The Deiderich Family Blog

My First Blog

2010-03-07T12:14:00.002+09:00

Hello everyone! This is my first blog. Sorry I've been slacking, but I'm making up for it now. My name is Alexander, but everyone calls me Alex (except Mom; she calls me Bug). I just wanted to introduce myself. I am a super fun baby and so far pretty agreeable. I'm still working on sleeping through the night without waking up to eat. I just can't help it. Sometimes, it's 2am and I wake up and think, "Dang! I need some milk... NOW! I just cannot wait until 6am. No way!" So then I start wailing and Mom feeds me. But once I'm done I can go right back to sleep.

In general, I'm a very agreeable baby. I don't really like to be in a room by myself, but as long as I can see Mom or Jackson, I don't get too lonely. Today I've been playing a fun game with Mommy. It's called, "How many diapers can I use in one day?" This is how it works. I poop in my diaper, then immediately start crying. See, unlike my older brother who could care less, I HATE for my diaper to be dirty for even a second. So, Mom changes my diaper. Then I wait about 5 minutes and poop again. Mommy is a pretty smart cookie, so she doesn't change me right away. Instead she distracts me and waits 10 minutes to make sure I'm ALL the way done pooping. THEN she changes my diaper. Little does she know, I was tricking her! Yep, wait 2 minutes and poop again. See how fun?

Mommy is telling me that we're going to go on an airplane soon. But she's been saying that for weeks, so I don't know what HER definition of soon is. I can't wait to meet all of the family I keep hearing about. Jackson assures me that everyone is nice and I'll have a fun time. And Mommy says, "Please sleep on the plane!" We'll see what kind of mood I'm in when the time comes.

I've started a new habit of sucking on my fist. I can't quite figure out how to stick my thumb out, but I just suck on the side of my fist instead. I don't really like those green rubber things Mom keeps trying to give me very much. But every now and then I tolerate one.

Well, that about sums up my introduction. Look for my next blog some time in the future!

Life as a "single" Mom

2010-03-06T08:46:00.002+09:00

Mike is deployed. He volunteered to go since we knew he'd go in May if he didn't go now. I'd rather him be gone while Alex is still LITTLE little, instead of being 4 months older. So while we decided this would be better, I'm still missing him. He's been gone a month, and it definitely doesn't feel like that long, so maybe the next few months will go by quickly, too.

I'm planning a trip home while he's gone. We're having a little bit of a tough time getting on a flight, but that's how it goes when you're flying "Space A". I'll gladly deal with the hassle to save thousands of dollars on a commercial ticket. Hopefully we'll get on a flight soon.

The boys. Oh my, how they are growing. Alex is smiling and laughing (and I can't get enough of that!) Jackson is making strides in language and is using complete sentences most of the time, now. He's also learned how to open doors, which is a joy. Last night he woke up at 2 and wanted to come in my bed. I told him no and put him back in his. He cried a few times and I went back in and calmed him down. I fell asleep at 3 (after nursing Alex) thinking Alex was fed, happy and back asleep and Jackson was asleep in his bed. I woke up at 5 and Jackson was in my bed with me. I'm not sure if I agreed to that or not. I definitely didn't do it consciously.

My life is full of little stories like that. It is definitely difficult being the only parent. We stay busy, so that helps, but there are some times where I just really could use a little break. An hour to go to the commissary by myself. I do have great friends and support here, but it's not the same as having Mike. Part of me really REALLY misses him. And part of me just ignores that and focuses on our routine. One day at a time. But I knew what I signed up for when I married him. This is part of being a military spouse, and even with the deployments, I absolutely love that "job"!

I'll be glad when we're back in the states and I can stop worrying about how we're going to get there. Until then, keep your fingers crossed for us!

Tokyo Disneyland

2010-01-28T21:50:00.001+09:00

Mike decided on Tuesday that if he could get off work on Thursday we should go to Disney. He found out on Wednesday that he would indeed be off work, so we planned to leave early-ish on Thursday for Tokyo.

The weather
The forecast online said overcast in the morning, 20% chance of rain in the afternoon. But the high was supposed to be 56. We decided to just chance it. We figured Jackson wouldn't make it much past 2 or 3 without a nap and he refuses to nap in his stroller, so there was very minimal chance of a nap. So even if it did rain in the afternoon, we wouldn't be out much. We got out of the car when we got there and it was SO windy and pretty chilly. We all had on sweatshirts but everyone around us had on winter coats. I was concerned. But we weren't that cold, and I managed to make a blockade out of my wrap around Alex's canopies, so he wasn't getting any wind. It rained around 1, and we ate lunch. By the time we were done eating, it was done raining. Score!

The drive
We didn't get to the Yujo for a map the night before in time before they closed. But no big deal, they're supposed to open at 8 according to the website and we were planning on leaving at 8. I printed a smaller version off of the website just in case. We got to the Yujo to find out they don't actually open until 10. Bummer. Mike was skeptical but I thought we could do it with the small map. There was one minor hiccup in my navigating at the very beginning, but I managed to convince him to just try it. We didn't get lost AT ALL after that. We had a little trouble finding our way OUT of the park, but after about 10 minutes I figured it out and we were on our way. It took about an hour and a half to get there, and about an hour 10 to get home. That is AWESOME time since it is supposed to take around 2 hours.

The characters
When we got into the park, there were some characters right at the entrance. Jackson was pretty unsure at first, but eventually went up to them (with some coaxing from Mike). Later in the day we saw the three little pigs. He was pretty interested in them, but still a little timid. Then as we were walking away, the big bad wolf came up to us. Mike was holding Jackson and Jackson was pretty scared. He acted like he was eating Mike and Jackson (which we do ALL the time at home and Jackson thinks is hilarious). Not so much a fan of that. Then he "licked" me, and Jackson was not impressed by that at all either. Pretty much a failure since he was so scary. But the other ones were pretty cool.

The rides
Some rides were closed, some Jackson was too little for, and some had too long of a wait. The ones we missed out on:
Alice's Tea Party (Mike just didn't want to do it)
Beaver Brothers Explorer Canoes
Big Thunder Mountain
Chip 'N Dale's Treehouse
Donald's Boat
Gadget's Go Coaster
Goofy's Bounce House
Grand Circuit Raceway
Haunted Mansion
Mark Twain Riverboat
MicroAdventure
Omnibus
Pirates of the Caribbean
Space Mountain
Splash Mountain
StarJets
Star Tours
Swiss Family Treehouse
Tom Sawyer Island Rafts
Westerland Shootin' Gallery
Western River Railroad

Wow, I didn't realize how much we missed. We'll definitely have to go back!

We got to do something called Alternate Ride. Basically since there were a lot of things Alex couldn't ride, Mike and Jackson would ride first, then Jackson and I would go to the front of the line and ride again. He got kind of spoiled getting to ride everything twice, but whatever. Of course explaining to the ride attendants at the beginning what we were trying to do was pretty difficult. After a few rides we figured out there were tickets they were supposed to fill out at the beginning of the line. That made it easier so Alex and I didn't have to stand in line with them. Then when they came out the exit, Jackson and I would just go back in through the exit and give them the ticket. It worked out pretty well. Every ride was a new ordeal with having to explain to them what we wanted, but by the second or third ride we had a good system down by pointing to Mike and Jackson, then making a circling motion for "ride", then pointing to me and Jackson, and repeating the circling motion. Then saying, "Change." They all figured it out eventually!

The ones we got to do:
Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters. My favorite ride by far. There were guns in your car that you used to shoot these Z things throughout the ride and you got a score. You also had a joystick to rotate your car around. This was one Alex could ride, so I got to shoot one handed, but didn't have another hand to turn my car with. I got 5,500 points. Mike got 35,000. Jackson got 4,500 I think.
Castle Carousel. Jackson said, "Ride horses. Horses go up and down." I think he rode it 4 times total.
Dumbo the Flying Elephant. Oh geez. The elephants. It was the first thing we rode. And he ended up riding it 4 or 5 times by the end of the day. Even at 2 when we'd been there for 6 hours, he'd get off a ride and say, "Go ride more elephants?" We had to go back to that corner of the park so we could ride them again in the afternoon.
The Enchanted Tiki Room. Bo-ring. All the shows were in Japanese. Alex started screaming in this one so I had to feed him. But my nursing cover was in the diaper bag, in the stroller, outside the theater. Oh well, I improvised.
It's A Small World. Actually a pretty good ride. Long-ish, but still okay. And one Alex could ride.
Jungle Cruise. So-so. One thing that is the same worldwide (apparently) is that the cruises like that involve lots of corny jokes and silliness. And it was again, in Japanese. There was one part that was kind of interesting though. There were hyenas, zebras, monkeys, lions, etc. all throughout the ride. The lion display was three females and one male. But they were standing over a dead zebra. A bit intense for little kids if you ask me.
Mickey's House and Meet Mickey. Of course Mickey can't just walk around the park like the other characters or he'd be getting accosted everywhere he went. So they have a specific place where you go through Mickey's house and at the end is the line to wait to meet Mickey. We skipped it earlier in the day but decided to suck it up and wait the 20 minutes later because Jackson had been pretty excited about seeing him. At the end of the line you're in a theater where they show old Mickey cartoons (in Japanese of course). Then they let you in the room with Mickey 6 or 7 at a time. One thing that surprised us was the pictures. They sell pictures of you with Mickey in a little cardboard frame. Since they sell them we figured no way were they going to let us take pictures with our camera. But not only did they let us, they did it for us. We got a pretty good one of the four of us with Mickey.
Minnie's House. Ah. Whatever. You just walked through Minnie's house. Would've been interesting to a 5+ girl, but not a 2 year old boy.
Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek! Pretty good. You got flashlights in your car that shown different characters. Jackson really liked the lights.
Peter Pan's Flight. Kinda scary. Lots of darkness, but a pretty cool ride overall.
Pinocchio's Daring Journey. Again, a little intense. But still interesting. Jackson was freaked out by the whale and scooted closer and held my hand for pretty much the last half of the ride.
Pooh's Hunny Hunt. AWESOME. There weren't tracks. I guess magnets? Your car spun and moved on the floor to show you different parts of the ride. There were black lights, and mirrors, and a spot where they showed you film of tigger and your car bounced. We got fastpass for this one, so we didn't wait very long at all.
Roger Rabit's Car Toon Spin. Another one where you had some control over your car. Just a wheel in the middle that you could use to turn your car to face different directions. Or spin around and around and around like the tea cups. It was very cartoon-y and not scary for once.
Snow White's Adventures. Holy crap. TOO SCARY. It was the first indoor ride we did (right after the elephants and the horses). After Mike rode it, he was going to tell me that once was enough, but Jackson said he wanted to go again. After I got done riding it with him, Mike and I talked about how it was probably going to give him nightmares. I had nightmares after seeing the movie, and this was way scarier than that for sure.
"Super Duper Jumpin' Time". It was a show, the first one we watched. It was alright. It probably was awesome for the people who could understand what they were saying. They had an area for the kids to sit on the ground up front, then benches for the parents around the edges. Jackson was back and forth 10 times between sitting with the kids and sitting with us. And when he was up with the kids, they'd all stand up and he'd stand up with them. But when they sat down, he still stood and jumped around. Of course he couldn't understand any of the instructions, but it was kinda cute.

Other stuff
We figured we'd get to the park at 10 when they opened. Despite leaving later than we thought and taking the wrong route once, we still got there at 9:45. We got our tickets and were in line before the park opened. We also thought we'd leave no later than 3. We thought that would be about when Jackson hit the wall. We left at 7 when they closed. He just kept going and going and going. He's usually in bed at 6. So not only was he up WAY later than usual, he did it without a nap. And a great attitude. No tantrums, no meltdowns. One minor incident of not listening that required a time out at dinner. But at that point, I would've expected a lot worse! I was so proud of how well he behaved. And I told him so frequently throughout the day.

We decided he could have one souvenir for the day. So the very last thing we did before we left the park was to go into the Toy store and let him pick one out. Which was a process. Do you like Pooh better, or Mickey? Pooh or Tigger? Tigger or Minnie? etc. etc. etc. He ended up with Eeyore. Seriously? What weird kid picks EEYORE? Not Pooh, Tigger, Mickey.... Eeyore. Whatever. He held it the whole way home and slept with it last night.

Overall it was one of the best times I've had. Amusement parks are so much more fun with kids. It was so fun to see how Jackson would react to everything. And how excited he got over seeing characters and the fun he had on the rides.

Quick update since it's been a month.

2009-12-23T12:38:00.004+09:00

The other day on the phone Char asked me if we switched sites for the blog since they hadn't gotten an email telling them there was a new post in a while. Um, nope. Just haven't done a post in a while. Oops. But I'm on it now!

First, pictures. I'm putting some pictures and videos on Facebook. But our new site where I'm loading everything is shutterfly. They have free unlimited pictures and up to 10 videos. I'll just delete the oldest video when I'm ready to put the next one up. Here's the address: http://deiderichs.shutterfly.com/ There's also an option to put journal entries on that page so if I end up really liking it, I may stop using this one so everything's in one place. You can also order pictures straight off their site to be delivered or picked up at Target and they're pretty inexpensive.

So what all has happened in the last month? It doesn't feel like it's been that long since Alex was born. Seems like just last week we were coming home from the hospital. On the other hand, it seems like we've been a family of 4 forever. I went to the commissary alone today and it felt very weird to not be holding a hand, pushing a stroller, or wearing a baby in a wrap. And I made it in and out in record time.

Alex is now holding his head up and making good use of his tummy time mat. Jackson HATED it and we would have to just deal with the fact he was going to fuss when we put him down there and just try not to let him get TOO upset. Alex doesn't mind it at all. He hangs out and does some good work for 10-15 minutes before he starts fussing. That's pretty much been the pattern for everything though. Alex is much easier going than Jackson was and I didn't think that was possible. He does spit up (okay throws up) a lot, but that should die down the bigger he gets. But it does mean lots of extra laundry in the mean time. One thing they have in common is not liking bubbles in their tummies. Jackson was impossible to burp. Alex burps a little easier, but it's gotten harder over the last week or so. And he is pretty unhappy if I don't get all the air out. He sleeps in his bouncy seat so he's on an incline.

Jackson got re-tested for speech therapy and tested out of the program. We're still in contact with the speech therapist so she can keep an eye on a few areas. If anything doesn't improve like it should by the time he's 2 1/2 or if something gets worse, we can go back to regular therapy sessions. But for now he's in the clear and tested at or above normal in all but one area and he was within the normal range for that.

Jackson is also learning new things at an incredible rate. He's counting to 7 now with a little help, and starting to learn his ABCs. It seems like every day he shocks me with something he knows that I didn't expect him to. Today I came home with a cheese slicer from the BX. He saw me taking it out of the packaging and said, "Want some cheese please." We've never had a cheese slicer before so I have no idea how he knew what it was. Especially since when I asked Mike, he had no clue what it was for.

He's also growing almost visibly. He can now push the down button on the elevator (and loves to have the privilege of doing so for us). And the other day he was supposed to be napping but was messing around in his room instead and Mike and I were in the living room. All of a sudden he appears out of nowhere and says, "No nap." We were both too stunned to tell him no so we just let him stay up. There hasn't been a repeat performance yet but it won't be long at all before he's opening doors all over. And Mike taught him how to open the fridge so he gets his own milk out now, too. My baby is definitely a little boy now!

Mike has been staying busy studying for his test for the next rank (Master Sergeant). And also training for the Frostbite Half-Marathon next month. He's had to take some unexpected breaks for injuries and illnesses, plus he took a week off when Alex was born. Hopefully he'll be ready in time. Jackson loves riding in the jogging stroller for Mike's long runs. The distance doesn't matter; he always has fun. Except the last time. It was a 10-mile run, which wouldn't have been a problem, except it was pretty cold out. Despite 3 layers, extra warm socks, mittens, and a hat, Jackson got REALLY cold. He did NOT like that! So he'll have to stick to shorter runs only until it warms up outside.

I've been busy but with nothing to really show for it. I try to stay on top of the housework and have done a decent job the last few weeks. But that's only because Mike's been helping me. It surprised me a little how big of an adjustment it was for me to go from one baby to two. I'll probably be able to get more accomplished once Alex isn't nursing every 3-4 hours anymore. But that ties up a lot of my day at the moment. It is pretty helpful that Mike is on swing shift (second) and works 3pm-11pm. I can get stuff done during the day and he's here to help me with the boys. I got sucked into the Twilight series so I did lose a week there where all I did was read and I totally ignored any housework that wasn't 100% necessary.

I got my stent taken out yesterday at a hospital off base. The doctor was nice (I think) and I was definitely glad to have a translator. They do things much differently at Japanese hospitals than they do in the states. It was kind of interesting to see their processes here though. And I'm VERY glad to be stent-free and completely finished with the whole thing. The CT I had done at the beginning of the month showed a few small stones, but those were on my right side and my stent was on the left. They were small enough to pass so they may actually be gone already. I likely wouldn't notice them passing except for maybe some minor pain.

In other health care news, Jackson had to go to urgent care last week. When I put him down for his nap I had Alex in one arm, and used the other hand to put Jackson in his bed. I picked him up by his hand and dislocated his elbow in the process. He'd been sick and whiny and fussy so I didn't know I'd done anything to him since he didn't seem any fussier than he'd been the last few days. He took a nap (!) and when he woke up he wouldn't use his left arm. A few tests (give me five, raise your arms over your head) and we knew something wasn't right. So we took him in and after some x-rays the ER doc determined it was nursemaid's elbow and just needed popped back into place. After a few tries, he couldn't get it in so he called in the orthopedist who got it. I'm just glad the room was small and there was only enough space for one parent. It meant Alex and I had to wait in the waiting room and I didn't have to witness Jackson's pain. Once they got it back in he was totally fine immediately and was using it again no problem.

The same time Jackson was in the UC, Alex had an appointment with the audiologist. He failed his hearing test in his left ear while he was still in the hospital, so they had us come back to repeat it. He failed again, so we have another appointment in January. If he fails AGAIN using the same method, they'll try a different method where they hook up electrodes to his head to see if there's any brain wave activity when they play the sounds. They think it could just be fluid in his ear causing him to fail up to this point. So we'll see.

Whew. I guess that's it! I'll try to not go as long between updates, but it is hard for me to remember and find the time. =)

Alexander John Deiderich--he's here!

2009-11-22T22:05:00.002+09:00

Yep, Alex has finally made his appearance.

Here's the short story. He arrived on Friday November 20th at 6:24 pm. I was 37 weeks, 5 days pregnant which made him 16 days early, and 11 days before his scheduled c-section. He weighed in at 7 pounds, 6 ounces (which is pretty big for his gestational age despite being very average for a full-term baby), and was 19 1/4" long with a 13 3/8" head. Aunt Sheila pointed out that at 6:24 pm Japan time, it was 4:24 am Ohio time, and Jackson was born at 4:24 pm. I think that's pretty cool!

So here's the whole story. I woke up at 0530 having contractions. They lasted until 0700 when I got out of bed, but they weren't regular. They got as close together as 4 minutes, but some where as far apart as 10 minutes. I was going to call the clinic when I got up, but then they stopped, so I didn't bother. They started up again around 0930, but were still pretty far apart and died out at around 1015. Then more contractions around 1045, and at 1110 I decided maybe I'd better pay close attention to how far apart they were. I timed them for 2 hours (which included a 10 minute walk to a restaurant for lunch, eating, then walking home). They were still inconsistent, but I called L&D anyways. I was told pretty much what I expected. "Wait until they're at regular intervals to come in." By 1415, they'd all been 4-5 minutes, so I knew it was time to get ready to go. I called Mike's work and told them to send him home. I was a little embarrassed since we'd just had a false alarm the day before and I didn't want them to think I was just trying to get him out of work. There was an exercise going on where they practice what to do if the base gets attacked, so I was getting him out of more than just normal work. I didn't want to be the wife who cried labor! Than at 1430 I called L&D and told them my contractions were 5 min apart for an hour and they told me they'd get a room ready for me. Then I finished packing my hospital bag and Jackson's bag for the sitter's house.

Mike got home from work around 1515, and while he was showering and changing, I walked Jackson over to Trysta's and dropped off him, his stuff, and Mike's keys (so she'd have a car with a carseat in it). We left for the hospital around 1530 and after driving through Burger King for Mike (who hadn't eaten basically all day), got to the hospital at 1545. They hooked me up to the monitor to watch Alex's heart rate and my contractions, and after 20 minutes, the doctor came and checked me. She said, "Yep, you're progressing, so we're going to go ahead and do it today." It wouldn't have been enough to admit me if we were planning a normal birth, but it was obvious I was in labor so there was no reason to not go ahead with the c-section. We were trying to avoid full on labor. That was at 1616.

Then everything started happening pretty quickly. Mike went back to the car to get my bag and pillow (which I didn't want to bring in the first time in case they sent me home) and the nurses and techs started getting me prepped for surgery. Hep lock in, catheter in, bed moved from non-stress test check-in room to LDRP (labor, delivery, recovery, and postpartum) room, forms filled out and signed, jewelry off, etc. Then we got the talk from the anesthesiologist about risks of a spinal, what to expect, blah blah blah. Around 1800 they wheeled me to the O.R. and did my spinal. The dr. checked me then and I was 5cm dilated.

******Side note. Getting to 5cm with Alex was a totally different experience than getting to 5cm with Jackson. With Jackson I was on pitocin and thought I was going to die every time I had a contraction. With Alex I was still talking through my contractions and while they did hurt, I wouldn't have been asking for drugs yet if it'd been a regular delivery. In fact, I might've still been laboring at home. Major difference for sure!!!**********

Then they brought Mike back all dressed in scrubs and started cutting. They had to use the vacuum to guide Alex's head out the small incision they made. Other than that, it was pretty uneventful. I did have to be given Zofran at one point (anti-nausea med) but that was totally minor. Alex came out screaming bloody murder. And kept screaming the whole time he was in the OR. They cleaned him up and then took him and Mike back to the room while they finished sewing me up. His Apgar scores were 9 and 9, and they said they pretty much never give anyone a 10. And at first I thought he looked like my baby pictures, but I've recinded that thought. He looks like Jackson. Other than the full head of hair that Alex has vs. the NO hair until he was 1 1/2 that Jackson had, they could be twins.

I was back in the room by 1855 and Alex was still screaming. Well, actually Mike had gotten him calmed down from screaming and wailing to just crying really loudly. Once the nurses did what they had to do with me (about 5 minutes), Mike gave me Alex and I started nursing him. Then he was happy. He nursed easily right away and had a normal feeding session (20 min on each side). Then he was zonked. Guess it was pretty tiring for him. I tried to wake him up at 9 and 10 to feed him, but he wanted no part of that. He finally ate again around midnight.

Trysta brought Jackson to visit and he stayed for about 30 minutes before Mike took him home and put him to bed. He wasn't quite sure what to think, and I don't think he understands that the Baby Alex that was in Mommy's belly is the same Baby Alex that is in the bassinet. But I'm sure he'll figure it out.

Jackson visited all morning on Saturday and left at nap time. He spent some time getting in Alex's face or cuddling with me while I held him, but still kind of standoffish. Plus we had lots of other visitors, too. Also on Saturday when we were sure all of the anesthesia was completely worn off, I could safely say I can no longer feel my stent at all, which is pretty good news. (Still no definite plans on when that is coming out but I could care less now that it isn't making me miserable.)

We got discharged on Sunday afternoon. Alex has a little jaundice so we have to take him back to get labs drawn on Monday, but the doctor expects him to be fine. Of course there's the birth certificate, passport, social security card, etc. paperwork to do, too. We're very happy to be home, and everyone is perfectly healthy. I'm in a little more pain than I remember with Jackson, but I'm taking it easy. It's nothing unbearable, and I'm much happier now than I was 3 days ago. I'd rather be in pain that I can manage with Motrin and a little Percocet than have constant misery from the stent!

I know everyone is anxious for pictures, and I posted them on Facebook here. You should be able to see them with that link even if you don't have Facebook. And it's bedtime now (way past it probably!). I'm sure there will be lots of pictures to come, so keep an eye out for them.

Jackson Video

2009-11-15T19:30:00.003+09:00

Video of Daddy making Jackson dizzy. He LOVES it!

Alex Update

2009-11-14T15:47:00.002+09:00

I had an appointment on Thursday with the OB. I'm 2cm dilated and 50% effaced, so it really could be any day. I'm having contractions and cramping that seem to be getting progressively worse. Nothing to send me to labor & delivery yet, but I have a feeling it's not far off. With Jackson I was 2cm & 50% on Tuesday afternoon and I went into full blown labor on Wednesday night. Although I didn't get a repeat performance with Alex, I'm sure his arrival is pending in the very near future. Well, hoping anyways.

Jackson's MRSA is back so he's been on antibiotics for that. They went ahead and tested me since there are precautions the nurses and doctors will have to take when I go for appointments if I'm positive. Also I'll be the second c-section of the day instead of the first if I'm still positive then. I'll find out results of the culture on Monday probably.

I've been sick with a cough and sore throat for a week, but I think I'm on the mend. No fever or other symptoms, which is good. Just an annoyance.

We had pictures taken today. I wanted to get them done ASAP while I'm still pregnant... because I'm hoping to not be pregnant much longer. =) I was going to upload them to picasa but you can only do them 5 at a time there and there are 53 total so that was going to take forever. They're on Facebook now (since I can bulk upload them there) and also photobucket (although I am seriously close to running out of space on there). If anyone wants any printed, let me know. The place we had them taken charges $20/sheet.

Parties, Halloween, and everything in between.

2009-10-31T20:25:00.009+09:00

So where to start?! It's been a while since I've updated. As usual, things have been hectic around here, but I finally have time to get on it.

In the last post I mentioned our plans for Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disneysea if the OB okay'd it. Monday morning (at 4am) I woke up feeling like I might have a UTI. With a ureteral stent in place running from my bladder to my kidney, a UTI can turn into a kidney infection in 12 hours, so it's not something to ignore. So I headed to the FCU right away. They did cultures and whatnot and found out there was no infection. They also monitored me for contractions and Alex's heart rate just as standard procedure. (As usual, his heart rate was fine and I had a few contractions but nothing major). The OB came in and talked to Mike and I (the nurse told me the dr. wanted Mike there for the conversation) for a while. She explained what restrictions I should adhere to (things I should've been told before leaving Tripler but wasn't). Basically nothing. I was seriously restricted (no driving, or baths) for 2 weeks, then just less restrictions (no lifting >20lb) for 4 weeks. The rest of the restrictions are for the duration of my pregnancy (no running, jarring exercises, sex, etc.) to avoid possibly jarring my stent out of place. That would be REALLY bad and would probably involve me going back to Tripler and staying until the baby is born. After that lecture, it was clear that any Disney-ing was out. So we spent Mike's 2 weeks of free leave sitting around the house. I felt bad that we couldn't do anything fun because of me, but there wasn't anything I could do about it.

Meanwhile the stent is absolute misery. I'm not sure what happened since it felt okay the few days I was in HI after the procedure. But for the past few weeks it's been horrible. Bad enough that I was planning on refusing to let them put another one in when it was time to change this one out. The urologist at Tripler said I would need this stent changed out 4-6 weeks after having it placed. The OB here (who is coordinating my care) decided no Japanese dr. will touch me being pregnant (based on experience at the very beginning of this ordeal), so it would be easier to send me to the urologist at Okinawa. That would involve a flight there and one back. Even though they're short, I'm REALLY pregnant to be flying. It would mean me flying home a few days before hitting 36 weeks when the risk of delivering on a plane skyrockets. The urologist at Okinawa decided I'm better off leaving the stent in since the only reason to change it was to avoid the small risk of it getting encrusted. The OB agreed with her and when the urologist at Tripler found out how far along I'd be for the flight home, he agreed too. Everyone was happy with that decision except me. I want this thing OUT!!! The part that coils in my bladder causes constant spasms, so I always feel like I have to pee. And when I do pee it's very painful. I'm not really comfortable leaving the house because I get very little warning when it comes to my bladder and I'm afraid I'll be in the middle of the commissary and pee my pants. So far it hasn't happened. =) The OB did give me some meds to help, and they do help a little. But I won't be sorry to see this thing go. Also, there's a chance that there's a big stone left that didn't show up on x-rays or ultrasounds. My first one didn't show up on any imaging until they did an MRI (which we can't do here), and the only way they knew I had an obstructing stone was that they could see via ultrasound there wasn't urine flowing into my bladder. If I got another stone right now, they'd have to send me back to Tripler to have the baby (probably with an OB on the plane since it's a 9 hour flight and I could have the baby on the way there). So I guess I agree that it needs to stay in for safety reasons although that doesn't make me any more comfortable in the mean time.

The final decision was that the stent stays in until 4 weeks after Alex is born. They want me to recover from the c-section before doing another procedure. They're looking into sending me to a Japanese dr. so I don't have to fly anywhere but no one is hopeful that we'll find one willing to take my case. The OB doesn't see what the big deal is for me to spend 3 or 4 days flying to Okinawa to get it taken out there and coming home, so she's not exactly pushing for me to be able to go off base. I'm not real thrilled about flying with a 4-week old with an immature immune system. Not to mention I'll have to find someone to go with me to watch him while I'm having procedures done. So we'll see when the time comes.

My c-section is scheduled for December 1st, but I'm really hoping Alex decides he's ready to come before then. Having him on the 1st means waiting until after the holidays to get my stent out. Having him a week earlier means I'd be home by Christmas stent-free. I pick that. Unfortunately, it's pretty difficult to convince a baby to come when I want him to instead of when HE wants to.

Then on the Thursday before the parties, I fell. We were coming out of the Taiyo rec center where we had lunch, and I missed the two little steps from the door. I just forgot they were there and didn't see them. But I landed flat on my front. My face took the brunt of the impact, and some was dispersed to my hands and knees (my reaction time was super slow so I didn't really catch myself like I should have) and my belly hit, too. Everyone FREAKED out!! I kept saying, "I just fell!" but no one would listen. They called 9-1-1, and I got super special treatment. 2 Firetrucks, 2 ambulances, 3 police cars (can we say OVERKILL?!). Then they put me in a c-collar and on a backboard, loaded me in the ambulance and sirened me across base to the hospital. They cleared me "spinally" in the ER and sent me upstairs, where once again, they hooked me up to contraction and fetal heart rate monitors. Alex's heart rate was fine, but I had a LOT of contractions in the first 4 hours so they decided to keep me overnight. They said it was just uterine irritability from being jarred in the fall, which makes sense. They wanted to make sure I didn't have a placental abruption or bruising on my belly. I didn't and I went home the next afternoon.

Yes, seriously, I have the worst luck. Poor Alex has been through more already than most kids go through before they're 5 and he isn't even born yet!!! Luckily, he's been pretty unaffected by everything. Unfortunately I foresee that making him difficult to reward or punish since he doesn't really seem to care. =)

So there's the medical update. Now on to the fun stuff!

Jackson after playing in the dirt.

Jackson had his 2-year checkup and the doctor was very nice. He's in the 25th percentile for height and weight, which is pretty much where he's hung out all his life. So he's growing fine. Developmentally she had a few concerns, but all of them were communication concerns which are already being addressed in speech therapy. Some of the behavioral things I mentioned caused her to pause a little. Not really concerned but she wants to see him again in 3-6 months instead of waiting for a year. He's doing some strange things that are probably due to the 5 million changes going on in the house right now with moving, and Mike coming home, my medical stuff, etc. And it's not going to get any better until well after Alex is born. So we'll see but no one is really actually concerned at this point, just trying to be proactive to make sure if there is something wrong we catch it really early.

Then there was the party. Oh the party! I fell on Thursday, got out of the hospital Friday and the party was Sunday. I had a very busy Saturday night! Mike made a huge difference and helped me frost cupcakes, washed dishes that I needed to re-use and pretty much anything else I asked him to do. I ended up with 4 dozen cupcakes and 18 chocolate cornflake cupcakes. Okay, so the chocolate cornflake cupcakes didn't turn out that great. The problem was I ignored my Brittish friend who told me "just melt some chocolate and put in cornflakes until they're all coated but not too soupy." Instead, I found a recipe online. MISTAKE. Oh well, I'll know for next time. Plus I also made 18 (so 36) deviled eggs, and cut up veggies and fruit for a veggie tray and fruit salad. It all took about 3 1/2 hours to do.

The morning of the parties, Jackson got his trampoline when he woke up. He absolutely loves it and I love having a place to tell him he can go jump so there's no more jumping on the couch or bed.

The shower went well. There were 9 people including me and it was very low key. Sat around and talked for a while, had some snacks and cake, then opened presents. Alex got lots of cute outfits!

Jackson's party was a huge hit with the kids. Everyone loved the bouncy castle. And I had traced and cut out pumpkins on orange construction paper. They decorated them with stickers and crayons then "laminated them" in contact paper. Jackson knew how to blow out his candle, which was adorable. We'd been telling him that it was his birthday since that was the day he got presents. He'd talked to family that morning and everyone sang Happy Birthday to him on the phone. When they finished he said, "More sing" and O'Sheila made them all sing again. He tried the same trick at his party, but it didn't work that time!

He got so many presents that we had to save the ones from family for the next day. By the time we got the room cleaned up and got home it was time for Jackson to go to bed, and I couldn't move off the couch. So the next day he got to open presents from family. He got started and then both camera batteries died. Then while we were waiting for them to charge, he got tired and had to take a nap. After he woke up from his nap we finished those presents. And we still hadn't given him his bike. He didn't get that until the NEXT day.

So he opened presents for 3 days. RIDICULOUS! I'm concerned about how Christmas will go....

Weekly Update 10/11/09 and End to Jenni's Adventure

2009-10-10T12:41:00.012+09:00

These pictures and videos are from an earlier blog post, but I just now had access to be able to upload them onto the computer.

The end of Jenni's Big Adventure:
DAY 10--Tuesday 10/6/09
I got up early and headed back to the hospital for one last visit with the urologist. Some paperwork to fill out and last minute discussions for arrangements in Japan. Then I stopped by OB to get my records from the ultrasound they did. One last stop to visit the Air Force liaison and she had flight info for me. I got everything I needed from her, then headed back to the hotel. I was NOT sorry to be leaving Tripler (for hopefully the last time!)

I'd e-mailed my cousin Chris before I left for the hospital that morning asking if he had any contacts in Hawaii that might be able to give me a good idea of what things were IMPORTANT that I see since I only had a very short time on the island. Within an hour he had lined up someone with the afternoon off who was willing to take me around and show me everything I wanted to see. Since I hadn't done any research, I had no idea what I wanted to see, so he just showed me things he thought would be important. He picked me up at the hotel around 1 and after some lunch and a vehicle switch, we headed out.

Our first stop was a rare look at the USS Arizona Memorial. Where my hotel was and where my guide (Kebry) lives is on an island in Pearl Harbor called Ford Island. You used to have to ferry back and forth between it and the main island, but about 10 years ago they built a bridge. There's a restricted part of Ford Island where you can only go if you live in the Navy housing that's back there. Just so happens, that's where Kerby lives. So he took me back there and showed me this little nook with an INCREDIBLE view of the Arizona memorial.

I didn't get to do the whole "Pearl Harbor Tour" deal because you have to go in the morning and sign up for tickets later in the day. The timing just didn't work out to where I could do it. But I still at least got to see the sight from here.

Our next stop was Waikiki Beach. There's a really nice DoD hotel there and we walked through it to get to the beach. We are DEFINITELY staying there when we go to Hawaii (whenever THAT is!). They have pretty prime beach property. We walked down and stood on a pier and got some good pictures of Diamond Head.

On our way back to the car, we went through the Hilton Hawaii where there were penguins. Yeah, penguins in Hawaii, I was surprised too. It just so happened we were there at feeding time.

We headed to a place called "Halona Blowhole". The waves hit the rocky shore in a way that forces water up through the rocks in what resembles a whale's blowhole. It was actually very cool. I got a video of a small spray, but seconds after I stopped shooting, there was a much bigger spray that I missed. That one was REALLY cool, but you still get the idea from this video:

Then we went to Pali Lookout. Well, actually there was another stop between Blowhole and Pali, and I have two pictures of it. But I can't remember where we were. Dang. I knew I should've taken notes!!

Okay, so Pali Lookout. It was basically a great place with fantastic panoramic views of lots of things.

After Pali Lookout, we headed back across the island to the Navy Base. We were at what I THINK was the club, but I can't be 100% sure. They had an outdoor patio where you could eat (during normal meal times only I think which was not when we were there). The view from that patio was ridiculous. If our club had that kind of view, I don't think we'd ever eat anywhere else!

Then it was to the Navy Exchange (NEX). Not your normal exchange by any means. It was more like a mall than an exchange. When we walked in, Kerby pointed out the ceiling that was done by Wyland. That was pretty impressive!

We did a little shopping, then headed to Hickam AFB to check out their exchange. (I was looking for a coin for Mike's collection and they didn't have anything "Hawaii" at the NEX--just things "Navy"). After I found a coin, we had dinner in the food court and headed back to the hotel. Whew! I still say that was a TON of touring in only 6 hours!

DAY 11--Wednesday 10/7/09
Kerby tasked one of his sailors (who I later found out was not getting out of work as I thought, but was actually on leave) to be my guide the next morning. I had to be at the airport at 10am to catch my noon flight, but I wanted to check out a flea market type thing that was going on that day. She picked me up at 8am and we headed to the market, where I found a few souvenirs for myself, and some dried peas for Mike (weird, I know, but he had asked for them while he was deployed and I hadn't been able to find them anywhere).

Then at 10 I was at the airport and checking in. I was concerned about the typhoon forecast but kept keeping an eye on the forecast and the lady at the airline check-in counter assured me my flight was still unaffected. Luckily it stayed that way and we boarded on time. We had to wait for three straggling passengers, so we took off 20 minutes late. They must've been special, because I know usually they shut that door at exactly the time they're supposed to. I ended up sitting next to a guy who is Air Force stationed at another base and his daughter. She'd had surgery at Tripler and they were on their way home, too. It was nice to be next to someone who spoke English, but the poor stewardesses all thought we were together (an easy mistake to make!), which was pretty funny. An uneventful flight, and only about 7 1/2 hours (instead of the scheduled 8 1/2). I watched "The Proposal" and "My Sister's Keeper" and read some of my book and slept about an hour.

We landed a little after 3pm on Thursday (Japan time) and I made it through immigration and customs in what felt like record time. It seemed to take forever to get my luggage even though it was one of the first ones off the plane. I booked it to the other terminal where the shuttle buses are and made it to where they park at about 4:02. I wasn't really expecting to make it but I thought I'd give it a shot and also make sure the other buses were where they were supposed to be. I got to their spots and... no buses. Hmmm, that's weird! There should be at least two here. So I went inside and asked the DoD liaison what was up. Turns out because of the "typhoon" they weren't going to do any shuttles that day. But when there ended up not being any bad weather, they decided to go ahead and send them. So they were on their way and scheduled to leave at 6:30 and 8:30 and board 30 minutes beforehand. Okay, no big deal. It sucks to have to wait, but I got something to eat then just sat in the airport and read some more of my book until it was time to get on.

The ride home was excruciating. To be SOOO close, yet still 2 hours away just sucked. I finally got myself to fall asleep and didn't wake up until we were coming through the gate on base. Then when I got to where the bus stops, I went inside and called Mike to come get me. They got there maybe 10 minutes later. Jackson was still awake (but a little sleepy) and already in his pajamas. I cried when I hugged Mike, and I decided to just hug Jackson in his car seat rather than get him out and have to put him back in. We headed home and I was very excited to get Jackson out and carry him inside. He got lots of proper hugs and kisses on the way in.

We let him play for about 10-15 minutes and then put him to bed because he was super tired and we didn't want him to get overly tired and not go to sleep. It was definitely weird having two people trying to parent. But I think we're getting the hang of it now!

And that's the end of my big adventure. I'm VERY glad it's over!!!

Weekly activities
Monday through Thursday was just Mike and Jackson at home. They went to playgroup one day, where Jackson played and Mike didn't talk to any of the moms. He's weird. And Mike bought a jogging stroller and pushed Jackson while he ran 4 miles. Jackson seemed to enjoy it. He wanted to be done after the first mile and a half, but he got over it. They went again on Saturday (while Jackson was still in his jammies) and that went pretty well, too.

Friday I had to go to the clinic and drop of OB records. I also got paperwork to file my travel expenses with the insurance company. And Jackson got his flu shot. Mike sang while he was holding him down, and Jackson didn't cry AT ALL. He barely flinched when they put the needle in. I mean, he's always really great about his shots and never really does more than whimper (which always gets impressed comments), but NO crying at all?! I can't believe how tough he is.

We had dinner with Trysta and David on Friday night. They'd invited some people over and we played poker after dinner. Since Jackson stayed with them for so long, he's used to sleeping on their spare bed. It's a queen mattress and box spring, but no frame, so it just sits on the floor. Perfect for him. After dinner we put him to bed there. We played poker with a bunch of people, but they all left and the four of us played ImagineIff... It was a pretty fun game. Around midnight we were ready to go home, and the plan had been to just wake Jackson up, take him home and put him back in bed. We decided to just leave him there and they called us the next morning when he woke up so we could go get him. He slept until after 9, which would never happen at home.

Saturday there was a birthday party for one of the boys in Jackson's playgroup. We ended up being over 30 minutes late because Jackson was still taking a nap. The party was good, and I got to see what the rec room and bouncy castle I rented for Jackson's party look like. They did theirs in an Elmo theme, and Jackson was very impressed by that. After the party we went to dinner at Chili's.

I went to Trysta's birthday party after that and Mike took Jackson home. No plans for today, but I still have some housework to get caught up on. I also have to get Jackson's party planned some time in the next two weeks. That should be pretty easy since Mike will be home on recon leave for them. We're also considering a day trip to Disney one day this week as long as the OB clears me to go that far from the base.

Jenni's Big Adventure

2009-10-06T13:47:00.000+09:00

DAY 1--Saturday 9/26/09
I woke up at 1am because Jackson was fussy. I went in and calmed him down then somehow managed to get back in my bed. I was having really bad back pains and obviously the Tylenol hadn't helped. I took 2 more and tried to find a comfortable position in bed, which was impossible. Finally around 2am, I got up and called the Family Care Unit (kind of like the ER for pregnant women after 20 weeks). I told them I was concerned it might be kidney pain since it was in the middle of my back and only on my left side. I know back pain in pregnancy isn't uncommon, but it tends to be in your lower back and across both sides. The nurse asked if I had a history of kidney problems and even though I had been thinking it might be kidney related, I hadn't thought about the kidney stones I had just after having Jackson in December, 2009. When she asked me about the history, I said yes. She suggested that I try a heating pad on medium for maybe 20-30 minutes but if it didn't improve to come in and get checked out. At this point I was having difficulty talking to her. I hung up the phone and got the heating pad set up in my bed. I don't think I lay there 20 minutes before I decided it wasn't working at all and I'd need to head in to the hospital.

I called Trysta and David to come watch Jackson. I was thinking one of them could stay with him and the other could take me to the hospital. But they'd had a few drinks the night before and that made it not worth the risk to have one of them drive. While they were both perfectly fine, and probably could've driven, there was no reason to take that chance. But they were obviously okay to watch Jackson (especially since he was asleep and wouldn't be up for a few hours). So I called another friend (Laura) and she came and picked me up to take me to the hospital. By the time I had phone calls made, and everyone got dressed, came to the apartment, and Laura got me to the hospital, it was around 4am. I was in enough pain that it was hard to walk or talk at all. When we got to Labor & Delivery they hooked me up to monitors to check Alex's heart rate and make sure I wasn't having contractions. They also took blood and urine samples to send to the lab. Alex was fine, and I wasn't contracting at all. When the labs came back there was blood in my urine which was indicative of a kidney stone. They gave me IV morphine and started me on fluids. Laura went home since it was obvious I wouldn't need a ride home any time soon.

More tests. I got an X-Ray and an ultrasound to see if they could find the kidney stone. They could see the stone on the ultrasound but not for sure on the X-Ray. The only downside is that ultrasounds aren't very good for determining the size of a stone. The best ways to do that are either with an X-Ray with contrast, an MRI, or a CT with contrast. The ones with contrast were out because those tests require a long exposure to radiation. Once they inject the contrast, the procedure itself goes really slow. That much radiation was not good for Alex. And Yokota doesn't have an MRI machine. The ultrasound did show, however, that my bladder was only getting urine from my right kidney, not my left. That meant that the stone had blocked my left uretur, which is not good. At that point, the OB at Yokota decided that the stone probably needed to come out. Normally that would mean a trip to Yokosuka, the naval base in Japan about 3 hours from Yokota. Unfortunately, the urologist from Yokosuka had gone back to the states a year earlier than expected and his replacement wasn't there yet. So instead I went to a Japanese hospital.

Around 9am, they sent me by ambulance with a translator, nurse, and med tech to a local hospital. It was about a 45 minute drive, but the bumps down to the ambulance and on the road were causing some serious pain. At this point I was getting 5mg of IV morphine whenever I needed it, as often as every hour. We eventually got settled in in the Japanese hospital. The translator, nurse, and tech usually just stay until the patient is admitted. Before they would admit me though, they had to do a bunch more tests (many of which had already been done at Yokota). More baby checks (still perfectly fine) and another ultrasound. Unfortunately that meant around a 3 hour wait. And even though the Yokota people had morphine for me, they had transferred me to the Japanese hospital people and couldn't give me any of it. And the Japanese hospital wouldn't give me any pain meds until I saw a doctor. I also hadn't eaten since 7am (and that was just crackers and milk) so I was really glad I had small boxes of raisins in my purse to keep my blood sugar from bottoming out.

I finally got in to see the urologist, who gave me some pain meds. They pretty much didn't help at all, but it was better than nothing at least. He did the ultrasound and couldn't see the stone, just that my kidney was swollen. The basic gist of what I got from him (via the translator) was that any further testing would be unsafe for the baby and that taking the stone out under general anesthesia wasn't a good idea either. So he suggested I just stay on pain meds until the stone passed. Not exactly what the OB at Yokota had planned on, but it's not like I could force him to take the stone out. So we loaded back up in the ambulance and headed back to the base. At this point, my pain had moved from my back down to my bladder and groin area. And it wasn't nearly as intense.

We got back to Yokota around 3pm with basically nothing accomplished. There had been discussion about being in the Japanese hospital and not knowing how long they would keep me. They make you stay for a week after having a vaginal birth, which is MUCH less than the states (usually 24-48 hours). It didn't even cross Yokota's OB's mind that they wouldn't take the stone out.

While I had been gone, the OB had talked to a urologist at Kadena AB (the Japanese base on Okinawa) about my situation. She said that it takes 4-6 weeks with an obstructed kidney to cause damage, so short-term we weren't worried about that. Her suggestion was to get my pain under control and keep and eye on the stone and hope that it would pass. In the mean time, the urologist at Misawa (ANOTHER AB in Japan--since there wasn't a radiologist on call at Yokota for the weekend) who was reading my earlier imaging tests found the stone on the x-ray and thought it was measuring about 6mm. Generally the opinion is that anything 5mm or smaller can be passed, and anything bigger than that has to be surgically removed. But the OB at Yokota thought that maybe due to pregnancy hormones and things being generally more flexible and dilated that I might be able to pass it even though it was 6mm.

The plan was then to control my pain and see if I would pass it on my own. The goal was to get me to be able to control my pain with oral meds and get me off of IV pain meds so I could go home.

DAY 2--Sunday 9/27/09
Throughout the night I still needed IV pain meds. They'd switched from morphine to dilaudid because it seemed to work better and last longer. I was taking Tylenol #3 as my oral meds in between IV doses. The whole day was pretty much just pain meds, some eating, testing blood sugar, and monitoring me. We figured out pretty quickly that the T3 wasn't going to control my pain so we switched to Percocet. The OB had originally offered Percocet but when the discussion was me maybe going home, I didn't want to be on Percocet because I wouldn't be able to take care of Jackson. So I requested the T3. At that point we also thought based on where my pain was that the stone had possibly moved into my bladder. But early into the day on Sunday I was having enough back (ureter) pain that it was obvious that wasn't the case. They had been straining my urine since I got back to the base and there was no sign of a stone having been passed. During the day on Sunday and Sunday night I would go up to 10 or 12 hours without needing IV meds and get excited about maybe going home, but in the end I always ended up with intense pain not controlled by the Percocet and needing IV dilaudid.

DAY 3--Monday 9/28/09
New medication plan. Tylenol every 6 hours scheduled. It may seem retarded to even bother with Tylenol at this point, but it really helped the other meds work longer. That's why vicodin, Percocet, t3, etc. are all combinations of a stronger narcotic and Tylenol together. The other part of Percocet is oxycontin, so they were giving me 15mg of oxycontin every 4 hours with an additional 5mg every 2 hours if I needed it, and IV dilaudid every hour on top of that if I REALLY needed it. Turns out that 15mg of oxycontin wasn't doing anything at all for me, so after 8 hours, they changed it to 20mg, plus still the 5mg every 2 hours and still the dilaudid.

The OB called and talked to the urologist at Kadena again to basically say, "We need a new plan" because it was becoming clearer every day that I wasn't going to get the pain under control with oral meds. That meant I was going to stay in the hospital until I passed the stone, which also wasn't looking like a very likely scenario. Kadena has two urologists, and they were sending one to Yokosuka for 2 weeks to fill in until a permanent replacement could get there. He was supposed to get there the next day, and she planned on sending me to see him then. In the mean time, maintain pain management.

The urologist did give her an idea of some possible solutions. Option A--put a stint in to allow the urine to drain from my kidney to my bladder. It would have to stay in until the baby is born because the stint would actually be smaller than my ureter, so there's no way I would pass the stone on my own. Option B--put in some kind of external tube out my back to allow my kidney to drain that way, while still giving the stone a chance to pass through my ureter on its own. Option C--surgically remove the stone, put in a stint to hold open my ureter while it healed from the surgery, then after 2 weeks remove the stint. Option C requires general anesthesia which could cause complications for the baby, but still seems like it might be the best option. None of these could be done at Yokota, though, since we don't have a urologist there.

DAY 4--Tuesday 9/29/09
The urologist from Kadena spent the morning getting checked in at Yokosuka, so the OB didn't get to talk to him until the afternoon. When she did talk to him, they decided sending me there would be a bad idea since he'd only be there for 2 weeks. Any procedure he did may require a recovery time of longer than 2 weeks and if they put a stint or a drain in, there wouldn't be anyone at Yokota to take it out and he wouldn't be back at Yokosuka until Feb. I asked about sending me to Kadena instead of Yokosuka but I guess they don't have the equipment that would be necessary to do any of the suggested procedures at Kadena. The decision was made to instead send me to Tripler in Hawaii. I think it's an Army base, but it has a good medical reputation, and that's where pretty much any complicated medical situation gets sent from anywhere in the pacific.

I had been doing really well with pain management and just playing the wait and see game. Then on Tuesday, things started going downhill. I'd been constipated for days, but there wasn't much I could do about it since the narcotics I was taking for pain were contributing factors to that and I couldn't stop taking them. At lunch I couldn't eat very much, and a few hours later, I threw up what little I had eaten. I was having what I thought were stomach cramps from the constipation, but they turned out to be contractions. They switched me into another room where they could monitor Alex and the contractions. I threw up some more before they transferred me and started feeling really really crappy. The monitors showed Alex's heart rate was fine, still as perfect as usual, but that I was having contractions. They weren't regular at all, and I wasn't dilating or effacing at al, so they weren't causing progress towards delivery either. Pretty much they were just a side effect from all the GI issues I was having. Any time there is "irritation" in your gut it can cause irritation in your uterus and therefore contractions. They were painful, but nothing crazy.

At that point my temperature was creeping up, too. It wasn't a "fever" so they weren't concerned, yet. But they were definitely keeping an eye on it and they also sent blood to the lab to check my white blood cell count to make sure it wasn't elevated (indicating an infection)--it was fine. They mostly just kept pumping me full of fluids and watching me, plus IV phenergan to help with the nausea. I started feeling better and they gave me a bisacodyl suppository to help with the constipation. I also got my scheduled dose of Tylenol via suppository since I'd been puking earlier. A few hours of rest and I was feeling much better. They're not really sure what brought it on, but my temp regulated and I stopped throwing up, so they weren't as concerned.

DAY 4--Wednesday 9/30/09
The morning was normal, and around 1pm the medical evacuation team came to the OB floor and got me and my stuff. We headed out to the plane and after sitting on the ambulance for an hour waiting for the crew to get the plane ready to go and the plane to take on fuel, we boarded. At this point there was one patient from Korea headed to a hospital in California somewhere for metal health issues. There was another guy from Yokosuka that had to ride up to Yokota (3 hours) in an ambulance. He was on a litter the whole time and he had an escort with him. Then there was another guy who had some kind of GI issues that was on the same floor as me at Yokota. In the Family Care Unit, one side is Labor & Delivery and the other side is medical surgery. He was on the med surg side. His wife came with us, too. So it was 4 patients plus 2 escorts from Yokota to Kadena. Plus of course flight nurses and med techs to take care of us on the way.

The flight was pretty uneventful. As soon as we got to cruising altitude, I decided I was ready to lie down. They had me as category 2B which is "litter for comfort," meaning they had a litter available for me to lie on but I didn't have to stay on it the whole time like the other guy. I was in a lot of pain at that point, mostly from the jostling of the ambulance ride and the plane taking off. I got some pain meds and lay down and started feeling a little better. The meds they were giving me weren't enough to get on top of the pain, but took the edge off at least. When we landed they decided I was better off staying on the litter and being carried off the plan rather than trying to walk down the steps.

Once we arrived at Kadena and got everyone loaded onto the buses, we headed to Camp Lester, which is a nearby Army base where the hospital is located. Each time we changed crews, there was a process of transferring meds and giving reports on all of our conditions, etc. The transfers from the OB staff to the transport staff at Yokota, then to the flight staff, then to the transport staff at Kadena all seemed pretty seamless. But the transfer from the transport staff to the hospital staff at Camp Lester was a problem. It took over 2 hours for them to get everything figured out and to get me meds. I ended up being in a LOT of pain before they finally got to me. Plus the guy they sent in to check me in was a complete idiot. He was obviously in training and had no clue what he was doing. He asked half of the questions wrong or took the answers down wrong and had to come re-do my pregnancy history. Then he needed help figuring out how to strain my urine. By the time he came in to draw blood for labs, I was done. He had to go ask another tech how to work a butterfly needle, and I started crying. When she came in and saw how upset I was she knew right away why. She sent him out of the room to go get something and asked if it was bothering me that he was training. I told her that normally I'm a patient person with trainees because I know everyone has to learn sometime, but with the pain and the situation, I was just not in the mood to be used as a training tool right then. She said she would take care of it and incompetent boy never showed back up. After labs, they finally got me some pain meds and I was able to sleep. Although for some reason the 3rd shift doctor decided I needed to be hooked up to a fetal heart rate and contraction monitor so I was strapped to the bed all night.

DAY 5--Thursday 10/1/09
Day 5 actually lasted 41 hours instead of just 24 since Japan is 17 hours ahead of Hawaii.

Since I couldn't get up or walk at all like I had been, my feet and ankles were the size of melons when I woke up. Luckily the day time doctor said I didn't need to be constantly monitored (which is what the Yokota OB said, too) so I was able to walk around and get the swelling down considerably. On my hospital walks, I even got to take some pictures of the view from the hospital of the ocean and such. They were taken from the "typhoon ramp" which is I guess just the escape route they use if there’s a typhoon and a bunch of people need to evacuate in a hurry.

Throughout the morning people from the transport team were in and out getting paperwork and taking my suitcase down to the buses. We picked up 2 more patients and 3 escorts for the trip to Hawaii so we needed 2 buses for all of the people and bags. They came to get me around 3pm to head to the flight line. I rode in a seat on the bus until we got to the plane, but they put me on the litter once we got there so I could just start there and not have to move after take off. It was a good thing because once again the pain meds were on a delay so I was in quite a bit of pain by the time I even got loaded onto the plane.

The plane left Japan around 6pm and landed in Hawaii at around 9am on the same day. Gotta love that International Date Line! The flight was interesting to say the least. I spent pretty much the entire time on the litter. I did try to eat something and they tried to prop me up as best they could into a sitting position, but it didn't really work and I ended up choking. The problem was I couldn't sit up because I was strapped to the litter. After some flailing they figured out there was a problem and unstrapped me. I was fine right away, but they went ahead and got me down to sit in a seat to finish my food. Once I was done eating, I walked a little, went to the bathroom, and back to the litter. I had oxygen on the whole time. My level had been down to 86 when I first got on the plane, which I think was due to being too far down on the litter, and therefore really flat instead of at an incline. Once I scooted back and had my back more on the back rest, I felt okay. But for the time I was sitting in the chair and not on oxygen, I did start to feel kind of bad. With just a little oxygen I was fine, but they kept me on it for the whole flight. Plus I was getting IV fluids for the whole flight and pain meds throughout as well. It was a rough flight, and super long (10 hours total) but I was glad to have it over with.

We all got off the plane and loaded onto ambulances for the ride from Hickam AFB (where we landed) to Tripler (where the hospital is). Somewhat bumpy (and therefore painful) but also a short ride. I was checked into the hospital and in my room by 10am, and I was exhausted! I called everyone to let them know I'd made it and then tried to sleep between vitals checks and doctor visits, etc.

Thursday afternoon the OB visited and basically said that they were keeping me in the OB ward so they could monitor my baby, but that I was urology's patient and they'd be calling the shots. Then she took me off all of my pain meds and started me back on just morphine plus oral Tylenol every 6 hours. Since getting off IV pain meds wasn't really a goal anymore, she decided the simpler the better. I got what's technically called a PCA but what I refer to as "my magic morphine button." I got 1mg of morphine every time I pushed the button and they set it to only let me get any every 10 minutes. It wasn't nearly what I'd been on but it seemed to do the trick throughout the evening.

The urologist visited later that evening and he said the plan was to watch things until Monday and see if I passed the stone on my own. After reviewing the CT they'd done earlier (almost as soon as I got there) they could tell the stone was now down by my bladder. On the previous ultrasound and x-ray from Yokota it'd been up by my kidney. So it already moved down through my whole ureter, and it only looked to be 3mm-5mm in size, so he thought I might be able to pass it on my own. If I didn't pass it by Monday, he'd put a stint in to help the flow of urine from my kidney to my bladder, making the ureter unobstructed and therefore less painful. The plan also included staying on the IV pain meds as long as I needed them.

DAY 6--Friday 10/2/09
I woke up at 6am to go through rounds with both doctors. I told the OB I was in lots of pain from being asleep all night and therefore not pushing the button and getting pain meds. So she changed the interval to 8 minutes instead of 10. Within a few hours I was caught up to the pain and the morphine was enough for the rest of the day. The urologist visited and said basically the same thing he'd said the night before.

Around 0730 they brought me my breakfast tray, and within 5 minutes the urologist came in. He said they'd examined my case as a board and felt they should present me with one other option. Go in today and take the stone out, put in a stint for a few days, then take it out within a week and send me back to Japan. Yes, please! I pick that option! My number one question was anesthesia. I'd been told at Yokota that if they wanted to take the stone out, it'd require general anesthesia, which was true at the time because the stone was so high up. But now the stone was much lower, so they could do it with just a spinal. Once I found that out, I was all about getting it out, and getting it out NOW! He mentioned that, "another surgeon was willing to do the surgery" which made me wonder why he wasn't, but whatever. He took my breakfast away and said nothing by mouth (not even water) until after the surgery. Bummer.

Shortly after they came and got me for an ultrasound. The first cool thing was, hey, extra pictures of Alex are always nice. The second thing was they had a monitor mounted on the screen so you could see what they were seeing without having to crane your neck and she didn't have to lean either. That was pretty cool. She measured all the stuff and I got to see everything again (but much clearer this time since he's bigger now). She printed out some good pictures which I will eventually scan and post. She also said he's measuring just a little big, which is fine since he measured a bit big at the last ultrasound, too. Then back to my room to wait for surgery.

All they told me was that it would be sometime in the afternoon, but they didn't have a time. I was just waiting around until they came to get me. They finally did around 1pm and wheeled me down to the surgery area. Everything went pretty quick once I got down there. New IV site, fluids, antibiotics, forms to fill out, etc. Then they took me into the OR and I was on the table. They did the spinal which I held surprisingly still for. Then they laid me down and things obviously started going numb from my feet up. That's when I started getting nervous. They put a sheet up to form a curtain by my head so I couldn't see what they were doing and put an oxygen mask on me, too. There were all kinds of people and all kinds of movement going on around me. I couldn't get myself to relax. I told the nurse anesthetists that I was nervous and couldn't calm down and she told me, "There's no reason for me to give you any drugs for it so you'll have to relax on your own." It sounds mean now that I type it but the way she said it wasn't mean at all. She was really nice, actually. I asked her when they were going to start and she said they already had, so then I calmed down quite a bit. I think since I wasn't asleep and I still had feeling from my belly button up that I was worried I'd be able to feel what they were doing. Plus it was the same anesthesia that I had for my c-section and I could definitely feel the moving around and pulling they did to get Jackson out. I managed to tune everything out and keep myself relatively calm for the rest of the procedure, which was about an hour and 15 minutes. Towards the end I could feel the spinal starting to wear off a little and that freaked me out. I felt Alex move and I told the nurse it was wearing off, and she told me it wasn't and I was fine. Then I felt someone leaning on my foot and I told her again that I could feel stuff and it was wearing off. Again she assured me that it wasn't wearing off and that she would see signs of that before I had any way to communicate to her that I thought it was. Okay, I relaxed again. But then I felt them touching me again, and I lost it. "Are you SURE it's not wearing off?!" "I'm sure, I promise I won't let it wear off and they're almost done." I wasn't satisfied but managed to stay relatively calm until they finished. They had been using a laser to break up the stones, so we all had on some special goggles. When she came and took those off and put my glasses back on, I knew we were really close to being done and that made me feel much better.

Once we were all done we moved to recovery. Other than being freezing and needing lots of heated sheets, blankets, and even a warmer thing that I think they mostly use for babies, I was good. They took me to labor and delivery for 4 hours to recover and monitor everything. I was supposed to be on a clear liquid diet but they took my sugar and it was down to 75 so they let me eat real food. I think that's the only time I've been glad to have gestational diabetes. I hadn't eaten in 21 hours so I was STARVING. Everything looked good in recovery (labor & delivery) except for a few contractions, which were mild and pretty much expected. Anytime the mess with things in your abdomen, it can cause uterus irritability which can cause contractions. Like all those before they didn't actually do anything or cause any progress so they were of little concern.

The urologist came to visit me in recovery. I've had a bunch of doctors and I can't keep them all straight. But the one who did the surgery (who was VERY nice!) was not the same one who'd been following me throughout my stay (not quite as nice). He told me that they would want to keep my stint in even if I passed the main stone. He said there were lots of smaller stones that the surgeon saw, plus the fragments that were broken off during surgery. So leaving the stint in would allow those to help pass, too. Also, the stint would need changed after 4-8 weeks. Then, it can't be removed until we can do a CT scan to verify that all the stones are out. But I can't have a CT while pregnant, so basically the stint has to stay in (after being changed) until after Alex is born. That means staying in Hawaii until I have him. I managed to wait until he left the room to start crying. It was pretty upsetting to think about being stuck in Hawaii without Mike and Jackson (at least not for the whole time) plus having Alex here with (Army) doctors I don't know, and not having any friends or anything here.

Shortly after I returned to my regular room, I passed the stone. I had some serious stomach pain and cramping which I thought was a contraction. I even thought, "If I have another one that strong, I'll have to call the nurse in here to monitor me." I had to stop what I was doing and breathe through the pain. But it was short-lived, which is part of what made me think it was a contraction. The next time I peed, there was the stone. YAY! It's out! It looks huge to me. They kept saying 6mm after the surgery, but 6mm looks a lot bigger than I anticipated. It looks like a kernel of unpopped pop corn but it's a little bigger than that. They'll collect it and any smaller stones I pass and send them to the lab for analysis. Hopefully once they know what it's made of, they may be able to give me good advice on how to avoid them in the future.

DAY 7--Saturday 10/3/09
During rounds the OB said I was good to go and he was ready to discharge me whenever urology was ready to release me. The urologist said I could be discharged whenever I want, but I asked to stay until Monday. We also discussed me going back to Japan. He said he's fine with me going back and then either getting a urologist there or coming back to Hawaii in 4 weeks to have someone here change the stint. Japan could be an off-base doctor or one at another base in Japan. Then after Alex is born, I can have a CT done on-base at Yokota and a urologist anywhere can take the stint out. We had a problem getting a civilian Japanese doctor to remove the stone while I'm pregnant, but may not have a problem finding one to change out the stint while pregnant, and should definitely not have a problem getting one to take it out once Alex is born.

Around 9pm I started leaking fluid, but no one seemed concerned except me. The OB said to just keep an eye on it.

DAY 8--Sunday 10/4/09
I woke up at 6am to a huge increase in leaking fluid. I immediately called the nurse and this time they started taking me seriously. They sent me up to labor and delivery to test the fluid to see if it was amniotic fluid or urine. When I got out of the bed, there was a huge spot where I'd leaked throughout the night. I was really scared that if it WAS amniotic fluid, I'd leaked a lot of it over 12 hours, which is not good. But once I got up to L&D they did a few tests and it turned out to not be amniotic fluid. Just urine. Gross, but a huge relief. Then they called in urology. It turned out that the stint, which was supposed to end in my bladder, had actually come out the other end of my bladder, and was basically draining my bladder constantly. Again, gross. So they shoved it back into place. Not a comfortable procedure obviously. All is well now, just have to take antibiotics since the stint was on the outside of my bladder but is now back in. They don't know why or how it happened and had no advice on preventing it from happening again.

The rest of the day was uneventful. Just chillin in my hospital room, watching TV and reading. I'm being discharged tomorrow after I talk to the social worker to figure out when/how I'm going home and where I'm staying until then. And of course I'll have to be released by OB and urology, so who knows what time I'll get out of here.

DAY 9--Monday 10/5/09
In the morning I had an ultrasound to make sure the stint is in the right place. It's the only time I think an ultrasound has ever been a painful experience for me. She was really digging that want into my ribs and side to get a good picture of my kidneys. Then I came back to my room and had breakfast, followed by a non-stress test. A non-stress test is where they hook me up to monitors to see if I'm having contractions and also to measure Alex's heart rate. I'd had two at Yokota, but since I arrived at Tripler (Day 5) I'd had them twice a day. They only last 20 minutes, but I was pretty sick of them. You can't really talk during it or it messes up the contraction monitor and they seemed pretty pointless since everything was always totally fine. I'm hoping that was the last nst for a while!

Then I got to take a shower. One of the best showers of my life. I'd had the chance on a fairly regular basis throughout the whole ordeal to shower, kind of. But one of the first things that happened at Yokota early on Day 1 was that they put in a hep lock. And when one went bad, they'd just take it out and find a different spot. You should see how many bruises are on my forearms from all the different ones. But that also means that showers came with a plastic baggie over my arm to keep them from getting wet. Finally on Day 7 they decided that since I'd passed my stone I could be off of IV fluids and just drink my water by mouth now. So the shower that day didn't involve a plastic baggie, but was one of the coldest showers I'd ever taken. I suffered through it because I felt gross, but it was definitely not enjoyable. Today's was MUCH better and actually hot. It's probably the longest I've gone without a satisfying shower. Plus when I got out, I put on CLOTHES instead of pajamas in anticipation of my pending discharge from the hospital.

Finally around 5pm I had arrangements for my hotel stay done and the discharge paperwork was done and I was set FREE!! I took a picture of my first views of freedom, although it wasn't very exciting. I'll upload when I get back to Japan. Still no word on flights yet, but that should hopefully come together tomorrow. The Air Force Liason at the hospital told me to make reservations for 4 nights, but that I probably wouldn't be staying that long. I'm anxious to get back, but right now just relieved to be free from the hospital. More info to follow as I get it!

Weekly Update 10/4/09

2009-10-06T13:43:00.000+09:00

Mom did her big adventure blog separate, so this one will be an update on me and Daddy throughout the week while Mom’s been out of commission.

When Mom went to the hospital on Saturday, Trysta and David came over at 3:30 am to watch me. They had me through the weekend, but Trysta got sick on Sunday. She went to urgent care where they did a rapid flu test that came back negative. So basically just rest and fluids and let it run its course. David kept me entertained throughout the day while she rested, but he had to go back to work on Monday. So during the day on Monday, Laura (the same one who took Mom to the hospital on Saturday) watched me at our house until David got off work and picked me up. She took me with her to take her dog to the groomer and some other errands, which I really enjoyed!

Then on Tuesday Laura watched me in the morning, then another spouse from Daddy’s squadron kept me in the afternoon when Laura went to work. Mom got a call at the hospital in the afternoon from the sitter saying I had a fever and asking if she could give me Tylenol. So Mom told her yes of course. When David picked me and got me home, Trysta found a lump on the back of my neck that I wouldn’t let her touch and I was saying my head hurt (well, signing hurt and pointing to my head, but same thing). I also still had a fever. So they took me to urgent care, where they did a rapid flu test that came back negative. They said the same thing for me that they’d told her: drink lots of fluids, give me watered down Gatorade instead of plain water, and let me rest as much as possible.

Also on Tuesday the decision was made to bring Daddy home from Kuwait. Since they were sending Mom to Hawaii, he needed to come home to take care of me. Trysta and David were doing a great job but that wasn’t a good permanent solution. Especially since we had no idea how long Mom would be in Hawaii. So Daddy’s commander and first shirt contacted his leadership in Kuwait and got the ball rolling with getting him home ASAP. Since he was supposed to be leaving in the next few weeks anyways and his replacement would be there soon, they consider his time in Kuwait as “mission complete”. He’ll still get credit for the whole deployment and anything else that he would’ve gotten (medals, etc) he’ll still get, too.

Wednesday Trysta was still feeling pretty crappy so Daddy’s first sergeant’s wife and daughter watched me. They brought me by the hospital to see Mom one last time before she left for Hawaii. I looked like crap still since I was feeling bad, and wasn’t in a very good mood, but Mom still got to see me which was nice.

Mom had also contacted the legal office on base and they had someone bring by paperwork granting Trysta and David temporary custody of me until Daddy got home. It was a good thing Mom did that since they ended up taking me back to urgent care on Wednesday night. My temperature got up to 102 and that worried Trysta. Mom laughed when Trysta told her that she’d taken me back for that, but she’s not a mom and obviously safe is way better than sorry. The doctor at urgent care kind of laughed at her, too. They told her I was fine, just still sick and continue the fluids, Motrin and Tylenol. Also, she’d been putting me in my regular sleepers and they told her to just let me sleep in a onesie. Oh, and no need to bring me back unless my temp gets to 104 and doesn’t come down with Motrin and Tylenol. Which, of course, Mom already knew, but the high temp freaked Trysta out and Mom didn’t blame her at all for taking me in. I'm usually healthy and really haven't been sick before. Mom felt kind of bad that she wasn’t there for my first real bout with illness. But at least I wasn’t puking or anything.

Thursday was uneventful for everyone except Mom until Daddy got home. He got home late at night and went to Trysta and David’s house. I was already asleep but Daddy didn’t have a key to our apartment, or even know where it was since we moved. He stayed over there for a few hours before heading home. He decided to just let me sleep and he’d get me the next day.

Friday Daddy went back to David and Trysta’s and gave David the camera to record the reunion. It was pretty anticlimactic. I recognized Daddy and walked over to him, but wasn’t just totally ecstatic to see me like Mom anticipated. Mom hasn’t seen the video yet, but she can’t wait to see it. I was still sick, so Mom thinks that may have had something to do with my lack of reaction.

Since Friday everything has been pretty normal. Daddy and I are re-bonding and getting a good routine down. Mom’s disappointed that she can’t be here to help things along, but we’re doing fine. I'm getting better each day but still have a sore throat and a slight temperature. Plus I haven’t shown Daddy my world class eating skills yet either. I’m sure I’ll get my appetite back in no time.

And of course, Sunday was my birthday. Happy 2nd birthday to Mom’s sweet baby boy who is no longer a baby. Such a big boy! In a big boy bed, and ready to start potty training. The other day I told Daddy BEFORE I pooped in my diaper so it’s definitely time!

This may be the last of the weekly updates for a while. Mom will still post something whenever we do something interesting, but now that Daddy’s home we probably don’t need weekly play by plays anymore.

Weekly Update 9/25/09

2009-10-06T13:42:00.001+09:00

This one will be short. It’s hard for me to remember everything that far back, and I’m creating a separate entry for all of my medical shenanigans.

Monday—Speech therapy at 0830 with Holly. The fishing game made a repeat appearance and Jackson was THRILLED about that! Nothing new to report on the speech front. He is enjoying his sessions and making progress as expected.

Tuesday I went to the housing office and reserved a rec room for the party on October 25th. I also rented a bouncy castle that fits inside the rec room for all the kids to jump in. We had considered having the party at Sand Park, but I talked Mike out of it since it's not fenced and everyone would have to be constantly chasing their kiddos around.

Wednesday was the day we went to the playground. There's one on the West Side that we hadn't been to yet so I thought we'd check it out. Jackson had a blast. It was just a small one on black rubbery ground cover, but he had so much fun. He likes to run in the grass, so he got to do that some. And it's more age-appropriate for him than the one at Sand Park. When we go to Sand Park, I have to kind of stay right near him all the time to make sure he doesn't try to do something that's too big for him (like go down the pole). But at this park, I could just sit on the bench and let him go. I think it was fun for him to explore and stuff without me having to hover over him the whole time. They also had a flower-like thing that came out of the ground in two spots. You could put your ear to one end and someone talks in the other end ad it magnifies the sound. He wasn't quite tall enough to reach it very well, but he got the concept pretty quickly and we counted back and forth to each other until I couldn't stay bent down to talk into my end any longer. Eventually he was ready for a nap and we headed home, but not because I made him. He requested to go home and then lay happily in his stroller with puppy the whole way there. Such a big boy

On Friday, Jackson and I dropped Daddy's car off at the BX Garage so they could do the safety inspection. Every 2 years, cars in Japan have to be inspected by the government and once they pass the inspection, they get a certification thing called a JCI (Japanese Compulsory Insurance). The one on Mike's car expires in November so we went ahead and got the inspection done so we'd know what needed fixed on it. Then once everything is fixed we'll take it to our insurance company and they’ll arrange to get it certified. But we left the car at the garage and walked home =e (it's really close to our apartment). Friday afternoon we went to the Farmers' Market with some friends. It's in Mizuho which is the next town over. I got directions from the person who told me about it, and was actually brave enough to take two other friends with me. Somehow we made it there and back without getting totally lost. I did miss the entrance on the way there but I knew pretty quickly I'd missed it and turned around. We found it without any problems on the second pass. Once again, I got a ton of produce for cheap, cheap, cheap. I was mostly buying veggies to cut up for the veggie tray for the baby shower the next day. This was a major success for me since I was able to drive off base with written directions but no map, and actually manage to not get lost at all. After Jackson was in bed Friday night I made sure I had pretty much everything ready for the shower the next day. I printed out the game sheets for the games we were playing, and made sure the apartment was pretty picked up. I planned on vacuuming and making the deviled eggs the next morning before Trysta came over at 9 to decorate. The last thing I did was wash and cut the veggies from the farmers' market that I'd gotten earlier that day. I noticed while I was chopping that my back was kind of hurting and I wondered vaguely what I had done earlier that day to it. Like maybe I'd twisted it funny or something. I finished up in the kitchen, took 2 Tylenol and headed to bed. Then things got really interesting..... to be continued in next blog.

Weekly Update 9/20/09

2009-09-19T20:19:00.004+09:00

I'm going to make a serious effort to shorten the blog this week. I got comments from multiple friends about it this week. They were things like, "Your blog is very detailed" or from Laura "That was quite long," (she's English). Anyways, this is my attempt at a succinct one. We'll see how it goes!

Monday night was my Enlisted Spouses Club meeting. I'm the treasurer but haven't gotten the stuff from the temporary treasurer (I was in the states when the last permanent one transferred out) so I haven't actually DONE anything yet. But the meetings are always fun and it's a few hours out of the house, so that's a plus. We had a bunch of new members and as usual it was a great time!

On Thursday (LOOK! I completely skipped Tuesday and Wednesday!) I had an OB appointment. Lots and lots of questions since I hadn't seen a doctor since I found out about the gestational diabetes. No earth-shattering information, though. That is, until the end of the appointment when she informs me I'll have to have weekly appointments from now until I have Alex. Ummm... that's like 12 weeks. YUCK! And she also said that later on they may have to do twice-weekly non-stress tests. DOUBLE YUCK! Luckily I found someone to trade babysitting with, so she's going to watch Jackson on Thursdays for me, and I'm going to watch her son (Xavier, 10 months) another day of the week.

This coming week is actually kinda busy especially with another baby party for Alex on Saturday to get ready for!

Jackson showing off his stacking skills for Daddy (on the webcam)

Refusing to get out of the bath despite the lack of water.

Weekly Update 9/13/09

2009-09-13T15:07:00.007+09:00

You know I sit down to write these blogs and think, we were SO BUSY this week. Then I start to write about what we did, and it doesn't seem all that busy. Maybe it's just daily errands to the BX/Commissary/Post Office, etc. that make it seem busy.

Tuesday was speech therapy. Jackson was very very cooperative. He seems to have more patience each time Holly visits. This was the first time they played with all the things she brought. Usually one or two things end up getting skipped because he's done sitting and playing before they get to them. His favorite this week was a discovery toy called Hammer Away. Once he figured out he had to hammer the balls down instead of pushing them with his hand (which was easier, but not the point) he had a blast and played with it independently while Holly and I talked towards the end of the session.

One concern she had was that he says, "bing bing" instead of "bang bang". That's not a big deal by itself but he messes up quite a few vowel sounds. She said at this point he should be doing most vowels correctly, but still messing up some consonants (especially hard 2-consonant combinations). I've been working on a list this week of vowel sounds he does incorrectly to see if she has suggestions on how to help him improve. She said we'll watch it for a while and if by the time he's 2 1/2 it isn't any better we'll reevaluate and try to find the cause.

I also got re-tested for MRSA on Monday which came back negative. So now we've both had 2 neg cultures and are completely cleared. YAY!

Friday was Jackson's dental appointment. He did awesomely, as expected. He really likes to brush his teeth! The dentist was pleased with the fact that Jackson doesn't drink juice or use a sippy cup (except the on in his bed with water in it), and is already brushing his teeth twice a day. Since from now on he has to go in March (they do it in the birth month of your sponsor) the dentist said he doesn't have to come back until March of 2011 if we don't want him to.

It just so happens that the dentist, Holly's office, and our playgroup are all in the same building. Holly comes to the house, but every time we go to playgroup we stop to visit her. So walking up to the door, the first thing Jackson says is, "Holly!" No, we're not here to see Holly. Off to the dentist we went. After his appointment we walked to Holly's office to see if she was there, but she wasn't. To get to her office you have to walk towards the playroom where playgroup is. As soon as that was in sight, he said, "Play! Play!" No, we're not going to play. We're going home. Sometimes I wish he didn't have QUITE so good of a memory.

Friday was also my meeting with the nutritionist on base. She gave me a new diet which is eating 6 times a day with 30 carbs at each meal/snack. That is much less complicated than what I was doing. And it also lays out when I should eat milk vs. bread/starch vs. fruit carbs so that I can be sure and fit in all the nutrients, too. My sugar has been fairly stable but one thing I'm struggling with is calories--I'm not getting enough. I basically just need to eat more meat is all it boils down to. I'm never hungry anymore, mostly because I'm not going more than 3 hours without food. I lost weight this week and didn't gain ANY last week, which is not good for Alex, especially since I'm now well below the recommended weight gain. (I've gained 12.8 pounds and should've gained 16.5-23). We'll see what the dr. has to say about that at my appointment this week.

Saturday I got a haircut, manicure and pedicure. All were momentous things since it's only the third time someone other than Mom has cut my hair, I've never needed a manicure since I always bit my nails, and I usually do my own pedicures but can no longer comfortably reach my toes. They did a great job with all three. It was a fairly relaxing 2 hours (without Jackson).

Other things going on this week....
I'm working on a floor covering for under the table so I can put Jackson in a booster seat instead of keeping him exiled in the kitchen in his high chair. But before I buy that, Mike and I decided we need to get a new table. (Can't buy flooring until we know how big of a table to buy for). So I ordered one at the BXtra today that we've eyed before but didn't have room for in the 2 bedroom. It has an L-shaped booth on two sides and one chair on the other two sides. It won't be in until mid-late October, so perfect timing for when Mike will be home. I was bummed to find out it had been on sale last week (sale ended Thursday I went in on Saturday), but when they rang it up today it rang up for the old price-YAY!

One morning Jackson decided we needed to hang out on the balcony. It was really nice out and it was the time when everyone was taking their kids to school. We can see the school from our house, so we just chilled and people watched. He played on his slide some.

We got to watch the OSU game on T.V. today. A disappointing loss, but I was still glad to be able to watch it. It's weird to watch college football on Sunday morning, but oh well. After it was over, I apparently dozed off. Don't remember this happening, but I do remember waking up. Thank goodness Jackson hadn't gotten into any trouble (that I know of). And this is what I woke up to... I have no words to even describe it:

I know that prior to falling asleep all 6 coasters were in the holder, the remote was on the arm of the couch, the water glass was on the table (just on the tile, no coaster) and the cars were on the floor. Part of me is a little concerned but mostly I'm just impressed. =)

I've also decided on Picasa to use as our new photo web place. Dad recommended it and it's a google application just like blogger is, so the pictures from all the past blogs are already on there. It makes it nice that I only have to upload them to one place instead of two. I have a feeling it'll fill up fast and then I'll either have to start taking some pics off, or find a web service that we can pay for because most of the free ones have similar limits. September Album.

My blood sugar has been all over the place this week. I'm trying to get a handle on it and it's been much better since I met with the nutritionist. It won't be long before I start figuring out what things make me go really high and what things are okay. Everyone has different things that despite being the right number of carbs, still cause them to jump. Anyone who knows me well at all won't be surprised to learn that I've made an Excel spreadsheet to track my food and blood sugar. It turns green when I hit my target range (carbs, calories, and blood sugar), blue if it's too low, and red if it's too high. I'm pretty visual so it's been helpful for me. The nutritionist said she'd never seen anyone do something like that before. She sounded a mix of impressed and a little scared. But she did say I could just email it to her next week the day before I call and we could do all our stuff over the phone and avoid a trip into her office.

Oh, and Jackson had to get a shot one day, too. I went into the immunizations clinic to check and see when his next shots are due. I was trying to coordinate his appointment with his shots, because you can't do them even one day early and last time I ended up having to bring him back to the clinic like 3 days after his appointment to get the shots. Turns out there aren't 2 year-old shots, but he needed one to play catch up. The HIB vaccine went on shortage right when he was getting started on the series as a baby. It was a 4-shot series but due to the shortage, they dropped it to 3 shots, all of which he eventually got. Once the shortage was rectified they changed it back to a 4-shot series so he needed that last one. He's such a trooper though, he hardly ever cries about anything. He's had numerous bumps on the head, black eyes, etc. etc. etc. and rarely cries for more than a few seconds. He did have a hard time sleeping that night, but other than that, no ill effects.

On the Alex front, he is MOVING! Today he actually moved violently enough to cause me pain. I'm in for a long 2 1/2 months! Add hiccups to that and he's doing his best to be a constant reminder that I'm pregnant. His bedding came this week so his room is almost totally done. All that's left is when Mike gets home we have to hang all our pictures throughout the house and for the moment they're all in his room. Plus if Jackson's not potty trained we'll need a second changing pad for his changing table. Oh and my friend is making curtains for both boys' rooms and they're not done yet, so obviously I still have to hang those once I get them. Other than those minor things, it's done and I'm very glad it is!

I volunteered to make breakfast for Mike's squadron for tomorrow morning. They're doing readiness exercises this week and working 12 hour days. So we (the spouses) are making breakfast and dinner for them tomorrow. Got everything together tonight and just have to get up at 0430 to put it in the oven. I will definitely be napping with Jackson tomorrow!

If you're not on Facebook, you should be. If you're on Facebook but not my friend, you should be. I update that daily with little blurbs so it's much easier to keep track of what's going on with us (and much shorter to read because they limit how many characters you have).

That's all for this week!

Weekly Update 9/6/09

2009-09-06T19:32:00.007+09:00

What's this? An on-time weekly update?! Wow. Things must be slowing down in the Deiderich household. Yes. But only a little. Here is our week in review:

Monday--Jackson had a speech therapy appointment at 9. But Holly showed up at the door with a stack of files instead of her toy bag. Apparently the therapist before her didn't do all the paperwork she was supposed to when we first entered the program. So that meant our scheduled time was spent filling out forms and we had to reschedule his therapy for this coming week. Jackson was extremely angry that she did not have fish with her. And then proceeded to spend the next three days begging and crying for "Hah-yee". Nice.

We also got re-cultured for MRSA and those both came back negative. So Jackson is now officially MRSA-free and I will be after one more negative culture.

Tuesday--Nothing too major. We had to go to the WIC office for more vouchers. They give them to you 3 months at a time. So when we scheduled our next appointment, she said, "And make sure you bring the baby with you because we'll need to weigh him unless he's been weighed at the doctor the same day." Totally said it in passing like it was no big deal. I, on the other hand, about hyperventilated. The baby?! Three months?! Holy crap I'm gonna have another kid by the time these vouchers are done!

I mean, okay, so yeah, I'm pregnant and all. But I also spend literally 24/7 chasing an almost-two-year-old. I don't have time to think about the fact that I'm pregnant. Alex frequently demands attention by trying to shove his head and/or butt out the side of my stomach, or getting the hiccups. But there are still times I look in the mirror and am surprised to see a belly. So she sort of shocked me with the casual mention of him.

Wednesday was the lab. Oh the joyous lab. Three hour glucose test. Doesn't that just sound dandy? I diligently followed my >150 carbs, >2,200 calorie diet on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Then fasted (i.e. didn't eat breakfast Wed morning) and got to the lab bright and early. They drew blood four times. Once before we started, then every hour for three hours. It's still the same drink, but it has twice as much glucose in it (but not twice as much liquid). I seriously thought I was going to throw it up. Until close to the two-hour mark, I was very concerned about this possibility. If you throw up you have to do it all over again a different day. I soooo did not want to have to re-do this. I managed to keep it down and by the time she drew my blood after hour two, I was feeling much better. I kept myself occupied with my Nintendo DS and two books that I brought along. Once the three hours was up, I headed home to Jackson and Trysta (neighbor/friend/babysitter). I felt like I'd been hit by a truck. That's one of the top 10 most tired moments of my life. Jackson had been asleep since 9:45 and I got home at 11:15 so I figured I'd better not try to lay down because he'd be up any minute. He slept for another hour. Of course. Then I was trying to make lunch and I could barely spread the peanut butter on the bread because my hands were shaking so badly. That test can kiss my butt! Oh, and Jackson's extra-long morning nap meant no afternoon nap, which meant no nap at all for Mommy. I think I FELL into bed that night!

Thursday--Final inspection in the old apartment. We passed, yay! I'm not sure we should have, because I know there were some things not all the way done. But the inspector knew the whole situation with Mike gone, pregnant, toddler, etc. So I think he had pity on us and passed us anyways. Granted, it was CLEAN. But they want it to look like no one has ever lived there. Not sure it met those standards.

Friday--Considered making an earthquake kit. Started making the list for everything we need for it (according to some list made by someone in San Francisco) and decided it was going to cost at least $200. Then I found one online for $100 already put together. So I'm still debating. And maybe I should just get a big thing of water and call it good.

Saturday--Birthday party. We went to a party for one of my friends' daughter who turned three. That was definitely interesting. Jackson had a lot of fun running around and playing with the other kids. I had fun talking to the other mommies. He came home with a knot on his head (from running into the bracket that holds the railing onto a ramp they were running up and down--he bounced), and a bloody lip (umm....not really sure how he got that exactly). He's such a tough kid though he barely cried at all when he got the knot. And today it's pretty bruised and definitely still a knot. There were also bubbles and t-shirt painting (we focused on the bubbles and skipped the painting). So a few hours of lots of fun!

Today--POOL! It was the last day the outdoor pool is open this summer and we hadn't been once. I decided we weren't going the whole summer without taking advantage of it, so today we walked over and played for about an hour and a half. I was bored out of my mind, but he had a great time. The best part was the kiddie pool is 21" deep. Most are more like 6"-8" deep. So it came up to Jackson's chest. It made it much more fun for him (but also a little scary for me!). I think it used to be a hot tub just because of the size and depth of it. The big pool is way too deep even at the shallow end to take him in and you're not allowed to use floats, so we're limited to the kiddie pool. We'll definitely be going back on a regular basis next summer!

The big news this week was my glucose test. They called the day after the test to tell me I failed. Which means I have gestational diabetes. I went that day and picked up my monitor (and testing supplies) and am now testing my blood sugar four times a day. I'll meet with the nutritionist (hopefully Tuesday) to go over the diet they want me on. I'll follow the diet for a week and then the doctor will reevaluate to see if that's good enough for controlling my sugar or if I'll need to go on insulin. In the mean time, I've found some guidelines online that I'm trying to stick to. Basically counting carbs and having 30 for breakfast, 15 for snack, 45 for lunch, 15 for another snack, and 60 for dinner. I'm also basing my blood sugar goals from a few things I found online. <95 when I wake up, and <120 the other times I test, which is 2 hours after each meal. The nutritionist may change those numbers, but if I've got them right (or at least close) then I'll have a 5-day jump on the week-long diet trial. So far my numbers have been pretty close to those goals. The one after the birthday party (where I didn't eat any cake!) was 126, which kind of bummed me out since I tried to be pretty good. Now I've just got to work on finding good breakfast and snack options. Dinner is pretty easy and lunch isn't too hard either. But since I don't like eggs, and am allergic to nuts (two commonly recommended items), finding breakfast plans under 30 carbs and snacks under 15 is pretty tough. And I'm staying under the carb limits, but I'm hungry. A lot. I was worried when they first told me about the diet that since I normally eat a fairly healthy diet that changing wouldn't be enough and I'd have to do insulin. But since following those guidelines, I found out my diet might not have been too unhealthy, but I was eating a bunch of carbs and didn't know it! Now I'm thinking the diet alone will probably be good enough.

As it is, I've only gained 13 pounds this pregnancy (3 pounds below the minimum of what I should've gained by now--5 below the normal), and not any this week. My concern is that this diet is going to mean even less weight gain and possibly losing weight. Neither of those things would be good. But obviously not keeping my sugar under control would be worse. The nurse that showed me how to use the machine said basically as long as I keep things under control, Alex should be fine. They'll still monitor his blood sugar for the first 24 hours after he's born to make sure it doesn't bottom out since he'll still be producing extra insulin but won't be getting the extra sugar anymore. But if I don't do a good job controlling it, he could be big which could increase his chance of respiratory problems. Obviously it's pretty important to stick with this!

So that's our week in review. Tune in next week to hear about Jackson's first dental appointment! =)

Oh, I forgot to put these pictures up on last week's blog. Probably because I was too exhausted to think about it. So here they are (better late than never!)

Jackson's backpack from Daddy:

Jackson "helping" Mommy pack boxes:

Weekly Updates for 8/23/09 and 8/30/09

2009-08-31T11:05:00.006+09:00

I had this whole thing almost completely written and the computer locked up. Apparently auto-save didn't actually SAVE anything. So the second try isn't as thorough as the first. Lucky you.

Again, two weeks in one. And a day late, to boot! I'm really slacking on the whole weekly blog thing. Hopefully the insane business is on the decline and I'll be a little better at it in the coming weeks.

So here's the breakdown for week 1:
Monday--Housing office. No progress.
Tuesday--Cultured for MRSA. Jackson was negative, mine was positive. No big deal, 60% of people would test positive for having it on their skin. Antibiotic ointment in our noses twice a day for a week.
Wednesday--OB Appointment. Everything's fine. The doc didn't have access to the radiologist's report from the ultrasound, but he said he would call once he got a hold of it.
Thursday--Call from O.B. office. Ultrasound looked fine. Alex has a bit of a large head, and a smaller abdomen, which is the reason the head:abdomen ratio was high. His abdominal circumference was in the 26th percentile. They don't start to worry unless it gets to the 10th, so we're good for now. Also they told me to get my glucose test done ASAP. Normally it's done at 28 weeks (I'm 26 now) but I was supposed to do it at 16 because I now have an immediate family history of diabetes (Dad). Wright-Patt didn't tell me, and I didn't know since I didn't have the risk factor when I was pregnant with Jackson.
Friday--Glucose test. An hour in the lab. Yay. Halfway through my hand started itching. By the end of the day I had a few itchy spots. When I woke up Saturday morning I was covered head to toe in what I thought were bites. Turned out to be hives. After meds they were gone within a few hours. Also found out my MRSA test was positive.

Housing office story. Called Monday, still #4 on the list, still 13 total on the list. No one gets housing until there are a lot more units available than there are people on the list. Hmmm... I must've misunderstood that. Went in on Wednesday to clarify. Nope, I got it right. And no one gets housing during peak PCS (moving) season. When I started to ask how I would know when PCS season is over, she back pedaled and said, "Don't worry about peak PCS season, just know there aren't enough units available." Called Friday to find out how many units ARE available? Got put on hold forever, then the lady (different lady than Wed) came back and said she was going to talk to her supervisor and call me back. She called back 10 minutes later to tell me they were offering us housing. Gee, what a shock, you have LOTS of units available, and yet no one on the list is getting housing. THAT'S why you couldn't tell me how many you have! Anyways, the one they offered on Friday didn't have a laundry room and wasn't on the part of the base we really wanted to be on. I discussed this with the housing lady and she said there were some in the building right next to our current building. So Monday I declined the first offer, got a second offer, and accepted it. It made it really nice for moving that the buildings are right next to each other. Plus the second one is newer, and has a laundry room. YAY for no washer and dryer in the kitchen!

Week 2:
Monday--I asked Mike's first shirt for some help moving. He said he would round some guys up for me, no problem. I stopped by vehicle operations and arranged to rent their truck for moving day.
Tuesday--Jackson had speech therapy. It went pretty well. He loves Holly! One activity was designed to see if he could put items together based on color. There was a container with red toys and one with blue ones. Holly took each thing out and handed it to him and asked him what it was. When he'd say, "Shoe" or "Bear", she'd respond, "Red shoe" or "Blue bear." After they were both empty and all the things were on the ground, he had to put the blue ones in the container with the blue ball and the red ones in the container with the red ball. He understood the concept, but wasn't very good at it. He got more than 50% so he wasn't just guessing. She said, "Next time we'll just dump them on the floor and have him do them that way. He's so smart I think he just memorized which things came out of the same containers." Like, he knew the shoe, train, and boat went together, but not because he recognized they were all red. So we'll see how it goes next time.

Also on Tuesday we went to the housing office to sign final paperwork and set up inspections. YAY!

Wednesday--Pre-Inspection at the old apartment. The inspector that will do the final inspection came to tell me what all would have to be done to pass. Let's just say it's a LOT of cleaning! I had a dental appointment which went fine. We tried to go to the member appreciation dinner at the e-club but when we got there I found out it's adults only. Oops.

Wednesday afternoon I had a little scare with baby Alex. I thought I was leaking amniotic fluid. I called the FCU (again), they told me to come in and be checked (again) despite the MRSA. I did and everything was fine. They did a test to confirm it was NOT amniotic fluid, monitored his heartbeat and me for contractions (which I had none) and sent me on my way. A little scary, but fine in the end and also a reminder that, "Hey dummy! You're pregnant! Stop doing so much!"

Thursday was just last minute packing and wrapping things up at the old apartment. And a call from the OB telling me I failed my glucose test. So now I get to do the 3-hour version. Probably since I didn't eat anything for like 15 hours before my test my sugar spiked when I drank the stuff. The 3-hour test they actually take a baseline. But I have to eat at least 150gm of carbs and 2200 calories for the 3 days before the test. Doesn't sound hard (and it's really not THAT hard), but I still have to write down everything I eat and drink to make sure I hit it.

Friday--MOVING DAY!! I got up at 0515 to pack anything I wanted in the new apartment that couldn't be packed Thursday night (bedding, toothbrush, etc) and take apart bed frames. I think it's the first time I've had to set an alarm since I quit working. Jackson's a pretty reliable alarm clock; I never sleep past 0630 and he definitely doesn't come equipped with a snooze button! We left the house at 7 to stop and get donuts and drop Jackson off at the sitters. Then I came home and left the donuts for the volunteers (voluntolds), get paperwork, then back to pick up the truck from vehicle ops. When I got back they were enjoying the donuts and juice and were ready to get started. They were all really great and not one thing ended up broken. I met the housing guy at the new apartment at 9 to get the key and we were off! I bounced back and forth between apartments all day. Unpacking when I could, running errands when I had to (for more tape, pizza at lunch, and to pick up Jackson at the end of the day). They finished up at around 1800 and they had moved EVERYTHING! I thought I'd have to move clothes from the closets and maybe a few smaller/lighter boxes on my own on Saturday. Nope. I was really impressed by how hard they worked.

So between what little time I had in the new apartment on Friday, all day Saturday, and Sunday morning I got completely unpacked. For the second time in 6 months, I unpacked in 2 days without Mike. NOT something I want to get used to!! Although getting to start over with a spotless house is always nice. =)

So that's our two weeks in review. With all the medical stuff coinciding with the moving stuff it did get overwhelming at times. But it's all done with now.

Floor Plan

2009-08-24T13:59:00.002+09:00

No weekly blog this week! Packing and getting ready to move. This is the floor plan for our new apartment with my thoughts drawn in. I'm putting it here so Mike can see it. The photobucket site says it's full so I'll have to spend some time looking for a new alternative to that. Will do that after we're settled.

Weekly Update 8/16/09

2009-08-15T18:05:00.010+09:00

Okay, so here's this week's recap. Nothing on Monday except the usual housework and errands. One huge success for this week for me was actually getting done all of my scheduled housework for the week. NEVER happens!

Tuesday was earthquake #2. I was still scared/concerned. But MUCH calmer. I even waited about 5 seconds before getting Jackson to see if it would stop. It happened at 5am, so it pretty much shook me out of bed. It was pretty long, so I did end up getting Jackson, although he was awake anyways. I'm not sure if the shaking woke him or the noise the ironing board made bouncing against the laundry room door. Either way, he was UP and not having any part of going back to sleep, so we went ahead and started our day 2 hours early. Then we had speech therapy at 8. Normally he does pretty well and stays focused but by then he was ready for a nap and his attention span was noticeably shorter. Still productive though. He played a fishing game where he had a rod with a magnet at the end and there were fish on the floor that had magnetic mouths. Last time he did a puzzle with fish in it. So when we ran into Holly (the speech therapist) later at the commissary, it's no surprise that when she walked away he started signing "fish". It was really pretty cute.

Every quarter they do fire alarm tests in the building. They always estimate two days and it never takes that long. It seems like we JUST did it, but that's probably because we were gone for two months. They were doing our floor from 9am-11am. Even though I wrote it on my calendar, I forgot about it and put Jackson down for a nap as soon as Holly left at 8:50. He managed to stay asleep even though our alarm was going off repeatedly. Then about 10 the maintenance guys rang our doorbell so they could come test all our sensors. And Jackson woke up. Seriously? He slept through alarms and a loud voice saying, "Attention! There is a fire on the eighth floor! Please exit immediately!" but woke up because of the not-that-loud doorbell? Weird baby...

Also on Tuesday I had to go to the doctor. Getting an appointment was pretty hard since the base is doing exercises all week but it was urgent, so the OB saw me. Baby's fine, I'm fine, just had a UTI, which I knew as soon as I woke up (at 5am) that's what it was. Still had to wait until almost 3 to get meds, which made for a pretty long day. On the plus side I got to hear Alex's heartbeat which is always fun.

Tuesday night I went to Chilis with the key spouse for Mike's squadron. Not a big deal to anyone in the states, but considering it's the ONLY chain restaurant on base except fast food, it's a big deal here. Grand opening was Friday, but they were doing "test runs" during the week to try to get the servers ready. It was free food, so that's always nice. Service was slow of course and we had limited menu choices but it was still good. It'll be packed for the next month, maybe six so I doubt we'll be eating there again any time soon. I got a babysitter for Jackson because it was supposed to be 4 women, but the other two didn't show so Jessie brought her husband and two kids.

Wednesday we were supposed to go to a mall off base and play with some other friends and their kids in the play area I've talked about before. But I woke up with a migraine so we literally didn't leave the house at all.

Thursday there was another earthquake about 8am but I didn't feel it. That's one experience I definitely didn't mind missing out on. We had our regular Thursday playgroup in the morning. It's an age-specific one and Jackson usually has a lot of fun. It was no different than usual and there was lots of playing, singing, and coloring.

Friday we went to a farmer's market that I had heard about from some of the people in the Enlisted Spouse's Club. We met on base and carpooled to it so I didn't have to drive, which made me happy! It was WONDERFUL. I got a ton of produce (1 small watermelon, 4 baby cucumbers, 5 peaches, 5 tomatoes, 6 bananas, 6 potatoes, and 7 onions) for only $16. It would've cost at least twice that at the commissary and wouldn't have been nearly as good quality. I can compare peaches to peaches and know that the farmer's market ones were 1,000,000 times better. So we had watermelon with dinner and breakfast and still have a ton left. I put the cucumbers and some of the tomatoes in Italian dressing to marinate overnight. I had some with lunch Saturday and they were EXCELLENT. Between me and Jackson, we've eaten 4 peaches (mostly me) and 4 bananas (mostly Jackson) in 3 days. Potatoes are on the dinner menu for the week, the rest of the tomatoes are for taco night, and I'll chop the onions sometime today or tomorrow to freeze and cook with. It's all so yummy I think this may be the first time I don't let any produce go to waste!

Friday night was my friend Renee's birthday, so I babysat her two kids while she and her hubby went to dinner. Jackson acted like an idiot, but I think some of that was from getting so wound up. He's not used to having older kids (Karter is 4) to play with. He was definitely tired and went to bed as soon as we got home!

Saturday we were supposed to go bowling, but Jackson wasn't feeling well. He hadn't been feeling very well Friday after we got home either, and earlier in the day he'd had a runny nose. I'm assuming just a cold since he had a little bit of an elevated temperature, but not a fever. So like he usually does when he doesn't feel well, he spent most of Saturday in his crib. Not really sleeping, fussing a lot, but not crying, asking to get down, or telling me he was "all done." He finally fell asleep about 1545 but only slept until 1630. Obviously not a good day to start a new sport. We had burger king for dinner. By that point I'd spent most of the day going in and out of his room calming him down and rocking him, trying to get him to sleep since I knew that'd make him feel a little better. I was in no mood to cook and I don't usually plan meals for the weekend anyways. If there are leftovers, great, if not we just wing it. No leftovers, so we were winging it.

Saturday was also the day Camden had to report to Shawnee State. Wow. My little brother is starting college. VERY weird to think about!

Sunday (today) we went bowling. Mike's been bugging me for probably 6 weeks (or more) to take Jackson bowling. He's deployed with a guy that has a son a month older than Jackson who LOVES bowling. So today after he woke up from his afternoon nap (which was late so not until after 1730), we headed to the bowling alley. Dinner first, then bowling. I had decided since it was kind of late, we were just going to do one game and I was only going to help Jackson and not bowl at all myself. Which turned out to be a good decision since he couldn't carry the ball at all. It was only four pounds, and Mike thought he'd be able to, but there was no way. Maybe if it had a handle on it. So here's the video of what we did over and over (20 times to be exact):

64--Not too shabby for his first time! (Although he did have a ramp thing AND bumpers...)
Oh, and earlier this afternoon, he helped me with the laundry. He's helped me put the clothes into the dryer for a long time, but he's just now tall enough to help put them in the washer.

Later on Sunday night, just as I was getting ready to finish up this blog and was just waiting on the last video to load, the fire alarm started going off. In our apartment there's an alarm and a speaker, but neither of those were going off. The speakers in the hallway were. I couldn't understand what they were saying, so I had to open the door and listen. It took a minute to get through the Japanese announcement, then I heard it say there was a fire on the 7th floor and to please evacuate. Of course Jackson had JUST fallen asleep. So I put on flip flops, scooped him out of bed, grabbed my keys and went out the door. Then hoofed it down 8 flights of stairs carrying him. Then we got outside and maybe 1/3 of the people in our building actually bothered to leave. Nice. And he didn't have shoes on so I couldn't put him down at all. We were only gone maybe 10 minutes. I was chatting with Mom on Facebook and the time between my messages to her was 14 minutes, which included getting Jackson up and putting him back down. So not too bad! Nothing like when we were in TLF in Little Rock and they were all false alarms. This one was definitely real because I can still smell smoke even in our apartment, and REALLY in the hallways. It's probably stronger here since we're on the floor right above it. So that was our excitement for tonight. Let's hope for more than 2 days in a row without something (earthquake, fire, etc.) exciting happening this week!

All this week we've been working on moving Jackson into his big boy bed. I bought a second crib mattress so we could have one in the crib and one in the bed at the same time. This helped avoid me having to move the one mattress back and forth. Plus I figure he'll be in the toddler bed now until he's ready to move to a twin bed with no rail. And that probably won't be until Alex is ready for a toddler bed. So we were going to need two mattresses anyways. The progress is kind of slow, but I'm definitely seeing that he's making some. He's mad about sleeping in his crib now. We start every nap or bed time with him in the big boy bed. I remind him at least 3 times that he has to stay in his bed, because if he gets up he has to sleep in his crib instead. About a third of the time (always a nap, usually when he's completely exhuasted and falls asleep within seconds of laying down), he stays in his big boy bed. The rest of the time he gets up and then when I see him he runs to get back in his bed hoping I won't make him sleep in his crib. He's always VERY upset when I move him to his crib. Each time he gets up, we make it a little longer in the big boy bed before he does. So I'm not forcing the issue. He'll get there eventually and we still have almost 3 1/2 months before Alex will be here. And even then we don't HAVE to use the crib right away (although I'd prefer to put him in it for naps so he's used to sleeping in it).

I know it's super early, but I'm already thinking about Halloween costumes. Since Jackson was born in early October, and this is our last baby, this will be my only chance to be pregnant at Halloween. I'm determined to come up with something really cute and creative and Jackson and Mike will just have to play along. There may be a kids' party we take Jackson to, or it may just be the people that see us out trick-or-treating on base. Either way, I really want to go all out this year! Here are some ideas I've gotten so far. I'm not at ALL creative, so I'm dependent on other people to give me suggestions so I can pick the best one. If you have anything to add, let me know!!

Me--Pumpkin smuggler (they make t-shirts that say this on them); Mike--cop (arresting me for stealing the pumpkin); Jackson--Big pumpkin
Me--Box made to look like an oven; Mike--Chef; Jackson--Butter, jelly or honey
Me--Basketball painted on my belly; Mike--Basketball player or ref; Jackson--Ref or hoop
Me--Basketball painted on my belly; Mike & Jackson--Baseball, Football, Soccer ball, etc.
Me--Tree; Mike--Tree hugger; Jackson--Seed, little tree, or bush
Me--Nun; Mike--Priest; Jackson--Alter boy
Me--Cheerleader; Mike--Football player; Jackson--Football

Earthquake

2009-08-09T20:07:00.004+09:00

Jackson and I have official been initiated into the earthquake club. There was a small one tonight right after I put him to bed, about 8pm. My friend and neighbor Trysta and her husband David grew up in California. I called her and said, "Are we having an earthquake?!" And she said, "Umm... yeah, I just felt it." So I grabbed Jackson and we went over there. Of course by the time I hung up the phone it was over, but still, I felt safer being with people who knew what was going on. We felt it more than the people on lower floors since the building is on rollers and kind of sways, the higher up you are the more you sway. But I've gotta say, it felt a lot more like shaking than like swaying to me! I'm still a little freaked out, but really it's fine. It only lasted maybe 30 seconds. And, I found a website that said it's only a 2. http://www.jma.go.jp/en/quake/3/350/20090809200827391-091956.html The next one won't be as scary since I'll be more aware of what's going on... of course it might be stronger. Now, if only the typhoon would miss us.....

Photobucket Pictures

2009-08-09T13:35:00.005+09:00

Weekly Update 8/9/09

2009-08-04T07:38:00.004+09:00

The weekend was spent mostly in the house. Playing catch-up on sleep and trying to finish getting on Japan time. Mission accomplished!

Monday was pretty busy. The E-Club had membership appreciation free breakfast. Nothing major, but hey, free food! We also went to the WIC office to get transferred back here from being in the states. I called to check on swim lessons for Jackson, but they aren't doing the "Mommy & Me" classes this month and he's obviously too little for regular classes. We'll try again in September.

Monday night was the Enlisted Spouses Club (ESC) meeting. It was a potluck, and the theme was "bring something from your home state/country." So I made buckeyes. They were a hit!!! A few people had no clue what a (real) buckeye was so I pulled the one I keep in my purse for good luck out and showed them. Everyone was surprised that I carry one with me. =)

Tuesday, Jackson had a re-check for his MRSA. Well, I thought he had an appointment. There was some glitch in the system and when I booked it online it didn't go through. Luckily he has an awesome doctor who just let us come in his office, looked at the spot, then talked to me about it. He said he thinks the infection is gone, but put him on 4 more days of antibiotics just to be sure. It was probably just leftover skin discoloration. It' looks completely healed now. He also said that we'd both be tested via nasal cultures. Jackson to make sure it's gone, and me to make sure I don't have it. I'm really hoping they get that done this week because if I do have it and need to go on antibiotics, I need to have them finished before I hit my third trimester on the 23rd. So, we'll see.

Wednesday we babysat two kids so a friend and her husband could both go to OB orientation. It's her third (duh) so she didn't need the info, but it's mandatory. Her son is 4 and her daughter is 1. It was an interesting combo with the 3 kids. Karter plays a little rough, but we managed to keep things under control and no one got seriously injured. Jackson wore himself out, though and we had to come straight home and take a nap.

Thursday was speech therapy. It was our first session with the new therapist at our house. We'd had one short session at the EDIS office, but this was much more comfortable for Jackson. He really likes Holly and her bag of toys. She had lots of good things to say and gave me plenty to work on. A few highlights: no more sippy cups. Regular sized straws are okay, but phase out the sippies. Working on that! I'm picking up some tupperware cups today that have lids with a spout, but no valve, so if it tips it still spills, just not as fast as a regular cup. Also, she repeated what she had said before about signing. Stop signing anything he already knows and only use it to introduce a new concept or word. I've been trying to do this for a while, but sometimes the signing comes unconciously with the word when I say it. So now I'm really focused on keeping my hands still when I say things that he already knows. And she recommended getting some party toys that have different shaped openings to encourage him to make a seal with his mouth and use sustained blowing. We picked up some cheap ones at the BXtra the other day and if I see more I'll get them.

Friday we were at the BX and I saw a toddler bed that is regular $40 on sale for $20. So I snagged it. We came home and put it together and he took a nap in it right away. He did pretty well staying in it. Bedtime was a different story. I sat in a chair by his bed and it took 90 minutes of consistantly putting him back in bed when he got out, laying him back down when he sat up, ignoring cries for milk, rocking, etc. and finally he fell asleep. I was pretty excited that I stuck it out. He woke up at 5am like normal, and it only took 45 minutes to get him back to sleep. His morning nap was the same; 45 minutes but with the chair towards the end of the bed. I really felt we were making progress. Then came bedtime on Saturday. I had moved the chair by the door and after 2 hours of picking him up and putting him back in bed when he got out, my back was screaming. I just could not do it any more. And he was showing no signs of being almost asleep at all. I gave up and put his mattress back in his crib, put him in it and shut the door. I didn't hear a single peep. So maybe we'll hold off on the toddler bed for now. I'm going to rearrange his room to make room for the crib and the toddler bed both so he sees it and it's there in case he decides he wants to try again. Plus since we probably won't have a 3 bedroom until after Alex is born, they might have to share for a while. Not at night, but I'd like Alex to nap in the crib to be used to it, so having both set up will be better anyways.

Saturday was the deployed families' dinner. I was excited to see this on the calendar. It was at the Samauri Cafe. I found out after I signed up that that's the name of the chow hall. So I thought maybe they just used the chow hall since it already had the tables, chairs, dishes, etc. for the dinner. Nope. It was chow hall food. You signed in, then went through the line like normal, and at the end we just didn't pay. They had someone there to help us carry our trays (since most of us were carrying a kid), and also gave us a bag of stuff to take home with us. I was a little disappointed, but like the free breakfast, it was a free meal. So now that I know what's going on, I'll be better prepared for next time. And I later found out they make grilled cheeses so then I'll have some more Jackson-friendly meal ideas.

Today is a lazy day. We're having lunch with Trysta and dinner at home. Tomorrow we'll start all over with chores and activities. Sometimes the time seems to drag, others it seems to fly. It feels like we've been home for a lot more than 10 days!

Weekly Updates for 7/26/09 and 8/2/09

2009-07-28T02:21:00.028+09:00

Two weeks worth of updates in one. This should be a long one!

We spent Sunday night and Monday at Dad's in KY then came home Monday around dinner time. Jackson started getting tired and was ready to go home and go to bed, but we stayed a little longer to avoid Cincinnati rush hour. Good decision.

Tuesday and Wednesday were SHOPPING days. Sheila took me, Camden, and two of his friends to Bed Bath & Beyond. We spent almost 30 minutes digging through 5 shelves with curtains 3 packages deep to find some. It was actually kind of rewarding. After what I saved from everything being on clearance, plus enough 20% off coupons for each item, I spent $155 and saved $160. Not bad! That covered curtains for the living room and master bedroom. Wednesday we went in search of curtains for the kids' rooms (no luck!) which need 72" lengths. And also a duvet cover. We ended up back at BB&B where I picked out a duvet cover and exchanged the master bedroom curtains from burgundy (our current color) to brown (to match the new duvet cover I picked out.

After we got home on Tuesday, Uncle Cam Cam shared his Twix bar with Jackson. See, if it had been me, I would've given him bites. Instead, Camden handed him almost a whole bar. The following ensued:

Thursday was a big day for Mr. Jackson! Mom got him to go poop in the potty. He followed her everywhere, including the bathroom when she went. She was done and he squatted like he was going to poop, so she said, "Are you pooping?" "ah"(yeah), "Do you want to poop in the potty?" "ah". So she took his diaper off (which already had a little poop in it), and put him on the potty. He finished there, then wanted to wipe and flush 50 times. And wash his hands 100 times. Probably a one-time accomplishment for now, but I'm going to start trying to figure out the best way to go about potty training him without Mike. He's starting to show signs of being ready.

Thursday was also a doctor's appointment for Jackson. He had a suspicious spot on his butt that looked like a pimple, but of course turned out to be MRSA. We're pretty sure he got it when we were in OH since he kept signing "hurt" every time I put him in his car seat even before he was buckled. The doctor said that 60% of the abscesses they see now are MRSA, so she put him on antibiotics even before the lab results came back. As of now, it's looking much better. It stopped draining after a day and a half of antibiotics. We'll follow up with doctors here just to be on the safe side, but since we caught it pretty much immediately, I don't foresee any complications.

Jackson also played buddy-ump and this little piggy with MiMi and O'Sheila. It was a lot of fun for Jackson and very entertaining for those observing the craziness!

Friday was a fun day for me!! I had an ultrasound to look at Baby Alex, details in previous post. Also, some packing and laundry.

Saturday was a BIG day! The baby party for Alex, and the big reveal that it's a boy! The party was really fun. We had 16 adults and 5 kiddos. Four of them were born between August and October, 2007. It was really fun to see them interact with each other. Not that I saw a whole lot of it. Matt had the job of child-entertainer and did a GREAT job. (Can we say tent under the cake table?) It made it easier for the moms to play games, eat, etc. It was a lot of planning, but everything went off without a hitch and was all worth it in the end. I'm really glad we got to have a party for Alex.

Then came Sunday. The beginning of the trip back to Japan. I was dreading the trip but looking forward to being home. Surprisingly, the 3+ days of travel went by pretty quickly. Some of you already received this in an email, but I'm just copying and pasting since I already did it once:

(All times local to the location)
Sunday July 26th
0415 Depart Tipp City for airport—actually left more like 0430. It was an early morning!

0615—Depart Dayton (DAY) on Continental Flight #2367 seat 11A
Mom and Sheila got gate passes and entertained/wore out Jackson in the gate area and on the escalators while we waited to board, which was only about 30 minutes. Jackson slept about 2 hours of the 2.5 hour flight. I slept pretty much that whole time, too.

0745—Arrive in Houston (IAH)
We found the USO in our terminal and hung out there and ate some snacks while we waited for our flight. We got to the gate area just as they were boarding “people who need extra time” (that’s us!).

0855—Depart Houston on Continental Flight #1767 seat 28C
The plane left a few minutes late, but nothing significant. It was a big plane, with 3 seats on each side of the aisle. We had an aisle seat, but the two girls in the seats toward the window were with the girl in the seat across the aisle so I switched with them. Jackson and I are better off in a window seat anyways. They were 12, 14, and 14. It was really nice because they were playing with Jackson some and pretty much could’ve cared less that he was being squirmy the first three hours of the flight. They were going home to Seattle after being in FL for a tennis tournament. The 12 year old and one 14 year old were sisters (Maddy and ALEXANDRA—Alex =), and the other 14 year old was their cousin. They were really nice girls. About 1000 Jackson fell asleep finally and woke up as the front of the plane was emptying and I was putting his shoes on.

1118—Arrive in Seattle/Tacoma (SEA)
Baggage claim was uneventful, but Jackson was pretty tired and hungry at this point, so he was fussy. I couldn’t hold him since I was getting our suitcase and his stroller all situated. I called Days Inn and they said the shuttle was already on the way. It took a while to get to the Ground Transportation area where the shuttle pick up is, and I thought I might have missed them, but just as I called back to check on the status of the shuttle it pulled up. Car seat installation was a breeze and there was enough room in the back that they didn’t even have to fold the stroller when they put it in there, which was nice!
Hotel in Seattle:
Days Inn Seattle South Tukwila
13050 48^th Ave South
Seattle, WA 98168
206-241-2200
Confirmation # 58552155
Check in was a breeze even though we were 3 hours early and she made sure to give me a ground floor room. The hotel wasn’t anything spectacular, but was REALLY clean. I could tell our nonsmoking room had been smoked in before, but that’s pretty much a given anywhere. Small fridge and microwave in the room. The bathroom was nice and had zero mildew—pretty unusual for a motel. We walked to the restaurant next door for lunch. It was decent food. Nothing spectacular, but edible and decent prices. It was completely deserted at 1245 though, so that may say something. It was pretty lacking in any kind of welcoming atmosphere, but it was at least a sit-down hot meal. Then we walked to the gas station next to the restaurant and got milk and Gatorade for our stay and came back to the room. We were both pooped and took naps. I fell asleep about 1415 but Jackson was up and down until almost 1500. He woke up briefly at 1615, and I put him in bed with me. I woke him up at 1800 so we could go to dinner. Jack In the Box. Yum. We both barely touched our food, though. I guess neither of us was very hungry. He was asleep by 2000 and I was too shortly after.

Jackson sleeping in MOMMY'S bed! I love how he crosses his ankles.

Monday July 27^th1115—Depart hotel for airport—actually didn’t leave until noon since the shuttle was only hourly and I knew we’d still have plenty of time to get through security.

1340—Depart Seattle/Tacoma (SEA) on Northwest Flight #5134 seat 14A
Shortest flight ever. Although I’ve never flown from Cincinnati to Dayton, so I’m sure that’s shorter, but still. Totally uneventful minus some kicking of the guy’s seat in front of us.

1435—Arrive in Vancouver, BC (YVR)

Never without his Daddy Doll.

Hotel in Vancouver
CoastVancouver Airport
1041 Marine Dr. SW
Vancouver, BC V6P6L6
604-263-1555
Expedia Itin #128537439876
This was a really nice hotel. It got some pretty shady reviews online, but was only $80/night with a free airport shuttle. Everything else I could find was twice that. So I figured we’ll just deal with whatever it’s problems are since it’s only for one night. It was fine. The hallways weren’t air conditioned, but the rooms had very good window units, so we stayed comfortable. Dinner was in the attached White Spot Restaurant downstairs. Worst service I’ve had in a long time. Maybe there’s some secret Canadian signal to get your server’s attention. I had to ask for a water refill three times, and therefore ate my entire meal with nothing to drink. Then I had to ask for the check twice. Dinner took almost two hours, and the last half-hour was after we had both finished eating and were just waiting to pay. I can’t remember the last time I felt compelled to leave $.01 for a tip, but I left 10% instead.

Then we walked to Safeway for some milk, powerade and a banana (which never got eaten). There wasn’t a fridge in our room, so I made do with ice buckets and cold water. The walk was a decent distance, probably 20-30 minutes. Uphill on the way there, which was nice for the way back when I was pretty exhausted from pushing Jackson in the double stroller.

It was another early night, with both of us in bed by 2100. Jackson fell asleep right away, I read until close to 2200 before completely passing out. Travel is exhausting, no matter how smoothly it goes! I also had a sore back from either lifting the suitcase a bunch, having the backpack on all the time, or a combination of both.

Tuesday July 28th

Breakfast was White Spot again. I figured we’d give it another shot. Still pretty crappy service, but not quite as bad as the night before. It was decent food, but not exactly great. I guess kind of expensive, although it was all in CAD so it wasn’t as expensive as it first appeared.

After breakfast, Jackson napped, then we got up and had lunch. I was NOT going to White Spot again, so we found a little place called Cravings Bistro about a block away from the hotel. I had a very yummy strawberry/spinach/chicken salad and soup, and Jackson had fries and some of my chicken. Then we went back to the room and finished packing before heading downstairs for the shuttle.

1300—Depart hotel for airport

1515—Depart Vancouver (YVR) on Japan Airlines Flight #11 seats 39A and 39B
Oh the flight. The dreaded 10 hour flight. The car seat was too big to fit, so we had to gate check it with the stroller. I was sure we were doomed without it. Turns out we were probably better off. Jackson fell asleep within a few minutes of take off for a nap. He woke up after an hour and a half in a great mood, and ate his dinner. (FYI for anyone flying Japan airlines. Order yourself the kid’s meal. He got just as much food as I did, but his was way more appetizing!) Then we watched cartoons on our video screens for an hour. He was hilarious with the headphones. He wanted them on so he could hear, but every time I put them on, there would be music and he’d start to dance in his seat and they’d fall off. In the end, we watched without sound. Then he went to sleep for what would’ve been his normal bed time. For when he was sleeping, I used an airline blanket to make a tent by draping it over the back of his chair and the video monitor in front of him. I tried to figure out a way to keep air circulating because whenever I stuck my head in, it was super stuffy. He wanted no part of that. If he was awake and I lifted up a side to check on him, he reached over and pulled it back down. He probably laid in his seat-tent for almost an hour, awake and perfectly happy! He did eventually go to sleep and so did I. He woke up about 10 minutes before we landed, pretty unhappy. I think his ears were bothering him, and he was still VERY tired since it was 1am Seattle time.

Wednesday July 29^th1705—Arrive at Narita (NRT)
Then the drama. The only kink in our whole entire three day trip. The car seat and stroller didn’t get delivered gate-side like they were supposed to. The flight attendant had told me it would take a while to get it delivered, and she would help me with my bag (just a backpack), so to wait after we landed and she’d come get me. Okay, whatever. Then she came to get me after everyone was off the plane and we went and sat in a seat right by the door. I had no idea at this point what we were waiting on. Turns out, the stroller got delivered to baggage claim with the luggage. So they went to their little office and got one of their airport strollers for me to use. I was on the plane a full 30 minutes longer than any other passengers by the time they got there with it. So I RAN through the health screening and immigration (always a problem for us until they finally understand we’re military). At this point, all the immigration officers are gone since there are only a few people waiting to get through, so we actually waited a long time. Then when I got down to where baggage claim was, there was a closed off gate that said “No Admittance” blocking where I needed to go to get our stuff. We got that straightened out and they let me through. I collected and arranged the stroller, car seat, Jackson, back pack, and suitcase and went through customs (easy since we never have anything to claim).

Then I was off to find the shuttle to the base. It was in another terminal. So I had to board a bus (with stroller and suitcase) to go to the other terminal. I had to stop and ask again where the bus was parked, and got good directions. By the time I got to where it should be, it was 1818. Thanks to sitting on the plane for so long, I missed the 1800 shuttle. I cried. Twice. It had been a long day despite my great fortune with Jackson sleeping. I was exhausted, hot, pregnant, and frustrated. But we just went back inside the airport to sit until 1930 when we could load our stuff onto the bus. It wasn’t that bad, I was just mad that I knew if Mike had been with me, he would’ve said something and we would’ve never sat on the plane for that long and probably would’ve made the earlier shuttle.

1800—Depart Narita on base shuttle—didn’t make this one and had to wait for the 2000 shuttle. The last shuttle of the day stops at New Sanno, which is a military resort. It only added about 30 minutes to our trip, but at that point it was 30 minutes I wasn’t happy about. Not to mention that Jackson and I were the only ones on the shuttle and no one got on there, either.

2000(approx)—Arrive at the base—got back to base about 2230, and home to our apartment by 2300. We were pretty hungry since Jackson slept through the second meal on the plane and I couldn’t eat it since it was a deli meat sandwich and a cookie with nuts. I had a bowl of soup, he had a granola bar and about 20 Nilla wafers. The fridge was totally empty. We were in bed and asleep by midnight, then up at 0730. Jackson had a hard time falling asleep for his nap, but slept from 1030-1315 when I woke him up.

He was a CRANKY boy and definitely not ready to get up. We went to the bank, the post office, quick stops at the BX and commissary, then Burger King for lunch and home. We ate our lunch and then he crashed. It was only 3, but I thought he MIGHT just nap. No luck. Around 5 I woke him up, changed his diaper, put jammies on him, and laid him back down. Then I went to bed, too. He woke up briefly at about 10, then again at midnight. I put him in bed with me at 2 where he messed around for an hour before finally falling back asleep. Then we were up for the day on Friday at 0600. ALMOST back on a normal schedule.

I'm going to assume nothing interesting will happen in the next two days and post a little early since it's already so much in one post. I'll put any weekend stuff in the next blog on 8/7.

It's A....

2009-07-28T02:10:00.003+09:00

I'll post the weekly blog later today or tomorrow... or the next day. I have some pictures to upload and it's going to be a long blog. I might just combine 2 weeks worth into one since we'll be majorly jet lagged for about a week.

Anyways, just a quick note for now. In case you didn't get a call, text, email, facebook update, or see the puzzle reveal at the party.... It's a BOY! Alexander John Deiderich. (Maybe AJ when he's older if he wants, but Alex for now). There's zero question. Just like Jackson, he was very cooperative for the ultrasound. In fact, their ultrasound pictures are from the same angle and look almost identical. It was a 45 minute ultrasound that was pretty fun to watch. They measured EVERYTHING imaginable. Internal organs, bones, spine curve, heart rate, etc. etc. etc. Everything measured normal except his head circumference is bigger than his abdominal circumference. The ratio is off enough to be out of normal limits, but the doctor thinks it just means he has a big head. Mike has a big head, Jackson has a big head, so probably just a genetic thing. We'll know by the end of the week for sure, but no one really seemed concerned about it. Also, he's measuring almost a week ahead. At the ultrasound I was 20 weeks, 5 days and he measured at 21 weeks, 3 days. They're keeping my due date the same (December 6th) because the earlier ultrasounds are more accurate for claculating a due date. And they said that all that really means is I have big babies. Since Jackson was 8#3oz at 11 days early, I was basically thinking, "Duh!" =) Soooo glad that I'm having another c-section.

Some people have been asking about gifts. Especially since it's another boy, we really don't need much. If anyone is interested, amazon.com gift cards are really helpful. There is a video monitor that I picked out on amazon. I also want the extra camera for Jackson's room, and the internet adapter to be able to turn it into a webcam so everyone can see the boys whenever they want to online via a secure website. It's pretty expensive. And we did pick out a new bedding set for Alex. There are a few other minor things I'd like to get, too. Everything is on the baby registry at amazon.com, if anyone wants to see the bedding pattern we picked (fire trucks).

Weekly Update 7/19/09

2009-07-14T08:38:00.006+09:00

Cleveland
BDP--part 2
Dad's

Monday was our zoo trip. LOTS of fun in Cincinnati. We had a large group to say the least. Me, Jackson, MiMi, Grampers, Ben and Amanda (cousins), Camden and three of his friends (Joel, Jordan, and Matt Eads), and O Sheila and Uncle Don. We stopped at Perkins for breakfast, as usual and then on to the zoo. Before we went in the boys had to have a huddle in the parking lot.

First stop was the reptile house. We saw aligators and turtles. There were snakes and stuff, too but Jackson wasn't real interested in anything else.

There was an "encounter" with a cat-like animal.

One of the tigers had cubs, and they were VERY cute!

Of course we couldn't go to the zoo without visiting Mike's FAVORITE. The polar bears. They weren't very active and were quite stinky, so I snapped one picture and left.

One of the biggest highlights for Jackson was the new stroller. I got a double stroller since we'll need one for the upcoming baby and it was a great deal. I brought it with me from Japan, but took the back seat off to make room to haul the car seat around the airport. It folds up the same size as our single stroller, so it just made sense. But I didn't anticipate Jackson loving the sit-n-stand on the back. He really enjoyed standing on the back and sitting on the jump seat. I didn't bring the buckle to strap him onto it since I thought he'd sit up front, but he was still pretty good about staying put where he belonged.

The next day was the BIG HAIRCUT. Jackson's first. I was very excited, and he had watched MiMi cut OSheila's hair beforehand and was pretty anxious to have his done. Luckily it was Daddy's day off so he got to watch the experience via webcam. Turns out he didn't really want to sit still. But two hours later it was done. Mom just had to follow him around the house and cut when she could. Might be a problem for the next one since we're pretty sure no barber is going to do that. For the rest of the week whenever Jackson sees the hair scissors he says, "more" and wants more hair cut off. I didn't take an actual "before" picture, but here's one from the zoo the day before side by side with the "after" picture.

He really looks less like a baby and more like a little boy now!

Wednesday was a return trip to Boonshoft. More playing in the shredded tire fossil pit:

And sometimes I forget how little Jackson is for his age. He's almost always been in the 20th percentile for height and weight. The kid standing next to him is a month younger than Jackson.
He and pregnant Mommy went crawling through the tunnels. Fun fun. You can't tell really in the picture, but that mirror is inside one of the tunnels.

He also insisted on Mommy getting into the truck with him.

Then he found a recycling truck to drive. There was some other kid in it who ended up getting trapped in the passenger seat because Jackson refused to get out of the driver side. Luckily, he was a REALLY nice little boy. He even entertained Jackson and showed him how the buttons worked. I wish I could've found his parents to tell them what a great kid they have.

Then we found the truck that digs in the garbage at the landfill. He wasn't real sure how to work it and was starting to get sleepy, so he definitely insisted on Mommy's help.

Thursday we left for Cleveland. My favorite band was playing at Wilbert's downtown and even though I just saw them two weeks ago, I wasn't passing up the chance to see them again. Plus we got to visit with my cousin Amber (plus unborn twins) & Gary V, and Aunt Teresa & Uncle Gary. Then Saturday was my cousin Todd's daughter Ella's birthday party. The concert was decent, but not one of their better shows. The crowd wasn't as great as it is when they play in the South because they don't have as much of a fan base up North. Still fun for me though. And of course I talked to the band for a long time after they were done playing. Which is always fun! Saturday was the party and the drive home. For some reason the drive home always feels longer than the drive there!

Now it's Sunday and we're at my dad's house in KY. Currently Jackson is fighting a much needed nap. He did fall asleep for a SHORT nap on the way here.

Once he naps and wakes up we'll head to Grammy & PaPa's for dinner, then back here to spend the night. Back to Dayton tomorrow after dinner.

That's all for this week. Right now the plan is to write next week's blog on Saturday night after the baby party for Alex since we'll be travelling on Sunday. And Monday. And Tuesday. We'll just have to see when it actually gets done. But look for BIG NEWS in the next blog, whenever it may come.

Weekly Update 7/12/09--a day late

2009-07-12T08:33:00.009+09:00

So yeah, this one is a day late. We were traveling yesterday and I didn't get a chance to do it last night. Oh well.

We went to Imagination Station on Monday. Jackson had a lot of fun. It was kind of cloudy outside, so it was a good day to go. He drove the ambulance
and then got distracted from driving and was looking for the cell phone on the seat next to him.

Then he rode the horsey. I think this is one of my all-time favorite pictures of him.

When Grandpa asked him if he was swimming he said, "Yeah" so I guess this is his idea of the breaststroke.

His idea of boat-entrance

Doing laundry

Jet skiing!!

In the fire truck

Grandpa rocking him on the zebra

On Thursday we left NC for OH. What a long trip! Not as long as our Japan-Dayton trip was, but still tough. It was 8 1/2 hours of drive time, plus an hour and ten minutes of stops. Jackson only slept for an hour of that, so there was a lot of singing from me and Grandma. But we made it. Thursday night we went to dinner at Mike's aunt Barb and her husband Eddie's house. Their son was there with his two boys (ages 2 and 4) so Jackson had someone to play with. We also got to see Mike's second cousin Stefanie and her new baby, Colt. He's 3 months old, but was 2 months premature, so is about the size of a 1 month old. He's pretty cute!!

On Friday we hung out at Bonnie and Steve (another cousin)'s house until a lot of people left to go to the dog track. Jackson and I went back to the hotel and Andy and Char went back to Barb & Eddie's. Saturday was the reunion and Jackson had a blast! It's at a lake and Grandpa took him to wade in the lake. He got a little overzealous and ended up soaking the bottom of his outfit. He also got filthy dirty playing in the sand and dirt. He played on swings, slides, and all kinds of stuff. Mike's cousin Aaron who has 2 kids--Kyle, 4 and Abby, 2--helped Jackson with the pinata. Jackson was the youngest kid there (except Colt), and he didn't quite understand the pinata concept, but it was a good effort.

Sunday we met MiMi and OSheila at Cracker Barrel in Columbus. Jackson was very excited to see them after being away for a month. After lunch, we said goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa and went with MiMi and OSheila back to Tipp City. Jackson did much better for that short trip. The combination of having MiMi in the back instead of Mommy and it being a much shorter drive made it easier for him, I think.

We went to the zoo today, but I'll save that story for next week since I should've technically written this yesterday before the zoo trip. =)

Tomorrow's Trip

2009-07-09T10:23:00.002+09:00

I'm in bed right now and writing this blog in my sleep. Tomorrow we are driving from NC to OH for Daddy's family reunion. Google maps quotes it at 8 1/2 hours. With stops it'll be at least 9 1/2 hours since speedy Daddy isn't driving (he could make it in 8 1/2 with stops!). And I don't like to be in the car. And I have a hard time sleeping in my car seat. And Mommy will be in the back seat, and with her back there I don't understand why I can't be held and sit in her lap. It's going to be a very long day. Mommy suggested ear plugs for Gauy, Grandma, and herself. Daddy suggested a muzzle for me. I don't think either one will work. Hopefully everyone takes their patience pill in the morning! And gargles with salt water, because there will be LOTS of "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "Wheels on the Bus", and "Hush Baby Jackson". MAYBE I'll fall asleep at some point. But I'll definitely be glad to have THAT trip over with.

Weekly Update 7/5/09

2009-07-02T04:09:00.016+09:00

Lots of updates this week!

First, we discovered Jackson has an obsession with hats. And it's not enough for him to wear a hat, YOU have to wear one, too.

Second, we went to Myrtle Beach. We left last Sunday and came home on Wednesday. The car ride there wasn't exactly great. Jackson doesn't nap easily in his car seat, and it's even less likely if there's someone in the back seat with him. I think maybe because he can see you, and expects you to get him out of his seat. He screamed the last hour on the way there. Not looking forward to the 8 1/2 hour (PLUS stops) drive to Ohio this week.... But that didn't stop me from trying to get him to nap anyways. I came prepared with Puppy Blankie, his blanket and of course Daddy Doll.

The place we stayed had a perfect room setup for us. It was a 2-bedroom condo, and the second bedroom had its own mini fridge, microwave, bathroom, and door to the hallway. Plus there was a door that could be shut from both sides (like connecting rooms in a hotel) so it could've been its own separate hotel room. There was a full kitchen with dishes, living room, and two balconies. NICE. The pool area had a small indoor pool, a lazy river, a kiddie pool, and an outdoor sprinkler play area that Jackson LOVED.

On Monday, we got up and had breakfast then went down to the pool and the beach. Mike's parents didn’t join us for a while and while we were by ourselves, Jackson and I floated on a raft in the lazy river. That was GREAT FUN. We probably did that for 20-30 minutes, which is a long time for him to participate in any activity, especially one where the main focus is sitting. But he was sleepy so I think he enjoyed it. We splashed each other and made fish faces back and forth then giggled hysterically. Too cute that monkey boy! But of course the first glimpse of Grandpa ruined that serene moment. Grandpa took him to the beach some

while I laid in a lounge chair in the sun and read and napped.

He got sand everywhere, including his face.

And Grandma went zoom zoom with him in the pool.

Then a quick rinse and lunch (peanut butter & jelly) and nap time. Took over an hour and a half to get him to sleep, but he had been sleepy for almost 2 hours, so whose fault was that? Mine. But he was having too much fun, I didn’t want to drag him away from the pool for a nap even though he signed tired/sleepy more than once. Oh well. Once he was finally asleep Mike's dad and I left for the outlets. Jackson got 4 one-piece zip-up footed pajamas, one pair of pants that turns into shorts, and one winter outfit--a one-piece with a bear on the butt. All in 24 month sizes. I splurged on a skirt at Motherhood. It was $50, and not on sale. But it is super cute and insanely comfortable. So I bought it. I shouldn’t have since it was so expensive, but I just couldn’t resist. I've worn it a bunch so far and plan on wearing it a ton over the next 6 months.

We got home less than 5 minutes after Jackson woke up from his nap. The scene when I walked in the door was hilarious. Andy dropped me off close to the hotel before he parked the car. So I came up to the room alone. Jackson was in the corner on Grandma’s lap or at least looking at her. I was halfway in the room before he finally saw me. He looked up, got slightly excited, and started running. I squatted down, and held my hands out to pick him up and he ran right past me to the door to see where Grandpa was. Little shit. =) He sure does love his Grandpa!! Then more beach and more pool and more lazy river and more zoom zooming in the big pool with Grandma.

Then bath time and off to dinner. We went to Captain George’s tonight (the one with the big ship in the middle and crab legs). Jackson ate like a pig. I think he’s working up quite an appetite with all the playing and none of the snacking. Jackson was soooo exhausted that he went down pretty easily. I had to go in once to fix his blanket but after that he only cried for a few minutes.

After he was down I went out on the balcony with Mike's parents for a while. It was really nice out there at night when it cooled off and there was a nice breeze. During the day it was pretty hot so unless you were in the water you were miserable. Although I don’t think it’s been quite up to 114 here, like it has been in Kuwait as early as 0930.

Baby Alex loves seafood, including crab legs. Lots of kicking after dinner especially.

Tuesday was pretty much more of the same. Pool, etc. in the morning just me and Jackson, then attempted nap, lunch, and then nap for real. We had PB&J for lunch again, but this time on the balcony. He was being goofy, but really enjoyed lunch outside I think.

Then more beach, pool, sprinkler in the afternoon.

Bath, dinner, and bed. Dinners were definitely interesting. Sunday was Angelo's (Italian), Monday was Captain George's, and Tuesday was Bennett's. All buffets, and Jackson went to town! Angelo's he ate so much we were all done and waiting on him to finish his pizza before we could leave. Bennett's had corn on the cob which we have learned he is a major fan of.

On the way home from the beach on Wednesday, we were about 30 minutes from Mike's parents' house when Jackson started saying something that we hadn't heard before. No one could figure out what he wanted. He was saying, "Gaauy." Sounds almost like guy but with extra vowels at the beginning. Char finally figured out he was saying, "Grandpa." Of course. So now he says it alllll the time.

After we got home we bought Mike some gloves to replace some that fell out of his pocket at work. Jackson had to try them on before we mailed them to Daddy.

On Friday, I went to a Benjy Davis Project concert in Southern Pines. They have a little mini festival during the summer called First Friday that is, duh, on the first Friday of every month from May-October. It is pretty neat. But of course I wasn't there for the festival, just the music. I couldn't believe my luck getting to see them for free and like 5 miles from Andy & Char's house. I would've driven MUCH FURTHER than that!

The show was awesome as expected. Even more so because I told a couple of the guys before the show I had come from Japan and that had to be some kind of record for furthest traveled to a BDP show. They agreed. I got a shout out, AND they played my favorite BDP song that they usually don't do at concerts. Well, that they've never done at any of the other 5 I've been to, despite repeated begging. =) I spent some time after talking to them and am looking forward to getting to see them again in Cleveland. One of my friends in Little Rock teased me and said I probably just came to the states to see them in concert and it had nothing to do with visiting family.

Our Fourth was uneventful. I tried to get Jackson's naps timed just right, with one around 11 (check) and another around 4 (didn't happen), so he could stay up late and watch fireworks. By eight he was done. We wouldn't have been home until 10 or later, so I just put him to bed. He really enjoyed them last year, but he's more demanding with his sleep now. Maybe next year.

This morning Grandma discovered if she sings, "Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom ba-boom" Jackson dances like an idiot. Very cute. He also imitates whatever you do with your hands (clapping, hitting your legs, swinging them in the air like a monkey). So we've taken turns doing that all day.

He also LOVES itsy bitsy spider and if you sing he can do almost all the motions (when he's in the mood).

This afternoon, we went to Cannon Park again because it was cloudy (and therefore cool) and still decent weather. We tried to leave the first time and when I was putting Jackson in his car seat he signed "sleepy" and tapped my shoulder the way he does when he wants to lay his head down on it. I asked if he wanted to take a nap and he said "ah" which is "yeah" in Jackson-speak. So in we came to take a nap. He laid quietly for about 20 min, started crying, and refused to nap. So up we went and back out to go to the park. He had a great time swinging and sliding as usual. Eventually it started to sprinkle and we had to come home. Now he's watching Lady and the Tramp with Grandma and Grandpa. Fun times.

Weekly Update 6/28/09

2009-06-28T09:58:00.002+09:00

I'm doing the weekly update early this week. We're leaving for the beach tomorrow morning around 11. And while I'd probably have time to write it before we go, I don't really want to take any chances on forgetting. The condo we're staying in has wireless internet, but no telling if it'll be free or not.

Not much has happened this week. I got a new game for the Nintendo DS Mike bought me before we parted ways in Japan. It's called Brain Age and I LOVE IT! It's the main reason I wanted the DS in the first place. In two days I've already dropped my brain age from 45 to 34. The ultimate goal is 20 but I'd settle for just 26. =)

Jackson has been having fun with Grandma and Grandpa. Especially Grandpa. They go on walks a lot and now Jackson can say walk ("wa"). Today they found a water drainage ditch (dry) and he was fascinated. He also likes for Grandpa to take him to the yellow ribbon on their tree so he can touch it.

Daddy Doll was broken again (accidentally moved the voice recorder switch from play to record) but it's fixed. Hopefully for good. I taped it down this time. Fingers crossed. Jackson's glad to have it working again. He loves hearing Daddy's voice!

Jackson has been a tad difficult where sleep is concerned this week. He's been refusing naps which makes bedtime harder. Not sure if he misses Daddy, or what. But he's been needing some extra cuddle time, too.

We're looking forward to the beach this week. And I'll try my hardest not to dunk him under a wave this time around! Look for pictures in next week's update.

That's it for now! Short and sweet.

Weekly Update 6/21/09

2009-06-22T00:05:00.008+09:00

First of all, the two most important things to say today are: "HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!" and "HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!"

I can't believe Mike and I have been married six years. I can't believe Mike and I have ONLY been married six years. It seems like just yesterday we were walking down the aisle, yet it seems like we've been married forever. I can barely remember how things were before I met him. We've both accomplished so much in the past six years! I'm very proud of him!!

On to the weekly update. On Monday we flew from Dayton to Raleigh where Mike's dad picked us up and drove us home to Pinehurst. We settled in quickly (including a nap for a very cranky Jackson). The flights were both fine and uneventful. We changed planes somewhere. I've been through so many airports in the last 3 weeks I can't keep track anymore.

Wednesday afternoon we went to Cannon Park in Pinehurst. It has lots of fun things for kiddos to do and Jackson had fun playing there when we visited in February. He had a good time this time around, too, but it was much hotter so we couldn't stay as long. And now he can go up steps (not a ladder) and slide down a slide all on his own. So he really likes to do that, and he also really likes the swings.

On Wednesday evening, Andy and Char took Jackson to a Jungle Safari traveling animal display. I had a headache and stayed home but Jackson liked it so much we went back on Thursday when Jada was here. Jackson's favorite part was the camel.

He liked feeding the goats the first day, but when we went the second day he was getting a little sleepy and was more interested in being held.

We had a nice time visiting with Jada while she was here on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Saturday before Jada left we went to Chili's for lunch. Jackson had his first corn on the cob and LOVED it. It took a little coaching to get him to figure out how to get the corn off the cob, but once he got the hang of it he really went to town. Looking forward to a repeat performance at the Deiderich family reunion.

And of course today is Father's Day. We're going to lunch soon to celebrate. And little Alex is just moving up a storm lately. Can't wait to find out what we're having on July 24th!

Weekly Update 6/14/09

2009-06-15T08:23:00.002+09:00

Don't worry Mike, this week's update will be much shorter.

Tuesday was the trip to the Tipp City Family Aquatic Center. (aka the pool.) It was lots of fun for everyone! They had a play thing in the middle of the big pool that was a lot like the one in Guam. He hates to have water on his head, but MiMi put him on the slide just past the water sprayer, I caught him and OSheila helped him walk back around to MiMi. He also floated around the pool in his new car float we bought him. There was another water slide that had a set up similar to what would be at a water park. The water just flowed down from the sides, so nothing to be on Jackson's head. It wasn't in a pool, just on the ground, and had a pad at the end for the kids to land on. The pad wasn't big enough though, and a lifeguard had to stand at the end with one of those foam lifesaver things to act as a bumper pad. With a little help up the steps, Jackson could go down by himself and get caught at the bottom. We could barely get him away from the slide. It was also difficult to explain that he needed to walk instead of run. In the same area there was a frog that squirted water out its mouth. But it would stop for a few seconds and then start again. When it stopped, Jackson looked in its mouth to see where the water went. Then got squirted in the face. Funny for everyone watching, but not so much for Jackson.

Thursday I had an appointment at Wright Patterson with an OB for baby Alex. Heartbeat was 158 which was good. They also took blood to do a quad marker screen to test for the potential to have some genetic problems. I expect it to come back normal and I'll find out at my next appointment what the results are. We also scheduled my next appointment (July 20th) and the ultrasound (July 24th) that will hopefully tell us the sex of the baby.

That was pretty much all the excitement for the week. There were meals, baths, naps, and bedtimes mixed in, but nothing exciting. Now we're packing since we leave for NC in the morning. Hopefully it'll be an uneventful trip!

Weekly Update 6/7/09

2009-06-08T01:18:00.012+09:00

I'm going to try to do an update each week on Sunday. Mike kind of requested that I keep up with the blog a little better... =) so I'm going to make an effort at least. I'm already behind since it's Monday night.

Our visit to the states so far has gone pretty well. It took about a week for Jackson to get days and nights straightened out. It was a rough week, but well worth it obviously in the end. We've spent some nights at Mom and Matt's house, some at Aunt Sheila and Uncle Don's house, and one at Dad's house in KY. We've gotten to visit with LOTS of people, too.

Camden's graduation and party were last weekend. We had only been in the states for 4 days, so Jackson and I were both pretty tired for the party on Saturday. Jackson did REALLY well for having to sit through a 2 hour ceremony. He was climbing from lap to lap, but didn't really fuss very much. The four days up to the graduation were pretty hectic. In between trying to get Jackson onto a normal schedule, Sheila and I were making posters, scrapbooks, and photo albums for Camden's party. We ended up with two tri-fold posters, one sports article scrapbook, one sports photo album, and one everything else photo album. It was a TON of work, but well worth it. Everything we did got lots of attention at the party and Camden even thanked me.

The rest of the week was pretty much spent just hanging out. Mom gave me a pedicure one day. I spent another day driving around to the WIC office in Troy, Wright-Patt to drop off records and confirm my appointment, and the mall.

Then this past weekend Jackson and I headed to KY to visit with Dad and Grammy and PaPa. We got there for lunch on Saturday (Skyline is tradition and it was great!). We spent the afternoon at Grammy and PaPa's, had mexican for dinner, then went to Dad's for the night. He has two mastiff-bull mastiff mixes (Luna and Athena). They're ginormous. When I opened the back door to the car, one stuck her head in to see Jackson. He freaked out. He loves dogs and is used to being around them, but none that big. Once I got him out of the car and held him, he was a little better and they were licking his feet and legs. Then we went inside and Dad made them get in their bed in the living room. Then Jackson was a little better with them since he could approach them on his time and with my by his side. He got to where by the time we left, he would go to their bed by himself and try to get them to give him kisses. On Sunday we went back to Grammy and PaPa's after lunch for some more visiting, then back to Tipp City for dinner. It was great to get to hang out with everyone, despite having a brief power outtage.

Dinner Sunday was Bob Evans to celebrate Mom's birthday which was Saturday. There were 14 of us so it was a pretty big group. Everyone had a good time, and of course it was good food. Ben (my cousin) had french toast but couldn't eat it all. So Grampers was giving some of it to Jackson. He's had french toast, and syrup before. But we usually just drizzle a little syrup on the top for flavor, and this was pretty much soaked in it. He was getting a little antsy and tired, so after we were done eating, I let him out of his high chair. He ran around like a little maniac. Still behaved, and stayed right by our table, but RAN. I think that was a combination of sugar and trying to keep himself awake. When we went home, Mom and Sheila were getting him ready for bed and he got sick. I think that was a combination of french toast, syrup, and running. He was fine within seconds and wasn't running a fever at all. Lesson learned.

Today was a trip to the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery in Dayton. Jackson, Mom, Taylor (Camden's girlfriend) and I headed there around 9:30. On the way there we were discussing GPSs since we were using one. Mom and I were telling Taylor about the time Mom, Matt, and Camden followed Mike, Jackson, and I from Apple Valley to Cedar Point using a GPS. It was new, and we convinced Matt that whatever way it told us would be faster than anything we could come up with on our own. He reluctantly agreed to trust it. We ended up going down gravel roads in the middle of nowhere and some farming access roads. Within seconds of telling this story, the GPS sends us down what appears to be a driveway/alley in the ghetto of Dayton. Taylor was amused.

I was a little worried the museum wouldn't have anything age-appropriate and fun for Jackson, but figured it would be worth a shot to try. Turns out I had no reason to worry. There were ALL KINDS of things for him to play with and do. Of course there were plenty of things that he couldn't do, too. Right after we walked through the door we found, "That Kids Playce." It had a fossil digging pit, tunnels to climb through, a play house, big blocks to build with, balls to kick, a tube slide, and best of all, a water table. He had a lot of fun crawling in the tunnels with MiMi. The digging pit said not for kids under 3 since they might put the shredded rubber in their mouths, but that's not an issue with Jackson so we just let him go and he dug right in.
The water table of course was a hit.
Then he found the slide. We couldn't get him away from it. He would get to the bottom, say, "more" and run back to the stairs. Mom was helping him at first, then even though he was capable of doing it on his own he wouldn't go up unless Mom or Taylor was at the top to "help" him by sitting there and looking at him.

We eventually were able to drag him away from the slide and we headed upstairs. There we found a (pretend) general store, a vet office, a legoland, some stuffed animal displays, some REAL turtles (Taylor and I thought they were fake then one moved its head and we both about had a heart attack), a car "garage", and a zoo type area with a few live animals. In the general store, he pushed around a little cart and put some "groceries" in it. He was starting to get a little tired so he would get mad very easily when he got his cart stuck against the wall and had to have help to move it again. The car drew his attention and many times he went back to it saying, "Caa, caa" (his version of car). There was also a tube slide that started on the second floor and came out on the ground floor. We tried to keep him away from it because I thought he was too little, but he wasn't giving up. I went downstairs to catch him and Mom came down the slide with him anyways, so he was fine. Then he lost a shoe and had a fit when I was putting it back on (tired) and threw his head against the floor (ouch!). We went back upstairs to look at the live animals before heading out. He really liked the geese (which we called ducks) and kept saying "kaack, kaack" (quack quack). You could get really close to the turtles, and he seemed to like that, too.
We walked past a dragon exhibit and stopped in breifly to see what they had. Mom found a little dragon hand puppet that Jackson liked and kept giving kisses to.

We made a pit stop before leaving and Jackson and I were waiting in a little eating/vending machine area. He was pretty tired at this point and when I told him no about something, he laid down on the floor with his head down. (pic is him getting up--I wasn't quite fast enough with the camera.) Yeah, tired.
Some more museum pics:

We went to Olive Garden for lunch, and had a nice time. He behaved despite being tired. And he (and I) napped as soon as we got home, though not for as long as I would have anticipated.

All in all, it was a great trip. Jackson had a lot of fun. It was exhausting for everyone, but definitely well worth it. We may be heading back another day for a repeat. Although next time we'll go AFTER a nap so he's nice and fresh.

The trip from Japan to the states.

2009-05-30T15:19:00.003+09:00

Many of you are aware of our Space-A woes. Space-A is space available and it basically means if the Air Force has a plane going somewhere and there's room, you can ride along for free. Lots of procedures and red tape, but hey, it's free. All the flights we kept trying to get on got rescheduled and re-routed, etc. One was full. Finally, on Monday there was a flight scheduled to leave the next morning for McChord AFB, WA. There's a TV channel on base in Japan that lists flight times and show times (what time you have to show up at the terminal), but it's usually wrong. I called Monday night to verify times, but they closed early for Memorial Day. As of a previous phone call, the show time was supposed to be 0520, but they said it may not go. So I set my alarm for 0405 with the intent to verify it was going and the show time, and made sure everything I could possibly pack ahead of time was packed since it was going to be an early morning. At 0405 when I called they informed me it was going and the show time had changed to 0415. Yep. Ten minutes. I freaked. But we decided to try to make it. I threw the last few things in the suitcase, threw on clothes, woke up a very sleepy Jackson and we headed to the terminal. We got there at 0417. So from asleep in bed to packed, out the door, and at the terminal (about a 3 minute drive) was 12 minutes. That seriously has to be some kind of record. They ended up letting people on the plane that showed up as late as 0500. Wish I'd have known I had time to pee and put in my contacts!

We got checked in and baggage checked, then let Jackson play in the playroom for awhile while we waited to board the plane. Mike was with us for this whole thing up until boarding at 0510. Saying goodbye was of course hard for both of us. Jackson was pretty clueless, so he wasn't upset at all. They put us through security, then on a bus that took us out to the plane.

Our 9.5 hour flight from Japan to Washington was on a C-17 Globmaster. Sometimes they put on what are called "comfort pallets" that are basically airline seats. But this plane had two pallets (which I should mention are not what you think of when you hear the word pallet, but something similar and about 4-5 times as big), plus a fuel truck on it. Think about how huge the cargo bay has to be to hold a FUEL TRUCK and two pallets. Huge. The seats we sat in were on the side of the plane. Not super comfortable, and definitely not reclining, but not terrible. Jackson rode in his car seat. We bought meals for the flight and the loadmaster that was our "flight attendant" was really nice. It was pretty loud and they gave us foamies (foam ear plugs) which Jackson wouldn't leave in, and I decided were too much of a pain to bother with. It wasn't THAT loud. They handed out juice, nutrigrain bars, meals if you bought one, and airline pillows and blankets (it was also a little chilly). Jackson and I spent most of the flight sitting on the blanket on the floor picnic style. Try doing THAT on a commercial flight! He did manage to take a 3 hour nap, which was good considering the early morning. I couldn't really get comfortable to sleep, though. Even without in-flight entertainment, it was the easiest 9.5 hour flight I can possibly imagine.

Once we landed at McChord, I found a phone and called Mike. He gave me our flight info for getting from Seattle to Dayton. The only problem was that it was midnight in Seattle and the shuttles from the base to the airport didn't start running until 5am. Even if we had been willing to sit in the terminal for that long, it would've been too late to get us to the airport in time for our flight. So we paid almost $100 for a taxi. Luckily Mike had called the lodge on base and gotten the number for a somewhat reputable company.

We got to the Seattle airport about 0200 Seattle time. The only thing that was open was the USO. That place was a total saving grace. It was dinner time in Japan so Jackson and I had sandwiches, brownies, and some cereal. Then we just hung out and played some. Lots of people were trying to sleep, so I was attempting to keep him somewhat quiet. Not very successfully though. I think we may have woken some people up. It totally beat having to sit in the airport lobby for 2 hours until the airlines opened.

At 0400 we went downstairs to the airline and checked in. Through security--always fun with a toddler, a double stroller, a CPAP which requires special testing, a laptop which has to be taken out of the bag, and water for Jackson which also requires special testing. Oh, and no other adult. But we made it through unharmed (except the brand new laptop bag did suffer a broken zipper). Then we wandered around the airport until our 0610 flight. Jackson was sleepy but not really interested in napping. We got quite a few comments and questions about his daddydoll.

The flight from Seattle to Chicago was 3.5 hours and Jackson screamed for the first half-hour then slept the rest of the way. I managed to sleep a little, too. Changed planes in Chicago and headed for Dayton. We landed in Dayton at 1517 local. Mom and Sheila had gotten gate passes so we weren't even out of the terminal area when we met them. Jackson recognized MiMi right away and was excited to see her. After baggage claim and a drive to Tipp City, we were DONE travelling. After 25 straight hours, we were glad to have it over with. Jackson really was a super trooper for the whole process and it went much smoother than I anticipated. Hopefully the way home is the same.

Jackson's had a very hard time adjusting to the time difference. He woke up the first night after sleeping for two hours sobbing uncontrollably and inconsolably. He was up for about seven hours before going back to sleep. Then he took a 5.5 hour nap. The next day was a little better. He stayed up late, but only slept about 4 hours at night and 4 hours during the day. Then 9.5 hours the next night but with a 4 hour awake period in the middle and another 4 hour nap today. He's up now after sleeping 4 hours straight, then another 4 off and on waking up about every 30 minutes. I'm REALLY HOPING he gets his days and nights straightened out soon. I am up with him and since we're sharing a room, I wait until he's been out for at least 30 minutes before I go to bed. Which means when he wakes up every 30 minutes I don't get any sleep. I'll probably crash on the couch if he manages to go back to sleep at all tonight. Some nights I just let him get up and play for an hour. Just what I want to be doing at 2am.

More posts to follow on our time in the states. Glad to be here, but missing Mike already.

Guam Vacation

2009-05-15T13:16:00.017+09:00

Mike decided a while ago to take leave this week. Since he is going to the desert for 4 months and won't have a chance to use up as much leave as he needed to in order to get below the use or lose cutoff, he had to USE some up or LOSE it. So he had the leave planned but we couldn't decide what to do. We considered Hiroshima, taking a few day trips, or Osaka. Then we decided to just go to Guam... well, he mentioned someone else we know was planning that and I jumped on it. Since I'm spoiled rotten and always get my way, he had no choice but to just agree. =) I thought a few days relaxing would be the best way to spend our last free time together. Good decision.

The trip TO Guam. We got on a bus from the base to take us to the airport at 11am. It's about a 1.5-2 hour ride to the airport in Tokyo. Jackson was a monkey (surprise, surprise) and didn't sleep at all on the bus. We got to the airport and they wanted to know why our passports didn't have Japan entry stamps in them. We all have 2 passports. One set of "official" passports to use when we moved here on official business. The other set are "tourist" passports for vacation, etc. Our official ones got stamped when we moved here, but we had our tourist ones with us. We won't make that mistake again. From now on we'll always carry both. But we got taken to immigration and they had us fill out a form that apparently gets done a lot because it had a sign by it saying "MILITARY" so obviously we weren't the first ones to have this issue. For a while there I was freaked out because I seriously thought they weren't going to let us on the plane! The rest of the trip was uneventful and Jackson still didn't sleep.

The hotel. We stayed at the Pacific Islands Club (aka PIC), and it was pretty nice.

We got a really good deal ($100/night including breakfast) so we were excited about that. Plus they have a great water park with kiddie pools, water slides, and a lagoon to kayak in. And it's right on the beach. There were a few downsides. One being that the lobby was not air conditioned which made for a HOT baby when we were checking in... and with Jackson hot=cranky! Plus it was late, 8:00 Japan time, 9:00 Guam time and he was in desperate need of some sleep. Also, the lobby, hallways, and water park were not non-smoking. That got pretty irritating because almost all the Japanese people smoke. But they also had a nice spa and I got a massage on Mothers Day. It was very nice! The one downfall of the room, which overall was great and had a balcony with a great view, was the lack of place for a crib. They gave us the crib for Jackson, but there wasn't really anywhere to put it that would be dark enough for him to sleep. Except the closet. We started with one closet door, but call a call from the front desk wanting to know what was up with our closet, so I put the other door back on, too. Mike took a picture of Jackson's "jail".

Guam.

Guam's main industry is tourism. And it's almost exclusively Japanese and Korean tourists. Obviously if Americans want and island vacation they go to Hawaii. So immediately everyone knew we were military since that's pretty much the only Americans that go there. So a lot of the restaurants and shops catered to the Japanese. Food, snacks, etc. I was just glad to see $$ signs and English words. =) The hotel was a little far from the main strip of hotels and stuff but still walkable. We walked "down the hill" two out of our first three days there. Then on Monday, Mike rented a car. Once again, great deal--$35/day including insurance and a car seat. So we had that for the last two days we were there, which made it really nice. We were able to travel around the island and do sight seeing and broaden our restaurant choices.

Sight seeing. We saw Two Lovers Point
the Latte Stones
and a couple of forts. (See earlier post from Mike's Guam TDY for descriptions of those.) Plus we walked through the Chamorro village, but all the shops were closed when we went. The native people on Guam are Chamorros, and that's also the language they speak along with English. Our last day we went to Underwater World. It has tunnels you can walk through with fish all around and above you.

It was very cool, and Jackson definitely loved the big fish.
At the end there was a touch pool where you could touch fish and starfish.
But Jackson thought it was more of a splash pool, so we didn't stay there long.

Food. We had breakfast at the hotel every day. We ate at a restaurants most other meals and had leftovers once or twice. The restaurants in the hotel were EXPENSIVE so we only had that the first night we got there and didn't have any other options. We had TGI Fridays, Tony Roma's, an Italian place called Vitale's, California Pizza Kitchen, a Jamaican restaurant, The Mermaid Tavern (twice), and Jeff's Pirate Cove. My favorite was the Mermaid Tavern (which is why we had it twice--see note above about me being spoiled). They had the best spinach dip I've ever had. Jeff's was also very cool. Some Japanese soldier hid on the island for 30 years and when he was finally captured he talked about how he could hear music coming from the Cove. The restaurant got sold a few times and now belongs to Jeff. He has kind of dedicated it to the soldier that was found. It's a pretty neat story and a pretty neat place.

The water. The beach by our hotel kind of sucked. It was really rocky and had lots of trash on it. So we spent all of our water time in the pools. There was one pool that was maybe 8" deep and had a bunch of toys for kids in it. Unfortunately to get to the main play equipment, you had to go where water was coming down on your head. That meant Jackson wanted nothing to do with it. But he did play with another thing that didn't require water on your head, and loved the pool in general. Especially when we brought down his watering can from the sand set (which we didn't use). There was another pool that was shallow, maybe 3', but obviously too deep for him to stand. It had big floating animals, which is why it was called the zoo. One was a crab that had a slide down its back. Jackson really liked that one. It got a little tiring for Mommy to keep catching him and putting him back on the top of the slide, though. They also had a lagoon that you could kayak in. I couldn't believe how much Jackson enjoyed that! We had fun just kayaking around a little, and there was a waterfall that he was mezmerized by.

Golf. Mike golfed three days, and the courses were beautiful! He also played pretty well.

The trip back to Japan. A NIGHTMARE. We got a late check out from the hotel hoping that Jackson would take a nap. No such luck. He did finally fall asleep as the plane took off, but only for about 20 minutes and didn't go back to sleep for the rest of the flight. After we got through the health screening, immigration, baggage, and customs, we were looking for our bus back to the base. It's normal schedule is leaving Narita at 4, 6, and 8pm. But due to the extra steps for swine flu, it had been delayed to 5, 7, and 9pm. But sometime while we were in Guam, they changed it back to 4, 6, and 8. We landed at 7:20 and walked outside about 8:10. Once we saw there was no bus, we called the base and found out they had changed the schedule back. Great. So that meant we had to take the train home from the airport. Luckily we got on an express that went from Narita to Tachikawa and only stopped 4 or 5 times in between. That took 2 hours. Then we had to get from Tachikawa to Fussa (only about 6 stops). The biggest issue was getting through the stations with 2 suitcases, a golf bag travel case, a stroller, a CPAP and 2 backpacks. When we got settled on the train in Tachikawa I looked at Mike and saw he didn't have his backpack on. When I asked him if he had the laptop bag he said, "Nope. I guess that's gone." Crap. We left it on the express train from the airport. We got off at the Fussa station and walked to the base (about 30 minutes). Got in the car and came home. By the time we got home it was almost midnight. Luckily on Thursday we called the train lost and found and they had the laptop bag. It took Mike 3 hours of travelling in rush hour train traffic to get it back, but we got it. Through all that, Jackson only slept for about an hour and a half divided between the two trains. He was really ready for bed by the time we got home!

All in all, it was a great vacation, with a few obstacles getting there and back.

Dinner out

2009-04-28T07:55:00.002+09:00

We had dinner off-base on Sunday night. Trysta watched Jackson so it was just Mike and I. We went to a place where they bring you raw meat and you grill it on your table. There was a little cut-out circle that had rocks and fire and a screen over it. We got a plate of meat and veggies, plus a bowl of rice each and some goyoza (like pot stickers). The goyoza was good, but we've had better. The rice was VERY sticky and not very good. But the meat was pretty good. We had pork and beef and the pork looked like thick bacon on the plate, but once we grilled it, it didn't look like bacon at all. The beef was better than the pork, but both were pretty good. They were seasoned with a bbq-type marinade. On the way home we got a tad lost, although Mike is like a human GPS so we were fine. We came across Cainz home (like Lowe's or Home Depot) and went in. It was pretty cool. I'm sure we'll end up there again. We may buy curtains there, but I had the measurements we needed memorized in inches, so I'll need to convert to cm before we go back. We left Cainz and although Mike got us back to the base, he didn't see it so I get credit for pointing it out to him. =) We stopped at a 7/11 (they are ALL OVER--directions usually start with, "Go left at the 7/11, right at the next 7/11, etc.) and got some Japanese snacks. Mike liked his ham jerky and spicy potato-stick like snacks. I still haven't opened mine, which are like sour patch kids (I hope).

Akihabara

2009-04-19T06:44:00.005+09:00

Yesterday we went to Akihabara (the electronic district). First we had curry for lunch at CoCo's which is a local favorite. Even the regular was a little too spicy for me, but we'll go back and I'll try the mild. Especially with my stomach in a constantly nauseous state, I'm thinking it might not be a regular dinner spot for a while. Mike and Jackson both seemed to really like it though. They have spice levels from 1-10 (and mild and regular are below 1). Mike had 5 (you can't get higher than 5 until you eat a whole plate of 5, then you can get 6 and once you eat that you can get 7, etc.) Who knows if they actually control that since, really, how are they going to remember everyone that's allowed to get 6 and up?

Then we got on the train and headed to Akihabara. It was a little over an hour to get there, with 3 transfers but one ride lasting over 30 minutes. Jackson was pretty tired as it was about 1:15 when we got on this train and he hadn't had a nap at all yesterday (despite my desperate attempts to get him down before we left). We tried and tried to get him to sleep. Finally we laid him on his belly across both our laps (head on Mike's, legs on mine). I patted, Mike sang and he was asleep in minutes... maybe seconds. Too bad there were only about 10 minutes left in the train ride. We left him as long as we could then transferred him to his stroller completely expecting him to wake up. He DOES NOT sleep in his stroller EVER. He stayed asleep! Miracle of all miracles.

He slept for 45 minutes despite the craziness in Akihabara and the NOISE that was surrounding us. Of course 45 minutes is a super-short nap for him and it was the only one he took so he went to bed for the night at like 5:00 when we got home... BUT he slept in his stroller. I keep hoping that the more he sleeps in it, the more he'll get used to it and maybe eventually he'll be able to fall asleep in it, too.

The electronics district was INSANE. I have never seen anything like it before. Just stores crammed full of stuff, crammed in right next to each other. Some buildings 5 or more stories high.

One we went into had kind of random stuff on the bottom arranged in categories like you'd expect (but with very narrow aisles--fun with a full sized stroller). But the second floor was all cameras and camera accessories (including a $9,000 lense). Then the third floor was laptops and iPods, the fourth was PCs. All the tall buildings are like that, with each floor dedicated to one or two things. One of the guys we went with bought something that hooks up two hard drives plus has USB so you can hook up to a computer, too and transfer stuff between all 3. The other guy bought $150 headphones. We bought a waffle with chocolate cream (I didn't eat much curry and wanted dessert). Then I needed to change Jackson and found a restroom inside a Mr. Doughnut so the guys decided to get some. Mike got me a chocolate doughnut with chocolate cream filling and chocolate pieces. And 2 doughnuts for him and Jackson to share. Then we were back at the train station and Mike found a cake place and bought a piece of cheesecake to bring home and eat after dinner. Ummm... maybe we missed the point of Akihabara? =)

The train ride home was uneventful. Jackson wouldn't sleep. BUT we did somehow manage to get on a Special Rapid meaning it skipped a bunch of little stops. So the ride home was much faster. And it was also a different line than what we thought it was and took out one transfer for us, which was nice to avoid with the stroller and all.

Weekend in Japan

2009-04-13T21:36:00.014+09:00

This weekend we went out. Again. Mike got back from Guam on Friday night. We had a babysitter for Jackson on Saturday and Mike and I went to Cirque du Soleil. I'm sure that the performance would've lended itself to some wonderful pictures, but photography is not allowed inside the tent. So this is all you get:

All in all the show was great. We left the base at 2:00, got there a little after 3 and walked around a bit. The show started at 4:30, was over by 7 and we were home with Jackson by 8:30. It was interesting to watch, but I wish I had read the synopsis before we went so I knew what the story was about. Everything was in either Italian or Japanese. There were a few lines in English, but nothing significant to the story. Anyways, it was still a great show and I can't wait to see another one. Mike told me today that there is a Beatles Cirque du Soleil in Vegas. We are DEFINITELY going to that someday! The acrobatics and tricks and such were truly amazing.

Then on Sunday we went to a mall. It was an open-air mall and was a lot of fun. There was a stage in the middle and the guy singing only had one arm. Which Mike didn't notice the first time we walked past. So when we walked back by he asked if I knew the guy didn't have one arm and I was like, "um, yeah I saw it the first time." So he took a picture.

There were some white dome-like things similar to the ones we saw at Showa Park. Kids running all over and bouncing off them.

They had a lego store but the only thing age-appropriate for Jackson was ~$60, so it was out. It did however have a huge lego tiger that Mike was SURE was a bengal.

We went inside a "mall within a mall" type area. It had a thing on the floor that was like a video of balls bouncing around. But if you put your foot down the balls "bounced" off your foot. It was pretty cool and once Jackson got the hang of it, he had a good time. Then he spotted the camera and all bets were off.

We continued strolling around and came across a little kids' play area. I forget what it was called, but it looked cool. It was 500yen to get in for 30 minutes. So not a bad deal. Jackson was starting to get sleepy so I don't think he had as much fun as he would have had if he'd been in a better mood. But still had fun. There were a few merry go rounds that were motorized but went slow enough for him to get on and off on his own.

One was bigger and had animals to sit on on it, and the rest were just little spinning things to stand on. There was also a waterbed-type thing that they could play on.

Above that was a caged-in area with balloons and fans going to blow the balloons around.

Since Jackson is obsessed with air movement (wind outside, my blow dryer, etc.) I thought he would love it, but it scared him a little. He was okay as long as I was in there with him and he could sit on my lap if he wanted to.
There was also the standard ball pit which he wasn't thrilled about, but started to warm up to.

Then some kid jumped in and landed weird and kind of kicked him. It was totally an accident but it freaked him out and that was the end of the ball pit.
Then there was the hamster-like wheel. He was on it briefly but then laid his head down and realized if he sat in one place too long he might fall asleep.

He was also interested in sitting on the benches for the parents. I guess it doesn't take much to entertain him.

All that playing wore him out so we walked around for about another 30 minutes but didn't find any of the things we were looking for. Then we came home and he and I took naps before dinner. We went out for dinner off-base to a ramen (they spell it rahmen) place. Luckily the waitress quickly offered us English menus. Those are always a lifesaver so we don't have to go off of pictures and just point. They didn't have high chairs, so Jackson had his first booster seat experience, which Mike got on video.

All the restaurants around here give the kids those plastic bowls with a toddler fork and spoon. I guess they figure even Japanese kiddos can't use chopsticks from birth. =)

After dinner, we stopped at a house on base to pick up a couple of play items for Jackson. They're used, but still in decent condition. We got a plastic slide and a fish rocker.
He LOVES them both. We had to put a folded towel at the bottom of the slide for padding. He had a little trouble at first, but is rapidly figuring out the slide. We have to keep the blinds closed, because if he can see the toys he wants to be out on the balcony with his new playground ALL THE TIME.

Guam

2009-04-13T20:14:00.007+09:00

Hi all, for those who don't know I spent last week in Guam. It started off with some confusion. I found out on Thursday I was going to Korea for the week. Then I found out on Friday I was going to Guam instead. I left on Monday and got back on Friday.

Guam is a cool little island. It's further south than I thought it was. Pretty much the same weather year-round from what I hear. We had highs in 90-95 range and muggy. It's also more expensive than I thought it was. Most of the "tourist area" is concentrated to hotel row. It's probably a 4 mile strip along the waterfront. Pretty much all the major hotels are there. High-rise, really nice 20 story type places. The strip is also lined with high-dollar type shopping. Prada, Gucci, all those type things line the street.

My room was very cool at the Hyatt Regency. It's really open. With the panel open you can sit in the bathtub and watch tv or get straight into bed. I was on the 5th floor facing the ocean. It's the prettiest water I've ever seen. You get extreme shades of bright blue as you go deeper. It's supposedly some of the best scuba/snorkeling in the world and from what I can see from shore it's easy to believe. I'm going to try and get certified in case I get to go back.

I got a chance to go golfing one day. Like I said, Guam is expensive. The best I could come up with was $100 for a round with military discount. So I played on base for $12. Wow, what a cool course. Palm tree lined, ocean front cliffside views. Reminded me of what I would expect Pebble Beach to look like. Plus I played the back 9 really well with some excellent driving and a solid on in two and two putt birdie on a par 5. I shot a 90, which was fine with me.

The next day I did some sight-seeing. I headed for the Latte Stones first. I didn't know much about them, but decided they might be interesting. They were in a nice little park. Apparently they were used as pedestals for supporting important structures by the Chorros (natives of Guam). These were moved from their original location of US military construction to their current site. At that park I also noticed some tunnel entrances with iron gates. They had nuclear fall out shelter signs above them. I went to investigate and learned that they are WWII tunnels courtesy of the Japanese. There was an info placard at the entrance of one of the tunnels warning about limited height and width and some of the history. I guess it's a pretty complex tunnel system, but I didn't get to explore since they aren't lit and I didn't have a flashlight. The placard just said "enter at your own risk" no accommodations provided. I went until it was pitch black, which wasn't far.

Then I was to the basilica. It was Spanish style architecture, pretty neat. There was something going on inside so I just took some pictures outside. Then to the Chorro shopping village. It was a nice place, I went in all the shops and checked stuff out. I got Jackson a maraca and ate at a waterfront restaurant. There was also a park area that I strolled around in. Of course, more beautiful views.

Next I headed to place called "Two Lover's Point". It's a popular tourist attraction. There's a cool little story about a couple in love who jumped off the cliff because she was being forced to wed a Spanish naval Captain when they were occupying the island. Here's a link with more info and some better pictures than I could take if you're interested. http://tinyurl.com/cxpm9y

One of the days we flew a mission to take pictures of a B-2 and F-22 formation. Apparently, this was they first time they had been deployed together and we were taking pictures to commemorate it. It was pretty neat stuff. Here's a few snapshots.

All in all, it was a nice trip. For those considering some travel, I recommend it. But beware, you might want to get there in the next year or so as the Marines are moving in in large numbers. I have nothing against Marines, but large numbers of them on a small island didn't exactly work out on Okinawa, which is why they're moving to Guam.

Today's Japanese Adventure

2009-04-05T22:04:00.007+09:00

Friday night we had dinner at a pizza place off base called Nichola. We won't be going back anytime soon. We got small pizzas (6") for each of us. They were pretty good, but they were made with gouda cheese, which makes for an interesting tasting pizza. And for an appetizer we had "French Fried Potatoes" which I thought would be something... well, more than fries. Nope, just fries. So, it was expensive, slow service, and not great food.

Today we went to a city called Tachikawa. We also went to Showa Kinen Park (aka Showa Park). We were going to go yesterday but got a little bit of a late start, so we decided to go first thing this morning. Yesterday we just went to dinner off-base and to the Seiyu instead. The Seiyu is the Japanese Wal-Mart, except it's 5 stories. They have Great Value brand stuff and everything! But it's all in Japanese, so... who knows what any of the stuff is. We bought Jackson some shoes but that was our only purchase. The dinner was kind of a bust because it was a little expensive and not very big portions. But at least they had English descriptions in their menu.

Back to today. We found our way to the park from the base pretty easily. After paying 820 yen to park and 800 yen for Mike and I to get in the park (Jackson was free), we were thinking it was a rip off, but we were pleasantly surprised. We rented bikes for 410 yen apiece for 3 hours. We had Jackson's umbrella stroller, so I rode a bike with a baby seat on the back and we just strapped his stroller onto that. Mike's bike had a baby seat in the front for Jackson to sit in. I didn't get a picture, which is unfortunate becuase it's a very interesting-looking seat. I saw quite a few people with a baby on front and an older kid on back. I can imagine that would make it difficult to steer! So off we went on our bikes down the bike path. This park is HUGE! (Here's their website with a map and everything: http://www.showakinenpark.go.jp/english/index.htm ). We stopped at something called the "Bouncing Dome".

Turned out my pregnant stomach wasn't really enjoying the bouncing. And Jackson wasn't too thrilled with bouncing either. But he did end up enjoying sliding down the side. We were also going to go to the "Misty Forrest" where they do this mist thing for 15 minutes every half-hour.

But Jackson was getting tired and bored and we were all hungry, so we decided not to wait on the mist. We did however try the "Rainbow Hammocks" but once again, Jackson was none too thrilled with the bouncing, and it was kids only.

Then we bought some corn dogs and fries and rode our bikes to a shady spot off the trail to eat.

After snack/lunch we rode our bikes to the park exit. The bike parking lot was HUGE!

It was kind of funny to see the parking areas painted on the ground. Locked the bikes then we went off on foot. We went into downtown Tachikawa. That was an interesting experience. There were department stores and restaurants. Even a KFC and McDonald's which we have heard are very good. (Even the American restaurants have food that tastes a little different than the states.) We walked into one store that someone told Mike was his wife's favorite place to shop. We saw Prada shoes, a Tiffany department, and a Louis Vuitton store. We went out the next door we found. So much for that! We found a *tiny* Disney store. The coolest thing was that all the stores were connected on the second floor by a kind of upstairs sidewalk.

Almost like a mall hallway, except outside. It basically meant not having to deal with crosswalks, cars, sidewalks, people on bikes, etc. It was pretty neat to see. One of the buildings had restaurants on the top floor, and we walked around to see if there was anything familiar because I was kind of hungry still. No luck, it was all weird. But there was an outdoor seating area, kind of like a courtyard. Mike looked at maps, I sat (I was tired), and Jackson RAN!

After all the running/resting/mapping, we decided to head back to the park. We got a tad lost trying to find our way back but eventually got there. The problem was, they wanted tickets to get in. Except we had already paid and had our tickets torn. So Mike showed the ticket taker our two torn tickets and tried to explain we came in a different entrance. I think he thought that Mike's ticket just got torn in half. Either way, we got back in. Then back on the bikes, and back to the car. I had to change Jackson's diaper before we left and went to the bathroom myself. I pushed what I thought was the flush button but turned out to be a help call button. That was difficult to explain to the worker girl that came rushing to the door shouting something in Japanese that I can only guess was, "Are you alright?!" Oops.

By the time we got home it was about 2 and WAY past Jackson's nap time. He was hungry, so snack then nap. His sleep schedule was thrown off for the rest of the day, but I think it was worth it. He was back on track by bedtime.

Dinner tonight was at the Red Dragon Chinese restaurant off-base. I had been there before with a spouse group, but Mike hadn't been yet. It's a little expensive, but very good, and pretty big portions. The thing I get is served in a stone pot over rice, and they give you little bowls with it. You scoop out a small portion into your bowl to let it cool. It's bad manners to blow on anything except food for a baby here. I had extra to bring home for lunch tomorrow.

So I guess that's it for our adventures this weekend. Mike's headed off for another TDY tomorrow and hopefully he'll be home on Friday since we have tickets to see Cirque du Soleil on Saturday.

Big News!

2009-03-28T20:42:00.003+09:00

I think Mommy has e-mailed or called or Facebook-ed or Myspace-ed or Babyfit-ed everyone she knows in the past few days. But in case you somehow missed it, I'M GOING TO BE A BIG BROTHER! I have no clue what's going on, but Mommy sure is excited. She drug out the "What to Expect When You're Expecting" and the journal she kept when she was pregnant with me (so she can compare how she felt then to how she feels with this baby). And she bought a new journal for this baby that's identical to mine. Plus she's reading "What to Expect the Toddler Years" for me. So there's big stack of pregnancy/toddler books/journals on our end table. Daddy is impressed. Mommy is already calling the baby "Alex" since boy or girl, that will be the nickname. (Either Alexander John or Alexandra Jade).

That's all for now. There is other news, too... but it's still pending. Mommy or Daddy will post when we know something for sure. (Hint: I might be back in CONUS soon!)

Thailand TDY

2009-03-28T12:27:00.005+09:00

Took my first TDY (Temporary Duty) only 20 days after arriving in Japan. I went to Udon Thani, Thailand to help out with a few aircraft we had there. It was an interesting trip. I was there long enough and in a non-touristy enough area to really get a feel for the culture a little bit.

I left on my birthday (12 March). Flew from Tokyo to Bangkok. Landed a little before midnight. They have two airports there, which I know only as "the new one" and the "the old one". I landed in the new one. Problem is, I had to fly out of the old one the next day. I took a taxi...well it turned out to be a "limo service" which was using Nissan Maximas. I always heard Maximas were fast; the driver left no doubt. The trip which I had been told took about 1:15 was over in :45. The traffic wasn't especially heavy, but was definitely steady. We averaged 4-5 lanes on the freeway and we used every one of them in the weaving pattern. I convinced myself he was a professional and took in the views. Bangkok is big. Much bigger than I expected, although I never gave it much thought. I arrived at the motel not long after 0100 and went to sleep.

I had to check out by 1200 so I was out at around 1130. I was the old airport by 1145. My flight took off at 1845. So....I went exploring where ever I could get to by foot. What I saw (and more importantly smelled) took my apetite away for the better part of a day. Crowded, dirty market. Dogs scavenging around. Clearly homeless people occupying their spaces. A general sense of chaos and acceptance of it. I found an internet cafe that charged 15 baht/hr (about 40 cents). I sat and checked the news for a bit, although the computers spent most of the time lagging or locking up. I headed back to the airport, which is an odd site in and of itself. It looks like a train station out of the old days and is more than half way shut down. I'm guessing it's slowly giving way to the new airport. Anyway, I went through security and found a Burger King. At this point I basically hadn't eaten in a day. The food on the 7 hr flight from Tokyo was bad at best. No chance to eat that night. No way was I eating in that market. I ordered the double whopper combo thinking I would scarf it down, but after sitting down with it realized I just didn't want it. I ate maybe a dozen fries and nibbled on the burger. Finally my flight boarded and I made the short 1 hr flight to Udon Thani.

My boss was waiting for me. He took my to the hotel to get me checked in and swept me out to the bars. The bars themselves are actually a very cool atmosphere. Thailand is in general hot and muggy (at least in March). For the most part the bars are open air with limited seating inside and a few tables outside. Pretty much any of them are at the capacity they can handle about 15 people or so.

There are blocks and blocks of these bars. Drinks are fairly cheap- 80 baht or $2.50. The surprise that comes with the bars is the hookers. They are actually employed by the bar. So, their first job is to keep you at the bar. This means they flirt, try to talk to you although they understand about as much English we do Thai, and play games. It's kind of funny to sit at a bar with a buddy and play Jenga or Connect 4 with a couple of hookers. So their second move is to try and get you to buy them drinks. You find out later that "lady drinks" cost about twice as much as your drinks. This is because the bar gives them a cut for helping sell alcohol. Finally, hookers do what hookers do. To take one home you actually pay the bar "fine" of 400-600 baht $13-$20.

There were also the "lady men". I guess the girls get enough attention in Thailand that it is popular to take upon yourself to become one. There are many works in progress out and about. There are also some who I think take pride in fooling Americans. Most have had some the necessary surgeries to look the part, others just dress for it. I suppose they're just part of making Thailand what it is.

I went on some lengthy walks from my hotel while there. More poverty and people just trying to get by. I'm confident you could sustain yourself there for not much more than $1/day if you had to.

The streets absolutely hum with traffic, but maybe 15% of it is cars. The rest are tuk tuks and scooters. It seems everyone has a scooter there. Weave carelessly through slow and stopped traffic. Because they are so unpredictable, tuk tuks and cars don't even try to watch out for them. I saw one accident and many close calls. Tuk tuks are basically three wheeled motorcycles with a cargo bed.

They are commonly used as taxis for local trips. Instead of buses, they use what we call cattle cars.

The people just get off and go up front to pay the driver when they get off. They can be hard to picture so I took some snapshots.

One day I took a tuk tuk to a park I heard about to run. What a gem. A beautifully manicured park with a nice lake and a 2 mile running track around it. Had a nice relaxing run and enjoyed the scenery. My tuk tuk driver even waited for me. I think he was amused that someone would go to the park just run and get hot n sweaty. I tipped him nicely for waiting for me.

I also got to golf one day. There is a nine hole course on the base. We had to rent clubs, which meant caddies were mandatory. We paid $17 each for green fee, club rental, caddie, and a half dozen balls. The course wasn't fantastic or anything, but definitely a good track and we had a great time.

Of course, throughout all of this I had to work too. I worked nights 1430-everthing's done, usually around midnight. We stayed busy for the most part and kept the C-130's going. We had some impressive maintainers down there. I think it's going to be a good unit I'm assigned to.

After being gone 10 days I was definitely ready to come home and to see Jenni and Jackson. It was a good trip, a definite learning experience. Hopefully I'll get to see a lot more of the world while I'm here. I'll try and keep everyone updated.

A TDY, Household Goods, and LOTS of unpacking!

2009-03-15T10:53:00.002+09:00

Mike found out Wednesday night that he'd be leaving on Thursday to go TDY. (TDY=Temporary Duty, meaning somewhere other than your regular station but not long enough or in a location to be considered a deployment.) So we scrambled on Wednesday to get laundry done and get him packed, not knowing how long he'd be gone. Thursday was his birthday so we talked to family to make sure everyone got a chance to wish him Happy Birthday before he left. He left Yokota at about 1pm on the bus for the airport in Tokyo. He called on Friday to say he should be home on Saturday the 21st. So, only 10 days. I'm sure we can manage without him for a week and a half.

The biggest thing was that our household goods (our crap) was being delivered on Friday. So I had to direct movers and arrange furniture without him. Luckily, our friends Shane and Ellen took Jackson for me Friday morning so he wouldn't be underfoot while the movers were here. THAT was a lifesaver! Another guy from Mike's shop stopped by to help out for a few hours, too. Also very helpful.

A few things got broken. The headboard for Jackson's crib when it converts to a toddler bed. The bottom of the floor lamp for the living room. A small tear in the back of the loveseat. None of those were really that big of a deal to me. But the tiles to our end tables and coffee table got broken. They moved 60 and broke 15. The packers in Little Rock were apparantly idiots. They just put them in two stacks of 30 and put them in a box. No paper, no wrap, nothing. Just in a box. Um, DUH! Of course they're going to break! The biggest fight will be that we need 81 tiles to have full replacement. The 60 they moved plus the 21 in the sofa table that's at Mike's parents' house. Hopefully we won't have to fight too hard.

After the movers left at about 12:30 came the unpacking. Oh joy. But I was able to get all the boxes emptied by Saturday night. And that even included a break on Friday night for dinner at Shane and Ellen's. Thank goodness I didn't have to try to cook in that chaos!! I finished organizing and putting almost everything in it's place this morning. Going out in a little while to buy a few things, then I'll organize the last little bit and be done! So, all moved in and unpacked in 3 days flat. Not bad for doing it with a 1 1/2 year old if I do say so myself. Of course there will be a few things that will wait until Mike gets back, like hanging the pictures.

Jackson had fun with all the paper and "helping" me unpack. He's also trying to sign Daddy even though we weren't really teaching him. We've watched his signing video twice this last week and I think he picked up "Daddy" from that. He is asking where Mike is, which is adorable. He point to himself and makes his question noise. I say, "Jackson." Then he points to me and questions and I say, "Mommy." Then he points to the door and tries to sign Daddy. Like, "Where the heck is that dude that's always here?!" He cracks me up. I'm sure he'll be just as glad as I am when Mike gets back!

That's all for now. Just a quick update while Jackson's asleep. No new pictures at the moment. Mike has the camera with him.

Fire Walking!

2009-03-08T18:46:00.007+09:00

We made another adventure out into Japan today: a fire walking ceremony at Mt. Takao. It was an organized trip through the base and was scheduled to be about 10 hrs. We decided that was too long to take Jackson along so some of our new friends here babysat for us.

We spent the first half of the day exploring the mountain. We took a cable car about halfway up the mountain to start the day off.
View from the cable car on the way back down.

We spent the next several hours exploring. The ceremony is put on by an isolated group of monks who have shed off civilization and accepted religion to form their own spiritual sect. They essentially worship two mountain Gods and aspire to be as close to them as possible.
The series of shrines and temples scattered across the mountain are beautiful. Many required a good hike to get to, but were well worth it. The detail and artwork is amazing (it's hard to appreciate in the pictures).
There are aspects of Hinduism and Shintoism mixed in, but also unique portions.

After hiking back down
to where the cable car takes over we had an interesting snack: sweet bean mush in a pastry. (It's actually called ningyoyaki if you want to google it). We didn't really know what it was when we bought it, but it looked safer than other things we've dared to eat since we've been here. It was actually not bad, but decidedly un-American (maybe if it had been fried and coated with sugar).

Once back at the base of the mountain we found some very safe noodles for lunch and geared up for the fire walking ceremony. I should say, geared for WAITING for the fire walking ceremony. A line was forming hours before the ceremony to walk across the coals. We got in line at 12:15 (ceremony starts at 1:00). We were probably 300 people back. So we stood in line for :45 waiting for it to start. I guess just lighting a fire and walking across it wouldn't be much of a ceremony, so they drug it out for another :45 before they even lit the fire. By the time anyone walked on embers we had stood there for 2 hours. We actually had a good view except that the people in front of started standing on the rails of the fence to get a better view, then we had none. We caught enough pieces to still enjoy it though.

Yes, we walked across the coals. They mostly put them out after the monks are done so the ordinary folk won't get hurt. When we walked across it was warm, but not hot in the least. But aside from the spectacle of walking on fire, the ritual itself was pretty cool in my opinion.
Jenni's foot after walking on the "fire".

If you want to see videos of us walking on the fire, you can check out photobucket. They were too long, and frankly a little boring, to put on here.

After walking the coals we went for one last walk. I got some potato sticks and Jenni gambled on something we know only as "three balls on a stick." They looked pretty safe, so she gambled--and lost. They were doughy (good sign, as that meant no surprise meats), and a little crispy on the outside. But they were weird, chewy, uncommon doughy. She managed to eat one before giving up. We thought about bringing them home for Jackson. We've figured out if we don't like something, there's a decent chance he'll eat it, but we gave him a break and tossed them. But we had to toss them in the trash on the bus. There were zero trash cans in the whole place, including the bathrooms. Weird.

All in all, it was a fun trip out. It was a good weekend finally getting out and seeing some of Japan. If work and weather allow hopefully we'll have lots of weekends like this one.

Japanese adventure #1

2009-03-07T20:53:00.007+09:00

We went out today. On our own. Oh boy!!

Let's start with the new backpack Jackson carrier we got. It retails for about $200, and used on eBay I saw some for $125. We got ours for $10. YAY! We've been looking for one so we wouldn't have to deal with a stroller on the trains. I posted an ad on yokotaads.com looking for one, and got a response pretty quickly. The lady we bought it from bought it second-hand and never used it. It is very nice.

So we parked the car on base close to the gate, and walked to the train station. I had the diaper bag (a back pack) and Mike had the Jackson-pack. We got to the train station and bought the cards you use for fares. You put money on, swipe it when you get on the train, swipe it when you get off, and it deducts your fare. In Japan, you pay based on how far you go. We found the right train going the right direction pretty quickly. It wasn't THAT hard, but very few signs were in English so we had to kind of piece it together. So we're on this train which we THINK is taking us where we need to go and we won't have to switch trains. Wrong. We get about half-way there and since we're watching the stops very closely in comparison with our English map, we realize the train we're on is about to turn around and go back the way we came. Luckily it was a long stop so we had plenty of time to figure this out and get off the train. We found some guy in the train station that understood where we wanted to go and was able to get across to us that the train for there would be leaving at 3:15. (He did this by pointing at a lit sign that said 15:15.) Okay, so we got on the right train headed in the right direction. Meanwhile, Jackson is okay in his carrier, but not exactly thrilled. But he was very interested in the train things (seats, windows, handles, doors, etc.)
We got off at our stop at about 3:30 (we left the apartment at 1:45--there was a lot of waiting at train stations).

Our destination was a place called Hinatawada. There are a lot of plum trees (like 2,500) in one area, and they are in bloom right now. So there were vendors on the street kind of festival-style. We kept saying we wanted to try something, but we had no idea what any of it was. We finally came across something that Mike and I both kind of looked at each other and said, "That looks safe." So we bought one. It was a skewer with what we thought was chicken and beef on it. Then they dipped it in some sauce and heated it so the sauce thickened into like a glaze. I WISH we would've taken a picture, but alas, we did not. Turned out the "chicken" tasted more like pork. Okay, it was still really good. The "beef" was oh so not beef. It was some kind of chewy, slimy, seafood. We think. It was a gray-green color with dark specks in it. Hmmm... So Mike and I split the chicken/pork and each of us at least tasted the chewy slimy crap and wouldn't eat the other piece of it. But Jackson did. He's apparently more open to new tastes than we are. He made a few faces, but kept asking for more, so I just kept letting him eat it. And cringing!

The main part of the day was looking at all the plum trees in bloom. They were very beautiful and we got some good pictures.
We went up a pretty big hill and then down the other side. Which was interesting for Mike with 30 pounds on his back. We also saw some shrines. I have no clue what their names were, and we didn't go inside any, but got some good outside shots:

More pictures:

View from a bridge.

Pretty hill. I think we took this from the top of the hill we climbed.

The way back was much less eventful on the train than the way there had been. We had to change trains once, but got off one and right on the other with no waiting, so that was nice. We were going to have dinner at a curry place by the station close to base, but it was very cramped and no high chairs. And Jackson was on his last leg so we decided to skip it and have McDonald's instead. It was interesting. We managed to order, thanks to the worker knowing some English and there being picture menus on the counter. As a side, you get fries, or for a little extra you can get McNuggets. And the fries are the old kind in the good oil, so they tasted much better. The sandwhiches were different. Not really better or worse, but definitely different. And no ketchup. Well, they had it, but it was in the same little cups as nugget sauce. And it didn't actually tast like ketchup. It was kind of watery and tangier than real ketchup.

So that's it for our big Japanese adventure of the day. Tomorrow Mike and I are going to a firewalking ceremony. That should be fun, but I'm not looking forward to leaving Jackson with a babysitter and not having a cell phone. How did people do it 10 years ago when no one carried a cell phone?

Coupons

2009-03-03T07:03:00.002+09:00

Coupons are a big deal here. The commissary takes them until 6 months past their expiration date. I guess since no one can get an actual Sunday paper with coupons in it, that's why we're all excited about them. The Enlisted Spouses Club has a box with a bunch of coupons in it separated by categories (cereal, dairy, hair color, etc.) Anyone who wants to can send coupons to me. I'm going to be taking over the "coupon box" soon (probably). If you want to send me your leftover coupons you can send them media mail for cheap. Cut out, full pages, separated, not separated, organized in some way or not at all. Whatever you have time to do. I guess a lot of churches in the states collect them from the newspapers somehow and will send like a stack of 20 that are all the same coupon. Not sure how they do that!

P.S. I drove to the ESC meeting last night. Oh boy! Not bad, but parking was not a first-try kind of deal.

New Trick

2009-03-01T18:11:00.004+09:00

Mommy taught me a new trick. AND got it on video. Now if we could just teach Daddy how to make a decent fish face, we could be a family of fishies!!

We bought a car!

2009-03-01T09:42:00.003+09:00

YAY! We now have transportation. Mike went off-base a few times and checked out various car dealerships. We had planned to buy one from the "lemon lot" on base which is where on-base people sell their cars to other on-base people. But we didn't see anything that looked like what we had in mind and/or a good deal. The dealership we ended up buying from is really just one guy who is retired military and sells to mostly military. He picked us up at our apartment and took us to his cars. We ended up getting a 2000 Toyota Funcargo. Here's a picture:

If you want to see more pictures you can go here: http://cars.nzherald.co.nz/car/view/vlcxsv/

Mike got in all the cars he was considering, since size is a big deal for him. After all the in and out of lots of small cars, he now has a huge bruise on his left thigh from the steering wheel. It's still a little strange with the steering wheel on the right. The windshield wiper and turn signal controls are backwards, but the gas and brake are the same (thank goodness!). The car we bought is very popular here. We see them all over the place. And it's also very common to see 1996 models for sale right now, so when we leave in 4 years, we should have no trouble selling it. The Japanese people take VERY good care of their cars. And also don't drive them very much. Most of the time if they're taking a long trip, the usually take the train or subway. So they usually just drive to and from work. Our car only has 33,000km (20,505 miles), which is not very much since it's 9 years old. All the cars we looked at were very clean and well taken care of.

The insurance here is different than in the states. You have to have 2 kinds of insurance. The JCI (Japanese Compulsory Insurance) is renewed every 2 years. They do a big inspection and make you fix anything they deem necessary before they'll certify it. But that stays with the car, even if it gets sold. The other insurance is liability like in the states, but is cheap. Since Mike's almost 30 (it goes down at 30 here instead of 25--they gave him the lower rate since he's only 12 days away), it was pretty inexpensive. $300 for a year. We still have to get it registered with the base after inspection on Monday, but the guy we're buying it from is letting us drive a loaner until then. So it's pretty nice to have a vehicle! Although Mike's going to need it most of this week so Jackson and I will be walking/taking the shuttle to story time at the library tomorrow.

The phone is working now, so if anyone wants to call us, feel free! Best time is 6pm-8am eastern time (that's 8am-10pm our time). That's all for now!