the First 11 days

Kerri is now 11 days old.

She's been proving to be a little tigress in every sense. When she wants her milk, she means business; she will cry the house down if she don't get her milk. The thing is, she drinks a lot! Her appetite is insatiable! And it's driving mummy nuts when she would just doze off while latching on to mummy after 5 minutes! Being the control freak that I am, I am now feeding her milk via the bottle rather than latching on. Same thing happened with Kae. So I pump milk dilligently every 4-5 hours ( I will start pumping every 3-4 hours after my massage ends on thursday), in order to get the supply going. Luckily this time round (touch wood!), I have more milk at this stage than when I had Kae.

I give her 80ml every 3 hours, but she usually would want her milk every 2 hourly during the daytime! So you can imagine how tiring it is now for me, pump milk, rest, feed, pump milk, rest, feed. Hah. It's back to the good old days. But somehow it feels damn good when you see the amount of milk being pumped out. Heh! All for baby!

Other than her huge appetite, Kerri also likes to demand to be carried. I guess that's the norm for most babies. Kae used to be like that too. Sigh.

Oh, and the confinement food is really heating me up! I feel so warm nowadays. Even being in an air-conditioned room with a temperature of 24 degree celsius doesn't help much; I would need the fan to be turned on at the same time. Yes, I use the fan, and I bathe everyday. I cannot imagine women nowadays still abide to the no bathing rule. It's so bloody hot nowadays! Even with the crazy rainy weather!

2 and 1/2 more weeks to go!

Farewell LNT!

Kae attended her last lesson at Little Neuro Tree located at Parkway Parade yesterday.


We decided not to let Kae continue with the lessons due to a couple of reasons. The main reason is that with Kerri around, it's quite tough for us to bring Kae to class every saturday. It will mean that dar has to bring Kae in himself, or that I have to tag along with Kerri. Also, we discovered and both agreed that Kae finds the lessons a tad boring. For the past term, she's been just sitting in class participating with not much excitement on her part. Yes, she does all the activities, but it seems that her heart is not with the teacher and classmates. She will not sing and dance along when it's singing time. But when she reaches home, she will just sing aloud and over and over again the song she didn't sing in class.

I just can't believe that 1 year has passed. We started Kae at LNT in April 2009. You can refer to my post here on her very 1st lesson at LNT last year. She has changed a lot since!

And these are the 3 teachers who first taught Kae; the japanese teacher has left end last year, the english teacher left early this year, and the chinese teacher has just left after this term.


This is Kae with one of her classmates, Amanda, and her chinese teacher whose last day happened to be on sunday.


I think I will miss going to the lessons more than Kae.

Kae and Chinese

Kae is getting really good with her chinese language. She can understand a simple chinese conversation and will reply us in english sometimes.

She lurves to recite and sing the chinese poems and songs she learn in school especially. Here are 3 examples.

This is the trishaw song:

This is the rabbit poem she has been reciting over and over and over again:

This is the blind and deaf tiger song:

the Longest 2 and 1/2 hours of my life

I've gone through the longest 2 and 1/2 hours of my life. Simply, I've been to hell and back. The date was 17th June.

As you can see from my earlier post, I was just lamenting that I was freaking out on 17th June at 130am about the impending birth of baby K. After that post, I headed for bed.

0130hr
I headed for bed, praying that I will have a good night sleep since I had been tossing and turning as of late.

0200hr
I felt contractions. Which is quite normal for my 2nd pregnancy. I would have quite painful ones during the night for as long as 2 hours before I drift off to sleep.

0230hr
The contractions kept coming. I told the sleeping dar that I am having contractions again. He said to wait and see, as they may be just the usual ones.

0245hr
I felt the contractions getting lower. My usual ones are more focused on my tummy area. This time round however, they feel much lower; under my belly button area. And I am starting to feel the need to pass motion. I was quite ignorant of the signs of labour as Kaelyn was induced the last time round, hence I didn't really know what to expect to feel.

0300hr
After several attempts to the toilet and realising that I have nothing to pass out, I realised to my horror I may be in labour. As I've read that the feeling of passing motion is one of the signs of labour. And I realised that I can't stand up straight and walk while the contractions are in motion. And the pain is getting worse. I woke dar up and we decided that it may be time to go to the hospital. We called up Raffles Hospital and woke up Kae and began to pack to leave. Which was quite difficult, as I was in pain and bringing Kae along was not easy.

0330hr
Kae was quite surprised that she was woken up and that mummy was in pain and talking very loud and making weird noises. But being the brave girl she was, she just looked on and didn't really cry. Although she did look frightened when we were in the car as mummy was trying literally to endure the ever growing contractions with loud "hah hah hah" noises while trying to breathe.

0400hr
We finally reached Raffles Hospital. I had to overcome the challenge of walking to the delivery ward, holding to to dar's one hand, while he carried Kae with his other hand. Come to think of it, I think he was freaking out too as he had to handle me and Kae while driving us to the hospital in the shortest time possible. But he can't really show that as he had to be in control of the situation; if not, I will freak out even more.

Dar immediately called my parents when we reached the hospital, as we needed someone to care for Kae when I'm in delivery. No such luck. The nurse on duty checked and informed me that I was 8cm dilated! My worst fear came true. No epidural! I was cursing under my breath then. I think I went ballistic. I was afraid. And yes, I cried. The pain was unbearable.

I was given the laughing gas to lessen the pain. And frankly, the gas did help a bit. How? Erm, it kinda made me feel high. So everything was fuzzy. I knew what was happening, but somehow, everything seemed to be happening in slow motion. I knew I was screaming whenever the contractions came. I knew that Kae was still in the delivery room with us and dar couldn't be right next to me as he had to carry and comfort Kae.

And my gynae finally arrived. I wished that I would faint from the pain and skip all the contractions, but no such luck. Seriously, I wished I could die, and I wanted to scold everyone. That's how much pain I was in. And when my gynae said the magic words: You can push now, I didn't hesitate and pushed with all my might.

0436hr
And Baby Kerri was finally out. I remembered it didn't take me long to push her out. I was dying to get her out of me. I can still remember my gynae asking me to not push too fast while Kerri was coming out.


And as I was not on epidural, I could actually feel the gynae stitching me up after the whole birthing process. I was still high from the laughing gas yes, but I could feel her "sewing" on me. Although it didn't feel painful; just felt like ants biting on me.

I still cannot believe I actually went through the whole birthing process without epidural. I have always admired those who chose not to use the drug, as I am a person who is damn afraid of pain. I hate injections or when they need to draw my blood. I am that timid.

But I am glad that Kerri chose to arrive on the 17th. She chose the correct date I suppose. If she chose to arrive 1 day later at the same time, I would have given birth at home, as dar would not be around at the same time the next day; he was supposed to go to the airport and fetch the parents back from their trip. And with Kae at home with me, I seriously cannot imagine what would have happened if that was the case.

Yes, we were lucky indeed. If we had gone to the hospital any later, I would have given birth in the car on the way to hospital. So everything turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

Except for the pain I suppose.

Freaking Out!

I just went to the gynae today and was informed that I was 2cm dilated!

Okay. I didn't expect this. As Kae was not even dilated when I went to hospital to induce her out 4 days earlier than her estimated due date.

I guess I am freaking out here a bit as it is now different compared to my birth of Kae. With Kae, everything was planned out nicely. We knew when she was coming as we chose the date. So I was prepared. We had no kids yet then, so we could go to the hospital as and when and need not worry about the existing child.

I am afraid, very afraid. What if baby K wants to come out soon? What if my worst fear came true? My worst fear being: I would arrive too late to the hospital and epidural could not be used on me? I think I will die.

God please help me.

the Last Saturday Night off

Kae stayed over at Bishan on saturday as my parents were not working on sunday. And it was also my last saturday night off before the 2nd one comes along.


We stayed over at Marriott Hotel over the weekend. As Kae would only be with my parents on saturday evening, we brought her along to the hotel, mainly to swim! I think Kae only swam in our estate's pool like 3 times, but countless times at hotels. Haha! Anyway, she lurves to swim, like the dad. The 2 of them sure had loads of fun in the pool.




And here's a video of Kae swimming in the water, with the dad holding her with just one arm.


After my parents picked Kae back home, we headed to Gordon Grill for an early dinner celebration for our 5th year Rom anniversary. Our last time there was like 4-5 years ago? This time round, we took advantage of the current UOB Chef's Creation promotion, and had their 5 course degustation meal. The meal was value for money in my opinion. Check it out if you want to try the food at Gordon Grill. As their ala carte menu is really pricey compared to the UOB Chef's Creation menu.


That marks the end of my saturday night off. Sigh. I wonder when my next saturday night off will be.

Learning to Trace

Kae has been learning to trace numbers recently in her classes at Little Neuro Tree. This is a short clip of her tracing the number 2. What amazes me is that she used to be really bad at tracing. She would just doodle around the numbers 0 and 1 (of course 1 not so much coz it's just a stroke down). So imagine my surprise when she could trace the number 2 so well. Maybe she's getting the hang of tracing in school daily now. Hmm.



I'm so proud of you Kae!

the Good still Exist!

I was touched by 2 strangers recently. It's just a simple gesture by 2 strangers on the Circle Line, but still.

Nowadays, I would take the Circle Line to go pick up Kae, and the Mountbatten Station is just behind her school. Going there is not a problem, as I will always have seats when I take the East West Line from Pasir Ris, and the Circle Line from Paya Lebar. It is when I take the Circle Line to go to the in-laws' that I find absolutely tiring. As I would be taking the mrt in the same direction as the peak hour crowd, i.e. from Mountbatten to Serangoon, where I take another 2 stops from Serangoon to Boon Keng on the North East Line. Okay, if you do not take the trains often, you might be a bit lost here. Heh. So, I attach a copy of the MRT map here for your information. Hah! By the way, the map is taken from the LTA website as at 11 June 2010 and includes the upcoming stations that are still under construction.


Okay, long story short. Basically the 2 strangers both did the same thing for me. They both asked people who were seated to give up their seats to me and Kae.

The 1st was a foreigner. She herself gave her seat up when she saw me and Kae enter the cabin. Then seeing that Kae can take 1 seat on her own and that I was carrying 2 bags and a big tummy, she just turned to the lady who was in the next seat to stand up and give me her seat. You know what that lady responded with? "Oh sorry, I didn't see her." Like real. She was just trying to wriggle herself out of an awkward situation. Thank you kind foreigner!

The 2nd lady really touched me. There were only a few single seats in the cabin I was in. So of course, Kae would take a seat and I would stand in front of her as I can't leave her alone and sit somewhere else. Then out of nowhere, this lady came up to the 2 young men seated next to Kae from another cabin and chided them for not moving over to the empty seat next to them so that I can take their seat and be seated with Kae. Seriously, she made the effort, walked over, chided them and went back to her own seat in the next cabin! Now, how many of you would do that for a stranger?

It may just be a simple act to some, but it means the world to me when I'm in the heavy condition I'm in now. Kind souls do exist in this world. There is still hope!

Story Time

Once upon a time, there is this man. A 40 year old man to be exact. Let's call him X. X has a problem.

His problem is that he is living off his parents and siblings, literally. You would expect a 40 year old man to have a job and support himself, if not his parents.

Yes, X had a major head operation 4 years ago, and he had to take a long time off work to recover. That took around a year (and I am being generous with the length of recovery here). But that was then. It's been 3 years since he has recovered. Okay, let's give him another 1 year to stand back on his feet. It would have been 2 years since. Has X gotten back to his own feet in these 2 years? Not that I know of.

If you were a single 40 year old man, and you know that you cannot survive on your current job which is commision based, shouldn't you find another job? No matter if the new job you find is not office based, no matter if the new job is a blue collared job, no matter if the new job is not "prestigeous" so to speak, shouldn't you find a new job just to survive and support yourself? Already, I'm not talking about even giving money to your own parents for their upbringing or for living in their house still and not paying for the electricity, water, and food you consume daily. I am talking about simple basic survival for yourself.

No, instead X chooses to stay in the commision based job, which does not guarantee him a basic income monthly. He chooses to not seek another path or take up part time courses to upgrade himself so that it will be easier to find another job with a new set of skills. Instead, he chooses to stick it out in the current job, which frankly does not earn him much, as he has been borrowing money from the sibling(s) to get by.

Maybe if X knows that he does not have any savings or salary to get by, he should not have gotten the particular apple when it was launched last year. He should not stay out late at night (God knows how much one can spend when one stays out late, i.e the drinks, the food, the transportation fees?).

What irks me the most is that X doesn't think that he has a problem. He doesn't seem to want to get out of the rut he is in. It seems like he is comfortable in the situation he is in, and just wait it out before his funds dry up again. And he doesn't seem like he is going to return the money he has borrowed. How is one supposed to return what he borrowed when one just lives by the days without any urge or desire to improve, upgrade or get a stable job!

I am sorry but I have no respect at all for X. And it's not even about the money he has borrowed. He doesn't seem to be involved in his family activities, he does not help around the house. He will be extra nice and make conversation when he is in need, and just disappear completely when he is not. Would you not feel the same?

Something has got to be done. Maybe when X is in need the next time. If not, X will not change, and he will just be the same man condemned to be despised for the rest of his life.

Kae and her books

Kae lurves to read her books. She lurves to roam around in bookstores and walk all over the place, removing the books from their shelves. Haha! I am glad that she has acquire this reading habit, like myself, when I was young.

This is me trying to get Kae to read out her stories. Yes, she remembers the gist of the 3 Level 1 Read It Yourself with Ladybird books she has currently; The Ugly Duckling, The Princess and The Pea, and lastly Cinderella. She can just sit down and read out the story herself, of course by memorising the story and not reading the words. But sadly, I didn't manage to get my video camera out fast enough to record her story telling.



Oh, and she always sing that particular song before she tells any story. Maybe she got that habit in school.

Must Have App for iPhone 3G

I discovered the most brilliant iPhone application for my iPhone 3G - the video camera!

Yes, as my iPhone doesn't have the video camera function, I was thinking of upgrading to the iPhone 3GS just for that function, but long story short, I decided not to upgrade the phone after all. It will cost a top up charge of $300 instead of the usual $100!

Anyhow, a blessing in disguise it turned out to be. And it's Qik Video Camera to the rescue! Although I think the quality will not be better than that of the inbuilt video camera of the iPhone 3GS, the quality is good enough for me! Heehee. Best application ever!

And this is a video of Kae in school during the Family Eat Together day. Boy was she happy that both mummy and especially daddy managed to squeeze time out from his busy work to have dinner with her in school together with all her friends and their parents. Thanks daddy!