USA Christmas Vacation

“I just want to taste everything!”  This was one of the first things Jesus said to me during our trip to Miami.  I had this same feeling for weeks leading up to our Christmas vacation.  The both of us wanted to buy and taste everything so we really had to pace ourselves and our wallets.  We had so so much fun this trip!  We stayed with Jesus’ aunt and uncle just outside of Fort Lauderdale along with his cousin Eli and his kids and his cousin Uki and his girffriend Karen.  The two bedroom house was packed!  We did so many cool things together!   It feels like too much to list but to name a few, we rode an airboat in the evergaldes, walked on South Beach, shopped at the malls and Best Buy and then Best Buy again, ate sushi and then ate sushi again, ate thai food, seafood and fancy cheese, walked on the pier/boardwalk, visited several beaches, went to the Seminole Hard Rock and even made a day trip to Orlando!

Miami Beach

 

Florida gator

Ready to ride the airboat

One of many sushi experiences

Cute!

Trending at South Beach

Joaquin wasn't scared of anyone in costume!

In front of the Dominican display at a Christmas program

Outside of historic landmark Viscaya

Rare to see my serious husband being silly in public!

Orlando was very special because we met up with Martin and Katy, some of our best Minnesota friends! We got to spend time with their sweet little twins who are 9 months now.  We walked around downtown Disney and had Italian food together for dinner.  The day went by much too quickly because so much of it was spent stuck in Orlando Christmas tourist traffic.  I learned my lesson to not go to Orlando at Christmas again…but still every minute of it was worth it to see our best friends!  We just love them so much and were so happy they were visting Florida the same week as us!

Spencer, Madi and Joaquin!

Spencer and Joaquin at the splash pad

My favorite!

I find that living in the Dominican Republic and the US are like night and day and it’s true that you don’t know what you got ‘til it’s gone.  I almost forgot how different things were until I left and came back.  There is so much in the United States I took for granted!  The first thing I noticed once back in the US was the level of cleanliness and maintenance of yards, streets, etc.  I remembered what it was like to be in a car driving around as a family with our baby safely buckled in his carseat.  In the DR we have to taxi or walk and drag the carseat everywhere. Since he is now in the convertible carseat that no longer fits in strollers, it’s quite the task to bring him out.  However I do walk a lot there and while it’s scorching hot even in the winter, I’ve become accustomed to putting my groceries  or whatever I need in the bottom of Joaquin’s stroller and trekking along.  Other things taken for granted in the US are road safety and the obedience of laws.  Do you know in the Dominican Republic you do not have to turn in the turn lane?  You can cut the whole turn lane off and just turn from any point in the road.  It’s normal and is not enforced as being illegal.  That’s just one example of how difficult driving is there.  While we were stuck in back to back traffic in Orlando, that didn’t compare to the amount of crowdedness and traffic in the DR.  I’ve even taken for granted the ability to pull over during a road trip to buy water for the baby or to go pee.  When traveling on the “highway” in the DR, you can’t just pull over.  Gas stations are few and far between so pee before you leave and you better have everything you need prepared.  Not that road trips in the DR aren’t their own experience with the fruit stands, people selling candies on the side of the road and the restaurants to stop at with fresh food cooked right out of people’s homes. 

Many people that we’ve visited here have commented on how brave I am for making this decision to live in the Dominican Republic with my family.  These particular people happen to be Dominican but have have become Americanized and recognize with me that it really is night and day.  I love the people, the rain and a lot of things in the Dominican Republic but let’s be honest, I like convenience in America and I never had dreams of living internationally.  If I was single or studying abroad things might be different, but it isn’t the easiest of places to raise a baby and have no car.  However it’s an experience we will never forget and are counting our blessings.  While a large part of me would like to just stay here in Florida, another part of me is ready to return home to a routine and structure in my life.  I have English classes to teach, a church calling to fulfill, my little puppy and I want to see my friends!  It’s good that I recognize that I live there and being here in the US is now vacation.

Oh I can’t forget to note about Christmas!  Jesus’ aunt cooks the best Dominica food, actually she can cook everything.  We had some traditional Dominican items and a ham for me just like my mom makes with pineapple on top.  After dinner we danced the night away starting with Merengue and bachata but finishing with American hip hop.  And the best was Joaquin opening presents!  When we clapped, he clapped too with the biggest smile!  And who doesn’t love a baby rnuning around in new pajamas each night?!  We are flying home on New Years Eve during midnight and celebrating New Years on the plane.  Domincans always clap when the plane lands so we are pretty sure they’ll have fun ringing in the new year on board as well!

A medical update

http://ournewjag.blogspot.com/2013/02/turns-out-i-have-miracle-baby.html

The above link: "My miracle baby" will be necessary for this update.

Once again in my life, I left the doctor’s office in tears.  I kind of hate going to the doctor here.  There are no appointments and it’s all first come first serve so I have spent countless hours waiting in line for appointments and insurance questions while everything has been in Spanish and it’s all been a bit stressful.  For the past ten months I have been waiting to receive a test to see if my left fallopian tube works before having abother baby, because we know Joaquin was born completely on the right side of my uterine septum.  I was meant to get the test in MN but ended up sitting alone in a hospital gown afraid of the pain of the test only to be told my doctor was called into emergency surgery and couldn’t complete it.   Then my family moved to the Domincan Republic. After insurance leading us to believe they would pay for this test after 6 months of my arrival here, they now told us they wouldn’t pay at all because it’s a pre-exisiting condition.  Jesus and I decided to foot the bill and my doctor said I could just show up for the test at 7:30 in the morning and it would be done.  Well I showed up at the lab and not only did they say I needed an “imaginary” appointment, but they said the machine was broken.  This test can only be done one day out of the month so now I’m moving onto month 10 of not getting it done and not knowing what to do in regards to any surgery.

Luckily both the Doctor in Minnesota and the Doctor in the Domincan Republic recommended the same thing  for surgery.  That I do not remove the uterine septum, since I had a successful pregancy, because at this point it can do more harm than good. They both suggested I remove the part of the septum that makes my life with Jesus uncomfortable.  You can fill in the blanks.  I decided I really wanted the recommended surgery but just wanted the tube test first to make sure they didn’t need to do anything else while they were working on me. 

This whole process of any potential surgery is taking way too long and I'm tired of waiting for when I can even start trying to have baby number 2. While it's kind of breaking my heart, I know I shouldn’t complain because Joaquin is the greatest blessing in my life!

So I emailed my doctor the drama of the visit to the lab for the test (and the drama of the past 10 months) and suggessted I do everything in the US when insurance will pay. She said that's fine and maybe I'll have a great pregnancy just like the last!  Can I just say that I love my doctor here?  It’s the medical system that has problems but not her.  She knew more about my case then my US Doctor and put me at so much ease because it’s so common here!

If we do have a baby here, I am frustrated that for every pregnancy appointment, I may be in line for two or more hours. It’s also scary that we don't have a clear timeline on when we're moving back to the US but all in all none of these are excuses to not have another baby.  I always dreamed of having five kids but now that dream has shrunk to three and now with the high risk pregnancies I'll have from here on out, I don't want to shrink my dream anymore. There are high risks of pre-term labors and miscarriages with a uterine septum and while that’s scary, if I had one baby successfully I can have another right?!

  

Thanksgiving on the Island

Jesus and I had been toying with the idea of hosting an American Thanksgiving at our home or taking the weekend he had off work to go to a local resort.  As much as I wanted to cook, the resort won out.  We went to the Riu Merengue in Puerto Plata.  This resort was so nice!  Sometimes I wish I lived on the beach.  If I had to make one complaint...just one...I'd say the beds were super un-comfy but the resort wasn't designed for you to be sitting inside. It had a large pool with a kiddy pool for Joaquin.  It also had a very large beach which was nice and clean and a little Caribbean street (Calle Caribeno) full of shops and souvenirs.  It was all inclusive so all our meals were paid for and you could eat pretty much whenever you wanted as well as unlimited pina coladas.  And while it was no use to us Mormons, even the rooms were stocked with unlimited alcohol.  Over they years Jesus has taught me to be cautious of buffets.  He always reminds me of how long the food may have been chilling outside and whether or not is is fresh.  However the buffets here did not disappoint, even for Jesus!  The breakfast was so good and the international dinner as well!  And dinner was different each night making it extra fun.  OK OK if I had to make one other complaint...around 11:00 pm one night, Jesus sent me out to check out what they had for snacks.  This is where the food HAD been chilling!  It was lunch's leftover pizza and hotdogs and it definitely did not taste fresh.  I'm pretty sure it was snacks for all the people who partied a little too hard and had some kind of munchies.  Needless to say the trash in our hotel room's bathroom smelled like hotdogs and poopy diapers the rest of the night.  But again, the breakfast and dinner buffets were fresh and delicious!  It was interesting to meet the tourists at the hotel.  Joaquin was outnumbered by all of the Eastern European grandparents but that kept things nice and calm for the little guy.  The resort had lots of activities including, kayaks, jet skis, volleyball, horseshoes, aerobics and whatever else but we split our time between eating, the beach and the pool.  It was so relaxing and so perfect!  I'd recommend this place for a vaca to the Dominican Republic if you are in need!

first sand castles

mountains

no fear

the pool

coconut tree

what a view!

the resort housing

love!

So many nice people offering to take a picture of the tree of us, we didn't even have to ask!

My husband's a good photographer 

I've never seen a tree in this country without leaves!  I guess every tree needs to bud...

Dessert buffet...need I say more?

My Haitian tourist braids!

These two love to play!

So cute!

Turns out my cooking endeavors and showing off an American turkey got to happen as well!  Everyone in my English class I teach at the church, chipped in a few pesos so that I could buy a turkey for them! We had turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie.  I didn't want  to fork out any more cash to make any more than that so it was just a sampling of the American tradition and I think we hit the main points.  The celebration went so well.  I gave a brief, very brief, history of where the holiday came from and then we all took turns saying one thing we're grateful for.  I told them how grateful I was for them.  I teach this class week after week without a steady curriculum, coming up with so much on my own.  I don't know if they are learning it and most don't even have an opportunity to use English but still they come.  Their desire to learn is so special and they come, even when it's me, just volunteering to do what I can.  Some of the students even said they were grateful for me and that too was very special.

New puppy, new schedule, new life

I recently quit teaching my pre-school English class.  I didn't love it.  I knew I wouldn't but I went in with a positive attitude and learned to love those little kids but overall still didn't love teaching the class.  Pre-school is just an age I've never favored.  I used to tell Jesus we needed to have children only age 5 and up.  Clearly that's changed for me since having Joaquin and I've learned to love babies but since he's not in pre-school yet, that age still drives me a little nuts.  I was actually looking for a way to quit and luckily something fell into my lap, as guilty as I felt about leaving.  Jesus's aunt was babysitting Joaquin for me while I taught but once I got a dog that all changed.  I used to be afraid of dogs before I ever had one and I still am afraid of big dogs. But Jesus's aunts fear is unlike any I've ever seen before, bless her. She claims to not be scared and that animals just make her sick and want to vomit but I'm pretty sure it' a phobia.  Earlier last week she arrived at my house for Joaquin's birthday to help set up.  I was out getting the cake and a friend was here to let her in.  When I came home I saw the puppy was in the room by himself while my aunt visited with Joaquin.  At this time my puppy was brand new and not accustomed to being left alone in the room so I took him out but held him and made sure he did not go close to my aunt.  That wasn't enough.  When I ran another errand, then next thing I knew my aunt was gone and didn't stay for Joaquin's party. I'm not offended because I feel she has a very legitimate fear and I wish I could help her without locking up the dog the whole party.  She also told me she could no longer come over to watch Joaquin which I understand knowing my own phobia.  I then had my out to quit my preschool English class which was a happy little blessing for me.  I still have my class I teach at the church and in January I will be teaching English at Jesus's office once a week.  Two classes instead of four with a new puppy and Joaquin suits me much better!

Our little Biscuit

Speaking of the puppy...I know a lot of my friends have doubted us.  We had a dog in MN and we didn't have the time to properly care for or train him.  We both worked full time and the poor but extremely energetic puppy was stuck in his kennel all day.  It made me feel terrible and I was having the hardest time training him on my own because while we were both gone in the day, Jesus had even more commitments in the evenings.  So we gave our little pup to a family with a yard, a stay at home mom and children.  A much better life for our little guy.  Now however I don't work full time!  I just teach a couple classes a week.  I am here with my puppy and have time to take him on walks, train him and love him.  He is perfect companion for Joaquin!  They love to play together even though they both have been told to be gentle with the other...it's mostly Joaquin that needs to be gentle but now the pup is starting to keep up with him. I love that this puppy listens to me and I feel like I have control whereas with the last puppy, I didn't. The two puppies are also completely different breeds and if I've learned anything from having dogs, it's breeds matter.  I went from Australian cattle dog to Yorkie.

I feel more like a stay at home mom now.  Joaquin obviously switched me into that role but now with a baby, a puppy and less classes to teach, I really feel like a "mom!"  It's the little moments like lunch time when I stick Joaquin in his high chair and put out food for the dog while I eat standing at the counter and feeding Joaquin.  It's our little system for us all to eat together since I don't have a dining room table.  Or how every morning we take a walk together with Joaquin in his stroller and Biscuit on his leash in my hand while I push.  Then there's the moments where I don't feel obligated to play with my baby because he's entertained by the dog.  Clearly my dog's no 24 hour babysitter but he does give me a break and I take it.

You can caption this...or guess what happens next...

I'm so so happy with this new puppy.  He's like a new baby that loves to cuddle with us. He and Joaquin just follow me around all day like little ducks.  It's a pretty decent life.  Minus the inevitable of the two babies putting the same toys in their mouth or Joaquin playing in the dog's water dish or fresh pee...what can you expect with a baby and a puppy?!

Drying after his first bath

PS if anyone has potty training tips for the little guy that would help.  We are doing indoor newspaper training because I cannot take Joaquin and the pup down three levels to go outside every hour.  He has started going potty on the paper but how do I get him to do it every time? Every time I catch him pee elsewhere I bring him to the paper. Maybe it just takes time, we've only had him a week.  Luckily I have super easy tile floors to clean for when he forgets.

Our New Jag turns one!

I can barely think about how happy Joaquin makes me without it bringing tears to my eyes.  I’ve learned a whole new kind of love this past year since he’s been in my life.  It’s a feeling I can’t even describe and I can’t believe that every parent in the world feels this same overwhelming happineess for their children because it feels so unique to me. But I know that every parent really does.  I mean, even my parents!  They feel the same love for me that I feel for Joaquin?  That’s so weird and something I’ve taken for granted too long.  Joaquin is the reason this lovely blog got started.  I ventured into motherhood with “Our New JAG” and I had to write about it. So why a tribute to my son?  Because he’s one today of course!  A whole year has gone by and in spite of every challenge and change I’ve faced, I’m pretty sure it’s been the best year of my life because of him!

Joaquin’s my son, he is my joy.

His giant brown eyes I’ll forever adore.

I love to hear his little giggle

While daddy tosses him, plays and tickles.

My favorite’s when his eyes lock mine,

And then he smiles every time.

Or when he comes to me for a quick hug,

But I don’t let go as much as he tugs.

It’s true I wish my boy liked to be held

But instead he likes running and walking all by himself.

Except for when daddy takes me in his arms,

Then comes the jealous one from no matter how far.

While he may be independent he still needs his mom

He finally cries when I leave, a bittersweet sound.

He may be one wearing clothes for age two

But he’s our “Little Beast” and you’d love him too.

When we say “un besito” and he gives us a kiss

to the memories I’ll begin to list:

From the day he was born and wanted skin on skin

But the second I held him, my anesthetics kicked in.

For the next 24 hours a barf bag sat by my side

And I couldn’t hold my baby and couldn’t even cry.

That was the moment my husband showed me who he was

When he took off his shirt and gave Joaquin that needed love.

I’ll never forget the day daddy and baby were about to shower

When Joaquin began to pee and I heard my name being hollered.

I ran to the the rescue and held Joaquin while dad prepared

And the next thing I knew, was projectile poop from my toes to my hair.

Four months later came a great change

We acceoted a job in a far away place.

I travelled with Joaquin to meet my husband there

And I remember so much that feeling of fear.

Crying in the terminal just wanting the nerves to end

But Joaquin flew like a champ and cried for a total minutes of ten.

Or the memory only my husband has

While I was out, thank goodness for that.

A safety pin caught our baby’s mouth

Stuck in his upper roof, and wouldn’t come out.

But dad held him down,  and wiggled and pulled

The pin finaly came out and this story I was told!

I hope to never forget all his cute faces

Like the one where he sniffles and is called “Viejita.”

This is the term for little old lady

Because he scrunches his face until no more a baby.

Joaquin is my angel, a blessing from God

I thank all of you who have helped him along.

Today is his day, the day he turns One!

I couldn’t be more excited for the memories to come.

I love you bebe lindo!  Happy Birthday!

If you look closely you will see that the cake fell while we were trying to get a photo of Joaquin because his cake matched his shirt...but we fixed it up and it was still delicious!