Big Day!

February 6th was a big day in the Ralles Household. It certainly didn’t start out as a typical Wednesday morning. I woke up Mike with the news that we were expecting Baby Ralles! As I sat home that morning trying NOT to announce the pregnancy to the world, Mike went to work in a daze. After a few short hours, Mike called because we received the much-anticipated email (yes, email) announcing our next assignment with the Foreign Service…Vienna, Austria!

The weeks that we were waiting for our next assignment were filled with great anxiety and a little sadness. We started to realize our time in this special, tiny place was coming to an end, an end that will come rather quickly. But as soon as we found out about Baby Ralles (due October, 2011) and Vienna (ETA March, 2012), we started thinking about the future with equal anxiety but this time much more excitement.

The Ralles Adventure timeline:

August- Rachel returns to the U.S. to wait for Baby Ralles
September- Mike comes for a visit and brings Strela to the U.S.
October- Mike returns in time for Baby Ralles’ arrival
Early December (est)- The Ralles Family (minus Strela) returns to close out in Praia
End of January (est)- The Ralles Family leaves Praia for the U.S. (training in DC and home leave)
End of March (est)- The Ralles Family reunited with Strela head on for the next adventure in Austria!

We hope to see as many friends and family as possible in our time in the States. As for 2012, our visitor count in Cape Verde stands at 20. Can we surpass that in Vienna? Only you know the answer!