Finally February

We made it through the last week of nothing and we are looking forward to all that February has in store for us! We went to playgroup on Monday, had friends over on Tuesday, went to the library on Wednesday, swim lessons on Thursday, and Questacon on Friday.

This week I am starting prenatal yoga. I have never taken yoga before but I am excited to try. I am hoping it will help me become more flexible and get me ready for a v-bac. So I will have to get dinner ready early, but then I get 2 hours to be with other adults! Granted we will be talking about babies, but still, I will be with other women and I won't have to constantly looking over my shoulder for Caleb and I won't have to worry about him since he will be with his daddy.

On Wednesday, my childhood next door neighbor is coming to visit. I can't remember this family not living next door to me, I grew up with their kids playing in their house and yard. Their second daughter lives about 5 hours north of us, so I have not been able to see her since we have moved here. But her mom is here visiting and they thought they would come down and visit us! I am so excited! It will be so nice to see a piece of home!

I will be 25 weeks this week, getting toward the end of my second trimester! But as I get closer to the end I start to worry. With Caleb at 26 weeks I went into pre-term labor. I know every pregnancy is different, but I still worry about going into pre-term labor again. I keep telling myself I have a lot less stress during this pregnancy since I am not working and the labor started with Caleb after a 12 hour work day. But I know that there is no use in worrying and that God is in control of this pregnancy and loves this baby more that I could ever love him.

Caleb is a very big cheerleader right now and cheers for me, Brian, or whatever we say. So I will end with a Caleb cheer. Yaaaaay February!!!

January blahs

Oh January, you are so boring! Caleb and I struggled this week to find things to do. We had 2 things planned with friends, but the other 3 days were tough. We tried to fill our time by going to the library and running errands. But it also rained all week, which is hard for a 23 month old (Can you believe he is 23 months! In a month he will be 2 - wow!). Caleb loves to be outside and run around. On Wednesday we had morning tea with some ladies and their kids from church. It was the first time that I saw them outside of church. It was really nice to get to know them a little better. The ladies are very nice and friendly. I also found out last week that I got into the MOPS group at church as well! MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) is a Christian group that meets every other Wednesday morning. I am really looking forward to it because there is childcare, so it will be an hour or so where I can just socialize and worship with other moms and not have to worry about Caleb. I also think it will be good for Caleb to be without me for a bit, he is getting very attached and throws fits when I leave him now. MOPS like everything else here starts up in February. By Friday Caleb was running around the house and tearing it apart. I don't mean this figuratively, while I tried to fold clothes he was taking everything he could out of the closet, off the shelves, and if he could break/tear anything he would. I tried to distract him by drawing, which he instead chose the tear the paper off the crayons and then break them. Luckily we had already planned to meet a friend at the pool, so Caleb was able to get his energy out there. Swim lessons start up again this Thursday - Thank goodness! At least we have 1 normal part of our schedule returning!

Today so far has been wonderful! It is MLK day, so Brian is off work. There is a channel here that plays gridiron (American) football on delay. So Brian is able to see all the playoff games. So he got up early to watch football/be with Caleb, which meant I got to sleep in :) And really sleep in since we had no morning plans since the football games would be on until noon. Then I got to get out of the house on my own to get a pedicure. I was supposed to take in Brian's car for an oil change, but they were booked up (oh darn!). It was so nice drinking an iced coffee, reading trash magazines, and having a pedicure. I even treated myself to lunch!

I don't think the rest of this week will be as relaxing as today has been so far. But like I said, swimming starts on Thursday. It also looks like a beautiful week for weather, sunny and high 70s - low 80s. So I think we will try to go to the zoo and a few parks.

On Wednesday I have my 20 week OB appointment (I will be 22 weeks). This will be the first time I will see my OB since I was 12 weeks. For my last appointment she was on holiday and I saw a substitute Dr. It will be nice to see and hear the baby. We also have a lot of questions for her. We will be able to talk a little about the birth since I am further along. This Dr. is in favor of me having a v-back (Caleb was a c-section - my fault, not his). This was news to me because my OB from the States told me this was not possible. But my Aussie OB has looked at my file and said that she would like to give it a try if I am up for it and it is possible. Of course we will not know anything for sure for awhile, but at 20 weeks we can begin talking about it. I have a scheduled c-section for May 17 just in case. I would like a v-back too, who wants to go through major surgery again?! I think the recovery would be a lot harder this time. With Caleb, all I had to worry about was 1, 7 lb baby. This time I will have a baby and a 25+ lb toddler who will not understand why he cannot jump on me and why I cannot pick him up. But maybe my US OB was right and it is not possible for me. Hopefully we will have more answers after Wednesday, but I doubt it.

We still don't have a name for baby boy #2. We have 2-3 we are considering. But none that we love. When Brian chose the name Caleb we both loved it and knew that was the name. That is not happening this time. We have looked at list after list. We even looked at a list of 700 boy names and came up with nothing. Finally we made our own list and decided no more searching. We have to decide between the 3 we had. But again it is hard, we like the names, but we don't love them. I am hoping that as time goes on and as we choose a name we will begin to love it. I hate being in limbo, I know we have 4 months before this baby comes, but not having a name bothers me. Unfortunately it only bothers me, Brian is perfectly ok with it. I am hoping in the next month this will be resolved!

1/2 way there

I will start with the exciting news first! On Thursday we found out we are having another boy. We were both shocked, Brian and I both thought we were having a girl. This pregnancy has been very different from Caleb's, so we assumed it was a girl. So when the ultrasound technician told us it was a boy we both just stared at her and she said "These things are not 100% but I am really sure this is a boy." We had/have not come up with a boy name. We had the girl name we were both happy with, but no boy names at all. At this point we have 2 that we are thinking about, but it has been difficult for us.

The rest of the week was pretty boring. Caleb and I struggled a bit to find things to do since things are closed down in January. On Tuesday we went to a play place which has a pretty large ball pit which Caleb loves! He loves to run and slide on the balls from one side to the other. Wednesday we got together with a friend from the embassy. It is always nice seeing them, the mom is really nice and her girls are really sweet. I love those playdates because Caleb is excited to play with the girls and their toys so the mom and I just get to talk. On Friday we went to Questacon and Caleb saw his first puppet show. He was so good during it! It was 1/2 hour and he sat the whole time, pretty impressive for a 22 month old! Bri and I decided to take it easy this weekend since we just had a busy month. We cleaned, took down Christmas decorations, and played around the house.

I know I talk about Caleb all the time, like what we do, but I thought I would share some of the cute things he does. First he is talking up a storm now and is starting to be a mimic. Like, when I tell him "no" he says it back to me. When he is really mad at me or Brian he will say "bye", wave and walk out of the room. It is hilarious, usually he walks through the dining room and back into the kitchen or living room smiling saying "hello"! He has learned that when he falls or hurts he will get a kiss. So now when he hurts something he will tell me the body part and "kiss" in a very pathetic voice. Then usually he will pick out a few other places that need kisses too. He continues to love music and now he sings along with the songs we sing. His favorite is wheels on the bus and if we ask will always request that one (even if he does not really want to sing it). He does the motions and says "beep, beep, beep" for the horn. He also loves Old MacDonald and when asked what is on the farm he will always say duck. We sing Bingo but change Bingo to Caleb and when we get to that part of the song he loves to spell his name (as well as he can).

Well I think I have bragged about my son enough for now. He is so much fun right now I can't wait until he has a little brother. I can't wait to see how this little boy is going to turn out! By the way when we told him he was going to have a little brother he said "yes" and nodded, like he knew all along.

New Zealand and visitors

I have so much to blog about! December flew by! The New Zealand trip started off rocky, Quantas once again gave me problems about bringing the car seat on the plane(we bought a seat for Caleb). So much so that the plane was delayed. They claimed that the car seat was not Australia standard, it lacked a sticker that they needed. When I questioned them further they said that only Australian car seats are allowed on the plane. But after fighting them about it, they let me bring it on. Since the flight was delayed, we missed our connecting flight in Sydney and had to be put on a different flight. Once Caleb and I arrived in New Zealand it was fine. We stayed in Rotorua, a geothermal town. We went to geothermal sites, saw a geyser go off, visited a Indigenous village, and went to a zoo. Caleb had a hard time sleeping in the pack and play at the hotel, but he was great during the day. It was a nice trip until the flight back to Canberra when once again Quantas refused the car seat. This time they did not allow us to bring it on the plane. I am in the process now of trying to get a refund for Caleb's seat on that flight. I have flown with Quantas 5 times now and every time they have given me issues about the car seat. So I have decided not to fly with them again. Virgin Blue also does the same flight from Canberra to Sydney so I will use them in the future.

2 days after we got home from NZ Marc and Betty came to visit. It was wonderful having them here! We took them to Jervis Bay, a beach about 3 hours north of us. It was a bit chilly when we went, but we had a great time. The beach was beautiful and it was nice exploring a new area with them.

We also celebrated Christmas with them. We had a big turkey dinner on Christmas Eve and opened stockings. On Christmas Caleb was spoiled with lots of gifts. He got a sandbox from Marc and Betty, a tricycle from my parents, books, play food, a train and dump truck from us. That does not include the gifts from friends and family! Needless to say he had a great day! It was so great to spend it with family. We skyped with my parents in the morning so they could see Caleb open their gifts. The rest of the day we all spent relaxing and enjoying each others company.

On the 26th we went up to Sydney. We took the train which we found was not so easy with Caleb. He wanted to get up and walk around the whole time. Since we had 4 people, we all took turns walking and playing with him. In Sydney we went to the opera house, saw the harbour bridge, went to the aquarium and zoo. It was really nice being in the city, Brian and I like the city much more than the country and Canberra is not really a city at all. Caleb was a bit sick of traveling by the time we got to Sydney and acted out some. But again, with Marc and Betty there it was much easier to handle.

When we got back we tried to show Marc and Betty some of Canberra. We took them to Tidbinbilla, the nature reserve behind our house to see kangaroos, Questacon, Caleb's swim lesson, the U.S. Embassy, and to some local parks. It was a really wonderful trip. They were here for 18 days and it went so quickly! I kept telling them I was not ready for them to leave. Caleb loved spending time with them, when he woke up in the morning and from nap the first thing he would say was "Grandma, pa pa?". He loved trying the scare them, sing songs, and read books with them. We were all really sad to drop them off at the airport this morning.

January is a very boring month in Canberra. Everything has stopped for the school holidays. So no swim lessons, library time, nor play group. It is actually very odd to me. Some stores and restaurants will be closed for the entire month. But I guess it is good for them to have a break. Caleb and I will have to search to find things to keep us busy.

Our next family visitors will be in May when the baby comes. On that note, we find out the sex on Thursday! We are very excited! I have already been feeling the baby move around some, mainly after I have eaten or am laying in bed. I have definitely popped and the recent heatwave has not been fun. I am dreading the heat of January and February with my extra insulation. Other than that, the pregnancy is going well, so far no problems or issues! I will blog again after we find out the sex to let you all know!

I meant to do a new post last week, but every time I thought about it our internet was out. So I will start with the most exciting news, Brian and I are going to have another baby! We are very excited! I am just about 16 weeks along, due May 25th. This pregnancy has been very different from Caleb's. The first trimester was much easier. With Caleb I was sick daily, this one is more temperamental. Some days I would be really sick others I would be fine. I am also very tired with this pregnancy, but I think that is more due to Caleb than this baby. So far I have only seen my OB once, I go again in 2 weeks. But I did have an in depth ultrasound at 12 weeks. So far I really like my OB and one nice thing about Aussie OB's they do not weigh you at every appointment. Only once in the beginning. Of course I don't want to gain too much and I will monitor it at home. But at least I won't feel pressured like I did with my OB in the States. I will keep you updated as the pregnancy progresses.

Thanksgiving went really well. I was really happy with how the turkey came out. The only thing that did not come out as well was the dressing. But I blame that on not have the same ingredients as the U.S. The kids all had a really good time and the adults did too! I am really glad I hosted!

This week Brian is in New Zealand. He left very early this morning. Caleb and I went to church with some friends. This church has a nursery and Caleb did really well in it, so that was a relief. But he has been cutting down his naps the last few days and that is worrying me a bit. He still really needs a nap and the last few nights he has been falling apart earlier than normal. So I think I am going to move his nap back 15-30 minutes and hopefully that will solve the problem. I need his naps just as much as he does, so I am hoping this is just a phase!

We have a normal schedule for the first part of the week. Tomorrow is playgroup. We are having our "Chrissy" party. I am bringing zucchini bread. Tuesday is swim lessons and Wednesday is library time. Hopefully those things will tire Caleb out and he will sleep well!

On Thursday Caleb and I are going down to meet up with Brian in New Zealand. We are going to Rotorua. Everyone always says how wonderful New Zealand is, so it will be nice to see it. I am nervous about flying with Caleb alone again. We are leaving very early in the morning, so I don't know how Caleb is going to deal with that. Luckily the flights are not as long this time.

Two days after we get back from NZ Marc and Betty will arrive. I am really excited about their visit! Caleb is starting to recognize his grandparents in pictures and saying their names. I think he will really enjoy their visit too! We are planning on going to the beach, Sydney, and showing them around Canberra. Brian and I are really missing family a lot, so being able to spend Christmas with them will be wonderful!

Please pray for our trip to New Zealand and for Caleb's naps. We love and miss you all!

It was a typical week again. We were able to pick up Brian's car, so I only had to drive Brian to work Monday-Wednesday. Which was nice because on Friday Caleb slept in until 8am. The rest was pretty normal. Thursday we went to Questacon. We had not been since before we went to Thailand, so Caleb enjoyed going back. On Friday we went to Paint and Play, a free event on Fridays for toddlers. It has 10 or so stations that the kids can do; shaving cream play, pasta necklaces, crafts, playing with rice, musical instruments. Caleb enjoyed playing with the rice the best. We we got home I still had rice in my hair and clothes.

Yesterday we went to the Telstra Tower. It is a radio tower that looks over the city. I uploaded some pictures we took of it. Telstra is a phone company here that we also get our internet through. We hate them probably as much as we hated Comcast. There are always random charges on the bill that when Brian calls they say they are a 1 time charge. Plus our internet is very unreliable. It is always going out at random times and when we call their first question is "Did it rain recently?". Of course there are clear skies. So we stopped calling and hope that the internet does not go out when we are skyping.

So since I don't have much to talk about that happened this week, I thought I would talk about how Aussies shorten a ton of words and almost always with a y. I know Americans probably do it a lot too, but I feel like we do it in order to cut out syllables in order to make a word easier to say. Anyway, here are some examples.

Breakfast - brekky

Sunglasses - sunnies

biscuit - bicky

mosquitos - mossies

Christmas - Chrissy

cup of tea/coffee - cuppa (I know this one does not fir with the others)

I know there are more but my mind is a bit fuzzy and it seems to get worse at night. I will update it when I think of more.

In all it was a good week. This week is Thanksgiving. Like I said last week we have 2 families coming over. I went out today and bought what I needed. Here is the menu:

Turkey

Betty's wild rice dressing - but they don't sell wild rice here, so I am pretending that white and brown rice is wild rice :)

Nanny's broccoli casserole

Dinner rolls - I am going to attempt to make them from scratch, we will see if I give up and just buy some.

Mom's apple pie

Pumpkin bars

The other families are bringing ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and another dessert.

I figure if I make enough family recipes it will feel more like they are here celebrating with us :)

Wish me luck!

Same old, same old

I realize that I did not post a new blog last week. I felt like I did not have anything to say. It was a typical week, nothing special. I guess that is a sign that I am completely settled in. This week was not anything special either.

Last weekend we went to Tidbinbilla. We walked around the nature reserve but did not see any animals. But it was nice to take a walk as a family. It is finally warmer here, in the mid-70s everyday now. This week it actually got in the 80s and we had to think about maybe turning on the air conditioner. That will be an interesting experience because I have never seen anything like this before. It is an evaporative cooling system, it has a tank on the roof that fills with rain water and somehow cools off the house through that water. Apparently you have to open a few windows in every room so mold does not collect. I don't really understand it and we will have to study the manual. Hopefully we will get the hang of it.

Monday was play group, Tuesday was swim lessons. Caleb did not do as well this week at swim lesson, he decided he was scared of one of the ladies. I have no idea why, he sees her every week in the pool. Hopefully he will fair better this week. Wednesday we went to storytime at the library. We see some of the kids and moms from the playgroup there. Caleb loves one of the girls. He gave her about 5 hugs, one where he knocked her over. And when she was leaving, she went up to Caleb and said "kiss", and they kissed on the lips. The other mom and I were joking that in 15 years later we will be in trouble!

Thursday was Veteran's Day, so Brian was off work. He let me sleep in and then we skyped with my parents, and in the afternoon we went to a park. Friday we met up with another embassy mom new to the area. She has 4 girls and Caleb absolutely loves them! It was so nice, he played with the girls the whole time and the mom and I got to talk.

Yesterday we finally bought a 2nd car. It is a french car at a pretty good price. I am so happy Brian has his own car now. I have been driving him to work for 4 months now, which is 20 minutes each way. We have to get ourselves and Caleb ready each morning to get out of the house to get Brian to work on time. Then every afternoon Brian is rushing out of work because Caleb and I are waiting in the car. It will be nice that Caleb can wake up when he wants, although he will probably still wake up at the same time, and Brian will not have to rush every afternoon. Plus, Caleb and I will spend 80 less minutes on the road everyday. We can pick up the car Wednesday, it needs a new windshield and an inspection.

Today we went to church and then I did some shopping with a friend. We have been going to a Presbyterian church the last few weeks. The Baptist church we were going to just did not seem like a good fit for our family. So far we have enjoyed the Presbyterian church. There are a lot of young kids and the families are all really friendly. I also got a lot of shopping done. It is amazing what you can get done when you are with an adult and not a toddler! I got 6 things I have not had time to buy (or kept forgetting to buy) and almost all of Caleb's Christmas presents. I have had to start a lot of shopping early this year since we will be mailing most of them out. I am not sure I will get them all to the States by Christmas.

This week is looking normal again. The only exciting things will be picking up Brian's car and starting to get things ready for Thanksgiving. This will be my first year cooking Thanksgiving dinner. We have 2 families coming over for a total of 14 people! So my first one will be a big one! But luckily both families are bringing 2 dishes each so I will have a lot of help.

I guess that is it for now. We love and miss you all!