Goodbyes & Getting There

It's 2 am and Sienna and I can't sleep so here I am blogging and she's coloring on the couch next to me. We finally made it to Luxembourg and I'm feeling excited to just be here. Our plane arrived, our stuff arrived (one bag and two car seats came a day late) and we arrived. So far, so good. I'm also feeling tired, disoriented, overwhelmed, confused, lost, and my head hurts because of jet lag. But, we'll get there. We'll get settled. And when we do, it will feel good. But we won't feel settled for awhile, so in the mean time I will sit comfortably/uncomfortably in some degree of chaos.

This was moving day. I could write a long post entitled Ode to Seattle, because I will miss it and my home. But I try not to think about it. It'll still be there when we get back. Right, renters?!

The week before we flew to Lux, we road tripped from Seattle to Salt Lake City. I LOOOOOOVVEEE road trips. Our first stop was in Hermiston, Oregon. We embraced the greasy spoon lifestyle and ate at the only place in town, A&W. Then we played tag in the dry heat of the afternoon on a grassy patch by the highway. Ahhhh, the open road. 

Our next stop was Boise, Idaho where we had dinner with my brother, Owen. I had this amazing watermelon salad and some fish tacos.

We met his friend, Laria.

Across the street from the restaurant was this really cool alley with murals all over the walls. I just love crap like that. 

We forged on to Twin Falls, Idaho where we stayed with my sister, Heather. I also met up the next day with my old BYU-I roommate, Becca, and this is her little boy with Heather's little girl. (Where's the pic I have of me and Becca? I can't find it.)

I met three-month-old Amelia for the first time. I called her Millsner. She's a little dream-babe.

Adam's brother, Jason, came to visit from where he's working for the summer in Burley, Idaho. They went to Jurassic World while Heather and I put the kids to bed and watched Bachelorette. Of course.

Haven is very theatrical. I took about 12 of this same shot and she is posing differently in each one. I love that! A chip off the old block, huh, Heath?

After a day and two nights in Twin Falls, we went to SLC to see more family. This is our visit with Adam's Grandma Betty. Grandpa Dan is in poor health, but we were lucky enough to see him while he was awake. We went to lunch with Betty and the kids got to swim in her community pool. 

 We also visited Adam's MacKay grandparents and have lunch with them and play at the outdoor fountain and indoor play place near their apartment at City Creek Mall.

Our last night in SLC we went to dinner with some of my siblings and their spouses. Roger, KarieAnn, me, and Owen. We laughed until our cheeks hurt.

Adam, Mark and Wendy. Sushi for the win! And for dessert? Bruges wafflery or something like that. I smell another Belgian waffle in my near future, hmmm?

We had to sell both of our cars before we left. We sold Zippy in Seattle and The Fo to my brother. Roger. This car was one catalyst in Adam and I getting together and staying together. So, you know, it was kind of a big deal, that car. It gave us 10 great years. However, I will not miss driving a stick shift all over Seattle. Let the record show.

SLC airport, embarking on The Day of Long Travel.

Me at the Paris airport. I'm tired. Can you tell? Also, Paris airport is lovely and JFK airport was total chaos, mayhem and confusion. We were more confused there than in any international airport I've ever visited. 

Also. Adam: "You gonna start break dancing in those pants?" 

I love seeing how different countries do bathrooms. I like taking pictures of them, too. Here's one in Paris.

And we made it! Luxembourg airport of ghostly quietness. It's kinda crazy how empty this thing gets.  But it is gloriously calm at all times. While Adam checked out our lost luggage, the kids took turns riding on my empty luggage cart. We had a lot of fun in our woozy, sleep-deprived state. 

A Luxembourg airport bathroom.  

We arrived at our apartment while the rental furniture people were unloading everything.

Some Amazon people were so kind to bring us a box of food and leave it at our apartment. The PB&J saved my kids and they even included homemade lemon pound cake! So sweet! I ended up taking a trip to the store last night anyway because today was a national holiday and I knew everything would be closed. Here's what I got. I LOOOOOOOOOVVVVEEE foreign grocery stores. Such an interesting slice of life to be observed there.

Behold, our first dinner in the place. Noah wouldn't look at me because he was mad about something. We were all hanging on a by one shred of sanity at this point. I scraped my chair loudly on the tile during dinner and Adam put his head in his hands and said, "I love you but don't make that noise ever again." This, you should know, is the sign of Adam's breaking point.

We all went to bed at 9 pm and slept until 3 pm this afternoon!!! We kept waking up at various points, then falling back asleep. Adam had to get up at 10 pm to let the rental furniture guy back in to bring the second kid's bed. Then the kids woke up at 2:30 am hungry and chatty. I stayed up with them until 4 am. Then we all went back to sleep until 1 pm when it seemed like we should wake up. Adam went running, and I went back to sleep until 3 pm. The kids woke up then, too. JET LAG IS LIKE WHOA.

When we got our shiz together, the kids tried out the playground next to our complex. It's for tiny kids, but they did okay. Sienna's first comment: "There are no monkey bars." She was bored pretty fast. But, still, it's something. Which is better than nothing.

It rained off and on today, but we ventured out in the car to another playground we'd seen on our house hunting trip. This giant pirate ship and slide. I seriously could not believe my eyes when I first saw it. There's Sienna, about to go up. She LOVED that slide. Noah went down and cried. 

 It's a good place to be, this Luxembourg.  I think we'll stay awhile.