similarities and differences

I feel like for the most part Will and I have adapted to living in the US after growing up in different places. We have come to appreciate the conveniences that the US has and put up with the differences of things we once thought we could not live without.
It is always amazes me though, how I can go to another country and find more similarities to my "home country" (Japan) then I ever can to the US. Even though Italy and Japan are such different cultures (I noted some differences here), they still seem more similar to each other than either one to the States. Why is that I wonder? Maybe it is where I live. I am sure the big cities in the US would feel more like home, but still, there are differences in what I have experienced in the States vs. other countries around the world.
what do I mean? its the little things...

flower stalls where you can buy fresh flowers practically on the sidewalk.

small cars...for small spaces. The roads in Italy remind me of roads in Japan. Narrow. Small cars fit through just fine, people drive a little crazy (though they do follow signs better in Japan) The huge SUVs of the US would never make it down most of the roads.

Public transportation. The US's public transportation is practically non existent. Really. Unless you are in the heart of a city. I was so happy Alex got to experience real trains (not the fun steam engines we take our kids to for a joy ride). Trains take people places they need to go. Now, Italy's metro is no match for the system in Japan, but the sounds of the trains coming, or the sounds of them slowing down and stopping to pick up more passengers. It reminds me of home! Yesterday we also got to experience a crowded bus, not unlike the crowded trains of Japan. Rush hour in a train or bus is 100x different then siting in your own car in traffic (imagine standing, squeezed in like a sardine STUCK in rush hour traffic, feeling like you are in a sauna. Much of the world is used to that, but based on the boys' horrified exclamations, most American's have never experienced that!

Smells. I rarely smell something in the States that reminds me of another country. "Roasted chestnuts" is sung in one of our popular Christmas songs, but how many people really enjoy it for a snack. Smelling this in Rome took me back immediately to Minami Koshigaya where we would walk to the other train line and there was always the stall by the stairs and the man selling his chestnuts. The presentation was different, but the smell was the same.

Space. We SO take space for granted in the States! My family regularly reminds me that in Japan they would probably fit at least 4 houses in my backyard. Out in the the smaller towns in Italy you do see more green grass, etc, but more often then not any open space is filled up with rows of grape vines or olive trees. Most people have to use their land a little bit more wisely.











I certainly will never complain about the many conveniences of life in the States. Now that we have Alex and another on the way, I am extremely grateful that I don't have to battle public transportation on a regular basis, and that there are plenty of escalators and elevators to allow me to avoid the stairs at all costs with a stroller. But there is a part of me that would be willing to forgo some of those conveniences to be able to live overseas and feel like I am more at home...
the confused life of a tck. :)

Revelation 7:9

Will has been able to visit Japan on several occasions, and each time he tells me how much his church reminds me of his in Italy. Which, when you think about it might seem a little strange when you think about how different the cultures are.
Japan: orderly, clean, technologically driven, on time, reserved, bows, rice, budhist
Italy: chaotic, loud, catholic, pasta, time: late is on time, personal space: none
In my operation world book the two countries are listed right next to each other (I think) and even though they are so different, there is one startling similarity. Both have less then 1% evangelical christians.

and that is why our churches are so the same. These people are truly family to each other. When they come together there is such wonderful fellowship because this is one of the places they have so much in common with others.

After the service, the kids started running around, the men set up chairs and tables, the ladies got busy fixing a meal (even though it was still too early for most italians to consider eating a meal!). It could have been my church in Japan. 

Christian fellowship is such a wonderful thing. I think it is easy to take it for granted in the States because we are often surrounded by other Christians in our workplaces, neighborhoods or schools. But so many countries in the world don't have that. I think there is so much we take for granted about church in the States. We have so many churches to choose from, so if they start asking too much of us we move on to another one that suits us so we don't have to get too involved. We need to stop taking for granted how blessed we are in the States.

Every time I am in a church overseas I get a taste of heaven. And it is one of my favorite things.

Rev. 7:9-10 After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:


“Salvation belongs to our God,who sits on the throne,and to the Lamb.”

Worshiping Jesus in multiple languages is such a beautiful thing. Last night they sang Shout to the Lord. I knew the song was familiar, but I couldn't place it through the first verse. I had been so long since I had sung it. Then when we got to the chorus I started singing it in Japanese :) and then they sang it in English one time and that is when I realized what song it was in English. 

People from every nation, tribe, and tongue will be in heaven worshiping Jesus. We need to take our blessings in the US and spread it around the world to make sure everyone has the opportunity to be able to worship Jesus. Because Heaven is really going to be so much more wonderful than anything here on earth.

Katie: Solo.

Well, we are safely in Italy. We walked ourselves to death on Sunday (more on that in another post) and had a wonderful rest last night...

but now for the story. The story that maybe one day in my life, I will laugh about. I'm not quite ready for that now though.
You see this picture...yeah, it really was just me and Alex on that flight...with the rest of the basketball team. Everyone BUT Will!

Through a series of unfortunate events, miscommunications, and lots of assumptions...Will didn't have a ticket. Yes, we were at the check in and discover Will doesn't have a ticket. We are all blaming the travel agent because Will's name had been on the list with the team, but we think when he talked to her about tickets for us, she somehow took his name off that list, and so the coach thought Will had bought tickets with us, while Will thought his name was still on the team list. So yes, no ticket.
And our flight was overbooked, so there was no way that he was going to be able to fly on the same 9 hr flight that we would be on. Yes, it was Alex and me. On a 9 hour flight.

here are some things I learned on our two flights flying solo: (the first one was just 45 minutes from Charlotte to Atlanta and the second was about 9 hours from Atlanta to Rome.)

1. Goody bags are a life saver! (See all about that here!)
2. Suckers are not my friend. What a sticky mess that ended up being. Pez on the other hand. I will take more of that next time!
3. Alex would rather watch a show in silence then put on head phones.
4. Benedryl has the opposite effect in the air. Seriously. We tried it out a couple times to make sure it didn't make him hyper. It didn't when we tried it. In the airplane...Heaven help us all! That was not a fun hour of my life.
5. Routine is important. We always read a lot before Alex goes to bed (since he doesn't really like to slow down any other time of the day). Once I pulled out the books and read to him, he calmed down right away and fell asleep not long after. Also since it was a flight that went through his bedtime, he slept a lot longer. 5 hours... I was one thankful mama!!!

 6. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Fortunately, this was not totally a solo trip. There were 16 other guys on the plane that could help out. Thankfully, Will's dad and two players were sitting behind me and helped to entertain him when he turned around. One even held Alex so I could go to the bathroom while Alex was sleeping (pregnant lady not going to the bathroom for 5 hours...yeah right!). Even if they weren't with me. I think I would have gotten to know my seatmates really well and asked them to help out with the little things (turning on and off air vents etc)
7. The best view on a plane used to be the destination...that definitely changed! This is now the best view...

and then we landed and I got this...

 and this...

(which refuses to rotate the right direction)

and then Will finally arrived. And life is okay. We are working on Will's ticket for the way home so that we can all be on the same flight. I hope and pray but I am going to be prepared either way! And I feel like a super accomplished mom now.:) I mean. 9 hrs. please. I know people have done more than that, but I will take any victory.

more on our new adventures soon! 

The Goody Bag

The day has finally arrived! The true parenting test:
Will we all survive a day of flying with a toddler.
Many have accomplished that feat before me, but will I survive?! :)

I packed up the suitcase on Monday (that way the clothes we wanted to take would stay clean!), and repacked it last night with the last odds and ends. But Alex's goody bags...those have been ready to go since the new year!

Maybe this should be called a BRIBING BAG instead. 

After talking to some friends and reading some stuff online, I decided to have some fun buying things that Alex isn't used to eating/playing with to make the trip more exciting. 

note to future travelers: 

make sure the suckers are properly hidden so your child doesn't start begging for them before the trip!

Most of this was from the dollar tree, or dollar bins at target, and then walking down the snack isles! I bought a washing bag at walmart for a $1 to stick it all in. 

Hopefully with this stash, the extra stash of snacks in our other carry on, and the IPad
(with games that will suddenly reappear after a month of being hidden)

we will survive. 

and maybe get some sleep in the process?

but there is always an italian espresso waiting for me on the other end if I don't.

Plunketts: It's a ....

We were quite curious to find out whether Alex would have a brother or sister! and finally on Wednesday we were going to have our ultrasound to find out!

Everything about this baby is looking really good so we were thankful for that! and then the time came...
and right away, we knew... It was a BOY!

Later that evening we went out to get some presents for our new little guy! I, I mean ALEX, chose out a stuffed animal for his brother that he will give to his brother when he is born, but he was more excited about the adorable shirts we found!

Can't wait til Alex and his brother get to wear them! 

And the little brother's name is...

William Donald! 

After 2 of Will and my grandpas. Alex is named after the other two grandfathers.

We will call him Liam 

so coming the end of May...

The Adventures of Alex and Liam will begin!

Katie: Blend it up!

Throughout my 365 recipes challenge, I really wanted a good blender that would help me make some recipes a little bit easier. All I had was a mini chopper and I had to do things in batches.
Well, thanks to black friday deals I got a ninja master prep and I love it! I didn't pull it out of the box for a while, but now that I have, I think it will always be dirty! Thank goodness there are 3 different sized bowls! I have pulled it out mostly thanks to some recent pregnancy cravings-Milkshakes and salsa!

My first attempt was a blueberry milkshake. With three simple ingredients: frozen blueberries (about a cup or two) some milk (maybe 1/2 cup to a cup) and a heaping 2 cups of vanilla ice cream, we were ready to mix it up... Of course my happy helper had to taste test the ice cream pretty extensively

After the blueberry milkshake Will decided we needed oreos, so our next mission was to make a cookies and cream milkshake!
Alex and I enjoyed the first round of that and then Will made some another day too!

Alex give this another milkshaky smile of approval!

One of my other cravings was salsa--the kind you get in resturants that is not very chunky. 

I use 2 cloves garlic and two green onions and mixed those up first.

Then I added a green pepper, and about 8 roma tomatoes, some lemon juice (two much!) cilantro, salt and pepper. 

I am going to work on the recipe, but it hit the spot! I had some store bought guac with a corn mixture in another bowl and it made a very delicious lunch!

Next on the blender list...HUMMUS!! :)

Alex.

It is only 9 pm. and he is still up. crying at his door. Will and I are model parents ;) and usually lay in bed with him until he falls asleep. The last two nights he has decided against falling asleep at a reasonable hour. Tonight Will is out. of course. The first time I shut the door, Alex cried for about 2 minutes, then turned on his lamp and started playing with his train. This time I got smart and took his controls out of the room. He is sometimes too smart for his own good! It would make my world if he started to learn to fall asleep on his own. I wait for him to find his way into his own bed, instead he finally manages to find his way out of his room.
crying of course, but through those glistening tears I see that satisfied twinkle because he knows he managed to escape.
Finally 45 minutes later, Will returns and I escape. The evening is gone. I really should go to bed in 10 minutes because the early morning awaits, but instead I sit here because i need my few minutes of calm before the storm comes.
Oh, Alex. I can't imagine life without you. But life WITH you always keeps me on my toes!