Just like that!

1 Already. What a fast, precious year. Mini Doc's 1st birthday celebrations.

We had a few people round for her birthday. I did announce it, but only as cake. I was trying to make a conscious effort to make it nice for her, and not get too carried away. Not getting carried away can be quite tough when it comes to kids birthdays. Faith has had a few great parties. I remember her 1st birthday. I had a house full. I fed everyone, not just cake... Faith was happy with a box and she wasn't comfortable with a lot of people. So i'm happy not a lot of people came to Gabriela's 'Pink cake' invitation, as i think that made it all the more comfortable for her. She had a great time. This is a big difference from UK birthdays. We had only been on The Big Island for a few months when Faith's birthday came around. I was pretty shocked that. Only a couple of parents RSVP'd (I had of course asked the whole class and the whole Sunday School and the neighbours) and then 1 family came from school and one girl was dropped off. One of the neighbours kids came and asked me for food to feed the rest of her family, which i obliged with, but that was a surprise too. I was also surprised that some parents brought food with them as a contribution to the party. Pot-luck is all the thing in Hawaii (perhaps America, but I only have experience of TBI of course). In Scotland it's rude not to RSVP, and everyone does. Almost everyone will come, and no one will bring food with them. I imagine guests would bring food if they were asked, but that doesn't seem to make for good hostessing to me... I remember the days when going to someone's house was a night off cooking. A bottle of 'Meeting Wine' (Shloer) and some flowers for the hostess. You could actually have a night off cooking at a pot-luck here, as some people bring a bag of crisps, but that would be rude. I wouldn't have the nerve lol! Thankfully, the first week we were here, my friend pointed out that going anywhere in Hawaii is a pot-luck, so we managed to avoid that faux-pa. Ha! 

Baby G

Introduction to the World.

Lovely to have Oma and Opa with us for 3 months. On 21 April we enjoyed fine Bavarian fare, included beef and blaukraut, with cloves (about 2 months later I remembered cloves bring on Labor, so perhaps they helped) and I ate a ton off it. For the rest of the evening I realize I can walk holding onto the stroller instead of the walker. Doesn't dawn on me at all that the reason I can suddenly get about more might perhaps be because the babys head is engaged. 10.30 I go to bed. 12.30 I wake up and 2 seconds later my waters burst (a new sensation really, since I was induced with Chookie and they burst them right before she came). I wake up Doc 'the baby's coming!, the baby's coming, my waters have gone the baby is coming' Doc 'Well get out of bed, have a shower' So I went and had a shower and he stripped the bed. I washed my hair. Why did I wash my hair?! Doc came through and I said these are big contractions, the baby is coming now, but for some reason he decided that babys take a long time and so off to bed he went. Meantime I phone my MD and Oma wakes up and is surprised I'm calling my doctor. Oma is also expecting this will take some time. I am now timing my contractions. Every couple of minutes. for about half an hour before Oma wakes up Doc again and I say to him, 'really, it's coming now, you're going to have to drive fast'. Made it out to the car in between contractions. Made it to delivery suite in between contractions, call back my doctor. 'Are you here to book in for a caesarean?' the nurse asks. 'No, I'm having a baby now!' Puts me in a room. Strip down into gown. Nurse checks. Almost fully dilated. Oh hello again Bavarian haute cuisine. Oh hello MD, you must live net door. MD 'Yes, round the corner' MD examines, fully dilated. Push when you're ready. Completely natural, no IV line, not even another gown! HELLO BABY! 8.95 dark hair, blue eyes, just like daddy.

Baby Shower

Plenty of Time

Our little American one will be welcome any time from tomorrow, as that will be week 37. Mean time Doc has been at the American Cancer Congress in DC and is on flight number 3 home. Not the correct flight as his first flights' delay entailed a missed connection and subsequent re-route to Kona. Kona is on the other side of the Island. So our freshly arrived visitors (Doc's folks) are having their first trip to the 'other side' in the evening, it'll be a scenic drive at least until the sun sets just after 6!

It's been 1 month now since I slid across the glossed cement, flooded, not even disabled accessible toilet at work, did the splits and thumped the wall with my Pelvis. Thankful that I didn't land on the baby. Since then I can hardly walk, my Pelvis was already weak from the loss of ligaments with a ruptured Pubis Symphysis week 28 of pregnancy - now 8 years ago, and this whack to the wall has knocked out my Sacroiliac joints. Yes it's painful, but not long to go now before the little one comes and I can start physical rehab, which this time will include ligament strengthening injections.

How an accident works in the UK. Paid sick leave for a time, paid maternity leave for a time, free NHS healthcare, company fix problem bathroom.

How this works in Hawaii. Haven't received a penny, work comp insurance just made available for use 1 month after accident (I received a prescription card yesterday, I had to pay for a walker frame myself in order to be able to get to the bathroom without the assistance of Doc), no paid maternity leave, no change in Bathroom. This now makes it understandable to me why people 'sue' in America. I don't want to personally, but the facilities are still an accident waiting to happen to someone else, which is just not right, is it?

 On the other hand my Blue Cross/Blue Shield Insurance is there to cover the birth.... or not if my employer decides paying the premium (of which I already had my portion of the April payment deducted from my last payslip) is not a priority, and NEGLECTS to inform me. Try to have a baby in America with no insurance anyone? Shaking in so much shock at not even being warned, I found out fro the insurance company. Thankfully Oma and Opa were there to calm me down and attempt to find a solution, so hopefully the lapse in coverage of almost 2 weeks has been rectified. Yes there are laws. Not sure as yet if it is covered now.

In Scotland this is called 'a kick in the teeth'.... if ever there was. Pretty mindboggling. Was I a bad employee? No, the opposite, apparently so much so that my boss can't cope without me so is now going to close, and yes I did leave detailed procedure instructions on how to do each task................

Doc's work is going well, and Chook is doing very well at school and with her Scottish books I have shipped over - have to keep up with the subjects which seem behind to me here, me thinks.

Oma has the baby clothes all washed and ironed, and our neglected ironing mountain is almost conquered. Opa has been doing jobs in the hoosey and Faith has been so so excited to have Oma and Opa to stay! So we are being spoiled by them, including German cooking, yum. Bet Doc can't wait for his flight to arrive tonight!

Tea party time!

 Mauna Kea taken from out front porch.

 The Birthday girl!

 Most but not all of the girls.  It was girls only btw.

 The remaining contestants, frustrated by the amount of wrappers!

If you birthday falls on a school day your mum can bring in Pizza and Cupcakes to class.

A milestone

It was quite deflating when my folks went home, especially when you're not entirely sure when you'll see them again :-( Hopefully when we do go back to Scotland to visit the weather won't freeze us. I have to say I have really gotten used to feeling cosy all the time.  My 30th birthday came quietly, I can't say I felt like partying, but it wasn't fun to go to work on my birthday, I don't normally do that, but then I don't regret using 9 of my whopping 10 annual leave days to spend with my parents.  Mike made steak pie and Faith drew e pictures. Then on the weekend we went to Spencer beach (we hadn't been before) and then all the way down to the Outback Steakhouse (There's only one on the Island) which had been the family haunt a couple of weeks before! Another gorgeous sunset in Kona.  So a nice family birthday it was :-)

Yay visitors!

Last post June. Oh time flys here. So July saw the arrival of my family for 3 whole weeks, and we all had a lovely time.  We stayed here http://www.hiltonwaikoloavillage.com/ and here http://www.sheratonkona.com/ both of which were great. Love hotel breakfasts too, although miss British bacon, the American streaky stuff is mostly fat it seems.  We did all the sights around the Island and some friends lent us their Honda pilot for 5 weeks, whilst they were back home so I enjoyed the freedom that brought, and it also meant those who wanted to could ascend the almost 14,000 ft high Mauna Kea and courtesy of my friend Joy (who works there) have a tour of the Gemini observatory, so that has to be one of those moments we won't forget.  After my pelvis played up with Faith i never thought i'd be higher than when i climbed Ben Nevis (exception of being on a plane obviously) but hey this is America - there's a proper road all the way to top. Interestingly with the naked eye at the top you can harldy see any stars, we had to go back down to 9,000 ft to see the stars better, apparently its something to do with the oxygen affecting our eyesight. At 9,000 ft there were a few telescopes, and my favorite one showed Saturn with it's rings. Gods amazing creation is stunning from here.