Good-Bye Fede

The Spanish countryside

Last Saturday we took a little trip with our friend Fede to his parent's chalet. Here, almost everyone lives in apartments and if you live in a house as we think of a house in the US, it's called a chalet. Some Madrileños have places in the countryside as a retreat from the busy city life. It was a great day to get out of the city, and enjoy a relaxing day with Fede and his parents.



Fede Sr. The grilling master. He's also known as Renae's Abuelo Fede.



Grilled meat . . . Does it get any better?



Upclose and personal with Renae . . .

She really enjoyed all the space to run and play. And be goofy of course.

And be sweet too . . .

Jesse and Fede headed to the community center for a game of Spanish pool.

Renae with her flower from Tío Fede

This week we also had to say good-bye to Fede. He moved to London to get a job and learn English. We had the great priviledge of taking him to the airport. He was a little nervous (obviously) as he was essentially moving to a new country with a new language, and no place to live or work yet. I would be nervous too!

Renae enjoyed playing with his suitcase. Seriously, anything on wheels . . .

Waiting in line can get boring . . .

And the last picture, right before he went through security (and before I started crying.)

Ok, one more hug . . .

We will miss Fede lots and lots but he hopes to come back at least once or twice before we leave beginning of next year. Thank goodness we'll get to see him!!

Here's One Way to Spend a Fall Night . . .

I'm not sure if I can believe it quite yet, but it appears summer may finally be over here in central Spain. This weekend saw temperatures in the 90's but Monday morning it seemed we'd turned a new leaf. Literally. The weather had cooled to the 70's and by the time Jesse's evening soccer game rolled around, it was cool enough for long sleeves and pants!

Jesse plays soccer once a week and I've always wanted to go watch. I decided this would be a good time as going out at night with a 2 year old and a newborn sounds about appealing as giving birth . . .


Can you see Jesse through the blurry shot? He's right in the middle in the red jersey.



Watch that fast foot action . . . that foot scored 2 goals by the way.
(And the other foot had an ankle that rolled, unfortunately.)



Renae wanted to play in the park and someone had to watch her.



Ready to head down the slide!

"Go Daddy!!!"

Go Iowa State!!

Reger family, you better cheer loud today!!! Wish we could be there!!! Renae is now walking around the house saying "Go sallcones" which is her version of "Go Cyclones." Papa, Tarica, Aunt Becky R, Trey . . . don't even bother commenting today. ;)

P.S There is another short video of Renae on Facebook.

A Little Bit of This . . . A Little Bit of That . . .

A group of ladies were visiting from the states and volunteered to watch Renae this past week. Of course, we were thrilled to get a night on the town with free baby-sitters! One thing that we've really, I mean really missed, is having Grandparents in town to watch Renae.


Look familiar?

So once instructions had been given, Jesse and I hopped on a bus and headed into town with no stroller, sippy cups or wipes. I would say we went kidless, but I am still carrying around 1 kid. He's just super easy to take anywhere.

Attempt at a long arm shot.

Speaking of being pregnant . . . it's worth it! We decided to try Madrid's Hard Rock Cafe which is located in the Plaza de Colon. Although temperatures are still pretty warm during the day, the evenings are gorgeous and when we saw the restaurant had an outdoor eating area, we jumped at the chance to enjoy a date night out in the fresh air. However, it looked like all the tables were full and there was already a waiting list. So we gave up on the idea of sitting outside and told the hostess we needed a table for 2. He then asked if we wanted to eat inside or out. We said we'd love to eat outside, but was there any available tables? He told me that because I'm pregnant, I get priority seating and as soon as a table is available where I want to sit we'd get a page! No being put at the bottom of the list and waiting forever for the perfect date atmosphere. I could get used to this kind of treatment.

Long arm shot attempt #2. (The Hard Rock sign can just barely be seen above Jesse's head.)

The food hit the spot and the atmosphere of Hard Rock Cafe was just what we enjoyed. And we especially enjoyed seeing a couple out with twin 1 year olds who were screaming a good part of their parents meal. We felt bad for them, but glad for us that we were (almost) childless that night.


Ripping it open small piece by small piece.

Moving on . . . Renae's Aunt, Uncle and cousins sent her a birthday present! There were a few gifts for her little brother too and we enjoyed opening a package from family.

Swimming butterflies

"Thanks Aunt Britt and family! I love these butterflies and can't wait to use them in water!! Mommy also says she loves the pacifiers you sent for my brother because those are the kind she was wanting to get!!"

This is just a random video from a few weeks ago. Renae and I had to meet Jesse in town for something and while we waited, Renae ate her lunch from home and half of my smoothie. What a mootcher.

Renae's Ramblings: So What's With Mom's Belly?

I've got something I need to get off my chest. Please keep this on the downlow . . .



Ok, I don't mean to be rude here, but have you seen my Mom lately? She's really packing on the pounds! I noticed that when we went to Iowa she was starting to look a little "gorda." I thought nothing of it seeing as how we had just been in the land of plenty. I for one was stuffed full of all kinds of pre-packaged goodies. However, over the past few months I've seen her belly grow and grow and she doesn't seem the least bit concerened! What is the deal?? I have a few theories as to what is going on here:



Theory #1: While in Iowa, some native species took up residence in her tummy and has continued to grow. I suspect it came from one of the various restaurants we visited. To me, some of the food looked quite weird so I'm not sure I would have been able to distinguish between food and a live organism of some sort. Plus, all of the food servings I saw in the US were much larger compared to here so that could explain why the belly has become so big. The only thing I can't figure out with this theory is how big the species will get and if it will come out. I'm taking diligent notes. I'll let you know what I found out.




Theory #2: I know my Mom really likes to eat. Could it be true that she is really just becoming . . . "one of those?" I really hope not. Because so far, I'm not really benefiting from the excess food if that is the case. She tends to hoard the good stuff (ie: stuff from the states) to herself.




Theory #3: It has something to do with Daddy. This is the theory I'm most confident in. You see, Daddy doesn't seem to mind Mom's growing belly. Sometimes I even see him with his hand on it like he's proud or something. So it makes me wonder if there is an "It" in there, and if Daddy somehow put that "It" in there. Speaking of "It," I'm wondering if "It" might be what my Mom keeps referring to as Brother. She'll say to me, "Come say hi to Brother, Renae! Come kiss Brother!" I'm a pretty obedient child so I usually oblige. (Plus I'm really fascinated with belly buttons.)

Anyways, Mom and Dad say that "Brother" is in my Mom's tummy and I guess only time will tell if "Brother" is something that hitched a ride from the States, a name Mommy's given her obsession with chocolate, or indeed, some sort of human being! Renae the investigator will keep you updated!

A "You-Know-What" Hider

This is my new "must-have"

When I was pregnant with Renae, a teacher at school who'd recently given birth showed me a "Hooter Hider." She told me how wonderful it was, and highly recommended I get one for myself. There is boning in the very top part so the Mom can look down and see how the baby is eating, without having to reveal herself. I remember thinking they were nice, convenient and cute, but not necessary. Then, when I had Renae and began nursing, I stole the idea from my friend Kari of tucking the corner of a blanket in a place where it would stay. I thought it worked pretty well. But then Renae got bigger, and I didn't really like exposing the brassiere strap, and she also began to get fiesty with her legs and would sometimes kick the blanket hard enough to pull it out. By the time I was done nursing around 8 months, I decided I should have started out with an adorable You-know-what hider. This time is different.

So I asked my sister-in-law Julie to make me one and she graciously said yes!!! Because it's labor day weekend (who knew?) my family in Iowa is all together and the ladies went shopping and looked for fabric for me. Julie sent me about 5 pictures of fabric to choose from and since she knows me well, it was very hard to choose! I ended up choosing the fabric below and I can't wait until my Mom arrives with the finished product. Of course, I just can't wait until my Mom arrives, period.

Can't wait to see it completed!

This time I'll be a much hipper nursing Mom. Because THAT is what's important, right? ;) Oh the things that make me happy! THANK YOU JULIE!!

Giving Birth in Spain: Preparing for Labor

Baby boy Masson . . . almost 35 weeks

Seeing as how I have about 5 weeks left until my due date, I've been trying to learn as much as possible about what I need to know about labor, and hospital procedures here in Spain. Of course, I remember lots of things from Renae's labor, but I still find myself reviewing the chapter on Labor in "What to Expect When You're Expecting." So besides reviewing the labor process in English, I'm now desperately trying to learn a whole new set of vocabulary words!!! I really don't want to depend on flash cards in the middle of a contraction.

Here is a shortened list of basic vocabulary I've had to learn:

• To give birth- dar a luz-literally to give light, or to bring to light
• Pregnancy-el embarazo
• Epidural-epidural (pronounced differently)
• To push-empujar (empuja is what they'll be telling me to do)
• Labor-el parto
• Midwife-la matrona
• To breastfeed-dar al pecho
• Blood/lab work-análisis

On the bus to get my 3rd trimester análisis done

One of the things I've had to do in preparation for labor is have 3 different sets of labwork done. Fortunately, my clinic has a lab in the same building. Unfortunately, I still have to go get lab work done on a separate day. At an appointment, the doctor will give me a prescription to have blood drawn for specific tests. I return to the clinic on a different day with a urine sample and the prescription. In the states, you have to bring a urine sample to each appointment and they provide the cup. Here, you go to a pharmacy and buy a urine sample cup for about 50 cents. All of the results for these different labs can be picked up on a different date and I must take them with me to my appointments. I also am responsible for bringing all ultrasound and lab results with me to the hopsital on the day I give birth. They have record of them too, but I'm supposed to bring my results.



I stole a shot of the waiting room while waiting for blood to be drawn.

Besides my lab results, I also have to bring the following to the hospital:
For the baby: short and long sleeve onsies, footy pajamas, a hat, socks, diapers (they are provided the first day, but the rest of the days I'm in the hospital we provide the diapers), carseat.

For the mother: Shirts that open in the front, socks, breastfeeding "accesories", toiletries, and some other blog unmentionables. (Ladies, just think of all the "stuff" they provide for you in the hospital that you're embarassed to even have to use. THAT is what I need to go buy at a store.)

My new reading material-thanks Beatriz!

My good friend Beatriz has been a Godsend. I met her in the park last month and we've been hanging out ever since. Turns out, she still has a lot of stuff from when she was pregnant with her son and she's loaning me all kinds of magazines, books etc to get ready for labor. One of the books is called "Advice from your Midwife." I've found it a great little book for learning all the vocabulary I'll be hearing (and saying??) during labor. By the way, when you give birth in Spain, you are usually attended by a midwife, a nurse (or two) and then the doctor who will deliver the baby. You are also assigned a nurse for your baby once they are born. I'm gathering that the midwives here are more like labor and delivery nurses in the states. The midwife is with you for most of the time.

I'm going to start making my list of things to buy for the hospital stay as well as typing up a "How to take care of Renae" for whoever ends up watching her. (Hopefully the timing will work out great and my Mom will be here to watch Renae!) There is a lot yet to do in preparation for birthing this baby but I've still got about 5 weeks (maybe less??). Renae's room has been rearranged, and Baby Boy Masson's clothes and other necesities have been moved in. I even have his initials on the wall. (Sorry, I won't be posting a picture of that.) The countdown has begun!

The Birthday Bash!

Renae's 2nd Birthday has come and gone already! I have learned that I thoroughly enjoy planning parties. So the fact that next year I'll have TWO kid's birthday parties to plan makes me very happy! I love picking a theme, making decorations, making the cake, and I enjoy the chaos that comes from a party. We had a great time!


Renae with her 2 favorite parents.

The theme for Renae's birthday was a Purse Party. She has at least 4 different purses and will sometimes wear them simultaneously around the house. When we go out, she'll often ask to bring one of hers. So I decided a purse cake was in order and then went crazy with the theme. I'll provide quick "how I did it" in case you want to do a purse party for a little girl in your life.

I can't believe I gave birth to her just 2 years ago!

We decided to have her party in the park this year. There is a large grassy park about 10 minutes away from us, by car. We invited all Spanish speaking friends. All in all I think there were only 4 Americans, and the rest were Spanish.


The purse cake!

I made a cupcake or pullapart cake since I knew we'd be in a park. This made serving a piece of cake (no pun intended . . .) as I didn't need to cut the cake, or forks to eat it with. I just pulled a cupcake off and gave them a napkin. Genius. (P.S. I found a great easy recipe for homemade fondant here. It. Is. So. Easy. I wish I had known before how easy it was to make your own fondant! )

Renae's individual fondant covered cake is at the top.

For crafts, the kids could decorate their own "purses."

This was also an easy thing to do. I found a template online for a purse and printed it off. Then I traced the template on colored cardstock, cut them out and made handles out of plastic string. The kids colored and placed stickers on their purses.

The purse piñata!

Another easy craft. I blew up one big balloon, and then 2 small ones. The small ones were taped to the biggest part of the larger balloon. I very carefully laid the paper-mache strips in all directions over the base to keep the balloons in the right shape. When it was dry (about a day later), I cut fringes into strips of pink and purple tissue paper, then layered them onto the piñata, starting at the base. For this I used a glue stick. I made the "buckle" out of rolled up tissue paper. The handle is wire covered in tissue paper as well.

Renae's only girl friend, Irene taking a turn.

Finally the kids could collect their candy!

This is where the paper purses came in handy. Each child had a "purse" to place their bounty from the piñata.

"Mommy, what do I do with all this candy?"

Renae seemed more interested in getting her candy open than she was in gathering more for the purse. (I think she needs lessons from her Uncle Trey on what to do after a piñata has been busted open . . .)

Blowing out her candle!

Renae only nibbled at her personal cake. Oh well.

The guests around the food table. Best place to be!

By the way, the purse theme stopped at the food. I picked typical Spanish appetizer-type food: olives, cheese, chorizo, crackers, and potato chips.

Opening a gift from Irene!

Opening her gift from Tio Fede. I don't have any pictures of him but he was there!

Jaime is Renae's newest friend from the park.

I met his mom at the park just a few weeks ago and we hit it off right away! She is a flight attendant and speaks great English. So when she discovered I spoke English we found that we are a good match as we both need someone to practice the language with. She's even coming with me to my next doctor's appointment! (P.S. Fede is in the corner of this photo . . .)

The little kids enjoyed playing with bubbles towards the end of the night.

Irene, Jaime and Renae (aka Esther in Spanish)

She's got cute friends, no?

And of course, Renae wanted to play a little soccer with her Daddy.

We had a great time, Renae was full of sugar and dead tired by the time bedtime rolled around. Next year will be the first time she has a birthday party in English!

Our Baby Girl is 2!

How does the time go so fast?? Jesse and I were reminiscing today about the day Renae was born. After a long and hard labor Renae finally entered this world and the doctor announced, "It's a girl!" For about the next 3-4 days Jesse and I became experts at faking emotions we knew we should have. We wanted to be surprised so we didn't find out the sex of the baby. However . . . we also didn't realize just how much we wanted a boy until we were told we'd had a girl. So we half-heartedly said, "Ahh . . . yay . . ." And even as I held her for the first time, I remember looked at her and thinking, "Ok . . . so you're my daughter. That's weird. I guess we'll figure this out later." At one point, the emotions were so bad that I cried to my dear sister-in-law, "Julie I just want them to put her back in, I want her to come out via c-section, and I want her to come out as a boy!!" Yeah. It was a proud Mommy moment.

Needless to say . . . I finally truly stepped into my identity as a Mother about a year and a half into Renae's life and of course, we wouldn't trade Renae for a million boys. I love being a Mom to Renae. She is a fun little girl and we feel so blessed to have a healthy, happy and cute little girl. She will be a great big sister for her little brother!! Happy Birthday Baby Girl!


A pancake in the shape of a 2 (short of . . .)



She actually blew out the candle on her own!



And this is how I found Renae yesterday . . . .



I'm going to have to be careful she doesn't do that when her brother gets here . . .