First Pictures: Joshua Jason

Introducing Joshua Jason Patrow!  3.225 kg (7lbs 2 oz) 50 cm (19.7 inches) long. Born at Gleneagles hospital, Singapore, January 10, 2012 at 1138 am!

We like him quite a lot!

As always God provided perfectly in all ways.  This labor was a little different than with our other babies, but it was exactly what it needed to be!  We had a good night's sleep and started our breakfast routine at 6:30 am.  At 7 am I was noticing some increasing regularity and strength to my braxton-hicks and thought maybe it was the real thing.  We made it to the hospital by 9 am.  I had to have an hour long antibiotic infusion prior to delivery.   By laying very still on my left side in bed and by prayer and worship music was able to delay progression until that was all taken care of.  Finally, Dave helped me up and with a bit of walking, swaying and then a bit of moaning and screaming, I dilated from 5 cm to 10 cm in the space of about 10 minutes!  Shortly thereafter, Joshua was born, safe and sound!

Our first family photo!  Jonathan was cared for by our friend Jojo, who went above and beyond the call of duty.   Jojo, thank you.  Jonathan's first meeting with his brother consisted on a quick climb up on the bed, a brief glance, and the words "baby brother."  Then he was completely distracted by the buttons on the hospital bed, the remotes, the cameras and gadgets on the bedside table, eating a banana and then exploring the entire room!  In this photo, he looks a little spaced.  That's because we were finally able to get him to sit still by turning on some cartoons! 

Yesterday was the day after Joshua's birth, and here is Dave holding the actual Singaporean birth certificate in his hands.  We had heard it was possible, but thought it was too good to be true.  By comparison, in Oklahoma there is a 30 day wait for a birth certificate with no option to expedite.  All that was required was $40 and a 2 hour wait.  We also were able to get Josh's passport photos taken in the hospital the morning after his birth.  After discharge this morning, we took a short taxi ride across the street to the US Embassy where we applied for the special consular letter of birth abroad AND the passport, which the lady told us will be here in 1-2 weeks!  That's faster than you can get a passport in the US!  After that, the last step is the visa.  We have airline tickets to leave Singapore on February 11, and so far things are looking good! 

We praise and thank God for his faithfulness and provision!  It's been difficult to be separated from family at this time, as you can imagine.  We miss you, grandmas and grandpas!  Yet we are amazed at how God is giving us the help we need.  We are especially thankful who has helped with Jonathan these last 3 days....amazing!  I am also grateful for the 2 night (standard) stay in the hospital where Josh and I could rest and heal and get to know each other a bit without distraction.  It was needed!

Well, we are caring for a 2 year old and a newborn now!  Until the next update!

A brave adventure at the Singapore zoo!

Well, since Dr. Irene said she thought baby will be "a while" in coming, we decided to give up sitting around waiting for nothing to happen and make a big adventure to the Singapore Zoo!

Folks, I have to tell you, the Singapore zoo is AMAZING!  It's big and their animals are lively and many are free ranging ....meaning they are not behind fences or nets or glass walls.  At our big zoo in Oregon, I remember the poor elephants.  Of the half dozen times I visited, I never saw any of them out in their yard.  They were always in their covered area, standing on a sad concrete floor looking....blank.  Here the elephants are kept very busy working.  They have baths and do shows and work and give rides and get yummy snacks several times a day, and it seems like they love it.

Our first stop was the Sea Lion "Splash show."  I gave Dave a bad time for being so excited about getting to see a Pacific Northwest sea lion.  We got there good and early for our front seats.  While waiting for the show to start, Jonathan played in the water splashing out of the tank and  made a new friend, Scarlett, who is from England.  (You can just barely see her behind Jonathan in the picture.)  They both were soaking wet within 2 minutes and had a great time squealing and splashing and copying each other.  As for our front seats, we quickly vacated them after the first big splash from the sea lion.

So here are Jonathan and Dave watching the elephant show, which was our second stop.  This morning I asked Jonathan what he saw at the zoo, and after a while he answered "elephant draw picture!"  This is what he remembered the most of the whole day.... Before the show, one elephant was out in the yard "finger painting" with her trunk.   Artistic expression for elephants!

An example of elephant art I pulled off of the web

More of the elephant show ....two elephants working as a team!

While we were waiting around, Jonathan quickly found a "digger" in the gift shop.  "Drive digger, drive digger, drive digger!"

Soon little Phillip came along and since there were 2 steering wheels Jonathan was happy to share his digger.  Dave visited with the little Russian boy's parents, Igor and Olga.  Having kids is such a wonderful way to meet people, and I wished that Jonathan could have more playtime with both Scarlett and Philip.  I also wished that we could hang out with their parents more!

We made it in time to the giraffe feeding.  When asked, Jonathan said he did want to feed the giraffe, but he got a little worried when that big blue tongue came reaching out at eye level! 

Here, he's a little braver!  This morning, he also recalled giving the giraffe a "snack" and was excited to see the pictures. 

Here are Dave and Jonathan at the white rhino exibit.  There were 5 rhinos.  I just couldn't get them in the same picture.  They were kind of dirty and ugly.

So, it was a very fun day, and I walked the whole day all around the zoo and did not go into labor, despite some moments of discomfort.  Jonathan did NOT fall alseep in his stroller as we had planned.  We left the zoo at about 5 pm and decided to try coming home on public transport -- bus-subway-bus.  (In the morning, we traveled by taxi for $28 SGD = 20 minutes.  Cost by public transport is about $4 = 2 hours.)  Jonathan did fall asleep at the train station and all was fine until he woke up in an extremely crowded subway car about 30 minutes later.  It was the worst meltdown EVER ....almost wiped out all of our happy memories of the day.  Fortunately, we have pictures of the happy day at the zoo and none of the meltdown so I think I know what we will remember in the end.   We're very thankful to have had one last family outing, just the three of us, before baby brother's arrival! 

Pregnancy update 38 weeks: short and sweet

Okay, it's not sweet, in the sense that I won't be eating any sweets this week.  My weight is up a kilo (2.2 lbs and baby's is up a bit, to 3.4 kg from 3.2 kg.)  Dr. Irene is not concerned about my weight, and happy that baby is growing....she just doesn't want him to grow too much.  She said "tighten up" a bit on my diet.  Big sigh.

So, in other baby news, he's slowly coming down but not "engaged" and she thinks he will still be "a while" in coming and my "biggest baby."

As of today, Saturday, I am officially more pregnant than I have ever been!  

Singapore: Simple pleasures

Just to share some simple pleasures we have experienced this week.....

What can be more exciting that a genuine construction site, complete with a mini digger, practically right outside our front door?  Jonathan came home from his playtime this morning singing his first original made-up song ....."Digger time!  Digger time!  Baby digger, la, la, la!" 

We took a bus trip (plus a 20 minute walk) to the local library yesterday . It was SO NICE!  Jonathan and I read about ...diggers.  That's another thing I like about being here ....in the U.K and Australia and here, most construction machines are just called "diggers" so I don't have to keep straight the back-hoes, front end loaders, etc, etc.

Oh bliss, there is a small thrift shop in the market block across the street from us!  I stop in briefly every couple of days or so.  Most of the books are in Mandarin chinese, but I've found a few good butter knives, a nice crib toy, and a great pop-up playhouse for Jonathan!

For Dave, a great simple pleasure is simply being able to buy an English newspaper at the corner store and read it while sitting in front of a fan.  Ahhhhh!

Pregnancy update: 37 weeks and honest diabetes rant

It's nice to be under a doctor's care now.  I've been seeing Dr. Irene Chua at Gleneagles Hospital once a week since we arrived.  She's a young glamorous obstetrician but quite sharp and so far we like her well enough.  She's done a quick ultrasound every week, to check on baby brother's growth.  Looks like he'll probably be bigger than his brother and sister were.

(SPOILER ALERT:  some complaining ahead)

Last week the baby gained a whole pound, but I did not gain anything! 

The week previous to that, baby's weight was stable, but I had lost a couple of pounds from the last weighing in Java -- granted it was on a different scale.

Dr Irene has not even mentioned my weight, but is quite pleased with baby's progress.

I just don't think that's fair. I've only gained a whopping 15 pounds so far this pregnancy.   I'm so hungry all the time but all I can eat are small low carb meals that don't satisfy.  We're eating very simply here -- lots of PB&J, scrambled eggs, french toast, milk.  It's a simple kitchen so I haven't been cooking a lot of meat.  There are TONS of eating establishments across the street, but mostly exotic to us and very high carb.  The other day we did get some take out -- the famous Hiannese chicken and rice.  I thought maybe with my Metformin on board, perhaps I could handle it, and ate about 60% of the rice portion.  It was delicious, but my blood sugar shot up to 158 -- almost 40 points above my limit.   Anyhow, after the doctor's appointment this week, we went to the more expensive grocery store and I was happy to find some low sugar jam, genuine Adams peanut butter, and a few other expensive but diabetic friendly snacks.  There is also a nice multi-grain bread here with a low glycemic index, so I've been taking advantage of that -- one slice at a time.   I also am thankful for the good supply of Splenda and Stevia that the grandmas sent in October, so I can have sweetness in my tea and my decaf coffee.  

My doctor would probably put me on insulin if I told her how I really am always hungry ....but I guess I'd rather stick it out on just the pills.  At most it can only be another 3 weeks, right?  Wouldn't it be a shocker if I went overdue!  Then I'd be begging for insulin!

(OKAY, COMPLAINING NOW OFFICIALLY OVER.  Sorry about that.)  

I need to keep reminding myself that it's a wonderful thing this condition can be controlled by diet and still result in a very healthy baby!   And to be thankful how God is shaping my character through this temporary trial.

Other news about the baby:  He's doing well!  At this time in my last 2 pregnancies, I was already effaced and partially dilated.  Here in Singapore they don't do internal checks in the late trimester, so I don't know what's going on down there.  The last ultrasound showed the head is low, but not quite engaged.  I am
having some Braxton-Hicks contractions, but nothing to get excited about.

Nonetheless, our hospital bags are packed and we are praying that baby will arrive according to God's perfect timing!  Last night Dave and I had a long talk about baby's name ...I think we are closer, but Dave is prayerfully checking into a few other options. 

Oh yes, Happy New Year!  It's not really on our radar this year, except I wonder how noisy it will be here later tonight?  I think Chinese New Year (in late January) is the bigger holiday for the people here, so maybe we have nothing to worry about. 

Learning to be happy and hungry at the same time! 37+ weeks

"Angel" helpers

Some of you might remember a few months ago, we didn't know WHERE we would be staying in Singapore or how we would pull this off.  We prayed about it day and night, knowing God would provide, but not knowing how.  We now know the answers to those prayers, and are amazed by God's provision really over and above, but different, than what we asked for.   All of you prayed, too.  Today I want to share with you some of the "angels" that God has sent to help us. 

Jonathan with Jojo

This is our precious Jojo, letting Jonathan play with her Ipad.  (She says she has a new one on order, so no matter if it breaks!)  When we were praying for a sponsor for our short term visa, God provided Jojo.  We later found out that in fact we did NOT need a sponsor at all, but Jojo just continued in her commitment to adopt us.  She is the wife of Jonathan, who is the pastor of the Mandarin congregation at Emmanuel Assembly of God where we've been attending.  By profession, she is a nurse, currently only working per diem because of health issues.  She is so bubbly and positive in spirit, at the same time practical and realistic.  She loves to play with Jonathan and has taken him a time or two for a few hours to give me a break.  When Jonathan hears her name he starts jumping up and down and saying "Jojo...church!  Jojo....church!"   She usually takes him to church where there's lots to play with. 

When she learned of our housing needs, she began quietly making a few inquiries -- no announcements in front of church or in the bulletin or anything.  Then, as she said, God sent "angels" to provide in ways that even she didn't imagine.  These angels are just people in the church to whom God gave an impression to help.

T.M, Rosalind, Jojo, little Jonathan, Jenn, Dave, big Pastor Jonathan

The next photo highlights T.M. and Rosalind.  Rosalind has a soft spot in her heart for people who leave their home cultures to serve God away from family and familiarity.  When she heard of our need, she started making housing inquiries.  When the inquiries fizzled, she and her husband T.M. made an offer to Jojo to help pay a portion of our rent -- a large portion actually.  Our jaws dropped when we learned of these complete strangers who wanted to help us like this.  I love it when God makes our jaws drop!  I'm not sure how it all works out, but we are not paying out of our pocket for rent.  

Here again is our sister Gene, a quiet gentle lady who has sacrificed so much for us to move in with her for 2 months.   Since we have moved in, the fridge has died, the doorknob broken, lightbulbs have burned out, the pot got scorched black, etc.  She is sleeping in the living room while we are using the two bedrooms, and have basically taken over the kitchen, too.  We're trying to be the best housemates possible, but sometimes we fail miserably.  We are so thankful for her generosity to us, and thankful to God for providing! 

In addition to this, other people from the church donated and loaned us many things we need for our stay here, such as bedding and linens, diapers and wipes and baby items, a crib, toys and books for Jonathan, a microwave and toaster oven, a CD player for music.  Another man, Brother Roger, gives us rides in his car around town when his schedule allows.  We feel so small and so undeserving, yet so surrounded by God's love expressed  through the body of Christ.

None of these people would want to be thanked publicly or glorified in any way for how they are giving ...but I just have to share this testimony of God's amazing work!  I hope you realize the part you have played through your prayers and also feel some "ownership," so to say, in realizing the answers to those prayers!

Singapore -- post 1

Jonathan exploring the adult exercise equipment next to one of the playgrounds in the HDB apartment complex where we are staying.

Jonathan and I arrived in Singapore on December 10, and Dave has now joined us on December 17!  We will remain here until several weeks after the birth -- when documentation is complete and everyone is strong enough to travel.  

The first week I was caring for Jonathan by myself and also immersed in settling in.  There is always a big learning curve, and a "search-and-gather" to do.

God has provided an amazing place for us to stay -- totally unlike anything we would have imagined when we were first praying about coming here!  We find His provision to be very good indeed!

We are staying in what is known as an HDB apartment -- Singapore's version of public housing projects.  It's affordable housing built by the government.  I know the 2 bedroom flat we are staying in has been owned by the family for 35 years.  When they bought it the price was $7000 Singapore.  It is now worth $300,000.  The "projects" in Singapore are actually quite nice -- equipped with plenty of greenery, excellent playgrounds for children and exercise equipment for adults, frequent garbage pick-up, regular mosquito control measures, and good maintenance.  I really can't believe the flat we're staying in is old .....it looks very new.  Also, the first floor of most of the buildings are packed with community services such as senior centers, early childhood centers, daycares, and the like.  Our building happens to be right next door to a large police station!

Wow!  There are 3 toddler-appropriate playgrounds within really close walking distance of our flat, and about 5 more within slightly further walking distance.  It's SO nice for a pregnant momma with a very wiggly 2 year old!

Our host, Gene, helps Jonathan climb up a play structure.

We are staying in a flat with "Sister Gene," a 51 year old Mandarin Chinese Singaporean lady.  She is a precious women who is "renting" the 2 bedrooms of her home to us.  She is sleeping on a cot in the living room.   It's working out fine.  I'll explain more of that story in another blog update that will be posted soon ....I've already started it.  We look forward to getting to know this devoted Christian woman more deeply.  She is quiet, doesn't speak much English, and an introvert like us. 

Gene is a private tutor who gives Mandarin lessons to primary and secondary students.  She loves children and they have been her life's work and ministry.  She likes Jonathan too, although toddlers are a bit out of her scope of practice.  Like many single people in Singapore, Gene does very little cooking.  It's at least as cheap to eat at the "hawker center" (translate: food court) across the street as it is to buy food, supply a kitchen, and cook.  So, we pretty much have the run of the kitchen, which is convenient.  There is a "wet market" (stalls of fruits, vegetables, meats, spices), a bunch of shops, and a grocery store so very close to our flat, so buying groceries is no problem.  We haven't really explored the food courts yet because of my diet restrictions ....and no real desire yet to find menu items that don't contain fish heads or other undesirables. 

We are having some culture adjustment here.  Singapore, although very diverse ethnically, is known as being a mainly English speaking country.  That's not true here in the Bedok neighborhood!  We find that very FEW people can speak English, and even fewer can understand OUR English (nor can we understand theirs). 

Bamboo pole laundry

Okay, so here's something fun about the laundry skills I am learning!  Most everyone has a washing machine, but few have dryers.  Instead, each family has a collection of bamboo poles.  Outside the kitchen windows are special slots for holding the poles out in the sunlight and breeze.  Special giant clothespins are used to clip on the clothes.  It's a process to get the clothes on the poles without dropping them on the floor 500 times and then to heave the wet-laundry loaded poles out the window into the slots without dropping them to the ground so far below!  Of course the other skill is to grab them back in quick when it starts raining!   The kitchen has hooks on the ceiling for inside drying too. 

Until next time!

Last family photos before leaving town

Yep, it's been a whole month since I've blogged anything! 

We've mostly been slowly preparing for our transition to Singapore ....I have a history of not "leaving well" and wanted to try SO hard to do it right this time.  I had a lot of little projects to complete at home ....it will be TWO MONTHS before we arrive home with baby, but I need his nursery (translate: corner of the master bedroom) etc to be ready now!  I finished quite a few low priority but important-to-me projects that I knew would NEVER get done if I waited until after the baby.  Then there were all of the arrangements for the house, the house-sitter (required by our employer), packing things away safely.  Lastly, but most importantly, all the arrangements for Singapore:  housing pre-planning, communicating with medical people, and packing!  It's a challenge for me to manage all this!

For Dave, this "preparation" time has been preparing 2 months of lesson plans for his substitute teachers.  Thank you Greg, Scott and Sue!  They will be filling in for his classes on top of their regular full-time jobs at Mountainview. 

It's been a real challenge to manage the gestational diabetes (GDM) the last month or so, and it has been time consuming to get it back under control.   My blood sugar was out of control for a few weeks, unbeknownst to me, because of defective testing equipment.   After talking with a few knowledgeable friends (Thank you Calista and Maria!) , we finally decided I should start taking medication (Metformin) to help in the last few weeks of pregnancy and take the pressure off during the transition to Singapore.  I finally have a loaner blood sugar machine from my Singapore doctor, accurate strips and so far the test results haven't been too bad.  With my past pregnancies, I would have firmly resisted the medication but this time I am relieved to use it because there are so many variables out of my control. 

The night before Jonathan and I left for Singapore, I had a sudden pre-separation anxiety ....what if this is the last time our family is together?  I insisted that, in the rush, we try to get some family photos.

This first one -- the propping-the-camara-on-the-fence-with-timer-test-shot -- makes me laugh!

This next one is probably the best of the bunch and I will use it in our next newsletter.

And of course an updated 34+ week pregnant tummy shot:

Just for fun, here is a picture of 34+ week pregnant tummy with Jonathan in Oct 2009:

Yes, I am definitely a slightly different shape this time.  I think it's because two year old boys still need their pregnant mommies to carry them around, and indeed their pregnant mommies need that too.  So, Jonathan has been sitting on his baby brother quite a lot, and something (my insides) got moved somewhere to make room!  I remember once seeing a similarly-shaped pregnant mom in Walla Walla and thinking she looked a bit strange.  Now I know why....she obviously still had a toddler or two at home. 

Blessings to all who are reading!  We are so thankful to God's goodness to us in all of this!

Angkota Adventure! It worked!

Well today Jonathan and I had another first -- quite an amazing one!   We have been out of cash for a few days and a trip to the bank was in order. 

An angkota is a little blue city minibus.  It travels a loop on a certain route all day.  The seating inside is benches all around and the door never closes ....EVER.  One way to anywhere is 25 cents.  (Not my picture.  I got it off the web.)

(Background information) When Jonathan was little, I used to wear him in an Ergo baby backpack.  It worked well on the angkota and he could be content in it for 3 hours at a time, with a break here or there.  Then he started getting too wiggly, bored, and fussy.  For a time I just decided not to take him to town in the angkota at all.  Then my mom got us a nifty little stroller that folds up easy-peasy.  I can roll him down to the bus-stop, fold up the stroller with one hand, heft him onto my hip with the other, get on, hold him on my lap to destination, and do the reverse steps getting off.    This required knowing the location of the stroller friendly sidewalks in town.  There are not too many of them, but I could manage from the bus-stop to the bank to the pharmacy and back across the street to catch the bus home. 

Now in advanced pregnancy, it hurts to even think about going to town on the angkota with Jonathan.  Everything seems so heavy and my pelvis just isn't as strong as it used to be.  I usually am limping the next day.  Not many of our friends have cars though and motorcycles are not an option for us either .....so on the angkota we go....just not as frequently as before.

Now that Jonathan is such a big boy, I decided to try something new and you know what?  He IS a big boy now and he did just fine!  We left the stroller at home and HE WALKED all the way to the bus-stop and around town and on-and-off the angkota several times, in and out of several stores, and all the way up the hill from the bus-stop to home!  We used his favorite red Elmo toddler harness, which he loves, but he also held my hand about half the time.  The only time I carried him was crossing the street.  It really decreased the physical burden, there was no fussing, and we both still had energy when we came home!  He even had dry pants!  I was so proud of him! 

Sorry, I don't have any pictures from today -- I haven't yet figured out how to manage Jonathan and myself and my belongings AND a camera.

But for those of you who are wondering how the belly is growing, I'll attach a picture from this last week.  Enjoy!

30 weeks pregnant with Baby Brother! 

Update on baby 4: 19 weeks and counting!

17 weeks!

      We are so thankful that we have been able to carry this new little one to 19 weeks already!  The first trimester was crazy!  We did so many crazy things like travel around the world with a toddler and move houses!  Finally, I am now feeling more energetic and the yuckies are gone and baby is kicking every day, and night!   We now have the blessing of a fetal doppler, so we can listen to baby's heartbeat at home whenever we want to!  I haven't been to any official doctors yet, but I am in contact with a midwife, a doctor, a dietician, whenever I need expert advice. 

        Jonathan does have some inkling that something is going on.  My lap is already starting to run out of room, and he will sometimes pat my tummy and say "baby."  We are still nursing, but have been cutting down.  Next week we are planning the big event:  the final weaning from mommy milk.  Pray for us!

       Sadly, but not surprisingly, my gestational diabetes is back.   I know I should be grateful that this condition, if controlled, will still result in a healthy baby.  Also I should be grateful because it can usually be well controlled with only adjustments to diet and regular exercise.  Actually, I am grateful.  But I am also sad .....I love sugar and I love treats and I love simple carbohydrates.    It is a hardship to give them up, even for just a few months!  About 5 weeks ago, when a urinalysis revealed the return of GD, I went through a grumpy and confused couple of weeks.  Grumpy because of sugar withdrawal  (mostly an emotional problem).  Confused because this is a rice country and a sugar loving one.  It's been more challenging to figure out what I can safely and enjoyably eat.    I lost a few pounds those first few weeks.  It's also been more challenging to find the energy and opportunity to exercise with my toddler and the safety restrictions we now observe.  Thankfully, I am now getting into a better eating routine, am gaining weight, and am slowly starting to get a little bit back in shape.  Good thing, because my blood sugar monitor is telling me that my pregnancy induced insulin resistance is becoming more severe week by week! 

      Another subject on our minds is where to have the baby.  I had originally planned on having the baby in the big city about an hour from here.   However, based on my age, my history and my list of mild risk factors, at least one highly qualified doctor has recommended I deliver in Singapore or the USA.  This would require about a 3-4 month absence from here, what with having to fly prior to 34 weeks gestation and having to wait for all of baby's paperwork to be complete before we come back.   I'm in denial about this at the moment.  The thought of having to go through that major transition again with Jonathan, and the expense.... it's overwhelming.   We are considering options and seeing how the Lord will provide for us.... and probably won't make a final decision until October, when we go to Singapore for advanced testing on the baby and consult with the doctors there.  We'd really appreciate your prayers for our peace of mind until God shows us the way, as we know He will!