what a pain in the...

legs... Leg cramps to be precise. Those achy, twisty, sudden kinda pain that kept me awake since 4am. So far, I've been blessed by God and have been relatively free from any pains or aches. Common pregnancy ailments seem foreign to me even though at 30 weeks, I'm supposed to be heavily pregnant and in my 3rd trimester. Swollen feet? Not since the last trip to KL... headache? nope, not at all... backaches? not much, only slight aches in my right bum bum occasionally... insomnia? ohhh, now I sleep like a pig...

I'm not too sure what is the cause of the leg cramps but I'm half suspecting it to be my frequent shopping trips. I've been walking a lot despite being pregnant. Wouldn't want to miss out on all the bargains during the Great Singapore Sale! Lest, u think I'm a sprendthrift... on the contrary... I've been window shopping and comparing prices and only grab the necessities when I think that particular departmental store is offering the best discounts and rebates... yup, mainly stuff in preparation for baby's arrival like baby wipes, cotton balls, maternity pads, etc... etc... I guess when it comes to the sales, I really don't know how to limit my walking... Hmm, come to think of it, I was out shopping from 11:45am to 7pm yesterday (without much rest in between. Bleh. =P) Plus, shopping / walking is good exercise, rite? Ok, ok, I shall exercise restrain. =P

I didn't dare to wake Roy up to give me a massage at 4am as he's already very busy with his course & I do want him to have sufficient sleep... so I just DIY'ed myself & played some games on Roy's PDA till I tire myself and slept after 6am. I'm praying that such leg cramps will not come too frequently for me in my last 2 months. Hmm... maybe I'll do some light exercises and stretching before sleeping from now.

Looks like I'll have to cancel my plans to shop around in the late afternoon before my cell meeting. =P

Do I really look like I'm carrying a boy?

I woke up with a strange dream this morning... I dreamt that the doctor couldn't identify the gender of our baby after I gave birth. It's a weird dream and I don't know why I would even want to entertain such thoughts, but I guess there's this unspoken "fear" in me that Emma may just turn out to be "Emmett" on the day of delivery. =P I guess unconsciously, I've allowed other people's comments to affect me, even though on the surface, I kind of dismissed many of such comments. Maybe it's the "9 out of 10" well meaning people who came up to me and told me I looked like I'm carrying a boy because of the shape of my tummy. Hmm, my tummy does look rather sharp recently under my maternity clothes, but I really can't differentiate between round and sharp, so it's rather subjective right? Plus, telling a gender from the shape of a tummy is an old wife's tale, so it's not really that accurate right? =P

I'll double confirm again next week during my next gynae visit... I've already spent a fortune on all the cutie pink girly stuff like dresses, rompers, sleepsuits, cot bed sets, etc. and I don't want the additional headache of "overhauling" the wardrobe. (One of those "9" people did mention that I can keep the stuff I've bought for the next one if "she" turns out to be a "he". Horrors!)

Looks like I'll need to make earplugs and blinders a part of my maternity wardrobe, as advised in the book "What to expect when you're expecting". hahahah... nevertheless, I've started to talk to baby that no matter the gender, both daddy & mommy will love her (or him) lots. =D

Midnight ramblings...

Tonight's one of those nights where sleep doesn't come easy... it could also be due to the ache I'm experiencing now from the fillings I've done this morning at the dentist. I'd made an appointment to have the "bite" corrected tomorrow and I hope this achy feeling will disappear soon.

Insomnia, something many mommies-to-be I've spoken to are suffering from, at least once throughout their pregnancy. Maybe it's God's way of preparing us for the sleepless nights ahead once our babies are born... it's amazing how a person who can sleep through a thunderstorm like a log, would wake up at the slightest sound now... this is all to prepare us for motherhood.

Emma's kicking much harder now, and till now, I still find it so amazing that a life is growing in me. Heavenly Father, I'm just so amazed at Your creation, for indeed, Emma is fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139)

I've decided to come up with a list of prayer requests. Do continue to cover us in prayer. Your prayers are greatly coveted and truly appreciated. Thanks so much! (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.")

CushyStraps... Part 2

Just when you thought Roy would be contented with his new purchase of the fawn-coloured CushyStraps on Friday, this clearly excited father-to-be just could not resist getting another blue-coloured CushyStraps to complement the new car seat we bought at Robinsons yesterday! Car seat = necessity, but CushyStraps? Hmm.... =P

We've decided to get the Britax/Safe n Sound Royale 6-pt harness convertible car seat at Robinsons yesterday to really make full use of the 20% + 8% + 5% discounts from the GSS plus members' discounts/rebates. Initially, we were thinking of just borrowing an infant carrier/car seat from friends (we've got a hand-me-down from Bee Lee/Elaine, and Choon Shing & Ling Ling had graciously wanted to pass theirs to us too), and then buy a toddler car seat later once Emma outgrows the infant one. But after doing some research and considering all our options, we've decided to get the Royale now since it can be used from infant till 4 years old. Felt we might as well let Emma get used to the car seat right from the start.

Here's a picture of the Royale. Looks comfy huh? heheh...

The search is over!

The great hunt is over! Finally found the Kiddopotamus CushyStraps with the beary design! Little things that gets this father-to-be even more excited in this whole preparation process for the birth of Emma's.
now i can proceed with the Childbirth Education Course with no distractions of "where else can i search for the CushyStraps?" thoughts.. hahaha!

I think the Childbirth Education Course will be fun. Even if I'm totally obfuscated by all these baby stuff, at least I know it's time well spent with Ade. =)

Last trip before Emma's arrival

Roy & I just got back from our KL trip last night. We went with another couple friend so that it'll not be too boring for Roy to drive up while I sleep throughout the whole trip. hahahah... We reckon it'll be our last trip out of Singapore before our beloved Emma is out, cos after that, it'll be quite some time before the 3 of us can travel again. It was a rather relaxing trip, more like an eating trip, but maybe it's also because of the MSG in the food (that's why the food tasted so delicious), I've developed some water retention on both my feet. It's the first time I've ever experienced water retention and I do hope this will be the last time. =P Thank God the swelling on my feet subsided this morning, probably also after "drowning" myself with water to flush the MSG & salt out from my body.

I think we went to KL at the right time as the shops are having a sale to coincide with the last week of their school holidays. Despite the sale, we didn't really buy that much stuff for Emma (mainly because we bought quite a lot of baby clothes at the Bugis wholesaler shop a day before our trip), just 4 pairs of sleeping pants and 2 hats (all at around $2.50 each after conversion), and one rubber cot protector sheet to prevent staining the cot with her wee-wees & poo-poos. Roy bought some really cheap T-shirts at RM10 each and a berms at RM20. I, on the other hand, have gotten myself 2 sets of front buttoned pj's to prepare for hospital use and some rather cheap maternity "u-know-wats" (something we S'porean ladies will go crazy buying in BKK... heheh). =P

All in all, it was a good break for Roy from his stressful course and a fun trip for the both of us... but, nothing beats home sweet home. =)

Emma's nursery room... work in progress

We've finally found someone (my auntie actually) to "inherit" the coffee table my generous uncle donated when we first got our flat, in order to make more room for Emma's new nursery. This room used to be our spare-room cum laundry ironing room, but now with the impending arrival of baby Emma, we've decided to convert it into a nursery room.

The room is in a MESS! Before we removed the coffee table, all our purchases and hand-me-downs, still in their respective plastic bags, were stacked on top of it. In anticipation of grandma's sleepovers once she's born, we bought a wooden single bed (which at $78, excluding the $100 mattress, was quite a steal, we find)... and that too, is jammed packed with plastic bags of stuff, from maternity clothes (yes, my cupboard has no more space) to comforters and more baby stuff.

We bought two 4-tiers Toyogo plastic containers from our neighbourhood Shop-n-Save a month ago on my birthday (a day we spent tearing out the ugly stickers from each drawer & using oil to remove the sticky remnants... what a way to spend a birthday, really "labouring" on Labour Day. Bleh =P), but we only managed to officially put the containers up in the room today... so now, I can start washing all the baby clothes and stacking them into the drawers.

We've decided not to spend too much doing up the nursery, so we would just paste some stickers to add some life into the room. I'm still deciding whether to get the cute giraffe motif streamers from Mothercare to decorate the room or not... hmm...

Here's a preview of some of the stuff I bought from the Singapore motherhood forum & from some of our other shopping trips:

1) Cute Carter's bibs. I love the two pink ones the most, cos they're really cute. The monkey one, however, was a mistake in delivery, but the design I wanted was out of stock immediately after I received the bibs... ah well. (Total "damage": $16 for 5 bibs)


2) Some blankets and a hooded towel, including a Kiddopotamus Swaddle Me blanket (bought at a 20% sale at Robinsons), which I find will be useful in keeping Emma snug and warm. =)


3) Carter's rompers from newborn sizes to 18 months (they're really cheap, averaging $10 per pack of 5), super cute pink Carter's Sundress for 3-6 months, & 3 rompers for 6-9 months, all purchased from the forum. I did not get any size 0-3 months nice rompers cos babies do outgrow them really quickly, so I'll most probably buy those cheap 6 for $10 ones for newborns to sleep in. We'll be visiting a shop near Bugis tomorrow to check out any cheap bargains and clothes.


4) A cloth book cot bumper for newborns from Tangs (20% off during GSS).



I'm trying not to overspend, so I've been limiting my purchases and getting more hand-me-downs from my nephew and from friends. Annie gave us 2 big bags of Naomi's baby clothes. Thank God for her! =)

the arduous hunt

The Great Singapore Sale is on now, and one would think that anything and everything that anyone wanted could be found in the many stores islandwide... now.. ANYTHING and EVERYTHING? I wished it was so, but sadly no...

While Ade's busy getting cute rompers, clothes, dresses and bibs for little Emma, I on the other hand have been getting the supposedly techy stuff, like the Maclaren stroller which we got at a pretty good price some 3 months back.. and hey! come to think of it, that seems to be the main thing I've got with regards to the preparation of Emma's birth.. haha

Since our months-old purchase of the Maclaren stroller for Emma, I've been on a "rampage" to get accessories to make Emma's "ride" comfy and cosy. So far, I've gotten the Kiddopotamus Cradler that helps to support her head and prevents it from slumping sideways and strain her neck.

The Ivory-coloured Kiddopotamus Cradler (with the bear design)

Now, my next shopping target is the Kiddopotamus CushyStraps (specifically the Bear, Fawn colour design), to complement the ivory coloured Cradler that I've got.

The Fawn coloured Kiddopotamus CushyStraps (with the bear design)

Now the CushyStrap is one tough item to find in the shops all over Singapore. We only managed to find 2 shops with the CushyStraps, but they had the last piece and it was the blue cat design, which doesn't match the ivory-coloured Cradler. ARRGH! so sad!

Hopefully the shops will bring in new stock, specifically the one with the bear design. Alternatively, perhaps i'll find this product in my drive-trip to KL in the coming week. =)

Emma's godma's wedding!

today's Emma's godma's wedding! Dunno if Emma sensed this happy occasion, but whatever it is, she sure was excited and unusually hyper active from morning till evening, moving in the morning as Ade was serving in worship during service; moving during lunch at Toa Payoh.. and moving during the beautiful wedding ceremony of godma Hwee San and TJ. This is unusual cos Emma usually moves at certain times of the day, not throughout the whole day.

Now, technically, this means Emma now has a godpa in TJ too! *winks*

To TJ and Hwee San, praying God's blessing in your lives as u walk together in marriage for the rest of this sojourn in this earth. As pastor had exhorted both of you, continue to pursue each other in love, and pursue God together as your household serves the Lord.

The joy of reading

I went for an introductory talk on children's literacy development this afternoon. You must be wondering why this mother-to-be is so kiasu, especially when baby Emma is still not out in the world yet, so she's still not able to read anything yet... but hey, her ears are fully developed at this stage, so she can actually hear what's going on in the world around her. Wouldn't it'll be good for her to be exposed to stories now? heheh. It's never too early to let her discover the joy of reading, so I've actually ordered 2 cloth books (Noah's Ark & My First Prayer Book) on the internet for her. =)

Talking about reading, I've borrowed 3 books from the library to prepare me for motherhood. The titles are:
1) Baby Girls: An Owner's Manual by Theresa Foy Digeronimo, M. ED.
2) Your Baby's First Year by Johnson's
3) The Complete Sleep Guide for Contented Babies and Toddlers by Gina Ford

I'm halfway through the 1st book, and boy, did this book open my eyes up for motherhood! The responsibility of nursing and nurturing a young one seems overwhelming... but then, yet exciting... I don't know if I'll be able to be a good mother, but I'll definitely try my best (God help me! hahah).

Emma's Daddy finally writeth.. God's faithfulness, God's grace

ok.. finally got the time for my first ever blog entry.. =)
as Ade has put it, Emma's a miracle baby, a blessing from God who answers prayers. Both of us had always desired for a child of our own, and I remembered praying to God in Jul 06 for a child, and that He would in His perfect time & according to His will grant us this desire of our hearts. Who would've expected that this prayer was to be fulfilled 5 months later.

God is good, and the way He prepared the news to us was most intriguing. I remember vividly that on 24 Dec 06, we were at the Sims collecting the shepherd's pie, and my dearest godson Joseph started asking me, "Where are your children?". Now, I was told JoeJoe has a prophetic gifting, and had also in an instance many months before asked a similarly innocent question to another friend of mine, BEFORE they found out they were expecting their 1st child. Wasn't it awesome?

Anyway, when JoeJoe asked me that question then, I was stumped, simply didn't know what to say. But in my heart, there was this unspoken joy of the hope of a child, a belief that God is preparing something good, and a sensing that it's gonna happen very soon too. I silently claimed in my heart this promise of a child.

A week later (30 Dec 06), Ade found out she's expecting! and words can't express the feelings within me then. I was simply awed at how God planned this throughout our first year of marriage. We had our first scare almost immediately when Ade experienced threatened miscarriage. This episode reinforced the truth that life doesn't lie in our hands. Life is fragile, and it lies in God's hands. Life is a journey we take TOGETHER with God, in partnership with God, and not controlled alone by our own strength and strife.

Anyway, we prayed and trusted God's hand through it all, and we thank Him for keeping Emma safe throughout the trying 1st trimester. Over the past 6 months, seeing how God created Emma's inmost being, and how He knitted her together in Ade's womb was just awe-inspiring. From seeing the formation of Emma's little thumping heart, to her active hands and legs, to the formation of her puny fingers and toes, we were learning something new each day about God's creation power, something that we often take for granted in this fast-paced world.

I can't wait to meet Emma come Sep... in my heart, I know she's special in God's eyes, and I pray God'll fill her with His grace and joy, anoint her with His wisdom, and use her life to bless many lives in time to come.

little Emma at 6 wks...

little Emma at 10 wks... almost looks like she's sucking her thumb..

finally get to see her face (in Apr 07)

I wonder how she'll look like.. not that I'm worried or anxious.. I'm just one curious father-to-be.. ha! one thing I know for sure, she's fearfully and wonderfully made by the Best Creator ever, whose works are simply WUNDERBAR! Ü

[more of Emma's ultrasound scans are in my photo website--> http://roy-foo.fotopic.net/]