Another Well Intentioned Blog Draft Written...

...two three weeks ago. But alas, so much has happened that I felt strange to post how our Christmas went. Crazy how busy life gets when you've really got one (and a little one to care for). My goal of writing a post every 2 weeks is going to shambles, but for good reason! This is a long post. You've been warned.

Our Christmas was a particularly memorable one. How could it not be? It is our first Christmas as a family of three! Brooke was uncharacteristically fussy. That usually means a developmental leap is about to happen. Sure enough! She got her first tooth. Needless to say, she wasn't in a very happy mood so pictures and video chatting got put on the back burner. The day was all about making Brooke comfortable.

New Years was an event too. Neighbors bought a muñeco*  in the form of Batman and burned it.  Music was very loud, especially after midnight. Sleeping was not an option. Brooke had a very restless night, and therefore, I did too. Turns out tooth #2 was making an appearance. She now has her two bottom teeth. Exciting stuff!

We are now gearing up for the Pope making a visit later this month. It is rumored that over 1 million visitors are going to be arriving over the next couple of weeks in order to see him. Panama's population last year was right around 4 million. While a lot of people are hoping to see the Pope, Robert and I will not be one of them. Call us crazy, but that kind of traffic jam with adults is not fun. Add an infant and you're talking crazy talk.


Brooke is now 6 months old. She is sitting up unassisted and without having to use her hands to support herself. Sometimes she falls over, but it's usually to reach for a toy and not due to lack of balance. We were waiting for this to happen since we have the green light from her pediatrician to start feeding her fruits and veggies. Woohoo!

The building had a booster seat/high chair that has been floating around for people's visiting grand babies. Somebody had it and thought Brooke could use it. Talk about perfect timing! It was missing straps to secure to the chair. We bought straps that are used to secure surf boards to car roof tops to solve that problem. She takes a lot of interest in our food. Now she gets to see what the hype is!

So far she's only had bananas. She does not seem to be quite sure about what to think of them. Brooke will take a bite, make an "ugh" face, gum the banana, and then smile. Not too much gets spit out and she is eating more and more each day. It is all about exploring at this point, so she's right on track.

Brooke is slowly becoming more mobile too. She isn't crawling. However, she is rolling and inch worming her way around. She was off the rug shortly after this picture was taken. Time to really start baby proofing the house. Maybe we can stay ahead of what she finds...maybe??

That is about all for now. I feel like I have typed this sentence several times with this blog and more updates keep happening or something changes. Time to wrap up this post before I have to change it to "Brooke is now driving." Haha! Hope you're all doing well.

*Muñecos (aka Judas Dolls) that are a tradition specific to this area. They are paper mâché dolls that can be of anyone. They symbolize things that people want to get rid of or give well wishes to with the upcoming year. Muñecos are burned at midnight and may be filled with fireworks. Popular choices for who these resemble vary from year to year, but politicians are always a classic. This year Miss Panama, the first indigenous woman to get the title, was a popular one

A Thanksgiving/ Mother's Day to Remember

Really?! How was it that my last post was over a month ago? I promise, I had a draft of one. It just wasn't finished. Agh!  So here is the original post:

The great thing about living in an expat community is that you learn about cultures and traditions in other countries. Our first Thanksgiving consisted of people from 7 different countries celebrating a US holiday. How cool, right? This year's Thanksgiving Day (T-Day) was a bit more scaled down, but still very unforgettable. After all, how can you forget your baby's first round of holidays?

We had a potluck T-Day at a friend's house. This year 3 countries were represented: the United States, Canada, and Thailand. Robert did not make his famous pies; somebody else volunteered for that. Kind of a bummer, but it worked out since they are a bit time consuming to do. Instead, we made dressing, honey butter, and brought rolls.

It was interesting because Canada also has a Thanksgiving. It occurs in October and is about more of the harvest rather than the Pilgrims. Canadians say that this is a big day for people in the US compared to their version of the holiday. People in the States go all out and travel hours to see family. That sort of traveling tends to happen more on Christmas for Canadians.

Robert and I always have a lot to be thankful for. This year is no exception because we got to celebrate it with Brooke.

A Holiday Weekend and No Time Change

November is a busy month for Panama. Not only does it mark the time for snowbirds to come make their way down (snowbirds are people who live here during the winter), but it is also is when holidays begin. This weekend kicks off the holiday season.

Here is a list of the holidays this month:

Nov 2-Dia de los Muertos

Nov 3-Separation from Colombia Day. Gringos tend to call it an independence day, but it isn't. Panama was never ruled by Colombia

Nov 4-Flag Day

Nov 5-Colón Day. When the townspeople of Colón stopped Colombian troops from marching into Panama City (celebrated more in Colón than the rest of the country).

Nov 10-Shout to Villa de Los Santos. The start of the revolution against Spain

Nov 28-Independance from Spain

The explanations of these are fairly watered down, but I imagine you get the gist. Most of these are paid holidays as well. It is my understanding that Panamanians get something like 30 paid holidays each year, plus a month's vacation. Not bad, huh?

This weekend normally results in busy beaches filled with people and blasting music until wee hours of the morning (welcome to Panama). Not this weekend! It has been relatively rainy and kind of on the cold side, resulting in fewer people on the beaches. 

We went shopping a few days before the rush started. You have to otherwise lines rival Black Friday lines in the US. Buying milk and butter can result in you standing in a line for over 2 hours. Thanks, but no thanks.

Most of the world also changed their clocks today. Living in Arizona got me spoiled by not having to do this. Panama also does not change their clocks. How cool! We are now in the same timezone as the East Coast of the US, still 2 hours ahead of Arizona, and now 3 hours ahead of Pacific (Oregon/California) time. 

No pictures in this post. Kind of boring, I know. I have nothing to post! Robert and I have been hunkered inside. Take care and be safe!

Our First Halloween

Happy Halloween everyone! This year has been exciting in a lot of ways thanks to Brooke. Having an excuse to dress up is no exception. We got to celebrate Halloween for the first time as a family. Woohoo!

Panama does not celebrate the day. Trick-or-treating doesn't happen here. They celebrate Dia de los Muertos instead. This day is about celebrating and remembering loved ones that have died. Watch the Pixar movie, Coco, if you're curious. The movie is cute and it explains the holiday in a Disney/Pixar kind of way.

Okay, so no Halloween in Panama. Why did you dress up?

How could we not dress up Brooke on her first Halloween? There was a 5k/2k walk/run to raise money for a local swim team. Because it was on the 28th, participants were encouraged to dress up if they so chose. We used this as an excuse for a family costume (although it would probably have happened regardless). Neither Robert or I can really recall the last time we dressed up for Halloween; it's been at least 16 years for me.

For those who do not understand the reference...you're welcome by the way

Unfortunately, we ended up leaving before the 2k walk started. We waited over 30 minutes after our walk was supposed to start. It was hot and humid. Brooke was asleep so she didn't seem to mind it. However, we would have been done with the walk had it started on time. Looking for respite from the heat, we left. 

Surprisingly, Brooke wasn't the only baby there! It turns out there are other moms with littles in the area. The community isn't just a retirement community after all! It was kind of exciting. It was also nice to see friends and people I haven't seen since Brooke was born. 

As a side note/rant: please do not ever think you are entitled to see anyone else's baby. One woman (who I recognized but couldn't tell you where from) was overly insistent on seeing Brooke's face. Brooke was asleep and had her face buried in my shoulder. Any chance I can change my outfit from a mama shark to a mama bear? 

I get it. Babies are usually cute and draw a lot of attention. Don't be like that lady. Respect boundaries and know you are entitled to nothing when it comes to somebody else's child.

The event may not have worked out as planned. We ended up having a fun day. Dressing up as a family was fun. Looking forward to what we come up with next year. Have a great Halloween!

Sore Throats Throttle our Plans

Brooke had her 2 month wellness checkup a week ago. Naturally, there had to be a coughing kid. His caregivers are teaching that sharing is caring, because he cared enough to share it with some of us in the office, including us. How to the receptionists not get sick by the way? Also, please excuse any awful grammar mistakes.

Originally I thought I was not drinking enough water. I easily drink over 4 liters (a gallon) of water a day and it was morning when that little tickle started hitting. A bottle later, problem solved. Or so I thought! This illness has been a gradual onset for me with a sore throat. Robert has been a different story. He got hit hard and fast. Unfortunately for him, he couldn't take time off work so he has not had a chance to really rest.

I think Brooke is getting it too. Luckily my body is producing antibodies in my breast milk to help with whatever funk we all have. Work antibodies! Work! 

All this scrapped plans for an event I have been looking forward to for a while: taking Brooke swimming for the first time. The go ahead was given by her doctor at her 1 month wellness checkup, but those plans had to get postponed. The hurricane in the East Coast of the US gave us very strong waves, preventing us from taking Brooke out. Did I mention her pediatrician prefers us to take her out in the ocean versus a chlorinated pool?

This week seemed perfect now that the storm has died down and waves are nice and calm. It is with the exception of us being sick. We are not the only ones, however. It seems like there is a bug going around.

I am very fortunate that my symptoms are less severe than Robert's. Trying to clear your throat or cough quietly/gracefully in order to prevent from waking a sleeping baby on your chest, is a whole new ball game for me. I kind of have to chuckle about as I write this. Parenthood is everything I hoped for and more, in every aspect.

Things otherwise are good in Panama. Not a whole lot going on outside of the normal ebbs and flows.  Now if only we could get rid of our soar throats and head down to the beach! Hope all of you are doing well. Stay healthy!

Cloth Diapers, Milk, and Photos

I think it's safe to assume that our lives, especially mine as a nursing mother, has been centered around Brooke. Adjusting to parenthood is kind of a strange thing. Brooke gets what she wants, when she wants. She is great at communicating like that. We wouldn't have it any other way.

It is kind of strange to think that a small little being has so much power and control over your life. She is a great communicator if you pay attention. Hungry? Go to Mommy. Tired? Time to figure out what motion (bouncing, rocking, walking, a back rub) will help. Diaper change? Done!

It is amazing how fast she is growing though. Literally! While I cannot say for sure, I am confident that she has more than doubled her birth weight. She loves her dad, mom, and her milk! Her latest thing has been enjoying nursing while being bounced on an exercise ball. Being rocked on the exercise ball or having mommy doing crunches while nursing is also another thing Brooke loves. She however, does not like being nursing in a rocking chair. Although I don't blame her since her feet have to go through the little side bars of the arm rest. I don't like nursing her there anyways, so it is a mutual agreement. If this is not an indication that she is a great communicator, then I do not know what is.

The whole diapering thing has been an adventure. We originally intended to cloth diaper from the start. We have prefolds, covers, cloth wipes...the works. However, Brooke was born smaller than the intended prefold size since I opted out of the newborn size. She is ready to fit in them but now we are at the drawing board trying to figure out what we need to do to prevent the ever dreaded diaper rash.

In a cloth diaper

Disposables (sposies) have been used in the mean time. Those aren't cheap ya'll! We've spent about the same amount on sposies as we have our whole cloth diaper stash that is intended to last Brooke well into toddlerhood and could be used by other future littles! By the way, if you're keeping track, Brooke is not even 2 months old yet. I am also not fond of all the extra waste going into the landfill, but that is a different post.

People ask for pictures of Brooke all the time. If you're friends with me on Facebook then you know that I am not a big social media poster or that I post many photos. Brooke is no exception. I try to limit my screen time when she is awake. Sometimes she will be doing something adorable and cute that is "totally picture worthy." I found myself getting so caught up in trying to get the cutest photo that I missed out on what she was actually doing. Fast forward 5 or 6 photos later and I feel like my focus was on the wrong thing. But hey, at least I have a cute picture now. Right?

The other thing, to be quite frank, is I don't know who is seeing these pictures and what people are doing with them. I already have strange stories I could share, but that is for another time. Want to see her? Come visit! We'd love to see you.

A typical photo now a days so my focus is on her when she is awake

Becoming a parent has been an initiation by fire, for sure. It has been the best and hardest thing. Although she doesn't realize this, Brooke pushes me and makes me want to be a better person, not unlike Robert. Life is a little more crazy, and a little tiring. It's also a lot brighter and better. Life in Panama is good ya'll!

Our Baby Girl, Brooke

This post comes a month late but...We are officially parents! Brooke was born on 16 July in the evening and weighed 5lbs 12oz. She is healthy and was a full time baby. Robert and I are head over heels with her and all her tiny preciousness. Here are some of the details you may or may not be curious regarding her birth. People have asked for these details though so here ya go...

My water broke Sunday evening while I was making dinner. Time to head to the hospital! Ironically enough, we still hit a little traffic with people heading home from the beaches area. Luckily it cleared up before we got to the city, and wasn't as bad as Monday rush hour traffic. I was not experiencing contractions at this point.

The doctor gave me 12 hours to go into labor without being induced. Robert and I both took naps. Word of advice: bring a blanket for dads/support people who are in the laboring room. Those rooms get cold!

No progress after 12 hours, so I got induced. Small contractions finally started happening. I eventually got the contractions but was not dilating. I was given medicine to help with dilation. It did not work. My ever clever doctor had some techniques up her sleeve. The baby was not in distress so my natural birth plan carried on.

Labor slowly progressed. My exercise ball and Robert were game changers. The initial birth plan was to go without an epidural. The words finally came from my doctor, "let's get you to the delivery room." Sweet Jesus, it's almost over with! By this point I was in a windowless room dealing with waves of contractions. I was ready to meet our baby.

People have asked how long I was pushing. They ask how long I was in labor. I do not know since I had no time reference. What I do know is that my doctor, the pediatrician, the laboring staff, and Robert were huge supports. They helped me do what I needed in order for us to become parents and without an epidural. I also know that Brooke immediately gave both of us an indescribable sense of joy and elation.