Hello and Happy Monday!
Moving is never easy; especially to a new country. For me it was/is tough; every single time. Let’s talk about the little face on this blog. I find it amazing how Petit Joel adjusts to changes. Any change in fact. He just goes with the flow, finds positive things in everything and is so easy-going. Even flying for two days was fine. You might think this is all too stressful for a toddler but he was okay. He is basically just a reflection of how I am, or how le husband is. Whenever we are stressed out, he is. He is such a trooper.
Today we had dinner at the Mongolian Hot Pot which was something completely new to us. What a fantastic experience and so yummy. I highly recommend this place and of course will write a review soon. Wow, Mongolian food for president!
I wrote a post on Joel’s eating habits a while ago and even those changed so much. There is no more apple juice addiction; he drinks water only now and it is all good. He eats and tries new things. He even likes Mongolian food. Who would have thought! Trying new restaurants, flavors and food is definitely something I love to do and it was always difficult to bring Petit Joel along. He never sat down, he never tried anything and was just a pain in the butt. Well, not anymore. So off to new restaurant adventures.
As far as time-change goes, Petit Joel adjusted pretty well, too. His usual time to go to bed in Germany was between 8 pm and 9 pm. He is exhausted these days whenever it is 8 pm in Canada now and falls asleep within two minutes. [2 am in Germany!] There is also a lot going on every day. House hunting, exploring Kindergarten and University, planning, researching and whatnot. Tomorrow we will see around five houses and I have a bunch of appointments on Campus. We might be able to put Petit Joel in the Kindergarten tomorrow for a bit so he can get comfortable and see what this business is all about. Actually, he says that he is excited since he saw all the toys today in the backyard of the daycare. “Joel play with other kids and scooters”, he said and my heart made a little jump or two. To have him in my life is one of the purest experiences I have ever had. Whatever he does just seems to live forever in me. This feeling when he just knew me and nothing else while being inside of me for nine months is long gone. He explores new things every single day and he is so smart. I feel he wants to learn, wants to explore and be challenged.
The time I spent with him in Germany and basically raised him on my own was nice but also very tough at points. My entertainment program is limited and we did a lot indeed! I just know that it is time for him to experience something new. He gets bored just being around me, as hard as this is (for me). At a tantrum-rich day I was looking forward to him just going to Kindergarten so I have some time for myself again. Now, that this time is here, something feels weird and I catch myself getting a bit sad [of a drama queen, crying for no reason; thinking he will be gone at daycare soon while kissing him over and over again]
It will be wonderful and terrible, happy, sad and heartbreaking at points to leave him behind with his little new friends while I study. I know I will hate it some days and love it the next day. Today, I stood next to him while he played in a lake. Le husband, Emma, Petit Joel and I took a little break from house-hunting and relaxed in the shade and water. I was amazed to observe Petit Joel figure out new things and how he found snails, shells and stones and brought them over to show me. In a way it made me feel proud but also powerless and sad. I remember those days when he was curled up close to me and I nursed him. After nursing we played and I counted his toes and fingers while saying funny rhymes and as soon as I know it I will be at his college graduation and in a still whatever foggy distance he will pack his things and leave. He will be smiling. He will be happy. Father and mother stay behind and smile back and don’t tell him how much it hurts. I asked my mom once how she felt when I left for police academy and she said she was very sad for a long time. The same again all over for my sister and brother.
I saw Petit Joel’s daycare place today and for some reason I know and realize that the days are counted until he leaves us for his first adventure; all alone. I know I will cry a bit leaving him behind but I also know my son. He will be fine. He is strong, he is tough and he will be okay without me. Will I be okay without him? Yes! Life goes on. I will pick him up in the afternoon and he will be excited to tell me what happened during the day. In the meantime, I won’t forget how fast time goes by and all these amazing moments we already shared won’t come back. But new ones will be just around the corner.
