The Light at the End of the Rainbow

Kevin and I are about to have a baby and become first-time parents, so naturally our maternal/paternal instincts have gradually started kicking in months back (and even more now that we're already into Week 34), in excitement of ensuring that our new born will have a healthier living (and breathing) space.

Our condo on the 17th floor overlooks a fantastic view of hill greenery from our balcony as well as master bedroom (and we get to enjoy cool, strong breeze in the evenings/night, although I still resort to aircon during bedtime) and we also an awesome view of the skyline from two other rooms.

Unfortunately for us, there is now construction happening by the hillside overlooking our balcony and the dust, debris, dirt... OMG! it's just dusty, dusty, dusty all the time!

Lucky for us, a friend recommended us for a product demo which she had just been introduced to recently knowing that we are soon-to-be parents, and most importantly, to ensure that our baby would be breathing cleaner air. Of course we agreed to the demo and over the weekend the representative came to unveil the product to us - no obligations to purchase, just to see the benefits of the product through a real-life demonstration at our home.

Anyhoo, there was not much convincing required after the Rainbow Cleaning System demo for Kevin and I to make our decision. It's what I've always wanted - convenient, low maintenance (no need for changing of filter etc. as the basic ingredient required is water) and it definitely meets my all-in-one home cleaning/vacuuming and air cleansing needs.

 

It's a definite YES for us, although it is on a pricey end (we took the credit card instalment option of course), but we see it as a good long-term investment. 

Following are shots of the dirt, dust mite, dead skin and filth collected by Rainbow at our home from just the one demo (mind you, we had a maid come in to clean and changed our bedsheet that had been dry-cleaned just three days before the demo day):

 Dirt trapped on a cloth, during the demo session, just from vacuuming the floor of our living room.

 Tada! This is just from vacuuming our living and dining room furniture and floor. Yuck!

 Here's what Rainbow sucked up from our master bedroom floor and bed. Double yuck!!

... and we just had our bedsheets changed to a fresh set from the dry cleaners 3 days prior to the demo day.
 

Rainbow managed to also kill off many insects (like this one) as a result of water-washing our living room air.

And the rest, as they say, is history as we lived "rainbowly" ever after!

34 Weeks Pregnant

We're back at the hospital again today, and this time, the little one brewing in my belly went with a full stomach. So, there was no "drama queen" attitude and she faced the camera during the 4D ultrasound.

Before we get to her fetal updates... Every few weeks once, we will meet this Arab couple (the wife is pregnant with their 4th; and they will bring along their three boys.) at the hospital. They go to the same Ob/Gyn as us, so we'll be waiting at the front of the clinic about the same time. 

This works well for our little fetus as she, as we believe it, somehow likes the youngest of the three boys (he's probably 3 years old and the "naughtiest" of the lot ~ yes, of course she would be attracted to "bad boys"). Anyways, like previous occasions, the youngest of the three boys will always come close and sit next to me, even though there are plenty of empty seats elsewhere, including next to my husband. But he always conveniently chooses the one that's next to me, unless that's not available, the it would be the seat directly opposite of me and mumble some "small talk" (to which my little one will kick and respond to - I know, I feel the kicks in response to his small talk). After that, he will just look at my belly, look at me and then smile the biggest, happiest smile. It's so heart-melting and he's so cute! This usually follows with a shy and manja kinda look, as if he is communication (or perhaps "courting") the little one in my belly. Oh, believe me, my hubby notices this too and sometimes gives the innocent little boy hard stares, but he ignores and continues to keep making eyes at me and my belly :) Way to go baby, already fishing from inside the womb and eying a "Persian prince"? :)

As of today (Week 34 - Day 1), the little munchkin's fetal stats are:
- Heartbeat: 129bpm

- CRL: ~32cm 

- Weight: ~2.4kg

 

 

Wakey wakey, sleepy head! Why do you like to keep falling asleep before your usual afternoon nap?

We want to see more action darlin'... The active action that we feel during the nights...

 

At this angle, daddy noticed her nose coming into shape like mommy's *hidung kembang*. Hahaha.

My Ob/Gyn also passed me my letter of admittance to the hospital for labor/delivery today to keep in the event baby decides to come before Week 40 (or as early as Week 36). Kinda early, but better to have the letter in my hand in advance. Another thing to add to my hospital bag... Oh, which reminds me I have to finish packing my hospital bag soon...

Little Miss Territorial

An unbelievable incident happened this weekend...

My hubby, Kevin and I had just gone shopping for some baby stuff and I decided to buy "Philips Avent 2-in-1 combined steamer-blender" at the store since it was at 25% discount. Yeah, I know, I know, I know... It's still way too early since the baby is not even born yet and I'm already months ahead thinking and worrying about her solid food intake.

Anyhoo, we live in a condo (high up on the 17th floor) - therefore, our elevator ride up or down is usually filled with many people. Hence, when we were making our way back to our condo, after we were done with some shopping for baby of course, there was a lady and her daughter (should be no older than 2 years old) who also took the elevator up with us. The lady pressed 16th floor, which meant that we have company in the lift as they lived one floor below us.

Kevin was carrying the combined steamer-blender in a bag. I guess the box was transparent enough for the little girl to see through and recognize the item or a picture of the baby eating pureed food on the box cover. Once she made the association, I guess she was excited and kept pointing to the bag my husband was carrying shouting "Baby, baby, baby" again and again.

I guess at that point, the lady felt it necessary to explain to us that she also has the product at home and her daughter seems to recognize it. Hence, her sudden outburst of excitement.

Throughout the conversation the lady was having with me, I noticed the little girl's excitement suddenly stopped as her eyes stared directly at my bulging belly. No more shouting and pointing. She had a sulked look on her face (the kind where a kid gets when they have just been scolded by someone for doing something wrong) as her eyes stayed glued to my belly for at least another 20 seconds. Then she bowed her head (as if in shame) and looked down at the floor, turned to face her mother (with her back at me) almost in tears.

The little girl's mother was still talking to me and did not notice the sudden change in her daughter's behavior at all, but both Kevin and I did.

And as soon as they both got out of the elevator on the 16th floor, Kevin and I were like "Wow! Did what I think happen just happened? Was that her doing from inside the womb?". 

So, what do you think happened???

33 Weeks Pregnant

We had to be at the hospital early today as I was scheduled for a blood test (to check my glucose level) at the lab on the 3rd floor at 8.45am.

This also meant that I had to fast last night from 9.00pm onwards and no breakfast for the little munchkin this morning either. Believe me, she tapped mommy many, many times to ask for food, but all she got in return was belly rub and a pep talk from mommy and I can tell the little one was not happy...

The blood test was a three-phased test which took 3 hours in total. To checked the glucose level, they needed to check my urine and blood three times in total, every hour - and I can't eat anything until it was complete. Which only meant my baby will not be having any breakfast, and it will be lunch time by the time I could take in food.

After the 1st urine-blood test, I was given a glass of glucose to drink up in time for the next test.

Since we had an hour until my next test, we headed down to see my Ob/Gyn for our weekly follow-up and ultrasound.

As of today (Week 33 - Day 1), the little munchkin's fetal stats are:
- Heartbeat: 133bpm

- CRL: ~30cm 

- Weight: ~2.1kg

Spine check! All's good :)

 

Reminding us yet again that she's a girl!

She's already sprouting hair at the start of 33 weeks!

Sure enough, during the ultrasound, the little "diva" inside me made it clear to us that she was unhappy. She turned the other way just as we started the scan so to have her back at us throughout the ultrasound - as if to let us know she merajuk (malay for sulk). 

She refused to turn back even when mommy and daddy called out to her and tried to sweet talk her. She was not happy and she wasn't afraid to let us know. We can tell she was wide awake as she was moving about alot. But she never turned. Hence, we were not able to see her face today. My Ob/Gyn took this opportunity to check her spine and other organs and all seem intact. Syukur alhamdullilah!

We headed to the pharmacy to pick up my medication immediately after the ultrasound and went back to the 3rd floor to continue with the test.

For some reason, I could not really "pee in the cup" for the 2nd test, but whatever drops I could provide seems sufficient and enough. After the 2nd urine-blood test, I was told to drink water and I gulped down at least 3 cups full. For the 3rd test, we were back in business and the cup was filled! Being "poked" three times every hour was also no fun, but I got through it :) Let's hope the results are worth the wait... I should get the results by next week.

It was just past noon by the time we were done at the hospital. We immediately hunted for food for the little munchkin. After food, all's back to normal again! Drama! Drama! Drama! even from inside the womb :)

'em Pesky Piles

At this late in my pregnancy, just when everything seems to be going smooth sailing, I just had to experience sore piles.

Also called hemorrhoids, piles is an agonizing condition caused by irritation of veins from the rear end. They are awful! Hurts so much and now I'm wondering if the swelling will stay on and affect me over the next couple of weeks until I go into labor. I sure hope not!!!

I did my research on this and I should stock up on my fibre intake and consume lots of fruits/vegetables. That's basically all I had been doing the last couple of days...

At the same time, I also picked up a couple of tips from friends who have gone through this and they recommended a couple of tips to ease the discomfort:

1) Soak in warm water several times a day. This is absolutely soothing.
2) Dap don't wipe when cleaning that area.
3) Apply coconut cream to the infected area. Apparently this works wonders.

The worst for me was when I started bleeding! Yeah, that scared the crap out of me as I was not sure whether it was just because of the piles or what. At that point, I was concerned that the baby will be affectd so I went straight to my Ob/Gyn as I did not want to take any chances. The bleeding was because the piles burst.

In addition, she prescribed me medication to help my little "piles" situation. 5 continuous days on both internal and external applied medication, morning and night, I now feel as good as new!!! :)

32 Weeks Pregnant

Yeah, baby! We just hit our 8 month mark today!!! :) Can't believe her debut into the world is getting closer and closer... And I seriously think she's just as excited about it as we are... Just don't come out yet ok darling... It's not time yet. Enjoy mommy's belly-tel stay a little while longer before you check out.
 
Like every other Saturdays over the past half year plus, we made our way to Pantai Hospital for our ultrasound date with the little one again today...

 

Can you spot her here? Daddy says she looks like daddy; even the placenta looks like daddy.

Well, we'll find out soon enough in person, won't we?

As of today (Week 32 - Day 1), the little munchkin's fetal stats are: 
- Heartbeat: 150bpm 
- CRL: ~29cm
- Weight: ~2.0kg

Check out her teeny-weeny legs and toes!

 

Our little sleeping beauty! 

Not only has the little munchkin grown drastically over the past week... Mommy also put on the pounds by shooting up 1.5kg on the weighing scale in just one week. Oh no! What happened to our plan of sticking to 0.5kg weight gain for mommy every two weeks, honeybun?!? Mommy thought we had an agreement... Didn't we?  

I'm pretty sure the weight gain for both mommy and baby was the result of the extensive eating during my Marcom Asia team off-site meeting. Since I'm very close to my due date and am not able to travel, the team flew in to Penang from KL, Singapore and India for our 2013/2014 planning "pow-wow". That only meant one thing - food, food and more food at the hotel and in the evenings, in between work of course. After all, what else is there to do when you're in Penang - right?!?  

Oh well, you know what this means... coming week, baby and mommy need to go on a DIET!!!

Cankles alert! What happened to my ankles?

I know swollen ankles, feet, hands and face are quite normal for many during pregnancy, but not in my case. No, no, no! Bloating and water retention are no pregnancy symptoms of mine... at least not that I know of...
 

Yet today, as I gazed down at my puffy-looking feet and, omigod, I can't see my ankles anymore!!! They have somehow merged with my calves.

Could I have grown cankles (calf and ankles combined) overnight??!!?? Is that even possible???

I have been walking alot more than usual the past few days as I've been busy playing host to colleagues from out of town and country during the evenings of our Marcom Asia team off-site meeting. Not to mention eating alot too! :) Amazing how only today, after everyone's made their way back, that I only noticed the swelling... I guess the exhaustion of the events of this week finally caught up with pregnant me huh?

Hmmm, I did read somewhere that there are a number of things that one can do to ease swollen feet during pregnancy. Perhaps today's my chance to put them to the test! :) Although, I do think that this is only temporary and a result of my over-exertion of the past few days.

My first instinct was to soak them in warm water to help relieve the swelling and also possible spasms. 15 minutes in luke warm water and they feel as good as new!

I also managed to get my loving husband to gently massage both my feet to soothe the swelling and stimulate circulation. *heavenly* Ooooh, the man can be so good with his hands!!! (I knew there was a reason why I married him - one of which is this) *wink* :)

Just to make sure I don't get feet spasms, I also made sure to regularly stretch and flex my feet (while sitting down, lying...) - basically any opportunity I can - and put a small pillow under my knees while I lie on my back to sleep (as advised by my OB-gyn - keeping knees bent while sleeping minimizes leg cramps).

Oooh, perhaps this is the perfect excuse and timing for me to go shopping for more comfortable, flat shoes this weekend... you think???

31 Weeks Pregnant

Today is the 3rd week we went for our weekly follow-up around noon-ish as we had our final antenatal class at 2.00pm. Both mommy and daddy of course gave her a pep talk on the way, to persuade her to show us some action before she naps.

As of today (Week 31 - Day 1), the little munchkin's fetal stats are:
- Heartbeat: 140bpm  
- CRL: ~28cm
- Weight: ~1.7kg

*punch, punch, kick, kick, punch, kick*

Ask and you shall receive... As requested, she gave us just enough on-screen action (kung-fu/karate/self-defense stunts she had been practicing the past few days) so that mommy and daddy will leave her in peace to nap.

After that, she was knocked-out and sound asleep... Nap time, as scheduled!
Soooo cute, and she utilizes the placenta as her pillow :)

At 2.00pm, our last antenatal class commenced. This one's different from the previous classes as it's the practical session and we had the physiologists (two very young "cikus") teaching us stretching more than breathing exercises.

What about the cool lamaze classes you usually see on TV, huh? Breathing, preparing for labor etc... I so wanted to experience those. This class brought back memories of P.E. warm-ups than anything else. I'm not going for a marathon or game, I'm going to go into labor in a couple of weeks. I need to be prepared. Teach me something that would help. Dang!

My Overprotective Fetus

People keep telling me that back pain is very common during pregnancy as the curve of your spine and center of gravity shifts as your baby and belly grows bigger. These changes will definitely put stress on the back leading to pain and discomfort.

Well, serious bad backache has definitely started since the past two weeks.

Lucky me - I have a loving husband who gives me good back massages every night. But a few days ago, I specifically requested that he massage my back alot more stronger than usual and to just drum his knuckles into my back with great force. 

I was moaning in satisfaction throughout as it just felt sooooo good that I did not take much notice that the baby was pushing and kicking a lot more while all that was happening. I just felt like I was in heaven from the great massage so I didn't really think much of it...

But guess what happened the next morning??? *drumroll please*

Yeap, daddy's knuckles were badly bruised when he woke up in the morning and it hurt like hell for about 4 days. *ooopsy* Kevin refused to massage me after that, in fear that our baby may think he's hurting her mommy again and he gets bruised again.

So, mommy had to explain to her overprotective little munchkin of a fetus that daddy was only trying to help mommy, not hurt her... At the same time, I also had to persuade and convince my hubby to continue the forceful massage on my back as it was just too good to stop now...

Amazingly, it worked! The little munchkin understands now that daddy was not hurting mommy. Perhaps it was my moaning that threw her off, so from now on, I just moan in silence. As long as she does not hear mommy's cry (which she probably thinks to be "cries of pain"), daddy's hands/knuckles are fine! :)