Tag: survival

Moms’ Trip to Kazakhstan … With Kids …

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Recently a friend of mine and I decided that it would be a good idea to take a mini-vacation to Almaty Kazakhstan. The kids needed a change of scenery and we needed Starbucks.

Luckily our kids, (hers 6 and 12) and Mine (2) love each other and are best friends so they were all very excited about spending a few days together.

My first big realization on this trip was that Little Love is no longer a baby. And being 2, I now actually have to pay for a seat for her on the plane. I also have to figure out how to get her to stay in said seat with seatbelt fastened during take-off and landing. Cue ALL the snacks.

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Big girl seat now. Safety first!

She actually managed the short trip really well and with the help of our trusted friend “hIPad” there were no major meltdowns. No mom-shaming please, limited screen-time is often my only saving grace, #toddlermom.

We arrived at the airport on the other side to find out that the hotel had only sent one car to pick up all 2 adults, 3 kids, 4 suitcases and a stroller. After some broken English / Russian conversations and translation plea phone calls to the hotel we found another car and a hair raising drive into the city ensued – at least there were lines on the road!

We were very pleasantly surprised by all the green. There was no dust. The sky was blue and I could breathe (I think I only blew my nose like 4 times the entire trip!)

Being a former Soviet country, the use of the Russian language is huge. The use of English, not so much. We definitely struggled to communicate. We felt a slight sense of animosity towards us “Americans” and a definite refusal to assist us unless I broke out my very limited Russian and at least tried to converse. We struggled with cabs because we could not communicate and as soon as they smelled the foreigner on us the price quadrupled. I would strongly suggest getting a local phone plan so that you can use Uber and Maps to find your way around without having to actually speak to people unless absolutely necessary.

I won’t give you a day-by-day breakdown but will highlight a few activities for reference  and entertainment’s sake.

McDonald’s – The kids (yes all 5 of us) were very excited to see one a block away from our hotel. Lunch on the day 1 was the first of many visits. My favorite thing on the menu – ice cold Coke…with ice.

Zoe got to experience McDonaIMG_2109ld’s milkshakes. Unfortunately I think that there may be an allergy in there somewhere due to the fact that poop-splosions happened shortly after … every time …

We moms were even more excited to discover that a block away from McDonalds was in fact a Starbucks. Many visits were paid to this establishment too. My takes – Vanilla Latte, slightly different; Green Tea Lemonade – did not include Lemonade; Vanilla Chai Latte – Just what I needed!

After attempting to find the Zoo, we ended up at an Amusement Park (it had a petting zoo so I guess is kinda counts). Many meltdowns happened here. Most were because Little Love was too little to go on some most of the rides. Some because she did not get to ride in the Pink car, but had to go in the blue one instead.

When the moms couldn’t take it anymore we hiked through the city trying to find a cab, instead we found our trusted Starbucks, and with their free WiFi were able to get an Uber to the mall.  Of course we ended up at the wrong mall… but it had A/C, and Pizza Hut. Little Love feel asleep in her pram and we were able to enjoy some quiet time browsing the stores and realizing that we couldn’t afford anything. Thank you international mark-ups.

Next, the part I was most excited about – Dinner at Ocean Basket. Who knew that I would find a favorite South African sea food chain in Almaty Kazakhstan? But we went (it was at the other mall…) and we ate a lot! Unfortunately they didn’t serve alcohol and they ran out of ice for the lemonade but they had a kid’s play area and we got to eat in relative peace.

We did in fact make it to the zoo on another day. Not much to say about it except that my 2 year old did not love the zoo as much as I hoped she would.

We took a trip up the mountain which was great. It warmed my heart that when I told Little Love that she was going on a cable car she immediately associated that with Table Mountain. Her favorite part was probably drinking ice cold mountain water out of her new cup that mummy had to buy.

Of course there were many more delicious meals consumed and a few more meltdowns and disagreements that I wont go into. But it was a great break and a much needed getaway. I’m lucky to have great friends that I can travel with and I’m lucky that those friends have great kids to keep mine occupied so I can relax a bit.

Fed is Best

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In honor of World Breastfeeding Week (1-7 August), I thought I would share my story.

I feel that with all the information moms–to–be are given prior to the birth of their babies, there is very little truth about breastfeeding, at least not unless you dig into personal blog sites and real life stories. Let me tell you this. Breast feeding is HARD. Maybe not for everyone, but for a very large number of women. It’s not something that always comes naturally. Not all boobs are built the same (Surprise!) and not all babies are built the same (Even bigger surprise!)

So here’s my story:

The first time I was able to hold and attempt to feed my baby was a very happy moment for me. It felt so natural and so right, until a stranger came in and essentially manhandled me so that baby could latch properly. I guess I needed that though. Apart from one pre-natal breastfeeding class, I had no idea what I was doing and apparently I was doing it wrong.

I was lucky enough to have a lactation consultant at the hospital that paid me a visit and gave me some great tips. She also informed me that unfortunately I didn’t have the best anatomy for breastfeeding and that Little Love had a small mouth and was a lazy eater.  So add all that together and we were in for a rough ride. And then she left. And I was alone.

As I mentioned here– breastfeeding hurts. I cried and I bled. I wanted so desperately to get to the hospital lactation class but never made it because ironically I was waiting for the nurse to come in and treat my bleeding nipples. I would highly recommend nipple shields – If not for every feed, then just for those times when the pain is too much and you need a feed or two to recover.

Once we got home, breastfeeding was still a hot issue for us. Our first doctor’s appointment told us that although Little Love was a chunker, she needed to be eating more she also had a minor tongue tie which was a concern but not enough to get it clipped. I was instructed to nurse and then bottle feed the last few ounces. Which meant I had to nurse and then pump, and bottle feed while I was pumping. Or nurse and then bottle feed and while baby was sleeping I pumped. It sucked. I was exhausted and stressed. The fear that your baby is not getting enough food is real.

Eventually it got easier, I don’t know when and I don’t know how but we figured it out. The pain got less and the crying reduced. Although there were still often tears during those midnight feedings when you feel like you are probably the only person in the world that has to be awake and sitting in the dark at this ungodly hour. I’ve said this before.

It got easier, until I started work. Another fact that I was not told was that I should start pumping WAY before I did, in preparation for going back to work. I had heard that you may not get as much from pumping as baby gets from nursing but I didn’t realize what a different that was. I immediately started having supply issues. I tried the teas, I tried the cookies, and I tried watching videos of my darling child while pumping. It didn’t do enough to relieve my stress. Being back at work, juggling meetings around pumping sessions, some which lasted 40 minutes just to get enough to barely cover the next day’s feeds.

Eventually after some strong words from multiple people I started to supplement with formula… GASP. I know, I know, breast is best. But what about when it’s not. What about when baby is not getting enough food and mom is not getting enough sleep because the few hours that she is able to sleep she’s either pumping or too stressed to sleep?

I kept pumping. I hated every second, but I kept it up as long as I could. Little Love got some breast milk bottles and some formula bottles. And she was OK. And I was OK. And then she got more formula bottles and less breast milk bottles and she was still OK. And then one day I just said I’m done. No more pumping. I wanted to celebrate and have a pump burning party but then I thought that would be wasteful and we may need that dreaded machine in the future. But I did have a moment of silence when I removed the pumping sessions from my work calendar and my world opened up. OMG I have so much time! To work, to eat, to not be attached to a machine.

I still nursed. In the mornings and before bed, and I treasured that time. We made it to 12 months. About 9 months longer that I ever thought possible. But that was my goal and we made it. We did not do it exclusively and the last month or so it was very sporadic but we did it. Thanks to formula I had the mental capacity to continue to have the treasured nursing moments without the stress.

I ask this of you. Please don’t ever assume that everyone can breastfeed. Please don’t judge when babies are getting formula. You don’t know everyone’s story and unless you have the nerve to ask and the capacity to care then the soapbox is not yours to stand on.

Why is potty training so terrifying to me?!

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Little Love was 2 in April and I know that she is ready to be “trained” but I am struggling to fully commit to this and say goodbye to diapers forever. Part of it is that I feel that my baby isn’t a baby anymore and I’m in denial. And part of it is just well … It’s a big pain in the butt!

It all started with Little Love signaling to me that she had a wet diaper. She didn’t care that it was wet and she still fought when I tried to change her, but she was noticing that something was happening. So of course I jumped on Amazon, bought a potty and a couple of books and waited 2 weeks for them arrive (FS Life) so we could get started on this!

The books had me terrified and I think that this is where my problem started. I really believe that as with all things parenting and child related, you have to find out what works for your family and your child. Surprise! All children are different! We lead a pretty busy life. We both work full time and our weekends are often jam packed with activities and/or events/ so the whole three day potty training boot camp thing just seemed impossible. When would I be able to find three full days to stay at home and clean up pee puddles? And three days is if things are going well!

I know, I know, I should put my schedule aside and focus on her needs etc etc but there’s enough mom guilt happening here so no need to point that out.

I decided that we would use some of the advice and ditch the rest and eventually we would find something that worked.

We started with random nakey time around the house. After bath and in the mornings and pretty much whenever we were at home.

I looked for the signs that pee-pee was coming and tried to get her to the potty in time. Of course there were lots of accidents and lots of “Mummy I Peed!” and pointing to the floor. But eventually she started to realize what the signs were and “Mummy I peed!” turned into “Pee coming!!” We celebrated every trip to the potty and rewarded (also read as bribed) the successes. Once we were seeing more successes than failure’s and consistent potty use during nakey-time we progressed onto phase 2: Commando or Big girl panties! And that’s where the road block happened. I don’t know if she associated panties with diapers and didn’t see the difference, but she just would not pee on the potty when she was wearing panties / shorts / pants / anything other than a bare naked booty.

There is a huge possibility that we are confusing her by being naked sometimes and wearing diapers at others but that is just the reality of our life. We kept at it. I started putting just t-shirts and dresses on so that she would still be “dressed” but she could get used to the thought of using the potty with clothes on. Thanks Mom for this suggestion. She got it. She started peeing in the potty with “clothes on”. We then progressed to loose shorts. She got that too. We put on tighter pants and she didn’t get that…

So this is where we are now. 100% potty trained, depending what she’s wearing…

My next step, when I get the guts, is to just ditch the diapers. Deal with accidents and apologize to those whose floors we pee on over the weekends…

WM > > SAHM > > WM

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I’ve always been a very busy person. Like I discussed here, I have always had a career and that was always very important to me. Then I became a mom and my priorities changed. I still enjoyed working and I could manage being a pretty decent Working Mom (WM), I just didn’t want to spend as many hours doing it.

When we moved to Dushanbe I found myself in the position of not having to work. Not only could I not get a job (hiring freeze) but financially, for the first time EVER, we did not have to rely on a second salary to survive.

And so I gladly accepted the position of Stay At Home Mom (SAHM). Let me tell you that this job is no walk in the park. Entertaining a Little Love for that many hours every day is hard work! But I loved it. I loved our routine and I loved having adventures and play dates and learning things together.

I probably worked more hours per day than I ever have in my life and had to be more focused and attentive to my “client’s” needs than ever before but it was definitely the most rewarding job I could ever have asked for.

When the US Government lifted their hiring freeze I threw my applications in hoping to get a part time position so that I could get out of the house and have grown-up conversations again, but also so that I could also keep some of my precious hours at home with Little Love.

Of course, as fate would have it, I was offered a full-time job in the real world. I really struggled with my decision of whether I should take on this challenge. I was so racked with mom guilt that the when I received the phone call with my start date I cried,
sad tears, for hours.

I debated (with myself) for many hours. Wondering if taking the job was the right thing to do. Would Little Love resent me when she was older because I worked outside of the home? Both my parents had full time jobs when I was little and I turned out OK. I don’t have any harboring hard feelings towards my parents because our housekeeper picked me up from school and made sure I did my homework. In fact that special lady became part of our family and I am forever grateful for the things she taught me.

So I took the job. I started on Little Love’s second birthday (oh boy did that elicit even more mom guilt!). We found a wonderful playgroup to keep her entertained each morning and a very caring nanny to take care of her in the afternoon.

And she’s OK. And I’m OK.

She loves her school and the friends that she’s made. She’s learning Russian, playing games and singing songs. Aziza is her new best friend and she welcomes me home very day with smiles, laughs and “Mummy! Mummy! Mummy!”

I’m using my brain, my skills and my experience. I’m enjoying being my own person and eating lunch without trying to coax a toddler to eat too.

I consider myself very lucky to have been given the opportunity to be a SAHM for 6 months and I am thankful for the support I received with my decision to go back to work.23231426_10155172925527877_6042871362319264525_n

Where in the World?!

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Husband and I managed to stay in one place for 9 years! That’s almost long enough to call D.C home.

It was a very long time in the making but work has now picked us up and dropped us in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Yes, I know, I had not heard of this place before I was told we were moving here._100986820_tajikistan

Tajikistan is located in Central Asia. Bordered by Afghanistan (nothing to worry about – probably the safest place I’ve lived in a while), China, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.

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That little tower over there … That’s the Afghanistan Border

The main languages are Russian and Tajik so it’s been a bit challenging communicating at times but I’m taking Russian lessons and maybe by the end of the next two years I will be able to form a full sentence. Zoe of course is picking up the language super quickly and already has 1-10 almost down along with her new favorite word – нет (Nyet = NO)

We are living in the capital city, Dushanbe. The people are friendly and the nearby snowcapped mountains are beautiful. We’ve had the opportunity to go exploring within the country and beyond and are definitely looking forward to travelling loads more while we are here.

We still have loads more exploring to do and I promise I will (try) keep up with sharing.

PS – We use the Osprey Pogo Ag child carrier and so far it has been great!

Hello Old Friend

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Wow … Am I really going to blow the dust off this blog again? 

You may have noticed that this is a trend. Motivated and inspired to radio silence and back again. Can someone please continue to give me a kick up the butt to keep this thing going each time I slip!

I miss my writing, I miss my therapy but so much has happened since I last logged off.

Let’s see:

  1. Baby turned 1
  2. Baby turned 2!
  3. We moved to Tajikistan! Yes I know … I’ll give you a map…
  4. I got to experience being a SAHM
  5. I got to go back to work…
  6. So many travels
  7. So many road trips
  8. So many new friends and new experiences!

I will do my best to catch everyone up and at the same time try not to put you to sleep!

Zoe sleeping

Blah Blah Politics

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** Disclaimer – this post by no means reflects my political views or lack thereof. I am not politically minded. I generally avoid talking about politics and for the most part don’t understand most of what people are talking about. **

As the rest of the country (and probably world) sits glued to their various media outlets, I am in my bed, watching Parenthood and feeling somewhat sad.

This is my first election as a US Citizen. I now have the right and duty to vote and I had to dig deep to actually find the motivation to make my mark and pretend to stand behind one of two people. Neither of whom I particularly like.

I feel like I should be excited for this moment. I should be posting pictures of voting with my family. But I’m not. I’m not excited to see the outcome. I’m anxious.

Growing up in a country that has seen more division than any other, this current US election makes me nervous. I feel it goes beyond Democrat vs Republican and I am already seeing a split between people who love each other based on their vote.  It is for this reason that I choose not to disclose or discuss who I voted for.

This country will be forever changed tomorrow. Either way. Someone will win and someone will lose. I just hope that everyone can understand that “it’s just politics” and remember that we are all family no matter whether we bleed red or blue.

Little Love showing off her new headband

All the Feelings

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These last couple of weeks have opened my eyes and twisted my heart strings in so many ways.

I’m sorry for getting deep here – prepare for tears…

It started when a family that I know only through an online support community lost their sweet little boy after a very long and brave fight with cancer. Even though I personally did not know their Little Love, his passing affected me in a way that I couldn’t explain. I wished that there was something that I or anyone could do to ease their pain and turn back time. I marveled at their strength during this time of immense grief and how much love this wonderful and happy child had around him through his short life and how even his very young siblings cherished every moment with him.

Then as if the universe knew that we needed a positivity boost, on Wednesday when the Husband, Little Love and I went to Chipotle for dinner (I know… Romantic), we went to pay we were told that the lady in front of us in line had paid for our meal and had said to, “Have a Wonderful Day”. This small gesture by a stranger brought tears to my eyes and I wish that I could personally thank that wonderful woman.

Lastly, on Thursday I spent a couple of hours at Johns Hopkins Children’s Hospital with some of the team from work and Jess Ekstrom of Headbands of Hope. We met some wonderful children and parents while handing out headbands that were made by UA teammates. Seeing the strength of these children was something special. Faced with some huge challenges ahead, they are all smiles and muster up the most amazing energy to have conversations with us grown-ups who just stop by for a few minutes in their very long days. It’s not something that most people would consider major but it is heartwarming to see that even something as small as a headband can bring so much joy to a child and in turn to their family.

I look at these children and these families and then I come home and give my Little Love the biggest hug. I am so blessed to have a happy, healthy baby but in the back of my head I live in constant terror that one day the strength of myself and my family may be tested as we face our own scary situation. I know that many parents suffer from the nagging thoughts of impending doom. It’s why we sneak into our baby’s rooms in the middle of the night and listen for those glorious breaths and grunts or lie awake at night staring at the baby monitor watching every little twitch. It’s why we triple check the car seat, baby proof our houses like prison guards and clean, wipe and sterilize everything to the point of no return.

I know that parents are crazy… ok fine… I know that I’m crazy… but as much as I try to control the world, I know that there are many challenges coming our way and as much as I would like to keep Little Love tucked away in a sterile and perfectly safe bubble I know that the big wide world is a terrifying but exciting place that she will love to explore. And I can’t wait to watch her grow and dominate at this thing called life.

** Headbands of Hope – www.headbandsofhope.com – For every headband sold, one is donated to a child with cancer. To date, Headbands of Hope has donated to every hospital in the US.

Little Love showing off her new headband from http://www.headbandsofhope.com