Hello, blogosphere! I’m back. I’ve been busy with a baby and living off Spam, escaping the apocalypse in my bunker. Whew. And now it’s Christmas!
For one week a year I tolerate the snow and Nordic/Germanic traditions that encapsulate my Minnesotan heritage. It’s the week between Christmas and New Year’s because Christmas is just more fun when surrounded by powdery snow and sugary, gooey desserts. This year, we have some crispy, brown snow, but a plethora of pie…so I’m breaking out the maternity pants.
And then there’s this dude.
Having spent 1.5 Christmases in Chile, I have to say it’s nice to see conservatively dressed elves, even though I’m sure after centuries of marriage Santa prefers the sexy elves in fur-trimmed bikinis of South America.
This year, we have Squeaker. She’s not old enough to realize what is going on yet, but she still has some presents under the tree that are larger than her.
Like these.
Things have been going so fast. She’s already almost six weeks old. I’m feeling almost back to normal with only the occasional twinge to remind me, “YOU HAD ABDOMINAL SURGERY! DON’T RUN, YOU IDIOT!” Oh, and the extra hour or so of sleep a night isn’t bad, either (we’re still hoping for a solid seven hours!).
We finally applied for her U.S. passport. We drove into downtown Minneapolis to the passport agency where everyone treated us kindly – as opposed to the last time - joking that this “must be her first passport, right?”
After Christmas, we have our first family trip to the Chilean Consulate in Chicago to register her birth and begin the process of making her a dual citizen. If it’s possible to be jealous of a baby, then I am. All she had to do was be born, which is, like, so easy…Where’s my dual citizenship for carrying the little fetal globetrotter?
I also changed my ticket, so I’ll be heading back to the Southern Hemisphere the second week of January. Chicago will be a good litmus test for our 18-hour journey. Cross your fingers that we can keep diaper blowouts and crying jags to a minimum and that our fellow travelers don’t mutiny and strap us to the wing.
Who wouldn’t want to sit next to this little squeaker?
Anymore last minute travel advice? Anyone? Please?
In any case, Merry Christmas!
Dont feed her while boarding. Let her cry. People will give you bad looks. You might get an extra emp seat next to you. Even more important, she will be hungry as you are going up. While the plane is taking off, feed her. This will keep her ears from popping and will make the rest of the flight much more enjoyable. Good luck!
I saw the funniest story on fb that would be a cool idea. Go to #24 on this link http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/moments-that-restored-our-faith-in-humanity-this-y . All these stories are wonderful but #24 is definitely for you.
Have a wonderful love filled Christmas Sara. All the best, Barbara
Copious amounts of Benadryl,lol. They say that for some children, it produces a drowsy effect, but for others, hysteria. Too bad our one year old ended up having the ladder reaction on a 12 hour trip Argentina-New York.
You’re still in a good window. After that hellish trip from Argentina we made a pact never to travel with a child between the ages of one and 3. And to my knowledge, we stuck to it. But you’re still in the “safe window”. You know, wherein they generally sleep for most of the trip.
Good luck, Sara! She is such a cutie.
olivia