Jeff's Trip to the Dentist

Jeff had a root canal yesterday. 

Starting to experience just a little discomfort over the weekend, but it wasn't so painful to warrant a run to the dentist.  Still, with vacation coming up, Jeff thought "better safe than sorry" and made an emergency appointment (else it would be a couple weeks wait).

Choosing a new dentist, Jeff wasn't familiar with the office layout.   Jeff entered the front door into a very small room with 3 chairs and 3 doors.  Two doors had brass plates, one of which had his dentist's name on it.  Walking into what might be a lobby or a reception room, Jeff opened the door to his dentist.  Instead, that was the chair, the dentist, the hygenist and the earlier patient.

Once it was Jeff's turn, the following little clip of movies sums up his experience.

Happy Birthday Ella!!

Daddy misses you, so he made a movie.


Enjoy.

Updates: All is Well and Back to Normal

Just a quick post to update those folks who aren't standing next to Maylia and the kids.
Of course, Michelle is back home in NH and everyone's bags were recovered at the airport (both Tuesday).

Yesterday (Wednesday) evening, I went out for a couple drinks with our downstairs neighbors to talk about some building topics.
First, a quick explanation about how buildings are maintained here. It's sort of like condominiums back home. All of us flat owners contribute monthly payments to a bank account, which then funds renovations or repairs to the "common areas," e.g. roof, stairs, hall lights. Whenever there's a "big decision" (a.k.a. spending money), the tenants must first agree (by majority, not unanimously, thankfully) to go for it or not. Agreement can be done quickly door-to-door. But when there's a bigger debate (bigger money spent), we all meet to vote in person at some coffee shop or lawyer's office. Since we moved in, we've done this twice already! This meeting vote is led by a chairperson.
So, our downstairs neighbor happens to be our chairperson. Also, how much a tenant's vote "counts" is proportional to that tenant's flat space. We happen to own the building's largest flat, so our vote swings some weight. The downside to owning more flat space is we pay our proportion of the item's cost. So, relationships are important for all of us. Clear, right?
Well, over a couple beer I and our neighbors discussed some upcoming renovations, especially our new main door. Maylia should be happy to hear that, of the 3 alternatives (spruce, pine or oak), our pick of the harder, but pricier oak won. And Maylia- regarding the water meters, I'm joining in with some folks on a contractor. To be only ~20 Euro for the meter and about twice that for installation.

The flat is eerily quiet without kids around. There's also eerily less laundry and eerily less milk in the fridge. But leaving a candybar on the table to have for breakfast the next morning feels perfectly safe.

Seems a bit odd to write on the blog when half the people who normally read it probably now aren't, while May and kids are there. Maybe not.

-Jeff

May, Michelle & kids are in Canada!!

Talked with Maylia a lot last night. They got in okay, on time, but 2 bags are lost somewhere, one of Maylia's and Michelle's only bag. Ouch. And since Michelle returns to Boston tonight, they're not sure how this will work out.

Ella slept for all of an hour and a half over the entire flight, so I could overhear she was in full manic mode while May and I talked. I so miss that kid already, but I know she's going to have a blast with all the folks there.

Update on Travels ~ Now in London

Just spoke with Maylia on the phone. They're now at Heathrow airport, with an hour left before boarding.

They have flown 2 flights since leaving home this morning 6 hours ago. And they're all set to start their long and final one to Halifax, Canada.

Some highlights from their travels so far:
Ticketing issue at the Prague airport. Apparently, in the computer, Maylia and Mattias were switched as mother and infant. Plus the word "MayliaParker" was entered as the baby's first name. Caused confusion and it got mostly sorted out, but they told Maylia she needs to check-in at each stop. Clearly, this was just another United snafu in a long list of issues we've had with Mattias' ticket since January.
Update from her - at Frankfurt and Heathrow, she was fortunately able to check-in at the gates.

Also at Prague airport, they booked Michelle with seating assignments straight to Canada, but failed to match her up with May and kids for the first flight. Maylia sorted this out personally with folks on the plane...
Maylia was seated in row 12 ("in the first row behind business class"), while Michelle was put in row 36. Maylia's seat was next to some gentleman in a suit; she asked him if he wouldn't mind moving to Michelle's seat (row 36), but the gentleman decided "no, thank you."
Ella then piled into her seat next to him, starting to unload her backpack of toys. Maylia said a few minutes later, the gentleman reconsidered and opted to switch with Michelle. As a business traveler and Ella's father, I don't blame him. :)

Also good news - Lufthansa gave Maylia a basinette for Mattias for the long London-Halifax flight.

Mattias has been sleeping on and off throughout the trip. He's doing well and May feels he'll probably continue to sleep on the next one.

Also, Ella fell asleep right as they were landing in Heathrow. Michelle carried Ella off the plane and through the terminal. Thank you Michelle!
Ella's awake now while they wait to board, but May said Ella will likely sleep early on in the flight out of Heathrow.

Waiting to hear from Maylia after they've boarded, before they start to taxi...

They should be landing around 2:45pm local (Halifax time), 1:45pm NH time, 12:45 Chicago time...

-jeff

Pictures to Post

It's 11:30pm now - the taxi's coming at 4am. Maylia and Michelle are ready for their big flight(s) tomorrow. For now, here are some recent pictures.


Big hunter Mattias next to a caught alligator.

Ella and her friend Dylan at the park...some pics we had to post.



Auntie Michelle's here!

We had Ella celebrate her 3rd birthday Saturday evening. Sure it's a week early, but the only chance with Dad and her Godmother. Ella picked out the dress to wear, which turns out to be something her Godparents picked out for her. Bring on the cake!

Dad made a cake while Ella napped. But Ella got to help make the chocolate frosting. There was plenty of taste testing.

After a few slices of cake (each with a few helpings of frosting) ---bring on the presents.
Whoa, a kiddie digital camera?? Jeff & Michelle spoil this kid.
Ella loved her camera, snapping off fifty pictures in a few minutes, learning the buttons fast.


Big success of a birthday party. (Almost) everyone enjoyed cake and presents.

Michelle's Arrived!!

She arrived safe and sound yesterday (Thursday) afternoon. May and kids greeted Auntie Michelle at the airport (actually Michelle greeted them, since she was there first).

Short Vacation
Michelle knows her fun time is limited. The girls had a pedicure yesterday evening and will hopefully enjoy the weekend, because after this...it is serious business starting very early Monday morning.

We Have a Winner
See, think back to last October when we dangled a free ticket to anyone crazy enough to travel with May and kids back to Canada. Michelle was just crazy enough to volunteer and so, she's the 'winner.'

Long Vacation
On Monday morning, before the sun even rises, the girls and the kids will be at the airport. Their flights start at 6am, having not 1 , but 2 stops (Frankfurt & London), before continuing on to Halifax, Nova Scotia. Then, Michelle continues on to Boston the next day. Wow.


Jeff says "Um, yeah...good luck with all that. See you in 3 weeks." Winner, indeed.

Been 2 Years - Another Health Check

On 16 July, it will be two years since May and Ella arrived in Prague to join Jeff. Time has flown!

We did a sort of "health check" one year ago, so we figured we'd do that again, noting how we felt then and now.

Happy?
2006: Dizzily happy.
2007: Still happy, but back down from the clouds
2008: Happy for sure, but better to say comfortable & content.

Culture shocked?
2006: Oh yes, (big culture shock).
2007: Adjusted and (fairly) settled
2008: Totally settled, but with occasional thoughts of "What the ??"

Homesick for...?
2006: Family & friends back home
2007: Family & friends back home
2008: Family & friends back home
(Have we mentioned how much we miss being close to you? Maybe not enough...)

Local circle of friends...?
2006: 0 (a zero makes a circle, doesn't it?)
2007: The 3 of us enjoy a good circle of friends we work, walk and play with
2008: Some moved away; new moved in. We're balancing family & friends.

Eating...?
2006: Take-out & ready-made meals (looked ready-made on the package)
2007: Maylia plans, buys and prepares all meals...no worries.
2008: Less a challenge to make dinner; more so to always find ingredients.

Czech language ability/effort?
2006: ..........silence. total f-ing silence.......
2007: See last year's complicated answer
2008: May striving for fluency. Jeff "content" with 2007 ability

Should note: our 'jobs' require very different language abilities (Jeff - none).

"Entertaining ourselves by...?
2006: Trading pictures with Jeff K's "Prague scavenger hunt"
2007: Having a babysitter, enjoying a peaceful meal out
2008: Nearly everyday in Letna or Stromovka park, playgrounds. Zoo & inner-city trips often.
Home nights spent burning through 3 seasons of Weeds & movies.

Who gets our paycheck...?
2006: Landlord & IKEA
2007: Bank & OB/GYN
2008: Bank & who knows...different every month. Latest was Mr. Mercedes

High on the Priority List...?
2006: An iron, basic cookware and toilet paper
2007: Preparing for our vacation, our new flat and upcoming baby
2008: Welcoming Michelle here and all flying HOME for summer holiday!

~~ Adventures of Mr. Vase~~

Our story today, children, is about a very special flower vase and how he made a new friend.

Not long ago, our hero, Mr. Vase, decided to enjoy the lovely day by sitting on the sill by the open window.

The weather was lovely. A sky full of sun and relaxing breezes.

But sometimes, the breeze was more than just a breeze, and the open window would knock into Mr. Vase. Oh-oh...

To avoid Mr. Vase tipping over completely, somebody filled Mr. Vase with odd rocks and shells to weigh it down. Whew...that was close!

The rocks & shells-filled flower vase continued to enjoy the sun. That is, until one breeze was just strong enough to ....oops, there it goes!

Ah, but how can an accidental fall out of a 5th story window be wrong, if it means you can make new friends? Right, Mr. Vase?

Meet Mr. Vase's new friend, Mr. Mercedes Benz. Note Mr. Benz's long, vulnerable hood.

Needless to say, meeting Mr. Benz had a big impact on Mr. Vase.

And, unforunately, on Mr. Benz, too.

[No picture of that impact - too depressing for a touching story like this. (oh, the puns!!)]

So, what was our next action, you ask? Naturally, we did the "right thing" and left our contact information for Mr. Benz's owner, blissfully ignoring whatever consequences may result.

To bring our story to a close, we'll post one more picture - of the bill we paid to our local Mercedes Benz dealership to have Mr. Benz fixed up and like new.

We're very thankful of two details:

1. Mr. Vase hit a car and not a Mr., Mrs. or child.
2. The 17,062 figure is not in dollars, but Czech crowns.

.....still, that's nearly 60 bags of Oreos!!

Happy Independence Day, USA!

Wave around the sparkers and enjoy the fireworks.

And Jeff made & brought in a cake for work.

Celebrate!

Happy Canada Day!!

... or "Fête du Canada"

Hope you got the BBQs fired up and there's plenty o' beer.

Celebrate!