34+ SSW - Das "Ende" naht

Nachdem wir gestern beim Wassergeburtskurs waren, ist mir nochmal aufgefallen, was für einen kleinen Bauch ich habe im Vergleich zu anderen Frauen, die genauso weit sind wie ich. Die haben sich so langsam an uns vorbeigeschoben und sahen alle massiv aus. Aber wart mal ab, wenn Bennet noch ein wenig zulegt über die nächsten Wochen, dann werde ich auch so aussehen. Es neigt sich alles "dem Ende". Noch 1.5 Wochen bei LEGO *schnief*. Am 01. September ist Umzug angesagt. Alles auf den letzten Drücker wie es scheint. Ich werde Ealing vermissen. Noch ein paar Photos, damit ihr auf dem neuesten Stand der Dinge seid. Sie sind ein bisschen gewollt und nicht gekonnt, aber Fotograf ist hier £200 für eine Session, zuuuu teuer. Ryon hat mit vielen Schwangerschaftsymptomen zu kämpfen. Er hat extrem trockene Augen und heute war im so übel, daß er sich 2 x übergeben mußte. Außerdem hat er einen schmerzhaften Versensprung, der ihn davon abhält normal und ohne Schmerzen zu laufen. Und das, obwohl er am Samstag Paintball spielen wollte.

Our Shotgun Wedding ;)

It was something like this... (as narrated by Ryon)

'PPL plz be seated'

'Hi I's officating this heer weddings'

'Ringz plz'

'O hai now u marries my daughter.'

'O noes preggers chixxors shouldn't booze!'

Me 25th Birthday - 29th July 2007

Kurzfassung:

1. Futter fassen bei WAGAMAMA - yum!
2. LEGOLAND - yay!
3. Hackney Empire: Theater-Stück "Die Familie" (Pantomime) - sehr lustig!
4. Und den ganzen Tag: wunderschönes Wetter!

1. Grabbing food at WAGAMAMA - yum!
2. LEGOLAND - yay!
3. Hackney Empire: Theatre play "The Family" (Pantomime) - very funny!
4. And all day: beautiful weather!

Edgware Birth Centre

Pictures taken this Morning/Midday, me at 30 weeks (7th month)

Today, at 3pm, we have an appointment at the Edgware Birthcente, a midwife run unit that encourages 'natural birth'. 80% of their births are actually water births and they have large pools to facilitate that. Maybe I get to take some pictures of it, so you can have an idea where I will be labouring. :) See you later!

Father-to-be at 30 weeks (7th month)



After our photo session we're leaving for Edgware birth centre, a travel that takes us nearly 1.5 hours across the city (*umpf*). The midwife, Conny, is German :) and comes from Potsdam near Berlin, where I was born and raised. I get to take pictures of one of the delivery rooms:



you can look out of the window, but windows are reflective from the outside :)



nice, big birthing pools adjacent to all the rooms and some equipment, somewhere they're hiding a birthing stool; no ropes by the way! :(((

Not quite as nice as some of the German birth centres, but still better than hospital...although today a Dr. who examined me, heavily questions the idea of going to a midwife-led unit. He said: "What if the baby is in distress or your contractions are not strong enough etc etc.." geeee, I don't know.....I don't want to be an irresponsible mother, but I feel comfortable at that place and midwives take their time and listen to you.

And last but not least: IKEA :)



which bed to choose?

Birmigham - June 30th 2007

On Saturday 30th June Ryon and I rented a car and drove from London to Birmingham to get some 3D DVD moving images of Bennet (I will call him that for now). As the weather had been really bad and we had to cancel our camping honeymoon in Cornwall the previous week, we considered this trip as our 'Mini-Honeymoon'.

When we arrived in Birmingham after about 3 hours drive we found the clinic where the scan was to be held immediately and we were more than on time *proud*. Prior to the scan we were told that the quality of our pictures would depend on the position the baby's lying and the mother's body fat etc.

Unfortunately, Bennet was lying quite close to the placenta with his hands in his face most of the time, so the guy doing the scan couldn't get very good images, but excellent pictures of his foot and spine! Hooray! : /

After about 7min DVD capturing and 6-7 thermal b/w printouts we were told that that's all he can do for us and the cheque of £145,- was passed over the counter at reception.

Of course, we weren't quite satisfied and upon return to London we wrote an 'Email of complaint' (carefully and wonderfully worded by Ryon, mwah!) to the booking office and Ryon's diplomacy got us another appointment yesterday, Saturday 07th July, for a re-scan.

To our 'surprise' the same guy was doing the scan as they have a moving clinic in 4 different locations in England. At first he wouldn't believe us that we only had 7min on our DVD (instead of the 15min promised on a sheet attached to the consent form, a sheet that we hadn't even seen the first time around!) But I had brought the DVD along so he could see himself.

Then he had another look at our old printouts and in his view they weren't so bad, of course. (Honestly, they looked like shots out of Aliens!!) I told him the reaction I got when I showed the pictures to my collegues and how the pictures on their website look SO much nicer. He said that this would be called marketing, but I think it's misleading advertising!

Nowhere on the Website is mentioned that the quality of your pictures will depend on ABC and that the thermal printouts are going to be black and white and not as pretty and golden shimmering like on the website.

We had paid them a substantial amount of money and didn't feel our expectations had been met the first time, so thankfully he did another scan, which I think would be called good customer service. (finally)

Bennet was still positioned close to the placenta. :( So we went for a 10 minute walk, I drank a gallon of water moved around, put an ice pack on my belly (ouch!) and even tried a headstand (don't do it when you're 29 weeks, it hurts your ligaments!!).

While Bennet still hadn't moved position much the technician was still able to get much better views and pictures of him this time, so we got an additional 7 min to our existing DVD (make sure not to go one minute over, doc!) and a couple of new printouts that were really much better than the first time.

I was very relieved, because I know they wouldn't have given us part of our money back, that's why I advice you to be very careful which company you choose to have your 3D images with. I would not recommend babyultrasoundcompany.co.uk! I'm glad this didn't turn into a major disappointment as I was SO THRILLED about the possiblity of having 3D pictures and moving images taken of the little one, so I hope you enjoy the slightly better images (oh, the doc even gave us a CD with the new images, although it wasn't part of the package we paid for and said he hopes we appreciate, we did!).

I'm looking forward to the day (not the pain) when I can see Bennet face to face and when there is no room for speculation about the way he looks :)

Happy Honeymoon to us!

Can you see the little smirk coming through?

Chinese Astrolgy

Ever wondered what your chinese sign is? There are 12 zodiac animals in the chinese horoscope and each of them is assigned a different element. You can be wood, fire, earth, metal or water.

The chinese year has a different span than our year, so watch out. Their New Year falls on different dates each year, on a date between January 21 and February 20.

So Ryon thought he was a Dragon at first as 1976 is the year he was born, but at a closer look we found out that the date he was born was within the end of chinese year 1975, so he turned into a wood rabbit, much to his disappointment as he would have liked to be a fire dragon! (Everybody: "Awwwwwww! ")

I'm a water dog by the way! My mum is a fire pig and my sister a fire snake. My dad is a fire dog.

Find out what chinese sign you are and feel free to leave a post to share the result and whether you think there's something true about what you've read!

The Naming Dilemma - Update

Bennet Alexander Grau



or



Maximilian Alexander Grau

Ok, so it's not really a Dilemma, because Ryon is cooperative and we already agreed on Bennet Alexander Grau. Maybe we will name him completly different once we see him. Like Jürgen or Gottfried or sth like that! :) We've got still plenty of time to decide. He is very calm today, not moving much, so I hope evrything is alright. Mummy isn't feeling brilliant and had a temperature along with tummy cramps, but the midwive wasn't too worried as long as he had '10 movements a day'. I told her he moved 5 times by noon. But did she mean 10 kicks in a row or 10 times active periods along with breaks in between, probably the latter. I don't know if I should be worried as he's not as active as he has been the previous days...

Benet or Bennett = English, from the surname Bennett, which is the old English form of Benedict, from the Latin >benedictus<, meaning "the blessed one"

Maximilian = Latin, from the Roman family name Maximilianus, derived from the Latin >maximus<, the "greatest"

Our Wedding - 20.05.2007

Ihr Lieben Leutchens!

Die letzten Tage waren wahnsinnig aufregend! Angefangen mit Donnerstag, den 17. Mai 2007, dem Tag der Feindiagnostik. Wir können uns wahrscheinlich auf einen Jungen freuen (der Arzt war sich jedoch nicht 100% sicher). Danach durften wir Ryon's Familie (Ryon's Eltern und seinen Bruder Scott) begrüßen. Sie haben uns gegen 17 Uhr zu Hause abgeholt. Dann haben wir uns auf den Weg ins Stadtzentrum gemacht und etwas gegessen (60s Fast Food Restaurant was sonst :). Dann sind wir zum Palace Theatre gelaufen und haben 'Shamelot' gesehen. Ein Musical und Veralberung des King Arthur und der Ritter der Tafelrunde. SEHR lustig!

Am Freitag, den 18. Mai 2007 habe ich mit Ryon meine Eltern vom Flughafen Stansted abgeholt. Als wir dann endlich wieder in London waren, hat sich Ryon mit seiner Familie im British Museum getroffen und ich habe mit meinen Eltern eine Stadtrundfahrt gemacht und ihnen alle wichtigen Sehenswürdigkeiten gezeigt. Abends haben wir uns alle in Ealing beim Italiener getroffen. Ausserdem bin ich, zu Hause angekommen, vor Erschöpfung wie ein Käfer auf den Rücken gefallen und konnt mich nicht mehr bewegen! :)

Am Samstag, den 19. Mai 2007 sind wir alle zusammen in den Londoner Zoo gegangen, was ganz toll war! Wir hatten eine wirklich 'close-up experience' mit einem Gorilla. Fast mehr als uns lieb war! ;) Der Londoner Zoo setzt sich übrigens für gefährdete Tierarten und den Schutz des Lebensraumes zur Erhaltung der Tierart ein. Mit meiner Eintrittskarte habe ich dafür einen Spendenbeitrag geleistet. (Es ist also nicht jeder Zoo bloße Tierquälerei)

Am Sonntag, den 20. Mai 2007 um 9.15 war unsere Hochzeit. Die Straßen waren leer (zum Glück) und wir sind alle zusammen in einem schwarzen Daimler Chrysler Minibus zum Standesamt in Brent gefahren. Dort hatten wir eine schöne Zeremonie, die von uns selbst verfasst war! Anschließend hatten wir ein tolles Essen bei Carluccio's in Ealing (meinem Lieblingsrestaurant). Dann haben wir Scott zum Flughafen Heathrow gebracht und sind dann leider ohne ihn in die Botanischen Gärten (Kew Gardens) gefahren, um Photos zu machen. Wir haben natürlich viel Aufmerksamkeit bekommen, da Ryon und ich die ganze Zeit in unserer Hochzeitskleidung umhergelaufen sind. Aber zum Glück hatte ich darin schon Training, da Ryon und ich schon öfter mal im Kostüm 'aufgetreten' sind :) Abends hatten wir wieder ein leckres Essen - diesmal bei Wagamama in Richmond (meinem 2. Lieblingsrestaurant). Es waren überall Fußballfans unterwegs und die Pubs waren vollgepackt, da irgendein Spiel stattfand, fragt mich nicht welches! Das passiert hier ständig. Ich bin eigentlich nur an der Fußball-WM interessiert und sonst hab ich mit Fußball nicht viel zu tun.

Am Montag, den 21. Mai 2007 sind dann meine Eltern nach Berlin zurückgeflogen und wir haben den Rest des Tages damit verbracht durch London zu laufen und Photos mit unserer neuen digitalen Spiegelreflexkamera, der Nikon D80, zu machen (unserem Hochzeitsgeschenk von den Amis). Dienstag und Mittwoch haben wir Ausflüge mit Ryon's Eltern gemacht, da wir noch Urlaub hatten. Da das Auto uns noch zur Verfügung stand, sind wir am Dienstag nach Brigthon gefahren und am Mittwoch zum Blenheim Palace bei Oxford und abends noch nach Stratford-upon-Avon zum Dinner.

Seit Donnerstag arbeiten wir wieder und vermissen unsere Familien sehr. Es waren ein paar erlebnisreiche und unvergessliche Tage, an die wir immer gerne zurückdenken werden! Schade, daß ihr alle nicht dabei sein konntet, doch es war alles sehr spontan. Nachdem wir die bürokratische Hürde letztendlich doch überwunden hatten, konnten wir nach 16 tägiger Wartezeit (das zum 2. Mal, denn der erste Hochzeitstermin war nach 16 tägiger Wartezeit für den 5. Mai geplant) endlich heiraten. Alles war sehr last-minute und ich habe eine Vorstellung davon bekommen, wieviel Arbeit in so eine Hochzeit gesteckt werden muß (und unsere war nicht mal groß) und warum Leute 'wedding planner' organisieren. Wir haben insgesamt mindestens £ 1500 ausgegeben und ich mußte nicht mal ein Hochzeitskleid kaufen. Das ist auch schon der richtige Stichpunkt! Ich will mich nämllich hiermit nochmal ganz offiziell und herzlich bei CHARLENE bedanken, die mir ihr Hochzeitskleid zur Verfügung gestellt (ja sogar geschenkt) hat. Sie hat mir dadurch viel Mühe, Geld und Zeit erspart und ich bin ihr wirklich zutiefst mit Dank verbunden! VIELEN DANK!

So, ich hoffe dies war ein ausführlicher Bericht! Ich lass Euch nun gehen. Genießt Euren Tag!

Alles Gute für Euch,
Milena und Ryon Grau - Grau (unser neuer Doppelname ;)

~ And now for all you lovely English speakers ~

Hello everyone!

The last couple of days have been incredibly exciting! It all started with Thursday, 17th May 2007, the day of Fluffy's detailed scan. Seems we can now look forward to a little boy, but the sonographer wasn't 100% sure. It ties in with what people have told me and the feeling I've had all along though. After that, we waited for Ryon's family (Ryon's parents and his brother Scott) to come and meet us at our flat around 5pm. Then we all made our way into town to have a lovely dinner at a 60s fast food restaurant and after to see "Spamelot" at the Palace Theatre, which was terribly funny!

On Friday 18th May 2007 Ryon and I met my parents at Stansted Airport. When we arrived in London, we split, and Ryon met with his family at the British Museum while I gave my parents a tour of London and showed them most of London's famous landmarks. My dad in particular really enjoyed it as it was his first time in London. In the evening we met up with the others to have dinner at an Italian restaurant in Ealing.

On Saturday 19th May 2007 we all went to the London Zoo which was great fun!

On Sunday 20th May 2007 at 9.15am we got married. Ryon's dad had upgraded their car to a black Daimler Crysler mini bus so we could all go to the wedding together. The streets were empty (thank God) and we made it to Brent's registry office in time. The ceremony was small, but very pleasing. We wrote the speech so it would be more personal. After that, we went to Ealing to go to one of my favourite restaurants Carluccio's - our wedding reception so to say. Then we brought Scott to the airport. Unfortunately, he couldn't join us for a wonderful day at Kew Gardens where we took a lot of wedding pictures. Ryon and I got lots of attention as we walked around in our wedding outfit all day. (Something you have to get used to when your with Ryon - walking around in costumes of all sorts). For dinner we had a lovely meal at Wagamama in Richmond (my 2nd favourite restaurant). There were football fans everywhere as some game was going on and Pubs were packed.

On Monday 21st May 2007 my parents flew back to Berlin and Ryon and I and his parents spent the rest of the day taking pictures with our brand new Nikon D80 (our wedding pressy from the folks). We also spent Tuesday and Wednesday with the rents as we were still on holiday. As they still had the car we went on day trips ~ one to Brigthon (on Tuesday) and one to Blenheim Palace near Oxford on Wednesday.

Since Thursday we're back to work and we really miss having our families around. We had some adventurous and unforgettable days, that we'll certainly always love to think back to! It's a shame that we couldn't have all of you there, too, but it was a very spontaneous wedding and too difficult to organise so short-notice. After we had overcome the bureaucratic hurdle of marrying in this counrty and had to give notice and pay a second time and had to wait 16 days a second time (our first wedding day was set for the 5th May in church) we finally were allowed to marry. I can just imagine how much effort you have to put into a 'proper' big wedding and why people have wedding planners! We have spent at least £1500 and I didn't even have to buy a wedding dress, which reminds me to give a proper and official THANK YOU to my friend CHARLENE who has helped me out SO MUCH by giving me her wedding dress - THANK YOU so so much!

And now go and enjoy your day. Sorry that I'm so wordy. :p

All the best,
Milena und Ryon Grau - Grau (our new double name ;)

No more "Ei" for Shirin

Shirin * June 1996 - † 30.04.2007

I can't put into words how deaply sad I am that Shirin had to go. It is like a member of the family having left, because she is, she was. She's grown up with me from when I was 13 years old and I have so many memories that I hold dearly. A dog dying is for me no different than a human dying. It hurts just as much. And while I know it's normal for me to be grieving, I am already looking forward to the day when it won't hurt so much to look at pictures of her and think of memories, because I don't want to deny that special place she had in our lives! It is tough to let go and it reminds me how precious life is and that we should be grateful for every moment that we can share with our loved ones. You have to invest in those relationships, show compassion and cherish them and if they're not satisfying try to make the best out of them. Because it can all be past so quickly! :(



(Ok, I have to admit. It is not the nicest video footage of her, but the last one I have made, I believe. Ryon was laughing at me for recording her eating a cracker...I thought the sound it makes is quite adorable, but I realize that some of you will find it just plain disgusting...)