The Schmitt Family Happenings: 2 months, MOTAT, regular life

2 months – that is how long we have been here now. we’ve had some amazing experiences already. I’d be lying if I said it was easy. Exploring as a family and having Bill around so much is priceless. We love all of the family time we are getting to have. But, there are still many hours in the week where Bill is working and the kids and I are sorting out a new routine. Bill is finding his groove and work and enjoying his experiences. I’m happy to report that the past couple of weeks have felt more normal and we have a rhythm going. Up until a few weeks ago I was still pushing myself to meet new people, connect with those I met at random places, go to new events, go, go, go. It was emotionally and physically exhausting. I have found a few friends who I can spend time really getting to know and I am embracing (or at least making a daily effort to) the EXTRA EXTRA time I get to spend with C, C&E every day. It is still not easy. I miss my council of dear friends in Rochester (thank God for Facetime, Skype calls, Viber texts) and family daily. I think a lot about when family will come to visit, when we will return home, etc. I wonder if this will lessen as the months go on? In totally amazing news my soul mate Lindsay & her husband Rob are moving to Auckland TONIGHT! This is basically a miracle. Lindsay and I never thought when she married a Kiwi that we would live in the same city again and God has definitely blessed us with this experience! I can’t wait to spend some time with her. Being with a friend who REALLY knows you is such an amazing thing.

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MOTAT – there are 2 american families here from the UVA neurosurg program. One family has 4 boys (all under 4 yrs old!) and we decided to check out the Museum of Transportation last week with our kids.

I showed up a bit early so the kids and I explored the planes part of the museum. Ellie & Claire didn’t really understand that the red ropes meant you were not supposed to go past it. I sounded like a crazy mom yelling at Ellie while she sprinted to the other end of the hanger, under a rope and almost into one of the precious planes while Claire was going in the other direction. classic.

ellie.

claire.

then this became a game. charlie running full blast with claire (sometimes ellie) in the stroller. never a dull moment.

Amy showed up with 3 of her boys (one of her boys was her stroller). She left her 8 week old with her Grandparents (who are here for 6 months – jelly!). We took the MOTAT tram from the plane museum to the train museum. The kids loved the ride and the pictures stopped because it was too busy there to snap photos too!

Regular life – claire turned into a dinosaur. Notice Charlie and Ellie underneath the table. They were playing a game where they were hiding from the dino.

RAWRRR!

Bill was home a bit late for dinner time so I set up Peter Pan to watch while the kids ate their pizza dinner that they helped make. The past few weeks I have been taking a night where Bill will probably run a bit late and we make pizzas. Now I am still a bit type A with this – basically I make the dough. Roll out 3 even pizza crusts. Then bring over the sauce and give each kid a chance to put sauce and sprinkle cheese on their pizzas - one at a time and with my help. Hey, I’m trying and they love it. Then they watch Peter Pan while it cooks and I sip some wine. Win Win!

Friday the kids and I headed to Ambury Regional Park (South Auckland) to meet Prue, Millie & Finn. It is a free Park/Farm where the kids can see cows being milked, sheep, pigs, chickens, etc. I didn’t take any pictures because it was too busy. Saturday we didn’t have any plans and the weather was iffy so we took Bill there to show him.

Heading into the milking shed.

ellie was nervous the day before and saturday couldn’t get enough

the milk just comes pouring out! having been a nursing mom before I really feel for these cows. I cannot believe how much milk they make. apparently they use the milk to feed the baby calves and other animals on the farm.

see one of the park rangers catching the milk from the basin? do you spy anything else? I had to stop taking pictures because I didn’t want a human crack in all of them.

feels just like Wisconsin!

this is my favorite part. I just LOVE this pig!! She reminds me of a pig near Tom & Laura’s house named Lewis. She has so much personality. She is always grunting and snorting and she is so hideous you have to love her.

I need to get a better face shot than this but if you could see her bottom teeth she has an underbite and her little toofers just stick out. I also love that her ears stick up. cracks me right up.

only 1 curl in the tail

ellie is very interested in the chickens.

these two. claire saw ellie checking out the chickens and decided to join in.

the various sheep. charlie is petting the merino wool sheep – you can definitely tell how much nicer the wool is on him. no wonder that merino wool is so comfy! about this time the weather decided to change to rain.

check out the blue sky this way.

and the grey clouds/rain coming in. these were taken at the same time in different directions.

driving along our st heliers beach we saw all these kite boarders out. it was a really windy day – probably perfect for them.

bill wants to try this before we leave.

the kids got out and played in the sand before dinner despite it being windy and cold! ellie insisted on taking her jacket off.

what a happy girl. claire didn’t seem to care about the weather.

ellie decided to “go for a run” down the boardwalk. that is what she tells us “go for a run” then takes off with her arms up and moving quickly. I hope to one day run with these girls by my side.

can you tell I was unimpressed?

much happier with claire giving me a kiss.

the kids were making a pile of shells they found. we had to bring those shells home. I have a funny feeling we will be collecting many shells this year.

C&C showing off their shells.

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charlie took these photos. ellie was holding this smile for him.

this was claire’s smile for charlie.

a regular family dinner. we are having many of these, which makes me happy. the kids even now pipe up and say (half the time without prompting) “thank you mom for making this dinner”.

notice each kid has their plate (the girls are still in highchairs – strapped – then pushed up to the table) and a cookie or gummy next to it. They get their dinner and then their dessert stays in the middle until they finish their dinner. If they are misbehaving their dessert moves closer to us or gets a bite taken out of it by us if need be. Who knows if it helps their manners/table etiquette, but it sure helps focus their eating.