Pic- nicky

Well picnic but that's how you pronounce it in Portuguese. All my friends at the park got together for a potluck picnic. All the women in white are baba's or nannies. Can you imagine having to wear white to work to take care of a baby or toddler? I would be a mess!

Tchau,
Sara
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Me vs Beach

Dear Beach,

Long gone are the days where I would greet you early in the morning wearing my small bathing suit, no shoes, holding a little bag with my sarong and a few dollars for coconut water. You used to bring me such a feeling of calmness and really complete me. I felt that you gave me a great workout, tan and love for life. I went to you in times of need. Someone to talk to while the hubby was away for work. I went to you when I needed to sort my thoughts.

NOW look what you have done. Maybe it's because you have missed me but I do not find it appropriate to still find you on me when I return home in places I would rather not mention on my family blog. You cling to my baby like you want to take her away. Well, I have news for you- she's mine.

When I see you these days I bring: the stroller, towels, sunscreen, food for Belle, water for Belle, and everything but the kitchen sink. I have to use all my muscle to drag the wheels through the sand to park and realize Belle doesn't need food because half the beach is in her mouth.

I constantly worry about the water, sand, waves, sun and random people walking by. I am stressed out the entire time we are together. When the outing is over and I return home looking a hot mess. Can't find my little belt that goes with my cover up, Belle's little swimmer diapers leaking all over me, I really can smell the urine soaking everything we own, sand stuck to Belle is scratching me, do I still have my bathing suit on?, Belle's screaming cause she is tired and sandy, and the expression on my face for at least the next two days will be of utter dismay.

Will there ever be a day when our friendship will mend?

In the future I ask that you bring many smiles to Belle's face as she builds sand castles, digs holes, looks for shells, and (fingers crossed) falls asleep under the umbrella before eating lunch with her clean sand free hands.

I ask that you not cling so much. We will be back to visit but maybe not as often. I might be a little scared at the moment. You defeated me today after a short outing. I set my hopes a little high and thought I could manage solo with Belle but I was wrong.

Must go take another shower to get more sand off....

Tchau,
Sara

Empty Nest

Another goodbye was said today and now the house just feels empty and lifeless. The past 2 weeks have been so fun with a house full of people and something always going on. I fear the next week when Nate will be leaving me for a week and I will face the house solo with Belle. 

Tomorrow the day should get back to the normal schedule of tons of walks, maybe a little beach trip (if I get brave), multiple trips to the park, and hopefully a little tennis. 

Yes, I said tennis... promise to write all about it in a few days with a full story. Now off to catch up on some sleep. 

Tchau,

Sara

Can Rio Pull it Off?

I am talking about the Olympics :) So many articles today swathed their focus to Rio 2016 now that London 2012 is over and the results vary from positive to negative. Just try googling "Rio 2016 are they ready" and you will see what I am talking about.

What do I think? Well I fall mostly with the negative view point at this moment in time. I whiteness first hand the lack of progress to the city of Rio on a daily basis. Heck, the guys downstairs have been working on the fountain in front of my condo since January and still can't manage to get it working. How are they supposed to pull off the Olympics?

A few days ago we drove buy the Olympic Village and they have broke ground but nothing else is done. The site where golf will be held is less than 2 miles from my house and they have yet to break ground. A promising feature though is that a sign defining the area as Olympic Golf hangs at the bus station. Let's hope it doesn't have to move to an already existing golf course.

Construction to the highways and main artery streets still progresses without providing any relief to the already congested roads. The huge 1 billion US dollar performing arts center has yet to be completed after at least 5 years of construction.

All these things leave me dreading the Rio Olympics. I hope that they prove me wrong.

Tchau,
Sara

Ooooops!

Well I picked the wrong week to revamp myself and the blog! With my mom leaving one day and then Nate's little sis coming the next I find myself with little free time!

Yesterday we attempted the beach and it was a flat out mess. Sand was everywhere. I didn't think about a wet diaper attracting so much sand and then depositing it elsewhere :)

Today we are venturing off to the hippy fair and the botanical gardens. At least there won't be sand!

Tchau,
Sara
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Remember When?

Remember a year ago when these photos were taken?

Happy Birthday to my sweet little girl who is growing way to fast. 

I cannot believe how much life has changed. I knew that it would change but really I had no idea how different things would be. I am totally in love every morning that I wake up and I can't wait to see what new things she learns. Looking forward to the changes that will happen in the year to come! 

Tchau,

Sara

Bye Bye

Why does the word goodbye carry so much emotion? Sometimes the emotion behind the word holds too much weight to even come out of my mouth.

Since moving away from family and friends I can no longer say goodbye without shedding a tear. The tears may come after the guest is gone but they always come. 

Tonight my mom left and for some reason I really want to be home and close to her. I loved watching Belle run to her and give her kisses and hugs. I could hear the two of them laughing down the hall or Belle babbling to my mom for something she wanted. 

These are the times when living in another country really take a toll on me and my heart. While I believe that what we are doing is right for our family at this moment in time I still long to be close to family. 

Nate and I laughed the other day when we were talking about the future and we referred to living in Tulsa as our dream.... Who would have thought that after all the teenage years of trying to get away and explore that we would dream of returning. 

Homesick in Brazil.

Tchau,

Sara

Revamping

I really must say that I am sorry to all the readers.... if there are any left! I have neglected to write anything substantial in such a long time that I have forgotten what to write and how to write it.

Blogs can be easy when I take a photo of the baby, slap a cute saying with it and move on with my day. What I really want to write involves so much brain power that I wish I could upload my thoughts while I sleep in order to avoid the time it takes to type, edit and post.

The new old me will emerge over the next week without fail I promise. I plan to revamp the blog with new photos, update the books that I have been reading through my library thing widget, updated the blogs that I actually read, and post a little more substance other a photo here and there.

I read a sanskrit saying the other day,

"Night will be over, there will be morning,
The sun will rise, lotus flower will open.
While the bee inside the lotus flower was thinking thus,
The lotus plant was uprooted by an elephant."

Basically don't plan so much and live a little more. Why wait to make changes or live your life. Enjoy each day, "c'est la vie".

To a new day and new goals! Join me and change something for the better in yourself or for someone you know.

Tchau,

Sara

PS- Of course I am still going to post about Belle... I have to but I want to write about anything and everything. Maybe one day it will lead me somewhere I didn't know I wanted to be.

Olympics

I used to love you but now maybe I hate you because I miss you.

I am sitting here with a glass of wine after a long day involving Belle, three walks, an hour of tennis, dealing with the maid being late.... again, a little rain then sun, Skype dates, difficult diaper changes, and too much speaking English (yes, my mom is here and I am not used to this much communication) and I realize that I hate Brazil.

I am soooo freakin upset that I have to sit here and watch the Olympics (should it be capitalized? I think so in this moment because that's how important they are to me) and never really see the US... ever. Well, I lie. I guess I have seen women's sand volleyball.

I watch the same stupid clips over and over again about Brazil winning a medal. I really would have thought that they have won thousands of medals based on the commercials, clips, replays, and general coverage. When I go to the official Olympic website I find out that Brazil only has 5 medals. Ughhhh.

I feel like I am missing everything and right now I am having a hard time seeing what I am gaining being here.

I guess this is the final straw? Maybe it's my mom being here and me realizing that I miss family way too much. Or maybe I just miss the great country of America. Period.

What ever the problem, I must find a way to change or find a solution.

Onto my next glass of wine. Maybe I will sleep the problem off tonight and have a more positive attitude tomorrow!

Tchau,
Sara

Soccer Stadium in Salvador

Nate is in Salvador at the moment for work. He took a photo of one of the stadiums that are supposed to be ready for the 2014 World Cup. Looks like there needs to be a lot more work!!! I don't think that any of the stadiums are ready at the moment :(

Tchau,
Sara
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