Got Milk?

We're Baaaack!

It has been way too long and way too much has happened in the mean time.

Last time I blogged Carter looked like this...


This was the day of my 41 WEEK appointment...and much to my surprise, the day the doctor said Carter MUST come out.


He is now 7 weeks old and looks like this...


So much has obviously happened in between these two pictures.

-Carter arrived on January 16, 2010 after an emergency induction, followed up 9 hours later by an emergency C-Section.
-Carter's Grandma and Grandpa Van Sickle came for a visit!
-We moved from Shanghai to Nanjing.
-Carter outgrew his New Born clothes.
-He began to smile.
-He lost a ton of hair and it is slowly growing back.
-He has gained 4 lbs since birth, weighing in at a hefty 11.7 lbs.

and the MOST current news...

his latest trick

Things That Make You Go Hmm....

We have no clue what this means, but it has got to be good.



Was it supposed to be PEACE or FAITH? Who knows.

Believe it or not...this is NOT a one-of-a-kind. The lady selling these had tons of them. She also would not negotiate price because she said it "was the best quality." I didn't have the heart to tell her that it was not the "best quality" because it means nothing to the people she is trying to sell it to. So I paid full price of 30RMB (~4.50USD) and was full of FACE with my purchace.

Our Furniture Has Arrived

Having furniture made here was a big experimental project on our part. There are no Pottery Barn's, Z Gallerie's, or even Rooms-to-Go in China. We also didn't have a real NEED to have furniture while living overseas because every home we live in is furnished. However, we don't have much real furniture at home-home.

Before we moved to Norway, we were just settling down in El Paso, Texas. We bought a house and started moving in, only to be transferred six short months later. Needless to say, we pretty much combined our bachelor/bachelorette furniture with a few new pieces and made do...all of which is in now in storage.

So why would we buy furniture here?

Two reasons:

1. Because it is dirt cheap. I LOVE a good deal. That is the truth.
2. There are wonderful people here who are experts at replicating/copying.

What made this challenging was that the furniture workshop is an hour away one direction, the fabric market is one hour in the other direction,(I'm sure our driver, Mr. Goo, is as sick of these places as I am) and there is very little English involved, which can get tricky.

At the bottom of this post is what we had in mind.

And here are some pics of what we got!!




The new things in this picture are the apothocary cabinet in the left corner. The two chairs, the pedestal table and the ottoman coffee table.

Juno

This week, while shopping at the international grocery store, I was approached by the High School PTSA President (of the international school I work at.) We had never met before. I was actually pretty flattered at "Hello." We then made small talk about having Thanksgiving in China then continued with our shopping.

As I was checking out, she approached me again.

"I had to tell you...I was so relieved when I found out that you were a teacher. The first time I saw you I thought you were in high school. I had to ask my daughter if there was a new girl in school that was pregnant!"

Funny? Yes.

Humiliating? Yes.

Needless to say, while I was working this week I felt like her:

I also found myself trying to hide my belly with my jacket and purse because I could feel the "Eagle Eye" on me as I walked past the Parent Volunteers who politely/awkwardly stopped their conversations said "Hello" and "Are you finding everything okay?"

I think I need to wear a school badge or official name tag....maybe glasses on a chain worn around my neck.

I Dream of Chicken Pox

As a child, one of the first "Big Moments" in life that I remember anticipating was catching the Chicken Pox. My friends were all catching it and I was really looking forward to having them too. The coolest part was that (once you were no longer contagious) when spending time out in the sun you had to carry an umbrella until you were all healed.

Well, when my oldest brother Brandon caught the Chicken Pox, I knew my time was right around the corner! My time did come....and of course it wasn't as glorious as I imagined it would be. After the week or so I was ready for the pox to be all gone.

Needless to say, I am now immune to Chicken Pox!

Little did I know...I am NOT immune to Shingles. Shingles is the "Grown up" version of the Chicken Pox. This virus I had as a child (works the same if you have had the vaccine) never really goes away. It becomes dormant. Then, when you are older and your body is in a time of stress (like pregnancy), it can return.....as Shingles.

Well, that is the cause of the burning sensation that I have on the back of my right leg. Shingles settles in one specific spot and this is where it has chosen to stay on me. I am now reliving those few days I had to spend in the Pink Lotion AND once again I can even spread Chicken Pox (not Shingles) to those of you who haven't had them yet. Lucky me!

Good news is that it causes no harm to Carter...I may even pass on a bit of immunities to him.

UPDATE....Oops:

I have just learned that I did not catch the Chicken Pox from Brandon! I caught them from a friend while we were living in Scotland.

I did, of course, rub my victory in Brandon's face by singing "I caught them first". He would then taunt me back by poking me in the Pox and sing "Well, I'm going to get them next." I don't think he caught them.

Who won that battle? I'm thinking Brandon. (As I sit here on day two in my Pink Lotion.)

Mr. Shanghai Skycraper Window Washer

This morning as I was in my PJ's (looking so wonderful) and checking emails, Lucy became very upset about something in our window. When I went to see what all of the commotion was about, I noticed there were four ropes hanging from somewhere above and dangling all the way down to the ground.

If that wasn't scary enough for a dog to comprehend........

A bucket and a shoe (not in picture) descended from above.

I tried to calm her down with a treat. However, when I returned to the living room.......

this is what I saw (we live on the 45th floor)!!! This man is sitting on a tiny piece of wood hanging from a rope cleaning the 7th tallest building in Shanghai! Not sure if this would pass on Health and Safety standards in the US.

While neither I nor Lucy were expecting to see man staring at us from the other side of our window early in the morning...I'm sure this man also had a rude awakening when he hit our window. Not only is he hanging on for dear life but he had a barking dog and pregnant lady in her PJ's taking pictures of him...what a way to start your day.

So here's to you Mr. Shanghai Skyscraper Window Washer! Without you, our windows would never be clean!