But nothing has gone as planned with this emigration process. Sometimes I wonder if the Universe actually wants us to do this, because we have had obstacles at every step of the process. No matter how prepared and diligent we were, things have just been going wrong all along - information not disclosed to us, leading us to miss a deadline; overly-relaxed clerks sending our documentation in late; a bizarre police arrest causing problems with my police clearance; an unprecedented delay at the visa processing office... It goes on and on.
In the meantime, Brad has left the corporate world, for the foreseeable future. The day he left work, I surprised him with a "Mr.Mom" party to mark this momentous life-changing event.
He's been easing into his role very nicely, I'm glad to report. Although he doesn't make me breakfast or packed lunches, as he'd promised, I do come home to a cooked dinner and well-fed kids every evening. It's a big load off my mind, and such a pleasant surprise every time, considering that his cooking leaves nothing to be desired. I do feel like quite a lucky little ducky.
So our home life has shifted gears quite suddenly. Before Brad became Mr. Mom, I would phone him during the day and he'd be busy working on a spec, coming out of a meeting, or about to do a presentation to the board. These days I'll phone and the conversation will go something like this:
Me: Hi. Whatya doing?
Brad: Preparing dinner. And working out our budget for when we emigrate. Do you realize how much we need to put away for retirement savings if you retire at age 65?
And I'm building Nikhil's train track. And just surfing some model plane stuff...
Me:Really? You're doing all that? Right now? You're not at work anymore, you know. You can relax. What's for dinner?
Brad: I am relaxed. Dinner is chicken stuffed with basil and sun-dried tomatoes, served with fresh asparagus and minted peas. Rosemary roast potatoes for starch. And I was thinking of making - NIKHIL! Don't do that! NOOOoooo! Roms, I'll call you back.
Me:What's happening? Brad? Brad...?
When I get home, to a deliciously aromatic house, the kids are thrilled to see me, but in a good way. Not the desperate, relieved, attention-starved way they used to be. They don't demand that I pick them both up (high heels still pinching my feet) and not put them down till they've drunk up as much of me as they need (usually about 20 minutes worth). Then I try and stand still in one place as Brad whizzes around me doing ... well, STUFF, in his supposedly relaxed way. I'm starting to feel like I really get in his way, when he tears about the house and keeps bumping into me. I get quite dizzy just watching him (and no, I'm not talking about that Y-shaped torso...;))
Today I met Brad at the mall during my work day. We made quite a pair - he in jeans and sneakers, with a backpack for Ariane's bottle and diapers, and me in a pencil skirt and silk shirt with a sleek handbag (my "serious look"). Considering Ariane looks distinctly more like his daughter, I suppose I could have looked like his inter-racial extra-marital dalliance.
We went on a little holiday to the Champagne Valley in the Drakensberg. It was supposed to be our recharging session before coming back to our serious emigration plans... Oh, well, false start.
But what a beautiful place, and what a perfect holiday, made all the more special by memories of our good friends' wedding there 3 years ago.
It seems the children made great leaps in development during those 5 days of undivided attention from us. Nikhil now refuses to wear a diaper during the day, and even asks for underwear at night (but he's really not ready for that). He also made a big leap in his conversational skills, and just seems to have gotten over that "Terrible Twos" phase. We don't fight as much, there's less to argue about, he's just generally more settled.
Ariane started climbing all over everything, quite fearlessly. And she's started pointing at objects and excitedly going "Whoo, whoo, whoo!" so you name them for her. She was fascinated by 2 pictures of birds above our bed. I would say "Bird" and she would go "Buh! Buh!". One morning she actually said "Buh! Duh!" but I couldn't get her to connect them. It didn't stop me from getting ridiculously excited, though.
Now we're back home and the wait feels interminable. Fortunately spring has arrived in all it's glory, bringing with it all the hope and optimism we need. Let's hope our visa arrives before summer wilts our spirits again...
