Take a Number and Wait in Line

Wednesday we spent the entire day in Buenos Aires doing "tramites". And I mean we started at 7 am and didn't finish with the last appointment until 8pm. But we got it all done. Lucía is now a US citizen with a passport and social security number on their way. She also has an Argentine passport in process. Mario had bloodwork done, x-rays taken, and a medical review to demonstrate that he is acceptable health-wise to be admitted to the US.

In the middle of this hideously hot day, we had a couple of hours to kill while waiting for the lab results to be available and found this park. They lend out reclining chairs for free and have some sprinklers to get wet and cool down. Mario and Lucía joined all the 50+ year old sun bathers in the sprinklers and I laughed out loud at the Argentine addiction to "taking sun". We were the only ones who intentionally sat in the shade!!

And Lucía had her best day yet - happy all day and no problem taking naps while waiting in embassies, doctors offices, walking, etc. I think she just likes to be out of the house!

I was playing with the rapid shot feature on my camera, but I spared you and only included here 3 of the 30+ pictures I took.

The Forth Trimester

Yesterday Lucía completed three months of life. She weighs 13 lbs 12 oz. and is 24 inches long.
She has started smiling and cooing and sometimes even laughing, and it's magical to hear.
We celebrated by getting out some new (recycled from Gabe) toys to stimulate her. Gabe is highly amused by her, loves to be next to her and regularly tells me "mom, she's moving!!!" He also tells me she can't do some of the things he does because she's "muy little". Her first three months have not been so easy. She cries an average of 5-6 hours a day. But because she doesn't have a fever and gains weight, it's all classified as "colic". I hate the word colic.

On Monday the ped finally gave her an antacid that seems to be helping. She's down to only about 2 hours a day of crying. a relief.My baby update email yesterday said she should be able to start sitting up with the support of pillows. WHAT?? I'm not even going to try. I don't even check to see if she can lift her head, because why would I look for signs of growth?? She's still my newborn, and I am so.not.ready for that to change. I love the way she curls up next to me, how she holds my finger when she's nursing, and when she's done eating she just nuzzles her head into me. I am so in love with this little baby girl.

Chile

Don't judge a book by its cover - or a vacation by its first 24 hours, because ours went something like this:

Start out 4 hour drive to airport with the news that the freeway has flooded and is closed, we'll have to find an alternative route. Freeway opened - but I got the airport wrong and when we arrived we discovered we had to drive to the other airport in Buenos Aires. Flight delayed, fear of missing connecting flight. Hours traveling, plane runs out of food to sell one row in front of us. Finally arrive in Santiago with 2 exhausted children and two starving adults with 5 minutes to get rental car before office closes for the night. Customs agent is AMAZINGLY SLOW, I'm sure it's intentional and Mario is trying to prevent me from fighting with her and going to jail. Finally make it through, and car rental agency DOES NOT EXIST. Seriously, no one has ever heard of them, phone calls go unanswered. Decide to take taxi to hotel and deal with it in the morning. In the morning hotel finds us a new car rental, but at twice the price. We call all phone numbers in Chile and the US for original car company as a last ditch effort, and then call to confirm rental offered by hotel, but it's too late, no more cars. Finally get a car for an even higher price, and set out for Viña del Mar. Arrive fine, but when we try to use the car later that day, it won't start. We spend the rest of the day on foot and they bring us a new car the next day.

After that the trip was great, but there were enough stress-causing situations piled on top of each other for Mario to swear off traveling for good. (I don't swear off traveling, I just swear.) Below is the pictoral record.

Gabe totally occupied for all 4 hours of the car ride with his new Mr. Potato Head.

Gabe and Tomas with the funnest game ever - attack mom with water guns!

Us at Isla Negra - one of Pablo Nerudas three homes. It was meant to look like a ship, and the inside has all super small, short passageways and doors because it's okay to be eccentric when you're rich and famous.

Mario and Gabe on the little boat tour we took in the bay of Valparaiso. I sat inside to keep Lucia out of the sun and the captain told me all about the privitization of the ports, the upcoming presidential elections, and the ongoing disputes with Peru and Bolivia that force them to maintain the best navy in Latin America. It was fascinating.

Cool random wall art in Valparaiso.

130 year old "elevators" to transport people up and down the hills of Valparaiso.

on top of one of the hills.

Valparaiso feels like it hasn't changed in 100 years. There is nothing new or modern. I felt like I was experiencing exactly the place Isabelle Allende describes in her books. Pablo Neruda said he had a house there b/c it is a place that lends itself to nostalgia and imagination.

the rocky coast of Viña.

early morning before the beaches fill up.

Chile loves American chain restaurants, and I love things that taste like home!

first day in the sun.

Gabe LOVED playing in the waves, even though the water was freezing.

But at first he was hesitant to even walk down to the sand.

Los Dominicos - a church in Santiago with the best artists' market I've ever been to. We loved Santiago - a fantastic city.

Outside the temple in Santiago.

Santa Cruz, Chile. Chile is California, and this is Napa.

Gabe totally wiped out on our bus tour of Santaigo.Mario's brother is the mission president in Rancagua, Chile. One morning I made a big American breakfast for the family and the missionaries that work in the office with Esteban.

Gabe likes to be held, A LOT. When Mario and I refuse, he goes to "San-TAY-o", or his cousin Santiago, who was amazingly sweet with him.

flying over the Andes.

Cia did a lot of sleeping in car seat and stroller.

Estela, Esteban and boys were GREAT. We had an amazing time with them.

Christmas For Archives

With the trip to Chile coming right on the heels of Christmas, I never posted anything about Christmas itself. It was a particularly fun year because it was the first year Gabe really "got it". We have the Little People Nativity Set and he played with it every single day. He could tell you that Christmas is the birthday of Jesus, that Jesus' mother is Mary and he was born in Bethlehem (all in Spanish, not English). He also was intrigued by Papa NU-el (how he pronounced it) and for weeks after Christmas would point to the sky and say "Alli esta!" (there he is).
We spent Christmas Eve with Paco, Alicia and Pilar in Santa Fe where Alicia and Nora had produced and beautiful atmosphere and the food was very tasty.

Gabe was enthralled and afraid all at the same time of the tiny puppy Pilar got.
Lucía spent a good part of Christmas day in the hammock while the rest of us were in the pool.

Gabe and Pilar singing from the hymn book together.