Ready for an Update

I've been wanting to update the blog for a bit, but wanted to make sure I was in a good place before doing so.  I'm pretty sure I'm in a good place now so here it goes.

After the last post it took about a week to get the blood work back and about a week longer to get a straight answer from the doctor about the results.  Here's what we found.  Both of the embryos did implant, but they did not survive and cysts formed around them.  We can not definitively say, but the doctor seemed confident when he said, that the embryos did not survive because of elevated C reactive protein levels.  I had elevated C reactive protein levels because of the daily progesterone shots.  Progesterone does not come in a raw form, it has to be injected in an oil, most commonly sesame oil because it is the least expensive form (at $60 per 8 day vial).  It turns out that I have a sensitivity, not an allergy, to sesame oil and that caused the reaction in my blood and a week long case of hives at every injection site.  The treatment for getting rid of the cysts is taking birth control to level out hormone levels, but I refused to take birth control, I'd rather let my body get itself back into whack on its own.  I did, however, agree to take oral hydro cortisone to help lower the reactive proteins and to make the itching stop.  So that's what we learned from try number one of IVF.

Now, most people have asked or are wondering, when will you do try number two.  The answer is, I don't know.  It's hard to want to try again when you know how crappy it feels to have it not work out.  When we do try again I'll be on progesterone in olive oil instead of sesame oil though, I do know that.  With holidays coming up, it's hard to want to try again when it could end up ruining the holiday season.  Then, there's the Hamilton family trip (most likely in February) which means based on cycle dates January and February are probably out... so who knows when a good time will be.  I'm sure that we'll know when it's the right time, but for now, we've got no clue and I'm pretty okay with that.

Since I only expressed anger and frustration in my last post, let me tell you a little about my personality.  I pretty much hate feeling sad.  It makes me feel powerless.  So, I just feel angry about things so that I can feel in control, until I'm out of the zone of time when I might feel sad and then I just try to avoid feeling anything in general.  I did pretty well avoiding things, but with my collection of baby stuff in the basement bedroom, it was kind of hard to avoid feelings forever.  So that I don't have to feel sad when I see those things, I returned the bumbo seat to Walmart since they were recalled anyway and gave my dream car seat in the fabric that I loved the most to my sister-in-law.  She'll be able to use it before I will, so at least it will get some use before it expires in 2015.  It served me well as a model for the canopies and seat pads that I made in the past though.  Now I just need to find a home for the stroller and a pottery barn boys bedding set. 

This was my dream carseat

Just as I expected from the last post, I got all three reactions that I anticipated and I have to say, that I appreciated all of them.  I even did okay with pregnancy announcements within the same week of finding out that our IVF cycle failed and only cried a little bit.  I mostly loved my parents' willingness to say that they would drop everything and come out to visit if that's what I needed to feel better.  They are so supportive and although I turned down their offer, knowing that I was more important than any work responsibilities made me understand that it's a relationship like theirs with me that really makes me want to have kids.  I am so grateful to have such amazing people in my life.  Since I feel like I am rambling now, I'll leave you with a quote shared by a great friend when she found out about our failed attempt.  "In India, we have a saying: Everything will be all right in the end. So if it is not all right, it is not yet the end." -The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel  So here's to this not being the end.

Let's Be Real

Have you ever written a post when you were so angry that your hands were literally shaking?  No?  I hadn't until just now, and it's probably a big mistake, but oh well, I need to write about this and haven't because I cared too much about people 1. being rude, 2. expressing pity, 3. acting like it's no big deal.

Well, you know what?  Screw all of the people who would have those responses.  I feel really angry right now and I want to be open about why.

Jon and I have been trying to get pregnant since May 2010.  A little less than a year after we got married.  Do the math and you will see that it's going on 2.5 years that we have been trying.  In this amount of time I have seen people get married and pop out two children, and although I am happy for them, every time I see a birth announcement, ultrasound, or "I'm going to be a big sister/brother" post on Facebook it still feels like a stab in the heart.

Now, this is where you are probably thinking, why haven't they gone to a doctor?  Well, we have.  We had a diagnosable issue that was addressed with medication and Jon and I were both considered in good health.  Since it had been more than a year since we started trying, we sought the help of a fertility specialist, who, after getting the hormone levels worked out with a medication, said we would be great candidates for IUI.  Well, six months down the road and three failed IUI attempts later, the doctor said we had to move on to the big guns, IVF.

Minimal stimulation IVF involves oral medication to increase the number of follicles that hold eggs.  Then, daily shots to increase the size of the eggs and another daily shot that prevents the eggs from ovulating on their own.  Finally, when they get to a good size, I trigger the eggs to be released with two shots of HCG and go into the doctor for a procedure where they remove the eggs.  To help along the process, an awesome embryologist takes a sample from Jon, picks out the best sperm, and using a robotic arm with a microscopic needle, injects one sperm into each retrieved egg.  What is now formed is an embryo that is observed for two days to ensure that it is maturing properly and then the best two are transferred back into the uterus. Strict bedrest is enforced for two days after embryo transfer to allow the embryos the best possible chance of implantation and vigorous exercise as well as lifting items over 10 pounds are prohibited until a blood pregnancy test can be administered 12 days after transfer.

So, that's sort of the science behind IVF.  Here are some stats from our IVF cycle.  We had 4 healthy eggs retrieved and all 4 were fertilized and survived the ICSI process.  After two days of observation, the healthiest embryos were selected for transfer (we had a 9 celled AB quality embryo and an 8 celled A quality embryo).  I was on bedrest and spent a relaxing weekend watching TV and reading.  The other 2 embryos were observed for progress so that they could be frozen and used in future cycles to have more children.  Sadly, neither of the "extra" embryos survived to become blastocysts.  We were reassured at this stage that although those two did not make it, the environment in the uterus is much more friendly to embryos and that all was well.  My hormone levels were checked and I diligently took a shot of progesterone in the hip every morning and tracked my weight and waist.

Fast forward 12 days.  This morning we went in for our HCG beta test, to find out if the embryos took.  Upon arrival we were warmly greeted and everyone happily joked that we would have good news in an hour and a half when the blood work came back.  I should have realized that when it took three tries to get the blood sample that nothing good was going to happen.  The results came back negative.  My HCG level was less than 1.  Jon was loving enough to be the one to take the call and share the bad news with me.  The doctor got lucky because I might have cussed him out if I had been the first to talk to him.  After talking to Jon for a moment, the doctor wanted to talk to me and ask me questions about a family history of miscarriage.  A history that I brought up 8 months ago and he chose to blow off.  I was even taking baby aspirin at the time to deal with what I thought could be a problem and he told me to stop, for fear that it would thin my blood which could cause excessive bleeding during egg retrieval.  I really appreciated being told by the nurses that only 1 in 10 IVF transfers don't take and that we had such great odds of things working.  It sure made me feel great to be the 1 in 10 for whom it did not work.  Well, thanks doc, for saying things like, With the quality of the embryos it should have worked, we'll just have to do some blood work to figure things out.  Oh, and thanks doc, for faxing the order into the lab by my house, but, coding everything the wrong way so that I had to wait an hour for you to take their call and get things clarified.  Oh, and thanks doc, for taking their call and rather than listening to the lab tech chick when she tried to get answers to her questions, you just told her that the results from this morning were correct and that I was not in fact pregnant so that when she got off of the phone she apologized five times for my unfortunate circumstances.  Oh, and thanks doc, for ordering a test that costs $750 and is not covered by insurance to run a genetic test for a disorder of which my family has no history.  Oh, and the solution for the disorder is to take 2 to 3 times the recommended dose of folic acid?  I'm pretty sure it doesn't cost $750 to buy folic acid supplements from Costco.  Thanks also for not having an answer for the lab tech chick and rather than you calling her back with the answer, you had your secretary call my cell phone to give me the answer.  I had a great time putting your secretary on hold while I waited for lab tech chick to finish running drug tests for the other two people in the waiting area.  It was just a blast spending that much time in the Lab Corp waiting area feeling angry and ready to cry.  But really, thanks lab tech chick for being so nice about things, I know you hate your job, but you were really nice to me.  Oh, and thanks to the Wendy's fast food guy for giving me my first taste of soda/caffeine/DrPepper in a month when I left the lab to come home and vent to my dog.  Oh and thanks to the Red Cross, for calling to see if I'll donate blood tomorrow.  I'm pretty sure that after 4 needle pricks and 4 vials of blood today I don't want to go.  Call me next week and I'll be there, but today is not such a good day to say you want to do anything with my blood.

So, there.  That's why I am so angry that my hands are shaking as I type.  I'm sick of infertility and not knowing why.

To diffuse this anger and help you see that I am not a bitter witch I will say this, I am grateful that I live in a time when all of this is diagnosable.  I am grateful that the doctor called in labs to try to find an answer as to why things didn't work.  I am grateful to have such an affordable doctor who is really qualified and probably just as stumped by my body as I am.  I am grateful that knowing I'm not pregnant means that I can ride every ride at Lagoon this Halloween and enjoy all of the rides at Disneyland when we go for Mickey's Halloween party.  I wish that I were not able to ride them, but I can't change what's already happened.  I'm also grateful to have such a supportive family and amazing group of friends who offer prayers and comfort but also know that it's okay to just be MAD.  I'm grateful that even though this outcome is not at all what I wanted, that rather than praying for a baby, we all along have been praying for God's will to happen.  I kind of hate that His will doesn't match mine right now, but He's got more experience than I do, so I just need to accept all of this.  I just wish that for once there could be good news for us.  Like I said, I'm happy when other people get good news, but it still hurts inside.  So, thanks for letting me be real and let you know about this life experience that we are having.  Sorry there are no pictures, but hey, I included some educational links.

He Loves Me Because I'm Crazy

Pretty much anyone who reads this blog knows that I am a nut for baby gear.  I blame my fascination on the fact that I worked at Babies'R'Us, but Jon knows the real reason, it's because I am crazy.  Well, crazy me got some birthday money back in January and it's been eating a hole in my sock drawer waiting for the perfect deal to come along.  See, I have a list of all of the baby gear that I want to own some day, and not just the brand, the specific fabric and style.

Over the last three years we've collected quite a bit of this gear (carseat, stroller, high chair, pack n play, monitor, etc) for use when friends and family come over, but a few of the things do not come up used and in good condition on Craigslist and KSL very often.  So, I've been patiently stalking Amazon and a few other retailers websites.  Imagine my surprise when I found the exact Ergobaby Carrier that I had been coveting for months on Amazon on sale more than 30% off!  Happy Birthday to me and the awesome carrier we'll use someday.

Having a little bit of cash left in that sock drawer was eating away at me though.  Silly?  Yes.  I should have been using it to get a couple new shirts for work or something practical, that I might actually need in the next few months, but no, I kept searching for that last item on my list.  My dream diaper bag.  Is it weird to have a dream diaper bag?  Probably.  Oh well.  I was amazed to find out this last Saturday that the exact bag in the exact fabric that I wanted from Nordstrom was on sale!  Basically half of the price of all of the other PPB bags.  Not only was it on sale, but the store only a couple cities away had it in stock!  I asked Jon if I was crazy for wanting it.  After having dreams about wearing it to Disneyland (it's from a limited edition line called It's a Small World) three nights in a row, I decided to just bite the bullet and get the bag.

 

I texted Jon right after I bought it today and his response, "dang it, I was going to get it for you on Monday and save it as a surprise for Mothers' Day."  Oops.  I guess I should have been more patient, but if anything I just learned that even though he might think I'm cuckoo he really does listen when I mention the things I am passionate about.

P.S.  This post is in no way an announcement of pregnancy.  It's just me showing all of you what Jon deals with on a daily basis.  We're hoping for an announcement of that variety in the next few months though.  Stay tuned for more updates.

Family Photos

Jon and I are jumping on the Christmas Card bandwagon this year and decided that we needed a family photo taken for said Christmas card.  We got a new fancy camera for Christmas this year and asked our friend Scott to test it out for us by taking the photos.  We think that he did a fantastic job even if two of the photo subjects were a little squirmy.

Just Us in our coordinating sweaters.

With the squirmy creatures.

My favorite outtake that Jon says no to putting on the card...

And just because we all know that animal pictures are cuter than people pictures... Sleeping Koda.

The sticker on her forehead says, "Star."  We thought that it fit quite well.

Thanksgiving

Ugh, we still haven't been able to figure out how to get our France post to show that we posted it less than 5 months ago.

Oh well, at least Thanksgiving is only TWO days away!

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. If you know me, you're probably thinking, "ANY holiday where you get to eat as much as you want would be your favorite holiday!" And you would probably be right... but Thanksgiving is different. While I do love the food... turkey, mashed potatoes & gravy, broccoli casserole, stuffing, and pumpkin pie (mmmmmm)... Thanksgiving is about more than that.

One of my other favorite things is to spend time with family, so this holiday is the perfect opportunity to combine the two. Although my parents and most of my siblings will be in San Diego this year, we do have Rachael's sister and her family coming up from Las Vegas to spend Thanksgiving with us. I'm really excited to have them visit and enjoy the holiday here in good ol' Utah.

In addition to the food and family, I love this holiday because SO many people actually take the time to think about what they're thankful for, something that seems to fall by the wayside most of the time.

I am thankful for so much, and I won't bore you with my list, but I will just say that at the top of it is my wonderful wife, Rachael. She is more amazing than I can express in a blog post. I am so thankful that she is my wife, and that we get to be together forever.

Now I just have to work as hard as I can to make sure she feels the same! :)

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

France!

As some of you know, we love to travel. We are extremely blessed to have the opportunity to visit so many places, to experience different cultures, and most importantly, to be able to spend time with family. This year, we had the amazing opportunity to go with my family to visit France and Switzerland. Our trip was from July 23^rd to August 2^nd.

Rachael and I flew out of Salt Lake. We met my family in Dallas, and flew to Paris on the same flight.

The following is our itinerary, put together by my sister, Erin, and her husband Jon M. Thanks Erin and Jon for putting this together!!!

France Itinerary

Note: for each applicable site, we’ve put the page no. referencing the site in the “Paris Pass Guide.” Look at the guide for more info., nearest metro stations, normal price of admissions, and mini-maps.

Day 1: Sunday (7/24)

● 9:15 a.m. - Arrival at Paris - Charles de Gaulle airport; go through customs, get baggage, complain about lost baggage

● 10:15 a.m. - take train to Hotel Novotel Paris Tour Eiffel, 61 Quai de Grenelle, 75015 Paris, (33) 1/40582000

○ RER B/Blue train to St. Michel/Notre Dame station; transfer to RER C, direction Versailles, exit at Champ de Mars/Tour Eiffel; walk 10 min. - travel time approx. 1 hour

● 2:30 p.m. - Paris Opera House (Palais Garnier - 8 rue Scribe, 9eme) tour; travel by Metro. Pg. 103.

○ Also nearby: the Paris Story 1 hour multimedia exhibit. Pg. 96.

● 3:45 p.m. - watch part of the Tour de France final stage from Les Tuileries Gardens; travel by Metro (or walk if we’re up to it), Tuileries station.

We had dinner that night at a little café near our hotel. Jet lag finally caught up to most of us by this point, and I’m sure that every one of us was sleeping at the table during this meal.

French cuisine is definitely different than American fare, and Rachael and I are not as adventurous when eating abroad as we would like. But then again, it would be really sad to get food poisoning while traveling, so we don’t mind sticking to the more tame options.

Day 2: Monday (7/25)

We started the day with breakfast at the hotel. They had it set up buffet-style, and tried to Americanize it by adding scrambled eggs (powdered) and bacon (way undercooked) and fowl (turkey) sausage. It was really good! The hot chocolate was probably the highlight of breakfast at this hotel. Think European chocolate in beverage form.

● 8:30 a.m. - Les Cars Rouges - Paris hop-on, hop-off double-decker bus, catch it at the Eiffel Tower, take it to Stop 3, Musée de Louvre. Pg. 101.

● 9 a.m. - visit Le Louvre - Paris Bus (hop-on, hop-off), stop 3; use our passes to avoid the line by going to the Richelieu entrance. Pg. 28.

The Louvre is amazing! Unfortunately, it’s also AMAZINGLY HUGE. There is so much to see and learn that we could not even visit all of the wings of the museum, let alone see all of the incredible art. I guess that means that I will have to take Rachael back another time!

Jon and John the Baptist

The Mona Lisa, notice the hoards of people reflected back in the glass.

In front of the Notre Dame.

The Rose Window in the Notre Dame.

This one is for Rachael's Dad who always joked that one's butt might fall off.

○ Eat lunch in this area after the museum

● Afternoon - visit l’Ile de France, including la Câthédrale de Notre Dâme (towers open until 5:30 p.m.); la Conciergerie (last admission at 5:30 p.m., pg. 70), and la Sainte-Chappelle (open until 6 p.m., pg. 72).

● Evening - ride Les Cars Rouges the whole way around the city. We saw Paris the quickest way possible, and still had a blast. We saw l’Arc de Triomphe, drove down the Champs-Elysees.

We ended the evening with a trip to Montmarte. We sat on the steps of Sacre Coeur, watched some amazing street performers, saw people get arrested for selling little trinkets on the sidewalk, and went inside the church. Afterward, we had dinner at a café in the center of a courtyard where artists gather. On the way down, we stopped and took pictures of the Eiffel Tower from a distance. It was another great day.  The best memory of the day was David racing with the funicular as we left Montmarte after a 3 hour dinner.

Jon and James waiting to ride the finicular

Amazing street performers!

View of the Eiffel Tower from Montmarte.

Day 3: Tuesday (7/26)

● 8:30 a.m. - Eiffel Tower (approx. 17 minute walk from the hotel) - ticket windows open at 9 a.m., and there will be a line, so the earlier we get there the better. To go to the top will take from 30 - 90 minutes (depending on the crowd.)

This is a great, but frustrating memory. We went to the Eiffel Tower, but we didn’t get to go inside. My dad waited in line while the rest of the family enjoyed a leisurely breakfast (it wasn’t really leisurely… we were running VERY late) and when we got there, the annoying little French man (who HAPPENED to be the security guard) wouldn’t let us get in line with my dad, and the line was 2 hours long. After a pointless argument in which some choice words were exchanged, we decided to just come back another day.

So, we decided to go to the Trocadero to take pictures. It was pretty cool, because the last time my family went to Paris, we took family pictures at the same place, so we posed the same way.

Replica of a photo taken when the Hamilton's toured Europe in their youth

● 10:30 a.m. - Musée d’Orsay - skip the lines by going to Entrance C. Pg. 26

● Proposed Split-Up Time: if you want to do the Catacombs, this is probably the best time.

○ 2 p.m. - Paris Catacombs, 1, avenue of Colonel Henri Rol-Tanguy, 14e; admission 8 euros; last admission at 4 p.m.; 45 min. tour; Metro stop Denfert-Rochereau.

Unfortunately, after waiting in line, we were unable to visit the Catacombs this day. We met the rest of the family at the Pantheon, and continued on the next activity.  There are no pictures from this phase of the day because there are no photos allowed in the Musée d’Orsay.  We did have a chance to see Van Gogh's "self portrait" that isn't really a self portrait.

● 8 p.m. - Bateaux Parisiens Seine River Cruise - 1 hour cruise, (available 10 a.m.-8:30 p.m., every 30 minutes; departs from Port de la Bourdonnais, Trocadero metro stop. Pg. 100.

This was a fun activity. We rode in one of the glass-covered boats in the Seine, past Notre Dame, and through Paris. I thought it would be more romantic, but those boats are LOADED with loud American tourists. We learned a lot about the city, and it was a great experience.

Following the boat tour, we walked along the shore of the Seine, past the Eiffel Tower, and were fortunate enough to see it when they turn the thousands of flashing lights that are positioned all over it. With the beauty of the river, and the Eiffel Tower, with the old buildings of the city as a backdrop, it’s no wonder Paris is considered to be such a romantic place. I felt so lucky to be there with Rachael!

Best shot of the glittering on the Eiffel Tower, there are better ones of the tower, but this shows the sparkle.

We look cheesy, but this was on the boat.  Notice Jon's dad's "phone" next to us that told about the points of interest that we were riding past.

View of Notre Dame from the boat.

Night shot from the boat of the beautiful Tower.

Another cool night one just before the twinkling began.

Day 4: Wednesday (7/27)

● 8 a.m. - Drew, Jon H., Jon M. pick up rental cars

What a fun experience! Driving in the city is definitely a fun thing to do when the city was designed with pedestrians and horses as the main mode of transportation!

After dropping the cars off at the hotel, we walked over to the Eiffel tower, and this time we got to go up! It is awesome to see the city from that vantage point. It looks like a bunch of wagon wheels, with the streets as the spokes. The buildings are so well built that they have been there for hundreds of years!

On the terrace of the Eiffel Tower.

One of the legs of the Tower.

Being goofy, they stuck their heads through the fence to get a unique shot.

A view from the top.

After the Eiffel Tower, we split up. Erin and Jon and their family went to Versailles, and the rest of us went to the Paris Catacombs. After waiting in line AGAIN, we got to go in! Another amazing experience! The catacombs are a series of chambers that are the final resting place of six million people. The bones have been arranged along the walls, with femurs interlocked log cabin style, and skulls arranged in crosses and various other religious symbols. The rest of the bones are piled behind the façade, and it as a really cool experience thinking about what these people did and saw in their lives.

Entrance to the area where the bones are located.

A cross made out of skulls.

The smiling skull.

A shot of the log cabin action.  This is how the first two feet are on all sides of the walkway, behind that the bones are just in piles.

● 9:30 a.m. - tour the Palace of Versailles and its gardens

○ If we want to, and there’s time, we might want to drive to see one of the other chateaux in greater Paris. Pp. 74-83.

After the catacombs, we met Erin and Jon and the kids at Versailles. We got there right before closing, and had to hurry through, but we were able to see many of the rooms, and the hall of mirrors, before going out to the gardens. We spent a couple of hours walking through the immense backyard, and took pictures. I found a four-leaf clover, and we pressed it in our Paris Pass book. Eventually, we were pretty much the only people there, and it was so great to be able to spend some quiet time with my family in a place that has so much historical significance.

Ceiling of the Hall of Mirrors.

More standard shot of the Hall of Mirrors.

Diana, the goddess of Paris.

Jon's awesome 4-leaf clover!

Ben showing off his muscles in front of the entry.

I thought this was too funny not to share.

Day 5: Thursday (7/28) – EARLY Breakfast at the hotel - Drive to Broc, Switzerland: 7hrs, Drive to Gruyère, 10 min.

● This is our biggest driving day - we need to be on the road by 8am at the latest in order to get to the chocolate factory on time. The chocolate factory - keep that in your mind, and you will find the motivation you need to arise early and hit the road. Just imagine Erin stuffing her face full of chocolate even faster than David can. In fact - let’s have a chocolate eating contest this trip!!! It’s ON! It’s So ON!

● 8 a.m. - drive to Cailler Chocolate factory – About 7 driving hours; hours 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. (last show starts at 5:15pm)

○ Maison Cailler Chocolaterie, Rue Jules Bellet 7, 1636 Broc, Admission: Adults (groups of 10+) 8 chf, kids free

My sister Erin, my brother in-law, Jon M., and my brother David all served missions in the Geneva Switzerland mission. When my family went to pick up my sister from her mission, they went to this chocolate factory and did a tour. After the tour, they were led into a room full of chocolate… and were told they could eat as much as they wanted!

Needless to say, I was jealous that I had missed it (I was still on my mission at the time), but we remedied that by going to the chocolate factory on this trip!

The tour was good, but the part we were all looking forward to was the chocolate tasting room. The tour ended, and we walked through a door… and there was a bowl of sample Branches bars. Little tiny bite sized ones. What the heck? Everyone was disappointed. This was NOT what we were expecting. We had been tricked! So, we did the only reasonable thing we could do. Each of us grabbed handfuls of those little tiny Branches bars we and stuffed our pockets full. Take that chocolate factory!

Feeling vindicated, we walked down the hall toward the exit, through another door, and into….

THE CHOCOLATE TASTING ROOM!

Boy did we feel like greedy, American idiots! We got to eat as much chocolate as we could (which I found is not all that much when the chocolate is as rich as it was there)! It was so cool! Not only did we get all the chocolate we wanted while were there, but we had our own little stash to keep us satisfied for the rest of the trip.

Jon driving our car, Emperor Zurg.

There were vineyards all over the hillsides along the drive.  So beautiful.

The chocolate tasting room.

Had to get a photo with the factory in the background.

● Post-chocolate tour - drive to Gruyère; Cheese Factory Hours: 9 a.m. - 7 p.m., Misses Schneiter Catherine, 1663 Moléson-sur-Gruyère; Admission: Adults (groups of 10+) 4 chf, kids 2chf

● Have dinner in Gruyère

We missed the tour of the Gruyere Cheese Factory, but we did get to have diner in the little village. We had the stereotypical Swiss Fondue and it was AMAZING!

First shots of Gruyere.  It was such an adorable town!

We've decided that next time we are in Europe we want to spend more time in Switzerland.  One day in this beauty was not enough.

Stretching our amazing fondu.

Awesome web and spider that we spotted on the Castle in Gruyere.

● Drive back to Lausanne to the Hotel Crystal, Rue Chaucrau 5 - 1003 Lausanne, Tél +4121 317.03.03

Day 6: Friday (7/29) – Breakfast at the hotel – Drive to Gap: 5 hours

● 9:30 a.m. - leave hotel

● 10 a.m. - tour the Chateau de Chillon (website: http://www.chillon.ch/en/), Open from 9am – 7pm, Adults – 12 chf, Students w/i.d.10 chf, kids free

● 1 p.m. - drive through Evian and stop and visit the medieval town of Yvoire (Photos: http://www.yvoiretourism.com/chapitre10_fr_2.html )

This was a really neat little town. The architecture was awesome, but it has been turned into a tourist attraction with gift shops all over the place. We were craving ice cream. So we got a little bowl:

It was $2.50 for one scoop or $10 for 10 scoops... we went with the ten and split it 4 ways.

The fountain in the center of the Chateau Chillon.

Looking down from the watch tower at the Chateau Chillon.

Driving to the hotel that night we spotted this amazing store!  It totally made Rachael homesick.

Gorgeous sunflower fields on the drive as well.

Church building from both David and Erin's first mission areas.

● Stay in Gap – Hotel Ibis, 5/7 Bld Georges Pompidou, 05000 - GAP, (+33)4/92535757

Day 7: Saturday (7/30) – Breakfast at the hotel - Drive to Aix: 2hr, Drive to Cassis: 30min

● 9 a.m. - leave for Aix-en-Provence, stopping at villages along the way

● Noon - lunch in Aix.

● See Aix-en-Provence – guided tour???

● 2:30 p.m. - leave Aix

● 3 p.m. - drive into Cassis; http://calanques.visite.free.fr/img_g/portmiou.bmp

○ Boat trip to the Calanques or kayak ?– to see 8 Calanques, 1 hr 30 min, Adults: 21 E, Children 14 E, departs 10:30, 11, 1:30, 2, 2:30, 4pm; to see 3 Calanques – 45 min, Adults 14 E, Children 7 E

Another cool experience! We took a boat out to the white cliffs along the coast. It was simply beautiful scenery, AND we got to go on a boat, which is one of my most favorite things.

Some really fancy expensive car that Jon will have to explain at a later date.

Riding the boat back to shore.

Charlotte and Ben spitting over the edge of the boat.

● Dinner in Cassis

● Drive to Novotel Marseille Est, 184 Avenue de Saint Menet, MARSEILLE, (+33)4/91439060

Day 8: Sunday (7/ 31) – Breakfast at the hotel - Drive to Baux: 1hr 15min, Drive to St. Remy: 15min, Drive to Roussillon 1hr, Drive to Gordes: 15 min, Drive to Avignon: 1hr.

● 9 a.m. - leave Marseille, drive to Château de Baux de Provence (Ancient stone hilltop village and castle ruins– get there by car); and, Saint Rémy de Provence (typical provencal town with Roman Ruins)

● Afternoon - Roussillon and Gordes

After dinner in Gordes, some of us stopped at a French cemetery. It was interesting to see the customs of different cultures. One of the crypts had a hole rusted in the metal door in the front. We all wondered (admit it, so would you) if we would be able to see anything inside, so I took a picture, and was surprised to see…

Yep, those are body bags! Probably 15-20 of them! It was a very… interesting and unexpected discovery!

Most docile big dog ever.  Just hanging out in front of a shop.

Entrance to the little town up on the hill.

Had to get a shot of one of the French Provincial tourist traps.

The wall that surrounds the city.

At dinner Jon and David showed off their magic skills.

Best Pizza EVER!

Best soda too!

And the infamous body bags.

View from the cemetery.

This is what the cemetery looked like.

● Stay in Avignon at the Kyriad Avignon, 2 Rue Mere Theresa,, Avignon, +33 4 32 76 88 00

Day 9: Monday (8/1) – Breakfast NOT included at this hotel. Drive to Orange: 30min, Drive to Valence: 1hr 15min, Drive to Lyon: 1hr 15min.

● 9 a.m. - take the first tour of Palais des Papes in Avignon, open from 9am-8pm; audio tour - Adults 10.50 E, Students 5E, kids free

We didn’t actually do the tour, and it was too expensive to justify walking onto the Pont d’Avignon, but it was cool to see!

● 11 a.m. - Leave Avignon, drive to Orange; have lunch in Orange, visit Roman ampitheatre

● 4 p.m. - leave Orange, drive to Valence for dinner

○ If some people want to leave Orange early to visit the caves in l’Ardeche they can, but they would have to still plan on being to Valence by 5:30 p.m.

● 7:00 p.m. - visit the Chateau de Crussol (hike up a hill to the ruins of a castle built in the 12th century)

In Avignon at the Palais de Papes where we were asked to leave because our children were so loud that the workers could not do their jobs. Bahaha.

Baby James eating his foot as we tried to decide where to go next.

The central plaza of the palais de Papes.

Roman Amphitheater Ruins in Arles.

This was really cool! We hiked up to the ruins, and the view was INCREDIBLE. To think that the ruins were once a little city was awesome. The walls of the structures were still there, but all of the wooden parts, like the roofs and any other structures that would have been wooden, are long gone.

● 8:00 p.m. - drive to Lyon; stay at the Novotel Lyon Gerland, 70 avenue Leclerc, Lyon Cedex 07,+33 4 72 71 11 11

Day 10: Tuesday (8/2) – Breakfast at the hotel

● Fly out of Lyon Airport

What a great trip this was! Rachael and I had such a great time visiting France and Switzerland, enjoying some great cuisine, and learning about the history and culture of that part of the world. But, even with all the incredible cultural experiences, delicious meals, and fun activities, the best part of the trip was being able to spend so much time making great memories with family. We are so blessed to have had the opportunity to be with them, and we are so thankful to my parents for giving us that amazing experience!