The Tooth Fairy

Emma has been wiggling her first "looth tooth" for a few weeks now. She proudly shows it to everyone and has been looking forward to this for years...literally. So, today she came bounding home from school and announced "mom, look it came out!" Here are a few statements from our cute girl about this remarkable occasion:

Mom: how did it come out? "It wasn't our housekeeper, or the nanny who is having a playdate with Xander and his friend at our house right now, but it was another lady in the lobby - she just pulled it out! and then said to drink some cold water to stop the bleeding" I later found out that it was someone from housekeeping who works in our apartment building - NICE!

"Mom, my friend Zoe got stickers from the tooth fairy, that's how I know that the tooth fairy is real."

"I'm going to polish my tooth with my toothbrush and toothpaste to make it all shiny for the tooth fairy."

"Did you know that tooth faries make their houses and castles out of the teeth they collect? They use the real shiny ones for special decoration."

"I'm going to write her a note and tell her that I would like a chocolate bar." Later, she said that the tooth fairy could give her anything and it didn't matter. It didn't need to be a chocolate bar.

"Mom, how will the tooth fairy know that I lost my tooth?" Mom: Oh, don't worry, she'll know. "Oh right. I bet she has one of those monitors and she can see when kids lose their teeth."

"Mom, how will she get into our house?" Mom: Probably just like Santa Clause. "I bet that I have a very small hole in my window and she can make herself really small and get in - that's probably how the bugs and mosquitoes get in anyway."

"I move around a lot when I sleep. What if I lose my tooth?" Mom: Don't worry you can just keep it in the baggie. "Should I leave it open so that she can get in there?" Mom: I think you can close it. She'll know what to do. "Oh, that's right, silly me, she has a magic wand."

Right now I'm wishing I would have prepared a little more for this day. When we were growing up, my mom had a "tooth fairy doll" with a special pocket for a tooth. The doll was so beautiful, I was sure that the real tooth fairy looked just like her. We would get to sleep with this doll whenever we lost a tooth. And in the morning, in place of the lost tooth would be a shiny new quarter. It's a dreamy, magical memory for me. I almost feel like I need to end this entry with: And they all lived happily ever after.

Home Again in Hanoi

We arrived home late last night exhausted, but happy to be home again. Here are some random thoughts I've had in the past couple days of travel as we've ended our stay in the good 'ol USA.

- I absolutely loved connecting with family and friends. My mind is swimming with good memories, warm feelings, deep appreciation, life-changing insights, fun times, and a heart full of love.
- The kids were amazingly good on the flights home and having Christian with us was such a blessing and a necessity. There were a few hiccups in our travels (like missing our overseas connection in SFO due to fog and having our journey delayed 24 hours, Xander's major diaper blowout-yikes!, and delicately balancing 12 pieces of luggage on 2 "smarte cartes") and I couldn't help but imagine the scene if I were doing it alone - me on the floor in a heap of tears and 3 crying kids is the image that repeatedly comes to mind : )
- Xander had the window seat and Christian had the aisle - in other words, he was "boxed in" and it worked out great. It cracked me up to see him with his airplane socks on (just like daddy) and walk around with his eye mask on (trying to copy mommy). He even took a nice nap and was cheerful on the trans-pacific flight, and he slept the entire 4 1/2 hour flight from Seoul to Hanoi. I was pleased that we didn't have to use the Dramamine I brought along.
- Emma sat behind Anneliese and me. I caught little bits of her conversation with the businessmen next to her, which cracked me up. She kindly bestowed Little Einstein stickers to everyone and at one point, I heard her exclaim, "this is my favorite show!" - on the Disney Channel of course. She was so grown up and proud to be "on her own" behind mom. Two fav moments are catching her brushing her teeth in her chair after dinner (who can resist playing with all the items in the travel pouch they give you?!?) And it was cute to see the flight attendants wait on her and give her special straws to go in her champagne glass full of water. I was a tad bit jealous, I just got a regular cup : )
- I got 2 solid hours of sleep last night from 1-3:00 a.m. and the rest was spent holding, feeding, jigging, walking out to the living room and back to the bedroom to test all the couches and chairs for comfort (I miss the nice rocking chairs at grandma's house and at mom's), and falling asleep with my head at every possible angle. I think Anneliese senses the change of environment and post stress of traveling for 3 days.
- I've been trying to think of what I am going to say to my housekeeper when she comes?!? I've been thinking about it for a couple days and all that comes to mind is a mixture of Chinese and Czech - help! She called this morning to see if we were home (we had no way to tell her our return was delayed) and I managed to communicate that we returned to Hanoi...obviously : )
- This morning both kids woke up at their usual time and Emma was excited to go to school, so we sent her for possibly a half day - we'll see how long she lasts. It will be a big surprise because I didn't have a chance to give her teacher a head's up. Thankfully Huong our housekeeper had a fridge full of chopped fresh fruit, spring rolls and sticky rice with chicken, and that was breakfast for all and lunch for Emma and Christian as they headed out to catch their busses.
- Xander, Anneliese and I took Emma down to the bus this morning and it was surreal and nostalgic to see Hanoi again through "first time" eyes. I couldn't help but smile as we waited for the bus and was reminded of the horn honking, motorbikes, ladies with bicycles loaded up with things for sale, construction projects in the works, people coming and going with their daily groceries just purchased fresh from the market ...aaaaaaah : ) I love it.
- I think I will be unpacking again for the next month...our airfreight shipment is waiting for me downstairs in 4 big boxes (the size of a dresser), our sea shipment comes next week sometime and I have 12 pieces of luggage with all sorts of things to pack. I know already that our housekeeper will smile, shake her head and say with a laugh "too many things!" It's amazing what you can do without and what you think you need to have.
- I need to sign off, Anneliese is fussing and Xander is too quiet...

Sen. McCain in Hanoi

The day after I got back to Hanoi, Sen. McCain arrived here as well. He came with Sen. Lindsey Graham (South Carolina) and Sen. Klobuchar (Minnesota). I was lucky enough to attend his meetings with the Prime Minister, Chairman of the National Assembly and his speech to a group of students. In between his official meetings, we made a quick trip to Truc Bach lake in the center of town. Sen. McCain landed in the lake after his plane was shot down during the Vietnamese War. Given that Sen. McCain's father was the head of the military's Pacific Command at the time, the Vietnamese quickly put up a monument at the site to those who shot down "Tchan Sney Mcaan" (a Vietnamized spelling of John Sidney McCain). Above is a picture of the Senator standing in front of the statue which remains today. McCain joked with his fellow senators that it didn't hurt his feelings that they called him an "air pirate" on the monument, but that it did bother him that they said he was in the Air Force and not the Navy.

It was amazing how Sen. McCain was treated like a rockstar here. At his speech to students, he was greeted by screaming teens snapping pictures furiously while trying to press in and shake his hand. It was a sight to behold. His staff even joked that the students seemed to have him confused with the Beatles. The next day, the delegation made a visit to the Hoa Lao prison, better known as the "Hanoi Hilton" where Sen. McCain spent many years. It is amazing to think that how far we have come in the past 30 years and the wounds that have healed. Regardless of what you think of his politics, Sen. McCain is to be commended for the crucial roll he has played in our reconciliation with Vietnam even though he suffered so much during the war. Less than 15 years ago we didn't even have an Embassy here and now 80% of the country loves America. My how far we have come! I guess it helps that more than 2/3 of the country was born after the war.


At church on Sunday, our Branch President informed me that he saw me on the national nightly news which covered the delegation's meetings with Prime Minister and Chairman of the National Assembly. Later while visiting the Communist Party of Vietnam's website (yes, I do that frequently for work) I came across the video news coverage of the meetings. While watching the video, I was surprised to see that the cameramen zoomed in on me several times (I guess that is because I was intently taking notes of what was being said). I have tried to download the footage to post it on our blog but I guess I am technologically inept because I haven't been able to do so. Here is the link to the Communist Party's website where the video was posted: Lãnh đạo Đảng, Nhà nước tiếp đoàn Thượng nghị sĩ Hoa Kỳ is the one with Sen. McCain (literally translated as Party and National Leaders Welcome a Delegation of United States Senators). I guess with that I have used up a couple more seconds of my 5 minutes of fame.

Christian in Hanoi & Jennie and the Kids in California

We enjoyed a great month together in Utah visiting with family and friends. Christian came back to Hanoi on April 5 only to be greeted by 1,200 unread work e-mails. I guess taking a month off of work will do that to you.

Jennie and the kiddos left Utah on Friday to visit her Mom and Briant in Southern California for two weeks before Christian heads back to the States for a couple of days to help bring the whole family home. Expecting Jennie to survive a 30+ hour flight alone with three kids, as cute as they may be, was just too much to ask. We look forward to being back in Hanoi all together as a family on May 5.

Anneliese Update

We've had an exciting past couple of weeks here in Utah. After spending 10 days in the Hospital, little Anneliese came home with us to Grandma Bitter's house. Jennie's Mom was a real lifesaver during the time before Christian could get here. She flew out the same day as the birth from California and did a great job helping out with Emma and Xander. We couldn't have done it without her. Thank you Mom! Christian took over in taking care of our older two kids upon arrival and has loved having quality one-on-one time with both kiddos. Jennie has been amazing dealing with Anneliese and the sleepless nights that accompany a newborn.

Not long after we brought Anneliese home from the hospital, Christian's parents and younger sister Denisha with her two daughters arrived in Utah to join in the celebration of Anneliese's birth. Denisha is a professional photographer and took the above photos and arranged them for us after returning home to her family in Kentucky. Emma and Xander have loved having quality time with their grandparents and great-grandparents. We are also looking forward to the upcoming visit of Jennie's Dad & Elaine at the end of this month.

While Christian's family was in town, Briant also drove up from California to be here for Anneliese's blessing. We are supremely grateful for the sacrifice of so many family members to be here to share in our special time. It was a wonderful celebration to have so many close family members on both sides of our family here for that special occasion. We are so blessed to be staying with Grandma & Grandpa Bitter who have been so accomodating and loving and have put up with our quirks and many visitors. Huge thank you's are also in order for Auntie who has been so generous in babysitting and everything else, Desiree & Chuck for giving the tired parents a rare night out together and Natalie for taking Jennie to the hospital at 4:00 am for the birth.

Anneliese continues to grow and is such a cute little princess. She is still on oxygen - largely the result of being a premy in high elevation Utah. We hope that by the end of this month she won't need her oxygen "top-off" any longer. Emma & Xander are enjoying helping Mom and getting to know little "Ah-Lisa" as Xander calls her. Time continues to fly by. In less than two weeks Christian will be getting back on an airplane headed home to Hanoi - with the rest of the family to follow a month later.

An update from The Mom

Little Anneliese (pronounced "On-Ah-Lisa") just after her oxygen tubes were removed.
This is the German spelling and pronunciation.

I checked out of the hospital yesterday. Alexander, the little gentleman, insisted on rolling my luggage up to the house. Anneliese is still in NICU Level Two. She will stay until she can eat all by herself for a whole day. That is the only thing that we are waiting for. She has a feeding tube and has a "bili blanket" which helps with the Jaundice - it is a blanket with blue lights in it that slides up her back inside of her onesie - it's like using a tanning bed without all the bright lights and sunglasses. You can see it glowing under her blanket in the pic below.


Her condition is very common for a 36-week-old baby. She is eating the right amount every 3 hours and is starting to differentiate between being full and hungry. She will nurse, and will sometimes do a very good job, but she doesn't have the energy/stamina to nurse long enough to get full. It is exhausting to her, so I am feeding her every other time to let her conserve her strength. This allows nursing to be a positive experience for both mom and baby. They feed her through the tube at night and the off-times during the day when I am home trying to rest. Overall, she looks really good and we just need to be patient and let her development take place. The doctors and nurses are excellent and I feel so good about the decisions we are making together about her care. Emma and my mom came today with me to feed Anneliese. Because of RSV germs, Emma is not allowed inside the NICU unit. They watched through the window as I showed them all of Anneliese's tubes and gadgets : )


Christian hops on a plane tomorrow! The whole family can't wait!!! Grandma talked with him this morning and told me later "that's one homesick daddy." : ) I'll talk with him the last time tonight and then we'll see him Sunday evening. We're excited for daddy to be here!!!

Introducing Anneliese Rebecca Marchant

Yes, we have a name. Anneliese Rebecca is named after her Auntie Anneliese Wood and Grandma Becky (Jennie's middle name is also Rebecca). Jennie's sister Anneliese passed away a little more than three years ago and blessed all those with whom she came in contact. We hope our own little Anneliese can touch the lives of others in her own way.

These photos are cribbed from my sister Desiree's blog. All those family members out there reading this blog that have pictures of my little girl need to e-mail them to me. Love ya!