The Sleep Sack

Sleeping sacks are super popular in Germany. They are great since they are basically wearable blankets and kids can't put it over their heads. Great idea. The only problem, in Germany, they cost roughly an arm and a leg. Ok, 60 Euro or so, but seriously expensive. So I was looking online to see if I can get some while here in the US. Low and behold, Carter's makes some! Sweet! They are out of fleece, so decently warm and they are cheap! Normal price, they are 20 bucks! YES! So, the other day, we were at Kohl's (one of my favorite stores) and they had them there, on sale...for 8 (yes eight!) dollars! We bought 3. They are super cute and Amelia likes them. There is only one problem. I have only seen them for 0-9 months. I hope that they make them bigger too...or I find them elsewhere here for cheap and bigger. :)

The second night...

...was really good with Amelia! I think she is coping with jet-lag much better than Markus or I am! However, she is allowed to take naps during the day, so that may have something to do with it. :) Last night, she was passed out by 8:30pm and we went to bed at 9:05pm (I'm very proud of that 5 minutes there!). I nursed her a bit, and she passed out again and only woke up at 2 and 5 to nurse for about 20 minutes and then went back to sleep. As I am writing this (7:25am) she's still asleep with Markus upstairs. Not bad little girl! Keep it up!

The trip...

...lasted 24 freaking hours! It was long, there is no denying that one, and had three different stages, but luckily, it was pretty good. We got up at 3:00am on Saturday, showered, got the car loaded and got Amelia ready. Unfortunately, the road crews weren't as on top of it as we were. The roads were AWFUL! We had to drive from Weiden to Nuremberg, which normally takes only an hour...Saturday, it took almost two....causing us to almost miss our first flight. Markus was awesome with driving...it was stressful, but we made it thanks to his awesome driving skills.

So, we're at Nuremberg Airport, and there are about 50 American kids (ok, early twenties) there wanting to check in as well. It was getting pretty close, and there were two nice ladies in front of us whose flights were at noon, so they let us skip ahead...why they were there checking in at 6:30am, I have no idea. We get checked in with only a half an hour before our flight...Phew, that was close! We get to the gate and we only have enough time for each of us to go to the restroom before we have to board.

Stage one -The first flight: This was the flight from Nuremberg to Frankfurt. We get loaded on to the plane, and then we wait...and wait...and wait...ok, it was probably only about 10 minutes at first, but then an announcement was made that we weren't clear for takeoff for another half an hour or so...an hour later, we were in the air. Amelia nursed while we were taxiing to the runway...and then we had to wait in line...Note to self: don't start nursing until we are cleared for takeoff and are gaining speed on the ground. She was done nursing before we took off, so we had to make her suck her pucky to help out with the pressure and her ears. This worked. She slept the whole half hour that the flight took. Wow...no screaming. Awesome! You're such a great kid Amelia!

Then we get to Frankfurt and have to traverse basically the entire city of Frankfurt to get to the right terminal. We were basically running at this point since the delay in our flight from Nuremberg caused us to have only a half hour in Frankfurt...not fun. We get to the gate right as they are making the announcement that "those traveling with small children are able to board at this time..." Sweet....just made it.

Stage two - Frankfurt to Houston: We pass through the gate and are herded into a bus that will take us to our plane. Alrighty, we can do that :). We get into the bus which was roughly heated to the temperature it is in hell...while it was about -12 degrees C outside. Not good. I'm just getting over being sick, I don't need to get sick again! But surely we can't be on the bus too long. We'll get to the plane and get off the bus and right onto the plane...nope. I was wrong. We stayed on this bus roasting until Markus asked the bus driver to turn off the damn heat. At this time, Markus is sweating bullets and is in his t-shirt. I've got Amelia, so I can't strip down and I'm so freaking hot and sweating as well. Amelia is getting pissed since we have her bundled up for the -12 weather, but in the bus it is about 90000 degrees. We get her de-layered. Right after we get her de-layered, they let us off the bus. Great...time to re-layer. We get out of the bus, and then have to wait in a line that is taking for-freaking-ever to board, and we were sent to the stairs that go up the back part of the plane...where everyone sitting in economy is supposed to go up...and the wind is going like no other...and the stairway isn't covered (unlike the stairs at the front at the plane)...Markus and I look at each other (after waiting in the line for the back stairs for about 5 minutes in the -12 weather) and we both agree, "Screw it, we're going to the front."

So, we get boarded and get to our seat. The stewardesses are loving Amelia and her hair. Everyone is amazed by her hair...I'm still amazed by her hair! Anywho, this flight is only about 20 minutes delayed (made up in the air...sweet! On time!). As we are taxiing to takeoff, Amelia decides it is a great time to be super tired and unable to be calmed....so she was SCREAMING like she was roasting on a spit or something! Oh lord...I'm thinking...I hope and pray it isn't like this the entire time! We finally get her calmed after about a good 15 minutes of screaming, and she just passes out cold. Phew...crisis averted. Number of bad looks at this time: 3 (mainly from this Turkish ass that was in the row next to us).

Throughout the rest of the trip, Amelia was AMAZING! She didn't cry, she smiled, she looked at everything and everyone. It was so cute. Number of good looks: Loads. Ok, this is going to be better than I thought.

Oh, and I forgot to say, we had those seats right at the bulkhead where you can attach a bassinet to the wall....If you are traveling with an infant, this is seriously the ONLY way to do it...it was great. And Amelia really liked it too. :)
About half an hour before landing, I'm starting to dread the change in pressure again...and I had every reason to be worried...right after this thought, Amelia started screaming again...yup, starting our descent. She didn't want to nurse...she didn't want her pucky...she wanted to scream...and scream she did for about 10 minutes before she passed out again. Total number of bad looks: 5 (again, mainly from the Turkish ass in the row next to us).

Alrighty, we made it through our flights...we get out of the security area, see my mom and are just completely elated. She gets to see Amelia for the first time since the birth...it was quite funny too, she didn't say hi to Markus or I...she just went straight for Amelia...totally understandable...I would have done the same :).

Stage Three - The drive: This wasn't so bad. We had to stop once so I could change Amelia and feed her, then she was passed out for the rest of the trip. The only bad part was this huge wreck on a little farm road (in which there is no other way to go except for on this one road). This caused about an hour delay. So a drive that should have taken about 3 hours took about 5...Man, I just want to be in my bed, in my room in Wimberley!

We get in at 9:00pm...and then were in bed by 9:20 pm. This was roughly 24 hours of traveling. Amelia was a champ and I'm totally impressed by what an awesome kid she was! I just hope that she's as good on the trip back!

Oh, and so far so good on the jet lag of an infant. She slept last night when we got here...I was the one that was up at 4am...not her. I finally got up at 6am, which in turn caused her to be up as well.

Oh, Texas! How I've missed you! I love being home and I can't wait to see all my family and friends that are coming to Wimberley and those I'll see in Houston! Woohoo!

Stupid cold!

So, I've got a cold. It decided to rear its ugly face at 3am...DAMN YOU COLD!! Luckily I have some of the best in-laws in the world and Franz and Marianne came to Weiden to watch after Amelia so I could run over to the doctor. I wanted to go to the doctor because A) I have no clue what I can take to combat a cold while breastfeeding and B) I wanted to be sure it wasn't a sinus infection...Well, it is a sinus infection and my doctor wants to combat it with antibiotics. Wait a sec...I thought I couldn't take antibiotics??? Well, I can. There are a few antibiotics that I can take, and yes, a little bit will get into the milk, but the doctor assured me it will have no ill-effects on Amelia.

So, now, I'm going to sign off and probably t he next post I make will be made from the US of A! I hope this achy feeling goes away soon...and the pressure...and the sore throat...

From Scratch...Tomato, Basil, Feta Quiche

This is another one of our recipes that I use all the time...at least once or twice a month. Oh, and I make these in Germany, where you can buy a basil plant for about 2 bucks, but I know in the US, basil will cost you an arm and a leg...you can use whichever herbs you have...dried works fine, but fresh just makes this recipe super good

Enough pie crust for either a spring form or a pie pan
1 package of feta
1 basil plant
3 or 4 roma tomatoes
3 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup cream
2 tea italian herb mix
salt
pepper


-Slice and de-seed the tomatoes and place in the bottom of your springform or pie pan that has the pie crust already in it.
-In a food processor, put in the feta and the basil and mix until the basil and feta are mixed together.
-Add in everything else and mix until smooth-ish (should be a few feta chunks)
-Pour into pie pan or springform and place in a 190 C pre-heated oven and bake for bout an hour. The top should be golden brown.
-Enjoy!

From Scratch...Smoked Salmon Pasta

This is a super easy recipe that takes no time at all to whip up, and it tastes pretty good! We make this at least 3 or 4 times a month

Enough pasta for two (reserve some of the pasta water)
50-75 ml. of cream
200 g. smoked salmon
loads of dried dill
freshly ground pepper

-Cook the pasta according to the package directions
-In a pan, cook the salmon just a bit (about 4 minutes before the pasta is done), add the cream and dill bring to a boil and add a bit of the pasta water
-Add cooked pasta to salmon mixture...if it looks dry, add a bit more of the pasta water.
-Add freshly ground pepper to your taste
-Enjoy :)

Oh, and don't add any salt to the salmon mixture...the salmon is salty enough...I made this mistake once, and never again... :)

One Stylin' Dog

Charlie got a new cone thing since he absolutely HATES the big plastic one. This one is an inflatable tube that goes around his neck and works the same as the cone, just better...and much more comfy for my Charlie dude! We were at the vet today to get some more shots since he can't take pills right now (his tummy is still sensitive), and the vet loved it! He said that he would like the name of the website where I bought it so that he can get a few for the more sensitive dogs (and cats) that need the cone. He also said that Germans aren't really like the Americans (duh!) in respect to how much money they spend on their animals, but he also said that this is all changing. I think that this little extra comfort for Charlie is totally worth it since he'll have to wear this thing for at least a few weeks. But yeah, he got loads of compliments on it...he's so trendy :).

Charlie and his stylin' cone (you can see the old one in the background)

One tough dude

Here is Charlie recovering on his blanket throne in the living room, which will be moved into the bedroom tonight...he is one tough doggie!

And he's home :)

Charlie came home at about 6pm. What a long, stressful, not fun at all day for him! But there is some good news too! When Markus went to pick him up, he asked about how the surgery went. They said beautifully, and that his intestine with all twisted/knotted, you get the picture. This is great news though since they didn't have to actually cut into any of his organs! This means that recovery will be just a bit easier, since they still had to cut through his stomach muscles and that hurts! But our little dude is home and asleep on a blankie on the floor...with his cone around his head.

We have to go in tomorrow for another IV and probably some meds, but maybe he'll get to eat something tomorrow! First time since Friday morning! The only thing is, we have to carry him everywhere...up the stairs, down the stairs, to his patch of grass to pee...thankfully, Markus is going to take him down the stairs and to the car tomorrow before he goes to work...and he'll most likely go to the vet with us...and Marianne is going to come up tomorrow while we're there to help out with Amelia. I'm so thankful that she lives so close!

Alrighty, that is all for today. I'm completely relieved that our little Charlie dude is back and that everything went as well as it did. He'll make a speedy recovery since that is just how he is. He'll be back being his old self in no time (but of course we'll limit him until he is truly ready for action).

Finally...

The vet called and said Charlie was a trooper and the surgery went smoothly. YAY! What happened is that his large intestine twisted (think wringing out of a cloth) and that is what was causing the blockage. I'm not sure if he had to actually cut into the intestine or not, so I don't really know recovery time, but I'm guessing a few weeks. Poor dude...but at least he is an ALIVE, healthy dude again. Now to think of ways to pamper my little dude :).

Oh, and we get to pick him up either this evening or tomorrow, depending on how he's doing. :)

One crazy night....

Charlie threw up again at about 3am, so we immediately called the vet (it took him a while to call back, which is totally understandable in the middle of the night). He said we needed to come in ASAP...he'd be there by 4:45 so we should be there too. Markus took Charlie over, and Charlie got some stuff to eat, special stuff, no idea what it is really. They can track it via x-ray and see how far it gets, if it gets anywhere...well, after half an hour, it didn't get out of the stomach...bad sign. So, the vet decided it was best to do surgery right away. Charlie went under the knife around 6:15am and the vet said it would take at least 3 hours...so we're waiting....and waiting...and waiting...this is seriously the longest three hours of my life...10 minutes feels like 10 hours...I've gotten roughly 3 hours of sleep (mostly from about midnight until 2...and from 2 until now (9:30) roughly an hour)....just waiting on the phone call...

...and the waiting continues...

Charlie boy

Poor little Charlie boy is sick. We had to go to the emergency vet today...Charlie had blood taken, an X-ray made of his stomach and an IV. Turns out he has a stomach and an intestinal infection...poor puppy! No food or water until the doctor gives us the ok (we go back in tomorrow morning for another IV and another assessment of how he's doing...Right now, Markus is cuddling with him on the floor, Amelia is passed out in her stroller bassinet...and I'm about to be passed out on the couch I'm so tired!

This also means that the posts that I was planning on doing to day about my "from scratch" challenge are being put on hold...I did make Creamy Smoked Salmon Pasta, Eggplant Parmesan and will be making a roasted chicken with scalloped potatoes tonight. So, these will just have to wait until my four-legged child is better...

Amelia's noises

We were able to get a cute video of Amelia making her noises...too cute!

Another cute video...

It is officially official!

Amelia is a US citizen! Woohoo! Here are some pics to prove how happy she is to have dual citizenship :) Oh and that pic with her passports is her passport pic...too cute!