First Birthday Celebration - 16 December 2007

Mummy had sewn a dress for you.
Baked cupcakes instead of ordering a birthday cake, invited many to come enjoy the food.
You were quite a good girl as long as you are in my arms.
Tried your very best to be a pretty princess.
You did not let others carry you for long, you did not throw tantrum either.
Everyone said you looked adorable in the dress mummy made.
There are a lot of presents and Red packets.
Thank you, Mummy!

More teeth - 3 December 2007

The top front teeth are out and the top right incisor is also on its way.
You have been grinding your teeth when its time to sleep and it kinds of irks Mummy.
Hopefully, you will stop it soon.


Rashes on the face... one side is cleared up while the other is still rather red.
At times it will get a little infected and that bothers Mummy quite a bit.
The elbows, knees, thighs and calf area also started to sprout small blister-like rashes.
Hopefully with the medication from the doctor's it will be controlled.
Mummy had stopped taking peanuts as it could be the ultimate culprit for the large breakout the last time.
On top of that, the detergent for the floor may also be another culprit.
So that would mean more to be done after cleaning the floor with the detergent...Mummy has to go through again with just plain water.

Whatever it takes to ensure that the rashes do not appear anymore.

Just Photos

Another tooth is sprouting - 13 November 2007

The top right tooth is sprouting so there has been sleepless nights.

There are also more painful nursing since you love to chew... OUCH!

And not to mention that you like to remind mummy that it is time for weight lost by biting on my bulging tummy.

Unfortunately, the rash on your face has not cleared and two small patches appeared on the other side.

Also, your left ear was not spared too.

Then on days when the weather is hot, rashes will break out all over your body.

It hurts to see you scatching away and being a grouch when the temperature goes up.

A happy song for Averlyn

Mummy made up a song as you have been rather cranky.

Averlyn is a happy baby,
and a happy baby is she.
She will smile.
She will laugh ... ha ha ha
She will chuckle ... hee hee hee
when we are together.
Averlyn is a happy baby
and a happy baby is she.

Upon hearing this, you will stop crying.
The power of a happy song.

New tooth - 19 October 2007, Friday

About a week ago, the second tooth made an appearance.
Hence, Mummy got more bites from you when I am nursing you.
You also managed to bite Mummy on the tummy just for the fun of it.

Other than a new tooth, there are new things you have learnt.
You have learnt to wave goodbye to people that you know.
And, you will insist on sending Daddy and your sister to the door when they leave in the mornings.
You started to slap your head recently and that got Mummy a little worried.
After a few times, Mummy realised that you were trying to send out a kiss while saying goodbye.
It can be rather amusing to see you slapping your head whilst trying to send a flying kiss.

Music... it is something that can perk you up.
You will start to "dance" when you hear the music start.

Crawling is not something new but you sure had become better at it.
You like to crawl to the bedroom to look for your sister while she is doing her homework.
Your loving sister will always carry you back out into the living room.
However, you will relentlessly crawl back to the room to look for her.

Babbling Baby - 26 September 2007, Wednesday

You have been very "talkative" now.
Your repertoire of sounds is increasing and the frequency of hearing you "talk" is higher too.
"Bah bah bah"
"Mah mah"
"Aieeee"
"Dah dah"
You also love to "chit chat" with us.
When I mimic your babbles, you will reciprocate with.

You have also learned to sign for "milk" and "no more".
When singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Stars", you may (when your mood is good) also do the action for the stars.
Clapping hands is also something you have started to do more frequently.
The most recent one would be you waving your arms around. It may refer to "bye" or "hello".

\

You like to exercise... in other words, you will pull yourself to stand up against the sofa or the coffee table.
You even attempted to climb onto the coffee table to reach for your favourite remote control or my ball of wool (really wonder whether you are a kitten by nature).

Your "Smelly" - 14 September 2007

You are very attached to me as if I am your little "smelly".
Then recently I realised that you have another "smelly" - your Tigger.
You had always grabbed Tigger's ears and gum them.
We thought nothing about it as it was during your teething period.
Of course, every week Tigger would go for a bathe in the washing machine so that its ears would not get too dirty.
Now, you not only chew on the ears, you start to hold on to them.
When you are sleeping, with your eyes close, you will search for Tigger's ears and hold them in your hands.

First tooth - 7 September 2007

Your first tooth made its appearance about a week ago.
Its kind of exciting to see the little white top out of the gum.
However, it makes nursing you a little painful.
But you have been a rather good girl as you did not bite me.

Learning to stand - 6 September 2007, Thursday

You have been learning to stand up on your two feet holding onto things nearest to you for support. So it can be quite fun to see you push your butt up into the air and then stand up. And of course, it is also fun to see you losing balance and sit down on you bump looking kind of confuse.

27 August 2007, Monday

Getting around is no longer a problem.
You have become a very good crawler.
Now, it can be rather difficult to make you stay at one place.
Baby proofing the house is necessary but we have not got down to doing it.

You have developed sensitive skin.
The rash on you cheek have grown so big and ugly that it hurts to see it.
With medication, the rash has started to improve.
We hope that the rashes will clear up completely.

The next feat you are trying to accomplish is standing.
You have learnt to pull yourself up using the sofa, the bed and so on.
However, you are still not able to support your weight.
So you will fall back on to your backside.

Sitting pretty - 3 August 2007

You have been crawling around so baby proofing the house has to be done soon.

Now on your tummy, you are learning to sit up.

So you will twist your body so that you buttocks touch the ground. Your arms supporting your body and slowly you push yourself up to a sitting position.

While sitting, you will try to stand up. You will hold on to anything that is in front of you and slowly push yourself up. However, there are still many practice sessions before you can master this skill.

21 July 2007, Saturday - Sitting Pretty At Mac

I need to eat my breakfast and it can be quite difficult to have to wiggle in my arms at the same time. Hence, I decided that it is time for you to upgrade to the high chair.

18 July 2007, Wednesday - First Crawl

Hey! You did it! You have learnt to crawl.
For a first timer, you are quite fast!
On top of that, you also can change direction!

13 July 2007, Friday - Apple with cereal

Today is the second day that I prepare this for you. I am quite frustrated that you are not willing to eat your cereal in the mornings and am getting worried about your eating habits too.

However, I tried to puree a quarter of a Fuji apple and mix it into your cereal. Hey presto! You decided that it was not all that bad. Although you did not finish all of it but at least there was less struggle when I fed you.

So you seems to like the apple and cereal mixture.

Next week, it will be porridge with a green veggie for lunch.

10 July 2007, Tuesday

You have learnt to sit quite well now. So you can play with your toys while sitting.

You also love flash cards. You get very excited when you see the cards flashing in front of you. However, you are not too keen on reading books yet. You tend to squrim and wiggle out of my lap when I try to read to you.

2 July 2007, Monday

You have started to scream your lungs out when things doesn't go your way. It hurts to hear you do that but I cannot be carrying you 24/7, can I?

You have started to sit without support. Still not stable yet but with more chances for practise you will be able to sit up tall soon.

Then you started to show interest in toy cars. Yes...you enjoy seeing the car been rolled around.

23 June 2007, Saturday

You went to the paediatrician to get you sixth month jab.

Your weight was 6.3kg, which means you gained 0.3kg over the one month. Your height was 66cm.

Basically, you are doing fine in the eyes of the doctor. He also confirmed that your teeth is not ready to come out yet, just a lot of saliva.

I mentioned your reluctance to eat the rice cereal. He said to just keep on trying and also suggested that I put it in a milk bottle and feed it to you in a more dilute form.

So this morning, I did that after trying to feed you unsuccessfully with the spoon. You did protest and cried but I refused to let you get away with it. In the end, you drank up the rice cereal but of course you also pushed some out. Daddy said that it does not matter as long as you got some of it in your stomach.

20 June 2007, Wednesday

You turned 6 months 4 days ago and I must say that it was fun to watch you grow day by day. Of course with the fun, there were also the many difficulties. However, I have learnt to look at the bright side of things so that I would not be too stressed up.

These few days you seemed to be rather unhappy away from me. You would cry in your loudest voice when someone attempt to carry you. You would scream when you could not see me. Hence, we are stuck together by superglue until you learn that it is alright to be separated for a little while.

14 June 2007, Thursday

You have found out that your tongue is one good weapon to make us laugh. So for the last two days, you kept sticking out your tongue and pushing out your saliva. You look very cute with that long sharp tongue.

Well, all the tongue-sticking-out act should be an indication that you are teething. I can see your lower gums swelling a little. That would also explain why you keep waking up in the middle of the night crying. You had difficulty sleeping and hence I am also losing sleep. But all these will past soon.

As for your rice cereal, it was just my luck that you finished it the other time. After that time, I am still having a hard time feeding you. I hope you will try to eat your cereal and drink your milk so that you will gain more weight.

8 June 2007 - Friday

You had been an expert in turning over to your tummy. However, you are not satisfied in just doing that. For the past week, you decided that you wanted to learn to turn onto your back while on your tummy.

So you have been turning onto your tummy and then turning yourself back again. It is interesting to see your stunt.

On top of that you have also decided that staying at one place was not at all fun. So while on your tummy, you would push with your legs and using your head to help, you would inch yourself forward. Ah........ the first step to crawling!

30 May 2007, Wednesday - Rice Cereal

Had been trying very hard to feed you with your rice cereal. You had not been cooperating and it was very difficult to get you to swallow the cereal every morning. You would squirm and wiggle in your Bumboo seat and make it even more difficult to feed. I almost wanted to give up and try again when you turned 6 months old.

However, this morning God answered our prayers! You started to eat the cereal slowly and even managed to finish it. I am very proud of your effort and also thank God for answering our prayers.

After you had finished, Daddy and Ash prayed a "thank you" prayer.

27 May 2007, Sunday - First LRT Ride

The day before was your first MRT ride and today it was your first LRT ride.

It must be fun seeing so many people around you. You were all very excited and was happily kicking your legs and waving your arms. Your eyes were all alert looking around at all the faces.

26 May 2007, Saturday - First MRT Ride

Since we do not have the car for the weekend, we had to get around with public transport.

There was the taxi rides... well, nothing fantastic about it as is is similar to riding in the car, except that you see Daddy sitting alongside us.

Then there was the MRT ride. Now that would be different isn't it. This time round you see many different faces sitting alongside us. It was kind of noisy too, wasn't it.

Well, you were rather attracted to an old uncle sitting beside us. You could not keep your eyes off him...hee hee hee. You did get his attention too.

21 May 2007, Monday - Started on rice cereal

You had your 5th month vaccine on 18th May and the doctor was not very happy with your weight gain. You are a bit small for your age. So he said to start you on rice cereal mixed with breastmilk.

So you had your first taste of rice cereal on 20th May, Sunday. Your reaction was ,"BLAH!" You did not really take to the taste of the cereal. Almost half of what went into your mouth was spat out. But still...we had to try and let you eat. So we have to continue to press on and hope that soon you will be able to get use to the taste.

17 May 2007, Thursday - Practise tummy turning

Since you have learnt that you can turn over to your tummy and that the view is significantly changed, you decided that you will practise this new skill throughout the day.

Interesting to see you trying to turn over.
These are the steps that you will take:
1. Lift up you legs.
2. Hold your legs with your hands.
3. With legs held on by your hands, you turned to your left side.
4. Stretched out your legs.
5. Using your head to help you push.
6. Push hard with your legs.
7. Hey Presto! You turned onto your tummy!

16 May 2007, Wednesday - Turning onto tummy

Today is the day you turned 5 months old.

On this day, you decided that you want to turn onto your tummy.

I placed you on the sofa daybed while I was expressing milk. You were your usual self, playing with your hands and feet, turning onto your right side...the next thing I know, you managed to turn onto your tummy!

So the significant event on the day you turned 5 months old is - TURNING ONTO YOUR TUMMY!

A round of applause for you.

Thursday, 10 May 2007

You are almost reaching the five months mark.

You have been drooling quite a lot recently and also enjoyed munching away at your fingers. They have been lovingly called "Little chicken wings". Hence, the numbers of handkerchiefs you change in a day is quite massive.

You also started to munch when you are nursing... yes biting away at the very thing that is feeding you and it hurt a lot. So I think you should be on the way to teething.

You have also insisted that you are upright sitting rather than lying on your back when you are awake. However, you are still not able to sit with support by yourself. We bought a support seat for you and you don't mind sitting in there for a little while. You tend to shift around and become uncomfortable.

You also seems to enjoy learning through the flash cards. Whenever I take then out, you will look at them and absorb the words. As for reading... you don't have that much patience to sit and listen. Never mind, I would keep trying.

22 April 2007, Sunday - Lullaby

You started to sing to yourself when you are about to fall asleep. Yesterday, you were in the car seat and was about to doze off. You then started to "sing" as you doze off. You went," arhhhhhh... arhhhh...arhhhh...aaaarrrhhhh..." Today, it was the same and it is so cute to hear you "sing" along with me as you doze off.

15 April 2007, Sunday - First taste of swimming

Yesterday, you went for your first swim at Raffles Town Club with your sister, cousins, Daddy, uncle and aunt.

Sad to say, I was not able to join you in the pool but I definitely took a lot of pictures of you.

Your experience in the pool was not all happy and fun. You were scared and cried a lot. You refused to let Daddy carry you and that upset him a bit. We think you did not really like his carpet chest.

So in the end, you were carried by your aunt... "kim kim". She carried you to play in the pool. After the swim, it was kim kim who bathed you too.

21 March 2007, Wednesday - Mummy went off to work

Today is the day that Mummy have to return to work. So to ensure that you have enough milk, the day before, I had to expressed diligently. In total, I made sure that there was about 7.5 oz in the fridge. That should be enough to last for the four hours that I would be away at work.

Also I had to find a way to express while I was away from you so as not to have any engorged breasts and also to keep the supply up. So I had to packed my pump, 4 bottles and also the cooler bag and ice block into my bag. My bag was so heavy and big that everyone was curious what I was carrying.

I left the house at 11 a.m. with Daddy and Ashlyn, leaving you in the trusty hands of Mah Mah. At least you did not cry as walked out of the house. You seemed to know that I had to leave for work and accepted it well.

While at work , I could not stop thinking about you. Thinking whether you would be crying for me, whether you would be sleeping, whether you would drink the expressed milk from the milk bottle...and many others. So I called home a few times and because of that I woke you up from your sleep. I was so sorry.

According to Mah Mah, you were quite okay. You did cry but not for long as your crying was because you wanted to sleep. She said that you could drink from the milk bottle although you did cry to complain but because Mah Mah was an experienced mother and grandmother, her patience with you won you over. In the end you took 2.5oz of milk and fell asleep while drinking. It was the same for the 4p.m. feed. You drank 2.5 oz and fell asleep while drinking. I was glad to hear that and of course now I can put my heart at rest while I am at work.

When I finally returned home a little after 4p.m. and saw you soundly asleep, I was very happy. Somehow you also knew that we had returned home. You woke up and immediately looked for me. Mah Mah tried carrying you and your eyes were stuck onto me. They followed me wherever I went.

Because you missed me, you demanded to be fed directly almost every two hours. Well, although it was tiring to do so but guess you needed that extra assurance.

Overall, it was not a bad day except that I was down with a bad case of flu.

23 March 2007, Friday - Hair pulling

You have learnt a new skill. That is grabbing hold of my hair tightly and refusing to let go. So everytime when I want to change the position of carrying you, I have to do it slowly or I wouldend up hurting myself.

And it is time to seriously think about cutting my hair short!

13 March 2007, Tuesday - Turning on your side

You had been trying to turn onto your side for the past few days. Today, you managed to turn onto your left side and stayed in that position for about 30 seconds.

What do you like to do now?

1) Suck your fists and fingers

You have found your hands and they will go directly into your mouth when we are not looking.

2) Smile

You love to smile. As long as we smile to you, you will return us your brilliant smile.

3) "Talk"

You enjoy "talking" to yourself and to others. When we try to talk to you or call your name, you will smile and then start "talking" to us.

4) Watch your sister

Yes, you seems to be in love with your sister. Your eyes will follow her wherever she goes.

5) Listen to stories

Your sister has been assigned the task of reading to you in the afternoons while I cook dinner. You will lay quietly in the playpen and listen.

20 February, Tuesday

You have reached your two months mark. You are not two months and 4 days old. So far I have been coping with your demands quite well.

You still have not learned to sleep in the afternoons. So everyday from 3 pm onwards you will be awake and very unhappy. So I would carry you all the while. While carrying you, I would work, teach your sister and so on. I would have to carry you even if you do manage to fall asleep as you still do not want to sleep on your playpen in the afternoons. So I would carry you till 10 pm at night. By that time you would be very tired hence you would finally fall asleep and rest in your playpen.

In the nights, you do not wake up much. On an average you would wake up three times for your milk feed and then return to sleep.

1 February 2007, Thursday

Now you are six weeks and 5 days old. For the past one week and 5 days, I took care of you by myself in the day. So the days had been rather hectic.

You have grown so close to me that you refused to let me put you down on your bed when you sleep. You will wake up the moment your head touches the bed. So I had to carry you most of the time. in so doing, I have learnt to type and do my things with just one hand. By carrying you, I know I am spoiling you but I just cannot help it and it definitely beats hearing you cry.

As you hit the sixth week, you also learnt to make cute noises, your personal baby language. Daddy and myself love to hear you "talk" and would always repeat after you.

You had also learnt that by smiling you would get everyone all excited and happy. So despite the fact that I may be very tired carrying you the whole day, your smiles always melt my heart and it wash away all the tiredness.

Along with these moments, you also had learnt to poo massive amounts which the diapers could not contain. So your clothes are always dirtied. So in one day, you could have a change of 3 to 4 sets of clothes.

16 January 2007, Tuesday

Today you are officially one month old and I am officially freed from confinement.

You had been rather difficult with your crying for the last two weeks. But that had passed. Your confusion between day and night had also passed. Now, you seemed to be more co-operative when it comes to sleeping.

However,you are still drinking from one breast at each feed so I am not sure whether you are taking enough. Everyone who came and saw you said that you are relatively smaller than your sister when she was one month old. But I know you have grown because you can fill into the bodysuits now. Unlike before, the sleeves were very very long and your feet did not touch the ends of the body suits.

Unfortunately, pimples have started to break out on your face the week before. So now you are a pimple-faced baby. These pimples are nothing but milk rashes.

What can you do or like to do at this stage? Well. you can lift up your head to look at things. You are very interested in the black and white pictures that I put in your playpen. You liked to be carried to sleep and when you sleep. You like to poo all over your clothes and also right after a change of diaper!

8 January 2007, Monday

You are now 3 weeks and 2 days old. Have everything settled down into a routine yet? Maybe yeas and maybe no.

You had managed to change your sleep pattern. So now you are sleeping at night rather than keeping awake. This is good but in the day... you tend to be very cranky in the morning.

I was not sure whether it was because you were hungry or because of any ailments. i know that you were tired but you just could not get to sleep. So in the mornings, I was very tired and frustrated. I prayed that soon you will get over this phrase and settle into some routine that everyone in the household will be comfortable with.

31 December 2006, Sunday

You are now 2 weeks, 1 day old and how are things so far? Well, you are starting to stay awake more often in the day and sleep more in the night. This meant that I would be able to sleep more in the night too.

However, your demands for breast milk are not stable yet. There were times when you could go 3 to 4 hours between feeds and sometimes (usually in the late afternoons and evenings) you demanded to be fed every hourly. So during those hours, Mummy would be extremely tired.

On top of the tiredness, there were the sore nipples that I had to bear. I had to grit my teeth whenever I latch you on. I checked and checked to ensure that you latched on properly and it seemed to be so but still my nipples remained cracked and terribly sore.

Another thing to note, you liked to poo immediately after we change a new diaper for you. So you had actually wasted quite a number of diapers and that drove Daddy up the wall!

24 December 2006, Sunday

It had been a week and a day since you were borned. The three days stay at the hospital was very much like we were on vacation. The nurses only brought you to the room when you were hungry. Upon the completion of feeding, you were wheeled back to the nursewry. They would keep you in the nursery up to 3 hours. During that period, Daddy and Mummy would get a good rest.

At the same time, Mummy's stitches were healing very well so this time round, the delivery and recuperating part was easy.

Then came the difficult part - going home! Once home, we had to handle things on our own. On top of that, there was the routine of housework, Ashlyn to take care and work to be done.

Once home, you were put in your playpen to continue your baby sleep. Daddy and Mummy went about getting the house organised. Packing up, washing the milk bottles and breast pumps, sterilising them.

The first day at home seemed to go well. You fed and slept but you usually drank from one breast and would fall off to slumber land. I attributed that to the fact that you were having a little jaundice. (Jaundice can cause a baby to be very sleepy). So the first night was not too difficult for us to handle.

It was the same on the second day home, Tuesday. Due to your sleepiness, the day was relatively okay and everything went well. The problem came when it was night time. When everyone was sleeping you realised that you were hungry and needed to fill your tummy. So you slept little and drank almost ever hour.

On 20th December, Wednesday, you were scheduled for a check-up with the paediatrician. so we bundled you up ensuring that you were kept warm, we set off to the clinic. Because you were showing more sign of jaundice, you had to take a blood test. We were asked to wait around for the test result. After waiting for 2 hours, we were joyful that your jaundice level was around 10 and hence there was no need for you to be admitted to the hospital. We just had to suntan you everyday in the morning.

16 December 2006, Saturday

I went through another CTG scan at about 7.30 am to track for contractions but sadly the contractions were very mild and too far apart. I was definitely disappointed at your reluctance to make your appearance into the world. However, except for praying, I can only continue to wait.

I decided to take a quick shower and it was surely a very quick one. I was still trying to adjust the temperature of the water when Daddy knocked on the door to announce the arrival of the gynae. Not wanting her to wait, I get out of the shower quickly.

Dr Chua had to examine me to check the dilation of the cervix before deciding the next move. She was also a bit disappointed with the lack of progress. She had given us two choices (before the examination) - insert another tablet, which cost $150 and then wait or to go home and wait. Since we were at the hospital, the most logical choice would be to spend another $150.

So she made the cervix examination and Boy!!! IT HURT BADLY!!! REAL BAD!!! As my cervix was located quite way back. Now, any normal person would scream the house down with such pain but since I was a little on the crazy side (and of course with God's grace and strength) I laughed to distract myself from the pain. The laughter did help in distracting myself and also Daddy. He knew I was in terrible pain but due to my comical expression, he could not help but laughed too, so did the gynae and the assisting nurse. With the laughter, I think I did a great job of lightening the mood.

No pain, no gain. Dr Chua managed to find a one centimetre dilation. So I was sent down to the labour ward for the epidural first, followed by having her break my water bag and then the drip to further induce you out.

So off we went to the observation room in the labour ward. There, I had to be shaved down below and had to be given a medication (thought the anus) to clear my bowel. Once my bowel was cleared. I was strapped up to the CTG machine and a blood pressure measuring machine. Once those were done, I was ready for the epidural.

Not long after, Dr Catherine Yap, the anaesthetist came (she was also the one who administered the epidural when I gave birth to Ashlyn). She was very fun and gentle too. While she gave me the needle, for the local anaesthetic, she kept distracting me by asking about out family's vacations overseas. Plus, whenever I felt pain, the crazy side of me kicked in and I went, "Blah, blah, blah, blah..." with my tongue. That was described as "singing" by Dr Yap. Well, I think I made her day easier. She seemed to enjoy herself too.

After the epidural is successfully set up, Dr Chua came in to break the water bag and then it was the beginning of the waiting game. As there were many mummies giving birth on that day, all the labour rooms were full so we had to wait for our turn to go into the room. At the meantime, Daddy and Mummy had to stay in the observation room (with 3 beds, separated with curtains). It was very cramp and noisy as nurses walked around the room giving instructions and talking. But by around 12.30 pm, we got a room and off we went rolling to the room on my bed.

Once in the birth room (Room 3), the environment was so soothing and comfortable that Mummy and Daddy slipped into dreamland. At around 1.45 pm, Dr Chua came in and had a quick check and confirmed that there was a 3 cm dilation plus contractions were regular and strong. However, with the epidural, I could not feel the contractions so I could still sleep comfortably.

At around 2.30 pm, I could feel the contractions in the tummy. It was not painful just that I could feel the pulling and tigthening of the uterus. At the same time, with each contraction, your heartbeat will get softer. Concerned, Daddy and I asked the nurse about this and she replied that it was normal. Then she proceeded to check on the dilation of the cervix and gladly announced that it had dilated to 9cm. The progress in just an hour was so fast and we knew that in no time, you will be arriving.

The nurses got ready all the things needed for the delivery. Such as the baby warmer (a machine that will keep you warm as you lie there for the nurse to clean up), the surgical gown for Dr Chua, the surgical equipment, the needles for Mummy and so on.

At around 3 pm, the nurses got me prepared by making me practise pushing. With each contraction, I was encouraged to push hard and push below. Daddy was there holding my hands and encouraged me to give mu best with each push. after about 4 or 5 practice pushes, your head can be seen. Daddy took a peek but was not able to see your crowning glory so the nurse made me do another practise push. Daddy saw your little head and at the same time Dr chua came bursting into the room.

Dr Chua was very delighted that the progress was fast and good. I was her 4th patient to deliver and she had one more to go. Once she was ready, I was ordered to give a big push.

The first push and your head and a little hand emerged. Daddy witnessed it with pride. With the next contraction, the second push, you came sliding out into the world to meet everyone. The sensation was like "blop, blop, blop..." in my tummy. It was like something bubbling out.


So your arrival was announced at 1512 hours on 16 December 2006. When I first saw you (you were placed on my chest immediately), I commented that you looked like your sister when she was born.

Dr Chua was very delighted to see you and she commented that you were very beautiful and looked like Daddy too. Daddy, upon hearing that was extremely happy. Me? I was happy too because you have my high forehead, sharp lips and the same face shape.

While you were taken away for cleaning and weighing with the nurse and Daddy, I "gave birth" to the placenta which was your source of food and home for 9 months (40 weeks to be exact). In the process of your birth, my virgina tore 3 cm(which was not bad in Dr Chua's eyes). She did not have time to do the episotomy, by the way.

She sewed the 3 cm up, pushed out the extra blood and also drained my bladder. And boy... my bladder was sure very full. Urine flowed non-stop for about two minutes. It was quite comical listening to the flowing urine. It sounded like an artificial waterfall (those water features that you install indoor).

Daddy and you returned to the labour ward after weighing. The following was your score card:
Weight : 3.225kg
Height: 50 cm
Head circumference: 34 cm

Compared to your sister Ashlyn's:
Weight: 3.71 kg
Height: 52 cm
Head circumference: 34 cm

So you were slightly smaller that her and that explained the easy pushing.

Hey... but both of you were as pretty as can be. Most importantly, both were healthy at birth and were blessings from God. At this juncture, Mummy and Daddy would like to thank God for the safe and fast delivery of AVERLYN TAN.

15 December 2006, Friday

There was another appointment with the qynae. I lost a kilogram in weight and my blood pressure was a little low so was sent for a CTG scan. Well, your heartbeat seemed fine but you were sleeping most of the time. So the nurses kept pushing and poking at my tummy in the hope of waking you up.

On top of that, there was no contractions. Now, I remembered asking you to wait but that was to wait for the gynae to return from her leave not wait till your effective date had passed.

When checked by the gynae, we realised that the cervix was not open yet! Now, why are you so reluctant to come out? So, we (Daddy, gynae and me) decided that it was the time to induce you out before any complications can occur.

Gynae pushed a tablet into the cervix to help open it up. We would have to wait for 6 to 12 hours for the contractions to come in. So, I had to be warded and then we waited...

However, Ashlyn was very upset because she could not stay at the hospital with me. She was very reluctant to go home with MaMa. She called when she reached home, after she had her dinner and before she went to sleep. Now, the last call was heart wrenching because she was crying very pitifully and kept saying," Mummy, I want you!"

So little Averlyn, don't you think you should really make your way out so that your sister and me will not feel so sad?

07 December 2006, Thursday

Thank you for waiting... the gynae is back and I get to celebrate my birthday today. I think after today, you can exit your home of nine months already.

This time, I am asking you to come om out to greet us all before your sister's birthday. Now, it would not be fair to let your sister miss her birthday right?

Tomorrow is another visit to the gynae, so hopefully you can also try to give yourself a little push? Everyone is waiting anxiously for your arrival. As for me, I am also waiting as my back is breaking and now my tummy is very uncomfortable. Yet, there are still so many things not completed. My work is yet to be completed, the house seems to be in a mess, Christmas presents not wrapped yet, Christmas presents (some of them) are still not prepared.

27 November 2006, Monday

Went tot he gynae for the regular check-up the Friday before, 24 November. Everything was going well.

I had gained 2 kg withing 2 weeks and you... well, you gained 300g in the same two weeks. So, where did the rest of the 1.7kg went to? Will think about that later...after your arrival. Now, you are a healthy baby weighing 2.9kg and waiting patiently for the right time to come out and meet everyone.

But wait! The gynae would be on leave from today (27 November) to Friday (1 December). So you have been ordered to wait! Now this is a good chance to teach you your first lesson - PATIENCE! So wait!

Not only due to the fact that the gynae would be away, I still have many things to complete at work. So wait, okay? Plus, there is Ashlyn's birthday party at her school on 30 November to plan and to celebrate. The many presents we need to get for Christmas, the cleaning and packing of the house, the new nursing bras to wash, the new battery to buy for the video camera. I think you have gotten the picture... WAIT!

21 Novermber 2006, Tuesday

Today marks the day that you are 37 weeks in the womb. I had planned to get a pregnancy diary since the beginning but work took over my time. However, it is not too late now... I just change the 'pregnancy diary' into a 'growing up diary'.

So starting today, I will periodically not down the things that happen around me, in me, and then when you arrive... I will note down events pertaining to you.

You have been an active baby inside the womb. Love the way you stretch your legs and how my tummy shows your little bumps. Love to tap the little bumps to let you know that I had noticed it. Love to let Daddy tap the little bump to show that he cares for you. Love to let your sister. Ashlyn, feel you move in the womb.

Ashlyn loves you to pieces. She us always on a lookout for items that you may need when you arrive. She cannot wait to be the big sister watching over and caring for you.