Week 30: Branching Out
Blossoming perspectives
Week 30: Baby is now the size of a garden Gnome
This week had plenty of celebrations and socialising, a good time to stop and appreciate all the great things going on in our lives. There’s quite a few of them, most of all the fact that we are healthy, strong together and live in a country that is mostly safe, protective of its inhabitants and with an incredible Nature. The son of a friend of ours had his second birthday and invited us to his birthday party. It is delightful to see a kid, super happy with all the attention, smiles and giggles, even if he doesn’t understand what a birthday is, let alone that he is now two years old. It is, indeed, quite a random thing, but why not celebrate it anyway?
Branching Interests
Our boy is also getting more interested in other kids, even if he doesn’t play together. I guess it’s time to find the space for him to interact more with other toddlers. In the meantime, the pregnancy keeps going well. The belly is stretching, and the baby is taking more room, making the movements and kicking more visible from the outside and easier to feel.
Rose Horns
My back is hurting, especially when I lean forward or pick up our son. Some stretching and walking seem to help a little, but it’s not great. In the end, I need more rest, and it’s been hard to find a way to get it. It’s making me a bit anxious because I’ll be sleeping less once the baby comes and will get more tired, so I wish I could top up my energy tank, at least partially, during the next weeks. However, that seems very unlikely to happen.
Branching Out for support
We are now committed to branching out and finding someone to spend a bit of time with us at home each week to be with our boy, and later both boy and baby, to help out a little. It feels weird. Shouldn’t I be able to take care of both children while my man is working? Am I lazy for wanting to sleep a bit more, maybe even 7 hours? Sure, “it takes a village to raise a child”, but is this the best for our boys or just for me? Either way, we need this right now, no matter how short-term. Our families are not here, and we don’t have close friends with kids living next door – nor in the next village. Plus, it still feels a million times better than putting any of them in a baby child care institution – for us, anyway.
Planting Seeds
We met a candidate for this help, and she seems great. Shell be speaking the local language to the kids, has a good experience and looks rather kind and open. There’ll be an adaptation phase but, if we move forward, she might very well help our family very much while we transition into a family of four. Next week, we are going to the doctor and check how our baby is doing, get to see him and know if all is well. With so much love and good wishes, I am confident we’ll have good news.
