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Two years ago today…
I was on a plane flying to England, to meet Ian (and Jane) for the first time! See?
Leave Thursday, 涂了春药被一群人伦爽 2, 2008
United Airlines 534 Economy | Airbus Industrie A319 (319) | 1hr 32min | 419 miles
| Depart: | 10:07am | Omaha, NE Omaha Eppley Airfield (OMA) |
| Arrive: | 11:39am | Chicago, IL Chicago O’Hare International (ORD) |
Change planes. Time between flights: 4hr 21min
Bmi 4478 Economy | Boeing 767-300 Passenger (763) | 7hr 55min | 3953 miles
Operated by: UNITED AIRLINES — UA 958. Please check in with the operating carrier.
| Depart: | 4:00pm | Chicago, IL Chicago O’Hare International (ORD) |
| Arrive: | 5:55am | London, United Kingdom London Heathrow (LHR) |
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| england 2008 |
It was incredible taking a flight which left in my mid-morning and landed the next day, bright and early, in London. I’ve never been overseas before. The sun went down and came back up so quickly. 🙂
I remember Ian calling my phone when I was in Chicago about to catch the train to another terminal, asking me if I was doing alright.
I remember landing at Heathrow, first thing in the morning, and being quizzed by the border guard at the airport. I anticipated all the questions. I was a woman travelling alone, with my first passport stamp yet to be applied.
I remember coming to the luggage carousel and wondering why it wasn’t on the other side of the reception lounge, like in America. I remember hearing all the people speak with accents. And of course, I remember seeing Ian right there, waiting for me. It was so exciting!
Then, we rang Gemmak, who’d been watching the plane on the Internet all night long. 🙂 Of course, I’d been watching pixel by pixel from the air, as well.
It was a wonderful trip… Read my 涂了春药被一群人伦爽 2008 to see more about it, if you like.
Wow. Two years ago. And we weren’t able to celebrate together last year. But this year, we are married and living on the same continent. 🙂
Strange stuff iz happening. Srsly.
We have our mini schnauzer back from the vet, where she was wired and tubed and drugged and put back on the mend. Hospital life is expensive for dogs. But it’s ok.
Yeah, so work. My workplace is about to change and I don’t know what to expect. Part of me is happy for everyone involved. Part of me thinks not too many people will be very happy the way it happens. A big part of me thinks all the ideas someone has for the aftermath will all go pfflflfofonononono….bleh.
My stepson, who’s in the Air Force, stopped over to take Brit out for her birthday dinner and shopping. Her sister and grandma have done similar things. I am so glad that everyone’s keeping in touch. It’s good for Brittany, and I enjoy touching base with everyone. My stepson was able to spend time with his dad before he left. I’m glad they were able to be together. In a way, it gives me hope for Brit, as well. Seeing her dad again is something she really hopes for.
I wish we could all be happy and going on with life to find out what’s good and next waiting around the bend. I pray about it every night for everyone in my daughter’s life.
Things with our little family itself are perfect. Ian and Brit get along so well. I’m glad he’s open-minded and helpful, likes maths and likes to watch kids’ tv all night long…every night (ok… just until 7pm.. our cut-off is 7pm for kid’s TV.)
Have a good Friday people!
Happy Birthday!
Happy birthday to my wonderful daughter, who turns 10 today! She’s been such a blessing in my life. 🙂
a片毛片免费观看! 11th
I remember a片毛片免费观看! 11, 2001. My daughter was just a few days away from turning 1 year old. I was at work, when everything happened. A plane hit the World Trade Center, then another. The buildings were on fire. Firefighters were going in, people were jumping to their death. We wondered to ourselves what we would do in that same situation.
A plane flew into the Pentagon. It was unbelievable. Another plunged into the Pennsylvania countryside.. a failed attempt at what?
People ran away from the World Trade Center covered in soot as the buildings collapsed. It seemed surreal. .
Life as we knew it was about to change. Someone attacked the United States. It was something I’d never imagined. It wasn’t arrogance. It was because terrorism was something that happened somewhere else.
Planes stopped flying for weeks. The President landed at Offutt Airforce Base. It was secure and in the middle of the country.
For days, we watched things happen over and over again. It was 24/7 news coverage for at least a week, maybe two. We watched people search for the missing, crying, posting photos on walls and fences. We worried about what was going to happen next, or how this had happened to begin with. We saw men on security cameras about to board the planes. They looked like ordinary people.
We watched people digging through the rubble. We heard alarms going off at “ground zero”, and wondered what they were. They were the personal security alarms of the fire and rescue workers going off. They were buried in the rubble.
It seems like America has joined the rest of the world, for the most part. This happened on our soil, and affected citizens in 70 other countries, as well as our own. We are not untouchable. The loss was unimaginable, especially for those who lost someone in the attacks, but for all of us.
Views from the cemetery
We went to the cemetery last night on a mission to find a headstone for someone on findagrave.com. We didn’t find what we were looking for, but I found a few stones of interest. Most of these are really old or belong to veterans.
Some of the stones were illegible due to wear, or were written in German. I could probably spend a whole day just looking at stones.
for
So as not to lose this recipe..
From Cat Cora, America’s first female iron chef.
Stuff and Things
So, The Little Kid has started back to school (last week). It’s all very middle-of-the-summer for school, but the rest of the families around here seem to be following the same freaky schedule. 🙂
Last night was Meet the Band Director and Talk to Him About an Instrument Night. TLK is going to be playing a euphonium this year, although I’m not sure if it’s base or tenor yet. The point is that the school has some on-hand and she was lucky enough to receive one of them for $90/school year. This is a big savings off the price of the music store rental, which was $60 a month.
I can stop trying to convince her that a really small instrument (no matter what it is) would be better to play than her humongous euphonium.
We are back in the land of homework, where there are spellings lists and stories to read, and questions to get through. Last year seemed to be full of math. This year seems to be full of reading (not a bad idea).
The interesting part was having her do safety patrol (blocking traffic so that kids can cross the street safely, for those of you in the UK, who I hear do not put your children in the midst of the street for this purpose). The school parking lot can be crazy, and she’s in the middle of it, but not every day. I said, “Really? You’re in the middle of the lot? Are you looking both ways before you block the traffic?”
“Mom.. the principal tells me when to go.”
Good deal. 🙂
Book Report: Still a Family: A Guide to Good Parenting Through Divorce
I’ve read a book recently called “Still a Family“. It was a guide for divorced parents with a goal toward helping children get through divorce and survive to as normal a degree as possible afterward.
This is what I took away.
Spend time with the child, and put them first, even ahead of your own feelings; not last. This can be accomplished by:
- establishing a dependable parenting schedule and trying not to cancel or be late picking up or dropping off. It causes stress to the parent who is waiting and causes stress to the child not knowing what is going on.
- being prepared for “adjustment time” between households, and don’t take things so personally. Kids may seem withdrawn when first arriving to or from visitation with the other parent. This is normal. It’s taking things in and assimilating to a different environment.
- listening to the child’s needs.
I don’t always know the perfect thing to do or say, but some of the important things come instinctively. A kid is not a mini-adult. They are just a kid with childlike understanding of the workings of the world and life. Normally, the are not attempting to hurt anyone’s feelings (unless you have just taken away their TV or texting venue… or grounded them).
Also, many arguments regarding parenting time come from parents planning activities (and expecting the child to float along) during someone else’s parenting time. Hope for flexibility, but don’t expect the other parent to give up plans to suit your plans. Be considerate of the other parent’s time by being on time where possible.
Delays which cannot be helped are best addressed through thoughtful, immediate communication. The underlying concept is “consideration” for other people and trying to make things easier on everyone.
“To make parenting time easier for each other, you and your former spouse need to respect each other’s time. This means, for example, not trying to switch times or cancel taking the kids at the last minute without a good reason. When doing this, a parent sends the message that the other parent’s time and plans are unimportant.”
Stressful. And here’s this:
“Cutting off entirely from a child can have disastrous consequences. The feeling of abandonment that may result can remain with a child for his or her entire life.”
What parents do really does give their children a model to work from. I would rather have my child learn to be prompt, considerate, courteous and dependable, than the opposite.
I’m not perfect by any means. I just do what I can, with whatever wits I have available at the time to work with. I honestly thank my husband for his undying support always, even when I’m stressed out or ranting and keep asking for support with the same issues. He’s a lifesaver and my strength when I don’t have any left. And thanks to others, including my family, who get to listen to me, as well, and offer insight and help when I need it.
P.S. If you’d like to borrow this book, just let me know. Barnes and Noble allows 14-day electronic lending, in a legal sort of way (of course).
欧美经典bgm 
