Astrid's First Year

What a year it has been.

The first child for Jen and I, which turned Travel for 2 into Travel for 3. We've had seemingly countless memories in the last 365 days. Astrid has lived a pretty adventurous first year, hence her nickname is Adventure Baby. From San Francisco to the Phillippines at 3 months old, to Sweden at 6 months and then a relocation to Paros, Greece and Italy. She's shared countless memories with family, friends and so many kind strangers around the world. She's eaten (and loved) exotic plantains in El Nido, fresh buffalo mozzarella in Capri, Swedish meatballs in Uppsala and a whole host of amazing Greek food, gyros and zucchini balls being her favorite. She continues to amaze us with her new skills and wonderful demeanor. She charms us every day and certainly keeps us on our toes with her new found walking ability to match her curiosity.

However, so many of the little moments can sometimes seem a distant memory all too quickly. I put together a slideshow of Astrid's First Year to help capture the memories for years to come. I hope you enjoy this little video!

Amorgos with the Klimas' family

We all know and love Paros. It's an exciting island with serene moments and plenty to do. So when Jen thought of places to getaway from Paros and try a new island, Amorgos entered the conversation. I had faint memories of Amorgos being a sleepy little island with a famous monastery and few beaches from a day trip when I was a kid.

A return to Amorgos with Jen, Astrid and Jen's parents, John and Sandy, has left me with an entirely new perception of this beautiful island. The typical Cycladic charm is seen throughout the island in white washed buildings, sandy beaches, amazingly simple tavernas and crystal clear waters. Amorgos is one of the more mountainous islands in the region, so winding roads lead you over many precipices lined with goats and down into small valleys that exude a wonderful sense of serenity.

On the day we arrived, we boarded the ferry with our car packed to the brim and made our way from the southern tip to the northern bay of Amigali. Here we were greeted with a stunningly calm bay with mountains overlooking the village. High atop the mountain ridges, were smaller towns that seem to cling to the edges of each cliff.

Astrid seemed to enjoy her new view

After a lovely evening at a lovely taverna perched on the cliffs, we decided to explore the nearby waters via boat. We chartered a speedboat for the day and made our way towards Nikfouria Island, a nearby uninhabited island with a rickety pier. We parked in some shade and enjoyed the peace and quiet with only a few of the local goats.

The family headed through the crystal waters of Amorgos

After a busy day of cruising the waters, we dropped John and Sandy off at a nearby resort and Jen and I set out to find the shipwreck cove along the southern tip of Amorgos. We were rewarded with an amazing shipwreck to ourselves.

We headed back to the port for a quick meal and siesta, only to take the boat out again for some sunset drinks on the calm bay. While Paros will always be my sunset perfection, Amorgos certainly carried itself well with a gently setting sunset along a perfectly calm evening, we soaked it all in and Astrid gently waved goodbye to the sun. 

Sure enough, it rose again the next day and we made our way to the famed monastery of Hozoviotissa. John and Sandy let our young legs do the walking and gladly accepted the offer to spoil little Astrid with some love and laughs. We made our way through the mountains to a lot where we hiked up the ancient stairway, only to be greeted by some kind priests offering us raki and water for our sweaty selves. The monastery seemed smaller than I remember, but that is because I was likely half the size I am now. It still had narrow hallways and steep steps to navigate, but Jen was charmed. 

Shortly after our return, we left for Levrossos beach nearby for a late lunch and a swim. We enjoyed our taverna lunch while Astrid napped nearby in her stroller. She awoke to fresh watermelon and delicious pressed eggplant in sauce. The beach ended up being perfect for kids, as it was shallow and calm with a cool breeze rolling off the mountains. We set up Astrid's umbrella and whiled away the hours. 

A Sabbatical of the Heart

In 2010, Jen and I left our lives in New York City for a new adventure that was intended to help us restore a work/life balance. The hustle and bustle of the city was wearing our spirits down, so fresh beginnings were sought.

Few places call for a return than the island of Paros, and we made our way. We spent a magical year, restoring a villa, whiling away the evening hours and being in love. After six months, we decided our lives should take us back to the US (aka "reality" in some strange way), where we found a new life in San Francisco.

Now, five years later, our lives have once again found a need to restore the harmony. San Francisco, a city that gave us so much in career opportunities, gorgeous nature, year round perfect weather, surrounded us with innovative and entrepreneurial people, was a dream come true. Our love for the city grew, despite the rising cost of living and doing business saw unprecedented growth, surpassing even Manhattan as the most expensive city to live in the US. With the remarkable growth of some of the leading tech companies in the world and lack of safety net to secure the homes and livelihoods of some of the tenants underserved groups, comes an underbelly of poverty and rise in homelessness that saw record numbers forced into a life on the streets. The streets rarely felt safe and barely a day went by where you didn't see someone sleeping amidst garbage on the sidewalk. My heart goes out to those who suffer, but it simply became such a common sight, that you felt numb in attempting to help those around you. Pairing this with our inability to make San Francisco a permanent home due to the exorbitant real estate prices, we struggled to grow the roots of our little family.

Dear baby Astrid then shifted our focus from how far our careers can be taken to how soon can we be home to share those precious moments. Leaving her in the hands of a nanny, who was amazing, so often at such a tender age simply broke our hearts. The tide of ineffectual family living led us to reimagine our future, and we decided that the moment was ripe for a fresh adventure. Many locations harkened and we searched for cities globally that could restore balance to our interests and family needs. What we came to realize was that once again, we were in a unique position to take advantage of a getaway to Paros, Greece. My position with IMA lent itself to telecommuting for a considerable duration. Jen sought a way to treasure the time with Astrid and pursue a new passion at the same time.

So we charted our journey and discussed at length the trials and tribulations involved with such a young infant, but we have such intimacy with the island already that we knew in our hearts it had to happen. The island has come to mean so much to us, from my introduction as an infant to Paros in 1984, my many formative summers through my youth, as a backpacking launchpad for my college years, young in love with Jen dancing til the sun rose in 2009, staying throughout the year working remotely and updating the villa in 2010, our jet set wedding in 2014, floating Jen's pregnant belly in the Mediterranean in 2015, and now to complete the circle, introducing our child to the place we love so intimately. 

It is with this desire for balance that we hope to take a step back from our shared existence, examine what brings us joy, remind us that life is better served together than apart. We needed a sabbatical from our life in a way, and now we have begun a journey to see which way we want to grow our family and remind ourselves that we should always be in love with our life. So far, it's looking pretty good. 

Independent Eater

Astrid has become a fan of grabbing the spoon out of my hand and doing it herself. Sometimes we let her try it out and sometimes it gets a little messy...

Before & After

And then quickly followed by a bath, but we always stop to let her see herself in the mirror, which usually results in lots of giggles and laughs as she reaches for the "baby in the mirror." 

First Movie

Astrid welcomed her VIP guests

Baby's first movie is a milestone in my world. Coming from a family of movie lovers, my parents loved taking me to the theatre as a child. Hearing about the first film I ever saw as an infant is a story I've heard a hundred times, but always puts a smile on my face, because I know my parents didn't quit doing the things they loved after they became parents. Now with a boisterous 7-month-old baby, I know the pleasure they must have felt being able to catch a film after a day of work, diapers and bodily fluids.

My dad loves reminding me that my first film at just four months was Woody Allen's "Zelig" where I promptly ruined one of his jackets after a feeding.

While Astrid has slept through some films with us already at home, I'm going to remember her first film as the one that took place in a proper theatre. Jen had reserved the Google video room, with a wall of flat screens stitched together, for an evening of pizza, popcorn, and a classic film.

"He Slimed Me"

Astrid's first film was one of my all time favorites in Ghostbusters. She watched intently as the screen lit up the room. She sucked on a cracker in mom's arms while Slimer made his appearance. She barely made a peep and loved wiggling around on the big bean bag chairs.

Now it's my turn to constantly remind her of what her first film was and hopefully she'll enjoy it as much the second time around!