Time to relax

We have a long weekend here in Damascus this weekend; Monday was a planned holiday but midweek the rumours started that Sunday would also be announced as a holiday and sure enough, midday Thursday it was formally announced at work, typically with such short notice that we're left with insufficient time to organise a short holiday!

What with our short trip to Beirut last week and our planned trip to the UK next week, we decided to take it easy and stay in Damascus, so now I have a bit of time to write a short post while the girls are having their afternoon naps.

Ottile has come on a lot this week. Not only is she becoming more photogenic, she continues to smile lots, is now laughing more and more and for the first time properly ate! She had some Thai sticky rice at the beginning of the week and couldn't get enough of it!

Maybe because she's supplementing her milky diet, but Ottilie's in a rush to put on the weight, now up to 8.6 kg. She enjoys having Beatrice around, laughing at her fooling around and very tolerant of Beatrice when she sometimes forgets that Ottilie is just a small baby and unintentionally is a little rough with her.

To balance things out a little, Beatrice continues to be quite a handful! Her default response to most of our questions is "No" and it gets quite tiring having to negotiate and walk that fine line where it is so easy to spark off a tantrum. But still, she's a pretty, smart and cheeky little two year old, so I suppose it's all part of the deal!

Trip to Beirut

This weekend we decided to brave the snow and rain and venture again over the mountains and across the boarder to Beirut for some retail therapy with the girls. Maybe it was the snow or maybe it was Beatrice's singing while waiting in the queue, but for the first time we were given our visas for Lebanon for free (and rightly so as I've argued before with the passport control guys as the sign clearly indicates that it's free to enter for one day); Flo was very happy at the achievement which she put down to her good humour with the official.

The journey, which is hectic at the best of times, was particularly perilous this weekend as there had been quite a dump of snow up in the mountains and the snow clouds were still thickly smeared across the mountain tops. On the way down towards Beirut the melt waters use the roads as the easiest route down to the sea making it slippy and also difficult to spot the many potholes.

We arrived in Beirut in one piece and had time to visit the little slice of heavenly retail cake (bare in mind we live in Damascus) that is the Grand ABC mall. Here we bought the kids some toys and treated ourselves to some proper burgers at Casper and Gambini's (they serve a selection of mini burgers, one of which Beatrice polished off on her own).

After arriving at the our Hotel (Hotel de Ville), the girls had their afternoon sleep and then we headed out for dinner. We planned to eat at Al Dente, but they don't open until 20:30 which was a little too late for Beatrice. We therefore went to Le Relais de L'Entrecote but were surprised to discover that they ONLY serve steak and frites which was of course not suitable for Beatrice who NEEDS her vegetables.

In the end, we popped up the road and settled on the Japanese restaurant Sake and we weren't disappointed; the food was excellent and Beatrice devoured a plateful of saute'd vegetables as well as helping out Flo and I with our orders; even Ottilie was catered for with some cucumber sticks.

This morning we found a large supermarket (TSC Plus close to the Grand ABC Mall) where we stocked up supplies to the tune of about USD 600 and I'm surprised that we managed to get it all in the car, let alone drive it back over that steep and bumpy road back to Damascus and not get charged for importing goods at the boarder, but the plucky little Land Rover takes it all in it's stride like a little donkey.

The boarder crossing was without major incident and thank heavens Apple invented the iPhone which turns out to be perfect for entertaining Beatrice in the back of the car while her mum is getting passports and visas stamped (blagging her way through the Diplomatic desks to avoid the queues at the normal desks).

A Typical Weekend

You know you're an expat when you have the luxury problem of deciding which club you're going to join this summer. This weekend we visited a place a colleague of mine told me about called the Yafour Hotel and Resort. It appeals because, unlike a lot of places here in Syria, you can use the pool during the winter as they erect a glass house over it and continue to heat it.

Even better is that you don't have to actually join the place to use the pool but can pay per session and so Flo asked if we could come along the following day with Beatrice, to which the response was "of course". So, we arrived this morning only to find that a full on event with children racing in lanes and enthusiastic adults cheering them on was taking place and we had to disappoint Beatrice by telling her we wouldn't be swimming today. It sounds a bit petty, but it's little things like this that can make expat life a bit frustrating sometimes.

Fortunately, we're still members of the Hacienda Country Club, so Beatrice still got to play outside in the fresh air.

Completely unrelated, I took some pictures of Ottilie this morning, including this one of her cute little hands...

Where does rain come from?

Today Beatrice asked Flo where rain came from. A bit startled by the question (not a question you'd expect from a two-and-a-half year old), Flo responded that rain came from the clouds!

I wondered if Beatrice had really understood the concept so when I got back from work I asked her where rain came from. Beatrice thought for a second, pointed upwards and said "up from the clouds".

Our clever little popje!

Back in Nederland

We arrived back in Nederland on Sunday to prepare for the arrival of number two in September, since we decided against having the delivery in Damascus. We took Beatrice to see auntie apple and uncle pear at the little fruit and veg stall, who were of course delighted to see her!

Beatrice Counting in the Bath

Beatrice instructed me to go and fetch my phone this evening to take a photo of her lying in the bath. She then put on a little show, counting to ten for the camera. I've now started on teaching her the alphabet, but I must add that we don't have high expectations of little B.

Beatrice loves bubbles

Beatrice adores bubbles. Every bath time she insists that I blow some bubbles for her to catch and on this occasion I turned my back for 5 seconds (talking to Flo) and she'd opened and dispensed half a bottle of Flo's expensive shampoo into the bath. I had no option but to make the most of the situation and froth up the water into a mass of bubbles, much to Beatrice's delight!

Healthy Narcissism

Beatrice loves looking at herself. We often find her watching her own reflection in windows and she keeps grabbing my phone and handing it to me saying "picture", encouraging me to take a picture of her so that I can show it to her. This is one of those pictures. She's learnt to strike a pose, smiling for the camera; looks like she's lining herself up for a career as a model!

B's first junk food

We stopped off at a McDonald's on the way to Beirut last week, where Beatrice sampled her first burger and fries. As you can see from her expression, she wasn't overly impressed.

B in Beirut

Here's Beatrice in Beirut enjoying playing with a napkin more than her pasta at Napoletana on Hamra Street.

Beatrice with arm in sling

Beatrice with arm in sling
Originally uploaded by jonnycorcutt

Poor little Beatice now has her arm in a sling after fracturing it yesterday. The sling will be on for at least two weeks while the fracture repairs.

She's quickly adapted to using only one arm however and it hasn't stopped her from running around the house like a mad thing, despite our best attempts to slow her down.

Beatrice's first haircut

Beatrice's first haircut
Originally uploaded by jonnycorcutt

It's been a while since we posted anything... everything is fine other than us not getting access to our blog here in Syria since Blogger is blocked. However, seems I can post from Flickr, so here we are.

As you can see, Beatrice is growing fast! She's now on to three word sentences (but her favourite expression is "zelf doen" meaning she wants to do everything herself) and is well on her way to being potty trained, pretty much going without nappies during the day now.

But the big news is... Flo's pregnant again! We're now mid term with the due date around 9th September. After years of trying to get pregnant back in Holland, we went for ICSI treatment here in Damascus (we were advised by our GP that they didn't even do ICSI treatment here) and we got lucky first time with only a single egg! So moving to Damascus has been proven very worth while.

We found a specialist here in Damascus who used to be a professor at Nottingham University in the UK. We found out about him through Flo's friendship with a European lady living over here who's married to a Syrian; her daughter had been treated by the specialist and she kindly passed on his details. The hospital is very basic and the bedside manner and general care is poor, but we're prepared to overlook all that given the outcome!

Beatrice learning to walk

Happy Birthday Beatrice

Thursday 6th August 2009 was Beatrice's first birthday and to celebrate Flo organised her first birthday party the following day, inviting a few of B's friends from the Damascus scene.


Flo also made a very impressive birthday cake, complete with butterflies and candles which was thoroughly enjoyed by all the guests. HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEATRICE!

Beatrice's got her hat on

Hip hip hip hurray!


By the time she is a teenager, she'll probably be really embarrassed about all those pictures of her with a hat on. Cute baby bonnets in the colder months and now with the sun out, sun hats! I just think she looks utterly adorable in them!

Meanwhile, I am trying to get organised and I will soon upload some more pictures to prove that we are alive and well. Providing that our internet connection does not play up again...

A kiss from Beatrice

We went to visit some friends at the weekend to admire their new born baby boy. Of course, we took Beatrice along but never anticipated that she'd be so sweet towards another baby.

From Beatrice Dorothy Corcutt

On being introduced to baby Taco, Beatrice lent over and gave him a kiss on the cheek! She proceeded to repeat this two or three times, smiling and chuckling in the process. What a little sweetheart!

Beatrice seven month update

From Beatrice Dorothy Corcutt

Beatrice will be seven months old next week and she's growing up fast! She's still on breast milk, so unfortunately still wakes up two or three times during the night which results in her parents, especially Flo being pretty tired during the day. However, she's supplementing her milk with solids now and routinely joins her parents for breakfast and dinner and when possible eats what we're eating, or at least the fruit and vegetables.

From Beatrice Dorothy Corcutt

The list of foods she's tried is steadily increasing and her tastes seem to change from day to day. Her current favourites are courgettes, tomatoes and strawberries. The acid flavour of the tomatoes makes Beatrice's face contort, but this initial reaction doesn't put her off as she will go on to consume two or three with no problem at all. Similarly, she loves strawberries and will easily devour two or three of them!

From Beatrice Dorothy Corcutt

It's not just on food she's developing, although perhaps as a by product of sitting in her high chair at the dinner table, she is now able to sit upright and play with her toys.

From Beatrice Dorothy Corcutt

She's not crawling yet, but she's an excellent roller and can make a full three-sixty on the spot! I don't think it will be long before she's chasing Boris and Boika around the living room...

Interview with Beatrice

This weekend I took the opportunity to record a brief interview with Beatrice.

Trip to Bloudan

This morning we made a trip to Bloudan to catch the last of the snow. We drove as far as we could up the mountain, passing a few comical exploits from the locals attempting to drive their cars up the icy track and slipping and sliding and generally falling over one another as they tried to push the cars up the mountain. With our four wheel drives it was relatively easy until we encountered a turn on the crest of an hill.

We managed to get reasonably far up the track where we introduced Beatrice to her first proper snow.

Trip to Bloudan

Back home

Sorry for the lack of updating our blog... So much has happened since we got here four months ago. Where have the months gone? I have been meaning to write about my (not so new anymore) job, our nanny (that sounds soooo expat-ty and decadent), our trip to Bosra where we had a look at the Roman theatre or how we just so very slowly starting to settle a bit. I might do that later.


We just got back from our trip home (erm, home is where the heart is, right?) We stayed with my parents for five lovely days, just long enough to touch base, see all my family, eat as much stamppot as we could possibly muster and work our way through a shopping list as long as my arm. Unfortunately too short to catch up with friends, update Facebook or eat enough paprika chips to see me through the next few months.

My family threw me a birthday party on the night we arrived and Beatrice helped me with unwrapping the presents. She also saw snow for the first time, rode in a buggy for the first time (an experience neither of us enjoyed very much. So out with the borrowed buggy and back into the sling) and we went baby swimming.


Which she really enjoyed. Of course also because she got a chance to show off her pink bikini.

And now we are back in Syria. With the crazy traffic, the bureaucracy, even the custom officer at the airport smoking and with all Blogspot pages blocked (so sorry Nina, Irène, Alle, Joeltje, Elke and Kami for not being able to check up on you! Would you mind sending an email of every post you write? :-)). But also with 17 degrees and sun today. Not long before we will be able to take Beatrice to the outdoor pool at the [insert Jonny's work name] club. We'll just have to do the walking around in circles and singing lullabies ourselves, for the lack of a baby swimming instructor. Or not. :-)


I meant to exclusively breast-feed Beatrice for six months, but at five months and a few weeks and after weeks of scrutinising our plates, she decided herself it was time to start on solids. We are doing something called baby led weaning, meaning we don't puree any food, but give stick sized foods instead for her to play with. So far she has tried potato, carrot, apple, banana, rice cakes, bread, pumpkin, red pepper, avocado, mango, cucumber, butter beans and courgette.


It is supposed to help hand eye coordination and make the baby enjoy food. She certainly seems to enjoy it. Although Jonny and I have both been weaned on mashed foods, we don't have any problems with our coordination. So I think it is more because I am too lazy to blend everything for her...