The color of Lydia's world

Tomorrow morning we are boarding a plane and (in the words of Lydia) flying from "orange Czech Republic to yellow America" -- their respective colors on our map. When I ask Lydia who we will see in America, Andrea's cat, Oscar, and Grandma Verbrugge's cat, Daisy, top the list. But don't worry grandparents... We (the adults) are excited to see YOU! ;-) So think of us tomorrow as we traverse the friendly skies. Hopefully Mr. Marcus will be quite oblivious to the experience and Miss Lydia will be as compliant and self-entertaining as is possible in her little nearly three-year-old world.

We look forward with great anticipation to spending time with as many of our friends and family as possible. We will be in Maryland for the first five days of our trip, and on to Iowa for the remaining nine. It will be the first time most of our family will meet Marcus and that they have seen Lydia in a year.

So Merry Christmas (Veselý Vánoce) to all, whether this side of the ocean or the other! With love and wishes for a wonderful holiday season as we celebrate Jesus' birth.

Pass the salt, please.

I think we've found our cure for the wintertime blues. A mom in our playgroup introduced us to a "salt cave". It's a small room that has been converted to a salty wonderland. The floor and walls are covered in salt crystals and the ceiling has salt crystal stalagtites. There are about 8 beach chairs for adults to relax while the kids play in the salt with the sand toys turned salty toys. Supposedly there are a bundle of health benefits to this, including the cure-all for runny noses and coughs. Whatever. I'm just excited about the prospect of a way to deal with Prague's eternal winter.



Lydia informed me on the way home that "there wasn't any pepper, just salt." And just to cover all bases "there wasn't any sugar". Hmmm.... now THAT'S an idea.....


"Ta-Daaaa!"


Taken from the website... Ok, it makes the room look a TAD bigger than it really is. Oh well, it was still pretty cool.

Oh, Christmas Tree

I am learning that Czech and American Christmas trees are a lot like people. Czech trees are just a bit (should I say?) less, well.... "full". Yes, even the artificial variety is sparse enough for the viewer to see through to the trunk. After last year's not-so-pleasant experience with a "real" Czech Christmas tree, and taking into account we will be in the States for 2 weeks surrounding Christmas, I decided to throw in the towel and go for fake. All in all the experience has been every bit as painful. The first tree to grace our doorsteps dropped just as many needles on my floor as a real tree. Only to discover that it was defective and the three tree sections didn't fit together. The thought of trying to explain this in Czech to the supermarket employee was enough to make me lose my Christmas pudding. So, I sent Brandon in for cleanup duty. He came home with another brand of tree. This one didn't drop needles and even has fake dead branches scattered about. Even slightly more sparse than the first tree, it was nothing that a few lights and ornaments couldn't fix. It's charming in it's own way. And in the words of Lydia, "It's VERY SO beautiful!" That's all that matters......


Efficient multi-tasker that she is, is there a better way to survey one's handiwork than on the port-o-potty? I knew the bad influence of the Czech construction workers would wear off on her sooner or later...

Passport? Check! (not Czech)

Looks like Marcus can come with us to the States for Christmas. Whew! Didn't know how he'd do home alone.


To answer the many questions: No, Marcus is not a Czech citizen. Yes, Marcus IS an American citizen. Although he has both Czech and American birth certificates, he only has an American passport. His passport is good for 5 years, which means his passport will have his picture as a 6 week old baby even though he is five. How they will verify his ID by looking at the photo is a bit humorous. Hopefully he will have a bit more hair and a bit less fat in the cheeks by then. He also applied for and received his Czech visa this week, so it looks like he can stay!

Following in his big sister's footsteps...

Marcus is becoming quite an impressive little American. In the words of the doctor at his 2 month checkup he is "big and heavy" (that's a quote), weighing 6kg (13.2lb) and measuring 60cm (23.5in). No puny kiddies in our house, no sir-ee.

This one is for the Grandmas....

We love you and are excited to see you (and Grandpas too)!!!

How'd they get His address?

Sadly, most Czech people know Jesus only as Baby Jesus, the little baby who magically appears each year at Christmas to bring you gifts. Sort of like a baby version of Santa Claus, but dressed very ornately. However, as sad as this is, it can be a bit humorous at times. Last year we were introduced to the Jesus phone booth, where you can call him up and make your requests. This year we stumbled upon Jesus' Post Office. How they managed to get His mailing address is astounding... maybe they used Yahoo People Search, after all you can find everything on the internet.

Milestone #2

Hey, I'm on Cloud 9! I've gotta tell someone about it... Marcus slept through the night last night! 8:30pm-6:00am. Yippee!!!! Oh yeh! Woo-hoo!!! You have no idea how much I needed just one night of uninterrupted sleep. I know, I know, it may not happen again for weeks, but at least I know he can do it. I'm smiling all over.

This evening brought to you by Daddy, proud sponsor of Mommy's First Night Out

Just you n' me kid!

When Shanna called to see if I'd like to join a group of ladies for dinner and a ballet I was a bit hesitant. Would Brandon be up to the task of solo daddy-hood? Would I actually be able to relax and have a good time? Turns out the answer was "Yes" and "Yes". After giving Brandon specific instructions on Marcus' routine, I hopped in my car and took a deep breath. Normal life is beginning to resurface! I met the group at the restaurant for a great dinner and conversation. Then we headed over to the theatre where we would be watching "Romeo and Juliet". My first ballet experience, I didn't know what to expect. It turned out to be quite enjoyable -- apparently it was modern ballet.

I also found it quite humorous at times. For example, did you know you can have a fist fight, sword fight, and kill another guy with a gun and all the while continue to dance? And apparently, while one is suffering from mortal gun shot wounds, there is still plenty of time to leap and twirl all while your friends look on and even occasionally join in the dance. Hello, would someone please call 911 already?!?

All kidding aside, I had an amazing time. Brandon came through like a hero, proving his ability. When's the next girls' night out? I'm ready!!!


National Theatre, Prague




See those little specks waaaaaaaaay down there? Those are the dancers. Hey for $1.25 (I'm serious!) you really can't complain when you find yourself in the nosebleed section. Gotta LOVE Czech Republic prices.

Don't worry, Grandma!

I let this woman take care of my kids.... ALONE!
(Love ya, Sunny!)