It Takes Two to Tango

"The plantings of cherry trees originated in 1912 as a gift of friendship to the People of the United States from the People of Japan. In Japan, the flowering cherry tree, or "Sakura," is an exalted flowering plant. The beauty of the cherry blossom is a potent symbol equated with the evanescence of human life...."

I have welcomed Spring with open arms, I'm definitely a sunshine girl over snow.  It seemed like overnight, without warning, the cherry blossom trees bloomed in abundance all around us and the bright pink, magenta and white petals transformed the bare tree branches from the dark, cold winter period.  It seems like this time in our life parallels the cherry blossom tree, familiar to me from my past as a child visiting my grandparents in Traverse City, I remember running through the tree lined fields.  (By the way, the photos above I sadly cannot take credit for.)

Rebirth and renewal has certainly been a theme during this period with the birth of our second daughter and feeling like in a way we are starting our life over again in the States.  Spring also marks that time in my life of my birth, April being my birthday month.  For me, birthdays are a time of reflection on the year past, decisions made, what paths were taken and recognizing how I've evolved over time (no anthropology pun intended).  This past year has been a particularly tumultuous and exciting time, with a lot of change and new beginnings.  

I've become a new mother again.  It feels like these past three (yes three) months have been the quickest of my life, truly a whirlwind.  It's such a different experience from our first baby.  Equally as awe-inspiring and precious, Siena has seamlessly woven into our lives and it feels now like she makes us complete as a family.  She has woken up from the sleepy newborn stage and her personality is being unveiled day by day.  I couldn't ask for anything more from Siena, she is an easy going baby, happy most of the day while I'm working away, manages to survive the aggressive cuddles from her older sister and best of all is a good sleeper.  She is smiling, making cooing noises, loves to "talk" and my favorite, discovering her hands through crossed eyes and taste tests.  

Having an infant again makes me contemplate the mysterious and wondrous cycle of life.  I look at her tiny little hands and wonder what thoughts and ideas will these hands articulate on paper?  And where in this vast world will these tiny feet take her?  What will her eyes see in a lifetime?  I've seen 27 years now and I think I'm seeing true beauty now (for the second time of course), with a simple smile and sparkle in her eyes at the sight of her mother.

Now, before you all (especially you mothers) roll your eyes at me for my idealistic description of motherhood, I'll bring myself down to Earth a bit.  Being a parent is hard work.  Really hard work.  Some days I feel like I'm surviving on coffee alone due to sleep deprivation and trying to balance working, daily chores, cooking, taking care of two little ones, connecting with my husband and carving out time for myself.  If anything, becoming a mother to another child gives me even more respect for those women in my life who have had 3...4... 5 children!! (Grandma Crum you are truly Wonder Woman, I don't know how you did it!)

Oh Sophiya.  Where do I begin?  She is growing up before our eyes.  The past few months her speaking and vocabulary has accelerated faster than Dana and I can keep up.  She is stringing together words to form sentences now and it feels like she picks up on new sayings daily.  She has assumed the older sister role with gusto, helping me with Siena whenever she can.  "Hello Enna" is her greeting to her sister every morning, she clobbers her with kisses and the two of them seem to entertain each other already, in short spurts.

She is taking after her parents as a total bookworm.  We read books before bed and after the light is off, we'll peak in to check on her and she has books scattered in her bed "secretly" reading on her own.  It's adorable.  She has memorized a few and will vehemently snatch the books out of our hands and demand "Iya (Sophiya) read" which we gladly acquiesce.

She is full of life and energy.  Everyday she is full on from morning until night.  She is thriving in the routine of going to school in the week and has made friends of all different ages in the Montessori classroom.  She's counting and recognizing numbers and letters.  It's amazing to watch her growth.

Having a two year old means that holidays are so much more exciting now!  The Easter bunny came to visit and left a trail of chocolates and basket full of goodies for her to find.  The look of pure joy, sincere excitement and surprise is priceless.  The Easter bunny will be sure to cut back on the amount of treats next year as all we heard for two weeks or more was "Easter bunny treats?" with a smile that could melt your heart, so clearly there was no way we could say no to her! 

 

She has become fiercely independent.  This wasn't a surprise to us as she's been asserting her independence since her first birthday, but now she has gained the cognitive and the fine/gross motor skills to be able to do things on her own.  She wants to dress herself, undress herself, put her shoes on, go to the bathroom on her own and has ideas of what she wants to do or where she wants to go...  "IYA DO IT" is her favorite phrase!  In the same breath, with her baby sister around now, she also wants to be babied and doted over from time to time.

She really makes us laugh with all her silly idiosyncrasies.  She has to be meticulously clean, even if it's a delicious sugar infused chocolate cupcake, she will refuse if it means getting messy - crazy right?  When we sit down for a meal together she wants to "Cheers" with everyone at the table and will then say her favorite phrase "Go Family", an encouraging pep talk for Mom and Dad to make it through the bedtime/bathtime madness.  When we are driving, I've lately been listening to a lot of Mumford and Sons and Florence and the Machine, and I'll hear in the back seat "Good song" and "loud", meaning "turn up the volume".  Foreshadowing for her teenage years to come... 

Still my baby when I watch her sleep like this...

Venturing out to downtown Balitmore for trip to the Children's Museum and walking around the Inner Harbor

Chilling out on the deck with my girls, soaking in some sunshine

African photo shoot, still missing our second home and friends back in Cape Town!

Sophiya and her rocking "Ellie"

We were treated to a surprise visit from Nana, for a quick grand-babyfix!

Auntie Anabell comes to visit too!  "Surprise face!"

My job is going really well so far, I'm enjoying it a lot.  I'm in the Marketing and Sales department and focus on finding internship placements for our international students for various programs.  I enjoy establishing relationships with different companies and organizations and I've learned a lot in the short time since I started.  It's similar to my previous role with Projects Abroad with recruitment, but on a larger scale as I'm working with host employers nationwide.  Dana's Global Career Launch program will be starting this summer so he'll be traveling to Chicago, San Francisco and DC.

We have some exciting trips coming up in the next few months too.  We'll be heading to Seattle for Memorial Day weekend and from there I'll be going to Minneapolis for my brother's high school graduation!!  I can't believe my "little brother" is all grown up!  I'm proud to announce he is going to the University of Minnesota and has been asked to be a decathlon athlete!  Go Jamie!

Another proud announcement, in a turn of events shortly after Siena's birth, my Dad was offered a position with Mattel in Melbourne, Australia!  After discussing and asking advice from us three kids, we all gave the enthusiastic thumbs up and bright green light for this awesome adventure for them.  They have already sold our house in Minnetonka and are planning the move in September.  I'm so excited for them, after our experience living overseas, there was no way we wouldn't be supportive of such a great opportunity.  We will certainly miss them after finally being closer the past six months, but we are looking forward to visiting them at the end of the year!

I absolutely have to close this post with a tribute to my incredible husband.  Moving countries, starting a new job, having two small children, and supporting our family, he has been my rock through this crazy time and I couldn't imagine this life without him.  He's been so supportive and encouraging throughout my pregnancy and post birth and always knows just want to say to put a smile on my face.  Our girls are so lucky to have a man like him for their father.  I've watched the bond between him and Sophiya grow immensely over the past two years.  They have such a special relationship, she absolutely adores her daddy.  Thank you for treating me like a Queen and showering our princesses with your infinite love!

And lastly... does this photo below not perfectly capture what we're up against in the years to come?