T’was the morning after Halloween and all through the house, not a creature should have been stirring…except we all were. We were off to Austin with the girls to explore and make some big decisions. The alarm went off a bit after 5:00 am. Loran and I got ready as the girls continued to sleep off their candy hangovers. We had them up and ready to go to the airport well before the sun only to get messages from Delta that our flight was delayed from its scheduled 9:10 to 10:50. Bah. We snuggled on the couch and watched a show and then decided to head to the airport and take our time since we had to get two girls, four backpacks, five suitcases (thankfully checked) and two car seats through security and C terminal. Double bah! At security, children under age 10 get to keep their shoes on. As does Loran who has special clearance. Of course, Lily wasn’t happy with this and insisted on removing her shoes. Lily’s shoes went through the x-ray with mine in solidarity. They did well through security and earned little TSA badge stickers. Our gate was across from a play area, so we made good use of that. Once on the plane, seat buddies Lillian and Loran were busy coloring, reading and napping. Ella and I kept busy with books and a little Daniel Tiger on the iPad. Ironically, of all the activities I packed in each girl’s backpack, the safety card in the seatback pocket ended up being the favorite for both.
We arrived without incident. It was then time to collect the two girls, four backpacks, two car seats and then make our way through the airport to collect the five suitcases, we actually caved and rented one of those Smart Cartes (White Bear company!) – which was a great choice, except Lily couldn’t understand why she couldn’t ride in the “stroller”. Suddenly, at the ripe ages of 2 and 4, Lily and Ella became magically helpful. Both offered to drag a wheeled suitcase through the baggage claim to the passenger pickup doors. It was adorable and several people stopped to smile and watch the two little girls maneuver suitcases larger/heavier than them through the crowd. By maneuver through the crowd, I mean that the crowds had to part or risk the loss of limb. Both girls were heads down, powering through the crowd towards the door. We sent Loran ahead with the car seats to get our rental car picked while the girls and I stayed behind to enjoy the warmth outside the airport and sit with our bags.
Coat free! A refreshing change from leaving MN on a brisk morning!
Our flight delay caused us to miss touring a school we were interested in, but we were able to reschedule. We did go see Loran’s new office, Bazaarvoice. As we arrived, they were just wrapping up their big end of quarter meeting. There is always gong ringing to celebrate new accounts. Ella and Lily both had their turn at ringing the gong, with help from Lori. The girls collected snacks and juice the further we went on our tour. It was like office trick or treating! We met a lot of great people and the girls enjoyed seeing Daddy’s new office.
Loran got a peek of his new corner office (with someone else’s stuff), but he left his mark by leaving behind two of those suitcases we hauled through the airport so as to lighten his packing load when he initially arrives in December.
We stayed at the nearby Embassy Suites. They had two big value propositions other than a pool that we hadn’t expected: snacks served daily and swans. Yep, swans. Two giant white swans named Butch and Sundance who lived in the hotel in a giant pond with some koi.
The girls loved snack time. We ordered them up some kiddie cocktails – their first. They both loved their drinks, however when I asked Ella how it tasted, she told me it was “spicy” – my little Minnesotan.
Our second evening in Austin, after tucking the girls into bed, I took a solo trip to Target. I needed new sunglasses to replace the ones that had been accidently sat on by a small girl. Loran needed pajamas because he’d accidentally packed all of his pjs in those bags that he left in the office that’s not-quite-his-yet. While there, I experienced something interesting. Winter wear. Hats, scarves, mittens and winter jackets. That in itself seemed silly. Even funnier? The jackets were right next to the wall of bikinis and swimsuits. Seriously. I may have rolled my eyes and stifled laughter.
Each morning, we were greeted with something new. Thick fog and beautiful sunrises.
Lily took a liking to the dog at the David Weekly design center. She wanted to take a “family picture” with it.
The first full day in Austin was our first design meeting. After a full day of designing, we took off to see our new homestead. It was a good practice drive because we were able to see what the commute would be like for Loran at 5:00 on a Friday. Our minds were put to rest when it was smooth sailing. We took a nice walk down our street to see our land for the first time.
Our little slice of land.
While on our walk, we met the first/only family living on our street. They were quite nice. They will live a few houses from us. They have a two year old girl and another little girl who was due momentarily. Yay!
We went back quite a few times. It was neat to see the hills in different light. We also checked out the elementary school our neighborhood is assigned to. We played at the park and I did my best to ignore the vulture that was hopping around on the power pole watching us.
On our Saturday evening, we visited the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum. It was really well done. While we didn’t see the entire thing, the parts we did focus on before closing time were interesting. I think we’ll be back. After our trip through the museum and the gift shop where each girl picked out a post card, we walked around the campus of the University of Texas at Austin. It was pretty busy. We didn’t venture too far into campus because our two little cowpokes were getting tired.
Sunday morning we went to a church near our new house called Lake Hills. As we entered the campus, there were signs instructing first time visitors to put their flashers on. Being the rule follower I am, I did as told. We were flagged down, directed to a prime parking spot up front and then met right at the car by a volunteer who helped us get the girls checked in and got us settled. It was a nice first impression. We enjoyed our time and the girls loved it. We weren’t used to having multiple buildings in which to check each child into. Another one of those things that wouldn’t fly in a Minnesota winter. Initially, I felt overwhelmed by sadness as I sat in the worship center because I didn’t know anyone. Nobody was familiar. I wasn’t friends with anyone who was in the worship band, nobody in the seats was familiar, none of the preschool volunteers were friends. Even the speaking pastor was new. But, I had to remind myself that those things were once true at Eagle Brook too. And as we filed out the doors after service, I surveyed the crowd, studying the faces and I thought to myself, “someone in this room is going to be my friend.” It was a nice thought and totally out of character for me, I am enjoying the peace I am feeling through this process the majority of the time.
After church and a quick drive through our neighborhood (again), we headed back to the “E” (as the girls called it) for swan feeding. At noon on the weekends, the head chef comes out and helps children feed Butch and Sundance lettuce and spinach. Both were a little nervous that the swans were going to bite them, but the chef was very careful and showed the girls how to feed the swans. Ella was still a little shy and would drop the lettuce into the water, but with some help, she became and expert swan feeder. Lily was also shy, but with help she also participated. Every time a swan would take the lettuce from Lily, she would squeal and put her hands to her mouth and double over in giggles. Ella and Lily stayed until all of the lettuce was fed. Ella was handed the lettuce bucket to dump the water into the pond. In true Ella fashion, she threw the entire bucket into the pond…the chef was pretty quick and retrieved it. Ella thought that was hilarious.
Later Sunday afternoon we explored Zilker Botanical Garden. It was beautiful! Located near downtown Austin, there were a few areas where you could see the cityscape. However, for being so close, you had a feeling that you were removed from everything. The girls loved running up and down the trails, picking up sticks and rocks, skipping and playing. It was nice to just get out and move after so many meetings and tours, with more to follow in the upcoming days.
Thanks for smiling, Ella.
Our summer clothes have been packed away at home, which didn’t leave me with a lot of warm-weather options for our trip. I thought I’d done okay in the packing department, but the second day we were there, it was 87 degrees. I was dying and starting to regret this moving decision. Here it was, 87 degrees on November 2nd. That was not okay. Terrible. However, that night while Loran and I were watching the news, we learned that it was a record setting day of heat. Not normal! The record had previously been set in 1918. I was flooded with relief. I did have to stop and buy some sandals over the weekend. It was nice to leave every day without jackets. I kept telling Ella to put her jacket, hat and mittens on before we left each day. She’d start to move, then stop and start to giggle, realizing I was tricking her.
Monday and Tuesday was full of house meetings, school visits and apartment hunting. We had two schools to visit. There was one school that I was wildly impressed with based on their website and another that I was interested in that we added at the last minute. I figured the choice was already in the bag, but we should have something to compare it to. Especially since all schools pale compared to our beloved Garden of Hope. We toured our last minute addition first. I was in awe, it was pretty magical. We saw the next school still expecting to be wowed. And to be honest, while it was a great school, I just got a weird feeling about it. I’ve always counseled friends who have asked about what to look for in a school that they will just have a feeling. Everyone wants something different, so it’s hard to put a definitive check-list onto paper once you’re past the basics of ratios, safety, cleanliness. But standing in the school that I thought was a sure thing, just gave me a feeling that there was something I didn’t like. I couldn’t even put my finger on it, but the gut said no. Meanwhile the other school gave me warm fuzzies and I wanted to stay and play. As did Lillian, who made a break for it and ran across the playground and into a classroom, making her way into the fold as quickly as possible, trying to blend in so she could participate. We carried her to the car kicking and screaming. Right now, it looks like the magical school has one opening and they’re going to see about a second opening, but until anything is set in stone, I’m not going to post the specifics of what made it so magical.
Apartment hunting was a good/quick experience. We had three properties to see. Even though we got somewhat lost trying to find the first one (we knew where it was, just not how to get there). We really liked the first property. Good size, nice amenities including a shallow pool, playground, and there was a fence running around the property to separate the buildings from the parking lot – all of those amenities that only a parent of small children would love. The second property was a winner with the girls because we got to tool around in a golf cart between buildings/apartments. The girls thought it was a wagon ride and loved it. I was less impressed with the property, the apartments were fine but they lacked on the amenities that we would use with the girls. They did have a dog wash that they were mighty proud of… The third one looked great and had pretty views but didn’t have short-term leases, so they were out and we never got past the lobby. So, that decision was easy, now we wait to get it all arranged and set.
Tuesday was our last day, we had our last house meeting to finalize everything with our designer, builder and sales consultant. All went smoothly. We had found a church, apartment, school and I’d been to Target. We had played outside, been watched by a vulture, I was bit by a fire ant, we swam, fed swans, ate Tex Mex, met Loran’s coworkers and even saw some of the trees starting to turn colors. All in all, a very successful trip!
Before our flight out, we had some fun playground time. While there, I received a phone call from a pastor at the church we’d visited. He was going to pass our info onto a small group of families who live near our new house. They are going to meet up with Loran when he is there in December and the pastor said they’d be eager to help us move in. It was kind of exciting to start the ball rolling in the friend-making process. Maybe they won’t actually be eagerly awaiting our arrival in the apartment parking lot with welcome signs and casseroles like I’m envisioning, but it would be nice for some people to know I exist in Texas.
After our playground time, we stopped at Mount Bonnell which provided great vista views of the “Lake Austin” (really another dammed section of the Colorado River), the Pennybacker Bridge, and some enormous houses. Beautiful, and if time would have allowed, I’d have liked to have hiked further. But, Loran was on a conference call and Ella and Lily were busy jumping from boulder to boulder giving me heart attacks.
Our trip home was fraught with “excitement”. And not the happy, hey-we’re-upgraded-to-first-class kind. More of the – we’re-stuck-in-traffic-because-our-GPS-sent-us-a-weird-way-to-the-airport-and-our-plane-is-leaving-SOON kind. After ten years of traveling/running through airports with Loran, I’m used to this drill. Having children made it a little more dicey but we now work well under airport pressure and I no longer cry as I run. Loran pulled into the departure loop where we handed our checked bags to a skycap. I then took the girls, their backpacks and my bag into the airport and through security (again having to remove Lillian’s shoes upon her insistence – eye roll). Loran then dropped off the rental car and came through security with his bag and two car seats. We met near the gate where we played restroom tag and then immediately boarded the plane. If we haven’t had a scheduled layover, I’ve hardly ever waited in an airport to board for more than 15 minutes. I’ve also never missed a flight. Once I argued with an airport employee at JFK because the flight had closed moments before I checked in - and I was successful! Another time I ran to catch a connecting flight in Ohio that had already boarded and closed the door, I cried, they let me on. Loran’s love of travel has taught me a few skills.
We were doing well on the flight home when in the last 20 minutes or so, Lily was getting restless and wanted out of her seat. The plane had a 3-3 seat arrangement so both girls and Loran were on one side of the aisle and I was on the other side with no seatmates. Nice. When Lily got restless I switched with Loran to talk to her and then hold her on my lap. Then Ella started getting squirmy. I figured she just wanted out of her seat too. Then she told me her teeth hurt. That’s her tell. Vomit was coming. I started ripping apart the back of the seat looking for the air sickness bag. Loran asked what I needed and I told him. He found one and thrust it at me, I had it inches from Ella’s mouth when she let loose. Completely missing the bag, but getting me, Lily’s leg, Loran’s work bag and the girls’ backpacks, not to mention herself and the car seat. Of course, the five minutes of the flight that I sit with Ella, I get coated in regurgitated airline snack box. Seriously. After the stomach-letting, Ella was all smiles, goofy and jovial. Goodie. The rest of us were rather defeated as we attempted to clean up using our leftover cocktail napkins, baby wipes and were bound by FAA regulation to our seats as the plane coasted to the ground. We did the walk of shame through the airport. I was covered in it, Loran was carrying the gross car seats and his bag and I was girl wrangling two small people who didn’t want to walk through the airport at 9pm. Needless to say, Loran and I were up doing laundry later than we’d expected. Despite the trip home being stressful, the rest of the trip was highly successful.
The night we arrived home, I checked on the girls before I went to bed and Lola the cat, who typically sleep right next to Ella had clearly missed her buddy as she was sleeping on top of Ella. The next day, when Lily fell asleep on the couch, Lola cuddled right next to her too. Our furry babies were also glad we were home. But darn if it wasn’t cold out! Ella is also the proud owner of some Sea Bands. Here’s hoping…
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