Bub didn't get the memo

Bubs was due on Friday...

After months of threatening to come early, the little rascal has decided to wait overtime. We have been here in Toowoomba for over a week now, since things seemed to be starting up.

But all is quiet lately. After three consecutive days in which Cherith went into early labor, with intense contractions only 2 minutes apart, things have settled down. Cherith has been walking a few kms per day in an attempt to convince bub that it wasn't going to be very comfortable much longer. But nothing doing except a few bouts of Braxton hicks... Kind of frustrating... Especially for her...

Of course, bub will arrive when the time is right (who ever heard of babies staying inside till it was time to get their driver's license??), but it has been slow... It seems like things are gearing up slowly again, but who knows for sure? I don't.. My crystal ball is away for repairs.

That's not to say there wasn't a good reason why bub didn't arrive a week ago. After it all, I took Cherith to see a Chiropractor, thinking that possibly something was out of line, and sure enough it was. According to the Chiro, would have quite likely caused labor to stall the way it did.

Maybe that was what was slowing things down, but then again, maybe bub just didn't get the memo.

I'm looking forward to meeting the little bub. But at the moment, with Cherith only a day or two over her due date, there is no real rush.

"I am Habit"

 "I Am Habit"

It is mighty hard to shake me, in my brawny arms I take thee,
I can either make or break thee - I am habit.
Through each day I slowly mold thee, soon my tightening chains enfold thee,

Then it is with ease I hold thee - I am habit.
I can be both good and vile, I can e'er be worth your while,
Or the cause of your decrial - I am habit.
Oft’ I've proved myself a pleasure, proved myself a priceless treasure,
Or a menace past all measure - I am habit.
Harmless though I sometimes seem, yet my strange force is like a magnet,
Like a great and greedy dragnet - I am habit.
Though you sometimes fear or doubt me, no one yet has lived without me,
I am present all about thee - I am habit.
Choose me well when you are starting, seldom is an easy parting,
I'm a devil or a darling - I am habit." --Anonymous

The best laid plans of mice and men...

So... We had planned to go up to Queensland for something of a working holiday. A great chance to catch up with family and friends, and as my work near home was coming to a close, we thought it would be a good time for the trip. On Monday we packed, planned, and tentatively decided to go on Tuesday or Wednesday, depending on how quickly we got everything sorted out... But,

The best laid plans of mice and men, go oft awry....

On Tuesday morning Cherith woke up at 2AM with regular, strong contractions (At 29 weeks, that is a very bad sign!!). Deciding not to wake me straight away, and not being able to lie still, she got up and went out of the room for a while, but nothing seemed to help. She woke me at 2:30, and on medical advice over the phone, took a painkiller and slowly went back to sleep. That was about 4. At 6, she woke up again, and the contractions were still there, though the painkiller was still numbing things, and we realized Tuesday was obviously not going to be the day to travel. By 9AM, the painkiller had worn off, and the contractions seemed to be getting stronger. I put her in a hot bath with magnesium and lavender oil, and the pain level dropped out of sight. Feeling much relieved, Cherith enjoyed the bath for a couple of hours, and seemed to feel much better, although the contractions were still there, they were not painful anymore.


Just before lunchtime her Dad called up and wondered if I could do an afternoon's work with him, so we got some lunch ready and went up, Cherith deciding she could rest better if she was with her mum, rather than at home alone. The instant we arrived the contractions kicked in hard and strong again. Within 20 mins her mum had called an ambulance... They arrived, asked a few questions, loaded Cherith into the ambulance, and set off for the hospital (A good hour's drive away, 40kms of which is dirt road). I took off for home, to grab a few things we'd need in town (Namely, my wallet, and some clothes, that thankfully we had packed already...) from there I went to town, arriving ten minutes after the ambulance, wondering just how many plans were about to go awry...

The ambulance girls said that Cherith was in labour, a fact the midwives at the hospital also confirmed, but, thank God, they were able to halt the labour, and with baby going into an excited and happy kicking frenzy at the chance to continue incubating ;), we both fell into an exhausted, and somewhat restless sleep... Regular checks confirmed that things were definitely settling down, though taking their time.

Now it's Thursday afternoon... Maybe we will make it to QLD soon, but who knows... The midwives have suggested it would be a wise move, considering we live an hour from town, and that the nearest hospital to here which could handle such a premature baby is Newcastle, a solid 6 hours drive away... In QLD we would be 30 mins drive away from the nearest hospital, and they would handle almost anything. But, as I've said, the best laid plans of mice and men....

The doctor suggested that pending a few tests to be done today, Cherith might be sent home this afternoon, so we'll see how that goes. Fingers crossed the tests all show good results. I'm eager to meet the little rascal, but not before it's time. Meanwhile, we have been living in a hospital room, trying to subsidize a hospital diet with some real food...

Good, quick, or cheap

     Which would you choose? It is a simple fact of life that you can only choose from two of those three options in any given circumstance of life. This can be good and cheap, but then they won't come in a hurry. They may be quick and cheap, but then you will sacrifice quality on the altar of speed. They can be good and quick, but price will certainly be at a premium in that case.
     Then there are different types of people. There are the perfectionists, who will never cut corners when quality is concerned. There are those who don't like to put in more work and effort than necessary. To them, quick is always a priority. There are others, who will put in any effort to save money, often sacrificing a lot of time, and losing quality in the process. Which type are you?
I've been discovering that quality is very important to me. I don't care if a job takes a little longer, as long as I know it is well done. I will usually never buy the cheapest product on the market, because I've discovered that it usually isn't worth the savings to have it break or wear out so much more quickly. I do a job properly, so I know I won't have to come back shortly and fix it or do it all over again. It's just who I am. I used to get frustrated with my dad for being a perfectionist, only to discover I am one myself.
     So, which do you choose? Think about it. You can only choose two. If you think you are getting all three you are being conned.

A very special hectic week

Last week seemed like a very long week! But a week filled with blessings just the same...

On Sabbath evening we had made the decision to travel to Sydney the next morning, to pick up the dining table we had bought three months before, and which one of Cherith's very obliging relatives was keeping for us till we could make the trip. But the real reason we were making this last minute trip was because Cherith's uncle was moving house, and offered us the piano that was in the house he was vacating, as he couldn't take it with him.

That piano caused us a little bit of agonizing, as we tried to decide if it would be worthwhile. Cherith loves to play piano, and is fairly accomplished, so it was obviously a fair inducement for us. The piano in question however, was approximately 110 years old. I had to wonder if it was in good condition/playable, and whether it would survive the rigors of a 500km trip without serious damage. Then again, pianos, especially very old ones, tend to be back-breakingly heavy (anything up to 450kgs for an upright piano like this one), and the question of how we would get it unloaded at our end was a bother too. With all this in mind, and after Cherith's brother, who had seen the piano, said it looked in fantastic condition, we decided to travel down on Sunday.

So on Sunday morning, we went to Cherith's parent's house to borrow a trailer, helped get the trailer shipshape, (which included rewiring the trailer's lights, and welding one of the support braces underneath), and just after midday we were on our way to Sydney.

On the way down, we were still trying to organize one or two people to help us load the piano onto the trailer, with very little success. We finally arranged to stay overnight in Sydney, at the same household that had sheltered our dining table for the last few months, and as it was 7:30 by the time we arrived there, didn't stay up long before going to bed...

110 years old. Sounds beautiful.

The next morning we loaded the table into the trailer, and the 6 chairs that go with it into the car, and set of to meet up with Cherith's uncle to see what could be done about the piano. We met him, took one look at the piano, and fell in love :D... It is a beautiful piano, which in spite of it's age is well preserved, and plays quite well. It didn't take us long to realize that we were NOT going to get this piano into the trailer with just two of us to do it. He left to pick up a friend of his, who in miraculous coincidence happened to be in the neighborhood waiting for his car to be serviced and had nothing to do in the meantime. With his help, and a lot of groans and strains, we managed to slide it onto the trailer, and then had to work out a way to put the table into the same trailer. Not the easiest feat, as the table is a 1.8 x 1 metre solid timber extendable table. In the end we had to stand the table upright to fit it in, strapped everything down, and started the trip back.

In Cooranbong we stopped in to show Cherith's grandma the piano (she had been very keen for us to be able to pick it up). It was after 3PM by the time we left Cooranbong, and the trip home, which usually takes about 6 hours, and with a heavily loaded trailer on would take even longer, began.

I had been planning to go back to work the next day, but wasn't sure that would eventuate now, considering how late we would be getting home. In the end run it was about 10:30PM when we arrived at home, tired, having done 18+ hours of driving in the last 32 hours.

The next morning we tried to see if we could get Cherith's father to come over and help unload the piano, and the neighbor also agreed to help. A lot of push and shove ensued, before we realized that one door was slightly (about 8mm) too small...The neighbor had some tools handy, and quickly modified the doorway to fit the piano through, and finally it was in our lounge room. Then the table and chairs were put into the dining room, and we promptly celebrated this feat by having breakfast around our new table with Cherith's family...

Finally we have a dining table in our dining room.

I tried to go to work that day... But I couldn't work for very long. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have tried it, and just rested. But that's me. But the blessings for the week didn't end there.

On Thursday, Cherith had her appointment for an ultrasound. We got to see the baby for the first time, and hear it's heartbeat again. It was surreal to see him (or is it her??) kicking and wriggling on the monitor. It was just such a special moment. Cherith was a few days short of 14 weeks pregnant, and it was interesting to see the level of development evident even at that stage of pregnancy. It was easy to see the heart beating, and hear it ticking away...

And just when you thought surely that has to be all for one week...

Our next door neighbor, who had helped us move the piano (and is our landlord's son), finished installing the chimney and sealing the roof up, just before it started raining on Friday afternoon. So now we can enjoy our cozy fireplace even when it's raining :). God's goodness and ability to provide never ceases to amaze me.

Oh, and he even provided the fuel money for our trip to Sydney... We could never have gone otherwise. Isn't He good?

A thousand ways to provide. And a thousand opportunities to provide. A thousand reasons for me not to stress. A thousand reasons for me to learn to relax and leave things in His hands!

1 + 1 = ?

Maths is a subject specifically designed for tormenting children with... Adults too sometimes...

But there are some things even maths won't work out...
1 + 1 = 2, right?

Well, it does, sometimes... But 1 + 1 can also be 3.

About 2 months ago, my dear wife and I, one bright and sunny morning, discovered that 1 (her), and 1 (me), was soon going to = 3. That's right. She is busy working on a new member for our little family. Life is great, right?! :). So it is. She was shocked, I was excited. From memory, I believe I even went so far as to jump up and down... Very undignified I am sure, but at moments like that, who cares!!?

Cherith had been feeling just a tad nauseous that morning, and in a fit of cheekiness, I suggested that it may be more that a disagreeable breakfast. Her response was to take a test, and lo and behold, my snap suggestion as to what might be happening turned out spot on. So it's a baby. And seeing as the only options are boys and girls, I guess we are having a boy... Or a girl........

So that's it. Sometime near the end of November or the beginning of December our little family will be experiencing a population boom. 

Last week we had the pleasure of hearing the little rascal's heartbeat, still very quiet, but definitely ticking away steadily. It was a strange moment, in the doctor's office, listening for that faintest beat. Somehow, it brought to mind the awesomeness of the thing. The baby was at the time approx 2 inches long! Imagine the size of it's heart?? That is one tiny ticker. But there it was.

It made me wonder how many people who want an abortion would still have one after hearing their own baby's heartbeat for half a minute... I don't know, but I think a few would change their mind. The heartbeat makes it real, alive, palpable. It is no longer an ignorable fact, but a living being. It makes it seem so much more like killing, because at some stage during an abortion, that little tiny heart stops.

Of course, many people have miscarriages, many unavoidable (at least seemingly). That too is a death. Hearing that heartbeat made me think of how traumatic that would be. I had never before understood why it was such a horrible experience, emotionally, for someone to have a miscarriage. But there's that heartbeat, ticking away... Living.... Only waiting to be born......

Keeping out the cold.

So the cold weather is coming. A week ago I was leaving for work with the water frozen in the windscreen of our car. So the temperature is steadily settling into it's winter rhythm. But there is a difference. We now have a fireplace. :)

Thanks to some help from Cherith's youngest brother, (who was staying with us for a few weeks while he worked nearby) who managed to move the 140kg stove into the lounge room for us, and my father-in-law, who is a carpenter and worked on fitting the chimney, we now have an amazingly snug and warm living room. Even my office, which is next door is feeling distinctly less chilly.

Growing up my family had a woodfire in the lounge room, and as my bedroom was at the opposite end of the house, it meant that in the mornings there was quite an incentive to race to the fireplace (which my mum would fire up at about 5AM every day in winter), and warm ourselves around it. It was one of those situations were things had to get worse to get better. I'd have to leave my moderately warm bed, race up the freezing cold hallway, through the dining room, and into the lounge room, for a nice toasty morning! Now I get to be the one who stokes up the fire in the morning, and get the house nice and warm for my wife! :).

Just remembering that, made me think about the saying 'things sometimes have to get worse before they can get better'. Very few people start life with everything in their favor. It takes hard work, and the proverbial 'blood, sweat, and tears' to make improvements in life. Just the same way a person has to brave the cold morning in order to start the fire, a person who wants to get somewhere in life has to start with step 1. You can't jump to the ending when life is all rosy and easy, smooth and comfortable. Life is generally tough to begin with. But that's no reason to dodge the tough streak. The key is to work through the tough spots in life, and keep your focus on the things that are important, and not let yourself get depressed by whatever difficulties you may be facing. Life is good. And it really doesn't matter what anyone else thinks of your life circumstances. The key is that you are happy with where your life is going, and are prepared to weather storms in order to be able to enjoy smoother sailing that so often follows a difficult time.