An End...

So my Bermuda blog has come to an end. We are moving back to the USA on December 21st. We have sold most of our things. We are moving back important items, clothing, kitchen items, and some things I can't live without (my Dyson Vacuum). Overall, we are able to sell most items for what we bought them for, or in some cases for more. I sold an outdoor table for $900 when we bought it for $700 two years ago. We will start over when we move back. It is exciting, but daunting to think that we have to buy all new furniture for our new home.

I have enjoyed sharing my story with all of you. I am not sure who has followed our journey from beginning to end, but if you have, thanks for reading. It was an amazing part of our lives that I will remember forever.

I have been encouraged by a few people to keep writing. I enjoy it, but sometimes lose track of time and don't write for months at a time. I am going to try and find time to keep up with it. Since our Bermuda journey is over, I have started a new blog titled, "Falling into Motherhood." You may start following my journey as a mother by clicking this link. It may not be as interesting as our Bermuda story, but it is the new chapter in my life.

This is my last Bermuda post, so I will not sign it, "Until next time..." I will just leave you with...

THANKS FOR READING!

So much to be said

I just got done reading some blog posts from an old friend and decided to revisit my blog. The last time I wrote, my mom and I were waiting out hurricane Igor. As the hurricane approached, my mom and I got more and more terrified of the unknown. The news was predicting a direct hit and the storm was going to be a category 3. The thought of waiting out the storm sent us packing. We booked a flight out to Philadelphia and spent a few nights with some good friends who took us in. We were glad to have done so as most people lost power and air conditioning for at least 48 hours. I heard that the most miserable part was the heat. It was so hot, but terrible to open the windows since the storm was so loud. The island had very little damage and no fatalities.

I may have missed my only opportunity to live through a hurricane as Ryan and I will not be living on a tropical island for much longer. Our move back to the USA (specifically Erie, PA) is scheduled for December 20th. By the time we leave, we will have spent almost two years here. While it is earlier than expected, we are glad to get back to the USA. Ryan took a job at Erie Insurance again. This time it is a Supervisory position. He is excited about the new challenges in this role. We were ready to leave Bermuda, but this job offer did come as a surprise and he was not actively looking for a new job. With Collin, we are excited to get back to the conveineces of America and we are excited to be closer to family.

Bermuda has beat us down in some ways. We get tired of the high prices for meals out, terrible wilted produce at the grocery store, rude people, 47 steps up to my car from my front door, our car with only a cassette deck, a small pumpkin costing $17, paying duty for every item we bring into Bermuda, stores closing at 5:00 pm in town, gas costing $8 a gallon, and the list goes on and on. Really, I shouldn't complain and I realize we are in the midst of an amazing journey that I will remember forever, but Bermuda has not been all it was crack up to be (well maybe what we imagined in our head). We only have 2 months left here and I am trying my best to take it all in. We are leaving a tropical paradise for Erie, PA (maybe one of the most non-glamorous places, we could chose). I am thrilled about moving back to Erie, but I am looking longer at the blue waters, rolling down my windows in my car to get some sun on my arms, eating freshly caught fish, putting my feet in the pink sand...as I know I will soon not be able to do those things.

We have said that we will love to come back to Bermuda to visit. We know we will in the future and can't wait to bring an older Collin back to the place of his birth. It is a wonderful island, but for us our home is America.

Until next time...

Shark Oil

Ryan has vacated the island and not because a Category 2 Hurricane is headed this way. He is in State College spending some time with good friends. He left on Thursday as we thought, "Oh just another hurricane scare, it won't hit." Well, this time it may hit. Thank goodness I have my ever so helpful mother here to help with the preparation. Joyce came for a low key visit to see Collin and I think she is in for more then she bargained for.

The Bermuda Government sent out a warning yesterday to start preparing for the hit of Igor. When the government sends out notices, Bermudians start to take it seriously. I always watch what Bermudians are doing to see how I should prepare. This time the grocery stores, hardware stores, and gas stations are busy. We were in town today and most people were getting off early to start to prepare. We have 5 gallons of water, ice, candles, extra diapers, twine, tape, etc... We have moved everything inside, we have taped the windows (in case the glass brakes, the tape prevents shattering), filled the car up with gas, and started making our nest in the office. The newspaper today is comparing this hurricane to the 2003 Category 3 Fabian. I have heard from multiple people that Fabian caused power outages for up to 16 days! We will fill up our bathtub to use for flushing the toilet and possible showers (well maybe a sponge bath). We still have a few days to wait for Igor's arrival and hopefully it will weaken and veer off to the east before its anticipated arrival on Monday morning.

While meteorologists are predicting the arrival and path of Igor, some Bermudians have their own way of predicting the storm. Shark Oil Barometers are natures way of predicting a hurricane. The shark liver oil (normally clear) turns white and forms peaks as the storm approaches within 200 miles of the oil. It has been theorized by Jacques Cousteau's son Philippe (according to the Bermuda Sun Newspaper) that during stormy weather sharks get sick to their stomach and descend to the sea bed. I am not sure how the shark oil outside of a living shark can change, but a Bermudian with a shark oil barometer will say it is always accurate. Now if Joyce and I can just get our hands on some shark oil!

We are taking precautions and will be safe, but without power I will not be able to post on my blog. Stay tuned as we battle through the storm.

Until next time...

Finally a post...

I am not sure if I even have any followers left out there. I have neglected the blog for months now with really no good reason. We have lived in Bermuda for 18 months now and I no longer find Bermuda exciting. In some ways it is dull here. While we enjoyed our summer to its fullest last year, this summer has been drastically different. I think I have only been in the water 3 times all summer. I have found this summer to be so hot that I don't even like to venture out for an evening walk with Limerick. I feel saddened by this and still like to take in the beauty of Bermuda as much as possible. This summer we did take a much needed 3 week vacation away from the island. It had been 5 1/2 months since I had left and was desperate to get off island. August is brutally hot here and I enjoyed the cooler temps of the US. Not that it was that much cooler, but there is something different about the humidity and blazing sun in the Atlantic. At its coolest at night it has only been in the 70's, which is not conducive to leaving the windows open. I wish we could so that I could be lulled to sleep by the whistling tree frogs.

What inspired me to write today was a book that was discussed at a dinner with friends last night. Tea with Tracey is a woman's survival guide to Bermuda. Tracey is from Canada and married a Bermudian which led to her move to Bermuda. She wrote a book to describe the challenges of life in Bermuda. This book is recommended to all ex-pats that move to Bermuda. For some reason I was never recommended this book and figured out things for myself. In some ways my blog was a way to post information as I discovered so many differences about our new home. Most of my information in my blog has been upbeat and happy. Maybe a post here or there (such as the laundry room from hell) was a way to get out frustrations, but for the most part I found the positives of Bermuda to share.

We have enjoyed our life in Bermuda, but I think I can enjoy my life wherever I live. I have so much to be thankful for: a wonderful son and husband (dog too), supportive family, solid careers, and opportunities that I never imagined. We also have some great friends here that provide a listening ear when we need to vent about something related to Bermuda. While the remainder of our time here is to be determined, I know that I will continue to look at the positives in this tropical paradise as I know I will never have the opportunity again.

Until next time....(hopefully next time is sooner than last time!)

A differernt kind of summer....

It has been almost a month since my last post and time has just flown by. No one ever told me how exhausting, demanding, but incredibly rewarding motherhood would be. Well...maybe they did, but you can't know until you are immersed in it. Collin is 6 weeks old and is growing like a weed. I retired his newborn onesies today for the 0-3 month clothing. He is smiling and interacting with Ryan and me and it is so fun to see him growing and changing.

I have spent the last weeks mainly inside the house. I went out a couple of weeks ago to find that Bermuda had fully changed over to the tropical tourist paradise that we love. I had forgotten how hot, humid, but incredibly beautiful Bermuda can be in the summer. We are trying our best to get out of the house and I have been getting out, but it seems to be that one of us stays home while the other gets some time with friends, golfing, scuba diving, or playing volleyball. I got the okay to start exercising since it has been 6 weeks since my c-section. I have even been out on my scooter again.

My life has quickly changed over from housewife attending the International Women's Club meetings to a mother attending La Leche League and Meet a Mum meetings and events. Meet a Mum is an organization that gets mothers across Bermuda together for play groups and other child related events. I went to a 0-12 month old play group this week. While Collin slept in his carrier, I met other moms from Canada, the US, and the UK that are also stay at home mothers. While I will start my job in September, I will still have time to get out and meet other mothers. The support is wonderful since most of us are living in Bermuda without family members close by.

Collin is on his way to USA citizenship. We went to the US Consulate last week to apply for the US birth certificate, his passport, and his social security card. I had the task of taking a baby photo of Collin for his passport. He will have this passport until he is 5 years old. I think he will greatly change from 5 weeks to 5 years! We should have his passport by the end of the month and have a trip planned to the US in August.

So far our Bermuda journey is moving along as planned, but our summer is greatly different this year. We can't wait to get Collin out to the beach to swim and play. I think we may have awhile to wait for that. He has been to the beach twice, but has tiredly slept in a Baby Bjorn or his carrier. He doesn't even know yet how beautiful Bermuda is.

Until next time...

Life Gets Busy....

I have been neglecting my blog for a good reason, but finally Sunday morning Daddy, Collin, and Limerick are all sleeping! It is time to catch up.

As you all know we were blessed with a healthy happy baby born on May 6th (already 17 days old!). He is such a good baby. He is happy, eats A LOT, is gaining weight, and has beautiful chubby cheeks! He usually lets us sleep for about 4 hours straight when we go to bed, so we have been happy with that, but don't get me wrong, I am sleep deprived and need a nap every day.

Our experience with child birth, the hospital stay, and overall medical care in Bermuda has been a positive one. I had a scheduled c-section due to Collin being breech. Due to the surgery, it was recommended that I stay in the hospital for 4 nights. Those were the longest four nights of my life. The maternity ward policy is that no visitors (including dads) are allowed in the ward from 8pm-8am. Ryan was kicked out (literally, a security guard came and checked my room every night) at 8pm sharp. Luckily, they just changed the policy in March of 2010. Previously, dads were not allowed back in until 11am. I watched the clock closely every morning waiting for Ryan to show up. It was difficult, and by night two Collin was by my bedside all night. The midwives were not even checking in on me. I was to take care of a one day old all night by myself only 24 hours after a c-section. This policy is due to small rooms at the hospital. The rooms are doubles and if I would have had a roommate, there would have been no room for another person all night. The maternity ward was quiet when I was there, so I had my own room every night. I am not sure I could have managed if there was another woman and her crying baby right next to me! Overall, the midwives at the hospital were very good. They gave me good tips and helped tremendously with nursing. Everyone was friendly, but I was very excited to bring my baby home after four nights away.

Everyone has been adjusting to our new life in Bermuda. We have ventured out to lunch, dinner, the botanical gardens, and even the golf course with our little one. I was able to push Collin around the golf course while Ryan and some friends played a quick round. I am gaining strength, but still need to take it easy. Overall, I have been very pleased with the c-section recovery. While a c-section was not ideal and I had never planned my labor to go in this way, it worked out well. All that matters is that Collin is here and is healthy.

Check out some more photos of Collin by clicking this link!

Until next time...

Introducing...

Collin Isaiah Crawford
Born Thursday, May 6th at 1:56pm.

8 pounds and 19 1/2 inches long

More pictures and stories to come soon!

Until next time...