My confinement nanny has finally left... she has initially told my MIL that she wanna leave on 29 Jun, Charlotte's full month... but yesterdae morn, she suddenly told me she wanna go home, cos her daughter's MIL (who had agreed to do her confinement) had fallen ill... wa biang! no advance notice given n wanna leave on the dae itself! coincidentally, she told me after Dearie stepped outta house for work... mebbe cos she wanna avoid seeing another unhappy face...
Told my MIL who's very unhappy... cos she's being very irresponsible... we deducted her pay accordingly based on the no. of daes she worked... itz a veri expensive lesson to learn, teaching us to open our eyes wide the next time we hire a confinement nanny...
Actualli, her job here is quite relaxing... she doesn't nid to bottle-feed Charlotte, wash n sterilise milk bottles etc... oso, we din ask her to do strenuous house-chores... she jus nid to look after Charlotte, wash her n my clothes, cook my confinement food (Dearie oso ate the same stuff as me, she din nid to cook separate meals for him) and do minor cleaning of the floor...
During her 1st week, she was stil okay, guided by MIL on wat types of confinement food to prepare n the way around the kitchen... but from 2nd week onwards, she showed her true colours!
1) She told my MIL her M-card was running low in value n she's unable to make calls home... so my MIL bot her a M-card worth $18... she then asked me to check on the balance (think she wanna confirm the card balance), telling me she had topped up her M-card b4 coming to Singapore!
2) She started bringing Charlotte outta the nursery n carried her while watching TV in the living room... while carrying her, she kept saying "Baby, Auntie carry you, rock you to sleep"... however Charlotte din cry, was jus lying quietly in her cot but she carried her out on the pretext of rocking her to sleep, but think she actualli wanted to watch TV!
3) She kept telling MIL n me dat during her previous confinement job, she slept in the air-conditioning wif the baby, v comfy... we told her we dun wanna expose Charlotte to too much air-conditioning.... but think she was trying to tell us she wanna sleep in air-conditioning too...
4) Initialli she cleaned the floor daily wif the MagicClean Wipes n mop... but she gradually cut down to cleaning every 2 or 3 daes... she oso cut down to jus using the mop, w/o the MagicClean Wipes... ydae me asked her whether she used the wipes b4 the mop... she said she used the MagicClean Wipes in the living room onli.... but whn me looked in the dustbin, there's no used wipes!?!?
5) At the end of the daes, she din bother to clear the rubbish bin... the bin would emit a foul smell, sometimes wif small flies flying around or wif the brim overflowing wif rubbish... but she din bother to replace wif a new, clean plastic bag... aiyo... Dearie n me had to clear the rubbish for her every nite...
6) She din bother to clean the kitchen tops after preparing the confinement food too... me jus couldn't stand it n started wiping the kitchen tops myself, much to the despair of my MIL n mum, who said me shouldn't do so, would onli make my hands dirty n oily, couldn't carry Charlotte...
7) We had alwiz thot these confinement nannies were professionals, would prepare delicious confinement foods, changing the menu daily... but she din... alwiz the same old food every lunch, til me wanna cry... MIL asked her to prepare soups for dines daily, but she oso din....
8) She oso liked to tok loudly to Charlotte... when Charlotte cried, she wil raise her voice at her, saying "Baby, losing temper again ah?"... but babies like to cry wat (their onli way of expressing themselves), wat else did she expect babies to do?!?!
etc...
Sighz... Dearie said me, being an easy-going person, could oso b so irritated by her... hmm... actualli, there's a limit to my easy-going nature... she has gone over the limit, such dat me can't take it anymore... nw dat she has left, itz good too... cos she's so irresponsible, lazy n distracted @ work, sometimes worried wat she'll do next too...
Luckily, MIL came over ydae after she left, n helped me wif the remaining of my confinement... else, dunno wat wil happen to me...
A few frens hv asked why Charlotte's Baby Shower is held on 12 Jul 08 n why it isn't held before her first month... here's the mystery unraveled...
Actually we'll be celebrating her full month on 29 Jun (just a few daes b4 her actual first month on 1 Jul), where we'll be distributing cakes to close relatives... will oso b bringing her back to my parents' place...
As my confinement is actually for a period of 40daes (where me need to avoid outside food) and not a month, we decide to hold her baby shower for frens and colligs after my actual 40daes confinement, so that me can stil enjoy the food during the baby shower... haha! greedy me?!?! but itz realli a torture eating the same kinda food daily during confinement (mebbe datz how the term "confinement" came about, where the mummy is confined to taking only certain foods...)
Now, we are hoping to get the confirmed guest list out asap, so that we can make the necessary logistical arrangements...
2 weeks into my confinement liaoz... getting sianz of the hot weather n confinement food...
particularly pity Charlotte who cant sleep in her cot in her 'oven' bedroom in the afternoons... we carried her, tried to coax her to sleep but the moment we put her down in her cot, she woke up... think cos her bedroom is more exposed to the afternoon sun, compared to our bedroom... so we resorted to putting her on our bed n she managed to sleep... told Dearie abt it n suggested getting a yao2 lan2 which was more cooling... he immediately went to get 1 @ United Square Mums & Babes aft work dat dae. =)) Charlotte took some time to adjust to sleeping in the yao2 lan2 (guess unfamiliar surroundings n confined spaces... she likes to stretch her limbs, mebbe datz y my tummy alwiz turned into lop-sides shapes during my pregnancy).... but in the hot afternoons, she tend to sleep betta in the yao2 lan2...
the confinement nanny, Auntie SH, we hired has a daughter who's oso due in Jun, but late Jun on 20 Jun... so she's kinda distracted while doing my confinement nw... she's worried abt her daughter who has 3 other daughters @ hm.... her MIL had initially agreed to do her confinement so Auntie SH had taken on my confinement job whn me called her last year... Auntie SH was initially thinking dat if me gave birth earlier, she could stil hv time to do her daughter's confinement, but her daughter's MIL likes to play mahjong n she's worried she wun take gd care of her... so she's thinking of gg back earlier but worried abt the little $$$ she wil get from my confinement job... but we'll jus hv to deduct accordingly from her pay based on the number of daes she worked...
Had my 1st post-natal visit wif Dr Lui @ MAH on 10 Jun (oso our 2nd year customary wedding anniversary)... brot baby Charlotte along too cos dun wanna intro bottles into her feeding patterns yet... plan to onli intro bottles when she's 2 months old, so dat she can get used to bottle feeding when me return to work on 25 Aug...
During my visit, Dr Lui changed my dressing, cleaned my wound n removed the stitches... he showed me the blue nylon string n my wound... me was pretty impressed! the wound was nt v big nor obvious, so can stil wear bikini n low-cut pants... haha! he oso explained to me y he did not use dis-solvable stitches for my wound, as some ppl may b allergic to the protein contents in the stitches... so he stil used the traditional method of nylon string... the nylon string was v clean, wif no blood stains @ all! he had oso learnt plastic surgery b4 n he's treating my wound as wat plastic surgeons wld treat their patients' wounds. =) he stil placed a small waterproof gauze over my wound n asked me to return for a follow-up visit nxt week...
Charlotte's 1st 'outing' since discharge was her 1st visit to PD Dr Simon Ng @ MAH on 6 Jun. Her weight had increased from 3.4kg (b4 discharge) to 3.72kg... we were so happi dat she's feeding n growing well (cos me was initialli worried dat my bm was nt providing enuff nutrition 4her!)... Dr Ng said her jaundice had oso gone down but we stil nid to monitor n sun-bathe her... Dr Ng advised dat 5-10% weight loss upon birth is normal for babies, but we being 1st-time parents, were v worried when we saw her weight dip from 3.78kg (at birth) to as low as 3.4kg when we were stil @ MAH!
Had purposely timed her feed such dat she wun get hungry during the 2 visits... but alas, bm which is more easily digested spoilt our plans... she got hungry n me had to find a place to feed her... there's no nursing room @ MAH... but luckily, managed to find a baby diaper changing room n quickly locked myself inside to satisfy baby Charlotte's hunger pangs... so cute n fulfilling 2c her suckling enthusiastically.... the joys of motherhood (despite the tiredness of waking up 3-4 times in the middle of nites for feeds) =)
Charlotte has decided dat she doesn't like 2b swaddled... during the 1st week, we swaddled her (to create the feeling of being in mother's womb) so dat she could sleep more soundly n nt b easily startled... but ydae, she started struggling outta the swaddle n refused 2b swaddled...
She has oso decided to poop whneva she likes... once, whn Dearie was carrying her whn his buddies, Jang n BK wif their other halves, came to visit, she decided to cringe, put on a stressed face n pooped a couple of times, making Dearie n his buddies laugh... she oso likes to poop while feeding (itz like in n out @ the same time)...
She has oso decided to increase her feeding frequencies... initially, @ MAH, it was once every 3 hours... @ home, we decided to increase to once every 2 hours... nw, she decides to feed on demand... it can b once every 1 or 1.5 hour... think the suckling makes her v comfy in my arms n she wil fall asleep while suckling, me hv to kip touching her lower chin so dat she'll continue suckling... but she's smart, whn she's full, she will turn her face away n kip her mouth tightly shut...
Itz quite an experience taking care of her... fun n fulfilling... moreover, Dearie is v supportive n reassuring... he'll wake up in the nitez to bring Charlotte back to my confinement nanny in the next bedroom aft each feeding... he'll oso carry her to appease her cries when he's hm... thx Dearie! =)
By a stroke of luck, me became a mummy at age 28... if Baby Charlotte had arrived on her EDD (5 Jun 08), me would hv become a mummy at age 29 instead... =P
Dis yr, me spent my bdae w/o any birthdae cakes or nice treats, n at MAH somemore... as Charlotte had mild jaundice, she could onli b discharged 1 dae later on 4 Jun instead of 3 Jun... as me bfeeding her totalli n we felt uneasy leaving her alone at MAH, we decided to extend my stay for a dae too... hwr, Dr Lui suggested so as to allow her maximum time under the bili light, itz nt advisable to hv her wheeled outta nursery for bfeeding, so me expressed my milk out n asked the nurses to spoonfeed her... seeing her exposed under the bili light, wif onli an eyeshield n diapers on, pained me... remembered hvg tears in my eyes watching her from outside the nursery... =(
Dearie got me a Trinity ring from Goldheart... itz a 2-in-1 gift (both bdae n delivery) =) he gave it to me after my delivery on the delivery date itself... wil nid to get the ring size changed thou, as itz too small... wonder whn me can put on my wedding band n proposal ring, as my fingers hv expanded during my pregnancy =( had hinted to Dearie b4hand dat a Trinity ring is special, given wif Charlotte's arrival, there wil b nw 3 members in our family... he had nt shown any positive signs of getting it 4me, so was pleasantly surprised whn me received the ring =)
My DIL got me a white Burberry Blue Label bag during his Tokyo trip. =) he said itz exclusive onli in Japan... so nice of him... the moment he n Dearie's sis got off the plane on 2 Jun, they immediately came to MAH... needless to say, Charlotte got the most number of gifts - Mikimoto foto frame, a pink-heart Burberry keychain, a cute kimono-like outfit, a hand-knit ball, an amulet, a NOEL hamper wif 2008 Singapore Mint coins n a box to kip her many 1sts... the 1st addition to her many 1sts is her umbilical stump which dropped off on Sat =P
But think Charlotte is my greatest gift dis year! =)) Motherhood is realli a gr8 plc 2b! thou itz tiring bfeeding her every hour, even @ nitez, the feelings of fulfillment n joy outweigh the tiredness n sleepless nitez... =)
Wanted to pen down the major milestones while they r still fresh in my mind... =)
31 May 08
9.00am - Went for my weekly gynae visit to Dr Lui, which oso happened 2b my last pre-natal visit. Ultrasound scans showed baby Charlotte's head being more engaged n my cervix had dilated 2.5cm. Dr Lui suggested either induction tdy or to wait til 3 Jun (which oso happens 2b my bdae)... Dearie n i were thinking of letting nature take its course n wait til 3 Jun... but Dr Lui suggested doing a CTG as baby Charlotte's oso quite big n he was concerned dat the umbilical cord might b around her neck... the CTG showed some dips in her heartbeats which Dr Lui was concerned n suggested immediate induction.
11.48am - Admitted myself into Mount Alvernia Hospital. Was sent to Delivery Suite 3 at 11.52am, n put on the CTG machine again, to measure baby's heartbeat n my contraction frequencies.
12.00pm - The in-house doctor, Shelia, inserted a tablet to start the induction process (which might take 6-8 hours). She said the cervix should dilate 1cm every hour, but the process/timing would differ for each individual.
5.25pm - Dr Lui came n checked my dilation... guess how much? onli 0.5cm! OMG! onli dat little dilation... how to survive the long wait til full dilation of 10cm?? He oso ruptured my waterbag which shocked me whn me felt so much warm liquid flow out suddenly... he oso observed some contractions from the CTG results... but me din experience any pains leh... was subsequently put on the drip which was supposed to hasten dilation... indeed contractions came on more rapidly n were more painful, but stil bearable... think the breathing exercises learnt during the pre-natal classes helped in relieving the pain, as me focused on the breathing n my mind was temporarily off the pain...
10.00pm - The nurse came n checked my dilation... onli another 0.5cm!?!?! how did dis happen? me stil refused to take epidural, wanna let nature take its course... but Dearie received a call from Dr Lui who advised dat it might b best to take epidural given my slow dilation n the risk of the umbilical cord around baby Charlotte's neck... so me decided to go for epidural after all...
11.00pm - Was put on epidural... after the epidural took effect, me din feel the contractions at all even though it came in faster waves! my legs oso started feeling numb but me could stil feel my toes... however, suddenly, me felt sensation in my right thigh n started feeling the contractions onli in my right thigh... told Dearie abt it n he said good as it would help me in my pushing later on... HUH?!?!
1 Jun 08
2.23am - The nurse came n checked my dilation... it was now 7-8cm dilated! The epidural indeed helped in relaxing my body n sped up the dilation process! Happi yet scared as the active stage would be starting soon...
3.20am - Dr Lui came, put on the plastic gown, fisherman boots n got ready for labour.... wif each wave of contraction, the nurses n Dr Lui told me to push hard hard hard... but no matter how hard me pushed, Charlotte's head jus wasn't low enuff... Dr Lui tried to move her head too... after abt 3-5 contractions/hard pushes, Dr Lui advised me to go for c-section for safety sake... me given 2 choices, either general anesthesia (where Dearie would nt b able to enter the operating theatre wif me) or regional anesthesia (where Dearie could b in the operating theatre wif me). Me chose the latter as wanted Dearie 2b by my side n witness baby Charlotte's arrival... so the epidural anesthetist was called in again to increase my epidural dosage so dat me wun feel the pain whn Dr Lui cut my tummy to retrieve baby Charlotte... but me stil felt pressure here n there n Dearie did take a peek but refrained from taking further peeks thereafter... =D
4.26am - Grand arrival of Princess Charlotte! Dearie n MIL (who stayed at MAH til me went to my ward) said her cries were real loud! she has good lung power indeed! haha! she shared my bdae month (Jun) n was 2d earlier than my bdae! both of us are Geminis! =))
