Sleep training week

It's been quite an uneventful week...tho i thot i better start trying to sleep train her and get her into routine by the time i go back to work. actually i could have done it earlier so i'm not sure how it'll be. actually she's been on a quite ok 3hr routine +/- 1/2 hour. tho it always gets messed up by the night sleeps because she does go for a longer stretch. still she's not dropping her early morning feed and wakes up at 1 or 2am for milk, and then 5am. it was bad last night cos i was so tired out by her awakeness at 2+3am. i crawled in and out of bed, giving her the pacifier and dropping off to sleep and waking again. i really want to refrain from giving her the pacifier to fall to sleep..but sometimes it's really hard.

today i tried the crying down method (while my mil was out). it worked the 1st time in less than 5mins...but she woke 1/2hr later for more milk which is 1hr earlier than her usual feed. the 2nd time i tried, she cried even louder when i turned her over to lie on her back that i gave in to her..and gave the pacifier. :( it's not easy...listening to her cry even for 5mins...i gotta try at least 15mins. someone in the forum said her friend let her baby cry for 2.5hrs(!!) but the baby eventually did learn to sleep on her own (w/o rocking, cradling, patting, pacifier). gosh what a dream. for now a dream will be that she is able to follow a more stable routine and sleep thru the night (at least frm 10pm-5am). actually i'm reading the Gina Ford The Complete Sleep guide for contented babies. a bit late to implement it? Eliza's 8weeks le...

anyway it's gonna be an uneventful rest of the week. Ww's super busy with school/discipline matters/masters course/& the super stressful EV. so he's back like 730pm everyday....only to con't working till 11+pm. poor him. so if i'm gonna try getting Eliza to her bedtime routine from 7pm onwards that leaves him with little time to play with her. sigh...

i'm starting work soon..yeap..and 3 day week. Thank God. there's so much to prepare but so little time....my EBM is taking up so much space in the freezer that my mil say got no space to put her cny food. i really dunno what to do with my frozen EBM. i'm trying out giving Eliza frozen EBM (of cos defrosted le la) tmr...cos i guess we'll need it when i go back to work. i'm also considering giving her bottled EBM so that i can better track her milk intake but a lot more things to do and the wait time for the milk is long, esp when Eliza's hungry earlier than i anticipated.

gosh...to a certain extent it new problems arise with baby growing older...not easy. but her gurgles and conversations with me always makes my day. it's always so rewarding to see her smile, and genuinely smile at me.

this was taken last week...before we went out to gaigai...she knows we're going out and is quite excited about it.
dance move 1

dance move 2

E: i'm super duper happy! yay! we're going out!

E: lalalala


this was the day i brought her to my office to show her off...she slept all the way rite? then back home she's awake..ok...tho still sleepy.


today i was bored of doing the same stuff with her in the afternoon, usually i'll
- read books to her
- let her play on the play gym
- sing songs to her
- talk to her
- leave her on her bouncy net (that's not bouncy at all) to stare at her linglinglonglong.

so....today i brought her downstairs for a walk...she was real excited when i carried her in the baby carrier...my mil say she got hua1 jiao3 (like to go out)
so she was staring around....oooooo

couldn't really take both of us...my arm not long enough...so it's either her or me.

Is baby going out too much?

I'm going to my office tdy to discuss my going back to work with my boss...he's really nice, actually it was my boss who brought it up even before i went on maternity leave. he said we can tailor to work to suit my working times. i wasn't sure if i want to bring Eliza along to say hi, tho it'll be cool to do so.

with the possibility of bringing Eliza out alone on possibly public transport, i popped to TM to run some errands last night. bought new diapers cos her current Pampers dry size S seems too big...and her pee/poo leaks from the side cos it's not tight enough. so i got the NTUC brand one..it's on offer and someone mentioned that it's soft & absorbs well too...ok i'll try it out and see. picked up my new jeans :) went to order Hagen Das cake for my sis (her bday on sunday). and...of cos bought a baby carrier for $148. (would have loved to buy the Baby Bjorn one..my sil says it's really good but no choice kiddy Palace doesn't sell it and i got its vouchers to use). waiting for her to wake up for milk and try carrying her with it.

anyway yesterday my mil & i & Eliza went to the SporeExpo John Little sale. not much stuff other than $1.20 rompers. the most exciting thing about the trip was that i forgot to bring her pacifier. i reckon that if she really cries then we'll juz carry her. lo and behold...she did! cried and didn't want to be in the stroller...and i carried her up, discovered her pants was wet..oops pee overflow. anyway i guessed her crying is cos it was too loud in there (imagine those lelong ppl...shouting over the microphones about the hourly special). anyway after her milk...she was quite zonked out.

but she cried again a while after we went back in *faint*. it's those loud cries...as if she's startled from her sleep. we tried swaddling her and viola! she slept all the way thru the rest of the shopping and going home.

lesson learnt: always remember to bring pacifier.

and i went for a nov07 mummies gathering on wed. i was worried about handling Eliza alone...with the pram. i only have 2 hands. but still i made it...yays! shared cab with Olivetree

*Eliza cry*
*out to office*
*back at 10:49pm to con't blog*

..and it wasn't so difficult as i imagined it to be. gosh there's always the first time with baby. still lugging that pram with one hand and Eliza on the other hand was tiring but manageable. it was going to rain so we had the gathering indoors instead. not so much use for the pram cos we put our babies on mattresses :P
aren't they so cute? can u spot Eliza?

tadaa...oops...Eliza gotta be a lil more gentle, uh-oh..yr flying arms made yr friend beside u cry


it was fun chatting with mummies, enjoying the food and managing our cute lil babies (whether it's feeding them, carrying them, pacifying them, changing them etc etc). not easy but it's good to have ppl around who's going thru similar stuff, and sharing about our experience with our babies.
this is only one half of the mummies :)


anyway back today.....
i came back safely from my lil trip to office with Eliza...and help from my sister who went with me. this is me with the baby carrier i bought yesterday.

not too difficult to wear it and i think it is so comfortable for Eliza (look at her sleep!) cos she's in an upright position and my walking rocks her to sleep. so..it was sooooo shuang for her that she literally slept ALL the way from when i left home till i reached home (almost..cos she woke up when i got out of the cab). ok she did stir a little, frown a little when my colleagues were like trying to play with her...gosh otherwise she's super knocked out. we took mrt & bus there and took a cab back. oh please remind me to never take a taxi from 5pm-8pm frm town area anymore, it cost me $22.60 (!?$%$^#). normally it would be like half the price.

anyway i'll work till 3.30pm everyday..it was what i talked about and discussed with my family...tho my boss thot i could work a 3 day week. ok...when i told Ww & my family..they were like commenting that it could be good too..(if not better..so i kinda have off day..and my mil can go out). now i'm confused...cos i told my boss abt leaving early...should i go for a 3-day week?? argh...confused.

another week has passed

Very soon i'll have to return to work :( while i kinda like my job, i can't bear to leave home without Eliza. there's so much to do and she has so much to grow, it feels like you don't want to miss it all. now the discussion is how to manage while i'm away at work..and whether i can work flexi hours and lesser hours. after all i'll be leaving my mil alone to take care of Eliza, while it can be done (i survived 3 days last week + housework on my own), she's also not young and managing baby with housework isn't gonna be easy day in day out..esp with her joint pains. so we're considering getting a part-time domestic helper to do the vacuuming and cleaning up, and consider ordering tingkat so she won't have to cook. tho..i know she just will want to keep cleaning (she cleans the bathroom almost everyday) and homecooked food is still healthier than food from outside. Ww & I are not in favor of getting a maid even tho the costs may be cheaper than getting a domestic helper to come twice a week. but it's the extra mouth to feed, extra space to accommodate; and if getting a maid just to do housework, what is she gonna do after all the housework is done? plus the chances of getting a reliable and good maid is not easy, out of all the maids that my sil has..my mil only likes one (has a lot of complaints for the current one). don't really want to tax her with taking care of baby & housework..so we're still in the midst of figuring out something...

On the weekend..
Weekends are kinda fun, on top of going to church..this weekend we ventured out to Airport Terminal 3! wohoo...so much for Ww saying shouldn't bring Eliza out coz there's germs...we intended to go on our own...lug the pram up bus 27 and carry Eliza. but thank God Ww's parents decided to join us for dinner at airport after their trip at Chinatown to buy CNY stuff.
Eliza juz drank milk before going out so she's quite in a good mood but and i was in a mess cos there's stuff to prep and pack and Ww's parents were waiting already..she was quite happy being at the front...

and watching....the sky??

Eliza: after dinner i was making a fuss cos i want to be carried and mummy guessed..hungry! so my ah-ma had to carry me around. gosh..i look like i'm in winterland with that hat!

Eliza: i try to look into daddy's eyes..but he's too busy posing for this photo..tsk tsk..

yays! another family photo...it's so hard to get one cos i'm always the shutter happy one..sometimes i always forget to get someone to take photos when i'm so happy taking photos of Eliza.


oh oh...while i usually put Eliza to zz on her tummy in the daytime she hardly does this, i suspect it's coz she's sleepy, and if she's awaking she isn't quite in a good mood to do this..woo..it's been a long time since i've seen her raise her head like that le. :P

Days of Eliza

See weekends are fun...so these were some of the stuff done over the weekend..and after that

Saturday

mummy's cell came and i was sleeping..daddy was to take care of me while mummy's having cell..and he slept too. when we woke, he brought me to join her cell and i was kinda sleepy after milk and the way daddy carried me is so comfy!

but he couldn't support my neck...so he used this pillow. mummy's cell ppl say i look like a lil boss....

hahahaha....


Sunday

we made it for 1st service this sunday and ah-ma bathed me earlier than normal (at 730am). plus daddy drove! he drove my gugu's car but i was so soothe by the car's motion i was sleeping most of the way. after that we went to TM to celebrate my grandma's birthday (mummy didn't take photo tsk tsk..) i made a fuss before we got out also because my cousins woke me up and i wasn't happy...so i kept crying..and wanted milk too. so we were late but i was so soothed by the car and the pram that i slept almost throughout their lunch. i guess mummy was glad she could eat peacefully. we went home in the afternoon and mummy thot i was going to sleep but noo..i was sleeping so much in the morning i was wide awake! so they played with me and later mummy tried making me sit on the sofa with the rest of the stuffed toys... gee...i'm of comparable size to them

but i don't wanna be there :(

see now she thinks it's fun and keeps taking picture of me...on another day, again...in the same position. daddy loves this photo so much he puts it as his laptop's wallpaper and shows it to everyone :)

ain't i cute?

mummy discovered that i do like sleeping on my back in the day time too...un-swaddled, cos she always find me out of my swaddling cloth when she feeds me at night. i'm so strong!! ahaha



My playgym days...
i like my playgym...and it gives me minutes of fun and things to see...and mummy some peace-time. note the position of where i am in the playgym....

isn't it fun?

i was quite intrigued by the car hanging above me...why is it looking at me??

oh...i've kicked and shifted my butt out of where i was...the mummy carries me to sleep


yup..it's time to sleep!

continues...

still on what the author of this blog wrote..but i've added my take on it...read hers at

1. You will feel an overwhelming love for your baby
yup and it grows over time...even it's only 6 weeks for me...and even though she frustrates me sometimes. when my hormones was in transition after birth, i would get teary thinking of her and how much i love her

2. You won't feel the episiotomy cut
i didn't really know if i had one until i asked my gynae...and yeah couldn't feel a thing..whell not till few days later...it did feel sore down there..and i made sure i ate my painkillers. i was still asking the nurse what if i need to poo.

3. You will forget the pain of childbirth and labour
The sleepless nights that follow are responsible for that, and also the joy of nurturing your child.
ok i so agree

4. Your body needs to heal
Get help during your first month, preferably Mom or a confinement lady (so you won't feel guilt about Mom taking the night shift all the time).
I so agree too. with my mil off at genting these 3 days, gosh i wonder how i'll survive the 1st month. but i did all the night shifts..thank God Eliza was still ok

5. You will feel some pain below
thot this was the same as no.2. ok..anyway it's sore..the most 'pain' was when my gynae removed the stitch. eep!

6. Breastfeeding will be a tough nut to crack
it was manageable at first...and there're challenges along the way..

7. You will get used to the night feeds
oh yeah...i'm still surviving on at most 3 hour interval sleeps (i had a 4hour sleep once..oh heaven!) i'm still thriving on these broken sleep

8. Throw out the superstitions
i dunno how much is superstitions and how much is not...i followed some and couldn't be bothered about some..wrote abt it in previous entries

9. Take pain relief when you need it
Whether it is in the labour ward or post-delivery, take the pain relief that is offered you. Technology is there for a reason. Keep your options open. Plus, for me it was easier to concentrate on pushing with an epidural while watching the chart, rather than racked with agonising pain.
yups. i still thank God for epidural...even tho it's a $600 thing. i still consider not going for it for my next delivery tho..must try the breathing method.

10. Breastfeeding does help you lose weight
I gained 16kg. Lost 6 kg post-delivery (or 1 week after delivery). still can't fit in my jeans..and look fat in my other tight-fitting clothes :(

11. Your back will hurt like hell

i think the culprit of lots of backpain is from taking care of kids, from breastfeeding (i lean on my bed with baby in cradle position but sometimes couldn't position properly), carrying baby (from the bed, from the sofa, from the bathtub...endless) , and just being plain old tired.

12. You will never be the same again
Yup, i'm a mummy now. hello parenthood...new territory.

Surviving Baby's 1st - 3rd Months

I read this from another blog which i found quite relevant. so if you're a to-be mum or planning for the future..whell..these are stuff that don't really change tho here's my take on it

1. Buy a cloth sling and practice carrying baby in it all day...
I bought. but i haven't practiced it. I'm lazy i know but it was tough trying it...still i'll persevere.
Eliza tends to fall asleep in it but there was once she was quite unhappy about being in it..i think i was quite a mess anyway...if u saw me figuring it out.
these were the 2 times i successfully got her in and comfortable. (it's the only position i know so far =7 )
on 27 dec

on 8 jan


2. When he is awake and in the sling, sit him a little more upright and point out things to him as you go about your day. When you're brushing your teeth, make funny faces to him in the mirror, when you're pouring milk, explain how Mom drinks milk too. He'll love being part of your day.
i guess what she meant was to talk to yr baby. and i find that there are times i'll just rattle on stuff, though i'm not sure she really understands what's it about, but she's learning. so i tell her daddy to talk to her more often esp since he's so busy at work and so tired when he comes back..she needs to hear his voice more. yup..so he did this weekend, engaging in conversation with Eliza, telling her abt the wedding dinner he's going tonight.

3. Spend some of the day with him in his crib or on your bed or on the floor. Talk to him, sing to him, animate some stuffed toys and do a little play for him, read to him. He just wants to see your face and loving glances at this point.
somehow i have to...except for mornings when i'll scuttle around to make bfast, sort out her after bath stuff, i'll leave her on the bouncy net to entertain herself. otherwise i'll usually play with her, try out the playgym (more on that another time..), recently i've started to read to her. singing...i tend to hum the tunes more than sing the lyrics...can't remem them well..so it's time for me to memorize more songs! tho singing is used for trying to get her to sleep..

4. If you want to put him down for a nap, try nursing him on the side (with a small towel under you to sop up the spillage) and then once he is asleep, you can steal away. :) Just make sure he is safe wherever he is.
i don't nurse her to sleep tho in the nights and early mornings i'll do so (so that i can sleep!) i used to nurse her lying down in the mornings (6-7am feeds) but i've given it up since i don't do it too well..and it's hard on my back, i dunno why..i think i didn't do it right.

5. Remember to feed and hydrate yourself too.
yups..and during confinement i did. i still try to and interestingly i get hungry easily. i'm not sure if it's cos i just don't have enough time to eat or it's due to breastfeeding (burns fats!) but drinking is important...keeps the milk coming. :P

6. Keep reading material and your phone (important for impromptu brilliant Kodak moments and surfing or checking Gmail) near you in case you suddenly need to nurse and can't get up to get stuff. i try..but sometimes in the flurry of things i forget, or i've already put Eliza on my lap and it's mafan to get up and get a camera. moreover, my camera, hp, book, internet is in the different part of the house.

7. If there's someone else in the house to help you, ensure they have a mobile phone too so you can keep your phone on silent and send text messages when you need help and baby is asleep.
hm..not too applicable for me. i juz shout. my house isn't too big. (oh...baby is asleep..ok..i'll just walk out of my room)

8. Create a routine for yourself and follow it everyday. It will help you manage your day better for now.
yes although mine isn't too routined and is still at the mercy of Eliza's sleep & feed time. but i'll have in mind what i want to do in the intervals when Eliza's asleep. (so far it's the best time i can do other stuff)

9. Rest as much as you can. It's impossible to nap with baby every time but just lying down helps. Get some me-time as well. Let Daddy play with baby for as much time as he can spare for important Dad-bonding (children who have involved fathers are more self-confident and possess better self-worth as adults).
that was during my confinement...i try to rest and do nothing much..except surf online and nap once a day. i try to nap once a day nowadays. Ww does good get-Eliza-to-sleep at night tho i know he's already quite tired out then. else i'll get him to bottle feed her when he comes back in the evening

10. Believe in yourself. The most critical thing for this period is to build your confidence as a mother and bond with your child. Everything else should take a backseat. Enjoy every moment with baby for you'll never get back this precious time when they are so tiny.
yeah so true. being with her 24hours is tiring but it's so precious.

Budrens to blessing

was spending some quiet time reading & praying from this material 31 days of parenting

"He will love you and bless you and increase your numbers. He will bless the fruit of your womb, the crops of your land—your grain, new wine and oil—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks in the land that he swore to your forefathers to give you." Deuteronomy 7:13

it writes: "..He does not view children as a sentence to eighteen years of hard time. He views it as a blessing. Interestingly, each of the blessings mentioned come at the cost of a lot of hard work. Children, crops and herds each require an incredible amount of sacrifice. It is hard to appreciate this blessing in the midst of the daily pressures. However, in the end, when you look back at it all, the rewards garnered warrant the efforts invested. There may not be a more life-altering event in your life than the moment you become a parent. Don't begrudge it; embrace it!"

truly it's a long journey, i know it but i couldn't imagine it till Eliza came into our lives. although we plan things for her (and future kids) like our change in lifestyle, finances etc, you don't feel it until you experience it. true sometimes i wonder if i'm going to do the same thing day in day out...feed her, change diapers, play with her, get her to sleep..and the cycle happens again. (and i'm only on my maternity leave) but she surprises me everyday, i would look at her and melt. yesterday she said "googoo" which was a new sound from her normal 'conversations', and got me so amazed at her.

God has blessed us with Eliza and i pray with her everyday (almost) for Him to be protect her, to keep her healthy, to grow well, sleep well, feed well, to grow into a lady who loves God. we don't know what the future holds for us and for her...but we'll enjoy every moment of it that God, by His grace, gives us.

talk about life-altering moment...she really changes us...though i think the change on me is the most. (Ww commented in her early days that i'm quite protective over her) it's like she's a part of me, esp when i know she needs us so much. just as our marriage brought me to understand God's love for us in a new light, having Eliza is bringing us to understand God in a different way as well.

Eliza's 2nd visit to the doc

On wed, we brought Eliza for her vaccination at a baby&child clinic at st.81. we wanted to go on friday, but there were things i was worried about so we went on wed instead. we wanted to go for the 6-in-1 but cos i'm a hep B carrier the doc advised to have a separate vac for heb B & do the 5-in-1 instead. it's prob a bit more jabs cos the hep B one is given separately but there's lesser side effects. i think for the 6-in-1 baby may get fever and usually that's not good in the sense that baby's gonna be cranky.

What Are “5-in-1” and “6-in-1” Vaccines?
These newer childhood vaccine formulations combine vaccines against 5 or 6 diseases into a single injection. These combination vaccines have proved to be safe and effective. However, do take note that the cost of 5-in-1 and 6-in-1 vaccines are not subsidised by the government. Consult your family doctor for more information on 5-in-1 and 6-in-1
Note: The 5-in-1 injection combines vaccines against Diphtheria/Pertussis/Tetanus (DPT), Polio and Haemophilus Influenza type B (Hib) in 1 injection. The 6-in-1 injection combines vaccines against Diphtheria/Pertussis/Tetanus (DPT), Polio, Haemophilus Influenza type B (Hib) and Hepatitis B in 1 injection.

So...Eliza had her growth charted..
she's 5.2kg (!! big baby woh...she's the size of a average 8wk old baby..and she's almost 6wks old) no wonder she's so heavy! oh my chubby chubs. the PD said it's ok esp since she's TBF-ed.
she's 58cm long (or tall) from the 50cm when she was just born

and...i asked about
- her green poop:
PD said it's usually due to what i eat, could be high fibre foods, so it makes the poop green.
- her rashes on her face:
i can't remem what the PD said anyway...but she gave some cream to put and Eliza's face is now much better (aft 2 days). yays to baby skin!
- her jaundice-y look:
PD said that she's seen babies who look jaundiced as long as 2 months (TBF babies) but if by 2nd month, she still does look so it's good to bring her back to the clinic for urine & blood test. this i'm kinda worried if it's got to do with the heb B thingy, which tho she's been immunized since birth (it was a different vaccination that cost us $300+), i wonder if it's some side effects. so we'll have to watch her for another 2 weeks, else we'll have to bring her back for tests :(

What is Jaundice?
[About 60 per cent of newborns develop jaundice because their immature liver is too young to handle high levels of bilirubin. The excess amount is therefore deposited under the skin and eyes, leading to jaundice. Bilirubin which is the yellow bile pigment in the blood is normally removed by the liver. Before birth, the mother's liver does this for the baby.

In newborns, their immature liver takes a few days to develop before it can eliminate the bilirubin efficiently. In the meantime, they develop jaundice in the first three to five days after birth. And it normally clears within seven to 10 days without treatment.

And yes her 1st jab we got to experience with her. we told her that even though she doesn't really know what's going on...it's for her good. (she was still like happy mood from the change in environment...looking around curiously). imagine minding your own business and suddenly getting jabbed.

oh her cry when she felt the jab! but it was short...the moment i carried her in her fav position, she gave a few whimpers and quietened down...soothed consoling. after that she's back to her curious-y self again. aww...my brave gal!

Eliza's days

I have a habit of kicking my left leg which sends me to the corner of my bed...mummy wonders why i like to 'walk' in my sleep..but it's as far as i could go

mummy dressed me up in my new clothes when i go out (it's to church for now), she says i gotta wear them all before it gets too small for me. and she propped me up on her bed to take a photo of me sitting...i love sitting up!

day's update

My MIL's gone out to shop for CNY clothes today so i'm home with Eliza, just me and her. (tmr i'm going out to shop for stuff..we kinda take turns)

i suspect Eliza's in a growth spurt this week (again!) cos she is hungry every two hours instead of her normal 2 1/2hrs or 3hrs. so she woke to feed at 12mn, 2.30am, 5am, 630am, 745am. i was quite ok in the beginning till the morning when i was so sleepy (and Eliza as well) that we slept right through her bathtime...only waking up at 9+am.
this is her in e morning...i like to bring her to my bed to sleep with me in the mornings...cos i don't want to get up and dwn..she looks really contented here...


The Saturday weekend
I've come to accept that unless my mil is home while we're having cell (cgl cell, Ww's cell or my cell), Eliza's become my priority cos if she's not asleep i'll have to carry her around and play with her till she does. it's ok right after her milk when she's happy to play quietly (which we had the time to join in for cell worship time), but after that when she's tired but can't sleep on her own, i'll have to rock her to sleep. i still haven't mastered the art of getting her to sleep even though i know what to do...whell sad to miss out the time with cell i felt i had to just join them (or some of them) downstairs for dinner with Eliza. it was a good thing that she just had her milk and was in a happy mood. so we put her on her stroller, wrapped her up in her long pants and hat and went for dinner at the coffee shop downstairs..it was a rainy day that's why she seems like in winter clothes.

whell...she was nice to me...and slept all the way through our dinner

The Sunday weekend
It's Eliza's 2nd time to church, this time we're a lil more prepared. still tried using the stroller but not very successful (cos it's tiring to carry her all the time). she'll wake up after abt 10mins in the stroller.
so daddy has to carry her..and she fell straight to lala-land.

this is when she was still in deep sleep...snug in the stroller

ahah...caught this sweet pic of her...tho i thought she didn't look quite like her. wonder what was she smiling at.

after 5 weeks

she's only 5 weeks old and i feel she needs us so much, from her most basic need - milk, to interacting with her. just played with her after her milk and felt that she really enjoyed our playtime together. i just felt like her smile as become more than a muscle exercise but a genuine smile showing that she really enjoys what she's doing. it's a precious time cos within 1/2hr or less she'll be restless and want to be carried or want to sleep but can't sleep.

Of sleep and naps
daytime naps are a lil difficult to get her to do. it's difficult in a way cos i know she's sleepy but after her play she just doesn't want to be put down on her bed to sleep even though she's yawning away. (oh i love her yawns...it has this 'ah' sound she makes that's so cute!) anyway so we have to carry her in her fav position, pat her and sing to her. so far day time sleep methods that work for her are
- carry her in her fav position, pat her and sing to her. when she's calmed down i can sit at the sofa, watch tv and con't doing the same stuff till she falls into deep sleep.

this is the position i carry her (was using my camera function on my hp to see whether she's asleep or not)

this is when she fell asleep

- give her the pacifier, pat her to sleep
- drink milk until she's so sleepy she falls asleep. (this is the easiest but we don't do it deliberately most of the time, instead i'm always trying to wake her up)

at night she's better...i think and hope she really knows that it's night time so after drinking her milk, changing her diapers (if needed) and trying to burp her, i'll swaddle her and leave her to sleep. occasionally she'll still make noise and i'll carry her and pat her till she falls asleep.

so really, sleeping is quite an art...at least getting baby to sleep is. it's mummy's rest time actually.

so while this schedule keeps up, i wonder when will i get a proper good night rest...even though i can last quite well with spurts of sleep, it would be nice to have a nice long 8 hour sleep.

time is precious

As much as i love to spend time with Eliza, i need to spend time on myself...even if it's just the basic stuff like eating, yes eating; going to the toilet, bathing, surfing the internet, reading some stuff and even nap. And if there's no one to help me out to carry baby, or sometimes feed her..really, i can only steal time when she naps...like now! and her naps range from as short as 1/2hr to 2hrs. sometimes i can't really predict cos she'll wake up earlier than usual.

(she woke up...fed her, coaxed her to sleep..now it's 2 hours frm the time i wrote the previous entry)

So advice to all to-be-mums, help around the house is so essential. like my friend SH told me accept any help, ANY. sometimes i would feel like i want to do everything, from bathing her to feeding her to coaxing her to sleep. but sometimes it's just too tiring, and even help from Ww to change her diapers is a relief. sometimes my FIL will entertain her while i go take my bfast, or my MIL will feed her and coax her to sleep, even Ww takes his turn at coaxing her to sleep. I'm really fortunate to not need to do too much housework cos i stay with my in-laws and my MIL does the washing every morning, (i help by keeping and folding all the clothes), she also cooks great meals so it's something i don't have to worry about. this is really important cos as much as nutrition is so important during the first few weeks after delivery, most of the times i just feel i don't have the energy to bother about it...much less cook! sometimes i feel hungry but circumstances are such that it's hard to eat and carry baby to sleep (i still haven't mastered the art of using the sling).
I really admire those mums who do their own confinement, it's not easy, especially if it's your first time and everything is so new. and you need that first month to rest and recuperate...and of course to gain confidence in taking care of baby. like now i'm perfectly fine left alone with her...once i even took a bath (a quick one..just in case she woke up and i can't go out in time to console her).

Sleepless evenings

I don't think i'll get to finish this...it's estimated 45mins till Eliza wake up from her nap. gosh it's her 2nd 'proper' nap...twice i had to coax her with the pacifier...and she was seemingly asleep with it...and if i remove it she'll cry after 1 min (which is when she realizes it's not there).

I'm trying to really regulate her schedule into a 3 hour schedule now..so when i feel she's really not hungry (ie 1hour or even 1 1/2hr after her feed), i'll hold her off with the pacifier or carry her around till she sleeps or till the time's right to feed her. sometimes it's a lil less than 3 hours..the last interval was only 2 1/2hrs but she seemed really fed up with the pacifier and turning red sucking it. (must be wondering how come there's no milk coming out from the pacifier).

she tends to be awake after her bath, although she's quite asleep before her bath as i'll usually feed her b4 that. i learnt never to bathe a hungry baby...it's hard to carry her, bathe her, much less clothe her when she's crying for milk. so a satisfied baby is a happy baby...see why her bathing photos are always so happy.
next interval to be awake is the noon or afternoon, then a good nap..and then it's the fussy evening. last night she was awake from 7plus till 1130pm. i was so tired out by 10pm that i left Ww to coax her, pat her and sing to her to sleep while i dozed off. woke to feed her groggily at 11pm which she finally fell asleep after that. thank God she slept through till 2am (gosh i had time to dream...how nice!), then woke at 5am and then at 730am.

Now that it's Jan and i'm 4 days out from my confinement, things still feel the same just that i can bathe normally, drink plain water and go out. Of course going out needs a bit of orchestrating...i need to make sure my mil is free, then if with Eliza there's a lot of barang barang to bring. meanwhile it's just a lil boring....so i'm looking forward to the weekend when we have cell over and church on sunday.

i want to go out and buy CNY clothes but it seems like i still can't fit in much of my pre-pregnancy clothes. i can for some but i look fat in them...really! even my mil says so :( geez. so i'm still wearing my pregnancy clothes..which makes me feel a lil better...see? pregnancy clothes last till after the pregnancy. need to plan a time to go shopping tho i prob only have 3-4 hours..or mayb 6 hours out...before i start to feel engorged and need to pump milk out. the wonders and non-wonders of breastfeeding. now it's like my going out times are limited...unless i bring Eliza along and nurse her while we're out.

Eliza's milestones..
- she seem to genuinely smile at me while i play with her
- her neck muscles are getting stronger (even tho at 2 weeks she's already lifting her head..and most ppl was saying that's like wah..)
- she enjoys sitting up and would exhibit that want to sit up or being lifted up
- she turns her head to us calling her (my fil tried today...and eliza turned frm left to right to left to right..cos my fil went from l to r to l to r

Eliza's days
mummy's colleague bought me this play gym and i'm trying this for the first time..what are those flying things?

eh mummy & daddy...why are they making noises and waving around?

lap time with mummy...yawns..i think i wanna sleep!!

another nice uncle & auntie bought me this clock which mummy brings it out for me to play everyday..(and uses it to 'record' my last feed). hmm...what's the time now?

After 1 month and other stuff

I take videos of her occasionally and it's hard to catch her in action sometimes, i wait and wait and she doesn't do much, and when i don't video her she has lots of tricks up her sleeves, else the camera's too far away. but this video was taken after her feed and she was so sleepy i would wake her up...but she smiles, half smiles and frowns (it's a facial exercise i believe..cos it's gone in a jiffy). in this video, my camera memory card was full by the end of the video...geez. but we love watching this one over and over again. (maybe it's some compulsive disorder...we keep looking at her over and over again...and get excited on how cute she is)


On my mornings and bathing Eliza
Eliza coos and makes interesting noises when she's in a good mood, after her baths, and when we entertain her. in particular a fun time of the day is her bath time. tho it's always my wakeup time and sometimes i don't even have time to wash up, brush teeth or eat bfast till she has bathed. most of the time my mil helps to bathe her, i do that when she's out to the market and i think i shouldn't hold off her bathing any longer. before bathtime is always my sleepy time, cos i always wish i can hang around in bed longer. usually i'll bring her to our bed for the morning feed and nurse her lying down while i doze off. sometimes she'll doze off after her feed, sometimes she'll stay awake and 'talk' to herself...which i'll encourage her...so as to wake her sleepy daddy up. (yeah...her daddy 'complains' at times tho he'll still wake to talk to her a bit and doze off again) mornings are such sleepy times...

ohhh..but BATHTIMES...are fun. she's always so happy bathing, except when she's hungry..so we always make sure she feeds full and clears all her poop b4 bath. (oh...you really don't want poop on you when you bring her to bathe...i got it once and i learnt my lesson...even if it means hanging around the changing table for 5 mins to make sure she is done with her poos. i don't mind the pees...and it has happened quite a few times but at least it isn't messy)

when we first came back from the hospital i wonder how to bathe her but thank God with my mil around, it was easier and i learnt from her.
- first is to clean her face, eyes, nose and mouth with facial cotton & warm water (cos her face can't go in water). it's quite satisfying to clean the "eye shit" off, or some nose dirt..and you know prob some lingering shit out milk somewhere around her face

- then it's to bathe her in this position, clean her hands and under all the joints and creases, esp her neck. i'm finding it hard to find her neck nowadays esp after all the fats that's accumulating there. she tends to be a lil anxious in this position, (i think she worries that she'll fall in even though we hold her tight) and she'll grab anything...like my mil's shirt or the bathtub which really can't be grabbed anyway

oh then this is her most favourite position...and she'll look so contented while we bathe her


after she's all bathed and nice...i can finally settle to do my morning stuff (or finish my morning stuff if i've done halfway) and eat breakfast and talk to her...while watching tv too. :)

On numbers and money
I had wanted to write about this but keep forgetting...about buying 4D. numbers like Eliza's birth date, her time of birth and even her NRIC number. obviously my fil bought those numbers once he knew it...(gosh i dunno how much he spent on buying these numbers). obviously it didn't come out the 1st week...but 3 weeks later, there was quite a commotion at home. cos her DOB came out as first prize. oops! and he didn't buy it. then came all the phone calls...which i realized then that my mil's friends/family have asked her for Eliza's DOB to buy 4d too..and one of her friends did win few thousand buying it. it was a lil frustrating for my in-laws since it was such a 'clear win' in a way. we gave little thought to it, knowing that the probability of winning any of these things are so slim, we can earn more investing money instead. but it was an interesting evening...my in-laws had to hang up the phone cos so many of their friends/family were like calling and they were frustrated i guess cos they didn't buy it.
interesting....