Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Pregnant Pu: 6 months (updated with more pix)








I have very few photos of me pregnant with Elil. I regret not taking more. It's such a beautiful experience being pregnant (after the first trimester anyway!). I love looking at pregnant ladies, always wanting to touch the unborn child. Some women don't like this so must be very careful. However, if ever you see me preggers again, feel free to caress my belly. ;)

Why bah this blogger acting up? Ahh! I'm posting this now. Hmph! Network Error my bum-bum!

I miss my family so much....(updated with more pix)



















....it hurts....


So many more pix I wanna upload but blogger is being a pain.

Haven't done a quiz in a while...this was disappointing




What Your Handbag Says About You



You tend to be relaxed throughout the day. You are naturally at peace.



You tend to be relaxed but alert. You keep your eye out for anything unusual.



You are a low maintenance person. You can adapt to a variety of situations.



You are a very creative person. Your life tends to be a whirlwind, but you always seem to pull it together.



You are practical and down to earth. You tend to be a rather reserved and quiet person.



You are an outgoing and expressive person. You always speak your mind, and you're very approachable.

Monday, September 22, 2008

My labor story 15.5 months later

Look what the stalk brought
On Wednesday, 6th June 2007 I started feeling cramps in my lower abdomen. I woke up in the morning to find myself spotting. I had been feeling like I was about to explode for a week or so. Hubs brings me to the OBgyn. My doctor, Dr. I was on leave so we went to see her neighbor Dr. M (Ot's OBgyn). He does his thing and tells me I'm 1 cm dilated and not to worry because I probably have a few days to go. We (hubs and I) leave the hopspital feeling a bit disturbed. 1 cm? I've started dilating but it might take a few days? "Trust the experienced doctor Pu", I tell myself. But just in case, I stay home the next couple of days. My mummy's flight was booked on the 14th June, 1 week to my due date on the 21st. "Mummy, I want you here now! I think the little angel will come out anytime soon!". So on Thursday, 7th June mummy is in town to care for her 3rd born who is preparing for her 1st born.


7th June, in the middle of the night and wee hours of the morning of the 8th. Major cramps don't allow me the sleep I so desperately need. Every half hour or so, I toss and turn in bed. I would not describe it as pain. It was more like major cramps and discomfort. I am in this state the whole night. Hubs is out entertaining customers and I am tempted to call him. But I don't. Mummy is in the next room and Assunta Hospital is a 5 minute drive away. By morning, I am pale and spotting a little more. The aches turn into pains and I can hardly stand up. However, surprisingly, I am calm. It's my mummy, mother of 4 who is in panic. "I really think you should go to the hospital now", she kept telling me. We decide to call Ots (in JB at the time) who is calm and tells me to go if I really feel I should. Again mummy, "I really think you should go coz I won't be in the right state of mind to drive if you are in uimaginable pain and screaming next to me". Seeing as if i waited any longer I may not have a driver to get me to the hopsital, I grabbed my maternity bag (that was packed months in advance), informed hubs and off we went,mummy daughter and sister's maid. We are directed straight to the labor ward. Here I am instructed to change into hospital gear. It is a little after 9 am.



They call in Dr. I, she is off duty but thank goodness she lives nearby. In the meantime, a nurse comes along and gives me the check. "Oh you are 1 cm dilated", she tells me. What? 1 cm? "But nurse, I was 1 cm two days ago!" I practically scream to the nurse. On top of that the pains were gaining frequency, like every 15 minutes. AND they were inconsistent, sometimes they came as close as 7 minutes. Finally, Dr. I comes in, her serene face, soothing voice and gentleness calms me immediately. Mummy tells me I have the sweetest, nicest doctor. I agree. Once again I am given the check for the 3rd time. The good doc confirms the 1 cm thing and instructs the nurse to hook me up to this machine that monitors my contractions as well as baby's heartbeat. It seems baby is ready to come out but mummy's cervix not ready to give way. Fear builds as I think of complications but the nurses do not look alarmed so I tell myself to stop worrying. The contractions are consistently closer. 5-7 minutes apart.


A while later, the nurse comes in to give me the check me again, apologizing politely everytime she does so. I find this very professional. It would be the polite thing to do huh, "Excuse me mam, I am now going to touch your most intimate private area". And I didn't even know her name. I tried to act as normal as possible and hoped I didnt blush. By noon, hubs was in the hospital. And a couple of hours later the IL's and Punes were around. I am now making my rounds outside the labor ward, my hands in hub's. I don't like the walking, it adds to the pain and discomfort. However, I was advised to walk to quicken the dilating of the cervix and induce the labor. Hours go by, Dr. I is back and after another check tells me I am still only 1 cm dilated. I am moved to the maternity ward as it seems baby won't be coming out too soon. I didn't know that a woman could stay 1 cm dilated for soooo long. Plus the pains were coming evey 5 minutes.


By 9 pm, I am exausted. Everyone but hubs has gone home to rest. He stays with me in the maternity ward. We walk around my room and I try to focus on the tele. The pain is horrible. And I am still only 1 cm. The frustration is mounting. "When will you come out little angel? When mummy's body allows you I guess." Over 12 hours in and out of pain and I press the button to call the nurse. "Could I have the (pentadine) jab?" An hour later the pain is reduced and the drug gets me through the night without too much pain. Some time in between (its all a blur to me) I am moved back to the labor ward. Even the nurses were unsure of where to keep me. So the labor ward it was!


The next day, 9th June. Dr. I comes in all cheerful asking how mummy is doing. Mummy is not too good. She wishes this was all over. And is eager to set her eyes on her little daughter. But alas, mummy is STILL only 1 cm! The pains are becoming unbearable. I cannot, refuse to walk. Hooked up to the machine permanently now. Mummy and baby need closer monitoring. Baby's heatbeat is fine throughout, doctor and nurses expressions allow me to remain calm. By noon I ask for my second shot of pentadine. Hey, 27 hours and still no baby ok! 3 checks and 3 hours later I am told I am 3 cm! Thank you God! Dr. I tells me that she can break my water for me to quicken labor but this will dramatically increase the pain. "Anything that gets baby out sooner", I tell her. I feel nothing as she breaks my water bag but the release of the waters felt odd, a gush of water coming out from my vagina was like the release of a dam. It is blood stained and this is normal. Almost immediately the pain increases 10 folds. Argh! You must know that I have a VERY LOW threshold for pain. I seriously cannot take pain. By now I am in tears. So is my mummy. She cannot see me in pain and suggested hours before that I just go for the c-section.


I had been through the cycle twice, as in the nurses shifts. All the nurses in the labor ward knew me! Most of them had visited my most intimate and private area. All apologizing everytime they entered. They seemed eager for me to deliver as well. Women came and went (in silence mind you, probably all on the epidural) and there I was close to 30 hours and entering my 4th cm. Dr. I is empathatic (not just for me but for my mom as well), she gets the nurses to give me oxygen. Which honestly helps very little. It does nothing for the pain. It's more of a mind relaxer that gets you high if you inhale too much. Which I did and well I didn't quite like the floating in air out-of-control state it left me in. FINALLY, I give in. I told myself not to, especially for the 1st birth, but I'm chicken shi* that way I guess. I say the words I tried so long to avoid, " Doc, is it too late for the epidural?" I ask. She replies, "No it's not, you are 5 cm dilated". Only 5 cm, sigh.

The anesthesist is called in and comes in about 45 minutes later (not soon enough believe me). He asks me if I have any back problems. No, my back is fine. He tells me to sit at the edge of the bed with my body arched forward in a c-shape with a pillow for support. He injects me with something and I feel something tiny move up inside my spine. It does not hurt. The doc tapes everything down securely and I am allowed to lie down on my back again. He says it takes about a half hour to kick in. 20 minutes later I can feel the effects and begin to relax. Another 20 minutes pass and the whole left side of my body is numb but there is feeling along my right side. Shi*! "Urm nurse, could you help with the pain? I feel it still. Up the dose maybe?" She ups the does, no change. Just take the pain away somebody! So alang-alang half of me still suffering. Another nurse comes in and gets me to rest on my right side. Almost instantly the pain subsides. Praise the Lord! From this point on NO MORE PAIN! Nothing!


Within 3 hours I am 8 cm dilated. And at about 8:30 pm I reach 10 cm and the nurses prepare the bed. My feet are in stirrups and are way above my head. My legs are open. Dr. I tells me to push. I feel nothing but try my hardest. Hubs is right next to me holding my hand but peering down to get a better view of the birthing process. I had troubles pushing at first, didnt quite get the breathing part. Blame it on the nerves as there was NO pain. After a while I got the hang of it and just focused on pushing as hard as possible. After baby's head was out, the rest of the body slipped out easily. At 8:49, after 36 hours of labor, Elil Arasi was born weighing 2.8 kg and 12 days early. Dr. I lifted her up to the delight of her proud parents. My first memory of her was her eyes, those round ever-alert eyes so bright and shining. I remember thinking to myself, oh goodness she looks exactly like me! She has changed back and forth many times since then but I still see a lot of me in her, and a lot of her daddy too. A good mix of us both I guess. I tried breastfeeding immediately but she found it a little hard to suckle. She was tagged baby number 25 and I was mummy number 25. I would never forget that face, never! I remember feeling very cold soon after, shivering uncontrollably. Hubs got me a blanket and I was wheeled to the maternity ward. Elil was off being weighed and cleaned and sent to the nursery. I noticed later that the nurses whose shifts had ended stayed back just to have a glance of little Elil. I'm sure they looked at mummy then at daddy and figured the product should be pretty interesting! Haha!


I don't remember feeling tired that night at the hospital. I was anxious and excited and wanted to be with my baby. I felt sore down there, that I remember. I did not and could not sleep. I was alone that night except for when they brought little Elil to me for feeding. Oh such a precious one she was, and is! One last thing, days later as we were filling up the forms for Elil's birthcert, we realized that Elil and Dr. I share the same birthdate! No wonder, she tried to delay inducing me!

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Bento update

Psst.

My mummy got me some stuff from Daiso yesterday.

I won some stuff from ebay.

AND

I think I may just throw some stuff out and add some cool stuff into my shopping cart in NST now.

I am grinning from ear to ear.

TAGGED!

1. The person who tag/pass you is? Mel

2. Your relationship with her/him is? BFF

3. Your five impression of her/him? lawa mau matee, hilarious, emotional, loving & did i mention lawa mau matee?

4. The most memorable thing she/he had done for you?
Been there everytime I needed a shoulder to cry on.

5. The most memorable thing she/he had said to you?
Told me she wanna name all her kids after me and actually sounded serious. But truly mel, dont k! ;)

6. If she/he becomes your lover you will...?
Ask her, "hehehehe....why your crotch so small?"

7. If she/he becomes your lover, thing she/he has to improve on will be?
Crotch size.

8. If she/he becomes your enemy, you will...?
Be totally heartbroken.

10. The most desired thing you want to do for her/him now is?
Show her that she can find and is deserving of that kind of LOVE.

11. Your overall impression of her/him is?
Hahaha yo...budu math...she likes butter A LOT. Paling fahnie person I know. Even funnier when drunk....that night not so long ago at waterfront....LOL.

12. How you think people around you will feel about you?
Will? Either that I'm funny or that I'm boring. Depends on my mood....this is yo's jawapan and i feel zakly the same!


13. The characteristics you love of yourself are?
I am passionate about everything. I am empathatic. I'm a lover of beer.

14. On the contrary, the characteristics you hate about yourself are?
I lack self-confidence sometimes and I can be insecure. I don't think I'm smart enough.

15. The most ideal person you want to be is?
A SAHM or WAHM

16.For people that care and like you, say something to them
Thank you.

17. Pass this quiz to 10 persons that you wished to know how they feel about you.

People I wish I knew how they felt about me? I'm just going to put 10 people, most of which I know how they feel about me.

1) Babe
2) Sel
3) Mel
4) Rol
5) Yo
6) Mia
7) Ots
8) Punes
9) Eyasmin
10) Hema

18. Who is no.6 having relationship with?
Will

19. Is no.9 a male or female?
Female

20. If number 7. and 10 are together, will it be a good thing?
No. Not quite possible anyhow.

21. What is no.2 studying about?
Photography?

22. When was the last time you had a chat with no.3?
Yaysterrday.

23. What kind of music band does no. 8 like?
Ooh...macam all sorts. I know she loves Alanis Morissette.

24. Does no.1 have any siblings?
1 older braderr.

25. Will you woo no.3?
Not necessary. Were already lovers of each other.

26. How about number 7?
Not necessary. Were already lovers of each other.

27. Is no. 4 single?
Taken.

28. What is the surname of no.5?
Graham

29. What's the hobby of no.10?
Eating

30. Do no.5 and 9 get along well?
They have met.

31. Where is no.2 studying at?
Sahhhnaaaa....

32. Talk something casually about no.1?
Hensem huggable teddy bear.

33. Have you tried developing feelings for no.6?
I have deep feelings for her.

34. Where does no.9 live at?
Sahhnnnaaaa....

35. What colour does no.4 like?
I have to say blue...hope i got it right.

36. Are no.5 and 1 best friends?
They are lavaasssss...

37. is no.7 the sexiest person in the world?
Totally!!!

38. What is no.6 doing now?
Desperately looking for a temp job.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

And so begins my new addiction....

I was bored and a lil' down yesterday, so I visited my fave online CD stores. And well nothing really appealed to me. The funky designs created very little excitement. Plus Elil has more than enough CD's to last her a while now. So I went a-bloghopping instead. And while visiting my usual spots, again my eyes were drawn to the Bento posts. Aha! And so I clicked on all the Bento labels and examined each bento tool and its end-product. Slowly I sensed some pleasure rising inside me. Hmmm....could this be my new addiction? The new temporary high when clicking BUY and the rush to the mail room to collect my package? Oh yes I think so! And so it began.

First, I called up mummy.

Me: "Mummy, could you get me some stuff ka?"
Mummy: "Sure. What you want?"
Me" 'Can you go to Japanese Home Store in Asia City, some shop on the 1st floor Karamunsing and Daiso in 1Borneo and check out some Bento stuff for me?"
Mummy: "What is Bento?"
And so I go on to explain....you know how the Japanese have this strange fascination with turning their food into pieces of art?....

Half an hour later mummy calls.

Mummy: "Ok I'm here in Asia City but have no idea what I'm looking for."
Me: "Look for the egg mould that you and Ots got for me the other day and stuff around it like cookie/sandwich/vege cutters, or rice/jelly/chocolate moulds. Or silicon cups and food separators. Sauce containers? Fruit or dessert picks?"
Mummy: " Hah! Teda oh! Ok, I cari Karamunsing now.

Another half hour later.

Mummy: "Puei, teda oh your bento-bento thing sini!"
Me: "Hah! Immmpossible! All the bento mamas in KK cakap ada tu in those shops!
Mummy: "None oh. Tomorrow I try 1Borneo ok. I penat redi dis."
Me: "Ok mummy. Np. Thanks."

Did you guys know that the only Daiso outlet in Malaysia is in 1Borneo??? So I bloghopped some more and someone mentioned the 100 Yen Store. Did some Google research and voila, the list of 100 Yen Stores in Malaysia. 11 outlets all together. I went to the SS2 branch 2 weeks back. Nada! And then ooh, there's one in Puchong!

A conversation between my colleague N (who's from Puchong btw) and me.

Me: "Hey got nice place to makan lunch in Puchong?"
N: " Go-ot!"
Me: "You wanna go there for lunch today?"
N: "What you want to buy?"
Me: "Ehe, you know me so well." (During my CD addiction,I got him to bring me to lunch in Bangsar so I could collect my CD's from the post office there.)

And so I go on to explain about the 100 Yen Shop. He told me he knows this shop well. All the better! And at lunchtime were on our way with two other colleagues tagging along. Ok so when N told me he knew the place, he actually had another huge red signboard shop in mind (Berry bakery!) and in fact had no clue where my bento-stash shop was! We spend almost an hour searching before thank the Lord we finally find the place.

Alas, to my dismay after walking around each isle, I find nothing. Well there were several cute bento containers but other than that, nothing! All that effort and nothing much to show for it. I ended up getting two real cute 2-level containers. At least I got something.

Today, I will go back to NST and probably, hopefully get some stuff from there. OR if someone is up for lunch in Uptown today....

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Salt intake for toddlers

I was chatting with a friend the other day and we started talking about what else but our babies (actually toddlers now). She told me that she hardly puts any salt in her kiddos meals. I mentioned my little Elil consumes quite a bit of salty foods. She then said that after she read an article about how high salt intake gives toddlers high blood pressure, she immediately reduced salt in her baby's meals.

So I have been doing my own research and nearly every site tells me the same thing. So I'm going to share some information with you guys:

Salt Intake Gives Toddlers High Blood Pressure by Valerie Elliott, Consumer Editor

Children as young as four are eating so much salt that they are suffering from high blood pressure, it was revealed yesterday.

Parents are being urged to cut down their children’s daily salt intake to prevent them suffering heart disease or strokes as young adults.

The alert was raised by new research, published in The Journal of Hypertension, that found that children eating the highest amount of salt had the highest blood pressure.

Health campaigners are concerned that the high level of salt in the diets of children aged from four to 18 is fuelling the country’s obesity crisis.

Related Links
Plea to take additives out of children’s food
Eating an extra gram a day resulted in significantly raised blood pressure, according to the study. Once high blood pressure had been established as a health problem in childhood it invariably continued into adulthood.

The research was based on data collated by the National Diet and Nutrition Survey of 2,127 young people in Britain, an official audit for the Department of Health.

Some 1,658 kept a diary of what they ate and drank and their salt intake and blood pressure was recorded.

The study found that for each extra gram of salt consumed by children there was a related increase of 0.44 mmHg (millimetres of mercury) in what is called systolic blood pressure.

Malcolm Law, of the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, said that the findings showed that the country needed a revolutionary approach to salt consumption.

Professor Law called on the food industry to do more to reduce salt content in food that is popular with children and teenagers. Even the amount in baby food was too high, he said.

Professor Law said: “The vast majority of children in this country are eating too much salt. Higher blood pressure is a marker for vascular damage and this shows it’s starting too early. Going into adulthood this is not totally irreversible, if people can have a ‘salt revolution’.”

The survey also found that children aged between four and eight who ate less than 4.5g of salt a day had a systolic blood pressure measuring 2mmHg lower than those of the same age group eating more than 5.5g of salt.

Mike Mead, of the Blood Pressure Association, said: “If we are going to prevent a future epidemic of hypertension, the more that can be done to educate families about taking some simple steps to leading a healthier lifestyle the better.”



Healthy eating

Recommended daily maximum:
0-6 months less than 1g
7-12 months 1 gram
1-3 years 2 grams
4-6 years 3 grams
7-10 years 5 grams
11-14 years 6 grams
Adults 6 grams

Source: Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition


This next site pretty much tells you the same thing, read more here

I am trying my hardest....

....and it ain't working....

Tuesday, September 02, 2008

Good read for mother's with toddlers and those who care for toddlers....

If you feel like the word you say most often is "no," consider ways you can make your house, or at least parts of your house and yard, utterly safe for his investigations. Lock gardening tools in the garage or shed, be sure there are no water hazards (i.e. buckets, wading pools, etc.), and put out a few balls that he can chase and try to kick — a big "exercise" ball can be very entertaining. Designate one room or corner of the house as the play area and have it full of pillows and toys. Remove breakable items from coffee tables or shelves that your child can reach. Be sure to pad any sharp corners (better yet, remove coffee and side tables that pose a danger). And let your child try feeding himself, even if it makes a big mess. Remember that play and exploration are how toddlers learn about the world, so it's not that your 14-month-old is being intentionally defiant, simply that he is curious about everything around him and doesn't want anyone to stop him from checking things out.Toddlers are enthralled by water. Water play can be both soothing and exciting, so next time you need a way to distract your toddler — say, while you're cooking — put him in his highchair, fill a plastic bowl with soapy, bubbly water, and give him a sponge or dish-scrubber so he can wash plastic cups and plates. You may want to put a drop cloth or an old shower curtain under the highchair if you're worried about a mess.

I got this from Baby Center.

Happy 51st Malaysia!

I experienced these two unfortunate incidences during the week leading to Merdeka.

Unfortunate Incident #1: I was having coffee with my friend during office hours. He was talking about a new found way of life - yoga and a new diet (apparently 90% of food type is cut out). He also mentioned a quest to search for his soul. He is under the impression that his soul is somewhere in, let's say...urm..'Yugoslavia'. What an odd idea! I told him his soul is right where it should be, deep within him. I don't think he believed lil' ol' me. So he goes on to say that he wants a change in career, a change of lifestyle, away from the hustle and bustle of KL city life, away from the materialism. For once, I agree with him! He is compelled to travel half way round the world to urm....'Yugoslavia' to teach poor little 'Yugoslavian' kids, suffering illiterates. I nearly spat out my coffee and fell off the freakin chair! "Don't we have poor children here in Malaysia that you could teach?" I ask him. He answers, "Yea, but they're all....let's say....urm 'Hispanic'!". If my eyes could pop out, I'm sure they would have. I roll my eyes in disgust instead. I shake my head and tell him, "No no, this is where you have it wrong. You want to help kids, you help em. Theyr'e kids for goodness sakes. Children! Who cares about their race! Children don't differentiate race until we (idiot) adults point it out to them!" He goes on to say, "Yea but they have 'Hispanic' parents!". I could not believe my ears! This isn't coming from some old uneducated fogie who is still living in the 60's. This friend of mine is in his early 30's and is supposed to be educated! I hate using that term 'educated' it's so BS. Note: I have changed certain country names and races to avoid creating racial hate among us Malaysians and in fear of being thrown into prison for having an opinion.

Unfortunate Incident #2:
Let's say I heard this from a friend who heard it from a friend. Well my friend, was telling me about something that happend to her friend X and X's friend Y. X and Y work together. They have a superior called Mr. Z. X and Y are not Malaysian nationals. They are from...let's say....urm 'Croatia'. Mr. Z is Malaysian. In delegating work to X and Y, Mr. Z gives them a word of advice, "You know its important to always maintain cleanliness. Especially you 'Croatians'. Your people always contract a lot of diseases because you are dirty. You bring diseases like Bird Flu and Typhoid." My jaw dropped. I tell you ah. I so so tak puas hati oh hearing crap like this. How do you say something like that to someone? No one deserves to hear stuff like that being said about their own people. I was told that X was brought to tears by this comment. It's just horrible and degrading and insulting and hurtful and uneccessary.

So here's to you Malaysia. We have a long long way to go....

Having second thoughts....

After Sungai Besi toll at 6:40 am

After Desa Waterpark exit at 7:10 am

I'm having second thoughts about my new work schedule. Ok, let's analyze:

Original Schedule

Work hours: 8:30 am - 5:30 pm

Tradffic Conditions: I leave the house anytime between 7:30 am and 8:00 am. The jam is horrendous, it takes me anywhere between 1.5 hours to 2 hours to get to work. My feet hurt, I am under a lot of stress (due to aching feet, fear of being late for work, lalalala). Leave office at 5:30 pm sharp, or anytime later and I get back in a little over an hour. So that means I spend at least 3 hours everyday on the road. 3 hours that I can never gain back.

Upside: I get to spend a little time with Elil before I leave for work.

New Schedule

Work hours: 7:30 am - 4:30 pm

Traffic Conditions: I leave the house by 6:30 am. There are already a lot of cars on the roas eventhough its pitch black outside. After the Sungai Besi toll just around the Petronas petrol station, the traffic slows. The roads are fulls. I am not in a standstill, but am down to 1st gear. It takes me 50-55 minutes to get to work. I am done by 4:30 pm on most days, it takes me as little as 40 minutes to reach Kajang. Less than two hours on the road daily and more time with Elil at the end of it.

Downside: I don't get to see Elil before I leave for work. The long stretch is REALLY heartbreaking.

The conclusion, you can't have it all and sometimes you don't have a choice. Looks like i'll be sticking to my new schedule. There's got to be a better way! I'm not doing this for long.