Watery adventures

We are still here in the mountains, having a great time. I am not keeping with with anything online. We still don’t have an internet connection at our house. Right now I’m sitting outside the (closed) public library, using their wireless internet. Again.

Mr. Four is back at the house, and he’s probably tapping his foot waiting for me to get back since he’s stuck at the house without the car.

My mom was here last week, and we had a great time exploring some rivers and creeks. She left yesterday morning, and some of Mr. Four’s family arrived last night. Mr. Four’s brother is also an outdoorsy guy, so he brought a couple of canoes.

Mr. Four and I took the boys on their first (very mild) whitewater adventure last week: a canoe trip down a beautiful Class I-II river. They loved it until it rained. Then Bug freaked because he thought it would thunder and he’s scared of thunder. Giggle was fine until the rain turned chilly. We took off the river a little early, though Mr. Four and I were pretty much in hysterics at the absurdity of it all. “It’s not funny!” Giggle kept insisting.

We had even more fun yesterday when we went tubing on a creek in a national park near our house. Giggle had his own tube, tethered to Mr. Four’s, and Bug sat on my lap in our own big tube. I used my whitewater skills, honed from years of Class III, to get us unstuck from various rocks. The boys loved it. Bug narrated the whole trip–”Here come the waves!”–and Giggle proclaimed at the end of each run, “That was awesome!”

Mr. Four and I both agreed. It was about as much fun as I’ve ever had.

I have some work stuff to do over the next week, to get ready for some conference presentations, but I know Mr. Four, his family, and the boys will have a great time checking out more of the local waterways.

On another note: the boys just got their Christmas and birthday money from their grandfather, and we are thinking about buying them each a Leapster, especially for the flight home. Any suggestions, recommendations, etc. are welcome. Thanks!

Back in the USA

Phew. What a week it’s been. I am not going to write any more about the flights over as they are best left repressed deep within my brain.

Mr. Four arrived late last Friday night. Between our arrival and his, the boys and I did a lot. It was pretty crazy. We went shopping (Old Navy, Target, and Kohl’s, along with a dollar store and a funky local toy store), swam at the lake, swam at the pool, played baseball in the yard, hung out with my dad, celebrated my birthday, went to a great science museum, bought toys, attempted to eat out in restaurants, went to a movie, stocked up on College Town paraphenalia, chased fireflies, played with friends, visited with other friends, and ate pretzels and ice cream (though not at the same time).

Since Mr. Four’s arrival, we’ve done more of the same, but with a break here and there for me.

A couple of friends here have asked us how it feels to be back. The answer is that it feels totally normal to be back. Totally normal to be able to call my mom and dad and sister without advance planning or a check of the clock. Totally normal to walk on nice wide sidewalks. Totally normal to be able to buy soy products at the grocery store. Totally normal to have play dates with our old neighbors. Et cetera.

Of course what’s not normal is trying to cram a month’s worth of activities into a week’s time. Right now we’re in College Town, a charming area with lots of old friends and kid-friendly activities. In a few days, we head to the mountains, to a small cabin Mr. Four built there years ago. We have a lot of friends up there, including friends with kids, but we’ll be much more isolated. Mr. Four is envisioning canoeing on the lake with the boys. I hope we find enough to do. Giggle and Bug are both pretty interested in bugs these days, so maybe we can go bug hunting. Other ideas are also welcome!

What’s been most striking about our trip home is how much my kids had become city kids. Especially for the first few days, things that seemed utterly ordinary to me were quite remarkable to them. When we pulled into the driveway of the house where we’re staying, Giggle said the front yard, with a few trees, was like a forest. Every patch of trees became worthy of comment.

The next night they ran inside, terrified, screaming at me about some strange flashing lights which turned out to be fireflies (they got over this fear quickly).

They’ve loved seeing mailboxes and checking ours multiple times a day. Fire hydrants also earn a call out.

It’s been a bit rainy here, and Bug is particularly stressed by thunder. This was true last year when we lived in the US, but the absence of thunder from our lives has only increased his fear. I’ve never seen him so terrified. Any plane in the sky has him asking if it’s thunder. Suggestions for dealing with this particular fear are also welcome.

We’ll be mostly unplugged, I think, in the mountains. We have a TV there (our cabin is set up to be a vacation rental when we’re not in it), but no internet access except the public library. I’m looking forward to some long bike rides, now possible as Mr. Four was able to dig my road bike out of storage this morning, and lots of reading. Another big treat for me has been buying the Sunday New York Times, even though it took me all of last week to read it, and I still haven’t cracked this week’s.

I’ll post again before we head to the mountains. What are your questions about our time back in the States?

THAT mother with THOSE kids

With no help from the horrid flight attendants on the Cairo to JKF flight (and I’m sure they felt the same way about us), we made it. I was starting to think maybe all Americans (like, had I maybe just forgotten?) were terrible until our second flight, when the lovely, wonderful flight attendant was so great with the boys and especially Giggle, who was having a very hard time waiting through a long runway taxi.

Now we’re here in College Town, at our friends’ house (they are out of town). It’s perfect and we’re so happy to be here.

More later when I have time.

To candy or not to candy

Mr. Four thinks I shouldn’t bring candy on the plane, because once it’s out the boys are going to want it constantly and will go crazy if they can’t have it.

I’m inclined to bring it, something that’s long-lasting like hard candy, and let them overindulge.

Opinions?

More mundane details of my boring life

I’m almost packed. Most of the boys’ clothes are packed, and most of my clothes are packed. We’ll add in a few things from tomorrow’s wash. We’re bringing way too many shoes, as per usual. But packing is easy when you’re overpacking!

I packed both car seats for the boys. I realized that otherwise we’d end up paying at least $150 to rent seats when we have two perfectly good ones we can bring over for free.

Last summer I ordered car seat bags from One Step Ahead, to protect the seats and make them easier to carry. The seats made the trip last summer, but barely. One of the canvas bags has large tears in the front panel. I’ll duct tape it up for our trip back home, but here’s your caveat emptor: don’t buy car seat bags from One Step Ahead, which should definitely be able to last at least one international trip. I wish I could find consumer’s revenge more satisfying… but really I’d rather have functioning bags.

The boys, especially Giggle, are bouncing off the walls. “Two days, Mommy? Two days to America?”

On top of all this is our confusing move to a new flat. The boys are trying to figure out how we’re going to America, and moving to a new house which they’ve visited twice, and coming back to Egypt, and spending time with grandparents. Bug keeps asking who is coming to the new house. “Is Puppy Four coming? Is my nanny coming?” It’s a lot of change in just a few months. But all good, I think.

They both had their last day of preschool today. Giggle told me today he’s proud of himself for finishing up preschool and being ready for kindergarten, also known as “the big school.” I’m proud of him too.

So we’ll be hanging out with friends in just a few days from now. Mr. Four still has another week in Egypt, including my birthday, which is a bummer. However, my dad is coming to town to spend a couple of days with the boys and me, which will be great fun, and the first time he and Giggle have met. I explained to the boys the other day that we get our ice cream-loving legacy from this man. They were duly impressed.

I’ve also been overwhelmed by my very generous friends and family, who are offering up all sorts of inconvenient scenarios to help us out and make sure they see us.

And, wow, blogging is sure a great way to procrastinate.

No more JFK anxiety

My very smart mother informed me that the boys and I will be arriving into and departing from the very same terminal at JFK. How on earth did she discover this? She looked at my itinerary. Go figure.

Last night I gathered up most of the clothes for the boys for this summer. I know we’ll be buying things there, and I didn’t want to overpack, but I also don’t want to be stuck doing laundry every few days either. I’ve also heard from a few friends and colleagues that it’s easy to spend way too much money in a few short weeks on home leave. Expats often go on summer spending sprees, so expat kids get the sense that the US is all about shopping. While this is true for many Americans, I don’t want my boys to think this. Giggle already loves shopping too much. And me too.

Giggle kid is growing so fast though — last summer he was a perfect 4T, swimming in 5T. Now his 5T pants are almost too short, and I’m thinking I need to buy ahead in size 6 and (gulp) size 7 to get him through the next year. Bug is growing out of some of his 3T things, but at least he has some hand-me-downs from Giggle (which he likes, because he’s seen his brother wearing this stuff, which apparently makes it cooler).

Clothes are going from Giggle to Bug so quickly that I’m the only one in the house who seems to know who fits into what. To his credit, Mr. Four did convince the boys that growing is fun, and so they are much better about letting go emotionally of favorite clothes that no longer fit. Bug likes to talk about how we’ll give their old clothes to other kids who need them (usually the neighborhood bowab’s kids or to our nanny for a refugee friend with a small boy).

The fact that we’re about to box up everything and move makes it easier to purge. For me too. I’ve passed to the housekeeper and her roommate some clothes of mine that just don’t (ahem) fit like they used to.

Today I’m also packing up my office at work, as it’ll be in a different place when I get back in August. So I best get to that.

(Not) packing and more (not) packing

My cousin went south to Upper Egypt for a few days, which I thought would give me plenty of time to start packing. It has given me some time, but I have not done any packing. I’m sure you are as shocked as I am by this turn of events.

I did go shopping this weekend, with cousin K, at the Khan il Khalili, a big touristy market/bazaar in downtown Cairo. It was Saturday afternoon and hot as all get out. And of course I managed to wander us into the wrong neighborhood even though the Khan was about two inches away from us. We finally made it of course.

Giggle joined us willingly because he loves going new places and shopping (both boys got new Egypt/cartouche shirts, which had been hidden under the t-shirts of camels smoking shisha). Giggle kept complaining when we’d go into stores and not buy anything. I told him he had to pretend to be uninterested in things so we could bargain. He largely failed at this. Anyway, he’s very happy with his new shirt and has already worn it twice. I ended the day with a headache so throbbing that it took a shower, a couple of Tylenol, and a nap to make it go away. I’m just no good in the heat (to which you respond, then, pray tell, why do you live in Egypt? Which is a very good question).

Giggle and I also had a conversation this weekend about how no one is allowed to touch him if he doesn’t want them to. A very serious topic, indeed, but it started because Egyptian men seem compelled to touch his hair. And of course he doesn’t like it — would you? So now he knows to say “la! la-ah!” (no! really no!) when people touch him. Hair touching is a big issue in the African American community, and apparently it’s an issue for native born Africans in North Africa too. Seriously, folks, if you’re a hair toucher, you really should stop. It’s weird.

Deep down I have much anxiety about all the packing I need to do in the next few days. Packing for the States should be easy because the boys have new clothes waiting for us there, plus we’ll be going shopping, plus we can get anything we need there, plus we won’t really need all that much. But as a friend of mine used to say, “Should is a dangerous word.” (Okay, an old flame used to say that, and he probably still says it, but I haven’t talked to him in MANY years.)

I think really I’m anxious about the flights even though there’s nothing to be done except laugh instead of cry. A colleague of mine did tell me some horror stories yesterday about transferring at JFK from international to domestic. At most airports, when you land internationally, you collect your luggage, walk it through customs, and then toss it back on some carousel for the airport folks to transfer it to your next flight. But apparently at JFK you have to walk it to the next terminal. This guy told me that he has a distinct memory of pushing his trolley of bags uphill through a construction site (but at least not in the snow). And he didn’t even have two little boys with him. Eh, que sera sera. And maybe JFK is better now.

We leave on Saturday around noon. Giggle will watch every movie that plays, and listen to every in-flight music station. He’ll attempt to call the flight attendant multiple times and the flight attendants will ignore us. Bug will be harder to entertain but he is also more malleable. I’m also trying to get used the idea of being on my own, without Mr. Four, for the week. But I think I’ll keep us busy with swimming and visiting and movies. Hurray, movies! Will Kung Fu Panda be too much for Bug? Because Giggle and I would really like to see it.

Last night, the boys and I went to a local toy shop tonight to pick out a few things for the airplane (I said so many times that they wouldn’t get the toys until the airplane that Giggle started saying, “I know Mommy! It’s for the airplane!). We couldn’t find many small toys. So we bought some real cheapies that probably won’t last much past JFK, but the boys seemed happy enough until this morning, when Giggle cried because he wanted his new airplane toys. Bug has mostly forgotten about the new stuff or is taking “for airplane use only” very seriously.

Bug also decided last night that he’d rather be in the sling, really an Ergo baby carrier, on my back than in the stroller. He really likes being carried sometimes, especially in crowded places or when he’s tired, and I think the sling will work better for me as it’s more comfortable for longer distances than our basic little umbrella stroller. Plus he’ll be able to watch the crowds.

So, we’re not packed, but we’ve got some toys and made some very important decisions.

Today or tomorrow is my last day at work… probably tomorrow since I’ll have still have some stuff to finish up. That gives me two days to pack and plan and make sure I don’t forget anything important like my driver’s license. It’s so quiet at work many of my colleagues have already left for the summer.

What to pack, what to pack

My cousin K is here visiting. It’s fun to be around someone with so much enthusiasm. We saw the Pyramids from a distance yesterday, and she was thrilled, and it was a reminder to cynical ole me that, yes, things are pretty nifty here in Egypt.

K is visiting the Pyramids and the Citadel today, which will make for a long, hot day, but a great adventure. She’s with a guide, which makes me feel a lot better about her being out and about in Cairo. Yes, she’s my cousin and she’s an adult, but she’s in college, and I feel some responsibility to make sure she’s okay.

The boys love having K here. Giggle in particular adores visitors (and their digital cameras), and he’s always excited to meet family (he’s actually only met two members of his new extended family, my mom and now our cousin K). Plus K is great with kids. She brought the boys Thomas sticker/coloring books, which proves she is a genius since she found a perfect gift that would also fit into her tiny backpack. I am also amazed at how little she’s packed for her month-long overseas adventure (we’re only part of it).

Speaking of packing light… the boys and I leave for the States in nine days (Giggle asks me every day, “Are we leaving tomorrow, Mommy? In two days, Mommy?” That boy is ready to go!). I’d like to pack as little as possible in part because we’re going to have a lot of stuff to bring back as I’ll attempt to anticipate everything we might want from the US in the next year. This is mostly clothes for my rapidly growing children. Actually, shoes take up the most room. And some clothes for me too.

So, I’m going to try to pack light. We’ll also have access to a washing machine most of the summer, which makes packing light even easier.

But how light is light? How many t-shirts and shorts should I bring for the boys? Actually, it’s shorts for Bug and pants for Giggle as Giggle really doesn’t like shorts for reasons he can’t quite explain and we haven’t figured out. I suspect it might be because no one really wore shorts in Ethiopia. Also, he loves jeans. And sweat pants. During the summer.

It’s harder to pack for myself because, well, it’s myself. And I have to pack for that conference in Seattle in August (though I’m feeling much better about it all now).

Still, I am determined to get the three of us into two or three checked bags, so that we’ll have at least three empty bags to fill with stuff this summer (with an allowance of two bags each for international flights).

Of course all of this means I have to actually start putting clothes into luggage soon. And, I also have to start putting everything else into boxes for the big move! Wish us luck.

In which the tooth fairy comes to Egypt

First, some exciting news: Giggle just lost his first tooth! It’s been loose for weeks, which scared him at first, and then, when he remembered stories from his friend August, delighted him. Bug has even been saying he wants “broken” teeth.

This morning, he called me into the bathroom to see his bloody mouth. He lost his tooth while drinking some water through a straw. First he ran to his bedroom to put the tooth, still bloody, under his pillow, and then he went to the bathroom and freaked out over the bloody spot. We reassured him it was okay and tried to show him where the new tooth is breaking through. The obligatory salt water rinse, remembered from deep in the annals of my memory, made him feel better.

When Mr. Four suggested a nap, Giggle thought this was a grand idea. So he went to bed, but then tried to stay awake to see the tooth fairy. Mr. Four explained it wouldn’t work that way.

So now he’s asleep, and I believe I just saw the tooth fairy exchange the tooth for 5LE (less than $1 US, but it goes a long way here in Egypt). I just really hope Giggle doesn’t talk to August, whose teeth apparently garner a lot more cash.

Travel advice, please

I’m leaving for the US in about five weeks (but who’s counting), and I need some advice for our trip.

First, the rental car (or, more specifically, rental mini-van, which seems to be the only vehicle which will accommodate four people with bloated luggage).

Giggle, Bug, and I are scheduled to arrive at the airport near College Town, USA on a weekend night in June at about 9:30pm, so about 3:30am for our Cairo-adjusted bodies. We’ll have been traveling since early that morning, Cairo time. We only have one connection from Cairo to College Town, through New York City, but I’m sure we’ll be zonked, especially me, since Mr. Four isn’t joining us until about a week later and I’ll be on my own with the boys.

Here’s the question. Do I go ahead and pick up the rental car when we arrive at the airport? It’s about 30 minutes from the airport to the place we’re staying in College Town, including some interstate, so I’d be driving that stretch on my own (my first time driving in almost a year). I have never arrived in the US from a trans-Atlantic flight feeling like I was ready to drive, but I could inhale some sugary sodas and push it. Perhaps I’ll be so excited to be in the US that I’ll have some extra energy.

The advantage of getting the car that night is that, once we’re in College Town and have had a good night’s sleep, we can head right out the door to our favorite Family Diner and grocery store. We can start living right away.

The other options are to get a taxi to take us to College Town or to beg a friend to pick us up at the airport. Better in the short term, but then we’d have to get a taxi or friend to take us back to the airport to get the rental car the next day, which would involve schlepping the kids around yet again because I don’t want to leave them, jet lagged and over stimulated, with someone they don’t really know.

Next round: carry-ons.
My boys have each taken two trans-Atlantic flights, and they both did great. However, those flights left at night. This flight leaves in the morning, which means the boys will be wide awake. Giggle will entertain himself by watching every movie and listening to every music station (and he’ll complain bitterly when we have to get off the plane). Bug is less predictable, though generally easier to amuse.

So, what should I bring on the plane to entertain them (keeping in mind I’m limited by what’s available in Cairo)? And, more importantly, what should I bring it in? Should they each have their own backpacks, or will this just be more stuff for me to carry around? And do I bring the large carry-on that only fits overhead but holds lots of stuff? The boys could then drag this one around the airports.

The complicating factor is our short layover in New York City, which means there’s a good chance we’ll miss our connection and end up spending the night in New York (exciting at any other time! but not this one!), without our luggage. So, on the plane, I want to bring at least one full change of clothes for the boys, and something approximating a change of clothes for me. Any carry-on advice, whether about the bag itself or what to put in it, is welcome.

Transporting the children: child carriers.

Last summer, Mr. Four and I brought a lightweight umbrella stroller and the Ergo baby carrier on the plane. Either boy fit in either. What should I bring this year? I don’t think I want to deal with the stroller, and I could get one pretty cheaply in the US. But what about the baby carrier? Either boy could go on my back, backpack-style. What’s easier: one kid on my back and me hauling the luggage? Or two kids walking (or perhaps one being carried) and me hauling the luggage? Or maybe one kid in a stroller?

And, finally, car seats.

Mr. Four and I, in our naivete, brought the boys’ car seats to Cairo. They are now shoved in some corner of our spare room, collecting dust. I definitely won’t bring them onto the plane, but should I bring them back to the US? We’d probably save about $100 or so in car seat rental for the minivan and maybe $50 or so in car seat rental for when we’re at my mom’s house, but they are really bulky, even when they’re in bags to be checked. I was hoping to minimize the amount of luggage I’ll have to deal with when it’s just me with the boys. The distance from the car into the airport, and then from baggage claim to outside, can be the most dreadful part of any trip.

I probably won’t bring the carseats back to Cairo if we bring them to the US, so we could use the luggage space for Fig Newtons and maple syrup and other essentials. Which would mean that if we ever want car seats here, we’re stuck. But that seems unlikely. So, what do you think?

Last question: am I making this complicated or is it complicated all on its own?