4 months old!

I can’t believe Micaiah is 4 months old today! I’m thankful everyday for this sweet boy I hold in my arms and rock to sleep at night. I’m thankful for the time we spend reading books, listening to KU games, and going on walks to the grocery store together. Here’s a letter I wrote to Micaiah for his 4 month birthday… it’ll give you a glimpse into his/our lives.

Micaiah,

Hey buddy. We sure love you. We thank God everyday for you. You are such a happy baby. Of corse you get fussy and yell and scream sometimes but that’s okay. It’s usually because your tired. We also think you might have a tooth coming in which I’m sure is painful. 

You are always happy in the morning when you wake up. This past week you slept through the night 4 nights in a row. A new record!! I can’t thank you enough. Each morning I love you greeting me with a huge smile on your face and sometimes a few giggles if I wiggle your giraffe mobile. A few days of the week you and Daddy hang out while I get ready. You love spending time with him and I often can hear him laughing from the other room because you are talking to him or making silly faces. 

You love to Skype with grandma, grandpa, Mamaw, Papaw, cousin Austin, great-grandma, and Nana and Papa. You brighten their day and I know they love it when you talk to them. Before, I thought you just liked to look at my I-phone cover because it was red but now I think you really like to see them on the screen and hear their voices. 

Lately you’ve been really excited about standing up and sitting in the bumbo or the walker. I think you just like to be looking around and be involved in everything. Sometimes when Daddy and I are talking you just make noises and try to get in on the conversation, especially during dinner time.

You spend most of your days (when we’re home) lounging around in your bobby or playing on your safari play mat. At least once a day you get in a fight with the cat hanging above the mat and start crying and I have to pick you up. 

You refuse to take a nap in your room. I’ve tried repeatedly to get you on a nap schedule but each time I close the curtains, get you all snuggly and try to lay you down in your bed you start screaming and don’t want to lay down: no matter how tired you are. But strangely enough when I lay you on your boppy in the living room with the music on and with me running around cleaning you fall right asleep. You just want to be where the party is I guess.

Even though it’s hard to get you to take naps sometimes you always do a great job going to bed. You go to sleep easily and lately stay asleep for quite a while. 

You LOVE bath time. Each time we put your feet in to test the water you make sort of a gasping noise and get this really scared look on your face. Then as soon as we get your whole body in, you smile and just lay there and enjoy the warm water. As soon as bath time is over though, you get upset and sometimes throw quite the tantrum while I put your lotion and pi’s on. When I pick you up and brush your hair you’re happy again. 

You’re quite the little evangelist. Because so many people come up to you and tell you your cute and want to touch your face, or poke you, or hold your hand, it provides me numerous opportunities to talk to people about why we live in Japan. 

We are excited to watch you grow and see you learn about the world around you. You are such a blessing to us and we love you very much. Happy 4 months buddy.

Love, Mom

Our Year in Pictures

2011 was a big year for us. Finishing language school, starting full-time ministry at MSCC Nagoya, moving to a new city, and having a baby made for a busy/fun/wonderful year. Thinking back there were definitely times when we felt lost, unsure, and alone… but through it all we knew that God was right there strengthening us and encouraging us despite our weaknesses. I’m thankful for all that happened in 2011… and I’m looking forward to what God is going to do in me, in our family, in our church, in Japan… in 2012!

Here’s a recap of 2011… in 11 pictures.

At the beginning of the year it was decided that half of our Nagoya team would move down to Osaka to start the second Mustard Seed Christian Church in Japan. The church launched at the end of October!

Click here to check out the church in Osaka!

On March 11, 2011 there was a massive earthquake and tsunami that devastated much of the coast of north-eastern Japan. The earthquake triggered tsunami warnings all over Japan and this what what we saw on TV.

A few days later a group of guys from our church here in Nagoya were able to go up and help those affected. They passed out blankets, food, and Bibles as well as served alongside other churches in the area.

In April we moved to Nagoya and into our new apartment. It's our first real "home" since we've been married and we love living in the city!

One sight you see every Sunday at MSCC Nagoya: the shoes of the people worshipping God. I often forget that in most places people don't have to take off their shoes in church, but it's one thing I love about Japan and our church. (That, and we have a disco ball.)

On September 22nd, 2011 our son Micaiah John was born! What a blessing he is to our lives everyday. We love you Micaiah!

About a month after Micaiah was born my parents and best friend Becky came to visit and meet him. We had a wonderful time together.

In November we had a picnic in a nearby park after church one Sunday. Hanging out together creates many opportunities to fellowship and have fun.

A large part of the past 4 months were spent trying to get my driver's license. I passed the written test on my first try and my driving test on the 6th! I finally passed on December 16th! Thankfully, I never have to go through that process again!

Since moving to Nagoya I have had the opportunity to join a few "mom" groups and make a lot of new friends. I've enjoyed getting to know these ladies and spending time with them.

MSCC Nagoya had a great year! God has been doing amazing things! This picture was taken at our Christmas Event and we are excited to see what God has in store for His church here in Japan in 2012!!

Micaiah’s Birth Day

Thursday September 22nd, 2011 our son Micaiah was born! Even as I write this it’s still hard to believe. His due date wasn’t until October 8th so when my water broke at 3:25pm I was completely shocked. Not to mention I was standing in the busiest train station in Nagoya surround by at least 50 Japanese people who were looking at me, a very pregnant foreigner, who was wearing gray leggings and had a pool of water at my feet. I put on quite the show, I’m sure. And to the sweet Japanese lady who stopped to ask if I was okay and if I had a way to get to my clinic… I thank you. I wish I would have invited you to church so I could see you again and tell you thanks (and so that you could come to church). Instead of just staring at me you stopped to help, and I appreciate you. Let’s start from the beginning of the day…

That Thursday started out early (like around 4:15am) our dear friends Nichole and Travis were visiting and staying at our house. The two of them, with Jared and a few other of our teammates were going up to Tokyo for the weekend to attend a pastor’s conference. They woke up at 4:15 to leave and because I had to go to the bathroom, I woke up too. Instead of going back to bed though, I decided to make some coffee and sit out on the balcony to watch the sunrise. It was a lovely day… and little did I know our son would decide to show up that day as well. Around 5 or so Jared headed off to Tokyo. (All that week Jared and I had been joking around saying, “I sure hope I don’t have the baby while you’re in Tokyo!”) Very funny.

Sunrise on Micaiah's Birthday

I needed to go to the clinic for an appointment that morning anyway so around 8:45 I headed off to the clinic. Since I had planned on running a bunch of errands I decided to buy an “all-day” subway pass to save money instead of using my usual subway pass. I only went to two of those places but now I have a subway pass that has the date Micaiah was born on it!

At 9:15 I arrived at my clinic. The day before, on Wednesday, there had been a typhoon so no one was really out and about which meant that on Thursday the clinic was packed! At the clinic you don’t make appointments you just show up, get a number, and wait your turn. It had only been open 15 minutes and I was number 19. It was going to be a long wait… it’s a good thing I had taken my “Natural Childbirth Book” with me. I read four chapters out of that book that morning and all of it came in handy that evening when I was in labor! Also, my friend Noriko was at the clinic that morning as well (her due date was this past Tuesday). As we chatted about having our babies I asked her if she had been having contractions or anything and she said, “No, how about you?” and I said, “No, but my due date isn’t for three more weeks so I probably won’t be having him for a while.” Little did I know…

(Noriko came to the clinic this past Tuesday, her due date, and saw my picture up on the board downstairs and she came up to my room to visit me. The first thing she said was, “I was so surprised that you had your baby!” to which I replied, “Not a surprised as I was!”)

Our family picture they gave us at the clinic

While waiting three hours to see the doctor I talked with Noriko, texted Jared off and on, and read my book. During this time every so often I would have a sharp pain in my abdomen but didn’t think much of it. During my check-up the doctor asked me if my stomach hurt, he didn’t use the word for contractions though, he just asked me if my stomach hurt, which it didn’t right that second so I replied, “No.” At that time I still didn’t think anything was really going on and the doctor didn’t use the words I would have thought he would use had I been dilated or anything. But before I left he said, “I want you to come in on Saturday morning and I want you to be the first one I see.” “That’s strange,” I thought, considering he’d always just said things like “Come back sometime next week.” Thinking that something must have gotten lost in translation (literally) I asked a nurse, and the lady at the reception desk what was going on and both of them just told me that the doctor wanted me to come back on Saturday. So I left the clinic… thinking I would go back on Saturday.

It was already 1:00pm by this time so I went across the street, had lunch, and then prepared to go to Nagoya station for a meeting I had at 3:30 that afternoon. Throughout this time I continued having strong pains in my abdomen but thought maybe they were from the coffee I drank earlier in the day. Plus, I could walk through them and I had always thought that if I was having contractions I would have to sit down or something.

When I arrived at Nagoya station at 3:00pm I went outside to get some fresh air and googled “What do contractions feel like?” That’s when I thought… maybe I am having contractions, but I can’t be yet, Jared is in Tokyo and it’s still three weeks until my due date! After that I decided to call my friend Erin and ask her what contractions feel like. She explained what they feel like and reassured me that some women have them and then they go away and come back in a few weeks. While talking with Erin I had made it to the big gold clock, a popular spot in Nagoya station to meet people at. Erin and I had just said “Bye” and that was it. My water broke. Not just a little… like a huge gush. Like on the movie “Baby Mama” it was just like that. I said, “ERIN! My water just broke!” I don’t remember what she said after that but we decided that she would come pick me up from the train station and take me to the clinic. During this time everyone was staring at me and I was freaking out a little bit. Here’s where that sweet Japanese girl entered the picture and told me to not worry about cleaning it up. So… I ran outside and waited by the taxi’s until Erin arrived. 5 minutes later Emily, who I was meeting, arrived at the gold clock and called me to ask where I was. I told her I was out by the taxi’s because my water broke. She came out and waited with me and rode to the clinic with Erin and I. It made me feel better though, because by the time Emily arrived at the gold clock she said she didn’t notice water on the floor or anything so someone must have cleaned it up already. (Probably that awesome girl had gone and told someone what had happened.)

Here's where my water broke (there weren't as many people at the time but... you get the picture)

So there I was waiting by the taxi’s with Emily. By this time my contractions had gotten closer together but weren’t hurting too bad yet. I couldn’t get a hold of Jared because he was in a meeting so I sent him a text that simply said, “My water broke.” Upon receiving the message he quickly left the meeting, hopped in a taxi to Tokyo station and took the next bullet train back to Nagoya (about an hour and a half ride).

The text message I sent Jared...

Traffic was crazy so by the time Erin got to the station it was about 4:15. I looked up the word for “water breaking” in Japanese and called my clinic and told them what happened. I bet Dr. Shibata was surprised when I showed back up that day. I remember asking Erin in the car, “Do you think they’ll send me home?” and she said, “No, I think you’re going to have your baby today.” Hearing that I freaked out a little bit (again).

Around 5:00pm I arrived at the clinic and they immediately took me into the LDR room and gave me my gown to put on. Erin coached me through my contractions, which were becoming much more frequent and intense, and the nurse told me I was at 4cm at that point. Jared arrived at the clinic around 6:30… I was so thankful he made it! When he arrived Erin left (or so I thought). Jared did an absolutely FABULOUS job coaching me through my contractions and by 9:00 or so I was at 9cm. Everything was happening so fast.

They brought me dinner while I was sitting in bed (I had to stop eating every few minutes to have a contraction) I remember the food being good though!

Like I said, I thought Erin had left, but she was out in the waiting room texting the girls on our team and giving them the play-by-play. She’s such a wonderful friend! Brigette and Nichole were in Tokyo, Erin was in Nagoya, and Megan and Caitlin were in Osaka so the girls were literally spread out all over Japan and keeping up with the happenings in my room via text message. The next day Erin showed me their group texting session and it almost made me cry… I love you girls!

I feel like the contractions were the most painful part (at least there towards the end). I thought they were more painful than the pushing itself. And then of course Micaiah actually coming out was painful, too. But, like my mom told me repeatedly, “When you hear that baby cry, you forget about the pain.” Well, I didn’t forget about the pain but I was way more excited about him actually being here then I was thinking about how much pain I was just in. Thinking back, I just feel like it all happened so fast, it’s been just over a week but it’s still hard to believe sometimes.

Micaiah John Henke born on September 22nd, 2011 at 10:21pm weighing 6 lbs. 8 oz. 18.5 in. long

I definitely wouldn’t describe my labor and delivery as “painless” but I would describe it as do-able. In Japan, epidurals are rare and at my clinic they can’t do them. For having a baby naturally, it hurt, but at least now I know that it’s do-able.

One of Micaiah's first pictures!

Having a baby is crazy stuff but I’m so grateful for my clinic and the wonderful people there. I’m also thankful for Jared and my teammates taking such good care of me… giving me advice, lending me books, and just encouraging me throughout my pregnancy. Jared, Micaiah, and I are truly blessed.

Our family

We thank God everyday for this little blessing He has entrusted us with. Since Micaiah was born two and a half weeks early the doctor said he has a “thin throat,” because of this he sometimes makes squeaky noises and has trouble spitting up. My first day in the clinic (Friday) while I was receiving my complementary hand and foot massage (like I said, my clinic is awesome) Micaiah started choking on his saliva and turning purple. I quickly pushed the nurse call button but when the nurse said, “What happened?” I realized that I didn’t know how to say “He’s choking” in Japanese. Thankfully, the massage lady told the nurse what happened and she quickly came up and got him. Micaiah is fine, but that experience the first day made me sit down and have a serious talk with God that night. I pretty much just told Him that I didn’t know what I was doing and that I couldn’t take care of Micaiah without His help. Like I said, we’re thankful God has entrusted us with this precious gift, but I constantly need to remind myself that he’s not just ours… He’s Gods. And no matter what happens God is in control and taking care of everything. Since having Micaiah I am reminded often of scriptures about not worrying, God being in control, and parent/child relationships in the Bible. One that I went back and read the other night was the story of Hannah and Samuel in 1 Samuel 1-2. In verses 27 and 28 Hannah says, “I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD.” This scripture really touched me because it’s what I want for Micaiah. I want to do the best job I can at being his mom but ultimately I’m not in control… God is.

Jared and I prayed daily for Micaiah and we’re thankful he’s here. Our prayer now is for wisdom in raising him well and that he would become a man who loves God.

So… that’s the story of Micaiah’s birthday. As you can tell, it was a crazy day. Now every time I’m in Nagoya station (which is often) I’ll always remember that time my water broke by the big gold clock… and I can’t wait to tell Micaiah about it someday.

August… where did you go?

Why hello September. August sure did fly by. Looking through our pictures just now it’s no surprise I feel like that. It was a busy month for Jared and I… in a good way. Here are a few pictures of what we’ve been up to!

At the beginning of the month Jared and a few guys from our church climbed Mt. Fuji... the highest mountain in Japan! This is Jared and Shohei at the summit... great job guys!

There was a CosPlay parade right down the street from our house!	Jared and his new friend we met at the CosPlay parade
The second week of August we went on a two-day mini vacation to the nearby town of Toyohashi and spent a full day relaxing on the beach... it was our last vacation just the two of us and it was wonderful!	Enjoying the beach at 31 weeks!
We said “goodbye” to our first MSCC intern: Austin. Thanks for all your hard work this summer!	The girls on our team threw Baby Henke and I a baby shower! It was a lot of fun and we feel very blessed. Thanks for coming everyone! (I'll write another post just about the shower later)
We held an event for the Christian Ladies of MSCC where we enjoyed brunch together, had a guest speaker, and encouraged and prayed for one another. Look at all those yummy brunch foods!!	All the ladies that attended the "Ladies Day Out" event! A big thank you to Yumi, our guest speaker, who did an absolutely amazing job. I'm thankful for wonderful sisters in Christ like you!

What an great month is was! Interspersed throughout the month we did a few outreach events, a language exchange, 2 doctor visits, welcomed our new interns, and hosted our dear friends Seth and Megan who stayed at our house until they moved to Osaka on September 1st. (More to come later about the Osaka church plant launching this fall! For now visit the web site at www.mustardseedosaka.com)!

I’m looking forward to the next few months as well! First of all, September means fall: my absolute favorite season! Here’s to great smelling candles, beautiful leaves, homemade pumpkin spice lattes, good books, cooler temperatures and fall decorations!

Also sometime within the next 6 weeks (hopefully) we will be welcoming our new family member! My due date is coming up soon (October 8th). We can’t wait to meet him! The last 3 times I’ve had ultrasounds he’s had his hand in front of his face so we haven’t gotten to see a good clear shot of him yet. But from what I can tell, his nose at least, looks just like his dads’. I love him very much.

Baby Update: 30 weeks!

Well, we made it to the third trimester! I can’t believe in 10 weeks (more or less) We’ll be holding our little baby boy. Jared and I are getting excited to meet him!

Here he is at 28 weeks! He has his arm in front of his face.

After going to the doctor about once a month throughout my second trimester I’m starting to have to go every two weeks again. I went this past Tuesday and the doctor told me that the baby had flipped over (so now he’s breech) and I have to do these crazy exercises every day this week and then go back for a check-up next week to see if he’s turned back around yet. I don’t know what it’s like in America but it seems like a pretty big deal here if your baby flips feet-first during the third trimester. Part of the reason is probably because I’m having the baby at a clinic instead of a hospital. In the event that something goes wrong I’ll have to be transferred to a hospital and won’t be able to have him at the clinic. Which is a little scary, but I’m trusting that God will take care of us and nothing will go wrong. I really love our clinic. I’m so thankful for Dr. Shibata and the wonderful staff of nurses who are so sweet to me. Maybe it’s because I’m one of the only foreigners to have gone to this clinic, I don’t know. But I feel like they are especially nice, and it’s really comforting.

Here we are at week 30!

I also found out that my mom, dad, and best friend Becky will be coming to Japan for a visit after the baby is born! YAY! I know my mom and dad are looking forward to meeting their very first grand baby and it will be my friend Becky’s first trip to Japan as well as meeting our little guy! They will be visiting for a week, 3 weeks after my due date. I know we’ll be getting used to life with a new baby around but I’m hoping we’ll be able to do a little traveling (even if it’s just around Nagoya) while they’re here! I’m so thankful they will be able to come and am looking forward to their visit!

There have definitely been some pros and cons being pregnant in Japan…. here are a few:

Pro: I walk everywhere! I’m at 30 weeks and have gained 15 pounds. (Which is good because I’m only supposed to gain 18 total)

Con: Smoking. So many people smoke here and most restaurants have a non-smoking section (where you can still smell the smoke), but many places don’t have one at all. Prior to being pregnant, I didn’t mind the smell of smoke. But now it aggravates me to be sitting next to someone (who can clearly tell I’m pregnant) and have them light up.

Pro: My “pregnancy badge”. In Japan, they give you a little key chain to put on your purse/bag that shows that you’re pregnant. It says, “I have a baby in my belly.” There have been so many wonderful people on the trains and subways who have offered me their spots so I can sit down.

Here's what my pregnancy key ring looks like!

Con: Cravings. I haven’t had hardly any cravings, but when I do have one, like Easy Cheese for example, it’s a craving that can’t be satisfied. They don’t make Easy Cheese here.

This looks SO good!

Pro: Getting to have the baby at a clinic. It’s just as inexpensive as having it at a hospital, but in a much smaller and quieter environment. I’m also looking forward to the “Oiwai dinner” they give you on the last night in the clinic to celebrate your new baby!

Con: I already stuck out as a foreigner. Now I definitely stick out as a 7-month pregnant foreigner.

Please don’t hear my cons as complaints. I’ve enjoyed pregnancy and I’ve enjoyed being pregnant in Japan. This country takes very good care of its pregnant ladies. I’m thankful for the wonderful care I’ve received, my loving husband who gives me foot rubs, and of course I’m thankful to be here at this time serving God… even through this pregnancy I feel like He has opened doors for me to minister to others who are pregnant here.

The other day I went to a phone store to get a phone for our new interns… while there the lady behind the counters first question to me was, “Are you pregnant?” and I said, “Yes.” After that she opened up with me about her and her husband’s struggles with infertility and how she really wants to be a mom. I invited her to church and she told me she wasn’t “religious.” Before I left the store I told her that even though she said she wasn’t “religious” I would be praying that God would allow her and her husband to have a baby. He’s done it before you know… I’ve continued to pray everyday this week that she would be able to get pregnant and through that come to know God’s love for her.

Our new home: Part 3 of 4 “Matsubara”

It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood. Our neighborhood. Matsubara 松原. Which means “Field of Pine Trees.” Which is interesting because I don’t see very many pine trees around here. Anyway, we love our new neighborhood. Even though it is in the central ward of the city it is much quieter than we thought it would be. More of a residential area there are many homes, a few offices, and some really convient places to have around like a super market, drug store, and park. Our apartment building “Scudetto Matsubara” is one of the tallest buildings which is nice because we have a beautiful view of the city from our windows. Since I still don’t have my drivers licence (but should get it in a few weeks! YAY!) I have really enjoyed walking around our neighborhood. The supermarket is only a 2 minute walk away. Also within walking distance from our home are cafes, resturants, a bowling alley, and shopping areas. It’s been hot out, but since I really have no choice but to walk, I’ve tried to make the best of it and have enjoyed getting to explore by walking around. Here’s some pictures from around our neighborhood:

Our Supermarket: Yamanaka. I go here once or twice a week for groceries. The people who work here are really friendly and I love that it's so close to our house.

Matsubara Park: This park is about a 1-2 minute walk away from our apartment. I'm looking foward to taking our son there to play and meet new friends! There is a playground with swings and a slide as well as a special "baby playground". I can't wait to go!

Denny's! Just a short 2 minute walk away we can enjoy the taste of America! Not really though, the food is very much Japanese-style. It's still good!

Komeda's Coffee: This cafe is all over the place in Nagoya. This one is right down the street! They have good drinks, cheap sandwiches, and coffee jelly: my favorite!

That tall gray building is our apartment building. We live on the 10th floor in the middle. In the next post I'll put up pictures of what our apartment looks like!

Thanks for taking the trip around our neighborhood!

Our new home: Part 2 of 4 “Naka-ku”

Naka-ku is the central ward of the city of Nagoya.

The light blue sections are different wards in the city of Nagoya. The dark blue ward is Naka ward where we live.

Besides the two of us, there are 75,889 other people who live in our ward. 20,995.6 people per square mile. Where Jared is from (Salem, Illinois) the population is 7,909 people with 1,296.5 people per square mile. And where I’m from (Topeka, Kansas) the population is 127,423 with 2,236.4 people per square mile. Living in downtown Nagoya our lifestyles look very different than they did growing up. It’s interesting to think that our son will ride on a train more than in a car, grow up playing in a park instead of in a yard, and eating rice balls instead of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch. Jared and I LOVE city life. The city is where the people are and God loves people and we want people to love God… so it all works out.

Here’s a look at a few places around our ward:

The Nagoya City Science Museum and Planetarium (this is about a 15 minute walk from our house!) It looks crazy doesn't it?

Nagoya Sports Center (about a 5 minute walk from our house) It's an ice skating rink where many of Japan's famous ice skaters practice.

This little guys name is "Hachimaru" he's the city of Nagoya's mascot. I think he's cute.