The Holiday (Shopping) Spirit

After our rookie mistake last year (of attempting to Christmas shop in Union Square hungover), Martin and I went for a slightly different approach this year.  Instead of Union Square we opted for Union Street for an evening of shopping and taking in the festive season.  After only a few short hours, I had presents for everyone on my list and even thrown in a few more items for myself.  It was a success!  We were done with shopping and the crowds for this year without incident, complaint or snarky comment …or at least that is what we thought.  United Airlines had other plans in store for us…..

We spent Christmas in Germany this year with Martin’s family and I left a few days early for a side trip to Tel Aviv for work (spending 3 great days with the team but missing all of the historical sights and attractions including Jerusalem and Bethlehem).  Martin and I were to rejoin in Berlin that following Friday to kick off the German Christmas Tour. 

I made it to Berlin safe and sound however due to flight delays and some re-routing, Martin arrived in Berlin 4 hours late; his luggage arrived in Houston around the same time.  With only the clothes on his back and the pair of underwear I bought him at the airport, it appeared we were going shopping in Berlin that next day; the Saturday before Christmas.

We had breakfast that morning with Anna and Tim, our hosts for the weekend in their beautiful East Berlin apartment and then set off to Alexanderplatz in hopes of buying a few clothes to outfit Martin until his luggage arrived.  Come to find out Alexanderplatz is the Union Square of Berlin and the Saturday before Christmas is their busiest day.  To make matters worse, even under pressure Martin was unwilling to forego his fashion sense and just buy something at the first store we went to.  After 3 stores and only socks purchased, my patience started running a little low and my comments were turning from supportive to slightly hostile.    We thankfully struck gold at the fourth store with Martin buying two great outfits including a pair of jeans, two shirts and a sweater.  And the fifth shop, the kebab shop, put me back in the holiday spirit.

We met back up with Tim and friends later that day and ended our quick trip to Berlin with a stroll through the Hacker Market Christmas Market for some more holiday cheer and Gluh Wein (kinder punch for me)…. Little did I know, our shopping mall / Christmas Market match up would be repeated two more times before the holidays were over.

Hacker Market Christmas Market

We left the next morning with promises to see Anna and Tim again next December (it was becoming a tradition) and hopped the train to Chemnitz to spend two nights with Meike before heading to the Breuer house. 

We arrived in Chemnitz and were informed that a few presents still needed purchasing for the parents.  So with Monday lined up as a day of shopping downtown, we spent Sunday night checking out a few Christmas markets in the surrounding areas – specifically Erzburg (in the old castle) and Freiburg (in the town square).  I found the Erzburg Market to be in a cool historic location but filled with cheap mass produced knickknacks and the Freiburg Market too overcrowded with too many food and alcohol stands (did I really just say that)?  The best market we went to was the Chemnitz Market, which we checked out on Monday after a day of Christmas shopping and a Christmas Carol sing along with Meike’s co-workers.  The Chemnitz Market had it all: the right amount of people, a good mixture of classic stands with the traditional wood carved decorations from the region, rides for the kids and a fun (definitely not the standard creepy) magician who kept us entertained as we huddled around the fire pit keeping warm with our Gluh Wein and kinder punch.

Chemnitz Christmas Market

Not to be outdone, we checked out one final Christmas Market the following day in Iserlohn after the drive from Chemnitz to Martin’s parent’s house.  I can officially say I have done the Germany Christmas Markets and soaked in the Christmas Spirit.

Fake Drinking and Dietary Restrictions

In terms of pregnancies, I would say that I have had it pretty easy so far.   No morning sickness, no food aversions, no complications to date, no heartburn, bloating or serious lack of energy.  If it weren’t for the growing belly it would be hard to distinguish between being pregnant and not.  The biggest change for me has been the dietary restrictions I had been warned about but not fully prepared for (no sushi, no soft cheese, no deli meats) and the need to fake drink my way through the first trimester. 

Thankfully for me, Martin was around for most social events to help cover my lack of alcohol intake.  At the wedding in Hawaii, Martin would order me “vodka” and soda waters or offer me “beers”.  The vodka drinks being just water and the beers being a beer bottle filled with water.  And when Martin wasn’t around, I enlisted the help of a few select girlfriends to assist with the charade…you know who you are and I owe you big time for drinking for two!

With the end of my first trimester, so came the end of my fake drinking as there was no longer a need to hide.  Begrudgingly I am still stuck with the dietary restrictions for a few more months… And with the dietary limitations, all of a sudden going out to dinner (my social lifeline and favorite pastime) is no longer the treat it used to be.   Each new restaurant menu is a minefield of issues:  raw fish removes half of the menu, no runny egg yolks kills half of brunch, if it has cheese in it no thanks as hipsters have made unpasteurized homemade cheeses cool, and a fancy salad sounds healthy, but with a house-made dressing I will have to pass. 

In the past few weeks, I have been internally tormented and torn between being the picky/snobby eater who asks about the source and preparation of each ingredient and dish and the alternative of simply ordering the most uninventive item on the menu (most likely the steak and potatoes cooked well done and please hold the spit and judgment, it is not my choice either). 

On the upside, in lieu of going out, we have started cooking more at home which is cheaper on the wallet and calories.   And Martin even bought a cookbook to help ensure the baby is getting what it needs each and every week. 

As the belly grows I feel less and less guilty of asking the list of questions or for modifications and I have gotten used to the restrictions.  However I do miss my old friends prosciutto and salami and secretly crave a sandwich stacker made of sushi, prosciutto, topped with a runny egg and slice of good cheese and washed down with a glass of red wine.  But I suppose those can wait.  I am working on something bigger and more important at the moment.  

The Big Reveal (Ordeal)

Until I met Martin, I was adamant that I would not have kids.  Blame my brother’s birth or Little House on the Prairie, I saw no meaningful benefit or upside to the childbearing process and corresponding aftermath in comparison to the consequences of childbearing.    Martin changed all that.  And so, after 2 plus years of marriage and one serious pep talk from my friend Kim (who has 3 adorable kids) I have found myself pregnant after only a few weeks of trying… apparently birth control does work and my worries for the past 7+ years weren’t for nothing!

Like all good things that require you wait, I found out about the exciting news two days after Martin had left for his annual week-long fishing trip to Norway. And so I was left on my own, waiting for his return, before I could tell him the big news.  I used the time to research doctors, book the first appointment, take another test to confirm the results and come up with a cute way to tell him when he returned.  I ended up buying a fun card and little onesie with a teddy bear hugging the state of California noting “made in California”.  He opened the gift within hours of his return home and the look of surprise, disbelief and then pure joy brought me to tears.  We are officially having a baby! 

Once Martin was in on the secret and the doctor confirmed our hopes, we then had to devise the plan of when and how to tell people… we ultimately wanted to wait until 14 weeks but travel plans and family visits required a bit more thought and coordination…. First up, the new grandparents! 

Luck would have it that Martin’s parents were in town for a 3 week visit in October and would be leaving right around the 8 week mark.  While it was a little early, we couldn’t pass up on the chance to tell both sets of parents in person and together.  Martin and I thought it would be great to tell them at our house and then head out to dinner to celebrate... the tricky part was convincing my parents to come into the city.  After much thought, we decided to use the only card we had, we told my parents that Annegret was cooking her world famous goulash for dinner to entice them over.  We knew my dad would never say no.  So when my parents arrived at our house the last night of Ernst and Annegret’s visit, with no hint or smell of goulash in the kitchen, we had to act quickly.  Martin announced to the parents that while we didn’t have and couldn’t offer goulash, we had something even better…. A baby on the way.  The look of surprise, disbelief and pure joy made both Martin and I laugh with happiness and excitement! I think my parents were expecting to wait a few more years and Martin’s parents had given up hope of grandkids all together.    After celebratory drinks at home and dinner at Original Joes, my parents left with words of congratulations (and advice to take care of myself) and Martin’s parents left the next day with promises to return every month.

With the parents down, it was on to the friends and family. For the most part, we were able to make it to the 14 week mark however due to some unavoidable travel plans and upcoming weddings, we were required to tell a few friends early… which unfortunately resulted in one or two awkward consequences.  Who knew such good news could result in so drama!  But I digress.

With all of the stress of the first trimester and potential for things to go wrong, we greeted Week 14 with relief and excitement!   

We took the opportunity to tell the family over Thanksgiving (which happened to fall right at 14 weeks).  And that weekend our friends and family both abroad and at home received emails, texts and phones calls to share the news.  I told an incredibly supportive boss the Monday after Thanksgiving and the rest of the office on Thursday with a simple declaration to the ladies “well ladies, I got knocked up” which was greeted with clapping, cheering and the entire floor sending their love and well wishes.   The support and excitement we received back from everyone in our lives put the pregnancy glow to my ever smiling cheeks.

The say it takes a village and it feels like the village is 100% there to support me and Martin in the upcoming months and beyond. 

I Lava You

After 7 years of being together and countless treks through Europe and mountain passes around the world, Martin and I took our first tropical vacation together!  We spent four glorious days in Kauai for my work-wife Lindsay’s wedding to her high school friend Vince.  And it was perfect.

Like a warm embrace from an old friend, we arrived Thursday morning to beautiful, sunny Lihue and 80 degree weather.  Naturally our friends have great tastes in travel so we picked up our rental car and headed north to my favorite part of the island and our home for the next few days, Hanalei Bay!  Before we could even get to our rented studio apartment, we saw Lindsay and Vince in line at the local taco truck in town so we pulled over to catch up on plans for the day and say hello. Being a small town, we would eventually run into the entire wedding party throughout the weekend despite staying in different houses and hotels.

Our apartment was just east of Tunnels Beach, but being hungry for lunch, we headed back into town for Chicken in a Barrel and then made our way down to Hanalei Bay for an afternoon swim. 

The wedding festivities kicked off that evening with a BBQ on Annini Beach and were followed by kayaking on Friday Morning, a welcome dinner on Saturday night and the main show on Sunday. 

In our spare time, Martin and I were able to relax in the sun, enjoy the beaches, not think about work (although Martin had a few things to take care of on Thursday), practice yoga, surf and take two hikes (unfortunately our original plan to hike the Napoli Coast to the waterfall on Saturday was derailed due to rains so we headed south in search of sun and found ourselves on the Kuilau Trail int the middle of the island.  We were still able to take in the views from the famed coast on Monday morning before our flight home but the trek was limited due to timing.

Below are a few photos since the scenery can speak for itself.  The goods news I might add is that Martin really enjoyed it!  This is coming from a kid who growing up complained about a beach vacation in lieu of a hike in the mountains.  He has already started convincing the rest of the family that another trip is needed!

Kayaking from Hanalei...  Martin did most of the paddling.

Tunnels Beach!

Martin enjoying his first fruity cocktail - a Pina Colada!

Wedding Celebrations!

Just a quick hike before our flight