Dirt Rain

For the second time this summer, we had an unpleasant weather phenomenon happen: dirt rain.

  Summers here are hot, somewhat humid, and pretty dry.  Yesterday began as a warm, windy day, but the later afternoon turned extremely foggy and arid.  When it started sprinkling outside, we were fooled into thinking we were getting a random summer shower, only to have the rain last a few minutes but leave lasting effects.

Also known as rain dust, it's dust (most likely from the deserts of Africa) that becomes airborn and brought back down from the atmosphere as rain.  The superfine particles of dust make everything look coated in a film of dirt, even after the water is all dried up.  Sadly, it's not just something that can be rinsed off.  You have to scrub or use a power washer to get things clean.  Our patio, even with a power washer, takes hours to clean because of the other items that get coated, like the playhouse, stationary picnic table, grill, etc.  This was not on the to-do list for this week.  Sigh.

A few of our patio chairs will need to be scrubbed down.

The entire playhouse will need to be scrubbed inside and out.  

The girls really can't play in it until this is done.

All the outdoor plants look like this.

Tile, tile, tile...thank God for the pressure washer!

I'm so thankful Noa realized what was happening this time and grabbed the clothes off the outside line!  

Truth

It was daylight savings time here last night and this morning when Ruby woke at her "normal" time, we convinced her that it wasn't time to get up yet.  Mila is still snoozing, Noa left for work, and I have a few minutes to sip my coffee and listen to the dogs prance around before our house gets moving for the day.  Naturally, I'm using these few minutes to blog a little.

So, can I share some truth here?  First of all, let me start by saying how truly blessed we are.  I know that the term "blessed" has almost become a cliche in some circles, but I can honestly say that we have been given much: we have a roof over our heads, money in the bank, food to eat, and a healthy family. And, on top of that, we got to move to Europe!  How many people dream of this experience?  We are the ones lucky enough to experience it first hand.  Truly, we are blessed.

A look at Rota's beach at sunset

Keeping that in mind, the truth is that this PCS has been different and very challenging compared to past moves.  The stress level in our home has been pretty high lately.  Moving to a new culture is not an easy task, even with military support, it can be challenging to navigate.  First, there's the language barrier, the societal customs (yes, everything closes for siesta), and learning to "fit in" here.  Noa is learning to be a part of a new command and a new department (he's working in the ER this year).   Then, there's the house: the constant unpacking, learning (i.e. European appliances), and organizing. Additionally, we are making new friends, so we don't have our normal safety net of buddies that we are accustomed to.  Each day there seem to be endless challenges to tackle in order to become established in our new home.  And each day is filled with some big ups and downs.

 For instance, let's look at yesterday:

UP: made it out of the house (before lunchtime!) with the kids to make an Ikea run

DOWN: kids only had 20 minute naps in the car and we can't find our car's base pass (which means we can't get on base with our vehicle)*

UP: Got the master bedroom unpacked and new rug put down

DOWN: oven isn't working and pantry light is out (and can't seem to find the replacement bulb at the store)

UP: got boxes and miscellaneous items cleared out of the master bedroom

DOWN: the rest of the house is still in a state of chaos

Pantry building chaos!

Noa and I chatted about this a little last night.  This move is different from our other moves because our family has changed; we now have two little ones, twice as much stuff (especially all the kid stuff), and as much as we love our new house, it's not what we are used to.  We have to learn how to live in the space and how to make our things fit.  

We noticed that we use our full emotional reserves each day and by the end of the day, both of us are spent.  We have to ask for forgiveness a lot.  We have to rely on faith each day and we have to often take a step back and look at the big picture.  We are in Spain.  We are blessed.  We are loved.

But, it's still hard.  Knowing that all of our past moves started out challenging, but proved to be wonderful is incentive to keep going.  We were not just randomly sent out here.  I know there is greater purpose to our move.  And, we will get settled in our home.  We will make friends.  We will learn the language.  But, it will take time and it'll probably be a bumpy ride to get there.

*Update: The pass has been located.  Ruby *found* it in her play kitchen.  Hmmmm…wonder how it got there?  Oh well, crisis averted.

My January Cure

One of the websites/blogs I follow pretty regularly, Apartment Therapy, does this yearly "event" in January, called The January Cure.  Basically it's a plan to help organize and clean out your home in order to start the new year off right.  I've always wanted to participate in the Cure, but with work and other commitments, it just seemed unrealistic.  This year, I'm doing my own form of The January Cure, but I think part of my ambition is really just pregnant-lady nesting, in addition to wanting to clean and organize my home.  I'm not following the AT schedule, but getting tips and ideas from them.  I did make a master list, as suggested on their site.  It's a ridiculous list - about two pages long.

My goal is to try to get most of these items done before the end of the month, but with a toddler running around and my 3rd-trimester energy being pretty much depleted on some days, that will be a challenge. Still, I want to prep the house as much as possible before baby girl arrives.  Technically I still have two months before she should be here, but just in case…I want to be ready.  Well, as ready as I can be.

Pizza! Pizza!

Noa was home early tonight, so we decided to make pizza for dinner.  It was Ruby's first time helping make dinner and she seemed to take the task very seriously.  She followed each step meticulously, well as meticulously as an almost 2-year-old.

Here were the steps we followed to make our pizzas:

Step 1: Lay out your crusts.  Take a bite out of the crust (I didn't get a photo of this, but you'll notice evidence of it in the next photo) to make sure it's okay to use.

Step 2: Have daddy pour sauce on the crusts.  Spread with spoon.

Step 3: Put large piles of cheese on top of the sauce.  Let daddy spread it out.

Step 4: Add toppings.  Be sure to do a taste test beforehand (again, no photo evidence, but she probably ate four of these pepperonis before they made it onto the pizzas).

Again, be sure to pile it high.

Step 5: Attempt to smile for a photo for mama.  Get distracted by something on the counter.

Step 6: Let daddy help celebrate our culinary efforts by getting in the picture.

Oh, and they turned out great!

He's Still Got It!

Noa was away most of last week for a work conference, so it was just me and the Rubinator (and the dingoes, of course).  It was a long week. Night after night, I was up with Ruby for her two-hour feedings (yes, she still eats about every two hours).  There were were some tough situations at work, sad news from friends, and more than enough things to do around the house.  Needless to say, I was more than ready for him to come home.  Plus, I just missed him.  The house sure seemed lonely. 

The morning before he was scheduled to come home, these arrived at my work.  

He still makes my heart swoon and knows just how to make me smile.

Love you, babe.  Glad you're home.

Incident

Dear Local Target Employees,

I want to apologize for the scene you may have witnessed in your store today.  You see, I was the one who was running through the housewares aisle with a screaming baby.  I can assure you that I had made all the proper precautions to ensure this wouldn't happen: the baby had been fed, changed, and should have been sleeping.  You'd think the stroller and car ride would have lulled her into a peaceful slumber, but no, my child eludes every sleep plan thrown at her.  I did not mean to practically knock down customers in order to make my way to the door, but when a baby is screaming like a wild banshee, well, you'd probably do the same.  Oh, and yes, that was my full shopping cart left in the middle of the store.  I realize one of your employees had to put all those items back, but surely it was worth it in order to have the frazzled mom and screaming child out of there ASAP.

Please, please forgive me.  I understand that today I was "that mom." The one who leaves her full cart in order to get her kid out of the store.  The one who plows through customers to get to the door quickly.  The one who has a kid that can be heard from the opposite end of the store.  I take full responsibility.  I wish I could say it won't happen again, but I'm learning that sometimes I just have no control.

                                                                                                        My deepest apologies,
                                                                                                        Julie


P.S. - Look, it worked....she was like this by the time I got home!

P.P.S. - Okay, the truth is she woke up as soon as I took this pic.  Still, I wanted to capture the image just to know that it's actually possible for her to sleep at all.

Baby Steps

My family has left to go back home to NH.

Noa is back to working overnight shifts.

And I took the baby out by myself.

Okay, so it might have taken until 3 o'clock that day to leave the house with her, but I did it.  

We did it.  

We enjoyed a beautiful Poulsbo sunset together by the marina. 

The new year is looking promising, as long as I just keep taking baby steps.

Fall is Here

Temps just a little over 60 degrees.

Rain.

Fireplace roaring.

Monday night football on TV.

More rain.

Fall is definitely here.

The Days of September

September has proven to be one of our busiest months.  It started with the deck project and a Labor Day weekend wedding of some friends.  The wedding was held at a golf club in beautiful Newcastle, WA.  The wedding was held during sunset in a tent that overlooked Seattle.  It was so beautiful.  The pictures don't do it justice.

The ceremony was very classy and had some beautiful personal touches.  We had cocktail hour outside (again gazing at the beautiful view) and then went back into the tent for the reception.  One thing that was really new (to me at least) was that each table had their own cake!  Each cake was a different flavor.  Ours was a tiramisu cake....mmmm....

The head table had a cake too, which was tiered and beautiful.

And here's the happy couple, Brad and Antje.  For their first dance they graced the dance floor with an awesome swing dance.  It was a beautiful wedding and we were so honored to share their special day with them.

Later that week, some of my girlfriends here surprised me and another friend, Ashley (who is due about a month before me) with a baby shower.  They held the gathering at The Tea Room at Port Gamble.  This place is the quintessential tea house, complete with dainty desserts, finger sandwiches, big, poofy hats, and colorful baubles.  All of us chose a hat from the selection provided and adorned ourselves with beads.

Here I am with the other guest of honor, Ashley, who is due about a month before me.

Here is our guests and our table filled with treats.  Look at those yummy goodies: scones, chocolates, and finger sandwiches!  Don't you just love our stylish hats?!

We received such thoughtful gifts.  I felt so loved!

These are the lovely ladies who planned the lovely event: (L - R) Candace, Ashley, me, Amy, and Lindsay. 

A few days later, a bunch of bearded guys showed up at our house...okay, we actually knew who they were.  Mike had gathered up some of his best guy friends to meet up in Seattle and climb the ever-so-famous 14-er (14,411 feet to be exact) Mt. Rainier.  Here is the entire group before the climb: 8 guys and 4 guides.  You can see Noa in the back row, 4th from the left.

According to the guys, the climb was pretty intense.  At first, however, it started out simple, with easy trails and lush surroundings.

Soon enough, they hit snow covered ground and had to make a quick footwear change and enjoyed a bite to eat.

At this point, their views weren't too shabby.

The group started up again towards the low camp, called Camp Muir.  This is where they spent the first night at over 10,000 feet.

They stayed in one of the buildings here, a simple wooden structure with bunks.  There was also an outdoor latrine and a food tent.

The views got even better.

Mike and Noa at Camp Muir.

The next day brought about the more trecherous climbing and cooler temps.  The group had to "rope up" into smaller climbing groups in order to safely make it to high camp.

Each group had two hikers and one guide.

High camp included some tents set up at around 11,000 feet.  

After reaching the high camp, the group prepared to summit.  They had to stay roped up and had to cross deep (we're talking 100s of feet deep) cravasses.  Here's an example of one, although this one would not be one they would cross since it's so wide.  And, yes, it's pronounced crah-vah-ss.

Sometimes the terrain got really steep.

There were also parts that were not snowy, although still steep and difficult.

But, the hard work was worth it....they made it to the top!  Here is Mike and Noa.  As you can see, it was pretty darn cold up there.

A view from the top:

Soon the sun began to go down and the group headed back to high camp.  This was probably the most difficult part of the whole climb because as the sun sank, so did their natural light.  The guys had to use their headlamps to light the way back to camp.

The next day was hiking back to the bottom.  Since the guys had to hike through the clouds, they ended up getting soaked on the way down.

And they made it!  I am so proud of Noa and all they guys for what they accomplished.  I know it was truly a memorable, once-in-a-lifetime experience.  

In the meantime, Jess came out for a short visit to celebrate the occasion.  We met up with the guys at the end of the week.

It was great to all be reunited again.  I can honestly say that I was pretty nervous for the group while they were away.  Thankfully, one of the guys had a way to check in through a satellite feed, which allowed all the wives to check in on their progress.  Still, nothing beats being back together again in person.

We decided to celebrate the occasion and reunion by heading out to a Japanese-style karaoke club called Rock Box, located in the Capital Hill neighborhood of Seattle.  Six of us, packed into a private room, ordered some drinks, and turned up the tunes.  As always, it was super fun!

Just a few of the guys from the hike: (L - R) Jeff, Rob, Mike, and Noa.

Gotta start getting the baby used to karaoke early.  Hope she liked the experience because our group rocked Bon Jovi's "Livin' On A Prayer" and Mumford and Sons' "Little Lion Man."

  The original room was a light blue as seen in this not-so-great photo from when we first looked at the house a year ago.

We didn't make a major change in color since I wanted to keep it light and airy (the room is pretty small).  And, I seem to be going through a gray phase, so I chose a light gray to cover the blue.  I'm really, really happy with it and I think that any accent colors I use will really pop against the walls.

The girls decided to hang out in the hall where there were less fumes.  Then we played with the iPhone.

And, it other pregnancy news, I am now fully into my 3rd trimester.  I've had a couple of minor health issues - thankfully nothing serious, just a stubborn cold and a case of tendinitis (which surprisingly can randomly develop during pregnancy).  Now I have to wear an annoying brace and have limited movement of my left hand/wrist.  We're hoping that this gets healed before the baby is born.

And to satisfy all you friends who are looking for a recent baby bump pic, here is my 30 week shot.  Baby girl is growing, growing, growing and now I am too!!

***Thanks to Mike and Lindsay for sharing your photos!