This is a cross post with another forum, but after the week I've had, hell, give me some imagination! Today, at 11:45, after a gruelling 56 hours of labour, my wife gave birth to a delightful, healthy, 3812g (8lb 6oz), 54 cm, baby girl (our first child). We have named her Eleanor (絵玲奈）. She gave a couple of little cries while they were messing her about, and has now settled in to adjusting to the world around her. (ON TOPIC!) She already seems to have the hang of the open guard, and although she has big hands she seems to favour palms over fists just now, though I'm sure she'll be up for a bit of grip training soon. She's quite big so as soon as her legs get a little longer I'm sure we can work on closed guard. She's not really focussing just yet, so the sensitivity all good martial artists need is already well-developed I think. In another week or two she should be punching harder than most kung fu fighters!
WOW! What is this?!? Everyone's having kids these days! CONGRATS!!!! You can do the Hatsumiya Mairi- the traditional Shinto baby blessing... done 33 days after birth!
Congratulations Mr and Mrs Punch. I will be joining the group of mappers who get no sleep when my partner gives birth around late june. (Slips right what is it with everyone on here - still I guess it does prove we do other stuff than just post on here)
Well done Mr Punch! Wow, I think I may have to take time away from MAP, it appears to be catching!!!!
Thanks everyone! Yeah, the 56 hours was a bit of a marathon... but at that size she's over the UK average and well over the Japanese, and my wife isn't the biggest woman... I'm really impressed it didn't have to go to Caesarian. Yep... we went to get our blessing at the main Suitengu Shrine in central Tokyo before the birth... strange, the o-mamori (protective amulet) is a little sealed silk purse as usual, but this time it actually contains pills for 'if the pain gets really bad'! I don't know if they're some traditional kampou-yaku (Chinese herbal medicine) or if it's aspirin or suicide pills or what, but neither of us really fancied the idea of trying them out! Plus, as I'm not actually religious or superstitious at all, I confess, it did go through the washing machine a couple of times in a back pocket of my trews! We skipped out on getting the name blessed and the kanji chosen by the priest (they do it by stroke count and various numerological and astrological means). I kind of wanted to, as an interested gaijin, but we had already chosen the kanji we wanted to use and as my wife pointed out, if the priest said no to all of the ones that could spell 'Eleanor' or chose another name, we'd just choose it anyway, but we'd feel a bit miffed about it! As for the hatsumiyamairi, sounds good!
And yes Doc, Eleanor is a lovely name we think! In fact it's one of my sisters' names, so it felt a bit odd choosing it, but my wife and I really like it and it's easy enough in English or Japanese, so Eleanor it is (Ere(i)na if you transliterate from the kanji).
