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| First day Picture, he picked out the hat |
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| Then he wanted to drive himself |
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| Cried when we picked him up because he wanted his mommy so much |
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| Happy and proud after his second week, color was Blue and letter was B |
It is amazing to see/hear him growing up so quickly. He brings home new words from school everyday and I think they are encouraging him not to suck his thumb. Another surprise of this most recent transition was the relatively painless move back into potty training. He has only had a few accidents, but with GI discomfort since returning, I am even more impressed on managing to make it to the potty each time.
He seems to be enjoying M (our newest addition). Helps her roll over, calms her down when she cries, talks to her, etc. The only thing is a bit of jealousy when he wants to be held and mommy is feeding the baby. He can't say her name yet, but calls her baby. Every time she cries he tells us that she wants to eat.
We do miss Ga (grandma AND grandpa, they don't have two separate names), but with FaceTime, it is a lot easier to keep in touch. With all the new fangled technology, being overseas feels so different than when I went abroad in high school and even college. Even though we are a thousand miles away, we can talk to family whenever we want for as long as we want. Though no more hugs and watching "bi" with Ga. Ga, grandpa, got N addicted to watching YouTube videos this summer. I guess it is good because now mommy and daddy can have a few minutes of time to ourselves or with M.
M is settling into her new home nicely. Our housekeeper and temporary nanny love her. She hasn't quite adjusted to the heat though, she gets heat rash more frequently than I'd like, especially when she rides in her carseat. She is so alert these days, and her smiles are great! M loves to be held and gets sad when we put her down, N was the same way, but it is tiring to hold her all day long. Here in Honduras, if we don't put her in pink, everyone thinks she is a boy because we haven't pierced her ears. We are helping her learn how to roll over, N loving it when he can roll her over himself. Good thing she has a strong neck!
Was searching for another GF's blog and came across your interesting one and recent post. When I read your comment, "Here in Honduras, if we don't put her in pink, everyone thinks she is a boy because we haven't pierced her ears."
ReplyDeleteWe lived in Managua, Honduras. After the birth of our first daughter, we soon discovered from our housekeeper why most baby girls have their ears pierced at days old. The underlying reasons are deeply rooted in the Honduran culture.
In most Hispanic cultures, it is a male dominated society. Earrings in little girls signify they are loved by their family and not just for gender identification. Soon after birth, my housekeeper asked why we hadn't pierced her ears at the hospital when she as born. I told her we were going to wait till she was older and wanted them. I mentioned to her that like your, I noticed ALL baby girls had earrings. Assuming it was merely a tradition, she explained to me that it is considered a sign of love and devotion to a baby girl to have her ears pierced soon after birth. Often little gold balls or red stones are inserted soon after the piercing to show the baby girl is loved in a male dominated culture. These often come from godparents or friends. Some moms of lesser means will often pierce their daughters with red thread until they can save enough money for little gold earrings. Earrings in baby girls are an outward signal to family and everyone who sees her that the baby girl truly accepted into the family.
Don't know if you even considered having your daughter's ears pierced, but think it is a nice tradition and cultural bridge showing your baby girl is loved by all, don't you?
At six months old, we decided to follow local tradition and custom having her ears pierced. Afterwards, I never received the comment, "¿no es lindo" and instead, "¿No es ella adorable. We felt a greater warmth with the locals when they realized our daughter had pierced ears. Admittedly, she was super cute with earrings.
Please don't hesitate to write me if you have any questions.
Amy
amyswor1765@gmail.com