A Whirlwind Trip to the Windy City

When Julie mentioned she would be coming to visit this summer, I asked if she'd like to take a short trip somewhere to explore a little more of our country. I gave her a list of places that she hadn't visited yet within a 10-14 hour travel distance and where I had friends or family connections: Chicago, Nashville, New Orleans, or Colorado Springs. She chose Chicago, invited a friend from high school, and we ventured up for a whirlwind trip to the windy city.

Twenty hours of travel via an overnight double decker bus, 41 hours very touristy hours in Chicago, and of course a ton of pictures!

We spent $29 for round trip bus tickets, $60 on attractions, plus food (Chicago pizza-- YUM!) ... but the experience was of course, priceless! Especially considering that I got to meet up with one of my high school besties. The last time I saw Dana was four years ago and it was for a brief 15 minute visit. She's living the life up in Chicago in the cutest little townhouse and is beginning her doctoral degree this month! 

See those bags under my eyes-- that's what happens after an overnight bus ride that arrived before 7am the day before, non-stop tourism for two days, all while carrying my backpack that held everything I needed for the 4 day trip. Oh, an upcoming midnight departure for our bus ride out of Chicago awaited me just a few hours later. 

I'm quickly becoming too old for this sort of trip, but these are certainly my favorite. Reminds me of my trip to NYC several years ago with my college roomie. Or the time we traveled down to Texas to visit the Dr. Pepper museum. Wait-- who am I kidding. I'll never be too old to travel. I may be tired (still) and have terrible bags under my eyes in photos, but I'll be traveling as long as I'm living! :)

Deja Vu

As I was cleaning the house and getting last minute things for Julie's arrival, the feeling of déjà vu came over me. Three years ago, almost to the day, we said our goodbyes to Derek as he went off to basic training. Less than a week later, we picked up Julie from the airport for the very first time as she was about to embark on her journey as a foreign exchange student.

 And here we are now, welcoming Julie back "home" again just six days after Derek left for training for his new army job after being promoted to sergeant! So weird.

Only fortunately, Derek is only away for ten days, not nine months this time. And I won't be having a baby while he's gone. :) 

It's been sort of a joke around here about the army seems to just have something against Julie. And not only because he was gone for the first several months when she lived with us, but because he often has army duty when she flys in, flys out, or has a graduation party. For being Danish, she's far more familiar with US Army life than many Americans. (She once told me that attending Derek's basic training graduation was one of the coolest things she experienced in America.)

The kids have been so excited all day. They have each taken turns being Julie and sleeping in her bed. And while we were at Target picking up some last minute Julie-essentials (like fruit loops and sweet tea) they told everybody... EVERY SINGLE PASSER-BYER that Julie was coming. Now, the two high ladies behind us in line were fortunate enough to hear our entire family lineage, our ages, and pretty much everything other than my social security number. What can I say, my kids are enthusiastic and they know no strangers.

The ride home was spent with the kids fussing over whose turn it was to talk while Julie and I started catching up. The déjà vu slipped away at this point as I realized how much she's grown over the past three years (and not just taller!). No longer a 15 year-old living to play basketball... She's now 18 and deciding on college majors and looking for jobs! 

I'm looking forward to the fun we'll have over the next couple week...  Especially when we head to Chicago next week!!! 

She's back!

Our favorite Dane is back!! According to Jackson, Julie is back from Capenhogen. Ha, it's close, right? 

Jackson has been especially hyper ever since we picked her up from the airport Friday night. He just can't get enough of her and he is glad he can finally have his birthday {we've told him all along that he will have his birthday party while she is here visiting}. 

We went up to Trenton for the Missouri Days festival on Saturday. Julie was Jackson's partner in collecting candy {and other goodies} from the parade!  

Jackson is so impressed that people actually throw candy {though not quite like last year-- please rewatch that video. So funny}. And he kept checking inventory of his loot.

And of course, Julie was excited to see Belle, who has grown so much in the past four months!

{In case that wasn't clear, it is Belle that has grown so much. Not Julie. She actually shrank a little.}

 And we happened to run into Chacey too! Chacey has major Julie withdrawal and apparently asks about her a lot. How cute are they?

Julie has used the phrase "our house" or "our home" a few times and that really, really makes me happy! We're going to have a great week- a busy week, but it will be good!

{be sure to check out the giveaway going on for party invitations and decorations!}

The week Christian came to visit

This past week flew by in a blur! With Julie's brother, Christian, in town we were busy from sun-up and way past sun-down cramming in as much as possible. We tried our best to let him experience our every day American life and to see the things our city has to offer. I had so much fun playing host mom/tour guide. Here's a recap of some of the things we did!

Thursday, April 21st
Christian spent the day with Julie at school-- just what every 21-year-old guy wants to do when he visits America, on his Easter holiday no less! But it was good for him to see what Julie's been up to while she's been here and he even ended up with homework. More on that later. That evening we had planned on going to the Royals game so he could experience some baseball, but the weather was terrible so we lucked out that our hockey team had a play off-game instead! Christian's a hockey player (he even played on Denmark's national team!) so he explained a lot of what we didn't understand!

Friday, April 22nd
With the little kids and the Danish siblings, we all crowded into the car to go visit Derek at work and then headed over to Oklahoma Joe's BBQ, which was the one place Julie really wanted him to eat. Kansas City is known for the having the best BBQ and Oklahoma Joe's is definitely my favorite. Christian was pleased as well, as his comment was "This is the best sandwich I've ever had." That night we grilled burgers and then Julie and Christian went to a birthday party, where they serenaded the birthday girl with the Danish birthday song!

Saturday, April 23
The day started off with the Easter Egg hunt at church. After lunch, we headed up to the city. Christian was eager to tour the World War I museum (the only one in the country) and then he and Julie went to the top of the Liberty Memorial tower for the great view of the city. We headed over to the Hallmark Visitor's Center next and even go to see a Danish greeting card in the international display case! Before heading home, we stopped at Yogurtini. YUM!

Sunday, April 24th
We got all dressed up and headed to church for Easter Sunday. Christian was a good sport as he was succumbed to posing for pictures!

We headed to Wal-Mart on Sunday afternoon. As a Dane, he was excited to go as he's just heard so much about this empire called Wal-Mart and as an American, I generally have a bad attitude about going into the ginormous store! Christian was even more excited as he realized exactly how much cheaper items are here in the states than at home. Later on Sunday evening, we had friends over to hang out and Christian got to experience making and eating a S'more!!!

Monday, April 25th
This was a busy day! First, Christian had to go back to school... to teach a class!! He is studying mathematics at the Univeristy of Copenhagen (actuarial mathematics, to be exact) and so Mrs. Dahmer invited him to teach Monday's lesson to the Pre-Calculus class. I would shoot myself if any vacation I took involved pre-calc, but he seemed to enjoy it and did a great job!

Per Christian's request, we had more BBQ for lunch. This time, Arthur Bryant's. He agrees with me; it's good, but not as good as Oklahoma Joe's. Then we headed over to do some shopping at the outlet malls, where he and Julie were super excited about the strength of the Danish krone to our dollar- specifically at Tommy Hilfiger, Forever 21 (for his girlfriend), Converse, and Banana Republic.

Before leaving the shopping center, I took them into Cabela's. In the parking lot, I told them both that this store was unlike any store they'd ever visited. I'm getting a good chuckle just remembering their faces as we walked in... to see the mountain (literally) of stuffed animals that used to be alive, enough camouflage to clothe an army of hillbillies, and a wall full of hundreds of guns. The guns, specifically, were amazing to him as Denmark (and most of Europe) doesn't have the same appreciation for our second amendment.

Tuesday, April 26th
This is the day Christian had to fly home. But on our way to the airport, we did stop at Dilliard's for one last item to take back home for his honey. Julie was super bummed to say good-bye, but reality is that she will be on that same journey in just a few weeks. We heard that the flight out of Kansas City was delayed so he missed his connecting flight to Frankfurt. But it all worked out when he ended up traveling to a different route; he was only three hours later than expected and he got a first class seat on his trans-atlantic flight. You've seen how tall the guy is- I am so sure he totally loved all that leg room, especially on that long flight!

We had such a good time! I has taken a couple days of recovering to get all rested up from our super busy week. Julie, Christian, and any one of their family will forever be welcome in our home! And anybody who ever wants to visit, actually!

Julie's Sweet 16

I have had so much fun celebrating Julie's birthday this week. She has been counting down days until her birthday practically since she got here, so I have been contemplating for awhile about how to make it super special.

Her birthday was on Tuesday. Monday evening I stopped by the school put balloons on her locker. Turns out it was the wrong locker, but I was only working with approximate directions from a friend (outright asking just seemed a little too obvious). Thankfully the friends I've been communicating with about her birthday were there to help out!

We encountered a few unwelcome surprises that day, but we got them all worked out and then I, unfortunately, had to go to class while Julie had a volleyball game. I was told that the entire gymnasium full of people sang happy birthday to her and that she served the winning point of the game. She was on cloud nine. I so wish I could have been there. She went home with some friends to celebrate her birthday some more with pizza and brownies. I popped in around 8:30, so I got to partake in a little bit of the fun. By the time we got home, she said it was too late and she had too much homework to open the presents, so we decided to wait until Wednesday.

Julie had so much fun opening the presents from her family and friends in Denmark. And her mom sent Jackson a gift too so he didn't just have to watch Julie have all of the unwrapping fun! Between the several things sent from Denmark, the things I got her (Mizzou shirt and Disney Princess SillyBand Bracelets), and the gifts from the party she ended up with a lot of really cool stuff!

Her party was last night.  There have been several parties lately and a few more are on the schedule, so we wanted to do something a little different than the typical cake and ice cream treats. So, we opted for waffles. And Mickey Mouse waffles at that (Julie loves Mickey and even has a dog named Mickey back home). The topping choices consisted of: syrup, chocolate syrup, peanut butter, mixed berries, strawberry jam, whipped cream, and chocolate chips. It was a big hit.

The stack of waffles!

 

Some of the kids got creative with their toppings!

We had about 20 high schoolers hanging out at our place and it was a lot of fun.

Julie had a great time. Isn't she just really pretty??

I shared her birthday surprise on facebook last night because I just couldn't keep it in any longer! But for those of you who haven't watched it yet-- you totally should!

This is Julie as she was watching the video, right at the point when her brother was on the video. She didn't take her eyes off the tv or stop smiling the entire time!

 

Being a host mom to a 16 year old is so much fun (albeit very, very busy), but lots and lots of fun!! I love this girl!

My Danish Daughter

I am nesting- I am working on getting her room all put together (got the bedding set, curtains, etc. this weekend!). I find a way to bring her up in most conversations. I am counting down the days until August 1st.

Turns out, being "foreign exchange pregnant" isn't much different than being normal pregnant! Only that when she gets here, she'll already be sleeping through the night and eating solid foods! Certainly, I won't find her sitting on the kitchen table, emptying my billfold contents into a glass of water. 

Her name is Julie, she's from Denmark, she's 15, and we've emailed back and forth a few times. She is so sweet and super cute! Since Derek will be away most of the time she's here, we'll get to hang out and do 'girl stuff.' I think we'll be a good match together. I'm already trying to plan fun things to do while she's here. Of course there's the trip to GA for when Derek graduates from basic training, but I am hoping to take a (long-overdue) trip to visit a cousin in Chicago and maybe a short vacation to Colorado before school starts. Then maybe I can get around to doing all of those things in Kansas City that I always tell people they should do when they visit, but haven't done yet myself.

I hope she likes it here and that she'll make good friends! I am praying for her daily and that I'll make a good mom to a teenager, despite my lack of expertise in the area. I am hoping that I can be the "cool" mom (doesn't attempting to be "cool" ruin all chances?) and that we will both learn a great deal through this experience.

It's a bittersweet countdown, knowing that every day she is closer to being here that it's one day closer that Derek will be leaving. But, honestly, I think it will be so good for me to be able to have a new role to take my focus off being a single-mom for several months. In fact, it gives us something in common and will help me be more understanding to what it must be like to her to be without her family. Only 142 more days to go!!