London (part two)

So I am going back.

This time the results came back and confirmed that my growth hormone is dangerously low and that I'm not growing like I should, so we are going back to London. I say "we" this time because they want B to come with me for moral support. The kids are staying with a babysitter whom we absolutely love and know they will be well taken care of. The hard part is that we have an open ended ticket, so we aren't sure how long we are going to be there. We have some awesome friends looking out for us, thankfully, and are very grateful that the doctors are worrying more than we are. That's the way I like it.

I am actually very calm about it all and am more excited to go back with my husband this time than anything. We already bought tickets to Wicked and I have a shopping list of a few things I want to buy while I am there.

1. RED rain boots
2. RED rain jacket
3. Cadbury creme eggs

We'll see if we can find them. I figure London would be the ideal place to buy rain gear. We don't have anything else planned since we aren't sure how long we will be there. We want to visit the temple if we are going to have to stay longer, but we will see after all the testing and such. I don't want to leave my kids for too long. . .

I know I am so calm because of all the prayers and fasting by friends and family. I feel very much okay with everything and I figure, why worry if everything could be just fine? You never know. I am not even going to mention the worst case scenarios that the doctors prepared us for, so nobody has to worry. I figure, let the doctors to all the worrying for us until we know definitively what is going on.

Oh, AND we are going to hopefully find out what we are having this trip, so if you haven't put your vote in for what you think we will be having, this may be the last week!!!

B says: Boy
Haley says: Boy
Maleia says: Boy
Dylan says: Boy
I say: Girl
(someone's got to cheer for the girl.)

I have been wrong with every child, but just like I chose Duke to with the National Championship in the NCAA basketball tourney, this is my year. I can feel it!!

**UPDATE: I was wrong. Again. But Duke WON!! So I'm thrilled! I am totally excited to have another rough and rumble boy around the house. Can you imagine 4 girls around that time of the month?? wow. 3 on the other hand will be just fine... pray for us!

London (part one)

I figured I would see London while living overseas, but I didn't think it would be for medical reasons. Apparently Hungary doesn't have the best health care (Eastern socialism at it's best. surprise surprise) and I knew this, but the Embassy doctor wanted all the prenatal testing done in a place where they know what they are doing. VERY civil of them. Apparently my blood work shows that my growth hormone is really low and I'm not growing like I should, so I was flown to London! I wasn't too worried about it all. I was more excited for the free trip to London!!

Everything was wonderful and the people there are marvelous, fabulous even. I only had one incident where someone pick pocketed me, but I got my wallet back from a really nice lady. Only my cash was stolen and I saw who did it. Lame, I know, but I didn't have much cash, and I didn't want it to ruin my trip. And it didn't. Though I was ticked off and wanted to toss the guy into THE GAP of the tube. (See below.)

"The Gap" underground in The Tube

Big Ben

London at night

Big Ben with The Eye in the background.

The hotel where I stayed. Can I say Ritzy? (for me anyway) It was next to Regents
Park and Great Portland Street stop on the tube. Nice.
Oh and the Hotel's name was a disappointment. I thought it was pronounced like Maleia, but it's really pronounced like Meal-ia.

Awesome buildings near where I stayed.

In my opinion, you can't go to London without seeing a show. I went to "We Will Rock You" and was blown away. I love Queen, so this was an easy one to like.

Dominion Theater.

My favorite part wasn't the finale. It was this old lady that kept standing up to dance during all the music. She must have been, like, 80 and can dance better than me. SHE stole the show.

I took a "Hop-on-Hop-off" bus tour so that I can get off and puke if I needed to. :) It was beautiful and a great way to get a well-rounded knowledge of a big city. We have done this in almost all the big cities we have been in and are grateful that I have. It was too cold to be walking around!!

Tower Bridge, not London Bridge.
Now do you know why I grabbed photos from other sites, this photo stinks. It was drizzling at one point and this was through the glass. Lame, I know.

I went to an awesome pizza place called Pizza Xpress and it was far from fast food. It was ONLY sit down and delicious.

My favorite part was that they cut out the center of my pizza and put a salad there. Perfect sized. They even gave me a my own pizza cutter. If they only knew how many times I have cut myself with a pizza cutter.

"There is no darkness, but ignorance."
Is that why you are standing like that?? You must be ignorant about how flaming you look standing that way.
oops. Maybe he just had to go to the loo. I would have to go after posing for that long.

Typical "By the groovy telephone booths that nobody ever uses anymore except to take pictures with" picture. Seriously. There was a line to take a picture with this booth. That is why someone was there to take my picture. And no, I didn't stand in line, I just offered to take a couple's picture and then I got to cut in the "queue." Sometimes it pays to be nice. Does it look like I need to go to the loo?

I just love the architecture wherever I go in Europe.

And how cute are the taxis?? I got to ride in one several times. To and from the embassy, to and from the theater, and to and from a fancy restaurant. The other times I took public (the bus or tube.) And it was really easy to get around.

And who can resist buying a Paddington bear at Paddington Station? I grew up watching Paddington Bear, so it was neat to bring home a bear and some books for the kids, though I had to explain it to them. I could easily read the expressions on their faces, "You went to London and brought back some crappy books and a bear?? Where's the candy?" Yes, I got them some Cadbury chocolate.

St. Patrick's Day

Yesterday was fun because we have some friends from Ireland and even have the cool accent and told us some of the things they do in Ireland. First off, it's a National Holiday. Cool, huh?

I teach my kids some Irish phrases to use all day. We don't say, "yes." We say, "aye." And we are all lassies and laddies. Fun times! Also, we have Shepherd's Pie, Irish bacon/apple Salad, and every fruit and veggie that is green. Green jello and died green Lemonade. mmmmm. It's all about the traditions and fun times!

We are like .8% Irish and I didn't even know it until we did our family line. All those years I could have been milking it... and I want a "Kiss me, I'm Irish" shirt for me. Just because I can now.

Messmaker

(sing to "Matchmaker" from Fiddler on the Roof)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59Hj7bp38f8

Messmaker, Messmaker, make a huge mess.
Find all the toys, then dump them out!
Messmaker, Messmaker, clean it all up!
I feel like I need to SHOUT!

Messmaker, Messmaker, I'll bring the box
You bring the broom, be ready to clean
Give me a reason to not throw out your toys
I don't want to sound so mean!

For daddy -- organize right!
For mommy -- just put out of sight!
For you, well, I would shudder in fear
Because your toys might be thrown out of here!

Messmaker, Messmaker, I haven't seen
The carpet in, I don't know when
I'm ripping my hair out as I see this big mess
I stepped on a toy, oh again!

by, Monique "Mom of almost 4 Messmakers" Chapman

SPA WEEKEND

If you know about my life right now, you will know that I am under LOADS of stress and have been having bouts of cry-fests. Really?? Crying?? I do NOT cry. I'm not bragging, it's just something I don't do. Sometimes I wish I could. If I'm looking around and everyone's crying except me at a movie, I feel very unsentimental. I feel like I could let my husband know how deeply I feel about something if I would just cry. And I guess it's an ego thing too. I grew up with three boys and all the while they would see me about to cry and immediately start making fun of me, so I had to toughen up quick! What are brothers for, right?

Anyway, because of too many things that I am not in the mood to discuss, I was in desperate need of some R & R. And this weekend, I got just that. 5 of us ladies here made a reservation in Heviz, a town just below the Balaton known for their thermal baths and SPAS, and left for the whole weekend. Including Friday. Three days of SPA treatments, thermal pools, and pampering. Ahhhhhhhhhh. I didn't have to use my Tylenol PM to help me sleep, I didn't need my tea in the morning for my headache and nausea, and I think my twitch actually went away. (Just kidding about the twitch.) And if you have read my other post about Church, I (regretfully) had to miss church. Dang.

Don't worry. I still love life and this baby of mine, yucky stress is just taking it's toll on me right now. I know that this is just a season that I have to go through to appreciate the good in my life. "You have to experience the bad to fully appreciate the good." And boy did I appreciate some good friends and great times this weekend. My family rocks! B was so supportive and even asked me in the thick of things if I had anything to look forward to. And the next day I made plans to go on this weekend getaway. When I told B about it, he said, "When do you leave?" I wasn't even offended. ;)

On a better note: Today, Dylan walked up to me and exclaimed, "I love your baby, mommy! I can't wait to play with him. I'm handsome, huh mom? I'm a big guy now. I can jump supa' high! Can I have a treat?" --No, we don't know if it's a boy or a girl yet.

And when he says goodbye to people, he now says, "GOODBYE!!!! Okay, I'm good." (From the movie Cars.)

M.O.P.C.

Maleia told me, "Cookie Monster loves cookies because he is named after cookies."

Later she came up and said, "Can I be called Maleia 'Oreo Pie' Chapman?"

She loves her some Oreo Pie.

My name would either be
"Monique 'Cadbury Creme Egg' Chapman"
or
"Monique 'Almond M&Ms' Chapman.

How about you?

London

I figured I would see London while living overseas, but I didn't think it would be for medical reasons. Apparently Hungary doesn't have the best health care (Eastern socialism at it's best. surprise surprise) and I knew this, but the Embassy doctor wanted all the prenatal testing done in a place where they know what they are doing. VERY civil of them. So I was flown to London! Wooohoo!!

Everything was wonderful and the people there are marvelous. I only had once incident where someone pick pocketed me, but I got my wallet back from a really nice lady. Only my cash was stolen and I saw who did it. Lame, I know, but I didn't have much cash, and I didn't want it to ruin my trip. And it didn't. Though I was ticked off and wanted to toss the guy into THE GAP of the tube. (See below.)

"The Gap" underground in The Tube

Big Ben

London at night

Big Ben with The Eye in the background.

The hotel where I stayed. Can I say Ritzy? It was next to Regents
Park and Great Portland Street stop on the tube. Nice.

Awesome buildings near where I stayed.

In my opinion, you can't go to London without seeing a show. I went to "We Will Rock You" and was blown away. I love Queen, so this was an easy one to like.

Dominion Theater.

My favorite part wasn't the finale. It was this old lady that kept standing up to dance during all the music. She must have been, like, 80 and can dance better than me. SHE stole the show.

I took a "Hop-on-Hop-off" bus tour so that I can get off and puke if I needed to. :) It was beautiful and a great way to get a well-rounded knowledge of a big city. We have done this in almost all the big cities we have been in and are grateful that I have. It was too cold to be walking around!!

London Bridge. Now do you know why I grabbed photos from other sites, this photo stinks. It was drizzling at one point and this was through the glass. Lame, I know.

I went to an awesome pizza place called Pizza Xpress and it was far from fast food. It was ONLY sit down and delicious.

My favorite part was that they cut out the center of my pizza and put a salad there. Perfect sized. They even gave me a my own pizza cutter. If they only knew how many times I have cut myself with a pizza cutter.

"There is no darkness, but ignorance."

Typical "By the groovy telephone booths that nobody ever uses anymore except to take pictures with" picture. Seriously. There was a line to take a picture with this booth. That is why someone was there to take my picture. And no, I didn't stand in line, I just offered to take a couple's picture and then I got to cut in the "queue." Sometimes it pays to be nice.

I just love the architecture wherever I go in Europe.

And how cute are the taxis?? I got to ride in one several times. To and from the embassy, to and from the theater, and to and from a fancy restaurant. The other times I took public (the bus or tube.) And it was really easy to get around.

And who can resist buying a Paddington bear at Paddington Station? I grew up watching Paddington Bear, so it was neat to bring home a bear and some books for the kids, though I had to explain it to them. I could easily read the expressions on their faces, "You went to London and brought back some crappy books and a bear?? Where's the candy?" Then I brought out the
Cadbury chocolate. A "Best Mom Ever" feeling replaced the "You left us alone with dad, you crazy mommy" feeling I got when I left.

Eger Weekend

aka

Weekend Without the Wiggles
(NO KIDS ALLOWED!)

It was a tad on the chilly side, but really mild. Just foggy. And the best part: SANS KIDS!! This is the main square where B and I got some killer hot chocolate. It was more like a hot, melted chocolate bar. I think it stuck to my throat as I swallowed it. Now that is my kind of hot chocolate. I also purchased a mango chili chocolate bar that we are waiting to eat with an appreciative audience. Any takers?

The Girls.
No, I am not standing on a stool, but I am wearing my heeled boots. I forget that I am a giant sometimes!! Remind me to not wear my boots during a picture. Oh, I think it's time to wear a different bra. Pregnancy really gives me a boost... if you catch my drift.

The Boys.
We asked them to stand with the canon. Manly huh? But of course, they were smart enough to stand in front of the canon so you can't even tell what's behind them. Again, very manly.

The daredevil that he is, B decided to go roof hopping...
(thanks Harmony for the idea of negative space.)

The community didn't like this too much, but I think his punishment was pretty mild compared to the torture devices found in the dungeon of the castle. . .

Alright, enough of my boring posts.

Living overseas, we have been blessed to meet some wonderful fellow adventuresome friends that are willing to go places and do fun things with us. Four other woman and I surprised our husbands with a night get-away on Valentine's day. We went the week after Valentine's day to one of my favorite towns called Eger. (Egg-air) It was awesome! I would even say it was close to perfect. And the reason why is that B, yes MY husband, wants to plan another one in April. He doesn't plan. For the most part. (Except our amazing Game Nights in MD, and his own family reunions, but that's another story...)

We left early on Saturday, stayed overnight in Eger with our fun fun friends, and then left Sunday morning after breakfast in time to get back for church in the afternoon.

Being a member of the LDS faith, we don't drink, but we went to a wine tasting with the rest of the crew Saturday night and enjoyed getting to know all about wine without feeling too odd-ballish. It was really cool. I'm sure we will use this information on Jeopardy, Trivial Pursuit, or some other very important knowledge-fest game. It reminded me of the Sesame Street show about "How to Make Crayons," but it was wine, and we were underground in an actual winery that looked more like a dungeon. It was very Mideival looking complete with candles and antique chandeliers. The best part was that, for us non-drinkers, it was free and we still got all the cheeses and appetizers that went along with it. (We tipped though. It's only fair, right?) Then we had a wonderful dinner of Veal Gouylas (Hungarian yumminess) and Nokedli (homemade Hungarian noodles). And for dessert, an Apple Cake with caramel drizzle. We paid for the food, don't worry, and it was divine!

We talked, laughed, and even danced the night away together in our own little cottage. I missed the crazy dancing since I went to bed early (midnight) because I felt sick, but the fun was had by all.

Great company and great food = Great time. Until April... we are thinking Sopron (Shope-rrone) this time!