Baby's First Nap

Well, yesterday (March 24, my blogger app is apparently not publishing) Caroline hit 6 weeks.  Poor girl still has some tummy troubles but is doing much better than the first 5 weeks.  We've tried a dozen things and we're not sure which is working but at least something is.  She went from 4 weeks of crying all day to 2 weeks of being consolable if held and rocked (but we couldn't put her down).  Yesterday she took her first nap lying down on her own!!!

Oddly enough, rather than relief, I felt kinda sad.  Though it wasn't by choice, holding her 12+ hours a day helped me get to know her really well and understand how much she was reliant on me and Mike.  She'll just keep getting bigger and bigger till she won't even fit on my lap, much less want to be held.

Well, she has been really squirmy and has needed me to hold her for the past 1/2 hour.  Guess it's a little too early to get nostalgic!  :)

One Month

We survived the first month!  And when I say "we," I mean Mike and I AND Caroline.  Poor girl has had a rough go, some serious stomach discomfort about 24/7.  My heart melts when she looks at me with those sad eyes that say "I'm TRYING to tell you what's wrong, why can't you understand me?"

Although it has been a difficult month, when I say "we survived," I really feel like our little family has had to be a team, which will hopefully be a sweet memory to look back on in the future.  I'd like to remember the countless wonderful meals Mike has made me (y'all seriously need to try his meatloaf, outta this world).  I'll remember the few quiet moments we've had with Caroline, when she made a silly face or fell asleep exhausted in our arms.

And I'll remember how funny it seemed to my sleep deprived brain when we were checking out at the pediatrician's office, the baby screaming, and the lady at the desk said knowingly "Oh, she's had her shots today!"  "No," and I thought to myself laughing, "now I know we have had a rough time if her modus operandi is what other babies reserve for getting shots." I felt strangely validated and Mike and I had a good laugh.

Caroline is a healthy eater, growing well, and we have a very attentive pediatrician's office we're working with, right across the street.  But please forgive the shortage of pictures, texts, phone calls, and blog posts.  We'll get there!  Team Ritchie is on the up and up!

One Month on March 10th

Selfie :)

Introducing.....

Caroline Mackenzie Ritchie

Born February 10, 2014

8 lbs 1 oz 

20 inches long

We're all doing great so far!  Mike and I are actually getting quite a bit of sleep (she's sleeping well, and big thanks to my mom for spelling us off for naps during the day).  It seems, however, that no amount of sleep can make up for the mental exhaustion of trying to figure out what your baby needs.  We're learning a lot, but she is a fun and beautiful baby.

Sorry for the short post, but I'm typing on my phone with one thumb, as the other has been claimed in Caroline's mourh's death grip.

 

November, December, and half of January

OK, we have to cover a lot in this post, so I'm going for bullet points:

• We spent November and December trying to ensure we have checked everything off our "Argentina" list (we'll finish up there May 1st).  
• We finally found a Thai restaurant that surpassed Mike's expectations (the curry was so hot, he was sweating and tearing up, PERFECT).
• We went to the botanical gardens down the street from our apartment (sometimes it's easier to get to know Patagonia than your own backyard).  The highlight of the gardens was the Mate bush section.
• We ate some great seafood at the Fisherman's Club restaurant, El Muelle, right on the Rio de la Plata.
• We had Mike's cousin, his wife, and little boy with us for Thanksgiving.  Thank goodness they handled the turkey, it turned out amazing.  I made my Dad's sweet potato casserole (I actually don't know if it's like how Dad does it, I just know that neither of us use a recipe).  I also made my Mom's homemade rolls.  
• It was fun seeing the sights with our cousins -- we revisted Recoleta Cemetery where Evita is buried, and ate some of our favorite Argentine foods (namely pizza, empanadas, and ice cream :)
• We headed to the U.S. at the end of December, and had a great Christmas with Mike's family in Rocky Point, Mexico (on the Sea of Cortez).  
• Our nieces handled Christmas like champs -- sharing toys (the coveted one was a plastic Disney Cars key chain that made noise), making us laugh, painting my face, and eating more vegetables than I think I've ever eaten in one sitting.  The youngest took a real liking to Mike, jumping on his lap whenever he sat down in the living room, and gabbing away at him. 
• Mike grilled up some Choripan for everyone to try (chorizo sausage on a nice toasted bun with chimichurri sauce).
• Mike's parents know how much we like Mexican food, and gave us ample opportunities to get our fill (LOVE the fish tacos down there).
• We also spent some time in Phoenix, saw some friends and family, and Mike surprised me with a visit to the botanical gardens with a fantastic Christmas light display, and tickets to the Phoenix Boys Choir concert (my favorite part was when Mike said, "That guy has been in the alumni choir since I was in the boys choir!).
• Our next stop was VA, to see my family.  
• We had Christmas round two (which worked out, because Kristi missed round one, as she was sick).
• We went to see the lights at the LDS Temple Visitor's Center, and got to see the new display with Mike's Grandpa's architectural model from when he was designing the temple back in the 70's. 
• We relaxed, got our fill of Taco Bell and other American specialties, and Mike headed back to Argentina and to work.
• Since then.....
• It has been freezing in VA (or below freezing).
• Mike has been melting in Argentina (heat indices well above 100F)
• We've been checking things off our getting-ready-for-baby list!

As you can see from the above list, we have been very busy.  My lack of blogging really stems more from that than from not feeling well.  I have had some issues with low blood pressure and poor circulation, and getting out and moving and doing things has helped (as well as yoga and the Atkins diet, weirdly enough).  I am 4 weeks from my due date, and still feeling great.  I do understand why women complain about feeling big, though I tend to forget that I am until I run into something (sorry, baby).  

PINK!

Well, we're having a girl!  February 10th is still our date, and the plan is for me to have the baby near my parents in the DC area.  Sorry for the lack of blogging, my mom says people will think I've been on bed rest, but to the contrary -- we have been so busy because I feel so great!

In other PINK news, I recently did a women's 5K here in Buenos Aires.  I'm really glad my friend Megan decided to come along and walk with me, because the other 12,000 motivated ladies left us in the dust!  It was really fun to get to know the racing culture here in Argentina.  My Grandpa Epps has run dozens of marathons, and I tried to stick to his rules as best I could (which meant I stuck out a little bit :)  I did NOT wear the race shirt until after I finished the race, but I only saw one or two other girls who didn't wear theirs.  At least I wore pink, I was afraid they were going to kick me out.

Speaking of getting kicked out, let me tell you a little about being pregnant in Argentina.  When we went to pick up our race packets a few days before, I was terrified they weren't going to let me participate in the race because I was pregnant.  There were all these notices on the website about how each runner had to bring a doctor's certification etc etc.  So, when we were standing in line, I tried to wrap my sweater around myself and hunch over so they wouldn't notice my belly.  Ha, yeah right.  They spotted me, and immediately moved me to the front of the line.

Being pregnant here has taken some getting used to -- the Argentines are very forceful about "You shouldn't be standing/You shouldn't be carrying that/You shouldn't be bending over."  I get yelled at several times a week for something I'm doing wrong.  I was waiting in line at the airport once, and an entire family behind me started pushing me towards the front of the line, "Pregnant women NEVER wait in line!" I tried to explain them that I couldn't go to the front of the line because I was waiting for my husband to buy me a bottle of water, but they just kept whispering to themselves about how pregnant women should never have to wait in line.  It was kind of funny.  I also got yelled at on the city bus when I got on by myself and stood by the front for a few minutes because all the seats were full (the bus was completely packed).  That time I cried, the scolding always surprises me, and I'm so shy about parading myself around like "Give me priority, I AM PREGNANT!" especially when I'm feeling so good.

Megan hosted a baby shower for me this past weekend, and it was so much fun!  Another friend Tanya helped out, and they really went above and beyond.  Salmon mousse on cucumbers and pink and purple macaroons, fun games and good company.  One of the ladies made a diaper cake (see below) with little finger puppets on top, which I love (and will use!).  Thanks for reading, more later!

Baby and Bariloche!

Well, the big news first -- Mike and I are expecting a baby in February!  I'm about 15 weeks along now, feeling great now that the first trimester is done.  I highly recommend spending your first trimester working in Mexico where no one knows that you don't usually go to bed at 8:30 every night, and where you can stay in a hotel and don't have to cook anything or deal with kitchen smells making you nauseous. And though I was glad Mike didn't have to suffer my continual moaning and complaining (amazing how you don't complain when there's no one to complain to!), I sure did miss him.  Due to a bureaucratic technicality, he couldn't come visit me in Mexico after all, so he went straight to the US to hang out with my family a couple days before I got there.  We loved spending time with them, and loved celebrating the big news with lots of hugs and smiles.

Although I'll likely give birth in the US near my family, in the meantime we are having the unique experience of going to all our pre-natal medical appointments in another country.  We are really lucky to have a great embassy doctor who meets with us before and after our local obstetrician appointments to make sure we aren't completely lost.  Although we could technically speak English to the doctors at our local appointments, the staff speaks Spanish and the doctors tend to slip into Spanish too.  The real miscommunications happen I think because of a cultural gap -- they're not really sure what to say to us because we're foreigners and we're not really sure what to ask (since it's our first time).

For example, at our first ultrasound appointment, the doctors were so focused on one particular measurement (which is actually the purpose of that whole appointment, come to find out later), that we had to shout out things like "Um, is there a heartbeat!?"  "Of course there is!"  Then they'd say something like "Good grief, I wish the baby would put those hands down."  "Oh, he has hands!?"

At the end I asked if the baby had legs, and the answer was affirmative.  So far so good :)  All my test results have come back normal so far.

Right around 6-7 weeks, we took a trip to a beautiful part of Argentina called Bariloche.  Mike made reservations for us at the finest lodge in the area (see below).  Unfortunately, I wanted to spend most of our time curled up in bed at the hotel room.  I was able to muster enough energy to check out the town, try the local chocolate and fondue (they go for the Swiss Alps experience there), take a tram up the mountain to have hot chocolate in a rotating restaurant with panoramic views, and I learned from Mike how to walk in the snow (missionaries in Siberia have to learn that first thing, dig your heels in the ice so you don't slip and break your back).  Thanks to Mike's patience and great planning, the trip turned out really well.  Absolutely breathtaking views.

Hello from Mexico!

Hola amigos!  I decided I needed to blog because I love reading all of y'all's blogs SO much, that when you don't post, I go crazy.  I really do, no sarcasm in the ethernet here.  Yet I'm usually even MORE guilty of never posting, so here you go.

I am on a month-long assignment in Monterrey, Mexico, doing tourist visa interviews as they're a few officers short.  Mike is busy running the American Citizen Services section in BA, so he couldn't come with -- he'll join me for a few days at the end.  I'm not sure he's going to enjoy it.  He's going to want to see the sights, and I'm going to want to show him all the dorky little things I've been doing for a month, like walking around the mall next door eating frozen yogurt and watching awesome 90's music videos at the take-out sushi place while I wait for my order. Though I DO think he'll let me take him to my favorite tiny hole-in-the-wall lunch place for tacos, pan de elote, and horchata. 

Now you've got me talking about Mike -- I really love working in the same office as him because when I get any little case that I find interesting, I can tell him all about it.  Or, if I see some cool clouds outside or something, I can show him (I don't think I've actually done this, I'm just trying to think of examples).  You know, the little things.  I probably drive him crazy.  But now that I talk to him just once a day, I can't cram in all the little things I've been thinking to tell him all day (I had this problem when we were doing long distance back a couple years ago).  Our conversations now go like this:

Mike: "Well?"
Me:  "I had at least 40 things to tell you and now I can't remember any of them."
Mike: "OK......."


I have told him how beautiful Monterrey is and how great the food is.  Though that almost goes without saying; I'm in MEXICO. 

And here is a random picture I took to prove I've been here.  More later.