International Women's Day

My experience today was especially fitting for today, International Women's Day.

The day was going ok. I went to class, took the baby to a doctor's appointment and then spent the day playing. Our usual playmates were sick so in the afternoon, we went to visit our neighbor. Some of our friends were over and it was time for me to head home and bathe and feed my son. As we walked out the door, I accidentally slammed his tiny fingers in the door!!! It caught his hand right at the door hinges and he started wailing. We all ran to comfort him and tears immediately filled my eyes. I felt sooooo bad!! He calmed down as soon as the pain was gone but I was a different story. I felt awful for causing my son pain  and was trying so hard to stop my tears in front of everyone but was having trouble. The women began sharing stories of times they accidentally hurt their children (or other people's children) and the tears turned into laughter. My neighbor later came to check on me and I was reminded of all the women in my life who have been (and are still) mentors, teachers and most importantly, friends to me in the most meaningful ways.

I think about my junior high and high school voice and choir teacher who pushed me towards excellence even when it was so hard. My lifelong besties who I could share everything with and who stuck by me when I was growing into the adult I would become. The amazing women I worked with who managed life and work with confidence and ease. The women who became wives and mothers around the same time as me who walk through the challenges of marriage and motherhood with me each day. My life coach who is my cheerleader (and friend) who has helped me achieve healing from past pain and continues to push me towards achieving my goals. The women who have adopted me overseas (my true extended family) who are incredible mothers and friends and help me navigate through the muddy waters of living in different cultures while establishing my home and family. My mother, sister, grandmothers, aunties and mother-in-law who are a constant support system and are always there for me through good and bad. The women of faith who pray for me and my family as we face challenges and are blessed.

All the women I know have overcome challenges and are moving through their lives with grace and gusto. Today I am especially thankful to have them as examples of faith, hope and strength. I know that when you look at the women in your life you will say the same.

To all the women I know, thank you for being such an integral part of my life and helping shape who I am. I am thankful for you and celebrate you today.

A Little Complaining Goes A Long Way

Michael and I got engaged Labor Day weekend in 2008. At that point, I assumed I would move to Austin, TX where Michael was working and owned a house. We decided we'd get married on Valentine's Day 2009 since it fell on a Saturday that year. It wasn't long after that Michael was offered a job in Singapore and was scheduled to start working there in January 2009. So, to handle all the official business of name changing and what not, we had a small legal ceremony November 14, 2008 and by the end of December we had chosen our home in Singapore and were preparing for our life overseas.

I didn't think too much about how drastically my life would change. My hubby worked long hours in Texas but only traveled twice a year and was usually home by 6 or 7pm. Completely manageable. His new job, however, required 50% travel and crazy long working hours. I was unprepared for the amount of time I would spend alone in my new home. Having left a job I loved to become a stay at home wife and having so much time to myself was a major adjustment. I needed to find ways to occupy my time that were meaningful to me while trying to navigate a new culture. I also had to learn a true respect and acceptance of my husband's working hours and work happily with the time we did have together instead of with an attitude of "it's not enough". This took some serious thought and effort on my part and the first year was very tough for me emotionally. Eventually, I was able to strike a good balance and a good attitude about the whole thing (mostly).

When we moved to Switzerland, I thought I knew what to expect. I was 7 months pregnant and extremely focused on our impending arrival. I figured Michael would work the same hours and be gone just as much but I had a bundle of joy to tend to so it was all good. What I didn't anticipate was the amount of time my friends would be gone in Basel. People are allotted a lot of vacation time in Switzerland so I found that there would be weeks where everyone left town (including my hubby on business trips) for a few weeks except me!! In Singapore it was ok because I could leave too. I could travel with my hubby or do my own thing no problem. But now I had a baby and couldn't just leave at the drop of a hat.

I would mention this to my husband, how much I hated being left alone with the baby while everyone else was on vacation and he was traveling. After a while, it turned into down right complaining and as we were approaching the first long holiday of the year I'm sure it was worse (OK, I know it was worse). Finally he said, "well, plan a vacation and we'll go too." YAY!!!!!!!!!!! So, all that long story to say, this is how we ended up in Morocco this week.

As our week here comes to a close, I was just thinking about all this and how thankful I am that we are here together and I'm not home alone with my precious son missing my friends and husband and wishing we were somewhere else. It only took me 18 months in Switzerland to figure out how to better strategically plan our vacation time but as I'm learning on this expat journey, learning things takes time and that process is not always easy.

I hate to get gushy on everybody but today I am so thankful for my husband who is so dedicated to his work but also 110% dedicated to his family. He has a lot on his plate to balance and does it with love and ease. I am also thankful for my son who is an amazing explorer and adventurer. He has enhanced my life in ways I never thought possible. I know when things aren't easy, I can think on these memories we've made this week and remember how truly blessed I am.

Morocco, we will miss you. Switzerland, I hope you've warmed up at least a little you chilly country you.

Thoughts About Vacation

The word vacation has taken a dramatic shift for me in the last 16 months. It used to mean laying around all day, exploring, hiking, shopping and doing whatever I wanted on that particular day. It also meant having a suitcase 100% dedicated to my things like numerous pairs of shoes, makeup, cute clothes for any type of weather and maybe some things for entertainment like a book and my computer. I also thought (depending on the location) that maybe I could get some kind of a tan.

This trip to Morocco has magnified what was and what is now and they are so different. The first major difference is packing. We traveled a lot last year but mostly to the US and places in Europe. Our major trip was to Greece but the baby was barely crawling so we could still kind of lay around. The climate in Greece was also very warm, so there was no guess work in what to bring (shorts and t-shirts and some swim diapers). This trip we were in the city and now at the seaside, a temperature shift of about 15 degrees. It's made having the right clothes (and enough of them) a challenge (not to mention we were in full winter mode in Switzerland). Also, we flew on Easy Jet (the only direct way to get from Basel to Marrakech), which is a budget airline (much like Southwest) except you have to pay for the amount of luggage you bring. You'd think a baby, being a smaller person, would need less luggage space but it is completely the opposite. He needs a 100 more things than any adult would require like diapers, wipes, pacifiers, all types of baby medications in case he gets a fever or has diaper rash, toys, and the list goes on.  Packing for this trip was definitely a challenge.

A small sampling of Mickey's clothes

Just a few baby necessities 

The next major difference has been the way we enjoy where we are staying. We are currently in a lovely 2 bedroom villa overlooking the ocean. We have a private pool (which is a bit too chilly to swim in) and the doors to our place open all the way. Normally I would have these doors wide open but since the pool starts right at these doors, they must remain closed. Our baby WILL fall in. We have to keep most things out of his little baby grasp (like the phones, drinking glasses, remote controls) and attempt to make sure he's not destroying anything that doesn't belong to us (sometimes that is a real challenge). 16 months is a great age but Mickey is into everything!

If only they'd open these doors!

Another hurtle to this trip is that we can't drink the water. This is challenging for adults and adding the baby into the mix makes it a bit stressful. We have to do all the bottle washing and formula mixing with bottled water (although he drinks regular milk now, we brought formula in case milk wasn't readily available and it hasn't been so I'm glad we did!). We also have to do a lot of distracting tactics in the bath tub to get him not to drink the water. It sounds crazy but it's something we have to watch out for.

The last major difference is there is no longer flexibility to our vacation schedule. Our little guy wakes up, takes naps, eats and goes to bed on cue. This makes sleeping in, eating whenever you're hungry and   enjoying your time late into the night almost impossible (sleeping in? What's that?). There are times I really miss those things.

On the flip side...we have a very patient baby most of the time and he's rolled with the punches on this trip. He's eaten a lot of strange food at random times, napped in cars and charmed the pants off all of the strangers we've met along the way. He even slept until 7am today! So, things are definitely different but I wouldn't change it for anything. Life has changed for the better by adding our little Mickey to the mix. Things as we knew it will never be the same, vacations and all.

Now that I've shared a little bit about how I used to and am now vacationing, here's a glimpse into how Mickey likes to vacation:

Reading "Brown Bear" over and over (with sound effects)

Exploring cabinets

Climbing in and out of cabinets to hide toys

Cartoon watching

Deciding what to eat from the room service menu

And after all the fun has been had, the only thing left is a much-needed nap...