so many things...

The past two weeks have been a blur! So much has happened, and we've been so many places that I'm not sure where to start - or whether or not I should even bother... So, here is a smattering of photos related to what we've been up to lately.

Who needs new shoes? Well, technically Nadia does. But the point here is that before we left for our trip to the States, I culled all her clothes and shoes, searching for appropriate things to wear over here. These pretty little shoes were in need of a bath (again - this is not really even as dirty as they COULD be. We hadn't had rain in a month, so they were mud-free).

After an hour or so of scrubbing and elbow grease her pretty little shoes look nearly new. Airplane ready!

Our travels began on April 13th as we left our home on the equator at 5:30am. All of our connections from Pontianak to Jakarta to Seol to Chicago were smooth, on-time and without a single hassle. Thank you, Lord. (Traveling across the planet while 6+ months pregnant and with a toddler had the potential to be a nightmare - but surprisingly there was minimal whining ((from either of us)) and only one instance of motion-sickness. In all, a miraculous journey).

Before embarking on our trek from Asia to the Americas, we took a day to catch our breath in Jakarta. We took Nadia to a zoo, and for 40 cents a person walked our feet off and exhausted the little one (as well as the overheating, swelling-footed mama). We saw lots of fun animals, and it was just a fun day together without luggage or check-in times or passports and visas.

Taking (another) break from all the walking. Nadia enjoying the borrowed stroller for a few minutes. Most of the time she was the one pushing it around.

Komodo dragon sauntering away

We arrived in Chicago on the 15th to very chilly weather. We were pretty certain that ANY weather would feel chilly to us because of where we've lived for the past two years. But 37 degrees and threatening snow was FREEEEEZING for us! We've been resting and unpacking and catching up with friends and family all week. For some reason, we don't really have photos of any of that time quite yet (Michelle, do you have any of all our kids?). Here are a couple from this morning as the weather finally warmed up enough to take the wiggle worm outside to play.

She learned about dandelions, daffodils, driveways and sidewalks today. :0)

Yesterday, she napped on her cousin's bed while under the close, careful, loving watch of the family dog, Kevin.