Oh my goodness… I can’t tell you how excited I was to finally tell Miss G that she was going to be a big sister! I actually found out that I was pregnant very early on this time around {thanks to feeling horribly before an upcoming girls’ weekend away in Abu Dhabi}, but because we wanted to be certain that all was good with the pregnancy and because 9 months is an extremely long time to wait for something that you desperately want when you’re five years old, we didn’t tell her until I was nearly 15 weeks along. At the time, we were amidst a busy summer with family, and since we really didn’t want anyone accidentally spoiling the surprise, it meant that we waited to tell most of our family members too {talk about some major secret keeping happening!} With the house being a constant stream of people coming and going, we decided that it would be easiest to surprise her with the news while on a little family outing to the park…
I think she was so thrilled that she didn’t even know what to do with herself. She got super silly for a little bit and then just would not let go of her picture of her new baby brother or sister.
Later in the day, a bunch of our family members joined us at the park, so she got to proudly share her news with them.
From then on, her baby photo pretty much went everywhere with her… To the farmer’s market where she’d explain to all of the shopping grandmas that she was going to be a big sister, to the skateboard park, on errands around town, and even to bed with her each night.
It goes without saying that she’s absolutely over the moon and we think she’s going to make the very best big sister.
As your mama, my job is to help you live a happy, healthy, and fulfilled life. Of course, this means making many decisions on your behalf, especially now while you’re so little. Some of them, like making your sleep a family priority or ensuring your body is nourished with healthy, wholesome foods, are easy. They’re inarguably what’s best for you and they’re worth every extra penny and every bit of extra effort. Other decisions are not as simple…
For the last few months, your papa and I have been talking about one of those kind of decisions. One of the ones that don’t come as easily. We’ve weighed our options and made the lists. We’ve discussed it with your grandparents and talked about it time and again… And after all of it, we have some big news, Baby Girl…
We’re moving.
And not a little move…
We’re moving back to the Middle East.
Back to Kuwait.
Now I know you might be thinking, didn’t we leave there only a year and a half ago? Didn’t you guys choose to come home to Canada not that long ago? And you’re right, sweet girl. We did. At the time, you were still so wee and had only had a chance to spend a few short weeks with your grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. We knew we needed to get you home to get to know your family members and develop those relationships. And you have. We’ve spent the last year and a half camping with your cousins, spending holidays with your grandparents, and experiencing all of the wonderful things that come with being a Canadian… From brightly coloured autumn leaves, to ice skating, to a backyard garden full of veggies and hills of fluffy white snow. It’s been wonderful, Lovey.
But soon enough, we’ll say goodbye to this little life we’ve worked hard to build in this beautiful city and begin anew. We’ll carefully pack all of our essentials, make the 36 hour trek we’ve come to know well, and set up our new life overseas in our second home. It’s bound to be full of challenges, and yes, our families will be far away, but Sweetpea, it’s going to be wonderful. There’ll be new friends, old friends, constant warm weather (sometimes so hot we won’t know what to do with ourselves), days spent at the Hilton, and travel adventures throughout the seasons. I can’t wait for you to meet the kids we’ll live with, for us to play in the courtyard each afternoon, to take you back to Dubai, and spend our first real European Christmas as a family (I promise we’ll make it further than the Frankfurt airport this time around). We’ll walk through the sand to the bacala in the afternoons, we’ll close up our apartment when the dust storms roll around, and we’ll cool ourselves in kiddie pools filled with cold water when the heat becomes too much. There’s bound to be days… Days when your papa and I become frustrated with living in a country so different than the one we grew up in, but it’ll all be alright. The three of us will be together and as cliché as it sounds, that’s truly all we need.
You don’t know all of this just yet… Seven months is still a long ways away and the concept of time is a hard one when you’re two years old. We’ll talk all about it this summer when the packing and prepping begins, and it’ll quickly become clear that big adventures are headed our way. But until then, Baby Girl, my promise to you is that your papa and I will do everything we can to ensure that you spend your days happy, healthy, and thriving, no matter where we are in this great big world.
Love you always and forever,
Mama
xox
hanging out at home // our apartment // your nursery
adventuring in mahboula // courtyard afternoon // a walk to the bacala
poolside // hilton baby // on the shore of the gulf
on a wild ride // boxing day walk along the gulf // fahaheel lunch
a walk along the gulf in egaila // waiting at the kuwait airport // evening at egaila park
♥
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