Vacationing with a newborn

Yes we're crazy, we took a little trip right at Micah's 3 week mark.  We traveled by ferry, then two different trains to get to a little city near the Ephesus remains.  We had two great little travelers, and it was a very comfortable way to travel with two little boys.

We would highly recommend the place we stayed, it's only a block away from the train station and within walking distance to several places in town, and just a short walk away from public transport to get you to various surrounding places.  The staff spoke English, the rooms were clean, they had a great breakfast every morning and the price was very affordable.

Ephesus is a place we've wanted to visit for a while now but just now have had the opportunity, and I'm glad we did it, even if it meant traveling with a newborn.  We hope to go back when the boys get older, because even though Calvin had a blast climbing on and jumping off of marble columns, he didn't quite appreicate the history behind those columns he loved to climb on.  The beginning of November was absolutely goregous, and it wasn't peek tourist season, a double bonus.

We also were able to stop at a place that makes carpets, they gave us a great lesson in how they make them and let's just say it's amazing.  We all were impressed by this demonstration and we were not pressured into buying, which is rare among those selling carpets.  We would love to buy one, but really do I want to worry about cleaning spills out of such a piece of artwork.....someday.

I'm too tired at the moment to put these pictures in order, but it gives you an idea of what we saw,

 The carpet weaving school

 Making the silk thread, which is a very cool process

 At this point I believe we were going on a bear hunt.....we didn't find any bears though.

 A rare moment where Calvin was actually still

 People knew how to build things back in the day

 public potties

 the library was very impressive

Micah slept the entire time

 the theatre.

So grateful to get to share this experience with these two, and John as well, but his pace was quite a bit faster than ours.

bosphorus birthday

We started off touring after taking a Sabbath to let his parents recover from the trip. We took a 4 hour cruise up and back down the Bosphorus. It was such a relaxing little trip and was the first time Marvin or I had ventured that far up the Bosporus. The boat docked for a few hours just shy of the Black Sea. There was an old fortress on top of the hill and we hiked up to the top, it was a little initiation to Istanbul's hills. Thankfully we all made it up and back down before the boat left.

Love the Bosphorus bridges!

where the Bosphorus leads to the Black Sea

Lots of cute little neighborhoods along the shore

Once we finally made it home we ordered Turkish food, oh how I am going to miss ordering food online and having it delivered quickly to my door on days I don't feel like cooking. I baked a cake in the morning and Calvin helped me decorate it with sprinkles. You can't quite tell but he made a nice little sprinkle pile in the middle of the cake. (Can you guess what piece Calvin wanted?) We had fun with our little birthday celebration and Calvin is still singing Happy Birthday to Grandma. What a treat to be able to be together on her birthday.

a Quick 2 weeks

Marvin's parents and brother left yesterday and we so appreciate what it took to get here, we know it wasn't easy. Calvin already misses them, and has been talking about how we need to catch up with them and go to the airport (and yes it breaks my heart every time I hear him say it). I have lots more photos to post but we'll start in order, so here are a few pictures of their first night/morning in town.  We just enjoyed having them here and let them sleep a bit.  Their first full day we headed to the bazaar down the street and let them explore and take in all the sounds, smells, and sites. 

 

Micah's first time in Grandma's arms

 

 Calvin quickly convinced Uncle John to read him some books, which turned into about a 45 minute reading session.  He had no idea how much Calvin loves books, especially when he has a willing reader.

First time in Grandpa's arms at breakfast the morning after they arrived.

We are so blessed to have had such an amazing visit.  Thank you so much for flying half way around the world to see us and to meet Micah, it means so much to us.

my little Traveling buddy

Micah had his first international flight just 2 weeks after he was born.  We had to leave the country to renew my visa and to get a visa for Micah (our life is never boring).  Thankfully we were able to find a good cheap flight to Bulgaria that only required an overnight stay.  I contacted some friends of friends who live in the country and they were able to recommend a place to stay and give me some info on how to get to and from the airport.  This was such a blessing because this little trip was planned 2 days before I went.

I was a little nervous flying solo with our tiny little man, but he was a such a great little traveler.  While I was waiting for my flight I bumped into some other expats on my flight and out of all the people who could have possibly have been traveling that day we made the connection that we had some common acquaintances.  They had a friend picking them up from the airport and I just climbed right in and they took me to the hotel and picked me up the next morning at 6:00 a.m. to take me back to the airport. 

Now they didn't stop there, we stopped by a grocery store so I could pick up some pig meat to take back with me.  While we were at the grocery store my attention was directed to the beverage selection they have available. Seriously before my eyes stood several cans of Dr. Pepper, it was delicious and a great way to start a very early day after very little sleep.

 

Unfortunately these were the only two photos I took during this short trip.  It was dark when we landed and foggy when we took off the next morning.  So I got a night glimpse of Sofia, I hope visit someday again and next time see more of the country.

Brotherly Love

Calvin requests lots of snuggle time with his little brother, which we are certainly trying to encourage.  He's been a great helper too.

 Micah's pretty fond of his big brother too.

 My sweet little guys!