31.5.11

I'm still here

I'm still here. The Bean is still kicking around inside me. I'm smiling, Matthias is smiling and the Bean (I believe) is also smiling. Everything is just moving a little slower than it used to and the absence of posts of late is that something had to give. Between work, baby beaurocracy**, doctor's appointments, birthdays, prenatal classes and an unforgiving need to enjoy Berlin's blissful weather I haven't had time to post. The good news is that I have two days left of work before I start maternity leave which means more time for me and hopefully more time for this space.
flower+blossom
** At some stage I might consider writing a post on the legal degree that is required to navigate the paperwork involved in having a baby in Germany when you are Australian and your partner is Austrian. There was a moment when we considered getting a lawyer to help us. Many, many hours later I think I understand what we need to do to ensure that the Bean is not left citizenship-less nor becomes an illegal immigrant at the tender age of 6 months. And no I'm not exagerating, the Bean will have a passport and a visa entitling him/her to live in Germany.

18 comments:

Clare B said...

Testing if blogger will let me comment!

Rhianne said...

I was born in Germany and my parents had to go through a similar process I believe, they left not long after I was born though.

Glad to hear you are all smiling :)

Laura lok said...

ugh sounds like a real pain. hang in there.

blogger has been acting up and not letting me comment so hopefully this comes through

Paint Me A Love Story said...

You have a really pretty blog here, I'm now following you :) Can't wait to see more.

paintmealovestory.blogspot.com

Jamie said...

So glad you are taking the time to enjoy everything (well, except for the paperwork!)

Katyha said...

gorgeous photo, I wish we had lovely weather here in Sydney, it has been raining non-stop for a couple of days and I need the sun out to take a few photos for my last assignment *sigh* but I am glad to hear you are well & almost on maternity leave too! how quickly has time flown? Enjoy the last few weeks of pregnancy, sleep in as much as you can ;)

SJ said...

good luck with all the paperwork!

the time is going so quickly, i can't believe it's june as of today. where did the weeks go?!

Stephanie said...

Honestly, enjoying the weather is much more important.

Justine said...

Love your shot, so soft. Good luck with all the paperwork, it sounds awful!

Lisa Gordon said...

I am glad you are doing fine Clare. It's getting closer, and what an exciting time!!

I know what you mean when you speak of the "legal stuff." When we adopted our daughter, we had to get a visa just to get her from one STATE to another in the U.S.!!! it was 8 weeks of paperwork, lawyers, and agencies.

katecreate said...

I am glad to know you're okay. I must say I am a big fan of your photography.

Kristin said...

Yes, the German bureaucracy is often a pain for the locals far too cumbersome and too large.

I wish you a very nice maternity leave. I can still remember, that was a good time, full of peace and yet already in mind, what will happen after birth. At that time I was concentrating on my mind point to my child and that was a good time for us both.

Jane said...

Oh, so good to hear from you again, Clare. I found German bureaucracy astounding when I was an exchange student there in 1989. The forms that had to be filled out in quadruplicate (forget triplicate) and the way I had to queue with all the asylum seekers to get my paperwork updated was extraordinary. Every time I moved host family, I had to go through the whole process again. I even had to have an X-ray! Unbelievable. Wishing you only the best. J x

Clare said...

Clare, hope you had a wonderful birthday on Monday. I tried to leave a comment before but it seemed there was a problem with my comment box. Good luck with paperwork, sounds horrible - a very frustrating and time consuming process, I feel your pain! I think Mum and Dad had a similar problem getting papers for Thomas in 1983. He was stateless for a while, until eventually they got him a UK passport and could be allowed to leave the country.

k said...

i can only imagine the paperwork involved in that, oh my goodness. it's exciting that you will have some work free days ahead!

Monique said...

So wonderful to hear you are all smiles! Wow, maternity leave is so close! It will be great to have some relaxing time before the bean gets here! Happy Weekend!

Kat Sloma said...

I am not surprised at all the complexities of immigration for your as-yet unborn baby, given what we've had to deal with in Italy. I'm glad you have it figured out. What an extra complication for an expecting mom to have to worry about! Crazy. :)

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful photo! Hope all is going well.