I'm Going to Miss My Doggie

I would insert a pic of my dog here, but I drained the battery on my camera and haven't charged it in weeks. Hence the lack of photos and posts recently.

Anyway, we are leaving in two weeks for Arizona! And all I can think of is that I'll miss my little doggie. He is so cute and I love holding him, playing with him and kissing him. I guess that will all have to change when this baby comes along anyway ... The cat I won't miss so much, and she won't miss me.

Wait, did I say we are leaving in two weeks for Arizona?? As in, we are leaving when I am 7 1/2 months pregnant? That's right. And no, we're not coming back empty-handed :) We are going to stay there for three months (!!!) so our little bundle of joy will be born there.

I know, I know, it would've been a cool story to say she was born in Argentina, but she wouldn't be able to have dual citizenship anyway because of the type of visa we have.

So to Arizona we go, and I couldn't be more excited. We'll be in Mesa, so if you are anywhere in a multi-state radius -- or heck, anywhere on the continent -- and want to visit, PLEASE DO!!!!!!!!

I will miss Argentina, but it will be cool to be back in the States and to lounge by a pool all day every day ;) Well, for the first few weeks at least. Then there's that whole giving birth thing and grueling parents-of-a-newborn schedule. Hm.

New Year?

With it being summer here, I feel disconnected from the idea that it is indeed a NEW YEAR.

I have made no resolutions and have not filed anything away with the label "2009."

I pretty much have just had my eyes on March 21 (due date). That is when the NEW YEAR will begin for me. The NEW LIFE. My new life; her new life -- our new life as a family. Scariness.

We went to the doctor for another checkup today, and he said she is now facing with her head down, which is a good position to be in. We got another ultrasound. They are ultrasound happy in this country; I have had too many to count. OK, let me actually count -- I have had nine. And mine is a "normal" pregnancy! They do one at every Dr.'s visit, and I "interviewed" several doctors at the beginning, so each one wanted to give me one. They love it. We got a DVD recording of the last one.

In today's ultrasound we could see that her eyes were closed and she was moving her jaw like a cow chewing cud. I guess she grinds her teeth (gums) like me. Her nose looked really squishy and it looked like she had big lips. I really hope she's not funky looking when she comes out. I am very curious to see what she really looks like.

They also do 3-D ultrasounds here. I didn't think I would do it, but now I think it could be kind of fun to compare it with when she comes out. What do you think, should I do it?

Hydrangea

Road Trip!

These were on our way to San Antonio de Areco (see post below).

It's nice having my faithful little car here, and it was fun to pack up and go.

For some reason I think Neil looks Asian in the photo above.

And I felt sorry for Bolu, because I was scolding him during a lot of the trip -- when he wasn't being sweet and good, he was whining and barking for no reason or at other dogs. Sorry, Bolu!



One thing that was kind of funny was when we went to get dinner. There were several parillas (traditional steak places) along the river, so we decided we would eat at one when it was time. Well, 4:00 p.m. rolled around and we felt hungry, so we moseyed on over. We are, of course, used to Buenos Aires, where places don't even open for dinner until 8:00 or 9:00 p.m. So imagine our surprise when they said they were closed -- not just until dinner, closed for the night! We definitely weren't in Buenos Aires anymore!

All in all, we had a great time. It was good to get "out" and fun to spend time together.

Let's Just Say ...

.. that white is not a slimming color.

Pics from a recent trip to San Antonio de Areco, a quaint riverside town two hours outside of Buenos Aires.

Mom, here's the side-view I promised.


I know, I need to quit slouching!





In the spirit of full disclosure --

As of today, I am 6 1/2 mos. along; it's a GIRL, due on or about March 21.

Poor Doggie

This metal vent cover fell down, scaring the doggie when it CRASHED!!!! to the ground. To help him get over his fear, Neil put the dog on top of the grate. Ten minutes later, the dog had not moved one paw. Poor thing! Maybe this is really cruel, so please don't tell PETA, but we left him there when we went out to eat. Neil said "sheer laziness will overcome him and he'll eventually move." Did I mention we had put his dinnertime food dish a few feet in front of him? When we got back, he had gotten off the grate and eaten his dinner. Aren't we going to be the BEST parents??!

White and Black

A couple buildings near my house.

Argentine Billboard Models

Neil and I have noted that in many ads in Buenos Aires, the men's physiques are more "normal" than you'd expect. Meaning, in the U.S, you have the Abercrombie ripped, cut and waxed version of a man (or eerily adolescent "man") and here, you get ads with men (boys?) who look more like this:
Granted he looks good, tanned and in reasonable shape, but where are the pecs? Where is the six pack? Is that ARM HAIR?? You just wouldn't see a guy with this little amount of muscle definition and presence of hair in any ad in the States. Not that we should be complaining; it should be refreshing. Just an observation/comparison.

Really Scary Dolls

Are these not the scariest dolls you've ever seen? They're made from sculpted foam; airbrushed and decorated with troll hair. Unique, but these seriously freak me out.

Oui Oui

Strawberry, peach and OJ licuado (smoothie).

We walked to Oui Oui today for brunch. It is getting really hot here, but it was a nice walk; about 25 min. one way, and I took pictures of houses and fruit stands we saw along the way because there were several beautiful examples of both.



Even though it was really hot, I couldn't resist one of my local favorites: a submarino. It's steamed milk served with pieces of bitter chocolate -- you put the chocolate in the milk yourself to melt it, add sugar (see the adorable, custom-wrapped cubes?), and you have hot chocolate!

The spread:

Croque Madame -- I was hungry, OK?! :) I like the free-form pink plate.

We brought our little doggie.


Some buildings/houses and a fruit stand on the walk back:

New/old. Spiral staircase.

Dakar Rally!!!!

http://www.dakar.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dakar_Rally

The Dakar Rally took off from Buenos Aires yesterday, New Year's Day, headed on a route through Argentina, crossing over into Chile and back again. For the three days leading up to it, they staged the vehicles -- trucks, motorbikes, etc. -- at the expo center right next to the Embassy. So we went over there a couple evenings after work to check it out.

I don't know why, but the idea of this off-road endurance adventure gets me so pumped! It sounds so exciting. I wish I could go along for the ride!!



Gadgets on one of the motorbikes. I have no idea what they might do.




These were "Dakar girls" at the end of the night.

Side note -- the moon and sky were amazing!

These guys were getting their bike registered and checked to enter the race by a judge.