I always intended to continue our blog once we returned to California and by now the statue of limitations on the moving excuse has surely expired! To bring this blog up to speed I will try to sum up the last four months as succinctly as possible.
Thursday, July 5th, our final night in Geneva - standing on the Pont d'Arve
In early July we tried to enjoy our final week in Geneva but with the many things that had to be accomplished it was difficult to relax. Both Scott and I had mile long to-do lists and most things could not be checked off until our final day. Chad and David spent the week going to a day camp sponsored by the Maison de Quartier right across the street from us. It was the same camp Chad went to last summer. At almost 4½ David was too young but I was able to sign him up anyway and was so glad that he had an activity each day. A few babysitters from church helped us out with Brett while we finished up our last minute shopping and errands. The movers came Thursday morning, July 5th, at 7:30 am. The night before we had turned our playroom into the staging area and had started dividing our personal belongings into two piles: one for the boat shipment which we will not receive for two months and another for the air shipment which we will receive the Monday after we return to California. We were limited to five hundred pounds for the air shipment. Sounds like a lot but we maxed out quickly on just our summer clothes, boys' bikes, our computer and a big plastic bin of chocolate. We would not see the boys' beds, toys or anything else we brought or bought in Geneva for two months.
Even though the first couple hours the movers were packing up were pretty stressful, as we tried to stay one step ahead of the process, it was a serious luxury to have professional movers. With their perfectly matched boxes of uniform size, large rolls of bubble paper and massive tape dispensers the entire process took about eight hours and that included a typical Swiss lunch break of ninety minutes. And for Scott and I it would have been even easier except we were also trying to pack for our eight day UK/Ireland trip. That added a new dimension as the weather would not be as warm as California so instead of packing most of our summer clothes we ended up having to put them in the air shipment.
The movers left at 4:30 pm. We did not have to pick up Chad and David until 5:30 and Brett was still with the babysitter until 5 pm. That gave Scott and I a chance to sit in our empty apartment and ruminate on the past two years. What a growing experience this has been for our family and an incredible blessing and opportunity. To sum up: it was very hard to come but it was much harder to leave.
After we picked up the boys from camp we walked to a local park to meet three families from Chad's school. Chad had not seen his school friends for over a week and it was sweet to see how happy they were to see each other. We stayed until about 7 pm and just enjoyed spending our final night in Geneva with some of our local Geneva friends. The parents at Chad's school really took the time to get to know us over the past two years and were incredibly patient with our French. The moms took me out to lunch and showered me with kitschy Swiss souvenirs the Tuesday before which I really enjoyed.
Chad (and Brett) playing with his Swiss school friends Zayan and Sarah
On Friday, July 6th, nearly two years to the day we arrived, we left Geneva en route to London. I will skip that part of the adventure as that travelog is still a work in progress. Suffice it to say it was a good transition for us as it would have been difficult to simply fly from Geneva back to America.
After our fun UK/Ireland vacation with the Carrie and the Haslam cousins we flew from Dublin to Newark and I have to say it was our most enjoyable flight yet. Traveling business class with huge seats and plenty of leg room makes a huge difference! But since it was on the company dime I highly doubt we will be enjoying that luxury again. As such we were determined to make the most of it. From the moment we boarded Chad reclined his seat, put on the headphones and zoned out to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. We barely heard from him the entire eight hour flight. Brett slept for at least five hours and David slept and ate ice cream sundaes from the ice cream trolley.
Nearly twenty four hours we finally landed in Los Angeles at the LAX airport. The difference between taking off in beautiful, green Dublin and landing in brown, smoggy Los Angeles was a depressingly visible reminder that our two years in Europe were over.
We spent a few nights with Scott's brother in Murrieta while waiting for rental cars, electricity and gas in our house and the first of three shipments we were to receive over the next two months. The first arrived Monday morning and it was composed of box after box of junk we left in storage for two years. Case in point: we had a sumptuous faux wood entertainment center that was purchased by Scott at Kmart the year we were married. Scott refused to allow it in the house and when Salvation Army came to pick it up they refused to take it claiming it would not sell! This was the quality of stuff we left in storage for two years. I was much more excited to see our air shipment that arrived from Geneva on Wednesday. Was it because of the boys' bikes they were dying to ride in our extra long driveway? Was it because after wearing the same shorts for four days I was anxious to see the rest of my summer clothes? No, it was the clear plastic bin tightly covered in bubble wrap labeled “Souvenirs de Geneve.” In other words my chocolate - tangible evidence of my life in Geneva. I hid the bin in my pantry so no one would discover my contraband.
We managed to unpack pretty quickly. It was kind of sad watching the boys play with that were clearly not age appropriate, such as a Little People Noah's Ark, but the majority of our Geneva stuff was not due by boat until September.
Moving and relocating is always a challenge. But thus far the biggest challenge we have faced is Scott's daily commute into Orange County from Temecula. It is a grueling ninety minutes each way. Typically he drives the whole way on Mondays because the traffic is lighter. The rest of the week he drives into Corona and takes the train to Irvine followed by a shuttle bus to his office. That actually makes the commute longer but at least he can work (or sleep) on the train. Other things that have helped: an iPod loaded with music and interesting LDS podcasts, a wireless headset for his cell phone, a hybrid SUV that gets great gas mileage and a custom installed stereo. He leaves the house by 5:15 am and is generally home by 7 pm. Or 8 pm if he stops off at the gym on the way home. Which, despite a full day with the kids, I really encourage as a way for him to blow off some steam and reverse some of the postural damage of sitting all day! We both committed to a year of “the commute” in order to get settled into American life before making any drastic changes and are determined to make the best of it. Another bonus is the Alternative Work Schedule (AWS). He works eighty hours during the first nine days of each pay cycle and has every other Friday off. On his Fridays off he takes David and Brett to preschool and often visits Chad's school to have lunch with him and play on the recess. I have to say that really makes up for the long days.
As many who know me can attest I am a self confessed morning person. I love getting up with Scott at 5 am to make his breakfast and lunch to take on the road. Then I enjoy some quiet time before the kids get up. I can honestly say that I accomplish a lot before 8 am. But since the rest of the day is pretty much a scramble that is about all that gets done! And by 9 pm, overcome by exhaustion, I can barely climb the stairs to my bedroom.
Chad started school not a moment too soon on August 20th. Scott took off from work that day and we all rode up to the school on our bikes and escorted him to class. His teacher, Mrs. Maxwell, is a twenty year veteran of elementary education. She has also worked as a reading resource teacher. This was comforting information knowing that we are facing an upward battle on the reading front. Most of the kids in his class attended the school's full day kindergarten program last year and learned essential early reading skills such as recognizing over twenty five sight words. My goal is to slowly bring Chad up to speed without “weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth.” Because ultimately I want him to enjoy reading as much as I do and not form negative associations. To further complicate matters it should come as no surprise to those who know this darling child that sitting still and focusing are not activities that come easily to him. I volunteer in his classroom every other Thursday and could definitely see that most of the other children were initially reading much better than him. But in the past couple of weeks he has made a lot of progress. More importantly he seems to be enjoying the sensation of being able to navigate the world as a reader. He now reads street signs and billboards and words on the television. So despite these academic hurdles we all love first grade! Chad really enjoys his friends, recess and buying the school lunch once a week. I enjoy time with David and Brett and David enjoys being the boss for at least six hours of the day.
The younger boys started preschool in September with Scott's mom's best friend, Sylvia Allen. I am amazed and excited by all the things they are learning. Miss Sylvia does so many things with music and that is just what Brett needs and loves. In October they enjoyed a carnival style Halloween party with a huge bounce house and games. This month the preschool hosted a Thanksgiving picnic complete with turkey and all the trimmings. The children dressed up as Indians in brown paper bag vests and feather adorned headdresses while performing the cutest Thanksgiving songs. Chad had the day off of school and helped me out by taking pictures with the digital camera while I was on camcorder duty. Upon hearing about his brother's costumes he whipped up a brown paper bag vest and headdress which he brought to the picnic to join in the revelry.
David and Brett singing Thanksgiving songs at their preschool picnic
"Bristling Beaver" and "Dakota Chief" at their preschool Thanksgiving picnic
We have celebrated three birthdays since our return. Brett turned three in August while Scott and I just got a bit older in September! It was really fun to have my dad and sisters here for Brett's birthday. We set up a Spiderman Slip'n Slide in our backyard and after a few runs he figured out how to hurl himself down the plastic slide and there was no stopping him. He loved opening his presents and enjoyed the pink strawberry cupcakes he selected.
Brett figures out the slip'n slide
Happy 3rd Birthday Brett!
Sadly there is a downside. Historically three has not been a great year in the Edgeworth family and Brett is no exception. Bedtime is especially difficult. The child is no longer bound to a crib and makes for a very obnoxious free agent. And I must confess to a certain level of sloppiness in the bed time routine that transpired during our final months in Geneva. Things were hectic and we were traveling a lot so he and David really got used to sleeping with us. I feel like I am really struggling with him as of late and then I look at David and realize that four is only a mite bit better in our family in terms of the ability to follow rules and self govern. I feel like things really improved with Chad when he turned six. When I do the math that seems like a long way off...
We had some really fun family visits in October. Scott's sister, Carrie, and cousin, Kim Seager, spent nearly a week with us. The highlight of their visit was a trip to Disneyland! The older boys are finally big enough to go on the really fun rides and enjoyed Space Mountain, Star Tours, The Matterhorn and the Haunted House Ride. As he is no where near the forty two inch height requirement Brett missed out on a few of those but loved riding Buzz Light Year four times. For me it was especially gratifying because for the first time with the kids I actually had fun at Disneyland. Waiting in line was not torture. The kids were excited and well behaved.
Adorable Emme Haslam (Carrie's 3rd) at 10 months
Right after Carrie and Kim left we drove to Las Vegas for a Riddle Family Reunion. It was great to see my aunts and uncles again and the boys really enjoyed all the attention and especially tossing a frisbee for hours in the nearby park with my Uncle Don. It was a really fun and easy vacation for us as my mom's house is really a second home in terms of toys and activities for the boys. My sisters and I managed to surprise my dad with a 60th birthday party comprised of friends, family and his favorite foods and drinks. Our aunts and uncles just barely managed to keep him out of his house long enough to set everything up! Pam organized a really fun tapas-esque style menu followed by Grandma Riddle's meringues and strawberries for dessert. Scott and I even snuck off Saturday night and went to a really low budget (yet kind of expensive) Haunted House that I had seen driving home from yoga. Scott loves that sort of thing and I try to be supportive at least once per year! And although I tried to be brave (mainly by walking through with my eyes closed) I did have to outrun the chain saw wielding man at the end.
Riddles hiking at Red Rock
Enjoying the sun in Grandma's backyard - Brett thinks it is warm enough to swim!
Halloween was BIG in our house this year. We made the most of modest celebrations in Geneva (organized by our English speaking church congregation) but let's face it: no one loves the accumulation of free candy while wearing outrageously expensive costumes like Americans. And this year Chad and David were at a great age to trick or treat. Chad wanted to be a Transformer so we decided he would earn the money to buy the costume with homework points. Each day that he did his math and reading right after school with no whining he earned a point. I also bought a military camouflage costume from Gymboree on clearance the week before Halloween and decided David could wear that. The only sticky point was that he thought he was going to be a Transformer as well. Not wanting to spend another forty bucks on the requisite Transformer jumpsuit I convinced the boys to “share” both costumes. Not sure how I got away with that one as David really only wore the costume once to his preschool Halloween party but it seems that was enough and he happily donned the camo costume on all the other dress up occasions including the 31st. It is not as grossly unfair as it sounds because when Chad was four he basically picked a costume from our dress up bin to wear for our first Geneva Halloween. At least David was sporting a new costume...
Trick or Treat!
Throwing a slight wrench in certain October festivities were the Southern California fires. We had our first inkling of trouble when Scott drove to work the Monday morning following our Vegas vacation. The toll road that he normally takes to his office in Irvine was completely shut down. We began watching the news and discovered that there were a series of fires in San Diego, Irvine and north of Los Angeles. Throughout the day the freeway closures continued essentially trapping Scott in Irvine. It took hours to get home that evening as he was literally stuck on the road for hours with thousands of other commuters. The rest of the week he wisely took the train to work. Chad was not allowed outside for recess but was required to stay indoors playing endless games of “Heads Up Seven Up,” which coincidently I loved playing as a child and was always thrilled for the rare rainy day in Las Vegas. By Wednesday the air quality had worsened and over two hundred teachers in our school district were displaced. Not surprisingly school was canceled both Thursday and Friday. Initially I thought everyone was overreacting but the gusting winds died down on Wednesday and by late afternoon I could not go outside without my lungs hurting and eyes stinging. The ash gray sky was reminiscent of a nuclear fall out. It stayed that way for several days and was very disconcerting as part of the sky was still a bright blue.
It has taken us a couple of months to adjust to our new church congregation here in Temecula. From our first Sunday in Geneva we loved the intimacy and felt a vital part of our English speaking ward. After about six consecutive Sundays in Temecula I realized that I had not seen the same person twice! But as summer ended and school started it became easier to get to know many of the parents in my boys' primary classes. A few families in particular have become good friends and we have already enjoyed many park outings together with the kids. After campaigning just a little bit I was really excited at the beginning of November to be called as the primary chorister – my dream calling as I fell in love with teaching the primary music in Geneva. Scott is serving as a teacher in the Elder's Quorum; a great calling for him as he is a superb teacher in my humble, and yet biased, estimation.
November was a busy month with parent teacher conferences, a lot of early release days and a weeks worth of Thanksgiving holidays. My mom joined us for Thanksgiving this year as well as Scott's Grandpa Edgeworth who is currently living in a retirement home in Victorville. Thursday morning Scott got up early to pick up both him and my mom who flew into the Ontario airport. After a relaxing and fun Thanksgiving meal at Evan and Aimee's house Scott drove him back to Victorville that night. Despite the arduous drive it was well worth it to enjoy Grandpa's company and his wonderful blessing on the food. My mom took the boys to the movies both Friday and Saturday and did a great job babysitting Saturday night so that Scott and I could go to the San Diego Temple. So despite the intense pain in my heart when I think of Geneva (I have coffee table books that I literally cannot even open) we are trying to recognize and enjoy all the blessings of living close to our families once again.
