Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving from Dubai. We're spending another year in another country that doesn't acknowledge this holiday, but oh well. Today my in-laws left. So now it's just the four of us…

It was an exhausting week but at the last minute, Ram and I decided we are going to make Thanksgiving dinner. For the next month I am doing a dairy, nut and berry free trial to benefit Riya. Poor baby's digestive system doesn't seem to be able to breakdown the enzymes right now and it has already helped get rid of some of her splotchy skin. Needless to say, this new diet is not exactly holiday friendly, especially in Dubai where we don't have many specialty food stores. It's amazing how many products have traces of dairy!!! I never knew. But I keep telling myself, this diet will help me lose those last few pregnancy pounds, so it's a win-win.  And I figured, today was as good as time as any to have that first drink. Ahhh it tasted so good. And I found some tobacco free molasses so I could smoke some shish :)

Love me some Belgian Ale!

It was a mad scramble at the grocery store to put together a diet friendly meal. I managed to find rice "milk" so I could make mashed potatoes. And we couldn't find ingredients to make gravy or stuffing from scratch, so we were stuck with the instant options, which actually turned out decent. Of course there was no turkey (we could have ordered one from a restaurant if we wanted to feed 12), so we decided to roast a chicken. It was very easy. The hardest part was the fact that I couldn't make my fav pumpkin cheesecake or pecan pie for Ram.  And since there was no way I could make a dairy free dessert, Ram was stuck picking out an apple pie from the bakery.

All in all I think it turned out well for a last minute meal. Take a look:

My pretty little helper:)

And so we could feel more connected to home, we threw on one of the Friend's Thanksgiving episodes:)

This was the year they did Thanksgiving flashbacks

So much to be thankful for this year, but most of all we are thankful for the light and joy Riya brings in our lives. She still manages to put a smile on my face during her 2am feeds. She's a keeper:)

'Tis the Season

I cannot believe Thanksgiving is around the corner! That means we have been living in Dubai for almost a year. And it looks like we will be here until 2015 at least. I'm thankful we don't have another international move this year, but at the same time was hoping we would be able to explore living in another country next year…I know, I'm getting greedy:) 

These days I feel like a hamster running on the wheel. Going, going, going but never seeming to accomplish enough. I think it's safe to say, that feeling will last until Riya goes to college. Yippe. Now would be a good time for the world to perfect the cloning process. I would like to sign up please. 

I'm so excited for Riya to experience her first Thanksgiving and Christmas. Even though she probably won't remember it, I want to make it special. Since we've been married, we haven't had a tree or decorated for the holidays for one reason or another. That ends NOW. I know I'm in the wrong country to cultivate my new found holiday spirit, but dammit I'm going to try! 

I'm surprised to hear that they have a big Christmas Festival in December with an ice rink and fake snow and everything. Done. And this weekend one expat group is having a Festive Fair. I really hope I can find some cute holiday ornaments and decor. I sincerely regret not picking up any ornaments on any of our European travels…I mean we even went to a Christmas market in Prague. What the hell was I thinking?!

In other news, baby girl is starting to sleep a little longer at night. Do you know what that means???? 

That's right, my first drink is around the corner! 10 months, 1 week and 5 days sober…

Lessons from A Newbie

Happy Due Date to me! I cannot believe that I could have still been pregnant till now. I also cannot believe I have a two month old baby. It still weirds me out referring to Riya as my daughter. Look at her trying to hold her bottle already! She's growing so fast...

So far I learned quite a bit, and I'd thought I'd share, so here goes:

1. Sleep trumphs all. Yes, even showering.  

2. Rush Hour. I always feel like I'm rushing through everything now. This is especially true when it comes to eating or running an errand. Since I have to keep Riya on her schedule, I find myself devouring my meals in less than 10 minutes or rushing through the grocery store to make it back in time for her next feeding (and forgetting items along the way). Feels like I'm always racing against the clock.  

3. Watch out. It doesn't matter how fast you change her diaper, she will still manage to pee on you. I thought this was an issue for boys only…

4. Talk is cheap. I suck at baby talk y'all. My mom puts me to shame. For some reason, it just doesn't come naturally to me. So instead, I give Riya real talk. Like how she needs to meet Prince George and make him fall in love with her. You know, the important stuff. 

5. Milking it. I faced some horrid feeding challenges half way through but now those dark days are behind me (I hope). It's oddly exciting seeing how I have the ability to supply food for my baby. And in case you're wondering, no I have not tried my milk…

6. One step forward and two steps back. It's hard to get excited when she sleeps an extra hour at night or stays awake after every feed one day because by the next day we're back to square one. And I hear that for pre-term babies the milestones don't begin until after their real due date. God help me. 

7. Swaddling sucks. But it's the lesser of two evils. I rather her fight the swaddle for the first half hour than have her wake herself up from her hand hitting her face halfway through her sleep cycle.

8. Eight is not enough. Unless you plan on doing laundry every day (which it still feels like I do), eight of everything (blankets, burp cloths, bottles, etc) is not enough. 12-15 is more like it.

9. Let it out! Burping requires both skill and patience. After 6 weeks, I finally acquired both. I feel like an expert now, thanks to Riya.

10.  I have 5 visible gray hairs. Enough said. 

Tomorrow's my mom's final day with us. One month flew by! It's going to be an adjustment not having her here, but my in-laws will be coming in on the 18th, so can't wait for them to meet their granddaughter!

Flash Friday

Happy Friday everyone! We decided to take advantage of the cool morning air and take some outdoor pictures of baby girl. I created a website for Riya that you can log into and view anytime you want. The site info is :

https://riyaaiyer.shutterfly.com

Password: september12 (if you are a shutterfly member, you can use your your shutterfly password instead)

I hope to be able to update the site several times a week. The entire shoot from today is on there, but in the meantime here are some of my faves: