I know I'm stating the obvious, but one of the things we've learned while living overseas is that America truly is the land of convenience. Many people criticize this aspect of American culture, but I confess that I love having lettuce all cut up in a bag and ready to eat!
Life in Amman, though relatively advanced compared to most of the world, has its fair share of inconveniences that we have adapted to. A quick example for you: we have a "water day." That means that one day a week the city fills up a large tank on the top of our roof with water. We are responsible for rationing this water to meet our basic needs, such as bathing, laundry, going to the bathroom, washing dishes, etc. So one day a week is essentially devoted to cleaning the house and doing laundry~tricky when you have to line dry all your clothes and it's raining outside. It is definitely inconvenient at times, especially because it means we have to be home on that day. But it's also been a good lesson in conservation and an opportunity to be responsible with our natural resources.
One of the inconveniences we are currently facing is that Jordan doesn't carry baby food. You can find formula and perhaps a box of "cereal" for infants, but when it comes to those great little jars of veggies and meats for your little one, they don't exist. So far this has been a non-issue for us. However, for about a week Guy has been eyeing us like a hawk when we put food in our mouths. Our boy loves to eat, and now he is noticing the unique way Jonathan and I do it. I am currently facing the reality that these next few months are going to involve a good bit of culinary effort on my part to keep this little one fed. Honestly, I've never been the person who loves to go "all natural" or organic, but I'm trying to see this as an opportunity to get Guy off to a healthy start!
While I'm on the subject of food, last week Jonathan and I picked up one of those boxes of "cereal" for Guy to try out. We mixed it with formula and, about ten minutes after we fed him, our little boy (who has only ever feasted on breast milk) came down with a nasty case of hives! Though he ended up being fine, his parents were traumatized. We're still not sure which one (formula or cereal) caused the allergic reaction, and I've decided to wait a few days before trying anything again. Live and learn!
