Adjustments...

2 nights home now... D's been pretty good. Though he seems rather drowsy, only waking for his feeds every 2-3 hours. The first night, he slept well through the day, and woke every hour at night... the 2nd night, he woke every 2 hours... today, we had some relatives visit, and he was up for 2 whole hours looking around quietly. After which, he promptly fell asleep for 3 hours, and hopefully will be good tonight. 

Thoughts of motherhood 3rd time round? Seems like it does get better and easier with experience. However, this also means you start to take things for granted, and think that you know how, but you've really forgotten how... like breastfeeding, which I did till mei K was 16 months, in June last year... I would have thought that it'd be easy, and I'd know how to handle it... however, I still came home with sore nipples, and still needed that nurses to help me latch him on. So i realised that maybe I'd been doing it wrongly all along??? is that possible? But my milk did come in on day 3... not so wrong after all, right?

The addition to the growing family

So, baby D has finally arrived! Thought I should post about my delivery experience since it's still fresh in my mind. So here's a blow by blow description...

We arrived at Mt Elizabeth Hospital on the 23rd of March at 5am or so... was brought to ward 4B, bed 36, where I was to stay for the next 4 days. The nurses came to do their routine thing at 6am, to prepare me for the elective lower section caesarian section, my third one. The nurse then said that someone from the operating theatre will get me at 7am for my operation scheduled at 730am. So we waited patiently in the room. This being my third one, I had mixed feelings. Firstly, I knew exactly what to expect from the surgery, and the recovery process of it all. However, having experienced the failed epidural the last time made me very nervous, as I wanted daddy K to be able to join me in the OT for our last planned baby. I also remembered how uncomfortable and painful injecting the epidural was, and was totally not looking forward to it. The staff from the OT finally came to get me at 720am... by the time we got down there, the place seemed to be in mayhem. I heard that we were late, there were 3 caesarians scheduled at the same time, and they thought that I had checked in late, as they were told that I was not ready yet... when in fact we were waiting up there for almost an hour!

Well, anyway, the anaesthetist (not the one I had the last time, like I thought) was very reassuring, and was so nice to assure me, and to calm my nerves. She found out about the failed epidural, and went a step extra to add an additional injection in to make sure that it worked this time... yes, which meant that I had 2 injections into the spine (ouch!), but eventually, I couldn't feel anything in my legs soon after. Soon after, I started to shiver (the side effects of the epidural), and daddy K came in to reassure me. However, although I couldn't feel pain/ sharp pricks, I could still feel a hand or some movements happening behind the screen that was put up in front of me. I suddenly had fears that I may still be able to feel the pain of the incision, and with the discomfort of the shivering, I suddenly regretted choosing to go through it under epidural... 

After about 5 mins, with the surgery going on, I calmed down. The fact that daddy K was there to soothe me really helped. Suddenly, the anaesthetist said that the baby was almost out, and that she was going to reach over me and push the baby out. After she did, i heard a very strong, high-pitched cry, and K was asked to stand and see the baby being taken out. As I was being sewn up and all, baby D was taken to the warmer, and was soon after put on my chest for a cuddle and some photos.

My first impression of baby D in the OT is that he is a squealer... and he proved that later on in the ward when he cried! Visitors who have heard him have likened his cry to that of a cat's cry!

The recovery from the OT to the ward was rather uneventful, and I was just eager to see my baby, and start nursing him. I was also eager to start eating again, as I was starving. However, the kind nurses were just so cautious, and insisted that I take drinks only first. Finally they were convinced that I was fine, and I had lunch at 2pm!

The next day, I was ready to get out of bed, and to walk around. The attachments were taken off me, and I felt ready to flee from the confines of the hospital bed. I managed to get out of bed and walk around without as much pain as I remembered from before. 

The next 3 days passed by rather uneventfully, not without the usual pains of breastfeeding. The 2 girls coming to visit in the evenings, not wanting to leave to go home, insisting that I went home with them, or that they sat on the bed with me etc... 

I'm just wary that their excitement to see baby D is short-lived, especially with mei K. We'll have to see how they take to the new addition to the household now that we are home, and when the 'vacation' comes to an end...

7 days and counting.

So it's the first day of the school holidays. But I've sent jie K off to school for the school holiday programme... Still a little unsure if it's the best decision. I compensated for my guilt by signing her up for just 3 days instead of all 5, including 1 day to watch the play Chicken and bear go camping. When I told her last weekend that this week is the school holidays, she said "yay, I don't have to go to school!" Then I had to break it to her that she was still going on 2 days, and 1 day to the play. However, on the other 2 days, we'll do something fun, like going to the bird park, or to the park for a picnic etc. This morning, she woke up really chirpy, and was rather keen on going to school. This mummy though, still has some reservations about school holiday programmes especially for her age. I just console myself that it's necessary for me, otherwise I'll be struggling to keep up with bringing them out, instead of resting in this last week before D-day. 

That brings me to why I wanted to write this post... I've been having this strange urges to want to clean up the house, pack up the baby things, go out to buy more baby things in preparation for next week when D comes home. However, I know that I need to rest, especially since I've been feeling the strong tightenings, and my gynae thinks that I'm doing too much. I'm in such a dilemma. Perhaps the theory of 'nesting' before one goes into labour is really true... but mine is really planned... so not really true 'nesting syndrome'.

The weekend that's just past is just an indication of how much I've been trying to do with the family before I pop. Saturday, K brought the girls to watch Disney on ice. Great time for me to have my me-time! I had the first undisturbed nap in a very long time! After they returned, I cooked, and then went swimming, then went bowling at the club, and then out for dinner. Sunday after church, we decided to bring the dog to the beach at Sentosa for a swim to help with her skin problems... so, 2 girls, dog, daddy and heavily preggers mummy all went to the beach! Talk about feeling like a beached whale... that's really all I could manage, just waiting to bathe and change the kids after their swim. But we all had fun... that's the whole point of it, isn't it? 

Today will possibly be my last gynae appointment before D-day. I'm praying that the baby has put on sufficient weight. Last saturday, at 36 weeks, baby was only 2.5kg, having put on 0.1kg in 2 weeks! The only consolation was that I also didn't put on any weight:) So this week, I've been loading up on durian, and more protein filled food, in my last ditch attempt to get his weight up to at least 3kg at birth. 

Yesterday, my mum's helper was officially transferred to us, much to my relief. However, being the only one in this house who has grown up with a live-in helper, I think there'll be a period of adjustment for the rest of the household, especially since she'll be sleeping in the same room as the girls, for lack of space in our apartment that's quickly running out of space... For my MIL who is so used to doing the cleaning, laundry etc, she'll surely feel like she's "out of a job", especially since I feel that these 'acts of service' is really her way of speaking her love language. for my FIL, who is such a private person, I wonder if he'll feel like it's an invasion of his privacy, or if he'll just cope by staying out of the house more than he already does! Of course there's the helper, who might feel like she's just moved out of a place where she had her own room, and lots of space to just do her own thing, to a place where she has to share everything with someone. (including the toilet which the dog has been trained to use.)  So, lots of prayer is needed. I ask the Lord to watch over this household, that there'll be peace, understanding and tolerance amongst all who live here. 

Head count: 5 adults, 2 children and 1 infant to come soon!

Lord help us...

3 weeks to D-day...

Wow! I can't believe that the month of February has gone by, without me putting in a single post! Gee... where has time gone? On the one hand, I'd like it to slow down so that I can enjoy the company of my girls more before the little one comes along. But on the other, I'm just feeling like a beached whale that I can't wait to get the weight off me (literally!). 

I've started to feel gradually more and more tired. the days that I don't work seem to be even more tiring, though I get help from being at my parents' place, and I often get to take an afternoon nap... however, all that lazing around seems to make me even more tired and lethargic... yet, when I'm at work for anything more than 4 hours, I'm just too pooped at the end of it to function properly... Plus, my feet and back starts to hurt from all the standing and walking... no good. 

As time draws near to the day of the prince's arrival, I'm starting to feel a little nervous about the whole c-section thing all over again. With jie K, it was an emergency section. So I didn't really have much time to think or worry about it. With mei K, it was planned. I was kind of nervous, but yet confident, thinking that I knew what to expect with the epidural section. However, things were not to turn out the way I had planned... the epidural administered actually FAILED! It didn't dull any of my senses at all! So with the hubby waiting outside to some in to keep me company, I had to decide to go under GA to take the baby out... Oh what a horrid feeling I had in me, not being able to tell K what was going to happen.(though the anaesthetist did do that) I woke up so drowsy, and I had trouble keeping awake for the rest of the day (the op was at 8am). I also had a super sore throat from being intubated while under GA, which lasted for most of my 3 nights in the hospital. I only regained my voice the day I was discharged. K later told me that he was kind of worried about the surgery, and was afraid that something might have gone wrong. But thank God that all went well. 

This time, I thought I'd be comfortable making the decision of going with a 3rd c-section since it's the only way I know. Something familiar, nothing too unexpected. Even as I write this, the Lord is telling me that it's something  that I have yet to submit to Him. I now know that only when I do this, will I have peace in my heart to know and trust that all will be well. I pray that the epidural will work this time, so that K can stay in with me throughout. Leaving it all in the hands of God..... that's the only way I really should know. 

Meanwhile, we wait for D-day... the Braxton-Hicks contractions have been getting stronger, and slightly painful... Doc has given me some meds to lessen the contractions, since I'm now only 35.5 weeks. Perhaps it's also God's way of telling me to slow down... not try to squeeze in so many things... just to rest... Rest in the Lord...

Happy Lunar New Year!

Wow! The month has just flown by! Thought I might just squeeze in a post on the last day of the month! Phew... the last week has just been the best one since we've been back. A 4 day weekend, followed by a 3 day work week. (for them of course... not me.) Daddy K has been in one of his most relaxed state of mind since work started for him, though I'm anticipating that the next week and many more to follow will just engulf him again, and we'll 'lose' him to that 'other' world. 

Chinese New Year has been great! Albeit tiring, too much visiting and feasting... but I think the girls have just enjoyed themselves, as they are now starting to understand what traditions are involved in CNY. 

Mei K turns 2 in 9 days time, just in time for the 15th day of  CNY or chap gor mei. As usual, the family will be having our customary lotong chap gor mei at our house. However, this lazy, tired mummy has decided to piggy-back on these celebrations, and use it for the K's bday with just a cake. Wonder if I'm just being smart in trying to save all the hassle, or if I'm really depriving her of a party?! But really, would she know the difference? After all, there'll be heaps of people, and there'll be a cake, and candles for her to blow out! What more can a girl ask for?

Jie K has been rather well these last few weeks, though she still seems to have some aversion towards going to school on a daily basis. She refuses to talk about what she does in school, though she says she has fun. She mentions some of her friends, but tells me she doesn't learn anything in school. She'll be going through a change in teacher this coming week, so I'll have to watch her behaviour, to see if it changes... I'm really starting to feel the challenges of being a parent to school-going kids! 

Had our 31 week check-up today... baby D is now 1.6kg, and about 50% on the charts. Obs says he might be small-ish like mei K was. The biggest shocker though was the weight that I have piled on in the last month since we've been home! In the first 6 months of my pregnancy, while I was coping on my own, I had put on 5kg, and was well on my way to maintaining a healthy weight gain for this pregnancy. I was also feeling so good, and soaking up the compliments about how good I look this pregnancy compared to the first 2. In the last 2-3 weeks though, I've been feeling more tired, and a lot heavier... today I noticed that my face is starting to swell, as with my feet and hands. The worst revelation was that I had piled on 6kg in the last 1 month! What's going on????? I knew that I had put on more weight, and I would naturally being in my last trimester... but I really blame all that good(read:bad) singapore food, which I can't resist, the pineapple tarts, bak-gua, cashew nuts etc etc... bleah... I just feel so terrible now. I'm now going to have to watch the amount I take in, and to make sure I eat more of the 'good' stuff for the baby! I guess the sudden decrease in exercise (from 1-2 hr walks daily to zilch) has to do with it too.  I can't believe that baby D is still so pint-sized! ggrrrr.....

So... we've booked a tentative date now.... 23rd March... check out date for baby D. 7 weeks and counting...

Settling in.

1 week has gone by since we've been home... adjustments and new routines are being put in place. Jie K has been in school 5 days today. She seems to enjoy it, yet a part of me senses that she's not completely happy with it. She doesn't really vocalise what she enjoys about school. In fact after the 1st and 2nd day, she seemed rather unhappy when I picked her up. She had said that she had fun, but when I asked what they did, she said "just stand there and do nothing"! On the 2nd day, I decided to pry a little to find out what was troubling her. I found out that this boy in her class,R, had hit her that day, after snatching the blocks that she was playing with. She said she had just sat there and did nothing about it, and that there were no teachers in  the class at that time. So mummy had to to the little pep talk thing, and told her to tell the teacher if it happens again. After she had opened up, she then started talking about the other things they had done in school, and she seemed much happier from then on. However, I still sensed that she is not too thrilled with going to school everyday for 4 hours now... It must be a big change for her from only going to 'play' 3 times a week for 2 hours, to a more formal, serious school. Well, as someone just told me... "welcome to the real world"...

Anyway, mei K has also started going to little play class at the same school, and she loves it. The teachers have noticed how different the 2 sisters are in character. At the same age, jie used to hide behind me and would rather not talk to anyone, mei just says 'hi' to everyone, and would be all over the classroom in no time at all.

As for daddy K, work has just consumed him like he never really left... He tried to have an early start yesterday by going into the office at 7, so he could finish early and spend time with the kids... instead, he pretty much had a 12+ hour day, and came home later than usual! mei was already asleep by the time he reached home. He misses the girls, and I can tell they miss him too.

Hmm... I'm uploading my backdated photos on FB, and just realised that I have to do backdated posts of our holiday as well!!! won't be long!

Home sweet home...

We are home at last! Belated Christmas and Blessed New year to all of you... I'tll surely be an eventful one for us in this household...
We've been back for 2 and a half days now... Adjusting to the heat and humidity, the dog, the in-laws, the house... everything in general. We've been on a mission to unpack and pack up the house, at the same time re-arranging furniture in prep for the girls' room and the new baby to come. Phew... it's been hard. Feeling rather tired.
2 days more till K returns to work, che K starts N2... Where has time gone once again???

It's really been great having 2 sets of grandparents around to occupy the kids... They are just so happy to be back. I don't know why. Perhaps it's back to a new but familiar surrounding, with lots more toys and people to shower them with attention.
Need to start getting used to a new routine again, familiarise myself with my kitchen, and it's appliances. Hopefully we'll get some small renovation works going and done before CNY.

As much as we loved the traveling and sightseeing, there's really nothing like being in your own home...
Ah... it's great to be home!!!