The day Zachary was born..

This happened exactly 7 months ago, on the 20th of July but it feels like it happened very recently. Can't believe that 7 months have passed! Was just looking at his photos which were taken when he was born and he has changed so much!

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On the 19th of July, Thursday:

So, SY was right! We told baby that we would induce him and force him to come into this world if he didn't give us any signs that he wants to be out naturally before 20th July. Contractions happened on the 19th July and he was not induced! Read this post on the date we picked for induction.

I woke up at about 9am and show appeared (bleeding). I told SJ that but we didn't have any big reaction; that was a sign that baby could be coming anytime soon. When a show appears, the contraction could take from hours to days to occur. We went to Antipodean, Bangsar for our huge breakfast. It was yummy! I was about to enter the confinement period for one whole month right after delivery, I just had to make sure I get to eat my favourite foods on the day before I deliver.

After our yummy big brunch, we drove to Amcorp mall in PJ because we decided to get a good camera on that day. I have been telling SJ that I always wanted to get a better camera because the current one that we have does not take good clear photos in low light. Told him I 'needed' a good camera to take baby photos :)) and he said, ok! He started to search for the camera model the night before. He even posted that question in Facebook and many suggested Canon G12 and we decided to get that! Found out from the internet that the shop in Amcorp mall gives one of the best prices for cameras. 

I was so happy and in good spirit because we have a new toy! :) Spoke to Dr Choong briefly while I was at the camera shop to explain to him about my condition. I was supposed to go into the labour ward in preparation to induce labour that very Thursday night after dinner. Since the show appeared that morning, we thought maybe we should wait for another few days because natural would be better for both mommy and baby. Asked Dr Choong for his opinion but he said it was entirely up to me. Dr Choong voiced that he preferred me to wait for baby to come out naturally. 

After that, we did some errands; stopped by at the lighting shop to confirm the lights for our new home. At about 2.30pm, I felt a regular rhythm of hardening and releasing of my tummy. It felt like baby was stretching really hard in my womb, which I initially thought it was baby kicks but realized that it was contractions because it occurred on a regular pattern. The contractions were 20 mins apart. I quickly messaged my friends and family members with this new update. My mom was asking me to quickly rush to the hospital because she was afraid baby could be popping out anytime.

We went home to rest. I had a nap but was woken up by the pain whenever the a contraction happens. Had my shower, washed and dried my hair. The Chinese's confinement observes that new mothers are not allowed to wash hair during the one month confinement period because it could cause rheumatism. We packed 4 bags of things to bring to the hospital. It was like we were going on a holiday because we had so many things. We had a bag of food; bicsuits, instant cup noodles and even isotonic drinks which we barely touched when we were in the hospital. I read that we won't be given any food when we were in the labour room and I should eat a little so that I would have energy to deliver the baby. So, the kiasu me packed a lot!

My mom-in-law was so anxious that she advised us to bring our dinner to the hospital instead of having it at home. At about 7pm, my contractions were about 15 mins apart, we had dinner at home and we watched an episode of CSI before we decided it was time to leave to the hospital at 9pm. The antenatal class instructor advised us to only leave to the hospital when the contractions were 8 mins apart.

Reached Pantai Bangsar at about 9.30pm and I was ushered to the labour room. 

Wires were being stuck on my belly to monitor baby's heartbeat and contractions, as shown on the machine located on the right side of the above photo. The nurse or midwife confirmed that I was already dilating and there was no need to induce anymore. Yay!

Just the two of us. Third member of the family would be joining us soon!!!

 In front of my bed was a small little bassinet where my baby would be placed inside when he was born into this world.

After the initial 30 mins of monitoring, I thought I would be transferred to a nicer room with an extra bed. During my tour when I was about 5 months pregnant, we were shown different rooms with an extra single bed for daddies to rest and there were tv in the rooms. I thought those rooms were great because SJ could rest and I could probably distract myself with the tv but I was told that I had to stay in this labour-delivery room until the baby arrives. I was shocked and feeling a little sorry for SJ because he had to sleep on the plastic chair. Tried to negotiate with the nurse that I wanted a better room but was unsuccessful because she said I would had to move back to this room when I deliver which could happen anytime soon.

My plan was to walk a lot while waiting for baby's arrival. I was walking around the room for a bit, stopped in between when the contractions comes and practicing my breathing but when the water bag breaks at about 10.30pm, it was almost impossible to move. Water was trickling continuously and it was so uncomfortable to even move a little. I was advised to just sit or lie down :(

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On the 20th July, Friday: 

At about 2am, when I was at about 5cm dilated, the pain was rather unbearable and I was not able to get any rest with the contractions that I decided to get the epidural. The epidural took about an hour to arrive and the anesthetist told me that I would still feel the pressure of the contraction but the epidural will take the pain away. A catheter was inserted to my back to numb the bottom half of my body and I would not be able to leave the bed at all because the epidural solution would continuously flow into the body. Babycentre explains epidural very clearly: http://www.babycenter.com.my/a542571/epidural

The epidural effectively removed the pain and I could sleep for a good few hours. SJ was sitting beside me the whole time observing the contractions and baby's heartbeat monitor. I was in so much pain without the epidural when the contraction number went to 60 but with the epidural, I could still sleep soundly even when the number went above 100. 

I had a fever at about 4am and I was shaking uncontrollably. I was feeling so cold and my teeth were chattering but it stopped after I had some paracetamol. At about 6am, Dr Choong came in and told me that my baby's heartbeat was beating faster than usual. Baby was in distress and it could due to my fever. At that time, I was 8cm dilated and if I did not reach 10 cm in another 2 hours, Dr Choong suggestted caesarean. 

9am came and Dr Choong examined me and I was still only 8cm dilated. He said he would let me wait and take my time if my baby's heartbeat was not beating so fast but because my baby was in distress, he strongly advised us to have caesarean to get the baby out fast. We agreed and preparation for surgery started immediately.

I was pushed with my bed to the operation theater  This was my 2nd time being in the OT, the first when I had my thyroid surgery in April 2010 but this 2nd time was quite an exciting and happy moment because I was nearing to meeting baby! The hospital staffs were fussing over me, preparing for the surgery that they almost forgotten about SJ. They left him standing outside of the OT. Dr. Choong was about to start when I reminded him to bring my husband in. 

Operation started at about 9.30am and baby came out at 9.49am! I could see the digital clock clearly in the OT and I could see a little from the reflection of the lights above me when Dr Choong pulled the baby out. The moment baby gave a really loud cry, we were relieved because baby was ok! SJ immediately took out the camera and followed the nurses. Our first born, Zachary was born! He was weighed 4.15kg and 51cm tall. I was so thankful that Zachary was a healthy baby.

The nurse brought Zachary to me so I could kiss him before they took him away

Our new precious!

It was love at first sight!

Yay! All good! 

That was 7 months ago! This past 7 months was probably the most special 7 months in our lives. It's really amazing that this tiny little human being could bring so much joy to our families and it such a blessing to have him. I hope I am doing alright as a Zach's mommy. SJ was amazing and very supportive throughout the labour and delivery. He is such a hands-on daddy and he is my pillar of support. I am really lucky to have him! :) I hope Zach would grow up to be like his Daddy. 

16th July 2012: Our last antenatal visit before baby's here!

July 20th 2012, this Friday is the date that we're going to induce labour if baby doesn't arrive naturally before that. We saw Dr Choong at our 12.15pm appointment today and as usual, he would take my blood pressure and the result is normal. My urine test result is also good. Did an ultrasound and baby's head is still down and his heartbeats sounds really strong and loud today. It seemed much louder and clearer today, maybe because baby is bigger; or maybe Dr. Choong turned up the volume of his ultrasound machine. I always love seeing the black and white images on the screen especially when Dr is focusing on the blinking part, which is the heart!  

Dr. Choong then proceed to measure baby's head circumference, abdominal circumference and the length of baby's femur bone. Before I could really see the numbers at the bottom of the ultrasound machine screen, SJ exclaimed loudly, 'WAH! 4.1kg!'. Dr. Choong measured everything again (I think twice) and finally he said that baby is estimated to weigh 3.732kg today. This is just an estimate; baby's real weight could be plus minus 400grams. I think Dr. Choong gave me a lower weight number so that I would not be so frightened about delivering a huge baby. He doesn't know that I am actually fine to deliver a big baby because my antenatal class practitioner told us that a woman delivered a 4.9kg baby in normal birth, a new record; and I thought since that woman can do it, I'm sure I can do it too. Anyway, I don't think my baby will be more than 4.5 kg. 

Ultrasound for today! Baby's head is on the right and his body is on the left. I cannot make out his head and body as baby grows (that was about since week 30).All we could see was his heart and his spine. Baby is 3.73 kg and Mommy has gained 18 kg in this whole pregnancy.

After that, we sat down and told Dr. Choong that we have decided on the induction date; which is this Wednesday, 18th July. Dr. Choong felt that 18th is too early to induce. He really doesn't recommend induction of labour because it would cause a lot of stress on both the mother and baby with a higher risk of having cesarean section. He explained that my pregnancy has been a very good and smooth one, my placenta is functioning really well; that is why baby can be so big because baby is able to absorb all the nutrients via the placenta. The date that he recommended for inducing labour is between 23rd and 26th, which is almost 2 weeks from my EDD. 

I was telling him about I'm just worried if something is not well; I was telling SJ that I couldn't feel baby much yesterday and I was quite worried over the weekend; my mom was concerned about baby suffocating etc, which Dr. Choong thinks that there is really nothing to worry about because everything about my pregnancy has been good. SJ was nodding and completely agrees with him. SJ always thinks that I'm such a worry-pot! They both don't think that my placenta will stop functioning or baby suddenly unable to live in the womb after EDD because the EDD is just an estimate, it's not the final date of baby in the womb. SJ's colleague, SY told me that if we pick an induction date, baby would usually come out earlier than the date that we picked because the baby is afraid of getting induced. We'll see if this is true!

After listening to Dr. Choong, I am feeling more confident and my mood was lifted. I told SJ that I should see Dr. Choong every 3-4 days so I could get a confidence boost every 3-4 days. There have been so many people telling and asking me why am I not inducing earlier or having a c-section now since I've passed my EDD for so long?! It's only 4 days!! Met a colleague in the hospital after my Dr's visit and she also asked the same thing. It's a world of difference when speaking with Dr. Choong and I am so thankful that he has cleared all my doubts. I know that many people have good intention but they usually based their opinions solely on their one or two experiences. Dr. Choong has more than 30 years of experience and I trust and have confidence in him. He is very logical and he speaks very sensibly. I am definitely happy to have him as my doctor ;) 

So, now it's just another 4 days to go before baby arrives by 20th, which is this Friday!!! Can't wait! Baby could be coming anytime earlier but Friday is definitely the last day! I asked Dr if I need to prepare or do anything before I get admitted. He told us to have a very nice dinner on Thursday night and then get admitted after dinner, at about 10pm on Thursday. Then, a pill will be inserted vaginally to ripen and soften the cervix on that night. I would be given an intravenous drip the next morning and inducing of labour will commence. If everything goes smoothly, baby should be delivered by Friday evening. I was wondering would inducing labour will have a short labour and delivery? Dr. Choong told me that some people could take days; some needed to be induced twice and some would have a quick one. So there is nothing certain. I hope my labour would not take days because I wouldn't want Dr. Choong to work on weekends. Must tell baby to be good and quickly come out to see Daddy and Mommy!

My favourite MOMENTS..

Is listening to baby's heartbeats aloud every time at my antenatal visit. I could remember my feelings when I first heard baby's 'galloping' heartbeats.. SJ & I was like 'WOW!'. It was like one of the most amazing things that I've ever heard. We were in the room with my doctor on my very first appointment.. the room was very quiet.. Dr. Choong was handling the ultrasound machine & our eyes were on the screen the whole time trying to work out that tiny dot on the screen.. then, suddenly, it was as if the whole room went silent.. we heard this fast 'horse galloping' sounds.. & Dr. Choong said this is baby's heart beating! That was when I was in week 6. Could not believe that there was a 'living being' in my tummy & this living being has its own set of heartbeats! 

There were days when I did not feel so 'pregnant', on those days when I was feeling all good, no nausea and I had a high level of energy; I would start to worry about baby a little.. and I always thought wouldn't it be great if I could have a device or a stetescope to listen to baby's heartbeats, so that I would be reassured that baby is doing alright inside. 

That's why I was incredibly jealous of my colleague & distant cousin, Chee Wai when he could download & save his wife's ultrasound visual & heartbeats audio into his computer! He was showing me on his computer the movements of his baby & he could listen to the baby's heartbeats anytime they wanted. I really really wanted that!! :( I requested from Dr. Choong in my very next visit which was on the 13th of Febuary, that I wanted to save the visual & audio of the ultrasound.. but unfortunately he doesn't know how to do that. Dr. Choong is a rather old man and not very tech-savvy but he said I could bring my thumbdrive in my next visit, we can meddle around his equipment & try to save them :))) We're definitely going to try saving the ultrasound in our next visit on the 9th March.

Recently, I have a new favourite moment, which is baby's kicks! Never felt so happy getting 'kicked'! Haha! Started to feel some baby's movements about 3 weeks ago, at week 18 but I was not sure because it could be gas. It was those gentle fluttering sensations in your belly and I was told it may not be easily identified especially in the first pregnancy. Baby's movements are more prominent in week 19 and I can definitely feel baby's kicks in week 20 onwards :) I always feel baby's movements/kicks on my right side on my tummy, I have made a note to ask the doctor which part of him is kicking me.. his hands or feet? 

Baby started kicking more after I started using Baby Plus in week 19. Baby Plus is a prenatal education system, which was introduced to me by SJ's colleague, Kenneth & his wife Hui Ming. We read more about it in the internet and found that it could be helpful and got it right away. I thought the sounds made by this Baby Plus device was rather loud and wondered whether baby likes or hates it. I'm not sure if baby's constant kicking during this system was played (an hour, twice a day, everyday) was baby telling me, 'Mommy, I'm loving it!' or 'Mommy, please stop this one hour torture!'. :S 

SJ's interpretation was that baby would NOT kick if baby hates it. Baby's kicking is because he is responding and loving it. The hours that I use this system are in the mornings (about 7-8am) and nights (about 10.30-11.30pm). The manual advised to use the system at the same time everyday. I could feel baby's kicks around these hours when I did not start the system on time or decided not to use it. So, baby kicks mean he was asking for his pre-natal lessons! I guess this system creates a routine and hopefully it will be helpful for baby's developments in the future.

Just like with the heartbeats, I get worried too if I did not or could not feel baby's kicks. I'm such a worry-pot! I would voiced my concern to SJ & we would put our hands on my tummy.. speaking to my tummy, asking baby to kick. Magically, baby responds to our requests everytime & that would bring a HUGE smile to my face. Really never felt so happy/relieved being kicked! SJ probably thinks I'm weird-worried-over-nothing but I'm thankful that he is always there so reassuring and telling me that everything is going to be alright..  :)))