Christmas with family

December 24, 2009- January 1, 2010

It was so nice to arrive (in between a blizzard to the west and an ice storm to
the east) back in the good old-USA! There really is something about spending
Christmas with family.

When we arrived, Jeanne had Christmas presents to wrap that had been
ordered online and delivered tothe US. So after she got caught up we finally
had Christmas in the afternoon.  The kids were quite patient and we had a
quiet and relaxful day enjoying Scott's parents and their cute dog Gus.

The rest of the week was spent shopping (hoorah Wal-Mart!) visiting Scott's
siblings: Michelle in Kokomo, Cindy from Minnesota and David in
Brownsburg. We had one big Christmas get together a few days after
Christmas which was fantastic for all of the cousins (a dozen of them now)
to get together and have fun.

Bryce unfortunately had to have his wisdom teeth pulled on Tuesday. But as
the UK dentistry isn't anywhere near the level of the US, this was a good
thing. He had one really rough day but then was near normal! He was
amazing!

We ended the new year at David and Sarah's house in Brownsburg playing
our new game PUERTO RICO. It was a confusing game but definitely
addictive!

Ski trip

Ski Trip to Les Gets, France


December 19-24, 2009


We went on a ski trip with three other American Caterpillar 
employee families- The Duffy's, the Rodman's and the Zak's. But we 
were the odd family as we flew into Geneva instead of driving. This 
was because we wanted to also go back to the States for Christmas! 
So we planned to fly into Geneva, stay 5 nights/4 days (2 shorter than 
the rest of group), and then race straight from Geneva to Indianapolis 
late Christmas Eve. It was a loaded schedule that was all the more 
complicated by yet another series of freak UK snowstorms.


Actually, for the first time ever, we FELT like we were on an island. 
The snowstorms closed the airports, shut down many roads, the ice 
caused the chunnel to close as the trains failed mechanically in the 
ice. To top it all, the ports closed due to the ice.


Though our entire group was inconvenienced, we all just barely 
slipped out of the country in little windows of open travel. WHEW!


The families that drove faced massive delays parking on all of the 
highways, waiting for the ferry (actually the last one), frozen wiper 
blades, NO bathrooms in France along the road as they were stuck 
in traffic, etc... BUT they made it.


Our taxi wasn't sure if we would make it to the airport...but we did! 
We then took the only flight out of the day that wasn't cancelled...
WHEW! But our taxi in Geneva was 2 hours late because they 
assumed we weren't coming from all the cancelled flights. Needless 
to say, we were tired but elated to finally arrive in Les Gets 
(pronounced Le- Zhay).


It was a massive BEAUTIFUL chalet. The only downside was that it 
required a shuttle to the slopes. Since we didn't drive we were a bit 
of an inconvenience to the other families in shuttling us back and forth.


The other downside (or blessing) was that the ski boots didn't fit 
Jeanne, so she had to be a house mom. But after she saw another 
dad severely injure his knee (torn ACL) the second day it was 
probably a blessing... She still had fun in the beautiful house and with 
the other fun families. It was good.


The beginner skiers all signed up for a group lesson which was 
fantastic (and economical) and in the afternoon the three little girls 
(Sophie, Emily, and Christina) all had their ski school. It was great to 
see how they all progressed. Bryce quickly got the knack of skiing 
and enjoyed hanging out with Noah and Anisa, Madison paired off 
with Anna in the mornings and Brittany in the afternoons and 
Christina just wanted to keep on skiing with anyone! She was like the 
energizer bunny! Scott had one big fall that left him sore and a little 
more timid. But the rest of the trip was better as he found his favored 
route down the mountain. He was careful with his knees survived the 
trip with blisters (from wearing his boots too tight) and a sore elbow.


The families that we went on this trip with have become very close 
friends. We are so blessed to have them here in the UK. We all had 
kids around the same ages so it made for a fantastic group. It was 
really fun to spend the evenings watching movies and playing games. 
Each family took turns preparing food for the day so the work load 
was spread out. It was great!


As the trip developed into a proof of Murphy's Law, the kids and 
parents joked about all that had happened. And with great humor, the 
kids got together and crafted new words to the twelve days of 
Christmas. They sang from the balcony and it was hysterical. (And 
no, Jeanne was not the one mentioned in #1).


1- and a mom peeing by the road
2- broken poles
3- cars a convoy
4- different families
5- more wipe-outs!
6- wipers wiping (NOT!)
7- months of rehab
8- aching parents
9- hour delay
10- shuttles a day
11- kids a skiing
12- meals a making

The song and being able to laugh at our problems and mistakes 
was a highlight of the trip! Such fun!