November was a very exciting month for us. Mommy and Daddy celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary, I was baptized (I was a bit hit at the service too!) and I celebrated my first Thanksgiving.
I think I will become a movie critic, as I have seen several in my four months in this world. We saw the Bee Movie, Fred Claus and Enchanted in November. I liked the Bee Movie a ton! Jana (I call her Aunt JJ) went with us and is getting really good at standing up with me when I need to fuss myself to sleep in the middle. Luckily these are "Baby pictures" and I am usually not the loudest one in the place.
Big news! I started eating food from a spoon. It is really fun and Mommy always makes it such a game. I like sweet potatoes and carrots but am not sure about the squash or the pears. I do think Mommy and Daddy are a little concerned, though, because they keep trying to get me to drink milk out of a bottle, but I would prefer to nurse so I cry and cry. Mommy did give me what she calls a "sippy cup" the other night and I like drinking from it just fine. Actually, I really just like chewing on the spout and I don't mind the milk going into my mouth.
We have found a school for me to attend when Mommy goes back to work in January. It's called "Creme de la Creme," but Nana calls it "baby university." I think it looks like a fun place, they have a "baby buggy" that holds 6 babies and we can go for walks all together around the building two times every day. Mommy keeps talking about how it will be a hard transition but it will be okay in the end and she knows that I will be very happy there. I am a good girl and smile when she says this even though I am not really sure what she is talking about.
I love December! I sat on the lap of a guy in a big red outfit and a hat (people were calling him "Santa Claus"). I just noticed that someone was holding me and there was a camera, so I smiled like usual. This morning Daddy and Mommy put me in a bunch of warm clothes (more than usual) and put me on a plastic blue thing, then took me outside to run around on the grass. But it was not green, it was white, and wet! I enjoyed my "first snow" and sledding experience, but I think Daddy actually had more fun than me! He is such a fun guy, I am so lucky to have him.
That's it for now. We hope that you are having a great start to December too.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Friday, November 30, 2007
October was a very fun month for me! Oh the places we went! Of course, Mommy and I kept our busy weekly schedule, with lunch dates, movies, dinner dates and house projects. We also read books (my favorites include Brown Bear, Brown Bear; Where Does Maisy Live and The Very Hungry Caterpillar), went to physical therapy at least one time each week, and hung out with Daddy every night and on the weekends. I started grabbing and holding toys, holding my hands in a “praying” position, smiled more and started giggling. I also now take my bath in a new bathtub that Kim and Jay gave me. I love it, I kick and kick in the water, it is so much fun!
Aunt Michele (Shell) celebrated her 40th birthday in style, with a visit to the Buckeye state to see us all! We had a fun-filled weekend, starting on Thursday night with my adventure to the airport with Nana (just ask her about the diaper bag and bottle incident). Friday we (Me, Mommy, Aunt Shell, Uncle Ken, Nana, Uncle Mike, Aunt Jackie, Grandma Mary, Kreath, Leah and Logan) went to Young’s Dairy farm, a place where Nana and Papaw used to take Mom, Aunt Shell, Uncle Rob, and Uncle David on the way to Pennsylvania. We picked out a pumpkin and enjoyed this unique place. We then met back at Nana’s where Uncle David, Uncle Rob, Aunt Jeannie and Great-Grandmother met us for a dinner together. I handle being the center of attention quite well and entertained the family with my coos and smiles (and jack-o-lantern costume!). Saturday was the big event with Aunt Shell’s party where more friends visited her (and me!). This time Daddy came with us too, so I got to spend some time in the Baby Bjorn (cool “front pack”) with him. The weekend was a success and we are looking forward to Christmas when Aunt Shell and Uncle Ken come back.
Mommy and Daddy have a goal of going with me to every state in the United States by the time I start college (in 18 years, we figure). I have a good start already, as we went with Grandma, Grandpa and Nana to Hilton Head, South Carolina for my first beach vacation. Oh what a fun time! I really enjoyed the five-to-one (admirers to baby) ratio, and I traveled through five states (Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia). A pretty good start for a four month old if you ask me. I am such a good traveler too! On the way to the beach we stopped for the night in Greenville SC and visited our friends Lisa and Joey. It was great to meet them and enjoy a fine dinner and exciting breakfast at the Waffle House. Then we were on our way to a fun-filled week at the beach. Every day, Daddy, Mommy and I walked on the beach. I was quite a hit with my pink hat, matching pink sunglasses and pink “Salty Dog” t-shirt. Daddy or Mommy carried me in the baby Bjorn (front pack), oh how I loved it! Sometimes we sat at the pool with Grandpa, Grandma and Nana too. Mommy and I also learned the Shag (the official dance of South Carolina). The weather was nice and the company was even better. I had my “special” bedroom in the hallway because my pack-n-play did not fit in the room, but each morning I hung out with Mom, Daddy and Nana (who all shared a room) as we got up and got ready. We went to Savannah one day and enjoyed a walk through the historic and fascinating city. We visited the home of Juliette Low, the founder of the Girl Scouts. Mom and Nana were especially excited to visit this house, as they were both Girl Scouts and are excited for me to be big enough to join as well. We also took a day trip to Beaufort, South Carolina, a small town just north of Hilton Head. We had a fun lunch on the water, walked the one main street, tasted a bit of wine from a local winery and found a great chocolate shop! A pretty good day if you ask me. I love watching TV too and Mom and Daddy figured out how to get me to do my stretches without crying (as I usually do) by letting me watch TV looking over my right shoulder. I knew what they were doing but went along with it since I like TV so much.
I am so glad that Mommy decided to extend her leave until January. We are having such a good time and she loves being with me all of the time.
I was a jack-o-latern for my first Halloween, you should have seen how cute I was! Since there are not many kids in my neighborhood, Mommy, Daddy and I hung out with our neighbors on one of their driveways and mainly traded with each others’ candy. Mommy, Daddy and I did walk to some of the neighbors we have not met yet and introduced ourselves. Since there are not many kids in the neighborhood, I think I will get lots of candy in coming years without having to walk very far!
November has started going to be a busy month too! We saw another movie, went to Patrick’s 3rd birthday party, went to Toledo to visit Grandma, Grandpa and to meet Uncle Terry and Aunt Suzi (Grandpa’s brother and sister-in-law who live in Arizona). Aunt Cindy (Cin-Day – you must ask her about this joke), Anna, Chloe and Christian also came over to visit, they are so neat and fun!
Aunt Michele (Shell) celebrated her 40th birthday in style, with a visit to the Buckeye state to see us all! We had a fun-filled weekend, starting on Thursday night with my adventure to the airport with Nana (just ask her about the diaper bag and bottle incident). Friday we (Me, Mommy, Aunt Shell, Uncle Ken, Nana, Uncle Mike, Aunt Jackie, Grandma Mary, Kreath, Leah and Logan) went to Young’s Dairy farm, a place where Nana and Papaw used to take Mom, Aunt Shell, Uncle Rob, and Uncle David on the way to Pennsylvania. We picked out a pumpkin and enjoyed this unique place. We then met back at Nana’s where Uncle David, Uncle Rob, Aunt Jeannie and Great-Grandmother met us for a dinner together. I handle being the center of attention quite well and entertained the family with my coos and smiles (and jack-o-lantern costume!). Saturday was the big event with Aunt Shell’s party where more friends visited her (and me!). This time Daddy came with us too, so I got to spend some time in the Baby Bjorn (cool “front pack”) with him. The weekend was a success and we are looking forward to Christmas when Aunt Shell and Uncle Ken come back.
Mommy and Daddy have a goal of going with me to every state in the United States by the time I start college (in 18 years, we figure). I have a good start already, as we went with Grandma, Grandpa and Nana to Hilton Head, South Carolina for my first beach vacation. Oh what a fun time! I really enjoyed the five-to-one (admirers to baby) ratio, and I traveled through five states (Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia). A pretty good start for a four month old if you ask me. I am such a good traveler too! On the way to the beach we stopped for the night in Greenville SC and visited our friends Lisa and Joey. It was great to meet them and enjoy a fine dinner and exciting breakfast at the Waffle House. Then we were on our way to a fun-filled week at the beach. Every day, Daddy, Mommy and I walked on the beach. I was quite a hit with my pink hat, matching pink sunglasses and pink “Salty Dog” t-shirt. Daddy or Mommy carried me in the baby Bjorn (front pack), oh how I loved it! Sometimes we sat at the pool with Grandpa, Grandma and Nana too. Mommy and I also learned the Shag (the official dance of South Carolina). The weather was nice and the company was even better. I had my “special” bedroom in the hallway because my pack-n-play did not fit in the room, but each morning I hung out with Mom, Daddy and Nana (who all shared a room) as we got up and got ready. We went to Savannah one day and enjoyed a walk through the historic and fascinating city. We visited the home of Juliette Low, the founder of the Girl Scouts. Mom and Nana were especially excited to visit this house, as they were both Girl Scouts and are excited for me to be big enough to join as well. We also took a day trip to Beaufort, South Carolina, a small town just north of Hilton Head. We had a fun lunch on the water, walked the one main street, tasted a bit of wine from a local winery and found a great chocolate shop! A pretty good day if you ask me. I love watching TV too and Mom and Daddy figured out how to get me to do my stretches without crying (as I usually do) by letting me watch TV looking over my right shoulder. I knew what they were doing but went along with it since I like TV so much.
I am so glad that Mommy decided to extend her leave until January. We are having such a good time and she loves being with me all of the time.
I was a jack-o-latern for my first Halloween, you should have seen how cute I was! Since there are not many kids in my neighborhood, Mommy, Daddy and I hung out with our neighbors on one of their driveways and mainly traded with each others’ candy. Mommy, Daddy and I did walk to some of the neighbors we have not met yet and introduced ourselves. Since there are not many kids in the neighborhood, I think I will get lots of candy in coming years without having to walk very far!
November has started going to be a busy month too! We saw another movie, went to Patrick’s 3rd birthday party, went to Toledo to visit Grandma, Grandpa and to meet Uncle Terry and Aunt Suzi (Grandpa’s brother and sister-in-law who live in Arizona). Aunt Cindy (Cin-Day – you must ask her about this joke), Anna, Chloe and Christian also came over to visit, they are so neat and fun!
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
I am ten weeks old today, and my how I am growing and learning. Mom and I are still really busy too, boy do we have fun. Here are some of the latest adventures.
1) I went to work to visit Daddy and Mommy's friends. I was a very good girl and did not scream the entire time. I even sat at Daddy's computer with him, check out the photo!
2) Mom has started an annoying routine where she makes me lift my head in certain directions and pulls it too. She calls this "physical therapy" for my stiff neck, I call it "inconsiderate" and tell her all about it. She even takes me to a place with lots of other kids and someone else does this "physical therapy." The other kids are fun to watch and I would prefer if I could just sit there and look versus being man-handled. But, luckily I am a good sport in general and don't give Mom too much trouble.
3) We love to read books. I think Mom likes them even more than I do. We love to play on my "ocean play mat" where I can grab and kick and play. I grabbed on my own for the first time the other day and Mom started making noises with her hands and saying "yeah Abigail." I thought what she was doing was funny so I laughed and smiled and then she kept doing her noises too. Boy, that was fun.
4) I had my first sleep-over with the girls! Mom, Kristy and I drove to Columbus to visit Teresa and Anna. Look at the picture where Anna and I realize that we are sitting next to each other. What you don't see is the next picture where Anna grabbed my shirt. She is 6 1/2 months old, so she actually has control of her limbs at this point, so I was at a bit of a disadvantage. Anna went to sleep so Chris (Anna's Dad) stayed home so Teresa, Kristy, Mom and I could get some Mexican dinner. Boy it was fun, so much fun that I did not want to sleep that night.
5) Daddy went on his first vacation without me. He was very sad to be away but said he had a good time playing golf with the guys. Mom and I picked him up at the airport and surprised him by being at the top of the stairs after he came through security. We love surprising Daddy! Unfortunately, Daddy does not always enjoy them as much as we do, so luckily this one he liked.
6) I slept my first night in my big bed in my own room last night! I am a bit big for the bassinet and Mom has reorganized all of the furniture in the house (again) and needed to move me out of her and Dad's room so she could put some furniture from downstairs in it. I think it's funny that she moved me for that reason, but Mom works in mysterious ways. Anyway, I usually go to sleep around 9 pm, but I was so excited about being in my own room (plus, I took a nap on Dad at 8 pm), I did not fall asleep until after 10 pm. Then, I woke up around 2 am when I did my Hudini move and got myself out of the swaddle blanket. Mom came in and found me wide awake! How could I sleep when I realized how fun it was to be in my own room. After several attempts to go back to bed, Mom finally slept on my floor for a couple of hours. She didn't snore so it did not disrupt me. She seems a bit tired today, but I am doing great!
7) Mr. Fancy Pants is my guardian. He makes sure that Mom knows I am restless or crying in the middle of the night. I hear him meowing after I cry, then I hear Mom try to tell Fancy to go back to bed. But he won't and I hear Mom continue to tell him that I am fine and nothing needs to be done at the moment. Mom was telling friends that even though I sleep from 9 pm to 5 or 6 am, Mr. Fancy Pants does not so she is still not getting that much sleep. I like that he is looking out for me!
I guess that's it for now. We have a busy week this week, with many friends to visit and appointments to keep. We hope you are all doing well and enjoying the adventures in your life.
1) I went to work to visit Daddy and Mommy's friends. I was a very good girl and did not scream the entire time. I even sat at Daddy's computer with him, check out the photo!
2) Mom has started an annoying routine where she makes me lift my head in certain directions and pulls it too. She calls this "physical therapy" for my stiff neck, I call it "inconsiderate" and tell her all about it. She even takes me to a place with lots of other kids and someone else does this "physical therapy." The other kids are fun to watch and I would prefer if I could just sit there and look versus being man-handled. But, luckily I am a good sport in general and don't give Mom too much trouble.
3) We love to read books. I think Mom likes them even more than I do. We love to play on my "ocean play mat" where I can grab and kick and play. I grabbed on my own for the first time the other day and Mom started making noises with her hands and saying "yeah Abigail." I thought what she was doing was funny so I laughed and smiled and then she kept doing her noises too. Boy, that was fun.
4) I had my first sleep-over with the girls! Mom, Kristy and I drove to Columbus to visit Teresa and Anna. Look at the picture where Anna and I realize that we are sitting next to each other. What you don't see is the next picture where Anna grabbed my shirt. She is 6 1/2 months old, so she actually has control of her limbs at this point, so I was at a bit of a disadvantage. Anna went to sleep so Chris (Anna's Dad) stayed home so Teresa, Kristy, Mom and I could get some Mexican dinner. Boy it was fun, so much fun that I did not want to sleep that night.
5) Daddy went on his first vacation without me. He was very sad to be away but said he had a good time playing golf with the guys. Mom and I picked him up at the airport and surprised him by being at the top of the stairs after he came through security. We love surprising Daddy! Unfortunately, Daddy does not always enjoy them as much as we do, so luckily this one he liked.
6) I slept my first night in my big bed in my own room last night! I am a bit big for the bassinet and Mom has reorganized all of the furniture in the house (again) and needed to move me out of her and Dad's room so she could put some furniture from downstairs in it. I think it's funny that she moved me for that reason, but Mom works in mysterious ways. Anyway, I usually go to sleep around 9 pm, but I was so excited about being in my own room (plus, I took a nap on Dad at 8 pm), I did not fall asleep until after 10 pm. Then, I woke up around 2 am when I did my Hudini move and got myself out of the swaddle blanket. Mom came in and found me wide awake! How could I sleep when I realized how fun it was to be in my own room. After several attempts to go back to bed, Mom finally slept on my floor for a couple of hours. She didn't snore so it did not disrupt me. She seems a bit tired today, but I am doing great!
7) Mr. Fancy Pants is my guardian. He makes sure that Mom knows I am restless or crying in the middle of the night. I hear him meowing after I cry, then I hear Mom try to tell Fancy to go back to bed. But he won't and I hear Mom continue to tell him that I am fine and nothing needs to be done at the moment. Mom was telling friends that even though I sleep from 9 pm to 5 or 6 am, Mr. Fancy Pants does not so she is still not getting that much sleep. I like that he is looking out for me!
I guess that's it for now. We have a busy week this week, with many friends to visit and appointments to keep. We hope you are all doing well and enjoying the adventures in your life.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Boy, has time flown by! I can't believe that I just celebrated my two month birthday. Mom and I celebrated by having a photo shoot at the house - with a real photographer this time, not mom's camera for self-portraits. Although I must admit that we do a great job with self portraits.
My adventures in the last two months have been just as fun as the adventures in Mom's belly, just different. I have not trekked to distant lands or been to work, but Mom keeps saying that it's a totally different world for her. I am not sure what she means for her, does she not know what a different world it is for me? We are enjoying what she calls "summer break" but it has been a lot of hard work, learning how to eat, trying to get an eat, play, sleep cycle for me and also relax a little about all of the house projects (that I don't see need to be completed). Here is a brief update on my many adventures in the last two months:
1) Nana stayed with us for two weeks, boy was that fun! Mom and Dad sure did appreciate that! They kept saying they were "calling in the troops" and Nana came, so I guess she has some skill they needed. I screamed most nights, so it was good to have three people ready to comfort me!
2) We have spent lots of fun time with Kristy, Colin and Patrick. They are such fun friends! We play at their house, my house, the "walking place" to see Fancy and Bella's trees and even out to stores.
3) We visited Grandma and Grandpa in Toledo, my first big trip! They moved into their new house and we got to meet many of my aunts, uncles and cousins when we were there. Grandma and Grandpa have visited too, we can't wait for them to visit again.
4) We have had many visitors, too many to count! Thank you to everyone who has come over, we love to visit. Mom and Dad especially want people to enjoy the new basement they keep talking about.
5) We walk almost every morning. I love to walk, although I must admit that Mom does most of the work. We have met many of our neighbors too, it has been fun meeting them all. We hope to see more of them as I get older too.
My adventures in the last two months have been just as fun as the adventures in Mom's belly, just different. I have not trekked to distant lands or been to work, but Mom keeps saying that it's a totally different world for her. I am not sure what she means for her, does she not know what a different world it is for me? We are enjoying what she calls "summer break" but it has been a lot of hard work, learning how to eat, trying to get an eat, play, sleep cycle for me and also relax a little about all of the house projects (that I don't see need to be completed). Here is a brief update on my many adventures in the last two months:
1) Nana stayed with us for two weeks, boy was that fun! Mom and Dad sure did appreciate that! They kept saying they were "calling in the troops" and Nana came, so I guess she has some skill they needed. I screamed most nights, so it was good to have three people ready to comfort me!
2) We have spent lots of fun time with Kristy, Colin and Patrick. They are such fun friends! We play at their house, my house, the "walking place" to see Fancy and Bella's trees and even out to stores.
3) We visited Grandma and Grandpa in Toledo, my first big trip! They moved into their new house and we got to meet many of my aunts, uncles and cousins when we were there. Grandma and Grandpa have visited too, we can't wait for them to visit again.
4) We have had many visitors, too many to count! Thank you to everyone who has come over, we love to visit. Mom and Dad especially want people to enjoy the new basement they keep talking about.
5) We walk almost every morning. I love to walk, although I must admit that Mom does most of the work. We have met many of our neighbors too, it has been fun meeting them all. We hope to see more of them as I get older too.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
I am Abigail Elizabeth Connor, known as "little Miss Sunshine" while I was in mommy's belly. I came safely into this world just over a week ago, on July 10, 2007. I knew that Amy (Mommy) and Matthew (Daddy) are planners, as I was breech (butt down), necessitating a scheduled c-section delivery. Of course I could have come sooner on my own, but I went along with the plan and came as expected on a warm, rainy Cincinnati Tuesday.
The day before my big entrance, Larry and Susan Connor (Grandpa and Grandma) and Pat Dill (Nana) helped Mommy and Daddy complete house projects, decorating around the all of my new furniture that took over the first floor, as well as the newly finished basement. Oh what fun we had! That night, Grandpa, Grandma, Mommy and Daddy had a nice dinner at home then treated us with the famous Graeter's ice cream (a Cincinnati favorite). Mommy and I love sweets! Mommy has always said that chocolate is a fruit and should be part of our daily diet, so having ice cream (with chocolate, of course) was the perfect last meal before my entrance.
The morning of the big event, Mommy and I went for our normal walk and completed several projects, biding the time before we drove with Daddy to the hospital. Within three hours of "check-in," I was here! I was given a good bill of health and except for a short time under the "baby warmer," was given to Mommy and Daddy and my adoring fans for visits and hundreds of photos. Grandpa, Grandma, Nana, Jim McMinn (Papaw) and Aunt Jeannie were all there waiting for me to give my first appearance.
The day went very well, I was peaceful and content and basked in the attention. Everything was going well until 9 pm when I started crying, and crying, and crying. Mommy and Daddy were a bit overwhelmed, to say the least, as the crying continued until 3:30 am. Luckily the nurses were there to help and identified that I was having trouble sucking (an important skill for eating). I finally did eat and fell asleep for a very short 2 1/2 hours. Needless to say, the family was a bit tired the next day!
Luckily, help was on the way. Paula the lactation consultant gave Mommy and Daddy exercises for me and techniques for feeding. With every feeding I did better and better and caught the hang of it by the time we left the hospital on Saturday.
The Connor family stay at the hospital was wonderful. Mommy and Daddy are fortunate enough to have insurance that allows for 96 hours after a c-section and since we were working on sucking, so we took advantage of all the time and help as we could. The nurses and doctors were wonderful, a true godsend for new parents!
The first day home was Saturday, and again we had a good day. The trouble began in the wee hours of the morning when I had trouble getting back to sleep after feeding. I only cried 2 - 3 hours (who can remember that long ago?) but without the reassurance of the nurses, Mommy and Daddy were not in good spirits. Sunday was yet another long day! But, what can we expect for the first night in a new place, especially for someone who is only 4 days old.
The day before my big entrance, Larry and Susan Connor (Grandpa and Grandma) and Pat Dill (Nana) helped Mommy and Daddy complete house projects, decorating around the all of my new furniture that took over the first floor, as well as the newly finished basement. Oh what fun we had! That night, Grandpa, Grandma, Mommy and Daddy had a nice dinner at home then treated us with the famous Graeter's ice cream (a Cincinnati favorite). Mommy and I love sweets! Mommy has always said that chocolate is a fruit and should be part of our daily diet, so having ice cream (with chocolate, of course) was the perfect last meal before my entrance.
The morning of the big event, Mommy and I went for our normal walk and completed several projects, biding the time before we drove with Daddy to the hospital. Within three hours of "check-in," I was here! I was given a good bill of health and except for a short time under the "baby warmer," was given to Mommy and Daddy and my adoring fans for visits and hundreds of photos. Grandpa, Grandma, Nana, Jim McMinn (Papaw) and Aunt Jeannie were all there waiting for me to give my first appearance.
The day went very well, I was peaceful and content and basked in the attention. Everything was going well until 9 pm when I started crying, and crying, and crying. Mommy and Daddy were a bit overwhelmed, to say the least, as the crying continued until 3:30 am. Luckily the nurses were there to help and identified that I was having trouble sucking (an important skill for eating). I finally did eat and fell asleep for a very short 2 1/2 hours. Needless to say, the family was a bit tired the next day!
Luckily, help was on the way. Paula the lactation consultant gave Mommy and Daddy exercises for me and techniques for feeding. With every feeding I did better and better and caught the hang of it by the time we left the hospital on Saturday.
The Connor family stay at the hospital was wonderful. Mommy and Daddy are fortunate enough to have insurance that allows for 96 hours after a c-section and since we were working on sucking, so we took advantage of all the time and help as we could. The nurses and doctors were wonderful, a true godsend for new parents!
The first day home was Saturday, and again we had a good day. The trouble began in the wee hours of the morning when I had trouble getting back to sleep after feeding. I only cried 2 - 3 hours (who can remember that long ago?) but without the reassurance of the nurses, Mommy and Daddy were not in good spirits. Sunday was yet another long day! But, what can we expect for the first night in a new place, especially for someone who is only 4 days old.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Background for the Amazing Adventures (and travels) of Little Miss Sunshine. Amy (mommy) and Abigail (Little Miss Sunshine) were on a 21-day trip around the world for Mommy's work and while they were traveling, they wrote emails to family and friends about their amazing adventures.
Following is the "travel log"
From: Connor, Amy (Mommy & Little Miss Sunshine)
Date: March 16, 2007
Subject: The Amazing Travels of Little Miss Sunshine: Background, Part 1 and 2 Recap and Part 3 update
Family and friends -
The stories below started out as a way for me to let Matthew and the grandparents of Little Miss Sunshine (LMS) know about her amazing travels around the world, but I thought it would be fun for you to hear about her adventures as well. Forgive me for the mass email, I only find about 20 minutes each day of non-work so just don't have time to send each of you an individual note. Please also excuse any grammar and/or spelling mistakes. LMS is not yet completely competent in helping me in this area. Just wait, though! Following you will see the first two parts of her travels and part 3, a brief update on our week in London (see very end of note).
Some background for those who have not been intimately involved with Little Miss Sunshine or our travel schedule. Little Miss Sunshine is about 23 weeks old now. As I read from the books, she is less than a pound but I swear by the kicks she is strong for her size (already showing her "pipes" just like her mom). She is due to take her first breath on her own around July 12. From all of our check-ups and our heart beat monitor at home, she is healthy, has a strong heartbeat and growing as expected. I am in the bliss of the second trimester and loving every minute of it. I know she is there and love to feel her move but don't have the aches and pains or tiredness that I know will come soon. I am just enjoying every minute of this miracle.
I am currently working on Metamucil and a new probiotic product called Align. We are going around the world (quite literally) talking to women about their stomach well-being. And you thought I might upgrade after leaving Iams! It's still all about "inner and outer health," so be careful at parties, I am full of information about the GI tract that you probably don't want to hear. When I say "talking to women" what you should visualize is a group of people (5-12) in a generally cramped room, all sitting in usually uncomfortable chairs staring either at a TV or through a one-way mirror for hours at a time. Oh right, and the lights are generally off so it's barely possible to take notes as the consumers talk. But, it is amazingly insightful and people are quite willing to share their insights, tangents, health concerns, family situations, etc to strangers, quite critical when we need to understand how to talk to them.
The trip has three legs, the first in Australia, then the UK, then Italy. It started on March 1 and will be completed on March 21. We arrived in Sydney late on March 2 (we lose a day getting there) and left on March 10. We had two Saturday's as we traveled from Sydney to London (lots of meals, this worked out
for me and LMS). We are now in London and will leave here on Saturday for Rome. This is the shortest leg of our trip as we will return to the great state of Ohio on March 21.
I am traveling with a wonderful team that is doing amazingly well together, especially considering that we spend 12+ hours a day together and will for 21 days. Following are the team members with a brief description so you can visualize them before we are home and have photos to share. LMS is becoming quite fond of them, so I must include each of them into the story.
1) Kirk is in CMK (P&G's term for market research), just graduated from college last year and is doing amazingly well with the rest of the group (see below, you will understand). He is easy-going and funny, always a treat! Especially on the 10th hour of listening to women talk about their digestive problems. We have nicknamed him K-Wall (like how the celebrities truncate their names).
2) Nancy is in R&D, has two grown boys (just a bit younger than Kirk and is a real trouper, especially when we went out "dancing" at the bar in Sydney (for those of you so lucky enough to know my dancing, you completely understand).
3) Wendy is about my age, is hip, trendy and single. I hope that LMS can gain some fashion insight from Wendy while we are on the trip. She works in our function called "Design" that is responsible for all of those fabulous packages you seen on the shelf.
4) Lori is in R&D, has three young girls and because of this has been on most, but not all of the trip.
5) Mauricio, my boss who is also not on all of the trip, mainly just here in London. He is a ton of fun so we wish he was on more of the trip with us, but I guess someone has to be in the office.
6) Anupam, Siobhan, Helen, Tess, Lata, Sally, Bettina and many moderators are part of the regional teams who meet us in the city and work closely with us during the week. They are all wonderful and we have all enjoyed getting to know them (the broader global team) on this trip.
Greetings from London!
We hope you all are doing well. LMS and I are still having a ball and made it through what was probably the most strenuous part of the trip, the travels from Sydney to London. We had a delightful "Saturday day 1" (you will understand in a minute) in Sydney, another 80 degree, sunny day. We rode the ferry to the zoo, then instead of going to the zoo, walked an off-the-beaten path along the water from that harbor to another about 1 mile away. The best way to describe it is a scenic nature trail like we have in the states, except that it was along the harbor and had spectacular views of the city and every little harbor area at every turn. We think we were off the trail at one point, but LMS has a great sense of direction, just like her mom, so we made it to the next little harbor just in time to catch the ferry back! We took another ferry to another neat harbor for lunch, then strolled through the city. I know you are laughing at the thought of me "strolling." You are right, it was "strolling" for me, always in front, but at least one person on the team (Lori) walks as fast as I do. LMS seemed to appreciate the fast pace! After we all scrounged for coins for our last delicious (decaf) cappuccino (with skim milk), the best I have ever tasted, we headed back to the hotel to transition into "Saturday, day two," our 24+ hour journey to London.
The first leg of the trip, Sydney to Singapore was relatively short, just 7 hours. We left for the airport at 3 pm for a 5:50 pm flight. Our flight was delayed, which generally is not a problem except that we were changing airlines in Singapore and only had a 45 minute layout. You would have been impressed with my calm, though, what could I do about it? I had 7 hours of flying to go, no use in worrying about the end of it when it had not yet begun. We were on Qantas, an airline I highly recommend you fly if you ever get the chance. I received special treatment from the flight attendants, gotta love that. By special treatment I mean that they gave me two huge bottles of water even though it was just for staff use. These are the important things in life, I was absolutely appreciative. LMS was up a bit throughout this flight, which was good because the objective was to stay away as long as humanly possible so we would be able to sleep on the next leg. She was quite a trooper and entertained me enough with her movement that kept me going when I thought I could not keep my eyes open. It also helped that we sat next to Kirk, the one guy in the team who is a perfect fit for the 4 women on the team! We did get a bit of a nap in, but it ended up being fine.
They were not able to make up the time in the air so our transfer time was less than 15 minutes in Singapore. I know what you were thinking, which is what we were thinking. No way were we making the flight and absolutely no way was our luggage making the flight. But, we had heard fabulous things about the Singapore airport, and remember that I am a fast walker. By the grace of God, the gate was just a few away, they had those walking sidewalks (that make me feel like I am flying, by the way), and the people at the Singapore airport are miracle workers. LMS and I, of course, charged the terminal in case I needed to have them hold the door for the team. You know this "charging" is not intentional, but when I get on a mission.... We all made it, and were quickly into our seats for the short, 14+ hours flight to London. This flight was on British Airways and although it was fabulous because we were in business class, if you ever have the choice between Qantas and British Airways, choose Qantas. We hear, actually that you should choose Singapore Airlines, and based on the experience in the airport, I would agree with that! I guess LMS and I were in the mindset for a long trip, because the time seemed to go very quickly, and after our 6th meal of our double day (Saturday, remember because of the time changes), we landed safely in London at 5:30 Sunday morning.
After being in Sydney for a week, we were not that excited about London, with predictions of cold and rain. To our surprise, London had a beautiful day in store for us. After checking into the hotel, we all took the train into the city and stormed it like any other good tourist. We saw some fancy parade at Buckingham palace, had lunch at an English pub so we (Kirk and Lori) could watch some football (soccer), rode a double-decker bus, saw Big Ben, Westminster Abby, the Eye (big Ferris wheel), and lots of big, old buildings that probably have some significance but just looked like big, old buildings to us.
Now, Sunday, we will admit, was not our best day. We only slept about 5 hours and the mantra is that you must keep going all day when you arrive in a new city, no matter what, or you will not adjust to the time change. This, we found to be grueling. Especially since most of the team took some sort of sleep aid and had a bit more sleep than LMS and I. Plus, you know how I do without sleep. Don't worry, I did not yell at anyone. On top of this, Lori and I both had the "waving feeling" after we got off the plane, something Kirk and Wendy experienced when we landed in Sydney. This, coupled with not getting to lunch for 4+ hours after breakfast made for a spacy Amy. Luckily, we were drinking water, LMS did not seem to mind, and after lunch we were up and going again.
The last two days have been full, including a walk around the royal gardens at the Hampton Court Palace (home of Henry VIII and some of his wives). It is another beautiful day with only a few clouds in the sky. The gardens are not in full bloom yet, but the daffodils are out and the grass is quite green. As you know, I am not necessarily a "green thumb" (that is an understatement) so it is amazing to me that flowers actually come back every year and seem to thrive in other people's yards. In this case, acres and acres of them!
LMS was up briefly at breakfast, but I expect to feel more of her later in the day. She is not such a morning person at this point, at least not in this time zone. At times I swear I feel her full head or butt, usually on my left side. Oddly reassuring and somewhat uncomfortable all at the same time.
We are off to bed - hope you are having a great day!
Love, Amy & LMS
Part 3: March 16, 2007
Greetings again from London!
We are nearing the end of our London leg and just about ready to transition to an Italian state of mind. London has actually been impressive this week, sunny and cool every day. It's no Sydney, but also not what we expected for here. We understand that it might snow this weekend, so we are glad to be moving on. Lori left today and Mauricio leaves tomorrow morning, so the core group (Kirk, Nancy, Wendy, LMS and me) will travel to Rome with a few of the regional team members for next week's work.
LMS is definitely getting bigger, or at least I am getting bigger. I know this because I find it not to be very comfortable sitting and leaning forward and I don't remember that sensation in the past. We still feel great, though, are still running/walking most mornings, as there is a beautiful path along the river (not sure which one), across from the Hamptom Court Palace, gardens and the like. At moments we feel like we have returned to an ancient world, until, of course we see a plane or round a corner and see the highway across the way.
But, for moments it is just pristine. And LMS still enjoys jogging, it's a great time for just the two of us to enjoy a moment. I hope that she is able to see the world with her owns eyes someday, there is really nothing like it.
We are off for a full day of work! Hope you are well.
Love, Amy & LMS
From: Connor, Amy (Mommy & Little Miss Sunshine)
March 22, 2007
Subject: The Amazing Travels of Little Miss Sunshine - Part 4 (Rome) & Message from Home
Our "Roman Adventure" (March 17 to March 21, 2007)
We were very fortunate with weather again, because the clouds moved in over London as we left for the airport on Saturday. LMS was in great spirits, ready for a new place and a new adventure. We arrived in Rome Saturday afternoon to a beautiful, warm and sunny day. As with each city we have been, we took full advantage of every minute and walked most of the city between Saturday and Sunday.
Our first adventure in Rome was the taxi ride from the airport to the hotel. I say adventure because driving in this city is not what we normally expect in the US. Now, I know that we have aggressive and bad drivers, everyone has those. Here, though, they don't really have many traffic signals, stop signs or lines on the street that normally indicate lanes. And most streets would not fit one US SUV. Those "Smart Cars" are the best vehicles, they are the same length as the width of many of the US cars. Got the visual? Of course the motorcycles also seem to rule the road, but they scare me to death with their disregard for the few traffic lights and "lanes" or even sidewalks.
Because Kirk and Nancy (and LMS) had not been to Rome, we focused on seeing as much of the city as possible (by foot, of course). We walked around the coliseum, primarily to get photos of each of us in the "gladiator" pose. My traveling companion from my first visit seven years ago, the dear Sharon Norton, will remember the same pose! LMS and I were also in the Rome marathon! It's true, the marathon was Sunday, all throughout the city. We have a great shot of us a part of it all. Funny enough, Sharon and I were in it when we were here together too! The Forum is just next to the coliseum so while Nancy and Wendy ventured through an art exhibit, Kirk and I wandered through the ancient marketplace. We "poached" a few tour guides to gain some tidbits about the ancient site and decided that if we were here longer that we would hire one of our own to better understand the signifi! cance of each structure. On Sunday we walked to the Pantheon and St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. I have been to both places before but am still in awe of them.
I learned on this leg of the trip that LMS is more patient than I am (I know, this is not a very high bar to jump). She has helped me slow my pace a bit so my fellow travelers could (usually) keep up as we trekked from one famous location to the next. Even with this slower pace, by Sunday night we were all completely exhausted (the marathon really wears you out. ha!). But, there was "traditional Roman" food to be eaten and we were not going to miss out. LMS also seemed to enjoy the long dinners with multiple courses. By the way, we noticed that people actually do not eat any slower than in the US, just the service is paced differently. The restaurants are not in such a hurry to clear the table, as it has often taken several requests to get the check.
Monday and Tuesday were full days of work, this time watching and listening to people behind a one-way mirror in a crowded dark room, but only hearing one voice (the translator) instead of the inflection of the several women sitting around the table in the next room. Although the translator was quite skilled, it was still a challenge to stay focused enough to hear one voice, see through the mirror and focus on the person who was actually speaking...but with a few second delay and often summarized. Good thing that LMS was quite amused by the hours and hours of sitting in a dark room. I guess because her world is all dark, what's the difference? Anyway, Monday I swear she was doing some sort of dance (hopefully practicing to be a better dancer than her mom) or sign language, either way, she moved all day long. Tuesday she was not as active, I think she caught up on sleep. I still did get her "butt of love" as Matth! ew calls it, the solid mass, generally on my left side that could be any body part, but is hard as steel and not my abs.
Each night we did go out to dinner, how could we resist in a city like Rome! After a multiple course meal, generally with a tasty Italian dessert and decaf cappuccino, we walked back to the hotel. Luckily LMS believes in "finishing strong" as I do. Our hotel is at the top of the (134) Spanish Steps (you would know this famous site, I think the latest commercial it was in is where the guy gives his wife a diamond in front of her family/friends). Not always, but most of the time we felt the urge the run the last portion of the steps. Yes, we were completely exhausted at the top, but then we turned around to see the top of the basilicas across the city which was completely exhilarating. Wendy did decide that my theme sound for the trip was "Break My Stride" by Matthew Wilder - do you know it?
Rain moved in Monday afternoon and Tuesday but we were working, so it was fine. What are the chances that in three cities we had beautiful weekends and when the rain came, we were working? It seemed right that we were going home as the rain and colder weather moved in. LMS could not be bothered with the 4 am wake-up on Wednesday morning. She did not start moving until we boarded the plane in Frankfurt, the most structured and security-conscious airport I have even been through!
Greetings from Cincinnati! (March 22, 2007)
We are home safely, can't believe that we are finished with our 21 day adventure. In honor of our colleague and new friend, Anupam, here are some statistics about the trip. We traveled over 24,000 miles in over 50 hours of flying time (not counting the hours getting to and waiting at airports), on 7 planes and 5 airlines (good thing for airline alliances!). We believe we traveled through most of the time zones in the world, lost one date (March 2) and lived one date two times (March 10). We were in five countries (Germany and Singapore airports along with Australia, the UK and Italy) in both hemispheres. We traveled in countless taxis (crammed, of course, with usually 4-5 to a cab including all of our bags), 5 ferries, one double-decker bus, 5 trains and walked approximately 30 miles. We listened to 200+ consumers over 60 hours, sitting in five different dark, cramped rooms, took over 200 pages of notes and spent countless hours! talking about what we heard and wrote.
We had close to 70 meals served to us, including 10 on planes. We enjoyed Italian, German, Indian and what we jokingly referred to as "bites" served at the research facility in Australia. We ate and overall enjoyed Thai, Chinese and English Pub fare in London. The options were a bit limited so all of our meals were "traditional Roman" in Rome. Surprisingly, I enjoyed the Italian served in Australia just as much as in Italy. We do understand from our friend Anupam that Australia has the second largest population of Italians after Italy, so that could have helped. I enjoyed 15+ "decaf" cappuccinos, and also surprisingly, enjoyed the ones in Australia by far to any other country. I say "decaf" because I don't think they believe in "decaf" in Italy, but luckily the coffees were so small, it could not have been much caffeine anyway.
LMS was a trooper every step of the way (quite literally). Throughout the trip she did not seemed bothered by the different time zones, cuisines, extensive walking tours or my lack of sleep. She was a wonderful diversion and comfort as I imagined her kicking, turning and trying to suck her thumb (background here - at the ultrasound she was desperately trying to get a thumb into her mouth but the technician said that they are not that coordinated so it takes a bit).
I mentioned this before but we were truly blessed to have enjoyed this adventure with my three colleagues Kirk, Wendy and Nancy. They maintained their commitment, engagement and positive attitudes every day of what could have been a grueling trip. LMS and I hope to hold onto many of the qualities they shared with us, including Nancy's easy-going calm, Kirk's quick wit and laughter, and Wendy's fun and creative spirit. Although we did not spend as much time with Lori, Mauricio or the other global team members (time is all relative on a 21 day trip, isn't it), we were still constantly amazed at the kindness and goodness of everyone involved.
While we were in Italy, Matthew told us that he and the kitties (Mr. Fancy Pants and Bella) missed us, but with the prolonged absence, LMS and I might have lost our spot in the bed. Bella now held our spot, but luckily she is a reasonable cat and we were able to negotiate the spot back last night. We made it up until 8:30 (which might be how we got our spot back because no one else in the house was ready for bed yet). After a good night's sleep, a nice run this morning, homemade breakfast and lunch and a day at home, we are ready to get back into the normal routine.
As we end this journey, I know that the amazing travels of LMS are just beginning. I hope that she loves the world for all that it is, from the adventures of her "everyday" with Matthew, Fancy, Bella and me, to exploring with you, her family and friends, and maybe even her own travels to foreign places as we did on this trip. Thank you for humoring our stories and for those who were able to send notes back. The plan is to use these stories and your responses along with the pictures and memorabilia from each place to make LMS her very own book.
Hope you are well and hope to talk to you soon. Love, Amy & LMS
P.S. Even though it probably never occurred to you why the Australian cookie we love is called "Tim Tam," I found out for us. Tim Tam was the winner of the Kentucky Derby in 1958 (or sometime around then). The owner of the cookie company happened to be at that derby, loved the name of the horse and named his cookie that too. Interesting facts never cease!
Following is the "travel log"
From: Connor, Amy (Mommy & Little Miss Sunshine)
Date: March 16, 2007
Subject: The Amazing Travels of Little Miss Sunshine: Background, Part 1 and 2 Recap and Part 3 update
Family and friends -
The stories below started out as a way for me to let Matthew and the grandparents of Little Miss Sunshine (LMS) know about her amazing travels around the world, but I thought it would be fun for you to hear about her adventures as well. Forgive me for the mass email, I only find about 20 minutes each day of non-work so just don't have time to send each of you an individual note. Please also excuse any grammar and/or spelling mistakes. LMS is not yet completely competent in helping me in this area. Just wait, though! Following you will see the first two parts of her travels and part 3, a brief update on our week in London (see very end of note).
Some background for those who have not been intimately involved with Little Miss Sunshine or our travel schedule. Little Miss Sunshine is about 23 weeks old now. As I read from the books, she is less than a pound but I swear by the kicks she is strong for her size (already showing her "pipes" just like her mom). She is due to take her first breath on her own around July 12. From all of our check-ups and our heart beat monitor at home, she is healthy, has a strong heartbeat and growing as expected. I am in the bliss of the second trimester and loving every minute of it. I know she is there and love to feel her move but don't have the aches and pains or tiredness that I know will come soon. I am just enjoying every minute of this miracle.
I am currently working on Metamucil and a new probiotic product called Align. We are going around the world (quite literally) talking to women about their stomach well-being. And you thought I might upgrade after leaving Iams! It's still all about "inner and outer health," so be careful at parties, I am full of information about the GI tract that you probably don't want to hear. When I say "talking to women" what you should visualize is a group of people (5-12) in a generally cramped room, all sitting in usually uncomfortable chairs staring either at a TV or through a one-way mirror for hours at a time. Oh right, and the lights are generally off so it's barely possible to take notes as the consumers talk. But, it is amazingly insightful and people are quite willing to share their insights, tangents, health concerns, family situations, etc to strangers, quite critical when we need to understand how to talk to them.
The trip has three legs, the first in Australia, then the UK, then Italy. It started on March 1 and will be completed on March 21. We arrived in Sydney late on March 2 (we lose a day getting there) and left on March 10. We had two Saturday's as we traveled from Sydney to London (lots of meals, this worked out
for me and LMS). We are now in London and will leave here on Saturday for Rome. This is the shortest leg of our trip as we will return to the great state of Ohio on March 21.
I am traveling with a wonderful team that is doing amazingly well together, especially considering that we spend 12+ hours a day together and will for 21 days. Following are the team members with a brief description so you can visualize them before we are home and have photos to share. LMS is becoming quite fond of them, so I must include each of them into the story.
1) Kirk is in CMK (P&G's term for market research), just graduated from college last year and is doing amazingly well with the rest of the group (see below, you will understand). He is easy-going and funny, always a treat! Especially on the 10th hour of listening to women talk about their digestive problems. We have nicknamed him K-Wall (like how the celebrities truncate their names).
2) Nancy is in R&D, has two grown boys (just a bit younger than Kirk and is a real trouper, especially when we went out "dancing" at the bar in Sydney (for those of you so lucky enough to know my dancing, you completely understand).
3) Wendy is about my age, is hip, trendy and single. I hope that LMS can gain some fashion insight from Wendy while we are on the trip. She works in our function called "Design" that is responsible for all of those fabulous packages you seen on the shelf.
4) Lori is in R&D, has three young girls and because of this has been on most, but not all of the trip.
5) Mauricio, my boss who is also not on all of the trip, mainly just here in London. He is a ton of fun so we wish he was on more of the trip with us, but I guess someone has to be in the office.
6) Anupam, Siobhan, Helen, Tess, Lata, Sally, Bettina and many moderators are part of the regional teams who meet us in the city and work closely with us during the week. They are all wonderful and we have all enjoyed getting to know them (the broader global team) on this trip.
Greetings from London!
We hope you all are doing well. LMS and I are still having a ball and made it through what was probably the most strenuous part of the trip, the travels from Sydney to London. We had a delightful "Saturday day 1" (you will understand in a minute) in Sydney, another 80 degree, sunny day. We rode the ferry to the zoo, then instead of going to the zoo, walked an off-the-beaten path along the water from that harbor to another about 1 mile away. The best way to describe it is a scenic nature trail like we have in the states, except that it was along the harbor and had spectacular views of the city and every little harbor area at every turn. We think we were off the trail at one point, but LMS has a great sense of direction, just like her mom, so we made it to the next little harbor just in time to catch the ferry back! We took another ferry to another neat harbor for lunch, then strolled through the city. I know you are laughing at the thought of me "strolling." You are right, it was "strolling" for me, always in front, but at least one person on the team (Lori) walks as fast as I do. LMS seemed to appreciate the fast pace! After we all scrounged for coins for our last delicious (decaf) cappuccino (with skim milk), the best I have ever tasted, we headed back to the hotel to transition into "Saturday, day two," our 24+ hour journey to London.
The first leg of the trip, Sydney to Singapore was relatively short, just 7 hours. We left for the airport at 3 pm for a 5:50 pm flight. Our flight was delayed, which generally is not a problem except that we were changing airlines in Singapore and only had a 45 minute layout. You would have been impressed with my calm, though, what could I do about it? I had 7 hours of flying to go, no use in worrying about the end of it when it had not yet begun. We were on Qantas, an airline I highly recommend you fly if you ever get the chance. I received special treatment from the flight attendants, gotta love that. By special treatment I mean that they gave me two huge bottles of water even though it was just for staff use. These are the important things in life, I was absolutely appreciative. LMS was up a bit throughout this flight, which was good because the objective was to stay away as long as humanly possible so we would be able to sleep on the next leg. She was quite a trooper and entertained me enough with her movement that kept me going when I thought I could not keep my eyes open. It also helped that we sat next to Kirk, the one guy in the team who is a perfect fit for the 4 women on the team! We did get a bit of a nap in, but it ended up being fine.
They were not able to make up the time in the air so our transfer time was less than 15 minutes in Singapore. I know what you were thinking, which is what we were thinking. No way were we making the flight and absolutely no way was our luggage making the flight. But, we had heard fabulous things about the Singapore airport, and remember that I am a fast walker. By the grace of God, the gate was just a few away, they had those walking sidewalks (that make me feel like I am flying, by the way), and the people at the Singapore airport are miracle workers. LMS and I, of course, charged the terminal in case I needed to have them hold the door for the team. You know this "charging" is not intentional, but when I get on a mission.... We all made it, and were quickly into our seats for the short, 14+ hours flight to London. This flight was on British Airways and although it was fabulous because we were in business class, if you ever have the choice between Qantas and British Airways, choose Qantas. We hear, actually that you should choose Singapore Airlines, and based on the experience in the airport, I would agree with that! I guess LMS and I were in the mindset for a long trip, because the time seemed to go very quickly, and after our 6th meal of our double day (Saturday, remember because of the time changes), we landed safely in London at 5:30 Sunday morning.
After being in Sydney for a week, we were not that excited about London, with predictions of cold and rain. To our surprise, London had a beautiful day in store for us. After checking into the hotel, we all took the train into the city and stormed it like any other good tourist. We saw some fancy parade at Buckingham palace, had lunch at an English pub so we (Kirk and Lori) could watch some football (soccer), rode a double-decker bus, saw Big Ben, Westminster Abby, the Eye (big Ferris wheel), and lots of big, old buildings that probably have some significance but just looked like big, old buildings to us.
Now, Sunday, we will admit, was not our best day. We only slept about 5 hours and the mantra is that you must keep going all day when you arrive in a new city, no matter what, or you will not adjust to the time change. This, we found to be grueling. Especially since most of the team took some sort of sleep aid and had a bit more sleep than LMS and I. Plus, you know how I do without sleep. Don't worry, I did not yell at anyone. On top of this, Lori and I both had the "waving feeling" after we got off the plane, something Kirk and Wendy experienced when we landed in Sydney. This, coupled with not getting to lunch for 4+ hours after breakfast made for a spacy Amy. Luckily, we were drinking water, LMS did not seem to mind, and after lunch we were up and going again.
The last two days have been full, including a walk around the royal gardens at the Hampton Court Palace (home of Henry VIII and some of his wives). It is another beautiful day with only a few clouds in the sky. The gardens are not in full bloom yet, but the daffodils are out and the grass is quite green. As you know, I am not necessarily a "green thumb" (that is an understatement) so it is amazing to me that flowers actually come back every year and seem to thrive in other people's yards. In this case, acres and acres of them!
LMS was up briefly at breakfast, but I expect to feel more of her later in the day. She is not such a morning person at this point, at least not in this time zone. At times I swear I feel her full head or butt, usually on my left side. Oddly reassuring and somewhat uncomfortable all at the same time.
We are off to bed - hope you are having a great day!
Love, Amy & LMS
Part 3: March 16, 2007
Greetings again from London!
We are nearing the end of our London leg and just about ready to transition to an Italian state of mind. London has actually been impressive this week, sunny and cool every day. It's no Sydney, but also not what we expected for here. We understand that it might snow this weekend, so we are glad to be moving on. Lori left today and Mauricio leaves tomorrow morning, so the core group (Kirk, Nancy, Wendy, LMS and me) will travel to Rome with a few of the regional team members for next week's work.
LMS is definitely getting bigger, or at least I am getting bigger. I know this because I find it not to be very comfortable sitting and leaning forward and I don't remember that sensation in the past. We still feel great, though, are still running/walking most mornings, as there is a beautiful path along the river (not sure which one), across from the Hamptom Court Palace, gardens and the like. At moments we feel like we have returned to an ancient world, until, of course we see a plane or round a corner and see the highway across the way.
But, for moments it is just pristine. And LMS still enjoys jogging, it's a great time for just the two of us to enjoy a moment. I hope that she is able to see the world with her owns eyes someday, there is really nothing like it.
We are off for a full day of work! Hope you are well.
Love, Amy & LMS
From: Connor, Amy (Mommy & Little Miss Sunshine)
March 22, 2007
Subject: The Amazing Travels of Little Miss Sunshine - Part 4 (Rome) & Message from Home
Our "Roman Adventure" (March 17 to March 21, 2007)
We were very fortunate with weather again, because the clouds moved in over London as we left for the airport on Saturday. LMS was in great spirits, ready for a new place and a new adventure. We arrived in Rome Saturday afternoon to a beautiful, warm and sunny day. As with each city we have been, we took full advantage of every minute and walked most of the city between Saturday and Sunday.
Our first adventure in Rome was the taxi ride from the airport to the hotel. I say adventure because driving in this city is not what we normally expect in the US. Now, I know that we have aggressive and bad drivers, everyone has those. Here, though, they don't really have many traffic signals, stop signs or lines on the street that normally indicate lanes. And most streets would not fit one US SUV. Those "Smart Cars" are the best vehicles, they are the same length as the width of many of the US cars. Got the visual? Of course the motorcycles also seem to rule the road, but they scare me to death with their disregard for the few traffic lights and "lanes" or even sidewalks.
Because Kirk and Nancy (and LMS) had not been to Rome, we focused on seeing as much of the city as possible (by foot, of course). We walked around the coliseum, primarily to get photos of each of us in the "gladiator" pose. My traveling companion from my first visit seven years ago, the dear Sharon Norton, will remember the same pose! LMS and I were also in the Rome marathon! It's true, the marathon was Sunday, all throughout the city. We have a great shot of us a part of it all. Funny enough, Sharon and I were in it when we were here together too! The Forum is just next to the coliseum so while Nancy and Wendy ventured through an art exhibit, Kirk and I wandered through the ancient marketplace. We "poached" a few tour guides to gain some tidbits about the ancient site and decided that if we were here longer that we would hire one of our own to better understand the signifi! cance of each structure. On Sunday we walked to the Pantheon and St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. I have been to both places before but am still in awe of them.
I learned on this leg of the trip that LMS is more patient than I am (I know, this is not a very high bar to jump). She has helped me slow my pace a bit so my fellow travelers could (usually) keep up as we trekked from one famous location to the next. Even with this slower pace, by Sunday night we were all completely exhausted (the marathon really wears you out. ha!). But, there was "traditional Roman" food to be eaten and we were not going to miss out. LMS also seemed to enjoy the long dinners with multiple courses. By the way, we noticed that people actually do not eat any slower than in the US, just the service is paced differently. The restaurants are not in such a hurry to clear the table, as it has often taken several requests to get the check.
Monday and Tuesday were full days of work, this time watching and listening to people behind a one-way mirror in a crowded dark room, but only hearing one voice (the translator) instead of the inflection of the several women sitting around the table in the next room. Although the translator was quite skilled, it was still a challenge to stay focused enough to hear one voice, see through the mirror and focus on the person who was actually speaking...but with a few second delay and often summarized. Good thing that LMS was quite amused by the hours and hours of sitting in a dark room. I guess because her world is all dark, what's the difference? Anyway, Monday I swear she was doing some sort of dance (hopefully practicing to be a better dancer than her mom) or sign language, either way, she moved all day long. Tuesday she was not as active, I think she caught up on sleep. I still did get her "butt of love" as Matth! ew calls it, the solid mass, generally on my left side that could be any body part, but is hard as steel and not my abs.
Each night we did go out to dinner, how could we resist in a city like Rome! After a multiple course meal, generally with a tasty Italian dessert and decaf cappuccino, we walked back to the hotel. Luckily LMS believes in "finishing strong" as I do. Our hotel is at the top of the (134) Spanish Steps (you would know this famous site, I think the latest commercial it was in is where the guy gives his wife a diamond in front of her family/friends). Not always, but most of the time we felt the urge the run the last portion of the steps. Yes, we were completely exhausted at the top, but then we turned around to see the top of the basilicas across the city which was completely exhilarating. Wendy did decide that my theme sound for the trip was "Break My Stride" by Matthew Wilder - do you know it?
Rain moved in Monday afternoon and Tuesday but we were working, so it was fine. What are the chances that in three cities we had beautiful weekends and when the rain came, we were working? It seemed right that we were going home as the rain and colder weather moved in. LMS could not be bothered with the 4 am wake-up on Wednesday morning. She did not start moving until we boarded the plane in Frankfurt, the most structured and security-conscious airport I have even been through!
Greetings from Cincinnati! (March 22, 2007)
We are home safely, can't believe that we are finished with our 21 day adventure. In honor of our colleague and new friend, Anupam, here are some statistics about the trip. We traveled over 24,000 miles in over 50 hours of flying time (not counting the hours getting to and waiting at airports), on 7 planes and 5 airlines (good thing for airline alliances!). We believe we traveled through most of the time zones in the world, lost one date (March 2) and lived one date two times (March 10). We were in five countries (Germany and Singapore airports along with Australia, the UK and Italy) in both hemispheres. We traveled in countless taxis (crammed, of course, with usually 4-5 to a cab including all of our bags), 5 ferries, one double-decker bus, 5 trains and walked approximately 30 miles. We listened to 200+ consumers over 60 hours, sitting in five different dark, cramped rooms, took over 200 pages of notes and spent countless hours! talking about what we heard and wrote.
We had close to 70 meals served to us, including 10 on planes. We enjoyed Italian, German, Indian and what we jokingly referred to as "bites" served at the research facility in Australia. We ate and overall enjoyed Thai, Chinese and English Pub fare in London. The options were a bit limited so all of our meals were "traditional Roman" in Rome. Surprisingly, I enjoyed the Italian served in Australia just as much as in Italy. We do understand from our friend Anupam that Australia has the second largest population of Italians after Italy, so that could have helped. I enjoyed 15+ "decaf" cappuccinos, and also surprisingly, enjoyed the ones in Australia by far to any other country. I say "decaf" because I don't think they believe in "decaf" in Italy, but luckily the coffees were so small, it could not have been much caffeine anyway.
LMS was a trooper every step of the way (quite literally). Throughout the trip she did not seemed bothered by the different time zones, cuisines, extensive walking tours or my lack of sleep. She was a wonderful diversion and comfort as I imagined her kicking, turning and trying to suck her thumb (background here - at the ultrasound she was desperately trying to get a thumb into her mouth but the technician said that they are not that coordinated so it takes a bit).
I mentioned this before but we were truly blessed to have enjoyed this adventure with my three colleagues Kirk, Wendy and Nancy. They maintained their commitment, engagement and positive attitudes every day of what could have been a grueling trip. LMS and I hope to hold onto many of the qualities they shared with us, including Nancy's easy-going calm, Kirk's quick wit and laughter, and Wendy's fun and creative spirit. Although we did not spend as much time with Lori, Mauricio or the other global team members (time is all relative on a 21 day trip, isn't it), we were still constantly amazed at the kindness and goodness of everyone involved.
While we were in Italy, Matthew told us that he and the kitties (Mr. Fancy Pants and Bella) missed us, but with the prolonged absence, LMS and I might have lost our spot in the bed. Bella now held our spot, but luckily she is a reasonable cat and we were able to negotiate the spot back last night. We made it up until 8:30 (which might be how we got our spot back because no one else in the house was ready for bed yet). After a good night's sleep, a nice run this morning, homemade breakfast and lunch and a day at home, we are ready to get back into the normal routine.
As we end this journey, I know that the amazing travels of LMS are just beginning. I hope that she loves the world for all that it is, from the adventures of her "everyday" with Matthew, Fancy, Bella and me, to exploring with you, her family and friends, and maybe even her own travels to foreign places as we did on this trip. Thank you for humoring our stories and for those who were able to send notes back. The plan is to use these stories and your responses along with the pictures and memorabilia from each place to make LMS her very own book.
Hope you are well and hope to talk to you soon. Love, Amy & LMS
P.S. Even though it probably never occurred to you why the Australian cookie we love is called "Tim Tam," I found out for us. Tim Tam was the winner of the Kentucky Derby in 1958 (or sometime around then). The owner of the cookie company happened to be at that derby, loved the name of the horse and named his cookie that too. Interesting facts never cease!
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