In the Pipeline

Time passes very quickly, we are already at week 4.

There are so many things to do in the pipeline I'm beginning to worry if I can manage. I think the problem with me is that I want to do everything perfectly and I stress myself by thinking like that. I must learn to relax, I'm competitng with nobody! Must get my sense of humour back. We'll need to get the cooker, arrange for deliveries of furnitures and various equipment, go shop for cockery, pots & pans, bed linens, new pillows and what nots. Start to do packing of all the stuff to bring over new place. I need to go see the dentist, go cut my hair, have the big day to move to new place, say goodbye to current house, say goodbye to the staff at the china food stall. Say goodbye to the estate.

I need to learn to be mobile with Kiki, learn to bring her out of the house so that we can go run errands, go to the park and everywhere else. I bathed her yesterday for the first time. I have not got the hang of it but I'm sure I'll do better with some practice. She is quite a handful when she cries before feeding time but she is oh so beautiful when she looks around us with her big, interesting eyes when we sing to her. You know, Brendan has become quite a song composer, he would just make up his own rhyming song when coaxing her; and we would both dance and goof around with her, like errr, the King's jesters we've become.

A cool morning

I woke up at 630am as I could hear that Kiki has been crying for some time. The nanny couldn't seem to handle and I could hear the impatience in her tone. So I sprung up from bed, still a little sleepy-headed and went to see what's happening. It is quite disturbing to hear the nanny tell me that Kiki had not slept since 4am. She said that Kiki had hiccups for 1 hour after feeding, pooped, became cranky and refused to sleep. I am very tired of hearing this as I feel that as an experienced nanny for over 18 years she claimed, how is it that she is complaining to me? I don't understand. This is not the first baby under her care, right? Anyway, I scooped Kiki off the bed and cradled her just to walk around the very small living room we have. Then I opened the door and gate and showed her the tree and sky. Not that she could see, but this breather was enough to calm her down a little. She is just cranky cos she's waiting for her milk, though we still had like half an hour more to go. It must have been the early morning feel-good factor that made me bring Kiki to my neighbour who was watering his plants. He was in his calvin klein boxers while I was also in my checkered boxer shorts. Well, it was 630 and we were mature enough to put aside any embrrassment since the focus was on Kiki. I showed Kiki to him and he melted his usual "coolness" and fondled Kiki on the cheeks. Asked me if she was a girl or boy and told me not to let others take pictures of her with flashlights on cos babies eyes are not fully developed yet. Said must be careful to take care of the eyes. (he cares!) hahaha. Well, it was a brief minute but it was a nice and cool morning. Soon after, it was time to feed Kiki and then she went to bed, tire-out I'm sure. It takes quite a lot of energy to care for an infant and I hope that I can manage well when nanny leaves next Monday. Try till I succeed.

Wink Wink

27 APRIL, Monday

Take the Heat

I'm not sure how humid it is out there but I guess it is from 35 to 40++ deg C. This is enough to drive many people hot, and I don't mean sexy hot but grumpy hot. It is ironic that I'm the one doing the confinement, you know, limited baths and no washing of hair (!) but I've yet to complain about being hot or humid. Maybe because it works better for me, logically, I am to perspire isn't it? I hate to do this but I have to tell you, the confinement nanny is not as patient as she said she is. For one, she nags. Every morning, she tells me of how Kiki wants to drink milk before the stipulated hour is up, and how Kiki will "gnek gnek" (make noises) and want to be held and not sleeping. Isn't this a norm? How do you expect an infant to sleep through 12 hours at night? Isn't that the main duty of a nanny? I don't know why is she grumbling. And she grunbles about the weather. I am really sensitive to nags, I dislike it a lot. I don't wish to be unhappy about the nanny and this is the last week anyway. I have to constantly remind myself to be grateful for her assistance, especially so when we were so lost and clueless at the beginning. So, I put up with it and try to demonstrate consistancy and patience as I always believe in leading by example. I relief the nanny from all the day feeds and she doesn't need to do laundry etc. Her only 2 main duties are night feed and cooking for my lunch and dinner. My mom does most of the marketing.

So anyway, this has made me realised the toil of a 24/7 baby caregiver. I am very thankful that Brendan suggested to me last night to hire a flexi nanny after the confinement nanny leaves. He said that it is important that I get enough rest, be mentally and emotionally happy in order to do a good job as a new mother. It makes more sense to spend quality time with Kiki and we should be exploring playtime, going for strolls and singing to her etc. Kiki loves it when Brendan sings to her every night. She cooes off and seems to be enjoying his sensual voice.

24th April

I guess I may have been a little too anxious as a new mother, I'ld get worried when Kiki "ou ni" (milk spills from the mouth & nose!) I guess it is because as an adult, we know how uncomfortable it is to vomit, hence we associate the discomfort or even pain. My friends tell me that it is common for babies to "ou ni", we just got to burp them properly and also lay them on the side after feeding. I am not sure when to be anxious and when to be relaxed. I should just talk to those mothers more often so that I'll know if what I'm doing is right or wrong, or at least get some feedback.

We are very undecided with whether to get a maid or send Kiki to a nanny. You see,,, we work at Jurong and by the time we collect Kiki in the evenings, it will be very late..... There are pros & cons to these options but most people have discouraged the idea of leaving the baby alone at home with a maid. I guess we will interview a few maids and then decide later on.

After Bath

Kiki's most comfortable after bath. She normally bathes at around 10 in the morning.

Another round of wiping the body in the evenings.

Next week, I'll have to OJT and bathe her.

I need someone to also OJT so that I can be relieved ocassionally should I need to have a breather or go run some errands.

Pump up the Volume

Oh yeah!
Addy sent me some CDs, Nursery Rhymes for Kiki to listen during her feeding time, as well as two Mandarin Nursey CDs with lyrics in a booklet - with Chinese text and Hanyu Ping Ying! (for the mother who is not very well versed with Chinese!) I can really count on Addy to do a good job. Thanks a lot Addy, you've made our day. =)

Week 3 of 16

Oou yeah! I'm back.

Confinement aunty "allowed" me to wash my hair on Sunday with Lemongrass brew. Little does she know that I had already washed my hair twice. I didn't go all the way to hide it from her, it so happened that she didn't notice and hence I of course will not go highlight it to her. I am liking the way I bathe these days, with the herbal brew and oh so very hot water! It is a luxury to bathe with all the time in the world, slowly and very relaxingly. I hope I have the luxury to continue this indulgence.

This week I start my Javanese Confinement Massage. It is not much different from any normal massage, just that they bind you up like a mummy from the pelvic up to below the boobs. I was very concerned as the womb area is still a little swollen around the stiches but the lady assured me that my wound is fine. You could never under estimate the effects of a massage. On Monday after the massage lady left and after my lunch,, I slept till 5pm, boy was I tired.

Aunt Margaret came over last night. It was very nice of her to come despite her busy schedule as a linen housekeeper at a budget hotel. She bought a lovely set of clothes for Kiki, all gifts are so lovely, they are sweet and tiny. We sent aunt Margaret home later in the night. It was a good excuse also for me to go for a car ride cos I'm really bored to be at home 24/7. Good thing Val brought some magazines over and some DVDs. I guess I can also start to do some packing, you know, get ready for the move some time next month.

Sleepy Beauty

Western Food?

The confinement aunty gave me a variety today for lunch. Yummy pork chop with fries!

Yeah! 

I was so hungry, my hands were slightly trembling. I don't know how come I'm so weak. I still feel cold if I don't put on a long sleeve top. They say it is because on a regular basis, I didn't take good care of my health, hence at this time I am exceptionally prone to aches and chill. 

Journaling here is a form of outlet for me. At least I get to write something and stay a little saner. Or else it is very boring to be feeding, eating, resting, reading, bathing, feeding, eating. I am restless and will need some activities to channel my energy so that I can sleep better at night. I had a good night's sleep last night. Thankfully. 

Knock Out

The knock out sleeping pose. 

Hiccups

Does anybody know if the infant will outgrow the lengthy episodes of hiccups soon?

Kiki will experience about 3 episodes per day and they last for quite a long time, 10 to 20 mins. I was told that it is due to the digestive system being "cold" and I feel guilty of all the coke I've drank during pregnancy. I don't wish to stress myself unduly and I hope that the hiccups will subside soon. 

16 April, Thursday

Kiki has lots of clothing, though many are oversized. She's quite "chor lor" with her sleeping etiquette and would wriggle her arms free from the swaddle napkin. We try to swaddle her as much, especially at night so as to cushion the effect of any sudden or loud noise. She kicks around a lot too, and could kick with both legs high up into the air. 

It is a relief for me that she's finishing her milk more often now. I've inspected the bottle-tip and realized that one of it has a hole so small that hardly and fluid could flow. I guess I have to learn to pay attention to all small details at this stage where her only form of communication is to either sleep peacefully or cry when in discomfort. 

 

Week 2 of 16

I have 16 weeks of maternity leave. Will return to work before the end of July. 

This is really a bonus, considering there is so much to learn, to manage, to get organized. 

I've done all the paperwork for Baby Bonus, which will be paid over a period of 18 months. I intend to pass the money to Kiki and put it into her CDA account where the government will match dollar for dollar, up till six thousand dollars. The money can be used for some enrichment classes or child care fees etc. There are many challenges at home, the water pipe got stuck and the whole bathroom and kitchen were flooded last night. We spent hours clearing the choke, good thing the plumber came this morning to give it a through push. I can't sleep at night. No, I can't sleep during the day, I can't sleep during the night. I am too highly strung. Even sedatives didn't help. Ok, I must really get my body clock back on schedule. The damn rash from the antibiotics allergy is frustrating. Hope it will go away soon. The pain from the C-section is more bearable today. I shall keep wearing the girdle since it seems to ease the pain. When there's wind movement in the colon and when there's bowel movement, boy was it painful! For once I finally admit to the importance of the Confinement Practice. You can't imagine how my hands ache and I couldn't grasp with my fingers in the morning just because I had meddled with cold tap water. So far, I've been bottle feeding Kiki several times. I try to do it during the day so that the nanny can take a break or she gets naggy really. Thank goodness for Joo Yann to point out to us that the previous milk bottle wasn't working for Kiki. Since then, she has been drinking much better and are now finishing up her portions more often. A baby's job is to eat and sleep. We got to bathe & cleanse her daily, and just spend some quality time with her when she's more awake in the evenings. For now, that's all. 

Her Sad Face

Goodbye Jaundice

We've visited the Polyclinic thrice in the past ten days. Each time the lab drew blood from Kiki's heels. We have to apply pressure on the heel for 15 mins. after the prick. Luckily we passed the blood test today and the Jaundice is subsiding. We don't have to visit the clinic again. The next jab will be a 6-in-1 which will be on 19th May.  Till then, we won't be missing the doctors. 

Made in Singapore

We registered Kiki's birth at SGH yesterday.

Many people asked me why I chose to deliver at SGH instead of the more popular KK Hospital or those private ones. Some didn't know that SGH has O&B division too.

Well,, I'm used to heading to SGH for most of my medical history, and it being less popular also means that it is less crowded. Registering the birth was a breeze too.

Some Initial Photos

Kick Start with some photos

MEMBERSHIP

Long fingers, they say. 
A big yawn
And now, we're three. 

It feels like a dream, but this is real. I am a mother now. 

Who would have thought this day will come?

How unreal this feels. 

Yes, thank goodness we have a baby now. We will learn to be as much a good parent as we possibly can. Oh, how uncertain we feel, but yes, we try.