A Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin On

June 23 was a pretty unforgettable day. For a number of reasons.

I admit, I was cranky -- I place the blame squarely on the shoulders of PMS -- and hubby and I had our first real argument since Petite was born. They say not to argue in front of the children right? Fair enough. Petite was heading down for a nap anyway. Well, supposedly. Kinda. Maybe? Let's put it this way: she was SUPPOSED to take her morning nap but she wasn't having any of that so she wailed and screeched and fussed in her crib while he and I argued and we finally brought her out to the living room to be with us but that means that she heard a lot of our disagreement. Ugh. Not fair to her, I know. Must make a better effort in that department...

Then, just when my blood pressure was settling down, I was reading a few blogs and I heard a rattling and the floor started to shake. For a split second, I thought that one of the heavy trucks from the construction up the street had passed in front of our house. But it went on, and on and blammo... it hit me. Earthquake.

Now as some of you may know, I lived in Japan for three years. And while I was there, I had the opportunity to feel a lot of earthquakes. Some very minor. Some pretty major. I was living in Japan when the Kobe earthquake of 1995 hit and thousands lost their lives. Although I didn't live anywhere near Kobe, I felt that one for sure. It was early morning, and I was getting dressed for work. Before I left my apartment, I was seeing the first reports of it on the Japanese morning news. I remember I picked up the phone and quickly called my parents; they were out so I left a message to the effect that we had gone through a pretty severe quake but not to worry, I was fine and heading off to work for the day. Well, as that day went on, we realized just how severe that quake was. My parents later told me how glad they were that I had contacted them first to let them know I was fine... well before the phone lines got jammed up.

Anyway, at about 1:40 on June 23, I felt that same, familiar shaking. I heard that same, familiar rumbling. I was in the kitchen on our laptop, Petite and Hubby were in the living room. As I was jumping up to grab Petite, she was crawling towards me at top speed and wailing in fear. I scooped her up, held her tight and the three of us headed out the back door and into our backyard. If I were downtown or in a major city centre, being outside is more dangerous as falling buildings and debris can be a problem. Here in the suburbs, there's a lot more open space so outside is probably the best place to be. Short of that, find the heaviest, sturdiest piece of furniture and get underneath it. A solid oak dining table comes to mind! So there we were, outside and waiting, waiting, waiting for the shaking to stop. It seemed like an eternity but in reality, it was probably 20 to 30 seconds that the major shaking was happening. Petite was swiveling in my arms, trying frantically to find out where the noise and tremors were coming from. She looked at me like, "Mom, what the heck is this? I'm scared!" and all I could do was hold her and wait for it to subside. When the trembling stopped, we gave it a minute or two and then went back inside.

The first thing I did was pick up the phone and call my folks. Guaranteed they would hear about this and fast and if I knew them, they were going to worry. I left them a message. "Hey Mom and Dad, it's me. So I'm leaving you a message very similar to one you got many years ago while I was in Japan. We've just had an earthquake. Bet you didn't think I'd ever have to say that in Canada did you?! Well, we did but we're fine. Petite is fine. The house is fine. So don't worry. We'll talk later. Love you!"

The first thing Hubby did was start searching the web for reports of the quake. At first, nothing. But after about 5 or 8 minutes, we started to see reports and within 30 minutes, we had the details. It was a 5.0 quake on the Richter scale (originally pegged at 5.5, it was downgraded). It was centred in Val-des-Bois, Québec, about 40 km (25 miles) from where we live and about 15 km beneath the earth's surface. Pretty close. It was felt as far away as Ohio and Boston and was the most significant quake this area has felt in a very, very long time. Needless to say, it was a first for me in Canada but I'm glad I knew what to do.

Also, on June 23, one of my friends, T, had a c-section as she was almost at term with baby #2. (Yes, baby #1 was a c-section as well so she and her docs opted to schedule a c-section for this one.) Two years ago, she had her daughter using donor sperm (she's a single mom by choice) and today, she gave birth to a full sibling for her daughter... a baby boy this time around. Over 9 lbs by all reports! Can't wait to see him. I believe both mom and baby are doing well.

And I can finally give you a report regarding Petite: she has teeth! (I realize that could have been part of her crankiness on the 23rd as well.) Her two bottom teeth have finally made an appearance, right before she turns 10 months old. We've suspected teething for a bit and the doctor saw that her gums were flattened and ready for those little pearly whites to make an appearance soon. Well, after all of our suspicions, I found them for sure on June 24; I figure the earthquake shook them right up and out through her gums! WOOT for teeth!

Now if you will excuse me, there's a rather pungent baby in the next room. I believe Mommy's on duty for a diaper change. Love to you all in blogland!