five things

{1}
It's strange how much more time I feel like I have on my hands when I'm in Colombia.
I just stay busier in the States.
I've organized and cleaned out drawers in the guest room/nursery, gathered a bag of clothing to donate, made several trips to the grocery store, kept busy cooking and doing lots of laundry.
Still have plenty of time on my hands.
I am wishing I would have brought supplies to crochet a baby blanket, because at this pace I'm fairly sure I could have it completed by my return. Weirdly enough, I am wondering if I can complete this project by George's arrival if I attempt it in the USA.

{2}
I'm completely aware that my statement above will likely never be spoken or written again.
The whole 'time on my hands' thing, so I am making sure to enjoy the quiet 'me' time.
Reading, walks along the bay, and lots of episodes of Scandal.
Don't worry, I am taking advantage of it.

{3}
I've returned to pilates for the short time I am here. It was fun to see all the pilates girls and listen to their sweet Spanish sayings as they reach for the bump and say hello to bebe. My favorite reaction was when the owner of the studio saw me for the first time.
"Look, she's not fat!"
In English.
Best. Compliment. Ever.

{4}
I read a lot of blogs, some I check in with and some I follow. I have been a Google Reader user as a way to keep track of those blogs I like to follow on the regular. It has recently come to my attention that Google Reader is no more as of July 1.
So now I've got to find a new way to follow blogs.
I've seen a few things about Bloglovin, so I am attempting to give it a try.
If you're interested in finding a way to follow the blogs that you enjoy reading, including this one, click the link below or the 'bloglovin' link on the sidebar of the blog.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin


{5}
This weekend....

we are off to enjoy our little baby moon.

A Colombian Cuna

We did it.
The one major Colombian baby prep item on the list... we found ourselves a crib.
{Confession... after this weekend I began to wonder if lil Georgie was going to be dreaming away in a Pack N Play each evening}

One day after work, Matt stopped at a few furniture stores in Centro, the downtown area of Cartagena to check out the local crib options. After looking at two different stores, gathering options, price points and additional information, he came home and shared his findings. We discussed and the following day made another trip to the furniture store. We found one that we were happy with that was also at an appropriate price point. Sold.

Now is where the Colombian part of the story begins.

As one man gathered our crib materials, I attempted to pay a woman. She told me they did not accept cards and neither Matt nor I had the amount of cash necessary. We asked where the nearest ATM was and the man said that he would ride with us to the ATM.  We looked at the amount of cash we had, about half, and stated we would be right back with the additional cash.
A little risky, but so was having a stranger ride to the ATM with us*.
We found an ATM that was close and returned to the store. When we arrived the sales people had our cuna all packed up and ready to go. The crib was wrapped up in plastic wrap and the mattress was sealed in a bag.  The crib parts were in the sales lady's hand and she gave Matt a brief Spanish tutorial on how to put the crib together. No written directions.
Thankfully my husband's Spanish is really quite impressive at this point and his engineering background also helps in these situations. He had no problem putting it together and by the end of the day we had a little cuna set up, complete with a waterproof mattress pad and crib sheet from the good ole US of A.


Our Colombian Nursery/Guest Room:




We've got a few plans to make this space a little sweeter, but due to the small space, the concrete walls, and the location {Colombia} this space is going to be simple.

Simple & Sweet...
and each time I walk by a take a peek, I can't help but smile.



*For those of you who know my DirecTV/Beaumont story, I've learned my lesson.

week 26

Bienvenidos a Colombia

Since our R&R, I spent a a little over a week in Tennessee, finishing up some American baby to-do's, seeing the doctor for my glucose screening, and soaking up my last little bit of Bella, America, and English.  My Aunt Betty was in town for the week and was kind enough to accompany myself and my parents to Atlanta before I flew out. We had a great little road trip and enjoyed the view from the hotel rooftop bar, which was rated as 'the best view of Atlanta' by a lifetime local we spoke to.
Matt and I have already discussed returning to enjoy the view and one of those specialty cocktails they serve.




My travels began early Friday morning and I made it to Cartagena by the afternoon {I flew Spirit, which cuts my travel day in half and that makes this pregnant woman very happy}.  My sweet husband surprised me by leaving work early to meet me at the airport and we spent a leisurely afternoon together.  Originally we thought I would spend 4-6 weeks in Colombia, but after we consulted the Dr., she recommended we cut the trip shorter since I am fast approaching the third trimester.  I'm here for just over two weeks, which will go much too fast so we're doing our best to make the most of our time.
On Sunday, we made a road trip to Baranquilla for a PriceSmart run and to begin our crib hunt. Cribs are not easy to come by in Cartagena. There are Pack N Plays a plenty, but a traditional crib made of wood is not the norm here. While I know people who use the Pack N Play as a crib, but in my head I equate them with an air mattress and since I don't want to sleep on an air mattress in Colombia, I don't think my baby should either.  Matt and I came to the conclusion that the price is likely the issue.  Furniture is very expensive in Cartagena and we're fairly sure cribs are up there as well. Since Baranquilla is a larger market we were hoping to stumble upon one there and several months ago, I even saw one at PriceSmart. While we found plenty of snacks, string cheese and almond milk, we didn't find a crib. From PriceSmart we checked out Baranquilla's mall and went to a baby store. We asked about cribs and were immediately directed to the Pack N Plays. We explained that we were looking for a traditional crib, made of wood, and were quickly greeted with a 'Good Luck'.  After some brainstorming among employees, they gave us the name of a furniture store in Central Baranquilla to check out. After looking at the website, we saw that they did in fact have cribs. However, once we made our way over to the store, we realized that it wasn't open on Sunday.
Our hunt continues. We plan to do some looking in Cartagena and then look at some additional options as well.

While we weren't successful on the crib hunt, I did find an unexpected find at PriceSmart. A body pillow...

In Tennessee I sleep in an amazing bed.  Matt and I discuss it before our visits... it's that good. So, I haven't had any sleep issues during pregnancy. I also have an abnormally large pregnancy pillow in case any issues do arise.

My situation in Colombia is the exact opposite. Our bed leaves a whole lot to be desired. After two nights in bed, tossing and turning, trying to correctly position sub-par pillows, I missed the comforts of my bed and the massive pregnancy pillow that I debated bringing with me for this exact reason, but quickly realized that was nearly impossible. When I saw a a body pillow at PriceSmart, I hesitated for a moment, thought about how much tossing and turning had gone on, listened to Matt tell me he would be happy to take over the pillow after I left, and the pillow made its way to our cart.

While it's no American pregnancy pillow, I did sleep a little better last night, after positioning a pillow or two.

While I miss that bed waiting for me in the US, one thing it doesn't have is my husband.

So, for the next two weeks, I will sleep happily in that hard bed, with sub-par pillows, and my husband.

Father's Day

While we didn't get to technically spend Matt's first to-be Father's Day together, we celebrated a little early.

On October 5th, the Kansas City Chiefs play the Tennessee Titans in Nashville. It's been a long time since this football loving, hard-working, daddy-to-be has had the opportunity to attend a football game. So as long as the game doesn't interfere with George's big arrival, Matt is going to head over to Nashville for the day to get a solid fix of football, while George and I cheer along in our Chiefs gear.

Matt had to work on Father's Day, but that didn't stop him from one of his first daddy projects, putting together George's swing/bouncy seat duo in Colombia. One of the challenges in having a baby that will be traveling between two countries is figuring out gear... what do we need two of? what is worth bringing back and forth? what can we get in Colombia? what do we need to bring over from the US?  Some of the items we can get in Colombia are ridiculously expensive and since shipping is NOT an option {we've tried that too many times}, we decided to try our hand at bringing some gear over.  We found a swing that also doubles as a bouncy seat and made our first baby gear purchase for Colombia.  Matt checked it like luggage and crossed his fingers we wouldn't have any issues. It arrived in one piece and Matt put it together on Father's Day.

Bravo daddy-to-be.

R&R: Part II

I've been tackling a mean to-do list before I head to Colombia for a little reunion, dose of reality, and a babymoon.
Finishing a recap on our R&R is on that to-do list, as well as an overall note to become a better blogger.

From Tennessee we made our way to the midwest, with a weekend stop in Chicago. We loved spending time in the city, taking in festivals, nice dinners, and a frozen Cubs game. But above all that, we love the people we get to spend our time with.


We had a great time at the Cubs game, with a lot to celebrate, including anniversaries, engagements, and babes.


Our little reunion & celebration weekend {which looked a lot different than last year} came to an end and we made our way to Iowa.

Our time in Iowa always goes by way too fast... with so many people to see, we enjoy all the little reunions, but never feel like we have enough time.

We met new babies,

{Jackson, Shawn & Christie's precious little guy}

spent some time with parents-to-be,

{we were so happy to be able to see the Brown's when we went to Missouri...it was fun to be able to discuss all the joys of pregnancy and becoming new parents}


{Tiffany welcomed a gorgeous baby girl last week}

and spent quality time with good friends.



We also had the pleasure of finally meeting our handsome new nephew, Hayden.


We celebrated Hayden's baptism, which we were thrilled to be able to attend.


We had a great week with Matt's family that included lots of food, a round of golf, a day trip to Missouri to visit family, and even some shopping for George.

It always seems like for the amount of time between Matt's R&R's, the time itself goes way too fast. Tuesday, June 11th was here before we knew it and we hopped a flight to Chicago together and from there we said goodbye until we reunite in Colombia. It wasn't easy and there may have been some tears, but I am thankful for the time spent and memories made and look so forward to being together in three days.

week 25

24 weeks

While Matt was in Tennessee we had our anatomy ultrasound. I was so thrilled we were able to schedule it so Matt could attend. Since the gender is still a surprise, we had to turn our heads at certain moments. It was difficult for me not to peek, but I'm fairly certain that had I peeked I still wouldn't know what I was looking at. We were also surprised and  extremely excited to receive a 3D ultrasound. Here's a few shots of our little darling.



From time to time, I find myself just staring at these pictures.

I can't even imagine how much staring will go on once our lil George is actually here...

Ridiculous amounts.

R&R

Now that it's finally over I'm ready to rehash it.

Matthew arrived, surprisingly bright eyed and bushy tailed, despite his red eye flight.
(America will do that to you, especially after a year)

We began the welcoming with Starbucks and reunions followed by a proper celebration dinner with a lot to celebrate, belated birthdays, a baby, and a big promotion.
(a ribeye from Ruth's Chris and a bottle of red was the perfect way to celebrate for this boy who hadn't had proper beef in 12 months).


We spent Memorial Day weekend at the lake and enjoyed sun, rest, ribs, and some of us enjoyed an American adult beverage or two.


When Bella initially saw Matt she was a little hesitant {that's a pretty common reaction for her around men} but after a few moments she knew exactly who had come to see her. I confirmed this when she immediately began playing rough, the way Matt plays with her.

Ruby got a makeover. {aka: a haircut}




We also made a mid-week trip to Kentucky to visit a few of the distilleries.






We spent the rest of the week enjoying our time together, over lunch, with Bella, watching movies, registering for baby McQuinn {overwhelming} and soaking in some of our last moments in America before we become parents.

At one point it hit me, that the next time we were in the US together there would be a little darling with us.
Wow.

I'll be back soon with R&R Part II.

week 23

R&R usually means my blogging skills decline.
severely.
here is week 23.
even though technically, it was week 22 and 4 days,
but for continuity sake, we made it work.

making it work...
that's kinda of theme around here.