Saturday, August 31, 2013

Fort hiking and 9 years ago

This morning we went with our friends (David, Laura, Jude and Silas) to Golkonda Fort, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golkonda

Sweet boys eating snacks after climbing tons of stairs! Harrison did a wonderful job climbing instead of having Bill or I carry him the whole time! 


Jude and Harrison = two boys who LOVE apple juice! 

We have decided to give our driver the day off (thanks to Laura and David driving!) so we will spend the afternoon hanging out at the hotel. 

This evening 9 years ago Bill proposed to me outside Unity Presbyterian Church (where we met 11 months before) In Terre Haute, Indiana. Certainly caught this 22 year old girl off guard as I was just starting my senior year of college and working two jobs. I love reflecting on that evening and I thank God everyday for bringing Bill into my life! 

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Daddy's surprise



Harrison LOVES playing with his Legos pretty much every day. Tonight before Bill came home from work Harrison made this and extremely excitedly said "Daddy's surprise! It's his new telescope!!!!" I truly love his imagination! 

Planes


Harrison's first chapter book! I loved listening to Bill read this evening, the plan is to read Harrison two chapters a night. 


Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Great weekend!

Saturday started off with breakfast at the Westin and then to the mall in search of a baseball bat at HyperCity. No baseball bat was found but a cricket set was bought. Harrison and Bill played outside on the playground for a little while- love watching them play! We will have to research the proper way to play. 



On Saturday afternoon we took Harrison to see his first movie! In India the movies tend to only last a weekend or two and if the movie is in 3D then they will only show the 3D version. So not only did Harrison see his first movie but it was also in 3D. The movie was Disney Planes, he was so excited (and popcorn was a huge hit)! Also the movie theater had intermission, so weird for a 1.5 hours movie. The 3D glasses were all one size but the engineer in Bill was able to use two of my hair ties to make them fit Harrison's head better. 
 
Saturday night we went to the Bailes house (Kate made us dinner) where Harrison was introduced to Peter Pan and Tinkerbell. It was a great Saturday! 

Sunday Harrison (Bill and I stayed with him) went to Sunday School for the first time. The church service is 2 hours long so they need a lot to fill the time. All the kids are gathered together before breaking into smaller age group classes. We sang songs, heard a Bible story and prayed before watching a movie (not the normal routine- we think the Sunday School teacher was absent). Looking forward to next Sunday. 

Sunday, August 25, 2013

A kitchen visitor looking for a snack.



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Friday, August 23, 2013

Had to do it...



Well friends and family I have done the unthinkable..... 

I bought instant coffee...the hotel coffee is AWFUL and not having access to a coffee shop I broke down and bought the instant...I have to admit it is better then the gross stuff at breakfast but FAR FROM Stumptown and Tony's...


Thursday, August 22, 2013

Train ride at the zoo

Today was a great day spent at the zoo with Stella and Ethan before going to Beyond Coffee...much needed coffee for the mommas! 

Harrison and Ethan waiting for the zoo train to start! 


Seriously the largest turtle I have ever seen 

Baboon!!! 


  

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday

On Sunday afternoon went to one of Bill's coworkers for an awesome home cooked lunch. Afterwards Harrison discovered the playground at their complex.


Monday was pretty relaxed with a home cooked lunch at Kate and Carol's house. Harrison really loves Kate! Kate is 28 years old and has babysat for us when Bill and I went to the wedding several weeks ago. 

On Tuesday Harrison and I went to Beyond Coffee for the moms meet-up and met another expat and her four year old son, Ethan. They are from the US but recently moved to Hyderabad from Russia. We have made plans to go to the Zoo on Thursday morning. 

Wednesday morning we have spent time snuggling while watching Toy Story and Toy Story 2...Harrison's new favorite! 

Sunday, August 18, 2013

Film City fun

Saturday morning we ventured out to Film City with one of Bill's coworkers and his family. Film City was an hour drive and is the largest film studio complex in the world with over 2,000 acres of studios, gardens, hotels, multi-storied buildings and structures. We didn't cover all the area but had a great time touring the studio and having Harrison ride some rides. He loved the carousel, train and helicopter ride. 


The most wanted boy ever! 

Harrison was fascinated with the huge dinosaur! 

Friday, August 16, 2013

Children's museum



This afternoon we went to Kidihou, India's first children's museum. Harrison loved role playing as a vet, being a cashier at the market, construction worker, playing at the train table and the list goes on...we went with Lindsey and her two children, Rhea is 5 years old and Everrett is 3 years old. After the museum we can back to our hotel to play for awhile. Harrison did a great 
job at sharing his toys and we are looking forward to another play date soon! 


Thursday, August 15, 2013

Working hard together to build an Aero-plane



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Tuesday, August 13, 2013

One month down!

Truly eye opening first month... 

Makeshift houses along busy streets, people everywhere, beggers knocking on your window for money. 

Families traveling by motorcycle, especially infants in their mothers lap. 

Children standing up in moving cars and motorized rickshaws 

There are as many Cafe Coffee Day's in Hyderabad as there are Starbucks in Seattle 

Men peeing along the side of the road 

Buffalo within arms reach at times and just wondering the streets 

Extremely Blessed with an amazing expat community! God is good, all the time. 

Monday, August 12, 2013

His first pencil sharpener

Today was a very low key day at the hotel playing trains and construction site. A small break to go downstairs and get my flipkart.com package (a new potty book "No Potty! Yes, Potty!"). After reading the book a couple times (It really is a cute book!!!) the receptionist came over and gave Harrison a pad of paper, an eraser, pencil and pencil sharpener... He thought it was so cool!! I love his tongue sticking out as he is focusing so hard!  


India wedding!


Even though Bill and I didn't know a thing about Hindu weddings, we were really glad we attended. The ceremony took place in a large hall with lots of flowers and decorations. We arrived a little early (here in India being late is completely acceptable) and was warmly greeted by one of Bill's coworkers. Lots of rituals take place and even though we didn't understand any of it, it was still neat to see! We were told rituals can last for hours! People were walking around, chatting and eating during the ceremony. The food was good and very spicy! We had no idea what we were eating but it was so tasty!! 






Package sending address

Bill Nagel
Amazon Development Centre (India) Pvt Ltd,
'B' Block, 2nd Floor, Q-city,
Survey No: 109, 110,
Nanakramguda Village, Serilingampally,
Hyderabad - 500046

(Note: Make sure to use "Bill Nagel".  That's his name in the Amazon employee look-up system and locals aren't necessarily going to know "William" and "Bill" are the same name.)

Sunday, August 11, 2013

Off to our first Indian wedding



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Saturday, August 10, 2013

Ready for my first India girls night out



via Instagram http://instagram.com/p/c1cH8Hurce/

Riding the train at Inorbit Mall



via Instagram http://instagram.com/p/c1J11jOrWI/



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Friday, August 9, 2013

Wonderful imagination!



Harrison has turned the closet into a treehouse. 

Working so hard to fix his treehouse with his Mickey Mouse tools! 
Harrison has been quite cutie today using his imagination. He played with his musical instruments for 15-20 mins. 

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Sari

Today I went shopping for my first Sari, an Indian stlye dress. I am admittedly horrible at describing things so be patient and I will blog pictures soon! Bill and I will be attending our first Indian wedding on Sunday evening (hence the reason for a Sari). After shopping Harrison and I enjoyed an afternoon of Disney Junior. I was super proud (and very thankful for the iPad) of Harrison while I shopped for the Sari, jewelry and measured. 

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Harrison enjoyed reading the paper on our way to Beyond Coffee for Tuesday moms coffee meet-up!



via Instagram http://instagram.com/p/crYvnRurYl/

Great Day

A day full of meeting new moms:

Harrison and I enjoyed going to Beyond Coffee, an every Tuesday morning coffee time with other moms from Big Bellies Mums and Buds Facebook group. It was great to meet more moms! Harrison was the only kid (all their kids were in preschool), as I drank my americano he enjoyed watching Handy Manny on the iPad. 

After lunch Harrison and I went to Pearl City Church mums group, meets every Tuesday from 4-6pm. Many of the moms are westerner expats but some are Indian whom used to live in the United States but have moved back to Hyderabad. One family from church lives in the same gated community, Jayabheri Silicon County, that we will be moving to next month! 

After dinner I started to reflect on how Blessed I am to have such a community of welcoming moms! 

Sunday, August 4, 2013

Our church!



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Buffalo getting a bath



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Good weekend

Saturday started off with a great breakfast and fellowship at The Westin hotel then back to the hotel to move rooms due to a leak in the bathroom. I am so glad to have some things in their place since we will be staying at Ellaa Hotels for another 4-6 weeks. We ventured out for dinner where Bill and I had an awesome hamburger! 

This morning we went to church, tried out a new and very yummy coffee shop. We have learned that if you are looking for a cup of coffee, search for coffee bar not coffee shop. Harrison and Bill are spending the evening building a big train track while mommy gets some mommy time. 

Hope everyone is having a great weekend too!  

Friday, August 2, 2013

Fresh air

This afternoon while Harrison and I were waiting for our driver we decided to sit outside on the hotel steps. The wind was blowing and the sun was trying to shine...it was so great to breathe in the air and feel the wind blowing. 

Harrison and I had a good time at the tea fundraiser, but I think he had more fun going to the mall afterwards. We went to Inorbit Mall so I could try on some jeans...three times to the dressing room and no jeans for me, having a hard time finding the right fit. Harrison was amazing, patient and I think he actually had fun "helping" me. Afterwards I let him pick out a small treat...his first Disney Plane from the movie that will be in theaters on August 9th. This will be his first time to the movie theater! His new plane, El Chupacabra, are peacefully sleeping together.  

 

Rough day

Yesterday (Thursday) was a rough emotional day for me...maybe the reality of moving here set in once our air shipment arrived with 99.9% of Harrison's toys and some of our clothes. My personality is organized and EVERYTHING has its place. I prepped myself for the shipment of boxes and how crazy our living room area will be until we move into our duplex flat next month.

I knew how excited Harrison would be to have his toys. As soon as we walked into the hotel room and he played with a couple toys he started to ask "where is my flatbed truck with the green jeep!!" I was sure it was in one of the boxes so the digging begun...only to discover they are on the sea shipment...which will arrive next month. Harrison seemed to understand and moved onto something else but my heart was aching for his beloved toy that he asked for daily leading up to his 3rd birthday. 

A good cry when Bill got home from work followed by hugs was a great help. Of course taking deep breathes always helps. 

This morning I woke up, ordered room service (Harrison REALLY wanted to stay in for breakfast and play with his toys AND the room service menu had BACON- his favorite!) of a cheese omelet, read the newspaper and online news before exercising to Jillian Michaels 20 minute workout dvd, taking a cold (unexpected and hoping for the water to get hot) shower, then applying a little bit of makeup! I feel refreshed and beautiful. 

Lastly I have been looking forward to this afternoon tea fundraiser for a baby orphan girl. Below is the invite with details...
"Please allow me to introduce Gayatri, she was discovered in am emergency room at 6 months weighing only 3.3 kg with staph infection and then pneumonia. After a full blood test, it was revealed that she has immunodeficiency and continues to get sick due to very low immunity and her medical bills are over 80k now. We are hosting a tea party to collect money for her medical bills." 

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Goldfish found and air shipment is HERE!


Thursday August 1st 

A trip to my favorite grocery store Ratnadeep where we found GOLDFISH crackers!!! Harrison was all smiles! 

This afternoon Harrison and I went to lunch at Kate's house, it was very and I am thankful for being invited to lunch! 
On our way home from Kate's house I told Harrison that our air shipment had arrived- Harrison was ecstatic!!! 

Top toys....
Curious George radio 
Wooden Seaplane 
Mickey Mouse tool set 
Guitar- "mommy sing a song!" This mommy has to learn some songs! 

Dinosaur Train set 
Ship 

Last night Bill discovered a leak coming from the bathroom shower. Today we found out that the problem is bigger then expected so we will be moving rooms on Saturday. Thankfully we only have to move across the hallway! 

FRRO done!

Wednesday July 31st 
We survived FRRO (foreign residents registration office) this morning- it only took two hours (we were prepared for a lot longer and thankful it's behind us). We will have to go back when we move into our apartment (September) and in one year for renewal for Amazon. But for now I will celebrate phase 1 done! 
This afternoon Harrison and I enjoyed playing trains and watching Disney Junior. Thank God for feeling better! Tomorrow Harrison will be so excited when we come home from a lunch date to find our air shipment has arrived (99.9% filled with his toys!!!)