Saying Good-Bye is Hard to Do!

After 9 months in Abu Dhabi, it's time to start saying goodbye to the few friends we've made here! While G and I are super excited to move to Dubai (we track the sea freighter that has our furniture shipment daily), I am a bit nostalgic about leaving Abu Dhabi. Obviously, it will always hold a special place in my heart since my precious Baby L was born here. I mentioned in previous posts that Abu Dhabi has been a bit of a lonely assignment for me because it was hard to meet people while pregnant, but we did make a couple really good friends that we wanted to have lunch with before we moved.

First we had lunch with my coworker's wife, who helped us witness documents at the Embassy for Baby L. I wanted to give Jeanne a little thank you gift for helping us with our embassy documents and I knew she loved pho, so I put together a little care package of spices including my dad's recipe.  We had a fun little lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant out on Al Raha Island with her oldest and youngest kiddos and Baby L. The pho was just ok - it was a bit greasy and there was under-cooked garlic in my bowl, but when the options are limited, you take what you can get! I told Jeanne she is welcome to visit us in Dubai any time!

Jeanne loving on Baby L!

Later this week, we had lunch with Lacey, our photographer here in Abu Dhabi. We've done three photo sessions with Lacey, and I love working with her. She also loves on Baby L like crazy, and I wanted to get a photo of them together so Baby L would know who took all her beautiful baby photos! Sadly, Lacey is moving back to the USA early next year, and we will miss her dearly!

Cuddles with L & L!

Other than that, things have been pretty low key around here. I've been trying to build up my milk supply for when I go back to work, which has taken up a bunch of room in the freezer.  Since our tiny freezer does not auto-defrost, the drawer that I store milk in finally froze shut this week and G had to manually defrost it. We are looking forward to a freezer with auto-defrost...neither of us had seen a freezer without it since the 1980's. When he took the drawer out the frost on the coils was taking up over half the drawer! I know he was hoping to not have to defrost it before we left, but it was really getting out of hand.

G defrosting our tiny freezer so I can keep pumping and storing milk

We're also still trying to bottle train Baby L. It is honestly the worst part of my day because she cries and cries and looks at me with such frustration. G has the same experience when he tries. If I did it over again, I would have put her on a bottle more regularly early on, because now it's a struggle. I wish G good luck when I leave for work because it's not going to be fun for him. :-(

We've started nap training Baby L to get her onto a rough schedule. So far, we've got her regularly going down for a morning nap about two hours after she wakes up...we're still working on the rest of the day. I'm sure as soon as we've figured out a routine for her, she'll have a growth spurt and change...since that's what babies do!

I still can't believe how much she's changed in only two months. The bedtime swaddle went from too big to too small in such a short period of time! Same thing for the two hats that G's mom made for her - too big to snug so quickly! I feel less anxiety about how fast she's growing now that she smiles and coos at us because it's easier to enjoy the new changes and developments. I still miss my super sleepy cuddly newborn, and I'm in love and excited to keep watching my little baby grow.

Baby L - on Day 2 on the left, at 10 weeks on the right.

Baby L is 2 months old!

Baby L turns 2 months old today, and I just can't believe how much she has grown! People still tell me she's teeny tiny, and to me she seems huge. She also doesn't seem nearly as fragile as she did when she was first born - she weighs 50% more, and definitely feels more solid.

Couldn't get her to smile, so settled for getting her to sleep!

She's started smiling real full-gums-showing smiles at us where her whole face lights up, she's started cooing at us and having little coo coo conversations, and she's started making this weird clicking sound with her tongue - I think she learned it from Thuzar from housekeeping. She also (mostly) sleeps through the night! I usually get a good stretch from 7 or 8pm to midnight, and then she'll wake up to eat roughly every 2-3 hours after that. G and I suspect that she is actually awake for parts of the night, and that since we keep the room dark, she knows it's nighttime and puts herself back to sleep until she's hungry. She is definitely most cheerful in the morning - if there is any sunlight in the bathroom when I change her diaper, it's over, she's wide awake, grinning and cooing like there's no tomorrow.

Her whole face lights up when she smiles!

We've started trying to bottle train her with a little more consistency - previously, we only gave her a bottle if either I left her for a certain period of time (massage, errands, date night, whatever), or if my nipples went on strike from her biting them with her gums. Thankfully the latter is happening less and less! She is not fond of the bottle, and I honestly wish we'd started bottle training her sooner - I was so nervous about nipple confusion and wanting to breastfeed her that we're running into the opposite problem - she fights the bottle. We're hoping that a daily bottle will help her get used to it so G doesn't have to spend literally all day trying to feed her.

G has also discovered the magic of the Ergobaby carrier. He was commenting on how carrying her around the house to try to soothe her into a nap was hard on his shoulder, so I suggested he put her in the carrier - and sure enough she was out like a light in minutes. His current challenge is getting her from the carrier into the bassinet without waking her up!

G, going about his day with Baby L fast asleep on his chest!

We have a long list of nicknames we call her...

• Sweetpea
• Sunshine
• Peanut
• Super Pooper
• Poop Shooter
• Spider Monkey
• Turd Monkey
• Stinker
• Whah-mobile (when she's crying)
• Poonami
• Wiggles
• Squeaks
• Sea Turtle
• #grumpybaby

She still flails her arms and legs quite a bit, and she still hates tummy time. I try to find alternatives to tummy time on the floor and most of them still end in tears. We'll keep trying, and we've decided it's ok if her physical milestones like crawling and walking are slightly delayed. There's a little clip of her flailing and squealing below.

Interestingly enough, her doula suggested that I try letting her sleep on her tummy when she's sitting next to me so I can keep an eye on her head position. It's not quite as beneficial as awake tummy time, but it might help her get a little more accustomed to being on her stomach. Apparently babies also sleep better on their tummies - I tried it, and she had the longest nap she's ever taken without either being held by someone or being in a carseat! She startles a lot less on her tummy, so I can definitely see why in the 80's and 90's parents were told to lay infants on their stomach to sleep. It was also fun to watch her lift up her head in her sleep to change positions without crying - a nice change from the tears!

Does tummy time count if you're asleep?!?

Things we're NOT looking forward to are her 2-month checkup and vaccinations. I'm bringing G with me to the appointment because her doctor is definitely LESS overbearing when he's with us - it's our last appointment with her anyway before we find Baby L a new doctor in Dubai. We're bracing ourselves for an unhappy Baby L when she gets her shots later this week.

We're enjoying these last few weeks in where we're all home as a family in Abu Dhabi before we move to Dubai and I go back to work. I'll definitely be bummed that I can't just walk downstairs to buy delicious little cakes for her monthly photographs! I'm feeling almost fully recovered - my hemogloblin is up, and I'm walking for 20-30 minutes 2-3 times per week. I'm back to pre-Baby L weight, although I put on some pounds with our pre-Baby L miscarriage that I've yet to work off. I'm targeting to shed those pounds by the end of the year. Of course now that G and I finally have a routine down to accommodate both our workout schedules and his schoolwork, it will all change - such is life, especially with a baby!

Look Mommy, I can grip it with two hands!

#MeToo

Much like so many of the other women who posted #MeToo, I was hesitant to share my stories. Brene Brown teaches us that "vulnerability is about showing up and being seen", and that if we can share our story with someone who responds with empathy and understanding, shame can’t survive. These are my stories.

Junior High

I was "going out" with a sweet boy. Which basically means we talked on the phone after school sometimes - and he was publicly my "boyfriend". We didn't really hold hands or kiss, and we bought each other presents for Christmas and Valentine's day. One day in science class, another not-so-sweet boy said to me, "You know, he's only going out with you because of your boobs." He might have been kidding, he might not have. Either way, I had a reputation for a hot temper, so I marched down to the principal's office and asked the secretaries if I could see the principal when he had time. A few hours later, my temper had cooled to anxiety and I received my summons to his office. Of course, when the aide came to class to tell the teacher the principal was asking to see me, the whole class did they're typical "ooooOOoo", and I blushed furiously as I exited the classroom. I remember my hands shaking when I went into his office and told him my story - I was so proud of myself for not crying. My junior high principal is a man that I have great respect for - he didn't question me, and that not-so-sweet boy was sent to in-house suspension for a week. I am very fortunate that he believed me, because there are many, many girls who in the same situation would have been told "well, boys will be boys".

What happened next was harder to deal with. Of course, by now, everyone knew why that boy was suspended, and because of his suspension was no longer permitted to go on some class trip (I can't remember where). I was called a tattle-tale, a bitch, and many unsavory names by his friends - I was made somewhat of a pariah for standing up for myself. Grade school children can be cruel, and friends of bullies can be the cruelest. Thankfully, I also had great friends who reminded me that I did the right thing and not to sweat it. It's important to note that #MeToo isn't just women in the workplace - I was a girl in school. I was maybe 12 or 13 years old. I ask the men out there, how would you feel if this is what your daughters were experiencing in a place where they are supposed to be safe? More than just #HowWillIChange that I see from my male friends, what will you teach your children?

High School

At the school I went to, the graduating senior class had an all-night party after the graduation ceremony. We called it "Project Graduation", and it was planned for us by group made up of parent volunteers. We'd load up onto busses and make several stops at different venues, all of which were supposed to be a "surprise" (but of course, since it was planned by our parents and teenagers gossip, we all knew what the stops were. There are only so many places you can go in the town I grew up in anyway).

In between a pair of stops, I was hanging out with one of my male friends (we'll call him X). I was tired, and pretty sleepy and he offered me a backrub. What I thought was starting as a friendly backrub turned into him fondling my breasts - I wasn't sure what to make of it, and I was uncomfortable, but I don't think I stopped him. I should have. I don't recall exactly how it ended, but I think I pretended to fall asleep. I heard later from other boys in my class "hey, I heard X got to third base with you!" It was incredibly embarrassing and I still feel a little ashamed that I let it happen. X and I never talked about it, and we went on our separate ways to different colleges - last I heard I think he's married with children, and I wonder what he would teach them.

University

I don't recall any specific stories from college. I know that almost immediately after meeting other men, I'd emphasize my long-term boyfriend who was at Purdue as a self-defense mechanism. I also had a pretty strong shift in the company I kept. In high school I had a lot of guy friends - I'd hang out at my friend Brett or Sam's house (neither of them are X) and we'd play video games, or I'd hang out at my friend Eric's house (also not X) and just generally be silly. I had girlfriends in high school too, I'd say the group of friends I hung out with was pretty evenly split between guys and girls. I tended to create a lot of my own drama (right, Jamie?!?), and hanging out with drama-free guys meant there was less drama all around.

In college, I hardly hung out with guys at all. I lived in an all-women's residence all. I joined a service sorority that was mostly female...I think there were only 2 or 3 "Mister Sisters" when I was there. I played the piccolo which was 30 women and 3 men. Ironically, one of my closest friends was one of those 3 men. Hah! Even in my department, I gravitated toward building friendships with other women instead of men. I'm sure I experienced sexual harassment in college, but none of them stand out as vividly as my examples from grade school.

Professional Life

I am blessed that I have not experienced overt sexual harassment in the workplace. Gender discrimination for sure, and that is a whole different topic for a different day. My first place of employment - a mid-sized construction firm in Minneapolis - was amazing. I felt supported as a professional woman, my ideas were respected, and the people were great. I had one not-so-great boss (who no longer works for them), and my issues with him didn't really have much to do with me being a woman as they did with him being arrogant and condescending (to everyone). The main reason I left was that it was, in fact, a mid-size firm without much vertical movement for me - I was there while my first husband finished his PhD, and then I moved on to a much larger corporation with much larger projects in oil & gas.

At my current company, again, I sense a lot of support for women, and sexual harassment as far as I know is not tolerated. Moreso than my first company, I experience strong-yet-subtle gender discrimination, and again, different topic for a different day. Unfortunately the most vivid sexual harassment experience I've had as an adult was during a business trip, though outside the workplace. I was on an assignment which required me to travel to Jakarta, Indonesia for roughly 3-6 weeks at at time. Over the course of a year, I went to Jakarta 7 times - which meant I spent most of that year in various stages of jet lag. One night, I decided to dine alone at one of the venues in my hotel - a lot of the business travellers liked to hang out in the club upstairs, and as an introvert, sometimes I just wanted to eat by myself. I was literally propositioned by a man while I was eating. I politely explained to him in my very American accent that I was at the hotel for professional business, and he had the decency to apologize and appear embarrassed. On the one hand I "should have known better" - the bar I was eating at was known for 2 things, a great hamburger and prostitution late in the evening, and since I look ubiquitously Asian, it's probably not too hard to mistake me for one of the working girls. On the other hand - it was early, around 6:30pm, and I shouldn't have to "know better" - while it might have been a different country, the clientele was all westerners. It was after work, I was dressed professionally - pants, a blouse, a jacket, and my wedding ring. I should be able to eat my dinner peacefully without being asked about the going rate for my services.

I share these stories because sexual harassment is so real and so pervasive in our society. I was watching Zoolander with my husband the other night - which used to be one of my favorite movies. I've been making Zoolander jokes about the tiny phone he bought (since he has to carry a USA phone and a UAE phone, he didn't want 2 large phones) and about Baby L since she favors turning her head to the right instead of to the left. I hadn't seen the movie in years, and re-watching it, I was shocked at the objectification of women in the movie. It seemed funny then, and seems a lot less funny now. I still enjoyed the movie, and I think I will probably take it off my favorites list.

I hope that my daughter doesn't have to have experiences like mine, although the cynic in me says that she will. I put my faith in God to make her strong, in my husband to teach her how a man should treat a woman, and in the strong female role models that she will have in her life to teach her to stand up for herself -- my two sisters, myself, and all the great women that I have surrounded myself with.

3 Years and a Lifetime

3 years ago today, my mother passed away from ovarian cancer which had metastasized to her liver.

Mom, sporting the haircut she always wanted, thanks to a new wig!

This is her abbreviated story.

She was originally diagnosed with cancer in January 2010 and had a full hysterectomy along with a section of her small intestine removed. While her surgery was intense, she made a full recovery and went into remission for 3 years. A year after her initial surgery, she suffered a perforation in her small intestine, and had to have surgery for the repair - fortunately this time, recovery did not involve chemo, but it was still slow and painful.  She learned that her cancer had come back in fall 2013, around the time that her mother died - in fact, I remember Mom and Dad talking about Grandmother's funeral being abbreviated so that Mom could get back to the east coast for tests. The biopsies showed that the new spots on her liver were, in fact, the same cancer as before. More rounds of chemo with limited results, and a year later she was gone. She was 54 when she died.

There are obviously a lot more details to share, and for today, I'll stick with just my memories from when she was first diagnosed with cancer. Before I go any further, for all you ladies out there - ovarian and uterine cancers are silent killers.  When things "aren't right" with your lady parts, GET IT CHECKED OUT. Typically by the time these two cancers are diagnose, they're already at advanced stages, and it is often too late to do anything about it.

I still remember the day in 2010 that my dad called me at work to tell me I needed to come home. I was supposed to call Mom every Sunday, and since we'd just come back from the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville (Michigan lost to Mississippi State), I had gotten a little lax in my phone calls. I thought it was odd that Dad was calling and texting me during the day, so I called him back after my meeting. I think it was a Wednesday. He told me Mom had cancer, she's having surgery on Friday...and the prognosis was not great. Mom didn't want me to know, and he felt it was my choice whether or not to fly out. Danielle was flying out Friday morning.

I remember talking to my supervisor - I was in an experimental open concept office setting (my company has since adopted this setting for its whole campus) and I remember crying in a huddle room while I told him I needed to fly out the next day.  I'd bring my laptop and work remotely so he would barely notice I was gone.  My supervisor at the time was like a big teddy bear and gave lots of hugs, so he hugged me and told me to log on if I felt I needed to but not to worry about it and go be with my family.

At this point, I was so thankful for all the international travel my company had sent me on in the previous year.  I booked a round trip ticket using 25,000 frequent flier miles - had I purchased the ticket outright, it would have been over $1,200. Nowadays that figure probably wouldn't make me blink -- but at that time, I wouldn't say I was "struggling" financially but a $1,200 plane ticket would have meant tightening the belt for a month or two.

I flew out Thursday morning. I had planned to arrive in Providence, RI that evening, and my parents would pick me up from the hotel at 5am the next morning on their way to the hospital for mom's pre-op. Of course it was January and there were flight delays, so I ended up arriving in Providence at midnight, got about 4 hours of sleep, and then it was time to go. I didn't sleep much anyway.

I intentionally didn't read about the statistics for ovarian cancer survival rates. I didn't want to know. I also didn't keep tabs on what medicines she was taking or what kind of chemo the doctor chose. My sister had way more scientific and technical savvy than me, so I let her worry about those things. Danielle told me that I didn't see how bad Mom was over Christmas - and that she was probably filled to the brim with painkillers to get through the Gator Bowl trip. I had no idea, she seemed so vibrant and lively while we were there.

Surgery was horrible. I don't remember how long it actually was, but it seemed like forever. Dad went to pick up Danielle from the airport, and lunch came and went. I want to we waited 6 or 7 hours, and the surgeon told us there was at least one point where he thought Mom wasn't going to make it. The good news was that he was fairly certain he'd gotten all the tumor. I don't really remember the rest of the weekend, only that I was relieved and so thankful that she made it and that I worried for her recovery.

I DO remember 2010 was a difficult and chaotic year for me.  My two best friends got married, my sister graduated from college, and I trained for and rode in my first MS150 charity ride - 180 miles on a bicycled over the course of 2 days. Between all this, trying to visit my mom often to keep up her morale and travelling to Calgary once or twice a month for work, I think I was on an airplane 5 or 6 times each month. I know that I got to United Gold status taking only domestic flights, which is saying something. I learned my limit for work and personal travel, for sure - I often woke up unsure of what city I was in!

Flash forward to now, I'm most thankful that mom's health held pretty steady then deteriorated quickly in the last 4-6 weeks of her life. She traveled all over the country in her last year, and got to see all her dearest friends. I suspect she was in more pain than she let on during all this, but I'll never know for sure. I'm also fairly certain she knew she was dying but didn't really let on how bad any of it was - she wrote letters to my father, sister, and I. I wish she had been more authentic with us, but I understand where she was coming from.

After seeing how difficult mom's recovery was from 2 abdominal surgeries, I was very leery of a C-Section with Baby L. Thankfully I didn't need one. I know that a CS is not nearly as invasive as the surgeries my mother had, and I have much more core strength for recovery than she did, and I'm still thankful that I was able to deliver Baby L (mostly) naturally.

I sometimes wonder how my life would be different if Mom were still alive.  Would have I have met G? Would we have gotten married on a beautiful day in Connecticut, or maybe it would have been in Houston? I know Baby L would have a different name (though what that would be, I have no idea). I'm fairly certain I wouldn't be living in the Middle East if Mom were alive, unless she was in remission again. I wouldn't have wanted to be that far if she was alive and still sick. She would have tried to come to Houston for her grandbaby's birth, and hypothetically, we all would have been stuck/stranded in Hurricane Harvey. Would I be as happy as I am now? Mom once said she would gladly take all her pain and suffering if it meant I could be happy. Sometimes I feel an immense sense of loss because of that - did my happiness cost me my mother? I try not to spend much time in that frame of mind, since I know it's not particularly healthy.

Instead, I look forward to the future. We'll be visiting my dad and stepmother for Baby L's first birthday, and it'll be a great time for us to take her 1-year old portraits with the family. G's parents are also planning on joining us, so it should be tons of fun. She'll also get to meet her grandmother and namesake!

I'm so excited to take Baby L to my mother's grave site - and I know my stepmother has been taking care of it, so it will look much more green than this!

 Mom, I love you, thank you so much for everything you've given me. Thank you for looking after me every day, and thank you for looking after my family and beautiful daughter.

Someday soon, I'll be able to ride a carousel with my daughter, just like my mother did with me.

Early Adventures of Baby L: Granddad and Mimi (or Granny?) come to visit!

This past week Baby L had the pleasure of meeting her grandparents on G's side of the family! They were so so excited to meet her, and she took to them right away.

The G's parents were scheduled to arrive at Dubai airport on Wednesday evening.  This actually worked out really well for us because he needed to do an inspection on our new apartment (for those following along, we got the property we were hoping for!), so G left around lunchtime, did the inspection and took some measurements, wandered around the Marina for a bit, then went to pick up his parents.  Similar to when my dad flew into Dubai, we decided the trip would be too long for Baby L, so she and I snuggled on the sofa and had our regular evening routine. Luckily Mom & Dad's flight arrived an hour early, so they got back to Abu Dhabi around 9pm instead of 10pm. This gave the grandparents time to shower Baby L with gifts and play with her a little bit before everyone went to bed!

Thursday was a pretty slow day - Mom & Dad needed to recover from jet lag, and G had schoolwork to do, so we mostly hung around the apartment cuddling with Baby L. We went over to Marina Mall for burgers and hot dogs at Shake Shack late in the afternoon, then pretty much called it a day.

Baby L snuggled between Mimi and the sofa - she is clearly enjoying it!

Friday we gathered up the whole family to go to church. We went to the Anglican Church instead of Catholic Church so Mom & Dad could see where G & I usually go to service.  This was Baby L's second time to Anglican Church and this time went much better than the first time. She made it through most of the service without crying, and even then it was only because she was hungry.  G and I also brought a bottle this time so I wouldn't have to try to nurse her in the middle of church (or in the nursery, which was still only separated from the main sanctuary by a giant glass wall). I'm not real shy about where I whip my boob out to feed her, and something about breastfeeding at church the first time we took her felt super awkward.

Baby L with her Granddad before church!

Baby L looking totally gangster in an outfit made for her by a member of her Granddad's church in Baytown

Later that evening, we went out to walk around the Corniche. Temperatures are dropping in Abu Dhabi, so with the breeze off the water it was actually quite pleasant along the beach. Clearly everyone else thought so too because tons of people were out enjoying the evening.  After the trip to the beach, we ordered room service from Li Beirut, the Lebanese restaurant in our complex - we had a delicious spread of cold appetizers and a main course of mixed meat grilled Arabian-style.  

Baby L's first trip to the beach!  She slept through all of it. :-)

Saturday was another slow day of jet lag recovery - G and Dad went to the post office to drop off the last of our thank-you notes and pick up his new Zoolander-esque phone. Mom and I stayed home to snuggle some more with Baby L (well, Mom snuggled with Baby L - I just sort of hung out and provided the boob when she was hungry). We all went out to Al Wahda Mall for pizza at Russo's - we know, we know, Mom and Dad didn't fly all the way from Houston to eat at Shake Shack and Russo's (which are both also in Houston).  Abu Dhabi doesn't really have "local cuisine" though, so we felt justified! 

Baby L sleeping like...well, a baby!  Sorry Mom, I know you didn't want me post the photo, but you both look great!!!

By Sunday, Mom and Dad were fully recovered, and we had high tea at the Observation Deck 300.  The theme at the Etihad Towers this month is "America", so we had "American" style tea - whatever that means. We had few good laughs about how tea really isn't an American thing, how we dumped the tea in Boston Harbor, etc, etc.  Regardless, the sandwiches and sweets were delicious, and I even caught Mom and Dad being like Millennials glued to their phones.  Baby L, of course, slept through the whole thing.

Yummy tea pastries!

Our parents are like Millennials

Group selfie!

After tea, we went back to the apartment so Mom and I could change into darker, more conservative clothes and I nursed Baby L before heading to the Sheikh Zayad Grand Mosque.  Obviously, no trip to Abu Dhabi is complete without a quick tour of the SZGM. Similar to when my dad came to visit, we didn't think Baby L was up to the full audio tour, so we just did a quick buzz around for photos before heading home. G carried her in the Ergobaby, and she, of course, slept through the whole thing again. I just love watching my husband with our baby, I get to see an extra tender side of him that makes my heart melt.

Family photo at SZGM!

G also took this incredible photo as we were walking in - we didn't realize how good it was until after we left since the glare from the sun made it hard for him to see his phone screen.

Gabriel snapped this fabulous photo!

We were all pretty tuckered out after such an eventful day so we took it a little easier on Monday. We met my supervisor for lunch. He gave Linh an adorable little farmgirl outfit! I'd been looking for a pair of overalls for her, so this was perfect. After lunch, both Mom and I were tuckered out, so we took a nap while Dad and G took care of Baby L.

Dad playing with Baby L while G supervises. Mommy and Mimi are taking well-deserved naps

We had our last major tourist attraction on Tuesday. We had lunch at the Emirates Palace, where G ordered the famous gold leaf camel burger. Really, the super touristy thing to do would be to have high tea at Emirates Palace, but I think one high tea per trip is probably enough decadence! And the views from Observation Deck 300 were definitely better.

Gold leaf camel burger

Baby L's first trip to Emirates Palace!

After lunch, we headed back to our apartment, with a quick stop at the conference center portion of our building. I wanted to get a photo of Baby L with both her Granddad and Mimi, and there is a beautiful ceiling backdrop just before the Jumeirah Hotel ballrooms.  Which brings me to the title of this blog post - Mimi or Granny?  Mom had originally decided she wanted to be called Mimi because she didn't want the same name as G's grandmother (whom he called Granny).  After a day with Baby L, she thought...well maybe Granny is ok?  G and Dad said it's too late - she'd already committed to Mimi.  So...we'll let Baby L decide when she's older. She's the first grandbaby, so she gets dibs!!

Mom and Dad with Baby L at the conference center of our building

When we got back to our apartment, Baby L's first friend (Thuzar from housekeeping) had a surprise for us! Thuzar had been so kind to Baby L, and we all love her. She'll be on vacation when we make our big move, and we are so sad that we'll be leaving her - since she's staying in Abu Dhabi for her vacation, she promised to stop by before we leave for Dubai.

Baby L loves the bear and plant that Miss Thuzar gave her!!!

We're so sad to see Mom and Dad head back home to Texas tomorrow - we probably won't get to see them again until we celebrate Baby L's first birthday in Connecticut next summer. Maybe after a few more Skype sessions, we can convince them to visit us in Dubai early next year ;-)

Baby snuggles with Mimi are the best!!!

Baby L's first Home Photo Shoot

Earlier this week our friend Lacey came over to take some professional photos of Baby L.  We got the final photos just in time for G's parents to see them when the arrived here in Abu Dhabi!

My favorite of all the photos works perfectly in our #grumpybaby series on social media.  Truly though, Baby L is no longer a grumpy baby - she has started smiling and cooing at us, and (if she gets her naps in) has a sunny disposition.  She is definitely a morning baby - she wakes up at 7 or 7:30 every morning despite the blackout curtains in our room, and she is ready to play!

Look at that face! We love it! #grumpybaby

We also have this lovely pair of photos from before and after Baby L was born. I still can't believe the little stinker ever fit in my belly.

Enjoy!