Monday, July 16, 2007

Souvenirs

Well, I was going to blame my absence from the computer on the reunion with the kids, who were very well-behaved upon our return, and seemed to genuinely miss us, and who impressed me greatly with their behavior and cooperation, until I found out their grandmother had promised them money if they acted nice for a few days. Somehow, I feel getting PAID for being pleasant takes a bit of the sincerity out of it, but whatever, I’ll take it. Then I was going to blame it on the 17-hour car ride home this weekend, which we did straight through. Although around hour 14 my butt was really complaining, it was easier than messing with another “pets allowed” hotel, plus, once you reach the point of “home” being less than four or five hours away, it seems worth it to just plug on, so we did. Home sweet home never looks as good as it does at 2am, after three weeks away.

Yesterday, I unpacked and started the mountains of laundry, and spent the majority of my day on the computer, downloading, editing, cropping, organizing, saving, uploading, and burning to disc the 1,037 photos that I took on vacation. Believe it or not, I still had a 1 gb flashcard that I didn’t even use ….. so I’m a little surprised at how FEW pictures I took. As soon as I get some of them re-sized and uploaded to my storage site, I’ll share more of the vacation with you …. I know, just what you were waiting for, right? I promise not to be like your old Uncle Earl, with his five-hour presentation of slides from his trip to Africa you had to sit through when you were young ….. A few of the best pictures of each day with a recap, more for me than for you, if I’m being honest, since I can kill two birds with one stone and use those stories in my scrapbook as well.

No, the real reason I wasn’t online the past week was because of souvenirs. The thing to remember, when taking a big vacation like the one we just took, is that if you’re the type of person who likes to buy souvenirs, which we are, then you’re going to need room in your suitcases to bring those souvenirs home. Now, things worked well for Blaine and me, because we had one suitcase we took ON the cruise ship full of consumables …. Gatorade and Boost for him, bottled water, DDP, and yes, I even managed to get a Styrofoam cup all the way from Oklahoma to Vancouver, wrapped gently in a towel. Don’t even pretend you’re surprised.

We kept those things in our stateroom and hotel rooms for convenience sake, and at the end of the trip, used that space in our suitcase to bring home the souvenirs we bought for the kids and ourselves. It actually worked out very well.

Renee and Keith didn’t have quite as much luck as us. She had the forethought to bring an empty suitcase with her on vacation, which was smart considering she bought souvenirs for every single person in their entire extended family (Me? Not so generous.) But, she left that suitcase at her in-laws, where their boys were, intending to pack the souvenirs there. What she didn’t consider was that she’d have to get her souvenirs from Alaska TO her in-laws somehow …… and, that when I reserved our car in Whittier, that I wouldn’t realize there are different sized SUV’s. And when you rent a “mid-size” SUV, that is NOT the size SUV you are accustomed to seeing around town. A "mid-size" SUV is really not much more than a puffy car with the trunk inside. Which, when you start out traveling with four adult people and eleven suitcases …. Which then turns into TWELVE suitcases because she had to buy another one in Whittier to fit all her souvenirs in it, well, although it’s sexist and stereotypical, let me just say thank goodness Blaine and Keith were there, in all their manly, organized, analytical, structured-like glory, and they were able to fit all twelve suitcases in. Because if it had been just Renee and me, we’d still be in the parking lot, cursing and shoving and being frustrated we couldn’t find room for all of the dang suitcases, so which one of us, exactly, is riding on the hood? And let’s not even talk about the cost of fed-ex-ing 90 pounds of fish home ….. let’s just say that around the Escoe house for the next few months, halibut will be the equivalent of Kobe beef.

So besides the fish, what did we bring home? Well, the requisite t-shirts, ball caps, a fleece coat for my mom, coffee mugs, pajamas, and those little bottles of Alaska gold flakes suspended in liquid that the kids are certain will make them millionaires. All things we could fit in our suitcase.

Renee, well, I can’t begin to list all the cool stuff she bought, but I think the kicker, the items that necessitated the purchase of the extra suitcase, were the rubber boots she and Keith both needed for our fishing trip. Thank goodness for Ace Hardware in Whittier, is all I’m saying.

Oh, and a house. Blaine and I bought a house this week.

That’s the REAL reason I wasn’t online, we were busy with walk-throughs and contracts and meetings, all done in a rush because we only had two days. Some people go on vacation and buy the typical tourist items, the state spoons, or figurines, or “So and So went on vacation and all I got was this stupid T-shirt” t-shirts. We go on vacation, and we buy a house. Funny, when we went on summer vacation last year, we bought a house then, too.

And dang it, no matter how much I looked, I couldn’t find a suitcase big enough anywhere.

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Woo Hoo! Thank God you are home. This obsessive behavior I have acquired over checking in on your blog has become somewhat of a concern to me (not to mention the husband)!

So happy to hear the trip/reunion with kids/souvenir haul went well.

Very curious about the whole purchased-a-house thing. I'm sure you will fill us all in.

On a different front entirely: I just heard that we are getting a Sonic nearby by this fall. I've only ever seen one when I was in Enid, OK, for a wedding many years ago. Any menu favorites I should keep in mind?

Pam in Michigan

Unknown said...

Glad you are home and cant wait to hear about it!! Thanks for making me smile..

Anonymous said...

My grandfather, EARL, was the king of slide shows. HOURS of slide shows. And here I am, 2 generations later, desparately trying to find someone, ANYONE, who wants to look at my pictures!!!!

Too many souvenirs, too little time.

Thanks for the fun and the laugh reading about it.

Anonymous said...

Now, I know you need to start writing for television. You are getting good at the cliff hangers. Hopefully we will not have to wait until next season for more detail.
Glad you are all home in one piece.
Sandy in Woodstock GA

Anonymous said...

a house? so, are you moving to Alaska? I remember one blog you mentioned that your plans for retiring and having your kids grow up and go to school at your old neighborhood, had been thwarted, is this why, because they will be living in Alaska?

Glad you had fun, you both deservea lifetime of vacations!

kim
www.caringbridge.org/ca/andrew

Anonymous said...

So, what about this buying a house thing......?? You can't leave us hanging like that. : ) Glad you had a great trip. I have had the luck to go to Alaska twice (not on a criuse) and absolutely loved it!

Anonymous said...

Wow! A nice trip to Alaska and a house. Cool. I'm assuming it's in Oklahoma, but can't wait to hear the details. And I LOVE seeing your pictures. I added you as a friend at flickr just so I could see them. =)

Mixed Up Me said...

You bought a house???? I can't wait to hear the details. Glad you had a good time in Alaska.

Anonymous said...

Pam in Michigan -
Not to hijack this post, but where in Michigan for the Sonic????
- fellow Michigander and reader since Kendrie's CaringBridge site

Anonymous said...

A house? Where? Pictures please! And details...we need details...
Claire in TX

krueth said...

Just glad you are back on and entertaining us with your thoughts etc. Congrats on buying a house, will be waiting anxiously to hear all about it.

The Traveling Yogi said...

Glad you are back safe and sound. But you can't leave us hanging on the house thing. WHERE did you buy a house?

Briana

Anonymous said...

Dear Fellow Michigander,

(Apologies to Kristie for the continued hijack of her blog!)

I'm in Niles, which is the South West corner and right on the Indiana state line by South Bend (Home of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish -- WOOO HOOO!) On the pinky side of the hand, point to where the wrist meets the hand. (ALL MICHIGAN people reading this will understand!)

Actually, though, the Sonic is supposed to be built in the South Bend area from what I have heard. Nothing confirmed, though!

OK, back to the show . . . I think we were getting ready to hear about the NEW HOUSE!!

Pam in Michigan

Tracy said...

Can't wait to see your pictures of your trip and hear more about the house.

~*~Snappz~*~ said...

Hey there Kristie!
Just wondering how you went with your holiday reading? Did you manage to find anything you liked from the long list of recommendations of your readers?! Only four sleeps until Harry Potter makes his final appearance!
Have a great day :o)
Snappz,
Australia.

P.S. What's with the house thing ... ?
P.P.S. Has your blog counter gone up a lot this week? Blame me ... And my checking-4-times-a-day-to-see-if-you'd-updated habit! :o)
Cheers! Have a good one, mate!

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on the house!!

Anonymous said...

Glad you had a great trip! Can't wait to hear about the house thing!! You've really left us all hanging here...

Gayle in Alabama

Anonymous said...

A HOUSE? You bought a house?! I think you need to elaborate!!!!

Amy said...

KRISTIE ESCOE HOW DARE YOU LEAVE US HANGING LIKE THAT! WHERE IN THE WORLD DID YOU BUY A HOUSE, INQUIRING MINDS WANT TO KNOW! Sorry, for shouting, you got my panties in a bunch with that cliffhanger!

Amy

kim-d said...

Okay, say it with me...YOU BOUGHT A HOUSE? DETAILS, PLEASE!!! That is awesome, I think? At any rate, I am so glad you're back and that you had a good time! And Renee? I'd LOVE to see your pictures! I'm one of those weirdos that loves to look at other people's pictures, slide shows, etc., even when I don't know a soul in them! I just cannot wait for all of your interesting posts-to-come.

And to all of you in MI, if you all get a Sonic, I am going to be just incredibly jealous. MN NEVER gets ANYTHING good. I'm still considering the road trip to Iowa--IOWA!!--for a Sonic :)!!!! Kristie, I'd love to hear your Sonic faves. After you tell about the house. YOU ROCK!

Anonymous said...

So if there's no suitcase big enough, how much will it cost to ship the house? :p

Cara

Anonymous said...

Where'd ya buy a house at?!

LOL...I HAVE that same little bottle of gold flakes! There hardly is any water in it anymore, but its been in there since 1993, what can you expect. I was too lazy to "pan" for gold so i bought some! LOL

Anonymous said...

You bought a house on vacation? Sheesh! I haven't been anywhere, and this whole house buying building thing is giving me an ulcer.

Welcome home! Somehow Alaska seems better than middle Georgia in July. I'll be there in August. I think I'll hit the every Sonic remotely near Warner Robbins just to see if I catch a glimpse of the Escoes.

Anonymous said...

So this house. Where is it? Are you moving to Alaska?

Anonymous said...

A house?? In AK?? or in WA?? What happened to OK?? I'm soooo confused........

katy said...

Details PLEASE! You don't tell people you bought a house and then just go do something silly like take care of your family and leave us hanging.

Anonymous said...

Okay, you have left us hanging on a couple of issues...way back when, the retirement and now a new house. Talk to us please!!

Pam D said...

Hmmph. I go on vacation and all I get are those stupid T-shirts and mugs and stuff. YOU go on vacation and you get a year's supply of fish and a house??!!! I want the phone# of your travel agent, that's all I'M sayin'. Glad to hear you had fun, and a safe trip home (and bought a house). I'm looking forward to pics from your trip (and more details about the house). I'll be checking for updates (about the house).

Anonymous said...

Good gracious! Do I need to call you to get the rest of the story? I just dont know if my nosey-ness can wait!

M