An Attempt at a Family Photo

We attempted family photos today but Blake and Louie fell apart after doing the small group photos.  Lollipop bribes didn't work for long and it just didn't happen.  However, we did get some really nice photos...

Heber Valley Railroad

Louie was absolutely GIDDY!  He actually saw and met a real conductor.  He rode on a real choo-choo.  They were stopped by a bandit who wanted to rob the train!  High drama on the plains!  He couldn't quit talking about it.  He absolutely loved it!

Sooo...what's his name?

Wyatt, Jack, Henry, Cole, Kyle, etc.  We could not figure out the "perfect name" for this adorable baby with a cowlick in the middle of his forehead.  Of course we would continually get the question, "So, what's his name?"  No idea.  Finally we settled on a family name from my mother's side...Blake.  I liked the family connection as well as it sounded good in combination with Johnson.  As for Cody, it was an easy name to yell across the soccer field.  And there you have it...the way baby Blake got his name.  It fits him perfectly.  Blake is 2 months old in this picture.

What a Priviledge

Louie and I received a special invitation from his birthmom, Arinda, to attend her baptism.  We were delighted!  What a blessing it was to see her remarried, her new baby girl and now rebaptized into the church. We have been so impressed with her courage and will power to turn her life around.  Our relationship with her has been a gift to us!  Congratulations Arinda!  We love you.  And as Louie would say, "You did it!"

Baby Blake's First Bath

Now this was quite the juggling act for a single parent!  Louie, Blake, a camera and sudsy soap in the bath.  At first Blake wasn't sure why he was cold.  Then once I started to wash the water over his body he began to settle in a bit better.  He's a wiggly and slippery little sucker!
I was trying to follow this schedule suggested in a baby and toddler book about bathing them together.  Well that is ridiculous!  Overall it was chaos at best!  At one point, they were both crying and no one was even bathed yet!  I think I will stick with MY original idea of bathing them separately until Blake can sit up on his own.  Obviously, this picture in the tub was BEFORE the crying chorus began.  But look at this little sweet face after his bath...

 

Middle of the night moments

Even though the lack of sleep is tough those first few months, I wouldn't trade those quiet moments when I saw Blake's sweet personality manifest itself.
*Once he burped so loud it made him laugh
*I was trying to swaddle his arms and one slipped out, he raised an eyebrow and then laughed (I am sure the was thinking..."not so fast!")
*He could win a staring contest with his intense gaze.
*His face lights up with a sparkle in his eye when he smiles.

I love these pictures at 2 weeks old.  It just reminds me how small he was!  It just goes by too quickly.

The DC Choo Choo

While awaiting the baby's adoption paperwork in Virginia, Cody found a fun adventure for Louie to keep him active while I was at home figuring out which formula the baby could keep down...and sleep!
Cody would take Louie to ride on the DC choo-choo aka the metro. He loved to ride the long escalators down the metro station. The "choo-choo" passed through tunnels and over rivers as it traveled to DC. They would get off at different stops and visit some of Cody's favorite haunts in DC such as Eastern Market and his old townhouse.

Happy Easter!

This was the first year that Louie understood the connection between finding eggs and the instant gratification of sugar in his system. He's not much into candy (yet) but loves cookies like his dad. He LOVED searching for the eggs to find a mini Oreo in each one! Matter of fact, we had to "reload" the eggs and hide them again and again!

Above is our first family picture with the new baby. He was adorable in his tiny white knit Easter outfit. Now, you know, that outfit didn't fit him the next week?! He's changing so quickly.

Surprise Birthday Party!

Louie and I arrived home to Utah on April 1st with an email from my dear friend Sara which stated, "Do you want a baby?" Through my jet lag brain, I managed to call her and have a coherent conversation about a potential adoption. Sara's sister was due in about 6 weeks and couldn't care for the baby. Cody and I were in awe of the timing and felt blessed to have this opportunity to add to our family again!
Eleven days later, the baby was born! Hence the surprise birthday party...yet, the surprise was on us! We thought we had six weeks. So if you can picture this, I immediately called Cody. It was 1:30 a.m. for him in Saudi Arabia. He was sound asleep. I keep repeating "the baby is born, the baby is born" because Cody doesn't come out of his sleep coma very easily. My next call was to our adoption case worker as to how to proceed with an out of state adoption. While on the phone, I am going through Louie's baby clothes looking for the swaddle blankets and infant clothes going down memory lane. As for Cody, he immediately hopped on a plane from Saudi Arabia. Once I got the adoption attorneys in motion, Louie and I flew from Utah to Alexandria, Virginia. After a whirlwind of 48 hours, there he was...dark hair, 6 pounds, 6 ounces and 19 inches and the sweetest little guy.

We met the baby on April 14th and left the hosptial with him on April 15th. Cody and I looked at each other, shaking our heads in disbelief of the blessing we were just given. Fifteen days ago, I was headed to Utah to sell our home and clearly now I am not! In the picture leaving the hospital is the birthmom's dad and sister.  They were a huge support through this process.  It really took a village to put all the pieces together.
Once back at the hotel, we were calling family and friends to share our elated news of this new tiny baby sleeping on our hotel bed (picture above). Again, such a surprise to our family and friends as he was to us! In a matter of days, our life and the lives of our family members have been changed for the better.

Make Believe or Reality?

I never would have thought my son would be living the life I saw in cartoons on the Jetsons! Louie skypes with our family on a regular basis. He interacts with books. He does show and tell with el-phant, Abby and airplane. And he sings songs. This is his reality?! So amazing.
Right now he is learning colors, shapes and plays matching games on my iPad. Again, his reality was my make-believe as a child. He can find his apps, maneuver between screens and even start his own TV shows from my video list.
I wonder if he will have a cell phone as a teenager? Or will it be something else? I guess those inventions are still in the make-believe realm.

Louie's Big Boy Room

Since moving closer to the ocean, "we" decided to go with a vintage surfer theme for Louie's room. It's adorable. I found an old red rider bike at the consignment store on camp. I just need to restore it. Louie drives it around the house. In these pictures, he is first trying to get "el-phant" to ride the bike. The he joins him. He's quite a fan of his new big boy bed. He loves to climb on and watch TV (on the iPad) while leaning against his pillows. However, he isn't ready to sleep there...or is it me not ready to have him out of the crib?

Half Moon Bay

This past weekend, we went to explore the Aramco beach closest to our community...Half Moon Bay. It's a fantastic facility! So impressed there is a great changing area, shower and western toilets. The beach is groomed everyday. There is a snack bar/ice cream and small kiosk with blow up water toys and beach chairs.
Of course there are rules at this beach. 1. No littering (so glad to see that one). 2. No slaughtering of sheep (really glad to see that one!). 3. No gazing (interesting).
We went with the Dille family and had a great time. Louie and Owen splashed and explored. It's jellyfish season and had to be careful. One had come ashore. I couldn't believe how big it was. Afterwards, we went down the beach to ride camels. They are very large animals. Very Large Animals. I had ridden a camel before but it was a new experience with Louie. He would NOT sit down; probably because he couldn't see. Squealing with delight, he would point and announce CAMEL several times; as if he couldn't believe it.

Hoarding can be Contagious

Grocery shopping in Saudi Arabia is typically a 2 hour endeavor for me. I spend so much time desiphering the labels in Arabic, French, Dutch or sometimes English. When I find some US products, they are usually the testers that didn't do well in the states. For example, Prawn Cocktail Pringles. Can you imagine? Shrimp flavored potato chips.
Or, we will get the left over seasonal products such as cranberries, pie crusts and turkey stuffing. It's a bit of a grab bag not knowing what they will have available on any given day.
This grab bag concept leads to hoarding. I have been warned about this but hadn't really had a problem finding most things I needed; until I saw Diet Dr. Pepper for the first time in 8 weeks. I had been searching every grocery store for this particular nectar. There were only 2 and a half flats on the drink isle and about 50 single cans in the refridgerated section. Yes, I took everything I could fit into my tiny shopping cart. I hoarded. I probably left about 20 cans. The next morning I was back for something I had forgotten and all 20 cans were gone. Glad I got them when I had the chance. There's nothing like a Diet Dr. Pepper with lime. The picture shows one of my treasures plastered with their customs label. So I barely noticed it.
Hoarding is dangerous on the budget. American products are double the price. So it's basically doing all of your grocery shopping at 7-11. But to find an a rare American product, it's worth the price. After being here for 2 months, I have never seen cottage cheese, buttermilk, greek yogurt, popsicles, onion salt, all spice and a slew of other spices. Very interesting what makes it here and what doesn't!

Louie's Go-To Packables

Louie loves his blue and gray striped "el-fant." This is new within the last month. He lost his woobie in the markets of Jamaica. We didn't talk about it. He hasn't mention it. We moved on. Surprisingly...no drama.
Since coming to Saudi, he has attached to this stuffed elephant that's been around since he was born. He hauls that little guy everywhere. When you ask what is his name? He looks at you like you are a fool because clearly it's an "el-fant" It's adorable!
Lately, he's into packing things around with him. His go-to packables are: "el-fant," "ma-qeen" (Lightning McQueen car), Abby Ca-Dabby, and the nearest truck before leaving out the door. The packables go to night-night with him but only "el-fant" can go into stores. This is such a cute stage with the bonus of his vocabulary exploding!

Long Live the King!

The Saudi King was out for surgery in the US and returned this past weekend. In celebration of his return, he gave all of his government employees a 15% raise, created interest free loans to buy houses and declared Saturday (which is our "Monday" here) a holiday. Long live the King!
So we took advantage of our extra day off and went to the Persian Gulf referred to as the Arabian Gulf if you live in Saudi Arabia. Dora and Rich (my aunt and uncle) took us to the Aramco community on the beach in Ras Tanura. Unbelievable. Houses backing right onto the beach. Gorgeous sandy beaches with clear water and it walks out shallow for yards and yards...or meters and meters as they would say here. Between the houses and the beach is a bricked walking path for runners and bikes. Within walking distance was a pool, snack bar, theatre and bowling alley. Cody and I were looking at each other and thought what do we have to do to live here?! No need. Of course, Aramco has a bus for everything. They have buses that go to RT every hour of the day and return every half hour. What's not to love about that?! I think this will definitely be in the plans for many weekends to come! Anyone want to come and visit?

Shopping in Saudi: Who knew?

Hermes, Cartier, Marks and Spencer, Bebe, ZARA, Locitanne, Banana Republic, H&M and Gap kids to name a few. The shopping here is insane. But no Nordy's. The jewelry stores have large 10k stones in rings and necklaces on display in the windows. These are emeralds in the picture. Rolex watches are a huge status symbol here. Gorgeous, expensive formal dress shops in every direction. These are worn at home for family parties.There are tons of baby equipment, clothes, toys and furniture stores - big families here.
I didn't get to even the smallest fraction of the Dhahran mall. It is literally so big that it is probably the size of two malls. And for them, that is one mall. Then there is another mall a mile away with the more high end stores. It is insanely fun to shop here ...but "just looking" as I tell Louie and myself. The prices are very expensive...must hit the sales at just the right time.
In the mornings, the malls are empty. Due to the heat, the Saudi's are nocturnal. They come out about lunch time and then back in for prayer. The malls are packed in the evenings and stay open until 11 p.m. or midnight. Men aren't allowed to go to the malls by themselves but should go with their wives, families or friends.
Most of the store clerks are men - think back to the 1950s. Even in the lingerie stores, there are only men to help you. It seems to be a serious career here. Very interesting.
Women aren't allowed to try on clothes in the stores. You buy the clothes, try them on in the women's bathroom and if you don't like the fit then return them 10 minutes later. Few stores have a return policy; mainly an exchange policy.
I can't find my Asics or New Balance running shoes here. The Saudis are HUGE into soccer and have a zillion Addidas and Nike athletic shoes.
This is my favorite! Because the heat is so unbearable in the summers, the malls have amusement parks inside them. Usually they will take up one floor of the mall or one end of the mall with roller coasters, carnival rides and arcade games. Mall of America has nothing on these guys! Can't wait to take Louie. He doesn't know they exist yet for obvious reasons.

Our new sandbox

When we moved in, there wasn't one tree, bush or grassy yard. It was all sand-actually one big sandbox. In prepping the houses Aramco wants everyone to start out the SAME. So they remove all the grass, flowers and bushes. This allows the new owner to order the plants they want from "gardening." Interesting thought, but our yard was completely barren - not even a tree!
We were allowed three small trees (12 inches high) and a few starter plants and grass starts. I really had to bargain for that third tree. No concept of sod here and the starter plants are truly starter plants at 6 inches high. The secret is to find someone who is leaving and to transplant their plants, bushes and trees before Aramco comes in and cleans it out. It's the oddest thing but everyone does it before the hired gardeners get to it. The gardeners in turn sell it to the families they work for here in the community.
Basically, we started from scratch. One family leaving told us we could have anything in their yard. We transplanted 4 bushes in the dark cover of night - seemed very odd to be doing this! I joined the gardening club here and had to learn what grows in SAND. After a few trips to the nurseries around here, I was able to fill in around our 4 leafy plants and add flowers and filler.
We finally finished this afternoon. Louie was a big help with the flowers. He would bring me one at a time. I would point where I wanted it to go. He would smile at me and then put it where he thought it should go! Such a character. He loves to garden with me - because basically we are playing in a big sandbox!

Saudi-gaudy!

We have been looking for furniture for the past couple of weeks - the furniture is huge and gaudy! I call it "Saudi-gaudy!" Not only is it gaudy, it's tacky and expensive. Saudi homes have huge rooms for their huge families. So it's common for them to have a couple of couches, love seats and chairs in one room. They love a vibrant mix of colors and fabrics. Who can blame them when they live in the desert?!
Every now and then, we find a couch or sectional that might look like the US but such cheap quality. Also, I found it quite humorous that the only way to buy a couch was in a set--the way you would see it in the catalog; couch and two love seats or couch, love seat and two chairs. The same applies to buying a pitcher; one must buy the matching glasses in the set.
Well, that's not quite our style. So it has been a little challenging to furnish our living room. However, I did learn it is quite inexpensive to reupholster furniture. So I bought a couch off the company craigs-list for $200. It's from Hickory Hill in North Carolina and actually matches the over stuffed chair I have at home from Hickory Hill -- what are the chances? So I'll try to ship out my chair and recover both of them. Done!

Louie's new friend, Owen

The second day we were here, Louie met a new friend named Owen. He lives two blocks down the road. Their birthdays are 6 weeks apart and squeal when they see each other! They love to play choo-choos and ride bikes together. I've never seen two boys just laugh and laugh. They like to hold hands when crossing the street to their preschool. It's the cutest thing!

Louie starts preschool

There is an adorable little preschool here for just 2 year-olds. It is run out of someone's home where a little classroom is set up and has little tykes jungle gyms in the backyard. Their curriculum is to not hit, bite, or push. They learn to play together, share and line up. Louie LOVES it. He has a little "Lightening McQueen" backpack ("pack-pack" as he says it) full of diapers and wipes rather than books and pencils. His teachers' names are Mrs. Ana and Mrs. Laurie. He goes for a couple of mornings a week. I LOVE it too.