Friends, Relatives & Pressies Abound!!

My stay at TMC was a lovely one. The nurses at the Labour Ward were fab and gave me constant encouragement during my long labour. However, the nurses on the floor were a tab disappointing, maybe cos I was given a room on the children's floor and not the maternity ward as they ran out of rooms. The food was good too!

(left - Mum, me and my lovely nieces, Claire & Sarah)

(Above, left to right - David's mom, Daniel & Cindy, David's Aunty)

(left - Sarah & Claire)

Thanks to all who brought us well wishes, gifts and ang pows!!! Yipee!! Haha, I sure do sound like a greedy mummy!

(left) A collection of some of the gifts.. couldn't capture all.

(below) Gifts from Norway

A Collage of Kimi's Birth Images

Its funny how you can never get enough of looking at your baby - he is perfect!!

Welcome to the World, Kimi - A Day of FIRSTS!!

Birth Details :-

Birth Date : 17 January 2007

Birth Time : 8.46pm

Kimi’s weight : 3.405kg

Length : 50cm
Head circm : 34cm

(Above) Kimi just after birth - FIRST PIX

(left to right)
1) At the weighing station - FIRST WEIGHING,
2) Being cleaned up - FIRST CLEAN-UP

(left to right)

1) A clean happy boy! - FIRST SMILEY PIX

2) FIRSTcuddle with baby & FIRST PIX WITH MUMMY!

(left) FIRST family portrait








(left) FIRST day @ hospital

My Birth Story

(left to right) - Birth Room, Me just laid down after pre-birth preparations before the onset of contractions









8:55pm Proceed to labour ward.

9:20pm Gynae arrives and checks cervix, still 2cm. Next thing I know, feel gush of warm fluid rushing out. Asked gynae did he just break my water. Thought he was going to insert pessary for inducement. However, gynae said no need to induce, break water and let labour start. Well, ok …

10:10pm Proceed to birth room 3 to wait out. Quickly msg hb to come to keep me company.

10:30pm First feel of contractions. Bearable. Let it pass.

11:00pm Contractions are FINALLY coming hard and fast! Breathing exercises, tahan tahan.

12:00mn Contractions driving me nuts. Gasp for etonox. Gas making it worse. Decides not to use it. Doesn’t help much too. Concentrate on breathing exercises, yet again.

12:20am Situation not too good. With every contraction, finding it harder and harder to breathe. Can feel lungs starting to wheeze – asthma acting up. Shaking from the pain too. Hb asks me to take epidural and not to tahan anymore. I told him never mind, I want to try to tahan.

12:45am I finally throw in the towel! Cannot risk elevating my blood pressure too and decides not to be hero. Hb quickly informs nurse to call for anaesthetist.

01:15am Epidural administered.

06:10am Goodness!! After so many hours, only another 1cm dilated making it 3cm. I thought with epidural, dilation would come swiftly! I was so wrong!

07:45am Still 3cm dilated. Epidural wearing out. Feeling the pain. Where’s the nurse?? What happened? I thought not supposed to feel pain? Not sure, ask nurse. Nurse said supposed to feel some pain. But such piercing pain?? Why then should I spend money for epidural to feel pain. Agitated. Want to speak with Anaesthetist to confirm.

09:45am Gynae came. Some improvements – 4 to 5cm dilated. Phew!

10:00am Put on drip to increase contractions. But epidural wearing thin and am already on max, how?? Never mind, Anaesthetist coming later.

11:50am Still 5cm dilated.

12:00pm Shaking and vomited a large bowl of water and gastric juice. Getting worried as baby’s heartbeat dips whenever I get a contraction. Nurse contacts gynae. Gynae said not to worry and continue with stepping up of the drip.

01:00pm Anaesthetist drops by to check on me. Apparently, the 2nd shift nurse did not follow her instructions hence I had to endure painful contractions. Dr Tan gave nurse an earful. She then explained to me that I should not feel any pain and she also didn’t want me to feel any pain so that I would not be stressed and have my BP elevated. She said I should only feel pressure not pain. Ok, understood. Dr Tan then instructed the nurse to use the new vial of stronger painkiller when the current one finishes.

02:15pm Gynae comes by again and increases drip as he says that contraction not strong enough to push baby out.

03:11pm Senior midwife comes along, checks my cervix - 6 to 7cm dilated and confirms that baby is facing outwards instead of the normal back to front. Cervix also a little swollen as baby head/face is ‘stuck’, difficult to move down. This explains the super long and painful labour. Never mind, I will endure. How long also never mind as long as baby is ok and I don’t need a c-sect.

05:20pm I am so tired, thirsty and hungry. Gynae is here again to check on me. Gosh! Still 6 to 7cm dilated. Gynae breaks the news that if I still can’t dilate or make any progress by 7 to 8pm, I will have to go for c-sect.

06:00pm Frantic. Don’t want to go c-sect after enduring all these. Intermittently, asks for direct epidural shots as feeling the sharp pains again. Realised that the nurse still using the old vial. I asked her why didn’t she changed yet and she said there are still some left. Told her, to change it immediately as I can’t be bothered to finish the old one as not effective enough! Duh?? At this stage, still bother to be so economical and endeavour to finish one before using another meh??

At this time, I am feeling as if someone is tearing me apart and breaking everything below my waist and as if my pelvis has exploded!

06:05pm Start to pray and use Mrs Wong’s deep relaxation method as I can’t sleep although I’m so tired.

07:45pm Waiting for American Idol to come on, hope to watch so can take my mind off. Nurse walks in and checks my cervix - 8 to 9cm dilated and baby very low already - great!! She then asks me to try pushing. Ok, prop up everything. Teaches me how to push and away I went. We did 3 sets of 3 pushes. Nurse said I could push very well and asked hb to come to the front to see baby’s hair as I pushed.

08:30pm Gynae arrives and prepares all his stuff.

08:46pm Gave 3 pushes. On 3rd push, Kimi was on my chest! Delivered in 5 mins assisted with vacuum.

So glad and thankful that I could go the natural way. The pushing and delivering was easy but the wait from 1cm to 10cm was agonising!! My total labour hours – 22+ hours not including the time I checked in!!


So was it worth it? YES!! Especially when I called out to Kimi while he was on the warming table and he turned to my voice direction and SMILED!!!

Hi, I'm Back!

After a super long hiatus, I'm back ! I hope that I can start blogging now that Kimi is more settled.

Before I start rambling again, my birth story as promised will be up in the next post.

39 Weeks Today and Inducing Tonight!!!

Just came back from Dr Gordon's ... finally, we will be seeing some action... My cervix has softened, baby is engaged and am 2cm dilated!!!

Hence, we have decided not to continue the waiting game and will check in to the hospital tonight to induce baby.

I'm all excited, nervous and scared rolled in 1. Going to get some rest now and will share my birth story later!

Officially A Giraffe!

I am 38 Weeks 3 days today and am officially a GIRAFFE!!!

Went for another round of check-up at Dr Gordon's. Again, he didn't want to check my cervix for dilation. He also said according to the scan machine, I am due on 15/1/07... wow! that's a few days more, I'm so excited!

Hence, he advised that if our little one still do not come by next week, I will have to be induced next Friday, 19/1/07. He hopes that I will go into labour the next few days ... ok, let's pray that there will be some actions over the weekend, else it's back to Gordon's clinic on Tues!!

The Waiting Game Has Begun ...

Guess Kimi has other plans - he wants to choose when to arrive in style?? Or is he too comfy in mummy's tum-tum??

Dr Gordon has decided that we need not induce as the amniotic fluid level and placenta is holding up well so it's best we wait it out. But I have to increase BP medication dosage as BP still high. But good news is that baby may come early next week! So let's keep all our fingers and toes crossed!

Hence the waiting game has begun and there goes my hope of having a 11/1/07 baby!!

Will update after check-up on Friday.

Unripe Cervix

Went for check-up today to see if cervix is ready for induce on 10/1 but unfortunately... it is tightly closed! Sigh... Have to see Dr Gordon again on Tues to check the next move.. Hopefully by next week, cervix would have ripen and we can bear our fruit of labour - Kimi!!!

36 Weeks and Counting

I am 36 weeks today! How time flies yet again!!!

Went for check up and Kimi is now approximately 2.6kg! We are very happy that he is growing well and placenta is also holding up well too.

My cervix has not dilated so our fears are abated. Have to see Dr Gordon next week, 4/1/07. As my cervix is still closed, he can't confirm if we are going ahead with the induction on 11/1/07. Guess, have to wait & see. Also did the Strep B swab today and to continue with BP medication as BP was not ideal.

Collected my 2 Wish-list Fisher Price mobiles from HB's colleague, Steve today who has kindly helped to lug back for us!! Can't wait to listen to it!!

Oh ya, forgot to thank Julie for giving the Ocean Wonders Aquarium (on the right) as a X'mas present to us and Kimi. Thanks very much again, Julie & Peter!

Busy Bee, X'mas Parties & Pressies !!!

M E R R Y X' M A S !!!
X'mas is finally here!! Ho! Ho! Ho!

Have been busy baking brownies and swiss rolls for the x'mas log the past few days that my legs now resembles elephant leg ... sorry folks, no pix - too shy to even post! hahah!







X'mas Eve
As I was having a popiah party for our small gathering of close friends on the 25th, reckoned I made extra so that we can also have some for x'mas eve at Jen's place. I think I did quite well for a first-timer, keke! Amidst all the celebration, we forgot to take pix of the food, save for the log cake I baked.

I had a real scare today as I started feeling menstrual-like cramps from 8:58pm till about 9:40pm and the pain came in 5-10 mins intervals. Luckily Hb is back and Dr Gordon is back too but it's really still too soon for Kimi to arrive. So I kept telling Kimi to hang in there. Thank God, it was only Braxton-Hicks, Phew!















Above - Me & the girls, see how much they've grown & how tired I looked! Yucks!!
Left - As usual, hovering over the presents when they've almost opened up all of them!!

My dear Hb bought me this lovely leather time-keeper in the shape of a Retriever, I love it!!! So nice right??












X'mas Day
My popiah spread! Alas, NO PIX again as Hb again forgot to snap ... So sad! BUT .... All of us had alot of fun rolling the popiahs, HB in his enthusiam, added too much filling and made a popiah burger instead!! hahah! But got pix of the xmas log I baked though ... complimentary of Charmaine - as usual, she's always thoughtful and meticulous ...














Kimi's First X'mas Pressies
Our lucky baby - his first 3 X'mas presents and he's still happily kicking in my tum tum! One from the girls (Peter Rabbit Song Book), Charmaine (Peter Rabbit Baby Book) and Hb's colleague (Baby Gap Gift Set). Thanks very much everyone! Kimi loves them all and so does mummy!


















Above - Pressie from HB's colleague
Below left to right - From Charmaine, from the girls

Happy Birthday to Me!! Keke!

It's my birthday today but Jen & the girls are not back from the Maldives yet. So very sian for me! Guess, good time for me to rest & relax today.

But good thing Hb came back tonight. He say he will bring me dinner tomorrow night ... Am looking forward to having Still Rd Pepper Crabs.

Look at the lovely card Hb got me! Thanks papa!















Mum & Dad also gave me a lovely card and a big fat ang pow - tks mum, dad!




















UPDATE :
Here's pix to my belated birthday dinner - Shiok!! Such humongous claws and that yummy mee goreng!!! DROOL FOLKS!!! Muhahhaha!!

Happy Anniversary, Papa

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, PAPA !!!

Hun, it's been 13 long years (today) since we've pledged our love to each other and yet it feels like we've just been married, ya?

Guess, this anniversary marks a very important milestone in our marriage as we wait in anticipation for our baby.

We've enjoyed ourselves all too much these years so next year it's not going to be the same ... diapers, night-feeds, sleepless nights, screaming baby ... the list goes on. Brace ourselves, hun! Haha!! But am sure we'll enjoy the journey ya?

Left - My little gift to my dear Hb - so he can read to Kimi and develop a strong bond with our son. Will give this to Hb when he comes home tomorrow.

Kimi's bed covers!

Went to town today to look at some slow-cookers, last minute toilettries shopping, etc. Also collected these cute and lovely bedsheet sets which Charmaine's MIL has helped me to sew. My fave white set with doggie prints are so disappointing as after washing, it looked so old ... Never mind at least my embroidered one is great!! Thank you Charmaine & your MIL!!

Planning to use the embroidered set for Kimi's first use at home.

Also collected these Scholastic books (what apt name??) from Sherl. Need to inculcate good moral values and reading habit in Kimi asap.

Herbs for Mummy-To-Be

Went with mom to buy some of the herbs which I will need for my confinement. It's been raining the whole day and everywhere we went was so crowded ... we spent most of the time just travelling from one place to another as the traffic was horrendous! Guess it's also the 2nd last weekend before X'mas! Yipee!

Today is 11/12/06 !!! Counting Down to 11/1/07

WOW!!! How time flies and it is almost mid Dec! Another month to 11/1/07 - starting to count down already! Both excited as well as overwhelmed ... a new addition to our family and a whole new world of experiences and responsibilities! Starting to get cold feet!

Beginning to miss eating gingerbread ... let's see if I've still some energy left to bake some ... In the mean time, enjoy and drool over last year's gingerbreadman and house! Keke!