YES! I'm past my first trimester!

Whoopee!!! I've been waiting and waiting for 12 weeks to come by. I'm just absolutely relieved because now, the risk of miscarriage has now dropped dramatically. Phew.

I haven't been updating for some time now because I've been on the road for a bit. Been off to Jakarta, a two-hour flight from KL, to check on the new house we'll be moving into. I'm pretty pleased we've finally settled that bit of our lives. Top Monkey has been based in the Jakarta office since Jan 08 and has been forced to shuttle back and forth since then. So it's been pretty tiring for him and pretty lonesome for me with him there and me here. I'm relieved we're finally going to make our move official and we can start a new life together there.

So here I am, just past 12 weeks and not looking in the least bit pregnant! I can still fit into my jeans and chinos. Right now I'm sure most people think I'm a lazy bum because I won't lift a finger to help carry anything even though I look fit enough to do it. I know I'm pregnant but it's impossible to tell from just a look.

My morning sickness has just vanished. My huge appetite from about a week ago has also settled down. Having said that, I gobbled up my airplane dinner and about half of Top Monkey's because I was hungry on the flight. Haha.

I feel bouncier now even though I usually lose energy in the afternoons. But it's not as bad as before, I can feel I'm zippier. I've started looking for clothes for when I get more whale-like. Mothercare carries some pretty good nursing and maternity bras, so I'll be coming back in later months to get some. We also took a look at prams and baby clothing... it's so exciting! When my girlfriends had their babies, I had a good time selecting toys and clothes for their kids. But when you're selecting for your own, the good time-ness is just awesome.

I've just taken to sleeping with a pillow to prop up my legs. I find it makes me more comfortable at night. Any pillow will do, just as long as it's firm enough to prop my legs up when I'm sleeping on my side.

We've taken a pic of my belly, so that we can track the progress of the bump. It's in Top Monkey's camera so I'll have to wait for him to come home before I upload it for all to see. I can feel a change in my abdomen... there's clearly my stomach and then my uterus if I press gently on my abdomen. I am soooooooo looking forward to the time when she is big enough to kick!

So that's just a quick update for me... this post is dedicated to PE who asked me "Why no updates?" So here's one, just for you... and may you be sending out good news on a Little J or PE Jr soon! My baby will need a playmate!

3rd scan: Alien life exists on Earth!

Look! Aliens! Well, actually it's Little Monkey, can you see her arms? I had my third scan today, was so delighted to see her. Her head's the blob on the right. The doctor also showed me her legs but he didn't print that shot because it wasn't so clear.

She is 3cm long now, her little heart is beating as strongly as ever and I am just ecstatic that she's doing fine. According to the calendar, I'm 9 weeks pregnant but the computer calculated that I'm 10 weeks along judging by her size.

I told the doctor I had no more spotting, nothing at all since the day I'd arrived in a panic at his clinic but the scan showed up a spot that he said was the old blood clot. Since he's the cautious sort (and because I plan to travel next week), he gave me a progesterone shot just in case. And ouch!!! - my bum is still stinging from the shot, more than 12 hours later. I don't know what he used, a hydraulic pump maybe to give me the shot. Ow.

He also gave me more progesterone pills and advised me to continue taking them till 12 weeks. I'm taking them faithfully, not taking any chances with our little one! I also had my blood drawn for various tests - hemoglobin, rubella, Hep B, HIV, syphilis, thalassemia, iron, folic acid, blood sugar. I'm no good with needles, the sight of one makes me faint. So I had to look away while he was drawing my blood and I could barely stand to look at the tubes of blood later but I had to because I had to ensure my blood was correctly tagged with my name.

The next time I come in for another visit, they'll check the ratio of her neck thickness to her length. This gives an indication of Down's Syndrome and if the ratio isn't right, then the doctor will do an amniocentesis test. The doctor explained he wanted to do the ratio measurement first as a sort of screening test because the amniocentesis test carries a very slight risk of miscarriage and he wanted to avoid it as much as possible.

When I saw her arms and legs, I was just thrilled. It makes her more of a person now that she's actually got proper arms and legs... her arms are bent at the elbows too! So cute. As I told a friend today, I still can't quite believe there's a Mini-Me inside of me. I guess it's because I'm not showing yet so it's very hard to sort of visualise it.

I talk to Little Monkey every day, usually when I'm rubbing cream on my tummy or when I've just woken up and I don't know why I don't feel silly talking to a little blob. Hehe.

I'm so in love with our Little Monkey. :))) But this might change when she's four yo and throwing a tantrum in the supermarket because we won't buy her sweets... but that's what boarding schools are for! ;))

We've told the boys!

We've finally told the boys about Little Monkey. The boys are Top Monkey's two grown sons from his first marriage, the elder of the two lives and works in Aberdeen and the younger has just found a job in Australia. They are lovely boys, I was very pleased they came for our Dec wedding and spent a beach holiday with us in Phuket in Nov last year because we hardly get to see them and I know for sure Top Monkey regrets not being able to see them as often as he would like.
I'd wanted to wait till the first trimester was over before we told them but it wasn't fair really to not tell them and Top Monkey broke the news yesterday. Both boys seemed happy to hear the news, I am looking forward to seeing them greet their new sibling when she arrives in Nov this year.

I don't know if there is a Chinese term for half-brothers, I've never heard my own cousins refer to their half-brother that way. Anyway, all this half-half thing isn't for me. To me, the boys are family, they will be older brothers to Little Monkey and that's that. But I will kill them if Little Monkey picks up their Scottish accents! :)))

9 weeks pregnant!

YOWZA!!! I am 9 weeks pregnant! I am not showing in the least bit, so I'm wearing all my jeans while I still can. Tops are a different matter, I tend to buy tops that fit snug and I can't wear most of them now because the boobie cups have runneth over. Time to go shopping!

The morning sickness has stopped (Phew!) and I'm eating the best I ever had in my pregnancy so far. I've discovered the Little Monkey doesn't like sour, tarty stuff and loves Coke and ice cream and chocolate. This is seriously not me because I've never been a Coke, ice cream and chocolate person. It's my hubby who likes that stuff and I told him, "Your child for sure!"
Yesterday, I scoffed a fish curry rice with fried chicken for lunch, followed by tiramisu for tea and amazingly, I still managed to stuff myself with fried beehoon and chicken for dinner. Top Monkey told me tonight after hearing what I've been eating, "Awww... my Little Porker with my Little Monkey...." Oi!!!

My batteries usually run out sometime during mid-day, so I'm careful not to be out and about then or I'll just collapse on a park bench or something. I take a short nap, wake up, play my guitar and sing to the Little One. I know Mozart is supposed to be good for smart babies but I can't abide Mozart so I'm hoping John Mayer, Dave Matthews Band and Sigur Ros have pretty much the same effect.

I'm scheduled for a scan and blood test this Friday, so I'm really looking forward to seeing her again and seeing how she's progressing. I just wish Top Monkey could be here with me but he's hard at work in Jakarta and someone's got to put food on the table. Never mind, once we've finalised our move to Jakarta, he'll be able to come along to every scan.

Bring on Week 10!

The colour of love

I've just finished reading this article written by a mum who's given birth to a mixed-race daughter (she's white, baby's father is Indian). I am a Malaysian of Chinese heritage and Top Monkey is white, so I share some of the feelings that she has.

In an ideal world, our Little Monkey will just be plain Little Monkey, not Little Mixed Race Monkey or Little Eurasian Monkey or Little Half white-Half Asian Monkey. I worry for her future - if she were brought up in UK, would she be ostracised because of the part of her that I am responsible for? Or if she were brought up in Malaysia, will she always be classified under "Lain-lain"? (lit. Others.. Malaysian forms generally require you to state your race) Will she always be judged by her mixed-ness first? Should her name reflect her dual heritage or should she just have a "white" sounding name to protect her from society's prejudices? I mean, like it or not, the fact is that even here in Malaysia, we still have this Love the White Sahib culture.

More importantly - what do I tell my child if one day she comes running to me in tears because some idiot has made fun of her colour?

Present for me and Little Monkey from Daddy!

Look what Top Monkey bought me! It's a piece of art called "Mother's Day". He saw it yesterday at Yan Fine Art Gallery and liked it a lot because of the mother and baby theme. I suspect he also found it reminded him of me because the mummy buffalo has as big a bum as I do. So today, he took me over to have a look at it and I liked it too! Top Monkey said it would be a nice way to remind us of Little Monkey's conception and me, being the practical Chinese and all, said that if the art appreciated enough, we could sell it when we need money to send Little Monkey to college. Hee.

I'm looking forward to having this hung in our new home and taking a pic next to it when Little Monkey is born. Hopefully, my bum won't be as big as that.

Click here for more on the artist, Ng Bee and his art.