Chickens and rabbits...

We live on the fourth floor of a four story apartment building. Right outside our door is a small stairwell that leads up to a ladder to the roof. On this stair well is all kinds of stuff, an old bike of ours, and then a bunch of our neighbor's things. Months ago they decided to raise little chicks in a box up there. It didn't bother us too much, smelled a little like a chicken coop and the chirping was endless. And then they were gone. Now they have a little white rabbit. He too lives in a box right outside our door. A box that he often gets out of and poops all up and down the stairwell and right in front of our door. Sophia likes to go see the rabbit and pat its ears, but its cuteness has worn off on us. It REALLY smells outside the door, and one day, not that long ago, a friend visited and left the door open and as I was changing Sophia, the rabbit hopped on by us in our house. Our new little sis (Mei Mei, Sophia's JieJie, or big sis) picked it up by the ears and put it outside. We then began the discussion of whether she knew how to prepare rabbit stew...

Sophia's new ride

We finally bought Sophia this little car, everyone has one and she usually tries to steal theirs. This cost us 70 yuan, which is $10, in the states I saw them for $80!!! wow!
We had a little roller derby today with the neighborhood kids, all of which are her ge ges (big brothers). She may be bringin' up the rear, but she had a blast, and they are careful not to crash into her like they do eachother!

Sophia listening and not obeying...

Here sophia listens, understands, and talks her way around the issue. we are trying to teach her 'if...then' statements, and sequence 'first this, then this,' though not really on purpose. One day I used my hands (just because I sometimes do that when I talk), to tell her we were first going on a bike ride, then she could play with chalk. First bike ride, then chalk. She mimicked my every move and said most of the words, unbelievable, I laughed out loud at how silly she made me look. Of course she wouldn't do it again for the video, but this video is a little similar to her understanding.

Sophia listening and obeying, :)

Happy 1 year Anniversary Lee and Laura

David's sister, Laura married Lee Craft last Feb 23rd, and we just happened to be there. Their wedding was beautiful and we were so glad to participate. Here are some flashback photos (I wasn't blogging then)


behind the scenes


beautiful downtown Wilmington, NC, and a handsome groom.


I loved the reception decor!


Pink and green looked gorgeous, and since having a little girl, the colors have become dominant themes in our lives

reception fun


Sophia was almost 8 months old at the time...

my how she has grown since then....

We love you guys, Happy Anniversary!!!

sophia bundled and me prego

An early morning outing on the bike still required Sophia to be bundled a little, especially with her recent cold/ear infections. but no longer. It is spring summer here. 70 degrees at night in our room and about 55 in the mornings. In the sunshine, so much warmer.


23 1/2 weeks pregnant, over half way there!!!

A new big sis

I looked at the bottom of Sophia's feet two days ago and they were clean! what does this mean? it means the floors are clean. what does that mean? it means we have a new helper. We have been without one for quite a few months now, but we have managed. And now we just hired a new girl who will be with us just a few months until our old helper comes back. Sophia has a new big sis, or Jie Jie, in Chinese. During one of her painful sleepless nights she even asked for her JieJie!

JieJie will actually live with us, which we have never done before, so it should be interesting, and should hopefully help our language. She is from a really big village not too far from us! We are friends with her family and her mom came with her on her first day which was really unexpected. I didn't know what to do, start training with her mom tagging along? well thats what I did. Her mom cannot speak any Chinese (very very little), and she had LOTS of questions during my intro to the work. what is a dryer, what is a vacuum, what is oatmeal? She gawked at my sink full of dirty silverware (our week with Sophia's ear problems kept us up many nights, so days included doing half of everything, like half of the dishes). She asked if it was all from one day? Was I more embarrassed because I hadn't done them in two days, or that I had used so many in two days? Actually, I wasn't embarrassed at all, everything in our house is foreign to her, and her house likewise, we had a good time getting through it all. She really would like us to find a husband for her daughter, she doesn't care if he is American, but he has to be willing to live in the village with her. Hmm....

how old are you?

Sophia in the pool

Here is a video of Sophia in the pool at Koh Samui. Don't know why but this video is not very clear, sorry.

miscellaneous

when we first got back a friend of ours brought me these flowers. she was up to date on all our troubles. these were gorgeous, i had never seen them in our town, they lasted over a week and smelled fabulous. what kind of flowers are these? i have no idea. you tell me.


strawberry shortcake, thank you TCC family. TCC sent a Christmas package that included an Angel food cake mix. we made it for a pre-Valentines day dessert. and for valentine's day I made our new favorite: Chocolate Eclair cake. I got the recipe from David's mom and cannot get half of the ingredients here, (but can improvise and make from scratch, maybe one day, until then I will use what was sent from the Cokers, thanks so much). have I posted the recipe already? well, here it is again:

Chocolate Éclair Cake

**best made 2-3 days in advance to soften graham crackers***

2 3 ¾ boxes French vanilla instant pudding

3 cups milk

1 12 oz cool whip

2 16 oz box graham crackers

1 can spreadable milk chocolate frosting

Mix pudding and milk, fold in cool whip

Line the bottom of a 9 x13 pan (or smaller 2 pans) with graham crackers

Add ½ of pudding mixture, add another layer of graham crackers

Use remaining pudding mixture. Add another layer of crackers, top with the chocolate frosting

Store in refrigerator

medical costs.

Fyi, to see the doctor the other day: 2.4 yuan: 35 cents (US), that is cents not dollars
the medicine: 24 yuan: $3.50
yes amazing. Before you decide you want to move here, just remember that when things get a little more than serious we have to hop on an airplane, which makes the medical costs more than quadruple duple duple. thankfully we have only had to do that two times in our four years here, the last serious health issue, we already had the plans to travel.

'wimmnun' with sophia (video)

In this video we try to get sophia to say the word 'swimming,' because it was so cute when she was trying before. Notice that she doesn't cooperate until the very end. I am trying to post one of her actually swimming but it is taking forever, so for another time.

The local doctor

Well Sophia still is not well. It has been a few weeks now. waking up at night, completely unlike her. fever, sniffles still lingering. We knew we had to take her to the doctor here to get her ears looked at, even though she just finished antibiotics for the very thing!
Now, going to the hospital here (which is where we go 'to the doctor,' never to a little clinic) can cause not just a little anxiety. My experience as a patient there was quite awful, but the diagnosis was correct. For Sophia we decided against the main hospital (where I went) and went to the women's/children's hospital. It at least has the allusion of being clean. Amazing what a little paint and glossy tiles can do to comfort my heart. It wasn't too crowded and when we found the doctor the room was empty of patients. Amazing. Usually everyone is crowded around trying to be seen. We soon realized this is because the line for the IV drip was at the other end of the hall, she would not be getting one of those...
we were so pleased with this doctor, she spoke clear Chinese, she allowed me to look in both of Sophia's ears so I could see the difference (left one extremely red), and then really took the time to get the dosage right for Sophia's weight when using oral meds which was probably her first time ever doing. She did say Sophia needed an IV first, but we explained we prefer oral and she obliged. We've deemed her our new pediatrician here. thanful for Doctor Jiang!
But yes, Sophia, after now 3 rounds of antibiotics in a month, still has an ear that looks real bad, and a fever, she must be catching up for 18 months with no ear problems and hardly a cold! we will keep you posted.

last of the details, whew

Feb 7th-8th
I am regaining my strength, but avoiding all oils and fats, gross. Sophia seems to be getting worse, not better, even on antibiotics. We were planning on leaving, but the doc said wait until her fever subsides. We really don’t want this to go into pneumonia, but we are so ready to get home. We decide to wait until Monday, take her back to the doc and head home, unless her condition is more serious. She won't sleep in her pack in play, just cries and screams. What are we to do in a thin-walled hotel? She sleeps with us…and does okay.
Now that I am feeling better David decides to give me an afternoon to see a movie and shop a little, then we will switch and I will give him the evening to go drink coffee (decaf of course) and read. I decide on 'Marley and Me,' which I thoroughly enjoyed. It wasn't cliché like I thought it would be, it actually had real drama to it, not just humor. Hollywood impressed me this time, but then again, I don't see new movies much…others may hate it.
When I take over, I put Sophia down and she will not sleep, not even with me on the bed, she is so wide awake. I am so tired of this, I thought. I was despairing. What are we doing to our daughter in this nomadic lifestyle we seem to live. The hotel room felt like a box. I start crying, having a pity party and just let Sophia get up and play. She screams in her bed, she screams in mine, so out of respect for our neighbors I let Sophia parent for a while, and I pray. What David reminded me of when he returned was that this bronchial dilator medicine we just started giving her is a stimulant. Duh. I could tell she seemed pretty wired. I relaxed a little, thanked God for His mercy in even allowing us to be here to get good medicine, and we all went to sleep by 10pm.

You know the rest of the story. We leave Hong Kong after our little SE Asia tour and about cry tears of joy when we land in our little town. Wow, what a journey. One that continues tomorrow and the next day. We wouldn't trade the journey for anything, as we learn the lessons we need to learn...to love better, trust more, ask forgiveness more readily, and see our ever-present weakness in this fallen world. We thank the Father for His patience with us and for His unfailing love that is our rock. Thanks again for journeying with us.

Details, Hong Kong con't

Feb 6th:

It just so happened that yesterday was my Birthday (the 5th, thanks everyone for the birthday wishes), which I officially deemed ‘the worst birthday ever, but with very good news.’ I had planned on having Starbucks with a friend and doing some morning shopping, then going out for dinner with our best friends. But the day before, I ate something that could have been cooked with shrimp (to which I am very allergic). By 5 pm on the 4th, I felt awful, and from 7-1 a.m. I was violently ill, I will spare you the details. This also involved severe chills and awful stomach cramps. The cramping got so bad that I began to really worry for the little girl growing inside, only 20 weeks old. I couldn’t tell if I was having contractions or if it was my bowels (I knew it was this, but was it more, I wasn’t sure). We finally went to the ER by midnight to check on the baby. Our teammates and dear friends happen to be in HK for a few days and came to take Sophia back to sleep. The baby’s heartbeat was fine, though I was still very ill. The ER doctor recommended going to see an ob/gyn for further check the next day and did say that you often cannot tell the difference in stomach cramping so it is always good to see the doctor when having such. The next morning, weak and weary, but the illness subsiding, we got another ultrasound, and all looked great. Finally this afternoon (on the 6th), I am regaining strength, and just thankful we were here…and I keep singing the old hymn ‘whate’er God ordains for me is right’ and remembering that God wants me this desperate to him in prayer in sickness and health. But he certainly has had mercy on us in our weaknesses these days….

Meanwhile, Sophia is now fighting a very bad cold that has brought on fever and difficulty breathing, which means difficulty sleeping. We took her to the doctor today who said things were not too bad yet, but did give us some antibiotic to protect from the infection setting in, she had seen many children with bacterial infections of late. We will wait for her fever to subside before we travel. So, currently, David is the healthiest among us.

Vacation details IX, Hong Kong

Feb 2-9th Hong Kong (zero pictures, sorry)

(some of the following is cut and pasted from another update, sorry for the redundancy)

Hong Kong is an amazing city, a feast for the eyes of food, clothing, toys, cars, you name it, this place has it. It is clean and somewhat easily maneuverable. We should love this place compared to Bangkok, but we don’t. Coming to Hong Kong for us means something serious is going on, or potentially serious. If you recall almost exactly two years ago, pregnant with Sophia, we flew here quickly for David to receive follow up Rabies shots after what was certain exposure. Sure, we could see a movie and drink coffee as we waited for the days between shots, but it was all masked by the reality that we possibly didn’t get here in time and rabies could come and David would be gone. It was sobering, and you guys prayed us through that. Our amazing God was gracious to us then and proves so gracious again. ..

The Cardiologist here, at first glance of David’s files from Bangkok, said they looked ‘ugly’ or, more medically, ‘malignant.’ Ugh, here we go again. But then he did an ultrasound and stress test, all which were great. He then made David wear a heart monitor for 24 hours (again), to see what the beta blockers were doing, if the tachycardia was really under control. David continues to feel an ‘odd heart beat’ which the doctor continued to see as well and named an ‘early heart beat.’ The doctor never seemed to think David’s problem was VT (the fatal kind of tachycardia), but he also said even with medicine controlling it, David is so young to be on medicine for the rest of his life. After reading the monitor, it revealed zero tachycardia, just the early heart beat. This was great news. He confirmed what other doctors we have consulted with have said, David has SVT with aberrancy most likely occurring in the AV node, basically his circuitry doesn’t work like most peoples, he has an ‘extra’ electrical pathway. This is good news, though it does make him an ‘excellent case for ablation therapy,’ as the doctor here stated. Ablation therapy ‘cuts’ or ‘zaps’ the electrical pathway. The doctor said David is at little or no risk if we wait until we go home to get this done in the U.S., which we prefer. David will remain on Beta Blockers and then when we return to the U.S. we will follow up with ablation therapy.

A little pause for Happy Bdays

We must send two great shout outs to two very special friends of ours. Happy Birthday Russell (the 13th) and Chip (the 15th). Not enough can be said about the impact these two guys have had on us and our family. Chip is one of David's best friends from college, and remains so to this day, even though miles separate them. The interesting twist is that David's friendship with Chip is what brought us into the lives of Russell and his family and brought us to our home here in Asia. In grad school David really wanted to go to Asia and take a few friends, he asked Chip where he should go, Chip said, 'you have to go meet this guy.' And so he did. We had been dating two months when we went with three others across the pond to visit this family that 'we had to meet.' They lived in a small town in China, we went to hang out with them for a month. It was life changing, we went home knowing we would get married and come back to live in that place. Now we do. Thanks Chip for that introduction, and thanks Russell for the years of great friendship that have followed. Blessings to you guys on your birthdays!

Vacation details, VIII, sad goodbyes

Jan 26-Feb 2, Thailand




Because our vacation was postponed our schedule was a little off. The Cokers were staying three more nights in Bangkok, the Crafts leaving that night, and we were going to visit friends in another part of Thailand. We weren't supposed to be leaving the airport until the afternoon, but happened to run into someone who got us an earlier transport out of there. It all happened entirely too quickly. The goodbyes were so sudden that we didn't have time to really think about it. Except I just watched as Sophia hugged and kissed and had no idea that her playmates would be gone tomorrow. Gone for a long time. We all teared up. But for me, as the Cokers and Crafts went out of sight, and Sophia kept yelling loudly "Lee, Lee, Lee," I broke down. This is getting so much harder. A lady who was escorting us, who I did not know at all, just hugged me, and I knew she understood. David and I do think about it, this life we have chosen. We love it entirely, and know it is what we are supposed to be doing. But man, taking your children from those who love her most, this will be our constant battle. And His Grace alone gets us through.

We consult with a doc who has the authority to tell us what we really need to do and where to do it. He looks at David's first heart monitor results and says they do look bad. We need to go to Hong Kong, and soon. Go see so and so doc, do what he says, I trust him completely, this doc tells us. This doc also takes the time to explain how the heart chambers and electrical system work and how David's could possibly be going awry. He was so helpful. So off to Hong Kong we go….

Vacation details VII, the beach

January 20-26th Koh Samui, Thailand

This is our first time on Koh Samui, we were impressed as soon as we got off the plane. The resort met us with SUVs and whisked us through town. We were staying on Chaweng beach, which we heard was the nicest but also the center of night life. But it is a long stretch of sand, so I booked a resort at the southern tip, away from the night life. It was perfect. No fighting for chairs, the service impeccable, the beach pristine, the sand so white, the waters various shades of clear blue/turquoise. And we just happened to have booked the nicest rooms right on the water. It was great for families with small children, as it had a section of the pool that was very shallow with a fountain that Sophia loved. The resort was small, with only a few rooms on the ocean, the rest set back in a tropical jungle type setting, the scenery was beautiful.

Sophia warmed up to the ocean, very shy at first. The other cool thing was if you walked a short ways you were in a little cove type area where rocks separated the ocean for a bit, the area was calm. Sophia loved this section, you could see the fish swimming around and the waves were nonexistent.

We spent our mornings in the pool and on the beach with Sophia, David always taking her in the pool where she would spend the hours filling and emptying her toys with water. We took turns reading and relaxing. In the afternoons, the crew continued to veg on the beach. Sophia started taking three-hour long naps. Wow. I would stay up on the porch where I could still see everyone and listen for Sophia. Honestly the first few days, I napped too, right on the porch in the seabreeze. God is so good.

One morning David and I went into town (still trying to get his medical records scanned and sent to the U.S.). The grandparents and Laura and Lee took over with Sophia. They had a blast, we, on the other hand, were unsuccessful with the medical records.

Late afternoon we would venture out for dinner. We usually ate around 5:30 or 6, when everyone else was still on the beach. Every restaurant we went to we were always the first people there, and usually left without others coming in. One particular night we ate a place called 'Poppies' that had great Thai food. We took a taxi/truck up there and then walked the beach back to our resort. This particular night our resort was having free cocktail hour and a show. We hurried back for our virgin drinks and enjoyed a guy juggling bottles on fire…Sophia just stared at the guy, clapping every so often.

After Sophia went down for the night we would hang out on the porch or in Poppy and CC's room which was right next to ours. We played some games, talked a lot, laughed more, and really enjoyed the week as a family. It was all too short. Thanks Poppy and CC for making the vacation so awesome, and Laura and Lee for being such troopers through it all.

Vacation details VI, last night in Bangkok

January 19th

The doc says the tachycardia has improved tremendously. This second doctor, who specializes in the electrophysiology of the heart, is 80+ % sure that David has the less serious kind, but still thinks ablation would be a good way to go. He does not pressure at all. He thinks for now David will be okay on Beta Blockers, and the beach we are going has a nice hospital. So we prepare. It was amazingly easy to change our flights and postpone our trip two days. The resort was so helpful (of course we were staying in some of their nicest rooms, they wanted us to come). Our last night in Bangkok we walk down the street to eat Schwarmas on the sidewalk, delicious middle eastern food. One thing we love about Bangkok is the great selection of international cuisine. The hospital caters to a lot of Middle Eastern countries so the Muslim presence is abundant. Many women in full Burkas, some with ornate metal accessories that cover their nose and mouth. In our previous visits David has talked with men from Oman and Yemen. One man told him that their government pays for its citizens to come and get health care here. They are oil rich countries and can afford to do so. Supposedly. I seriously doubt all the citizens make the journey.

After Schwarmas (which everyone loved, and our most economical meal yet at about 2 dollars a plate), Laura, Lee, Poppy, and CC, decide to venture into Nana market, a sidewalk market where the later it gets the grosser the scene. But it was early and there were bargains to be had. We gave a brief recap of how to bargain (go down less than half of what they say, and walk away). They came back with some nice bargains, fake, but nice. And we all pack and prep for the beach, still timid about David's unresolved medical issues, we resolve to relax and enjoy our time together.

vacation details V (video)

January 18th
Another day to enjoy with family, though the monitor still hangs on David's chest. They are really seeing Sophia in action, CC teaches her a new word, which she repeats on cue in her super cute way "awl -right-ee." And as David seems to be doing well, we debate the beach. We have tickets and a nice place to stay on Koh Samui, one of the nicest beaches in Thailand. We are ready for a change, David is too, we just need to weigh the risk and see what the doctor says tomorrow. I hurriedly canceled our flight and called the resort to let them know the situation, as we were already past due there.
Here is a video at the beach of Sophia saying her new word: 'alrighty'

Details IV

January 17th
No new news, but a very timely visit from an old friend Phil T. the night before. Another great Providence of our Father, arranging everything. We were all set to go forward with the study (invasive, catheter, and not without risk). This doctor did these a lot while in the states but does not do them frequently here, that and he would have to wait to gather a team, a colleague currently in Malaysia. We begin to second guess. We decide to wait and see what the Beta Blockers do. They finally let David check out, and cannot answer many of our questions, because in medicine nothing is 100%, of course. David now wears a heart monitor for about 48 hours. His heart feels a lot better, he still feels it some but not nearly as much. It all seems to be under control. But our question is, is it really? Because I really do not want to have to do CPR on my husband, especially returning to our remote town in China. We decide to wait and consult with more docs while letting David get used to/ adjust to the medicine, which seems to be working great.

We finally get out on the town and enjoy some tasty Outback Steakhouse. Yummy….

Vacation details III, Crafts arrive

January 16th

With David indisposed it is my turn to get up early and get Laura and Lee from the airport. We happened to get a most unhelpful and actually downright mean taxi driver. He would not listen to what I said, he was very careless with luggage and I was frustrated with him, he had little idea where he was going. I told them not to judge Thailand by this guy, he is an anomaly, most people are so friendly and helpful. I tell L and L that David is in the hospital and all that is going on. We plan to go to the beach Sunday, but everything is uncertain at this point. The taxi driver accidentally takes us the right way and I point him to our hotel. Finally. Because David really wanted to see Laura and Sophia's meeting, I secretly arrange with Poppy and CC to all meet up in the CCU, such a blessing to all be together, even if it is in a hospital room.

I actually feel awful all day, I think it is pure exhaustion. I have what must be a migraine, and nausea. Laura and Lee immediately serve me by watching Sophia so I can try to rest. We are back and forth to the hospital and meeting with two doctors now. The consensus seems to be that there is a definite circuitry problem in David's heart (which we already knew), the where is the question, that determines its seriousness. And so far, hooked up to all these machines they can't catch it. The doctor tells David about doing an electrical study to find the problem area and 'ablating' or cutting it off if they find it. David has heard this before, just never while lying in a hospital bed. They do put him on meds to lower his heart rate. And watch.

Sophia kissing her reflection (humility needs work eh?), she is boasting her new hair bow and jumper from Lee and Laura


check out my shades, I am ready for the beach


playing with Lee on the balcony, I love Lee, and can say his name so clearly!

Vacation details II, the hospital

January 15th
We are having a great time with Poppy and CC, we are enjoying them enjoying Sophia. It is unusually cool in Bangkok, supposedly a record. Still wonderfully mild compared to NC and our home as well. David and I are excited because we are going on a date, a real date, with a real movie theater and everything. We have really been wanting to see 'Defiance', and no twisting the parent's arms to watch Sophia. About to walk out the door, the phone rings. It is the cardiologist who just now has read David's heart monitor. 'You must come and check into the hospital.' What???? He obviously didn't like what he saw. We are a little in shock but just get stuff together and go to the CCU. When the doc said 'watch you overnight' I was picturing my hospital room after giving birth, cozy, private, couch, etc. Not so in the CCU, and well, I have never been to a Coronary Care unit. It looked like a 'House' episode. The walls were all glass, the nurses station right there, a much scarier place. On the way over I joked to David about him being the youngest patient in there, the nurses would love him. I swallowed hard when we walked in and the first room held a three month old. I swallowed harder as the doctor came and said that his readings of tachycardia were scary, in his office he could tell through ecg that David has a fairly benign form of tachycardia, but after seeing this he could not tell if it was the fatal kind or not. Hence, the hoopla and the hospital gown for our dear David. And the saga begins. The wondering, the praying, the crying, the fear, the hope, the thankfulness, the joy, the wondering, the praying, and on….

Backtracking...

Working backwards, I am trying to give myself a glimpse of the past month and the hoopla it entailed. I will not be deeply reflective here, but more documentary of our time away from home, with family, with lots of doctors, with friends, with more doctors, etc. you get the drift. This will be piece by piece not one long post...

January 13-14th, 2009

We arrive in Bangkok and get settled into a nice 3 bedroom apartment, David will arise very early to get Poppy and CC from the airport. After Poppy and CC arrive and spend great time with their Sofa Loafa, it is off to doctor's appointments for everyone. Here we indeed find out that Sophia has an ear infection (her first ever), and David gets put on a heart monitor for twenty four hours (the history here is his increase in tachycardia, a known condition, that got gradually worse the three weeks before we left, to the point where he was feeling it 40-50 times or more a day and getting winded, this was scary).

Home at last

It has been almost a month since my last post. I really thought I would blog while gone, but so much craziness was happening...I think I will back track and document/journal here what went on, but mainly for my own benefit, redundant to most of you guys. Sorry about that.
But for right now we are home. What did that look like:

Hong Kong, last minute doc appt for Sophia. Ear infection. bad. more meds. stronger antibiotic. Sophia has leaky diarrhea diaper, gets on daddy. The Subway stinks thanks to her. Change clothes. pack up quick. airport. Sophia throws up, gets on daddy. Stroller stinks because of her. Sophia sleeps long. KM city airport KFC dinner. 9 pm flight home. HOME. Pay taxi driver extra to help haul 88 kg of luggage (not pounds kg!). Sophia to bed. Unpack. Sleep by midnight. HOME. Pure thankfulness and joy. Thanks for traveling with us....