Two Months Ago....

Two months ago today, our family was blessed with another sweet baby girl.  We welcomed Sarah Jane Puffenberger into our family on August 14th at 6:06pm.  In order to remember her exciting birth, especially amidst all the other craziness going on in our family, I am sharing her birth story for this post...it was one we will never forget...but just in case, I wanted to record it.

On Monday, August 13th, we had scheduled our air shipment to leave for Hong Kong ahead of us.  This was a big day because we had spent weeks deciding what to take, give away, throw away, or store away.  When the packers came, we finally were able to get a big hurdle out of the way and see what would fit in our weight allotment.  Luckily for us, we squeezed everything we had hoped to take...whew! We were also relieved that I had not had the baby before then...not sure how we would have handled it if we had.  We did schedule an induction on Wednesday...for a couple reasons.  1)we were trying to balance family time, and if I had the baby on Wed I would be home by Friday, and thus, we would have had two weekends together before the "first shift"left for Hong Kong. 2)When you have four other children, it's nice to be able to plan childcare. 3)Wednesday was the 15th of August, and we had three other children born on the 15th of the month.  So Wednesday was looking good!

On Tuesday, my sweet grandmother had planned to take my older two daughters for pedicures for their birthdays.  She had missed Grace's b-day in June since we were at the beach, and Emma would be in Hong Kong for her birthday.  The salon was in Hockessin, closer to where my grandmother lived, so I joined them...to bring them home, and I wanted my toes to look pretty, too.  As we were leaving at 4pm, I experience a larger than normal flow of liquid leave my body.  Now, having four babies, and being pregnant with a fifth, it is not abnormal to have incontinence...so that was my first thought.  But, this was a little more than normal, so my second thought was that my water broke.  Now, my water had never broken outside the hospital before, so I began to try to remember how much time I had and if there was anything else I was supposed to do. I did ask my grandmother if she had any towels in her car, and when she told me she only had tissues, I told her what I thought was happening.  She was so excited and gave me her flannel blanket she uses for picnics.  I didn't know how absorbent it was, but it was better than nothing...and I had a 30-40 minute drive home!

On the way home, Andy called to ask what we should do for dinner, and I suggested that we stay home since we will need to get ready to go to the hospital...crickets.  "Are you sure?"  Yep! 
So I decided to lay down, since I had only had one contraction on the way home, while Andy was cleaning up the kitchen.  We also had decided that I was going to try to give him a haircut before we left.  Yes, I know.  A haircut when you're in labor? But Andy needed one and contractions were not too intense...yet.  About half-way through, I had to intense contractions, so I told Andy that that he could either get the rest of his haircut, or a shower, but we didn't have time for both...we needed to go! He chose the shower, I called my brother to come watch the kids, and we were off by 5:15.  By the time we had been in the car for 5 minutes, my contractions were 1-2 minutes apart.  I was busily texting in between contractions.  Our friend, Melissa, is the nursing coordinator at the hospital and was on that day. She wanted to be notified when we were coming in...so we let her know, with all the details.  I also texted, and Andy talked to, our friend Jocelyn, who is the pediatric hospitalist and was on that night.  As Andy talked to Jocelyn, giving her details of how close my contractions were, she was telling him that she could meet us on the side of the road.  When I would ask him what she was saying, he was telling me that I was going to be fine...he was doing his best to keep me calm during our 40 minute drive, during rush hour, to the hospital.

As we arrived at the hospital, it was like a scene in a movie.  Both Melissa and Jocelyn converged on our car at the same time.  Jocelyn had come from the parking lot and grabbed Andy's keys to park the car, and Melissa had come out of the hospital with a wheel chair for me.  As she wheeled me pass the from desk, they handed Andy a blue sheet to be filled out later and told us to go on back.  When we got back to triage, I remember the hallway being lined with nurses saying, "this is Puffenberger," as they directed us to the room, where two nurses and a doctor were waiting for me.  Melissa had done a great job preparing them for me!  In seconds, they had me in a gown and getting checked, only to find I was 8cm.  Without an IV, they called my doctor and rushed me upstairs to labor and delivery. When I got up there, two of my doctors were waiting (shift change).  They checked me, and told me that I could push during my next contraction. One contraction/two pushes later...Sarah was born. Eleven minutes after arriving at the hospital...the fastest eleven minutes of my life!  I remember feeling like "what just happened?" But she was beautiful, already pink and crying, and she looked just like the other four...amazing!

So Miss Sarah came with a bang.  She had to, she's the fifth.  But in the midst of moving to Hong Kong, I wanted to make sure that we don't forget this amazing miracle that we have been blessed with, and I am trying everyday to enjoy her.  She is growing so fast...and she has been such a trooper.

 

She was great on the 15 hour flight, travels with us during long days...including every day to get her big sis from preschool, goes food shopping with me, and is eating and sleeping well. She has captured our hearts, and we ALL are head over heels in love with her.  While Hong Kong is not the easiest place to have a newborn, I could not imagine doing this without her. So here are some newborn 2 week pics (taken by my good and talented friend, Brianna) and some more recent 2 month pics.  Hopefully you can see that she is chubalicious, and we are enjoying her smiles!

Abby's First Week of School

So it's really hard for me to believe that it's only been a week since we have been on our own without our friends.  I feel like this week has been an eternity! The biggest hurdle has been Abby going to school.  Just like Andy did with the older kids, he and I decided we would ride the bus with her on her first day.  What I didn't realize was she was scheduled to be on the bus for an hour and a half!  I didn't find this out until that morning when I received an email from the bus contractor.  As we were on the bus, I couldn't help but pray and wonder if I was supposed to home school my four year old.  If you know me, just thinking about it was a big deal for me.  As we arrived to school, all I knew was that this situation needed to change...and Andy felt the same way.

From there, Andy went to work and I went to meet a new friend.  Andy and I briefly spoke and came up with an alternative idea, but didn't know if it was going to be accepted. As I met with my friend, the bus contractor called to see how the morning went.  When I shared my concerns, he was totally understanding and was supportive of our idea for Andy to bring Abby to another stop later in the morning to catch the bus, and therefore, only be a rider for 25 minutes. This give me great peace, especially since she loves school, and loves riding the bus...and yes, I still can't believe I put my 4 year old on a school bus!

The other part of this, of course, is that I need to pick her up everyday.  There is no bus that brings her home.  As Rebecca and I figured out before she left, there is actually a bus that will help tremendously in this situation.  So, my commute to pick her up entails : bus from our community to Tai Wo MTR, train from Tai Wo to University MTR, then bus from University to Heng On MTR, which is right by Abby's school.  I will never complain about picking up a preschooler in the states again!  This takes me a little over an hour(one way), but I have found that I don't mind it, as long as I am not stressed about timing.  The pressure of timing still weighs on me, and I liken it to carrying a weight in the water vs. on land....the weight/burden is much heavier on land/when I'm running late vs in the water when it is lighter/when I have plenty of time.  Who knows what the future will bring, but for now, it is working for us.  And Sarah just sleeps the entire time in the carrier...such a sweet girl.

The other big thing for me this week is that my friend, Bernadette, asked me if I wanted to meet, pray and read through 1 Corinthians together on a weekly basis.  She is from Australia, and her and her family have befriended us, even before we arrived.  The way we connected is for another post, but her four children are about the same ages as our older children, and Grace and her oldest have especially connected...a huge blessing for both of them.  Bernadette and Robb have been a huge encouragement to us...being there when Josh needed stitches, helping with furniture stores, and Robb, being an IT guy, has been a great resource when it has come to trying to get wifi in our house.  We are so blessed by there friendship, and it has been fun to learn some "Australian lingo" along the way!

Well, everyday is an adventure here.  I also attempted the grocery store and finally went swimming in the pool with Abby.  We are incredibly blessed by the many ways the Lord has showed up for us in too many ways to count.  Thank you for your prayers and encouragement as we continue the transition process.

First Week in Hong Kong

It has been a crazy busy week...trying to cram lots of information in my tired head before our live-in saint, Rebecca, left for home yesterday.  Navigating the MTR (train system) wasn't too difficult, as I remembered a lot from our trips here in May.  The thing I struggle with the most, I realized, is the aspect that you are not in control.  I dislike being late, and sometimes it doesn't matter how far ahead I plan, the bus from our community to the MTR station could be running late...or the trains could be so packed that I cannot get on the first one that comes.  All of this is stretching me, and pinpoints my need for control.  There are lots of other areas of needing control...but this one seems to be at the top right now.

Another thing that has been most challenging is the homework.  It was a difficult decision to come to Hong Kong in shifts, but I am so glad the older children didn't miss any more school than they did.  The homework here is intense, and we are still trying to get a handle on it.  It is getting a little better now that they are catching up on what they missed, and getting used to it, as well.  But it is not uncommon for Josh, 1st grade, to have an hours worth of hw, Emma three hours, and Grace is often up until 10pm.  The other night, when Ron, Rebecca and Andy were out running errands, I was trying to figure out how to help all three.  I figured out that if I can get Emma done (who usually just needs encouragement, anyway), then she can help Josh (who usually has Chinese-which I can't help with, but Emma can) and then I can focus on Grace.

Finally, yesterday we said goodby to Ron and Rebecca...even writing this brings tears to my eyes.  It's not that I don't think we can survive without them...in fact, just this morning the Lord brought to my attention 2 Peter 1:3 (His divine power gives us everything we need for life and godliness...)but there is still a loneliness that I face, and even more importantly, I just appreciate and am so grateful for all that they did for us.  It was incredibly sacrificial of them to give a month's time of being together so that Rebecca could come to Hong Kong.  She encouraged, nurtured and loved on my older three children, watching out of for them and seeing them through this transition...all the while, trying to figure out the ins and outs of living here.  She supported Andy, pushed back when needed, and balanced him out when necessary.  And this past week she was incredibly helpful (cooking all week), making sure I knew pertinent information, and giving me opportunities to try things on my own, so I could have the confidence to know I could do it. And I could never had flown over by myself with my two littles, six 70lb bags/boxes and three carryons.  He was extremely patient and held a baby more in the last week than he has in his entire life.  Not to mention all of his technology expertise and being my husband's best friend...it was such a gift!

So our first week alone is upon us.  Abby begins school tomorrow and Andy and I are planning to ride the bus with the four kids, at least her first couple days.  I'm sure I will let you know how that goes...

Here are some pics from our travels and first weeks here...

Our adventure has begun!

Almost nine months ago, my husband was presented with the possibility of taking a three year commitment with his company to Hong Kong.  When he told me, I was strangely at peace with the idea.  This was definitely "out of the box", and even more so than My husband knew, since I hadn't told him yet that I was pregnant with our fifth child.  We are a family that strives to live by faith, so we decided to pray about it, and with godly counsel, take one step at a time.  Long story short, every step we took forward, God opened another door...and now we are here!  We came in two shifts...my husband, our three orders, and a friend coming almost four weeks ahead of the rest of us.  My older children needed to start school, while I stayed back to wait for a passport and imunizations for our newborn, and to tie up loose ends with the house and other details.  Those three and a half weeks were incredibly difficult, but the Lord saw us through, revealing Himself in countless ways.  So I have decided to blog our adventures, mostly to record our memories and remember how faithful our God is to us.

After a long separation and hard hours spent on packing up the house, my two littles and I said our goodbyes and took a shuttle to the airport.  We met our very good friend who would be traveling  with us, and who's wife had been over in Hong Kong, helping on that end.  We brought a good deal of luggage...five big 70lb boxes, a large suitcase, and several carryons.  We got everything checked in without issues, and we got to enjoy some down time before our fifteen hour flight.

The flight went smoothly...not a lot of sleep by the adults, but the kids slept well.  After arriving, we were able to collect all of our bags and find my husband waiting for us...this in itself was miraculous since I had a cart and stroller to push, and our friend had two carts to push, all the while not losing our preschooler who was blazing the trail.  Finally, we packed up the cars and went home to my very missed olders.  For as painful as my goodbyes in the states were, my reunion with my family was even sweeter...I'm sure a lesson for the future.

This first weekend has been exhausting...dealing with the two littles who are jet lagged, my own jet lag, and night feelings. But, there is great peace being where we are supposed to be...together on a journey that only our Lord could script. Yes, no one in their right mind would move a family of seven to a foreign country, especially after given birth six weeks prior.  But God does not call us to live the "easy" way, or the way that makes sense, or the way that is most comfortably.  He calls us to live in obedience...which is what we are trying to do.

We went to church this morning, and the message was about discipleship.  Discipleship is a long journey...a transformation that does not happen instantaneously.  I believe that for our family, this adventure in Hong Kong will be a slow transformation in learning more and more how to trust and rely on Him like never before.  There will be great days with successes, and there will be hard days with failures...but all will be filtered through the hands of the Father, who will use both for our good. While the. Next three years tire me just thinking about them, I am grateful for the opportunity.  I'm sure I won't always be, but The Lord will use that, too.  Feel free to check in on us...no doubt it will be a crazy ride!

This first weekend has been exhausting(trying to get on Hong Kong time