Adjustments

After moving to Singapore (for the 2nd time), there have been major adjustments we've gone through while we've been here. From adjusting to the hot climate, being a little homesick, Jason's busy travel schedule to making new friends, things around here are a lot different than they used to be.

One major change that we have here though is that we have a live-in helper (maid). Here in Singapore, most expats have them, as labor is so cheap here. I had gone back and forth debating whether or not we wanted one but we both agreed that it would be beneficial to our quality of life here. Most helpers are nannies too but I decided that I want to be Olivia's main caregiver (shocking, I know). Besides watching Olivia nap while I go to the gym and babysitting after she goes to sleep so Jason and I can have date nights every now and then, N's primary job is to do all the housework and cooking. I was a bit apprehensive in the beginning because I wasn't sure how it would go having someone else in our house and in our space. I must say that I am very thankful that we live in a 4 story townhouse. N has her own room and bathroom in the basement and doesn't come up to levels 2 and 3 until we are up. She is also very good at being a ninja and sometimes I don't even realize she is around. I am very thankful to have her, especially when Jason is away. Now it is much less likely that I will call 911 (or 999… whatever) because I think someone is breaking into the house (which may or may not have happened a couple of times when we were back in the US…haha) and I just feel much more secure while he is away… which seems to happen more and more frequently. N has been working with us for over a month now and I must say it is an absolute dream. I am enjoying it way more than I thought I would (or should). I guess I never noticed how much time went into keeping up a house because I had to do it. Now instead of having to cook or clean, I spend that time playing with Olivia and I get to be the hands-on Mom I've always dreamed of. Also, I find that I actually enjoy cooking more because I don't do it because I have to, I do it because I want to. Spoiled? Probably but I consider it a perk from being so far away from my family and friends back home. It's not like my Mom can just pop by anytime to watch Livi for us like the good ol' days. And let's be honest, every mom needs a break every now and then. I must also mention that Livi LOVES her, to the point where I have actually become jealous a time or two. I have to remind myself that I want Olivia to feel as loved and happy as humanly possible. And it helps that when she falls down, she calls for me. ;)

I originally wasn't going to mention that we had help in my blog (in fact a couple of women I know actually advised me against it) but to me it would be lying by omission and as I've said time and time again, I want this blog to be real. Plus, now you will know where Olivia is while we are scuba diving. ;) 

P.S. The whole helper thing is hard to comprehend unless you live here and realize how common it really is. In fact when we lived here the first time, no one could understand why we didn't have one even though back then it was just the two of us. 

Hiatus

As you may (or may not) have noticed, I took a bit of a hiatus from my blog. I could easily say it is because I've been busy with the baby, or that we've been away on holiday or that we are just beginning to settle into our new home in Singapore. But since day one I have always said that this blog is an honest representation of my (our) lives and I fully intend to keep it that way. It is the REAL life of an expat wife, after all. So this is really why I have really taken a break…

I have come to a bit of a crossroads while writing this blog. I have come to the realization that it is way more public than I thought it would become. Several people have googled my name and this blog has come up on the search. Although flattering, it also makes me realize that what I write has an impact on all those around me who are apart of my life. That is a lot of pressure, especially because I don't want to sugarcoat things or hurt anyones feelings with any of my opinions in the process. And this blog is just that, my opinion and my take on my life and experiences. This blog is a representation of my feelings and life in the moment, not what others "think" I should say or feel. I guess maybe I need to write a fine print on my home page because it is never my intention to hurt anyones feelings with my writings (or lack thereof). Nothing in particular happened to come to this epiphany. I just feel an overwhelming sense of responsibility because I am friends with people from all over the world, in all different cultures, and don't want anyone to have hurt feelings. So why don't I just keep this blog private? Well, I believe that some of our experiences would be beneficial to more people than just my friends- to the common traveler.

I have also found that I miss my writing. It is so hard for people to stay caught up with our lives back "home" because I don't have the luxury to call my friends or family for a quick chat to catch them up with what is going on in our lives. And I also miss how much a stress reliever it had become.

So here I am, back at the drawing board. I have so much to say and I'm not sure where to start so please bear with me. The next few posts may not be in order but I am going to try to stop being a perfectionist and just write.

More to come soon…

xx

Livi's First Trip To The ER, Aussie Style

Well, Livi decided that we didn't quite see ALL of Sydney while we've been here. We can now cross off the Sydney Children's Hospital, which never did make my list in the first place. My poor little bug caught a bug and off to the ER we went last night. And of course Jason is in China for work so it was just the two of us.

Here's how it all started:

Yesterday Olivia wasn't quite acting herself. I have been feeding her solids little by little and yesterday I gave her pears. She loved them! She ate a lot. Later that afternoon, Livi didn't drink much formula but I chucked it up to the fact that she must be full from the pears. Late in the afternoon, I decided to go for a run with my new City Jogger stroller (we got a new one since Delta damaged our Maxi Cosi). While running, Olivia was whining so I pulled to the side and just as I bent down to see what was wrong, my poor baby threw up EVERYWHERE. I didn't even attempt to clean it because it was all over her, the stroller, her stroller seat pad and her toy. I did what any wonderful mother would do and I covered it all with a blanket so no one would notice and hightailed it back to the hotel.

By the time we got back I figured she was feeling better because she fell asleep on the way home. Once we got to our room, I stripped and bathed Olivia and let her play. Then I cleaned the stroller and toy and threw her seat pad in the wash. After I was done cleaning everything up, I went to feed Olivia her afternoon bottle. Poor thing immediately puked what little formula she did take down. At this point I still figured she was full from earlier today and thought that maybe she was bounced around while I was running and it upset her tummy. That lead to bath number 2 for my sweet girl. After bathing her, I took a shower. I started to play with Olivia and an hour later I decided to try a bottle again. You guessed it… puke everywhere and bath number 3 for my baby. Now I really started to become concerned. I know babies can dehydrate easily and at this point it had been several hours since she kept anything down. I waited a couple more hours and decided to try once more. She drank maybe 2 ounces and then threw it up EVERYWHERE, which lead to bath number 4 for Livi and shower number 2 for me (and a whole lot of laundry and cleaning). After a minor freakout (sorry Jason!), I went to the reception desk and asked about an after hours doctor. I called the number and was referred to an advice line. When I told the nurse what had happened and about the lack of wet diapers the whole day, she told me to go to the ER- so off we went.

We arrived at the ER at 10:30pm and it was packed. The nurse told me that it could be a couple of hours. There were 10 people ahead of me. Had I known that it would actually take 6 hours (just in the waiting room!), I probably would have just gone home. While waiting, I did manage to feed Olivia 4 ounces over a 3 hr period (which is better than nothing). When we finally got taken back, they basically told me that she wasn't dehydrated yet and that they thought it was the flu but that they wanted to take a urine sample to be sure it wasn't a urinary tract infection. We were given a room and I was told I had to catch Olivia's pee in a cup. Mind you, it was now 4:30am, this poor kid hardly drank anything since early afternoon and didn't have any wet diapers since then. I was thinking "fat chance" but held my tongue. I started to feed Olivia while waiting for her to pee. After about 45 minutes, I finally caught some. I was so proud! The doctor (who by the way looked like Doogie Howser) came back and said that the urinalysis came back with white blood cells and that they wanted to get another sample using a catheter to make sure the urine wasn't contaminated by skin cells or anything, which they say happens frequently with little girls. Why they didn't just do that from the beginning, I'm not sure. It would have saved over an hour but oh well. Anyhow, the second urinalysis came back negative and after all that waiting, they told us that we needed to come back at 2pm for a regular doctor appointment. We left at 6:30am. Ridiculous!!

We got home at 7am and I put my PJs on and we both slept until 12pm, thank goodness. We went to the doctor at 2pm and she told us that Livi did in fact have the flu but that it was probably just the 24 hour bug. By that time, it had already been 24 hours and Olivia was on the mend and had already held down a couple of bottles. So basically we went to the ER for 8 hours for nothing and then to the doctor for 1 hour just for them to tell us she should start feeling better.

Needless to say, it was quite an exhausting adventure. And one expensive hospital bracelet for her memory book. ;) I'm not exactly sure why I am not sleeping right now. The good news out of all of this is that Olivia is starting to feel better and still went to sleep in her crib tonight without hardly crying at all. I just hope my sweet baby is back to her usual self tomorrow.

And now I'm off to bed. G'night. xx

Taronga Zoo

Our first weekend in Sydney, Jason, Olivia and I made our way to the Taronga Zoo. Ever since Jason and I began traveling we have always made a point to visit the zoo in whatever city we are in (if there is one, that is). I must say, the Taronga Zoo has by far the best view of all the zoos we have been to.

In order to get to the zoo, you have to take a ferry. It is right on the water overlooking the Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The water is so so blue and the view was just spectacular!! Of course by the time we got to the sky safari it was overcast and we didn't get very good pictures. Oh well, I guess we will have to go back. ;)

My favorite parts of our day were the seal show (I just love any kind of water show!) and the sky safari. Olivia actually paid attention during both so I think it's safe to say that she loved them too! I highly recommend a visit if you are ever in Sydney. 

Here are some pictures of our day:

Can't wait to go back when Olivia is a bit older! xx

Happy 5 Months, Livi!

I still can't believe Livi is already 5 months old! Where is the time going and how do I make it stop?! We had a lovely day walking around Bondi Beach and having a mini photo shoot. Here are some of my favorite pictures from yesterday.

For those of you who ask how we travel without all of our baby stuff, this is how I feed Livi. Thank goodness she is good and doesn't move around too much. Except when she is eating her toes… apparently they taste just as good as her sweet potato, carrot and apple combo. 

Here's what Olivia has/can do so far:
~2 teeth
~sits up
~rolls over both ways
~recognizes her name
~eats baby food
~splashes and plays in the bath
~found her feet
~tries to crawl (unsuccessfully so far!)… who knows, maybe this will be the month ;)

Slow down, sweet girl! You are growing to fast!!

And another month bites the dust…

xx

Rawr ;)

Looks who has two little teeth. They started to come in a several weeks ago but are really starting to show. Now when Livi smiles you see them, which is pretty much all the time. :)

Between her little teeth and growling herself to sleep (a strange way to comfort herself if you ask me!), I think her theme song should be Roar by Katy Perry. 

I just love this little girl!! :) 

xx

G'day Mate!

We have made it to Australia and have settled in nicely in our cozy little hotel apartment on Bondi Beach. I just love it here!! I'm still wondering why I didn't ask if Australia was a choice for our relocation. Oh well. ((kicking myself))

When we first arrived, we stayed in Sydney in Darling Harbour for a few days before relocating to the beach. I think I sold the idea when I told Jason that besides seeing all of the sights (which I have already seen the last few times we've been here) the only thing to do with the baby was to go shopping. ;)

Olivia and I have enjoyed our lazy beach bum days. We haven't actually been ON the beach but looking at it all week from the grassy area has been good enough for me. It is spring here in Sydney and the weather has been a bit nutty. It was gorgeous when we first arrived. Late last week it was extremely windy (55mph+)- the stroller almost got taken away in the wind (twice) and then I decided it was probably best to stay in for the day. It's mostly been in the lower 70s and very windy but this weekend was gorgeous and in the 80s.

So far we have walked around Sydney, explored Manly Beach, we went to the Sydney Zoo (amazing views!!), and have been wandering around Bondi ever since. This weekend we went on an 8 mile hike from Bondi beach to Coogee beach and back. It was gorgeous!

Now that we are settled, I'll make sure to write a lot and post about each little adventure so STAY TUNED!!

Cheers!! xx