New Seasons

There have been some changes in the Krishnan household this week...  Some good, some ok, and some just because that's the way things are!

Micah ended the classroom portion of his ER course and has transitioned to clinicals.   This means he no longer goes to class Monday-Friday from 8-5pm.  This is good!  He now works in the actual ER on Mondays-Thursdays.  He has 9 weeks of clinicals.  The first five weeks or so he will work "nights" (which is what he is doing now).  So he works from 3-11pm.  The second half of clinicals he will work 7am-3pm.  He does have some homework to go along with clinicals that he has to do during the week and submit daily, but he has 3 day weekends!!!!  This is very good! His current plan is to stay after work and get his homework done before coming home, so last night he didn't get home until 3:30am...This is not good.  Hopefully after a week or so, once he is more familiar with the expectations, he will become more efficient and be home by 2 am...which is better!

Juliet continues to go to her preschool two days a week.  However, she now stays there for her afternoon nap.  This is ok.  Previously, I was picking her up at noon and bringing her home to take her nap so she would sleep better, even though we were paying for her to be there until 2pm.  But when I picked her up early, even though she was taking a little longer of a nap at home, she was missing some of the afternoon activities at preschool. This was not good.  Another main reason to leave her the whole time (even though I almost cried the first day I did) was so that Micah and I could have those mornings to hang out by ourselves (since he is on night shift).  This is very good!  So, this has been a good transition and only challenging for me and my mama's heart having to leave Juliet at preschool longer.  Thankfully, she seems to love it and she has the best teachers ever!!  She also actually naps well there, which also makes me feel better about leaving her.  These are all very good.

Juliet Isabel and her teachers Sra. Silvia and Sra. Pilar!

I have not had too many changes in this new season.  Mainly just adjusting to having Micah work nights and all the changes that have come with it.  I now have all this alone time in the evenings when he is gone and Juliet is asleep.  Call if you want ;)  Recently I have seemed to have more things on my plate.  This is very good.  I have had several get-togethers with two other moms from church who both have 22 month-old girls.  Plus, fall activities with church have started up and that means a few more ways to get involved.  This is very good.  So, as we head into the new season of fall I feel more and more "settled" here in Texas with each passing week.  This is good!

And the final new season is the season of fall that is rapidly approaching us.  Despite the calendar it still feels like summer down here, so any of you who are sad for the new season's arrival, come and visit us!!! Our outdoor pool is open ALL year.  I'm not kidding.  I asked.  This is just the way things are in Texas, I suppose?!

Summertime Baseball

I love minor league baseball games!  It seems like a natural part of summer time.  In Asheville we frequented the Asheville Toursits and last night we went to our first San Antonio Missions game (the mascot names make me laugh).  Every Thursday night baseball game is Dollar Night....dollar beers, dollar hotdogs, dollar popcorn, dollar soda, all night long!   We made sure to coincide this deal with our first trip ;)

Juliet ate 2.5 hotdogs and some popcorn.  (This is why we must go on dollar night, otherwise we could not afford to go.)  She also really go into the atmosphere.  For a child who loves clapping, baseball games and baseball music is like heaven!

Salsa Obsession

Juliet is obsessed with sauce; "salsa" as she calls it.  If there is anything that could be considered "dip" or "sauce" within her vision she will not eat her food unless she is dipping it.  Seriously. 

Today for lunch she asked for a sandwich.  I made her a grilled cheese.  I sat down to eat with her, except I was eating a salad.  I made the mistake of putting my dressing on the table and she insited on "salsa" for her sandwich.  She then proceeded to take the cheese out of her sandwich (this is a common occurrence, which is why I give her a sandwich with melted cheese in hopes of deterring her) and dip it in the dressing I poured on her plate; no bread necessary...

A New Perspective

Sometimes we just need some change :)

Forts

I think one of Juliet's favorite parts of the day is when Micah gets home.  He is way more fun that I am and when she hears him walking up the stairs she starts to go crazy with excitement.  She loves having someone who will "wrestle" with her and tickle her till she can't breathe.  Sometimes they even build forts.... (Oh, and don't forget to invite the babies over to the fort too!)

Juliet talk

Juliet's language has really exploded over the past two months.  It has been really fun hearing her talk so much!  She also keeps us laughing by the things she says out of the blue and the things she repeats (well, laughing or crying....ha). 

A few of her most common phrases these days that I think are so funny are "allllright", "boogers, get it", "ups-y daisy" (when she wants to be picked up or she picks something up), and "whoops-y daisy" (when something goes wrong).

My Little Housemaker

Before returning to Germany, some of our neighbors gave us their little kitchen that they had brought with them when they moved to the States.  Our German friends Rebecca and Gorg, whom we met at the pool, were here because Gorg is in the German Army but was stationed here for several months to do some medical training.  They had twin 4-year-olds Levi and Lena. 

They were so kind to give us the awesome kitchen when they returned home.  Juliet has been in heaven.  She will make and serve you cheese, chocolate, or agua just about anytime of day :)

36" Pizza

Oh, yes!

 

Don't worry we didn't eat it all; we shared the meal with friends.  But I will let it remain a secret who ate the most pizza...?!?

We are returning on Friday for a friends birthday and we are getting the largest pizza they make...42 inches!!!!

Everything's bigger in Texas!

Sunglasses Obsession

I forgot hers one day.  Poor child.  She had to ride the whole way covering her own eyes.

Dramatic and particular?

No, of course not, not in the least bit.  ;)

Potty Training...

....We tried and we failed (for now at least).

 We only tried because Juliet kept wanting to use the potty and have her babies use the potty, so I thought, "Who am I to hold her back?!".  And she was SO excited to get her panties and potty seat.  And in the beginning she was even very excited to sit on the potty every 15 minutes...

 But she never, not once, actually peed in the potty.  She pooped (and still does occasionally even though we are back to diapers) in the potty, but NO pee.  She told me every single time she was peeing, like the actual moment she was going, and would then proceed to run sprint (as much as an 22 month old can) to the potty, but she would not actually pee IN the potty.

Alas I surrendered and we will try again in the future!

Body Parts

I was reading a book on body parts with Juliet and so she just started reciting and pointing to the ones she knows how to say already...

"head"
"toes"
"codo" (elbow, in Spanish)
"head"
"shew-wee"       ........she said while pointing to her bottom. 

Yeah, we need to work on that one.

Life in Texas

We have been in hot/pretty/bare/sticky/urban/dry/flat/relaxed/busy (my opinion changes depending on the day) San Antonio for almost two months now.  Many times I've considered sitting down and writing about our new life here but have not yet quite felt ready to express how I felt about Texas life. ...read: I didn't have much nice to say so I decided to say nothing at all.  But I think the time has come and I have worked through those first initial emotions that come with a new [husband, home, state, job, childcare, church, friends, highway, neighbors, grocery store] season!

The move was hard for me.  Not physically (despite the climate change), but emotionally.  Actually, I was doing great here until Micah started his Emergency Course (M-F, 9-4, plus studying often at home), and then I was left friendless, jobless, and spending my days with a one-year-old (although she is quite adorable!, the conversation quickly reverts to crayons, cheese, babies, blankets, and Elmo.).  Before we moved I was relatively busy...teaching four classes, mommy-ing, packing, and planning a wedding.  I like busy.  I function well with busy, always being around other people, and the more I have to do the more productive I am.  So, Texas was a change.  I had all this free-time yet not really sure what to do with it; no one to spend it with.  It was hard for me (sometimes still is), but it is getting much better as we get more involved and seem to find more of a natural day-to-day rhythm.  I also think it has been a good season when God has reminded me to turn to Him with my day-to-day struggles and free-time, and He reminded me also how self-centered I am.  How much I want and how much I expect.  So it's been a good time for me to work on refocusing my Lara-centered brain and to have the free-time to sit and think about things, instead of just going all the time :)

All that said, life here is hot, but we pretty much go from air conditioning to air conditioning so I feel like it's not too terrible.  We have a pool at our apartment that we frequent often and Juliet LOVES her "kool".  We also live about a mile from a huge stretch of the green-way and we take advantage of the shaded trails almost daily.  Believe it or not, I often see deer on my runs!...although, I guess that shouldn't surprise me because it is really the only green place the deer have to live in this city.

Micah's course seems to be going well.  I know he is learning lots because he studies all the time.  The course consists of two phases: classroom (which they are doing now) and then in hospital clinicals (September-October).  During the classroom part they have a test every Monday on the material covered the week-before, hence the studying.  If you don't pass the tests you can't continue in the course.  So, he studies.  

Micah also convinced me to do a GoRuck race with him.  So we have begun our training...just imagine two people running in the heat of Texas with Ruck Sacks (backpacks filled with weight), carrying hand-weights, and pushing a baby stroller.  Yup, that is currently us.

Juliet seems to be adjusting fine to Texas.  She loves the pool, her preschool, and all the green lizards that climb all over our outdoor stairs.  She goes to a bilingual preschool two mornings a week and loves it.  When I wake her up the mornings that she goes to school, I tell her she is going to school today and she says "Play?!?!  and...... EAT!".  Clearly I am getting my money's worth ;)

I personally am really trying to be more proactive in getting involved.  This week I emailed two different ministries that I heard about through our church to inquire about volunteer opportunities.  One is a Pregnancy Center and one is a ministry that works with the kids of homeless families.  I've really been praying, even before moving here, that God would use us in some sort of ministry and I'm looking forward to where that would be!  I also started a job....  which was a total God-thing.  I wanted to do something teaching related and part-time without it causing me to need lots of childcare.  Well, one of Micah's classmates has a husband who works for an online higher-ed program.  They just started their Spanish courses this year and needed graders.  So, my job is to grade assignments, essays, and exams of the Spanish students as they submit them.  It's all online and all on my own time.  God is good.

I think that is a pretty good summary of our lives these days.  Thanks for reading and for caring about us.  May our lives bring glory to God and this blog be a testament of they ways He has been faithful and good to us!