A very sad day.

The day we set off on our cross country trip (July 10, 2011) from Bayonne was a very sad day. I missed a call from Megan, one of my best friends, and called her back right away. I could tell from the way she answered the phone that something was wrong and soon found out that her step-dad, David, had been out riding his bike with friends when he suffered a massive heart attack and died. I was stunned. David was only 65, in seemingly good health and an all around good guy. He will be dearly missed.

David's death, just two weeks before Megan and Justin's wedding, was devastating and overwhelmingly sad. I am grateful that Megan, her mom Dorrie and her brother Mike had a lot of support from friends and family after this tragic event. Watching all of them deal with this loss showed me what a strong, close knit family they are and made me proud to be a part of their lives. I will never forget the generosity and kindness that David showed my family and I will treasure my memories of him always.

A picture from my wedding with David, Dorrie and Megan

Miscellaneous Memories...

I often get behind in my blog and end up writing posts months after the event has occurred. For that reason, I often omit things that I want to remember- little pieces of history that I hope to look back on someday. I hope to do a better job at keeping up to date so that everything I want to remember gets recorded.

This is an OLDIE- I probably didn't forget to write about this, but rather intentionally omitted it because I was embarrassed and grossed out. It has been well over a year now and I think it is time to share. When Esme was a tiny baby- I'd say 2 months or so, one of my cats had an accident that involved her. We were sitting on the couch as a family, petting our cat Olive, when the unthinkable happened. Olive sprayed her glands all over me and the baby. To say that I was horrified is an understatement. The kitty didn't do it on purpose but boy was it a stinky mess!! Thank goodness my mom was there to bathe Esme while I bathed myself...stinky! It was horrifying then but is kind of funny today!

I never want to forget the sound that Noah makes when he sucks on his binky.

Most of you know that Stephen and I have decided to bed share with our children. Up until Noah was born, Esme slept with us. This was particularly handy for nursing and I am certain that this arrangement has a lot to do with my children sleeping soundly through the night from such early ages (4 and 5 weeks, respectively). After Noah was born, Esme slept in her crib in the spare room (where my mom was staying) and occasionally woke up and slept with my mom. When my mom left, we brought Esme back into our room and put her in the pack and play and Noah slept in bed with us. Unfortunately, this didn't work out very well at first because Esme would get upset and we would end up with 4 in a bed. We have an American queen size bed (known as king size in the UK) so three is manageable, four...not so much. I ended up sleeping with Noah in one direction (heads at the foot of the bed) while Stephen slept with Esme in the other direction (heads at the top). This worked out pretty well but was not sustainable. With a little persistence and a few tears, we managed to get Esme to sleep in her pack and play all night long! We even got to the stage where I would put her in her crib for nap time and she would go down without any trouble. Same with bedtime- no tears, just straight to bed. Of course, the move changed everything...but I will get to that in another post.

I adore the way Esme has moved from saying HI to saying Hello. This happened soon after we moved to England and I think it is the cutest thing ever.

Esme lost her favorite shoe twice in one day (approx 16 months). The first time she put it in the clearance rack at Target. It took me about an hour and a half to find. Then, on the way home, I noticed the shoe was missing again! I had to drive all the way back to the store. It was in the lost and found. I wasn't impressed at the time but look back and laugh.

I love the way Esme turns everything into a phone and carries on conversations complete with a hello at the beginning and a goodbye at the end. This never fails to make me smile.


I will probably add to this blog...I have been remembering things lately and want to jot everything down! xx

Our final weeks in NJ

Our final weeks in NJ were very busy! We had a lot of organizing to do before the big move and, as much as we were looking forward to moving to England, we were sad to leave our friends behind. We spent the days shopping and going to the pool with Savvy, Krystal, Cass and Jill.

Banana monster! Just a little side note- Esme has disliked bananas since day one. On our trip to Laws Vegas, a lady on the plane offered her one and I didn't want to be rude and turn her down. To my amazement, Esme ate the WHOLE thing! SHe still doesn't like banana flavoring but does enjoy a fresh banana now and again!

Noah likes the water

Esme and Cass

Esme and Savvy

We also discovered that Esme loves plums and nectarines, thanks to Krystal. We were playing at their house one day and Esme was trying to eat Savannah's dinner. Krystal asked if Esme could have a plum instead and she loved it. I don't like plums so I don't ever buy them- I guess they will be in our cart from here on out!

A few weeks before we left, swimming lessons were offered to toddlers in our apartments. We decided to enroll Esme even though we wouldn't be there for the duration. Noah was old enough to start as well but because each child needs one adult, I could only take Esme. Noah cheered from the side lines! Esme ended up taking two classes (weather/illness cancelled one class) and took to the water like a fish. We look forward to taking more classes in the UK!

The move

I am blessed to have a family that is willing to go the extra mile for me. My mom, Brent, Grandma Mardine and Grandpa Wil made the cross country journey from Seattle to Bayonne to help us transport our cats (to the Seattle area to quarantine), car and miscellaneous items.

They arrived just as the movers were finishing up the packing. Not only did they all help with the moving and the cats, they were instrumental in the cleaning efforts. My mom and grandma spent a lot of time and effort making the apartment spotless to ensure that we got our deposit back. I cannot thank them enough!!

The day we set off was also Savannah's second birthday party. Esme and I took a hiatus from cleaning and moving in order to say goodbye to our closest friends in NJ.

The beautiful birthday girl

Savannah, Esme and Cassius- best buds

Esme

Hilarious!!!! He looks horrified...

That's better...

I really can't explain to you how important my friendship with Krystal, and eventually Jill, was for my sanity. Spending time with Krystal and Savannah kept me from sitting in my apartment bored and watching mindless TV when Esme was young. Our daily play dates developed into a friendship that I will always cherish. I will always look back on our "Lucy and Ethel" adventures with fondness and love. Thanks, girls! I know Stephen will miss his friendship with Savvy's dad, David, as well. Stephen and David bonded over Red Dwarf and had a bromance that was written in the stars :)

It was really hard saying goodbye- I am an emotional wreck- but I know that it isn't forever. We will visit the NYC area at times and there is even a chance we will see The Scott family in London :)