Krohn 2010 Road Trip...Day 14 & 15

March 17-18
Charlotte, NC
Jeff spoke a few minutes at the SIM prayer meeting this morning...it was fun to see people in the home office and for the boys meet people there.  We had a great interview/debriefing and then I was fortunate to be asked out to coffee by a wonderful lady that I had just met.  Her questions and true concern for what we are going through during this transitional part of our lives was very encouraging and very needed.  Thanks Ruth!!

On the 18th I finally got to meet Erin, gal who works for International and with whom I have been skyping for almost 2 years!!  She just had a baby girl about 6 months ago and so we wanted to meet and have our girls meet.  It was a nice lunch with the kids and hubbies...fun to meet you Erin!!!

It's nice to just hang out at SIM and for the boys to play games and not have to be anywhere at any certain time.  One thing they have discovered is Monopoly!!  They are Monopoly fools and it's funny to see them buying up houses and hotels like fools!!  What fun they are having!

Krohn Road Trip...Day 12

March 15
Coral Springs/Ft. Lauderdale, FL
We stayed the night in a nice hotel and then the next day went to the beach for a few hours.  It was super windy but the boys loved playing in the ocean and sand.

After the beach, we went and had dinner with a friend of Jeff's and his family.  We had a nice time and our kids really enjoyed playing with the Cooper kids.  After leaving their house, we drove all night to get to Charlotte, NC.

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...Day 13

March16
Charlotte, NC
We spent all night driving so that the kids could sleep, and arrived in Charlotte mid-morning.  We got all settled into the residences at SIM and then got some rest.  It was great for the boys to see SIM USA and meet some of the people there as well.

Krohn Road Trip...Day 11

March 14
Islamorada, FL-Coral Springs, FL
Today we got to experience Everglades National Park with James and Jennifer!  It was so amazing!  I will admit I was a bit nervous about seeing alligators out in the open, close enough that they could gobble up my kids if they were hungry enough!  The scariest/most exhilarating part was when Nathan was running up ahead of us and all of a sudden came running back saying there was a HUGE alligator on the path!  Sure enough, we walked up a bit and there was this humongous alligator sitting right in the middle of the path!!  We were going to walk around it and hope to find another way out, but then it just up and walked off the path, over the bank and into the water.

After spending a few hours in the park, we said goodbye to James & Jennifer and took off for the Ft. Lauderdale area where Jeff was going to meet up with some friends and the kids and I would just chill and hang out together.  We were stuck without a car so we decided to embark on a little adventure and walk to the nearest shopping area to find some dinner. We debated between Thai food (which I wanted) and pizza (what the boys wanted)...and of course concluded that pizza would more likely be enjoyed by all.  We had fun, just the kids and I, but by the time we finished and walked back it was getting late and Jeff was on his way to the hotel.

Sophia's ear infection...and first ER experience

March13
My baby is sick!!  Somehow the fact that she is a super itty bitty peanut, makes it hard for me to see her sick!  I finally relented and took her in to the doctor since she has been running a fever for almost 10 days and had a runny nose and cough.

Jennifer and I decided that our only option was to take her to Mariner's Hospital in Tavernier (the next Key between Islamorada and Key Largo).  We arrived around 3pm and waited and waited and waited.  Sophia was super fussy and cried most of the time we were in the lobby..there ended up being 4 other people behind us when we were finally given a room inside the ER.  I had given Sophia some tylenol and so when they took her temp, it was normal...but the longer she sat there, the more agitated she became and her fever finally spiked again at 101.6.  The nurses gave her some tylenol, and explained that the doctor had encountered some serious problems with other patients and they were sorry that we were having to wait so long.  We finally saw the doctor close to 6:45pm and he looked at her ears and saw liquid and knew that's what was causing her fever and irritation (and cough).  He prescribed some Amoxicilin and she is currently taking that now and is much, much better!!!

We were in the ER for 4 hours, and while it was not ideal, I had the best time with Jennifer just yakking it up in there!!  To me, besides Sophia being sick, it was one of the highlights of our trip so far!!!  I love you Jen!!!!

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...day 10

March 12, 2010
Orlando, FL-Islamorada, FL
I had such a fun morning meeting up with Crystal and Bella at Cracker Barrel!!  Crystal is a mommy I know from an internet forum that I have been a part of for almost 2 years.  She recently moved to Orlando and we took advantage of a free morning to get together...it was so much fun!! I loved meeting her and getting to know Bella in person...thanks Crystal for making time to get together with us!!

After meeting up with Crystal, I went back to the house to pack up our things and get ready to head to the Florida Keys.  Our final destination for the day was to Islamorada, one of the Keys between Key Largo and Key West to stay with our good friends, James and Jennifer Johnson.  It was completely rainy the entire drive to the Keys, and not a pretty, light rain...but a really heavy rain from the time we left Orlando until we arrived in Islamorada.

James & Jennifer had hot chili waiting for us in their super cozy home...it was sooo good to arrive and see them again!!  We were tired, but it was fun to just hang out with them.  Sophia was fussy and didn't sleep well...once again she was running a fever for like the 10th night!!  I knew I probably just needed to take her to the doctor, but it was Friday night and nothing was open.

Saturday morning we went to breakfast at Mangrove Mike's, and then over to Cheeca Lodge to see where James works.  It is sooo gorgeous, and while it wasn't that warm (and it was SUPER windy), we still got some great pictures of the lodge and the ocean.  The Keys are (obviously) surrounded by water..the Gulf side and the Ocean side...Cheeca is on the ocean side and is a very exclusive lodge. We toured the grounds and then headed back to the house for lunch...on the way we stopped to feed the Tarpon.  This was quite the experience...Tarpon are HUGE fish and we wanted to feed them smaller fish.  The problem was that even though they are enclosed within a white fence, the pelicans were doing all they could to snatch the small fish out of the boys' hands.  Jonathon & Brandon both got "pelican bites", but thankfully it didn't draw blood!  I was sure the pelicans were going to bite off their fingers...or arms!!! lol

After lunch I decided that enough was enough and I needed to take Sophia in to the doctor...she had still been running a fever and had started pulling at her ears. (see next posting about the experience)

We met up with the guys and kids at Lazy Days, a great little place on the ocean with FANTASTIC seafood!!  I had Yellowtail Baja, which was a delicious fish that was encrusted and fried with a white sauce and served with cilantro...it was SOOO yummy!!  It ended up being a late night as we stayed up talking with James and Jennifer...what great friends they are!!!

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...day 9

March 11, 2010
Animal Kingdom--Orlando, FL
Oh the rain!!  After 2 absolutely gorgeous days at Disney, we arrived to the Animal Kingdom and were literally soaked before we even got from our car to the entrance!  We got on the tram and rode to the entrance in a huge deluge...Jeff had forgotten his camera, so he helped us take cover and took the tram back to get it.  While he was gone I noticed that one of the workers was from Venezuela, so I struck up a conversation in Spanish and he ended up giving us a free Disney poncho--for which we were super greatful!

To our surprise, the rain stopped for the rest of the morning...allowing us to do all the rides we wanted to do without getting soaking wet!  We did the Safari, which Sophia loved, and then headed off to Asia to do Expedition Everest.  Oh my goodness, I think this ride trumps Space Mountain in my book...it was a BLAST!!!  We ended up riding it twice because there was such a little wait--it was one of our highlights of the day!  Then we went to Dinoland and walked around a bit, letting the kids use their allowance to shop.  We really wanted to see the afternoon show of The Lion King, so we headed in that direction...and wouldn't you know it...it started raining right as we were going into the show.  Sophia clapped ALL through the show and bounced up and down...she LOVED it!!  It really was impressive, and by the time it ended, we were ready to call it quits and head home.  It worked out great that we were done because it was raining cats and dogs when we left the show and it didn't let up, not even a little.  Most people were headed out of the park anyhow since the park closes at 5pm and it was pouring.

I think we had a GREAT 3 days at Disney, it was such a blessing to have been able to do this, and we are SOO thankful for Bob & Carol's generosity in getting us passes to take the kids.  Sophia won't remember her time here, but we were able to get a few pictures with the characters and get some autographs in her pink Disney Princess book.

That night when we got home, we showered to warm up, dried off, and had a great dinner with Bob, Carol, Nikki and Camdyn.  Camdyn had a blast with the boys, and we really enjoyed kicking back with a glass of wine and chatting with everyone else.  Thank you Bob & Carol, we love you!!!!!

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...day 8

March 10, 2010
Epcot--Orlando, FL
We started out by arriving to Epcot (a bit sore, I might add) on this beautiful Wednesday morning with Carol and her friend who used their comp passes to once again get us into this Disney park.  We had intended to do Epcot in the morning and then park hop and do Animal Kingdom in the afternoon...however, as we saw all there was to do at Epcot, we ended up changing our minds and staying at Epcot all day long!!  I didn't think there would be much for the boys to do, but they loved it there!!  Especially the hands on stuff at Innoventions and the 3D Mickey's PhilharMagic show that actually sprays you with real water and smells like apple pie! 

We traveled from Orlando to space to Germany all in one day!! :o)  The Mission: Space ride (I think that's what it was called) was super intense...the boys loved it and got to ride it twice each since the wait was super short one time and then we got FP for another ride.  Jeff insisted we go to Germany for lunch...it was funny to be walking along all the countries and Jonathon kept asking me when we were going to stop for lunch...I just kept saying, "When we get to Germany".  We enjoyed brats and kraut and just hung out for awhile before heading back to the main part for more fun.

We stayed until the park closed for another wonderful firework and water show, and once again dragged the kids to the car where they promptly fell asleep in the car.  Once again it was great weather and we were so blessed to have been able to do this!!

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...day 7

March 9, 2010
The Magic Kingdom--Orlando, FL
Oh my goodness, the boys' eyes were soooo wide as we took the Ferry across the lake to the Magic Kingdom!  Jeff's Uncle Bob works for Disney and so he was able to get us passes into the park...we were SOO blessed by this!  It was amazing, and to use a cliche, a very magical experience!  It was our first time as a family to go to Disney, to try our hand at the "Fast Pass" system, and to have a small child in tow in this sea of strollers!

We went to Space Mountain first to get our fast passes...this was our first mistake because the FP return was for a couple hours down the road and so we couldn't get another FP for a couple of hrs...we should have gone to another ride and did a FP that would have yielded us a quicker FP.  If you have been to Disney, you'll know what I'm talking about...if you haven't been, you won't understand the system at all! :o)

So after Space Mountain FPs were taken care of, we went over to the Buzz Lightyear ride, of which the standby line was only a 20 minute wait.  Sophia actually loved this ride, full of lasers and bright lights!  Then we proceeded over to Frontierland to see if we could ride any of the big rides there.  We lucked out and the wait for Splash Mountain was only 10 minutes!!!  Jeff took 2 of the boys and got in line while we did a child swap and Jonathon and I waited with Sophia.  We saw them come down and the pictures were hilarious!!  Once they came out, Jonathon and I got to go through the FP line and so we didn't have to wait at all...it was sooo great to see Jonathon's face as we went along the ride and then finally down the water slide.  What a joy to be a parent and get to do this with our kids! Next we were able to get a FP for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and then return to Tomorrowland to ride Space Mountain.  Jeff had been worried that the boys would be scared on SP...but if you know the Krohn boys at all, you'll probably agree that they aren't scared of much...so they LOVED this ride!! 

We then returned to Frontierland, eating our sandwiches along the way and trying to stop for a character autograph/picture with the princesses...but everytime we went to get in line, they were closing the line until a later time...would you believe we didn't get a SINGLE picture or signature at the Magic Kingdom???!!  I was soooo bummed, I really wanted to get Sophia with the princesses to document her first time at Disney, since she won't remember it.  Oh well.

The day really was fantastic, we were able to do the major rides, all with minimum waiting, that we wanted to.  It seems the day flew by, and we stayed to watch the fireworks at the end of the day which Sophia LOVED!!  She was so excited to see these bright lights and the sound didn't scare her at all.  The kids fell asleep on the way home, and Jeff and I wondered if we would have the energy for another day at Epcot/Animal Kingdom the next day.  It was a gorgeous day (weather-wise) also, so we were very thankful.

Krohn 2010 road trip...day 6

March 8, 2010
Orlando, FL
We drove all night and arrived for dinner in Orlando, FL! It was a 21 hour trip, but that doesn't count the hours spent stopping to sleep, see D.C. and eat.  We stayed with Jeff's Uncle Bob and Aunt Carol and it was such a fun time!  We were very tired, and Sophia didn't sleep well at night...but it was so good to arrive!  The boys wanted to swim in their pool, it was FREEZING, but that didn't stop them..until they jumped in and then nearly cried because it was so cold!!  Oh well, maybe another time.

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...day 5

March 7, 2010
Houghton, NY to Orlando, FL
Fantastic time at church with the Webbs this morning!! We loved meeting their friends, and had a good time listening to one of the Houghton professors speak on dreams in the Muslim world.

After a delicious lunch and packing up our things, we finally got on the road to head to Orlando. The plan was to drive all night, or as far as we could make it so that we could arrive in Orlando sometime Monday afternoon/evening.  Jeff made it until 5:30am which is very remarkable!  I woke up a bit later and took the wheel for a couple hrs.  We noticed that we didn't see any more snow once we left Harrisburg, PA.

The highlight of this leg was that we drove through Washington, D.C. at 10pm!! The streets were empty and there was hardly any traffic (Sunday night) so we were able to drive right up to the Capital Building! It was so cool, I thought it was especially cool after watching the West Wing and seeing all these buildings!  We drove past the White House--I was surprised that you actually can't get super close, though really, it's not that surprising since it is the home of our President.  We drove along the mall and then Jeff dropped the boys and I off at a stop sign next to the Lincoln Memorial and we ran up there and got some pictures!  There were a few people there and it was just fabulous seeing this famous landmark...I hope to go back someday when we can really explore our nation's capital. (all of a sudden I'm blanking on capitol/capital and thinking I should have put capitol...if you write it too many times they all look wrong...can someone correct me please?)

After finally getting out of the Pennsylvania Avenue area, we were on our way again...driving past the PENTAGON!!  This was uber cool since I've always wanted to be a spy...and work for the CIA...which I'm actually horrible at lying, and definitely crack under pressure...so it wasn't really an ideal job opportunity, but I like to pretend!! 

Kids did great and of course slept all night in the car!!

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...day 4

March 6, 2010
Houghton, NY
A super fun day spent with the Webb family!!  We watched Emma & Esther play soccer up at the college, and then after a dinner at the Houghton commons, we dropped the boys off at the dorms to stay the night with Devon & Steve!!  I'm sure they won't get a lick of sleep!

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...day 3

March 5, 2010
Detroit suburbs to Houghton, NY
We left mid-morning after a delicious breakfast of homemade waffles!! Our original plan was to head to NY via Canada and Niagara Falls...however, we didn't know how long it would take to get across the border, so we opted to just head through Pennsylvania to get to Houghton.  It was a gorgeous drive, one that I would LOVE to see during the fall!! 

We arrived at Houghton in time for dinner, the plan was to head up to the college (Houghton College) and have pizza and wings with the Webbs and the soccer team (most of the guys who came to Peru were going to be there). The boys LOVED seeing the team again, they had been recalling their names for months, trying to remember each of the guys who had become a special friend to them.  It was great catching up, the boys had a blast, and then we took them home to the Webbs for a fun movie/popcorn night with Levi & Tobias.

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...day 2

March 4, 2010
Portage, IN to Detroit, MI
We had a lovely breakfast with my Aunt Gaydene this morning, she only lives about 20 minutes away from Portage so she came over to meet up with us. It was SO great seeing her, I"m not sure how many years it has been, but the boys loved seeing her and also commenting on how much she looks and laughs like "Ama" (my mom--their grandmother).

After breakfast, we started driving towards Grand Rapids where we were blessed to have lunch with Jeff's good buddy and his wife, Chip & Ingrid Huber.  It was a fun time seeing them again, and seeing their new home and catching up on Chip's new job.  Lunch was good too!!

After lunch, we headed out for another couple hours until we reached the northern suburbs of Detroit where we spent the rest of the evening and night with more good friends, Mark & Mindy Botterill.  Our kids LOVED playing with their kids and stayed up way too late laughing, playing soccer in the basement and giggling.  Sophia didn't do so well and her and I slept on the couch...she's still running a fever and is very fussy!  Mindy is a sweet hostess and got sweet Sophia a birthday gift!!  They also got the boys mini hockey sticks which they love!! 

Krohn 2010 Road Trip...day 1

                                                                                    March 3rd, 2010
                                                                                    Minneapolis, MN to Portage, IN

We left for our massively insane roadtrip today after Sophia's Dr. appointment.  We left around noon and drove to Portage, Indiana. We arrived around 9pm and Jeff took the boys swimming to burn off some of the energy from the long car ride.  Sophia didn't sleep well, she was feverish off and on through the night and cried quite a bit. The boys did well and got to watch a movie on the new car DVD player...they thought that was pretty fantastic!

Sophia turns ONE!

Yes, our daughter turned one on March 3rd, and I have to admit I'm a bit sad!  I know I should be happy and excited as she turns the corner into "toddlerhood" and will continue to grow and develop month after month...but at the same time, I LOVED these past 12 months with her and just want to hold her tight and not let her grow up. 

She had her 1st year check up on her birthday, so we celebrated the night before with our family and parents.  Papa Krohn's bday (Jeff's Dad) is on March 2nd and so we ate giant Angel Food cupcakes together and sang Happy Birthday to celebrate.  It was a simple, yet sweet time.

On March 3rd, Sophia and I met with her new Pediatrician.  We really liked Kristen and were pleased to hear that Sophia is meeting her milestones as she should.  She hasn't passed the major physical milestones yet (walking along furniture, standing alone, walking, etc.) but Kristen was sure that since Sophia just got her brace off recently, she should start doing these things.  Sophia got her vaccines, 4 of them!!!  She also had to have blood drawn from her sweet, little hand so they can test her thyroid, her glucose and Celiac...this is all in response to her low weight.  At her 12-month check up, she was 15.4 lbs and was 26 inches long...both were below the charts, but were proportionate with each other. 

My sweet baby...don't grow up too fast!  I love you!

Writing from the road! If I can figure out how to do it on my phone!

We did it!!

The past 2 weeks have been a blur!!  We decided to make January 1st, 2010 our moving date...and then kept thinking of things we needed to get done in Lima, so we kept moving that date up.  Finally we decided that we would leave Abancay on December 28th...however...we had a HUGE garage sale on the 26th, youth group that night (Jeff preached and they did a farewell number for us), church on the 27th in the morning, another church service in the afternoon, and finally another church service in the evening!!  All of them we had to attend as a family because they were the "goodbye" services for us...it was very nice, but very exhausting.  Add to that, the entire week and a half before we left Jeff was gone every single night and we were busy most days!  So, all that to say that we didn't end up leaving until today, the 30th. 

We drove 15 hrs straight to get to Lima...our car was packed to the hilt and we sent 5 bags ahead of us by bus!!  We start our conference on Monday, and will be there at the beach for a week.  After conference, we'll head to AQP for 3 weeks...Jeff will return to Abancay to move our things into storage, so he has a big job ahead of him, but he'll do great!!

It was bittersweet to leave....we are ready for this new adventure ahead of us, but sad to leave our home of the past 6 years.  This is the only home the boys have known, so they will really miss it and miss their dogs as well. 

7 months

Solids!

What time is it?  Time for solids!  We captured her trying peas for the first time...definitely not a fan.

My little reader

Sophia LOVES books!!!  I hope she develops as much of a love for reading as the rest of us!! 

Chicken Pox & a lost tooth

The beginning of October marked a big milestone for us...Sophia got the chicken pox!!  At least that's what we think they were, they followed the typical chicken pox routine--started out looking like bug bites, then looked like they blistered over, then scabbed over, then went away.  We didn't get an official diagnosis, but that's what we suspect.

The other big news was that Jonathon lost his first front tooth!!  We were excited, except for Nathan, who can't wait until he turns 6 so he can start to lose his teeth!

6.5 months!

Big girl in the bath!!

We've graduated from the bath sling to the big girl bath chair!  She loved looking and playing with the little toys on the chair; I can't believe she's getting so big!!

Sophia & Sofia again a few months later

Here are the 2 little Sophia/Sofias!! This picture was a couple months after the first one was taken, you can see that Sofia is getting bigger than our Sophia!!  Once again, they were born just 6 weeks apart in the German hospital in Curahuasi--Diospi Suyana.

Movin' out!

Well we moved Sophia to her own room...now she seems SO far away!! She's upstairs with the boys, while we remain downstairs.  It has been nice to have our room back, to not have to whisper each time we go into the room--and Jeff can now sneeze without waking up his daughter!  You can see her little playmat, we fashioned her name out of the foam letters...and don't worry, that white cord in the background is now nicely buried under the foam pieces so it won't be a choking hazard! :o)

Go Vikings!

Vikes are doing great this season, and our sweet Sophia just wants to show her support to her Daddy's favorite team!!

September means 6 months old & other fun

Our sweet girl is 6 months old, she is a joy to watch and is such a good baby!! Her brothers ADORE her and are always wanting to keep her company--during the diaper changes and feeding times even! I am madly in love with my kids!!!

5 months old

Yes, I'm posting Sophia's 5 month pictures in November!! I really am trying to get caught up and I'm determined to stay caught up once I actually get caught up.

Road trip to Arequipa!

In August we buckled the 4 kids up and headed south...to Arequipa. It takes us about 13 hours to drive and I have to say that our kids are the best travelers on the planet!!! We listen to books on CD, listen to music (the boys LOVE the Star Wars, Narnia, & Prince Caspian soundtracks), and they just play and look out the window. Sophia did so well, she slept a lot of the time and then just watched her brothers. She only really fussed a couple times!

We enjoyed lots of fun times with friends, and I got to celebrate my birthday with our good friends, Eric & Tina VanPelt, at my favorite restaurant, Zig Zag.

We also enjoyed time with the kids at our favorite coffee house...you can see they enjoyed it as well!

Sophia & Sofia!!

These two are quite the pair...they were both born in Curahuasi, Peru within 6 weeks of each other! My Sophia was born first, but you can see that her little friend has nearly outgrown her! The other Sofia is the daughter of Alex & Laura, they are doctors that are working in the hospital where Sophia was born. We have enjoyed having these 2 girls "meet" each other, but we are bummed that we don't get together more often!