The Forget-Me-Nots

Siblings

2012-01-27T09:31:00.000-08:00

Watching these two develop their sibling relationship is so much fun.

New Years Eve - A Murder

2012-01-25T12:47:00.000-08:00

We were pretty excited to ring in the New Year with a dinner and a murder. We invited over a few friends and got to planning.

Since the Murder Mystery was Christmas themed, the decorations were all ready to go. Jason just needed to fix our little star that never seems to stay on top of the tree...

We made name tags and made sure the table was set to go.

Then it was time for the most important part - our guests to arrive!

Or in this case, the suspects...

Gordon and Vicky

Kay and Shana (Yes, we are aware you cannot see Kay; it was all in character)

Constanza and Kiever

And of course...the hosts!

We are pretty fortunate to have friends who are such good sports. It was a fun evening. Turns out that Jason was the mastermind behind the whole thing and dragged two other guys into his crazy murderous plot.

When it came time to ring in the New Year, we did it Spanish style. Thanks to Constanza we learned that in Spain you eat twelve grapes when the clock tolls midnight; one with each toll. Well, we were fresh out of grapes so we subbed mandarine orange slices instead and loaded the live feed from Spain onto the computer. Eating twelve slices of orange in a short amount of time is not the easiest thing, but it was so fun to do something new. It is one tradition that we will probably keep. Thanks Constanza!

Of course there were fireworks, but it clouded over pretty quickly. And while there are certainly more fireworks here than we have ever had in Canada it still does not compare to the ones in The Netherlands. We will surely never forget the New Year's Eves that we spent there!

As the evening came to a close, we bid our guests a safe journey home and talked about goals for the New Year as we cleaned up. Perhaps we'll share a little more about those goals on another day.

We hope everyone had a wonderful time ringing in the New Year!

8 Months - Milayla

2012-01-19T13:25:00.000-08:00

Our Little Lady is 8 Months old and to celebrate we took lots of pictures. Milayla gets pretty excited about picture time and was all smiles as Mommy snapped a few photos to test the lighting.

When the lighting test started taking too long, Milayla began eating her dress....

Then it was on to crying...(poor girl!)

Thankfully, this little girl loves to play with one of Atticus' toy cars. In fact, she loves it so much that Atticus has very proudly dubbed it 'Ayla's Red Car'.

Though the pictures don't show it, Milayla does more with that car than try to eat it. She squeals in delight when Atticus rolls out the car mat, and she is right along side her big brother as they build roads out of blocks to drive the cars on. On this particular occasion, holding this little car for a couple of minutes brought back plenty of smiles for pictures.

The last month has brought with it so much growth and change. Milayla never seems to lack energy and is always ready to play, read, move, talk and cuddle. She is really itching to get moving and can go every way but forward (which is mighty frustrating for her) though she has become very skilled at rotating herself to back into the object she is after.

Her two bottom teeth have become quite prevalent and, if the drool and interrupted sleep are any indication, we should see some more teeth cutting through soon!

Not the greatest photo, but you sure can see those teeth!

And it would seem that we have another little bookworm in the family. With how excited Milayla gets about reading a book or going to the library, you would think that we had gone to Disneyland. It is so much fun reading to her and seeing how proud she is as she hones her page turning skills.

she even enjoys the books upside down ;)

She really is a delight and we love soaking up every little moment with her. She is always making us laugh and her love for all things music has filled our home with even more dancing and singing than there was before (and more good music is always a good thing). We sure are blessed to have her to love.

Übersee-Museum

2012-01-12T04:50:00.000-08:00

Following Christmas, Jason took a few extra days off work so we took advantage of some free time and took the kids to the Übersee-Museum which had been on our list of things to do since we arrived in Bremen.

Even though both Atticus and Milayla do pretty good visiting museums we cannot tackle an entire museum at once, though we did manage to see two of the exhibits in entirety.

Trying to get pictures with the kids where they are looking at the camera was a fun task as both kids were completely in love with all the different items there were to look at. There were a couple occasions that Atticus needed to be reminded not to push his nose against the glass...

Milayla got pretty excited about the display of instruments from Asia.

Atticus particularly liked the old Celica, and was a little confused as to why a car was inside a building.

And both kids loved the little Japanese garden that had a pond with fish swimming in it.

By the time we finished the Oceanic and Asia exhibits it was time to head off for an overdue lunch. We all enjoyed a nice morning out at the museum. We will definitely need to find some time to go back and visit the other exhibits!

Atticus' First Day at Work

2012-01-09T13:06:00.000-08:00

Jason had to run into work on one of his days off to pick something up so he took Atticus along to see the office. Lucky Little Guy!

They made sure to snap a photo on the cell phone so that Atticus could show Mommy and Milayla that he was at Daddy's work. He was pretty excited about it!

The 2nd Day of Christmas

2012-01-03T06:47:00.000-08:00

The 2nd Day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

A full day of pyjamas!

The second day of Christmas (also known as Boxing Day) was a much needed day of rest for all of us. We stayed in our pyjamas all day which is something no one could recall us having ever done before. We finally opened up the presents, enjoyed leftovers and played games. Atticus was probably most excited about his long awaited Christmas Skype call to "Ampa Bob and Amma". Every time we went near the computer he asked if we were calling them (he is still a little too young to understand the time difference thing and think that calling at 2am is completely fine...).

Atticus spent a good portion of the day playing with his new car mat, and setting up his train tracks around the entire living room. Milayla hung out in her new door jumper. We thought the jumper would easily be her favorite gift, but alas, it would seem that she has far more excitement about her new books. That's not to say that she isn't excited about her jumper though!

Perhaps one of thebiggest surprises is that Atticus has replaced his cool winter hat for a bright red, Elmo one(with matching mittens) that Great Grandma Hochstein sent him. Atticus and Milayla have had such fun with the mittens as Atticus putson little puppet shows in the bakfiets with them.

And even Milayla got a new hat.

Thankfully the day wasnot all about presents and seemed to revolve more around relaxing as a family;a rare treat as we always seem to have something that we are trying to getdone. Spending time together and seeing the smiles on these little people'sfaces is incredible and it was so nice to feel like the world slowed down for aday.

Christmas Day

2011-12-31T01:45:00.000-08:00

Who would have thought we would enjoy Christmas being on a Sunday so much? It certainly made things a little busier, and pushed the presents to the back burner, but it brought so much more meaning to a beautiful day.

Upon waking up, we all got dressed for church while Daddy put his previously prepared breakfast casserole into the oven to warm up. Once we were all ready, we opened up our stockings which had our Christmas treats in them (Atticus was pretty excited about his own bag of studenten nut mix :) along with a few small gifts. After our morning scripture study it was on to breakfast. We finished breakfast, brushed our teeth and had just enough time to snap a picture before we headed out the door.

not the greatest picture, or quality, but when you only have time for one take...

Church was wonderful. There were special musical numbers and lovely talks given. It was a nice treat to be able to partake of the sacrament on Christmas. Funny enough, there was a family visiting from Canada whom, we learned, know both of our families (small world..). After church services we made sure to give seasons greetings to everyone and visited with friends (much longer than the kids would have liked..).

By the time we made it home and ate a light lunch we were all ready for a nap, but opened up just a couple presents first. Milayla took an immediate liking to her new stuffed giraffe and a book from her big brother while Atticus was beyond excitement at the sight of some new books.

While the kids napped, us responsible adults went to work to get the kitchen prepared for dinner. We prepared a lot of stuff in advance so it was mostly just a matter of getting everything out and organized. This year we experimented with three different kinds of perogy filling. Beyond perogies (and sauce!) we had rolls, roasted veggies, veggie sticks, salad and sauerkraut (Jason may have been the only one who liked that last one).

Spinach and Garlic, Red Cabbage and Apple, Spicy Cheese

Our guests began arriving and we got to work making perogies. Most of our guests had never even heard of them before let alone tried them (except for one of our guests who is a fellow Canadian) and we love introducing people to the deliciousness that is perogies.

While we assembled we talked, a lot, and snacked on far too many predinner sweets. Atticus snuck in another present to open and enticed everyone to the living room while we waited on a couple guests to begin dinner. Much to Atticus' delight everyone was pretty excited about his new train and tracks to add to his growing collection.

When the time for dinner finally arrived we were all pretty excited and crowded ourselves around the table but it would have to wait for just a couple more minutes while we snapped a photo. Unfortunately, there are still three people missing from the photo.

From left to right: Atticus, Jason, Constanza, Kiever, Elder Eggmann, Elder Whitehead and Janice.
Missing from this photo: Laura, Milayla and Sofia

After dinner we watched The Nativity (the short one produced by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), sang carols and opened up gifts. Then it was time for dessert and games.

It was a fun day. The kids loved having so many people come to celebrate Christmas with us and so did we! The kids even got to talk to Uncle Chase, who is currently serving a mission in Arizona, before they headed to bed. And we got to talk to a few members from the English side of the family before we went to bed. The Spirit of Christmas was certainly felt in abundance as we gathered together to celebrate the birth of our Savior - what a wonderful blessing.

Christmas Eve

2011-12-29T08:00:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve this year brought with it an entirely new tradition for all of us - Bethlehem Dinner. Laura stumbled upon the idea shortly after Christmas last year so we have been anticipating the introduction of this tradition for some time now.

As soon as the sun went down (very early in the evening during these short winter days) we turned off all the lights (and any other electronic items; except for the Christmas tree) then cuddled up next to the glow of the Christmas Tree lights to read the story of the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. We sang songs of his birth. We talked about different aspects of the birth, the gifts the Saviour gives us, and looked at pictures (remember, we were gearing this toward a 2-year-old and a baby). Then we laid out a blanket on the floor and ate a very simple dinner of foods that would have been around during the time that Jesus was born. It was not extravagant. Perhaps it was the simplicity that made it so perfect. As we sat on the floor eating olives time seemed nonexistent and it was lovely.

Following dinner we turned to a couple time-honored traditions - pyjamas and a new family game. It was Milayla's first chance to open a Christmas present and that little girl got the idea very quickly. The kids excitedly put on their new pyjamas and we broke out the new game (Candyland) and played a little before it was off to bed for the little ones. Of course, we broke our 'no electronics ban' for the night to snap a photo of the kiddos before they headed to bed.

Once the kiddos were all snug in their beds, we brought out 'A Christmas Carol' and began to read. We took turns reading and read the book in entirety before retiring to bed ourselves. It was such a lovely way to end the evening. Reading the book is a tradition that we hope to keep and also hope that the kids will begin to join us for as they get older.

Coatroom

2011-12-28T06:59:00.000-08:00

Our bathroom tends to do double-duty as our coatroom. Probably not the most desirable place, but its handy location next to the door mixed with the ability to warm the kids jackets up over the radiator make it mighty useful in the colder months. Besides, there is something about the sight of those little jackets, sweaters and snowsuits all lined up that put a big smile on my face.

Gingerbread House

2011-12-27T09:32:00.000-08:00

It's been a Christmas tradition now for a couple years for us to build a Gingerbread house together. This year, however, it looked like it was not going to happen. There were just simply too many other things going on to try to plan a house, bake the pieces, build and decorate. We had come to grips with reality when the idea came up to use premade pieces. It was not quite as creative as we usually like to go, but it meant that it would be much easier to fit into our schedule and definitely much easier for the kids to pitch in. So Jason picked up some premade gingerbread house pieces from Ikea, we bought some candy and made some icing. Then, a few nights before Christmas, we got to work.

Atticus helped direct where things should go.

Milayla cheered very enthusiastically as the walls went up and dried.

Jason piped around the windows and the roof then added some icicles. Laura added some decorative piping on the walls.

Atticus color-coordinated the candy and handed different colors to Daddy.

And when it was all finished we marveled at how unstressful and enjoyable the process had been then promptly forgot to take a picture of the finished piece. It was not until a few days later (Christmas Day) when we noticed the roof cracking and bowing and the walls buckling that we realized the humidity was deteriorating our house and quickly! So we snapped a few photos right as our guests rang the doorbell.

When we came back from answering the door our house looked like this...

...we certainly snapped a photo of our finished house just in time!

While the house only lasted a couple days before humidity sent it tumbling down, we are sure glad we took the time-out as a family to create it together.

Christmas Letter

2011-12-23T08:45:00.000-08:00

Although most of us have probably received Christmas cards from friends or family in the past that have contained the almost cliche Christmas letter, our family had never thought about writing one, and perhaps for that very reason – at least, not until this year. During a search on the Internet for Christmas ideas, we came across the origins of the Christmas letter. An English nobleman felt that the Christmas season was the perfect time to tell those closest to him what blessings he and his family had received over the course of the past year, and to wish friends and family prosperity and good will for the future. And with that in mind, let the first official Hochstein Christmas letter proceed...

This has been one BUSY year for our family. Some people are wise and make sure that the big moments of life are well spaced out. Us? Nope, not even close. Life for our little family over the past twelve months didn’t seem to slow down for a second. Einstein once described time as a river - depending on where you are in the universe, it ebbs or flows, sometimes moving at a trickle and elsewhere rushing along like a class IV whitewater rapid. Well, I’d like to think we’ve become very accustomed to whitewater by now, but BOY it sure can make you tired.

In May we were blessed to have Milayla Rose join our blossoming family. The pregnancy and delivery went very well thanks to a great medical system in the Netherlands and a new form of child birth we were recommended called hypnobirthing. Milayla has added so much joy to our family. She has captivating eyes, an infectious giggle, and a smile that would make just about anyone forget their worries. Although she hasn’t met much of her extended family in person yet, we are looking forward to that day with great excitement. Atticus has taken his role as big brother quite seriously and finds immense satisfaction in holding Milayla, reading to her, and making sure she stays clean and proper. It has been so amazing watching their sibling bond grow. Milayla is constantly watching every move Atticus makes. The kids are very different, one from the other, but we’re so happy with how well they get along.

A month after Milayla’s birth, we celebrated another major milestone - Atticus’ 2nd birthday. It’s hard to comprehend how quickly time has gone by, and how much he has grown! He’s no longer the baby or even toddler he once was. He has become very independent, but loves to help Mommy, Daddy and Milayla, too. He is speaking much more now, and his love of puzzles, trains, cars, and building blocks continues to grow.

At about the same time, we began readying ourselves for two more big changes. We accepted a new job offer with a private space company located in Bremen, Germany. This, of course, meant that we would be leaving our much-loved Leiden for Deutschland once more. It was a hard choice to make, but we felt impressed that a change in employment and location was the best thing for the family. We were blessed to find a fantastic new apartment in Bremen, and have found many new friends through work and our new church congregation. Bremen is a beautiful city with much history and tradition. Thankfully, it’s quite flat, and as a result, cycling is almost as ubiquitous as it is in Holland, so we are able to get around with the kids almost everywhere by bakfiets.

It’s been four months already since we arrived in Bremen, and the adjustment has gone well and relatively smoothly (if you discount the massive amounts of German paperwork to be done!). We like our new home, and home it certainly feels like. It is still difficult to be so far away from our families and many of our friends, especially around the holidays, but we are so grateful for your continued prayers, love and support. We have so much to be grateful for - most of all our Savior Jesus Christ and his perfect example. We hope that amidst the hustle and bustle of this blessed season, more people will pause to remember the reason we say “Merry Christmas!”

May this Christmas season bless each of your lives with an increased peace, harmony and love as you reflect on the blessings you have received, big and small. And may the New Year bring you much prosperity, joy and good health.

With much love,

Jason, Laura, Atticus and Milayla Hochstein

Half Birthday - Atticus

2011-12-22T12:27:00.000-08:00

With Atticus approaching his Half Birthday, I thought it would be fun to do a few photos of just him. Unfortunately, he didn't think the idea would be so much fun and he buried his head into the arm of the couch.

This was the closest thing he would give me to a smile. He did give me a whole lot of "attitude" shots though...

Perhaps he will let me take a few on another day (I did not want to press my luck and take any more this time). Lately this boy wants to do nothing but read and colour and if you tell him he needs to do something otherwise (eg., brush his teeth or pose for photos..) you are likely to hear his high notes (usually dependent on how much sleep he has had). Of course, he'll happily take breaks to play with his sister, go on walks and eat. Oh man, he loves to eat. We really lucked out that he is not a picky eater - hopefully that doesn't change. We could give him a full plate of roasted brussel sprouts for dinner and he would chant "yum, yum, yum" as they are brought to the table and ask for more when he finishes the plate! It makes meal planning soooo much easier.

It sure is fun spending time with him. He loves to sing and dance and is fully relishing in our nightly Christmas carols. He has begun saying prayers by repeating, and hearing him say things like "bless us" or "Jesus Christ" always puts a smile of joy and gratitude on our faces.

We are pretty crazy about this kid. He is always volunteering to help, giving hugs and kisses and sharing his toys. He loves laughing, being silly and being a big brother. We love him so much!

And that's that for the mushy stuff (at least for now..)

Milayla - 7 Months

2011-12-19T11:33:00.000-08:00

We are busy getting ready for Milayla's First Christmas over here and, boy, are we excited. We were certainly not anticipating her being as mobile as she already is. She has been keeping us on our toes by rolling straight for the Christmas presents to tug and taste whatever she can get her hands on.

She is constantly making us laugh with the fun faces she makes.

And this girl loves to pose for pictures. She gets so excited when the camera is out that she giggles and wiggles, giving us plenty of smiles for pictures but a few too many blurry photos.

And when she gets really excited she goes wide-eyed, hums, tenses her body and shakes her hands and feet as quickly as possible. Here is a still shot of that action...

Tooth number two finally cut through and, if the last couple nights are any indicator, tooth number three should be along shortly. So she is chewing on every little thing she can get her hands on.

Bath time is a favorite around here as she splashes and giggles and makes everyone laugh.

This girl is full of so much personality and joy.

Laundry

2011-12-15T07:27:00.000-08:00

Folding laundry is sure a lot more fun when you have this happy little helper keeping you company.

Weihnachtsmarkt - Part 2

2011-12-14T01:05:00.000-08:00

Our kids are good sports and braved the chilly weather twice to go to the Weihnachtsmarkt. So we bundled them up and headed downtown. Milayla gets pretty excited to get dressed up to go into the wrap.

The kids were not quite as excited once we got outside into the cold, rainy weather and put them into the bakfiets....

The plan was to head downtown, wander Weihnachtsmarkt, find our 2011 Christmas ornament and soak in the ambience before grabbing a bite to eat and heading home. It was a great plan, but we should have switched the order and eaten first. Our bag of snacks and a few Weihnachtsmarkt treats did not seem to be enough to tide Atticus over so subsequently we wandered the market to the tune of "eat, eat, eat" on repeat from our joyful little toddler. We will certainly have to remember this lesson for next year!

Before we caved to our musical toddler (sooner than we had planned), we did manage to snap a few photos...

The boys.

The girls.

Some of the stalls had some incredibly ornate, handcrafted Christmas decorations. Some other stalls had decorations that left you wondering who might buy them (a wooden elf with the face of Mr. Bean, anyone?). One of our absolute favorites was this hand-carved Nativity Scene; wish we could have caught a better photo of it as this photo does not do it justice.

The ambiance of the market was lovely and we were very happy that the rain and clouds cleared while we looked around.

And we even successfully found our 2011 Christmas Ornament!

It's the handblown (and hand-painted!) one on the left.

While we did enjoy our time at Weihnachtsmarkt we were all pretty grateful when we finally sat down to dinner.

Weihnachtsmarkt - Part I

2011-12-13T06:23:00.000-08:00

The kids and I were rather spoiled this year as we got to go to the Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market) on two occasions together. First up was a trip downtown with Constanza to visit the year-round Christmas Store and to sneak a peek at the Weihnachtsmarkt.

We checked out Böttcherstrasse first.

This street feels reminiscent of a movie backdrop...

Then enjoyed a walk through the trendy neighbourhood that the Christmas store is in before we browsed the color-coordinated ornaments inside the store.

Then it was off to the Weihnachtsmarkt.

Constanza even submitted herself to pose for a picture with the Bremen Town Musicians all dressed up for winter.

It was a really nice way to spend a Friday morning at the end of a rather busy week and we were all pretty happy about having Constanza join us!

Protective

2011-12-12T04:26:00.000-08:00

Future boyfriends beware....this little girl of ours has one protective big brother!

U5 - Milayla's latest stats

2011-12-07T10:10:00.001-08:00

Milayla finally had her appointment for her U5 at the Kinderarzt. We have one strong, healthy baby girl who handled her vaccination very well (last one until she's a year old).

First up, her stats.

Weight: 7050 grams

Length: 68cm

Head Circumference: 42.8cm

Her development is moving along as expected. She has begun pushing herself up on her knees, but doesn't seem to realize the benefits of it yet. She is alert, attentive and loves singing her little heart out. And the tooth that has been keeping her up the last week has finally pushed its' way through - her first tooth! (front, bottom left tooth)

"Look Mama!"

"Now what do I do?"

"whoops!"

Still smiling!

General Conference Weekend

2011-12-06T05:31:00.000-08:00

Crazy that General Conference weekend was already two months ago. Our Conference issue of the Ensign arrived this morning which got me thinking back to that weekend and realizing that we never posted a thing about it. It is always filled with so many great lessons and motivations to be better. It still feels a little strange to watch it at such different times than we did growing up (due to living in a different country) but we're adjusting.

We went into conference stocked up on related activities for Atticus to do while watching conference, but in the end we did not need a single one of them. Atticus loved conference - or perhaps he loved that we had picnics on the floor while we watched conference. In any case, it was fun to see his eyes glued to the various speakers, cheering when the new temples were announced and smiling as the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sang.

One talk that we loved was in the General Relief Society broadcast and was actually the inspiration for our new blog name. You can watch or read that talk given by President Uchtdorf here.

As per tradition, fall General Conference goes hand-in-hand with home made apple pie which we invite others over to enjoy and talk about our favorite messages. This year we had the missionaries and a lovely lady from our congregation over to join us. Sure wish we remembered to snap a picture of those fantastic people! We did snap a couple pictures of the pie....

it helps that I was able to take a picture of the pie before the guests came and the kids were still napping... after that things just got busy and the camera sat on the shelf.

We did this on Monday, which coincided with 3 October (Leiden Ontzet. Which also happens to coincide with German Unity Day), so we decided to have a lovely Dutch meal and share some dutch culture and history with our guests. We cooked up some vegetarian hustpot for dinner and enjoyed some Dutch apple pie with Stroopwafel for dessert. Then our guests joined us for a Family Home Evening about gratitude in preparation for Thanksgiving. It was great having Conference fall on a long weekend as it really helped us to relax and soak in the messages that were being shared with us from apostles of the Lord. It's definitely time to go back and review those conference notes, assess goals that were made as a result and formulate new ones.

It was one fantastic weekend and we loved being able to share it with others.

December Eve

2011-12-05T06:26:00.000-08:00

When to set up the Christmas Tree and decorations is a little bit of a sticking point around here. One of us is always a little bit eager to start the Christmas holidays. The other always wants to hold off just a "little bit longer", perhaps in hopes that some eggnog will magically appear for the decorating festivities (the alcohol free, full-of-fat stuff you buy in the grocery store in North America). Since we would be waiting around a long time for eggnog (and not for a lack of trying, unsuccessfully, to make our own) we decided to compromise this year of doing what we called 'December Eve'.

December Eve was to be celebrated on the last eve of November. We would put up the tree, decorate the apartment, eat special Christmas treats, maybe even sing a few carols, the kids would leave out their shoes (Sinterklaas style) and wake up to receive their advent calendars. And with that glorious First of December morning would come endless holiday cheer and music - lots and lots of music.

It was certainly a good goal, but it didn't quite work out that way. Schedules conflicted and despite December Eve being planned a month in advance, we needed to move the date ahead just a few days before its' arrival. Since the new date was sooner than we had planned that meant no time to bake special treats, some decorations were not yet purchased and advent calendars would have to wait. Despite a little bit of disappointment from the perfectionist in the family (any guesses who that may be?) we went full steam ahead and it was still a pretty special way to welcome the holiday season.

There was music. There was chocolate. There were decorations. There was laughter and storytelling. Most importantly, there was a whole lot of time together as a family.

The boys fixed up our family advent calendar with crazy glue (it worked so well, we joked about how we should have used it in the first place).

Atticus snuck in for some cuddles with Mommy and Milayla.

Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus were carefully unpacked.

The tree was trimmed as we recalled the stories behind our yearly Christmas ornaments.

Then it was time for hot chocolate, speculoos and games before heading to bed full of excitement and anticipation for the season ahead.

While the evening didn't play out as planned, and the pictures weren't perfectly crisp and clear it was still a wonderful evening full of the Christmas Spirit.

Fall

2011-12-03T05:42:00.000-08:00

Love the changing seasons...

Behind the scenes

2011-11-28T11:46:00.000-08:00

I am pretty fortunate to have one very awesome Photographer's Assistant. On our latest photo shoot he read books to the subject and even demonstrated a couple poses.

These two are priceless...love them so very much.

Siblings

2011-11-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

These two are so happy to pose for pictures lately which means we are getting as many as we can.

Half Birthday - Milayla

2011-11-16T11:35:00.001-08:00

Can you have a half birthday if you have not yet had a full birthday? Sure you can!

This Little Lady of ours has changed and grown a lot in the last 6 months which certainly warrants a need to celebrate. From tiny toes to tasty toes. From flopping over to sitting up independently. From barely making a sound to telling us about everything. The signs that this girl of ours is growing up are all over the place. Her extra long lone eyelash has fallen out and her hair is filling out. Still hard to believe her little announcement pictures were taken 6 months ago...

Milayla is always on the move and has discovered that she can push herself around backwards if she rolls onto the laminate which means she has left her inchworm tactics behind her. Although, she loves using rolling to get around and can make her away across most of the living room. She has recently taken to singing with Mommy and will 'coo' along happily. Sleep is the last thing on her mind as she masters her new skills and carries on conversations with whomever the lucky person may be that is keeping her company. That lucky person also gets to enjoy plenty of cuddles though as she will hold on tightly and snuggle away.

She is very expressive; which makes narrowing down pictures nearly impossible.
(get ready for picture overload...)

It is so much fun seeing how interactive she is becoming with other children. Her and the other children will be laughing within seconds or chatting like they really understand each other.

And boy, oh, boy, is she becoming a little bookworm. It helps that she has a big brother who jumps at any opportunity to "read" books to her.

This little bookworm still needs to be supervised with her books though, as she has quite an appetite....

There is definitely a love for music that is starting to shine through, especially for the Christmas music that is increasing in playing rotation these days. She will tap her foot, smile and sing along.

We thank our lucky stars every day for this little girl of ours. She is so joyful, genuine, loving, determined, patient and mischievous...definitely mischievous...

And all that patience of hers definitely pays off when Momma pulls out the camera!

"no more pictures, please!"

Now that she has hit the 6 Month benchmark solid foods will soon make an appearance!

Phone upload

2011-11-15T05:07:00.000-08:00

Had a chance to upload photos from my phone - here are a few of the kids (with Mommy sneaking into a frame).

Milayla drifting off for bed time

Atticus "smiling" and Milayla trying to figure out what exactly the big orange thing in front of her is while Mommy and Daddy try to figure out the auto-timer on the camera.

That's more like it- smiles!

Stealing some cuddles with Mommy

Smiling at herself in the iPhone - the 'high-tech-baby-mirror'

laughing at the funny baby on the iPhone (herself)

Freimarkt

2011-11-14T13:04:00.000-08:00

As promised, here are some photos from our afternoon at Freimarkt.

When we arrived home from the Freimarktumzug it should have been nap time, but the kids were just too excited to sleep. So we bundled them up and off we went.

Freimarkt was close enough to our apartment that we were able to walk there, which was great.
(That also meant that we got to watch the fireworks from the warmth of our living room.)

Atticus was immediately interested in the large Ferris Wheel.

There was no shortage of sugary food, meat and bread...

We steered clear of the 1/2 metre wurst and Hawaiian Pizza Kebap, but did indulge in a little ice cream and pretzels.

Milayla didn't know what to make of all the sights and sounds - so she became the target of a cheesy photo opportunity. She looks pretty happy about it too ;). Really though, she was all smiles (or sleeping) for the whole outing.

That's a Lebkuckenherzen (gingerbread heart). A staple at German fairs. They will have different things written on them, depending on the particular celebration.

Can't say the same for Atticus though (about being all smiles or sleeping). The lack of sleep kicked in part way through our trip and we got some pretty high notes from him. Taking pictures probably didn't help matters, but we are just trying to capture the full essence of the day ;).

We even managed to fit in a ride before we headed home. It was Atticus' choosing, and the boys enjoyed it so much they went on it twice.

A few days later, a couple of Jason's coworkers (the same ones that rescued Laura and Milayla during the move. We're pretty fortunate to have them around) gifted us with a Bremen specialty that is popular during Freimarkt - Bremer Kluten - a peppermint fondant dipped in dark chocolate. Definitely the best treat of Freimarkt.

Freimarkt was a fun afternoon outing to check out. Not sure if we'll head down next year, but you never know...

Swimming - Milayla's first time

2011-11-10T05:28:00.000-08:00

Well, it took us three attempts but we finally managed to take the kids swimming and...

they hated it.

Perhaps 'hate' is too strong a word. Let's just say that between it being Milayla's first time at the swimming pool and Atticus' first time since Milayla was born, neither of them were too pleased about the idea of sitting in barely warm water and being expected to play. Guess that means we just need to put forth a little more effort to make it swimming regularly.

In any case - we did snap a few photos to commemorate Milayla's first time at the pool. Wish we could have taken her swimming sooner (as 5 months old seems rather old), but better late than never!

pink sea turtles weren't exactly our first choice for a swimsuit, but when shopping in the off season choices are rather limited...

Milayla sure didn't care what was on the swimsuit though!

Still excited about the adventure ahead...

Not so excited anymore and she's only been through the shower. She has one awesome grip on Daddy's skin too.

Trying to hide in Mommy's arms....

In the pool + not crying = best success we had. Only room to improve!

Toes...

2011-11-08T06:00:00.001-08:00

They are apparently pretty tasty.

Perhaps she is trying to see if she can fit the whole thing?

Stuck inside on sunny days...

2011-11-04T11:34:00.000-07:00

Our stroller is being sent in to be fixed (under warranty, thankfully, but that's a story for another day) and we had to stay home yesterday for the parcel pick up - which never happened. It isn't very much fun spending an entire sunny day inside only to find out you didn't have to.

The pick up was rescheduled for today, we had to clear our plans to be home. In my heart I was kind of hoping it would pour rain and I would not be so bitter about being stuck inside again. But it was clear blue, sunny skies.

I think the kids caught on to my dislike of being inside and they joined in - not a fun result.

After a long morning of teething and tantrums I finally put Atticus and Milayla down for naps.
I will admit - I was tired and really just wanted to sit down with a green smoothie and a book for 15 minutes to recharge before starting on some to-do list items. Then, Atticus asked me to cuddle and sing him a song. He even said "please" accompanied with his cute, wide-eyed, smile. I gave in. And I am so glad that I did.

It was only a few minutes. But those few minutes were wonderful, especially when considered in contrast to the rest of the morning. I am so grateful for two children who constantly remind me to slow down and enjoy the little pleasures that life has to offer. Life doesn't always need to be busy with every minute planned. Some of my favorite moments involve just being together as a family, relaxing at home or the impromptu moments.

True, it would have been nice to go outside and enjoy the sunshine, but I had it pretty good being stuck inside with two great kids to keep me company. Besides, who knows how much longer Atticus will actually ask and want me to sing to him ;).

As for that parcel pick-up...well, it's been rescheduled - again.

Mr. Independent Returns

2011-11-03T06:00:00.000-07:00

Atticus needed a hat for winter (aka a touque) so we made a stop to pick one up when we were downtown. Jason was pretty set on Atticus getting one with a nice big bobble on top, but Atticus had other plans. When Jason offered the bobbled hat to Atticus so that he could try it on Atticus flatly refused. Jason chalked it up to Atticus not wanting to wear a hat at all. Boy, was Jason wrong (sorry, Hon... ;).

Atticus very happily put on the hat of his choosing.

Just check out the pure delight on this face when he got to put his hat on the following morning so that we could walk to church.

Now, that is a happy boy.

That blurry hand up there was a thumbs up...

Looking good!

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T15:15:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our pumpkin carving adventure for Halloween. In five easy steps we were well on our way to our lovely Halloween pumpkin.

Step one: family outing to market to pick the perfect pumpkin. (sorry, no picture of that one...)

Step two: Wash the pumpkin and prepare your work space.

Step three: Plan your design.

Atticus had a certain affinity to the Jack-o-lantern in one of his books, so we went with that design.

Step four: Have a supervisor (Milayla) and a photographer (Mommy) nearby to capture the moment and make sure things don't get too out of hand.

Step five: Get to work!

The following series of Atticus really sums up his gradual warming to the idea of pumpkin guts...

"What's that you're doing, Daddy?"

"ewwwwww"

"I will stick to eating the pumpkin. Thank you very much."

Atticus did warm up to the whole idea and loved jumping in to help Daddy dutifully separate the seeds so that we could roast them.

"Want to try, Daddy?"

Then, of course, we took a family photo with the finished masterpiece. The boys did a great job. Of course, the expert supervision and photography helped ;).

Halloween isn't really celebrated here, but between pumpkin carving, pumpkin soup, Halloween activities, and a Halloween themed family movie night ('It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown' was this year's pick) I think we definitely got our fill. (and that means it is nearly time to start playing the Christmas tunes!!!)

Hope you all had a fun Halloween!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Sibling Time

2011-10-31T06:46:00.000-07:00

Following afternoon nap the kids are always so eager to play with one another. Whichever one wakes up first gets very excited when they hear the other one wake. Atticus has now started running to Milayla's room to climb into her crib as soon as he hears her and begins getting her out of her sleep sack (apparently, Mommy doesn't do it quick enough).

Atticus is dangling a rattle-sock over Milayla to make her laugh

The two will giggle away happily until Mommy mentions snack time, at which point Atticus gladly relocates to the table.

It is so much fun to see these two interact so positively.

We don't remember getting older...when did he?

2011-10-29T06:32:00.000-07:00

Our kids are still very young, but there are moments when we look at them and cannot believe how much they have grown already.

The lyrics to 'Sunrise, Sunset' from Fiddler on the Roof seem to play in our heads far too often.

"I don't remember getting older, when did they?"

We had one of those moments the other day when Atticus asked to have his photo taken and we looked at the camera to see this....

That's our little two-year-old already starting to shed his toddler-ness and becoming a little boy.

Or what about the moments when he points out all the letters he sees on the pages of a book or starts asking for Mommy to read Harry Potter books instead of his picture books?

Or there are the moments when he carries his role as Big Brother with such maturity as he cuddles up to Milayla on the floor to tell her all about his day and ask if he can read her books. He is truly concerned every time she sneezes, coughs or spits up and wants to help with everything involving her.

It is so fun and rewarding to see Atticus growing and learning so much, but we often catch ourselves saying..."When did he grow older?"

Freimarktumzug (Free Market Parade)

2011-10-26T04:09:00.000-07:00

Freimarkt is here!

Freimarkt is essentially the 2-week German version of Stampede Midway, except that it is quite a bit older; it's been around since 1035 (the oldest in northern Germany).

We've been told that Freimarkt is really it's own season here (thanks, Dennis). We are still making up our mind on Freimarkt itself but, as a season, at least it hasn't been too cold or too rainy.

The Freimarktumzug (parade) was held last weekend so we invited some friends, bundled up the kids and headed down. And it was looooooooooong.

With 148 entries, we only lasted until about number 90 (which had already been an hour and a half). Even the kids were tired of catching candy by that point; probably partly because their bags were getting full and so were the back up stashes - the parents' pockets.

Not the most flattering photo of us all - but we are all accounted for (Milayla is warm and cozy in the wrap....the white spot...)

There weren't a lot of floats in the parade but rather large, decorated, flatbed trucks, blasting music and full of people in various costumes tossing candy (that stuff kind of hurts when you get smacked in the head). There were also plenty of marching bands - they were really, quite good. Some entries were better than others though we were all rather partial to the marching bands. Atticus did get pretty excited about the entry that gave him a sausage though. Yes, there was an entry handing out Wurst. We do live in Germany after all...

Despite the parade being on the long side, we had gorgeous weather and great company so we certainly cannot complain. We were really glad to have had the Lorenz family join us for the outing.

Taking a photo looking into the sun may not have been the best idea....but at least we are all there, squinty-eyed and all!

In the afternoon we ventured with the kids to check out Freimarkt, but more on that later (with pictures!)

Big Boy Bed

2011-10-24T04:59:00.000-07:00

We decided that since we were moving and things were going to be changing all over the place that we would transition Atticus into a big bed at the same time. Well, once we moved the setting up of his big bed was little delayed due to all the work that needed to be done on the apartment and our inability to start unpacking until it was finished. So, Atticus was shuffled into the travel cot while Milayla shared our mattress on the floor with us. It was luxury accommodations around here, no doubts about that!

After many weeks, the big day finally came – Milayla moved into the crib, we moved our mattress on to a bed frame and Atticus moved into his big bed. After Atticus helped Daddy set it up and make the bed he climbed right on in. When he realized how much extra space there was he figured Milayla should be in there with him.

They look so tiny in that big bed!

On Atticus’ first night in the bed, we were talking about if we should try to find a railing to put on his bed when suddenly we heard a big thud – Atticus had fallen out. Thankfully, it was a quick recovery and he was back to dream land while we located any extra pillows and put them on the floor next to his bed. He has not fallen out again so we’re (hopefully) safe without the railing (although we have not yet ruled it out).

We have only had a few incidents of him getting out of bed, which we counts ourselves pretty fortunate for (we had a "three-strikes-your-out-penalty" which meant he had to sleep in the play pen for the night and that seemed to do the trick).

After nearly two months of sleeping in the bed he is finally discovering that he can jump on the bed. Perhaps 'Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed' will make its way into our book collection soon...let's just hope this Momma won't be needing to call the doctor.

All things considered, it has been a great change that we were all ready for!

The happiest place on earth

2011-10-21T05:19:00.000-07:00

If you thought the happiest place on earth was Disneyland, you'd be wrong - at least in our kids' eyes.

When bedtime comes and they want us to think they aren't tired their bedroom becomes the funnest place ever. We'll close the door and hear the loudest laughs and giggles of the entire day and they aren't even getting out of bed.

Milayla will last about five minutes before she surrenders to sleep. Atticus manages to go a good twenty minutes when he is really dedicated.

Of all the things that the kids could do to try to convince us they aren't ready for bed yet, this is a pretty enjoyable one so we'll take it while we have it.

5 Months - Milayla

2011-10-21T05:10:00.000-07:00

Has another month already come and gone? We keep trying to hold on to all these moments, but Milayla is growing and learning so quickly that we may not keep up if we hold on too long.

We are always so impressed with how patient and determined she is. No matter how many times she flops over while trying to sit up, she keeps at it. She is making progress in her pursuit of crawling and now looks like a cute little inchworm as she tucks her knees under her and pushes off. The face still slides across the floor...she'll coordinate the upper body one day and in the mean time she still has a pretty sunny disposition about the whole thing.

Her laugh is becoming more distinct and reactive. She is incredibly ticklish. She laughs when she hears others laughing. Both her laugh and smile are completely contagious.

Her personality is so much fun to watch develop. When we tuck her in for naps or bed time she will use one hand to grab tightly to our fingers and rest her other hand on the side of our faces while she 'coo's her little heart out with her eyes open as wide as they'll go. It is amazing to see the conversationalist that she turns into when bedtime is looming. Not surprisingly, we frequently give in and soak up any extra cuddles we can get. We will need to learn to say 'no' to her one day...

In the mean time we'll enjoy those precious moments while we have them. She is still so tiny.

Don't let those gorgeous blue eyes fool you though. This girl is a strategist and a good one at that. When we place toys just out of her reach to encourage her to get moving she plans her route/movements first and then with rolling and forward inching she has those toys in seconds.

Her and Atticus are becoming quite the dou and get so excited for play time together. As Milayla becomes more interactive, Atticus is trying to include her in more of his activities like puzzles, books and building blocks and she loves it. They manage to get some good laughs out of each other by making faces - the faces are so simple but they just love to laugh.

There are so many things that I wish I could capture on film/picture but have failed to do so (the magical moment seems to slip away whenever I pull the camera out). I wish I could capture Atticus trying to explain to Milayla that you are supposed to sit still when you cuddle as he tries to "read" her a book. I wish I could capture her single eyelash on her left eye that is nearly twice the length of her other, already very long, eye lashes. I wish I could capture her complete intrigue as she sits on Daddy's lap at dinner time watching every bite that goes into his mouth; all the while smiling because it's the greatest entertainment ever. I wish I could capture the way she lunges for things with all of her might with her mouth, especially fingers. I wish I could capture the softness of her cuddles that make her 3 am feeds worth every minute of lost sleep...

Of course, Milayla isn't always smiles, laughs, and happy moments. When Mommy tries to take one too many pictures we do get quite the pout.

Smiles or frowns though, we love her and she has very intricately woven herself into our hearts.

Science Centre

2011-10-19T02:05:00.000-07:00

After several weeks and weekends dedicated to various components on settling in to our new home we decided it was time to do something together, purely for the fun of it. We decided to head to the Science Centre. Sorry about the poor quality photos (our point and shoot camera finally quit on us and we don't typically carry around our big camera so these were taken on our phones)

The exterior of the building is pretty cool, but we forgot to snap a photo so this one from the official website will have to suffice. Rather fitting for it to be in a giant spaceship. (**update** since posting we have learned that the Science Centre was modled after a clam. Still looks like a spaceship though...)

Atticus wasn't too happy about being at the Science Centre (at least not to begin with), and insisted that he get to sit in the stroller with his banana and pout.

It didn't take long for all the interactive exhibits to entice him out of the stroller though.

Which meant that Milayla got to take up residence in the stroller, very happily too. She loved seeing all the lights overhead and enjoyed some serious giggling with Mommy. Can we please freeze these moments in time so that they are never forgotten so that that little baby giggle will always ring freshly in our ears? We have tried to do our best with pictures and videos, but they just cannot do these moments the justice that they deserve. What about all those drool-covered hugs and kisses? Or that little baby smell (not the one from the diapers...)? Is there a way to document those? *sigh* I digress...

Jason tried out the rowing machine to study the way his bone structure functions while using it.

We all thought the sensory booths were pretty cool. There were five or six of them all from different places. When you stepped into the booth it filled with the sounds and smell of whatever the pictures was. It's incredible (and a little scary) how easily things like smells can be created.

And the outing would not have been complete without a couple cheesy photos in an oversized chair. Jason loved hamming it up.

It was a much needed break from the norm.

Mini-Golfing

2011-10-17T05:59:00.000-07:00

Before the weather turned unfavorably chilly we enjoyed a morning of mini-golfing in Burgerpark. It was Atticus' first time and boy, did he love it.

Burgerpark is beautiful. We sure do love living so close to it.

The golf club was nearly the same size as Atticus, but that did not deter him.

Milayla opted to snooze away in the shade of her wrap.

Both Mommy and Daddy did their best to share their incredible wisdom about mini-golf techniques and Atticus soaked it all in...until he realized that he could pick the ball up and place it in the elusive hole much easier than hitting it in...perhaps we'll work a little more on the rules of the game the next time!

Our little pumpkin patch

2011-10-14T05:28:00.000-07:00

We have started digging out the fall/winter wear (a fact I am not so happy about) and stumbled upon a favorite item of ours - the pumpkin patch hat (a fact I am a little happier about). For the future embarrassment of Atticus and Milayla, especially in their teenage years, I felt I should post photos of both of them in the little pumpkin patch hat. They'll thank me later ;).

First, here's Atticus at 3 months...

(My goodness, it feels like it has been a long time since Atticus was that tiny.)

And here is Milayla at nearly 5 months in the same hat...

(please excuse the phone photo quality...)

They both look pleased as punch about it, don't they?

At least they both learned the drill early - keep the hat on, look at the camera and it's over much quicker.

Getting his daily greens

2011-10-13T23:28:00.000-07:00

We have been pretty fortunate that Atticus loves food - anything and everything. So it probably shouldn't be any surprise to us that he asked if he could have frozen spinach to snack on. He seemed to be a little confused that we wanted to snap a picture of him eating it because he thought it was pretty normal stuff. He'll get it one day. In the mean time this picture will sure put a smile on our faces.

I’ll love you forever…

2011-10-10T05:47:00.000-07:00

‘I’ll Love You Forever’ written by Robert Munsch is in permanent book rotation in our home. The kids love it and I love it. For those who are unfamiliar with the book, it is about a mother who sneaks into her son’s bedroom after he is asleep and rocks him back and forth while singing:

I’ll love you forever
I’ll like you for always
As long as I’m living
My baby you’ll be

This mother continues doing this as the boy grows older and older and eventually moves out to start a family of his own. Admittedly, it seems a little creepy when the mother starts driving across town with a ladder so that she can climb into her son’s bedroom in his new home, but the sentiment is still there.

As cheesy as the story is, I always have to work to keep myself from tearing up because, well, I finally get it. I finally understand to some degree why the mother is sneaking into her son’s bedroom and I think it’s a rather brilliant idea. And this is why:

It’s because there are moments as a mother that are harder than others. There are moments when lunchtime rolls around and you realize you still have not had breakfast. There are moments when you go grocery shopping with two tired, young children and get to the check out (with everything on your list) thinking “I did it, I actually did it!’ only to discover you forgot your wallet. There are moments that you pray your son will start looking where he is going so he’ll stop running into walls and doors…then you do it yourself. There are moments the laundry piles up. Moments you have more bodily fluids on you than you care to think about. Moments where you can’t remember that last time you washed your hair. Moments where the screaming begins to turn into white noise. And moments where you remember that silence means trouble and “Uh oh, Mommy!” means it’s already too late. But at the end of those days, once the kids are asleep if you sneak into their room to see them sound asleep you get it.

(these photos were taken during nap time, which is why the kiddos are not in pyjamas)

It is right there in those quiet moments where you remember what matters most. You remember with vivid detail the first moment you held them in your arms. You remember how perfect and innocent they are. You remember the numberless days where they have blessed your life with more joy than you ever thought possible. The days where you stay in your pyjamas all morning – on purpose – to curl up on the couch and read books together. The days where you hurt yourself only to have them kiss it better. The days where you get to be a part of helping them discover something new. The days you realize that there has never been a day that lacked in the department of hugs and kisses. The continuous days they do something that amazes you and your face glows with pride. The days that are never short on adventures or laughter. And the days that are always full of love.

It is during this flood of emotions that your heart swells with so much love for that one person that it feels as though it may burst out of your chest. It is this love and these emotions that refuel you and leave you waiting in anticipation for the moment they wake and you get to be “Mommy” again. This is when all those "hard" moments are put into perspective and the grand picture is put into view.

Being “Mommy” may not be glamorous, but I am continuously overwhelmed with gratitude that I get to be Mommy to these kids. When they were born I signed on to partnership with God that I would do everything in my power to raise them so that they will return to their Heavenly Father again some day and even with all the inevitable bumps in the road, I would never trade that role for anything. I love these kids and I love being their “Mommy”.

Moving

2011-10-10T05:13:00.000-07:00

Man oh man. Moving is an adventure – no matter what country you live in – but add in a couple foreign languages and it always makes for an exciting time. It feels like moving day was some time ago, but with boxes still lingering it’s no secret that we are still pretty fresh in Bremen. So, here is a rundown of all the adventurous highlights of our switching countries.

Of course, everything began with apartment hunting. Then it was on to packing boxes, canceling contracts, researching health care and on and on. Moving day was actually broken up into two days.

Day one: Jason took the train to Germany to pick up the moving van while Laura and the kids finished organizing everything to be loaded into the van. Jason made it home in time for the van to be loaded up. We were very blessed to have so many able hands show up to help us load the van. We had a whole crew to load the van and even had one of the Young Women to help take care of Milayla (Atticus was already in bed). Loading the van took all of 45 minutes, which meant that we had plenty of time to start the final clean after they all left.

Day two: With how smooth Day One went, we had high hopes for day two. Some ladies from church came over to help out with the final cleaning items which was incredibly helpful as it went quickly and they were great company. Then the boys headed off in the moving van while the girls headed to the train station at the airport with Angie so they could catch their train. The timing was planned out so that we would all make it to the apartment at about the same time; which was just in time for us to do the walk through with the agent, sign the papers, get the keys and eat dinner before we unloaded the van. It was a great idea, unfortunately it did not play out that way at all.

Laura and Milayla came via the train and had one switch to make in order to arrive in Bremen. They made it to the stop they were supposed to change over at without any problems. When Laura looked at the train board to find the platform of her connecting train it was no where to be found. So she showed a ticket man her ticket and asked him which train was hers. He directed her to a train that was waiting at another platform assuring her twice that it was the correct train. So the girls got on and settled in set to arrive at Bremen Hauptbahnhof 45 minutes later. Well, an hour later they were still on the train and no where near Bremen. Wrong train. Thanks Mr. Ticket Man.

After some sorting out and some assistance from Jason’s coworkers to figure out where the girls were and how to get them to Bremen, they arrived two and a half hours later than planned only to discover that due to some protocol, which we were not aware of, we were not allowed to move in. Great. We had people from church waiting eagerly to help us move in our boxes and we had no where to move them to. Not to mention, none of us had eaten dinner and it was now well past the kids’ bedtimes. Grumpiness was in abundance where patience would have been nice. Milayla even had a solid two hour crying fit; for a girl that rarely cries this is incredibly unusual. Again though, it was Jason's coworkers to the rescue! Everything was sorted out (after several hours), the boxes were moved in, and everyone enjoyed some chili that a lady from our new church congregation had brought. We were so very grateful for all the help and to eventually make it to bed.

Of course it's not all done yet. For starters, having moved from a furnished apartment to an unfurnished apartment we have the looming task ahead of us to start getting some furniture in this place (absolutely everything, right down to the light fixtures). We have made a good start and have a few of the basics, but there's still plenty more to do. The knowledge that it will all come together eventually is definitely helping us to be patient with the process. Then there were all the repairs, flooring and painting that needed to be done - thankfully most of that is done now. Other than that, most of the logistical things are done or well underway (residency permits, finding doctors etc.)

It has been a busy time, but we are really happy with how quickly it has felt like home. As things begin to come together we will be sure to start posting pictures of our apartment.

A Walk in the Park

2011-10-10T05:07:00.000-07:00

For many weeks, our apartment was littered with flooring, paint, repair tools and many other items kids should not be around – not to mention a lot of noise. So the kids and I spent many days exploring the neighborhood and searching out some playgrounds (in rain or shine!). Here are a few photos from our journeys (taken with the camera phone, so excuse the quality).

one very happy little boy (who happens to be needing a haircut...)

Oh, this picture makes us laugh - Milayla looks like our little Evil Genius here!

he still needs to point at everything...

boat ride in the park anyone?

finally some sunshine!

collecting leaves for his art project

Mr. Independent

2011-10-04T04:59:00.000-07:00

Mr. Independent (alias: Atticus) insists on picking out his own clothes and dressing himself. He washes his own hands and does not want help unless he asks for it. He will not wear grey socks - only black. He will make his own bed. No, he does not want his shoes on the right feet. And he enjoys wearing shorts in cold, rainy weather with one knee high sock and one ankle sock. Wearing socks on your hands and having buttons misaligned is all part of a cool toddler trend in his eyes and is not to be tampered with. And he would not even dream of asking for help going up or down the stairs - no matter how long it takes or how many times he stumbles. These are only a few examples of all his independent traits...

Yes, Mr. Independent sure does test his parents' patience with his determination but when we get to see how much he has learned and improved we remember that we need to let him sort some things out on his own no matter how long that may take sometimes. Love him and his firm determination!

He is pretty proud of himself and so are we!

4 Months – Milayla

2011-09-30T13:34:00.000-07:00

It feels like the last month has slipped right through our fingers. Milayla has been such a joy throughout the transition of moving. She may not be a big proponent of naptime but in spite of that she is always incredibly happy and patient. Even when she needed to wait to be fed while matters of the move were being dealt with she would still smile and cuddle.

Beyond her understanding, happy nature she is one talkative, strong and determined individual. She has been rolling over both ways for nearly a month and has begun inching herself forward by pushing off her toes, the latter being a work in progress still since she has yet to coordinate her arms with the toes and ends up sliding her face across the floor (not very pleasant for her as you can imagine). She is alert and attentive and giggles uncontrollably when her and Atticus have a “conversation”. She loves being around her big brother and relishes in attention from him via tickles, kisses, hugs and playing. And we certainly cannot forget that this little lady has an opinion; when she wants you to know it she is not shy about it. And once she discovered her toes there was no letting go. Toys? Who needs those when you’ve got toes?!

We sure do love her and the dynamic and joy that she brings to our family.

:::UPDATE:::
Milayla had her 4 month check up at our new doctor today and here are her stats as of October 6th:

6500 grams
63 cm long
41,5 cm head circumference

She received her updated vaccinations along with a couple added checkups on her organs and hips (a normal thing done in Germany in the first couple months of birth so they did it for Milayla to make sure her results were accounted for). She did awesome with the vaccinations. And it turns out all that rolling over, body strength and hand coordination of hers have developed at an accelerated rate; not so surprising considering how determined she is!

Not the best lighting, but that doesn't change the fact that you can see her gorgeous smile

excuse the poor quality (from the camera phone), but couldn't resist adding another big, smiling photo

TOES!

Playing with one of her favorite toys. We have definitely entered the stage of endless drool...

See you later, Alligator (Leaving Holland)

2011-09-29T12:28:00.000-07:00

It has been nearly one month since we moved from Leiden; so this post is a little delayed but with good reason as we were without internet connection. The past month has been very full of boxes, Ikea trips, language struggles, church callings, paperwork (banking, residency etc.), navigation and exploration. Thankfully, most of the things we have needed to do we have been able to enjoy the time together – and that is including a 4 hour trip to Ikea on a Saturday with two tired children in tow! We are saving all the details of our settling into Bremen for later posts. For now, it’s time to close off our time living in Leiden…

We can’t believe we lived in Leiden for two years – it went by so quickly! It feels as though we were just visiting Holland for Valentines Day (while Laura was still pregnant with Atticus) when Laura said “I love this place! I could definitely live here. Look, there are swans just hanging out along the canals! How beautiful.” Well, it was not even a month later that the possibility of moving to Holland came into discussion and soon we were planning our move…

Visiting the temple

Our first encounter with the bakfiets. We were so intrigued - who would have ever thought we would soon be the proud owners of one!

A swan, just chilling out at the intersection...

Boy, did we luck out as far as apartments go. We looked a few places that were complete dives. One particularly memorable apartment had been broken into so many times that there were 6 different locks on the door. Sure makes you feel safe, doesn’t it? The last apartment we looked at was more out of curiosity than seriousness because we were dying to see the incredible view from the apartment which looked out over very green fields, canals and trees inhabited with cattle, sheep, horses and birds of all types; those beautiful swans even gracefully floated by regularly. After getting lost multiple times while trying to find the apartment we showed up late and almost thought it was not worth the bother, but we prevailed and we sure thank our lucky stars that we did.

After only a few moments of being in the apartment, we were both convinced this was it. Despite the not-so-lovely pink carpet and peeling wall paper, we were in complete awe of the view and were already dreaming of the summer nights to come that we would enjoy those long days out on the balcony. After taking the matter to prayer we said ‘yes’ and signed on the dotted line.

Being lured by the incredible view turned out to be a huge blessing as living in that apartment was the source of so many more blessings. We did indeed enjoy many nights out on the balcony (when it wasn’t raining), playing Uno tournaments and chatting. We enjoyed two lovely New Year’s Eves watching the fireworks out our living room window (you can read about our second New Year’s Eve here). There were countless sunsets that were so stunning that we would watch them rather than a movie we had planned on watching. We learned about different species of birds and agriculture techniques (Atticus loved getting a front row seat during harvesting time). It was not uncommon for us to wake up in the morning only to look out the window and fall in love with the view all over again. That view was an unexpected source of late night conversations, learning and growing together. Who would have thought?

Morning photo...

Evening sunset

on the street where we lived...

The blessings of the apartment extended far beyond the view though. For starters we had some great neighbours. They were the kind of neighbours who not only took the time to say ‘Hello’ but to help you with the groceries, to find out how things were going, to speak Dutch slowly so we could try to understand and to help in many ways. We could not have asked for better neighbours. They were always there to talk to, to help and to be friends. Atticus sure got spoiled by the attention they gave him – and is likely never to forget all those comments about how handsome/cute/smart/grown-up he is. And we will definitely never forget the kindness our neighbours showed to us while we lived there. There were times when they brought in the weather cover for our bike that had blown down the street, or when we needed help translating, or when Laura injured her back while she was pregnant and needed to go to the doctor but could not find anyone to watch Atticus (that particular neighbour, in addition to watching Atticus, even lent us her car so that Laura could make it to the appointment), or when they brought us packages from family in Canada, or when they came over after Milayla was born to congratulate us and give some very thoughtful gifts….we could go on for some time but we’re sure you get the point – they were pretty awesome. To close off our time in Holland they all pitched in to put together a “dutch” gift for us to remember them and our time in Holland by. While the kids may be too young to remember them, we will certainly enjoy telling them all about them when we read their special Dutch book. We will certainly never forget them! Whether they knew it or not, they were the source of many answered prayers. We loved sharing baked goods with them and taking the time to get to know them better.

Of course it came wrapped in Delft Blue paper

Our network of wonderful friends extended far beyond the walls of our building. There were friends from the neighborhood, from swimming class, music class, church, work and play group who helped to enrich our lives by creating lasting memories with us and sharing their culture and traditions with us. We cannot say enough about how grateful we are for their role in our lives. They truly spoiled us with kindness and friendship. We will never forget them and hope that we will see many of them again soon!

Our time in Holland was filled with so many sweet memories. We fell completely in love with Holland - the people, the culture and the country. It made a lasting impression on us and it was so difficult to make the decision to leave. We grew so much as individuals and as a family and will always treasure the time we spent there.

Our last photo in our apartment...

And just so you can get a better glimpse of Milayla

Giving Hugs

2011-09-28T05:56:00.000-07:00

Just a few photos of Atticus and Milayla. Boy, these two love being with each other.

And just for the record, it was Atticus who wiggled his legs under Milayla so he could give her cuddles then played shy after I took the photos.

Forgotten Moments

2011-09-28T05:47:00.000-07:00

We take a lot of photos to try to remember all the moments that happen in our family - big and small. Unfortunately, there are a lot of moments that never get captured on camera. Even more unfortunate are the precious little moments that are captured on camera and then never have anything done with them (part of the reason why we have a blog).

Well, here is a moment, captured in a photo, that we do not want to forget.

After one particularly long moving day, Milayla fell asleep while rubbing her eyes. Poor girl only wanted some peace and quiet.

Atticus: Unedited

2011-09-20T04:46:00.000-07:00

The below picture of Atticus is completely unedited.

Yes, that is Atticus wearing nothing but his boots...

Post-shower, Atticus decided to drop his towel, put on his boots and run to the living room. We snapped a picture (of course) before ushering him back to his bedroom to get into pajamas. We really lucked out that the sun reflecting through the window censored the photo perfectly ;).

A day at the park

2011-09-07T04:58:00.000-07:00

On our last weekend in Holland we took the kids to the park and met up with the Prins family. We ended up doing a little park-hopping walk and chatting while the kids worked off all their energy. Atticus and Evia get along so well, it's a shame they won't be able to play together as often now.

Here are a few pictures of the midgets enjoying the afternoon.

Atticus has a thing for pointing these days...

After Atticus sprained his ankle on the slide back in May it took him quite some time to get up the courage to go down the slide, and then to go down the slide by himself. Now he does it like a pro again, and again, and again.

These two have their "off" moments where one of them wants to hold hands but the other one is adamant on being independent. Those moments typically don't go over well. Thankfully, this was one of their "on" moments where they both wanted to walk together - holding hands. You'll note that they are walking on the grass in the following photos. That is because they seemed to have quite the knack for nearly getting run over by the cycles and scooters.

Jason and Jan seemed to have quite a bit of fun playing the role of Big Kids while the ladies took care of the babies and chatted. When it was time to go, our little playing duet needed to be dragged away kicking and screaming - literally. They were both adequately covered in sand and dirt and very tired. Aside from the cranky ending with the toddlers, it was a lovely visit with the Prins family, as always.

The Latest Craze

2011-08-26T00:17:00.000-07:00

Playing with Duplo in Mommy and Daddy's bed...

Dutch Days

2011-08-21T11:07:00.000-07:00

It feels like we are experiencing a lot of "lasts" lately. Today we had our Last Sunday at church in Holland and it feels completely surreal as though we will be here again next week, cycling to church, talking about the weather (because the weather is always something to talk about). We won't be here though, and boy, that is a sad feeling.

We have loved our time in The Netherlands. It has only been two short years, but so much has happened. We have had some wonderful experiences, made some incredible friends and even welcomed Milayla into our family. There is so much that we are going to miss, especially the people. We have been blessed with great friends and neighbours who are always there for us. Fortunately, we know it will not be the last time that we see many of them.

Being that this was our last weekend, we wanted to take a break from packing and just make the morning relaxed and enjoy the simple things we love about living here. First on the agenda was eating Hagelslag for breakfast. Sounds like a pretty strange thing to have on our list, but we had yet to try it and while we were a little leery of chocolate for breakfast we did like it. At the recommendation of a friend, we put some peanut butter on with the hagelslag, however, it was far too sweet for us as a breakfast (particularly when we usually eat unsweetened porridge or muesli). Perhaps we will stock up on a couple boxes to use for cupcakes.

Not the most photogenic food - very brown...

Then we packed the kids into the bakfiets (which we are very happy to report we will be taking with us to our new home in Germany) to head to Saturday Market. It was the first time that Atticus and Milayla got to sit beside one another in the bakfiets as Milayla has previously been in her Maxi-cosi. These two loved it! It is quite fun to see them interact with one another.

waiting patiently to get on the road

Holding hands for the journey!

The weather this summer has been a little on the cool side, so we were very thankful that our morning held blue skies and sunshine for us. We love downtown Leiden, especially during market. We strolled around, stopped in a few shops, enjoyed fresh stroopwafel and Jason had his last Herring.

Milayla enjoying a nice snooze while Jason enjoys his Herring

It was a simple, laid-back Saturday morning which have been some of our favorite Saturdays while we have lived here. When we arrived home it was back to the chaos of boxes and the reality that we will soon be saying "goodbye". Just a few more days and everything will be packed into the moving van and we will be driving off. Considering that we will only live 4 hours away, we are hopeful to come back for visits and that we will have visitors come our way as well.

Our time in The Netherlands has certainly allowed us to grow as individuals and as a family. We leave with fond memories and great things to say about this country and the people who live here. It has been an experience we will forever be grateful for.

On the logistical side of things, once we move we are not sure how long it will take for us to be reconnected (phones and internet). So please be patient as our usual phone calls and emails may take a while to resume. If we have the time we may schedule a few blog posts to fill that void.

Thank you everyone for all your love and support!

Love,

The Clog Crew

3 Months - Milayla

2011-08-19T05:18:00.000-07:00

This little girl of ours is not so little anymore. We are already starting to see her personality shining through. She always knows exactly what she wants and will not accept substitutions. She has a very infectious giggle. She is generally very happy and smiley. And she is very deliberate in her actions; if she wants to hold something she will focus, reach and grab it usually on the first or second try. She is not so keen on tummy time (despite big improvements in holding her head up and looking around), however, she loves being held so that she is "standing" (already in a rush to grow up..). Her hands are quite the novelty and she enjoys clasping them in front of herself or holding other peoples' hands. We love listening to her chat away and she has already become quite good at mimicking her older brother's words with cheerful intonations - she catches on and learns quickly.

We had our final appointment at the Consultatie-Bureau for Milayla today. Her latest stats are:

5900 grams
62.5 cm long
40 cm head circumference

Her weight gain from her last appointment was not as high as the doctor was expecting, but the doctor suspects that Milayla just has not been eating as much lately with the upcoming move interrupting the usual schedules. We are to keep an eye on the weight gain, although we are pretty certain that once things settle down and day-to-day life resumes, things will level off.

We sure do love this not-so-little-girl of ours.

Enjoy the latest photos below.

Could not decide if this was better in BandW or colour. In any case, we are crazy about that profile!

Practicing tummy time. Getting much stronger. We love her fuzzy hair!

Check out those beautiful blue eyes!

Taking a rest and snacking on her first while she waits for milk

The Giggles

2011-08-17T05:36:00.000-07:00

We have a sure fire way to take Milayla from this cute, coy smile...

to this adorable, full out, giggle.

It's a little strange, but we simply tickle her nose with her toes.

Observe.

Step 1: Toes to nose.

Step 2: Enjoy the giggles.

Who would have thought?

Learning a thing or two...

2011-08-14T10:42:00.000-07:00

Atticus is learning all sorts of things lately, here are just a few of them.

Learning how to clean...

Learning how to draw triangles...

Learning how to draw circles...

Learning how to carry his books...

Learning how to help make dinner...

Those are veggie dogs with whole wheat pasta stuck in them before cooking. It seemed like a really silly thing to do, but Atticus was very serious about it and LOVED showing Mommy and Daddy what he did to help make dinner.

And learning how to use the toilet!

(to spare the future embarrassment of Atticus, we've not included a picture of that last one ;)

However, here are a few pictures of Atticus learning how to dress himself. He did manage to get his pants and shirt on; it just took a little while.

"Where's my foot?"

"There it is!"

Both legs down one pant leg - he sorted that one out pretty quickly though

First time in Bremen

2011-08-04T06:46:00.000-07:00

As many of you know we headed off to Bremen last weekend in search of an apartment. It was a trip that we were all a little nervous and excited for; nervous that we may not find an apartment and excited to see the city that we will be living in soon.

Before we left for the trip there were many late nights put into searching for apartments and making appointments. At least it was a good reintroduction to the German language (something we all need to start practicing again). Our searches did not pull up anything "perfect" or anything that came all that close either. We were determined to live closer to Jason's work than we do now (as we will still be using bikes to get around), close to church, near a park, easy access to grocery stores, 3 bedrooms and a fitted kitchen (eg., kitchen cupboards). Most of the apartments we had found did not even check off one of those items, but we were still hopeful!

We left Thursday afternoon, arrived in Bremen about 4 hours later, checked in at our hotel, grabbed a quick dinner and headed to apartment appointments. The kids finally got to bed some time after 10 and we made it some time after midnight. No promising results.

Friday was packed full of appointments and began with a delicious breakfast buffet (love not needing cook and clean while at a hotel). Our last appointment of the day was very promising; around the corner from church and the grocery store, down the street from the city park, shared garden in the back and half the distance to Jason's work as we currently are. The downside was that the rent price was higher than we were planning for. We balanced numbers that night, prayed about it, and woke in the morning feeling that applying for the apartment was the right thing to do.

Saturday morning we called about the apartment as early as possible, but with no concrete answer we had to head off to another busy morning of appointments. When lunch time rolled around we were all exhausted and decided to walk downtown for some lunch. This gave us an opportunity to see a few different things as we walked and ate and even take some photos (taken with our little camera, so forgive the picture quality). We should probably preface the pictures with the fact that we know very little about Bremen. We're sure some of these beautiful buildings have functions, we just do not know what they are - yet.

One of our favorite places we saw because it reminded us of Holland.

entrance to the shopping street marked by the pig herder statue. The pig herder would bring his pigs down market street at the end of the day for the pigs to eat all the food bits that had been left behind (not anymore, of course).

A church with a flower stall in front called "Hollandischer"...

It would seem that this is THE thing to see in Bremen. They are the Bremen Town Musicians. Originally a Brothers Grimm Fairytale, there have been many renditions of the story since. It is apparently good luck to hold both of the donkey's front hooves. Milayla is tucked in the wrap on Laura, so she is sure to get some good luck too!

This is on the main square and we need to learn what this building is...

and this one too...

We even stumbled upon Böttcherstraße which you can read about here.

The hidden entrance to Böttcherstraße

It has museums, hotels, a candy maker, small cafes and restaurants along with some really neat artistic details worked into the buildings,

the candy maker. There were people lined up outside the windows to see the candy being made.

outdoor seating in front of stained glass windows. looks like a movie set.

a view of the narrow street

After lunch it was back to the hotel for some much needed rest. We were all exhausted. This series of pictures with Milayla and Jason sleeping on the couch is so precious!

Here is Atticus curled up on his quilt, bum in the air and thumb in the mouth; a position he rarely sleeps in unless very tired.

We woke from our nap time to a phone call to say that the apartment was ours! Full bellies and naps really do make things better. We had a couple appointments that afternoon that we honored before meeting the agent to handle the paperwork. Luckily, one of Jason's future coworkers accompanied us to do the paperwork and aid us in understanding all the German. We celebrated by getting some groceries for Sunday at the grocery store by our soon-to-be-ours apartment.

Sunday morning we checked out of the hotel and visited the Bremen ward. There is a beautiful, new church building in Bremen and we received a very warm welcome from the members. Atticus surprised us both by happily staying in the nursery. By the end of church, Atticus was running around with new friends that he had made and saying "Tschüss!" (a friendly way to say goodbye) as we left.

We drove back to Leiden Sunday afternoon feeling relieved, excited and very blessed. We found an apartment that is very perfect for us, have already made some friends, and have two kids who patiently went from one appointment to the next greeting each apartment agent with big smiles.

Now that we have an apartment it is time to really get motivated and finish packing up our things, booking moving vehicles, cancelling contracts, opening new bank accounts....the list goes on. Less than 3 weeks to go. While we are excited about the journey ahead, we are not looking forward to saying goodbye.

Feel the love

2011-08-01T04:26:00.000-07:00

These two are quite the pair.

They cheer each other on. Laugh together. And enjoy being together.

Atticus relishes in opportunities to help Milayla and is incredibly concerned when she spits up or kicks off her socks.

Milayla eagerly looks for Atticus when she hears him and follows his every move.

They are still very young, but we hope this friendship between them will keep growing stronger and endure through the sibling disagreements that will surely come.

Monkey Pants

2011-07-28T02:23:00.000-07:00

Our little Monkey Pants loves to hang from everything these days.

Just look at that smile on his face. He loves it.

Museumplein - Amsterdam

2011-07-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we took the train to Amsterdam to hang out at Museumplein and visit the Van Gogh Museum. It was the the first trip to Amsterdam for Atticus and Milayla and they were both very well behaved.

Van Gogh Museum on the left, Rijksmuseum in the background

Concert hall

A very popular picture spot...

Momma and Atticus hanging out with the 'I'

Daddy and Atticus climbing up; Milayla is tucked in there too!

After taking some photos outside we headed to the Van Gogh Museum for a visit. It was a first visit for all of us and it was incredible. Being able to see the original art work of Van Gogh and the work of a few others was a very special experience and we quickly realized that the pictures we had seen previously did not do any of the art justice - they were all stunning. Some of our favorites were: Peach Trees in Blossom, Wheat Field with a Reaper and Wheat Field with Crows, but there were plenty more that we loved looking at and learning about. Atticus seemed to be particularly excited about the life size depiction of 'The Bedroom'; he pointed out every item in the bedroom and was hesitant to move on to the next part of the museum.

No pictures allowed inside the museum for the preservation of the art, but here are a couple pictures of the building.

We enjoyed lunch in the cafe at the museum before we headed home in time for a late afternoon nap. We sure do love living in a place where we can see some incredible pieces of history so easily.

Love

-The Clog Crew

Milayla - 8 Weeks

2011-07-22T13:29:00.000-07:00

Milayla had her 8 week check up which means....vaccinations. Fun for everyone.

Up until the needles came Milayla was one very happy baby. After the pokes was another story, but she calmed down and was pretty sleepy for the next 24 hours or so.

Now she is back to being our happy, talkative, patient baby girl.

Latest stats:

5540grams

59cm long

39cm head circumference

Healthy and happy.

What we've been up to

2011-07-17T10:38:00.000-07:00

June was a particularly eventful and busy month for our family. With two birthdays and Father's Day, we have no shortage of sugary treats to fuel us through the different events. Here are just a few of the highlights.

We decided to give gardening another shot this year. Gardening is definitely a term that is used loosely here; what we really mean to say is that we ventured to the garden store and picked out some strawberry plants and some basil to plant in containers on our balcony. For those who are familiar with last years embarrassing disaster with our attempt to grow radishes you will realize this is a big step for two adults that do not have any pigment of green in their thumbs at all. Atticus loved helping us pick out the plants at the garden centre and visiting the fish and rabbits while we were there too. Milayla slept.

The really sad part about this venture is that one particularly windy day our strawberry plants lost a good deal of their flowers (is that what they are called?) and the basil began wilting. The story does have a happy ending though; not only do we know to bring our plants in during stormy weather but our plants seem to have recovered with a little love and pruning - we have even enjoyed some delicious fresh strawberries (to our complete surprise and amazement).

Laura celebrated a birthday in June so her birthday present was not to cook and go out for dinner. We went to Den Haag and got to see a very neat sand sculpture. The birthday girl opted for dessert at home (there was no more room after we ate dinner...) of chocolate torte with strawberries and whip cream.

We celebrated Father's Day which you can read about here and Jason blessed Milayla at church that same Sunday which you can read about here. There were a lot of special events that fell on this Sunday including Father's Day, Milayla's Blessing, Milayla's one month birthday and Aunt Dayna's birthday (who welcomed a baby girl, named Lylah, the same day that Milayla was born!). It was definitely a celebrated day.

And of course, we celebrated Little Man's Birthday which you can read about here, here and here (wow, we wrote a lot about that!).

Milayla started sleeping longer during the night, which any parent will know is great cause for celebration and we celebrated by making sure that we fell asleep when she did - a good night's rest is a wonderful gift! We partly attribute the longer sleeping in the evenings to our Woombie (part of a very generous gift from Jason's coworkers), which Milayla seems to be incredibly content and comfortable hanging out in. They look a little strange (and we have had a good laugh about the faces Milayla makes when we zip it up), but it seems to do the trick.

Milayla is also making great strides in holding her head up and is very attentive to what is going on around her. We are fortunate that she is a pretty easy going baby who loves to cuddle.

Atticus is, well...Atticus. His development has just exploded in the last couple of months and it has been a lot of fun for all of us. He is learning new verbal and signing words constantly and has even picked up a surprising amount of Dutch words. When we go out he always tries to chat with the people we meet and is insistent on helping with errands in every possible way. He pulls the basket at the grocery store, gives purchases to the cashier and carries the bags out of the store. He really is a gentleman. We have begun preschool work sheets with him which he really enjoys and concentrates very intently on.

We've learned to check his pockets before putting him down for a nap. Recently, he hid a set of keys in his pocket before going down for afternoon nap. When he decided it was time to get up he pulled out the keys and began trying to unlock his crib. He was not successful, obviously, but he sure did put in a valiant effort. When Mommy came in and discovered what the clinking noise was, Atticus could not stop giggling hysterically - caught in the act!

Atticus has really taken to the idea of Hide-and-seek lately and he is surprisingly good at finding hiding spots, just not so great at staying quiet. He gets a serious fit of the giggles...

And his love for books has increased substantially. His latest favorite is 'The Giant Jam Sandwich', and will want it read 3-4 times in a row - Mommy has it memorized. He is so great with 'reading' books to Milayla as well, such a sweet sight to see.

Jason went for a job interview and we accepted a job offer this last week that will require us to move to Bremen, Germany. After lots of prayerful consideration we felt it was the right choice for our family. We will be moving in just over a months time; there is so much to do before then. It is sure to be quite the adventure. We better start reviewing and practicing our German.

As excited as we are about the new possibilities ahead, making the choice to leave The Netherlands was very difficult. Our time here has been incredible. We do still have one month left though, so we will save our sappy 'goodbyes' for then.

There you have it, just a few of the bits and pieces of our life.

Love and miss you all.

Love,
-The Clog Crew
(guess we will need to rename ourselves...any suggestions?)

Milayla is growing up...

2011-07-06T05:19:00.000-07:00

We had an appointment with the pediatrician this week to check up on Milayla (6 weeks old) and she is one healthy baby girl - happy too :)

Her latest stats are:

5.1 Kilograms

58 Centimetres

It is so fantastic having her in our family. She is very patient, alert and attentive and has one absolutely incredible smile. We can already see her little personality shining through. She is a cuddle bug and can't resist falling asleep in Mommy or Daddy's arms. Perhaps one of the sweetest treats is that she laughs in her sleep - melts our hearts. Big brother, Atticus, is pretty protective of her and loves showing her off and showing us where her eyes, nose, toes etc are. He helps us make sure that all ten toes of hers are still there ;). Needless to say, this little girl is the perfect fit for our family. We love her.

Here are a few new photos.

Enjoy!

-The Clog Crew

This one is a little blurry, but she is holding her head up so well!

The ISO was way too high for this photo, but look at those gorgeous eyes!

They grow up so fast....Atticus' Birthday Photos; 2-years-old

2011-07-03T05:44:00.000-07:00

Here are Atticus' Birthday photos! They were taken on June 22nd at Vlietland. We sure were fortunate for the weather to cooperate just long enough for us to get some photos. This Little Man of ours sure is handsome.

Enjoy!!

Love

-The Clog Crew

Big watery eyes from being a tad unhappy about needing to go in the stroller. Still adorable though.

Hanging out (picture complete with Daddy's foot)

Trying to demonstrate how to lean on the wall and look cool

His model pose

so sweet

striking a pose

Going for a run on the sand

"Mommy, you coming?"

He sure is excited about something!

Took a tumble and needed to wipe his hands off while telling us they were dirty

Telling us about how dirty his hands were

He couldn't walk by a door without trying to open it

A little disappointed that the door was locked

Milayla's Baby Blessing

2011-06-29T11:03:00.000-07:00

In our church, newborn children are often given special blessings in which they formally receive their names along with other unique pronouncements. Where possible, these blessings are given by the father; otherwise, it is often one of the local priesthood leaders or a friend/relative who holds the priesthood. This past Sunday (also Father's day), I had the privilege of blessing Milayla. I can think few other occasions that compare to being able to hold a child in your hands, surrounded by dear friends and leaders, to pronounce these unique blessings. It was a wonderful experience. Milayla was beautiful, dressed in Laura's own blessing gown that had been made by her now-deceased grandmother some 25 years previous. Her mother sent it over with one of our neighbors who happened to be visiting Calgary (this was the "special item" mentioned in a previous posting, here). Additionally, Laura deliberately taught herself how to crochet in order to accent this adorable dress with a floral design headband. I've got to say - I was pretty impressed! Here are a few pictures from the day.

Milayla in her mother's blessing gown. What a cutie!

Atticus getting ready to go to church.

Proud Mommy with her baby girl.

Daddy's pretty proud too!

Not too sure what to make of that face...something along the lines of "somebody help me!!"

On the couch with the kidlets. One of us isn't overly impressed.

My world!

Atticus and Milayla sitting nicely together on the couch.

Melts her daddy's heart.

"Daddy, I'm bored. Are we done yet?"

Love those flowers!

Hard to imagine her all grown up some day. Guess we'll just enjoy everyone moment along the way.

Birthday Celebrations...

2011-06-26T13:15:00.000-07:00

The morning of Atticus' 2nd birthday we went into his room singing our hearts out to the birthday boy and he greeted us back with a huge smile and a "morning!" He then proceeded to hang like a monkey on his crib - not exactly a surprise.

We had set up his new art easel the night before so that he could play with it in the morning and he opened the presents that were art-easel-related. He was very concerned with making sure that the wrapping paper made it's way into the recycling as he was unwrapping the gifts. Drawing with different mediums on his art easel was all he wanted to do that morning.

Lucky for all of us, Daddy was able to come home from work early and made it home shortly after nap time to go out for Atticus' birthday photos at Vlietland. When he arrived home it was pouring rain, however we trekked off to the Vlietland in hopes that by the time we arrived the rain would stop. To our definite pleasure the rain not only stopped, but the sun came out for a small window of time; just enough time to get some photos of our newly 2-year-old boy (the photos were even taken around the same time of day that he was born at...that was just coincidence though). The official birthday photos that we took will be posted soon!

As soon as the sky began darkening again we raced back to the car while the rain came down and headed home for dinner. While dinner cooked, Atticus got to open up the rest of his presents. He was also showered with many thoughtful emails, facebook messages and birthday phonecalls complete with songs from family and friends. We cannot even begin to describe how lucky we are to have family who do so much to make sure that we feel close to them. And we are very blessed to have great friends here who love Atticus so much.

Dinner certainly wasn't fancy with Spinach and Garlic Mashed Potatoes, steamed broccoli and cubes of Gouda, but they are unmistakably some of Atticus' favorite foods. No matter how much he gets, he always asks for more. Although, there are very few foods that Atticus won't eat. Of course, he was certainly excited about his cake, decorated with a lion to look like his favorite toy.

Hopped up on sugar we all sat down to watch Atticus' favorite movie, Cars. Granted, 20 minutes worth was the max of his attention span before he would rather be playing with his new puzzle (there are only a few things that he cares to watch and we're quite okay with that).

We had plenty of cake left over so we made sure to share with our neighbors one of which even shares a birthday with Atticus.

And the birthday boy was then tucked into bed still buzzing with sugar...

The Saturday before Atticus' birthday we met up with some friends (the Prins Family) for a special birthday outing at a nearby indoor play place. Atticus was a little overwhelmed at first but that changed once he started exploring all the neat things there.

Atticus in the foreground on a giant air mattress. Evia is the little girl in the background dangling off a giant ball.

Taking a break.

We made sure to bring along some birthday cupcakes to share; Banana Cupcakes with cream cheese icing. The kids sure seemed to love them. Atticus attempted to lick off the icing as though it were an icecream cone. For a little boy who does not usually get sugary treats, he sure had his fill for his birthday!

smiling for the camera

assessing how much icing he has left

Evia enjoying her cupcake.

Family photo. Milayla is behind Atticus' head and Atticus was too busy licking his cupcake to worry about smiling for the photo but least we are all present!

Prins Family photo; Leah, Evia and Jan.

Atticus giving Evia a goodbye hug!

We all had such a fun time celebrating Atticus' birthday. We really are so fortunate to have him in our family. He is one very wonderful kid and we sure do love him.

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-23T05:46:00.000-07:00

Jason and I have a couple of pretty spectacular fathers. They made many sacrifices in the process of raising us and continue to provide us with unconditional love and support. While we may not live close enough to give them the big hugs that we wish we could give them, we were able to call them and thank them for everything they do. No matter how far apart we may live from them, we continually feel their love, support and prayers for us. We love them and are grateful for all they do.

On this side of the pond we celebrated Jason's second Father's Day. Words cannot express how blessed we are to have Jason as the head of our household. He works tirelessly to ensure that we are always provided for in every need and sets an incredible example for our children. He is honest, loving and sincere (not to mention, extremely handsome ;). We all love and look up to him. With that in mind we wanted to make sure Father's Day had a few nice surprises during the day.

Surprise number one was a new tie made by Atticus and a special card from all of us.

Sadly, Jason didn't sport the tie to church, but that was in part because he was going to be doing something very special at church - blessing Milayla (more on that later).

Jason and Atticus got to spend a little bit of extra Father-Son time together and attend a baptism following church meetings. And then they headed home for one of Jason's favorite dinners - lasagna and garlic bread.

For dessert we sent him on a treasure hunt. The 'X' marked the spot for a container of Buckeyes; another favorite of Jason that do not get made very often. He was ecstatic!

We attempted to get a picture of Jason and the children, but probably should not have left it until right before bed time. Both kids were very tired. We're happy that we still managed to get a photo of all three of them though!

At the end of the day, Jason and I were able to sit down and laugh as we reminisced about some funny moments that Jason has had as a father and that we have had with our own fathers. So many great memories and many more to come!

Love,

-The Clog Crew

The Birthday Boy Turns Two

2011-06-22T00:23:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that the above picture was taken two years ago today when Atticus Berkley Hochstein was born into our family. We knew Atticus would bring incredible joy to our family, but we could have never fully anticipated just how much.

No, Atticus isn't always perfectly behaved and we could probably use a few days where he isn't helping us to increase in patience, but through all the ups and downs we know that we are doing our part in raising a very special child of God and, boy, do we feel blessed.

At only two years old Atticus is constantly setting an example for us. When he sets his mind to something, he works until he sees it through like finishing a puzzle or coloring a picture. He loves to pray and never forgets to remind us to pray when we wake up, before we eat, before we go to bed, before we leave the apartment, with scripture study and even before every bite of apple he eats at snack time (yes, that has happened...). Our prayers have taken on incredible diversity as Atticus even requests prayers for the ducks. When guests come over he offers them water, shares his snack and lets them play with his favorite toys. And he beams with happiness when he gets to help someone.

Yes, today marks a very special day for our family. Today we celebrate one very talented and incredible boy!

We love you, Atticus! Happy Birthday!

Below are some photos of Atticus on the morning of his birthday; his first photos as a 2-year-old.
More to come....!

He has grown quite a bit since these photos below were taken on his 1-year birthday! He is getting more handsome all the time though...

A Walk in the Park

2011-06-21T05:33:00.000-07:00

It's certainly not a secret that Keely is a wonderful photographer. She has a great natural eye for it. So we couldn't resist getting her to snap a few shots at a trip to the park with Atticus while she was in town. It was particularly windy this day, so picture time was limited, but we still managed to a get a few great shots.

Enjoy!

Love,

-The Clog Crew

Swinging

Getting an extra push

checking out the soccer field

Giving Momma a big hug

trying not to get blown away

Walking home

our lovely windmill

Koninginnedag (Queen's Day)

2011-06-18T06:08:00.000-07:00

April 30th is Koninginnedag (Queen's Day) in the Netherlands. It is a day to celebrate the Queen's Birthday. While the current Queen's birthday is actually in January, Queen Beatrix, opted to keep Queen's Day on her Mother's birthday to allow for nicer weather (or so we've been told). How thoughtful of her!

On Queen's Day there are various celebrations in every city, a flea market and plenty of people wearing orange, which is the royal color. We celebrated in Leiden and headed down town to check out the flea market and see what else was going on.

Keely happily joined in the festivities, donning her orange bandanna and her camera. She even braved a ride on a mechanical bull to show the Dutch how it's done in Alberta! Enjoy a few of our photos from the day below.

Love,
-The Clog Crew

trying out some masks

Atticus hanging out

Mounting the bull

A very graceful fall - landed on her feet

family photo with Atticus hiding behind his arm

a picture of one of the flea market streets to give you an idea of how busy it gets

If at first your don't succeed...The First (and second) Bath!

2011-06-07T09:37:00.000-07:00

We brought out the Tummy Tub for Milayla's first bath. It was, well, a first bath. She cried. She looked unsure. She was cleaned. Then it was over; she was dressed and in Daddy's arms. Her world was right again.

The second bath was more successful. Milayla was a pro and was so relaxed that she fell asleep. Nothing like a little meditation in the tub.

That's Our Boy!

2011-06-05T10:56:00.000-07:00

Our Little Man has a birthday coming up. Hard to believe that he will be turning TWO! So in anticipation of the upcoming celebration, here are some photos of what Atticus has been up to the last little while.

First up, here he is trying to show us that he can fit in his toy bucket with his Duplo.

After telling him that we couldn't go outside as it was raining he ran to the door, put on his rain boots, gave us a big smile and signed 'please'. Smart boy - he knows just how to melt his parents' hearts.

And when he isn't sporting the rain boots it's Mommy's shoes he sports, but that's probably because Mommy is the only one that is always forgetting to put her shoes away.

Atticus still loves sitting down and working on different creative activities such as painting, play dough and, most recently, puzzles. His favorite are his Hungry Caterpillar jigsaw puzzles, which he proudly and confidently does all by himself.

He is all about wearing his sunglasses and making silly faces while he works away on his puzzles too.

Nearly done, so the shades have come off to really focus...

This is the face that we get when we ask him to smile...

And this is the incredibly handsome smile we get when he has completed a task he set out to do.

Atticus loves bathtime! He loves it so much that he will clean up his toys much quicker if he knows that bath time is next.

Of course we need to include some lovely bath time photos...complete with funky shampooed hair.

And we certainly couldn't leave out one of the biggest changes around here lately; Atticus becoming a Big Brother! We knew that Atticus was a very loving and helpful boy before, but seeing all the affection he showers on his little sister puts a huge smile on our faces and exemplifies the limitless capacity of love. Milayla is one very lucky girl to have such an awesome big brother.

Life with Atticus is certainly never dull. He is always making us laugh, showering us with kisses and learning new things. We feel so spoiled and incredibly blessed to have him in our life, especially when he cuddles up to us for story time, when he claps for family scripture study, or when he corrects Daddy on how to properly fold his arms for prayer.

And how could we forget to be grateful for his lovely patience while Mommy snaps a million photos of him?

We sure do love this Little Man of ours!!!

"Please no more photos for today. I'm exhausted."