Our {love} Story

Our first photo together on our 2nd date

I've had a few people ask me how Mike and I met.
How does a South African end up with a Peruvian-American?
Well, our very first wedding anniversary is coming up (this Sunday to be exact) so I thought it was the perfect time to share our story.

We met just before Summer 2010.

A friend of mine was dating one of his friends and one night she dragged me out (literally!) because her date was bringing a friend.

I was not in the mood to go out after a long day of work, dirty hair and no time to make myself look presentable but at the last minute I decided to go, and ended up spending the whole night talking to this guy who, in just a few months, I would be calling "husband". 

To say that our romance was a whirlwind is an understatement.

We began dating in the Spring, became boyfriend-girlfriend in the Summer, got engaged in the Fall and were married by the Winter.

Some people are a little shocked when they hear that, but when you meet the right person and you just know that they are the right one for you, then why wait? ha ha.

Engaged!

The day I married the love of my life was the happiest day of my life and this past year has been the most amazing time of my life filled with so many adventures.

I feel so lucky to have found the man of my dreams. I love having someone to share my day with, someone who makes me laugh almost daily, and most importantly someone who supports and builds me up to become a better person. 

Mike, on our wedding day I vowed to love you more and more each day. I didn't know it was possible but my love for you has multiplied so many times over and I know it will keep on doing so until death do us part.

Our wedding day

19 weeks

How far along? 19 weeks, 4 days

Maternity clothes? Nothing new. Living in leggings & sweatpants. Also bought a few sweaters that button in the front.

Stretch marks? None

Sleep: Good besides the scary dreams I've been having.

Best moment this week: Getting to over stuff myself with Thanksgiving dinner and not caring if my belly sticks out. ;) Miss Anything? Couldn't eat the brie cheese on the cheese platter and missing the occasional glass of wine.

Movement: Ive been looking out, but only felt it a couple of times.

Food cravings: Been eating a lot of strawberry jam toast.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Still getting headaches, and had a few "growing pains" in my belly.

Have you started to show yet: Yes, still not obvious though.

Gender: ?

Labor Signs: None
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: 20 week scan on Monday. Hold thumbs that we'll be able to find out the sex.

My First Thanksgiving

Are you guys still stuffed full of turkey?

This year was a special Thanksgiving for me. It was Mike and my first Thanksgiving as a married couple and the very first Thanksgiving in the 3 years of living in the US that I've celebrated it the way it was meant to be celebrated: with lots of food, family and fun!

Carving the most delicious turkey I've ever tasted in my life! My cousin cooked it in a smoker so it was juicy and just sooooo tasty!

Food, glorious food.

The family

We went around the table and everyone expressed what they were thankful for. After dinner we played a few games before passing out in a total food coma. 

What a perfect Thanksgiving!

Black Friday madness

My Black Fridays of the past have looked something like this...

I head to a specific store with 2 or 3 items in mind that you really want to get your hands on.

But then...

Hours and perhaps some bumps and bruises later you end up with a whole shopping cart full of stuff that you never really needed in the first place.

This year I was very good. I had to get up for work at 6am, so that stopped me from lining up in the cold at midnight. The top 2 items on my list of things to find deals on were a sofa and a bed. Since we are moving from our shoe box to a bigger apartment, we now need furniture. We settled on a sofa and loveseat combo which I think we got a good deal on and then ended up at Baby Depot and purchased a crib which was $100 off the regular price! Score! At the end of our trip we were buying a shower curtain when we found out we had totally drained our checking account. That brought our Black Friday spree to an end, but at least our baby (who is not coming for another 5 months) has a place to sleep. haha.

How was your Black Friday?

Did you go totally crazy or did you grab a couple of really good deals?

Turkey Day

Its so much fun getting to celebrate American Holidays and today will be my first proper Thanksgiving with lots of turkey and family.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

100!

This morning when I logged into my blogger account I saw something that I think is pretty cool.

This little blog of mine has hit it's first milestone. 100 Followers! 

Sure, it may not be a HUGE number like some blogs with over 2000+ but I still think its pretty awesome. 

I just love my little corner of the web where I can express myself, ramble on and of course I love all of you guys who stop by for a visit! 

Thank you everyone for supporting A South African in New York with your comments and emails. I love being a part of this blogging community and you all make my heart smile. 

Bring out the fireworks!

18 weeks

How far along? 18 weeks, 4 days

Maternity clothes? Nothing new, I'm down to my 1 pair of maternity jeans and leggings.

Stretch marks? None

Sleep: It's really annoying having to wake up at least 2 times in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom.

Best moment this week: I think I felt the baby moving. It was so ticklish.!

Miss Anything? Not really

Movement: Felt it once. So funny!

Food cravings: None this week

Anything making you queasy or sick: Still getting bad headaches. :( 

Have you started to show yet: I think so. Its still not totally obvious though.

Gender: 2 weeks till the next try.

Labor Signs: None
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: When I have my headaches, I'm miserable. But besides that, happy!

Looking forward to: Thanksgiving. Move over baby I need some room for turkey!

Thankful

Thanksgiving is this Thursday and I couldn't be more excited! 

Have you bought your turkey and written out your cooking strategy? 

As a South African, Thanksgiving is a very new holiday for me and although I have lived in the States for almost 3 years, this is the first year that I will be celebrating it the proper way surrounded by family and a big ol' turkey.

I wanted to kick off this week on a very thankful note so I have made a little list of things in my life that I really appreciate.

I am thankful for... my husband of course! Our 1 year wedding anniversary is coming up and it has truly been the best year of my life. He offers me support, makes me laugh and most importantly cleans the ferret cage! I feel so lucky to get to share my life with this amazing man. Mike, I love you with all my heart.  

I am thankful for...  the little Llambok that is growing in my belly! Although he/she might have come as a little bit of a surprise gift but we are so excited for this new chapter in our lives. I know how hard it is for some people to start a family and am very grateful for a healthy and (almost) smooth pregnancy thus far.

I am thankful for...  my parents who offer so much support even though they live so far away. It is sometimes not easy being a whole ocean away from your family, but with parents like the ones I have; distance is not an issue.

I am thankful for...  my sister who is always fun and cheers me up. I missed your wedding this year because immigration wouldn't let me leave the country. It was the saddest moment, but you looked beautiful via Skype anyways. I can't wait to make up for it next month when we visit you in Cape Town.

I am thankful for...  the safe return of our fur-son Gumby a few weeks ago after he was lost for a couple of days. He is such a clown and always makes us laugh.

I am thankful for...  having friends. No matter how far away you are.

I am thankful for...  the apartment we are moving into at the end of the month. We have lived in our shoebox for far too long now! 

I am thankful for...  having a job in this economy. Although the 11 hour days are much to be desired, I love my job.

I am thankful for...  living in America and also having the experience of living in and visiting so many different places and countries.

Package Pals

I was very lucky to get to participate in Gentri Lee's Package Pals Party where we were partnered up with a random blogger who we got to know and then exchange little parcels with.

I got to swap packages with the very adorable Michaela who blogs over at Typewriter Keys. Michaela lives in Iowa and is super talented in the sewing department as you will find out.

I wanted to send Michaela a New York themed box of goodies and decided to make up a New York survival kit in case she ever visits this side of the country.

1. A note pad and pencil to record her journey.

2. Hand sanitizer. It kills 99% of New York germs. This comes in handy, especially when riding the subway.

3. NYC lip gloss for when you need to glam it up on the Manhattan streets.

4. Candy (sour gummy worms - M's favorite) to keep energy levels up

5. Yankees rain poncho because the NY weather is very unpredictable.

6. Everybody needs a I (heart) NY t-shirt as a souvenir.

I was just thrilled when I received such a big juicy box in the mail! Gumby was very curious as to what was inside and really enjoyed all rummaging around in the stuffing it came with.

Look at all the goodies she sent! An Iowa T-shirt and a little Iowa onesie, a packet of Gladcorn (this stuff is amazing, and I'm now totally addicted!), vintage key, scented candle (I just LOVE the name, hehe! And it smells absolutly delicious), a picture of her favorite tree, Iowa magnet and (drumroll please...) a baby blanket that she sewed herself! I'm soooo impressed.

I loved everything about the package I recieved, especially the very thoughtful baby stuff for my little future Llambok!

Thank you Michaela for being such an awesome person to exchange packages with and a BIG thank you to Gentri for putting together such a fun project. Keep 'em coming!

17 weeks

Baby Llambok was a little camera shy yesterday and wouldn't "spread 'em" too well when we did the ultrasound scan. At first the doctor thought it was a girl and then changed her prediction to a boy and finally said that she just couldn't tell and we would have to wait until our next scan to find out. 

For someone as impatient as me, this was disappointing news and the next few weeks are probably going to drag on! But our little one is jumping around in there as happy as a clam which makes Mommy and Daddy very pleased. 

How far along? 17 weeks, 4 days

Maternity clothes? Still rocking the maternity jeans, I need to buy some long shirts.

Stretch marks? None

Sleep: Still not the greatest

Best moment this week: Signing the lease for our new apartment with lots of space and 2 bedrooms. :)

Miss Anything? 

Movement: Not yet

Food cravings: Chili Cheese Burgers

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really

Have you started to show yet: A little

Gender: Baby A was hiding the goodies :(

Labor Signs: None
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: Moving at the end of the month (and not having to do any of the heavy lifting, hehe)

What will it be?

Today is the day that I've been waiting for for almost 4 months. 

In a couple of hours we will be finding out if our little Llambok is a boy or a girl and I can start dreaming up either a pink or a blue nursery. 

To say that I'm excited would be an understatement. 

Old Wives Tales

In 4 days (eeek!) we get to find out if little baby Llambok is a boy or a girl, but I thought it would be fun to test out some Old Wives Tales that predict whether we'll be throwing mud pies or dressing up Barbie dolls in the near future.

Old Wives Tale #1:  Ring Test
Using a string, hang your wedding ring over your pregnant belly.  You are having a girl if the ring swings back and forth  and it’s a boy if it swings in a circle.   

Couldn't find a piece of string so I used some earphones instead. The ring swung back and forth which means... GIRL

Old Wives Tale #2:  Key Test This test involves a key.  If you pick up a key at the top (the roundest part), you are going to have a boy.  If you pick up the key at the bottom (smallest part), you are going to have a girl.  If you happen to grab the key in the middle, congrats, it’s twins!

Phew! Lucky I didn't grab it from the middle. haha! I did this test without looking at what the results meant first and grabbed it from the bigger side which means... BOY

Old Wives Tale #3: Position
This one you can do just by looking south: if you're carrying high, break out the pink. If your bump is low, you're carrying a boy.

I don't actually know whether this is high or low? Anyone?

UNDECIDED

Old Wives Tale #4:  Mayan Tale The Mayan tale adds the mothers age at conception and the year of conception.  If the result is a even number then mom is having a girl.  If the result is an odd number then a boy is on the way!  

24 + 2011 = 2035
Which means... BOY

Old Wives Tale #5:  HandsWhen the pregnant woman is asked to show her hands, it’s a boy if she keeps her palms down and a girl if she shows her palms up.  

Again, I did this test without finding out what the results meant beforehand.

Palms up means it's a... GIRL

Old Wives Tale #6:  Side You Most Rest On If a pregnant woman prefers to lay on her left side, she’s having a boy.  If she prefers resting on her right side, she’s having a girl.  

I mostly sleep on my left side which means... BOY

Old Wives Tale #7:  Headaches If you are having headaches, you might be carrying a boy.  

Definitely getting A LOT of headaches which means... BOY

Old Wives Tale #8:  Chinese Gender Chart
The Chinese Gender Chart claims to have an accuracy rate of over 90%.  It is based on how old the mother is at conception and the month that she conceived. 

According to this chart its a... BOY

So it looks like The Old Wives think that little Llambok is a boy.

What do you think?

Handmade Christmas

Do you realize that Christmas is 46 days away? WHAT!?

I have always loved handmade gifts instead of some of the rubbish that retail stores try to get you to buy.

Why not buy homemade AND support the little man? Well, Sarah has some awesome Christmas-gift-worthy stuff in her etsy shop. If I was you, I'd go check it out!

Helloooo! I'm Sarah and I blog over at A Lost Feather. Kate is super awesome for having me over today.. actually she's super awesome regardless, but today she's helping me out in spreading the word about my Etsy Shop.. conveniently called A Lost Feather

Since the holidays are coming it's time to compete with those big stores that can air commercials on TV. Maybe one day I will have a commercial- but not today! I'm offering anyone who can help me spread the word about my shop, a high resolution file of one of my popular prints, "Girl and Wolves" so you can print it at home and a 10% off coupon code to use in my shop! Please visit here for more information about how to participate! (it's super easy!) I appreciate your help immensely.

Thanks for reading! Happy handmade holidays! (Once it really is the season!)

Love, Sarah

16 weeks

How far along? 16 weeks, 4 days

Maternity clothes? Rocking the maternity jeans

Stretch marks? None

Sleep: Not great this week.

Best moment this week: Buying a new pair of maternity jeans that are the most comfortable things ever.

Miss Anything? Drinking beer when playing beer pong! I was the beer pong champ this weekend, but my poor partner had to drink all the beer.

Movement: None

Food cravings: KFC and oranges

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really

Have you started to show yet: A little

Gender: Find out next week!!!!!!!!

Labor Signs: None
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: Next week's ultrasound :)

The ferret with 9 lives (7 left!)

A while back I posted about the time we rescued our beloved ferret fur-son, Gumby, who was hanging out of our 3rd floor window, clinging to life with one little claw. We were so lucky to have heard his little squeak and had time to save him that time. On Friday, we weren't so lucky.

I was at work when my husband, Mike, called me in a panic to tell me that he couldn't find Gumby. At first I wasn't worried because we always let him run free around the apartment during the day and he usually finds the best hiding spots to take a nap in. Like this...

But a couple of hours later when he still hadn't showed up, I began to panic. Mike was cleaning the apartment and had left the infamous "window of doom" open to let in some fresh air so we had a feeling that Gumby had decided to go exploring up there and then slipped and fell out. Mike spent hours searching outside, up and down the street, and every nook and cranny and when I got home we went out again to search the neighbourhood with our flashlights. No sign!

Although I wasn't too optimistic about his survival (it's freezing at night and he would be injured from the fall), we printed out MISSING posters and stapled them to lampposts on our street on Saturday.

I'm pretty sure this is the first time many people have seen a Missing ferret poster.

I hadn't stopped crying since the previous day and by Sunday I was a mess and my eyes were totally bloodshot.

Sunday afternoon I was in the shower (mid-shampoo) when Mike bursts into the bathroom screaming "Someone found Gumby!!" I jumped out of the shower (soap still in my hair) and flooded the apartment while jumping up and down and trying to listen to what the lady was saying on the telephone.

5mins later Mike came back with a very tired looking ferret who had apparently not eaten too much in 2 days and was limping so after giving him a big bowl of his favorite food, I went to buy the hero's a box of gourmet cupcakes as a thank you.

We are just so delighted that Gumby is now safe and sound back where he belongs and it feels like such a miracle that he survived that fall and then was found and returned to us. 

International Cravings

Some people have the weirdest pregnancy cravings. We have all heard the stories of women eating weird combinations like pickles with chocolate syrup, french fries and ice cream, and sauerkraut/banana sandwiches; but just to be boring, my body has stuck to pretty normal things like tomato soup, KFC and oranges.   

But what happens when you have a massive crave-attack for a food that is not even made in the country you are living in? Well, you complain, search online international food stores and then cry about how expensive it is to ship.

One day, all of a sudden I started getting the most incredible cravings for a bowl of my favorite South African cereal, Pronutro. I practically lived off that stuff when I was growing up and right now my mouth is watering just thinking of it! Pronutro tastes like no other cereal out there and the feeling of the closest box being a million miles away can almost brings me to tears. After a couple of weeks of complaining, I received the best surprise ever! One of my best friends (who I had met in NY) sent over a package of pronutro all the way from South Africa as a surprise birthday present. Needless to say, the WHOLE box of cereal only lasted me 2 days. Yes that's right, I ate it for breakfast, lunch and dinner!

I also keep a stash of British junk food (found at Fairway market's international food isle) for all my UK cravings brought on by living in London for 3 and a half years. Some staples are: Prawn cocktail flavored crisps, peppermint Aero and Ribena (the most amazing black current fruit juice you'll ever taste).

Hopefully these will get me by until my trip to South Africa next month when I shall be bring home an ENTIRE suitcase full of Pronutro along with a bunch of other junk food!

R.I.P compact disc

Do you (kids from the 90's) remember making the transition from cassette tape to Cd's?

Do you remember the very first CD you ever owned?

I wish I could say mine was something cool, but I'm gonna be honest; it probably wasn't.

Come to think of it, my first CD was probably a K-T-V (South African children's show) CD where kids sang covers of all the top songs at that time. Lemon Tree or Who let the dogs out, anyone?

I cringe!

I remember how cool I felt when my parents bought each my sister and I a cd/tape player/radio for Christmas one year. We had hit the jackpot! I also remember the portable cd player (disc-man) I got on an overseas trip to London one year. I would carefully place it in my backpack and connect the headphones before setting off for an afternoon bicycle ride around my neighbourhood, only for it to skip and stop and start when I hit the slightest bump in the road.

It now seems that the days of compact disks, like the cassettes; 8-Tracks and vinyls that came before it, will be coming to and end. According to a new report it seems that major labels are abandoning the CD-format by the end of 2012. Streaming and downloading music content seem to be the only future for new releases in this day of the ipod, smart phone and laptop.

One day; when our kids find an old dusty box full of Cd's and calls them vintage, we can reflect and tell them about the days of shiny disks we liked to throw around like frisbees and the pull out posters you would sometimes find in the album covers. Heck, we can even go back a little further and tell them how 'back in our day' we even played music on plastic bricks filled with wheels, gears and ribbons.

R.I.P Compact Disc.
Thanks for the memories!

Post halloween depression

So, Halloween is over and after spending the day reading every one's blogs about their spooky weekends and amazing costumes I have some major Halloween jealousy and sadness that I never actually did much to celebrate this year. Besides carving this orange of course.

I love dressing up, but we made the decision a while ago that we would not go out this year (pregnant ladies don't really belong in clubs/bars even if I could stay awake that late to begin with) But when the weekend rolled around I decided I could possibly muster up some energy, but of course I had nothing to wear.

On Halloween Monday I spent the day nannying for a little 1 year old pumpkin. I made her wear that outfit ALL DAY LONG until her mom got home to take her out trick or treating. My husband then informed me that he was off that night (he had very late notice from work and usually works evening shifts) so off I rushed to the Halloween costume store, Target and even Spencers to see if I could find any last minute costumes since I was now determined to go out! Unfortunately the pickings were pretty sparse (as they would be on actual Halloween night) and I am really fussy about having a good looking costume. PLUS I wanted something prego related as it is not every year that you are pregnant on Halloween. After my last minute attempts to celebrate failed my husband promised to take me out for a nice dinner, but of course I was totally exhausted by the time I got home so we ended up just ordering Chinese Take Out and watching horror movies. Of course after this whole fiasco I have found the perfect Halloween outfit via on deliacreates Blog


found here

Wouldn't that have been the most awesome AND SIMPLE mummy costume? My hubby could have gone as a daddy-mummy, and all we would have needed was some bandages! 

So after buying a bag of 50% off fun-sized candy today, I have learnt my lesson about feeling left out of such fun American holidays and swear that I will be prepared for next year! By then we will have a little 6 month old to dress up (what a crazy thought!) and I am already thinking up some ideas for an awesome family outfit!