Latching On

It has been quite some time ever since i latch her on again... i still remember at birth, she can suckle so well... when the nurse first time help me wif breastfeeding, she immediately put her own mouth to my breast... even the nurse was so shocked to see baby can suckle so well... but eversince i discharge, she seems not wanting to drink from my breast anymore... so all these while, i been expressing the milk for her... until recently, yong started to help me to latch her on.. yesterday, i managed to latch her on for 20mins... i feel so happy abt it... hopefully she's able to continue to latch on... so tat my milk supply will increase.... ~Happy~

First Time Bringing Kaylia out alone

On Monday, 25 Jan 2010, tat was the first time i bring kaylia out on my own... the story goes like tis... my mum called me saying tat she n my dad taking train over to come fetch me n baby... then i say huh? for wat, so troblesome... so i tell her i push pram myself n go over... the feeling was quite wonderful... cos i really independent to bring her out alone... n she quite cooperative oso... so everything went on smoothly...i took her wif me n took a train to khatib...

This is a photo of her i took when inside in the MRT and she's inside her pram...

Then the next day, i oso brought her out to have lunch wif Shangjuan at Sakae Sushi... everything was fine until abt to leave, she started yelling... think she hungry for milk already... so quickly bring her back for milk... recently just increase her feed from 75ml to 90ml... so sometimes it last her 3 hrs but sometimes 2 hrs she's hungry again... so not easy to gauge recently...

Kaylia's first haircut

Yesterday we brought gal gal for a haircut... tat was her first haircut and it was bald lor... keke... she didnt cry but she move here and there during the haircut... i felt so bu she de lor.. to cut off her hair and eyebrow... but my mum says cut liao then when re-grow will be nicer... so i got to take the risk and cut it... Hopefully her hair will grow long faster.... Mummy waiting for long hair... keke...

Baby Full Month Celebration

Initially we dressed up gal gal like tis... but we find her too man... so we quickly change her... keke.. if not, it will be so funny...

Planning a celebration is really a tiring chores... but no choice, still got to do it... we held the celebration on 16 Jan 2010 which is exactly one month... initially wanted to hold at the linkhouse but the malays has booked it for their wedding.... so no choice we hold it at our house... we split into 2 sessions... one in the noon n one at night... we cater the food from Neo Garden... tink tis will be the first time n the last time i order from them... their potion of food was pathetic... for eg. fishball... one pax is only ard 1 fishball... for both the sessions, we added on pizzahut... felt so paisey for not enough food lor.... their food is not bad but the portion really too pathetic and somemore not cheap oso...

It was a tiring day tat day... receive lots of gifts and angbaos from relatives and friends... ~Thanks~

Confinement

We were discharged on 18 Dec 2009, actually Dr WK Tan wanted me to stay for another night.. but i ask her if i am able to go home? then she asked me if i am able to take care of baby cos tis is my first baby... i say ok.. one thing i really feel uncomfortable staying in hospital and also staying for another night, i will need to pay 600-700+ more... so y should i? the hospital bed is too high and i climb up & down, my wound feels so painful... before we went home, we went to visit you long zi for gal gal chinese name... nightmares begins when i reach home... my whole house is not ready to welcome gal gal yet... bedsheet for gal gal's cot not done... luckily we wash already just tat we haven lay the bedsheet yet... so we quickly tidy her room and let her rest in her princess cot... keke... i was busying tidying her room, walking here n there... my wound feel so painful... n worse of all we haven buy formula for gal gal yet... luckily everything was more settled the next day... but due to my mum is not used to my house things, i have to tell her and help her to get used to it... the second night i am home, my breast begins to engorge... it was so painful tat i cant move myself when i sleep... n i even have fever... so in the midst of the night, i took out my medela pump and started to learn how to use it.... n i begin to learn how to pump milk.... after pumping for few times, then my engorgement went off... i put cold cabbage on my breast... it helps a bit when its cold, but very fast, the coldness will goes off... so i will still feel pain... my pain last for around 2 weeks... until doctor took off the stitch for me then i feel better after tat... the initial pain was so painful tat i wanted yong to buy me a float... but he cant get it.. haha... he saw me wif pain tat he ask me does gal gal still will have a didi or mei mei? haha my reply was dunno.. haha...

Confinement was a very boring process and it takes a month... oh my god... i simply cannot dun bathe.. initially when i came back, i almost bath everyday lor... my whole body stink lor if dun bath... haha... i m used to bath every 2 times a day... how can i dun bath?? haha... its only in week 3 then i started to settle down and took care of baby at night myself...

During confinement, it's really not easy to learn how to cope wif ur baby, learn breastfeeding and coping wif the milk supply... and also food is the most sian thing... everyday almost eat the same kind of food... and cant even drink plain water.. haizz...

For the malay massage, i started doing it a week after i gave birth... i do it for 5 days and wrap... still not bad, especially when she help me massage my breast n clear all my blockage... as for my tummy, i think the wrap did help me reduce but actually till now, i still have my little tummy...

Coping wif breastfeeding is the most stressful thing... cos my milk supply is not very good... initially start, i could only pump 20-30ml a time... it was so pathetic lor... one day i could only feed 3times of my breastmilk only... so ard 1/3 on breastmilk & 2/3 on formula... now, my breastmilk increase a bit liao... ard 2/3 on breastmilk and 1/3 on formula... i m still hoping to see one day where i can fully feed her on breastmilk... pumping milk for tis one month, i really feel myself like a cow... pumping n pumping... every 2-3 hours pump one time... the process was so tiring... initially i make myself so miserable by hiding myself in my bedroom and stare at the pump to pump... then it really makes me feel pumping milk is a boring thing... so thereafter i feel i must make myself enjoy more in pumping milk... so i pump in my study room while using pc... so life really got better... haha.... maybe more used to it by now...

During confinement, there's lots of things to do lor.. learning is a long process... we named our baby 陈思豫 after long discussion... finally do up her birthcert on 30 Dec 2009.. keke...

Birth of Kaylia to the world

On 11 December 2009, which kaylia is at week 37 exactly... as per normal, i went for checkup and Dr WK Tan told me that Kaylia is still enjoying herself inside... i have no contraction and baby not engage yet... so wont be so soon! she weigh abt 3.19kg already... i was so worried abt her birth weight cos i wan to try natural birth... but since doctor says wont be so soon, so i just have to wait... keke... n i still able to atend kuku's wedding and continue to enjoy eating... keke... :) so life continues as per normal....

On 15 December 2009, Tuesday night, i was working late until abt 8pm... and i was rushing my work etc... when i was abt to leave office, angela still asking me "will u be here tomorrow?" i still reply her "Y not?" of cos i will be here... keke...

On 16 December 2009, Wednesday.. early morning abt 7am... yong was talking to baby as per normal... he usually will talk to baby then he will leave home for work... so he was telling baby tat 9 more days will be christmas and baby will wan to be a christmas baby? then after talking to baby, he went to the kitchen for his bread for breakfast... so i wake up and went to toilet... the night before, i realise i have lots of fluid flowing out... but its normal bai dai like tat... so i ignore... so morning when i went toilet, i realise my panty was wet but as i was wearing a black panty, i didnt see the colour of my fluid... so i took some toilet paper n wipe... i saw blood stain!!! i was so shocked and i keep shouting for dear... telling him HOW?! i was in shocked n blurred!! dunno wat to do!! n i tell him or i go office first... handover then i go see doctor later... cos clinic oso not opened yet! then i walk here n there dunno wat to do... he is in daze too... cos he doesnt know if he still going to work or not... so i decided to call my mum n ask her... then my mum told me tat if got blood liao, i need to go hospital liao... then dear call up TMC n check... the nurse oso told him i should go hospital now... so we decided to go hospital... i still thinking it should be a false alarm... cos doctor say baby wont come out so fast mah... so when we reach hospital, i wasnt prepared tat i will give birth... i still tell dear dear tat tonight i be cooking birdnest for baby... and he still tell me he wan bring me go eat crab before baby comes out... so we were still not prepared for baby arrival... n the worst thing is i havent pack anything for hospitalisation... keke... so quickly packed in a rush and i quickly bath... so when reach TMC, i was observed using the monitor... to monitor my contraction and baby's heartbeat... the nurse keep asking me if i have any contraction, i told her no... then after monitoring for sometime, the nurse told me i have contraction already... so when Dr WK Tan arrived, she check my dilation and told me tat i have dilated 1cm already... i was so shocked.. so she put one tablet into my cevix for softening.... at tat time, yong went out to make phone call, so when doctor left, i still thinking will i be giving birth today? then i ask the nurse... the nurse says of cos... the tablet already put in... oh my god, i was so shocked... then when yong came back, i told him the nurse looking for him to register me for ward and medisave... cos i be giving birth today.... he was shocked oso... keke... so he went to do the necessary documentation, n came back to me... Think i should write the whole process with the time included:

7.00am : Saw blood stain

8.45am : Reach Thomson Medical Centre

9.00am : Put on Monitor

10.00am : Dr WK Tan came and examined. Dilated 1cm. Put in tablet to soften cevix

12.00pm : Serve my lunch

1.00pm : Nurse shave and pump in the fluid to empty my bowels

1.30pm : Bath and clean up myself

1.45pm : Sent to Labour Ward Room 5

2.00pm : Dr WK Tan examine my contraction at 1.5cm... then break my waterbag and put me

on drip to speed up my contraction

2.15pm : My contraction begins... PAIN PAIN PAIN! i tried to endure and used the gas but NO

USE!

3.45pm : Dr WK Tan came and i told her i cant endure, can i have empidural?

4.15pm : Dr Lilian came and help me inject empidural.. my contraction was so frequent that she

has to stop the drip so tat she's able to inject empidural

4.30pm : Empidural finally work and i was painless

5.30pm : Dr WK Tan came to check my dilation.. it was only 5cm...

6.30pm : Nurse serve me dinner which is sandwich...

8.00pm : A senior nurse came to check my dilation.. it was 8cm... the nurse told me most likely

i will be able to start pushing at 10pm....

8.15pm : My empidural started to lose effect.. i begin to feel my contraction again... but the

nurse told me they cant increase the empidural too much for me cos if so, i wont be

able to push later.. so they increase a little bit... n i could still feel the pain... but no

choice, i have to endure...

10.00pm : Finally the nurse check my dilation... it was 10cm...

10.15pm : I begin to push... it was so tedious and tiring... but at tat point, i only could use all my

strength to push... i wouldnt wish to go c-section after trying for so many hours in

labour ward...

10.30pm : Dr WK Tan came.. and help me... i push n push... the midwives help to push my

stomach.... after trying for 15 more minutes, baby is out... i could hear her cries...

i feel so happy... i kept asking doctor is baby fine? she told me baby can yell so loud most likely she doesnt have any problem... they carry baby for me to kiss n bring her out to yong to measure her weight n length...

she weigh 3.205kg at birth and length of 49cm... this is a photo of her at birth...