One!

Hope everyone's have a good week so far. We're having a great time with my mom and step-dad out here visiting. It's been nice for me to have a little break from the little man; for all you mom's out there, you know what a treat it is to run to the grocery store- kid free. 

Our little peanut turned 1 at the end of February and while we decided not to have a big party, we definitely did some celebrating. Special pancakes were made for breakfast, a trip to the wildlife park to pet some kangaroos in the afternoon and we ended the day with cake and presents. My brother and sister-in-law were here visiting so the wildlife park was a fun thing to do with them too. 

Amazing how fast a year goes!

I could just squeeze him!

Loving his birthday pancakes. I was so excited he kept his "1" hat I made him, on his head!

Such a cute face but I'm a little embarrassed about this cake. That green icing looks toxic. I'm going to take the blame for that one :)

... but Decker doesn't seem to care. He loved his first taste of birthday cake.

Bondi Coastal Walk. Check out the color of that water!!!

Bondi Icebergs. Who wants to have a pool party? 

Bondi's Campbell Parade

Taking the train after a long day at the beach.

Exploring the art galleries in Paddington with Kandyce

Paddington ally in between terrace homes.

A beach found at the Royal National Park

Decker's Birthday Trip to Symbio Wildlife Park. You can't see it, but there is a Joey in the Mama's pouch!

Reflections

I am a horrible blogger. There I said it. Apparently I don't know what consistency means. But it's my blog and I can write when I want? OK moving on...

Decker at 11-months

After putting little Decker to bed tonight I jumped onto Facebook and Twitter (yeah, so that happened today. I am now on Twitter! Can someone please tell me what this nonsense is all about? I think I need to watch a YouTube tutorial on how to operate this site and why.), to catch up on all the important news from around the world. While on FB, I saw a post from one of our old neighbors come up on my newsfeed; I clicked on her profile and just scrolled through some of her pictures and thought about how I met her when she was just a newborn and now she is a stunning, young lady. My sister and I used to babysit for this tiny baby and her older sister; both girls are now in college. It just got me thinking about how time really does fly!

Decker will be turning ONE (*tear*) at the end of this month and I know all mothers probably say this, but- I can't believe how quickly a year went! Most likely it was because I was in a tired haze from the lack of sleep I got in the first 5-months due to being a new parent with a baby that didn't sleep through the night right away. But I got to thinking about how our lives have changed and how Decker has taught me so much about myself and I guess, about life.

Looking back at how I was as a person before Decker, I sort of feel like I was this selfish, impatient person rushing around speeding through events to make life "happen". This little boy is a complete blessing (I think this word is so annoying thanks to everyones overuse of #blessed hashtags on Facebook and Instagram... isn't there another word we can use? For this posts purpose, no). But seriously, Decker has made me slow down, enjoy the simple things about growing, love and life. He's taught me to be SO patient and to let him be "little". It has been so amazing watching this tiny, helpless baby grow from a dependant little peanut to a very busy toddler.


He's also allowed us to understand what's it's like to run off of little sleep.

But going back to my old neighbor, when I was thinking back to when her mom brought her home from the hospital as a newborn, to me-I can remember it clearly and it seems like it wasn't that long ago. I mean, I was in Junior High School so it was a long time ago but you know what I mean.  Then I thought about how Decker's 1st year flew by. And it got me thinking how I only have 18 more times to celebrate another year with him under my roof. That is assuming he goes away to college after high school and that he doesn't hate his parents and want to get emancipated at 15.

Eighteen! That's not a lot of time. Life is crazy. And by crazy, I mean it goes by too fast.

Kevin's Grandpa Frank turns 99 years old this year. I bet if you asked him about his life he would tell you it went by so fast.

In closing, I feel so lucky to be a stay at home mom to this little boy. The time I get with him is irreplaceable. Don't get me wrong, there are days where I want to run away buuuutttt... I'm so grateful for what I have and the opportunities I've had thus far with my life and my family.

Cronulla Beach, NSW, Australia

Don't forget to slow down once in a while, look around you and find the simple beauty in the things right in front of your face. You don't have to be living on the beach or in a high-rise apartment with an amazing view, even though that does help a little. :) Enjoy the little things because before we know it, we will be 99 looking back saying, "my life went by way too quick."

Kisses!

Cheeky little monkey

1 Year Anniversary living in Australia

I should have written this post back in August but time slipped away from me, again! Two weeks ago we moved and then Kevin had to take a business trip overseas so I've had my hands full. Anyway, I thought I would do a 1-year anniversary post on living in Sydney and write about the pros and cons living here and overseas in general.

With my loves at Opera Bar, August 2013

Living in another country definitely has it's challenges / cons.

1.) Even though everyone speaks English, there are some language barriers and new words we've had to learn and incorporate into our vocabulary. We've noticed there is a lot of slang and the locals add an "o",  "ie" or "y" at the end of a lot of words. Most of the words you can figure out but some make no sense to me . It's funny and charming but it's a little annoying too.  But that's the Ozzie's thing, I guess.

For example:

Lift = Elevator                                                  
Ambo = Ambulance
Pram = Stroller                                                  
Arvo = Afternoon (I have NO idea how this translates)
Bin = Garbage Can                                          
Mozzy = Mosquito
Garbage = Rubbish                                          
Footy = Rugby
Nappy = Diaper                                                
Swimming costume or Togs = Bathing buit
Coriander = Cilantro                                        
Doco = A documentary film
Chips = French Fries                                        
Tradie  = A Tradesman or blue-collar worker
Bubbles = Sparkling wine                                
Esky = Cooler (In NZ, they call this a 'Chilly Bin')
Flat = Apartment                                              
Ice Block = Popsicle
Rashi = Rash guard                              
Woop Woop = A small town; out in the boonies
Thong = Flip Flop sandals                                
Whinging (Kevin's favorite) = Whining or complaining


2.) Living away from family and friends. This one is really hard for me, especially now that Decker is here. God Bless the inventors of Skype, Viber, FaceTime and iMessage. Without these advancements in technology I would be lost. End of story.

3.) Trying to find the comforts and conveniences of home from food to Target & Nordstrom. It's always fun to discover little pieces of America while overseas. It was an exciting day when we found Costco and Ikea, ha! It sounds a little materialistic but when you are living so far away, sometimes it's the little things that can make your day. I feel like Australia is more Americanized than New Zealand was but it's still a challenge not having a 'one stop shop' like Target. I miss you Target, more than you know! BTW, there is a Target here but it's not the same-different quality and different brands. They try to make it similar but it's so bootleg it's not even funny.

4.) Driving here sucks! Uggghhhh. We have an SUV or Ute (as they call it here. Another slang word I'm guessing is short for Utility Vehicle?). There are not any major freeways like the 405 or the 5 that you can travel long distances at a fast speed. All vehicles, including huge semi's (there's another word for these too but I can't remember it right now) have to travel through the suburbs to get around. Traffic is horrendous all the time. ESPECIALLY on the weekends. Because businesses here close down at 5pm Monday-Friday, people that work have to run all their errands on the weekends which is major cause for a cluster f*$k on the roads.
The roads are also very, very narrow. Since I drive a bigger car, I feel like I'm going to hit either the side rails or another car. I've already been in one accident here and I'd rather not relive that experience. Thank you very much.

5.) It is so flippin expensive here. I keep telling myself that I really need to get over this one but it's so hard. Especially since we are American and we know the cost of these things in our home country. Stuff is double, sometimes triple the cost in Australia. I rarely go shopping here, definitely not for cosmetics. Poor Kevin always gets a shopping list from me when he goes to the US for work.  Ever since we've lived in NZ, I told myself that I was going to start a business of importing cosmetics and iPhones from the US and sell them back to people here (for a higher cost than what you buy it for in America, but WAY cheaper than what they sell for here in Australia). Then I got reading into all the taxes and other BS you have to go through. Black market business anyone? No thanks.
Rent is another huge cost that makes me sick. I'm not even going to disclose what our rent cost is per week (you pay by the week vs per month). You would keel over and vomit as well. I know what mortgages and rents are in the US and comparing it to OZ,  it's like the cosmetic prices here- double and triple the cost.
I miss the American-style houses- spacious and convenient. Thankfully our new place is more spacious than our old place but we had to move 45-minutes away from the city to get it. But the beach! The Beach! THE BEACH! We are closer to it now. A 7-minute drive to be exact. And it's a beautiful beach too with tons of diving and snorkeling spots too.

On the flip side... here are the Pros.

1.) Everyone for the most part is friendly. It's not "American friendly" but people aren't going to snub you if you walk up to them off the street and ask for directions.

2.) It's beautiful here and the weather is great. In Sydney, the weather is very mild. It's spring time right now and I can't count the days that it's been in the 80's which is my ideal temperature to live in. I'm not a big fan of rain, grey skies or cold weather . I love that I can spend a lot of outdoor time with Decker whether it's laying a blanket out in the front yard or going to the beach for a long walk. Being a stay at home mom, it's important to me that I get out of the house so having gorgeous weather to get out in is a bonus.

3.) Traveling around this country is fairly easy. Within the city, there is public transportation; busses and trains. It's easy to get a taxi and there are a few lower cost airlines that will fly you around the country with good timetables.

4.) Australia is a great place to have a baby and to raise your kids. The whole country is very kid and family friendly.
Things that I have noticed in Decker's 6-months of life: Almost every public place I go, there are baby changing tables in the bathrooms and all the malls and shopping centers have a really nice parents room complete with private feeding stalls, microwaves to heat up food and seating.
There are activities galore for kids and a lot of mother's groups, play groups and support groups for babies and parents.
Even though we aren't eligible for the public healthcare here, we do have private healthcare and there are a lot of great doctors available for us to see. There are also a lot of free telephone hotlines available for us to use if we have questions. The hotline option sounds weird and in the past was a sketchy concept designated for dating but they are staffed by qualified nurses and sometimes doctors for advice. Believe me, when you have a newborn screaming in the middle of the night and you can't call your mother, you are grateful these hotlines exist!

5.) The experience of living in another country. We're not sure how long we're going to be living here, my guess is a few more years but only time (or Kevin's company) will tell :)
Seriously, how many people get to do this? I'm excited to show Decker all the adventures he went on, that he won't remember. I take a TON of pictures that I will show him when he's older. Thank you Apple TimeCapsule for backing up my habit.

Aside from all the challenges that living so far away brings us, we do have some great days here. It's made us all stronger as a family and as individuals. K and I are looking forward to more trips and traveling we want to do while we are living in this part of the world.

City2Surf 2013

The City2Surf 14k is the largest race in the world and with 85,000 people who registered, we were a part of it. 7 months ago, I signed myself up when I was still pregnant as motivation to get myself back in shape, post pregnancy, but didn't put much thought into the training part of the race. As the days before the race grew fewer, I realized I hadn't logged more than 3 miles. Eeeek! This was our first 14k so I decided to give myself a goal: Just finish and really, really, really give a good effort to run the whole course.

The morning of the race we woke up very early and headed into the city and found that everything from public transportation to the locations of the starting lines, was very organized considering how many people were participating.

As the gun went off to signal our start, it took us 20 minutes to actually get to a point to where we could start running. Once we turned the corner into Kings Cross, what a spectacular sight it was to be up on a little bit of a hill and look down at the throngs of people in front of us running the same race. Good thing I'm not claustrophobic!

Finally starting to run as we got into Kings Cross. You can see the famous Coca Cola sign in the distance. 

The energy throughout the whole race was great-it seemed more like a fun run with some people dressed up in costumes. Once the official results came back, I found that the top finishers ran the whole thing in under 45 minutes. Not so much of a 'fun run' for some.  I think my favorite part was running towards the finish at Bondi Beach. Not only because we were almost done but because it was such a beautiful day and we got a pretty view of the ocean in the last few kilometers.

The race was so much fun and I'm so glad we participated. AND,  K and I ran together the whole way and finished. So there- we met our goals! :) Sign us up for next year!

USA trip, 5-month update and goodbye to the binky!

Hello!

I've been missing.

From this blog, that is. But we're back...! From our trip to the US. What an amazing trip we had catching up, relaxing and having some Q.T. with friends and family. I'm so thankful for the time we got to spend on our trip and having our families bond with and watch Decker grow right before our eyes. As I was uploading the 982 pictures I took while I was gone, I was comparing the pictures from the beginning of the trip to the pictures at the very end and I feel like he changed a lot. I also saw my last post was his 3-month 'chair shot' and realized how bad I am at keeping this blog up to date.

But we're back in Australia and it's supposed to be the middle of winter here but the skies have been clear and the sun has been shining. If this is winter, I'll take it! But nothing beats the summertime weather we had while in California and Washington. Spectacular.

Decker is now 1-week into his 5th month of life. I can't believe he'll be 6-months old at the end of August! I'm starting to put together his baby book and I got a little teary eyed when I was going through his newborn photos. When I was in that moment of trying to figure out what to do with this new little being in our lives (who am I kidding... we're still trying to figure this all out!), I sometimes felt like the challenging moments of being a new mom were never going to end. But like all my mommy friends told me, the different stages pass and time flies. 

Our little mister is such a joy to us and brings smiles to our faces everyday. I'm definitely enjoying this precious little baby and all the special moments I get to have with him.  He's still a laid back little guy. He's been rolling around from back to stomach and while we were away, Lolo (Grandma) gave him his first taste of rice cereal! I decided to take up the 'hobby' of making baby food and so far he loves: Sweet potatoes, pears, apples and carrots (mixed in with a fruit). The green beans I puréed? Not so much. We'll try again later. 

Decker still wasn't sleeping through the night or taking naps very well and as a stay at home mom, it can be SO frustrating because I was starting to feel like I wasn't getting anything done. He would catnap for 40 minutes, be awake for 1-hour and then nap for 40 minutes again. All. Day. Long. He was also waking up multiple times in the night.  I've heard that infant boys tend to not sleep as well as girls do so I was sort of just dealing with it. 

We were visiting with some friends over the weekend, they were in the midst of weaning their 9-month old son off of his pacifier, 'the binky'. I then started reading online about infant self-settling and how important it is to get rid of 'the binky'. So many people were saying how their child would wake up a lot in the middle of the night crying because they were searching for it because it had fallen out of their mouth when they were sleeping. A lightbulb went off in our heads and we figured that must be the reason and made our decision then and there to get rid of the damn thing. The next day it was game on. The screaming that ensued for 45 minutes was heartbreaking but he's a smart little boy. He, for the first time, slept through the night!!!! WE WIN! 

It's amazing how this little piece of plastic and rubber could be so addicting to these little ones. 

Today is day 2 and Mister D has gone down for all naps (and took legit naps for 1.5 hours each time) and to bed again with no tears. I love him and binky's suck. I have kept a couple for a 'just in case' situation but as far as I am concerned they are gone. 

Well, that's all for now. Enjoy a few of the recent pictures of Decker F.N King. And oh ya, we recently said Decker's name out loud abbreviating the two middle names...oops! Oh well, could be pretty badass if he becomes an athlete or something similar when he gets older! Ha! 

A winter day at Maroubra Beach

It's always a good morning when you wake up to this sweet face!

Afternoons with Decker {2-months}

Since Lil' D is going to be 3-months old this week, I thought I would post a few fav's from this past month. He is such a little sweetheart and a lot of fun. I can't wait for him to start laughing... I feel like any day it's going to happen. Now to only get him to sleep longer at night...

Play date on Jamie's rooftop deck, Coogee Beach, NSW, Australia
April 2013

All snuggled up to Daddy

Hyams Beach
"The Whitest Sand in the World" (according to the Guiness Book of World Records)

The many faces of Decker.
I love this face!!!

Out on an evening walk with Decker...
Sunset at Sydney Park (park across the street from our place)
April 2013

Our new arrival

Born February 28th

Isn't he sweet? These pictures were taken when Decker was about 8-days old and he has already grown so much since then. Today, he is 7-weeks old. We get a lot of people asking about his name and how we chose it. It seems like when we told our friends from the US what his first name is, the typical response was "cool!" or "I love it!". The typical response from the Australian folks is: "Hmmmm. That's different." It makes us laugh. It is different and unique and that's one of the reasons why we chose his name. His middle names are after Kevin's Grandfather and my Grandfather. So now you know.  :)

I've been so bad about keeping up with this blog but mommy-duty calls. This is a full-time gig! No one could ever prepare me for how tired we would be and the days seem to run into each other. I'll be looking forward to the days that this little one sleeps through the night. He just started smiling last week so those little milestones make us smile.

This little boy is so sweet and he has us wrapped around his little fingers; that's for sure! He's smart, attentive, alert and hopefully adventurous because we've got some fun plans coming up for the three of us: A trip to the Great Barrier Reef in a couple weeks, a trip to the US in June and many fun Australian adventures in between!