Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Blog on back burner until 2009.
I find myself incredibly busy these days! I'm putting this blog on hold for now...maybe until next calendar year. I plan to continue writing on my birth blog (see side bar) and keeping up to date with family & friends via skype and facebook. "Moce" for now!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Weird.
Some funny things have happened lately.
I wasn't there for this one, but Kris was taking a local man named Oliver to visit his farm in Nausori. He drove the Bula Bus just in case he was able to pick up some sheep on the way home. On Reservoir road in Suva, a very steep and curved road, the sliding door of the Bula Bus FLEW OFF. It landed near St. Giles. Oliver suggested they just stick it in the back, but Kris bet him that he could reattach the door in under a minute. He did- 55 seconds. It's pretty scuffed up but we drove the BB to church on Sunday out of necessity and the door stayed on.
I opened the lasagna noodle box yesterday to make said dish. A few cockroaches popped their little heads out. I said "Ew" but at the same time, I couldn't help imagining them as cute little creatures, such as Emil in Ratatouille or all those adorable pests in animated films. I brought the box outside, snapped off the chewed ends, and brought them back in to be boiled. I've either been in Fiji too long, or watched too many kids movies. Either way, as Kris said.... they have to boil for like 15 minutes, so it's fine.
Last night I stepped on a hornet, the same hornet, twice. Then I kicked it. Not on purpose- I just thought it was a bit of stick that the kids had brought in. It didn't sting me. We have a bizarre thing with these hornets. Some days them come into the house and hover around the back door in great swarms. Mortein can kill them, but they come back a couple days later (collectively that is, not the dead ones.) But they haven't EVER stung us. I'm not saying it's impossible, they just never have. Strange.
Next post I'll be back with something cute for the grandparents and aunties again!
I wasn't there for this one, but Kris was taking a local man named Oliver to visit his farm in Nausori. He drove the Bula Bus just in case he was able to pick up some sheep on the way home. On Reservoir road in Suva, a very steep and curved road, the sliding door of the Bula Bus FLEW OFF. It landed near St. Giles. Oliver suggested they just stick it in the back, but Kris bet him that he could reattach the door in under a minute. He did- 55 seconds. It's pretty scuffed up but we drove the BB to church on Sunday out of necessity and the door stayed on.
I opened the lasagna noodle box yesterday to make said dish. A few cockroaches popped their little heads out. I said "Ew" but at the same time, I couldn't help imagining them as cute little creatures, such as Emil in Ratatouille or all those adorable pests in animated films. I brought the box outside, snapped off the chewed ends, and brought them back in to be boiled. I've either been in Fiji too long, or watched too many kids movies. Either way, as Kris said.... they have to boil for like 15 minutes, so it's fine.
Last night I stepped on a hornet, the same hornet, twice. Then I kicked it. Not on purpose- I just thought it was a bit of stick that the kids had brought in. It didn't sting me. We have a bizarre thing with these hornets. Some days them come into the house and hover around the back door in great swarms. Mortein can kill them, but they come back a couple days later (collectively that is, not the dead ones.) But they haven't EVER stung us. I'm not saying it's impossible, they just never have. Strange.
Next post I'll be back with something cute for the grandparents and aunties again!
Friday, May 23, 2008
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Sleep comes easily....
I love funny sleeping pictures! Here's a few from our kids, in no particular order....
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Go Big Blue!
After months (years?!) of praying for a vehicle big enough for our family's needs, the Lord has provided Big Blue, our new 11-seater van. It is great!! Very comfy with lots of seatbelts and space. We are so thankful!
Friday, March 28, 2008
Family of Six
Life as a full time mom is busy. Full time as in 24 hours a day. And with 8 or so of those hours being just on call, it STILL works out to be approximately 112 hours a week of waking busy hours. So when I ask rhetorically, at any given hour of the day, "Why in the world am I SO tired??".... I remember that I am a FULL TIME Mom. :)
Kris, too, puts in many hours a day taking kids with him on errands and visits, cooking, and being an attentive husband and Daddy. He loves all his little "arrows" and the fact that his quiver is filling!
It is a joy for all of us to now be a family of six. Love is abundant (though time and energy are not always!) and we revel in the blessing and delight of it.
Here's a new photo of little Haleh and her doughy soft milk belly:
Kris, too, puts in many hours a day taking kids with him on errands and visits, cooking, and being an attentive husband and Daddy. He loves all his little "arrows" and the fact that his quiver is filling!
It is a joy for all of us to now be a family of six. Love is abundant (though time and energy are not always!) and we revel in the blessing and delight of it.
Here's a new photo of little Haleh and her doughy soft milk belly:
Birth Story
Here's my birth story in words. I wish I could write well enough to compete with the drama of the video! But here's the details anyway :) .....
Haleh Nancy is our fourth child (third birth since our daughter Myah is adopted) and our first waterbaby! As labor began to pick up around 5 in the evening, I walked in big loops outside in the pouring rain. We live in the tropics in a little wood house by the ocean, so this was a really memorable way to labor. When I was good and sure that these contractions would bring the baby, I came inside and took a cold shower that felt so warm after my cold rain bath. By this time it was almost dark. I curled up in our papasan chair for a bit, then crawled into bed for some extra comfort. Since we live rurally, my brother-in-law had offered to host the birth at his home in the city in case we needed to transport to the hospital. (In fact, we planned to stay at the hospital for a night following the birth to rest before the trip home.) Kris and I wished at this point in labor that we could stay home, but got the family and bags loaded in the car anyway and started off. The bumpy 45-minute trip was really tough to endure, as I had feared. It was such a relief to finally arrive at a dim and quiet room where my Gentle Birth Pool was being filled! Labor took its time, I thought, especially for a third time around. I was 6 centimeters dilated when our OB arrived at 9:30 pm, and spent a few hours in laboring quietly on the bed while the pool was being perfected. Contractions were different than in past labors- I could feel my uterus lifting and felt the lateral muscles widening. It was a powerful sensation but not painful. (These sensations continued until transition). I got in the birth pool around 1 a.m. maybe. It felt amazing! So weightless and the perfect temperature. I told Kris that I felt that I was cheating, and that I thought maybe I would skip transition altogether and the baby would just kind of slide out. He was dubious, and said, “Well, I’m still going to look for a very strong emotional signpost marking transition!” All the ladies in the family came in to see me then, and Kris took some photos and video. At around 2:30 a.m. I felt like I was ready to progress faster and the contractions felt the same as they had for a while. I agreed to be checked again, and since I was still 7-8 cm, I was ready to have my water broken. This was easy and comfortable, and contractions did come harder but I was still able to sleep between them. Around maybe 4:00 a.m., I got back in the birth pool. 15 minutes or so later, I started sobbing right after a contraction. Kris was right, and I was definitely in the transition stage! We labored for about 30 minutes more, with Kris holding my head as I floated in the water. (He had a very sore wrist for a week afterwards!). My very sensitive OB waited until she heard me saying “I can’t do this anymore!” and gloved up to assist the birth. Contractions were a bit confusing at this point, some as much as 7 minutes apart, but some only 2 or so minutes. With some I wanted to push, and with some I wanted to cry. It was so wonderful to be in the water and moving freely, sometimes floating, sometimes curling up in a ball and pushing. Though I was surrounded by family, I was able to feel safe and focused in the birth pool. What a relief as I felt the baby’s head finally slipping in to the birth canal. I could finally believe that we were almost there! A bit of hair showed, and soon baby’s head was crowning. I panted and tried so hard not to push. I remember saying “I want to push the baby out!!” again and again. Finally the baby’s (HUGE) head was born gently, our OB maneuvered the shoulders which were a bit stuck, and with another push and a cry, its whole wonderful body was out! Kris checked…and said “It’s a little girl!!” We all laughed and cried and rejoiced. She didn’t cry at all for the first few minutes, though she was as healthy as can be. She just cuddled close and gazed at me with wide open eyes. I named her Haleh Nancy – I got to choose since she was a girl! She was born at 5:08 a.m. on February 9, and weighed 9 lb 12.5 oz. What a beautiful gift from God!
Haleh Nancy is our fourth child (third birth since our daughter Myah is adopted) and our first waterbaby! As labor began to pick up around 5 in the evening, I walked in big loops outside in the pouring rain. We live in the tropics in a little wood house by the ocean, so this was a really memorable way to labor. When I was good and sure that these contractions would bring the baby, I came inside and took a cold shower that felt so warm after my cold rain bath. By this time it was almost dark. I curled up in our papasan chair for a bit, then crawled into bed for some extra comfort. Since we live rurally, my brother-in-law had offered to host the birth at his home in the city in case we needed to transport to the hospital. (In fact, we planned to stay at the hospital for a night following the birth to rest before the trip home.) Kris and I wished at this point in labor that we could stay home, but got the family and bags loaded in the car anyway and started off. The bumpy 45-minute trip was really tough to endure, as I had feared. It was such a relief to finally arrive at a dim and quiet room where my Gentle Birth Pool was being filled! Labor took its time, I thought, especially for a third time around. I was 6 centimeters dilated when our OB arrived at 9:30 pm, and spent a few hours in laboring quietly on the bed while the pool was being perfected. Contractions were different than in past labors- I could feel my uterus lifting and felt the lateral muscles widening. It was a powerful sensation but not painful. (These sensations continued until transition). I got in the birth pool around 1 a.m. maybe. It felt amazing! So weightless and the perfect temperature. I told Kris that I felt that I was cheating, and that I thought maybe I would skip transition altogether and the baby would just kind of slide out. He was dubious, and said, “Well, I’m still going to look for a very strong emotional signpost marking transition!” All the ladies in the family came in to see me then, and Kris took some photos and video. At around 2:30 a.m. I felt like I was ready to progress faster and the contractions felt the same as they had for a while. I agreed to be checked again, and since I was still 7-8 cm, I was ready to have my water broken. This was easy and comfortable, and contractions did come harder but I was still able to sleep between them. Around maybe 4:00 a.m., I got back in the birth pool. 15 minutes or so later, I started sobbing right after a contraction. Kris was right, and I was definitely in the transition stage! We labored for about 30 minutes more, with Kris holding my head as I floated in the water. (He had a very sore wrist for a week afterwards!). My very sensitive OB waited until she heard me saying “I can’t do this anymore!” and gloved up to assist the birth. Contractions were a bit confusing at this point, some as much as 7 minutes apart, but some only 2 or so minutes. With some I wanted to push, and with some I wanted to cry. It was so wonderful to be in the water and moving freely, sometimes floating, sometimes curling up in a ball and pushing. Though I was surrounded by family, I was able to feel safe and focused in the birth pool. What a relief as I felt the baby’s head finally slipping in to the birth canal. I could finally believe that we were almost there! A bit of hair showed, and soon baby’s head was crowning. I panted and tried so hard not to push. I remember saying “I want to push the baby out!!” again and again. Finally the baby’s (HUGE) head was born gently, our OB maneuvered the shoulders which were a bit stuck, and with another push and a cry, its whole wonderful body was out! Kris checked…and said “It’s a little girl!!” We all laughed and cried and rejoiced. She didn’t cry at all for the first few minutes, though she was as healthy as can be. She just cuddled close and gazed at me with wide open eyes. I named her Haleh Nancy – I got to choose since she was a girl! She was born at 5:08 a.m. on February 9, and weighed 9 lb 12.5 oz. What a beautiful gift from God!
Friday, February 22, 2008
She's here!
Haleh Nancy Stice was born on February 9th at 5:08 am! We had a wonderful waterbirth at 8 Maharaj Place, Suva. She matched big brother Judah's birthweight at 9 lbs 12.5 oz, but her head and shoulders were big like big brother Jo's! She will be two weeks old tomorrow and is as chubby and wonderful as a baby can be. She has even been sleeping through the night!
Check back for photos here (upload tool is having issues) and in the meantime here's the video compilation that Kris made to celebrate Haleh's birth:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeL8GMDn-V4
(I'm sorry I can't get the hyperlink to work either!)
Haleh Nancy Stice was born on February 9th at 5:08 am! We had a wonderful waterbirth at 8 Maharaj Place, Suva. She matched big brother Judah's birthweight at 9 lbs 12.5 oz, but her head and shoulders were big like big brother Jo's! She will be two weeks old tomorrow and is as chubby and wonderful as a baby can be. She has even been sleeping through the night!
Check back for photos here (upload tool is having issues) and in the meantime here's the video compilation that Kris made to celebrate Haleh's birth:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeL8GMDn-V4
(I'm sorry I can't get the hyperlink to work either!)
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Last photo of the un-blogged pregnancy
Here's me, ready to pop, at 37.5 weeks. I see my baby ticker says that baby is over 6 lbs now. Hah! I'll say! Stay posted for baby news and pictures in, I hope, 2 more weeks. Yessss!
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