A casual lunch at home...

But then, they brought pink balloons, cake and presents!



It was like it was my birthday but it wasn't!

I don't really have any photos because I was far too busy eating and ripping up wrapping paper. But when I get sent some I'll post them.

So fun!

34 weeks

Went to Dr R's today. It wasn't the most pleasant of experiences because I had to get a swab for a StrepB test. Other very undignified things also took place. Yuk.

His scan showed that the placenta is still a little too low. If it's too low, giving birth naturally will be difficult. He'll be checking the position again in two weeks.

In the last week, I've had three ultrasound scans. I hope Mopi isn't too bothered but I don't think ultrasounds are harmful to the baby. Anyway, the other two docs who did the scans for me last week in Singapore didn't think the placenta was a problem. They said while it was low, it had moved up sufficiently.

I mentioned to Dr R that I've been feeling very unbalanced as Mopi's weight and mass seems to be carried mainly on my right side. He said that it is coz the placenta is on the left so she doesn't have much space on that side. So Mopes has positioned her head on my left side and shoved the rest of her body towards my right. You should see my tummy sometimes - it just looks so WEIRD coz it's all loopy loopy lopsided.

I have been feeling very heavy. I guess it's no wonder given Mopi's giant growth spurts. I now am weighing in at 66+kg. Ooooof! Here's the proof (thanks Smell!):

I am pudding
Mopi has been very active, especially after meals - and papaya, of which I've been eating a lot of (no idea why!). She kicks and stretches a lot. It's quite an uncomfy feeling but reassuring coz at least I know she's boogie-ing in there.

Peek a boo!

On Monday, we went to Dr AT's to have a peek at you. She's got a super-dooper scanning machine and we were very excited coz we knew we were going to get a good look at you.

At first, you weren't quite co-operating. You were fast asleep with your arms up around your face.

Stop hiding your face, baby!
But after some jiggling, you flipped around and we saw your little sleepy face. You had one hand tucked under your head and you looked like a real life baby! It's like you were actually sleeping in a cot rather than in my tummy.

You've had a major growth spurt. In less than three weeks you've put on 0.6kg. You are now 2.218kg! The doc said if you keep growing at this rate, you will be about 3.2kg at 40 weeks... but I think we'll see you waaaaay before then!


Is that a smile?

Place of birth: Singapore/KL?!?

It's been quiet around here coz I went back to Singgers for about two weeks.

D was super sweet to drive me down last last Thursday. He left me the car and bussed back to KL for work and then flew back on the weekend for Ickle's wedding and to drive me back to KL. "Just enjoy yourself - it's the last time you are going to be there without a baby in tow!", he reminded me. Eeeps!

While I had a blast in Singgers - attending ickle's many wedding festivities, poking about in the shops, and flitting away hours with smell, the foggies and the girlies (d and g included) - I realised that Singapore isn't home.

For me, home really is where D and I have set up house. Where all our stuff is. Where I feel comfy in my own space-place. It was just so nice walking back into our home with our lovely comfy beddy and pillows, our bathroom (and range of toiletries!), my kitchen... and the couch!

This sense of comfort, peace, belonging (whatever you want to call it) is really what I think I will need once Mopi pops.

...Which brings me to the FIRST issue of WHERE we are going to have Mopi: Singapore or KL???

D's vote is Singgers coz he thinks Dr Y is good and that the medical facilities are much better. His view: If you can get the best medical care in the region, why would you not opt to do so?

But it's not as simple as that.

Challenge #1
If I pop in Singgers, I would have to travel down at 37-38 weeks and wait for Mopi to decide when she's ready to face the world. D would not be with me and will only come down once there is an indication she is about to pop. So I will be alone - staying with my foggies or the in laws - during my last few weeks of pregnancy (which can go up to 42 weeks!).

Challenge #2
After Mopi pops, I want to be at HOME as soon as I can. As I said, our home is here in KL.
I think it will be hard enough settling the new baby and getting used to everything without the hassle of living out of a suitcase in someone else's house for a month.

Also, I kind of want the three of us to be a family and to make our own decisions - and mistakes, rather than having other people around and doing things that I may or may not agree with for the baby (or telling me what to do etc) - even if they have the best intentions.

Anyway, we went to see two docs in Singgers while we were back and...

Solution to #2
The docs say D can drive us back to KL as soon as I am discharged even after a few days. However, to make sure all is super dooper ok, I can stay in hospital for a week and then head directly back to KL. This will allow for any baby problems to be sorted out (ie jaundice etc) and also for the nurses to teach me all I need to know about baby care and feeding. Dr Y says I will become a pro after a week of training. Hmmm....

It seems it's not a big deal for Mopi to go for a 3hour+ car ride at one week old. C asked her pediatrician for me: "Dr says fine for baby to travel!"

As you can imagine, both sets of oldies are FREAKING OUT. But since all the docs say it's ok, they'll just have to cope!

Solution to #1
...Brings us to another problem. A decision as to HOW we are going to deliver.

I don't particularly want to be alone for the last few weeks leading up to Mopi's birth coz I think it's an important time for us to be together. Besides, I think I will need D to look after me in moments of blubbering, hormonal freak outs and just to know he's at arm's length is very reassuring.

So to minimise this alone-time and to make sure D is around for the birth, the docs have deemed the best way to do this is to:
a) induce the birth - and then pop her out naturally
b) consider an elective C (there are other compelling reasons other than timing which I won't go into)

On the other hand, if we stay in KL we can just coast along and let nature take its course... or NOT!

I still haven't decided! Even after your passionate argument 'for', Kirri (which by the way struck a cord with D - he's like go NATURAL NATURAL!)... I just don't know.

I don't want a caesarian... and I don't want to give birth naturally.

Isn't there some other way?

The first cut is the deepest - or is it?

Between 31 and 32 weeks, I am already a hefty 64kg!!!! The scales grunt and groan each time I step on them. So far, I've put on about 11kg... Ooof!

They say this is pretty "average" and it seems that in the next few weeks, I can expect to put on another 5-7kg. Double Ooof!

Y put on about 20kg, hitting 72kg. K piled on 22kg with Marcus. But C only had a light padding of 14kg altogether: How I wish I had her genes! (Speaking of jeans(!), less than four months after C gave birth, she was back in her size 25 Blue cults! Ohhhhh, I SO want her jeans/genes!)

Anyway, all three of these mums had C-sections and all of them were back in shape faster than you could change a nappy. So it is somewhat of a fallacy that you can't really lose weight unless you deliver naturally.

Which brings me to The Delivery Issue:

Our first pre-natal class was on Saturday. Zzzzz.

We were supposed to find out about the delivery process but the doc went off tangent and we didn't really find out anything about how to have a baby.

The doc said: "Oh by the time you're in here, there's nothing you can do and you will be in good hands. We'll be guiding you along so don't worry."

He went on instead to tell us what to look out for from now till all hell breaks loose so that we would know if anything was going wrong.

Good to know but not quite what I needed to know.

You see, D and I are considering our delivery options: To C or not to C, that is the question.

At the moment, I am leaning like the Tower of P towards a C.

I have already spoken to my doc here about it and I will be speaking to another two Obs when I go to Singapore in two weeks.

There are pros and cons to both procedures...

* You deal with the tummy pain or the other pain. Either way you are going to get cut up. Personally, I'd much rather deal with a pain in my gut.

* The whole looooong, gunky "natural" process... I think if it can be avoided, then why not.

* There are other consequences of a natural birth that may long stay with you. Trust me - VERY ICKY!

* It may allow me to deliver in Singapore - but I will do so ONLY if I can return home (KL) immediately after we are discharged from the hospital. Of course I will be discussing whether this is even possible (3-4 hours by VW?) with the two Obs in Singapore AND it will also depend on how long it will take for Mopi's to get her snapshot stuck in my passport (I am looking into this now). But there are advantages to having the baby via C in Singapore - my doc is a super-skilled tailor, Mt E Hospital (need I say more!) and most importantly, that means my foggies, D's parents, and our good mates can have a peep at Mopi before we go home!

Anyway I am keeping an open mind and am still doing the research. But it's good to have CHOICES.

But if I go for a C, it will mean that I will deliver earlier... 37-38 weeks instead of 40.

Which means Mopi may be out in 5-6 weeks!!!!!!!

*shock*

31 Weeks

As time goes on, you are becoming more of a reality. A little human.

Look how your little cheeks have filled out over the last month...

At this month's prenatal visit, the doctor told us not only can you open and close your eyes, but you've even got little eyelashes to bat.

You are really active! You are always on the move. The doc had a bit of a laugh as he tried to measure your thigh bone, check your heart and your tummy. You wriggled and squiggled all about.

Your busiest time of day is in the mornings and in the evenings, usually when I am lying down. I guess when I lie down it gets pretty squishy in there and you keep trying to make more room.

You now make fewer big movements, like somersaults, but you make up for it by kicking harder. Ow!

Also, you stretch a lot. For the last week, you've been sticking out a foot or a fist quite regularly. It feels really weird having a lump suddenly - and sometimes violently - appear out of my tummy. For some reason, that mostly happens on my right side and up top.

I've been getting a burning sensation right in the middle of my chest. It seems my intestines are all squashed up there and sometimes when you kick up top, it really hurts. Combination heartburn and karate move. Nice.

You've also had a few bouts of hiccups. The first time I felt it was about a week ago. I sent D an sms and your grandmother. She thought it was so cute and she told all her friends about it. "Really ah? Babies can hiccup inside ah?", she asked her other grandma friends. Already she is carrying on about you and you are not even born!

You know someone said to me, "No one will think your baby is as interesting as you." And it's SO TRUE! There really is nothing worse than hearing a mother - or a grandmother - going on and on. So we'll try to keep it all in the family - or on your blog here!

Colostrum... huh?

I first noticed a "pearl" a while back... maybe when I was about 20-ish weeks.

It was kinda weird. Kinda gross.

I told C about it and she was all gushy: "Ohhh S, you have colostrum!"

Well since then, there have been more pearls.

Yesterday, I realised that I had some slight grazes, a bit of skin had come off and had healed over.

All I can say is that the internet is a wonderful thing. The things you learn....

Colostrum

It is possible for a woman to start producing 'colostrum' any time after about 14 to 16 weeks of the pregnancy. Colostrum is the first fluid a woman's breasts produce and is a clear or creamy-yellow substance that is syrupy in consistency. It is possible for some women to hand express colostrum from their nipples during pregnancy, or to slightly leak colostrum occasionally, especially if this is not your first baby. (Be aware that leaking colostrum during pregnancy does not happen for every woman and your milk may not become obviously noticeable until after your baby is born.) If you are leaking colostrum and it is becoming annoying, you may need to wear breast pads inside your bra.

It is normal for some women to notice a small amount of blood mixed with the colostrum that may come away during pregnancy. This comes from within the breast and is caused by the rapid growth of blood vessels in the growing ductal system, in preparation for breastfeeding. Also, drops of blood may also be seen on the bra because the sticky colostrum temporarily 'glues' the nipple to the inside of the bra and a tiny bit of nipple skin is removed with the bra, which does heal.

A little practice for D

First off, I have to say that at seven and a half months, my belly button has still not exploded! That must be some sort of record! C thinks I must have had a really, really deep innie. But anyway, it's going to pop out soon... and then I can clean it properly for the first time in my life. Ha! Nice.

Yesterday, we went to a yum-cha brunch with C and N at the Westin and D got a little taste of what is to come.

Baby B was a little bored and needed to be entertained. He sat on his mother's lap through lunch, then Dad took him for a lap or two around the restaurant, and then he was back in his mother's lap.

I thought I would relieve her for a while so I took him. But soon after, the desserts arrived! Yum yum yum. These days I have a very sweet tooth! So I passed B to D.

While we all tucked into dessert, B happily sat on D's lap watching the cars whizz by from the window. After about 15 mins, he wriggled his way into a lying position, did a few stretches and promptly fell asleep!

B kept a firm hold on D's finger, which he didn't dare remove for quite a while in case B woke up.


How will we be able to eat out with... no hands?!?!

All in all, I think D had him for 40 mins, if not more. Well done, I say, coz I know D will be able to handle the baby when I'm off for APPLETINIS with the gals!


I can't wait!

All wrapped up

Swear-by-swaddling mums have convinced me that a tightly wrapped baby is the way to go - for the first couple of months at least.

Some people do not swaddle, believing the baby should be allowed to "explore". But even C, who didn't swaddle, says to DEFINTELY do so.

So I flipped through Baby-gami, a book we got from KT. I looked at all the different ways of swaddling and let me tell you, folding a crane is nothing compared to this. Pretty complicated... especially with a wriggling baby.

Errr... and then?

But luckily, K came to the rescue! She swears by 'The amazing miracle blanket' which according to all reports makes swaddling easy-peasy.

I took AGES deciding what colour to get. K said to get a pretty colour. M said to get pink and then lavendar with pink trim.

Well, I just ordered two online for Pinz to bring back from Washington DC for Mopes.

Bet you won't guess what colours D and I picked!

School's in... and OUT!

Many women work through their pregnancy up until the day they give birth. In Singapore, there is three months of maternity leave and then working women are back at their places of employment.

Well, thank God I am not working (though I think if I were, I could and it'd be ok coz I'd be in a routine) but I was going to finish up my degree before Mopi's arrival.

But when I went through a couple of lectures and my course materials yesterday, I was like... G.A.H!!!!!

So, this is what ensued...

To: Faculty of Arts, Postgraduate Student Support Centre
I have one more unit to complete to fulfil my MA graduation requirements. However, I am due to deliver in April/May and I am not sure if I will be able to complete the unit. As such, I'd like to inquire when the cut off date is for withdrawing without penalty. Also, if I do withdraw, do I have to complete my remaining unit this year or or can I resume studies in 2007?

To: Me
The deadline to withdraw from semester 1 units without financial or academic penalty is 31 March. Another option you might like to consider is to intermit (defer) for either semester 1 or for 2006. This way you can keep your place within the course. If you wish to do this, the deadline is also 31 March. If you wish to intermit semester 1 after that date you will liable for the tuition fees. Please let me know if you wish to intermit and I can complete the paperwork on your behalf and forward it to Student Administration for processing.

To: Faculty of Arts, Postgraduate Student Support Centre
Thanks so much for your prompt response. After considering your advice, I will defer for this year and resume in semester 1 2007. Thanks so much for your help.

Then I told Pinny about my decision via MSN:
P: i think u will be very busy w the baby
S: i only have ONE unit to complete to GRADUATE. how lazy is this!
S: ...and i could finish my dissertation before the baby is due in may
S: ...could.... should....
S: ...but WON"T!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
P: ...but u can write nice blogs
Q.E.D.

Grumblezzzzzzz

I don't know why but sleep has been eluding me.

For a very long time now, I haven't been able to sleeeeep, as in really SLEEP. Like when your brain and body gets swaddled tight in a deep, dark, comfy coccoon... which then cracks open at just the right time, to leave you all refreshed and energetic... And you float as light as a feather through the day...

Well, 'tis but a distant memory.

Last night for example, I went to bed at 11pm but my mind kept on clicking over - mostly about nothing - till almost 2. Then when D woke up at 6.30am for work, PING! I woke up too.

Very frustrating.

So each morning I wake up with a pseudo hang-over, very sad b'coz I don't even have the pleasure of spending the night before indulging in some bubble trouble.

To make matters worse, I have a neck crink on the right.

Nice.

As you can tell, I'm all grumpy.