Long Time, No See

Trying to get back into our life in Chicago...



Brandon and I met up with our friends at Family Grounds Cafe. This is the same place where we had a going away playdate back in March, just a few days before we flew to SG. Wow! The kids sure have changed!

Sarah and Maggie came over for a playdate. Brandon didn't really like sharing all of his "new" toys with Maggie...

Brandon had his first taste of peanut butter. Not sure what to think of it... Maybe because Mommy bought the all natural kind and not the yummy sugary peanut butter. :)

It was nice to back in Chicago in time for all of the Fall fun. Our little lion enjoyed his Halloween playdate with his friends. Olivia, Conrad, Milind, Amalia, Mia, Charlie, Sofia, and Heidi.

We also made a trip to the Museum of Science and Industry. Love that we have a membership. Great place for kids!!!

Seeing all of our friends again helped make Chicago feel a little more like home. Still taking time to settle in...

Home in Chicago

Nearly an 8 hour flight from London to Chicago. Very short considering our last flight! :)

Brandon did well on the plane, but his sleeping schedule was off. This was probably the most difficult flight of our recent flights. That could have also been because we were anxious to finally get back to Chicago...

A friend picked us up at the airport that evening.

So strange to be back in the States. Even as soon as we got off of the airplane, I noticed that I wasn't in Asia anymore. Visually, I noticed a different racial composition of people.

Maybe we will have a little culture shock back here in the US?

When we arrived back at our condo, I expected to feel a sense of relief and a sense of home. Rather, our condo did not feel like home to me. It felt foreign. It felt lonely. I felt a emptiness in my stomach.

It didn't smell like home.

I cried that night. Overwhelmed by so many emotions. And pregnancy hormones, I'm sure. :)

Brandon seemed thrilled to have arrived in a new setting with new toys. It was like Christmas morning. He rode his red Lightning McQueen car around the house. When he saw all of the books in his bedroom, he said, "Oh, wow!"

I can't tell if Brandon remembered our home or not. I sensed that something about the place was vaguely familiar to him, but I don't think he really remembered that this was once home.

I realized how much Brandon has changed in the last few months. I also realized how much time had actually passed since we left Chicago in March. All of the pictures on the walls were of a little Brandon - not the big boy we returned with. I think that part of me felt that time stopped while we were on our SG adventure. Being back in our condo, I realized that time hadn't ceased. For Mommy, it was a sad reminder that her baby is growing up...

As it was nighttime, we headed to bed a couple of hours after arriving. I couldn't sleep. I was exhausted, and I don't think the insomnia was related to jetlag. More, it was because my senses were overwhelmed by new stimuli, and my mind couldn't stop spinning. As is rare, Steven fell asleep long before I did that night.

The jetlag wasn't so bad. Brandon didn't seem to have trouble with his days and nights. He did cry a few times in the night for the first few nights, but after that he was sleeping solidly through the night again.

I would say that it took us at least a month to get readjusted to Chicago and our "new" home. Oh, how I missed our kitchen! How I missed our cars! And, yay! It was amazing to have my cell phone back.

My parents came to Chicago the first weekend we were back. So good to see them again. We enjoyed the short walk from our house to the beach on Lake Michigan.

While the weather was still warm, I took Brandon to the Lincoln Park Zoo. Needed to satisfy our zoo addiction.

Some things Brandon is doing -

He knows how to hail a cab. He raises his arm and says, "Taxi!" He loves the SG and London taxis we brought back for him as souvenirs.

Brandon is such a happy boy! He is learning so many new words by the minute.

London - Last Day

Our last morning in London...



Brandon and I took a long walk to the Shakespeare Globe Theater. It is a modern reconstruction of the theater associated with William Shakespeare around 1600.

I really wanted to see the inside of the theater, and the only way to do that was to take a tour. Not an easy thing to do with Brandon, especially after he had been sitting in the stroller for an hour beforehand.

The tour was short, but we still had to leave about halfway through... I didn't want to disturb the other people in the tour.

We headed back to the hotel, packed up our things, and checked out of the hotel. Steven met us at the hotel, and we headed to the airport.

7 1/2 hours... In only 7 1/2 hours, we would arrive back in Chicago after being away for almost 6 1/2 months. Anxious and excited!

London - Day 2

This morning we left the hotel and headed for Westminster Abbey. We didn't have to walk far!



This is a picture of our hotel. The London Eye is right behind it.

































This is the other view from our hotel. The hotel is located just across the Westminster Bridge from Big Ben! And, Westminster Abbey is right behind that. Amazing location!

We took a tour of Westminster Abbey.

After that, we walked past Number 10 Downing Street, the residence of the Prime Minister. (We couldn't see the exact address as the street was blocked by this gate and guards.)

We walked through St. James Park.

We made our way to Buckingham Palace.

We walked through Trafalgar Square.

Brandon loved the red busses and the black taxis!

We made our way back to the hotel taking in a few more old and beautiful sights.

This afternoon, I wanted to go to Kensington Gardens. I wasn't sure about transportation with Brandon and a stroller though...

It turns out that the black London taxis are HUGE! I was able to strap Brandon into the BOB and wheel him into the back of the taxi with me. WOW!

We found the Princess Diana Memorial Playground that I was looking for. The children's playground was inspired by the stories of Peter Pan, one of my favorites.

Brandon played for a while. He was especially mesmerized by an older boy who had a really neat toy car. "Mommy, please get his car for me!"

We also walked through the park to find the well known Peter Pan statue. The location for this bronze statue was chosen by J M Barrie, the author who created Peter. In Barrie's first story about Peter Pan (The Little White Bird), Peter flies out of his nursery and lands beside the Long Water, right where this statue in located.

So magical!