Due Date Today

Well, today was the due date but if he's going to be in the 5% of babies that are actually born on the due date, he only has 2 hours left. So, I guess it's not going to happen. Now the question is, will he be a Christmas baby or a New Years baby? I'm hoping for Christmas because this is getting a bit uncomfortable and I really don't want to go another week. I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would be going PAST my due date on my second baby. I'm shocked. I just hope he's not too big to deliver naturally. That's what I'm worried about most these days. Every day that passes, he's getting bigger and the more chances are that there will be complications and we'll have to do a c-section. I honestly don't want 3 months of being laid up not being able to get on normally with my life and taking care of two little ones. My mom and her husband will be here in about 3 weeks or less and it won't be much fun if I can't even drive. That's just one reason I don't want a c-section but there are plenty of other reasons. This is my last baby and I really wanted to give birth like the first one. At least I got to experience it once, so I suppose it won't be the end all be all. I have to say that I'm quite grateful that the reason for possibly having a c-section is that he's just a big baby and not something a LOT worse. Plenty of people have them for SERIOUS problems with their baby so I better just quit my complaining right now, hahahaha.

Tomorrow we'll have our big family Christmas celebration. There will be close to 30 people there and I know it'll be a nice time. It's a big dinner at my sister in law's house. Here in Costa Rica, Christmas is mostly celebrated on the 24th with a big family dinner and presents after the evening mass. Not much goes on on the actual 25th. I'm scrambling for something nice to wear because I really didn't think I would be pregnant on Christmas and need something that dressy. I had a friend offer me one of her fancy maternity outfits a while back and I turned her down because I didn't want to take stuff I didn't need. Turrns out I wish I had taken it. She's moved back to the states now so it's too late. I do have  a green strapless dress that could be dressed up with the right jewelry and it's very comfortable so I guess that'll have to do.

Here's to hoping I have the baby soon! Cheers and Merry Christmas!

Day Four

Day 4: I didn't know what to expect on this day and I was kind of hoping that they would try that gel on me which was mentioned the day before because it seemed to be working for my friend. When the doc arrived to do his rounds around 8:30am, he was reviewing my file (again, special treatment because he got there went straight to my bed, got my file and I followed him out to discuss it. He could have had me wait till he got to me because I certainly wasn't first) and said hmmmmm, you're only 38 weeks? I said well now I'm 39 and a couple of days and he said, it's not going to work (meaning the gel). I was like, really? You don't think so? He said that he would order it to be brought from the hospital pharmacy but he wouldn't know if it would really work until he checked me to see how my cervix was and if I was even dialated at all. This is not the doc that hospitalized me and as we all know, different docs, different opinions. I don't just have one OBGYN here in the universal healthcare in Costa Rica, you get who you get, but you get used to it. So, after he checked me, he said he was going to let me go home and I should just wait until the baby's ready. He said we could induce and induce and induce and if the baby's not ready, it's not going to come. That would be bad for the baby and could also cause uterine rupture among other problems. He didn't recommend a c-section because he said if the baby's not ready and we take it before and then his lungs aren't fully mature (one of the last things that matures before a baby is born) then we'll end up at the children's hospital in San Jose (4 hours away) in a neonatal unit with my son hooked up to oxygen and it's just not worth the risk. It's best to just be patient and let nature take it's course especially in this case when there is no emergency and there is still time left in the pregnancy. I was so happy to hear this news and I just wanted to get out of there and stop inducing (two days of contractions even though the second day wasn't all that bad) and go on my merry way. I was getting pissed at the doc who sent me for induction in the first place although I'm sure he had good intentions and probably thought he was doing me a favor as well since most women at almost 39 weeks are just ready for it to be over and meet their new baby. I know and have known these docs for a while now at least since my first pregnancy 3 years ago and they are good and I respect them. I just think that the one who hospitalized me for induction made a mistake. It was a rough 4 days being without my son that long (longest I've ever been away from him) and away from home but I made some friends and actually had an ok time. Even if they did serve dinner by 5pm and I was hungry again by 10pm and missed my nightly bowls of ice cream while watching Everybody Loves Raymond or Friends with my husband.

Days Two and Three

Day 2 Induction: The next morning at 5:30am, I was hopping in the shower, getting ready to go to my induction at 6am. There was one other woman there who was going for induction also that day and we were pretty excited. Unfortunately, we couldn't eat all day until things were over but one of the nurses told me if I wanted, I could have one of the granola bars I brought and drink some water before going to the labor and delivery ward so I did. I was surpised with the IV fluids that I really wasn't THAT hungry when the time came that I could eat. I was, but not starving like I thought I would've been. So, what happens here in induction is that they start an IV with the Pitocin drip in there and within about an hour I was feeling contractions coming on. This is supposed to start the softening, thinning and opening of the cervix.....if the baby and body are ready, that is. So, after a couple of hours, I mentioned to one of the OB nurses (this one happened to be male) that these contractions weren't getting much stronger and didn't seem THAT strong to me and if they ever increased the drip or was that not normal practice. He said, sure, we can increase it so they increased it from 60-100. Soon enough, I started feeling some pretty good contractions that I actually had to concentrate on my breathing sometimes for and I felt like that way I'd be making more progress. Well, the drip lasts about 8 hours (I finished a bit early since they had increased the frequency) and I was only 1 cm dialated :( Once the Pitocin stopped, my contractions basically stopped and that wasn't what I was hoping for. I found out that they will do this same routine 3 days in a row and if it doesn't work, they will usually send the patient for a c-section. I had not known this at the time of being hospitalized or I wouldn't have agreed to it in the first place seeing as how I still had time left before it was "urgent" to get this baby out. I was a little freaked out at that news that could happen after 3 days of this, but I decided not to worry too much and I was sure it would happen the next day.

Day 3 Induction: It didn't happpen. In fact, I had them put the Pitocin up to 100 fairly early on and the contractions weren't even all that strong.....I was pretty bummed. In the room I was in, there were 3 beds. The first day, the other lady and I were in there and there was one other one in there for the first few hours. Then, the other one went and had her baby and it was just the two of us the rest of the day. The second day was already the third day for my friend and they decided to try a gel called Progestin (not totally sure that's what it is in English, I think it has another name too) that they put on the cervix to try to "ripen" it and get things started that way. She didn't have to be in the labor and delivery ward for that and there was no IV involved. She had stayed in her bed in the maternity ward so I went in on my own the second day and found someone I knew from outside the hospital that was already in there in labor and just about to have her baby. After she left, I was alone for a little bit and another lady came in and after a while chatting with her, her labor started moving so fast that the OB nurse asked if she could make it out of the bed to go to the actual delivery room and she said NO. So, all of the sudden, I realized that this lady was going to have her baby right there in the bed next to me, just about 5 feet away! Wow, that was kinda exciting in a weird kinda way. I mean, I didn't want to stare but a life was coming into the world right there next to me. Luckily it was next to me and not some other angle that I was looking at so I couldn't see anything that I didn't want to. It's not like this woman was struggling with this delivery or anything, I mean, that baby was coming and coming fast. All of the sudden the OB nurse started prepping the bed with steril sheets, getting her tools out and calling for assistance. It all happened so fast but calmly and controlled. Pretty exciting, I thought. When I left the hospital (with no baby) I said bye to her and thanked her for sharing her delivery with me. Of course I was making a joke but it was also true. Good thing it was her 5th child and she was 44 years old (she's ready to get the tubes tied) so I don't think she cared that much that I was there. I must say, it helped pass the time that day that not much was going on with my induction, since my friend wasn't there. After she left, I was alone the rest of the day. I walked out with my IV stand and ended up hanging out in the nurses station area since obviously, this induction thing just wasn't working for me. Lucky for me, everyone (in admissions, maternity and labor and delivery) knew I was a doctor's wife and so I got some special treatments, that's for sure. They were all so nice as they were to other patients but did tend to go above and beyond for me. I really appreciated it and I felt like I was there amongst friends. We were talking at the OB nurses desk about how the induction obviously wasn't working (I had been there for about 6 hours and nothing but mild contractions were happening) and they decided to let me go back to the maternity ward (just in time for afternoon coffee hour) about 45 minutes early since if nothing had progressed all day, it sure wasn't going to happen in the last 45 minutes. After that I was pretty worried that the next and last induction day wasn't going to work and that they were going to try and pressure me into a c-section. The only cases Dani knew about this was the standard that they try 3 days and if that doesn't work they do a c-section. I was trying to tell him my case was different though and I still had a week or two left before they should try and force that on me. I really want to (and like to) give birth naturally just like I did last time and only want a C if necessary. OF COURSE if it's an emergency and it's NECESSARY, I'm all for it, no problem, no one has to twist my arm.

Hospital Stay

As most of you know, last Thursday I was hospitalized as I was about to be 39 weeks.  I went for my appointment in the morning and the doc started asking questions about how big Matthew was when he was born (8.2 pounds) and talking about how this baby seemed rather large too. He decided to do an ultrasound to see what it said the weight was. The ultrasound is approximate and could be a pound less or even more but most often it's less, if anything. It said the baby was 8.5 pounds but, like I said, could be less (or more, eek!). So, the doc recommended that instead of waiting another week to ten days for the baby to get even that much bigger, I should be hospitalized later that day to start induction the next morning.  He said if we waited, the baby could get too big and cause problems in a natural delivery and it was to help avoid an emergency c-section if there were complications.  I was kind of excited and in shock at the same time but luckily I had a few hours to go home, wrap up some loose ends, talk to my mother in law (who was already there with Matthew while I was at the appt) and talk to Dani.

Day 1 hospitalization:. I went home and started getting everything ready and then I was just doing what I could to pass the time before it was time to go in. I was pretty excited thinking that I could have my baby the next day or at least the day after. I got to the hospital and didn't get all settled in after paperwork and all until around 2:30pm. There are no private maternity rooms in the public hospitals here in Costa Rica but I was fine with that because I have already had a baby here and know how it is. I'm sure to most Americans in the US it sounds just horrible to be in a huge room with 14 beds (there were only about 8-10 women at any given time) but for me, it really wasn't that bad. In fact, Dani was working and visiting hours are only from 11am-noon and 4pm to 5pm so it would've been pretty lonely if I had been in a room alone. I had a book but just couldn't focus on reading it knowing that I might actually have my baby the next day. Just too much excitement to focus on reading. I met other women in there that were being induced or were hospitalized because they were already 41 weeks and they were being monitored before being sent to induction.  There were also women who were in the early stages of labor and women who had just come out of the delivery room with their baby. Quite a mix of stuff going on in that room, but everyone was so nice and I made a few friends in there. It felt weird though because all the women in the "induction" situation, were almost 41 weeks along or past 41 weeks and it was starting to get more urgent for them to get those babies out. My case was weird because I would just tell people that no, I'm about to be 39 weeks but my baby is just big so they decided to induce me. I wasn't having contractions (other than the false kind that don't hurt and I had them for a while now) like many of them or other pains. I felt like I was supposed to be "sick" and ailing like the others but I was just there hanging out! We had a group of 4 of us women that were hoping to get labor started as soon as possible so we would go on walks around the hospital together since that's a tried and true way of getting the baby to move down and help contractions along. Of course it was fun talking with the other new mothers and seeing their little newborns in their first day of life. Also in the public hospitals here, there is no "newborn nursery" and the babies always stay with the mother from the time they're born and cleaned up which I think is the best way for me personally.

38 Weeks Tomorrow!

I'll be 38 weeks pregnant tomorrow, just two weeks away from the due date! I just read the Webmd write-up on the 38th week of pregnancy and what goes on during this time and it said to make sure the hospital bag is packed because 95% of babies are born within two weeks of their due date. I'm feeling pretty good, some aches and pains sometimes but not all the time. My dad and his wife are visiting and they just left to go to a beach house they rented about an hour and 15 mins away. We had a fun couple of days together and it was nice having them around and hanging out in our everyday life. I'm thinking of some of the old wives tales about getting labor started and wondering if they work. Things like walking, eating spicy foods, massage on certain pressure points on the feet (that would be great whether it works or not!) among other things. But, I was thinking, do I REALLY want to try and get this thing started? I really want to go on a day trip to this beach house where my dad and his wife are on Saturday and to get a few more extra days of no crying, MANY poopy diapers and 3am feedings.....seems like maybe I shouldn't rush things. I can't WAIT to meet my other little man but I'm thinking to start trying old wives tale stuff starting Sunday. Then again, it's a full moon on Saturday, so WHO KNOWS what could happen, lol.

Thanksgiving in Costa Rica

For the second time in my 10 years here, we have celebrated Thanksgiving with my Costa Rican family and they truly enjoy it (one was 3 years ago and now this one). I have to continue to make this tradition happen because we all really enjoy it. Little by little, I'll have to share the recipes with them so they can help make a few dishes because they really want to help. I have only done the dinner with other American friends but I won't always have them to participate, but I still want to continue the tradition. My family here is super good at going around and saying what they are thankful for. They are all mini speeches and usually somewhat touching and emotional. I started and basically said that I was thankful for my family here and in the US, thankful for the baby that I have and the one that I will have shortly, thankful that we all have jobs and good health and are able to live a nice, enjoyable life. That was about it. Of course I'm thankful for so many other things but really, I am just not that much of a talker, whereas the Costa Ricans (especially my family) are. We decided to all serve our food and then one by one say what we are thankful for because it could take a good 30 mins and the food was getting cold. So it was better that everyone could be eating while listening to others give their "speech". I hope I can continue this Thanksgiving tradition for my family here and especially for my sons, so they'll be able to celebrate and learn about both their cultures that they come from.

Dani giving his "speech" and saying the blessing.

Coming Soon!

I had a doc appointment today and everything looks good! The doc told me about 3 times that I'm just 2 weeks away, meaning full term but he kept stressing two weeks! Now, I probably won't have this baby in two weeks (37 weeks) but you never, never know...... Like I've said before, I feel like the baby will be here sooner than later. I can't believe the Braxton-Hicks (false labor/contractions) contractions that I'm having that I didn't feel last time. Last time I was walking an hour a day several times a week with no problem. Of course after I got off work at 4:30pm, I had nothing but time since Dani usually got home from work around 10:30pm. I feel like if I even attempted to do that right now, I would go into labor. Seriously. I just feel delicate, like I should take it easy. I should trust my instincts.

After seeing the doc today, while waiting in line (yes, there are LINES here in the universal healthcare world to get an appointment) to get my next appointment in two weeks, I wasn't feeling so good. I felt like I was going to pass out (everything started fading out of my vision) and I was feeling cramping before, during and after that. Thank goodness a chair opened up a few feet away from the line so I asked the guy behind me if he would mind saving my place in line, that I wasn't feeling so good and was going to sit down for a minute. Freaked me out a little but realized the hospital was the best place ever for this to happen if something bad was going to happen. I just didn't want to end up laid out on the floor with ALL those people around, how embarrassing. Anyway, as the 7 people in front of me went to the receptionist one by one to get their appointment, I started feeling a little better. Then it was my turn so I got the appointment for the morning of December 6th, the same day my father and his wife are coming  into town, got in the car and went home. I laid down for 5-10 minutes, got something to eat and coffee and started feeling much better. Glad that was the end of that. Braxton-Hicks contractions I can handle, passing out in the middle of a crowded hospital floor, not so much.

So that's my event for the day.....Oh, and the fact that this is the fourth day that Matthew has not gone down for an afternoon nap. He is going down earlier around 7:45-8pm, so at least there's that. He also lets me have rest time which is when he watches youtube videos in his room while I lay on the bed next to him and rest for about 30-40 minutes. Better go fix that boy some dinner now, while I'm thinking about it.

Matthew is so sweet!

My little man has been giving me more and more kisses, hugs and love pats these days. Especially kissing on his baby brother in my belly :) The other day he was halfway in my lap on the sofa and looked up and said "Papá?" and I said in a kinda sad voice, "He´s at work again sweetie. He´s at work a lot, isn´t he?" Matthew nodded his head and then proceded to pet my leg and said "ya, ya, ya, mamá" (which is a way of consoling someone in Spanish, usually children after they´ve hit their head or hurt themselves so I´m sure he´s heard it from many in the family and teachers) and then he laid his head in my lap. Then he said, "me here, mamá, me here" and then kissed my leg and hugged my lap. It´s so neat how he perceives other people´s emotions and reacts to them during this age. What a sweetie.

Almost!

The title of this means two things. First, I ALMOST passed my taxi licensing exam and missed it by one question. It was only 25 questions, and I got 19 instead of the necessary 20 to pass. I'm hoping to schedule it again in a week to 10 days but we have to call on Monday morning to make the appt.

Also, my second son is ALMOST here! I am 35 weeks today and at 37 weeks, he'll be full term. Matthew came early at 38 1/2 weeks so I'm saying that we are talking just a matter of weeks left until I'm a mother of two. I mean, we're talking as early as 2 weeks away and as many as 5......that ain't much!!! I've got my bag halfway packed for the hospital, just have to wash all the newborn clothes so I'll have something to bring him home in and also get my coming home outfit in there as well. A few little things here and there like a toothbrush and other things that I have to get in there last minute. I don't know why, but I've thought A LOT about this baby coming early this go around. That hardly ever occured to me last time, I just figured that first timers usually went almost the whole 40 weeks (or more sometimes). But this time, I feel like he's really big and moving around so much that I'm not sure if I was getting this uncomfortable at the same time in the last pregnancy. I'm sure I was, I was just excited and didn't care how uncomfortable I got because it was my first time. I never really remember being very uncomfortable last time. I remember thinking that I wasn't desperate to get the baby out like so many women talk about in the last few weeks. Don't get me wrong, I'm not at that point now or anything, I just wonder how many more weeks I can go without starting to feel that desperation. It's much harder this go around having a toddler around and being a stay at home mom which is much harder than my office job I had last time. Last time, I just went to work and sat in front of a computer all day and it was pretty low pressure and physically very relaxing. Not like being a stay at home mom at all. It's only a few more weeks left, so I'm not really complaining, I just compare, compare, compare with these two pregnancies. I'll probably do that with the two boys too, lol! BTW, Dani and I are still throwing some names around so if any of you are set on Christian Thomas, it's still not 100% like I said in the post that I mentioned it in. I want us both to be 100% about the name so we're doing our best to make sure that's the name we want. Here are two baby bump pics to satisfy your curiousity. There are plenty of women much bigger than me at this point, so I can't complain, I'm not really that big.....it's just a lot harder to get off the sofa, bend down and pick something up, help my son go to the bathroom, give him a bath and turn over in bed. Just the little things you take for granted :)

Family Day

Friday was family day at Matthew's school so they had a talent show for each class. It was a really nice time and Matthew's grandmother "Tita" and her husband Mario were able to make it. There was another event in the family so that's all that could make it that day and Dani was working. Matthew had to dress like a mouse so I made him some ears (with Tita's headband she left here one day while babysitting, lol) and we painted a nose and some whiskers on his face. I say "we" but really it was his teacher. He was kicking and screaming practically before we left the house because he didn't want to put on the ears or have his face painted but I knew his teacher would be able to convince him and she did! I think Matthew's talent must be standing there because that's pretty much all he did.  That's surprising since he loves to dance and actually has pretty good rythym. I do have to give him credit though......about 30 seconds before they opened the curtain, I saw him squirming around like he needed to pee and he did right after the performance so I think he was halfway concentrating on NOT peeing, lol. Also, the boy is really shy, I mean really shy with lots of people around and when they opened the curtain, little did he know there would be about 100 people staring at him, poor thing! So, needless to say, he just stood there. You can't see his facial expressions or anything much here (I'm working on getting a few pics from other people to show you closer so you can see his face better) but this is the best I have. I can't wait to get my NEW camera when my dad and his wife come in December. I'm hoping it'll take better pictures AND better videos. Matthew is 4th from the left between a light gray mouse and a darker mouse with black ears who dances a lot.

Better Late Than Never!

It sure took a while since Matthew was 2 years and 4 months old when he potty trained (which he pretty much did in a day or two) to finally be pooping consistently in the potty! The peeing thing was no problem and he even pooped a few times when he first trained but then something happened and he was scared of something and has been pooping in a diaper (could be worse, in his underwear) until about a week ago (just turned 3!). Luckily, he would tell me he had to poop, I'd put on a diaper, he'd do it and I'd change him back into his underwear. We have done that once a day for 7-8 months now and I finally decided to put a little pressure on him (they say not to force these things, so I wasn't!) and also offer him candy (which I had offered before) and it worked! Somehow, the norm ended up being 3 pieces of candy (like the individual wrapped hard candies). It was Dani's idea to put some pressure on him and I'm glad I did it but we started doing the math and realized if we gave him three pieces every day, that would be 90 per month, ugh!!! TOO MUCH! We stay away from sugar as much as possible so I really didn't like this idea. Today, he actually pooped two times and I didn't mention the candy and he didn't either, yay!!! Hopefully that candy idea will only last the week that it has and we're pretty much done with it. It's how I got him to pee in the potty in the first place and it was only a few times that I actually had to give him a lollypop.

He still wears a diaper to bed partly because I don't feel like dealing with the accidents but many times he wakes up dry. I suppose we're going to have to nip this in the bud soon too. Guess it's better before the baby's born than have to deal with it after. Although, regression is VERY common with a new sibling but I'm really hoping he doesn't go back to diapers for while. I have a friend and her daughter went back to diapers for 4 months when her little brother was born, ugh! I'm sure it's going to be a rollercoaster ride when this second one comes because I KNOW there will be some jealousy but hopefully not too much acting out for attention. He's DEFINITELY a mama's boy though, so I'm expecting the worst but hoping for "not so bad"...........

I'm proud of my little man though, a big boy bed AND pooping in the potty AND staying overnight without mommy and daddy for the first time.....all in a matter of a couple of weeks. Major milestones so close together, I can't ask for much better :)

Sushi for Pregos/Taxi License

I made sushi with steamed lobster tail and cucumber the other day and it was GOOOOOOOD! No, it wasn't a "craving" I was having or anything like that, I just like sushi and we had frozen lobster tails in the freezer and so I used it. Since being pregnant, I can't eat raw fish, I steamed up the tails and put 'em in there.  We don't always have the seaweed wrap, sushi rice and wasabi around here in Nicoya to make it but I was in Liberia the other week and stopped in the supermarket to look for some chocolate chips (another thing we don't always have around here) and I stumbled upon the international foods section.

The reason I was in Liberia was because it seems that I'm going to get my taxi driver's license here in Costa Rica. Yes, that's right, I'm going to be a licensed taxi driver but it will not be to actually drive the taxis. We already own a taxi and have another guy as our driver but none of us actually have a license so we can't drive it. I know this all sounds weird but a few years ago my husband and I went in with my mother-in-law and invested our money in a licensed taxi. It seems that the taxi business makes more money than if we were to put our money in a bank somewhere and earn the interest. Plus, every week or every day, there's constantly extra cash coming in that has been a great perk of the business. Anyway, as owners we get 70% and the driver gets 30% and we share the gas expense with him. Our SUV is getting a bit old and after running 6-7 days a week, sometimes 14 hour days, it's having to be fixed A LOT (and that's OUR expense as owners). So, we've decided to buy a new one. The problem is, the taxi we have now is still in the name of the original owner who, I think is dead or something (I'm not kidding, I think he's dead). There was some weird legal issue where we ended up leaving it in this other guy's name and Marjorie, my sister-in-law has documents written up and signed protecting us against any type of legal problems. The issue now is that we want to buy a new one and the person's name it's going to be in has to have a taxi driver's license. Well, we can't put it in my husband's name because he's a doctor and in case he were to get sued, they could go after that as part of the payment. My mother-in-law doesn't even have a regular driver's license, much less a taxi specific one. So......that leaves me! Up until recently, I didn't even have a Costa Rican license since the US one is accepted here but I really did need to have it after living here 10 years so I got it. It looks like I'm studying for the exam now for the taxi license to take next Friday. Trying to get all this done before I have the baby and I'm 34 weeks along today. Whoo-hoo!!!



Toddler Bed

So far, so good with the toddler bed. Today is the first day and below is a video of him coming home from school and seeing his new bed set up for the first time. I didn't even ask him to take his shoes off, that's just something he does!  There may be some getting up in the night and wandering into our room, I wouldn't be surprised. We shall see! I sure hope he adapts to this well :) Being almost 34 weeks pregnant is not exactly the time that I want to be woken up many times during the night (except for the normal uncomfortableness and peeing), but if it happens, so be it.

Not Sure Why We Waited Three Years

We had a wonderful weekend getaway for our 7 year anniversary. It was absolutely perfect. I'm still not really sure why or how we waited over 3 years to get away just my hubby and I but somehow the time just flew by and it happened! We won't wait that long again for sure. We had room service breakfast, amazing restaurant meals, drinks at the poolside bar (non-alcoholic for me, of course!), evening show entertainment followed by dancing at the disco, lounging, relaxing and we slept till 9:15am!!!!! Whoa! Another thing I haven't done in over 3 years, ha, ha, ha. And it was funny because I thought that I had only slept until 8:15am and was kinda bummed because it wasn't as late as I was hoping for. Then, Dani starts stirring around and says something about sleeping until 9:15am and I was like, no it's 8:15 by this hotel clock here that was correct yesterday. Then, after checking Dani's cell and seeing that it ALSO was in the 9 o'clock hour,  I was like OOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHH, I know. Since the US had their time change that Saturday night, the clock is obviously imported and changed automatically, lol! So, I did get to sleep in late and that made me smile :)

Change of subject, but Matthew is starting his big boy toddler bed tomorrow. I had to have the sheets specially made since the mattress was custom made since we're using a toddler bed that was made for Dani when he was little. It's a really pretty bed (basic, of course, with a railing and all) and Matthew seems excited about it. We finally picked up the sheets today from the seamstress so, it looks like tomorrow is the big day! Oh, I hope so much that he just stays in the bed and goes to sleep! I will take pictures and give an update soon!

A Little Time Away

Tomorrow Dani and I are going to leave Matthew for the first time to go to an all inclusive 5 star beach resort for one night for our 7 year anniversary. His Aunt Carolina (AKA Tia Ina) will be here from San Jose and stay the night at our house to take care of him. He loves his Tia Ina and I know he'll have a great time. We will be leaving in the mid morning and getting back mid afternoon sometime on Sunday. We haven't been away just the two of us in over 3 years so we're pretty excited! It will be amazing not to wake up to "mama, mama, mama" for the first time in so long. I doubt I'll sleep that late or anything since being 33 weeks pregnant (and a little uncomfy) and so used to getting up at an early hour for so many years but it will be great just to lay in bed in the morning, have some coffee and watch some tv if we want. We might just have to do room service in the morning for breakfast. I am pretty sure we WON'T be waiting 3 years to do this again. I'm thinking it should be an EVERY wedding anniversary tradition. Our anniversary is on November 6th, so that's the perfect time in Costa Rica since the rains have pretty much ended, clear blue sky is all around and the low season prices are still in effect (barely). Matthew's little brother will be about 11 months old, this time next year and I think that would be the perfect time to leave him for the first time.

 

The resort we're going to is The Westin at Playa Conchal. I've been to this beach before but it was many years ago and what's unique about it is that instead of actual sand, it's made of tiny broken up pieces of shells. They are so tiny that many of them look like it could be sand but if you look at it real closely, you'll see that they're shells and they've been worn down and smoothed over by years in the ocean. Here's the link if you want to check it out.....

 

http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=3560

 

I am sure I'll have some pictures later.

 

Pumpkin Carving in Costa Rica!

Even though they don't officially celebrate Halloween in Costa Rica, there are costume parties (more in San Jose than in smalltown Nicoya) and pumpkins available for sale. There is no trick or treating so I'm one of the only ones in town that probably carved a pumpkin and put it out but it was fun to do with Matthew. It was his first real time actually carving a pumpkin and he didn't want to get his hands all messy with the goop (sp?). He DID like trying to get in there using the butter knife I gave him to try out his carving skills, however. This pumpkin was unique in that it seemed to have beansprouts growning inside when I opened it (which I had never seen before) which of course, were actually sprouts from the pumpkin seeds. The pumpkin wasn't borderline rotten or anything but apparently was already trying to grow more pumpkins inside itself. I took the seeds (that weren't already sprouting) and toasted them and they were delish! Here are some pics of Matthew getting in on the carving....and Negra (the dog) was hanging out as well! Thanks to Lisa for the great pics.

Surprise Baby Shower

The surprise baby shower was actually held for Matthew but I get to reap the benefits of the gifts! When I picked up Matthew from school on Friday they called Matthew back into the room to get something and he walked out with a big decorated box full of baby gifts! Apparently they got all the parents and teachers of the class plus the administration and everyone brought gifts for Matthew's little brother. They had a little baby shower for Matthew in his class. Matthew enjoyed opening the presents once we got home and he doesn't seem to feel too left out or anything because a couple of things were little toys or a bowl with matching fork and spoon and other things that he can kinda play with. He does know they're for the baby though because he held up some of the clothes and said "baby". We got some really cute things and you can just tell that these gifts came from parents since there are baby clothes of ALL sizes and a package of diapers, soap and lotion, etc.  All very practical stuff. That was so sweet and such a surprise. Matthew's teacher had actually mentioned doing it a while back but I figured with just a month left of school and everybody getting busy, that it probably wouldn't happen. Matthew and I are going to make a big THANKYOU card on posterboard to put up in the room for everyone to see. Here's a video of Matthew opening the gifts. Enjoy!

Scared of the Bull

Matthew has been such a wonderful sleeping baby all his life. At exactly 8 weeks old, he slept about 9 hours all of the sudden and it just got better from there. He's been a great napper and a great sleep through the nighter. The only times we've really had problems waking in the night and not being able to go back to sleep on his own were when we were somewhere else and sleeping in the same room and could see us there in our bed when he woke up.  Then he just wanted to hang out with us.

About a week before his third birthday, Matthew decided there was a bull in his room. Not monsters under his bed, snakes in his closet, not even the boogie man. No, it's a bull that he's afraid of. Now he's seen plenty of bulls in real life living here in Costa Rica. Most festivals and fairs have bullfights and they're aired on TV as well. He's seen them on the truck at the fairs before they enter the ring and he even "plays bull" by putting his index fingers up on his head and runs around "charging" us (mainly Dani). Dani plays it with him too and Matthew LOVES it. Giggles and runs around trying to get away from the bull. He will still play these games during the day but at night, he says there's a bull in his room and I have to leave the light on (no, a nightlight is not good enough) and sit in there for a little while, usually until he falls asleep (just about 10-15 mins). So, ok, the bedtime ritual has changed a little bit, no big deal but he is also waking up at some point in the middle of the night (seems to be mostly at exactly 2:14am) and wanting someone to be in there for him to go back to sleep. Luckily we don't have to put the light on again and really start from scratch, but still not a pleasant thing when he's slept through the night for almost his whole three years minus the first 2 months. Dani has been taking care of the middle of the night wakings for the most part and I'm really grateful for that. Soon enough, in December sometime, I'll be up every couple of hours myself with the new little one:) Dani can usually get the job done quicker because Matthew seems to be more needy and clingy with me. Last night, he didn't wake up but that was the first time almost since this started about 10 days ago. Let's hope Dani doesn't get tired of helping out in the middle of the night!

We are trying to make the switch to toddler bed starting in the next week or so, so let's hope this bull thing passes quickly. Not a good idea to try to change his bed and everything while he's got this other sleep stuff going on. Somehow I have to make him think that what he needs is a new bed to get rid of the bull......hmmmmmm, I might just be on to something here.

Three Years Ago (updated)

I was talking to my husband about my blog last night and apparently I was a little off on the times. Yes, we went to the hospital around 10:30-10:40pm but we didn't get going to Liberia until around 11:30pm and arrived at almost 1am. Now I remember that this was true because they couldn't find an ambulance available to take us immediately and we were considering going in the car. The problem with the car is that they were worried that I wouldn't make it there without having the baby and obviously there is a lot more medical equipement in the ambulance than the car. What if we had to pull over to the side of the road to deliver this baby? I think there was some law about a hospital employee riding in our car too for insurance purposes so it would have just been my husband Dani (a doctor thank goodness) and my mother-in-law. I remember them saying they were making calls to different people/ambulances but the quickest one was going to be in about 30 mins. In the end, we waited for the 30 minute one but I think it came a little sooner (although my concept of time is apparently all messed up, I was busy with my contractions). By the time we got in the ambulance I realized I was SUPER thirsty so my mother-in-law (who rode in the front seat.....long-time employee of the hospital) called her husband and told him to be outside their house waiting with a bottle of water because we were going to swing by in the ambulance to get it. They live practically behind the hospital. That was one of the best bottles of water I'd ever had.... I think the average person doesn't really know true thirst until they've been in labor or breastfed. It's a thirst like no other.

So today, October 25th is Matthew's third birthday. I'm so proud of him starting his first year of pre-school this year and he has adapted so well. He's so capable of doing things on his own and surprises me every day with the things he does and says. He's growing up so fast and he's just SOOOOOO handsome. He's going to be a great big brother despite wanting to be mama's (only) boy. I'm sure he's going to grow and mature so much in the next year because of his little brother and I think it will be so good for him. Happy birthday little man! I love you more than anything and am so proud of you!

Three Years Ago

Wow. At this very time, 10:30pm, three years ago, Dani was getting off work only to come home and find that he had to go back to the hospital to take me because I was definitely in labor. How exciting that was!!! Ten days early, I wasn't sure if they were "real" contractions so I didn't make much of it when he came home for dinner around 7:30pm that night. Once he got home after his shift ended at 10pm though, I was pretty darn sure! Once we got to the hospital, just a few minutes away and progressing very fast, we found out that we were going to have to go to Liberia (about an hour away) to have our baby Matthew. It was a Friday night and there was no OBGYN or anesthesiologist on call (just in case). I guess that's just what happens sometimes in a small town in Costa Rica. They gave me whatever it is (forgot the name) to slow down the contractions, hoping I wouldn't have the baby on the way and we were off. We got to the hospital at about midnight and since they had slowed down my progress (which probably didn't take full effect until we reached Liberia), we had to wait until 4:31am for our new addition to the family. It was all worth it and a wonderful experience, I might add. Turns out, we didn't even use an OBGYN, just an OB nurse because everything was fine and there were no complications :)

As I'm writing this, our next little one due in December is making my belly visibly move all around. I don't just feel him but can look down and see my belly jumping, hahahahaha. Pretty funny and strange. He's an active little guy just like Matthew!

I must have the stupidest dog....

I hope my dog Negra is not REALLY this stupid but it appears that she either jumped or fell off the second story of our house that is under construction. The first floor is complete but they are working on the second floor and Negra goes up there daily and sniffs around, uses the bathroom (I know, but it's cement slab for now and totally open so I don't worry too much about it) and looks for birds and squirrels. Apparently today she fell off. No one really saw how it happened just as she hit the ground but I really hope she didn't try and jump. At first we were going to take her to the vet for X-rays but then realized she was walking just fine and maybe favoring her left side a little but you could hardly notice, so definitely nothing is broken. Dani felt around all her bones and he didn't feel anything broken, just that her shoulder could be a little jammed. I called the vet and found out what I could give her for pain and we'll try that for a few days first. She's not wimpering or making any kind of painful noises so I think she'll be just sore for a few days. The question is now if she learned from that or will she do it again.

On a scarier note, twice now, Matthew has been outside while I was inside doing some stuff and all of the sudden it grew very quiet so I looked outside to see what was up. When I didn't see him, I realized he was up on the construction with Negra so clearly we are going to have to put up some kind of barrier to go up the stairs or I can't let Matthew wander around the yard alone. The second time it happened within a matter of minutes and he was all the way up there, I couldn't believe how fast he got up there, ugh....so scary to see your little toddler way up there with no walls surrounding him.

Haircut

It was LONG overdue. Matthew's hair was out of control and unruly. So I finally cut it again. I don't even know the last time I cut it but I know I didn't cut it very short so it became long and unruly quite quickly. I would love to take him to a professional but he barely lets me cut it much less someone he doesn't even know. So, here he is, 3 years old and I still cut it. I use the electric shaver with the attachments for the sides and usually do the rest with scissors. I think it looks ok. He looks older without all his long, shaggy curls everywhere which I guess is fitting since he'll be 3 next week! I got what pictures I could but he just isn't a picture boy (ham) like he used to be. He prefers to do the picture taking now instead of being in them which just causes a lot of flash and wears down the batteries. Here are a couple I took but we'll get some good shots of him this Sunday at his birthday party. Oh yeah, I mentioned in another post that his party would be on the 16th but we changed it to the 23rd. Looking forward to it!

 

Baby Shower (or lack thereof)

I think I've decided not to have a baby shower this go around. I guess we could still end up with a small little get together, but I'm thinking it's better not to. Of course some people in the family are interested in giving me one but here's the deal. I have saved EVERYTHING pretty much from Matthew as far as clothes, toys, books and other things are concerned. In fact, I have some friends that moved back to the the states recently and left me with lots more baby clothes. I have actually been giving some away to those less fortunate because I have PLENTY which I'm so thankful for. What we will need are things like diapers, shampoo, creams, wipes, etc. My mother in law suggested that we put something to that effect on the invitations or that we would like cash in lieu of gifts. The thing is, is that a baby shower is a lot of work, planning and money. Especially ones that they have here where we're talking 50-60 people at a 4 hour long event. That is VERY tiring for an eight month pregnant woman to endure. I'm thinking instead of spending all that money on food (it's never just fingerfoods here, we're talking full meals), invititations, decor, etc, we should just use all that money and go shopping for diapers and all the other little necessities. Why spend all the money so that we can make that money back by asking for cash in lieu of gifts? It would be different too if it were a small, intimate gathering at someone's house that was like a two hour ordeal. I don't know, these are my thoughts on it, but then again, it IS kinda fun to have a celebration and a welcoming for your future little baby. I'm on the fence about it but am almost decided.....we'll see what ends up happening :)

3 year old Birthday Party!

It's almost that time. Matthew will be 3 years old in just about 2 weeks. We've decided not to have the big shindig this year with inflatables, clowns, etc until next year. Matthew is quite the timid little boy. He's definitely opened up since starting pre-school this year but he's still shy and doesn't like tons of attention on him. When he feels it's too much, he gets mad and yells NO and is not all that friendly, so we think the big party should wait until next year. Also, with me being pregnant and children's parties here lasting 4-5 hours and with the almost 90 people who would attend, it's just better to wait. Can you imagine having upward of 100 people at a toddler's birthday party? To me, it sounds crazy but that's quite common here. When they do a party, they go ALL out. If we invited just 30 kids (17 from his school class, plus the others we know from the neighborhood and family), each would come with one or two parents and/or a sibling. Seriously, the number can reach close to a hundred easily. I don't know why it's necessary for it to be an all day even either. Four to five hours for a toddler's party? It's just too much....but that's the custom here.

What we've decided to do is just do a lunch with cake and presents with only family (about 18 people) at a nearby restaurant next Sunday, October, 16th. I'm pretty excited about it and think it'll be perfect for this year. There's this restaurant that we know the owners of and they have a separate space for parties and such. I talked to them last night and I think it'll be perfect. I'll be able to decorate, we'll be able to have music, the cake and presents and all and people can just order from their regular menu. I'm just not sure what design to put on the cake. I'm thinking Elmo but when I asked Matthew, he said yes to Elmo, Toy Story AND Shrek.....so.......not sure yet. I will definitely post pictures! Here are two recent pictures. One of Matthew laying under his new umbrella that his cousin Emma gave him and a baby bump one that Matthew took of me at 29 weeks pregnant.

No Undies?

Ooops, I think Matthew may have gone to school today without any underwear, lol! I had my regular doctor appt. this morning so Dani took Matthew to school. Dani is usually the one to put on Matthew's uniform anyway, but I usually take him to school. When I got home from my appt. I saw Matthew's underwear sitting on the sofa which is usually where we dress him for school. He only had ONE pair of undies that were clean and they were sitting on the sofa. I asked Dani if he put on his underwear and he honestly isn't sure. I'm pretty sure though since there was only one pair of clean undies left. I'm a little embarrassed to pick him up today. Should I check right there in front of the teacher and tell her what happened (more importantly, WHO did it) and laugh  it off? I'm sure they noticed when he had to go to the bathroom but I do know that he does that a lot on his own there. Hmmmmmmm, not sure what to do, lol!

Last night we were reading a book about a mouse that doesn't have a brother but by the end of the book he does. I asked Matthew if he had a brother and he said, "si". I said, "what's his name?" and he sat there looking at me for a second and then said, "Bebé". That is so cute!!!!! I told him that he was going to play with his baby brother when he got here like the mouse in the book and he said, "si". I also told him that he was going to teach him all the things he knows how to do like ride a bicycle, throw a ball and how to talk. He seemed pretty content that that was his job to teach him everything he knows:)

As I mentioned before, I had a doc appt this morning and everything is fine.Heard the heartbeat and he kicked the probe (or microphone, whatever it is) a couple times as he usually does. Gained a pound a week this go around as I did the last, eeek! I think it's fine though because it's all belly and I don't seem bigger anywhere else, so that's a relief. I'm just about 29 weeks now. This baby could come in the next 9-10 weeks.....wow, doesn't seem long now! Matthew arrived at 38 weeks.....so we shall see!! I can't wait, it's going to be amazing having two little boys. The big question is, who will he look more like? I mean, Matthew looks like me in the skin color department and hair but other than that, his expressions and facial features are VERY much like Dani. A perfect combination of the two of us. The next one could be brown or white skin, blue or dark brown eyes, brown or black hair, I mean, it could go either way! So exciting to see what we're gonna get this time, hahahaha!

My Sweet Little Guy

Just wanted to mention two little things today that my little man did that melted my heart. First, I was trying to put on his shorts and I leaned over to put his feet in the holes (he was standing up, holding on to me) and I guess my face was right next to his and he turned his head and planted this big ole' kiss right on my cheek. Then hugged my neck as hard as he could and kissed me on the mouth. Of course after that I had to smother him with kisses and tell him how much I loved him. So sweet!!!

Then, he found his traning potty in my closet that I've been meaning to get out to the storage area but haven't and he started taking everything out to get to it. When he did, I said that he doesn't use that anymore and that it was going to be for his new baby brother in the future. He took it out and took it to the living room where he originally "trained" and I said, "but you're a big boy and you use the big boy potty now, that's for the other baby in the future". He said, "Este (this)......bebé (baby)" as he pointed to the potty. Meaning "this is for the baby" and I said, "is that for your baby brother?" and he said, "si". And then he told me to "wait". I told him we would have to wait a long time and he told me to "wait" again, lol. I know he won't be this positive about his baby brother once he gets here but it sure is fun for now when Matthew points out stuff that is for the baby with no prompting at all!

A Name?

I think we might have a name.....we're pretty sure but, of course, anything could change. We're pretty sure it'll be Christian Thomas. We want something that sounds good in both languages and since it looks like we will be living most of our lives in this country, it especially has to work in Spanish too.  Of course it's important that my US family can pronounce it, lol! So, as many of you know, Dani's name is Christian Daniel so it looks as though Dani will get his name on both of his sons :) (Matthew Daniel and Christian Thomas). Thomas is a name from my Mom's side of the family.

We are still thinking about spelling since here they usually spell Christian as CRISTHIAN and Thomas, would be TOMÁS. Also, most likely he'll go by Christian, although Dani says he will probably call him Thomas or Tommy. Poor kid, he won't know what his name is. This is 99% set in stone. We had kind of thought about this before but today when we were talking, I got a special feeling about it....just started smiling as I said it and felt all warm and fuzzy inside so we're thinking this could be it! Hope everyone else likes it too :)

The Home Stretch

This week I'm starting my third trimester of pregnancy, whoa! I really can't believe it as I've mentioned before and I know we all know how time flies, it's just getting pretty real. I was thinking the other day that in about two months, I should go ahead and get my hospital bag packed because it could happen anytime in the last three weeks or so of the trimester....that makes it kinda real. I'm feeling pretty good but am noticing my belly getting in the way at different times. Like I can't stand as close to the sink to wash dishes anymore, or when I try to "squeeze" by somewhere that I used to be able to, I can't anymore. Matthew has hit his head walking by my belly a few times, good thing it's soft. Here is a baby bump picture that we took a few days ago. It truly depends on the kind of clothes that I wear that can make the bump hardly noticeable or much more noticeable. This one I just look kind of in between.

Today was Matthew's first day back at preschool after a little over a week off and he was pretty excited to go. I always worry after a little vacation how he'll be going back but he was quite happy. He actually came to me back in the bedroom to get his hair "done" (you know, throw some water on it, get the curls rejuvenated:) and then asked for his toothbrush which he has never ASKED for either one of these things in the past. He was walking out the door almost 10 minutes before we really had to leave so we took our time getting in the car and got there a few minutes early. We can take him as early as 7:45am (class starts at 8am) but I always feel bad taking him if there's hardly any kids in there when I drop him off.
I saw Matthew get a little embarrassed for the first time by me telling a story to his teacher of something funny he did this weekend. I've seen him get shy and embarrassed a couple other times but it was usually for something he did wrong and got reprimanded. This time I told the teacher about being with Matthew's 15 year old cousin this weekend who has a little belly and he went up to her and patted her belly and said "baby, baby" as if she were pregnant because of her belly. When he first learned that a bigger belly could mean it had a baby in it, he was saying that about everyone who had any kind of belly at all. He even said it about himself, but since then he's learned that men don't have babies. After I told this story to the teacher, Matthew seemed to have understood everything and started clinging to my leg and hiding his face. I felt so bad after that because he had been so excited about school today and after that, he felt insecure and kind of bad. I'm sure he got over it quickly but I guess I have to watch what I say....poor thing.

YIPPEE!

Ahhhhhhhh! For the first time in I don't know how long (maybe not in the whole 3 years that Matthew has been alive) I actually got to stay in bed until 8:45am this morning. Granted, he missed his nap yesterday (another story for another time) because of taking a 40 minute powernap in the car but he went to bed an hour early last night and slept until around 8:15 this morning. He just talked in his crib until I went to finally get him at almost 9am. That was something special.......I just had to share :)

I've thought about stopping the naps and just putting him to bed earlier (he currently goes to sleep at night at 9:30pm) but first, I'm pregnant and LOVE/NEED my 2 1/2 hour break in the afternoons and second, he has school and we have to be up by 7am either way. I think it's best we keep the naps for now.....there will be a time that all this nap stuff goes away so I think I need to enjoy it while I can!

BTW, I'm getting ready to get my Costa Rican driver's license finally for the first time in the almost 10 years I've been here (the US license is legal as an international license, but it's probably not good that I've been here so long and still don't have one). It's already been quite an adventure. If you've ever spent much time in CR, you will know that efficiency in government agencies especially is just ridiculous. I don't even know why I'm shocked. I know better. I know how it is here but yet, I'm still shocked at the miscommunication and inefficiency. I will tell the story soon. It's ongoing and hopefully will have a happy ending where I don't have to take the written and driving test again. I mean, taking it when you're 16 is one thing but I really don't want to have to do it again at age 37.

I hide, I hide!

A few days ago it was thundering really loud and it was almost time for Matthew to get up from his nap.  Right as I was about to go in his room, there was a HUGE clap of thunder and the power went out. As I walked into his room, I saw him face down in the corner of his bed holding his stuffed Bunny and Ducky but he was moving around a little. When he heard me come in, he looked up with a kinda shocked, blank look on his face. I said, "wow, sweetie that was LOUD thunder, wasn't it?" and he said, "Si Mama, I hide, I hide!" and then he proceeded to show me how he was hiding in the corner of his bed with his two stuffed animals. It was just so adorable. I just loved on him for a little bit so he would feel safer. I'm surprised he didn't call for me and he stayed quiet and was "hiding". My little sweet man.......

Btw, we have the Spanglish thing going on so he usually says a mix of Spanish and English. He might say "sit down....aquí Mama" or "Agua please". Sometimes the phrase is completely in Spanish and sometimes it´s in English. He seems to still count more and say the colors in English but now that he´s in pre-K, there´s a lot more Spanish coming out. The family here is adjusting accordingly and his grandmother here knows that after his nap when he says "Más juice" that he wants more juice (jugo), ha, ha ha! Even his 76 year old grandfather is counting to five in English now:) It's so amazing how he learns both languages and doesn't even know he's doing it. Sometimes he says moon and sometimes he says luna.  One time his grandfather (Tito) was pointing out the window telling him to look at the "luna" and Matthew kept yelling in his face "MOON, MOON, MOON" and of course Tito didn't have a clue what he was yelling. Finally I walked in and saw what had been going on for the last few minutes and explained to Tito that moon, was "luna" in English. Ahhhhhh, I'm sure we're going to have so many interesting situations like that with the two languages.

Starting Off

So, I've decided to try blogging. Not necessarily so tons of people can sit around and read what's going on with me and my two children (two, once the second one is born in December:) and husband but to document what's going on, when, where and with whom. Mainly for my two boys in the future but also for me to be able to read back on in the future when I feel like reminiscing. Since we live in Costa Rica, it will also be nice for my friends and family in the US to be able to read it and somewhat keep up with things too!

To start off, the title of this entire blog is "My Gringo Ticos" and for those of you that don't know, Gringo is what most Latin American countries use to refer to Americans or English speakers instead of just calling us Americans or North Americans. It actually comes from wartimes between the US and Mexico when they would say "Green Go" since our soldiers were wearing green uniforms and they wanted us to GO. The term ended up being Gringo. This is the story that I've heard but if someone knows a different one, I'd like to hear it! Tico is the name that Latin Americans call Costa Ricans and it originates from many years ago when Costa Ricans used to put an ending on a word which was "tico" instead of the typical "ito" on the end of it to mean "little". For examble, un momentito would be un momentico which means give me just a little moment or second. Instead of saying a baby is chiquitito (very small), it would be chiquitico. You still hear this around town and I've even said it a bit myself.  So to make a long story short (or longer), "My Gringo Ticos" would be "My American Costa Ricans" referring to my two boys who are both American and Costa Rican. Since this blog will be mostly about them, I thought it was appropriate.

Just a little update for those of you that already know, I'm 6 months pregnant with my second son and he's been moving all around lately. I'm starting to feel some of those jabbing feelings when an elbow or knee or something is trying to poke out or getting up close to my ribs. So far, I'm all belly (and not really all THAT big in that area) like last time and also like last time I'm feeling plenty of heartburn. Thank goodness for Zantac, that's all I can say. Besides that negative side effect, I feel pretty great except I'm definitely more tired than last time. I think it might have something to do with chasing around a toddler and plus, I'm not getting any younger, ha, ha, ha!

It just dawned on me the other day that this baby will be here in about 3 months....wow. Time is FLYING by. My first son Matthew will be 3 years old next month? How is that possible? Didn't I just bring him home from the hospital like YESTERDAY? Amazing. I was sorting through his clothes the other day to give some away since someone gave me a bunch more boy clothes and I remember it all like it was yestesrday. I remember him wearing this newborn stuff and who gave it to us. It just wasn't all that long ago, yet it was 3 years ago. I also can't believe that this will be my last time doing this pregnancy thing. Not that I'm dying for a bunch of kids (really two is enough and it's all I've ever wanted) but the whole experience is just so amazing. I really love it. Even the tough parts, labor and delivery, middle of the night feedings and all kinds of other "strange and uncomfortable" things that come with having a baby that I won't go into for the sake of the men in my family that may be reading this. So it's kinda sad (not boo-hoo, crying sad, but sad) that this chapter in my life is ending but I guess that's just part of life. I haven't had that many "chapters" in my life close where I said ok, I will definitely never be doing that again. Especially something that I loved.  It's a weird feeling.

Surprisingly, I still have stuff to say (this is something that I worried about that I wouldn't have much to say) but it's 3:15pm and my son will be up from his nap at 4:30pm and I should go rest up while I can. I'm really trying to rest when he naps to be able to keep up with him during his second part of the day. All too soon, he'll give up these afternoon naps and when this baby comes in December, Lord only knows when I'll get to rest again.