Visitors enjoying Park Güell

Most of our trips become culinary adventures – this one included. I assumed the food would be similar to Mexican food, or maybe Paella, but Barcelona is known for it’s tapas (little dishes holding just a couple bites) or pinchos (little slices of bread topped with various ingredients, held in place with a toothpick). Below was my favorite pincho that we tried – cream cheese, jam and fresh mint. They’re set out at a bar so you can sample whatever kinds you want. Each one was about $1.50, and when you’re done, they just add up the toothpicks to calculate the total.

Cream cheese and jam pinchos

Though flamenco dancing didn’t originate in this area, we went to a dinner theater one night and had front row seats for a flamenco show. The dancers were impressive and tapped faster than I could snap my camera. I’d like to see them up against some Irish folk dancers. :) Dinner was tapas – bread with chopped tomatos and olive oil, fried potatoes with aioli sauce, various cheeses and dried hams, and Padron peppers, also known as Pepper Roulette. These are generally very sweet tasty peppers, but every once in a while you get a spicy hot one. They look identical, so you can’t tell which is which until you taste it.

Flamenco Dancer

One of my favorite sites was the Sagrada Família church. It was designed by Gaudi, famous for his modernist designs, in the 1800s and still is not complete. The detail and style are what is unique about it. I particularly liked the inside which was modeled after science and nature concepts like plants and trees.

Interior of church modeled after tree trunks and branches

On Sunday, we found locals gathered outside a cathedral dancing the Sardana, the Catalan national dance, with a full set of musicians to the side. The dance looks somewhat like a traditional Greek dance, where the dancers form a circle, hold hands, and tap and kick their feet. We stayed on the sidelines, but I loved seeing the older locals dancing along – many wearing white cotton shoes laced up their legs.

Catalan dancers on Sunday morning

The other thing I wanted to comment on was the conflict in Barcelona’s identity that weekend. We happened to be there during the final World Cup game, where Spain beat The Netherlands. There was much celebration and pride in their country. However, the day before, we stumbled upon a huge protest (over 1 million people) who wanted the Catalonia region, including Barcelona, to have independence from Spain. Even though it’s part of Spain, it has it’s own language – Catalan rather than Spanish – and a very strong culture. After living in Belgium, with 2 different languages, cultures, and even governments split down the middle of the country, it’s a little easier to understand, but the flipflop from one day to the next was what I found humorous.

Barcelona protesters wanting independence from Spain

I’ve got to add one more note about a famous Barcelona site we saw…the Barcelona Naked Man. This is a real human (older) man who proudly walks the streets of Barcelona, sporting only a hat, tennis shoes, and a tattooed on pair of shorts. I had read about him, but was shocked when I actually spotted him. I quickly told Thomas, who with no shame, stood right in front of him, snapping away on his 80-200mm lens. The guy was not impressed, but we came home with some amusing photos.

For those that want to see:

• From the Front
• From the Back

It was only a weekend, but we took a bunch more photos on our trip to Barcelona. If you’d like to see them, they’re posted on PicasaWeb:

• Weekend in Barcelona (60 photos)

24 weeks in Drežnica, Slovenia

Hi Baby! We’re now in the 25th week of pregnancy and all is well. We had another appointment at the doctor this morning, and she said you look great. You have been kicking up a storm, earning you a new nickname of Kickypants. I now notice your kicks throughout the day – strong enough that your daddy can clearly feel them too.

We just got back from our last trip that I’m allowed by plane which your daddy and I are calling our Babymoon. On it, we chatted a lot about what we want to teach and share with you – nature, books, silly songs, a love to explore the world around you… Learning about different places and cultures is something he and I share, and already, you have been quite the traveler – to Ireland, Taiwan, Japan, the US, Italy, Spain, and Slovenia.

Your birth will be in Belgium, where we currently live, but you will be a Swedish-American. With dual citizenship, you’ll be able to travel and live freely in both the US and Europe when you’re older. Your daddy is Swedish, and though he hasn’t lived there for a really long time, we hope to teach you about the culture and customs from there along with the US, and what we’ve picked up living overseas.

Your due date is in 15 weeks, and we’ve been making our final travel plans. I’m staying around here, but your grandparents (my parents) are visiting in August to do a little touring, and then your uncle (my brother) will be here in September. Your daddy has a work trip in Portugal for a couple days, and will also be heading to the US another time or two. At the doctor today, we confirmed the earliest and latest dates for you to arrive, so he can make sure to not miss it.  It feels like we’re getting closer, and we can’t wait to meet you.

Love and kisses,
Mama

So, I’ve been researching all this baby gear, but I would love some advice from real parents who cloth diapering and use bedside cribs. Here’s my questions:

Cloth Diapering:

• What brand do you use?
• Did you start using them as soon as your baby was born?
• If in Europe, what detergent do you use?
• Did you make your own wipes? Out of what?
• What did you use for your wipe solution? Just water or something else?
• How many diapers do you suggest getting?
• If I have a European combo washer/dryer that takes a couple hours to wash/dry a load, am I nuts for wanting to do this? Note: Otherwise, I walk to the grocery store and only buy what I can carry (groceries + baby + disposable diapers included).

I’m currently thinking about Bum Genius diapers with the snaps. I like that they use the inserts and will fit the baby for the entire diapering time. I’ve seen them in a Belgium shop, but they’re much more expensive here than in the US. I’ve been keeping an eye for them on US Ebay, but many have the velcro which seems to get worn quickly.

Bedside Cribs:

• What kind did you use?
• How long was your baby in it?
• How did you keep it attached to your bed?
• Was it important to have the crib on wheels?
• Where does your baby sleep during naps when you’re not also sleeping?
• Did you use a bumper?
• Afterward, did your baby sleep in a crib or a floor bed?

I’m not sure what we’re currently leaning toward for this one yet. We’ve considered just getting a moses basket or possibly a small crib/bassinet, but they would be more separate from our bed, and it sounds like the baby would grow out of that so fast. We’ve also looked at getting a bigger crib with a removable side, like the Ikea Gulliver and strapping it to our bed. This would last the baby much longer, but we have limited space while the baby is in our room.

Part of me feels silly for asking these questions because in the big scheme of things, whatever we end up doing will probably be just fine. But they’re things that match our values, and if we can find a way to make them work by learning how others have done it, then it’s great to have a little experienced advice. Thanks!

The Atomium

Spectators

Nearing the Finish Line

On Monday, the racers left Brussels at the Royal Palace and headed up to Spa. I gave myself plenty of time and had a great spot at the Montgomery round about, but they’re so fast. They pass in just about 20 seconds. Still, I enjoyed watching the crowds, the teams’ cars, and the motorcycle photographers, and I even spotted Lance Armstrong! Afterward, I headed downtown to see the Mannekin Pis in his racing day costume – the first time I’ve ever seen him dressed up.

Photographer on Motorcycle

Racing around Montgomery round about

Mannekin Pis in this Racing Day Costume

If you’d like to see more photos from the race, I’ve posted them on PicasaWeb:

• Tour de France Arrives in Brussels (21 photos)
• Tour de France Leaves Brussels (19 photos)

First, I made a ruffly pillow. I had a bear family fat quarter that was too cute to cut up into small pieces, so I thought it would make a good pillow for a rocking chair…well, or my computer desk chair while I’m rocking the baby. I used part of a yellow sheet from my stash for the back and the ruffle. The ruffle isn’t quite even, so the perfectionist in me might re-attach it. Otherwise, it’s an improvement from the bland denim pillow I stole the insides from. I didn’t use a pattern (my ruffle might have come out better if I had), but of you give it a try, I recommend the Ruffly Pillow Pattern by Portabello Pixie.

Next, I made a fabric box…actually two. The first one went into the scrap bin due to a math error on my part. I accidentally made the box 5×13 inches – an awkward size. The second box is 8×10 inches and works much better. For the outside, I used a heavy weight decorating fabric that happens to be the same pattern as some paper I was planning on using for a mobile. The inside was another yellow sheet from my stash. I used the Fabric Basket pattern by Stitchin’ Chicken, but made the box extra tall so I can fold the edge over – I think it made it a little more stable.

The final project was burp cloths. I’ve made these before for baby showers, usually making 2 patchwork cloths. This time, though, realizing babies use much more than just 2 burp cloths, I made them much simpler with no patchwork. Mine are more rectangle (7.5x18inches) but the Easy Peasy Burp Cloth Tutorial by My Longest Year gives you directions. And these were easy peasy to make – I think I spent more time picking out the fabrics. :)

I think the interesting part about these projects was going through my fabric stash. I was surprised that I didn’t really have that many delicate baby girl fabric patterns – lots of blues, greens, yellows, and bold prints. Relying only on my fabric stash, this may be one brightly-colored child! So next up on my craft list…bibs, a travel changing pad, a nursing cover, and a mobile. Do you have any favorite baby craft projects I should check out?

The Costa Rei Beach

A couple weekends ago, Thomas and I headed down to Sardinia. It’s an island just off of Italy, on the southwest side between Corsica and Sicily. It was wonderful! We stayed on the eastern coast (Costa Rei beach) in a quiet little resort town with gorgeous beaches and clear blue water. The other tourists were definitely European (mostly German), as most of the men wore speedos and women occassionally went topless. I think a bigger shock to some may have been the naked or topless children on the beach. As long as they’re sunscreened well, I guess I can’t see any problem with it.

Shallow pools and smooth rocks

Speaking of sunscreen, we got our fair share of burn. Traveling with only a carry-on, and limited to 3 oz of liquids, we skimped on the sunscreen and came home with peeling feet and shoulders. When I went to the baby doctor the other day, she was concerned about the marbled spots on my legs and asked if everything was okay. I had to explain that I just didn’t do a very good job at spreading my sunscreen evenly.

Delicious caprese salad

So other than the sun, the water was wonderful. It was warm enough to swim, and the beach had huge sandbars and smooth rocks that you could walk out on. The food was delicious too. Thomas was the photographer for the weekend and spent a lot of time on the local birds. We mostly saw sparrows and swallows, but also some martins, flycatchers, and a cormorant in the ocean.

Sparrow on a rock

Cormorant in the ocean

On our last day, we drove back along the southern coast, and stopped at the salt marshes outside of Cagliari. We had heard that flamingos often visit here, and we found them! There were a bunch, maybe 60 at least, but they were on the other side of the lake, so we didn’t get that many photos. It was interesting to see pink feathers on the shore, but with a bird-touching phobia, I didn’t bother to bring any home with me.

Flamingos in the salt marshes

So if you ever need a little getaway with gorgeous weather, relaxing views, delicious food, and plenty of swimming, I recommend Sardinia. If you want to see more photos from our trip, I’ve posted them on PicasaWeb.

• Weekend in Sardinia (45 photos)