We are gearing up for our big trip home this summer, which is once again being overshadowed by fears of the big epidemic. Our wedding was also impacted by fears of the big global epidemic. Big Fish and his mother had to take 10 days off of work unpaid after returning form Canada, where all the evil diseases come from. Hopefully they don't force Big Fish to do that this time too, because I don't think his branch would survive 20 days without him. They can barely survive 2 hours without him, judging from the 9 phone calls he got while he was cutting Cupcake's cord and having his fist cuddles with her.
The Japanese media is going nuts about Swine Flu. When 3 people coming back from Canada brought swine flu with them, they were ecstatic. Foreign countries are evil! Canada is diseased! Foreigners not wearing masks spread disease! Now, however, 244 more people without foreign ties have tested positive for swine flu and they are freaking out. There are no other news stories at all, whatsoever.
The funny thing is that the coverage is so bad. They go on and on and on about how everyone should wear a mask and that will save them. Of course, the people saying this on tv aren't wearing masks.
No mention is ever made of the action that would actually prevent the spread of disease: washing your hands. Nothing about covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze either. And certainly nothing about buying alcohol gels to clean your hands when you can't get to a tap with warm water and soap (which in Japan is basically everywhere). This really bothers me. My son is 2 and even knows how to wash his hands with soap. Why can't adults here do it?
I am not overly concerned about catching swine flu. I'm just making sure that we keep as healthy as normal. We do wash our hands with soap or alcohol gel if out and about. We cover our mouths when coughing or sneezing. Cupcake is being nursed and the rest of us are drinking probiotics and I hope this keeps us decently healthy. Besides, my grandma survived the Spanish flu as a toddler so I hope her good healthy genes have been passed on to us.
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This Day in History
I can't believe Cupcake is 6 weeks old already. The time has seriously flown by. Nothing like a toddler to suck time away from you. When Little Fish was this small I had nothing but time to sit around and dress him up in outfits and take pictures. Now I'm lucky if I get two hands on a keyboard.
Cupcake is growing so well. I had nursing problems with Little Fish and he didn't grow much at first, but Cupcake is huge in comparison. I know you're not supposed to compare kids but I totally have been. She is so long (56cm already!) that she was out of the clothes Little Fish wore at about 3 months before she was a month old. It's so sad to pack up those itty bitty clothes.
Little Fish seems to have adjusted well to being a big brother. He had a hard time at first, and sleep was a major issue. Now he's doing great. He might hug her a little too hard sometimes though. He also gets angry when strangers hold her. He tells them "Mama's baby, don't touch!" He's been helpful and gets to her before I do when she cries. He also brings me water and food while I'm nursing. The perfect child, except for those nasty tantrums when he can't find Lightning McQueen.
Lately Little Fish has been obsessed with drums. We went to see the Diamond Princess cruise ship when it docked here last week and there was a taiko drum performance that he just loved! My friend gave him a drum set last year and he took that out and has been playing with it nonstop. I don't think he's inherited my tone deafness, but it's hard for me to really judge, being tone deaf and all. It's amazing Cupcake gets any sleep at all.
Sleep she does though. I have been blessed in that department. Little Fish just never slept, he was really wired (still is for that matter). Then there were all the busybodies telling me how to put him to sleep and I would ruin him if I didn't do it their way. Like all kids are the same? Even in the same family I have two totally different sleepers. I'm sure that will all change one day but for now I am more well-rested than I have been since before I was pregnant with Little Fish. Luck of the draw and this time I got an Ace.
I've been trying to make sure I get time alone with Little Fish. I am lucky that I healed so well this time. We've been going on bike rides in the evenings while daddy feeds Cupcake some pumped milk. Riding a bike 4 months postpartum with Little Fish was an ordeal, but I can do it now no problem. He and I cruise around town, stopping at the beach or the river. It's warm enough to swim now but it's hard to do that with Cupcake. Little Fish is a great swimmer but doesn't really know his boundaries so someone has to be with him all the time. Hopefully we'll get some good swimming time in this summer.
At lunchtime on March 28th, after 30hours and 1 minute of labour, Cupcake decided to join our family, at 3450g and 51 cm. 
The labour was long, but not all that difficult. Being in my own home, with people around me and being able to contact friends and family on the web gave me a real sense of security the entire time. Poor Big Fish was put to work on both looking after Little Fish and providing counter pressure. So much that 6 days after the birth, the only pain I have is from the bruises on my hips from Big Fish's hands. 
I was so blessed to be able to have the opportunity to give birth at home. I know it's not for everyone, but since painkillers aren't an option, I decided that this time I wanted to be able to listen to my body and be able to have the freedom of movement I needed to make labour as easy as possible. Everything fell into place- friends who wiped their schedules to be able to pick up Little Fish at a moment's notice, my body behaving beautifully throughout pregnancy so there were no health concerns, a mother-in-law who cut up carrots into sticks during and after labour so I could munch even though she thinks that eating raw carrots may possibly kill you, many wonderful women who shared their home birth stories with me so that I would be prepared, and a team of midwives who are talented, warm, and caring. That moves me beyond belief.
Little Fish needs a big thanks for supplying the entertainment portion of the day as well. He enjoyed the tunnel I made as I laboured on all fours before Daddy went to work and I retreated to the tub for water pressure. He also cracked everyone up by pronouncing that the udon noodle (umbilical cord) looked yummy.
The most moving to me was when transition came suddenly and Little Fish (who had previously shown no interest at all) showed up in the doorway, put his hand on my shoulder, and told me to Ganbatte. That gave me the strength I needed to get her out in 2 contractions (6 pushes).
This week has been a little tough with the adjustment from 1 to 2, but we're all still alive and uninjured so I say it's a rousing success.
Remember how it felt waiting for Christmas when you were a kid? Your heart goes ba-boom, ba-boom. But the difference between that and now is that I always knew how many sleeps until Santa arrived. Now I don't have any idea when Cupcake is going to arrive. Every night I go to sleep thinking tomorrow will be the day, but so far nada.
It is a pretty cool feeling, the anticipation. I have to admit I like hearing from people I haven't heard from in a while as they check in.
I am officially 5 days overdue. I felt fantastic up until yesterday and now I feel uncomfortable. No pain yet, but I do have to say no to Little Fish a lot. He wants to play but there's only so much I can do without having to be in a certain position. I feel bad because I really want to make the most of my time with him. His little world is going to flip upside down in the next while.
I am getting a little frantic. I really do not want to be induced. I was lucky enough this pregnancy to be able to choose really uninvasive and natural prenatal care, and to be able to plan a homebirth. I am hoping that things work out and my husband is able to be home and my midwives can be in my own home as we welcome Cupcake. Any good vibes/noodles you have would be appreciated.
To keep myself busy and stop obsessing about Cupcake's arrival we've been out and about enjoying the sunshine. The sakura are in full bloom and just walking outside is a pleasure. The weekend saw a high of 28C and Big Fish had two days off in a row so we had a great time. 
I recently realized that I have been lying to my son. A lot. Usually it's to scare him into doing something I want. When he doesn't want to put his seatbelt on or sit in his carseat, I tell him that the police will come and take him away. When I don't want him to climb up a ladder at the home store or jump onto someone's motorbike, I show him some writing and tell him that the sign says he can't go there. He really respects signs, more than me saying "danger" anyway. I think over the last year I've said it so many times it's lost its power.
The reason why I am so embarrassed about this is because he is so honest. When I pick him up from daycare and ask if he was a good boy he'll tell me if he was or not. If he cried for some reason he'll say that. It's adorable, really. It also gets daddy in trouble. On Sunday morning the Fishes went out for a walk while I finished up a project for work. As soon as they came back Little Fish gave a full report of what they did- none of which they were supposed to. Even though we were about to have lunch they went by themselves to McDonald's (which Little Fish now pronounces better than his daddy!). Nothing for me. :( They also went to the game centre, which I don't normally have a problem with, but lately Little Fish has been interested in pachinko. Pachinko is this stupid antisocial ball game which rots people's brains and is an unbelievable waste of money, not to mention the danger the drivers pose as they rush in and out of the pachinko parlours with nothing on their mind but their addiction (still bitter about the guy who hit me when I was walking with Little Fish soon after he was born). They advertise everywhere and are a real draw for the toddler crowd with the characters they use- not sure what the draw is for adults. Little Fish has seen the games in the game centre with videos on top and wants to try. I am really opposed to this. Big Fish doesn't play pachinko himself thank goodness.
Anyway, Little Fish wants to play the game versions of pachinko they have in game centres. There's one with a video of a dump truck he's itching to try. I won't let him near it but daddy is a soft touch. So Little Fish got to play it on Sunday and was so proud he announced it the second he got home, which meant Big Fish got in a world of trouble. I explained to Little Fish exactly why pachinko was bad and he wasn't allowed to do it again.
Apparently some of the lesson got through because today as we walked through a grocery store with a game room he said "Mama, no chinko- it's bad." Leaving the pa off of pachinko turns this sentence into an anatomically correct but very amusing statement. The women behind me got quite the guffaw out of Little Fish's statement. I did too.
It's nice that Little Fish is so honest, he's inspiring me to be too. I don't know if I'll give up the police card quite yet, but I'll try.