A Good Scottish Name

Snow!

2012-02-06T22:48:00.006Z

This past weekend England got snow! It was probably the best kind of snow - it was beautiful and covered everything but by Monday morning it was fairly well melted. However over the weekend it did of course cause chaos in this country with cancelled flights, closed shops, delays, and lots of traffic problems. We did not venture out anywhere too far but we did take Crosby outside to see what she thought of her first proper snow fall.

Scott tried to put her feet down on the ground so she could (attempt to) walk on the snow (note the Tesco bags covering her Ugg boots!) but as soon as her feet touched the ground, cries began.The view was much better from up on Daddy's shoulders!Scott tried to rekindle his midwestern winter roots by building a full snowman. Crosby & her baby doll were much happier watching this activity from the comfort of our living room on the inside!Our first English snowman - the perfect place to play peek-a-boo!

How long is too long?

2012-01-22T06:19:00.002Z

How long is too long to be an expat? I realize some people and families make a career out of it and are happy to do so for a very long time. I still unsure that we could be one of those families however we have already extended our tour of expatriate life longer than we ever thought we would.

This question of how long is too long is one we have discussed quite a bit lately because Scott has been offered and has accepted a new job (still with the same company) --- a promotion and a new position that will keep us in England a while longer. How much longer will we stay is the question? That answer is unknown.

We know it will not be forever. Neither one of us wants that situation, as we know we want to return to the US. However, we have quickly become one of those couples who we heard about when we were first moving abroad and both thought that would never be us.

It was the scenario we heard over and over again. "I was offered an expat assignment in X location for 2 years, and we loved it so much, it turned into 5 / 6 / 7....or whatever the greater number was." Countless tales of such assignments that extended well past their initial contract date. And now here we are ---- 3 1/2 years into an 18-24 month initial contract.

It is the right move for Scott's career for us to continue our time here, or so we hope at this point. The new job will be a great challenge for him and will hopefully allow his career to hopefully continue to flourish with his company.

But the more time we spend away, the more I grapple with the question of how long is too long to be away? Initially our answer was that when we were ready to start a family, we would probably return to the US. Clearly, I survived [the rather horrendous childbirth situation in the UK hospital] and we are still there. Dare I say, there is a part of me that has been glad to be in the UK with an infant because of the year-long maternity leave it has afforded me. (of course I am not sure that is outweighed by the lack of family within close proximity! or the really terrible hospital experience!)

Various discussions on this topic of length of time abroad now are focused on Crosby and our wants and desires for her life. Is this still the right decision for us to be abroad, now that we have a child? Is the end time for us abroad now when she is starting school? Is that primary school or secondary school? Or are we providing her with a great gift of life adaptability by being away and learning about another country/culture/lifestyle? Or will she feel unsettled because she will have not spent her entire life in one country and/or location? So many questions and concerns, and of course there is no "right" answer. People view such opportunities differently which is of course why some people accept such assignments and others do not.

We have also said we will continue to pursue the best career paths, provided that we are all healthy and well. God willing, this will continue to be the case.

Obviously with Scott accepting a this new job that will keep us abroad for a while longer, we have agreed that this decision is currently the best one for our family. However, with an end date unknown and time spent building a further life for ourselves in England, we really struggle with the debate of how long is too long and when is the right time to return home? We also realize that "home" will have a new meaning for us in the US because the variables will not be the same in our life / location / home / family etc from right before we moved abroad.

Seasonal Candy

2012-01-20T23:08:00.000Z

While I was home in the US for the Christmas holidays, I noticed the shift in the store shelves from the Christmas themed candy to the Valentine's Day themed candy. Shortly after January 1st all of the red, green, and santa themed candies were cleared away and the shelves at Target and the grocery stores in the US were lined with red and pink candies, with lots of hearts all around. I started to think that there is much more of a holiday/seasonal candy market in the US than I ever see in the UK. It seems for any possible holiday in the US, there is a sugary and sweet treat to match up with the theme of the holiday.

Two of my favorite candies - Brach's cinnamon and Cherry Hearts made their way back to the UK in the nearly 200 lbs of luggage that Crosby & I flew back with. I cannot say there is anything quite like this type of candy on the shelves here in England right now...

However when I walked into my grocery store the other day, I noticed a sign for "SEASONAL CANDY" so I thought to myself, "Well, maybe there is more of a market here than I thought before." I went to investigate the offerings.

Apparently the candy market goes straight from Christmas tins of candy straight to chocolate Easter Eggs here! Funny to see Easter candy on the shelf in January but I guess when Cadbury has been the most loved sweet manufacturer in this country, the stores do everything to support their products (and I do love their mini eggs! When I think about it, the mini eggs were the only thing I had to eat last year during my 24-plus hours of labor when having Crosby, so I guess they were out on the shelves well before Easter last year too!).

I know conversation hearts do not exist here in England for Valentine's Day but I wonder, do small children exchange candy for Valentine's Day like we did when I was little in the US? Or is it another commercialized event only in the US??

Change of Travel Plans

2012-01-07T06:00:00.008Z

Well, Crosby & I were supposed to be back in the UK by now....and I am sure we would be having a fight with jet lag right about now but we're not! We changed our flights (of course with Scott's permission and agreement) so we could stay an extra few days with my parents. Plus, it hasn't hurt that the weather has been 65 degrees and sunny in the midwest this week!

We spent the morning on a walk and at the park in order to enjoy the super nice weather we are having right now.

This always happens when I am about to leave my parents after a visit. I really don't want to leave them because I don't get to see them as often as I would like. When I think about it, I know I am a "home body" and maybe I am stranger than most in that I really love being back at home and enjoy spending time with my parents. Perhaps it's a female thing but Scott is good about encouraging me to spend time when I can with my family because he knows how important it is to me. If I take a step back and look at it, I am often amazed that I do so well with being in a completely different country from my family, but I know that my parents were always good about encouraging my sister & me to flee the nest so we could take advantage of life opportunities.

When I was younger, I remember my father taking out a map and drawing a circle around our city, saying "Here's a 500 mile radius. You girls can go to college anywhere outside this circle." And he meant it! At a time when most parents we knew were trying to keep their children close to home, ours were telling us to go away. Their theory was that we could always come back home again, but we needed to leave first to see what else was out there.

I feel their lessons ring true more often than not these days. My sister & I have both moved away and are making our own ways out in the world. I am sure my parents never imagined that their encouragement in fleeing the nest might lead to our current life in England, but they have been nothing but supportive of it, despite the times when the distance really is far.

Now, in time, it will be my turn with Scott to teach Crosby such lessons in life. But for now --- for one more week -- Crosby & I just wanted to be home again to enjoy some more time after the busy holiday period. Jet lag can wait another week, because I am sure it will find us upon our return to England, regardless of when that is.

Sometimes it is just really nice to be home again.

"Home" for the Holidays

2012-01-06T14:49:00.009Z

We have been "home" for the holidays. I say "home" loosely because of course we have not really been back in our actual home in Chicago, but we have been traveling between various locations including time spent with Scott's family and my family in an effort to see everyone during this time of year. It has been wonderful to see everyone and Crosby has been a trooper during her various moves between hotel rooms, houses, plane rides, train rides, car rides, etc. For the most part, our time back "home" has been spent fighting jet lag, unpacking, repacking, traveling, and visiting with family (oh and eating more meat than we ever thought possible!). I think we crammed a lot into our visit this time and yet it still doesn't feel like we've spent enough time in any one location, or seen everyone we had hope to see. I know this is just often the case when traveling in from out of town, and now with a baby, time seems even more compressed.

I am not sure if it is better to have both families in one city or if it's better to have them in different locations? I am aware that either situation has its own set of benefits and challenges. For us this year, it felt like neither side of our family got a fair bit and of course we felt like we were a bit sandwiched in the middle. We were rushed on Christmas Eve to pack up all of our belongings and get everything ready for our travel on Christmas Day, and then we didn't get to stay long on Christmas Day with my family because we had to fly twice, transfer planes, etc. and drive another hour to get to Scott's family once we landed at our final destination. So, we ended up eating Christmas dinner back at O'Hare airport where we had to transfer flights. Then once we got to Scott's family's house, it was late and so we did Christmas gifts, etc. the next day. So much pressure around one day and it just goes by in a blink of an eye! I am not sure what the answer to the splitting of the holiday is - it would be a challenge even if we were just in Chicago, still but of course the international aspect makes it even more complicated. Despite the headaches of travel, we did enjoy our visit as much as we could and were very glad we decided to spend the holidays back in the US. Crosby of course probably enjoyed it the most because she had everyone's attention!

Crosby at the train station in the suburbs of Chicago. Crosby & I took a train from the suburbs of Chicago while Scott stayed on to do some work for a few days at the start of our time back in the US.

Having dinner in the city with some extended family. Crosby loved being out in public and eating at the table in a proper high chair.

Bundled up in her snow suit for the cold Chicago weather. Thankfully no snow, but it was cold!

Enjoying a dinner out at one of Dad & Mom's favorite old restaurants.

On the plane again....leaving Chicago and off to see my family.

Crosby's ride through the airport (she will have seen the inside of O'Hare airport 5 separate times during this trip back to the US alone!!).

We spent some time with my family and then flew out to see Scott's family on Christmas Day.

The three of us on Christmas.

Crosby loved playing and being with her Aunt Carrie again!

Playing with her nativity set on Christmas morning.

A brand new baby doll for Miss Crosby! She was so happy and loves giving the baby doll kisses.

Hanging with Grandpa Craig at his house.

Crosby has really become attached to her little stuffed lamb. The lamb even had to join her at breakfast a few mornings while we were with Scott's family. She would not let it go!

A gift from Grandma Cris - a motorized hamster. At first Crosby was scared of this pretend pet but by the end of our week's visit, she had really warmed up to it and was chasing it around the house instead of letting the hamster chase her around.

Spending time with Uncle Todd & Gail was fun.

A third Christmas gift opening event for Crosby. Gifts with Great Grandma!

Visiting with Great Grandma and practicing her wave.

Watching football games with Uncle Matt.

Enjoying her visit with Grandpa Craig & Grandma Cris.

On the plane again....another flight, back to Gram & Pa's house on New Year's Eve.

Ringing in the new year with Pa, Gram, Uncle Ray & Aunt Claire. Although Crosby didn't know it, she was the greatest entertainment ever for the evening.

Crosby has been busy sifting through the local newspaper and clipping coupons and sale ads while we've been back. The newspapers in England don't include such sale flyers and coupons.

Spending time with Pa and winky the lamb too.

Learning new tricks - first how to use her new snack "catcher" with Gram.

And then how to drink from a straw!

It's been a great visit but now it's time to start packing to go back to England....

Meeting Santa

2011-12-22T00:13:00.008Z

Visiting Santa at a local mall is very much an American commercialized event. I have yet to see any type of Santa (or Father Christmas as they call him) at any main mall area in England. Shopping malls are not as common in England to begin with but then additionally, Father Christmas tends to reside and have visitors at his "Grotto." Just out of interest I looked up the history of the Grotto online and as it turns out, the Grotto actually began as a British tradition and then grew to America and Australia, where visiting Santa has become more commercialized in the mall as opposed to just the Grotto area within one department store.

So, today we took Crosby to experience the American version of visiting Santa at the local mall in the US. Since it is just days before Christmas, the lines were alive and well so my mother agreed to go early and stand in line for nearly an hour before we arrived with Crosby. Total time spent in line waiting to meet the big guy in red was nearly 2 hours so it was a good thing that we had the tag team approach.

Upon arrival and while we waited in line, Crosby was very busy watching all of the other people in line and at the mall. She brought along her favorite stuffed animal to keep her company. Almost to the front of the line with Gram, Crosby seemed to really like watching the other children go visit Santa. All smiles in her pretty Christmas dress before meeting the big guy in red.Santa left his chair and walked over to us at the front of the line, to introduce himself to Crosby. She was slightly hesitant when he approached us but wasn't too shy just yet.The plan was for Gram to place Crosby on Santa's lap, while Scott was trying to get her attention by me while I snapped the photos of her first visit with Santa. It did not go as planned......as soon as Gram set Crosby down, she immediately curled up into a ball and tried to climb as high up back onto Gram as she could!So, then we decided to make a switch and see if Scott's presence would be a bit more reassuring to Crosby with Santa. It was not really the case. Crosby started to curl up in a ball again, this time right up against Dad.And then there were screams and tears....And more hiding in Dad's coat.

Sorry Santa, it looks like Crosby wasn't too smitten with you this year. We hope you will still visit her on Christmas Eve and hopefully next year she'll be more thrilled to sit on your lap and tell you about her year because she is a good little girl.

Transatlantic Travel with an Infant

2011-12-19T19:48:00.001Z

Since Crosby's arrival, we have kept up with some travel, although admittedly not nearly as much as we used to do before her arrival. With each trip we take with her, we think to ourselves, the last trip was so much easier.....

She is just more active, more mobile, has a more set schedule, and also eats real food now. While some of these things make it a bit easier to travel with her, they also can be a bit challenging as well. For this most recent transatlantic flight we took from the UK to the US, I wanted to make sure I had enough food and snacks prepared for her during our trip. I always find that on the flight from the UK to the US, I end up eating 4 or 5 meals that day because we gain an extra six hours due to the time change. It was a bit tricky to figure when I should feed Crosby and how often she should eat, but I wanted to be prepared with lots of healthy snacks and meals, and of course extra of everything, in case we would be delayed at any point.

So, I packed the following: cucumber slices, breadsticks and spreadable cheese, a few packets of Ella's baby food for back up, "Puff" snacks (US product), dried cranberries, whole wheat breadsticks, an avocado, a hard boiled egg, dried strawberry snacks, string cheese, green beans, and chopped strawberries. Sounds like a lot of food for a little baby but I am glad I had it all for her. I ordered a child's meal on the plane but it was just like the adult plane food - not really anything great to eat, so it was much better that I had plenty of fresh food on hand for her. However now that I have so many extra things to pack for my child, it seems my bag never has anything for myself in it....it is just filled to the brim with the "in case we need this for the baby" stuff! I would say I feel like a pack mule when I travel now on these transatlantic flights....

While the flight to the US was a bit more difficult than previous flights in that Crosby really wasn't interested in staying in her seat for the full 8 plus hours (and who can blame her, it's no fun for an adult!), the most difficult part of this trip so far came after our arrival in the US. We were staying with Scott in a hotel for a few days while he went to work for some meetings. I think it was the first and last time Crosby will be invited to stay with him on a transatlantic business trip! With Crosby being just a little bit older and on more of a good sleep schedule, she had a more difficult time shifting her schedule this time around. The first night in the US, she woke up at 2:30am and was ready for breakfast and playtime since her body thought it was 8:30am UK time. When we kept trying to get her back to sleep, there were lots of screams - er, for about 3 hours - and needless to say, I am sure we were not popular guests in that hotel as a result.

The scene at 3am in our hotel room: Crosby sitting on the chair eating cheerios off of a cutting board.

Up until this trip back to the US, we have (very luckily) not had too many issues with Crosby adjusting onto CMT from GMT. Unfortunately this trip it has taken her a good 5 full days to get back on track. Lesson learned that it is much more difficult to be in a hotel room with an infant who is fighting jet lag versus being at a house where there is space to play and eat snacks, etc. It was also very nice to have grandparents or other family members available (as Scott would say they are saints) who were with us to get up in the middle of the night to entertain our jet lagged child, so we could get a little bit of rest after walking around like zombies for the first few days back home.

Traveling back and forth on a transatlantic level is part of what we will continue to do since we live away from family but it has gotten more challenging with each trip we take. I am trying to enjoy the time we have now at home but am also dreading the return flight journey and the jet lag issues we will face once we are back in England where we will not have the extra help from family (going East seems to take even longer for Crosby to adjust back into....).

So I wonder, is it fair to travel like this with a child? I know there is no serious damage but it does seem to take its toll on her for about a week on either end of the trip. And at what point in the future will it get easier to travel with her? Or is that time now and I just don't realize how easy it is now compared to what it will be like in the future? I really don't know, but I guess time will tell....

Baking Ingredients

2011-12-08T02:36:00.002Z

I bake quite a bit during the weeks leading up to Christmas each year. It's become a new little tradition for us in that I bake huge trays of cookies for Scott to bring in to his office for all of his co-workers to enjoy. Then, I make bags filled with homemade treats for co-workers, neighbors, friends, etc. I used to do this before Scott & I met and then once we got married, my list of people to bake for has expanded to include his colleagues as well. I love planning the items I will make, and I do try to plan the list out in advance, so I can then go shopping to stock up on all of the baking supplies to ensure I don't run out of some important ingredient in the middle of my baking frenzy.

This year I was contemplating making these chocolate mint brownies as part of the assorted baked goods / cookies on the trays for Scott's office to enjoy, but I wasn't sure if I had seen peppermint extract on the grocery store shelf here before. I looked in my pantry and did not have any, so I went to the local Sainsbury's to see what I could find.

I was surprised of course to see the peppermint extract labeled as "AMERICAN" peppermint extract. Why is it American and not just Peppermint Extract? I did find it amusing from my standpoint, because of course I am an American who would be using it to make an American brownie recipe!

Waffles

2011-12-07T19:14:00.001Z

Every time I pass the "waffle" sign at the grocery store here, I think I am going to see some frozen type of Eggo waffles here, but I don't (I should know better by now).

The "waffle" sign refers to all of the potato waffles for sale in that aisle.

I have no idea if these waffles are supposed to be eaten at breakfast or dinner, but I finally bought some and we had them as a side dish for dinner last night.

My verdict is that these are the equivalent to American tater tots or something quick along those lines. They claim to be made of mashed potatoes in the shape of a waffle and that is how they tasted too. I have no idea if these are sold in the US or not, but I am always surprised that frozen waffles are not sold in the UK, since they are so popular in the US.

Exercising

2011-11-29T23:31:00.002Z

This post really has nothing to do with living abroad or being a resident in a foreign country - it's more of a general life observation.

I am finally getting back into an exercise routine after not keeping as fit as I probably should have during my entire time of being pregnant. Looking back on it now, I realize how much I did not enjoy being pregnant. I think a large part of it was because of the extra weight I was carrying and of course the terrible sickness at the start. Uggh, i am still ill just thinking about how awful I felt. I know it was a short lived time frame and the extra weight I gained did have a purpose in that it brought me Crosby, but I have come to realize how awful it feels to be carrying around extra weight every day.

I started to exercise again probably about 5- 6 months post delivery of the baby. Some people just jump right back into their exercise program, as if the delivery of their baby is almost like a blip on their radar and then they are back into again, but that was not the case for me. I am sure a large part of it had to do with my c-section and then the other part was just pure exhaustion. Yes, I did walk a lot with the baby - it was a way to get out of the house, get fresh air, and get a bit of exercise, but it wasn't really the rigor of which I was accustomed.

Finally getting back into an exercise routine has been paramount. I feel better and I think I am a better mother and wife because of it. Someone just described exercising to me as " it's body maintenance, just like brushing your teeth every day. You just have to do it to keep up from getting cavities." Sounds very true to me! After all, we are given only one body in this lifetime and it is our own job to keep it healthy and well.

I am still not back to my pre-pregnancy weight yet - or so I don't think I am.....I actually rarely weigh myself and I was lucky enough that the doctors and midwives never weighed me during my pregnancy (still not sure if that's a good or bad thing!). For me I always judge how my clothes fit and how I feel as the indicators of if I am carrying extra weight or not. So I am back into my pre-pregnancy clothes but they do not all fit quite the same as they did before. I am not in a rush, they will fit better in a while.

And I do not diet. I don't believe in it and I am not sure I ever will. I love sweets too much and I think dieting is a quick fix to the wrong overall approach. I subscribe to the idea that weight loss comes from an approach to eating better and taking care of your body with good, regular exercise. Everything within moderation is ok. I am just very happy to be back into the swing of a gym routine and exercising more regularly again.

Celebrating Thanksgiving

2011-11-23T23:59:00.004Z

One of the nice parts about being part of an expat club is the opportunity to celebrate your own national holidays with other fellow Americans who are also living abroad. Thanksgiving is one of the big holidays that is celebrated within our American club. Although it is not nearly the same as being at home with our families seated around a table, it is nice to celebrate the American holiday over here in England with people who appreciate the occasion.

So this past Sunday we gathered with our fellow American friends in a local village hall and had an afternoon feast with all of the traditional foods - from turkey to stuffing to pumpkin treats!

The buffet of food before everyone started to eat.We are so thankful for this amazing healthy baby girl in our lives. Our little turkey Crosby was wearing her new turkey bib for the special dinner! Crosby with a few of the other American kids before the dinner started. She had so much fun just watching the other children run around the hall!

Although we are not in the US for this day tomorrow, we will still pause to reflect on everything in our lives for which we are thankful. We will actually be enjoying another Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow night with some American friends in Europe. We have many reasons and people for which we are thankful this year and we will be thinking of all of these things and people most especially tomorrow.

Behind on Blogging

2011-11-08T20:44:00.009Z

I am feeling very behind in the blogging world these days......

I remember reading another expat's blog and after about 2 years in the foreign country, she said she felt everything was "normal" and routine in her daily life, and so she ended her blog. I can safely say that after 3 years of living here in England, I do also feel like our life is much more normal over here on a day-to-day basis, but I still find bits that surprise me or make me question how the situation or item would be in the US. Most especially since having a baby, I am finding even more topics blog worthy, but alas, I clearly have not blogged all of these thoughts. Many thoughts have been started as bog posts and perhaps I will finish them (someday!!); others may never come to fruition.

I used to catch up on the blog in the evening but now my evenings seem to consist a lot of cleaning - picking up Crosby's toys, cleaning the kitchen floors and her highchair (for the third time of the day), and then working on cleaning the stains out of her clothes and soaking them until I put the next load of laundry in the wash (normally done in the evening too since I don't have to manage a baby on my hip).

Or, if I am not cleaning, I am creating a mess in the kitchen - cooking up meals for Crosby, or trying to get ahead of tomorrow's food by prepping for dinner so I can have dinner ready for Scott when he gets home from work. Or I might be decompressing by baking....which often happens....or, I am collapsed on the couch in exhausted from the day!

But back to the topic of blogging, the other side of life abroad being "normalized" to some extent is the thought of returning home to the US and how I find myself thinking about what life will be back in the US after having been away for so long. We are still unsure of when and where our next move will take us. It most likely will be back to Chicago but we can not be fully sure of that until that offer comes through. In the meantime, the thought of returning home makes me a bit more uneasy with each month that passes. Other expats who we have known have all said the return home is the hardest part of an international move. I will leave that topic for a future post, but it is one that consumes much thought these days because we have created a nice little life for our new family over here and while it will be nice to go "home," it will be difficult to leave our current "home [England]" for so many reasons.

Home for the Holidays

2011-11-06T19:44:00.014Z

Halloween has just passed and now it seems everyone's attention is already focused on Christmas. We are fielding questions - When are you coming home for the holidays? When do you plan on being in X city for a visit?

Surprisingly since we have been over here in England, we have actually not been home for Christmas in the US. Our first year we had been home in November so we saw our families right before the holidays, and then we took a vacation to Egypt for our first Christmas. I was quite sad not to be with my family for Christmas that year, but since I was with Scott is was ok.

Our second Christmas over here, my parents took my sister and us to Italy for a week. We really didn't do Christmas gifts, since we all took a trip together, and it was wonderful. I look forward to doing this type of Christmas celebration again and someday treating our children to vacations. It was so nice to spend time together and to experience Italy together.

And last year, I was too pregnant to fly on a long-haul flight at Christmas time, so we stayed here in England and ended up with an unexpected guest for Christmas day (my friend Sarah) due to the snow storm that hit England last year. It was a quiet Christmas but a very relaxing and enjoyable one.

This year we are flying home to the US with Crosby since it is her first Christmas and all of our families want to see her. Although our families are relatively close in proximity [just a mere 5-6 hour drive apart----to Brits, this is NOT close in proximity! but to Americans, it's "close"], the physical travel between the two cities, the stuff / gear we now have to travel with for a baby, the extra baggage for Christmas gifts, extra clothing and gear for a visit in the winter months, not to mention the attempt to please everyone involved, is already a bit overwhelming.

We are trying to secure all of our flights for this trip back, and it appears Crosby & I will be taking no less than SEVEN flights over the break. Scott will be with me for half of these flights so I will appreciate his extra set of hands for sure. Let's just hope we don't have any snowstorms or flight delays thrown in there, or else my worst travel nightmares might be coming true.....after hearing about the recent planes that were grounded in CT for over 7 hours on the runway with no electricity or assistance, I am fearful of these situations now that I will be traveling with a baby in tow. Traveling just as two adults at this time of year seems to require extra patience since it feels like every public gathering place and airport is extra crowded with people and lines for waiting are always twice as long! However now traveling with a small child, the stakes seem even higher because it is no longer just about us, it is now about trying to keep an infant appeased during all of this travel and change from her daily routine. Why do things always get so crazy at the holidays? Besides the crowds everywhere, it seems everyone is so busy and everyone is trying to cram too many visits into a short period of time. Why does it happen year after year?

Then upon arrival, we will of course be living out of suitcases, staying with relatives in someone else's home, shuffling back and forth between various houses with all of the baby gear and suitcases in tow, and will be without our own surroundings that Crosby is used to, so I know it will be twice as much work to watch her every move to make sure she is not exploring nooks and crannies that are not meant to be.

Hopefully our travels will be uneventful and punctual at best. It will be nice to go home but I do look forward to having Christmas in our own home without the hassles of travel and the worries of bad weather at this time of year. It will be nice when Crosby can wake up in her own house and we can start our own traditions as a family. This is when living so far away from home is not as attractive as being only one [short] flight away from family. For this year, we will be taking a lot of deep breaths, hoping for good weather, smooth flight connections, and a well behaved little girl!

Anglo-American Halloween Celebration

2011-11-01T23:20:00.015Z

As I have mentioned before, Halloween is not as much of an event in the UK as it is in the US, although traditions we know as Americans, such as trick-or-treating, are increasing here in England. We probably had only about a dozen trick or treaters in our neighborhood, and I thought that was quite light, given that we are in a pretty family-friendly area.

Since this was Crosby's first Halloween, I thought it would be nice to have a little party with her British baby friends and their parents so we could celebrate the holiday in more of an American style!

Crosby trying out her first Halloween costume, a cute little duckie!

The Saturday before Halloween, we hosted about 15 people at the house for an early Halloween pizza dinner. Since our guests were all British friends, I decided it would be fun to introduce them to Chicago deep dish pizza and American Halloween candy, both of which none of them had ever consumed before.

I brought back a few decorations from the US on my last trip there and decorated the house with some festive things.

I was a busy baker before the party, making both chocolate "ghost" cupcakes and vanilla "jack-o-latern" cupcakes.

The table was set with the food spread including: caramel peanut apple dip, hummus & veggies, cheese & crackers, deep dish Chicago pizzas, parmesan pizza bites for the babies, frosted sugar cookies, and chocolate & vanilla cupcakes - everything homemade from scratch of course! The center of the table had lots of American candy for our guests to enjoy and take home in their goodie bags : tootsie rolls, nerds, sweet tarts, Ghost tootsie roll pops, reeses pieces, candy corn, marshmallow pumpkins, laffy taffy, and sixlets.

The sausage, veggie, and sausage & mushroom deep dish Chicago-style pizzas. They were a hit with the guests!

We tried to capture a photo of all of the babies in costume in one sitting on the couch. It was nearly impossible to do! For some reason, Crosby was not a happy camper during this photo shoot and as soon as she started crying, the others followed suit.

Then on Sunday, we attended a Halloween party, this time with the American Club in our area. Although Crosby was probably a bit too young for the activities at this event, it was nice to celebrate the occasion with our American friends.

Crosby at the party in her fancy Halloween bib I made her.

Scott has fun swinging the little duckie around upside down!

At the party, taking a photo in the decorated area.

Trying out Mom's silly Halloween sunglasses for size.

NFL in London

2011-10-25T22:59:00.004+01:00

Once a year since 2007, the NFL has traveled to London for a football game at Wembley Stadium. Since we have been here, we have been in the country for almost every game the NFL teams have played in England, however there have not been teams of great interest to us (or should I say of interest to Scott) until this year.

When it was announced that the Chicago Bears would be playing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scott knew immediately that he wanted to attend this game. I think I heard him chanting "Bear Down, Chicago Bear" as soon as he first heard the Bears would be coming across the pond.

So, we purchased tickets with some friends and made the journey down to Wembley Stadium in London for the game last Sunday evening. It was a bit strange to experience an American football game in a British setting but it was definitely a fun experience!

One of the first big noticeable differences in attending a football game in the UK was that the concession stands were serving British fare, and not American hot dogs, nachos, and pretzels! It felt rather strange to have options such as fish and chips available at a football game, but I went with it and ordered scampi and chips. The pre-game field show was interesting. The Goo-Goo Dolls performed and the Buccaneer cheerleaders put on a show (since they were considered to be the "home" team for this game). We were there with our friends Holly & Kevin. Holly & I had a good time chatting and watching the game while the boys talked sports the entire game! Also as part of the pre game field "show," both the National Anthem and God Save the Queen were performed. And along with the songs, there were American flags on the field (as you see with the people standing underneath the red, white, and blue colors), and then the seated attendees in the stadium held up red, white and blue papers to make a large Union Jack out of the crowd. It was very cool.

Given the high population of Americans who live in London (close to 500,000 in London alone), I thought the crowd would mainly be made up of Americans. However when God Save the Queen was performed and the crowd chimed in, I realized we, as Americans, were in the minority for this game.

Luckily for Scott, we were able to see the Bears beat up on the Bucs in a great game. It was fun to have a little bit of an American sporting tradition over here, even if it had a British "twist" to it.

The British Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-23T22:28:00.005+01:00

In the US, I grew up going to huge pumpkin patches every year - complete with their corn mazes, spooky scarecrows, hay rides, festive foods, and more. In preschool and grade school I am sure there were school trips to the pumpkin patches every fall. In the US, a trip to the pumpkin patch is one that every family seems to make in the September/ October time frame. I have plenty of photos through the years of our trips to the pumpkin patch, where my sister & I would each pick out our pumpkins that we would carve for Halloween. It is fun, festive, and part of the build-up that goes into celebrating Halloween in the US.

I may have touched on this subject to some degree in the past but the pumpkin patch is yet another example of how commercialized the Halloween Holiday is in the US versus in the UK where it is not as elaborate in scope (Although admittedly growing in popularity each year but the looks of the store shelves...)

Now that we have a little girl to start such family traditions with, it seemed only fitting that we celebrate the fall season with a trip to the local pumpkin patch, so last weekend I searched for a local pumpkin patch in our area and luckily we found one within about 20 minutes of a drive.

The pumpkin patch was located on farm in the middle of the countryside and they had one large pumpkin balloon flying in the air for people to be able to find them. It only took us about 5 minutes to walk around the entire pumpkin selection area of this farm, but it was really a cute little find - just quite different than the massive pumpkin farm industry in America!

The farm owners had some "spooky" and festive decor set up on their property.

Inside the tent of pumpkins. Much different to the US, there was only one small tent filled with pumpkins (although a nice selection of them!).

Crosby took in the view of the pumpkins from Dad's shoulders.

There was a cute old fashioned large scale there to weigh the pumpkins, so we decided to weigh our little pumpkin to see how she compared!

We seated Crosby next to a few of the pumpkins for a while. She happily sat there and just watched the other people visiting the pumpkin farm walk around. She most definitely enjoys being out watching people.

Is that a pumpkin head or Scott??!?!?

After we selected a few pumpkins, we piled the pumpkins and Crosby into the little wagon the farm had on site.

Scott pulled the pumpkins and Crosby back to our car. It was a short little visit but it seemed festive and we were glad to support a local farmer in our purchase of pumpkins, rather than the grocery store.

World Series of Baseball

2011-10-22T13:23:00.004+01:00

It is amazing how smart babies can be at such a young age. I am impressed with Crosby already....although she hasn't lived in the US yet, she already knows where her roots and loyalties lie. I went to pick out an outfit for her to wear and she picked out her little St. Louis Cardinal's onesie because just the other day she heard her Pa talking about how he was wearing his Cardinal's gear to support the home team.

It's a good thing Crosby is so smart already at a young age and already knows which baseball team is going to win the world series. Wish we could watch game #3 tonight but we'll be rooting for the red birds all the way over here!

Royal Mail

2011-10-17T18:31:00.005+01:00

There is something so very British about the fancy red mailboxes throughout this country. Crosby, Bashful her pig, and I took a walk today to our local post box to send some letters to America. Crosby held on to them tightly until it was time to drop them in the red letter box (or perhaps she ate chewed on them along the walk to get to there?!?!). I love seeing all of the red post boxes dotted along the streets of this country.

British Fashionista

2011-10-08T22:41:00.002+01:00

The weather was a bit crisp today when Crosby & I decided to go for a walk. Since it was cooler weather outside, Crosby wore her little Burberry coat from our friends Beth & BJ for the very first time. She fits right in here in England with the Burberry plaid as part of her wardrobe!

A little budding British fashionista at a very young age....

American "Loot"

2011-10-07T23:03:00.001+01:00

Scott about croaked when he helped me unpack my suitcases when Crosby & I returned back to England this week. I had almost an entire suitcase full of food - namely Halloween loot and candy! Ooops....

We are planning to host a little Halloween party for some of our British friends who have children within a few weeks of age of Crosby so I figured that was the perfect excuse to bring back lots of American Halloween candy so they can all try the American sweets we like.

Now that Crosby is eating food in full force, I also brought back a few baby items that she enjoyed in the US that I cannot find here - "puffs," plain Cheerios, Rice Rusks, disposable place mats for eating out at restaurants (love them), etc.

It's a good thing we have status with the airline so I am allowed plenty of extra baggage! :)

Torn between two places

2011-09-27T10:14:00.001+01:00

Crosby & I are winding down our US trip here within the next few days. It has been a great visit although it has gone by WAY TOO FAST! We surely do miss Scott while we are here but it is so nice to be back home. Every time I am back home, I realize how much I really am a "home body." Scott knows it so he is good about encouraging me to come home and spend time with my family. I miss them terribly but I know my parents have given me good roots & wings, which is why they have been so supportive of our stint abroad for Scott's job. It is the right thing for his career at the moment, and has provided a foundation for our marriage that we never could have experienced with another path, but each time I am back home, I realize how nice it is to be here too, and I often think of what it would be like if I actually lived near my family (unfortunately not quite a reality for us anytime soon).

However there is a part of me that feels like England is also our home, and so I feel torn between the two places.

I know that if we were to be sent back "home" to the US anytime soon, I would miss England terribly. We have a life there now with established routines, friends, and great experiences every day. It has been a life changing experience for so many reasons.

Now with Crosby in our lives, it just seems more difficult to be away from our families, but at the same time when we are home in the US, it seems difficult to be away from Scott and from our daily routine / nuclear family in England. I wonder if it will ever get easier to leave "home"---- In whichever direction that is?

Scott says I always get sentimental when I am about to leave my parents and once I return back to our daily routine, I am fine. This may be the case (he knows me well) but I do think now that we have our own family, I feel more torn between the two places than I ever have been before.

I just know it's a weird spot to be in at the moment. I hate the thought of having to leave my parents and go back to England in a few days, but at the same time I hate the thought of one day having to move back to the US away from our life in England.....

Crosby luckily is happy on either side of the pond (although probably gets much more attention here in the US!) She has been happily adapting to life in the US with her morning dose of cheerios.

Shopping til she Drops!

2011-09-20T01:45:00.000+01:00

Crosby has been happily riding in various shopping carts since we have been back in the US. I realized she has not been in a shopping cart in the front seat bit until now. We don't really go to the grocery store too often in the UK (since we do the online grocery ordering) and when I do nip into the store, I usually just take Crosby in her car seat and place it straight into the cart. Besides the grocery store, we don't really go shopping as often in England because A/ there are not nearly as many big box retailers in the UK as there are in the US and B/ if we go to the store, we usually just walk to our town's high street and so Crosby is typically just in her stroller.

Since we have been back in the US, Crosby has fallen in love with riding in shopping carts. Strange? Possibly but she seems to be a very social baby so she enjoys being in stores, sitting up high in the carts, and people watching until her heart's content. I really cannot get over how much attention she gets at every store we enter! She is one happy baby when she is riding in the shopping cart....

Riding in the shopping cart at Kohl's. She had so much fun watching the other shoppers and trying to reach out to touch all of the clothes, towels, etc. from her little shopping cart!

Back in America

2011-09-18T15:34:00.000+01:00

Crosby & I are currently spending some quality time back in the US. Scott has been working long crazy hours lately and has had quite a bit of travel, so we decided it was a good opportunity to come home for a bit. It seems to be a win-win for both parties. I am getting some much need R&R, since I am home with my parents, Crosby is getting lots of good attention, Gram & Pa are glad to have us both home for a bit, and Scott is able to work long hours and travel without worrying about his two girls being on our own.

When Scott travels for work over the weekends, it gets really tough for me to be on my own all the time. It is at those times in particular that the distance of being so far away from my family really hits home. If we were back in the US, it would be easy just to catch a short flight or drive a few hours to go home for a few days for a break, but having to fly over 4,000 miles with an infant by myself is a scope of a different magnitude! So, in order to really make the cost of the trip and the distance of the trip worthwhile, it is best to come home for at least a few weeks so we can actually enjoy our time here without fighting jet lag the entire time.

Once we get through that VERY LONG and hairy day of travel, it is so nice to be home and to stay put for a while, without anything pressing to do, and to have extra eager helping hands around. We have had a few outings since we have been home, but overall we are really just trying to enjoy some R&R in the good old USA.

Entertaining a 7 month old on a 13 hour cumulative plane journey was not as easy as it was when she was only 3 months old....after the connection in Newark, Crosby was not as impressed with sitting in her car seat for yet another plane ride, but we did survive (other passengers might not have been pleased with us).

Luckily when we landed in STL, she was all smiles and no one ever would have known she spent the majority of the last flight screaming most of the way!

There was a parenting failure on the morning that we left the UK. Scott took Crosby's favorite stuffed animal "winky" out of her crib and I thought he brought it with her when he put her in the car seat to go the airport. Unfortunately he forgot the animal and did not realize the importance of this stuffed being. It is "the thing" Crosby snuggles with every time she goes to sleep....so it is a necessary travel companion. Luckily Scott is a good Dad and thought ahead to call my Mom in the US as soon as we left to notify her about the forgotten stuffed animal. Since Winky came from STL, my mom was able to go find another one and Crosby was SO excited and happy to be reunited with the animal upon our arrival in STL!

Since arriving in the US, Crosby has tried lots of new foods while sitting in my old high chair! She loves it and I love it too. I wish I could transport it back to the UK with us because it is sturdy, wooden and much nicer looking than our plastic high chair we bought in England (my irritation with high chairs is a subject for another day). At least she'll get to use it every time we come home. Crosby is enjoying the American foods, just as I am....she has tried Cheerios (which she loves - they do not sell plain Cheerios in the UK, they all have sugar coatings so I won't buy them for her), she has had USDA aged steak (ground up), and she has tried the little "puffs" sold for babies here. Her hand-eye coordination is really improving and she loves to feed herself.

We went to visit Pa / my Dad at his office one afternoon for our daily outing. Since he runs a family business, it is important that Crosby knows about it from an early age in case she ever wants to work there!

In the back garden of the office, my Dad has a vegetable garden growing. We picked a tomato and Crosby tried her first one from there. She seemed to like it!

Crosby also made another "well child" visit to one of my old pediatricians. She was given a great bill of health and is growing very well! She is at the 100% for her height and 96% for her weight. Interestingly enough, since our last visit to the US pediatrician (back in May), The American Academy of Pediatrics has changed its stance on the introduction of foods for babies. Now, much more in line with how the UK approach has been, babies after 6 months of age can eat almost everything and anything (except honey) - including fish, strawberries, nuts, etc. Apparently the guidelines change every so often when new research comes out and so now we are introducing more foods to Crosby right away as the academy suggests.

And of course since we are staying with my parents, Gram / my Mom has Crosby already working on her chores, manners, and good behavior! Although Crosby doesn't have any teeth just yet, my Mom is already teaching her that she needs to brush her teeth multiple times a day!

Visitors

2011-09-10T23:32:00.003+01:00

At the end of August, Scott's mom and brother came to England to visit us on the front end of their two week European holiday. I think Grandma Cris & Uncle Matt enjoyed the one-on-one time with little Miss Crosby just as much as she did! Although we didn't do much sightseeing due to Crosby's nap schedule and early bedtime, we spent lots of quality time at home so Crosby was in her element, giggling, smiling and cooing away for her special visitors.

Grandma Cris & Crosby using the computer to skype with Grandpa Craig back in the US one morning. Crosby seems to know her way around the computer already - scary!!!At lunch at a local English pub - Uncle Matt and Grandma trying to keep Crosby entertained before our food arrived.Afternoon play time with Grandma Cris.Snuggles with Grandma Cris while Crosby was sporting her baby Uggs (a gift from some friends in Australia - straight from the source!) on a fall-ish day.All smiles with Uncle Matt!

Barbados

2011-09-08T21:58:00.002+01:00

I am very behind in updating our travels from this summer. August seemed like a whirlwind! We first had a lovely week in Barbados, then Scott went to the US for nearly two weeks, and then Scott's mom and brother arrived a day after Scott returned for a week's visit. It was a busy time to say the least - going from single parent duties with a jet lagged child to preparing, hosting, cooking, etc. for visitors. By the time September arrived, I was ready for another week in Barbados! Luckily we had a great time in the sun while we were there, so we really enjoyed our trip and made the most of the rest and relaxation at the start of the month.

We went to Barbados to attend the wedding of our friends Beth & BJ who live in London. They had a destination wedding so we decided to make a week's vacation out of it. It was terrific. Not only was the resort lovely and beautiful, but the guests who were attending the wedding were all there for more than just the weekend, so we had a nice time meeting their friends - half of whom were from the UK and half of whom were from the US (and mainly Chicago). Scott & I commented that it felt like our two worlds - our UK life and our US life - were coming together in one place, so we really enjoyed it. Crosby probably loved it the most because she was the only baby who was in attendance for the vacation within the crowd of wedding attendees. To say she received a lot of attention, was an understatement! Luckily she was well behaved and relished in all of the cooing over her.

Our little beach baby! Hanging by the pool on our first afternoon on the island.

Our first full day in Barbados. Scott & Crosby on the balcony of our room at the resort.

Ahh, our lunch view every day....

And my favorite lunch sandwich I had a few times on the island - a flying fish sandwich. Apparently the flying fish is a local favorite and it was tasty!

How Crosby spent her days...on a beach chair, topless, with her stuffed animals. What a life!

The stretch of beach on which the resort was located is apparently one of the nicest on the island. Apparently Beyonce & Rihanna were walking on this very beach the second night we were there. Fancy, right?!?

Although Crosby liked the beach chairs, the ocean was clearly not her thing!

She was even a sport and hung out at the poolside bar with Mom & Dad during happy hour...

But clearly she partied too hard and was asleep by dinner time!

Another day of too much partying on the island for this little babe!

While Scott enjoyed some reading on the balcony of the room, Crosby snoozed in her stroller like a perfect baby.

Swimming in the pool was most definitely one of her favorite parts of this vacation. She loved her little inner tube floatation.

Even without the floatation, she loved the pool.

Such a pretty sight every day.

Relaxing just like Dad under the couch cabana chairs.

The new Mr & Mrs - BJ & Beth at their lovely wedding ceremony near the beach! Congratulations to the happy couple - we were so glad to be there to celebrate!

A Baby in Barbados

2011-08-22T20:54:00.004+01:00

We spent the other week in Barbados and it was Crosby's first time to go in the ocean. We thought she would love it, since she loves the pool. Boy were we wrong! As you can see, our sweet (normally very calm daughter) was almost hysterical when Scott tried to take her into the ocean.

Maybe on our next beach vacation she'll like the ocean better...or perhaps she's just like her Mom and likes the beach, but doesn't like the mess of the sand, so she'll happily stay by the pool!

Crosby does Oxford

2011-08-21T22:51:00.002+01:00

Today Crosby & I took a little road trip down to Oxford for the afternoon. We had lunch with my cousin and her boyfriend but before we went to lunch we took a brief stroll around the city since it was a lovely day outside.

Crosby in Oxford. Maybe someday in about 20 years she will return here as a student, and I'll have the photo to say "remember when..."

How quickly that feeling fades....

2011-08-18T22:17:00.002+01:00

My little stinker baby tonight who is still wide awake at 10pm from jet lag! After she spent an hour screaming in her nursery, I finally brought her downstairs with me, but am making her rest on the couch in the hopes she will soon fall asleep.

Just a few days ago on Monday, we returned from a lovely relaxing and very nice holiday in Barbados and yet somehow the feeling of being completely relaxed and at ease seems to be fading all too quickly.... Nearly 36 hours after we touched back down in England, Scott turned around and flew back to the US for work, leaving Crosby & me here for a bit. It's amazing how quickly all of the laundry from our vacation has formed a huge mound, how tiring it is to be dealing with a very jet-lagged baby who is completely off schedule (and as a result I am off schedule since I was up with her at 11pm, 3am, and 6am again last night/this morning!), and how much I need to do to get things in order for our visitors we have arriving nearly 24 hours after Scott lands back in England next week! Temporary single parenting is part of what I knew I would encounter with Scott's job over here since he is traveling more frequently now.

However, these are most definitely the times when I do wish there was not an ocean between my family and me so I had someone near enough to come visit while Scott was away, or that I could go visit them without enduring a transatlantic flight.

Flying with an Infant

2011-08-16T11:42:00.008+01:00

We have encountered many people already who continue to say something along the lines of "I cannot believe you are traveling with an infant!" While, yes, traveling with a child is VERY different and more consuming than traveling solo or just with the two of us, it is part of why we loving living abroad so we would be silly to halt our explorations now. Besides, we hope that if we start traveling with Crosby at a young age she will learn to be a good little traveler as she grows up. At 6 months old, she has already logged over 16,000 miles in the air. I am not sure I logged that many miles in my first 10 years of life!

This past week we went to Barbados to attend the wedding of some (American) friends who live in London. They had a destination wedding and we thought it was a perfect excuse to make a vacation out of it! Since we were not able to just leave Crosby with Grandma & Grandpa near by due to the ocean in between us, she traveled with us. Plus, I am not sure either of us wanted to be away from her for a full week, so we knew she would come with us for this trip; she's still too little to be away from us for too long.

It was almost easier to get to Barbados from the UK than it would have been to get there from the US. We had a direct flight from London Gatwick straight to Barbados. The airline choices were either Virgin Atlantic or British Airways. Unfortunately, we are a United/Continental family, so we didn't have status on either of those airlines that flew to Barbados. We decided to give Virgin Atlantic a shot since we had heard good things about them.

Traveling with Crosby at 6 months old was more difficult than it was at 3 months. Of course I didn't realize how easy it was at 3 months until we flew at 6 months and realized in retrospect, it was a piece of cake at 3 months because she didn't do much at all! While I am sure 6 months is easier than it will be at say 1 year, she is starting to be interested in more things, so sitting still is not always as entertaining for her as it used to be. That being said, Crosby is a terrific traveler so far. She doesn't scream on the planes, she deals well with the pressure of the flights, and overall she is really a good baby. We are very lucky. We also travel with anything and everything we might possibly need in order to be prepared (or should I say I travel with it all since somehow my carry on ends up being Crosby's bag!), so I would like to think that part helps a bit too.

Overall, I am not sure about the hype around Virgin Airlines. We thought it was ok, but now find that having status on one airline carrier makes it difficult to fly any other airlines since the service levels are not as high as they are when you are a preferred customer. While Virgin did offer the complimentary bassinet for babies under 19 lbs, they would not confirm it in advance like Continental & United did for previous flights. Plus this bassinet was basically a cardboard box with plastic lining.

Virgin does offer these nice little welcome bags when you board the aircraft, similar to the business class kits that are offered on other airlines with eye masks, socks, a toothbrush, toothpaste, etc. so that touch was nice. Scott let Crosby play with it all and even dressed her in the gear before putting her in the bassinet!

As you can see, Crosby filled up the entire bassinet, so this was our last transatlantic flight to request and use one of these. She really didn't sleep on this flight because the straps that attached this bassinet to the tray that came down from the wall, were in her face when she was at the bottom of the bassinet. A different set up than the other bassinets we have had where they attach directly to the wall and do not have straps over the main parts.

So, most of the flight was spent on either Dad's lap or Mom's lap. Luckily, Crosby was entertained just by watching the images on Scott's tv screen.

And then when the flight attendants handed out pretzels, Crosby played with the bag for a long time. It made noise and crinkled so it appeared to be a fun toy for her.

The flight was not full on our way over so she even got to sit in her own seat for a while which she enjoyed. Her little stuffed lamb sat on her tray so he didn't get lost.

Finally after about 6 hours of being awake during the flight, she finally got some sleep on Dad's lap!

Let's hope Crosby's good flying record continues for a long time into her future.

The Food Adventure Begins

2011-08-15T22:15:00.005+01:00

Today Crosby started solid foods. I gave her sweet potatoes as her first food. As you can see, her reaction was not one of immediate love....

It was rather difficult to capture her very vibrant expressions but I was laughing with each bite she tried to eat and then spit out. You would have thought I were trying to feed her dirt with her uncertainty of the food!

Baby Food

2011-08-02T23:13:00.000+01:00

In less than just two weeks Crosby will be six months old and it will be time to start introducing solid foods into her diet. I cannot believe she is nearly 6 months old! I remember thinking I had so much time before I introduced her to food and here it is upon me now. Some people do introduce food a bit earlier to their babies (between 4-6 months) but we have decided to wait the full 6 months because there are some dairy, fish, and egg allergies on Scott's side of the family and my sister was just recently diagnosed with celiac disease. While there is no way to prevent Crosby from inheriting any of these genes that could cause the allergies, I have been advised that breast milk only for the first full six months is the best shot at protection against such issues. So, I have stuck with it and hope it is giving Crosby the best start at a good healthy diet.

We are headed on another family holiday soon and so as soon as we return from that trip, I will begin the food adventures. In order to prepare for Crosby's first foods, I have been scouring the shelves at the grocery store and doing quite a bit of reading online. When I took Crosby to the pediatrician back in the US (at 3 months of age), the doctor gave me this leaflet as a guide to introducing foods into Crosby's diet:

There is quite a list of items to avoid - some until she is ONE year old and others to avoid until she is TWO years old. The other bit of advice listed there (and also given here in the the UK) is that babies should be introduced (early on) to only one food at a time, most especially if there is a history of allergies in the family. I have seen various advice on the "wait time" in between foods - anywhere from 2-4 days before introducing the next "new" food is what I have read.

Now comes the confusing part for me. Here in England, I have not found any plain baby food at the grocery stores - just one food item at a time in baby food form. So, unless everyone makes their own baby food, how is it possible to introduce just one vegetable or one fruit at a time???? (*Minor exception - Ella's organic pouches have just released plain apples, plain pears, and plain mangoes)

As seen at my local grocery store:

The Plum Brand foods - no plain foods there - all mixed varities!

Ella's Kitchen offers a mixed strawberry & apple pouch as a "first food" which is another point of confusion for me since the US pediatrician said no strawberries until age 2. Here, a first food is between 4-6 months. Confusing, right?

And then beyond the "First foods," come the stage 2 foods which are more like little meals for babies. I never thought about the foods in the US before until I started looking at the foods here. These baby foods seem to be very culture specific.

Hence the Fish Pie with mash (very British) and the Beef Stew with Spuds. Sounds like pub fare to me!

Annabel Karmel is considered to be one of the baby food "experts" here in the UK. She is widely known and her books are all over the baby shops and bookstores here. After reading her website, I am now just more confused on which standard I will follow for introducing foods to Crosby. As a prime example, the first photo from my US pediatrician says fish should be avoided until a baby is over 1 year of age. However, Anabel's website has this recipe and information under the foods for 6-9 months age:

It’s important to encourage a liking for fish early on. This Salmon Puree baby food recipe is quick and easy to prepare and combining it with root vegetables is a good way to introduce fish to your baby. Oily fish like salmon, trout, tuna and sardines are especially good as they contain omega-3 essential fatty acids which are very important for visual and brain development. Tinned tuna however does not contain omega 3s only fresh tuna.

Ingredients

200g carrots, topped and tailed and sliced
125g salmon fillet, skinned
60ml orange juice
40g grated Cheddar cheese
a knob of butter
2 tbsp milk

And of course then the baby foods contain fish and other items that I am not sure are in US baby food....

Personally I am a bit disgusted by baby food. My thought is that I don't eat meals out of jars or little packets, so why would I want to give my baby her first foods from them? Fish or lamb sitting on a shelf in a packet? Can it really be that healthy?

So, I am making all of my own baby food so that I know what goes in it and can control the quality of food she eats early on. It is simple to make and I have already made and frozen: peas, sweet potatoes, pears, apples, and mangoes in anticipation of Crosby's first foods. This way I can also introduce one food at a time to ensure we are able to catch any food sensitivities when they occur. There is no guarantee but I hope I am giving her the best start possible. Plus, I want my little girl to be a good, healthy eater which I think includes lots of fresh fruits, vegetables and proteins. We will forge through this next stage as best we can but it is a bit confusing that different countries have different advice for such tiny people. I guess both are probably right and wrong to some extent - after all, both countries continue to grow their population so something is working!

Buckingham Palace Tour

2011-07-29T22:23:00.009+01:00

Yesterday my friend Holly & I went into London for the afternoon to go tour the Buckingham Palace State Rooms. The palace only opens for tours once a year while the Queen normally heads north to her residence in Scotland for her summer holiday.

Since this summer season is quickly approaching the 3rd anniversary of our arrival in the UK, I was determined to see the palace state rooms before we leave the island! Scott really did not have a great interest in going to see the palace rooms and luckily Holly's husband wasn't as keen on it either, so we decided to make the journey ourselves.

We booked our tickets in advance (such a key point - allows for VERY minimal queuing) and so we were able to basically walk right up at our specific time slot and began the tour of the state rooms.

So many interesting things to learn about Buckingham Palace beyond just browsing around at the magnificent splendour inside. Buckingham Palace is Queen Elizabeth II's official residence, and has been the official London residence of Britain's sovereign since 1837. The state rooms at the palace have been opening to the public for just the past two decades, since 1993, after a fire at Windsor Castle. Initially the summer opening was a way to pay for the damage at Windsor Castle but the tours have become so popular that the Queen has continued it every summer when she goes to one of her country homes for about 8 weeks.

Buckingham Palace has 775 rooms!!! These include 19 State rooms, 52 Royal and guest bedrooms, 188 staff bedrooms, 92 offices and 78 bathrooms. Buckingham Palace is not only the London home of The Queen; The Duke of Edinburgh, The Duke of York, The Earl and Countess of Wessex, The Princess Royal and Princess Alexandra also have private offices and apartments located within the Palace. Unfortunately we did not get to see these private bedrooms and offices but the state rooms that we did see were quite lovely indeed. No photos were allowed to be taken inside the palace but I did get a few outside...

Everything from the entrance, to the exit, to the temporary restrooms and temporary gift shop were set up specially for the Summer Opening of the State Rooms.

In the gift shop at the end of the tour, mini wedding cakes from William & Kate's wedding were available for purchase. Apparently the British have fruitcake covered in fondant at their wedding for their cake. Not my choice of a cake, but then again I am not British!

The temporary gift shop at the end of the tour.

Holly & me at the end of our tour - the back side of Buckingham Palace.

The highlights from our tour of the state rooms included: Seeing Kate's wedding dress, veil, shoes, tiara, earrings, flower bouquet, and the wedding cake (I wonder if it were a replica cake though?). We also got to see the red room where many of the "official" photos of William & Kate were taken at the palace after their wedding ceremony. It's pretty cool to me to think that whenever I see that photo of them in the future, I will remember walking in that same room of the palace when I went for a visit! The other bit that stood out to me was a "secret door" that the Queen uses to enter one of the state rooms - a short cut for her from her private residence area. After taking the main tour now of the state rooms, I think it would be really cool to tour the back hallways and private residence areas of the palace....but I guess everyone else would want to do that too!

Traveling with an infant

2011-07-22T09:21:00.010+01:00

Last week we took our first family holiday abroad. Yes, we did already go back to the US with Crosby so it wasn't her first international trip, but this last week was our first vacation where we were not going to stay with extended family, etc.

Before Crosby came along, Scott & I had been maximizing our time off of work to travel as much as we could while we have been living over here in Europe. We have grown to love traveling more than we ever thought we would. We knew our travels would not cease once we had a baby, but we did recognize that we would probably slow down a bit since traveling with an infant is not as easy as just traveling with two adults. Luckily for us, Crosby seems to be a good traveler - she is quiet on the airplane, the pressure of the flight doesn't seem to bother her too much, she doesn't have car sickness while driving on windy roads, and she seems to be interested in her new surroundings so she likes to take in the sights in new places. She is still at a good age where is "portable" and isn't eating food yet so it is a bit easier on us for now.

The one part that has changed and that is not as portable is all the GEAR that comes along with a baby. How does such a little being require so much stuff??? In reality, we do not bring that much extra "stuff" for Crosby but on this last vacation we could see the difference when we rented a car. With a car seat, stroller, baby, plus all of our luggage, we knew we would have to upgrade the size car we needed for the week.

Beyond the car seat and stroller, the other "gear" items required on this trip included: a travel cot/"pea pod" for a sleeping location (the house we rented only had one baby cot and there were two babies so we needed an extra bed for one baby - it can double as a sun shade for baby since it has UV protection), an inflatable swimming ring for the pool, baby bjorn carrier, a baby monitor, two baby bottles, bottle brush, sterilizer bags, and of course an assortment of baby clothes, burp cloths, bibs, and more.

While the gear is much greater than we have been used to for travel purposes, it is manageable and we are slowly learning what is necessary and what is not. The part of this trip that was not expected when we thought about traveling with an infant was the airport and airline issues we encountered this time around.

The day we flew to France, we went to the airport in advance of our flight and proceeded through security as we usually do. We are pros at pulling out our liquids and knowing what will set the alarms off, etc. So in advance of the scanning machine I told the security agent that I had breastmilk in a cooler - bottles for my baby. These are completely legal to bring through for flights and I have already been through three major airports (including this airport, BHX, which we were going through again!) and have never had any problems with Crosby's bottles.

After our bags and items went through the scanner, we got pulled aside for further inspection. (expected since we were traveling with milk for a baby). The security guard asked me to taste the milk. [a side note - the UK will ask you to taste breastmilk, but the US will NEVER have you taste it because since the US is such a litigious society, you could poison your own milk and then sue the airport for having them ask you to taste it! Insane.] After I tasted it and all was fine, the security agent noticed the freezer pack I had to keep the milk cool. The agent then proceeded to tell me I could not keep the freezer pack and it was considered to be a liquid so it would have to be thrown out. I questioned this response because I had already flown THREE times with this freezer pack and it was never questioned and furthermore how was I supposed to keep the milk cold for baby Crosby without it (plus it was a special pack made to keep the bottles cool)? SHE didn't care. (I really thought it was 10 times worse since the agent was a WOMAN and had to have had some compassion). She told me freezer packs were only allowed for medicine and milk was not medicine so she threw it out, in front of me. It took Scott to almost pull me away to not completely loose it over this issue. There are so many reasons I was upset about this interaction and way it was handled but I was most upset about the milk I was carrying potentially going bad before Crosby could consume it.

Fast forward to the week we returned from our trip. I was frantically searching online for information regarding the rules and regulations for taking breastmilk on an airplane. Apparently the TSA in the US has a very clearly stated policy about this topic on their website: breastmilk is considered to be in the same category as medicine, so freezer packs ARE ALLOWED. In researching this topic, many women have said it is best to print out this specific site to show to security agents if you encounter any problems when traveling. I will do so for my future trips within the US, however I could not find such information for the UK policy. Consquently I am writing a letter to the airport team to inquire about this topic. I also called Medela - the company who makes the breastpump and freezer pack - they were GREAT! I told them about my experience and they sent me a new replacement freezer pack for free and are looking into the airport guidelines for me.

As if the start to this trip didn't cause me enough of a headache with the security screening debacle, then we went to board our bmi baby flight and we surrendered the stroller and car seat at the gate to be gate checked. I inquired with the flight attendant as to when we would be able to collect the items when we landed. Her response was "at the side of the airplane when you land." Because I had a weird feeling about things, I grabbed the baby bjorn and put it in my carry on bag just in case. I was glad I did! Sure enough, we landed in France and had to board some buses and were shipped to the main terminal where we had to walk for eons to get to baggage claim....all WITHOUT our stroller for the baby! And then amazingly enough this happened AGAIN to us on the way back from France to the UK and we had the same responses from the airline staff again.

While the airline staff didn't seem to know their own policies regarding gate checked items, the airplane was also ill-equipped for babies. Unfortunately we learned the hard way that although bmi baby airplanes are always filled with families (and lots of babies!), they are not baby friendly. NO BABY CHANGE in the bathrooms. Why??? The airline attendant said to me "I know it's silly but sorry, we just don't have any." She offered me the jump seat where the flight attendants sit, which was very nice but unfortunately kept flipping up and so it was not a very secure space to change a baby.

I knew traveling with a baby would have its own set of challenges but these were not the expected kind. Needless to say, I am composing a few letters of feedback for the airport and airline to inquire about these issues encountered....

Ziploc: Why France and Not England?

2011-07-18T09:44:00.000+01:00

We have just returned from a week's holiday in southern France and while the holiday was positively lovely (more on that later), I was surprised with a find in the grocery store in France: ZIPLOC BAGS! Why does France have them and England does not?!?!? Do the French like to store their items tightly and the British don't? I was so surprised to find actual ziploc brand bags on the shelves in the supermarket that I had to take a photo just for proof....

They had a HUGE selection - gallon size, snack size, quart size and more! Maybe someday England will catch on to this great idea too....

A Birthday for a Super Dad

2011-07-08T14:37:00.005+01:00

This week we celebrated Scott's birthday. It was his first birthday as a Dad so I decided that the birthday cake theme this year would be "Super Dad," since of course he is a great Dad (and husband too!).

My littlest pastry chef was busy that morning icing Scott's ice cream cake! Unfortunately Crosby did not stay awake long enough to eat the cake and blow out the candles because Scott had a late night at work.

When Scott did get home, he opened his gifts. No, the big case is not a rifle gun, but a set of monogrammed grill tools from his in-laws. We will all benefit from his use of this gift!

And then we had his favorite - mint chocolate chip and homemade chocolate ice cream cake! A super birthday for a Super Dad!

Online Grocery Shopping

2011-07-06T23:31:00.001+01:00

This past winter I embarked on a new adventure...online grocery shopping. I had heard about this idea of ordering your groceries online and then having them delivered to your house soon after we arrived here in England but I never felt that I wanted to try the service because I love going to the grocery store. I could wander the aisles for a long time (and sometimes I have done so!) and I enjoy looking at all of the products, especially the British products over here. I like to see the various placements, packaging of products and more.

However, the thought of having to go grocery shopping when I was going to be home with a newborn started to panic me a bit. Before Crosby arrived I kept thinking about the out of town visitors we would be having right after the baby arrived and I kept wondering how I would manage to shop for them and for us, with a newborn in tow, when the grocery store is always such a zoo by us? Because of the driving differences, I knew our house guests were not going to be willing to drive out to the store at a moment's notice - plus, they don't know how to get around over here. So, I decided that it would be worth trying the service before I "needed" it to see how it was, and then if I liked it, I would continue on with it for the first few weeks after the baby was due to arrive.

Well, I tried it and I fell in LOVE with this service. I have been so pleased that I do not have to fight the parking lot mess at the big retail park by us on a weekly basis to do my shopping for food! (the parking lot woes with a baby in tow will be covered in another post) Plus, I don't have to spend the money on the petrol to get to and from the grocery store either! The groceries now come to me.

I order them from the comfort of my living room, I then select my delivery time slot (an hour's window), and then voila, on the day and time of my order, a nice delivery man in a fancy delivery truck shows up at my house and unloads the grocery bags for me. He even walks them into my kitchen if I want him to do so.

The nifty part is that when the groceries arrive, the bags are color coordinated so I know which items go in the freezer (Green bags), which go in the fridge (red handles), and which items are to be left out for the cupboard area (purple handles). Genius!

The one challenge with the online grocery shopping ties back to the English language. As an American shopping online at a British grocery, I sometimes cannot find what I am looking for. I have become to realize that when I was physically shopping at the grocery store I knew where the item might have been located within the store, but now when I am searching for it by name, I do not always know the proper name of the product.

Some examples:

dishwashing soap = washing up liquid

diapers = nappies

tomato sauce = passata

tomato paste = tomato puree

sour cream = soured cream (not a huge difference, but interesting, isn't it?)

popsicle = ice lollie

garlic powder = garlic granules

zucchini = courgettes

chips = crisps

french fries = chips

I know this service is one part of British life that I have already become attached to in a very short period of time. I am surprised that this concept is not more popular in the US, given that there are so many customer service centric stores there. Hopefully by the time we move back, our local grocery store will have adopted this concept because I would sign up again in a heart beat!

Red White & Blue

2011-07-04T12:47:00.002+01:00

Happy 4th of July from our littlest American!

Although we are not having the day off and fireworks here in England, it is a nice sunny day with a bit of humidity - very fitting for the 4th of July. Thinking of everyone back home in America!

The Fish Finger Sandwich

2011-06-28T20:24:00.004+01:00

The longer we live here in England, the more food I find that I think I will actually miss once we move back to the US. Shocking I know since the English are not known for their food, but there really are some good treasures to be found over here.

The most recent food item to be added to my favorite food list is the FISH FINGER SANDWICH. This sandwich is typically found in a pub, usually on a lunch menu and really there is nothing fancy about it but I have fallen in love with it. I have ordered it quite a few times at one of our local pubs, and although they claim to make homemade fish fingers, I am still a bit skeptical about that part of it.

Tonight, I decided to embrace the fish finger sandwich at home to try something new for dinner. While I did not make my own fish fingers, I did make these hamburger buns from scratch for a homemade touch.

Basically, the fish finger sandwich is just a "bap" (aka a sandwich roll) with tartar sauce, fish fingers, and then tomato and lettuce on top to make it a hearty sandwich. Some may say places like McDonald's sell fish sandwiches....and maybe they do - but I think this one is best eaten at the local British pub around the corner.

How Time Flies

2011-06-24T15:52:00.008+01:00

I know it's an old and frequently used cliche, "how time flies," but really, isn't it amazing how time flies??

This week has come with some time sensitive news for us regarding our life over here. First, we have been scheduled for an appointment next week to have our biometrics redone for our new visas since our current visas are due to expire in August. We moved here on an 18-24 month contract for Scott's job and now we are close to the 3 year mark....how quickly it has passed! I marvel at the strength and great experiences it has brought to us as individuals, to our marriage, and most importantly now to our family of 3. When I think about the difference time has made for us in these circumstances, I think about how nearly three years ago we kept thinking - "Won't it be great to get back to America to do x, y, z, etc. when we move home," and now, how we often say "We know we will move home, but we are surely going to miss x, y, z, about life in England when we have to move home. Let's hope it's not too soon, we still have a lot to do and see over here."

The time has gone by in a blink of an eye and I did not think when Scott accepted his assignment here that we would be one of those couples who signed up for a couple of years abroad and then enjoyed it so much that it turned into (?) number of years. It feels like just a few days ago that we were saying good bye to our families (and of course I was crying for having to leave!) and we were both filled with excitement and a lot of nerves about what was in store for us. And now, here we are, searching through the filing cabinet to find our original birth certificates, marriage certificate, and other appropriate paperwork so we can apply to stay here for a bit longer. Within the past three years, it is incredible to think of the world monuments we have seen in person, the trips we have taken, the different culture that we have now grown to embrace for so many reasons, and the reliance on one another that has cemented our marriage and family together.

The second time reminder came when our tenants living in our Chicago house informed us that they would not be renewing their lease this fall. Scott & I were giddy with dreams for our future when we bought that house. It's strange to think we only lived there for a year before we moved out and the plan for what we thought was going to be a life in downtown Chicago, became a life (temporarily) abroad. We have now had tenants who have lived in our house longer than we ever did and probably ever will. With the time that has passed is now the concern that we do not want to move back into that house when we return. Time has changed our needs and since we have been living in England we have lived just 5 minutes from Scott's office. In Chicago, we chose to live in the city and Scott commuted nearly an hour (more on most days) each way out to the suburbs to his office. Since we have lived so close to Scott's office here in England, the long hours he puts in at the office don't seem as long as they did in the US because he is home much quicker at the end of the day. The time he is able to spend with us as a family is important so we will live closer to his office when we move home.

And thirdly, my baby is growing SO quickly! How is she already 4 1/2 months old?

I have mentioned my mixed feelings about the year-long maternity leave here in England before, but right now, I am nothing but grateful for the time with Crosby. I am not sure how I would have ever been able to go back to work already. I feel fortunate to be able to spend this time with her and to enjoy the milestones of her first year as they happen. Yes, at some point we may decide to have another baby, but I keep thinking to myself I will never have this time back with my first child, just the two of us together. I am trying to relish the days and experiences we are having now. I keep thinking - I want to keep her this age forever, and then a few weeks later, I find myself more in love with her than I was before, and I think no, this age is even better, she is even more adorable now. How does this continue to happen? I am grateful for this time and hope I am soaking up as much of it as I possibly can, because time really does seem to fly....

Lunching with the Ladies

2011-06-22T15:03:00.005+01:00

One of the expat American women's club activities that takes place every month in our area is called "Pub Lunch." It's a good excuse to try out a different pub once a month for a nice lunch out. I enjoy trying the pubs for lunch because then if they are good, Scott & I will often go back for dinner on a weekend evening. Today Crosby attended the pub lunch with me and so she went "lunching with the ladies."

Crosby before we left the house for lunch. She was dressed in a pretty little dress and cardigan, and outfitted with bows!

Crosby on the end with one of the ladies at lunch. She was the perfect little baby and didn't utter a peep the entire time! She smiled and cooed and sat up nicely at the table for a while before she took a short snooze during the main course.

Father's Day

2011-06-19T21:04:00.007+01:00

Unlike Mother's Day in the US and Mothering Sunday in the UK, Father's Day is celebrated today in both countries. It was Scott's first Father's Day as a Dad so hopefully he had a nice day. While we didn't do anything too exciting, we did manage to all go to the gym (Crosby had her first visit to the creche there) and we grilled steaks for steak salads per Scott's request for dinner. Celebrating these holidays now as a parent myself is a bit different than before. I have never doubted my love and appreciation for my parents for being such good examples to me and for providing a wonderful life for me, but now that I have little Crosby, my respect for both of them is so much greater than before. Maybe that is how life works - we learn more about the past with every future experience? Right now, I feel a bit like that and I know my parents now see something with me and Crosby, similar to what their parents must have seen when I arrived (and then also my sister) with them.

On a day like today, I do marvel at how lucky I am to have such a wonderful Father and how hard he has worked to provide for my family throughout my life - and how he continues to do so even though I have moved on into my own little family. My Mom & Dad both say to me, "We will always be your parents so we will also continue to do things for you as parents should." And now with Crosby's arrival, I understand that a bit more. I hope that as we raise Crosby, we will always put our children's best interests first, doing everything possible to provide for them, and to give them enough love and support for them to thrive. Being so far away from family on these holidays is a bit more difficult now that Crosby is around, especially since we are also celebrating her Grandfathers today too and we are unable to be with them.

However, I am reminded that we are away only temporarily and the reason we are here is because Crosby has a Dad who wants to provide the best life for our new family. His career has carved out this challenge for him and we have taken this opportunity in hopes that this experience will allow him to continue to succeed in the future. Today especially, I am glad to celebrate Scott on his first Father's Day, as I know he is working hard for us, is being a good example for Crosby and will be for the rest of her life.

Crosby in her special outfit in honor of her Daddy!

Hanging with Dad for the afternoon.

An attempt at a family photo on Father's Day.

Crosby's gift to Dad - coordinating half pint/ Pint t-shirts to celebrate Scott's first Father's Day living in England. Unfortunately it was a bit too close to nap time and little Crosby was not so thrilled to be modeling her new shirt....she was ready for her crib!

A Garden Tea Party

2011-06-16T21:20:00.008+01:00

This afternoon I attended a proper English Tea/Garden Party with a group of expat ladies for a fundraiser for a local charity. It was great fun and reminded me of some of the great perks of being an expat wife. Hats or fascinators were required since it was a proper tea and it also coincided with Ladies Day at Ascot today, which is another place where hats are part of the attire for women. I opted for a fairly small fascinator by English standards but still felt a bit like a fish out of water since I am not used to having such large things in my hair!

An attempted self portrait to capture a picture of my fascinator before leaving for the tea.

The tea was full of sweets, cakes and tea sandwiches to enjoy.

I had volunteered to bake a cake for the tea. I baked this strawberry cake (not a proper English tea time cake, but yummy all the same!).

With Anne & Michele in our hats and fascinators at the tea.

There was traditional victoria sponge cake (one of my favorite British cakes).

And plenty of delicious finger sandwiches! Salmon, cucumber, egg salad, and ham & cheese.

And of course scones with real clotted cream and jam. Talk about leaving on a sugar high!

When I returned home, I arrived to find my little Crosby fast asleep after being a good little baby for the sitter. It was a lovely afternoon for a good cause!

The Nappy Report

2011-06-10T10:05:00.005+01:00

This week I left Crosby home for almost the entire day with a sitter for the first time. Crosby & the sitter did just fine but of course I was worried and thinking about my little baby the entire time! Crosby is used to this sitter already which is good. We found her shortly after all of our parents went home after visiting so I could get out for a few hours every week, since we do not have family nearby to watch her if needed. The visits with the sitter have only been a few hours at a time before so I wasn't sure how the entire day might go. Luckily everything went well and when I arrived back home, I was given the full nappy report.

Nappy Report? Code name for Diaper Report. And that's not the only baby item called by a different name over here....

When I came home from the day out, the sitter said to me: "Crosby was an angel. She had four wet nappies and no dirty nappies. She drank her bottles and I took her in the pram on a walk into town."

Yes, in the world of a baby, there are more differences in words between the British and Americans. So, because we have a British babysitter, I find myself correcting myself when giving her instructions to ensure we are both talking about the same thing....

American word = British word

Diaper = Nappy

Pacifier = Dummy

Burp Cloth = Muslin

Stroller = Pram or Pushchair

Crib = Cot

Convertible Crib = Cot Bed

Bassinet or small rocking-type crib = Crib (the cot/crib situation was very confusing when shopping for a "crib" as we know it in the US!)

Onesie or baby bodysuit = Vest (commonly in the UK, vests are sleeveless, worn as undershirts really, and I have not found these in the US/ although I would also say vests could be with sleeves and then they might be worn as shirts as they are worn in the US)

One piece snap-front sleep n' play (as Carters would call them, actually I unsure what they are officially called in the US) = Baby grow outfits

Day care = Nursery

I guess only time will tell to see if Crosby picks up any of the British words for these items while living over here!

Jet Lag

2011-06-06T21:40:00.001+01:00

Jet lag seems SO much more tiring with an infant! While Crosby was a dream baby on the return flight back to the UK, the first few days/nights back in England were a bit rough. Truthfully they were probably more tiring for me and for Scott than they were for Crosby. We arrived home only to smell a terrible stench in the house - our freezer had gone bad. Who knows if it went bad while Scott was traveling in Europe before he came to America to meet us, or if it went bad during the week he was in the US. Either way, our house stunk and we were already exhausted from the journey to get back here before we had to deal with cleaning out the soupy freezer and work on the smell.

After Scott wrapped himself in a mask and kindly threw out the contents of our entire freezer, he headed into the office for the rest of the day, and I spent the remainder of the day trying to entertain a baby who was completely off schedule.

After dinner, I walked into our living room to find the two other family members here looking like this:

Jet lag struck the first night for sure! Unfortunately it's difficult to tell a baby not to sleep all afternoon so she'll sleep at night....so we had a wide awake Crosby at 1am on our hands the first night back.

After about four nights of a somewhat mixed up sleeping scheduling, Crosby seemed to get back on track and luckily she is now going back to sleep at 8pm which makes everyone in the house happy.

Indiana

2011-05-31T21:19:00.032+01:00

The last part of our trip ended with a week in Indiana. We started the week with Scott's parents in central Indiana, and then ended the weekend in northwest Indiana, with both sides of our family, where we had Crosby baptized in her Great Grandmother's Church. It was a packed and busy week but lots of people got to meet little Crosby. She even got to experience her first tornado warning sirens! (not a part of life in midwest we miss very much...)

Up early the first day of our visit and chatting away with Grandpa Craig in the morning. He's so entertaining, so Crosby had a lot to share with him!

Trying out Grandpa Craig's chair for size. Still a bit of room to grow...

One evening we went with Scott's parents to their choir practice. They had a pot luck dinner reception first so everyone could meet their new granddaughter, Crosby. Scott & I were commenting on the great American salads and dishes at a "pot luck" meal in the US. Pot lucks in the UK really don't compare to American salads and dishes - the UK tends to gravitate towards sausage rolls, store bought mayo based salads, pork pies and other rather different dishes.

Crosby was introduced to some of Grandma Cris' dearest friends, Carla and Randi, who have both known Scott since he was a baby too.

Meeting Mrs. Nancy

And Scott's friend Dan

Great Grandma watching Crosby swing away the afternoon.

Meeting Mrs. Linda

Celebrating Grandma Cris' birthday while we were visiting. Crosby didn't have any cake this time either but I think she enjoyed the candles.

On Grandma Cris' birthday, Crosby had special photos taken with both Great Grandma and Grandma Cris.

After the week with Scott's parents, we all headed to northwest Indiana to visit with more relatives and for Crosby's baptism at Great Grandma's Church there.

On Saturday evening before the baptism, Great Grandma hosted a lovely dinner for some of Scott's and my family so everyone could spend more time with Crosby. She got to meet her Great Aunt Kathie and Great Uncle Steve there for the first time.

Crosby also got to meet Uncle Matt!

And Uncle Todd!

We all had a nice dinner and a good time snuggling with the baby.

Back at the hotel that night, Aunt Carrie had a sleepover with Crosby in her room!

Sunday morning was the morning of the christening. Crosby looked so pretty in my dress that I wore for my christening, and she even had a new pretty pearl bracelet from Gram & Pa for the special occasion too.

With her godparents, Jonathan & Sarah, and us before the ceremony.

Both of our families before the ceremony.

The ceremony was very nice and it was even more special that we were able to have Crosby christened in the same church where Scott's parents were married and Scott was baptized too.

After the christening, we hosted a lunch at a nearby restaurant for both sides of our family. Many more cuddles with Crosby were in order! It was a great end to the trip to the US and a wonderful occasion for many of our loved ones to meet our newest treasure.

St. Louis

2011-05-23T05:11:00.015+01:00

The first stop on our US "tour" was St. Louis. I spent some extra time there with Crosby while Scott was back in Europe traveling around for work. It was nice that I was able to be home with my parents for a bit instead of being at home by myself with Crosby in England while Scott was away. I have never seen Grandparents so excited to change diapers, bathe the baby, or even do her laundry than my parents were when we arrived. While Crosby liked the attention and change of scene, I think I enjoyed the rest and break more, most especially since I had my parents taking care of me too! (although I am going to say Scott really enjoyed sending me back home because he was able to get quite a few nights of un-interrupted sleep and was off diaper duty while we were away!!) We enjoyed the time at home and I ate all of my favorite St. Louis foods and treats, and I also enjoyed multiple trips to Target while there!

Crosby practiced time on her tummy while we were home. Pa sure loved playing with her every night when he got home from work!

Gram started Crosby on her "good manner" program with her first visit home. She is to wear a bib at all meals and is learning how to sit properly at the dinner table like a lady. Scott and my mom often joke that we will send Crosby to my mom's for "manner camp" but I am not sure there is really any joking involved. The lessons have already begun!

The first weekend I was home, my Mom hosted a luncheon for Crosby to meet "the ladies." Many of these women have known me since I was Crosby's age, so it was very special for me to have them see and meet Crosby while we were there. As always, Crosby was a gem of a baby and she was passed from one lady to the next without any fussing at all.

We visited my Dad's office where Crosby decided to get to work at a very early age. The family business may just be her cup of tea someday!

One of the main reasons we decided to go home in May was because my Dad celebrated a special birthday. While he does not like surprises, he did enjoy the (few) we helped orchestrate for his birthday.

First, on his actual birthday, my sister Carrie arrived from Denver for a surprise visit. She got to meet Crosby for the first time too!

We all celebrated my Dad's birthday that evening with dinner and cake at home. Crosby couldn't eat the cake but I suspect it won't be long until the doberge torte from one of our favorite St. Louis bakeries becomes one of her favorites too.

Carrie, Crosby and me with my Dad on his birthday. Happy Birthday Dad!

Auntie Carrie had lots of fun playing with Crosby. Crosby resembles Carrie a LOT as a baby so I have to wonder if people who saw them with one another thought they belonged together?

We also had a play date with two of my friends from high school who were both in town with their kids. It was great fun to catch up with them and to be able to meet their kids while we were all home!

The weekend Scott arrived in St. Louis was a weekend planned with a bit of another small surprise for my Dad's special birthday. Some very dear family friends of ours came to St. Louis from Milkwaukee, Chicago, and Kansas City to celebrate with all of us. This family might as well be our real extended family since we have grown up with their two girls, have spent family vacations and holidays together, and they are all still our dearest family friends and girlfriends!

Em snuggling with little Crosby.

Emily's daughter Ella became Scott's buddy right away. We often skype with Em & Ella so it was fun to see them in "real life" too.

Amy with little Crosby.

Ella made a special birthday hat for my Dad and gave it to him!

The four girls - Amy, Carrie, Cassie & Emily - all back together again! I think it's been 6 years since we were all together as we were this time. Now there are two more little girls to add to the mix - Ella & Crosby!

While being back home was great, it also made me a little sad that we are so far away from our families now that we have Crosby. I have always missed my family since we have moved away, but not as much as I do now that we have a baby. Skype makes it easier to see everyone on a daily basis but it sure would be nice to not have to travel across a large ocean and multiple time zones to get home for a bit. I know we are very fortunate for this opportunity to live abroad so I am not complaining, but I do think that I will look forward to going "home" for different reasons now with Crosby than I did before she arrived. In the meantime, we will treasure our visits we have with our families, which are probably in longer stretches compared to if we were living close by and would see them more often, but for less amounts of time.

First Visit to the US Pediatrician

2011-05-18T01:20:00.005+01:00

Today my mom and I took Crosby to visit my old pediatrician for a "well child" visit. Since we know we will eventually be moving back to the US and due to the lack of regular "well child" visits at pediatrician's offices in the UK (actually there are no specific pediatricians for children through the NHS in England, unless there are problems and then a pediatrician would be considered a "specialist"), I decided it would be a good idea to start a medical history for Crosby here in the US and also just wanted to have piece of mind with a doctor I've known to review her here.

I was pleased to have taken Crosby to the doctor's office today to confirm the fact that she is a healthy growing little girl! She is at the 99th percentile for her height and weight and is at the 90th percentile for her head size. Crosby is just over 17 lbs already and is 26 1/2 inches tall at only 3 months of age! I sure do have an arm workout on my hands....

The not-so-fun part of the visit for Crosby was the start of her Hep B shot series. The UK does not immunize for Hep B but they do here in the US, so I wanted to make sure she started the series. It will work out well that she will be able to get the second round of this shot in the fall when Crosby & I come home for another visit. I also found out that she missed the roto-virus shot in the UK, and they do immunize for that here in the US. Unfortunately the shot has to be given before a baby is 2 months old, so we have missed the window for Crosby. Luckily it's not a serious shot but it just means we may have a bought of a virus on our hands before Crosby turns 2.

Sitting on the exam table with mom - just where I used to sit!

Getting those ears checked out....all was well. We are so lucky to have a healthy, growing, and happy little baby girl!

Observations in the US

2011-05-17T04:04:00.005+01:00

Once again I find myself looking at life in America with a different view, upon first arrival back here during our visit. For this visit, I am home for nearly 3 weeks which is the longest amount of time I have been back "home" in nearly 2 years. Because I am spending more time here, I find myself really comparing and contrasting bits about the US vs bit about our life in the UK.

As I sit here watching the local evening news right now, I am noticing how many murders and shootings are reported for one city alone. In England, there may be one shooting mentioned every few nights but overall, not many murders are mentioned nightly on the national news. The gun crimes and sensationalized news really does seem to be more heightened here in the US.

SUVs. As my Mom and I drove into a shopping centre the other day, I remarked that nearly 75% of all cars in the small parking lot were SUVs. It is nearly impossible to see around these cars when pulling out of the parking spaces. I said I wonder if when we move back to America, will we give in to this aspect of American culture and buy a SUV so we can tote kids, luggage, etc. around town?

Opening Hours. I have been to Target late at night after my little Crosby has gone to bed (Gram & Pa on baby duty of course). Target is open until 11pm! I can only imagine what kind of errands I would be able to run in England if stores were open that late and I would be able to go out after 8pm at night....

The grocery store. I find myself in awe of all the new products on the shelves that I have not seen before nor have I tried. I hope I won't go too crazy in tasting all of them once I move back. I also find myself in amazement over how many flavors of ice cream are here in the US at the grocery. I realize how limited the variety selection is in England. I have missed good ice cream tubs.

I also found myself looking for products at the grocery store here, that I have been accustomed to in England.

With all of these comparisons that are running through my mind while I am home, I wonder how long it will take to fully readjust to life here in the US (once we move back) before I stop comparing the two countries? Initially I guess I never thought I would be comparing the things I now prefer in England to things back here in America....so I may eventually be returning to the US with a different set of eyes than those of when I moved away.

Transatlantic Travel

2011-05-11T02:05:00.003+01:00

Crosby & I have come "home" for a few weeks - Crosby's first flight and her first trip to America. Scott will join us later for some time with family here in the US, but since I am on maternity leave and Scott is busy with work, I decided to take some extra time at home first. (Secretly I have to admit is really nice to have time at home with doting grandparents who want to help out with Crosby and take care of me - doing everything from changing diapers, bathing the little beauty, and even sleeping with a jet-lagged baby so I can get a break.)

While we are now enjoying some down time at home, the trip here was a bit stressful for me. I was quite nervous to be flying with an infant BY MYSELF for her first time on a flight - a LONG one at that....13 hours of travel, 2 flights and nearly 4,000 miles traveled in one day!

So many things could have gone wrong, but luckily Crosby did pretty well and after doing it on my own, I am pleased that it went so well - but I do hope that I will always offer help to any other mother or father I see traveling by her or his self. I was expecting the airline staff to be more helpful when boarding or de-boarding the plane with an infant, but they really didn't offer too much assistance to me when I was trying to collapse the stroller at the gate, when I was trying to put my hand luggage in the overhead bins, etc. etc.

The "stuff" to manage on my own....2 suitcases (about 90 lbs in total weight), a stroller, a car seat, the baby(!), three carry on bags, and myself. Whew, it made for two handfuls (literally) at the Newark Airport where we had to collect luggage and clear customs. As seen here, this is how I managed....two suitcases being wheeled in one hand, baby and kit in the other hand, with all bags hanging off my shoulders.

Crosby was fast asleep in her car seat when we first took off into the air. Then, I had requested this bassinet for her to use (available on certain long haul flights for babies under 6 months of age) and she did pretty well in it for most of the flight. She woke up about mid way through the flight and screamed for a little bit but then seemed to be just fine. I have to wonder if she was either not sure where she was - or maybe her ears were bothered?

Wide awake later on during the flight and looking around at all of the people on board!

At the end of the flight, in her car seat ready to go....just waiting for everyone else to get off the plane first so we could take our time to put the stroller together before racing down to baggage claim to collect our bags for customs and our connecting flight. Let's hope Crosby's good traveling behavior continues for a long time!

Easter Weekend in Cornwall

2011-04-27T21:33:00.019+01:00

This year for the long Easter weekend holiday, we decided to stay a bit closer to home than we have the past few years since we were unsure how traveling with a small baby would be. However, since it is a four day bank holiday weekend, we wanted to take advantage of the long weekend and so we drove down south to the south west coast of England in Cornwall.

One of our first observations about this trip was that we had no idea so many camper vans existed in England! Apparently they all congregate on the M5 (the motorway route to get to Cornwall) on holiday weekends and we experienced traffic with what seemed to be the entire population of camper vans in all of England on our way down to Cornwall. Once we arrived in Cornwall, it seemed that we were passing camping sites around every turn. It is very unlike any other part of England we have seen.

The other observation about this trip was that we truly enjoyed the food in this corner of England. The seafood was definitely fresh and we ate some at every meal. Cornwall is known for a few other food items - cornish clotted cream, clotted cream fudge, and cornish pasties, all of which were excellent right at the source!

While the newscasters kept reporting on the "Barbecue" Easter weekend weather we had in the UK, it still was not as warm by the coast as it was inland --- BUT a weekend without rain in England is fairly uncommon, so we treasured every minute of the sunny skies!

Little Crosby sporting her sun hat, ready for some time outside after checking into the hotel.

Mom and Dad's idea of relaxation the first afternoon there - snacks and beverages while overlooking the beach at the hotel!

Just call her Stevie Wonder.....trying out baby sunglasses for size. Crosby was not pleased!

On Saturday, we drove up the coast to a town along the water called Padstow. It was a cute little town with a port and shopping market area, but it is most famous for being the home of Rick Stein's Seafood Restaurant and other ventures.

Driving in Cornwall was a bit hair raising. The streets are very narrow, quite windy, a bit mountainous, and there are thick and high hedges lining most all of the roads. I left the driving to Scott!

A very English looking scene in town.

Scott & Crosby at the water in Padstow.

A fudge shop....the clotted cream fudge was amazing!

We had lunch at Rick Stein's Fish and Chips shop right on the water. It was nothing short of DELICIOUS! Tip: If you are going there, they do not accept reservations. You need to queue outside and they seem to wait for the entire restaurant to clear out, and then they seat the next group of people in the queue. It was worth the wait!

We had freshly caught oysters and deep fried oysters to start. Both were amazing.

And then I had monkfish "fish and chips" - deep fried in beef fat. MMMMMmmmm heart attack good!!!

After a walk around Padstow, fish and chips for lunch, and some cornished cream ice cream for dessert, we made our way along the coast and decided to stop at a National Trust site -the Carnewas and Bedruthan Steps to walk along the stunning coast there.

These yellow flowers/ground cover were very prolific along the coast at this point. I am unsure as to what flower or plant they are, but they were very pretty.

We took Crosby in the stroller along the coastal path.

The views were unbelievable.

Such a pretty coast!

And then back to our resort/beach area of the hotel.

It is a big surfing area.

Scott & Crosby on the beach. Crosby didn't care for the wind too much, so she slept through the walk, while bundled up.

Family portrait on the beach with a sleeping baby!

The cliffs along the beach had lots of rocks (and signs for falling rocks) but beach -goers seemed to camp out in the caves all around.

A great sunset over the water.

Easter Sunday in the sun - Miss Crosby sleeping through a beautiful morning again!

Marathon US Travel

2011-04-26T21:38:00.003+01:00

Crosby & I are now counting down the days until we head back to the US for our first trip there since Crosby's arrival. I am not sure if I am a brave soul or a fool for trying to make Crosby's first flight (a transatlantic one none the less) on my own, but I will be doing it.

Scott will join us later along the way. We are flying out of one airport here in England, transferring in Newark, NJ, and then flying to St. Louis where we will stay with my parents. Then, Scott will join us in St. Louis for a few days, and then we pile everything into a car, drive for about 5 hours to see his parents in Indiana, and then we will drive north to a suburb of Chicago to see Crosby's great grandmother, where all of our family members will reconvene for the weekend for Crosby's baptism. Crosby, Scott & I will then fly out of Chicago's O'Hare airport to return back to England, via a London airport on the return end.

Tired already from reading that itinerary? I am, and I haven't even started packing for the trip yet!

Our trip back to the US is actually somewhat central compared to most. I was recently talking to another expat here in England who is heading back to the US with her family - they start out on the east coast, then go south, and then end up in the midwest so they can see everyone, before flying back to England. Another expat friend is back in the US right now with her family, she has three stops on her trip, with two internal flights. I guess we are lucky that we can drive in between our stops? While it is great to go home, the stakes are now higher since Crosby is involved and everyone wants to have time with her and we want her to be able to spend time with to everyone too. We know a short weekend trip back in to Chicago only is no longer going to be the case, as we may have done in the past. Plus, we have tenants living in our home, and neither of our immediate families are in Chicago. Perhaps if our families were both in the same city and we had previously lived in that same city, we would not face such internal travel, but I cannot imagine many expats are lucky enough to have all of those things aligned.

For such a long (and costly now since it's x 3) flight, I think I am always going to want to make the most of our time back in our home country, however I have a feeling it is always going to feel like a marathon US trip whenever we decide to go home....and I already feel like for such a long trip back home, we are still not getting to see everyone we would like to be able to see and visit all of the places we would like....

Our little American

2011-04-21T12:47:00.003+01:00

Since Crosby was born here in the UK and not in the US, we had to register her birth with the US government and US Embassy in London in order to gain her American birth certificate, social security card and number, and American passport. We wanted her to become an official American as soon as she was able. Unfortunately, just because Crosby was born in England does not mean she automatically gains British citizenship. Now, if the reverse situation happens (a British couple has a baby in America), that child does gain automatic American citizenship....

Since we knew we wanted to take Crosby on a trip back to the US in the spring, we wanted to secure her American citizenship paperwork and passport as soon as possible. However the process requires an in-person visit to the US Embassy in London, so a bit of time was needed for me to recover so I could be up for a day out with a newborn in tow.

First, we had to register Crosby's birth in the UK and obtain her UK certificate of birth. Then we had to have Crosby's passport photo taken (of course not simple task since the US passport photo has to be a different size than a British passport photo!). I was very proud of taking Crosby on my own for her photograph to be taken. It was my first outing with her on my own, and I went right after my parents left to go back home. She will use this photo until she is five years old. I think it's crazy because she has already changed, just a few weeks after this was taken.

Once we had her photograph taken and had her UK record of birth paperwork in order, we were then able to make an appointment at the US Embassy for our in-person appointment.

Last month when Crosby was just over one month old, we took a quick day trip down to London to visit the US Embassy there to apply for Crosby's paperwork in person. We were able to just drive straight into the city, park right on the square by the Embassy and Crosby was a perfect baby for the big excursion. We walked through the square in front of the Embassy and took this picture in front of the US Embassy there.

With Dad/Scott in front of the gates of the US Embassy, Crosby sleeping through most of the visit there!

Crosby's US passport has finally arrived. Hooray! Just in time for Crosby's first trip with mom to the US!

The Surgery

2011-04-06T13:05:00.005+01:00

When I first heard this phrase - as in - your local "surgery" - I thought it was a bit strange....a surgery center? Wrong. Another British word that is different than the American version...It is basically the equivalent of the local doctor's office. These doctor offices exist in every area and locals are assigned a local surgery based on one's post code (aka zip code).

In the two years plus we have lived here in the UK, I had only been to the local surgery once - when we first arrived as I needed to register with the local doctor. The surgery center assigned me one of the doctors in the practice and it was actually not until this week that I met "my" doctor in the group.

The concept of the local surgery is a point of how this NHS system of socialized health care works. Everything runs through your surgery center first if you are following the NHS way. With my recent pregnancy, I sought 100% private care (very a-typical here in England) so I did not visit my local surgery for midwife appointments except to tell them I was pregnant so they could register me at the local hospital and then to show them my notes so they knew I was receiving proper care elsewhere.

However, now that we have Crosby, the local surgery is the doctor's group I will visit for her care and it is as well as where I go for general medical needs. Ironically we have now landed ourselves there twice this week....

First, we went for Crosby's 7 week post-birth hip check and weigh in where we met the doctor with whom we are both registered. All went well and Crosby is growing like a weed (99% for height which we knew would happen with her tall genes!). Then unfortunately I ended up with a bacterial infection this week and so I was back at the doctor's office for treatment and a prescription to assist. For the second visit, I saw a different doctor other than my own - just another one in the practice who had an available appointment.

So beyond the fact that we go to the "surgery" whenever we have medical needs and yet no surgery actually takes place there - I also find it a bit different that the same doctor who sees Crosby is the one who also sees me for any problems I have. If we were in the US, we first would have gone to the pediatrician for Crosby's check up and then I would have seen my own doctor for my situation, however here everyone goes to the "GP" (general practitioners who see all family members and all aged patients) and then if there are special circumstances you would receive a referral to a "consultant" (i.e. an Orthopedic Surgeon, Dermatologist, etc.). In some ways I believe this referral system is how some insurance policies operate in the US, but for a general PPO type of insurance policy, I was always used to going directly to the type of doctor needed for the situation.

This system and concept of the local surgery seems to work just fine here in England, however it is one of the other differences we are adjusting to as we experience life in a different country......I am sure the British might find our system difficult to navigate on the reverse side....

Mothering Sunday

2011-04-03T20:47:00.005+01:00

Sunday April 3rd was "Mothering Sunday" here in the UK. It is the British version of what we know as Mother's Day in the US. In reading about the history on why it is on a different date, I have found information that says in the US Mother's Day always takes place at the beginning of May but here in the UK, Mothering Sunday takes place on the Sunday halfway between Shrove Tuesday (also known in the US as Fat Tuesday) and Easter - halfway between Lent. Typically this means Mother's Day in the UK is in March, but this year due to Easter being so late, it was in early April. For more historical information, this site explains things in more detail.

Either way, now that I am a Mom, one of the advantages of being an expat here in England means that I get to celebrate Mother's Day twice - once for being a "Mum" here in England, and then again in May on the US Mother's Day. On Sunday, I had a very nice first day being a Mum here in England. Scott brought me breakfast in bed and little Crosby was once again a good baby all day long. In May for the US Mother's Day, Crosby & I will be back with my Mom in the US so I am excited to have the best of both worlds for my two first Mother's Day(s) this year!

Crosby all smiles on Mothering Sunday in her special outfit, although it should have said "I Love Mummy" for this celebration in England.

Opening my cards from Scott & Crosby. Crosby managed to get into the pink paint and painted her hand prints all over her card for me. Very cute...and well done Dad on the thought (although I sniffed something suspicious when I came home from the store and saw pink paint all over Crosby's outfit and didn't get a straight answer as to why she had pink marks....!!!). I feel so lucky to have such a nice husband and a beautiful baby girl as my daughter!

A Pink Party!

2011-03-28T22:10:00.003+01:00

The lovely American ladies in the expat club near me kindly hosted a "pink party" for everyone to meet Miss Crosby last week. It was so very nice! Crosby was dressed in her pretty party dress and bib and was a model baby for the afternoon. Crosby was passed around from one lady to another and didn't utter a peep!

Crosby looking pretty in her pink dress and bib before the party.

With Mom at the party...

All the pink treats in the kitchen at the party...strawberry pink cupcakes, pink sugar cookies, truffles with pink icing, pink baby feet cookies, and even pink-ish punch. What a lovely party!

Never Attention Starved...

2011-03-25T22:44:00.004Z

Crosby has yet to be attention starved....

Scott's parents arrived last weekend to come meet their first granddaughter here in England. Needless to say they are more than smitten with Crosby and Crosby is enjoying all of the attention!

Grandma Cris & Crosby having a cuddle

Grandma & Grandpa planted some flowers in our yard for us. We are calling it "Crosby's little garden." Grandma Cris & Crosby checked it out this afternoon while the sun was shining and the weather was lovely.

Grandpa Craig cuddling with his granddaughter!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2011-03-17T16:57:00.000Z

From our littlest leprechaun.....

One Month Old

2011-03-13T21:56:00.001Z

Crosby is one month old! It seems like time has already flown by but at the same time it is hard to remember a time before we had a little daughter too....funny how that seems to happen with big life events, isn't it?

Pa Arrives

2011-03-11T21:54:00.000Z

Grandpa - aka "Pa" arrived this weekend in England to spend a long weekend meeting and snuggling with little Crosby. As soon as he arrived, he was already converting his first grandchild into a St. Louis Cardinal's fan! Dad is going to have a tough fight to turn this little girl into a Cubbies fan with the St. Louis lineage in her blood....

Crosby with her first St. Louis Cardinal's outfit. Not so sure about it just yet....

Snoozing and snuggling with Pa!

First Few Weeks

2011-03-07T17:49:00.004Z

We are settling in to the first few weeks of parenthood with our new daughter, Crosby. Gra-Melody is still with us and we are so happy she is still here because we are not sure what we would do without the extra set of hands at the moment! It's amazing how such a tiny being takes up so much of our time and energy....leaving us with little left for daily tasks, household chores, and simple things such as getting out of the house! (Scott being the exception since he is back at work full time after his paternity leave and seems to be back to his daily work routine, he has just added a "late night" shift for diaper duty....)

Gram reading the baby shape books to Crosby. Crosby is starting to follow movements, voices, and people with her eyes already so these black and white books are great.

After a failed attempt to drive into town one afternoon (the car seat was too complicated to figure out!), we decided to take little C for a walk around the neighborhood. Gram pushed the stroller (or pram as they say here) and we all enjoyed a bit of fresh air.

Someday I will be pushing this pram around the block too!

For Crosby's 3 week check up, our midwife Diane weighed little C at the house- she is healthily growing and weighs in at 10 lbs 7 ounces! She is healthy and thriving and we are so very thankful!

Grandma Arrives!

2011-02-28T21:57:00.005Z

Gram, Granny, Grandma, Mimi, Nana.....name of this important relative still to be determined, but for now, Gra-melody has arrived in England and is happily entertaining and taking care of her first grandchild! We are being taken care of too so it seems everyone is happy at the moment!

Grandma arrived on Thursday and Crosby has quickly taken to spending time with her while we rest up and learn the tricks of taking care of our little baby from my mom.

Between the jet lag and nap time, Gram and little C snooze for a bit on the couch together.

Snuggles upon arrival!

Gra-Melody bathes little C and we have a little happy baby. What have mom & dad been doing wrong that we always have screams when little Crosby hits the bath water??? Apparently Grandma has the special touch!

More cuddles after bath time. Grandma is clearly the favored care taker at the moment....

We will be enjoying this time with Grandma around the house. The laundry is getting done, dinner is on the table, the kitchen is clean, the baby is happy, and even diapers are being changed with great enthusiasm by the new grandma. We may never let her leave at this rate....

First Photos

2011-02-23T15:23:00.000Z

On Monday we had Crosby's first professional photos taken at our house. The lovely photographer, Jo Hastings, came to our house for the afternoon to photograph our little newborn Crosby in our home. While the images will not be ready for viewing for another few weeks, I did manage to capture a few photos of the "behind the scenes" action from the photo shoot.

Photo shooting in the living room. Scott plays photographer assist in prepping little miss Crosby for her shoots in her moses basket.

Taking a break for a snuggle with Dad in between "scene" changes.

Our kitchen turns into a shooting set with lights, baskets and all. Unfortunately this part went a bit downhill as when Crosby went without her diaper, she decided to go all over Jo's basket! Scott swooped in quickly so most of the mess ended up all over his sweater instead! We can't wait to see these photos of our little girl soon!

One Week Old

2011-02-20T19:46:00.002Z

Little Crosby is one week old today! She is doing well and is nearly back up to her birth weight. The midwife will weigh her again on Tuesday or Wednesday of this week so we will know for sure how much she weighs then. She seems to dislike being naked, although this afternoon we were able to capture a few shots of her while content in just her diaper.

It's a GIRL!!!!

2011-02-20T19:38:00.003Z

One week ago tonight, we welcomed our daughter Crosby into this world! It was a long 24 hours plus of labor and ended in a c-section, but the most important bit is that mom, baby Crosby (and cheerleader Dad too) are all healthy and well. Crosby & Mom spent a few days in hospital (a story for another post - the "ward" is not ideal over here!) but we are gladly at home now. We are all adjusting to being a new family of three, with little sleep and long nights, but are over the moon with our new little girl.

Mom meeting baby for the first time

First photo of the family of 3!

The Chinese New Year

2011-02-07T21:19:00.003Z

The new Chinese new year was just recently celebrated, bringing in the year of the rabbit. Since our child will now be born under this year, I decided to make a little welcome outfit for him or her.....with a rabbit motif! With the extra time on my hands these days (still awaiting baby's arrival...), I have been trying out new designs on my embroidery machine.

One option for a little girl and one option for a little boy. Hopefully one of these onesies will fit our little Dauson around Easter time too!