can comment on the blogs. Sorry that I didn't respond to anybodies. I'm new at this and I really don't check my blogs very regularly. Please don't take it personally!! (:

We still don't have plane reservations but it is sounding like we will more than likely be leaving next Monday or Tuesday. It is really happening!! All the emotions are going through us right now....sadness, excitement, fear, relief, etc.
We went up to Mesquite and stayed with Chris' mom for the weekend. The kids (and me) really needed the break. Chris headed back up to SLC on Sunday and the kids and I came back to Vegas Monday. The kids helped me take all of their beds to the front room. They thought it would be fun to have big slumber parties together for the last week. They changed their minds when they actually tried to go to bed and the noises were different. Alysa and Cole both ended up going back to their rooms and sleeping on the floor!

Still here.....

Still holding on waiting for the church, Jacobsen Construction, Guatemala, etc to get all of the contracts and permits in order so that we can go. The latest time frame that we are looking at is to move on the 23rd of February. Who knows though!! All I can say is that it's a little boring/empty around here. I am seriously contemplating a trip to Legoland or Disneyland with the kids!!

Cole's Baptism

We were so fortunate this weekend to be surrounded by friends and family for Cole's baptism. It can be pretty tough having our family so far away but it is nice to know that we have a ward family as well. It is especially true as we prepare to go to Guatemala to know that where ever we are, we'll always have a ward family. (I don't know if it'll be as great as our current ward though!!! (: )

Chris was able to baptize/confirm Cole along with his dad and brother, David. It's been really nice to have them in Mesquite.

Unfortunately though, I got strep throat so spent the weekend in extremely horrible pain. Thanks to wonderful peniccilin, I am starting to feel better and able to eat some food once again.