My moon month is over. I was released from “house arrest” on Thursday and after I’d bundled up in my winter wear once more, I stood for a moment in the driveway, arms outstretched on either side of my body, back arched and face pointed to the sky and breathed in. The winter freshness filled me like a balloon. I’m…   …read more.

A standing issue between Guo Jian and I (pun intended) is regarding the state of the bathroom. I theorize that since Chinese restrooms are, on average, absolutely disgusting places, his overall standards for bathroom sanitation are simply lower. He grew up there. I, however, didn’t.

It’s a rare moment. Both children are sleeping at the same time. When Paz was only one week old, I had my first day solo. Guo Jian went into town to do some errands and hitched a ride with some gracious neighbours who needed to finish their Christmas shopping. He left at 9am and I survived five hours of two…   …read more.

“Maybe we should make a plan.” At my suggestion, my cousin Lorie’s eyes widened in surprise. She’s had three children, so she knew exactly what I was talking about. I had arrived the day before. We were gearing up for an early Christmas celebration. Guo Jian was going to get a tree-decorating, stocking-stuffing, big-family-dinner experience that he’s never had at…   …read more.

Guo Shilong (国世龙) Topaz Swift Born December 16th, 2013, 9:57pm, 9 days early, 7lbs2oz (Announcing his birth now because we had to wait a whole day before he could meet his father and then we could confirm our name choices!) Here is explanation of his name: Guo (国) is Guo Jian’s family name or surname. It is a rare and…   …read more.

She’s so beautiful, so engaged and smart, so distracting, so able to convince her mommy that she definitely needs to go to the potty only to be placed down on it and then laugh openly, proving that she’s taken me in yet again. I’m being tricked by a nearly-two-year old. Regularly. After giving her this second benefit of the doubt…   …read more.

She had been crying on and off for the last 100kms. No amount of singing or reassurance or stopping to give her a quick cuddle would inspire her to sleep. It was long past her bedtime. We were coming up on the last leg of the journey on a country road heading back “home” to my parent’s house—our retreat space….   …read more.

For my last birth, I toured the birthing facilities at the painstakingly-chosen hospital before my bump had even taken shape. This time, it took until I was 36 weeks along for the decisions to be finally made regarding the birth—the where, the how, the who, etc. Why so late? Let me chronicle this drama: You see, we were hoping to…   …read more.

Final Thought, Dec 2013   This fall, I finally started my Masters Degree through an online program at The City University of Hong Kong. This MFA for Creative Writing is the only one of its kind in the world because it focuses on writings about Asia in English. In October, I attended an in-person session called a “residency.” Required once…   …read more.

Every woman has a different pregnancy because every woman’s body is different. But, every pregnancy is different too, which points to the influence of the baby on these things, obviously. Every fetus is different from the last. So, the child rules the roost in here! (Of course!) Here’s my list of comparisons between my two pregnancies, something I find quite…   …read more.