Just when I thought it couldn't get any busier it has! Abby and I had a crazy trip to Jakarta. It was supposed to only be three days, and we ended up staying there over a week. On the way we to Jakarta we missed our connecting flight, the airline said it was my fault for scheduling the flights so close together, so I had to run around the airport trying to find a flight to Jakarta that left that night so I didn't miss my one night at the Ritz that I was so so so excited for. I shelled out the CRAZY amount for a tiny one way flight and ran to the plane (oh and the airline had lost my luggage... on a nonstop 1.5 hour flight? What the what?) Abby and I just caught the flight and the flight attendant (I am sure trying to be nice) brought Abbers what I thought was rice pudding but after a few bites Abby started SCREAMING so I tired it and discovered that no, it was spicy yellow curry. Abby proceeded to throw up all over me for the next hour or so when she wasn't screaming. We finally made it to the hotel (which had CRAZY security because apparently it was bombed last year, ahhhhh!) and we got to our amazing room at 11:45 PM!!!! I washed our clothes in the bath tub and was never more grateful for huge fluffy bathrobes. OUr friend Cherylyn picked us up (after a wild goose chase, she thought I would stay at the other Ritz, not the one that had been bombed, apparently I need to do better research on my five star hotels ha!) The next morning I headed in for my root canal, joy of joys! The day after that Abby got her 1 year immunizations (5 shoots) and blood drawn. Cherylyn was kind enough to cart us around to all the amazing, out of this world, malls. I literally never thought I would say it but upon entering one mall the words "this is too big" actually escaped my lips. We ate out at fabulous restaurants and went to THE coolest fabric mecca I have ever seen. (I will upload pics as soon as our internet isn't lame). The dentist needed me to stay for five days so we had already pushed everything back so that I could make my second apt. On the second supposed day of departure, Tanner was kind enough to drive me to my apt. while Cherylyn watched Abby. About five mins after we left Abby tripped and hit her head really hard on her coffee table. Cher called and told us we needed to turn around and come back. Honestly I didn't think it would be that bad, head wounds tend to bleed like crazy. When I saw it though I totally went into shock and thought "oh my goodness there is a chunk of my daughters head somewhere on your carpet!" Tanner loaded us up and we spent the next 2.5 HOURS trying to find the SOS, medical center that Expats are supposed to go to. Keep in mind EVERYONE in Jakarta has drivers because traffic is so bad and the streets are so crazy, and the Nielsen's usually do, but Sat is his day off. My flight out was at 6:30pm and I REALLY didn't want to miss it. Cher sent Chris an email and then Skyped with him to let him know what was going on. We were about to give up when we finally found it. There was a sweet Indonesian man waiting outside with a huge umbrella (did I mention it was lashing rain?) and as soon as he saw us came running. We saw a very sweet American doctor who informed me that no, there was no way we would make our flights and essentially if I were a good parent who cared about how my poor daughter looked I would go to the hospital and have a plastic surgeon stitch her up. Flash forward 2 hours, the plastic surgeon finally makes it through the rain and traffic and they have to put Abby under to do the stitches. The local Embassy nurse demands to be in the operating room (she literally said to me "if I am not in that room this surgery is not happening" and took my gown) as I stand in the hall crying. 15 stitches later we head home.
Yeah, it makes me so tired even thinking about it. We end up flying out to Bali a few days later. Our flight is again delayed (oh and we still have no luggage, they refused to send it on and told me just to get it on the way back to Dili) so we arrive at 10:30pm. In Bali you have to get off the plane and then take a bus to the terminal. You are of course SHOVED in together like sardines. Since I had no luggage (the counter was closed by now) I ran out to Que up for a taxi. I got to the front, told them where I was going, reach into my bag and my wallet is gone. It had been stolen while I was shoved in together on the bus. OH MY GOSH. I literally was freaking out. Here I was in Bali with no money, no debit card, no credit cards and essentially 1.50 in cash. I thought to myself okay, the flight leaves early tomorrow morning we can just sleep at the airport. I kept my Diplomatic passport in my pocket at all times so we were good there, but there is a 15 dollar exit fee, crap. I walked over to the crowd of 100 or so drivers waiting to take people to their hotels and yelled out "Conrad? I am going to the Conrad!" Miracle of miracles (there were several that night) a very nice gentleman steps forward and said he was from Conrad and asked if I had requested transport. I told him no and then started crying and explained what happened. He immediately took me to airport police and helped me fill out all the paper work to report the incident (which is just ridiculous and a waste of time). He then grabbed one of their other drivers and had him take me to the hotel. It was about a 20 minute drive and I literally sat in the back crying and praying the entire time. I had no idea how I was going to get a hold of Chris. It was past midnight Dili time so there would not be anyone at the switchboard and there was no way he would be on skype. We pulled up to the hotel and the manager opened the door and said "Our driver called us and told us what happened and we have your husband on hold at the desk" OH MY GOSH!!!!! I got to the phone and of course starting bawling my eyes out, the other workers defiantly thought I was crazy. Chris had no idea what was going on but right before going to bed though "I should call Kelly and make sure everything is okay with the hotel". When they told him I hadn't checked in yet he knew something was wrong. So, Abby and I get to our room AGAIN past 11pm, which is sooo sad because look how gorgeous
THIS place is. The hotel manager was very kind and said they would easily charge extra money to the card for the room and give me cash so I could get out of the country. Then, the next morning when I came up for breakfast they handed me my wallet! The first driver guy had gone back with the airport police and searched through the bus's and found it! All the money was gone but my debit card and ID were still there! AMAZING! When I went to the airport I was finally reunited with our luggage, which I unfortunately had to immediately recheck, and boarded the plane no problem. I never thought I would be THAT happy to see Dili! The boys and Chris were waiting at the airport with little signs and I thought I had died and gone to heaven! Talk about a crazy trip. The thing was, except for the traveling and stitches it was such a fun trip! The Nielsen's are wonderful hostess and Cher and I had such a blast together. Of course right when we got back the USNS Mercy docked which has meant NON STOP fun crazy busy days. I was Helloed out the Same to take pictures of the Commadore visiting a medcap and it was amazing. But the highlight HAS to be the fact that there are 40 volunteers from LDS church services! I was assigned to photograph one of their deliveries to a Muslim orphanage. I loved seeing box's with our church's logo being handed up:
And the children were adorable
Soft spoken and shy
And so excited to color, play with play dough and just talk with our church volunteers:
They were all so grateful, and expressed their sentiments via a play dough message (note the spelling)
On Sunday we were sooo lucky and got to go out on the Mercy for church! The kids were ecstatic to go on a little boat out to a big ship. Before church we were given an extra special tour that involved the boys getting to sit in an actual helicopter!
(Abby also had her stitch's taken out about 2 mins after we boarded, hence the sponge bob band aide)
(you are not allowed wear dresses on the ship hence my pants)
We had a YUMMY dinner with soft serve ice cream and girl scout cookies for desert then headed down to the chapel. It was lovely singing with an organ and shhhhshing the kids! Sam gave his very first talk on board woo hoo how cool is that! And then we had primary in the peds ward where we sang primary songs to the kids healing from surgery. The boys also had gone through their toys and picked out ones they wanted to give to the children and were able to hand them out. Chris and I made sure that everyone had our numbers to call us when they were on liberty and lets just say that everyday this week at 12 at least 8 have been on liberty shoved in our tiny jeep cruzin' Timor and then coming to the house for dinner.
(okay smallest world ever, emily in the middle of the photo, was roommates at BYU with my best childhood friend! Man the LDS world is a small one!) I actually was really sick the other night and I think I had literally run myself ragged, and it is only the middle of the week! Ha! So needless to say things have been WILD around here. Add into that embassy and private photo shoots, and the fact that both boys start back to school this week and I am DYING for our R&R, 3 weeks to Rome! Plenty more pics and stories to come, I just wanted to do SOME sort of update, even if it is 12:45 at night here (yeah our kids went to bed at 10pm, way to much going on!) And this last picture just because abbers looks so tough with her band aide
