Christmas Festivities

My mom pointed out a few weeks ago that this blog could use an update... and I agree. Must be lack of time,ambition, inspiration or motivation. Just not sure which one!
Anyway, we've had a busy month leading up to Christmas, and here is a little sampling of what we've been up to:

 Making the Christmas crafts that came in the Christmas box from Grandma Ruth (magnet Christmas picture frames). Fun!

 We were heading to an evening performance of the choir Annika is in, so we stopped on our podium to take some pictures of the girls wearing their Christmas dresses. The weather was clearly much warmer at the beginning of the month than it is now! It is now way too cold to be sleeveless!

Pre-performance warm-ups.

Here they are finally performing after a very long time of waiting through "technical difficulties". We were feeling sooo sorry for the music teacher while they were figuring out what was wrong. 

 This fall we started attend St. Andrew's Anglican church because it is so much closer to where we live than our old church. We just couldn't handle an hour long commute with two trains and a really long inter-change. We miss "Island", but we all are enjoying St. Andrews, and we especially enjoy our weekly lunches with our good friends Mary and Joseph (no joke!). Their daughter is to Leila's right. The kids were singing here in a special family service. 

 Amazingly the gingerbread cookies that Grandma and Grandpa Janzen sent us arrived in one piece. The girls had a lot of fun decorating them (and eating them)!

Mike and Leila hanging out waiting for Annika's Christmas concert to start

Leila's Christmas concert. By now, the temperatures dropped and there is no heat in the chapel, so the kids had to wear their jackets and then quickly take them off before they performed. 

Leila was in a little small group that sang some lines of "Away in a Manger" on their own. It was so sweet! And she really wasn't feeling well, so I'm glad she made it through. 

Mike was able to stop by her class party for a few minutes on one of his breaks. 

Annika's class party later in the week. They got to have a "free dress" day on the last day before the holiday. 

Annika's class party

 Christmas din-din with friends at Phoebe and Joey's. Side-note story- that little goof with the rabbit ears was a friend who was just over for the evening, and he goes to CAIS, so he recognized Mike. Mike didn't know who he was though, since he would have been in Grade 4 last year when Mike was teaching grade 6. Anyway, he informed us that he had seen us in the Edmonton airport this summer. We were like "What?!? Why were you there?". He told us that he had an aunt or somebody who was living in Edmonton. So that's a bit unnerving to think that he and his family could have just been watching us in the airport and they didn't approach us and say anything. Weird!!

And... that's what our catered Christmas dinner looked like! Along with wine and ice cream. Merry Christmas!

Throwback Monday

Today Leila was supposed to bring a baby picture to school. I'm not even sure what it was for, but since I didn't have any with us in Hong Kong I made a trip to the photo place in our mall and printed this one for her to take. 

Aahh! What a cute baby... I just want to kiss those little cheeks! Why do they have to grow up so fast on me? We just found out this weekend that one of those little bottom teeth that you see in her smile is very wiggly. I think the tooth fairy will be visiting soon. Sniff...

 And while I was digging through old photos I came across this one and had to print a copy of it as well. My little snow babies! :) That winter we discovered that they were happy as ever being pulled in a sled so we took lots of walks around the neighborhood or on the ice rink with this arrangement. I thought maybe Leila's teacher and classmates would be interested in this photo. I'm sure most of her buddies have never even seen snow!

Feeling Inspired...

Today was a grade 1-3 family picnic at Inspiration Lake. So that meant Annika's grade 2 class and Mike's grade 3 class both went, while Leila and the rest of the preparatory class had an empty school to themselves. It was a beautiful and hot day and I was glad I could go along. Also, I don't think Mike has ever been able to go on a field trip with the girls, although it's not like he doesn't go on his fair share of field trips! It was nice that he didn't have a lot of responsibilities and could hang out with us a bit- there really was no agenda for the day. 

A picnic lunch on actual grass!

The teachers had brought some parachute games and some balls for kids to play with. For some reason the parachute teachers were having trouble attracting kids, so Annika and I joined in for a while. 

And then at noon there was a much-anticipated "nature hike" led by Mr. G.  It was pretty much just a walk around the lake. But that was good because I spent most of last year just in the playground with the girls and hadn't had a chance to explore. It wasn't exactly vigorous, but it was very hot and sweaty and we were all tired by the end. 

Okay, this picture shows some of the beautiful scenery at Inspiration Lake. But see the student way off on the right side wearing PANTS? Those are the P.E. sweatpants that go with the "winter" uniform. There was a handful of kids wearing them today. It was a high of 30 degrees! It's cooled down from August temperatures for sure, but it was probably hotter than any of the days we experience in Alberta this summer with the added humidity! I just couldn't imagine why these children would have been dressed in thick sweatpants. Was there a worry that they could possibly be cold? No really, I wish I could find out if that was an actual concern. Or was it more to protect against the sun's harmful rays and against insect bites. Who knows, but I felt sorry for them. 

Mr. Janzen and his tag-a-longs

A waterfall!

It definitely "inspired" us to think about returning with Grandma and Grandpa Janzen. You can even rent paddle boats and bikes. Can't wait!

Seven!!!

 Time for another roundup of this year's pictures of Annika. I didn't have time to put this together on her birthday, but this year Annika actually remembered and reminded me ("I want to do that thing where you ask me what my favorite things are"). So here goes...

Shanghai, China

 Favorite food: Subway sandwiches (from Subway or it's also what she calls buns with meat, cheese and lettuce which is what I often put in her school lunch).
Favorite book: Cara the Camp Fairy (just got it for her birthday)
Favorite TV show: Jake and the Neverland Pirates (no surprise there!)

 Favorite holiday: Christmas, Easter and Canada Day
Favorite school subject: Christian Ethics
Favorite place: Disneyland
Favorite animal: swift fox

 What do you want to be when you grow up?: Librarian
Favorite restaurant: McDonalds

Birthday party fun

More birthday party fun with a classmate.

 Favorite friends: Audrey, Gigi, Yurino
Favorite season: Autumn
Favorite sport: Swimming
Favorite movie: Cinderella

I think this was the "year of the teeth" as her smile looked different month to month.

Life is good!

Favorite color: Orange and Purple
Favorite flower: Lily

ST-RIKE! (if only)

New and improved skills this year: whistling, shoe-tying, monkey bars, bowling, swimming, jump rope skipping

With Leila on a class field trip to the history museum.

Favorite wedding: Auntie Leanne and Uncle Michael, of course!:)

Dancin' Janzens

A happy camper!

Annika, we love your zest for life! You bring us so much joy! Happy Birthday... we LOVE you! XO

A's Birth Story

Exactly 7 years ago on September 26, 2006 I went into labour with Annika. I just remembered today that I had promised myself that I would take the time to write down her birth story just as I had done with Leila. I can't believe it was SEVEN whole years ago! That sounds like a lot... and in some ways it feels very long ago, but at the same time I can't believe so much time has passed!

I finished work at the sometime in the beginning of September and on September 26 I was exactly 39 weeks along. By that point I had pretty much gotten everything done on my list and was feeling very ready to meet my baby. I had made plans to have some fun lunch and coffee dates for the rest of the week, but the only thing I had up on that particular Tuesday arranging for a piano tuner who would be coming around eleven or twelve to tune our piano. Mike had joked that morning that I could have the baby that day, but I should just  wait for the piano to be tuned since we had booked it a while back. I went for a long walk that morning on the 'Participark' trails and it was a very beautiful fall day and the leaves were changing colors. I remember stopping and feeling winded, wondering if I would be able to waddle my way back home. 

I came home and found out that the piano tuner was only coming around 2:00, which was a bit annoying because I would have made some plans to get out of the house had I known it would only be happening in the afternoon. I was getting bored with all the waiting. I made myself some lunch and went to the bathroom like you do a million times a day when you're 39 weeks pregnant, and when I stood up, I had the sensation that i was peeing my pants! It occurred to me that maybe my water had broke, but it wasn't the "gush" or "splat" that happens in the movies. I was stunned and excited and scared and in disbelief that this might actually be happening! Once I determined that this wasn't just an "accident" (which would have been weird, right?)  I phoned the Shared Care program to let them know what was going on. The midwife assistant that I spoke to on the phone told me that I needed to wait until contractions started before doing anything. I didn't need to come to the hospital until they were regular and five minutes apart, unless 24 hours went by with no action. Then I should come in regardless. She told me that the best thing I could do would be to go lie down and rest since there was a good chance I'd be up all night. 

That was incredibly exciting to hear! Up all night? The baby is really coming?! As if I was going to be able to go to sleep upon hearing that news!

I decided to phone Mike so that I could let him know that my water had broken. I just wanted him to be aware of what was going on and know that I might phone him again if I needed him to come home quickly at some point. Also, he could think about starting to prepare sub plans, etc. for the next day.  Other than my water breaking I wasn't feeling different in any way, so I wasn't panicked or thinking that he needed to come home. 

This was way back in the dark ages when Mike didn't had a cell phone on him at school and he didn't even have a phone in his classroom. So the only way I could get ahold of him was to go through the office. This is how my conversation went:

Shirley the Librarian: "Hello, LWCA, this is Shirley".
me: "Hi. This is Sarah Janzen calling. I'm wondering if Mike is available, or if I could leave a message for him to call me back?"
Shirley: "Ooohh... is it the 'time'?"
me: Ummmm.... well... I don't know... my water just broke, but I don't think I'm in labour yet... I just wanted to talk to Mike?"
Shirley: "Hold on, dear. I'll get him."

********wait, wait.... wait....wait... for what seems like an eternity.....****

Shirley: "Hi, Sarah? He's on his way."
me: "Okay, thanks."

*******wait, wait, wait...***** 
Click. 
What? Why is the phone dead???

Seconds later, the Micra Machine came racing up to the front of our house, and Mike got out, slammed the door and came running breathless into the house.

Mike: "Are you okay?! I hear the baby's coming! Are you in labour???" 
Me: "WHAT?? You came home?! I was just wanting to TALK to you on the phone! I didn't need you to actually come home!"

What the heck? That was kind of funny/embarrassing. It made me feel anxious that maybe I was just making this up since I was still a week early and that there really wasn't a chance that this baby was coming. But Mike, on the other hand, once he got over his shock, was pretty pumped that he got to make a dramatic exit right in the middle of his class (they may have clapped and cheered) and have the rest of the afternoon off! haha

And then the door bell rang. Of course... the piano tuner! So I hid upstairs since apparently I was in labour while Bob the Piano Tuner worked his magic on our piano. When he finally left, we tried to take a nap as I'd been ordered, but we were too excited. We packed the bags, Mike made sub plans, and had some supper. I just had toast because I'd read that you're not hungry when you're labour. After supper Mike watched some TV while I sat at the table working on a jigsaw puzzle that I'd started to keep me busy during my boring days at home waiting for baby to come.

As I was puzzling away, I realized that I was experiencing some lower back pain. It would start, get worse, and then fade away. So these must be the contractions I'd heard so much about! I got Mike to start writing down the times as they happened. By 8:00, they were really increasing in intensity, and by 9:00 they felt strong enough and were frequent enough that we decided we could head to the hospital.

On the way to the hospital, the drive was not fun! On the ten minute drive I had two or three really painful contractions where I was gripping the seat and trying to breath through them. I remember feeling very thankful that we had planned to deliver in Stony  because I thought the drive would have been excruciating if we'd needed to have an even longer drive into Edmonton! 

I made it to the intake desk and of course they were suspicious to see a first-time mom who was only 39 weeks along claiming to be in labour. But they checked me out and it turns out I was already 5 cm dilated. Hooray! 

The next 6 hours are a big hazy blur of pain. I remember that it was peaceful in our private room, and we almost always had a nurse sitting with us because it wasn't very busy that night. We had brought our "labour music" and it helped a bit to distract and make a calm environment. I did NOT like being in the shower, i did NOT like standing up and I did NOT like lying down. The only thing that I could tolerate was sitting in a mesh Poang-type chair and I would just rock back and forth as each contraction came and went because the pain was in my lower back and that chair provided resistance that helped a bit. They never once offered me any drugs and the mind-set seemed to be that of course I could do this. Why wouldn't I be able to?
I think if I'd been delivering in a hospital that handed out epidurals, there were times were I would have gladly accepted, but since no one offered, I just soldiered on, silently rocking my way through the contractions. 
At around 3:00 a.m. it was declared that I was fully dilated and would be able to being pushing soon, so they filled up the tub with water and called the midwife. 
I guess it was around an hour of pushing. I don't really know the time too exact, but it was painful and crazy until the glorious moment of 4:20 am. when Annika Lily Janzen made her arrival!

We hadn't found out her gender and the suspense of not knowing if we were having a little girl or a little boy had been driving me bananas!  The moment that we laid eyes on her was so special and surprising. She weighed a healthy 7 lbs, 14 oz. and other than some tearing on my part, we were both fine. Such a miracle and so much to be thankful for! Praise God!

We waited until after six (although the time passed quickly with getting cleaned up and showering, etc.) until we could make some exciting phone calls that our baby girl had arrived! We were sent home that afternoon (which looking back was a bit too soon), and thus began this crazy journey of parenthood!

We love you, Annika!!!

hipsters in Hong Kong... who knew?

I saw this video posted today. I'm a sucker for a good flash mob as it is, but I also liked the song and recognized a couple of people in it. Also, it made me miss making music. I'm sure Mike probably comes to that realization a lot more often than I do.
This band (Noughts and Exes) is having an album release show tomorrow night. I also wish we had a few more options with childcare because it would be fun to go. Ah well... what can you do?

Another Beach Post...

 This weekend we finally had some actual beach weather, so we packed up our stuff and headed back to Lantau Island for another beach day. This time, we went with some friends, and they showed us their favorite beach- Cheung Sha. I've seen Cheung Sha from the bus as we've traveled to other parts of Lantau Island and always thought it looked fabulous, but wasn't sure what exact beach I was looking at and how we could get there ourselves. Well, I'm glad we had some seasoned Chueng Sha beach-goers to show us, because it ranks right up there with one of the best beaches in Hong Kong that we've been to. I loved how open the view is- it's on the very southern part of Lantau Island. What are we looking at? I don't know... I just glanced at our world map. I guess maybe towards the Philippines? I don't know why, it's probably kind of weird, but I'm on an ocean shore, I like to envision what country or region lies beyond the expanse of water. 

 I am very glad to know about this beach, and it really isn't that difficult to get there from our new place in Tsing Yi. At least not compared to how long of a trip it would have been from Kowloon. The sand was really fine and white and for being such nice weather on a Sunday (which is when most HKers take the time to relax) it was a lot less crowed than you would find at a beach on Hong Kong Island. The kids had a lot of fun climbing and jumping off the sand banks. 

Me and Em

 We ended off our time with a dinner at a South African restaurant located right on the beach. A special treat to have an ocean view with your meal. We didn't try the ostrich on the menu this time, though. 

One final glimpse of this lovely place as the sun was setting and we headed to the bus stop to make our way home...