KissKus

Hello Goodbye

Goodbye wonderful, exhausting, messy 2008!

Hello lovely, quiet, healthy 2009!

We party with cake

Oh yes, we do!
I decided that this year for Simon's birthday we needed to have a homemade cake.
It was a simple plan: chocolate cake, layers of whipped cream and on top a coating of marzipan. Oh, with the John Deere logo!
All credits go to Michel who -with blood, sweat and tears- created this:

Wow! We were all impressed and I've decided to make this a family tradition :)

 

We celebrated Simon's birthday for family and friends yesterday. He received lots of nice presents and he enjoyed his special day.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

On his actual birthday on Wednesday we went to a lovely, small theme park called Sprookjeswonderland. We had heard good things about it and it definitely didn't disappoint us! It was a very friendly place where we enjoyed a very fun afternoon in the sun.

There were fairytale creatures, cute rides, a pet zoo and playgrounds.

Certainly a day to put in the Happy Memory Box :)

Sand & water

Thank you all so much for thinking along with me about what might be going on with Linus! We have an appointment at the doctor's on Friday.

We went to the beach today.
The weather wasn't very beachy, but when you live in Holland you'll get nowhere if you have to wait for the right kind of weather... So we embraced the elements and had fun nonetheless.

Amber and Simon had a wonderful time chasing the (HUGE) seagulls and digging holes. Linus was happily being rocked in his pram by the strong winds. I collected shells and enjoyed the feeling of sand between my toes. Michel was the odd one out (he's more of a forest person) until the children persuaded him to build sandcastles with them.

Did you ever look closely at sand?! It's made up of all kinds of colours... beautiful! And shells? Aren't they amazing? One square meter of beach is enough to keep me entertained all day :)

Simon's sun bleached hair against the sand. Mmmm, sweet boy, kiss on that lovely head of yours!

I would really love to go to the beach more often. I always feel that it's a long drive, but really it's less than an hour. When we were in France we had to drive 30 minutes to the supermarket, so what are we talking about?! We should just do it! Yeah!

Vive la France & vive our own home!

Hello, we're back from (mostly) sunny France!

We had a great holiday, but we're all enjoying our own home very much again too. Don't you love coming home again after a holiday too? Everything looks so fresh and comfy... it's the best way to appreciate your home I think!

Now what did we do in France?

We read...

We played...

We ate...

... and we enjoyed the kiddies very much!

All the ingredients for a good holiday :)

Do you know something else I enjoy? Washing about 20 loads of dirty holiday clothes. Seriously... I do!

Oui, oui...

... tomorrow we're off to France!

Michel is running errands with Amber and Simon, so I've got a little time to start packing (start yes, in this household everything is done at the last minute). Our goal for today is to be completely finished with the packing and cleaning by 5 pm, because we have a party to go to tonight. Our ambitious plan is to achieve this without stress, which is quite a challenge considering the things we still need to do in those few hours. Nothing is impossible though ;)

We're all so looking forward to this holiday! It's our first proper holiday in three years! I can't wait to get there and just rest and relax... it will be heavenly, I'm sure.
What we're taking with us: a stack of books, paper and pen & some crafty supplies. What we won't be taking with us are a computer and internet connection. Strangely enough, I'm only slightly nervous about this. Secretly, I'm looking forward to the quietness. But don't worry, I'll be back in full strength in a couple of weeks :)

So I'd better get to work! I hope you all have a lovely relaxing time... enjoy summer!

Oh by the way, I wanted to make a skirt for myself today... but I won't, it would certainly stress me out. I do want to sew a quick picnic-blanket though :)

Garden Sunday

We worked in the garden for most of today. We eliminated the prickly bushes (they didn't go down without a fight!) and pulled weeds. I'm sore, but satisfied with the result.

Here are some images that made me smile today:

A new colour hollyhock revealed itself

Flowers given to me by Simon, which he picked them himself from oma's garden

A beautiful and curious double rainbow

Amber fresh out of the shower: hearts, apples and polkadots

I put some more photos up on Flickr.

Six weeks ago today: the birth story

On Thursday the 3rd of April I woke up restless and cranky.
Even though I was only 3 days past my due date I was getting unbelievably impatient.
I asked Michel whether he would ask his father to come pick up Simon; it would be nice for Simon to spend a day with his grandpa... and who knows what might happen today?
I'd had little sleep that night, so I went back to bed until around noon. Michel made us a scrumptious omelette for lunch and I thought back to Amber's day of birth when Michel also made us a delicious lunch.

We hung around until it was time to pick up Amber  from school. By then I had decided that I wanted to go somewhere, so we went to a restaurant in

Hilversum

. I had a large orange juice, Michel coffee and we both had a piece of apple pie. Amber had an ice-cream. It was a very special moment, just us with our eldest child; that usually never happens. It brought back many happy memories of when we still lived in

Hilversum

with just Amber. It also made me realise how lucky I was to be on the brink of having my third child.

We left the restaurant and went shopping for dinner at the supermarket where we used to shop. Another trip down memory lane. We decided on soup, salad and bread for dinner.
We arrived back home at around 5.30 pm. I got out of the car and waved to my neighbour. Through the window he enquired with whether there was anything happening yet. He did this everyday and I sighed a little. I shrugged and shook my head.
At that moment my waters broke.
Without letting my neighbour know I hurried inside and went to the toilet straightaway. Michel and Amber followed me, but were still unaware of what just happened.
Once I pulled my pants down I started to sob. The amniotic fluid was positively green... the baby had pooped. No homebirth for me! I was very disappointed.
At this point Michel and Amber realised what was going on too. I showed Amber my green undies. She thought it was yucky. Until this moment I had kept a tiny option open for Amber to be present at the birth if the circumstances were right. Seeing her reaction I knew this wouldn't be a good idea and impossible anyway since we would be going to the hospital.

Michel started getting busy right away. He phoned the obstetrician, she would come immediately. He also phoned the mother of Amber's friend... she would be picking her up. I was so happy that Simon was already at opa's!
Of course we hadn't prepared a bag yet, so Michel started packing. Meanwhile I was trying to stop dripping everywhere.
The obstetrician came. She had a look. Yes, it was very green and I was 3cms dilated. We had to go to the hospital right away. Unfortunately, she wouldn't be present at the birth, since I was now considered a 'medical' case. Another bummer, but I was able to accept it as a fact... I knew there was nothing I could do about it.

We kissed Amber goodbye and we got in the car... back to

Hilversum

we went!
I was going to give birth in the same hospital where Michel and I first lived together (1997) and where we both had had jobs. I had worked there for nine years. It felt as if we were about to close a circle.
We were excited and had a good 20-minute ride. I had three mild contractions in the car and one in the car park. We walked to the appropriate wing on the second floor; we knew the way. It was 6.30 pm when we arrived there.

We were welcomed by the obstetrician that would help us with the birth. She was young and kind. She said her shift would end at 11 pm. I hoped the baby would have arrived by then, because I didn't want someone else taking over half way.
We were shown into our room which was light and spacious. It was also warm, so I took of my jumper. It felt a bit weird being in that room, I knew I would deliver the baby right there on that bed. Such a different feeling from being at home where you're so free to do whatever you want.

I was put on the bed and two belts were strapped around my belly to monitor the baby's heart and the contractions. I felt so unfree! I wanted to move around and not lay helplessly on my back. The obstetrician didn't really seem to understand this, but she told me that I had to stay like this for at least half an hour and then I would be allowed to walk around. The contractions were still easy to deal with, they came around every 5 minutes.

Michel went to get a sandwich. Of course we hadn't had dinner. He brought me a magazine which I tried to read, but I couldn't concentrate much.
I was distracted by the heartbeat of the baby. It sounded so loud and it made me wonder whether it was alright. The obstetrician turned the sound down.

At 7.30 pm she finally unstrapped the belts... I was free! The obstetrician and nurse said that they were going to have something to eat, but that we could buzz them if we needed them.
I wanted to go to the toilet. With my other two births that was a favourite spot of mine to tackle the contractions. Once I sat down there the contractions got a lot more serious. I had to vomit (hello, omelette and apple pie!) and I knew this was a sign that things were moving fast. I told Michel to buzz. The nurse came and pulled me from the toilet. I wanted to brush my teeth, but she told me to leave it (I still quickly did!). She moved me along to the bed even though I was in the middle of a contraction.

They started to get everything ready. In between two contractions the obstetrician checked how far dilated I was: 8 cms. The contractions had gotten painful: I was very focused. I was shaking a lot; I couldn't stop it, it was all the adrenaline going through my body. I was proud my breathing went so well. I felt it coming from deep inside, once again proof to me how natural this experience was.

The baby was about to come out now. Michel changed places with the nurse. She held my hand now, while Michel prepared himself to pull the baby out (from the turning of the shoulders). He had done the same with the other two children.

They told me that with the next contraction I had to pull up both legs with my hands and push. This didn't seem possible to me and when the contraction came it was indeed impossible to lift my legs even a centimetre. However, at that moment the situation changed. The baby came out too quickly. The nurse became very stern with me and she told me breath, breath, breath. She told me it was the only way for the obstetrician to keep things undamaged 'down there'. From that moment I concentrated merely on the nurse's left eye. She was wearing glasses and I was staring into her eye as I was breathing all contractions away. I knew it was necessary, but it felt unnatural. The pressure was so enormous, but I breathed as if my life depended on it. The nurse said I was doing very well. Without any pushing I felt the baby slide down and then he came out.

Michel said it was boy. Hadn't we suspected it all along?
It was 8.18 pm. I had definitely made it before 11 pm!

They placed him on my chest. He was so beautiful and clean! And he was crying so pitifully. He was Linus Hugo.

The placenta had to come out. The obstetrician told me to push. It was strange pushing without contractions. It came out very easily. She showed it to us... amazing seeing that baby room! Michel cut the umbilical cord. Such a momentous moment, cut off from me... you're on your own now, little one!

 

Linus was placed at my breast. It took him quite a while to latch on (longer than with Amber and Simon), but finally he did and not long after that I heard the first gulps of milk going through his throat. To be able to feed and sooth my child in such an easy way is still a miracle to me.

I needed stitches. It hurt very much, but looking at my beautiful baby helped me through it.

Michel and the obstetrician did all the necessary tests. The score was excellent. Michel bathed Linus to get the last of the green muck off him. I looked on admiringly while he dressed him. He did it so calmly and relaxed. He held Linus for a while and then gave him to me.

Michel started phoning family and friends. Everybody was happy, but still a little unsure about the name. Well, he was Linus anyway!

I wanted to go home, but we had to stay two hours after the birth for observation. But I was allowed to shower, which was lovely. After I'd put on my clothes I started packing our bag, but the nurse pushed me in a wheelchair. I had to wait until we were ready to go and then Michel pushed us towards the exit. I was holding Linus in his maxi cosi in my lap. I was giggling the whole way, I thought it was such a funny picture.

Michel went and got the car and we put everything in it. Linus went into the back. I really wanted to stay with him, but I also wanted to sit next to Michel. As a compromise I held Linus' hand the whole way. I couldn't see him, since he was facing the other way, but I was certain that he was awake the whole journey. He held on to my finger so tightly! I was completely happy. We were both elated; we joked and laughed the whole way.

It was wonderful to bring Linus into our house. We sat and stared at him for a while. It was 11 pm. We had a cup of tea. Michel kept saying that it was as if I'd merely done the dishes instead of giving birth. I was totally awake, I could have done anything at that moment, but Michel wanted to sleep. It was strange that the other children weren't in the house, but it was very special to spend that first night with just the three of us in our attic room.

 

This was six weeks ago. Not long, but Linus has already found his own unique place in our family.
He's gorgeous and adorable and the five of us are really so happy together!

We celebrated Queensday yesterday

Yesterday all the Dutch were merry, because we celebrated Queensday!! Hurray, hurray, long live our Queen!!!

Everyone is (almost) obliged to wear something orange, so the children were dressed appropriately.

We ventured out to the free market as early as we could (which was after 9 a.m. but still!) and already there were quite a lot of people there, but a little later it was so busy that at places the crowd was hardly moving anymore.

Luckily we decided to carry Linus around instead of taking the pram with us.

It was a very successful morning. We all scored some great bargains, the children payed games and Linus behaved very well.

It's so much fun to see that people sell the strangest things on Queensday... I just had to take a photo of this mountain of ugly dolls.

This was my modest haul:

Fabric (love the teapot fabric!)

And two adorable prints. I fell in love with the one on the left immediately. These will definitely be reframed and hung somewhere nice.

So all in all a very good day that we ended with an indoor bbq.

Read more about Queensday and what we did previous years here and here.

The posse and I

Michel went back to work yesterday and so now it's just me managing our clan and household.

I told myself that I wouldn't set crazy goals. As long as everyone is happy and fed then I consider my day a success. So far so good. I even managed to do the washing and did a bit of tidying up. Oh, and I bathed Linus all by myself and he didn't even cry once!

We've been blessed with lovely weather these past days, so that we've been able to spend lots of time in the garden, which I must admit makes it a lot easier to manage our clan!

By the way, the top photo was taken two weeks ago and the bottom one this morning... what a difference already!

32=3+2=5

Today's my birthday.
My first birthday as a mother of three.

Except for the usual birthday ingredients like cake and presents, this time there were other highlights as well.
I took a shower with Linus this morning, which was really special and we went on our very first walk. It was lovely weather and it was wonderful to be outside.

Apart from a serious lack of sleep things are going very well around here. Linus is such a sweet, easy baby. He is so soft and pink and cute and cuddly... I'm happy just to hold and watch him all day.
Amber and Simon have adjusted very well to the changes too. Simon had a little trouble initially, but he's back to his old self now. It's no small thing to become an older brother overnight!

Look at my two boys taking a nap together... aren't they adorable?!

Ok, just one more photo of Linus then!

I'm amazed at the way he looks around when he's awake. His eyes are so curious and wise... it really seems as if he's absorbing everything. As I said I could look at him all day!

Well, I think it's almost boobtime again and then hopefully some sleep!