Thursday, June 25, 2009

Singapore, Edition 1

So yeah, Singapore…  Told you I’d get around to it.  At least, this will be a start…

We had the remarkable opportunity (thanks to the mass accumulation of frequent flier miles) to travel business class to Singapore.  Since the in-air time exceeded 20 hours, I’m pretty sure that the ability to lay down during the longest stretch (14 hours) saved my ever-loving sanity.  I am not a good flier.

As it was, we arrived in Singapore tired and disoriented, but not wailing and moaning for our own deaths.

Also, we had the privilege of waiting for our various layovers in the First Class Lounges, which were quite nice and relaxing, unlike the traditional hustle and bustle of airport gates.  The San Fran Cathay lounge was my favorite.

Jens always gives me that look when I’m taking pictures of him.  You’d think he’d be used to it by now.

While making our way through the Hong Kong airport, it quickly became obvious that we weren’t in Kansas anymore, Toto.  Aside from the fact that everyone was, well, Asian, they were all wearing surgical masks.  Apparently the swine flu was a great concern in Hong Kong.  After a while, we started to feel really out of place, and began contemplating what would happen if we went up and sneezed on someone, laughed maniacally, and ran away.

Remembering that we were in an airport, where they tend to lack a sense of humor about such antics, we decided against that course of action and instead went to the lounge to dine on some various Asian soups.  Yum.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Under Attack

“DIE, YOU LITTLE SUCKERS!”

Kaelin issues the battle cry, while I commence rolling over the little demons with the sticky lint brush.

It’s true - we are under attack.  The ants have taken over our kitchen and no amount of Terminix visits seems to bring their population under control.  Apparently the insides of our walls are teeming with them, and being thwarted only makes them more determined to find new ways to breach the wall into our kitchen.  We have baited the light switch outlet and the electrical outlets, and treated the yard and border of the house.  This morning Jens had to caulk a pore-sized hole near the window that they were using as the Mont Blanc Tunnel.

Up to this point, the unrelenting ants have been a moderate nuisance.  But today I have run out of patience.  As of today, this is WAR and I will not be defeated.

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Kaelinisms: Terminology Edition

One day I’ll get around to posting about Singapore.  But in the meantime, my kid is funny:

Kaelin: Koren, back away from the exercise machine.  KOREN.  BACK.  UP.
Mama: He doesn’t understand what ‘back up’ means, babe.
Kaelin: (to Koren) It means GO AWAY.  MOVE.
Mama: He doesn’t understand what that means either.
Kaelin: (to Koren, disgusted) Then ask your mother.

Monday, June 15, 2009

Old Friends and New Friends

For Koren’s birthday party, two of my oldest friends came to visit and brought their children.  It was a weekend of much chaos and tons of fun! 

The kids all hit it off immediately, especially Kaelin and Madelyn, who might have been mistaken for long lost sisters.  They were inseparable the entire time, and when Madelyn left, Kaelin told me that she loves Madelyn and wants her to come back (sniff, sniff, pout ... no really, she actually sniffled as though she was going to cry about it).  They even bunked together in the same room and (after a little, ahem, coaxing) actually managed to get a small amount of sleep that night

The kids played and played and played, while we grownups got a little bit of catch-up time (emphasis on “little bit” - there was a lot going on with 5 kids running amok)!  The bonus though, was that none of us had to actually entertain our children the entire time - they took care of that themselves!

Koren had a very busy day and was exhausted after the party.  Oddly, he was not a fan of his birthday cake, and set a record for the least-messy consumption of chocolate cake in the history of toddlerdom.  We stripped him down to his diaper in preparation for the destruction, and I think he ended up dirtying one finger.  The child will jump at the opportunity to eat dog food, but resists chocolate cake.  This does not say much for my baking skills…

Leigh and Steph, thanks for making the drive up to see us!  I loved meeting your kids and watching them all interact!  This was definitely a birthday to remember!