Double Happiness

It’s been more than a week since I’m home from KK Hospital. Already the whole experience of staying in hospital seems quite remote. As I lie on my bed, perspiring despite having the aircon blasting at 22 degree Celcius, I wonder how on earth I had made it through the stay without aircon. I really really hope that I shall never need to return to Class C again.

The plan is this – if the babies are good and arrive at week 34 or later (deadline: 1 April – easy enough to remember!), we will opt for Class B2+. It’s the cheapest ward possible that provides aircon!!! It’s certainly still a subsidized class (ie: only Sporeans can opt for this class) but there’s still quite a bit of difference from class C charges:

• Price of mother’s ward is $115 daily (compared to $25 for Class C)
• Price of Babies’ Intensive Care (NICU) is $480 daily for two (compared to $200 for Class C). With special medication it may come up to twice the amount
• Price of Babies’ Special Care is $250 daily for two (compared to $100 for Class C)
• Price of Babies’ Nursery Care is $100 daily for two (same as Class C)
• Cost of C-section operation is around $1500

From my calcuation, assuming babies born at week 34 have to stay in NICU for 2 weeks, the total cost would be around $10,000. A large chunk of this can come from Tim and my Medisave.

As the babies (at week 32) are now still in breech position, it is likely that delivery would be by C-section. Under KKH’s regulation, fathers are not allowed in the operating theatre during C-section. Ziyun suggested that since our rapport with Dr Tham is not all that cosy, we may want to consider going to another obstetrician and delivering in a private hospital which allows fathers to be present. Of course this is provided that the babies arrive at week 36 or later (13 April) as private hospital’s NICU charges are much higher. Have decided to try out Mt Alvernia as it is one of the cheapest private hospital and it allows fathers to be in the operating theatre if the doctor is fine with that.

• Cost of C-section delivery by private obsterician is about $2,000 (depending on doc)
• Hospital charges for C-section operation with epidural and 3-day stay in a 4-bedder ward is about $1,800 (including standard medication and procedures)
• Price of Babies’ Intensive Care (NICU) range from $180 to $920 daily for two, depending on intensity of care. With special medication it may come up to twice the amount ($2,000 daily for two, gasp!!)
• Price of Babies’ Nursery Level 1 is $180 daily for two
• Price of Babies’ Nursery is $95 daily for two

We intend to go for a consultation with an obsterician who practises at Mt Alvernia once the 33-week growth scan at KKH is over on 26 March. That way we can have the latest position and estimated weight of babies for the obsterician to make a better judgement of whether they would require NICU and whether he/she would allow Tim to be present in the operating theatre. Will look through reviews online at TwinsPlus.com and SingaporeMotherhood.com for feedback on good obstericians. Really hope that the babies are at a good 2kg for the next scan! Will keep everyone updated.

It is with great pleasure that I announce to everyone that the doctors at KK Hospital have decided to discharge me yesterday, ending my 18-day stay at the hospital. The decision was made based on 4 factors – 1) my cervical length has not shortened, showing that continued bedrest may be sufficient to prolong pregnanacy; 2) babies are at 31 weeks which, while still far from the ideal 34 weeks, is still viable; 3) 18-days of careful monitoring shows my condition is quite stable (in terms of uterine contractions, babies’ heartbeats, my blood pressure and temperature); 4) my commitment to be disciplined and continue the same horizontal bedrest at home.

I gave Tim a call and he came down at 1pm to fetch me and my tons of worldly possessions home. I said bye to the nurses, many of whom have been very patient and kind to me. I managed to write a long feedback form to the KKH management, applauding some of the doctors (Dr Taufik, Jazlan and Kenneth Kwek), nurses (esp Nurse Manager Poh whom I have a deep respect for as she is so devoted to her work), caterer and cleaning personnels.

At the same time I also gave my honest feedback on two areas they can do better – 1) the food (oily breakfast, Kellog flavour soup, jelly and cakes instead of fruits) and 2) attitude of a few of the doctors – without giving names of course (not taking time to listen to patient queries, more interested in finishing rounds, brushing aside concerns, insensitive choice of words). Now that I think back… perhaps I should not have said so much because one of these doctors may be operating on me… Sheeeesh… sometimes one does something silly only to regret it later. However, I vouch by my comments – they are my honest observations, not born out of vengence or high-handedness.

The first day back home was like a dream. I get to caress my cats, lie on our king-size bed in absolute aircon bliss, sit on the sofa (with my legs propped up horizontally, of cos), shower in the familiar bathroom without the stale smells, make phone calls from our landline without worrying about the high outgoing-call costs of mobile phones and bad connection, play music without worrying about disturbing others, and watch TV on a giant LCD screen instead of the 9cm x 5.5cm Cowon (which has served my very well, but still!). These are all things that one tends to take for granted, it is only when you are deprieved of them do you realise how blessed we are to be surrounded by these daily conveniences.

Our next major task is to engage a domestic help, one who can start work on 1 April. Today I flipped through the papers and made a few phonecalls, then Tim did the legwork to go down to the agencies and collect the biodata of suitable candidates. Now that I’m bedridden, there is limited help I can give to all the tasks that still need to be done to prepare for the arrival of the babies. Tim’s tasklist has lengthened correspondingly as a result, my poor husband… Perhaps this may help him to unconsiously lose a few pounds =)

Today the babies are 30 weeks + 2 days and a growth scan shows that ah-boy is 1.7kg and ah-girl is 1.66kg. It is not a bad weight but we’re a bit disappointed that they have grown only 200g in the last 2 weeks. We were hoping that with Tim’s genes the babies would be closer to 2kg by now. On the other hand, my cervical length is 1.4cm today, slightly better than the 1.1cm last week though still far from the 2.5cm safe range. Still, if my condition remains stable, Dr Kenneth Qwek, head of the High Risk Consult, may allow me to go home for bedrest at 32 weeks, which is around 17 March. He wouldn’t recommend any earlier and if I insist on leaving, I would have to sign a ‘discharged against medical advice’. Being my kiasu self, I of cos would not do that.

By now I am quite used to the hospital routine, a typical day goes:

7.30am: House Office (HO) and Medical Officer (MO) make their rounds, asking routine questions like ‘Any pain’, ‘Any contraction’, ‘Any discharge’? This is the time to give my queries to the doctors as they will not be around until same time next morning

7.45am: Nurse will dispense 2 adalat and 1 iron supplement for me to take after breakfast with the rest of my supplements.

8am: Breakfast is served. Usually there’s congee, rice or even fried noodles. A cup of Milo is always included. If the breakfast looks too oily for me (eg fried kway teow), I can ask for 2 slices of bread with margarine and jam. I miss my usual cereals and toast. If the High Risk Consult team drops by, it’s usually around 8~8.30am. This is the time I ask Dr Kenneth Kwek all my burning questions.

9am: CTG time. Senior nurse will strap me with 3 monitoring devices to the CTG machine which provides traces of each fetal heartbeat and maternal contraction. I have to lie as flat as possible (without becoming too breatheless) and remain as still as possible for the entire tracing. Sometimes babies are good and it takes 45mins. Sometimes babies are too active and I have to be strapped down for almost 2 hours. Ah-boy is so far more obedient, can always be found at the same spot, is happy to lie still and hence providing a beautiful continuous trace. Ah-girl seems more active and plays hide-and-seek, she moves around too much and sometimes her trace disappears altogether and we have to start all over again. Also, ah-girl’s heartbeat is constantly higher than ah-boy’s. This could be an indication of their personalities, we shall see!

10am: Warm barley drink is served.

10am-12noon: This is when I use the laptop to surf the net or write emails.

12noon: Lunch is served. It’s usually a soup, one dish of meat, one dish of vegetable, one HUGE serving of rice and one dessert (usually aga-aga or fruit compote). I have tried one week of Chinese food and it is quite bland, especially the vegetable which swims around in a pool of water. The meat is always either chicken or pork. Ths soup is worse, flavoured with Kellog’s chicken cube and a few morsels of vegatables. I then tried one week of muslim meal which was exciting at first because of the beef and mutton and the spices. But after a few days of 3 spicy meals a day, I noticed the blend of spices seem to be the same, the only thing that changes is the meat. It gets nauseating after a while and I have to get Tim to buy me something different like Deli France tuna or egg sandwich. Fortunately Tim is not a fussy eater and doesn’t mind eating my hospital meal while I feast on something more interesting.

12.30pm: Tim pops by for lunch visit and stays for about an hour.

2pm-5pm: This is what I call the sauna period. It is the hottest period of the day where every contact with the mattress means heat and sweat accumulation. I try to lie on one side to minimize my skin contact with the mattress, and turn every 30 mins or so to a new position on the bed where heat has not penerated yet. This is the most UNBEARABLE period of the day. I try to either sleep, read or watch something on the Cowon. Not a good time to use the lapton because it requires me to sit upright, with maximum contact with the mattress.

2pm: Nurse will dispense 2 adalat

3pm: A cake or pastry is served together with either Milo or milk, I usually ask for milk as it’s less sweet and less heaty.

5pm: Dinner is served. Menu is the same as lunch except that instead of a dessert, a fruit is served. I am usually not in the mood for dinner at all at 5pm, since in my ex-life outside the ward I usually only eat dinner at 8 or 9pm! But stone cold hospital food tastes even worse, so I psycho myself to begin eating latest by 5.45pm.

5.15pm: I go for my daily shower. This is one of the highlights of the day. I wish I can take more than 1 shower a day but decided not to take the risk – the floor being slippery and too much out-of-bed time.

6.30pm: If my parents visit, this is the time they pop by as they try to catch the last shuttle bus from Bugis MRT to KKH.

7.30pm: Tim usually arrives at this time and stays up to 2 hours. We catch up on the happenings of the day, brainstorm for baby names, and he gives me a back rub. He leaves around 9pm to work some more at home.

8pm: Nurse will dispense 2 adalat

9pm to 11.30pm: I read or watch something on the Cowon. This time of the day is more pleasant and I perspire less. After midnight is the best as the temperature is the lowest.

2am: Nurse wakes me up to dispense 2 adalat

5.30am: Nurse wakes me up to tke blood pressure and temperature. Sometimes I am unable to sleep after that.

And the day goes on…two more weeks of this, I shall be bored out of my skull…

Today is my 12th day being warded in KK Hospital. Seeing that Tim has done a very good job summarizing my plight, I wasn’t very motivated to write, especially since it is quite impossible to find a good position in bed which allows me to type properly and at the same time not put too much pressure on my lower belly. Still, I think the overseas folks (namely Evelyne, Jean, Huijun and Ziyun) would like an update, even if just to know I haven’t popped yet~!

My current home in Ward 34 bed 2 is a 6-bedder, non-air-conditioned, class C ward, with maximum noise and minimum personal space – it also happens to be the very cheapest with 80% subsidy from the government. It makes the most financial sense to be warded here since infant charges is pegged to class of mummy and NICU is extremely expensive ($120 per day per baby is the subsidized C Class rate!) and would be a high cost to bear if the babies make an early appearance. “Bare minimum” is the best descriptor for this little corner of mine but with Tim consistently bringing me stuff from home for my daily needs, this corner is quite self sufficient. I am surrounded by a host of personal items that signify to all nurses, cleaners and other patients that I’m a long-term resident here. I have my own pillows and bolster, 3 pots of flowers, a fruit basket, snacks (currently it’s pineapple tarts and cashew nuts), a big bag of toileteries, several books, my laptop, Tim’s Cowon and 3 chargers.

To be honest, the stay here is quite a break from the usual hustle and bustle of working life, and probably better for the development of the babies both phyically (since I’m lying down all the time) and psychologically (since I’m not all stressed up with work). I can bear with the lousy food, the boredom, the stale-smelling washroom, the constant chatter of my ward-mates, the disturbed sleep when babies cry and nurses wake you up at 2am and 5.30am. It is only the heat and humidity that gets to me. To be covered with a sheen of perspiration down the back and between every fold of the skin is a sensation I didn’t have to put up with since student days where classrooms are not equipped with air-conditioner. I have developed heat rash on my neck. Air conditioning has become part of the basic creature comfort for me. Besides that, I miss the comfort of home and my three cats. The growing belly makes me breatheless in certain positions and the stronger baby kicks near my cervix area make me squirm in pain, and is enough to wake me up at night.

Patients staying in Class C are very different from the people I generally come into contact with. There is an Indian girl aged 32 who just gave birth to her 7th child. She doesn’t work and her husband takes home around $1500 a month… all that to feed a family of 9?! There was a pretty 19-year-old Chinese girl who gave birth just 3 days ago. I noticed that her parents did not visit her and that her visitors are mainly young, angry-looking teenage girls with mini skirts and tons of makeup. She later told me that her father did not visit often cos her stepmother did not like her… and her own mother died when she was 12. She has finished her O-levels and hopes to go back to school one day but now with the baby it may take a few more years. A Malay woman who was warded at 35 weeks and is still here now was telling me that her pregnancies are usually problematic and result in hospital stays so she has phobia of getting pregnant again. Since this is her third pregnancy, I asked her why doesn’t she consider tying the tubes. Her only reason? In case she gets divorced, she wants to be able to give birth for her next husband.

These are perhaps the people who have fallen through the cracks of the affluent Singaporean society – the financially poor, the broken family and the lowly edcuated. What kind of children will they bring up? Is it going to be a vicious cycle? It seems that it is those who have the financial means and intellectual ability to raise kids who are unwilling to give birth while those who can ill afford it choose have more kids than they can afford. Perhaps that’s the way the human race ensures that society will always have a broad base of people at the bottom of the hierarchy.

On my own front, my parents visit me very often, at least once in 2 days, bringing wih them a healthy meal, fruits, snacks and fresh water. As they stay quite far away and there is no direct bus from their home to here, I really appreciate their efforts. Such is parenthood, I suppose. It is continuously giving. A wise Chinese teacher once told us: there is no way children can ever return their parents the same amount of love, the only thing one can do is to be to be loving parents themselves and so pass it forward.

Tim has been a very supportive husband, coming to visit me during lunch and after work. These are usually the highlights of my day cos he’s around to make me laugh and give me a comforting back rub. I have come to realise the value of laughter to a person’s overall wellbeing – it is so important to be in good humour and a few hearty laughs feels really good. I guess that’s where I got it good – I have married a funny man, the angmoh version of Stephan Chow. I have also married a kind man, one who gives back rubs even when he is dead tired at the end of a workday. At the risk of sounding really mushy, this stay in hospital has its own silver-lining, the greatest of which is the realisation that I am truly lucky to have married a man like Tim.

It’s been a while since my last update. Life has been treating me quite well with the recent return of my best friend, Huijun aka Tabi, from Holland! Have been catching up quite a fair bit. Firstly we met on Friday 9 Feb and she introduced me to a fantastic roti prata store at Blk 3 St George Road where we had a hearty breakfast. It’s one of the best prata I’ve eaten, especially the cheese prata. Must bring Tim’s parents there to try when they’re here in July. For the record, it opens daily till about 8pm. After the prata, we went downtown to Tangs Orchard and spent 4 hours just on the ground floor checking out cosmetics. Here’s where Tabi bought me a Chanel Blanc Illuminator (or what we call the ‘miracle white powder’) to help me further my cause of being a Glam Mum. After that we sat down to rest at MacDonald’s for coffee and dessert and chitchatted for 2 hours! Time simply flew by and the next thing we knew, we were late for our dinner appointment. For dinner we met up with old university friends Dejun, Xueling, Huili & Peiyun for dinner at Oishi Wisma. It was really really fun catching up and we had many a laugh over really silly jokes.

The second gathering with Tabi was for a buffet lunch at AquaMarine at Marina Mandarin with Lydia. The day began with Lydia coming around to fetch us in her Toyota, it’s such a comfort to be chauffeured around, especially with my bulging belly and the intense Singapore mid-day heat. The food selection at AquaMarine was quite amazing – from local cuisine, Hong Kong dimsum, western salads to a chocolate fountain. We stayed there from 12.30pm to 4pm and really ate our fill while reminiscing about the past when our stomachs could really handle much more! The food was enough to last me through dinner, together with an ice mocha vanilla decaf from Coffee Club.

The third gathering was with the whole gang for a Crepe Party – everyone was able to make it except John and Leewai. This time, Tim found a new way of entertaining the guys by inviting them to a few rounds of computer games in the study while we girls do our ‘girly girly’ talk. Baby Chloe and Asha have grown much bigger (and cuter!!) since I last saw them. It’s amazing how fast they grow! Jingyi came along with some floormats and Yen with a bag of baby girl clothes and shoes. Having these hand-me-downs is great! This treasury of goodies shall be handed down to Meiying and subsequently Lydia, Huijun, Ziyun… who knows? Luckily baby clothes don’t go out of fashion!

On the pregnancy front, we had our first hands-on session at Mdm Wong’s birth class yesterday. We learnt how to hold and bathe baby (paying particular attention to how to wash the head, eyes, ears, naval, hands and privates), how to soothe crying baby (have to understand what the different cries mean), how to burp baby (not stroke but hit gently with capped hands), how to swaddle baby, how to put on a diaper, how to fold the clothe nappies. All very exciting and fun to do on a plastic baby doll… I bet in real life it will be a nightmare, especially knowing after doing one, you got to do the other.

Another key learning is that we should watch over the confinement lady and maid to ensure that they are not doing something dangerous to our newborns (ie: what they have learnt from their years of experience but are not scientific). It will not be easy to correct a confinement lady given that she will inevitably have a ‘I know more than you’ attitude. Perhaps Tim is a better person to manage this kind of situation – he can be the ‘I’m a westerner and I don’t buy all these crap and I don’t wish you to use your traditional methods on my children’ kind of father. As I’m a Chinese, it’s much harder for me to denounce all these Chinese beliefs. Plus if I’m still recovering from the birth, I may not have the energy for any confrontation. Best is to leave it to Tim =)

Have been splurging a bit on maintenance the past couple of weeks. Well, after a while I have gotten tired of looking tired and I have decided that though I look like a whale, I don’t have to dress like a tired whale! In order to FEEL Good, I have to LOOK Good. Off I went for a haircut to get rid of my unruly hair, a mani/pedicure to feel groomed, and a shopping spree (with Tim in toll, trying his best to be patient) to buy maternity clothes that actually fit my 24 weeks, 39″ belly. Till now I have been squeezing into my old empire-cut blouses, or wearing hand-me-downs from friends and relatives. The problem with my old clothes is that there are only about 4 of them to rotate around and the problems with hand-me-downs is that they are not quite my style. In any case, they are all starting to fit too snugly now that I am huge like a full-term singleton mum. So off to every preggies’ favourite hunt, Suntec City, for the likes of Mothercare, Spring Maternity and Perfect Mum.

The baby kicks are getting stronger and stronger everyday. We can see the vibrations on the surface of my belly now. Yesterday they did a series of almost 10 consecutive strong kicks that really surprises us. Tim thinks they are karate kids and I think this is an indication that they will be hyperactive babies! I’ve noticed that their kicks are usually strongest at night when Tim and I are watching TV. They can be quite active around 3-5pm when I’m working in the office, but the most violent moves are reserved for at night to impress their papa. Good kids!

We went to our second prenatal class on Wed. Class started late and ended late which really pissed Tim off. We went through the different types of pain relief during labour - breathing technique (breathe in and pant, pant, pant, blow), relaxation (tightening and relaxing of muscles from face to legs, including pelvic floor), TENs (looks like a crap device), entonox (laughing gas – sounds exciting but may cause nausea or vomiting if too much is inhaled), injections of pethidine (lessen but doesn’t stop pain) and the life-saving epidural (the process of inserting the long needle into the spinal cord is nerve-wrecking to say the least). We shall discuss our options with Dr Tham on Monday.

On Thursday we met up with Helene, wife of Tim’s friend Benoit. Helene is a flight attendant with Air France and a mother of two really beautiful kids. She brought us gifts from Tim’s parents – 2 matching sets of baby rompers (I learnt that the French adoringly call the kids ‘little rabbits’), 2 sets of baby bips that says Lundi to Dimanche, a box of foie gras which expires in 2009 (Tim has to wait for me to eat it, ha!), a head massage truc which I have taken to wearing on my head so Tim can massage me anytime he happens to be next to me, and 3 books of children stories in French. Merci Evelyne, Jean!

On the public transport front, it’s been two weeks since I stopped taking Tim’s motorbike. Am getting used to the routine. In the morning I must get into the bus at least until the seating zone. If I’m stranded at the boarding zone where the bus driver sits, nobody can see me and so nobody will give me a seat. Best are the double-decker bus, I try to walk upstairs cos there tends to be legitimate empty seats so I don’t have to deprive someone of theirs. At night, I will wait till 8pm to jump into a cab – this saves me $2 peak-hour surcharge though it means going home later. On bad days when the back or belly discomfort is less bearable, I will just pay the $2 to go back early. So a budget of $25 a week is spent on cabs – that’s not too bad.

Our prenatal classes started yesterday evening with Mdm Wong Boh Boi at Thomson Medical Centre. She is a hilarious woman, quite auntie-like though the medical jargon she throws into her speech is a good reminder of her medical training. Her favourite phrase “Am I quite clear?” still rings in my head. What really threw Tim off was the fact that she’s super longwinded – obviously one who loves her own voice. Plus she’s also quite free with her self praise. But all in all, I like her humour (quirky as it is, at least the session’s not boring) and I sense her sincerity. I’m not sure Tim has the patience as her style is very much a Singaporean naggy auntie style.

There were certainly more than the allowed 23 couples in the room – some had come of their own accord after missing other sessions. Since everyone was first-time parents, we were all decently cordial to one another. The only awkward moment was when one man marched through the crowd, all seated in various levels of comfort on the floor, and exclaimed aggressively, “My wife needs a chair!” It’s like, AHEM, in a room full of pregnant women, does it make any sense that your pregnant wife deserves a chair while other preggies are very happy to be on the ground? Really.

The overcrowded condition means most people were not able to see Mdm Wong’s demonstration and will just follow the people around them. As the theory of Broken Telephone goes, towards the back of the class I bet everyone is doing it wrongly. Fortunately Tim had been early and was able to book a strategic spot so we were somewhat in the centre of things. However as we were all sitting on the floor, Tim’s inflexible knees means he either sits awkwardly or stands throughout the almost 3 hour session (look, in a standing-and bending position, he can barely grab his knees!). Now, I think My Husband Needs a Chair.

The focus of yesterday’s training was exercise and posture – how to get up from lying down and from a squatting position, breathing exercise to help with labour (deep breathe followed by panting – a hilarious exercise), arm/leg massages to reduce water retention (aided by husband), back roll to strengthen back (otherwise known as Meow position), hip roll to strengthen hips (otherwise known as Doggy wag), stomach stretch to help digestion (aided by husband), chest thrust to tone up breasts,… can’t recall the rest.

On the use of public transport – I have been taking the bus to work everyday since Monday and it’s taking a toll on my sanity. Singaporeans seem to be generally kind enough to give me a seat or perhaps are just too embarrassed not to (I am guilty of glaring at them until they stand up, or pretending to look weak). The journey is usually fine but it’s the waiting time that can be killing because sometimes there’s no place to sit at the bus stop or while waiting for the taxi. Being a Bag Lady, my daily handbag carries the usual umbrella, water bottle, hospital notes, medical records, daily supplements, makeup kit and sweets. It becomes a tangible load when you’re already burdened with a growing belly. My back aches just from standing stationary for too long.

During the rainy days, it was tough not to feel sorry for myself when I’m carrying my umbrella in the torrential showers, flagging desperately for taxis that always seem to be On Call. It’s at moments like this that my confidence in being able to live without a car falters, washed down by the rain. I think, surely I can do better for myself, surely (to quote L’Oreal) “I’m worth it”?? I have always pride myself on my prudence in spending but as I age, the thought of having to scrimp and save for the rest of my life is starting to depress me. Sigh… 

It was Tim’s birthday on 10 Jan. Sad to say my diminished braincells means that I clean forgot about it until 8 Jan and it was a mad rush to think of what to do on the day. Though he insisted that he didn’t need anything, I refuse to let the day pass by just like another day cos it’s a bad precedent to set and I know I will leave to regret it. In the end, I got a birthday cake (his favourite chocolate cake from Four Leaves), 3 books of GTO and Thai dinner. Nothing pricey or romantic, just stuff I know he’ll like. To my dismay, I later found out that his colleagues also got him THE SAME CHOCOLATE CAKE!! Sigh… But he likes the GTO, so the long walk to Bugis and back is worth it lah.

My boss has just informed me that the company would be granting me 4 months of paid maternity leave (instead of the standard 3)! I think my fast-growing belly has been noticed (everyone says I look like I’m at full term now though I’m only in my 6^th month) and my boss thinks I would need to go off early. Perhaps I will wane off work from April onwards. Another colleague was telling me that if my spine is too curved, the gynae may prescribe for me compulsory bed rest anyway so I get to keep all four months for after the birth! Anyway, Tim was saying that’ll be exploiting the generosity of my company, so we’ll see how as we go along. Anyway staying at home is quite unbearable for me – hours go by so slowly as I only eat, sleep and read all day. I honestly prefer to be in the office… if only I don’t have to travel to and fro! Maybe I could suggest working from home…

Today I move into the 22^nd week of my pregnancy and already my belly is bigger than my husband’s (check our “My Pregnancy Progress” to see evidence! Guaranteed to pop your eye). I am also at the heaviest I have EVER been my entire life, moving past the 65kg threshold.

Have been down with flu since last Friday. This is the second time I’m sick while pregnant and this time it’s a lot worse because I’ve already grown much bigger. At this size, it is hard to find a good position to sleep and each twist and turn requires effort. Toilet visits are also more often (2-3 times a night). Add in the fever + blocked nose + sore throat and night time becomes just unbearable. I woke up at 4am this morning and couldn’t fall asleep till 6.30am. It helped that Tim and I had just gone to the library and I had borrowed 6 mystery books so I was at least occupied.

Another concern of mine over the weekend is the usage of nifedipine which reduces risk of preterm birth but is unfortunately causing me bad headaches and fast heartbeats (120 per minute!). I did a search online and read that it is a “calcium blocker”! Does that means my babies will come out with weak bones and teeth? Osteoporosis at birth seems so cruel.

Argh…. it seems that I should opt for weekly jabs of progesterone instead. My GP, Dr Sen, suggests that I get the medication from KK Hospital and get my GP to inject for me so that I don’t have to make weekly trips to the hospital. Will check that with Dr Benjamin Tham. The sad thing is… I also read that progesterone jabs have side effects of mood swings and weight gain – aiyoh, as if I dun already have enough of these!!! Also, I read that progesterone is not proven to be beneficial for reducing chances of preterm birth for multiples – only for singletons the jabs are shown to reduce preterm birth by 33%. Apparently there’s not enough empirical evidences for multiples yet. Sigh… Dr Sen is right – sometimes it’s better not to read too much info online and drive ourselves crazy… 

Well, one small piece of good news is that Tim, future daddy, has finally managed to feel the Magical First Kick from Baby Boy on 4 Jan! We figure it’s ah-boy’s kick because of the location – bottom left of the belly. Subsequently, whenever I felt the babies kicking up a storm, I would get Tim to place his hand on my belly but when he did that, they quietened down. Poor Tim was sorely disappointed. I’m concerned that I seldom feel kicks on my right side (ah-girl seems to be a quiet one), will raise this with Dr Tham next time I see him.

That’s all the update for now…

On 27 Dec, the Gang had a post-X’mas cum Farewell-to-Ziyun party at my place. Yen cheerfully took on the task of food supplier, driving to buy roasted chicken, pork ribs, bacon, salad, spaghetti, X’mas cake and drinks, all with little Chloe in tow! It was only when the party ended around midnight did she reveal that she was actually having a fever that day… What Tough Gal our Yen is!

Thanks to Yen, Derek, Lydia and Tim (while Ziyun and I were tasked with taking care of Chloe), an impressive dinner was ready by 8.30pm. I think all of us were too famished by then to take any photos of the dinner spread. Dinner was soon followed by the usual chit chatting. We even caught Tim learning the ropes of fatherhood from Derek!

When Tim brought out his Dance Dance Revolution mat, the night reached a new high. Tim impressed everyone with how agile he was despite that 110kg frame. Derek, after watching by quietly for a while, was pushed to try out by Yen and impressed us all with his neat footwork. Meanwhile all is not lost for the gals – Lydia was easily the best of the gals with her good sense of rhythm and composed foot movements; Meiying put up a good show after getting used to the rhythm while Yen put up a good show by jumping everywhere except where she was supposed to! Many a times she looked like she was going to topple over and flatten slender Ziyun sitting behind her. Oh Ziyun…she was keen to try out as well but alas, Dr Tan you should not quit your day job… =)

The night ended on a high note with photo taking and everyone wishing the night can last longer. Well, there will certainly be next time soon as Huijun will be back in Feb and Ziyun in Jun. Looking forward the next big outing!

PS: Thanks Lydia for supplying the photos!