Fun weekend and other things!

Cracking himself up!

Blind-folded driving!

Putting his had on himself!

Well, we had an extra especially nice weekend this week. Saturday was the last day of the term for me, which was nice. I’ll still teach the same classes next term, but it’s still a sort of relief to finish up that nine-week period. Usually I stay after my Saturday classes to do all my planning for the upcoming week, but our friend Amanda was having a barbecue at her place so I left right after my class so we could head over there.

It was such a nice evening. We couldn’t stay too long, so we could get Liam to bed at a reasonable time, but it felt so good to be out. We don’t get to do that sort of thing too often these days, so it was a special treat. They had an old mattress brought out into the courtyard for Liam to play around on and he got lots of attention and got to do lots of exploring, so he certainly had fun. Richie and I had a great time too, and there was lovely food, great weather and it was very pleasant to get to chat with friends we don’t see often and some new people as well.

Sunday was our normal day off and we did our usual stuff… chilled out morning, naptime, then out for lunch and some playtime in the park. Today Liam had a very cranky day, which was a bit exhausting, but Richie came home early from work which was a treat and my friend Katherine and her baby came for a visit, so that redeemed the afternoon anyway! The weather’s been a bit all over the place, but hopefully we’ll have dry weather so I can get Liam out to play a few times. And Thursday I have a doctor’s appointment, so I’m looking forward to that.

Liam’s still sprouting teeth all over the place! He’s gotten 5 new ones in the last month and I think it won’t be too long till he gets more! Poor kid. He’s taking it all very well though. The latest cute things he’s been doing are giving us kisses and giving Richie hugs goodbye before he goes to work. With the kisses it’s cute because he pooches out his lips so much and gives me a kiss on the lips. First he would just lean in his face towards Richie so that Richie could give him a kiss on the cheek, I think because of Richie’s beard, but now he’ll give Richie kisses too. It’s adorable. Last week Liam started giving my belly kisses too! So cute! He’s also started taking notice of my friend Katherine’s baby. We’ve been visiting Katherine every week for ages, but usually Liam didn’t pay any attention to her baby Daniel. But just recently he’s started patting him, giving him hugs, talking to him and trying to play with him a bit. It’s so sweet to see him interacting so nicely with Daniel and it also helps me imagine how he’ll be as a big brother in a few more months.

Holiday 2012: delightful beginnings…

It all began on Saturday last week, bright and early. We had intended to head off on Sunday originally, because it would be the second day of the big end-of-Ramazan holiday, and we’d hoped that travelling would be easier that day with less traffic and fewer people trying to take ferries, etc. However, a friend of mine and her husband, Katherine and Alper, were leaving Istanbul early on Saturday morning by car and heading to Alper’s family’s summer home near Eceabat, a small town of about 5,000 people on the eastern shore of the Gelibolu Peninsula, which was close to where Richie and I were planning to go ourselves. They invited us to come along for the ride and to stay the night in the house with them, which is what we did.

The traffic was heavy enough, and I guess the trip to Eceabat took about twice as long as it does on a quieter day. There were so many people trying to get to wherever they were going, and especially near the end of our trip, there was a huge amount of congestion around the various ferry points with people trying to get over to the Anatolian side of the Dardenelles. Cars were lined up for kilometre after kilometre, and we were really lucky we weren’t trying to cross over that day.

Instead, we stayed in a little ‘holiday neighbourhood’ just about 5 minutes walk from the Aegean Sea. The house was pretty basic in it’s amenities, but it was a fun and comfortable place to stay, with beds and couches for Liam to jump around on, a lovely garden with a canopy of grapes growing as well as plum and fig trees. We sat in the garden in the evening, enjoying the cooler air outside, and most importantly, we got to go swimming!!! It was Liam’s first time playing in the sand too, and we gave his toes a little dip in the water lapping up on the sandy shore. He wasn’t too sure about it, but he didn’t cry or fuss either. It was just gorgeous.

After our evening swim, we all headed by car to a local restaurant by the docks. We had a seafood feast while the sun went down over the sea and we could see the cars loading up on one of the ferryboats nearby. We had squid and seabass dolma, fresh salad, roasted aubergine/eggplant meze, fresh melon with beyaz peynir (feta-like white cheese), and skewers of swordfish and something which translates as ‘tongue fish’ for the main course, all washed down with some rakı, the signature Turkish anise-flavoured spirit. It was delicious. Liam entertained himself by chewing on bread, and acting a little like a wild animal, which was pretty funny.

The next morning we had a lovely Turkish breakfast prepared by Katherine and Alper, with all the usual yummy stuff, like fresh juicy tomatoes and cucumbers, cheese, olives, spicy sausages, honey and kaymak, and thick slices of village bread. Then it was time for another swim in the sea and playtime in the sand. I just find the sea so invigorating and amazing. I’ve been craving a swim in the sea for the last two years, and I still feel like I haven’t had enough of it. I love the salty taste of it, the lapping of the waves, the sound of the wind blowing over the water and rattling away in your ears, that fresh coolness that washes away all the worries and cares of everyday life. When I’m in the sea, it’s almost like there’s nothing else in the world except that deliciously cold refreshing water, and it makes me feel alive and awake all the way down to my bones. Ah, sea, how I love you…

Festive fun and Liam’s first Christmas…

It was a really nice Christmas, although we obviously didn’t get back to Ireland for it as we’d originally planned. Liam’s passport wasn’t ready in time, but at least it’s ready now so we’ll be doing our home-travelling at the end of the month! Can’t wait!

Anyway, this Christmas felt much more festive than our first one in Istanbul. I decorated the plants in our sitting room with some cheap baubles and fairy lights. We got a couple parcels with chocolate and other goodies from Richie’s mom and sister and we’ve been enjoying stuffing our faces with those and drinking hot chocolate (and the occasional sip of brandy!) while watching Christmassy films like Miracle on 34th Street and It’s a Wonderful Life. I also found shows like the Grinch and Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer on youtube.com, so that was great too!

On Christmas Eve we went to a party at our friends Sara and Amanda’s apartment, which involved delicious cookies, some mulled wine, festive music and they even had a lovely Christmas tree! Although I think the best part was the light-up Santa hats. On Christmas morning Richie, Liam and I hung out at home and enjoyed a relaxing start to the day, while watching It’s a Wonderful Life and eating yummy stuff from our local bakery. And Liam got his first presents from Santa! It was fun, although obviously, he didn’t really know or care what was going on. In the evening we went to Dan and Kathleen’s place for an amazing pot-luck, vegetarian Christmas feast. It was delicious and I was appropriately over-stuffed at the end, in proper holiday fashion.

So, here are some photos and videos from it all:

Ten weeks old…

Little Liam is now ten weeks old (as you may have gathered from the title of this post)! He’s basically an awesome kid. He’s fully into smiling now, and we now have conversations with him cooing at me, and me cooing or talking back to him and him responding with more coos. It’s so cute and fun to actually communicate with him (although I have no idea what we’re really communicating about, but who cares- it’s cute all the same). He’s slowly starting to get more into longer naps, which is great for me. I haven’t done anything to create a schedule or whatnot, but over the last few days, he’s started having a long nap in the late morning or early afternoon and then another long ‘nap’ in the evening (although, this might really be him falling asleep for the night, and then just waking up for his normal feeding/changing routine at about midnight). I’ve been able to take some long naps along with him which makes my life so much easier. I love having him all swaddled up next to me on the bed looking so peaceful, and I just take my snooze next to him. Sometimes I think he sleeps better that way, knowing I’m right there with him.

Last week my lovely friend Jen came to visit, and we had a great time. We were out and about every day, basically eating our way through Istanbul. There was a little shopping involved too, and a few films watched at home, but mostly just eating and talking. Perfect visit. And through it all, Liam was calm and happy and amazing! I could hardly believe it. Last Wednesday we had a busy day, getting out early-ish in the morning, and then he had his 2-month doctor appointment which involved 4 vaccinations, and even having gone through that ordeal, he was in a perfectly happy mood the rest of the day. Unbelievable. He’s awesome.

He’s still on the lower end of weight gain but he’s grown enough over the last month, so I’m not worried about him. Just seems like that’s the way things will go for him. He certainly eats all the time, so I’m not starving him! He grew a few centimetres too, and now he’s too long for most of his 0-3 month size clothes. It’s been fun to dress him in some cute hoodies and fleeces as the weather gets colder. I also love wrapping him up in this fleece blanket he has for naps, and holding him while he sleeps in that is so cozy. It does make me a bit jealous though, because I want to be all wrapped up in fleecy blankets too, but at least I get to snuggle him to feel warmer.

Well, he’s been sleeping on Richie’s lap but is starting his stretching and wriggling wake-up routine, so my time here is probably about to run out. But here are a few photos of Liam over the last few weeks.

Visitors, baby shower, and other things…

Well, I’ve just been looking at photos on facebook that Richie’s sister Frieda took while herself and Richie’s mom were here. Luckily someone was on the ball, because I just downloaded the photos off of my own camera and apparently I only took four photos the entire time!

Anyway, their visit was great and I can hardly believe I’ve already worked for a week since they left! The weather was perfect when they were here, we were out all the time, enjoying cafes and restaurants, sitting in lovely shady spots, enjoying the fresh air. I literally only worked for one hour while they were here, which was amazing, so it definitely felt like a holiday for me too. Richie didn’t have to work too much either. We got a lot of talking done, and of course, eating, two of my favourite pastimes!

During their stay, a couple of our friends, Kathleen and Marijke, organized a baby shower/picnic for us in Yildiz Park. That was great too. The park is on a hill and there are lots of trees, so you get a breeze and shade, not to mention it’s quiet and there are birds, squirrels and the occasional hedgehog. It was lovely for people to come out and we really appreciate all the gifts people brought! One of my missions for the weekend is to start writing thank-you cards for all the gift givers, both here and elsewhere- quite a diverse group from three countries!

Our apartment is now filling up with baby things! It’s pretty fun, I have to say. A couple of weeks ago we basically had nothing, and now we’ve got nearly everything we need! Just a few tiny bits and pieces left to buy. I’ve started the washing and organizing of all the baby clothes and blankets, etc., and it’s so fun to look at all the cute stuff over and over again. Still finding it hard to imagine actually putting a little person into all those outfits in a few weeks though!

Visiting the hospital…

Yesterday Richie and I did our trial run to the hospital where we plan to have the baby. Richie finished work at 10.30, so we met at the Besiktas ferry and headed over to the Asian side. I’ve been loving the ferry rides and the fresh, cool air on these hot, humid days! I think it’s largely to do with pregnancy, but I can’t seem to get un-hot sometimes!

Anyway, we got over to Uskudar and hopped in a taxi. Most of the route was motorway, which was really fast and efficient. I think the drive took about 20 minutes, so it wasn’t as far as I’d imagined when just looking at a map.

The hospital is only a year old, so very new and shiny and modern. We had a little tour of the little maternity ward, and we were very happy with what we saw. The labour/delivery rooms and the ‘recovery’ rooms looked nice and bright and comfortable and didn’t have the sort of horrible sterile hospital feeling. We also took a peak at the neo-natal/nursery area, which is just a short walk down the corridor. Everything was just in one small hallway, nice and convenient and compact. The hospital also practices rooming-in for the babies, so I’m glad that’s the standard practice anyway. We definitely got a good impression of the place and it’s nice now to have a mental picture of everything.

On another note, when we first arrived, the woman giving us the tour thought we’d be switching to the hospital doctor until we explained that we had a doctor already but just wanted to give birth there. So, anyway, she mentioned meeting the hospital doctor and how he would advise ‘surgery’ (i.e. C-section) and that it was ‘easier for the mother and baby’ and the ‘recovery time was quicker’, etc. Mental. So, that was when we said, thanks but no, we didn’t need to meet their doctor, we already have one! I just find it so crazy how within about 1 minute of being in the hospital talking about birth-related things, someone starts telling people they’ll need to have surgery to give birth and tell them how much better and easier it is!!!! After the visit I was thinking about it and I just felt sad and a bit angry that this is what so many women are told and believe! I definitely feel lucky to have access to books and knowledge about other birth options and to know people who have had different, and very positive experiences! Thank god for choices and the chance to be better informed about all these things! It really seems that here, women are lacking those things. I hope it changes in the future.

But that craziness aside, the hospital visit was positive, and I’m so happy we’ll have our doctor who I definitely trust, and our doula to help us. I’m really excited about everything and while certainly nervous about such a monumental experience looming on the horizon, I feel very positive and am looking forward to seeing what my body can do and to giving the baby the best possible start in life.

So, after the hospital visit, we came back to Besiktas and met our friend Marijke, so the rest of the day involved drinking tea/beer/water in lovely cafes/outdoor bars, eating Mexican food, and just enjoying being out and about in the great summer weather. It was a fantastic relaxing day!

 

My week of quietude…

Well, I don’t have much to report, other than the fact that I’ve had an extremely relaxing week. The weather has been gorgeous and right now I have all the windows open and am enjoying the fresh morning breeze blowing in while listening to all the birds singing outside. I love seeing the treetops all covered in leaves right outside our sitting room and bedroom windows, and mulberries on the trees are all green and unripe, but I’m looking forward to just reaching out the window to pluck them off soon!

My main activities this week have been eating, napping, sitting around, reading, catching up on some phone calls and emails, occasionally taking a stroll or eating out or going for coffee/tea, meeting a few friends… yeah, that’s about it. I’ve definitely had moments of boredom, and I’ve wasted more time playing stupid computer games like Mahjong and Minesweeper than I care to admit, but for the most part I’m just enjoying and trying to make the most of this quiet holiday.

Richie’s getting on well in Ireland, and I’ve been able to talk to him every day so far, which has been great. But today is the big wedding, so I doubt if we’ll really get to talk, since he’ll be rather busy. I’m so excited for our friends Diarmuid and Andrea and I hope they have a beautiful day, lots of fun and a great start to a great marriage. Richie says the weather is beautiful over there, warm and sunny, so perfect for a wedding. I’m sure it’ll be a great celebration and I’m so glad Richie’s there for it!

Well, the little guy is kicking loads these days, which is really fun. Today starts week 27! According to a few ultrasounds I’ve had, and the measurements they do, it looks like I’m a week further along than originally thought. So, I guess this means my due date might be more like September 4th instead of September 11th. I’m okay with that. I know due dates don’t mean a whole lot, but still, the 4th is potentially much more auspicious than the 11th, so I’ll go with that. So, only two weeks left of my second trimester! According to everything, I should have been very productive these last three months, since my energy levels were higher and I wasn’t so big in the belly yet. Unfortunately, due to my procrastinating nature, I have been completely unproductive in baby-preparation activities! Aside from the bit of shopping I did with my mom in America, I haven’t done anything! So, when Richie gets back, we’ll have to get on that. I have got some great shopping recommendations from my cousins recently, so I’m planning to see if I can find the stuff they think is most useful here, and then whatever we can’t get, we’ll probably order. One crazy thing though, about looking at baby things, is that it seems so hard not to end up with tons of plastic stuff! In a previous post I mentioned wanting to go as green as possible with baby toys and ‘supplies’, but my god, everything is plastic and at least half of it is battery operated! This green babyhood thing could be more complicated than I thought. I guess we’ll just have to see what we can do and try our best.

 

 

Getting presents in the mail is the best thing ever!…

I’ve been a lucky girl these past two weeks and have received TWO packages in the mail at work; one from my bestest buddy Andrea and the other from my lovely sister-in-law Frieda. It was so exciting to get a little something in the post, and feel loved. As you know if you’ve been reading my recent posts, I’ve been feeling the winter-blahs and have been tired and a bit burnt out, so little things like getting lovely stuff from friends really can change one’s entire mood! So, thanks a million! I’ve been wearing my new t-shirt, ooo-ing and aaah-ing at photos of cute kittens, and am so ready to munch on some yummy chocolate while watching a new series on DVD! Yippee!

Our Irish Christmas: in a rather large nutshell…

Well, after my very long break from blogging, I think it’s time I at least attempted to write something about our amazing Christmas holiday. At long last, we made our (very brief) return to Ireland. We’d been looking forward to the trip for MONTHS, and it was just as good as we’d hoped. It was great to slip back into our old lives for a couple of weeks and enjoy some great times with family and friends, catch up with everyone and enjoy the feeling of being home. Everyone really made our holiday superfantastic!

Actually, we were lucky to get to Ireland at all! As most of you probably know, there was crazy, cold, snowy weather all around Europe and then in the US too, but things in Ireland seemed okay before we departed. We arrived in Dublin without any problems or delays, but about four hours after our flight landed, the airport closed because of the snow! It was the coldest weather I’ve yet experienced in Ireland, and for days and days it just kept snowing. Now, it wasn’t really all that much by North American standards, but all the same, it was a decent bit of snow and, apart from last year apparently, not a very common occurrence in Ireland. It was certainly festive though! Tons of big fluffy snowflakes falling and falling and falling. It definitely helped make it feel extra Christmassy.

We spent a few days in Dublin catching up with friends before heading to Tipperary to stay with Richie’s family. We stayed with Diarmuid and Andrea, and we also got to spend quite a bit of time with friends from Kafka, the restaurant where I used to work. It was so great to catch up with Anthony and Ivano, Paolo, Shannon and Debs, Zeila, Joe and later Sheena who was over from London. The only bad thing was that on our second night in Dublin, I came down with a terrible cold/flu, the worst I’ve had in years and years! I got a fever, cold, cough, etc. and was a bit out of it for a couple of days. But once we got to Tipperary I just collapsed at Richie’s parents’ house and had lots of rest and relaxation to help me recover.

So, we spent about a week in Tipp, catching up with Richie’s family, eating loads, staying toasty warm by the fire, and just completely relaxing. It was a lovely Christmas and I’m just so happy we got to have a family Christmas this year! Diarmuid and Andrea drove over from Clare and stayed one of the nights we were in Tipp, so we got some extra time with them.

After a week in Templemore, we headed back to Dublin to meet some more friends; Phil and Anouk, who were over from Germany for Christmas, and James and Eddie. We met for pints and had a lovely evening catching up with everyone! The next day we did a bit of shopping in town, getting some of the things we miss when we’re in Turkey, using some Christmas gift vouchers and that sort of thing. We had a quiet New Years Eve in the flat, just Richie and myself, watching a film and drinking some delicious ales. Nice tasting beer/ale/stout is definitely something we miss in Istanbul, so it was a nice treat!

Then we met Diarmuid and Andrea the next night when they returned from Clare, and after that met the Kafka crew for drinks in our old local in Rathmines. We had a bit of a lock-in and stayed for a sneaky drink after closing time, which was a great way to end our last night in Dublin. In the morning we had breakfast with Andrea and Diarmuid before heading off to the airport.

Travel was no problem, and we got home safe and sound. It was a bit surreal to be returning to Istanbul, leaving one place that feels like home and returning to another place that now feels a bit like home as well. So, thanks to everyone we met and stayed with, for making our Christmas amazing, for all the fantastic hospitality and for great chats and hugs and fun. Richie and I were talking about how amazing it is to have such good and caring family and friends to come home to, and we can’t wait to see everyone again!

More photos will be coming soon!

Cumhuriyet Bayramı…

Yesterday, the 29th of October, was Cumhuriyet Bayrami- Republic Day. This particular national holiday celebrates the proclamation of the Turkish Republic in 1923. So, being a national holiday, most people get the day off. However, Richie and I are always off on Friday, so sadly, we didn’t get any extra benefit out of this free day. The day was great though, and we got to visit some friends that we haven’t seen in ages!

We went to our friend Sohye’s apartment in the evening, where we also saw ‘our Turkish family’- Sultan and her four children. Thanks to our recent Turkish lessons, I was actually able to make some baby sentences and talk to the girls! I can only say things in the present continuous, i.e. I am reading, I am learning Turkish, Are you eating?, etc. Not the most in-depth conversation capabilities, but it was something. And the oldest of the girls, Sibel, has recently started university and is studying elementary English, so our overall communication abilities are certainly increasing!

We had a nice Turkish-Korean-fusion feast, made by Sohye and Sultan. I did contribute a chickpea and aubergine salad to the mix, which seemed to go over well. Every time I eat at either Sultan’s or Sohye’s I am in heaven. Such good food!

As we were finishing the dinner, an amazing fireworks display started outside. Sohye lives on the seventh floor of an apartment with a great view, and we could see a huge amount of fireworks all along the Bosphorus. They were so beautiful, and I couldn’t believe how many there were! It was really spectacular.

Then the two younger kids got sleepy, so Sultan and her gang headed home, and we stayed to hang out with Sohye for a bit longer before heading home. It’s always super entertaining and fun to spend time with Sohye and Sultan’s family, and now I’m so excited that we’ll be more and more able to actually communicate with them! Now I can’t wait for our next Turkish lesson!