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‘Travel’ Category

  1. Homeward Bound

    September 2, 2011 by Katie

    5000 miles, 80+ hours in the car, 10 states, countless roadside diaper changes, 3 weeks on the go, 2 optimistic parents and 1 clueless newborn.

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    (Elise at almost one month old right before we went on our adventure. Seems so long ago.)

    It’s never too early to start traveling the world and seeing exotic places….like Kansas.

     

    Who ever thought we would’ve survived three weeks of traveling with a newborn? I’m sure most people thought we were crazy, and I don’t think that’s an unfair assessment.  But we knew way before she was even born that we’d be embarking on a trip back to Kansas City for my dear friend Kaddie’s wedding, so we figuredwhy not make a longer visit out of it since Todd gets a month of paternity leave anyways (thank you for that awesome benefit, Big Software Company)?

    When we left, she was a tiny 4 week old baby, and when we returned, she was a well-traveled 7 week old. At the end of our trip, we realized that she had almost been away from home just as long as she’d been at home. And that’s when we knew it was time to get her back to ‘normal’ life.

    The beginning of our trip took us to visit Grandpa & Grandma H in Idaho for a couple days, and somehow we managed to leave our camera packed away in the trunk of the car. :(

    Onward through Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska and finally to Kansas City where she met her uncle Ben & aunt Kim!

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    (aunt Kim was 8 months pregnant, and baby Barrett decided to make his arrival the week we left to drive back to Seattle)

    I think Elise was pretty enamored by Uncle Ben, and he now thinks that he’s the only one who can get her to stop crying…I’ll let him keep thinking that.

     

    You know, for being out and about for several weeks, we really failed to capture many pictures. I guess that’s what happens when you have your hands full and are more concerned with tending to a baby’s needs.

    Once Todd gives me some he took on his phone, I’ll post those, but for now all I have are these we took while we were relaxing on my parents’ farm.

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    Uncle Ben flew his plane up on Saturday morning to spend a couple more hours with us.

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    Somewhere in there, she also got to meet her great aunts & uncles and numerous relatives. I’m excited for Elise to get to spend many more summers back on the farm. It’s a great place to be.


  2. Hard at Work

    March 9, 2011 by Katie

    Hope you haven’t minded that we’ve been absent for a few weeks. We were busy doing stuff like this:

    And this….

    And all of this….

    Tough job, but somebody had to do it.

    I’ve officially been told I have a big belly. Could be because the only things that are truly comfortable now are maternity shirts and they’re made to emphasize the bump, or it could be the fact that I ate a lot of shave ice & a massive amount of luau pork and it all caught up with me after vacation.

    Either way, I love this belly—no matter how ‘big’ some say it is—because it means that we are healthy. Junebug/Squirrel/Baby Harris has become an active little boxer, and is packing on the ounces, weighing in at just over 1 pound. And judging from our most recent ultrasound images, quite the cutie. Ok, maybe we’re a little bit biased.

    24 weeks down. ? weeks to go!


  3. One year

    September 19, 2010 by Katie

    Exactly one year ago today, we were over here….

    ……immersing ourselves in the majestic beauty of Switzerland.  We spent our last couple days in Switzerland in the city of Interlaken.  At a 2-star hotel above a mexican restaurant, with the communal shower one floor below us and the toilet one floor up. Certainly not the fanciest of digs, but we didn’t care at all when we were so worn out from traipsing through the Alps all day.

    Have I ever mentioned how much I love jumping?

    And that I love Swiss cows so much they made me squeal with glee every time I saw them?  Look at them, just chillin’ in the Alps. No fence. No worries. Just a strange American girl squealing in their faces.

    These pictures don’t even do the beauty of the Bernese Alps justice. Where else can you eat your lunch and spend a whole day hiking with this magnificent view as your backdrop? Perhaps in Heaven? (yes, that’s right. When I get to Heaven, I want to go hiking with Jesus.)

    My words cannot even come a million times close to describing the awesomeness of it all, so I won’t even try.  I was so happy to be there, I frolicked in the wildflowers.  Switzerland, I love you love you LOVE you.

    And then after a stop at Lac Léman in Geneva for a couple hours we hopped a train to Lyon, France for 2 days where we basically ate our weight in quiche, crepes, croissants and panaché. Mmmmm, panaché.

    We talk about going back to Europe at least 5 times a week. Perhaps that’s why I’m super reminiscent right now.  I want to be there.  Amongst the gentle cows, the waterfalls, the Eiger & Jungfrau. Eating my cheese & grapes on a mountain bench.  Sitting at a sidewalk cafe sipping rosé and savoring creamy French crepes.

    Lost in the languages, but happy all over.


  4. Truly Amazing

    August 8, 2010 by Katie

    After a grueling 36 hours of traveling, I made it safely back home Friday night.

    Oh, the stories I have to tell (once I get unpacked, caught up on sleep, and my brain isn’t so foggy)….

    For now, I will sum up the Russia trip in one word:

    AMAZING.




  5. To Russia With Love

    July 22, 2010 by Katie

    Well, I’m off on the adventure.

    My bags are stuffed to the brim.

    Green one is clothes. Blue one is lots and lots of this fun stuff:

    Snap bracelets, glow bracelets, whirlygigs, paper, googley eyes, face paint, pencils & pens galore…..etc.

    There’s another larger suitcase full of fun goodies that had to be dropped off at another house earlier since it won’t fit in our car with both of us and these bags. :)  The kids will be happy.

    Thank you to all who have donated money to help with this mission. I appreciate it SO incredibly much.

    With God, I go. Catch ya in two weeks!