Valencia Oranges

It had been so long since I last blogged that I’ve actually forgotten what my admin password is. It took me nearly 3 tries before I managed to get it right. It had been a hectic one month with me falling sick for nearly 33 days, followed by my dearest baby. I had never spent so much on the been to the doctors as many times as I had for the past one month. 4 trips trying to get myself better medicine each time and twice for my baby. It’s really no joke being sick. You feel like a battery that can never be recharged no matter how hard you try. It’s especially worst when the hubby had to work till so late every night on his events. Before I got married and having a baby, sleeping to me is a waste of time. I will rather finish a book or go shopping. I can never understand how some people can sleep their day away.

Now, 19 months into motherhood, I can fully understand. The hubby always ask me why I always look so listless and tired. I really can’t give an explanation why. Not that I do not know the reason, but I feel bad saying that it’s because I’ve been looking after our baby round the clock. I do not like the feeling of blaming Sheryl when it’s not her fault. But all the “sleeplessness ” has really taken a toll on my body. I used to be able to recover from flu in 3 days, 4 the max. Now I need 33 days. It’s really no joke when we slept at 9.30pm and I having to wake up at 12am to make sure that she is covered with blanket, 3am to make milk, 5am before I can get back to sleep, wake up at 6.30am to work, make her milk at 7am, leave the house at 7.30am to take bus, reached home at 7.45pm, a 10 min dinner with Sheryl on my lap most of the time and bathing her at 8.30pm. By this time, I’m nearly left with 10% of battery life. Not forgetting, after bathing her and before she sleep, I have to be her story teller and her playmate. And this cycle will repeat and repeat till I get a day off or two when she’s at my mum’s place.

People had told my my face look bloated and I really can’t understand why I continued to put on weight and look so puffy despite not able to sleep and eat well. I’m really clueless about this. People had been telling me how they had lost weight after taking care of their baby. I became shagged and sick instead. I really can’t understand how some mother can look so fresh everytime they go out. There are so much things to worried about. I worried about what Sheryl might be eating when I am at work, are the food fresh and warm? I wonder if she had her mid morning and afternoon naps, I wonder if there’s anyone making sure she’s not playing near the stairs, did anyone wash her up after her meals and did anyone noticed her soiled diapers? All these thoughts are running though my mind the whole day except when she is at my mum’s place. But unfortunately, she can’t be at my mum’s place all the time since my mum has a really bad back and my in laws are trying their best with so many children at home. I also know that the mother’s love to her child cannot be delegated. I can’t expect others to care as much as I care about Sheryl. So people, pls be kind on your words. I know I don’t look the best as before but I am really trying my best. 

To the hubby, I know you are tired from your work and I truely appreciate you trying your best to “off-load” some of my duties (but I was really pissed when you decided to go drinking and leave me alone with baby especially when she’s down with a fever!) . But I really need time to get fully recharged and although the chicken essence does help, they are not magic potion. I need time to “recover”. Aside from this, it’s another 11 days before we are off to Brisbane for the next 1.5 year. Hopefully things will get better! Hmm.. it had been so long since I had a nice and romantic dinner and evening with the hubby. I guess It’s not going to happen anytime soon till Sheryl is 3 when we are back from Brisbane?! 

Does people spend more at the end of the year? I can’t agree more. Darlin had to spend close to 2K within the last one month? First, it was us, falling sick after one another. That means medical fees - $200. Just a week ago, I stepped on my trusty spec and it breaks into two. I could have saved it IF it was Sheryl stepping on it but well, I’m sure you know what is the state of the spec when I stepped on it. Another - $300 from darlin’s pocket.

And last came the big ticket item. My stupid acer laptop died on me. The screen just went white and I couldn’t even save anything out from it. Darlin had to get me a Toshiba laptop and what does it means? Another - $1400 from darlin’s pocket.

That’s why I say, christmas came early, for me, not darlin.

I highly suspect the current flu carries a new strain! Daddy Ang had been sick for almost 5 days! I was sick for almost 5 days too. You know how the doctor always give you extra pain killer and anti swell medicine and most of the time we will just take some and leave the rest aside. This time round i had to  literally finished all my medicine before I actually recovered! and I am not talking about jsut myself. Daddy Ang will usually be well after a night but unfortunately, he’s still pretty much ‘lem beh’ while I am typing this. Almost all the children in my household are down with flu at this moment. oh no!   That partly explains the fact why I’ve not been taking photos recently. How to take pictures when everyone is looking like a ghost zombie!

This is definitely not a good season. The little one was down with fever about a week ago. In her first year, she was pretty healthy and had steered clear of medicine *ok touched wood*. Just barely a year over, she caught the bug. She couldn’t drink well, only manage 2 to 3 ounces 3 times a days and wouldn’t touch any solid food. Most of the time, she just lazed around in bed and couldn’t even bother to come towards us when we were eating. How my heart aches! Just when she got well, I fell sick! How terrible. Had to see the doc last Sunday and there goes the $$. The doctor must have earned big bucks this month consider both baby and I had spent nearly $150 on medicine and consultation. Well, at least I did become better after the medicine. But the not so good news is, now daddy Ang is down with fever. I guess it must be the endless nights of looking after the baby and working the following day that makes the very sleep-deprived daddy ill. Unfortunately, daddy Ang still had to attend some courses today and tomorrow. Jia You daddy!

Anyway, I think it’s partly my fault that Missy Ang fall ill. It’s time to make more nutritious meal for her! I’ve come up with 3 new porridge combi that she has taken a liking for. Ham and carrot P, Chicken liver and cucumber and eggy fish porridge. Hope the flu season will be over soon!

…her equally happy parents.

Both hubby and I thought it will be a good idea to bring baby for a dip since it’s kinda warm these few days. Bought a big float, a swimsuit and a pair of arm bands for our dearest daughter and off we went to the pool!

Dipping in the pool with my little Sheryl. Pls excuse my gigantic arms ok..
Daddy Ang was not in the pool for obvious reason. He was kept very busy snapping pic of us at the side of the pool.

Some random pics taken by Daddy Ang

 
My drooling baby on the bumbo seat..we did not buy it cos daddy Ang was worried that his dearest daughter thighs will get stuck at the opening!

Daddy Ang and Baby Ang were shopping while mummy went to a luncheon

Taken in MIL’s room. Don’t know why but my baby seems to get a kick from sucking her pacifier upside down!

2 Missing posts. I don’t understand how the posts just went missing. The thought of having to rewrite everything simply annoys me. Luckily after some ’searching’ thru the archive, I found the post. The timestamp on the post were all wrong. How did it happen?! However, all the pics were gone and I had to relink them. Argh..hope it won’t happen again. What a waste of my time!

Anyway, brought baby to have her 4th month injection (2nd dose of DTP) yesterday. Seems that baby knew the injection was coming. She was screaming as soon as she saw the doctor. Perviously, when we visited the doctor, we never have this problem. Hmmm…

Something for me to remember,

During birth 
Weight : 3.48kg
Length : 50cm
Head Cir: 36cm

1st month
Weight : 4.76kg
Length : 59cm
Head Cir : 38cm

2nd month
Weight : 5.7kg
Length : not measured
Head : not measured

3rd month
Weight : 6.32kg
Length : 63.5cm
Head : 41.5cm

4th month
Weight : 6.72kg
Length : not measured
Head : not measured

Not much weight gain there…:(

On another note, I realised I haven’t post any pic of my botak baby.

Ok I know..I look like a complete auntie with my messy hair and my “too loose’ specs…

Just realised that I have neglected Sheryl’s daddy in my blog. So here’s a pic of daddy and Sheryl to make up for it.

Unshaven Darlin trying to get Sheryl to pose

Sheryl prefers looking at the crowds than mummy

On a random note, 

I’ve always try to post only pics of Sheryl looking in her best. That takes alot of energy cos to take one nice shot, I’ve to take many many shots. I guess it’s time I post some not so nice pic of her! haha..Don’t blame mummy ok!

The “question mark” look

and I realised Sheryl loves her cot mobile (thanks to Eileen). She can watch it goes round and round for an hour!

Qiang kor and Melissa commented that Sheryl is daddy’s girl.

I guess you can either try imagining Sheryl’s daddy without teeth or Sheryl having some teeth.

Do you say yes?

It’s the 3rd day of 2009 already and I realised I hadn’t made any resolution!

hmm..anyway, let me look back at 2008. 2008 was a very different year for me. I got married (ok..I know that was dec 2007!) and become Mrs Ang. I gave birth to Sheryl in November 2008. I changed job. To be fair, I do like my previous job alot but I simply couldn’t stand the long hours and my 2 superiors. One only know how to talk and the other one is worse. However, giving birth to Sheryl was a great experience and it somehow change my priorities in life. I guess baby and hubby is on the top of the list now. I no longer had the urge to splurge and i don’t mind staying at home just to talk and sing to baby. If given a choice, I will definitely choose to be a stay at home mum. There’s so many things that we mother and daughter can do together. However, given the current economy situation, I guess it’s wiser for me to continue working to save for a rainy day.

Ok, so what’s for 2009? .. I hope..

1. Baby, darlin and all my loved ones to be healthy
2. A smooth sailing career for darlin
3. Pay rise
4. Darlin to spend more time with baby and myself
5. Darlin and me can own a property

Of course there’s a heap of things that I  to wantwish for but I shan’t be greedy.  These five will do, really.

It’s amazing how time flies! I still remember the day I went to the KKH’s delivery suite..lying there for almost 10 hours and welcoming the birth of Sheryl. And…Sheryl is almost 5 weeks old now. It’s really nice to have the opportunity to stay at home and witness Sheryl’s growth. She has grown so much since day 1. Even at week 5, she has changed and learned so much and had already a personality of her own.

How about me? My day revolves around bathing her, feeding her, patting her to sleep, changing her nappy and soothing her. It’s really a rountine but I’m loving it. Somtimes it can be pretty frustrating, espcially when she refused to sleep at night. There are times where I’ve to carry her in my arms (she’s now almost 5kg!) from 11pm till 4am so that she will sleep. And just before you think you can go off to slumberland, it’s milk milk time for her! New mummies can really be deprived of sleep! Daddies too are not let off. I wonder if all babies are the same but Sheryl likes to give out a loud cry (and she went back to sleep) suddenly in the middle of the night. I guess it must be her having a nightmare (..of her not getting her milk milk?). Both darlin and I will be jolted up from our sleep only to realise that she is sleeping soundly again. Wah..seems like a alot of complaints eh?! haha..of cos not. At the end of the day, with her looking at us with her innocent eyes and smile…all are forgotten.

Ok now for some pictures..

 
Sheryl’s 1st month visit to the paediatrician to get her 2nd dose of Hep B jab. And yes, the doc is balancing her on his palm. haha..I think she was scared of falling and so was sitting very still.

Sheryl napping on my shoulders. She loves this.

Confinement auntie carrying her while her yeye cuts her hair to mark her 1st month.

Sheryl’s holding joss sticks and praying to the god. I find this pic really funny. I think she was half sleeping and praying.

Tummy time for Sheryl.

I’m a small small girl on a big big bed…

Sheryl’s napping in her cot

Sheryl’s first swimming lesson

I trying to teach Sheryl’s how to kick. I was told by the shop people that all babies know how to swim since they have already been swimming for nearly 8 months (8 cos the first mth she’s still a ball of cell mah…)

Sheryl’s getting a massage to soothe her colic pain. So shiok! I also want!

 
Oh ya, I realised I haven’t blogged about my confinement food. This was taken on the last day of my confinement. I was eatting half way when I remembered that I hadn’t took any of my diet for that month.

Broccoli with mushroom, carrots, scallop and pork

Stewed pork rib with herbs

Pig stomach with pork rib soup. Commonly known as Zu Du Tang

..ok till next time. It’s time to attend to baby Sheryl again!

Seeing how enthu I’ve been posting up photos of our baby, the hubby has decided to get me a new phone! I love the red Sony Ericsson C902 and have been eyeing it since its launch. Of cos.. being the “non gadgety” me I was very attracted by the 5MP cybershot camera and tell me…who could resist when it comes in lucious red?

Thanks darlin! More photos will be up soon!

Confinement is good and can be rather unhealthy. haha…My meals consists mainly of tonic, pork, innards, meat, meat, meat and MORE meat. Drink is always longan tea and more longan tea but I’m not complaining because, that’s what I do everyday. Eat.

Darlin has been such a wonderful hubby and daddy. From the moment I was admitted till now, darlin has been taking care of my every need. When I was warded, he was there to cover my blanket for me, poured me water, helped me to the toilet, feeding the baby (ok, not breastfeeding la), changing the diaper, soothing the baby and monitoring the baby. And what did I do, I was just lying on the bed with the TV remote control on my hand.

When I was discharged, basically I just sit on a wheelchair and darlin pushed me all the way to the car. Of cos we didn’t forget the baby la. My mother was basically glued to her. My in laws were really nice and were at home and ready to welcome baby Sheryl when I reached home. But ta da now the challenge came, I have to climb 3 storey up to my bedroom. I guess I will be upstair for one month…Anyway the confinement lady is coming the next day. so……..that’s to say we have to survive the first night by ourselves!

First night, baby cried and cried. I guess the reality of being a mum still have not set in. I just lay there and don’t  know how to react. That’s when..SUPER DADDY TO THE RESCUE! Darlin seems to experienced and calm. He changed the diaper, clean the baby when she cried, carry her and ….. I felt so ashamed. I didn’t even dare to carry her till she’s llike 1 day old? Darlin did not even blame me and instead consoled me. teling me it’s alright. I just have to learn slowly. When baby got jaundice, darlin was the one to bring her to the paediatric, the hospital for blood test and sunning her every morning. Basically darlin did everything except breastfeeding and delivering the baby.

Frankly speaking, I will not be able to cope without the support of darlin.Luckily his office was kind enough to grant him one week leave.

Thank you darlin. You are our everything!  

 We have decided. 5th Nov 2008 shall be the date.

2am - Checked in to Delivery Suite at KKH with darlin
3am - Nurse arranged me to be in one of the room and checked my temperature, bp and most importantly bb’s heartbeat. Inserted a pressary to start the induction. Pain score was still zero as I felt no contraction and thus was wheeled back to the ward.
4am - The contractions started and I tried to bear with it thinking that it will be over soon. It starts off like really bad menses cramp and soon I was curling up. Called the nurse and was wheeled back to delivery suite. Was given pentidine in the thigh. I was about 2cm dilated.
10am - Wow, I knocked out till around 10am. Woke up for breakfast but I was not in the mood for anything. Darlin finished my breakkie. haha…By then I was 3cm dilated. Siao liao.. I was told that the dilation is about 1 cm per hour. In some case, the cervix won’t even get dilated and a 2nd or 3rd dose might be required. I did a mental calculation and figured I might have to wait till 5pm to get fully dilated. At this point, I could also felt my mucos plug coming out. Dr Han came in and broke my waterbag. The whole bed was nearly flooded!
11am - Darlin left me for home to pack up the house and moved some furniture. The moving of furniture was put off until my pregnancy since the old folks believe that no shifting of furniture is allow when I’m around. At the same time, the Dr and nurse offered me the option of epidural. Being the “no pain tolerance” me, I immediately agreed. I salute those mum who can survive delivery without epidural. My contraction is now 4 to 5 cm. Good progress the doctor says.
12pm – I managed to relax a while after the epidural. I was getting impatient and kept myself occupied by watching the USA election on the TV. Dr Han comes in and informed me that by the time the American announced their elected president, I will be ready to give birth! Haha….Dilation is now 6 to 7 cm. The midwife starts preparing the apparatus.
1pm – The midwife checked my dilation. Wow it’s now 8 to 9cm! Midwife Linda says I’m ready and she gave a call to darlin. I overheard their conversation and I reckoned darlin is already along Bukit Timah Road.
1.30pm – I heard darlin’s footstep! What a relief when I saw darlin. The midwife instructed darlin to help support my head and neck and 1…2….3….PUSH! I must have used the wrong techniques to push. My face was all red but baby doesn’t seems to be coming down!
2pm – Dr Han came in and tried asking me to push. I was exhausted. At 2.15pm Dr Han gave a warning. He gave me 5 more min cos baby’s heartbeat was dropping from 150bpm to 120bpm. This must have gave darlin a big scare! I tried pushing with all my might but somehow the epidural seems to numb my legs so much that I don’t feel the baby coming out at all. Dr Han told me he has to use the forcep to “giak” the baby out since I seems to have to have no more strength to push. That was the longest 5 min of my life. With one big breath, I gave a big big push. Finally at close to 2.40pm, the medical team congratulated darlin and me and I could hear our baby crying. That was a huge relief! I asked De Han confirm it’s a girl right? Haha.. He showed me the baby and the what follows I can vaguely remember. I just remember Dr Han stitching away and I was very very sleepy.

Anyway, welcome to the world, Sheryl Ang Jia Xuan.

Week 1 to 3 : Normal. CNY Period!
Week 4 : Experienced implantation bleeding
Week 5 : Missed menses. Tested, result positive. Went to Gynae, Dr HC HAN at ‘The Private Suite’ at KKH. Doctor advise not to lift heavy goods and stay stress free. No pineapple, coconut and cold water. Appetite started to decrease. Start disliking food that I’ve njoyed before (exp, mushroom, fish etc…). Slight spotting. Supplement given : Folic Acid 5mg, Vit B6 and Dydrogestron 10mg (An tai yao?)
Week 6 : Still no appetite. Went for 2nd appt with Dr Han. Slight spotting from previous week was in fact old blood. Saw baby heart beating. Blinking light on the machine. Baby was 6w4d, measuring 7.5mm. Edd 14th Nov 2008. No morning sickness. However, felt sick int he stomach almost at 5.30pm everyday.
Week 7& 8 : Still no appetite. Went Japan for honeymoon. Was so tired throughout the trip. Felt so cold at Disney Sea! Darlin comtemplating buying bibs but he asked me..so “Mickey or Minnie?”. hehehe…
Week 9 : Appetite slightly better. Heavy discharge from week 7 onwards.
Week 11 : Went to Dr Han for check up. The baby head, hands and legs can be seen! So cute!
Week 12 : Went to do the routine Fetal Screening. I guess most pregnant ladies had went thru this. Didn’t know that I have to keep my bladder full before the screening. Ended up having to dunk a bottle of water after seeing the doc. Went in for the 2nd time and again, baby is notti and kept tossing around and hence I have to wait for the bladder to be fuller in order for the doc to see a clearer pic. Went in to see the doc the 3rd time and doc assess if baby is healthy by measuring the nuchal translucency and also to check the presence of the nasal nose. Doc Kenneth Kwek did an assessment and everything seems alright. Low risk and rate was 1 in 2000. Did the blood test and combined result was 1 in 1675. We are both glad that the result looks good. By the way, baby is 5.5 cm long. hehehe..
Week 14 : Went to Dr Han for the monthly check up. Baby is now 9.1cm. However, bb very lazy and was all curled up in a ball. Only managed to see the bb spine clearly and the heart ppumping at 160 per min. Doc advised to have more meat as the BP is a tad low.
Week 18 : For another round of scanning. According to the sonagrapher, this is to make sure that all of bb’s vital organs are working well. Had a glimpse of bb’s face, feet, heart and even the internal organs. the wonders of technology!The sonagrapher mentioned that evertything looks alright and …. bb is a girl! Darlin says bb looks has his pointed face! mo
Week 20 : Leg cramp! I was screaming away in the morning. The pain is unbearable.
Week 23 : Saw Dr Han again. Informed Dr about the constipation problem. Given Lactus to be eaten on the evening. Hopefully the prob will go away. Baby is getting bigger. We saw bb’s cute butt and legs kicking thru the ultrasound machine. hehe… However, I was advised by doc that I have gained too much weight since last check up. 3kg!! So have to cut down on carbs and sweet stuff..
Week 27 : I gained only 300g! So cutting down on rice and no ice-cream does help! hehe…Everything looks okay at the ultrasound machine. Since i’ve going towards the 30th to 40th week. I will be seeing Dr Han every 3 weeks instead of 4. On another note, baby fair was on at Taka. Went and shopped with mummy and mummy bought so many clothings for bb! hehehe…
Week 30 : Gained 1.3kg. oops… must be the occasional brownies and ice-cream I’ve been feeding baby. Baby is about 2kg now! I informed Dr Han that I still had a slight yellowish/greenish discharge and he did two swab test. That cost darlin almost $80! I thought yeast infection is common among pregnant mum. In this case, the hospital must have earned alot. Dr Han didn’t even informed me the price before he do it leh! haha.. But I guess, at the back of his head he must be thinking, if you are seeing doc at The Private Suite, you should be able to afford lah. haha..Got a call two days later. Nothing serious, it is in fact yeast infection and I was told to insert the Isoconazole ovule for 7 days! Eh, each pill cost around $8 leh!! Argh!! On another note, KKH reminded us that it’s time to pay to secure a bed. Estimated bill size was $3180 to $4450 for a Single bedded Class Ward (Senior Consultant). Part of it can be deducted from the Medisave Maternity Package though (phew!). I guess all these cannot be saved lah.. And single bedded ward also means that darlin will be with me throughout the stay!
Week 31 : Between the the last and this week baby seems to have a growth spurt! haha.. I can feel the very distinct kicks from bb especially just below my rib cage (where her legs are). Sometimes in the night, I can almost feel my whole tummy vibrating.. so strong that when darlin put his hand over my tummy, he can feel it too. Bb..bb..what’s in your mind whole day?
Week 32 : Dr Han says that bb is now almost 2.4kg! Fat bb! haha… Average size is around 2.1kg according to him. Bb estimated delivery date has been bought forward by a week and will be around 3.6kg to 3.8kg when delivered. For myself, I’ve gained 10kg so far and doc says it’s still within normal range. However, a not so good news, I developed piles . I know it’s common during pregnancy, it is not life threatening but it’s extremely unpleasant.
Week 33 : Went back to Dr Han. The pain was unbearable. He referred me to TTSH A&E. Went to the A&E but the doc on duty don’t think that a surgery is recommended. Instead he suggested that he will push the ‘thing’ back into the rectum. My gosh. I still shivered at the thought. It was extremely painful. I was shaking and grabbing the side of the hospital bed when he did it. I think the whole process took about 3 min but it feels like 30min. The doc says just take it as a preparation for childbirth. Gosh I don’t want to go thru it again. By the way, baby is about 2.6kg! She put on 0.2kg in just about 5 days!!!
Week 35 : Saw Dr Han again. Not much complaint except about my leg swell prob. He mentioned it’s normal and I will feel better if I pop up my legs with pillow before I sleep. My mum told me the same thing too. Hope the swell will go down soon. My ankle feels so thick! Dr Han also measured my aminotic fiuld and he mentioned I have a good amount of that. So he don’t expect any induced labour. By the way, baby is about 2.7kg! hehe..
Week 37 : Changed to a Saturday appt. Gosh. The Private Suite is so packed on weekend. Told Dr Han that I often felt breathless and a bit light headed after going to the toilet. My limbs also get tired easily. He says all these are normal cos of water retention and the weight on my tummy. Checked bb. Bb has engaged and I might give birth by the next two weeks. As usual, bb gained weight and is now 3kg. Fat bb! haha.. For myself, I’ve gained 14kg since the start! On another note, the stretch marks on my tummy are so darn itchy!
Week 38 : Dr Han checked for dilation and NO dilation at all. Anyway, I thought it will be painful but not so painful la! I’m been scaring myself. haha.. Baby is approx 3.3kg and I ask doc when can I give birth. Dr gave me the option of induction and say I can admit myself anytime when I feel like it. I ..was like er…. I am in quite a delimma actually. Of cos I would want the normal way of feeling contraction and my waterbag burst and then proceed from there BUT what if bb gets too big and I can’t deliver??? At this rate, bb is gonna be 4kg by the time I am in 40th week. Will bb be too cramped inside? What if bb gets too big and I have to go for c-sect last min? Hmm..troubled! On another note, I’ve gained less then 200g since last week.