Welcome, Bo!

Jose and I welcomed our son, Bo Tseun Bernabe Verlarde-Chan, into the world on Sunday, June 3, 2007, weighing in at 6 lbs 13 oz. and 20 inches long. GUIDE TO HIS NAME:"Bo Tsuen" is of Chinese origin. The transliteration is of the Cantonese pronunciation. Bo means "treasure or treasured", and Tsuen is a word for "big river" and is his generational name. Bernabe is from the Bolivian side of the family.

He was born with a very rare and life-limiting condition that took 5 weeks and two hospitals to identify: microvillous inclusion disease. Basically, his small intestines cannot absorb the amount of nutrients he needs to live, although they do create all the enzymes needed to break down food. The microvilli, or finger-like protrusions that give the intestines all their surface area are not where they belong on the surface of the intestines, but are stuck in these bubbles (or inclusions) imbedded in the tissue instead. We were told that these children often do not make it to their third birthday, but that it wasn't a death-sentence (huh?).

To infinity and beyond

The vastness of my belly is truly alarming. While I only have 2 weeks left in the office, it is hopefully going to be at half-time to accommodate my excessive edema (feet full of fluid). These pix are from yesterday, ringing in at 34.5 weeks. I really cannot get any bigger. No, really. I'm uncomfortable sleeping, which is very sad, as that is one of my most favorite activities. And, if you are asking yourself if there are twins, the answer is no. There is only one person in there. We checked (3 ultrasounds already).

The Vanity Ultrasound

We couldn't resist and got 3d/4d ultrasound pictures and movies. I'm considering YouTubing the avi files, but am also a little squicked out by that prospect. Here are some shots of our very own Sparkle/Sprinkle Primavera in utero.

The ever expanding belly. This pic is from 25 weeks- I'm now at 31 weeks and will load a 31/32 week pic next week. It is so big that tying my shoes requires furniture to prop the foot up. I sneezed so hard, I think I sprained my gut. And my edema now requires this super-sexy flesh-toned compression hose that takes 20 minutes to put on in the morning. It goes over the belly and is so scratchy that I gave myself hoseburn on one of my knuckles while wrangling them over my knees. My hand was bleeding. Seriously.

Babymoon

We got to swim with the dolphinos at the Kahala on our babymoon. The coolest, biggest water mammals I have ever had the privilege to pet. And hug. And feed. They have sharp teeth.

We also got to spend a lot of time with our Little Friend (and her parents), who will be turning 1 year old right around the time Sparkle Primavera is due. Since we will miss her 1st luau, it was fantastic to see her on this visit. And! We got to visit my sister for the first time since she moved to Oahu. She has a staff of 80 and testifies at the capital. All around a very fun, relaxing and ohana-filled visit.

The Furry Gang

Since I posted a picture of the two minpins (black is my parents', red is my sister's), I thought I should include a few of our hefty friends, Murray (tortishell) and Fred (tabby). Together, they represent over 26 pounds of cat. A diet may be in order.

Waving at your fanclub, like a rock star

My buddy is waving to us from the ultrasound a few weeks ago. It's like take your child to work day every day for me, now. Can I just say that I am counting down the days to my maternity leave? 62 business days. My company has a pretty generous timeframe for leave, which Jose does not believe I will have the patience for. It is very likely he is right, though the idea of not being at work for 8 months is pretty liberating.