I can't say that I know much about living in Europe. However, thus far, it's been a great adventure. I almost feel as if we're on vacation.
We finally bought a car. We were getting rides from friends here and there and that was getting to be too much. So, we grabbed at the chance to buy a 99 Nissan Altima from a guy who is leaving NATO. It's not what we wanted. But, it was in our price range and had low mileage. So far, it's proved to be a fine car.
Driving, on the other hand, has proven to be a bit more challenging than I was expecting. I'm learning to navigate around round-abouts properly and watch for hidden street signs, all the while trying to avoid hitting cars next to me on the narrow streets. Our portable navigation tool (TomTom GPS) has come in very handy. In fact, Matt and I don't think we'll travel without one anywhere again. Though not always accurate, it easily redirects you in the event that it has taken you in the wrong direction.
I don't know if I've previously mentioned the baby sitter dilemma. There is no child development center here as there is no military post. I'm using a babysitting service that I hear has been somewhat unreliable. I also have a young American woman who's husband works for NATO helping me on Monday's and Wednesday's so I can get to my 5:30pm class on time. She stays with the girls until Matt gets home. Which, at times, has been later than expected. She's involved with the spouses group and has a couple of other jobs that keep her quite busy, therefore, I won't be able to use her as much as I had hoped. Portuguese use their family members to babysit their children and babysitting, aside from daycare centers, are virtually unheard of. There are many new families with small children here at NATO and we're all nervous as to what we're going to do when it comes time for the next formal. If the babysitting service works out, Matt and I shouldn't have too much of a problem. Just in case it doesn't work out, I've been keeping my eyes an ears open for other options.
The language class I'm taking is going okay. Learning a language is so much harder than I remembered. I almost wish I had taken a more relaxed, private group course in which grades are not given out. However, I am catching on and I vaguely understood what our gardener was explaining to me the other day. Well, really all I understood was that he was telling me that I need to learn Portuguese and that he thought our dog was six-years-old or maybe it was that he has a six-year-old dog...
As I've mentioned previously, the food here is wonderful. I've grown to love their form of coffee and even their grilled sardines. They are divine! And the wine! I don't even know where to begin. While it's good (not the best in Europe), I'm only just beginning to know what wine goes with what, etc. I ordered some books to help me out.
I'm trying to buy local food and produce while we live here. Local butter, honey, apples, cheese, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, bread, meats, fish, etc. It could be easy to go to the NEX (military store that sells food and a few household products). But, why buy American cheese and meats when I can the freshest here? After finishing up making stuffed shells a week or two ago, I realized that it probably would have tasted a lot better if I had used local parmesan and ricotta cheese. The cheese I bought from the NEX was about to expire. While the NEX is handy for Matt's Mountain Dew, American movies and a few other items, it seems senseless to continue to buy from there on a regular basis when the food on the economy is so much better than most of processed food sold at the NEX.
We finally hired a housekeeper. She's about $35/week US. I takes some stress off knowing that my house won't get too out of control. She comes once a week and cleans whatever I ask her to. Such as the stove, oven, floors, countertops, bathrooms, ironing, etc. We have her coming for four hours. If we need another hour or so, she's more than willing. I'm afraid that I'm going to get spoiled because I know there is no way I'll find someone to clean my house in the US for that price!
Matt and I have so many places we want to see before the cooler and rainy winter months approach. Now that we have a car, we can start to go on some adventures. It's not always easy traveling with two young children and you all will be sure to hear about our adventures and misadventures!
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
One Month in Portugal
Well, we've been in Portugal for nearly a month. When did time start to go buy so quickly? Wasn't it just yesterday that I was playing on a snowy playground waiting for the bell to ring; thinking I might freeze to death before then. Back then, 15-minutes felt like an eternity. I'm certain that I waited forever for 16 to come so I could get my license. And the high school years were painfully slow...However, college slipped by quickly and after I turned 21, I can admit that I suddenly wanted time to move more slowly. But, never could I imagine that at the age of 30, I'd have two children who appear to be growing up overnight. Olivia's high school graduation is tomorrow, right?
I was such a great mom before I had kids. One who would never update her blog if her floor needed to swept and mopped and (gasp) dishes in the sink. If anything would take me away from household chores, it would only be because I was doing a project or reading to my perfectly behaved, sweet children.
In actual reality, most days, I question my ability as a mother. Olivia constantly runs around naked because I'm tired of arguing with her and struggling to put clothes on her a dozen times a day while she fights me. If I was a good mother, I would have never allowed her to start undressing in the first place. I would have nipped it in the bud with a few long time outs before it got to this point, right?
If I was a good parent, Olivia would go to bed without a tear every night, right? And, now that she's started hopping out of her crib, we have to get her a big-girl bed (something we've been meaning to do for a while - but, decided to hold off on because of the move). While Olivia will be happy to have her very own bed, I know she'll really be excited because she'll see it as an opportunity to get out and play with her dolls all night long.
I should know to shut and lock the doors that lead to our stairs so Olivia won't sneak upstairs while I'm changing Lila's diaper. How many times have I found Olivia upstairs in our bedroom rummaging through dressers or putting her dolls to bed in Lila's Pack and Play?
Surely, I should know to shut and lock the door to the bathroom in her playroom. How many times have I found her sitting naked in the bidet - the bidet filled with warm water and a towel as she explains to me that she's washing her butt?
Did anyone warn me that Lila could be as mobile as Olivia was at this age? Matt and I now have a stair climber. And, if Olivia has any say in the matter, she'll be walking in a couple weeks. Often Olivia says to Matt and I, "I want Lila to walk soon, alright?"
However, with all the challenges having two close together brings, I hear it does get a lot easier. Olivia is now fully toilet-trained (aside from the normal rare accident here and there) and by the time Lila is two, they'll probably be entertaining each other quite well. Maybe it'll be around that time that they'll play dolls together and leave me alone while I sweep and mop. Or, will I have two little girls fighting over the broom???
Despite the challenges of raising these two girls, it's the cute moments that save me from going crazy. Olivia's big smile as she runs over to me, arms outstretched saying, "I love you mommy! And Lila and Daddy too. Oh, and Denali."
And then the look on Matt's face when he comes home from work and Olivia is jumping up and down yelling, "Daddy's home, daddy's home! Yeah, daddy's home!"
Just the other day, as we pulled onto our street, Olivia exclaimed, "Yeah, we're home, we're home!"
It was that statement that helped me realize that despite the fact that I barely have enough utensils and pans to cook a decent meal, and we're doing without a TV and many other normal household items such as toys and communication tools (as in a phone to call the US), life is good and our kids are adjusting well. Olivia loves her new home, Lila is back to sleeping normally, we finally have a car, I'm learning a bit of the language and the food - from sardines to bread, to coffee and pastries to wine - it's all wonderfully good. To top it all off, the sun, palm trees, oceanfront and overall beauty - I wouldn't want to be anywhere else!
I was such a great mom before I had kids. One who would never update her blog if her floor needed to swept and mopped and (gasp) dishes in the sink. If anything would take me away from household chores, it would only be because I was doing a project or reading to my perfectly behaved, sweet children.
In actual reality, most days, I question my ability as a mother. Olivia constantly runs around naked because I'm tired of arguing with her and struggling to put clothes on her a dozen times a day while she fights me. If I was a good mother, I would have never allowed her to start undressing in the first place. I would have nipped it in the bud with a few long time outs before it got to this point, right?
If I was a good parent, Olivia would go to bed without a tear every night, right? And, now that she's started hopping out of her crib, we have to get her a big-girl bed (something we've been meaning to do for a while - but, decided to hold off on because of the move). While Olivia will be happy to have her very own bed, I know she'll really be excited because she'll see it as an opportunity to get out and play with her dolls all night long.
I should know to shut and lock the doors that lead to our stairs so Olivia won't sneak upstairs while I'm changing Lila's diaper. How many times have I found Olivia upstairs in our bedroom rummaging through dressers or putting her dolls to bed in Lila's Pack and Play?
Surely, I should know to shut and lock the door to the bathroom in her playroom. How many times have I found her sitting naked in the bidet - the bidet filled with warm water and a towel as she explains to me that she's washing her butt?
Did anyone warn me that Lila could be as mobile as Olivia was at this age? Matt and I now have a stair climber. And, if Olivia has any say in the matter, she'll be walking in a couple weeks. Often Olivia says to Matt and I, "I want Lila to walk soon, alright?"
However, with all the challenges having two close together brings, I hear it does get a lot easier. Olivia is now fully toilet-trained (aside from the normal rare accident here and there) and by the time Lila is two, they'll probably be entertaining each other quite well. Maybe it'll be around that time that they'll play dolls together and leave me alone while I sweep and mop. Or, will I have two little girls fighting over the broom???
Despite the challenges of raising these two girls, it's the cute moments that save me from going crazy. Olivia's big smile as she runs over to me, arms outstretched saying, "I love you mommy! And Lila and Daddy too. Oh, and Denali."
And then the look on Matt's face when he comes home from work and Olivia is jumping up and down yelling, "Daddy's home, daddy's home! Yeah, daddy's home!"
Just the other day, as we pulled onto our street, Olivia exclaimed, "Yeah, we're home, we're home!"
It was that statement that helped me realize that despite the fact that I barely have enough utensils and pans to cook a decent meal, and we're doing without a TV and many other normal household items such as toys and communication tools (as in a phone to call the US), life is good and our kids are adjusting well. Olivia loves her new home, Lila is back to sleeping normally, we finally have a car, I'm learning a bit of the language and the food - from sardines to bread, to coffee and pastries to wine - it's all wonderfully good. To top it all off, the sun, palm trees, oceanfront and overall beauty - I wouldn't want to be anywhere else!
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