Mama

On July 29 I become a mama for the first time. We welcomed our little Finn into the world. I can't believe it's been almost 3 months already.

Throughout my pregnancy, I had been followed by a midwife and planned to give birth to Finn at the birthing centre. I went into the non-stress test appointment at 41+3 weeks and came home with a baby! Finn was doing well, but it seems that my amniotic fluid had either a) dried up or b) my water broke and I didn't know. I was induced that evening around 8 pm and Finn was born early the next morning at 4:36 am.

All in all the birth went well, though it was far from my hopes of a natural birth at the rhythm of my body working together with Finn. Pitocin is no joke. It's the synthetic hormone they give you to have contractions. It's a bitch actually. The epidural however, was glorious. So glorious that it made me dilate from 4-10 cm and Finn being born within an hour and a half of having it administered. I told Matthias, if I ever need to be induced again, sign me up for the epidural as soon as I can have it! I waited way too long and had too many threats of c-sections if my labour didn't progress (as if I had the ability to control it).

Newborn smiles captured!

The top two questions I get asked the most since being a mama:
1) Does he sleep well/through the night/long enough?
2) Was being a mama what you had expected it to be?

I miss this little face! Seriously, how cute is he?!

The answer to the first question is NO. Finn does not sleep through the night, under 3 months it's a bit unrealistic... but during the night he does sleep in 3.5-4 hour chunks. So Matthias and I are fairly well rested. He's slept well at night since birth.

The second question is a bit trickier to answer. Yes it is from the point of being tired and what "needs to be done" (i.e: diaper changes etc.). However I never thought of the emotional and "level of involvement" side of things through the newborn phase. I know how to interact with a baby who smiles back and reaches up for you to take him, but what about with a newborn? How does the role of being a mama get played out here? Well, in my experience, through snuggles and lots of 'em! We also were so blessed to have Finn smiling at us very early on (around 5 days old) and so that made it so much sweeter! To answer the question, no. So far, being a mama was not what I had expected it to be. It's so much better - it's sweet cuddles, smiles, unconditional love, tears (mine and his), fatigue, short showers, quick meals and long nights. But it's so beautiful and although I didn't expect it, I truly love it.

#Finninthefall

Final Instalment of the "Top 30 List"

So... it's been 6 months since I've turned 30 and thought it was time to update my list.
Unfortunately this is all this blog has been good for over the past years, but I hope that will change! 

1) Lie on my sand pile in Uruguay - best place on earth
2) Set foot on Europe, Africa & South Pacific (Australia & New Zealand)
3) See Barcelona
4) Watch a World Cup game in person -->> Done! Women's World Cup was in Montreal last year

 
5) Drive from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Victoria, BC -->> (although I didn't drive... I visited both Halifax and Victoria)
6) Drive the Ring of Kerry in Ireland
7) Decorate my OWN home --> Matthias and I bought our first home in May 2015!
8) Start & finish a book in the same year
9) Find that place in Panama that looks divine & go
10) Learn to salsa
11) Get my whole head professionally braided
12) Sleep under the stars on a remote beach
13) Celebrate New Year’s on a plane
14) Go on a cruise
15) Have an NBBI reunion with the people I miss!
16) Spend quality time on the beaches of Madagascar
17) Learn German -->> although not fluent yet, I'd say I'm not so bad!
18) Also, Portuguese & Italian (not coming along so much)
19) Get a great job at a good travel company
20) Spend a week or a few days somewhere with all my closest friends
21) Hold a NEWborn baby -->> Meet Finn! Our precious baby boy. Newborn snuggles are the best

 
22) Learn to take breath-taking pictures
23) Buy a sweet lens to take those pictures -->> bought a lens... it was stolen during a break-in :(
24) Sail in the Greek Isles
25) Be the maid of honor in a good friend’s wedding 
26) Visit my sponsor child in South Africa
27) Go for a two hour massage -->> done! it was amazing. How did this take so long to accomplish?!
28) Play with a small, domesticated white tiger
29) Skinny dip in the Caribbean Sea
30) Run through a sunflower field when it’s in bloom -->> did this a while ago, actually.

Conclusion: I accomplished 13 of 30 items on my list...
I hope to accomplish more in the years to come :) Until then, I'm going to snuggle my baby some more!

 

Update on the "Top 30" list!

I've been recently thinking about my "Top 30 Before 30" list that I wrote 2 1/2 years ago. Time flies! Wow. So I wanted to know what I had left to accomplish :)

1) Lie on my sand pile in Uruguay - best place on earth
2) Set foot on Europe, Africa & South Pacific (Australia & New Zealand)
Europe - Check! This is from Munich in 2012

3) See Barcelona
4) Watch a World Cup game in person
5) Drive from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Victoria, BC - and visit everywhere in between
6) Drive the Ring of Kerry in Ireland  --->> To be done in Summer 2013!
7) Decorate my OWN home
8) Start & finish a book in the same year
9) Find that place in Panama that looks divine & go
10) Learn to salsa
11) Get my whole head professionally braided
12) Sleep under the stars on a remote beach
13) Celebrate New Year’s on a plane
14) Go on a cruise --- Done! June 2012 with my mum

15) Have an NBBI reunion with the people I miss! --- Heidi & Tyler's wedding 

16) Spend quality time on the beaches of Madagascar
17) Learn German --- UPDATE: it's coming along!
18) Also, Portuguese & Italian (not coming along so much)
19) Get a great job at a good travel company --- UPDATE: Product Assistant at Air Canada Vacations!
20) Spend a week or a few days somewhere with all my closest friends
21) Hold a NEWborn baby
22) Learn to take breath-taking pictures
23) Buy a sweet lens to take those pictures
24) Sail in the Greek Isles --- Done! This is on the cruise... view of Santorini

25) Be the maid of honor in a good friend’s wedding --- May 2011! Now they're having a baby! Perhaps this is the newborn higher up on the list?! :):)

26) Visit my sponsor child in South Africa
27) Go for a two hour massage
28) Play with a small, domesticated white tiger
29) Skinny dip in the Caribbean Sea
30) Run through a sunflower field when it’s in bloom
31) Shave my head... this is an extra one because I’ve kinda always wanted to see what it felt like but will never do it!

Okay so I have 6 accomplished and two on the way! I think I should tackle this two hour massage idea soon.... Perhaps after we move this summer? 
And I'm not going to Brazil 2014 so therefore one item will be un-accomplished :( Boo.

But 6 is not terrible! :)

(Almost) 6 Months of Wedded Bliss

Six months after marrying the man of my dreams, I've learned a lot about myself and also about him. In just a few months, we've traveled around and seen the fish in the Grenadines and the Alps from the top of a steeple in Munich. We've laughed uncontrollably and cried. Gotten mad at eachother and realized just how much in love we are. We're learning to live life together and through the help of the Lord we're going to live it to the fullest!

Evening wedding shots :)

Setting recently hatched sea turtles free on our honeymoon... a highlight in my life for sure.

Matthias is a goof - he doesn't always like to show it, but this is a glimpse of what I get to love more and more everyday.

Taking a walk through the "central park" of Munich

The view from the tallest point of Munich. If you squint, you can see the Alps.

 

Our first Christmas together! (The other two years we were apart, 

but ensemble for New Year's :))  

 

A very cold winter walk through Parc Maisonneuve - 
and a slightly less photogenic picture of us. 

Christmasy

Christmas has always been a quiet occasion in my immediate family. I meet with my larger fantastic family and I spend some quality time with my parents, enjoying the cozy fire place and free wine ;)

 

 

 

 

This is the first year that Matthias and I spend Christmas together and we have a couple small decorations (like our Christmas plant... we didn't get a tree this year) and thanks to Songza have an unlimited playlist happening in the background. 

Merry Christmas! Joyeuses Fêtes! Frohe Wienachten! Feliz Navidad!

 (A nice gift sent from Matthias's parents... A tradition advent wreath :))

Gift #22

Homemade chocolate on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

Gift #21

Small coffee shops where you can nestle in with a cup of good coffee (or hot chocolate if you're like me and don't like coffee but are married to someone who loves coffee).