Brussels Flower Carpet, 2010

Luna and I went to Brussels with Ambre, Hannelore, and Kirsten today to see the Flower Carpet. Every other year, the Grote Markt of Brussels is transformed into a colorful carpet of flowers! 750,000 to 800,000 flowers, mostly begonias, are used to create the design, which is different each year.

We had our hands full with two babies (Kirsten is one day older than Luna) and Hannelore, who is almost three and very independent. But we had a nice time all the same, visiting the carpet, having pizza and ice cream, and strolling through the outdoor market. I had planned to go up to the city hall balcony for a better view, but the line was too long, so we settled for the close-up view from the ground. We bought some professional pictures to show it from above.

Check out the pictures and videos!

Soldiering On

Its been a bit longer between posts than usual, I apologize. I just haven't found the time to blog. Lots has happened, I'll do my best to update without making this tooooo long.

First on everyone's minds, I am sure, is Miss Luna. She is doing well. She is back on her acid reflux medication, and it started helping almost instantly. She began sleeping better within two days of being back on it. She has not miraculously started sleeping through the night, but most nights I am only up with her twice, which is fine with me! She usually sleeps about 12 hours a night, and I feed her before I go to bed and one to two times during the night.

We have introduced new vegetables into her diet, and she has so far tasted carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, green beans, and zucchini. She doesn't seem to care much for the broccoli, but she eats it anyway - just cracks me up with her "yuck" faces. She is having trouble with constipation, a common problem after the introduction of solids apparently. We've been giving her glycerine suppositories as necessary (poor thing!), and today we are introducing fruits, which is supposed to help. So starting today, she will get one portion of vegetables mixed with potatoes and olive oil and one portion of fruit mixed with baby cereal and orange juice. And she continues to nurse regularly.

Luna got the last of her shots this past Thursday. She still has one oral immunization left, but that's it until her first birthday. Her height (63 and a half cm) and weight (6.710 kg) are right smack in the middle of the growth charts, so she is growing just right. Her head continues to be on the large side, but its growing at a smooth rate so the doctor is not concerned. Its got to be that big to contain all her brains! She is a little smarty.

Her biggest achievements this month have been perfecting rolling over (she uses it as a means of transportation now) and the discovery of her feet, which she chews on all the time. The doctor told us babies usually don't discover their feet until five or six months, so we're very proud of our little toe nommer. She has also started laughing big belly laughs now, which is the most beautiful sound I have ever heard. The first time she did it, G and I looked at each other and discovered we both had tears in our eyes. Unfortunately, I haven't caught the belly laughs on video yet, but I will eventually!

As for mama, I've had a rough week. After much discussion, we decided its not financially possible for us to visit home this fall as we had hoped. I have been very homesick and the thought of that trip has been keeping me going, so I am struggling pretty hard now. I don't know when we will be able to make it home, and I am extremely saddened that my family and friends will not get to meet Luna while she is a baby. Many thanks to all the family and friends who have sent such touching and heartfelt emails to cheer me up and to remind me that being here is what is best for my family. Special thanks, also, to my friend Ambre here in Belgium, who has been great at helping to cheer me up this week. I will survive, I know, and eventually I will adjust to being so far from home.

In other mama news, we reported to the office regarding my integration classes. We don't know much more than we did before we went, though. I learned that I am required to complete 60 hours of social orientation and 120 hours of Dutch instruction. Which seems like way too much social orientation and way too little Dutch, but nobody asked me. :) Classes are in 3 hour blocks 2 to 4 times a week, so depending on which schedule I choose, I could be doing up to six hours of classes 2 to 4 days a week. Which means that the whole process will be completed within 3 or 4 months, but during that time I will be away from Luna a whole hell of a lot. The next step is to meet with our intake counselor, and our appointment for that isn't until September 20th. At that time we can explain our situation and they will supposedly work with us to find a solution. The woman we met with did say that they will pay for daycare and transportation, and pointed out that the waiting list for government sponsored daycare is so long that we may not have to worry about the breastfeeding issue because she will be weaned before we get a placement. So classes are not imminent. Which is a relief and a frustration all at once, to be honest. I do not want to put Luna in daycare, and I do not want to be away from her for 20 plus hours a week. The thought of that makes me tear up - I would miss so much - she changes so much every day! But, on the other hand, I am also extremely frustrated to not know the language and I will be happy to finally learn it. I wish I could start language classes now, somewhere closer to home for shorter intervals, and wait for the ridiculous social integration classes when Luna starts school. (Kids start school at two and a half here.) But again, nobody asked me. I will have to do whatever they tell me, unfortunately. I had all I could do to not roll my eyes when the woman we spoke with said, "So, I understand you received an invitation from us?" I think the word she was looking for was ultimatum.

G's toes are still giving him trouble, but he is back to work. He is not happy about that - he had gotten used to the extra time with Luna and is convinced she is already becoming less interested in him now that he is not here as much. I'm not sure if that is true, but I do pity him having to be away from her so much. I am very lucky to be able to stay home with her!

Enough for one post, I don't want to put anyone to sleep. I could write four more pages about the new things Luna has been doing every day, but I'll resist. Will try to update a little sooner next time. I hope everyone is doing well!

Someone Is Always Sick Around Here!

I'm grateful that none of us has any life threatening illnesses, but it seems like one or the other of us is perpetually sick or injured, frequently several of us at once!

G's three week vacation was unpleasantly extended when at the end of the second week he injured his foot, leaving him housebound for two weeks. He is just now returning to work, and I suspect it will be a painful first shift, since he hasn't worn shoes for two weeks. Walking around all day is going to be tough on him. :(

Friday night I took the baby out for walk, and halfway through I got horribly ill and just barely made it home in time. I spent the next 24 hours miserable, and only returned to the land of the living Sunday afternoon. I'm not sure if it was just the flu, or if it was a reaction the the insect bites peppering my arms and legs. I have probably eight bites right now, we think they are mosquito bites but its hard to tell for sure because they are swollen up and there are large red welts ranging in size from a dime to a half dollar. Apparently I am allergic to Belgian mosquitos. The same thing happened to G last summer in Maine, but there are a hell of a lot more mosquitos in Maine, so he was far worse off than I am. Let's hope I build up an immunity fast. I haven't even left the house, so the mosquitos are getting inside somehow. G has a few bites, and Luna has one as well, but neither of them is reacting like I am luckily. G was very helpful in taking care of Luna while I slept all day Saturday. He'd wake me when she needed to nurse, and then I went back to bed.

Luna finished her eight week course of omeprazole for acid reflux on Wednesday, and at this point her reflux is AWFUL. She is choking and gagging constantly, and just seems utterly miserable. Further, she's experiencing what I understand is a common occurrence in babies just starting solid food - constipation. We don't see the doctor until Thursday. This morning I called the pediatrician's office and got one of our doctor's colleagues. Apparently our doctor is on vacation today. The substitute doctor told me to put Luna back on Gaviscon (which is available over the counter) until we see our doctor on Thursday. She told us to give Luna glycerine suppositories today and tomorrow, and to switch her food from carrots and potatoes to either broccoli or cauliflower and potatoes. Apparently carrots are known to cause constipation. So is rice cereal, which is what babies are started on in the states. Which begs the question, WHY do we start babies on things that are known to cause this problem when the very act of starting to eat solid foods already causes the problem?? Anyhow, she'll be experiencing new veggies today.

That will have to suffice for today's update, because little bird is making waking up noises over the monitor. Happy Birthday to my brother and to my sister-in-law!

Ferber-izing the Birdie

As you can see, Luna started solid food this week. The first day was a bit rough (and extra messy), but we've all gotten the hang of it now. Mama found her some smaller spoons and learned to take Luna's clothes off before feeding to avoid excessive laundry, and Luna has learned to eat properly and swallow. She has taken to it like a natural (hardly surprising seeing how much her parents love to eat), and screams if I don't shovel it in fast enough. She also enjoys holding the spoon herself and licking the excess off her bib. Videos and photos from the first day of feeding her can be found here.

Our biggest challenge this past week has been sleep. Luna all of a sudden began to hate sleep - she wouldn't nap for more than a few minutes at a time. One day she went 16 hours without sleep! Between that and the ongoing vomiting, she got pretty cranky. Everything we tried to get her peacefully into the land of Nod ended in hysterical screaming. And so, eventually, we realized we'd have to let her cry even though we hated the very thought. We've been using a modified version of the Ferber method for three days now, and things are greatly improved. She is napping again, and there is usually 5 minutes or less of crying when we put her down to sleep. She has been waking up more and more frequently during the night, but we'll tackle one problem at a time I guess. According to the official Ferber method, your supposed to kiss them goodnight, give a few reassuring pats, and then walk away. I can't bring myself to do that. We are still doing the little bedtime ritual of nursing and butt patting until she is asleep and then gently lowering her into the crib. She always wakes up when we lay her down, but at least she is sleepy before we leave the room. It seems to be working for us. But let me tell you - there have been a lot of tears in this household the past few days, and only half of them are Luna's!

Luna has been rolling over more and more frequently this week, and she has discovered her toes. She takes great pleasure in pulling her toes up to her mouth to chew on them. She has also begun losing her hair, quite a lot later than expected. She's got a couple of nearly bald patches! We've been encouraging her to play while propped up in a sitting position to help her strengthen those tummy muscles, and its quite amusing to see her propped in the middle of the pillows like a princess on her throne.

Bad Days

A crazy couple days here...

We took Luna to the U.S. Embassy yesterday to register her birth. She is now officially a dual citizen, and all the appropriate paperwork is coming soon. I felt like she should have a little mini flag to wave! It was fun to visit the embassy. While in Brussels we also ate at Pizza Hut, and we found a newsstand selling Real Simple magazine and Oreo cookies! It was an American morning.

Since around Monday, Luna has been vomiting much more than usual. She hasn't seemed ill, and hasn't had a fever or any other symptoms other than restlessness and trouble sleeping. After we returned from Brussels, she threw up a lot all at once, which made us nervous. We called the doctor, and she was concerned as well, enough so that she wanted us to bring her in immediately. It was already nearly 5, so she told us to call the on-call pediatrician and bring Luna in to see him. So long story short, we found ourselves frantically rushing to catch a train to get Luna to the doctor.

Luna and I left first, as G stayed behind to change his clothes and close up the house. I noticed before we left that the sky had gotten dark, so I grabbed the rain cover for the carriage. I began rushing along to the station, and about halfway there, it started to rain. It was very light at first, and I half thought about just tossing a blanket over Luna and trying to make it to the station without the cover. But I decided not to risk it, and stopped to put the cover over the carriage. I had no more than fastened the velcro when the skies opened up and it began to pour. Then out of nowhere, the winds began. Within minutes, it was as though I was in the middle of a hurricane. The winds became so strong that they were trying to wrench the carriage from my grip. The rain cover was barely staying on. I had to lay my body over the carriage to keep it on the ground and to keep the rain cover on, so I was laying over it and running at the same time. I finally realized I was not going to make it to the station without one of us getting hurt, so I found a little glass shelter (like a bus shelter, but on the train platform) and got us inside. Luna was screaming hysterically and I was drenched to the skin. She was mostly dry, just a little damp where some rain had leaked around the seams of the rain cover. But she was understandably terrified, and I could not comfort her without soaking her as well. I wrapped her up tight in the blanket and kept the rain cover over her. I was afraid of the lightning, but decided we were safer where we were than out in the elements. G finally appeared through the storm and joined us in the shelter. He was dripping as well. Once he was there, we decided to try to make it the rest of the way to the station, because we were freezing. We made it inside finally, where we attracted quite a lot of attention - two sopping wet parents and a baby screaming in her carriage. I managed to calm Luna down and she actually fell asleep while we were waiting. Eventually, though, she got upset again because she was cold. I was still drenched to the skin so I wasn't able to warm her against me. Since the storm had faded to just a steady rain by this point, we headed home. We arrived, wet and bedraggled, but safe at last. We got all of us into dry clothes, then we wrapped up in blankets and G and I had tea and cookies while Luna had some milk. Needless to say, we did not get to the doctor last night.

Soooo, first thing this morning we headed to the doctor. She examined Luna and asked a bunch of questions, and then decided to do some tests to see if there was anything wrong. She ordered a urine test to check for a bladder infection (I had noticed some dark urine), and ultrasound scans of the brain and the stomach. First stop was the pediatrics ward, where the urine collection bag was attached. They adhere a little plastic bag over her, well, you get the idea. And then you wait. While we were waiting, it was off to registration and then to radiology. Luna was awesome during the ultrasound - she laughed and smiled at the technician, and at one point laid her hand over his while he was moving the wand around her belly. She only fussed once - his machine suddenly made a loud noise and it scared her. The scans were quick and painless. We then went to the cafeteria for awhile to continue to wait. And wait. We kept checking her diaper, but the little bag was empty. We went back to the pediatrics ward and continued to wait. Twice she filled her diaper and they had to clean her up and attach a new bag. We waited for several hours, but she would not go. She got so tired and fussy, she couldn't sleep for more than a few minutes at a time. Finally, we asked the nurse to call the doctor and tell her we wanted to take the baby home. She came and did a catheterization - it took 2 minutes. No idea why she didn't do that to start with!! Luna cried, but just for a second. The scans were both fine - nothing wrong with her brain, and the little valve that closes off the stomach works properly. We haven't yet heard the results of the urinalysis, the doctor is supposed to call. In the end, after 4 and a half hours at the hospital, she sent us home with a prescription for medicine that is supposed to soothe her stomach, which we are supposed to give her three times a day for a week. After the first dose she puked twice, so its not especially helpful. So long as she doesn't develop any new symptoms, I think we will just deal with the vomiting and hope it improves next week when we start solid food.

Here's hoping the next few days are better! We're planning to stay the hell home tomorrow!

Sleeping Like... Well, a Baby

The big news around here is that Luna has started sleeping in her crib at night! We went to the pediatrician for vaccinations Monday and discussed a few things with her, and she said we should get Luna sleeping in her own bed, even if it meant crying it out. We were not very happy about the crying it out idea, but we came home resolved to suffer through it. Bedtime came and I nursed her and rocked her until she fell asleep, and then laid her in the crib. As usual, she awoke when I moved her, but I walked away anyway. I went downstairs and flipped on the baby monitor to hear.... silence. I went up to check, and sure enough, she had curled up on her side and gone to sleep as though she had been doing so every night of her life. I figured it was a fluke and that the first time she woke to eat she'd balk at the idea of going back in there. But she woke to eat at her usual time, nursed and rocked, and then settled right back into the crib with no fuss at all. She slept all night. She slept more than I did, I was so nervous I checked on her every fifteen minutes I think.

Last night I figured she'd scream when I put her to bed (especially because she had a fever last night), but no, she again settled right in. Maybe she was just ready, I don't know. I am hoping it continues to be this easy.

Naps are another story entirely - she still refused to sleep in the crib at naptime today, but it may be because she isn't feeling well today and has been extra clingy. I figured I'd tackle that challenge once she is feeling better.

Yes, unfortunately, Luna did not escape this round of vaccinations unscathed. She had a low grade fever last night. One dose of Baby Perdolan cleared it right up, but she continues to be whiney and clingy and her eyes look sick. She's thrown up her milk several times, too. Hopefully she will be better by tomorrow.

We also discussed the acid reflux again with the doctor. I told her that the current medicine seems to make the reflux about 50% better, and she said she expects that to continue to improve as she gets older. She suggested we begin solid foods at 4 months, as it minimizes reflux. Interestingly, the norm here is to feed babies pureed potatoes and vegetables right from the start - the doctor had no idea what I was talking about when I mentioned baby cereal. So in just a couple more weeks, Luna will get her first taste of potatoes!

The doctor also mentioned that Luna has a larger than average head. I was not surprised to hear that, considering that her head got stuck despite my wide hips. The doctor embarrassed the hell out of us by measuring both of our heads and determining that both parents have large heads (who knew??), and that Luna's large head was probably just genetic and unlikely to be anything to worry about. Nonetheless, she is going to keep an eye on it and make sure the rate of growth runs parallel to the growth chart.

We are enjoying G's vacation. Not doing much, but its nice to have more family time. We're mostly hanging out.

I learned this week that my brother has joined the military. He will be thirty this month, so it was a bit of a shock to us. Supposedly there is no risk of him being shipped overseas in the position he signed up for, but I don't trust that. I love my brother dearly and I worry about his safety. Please keep him in your thoughts, or in your prayers if you are the praying sort.