Thanksgiving and 2 months

This year marked our second year celebrating Thanksgiving abroad. Last year, we spent the holiday in Tokyo taking in the sites and feasting on the tastiest Kobe beef for Thanksgiving dinner. This year, with the very recent addition to our family, Felipe's parents and sister flew to Amsterdam to celebrate the holiday at our house. It's very strange celebrating a holiday abroad when you try to plan around store opening hours and then realize that everything is business as usual because it's not actually a holiday where you are. So, on Thanksgiving day, we took advantage of the Nike Factory Store friends and family coupons and went shopping. After that, we came home and started making dinner. Since our oven is super tiny and there was no way we were going to fit a turkey in it, we opted for sous-vide duck breasts, stuffing, wilted spinach, and an arugula salad with pears, walnuts, and Stilton Blue Cheese. I also baked a pumpkin pie but that was another learning experience with our oven. You would think one of these days I would learn to check my food often before the timer goes off. So, we had "Cajun style" pumpkin pie that actually looked more blackened than it tasted thank goodness. Enzo was a trooper and slept in his puppy vibrating chair while we ate.

Instead of rising early for Black Friday, we slept in and had leftover stuffing with poached eggs and pumpkin pie for breakfast. We took Enzo to his first brewery, however, we did not get to take the tour as it was fully booked. We opted to sit in the pub and have a beer instead which was just as nice.

As you can see, Enzo slept right through his first brewery/pub experience.

Saturday was a beautiful sunny day which usually means it is also quite cold. In the morning, we went to the local market and had yummy pancakes for breakfast. I opted for the one with Gruyere and Serrano Ham, delicious! After that, we took a family walk around Vondelpark and then headed up to the roof for some photos.

Not sure what we did before self timers.

Enzo with Nonna and Nonno.

Enzo snuggled in to Nonno's shoulder.

Mom and Dad trying to get Enzo to smile for the camera.

Aunt Camila and Enzo. 

Enzo also turned 2 months today. We had chocolate cake to celebrate! I really don't know where the time has gone. He is growing before our eyes and changes so much from day to day. He is such a happy baby and seems to be pretty good at going with a flow.

Relaxing with Aunt Camila in the morning 

These smiles are showing up more and more. I just love them!!

Life is hard when you are a few months old.

Sleeping on mommy's lap after a healthy meal of milk.

Let the 2 month photo shoot begin.

Feeling Thankful

The holiday season is officially upon us. The streets of Amsterdam are decorated with festive lights and the people of Facebook have been counting down the days until Thanksgiving with their days of thankfulness. I will not be posting a daily blurb about what I am thankful for but I have been counting my blessings these last few months so will dedicate today's post to a few of the things that I am thankful for.

1. Top of my list today, of course, is for my little Enzo James. This week marked 7 weeks and has already brought so much happiness and love into my life. I'm thankful for the little smiles that he now gives me when I go to pick him up, for his sweet cheeks that I want to kiss every time I see them, for his 10 fingers and 10 toes that he is starting to discover on his own, and for showing me a love beyond anything I could have previously imagined.

Someone is finally starting to enjoy the after bath ritual as much as the bath.

 

This little one is growing faster than I can count. Last week he weighed 13 pounds and is growing in length too!

A close up of my little sleeper.

Those are those cheeks that I'm talking about. Love. 

Trying to capture those toes is a little more difficult. But you get the picture. This little piggy...

You looking at me? Yoga with mommy.

All this activity makes me sleepy.

2. Speaking of love, I am thankful for my husband, love of my life, and father to our son that has helped make our family feel so complete. I'm thankful for a partner that challenges me and supports me fully. I love that he is my Z to my A and that while we often see things so differently, this is what makes our lives that much fuller. I love that we still have fun together and I couldn't ask for a better travel buddy, foodie restaurant critic, and comforting shoulder to lean on. I'm thankful that we have been given the opportunity to live abroad and that he works so hard to give me the chance to devote my undivided attention to our son and being a good wife.

Latest family photo. We ran into our neighbor while walking through Vondelpark and he was kind enough to snap a quick photo.

3. We would never be able to live abroad without the support from our family. I am thankful that I have a family that has supported me in life as I have spread my wings and taken flight. While we may not get to see or talk to each other daily, there is not a day that goes by without them passing through my thoughts. I'm thankful for my nieces that are so full of surprises and make me smile every time I see them. I love going back to Nebraska to a full house of craziness. Here in the Netherlands they would say it's "gezellig". I can't wait to to go back this holiday season and introduce Enzo to the family. Between my family and Felipe's family, this boy is going to be loved like no other. It makes my heart happy. I'm also thankful that this Thanksgiving our in-laws are able to travel this way to spend the holiday with us. I look forward to spending time hanging out, drinking some good wine, and finally introducing Enzo to his Auntie Camila.

4. You are born into a family, however, I always think of my friends as the family that I have chosen. I am so very thankful for my chosen "family". I'm thankful to have so many amazing people that I have been able to keep in touch with, even as I have jumped around from place to place. I love being able to pick up the phone, make a visit, or send a string of emails and be reminded why that special person has chosen to stick with me through my bouncing around. I have such a varied group of individuals that make up my circle. I love the crazies that will dance with me into the wee hours of the night, the foodies that will geek out to different recipes and restaurants with me, the winos that have spent more hours in the Napa sun than I can count, the creatives that continue to inspire me and make me strive to be a better designer/crafter/artist, and the runners that talk me into continuing to push myself-if someone would of told me 10 years ago that I would have a few half marathons under my belt I would have laughed and now I'm trying to figure out when and where my next one will be. All of you-big hugs from Amsterdam. I love you all.

5. Because this is so very much part of my present situation, I am so very thankful for the network that I have found so quickly upon moving to Amsterdam. I have made friends that have made being away from family and "family" doable. From my museum/coffee buddy that has helped me out when Felipe was out of town to my other new moms that give me a place to exchange stories and know that what I am going through with Enzo is "normal" and much needed adult conversation while Felipe is at work. I look forward to our walks in the park, coffees, and lunches.

6. Moving on from the people that I am thankful for, I'm thankful for living in a city with such cool architecture and parks that provide loads of inspiration. I love walking through Vondelpark with all of the different cool trees and right now it is especially beautiful with the different colored leaves. I can't wait to show Enzo this cool city and also introduce him to this big beautiful world that we live in.

7. One last one (marking 7 weeks of my little one), I am so thankful that my family and I are all healthy. It is often easy to take for granted a clean bill of health but life is full of surprises and there are so many people out there that are handed an unfair hand of cards. We are lucky and I am grateful for that.

Life with Enzo

My apologies in advance. First, I have not posted in a really long time and, secondly, this post will most likely be all over the place. Such is life with a baby. On October 1st, 2013, we welcomed Enzo James into this world at 8:17AM. I was a little worried about the experience since it ended up being a planned cesarean, but I couldn't of asked for a better way to welcome my sweet boy into this world. We delivered at St. Lucas Andreas via a "gentle cesarean" and the doctors and nurses were amazing. They talked me through the whole thing and when it was time to bring Enzo out, a green cloth was dropped and I was able to watch the doctor bring Enzo into this world. He would of liked to stay in there a little bit longer because as they were pulling, he was pulling in the opposite direction to get back in. Once out, they brought him to my face so I could meet him. It was magical, puffy face and all, he was the most perfect baby I had ever seen.

First look.

The pediatrician then took him, along with Felipe, to check out his vital signs and then brought him back to me while they continued to "seal" me up. Once they laid him on my chest, we didn't exactly have the "look into my eyes" bonding moment. The bright light from the other side of the curtain caught Enzo's attention and he was set on focusing in on that-probably wondering how he could get back to his warm cozy place. We spent 3 days in the hospital before we were released to come home. I think they would of liked to keep me a 4th day but I was done with the hospital room. All of the nurses and staff were wonderful but on the second night I had a roommate. I knew that I would probably be getting a roommate and was lucky to have the first night to myself. My roommate was super nice and actually had some good tips as this was her second baby but this made the night a bit stressful since I was scared that I or Enzo would wake her or her baby up. My room was also furthest from the window so lack of natural sunlight started to get to me as well. I could go on, but the bottom line is that I was ready to get home and be a family. Update-I just tried to post and lost everything but the above paragraph. Below is the abbreviated version of an entry that has been a week in the making and today Enzo turned 1 month. Hopefully, I will get this out before the end of the day.

Traditional Dutch treat. Champagne, beschuit met muisjes, and some fruit to celebrate

 Enzo sleeping peacefully in his "day of birth" outfit. I had not been told that the tradition here is to put your baby in a special outfit the day he is born so that he will look his best for visitors. Since I did not know this, and didn't have many visitors, this little green and white onesie had to do. 

Mommy, Daddy, and Enzo ready to go home.

One of the best things about having a baby in the Netherlands is the Kraamzorg. The Kraamzorg is a nurse that that specializes in helping the mother and newborn in the first week and is part of the standard health care system here in the Netherlands. Within an hour of arriving home the Kraamzorg came. Frankly, I don't know how mothers survive that first week without her. Her advice was invaluable and she was very strict to make sure that I was getting the rest I needed to recover. From the moment she walked in, after we discussed what to expect, she got busy making up Enzo's bed, cleaning bathrooms, and vacuuming. The first week, I also had the midwife visit us twice for check-ups and the consultatie bureau came to our house for the hearing test and heel prick.

 Machine used for hearing test. He passed!!

The heel prick. He was a total trooper and didn't cry.

Enzo also has gotten to meet all of his grandparents. He has been completely spoiled and we are adjusting to life without the extra set of hands.

Nonna and Enzo.

 Grandma and Enzo

Enzo getting some Vitamin D

He's getting more and more alert. 

3 generations of Zardo men. Enzo, Nonno, and Daddy

As I mentioned earlier, Enzo turned a month today. The time has flown and I can hardly believe we've had this little love that long but also don't really remember the days before he came into our lives. So far, he loves baths but hates the part where you have to get out, dry off, and get dressed. I don't blame him because I don't really like that part either. He loves looking out the window, walks outside in the pram and even more so being carried in the Ergo Baby Carrier, being cuddled, and eating. He had his month check up on Thursday and everything looked good. He now weighs 11 pounds and is 23 inches long. Needless to say, all newborn clothes have been packed away.

Enzo's first bath

Introducing him to Scrabble at a young age. 

Counting down the days

I cannot believe that Felipe and I are going to officially be parents in 9 days!! We are so excited and nervous and trying to enjoy these last few days with just the "two of us". Last week was a busy week with Felipe working and I was busy working my way through all the baby clothes, blankets, and towels. Our washing machine has pretty much been running non-stop. Tuesday, I carved out a little time to go see the movie "Blue Jasmine". I forgot how "sophisticated" the European movie experience was and I was disappointed by the lack of movie theatre popcorn. Isn't that part of the reason to go to the cinema anyways?? Despite not having popcorn, it was nice to see a movie on the big screen and I enjoyed seeing glimpses of "home" even if the ending of the movie dropped a melancholy weight on afternoon.

Thursday was a big day of errands. I had the car for the day so I took full advantage by taking a trip to Villa Arena, Ikea, and Babypark. Villa Arena is this massive furniture mall with 50+ furniture stores. A stop there was a must because I needed to exchange a pillow, but then I spent another 2 hours or so browsing the different stores since I was alone and wasn't being rushed through. Next stop was Ikea to pick up a frame for the A-Z print that I bought Optimus. I actually need to give credit to Felipe for finding it. Check out their other prints here, http://67inc.com/. Last stop was Babypark for crib sheets, baby bath, changing table, and diaper bin. I found everything I needed but ended up buying the diaper bin off of Amazon.

On Saturday, I met up with an old friend from Nebraska who is taking the year off to travel around the world. I love meeting up with people that I haven't seen in MANY years and being able to just pick up where we left off. We had a great time checking out Noordermarkt Boerenmarkt with all of the different types of organic produce and the vintage flea market finds. She was able to find a super cute scarf to keep warm and I picked up some almond oil. We also explored the different shops in the Joordan and I found a pop-up store that I had read about and had been wanting to check out called A Store Without a Home, http://storewithoutahome.blogspot.nl/. They had lots of cute stuff and I managed to get out of there without spending too much.

I love mushrooms. Such beautiful shapes and colors. I picked up a package of dried mushrooms that are awaiting their fate in a tasty Mushroom Risotto.

Are you a pepper head?

Megan and I all smiles after some yummy Apple Pie.

The weather is definitely cooling off here and the smell of fall is in the air. I was craving something sweet for dessert the other night after dinner and after analyzing what we had to work with I ended up modifying a Carrot Cake recipe that turned out quite yummy. Below is the recipe if you'd like to try a twist on the traditional Carrot Cake. I'm sure it would be tasty with a cream cheese frosting as well but I was just as happy without.

Carrot Olive Oil Cake

Ingredients

• 4 eggs
• 1 1/4 cups Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 cups white sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 cups grated carrots
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest (zest of one lemon)
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup chopped pecans (optional-I didn't have pecans but I think they would be quite tasty)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
2. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, white sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in cranberries, carrots and lemon zest. Fold in pecans. Pour into prepared pan.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

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Weekend in Bruges

As promised, I'm back to update you on our little weekend away in Bruges. The lunch at Oud Sluis was such a big part of the trip that it got its own post. I think I can manage the rest of the weekend here. We ended up choosing Bruges as our weekend away because it was close enough to drive, we knew there would be good food, and the city is small so seemed manageable to cover in one weekend. We had also been to Brussels and Ghent a few years back and loved both cities so we were excited to get back to Belgium.

We stayed at The Pand Hotel. It is an 18th Century carriage house that has been converted into a 26 room boutique hotel. Our room was the Ralph Lauren Suite however I'm not really sure why it was called that. It was beige and cream with plaid wallpaper. It was on the top floor so you had to watch your head at times but our view was lovely!

View from our hotel window

After we got settled in, we decided to go out for a little walk and find a pub so Felipe could start sampling the assortment of Belgian beer. Let's just say, if it wasn't for hot chocolate, this trip may have been a disaster for me. Haha. We found a cute little beer bar on a side street called Brugs Beertje that was the perfect place to slip into and hang out for awhile. The place was busy but there happened to be 2 open seats at the bar. Within 20 minutes of our arrival, all seats had filled up and the place was packed! 

First up was the local brew from Brewery de Halve Maan, Bruges Zot. This was probably Felipe's least favorite of the beers that he tried all weekend. He said it was a bit flavorless.

Next up was Urthel. I loved the old man on the label and tried to talk Felipe into naming our first born after him but, while he was quite impressed by the beer, he thought the name a bit old fashioned.

Last beer for the evening. I think this may have been a favorite.

Yummy as it was, my hot chocolate presentation was not overly impressive.

Saturday morning started off with a nice breakfast in the hotel with freshly baked breads, croissants, and eggs cooked to our preference. We both opted for scrambled. After breakfast, we headed across the street the catch a canal tour of the city. Our timing was perfect because one boat had just filled up and was headed off so that meant we were first in line for the next boat. It was perfect as we took the 2 seats right up front so that we could get some photos without any heads in our way. The guide was also super friendly and had me get in the captain's chair so that he could take a photo of Felipe and I.

Me looking like a giant next to Felipe. Notice the clear blue skies in the background. Perfection.

The tour was nice. It lasted about 35 minutes and it's always great to see a city from the water. The major sites were pointed out and it was fun gliding under the low bridges. 

Looking at the famous Bell Tower that has stood over Market Square since 1300. We tried to climb to the top but the line was ridiculous so opted out. This bell tour has 47 different bells that are very active throughout the day. It made me appreciate the simple bell tower a few blocks away from our flat in Amsterdam.

 Our guide referred to this sculpture as "Woman looking for her contact". I believe it was a joke. 

 Church of Our Lady and another boat in front of us.

Headed under one of the low hanging bridges

Pretty flowers in front of this hotel.

After the boat tour, we explored the city for awhile by foot. There are so many little side streets that it is fun to just walk around and get lost. We happened to stumble across a chocolate store that I had read about so popped in and picked up a box of chocolates. Chocolaterie Sukerbuyc, which means Sugarbelly in English, is the oldest chocolate business in Bruges. I picked up a small box and have been enjoying my treat now that we are home.  I hadn't read about their tea room, "de Proeverie" before the trip, but if I go back I will definitely be stopping in. We visited Church of our Lady, however, it was under renovation so the majority of the interior was covered with sheets. We also kept seeing these medieval groups of houses around the city called "Godshuizen". They were built in the 18th Century by rich families to house the poor or people that were unable to work due to illness, handicaps, or other mishaps. The inhabitants would receive food and basic care. They are quite pretty with lovely interior courts filled with flowers and at times little gardens where the inhabitants can grow their own vegetables. They are still all inhabited, however, they mostly house the elderly. The majority of the inner courtyards are closed to the public but we stumbled across one that was open. 

I loved all of the pink flowers in front of this one house.

Now it was time to get back to the beer. We headed over to Brewery de Halve Maan for a tour. This is where the woman that we bought our tickets from warned me that there were 220 steps on this tour. My response, "that's all?". The tour was okay. I think the highlight was getting to the roof and checking out the views of the city from up there. Who needs The Bell Tower after all?  

Looking towards Church of Our Lady from the rooftop of the brewery.

Watch your head, Felipe!

After completing the tour we had lunch in the restaurant. We both opted for the Flemish beef stew over fries. It was a bit of a gut bomb, but like most gut bombs....delicious. It came with a small side salad so I ate both of the salads and gave half of my stew to Felipe to finish. After lunch, we were both ready for a nap.

Placemat with the brewery founder's profile. It kind of looks like Abe Lincoln to me....

According to legend, a bear was the oldest citizen of Bruges so you see bears and references to bears all over. I thought it was only appropriate that I snapped an Optimus progress shot next to a bear. 

After feeling refreshed from our nap, we decided that we needed to find mussels for dinner. We asked the receptionist at the hotel's front desk and she told us where her favorite place was. We headed that way and since we were still kind of early we were able to get a seat despite not having a reservation. The mussels were good, however there was kind of a lot going one. I'd prefer a little less celery, or at least the celery chopped a bit smaller.

Pot of mussels

After dinner we walked around for a bit and stumbled across a band playing in the center square so we stopped and listened for awhile. 

The played some James Bond theme songs which I quite enjoyed.

The Bell Tower

Provincial Palace

Time for more beer and I was ready for dessert so we headed to Cambrinus, King of Beers, for some more tasting. I had a beer flavored ice cream sundae with chocolate sauce while Felipe kicked off his beer tasting. The sundae was quite tasty and I finished it before I thought of taking a photo. Apparently, I was more worried about capturing Felipe's beer experience. :)

First up, a tasting a 4 different beers. Felipe's least favorite was the pinkish red looking one which was a Kriek beer (cherry flavored). I tried a sip and will agree-it tasted like cough medicine. You can see in the background, that in addition to my sundae I also tried their hot chocolate. Very chocolatey.

One of Felipe's favorites, "it tastes like a steak in a glass and would be delicious with some bacon".

Last beer of the evening. Noir de Dottignies. 

View of the Bell Tower on our way home. Yes, this is a romantic city indeed.

Sunday, on our way home we stopped by the Passchendaele Memorial Museum. The museum commemorates the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917, in which there were 500,000 casualties in 100 days in order to gain a few kilometers of frontline. A portion of the museum was a replica of the British dougout experience of life underground, necessary when there was nothing left above. It was very eerie and I can't imagine being one of those soldiers living in these conditions. There was also sound simulation and at one time when a "bomb went off" I actually jumped. 

I'll take the top bunk.

Artillery display

Reconstructed trenches - again can't imagine being down there in the rain and cold.

Close-up of the construction. 

Now we are home and just trying to get everything ready for the arrival of Baby Z. These last 9 months have passed so quickly, and while I am reaching the point of constant discomfort, I'm also looking at my to-do list and hoping I get everything done before he gets here. I had also planned on him being late, so of course since he has decided to settle in the breech position he will actually be delivered a week early via a "gentle cesarean". I had a check-up on Friday and the midwife did an ultra-sound to be 100% that he was still head up, I knew he was as I am quite familiar with the feel of his head nestled into my ribcage right now, and she commented on his feet being straight down. She called him "a stupid little boy" and I let it slide since English is obviously not her first language. We are so excited to meet him. Felipe is ready to take him to Scotland for his first football match in November and I had to put my foot down. He thinks he has some making up to do after Optimus and I getting so much bonding time in the last 9 months. Haha. I think he will have plenty of bonding time with him and I said he is more than welcome to change all diapers in order to gain a deeper "bond" with his son.