Normandy Trip

We had a great trip. The car rides went very well - no blown tires, we didn't run out of euros and no one puked in the car - we are making progress. Normandy has been on Kens list of places to go while we live here. This trip made both of us have a new appreciation for what the soldiers in the war went through. It is hard to describe what it is like being at the war memorials. It is both emotional and almost bittersweet.

The best part of the trip for me was on the first day. I struggled before the trip as to what to tell Ava we were going to see. I figured I would start as vague as possible and go from there. So, we started with "we are going to see an important place where people fought over who was the boss". I should have maybe read up on how to talk to a 4 year old about war! While we were at the American Cemetery and Memorial on Omaha Beach, it was very clear that our little explanation was not going to appease her and the questions started. "Why were they fighting?", "Did people die?", "Why do some people have crosses and some have stars?", "Is Hitler in heaven?". I give our answers a B-, definitely room for improvement. I know that she will probably not remember being here, but I am happy that we were able to have some good conversations about what went on and that she was taking things in and asking meaningful questions. When we got back to our apartment at night, she wanted to draw (she is very into drawing right now!). I asked her to draw anything that she remembered from the day and this is what she came up with.

The cross on the left has a flower on it and the purple thing in the middle is a star. Of course, as a typical 4 year old, the star ones were her favorite! Such a great moment as a parent!

Our first day started at Arromanches. This was the harbor that the Allies used to transport vehicles, troops and goods after the initial attack. 

She had to write her name in the sand. We learned that she is a beach girl 

and could play in the sand for a long time!

 Overlooking Arromanches.

Arromaches with the tide out. The rusted floats on the beach supported the roads that they used to transport the vehicles, troops and goods. 

We then went to Omaha beach where we went to the American Cemetery and Memorial - so difficult to describe. The memorial was pretty emotional, listening to the personal stories and hearing them name each individual that gave their life.

So peaceful and beautiful now.

The chapel in the middle of the graves. 

The second day we went to Mont St. Michel and then took a scenic drive to St. Malo.

 Mont St. Michel from afar.

 Ava got to take a special tour of the abbey with Daddy. She always loves when she gets to do special things that her brother has to stay back on!

Inside the abbey.

They are redoing the entrance, so there was a bunch of construction!

On our drive to St. Malo. The tide was out, so the boats were a bit stuck.

"Pointe du Grouin"- absolutely beautiful

Beckett was over the pictures.

Beautiful sunset

My pretty girl.

The next day we went to Utah Beach. Ava loved playing in the sand and jumping over the waves.

Showing Beckett what the American flag looks like. 

Showing some muscle.

Loving her beach time. 

 Loving the beach, just like her Mom.

 Jumping waves. Unfortunately for her, she also has her Mothers coordination skills.

Has to do everything his sister does.

On the fourth day, we went to Etrétat and then stopped in a fishing town called Honfleur. 

Throwing pebbles at Etrétat.

Ava got to do the hike to the top of the cliff with Daddy.

The golf course at the top of the cliff. Ken was jealous.

Handsome boy.

Trying to convince Beckett to take a nap and just let me lay there. Didn't work.

Honfleur

Saint Catherines Church in Honfleur.

The church was all wood, so they built the bell tower across the 

square to lighten the load of the wooden roof.

Honfleur at night. 

On the last day, Ken took Ava to the Tapestry Museum in Bayeux where we were staying. Rick Steves gave it a top rating, but Ken was not very interested in it. Ava still managed to get him to buy a postcard - who will be the lucky recipient of the tapestry postcard?

Bad day...

You know you are in for a bad day when you have a kid that throws up continuously for 3 hours straight in the middle of the night. Ava started at 2:30am and by 5:30, she threw up almost 15 times. To make matters worse, Ken is out of town until tomorrow night. Lindsey said it best at 3:45 this morning over text "Such a sad little French life today! No babysitter. No car. No husband". Thanks to some friends, we did get Beckett to the creche this morning, so Ava and I were able to have a quiet day of movies, napping and doing a lot of puke laundry! She still isn't feeling great, but at least the throwing up has stopped.

Ava did momentarily cheer up when she got a package from the Wiersmas! She said "Libby just knew this would make me happy today".  Thank you Libby!

Now, I get to enjoy the rest of my quiet night eating ice cream and watching Friends. The bonus of a sick kid is they are in bed early - hopefully it stays quiet and no one else gets sick.

"Von der Höll ins Paradies"

Today we went on a 7.1 km hike and wine tasting tour in Oberkircher, Germany. I was hoping for a leisure walk with a glass of wine, but it ended up being a pretty difficult hike (especially with 2 strollers and 6 kids) through the vineyards and up to a castle with 7 wine stops along the way. It is always easier to hike when there is another wine stop up ahead!

The beginning of the hike - it started with a slow climb.

Yes, my wine glass was tied around my neck!

Friends!

Right as I was about to take the picture, Ken spilled his glass of 

wine even though it was tied around his neck. 

Take 2.

Love them!

 Taking a well deserved rest.

3/4 of the Swayman family. 

 Having so much fun!

All 3 girls did great! They walked the whole thing without complaining.  

Tired boys.  

Almost losing the strollers down the hill.

 The castle at the top.

We were all standing next to a big drop off to have a group photo. Someone gave the stroller a little push and it took off over the side. Kens reaction was "Is there a kid in there?"

No kids were in and the stroller was rescued. 

Britax makes a sturdy stroller - nothing was broken!

The group photo! We are hoping to go back next year - maybe with no kids next time....

Rough week back

This hasn't been a really terrible week, but it has been pretty rough. We had a great time at home, which was great, but also made coming back more difficult. The transition there went very smoothly and things fell right into place. The kids did great adjusting to the time change and a different schedule. We felt like when when we saw people, it was like we never left. Everyday was meeting up with friends or family, so basically every day felt like a party.

Date night at Head and the Heart

At the zoo with the Kerstetters

So sweet. 

Watching the kangaroos.

We got to meet baby Emma! Ava loved her.

Beckett turned 2!

Love him!

 This was the only time he paid any attention to Emma.

All of the cousins (for now). #7 comes in February!

Ava had so much fun with her cousins.

Sisters!

Fun with Kendall and Carter

Ava loves playing with Carter!

Saying goodbye was rough. While we were saying goodbye to Laurie and my Mom at the airport, Ava asked me why I was crying (yes, there were quite a few tears!) and then went into why things were going to be ok and gave me hugs. She can be such a sweet girl sometimes! 

We won't be back home for an entire year. We are going to miss birthdays, holidays and a couple of special babies being born. This makes it so hard! We are excited to be out here again, but leaving friends and family at home isn't easy.

The transition back to our life here was rough. The kids did great on the plane even though they only slept for 2 hours. The first couple of nights were terrible. Both kids were awake from about 10pm-4am and at 4am, the kids and I would finally crash in Ava's bed. We would all be so tired, I would have to wake everyone up at 10:30 in order to get back on schedule. Ken went to work 2 hours after we landed and had to work the rest of the week, so he wasn't much help at night.

Our third night home, we were determined to at least get everyone in their own bed. Ava went down ok, but Beckett was awful. He learned how to climb out of his bed for the first time that night and proceeded to climb out 110 times! Ken kept putting him back, but Beckett was determined that he was not going to sleep in his bed (this went on for over 2 hours). I finally gave up at 1am. Ken had to work the next day and I thought our neighbors were going to hate us. So, I moved with Beckett to the couch. I took away his taggie and paci and made him sit at the end of the couch. He sat there without doing anything until 3:30, when I gave up again and just took him to bed because I was so tired.

By the fourth night, things started to get better and now everyone is sleeping in their own bed. No one is sleeping through the night, but everyone has to go back to their bed.

The past couple of days, we have been able to get out and go to the parks and meet up with friends. It is so good to see everyone here again. We are reminded why we really do love living here. I tell Ava all of the the time that she is a lucky girl because she gets to have so many people both at home and in France that love her.