Carnival is being celebrated in Spain and due to the nice weather the party in the Canary islands is huge. Everybody is celebrating.
We also joined the festivities and this time we were in the good company of a strange bird. A small little parrot!
The vaccination went as we had expected. Alex was tough when they put two injections in his leg. He cried a little bit, but he quickly forgot about the pain and fell asleep in his stroller. We did get some unexpected news. Alex had two teeth already! It happened without us even noticing. We had heard that the growing of his teeth would result in sleepless nights and we did notice Alex was in a bad mood some time ago and experimented with a special bite toy from the fridge, but in the end we just figured (incorrectly) it was some kind of phase.
His statistics:
Weight: 7.190 grams
Height: 65 centimeters
Alex has reached his first half year! Six months have flown by with the speed of light.
Alex has grown from a tiny small baby to a big baby actively working to control his limbs and the discover and understand his little world. A little man that started life with just a few drops of milk every few hours and is now drinking entire bottles of milk, eating cereals and enjoying his fruit mixes thoroughly. Alex is a happy kid who likes to laugh and who can enjoy himself with his toys. He sometimes (loudly) claims the attention when he feels bored.
As parents we also experienced an impressive change. We got more secure as a family and we really got to know Alex perfectly. We can sense when he’s tired or when he’s hungry or when he wants to play. We help him to fall asleep and we try and introduce him to new experiences on a regular basis.
Sadly, this milestone in Alex’ life will be celebrated with a couple of injections. He will get three vaccinations today. Now so nice, but it’s all part of growing up. The good news is that probably this afternoon we can start with ‘real’ food. Finally he will get some nice vegetables and just plain warm food. Exactly how food should be!
The voice is an incredible instrument. Here an impressive example of the possibilities by the Petebox.
Alex has finally discovered his dummy. It took five months in which he kept spitting out the little plastic thing but he has finally changed his mind. We hope his thumb will finally get some rest. According the pediatrician a plastic dummy is better than his thumb because of the bad effect the thumb has on the developing teeth. Still, it seems every so-called child expert has a different (contradictory) opinion.
On this picture you can also see Alex reacting to his mirror image. He was a bit surprised, but since some time he is actively trying to grasp his other self.
The operation went well. Ana’s gallbladder was removed during an operation that took about two hours. During the operation it became clear Ana’s gall was very big, but still they managed to remove it through a small incision near her belly button. After the surgery Ana felt sick the entire day. A common after effect from the general anesthetic she endured. The next day she felt a lot better and even managed to walk around a little.
Today Ana went home. She will need to take it easy about ten days and then her stitches will be removed. Afterwards she can start the process of normalizing her diet.
Tomorrow is the day. Ana will enter into surgery and they will remove her gall bladder. This afternoon Ana will be admitted in the hospital and tomorrow the operation will take place. If all goes well she will be allowed to go home the day after tomorrow. Afterwards she’ll need to take it easy for about 10 days and than she should be fine again.
The time she spend with her gall bladder full of stones was at times quite painful. She had a strict diet without any fat, but whenever Ana made a mistake and ate something containing fat she suffered a painful night. After a while she managed better with her diet and started loosing about a kilo or weight a week. After the surgery she should be able to eat normally again, but she will need to avoid food that contains lots of fat.
The operation itself is not so difficult. Ana will be fully anesthetized and the will make three incisions in her stomach. One incision to pump air in, one for a little light and one for the instruments and to take out the gall bladder. If all goes well the operation itself should take about half an hour. The entire process should take about 2 hours.
Today was the last full day that my parents were able to bathe in the warm sun. Tomorrow they leave the 25 degrees next to to pool and return to the -15 degrees in the Netherlands. A difference of 40 degrees! For sure they will notice. Today Alex, Ana and I went to the hotel for a visit. We enjoyed the sun and Alex enjoyed himself a lot. He was laughing with grandma and grandpa.
In addition to these movies you can also view a few family pictures.
More nicotine, more tar and more of everything for much less money. It’s a win-win situation. Mecanicos are a very cheap brand of cigarets from the Canary Islands and the price for a carton is less then 6 euros. This means you can get an entire carton of cigarets for a price that is less then what you pay for two packs in Holland. Too bad (?, not really) I don’t smoke.
I am quite certain now that somewhere on this island tobacco plants are being cultivated. Of course I would like a little plant of my own, just to be able to see it grow. It find it I will need to be smart. To find anything on the Canary islands that is not directly aimed at the tourists you will need to use the social network. There is just no other way. I will have to ask some Canarians and see if my integration on the island is sufficient to provide me with a result.
My mom and dad have come to visit us. Of course this is very nice and although the locals think its pretty cold the sunshine and the temperature of around 20 degrees did agree with my parents.