We Made It!

Today Zachary and I had to go to Hong Kong by ourselves.  We both had doctor’s appointments and we had to pick up Zachary’s new passport and Chinese Visa.  Adam was going to meet us Friday after work to join us for Zach’s appointment on Sat.  So 3 nights in a hotel and 4 days in Hong Kong with a baby means a much bigger suitcase then I would normally take…plus I like to leave a little room for some food shopping. 
Our driver took us to the Hong Kong border and from then on it was just the two of us.  I strapped Z in the baby carrier I piled the boppy (our new travel “bed”), our suitcase, the breast pump and the diaper bag in the stroller and took the elevator to the Chinese immigration.  We walked through no mans land and then went through the Hong Kong immigration.  Once you get to the other side there is only an escalator or stairs to get to the train.  I am pretty skilled in taking the stroller on the escalator but not with a baby strapped to my chest and a stroller full of stuff.  Thankfully someone helped me hold on to the stroller while we carefully went on the escalator. 
We took the MTR (subway) all the way to Central from the Hong Kong border, which means we change trains 3 times…this is the same route I took pregnant, however it took me a whole lot longer.  The Central station is huge and has only one elevator…on the opposite side of where I want to exit from the station to get to the hotel.  So we walked until we found a taxi (have you ever folded a stroller in the middle of the street while having a sleeping baby strapped to you?).  Once we got to the hotel I pumped, changed the baby, fed Zachary and let him stretch out a bit before strapping him back in to run our errands. 
I feel like if I did this, I could do just about anything.

Happy 1 Month!

Today Zachary turned one month!  He is still too small for his 0-3 month clothing and he is still smaller than the average newborn but he sure makes up for it in other ways!  Zach does NOT stop moving, when he is awake his arms and legs are going non stop, when he is asleep we sometimes see his little legs kick up in the air.  Have you ever tried to diaper a frog?  I would imagine the experience is similar to putting a diaper on my little guy.  Zachary can hold up his head for extended periods of time, he makes noises, he gets startled by any sound (which is hilarious), he uses Adam and I as a jungle gym and he almost throws himself from side to side when we carry him.  He hates to be swaddled he will get his arms out then grunt and groan if he can’t escape the rest of the blanket.  We were advised not to bother swaddling him because it just upsets him.  I put him in footie pajamas because the elastic on sleep sacks end up at his waste with his legs exposed and his arms end up out the neck hole.  He really is a hoot and I love that he does things that we least expect.
Zach still loves his bath!  He gets a look of total satisfaction on his face while sitting in the tub.  We bathe him every night to calm him down before bed.

We also have a little window into how Z will look as an old man…his hairline has receded to the back of his head.  Rather than losing hair on the back of his head (like most babies) he is losing it up top.  I am half relieved and half horrified.  Z was really hairy when he was born.  I am looking forward to seeing if he ends up with blonde curly hair like I had as a girl or straight brown hair like Adam had (and still has). 

When Zachary was born he looked like a mini version of Adam but as he has grown this month I am beginning to see a little bit of me in his face. 
We have his one month doctor’s appointment on Saturday and we are hoping that he has gained a pound and a half putting him at 7 ½ lbs.  With the amount he has eaten lately (trust me…my pump has become my best friend) and the extra chubb in his cheeks I think the doctor will be pleased at his gain.
I am feeling great.  I have 5 lb’s to go before I am at my pre pregnancy weight and I can fit into most of my old clothes…however they don’t look so great.  I also have my appointment this week so I will hopefully find out the details of the birth issues.  Dr. Doo explained it to me in the hospital however my mind was on other things. 

Two Worlds Colide

Out of sight…out of mind.  That is how I live my life, not that I don’t miss my home in NC, my family, my friends and my career…but life here is soooooooo different here that it almost feels like a whole separate world.  I tend to think that my old world stopped the day we stepped on the plane to China and won’t start up again until we return.  This mindset makes me not feel like I missed out on Christmas, weddings, Thanksgivings, hanging out etc… So far my two worlds have been totally separate with Skype and illegal facebook being the only connections to my old world.
Everything has changed…my mother (someone from my old world) is here in my new world.  She is shopping in my stores, meeting my friends, living in my home and becoming a part of my China world.  It is strange to see her a year older with brand new knees and telling stories about things that I didn’t get to experience.  Although I talked to her a few times a week over Skype and have heard about life in the states, having her here is making everything seem real. 
My old world seems like it was a lifetime ago and I can’t imagine ever leaving my new world.  I am beginning to think that it is going to be much more difficult to go back into a world where you missed so much than it was to become part of a world where you knew no one, had communication issues and had to become a part of a whole new culture.

Happy Mothers Day To ME!

It is so strange to be celebrated on this day!  I just had a baby…which still feels a little surreal.  I was very lucky to be able to celebrate my first mother’s day with my own mother.  We didn’t make a huge fuss…in fact we all worked all morning getting our party ready.  After everyone left we played a little guitar hero then headed off to the Kande hotel for a nice dinner and a foot massage leaving the men at home.  I was really glad to be able to spend the whole day as a family celebrating my son with my friends, but it was nice to get away for a couple hours and to eat a meal without having to stop to feed or without spilling on the baby’s head. 
I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband and a beautiful little boy.  Honestly that is all I need on my mother’s day!

2 Weeks Old

2 weeks…WOW!  So much has happened in the past 2 weeks that I can’t even begin to say how wonderful everything is.  We have a wonderful baby boy who hardly ever cries and is very playful.  Our 10 day doctor’s appointment showed that Zachary has gained all his weight back and is up to 6 lb’s!  Dr Chan gave us a goal of 200 grams and Z gained 300!  We also decided to switch to the bottle this week, no more annoying tube (which makes me a very happy woman…however I would be much happier if he would nurse).  The biggest thing we did this week was make the move from Hong Kong to Huizhou.  We finally got to our own home with our own stuff…ahhhhhh…life is good!

Adventures in Feeding

Because Zachary was born small he has many characteristics of a premature baby.  I really don’t think my pediatrician believes that he is 39 weeks along (he asked every time we saw him)…I wouldn’t believe it myself but we found out pretty much right away and the dates were determined by a blood test.  Anyway, one major characteristic Zachary has of a preemie is the trouble he has with feeding. 
Our first night in the hospital Zachary hadn’t eaten anything which is pretty normal since the babies are generally tired and not hungry, however with a baby that is underweight they need to make sure he eats.  Since little Z wouldn’t feed on his own (at this point he wouldn’t latch) my colostrum had to be expressed by hand and given by syringe every 2-3 hours.  When I say expressed by hand I mean just that…the nurses and midwives took turns milking me.  In the beginning I was able to express about 1 ml.  This wasn’t enough to get some weight on the boy so I had to supplement with formula.  I kind of figured we would need to do this at some point but I was hoping not the first night of his life. 
On day 2 the day shift midwife came in and was adamant about stopping the formula and getting him to feed…she sent her assistant Julia (she said she was the best at hand expressing because she worked on a farm) to be my personal milk maid for the day.  Anytime I wasn’t being milked I laid skin to skin with Zachary and every time he started rooting (looking for food) I called the midwife and we would try to get him to latch.  Before Adam left for the evening (he wasn’t allowed to stay) Zachary had latched (no sucking) and I was expressing almost 4 ml every few hours so it was looking like we wouldn’t need the formula and that soon enough he would be feeding.  However that night the nurses (who were not as skilled as Julia) weren’t able to express enough and we had to supplement again.  I felt awful…not that we needed to use the formula (anything to get my baby the nutrients he needed) but because it was like we back tracked. 
In the morning of day 3 before Adam got to the hospital I made the midwife give me another option…anything to get him to latch and suck at the same time.  She said she didn’t recommend a nipple shield but it was something.  I was all for it!  Zachary was able to latch and fed for 20 min before he started crying.  I pulled him off and noticed I was bleeding (not a lot…but enough that he may have gotten a little).  Not only that but I woke up with a major rash on each breast…and no one had seen anything like it before (it healed within a couple days but I swear it was from squeezing them so much).  Next I tried to pump which didn’t do any good because my milk hadn’t come in yet.  Thankfully someone sent the lactation consultant to come work with me.  She spent a couple hours with us, at this point Zachary would latch and not suck consistently (as long as he wasn’t traumatized by people forcing him onto my breast…which made him scream and less likely to cooperate).  I think the most positive thing that came out of our time with Sarah was that she was positive and not forceful.  She told us that I was doing everything correctly and I had enough milk, however we just needed Z to do his part and he just didn’t understand what he needed to do.  The rest of the day I expressed myself a meal ahead so that I wasn’t trying to express while he was hungry…so basically I became the cow and the milk maid.  This worked really well (considering) and I became good friends with the nursery staff who would see me coming and get a fresh syringe and my milk from the fridge.  At this point I was expressing 5-8 ml. 
My milk came in on the day we left so when we got to the apartment I started using my dual electric pump (people thought I was crazy to get it but it has been a lifesaver).  Then I made an appointment to have Sarah, the lactation consultant, come visit us and have another go at it.  She was realistic and knew things may not work perfectly so she came with another idea.  At this point had a lot more than a few ml of milk and the syringe wasn’t practical.  So we started tube feeding.  Basically I pumped into a bottle and Adam or I would stick a finger into Zachary’s mouth and when he started sucking we would slide a thin tube into his mouth and the other end into the bottle of milk.  This way he could self regulate and we were training him to suck correctly.  This worked really well for a few days…we still had to supplement if he was hungry and I hadn’t pumped yet.  We had Sarah come by once more and we got him feeding for a couple min.
Yesterday Z decided to stop sucking correctly and he hadn’t fed on his own since Sarah…he just latches then looks at me like “now what”.  Between that and losing the bonding cuddle time you should get…not to mention that my milk is stimulated by the sound of my pump and not my babies cry I decided to go with a bottle.  I still pump so he gets my milk but I figured this kid already experiences nipple confusion and the tube was no longer working well (he started biting on our finger and not taking breaks causing milk to go all over him, plus I spilled the milk myself which is the most upsetting experience a) you literally take food from your baby b) you supplement for no reason c) it was such hard work!
The bottles have been wonderful, I am able to hold my baby and feed him at the same time.  I don’t have to clean those annoying tubes between each feeding and we aren’t making as much of a mess.  Plus I think it has helped his feeding skills (we try everyday when he is happy and alert).  I am still hopeful…but until the little man decides to work with me my pump is my best friend!

Mom Came

Zack and I waited very unpatiently for my mom to come out of the departure hall at the Hong Kong International Airport.  Adam came from work and met us.

We went to the mall and had a dinner/snack.  Mom was already tired of noodles after being served them for each meal on the 18 hour flight.  We took her to a Canadian burger place for some American food and milkshakes.

The next day we waked along the HK harbor.  We stopped again for American food.

After lunch we went to the HK Museum of History.  After walking a whole lot and no naps I was exhausted and spent most of the time at the museum sitting down...apparently you are supposed to take it easy after giving birth.



Even though it was exhausting and it took me a while to recover from the whole day (or should I say the whole week) of not stoping, it was worth showing my mom our HK stomping ground.

“At that moment I knew…I knew like you know about a good melon.”

I stole that quote from one of my favorite movies, When Harry Met Sally.  I love listening to the love stories between scenes.  It makes me wonder what Adam and I are going to look like in 50 years and how we will tell our story.
So far we are 0 for 2 on anniversary celebrations.  Last year our Anniversary fell on the day before the factory in China was scheduled to open meaning Adam would have to work long hours, including the weekend.  Rather than sitting at home hoping he could get an hour off to have dinner with me I took a trip to Singapore to visit my cousin.  We made up for it big time by going to Thailand the next month.  This year before the baby came we had our date nights in Hong Kong and we tried to make them extra special since “any day now” we would have to worry about packing up an infant to go to dinner.  This year our anniversary is special because we get to share it with our 8 day old son and my mom.  Not the most romantic day but special.

Back to the quote…like I wrote on Valentine’s Day…I am not big on showing your love for someone because you feel like you have to…I am all about the little moments that let me know my husband loves me.  Throughout the past year there have been many of these little moments which are more special than any huge celebration.  Sometimes it would take Adam a little longer to get home from work because he stopped off at KFC to pick up a mini ice cream Sunday for me.  When it’s Adam’s turn to pick a movie he tends to pick ones that I like and while I have been pregnant and stocking up on Children’s DVD’s he will even sit through those.  He spent hours downloading corny Christmas movies and even committed to watch them with me just because he knows how much I love Christmas stories.  I recently found out that late in my pregnancy Adam had to go to a business dinner and asked for an extra dessert to bring home to me…he forgot it at the restaurant and felt so bad that he picked up an ice cream on the way home.  He never told me about saving the dessert because he didn’t want me to be disappointed that all I got was an ice cream, but when one of his co-workers let the cat out of the bag I felt like the luckiest lady on earth.  My wonderful husband also makes sure that I always have a full bottle of water…in fact I keep bottles of water by the bed, in the bathroom, by the sofa and in the kitchen…somehow during naps or what not my water bottles magically become full.  I look forward to our daily talks at around 11:30/12:00 when Adam will call to see how my morning was.  I love our lazy Sundays spent in pj’s.  I love our game nights even though Adam usually wins. 
Living in China has truly made it so that we depend on each other and Adam is literally the only person in the world that I can spend 10 days with one on one 24 hours a day on vacation without getting irritated. 
Celebrating our anniversary is not about the fancy trip (although I would happily go to Thailand again) or a fancy dinner…it’s about looking back at the time you have spent together and looking forward to many years to come!

Zachary’s First Week

Our first week was spent getting to know each other…and pumping.  We met with a lactation consultant twice and went to Zachary’s first doctor’s appointment.  The doctor really just wanted to check up on his weight (he wasn’t quite up to his birth weight but he is gaining).  He said the next appointment he would be a bit more mean.
Zachary took his first van ride, taxi ride, MTR ride and got his first passport and Chinese Visa.  We were able to go out to dinner and or lunch each day without any fuss. 

Ithink we are in the groove when it comes to sleep…however I will be very happy when we no longer need to use the tube to feed (see Zachary’s Breastfeeding Post).