Mia's Big Entrance (Part 3)

This may get a little long since I don't want to spread out this story over a million posts.


In the afternoon on April 15, I started to have contractions about every 20 minutes or so. The nurses told us to let them know when they started to come 10 minutes apart. Well Ten left the hospital around 8 pm, and almost as soon as he did....they started to come 10 minutes apart. I informed the nurses....and this is where I started to get irritated...and these nurses are lucky they are still breathing right now. Every time I had a contraction, they would place their hand on my stomach...and they would just say...hmm I don't think it is a contraction. 


I just smiled and said okay, but then they were coming every 5 minutes. I also started puking my brains out...as well as having to use the portable toilet about every 5 minutes....umm talk about the highlight of my life. The nurses just came in and said well it must be false labor. They told me to please stay in bed and everything should settle down. I knew they were wrong, and  the pain was getting much worse. The nurses continued to look confused, and I was starting to wonder if indeed this was a maternity hospital. I let Ten know the situation via What's App, and he told the nurses to call him immediately. In typical Japanese fashion, they said okay and avoided the situation. In the meantime, one nurse came in (who couldn't speak English) with a big binder of translated Japanese to English questions. Now, she could ask the questions (kind of) but couldn't understand the answers....so this was going absolutely nowhere. Also, the questions were so pointless...Example: On a scale of one to ten...what is your pain level? And they asked this question repeatedly. 


They also still refused to call Ten....so he was beyond angry...as it was clear that he was much needed for translation duties. 


Eventually around 1 am, they decided to call the doctor. The doctor told them to double my medicine. Well after an hour, this was having almost no effect. It had only slowed the contractions down to 10 minutes apart or so. So, they busted out the heavy duty stuff. I was on a new medicine and at 4 times the standard amount. My hands were shaking violently and heart was racing....but they assured me that it was a normal side effect and I would survive the night...hahaha. The nurses also said that the evening wouldn't be a good time to have a baby since they were short staffed (think about that before choosing Aiiku)....hahaha. 


The next morning I met with MY doctor. Finally...I was so happy to see her. She did an exam and said that it was not false labor last night and if they hadn't of increased my medicine, then I would have had the baby right then. She said that she wanted to take me off of the meds immediately and get the baby out since the situation could become dangerous to the both of us. She was especially worried about a serious infection or the cord putting pressure on Mia's neck. She said that I could wait for my husband to arrive to decide, but I told her to go ahead and stop it.


Ten arrived around 9:30 am or so, and at about 10:00 I had gone into labor....AGAIN...yes, fun times really. I had not slept for almost 3 days at this point. I was also told by my doctor that I would be hooked to monitors during the entire delivery and would not be able to move through any of my contractions....so it was bound to be highly painful and uncomfortable. Everyone agreed that an epidural would be my best bet (epidurals are extremely uncommon in Japan, so it was a bit surprising that everyone was on board with this).


So, I got the epidural at 1:00. I was finally able to sleep for a little bit, and Ten and I listed to some Kesha and Lil Wayne....yeah the doctors and nurses probably thought we were nuts. We were also dancing....well Ten was...and I was just doing motions with my hands....Ten also started to complain that labor was kind of boring at this point....no more drama  now that the baby was on her way....haha. I was happy with boring though.


Finally, a new doctor came in. This was the doctor who would deliver the baby. Our hospital is a maternity hospital, so they work in shifts. My doctor was doing check ups that day but not delivering babies. We were okay with that, but this new doctor was terrible. She came in and didn't speak to us or even tell us her name. She just walked right in and proceeded to see how far along I was. I was pretty unhappy and so was Ten. She also talked about how they wouldn't give me any more pain meds because a natural childbirth would be safer. Now, this was the exact opposite of what my doctor had suggested...and let's just say that this did not go over well with Ten.


Ladies and gents this is where it got a bit dramatic again, he kicked the doctor out of the delivery room. He yelled at her...something about if she was making a cultural decision and not a medical one...then he didn't care and he wanted them to keep the pain meds flowing freely. Blah, blah, blah and a lot more angry Japanese and she left the room. Yet, this wasn't good enough...he was also sick of the incompetent nurses (yes, they were quite terrible to be honest)...and proceeded to kick all of the nurses out as well....This just left me and Ten...and I was wondering which one of us was going to have to catch the baby at this point.


Eventually, they decided to send in only the head nurse as well as our doctor (Dr. Kawana). Dr. Kawana was amazing, and we delivered Mia at 5:16 on April 16. She started crying immediately and weighed in at 4.9 pounds.


We didn't get to hold her though. The NICU team immediately rushed her away to do a 3 hour evaluation where she got her feeding tube inserted, checked her brain for bleeding, etc. After 3 hours, Ten was able to go to the NICU. I on the other hand was told that I had to lay in bed for 8 hours and could see Mia the next day. This didn't fly well with me, so I pretended not to understand and snuck out and went to the NICU as well. The nurses caught me after a few hours and tried to make me get in a wheel chair to go back to my room. I began to speak to Ten quickly in English in order to intimidate them into leaving me alone and letting me at least walk back to my room. I kind of feel guilty about that, but I mean....I had a baby...I didn't go through war. I felt fine.


As a side note...women in Japan are kind of pitiful after having a baby. They walk around the halls like they can barely move and stay in the hospital for 5 days. The nurses were shocked that I was walking normally the next day and asked to be discharged. Being discharged early caused a long argument....but eventually I was free of the hospital after a mere 8 days. 


The next post I will do...to end this giant recap...will be brief...some photos of Mia's time in the NICU and GCU.

Mia's Big Entrance (Part 2)

The first three days in the M/FICU were pretty uneventful but extremely stressful. I was on strict bed rest and couldn't even get up to take a shower or go to the bathroom. Instead they brought this little portable toilet next to my bed and I had to ring the nurses when it needed cleaning. Yeah...not my idea of a good time.


I had daily doctor check ups and was told that I was very lucky that the baby was already head down or I would have had to have a C-section immediately. She still had enough fluid to stay in longer, but I was monitored daily for contractions, her growth, fluid levels, etc. My image of bed rest and the reality were much different. I got to do very little resting really with all of the tests going on. 


We also had meetings with the head doctor of the NICU as well as the head nurse. The doctor was extremely pessimistic giving us all kinds of worse case scenarios and explaining how the baby would most likely be looking at a lengthy NICU stay....until her due date...so six weeks. As a doctor, maybe he had to say these things...but it did extremely little to ease our anxiety. He also told us that indeed 34 weeks is an arbitrary number and maybe Mia's lungs wouldn't be as developed as we would like. After that, we met with the head nurse of the NICU. This lady was like an angel...She explained that babies at this stage had few problems and could even go home around 36 weeks. She also brought in a big photo album with success stories of babies who were born at much earlier stages than ours. A complete 180 from the doctor. Nevertheless, we were both extremely stressed and not at all sure how things would play out when the time came. 


We also got to meet with doctors talking about risk of C-section, blood transfusions, infections, etc. The anesthesiologist also came in and talked about what indeed would happen if an emergency C-section was necessary, and she talked about pain medications available during labor. 


Overall, we were extremely busy for the first 3 or 4 days trying to get everything figured out. Ten and I were hoping at this point that I may be able to even last longer than the 34 week mark since I wasn't having any signs of going into labor. We were becoming a bit more optimistic about our chances and hoping a mind over matter approach would work for us. On April 16, I would be 34 weeks and we were going to meet with our doctor to decide what course of action we would take regarding the medicine that I was on to stop labor. However, on the afternoon of April 15, our decision was slowly but surely being made for us.


Note to anyone looking for an English speaking hospital to have a baby at in Japan: All of the information was presented to us in both English and in Japanese. The staff did their absolute best to communicate everything in both languages up to this point. However, there were several times when the conversation switched to pure Japanese since Ten is a Japanese speaker and the nurses assumed that my Japanese was good enough to at least follow the main points of the conversation. However, I am confident that Aiiku Hospital will do their absolute best to communicate everything in English if you have no understanding of Japanese and are not with a Japanese speaker....however, there are some major drawbacks to this hospital....which I will talk about in later posts.

Mia's Big Entrance (Part 1)

On April 11, Ten and I finally made our way over to the hospital to do a tour of the Labor and Delivery ward. We figured that it was about time to do it. We made our way over to the hospital (Aiiku Byoin) and joined the tour. 

We saw the delivery rooms, the rooms that you stay in, etc. Pretty boring overall, and they even showed us a special room. The room was right next to the nurses station and was for those with complications and immediate high risk deliveries/pregnancies. We kind of glanced at it and both made the comment that we probably wouldn't need it so no point really paying attention....bahahaha. Fast forward about  6 hours later.

Yes ladies and gentlemen...there are my legs....sitting in the Maternal/Fetal Intensive Care Unit.

When we got back from the hospital...we continued our day as normal...and then around 9 pm or so....I decided to go to bed. After about half an hour or so I got up to use the bathroom....and my water broke. I would say that we weren't panicked really...I told Ten that he should probably call the hospital and ask what we should do. Ten called them up and said that I was 33 weeks pregnant and that we had thought that my water had broke. Their reply was something along the lines about how that was too early...but to come in for a check up anyway and try not to move around too much. I told Ten that maybe I had just peed myself and was to ignorant to realize it....hahaha...or at least I hoped that was what happened.

We hopped into a taxi and made our way over to the hospital. I was diagnosed with PPROM (which only happens in less than 3% of pregnancies) and told that I would be hospitalized (in that special room) and on bed rest until the baby came. They pumped me full of meds that would stop contractions and said that we were going to try to at least make it to 34 weeks. However, the important thing was to make it a day longer...each day I didn't have the baby was a milestone. 

Ten headed back home for the night, and we began our 5 day journey in the Maternal/Fetal Intensive Care Unit.

Things I will Never Miss

We are now officially in our 31st week of pregnancy, and I would say time is neither flying by nor moving at a snail's pace. 


As I get closer to my due date, people often ask me if I am tired of being pregnant yet? My first reaction to that question is no, not really. I never had the terrible morning sickness, fatigue was offset by the fact that my extremely great husband allows me to stay home and not work, and I haven't gotten a huge pregnancy stomach...yet. Things are running fairly smoothly so far. However, if I think about that question a little bit more, I would say that there are several things that I am tired about when it comes to pregnancy. 


These things have nothing to do with the actual baby that I am carrying. The baby does very little to harass me during waking or sleeping hours in fact. Instead I will be happy not to be harassed by the endless questions and the heaps of advice that I receive from others. Sounds kind of terrible, but I think a lot of women might agree. 


Here are a few of the things that I indeed will be happy to say good bye to:


1. "How do you feel?" Every person on greeting me asks this question inevitably. Indeed I feel just the same as I did before pregnancy, so PLEASE STOP asking!! I have no idea how to answer this question. I feel fine...or should I make up a list of dramatic symptoms so we can have something to talk about?


2. "Are you able to do that?" Yes, yes I can. Now, there are certain things that I can't do like lift heavy weights at the gym, hop into a sauna (or do anything else that overheats me), or drink alcohol (not that I do anyway). However, almost everything else...yes...I can do it. Walking will in fact not kill me. I am capable of going to crowded places. I do not in fact need to be a hermit. Now as time goes on and I get more tired, I may choose not to go out for long periods of time....but this is my choice.


3. "Can you eat/drink that?" I ordered tea at lunch one day, and a friend about had a heart attack! Yes it had a tiny amount of caffeine in it, but well within the allowable limit. It shall be okay. I can indeed eat almost anything except for uncooked meats and unwashed vegetables and some cheeses. But I can eat 99.9% of normal foods!


4. "Are you craving that?" Every time I say I want to eat ABC or XYZ, I am  immediately asked..."oh is that a craving?" Umm, no! I'm hungry and that is what I feel like! It isn't pregnancy related. This is no different when you answer what you want to eat for dinner.


5. "How was your last doctor's appointment?" Ok, this one may be a bit cruel to be annoyed about....but it still does get under my skin. It went fine as far as you are concerned. If something really went wrong...would you actually want to know? Would you know how to react? I'm sure if there was something to tell...I would. Though I completely understand why people ask...it drives me nuts.


6. Your baby will look more Japanese/white. You have no idea, and neither do I. However, I definitely don't appreciate a discussion on our baby's race! Who cares which it looks like!! It will be a perfect blend of the two. I know Ten and I don't care "which she looks more like," so why do you? If I hear one more time about how our baby will have black hair/blue or dark eyes/pale skin, I will scream. 


7. You need to buy this/that now! You are just in denial that you are having a baby. What? Trust me there is no denial when you are kicked in the stomach so many times a day that you feel a bit of motion sickness. We are just really wise shoppers. We always have been. So, it shouldn't surprise you that we do a lot of research on things before purchasing them.


8. Parenting Advice with the comment "You'll see." I do not care that you believe in spanking your child. I do not care that you think breastfeeding for an extended amount of time is strange or plain inconvenient.  You think that babies should learn self soothing by crying a bit in the night? Great for you. When you ask about what we believe....we don't need the response "you'll see!" No, you will see that we have different beliefs and will try to do things differently. Your way is not the right way!


9. Labor/Birth Advice. Simply put...it is none of your business. I don't care if you highly recommend an epidural or wish that you had had one. You are not me! I think it is even worse when people speak negatively to you about the decisions that are you making. Why be a source of discouragement? Shouldn't we try to uplift people in their choices if they aren't doing anything wrong or hurting anyone. Also, I will punch you in the face if you talk about how I have no idea how painful labor is...and I just have no idea. Yes, indeed it is painful.....but your experience will not be mine. We can't even really  predict what each person's labor will be like, but we definitely shouldn't try to undermine their ideas or scare them!


I better stop here. The list may go on forever...I didn't even think I had this many...hahaha

Another one of these...

I really hate to do so many of these posts where I just bullet point everything and throw it together, but here goes another one. There are just too many things going on to make it into one cohesive post....and I'm too lazy to blog every day. So....here it goes:

• Biggest News of the Week: We are going to be having another little nephew or niece welcomed into the family at the end of this year. This is really exciting!! I can't wait to go home to visit in December so that we can all get together!!
• Biggest Stress at the Moment: This is nothing to be extremely stressed about, but this year I have to buy gifts for 3 of my cousins' baby showers along with the above mentioned nephew or niece. Plus our nephew's birthday is next month. Yikes this is a lot of gifts, but I know everyone else is in the same situation. I really don't mind it, but it is a lot to consider...plus we haven't bought anything for our baby yet...hahaha!!
• We came up on the one year anniversary of the earthquake/tsunami/nuclear disaster here in Japan. A lot of people have shared this video, but I will here again. It is well worth watching.

So many people were affected by the tsunami in one way or the other. In Tokyo we were so lucky, but it definitely wasn't the easiest of times.

• Also, I attended a meeting with the Tokyo Pregnancy Group to learn about some baby related things. Really nice ladies, and I highly recommend this group to those having babies in the Tokyo area!! There is also no pressure to join every meeting, so that is really nice.
• Finally, we have started to go to our bi-weekly checkups for the baby and will soon go on our hospital tour. Getting very close to the time where we can start really counting down.

Anyway, I think that I will leave it at that for now. I really hope to start actually writing regular posts again soon! I just get so caught up in the mornings with Skype chats and then before your know it I have to rush around our apartment cleaning it up so I can start dinner before Ten gets home...yes, I need a time management intervention...this I know.

Cleaning out the Old Noggin

• We had our Skype baby shower yesterday, and it went about as smoothly as I expected. Which wasn't smooth at all...haha. However, it was really nice and I'm looking forward to seeing the pictures of everyone from Hannibal.
• I found out about 2 minutes after my baby shower that my cousin is pregnant. 4 girls so far in my family and all due about two months apart. Very exciting! I wish her and her husband the best of luck in their pregnancy.
• I have a bit of a panic attack every time I receive a new baby gift. I may actually keel over and die once we start buying our stuff which we should probably do soon since we don't have that much more time. Anyway, Ten thinks my anxiety is kind of funny but weird...I don't blame him.
• I am really excited about sending out Thank You cards to everyone who attended or sent something...I love writing notes to people. Much more personal than Facebook Thank Yous and texts. It's really a shame that many people don't do this anymore....:(
• On a completely different note....I'm wondering if a bad attitude should be expected when dealing with the service industry in people from Western countries. I have so many examples but the most recent comes from my dear country of the U.S. Dear tax lady, I was just gently pointing out something you missed....no need to get defensive about it. Wow.
• Also, I'm really wondering what is going on with the weather here. It is raining all of the freaking time!! To make matters worse....we only have a few more months before rainy season starts...so really wondering if we are going to catch a break from this weather.
• As some of you may know, I am gaining a small obsession for....picnicking. hahaha. Yes, I don't know why but I want to be able to have beautiful picnics outside. I marvel at different picnic baskets online all the time. I can't wait for this weather to clear up to start this new little hobby. hahaha.
• Finally, I think I may venture into the world of ebooks. I love paper books so much, but I've been told that this is the way of the future....and I might as well not fall behind...sigh....

Baby at 25 weeks

Well last week we had yet another ultrasound for our 24 week check up. I must say that having an ultrasound at every appointment is really fun, and this is one reason I'm very glad to be having our baby in Japan.


This time Ten wasn't able to make it for the whole appointment which was really too bad.... :(  Anyway, the doctor started by checking for a heartbeat...and what do you know...she couldn't find it...again. However, I definitely wasn't freaking out since the baby had just given me a few good kicks to the stomach. Anyway, she quickly broke out the ultrasound equipment and there was the heart beating away somewhere between 140-150 (completely normal). The baby had moved into a head down position, so she was checking in the wrong place.


This appointment was probably one of the most exciting because I finally got to see a clear picture of our baby's face.

Well obviously it wasn't this one. This is such a terrible picture, and I doubt that it helps that my camera was on the wrong setting...haha. My doctor is definitely no photographer...hahaha....but that is really the least important thing.


I also asked her if our baby was still a girl. We checked again, and indeed she is looking more like a girl than ever....if you know what I mean... ;). So, I have no doubt in my mind that in fact she is a girl....hahaha. Also, she was weighing in at a bit over 1.5 pounds and her length is also normal for 24 weeks (even a little bit ahead)....whew always a relief.


Finally, I got to take the lovely glucose test. In Japan (or at my hospital), there are no flavor options. We get a choice between cold or not cold "cider"....hahaha...I chose not cold and downed it and then got the blood work taken a while later. Pretty easy overall.


Anyway, we are still thinking of names for our baby girl, and we are both hoping that we get something chosen soon! Two cultures/two languages and one name is indeed harder than it sounds...hahaha. 

Baby Surprises

So a few days ago, we got this lovely box in the mail.

When we opened it, here is what we found...

It was filled to the brim with baby stuff. How exciting.

We were so happy/surprised. My sister and mom really went all out buying baby things for us!

Sometimes I do get a bit uneasy about the fact that we don't have a very big support network here in Tokyo. Neither of our families are here, and we honestly only have a handful of people who we would call friends...and I've learned that most friends only want to help you in ways they see fit....if that makes sense. However, this was a sweet reminder that we aren't completely alone on this adventure.


So after getting a few gifts here and there, this has definitely started to make us get out there and do some of our own window shopping. Though I have promised myself we won't buy anything until after our baby shower in March... :).... 

P.S. Love these PJs

Out and About

So last Saturday we were B-U-S-Y (which may be the reason why I've been bedridden with a nasty bug).


Anywho, sometimes you do want to forget the fact that you are living in Japan (or abroad) and do things that are completely "Western." Sounds so weird to use that word.


Saturday kind of turned into one of those days for me. We woke up bright and early and got the housework out of the way and marched over to 7-11 (unshowered might I add, so I'm sure we were a sight). We there guarded the machine where you can buy tickets to different events for the next 20 minutes or so....The reason being that at exactly 11:00 tickets would go on sale for the opening game of the Mariners vs. the A's at Tokyo Dome...we don't particularly like these teams....but we do love baseball!! So...when the clock hit 11...we frantically started hitting buttons to get the tickets....we were so extremely lucky as we got two in the outfield!! When we paid for the tickets we decided to check what seats were left....nothing....we were smiling like idiots because it was like winning the lottery for us....haha.

After that we sold yet another book at Book Off and went to our dentist appointment (where upon arrival we discovered that our dentist had moved to Australia and sold her practice....new dentist was terrible...a heads up would have been nice!)


Anyway after terrible dentist appointment, we decided to go to Ikebukuro....where we ate a glorious meal at Burger King. I totally don't expect those of you living in the U.S. to get how exciting this is....haha.


















Finally we headed over to Babies R Us.







We were so happy to see tons more foreign products here compared to Akachan Honopo (a Japanese store we visited). I think Ten had the most fun there playing with toys and pushing around strollers. He is already such an involved dad... :)


Anyway, so it was like a day out back home (minus the fact that I couldn't read or communicate...haha), and we had such a good time!


P.S. I do believe I have fallen in love with this stroller. It is indeed a Japanese brand....but so much nicer and lighter than anything else we have seen...not in this color though.

Yoga Time

I am so happy to be up and moving around again. The ankle is definitely on the mend, so today I decided to start a regular exercise routine. Me and the husband used to be gym fanatics, but the past year has been so hectic so we didn't have the time to go....and no this isn't an excuse....hahaha. We absolutely love the gym!

Anyway I've always wanted to try yoga, and I'm told that this is one of the best exercises to do during pregnancy. Not only does it help keep you in shape, but it also helps prepare for labor and delivery. So, I ordered this DVD from the U.S., and I absolutely love it.

I always thought yoga would be too complicated to do without an instructor, but with this DVD that's not the case. I love all of the poses to increase balance and improve breathing. Really fun and doesn't feel like that much of a workout to be honest, especially when they remind you to smile while doing different poses...haha. Also, I'm glad that this video will be good for after the baby comes as well.... :)

There are so many pregnant gals in my family right now and tons of people that I went to school with are pregnant too. I'm really curious to know what kind of exercises everyone is using or has used during their pregnancies since this DVD probably won't be enough of a challenge.

Let me know here or on Facebook please!! :)

21 Week Update!!

I am still here everyone, but haven't felt like blogging much. Hopefully, I will get back in the groove of things. However, I did want to give an update on how things are going in the baby department.

Today, we have officially made it past the half way point at 21 weeks, and we are pleased to announce that we are having a baby GIRL!!

Here is the most recent pic of baby girl....

During the ultrasound, she was moving around like crazy. For the rest of the day, she was kicking me non-stop. I think that she may have been irritated at all the poking...hahaha. 

Anyway only 19 more weeks to go!! I have been assured that the second half will pass more quickly than the first, so we are looking forward to finally meeting the little one face to face in a few months.

16 Weeks

Yay, the three of us have made it to the 16th week and have started our regular prenatal checkups. Here is a rundown of how things are going.

Hospital Visit

Each hospital visit goes something like this:

• Check-in at the front desk. I give them my medical card, insurance card, and coupon for partial reimbursement (love these).
• Urine collection. I head to the bathroom and get to fill up a cup...well not fill it up...though Ten said that I should try to fill it to the brim....umm...I didn't...FYI.
• Blood Pressure and Weight: Ten and I head to the machines where we measure these ourselves. They spit out a little piece of paper with the numbers on them, and we give them to the midwife later....love not having to check my weight with a nurse watching...hahaha.

Finally, we see the doctor. This always includes an ultrasound...which is never boring...along with whatever tests are scheduled for that time period...overall, pretty easy.

Baby this Week (between 15-16 weeks)

• Baby is resting pretty high up there, so when they were using the Doppler to find the heartbeat, they couldn't find anything...oops ...they were looking a lot too low...and too far left...hahaha...but the position is really good and baby is fully attached.
• We got to hear the heartbeat for the first time, and it was clocking in at 150 bpm.
• Baby measures at 10.5 cm from head to waist.

Everything is as should be at this stage. Here is our most recent pic....

It was a abdominal ultrasound...so not the best image....but if you stare at it like a MagicEye poster long enough...then you may be able to make out a baby....hahaha

Me

All of my tests have come back fine as well. The doctor mentioned that I've gained a little bit more weight than they would like, but it isn't all that bad. Considering I haven't been able to exercise...I would wonder why they are surprised...hahaha. However, I did get a free ticket for a prenatal yoga class which I may test out.

Ten

Ten has been doing a great job!! He will be/is such a great dad. Here is what he has been up to:

• Ten was a superstar at our doctor's appointment. He had a whole list of really good questions. He asked, translated, and explained everything. 
• He took the time to read through almost all of the hospital info...and we have tons...and it keeps building with every visit.
• He filled out our date/appointment card. This card lists all the dates that correspond to the weeks and tests. A little bit tiresome to fill out...and hard to explain...so here is a photo....

• Let's see...he also started a spreadsheet with all of the baby stuff that we have to buy...we aren't buying anything now...but just so we will be ready when the time comes.
• Finally, he has been looking at the most ridiculously priced strollers, cribs, toys, etc. Why? Because his baby shall have the best stuff....I am hoping that this will wear off though because a lot of it is so unnecessary...hahaha....but it definitely shows how much he cares.

So, that is the rundown, and the last little piece is that we have made our birth appointment at Aiiku Hospital. It seems like their philosophy is similar to what we believe, so it is a great match!

Week 12

Today was our 12 week check-up...well we were actually a few days early because our doctor was all booked up for the next two weeks....but I'm glad that we were able to do it on a Saturday anyway. So here is our most recent snapshot...

A bit blurry, but you get the idea. The best part was watching the little one jump around in there like it was a bouncy house...hahaha. Also, she said that everything looks extremely good, and I have been cleared for exercise!! So happy. She said that usually she doesn't recommend it until 15 weeks, but since everything looks so good that I am good to go...though Ten is kind of demanding that I put it off for a few more weeks...haha. Even better is that I don't have to go back for a whole month. Yes, a whole month without being poked and prodded. Wonderful. Also, we will find out the sex of the baby on January 13....fun!!

Also, I have received a ton of information over the past few weeks...so here is a glance at that as well.

To keep on my bag so people will be nice to me and give me their seat on the train....has yet to work though.....

This little book will hold all of the information about my pregnancy and the baby's health for the next 7 years!!

Above and below are examples of the inside...this book is provided by the government I should add.

We also got some information on childbirth, creating a birth plan, and that kind of thing...

I thought that this was kind of cute...haha

Also, I should mention that we have decided not to go through with any of the genetic testing that we were given the option to do...just seems more stressful than anything.

Anyway, when we were heading back home Ten asked if I wanted to have lunch out to celebrate our most recent appointment....so we kind of went with one of the most unhealthiest meals possible...hahaha...but it was good.

Ten got the fried pork cutlet....he had so many refills on his rice and soup though....it made me sick just watching him eat...hahaha

Fried oysters, fried chicken stuffed with cheese, and a giant fried shrimp served with soup, pickles and rice...this was mine...

Ten serving us the shredded cabbage





There was a whole lot of napping going on after this.

Our Pregnancy Story...so far

Well, we are expecting...again. Obviously we have known for quite a while now but have kept it among immediate family (mostly) and close friends. So...here is the nitty gritty. 

Weeks 0-4

In August, we decided to get back on the baby making wagon. It had been about 4 months after our miscarriage, so we were cleared to go by the doctors at this point. Also, we had resettled ourselves after getting back from London.

In mid-September, we both kind of expected that I was pregnant, but not really sure...because I mean we hadn't been trying that long.

However, around September 19, 2011...we got this:

We were happy, but still really guarded...as you can imagine...:)

Weeks 5&6

At this point, we decided to hold off on our first doctor's appointment and wait until a heartbeat could be detected at 7 weeks....can't say that this was a very stress free time.

Week 7&8

So, we headed to Aiiku Hospital for our first appointment, and I was almost expecting the worst...and I'm pretty sure Ten was too. This was the point last time where we learned that things weren't progressing properly...and I then had to have a D&C. However, this is what we saw:

I think we were both holding our breath a little bit until the doctor zoomed in, and we saw the heartbeat...whew...sigh of relief...hahaha. 


Week 9 &10


At 9 weeks, I had to go back and get another ultrasound (they love to do those in Japan), and have blood work done. The baby looked much more baby like, and once again we saw that tiny heart beating.

 Also, now the doctor was pretty sure that the due date would be around May 28th.


Finally, at 10 weeks we decided to go ahead and make everything public. Last time it slipped out way before we were ready, so we wanted to have a bit more control of the situation. Also, we decided that our chances were looking better than last time...and anything can really happen at any time...that goes for before birth, after, and as adults...doesn't it....so, better not to be alone in this....and keeping secrets isn't all that fun.


Anyway, our next appointment will be in  about two weeks time. Hopefully all will continue to go well....:) Tomorrow, I'll post all of the things that I have received from the government office in Japan...quite different from America I am told...hahaha...and then I will be finished with baby blogging until our next appointment....I don't want to become one of those people...hahahaha

Hi World

Surprise!! ...we've got some explaining to do....check back tomorrow....:)