Early Christmas Present

This present arrived in the form of a giant container and a crew of moving men. We did not expect our container to arrive until a couple of weeks after Christmas...we were thrilled when it arrived on December 20th! We only waited 6 weeks! It was an enormous Christmas gift that made things seem like home in quick fashion. We were especially excited to see the tree. We did not have many decorations up other than stockings that had arrived in our small shipment a month eariler, so this was perfect. We found the tree and with much energy, we found most of the ornaments. So on Wednesday December 21st we put up the tree (and very late at night I might add). But it was perfect and the kids were thrilled.

Our "normal" traditions were worked in all through the month of December, some in different manners than we have in the past. But it all worked and we learned about being flexible. And being happy in doing things differently.


Dallin is holding our "before" tree and next to him is the "after" tree.

The day our shipment came was also Mark and I's 14th wedding anniversary! I just have to say how amazing the man I married is. I love that we laugh and that we love being together always. I am blessed each day to have meet and married Mark. For eternity.

Christmas Spirit

A couple of Sundays before Christmas we made our way down to the LDS Santiago temple. There was a tent full of pictures of Christ and His life, nativities from all over the world, and good music. We wandered the grounds, looked at the art, and listened to a little music. It was a nice time spent with my family, remembering the true meaning of Christmas.

Santa Lucia

Right in the middle of Santiago, amoung the skyscrappers and millions of people is a large hill. It just kind of pops out of the flat land around it. On this tall hill is an old fortress used by the Spanish. It also has beautiful fountains and bulidings that were built into it sometime in the 1800's. It is beauitful and gives quite the view at the top. We walked to the top and stopped to see all of the statues, fountains, and lookouts. The boys also counted stairs - because there were hundreds of those.

Across the street from the hill is the Santa Lucia market. It has all sorts of Chilean trinkets, clothing, and atmosphere. It is a fun place to pick up souvenirs. We took the boys over after our little hike and they were able to buy Christmas presents for eachother. I love the Santa Lucia market, and the kids loved it too. Plus when you cross the street from the hill to the market, you actually go under the street by going down into the metro station and then up on the other side. They liked that!

December 17, 2011

Santuario de la Naturaleza del Arrayán

Our first little trip was to a beautiful mountain park that is only about 25 minutes from our home. Wow. I love the mountains and hiking. It was just what our family needed after a few weeks of running around trying to get moved in. This was on December 8th, a holiday here in Chile. We have found that if you get any place in Chile by 10am, you are pretty much one of the first people there. We spent a few hours, had a picnic, and then headed out just as it was starting to get crowded.
We were able to hike a litte...as much as a two year old allows, which I was surprised at how much he did that day. After a while I took Easton down to a playground, while the others did some more exploring. It was beautiful hiking in the mountains right next to the mountain stream.

Chile

So the first few weeks were full of the little details that pretty much drive you crazy. And we have found that in Chile those details take much longer than we are accustomed to. The waiting just about made me crazy. I found myself getting a bit depressed.

Mason started school 4 days after we got here, but Dallin and Drew had to wait because of the acceptance process for the elementary more than a week after Mason. It was a long wait...at least it seemed like it. No car, no toys, no books, no TV, no computer equals drive your mom crazy with the phrase, "I'm bored."

But there were fun times too. We did a lot outside and played together and the boys found clubs to make and adventures to have while I tried to get the house cleaned and manageable. The pool was cold in November and the first couple of weeks in December. I guess most people don't get in until the end of December, but we had just left snow, so the boys could not wait. They would get in for short periods in the afternoon. In November the temps in the day were 75-85, but at night in would drop to 45-50. It makes for perfect days, but cold pools.

This was the first day here in the morning in our front yard.

Until last week, much of the house was empty. We had a few rental pieces. Two couches, a table, and beds. So there was room to run.


And the pool and backyard are gorgeous! I love being outside and just looking at the garden in the back and front. And I love my lemon trees. The lemons will be turning yellow soon. There are a lot of them just getting ready to ripen.

A little bit of this and a little bit of that

I will be trying to play catch up here for a while. We have been seeing new things and doing all sorts of new things. So now I have to organize all my thoughts and get working on getting it all documented. This post is going to be a few pictures of the weeks before we left. Then on to the Chile stuff.

So the last few weeks were filled with the end of the soccer season and a very sick Dallin, he missed 5 days of school. He didn't want to miss the last game and getting a medal, so he cheered his team on from the side lines (and a safe distance away).


This is Drew's last game and awards.

Trunk or treating at the church the Wednesday before Halloween. It was the only trick or treating we did. Since in Iowa trick or treating is always the day before Halloween (it goes way back and I am still not sure why the tradition hasn't died) it fell on a Sunday. We went to a friends for dinner instead and left a bowl out on the porch for the neighbors.

Carving pumpkins Thursday before Halloween. Dallin was laying on the floor, just watching. He drew the face on his pumpkin and I carved it for him (that is how I knew he was really sick).

Our friends threw a going away party for the boys at a gym. It was so nice of them. They invited all classmates at school and families. Unfortunately I didn't take more than a few pictures and most didn't turn out.

The night before we left (Friday November 12th) was the boys piano recital.
They all did so well. I am so proud of all their hard work. Especially considering we didn't have the piano for the 5 days before the recital, since it was packed on the truck. We did go over to a friends the night before so they could practice before the big day. We sure miss their piano teacher, she has a place in our hearts. We look forward to when they can learn from her again.

Our Big Trip

With this post we begin a brand new chapter in life. There are certain events that mark your life. "After we were married, life before and after children come, etc." In our family, we will mark events by before, during, and I assume even after we lived in Chile. It is strange because at times I feel like things are so normal, then I try to answer the door when the bell rings or go do simple things like get gas for the car and then I am jarred back into the realization that life is so very different. Different, good, amazing, and hard.

So I will start with our trip to Chile from the states. It had seemed like such a long time coming that we were all ready to just get on the plane and start! The last 4-5 days in Des Moines were crazy! But we have amazing friends who stepped right up and feed us, drove us, and loved us. I feel blessed by my Heavenly Father for the people He has put in our lives.

So to the airport our friend helped us get. We had so much luggage that our one rental van was simply not enough. We had eight large suitcases, a jogging stroller(which I am so glad we brought so I can run the trails here), a car seat, a booster seat, and then the 5 backpacks, one laptop, and a purse full of passports! We had five suitcases too heavy, after much moving of things we got it down to three and said the heck with it and paid for the three over weight bags.

We got to Dallas without a hitch. Landed and headed to McDonalds to eat dinner. I got up to go look at some other food options while the kids ate. When I got back Mark said our flight was delayed 12 hours, I laughed and told him to stop kidding around. He did not laugh, at which point I almost cried. So Mark went off to find out what to do. I gathered kids and had so much in my arms I couldn't carry Easton, who then had a complete meltdown as we made our way to the ticket counter. It was a blessing because the gal took pity on us and got us our food and hotel vouchers herself rather than us going to the counter that was doing this that had a line of about 100 people doing the same thing. Who know that meltdowns of two year olds were blessings?





So we stayed in the hotel attached to the airport (which is prepared for travelers like us and provided six packets of toilettries). So we woke up, ate, and boarded our 10 hour flight. We thought we would have 10 hours of sleeping kids, but not so. I was amazed at how awesome our kids did. Easton took about a 4 hour nap, the angels where with us.
So then the real fun, lets just say after 12 hours of not eating, 3 hours of lines, and a very loaded taxi van, we made it to the house a little after midnight! And our kids rocked it! There was the occasional complaint, but by the time we had been in lines for so long I think they just gave up and realized there wasn't one thing to do but just keep going.
The next two days were a blur. Grocery shopping, trying to get cars, school tests and tours. But we made it. We are still trying to figure out a lot of things, but that is for the next post! Love to all who helped us on both ends of the adventure.

*As a side note, now that our internet is through a Chilean company, when I run spell check it tells me every word is spelled incorrectly since it is checking for Spanish. So typos may be frequent for the next little while.