One year ago...

There is a downside to having nearly all your belongings in a container awaiting delivery somewhere in France (or so I hope) for five months while we wait for our apartment here in Clermont-Ferrand. But, there are positive things as well, such as a minimalistic lifestyle and our 2010 calendar! We do have several 2011 calendars, but because the walls are so bare due to lack of art to hang on them, we have left one of last years calendars on the wall. Every Christmas my grandmother receives a calendar made for her by her twelve grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Each grandchild receives the honor to design the art for one month out of each year, and we make copies for everyone to hang at home. And so in January we relived my sister Anna’s and Andrejs’s wedding. February brought my other sister Zinta’s art for the current year as well as my brother Māris’s compilation from the last. And this month, not only are we looking at my cousin Kaiva’s collage including some very lovely large hats but also my cousin Andis’s designed maze leading to grandmother’s house.

I also glance from time to time at the daily notes I made last year, and this is how I came to be thinking about what was happening in our lives last year. A very busy period for us! We had guests almost the entire month, which was wonderful because at this point in the pregnancy I had quit work and welcomed the extra time with family. My mother kicked it off with a weeklong visit during which we had a long list of things to do to prepare the nursery: we accomplished only a few because we spent the week sightseeing up in the mountains. Then my godmother and cousin Līga spent their spring break with us, during which time we saw even more sights and I was becoming quite an adept tour guide. With only a short break my aunt and her family, with cousins Annelī, Andis and Edgars showed up for another week of good food, great trips and help with the things pregnancy was making difficult. Note: I was still able to tie my shoes at this point, although I’m sure I would have had plenty of volunteers.

At this point I flipped forward to April, it had to be done, and alongside a picture of my godson Imants upside-down but right-side-up with all of his hair standing straight up (well, down) were notes on the second batch of visitors. Roberts’s parents, sister and family and cousin Asja (whose wedding we are very much looking forward to this year!) were in town for four days which we spent enjoying the beautiful Greenville spring weather. And although the cats had grown weary of the company, I was ready for more and so the icing on the cake came with Anna and Andrejs’s visit. The men moved furniture, Anna and I sorted baby clothes, and when they left I was within 12 days of my due date.

Well Lauris didn’t receive the message that everything was ready for him and only made his debut 16 days later, but by this time he was a healthy 23.5 inches tall and 8 pounds 15 ounces, far from the predicted 11.5. Here I must mention the last of our guests during these months, Pauls, Ēriks and Miķelis, family friends who came to help Roberts the days after Lauris was born… Anniņa, who came back to help me while Roberts was traveling. And the rest is history!

I wish that the past month here in Clermont could have been as filled with wonderful visitors, but on the other hand it would have been hard hosting so many people in our tiny temporary apartment. And we will soon have our first guests, Roberts’s brother Matīss and his girlfriend Indra will spent Easter with us. We have so very much to be thankful for in the past two years, and I can only dream of the adventures that we will have in the next. Thank you to all those who contributed to the remarkable memories of spring last year, please come visit again!