Last Scan of The Year!

This morning's appointment with Dr Tan was the last one in 2007. We waited for almost 2 hours before it was our turn. We had overheard that Dr Tan had to do a delivery in the morning, and hence all the appointments were delayed. Well, gotta book either the first or last appointment slot in future, in order to cut down on the waiting time!

After doing her routine checks on the U/S machine, she measured our baby's weight. As of today, he is 680g, which is within the normal range. He was also in the right position - head down and legs up. She seemed pleased too, with my weight gain over the past month - I am now at 54.7kg (before lunch..haha).

I asked her whether there should be any cause for concern if I didn't detect baby's movement for 2 days. She replied that at this stage, not to worry too much. However, I could lie on my left side and gently tap on the right side of the tummy. Another pointer from her was not to rub my tummy too often as it could cause uterus contraction. Even when applying stretch mark cream, I needed to do it gently. She also advised me to do brisk walking and swimming as I would need to exercise. Gosh... I am getting breathless even after a short walk.

See you next year, baby & Doctor!

Wishing All A Merry Xmas & Happy 2008!

More gifts for our baby... (and none for Daddy, nor Mommy)...















Went to Great World City's Mothers Work over the Hari Raya holiday to grab more Babysafe products while the 20% discount lasts. From left, mattress protector at ~$18.30, and an extra mattress cover.
















Finally got this Snuzzler from Robinsons, @ ~$34 after the discounts (cheaper than online bulk purchase price). It was out-of-stock just a week ago!
















Our online purchases from Old Navy finally came: 3 pcs of short-sleeved bodysuits, 1 romper for sleeping, 1 knit cap, 3 pairs of ankle socks, 3 pcs of long-sleeved bodysuits. All at 3-6 mth size, which is a tad too big for a newborn.

A Worried Grandmother

Since Sunday, I had not felt our little boy kicking as actively as he did in the previous week. In fact, I didn't remember feeling any feeling on Sunday and Monday. I told my Mom about this on Monday evening, and that made her worried. She even went to pray and occasionally, would stare at my tummy and then ask, "Did you feel anything?". My SIL even helped me rub the tummy to 'psycho' our boy to show some reaction. She said that I must talk to the baby frequently, because I would bond with him more than anyone else.

When hubby fetched me home and I told him about it, I think that got him worried as well, and kept checking whether our baby kicked. Finally, he did, even though for only a brief moment.

This morning, my Mom called just to check on me. She was very relieved when I told her everything was ok. I'm sure she was going to make me see the doctor if there still isn't any feeling. She guessed that our baby just has to take a rest after an active week. Felt a bit guilty to cause such worry to my Mom as she herself is recovering from a recent operation, but nevertheless, it is a moving gesture from her and a joy to know that she cares so much for her grandson. Despite her current shoulder and arm injuries that still require frequent physiotherapies, she still made an attempt to cook some tonic for the family.

This evening, our baby has kicked more frequently. No matter how ticklish the sensation is, it is such a wonderful feeling, and to know that your junior is doing well inside.

Oh yes, finally received our Desitin ointment!

Christmas must be one of the best times of the year to shop. Loots at 20% off!

We rushed down to Robinsons at Centrepoint after work on Friday, wanting to get the Babysafe mattress. However, it was not part of their storewide 20% sale.

What we got instead: a baby carrier, SwaddleMe, and 2 Nuk pacifiers (bisphenol-A free!). The SwaddleMe was a great buy (@ $22.72) because it was cheaper than online bulk purchases. The only con was that the designs were VERY limited. For small size, only cocoa dots prints in pink & blue were available.

Latex mattress was actually recommended to us by a friend, so that our baby will not feel so hot when lying on it. We happened to pass by Mothers Work yesterday, and who would have predicted that we came out of the shop with the Babysafe products that we didn't get to buy at Robinsons last Friday. Mattress @ $81.60, newborn pillow @ $13.52, & pillow case @ $7.04 after discount.

Make Way! Make Way!

First Clothes & Miscellaneous

We went to the John Little Expo sale last Sunday and grabbed some items which we felt were pretty cheap!

A mini clip-on fan @ $6, with changing LED lights.

2 packs of story-telling playmats @ $19.90.

Night romper @ $12, pack of 12 washcloths @ $2.90, and thermal blanket @ $12.

Basic rompers @ $1.20 each! 2 newborn sizes and 3 S sizes.

Bought these from Cerisi @ $2.90 per pack (each pack has a set of mittens & booties)!

More to come from my online purchases, arriving next week. Stay tuned...

"Chi2 Di4 Sheng1" aka Ginseng

Last Saturday, I dragged my SIL along to the next-door Hock Hua shop to get some replenishment of Cordyceps. However, the lady recommended us to take the "Chi Di Sheng" (a type of Ginseng) instead because the price was a fraction of Cordyceps and the benefits were same/better, one of which was to boost memory power. My SIL and her sister, who joined us later, were convinced by the shoplady and each got a box as well, so we got a 35% discount for buying in 'bulk'.

1 box costs me $98 after the 35% discount. Can last me till confinement.





Preparation method: Soak 10 pcs of "mao2 dun4" for 10 mins. Rinse 2 pcs of ginseng and 2 tablespoons of wolfberries under gentle running water, in a sieve. Slow-cook all the ingredients, with lean pork (no chicken!) for 1-2hrs. Remember to eat the ginseng.

** This is best eaten between 4-6pm, and best to avoid taking other food 2hrs before and after. ** Not to be taken with sickness.

The shoplady advised us to eat this fortnightly, up to the end of the 7th month of pregnancy. From the 8th month onwards, the tonic "Shi2 San1 Tai4 Bao3" is recommended for easier birthing.

Dear hubby made this for me on Sunday and somehow, baby has been kicking more actively. I wonder whether the tonic has taken effect, or because the baby is bigger? Hmm..

Detailed Scan on 3 Dec

The long-awaited scan came, when I was at 20 weeks 5 days. Dr Chang kept saying "good" while performing the scan. All the measurements fell within the "average" range, as Dr Chang put it, which was good. Our baby's estimated weight was 377g. It was with a great sigh of relief that everything was normal. It was another load off our minds! Dr Chang also helped us confirmed that we are expecting a little boy indeed!

After the detailed scan, we had a short check-up with Dr Tan. She commented that I had to watch my diet as I gained 3kg since the last checkup a month ago. Less carbos for me, and more low-fat milk...

So far, many people have remarked that my tummy looked small for a person of 5 months' pregnancy. But after this visit, I felt relieved as neither our baby nor myself is under-growing. In fact, I have to gain LESS weight!

Oh yes, another milestone for the Daddy - he has finally felt the kicks. :)

Kick, Kick, Goal!

Ever since the 16th week, I have felt a ticklish feeling in the tummy, but I couldn't really differentiate between a baby's kick and gastric bubbles. However, while I have been getting anxious when I still have not felt 'it', our baby has started to make obvious kicks/movements this very afternoon. He has done it non-stop for the entire afternoon that it distracted me from work quite a fair bit. For the first time, I felt it when I put my hand on my tummy. It was such a joy! Hope our baby will let daddy feel it soon too. Marking the 20th week as a milestone!

Now, for the updates...
- Completed the 2nd part of our hypnobirthing course. Wow, a lot of practise to do, but we're such lazy bums that we have not done the homework given. Heard that our gynae Dr Tan is not too receptive to this idea... mood minused 50%...

- Spent last week battling with the flu virus.

- Shopping! Things we have bought recently:

• Chest of drawers


• Playpen


• Changing mat


• Medela PIS Advanced pump (Thanks to alerts from fellow forumers that the First Few Year shop is having a promo today at $599, and got hubby to go down Paragon to place an order. Collection date is 15 Mar 08.)


• Dr Brown feeding set and Desitin diaper ointment from Amazon.
  
  

A gift from daddy (with lots of sweat): self-assembled chest of drawer, from Ikea. Man, it IS heavy!

My contribution! Organising boxes from Ikea.

Changing mat from Ikea

Flipper playpen from JL. It comes with a bassinet and changing table.

Easy, short, relaxed, and comfortable birth

We spent our entire afternoon attending the first part of the hypnobirthing course. It was in a relaxed setting with warm, dim lights and we were made to sit back on thai mattress and lots of cushions. There were only 3 pairs of us, so it was supposed to be a cosy class size. It was a bit surprising to me to see the other couples because they were almost in their last month of pregnancy!

The lesson began with Ginny sharing the background of hypnobirthing, how it came about, and how it would help labour to be easy, short, relaxed and comfortable. There were some exercises which include breathing techniques to be practised daily. During the breathing exercises, we were guided to make ourselves very relaxed and to fall into a state of deeply relaxed mode and to make our subconscious minds take charge, somewhat. The whole point is, the more relaxed you are, the more your body muscles will loosen up too.

We were also shown how nature had intended the child to be delivered through the cervix/pelvic bones, and how to sit in proper posture (or rather, how to prevent improper posture) from the 32th week onwards, to enable the baby to choose the best way to position himself inside the uterus. The few ways of labouring and birthing were also demonstrated to us - not those typical positions you would normally see on TV whereby the mothers laid on their backs. And one cool thing was, hubbies were shown how to lightly massage their wives during labour to help them relax. One last exercise that we did was to run through a basic hypnosis script - wife laid back in the most relaxed position, while hubby guided wife into a state of hypnosis. My hubby was quite cool with this!

Throughout the class, there were short video clips, mostly on hypnobirthing. It looked really easy and fast! And the mothers were not as vocal as what you would see on TV dramas. In fact, they appeared so relaxed it was a bit hard to believe that this was real. And babies born in this manner appeared less cranky as well, and they only cried a short while to start breathing. We also learnt that it was just as important to have 'prenatal education', as the child would somehow be affected by whatever that was happening outside the womb, eg. the mother's emotions.

The first homework we need to do is to listen to the CD provided on a daily basis. And more homework will be coming via email. We took home some course materials and a book on hypnobirthing. With hubby having to tackle his newly started SAP course with a cannot-afford-to-fail exam, it is going to be tough on him especially. Gambatte ne!

Hypnobirthing Class

We attended the antenatal taster session this morning at Four Trimester, to find out more about their hypnobirthing course. There were another couple, and 2 other MTBs at the session.

What is hypnobirthing? In brief, it is a technique that helps you go into a state of deep relaxation. There is no 100% guarantee that the delivery would not turn out to be a c-sect eventually, but there is a higher chance of having a shorter labour and also with lesser pain.

At the end of the session, we signed up for the intensive course on next 2 Sundays, because hubby is only free on Sundays from next week onwards. Be prepared to brace ourselves for a mind-blowing, perception-changing process!

And Our Baby Is A....

...boy, until proven otherwise. So were the words from Dr Tan during our visit yesterday! Hubby had asked her whether we could tell the gender by now, and Dr Tan joyfully started the scan from the legs of the baby. She showed us the male genitals but honestly, we couldn't discern from the U/S machine.

See our baby at 16 weeks 5 days...


Here's a website that explains the technicality of a U/S: Obstetric ultrasound

I also asked Dr whether it was OK to apply nail polish, and the answer was "No problem". However, when I asked whether I could start to take bird nest, Dr Tan said it was not necessary.

But anyhow, due to my kiasu-ism, my mother, 2nd sis-in-law, and us visited the Hock Hua Medical Hall next door to buy the bird nest. The shoplady explained between the various grades and recommended the 'Guan1 Yan4' or the 'Jin1 Si1 Guan1 Yan4' for better taste. These are supposed to be more nutritious than the lower grades. Had chosen the latter eventually for the nicer smell. Great damage done: $210+ for 7 pcs, after all the discounts (in-store promo + mom's VIP card). But it was all for our little bundle of joy.

How to prepare:
1. Soak in a bowl of tap water for 1hr, inside the fridge.
2. Pour away the water. Refill bowl with tap water again, but do not run the tap directly into the bowl in case the water jet breaks up the bird nest. Using hand, hold one end of the bird nest and gently shake it inside the water. Look for any remaining strands of feather.
3. Pour warm (not hot) water into a slow cooker pot. Put the bird nest in, and add 2-3 slices of 'pao4 sheng1' (if you are not having a cough). Cook for 1.5 hrs.
4. Add rock sugar at about 10 mins before serving.

My hubby have prepared a piece this morning. Yum yum...

Warerobe Version Upgrade

As I have outgrown most of my normal clothes to the extend that I have to wear the same things every week, dear hubby accompanied me around to shop for maternity wear. We went to Suntec City as there are a few maternity wear shops 'conglomerated' on the same level with a pretty good selection. Spring Maternity was on sale and we grabbed 2 plain tees at $12 each and another at a discount. We foresee that I will start to need these for everyday wear in another couple of months.
Other damages:
2 newly arrived tops (suitable for work)
1 maternity office pants

Thank you, lao gong!

Pretty Nails... Beware

3 chemicals to avoid in your nail polish:

1. Phthalate
2. Formaldehyde
3. Toluene

Gosh. Did a check on my 'collection' and found that a base coat that I had gotten free from a local salon during their package promo seems to contain 2 of the 3 toxics. Gonna chuck it out soon.

Goodbye, Trimester 1... Hello, Trimester 2!

This week had marked the start of my 2nd trimester - another milestone for us to cheer for.

To begin with:

1. My colleagues have remarked on my growing bump.
2. Started on the maternity wear that were bought recently - argh, need more...
3. Started to experience mild leg cramps. :(
4. Increasing appetite - Mom cooked flower crabs today, yippie!

Wishlist for now - massages from hubby!!! hehehe

Another New Week

It's finally the 13th week. One more week to go for 1st trimester to be over. Well, anyway I'm finally over with Utrogestan and have started on the fish oil and multi-vits. Dr ordered an increased intake of folic acid though. 3 more weeks to the next scan... endure endure..

A Hurdle Cleared

As promised by the clinic, I had received a call regarding the blood test results and the nurse told me that I'm in the low-risk category. Statistics - 1/14899 risk of DS. :) It was a relief to both of us and we will keep our fingers crossed for the next 7 months.

We visited the ParentCraft Centre and signed up for Mrs Wong BB's class in Jan. As I have not gone through the detailed scan, the staff advised us to make our payments only in Dec, when things are clearer. Have to mark down our calender for every Sundays, 12.30pm.

Oscar Scan

Just a few days ago, I had asked my hb what if we have negative news during the next scan. I guess anxiety is normal among new expectants, and especially when my symptoms start to diminish. My MS has gradually subsided, and with my weight going down - I didn't quite feel pregnant. Both of us decided that we would leave it to heaven.

This day finally came - the OSCAR tests in which I would be testing for down syndrome possibilities, and maybe a host of other disorders. We waited expectantly outside Dr Chang's clinic. We were early and there was no other patient around. Shortly, we were called in. The scan was a quick one, but we managed to see our baby much clearer than ever. It was the first time we saw the baby moving and hear the heartbeat - and it was amazing! Heartbeat rate was 170+ which is within the norm. The Dr also showed us our baby's head, neck and nasal bone. The results were good - 1/3218 chance. He also reassured us that because we were able to see the nasal bone, there was nothing to worry about. This is because in a DS case, normally the nasal bone would not be seen. However, we would need to wait for the blood test results to recalculate the 'score'. Looking forward to a phone call that would bring us good news, this Wednesday!

A glimpse of our little one where the nasal bone is seen...body length measuring 5.44cm at 12 weeks.



After the u/s scan, I was brought to the resting room, where sister XXX drew 5 whopping tubes of blood. Never managed to catch the name of this sister whom I see at every visits..hehe.. Sister explained what the blood test was for while doing the preparation work. It was not as painful as I feared, and the good thing was, she only injected once and changed the tubes after each one was filled.

This visit to Dr Tan must be the fastest in our history. We were in and out within 15mins, including waiting time.

When all the medical appointments were over, we dropped by the Info counter. There is an ongoing promo for NUS Alumni card, with $20 discount in the subscription fees for the FBI card. We signed up on spot and took back a big bag of goodies - the 3 books by Mrs Wong Boh Boi, Mothercare catalog, baby stuff like bibs, and signed up for a host of other goodies from Nestle, etc etc etc. Good deal!

Yes! We have a little one on the way...

Aug 11, Sat - First visit to gynae at TMC, after a positive test at our GP's clinic. Our gynae managed to detect a water sac but not the yolk sac as it was too early. Based on the gynae's estimation, pregnancy was about 3 weeks. Was to observe for next 1 week... Whether this was going to be a truely good news or bad news, it would depend on the growth of the embryo for the next 1 week. I was ordered to have bed-rest for 1 week. I also started on folic acid and utrogestan.

The estimated due date (at this stage) was 16 April 2008. It is going to be a memorable date for us, at least for now... Nevertheless, this marked the beginning of a journey of anxiety, paranoia, joy and anticipation, for the 2 of us.



Aug 17, Fri - After a week of anxiety, the appt with Dr Tan was finally here. This visit brought us good news - as the sac grew, it was confirmed that this was not an ectopic case. Dr showed us the yolk sac.















Aug 27, Mon - I was working in office when I discovered some spotting. I called up the clinic and was told to see the doctor immediately. We reached the clinic at 4+ and waited for 2 hrs before we were finally called in. It was a record-breaking wait for us so far, but it was because the doctor had 2 deliveries to make. The u/s scan was reassuring - Dr Tan managed to see the heartbeat this time round. Although I couldn't really tell, my hubby did see it. According to him, it was an indescribable feeling. We were both relieved from the positive results.

To be on the safe side, I was given an injection and another dose was scheduled 1 week later. Dr Tan said, most likely, the placenta was not strong enough to support the pregnancy now and therefore I had to take injections and pills to support it.

From the u/s, the EDD was shifted to 14 April. Hmm... will it shift again?


10 Sept, Mon - After what seemed to be a long wait, our appt with Dr Tan was finally here! I took my weight - lost some weight. Most probably due to nausea and indigestion over the past weeks.

This turned out the most-enjoyable visit for me so far, because it was only quick a tummy scan. This time round, I finally managed to see the heartbeat - a little blinking light on the u/s screen. My hb was a bit disappointed though, because the nurse had forgotten to ask him into the room, in time to see all the action. He only saw the still image that was still on the screen... well, it'd be better next time! But we were too glad that everything was going well. Till the next time, our little one.