Pepper arrives in London!

We first attempted to bring Pepper to London two months ago. Delta screwed up our reservation and British Airlines said she couldn't fly on the particular day that we needed because 'there were snakes on the plane'!! How funny is that! Josh thought I was attempting to be funny when I told him. After this fiasco we decided to wait until she could fly back with us.

We dropped Pepper off at British Airlines Cargo at the Atlanta airport. Everyone in the office took great interest in her. It took over an hour to get all the paperwork in order, we even had to sign papers that said our dog was not filled with explosives. It was tough to leave her, you really wonder if the airline employees will take good care of her and how she will do on the flight. You can not sedate animals for the flight so Pepper will be awake for the entire trip. Pepper's flight left two hours before ours. When we arrived in London I called the London Heathrow Animal Reception Center. They confirmed that she had arrived, she was doing well and her paper work was being processed. We had booked a mini bus to pick us up from the airport. Josh, Avery and I plus carseat, stroller, 5 big suitcases and soon to be added 1 dog and 1 dog crate. To our surprise a 'mini bus' is really just English for mini van. We knew it was going to be difficult to fit us all in. When we arrived at the ARC Pepper was just finishing up with customs. After a quick 10 minutes she was out and she was so excited to see us! Happy and healthy :)

Now it was time to fit in the mini van. Josh was in the front with the driver. I was in the middle seat in the back with two bags in my lap with Avery to my right with her stroller on the floor in front of her and Pepper to my left with a suitcase in front of her. In the back we filled Pepper's crate with bags and stuffed the trunk. We just barely fit! We took Pepper to dinner at one of our local pubs for her first meal out.

Pepper's First Day in her new garden (yard).

Tired, tired Pepper, escaping the wrath of Miss Avery.
(OK, and slightly spoiled, yes she is on the couch, can you tell that we missed her?)

Life is good!

We have taken Pepper to the Heath every day to walk, run, play and chase a ball, all leash free! Tuesday morning Avery, Pepper and I were out in the Heath for a walk and we stopped to throw the ball. As Pepper was chasing down the ball she over ran it, slowed up a bit, turned back around to get it and then just laid down. I immediately knew something was wrong. When I got up by her and asked her to get up she walked with no weight on one of her rear legs. I laid her back down and ran my hands all over her leg, she never showed me where it hurt. So, we started the treck home. Pepper was still full of energy and very willing to hobble home but was not bearing any weight on the leg. I called the vet a made an appointment for later in the day. I was hoping that I wouldn't have to look into getting a vet for months but that changed quickly.

We already knew that Pepper had gained weight from being spoiled at PopPop and Bubbe's but the vet here confirmed it again. She said that between the extra weight and the big change in exercise that Pepper's muscles probably couldn't keep up. If we are lucky, Pepper could have soft tissue damage around her knee. If we aren't so lucky she may have pulled the cruciate ligament in her knee. We are headed back to the vet tomorrow. She will probably be sedated and have her leg x-rayed. Check back tomorrow for an update.

Atlanta

The final city on our tour. We arrived the day before PopPop's birthday but we didn't actually see him on his birthday. He was returning from a business trip and we were all in bed by the time he got home. Happy Birthday PopPop! Great Great Aunt Joyce made a trip all the way from Atlantic City just to meet Avery, what a special treat! Avery also got to see Pepper for the first time in 9 months. She actually had 4 four legged friends to entertain her; Pepper, Suzie, Bella and Butterbean. Pepper enjoyed stealing bits of bagels out of Avery's hand and Bella was always there to give kisses and clean her face.

Thursday was game day and Avery dressed the part. Uncle Adam and Aunt Kim even hosted a game watching party at their house so we could catch up with everyone.

Go Jackets! (I will not comment on the outcome of this game.)

Avery came down with a bad congested cough and a small fever. So between visiting with friends, fitting in Avery's naps, doing some shopping and getting my fill of Houston's salads,yum!, the week was over before we knew it.

As I mentioned in the previous post we were tired of the rain in Austin but that doesn't even scratch the surface for how tired of the rain we were in Atlanta. There were downpours every day until the day we left when the sun finally came out. The last day Bubbe finally got to take Avery out in the Radio Flyer wagon and walk around the neighborhood.

Now, it's time to leave all this crazy rain and get back to the sun in England....now how many times will I ever be able to say that?!

(Sorry for the lack of pictures, we were really bad about taking pictures on all three legs of this trip!)

Austin!

The second city on our tour! While Josh spent the week at a customer conference for work, Avery and I got to have fun! Greg and Tiff were gracious enough to have us stay at their house with them. It was a bit strange to be staying next door to our house. Even funnier to see a Porche in our driveway instead of a Chevy. While we were hoping for sunny warm days that we could lounge at the pool we ended up with rain every day. I know Austin desperately needs the rain but did it need to happen while we were visiting? Oh well, it didn't deter any of our plans other than swimming. Avery and I caught up with old friends, shopped, went to the pediatrician, I got my teeth cleaned, my haircut and had a much awaited pedicure. We spent Friday night out downtown with friends and watched football all day Saturday.

Caitlyn and Maddison gave Avery all sorts of fun dress up clothes and dressed her up too! Check out that tutu!

Avery sported her Huskers tee in honor of Greg and Tiff. (GT didn't play that day)

Princess Avery. Don't worry, her bear is wearing a Georgia Tech tee.

Sunday morning Josh helped out with the LCRA Underwater Lake Clean up. It's amazing to see how low the lake is. Sunday afternoon the dive club got together at Ed and Beth's house. What a fun time to catch up with friends

Normally these stairs lead divers right into the water, now they just lead to more rocks.

Giving Dory the hostess doggy and kiss for having us all over!

Pediatrician Update
Weight: 24lbs 75%
Height: 31 1/4" 75 %
Head Circumference: 49cm 97%

This week flew by!
Off to Atlanta!

South Haven Michigan

After less than 14 hours back in London, Avery and I were back at the airport headed for the South Haven, Michigan. This will be our first stop on our three city tour. Josh followed a few days after us so he could fit in a few more working days. Overall the flight went well and I really can't complain. Avery took an hour and a half nap on the 9+ hour flight to Atlanta. I was lucky to have an empty seat next to me where she could stand and play. She did finally fall asleep on our connection flight into South Bend, she fell asleep so hard that I carried her like a tiny baby (24 pounds is not a tiny baby) all the way to baggage claim. I'm not sure what Grandma and Grandpa were thinking as I walked through the doors with her cradled in my arms.

We spent the week hanging out with Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Tonya, Uncle Chris, Ethan, Marina and Clara. Avery loved Clara, she wanted to hug her all the time. Ethan and Marina liked that Avery had learned to walk since the last time they saw her. Avery liked that she had so much space to cruise around in, much more than our tiny place. We had perfect weather, sunny and in the 70's. We played in the sand on the beach and swam in the pool, the lake was too cold!


Grandma and Grandpa hosted the 3rd Annual Summer Wine Down, wine tasting party. This year all the wines were from Italy. We discussed having juice tasting for the kiddos next year! It was a great chance to catch up with Aunts, Uncles, Cousins and friends.



The week was over before we knew it!

Off to Austin!

Alicante Spain

We took advantage of a bank holiday the last weekend in August and fit in a few days to escape to Alicante Spain. Alicante is on the Mediterranean Coast west of Barcelona and is considered to be one of Europe's top 10 beaches. We found an apartment to rent that was about a mile from the beach. The first morning of our trip was a bit hairy. Avery had her first real throw up and unfortunately I got an up close and personal view or should I say splattering of this event (so did her poor stuffed bear). Luckily a nap on mommy, after we were all cleaned up, cured all and she was ready for the pool and beach that afternoon. We spent the remaining days hanging out ocean side under an umbrella followed by a rinse off and swim at the pool in the afternoons. Avery loved the water, it didn't matter how much salt water got her mouth. She was not afraid of the waves either.

Daddy and Avery hanging out on our porch.

Playing in the sand.

The view down the beach.

Family pic.

Taking a wave.

Having fun!

Hanging with Mom under the umbrella.

So far behind...

OK, OK, OK, I haven't posted in over a month, as a few of you are reminding me!  We have so much to catch you up on; Spain, South Haven, Austin, Atlanta and Pepper.  I promise a post tomorrow :)

Changes

The past few weeks Avery has been making some big changes. She is showing us how much she really understands the things going on around her.

Earlier this week Avery picked up her swimming bag and starting walking to the front door with it, while waving and blowing kisses at me.

Yesterday Avery packed Daddy's laptop bag for work. She included his test strips, phone, a hair bow and a teething ring :) Then waved as he left for work.

She has also learned where we keep the keys for the garden door and realized she is tall enough to reach them. She now picks up the keys, walks to the door and uses the keys to unlock the door. Ok, granted she is not actually unlocking the door but she definitely gets the overall idea.

Avery also now loves the bathroom and kitchen. Two places we would like to keep her out of. Recently she discovered pushing the buttons on the washer/dryer (in the kitchen). This is all fun and games until she hits that horrible button that locks and unlocks the door. It makes a clicking noise that for some strange reason sends her immediately into tears!


Our weather has been absolutely beautiful lately. Great temps in the upper 70's and mostly sunny. Ok, I admit we do get some rain but overall I can't really complain. On the weekends we try to get out to the Heath for picnics and play time.

Daddy and Avery chillin at the Heath

Recently we also revisited one of the city farms. Avery was not very impressed the last few times we visited the farm or zoo but for some reason this time she LOVED it!

She wanted to pet every goat. The only time she got worried was if they got too close to her face. This gives us hope that she will remember Pepper who she hasn't seen in over eight months, and I'm not exactly sure what she remembers from eight months ago!

Checking out the cow

Attempting to chase the ducks and rooster. That rooster loved her and made me very nervous.