Birth Story: Preparing

What are you supposed to do when your due date approaches, passes you by, and you still have no baby? Well, you continue to get ready for the arrival of your baby!

What do you do when your to-do list is completely finished, and still your baby is too comfortable to make an entrance?

You schedule an induction.

To be honest, I felt a pretty significant level of guilt for scheduling an induction. There are so many proponents for natural births out there. Of course, I would like to bring my babies into this world as naturally as possible. But I had this great cloud of stress hanging over my head about the baby's arrival. There's all this paper work and beurocracy that needs to be sorted through once the baby is born---and from my past experiences I know how long and frustrating everything takes. I also know that our plane tickets are already bought and that Adam is under pressure to return as soon as possible.

So, without really consulting Adam or even God...I agreed to going to the hospital for a scheduled induction on Wednesday, August 7. 

Talk about mixed feelings!

I wanted to have my baby! I was so ready to deliver that baby! And so uncomfortable too! I could hardly sleep, walk, eat, breathe....I was taking pain medicine every day to help get through the hours.

I was also having contractions that were going no where. For five days! By Wednesday, I was dilated to about 3 centimeters, so if I had waited another day or two--maybe things would have progressed naturally. But the not knowing was killing me.

I wanted to go the hospital...but then again...I didn't want to go. 

I tried to make a strawberry pie and a chocolate cream pie. That didn't start labor. 

I continued purchasing, washing, cataloging, and packing clothes for both kids' wardrobes.

I finished my to-do list...which included sending a very late gift to a sweet friend. 

Renewed debit and credit cards, went shopping, returned purchases, bought donuts....

Went out to eat at a little diner. Willow cracks me up; she can drink her water like such a 'big girl'. Only one hand!

We sat in a booth, because I requested it (it's easier to contain Willow in a booth, since she dislikes high chairs). The manager, a big-fat guy, yelled out to me as we were being seated, "She's not gonna fit in a booth! She's too big!" At the top of his lungs. Over and over again. The waitress kept yelling back over her shoulder, "she'll be fine! she's gonna fit!" I tried to laugh it off and have a good attitude about it--but seriously....why do people think that it's okay to say such things to a pregnant woman? I almost told him that he wouldn't fit in the booth either.

Just to let you know...I did fit in the booth. I had like five extra inches.
And it was my due date.
Thank you very much, big-fat manager.

And still...no baby!

To be continued.....

New Stuff

It feels like we're just bleeding money. This seems to happen every time we're in America. Not to be misunderstood: we are receiving so many gifts, so many free meals, so many generous blessings of money---everything has been wonderful and unexpected and we are humbled by others' willingness to bless us.

Still...we are making quite a few purchases. Quite a few necessary purchases. Including this double stroller. I see this stroller as my ticket out of the apartment. This is my assurance that I wont be housebound with two kids in China. If the second baby is anything like the first, I wont be able to carry him for very long distances. Add to that, the concern of Willow darting into traffic while I'm holding said-behemoth. Add to that, possible groceries, diaper bags, etc.....A stroller was needed!

The great thing about the Combi Twin Savvy Stroller:

1. We can travel internationally with it; and use it in the airports. It is one of the only strollers on the market that is able to be carried on to a plane. Meaning: we will most likely NOT have to check-it at the ticket counter (thereby increasing our flight costs) and have to worry about it getting broken through all the baggage chaos that our suitcases barely survive.

2. Each seat can carry a substantial weight. I'm hoping that this stroller will last us two years in China. We love China, but the streets and sidewalks have not been forgiving to our other stroller. 

3. Each seat is also outfitted to carry newborns, with comfy confines and a five point harness.

4. Supposedly, it can fit through most doors. It's not too wide or cumbersome (hence why it's allowed on planes as one of your carry-ons is because of it's light weight and small dimensions).

What I don't like about the stroller: 

1. The wheels. I'm worried they wont stand up to the stewardesses shoving it onto the plane, or the rough Chinese roads and sidewalks, especially at the airport which is probably still under construction in the parking lot area. Totally wrecked our last stroller there. 

2. No cup holders for kids or mom. Baskets are too small. Umbrellas will not give as much shade or protection as they ought. 

But I'm okay with these cons. I see myself using it by the river, to get from one apartment to the next in our complex, for walks when I'm losing my sanity, and to go the various parks so Willow can expend some energy. It's not really for long trips to markets, or crazy walks down San Hao Jie. I don't see myself getting in a taxi by myself, with two kids, and no other adult help...especially with a stroller to collapse and pack into a trunk on my own. But I think it will help us to get out and get around to play dates and the fruit market. It will definitely save my back some pain. I just hope it will last!

Here's some pictures of Willow enjoying a birthday present---a new coloring book!

Enjoying the cultural experience of America: snapping and canning beans with Grandma Johnson. Which reminds me...Adam taught Willow over a series of days how to say and identify the difference between soy bean fields, corn fields, and wheat fields.

Thought He'd Be Here

Though he'd be here by now. I was really hoping for another July baby, though the due date is August 6.
Wishful thinking, I suppose!
It was a 'mind over matter' mentality. I thought that if I was spatially prepared with nesting, and mentally prepared for delivery in July....the baby would just pop out before August.

Dang. It's August 2, and no signs of an early appearance. Willow was 5-7 days early (depending which due date you use--she had two). But now I'm four days away from this little guy's due date and starting to feel desperation set in. "Am I ever going to have this baby?!" I think that all the time. But then, I also am preoccupied with thoughts for his safety. I'm trying to be content with the timing of things, to be patient with all this anticipation and discomfort. I just want this baby to be here, healthy and happy. 

Some pics from nesting this past week. Changing table is stocked and ready to go. Clothes are washed and organized...not just for the first few weeks, but for the next two years. Hospital bag is packed. 

Willow's imagination station. Here is her 'restaurant'.
She likes to set the table, pretend to cook, and pray before she eats.
She's also pretty desperate for some customers--so if you want to play with a two year old...come on over.

Realized that I never posted the finished product. This is the baby's blanket I made several weeks ago. Not the best pictures, but you can kind of see what it looks like. 

31.5 weeks = Can't Breathe

30 weeks pregnant with baby boy
June 2013 

Almost 8 months along, and can't believe it. 

Maybe I should be mentally preparing myself for labor and delivery. Or maybe I should be reading some reminders on how to care for a newborn. Or maybe I should wash all the baby clothes and blankets. 

Or maybe I should blog thoughtful letters to this baby. Or maybe I should be preparing Willow to become a big sister. Or maybe I should be lifting their impending sibling relationship up to the Lord on a daily basis. 

I'm pretty much failing at all these things right now; and I'm in a state of denial. 

I reside in the land of sluggards where I eat ice cream, cereal, and yogurt all day. Where I read books from the library all morning. I live in a land where a full breath of air is not my thing anymore. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to use more then 10% of my lung capacity? 

I live in a place where I forget to take my prenatal vitamins 50% of the time. A place where my back is slowly turning to gelatin and the veins in my hands are about to explode. 

30 weeks pregnant with Willow
(May 2011) 

 I live in a place that's far from my husband, constantly missing him and wishing he was here. 

But I count my blessings. I have flavored ice cream. I can drive to the store. I have great doctors. I have a loving husband who waits up at night to talk on skype. I have family who helps with Willow throughout the day. I have a fun-loving daughter who is obsessed with ice-cream, car rides, and animals.  

I get to spend so many precious moments with Willow. We snuggle in the morning, we cuddle at night, and we play during the day. We eat eggs for breakfast, and watch Sesame Street on youtube. We go for walks and car rides and enjoy shopping trips. We play with puppies at the pet store and go out for breakfast. We eat whipped cream straight from the container. We eat kimchi and rice together. 

Breaking of the dam: first clothes purchased for baby boy.
Soon followed by excessive amounts of shopping. 

I'm finished with the 'nesting' on the other side of the ocean. So maybe that's why I'm just not into it right now. I hope a second wave will hit me soon because there are a few things that ought to get done before the baby arrives. Willow's birthday, a plan for where Willow will sleep once the baby is born, wash all those baby clothes, sew a baby blanket....etc. 

I'm so thankful to have had a relatively easy pregnancy. My first world problems are so minimal. I worry about not getting to eat the moose tracks ice cream, and the fact that the book I just read was a waste of time. 

A real concern, that I keep pushing to the back, is the position of the baby. I'm positive he's in an oblique position. I hope that in the next few weeks, he settles in the correct position and is ready to come out! I do not want to have a c-section. So, this is a real-life prayer request--that the baby would move into the best position at the proper time. 

much love from the languid whale. 

Nesting for Willow's Sake

Part One: Willow's Art Cabinet

This little cupboard used to have all of our junk in it. And we sort of threw Willow's coloring books in there too. The only problem was that ever since she could open this cabinet, she has been emptying it of all the contents. Spent way too much time on daily basis returning all our junk into the cupboard. As the months went by, things got more and more disorganized/ruined/crazy. 

The last straw was when I saw Willow playing with all the spare apartment keys we kept in the cupboard. She would try to open the front door with a key--but since it doesn't work that way--she moved on to the power outlets. Instant panic. For those of you that don't know, I shocked myself horribly as a toddler by sticking a key into an outlet. So, as soon as I took the keys away from Willow, I started finding new homes for all our junk cabinet items.

And made it into Willow's cabinet instead. There's a bit more stuff in there now, since we inherited some more coloring books, notebooks and crayons last week.

Part Two: Willow's Big Girl Bedroom 

The saga of the guest room. It seems like everything we try to do to this room...sort of...goes wrong. 

First Problem: The paint. We painted this room fairly quickly. In a few hours. But in a few sections, the paint refuses to adhere. It peels off in huge patches and we can't figure out how to fix it. We've tried a few times, and it continues to peel. 

Eventually Willow's toy chest will be in the corner, instead of this shelving unit. 

Second problem: The bunk bed. It took a week to set up because the wrong pieces were in the box. This has happened to us once before with IKEA. We had to wait a week for IKEA to deliver the correct pieces.

Still have to hang a banner on this wall and mount a mirror. The chair will not normally be there either. 

Eventually, I want to make this a reading nook for Willow 

Eventually, these draws in the nightstand will be filled with Willow's stuff. 

I bought new black fabric and had the tailor sew black-out curtains for both of the children's bedrooms. When the blackout curtains are closed, hardly any sunlight/streetlight comes into the room. Which is great, since the sun rises around 4am in the summer. 

You can see the paint peeling off under this shelf. 

Where does the sidewalk end? I'm not sure, but we didn't find it on the Great Wall.

Isn't this a cute purse? The "J" stands for "Julie". Not "Johnson". Yes...this was my purse as a 16 or 17 year old. I paid big bucks for it at Marshall Fields, and now Willow plays with it. Life is ironic.

Eventually, this will be her dress-up corner. We'll hang a mirror to cover up the peeling wall, and put all her dress up pieces in a basket or hanging from these low hooks. 

Anyway....this is just a little bit that's been going on in our home. I didn't take pictures of all the gross, disgusting things I've been scrubbing and cleaning, and scrubbing and vacuuming, and disinfecting. Because those are just disgusting. It is shocking how dirty the surfaces of our apartment get....just from the AIR!!!!