One stroller… one baby…. and one lazy dog!

The weather here in the Netherlands has been fairly decent the last few days (of course as I write this it is cloudy and rainy out), so I’ve been trying to get out and go for walks with Isabella.  A couple days ago I brought Stoney along for a nice long walk through the grass field and into Hoogland which is a section of Amersfoort that use to be its own town.  Hoogland is located on the other side of the grass field where I can let Stoney off his leash and let him wander and sniff until his little heart is content. 

The problem with Stoney when we go for our walks, is that he pulls so hard on his lead he tires himself out faster than he should.  And if he is off his leash he goes nuts walking at light speed with his nose on the ground, trying to sniff every blade of grass possible. It is also difficult to control him and push the stroller at the same time, especially when we are walking down the narrow sidewalks in Hoogland.  

Well, I found the solution…

He fits perfectly underneath!!  This way he can still get out for his walks and I’m not dragging his little butt along when he’s tired,  and I can still go down the narrow streets and sidewalks!   It will also be helpful when I go into the city and I can’t carry him in to the stores, this way he can go under the stroller and be out of everyone’s way and I don’t have to worry about him lifting his leg on a mannequin!

As my mother put it… “He’s a poor excuse of a dog and should be ashamed!”  LOL!!

I can’t believe I did that!

I missed a whole month without posting a blog!  Well I’m going to blame the wee one, mainly because she’s too young to defend herself right now and also because it’s partly true.  My girl has perfect timing, mommy wants coffee, she cries.  Mommy wants to go take a shower, she cries.  Mommy wants to write a blog, she cries.  But luckily she’s learning to entertain herself a little more now so I can get 15 minutes to make something to eat, doesn’t mean I actually get to eat it, but at least I was one step closer to having some lunch!

Right now she’s sleeping, so I have a few minutes to update.

Well, my mom left to head back to Canada.  It was great having her here, and I loved that she was able to spend the first two months of Isabella’s life with her.  Even now Isabella recognizes her nonna’s voice on the phone, she’ll lean hard into the phone or she’ll give me a look like “ok I hear here but where are my cuddles???”  It took some time management after mom left to get use to being home alone with her and trying to get things done around the house.  People who say “You need to nap when your baby naps”  obviously don’t have kids.  Really?  When the kid is asleep it finally gives me a chance to, shower, eat, clean, breathe…I’d love to take a nap but the girl has extra sensory powers and knows when I’m about to lay my head on the pillow.  Also her naps aren’t as long as they use to be and in this house with 4 other people it’s difficult to keep the noise level down so that she can get a decent nap.  Monday’s and Tuesday’s are her best sleeping days as everyone is out of the house by 9.   Even when mom was here I don’t remember taking naps all the time. 

Isabella is growing by leaps and bounds, she’s chunking out and now she’s really starting to smile.  She doesn’t normally wake up happy (like her mother) but give her a few minutes and you can get smiles and coos for a good hour before she’s had enough.  She’s holding her head up really well, but I think I need to give her more tummy time.  She likes to lay on me and hold her head up but not when she’s on her play mat.  She’ll coo and try to mimic your lips when you repeat a word, right now we have a battle of  Mama and Papa going here.   She also has figured out how to launch her soother, I think when she’s older I’ll put her in one of those watermelon seed spitting contests.  Yesterday she was suppose to get her shots, but the doctor was sick – again.  For the three times I’ve been there with her, I’ve seen him once, and not overly impressed with him to be honest.  But I wanted her to be checked out before the 24th (more on that later).  So I called the huisarts (family doctor) and got a quick check by him and I’ll reschedule her shots for next week, even though she still won’t be seen by the doctor since he’s now backed up until March 30th, she’ll get her shot done by the nurse.

Stoney still has no use for her and just sees her as “the-thing-that-took-my-lap”.  He will go over and sniff her chair or swing and look at me then walk away.  He won’t come to me at times when I call him because he’s too pissy about the whole thing.  He loves going for his walks but now that there’s the stroller he can’t wander back and forth like he use to, so he gets a bit bent about that also.  Needless to say my dog is still sulking.  He does still get the pets and loves,  just not as much as he wants.  Stoney would be content being on your lap 24/7 as long as you pet him and give him some food. 

Well I was going to start looking for work around June/July, but the cost of daycare in this country is just bloody stupid!!!  Yes we will get some of it back, but we have no idea how much and with just one of us working and who knows for how long it will remain just one income, 1500-1700 EUROS a month is a little out there!  I don’t know how they determine how much of a rebate we get back, but I’m sure it will be less if both of us are working.  I really don’t feel like going to work just to pay for daycare,  what’s the point?  I might as well stay home, us be on the same level and at least this way I can watch Isabella grow and not some stranger.  So I will try to hold out for a year before putting her in daycare.  I would like to go back to work, since I enjoy having money to myself!  But unless we find cheaper daycare of a babysitter of some sort it may not happen anytime soon.

The weather has been freakin’ cold this year!  We’ve had snow,  just the standard 1 or 2 weeks, I’m talking SNOW!  Even yesterday morning there was snow on the ground.  For the majority of us we are in denial that winter still has its grips on us.  As for my friend Tammy, she took it one step further and wrote a little letter to Mother Nature!  I can officially say I’m done with winter.  I promise never to bitch that there isn’t any snow in this country again! 

So what’s the news on the 24th??? 

I’M GOING TO CANADA!!!  I’M GOING TO CANADA!!! I’M GOING TO CANADA!!!

That’s right!!  Isabella and I are coming home for a month!!!  I can’t wait for everyone to see her, especially her great-grandmother whose name she has as her middle name.  Plus she gets to meet her grandpa and aunties (my best friends) and her Zio Rob, and her great aunts and uncles and cousins and her GREAT GREAT aunt Ada!!  We are going to have family gatherings so everyone can see her!  Also I am going to go to Toronto to visit some friends and go back to Saxco so they can see her too.  

I’m not overly concerned about the flight with her, as long as she’s fed and dry she should be ok.  She likes her sleep so I’m praying the hum of the airplane will lull her.  I dread trying to change her in those itty bitty things they call a toilet on the plane, and I’m PRAYING with all my might that she doesn’t have an up-the-backer while we are flying.   The one thing that I’m wondering about is that I’m flying into Detroit and now they have that rule where you can’t get out of your seat for the last hour or so….what happens if I need to change her?  Will the flight attendant change her for me?? Will I be allowed to get up?? Or do I have to change her on my lap in the one foot space between me and the chair in front??  Either way those 8 hours in a plane will be my new challenge.

Oh the Princess is stirring, there must be a pea under her blanket and it has awaken her.  She just gave me a look and stuffed her fist in her mouth, I guess she’s hungry!  So I’m off to feed her and there’s one last pic of her saying Hello!