Baby Galore!
So prepare yourselves because when I say Baby Galore...I am NOT kidding. The next few episodes will be for all those mommies in waiting, in mommying and in considering whether it's time to be a mommy for the first time or for the second...This is for all those beautiful bellies that surround me and the precious creatures that come out of them:
First and most importantly is the progress of Susanna and little Gerard. The time is getting nearer and her belly is, well, getting bigger. But she continues to look just as stunning and maintains her figure and grace quite well.
In celebration of this graceful mother-to-be, I decided to plan a little baby shower, American style to welcome Gerard to the world and to introduce this strange concept of baby food eating contests, blue everywhere and surprising the parents to be so much that the baby could quite possibly decide to come on that very day... The Catalans didn't quite understand why we were doing it before the baby is born (it is custom here to celebrate the birth after the baby comes, logically, but when have Americans ever been logical?). The great thing is that Catalans will never say no to good food, a party and drinking so here we go!
The week before, Susanna (the one who's not expecting...), Jenny and her precious little Lucas, Marta (who is expecting and yes there will be a test after this blog)and I (WHO IS NOT EXPECTING!)got together to finish our to do list, buy the necessary gifts that Su was still lacking and to plan the surprise. I got to learn an array of Catalan vocabulary for babies and laugh as I bought the gifts for the contests (wine and condoms of course!). We had a great time and I was excited to see that the girls got more and more excited as the party got rolling.
And then came the big day...I suddenly found my home invaded by strollers, babies, baby food and armor, and about 30 people in my living room waiting for the parents to be to arrive on the first hot day of the summer...just like any baby shower should be.
Needless to say, when Susanna and Sergi finally did arrive they were shocked, very shocked to find my living room full of their friends celebrating them. I feared that Susanna would go into labor and she reminded me that only I would be capable of making her cry, yet again, and surprising her.
I loved seeing the surprise on her face and I loved seeing all these people come together in my small hot living room. Of course we had baby food eating contests, guessing the size of her belly's circumference and guessing the date the doctor had given her. Surprisingly, the men were more into the games and the ones who walked away with the winning prizes! Men never cease to amaze me in these matters.
The little ones were everywhere and Olot was the star of the day as Susanna and Sergi gave it a try and handling a little one before their very own baby boy comes along (and I can tell you that I think they will be okay).
In the end, we were a merry group with full bellies and happiness. My first hosting of a baby shower went quite well and I was glad to see the Catalans play along with me and to see Susanna walk away with a basket full of useful goodies.
A week later, the mommies to be, organized a dinner and all but me was lacking a child or a belly with a child in womb, but they insisted that I join them and represent the single party. Although I didn't have much to share in terms of birthing, breast feeding and all the other sexy things that come along with being a parent, I joined in the fun and became the official photographer, documenting the event. Write this down, in the last 6 months, 9 friends, 9 of these women have either had a baby or will very soon have one...check out the bellies, from the largest being Susanna to the two latest announcements Irene and Sonia. I was flipping out and decided to avoid drinking the water in this country!
I have also decided to consider opening my own English school for toddlers, since with this gang I will be able to make a load of money and make sure that the Catalans speak better English then ever.
Then just a few weeks later, I went down to Tarragona, which I hadn't been in ages and celebrated yet another mommy to be, Idoia's great friend Ana. We laughed as we sipped on gin and tonics and watched the thunder storm from her gorgeous pool as she mopped away, barefoot and pregnant...and this is not a cliche. The greatest part was watching Santi, her friend sit around as she calmly mopped up the storm's remains. A classic moment of the misfortune of being a pregnant woman.
Later that night, of course, I enjoyed the company of the beautiful Idoia and Carles and opted for seriously not drinking the water. Although it's lovely seeing your friends create their families, I will stick to helping myself survive for the time being, since that alone is a job in itself...
And so this is for all the mommies out there, Congratulations! And may your children turn out to be the explorers and dreamers that this world needs more of and if you ever need an english speaking babysitter, you know who to call!
First and most importantly is the progress of Susanna and little Gerard. The time is getting nearer and her belly is, well, getting bigger. But she continues to look just as stunning and maintains her figure and grace quite well.
In celebration of this graceful mother-to-be, I decided to plan a little baby shower, American style to welcome Gerard to the world and to introduce this strange concept of baby food eating contests, blue everywhere and surprising the parents to be so much that the baby could quite possibly decide to come on that very day... The Catalans didn't quite understand why we were doing it before the baby is born (it is custom here to celebrate the birth after the baby comes, logically, but when have Americans ever been logical?). The great thing is that Catalans will never say no to good food, a party and drinking so here we go!
The week before, Susanna (the one who's not expecting...), Jenny and her precious little Lucas, Marta (who is expecting and yes there will be a test after this blog)and I (WHO IS NOT EXPECTING!)got together to finish our to do list, buy the necessary gifts that Su was still lacking and to plan the surprise. I got to learn an array of Catalan vocabulary for babies and laugh as I bought the gifts for the contests (wine and condoms of course!). We had a great time and I was excited to see that the girls got more and more excited as the party got rolling.
And then came the big day...I suddenly found my home invaded by strollers, babies, baby food and armor, and about 30 people in my living room waiting for the parents to be to arrive on the first hot day of the summer...just like any baby shower should be.
Needless to say, when Susanna and Sergi finally did arrive they were shocked, very shocked to find my living room full of their friends celebrating them. I feared that Susanna would go into labor and she reminded me that only I would be capable of making her cry, yet again, and surprising her.
I loved seeing the surprise on her face and I loved seeing all these people come together in my small hot living room. Of course we had baby food eating contests, guessing the size of her belly's circumference and guessing the date the doctor had given her. Surprisingly, the men were more into the games and the ones who walked away with the winning prizes! Men never cease to amaze me in these matters.
The little ones were everywhere and Olot was the star of the day as Susanna and Sergi gave it a try and handling a little one before their very own baby boy comes along (and I can tell you that I think they will be okay).
In the end, we were a merry group with full bellies and happiness. My first hosting of a baby shower went quite well and I was glad to see the Catalans play along with me and to see Susanna walk away with a basket full of useful goodies.
A week later, the mommies to be, organized a dinner and all but me was lacking a child or a belly with a child in womb, but they insisted that I join them and represent the single party. Although I didn't have much to share in terms of birthing, breast feeding and all the other sexy things that come along with being a parent, I joined in the fun and became the official photographer, documenting the event. Write this down, in the last 6 months, 9 friends, 9 of these women have either had a baby or will very soon have one...check out the bellies, from the largest being Susanna to the two latest announcements Irene and Sonia. I was flipping out and decided to avoid drinking the water in this country!
I have also decided to consider opening my own English school for toddlers, since with this gang I will be able to make a load of money and make sure that the Catalans speak better English then ever.
Then just a few weeks later, I went down to Tarragona, which I hadn't been in ages and celebrated yet another mommy to be, Idoia's great friend Ana. We laughed as we sipped on gin and tonics and watched the thunder storm from her gorgeous pool as she mopped away, barefoot and pregnant...and this is not a cliche. The greatest part was watching Santi, her friend sit around as she calmly mopped up the storm's remains. A classic moment of the misfortune of being a pregnant woman.
Later that night, of course, I enjoyed the company of the beautiful Idoia and Carles and opted for seriously not drinking the water. Although it's lovely seeing your friends create their families, I will stick to helping myself survive for the time being, since that alone is a job in itself...
And so this is for all the mommies out there, Congratulations! And may your children turn out to be the explorers and dreamers that this world needs more of and if you ever need an english speaking babysitter, you know who to call!
posted by Heidi Schmidt at 2:49 PM
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