Seriously?!

April 11, 2013

Dear Mother Nature,

Not cool.

xo,
a.

Weekend Bits

I can't begin to describe how wonderful this weekend was - having Annie and my parents here was simply the best. There was a lot of lounging at home with the bug, and walks in the sunshine. There were a lot of laughs and a lot of jokes. There were old stories remembered and happy memories made. There were cocktails and wine, crackers and cheese. There was take-out, eating-out, and home-cooking. There was so much happiness, and so much love.

I got a new camera from my parents (a belated Christmas present), so I spent the weekend taking a million pictures... here's just a few:

We're looking forward to a quiet week, and hoping Auntie Annie and my folks come back soon. We miss you already! Especially Ina...

poor bug.

The Girls

Yesterday morning, everyone's favorite Auntie Annie arrived in Toronto for a fun-filled girls (+Didz) weekend. She and Ina instantly became best friends, and we've been having so much fun catching up, chatting, shopping, eating and drinking. We spent the day yesterday cruising Queen West with my mom, who arrived Tuesday. We stopped for lunch at the Drake Hotel, where we had cocktails (the Cucumber Smash was the big winner) and fish tacos and killer mac + cheese. I'm so happy to have my two favorite ladies around, and Ina is spoiled by all the love and attention (and gifts!)...

Lucky for Didz, my dad arrived this morning. The two of them just went out to lunch together... which means we might never see them again. In a few hours I'll start calling every bar in the neighborhood, asking the bartenders to be on the lookout... Let's all hope they make it back in time for dinner.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Easter Weekend Bits

On Easter Sunday, we gathered with Didz's extended family for a big family reunion brunch. It was nice catching up with his family, and showing off our little Easter Bunny. In a rather hectic car-packing, baby-dressing, coat-finding attempt to get out the door in time, I forgot to grab the camera. So I don't have any photos of the amazing brunch spread GrandmaDidz prepared, or the sweet smiles Ina gave her aunts and uncles (or the few tears when the big crowd was too much to handle).

Easter brunch was wonderful, but to be honest, the highlight of the weekend was Friday afternoon. We invited Didz's sister, brother and his girlfriend over to hang out for a few hours. We had a few drinks, and a few laughs. Ina got smothered with attention and love from her aunts and uncle, and it was so great spending that time together in a small group setting - big family gatherings can get pretty overwhelming for the little bug.

The other highlight was the massive, out of control, awesome breakfast burritos Didz made Easter morning (before the massive brunch). It doesn't look like much from the photo, but once it was rolled up it was bigger than my face:

This will be a busy, fun-filled week beginning with my mama's arrival tomorrow morning... So much goodness to look forward to! I hope you had a great weekend filled with chocolate bunnies and joy. Have a great week!

Weekend Bits

This weekend was packed with friends, family, food (and a lot of wine). An old friend from my childhood summer camp days decided, at the last minute, to drive up from Cleveland to see us. He and I spent Saturday morning sampling Farmers Market fare at Evergreen Brick Works - an old brickyard that's been restored and converted to a "community environmental center that inspires and equips visitors to live, work and play more sustainably". In the afternoon, we celebrated Ina's grandmother's birthday over lunch with the family. That evening, we invited a few friends over for a pizza making party, where we utilized ingredients from the farmers market including lamb sausage, roasted garlic, salami, mushrooms, tomatoes, basil... and more. We stayed up late eating and drinking and catching up.

Here's a peek, if you'd like to see:

I hope the springtime has found you, wherever you are... I'm finally feeling hopeful that winter is behind us. Have a wonderful week!

5 Months

Dear Didzette,

Between all the packing and moving and traveling and adjusting and unpacking and all the rest of the hullaballoo lately we nearly forgot to acknowledge that you're five months old today! You've been such a trooper during this hectic transition - smiling at flight attendants and strangers in airports, sleeping in new places, meeting new people and getting passed around to many sets of arms. It's pretty incredible how well you've been handling it all, actually. You've gotten through all of this in much better shape than both your daddy and I. So thank you, little bug. We promise one day soon we'll settle down and you'll have a room to call your own with a proper bed, and the travel crib you've been living in will go into storage.

Now, it might be because all this change is too much, or it might just be cause you love me, but the past couple days you've been super clingy. Yesterday you wouldn't even let your daddy hold you. You strained your whole body with arms outstretched to get back into my arms and nuzzle your head into my neck and let out an audible sigh of relief. I know how you feel bug, sometimes all I want is my mama, too. I'm 30 years old, and there are still times when all I want to do is snuggle up with her and know that everything will be ok. I'm sure there will be a phase during the dreaded teenage years when you'll be embarrassed to be seen with me, but I hope you always know you can rest your head on my shoulder and know it'll all be alright.

Because it will be alright, bug. You don't have to worry about a thing. I know you miss napping in your stroller along the bumpy cobblestone streets, and the familiarity of our tiny little Belgian apartment. And you really don't like being put into your new car seat and your grandparents' little dog chewed up your stuffed chicken toy. There's a lot to take in - new sights and smells and people. But as long as the three of us stick together, we'll be ok. Hang in there, it'll get easier. For all of us.

These past five months have been the happiest (and the hardest) five months of my life. Every day brings something new, and every day we love you more... and more... and more.

xo,
Mama

The Honeymoon is Over

A year and a half ago, I married my best friend and left on my honeymoon. A couple days ago, we returned (with a little baby in tow)... and it all feels like a dream. I know it happened, I know we were there, but I already feel so removed and so far away from it all. My heart hurts a little, and yet I'm looking forward to new horizons, a new place to settle down and call home.

For now, we're enjoying our time in Toronto (despite the fact that it's FREEZING). It's been great catching up with Didz's family. They are positively smitten with Ina, of course, and she has been such a trooper being passed around from one set of arms to the next getting to know everyone. Once this jetlag wears off and we're all sleeping through the night again, it'll be even better.

We're also taking our time adjusting to the culture shock - which might not ever truly go away for us. We're constantly comparing things and missing things, and after watching about five minutes of garbage on TV and sitting in traffic for an hour we realized we were way better off not owning a TV or a car. It's still strange hearing people speak English around us, being greeted with "hello", and leaving tips at restaurants (tipping isn't standard in Belgium - neither is good service).

I can't honestly say I'm happy to be back yet, but I imagine that's typical for most couples returning from their honeymoon.