Where you go, I will go; where you live, I will live. Your people will be my people for your God is my God.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Peach-y

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Nothing like a little oatmeal and milk to go with your peach!  {BTW oatmeal with any variety of toppings has been a favorite these past several weeks.  Inexpensive, easy, warm, versatile, and healthy! Both mom and baby are happy!}

Last Week

Last week was an exciting, milestone setting week baby-wise in our home.

~Monday:  I went to the open-air market for the sole purpose of hunting down baby clothing.  Used clothing from the States is piled in categories on tables and you dig looking for treasure.  And treasure we found.  Adorable, mostly name brand, good condition, clothing for the first several months of our little guy’s life in the outside world.   My suegra graciously offered to {hand}wash all the clothing.   I went to her house a couple of days later to find every item we had bought {and then some} clean, smelling lovely, and ironed.  Yes ironed.  To say she is an excited grandma would be an understatement!

~Throughout the week: Rafa has been spending his lunch break to work projects around the casita to make it more functional, baby-friendly and cozy….so glad I am married to a man who is practical minded and good with tools!   I too have been sorting through stuff, organizing and cleaning using the motto, “When in doubt, do without.” Simple and homey is what we are going for!  But it does seem that with each project we accomplish we add three more to the list…

~Friday:  We went for a routine check-up. The baby is now completely formed and all the parts look the way they should and are where they should be!   He just needs a few more weeks to grow.  The doctor says there is no reason to believe that we will not have a smooth, uncomplicated delivery with a healthy baby boy at the end.  Music to our ears!  According to current calculations he should be in our arms sometime around May 3rd!

~Saturday:  I went to the fruit and vegetable stand to pick up a couple things.  The lady who works there, looked at me for a long minute and asked “Are you pregnant?!”  {Gotta love Mexican bluntness.  Where I am from, when in doubt about a woman being pregnant or not, it is best NOT to ask.}  Guess that means that I am actually showing a bit now?! {At 25+ weeks it was about time!}  I was thrilled she asked and even more thrilled to say yes!  

~ One night last week, I looked at Rafa and said, “We are going to have a baby!   An actual real person!”  Yes, the reality is setting in more and more each day and we love it!  Looking forward to the weeks to come and the milestones they will hold!  

Friday, January 13, 2012

Pregnancy

A post I wrote, but never published a few months ago.  Looking back it is humorous and honest, so I thought I would share. 

 

Its 12 noon and I am still in bed wrapped up in a bathrobe.   I have just now forced yogurt down my throat.  Just the thought of food, opening the fridge door, or washing dishes makes me want to hurl.   And any minute now I will take a break from writing to do just that. I don’t even think about what’s for lunch until it is time to prepare it.  What used to be a delight is now THE dreaded chore of the day.  Today I am taking Rafa to the center of town and treating him to whatever his little heart desires!  

And the emotions!   I keep trying to sort them all out.  But then I wonder, should I even attempt that?  Would it not be best to wait to read myself emotionally until after our child is in our arms?  The only thing that I am consistent at emotionally right now is being inconsistent.  My dear husband will look at me tenderly and ask me what is going on (with me emotions-wise) and I do nothing but fall into his arms and say “I don’t even know!!”  Then there are some times that I want to cry, but I can’t.  And whenever I don’t want to cry, however, the tears come pouring. 

I wake up for no apparent reason at least five times a night, and when the alarm goes off in the morning I am more exhausted then when we placed our heads on our pillows the night before.  But I have found sleeping after Rafa leaves nearly impossible, special thanks to the construction workers.  So I rest.  Sometimes drifting in and out of sleep, but most of the time day dreaming, reading, or praying. 

As I told my mom last night, I feel like a mentally healthy person in a deformed body.  There is so much I want to do….be productive, make new friends, explore the neighborhood, decorate our sweet home….but between the lack of energy and throwing up, it just does not happen. 

And then people ask you how you are doing. How are you supposed to answer that?  I for one used to judge pregnant ladies who always had something wrong.  And I fear that if I say anything besides “Better than I deserve!!” {Which is SO true BTW} EVERYTHING will come pouring out, especially if it’s an understanding person.  

Thursday, January 12, 2012

What I eat…

Being pregnant has been interesting as far as the eating thing goes. 

Living in Mexico, I naturally have a pretty healthy lifestyle:  an abundance of fresh produce, lack of processing in the food, home cooked meals, and walking everywhere.  Before pregnancy, I ate pretty much whatever I wanted {in moderation} and maintained a weight and figure I was happy with. 

But then came pregnancy.  And with it a lack of appetite, throwing up, and a general disgust for anything food related. I lost weight.  At least 15 pounds in the first trimester.  I did not really worry about my diet, I just ate anything that would stay down. 

Around week 16, I started having the desire to eat again, but not nearly as much as I was eating before I was pregnant. I continued eating whatever seemed appeasing.  I am now almost 24 weeks, and I still throw up about once a day {a lot less than the first few months and some days are better than others} and sometimes have a good appetite. 

I eat small portions several times a day.  Snacking really.  And when you are snacking, pregnant {and not packing on the pounds}  it is really easy not to eat healthy food.  French fries?  Why not?  A slice of leftover Christmas cheesecake?  Sure! 

Having healthy “snacks”  {which I crave and enjoy more} takes more time cause it means pre-planning and preparation.  I decided that being purposeful and putting a bit more work into  it will be better off for both me and Baby-D {duh!}  So here are some small things that I have been doing:

~When I get up, I fill a jar with water, leave it on the counter, and purpose to have it finished by lunch time.  Having a visual reminder helps me so much!  In the late afternoons/early evenings a make a pot of herbal tea and finish it off before bed. 

~ I made some yogurt this past week and have been enjoying it for one of my breakfasts {I usually eat at least twice before our main meal at lunch time} either with some cut up fruit, or all thrown in the blender for a smoothie.

~ I keep other healthy options around for when I am hungry, but it is not a planned meal time.  I have the ingredients for hummus {with plenty of veggies}  sitting on the counter waiting to be mixed up right now. I leave fruit on the counter {visual reminder!} so that it becomes the quickest option.   And toast with a bit jam seems to always hit the spot. 

~Other than that, I eat a bit of what I fix for lunch, or whatever I want.   Any type of potatoes I can pack away and I like to make some type of bread or baked good about once a week and have that in the evenings.  {I wanna make soft pretzel bites tonight.} I hope to be purposeful, but enjoy what I eat too.  All in moderation.  

Now off to find something to eat…

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Christmas Dinner

We were asked if we could host Christmas dinner for the extended family this year.  We readily agreed. 

It was simple pot-luck style {with a little planning between the ladies} and took place Christmas Eve night {we started dinner around mid-night!}   I have been very blessed with a family here.  They have quickly and lovingly accepted me was a part of the family. 

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After dinner it was game time!   {Pin the tail on the donkey, Pictionary, 4 on a couch, and charades, were among the several we played.}  The last of the group lefts a little after  4 a.m….

Only to sleep for a little bit and have everyone back by 2 the next afternoon for leftovers and more games! 

THE Piñata

A New Year’s Day tradition here is piñatas!   This year we gathered with {some of} our extended family, and this is what the kids piñata looked like…

DSCN0314 It is a cube made out of plastic paper and FULL of balloons.  Some of the balloons have little pieces of paper with numbers in them.  Each number represents a prize. {Some of the prizes where big like a new doll or dinosaur, will other numbers represented lollipops and other small candy.}  This takes piñatas to a whole new level, let me tell you!  After the piñata is broken, the scene looks like this…

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And never fear, there was a piñata for the adults too.  Since we were participants, there is no picture evidence. The competition to pop the balloons and be the first to pick up the piece of paper, was fierce.  Without going into too much detail, I will just share that between Rafa and myself, we took home the big {and most!} prizes of the day.  There is talk of just allowing one of us to participate next year…

Paperwork.

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Not a task either one of us is particularly thrilled with, but our life will be {and is already!}  full of, considering our motherlands.  There will always be another visa form to fill out, passport processes to go through, documents to have translated, waiting and lots of patience.  Not only for each of us, but each child the Lord decides to bless us with. 

But I have found that it is a much more delightful task with a pot of tea, a good smelling candle, flowers from my best friend, and having him by my side. 

Perhaps. just perhaps, I may find that one day paperwork was become a delightful, no longer dreaded, task!