Welcome baby boy

Our little boy finally arrived nine days after his estimated due date. Now he's about a month old.

By all accounts I had a very easy pregnancy. My favorite parts of being pregnant were my weekly prenatal yoga classes, getting to eat cheeseburgers and shakes without any guilt, and how everyone was so friendly to me. Strangers would tell me congratulations and ask his gender or due date. During my pregnancy I drank yogi mother to be tea and took newchapter prenatal vitamins, which I can't be sure contributed to the ease of my pregnancy, but I'm sure it didn't hurt anything.

French training and our big move consumed my life during my last trimester. If you've ever studied a foreign language, you knows it's hard work, but what I didn't account for was how difficult it would be to sit and concentrate for long stretches of time while severely pregnant. In addition, I found the logistics of moving overseas with an infant quite overwhelming. Bring on the stress!! But in the end I passed my language exam and everything in our DC apartment plus our consumables (a shipment of non-perishable food, toiletries, and cleaning supplies) got packed and sent on it's way to Africa.

Then, 38 weeks pregnant, we packed the remainder of our belongings into my brother's hatchback and drove to my home state of Ohio to have the baby and spend my maternity leave with my family. I spent this pregnancy in two different countries (3 if you count our trip to Japan), two U.S. states, and visited 3 different OBGYN practices. Unconventional, yes; but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Taking care of this little guy has been such a privilege. He's delightful. I'm excited to see what the future has in store for us.

My Seven Happy Things at Work

My favorite design studio, This Paper Ship, recently blogged about their seven favorite things at work.  Check out their blog!  I thought this was a great idea for a post.  Lately I have been needing an attitude check:  I've been missing my old job in Tel Aviv; I had a lot of trouble getting over jet lag since I jumped right into training; and last but not least none of my clothes fit me anymore which is making me feel so blah.

But there are a lot of great things about spending time at FSI (the Foreign Service Institute, where we do our training).  Here are my top 7:

1. Seeing old friends in the hall and cafeteria
2. Getting paid to learn, especially getting paid to learn a language
3. Not having a blackberry--they are really useful in the field, but it is nice to get a break and not be constantly "on call"
4. Getting out of work early--even though many classes assign homework, I love being able to go home and do it
5. Making new friends and meeting lots of interesting people
6. Getting to wear business casual
7. When my spouse drives me to work (this isn't a given, but he knows I'm not a morning person even though I'm a fan of public transportation)

What are your top 7 things?

Lots of Life Changes

So a lot has happened in the past few months since I've updated this blog.  Life change #1: I'm pregnant!!  I announced it on Facebook using this photo:

We're really excited/nervous/have no idea what we've gotten ourselves into.  Yes, we will be taking a baby to a developing country.  Don't judge.  And if you have experience with raising a baby in developing country, please comment on this post--let's exchange e-mails.  

I know I'm extremely fortunate that I had the easiest first trimester imaginable.  I had no morning sickness and wasn't even that tired.  I threw up once, but I think that was because I was carsick.  When I found out I was pregnant, I stopped drinking coffee cold turkey.  Friends, I hadn't gone a day without coffee in 12 years.  You can tell on my face how thrilled I am (here is documented evidence of the day I stopped drinking coffee):

One of my New Year's resolutions was to go on a detox, and I believe this counts: no caffeine or alcohol, tons healthy food, and prenatal vitamins.  Unlike in the taco bell commercials, I haven't had many weird pregnancy cravings.  In Tel Aviv, once I had a hankering for that fake icing that you buy in the grocery store, but I had no idea where to get any and the feeling passed.  One week I only had eyes for Subway, and thankfully there was one next to my office complex.  Besides that, I have been craving copious amounts of fruit, mostly peaches and tomatoes.   

Life change #2: We're back in DC--at least temporarily.  I'm still in denial about the fact that I've left Tel Aviv.  I loved my job and my coworkers, I made some awesome friends, and I loved living by the Mediterranean Sea.  I'm so lucky that I got to work on some really exciting projects towards the end of my tour.  It broke my heart that it had to come to an end.  It has eased the pain a little that we've been able to catch up with some of our close friends from Tel Aviv here in DC.  

On the bright side, we adore DC.  It is such a cool city and we have amazing friends here.  We're close to my husband's family, which is great.  Last time we lived here we were both students and we were living in a basement and pinching pennies.  So we're looking forward to spending as much time as possible with friends and family and living it up for the next few months as we study French!

I'm beginning to show signs of being prenant.  I no longer fit into my clothes.  I brought some of my baggier clothes with me from Tel Aviv in hopes that I could get some mileage out of them, but now I realize how foolish that was.  Also, we found out from the doctor that we're having a boy!!    

(Middle photo credit: U.S. Embassy Tel Aviv http://www.flickr.com/photos/usembassyta/7139330665/in/photostream)

Exploring Japan - the vacation of a lifetime

My husband and I have been contemplating for a while now the possibility of taking a vacation to Japan to visit my little brother.  Miraculously, everything fell into place and we were able to take this once-in-a-lifetime trip.  Of course, my husband is now completely smitten and he wants me to bid on it, but our attitude going into this trip was to see everything we could see in 8 days.

We spent our time in three main cities: Tokyo, Kyoto, and the region around Sendai (where my brother lives and works). Tokyo is a city of 13 million, and thus the biggest city I have ever visited.  I was immediately struck by how clean it is.  In New York and London, for example, when you blow your nose at night what comes out is black (yuck!), but not so in Tokyo.  In Japan you have a fascinating juxtaposition of high tech (think bullet train, Tokyo high-rises, neon lights) and ancient tradition (geishas, beautiful shrines, temples, and gardens).

Some of the highlights:

• Studio Ghibli, the museum of famous Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro).
• Sleeping on real futons on traditional tatami mats in a Ryokon
• Eating sushi for breakfast at the Tokyo fish market
• Fukushima Inari - the shrine of 1,000 red gates
• Bamboo grove near Tenryuji in Kyoto

Being in Japan was an exhilarating mixture of adrenaline and disorientation that I haven't felt in a long time.  Everything is so different from the West, and at least when we went, there were very few tourists.  The Japanese are so friendly and charming.  It helped that my brother speaks Japanese--that goes a long way.

While in Japan my husband and I celebrated our six year wedding anniversary.  We went out to a traditional Japanese meal with my brother and then to the New York Bar (the one in Lost in Translation). We had such a fabulous time.  It was so good to spend time with my little brother and to lose ourselves in the tourist experience.  Was it worth it? Absolutely.

Afternoon Tea Party Baby Shower

Over the weekend my friend and I threw a baby shower for our dear pregnant friend!  She looks so cute, right?  The shower was so much fun.  We had it partially on our balcony.  I found the DIY streamer instructions on Oh Happy Day.

The menu included

Drinks

Bellini’s

          Champagne w Strawberry PureePeach Puree

Limonana

All sorts of fruit juices

Water with lemon slices

Food

French bread crudité

          Slices of French bread

          Herbed veggie dip

          Fresh veggie crudités

Cucumber bites with whipped herb topping

Tea sandwiches

          Vidalia onion w/ salt and butter

          Smoked salmon on dark bread (pumpernickel or rye)

          Watercress or arugula

          Chicken curry

Cherry and goat cheese crostini

Caramelized Onion Tart

Mushroom Galette

Desserts

Vanilla Cupcakes with cream cheese frosting

Candied Popcorn

Blueberry scones with lemon curd

Strawberries and dip

          Sour cream and brown sugar

          Balsamic vinegar and powdered sugar

My beyond incredible friend and co-host made the lions share of the food. She has her own blog, which I will ask her permission to link.  And the men?  They went go carting!   

Pavlova

Don't you just love meringue?

Turkey in February

One of the neat things about living in Israel is that you are a short flight to so many interesting locations. Last weekend, we got to realize a longtime dream to visit Istanbul, Turkey. Seriously, folks, we have owned a Turkey guide book for six years!

I wouldn't necessarily recommend going to Istanbul in February because (get this) it is FREEZING COLD. But, on the bright side the prices are a cheaper and it is definitely not as crowded.

My favorite memory of Istanbul is the Hagia Sophia. It is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. You walk in and you are speechless, surrounded by gold and light, looking up at a ceiling that seems to float in the ether. Well, the pictures simply don't do it justice, but I will share our attempts to capture it.

The Hagia Sophia was originally built in 360 AD and it changed the history of architecture. The one we saw was the third structure to stand on that ground (built in 532 AD). It suffered from earthquakes and was converted into a Catholic church, a mosque, and now a museum.

This picture (below) is the interior of the Blue Mosque, or the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, which sits across from the Hagia Sophia. It was built in 1616 AD.

Other highlights of the trip: dinner at a tavern in Beyaglu and a cruise of the Bosphorus. Below is my husband's favorite picture from the weekend.

Skiing on Mount Hermon

This weekend, we went skiing on Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights. 3,000 ft above sea level, we could still see in the distance the second lowest place on earth, the Sea of Galilee. We went on a Sunday, which is a working day here, so it was less crowded than it would have been. Much to my surprise, however, most of the people who came to the mountain purchased lift tickets simply to ride the chairlift to the top of the mountain, sit in the lodge, and then ride back down. They were dressed like they were going skiing, but without any skis.

We had a very nice time. There weren't a lot of runs, but it was pretty steep and a good workout. It was nice treat for my husband and I who love to ski/snowboard but haven't had the opportunity for a few years.

Decorating on the move

Developing your own personal decorating style can be difficult, whether you are renting or (like me) have a job that requires you to move every few years. Here are a few photos from my space, captured on my iphone, and some tips.

1. Order the Domino Guide to Decorating, which teaches you how to define your own style and execute professional looking rooms. Yes this is possible even with drexel heritage furniture. Our personal style is mod/farmhouse. As you can see, it is whimsical, but we think it works.

2. Collect pieces that say something about you. A lot of the pieces I own are from flee markets, antique stores, and auctions in Ohio; and the art is either from friends or relatives (I have the wonderful luxury of having a MIL, aunt, and great uncle who are all visual artists; an aunt who is a fab interior decorator; and a long line of antique-hunters that goes back to my great-grandmother). Life after Jerusalem recently wrote a post about Foreign Service Officers telling a story with their houses/apartments (read it here).

3. Find the cheaper alternative. Can't paint? Try a wall sticker to make a statement or large prints of your favorite artwork. Can't wallpaper? Try framing large swatches of fabric to use as wall hangings.

4. Read magazines and blogs and bookmark things you like. Your dream house/apartment will be easier to pull off if you can visualize it. Even better if you can find DIY tutorials like my friend Mandy's. If you pull of something fabulous, share it!

Any tips of your own to share? Favorite sources of inspiration? What two words describe your personal design aesthetic?

The navel of the world

Last weekend I had the rare opportunity to take a tour of one of the holiest and most emotionally-charged places on earth: the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

The Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque are located on the Temple Mount, one of the holiest locations for three of the world's major religions. You may not realize (I didn't) that the Dome of the Rock is not a mosque and that women pray in the Dome of the Rock and men pray in the Al-Aqsa Mosque (both located in the Temple Mount inside the Old City of Jerusalem).

Inside the Dome of the Rock is the Foundations Stone (below). Many believe this stone to mark a special gateway to heaven, the place where God began the creation of the earth, the rock where Abraham almost sacrificed Issac, where the Holy of Holies was located in the Jewish Temple, and where the Prophet Mohammed ascended to heaven. The experience was quite moving for me and puts into perspective how complicated the city truly is.

Ride for World Health

This is my sister, A. For over a year she has been training to bike across the United States--that's right, 3,700 miles--to raise awareness and money for domestic and global health. I'm so proud of her for setting this goal and inspiring others to join in (she is currently on the leadership recruitment team). On top of it all, she is about to complete her fourth year of medical school! What a star.

If you're interested in learning more, donating money, or joining the ride, visit the website: http://www.rideforworldhealth.org/. You can donate to a particular rider by clicking on the "Our Rider's" link. The money they raise will be donated to Louie's Kids, MANA, and SOIL. The riders themselves sleep in middle school gyms, churches, and community centers along the way to defray the cost over the two months it takes to complete the ride.

Can you imagine what good shape they will be in by the end? Do you have any big goals for 2012?

Merry Merry!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to my friends and fellow bloggers. This year we were fortunate to be able to come home for the holidays for some rest and relaxation, good food, games, family, friends, and non-stop Christmas music. Check out my baby nephew, Jackson, who stole the show.

Have you made any New Year's Resolutions? This year I am renewing my "baking bread" resolution from last year. I got as far as baking naan, which has yeast (so it counts), but I never made an actual classic loaf of bread.

I'm also going to

1. sign up and train for a half marathon

2. make tofu from scratch

3. do a detox

4. improve my capacity to remember people's names

5. be funnier

What are some of yours?

Touring with my sister!

Recently my beloved little sister took a break from med school residency interviews to visit me and my husband in Israel. You better believe we crammed as much as we could into one week including Jerusalem (above), an after-hours soak in the Dead Sea (below #1), hanging out in Tel Aviv (Jaffa Port, below #2), and the Sea of Galilee (below #s 3 and 4). We also went to Bethlehem, Nazareth, Acre, and Haifa.

It's fun to experience new things with family, don't you think? So, when are you coming to visit?