Braveheart

Our own William Wallace

This morning it was a bit sad to see Peter get dressed and head off to work. With both little A and baby N he took an entire month off of work to spend some time at home bonding and helping out. However, this year 'we' decided (or someone decided--I'm still on the fence) that 'we' would save his vacation time for a summer trip back to Canada. With a friend's wedding and Peter's sister getting married, it is a good summer to return (two big events), but I'm still nervous about how I will manage with three children. I guess today will be a good test (although not really, b/c I am still very dependent on our helper to lift baby N when required, and to do anything that requires going up and down stairs).

Professional Pudding Painter

(she even has a bowl of pudding on the side for eating!)

Speaking of our helper, we have just given her a little raise, and thus ensured her happiness for the next year or so. We have also confirmed that she will be going home for a holiday in August, during Ramadan, and thus we will be back here during Ramadan. I have mixed feelings about this, as it will be seriously hot outside, but Peter will also be working "Ramadan hours," so he will leave home for work later and come home earlier (so, more 'family time'). The alternative, is that myself and my three children will spend August on our own in Canada. I know that many ex-pat families do this, but I am not interested in separating our family for a month (unless it is absolutely necessary).

We had a very nice weekend. As predicted none of our guests showed up on Friday (so we did some finger-painting--baby N's first time). On Saturday we were visited by Uncle Pete and his new friend Maia (a Goan lady from Southern California). Maia is here on a contract and seems to be considering whether this is a place where she would like to relocate her family. She seems to be a lovely lady and very knowledgeable about a great many things (which Peter tells me is a very 'Indian' trait). We had a long visit, and ordered delivery from India Palace for lunch.

'Iz-me' and 'Mini-iz-me'

NB S is settling in to our home. She is a lovely baby, and has even learned that diaper changes can be nice and pleasant experiences that are not to be confused with Chinese water torture. Everyone in our home adores her. I'm not sure who is MORE protective of her, little A or Phinn. Little A often sits and plays quietly around her, and the minute she makes a peep, it's a race between the big sister and the big (chocolate pomeranian) brother to get to her first. Little A makes sure that Phinn does not harass NB S by being overly affectionate. She has learned to say 'Phinn OFF' with a great deal of authority (and kindness). Baby N is still not overly interactive with the new baby, but considering his fine motor skills and limited ability to grasp the word 'gentle', this is preferable. Still, whenever NB S is presented to him, she never fails to bring a six-toothed smile to his face.

I need to take a minute and commend Phinn on his maturity. This is the first time we've brought a baby home (and it seems over the years we have brought many--not just our own, but our friends' babies who have come to visit as well), that Phinn has not gone 'crazy' and needed to stay outside of the home. When little A was born, we had to put him on meds to help him calm down, and he had to spend some time with our neighbours (Colin and Caroline--we miss you!!) so the meds could kick in. With baby N, even WITH the meds (which we introduced before bringing the baby home), Phinn was a panting, barking mess, and had to spend a few days with our helper in her room. This time I didn't bother with any meds and just figured he could spend some time in our helper's room, but it wasn't necessary. He was very excited to meet NB S, but there was no barking or panting. He came, he saw, he loved, and he left her alone. We still have to watch him as he will jump up on the sofa to see her (that's where she is sleeping most of the time), but as already mentioned, he is often countered by NB S's big sister.