omigod! omigod!
what lovely, adorable people you all are! consider yourselves all hugged and kissed!
explaination before i hyperventilate...
paul arrived home from work today with five packages of books for us! i wasn't sure that my appeal in an earlier blog for books to read with percy would amount to much. how horrible of me to under-estimate you all so badly!
we are now spoiled for choice! yippee!
this couldn't have come at a better time as today has been an absolute shit with percy. she has slept less than 2 hours since 6:45 this morning and i was feeling very down. this has lifted my spirits greatly and i feel sure she'll sleep tonite.
love to all, i'm off to read to my bubba!!
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Civilisation
tomorrow percy and i fly to the netherlands to stay with robyn and phillip for nearly four weeks. it will be so nice to be back in civilisation. of course i'll miss paul like you wouldn't believe. i suppose percy will too. tho it's hard to tell what goes on in her head. paul has a ticket booked to visit us for a long weekend in august.
i'm not looking forward to travelling alone with percy but there's nothing else for it. i make our total trip time nine hours, made up of three hours getting to the airport and checking in and boarding, four hours flight time (stop in vienna) and two hours getting out of the airport and from amsterdam to rob and phil's home.
anyways, this post was to say 'see you later'. i don't think i'll have time to post again before we leave and hopefully life will be too much fun in the western world to leave me time to post. then again phil is at work and rob is studying so i might have plenty of time.
thanx for sharing the journey so far. i've got a naughty miss who won't sleep to feed and then i'll look at our packing some more. cheerio.
i'm not looking forward to travelling alone with percy but there's nothing else for it. i make our total trip time nine hours, made up of three hours getting to the airport and checking in and boarding, four hours flight time (stop in vienna) and two hours getting out of the airport and from amsterdam to rob and phil's home.
anyways, this post was to say 'see you later'. i don't think i'll have time to post again before we leave and hopefully life will be too much fun in the western world to leave me time to post. then again phil is at work and rob is studying so i might have plenty of time.
thanx for sharing the journey so far. i've got a naughty miss who won't sleep to feed and then i'll look at our packing some more. cheerio.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
2nd impressions.... expanded
here i go again. remember i'm writing this in hind sight. i'll try to be fair to what i was thinking at the time...
"aren't those skirts short!" -not a question, just a statement of fact.
"aren't those tops tight!" -see above
"aren't those heels high!" -above again.
"is absolutely everyone smoking?" -maybe a question
"is that alcoholic?" -finally a question. kiev, and perhaps all of ukraine, has the charming opportunity to buy a drink from these mini-tankers that sit on the footpaths dispensing a mildly alcoholic beverage into plastic cups. i'll try to take a photo of one and post it soon. come to think of it, that's probably why people can bear to live here; they're all mildly tanked all of the time. but i get ahead of myself.
being ex-soviet no-one appears to own the outside spaces. consequently they are quite unmanaged. the exterior of the soviet era buildings are falling apart. quite literally, a large portion of tile has fallen off the exterior of our building. must get a photo of this too. from my experience the tile is cosmetic only so no worry as to the structure of the building. which brings me to an odd juxtaposition. if no-one owns the outsides and no-one cares why have some buildings been clad in tiles or fake marble or had fake concrete columns attached to the doorways? perhaps someone does care after all.
the spaces between apartment buildings are public space. there are no fences restricting access. this is a little different for houses that have private open space about them, but there are so few houses it hardly counts. if a road has not been constructed between the buildings an informal path will have been formed by people walking across the desire lines they choose. because of the low incomes people generally get about by metro (train), trolley bus (a sort of tram) and walking. because of the high density living, there's a lot of people choosing the same paths. i found this quite egalitarian. to enter the metro costs 50 kopeks, equal to 12 cents aussie. for this you can ride all day to any destination. once you leave you have to buy another 50 kopek token to re-enter. apparently since independance approximately ten years ago, the cost has risen from 5 kopeks. so in percentage terms it's a huge increase but can you imagine cityrail giving relatively unlimited travel for 12 cents?!
the public spaces are covered in greenery, whether it be the ever present chestnut, or as paul remembers from his childhood, conker trees to berry bushes and plain weeds. which presents the city as very green and pretty. which is useful in hiding the butt ugly buildings! these spaces are also generously provided with benches and children's play equipment. which makes sense if everyone is living in a tiny apartment like us (or worse) the public space is vitally important as socialising, entertaining, learning and interactive space. go read jane jacobs.
we are fortunate in the level our apartment is on. first floor. meaning the view out our windows is directly into the foilage of the trees. one floor down and street level is dismal, too many floors too high and you're above the trees and have to look at the buildings. of course, rob and phil pointed out when they were visiting that the trees will lose their foilage come autumn and we'll be stuck with bare branches and reality. thanx guys!
reality is also the sexual politics of the population. and my incredulity at the fashions of the women. something akin to 50s attitudes are prevalent. women are ornaments that serve a purpose in the home. okay, anyone alive in the 50s is allowed to correct me, with examples and scientific argument. otherwise my generalisation stands!
the short skirts, plunging necklines, tight, tight clothes and stilleto heels are worn by just about every woman between the ages of 16 and 40. i did a mental run thru of the clothes i had brought- breast feeding tops, loose fit jeans and pants, volleys, hiking boots, flat sandals... i just wasn't going to fit in. having said that, i don't want to. you've all heard of russian mail order brides. well a good portion of them are ukrainian. the style of dressing is to attract a wealthy mate who will take you out of the country, or at least out of the poverty you live in. you can hardly blame the girls. who wants to live with your parents in a one room apartment, going to a crap job, with crap pay for your entire life?
it's just unfortunate that the women can't work their way out of their situation on their own merit. as far as i can tell there is limited opportunity for women in their career choices and certainly if they do marry and in particular have children they are consigned to home and hearth. which is perfectly fine if you choose that option. if no other options are available you haven't really made a choice, have you? i'm convinced that all the males at paul's work and most of the women, find it very baffling that he wants to come home in the evening as early as he can to play with his daughter, to bath her, to spell me and to be involved in her life. after all that's my job, his is solely to provide the sperm and then the income. it's hard to describe how infuriating this attitude is until you experience it. when we want to go home at 8 or 9 or 10 in the evening because percy has cracked the shits and we are exhausted it is my fault for bringing the baby in the first place- haven't i heard of nannies? and doubly my bad child rearing because i should be able to do this alone and not have to involve my husband. perhaps this attitude exists in australia too, i've never encountered it.
after visiting the down town area and some of the local tourist attractions i decided it is quite a nice city with interesting architecture and an involved and twisting history. let's make the most of it and have a good time. we're going to try to get around a bit of eastern europe too so that makes it worthwhile. i want to go to st petersburg and see the winter palace and the hermitage. odessa and potemkins steps, my family's long, long ago home country capital city- vilnius, lithuania and the hagia sophia in istanbul. we also intend to get to paris and visit robyn and phillip in the netherlands. it probably doesn't sound like a big list to intrepid travellers but i challenge you to add a baby into the mix and paul's work obligations and still get around to it all.
so it's challenging but far from impossible. it'll be fun- you'll see!
"aren't those skirts short!" -not a question, just a statement of fact.
"aren't those tops tight!" -see above
"aren't those heels high!" -above again.
"is absolutely everyone smoking?" -maybe a question
"is that alcoholic?" -finally a question. kiev, and perhaps all of ukraine, has the charming opportunity to buy a drink from these mini-tankers that sit on the footpaths dispensing a mildly alcoholic beverage into plastic cups. i'll try to take a photo of one and post it soon. come to think of it, that's probably why people can bear to live here; they're all mildly tanked all of the time. but i get ahead of myself.
being ex-soviet no-one appears to own the outside spaces. consequently they are quite unmanaged. the exterior of the soviet era buildings are falling apart. quite literally, a large portion of tile has fallen off the exterior of our building. must get a photo of this too. from my experience the tile is cosmetic only so no worry as to the structure of the building. which brings me to an odd juxtaposition. if no-one owns the outsides and no-one cares why have some buildings been clad in tiles or fake marble or had fake concrete columns attached to the doorways? perhaps someone does care after all.
the spaces between apartment buildings are public space. there are no fences restricting access. this is a little different for houses that have private open space about them, but there are so few houses it hardly counts. if a road has not been constructed between the buildings an informal path will have been formed by people walking across the desire lines they choose. because of the low incomes people generally get about by metro (train), trolley bus (a sort of tram) and walking. because of the high density living, there's a lot of people choosing the same paths. i found this quite egalitarian. to enter the metro costs 50 kopeks, equal to 12 cents aussie. for this you can ride all day to any destination. once you leave you have to buy another 50 kopek token to re-enter. apparently since independance approximately ten years ago, the cost has risen from 5 kopeks. so in percentage terms it's a huge increase but can you imagine cityrail giving relatively unlimited travel for 12 cents?!
the public spaces are covered in greenery, whether it be the ever present chestnut, or as paul remembers from his childhood, conker trees to berry bushes and plain weeds. which presents the city as very green and pretty. which is useful in hiding the butt ugly buildings! these spaces are also generously provided with benches and children's play equipment. which makes sense if everyone is living in a tiny apartment like us (or worse) the public space is vitally important as socialising, entertaining, learning and interactive space. go read jane jacobs.
we are fortunate in the level our apartment is on. first floor. meaning the view out our windows is directly into the foilage of the trees. one floor down and street level is dismal, too many floors too high and you're above the trees and have to look at the buildings. of course, rob and phil pointed out when they were visiting that the trees will lose their foilage come autumn and we'll be stuck with bare branches and reality. thanx guys!
reality is also the sexual politics of the population. and my incredulity at the fashions of the women. something akin to 50s attitudes are prevalent. women are ornaments that serve a purpose in the home. okay, anyone alive in the 50s is allowed to correct me, with examples and scientific argument. otherwise my generalisation stands!
the short skirts, plunging necklines, tight, tight clothes and stilleto heels are worn by just about every woman between the ages of 16 and 40. i did a mental run thru of the clothes i had brought- breast feeding tops, loose fit jeans and pants, volleys, hiking boots, flat sandals... i just wasn't going to fit in. having said that, i don't want to. you've all heard of russian mail order brides. well a good portion of them are ukrainian. the style of dressing is to attract a wealthy mate who will take you out of the country, or at least out of the poverty you live in. you can hardly blame the girls. who wants to live with your parents in a one room apartment, going to a crap job, with crap pay for your entire life?
it's just unfortunate that the women can't work their way out of their situation on their own merit. as far as i can tell there is limited opportunity for women in their career choices and certainly if they do marry and in particular have children they are consigned to home and hearth. which is perfectly fine if you choose that option. if no other options are available you haven't really made a choice, have you? i'm convinced that all the males at paul's work and most of the women, find it very baffling that he wants to come home in the evening as early as he can to play with his daughter, to bath her, to spell me and to be involved in her life. after all that's my job, his is solely to provide the sperm and then the income. it's hard to describe how infuriating this attitude is until you experience it. when we want to go home at 8 or 9 or 10 in the evening because percy has cracked the shits and we are exhausted it is my fault for bringing the baby in the first place- haven't i heard of nannies? and doubly my bad child rearing because i should be able to do this alone and not have to involve my husband. perhaps this attitude exists in australia too, i've never encountered it.
after visiting the down town area and some of the local tourist attractions i decided it is quite a nice city with interesting architecture and an involved and twisting history. let's make the most of it and have a good time. we're going to try to get around a bit of eastern europe too so that makes it worthwhile. i want to go to st petersburg and see the winter palace and the hermitage. odessa and potemkins steps, my family's long, long ago home country capital city- vilnius, lithuania and the hagia sophia in istanbul. we also intend to get to paris and visit robyn and phillip in the netherlands. it probably doesn't sound like a big list to intrepid travellers but i challenge you to add a baby into the mix and paul's work obligations and still get around to it all.
so it's challenging but far from impossible. it'll be fun- you'll see!
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Toe saga
...i'm pleased to report is nearing a conclusion.
we made our final visit to the doctor last saturday. i had started off visiting every second day to have the carnage inspected and the dressing re-applied. the first of these visits was the worst as the dressing had fused to the flesh underneath. it's removal required distraction and yanking! unfortunately i've either seen too many doctors or am just wise to their tactics but when a doctor starts asking you questions about something that has nothing to do with your medical predicament, eg. 'do you play guitar', no? 'do you sing?' no? RRRIIIIIIPPP.... well i can make you yell! it's an attempt at distraction while they do painful things to you. having the catheter yanked out of me following percy's birth at the count of 'two', rather than at 'three', as i might have been expecting when i was told to count to three is another case in point.
thankfully subsequent visits saw the dressing fuse less and less to the toe. on the down side my body was not fighting off the infection like we hoped it would. i went a week and then agreed to take antibiotics. i was hoping to avoid this as antibiotics do transfer thru breast milk to babies. i really, really don't want to start percy on formula or solids for that matter. (topic for another day)
we agreed on an antibiotic that is a low dosage and does not have any contraindications for breastfed babies. i took a course for one week with good results. percy seemed fine and the infection healed very quickly.
the visits were then dropped to every three days where the doctor was barely in the room while the nurse changed the dressing. still cost $120US every visit!
on saturday the pronouncement was all is okay, leave this dressing on until tuesday and then you're laughing. the dressing fell off on monday. when going out i'm putting a simple bandaid over the bit where the nail should be.
i'm mobile again and not showering with a plastic bag tied tightly over my foot. it really does lift your spirits. and believe me- they need lifting here. got you interested for the next entry now, huh?
well, it's time for percy to wake and feed so you'll have to hang on.
we made our final visit to the doctor last saturday. i had started off visiting every second day to have the carnage inspected and the dressing re-applied. the first of these visits was the worst as the dressing had fused to the flesh underneath. it's removal required distraction and yanking! unfortunately i've either seen too many doctors or am just wise to their tactics but when a doctor starts asking you questions about something that has nothing to do with your medical predicament, eg. 'do you play guitar', no? 'do you sing?' no? RRRIIIIIIPPP.... well i can make you yell! it's an attempt at distraction while they do painful things to you. having the catheter yanked out of me following percy's birth at the count of 'two', rather than at 'three', as i might have been expecting when i was told to count to three is another case in point.
thankfully subsequent visits saw the dressing fuse less and less to the toe. on the down side my body was not fighting off the infection like we hoped it would. i went a week and then agreed to take antibiotics. i was hoping to avoid this as antibiotics do transfer thru breast milk to babies. i really, really don't want to start percy on formula or solids for that matter. (topic for another day)
we agreed on an antibiotic that is a low dosage and does not have any contraindications for breastfed babies. i took a course for one week with good results. percy seemed fine and the infection healed very quickly.
the visits were then dropped to every three days where the doctor was barely in the room while the nurse changed the dressing. still cost $120US every visit!
on saturday the pronouncement was all is okay, leave this dressing on until tuesday and then you're laughing. the dressing fell off on monday. when going out i'm putting a simple bandaid over the bit where the nail should be.
i'm mobile again and not showering with a plastic bag tied tightly over my foot. it really does lift your spirits. and believe me- they need lifting here. got you interested for the next entry now, huh?
well, it's time for percy to wake and feed so you'll have to hang on.
Immunisations
darling percy had her four month vaccination injections today. one in each leg. she was a trooper and cried only a little. the american medical centre doesn't stock the pneumococcal vac so i found a british european medical clinic run in the british consulate that did have it. she also had her second dose of rotavirus vaccine (ably administrated by her papa) last nite.
i hope her system doesn't feel too overwhelmed.
she had her vital stats taken again. she's now 6.5kg and 64cm long. again, her head circumference escapes me. maybe it's me not wanting to be reminded how far across a baby's head is! the doctor pronounced herself happy with her ability to roll, push up while on her belly and her general health. she even said she would 'be crawling in no time.' crap- couldn't she be a late starter on that and leave it 'til we get home? if only because in this apartment if she does two 'crawls' forward in any direction she'll hit a wall and i don't want to 'baby-proof' this place. oh well, we'll see. i think it's a few months off yet.
her vaccinations cost $218US. nobody told me that the clinic only accepts US$. i whip out the visa to be met with a shake of the head. how come the british clinic will only accept american dollars? where's the patriotism? surely it should be pounds! in any case it doesn't help me. the bill is due in two weeks, to be paid in person at the clinic between the hours of 9am and 1pm weekdays, and i'm off to the netherlands on friday. paul is not going to be able to get there during those hours. oops! and where does one get american dollars?
oh, for the ease of the system we know and love at home!
i hope her system doesn't feel too overwhelmed.
she had her vital stats taken again. she's now 6.5kg and 64cm long. again, her head circumference escapes me. maybe it's me not wanting to be reminded how far across a baby's head is! the doctor pronounced herself happy with her ability to roll, push up while on her belly and her general health. she even said she would 'be crawling in no time.' crap- couldn't she be a late starter on that and leave it 'til we get home? if only because in this apartment if she does two 'crawls' forward in any direction she'll hit a wall and i don't want to 'baby-proof' this place. oh well, we'll see. i think it's a few months off yet.
her vaccinations cost $218US. nobody told me that the clinic only accepts US$. i whip out the visa to be met with a shake of the head. how come the british clinic will only accept american dollars? where's the patriotism? surely it should be pounds! in any case it doesn't help me. the bill is due in two weeks, to be paid in person at the clinic between the hours of 9am and 1pm weekdays, and i'm off to the netherlands on friday. paul is not going to be able to get there during those hours. oops! and where does one get american dollars?
oh, for the ease of the system we know and love at home!
Monday, July 23, 2007
flights - third installment
thought i'd never get back to this, didn't you?
well, perhaps it's fading from memory so i better do it now.
our dubai hotel transferred us to the airport for a late night flight- no curfew in dubai (have i already mentioned that?) the traffic getting to the terminal was chockers. i honestly thought for a while we'd be better off getting out and walking. re-considered when i thought of the four bags, three carry-on bags, two people and one baby that we'd be lugging along. got there in the end, in plenty of time.
airport security is an interesting thing these days. i think united arab emirates are not concerned if you what to smuggle out the nasty stuff. we were barely checked. paul did not have to take his lap top out of it's bag like at every other airport, no removal of shoes or other items and percy did not have to come out of the sling. maybe they figure if you're taking it out of the country it's someone elses responsibility..?
prior to boarding percy needed to be fed and changed. in vain did we look for a parents room. i intend to write to his highness sheikh khalifa bin zayed al nahyan, present ruler and president of the uae and tell him exactly what i think of his pathetic airport! considering it's new and supposedly all swanky and nice it's still smoky and bereft of facilities for parents. again, is it that hard to take three square metres and give people somewhere quiet and private to tend to their offspring?! they put these useless "smoking rooms", which have walls but no roofs and no ventilation, therefore not stopping the smoke spreading throughout the terminal, all over the place. it just makes me so angry!
i finally approached an information booth to be told there is a 'quiet' lounge near gate whatever. okay, off i go again. what the hell is a quiet lounge? and do they really expect it to be quiet once a baby is in it? i couldn't figure out where this lounge is so i go into the nearest airline lounge and ask them. no idea and no, i may not enter their hallowed turf for 15 minutes to feed and change my baby. i'm onto my fourth airline lounge, nearly in tears, when a angel appears. yet again, i am asking whether the information booth meant this lounge as the 'quiet' lounge. dopey, stupid looks and shaking heads. maybe it's the lack of english. a man standing next to me tells the dopey, stupid lookers that he now has a guest he would like to bring into the lounge- in english; everyone understands him! i turn to go and he says i'm his guest. god, did i cry. never seen this man before or since and he still makes me cry now. i think until you are in a desparate situation and a total stranger rescues you, you don't understand how much it means. (plus, i suppose i'm still pretty hormonal!)
i have no idea how much it costs to have a guest in a airport lounge but he wouldn't let me pay and tried to make me stop thanking him so much.
i found a quiet corner, turned a comfy chair away from everyone, feed percy peacefully, went into the ladies loo to change her in hygienic place (instead of the public toilets that made me blanche) and was all done in 20 minutes. i hope the other three lounges burn down.
i found my rescuer again and thanked him some more. there wasn't anything i could do in a material sense but i suspect he understood what a difference he made to me- he wore a wedding ring, maybe he has children too.
i returned to where paul was waiting at the gate and we boarded shortly afterwards.
this leg was much shorter. six hours to vienna (if i recall correctly) that passed without mishap. we did run into some turbulence just when we were changing percy. the crew were directing everyone back to their seats and tried to insist we go too. turning your back on someone is an effective way of getting the message across that until your baby is clean and re-dressed your not moving. i understand the risk- in a past life i was a hostie. i think flinging a poo-filled nappy at the crew would have been my next move.
they insisted i sit down in the nearest row as soon as we were done and paul was sent back to our regular seats. about ten minutes later the crew decided i was in the wrong seat, roughly grabbed me by the arm and marched me back to my seat. did i mention we were flying austrian? did i mention europeans suck? they haven't a clue about customer service. i have a theory about austrians in particular but you're not going to like it. however i can't resist so skip the next paragraph if you're sensitve about WWII, hitler, etc.
theory: the austrians are still sensitive about the fact that they are the birth place of hitler and that the course of history might have been different had they just let him into art school. they've got a chip on their shoulder about the size of western europe, think everyone hates them and act in a correspondingly hateful manner.
it's just a theory. if i have caused any offence to nice austrians (yet to meet one) i'm sorry.
we landed in vienna with only an hour transit time. that was nice. the last hour and 45 minutes to kiev was with tyrolean. it was with these guys we had our argument about not taking percy out of the sling for landing. she was fast asleep. we stuck to our guns and won. afterall, what were they going to do? not land the plane until we complied?
rules are meant for the lowest common denominator, not the intrepid and the creative. gee- am i blowing my own trumpet?
this could open an interesting debate about which rules too... i think road rules should apply to everyone equally. just because micheal schumacher can drive with skill that should keep him safe at high speed shouldn't let him do so on ordinary roads. if you are "creative" in avoiding paying taxes, should you be allowed to? etc...
that was our last flight. until this friday and other future dates. we'd arrived with all limbs and thankfully all luggage. the anxiety proved worse than the experience. and of course memory in new parents isn't a strong point so perhaps the passage of time has taken the sting out.
well, perhaps it's fading from memory so i better do it now.
our dubai hotel transferred us to the airport for a late night flight- no curfew in dubai (have i already mentioned that?) the traffic getting to the terminal was chockers. i honestly thought for a while we'd be better off getting out and walking. re-considered when i thought of the four bags, three carry-on bags, two people and one baby that we'd be lugging along. got there in the end, in plenty of time.
airport security is an interesting thing these days. i think united arab emirates are not concerned if you what to smuggle out the nasty stuff. we were barely checked. paul did not have to take his lap top out of it's bag like at every other airport, no removal of shoes or other items and percy did not have to come out of the sling. maybe they figure if you're taking it out of the country it's someone elses responsibility..?
prior to boarding percy needed to be fed and changed. in vain did we look for a parents room. i intend to write to his highness sheikh khalifa bin zayed al nahyan, present ruler and president of the uae and tell him exactly what i think of his pathetic airport! considering it's new and supposedly all swanky and nice it's still smoky and bereft of facilities for parents. again, is it that hard to take three square metres and give people somewhere quiet and private to tend to their offspring?! they put these useless "smoking rooms", which have walls but no roofs and no ventilation, therefore not stopping the smoke spreading throughout the terminal, all over the place. it just makes me so angry!
i finally approached an information booth to be told there is a 'quiet' lounge near gate whatever. okay, off i go again. what the hell is a quiet lounge? and do they really expect it to be quiet once a baby is in it? i couldn't figure out where this lounge is so i go into the nearest airline lounge and ask them. no idea and no, i may not enter their hallowed turf for 15 minutes to feed and change my baby. i'm onto my fourth airline lounge, nearly in tears, when a angel appears. yet again, i am asking whether the information booth meant this lounge as the 'quiet' lounge. dopey, stupid looks and shaking heads. maybe it's the lack of english. a man standing next to me tells the dopey, stupid lookers that he now has a guest he would like to bring into the lounge- in english; everyone understands him! i turn to go and he says i'm his guest. god, did i cry. never seen this man before or since and he still makes me cry now. i think until you are in a desparate situation and a total stranger rescues you, you don't understand how much it means. (plus, i suppose i'm still pretty hormonal!)
i have no idea how much it costs to have a guest in a airport lounge but he wouldn't let me pay and tried to make me stop thanking him so much.
i found a quiet corner, turned a comfy chair away from everyone, feed percy peacefully, went into the ladies loo to change her in hygienic place (instead of the public toilets that made me blanche) and was all done in 20 minutes. i hope the other three lounges burn down.
i found my rescuer again and thanked him some more. there wasn't anything i could do in a material sense but i suspect he understood what a difference he made to me- he wore a wedding ring, maybe he has children too.
i returned to where paul was waiting at the gate and we boarded shortly afterwards.
this leg was much shorter. six hours to vienna (if i recall correctly) that passed without mishap. we did run into some turbulence just when we were changing percy. the crew were directing everyone back to their seats and tried to insist we go too. turning your back on someone is an effective way of getting the message across that until your baby is clean and re-dressed your not moving. i understand the risk- in a past life i was a hostie. i think flinging a poo-filled nappy at the crew would have been my next move.
they insisted i sit down in the nearest row as soon as we were done and paul was sent back to our regular seats. about ten minutes later the crew decided i was in the wrong seat, roughly grabbed me by the arm and marched me back to my seat. did i mention we were flying austrian? did i mention europeans suck? they haven't a clue about customer service. i have a theory about austrians in particular but you're not going to like it. however i can't resist so skip the next paragraph if you're sensitve about WWII, hitler, etc.
theory: the austrians are still sensitive about the fact that they are the birth place of hitler and that the course of history might have been different had they just let him into art school. they've got a chip on their shoulder about the size of western europe, think everyone hates them and act in a correspondingly hateful manner.
it's just a theory. if i have caused any offence to nice austrians (yet to meet one) i'm sorry.
we landed in vienna with only an hour transit time. that was nice. the last hour and 45 minutes to kiev was with tyrolean. it was with these guys we had our argument about not taking percy out of the sling for landing. she was fast asleep. we stuck to our guns and won. afterall, what were they going to do? not land the plane until we complied?
rules are meant for the lowest common denominator, not the intrepid and the creative. gee- am i blowing my own trumpet?
this could open an interesting debate about which rules too... i think road rules should apply to everyone equally. just because micheal schumacher can drive with skill that should keep him safe at high speed shouldn't let him do so on ordinary roads. if you are "creative" in avoiding paying taxes, should you be allowed to? etc...
that was our last flight. until this friday and other future dates. we'd arrived with all limbs and thankfully all luggage. the anxiety proved worse than the experience. and of course memory in new parents isn't a strong point so perhaps the passage of time has taken the sting out.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Russian / English
yesterday paulie turned the blog site from russian to english for me. yay! previously i've just been guessing what different tabs and buttons did as i couldn't read them. i experimented by putting two pictures up. which hasn't worked that well, as you can see. bear in mind my general computer interest is sort of low and i have poor intuition about how to get the results desired so stabbing away at buttons and getting pissed off and storming off to eat some chocolate is my modus operandus.
why, or how, you ask, did i end up marrying a programmer? maybe subconsciously i knew i'd need the help.
anyways, i'm just asking for your patience while i figure out how to edit my blog in a cohesive manner.
ta.
why, or how, you ask, did i end up marrying a programmer? maybe subconsciously i knew i'd need the help.
anyways, i'm just asking for your patience while i figure out how to edit my blog in a cohesive manner.
ta.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
travelling with a baby II
small correction... when i said we took 'ratty' toys for percy i meant rattly.
my main tip now would be to know as much about your destination as possible before going. we were sadly remiss in this research. if you are travelling within australia to visit close friends or family there's probably not a lot you need to know before hand. if you are travelling to a country to visit family and you speak the language, again you're probably going to be fine. in fact anywhere with family hosting you is probably going to be pretty okay as they can be recruited to help you find your way without much hassle or guilt- even at 2am. if you're going to a country without friends or family but you do speak the language a little research would probably come in handy. things you might like to know are shop open hours, the currency exchange, tipping etiquette, smoking laws, baby seat/capsule availability, baby product availability- particularly if you must have/prefer a particular product, flight bookings and confirmations, emergency services telephone numbers and the like.
if you're off to the bum-end of the world like us you would like to know all this stuff and more before hand but you're not going to. you're just going to have to wing it. that said, would i have not come had i known the atrocious road habits? the difficulty in doing grocery shopping? the near complete absence of english? the hideousness of the tap water? nope. i'm a fool sometimes and they rush in. would you be amusing yourself with this witty and erudite blog had i not come? nope.
the one thing we lugged all the way over here and have not used is our lovely cloth nappies. the reasons for not using them are these: i have simply been unable to find a suitable receptacle to use as a nappy bucket. you wouldn't think it would be so hard to find a plastic container of suitable size with a secure lid! think again. hasn't happened. also the water here is incredibly harsh. i'm not convinced that the nappies would be cleaned sufficiently for re-use. for the first time in my life i am using fabric softener, not soley to soften the clothes but to soften the water. i'm convinced the water is so hard that the soap or detergent is washed off before it can actually clean either clothes or persons. i'm also going thru a lot of moisturiser! even using a moisturiser on percy after her baths. which makes for a nice massage time but i didn't figure on a baby's skin getting dry from the water!
we are investigating sending the nappies home by post or freight as we're in disposables for the duration of the stay. of course shipping things into and out of ukraine is an exercise in bribery and extortion so we may be carrying them again come november.
for those of you unfamiliar with cloth nappies and why this is an issue; they are expensive to purchase initially, tho cheaper than 2-3 years of disposables, and heavy when you've got 20 of them.
there, i hope that hasn't put you off travelling with your bundle of joy. different types of travel would also dictate different ways of doing things. honestly, i think you should hang up your backpacking boots for a few years- sorry. travelling to a destination and staying put seems more sensible. but i'm a known wuss on many things and perhaps my preferences should be only mine.
my main tip now would be to know as much about your destination as possible before going. we were sadly remiss in this research. if you are travelling within australia to visit close friends or family there's probably not a lot you need to know before hand. if you are travelling to a country to visit family and you speak the language, again you're probably going to be fine. in fact anywhere with family hosting you is probably going to be pretty okay as they can be recruited to help you find your way without much hassle or guilt- even at 2am. if you're going to a country without friends or family but you do speak the language a little research would probably come in handy. things you might like to know are shop open hours, the currency exchange, tipping etiquette, smoking laws, baby seat/capsule availability, baby product availability- particularly if you must have/prefer a particular product, flight bookings and confirmations, emergency services telephone numbers and the like.
if you're off to the bum-end of the world like us you would like to know all this stuff and more before hand but you're not going to. you're just going to have to wing it. that said, would i have not come had i known the atrocious road habits? the difficulty in doing grocery shopping? the near complete absence of english? the hideousness of the tap water? nope. i'm a fool sometimes and they rush in. would you be amusing yourself with this witty and erudite blog had i not come? nope.
the one thing we lugged all the way over here and have not used is our lovely cloth nappies. the reasons for not using them are these: i have simply been unable to find a suitable receptacle to use as a nappy bucket. you wouldn't think it would be so hard to find a plastic container of suitable size with a secure lid! think again. hasn't happened. also the water here is incredibly harsh. i'm not convinced that the nappies would be cleaned sufficiently for re-use. for the first time in my life i am using fabric softener, not soley to soften the clothes but to soften the water. i'm convinced the water is so hard that the soap or detergent is washed off before it can actually clean either clothes or persons. i'm also going thru a lot of moisturiser! even using a moisturiser on percy after her baths. which makes for a nice massage time but i didn't figure on a baby's skin getting dry from the water!
we are investigating sending the nappies home by post or freight as we're in disposables for the duration of the stay. of course shipping things into and out of ukraine is an exercise in bribery and extortion so we may be carrying them again come november.
for those of you unfamiliar with cloth nappies and why this is an issue; they are expensive to purchase initially, tho cheaper than 2-3 years of disposables, and heavy when you've got 20 of them.
there, i hope that hasn't put you off travelling with your bundle of joy. different types of travel would also dictate different ways of doing things. honestly, i think you should hang up your backpacking boots for a few years- sorry. travelling to a destination and staying put seems more sensible. but i'm a known wuss on many things and perhaps my preferences should be only mine.
travelling with a baby
this is my contribution to anyone seeking advice on air plane travel with a baby. since i'm off to visit robyn and phillip next week i'll be taking to the air again with percy. now seems an appropriate moment to consolidate what i learnt on the way over here and see if i can apply it to up coming flights.
sarah, this might go some way to answering your questions as well.
unfortunately one needs to pack a lot for babies. to take on the plane i mean. it's mostly nappies, wipes and changes of clothes. importantly- remember to factor in the time before and after the actual flight. if you are travelling a long way to/from the airport this time, plus time for check-in, passport control, customs, duty shopping (if you intend to do this), parking, waiting for connections, waiting for buses or trains or taxis at either end must all be added up. it can make a six hour flight actually take 12 hours before you are safely at your destination and can call up reinforcements, forgotten-item-shopping trips, baths or the like.
so, once you've got your hours sorted out what then? well, you know those smaller wheeled suitcases that you see people taking as carry on luggage and you wonder what the hell is in it that they will need so desparately over the next 8 hours? get one. paul and i used to manage with a small backpack either each for the longer trips or one together for the shorter ones. after a bottle of water, a book, maybe some earplugs and/or eye masks, head ache tablets, a pack of tissues and your toothbrush and paste, what do you need? one day i'll ask the pretty people what they carry in their carry-on, in the meantime i suppose i'll stay perplexed.
anyways, my advice is get one of those suitcases and fill it with nappies, wipes, changes of clothes and maybe some favourite toys or comforters. you're not allowed to carry water anymore so don't waste the space. when you're seated ask the cabin crew for a bottle of water- the biggest one they've got. and keep asking until you get it and when it's empty for another one.
how many nappies? i read one site recommended one per hour of flight. this seemed excessive to me, and we did not use this many. however we took at least 30 disposable nappies on our flight from sydney to dubai. given the 8 hour delay in singapore the total travel time was something near 30 hours. we did not use all the nappies.
how many wipes? we took i think, 5 packs of 30 (is that how many in a pack?- i've fogotten) anyways, again it was too much but they did prove useful in wiping our hands and faces too. i figure if it's good enough for percy's butt, then it's alright for my face.
how many changes of clothes? hmmm... more than you think. you'll recall percy was in her third change of clothes before we even boarded our first plane. again, could have been our bad nappy application method.
toys? distractions? i'd say this depends on the age of the baby. we took three toys (small, soft, ratty things) for percy and used none of them. she just wasn't at a toy stage at ten weeks of age. i dare say this would be very different for older babies. at sixteen weeks now i'm sure i'd use a toy to distract her and help pass the time.
slings? car seats? strollers? prams? we don't own a stroller or a pram so i can't comment on their usefulness. our car seat was a rental which we gave back the day we left so we did not use it at the airport or on board. if you have a car seat that is an independant unit, ie. not requiring a piece to be permanently affixed to the vehicle it might be a good idea to take it depending on your destination and whether it can be used there, ie. is compatible with local products. on the whole i'd say leave it at home. we have both a hug-a-bug sling and a baby bjorn sling. percy travelled in the hug-a-bug on my chest on all flights. of course she is required to be seated on my lap and belted in during take-off and landing. very annoying if she is sleeping soundly. i understand airlines have their rules. however percy is far safer in a hug-a-bug where she is restrained al'round than a loose seat belt that will just see her snap in half. the cabin crew on tyrolean didn't see it this way. the sling was, in my opinion, the easiest way to get about the airports and to from destinations at either end. of course if you can't sling your baby then the lightest weight stroller you can manage would be my second choice.
facilities on the plane. limited! if you can fly with the south east asian carriers- malaysia, thai or emirates. these guys seem to have a better service mentality and enjoy babies. europeans suck. haven't flown with americans yet (will do on the way home), neither with BA or qantas. the europeans will cop a serve when i get around the the third flight installment (if ever!)
so, change tables are present in at least one toilet. paul and i did changes together as it was much easier. one of us would go into the cubicle and lay percy on a disposable change mat with a cloth under her head. the other would stand in the doorway, jamming it open with a foot, and pass the requisite items to the operator. yes, it was pretty mechanical so operator is an apt discription. we also completely ignored requests to get past us or anything else. we were selfish and kept percy as priority one. stuff 'em.
the asian carriers supply a little welcome kit consisting of some half-arsed wipes (definately no pun intended) two nappies and a toy. it's not worth bothering. say thank you and then stuff it under your chair. at least they try, no-one else does.
larger aircraft will supply bassinets that plug into the wall infront of you if you have a bulk head seat. be sure to specify these seats and the bassinet when booking. smaller craft will leave you with bub in your arms.
sorry, percy needs me, i'll make this a to be continued....
sarah, this might go some way to answering your questions as well.
unfortunately one needs to pack a lot for babies. to take on the plane i mean. it's mostly nappies, wipes and changes of clothes. importantly- remember to factor in the time before and after the actual flight. if you are travelling a long way to/from the airport this time, plus time for check-in, passport control, customs, duty shopping (if you intend to do this), parking, waiting for connections, waiting for buses or trains or taxis at either end must all be added up. it can make a six hour flight actually take 12 hours before you are safely at your destination and can call up reinforcements, forgotten-item-shopping trips, baths or the like.
so, once you've got your hours sorted out what then? well, you know those smaller wheeled suitcases that you see people taking as carry on luggage and you wonder what the hell is in it that they will need so desparately over the next 8 hours? get one. paul and i used to manage with a small backpack either each for the longer trips or one together for the shorter ones. after a bottle of water, a book, maybe some earplugs and/or eye masks, head ache tablets, a pack of tissues and your toothbrush and paste, what do you need? one day i'll ask the pretty people what they carry in their carry-on, in the meantime i suppose i'll stay perplexed.
anyways, my advice is get one of those suitcases and fill it with nappies, wipes, changes of clothes and maybe some favourite toys or comforters. you're not allowed to carry water anymore so don't waste the space. when you're seated ask the cabin crew for a bottle of water- the biggest one they've got. and keep asking until you get it and when it's empty for another one.
how many nappies? i read one site recommended one per hour of flight. this seemed excessive to me, and we did not use this many. however we took at least 30 disposable nappies on our flight from sydney to dubai. given the 8 hour delay in singapore the total travel time was something near 30 hours. we did not use all the nappies.
how many wipes? we took i think, 5 packs of 30 (is that how many in a pack?- i've fogotten) anyways, again it was too much but they did prove useful in wiping our hands and faces too. i figure if it's good enough for percy's butt, then it's alright for my face.
how many changes of clothes? hmmm... more than you think. you'll recall percy was in her third change of clothes before we even boarded our first plane. again, could have been our bad nappy application method.
toys? distractions? i'd say this depends on the age of the baby. we took three toys (small, soft, ratty things) for percy and used none of them. she just wasn't at a toy stage at ten weeks of age. i dare say this would be very different for older babies. at sixteen weeks now i'm sure i'd use a toy to distract her and help pass the time.
slings? car seats? strollers? prams? we don't own a stroller or a pram so i can't comment on their usefulness. our car seat was a rental which we gave back the day we left so we did not use it at the airport or on board. if you have a car seat that is an independant unit, ie. not requiring a piece to be permanently affixed to the vehicle it might be a good idea to take it depending on your destination and whether it can be used there, ie. is compatible with local products. on the whole i'd say leave it at home. we have both a hug-a-bug sling and a baby bjorn sling. percy travelled in the hug-a-bug on my chest on all flights. of course she is required to be seated on my lap and belted in during take-off and landing. very annoying if she is sleeping soundly. i understand airlines have their rules. however percy is far safer in a hug-a-bug where she is restrained al'round than a loose seat belt that will just see her snap in half. the cabin crew on tyrolean didn't see it this way. the sling was, in my opinion, the easiest way to get about the airports and to from destinations at either end. of course if you can't sling your baby then the lightest weight stroller you can manage would be my second choice.
facilities on the plane. limited! if you can fly with the south east asian carriers- malaysia, thai or emirates. these guys seem to have a better service mentality and enjoy babies. europeans suck. haven't flown with americans yet (will do on the way home), neither with BA or qantas. the europeans will cop a serve when i get around the the third flight installment (if ever!)
so, change tables are present in at least one toilet. paul and i did changes together as it was much easier. one of us would go into the cubicle and lay percy on a disposable change mat with a cloth under her head. the other would stand in the doorway, jamming it open with a foot, and pass the requisite items to the operator. yes, it was pretty mechanical so operator is an apt discription. we also completely ignored requests to get past us or anything else. we were selfish and kept percy as priority one. stuff 'em.
the asian carriers supply a little welcome kit consisting of some half-arsed wipes (definately no pun intended) two nappies and a toy. it's not worth bothering. say thank you and then stuff it under your chair. at least they try, no-one else does.
larger aircraft will supply bassinets that plug into the wall infront of you if you have a bulk head seat. be sure to specify these seats and the bassinet when booking. smaller craft will leave you with bub in your arms.
sorry, percy needs me, i'll make this a to be continued....
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
aren't these amazing things...
i'm referring of course to toes! percy discovered hers this week. favoured position is now curled up feet in hands and gurgling. i think she's disappointed the toes don't talk back.
the only down side is that in constantly grasping for her feet she has left little scratches all over her legs. no matter how short i might manage to keep finger nails they are always sharp. she is mostly dressed just in a t-shirt- it's over 30 degrees every day here- so her legs are exposed.
what more amazing things await in this world?
the only down side is that in constantly grasping for her feet she has left little scratches all over her legs. no matter how short i might manage to keep finger nails they are always sharp. she is mostly dressed just in a t-shirt- it's over 30 degrees every day here- so her legs are exposed.
what more amazing things await in this world?
how is percy travelling? attempt 2
sorry 'bout the title with no entry. this will be addressed in "3rd impressions expanded"
so, given this blog is about percy i haven't actually said a lot about her. how is she travelling? i don't know, about average i guess. i've got nothing to compare her to. no-one has stopped me in the street wildly gesticulating and screaming "what is wrong with your baby!" so i suppose there's nothing terribly obvious. not that i'd understand the russian anyways.
we did have a three month check-up with a pediatrician at the american medical centre a few weeks back. (same place that took my toe nail- which is healing nicely now, thanx for your messages and concern.) he pronounced himself happy. he looked in her eyes, her ears, her mouth, he manipulated her hips, he pulled her to sitting by her arms, he rolled her on her stomach, he looked at her hands and feet, he watched her interact with me and the nurse and her fascination with her surroundings. i can't think what else he might have done.
she weighed in at 6 kilos and measured 60cms long. i forget her head circumference, will have to check her blue book. she'll probably have added to these statistics over the last three weeks.
i asked about her vomitting after nearly every feed, he replied this is normal and fine, so long as it is not excessive and she is still gaining weight and healthy. well i suppose it's not excessive- i haven't exactly tried to catch it or mop it off the floor and measure it.
she holds her head up very well and has great neck muscles. i attribute that to all the time spent in the hug-a-bug or baby bjorn slings as she needs to hold her head up to see different views. we've not yet bought a pram or stroller so any trip out is in a sling. she doesn't actually get a lot of time on her stomach. she's not very keen but we are working up from 15 seconds to a few minutes each day.
she has wet nappies throughout the day and at least one pooey one per day. i've stopped changing her at the midnite or early morning feeds as this nappy is typically dry and clean.
that's her statistic report card.
on the "ooo, isn't that gorgeous!" and "aren't you a clever percy-wercy?" scale she has changed so much from her first weeks. she rolls readily to her right side and back to her back. she'll roll with encouragement to her left and then rolls back. she can grasp most objects given to her- rattles, soft balls, toys, our hands, books, cloths, dummies, $100 notes... no just kidding on the last one. i honestly don't have a $100 note to test that with. 100 hryvnia (pronounced greev-na) i do have, i'll wait 'til she wakes up.
she was engrossed with my water bottle and really took to sucking the condensation off the outside. perhaps i shouldn't have let her- oh well, stregthen her immune system. i think she was interested in the different temperature. she hasn't experienced cold, wet things before. of course wet nappies need to be discounted from that equation. i imagine they stay warm for a long while too.
her ready smiles and giggles dry up when you point a camera at her. maybe she's actually from a remote hill tribe and is concerned i'm stealing a portion of her soul everytime i take a photograph of her. baby, stop worrying! given the number of photos i've taken you are now soul-less; there's nothing left to worry about. i've let her handle the camera but she shows very little interest in it once it's within reach. her giggles and laugh are heart melting. she's very quick to smile and almost looks shy and coy sometimes when she does as she tucks in her chin and turns her head away a little. i'm reminded of scarlett o'hara. she smiles with her whole face and body, it's tear-jerking!
she feeds well. we have been demand feeding up to this past weekend. this usually meant around the 3 hour mark. sometimes 2, sometimes 4 and sometimes when we were particularly lucky 5 hours thru the nite. on sunday we decided we'd try to set a bit of a routine. just so there is more predictability in our lives and hopefully so percy learns to sleep longer periods. this is the fourth day of the routine and it seems to be working relatively well. i'm not demanding that everything happens at a set time to the minute but within 15 minutes would be good. i'll let you know what success we have....
the only thing that concerns me about her is her addiction to her dummy (pacifier if anyone reading is a yank.) we did not give her a dummy for the first 4 weeks of her life. partly because i was opposed to them and partly because she did not take it on the first offer so we stopped. unfortunately percy had digestion issues and sucking on something after her feed helped her to keep food down and eased the pain. this initially meant our little fingers had the shortest nails you've ever seen and ended up quite prune-y by days end. (this factor wasn't really a concern.) more seriously what it meant was that one of us was literally attached to her for hours at a stretch. it's just not practical. so we tried a dummy again, and she accepted it.
now she needs it to help calm or soothe her at any time. the only time i can get her to sleep without it is in the middle of the nite when she feeds virtually asleep and lies down again without being disturbed. then she seems to have forgotten her need. however if she wakes up more seriously then she misses it and cries for us to replace it in her mouth. you can imagine what a bad nite for us is. i have read you can train a baby to replace the dummy herself- when they're about 8 months old. we've got a lot of lost sleep between now and 8 months.
i've tried to be firm and hardened my heart and wean her cold turkey. after 20 minutes of plaintive screaming i couldn't take it any more. pop! goes the dummy!
i have purchased an incredibly soft teddy bear, now named 'raffles', to become what the experts call a 'lovey.' something for her to have to help her soothe herself. it ain't a dummy replacement. yet. i'm hopeful. we'll persist. if anyone has tips on banishing the dummy without hours of tantrums i'd be pleased to hear from you.
all up i'm going to take reassurance that she looks normal to me, has a healthy set of lungs, enjoys playing with all manner of things, likes being bathed- if the temperature is right!, has all the requisite appendages in all the typical places and doesn't elicit screams on the street.
so, given this blog is about percy i haven't actually said a lot about her. how is she travelling? i don't know, about average i guess. i've got nothing to compare her to. no-one has stopped me in the street wildly gesticulating and screaming "what is wrong with your baby!" so i suppose there's nothing terribly obvious. not that i'd understand the russian anyways.
we did have a three month check-up with a pediatrician at the american medical centre a few weeks back. (same place that took my toe nail- which is healing nicely now, thanx for your messages and concern.) he pronounced himself happy. he looked in her eyes, her ears, her mouth, he manipulated her hips, he pulled her to sitting by her arms, he rolled her on her stomach, he looked at her hands and feet, he watched her interact with me and the nurse and her fascination with her surroundings. i can't think what else he might have done.
she weighed in at 6 kilos and measured 60cms long. i forget her head circumference, will have to check her blue book. she'll probably have added to these statistics over the last three weeks.
i asked about her vomitting after nearly every feed, he replied this is normal and fine, so long as it is not excessive and she is still gaining weight and healthy. well i suppose it's not excessive- i haven't exactly tried to catch it or mop it off the floor and measure it.
she holds her head up very well and has great neck muscles. i attribute that to all the time spent in the hug-a-bug or baby bjorn slings as she needs to hold her head up to see different views. we've not yet bought a pram or stroller so any trip out is in a sling. she doesn't actually get a lot of time on her stomach. she's not very keen but we are working up from 15 seconds to a few minutes each day.
she has wet nappies throughout the day and at least one pooey one per day. i've stopped changing her at the midnite or early morning feeds as this nappy is typically dry and clean.
that's her statistic report card.
on the "ooo, isn't that gorgeous!" and "aren't you a clever percy-wercy?" scale she has changed so much from her first weeks. she rolls readily to her right side and back to her back. she'll roll with encouragement to her left and then rolls back. she can grasp most objects given to her- rattles, soft balls, toys, our hands, books, cloths, dummies, $100 notes... no just kidding on the last one. i honestly don't have a $100 note to test that with. 100 hryvnia (pronounced greev-na) i do have, i'll wait 'til she wakes up.
she was engrossed with my water bottle and really took to sucking the condensation off the outside. perhaps i shouldn't have let her- oh well, stregthen her immune system. i think she was interested in the different temperature. she hasn't experienced cold, wet things before. of course wet nappies need to be discounted from that equation. i imagine they stay warm for a long while too.
her ready smiles and giggles dry up when you point a camera at her. maybe she's actually from a remote hill tribe and is concerned i'm stealing a portion of her soul everytime i take a photograph of her. baby, stop worrying! given the number of photos i've taken you are now soul-less; there's nothing left to worry about. i've let her handle the camera but she shows very little interest in it once it's within reach. her giggles and laugh are heart melting. she's very quick to smile and almost looks shy and coy sometimes when she does as she tucks in her chin and turns her head away a little. i'm reminded of scarlett o'hara. she smiles with her whole face and body, it's tear-jerking!
she feeds well. we have been demand feeding up to this past weekend. this usually meant around the 3 hour mark. sometimes 2, sometimes 4 and sometimes when we were particularly lucky 5 hours thru the nite. on sunday we decided we'd try to set a bit of a routine. just so there is more predictability in our lives and hopefully so percy learns to sleep longer periods. this is the fourth day of the routine and it seems to be working relatively well. i'm not demanding that everything happens at a set time to the minute but within 15 minutes would be good. i'll let you know what success we have....
the only thing that concerns me about her is her addiction to her dummy (pacifier if anyone reading is a yank.) we did not give her a dummy for the first 4 weeks of her life. partly because i was opposed to them and partly because she did not take it on the first offer so we stopped. unfortunately percy had digestion issues and sucking on something after her feed helped her to keep food down and eased the pain. this initially meant our little fingers had the shortest nails you've ever seen and ended up quite prune-y by days end. (this factor wasn't really a concern.) more seriously what it meant was that one of us was literally attached to her for hours at a stretch. it's just not practical. so we tried a dummy again, and she accepted it.
now she needs it to help calm or soothe her at any time. the only time i can get her to sleep without it is in the middle of the nite when she feeds virtually asleep and lies down again without being disturbed. then she seems to have forgotten her need. however if she wakes up more seriously then she misses it and cries for us to replace it in her mouth. you can imagine what a bad nite for us is. i have read you can train a baby to replace the dummy herself- when they're about 8 months old. we've got a lot of lost sleep between now and 8 months.
i've tried to be firm and hardened my heart and wean her cold turkey. after 20 minutes of plaintive screaming i couldn't take it any more. pop! goes the dummy!
i have purchased an incredibly soft teddy bear, now named 'raffles', to become what the experts call a 'lovey.' something for her to have to help her soothe herself. it ain't a dummy replacement. yet. i'm hopeful. we'll persist. if anyone has tips on banishing the dummy without hours of tantrums i'd be pleased to hear from you.
all up i'm going to take reassurance that she looks normal to me, has a healthy set of lungs, enjoys playing with all manner of things, likes being bathed- if the temperature is right!, has all the requisite appendages in all the typical places and doesn't elicit screams on the street.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Sunday, July 15, 2007
1st impressions expanded
alighting from the plane in kiev we crowded onto a bus for the short trip to the terminal. this is when percy decided she'd had enough. she started to cry. thankfully not the ear-spliting, shake-your-very-core cry, just a consistent, whingeing, plaintive wail. it's still quite distressing. well, it is for the parents of the child.
in the terminal we completed the entry form and turned to join the queue for passport control. ukrainians don't queue. there was about four desks operating to serve i would estimate 200 people. these 200 just milled and pushed to get to the front. we're too polite for our own good and kept getting shoved to the back of the mass. then, small mercies! percy leapt to the rescue with more sustained crying and some nice woman near the front yelled at us to push through and get to the desk faster. at least we assume that's what she said. the fifty or so people between us and the desk turned, "humphed" and barely made space for us to squeeze to the front. on these sorts of occasions i'm not going to say "no, thank you." so i probably stood on a few toes, literally, and bashed a few elbows and pissed people off by not having the entry form completed correctly and having to re-do them at the desk and take a long time doing so.
but we were in.
baggage collection was thankfully straightforward and we exited the air side to the land side thru opaque sliding doors to confront a real ukrainian crush. don't the bastards understand if you stand back and let people thru your long absent relative (or whoever you are clamouring to meet) will have a better opportunity to make it out? so we ran over a few more toes pushing our luggage trolley to where we hoped paul would see someone he recognised.
the boss of the kiev office was there with his nice new honda. we'd previously queried whether we could get a taxi that had a baby capsule. we were assured that 'no-one bothers with that here, it's not necessary." this i took to mean was because everyone still got about in horse and carts and the risk from collision was low. ha ha. voldya drove us the 40 kilometres from the airport to the city at i would estimate an average speed of 140km/hr. i did see the speedometre read 165 at one point. there are more fatal accidents in kiev per vehicles on the road than in any other city that keeps such records. in fact we have learnt the statistic here is something like 13 times more accidents than in sydney.
and all the protection percy had was being strapped tightly to my chest in the hug-a-bug sling.
since this experience we have become accustomed to getting in taxis with no capsule- it'll will almost feel weird to come home and have to use one again. i would also point out that voldya has two children and provides child booster seats for them. is my offspring worth less than his?
despite the view whipping by at such speed the drive to the apartment was interesting. we saw the huge disparagey (i can't spell this morning- bad nite with percy- i know that's not right, but can't think what is) between the rich in their lexus's and bmw's and the moderately okay in their old lada's and the downright poor walking or on very crammed buses. the difference in architecture from the soviet era to today was also clear. i think harry t would love this place. the level of corruption and heavy-handed dealing i understand would make him feel very comfortable. the disinterest in any public spaces appeared nearly as strong as i observed in dubai.
anyways, we finally arrived at our apartment. "oh my god", just let me repeat that "oh my god." a lumbering soviet era building with falling tiles, no paint since before lenin, badly cracked concrete, and an entire air of "i'm miserable and at the end of my life, don't talk to me."
i was anxiously trying to convince myself that this wasn't it and we'd just stopped to pick something up, like maybe the keys to our nice apartment, in a nice building, somewhere far away from this monolith. not so. we clambered out; those hondas aren't that big a car really. round to the front of the building trying to dodge the weeds and the broken tiles and the dripping water on the way and up a short flight of unwelcoming stairs thru a door that i swear probably came from a de-commissioned concentration camp, into a stair well that was so small two people can barely pass, if of course they can see each other in the gloom and aren't trying to watch were they put their feet so they don't trip over the disgusting floor mats. voldya knocks on a door on the first floor- at least we don't have to climb up six flights of stairs- and a half naked man opens the door. right! clearly we are at the wrong place and i turn to go. again, not so. this man is the owner of the apartment who is here cleaning it in anticipation of our arrival. they (he and his wife) did a poor job. another gripe.
well, i'm too exhausted by this time to protest that much. the apartment, while tiny, belies the expected horror of the outside of the building and is modern enough. i claim the bedroom to unpack percy, feed and generally breathe. paul is taken off to a supermarket to stock us up for awhile and the ukrainians finish cleaning.
it was quite an introduction. i was very happy that the travelling was over and also happy to have voldya translate and smooth the path for us a little. i was dismayed by our building but content with the apartment itself. i thought the neighbourhood would take some getting used to- we're definately in the 'burbs and not necessarily the rose bay or hunters hill version, more like the mt druitt version. it's certainly interesting and i was eagerly anticipating getting out and exploring it. after sleeping first. maybe a bit more sleeping...
in the terminal we completed the entry form and turned to join the queue for passport control. ukrainians don't queue. there was about four desks operating to serve i would estimate 200 people. these 200 just milled and pushed to get to the front. we're too polite for our own good and kept getting shoved to the back of the mass. then, small mercies! percy leapt to the rescue with more sustained crying and some nice woman near the front yelled at us to push through and get to the desk faster. at least we assume that's what she said. the fifty or so people between us and the desk turned, "humphed" and barely made space for us to squeeze to the front. on these sorts of occasions i'm not going to say "no, thank you." so i probably stood on a few toes, literally, and bashed a few elbows and pissed people off by not having the entry form completed correctly and having to re-do them at the desk and take a long time doing so.
but we were in.
baggage collection was thankfully straightforward and we exited the air side to the land side thru opaque sliding doors to confront a real ukrainian crush. don't the bastards understand if you stand back and let people thru your long absent relative (or whoever you are clamouring to meet) will have a better opportunity to make it out? so we ran over a few more toes pushing our luggage trolley to where we hoped paul would see someone he recognised.
the boss of the kiev office was there with his nice new honda. we'd previously queried whether we could get a taxi that had a baby capsule. we were assured that 'no-one bothers with that here, it's not necessary." this i took to mean was because everyone still got about in horse and carts and the risk from collision was low. ha ha. voldya drove us the 40 kilometres from the airport to the city at i would estimate an average speed of 140km/hr. i did see the speedometre read 165 at one point. there are more fatal accidents in kiev per vehicles on the road than in any other city that keeps such records. in fact we have learnt the statistic here is something like 13 times more accidents than in sydney.
and all the protection percy had was being strapped tightly to my chest in the hug-a-bug sling.
since this experience we have become accustomed to getting in taxis with no capsule- it'll will almost feel weird to come home and have to use one again. i would also point out that voldya has two children and provides child booster seats for them. is my offspring worth less than his?
despite the view whipping by at such speed the drive to the apartment was interesting. we saw the huge disparagey (i can't spell this morning- bad nite with percy- i know that's not right, but can't think what is) between the rich in their lexus's and bmw's and the moderately okay in their old lada's and the downright poor walking or on very crammed buses. the difference in architecture from the soviet era to today was also clear. i think harry t would love this place. the level of corruption and heavy-handed dealing i understand would make him feel very comfortable. the disinterest in any public spaces appeared nearly as strong as i observed in dubai.
anyways, we finally arrived at our apartment. "oh my god", just let me repeat that "oh my god." a lumbering soviet era building with falling tiles, no paint since before lenin, badly cracked concrete, and an entire air of "i'm miserable and at the end of my life, don't talk to me."
i was anxiously trying to convince myself that this wasn't it and we'd just stopped to pick something up, like maybe the keys to our nice apartment, in a nice building, somewhere far away from this monolith. not so. we clambered out; those hondas aren't that big a car really. round to the front of the building trying to dodge the weeds and the broken tiles and the dripping water on the way and up a short flight of unwelcoming stairs thru a door that i swear probably came from a de-commissioned concentration camp, into a stair well that was so small two people can barely pass, if of course they can see each other in the gloom and aren't trying to watch were they put their feet so they don't trip over the disgusting floor mats. voldya knocks on a door on the first floor- at least we don't have to climb up six flights of stairs- and a half naked man opens the door. right! clearly we are at the wrong place and i turn to go. again, not so. this man is the owner of the apartment who is here cleaning it in anticipation of our arrival. they (he and his wife) did a poor job. another gripe.
well, i'm too exhausted by this time to protest that much. the apartment, while tiny, belies the expected horror of the outside of the building and is modern enough. i claim the bedroom to unpack percy, feed and generally breathe. paul is taken off to a supermarket to stock us up for awhile and the ukrainians finish cleaning.
it was quite an introduction. i was very happy that the travelling was over and also happy to have voldya translate and smooth the path for us a little. i was dismayed by our building but content with the apartment itself. i thought the neighbourhood would take some getting used to- we're definately in the 'burbs and not necessarily the rose bay or hunters hill version, more like the mt druitt version. it's certainly interesting and i was eagerly anticipating getting out and exploring it. after sleeping first. maybe a bit more sleeping...
Thursday, July 12, 2007
1st, 2nd.... 3rd impressions of kiev
having been here over a month i suppose i can quickly summarise what my impressions are.
'quickly' also because percy is probably about to wake up.
1st impression.... hmmmm, this is .... um.... different.
2nd impression..... it's kinda pretty with all the trees and greenery and stuff, just don't look at the details
3rd impression... it's a hole that i shan't be coming back to.
will explain later, percy is calling for me
'quickly' also because percy is probably about to wake up.
1st impression.... hmmmm, this is .... um.... different.
2nd impression..... it's kinda pretty with all the trees and greenery and stuff, just don't look at the details
3rd impression... it's a hole that i shan't be coming back to.
will explain later, percy is calling for me
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
rapid update
my apologies for not writing anything lately. (i wonder if many people read my missives? and care?- i do know of a couple! it's very gratifying guys- thanx heaps.)
i haven't been writing because i've been trying to be a good host to our friends robyn and phillip who had flown over from their home in the netherlands to visit us. of course i managed to do an absolutely lousy job of that.
rob and phil arrived on sat 30th june. because we have a miserably tiny apartment they had to pay for their own apartment in the city. hotels are stupidly over-priced in kiev so most people that stay longer than two nites get a furnished apartment instead. which is not to say these are reasonably priced either. a moderately sized studio or one bedroom place will start at $100US per nite.
i hate to think what the whole trip cost them.
on sunday we did the touristy thing and visited a few churches and what is known as St Andrew's Descent. which is a steep, twisty, cobble stoned road lined with souvenir stalls. it's called andrews descent because the saint apparently walked up the hill, planted a cross on top and descended the hill using this route. fair enough i suppose. the souvenirs aren't that exciting. we managed to keep our wallets unopened.
monday and tuesday rob and phil did more touristy things themselves in the morning and came and lazed and played with percy with me in the afternoon. on wednesday they took the chornorbyl tour. yes, there are organised tours of the exclusion zone. (we intend to never take our innocent, developing daughter anywhere near the place.) apparently it is very creepy. they got within 200-300m of the reactor that is now encased in ever crumbling and therefore ever maintained concrete. they were told to only walk on the paths, not the grass or moss. i'm not sure of the reason.
their photos are eerie... they show a fairground were the bumper cars are left exactly were they were when the last person was driving them, and a ferris wheel rusting into ruin. this was particularly poignant for robyn as she told me her and phillip had some wedding photos taken on the same model ferris wheel at home in australia.
buildings abandoned with contents intact now have small trees growing out of the gutters. it's been 20 years and nature is claiming a place in this place no-one else wishes to claim.
at about this time too, i think tuesday, i sustained a small cut near the nail on my left big toe. i thought nothing of it. i can't even remember how i got the cut. on wednesday afternoon, while rob and phil were touring the land of the damned, i went to baby group! and got even more depressed at what some companies will obviously pay for their employees apartments, and what ours will clearly not. this place was even nicer than last week!
by the time i left it had started to rain. (note: the weather here is very changeable, a sunny morning does not preclude a rainy afternoon, and vice versa and sometimes twice in one day.) it was only a short walk to the metro station and then a short walk from our metro station to home, as it was not raining very heavily i decided to continue rather than try to shelter in some inadequate over hang. i layered up percy and went on my way. unfortunately i was wearing open-toed sandals and got very wet feet. i really believe this was the beginning of my woes. i think i got some bugs/ bacteria/ microphages, whatever, a.k.a shit, in the cut on my toe. it got badly infected.
p.s. percy travelled home fine, she didn't have a drop of water on her. nevertheless i changed her and rugged her up good.
thursday my toe hurt a lot but i figured a good clean should see it right. nah-ah. thursday nite we walked, me in pointy toed boots (yes, i'm a dick head) about 15 minutes to a restuarant for dinner. it was almost worth it as there was a non-smoking section! this is a massive deal in ths country but i'll have a rant about that another day.
i was in bad shape by friday morning. paul telephoned the american medical centre, which is a medical service run by americans to bring western medicine to the eastern bloc- thank god. there are centres in kiev, moscow, somewhere in poland and i think belarus or somewhere like that.
we got an appointment for 11am. paul ended up taking the day off work, well- off the office, he still worked from home when we got back.
the doctor took one look and said "off with her toe!" okay, i exaggerate but for a micro second i really did hear that. no, what he recommended as the best course of action was to remove the whole toe nail as the infection will not clear otherwise. we, at least me, blanched and agreed. i don't see what else we could have done.
do you know how toe nails are removed?!! (if you don't want to know, skip the next paragraph.)
an elastic band is wrapped very tightly around the base of the toe, a local anaesthetic is jabbed in (three times!) and the doctor sticks a pair of scissors under the nail to the quick and levers/cuts it off! my stomach is turning just thinking about it again. the infected flesh is snipped off, the whole lot cleaned, doused in antiseptic and bandaged up.
of course percy decides this is a great time to do a monster poo. poor paulie had to strip her off, clean her, change her, clean her and change her again because she also decided to pee mid change, on the adjoining operating bed whilst trying to reassure his fretful wife that both her toe and her daughter will be just fine.
this surgery put a decided dampener on our plans to entertain rob and phil. i had intended to take them to lavra on friday, instead i found myself gaping as my toe was butchered and they went by themselves. of course rob and phil are two of the most capable, enterprising and adult, adults i know so they were just fine. lavra is a unesco world heritage listed site here in kiev of middle ages churches, monastries and caves also previously used as monasteries and holy sites.
the weekend also consisted of me lounging about the apartment with my foot in the air and asking for more ibuprofen. actually i'm trying to keep the ibuprofen to a minimum. i know it is considered safe to take whilst breastfeeding but less is more i reckon.
phil returned home on saturday and rob has been staying with us, tolerantly sleeping on the lumpy lounge for four nites.
may i say robyn is a saint. she has been absolutely a god-send (says the aetheist) these past days. she has done everything so that i need do nothing. washing, shopping, cooking, laundry, lunches, desserts, interpreting with taxi drivers, playing with and holding percy, you name it. i'm sure this is what she thought her holiday would be. NOT. i was in tears to wave her off this afternoon.
so this is why i've been a crap host and slow in writing.
i haven't been writing because i've been trying to be a good host to our friends robyn and phillip who had flown over from their home in the netherlands to visit us. of course i managed to do an absolutely lousy job of that.
rob and phil arrived on sat 30th june. because we have a miserably tiny apartment they had to pay for their own apartment in the city. hotels are stupidly over-priced in kiev so most people that stay longer than two nites get a furnished apartment instead. which is not to say these are reasonably priced either. a moderately sized studio or one bedroom place will start at $100US per nite.
i hate to think what the whole trip cost them.
on sunday we did the touristy thing and visited a few churches and what is known as St Andrew's Descent. which is a steep, twisty, cobble stoned road lined with souvenir stalls. it's called andrews descent because the saint apparently walked up the hill, planted a cross on top and descended the hill using this route. fair enough i suppose. the souvenirs aren't that exciting. we managed to keep our wallets unopened.
monday and tuesday rob and phil did more touristy things themselves in the morning and came and lazed and played with percy with me in the afternoon. on wednesday they took the chornorbyl tour. yes, there are organised tours of the exclusion zone. (we intend to never take our innocent, developing daughter anywhere near the place.) apparently it is very creepy. they got within 200-300m of the reactor that is now encased in ever crumbling and therefore ever maintained concrete. they were told to only walk on the paths, not the grass or moss. i'm not sure of the reason.
their photos are eerie... they show a fairground were the bumper cars are left exactly were they were when the last person was driving them, and a ferris wheel rusting into ruin. this was particularly poignant for robyn as she told me her and phillip had some wedding photos taken on the same model ferris wheel at home in australia.
buildings abandoned with contents intact now have small trees growing out of the gutters. it's been 20 years and nature is claiming a place in this place no-one else wishes to claim.
at about this time too, i think tuesday, i sustained a small cut near the nail on my left big toe. i thought nothing of it. i can't even remember how i got the cut. on wednesday afternoon, while rob and phil were touring the land of the damned, i went to baby group! and got even more depressed at what some companies will obviously pay for their employees apartments, and what ours will clearly not. this place was even nicer than last week!
by the time i left it had started to rain. (note: the weather here is very changeable, a sunny morning does not preclude a rainy afternoon, and vice versa and sometimes twice in one day.) it was only a short walk to the metro station and then a short walk from our metro station to home, as it was not raining very heavily i decided to continue rather than try to shelter in some inadequate over hang. i layered up percy and went on my way. unfortunately i was wearing open-toed sandals and got very wet feet. i really believe this was the beginning of my woes. i think i got some bugs/ bacteria/ microphages, whatever, a.k.a shit, in the cut on my toe. it got badly infected.
p.s. percy travelled home fine, she didn't have a drop of water on her. nevertheless i changed her and rugged her up good.
thursday my toe hurt a lot but i figured a good clean should see it right. nah-ah. thursday nite we walked, me in pointy toed boots (yes, i'm a dick head) about 15 minutes to a restuarant for dinner. it was almost worth it as there was a non-smoking section! this is a massive deal in ths country but i'll have a rant about that another day.
i was in bad shape by friday morning. paul telephoned the american medical centre, which is a medical service run by americans to bring western medicine to the eastern bloc- thank god. there are centres in kiev, moscow, somewhere in poland and i think belarus or somewhere like that.
we got an appointment for 11am. paul ended up taking the day off work, well- off the office, he still worked from home when we got back.
the doctor took one look and said "off with her toe!" okay, i exaggerate but for a micro second i really did hear that. no, what he recommended as the best course of action was to remove the whole toe nail as the infection will not clear otherwise. we, at least me, blanched and agreed. i don't see what else we could have done.
do you know how toe nails are removed?!! (if you don't want to know, skip the next paragraph.)
an elastic band is wrapped very tightly around the base of the toe, a local anaesthetic is jabbed in (three times!) and the doctor sticks a pair of scissors under the nail to the quick and levers/cuts it off! my stomach is turning just thinking about it again. the infected flesh is snipped off, the whole lot cleaned, doused in antiseptic and bandaged up.
of course percy decides this is a great time to do a monster poo. poor paulie had to strip her off, clean her, change her, clean her and change her again because she also decided to pee mid change, on the adjoining operating bed whilst trying to reassure his fretful wife that both her toe and her daughter will be just fine.
this surgery put a decided dampener on our plans to entertain rob and phil. i had intended to take them to lavra on friday, instead i found myself gaping as my toe was butchered and they went by themselves. of course rob and phil are two of the most capable, enterprising and adult, adults i know so they were just fine. lavra is a unesco world heritage listed site here in kiev of middle ages churches, monastries and caves also previously used as monasteries and holy sites.
the weekend also consisted of me lounging about the apartment with my foot in the air and asking for more ibuprofen. actually i'm trying to keep the ibuprofen to a minimum. i know it is considered safe to take whilst breastfeeding but less is more i reckon.
phil returned home on saturday and rob has been staying with us, tolerantly sleeping on the lumpy lounge for four nites.
may i say robyn is a saint. she has been absolutely a god-send (says the aetheist) these past days. she has done everything so that i need do nothing. washing, shopping, cooking, laundry, lunches, desserts, interpreting with taxi drivers, playing with and holding percy, you name it. i'm sure this is what she thought her holiday would be. NOT. i was in tears to wave her off this afternoon.
so this is why i've been a crap host and slow in writing.
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