Grandma Bev stayed a week. Many people at church were not aware Sheralie was not there, as Bev looked so much like her. Others were flabbergasted to learn that Bev was Sheralie's mother.
11 days old
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Safari Zoo
On Martin Luther King Day weekend, we went out to a tiger safari park. They have a lot of tigers. The main attraction is a jeepney ride through a tiger preserve. During the ride, they feed the tiger through the side of the jeepney while horrified passengers look on in awe. I actually bought the pictures they took and I am glad I did, because two days later James was born, and in the excitement, I deleted all the pictures that were not of James.
Feeding the tiger. I was actually hoping they would feed them a live chicken and we would see a hunt. But this was okay too.
The tiger pose, with Tom.
It was a fun zoo, definitely better than the Manila Zoo. The highlights were the parts where you could feed the animals (for a nominal fee of course). We fed parakeets, camels and other animals. We left early in the morning and were able to leave before noon and make it back to Manila by 3 pm.
Friday, January 22, 2010
New Kid on the Block
Wednesday morning I woke up and Sheralie told that she was feeling very tight. This did not bode well. We managed to get Jeffrey off to school and then were off to the hospital ourselves. Asian Hospital was really great. My only beef is that they gave me a lot of grief about taking my boombox stereo in to play music. I knew this was important to Sheralie so I just assured the guards that it was okay and that I was just going up to my room to use it and if this was a problem, please send someone to my room to discuss it. It was kind of an empty victory though, since it ran out of batteries after only an hour in use (it is a 110V and if there were any plugs there they would have been 220V). I at least had my backup MP3 player with portable speakers.
We arrived at the hospital at 8:30 am and James made his entrance at 11 am. It was our first delivery without a mid-wife. The doctor was very good, though she was no mid-wife. One of the major exports of the Philippines is nurses, and they were all good, though very young. I thought it was funny to get all the initial measurements in the metric system. Our doctor tried to convert the 3.346 kilos into pounds, and she was pretty close. I later found a conversion tool on my phone (who knew?). Sheralie says this will be our last child born overseas, as she was frustrated by some of the concerns of the nurses and doctors. Overall, a good experience though.
Shortly after weighing in. Yes, I look ridiculous.
A couple hours after delivery.
Contemplating life outside the womb.
Day three.
Shortly after arriving home, with Lucy and Grandma Bev.
With Jeffrey and Lucy
When I surprised Sheralie's mother by calling them and telling them of James' arrival, it was about 9 pm San Diego time. By midnight she had secured a ticket. By 3 am she was packed and on the road to LAX. By 5 am she had arrived at LAX and at 7 am she took for Manila (via Vancouver). It is reportedly easy to adjust to jet lag when you miss a full night's sleep.
The other children:
Jeffrey is very happy, but it is old hat for him. He was the last to meet James as he was in school and didn't visit the hospital. Laird is almost deliriously happy. He giggles with excitement whenever he is around James. Lucy has been quite clingy. Especially as she is not quite used to Grandma Bev and was not happy when we left for the hospital. While Sheralie was gone, she frequently said to me "You're going to take care of me?" and "You're staying home?" She was a little unnerved to see us break out the old car seat as she still remembered that it was hers and she didn't want to share it. She is almost continuously by Sheralie's side now that she is home and is very excited to have a baby brother.
We are very happy to have James in our family and look forward to seeing him grow.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Introducing
James Charles Broadbent
Born January 20, 2010
3.436 kilos (7 pounds, 8 ounces)
52 cm (20.5 inches)
Friday, January 8, 2010
Resolution 2010
I was sad to see TX lose earlier, but at least they put up a good fight even without their number one QB. If anyone remembers my previous post about leaving college football for the year, it was a bald-faced lie. In my defense, over bowl season it did become a social event because we (the few college football fans) could usually get together over lunch and watch the end of the games in the cafeteria (the night games usually ended around 11 pm to midnight Eastern time, which is noon to 1 pm Manila time).
Back to resolutions. I enjoy making resolutions and I have gotten better at keeping them.
For 2009, I had a goal to run 50 miles per month. While I did not attain this goal every month, it did work out on average - I hit 625 miles for the year. I won't bore you with the details of all the goals I didn't achieve.
This year, in a continuing effort to improve, my goal is to run the Baltimore Running Festival Marathon on Saturday, October 16, 2010. You read it here first. I don't think any of my loyal readers have even remote plans to run, but I would be happy to have you join if you would like.
I am telling you because telling people is a good way to help keep resolutions, according to the interesting book I am reading, "59 Seconds". In keeping goals, there are five things, scientifically-speaking, that will increase your chances of keeping your goal:
1. Make a step by step plan
2. Tell other people about the goal (check)
3. Think about the good things that will happen if you achieve my goal
4. Reward yourself for making progress toward the goal
5. Record the progress (google spreadsheet of all runs)
And there are five things that will decrease your chances:
1. Motivate yourself by focusing on someone you admire very much
2. Think about the bad things that will happen if you don't achieve the goal
3. Try to suppress unhelpful thoughts
4. Rely on willpower
5. Fantasize about how great my life will be when you achieve your goal
I thought it would be helpful advice to pass along.
And for those of you just looking for cute photos of the kids, here are pictures from our January 1 beach trip with our neighbors the Allens:
Subic Bay, January 1, 2010
The boys buried in sand
The water was great, until it got shady
The sand was warm.
This is not at the beach, but it is one of the few pictures my beautiful and pregnant wife Sheralie would let me take of her this last holiday season. She is showing off her "Santa's Whiskers" cookies which one two awards at the office cookie contest, "Most Creative Cookie" and "Best Overall Holiday Cookie".
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