Christmas Eve was nice, Nonny, Boogie and I went and had sushi, then drove around looking at Christmas lights for a while before Boogie and I headed up to Petaluma to celebrate the Eve with the husband's fam. I guess people thought I wasn't going to go, since P was in transit back to the US, but it was nice, and busy. The food was good, and I liked having a chance to catch up with everyone.
Boogie was exhausted, but she did well, letting family hold her, dancing a bit, and opening presents. Around 1am, she was sitting with a new toy on her lap, eyes glazed over, not moving, not speaking, so I decided it was probably time to take her home to sleep.
The next morning P called to let me know he had missed the last leg of his flight, so Boogie went down for another nap, I prepped a dish for dinner, and Nonny stayed at the house cooking while I went to the airport with Boogie. When we got there, she was all smiles to see her Papa, and when I took her from him so he could get the suitcases in the car, she was devastated and cried her soul out until he took her back. They had a long time to get reacquainted in the back seat because it took us two hours to get home from SFO. Traffic was horrible, and I cried once from something P said, but not an entirely unenjoyable ride. Once I got over the hurt and realized he was reacting from being hungry and tired, I tried to enjoy my solitude in the front seat and actually 19th Ave is quite beautiful when you are forced to take it all in, in slow motion.
Anyway, dinner was awesome, and we have just enough left-overs to gorge ourselves but not get sick of the food. Boogie only opened about half her presents, when she got to one of the baby dolls I bought for her, she lost interest in the others and just wanted to play with her. But then the fussies came, and she got a nice bath with Papa and went to sleep.
And this morning P was up early with her so I was able to sleep in late for the first time in weeks, but when he brought her to me to nurse for her morning nap, she kept getting distracted trying to figure out where "Baby" was. I had to cradle Boogie and her doll both so that she could feel the heavy plastic doll next to her, then put them both to sleep. And she has a super-soft new pillow and blanket, from her Nonny, to sleep with, and super-adorable PJ's from Jojo.
So all-in-all, a typical Christmas for us. It was nice, lower-key than normal, less stress, and Boogie and I both got our Babies, mine from the airport, hers from a cardboard box. And I'm totally subscribing to Christmas being for the kids from now on, and folks wil have to wait for their birthdays for presents. I thought I might mind a bit not getting anything, but I was okay, I love watching Boogie rip strips of paper off and yelling "Wow" when she sees the gifts. And we have more to open today (mostly what I gave her) though I don't know where they are going to fit. Maybe I'll have to clean out more of the baby toys, and go get a toy box asap.
So, Happy Holidays to everyone, hope your days are filled with good food and family.
Showing posts with label family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family. Show all posts
December 26, 2007
December 12, 2007
Photo Blog ... Paraguay Trip 2007
So, 17 days in Paraguay. 4 days of travel. 2 very sick Americans. 1 sunburned Paraguayan (no pictures of that though..sorry). Enjoy!
A lot of Taryn's time was spent in bathtubs, partyly because she really likes water, and partly because it was 95 degrees at 10am, and the kid does not like heat. But she had a lot of company.
Here is Taryn and her cousin Melissa taking baths in Tata Lina's bathroom. They don't have bathtubs down there, so we made good use of the buckets.
This is Taryn out on the back porch. She wasn't dirty, just hot. And her cousin Maira was keeping her company so I could eat. Cute, eh?
I think this was the same day, before Meli took her bath in Maira's tub. She was playing with her Ebo out back.
Not really relevant, but P picks his nose constantly.
She loved playing in Abuelo Elio's (Ebo) taxi. And it must have been 10 degrees hotter in there with the black leather seats, but every day, she wanted to pretend to take a spin.
She wasn't the only one to likes to drive, but when the cousins came, she got to ride shotgun. Did I mention, probably half the cars down there don't have seatbelts, and the other half don't have working ones? Scary.
We brought her over to Pedro's Tia Olga's house one night, and she refused to sleep. You can see she was exhausted, eyes glazed, wasn't fussing, but flat-out would not sleep outside of her pack-n-play, and only in Tata Lina's bedroom.
This picture is deceptive, because she really didn't eat much while we were there. Yogurt and bananas. And juice. And chi-chi (which she learned to say down there). But through the sickness and heat and lack of food and sleep, she was still a clown.
We spent a lot of time playing outside. She received these sqeaky sandals as a gift from her Tia Olga, and didn't want to wear anything besides them the whole time we were there.
Of course, sometimes she didn't want to wear shoes at all.
One of the most important things we did while down there was get her baptized. She didn't agree with the holy water on the head part, but we wrestled her into submission and got it done.
She's exhausted, he's distracted, and I'm way too overjoyed. :)
***
So there you go. I had some technical difficulties transferring the pictures from the camera to my PDA while we were there, so there are a lot more photos to come when P gets home.
A lot of Taryn's time was spent in bathtubs, partyly because she really likes water, and partly because it was 95 degrees at 10am, and the kid does not like heat. But she had a lot of company.
Here is Taryn and her cousin Melissa taking baths in Tata Lina's bathroom. They don't have bathtubs down there, so we made good use of the buckets.
This is Taryn out on the back porch. She wasn't dirty, just hot. And her cousin Maira was keeping her company so I could eat. Cute, eh?
I think this was the same day, before Meli took her bath in Maira's tub. She was playing with her Ebo out back.
Not really relevant, but P picks his nose constantly.
She loved playing in Abuelo Elio's (Ebo) taxi. And it must have been 10 degrees hotter in there with the black leather seats, but every day, she wanted to pretend to take a spin.
She wasn't the only one to likes to drive, but when the cousins came, she got to ride shotgun. Did I mention, probably half the cars down there don't have seatbelts, and the other half don't have working ones? Scary.
We brought her over to Pedro's Tia Olga's house one night, and she refused to sleep. You can see she was exhausted, eyes glazed, wasn't fussing, but flat-out would not sleep outside of her pack-n-play, and only in Tata Lina's bedroom.
This picture is deceptive, because she really didn't eat much while we were there. Yogurt and bananas. And juice. And chi-chi (which she learned to say down there). But through the sickness and heat and lack of food and sleep, she was still a clown.
We spent a lot of time playing outside. She received these sqeaky sandals as a gift from her Tia Olga, and didn't want to wear anything besides them the whole time we were there.
Of course, sometimes she didn't want to wear shoes at all.
One of the most important things we did while down there was get her baptized. She didn't agree with the holy water on the head part, but we wrestled her into submission and got it done.
She's exhausted, he's distracted, and I'm way too overjoyed. :)
***
So there you go. I had some technical difficulties transferring the pictures from the camera to my PDA while we were there, so there are a lot more photos to come when P gets home.
December 9, 2007
Month Seventeen
Sweetie-Pie-Boogie-Boo!
Okay, so I'm late, I know. But the day you turned seventeen months, we were getting on a plane to fly to Paraguay for your first international expedition! And I was thinking I'd have time to write your letter in the air, seeing as it was 18 hours of flying, but in the 24 hours it took us to get to your Tata Lina and Ebo's house, you slept all of 4 hours.
But you did fantastic. No crying. Not even very fussy, though you didn't seem to like to airline food and preferred cookies, milk, and dried fruit. But I can't blame you for that.
So Paraguay. Since I'm late, I may as well tell you, you had a great time. Your cousin Melissa is only a couple months older than you, and she was at the house almost every day to play. You guys had these sandals that squeaked every time you took a step, and when Papa and I were trying to nap during the 100 degree afternoon heat, you two would be running around the house squeak-squeak-sqeaksqeaksqueak ... for hours. Normally one of us had to sleep on the couch in the living room, because you were freaking out when we weren't in sight. And you only let people hold you if we were right next to them, or you were too tired to protest.
But you played coy with everyone, you'd run up and hand them something, then get shy and run back to hide behind my legs. Or you'd say "up" and hold you hands out, then wiggle away a second after they picked you up. And everyone was so impressed that you didn't cry much. You'd run around, trip and fall, then brush off your knees or your hands, and keep playing. Running into chairs, bumping your head on the tile floors, nothing made you cry, except when your hands and legs got covered in ants and they started biting you. That was partly my fault for letting you walk on the grass, but I had no idea it would hurt you so bad, but even then, a few minutes after you calmed down, you were ready to play some more.
We did have some problems, mainly your refusing to eat when you got sick, except for the liquid yogurt and mini-me bananas they have. And you didn't sleep too well, so you ended up in the bed with Papa and I every night, but it was so amazing for me to wake up in the morning and see your little face a few inches from mine. Your binkie would be gone by the morning, and a little puddle of drool soaked the sheets under your mouth, just like your Papa. When you got the 104 temperature, we were so worried for you, and you refused to take the medicine, made yourself vomit every time we gave it to you. And the diarrhea was awful, you lost 1/2 pound in 1 week, and were so tired and cranky. You didn't want to play as much that last week, just wanted me to carry you around, and nurse. And really, I loved that I was the one you came to for comfort, and I treasured the hours we spent sitting in the sun, reading books and snuggling.
You also were baptized on December 2, 2007. You didn't really enjoy sitting quietly through the service, and really freaked out when they poured the water over your head. You fought the priest like he was trying to put the Devil in you, instead of trying to keep it out. And you were so tired by the end of the service that the photos we have show you slumped in my arms, no shoes, no smile, not even looking at the camera. But your Baptism breakfast afterwards at Jojo's Mama's house was nice, and you got tons of hugs from your cousin Facundo. Everyone admired how beautiful you were in your little dress, and you danced to the music from cars passing by the front of the house. Your Godparents, Tata Lina and Ebo, were so happy to be with you, and are honored to have that distinction.
You really started talking a lot more when we were there. I was amazed when I asked you "Quieres mas?" and you made the sign for more. Or when I asked you if you wanted to go home (to California) and you nodded your head yes and pointed somewhere in the distance. You have an incredible vocabulary for such a small person, and can say all kids of things, and you mimic what we say perfectly. It seems like you can pick up a word in a second, know how to pronounce it, what it means, and actually use it too. And everyone was super-impressed that you understand English, Spanish and Guarani too. My tri-lingual Angel. My wish for you this month is that you retain your knowledge of languages and are able to be fluently multiligual as an adult. It will be a necessity for your generation, not a choice as it is for mine.
So Darling, I have to go now to wake you up, feed you some more and we're going to get our Christmas tree. Your Papa decided to stay 2 more weeks, so it's just you and me Kiddo, until he gets back. We went grocrty shopping at 7am today, in our PJs, and I'm having so much fun spending my every waking moment with you.
I love you.
Mama.
Okay, so I'm late, I know. But the day you turned seventeen months, we were getting on a plane to fly to Paraguay for your first international expedition! And I was thinking I'd have time to write your letter in the air, seeing as it was 18 hours of flying, but in the 24 hours it took us to get to your Tata Lina and Ebo's house, you slept all of 4 hours.
But you did fantastic. No crying. Not even very fussy, though you didn't seem to like to airline food and preferred cookies, milk, and dried fruit. But I can't blame you for that.
So Paraguay. Since I'm late, I may as well tell you, you had a great time. Your cousin Melissa is only a couple months older than you, and she was at the house almost every day to play. You guys had these sandals that squeaked every time you took a step, and when Papa and I were trying to nap during the 100 degree afternoon heat, you two would be running around the house squeak-squeak-sqeaksqeaksqueak ... for hours. Normally one of us had to sleep on the couch in the living room, because you were freaking out when we weren't in sight. And you only let people hold you if we were right next to them, or you were too tired to protest.
But you played coy with everyone, you'd run up and hand them something, then get shy and run back to hide behind my legs. Or you'd say "up" and hold you hands out, then wiggle away a second after they picked you up. And everyone was so impressed that you didn't cry much. You'd run around, trip and fall, then brush off your knees or your hands, and keep playing. Running into chairs, bumping your head on the tile floors, nothing made you cry, except when your hands and legs got covered in ants and they started biting you. That was partly my fault for letting you walk on the grass, but I had no idea it would hurt you so bad, but even then, a few minutes after you calmed down, you were ready to play some more.
We did have some problems, mainly your refusing to eat when you got sick, except for the liquid yogurt and mini-me bananas they have. And you didn't sleep too well, so you ended up in the bed with Papa and I every night, but it was so amazing for me to wake up in the morning and see your little face a few inches from mine. Your binkie would be gone by the morning, and a little puddle of drool soaked the sheets under your mouth, just like your Papa. When you got the 104 temperature, we were so worried for you, and you refused to take the medicine, made yourself vomit every time we gave it to you. And the diarrhea was awful, you lost 1/2 pound in 1 week, and were so tired and cranky. You didn't want to play as much that last week, just wanted me to carry you around, and nurse. And really, I loved that I was the one you came to for comfort, and I treasured the hours we spent sitting in the sun, reading books and snuggling.
You also were baptized on December 2, 2007. You didn't really enjoy sitting quietly through the service, and really freaked out when they poured the water over your head. You fought the priest like he was trying to put the Devil in you, instead of trying to keep it out. And you were so tired by the end of the service that the photos we have show you slumped in my arms, no shoes, no smile, not even looking at the camera. But your Baptism breakfast afterwards at Jojo's Mama's house was nice, and you got tons of hugs from your cousin Facundo. Everyone admired how beautiful you were in your little dress, and you danced to the music from cars passing by the front of the house. Your Godparents, Tata Lina and Ebo, were so happy to be with you, and are honored to have that distinction.
You really started talking a lot more when we were there. I was amazed when I asked you "Quieres mas?" and you made the sign for more. Or when I asked you if you wanted to go home (to California) and you nodded your head yes and pointed somewhere in the distance. You have an incredible vocabulary for such a small person, and can say all kids of things, and you mimic what we say perfectly. It seems like you can pick up a word in a second, know how to pronounce it, what it means, and actually use it too. And everyone was super-impressed that you understand English, Spanish and Guarani too. My tri-lingual Angel. My wish for you this month is that you retain your knowledge of languages and are able to be fluently multiligual as an adult. It will be a necessity for your generation, not a choice as it is for mine.
So Darling, I have to go now to wake you up, feed you some more and we're going to get our Christmas tree. Your Papa decided to stay 2 more weeks, so it's just you and me Kiddo, until he gets back. We went grocrty shopping at 7am today, in our PJs, and I'm having so much fun spending my every waking moment with you.
I love you.
Mama.
November 16, 2007
Last Will and Testament
Lat weekend P and I wrote out our wills in anticipation of spending 3 weeks in a foreign country wrought with violence and political upheaval. Well really, I wrote the wills, and our impending trip was more of a very definite deadline that I could set for myself and not procrastinate past. Because I love putting things off. Especially things that make me contemplate my future demise and the impact it will have on my Boogie.
Most of the will was easy since our main concern is to make sure Boogie is provided for financially if we die. It was harder to decide on guardianship. Nonny is a shoe-in, there was no question there. Nobody shares my parenting goals like she does, and nobody besides her Papa and I love her as much as her Nonny does. But then we decided that in the twenty-billion to one chance that she can't take Boogie, we should have a second alternate.
Just in case.
And this is where we ran into trouble. We wanted someone who already had kids, because I don't want anyone for a second to regret "having" to take her. We didn't want to stifle anyone's youth, and we don't want Boogie raised as an only child either. But we also didn't want her to be placed with anyone who doesn't have legal status here, because not only would they not be guaranteed to take care of her, they also would not be legally able to manage any property we left her.
I was a hard choice, but we made it. And we asked my brother to be involved with her, as property guardian, but not her physical guardian.
And I thought he would be okay with that. I thought that he would feel relieved that we didn't ask him to be her guardian, but he was pissed. He said that if Me, P and Nonny couldn't take care of her, wouldn't he be the logical choice?
And I told him I was happy to hear he was willing to take her, but left it at that. Because we already signed and notarized the wills. Which might be screwed up, but how do you tell your brother that you don't want him to raise your child? Am I a bad person for saying that?
The truth is, I don't think he has the experience, patience, or desire for self-improvement to raise a little girl by himself. If he had his own kid, I may feel differently, but P and I agreed almost instantly that he was definitely not the one. I love my brother with all my heart, but he's too harsh, too judgemental, too stuck in his own ways to raise my daughter to be the kind of person I know she will be, with enough nurturing and compassionate direction. I know there would be no lack of love, he adores her, that is evident. But he and I don't see even close to eye to eye on parenting styles, and although I want him in her life, I don't want him to be the major influence on her growing up.
And I feel awful for saying this. But one of the things we had to face in writing our wills is that we had to put family ties, allegiances and friendships aside in order to decide the best alternative parents for her. And I feel good that we made the right decisions because there was hardly any discussion. We both already knew in our hearts who the best people for the job were, and I pray that there are no long-lasting grievances from this, but we had to do what we felt was best for our daughter, even if some people will not be very happy about it.
It's a huge relief to get this all out. I know people are going to be hurt, and I am so sorry, but when I became a mother, my priorities shifted and Boogie is all I am concerned about. We couldn't go against our instincts to preserve someone else's expectations, because if any situation in my life called for a firm resolution, this is it.
Most of the will was easy since our main concern is to make sure Boogie is provided for financially if we die. It was harder to decide on guardianship. Nonny is a shoe-in, there was no question there. Nobody shares my parenting goals like she does, and nobody besides her Papa and I love her as much as her Nonny does. But then we decided that in the twenty-billion to one chance that she can't take Boogie, we should have a second alternate.
Just in case.
And this is where we ran into trouble. We wanted someone who already had kids, because I don't want anyone for a second to regret "having" to take her. We didn't want to stifle anyone's youth, and we don't want Boogie raised as an only child either. But we also didn't want her to be placed with anyone who doesn't have legal status here, because not only would they not be guaranteed to take care of her, they also would not be legally able to manage any property we left her.
I was a hard choice, but we made it. And we asked my brother to be involved with her, as property guardian, but not her physical guardian.
And I thought he would be okay with that. I thought that he would feel relieved that we didn't ask him to be her guardian, but he was pissed. He said that if Me, P and Nonny couldn't take care of her, wouldn't he be the logical choice?
And I told him I was happy to hear he was willing to take her, but left it at that. Because we already signed and notarized the wills. Which might be screwed up, but how do you tell your brother that you don't want him to raise your child? Am I a bad person for saying that?
The truth is, I don't think he has the experience, patience, or desire for self-improvement to raise a little girl by himself. If he had his own kid, I may feel differently, but P and I agreed almost instantly that he was definitely not the one. I love my brother with all my heart, but he's too harsh, too judgemental, too stuck in his own ways to raise my daughter to be the kind of person I know she will be, with enough nurturing and compassionate direction. I know there would be no lack of love, he adores her, that is evident. But he and I don't see even close to eye to eye on parenting styles, and although I want him in her life, I don't want him to be the major influence on her growing up.
And I feel awful for saying this. But one of the things we had to face in writing our wills is that we had to put family ties, allegiances and friendships aside in order to decide the best alternative parents for her. And I feel good that we made the right decisions because there was hardly any discussion. We both already knew in our hearts who the best people for the job were, and I pray that there are no long-lasting grievances from this, but we had to do what we felt was best for our daughter, even if some people will not be very happy about it.
It's a huge relief to get this all out. I know people are going to be hurt, and I am so sorry, but when I became a mother, my priorities shifted and Boogie is all I am concerned about. We couldn't go against our instincts to preserve someone else's expectations, because if any situation in my life called for a firm resolution, this is it.
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