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Friday, September 19, 2008

Parenthood :)

Finally nw i can say this: it's really not easy being parents. Parenthood has taken on a whole new meaning ever since Matthew came into our lives. Before he came, it was all juz theorical knowledge -- learning hw to bathe & breastfeed bb, wat r bb's needs/demands, buying fanciful clothes or toys for bb, etc.

Nw dat he's REALLY right here in our household, it meant a THOROUGH hands-on experience for us all.

For a start, Bebe & i hv pretty much become Daddy-&-Mummy-PANDAS!! We've slept so much lesser than before, having to wake up at unearthly hours like 3am or 4am to bottlefeed or breastfeed Matthew, and another 3hrs later for his next feed. Other than dat, we hv to change his wet/dirty diapers, which our dear Matthew has an "odd" habit of poo-ing (lots!!) in the wee hrs of the morning!! Imagine a groggy & sleep-deprived Daddy or Mummy trying to change his diapers as fast and as clean as we can & then put him back to sleep, or else if Matthew gets into his "all-awake-mode", then i'll be having a hard time trying to coo him back to sleep, since Bebe still has to wake up early to go to work later on.

Having said dat, we're still very, very happy parents :) Cos nothing can take away the joy of seeing ya own baby happy, clean & well-fed. We truly love him to bits & as all other parents hv advised us, we're juz gonna enjoy our little one as much as we can, in all these beautiful moments... :)

Eat, Poo, Sleep!! :p

As they always say, a baby's full-time job is to Eat, Poo & Sleep!!! :p

So here's our darling in action....

Matthew's classic-look whenever he's into his poo-business!!! :p


And his satisfied-&-drunken-look after his feeds.... hehehe!!! :D

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Mummy's Darling :)

Mummy's beloved boy.... :)

Daddy's Boy!

Bebe had juz recently ended his whole 8-days block leave from work to stay home & hv some father-son time with our little Matthew... & after dat he was complainin' hw much he hated to return to work & not being able to play with our son oredi!! :p

Bebe was really proud dat our boy looks more like him, so he kept askin' me to take pics of them together!! (to make me jealous!!)

Ok lah... here's 1 of those pics.... :D


And this one.... it was really taken when BOTH of them r asleep.... even their sleeping positions seemed alike!!! :p

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Labour of Love :)


As i'm writing this blog, my little darlin' is sleeping on the jungle-playmat placed on top of another ABC-playmat in our living room so both Bebe & i cld go on doing our own stuff while still being able to watch over him... talk abt multi-tasking! :p




Really feel very satisfied lookin' at my own son :) Somehow, i almost cldn't imagine i've really given birth to a baby boy!! Afterall, the labour process hadn't been easy....

In the early morn of 24 Aug at 1am, when Bebe & i were halfway thru our usual bedtime-chat, suddenly i tot i heard a "pop" sound & the next thing was i felt like i was leakin' below! I was both panicky & excited at the same time cos THIS CLD BE IT!!! :D After "debating" with Bebe & my mother-in-law for quite awhile whether dat was a urine leak or my waterbag really burst, we finally decided on going to the hospital immediately to confirm it... juz to be absolutely sure :p

By the time we reached Thomson Medical Centre, it was oredi 2am & the doctor on duty gave me a checkup.... i was oredi 2cm dilated!! :D I was then asked to take some sort of a medicine to help me pass motion as the nurse said i needed to clear my bowels before delivery. Thereafter, i was hooked up to a machine which tracked on my contractions as well as to another machine which monitored my baby's heartbeat.

By this time, i was pretty excited & alert. Tho i dun really kn wat's gonna happen next, but i knew for sure dat by the later half of the day, my baby wld be in my arms already!! :)

Thru'out this time, Bebe was by my side giving me his support. By 4.30am, my contractions were coming on more regularly & painful. Earlier, i had requested for epidural as my pain relief & juz before the anaesthesiologist gave me the injection at my spine, i experienced a "full-blown" contraction!! OMIGOSH!!! It was REALLY REALLY painful!!! But juz shortly after the epidural was administered to me, i felt almost instant relief!! :p

The rest of the labour process goes like this:

4.30am - 10.15am: My contractions come & go but i did not feel any pain at all. There was absolute numbness from half of my body downwards to my legs and feet. As a side-effect, i was also shivering from the epidural dat was given to me.

10.15am: My gynae came in to check on me & i was fully dilated at 10cm, & so he said "Now we're ready to start!"

Initially, Bebe & the nurse helped me to "respond" to the contractions (which i cld no longer feel cos i'm on epidural) by pushing my baby out. They said they cld see my baby's hair & i was really happy!! In my mind i thought: Hey! This cld be over in awhile!

But it wasn't to be!! I kept pushing with all my might yet my baby cld not come out (yet)! I was gettin' very exhausted & losing strength to push. With the epidural wearing off (cos my gynae wanted me to hv some "sensations"), i was inhaling "laughing gas" (nitrous oxide gas mixed with oxygen) to keep me going. After struggling for 1 hr 45 mins, my gynae said dat my baby's heartbeat wasn't going so well & we muz really get him out fast.... so ended up using 2 VACUUMS & 1 FORCEPS to bring out my beloved baby!!! (Later on my gynae explained dat my baby's face was facing upwards instead of downwards, which made the delivery abit more difficult).

And so finally, at 11.57am, our God-sent baby Matthew Chen was born! :) This photo was taken by Bebe the moment Matthew was taken out of the labour room & wrapped in a blanket... :)


Thinkin' back, i muz admit dat the labour process had not been easy & even nw i'm still aching from my painful stitches, but whenever i'm holding Matthew in my arms & admiring him, i knew dat it was all worth it -- ABSOLUTELY :)

Friday, September 05, 2008

A Special (Sleeping) Moment ;)

I (sneakily) took this photo when the father & son were sleepin' soundly together this afternoon after Matthew's playtime in his "jungle-playmat".... :)


Wat a special moment... :)

A Mother's Heartache...

Just 3 days after Matthew & i were discharged from TMC, during the follow-up appt with the PD on Friday, Matthew was diagnosed with a high level of jaundice rated at 372 points!! (safe/normal range is abt 200 points & below). Imagine our fears & panic when we knew abt dat!! :( Bebe & i then decided to admit Matthew back to TMC for phototherapy. Everyday, Bebe & i wld travel back to the hosp to visit Matthew & i wld express out my breastmilk in advance so dat the nurses cld help me feed Matthew with my breastmilk for the next few days. It seemed dat Matthew's jaundice level was so high dat it took 4 days 3 nights of phototherapy for his jaundice level to drop down to within the safe range. I felt such heartache dat i cried the 1st night i came home without my beloved baby. Really, really missed him alot, even for a day... :(

Now dat he has come home, Bebe & i made sure Matthew has enuff feeds to pass out urine & motion so dat he cld recover sooner. We also had to sunbathe him in the morning sun (btw 9-10am) and evening sun (btw 5-6pm) as instructed by the PD.

But i know the Lord is watchin' over my beloved Matthew & our sweet little one will soon be lookin' radiant & red-cheeked again!! :)

This is Matthew when he was discharged from his phototherapy...


And Matthew with the special cloth cover for his eyes before we bring him out to sunbathe...