There is something I have always loved about living in an international country...the international friends you make. When people from different cultures come together in a foreign country; these people become more than friends. They become family. You rely on each other, laugh and rage over the country's weird quirks, mourn over missing familiar things and people, help each other out no matter what. You find parents, siblings, grandparents, cousins in these people whom if you were in your own turf you would probably never get past the stage of acquaintance.

I have been so blessed to find a few people like that here...

One of things most difficult about having a child in a new country is not having family and close friends. Johan's family also doesn't live in our region. So we don't have people  who we can just drop Shakinah off to for a few hours to get something done. I LOVE being a Mum, but sometimes to not have that option...is difficult. One of us (Johan and I) need to be with Shakinah. So date nights are not something that happen. I'm not saying this with self-pity (these are the choices we have made) but more that sometimes I find this difficult. 

So knowing how this feels when my friend Julia (from Slovakia) asked if I could watch her son. I was more than delighted to help out; plus I just love that little guy. 

So we got him from 5pm-11pm

And we enjoyed every minute of it!!