Photos!

I am loving my new camera...although, as I proved with the failed video I took earlier, I still have a lot to learn about it.  I know if I knew just a bit more about photography, I could do some really amazing things.  Someday...

Here are some of the most recent pics:

Hello, Kitty! :) 

My bright-eyed daughter.

This is my favorite...not sure why.  She's just too cute.  And looks so good in white!

She sure loves to laugh and smile with mamá!

I can't resist her when she sleeps--adorable.

Em and Bela

I suppose there's much more to blog about...but as you can tell from my lack of blogging, I don't really have a lot of time (or desire, let's be honest) to sit down and write.  But I did want to post this video for all of you.  Emily is two weeks away from her fouth month birthday and is getting more and more interested in her surroundings everyday.  Angelines discovered the other day that she gets quite a kick out of Bela's antics.  Apparently she was cracking up when Angelines was playing fetch with the dog in the house.  Well, here's video footage of another new favorite game of hers.  I took a great video (or thought I did!) and then turns out the camera wasn't actually recording. :(  This is take two and Emily's getting a little tired of it...but you still get a good idea of just how much fun she has with her mama and her four-legged big sister. ;)

Enjoy!

All's Well...

...That ends well!

I am home, eating a sandwich on the couch with a fire blazing and a sleeping baby in the bedroom.  All has certainly ended well. ;)  Our trip to Sevilla went smoothly and we arrived with time for me to give Emily a quick snack before my first exam and then because I finished early we had lots of time for a good feeding before the second one.

I feel very good about both the tests I took.  The first one I'm pretty sure I nailed it 100%.  I'm a little less sure about my second one, although I am sure that I passed.  Hooray!  No more exams for me!! :)

Emily was a little champ.  She was a little dream baby for her auntie and even let her read for about 45 min. while she napped during my first exam!  What a good little girl. :)  When I finished my last test I could hear her crying as I came out of the room.  She was pretty tired, sweet girl.  I was able to put her to sleep in the hotel lobby (the exams are in the hotel's convention rooms), but unfortunately she woke up after moving her into the car.  She got increasingly upset and we had to pull over before getting out of Seville to calm her down some--poor baby.  In the end we had to let her cry for a bit in her carseat, but super auntie sang her to sleep and she was out all the way home.

The afternoon went flawlessly smooth if it hadn't been for one small hiccup.  When Toñi rushed out the door with Emily to go feed the parking meter, my jacket (with cell phone in the pocket) fell out from under the stroller without her noticing!  As it turns out, she didn't need to put anymore money on the meter because at 8 o'clock parking's free.  When she got back to the hotel, happy to have saved a few cents, she got a panicked call from Angelines asking where she was and where I was and why I didn't have my phone!  As it turns out, a nice, young lady found my phone and called the first contact (Aangelines) on the list...  She turned my phone in at the hotel front desk, but someone thought my jacket was too much to resist with this awful cold snap we're having!  I loved that jacket, too...  but I guess I'll console myself thinking that someone else, colder than I, will be snuggled and warm through these cold weeks ahead.  I have other coats.

...So, as I say, all's well that ends well.  My exams went well.  We made it home.  I have my phone.  The baby is still sleeping and now I'm off to bed, too!

Feliz Cumplemeses

Instead of a cumpleAÑOS...today is Emily Alejandra's third cumpleMESES. :)  That's right, my baby is three months old today.  I can hardly believe it.  She is ceratinly growing big, strong and fat!  We took her to the pharmacy to weigh her today and she's up to 5.6 kilos (12lbs 5 oz); three kilos above birth weight so an average of one kilo per month.  Not bad...just glad I don't gain weight that easily/quickly!

The hat Auntie Maggie made for her is nearly too small already!  ...Big-headed Wilbanks.

Things are going pretty smoothly around here, although we're coming up on another adjustment period.  Next week I'll begin teaching a few of my classes again.  For now I'm only going to be teaching my youngest students so that means only three hours one day a week.  I have to say I am not looking forward to it at all...but complaining about such a ridiculously small work load seems incredibly self-centered when I know many of my friends are working 40 hour weeks and had to go back to work even earlier than I am after having their babies.  

Normal maternatiy leave here in Spain is four months, so I'm almost there.  Of course, since my work is all under the table this isn't real (read paid) maternaty leave.  If I had it my way (or if Angelines earned a bit more) I wouldn't go back to work at all.  (I feel silly even writing that: "work"...but I really would just love to be with my baby ALL day EVERY day as I have been now for three months.)

  

Like I say, I'm starting out slowly: just the kids' classes for three hours a week, and we'll see where it goes from there.  I may begin teaching a few hours out of home a little later on in the spring.  In this second semester for my university studies I'm not taking anymore classes (Yay!), just working on my final capstone project (Yuck!), so that's work I also have to keep in mind when planning to take on more English classes or not.   

Regarding my capstone project, I'm kind of excited for a change.  I really have enjoyed all my classes, but it will be nice to do something different.  Research can be fun.  I don't really know what I'll do my project on...definitely something related to bilingual teaching...but I can't tell you much more than that.  Actually my Didáctica de la literatura infantil class is making me think that maybe I can do something with children's literature in English or bilingual literature.  Sounds promising, right?  I'll keep you posted.

So as I am dragging my feet about getting back into teaching, Angelines is plotting ways to bring in more money at the bar.  Bless her heart.  We're having a concert on March 7th that we're selling tickets for in order to defray the cost of the band.  I am so glad she's come to see that selling tickets is the only way to make money when we have groups come and play!  Let's hope we sell out. ;)

She has also been picking up the slack around the house since I've been on "vacation" as she jokes. ;) But it is true that I cannot do as much housework as I used to just because a certain small someone demands quite a lot of attention (and food).  As I say, things are going pretty smoothly.  We've found a routine and have been enjoying being a little family.  Angelines hasn't been opening Thursdays because after the holidays it's more expense than it's worth (electricity, heating, etc.) so that's an extra day to have her here at home with us.  And we have been going on weekly outings (even if only to Estepa) to mix things up and get out of Dodge a bit.

Well, this is a study-break blog so I should get going.  My exams are Friday.  Wish me luck.  My sister-in-law is coming along with me to babysit while I take my exams...we'll see how my little girl holds up.  She usually starts getting fussy in the afternoons and my exams are at 5 and 7:30pm... hmmm.  Once again, wish me luck. ;)

She likes relaxing on the couch with mamá after siesta.