Another growth spurt on the way?

The kid seems to be growing in fits and starts and I think it’s ramping up for another growth spurt. Yesterday I was starving all day, cold and thirsty. Our gas heater has been acting up and I had a few words with it on more than one occasion. I finally gave up on it and told it off…“I hope you know I think you’re f%@kin’ useless!” I’m sure it’ll be working much better today. I drank so much water, tea and juice that I couldn’t be away from the toilet for more than 45 minutes. I had breakfast, 2nd breakfast, lunch, 2nd lunch, afternoon tea and dinner. With plenty of grazing in between of course! Should be an interesting and somewhat tiring week.

Set to ride in style

Stroller
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

We bought our stroller a couple of weeks ago! You may be interested to know that in Japan it’s called a “baby car”. Just like every other car in this country it has as many names as a pedigree Shiba Inu. This particular model is the “Combi, A-Style, Stylish Sports” and it has a sticker on the side that proclaims it to be “As gentle as a mother’s arms”! Shopping for a stroller is a task not for those who easily succumb to option paralysis. Buying a stroller in Japan narrowed our choices quite nicely which, was a bit of a mercy. First on the list of “must haves” Sean had to be able push the stroller while standing completely upright. Sounds crazy but we tried out a few that had Sean bending at the waist to reach! Then we both agreed that it had to be sturdy and that I had to be able to open and close it using only one hand. Due to the general lack of space to store anything here many strollers fold into shapes and sizes that are really quite remarkable. Sadly this requires many folding components and more moving parts than you would believe which makes for a pretty rickety feel. Next it needed to have a push bar that could flip from side to side (a wise recommendation from our dear friend Jess!) and a sun hood that would completely cover the Kid from the darn harsh northern Japan UV. Price was also a concern. There are more strollers in the $400 to $550 price range than there are in the $200 to $300 range. The stroller we bought was originally $200 and we picked it up on sale for a mere $150!

We are currently shopping for the car seat. Then the bassinette and all the big stuff will be out of the way! Yippee!!

The 3rd trimester is officially here!

Not quite the final countdown but we’re getting close to it. The ‘ol belly is noticeably bigger each week and we’re up to visiting the doctor every 2 weeks now. Here’s the goods on the last 3 doc appointments leading up to the beginning of the 3rd trimester…

Dec 20
-baby weight: approx. 470 grams (a wee bit over a pound)
-mom’s weight: as if!
-lots of movement
-all is well

Jan 21
-baby weight: approx. 1300 grams (that’s almost 3 pounds and 2.75 times bigger since the last visit a month ago!)
-I’ve been really tired this month and the growth spurt the Kid went thru definitely has a lot to do with that
-nurses initially thought I had high blood pressure but they spooked me when they didn’t give me advance warning that I had to get a blood test and it sent my BP through the ceiling. The head nurse talked me down though. She wears such pretty pink lipstick. It’s nearly hypnotic. Maybe I can get Sean to wear the same color for the delivery!
-all is well

Feb 4
-baby weight: approx. 1340 grams
-blood test results from previous visit good eg: HIV was negative (apparently they don’t have to ask for your permission for that one in this country!)
-got to hear the babies heart beat for the first time. COOL!
-legs are still about 2 weeks of growth ahead of the body! Hopefully at this rate our child will not end up with a 26 inch inseam like me!
-all is well
-signed up for our prenatal classes on Mar 8. YIKES!

Would it be possible to keep my cervix out of this?

Around the end of November I started to feel the first signs of movement. At first I didn’t really know what I was feeling and was convinced it was gas. By mid December the movement had developed into full on kicking, spinning and what felt like jumping jacks. There is really nothing more life affirming than feeling a baby moving around inside your own body. Up until that stage the doctor told us there was a growing embryo in there and we had seen the “Bean” in ultrasounds. But once it starts moving the reality of being pregnant really starts to kick in as it were. Sean felt the baby moving for the first time on December 17 and some time after that “the Bean” graduated into “the Baby” or “the Kid”. It would appear movement allows for a more human reference!

For the first time in my life I experienced being kicked in the cervix from the inside (not that I’ve ever been kicked in the cervix from the outside!). Took my breath away it did. At the time the kid weighed in at a little under a pound! Good grief what’s gonna happen when “the Kid” gets some more weight on it’s side!

Belly button spotted where one hasn’t been seen in at least 2 decades

I can see the “button” in my belly! I haven’t seen it in years. It’s so friggin’ deep and well honestly it has been nicely tucked between a pair of quabbles for quite some time. Wish I could celebrate with a nice glass of wine!

Switching sides

So I'm now up to peeing twice a night. You'd think with all these years of evolution behind us the female body would have figured out how to deal with the decreasing space that is alotted to the bladder in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters. The dexterity of the human thumb has adapted to the Game Boy in less than 20 years after all. Personally I view this as just training for the reality that I'll be getting up several times and at all hours of the night for feedings in less than four months.

The layout of our bedroom requires that the foot and one side of the bed be up against the wall. The night table is wedged between the head of our bed and the wall. My preferred side of the bed has been against the wall since it's so cosy and the glare from the heater doesn't keep me up all night. That side of the bed is also the furthest from the door and requires that I climb over a sleeping Sean in the middle of the night to do my business. The night before last was my first two pee night and by the time I had to get up for the second pee I was not too genki and had a bit of trouble getting me arse to the toilet in time. So last night Sean and I switched sides. It is something that was in my future anyways as the wee nipper is going to have to sleep on the "no wall" side of the bed and I'm planning on being the food source. It was a little sad and a little exciting but most of all it was just as cosy and Sean positioned the heater so that I didn't feel like I was staring at the rising sun through my eye lids.

For your enjoyment and astonishment here are the measurements of our bedroom...

Bedroom 2.5 m x 2 m
Bed 140 cm x 2 m
Table 60 cm x 30 cm
Door allowance 85 cm x 85 cm (door opens INTO the room, friggin' tres stupido)
Remainder 168 cm x 87 cm (for heater, to get dressed and baby bed)

Not such a roomy room ne? But it's still cosy!

A bit of Mommy & Daddy time before Mommy and Daddy time hits

Never ending goodness!
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

Sean and I just finished our last vacation as "a couple sans children". We had a great time and it was really wonderful to just be together. We had wanted to leave Japan and go somewhere hot for Christmas again but I didn't feel too good about leaving the comforts of home and hospital at the midpoint of our pregnancy. So I finally convinced Sean into a 5 night vacation in Sapporo and all the snowboarding he could do all season long. Snowboarding is out for me this year as I'm a bit too far along. So I hang out in the lodge, go for walks and write blog posts!

Sapporo was wonderful. It snowed everyday and it was truly magical at times. We lounged in Starbuck's for at least an hour every morning with such beverages in hand as Gingerbread latte, Creme Brulee latte and Valencia Orange mocha. We spent our days walking thru the snow, shopping, eating lunch along the way, visiting bakeries and marvelling at the crowds. Christmas is not celebrated here like it is in the west. Part of the oddness of Christmas here is that people eat fried chicken and a fancy cake for dinner. The line-ups at the bakeries were simply insane. This visit to Sapporo was more human intensive than our visit Tokyo and Kyoto this summer. We went out for dinner every night (Indian, Mexican, Asian fusion, Thai and 1 night of fast food) and then usually crashed into bed by 7:30 or 8 to watch ridiculous Japanese programs or whatever foreign film was being offered up.

We returned to Obihiro and lounged around our pad for a couple of days and Sean got a few days of snowboarding in at Nukabira as well. Sean hooked up our newly purchased DVD player and we spent our evenings watching rented DVD's. We learned that washing your car is "the" thing to do on New Year's Eve in Japan. There were line ups around the block for most car wash joints. We spent the wee hours of New Year's Day at the Obihiro Shinto Shrine where we said a short prayer on the top step of the Shrine. Then we both literally rang in the New Year on the big bronze bell on the grounds at the Buddhist Temple near our apartment. We spent the evening of our last day in great conversation with our friend Keiko who had made an amazing meal.

If you're pregnant or thinking about having kids I strongly suggest you find the time and money to do this kind of thing with your partner. Just get away and enjoy doing things with your honey. You won't regret it.

Made for each other by way of the granola bar

Every now and then a series of events occurs in your marriage that further proves you and your spouse are meant to be together. One day in mid November I was busy getting ready for a couple of late morning classes. I was feeling a little snacky and remembered there were some of those yummy chewy granola bars in the cupboard that Jose had sent us. I opened one, ate half of it, set it down and then immediately forgot where I put it. I considered the fact that I may have finished it, regardless I was still a bit peckish so I started in on the other one. Again I opened the wrapper, ate half, put it down and forgot about it. I finished packing up and left for class.

I didn't think about this again until Nov 26, the day of our TIEC Thanksgiving dinner. There were about 10 of us preparing food in the kitchen and we were discussing the sad fact that my memory was shrinking by at least 50% every week that my pregnancy was advancing. I told everyone about the granola bar incident and that I was sure I didn't finish either bar but had never found them. Then Sean pipes up...it turns out he had come home before me the day I "lost" the bars. He found one half eaten granola bar and ate it without thinking about it. Then some time later he found the other one. He actually thought that it was the first one and that he had forgotten to eat it. So he ate the second one and didn't think anything of it. What a pair! Everyone in the kitchen had a good laugh at our expense and Sean and I weren't really that surprised with the way things turned out. I can see myself leaving the kid behind somewhere and Sean coming along and thinking "here's a cute kid, I think I'll take you home with me!".

Recommended Reading: “Bear With Me”

By: Diane Flacks
Available on amazon.ca
ISBN 0-7710-4764-9, $24.99 CDN

My sister Jose sent me this book from Ottawa. It arrived while Sean’s folks were here and Pat spent time reading parts of it, laughing, nearly crying and all the while reminiscing about her experiences of being pregnant. I found out my sister did the same thing in the bookstore before she bought it and then she took it home and read the whole thing before she sent it to me. This is by far the most frankly written and honest book I have read in quite some time. The author writes of her experiences while trying to conceive, being pregnant and going thru childbirth from a perspective few woman have ever given thought to let alone read about. She is unafraid to call the shitty stuff “shitty” and manages to keep her sense of humor through all the yucky parts. She calls her breasts “boobs” and her labia “pussy lips”. The first 3 chapters are titled…Getting Knocked Up, The First Weeks-I’m Backing Out and The First Trimester-Losing Control. One of the best parts of the book describes how the phrase “fer fuck’s sake” tacked itself on the end of every request the author made of her partner. “Do you think you could close the fridge door, fer fuck’s sake?!” Now that’s something I can relate to! This is the only pregnancy book I have read from cover to cover and although it’s not loaded with technical info this book best describes the emotional roller coaster ride aspect of being pregnant.

The gathering of information

There are sooo many friggin’ books written on preconception, getting pregnant, what to do while you’re pregnant, what not to do while you’re pregnant etc, etc. It’s a little daunting trying to figure out which ones to spend your hard earned dollars on. Not having access to a single page of printed material in English of the aforementioned topics I had to rely on reader reviews on the net and recommendations from friends and family. I have now acquired several books but my favorites are few. Not many pregnancy-related books are meant to be read from cover to cover as they are more reference related and contain unending miles of dry text strung together. That being said there are a few books that I simply could not have done without reading. Perhaps I’ll sporadically list my top 5 fav’s but not in any particular order of course!

Why "Bigger in Japan"?

Well, my husband and I live in Obihiro, a small city on the northern island of Hokkaido in Japan. The population is about 175 000 and there really aren't very many "foreign" folks here. I have light colored hair, I'm a bit under 5'8" tall, and I am by no means a "small" or even "medium" built woman. My favorite eyeglasses are red (2nd fav are bright blue) and from what I understand I laugh often and the sound can carry for a great distance. So needless to say I'm a solidly built Canadian gal that generally sticks out in a crowd of local folks in these parts. Being pregnant and growing bigger (hence "Bigger in Japan") around the 'ol mid section is going to make me all the more noticeable! I can't wait really and plan to ham it up as much as possible!

Is that stink coming from MY pits?

There's lots of really wonderful emotions and physical changes that come along with being pregnant. There's also some really gross things you "turn into" pretty much over night. I turned into stink. One morning around week 6 or 7 I was busy cleaning up about the apartment and I noticed there was a nasty smell following me around. It could be likened to the teen stink that fills the locker room of let's say a group of junior high aged boys that have just come off the ice after a high energy hockey practice (but you never stank Tony!). Sean rarely gets BO, he has freakishly only gone through 2 sticks of antiperspirant in the 7 or so years we've lived together. And yes, I keep track of his pit stick use because I do indeed find it freakish. To my horror the stink was coming from the very pits under my arms. I showered later in the day and gave the 'ol underarms a good scrub with the wash cloth. That oughta do 'er. Afterwards, I was drying my pits and when I rubbed the towel back and forth I could smell the stink again. It didn't wash off! It was like I had scratch and sniff stink pits. Soon enough Sean started to make comments and he quickly learned that the topic was NOT open for discussion or further comment. "You wouldn't want to make me cry about this would you?". I continued to try to deal with it but nothing I tried would make it stop. My antiperspirant was "absorbed" by my skin and in minutes it was like I had never put any on. I tried Sean's, strong enough for a man so it must be strong enough for a pregnant woman. Apparently not. I decided no matter what I wouldn't cry about this and in the end I don't think I did but then again I can't remember. The stink just packed up and left on September 22 which was a mercy as it was the day before I was packed and leaving for a 24 hour showerless flight to Ottawa. I've been stinkless about 5 weeks now and Sean and I couldn't be happier!

Repainting the kitchen

So my first brainless event occured sometime around week 6. Sean was home and sitting in the kitchen at the computer. I ventured into the kitchen with a hankering for some Meiji Mixed Berry yoghurt beverage. This stuff is incredibley tasty and a little high in calories but I can justify drinking a cup or two for the sake of my increased need for calcium. It's also purple and comes in 1 litre cartons. I had just bought a brand new carton the day before so I was really looking forward to it being very fresh and fruity tasting. So I take the carton out of the fridge open it right up and THEN I shake it. Yup, it went everywhere. All over the counter, walls, garbage can, the wall behind the garbage can, floor and fridge. I was so pissed off I didn't even stop to survey the milky, purple damage I just slammed the friggin' carton down on the counter and stormed off to our bedroom in a flurry of cuss words, waving arms and stomping feet. I jumped into bed, pulled the covers over my head, started crying and wailing questions into the duvet.

"What's wrong with me?", "How can I be such a stupid idiot?", "What was I thinking?", "I WASN'T thinking because I am a STUPID IDIOT!".

Then there's Sean. He was just putzing away at the computer and all of a sudden the kitchen is purple, I'm cursing, screaming and stomping and then under the covers. Needless to say, he was out of his seat pretty damn quick. He cleaned up and then he crawled into bed to console the inconsolable.

We can kind of laugh at it now but I think we were both a little freaked out by my "fit". As it turns out I've had a few crying fits since and it's just torture. For both of us. "Honey, I don't know why I'm crying!" sort of stuff. It's so unpredictable and uncontrollable I'm sure Sean is convinced I'm a ticking time bomb. For Sean's sake and mine I hope I'm out of that phase now.

...and then the hormones started attacking my brain cells

Hormones. The big wig scientists still aren't sure how or why the capacity and normal functions of the female brain start their perpetual downward spiral once sperm meets egg. One thing I know for sure is that the decline is swift and unrelenting. I can't remember things I did last week, yesterday and sometimes by the end of the day I can't remember what I had for breakfast. This can be alarming but my sister Jose helped me come to the realization that if I just calm down and relax through it I likely won't remember my pre-pregnancy grey matter's performance by the time the baby is born!

My first prenatal doctor's appointment

The following is cut from an email I sent to my sister and Sean's parents on September 1. I had to go to this first appointment alone as Sean couldn't get out of work that day. We were both a little disappointed but it turned out to have been for the better...

Hey there folks,

I had my first appointment at the hospital yesterday. All the doctors work out of hospitals here so don't go panicking! I met a really nice couple in the waiting room that live on the other side of the city near the "big factory" maternity hospital and they said the one we have chosen is very well known and respected. They just had their 3rd child there and were very pleased with everything. Anyways, my appointment went really well. I had an ultrasound and even got a photo printout of the wee nipper! Pretty tiny but all is well so far! So technically I'm 5 weeks, 1 day and 7 hours (the hours are crazy I know) into this journey. In two or weeks I'll go back once the spine has formed (isn't that nuts...a spine grows in 2 weeks, I can't even grow a bad haircut out in that time!) and they'll measure the spine length to determine the due date. Some sort of new fangled technology. Don't know if Asian spines grow at the same rate as Western spines so I've added that to my list of questions.

Here's something funny for you...my doctor has a pretty good command of English but he calls breasts "mama's". I figure that's short for "mammaries". So here's the question he asked me yesterday..."Do you have any descention of the mama's?" I was so surprised I actually replied with "what?!!" then "uhhhhh, yes" and then I nearly pissed my pants trying not to laugh. "Descention of the mama's" sounds like some sort of Harley Davidson biker chicks turn feminist B grade mockumentary!

...so translated into English and then Nancy-speak "Do you have any descention of the mama's?" means "Are your boobs getting bigger?". In hindsight I realized that if Sean would have been there with me to get the hiliarity of that question I would have totally lost my composure. So I count his absense for that appointment as a bit of a blessing as I'm sure I would have lost all credibility with my doctor if I melted into a giggling pool of hormones.

And they'll tell two friends...and so on...and so on...

We had decided that we weren't going to tell anyone until we had our first visit to the doctor. That resolve lasted about 2 days. Sean's parents phoned us and at one point during the conversation Sean put his hand over the receiver and with this big grin on his face he whispered "should I tell them?" Personally, I'm all for telling everyone that will listen but I understand the reasons for showing some restraint until the end of the first trimester. Naturally I giggled "yes"! Soon after I heard excitement from Canada streaming through the phone lines. I told my sister Jose on her birthday (August 24th). She told our mom and everyone else in the room right away and by the end of the next day everyone in her office knew too! I told our friend Jess here in Japan and she told Kevin her boyfriend. So we told 6 people but I'm sure at least 300 know by now. People just love the news of a baby on the way and we've learned it's one of the hardest secrets to keep!

Blue yes, but sometimes not so clear or easy!

Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

So I bought the Clear Blue Easy test. Bought two in fact as I knew I would somehow bungle the testing process. Saturday ended up being too busy but I was up bright and early on Sunday morning (August 21). There I am perched on the toilet, test in one hand, instructions in the other trying to ready my swollen bladder for it's most meaningful urination! In my mind and possibly out loud I'm saying "easy does it, slow and steady". This is where I need to break in to tender some advice. The instructions give you two options. Peeing directly on the strip or peeing in a cup and then dipping the strip. Just go directly to the second option. I had the pressure of a friggin' fire hose (something I've since learned comes with pregnancy) and I basically destroyed the first test. This is when Sean stepped in. He re-read the instructions and we ended up doing the dip option with the second test which was far more civilized and a lot less messy. Most importantly though was that we had a positive result pretty much right away. Two blue lines. Wow! We did it! Such wonderful news but such a shame to get it while seated on the crapper! Ladies, we definately need to call for some sort of technological update there!

I just knew

As the week wore on I was positive that there was a bun in my oven. My bra was filling out at a rate I couldn't explain, my brain felt a little fuzzy and I started habitually waking up at 5 am. I can't remember what day I mentioned it to Sean but he either didn't believe me or didn't want to believe me (at least not just yet!). Technically we had only been trying for a little over a month so we were both looking forward to a little more "recreation" before we had to come to grips with the fact we were soon to be a mommy and daddy. Besides nobody gets pregnant after less than 5 weeks of trying! Being a little short on cash I decided I would buy a pregnancy test on payday which was Friday. We would do the test on the weekend.

Hmmm...what's that I'm feeling?

Sean...about an hour before I realized he was going to be a daddy!
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

The first day I suspected I was pregnant was August 15th, 2005. We had just spent the last night of Tom and Pat's visit in Sapporo. We got up early to drive them to the airport in Chitose and all I could think about was getting them to the airport and getting us home. I woke feeling not quite myself and really tired. We had a whirlwind visit with Tom and Pat so I figured the last 5 or so weeks were just catching up with me.

After tearful good-byes at the airport Sean and I went into Chitose to do some shopping and have lunch. We then embarked on a new route home with the idea of an adventure appealing a wee bit more to Sean than myself. I didn't reveal this to him at the time 'cause I figured I'd snap out of my funk once we hit the road. The drive was indeed lovely. The road wound thru rice paddies and over deep valleys with shallow jade rivers. We stopped in Bitori to visit the temple and take some photo's. And then the rain started. Back on the road we encountered restless, black clouds heavy with rain. The deeper we ventured into the mountains the harder the rain pelted our car. This is when I started to feel sick. I willed that car throught sheets of rain and flooding streets. The windshield wipers were wildly wiping but it seemed to do little good. Past motorcycles and cars pulled to the side of the road and through intersections under 10 cm of water I thought of nothing else but getting home. The rain stopped just before Hidaka and when we turned right onto the main drag I thought of two things. The sunshine seems so golden after all that blackness and I'm pregnant. That was Monday.