Labor of Love

Today is Labor Day, which means we had a 3-day weekend ;)  Even though we didn't go anywhere or did anything special, we did enjoy being at home, doing some chores around the house, and having extra Daddy-time. Since Elliot has a runny nose, we decided it is best to take it easy. But the kids didn't mind at all since they just wanted to play with Daddy, hang out in our backyard pool, go for a walk on Sunday morning and be together. The house may be a bit more messy, we can't sleep in anymore on holidays (or any other days for that matter), or just sit on the couch and relax, but nonetheless we had an enjoyable weekend and loved spending time with our little ones.

My absolute favorite picture of the weekend: Like Father like daughter.

Sunday morning walk

 

Pool time
 

By the way, Elliot waves and says "Hiiiiiiiiiiiiii" to everyone around him, sits himself up, crawls really fast thru the entire house and pulls himself up everywhere. We had to lower his crib to the lowest level and I have the feeling that soon he will start to try climbing out of it. This kid is really exploring his surroundings, testing his limits daily and growing up way to quickly. For example, this morning for breakfast he devoured a whole homemade multigrain waffle and watermelon chunks.


Yummy,yummy

Standing up (very chic with his leg warmers)

Big Boy

Vacation Ready

We are getting excited and ready for our 3-week vacation to CR in October. We will be spending 20 days there, relaxing, enjoying our time off and hoping to find our new home for the next year. We have rented a nice house with pool and also have a rental car so that we can make excursions to scoop out different towns and villages. We have 5 or 6 areas in mind that sound very promising to us. Hopefully we can narrow it down while we are there and may get lucky and find a rental house so that when we come back in December we have a place to live.

Our vacation rental is located in Alajuela, which is the second-largest city in Costa Rica after the capital, San José. The climate is tropical, which is typical of the Central Valley, with moderate temperatures, averaging  72-77 F (23–26 C) degrees,  and the city and its surroundings are famed for having "the best weather in the world".

Even though it is still 5 more weeks till our vacation, I started packing and putting stuff aside we want to take with us. We are planning on taking extra luggage (from toys, clothing, books, etc), so that we will have to ship less later. For example, during the 3 weeks vacation, the kids will need some toys, so we will bring some along now but will leave it there in a storage unit until we come back in December. It will be easier to bring things with us in the airplane rather than to ship it as there is an import tax on all goods (toys, household items, etc). And we can avoid some of the taxes when bringing it with us as luggage.

On the other hand, we started very slowly to sort thru stuff at home that will be given away or sold. There is not much to do right now as we still need most of it on a daily basis and can't get rid of it till closer to our moving date. This waiting period can be exhausting and annoying as I'm actually ready to pack up our stuff and leave now.  But in the grand scheme of things, it is not that much longer till December, especially since we are gone for almost all of October and once we are back from vacation, the real moving stress will begin. So, I'm practicing patience and continue to make lists.

Still Sick and Staying Busy

Elliot is still sick. Luckily his fever is down since yesterday morning, but now he has a pretty bad rash, courtesy of the viral infection called Roseola. It is most commonly affecting those between 6 months and 2 years old and is usually marked by several days of high fever, followed by a distinctive rash just as the fever breaks.The high fever often ends abruptly, and at about the same time a pinkish-red flat or raised rash appears on the trunk and spreads over the body.

Even though he was doing ok with the fever, he now is very fussy, irritable, cries a lot (!) and has a decreased appetite (no solid food, just nursing). In short, he is miserable. And so are our nights. I have had never a night like last night. Poor baby screamed most of the night and only napped in between, mostly snuggled in to my arms. And he did say "Ma-Ma" for the first time last night when I picked him up from his crib. I guess, they know who they need most when they don't feel right. :) 

The rash doesn't hurt, but he has a reddish throat, is teething and had pretty bad gas, which caused him to feel very uncomfortable. And there is nothing much I can do at that point, except comfort him and keep my calm. I really hope that this was the worst of it and he gets better from here on. Because we all need some good rest. The entire family is exhausted. My poor husband had to sleep on the couch the last couple of nights in order to get at least some rest.

On the other hand, Amelia is doing just fine. She had Roseola when she was younger and seems to be immune now. But because we can't go out or meet friends right now, we are cooped up inside. It is tough keeping her occupied and happy while taking care of a sick baby. So I try to make extra efforts and keep her busy while Elliot naps. Yesterday, we did Play-Doh and she helped me in the kitchen.

This morning we did painting and then some bubbles outside, She also helped me weeding in the backyard. But hopefully soon, we can return to our normal routine and be out and about again.

A New School Year has Started

This week all children in Florida had to go back to school. Even though Amelia went throughout the entire summer to her preschool (The German School of Ft. Lauderdale), they didn't do their regular curriculum but more like a summer camp. She loves being at school and enjoys learning a lot. She loves her teachers, Angela and Patrizia, and playing with her friends. They always do some kind of arts and crafts, reading and discovering new things.

Because she is so interested in learning, I thought it would be a good time to get her started on reading. So, every day we will be spending approximately 20 minutes together to learn about letters and how to put them together to read.  I will be using the book Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons as a teaching tool.

 

We also will do some fun activities, crafts, writing and counting. It will be fun and based on her interests and enjoyment. So far, she has taught herself the ABC's and she can count 1-20 in English and German. I have not given her any instructions, except when she asked for them. So, I will continue not to push her to learn but rather give her the opportunity and guidance needed and I hope she will enjoy it.

 

The other day, Amelia asked me to write some letters with her. She told me which letter to write and I wrote them out for her. Then we traced a couple of each letter together and after that, she traced them herself. I think this is pretty good for a 3-year old.

 

 

Birthday Party at Preschool

This week, Amelia celebrated her 3rd birthday at preschool, The German School of Ft. Lauderdale. Since a year now, she is going twice a week to this German-based preschool program, which gives children ages 2-5, the opportunity to indulge in the German language in a peaceful Montessori setting. She loves going there, learning and playing with her friends. And she loves her teachers, Angela and Patrizia, too. Her German is almost perfect (for a 3 year old) and she learns about the German culture, customs, and traditions.

Even though it was a few days late, they celebrated her birthday yesterday. Mommy and Amelia baked 24 cupcakes on Tuesday and decorated them with frosting and sprinkles Wednesday morning.

 

We also brought in "Princess" decorations, juice, watermelon and some German chocolate.

They played games, sang, and celebrated my little princess. She had a great time and felt really special. Danke schoen!