The big sister

The big sister loves her brother although she sometimes showed it the wrong way. Whenever she is back from the babysitter, the first thing she will ask about is 'where is baby?'. She likes to stroke his hair, touch him, disturb him and play with him. Whenever he cries, she will try to console him and ask him not to cry. Whenever I am bathing or changing Zac's diaper, she will want to be involved, either standing at the side to see and touch or play with everything from lotion or baby bath etc. She will also help with bringing his hanky, diaper, napkins or whatever we ask of her.

She likes to ride her tricycle in her house and will sometimes bang into Zac's bouncinet with Zac in it sleeping. She sometimes like to rock the playpen again with Zac in it sleeping. Sometimes when I am with Zac she will want me to pay attention to her but with a little bit of explanation, she will understand and stop demanding. Never once she will hit Zac or do anything nasty to him.

Although she is not even 3, I am quite proud of her.

Zac's Update: 1+ month

At 1+ month I can:

• smile a lot
• look you in the eye and interact
• goo goo gaa gaa occasionally
  
• drinks 5oz of mummy's milk every 2.5 - 3 hrs
• demand to be carried when I want to be carried
• sleep and play whenever I feel like it be it day or night

I am currently at 5.39kg and had my 1st Pneumococal jab, 1st DTP & Polio & Hib jab and Rota Virus. I also had my very first hair cut.

Before

After

The Panda Mummy

Zac is now 1 month 9 days old. How time flies. During the first month with aunty Foong around I was enjoying the moments, was telling myself and papa that 'hey it wasn't that scary after all'. After aunty Foong left, the reality finally kicked in. I was so tired the first few days that I didn't have the mood to do anything, not updating my blog account or reading any of your posts etc. Apart from looking after a baby, I had to do housework, do dishes, look after a hyper and attention seeking 2 year old, I was simply exhausted.

Having to adjust myself again to such hectic lifestyle was certainly no easy task, especially at my age. On the first night alone with Zac I was so scared. I wasn't sure if I could manage him alone. I thought I came up with a good idea by letting him latch whenever he was hungry thinking that I could get some sleep, you know where people always say you can let the baby suck sideways while you are both sleeping and you can continue to sleep?! It didn't work! He sucked for like 5 - 10 mins and then fell asleep or puke. 30 mins later he wanted to suck again and this went on for the entire night. I was horrified and zombified. The subsequent nights I didn't let him latch anymore. Although he wasn't sleeping through, at least he will sleep for 2-3 hours before the next feed and it was definitely much better than latching (although I still had to wake up to express frequently) and papa could help in between.

The first few nights was tough. My body was trying to adjust to the new schedules and I almost gave up. Thankfully it got easier after a few nights. Although occasionally Zac refused to sleep at night (and sleep all day), he wasn't that difficult to deal with. We had to introduce him to the pacifier (something we didn't have to do with Hayley) as he would scream very loudly the moment he was awake asking for milk that he would wake the sister. This boy got no patience!

I also had to learn all over again on how to bath a baby, picking up his signals on how he liked to be carried, what the different type of cries meant etc.. things I have long forgotten. As things got easier with Zac, it was a different story with Hayley.

We're not sure if she's trying to seek attention or she's just simply getting naughtier as she gets older. Our main problem with her is that she is a very picky eater. You can feed her something be it porridge or rice and it will take her ages to finish it. You can give her a slice of apple and again it will take her ages. Sometimes she will pretend to vomit and actually end up really vomitting out the food to tell us that she didn't like it. A few times we lost our patience (because it is becoming a habit) and actually smacked her but she will still repeat the same the next day. She's also very hard headed and will not listen to anything we say. She is really testing our patience. We constantly tell her how much we love her and spent time with her so she won't feel left out. I also heard from a lot of mummies with 2 kids telling me the same thing and they assured me that it will get better over time and all I can do now is hope that it will come sooner.

And oh, here are some photos of the little boy:

My boy who loves to smile, and he's got a dimple too just like me :-)

A cute little cake on his fullmoon courtesy of aunty Jessie

Zac with aunty Foong.

Aunty Foong cried the day she left as she really loved Zac :-(

She even called the following day to ask about Zac and me.

Zac at the fullmoon party, sleeping through.

Confinement is over

For the last few weeks I have not been updating my blog because I was busy eating, resting, watching TV and milking :-). All these will come to an end on Tuesday when Aunty Foong leaves and I will be left on my own to manage 2 kids, scared nya.

I don't like confinement periods. I don't like not being able to bath and wash my hair as and when I like, I don't like being sweaty all the time because of the heaty stuff I have to eat, I don't like confinement foods, I don't like drinking red dates water everyday (I miss plain water) and I don't like being confined to home but I will miss Aunty Foong.

Aunty Foong is my confinement lady. She cooks for me, boils water for my daily usage, takes care of my needs, looks after Zac and sleeps with Zac at night so I can get some rest in between my milking hours. Aunty Foong who is almost 60 is a good confinement lady and comes from Kuala Langat. I can't really comment on her cooking skills as I am not into confinement foods so whatever she cooks I will just eat eventhough I don't really like it. Aunty Foong often comment that I am a small eater and I don't know how to eat.. haha.

For the last one month she even cooks dinner for papa and Hayley and clean up after them which most confinement lady will not do as it is not part of their job. Although she sometimes will have her own ways/ideas in the things she do which I might not agree with, she did teach me a thing or two on what I should or should not eat and how best to care for a baby. I will also miss chatting with her, she's very '8' and likes to gossip about people from her hometown with me :-).

I have had 2 confinements, 1 with the help of a confinement lady and 1 without. For those who will be having a baby soon, I highly recommend hiring a good confinement lady to help you get through the healing period. For me, the experience was very different and I truly enjoy having Aunty Foong at home.

I am sure Zac will miss her too.

Need more breast milk storage bottles/bags

Can anyone please recommend me what's the best method for storing breast milk in the freezer?

I have 8 Avent containers and 4 Avent 9oz bottles and they have all been used up. I need to get more containers for storing breast milk and not sure what's reliable, useful or efficient.

Can someone out there please help recommend me something good?

The day he arrived... (Part 2)

Continued from here.....

After about 3-4 hours I was wheeled out from the OT, the anaesthetic started wearing off and I could finally feel the pain. Dr Lee mentioned that if needed I can ask for painkillers and the one that would work best would be the suppository type. As the pain was bearable, it was painful but not the end of the world kind of pain, so I decided to be a heroin and refused the painkillers. To be honest, I was more uncomfortable sleeping on the hospital bed than handling the pain from the wound. The hospital bed was so hard that I am sure I would end up with bed sores if I had to sleep an extra night. My buttocks and back were so sore that I have to move and change the pressure point every 30 mins but with the pain it was hard to move. And as I still had the drip on me plus the urine cathether, it was even harder.

I just lied there the entire night, only sitting up slightly assisted by the bed to breastfeed. I started breastfeeding the night itself. The nurse also offered me a glass of milo which I accepted happily. As it was a single bedded room, papa was allowed to sleep with me. He had to sleep on a reclining chair that squeaks a lot (ie very noisy). It didn't look at all comfortable but he will just have to make do. After the 11pm feed, papa went back home for a quick shower and returned about 2 hours later. During that time, the nurses came in to check on me every 15-30 mins, checking my blood pressure, heart beat and temperature. It was quite annoying honestly as I didn't really get to rest properly.

At about 3am the following day, the nurses stopped the drip but left the needle intact in my hand as I still need to be injected with antibiotics. I felt much better being able to move both my hands more freely now. Bun was also brought to me every 3-4 hours for feeds. I was able to feed him quite comfortably too.

The next morning around 6am, the nurses removed the urine cathether. You have no idea how relieved I was when it was removed. After a while I became worried. What if I needed to wee and I still can't walk? The nurses told me I will need to make an attempt to the toilet at least once before 12 noon otherwise they will need to put the urine cathether back in me.

At 8am they came back to give me a sponge bath and to change the sheets. After it was done they asked if I would like to try to sit on the chair. Papa was away for his breakfast. I braved myself and tried to sit up with the nurses' help. It was only 18 hrs after the surgery. I managed to sit on the bed but the moment they helped me up on my feet, the wound hurts so badly it felt like I was being ripped apart. I could make one small step using my left foot but not with my right. Immediately I could see blood dripping from down there onto the floor. The nurses said I must have stood up for too long and told me to get back on the bed. With a lot of pain, I got back onto the bed. My heart sank. I was constantly being reminded by nurses and doctors and friends that the sooner I walk, the faster I would heal. Imagine my disappointment when I could not walk.

Dr Lee came to check on me in the morning and I told him I could not walk as it was too painful. He prescribed me with some mild oral painkillers. The nurses came a few mins later with a little brown pill and 2 paracetamol. I took them hoping that it would help me walk faster. Dr Choy, Bun's paed also came to introduce himself and told me that Bun was doing very well and he was a healthy and heavy little baby.

Then around 12 noon the nurse came again to check if I have used the toilet. I told her I could not walk still and asked her if I could use the bed pan. She brought the bed pan and I cleared the bladder. It was about 800ml! The nurse then warned me that I cannot hold my bladder for so long as the fuller the bladder is, the harder it would be for the uterus to contract. Moreover, if the bladder is full it would hurt the uterus too. After relieving myself, I felt so much better. I was wondering if that was the reason why I could not walk in the morning... could it be because of the full bladder?

The rest of the day got by like usual, lots of nurses coming in and out for the routine checks, cleaners coming in to clean the room, breakfast, lunch and dinner being served. For the entire 3 days 2 nights I was there, I was given tasteless fish porridge for lunch and dinner. For breakfast I got 2 slices of bread with fish porridge for day 1 and 2 slices of bread with oats for day 2. Oh how I miss eating rice. I got milo 4x a day.

Around 5pm, after 5 hours of clearing my bladder, papa asked me to try and sit up again. This time it was just me and him. I held his neck tightly and he helped me up. I managed to sit down for a while and adjust to the pain. After about 10 mins, I was able to stand up and again had to remain standing for a while to adjust to the pain. I finally managed to walk a few small steps to sit on the chair next to the bed. I was so happy. Next mission is to walk to the toilet. As the nurses still needs to monitor my output 2 more times that day, I had to call them to help me to the toilet. Taking one small step at a time I was able to walk to the toilet and cleared my bladder. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

After the first time, the subsequent times of getting up from bed, walking and sitting became easier and less painful. I got up a few more times that night to just walk around the room unassisted. I was so happy as this would secure my discharge tomorrow!

The next morning Dr Lee dropped by to visit and asked if I was independent to walk around, use the toilet etc which I proudly replied yes. Then he told me I could go home today and advised me to continue taking the painkillers for 2 more days just in case.

At around 1pm on Wed, I was finally discharged and was able to walk all the way from my ward to the car park. I was so happy that I don't have to sleep on the hard bed anymore.

The day he arrived... (Part 1)

Everytime after having a baby, I told myself that I will never want to go through it again but a few months down the road after seeing how cute they grow up to be and what a joy to have them around, I forgot what I have been through and got myself in trouble again. So this time I have decided to document it so I can refer back and remind myself that I should not go through this again... and hopefully it works.. hahaha

On November 1st 2010 at 8.30am, we sent Hayley to the babysitter. Upon leaving her at the door, I could not hold back my tears and started crying. Aunty asked me what was wrong and she thought I was scared of what's coming next. I told her I will be scared later but now I am crying because I have to be away from Hayley for 2-3 days and it will be very tough for me. Everytime I am away from her longer than the usual working hours, I will miss her terribly, I will worry if she will be ok without us, and then the tears will automatically roll. Plus this is the first time she's actually not sleeping with us by her side. Aunty assured me that she will be ok and we left with a heavy heart, after a hug and kiss routine.

We drove straight to SDMC and got admitted around 9.45am. We requested for a single room (RM230 per night) but since none were available at that time, we were given a 2 bedded room (RM150 per night). I insisted to be on a waitlist for a single room. Around 10.30am, nurses came in to clean me up ie shave me and gave me a hospital gown. My elective c-sec has been scheduled for 2.30pm that day and since I have to fast, I spent my time filling up forms, watching TV, facebooking and updating my blog to keep my mind from thinking about the surgery. Papa went for a quick breakfast when I was getting cleaned up. Dr Lee also popped in to check on me and to inform me the name of the anaesthetician for the day. It was Dr Zurainah:-). He said she is very skillful and I am in good hands.

During the entire time I kept staring at the clock and got more and more nervous as we approach 1.30pm. I know in anytime they will be coming to get me. At exactly 2pm, they came in with a bed and wheeled me out into the OT. Papa followed but was only allowed to wait at the waiting area outside the OT.

I was wheeled into the reception area of the recovery bay where they asked me my name etc and some information as I have filled in the forms, probably to check and make sure that I am sane and I know what I am doing. Once everything has been clarified, they wheeled me into the recovery bay. Another boy of about 10 was in there with the mom probably waiting for his turn to undergo some surgery. I asked the nurses again if papa was allowed to accompany me (since the boy's mom was there) and they said no. After about 30 mins, Dr Zurainah came to introduce herself and inserted the needle on my left hand for the drip. Although she was gentle, it still hurts. I also took the opportunity to ask her about the various anaesthetics and she confirmed that spinal would be the best for baby and me, this method according to her and some studies I read on the web has the least complications.

Around 2.45pm, I was wheeled into the OT. You have no idea how fast my heart was beating at this time. I think at least 200 beats per min. The OT was cold and they transferred me onto the OT bed. The bed was small, if I turn either sides I would end up on the floor. I could see many nurses in the room preparing the things required for the surgery. I could hear Dr Lee's voice outside the OT. Then I was told to sit up, with my legs bent inwards and a pillow under my armpit forming the letter C. Dr Zurainah then sprayed something cold on my back and jabbed me with the spinal jab. I didn't dare to look and could not stop trembling and asked one of the nurses if I could hold her hand. I squeezed her hand so tightly but yet she didn't complain. The nurses there were very symphatetic and understanding. They kept comforting me that it will be painless and it will be over in a min. I can feel the needle being poked into my spine and then I can feel the sensations on the right leg but nothing on my left. Then I overheard Dr Zurainah saying something about it not being deep enough and I knew I will have to go through it again. She jabbed me again for the 2nd time and after a few seconds my feet felt very heavy. She asked me to lift them up and I couldn't. I have to say that the jab itself is less painful than the insertion of the drip on my hand.

After the magic potion kicked in, they inserted the urine catheter into me. Although it was painless, I could feel the sensations and I knew exactly what they were doing. It was extremely uncomfortable. Once everything is ready, they started putting up the cloth to block me from seeing what they were doing. They placed both my hands on the arm rest on my left and right forming the letter T. They covered my upper body with thick blankets as they saw me trembling. Suddenly my nose itched and I asked the nurse to help me scratch :-). After a couple of mins, I started feeling nauseous. I told Dr Zurainah and she said it was normal as my blood pressure was dropping, a side effect of the spinal jab. She said it wil be over in a few mins. It was a terrible feeling, lying down and felt like vomitting but she was right, it was over in a few mins.

Dr Lee then came in, spoke to me for a min, he said after the surgery I can have my milo and the ever famous chicken soup of SDMC. He really knows how to make people feel better. Then he asked the nurses 'everyone ready?' and 'can I start?'. Then they responded and said yes ready.

I couldn't feel when the knife or whatever was used to open me up but I know they were touching me and working on me. My body was being turned left and right and after about 10 mins I heard Dr Lee asking for a forcep. Then a nurse came over to my upper part and started pushing my baby downwards by pressing onto my tummy. After a few mins, I could feel the baby being taken out as I felt light. Seconds later I could see him on my left and heard his first cries... I cried too..

During the entire time I was just watching the baby. He cried so loudly and continuously while they were cleaning him up. The Dr and the nurses called him hero as he cried non stop. I couldn't really see his face but could see that he was huge, some of the nurses even joked that he looked like a 4kg baby and no wonder Dr Lee had to use a forcep!

As I kept my eyes on him, I could also hear Dr Lee and the nurses as well as the suction. They must be cleaning up the blood inside me. Dr Lee then started stitching me up as I could hear him say '1st layer' then '2nd layer' and finally 'last layer'. Before they began stitching me up, the nurses brought baby to show me and let me kiss him for the first time. They also showed his private part to me to confirm his gender. Then baby was taken out to be shown to papa. The stitching and cleaning up took at least another 30 mins and it felt like forever. After everything was done, the nurses flipped me over from left to right to clean up the blood. I could see cloths with blood on the floor and in plastic bags. Then they remove the cover that blocked me from seeing the surgery and I knew it was all over.

Dr Lee showed me his bloodied gloves and told me how big Bun's head was and he couldn't grab it and had to use a forcep. Then he said everything went well, and Bun is well but the forcep scar will remian for a day or 2. The scar was from his left cheeks crossing down to his lips and right chin. He also adds that if I need painkillers after 2-3 hours I should ask them from the nurses.

I was then wheeled out from the OT into the recovery bay. I was instantly covered with thick blankets and one of it came with hot air to keep me warm. I trembled non stop. The nurses said it is another side effect of the jab and I should be ok in about 30 mins. It was about 3.45pm then. I was finally wheeled out into the ward around 4+pm. Papa and his brother were waiting for me outside the OT. I was wheeled into a single bedded room. I was still energetic as I got back to the room and started calling family and friends to inform of the good news. After a few hours, the 'pain' finally kicked in....

Meet my boy

Updates..

Our little boy is finally here.

Name: Zachary Yew
Weight: 3.84kg
DOB: 1st November 2010

Will follow up with the experience and his photos later :-)

Waiting....

I admitted into SDMC since 9.30am this morning. They shaved me, cleared my bowel, got me to fill up some forms and I am now waiting for the TIME. I think this waiting time is the most horrible in my life. Half of me is excited and the other half of me is nervous and not to mention I am hungry and thirsty. I kept staring at the clock! Dr Lee dropped by earlier to check on me and he told me that papa will not be allowed in the operating theatre, DAMN! I thought for once he could see it for himself what I have to go through, let him see how courageous I am and let him experience it all for the last time. Sigh... that is not going to happen again (the first time in Assunta and he was not allowed in as well) and I am so upset. Dr Lee said papa will get to see Bun in the recovery room and I will be wheeled out into the recovery room for about 45 mins after the surgery.

The most dreadful part of the entire process for me would be the insertion of the drip, the urine catherer and lastly the spinal anasthetic jab. Needles makes me weak. The nurses said these will happen in the OT itself. Although this was my 2nd c-sec, it was different the first time as I was wheeled in from the labour room into the OT and most of the preparation work was done in the labour room and everything happened so quickly.

I pray for courage and strength and a smooth delivery...

Out of order...

Tomorrow is finally THE DAY! After all the cleaning and washing and packing, I think I am done, I hope I am done and I didn't miss anything [OCD kicking in :-)].

I am not sure how soon I will be able to get back to blogging, to write or even to read your posts. But I promise to at least try to post up some updates and photos of Bun as soon as I can.

Don't miss me too much :-).

The 3 of us, for the last time...

I have always wanted to take beautiful photos of me in my last trimester and finally got the opportunity to do it this time. But because I do not have a beautiful tummy (you know how some lucky woman will have tummy with no scars like 'watermelon scars' or brown vertical lines etc), I wasn't one of them. So no sexy shots of me in tank tubes. But just a couple of family shots taken at 37 weeks for our own collection.

The photography session only lasted 50 mins as the little one lost interest pretty quickly and refused to look into the camera. It was a pretty hot day too - you can see that Hayley's hair is soaked in sweat.

We just wanted to say a huge thanks to our photographer friend Joyce Lee and my best buddy Jessie who helped made this possible. Jessie introduced Joyce to me and Joyce who did a lot of photography work for charity and publications agreed to do this huge favour for us at a discounted price. Here are some raw photos which have not been touched up yet:

Bun's last check up

Saturday was Bun's last check up with Dr Lee. The next time we see Dr Lee, I will be on the operating table, naked and shivering (because of fear la) and with half of my body numbed and when it's all over I will have Bun in my arms and I will be in a lot of pain for days .... thinking of it alone is enough to cause me sleepness nights and I haven't been sleeping well in the past few nights because of the pain and because I could not find a comfortable spot - there is no comfortable spot!

I am officially off from work this week although I am still checking work emails occasionally in case my back up could not handle the 'shit' I left behind. I am trying to do a lot of last minute things such as cleaning, washing, packing, more cleaning, more washing and more packing. The weather hasn't been very co-operative, it's been raining everyday and my washing machine has been working non-stop. There seems to be no end in the things that I needed to wash and clean. I guess this is perfectly normal. I know I won't be able to clean and wash for at least a month or more so I am stressed out to get them all cleaned as much as I can now.

As of my last check up, I gained back 1 kg and current weight stands at 59.6kg. Dr Lee was delighted that I gained and he said everything is back to normal and I am ready for next Monday. Bun's head remained in the right position (ie bottom) but not engaged. Dr Lee said some babies especially 2nd pregnancies will only engage at the very last minute so it will be hard to tell if Bun will engage or not. Well, if Bun decides to come early, then we'll attempt natural based on the circumstances but if not, 1st Nov it will be.


We also managed to discuss about anasthetic with Dr Lee. Apparently there are 3 types - spinal, epidural and general anasthetic. I took the opportunity to ask him because for someone like me who has phobia towards needles, this is a BIG thing. I will even get weak knees when I had to go for my blood test and if the person drawing my blood is not skillful to do it quickly and at one go, I will faint, seriously.

Dr Lee explained that spinal is what most anasthetician would use for elective c-section, epidural injected in the empty space next to the spine is for natural birth and GA for elective c-section as well for those who would rather go to sleep during the surgery. Some anasthetician would use epidural for elective c-sec too. I had GA the first time and it was painless but the recovery was longer. I was groggy for a few hours and had to fast for 2 days and could not get down from bed for 2 days. I was told spinal would be painful when they jab into the spine but recovery would be faster. And since I am not planning for another child, I really wanted to build up enough courage to go through the surgery with a spinal jab. I wanted to see how or in this case hear how it was done. I just hope I won't chicken out at the last min.

Apart from worrying about which anasthetic to choose from and what have I not washed or cleaned, I am also constantly worried about the fact that in 4 more days I will have to manage 2 kids. Will I be able to do that? What will life be with 2 kids? How different will it be from now? I know many mothers have been through this and they survived and I will too, but I still can't stop myself from worrying and thinking too much. And you know what, we are going to put Hayley at the babysitter's for a few days when I am in the hospital and although that will only be happening in a few days, I am already feeling guilty and missing her like crazy even right now! Am I going insane or what????

The same guilt that I felt when I first found out I was pregnant that she will have to share my love with another sibling is back.... arghhh......

OK, I have to go and wash the bedsheets now.... tomorrow the curtains and strollers, Thurs the play pen.... hahaha

Heat rash attack 2

The heat rash attacked my poor girl again. The first time was in August and it lasted for slightly more than a week. This time we brought her to the paed and the paed said it wasn't heat rash. It was what chinese called 'fung mok'. I am not sure what it is called in medical terms. Anyway, the paed said it was an allergy, she is either allergic to some foods or some new washing detergent or some insects etc. The paed said it was mild and asked me if I gave her any new foods in the last couple of days. I honestly cannot recall giving her anything new and I bet the babysitter would tell me the same if I were to ask her on Monday. Hayley is 2.5 and she's eating everything we eat especially when we go out, it will be very tough to monitor her food.

Anyway, I am glad we brought her to the paed as the paed prescribed her with Atarax and the moment we gave her the first dose (she needs to take 3 doses a day for 3 days) the rashes disappeared. The paed also prescribed another med to be taken once a day for 2 weeks to hopefully get rid of this allergy.

Now the hard part is monitoring the food and if we can't find the source to it and should it happen again, we might need to document her daily food intake and routine to hopefully find the culprit.

As for eating the med, now that she's older and cheekier, she knows how to say no, how to keep her mouth closed and how to run away and hide the moment we take out the med bottle. The only way we can give her the med without any hassle is to bribe her with 1 M&M chocolate. We know bribing is not good but we're glad it worked.

Bun at 36+ weeks

Today we went to see our beloved Dr Lee again - getting a bit bored with all these visits and the waiting .. haha

The good news is Bun is growing well, Dr Lee predicted Bun to be at least 3.2 - 3.4kg (if not more). The circumference of Bun's head is quite big too, about the size of a 37 - 38 weeks baby. So Dr Lee said it is probably a good idea to confirm c-sec.

Our c-sec has been confirmed for 1st November at 2.30pm, just 16 more days to go [nail biting]. I probably won't be able to sleep the night before and ended up looking like a panda on 'action' day. Hopefully Bun remain co-operative and stick to our plan!

Dr Lee also said that there is a high chance that Bun might come earlier. If that happens, then we'll decide on the spot whether I should try natural or c-sec. He said if Bun's head engaged/crowned up to 40 - 50% and my cervix is about 4-5cm dilated, he would encourage me to try natural. But if Bun's head remained high and I am only about 2-3cm dilated and am experiencing labour pains, he suggested that I should just go for c-sec.

As for my weight, I lost this time. I am now at 58.9kg, lost 0.6kg in the last 2 weeks. Is losing weight even possible? I don't really know but Dr Lee said some women will lose weight closer to child birth so I should not be worried about it. But he did asked if I was sick or having diarrhea etc and said that instead of coming back in 2 weeks which will be 2 days before my c-sec, he suggested that I return for the last time next Saturday just to make sure everything is fine - he did show a concern face when he saw my current weight.. haiz...

In the last 2 weeks I also experienced the following changes:

• experiencing extreme itch on my tummy, so itchy that I have to scratch even when I am in the office or driving or walking. Extremely embarassing but I can't help it :-(. Hopefully I won't end up having red watermelon looking scars all over my tummy.
• my gums have also started bleeding in the last few days when I brush my teeth.
• sleeping (finding a comfortable spot) and waking up is becoming more and more challenging. Sometimes Bun will kick or press against my ribs causing pain.
• Bun likes to put pressure on my bladder too, very irritating.
• losing appetite during certain times especially dinner is also becoming a norm - sometimes feeling nauseous after eating - maybe this is why I lost weight.
• I am walking slower and slower that sometimes my colleagues will tease if they need to bring a shopping trolley to wheel me to lunch hahaha

Today we also completed pre-admission at SDMC. The costs are just scary, RM8,000 deposit, single room is RM230 per night (ala hotel standard).. hahaha

Some random shots with my Canon S95

A day out to our regular park on Sunday. Photos taken using Canon S95.

P/S: Leona, this camera is very good la. You should look into getting this one.

Stocking up on herbs from EYS

The moment I found out I got pregnant, my best friend asked me to make sure I stock up on some herbs from Eu Yan Sang (EYS). When she got pregnant and when her sis in law got pregnant, her mom gave them a checklist on the things they need to buy, some from EYS and some from any chinese herbs shops outside but her mom insisted that they MUST get everything on the list. She's had 1 kid, her sister in law 3 kids and they both seems to have very good health after having the kids and rarely falls sick - unlike me :-(.

So this time I decided to follow her and requested the checklist from her mom. This is what I was told to get and I got mine mostly from EYS for convenience sake:

1. Dang Guai and Nan Zhao (get 100 grams and divide into 4 packs), boil and drink with chicken drumstick after 10 days, drink once a week
2. Bak Foong pills (eat for 12 days, only start eating after menses is clear)
3. So Hup pills (eat for 16 days, can start immediately after child birth, once in the morning and once at night)
4. Astragalus slices (pak kei)
5. Tong sum
6. Red dates
7. Black dates
8. Lycium berries (kei chi)
9. Dried longan
10. Black beans (hak dao) use to boil with soup
11. Pak Foong Ngai (herbs for shower)

Items 1 to 3

My 30 packs of items 4 to 9 all nicely prepacked so it would be more convenient for the confinement lady to boil for me

The only 2 items I haven't bought would be item 9 and 10 which I will get later from the chinese herbs shop outside the house. The above, all from EYS cost me a hefty RM718.32 (after member's discount). Well, money aside I just hope to have better health after having Bun because I certainly do not want to be sick so often again like what I have to go through after having Hayley.

At Leona's recommendation, I also got a pack of Bo Ying Compound for Hayley just in case. I was told by EYS that I should give it to Bun as well the moment Bun is born but I am not prepared to do that. I think my breat milk will be sufficient :-)

Good bye old faithful

This blog is dedicated to 'old faithful' whom we've had for the last 15 years. Papa claimed it was a her and treated her like a wife. We really didn't have the intention to change her and there were no need to as papa hardly use her but because of the growing family and the need for a more reliable car, we didn't have a choice. Papa wanted to keep her as there were hardly any trade in value but felt that it wasn't the logical thing to do. Why would we need 3 cars at home? and where on earth will we park her? And if we kept her but ended up hardly using her, we know she will become more damaged and going to the scrap shop is the last we would want for old faithful. So we decided to let her go and hopefully she will find a new and better home.

Although she's no longer with us, here are some memorable stories that will always remain in our hearts:

• Papa first came to pick me up during our first date 13 years ago in her.
  
• Papa and I and now Hayley often argued about her colour. Both Hayley and I said she was green, papa insisted that she was blue. It created many laughter.
  
• Papa bought her when he first started working because of his previous girlfriend who insisted that a man must have a ride. When they broke up, he was heart broken and took her out for a drink and ended up throwing up in her at the back seat.
• When my first car was submerged in water up to the roof while parked behind the office (many years old during one of the heaviest down pour in KL), old faithful came to my rescue.
• When I was still dancing part time and didn't own a car, papa and old faithful waited for me to finish work to send me safely back home. Sometimes they waited for 30 mins, sometimes 3 hours. Although papa was showing me a sour face during the latter, old faithful greeted me with a smile :-)
• When we needed to transport bulky items like a table or chair, old faithful was the one we depended on as my car (although a sedan), could not perform the job like old faithful can.
• Papa had one major accident with her a couple of years back, half of the car (the front part) was gone. Papa smashed her into a tree while taking a turn in a dark alley. The windscreen was smashed and because there were no air bags papa flew out from car and was found by his friends several meters from her. Papa had to get a few stitches on his chin and legs and there were a few cuts here and there, the most obvious was the horizontal cut across his belly, but thankfully nothing major was damaged or broken. He was released from the hospital after half a day. Doctors said he was lucky but I think it was old faithful, she looked after him well. Old faithful was re-assembled again but she was never the same since then.
  
• I looked after papa while he was recovering, feeding him and cleaning his wounds. Papa was touched and proposed a few days later. He went down on one knee although he couldn't due to the stitches and I said yes :-). Prior to that, I found the receipt to the ring in his shirt pocket while helping him with his laundry and had to pretend that I didn't see it, he didn't know about this until I told him much later [hahaha]

Thank you for all the sweet memories old faithful and most importantly thank you for looking after papa during the last 15 years and keeping him safe. You also brought us together. You will be missed and we hope you will find a new good home and we certainly hope to see you around again soon.....

We've finally decided and then.....

Today, papa and I finally discussed and decided that c-sec it is. We weighed the pros and cons and made the decision. We even decided on the date and confirmed our arrangements with Dr Lee.

Then... we started hearing comments such as these.....

• aiyah, why c-sec, just think positive and surely you can go for natural one... last time people where got options.. die die also natural also can
• natural is good, it's a different experience, very memorable, unlike c-sec.. try it and you will know what I mean
• my friend's first child also c-sec and then second one natural and she said natural is better
• think positive, don't think you can't, think you can and you surely can
• why waste the money, try natural la, then you can save a few thousands
• last time my kid was 8 pounder and I also gave birth like that

To those who commented, I know you meant well, you meant to encourage me to try natural birth but I am not prepared to take the risk.

I am not going for c-sec because it is the easy way out. DEFINITELY NOT. I have never ever thought of that. Who would want to go under the knife if given a choice? You think c-sec doesn't come with pain??? I tried natural with my first child and because she didn't crown, I ended up suffering contractions for a couple of hours and then was told that I wasted my time and effort. Imagine my despair and my disappointment. It was not even beyond my control. My previous doctor could not explain why she didn't crown and until now I still didn't have any answers.

This time, Dr Lee said the same thing. His guess was because of my petite frame but it was just a guess. He said if Bun is about the same size as Hayley, very likely I will have the same problem. He did encourage me to try natural but he also warned me to be prepared to face the same trauma. He also warned that if I ended up using both the labor room and the OT, I will have to pay more. I am just not prepared to face the same trauma or disappointment again and we certainly do not wish to pay more.

Not only it is hard for us to make the decision, it is even harder for me to accept the fact that I am a loser. I feel like a loser because I cannot give birth to my babies naturally like most woman can, like how nature designed it or like how my mother gave birth to us or how my sister gave birth to her 2 girls. I guess I am not normal after all. The guilt alone is enough to kill me so please don't make it any worst.

Anyway, this will be the last time I am explaining my situation and I am not going to mention it anymore - I am bored of saying it over and over and yet people still don't get it. All I am asking for is just some support and understanding but if you can't do that, then please keep those comments to yourself.

Thankfully I have an understanding man by my side. He was there during the first time and he knew what I had to go through and supported my decision all along. I am so glad that I have him by my side to help me overcome my guilt.

Sad news....

Yesterday and today I received 2 very sad news....

A good friend of mine is pregnant with her 2nd child. She's about a month behind me so the baby will due end Dec. This morning, I was told that she delivered yesterday, the baby at 29 weeks weighs only 1.35kg. 2 weeks ago she was complaining about having bleeding and doctor told her to rest more and I honestly didn't expect this to happen. I really hope both mummy and baby will pull through.

Again this morning I was told that another relative of mine who attempted IVF for the 5th time and finally got pregnant will also be having her emergency c-sec today, 1 month ahead of the EDD. Her gynae told her that the baby seems to be getting smaller so it is better for them to have her out and monitor her condition. What is going on? In the past I really rarely hear of cases like these but now it seems so common. Is it something we eat? or is it in the air that we breathe? I am so upset. I just hope both babies and both mummies will be ok.

This really made me appreciate more and more of what I have today....

Bun at 35 weeks

2 weeks flew by yet again. On Saturday we visited Dr Lee again for my checkup. This time I gained 1kg - current weight 59.5kg. 14.5kg gained to-date.

It was a quick checkup, Bun was growing well and we didn't check Bun's weight this time. I told Dr Lee to check only at the next check up so it will be closer to due and I don't have to pay RM60 twice for this scan. It will also be easier for me to make the decision whether to opt for c-sec or natural if I knew Bun's weight at a later stage. Dr Lee said based on the size of my tummy, Bun looks 2 weeks older, ie he is hinting to me to expect Bun to be more than 3kg :-).

Dr Lee gave me some dates to choose in case I decided on c-sec. Since Bun's EDD is 10.11.10, Dr Lee suggested 30.10.10, 1.11.10, 2.11.10, 3.11.10 or 4.11.10. At this point in time, I think I will just go for c-sec due to the following reasons:

• hubby strongly encourage that I go for c-sec again so I don't have to go through the trauma of attempting natural and then ended up being slaughtered if the baby won't crown again - this will also result us in paying extras for the use of labor room and also the operating theatre.
  
• since we have Hayley at home with no maid/help, having an elective c-sec will help us plan a little better. We could make arrangements to drop Hayley at the babysitter's and prepare everything else necessary instead of going into panic mode if I suddenly experience labor pains in the middle of the night
• my first was a c-sec so might as well have another c-sec since I already have a scar there
  
• I know what to expect from a c-sec so hopefully will be able to prepare myself better - mentally and emotionally.
  

Of course there are a lot of disadvantages to c-secs too such as:

• max 3 babies (not that I am planning of having more than 2 but you just never know)
  
• the post surgery healing is much longer than natural birth and much more painful
• movement is very restricted due to the pain for the first 2 weeks, breastfeeding while lying on my sides is almost impossible without help
  
• won't be able to do 'urut' immediately which a lot of people say is really good and must do as soon as I can. I didn't have a single urut session after Hayley was born :-(
  
• of course it cost a lot more too.. you're talking about RM3-4k V RM7-8k at SDMC
  
• restrictions to certain confinement foods
• more prone to infections post surgery (which I experienced 2 weeks after having Hayley)

Weighing the pros and cons, I am currently 70% leaning towards c-sec. Anyway, will decide in another 2 weeks. Hopefully I will be 100% sure by then.

I just hate making all these decisions but it is one that must be made. SIGH....

Papa's birthday and his present

Papa's birthday was exactly 10 days after my birthday. For this year, I wanted to take him to Sage (fine dining restaurant) at The Gardens but unfortunately we could not find a babysitter on Saturday night and they are not open for business on Sunday and therefore I had to change my plans. I took him to Xenri (Japenese fine dining) instead which is located near Wisma Elken in Old Klang Road since we've heard a lot of nice things about this place and instead of dinner we went for lunch. All these was made possible thanks to my sister and her boyfriend Ivan who helped to babysit Hayley for a couple of hours :-).

About Xenri, I think the food was really nice but the ambience just average. Here are some of the food we ordered taken using my new Canon S95 without any touch ups :-)

Part of Papa's meal set

My set but I donated my sashimi to papa :-(

Part of papa's set - Salad

Part of papa's set - Tofu

Part of papa's set - more Sashimi (which unfortunately I could not eat)

My healty 'dragon fruit and orange juice', absolutely love it. Only RM6.90.

The birthday boy

At night, the little rascal sang her papa a birthday song and she couldn't wait to blow the candle on the cake and to have her hands on the cake. The cake is courtesy of my sis and her boyfriend (picked by Hayley)... thanks again :-)

And lastly, papa's present to himself. A brand new car! I sponsored some accessories.. haha. Well, papa ordered the car about 2 weeks ago but wasn't expecting it to arrive on his birthday but it did. Papa had to say goodbye to his old faithful of 15 years (yes he drove his previous car for 15 years) and it was a rather emotional goodbye for him. We made the very difficult decision to get a brand new car (that of course comes along with a commitment of 6 years, sigh) because of the growing family and a need for a safer and more reliable car.

My birthday and my present

Firstly, I finally got my birthday present, hurray and no, it's not an IPhone 4. I am not a gadget person so I am not into new phones, my current phone is almost 4 years old and it still works so no plan to change anytime soon unless papa feels generous haha. Plus Hayley enjoys playing with my phone - listening to the music, looking at her own photos or videos so I think an old phone suits me best for now.

But I do love taking photos and because I am not prepared to carry a bulky DLSR wherever I go and papa said he is not going to help me because he is not into photography, so I have to compromise and finally decided on a new digital camera instead. So papa bought me a Canon S95 which is not yet available in Malaysia. Canon S90 is the current model available here, sold at RM1,229 during the mega sale. I bought the Canon S95 (upgraded version) at RM1,300 from Hong Kong, with the help of a kind colleague.

Isn't it a beauty? Black beauty :-). The photos are gorgeous too if compared to the ones taken using my old Canon Ixus camera which is about 3 -4 years old. I am loving this new camera and Hayley will inherit my old camera as she loves photography too :-). I have yet to take any decent photo with my new camera (still playing around with it) and will show you the output in the next few weeks.

As for my birthday, it was a day filled with errands.. haha. Papa and I left the house around 10am to find someone but the shop was not opened, then we headed off to Kinderdijk and got the spare parts for my Avent breast pump. After Kinderdijk we went to Ikea to buy the baby bath tub (I am planning to bin my old one) and stool but both product no longer available, what a disappointment. After Ikea we went for Korean BBQ lunch at Kota Damansara. The food was not good so another disappointment. After lunch we headed to Jusco to grab some more stuff for Hayley and Bun.

Papa also bought me a slice of Secret Recipe Chocolate Indulgence cake and we requested for a candle. At night, Hayley sang me my birthday song (sweetest song ever) and blew my candle for me (I pretended I didn't see the saliva.. haha). She fed me my birthday cake for the first time and I was on cloud 9 the whole night. Then we spent the rest of the night playing lanterns and candles with her outside the house.

Although the day seems simple but being a simple mom myself, I am truly happy and contented with what I have and thank God everyday for his blessing!

I indeed did have a HAPPY BIRTHDAY :-)

Happy Birthday to me!

Today is my birthday. I am turning 24 (I WISH) and I am so excited... hahaha.

I am not working today and Hayley is away at the babysitter.

It will just be a simple and peaceful celebration (lunch that is) between papa and me. And hopefully we'll have some time to do some shopping later to get some new toys for Hayley to soften the guilt :-). We also need to go to Kinderdijk to get some spare parts for my Avent breast pump.

As for my birthday gift from papa, I'm getting it next week. Got a colleague to help me buy it from HK as it is slightly cheaper and they have the latest model which we don't have here yet. I can't wait :-)

And lastly, HAPPY MID AUTUMN FESTIVAL too!!!

The new 'nagging queen'

My 2.5 year old have recently taken over my responsibility in the car as the nagging queen - that is whenever the papa is behind the wheel. The papa is not a very patient guy when it comes to being on the road so occasionally he does drive very dangerously even when we are in the car. He always argue that driving a little faster or taking bends without slowing down enough does not necessarily mean that he is driving dangerously.

Whenever papa drives through a bump without hitting enough of the brake and send us bouncing in the car, rascal will say 'Papa..... don't drive dangerously ok' or 'Papa please drive carefully ok'. I believe she picked this up from me.

Whenever she spotted the papa driving with 1 hand 'Papa... use 2 hands!'. She will repeat until he actually placed 2 hands on the steering wheel just to please her. I have never commented on this before so not sure where she picked it up from.

Papa is quite annoyed whenever he hears the above as she sounds exactly like me, the intonation and even the expression :-). As for me, I am just happy that she knows what is safe and what is not when it comes to driving :-)

Bun at 33 weeks

So fast 2 weeks flew by. Today we went for our regular check up again.

Bun
Everything is going well and Bun has been upside down since 2 weeks ago and remained upside down. Today we managed to catch a clear glimpse of Bun's face. The nose, the lips, the face was extremely visible but we still can't tell who Bun looks like. Bun has a big nose (must be from the papa) and thick lips (must be from me) :-). Didn't look at all like Hayley when she was a baby.

Dr Lee said he will weight Bun again at week 34 to keep a close tab on the weight and help me decide by 36 weeks whether to go for a c-sec or to attempt natural.

Me
I only gained 0.5kg this time. Am extremely happy. This means 13.5kg weight gained so far. The pain down there is slowly returning and Dr Lee said it is normal at this stage and there is nothing he could do to help me. He also reminded me to sleep on my sides at night.

I also mentioned to him about the irregular heartbeat. He called it 'skipped beat'. He said some women will experience it although it is not normal. If I am still able to function like normal, ie it is not causing me extreme discomfort, I should not need to worry about it. He said some women who experienced serious skipped beat will need to wear a gadget 24 hours a day to monitor the heart beat.

I am also getting more and more tired by the day. Going up the stairs or walking long distance is becoming a challenge.

Hayley
Brought her along to the hospital again today. She was extremely naughty. Running here and there in the waiting area, touching this and that, refused to sit down even for 2 mins and making all sorts of noises. She will walk towards other babies or kids and play with them and annoyed their parents.

The funniest thing today is when we were leaving Dr Lee's office. The moment she stepped out from the room she said this 'hello everybody' while waving her hands to everyone seated in the waiting area. Sometimes we don't know if we should be angry, happy, proud or sad to have such a child! Maybe a combination of everything best described how we feel.....

Shh... Quiet!

When papa and I used to chat in the car with the rascal around she will often interrupt us by talking loudly or calling me or doing all sorts of things/noises to attract my attention. She started doing those nuisances since she was much younger. Whenever she does that, I will tell her to "shh.... quiet, mummy and papa talking, you cannot interrupt, that is very rude".

After saying the same things to her a couple of times, she started picking up the first two words ie "shhh.... quiet" since young. Sometimes she will say it in a soft manner, sometimes demanding.

She will sometimes use those 2 words on me when she did something naughty and I scolded her. She will sometimes use those 2 words on me when papa and I were talking in the car trying to stop us from talking and she also uses those 2 words on me sometimes even when the situation does not require her to ie saying it for a situation that does not fit.

Today, the babysitter confronted me. She asked if we (papa and me) talk very loud at home and if we argue a lot. I told her we definitely do not argue much and we don't talk very loud at home except when we're scolding the rascal or calling for her when she run to the kitchen or to other rooms etc. The babysitter then adds that rascal got affected by us talking loudly or arguing loudly. She said they don't talk loudly at home so she must have got affected by us. That got me scratching my head, what the heck is she talking about?

Then she said yesterday while in the car, obviously her husband and her were taking rascal somewhere and they were chatting and rascal used the 2 words on her. She said it was the first time she heard it although we've heard it many many months ago. I told her not worry about it as rascal was probably just copying us and I constantly reminded her not to say those words whenever she uses it and I told the babysitter to do the same if she heard it again. The fact that she only heard it for the first time yesterday was solid proof that rascal was using the 2 words lesser than before.

The babysitter then adds again that we have to be careful with our actions and words as we will affect or scar a child badly. It will be worst when they reach 8 or 9 years old. I know she meant well but sometimes I think it is not necessary to be overly worried. Kids will be kids and they will pick up all the good and bad. As parents, of course we try our best to set the best examples but we're humans, we make mistakes too and sometimes even we don't notice when we did.

As long as our conscience is clear, I think we should not worry too much and enjoy parenthood.

Bun at 31 weeks

Last Saturday it was the usual bi-weekly check up for Bun.

While waiting for our turn, the nurses took my weight and also examined my urine, as usual. I gained another 1.7kg in 2 weeks. I am now at 58kg, 13kg gained so far. Urine is normal.

After waiting for about 45 mins, it was our turn. This time Dr Lee checked the weight of Bun. Bun weighed at 1.8kg, Dr Lee said it was ideal for a 31 week old baby. At this rate, Dr Lee 'predicted' Bun to be at 2.9 or 3kg when born. So my next mission is to decide whether I want to opt for a c-sec or attempt natural birth - something that I still can't decide now as they both have their own pros and cons.

As for me, nothing much has changed since 2 weeks ago. The only new condition I have is irregular heart beat which I forgot to check with Dr Lee. Sometimes I felt uncomfortable around the heart/chest, felt like the heart was beating irregularly and the entire body felt uneasy. It doesn't hurt, maybe it felt heavy, I just don't know how to explain it. Sometimes I even think (maybe I was imagining things) that I might be having a heart attack and I would experience it several times a day.

Other than the above, and feeling heavier each day, the rest are as usual.

I have also started preparing things for the arrival such as stocking up diaper, milk bottles, washing up baby clothes, packing my bag etc. Next on the list would be to clean the cot and play pen, washing the baby car seat, preparing the guest room for the confinement lady and also stocking up on herbs.

Just me

Last Sat I attended a friend's wedding in Cyberjaya. We used to dance together and I was really looking forward to the night as I will be able to meet some of my dancer friends - reminiscing the good old times.

I went alone, no hubby and no baby for the night. So I got to talk with friends and eat in peace and enjoy the night fuss free.... :-). Oh boy how I missed moments like these...

Dancers and spouses/partners.. some retired

Retired dancers who now became mummies...

Evon on my right has 2 kids, a 9 year old boy and a 3 year old girl

May on my left has 3 kids, a 6 year old girl, a 3 year old girl and a 9 months old boy

And of course me in the middle, with a 2.5 year old girl and a 30 weeks old Bun :-)

Toilet independent

Just wanted to put this into the record that my little rascal at 2 years and 6 months old is finally independent to go to the toilet on her own supported by a stool. Of course this is only for the small business and not the big business :-).

She will stand on the stool to gain enough height to sit herself on the adult toilet (without a child toilet seat cover) and then balances herself holding the sides of the toilet while she completes her business. Once done she will climb down on her own, grab some toilet paper and wipe herself clean. Then she complete it with a 'flash'! Yes, that's how she pronounce 'flush' despite us teaching her over and over.

We are so proud of her :-)

Bun at 29 weeks or 7 months

Had our monthly check up last Saturday and surprisingly it wasn't crowded (maybe Dr Lee wasn't that popular :-)). Reached the hospital around 9.45am and this time we brought Hayley along again to let her see the baby and we were done by 10.30am. As usual she was very excited and she got even more excited when Dr Lee gave her a chocolate and then another one as he promised as she was well behaved during the scan.


As for Bun, everything looks normal and good although the head was still on top. It was a quick routine scan. As for me, I gained another 3kg (oh shucks!) and I am now at 56.3kg, 11.3 kg gained. Dr Lee said anything between 12 - 15kg in total is considered normal. Looking at the rate I am going, I think I will become 'abnormal' at the end of it. I really should start watching my diet from now on (say only but can never resist the ice cream, donuts, murtabak chicken).... hahahaha...


Since the last check up a couple of things have changed in me.

1. The pain I mentioned in my previous post here is getting so much better. At least now I could walk without being in a lot of pain. It only hurts once in a while now especially when I have walked too much or when I am too tired or when I toss and turn in bed. Otherwise not so much pain.. so that was a huge relieve.
2. My tummy is also getting a lot bigger. Everyone who bumps into me (even strangers) will ask if I am due soon cause they said it looks huge and very low [nail biting].
3. I find it challenging to stand up after sitting on the floor. Even when I am seated on the chair I can feel the bump directly resting on my thighs. Don't remember feeling these when carrying Hayley, at least not until the last month.
4. Both my feet (around the calves) started to swell more than a month ago. The calves felt very hard and tensed. Even when I walk I can feel the calves hardened like I will be getting a cramp soon that kind of feeling. Dr Lee said the swelling could be caused by me sleeping on my back as he said sleeping on my back will reduce oxygen flow to the legs causing swelling and varicose veins as well as cramps. It won't be good for the baby too. I have been sleeping on my back since the pain down there started to avoid having to toss and turn but I have now started sleeping sideways despite the pain and hopefully the swelling will go away soon.
5. I have had 2 cramps so far, both times on my right leg. They happened in the middle of the night and I suffered in silence... sob sob
6. I am also feeling more pain around the tummy. Sometimes when Bun stretches ie when you see the tummy turning into an odd shape, it hurts. I had to stop doing whatever I was doing until the pain is gone as it really hurts. Don't know if these are called 'Braxton Hicks' contractions. I sometimes feel it a few times a day more so at night.
7. The midnight need to go to the loo is still ongoing. Sometimes after going to the loo, I won't be able to fall asleep until 2 hours later hence waking up in the morning feeling very tired.
8. I get lower back ache if I sleep on my back. Thankfully they only last for a while.

We still have not decided whether we will go for a normal or c-sec delivery. Dr Lee suggested checking the weight of Bun the next round which will be in 2 weeks. He said if Bun is between 2.8 - 3kg, I could still attempt a normal delivery but if Bun is going to be as heavy as Hayley (3.4kg) or around there, he would suggest a c-sec as he foresee that I will encounter similar problems ie baby not crowning due to my petite size (small bum). I am leaning towards c-sec as of now as I definitely do not want to go through the labour pains and then c-sec post surgery pains all over again.

Help! My daughter got heat rash!

Since Sunday we noticed some rashes around Hayley's feet and body. They looked like blisters or small mosquito bites or Chinese called it 'fung mok'. Some appeared in patches, some just one or two. Sometimes they even appear on the face. The heat rash will appear out of the blue and then suddenly disappears. Initially we though it was food allergy but we did not recall giving her anything strange or new prior to the symptoms.

After monitoring her for a few days, we noticed that she will get the rashes more when she was hot ie in the afternoon and they will apparently get better after she has had her bath.

Both the babysitter and my mother said not to worry about it as they are just heat rash and will go away in a few days. My mom who was an ex nurse asked me to apply some calamine lotion when the patches appear. The rashes doesn't seem to bother Hayley as well.

Today is Thursday (5 days after the first symptom) and the babysitter said she is still getting the rash in the afternoon. When we took her home in the evening, only a few could be seen, probably because it was cooler in the evening.

What should I do now? How long more do I have to wait before I have to bring her to a doctor? My mom said there is nothing the doctor could do, they probably will prescribe some cream or some medicine to treat the itch. Have anyone else experience this before? Is there any other home remedy that I could try?

Swiss Garden Kuantan

This is actually a long outstanding post. Its been almost a month since our trip to Kuantan was from 25 - 27 July. Anyway, I have been busy at work and at home (too tired to do anything at home) and didn't have time to sort out the photos.

Anyway, not going to elaborate much here (maybe just a little bit la in case some of you are keen to go) but instead will let the photos do most of the story telling :-)

This is the view of the pool, the beach and the coffee house taken from the lobby.

The lobby, the place looks a little dark as it was taken late afternoon on a rainy day. But the newly refurbished lobby is really nice. Very cosy and welcoming.

Hayley love taking photos with the trishaw, and of course her papa

A shot of us taken by Hayley

Her favourite ie playing sand and catching crabs

At the fruit farm, eat all you can (seasoned fruits only) paid for by the hotel. The tour is for 2 hours and includes transport. We only managed to eat rambutans (Hayley asked 'how come got hair one?') and of course durians. We experienced picking up the durians from the ground and then the orchard owner will open it for us. He will also pick up a couple from various trees to let us try the different types. They were delicious! Unfortunately Hayley didn't like it. She also enjoyed following the goats we saw at the farm.

More time at the beach on the 2nd day. Papa is going to kill me for exposing his 5 months belly. At certain angle, his looks bigger than mine.. hahaha

Her second favourite place ie the swimming pool. We spent most of our time either on the beach or at the pool or in the bath tub in the room.

Of course we dropped by the turtle sanctuary. It was hot and therefore we didn't stay for too long. We arrived around 1.45pm and was told that the place is closed from 1 - 2pm (lunch time probably). So we waited and snapped some photos instead at the beach nearby.

Lastly, a family photo taken at the entrance of Club Med where the beach and the sand are so much nicer. This beach is just next to the turtle sanctuary. Unfortunately we are not allowed to pop into Club Med so we only stopped for a while to snap some photos before heading home. And yes I do look very fat in the photos... I blame it on the angle and the wind blowing my hair away from my face :-(.

Here are some general comments on the hotel, food etc for those who may be keen to visit:

The hotel and the room

As you can see, I didn't take any photos of the room because it wasn't at all impressive. We booked the garden view room as per the promo package but instead we've got the car park view room. I requested for a room closest to the lift so I don't have to walk too much but ended up getting a room in the middle so I still had to do some walking to the lifts. The furnishing in the room were old and I didn't have any mood at all to snap photos (yes bad).

But I do like the lobby and the pool area. They have an adult's pool, a children's pool and a jacuzzi which unfortunately was out of order the 3 days we were there.

The check in was also quite disappointing as when we arrived there were 3 staff on duty and 2 families checking in/out and I am not sure why I still had to wait almost 20 mins to be attended to. As for the staff, most of them are not very friendly. We had to wait for 10 mins before someone (and that is after us calling many times) came to attend to us at the coffee house.

The food

On the first day when we arrived, we were too lazy to go out for food. So we had hi-tea at the hotel. The price was RM28nett per person and the food I would say was quite ok - acceptable la. We also had dinner on the 1st day at the Blossom Chinese restaurant that comes with the package. The menu were pre-selected so as expected it was nothing fancy and definitely nothing to shout about. We got 3 dishes (chicken, beancurd and vege) with 1 soup, a fruit platter and chinese tea.

On the 2nd day, we had lunch in town at one of the regular kopitiam. As for dinner, we got slaughtered at the Beserah Seafood restaurant. We ordered a steam fish (can't remember what fish), a spinach soup, fu yong egg and 2 drinks and the bill came up to RM70! So please do not go to that seafood restaurant unless you want to get slaughtered! But I have to say that the fish was really good and tasty :-)

On the 3rd day, we checked out and went straight to the turtle sanctuary. On the way back we stopped by at another Seafood restuarant located at the entrance of Legend Cherating and we ordered venison, vege, seafood fried rice and drinks and it cost us less than RM40. The price is very reasonable and the price list is displayed in the menu. So definitely no hanky panky here.

We also bought some prawn and fish crackers back for families, colleagues and neighbours.

The trip

I would say Hayley enjoyed the trip the most. She was so happy throughout the whole trip. It makes us happy to see her so happy. She kept telling us that she wanted to play sand, go to the beach and sea after we got back. She was also a darling throughout the whole journey of 5 hours (2.5 hrs each way). Although she didn't nap on the way to Kuantan, she didn't really fuss at all and remained seated in her car seat, although occasionally we need to entertain her. On the way back, she slept for 2 hrs :-).

Papa on the other hand complained about the driving. He finally admits that he was getting old and driving for 2.5 hours non stop was too taxing for him. I guess he was just tired as he didn't really sleep well both nights as we shared a king bed and 'Hayley the terror' who slept in the middle terrorised us both during the night with her kung fu kicks and punches.

To summarise it all, it was definitely a simple but memorable trip for us as it will be our last trip as a family of 3!