July Happenings

The month isn't quite over yet, but I don't anticipate anything too exciting happening in the next week.

Tiago eats a lot more than he used to.  And makes a big mess.  He loves dropping his food on the floor to let us know he's done.  I think this day we were trying to feed him sweet potatoes, or carrots.  Whatever it was, he hated it.  

For the long 4th of July weekend we decided to go camping at the same nearby place that we went to in May.  Originally we were going to camp for two nights, but it turns out Colombia was playing in the World Cup on the night of the 4th, so being disconnected in a campground wasn't an option.  The one thing that always excites me about camping is the food.  We had hawaiian hamburgers with pineapple and avacado.  And hawaiian sweet rolls.  yumm.  I should cook like that more often.  

Beside the sleep issues (ie: going to bed late because the sun was still up and waking up early because the sun came up) Tiago was a champ on this adventure.  Similar to when we first put him in sand and he didn't move because he hated the feel of it, he wasn't a big fan of the grass.  In fact, the whole first day, every time he was on the grass, he'd hold his whole body weight up so he didn't make contact.  He held the position below for at least 30 seconds.  I was impressed. 

And fiiiiiiinaally once Tiago was asleep we had s'mores.  German camping is lame because you can't have open fires, so our little grill had to fill in.  But the German chocolate was a nice addition.  

Before going home on Friday we enjoyed the beautiful pools they have at the campground.  One was especially perfect for little kids; Tiago loved it.  

This wasn't a complete pinterest fail, because they did turn out kind of cute for the 4th of July.  But the red was more pink, and the swirl was about a quarter of what it should have been.  But I just won't show a comparison picture and these will be more impressive.  

One night we happened to have a very Colombian dinner, and Hyrum happened to have on a fake Colombia tattoo for the World Cup.  

Santiago is very active, and likes to explore.  One Sunday during Sacrament meeting he was crawling around the piano, and fell and banged up his face on the piano leg.  It was the kind of howl that was completely silent while I hurried from the front row of the chapel, and the second I stepped outside it came out loud and clear.  Ouch.  I wish I could say it was his last big wound, but he's getting good at that now that he can climb up on things. 

 So much hair on the back of his head!

Here are the pictures Hyrum took when I hurt my back and was trying to wiggle my way down the stairs.

And this is what the kitchen looked like when Hyrum finally got home.  Tiago really enjoyed being able to trash the place without me being able to stop him.  

More pictures of Tiago at the washing machine.  Without being able to move for a few days, laundry really started to back up.  Last Monday I think I did 8 or 9 loads of laundry.  It took about 12 hours.

Fortunately I can lock the buttons on the washer so Tiago doesn't turn it off.  

Last Saturday we had a whirlwind day.  I feel like most of the Saturdays when we stay close to home we don't do much.  But since we haven't been doing as much traveling I think we had the energy to do more.  I went to the flea market in the morning with some friends.  One of the things I bought was a HUGE picture frame.  I'm still trying to decide what to do with it (ie: transform it into something else.)  But we have a large wall in our entry way that needs some help, so this could fill the space well.  

After, we all went to the pool because it's been so hot.  I think it was our first really hot week, where we had the fans running 24/7.  The Vilseck pool has a nice kiddie pool and Tiago likes to just crawl around like it's his own huge bathtub.  

And the grand finale was going on a date to Amberg... because Indian food was sounding really good to me!  We went there last year right before Hyrum deployed, and it's delicious.  I never make Indian food at home, so it's a nice change once in a while.  It seems more worthwhile than getting pasta or chicken somewhere, since I eat that all the time. 

June Happenings

The first part of June we were in Greece, and after that Hyrum was in Brazil.  The rest of the month was mostly spent watching soccer and eating good food.  Here's a look at what we were up to.  

First, Hyrum had to do something about his facial hair after Brazil.  It's a rare occasion that he doesn't shave, so he was enjoying it while he was on leave.

While Hyrum was deployed, he recorded a few videos of him reading books to Tiago.  I played them for Tiago, but he was always too little to even care.  One day I turned it on hoping to distract him, and he actually seemed to 'get it'.  He started laughing hysterically at some of the things Hyrum said, and ironically he ended up laughing at all the funny parts.  I think he's been around Hyrum enough now to know his mannerisms and know when he's trying to be funny.  And on that note, Hyrum loves having someone around that thinks his jokes are funny (on video, and in person.)

Now that Tiago is mobile, he gets into everything.  He loves throwing tupperware all over the kitchen.  Once that's a mess, he usually heads for the pots and pans.   (By mid-June he was crawling normal, not just dragging himself along.)

He also improved his standing skills, and fortunately once it wasn't such a novelty he stopped doing it every time he woke up at night.  

His favorite place to crawl to in the house is the washing machine.  I think this was one night before he took a bath.  Hyrum had the laptop in the bathroom so he could watch the soccer game while he was bathing Tiago.  That's normal multi-tasking, right?  

Tiago had his own Colombia onesie to wear.  And the flag was always flying at our house when Colombia was playing. 

That was one of many soccer games going on around here.  My sister actually asked me how much of the World Cup Hyrum watched, and I told her he'd probably be offended by that question.  Missing a game wasn't even an option... even if it meant he had to stay up til the wee hours of the morning, then wake up at 5 am for PT.  During Colombia's game against Uruguay, I actually thought Hyrum was going to cry when Colombia scored.  I was so busy watching his celebration that I didn't take any pictures, but here he is after the excitement wore down a bit.

My sister also asked if this was the first World Cup I'd experienced with Hyrum.  I reminded her that right after we got married, Hyrum and his friends were trying to find out the score for the game they missed while at the wedding ceremony... and then how we watched every soccer game that happened during our honeymoon.  So it came as no surprise that we spent our anniversary this year celebrating our marriage with Chinese food, then watching soccer.  Regardless of the soccer, it was fun to spend time together.  We've spent enough anniversaries apart that I can appreciate when we're together.  And for fun, we calculated how much of our 4 years of marriage we've spent apart, and it's about 32%!!  Thank you, Army.  I'm hoping this coming year will bring that number down a bit. 

The game going on was USA vs Germany.  Our town did a public showing at the castle/fortress, Burg Dagestein.  It was a lot of Americans from the base, mixed with a bunch of Germans, and a lot of bratwurst and beer.  Unfortunately, USA lost, but fortunately it didn't matter because they still advanced.  

Tiago was cute enough that he made it into the German newspaper!  Our landlord gave us this copy.  It included a few quotes from Hyrum, including who he thought would go to the final.  

Hyrun (his name always gets messed up) Suarez from Utah is a huge futbol fan.  And his son is too, apparently.  

   And this was from my own camera. 

Once Colombia got out in the 3rd round, we were happy to see Germany make it to the end.  Well, Hyrum was technically cheering for Argentina, but happy with the outcome nonetheless.  There was definitely celebrating going on with their final win, including a lot of fog horns and cars honking, but pretty minimal compared to what you'd see in a big city.  Vilseck, after all, isn't a huge metropolis. 

 

A few more pictures of Tiago to wrap up the month. 

This never happens.  Except sometimes in the first 30 seconds after he wakes up from a nap.  So any time he decides to half-cuddle it's worth pulling out the camera for.  

Santiago: 10 months!

Look who turned 10-months-old on the day of the World Cup final??  A coincidence like that would only be marked with Hyrum as your dad...

Santiago hit three huge milestones in the last month.  At 9.5 months he advanced from pushing himself around the house to the more respectable crawling.  He loves to explore the house now, if I blink he usually ends up by the washing machine or printer.

He also stands up.  It started out shaky--he'd stand and then crash backwards and cry.  Now he gets up and down very comfortably but hasn't even attempted to stand alone or walk.  I think he's just enjoying this new skill.

And last but not least, my favorite milestone:  he sleeps through the night!  Consistently!  I really felt like this day would never come.  I feed him before I go to bed, but he almost always sleeps at least 8 hours after that before waking up for the day. That makes me so happy.

Naptime has improved drastically, too.  Usually two naps, 1.5 hrs each.  But that's a topic for another day.

In short, I feel like this is kind of a sweet spot in babyhood.  Because what's better than a well-rested baby and a well-rested mother?  And he's so fun.

He's getting a little bit chubbier.  We started formula-feeding him in the last month (another topic for another day), and I think that's fattening him up.  He finally has a few rolls on his legs.

It doesn't seem like too far away that he'll be eating birthday cake and wobbling around on his own two feet.  I think he already has a sweet tooth, which isn't a surprise since he clearly takes after me.

He hasn't started saying any words, and I can hardly imagine him talking. I still feel like when I talk to him he's clueless that those noises mean anything.  "Tiago, stop that!" doesn't even rattle him.  He just looks at me and keeps on going.  Maybe that's just him taking after me some more?

I can't leave out how much he laughs.  Mostly at Hyrum and his games.  I have a few videos I need to upload because they're really cute. Speaking of videos, Santiago learned how to dance!  We turned on music and moved our arms around, and he copied us.  Now when the music comes on he'll start bouncing on his legs (if he's standing) or rocking his torso (if he's sitting.)  Too cute!  I hope the good times continue.

Home from the hospital

I've avoided the Emergency Room for the last 28 years.  Unless you count one time that I went with dessert to visit my sister during her shift at work.

Then yesterday morning I noticed a banana stuck to Tiago's pants after breakfast, so I bent down to get it and the rest of the day was a series of misfortunate events.  Half-way through my 'bend' something gave out in my lower back and I went tumbling backwards.  I laid on the floor for a minute, thinking what an inconvenience this was.  I was a helpless bystander as that banana got pushed into the carpet.  Oh well?

Then things got worse.  I watched Tiago crawl into the kitchen.  Then onto the dishwasher which was inconveniently open.  He doesn't know how to 'get down' so I had images flash through my mind of him throwing himself off and hitting his head.

I tried to stand.  It worked, for about 4 seconds until it just didn't work, and I found myself crashing to the ground.  My back simply wouldn't work.  And it's not until your back feels like a floppy spaghetti noodle that you realize that almost every action involves your back muscles.  Almost.  I quickly (out of necessity) discovered that if I laid on my stomach I could pull myself along the floor with my arms.  I saved the baby from the dishwasher, and really regretted that I hadn't cleaned my floor in a week.

I laid on the kitchen floor for 20 minutes, staring at the bottle of Tylenol on the top shelf of my opened cupboard.  Tiago was throwing every piece of Tupperware I owned all over the kitchen, and I didn't really mind; he was quiet.  (Although he really needed a diaper change.  Figuring out how to change his diaper was my second priority after getting to that Tylenol.)

After several failed attempts, I twisted my body so most of my weight was on the counter top and not my back.  I'm positive I looked like Quasimodo. But I grabbed the medicine before wreathing to the floor in pain.  When I kicked the fridge door open to get my water bottle I was pretty disgusted to see it on the top shelf.

I formed a brilliant plan in my head.  I was going to prepare a bottle for Tiago, crawl into his room and hope he would follow me, change his diaper, feed him, and have him take a nap on the floor.  Once he was asleep I would figure out what to do about my back.

I started crawling.  I dragged myself and a bottle through the dining room, and into the entryway where I saw my cell phone.  At that point I thought I'd call Hyrum just to see what he was up to, because if he was free, maybe he could come change that diaper and lift Tiago into the crib.

"Hello.  What are you doing?  Uhm, I've been laying on the floor for the last hour unable to move..."

He hurried home, thinking he was going to find a paralyzed wife, but instead, he just found me laying behind the front door pathetically, while Tiago played with the toilet bowl brush.  Normally that's a no-go, but I guess he was smart enough to know he could get away with it.

Once Tiago was asleep we evaluated our options.  The health clinic on post wouldn't see me, so my only option for medicine or a diagnosis was the Emergency Room (at the German hospital where Tiago was born.)  I could either make it down to the car on my own, or call an ambulance.  I thought initially that Hyrum would be able to carry me down, but every time he tried lifting me I had horrible spasms in my back that made me want to lay down in a neutral position and never move.  I tried getting into a rolling chair, but couldn't even get into a kneeling position.  I was worthless.

But I also couldn't stand the thought of an ambulance coming, so I told Hyrum I'd drag myself downstairs.  He did some work while Tiago napped, then I started my long trek down 1.5 flights of stairs.  It sounds crazy, but it honestly was less painful to do it on my own.  It probably took 45 minutes.  And of course my downstairs neighbors came out just as I was making it to the bottom.  I waited and waited for them to leave, because it was kind of embarrassing to literally drag myself.  I couldn't explain the problem because of the language barrier, and they were horrified just seeing what I was doing.  I wanted to say, "This would be a little less painful if you'd just go inside!"  But I eventually swallowed my pride and just dragged myself with my arms down the walkway to the car.

[There are pictures on the camera of me going down the stairs because Hyrum thought it looked pretty funny. I'll have to update this later.]

At 2:30, more than 5 hours after my 'accident', I arrived at the emergency room.  My experience at the hospital was frustrating overall, but I was pleasantly surprised when they took me right into a room and started drawing blood and asking my symptoms.  None of the nurses were comfortable with English, so they just didn't say anything.  They hooked me up to a tube and walked away.  (Turns out it was medicine, but really?? Not a word??)

The next several hours involved being wheeled around on my hospital bed, waiting in random hallways for up to an hour, seeing random doctors, and maybe most importantly getting a urinary catheter.  Until you need one, they'd never cross your mind.  But without going into detail, they're kind of a lifesaver.  Moving on...

I was frustrated that no one was telling me anything, and frustrated that no one seemed to understand what pain I was in.  (On a scale of 1-10, it was a 10.  Comparable to childbirth contractions.)  Multiple times, people brought in wheelchairs and asked me to get in!  I wanted to hit them.  While laying down I couldn't even lift my legs more than an inch.

They asked me if I wanted to stay the night or go home.  I tried to nicely explain that I live on the second floor and don't physically have a way to sit up, not to mention walk up stairs.  Or even get off the bed for a start.  So they found me a room with two old German ladies who didn't speak any English.  They were up at 6 this morning chatting, and that continued on most of the day.

The one saving grace of my hospital visit was that right as I was trying to go to sleep, they brought in a medicine labeled NaCl.  (Although I was envisioning getting vicodin, percocet, or any of the other really strong pain meds that I know nothing about but hear people talk about so they must be strong, most of the stuff they were leaking into my veins was weak sauce.)  But as soon as that NaCl bottle started dripping in, I recognized it as one of the drugs I got during my labor contractions.  It feels like little balls of cool metal dissolving throughout your body.  I got dizzy, and my fingers felt tingly, and I thought, "If this is what it feels like to get high, I think I like it."  I dozed off into a blissful sleep.  (I'm sure the bottle contained more than sodium and chloride, but since the nurses weren't big into sharing information, I'd be the last one to know what I was getting.)

This morning I finally saw a doctor.  They ruled out herniated disks and fractures, and told me it must just be a muscular problem.  They mentioned a physical therapist coming, but that never happened.  I said, "If I'm just going to lay here all day with medicine, I could do that from home.  Is there any reason for me to stay?"  They said no.  So I waited several hours hoping for a follow up or physical therapist, or 'next instructions' and eventually gave up and asked if I could go home.  If I leaned against something to help hold my weight I could kind of stand, so I had a little confidence I could make it up our stairs.

I had a really nice friend who quickly volunteered to watch Tiago for us today while Hyrum was at work.  It worked out so well.  I wish I could say my 'day off' was relaxing and enjoyable, but it was mostly just very painful and boring.  I had no internet, no tv, no computer.  Just a book I'd grabbed from home that wasn't even that entertaining and two German roommates talking all afternoon.

Before Hyrum picked me up, a nurse brought in my 'discharge papers' to take to the Army Health Clinic.  She said, 'Okay, you are clear to leave.  Goodbye!'  I am convinced that no one in that building communicated with anyone, because there was no way I could walk out of the hospital.  So I asked for a wheelchair, and she had no clue what I was talking about.  I eventually acted it out for her and she brought me one.  One of the many times that I had a language barrier.  I think the labor/delivery section of the hospital has all the English speaking nurses because neurology had no one.

Hyrum picked me up, we came home and got Tiago in bed, and then he hurried off (unfortunately) to an Army event that he couldn't get out of.  Hopefully that explains why I just typed this entire novel: I really haven't talked to anyone in two days!  I'm going a little stir crazy, and can't get up from the couch.

I'm still not sure how serious this problem is.  I keep hoping that in a few days I'll wake up and it will just feel better, and I'll keep training for the half-marathon like usual. This past Monday I ran my longest distance yet-[9 miles!  I can brag, it's my blog after all] and felt relatively good.  I just ordered expensive running shoes online and  I was starting to feel like 13 miles was within my reach, but this could be a huge setback (or game ender?  I hope not!)

Maybe the only productive thought that I had during my long boring day was in regards to charity.  I've been studying that topic lately and thinking about how I can be more charitable.  It doesn't come naturally to me.  I think I'm too quick to judge people's intentions if I think they come across as needy (yes, I realize that's bad) and because of that I don't like asking people for help.  I don't want to come across as needy.  That's why I laid on my kitchen floor for an hour before even calling my husband who was at work, surely doing more important things.  However, being in the hospital, and having to rely on other people for help, has humbled me.  Last night when I started realizing how seriously I was hurt, I knew exactly who I could call for help.  I hope I can be that kind of person to others in need.  I'm still not sure how to get there, but maybe I'll figure it out with the many hours I have ahead of me laying flat on my back.  

Brazil 2014: World Cup PART I

On June 10th, after just a night of recovering from our Greece trip, I dropped Hyrum off at the Vilseck train station.  He was the happiest guy on the planet-- headed to Brazil to fulfil his life-long dream of watching Colombia play in the World Cup.  [In this previous post I explained his long road to Brazil, and why I stayed home.]

For the next 10 days he breathed soccer.  Except he recently informed me that in our house we're not allowed to call it soccer.  So he breathed futbol.

He flew from Nuremberg to Paris, and then had the long cross-Atlantic flight to Sao Paulo.  When he explained to me what the flight was like, it sounded like a party bus, only 30,000 ft in the air.  It was completely packed with futbol fans headed to watch the games, everyone wearing their team's jersey and equally excited as Hyrum.  In a big group of Americans it's hard for Hyrum to find people to talk futbol with, so I think he was in heaven.  He said at one point he got up to stretch, and ran into a group of guys in the aisle.  They talked for almost 2 hours about... I couldn't tell you... whatever it is they actually talk about when they "talk futbol".  Unlike a normal flight, where it's relatively quiet, the plane was buzzing with excitement the entire time.

While he was boarding, he saw a famous player from the France's champion team at the 1998 World Cup, Christian Karembeu.  [I'm told that if you know anything about soccer, you'd know him.  I wouldn't have even blinked twice if I saw him.]  He tried to take a picture of him from afar, but the player boarded too quickly.

But as Hyrum was going to take his seat, he passed the player and was able to get a picture.  So that's one happy Hyrum, and he hadn't even touched foot in Brazil yet.

So after the party bus airplane, he took one last flight from Sao Paulo to Brasilia.  It seems like the airports there weren't very well equipped to handle the huge increase in passengers, so things were slow and confusing, but eventually he made it.  He had a day to explore, and pick up his long-awaited game tickets, and then took a night bus to Belo Horizonte (where Colombia's first game would be). 

I didn't realize until Hyrum went there and told me about it, but Brasilia wasn't even founded until 1960 because they wanted to build a more central capital.  The city was designed then built all at once, giving it a cityscape pretty unique from other big cities.  The architecture is modern, and there is a lot of open space with parks.  Brasilia has the highest GDP in the country because it's predominantly government employees with fairly steady jobs.  

^^Hyrum made random friends everywhere he went.  

^^Brasilia's unique architecture: the top right is a church, and the bottom left is the national library.

^^bottom center is the supreme court building, along with some other government buildings. 

^^Of course he found a place to watch soccer games throughout the day. 

       
Although he was initially going to do this trip solo, a few months ago one of his good friends from Colombia, Manuel, (who now lives in Utah) decided that he was also going with a couple of friends.  So Hyrum was able to meet up with them in Belo Horizonte and travel with them the rest of the trip.  It worked out great.  They were way more fun for Hyrum to be with than I ever could have been.  

On the bus ride into Belo Horizonte he passed through a lot of favelas, making him nervous about where his hotel was going to be.  Incredibly, a lot of the stadiums were built in pretty bad areas.  They 'cleaned up' the neighborhoods, but you can only imagine what will happen after the summer's events.  In Manaus and Cuiaba, they built stadiums where no futbol teams actually play! They will probably never be used again.

A few sights around Belo Horizonte before getting to any soccer games.

Hyrum even made friends with a homeless guy,who kindly gave him his Brazil flag.  The sport really does bring people together!

Up next: Colombia vs Greece and a lot of crazy Colombians