The night of his birth was filled with exciting and scary moments for me.

Over the last several weeks, my blood pressure has been borderline high and creeping up slowly. When the doctor gave me a fetal non-stress test to check the baby’s heart rate and movements, the results were ok, not great. Like a little bit of movement, not a lot. Doctor ordered me to take it easy, rest at home, and come back in a few days to retake the test. Unless I start having contractions, bleeding, or don’t feel the baby move. Chances are, if the second tests show the same thing, the baby should come out. He might not be thriving in my womb anymore.

~~

On Monday night I was getting ready for bed around 11:00pm and started feeling contractions. Everybody’s been telling me how many many hours it takes to deliver a baby and how I should stay home as long as possible.

But they were really close together. Like 5 minutes apart right from the beginning. So I woke Liem and my mom up and they started timing the contractions. Less than 5 minutes apart. Ok, it’s late at night, and without traffic we can get to the hospital by taxi in 5-7 minutes. Then around 1am I started bleeding. My OB/GYN nurse, certified midwife Mom looked concerned. Time to go.

When I got to the hospital, my blood pressure was normal, 120/81 and I was dilated 1 cm (10cm is when you actually push the baby out). But contracting every 5 minutes. So they hooked me up to a monitor for baby and found that he was decelerating: heart rate was dropping during the contractions. That’s not good. Mom is looking worried. So they said the baby would have to come out soon. Likely before morning, likely by c-section.

At 3:00am, my water broke. But there was the baby’s poo (meconium for all you healthcare people) in the water. Baby’s got to come now because there is a risk that he’ll inhale the poo. Which is also bad. At this point, I was only dilated to 3cm. My labor was progressing fast for a first timer, but he needed to come out immediately.

So they prepped me for surgery, and Liem got scrubbed down and came in to hold my hand. He watched the whole surgery. I was laying there, awake during surgery, numb from the chest down, arms spread, praying the entire time. Watching Liem’s facial expressions and listening closely to the dialog between the doctors.

Baby Siam came at 4:11am. 3180 grams (~7lbs), 51 cm (~20.5″). He didn’t cry for several seconds. The cord was wrapped loosely around his neck. He was a little blue. First APGAR score was a 7 (7-10 is good). They cleared his lungs. No meconium (poo) seen. Then he starts crying! Next APGAR (5 minutes later) was a 10. He’s pink! They prep him, wrap him, let me kiss him and whisk him away for tests.

I get stitched up. I fall asleep. Mmmm. morphine.

At 6:30am or so, the pediatrician came in. She said that Baby Siam was wheezing a bit so they put him on oxygen (see the video of the astronaut helmet in the previous blog) and a culture was taken to see if any bacteria from the poo had gotten into his blood. Antibiotics just in case. IV saline fluids. No breastfeeding yet, until the the doctor says he’s ok.

Meanwhile, I’ve just had abdominal surgery. So I’m on an IV and have to lay flat for what turns out to be 36 hours. It’s worse than being bedridden, because not many things are within arms reach when you have to be flat: light switches, ice chips, cell phone, remote control, etc.

The next day, the wheezing stops and his breathing improves and he no longer needs the oxygen helmet. And we get to try breastfeeding. I’m thinking it’s going to be pretty hard because he may be groggy from the medication and c-section, and I have to do it from a lying down position. But, he’s a natural. He’s so good that they say if he feeds well again, they’ll take him off the IV fluids. Good, because I was a little sad seeing his tiny little hand with the big needle and tubes coming out.

Now I’m upright, walking around the room, blogging, eating soft foods, and Siam is doing well enough for us to keep him with us in the room. He’s a really good eater, and all he does at this point is eat, sleep, and fill diapers, but it’s pretty hard to take my eyes off him.

So thanks a million for the prayers, even if you didn’t know what was going on in real time!

-Downy

The labor pains started at 11:20 pm and wasn’t exactly sure how the whole “timing of contractions” worked… but you learn quick when it’s time. The contractions started off lasting for 45 seconds each and they were only 2-5 minutes apart for the first hour. Because the contractions where so close together we had to rush to the hospital.

Luckily, Downy’s mom was around which is good for two reasons… she is Thai, so she can speak to the doctors and nurse in their native language. And also, because she is a certified midwife / OBGYN Nurse. She arrived to Thailand in perfect timing.

At the hospital we monitored the baby’s heart rate and due to complications… the baby needed to come out of Downy’s body right away. A C-section was performed and I had a front row seat to hold Downy’s hand. Witnessing a C-section is not for the squeemish… people don’t realize that it’s major surgery and I can go into detail but I’ll refrain because it’s pretty graphic.

After a little while watching them operate, they pulled the baby out and did the standard protocol on all C-section babies (tests, checks, etc) They brought the baby out so that we can briefly see him up close. It’s one of those really surreal moments in your life. For us, everything happenned so fast.

They stitched Downy up and she is now recovering from surgery. She is knocked out like trout right now, so it gives me a little time to write.

It’s been a long time coming Siam. We love you. And, a lot of people have been pulling for you… all smiles in Bangkok.

SIAM is the old name for Thailand and it seemed fitting since it’s his birthplace. Plus he’s 1/2 Thai (SIAM) and 1/2 Vietnamese (NGUYEN)

Below is a video of the little guy… just 30 minutes old. He had to be held in an oxygen shield for a while… one of the standard procedures for C-Section.  Anyways, we had a great father / son talk… I like to lay down the law early.

Thank you everyone for all your love, support, and prayers. We really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, appreciate it. Really.

Liem

We’ll keep everyone posted… we might be getting an early Christmas gift.

Liem

So time is quickly approaching and we’ll be parents soon. A lot of emotions. I think Downy is a little  nervous… but her mom is flying over here in a week so that should make things a bit better. And it helps that her mom is an ob/gyn nurse. =) Anyways, hope you enjoy the photos… we’ll be in touch again soon.

Happy Holidays… we miss everyone. We miss Christmas. We miss cold weather in Christmas.

Liem

So it’s been really hectic here over the past few weeks…

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October 27 was our 2 year wedding anniversary! Liem took me on a dinner cruise along the Chao Phraya River, which runs through Bangkok.  We both had a really good time.

Yummy Thai, Pan Asian, sushi buffet.

Thai dancing. Our entertainment for the evening.

One of many bridges we passed on the dinner cruise.

Capped the night off with some mini cupcakes I bought from the local bakery.

He still gets me flowers…

~~~~~~

A week later, our 50 moving boxes came by ocean cargo from NYC. Time to nest!

~~~~~~

I mid November, we went for a routine ultrasound. Baby Nguyen is healthy and growing! At 34 weeks (8 months) he weighs 2010 grams (4.43lbs)

this one is his face

This one is of the ribs.

This one is called “anatomy” … Definitely a boy.

~~~

We went to a Japanese art exhibit at the Bangkok Arts and Culture Center in late November.

This alien was waiting for us outside. She’s taller than the sky train!

This robot greeted us inside. Male or female?

Looks kinda like the Guggenheim on the inside. Giant polka dot balls were part of the Japanese exhibit.

Got my own belly ball to show too

Robots on a ferris wheel.

Liem in his element.

That’s all for now. Hope you enjoyed!

-Downy

]]> http://downyandliem.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/photo-updates/feed/ 4 downyandliem Boat buffet Thai Dancers Bridge Cupcakes Flowers Moving boxes 34 weeks face 34 weeks more ribs 34 weeks Anatomy Alien Robot Balls Belly Balls Ferris Wheel Japan arts http://downyandliem.wordpress.com/2009/10/30/retreat-into-the-woods/ http://downyandliem.wordpress.com/2009/10/30/retreat-into-the-woods/#comments Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:58:46 +0000 downyandliem http://downyandliem.wordpress.com/?p=384 ]]> This past weekend, Liem and I went on a retreat with a church called Song Sawan. They are closely connected with NightLight. It gave me a good opportunity to show Liem who I work with each day and allowed both of us to become closer to this amazing community.

We were in Isaan, a region a few hours North of Bangkok. It was nice to get out of the city for a weekend and back to nature. Lots of laughter, tears, joy with 50 others.

There was Thai worship music. There was Scripture. Testimonies. Games. Deliverance. 5 Baptisms and one accepted God into her life!

We came back to the city with a sense of renewed spirit and refreshed, ready to battle the upcoming week!

Baby bump: week 31 (7+months)

This bright, blue bus was our ride to Isaan. It matches my shirt. It features a super loud sound system and disco ball for dancing!

It rained pretty hard the night before, so there were lots of flooded streets all over Bangkok.

Singing worship songs in Thai. There are no words to describe the love for God in the room.

Worship gathering.

5 women were baptized this weekend. So beautiful…

Volunteers in the woods! I love being around such amazing women with amazing hearts.

Looking back when me, Anthony, and Chad started the organization our goal was to spread awareness and that’s why we called it The Blind Project… to open the eyes to those who are blind to the issue of sex trafficking. We are so amazed and humbled to see how far it’s come.

Have to believe that’s why me and Downy are in Thailand. Downy is helping women who have been exploited by the sex trade and I am working in advertising. But together, we can use our resources to help these victims and open the eyes of those here in Southeast Asia.

Below is a video from the event this past weekend. It’s a bit long but you get to see Anthony and a very good speech by AnnaLynne (by the ways, the person standing next to Anthony in the video is the wife of ‘Uncle Jesse’ from Full House, random).

I am excited to see what the upcoming year will bring. We have some new fashion / jewelry designers on our team and one of our upcoming projects will feature fashion goods made by rescued victims in Southeast Asia.

At the very heart of it all is the sad truth that slavery is still in existence today – much more than it ever was in history.

We are so very thankful for everyone who has supported The Blind Project thus far.

God Bless,

Liem

Anyways. we really miss you guys. We had a rough time before work started to keep ourselves busy. So about work…

First week of work for me was real interesting… just trying to get the right vibe and culture of work takes a little time. Fortunately, I work next door to where we live so the commute takes a few minutes walking – which is great because I can meet Downy for lunch or rush home if there is an emergency. But also, it could be bad because I may never leave work if things get busy because I live so close to home.

I posted some photos below but one thing you notice here is the complete reverance and loyalty to the King & Queen. Their pictures are everywhere… I mean everywhere. 20 ft photos with fancy decorations in gold. I think he’s been in power for 60 years and there is a lot of love and respect for him. I was told from co-workers not to talk badly about the royal family and that if I did, I could get in DEEP trouble.

This is the front steps of my work building.

Koi fish in the lobby fountain (good for us, not so much for the fish).

In case you missed the king at the front, he’s by the elevators too.

Work is good so far, just getting to know my neighbors around me. Sometimes I forget that I’m working in Thailand until I walk out into the hallways and see tons of Thai people speaking Thai… and then it hits me. I am in Thailand. What? What the heck did I do? I miss NY. haha. Crazy how that happens. But I do think there is a reason for us being here for the moment. But I think it has something to do with what Downy is doing here and the recent success of the blind project (more on that later).

If you’ve been searching for God, well, here you go.

Sad but true – you get awards in advertising.

So work – same ol’ same ol’. I’m already working on a tv spot for an ice cream company here. Did a 15 second storyboard and waiting for the illustrations to come in tomorrow. And also, one of the perks of speaking English pretty well is that you will get used as a voice over talent if they need you for emergency. On Friday, I was a voice over talent for a deodorant tv commercial… so that was cool. Anyways, enough about work.

Downy’s health is good. Her stomach is getting bigger and so are her calves! There is a lot of walking here in Thailand and a lot of sweating. But, fortunately, there is a lot of taxis here and they are CHEAP. For the New Yorkers reading this… seriously, it is unbelievably cheap (imagine taking a cab from JFK to Grand Central for $5 instead of $50). The hospital here is great and the healthcare and inexpensive as as well. We went to the doctor yesterday and the baby’s heart beat is strong. Downy says this will be her 2nd child. Can’t wait for my son / little brother!

This is a snapshot of the hospital hallways.

Downy getting groceries.

I found a park nearby where I run in the mornings called Lumphini Park. It’s like Central Park except filled with thousands of old people running and doing tai chi. It’s like running through a kung fu movie with a bunch of extras of senior citizens. I think in the early mornings like 6 am, this is my favorite time in Bangkok. This is where the city wakes up and breathes it’s first breath. It is a spiritual and peaceful place. I get sentimental when I’m there in the park because I think of my parents. It reminds me that when people get old… we don’t need to cash in our chips, sit around and wait. We can LIVE. We can enjoy time… look forward to each morning to meet our friends. To laugh, to excercise, to have quiet time alone, to have coffee, and talk. I can’t wait till I get old so I can be among them… the old geezer still cracking inappropriate jokes. Below are a few photos of Tai Chi people… there are a lot more.

But something tells me I’m gonna be more like the guy doing Tai Chi alone next to a tree.

And I found a bball court! I put down the camera and played a couple of fullcourt pickup games. This won’t be my last time here.

Oh yeah, if you run, careful. Watch out for the 5 ft carnivorious lizards.

Just got this photo from my sister in law and it made me happy. My mom, brother (and his wife), my sister, niece, and friends did the Race For The Cure over the weekend in Dallas.

Church has been good too. I think we are going to commit to a church here called LifeCenter. A very different kind of church… more about connecting with the local people on a very personal and small group level. Spiritually, it’s been good – we’ve had some rough moments, but hasn’t everyone? “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.” or the simple man’s version, “If you’re going through hell, keep going.”

Anyways, the title of this post is ‘starting work, etc, etc’ – I should have added a few more etc’s in there as this post is a bit all over the place.

Thanks for all your encourgement and prayers. That stuff works you know. Really. It does. Just ask him.

Peace & love.

Liem

This week I started volunteering at Night Light. www.nightlightinternational.com
My duties will include assisting Annie, the woman in charge of it all.
Also, I get hang out and connect with the women making jewelry.

The first morning I was introduced to the other volunteers and women working here, I recognized many of them from the eye exams in February, they remembered me as well!

I ended up sitting and speaking with some of the girls making jewelry in the morning. I attempted to make some jewelry but failed miserably! I have to say, the skill level of the girls was incredible: very intricate beadwork. It’s definitely upper level craftsmanship.

I had lunch in-house with the other volunteers, each day a few of the women who work there take turns making lunch: home style Thai food and communal fellowship. Reminded me of Baan Immanuel (Ron’s orphanage) in Chiang Rai.

It turns out my daily schedule includes starting each morning out with and hour of worship. How wonderful it is to start off each morning in a room of redeemed women each morning, singing songs of praise in Thai?

Once a week, the volunteers have Bible study over lunch.

I cannot even begin to express how blessed I feel to be involved with Night Light. Between worship, Bible study, communing with the girls, can this get any better? Stay tuned.

-Downy

We’re doing quite a bit of baby shopping for supplies and bought our first crib. Sometimes I forget that Downy is pregnant and has our son growing inside of her. And then, other times, I realize our life is going to change quite a bit when we have a kid.

Below is a crib I put together anticipating our new arrival in December.

Luckily, we met some new friends here in Bangkok who have kids of their own. Their names are Daniel and Paulina Brolin. They are a married couple from Sweden who came to Bangkok to plant a church called LifeCenter (www.lifecenter.asia). Daniel is a Swedish graphic designer and his wife keeps busy with their 4 children. Anyways, they’re the first Christians we’ve connected with and have been really encouraging so far.

Daniel, Paulina, and their kids.

Daniel and me at the Thailand Open (major tennis tournament).

And also, Downy’s cousins live here and they have a couple of kids of their own as well. They’ve been giving us a lot of advice and recommendations for doctors / hospitals. Below are a couple of snaps of their son and daughter (Plubb and Pinn) when they came over to our place for a swim.

So that’s about it so far. We’ve been skyping a lot (mostly with our parents) but if you want to skype us and video chat feel free to. My skype sn is limb.when so go on and add me. Anyways, below are a few snaps we took of just being out + about.

Food here is cheap and quite good. Seriously, it is cheap.

It’s official. We’ve changed banks.

They are not afraid of covering entire trains with ads. The ads here are inescapable.

And then we ate at a seafood restaurant where they had weird exotic creatures in a tank. Below is a sea salamander which they pulled out of the tank and sliced it open. We ate the little guy raw with vinegar carrots and lime. Real chewy like calamari. what an experience! NO JOKE!!!

Ok. Fine. I was only joking. We actually went to the aquarium and snapped some photos.

… some floating implants.

And that’s all folks… until next time. Thanks for stopping by… Miss you.

Liem