Today is the day that the boys and I should have been returning from our trip to India.  It’s sad to think about, but now that Chris is home and settled in, we’re all fine.  Many family members and friends don’t know the whole story of the events this month, and now I finally have some time to catch you all up.  It’s been quite a rollercoaster ride, but there’s a happy ending, too.

Thursday morning, September 24th, in the midst of a flurry of packing and organizing for our trip, I received a call from Chris’s HR director, Tim Anderson, saying “Don’t worry, but we think Chris might have to come home.  There’s an issue with his visa.”  What?  Chris was 10-1/2 hours ahead of us, so was sleeping at the time.  I have to admit…I was a little dismissive of this phone call.  “Naw…”, I thought, “this must be some sort of snafu that they’ll be able to work out.”  So, I waited for Chris to wake up and ask what the deal was.

Well, sure enough, turns out Chris did have to come home.  Once it was confirmed that the Indian government was requiring all foreign nationals (according to the information they had at the time) to return to their country of origin and re-apply for a visa, Chris took the first flight available and, actually, arrived the same day that the boys and I were supposed to leave to go visit him.  What a disappointment!  But, also, of course, what a relief to see him.  We had been apart for 6 weeks, and we missed him so much!

Why did this happen?  Good question!  I don’t think we’ll ever truly get a direct answer, but here’s what we pieced together so far.  Just like here in the U.S., India has a problem with semi-skilled immigrants coming into the country and taking jobs that the government thinks its own citizens should have.  There has been a lot of negative sentiment directed toward Chinese nationals in India lately.  So, the government decided to do something about it and revoke all business visas (relatively easy to get in India).  Here’s a link with an explanation of the “clarification” of the new rules for business visas to India.

Unfortunately, the state of Gujarat (where Chris was) chose to expand the interpretation of this new policy to include ALL business visas of ALL foreign nationals.  Period.  At the time, they were given a deadline to get out in 6 days by September 30th.  An ex-pat friend of his was threatened by armed police that if they chose to not take this seriously, they would be arrested, detained and fined.  Chris was worried that all the flights would get booked up.  So, he packed everything in 6 hours and high-tailed it out of there.  Here’s an article from the newspaper in Ahmedabad that I read the next day while he was flying.

What a confusing and mind-blowing event.  Whew…so much to figure out and do once Chris returned.  The travel insurance that we had for the boys and I didn’t cover an incident like this, and denied our appeal.  ($$ well spent there.)  I was “on vacation” for the month of October for this trip, so was using all the vacation time I had saved up.  Fortunately, some very generous co-workers at St. Mary’s had shifts they wanted to be covered, so I was able to recover most of that vacation time.  We also learned some wonderful lessons…distance truly does make the heart grow fonder, and I’m not really a great single-parent.    What’s the saying…the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.  That’s our family.  We learned that we all love each other very much and definitely function better as a whole unit.

Here’s the kicker, though…Chris needs to return and fulfill the commitment he made to his company as a technology mentor for the Ahmedabad branch.  This means he has to start all over again and will be returning in January through to May.  The tentative departure date is January 13th, 2010.  We’ve decided that it’s best for all of us to go together…for many various reasons.  I think it’ll be a positive experience all around.  So, we’re kicking things into gear for planning to be away from home for 4 months.  Yikes!  Anybody want to take our fish into their home?

Chris has been taking many photos to journal about his stay in India.  This helps the boys know what he does and what his experience has been like.  He has a neat photo journal of his flight to India.  He first flew from Madison to Chicago.  The next flight was non-stop from Chicago to Delhi, India – a 15 hour flight.  Then, he had to stay overnight in a hotel and take the first flight to Ahmedabad.  It was quite an ordeal. The boys and I will be taking the same flight at the end of September to go visit Chris for a month.  All I can say is thank goodness that there is plenty of movie entertainment for each child!  Whew!

Each photo is clickable to get a larger view.

We flew over on a Boeing 777. This was the view of the cabin from my seat. The seats in cattle class, errr . . . coach (shown here), are configured two on the side, five in the middle, and then two again on the other side.

Each seat has a mini TV screen either on the back of the seat in front of it, or on an arm that pulls out and up from the arm rest.

The welcome / main menu screen for the “in-flight entertainment system”.

If you choose the “Flight Path” option, it loops through several screens that show trip data. On one, you get real-time data on altitude, ground speed, and outside air temp.

On another, you get a “big picture” view of the flight path.

The plane indicates the location along the flight path, and the screen also shows day and night areas.

We were flying over Greenland at 35,000 feet (about 6-1/2 miles) through air that was nearly 70 below zero.

While you’re on the plane, you get one meal and then a snack bag. This is what the in-flight meal looks like; I got the vegetarian option, which was actually pretty good.

Some fiords in Scandinavia.

The coast of Poland.

Northeastern Afghanistan from 41,000 feet.

We’re going to try to keep a journal of our time in India.

Last week Thursday, Chris left for Ahmedabad, India for 4 months.  It was so hard to see him go, knowing that he won’t be back until Christmas.  KJWW, the engineering firm that Chris works for, has a branch there.  They rotate employees from each department (Chris is in Systems) through the India branch, so that the Indian staff can learn about American standards of construction.

The boys and I will join Chris in India for one month on September 26th.  I already miss him so much and can’t wait until we are there.  Although, the plane ride with the boys seems a little daunting right now.

We spent a week visiting my Uncle Jerry and Aunt Kathrine at Lake Okoboji.  The boys had a blast tubing behind the boat, swimming off the dock, learning how to fish, and playing lots of board games.  They also thought it was pretty cool to sleep on cots on the porch of the “little house”, the cottage behind the “big house”.  They were getting lots of attention from all my aunts and uncles being the only kids here.

The boys caught fishing fever.  My Uncle J. gave Chris a tutorial on cleaning fish.  Boy, Chris does not enjoy that job at all!  Too slimy.  But, there’s nothing better than eating the catch of the day!

Within walking distance from the house, was a bald eagle’s nest right on the lake’s edge.  There were a pair of bald eagles and a “baby”.  The baby was also as big as it’s parents, but not white on top yet.

Thumbs up

Go faster!

Getting good at casting!

Two fish!

Fishing fever!

Pensive Erik

Bald eagle’s nest on West lake

Clark, Jerry, Judy, Bill, J.L.

Aunts and Uncles

I made this for Kim for her birthday…didn’t finish the project until a month after, though.  I worked a lot on it while Chris and I were in Washington DC.  It was handy to have something small to work on.  I love small projects right now.  They get finished so fast even when I don’t have much time to work on them.

Soap holder

Linen bag

Shower scrubby

Another great offer from Knit Picks!  6-50 gram balls + the pattern set for less than $20.   These were a sport weight yarn knit on size 5 needles.

Wow, I’ve really gotten behind on keeping up on this blog.  There are several entries that I’ve had in mind.  So, now on this rainy day, stuck at home (and not wanting to do other items on the “to-do” list), here I am catching up.

On January 4th, we had a winter storm that layered our city with a coating of ice at least 1/4″ thick.  So, what else does one do but go sledding down the driveway.

Ian and Alex ice sledding

Erik sliding on a garbage can lid

There’s a great sledding hill close to our house, Hiestand Park, that is not too steep, but has a long ride.  The boys’ endurance and tolerance for the cold improves every year.  Here was a beautiful, sunny day in February.

Erik

Ready to go!

Wipeout!

Ian

Ready, set, go!

The tummy slide

Alex - the hardest part is climbing back up the hill.

Another favorite activity is fort building.  This winter snow fall provided lots of opportunity to build caves and forts outside.  Here’s a picture of the rosy cheeks afterward.

Rosy cheeks

Just for the record, I’ve lost my patience with trying to fix the formatting in this post.  Just in case you were wondering.  Ugh!

Alex introduced his grandfather

Talking about brushing teeth

Pops listening to a question

Answering questions

My Dad visited Alex’s classroom today for February Dental Month. Alex’s class is Kindergarten and 1st grade, 22 5-7 year olds. Alex introduced Dad as his Papa and said, “He helps fix people’s teeth.” They all enjoyed commenting about how many teeth they have lost or if they had gotten any cavities yet.

Dad demonstrated how to brush properly, not just the tops, but along the gum and inside, too. Don’t forget to brush the tongue! He emphasized how bad soda is for one’s teeth, too. Coke has almost the same pH as battery acid! Yikes! Each child received a small tube of toothpaste and a new toothbrush.

Blueberry felted oven mitt

I was inspired to felt something, anything, after seeing Charlotte’s “Barack My World” bag that she finished last year. So, when I saw a free felted oven mitt pattern, “Out of the Frying Pan” by Amy E. Anderson during a deliciously child-free afternoon before work one Sunday at Lakeside Fibers on Monona Bay, the light bulb went on. This one is in the color “Blueberry”. I’ve also wanted to try needle felting, so I added the designs using that technique to make it a little more fancy and prettier.

I also enjoyed the wool from Off the Beaten Path in Monona. This brand,

Universal Yarn Deluxe Worsted LP, has many different color variations.

New Mexico

Blue/green variegated

Apple Prchid

Unfelted hot pad

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The last two knitted items are unfelted. They still need to go in the wash for the fibers to “felt” together and become heat-resistant for pulling items out of the oven. This color is name “apple prchid”. Strange name, but beautiful result! I decided not to give these two away.

Our Franczek family year-end summary for 2008

Ian is now 8 years old and in the 3rd grade. He has the same teacher, Ms. Kane, that he had last year (multi-age classrooms). Over the summer it seems as though Ian had been bitten by the reading bug. When we can’t “find” Ian it is usually because he’s found a quiet corner to read. The latest series he’s into is Lasky’s Guardians of Ga’Hoole. Ian also got glasses in May. He wasn’t really excited about the idea of wearing them at first and didn’t wear them much over the summer. They were actually “lost” and then found just in time for school to start.

Alex is 5 and started Kindergarten this year. We’re a little relieved that he loves school. Having the history of Ian’s emotional rollercoaster Kindergarten year in our minds, we were prepared for a harder transition for Alex. He pleasantly surprised us and adjusted pretty easily. He generally is just more tired and sometimes falls asleep before supper near the end of the week. It’s interesting to watch Alex’s world get bigger as he makes new friends and finds new and interesting things to talk about.

Erik is 3 and has really blossomed this year. We can’t deny that he’s not a baby anymore. He potty trained quite reluctantly, but is really proud of his underwear during the day and night! He also makes his opinions known with vigor. If he thinks anyone’s not listening, he puts his hands on either side of your face and turns your head to get eye contact to make sure that you ARE listening! Erik easily transitioned out of the family bed this summer after we purchased bunk beds for the boys. Now all 3 are in their room. Ian, on top, and Alex and Erik in a full-size on the bottom. Having Alex to snuggle up to made Erik not miss mom and dad, though he sometimes creeps in our bed in the early morning.

Chris is enjoying his 2nd year with his “new” job at KJWW Engineering. He’s now heading up large projects on his own and is traveling more often. He finished up projects in St. Louis, MO and Traverse City, Michigan and is now working on ones in La Crosse, WI and Duluth, MN along with other projects in the Madison area (mostly on campus at the UW). We continue to be amazed at the commitment KJWW makes to its employees. This was evidenced by our first trip to the KJWW family Christmas party in Davenport, IA, complete with a Santa party for the kids then babysitting while there was dinner and entertainment for the adults. The company is faring well and are in a healthy position despite the economic downturn, which, of course, always hits construction hard. Chris and Dean are continuing to work on the three times thick album, and it is nearly finished (finally?!). Also, one sad turn of event was that Chris’s grandmother, Ginny, died this last month. Being in Chris’s daily life growing up, this was a hard loss. We feel very fortunate that Chris was able to be by her side when she passed.

As for myself, I’m trying to put a positive spin on all the changes at St. Mary’s Hospital. There were more changes this year than the last 10 years combined! The switch to an electronic health record was hard and the adjustment is ongoing as the programming continues to be revised. Patient and health care provider interaction will never be the same. As a distraction, I’ve gotten more involved with La Leche League and am now the state treasurer. I’m also excited that both the House and Senate in the Wisconsin legislature have won Democratic majorities. The PAC I’m working with feels the breastfeeding legislation that is so badly needed here in Wisconsin might actually go somewhere this time around now that the Committee Chairwoman (who happens to be a Republican) will now lose her chairmanship.

Looking back over 2008, we were real homebodies, preferring to work on the house and yard rather than vacation. Part of this was because our dog Wheeza was near the end of her life and it was hard to get away. She passed away in July. As a result, the basement is now an extra living space for the boys to play in, the driveway is redone so now (crossing fingers) the basement window won’t flood, and there’s more garden space to keep growing more food and flowers.

So, all in all, there were many sad endings in 2008, but we’re also looking forward to many new beginnings for 2009.

It’s right about this time of year when I start to miss all the green things. Yes…already. It’s all white and beautiful outside, but the cold and I don’t agree so much. Hence, the long underwear everyday.

So, right now, I’m really appreciating that I made a lot of pesto back in August and froze all of it. The taste of green basil and garlic. One of my favorites.

Basil plants after harvest

Ingredients for making pesto

Pesto in the food processor

Our whole family likes pesto. On pizza, pasta, seasoning for sauteed chicken. It makes such easy, tasty meals. I really started loving it when I tried Renaissance Farm’s basil pesto while working at the Mississippi Market Co-op in St. Paul. I never really liked any other brand after that…until I started making my own.

Pesto is so easy to make and the fresh, green taste in the middle of winter is irreplaceable.

Laurel’s Basil Pesto

Makes 3/4 cup, about 12 servings (1 Tbsp), 2 ww pts per serving

ingredients

3 cups fresh picked basil
3 cloves garlic
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp. toasted pine nuts
2 pinches Kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper

directions

Combine all in a food processor (or blender) and run until ground into a smooth paste.

NOTES to self: plan on planting several rows of basil next year. Add a few different varieties…cinnamon and lemon.