Just 80 days or so to go~

This month, we visited Dr Lim twice... Once early this month, and once more later, on 30th May... It is again an early morning trip down to Tanglin Shopping Centre, same time, same queue, same staff nurses, same parrot fish...

This visit was no different from the previous one, it being a 1 hour bus journey, a 30 minute wait... all for a 5 minute consultation. But in cases like these, no news is good news... And Dr Lim gave another assuring "The baby looks fine and I'm happy with what I see", after doing a routinal scan. I did ask if there was any change to the expected due date, and was told "There is only a 5% chance that the baby will be born on the expected due date, 85% about 1-2 weeks before that, and 10% about 1 week after"... Mehhhhh... there goes my hopes of sharing my birthdate with Renzo... although there IS still a slight chance that he may share it with Singapore (albeit prematurely though...).

Interestingly, week 28 - 36, the visits will become more regular, meaning we'll be heading down here every other week. So after we scheduled our next appointment with the staff, we made half of the payment for Feil's prenatal checkup package, and registered for the Thomson Hospital (we are opting for a Single Bedder so that I can be there with Feli all the time and Renzo can be with us too ~!... supposely for two bedder rooms, babies are brought to the parents at certain permitted times only). Out the clinic we went and off to some DeliFrance buffet breakfast (which Feli have been speaking off for almost a week now). And for the second time, we do not have any scans to upload... Maybe scans are only for before the full scan? *scratch head*

Anyway, we have been doing some Renzo shopping lately, bought some simple things like overalls, baby detergent (supposedly liquid detergent *may* cause skin irritation for infants) and a little clothes stand with little clothes hangers just for him~

Feli did a bit of washing and LOL... when I see those little clothes hanging out there drying in the Sun, that pleasant, warm, fuzzy feeling just overwhelms me... ^_^

Finally into my last trimester…

This is my 28th week.. Finally I am at my last trimester..
This morning I suddenly realized that I did not take any picture all these while, therefore I asked my colleague Margaret to take 2 pictures of my big tummy before I get too clumsy and tired for camera shots.. Same as many other pregnant women, I have swollen face, limbs, ankles, feet and even fingers.. "Pregnancy has turned me into a monster!!" haha.. that's what every pregnant women says I think.. It is true that I look more and more like a puffer fish now, but feeling Renzo moving around in me just make me believe that it's all worth it!!

Next time I should get a picture of me in maternity wear, since it will make my tummy look a lot bigger, really a lot a lot.. Haha..
Front & Side Views (where's my waist??)



Hmm now it's time to pen down the "Must Haves" during my pregnancy:
2 Litres of water in office - To make sure I am not dehydrated, and it helps to reduce water retention also. A lot of people deem that too much water will cause water retention but it is totally wrong. When your body does not have enough water, it will try to stock up more water in areas like your ankles, feet, etc..
Lots of fruits - Wilson and Lucretia bought me a full huge basket of fruits during their last home visit, and Win thought it could last me 2 weeks but I finished all in less than 5 days.. Fruit is my only crave so far, and I could eat 8-10 servings everyday but still feeling not enough.. Now I am trying to cut down to 2 servings because frankly speaking, I am scared of gestational diabetes due to high blood glucose level..
My makeup box - I can look amazingly ugly without makeup although I do not look any better with makup either, sounds so contradicting.. Today my best friend Yong asked me what I want from taiwan, haha since he's stationing there for quite long, maybe it is time to take a look at my makeup box and see what's needed, haha..
Hydrating masks - guess that is the key item which keeps me free from skin breakouts during pregnancy..
Leggings - very comfy to wear and easy to match, for those who do not want to burn a big hole on your pocket for maternity wears, this is the best alternative because you can just wear it with any long top till full term.. Of course you must pick those very stretchable ones around waist area..
Sleep, sleep, sleep - 8 hours of sleep a day is the minimum but I am sure 24 hours a day is never a problem for me..
Fitmama DVD - A prenatal/postnatal workout DVD I bought from Amazon.com.. I started doing it around my 6th months(skipped all my prenatal yoga classes at True Yoga before this since I want to spend more time with Win during weekends, although I used to be super determined and can go for 2-4 yoga classes a week before my pregnancy).. If you also hate exercise under hot sun, then try this DVD.. It's a combination of Salsa dance, Yoga and body stretching which is suitable for preggy women at any stage..
Pregnancy magazines/forums - Keep myself well prepared as a first time mother.. And best option for me to pass time at work (oops, keep my fingers crossed that my boss doesn’t read this..)
Renzo's kicks - haha the feeling is so shiok and I get super nervous if he doesn’t kick me for one day..
Win's hugs - that's how I can have a good sleep every night.. ^_^

Nah, not to forget those "Must Not Haves":
Milk - I never like the taste of milk so in the past I seldom drink it, only after I got preggy and start to drink more milk, I found out that I am "lactose intolerance", basically my body cannot absorb milk and it even causes diarrhea.. Haha I am just thinking if I ever have any constipation problem, then milk can be really useful maybe?? Haha..
2nd or even 3rd hand smoke - Smokers, dust bins, please, stay far far away from me!!!
Missed calls from unknown numbers - I hate to speculate who the caller is, especially while I am waiting for test results from the clinic..
Mango - I am allergic to mango, so, I cannot let Renzo take the risk..
Slippery floor- I cannot afford to have a heavy fall right now, and please do not call me while I am walking, that's how I fell down and sprained my ankle the previous time.. haha..
Tight clothing - I never suffer from morning sickness, but if I wear a bit too tight (sometimes without me noticing it myself), I will start vomitting, maybe that's Renzo who feels uncomfortable..
Night outings - Still joined a few during 1st and 2nd trimester, but strictly no night outings for 3rd trimester, I cannot stand myself walking like a clumsy duck because my tummy just gets much heavier and bigger at night..
Grand sale at my favorite shops - "humpty dumpty" doesn’t look nice in any kind of color or design, I dare not to see myself in the fitting room no matter whether it is a 70% off or a buy-1-get-1-free deal.. And pretty shoes are just not for me even if I am willing to get a "2 size bigger" pair, as most of the nice ones are at least 3 inches high...

Haha while I am typing out the above, I suddenly have this strong feeling that tonight, AGAIN, I am going to dream of myself in curly long hair with high heels and short skirt.. hahaha..

Relac Parent * 2

Less than 100 days to seeing Renzo... Shopping list has been listed... Now we have to drill down to the details of the items... Right down to the sizes, brands and exact prices...

Felicia did a bit of market research earlier this week, and man... When she told me about the nitty gritty details, I was exposed to a whole new universe of terminologies and jargons. There was just so many things to buy and so many market brands, each seemingly better than the other.. CHOICES, Choices, choices...

Lets just take a baby thermometer for example... A Cadi Advanced Sensing Thermometer that conveniently takes ear and forehead temperatures and doubles as a Clock with room temperature reading at $90+ versus a standard baby thermometer that can be purchased off the net at a fractional $40. Both boosts the same "Extremely Accurate" and "Easy and Convenient to Use" features... oookay... So I guess the difference of $50 is in the table clock functionality then...=P... And then there are these milk bottle sterilizer kits. One with 8 hour indicated in bright green on the box, and the other with 24 hours, and according to the sales staff at Kiddy Palace, the difference is that the 24 hours sterilizer is one that you can simply place all the milk bottles in it to keep them sterilized round the clock, ready for use at anytime... while the other... well... just can't support 24 hour sterilization ( but when no reference to what the 8 hours means... -__-' )...

Hmm... Lets take a look at the items that considered to be Renzo's possession... A Capella stroller courtesy of my Bro and Da Sao... multiple sets of tops and matching bottoms from Feli's sis... More tops and bottoms from Feli's colleague... a bottle and babyfood warmer from another colleague of Feli's... and lastly, a useful $$ ang bao from my Manager (steady lah Lao Da~)...

Mehhh... No contribution from Win and/or Feli...At least not material contributions..=P

Looks like its time for Renzo's parents to start shopping for stuff for him... Lets start from Ikea~

Shopping List - Getting prepared...

After reading through plenty of useful tips online, here's the final shopping list I've created for Renzo, and myself of course(nothing much to buy for myself though..).. My sister Kelly striked off a lot of items immediately from my original list to help me save more $$..

Wondering how much will it cost to raise up a child???
This is just the BEGINNING!!!



Win was not shocked at the estimated total bill of $3000+ (well, as expected..) haha.. He just commented that the $4k baby bonus paid off throughout 1.5 years from government seems to be not that helpful then... Of course we never plan to touch that $4k as we want to use that for Renzo's medical expenses (kids get sick sometimes and hospital bills can be really huge..).. So parents-to-be, be PREPARED!!!

And this list does not include the following items:
Baby pram - we got a nice one at home sponsored by Win's brother, Wilson & his wife Lucretia, they brought down the pram to our place a few days before they went back to UAE (Wilson is working there currently..), and that is the very first gift Renzo has received so far..
Avent Sterilizer Set - My sis Kelly & her hubby xiaodong are going to buy this set for us. I'm spoilt by choices when comes to such kind of items, as there are just too many different brands in the market. Luckily Kelly always knows how and where to pick the best one..
Baby furnitures(wardrobe, drawers etc) - We have not started doing any renovation or decoration for Renzo's room, so all these things can come in at a much later stage..
Baby toys - Both of us strongly believe that Renzo does not need much toys besides a ball and maybe some lego bricks. We simply hate the idea of giving too many toys to kids, and rather invest the $$ on books and flash cards, which are more educational..

Now the next thing to do, sit back and relax, wait for Great Singapore Sale before we start our shopping spree!!

A short message to Daddy Chan...

Being the first one among your group to get married and become a father, guess it is not easy for you since there's no one there to share much experience with you..

Many father-to-be do not accompany the wife for gynae visits, to wake you up at 630am on a Sat morning is really something I hate to do, but I am glad that you are holding my hand when I watch every single move of baby Renzo on the ultrasound screen...
Many father-to-be do not do housework often, I am lucky that you are not a "hygiene freak". You never complain about me not cleaning up the house, moreover, mopping the floor and doing laundry work becomes your routine job during weekends...
Singapore has this erratic weather, but you do not mind to go for a 1 hour stroll with me under hot sun, just because more exercise is good for me now...
Many mother-to-be have serious mood swing during pregnancy, I've never thrown tantrums to you or anybody so far, that is because you already nip any problem in the bud and you are showering me with all your love, care and tolerance...
Many new parents are paranoid over things like prenatal checkup, financial planning, upbringing of baby etc, I am also one of them, but fortunately you are a more steady kind, after discussing with you, big issues become small issues, small issues become no issues.. Haha...
When you hear me saying that I appreciate what you've done for me, I am saying that from the bottom of my heart...

On May 12, 2009, Daddy Chan said this to Mummy Chan: "I will be a good father!". Renzo will get to read this one day and he will be touched also I guess..

Visit No 7...

These monthly morning visits to the Gynae is starting to fit right into my routine. Honestly, waking up at 0630 AM on a saturday morning to take a one hour express bus ride ain't exactly my ideal way to start a weekend break. But after these numerous visits, and of course knowing that is it for the good of Feli and Renzo, it becomes something that I actually look forward to... =P

Okay... so it is 2nd May 2009, 3 days since I first felt Renzo's memento kick~, and Feli's 7th appointment to Tow Yung Clinic. But this appointment was usually early for us, usually our appointments will be closer to 0900 AM.. around 0840-0850 or so... but this time, we reached the clinic slightly before 0830, making us the first couple there. In fact, we were so early that we had to enter via the staff entrance... LoL. Dr Lim wasn't there yet when we checked in, so I had plenty of time to walk around the clinic, and this time, I managed to get a shot of those smiley parrot fish that I mentioned in my previous post "When Daddy Chan Meets Dr Lim..." to prove that those lil fish DO smile for the camera...hahaha

Close to 0900 AM, the familiar chirpy whistling down the staff corridor signalled that he had arrived. Being the first couple of the day, I was thinking that Dr Lim would have much time to talk to us, but as it turns out, this visit was the fastest we have had till date. Dr Lim did a quick ultrasound scan, pausing on 3 occassions, once with Renzo's head in focus, once having Renzo's spine in full view, and once on Renzo's legs... and then, in his usual gentle tone, said, "Very good, very good." and proceeded to his desk.

There wasn't much to ask and Dr Lim had nothing much to say, but the smile on his face set our mind at ease and with that, we scheduled our next appointment and left the clinic...

Renzo Kick Level 1

It was just another usual night with me sitting religiously in front of my computer, either playing my games or chatting with my usual online mates, when suddenly Feli jolted up from bed and signalled me over to her. Dethroning me from my almighty seat in front of the computer is by no means an easy task, but this simple beckoning from feli brought me to her side instantly.

With a sparkle in her brown eyes, she placed my palm on her belly and rolled over so that my hand is right under her and under her weight. It wasn't the first time that i tried to feel around for Renzo... but this time... I knew it was different... and then before long... the miracle...

On 01 May 2009, 0016AM (yeah... 16 minutes into Labour Day)... I FINALLY FELT RENZO'S KICK ~!... wOOt ~!... The feeling of joy was overwhelming, so much so i almost teared (no joke)... All this while, Renzo has been nothing more than a smear of white on a black canvas on those ultrasound scans... but now... for the first time in approximately 6 months... I can feels him... And already I feel my bonding with this little life is immediately brought closer... Ah~ The wonders of life~!

The best response I had so far on this Renzo Kick...

"And how do you know it is a kick and not a punch?" -Kelvin Yeo Wee Hong

Mehhh... i guess i'll never have an answer to this question... -__-'

Renzo Chan = Renzo Chan Yu Chung 陈宇聪

When I first thought about our Baby Chan's chinese name, the only thing I am very sure about was.. I want to give him 2 characters instead of just 1 and I am not going to consult any name selection masters. With thousands over years of Chinese history, and me having no professional knowledge nor experience with naming a baby, you can imagine how many kinds of combination I was having in mind when I first got started.

I searched high and low on chinese naming websites for an auspicious name but to no avail. Those so called "good-fate" names can be really weird. For example, 陈风涵。 Yup it looks not bad but it sounds like "风寒(having a cold??)".. How can I give Baby Chan such a name??

So, I discussed with my all time favorite "counsellor" - my sister Kelly, for a whole day on Skype. Because she's given a really nice name to my niece Cherry 嘉莹, sounds like some Hongkong celebrity's name isn't it? And the conclusion is, forget about those auspicious names, that's our baby's fate and we should not try to control or change it anyway. Just come up with anything that is pleasing to ear, nice to read, and of course most importantly easy for our baby to write. I am sure that Win mentioned at one time that he does not want our poor kid to spend hundreds of seconds on writing down his full name during exams while others are already on their 3rd questions of the paper..

So my sister suggested something I personally like a lot - 陈启聪 (brilliant man! I wonder how she managed to think of it though). But the only problem is, the Cantonese spelling "Kai Chung", sounds a bit like a hokkien profanity to me.. Haha.. Thus after much consideration, I changed that to 陈宇聪. No special reason or meaning of that, just that I like the word "宇". Win straight away gave me a green light on that. But my parents suggested me to check with my in laws as they might have different ideas about it. So during one of our home visits on Sunday, we asked Win's father as his mother was not at home. Father immediately took out a piece of paper and wrote down "陈维亮". We can tell from there that he's been thinking about Baby Chan's name for a really long time. Father said "陈是很旧的意思，维亮就是希望能在陈旧中维持光亮" (陈 means old in chinese, so 维亮 means maintaining the shine). What a meaningful name!!! We were truly in a dilemma this time because most people we asked prefer 宇聪 as it sounds more cultivated, suave and refined(in a way), whereas 维亮 has a profound meaning plus it is a name given by Baby Chan's grandfather.. We struggled for weeks and in the end decided to go for 宇聪 since we both love it more, and most of our friends share the same view also. Personally I also feel good because Baby Chan is so close to me and I feel him everyday during my pregnancy, I believe giving him a name myself is really something I should do and can be very proud of. But of course on the other hand, I feel very sorry to my father-in-law. I guess he must be quite disappointed, but being a very understanding and considerate father, he agreed with us and said that the most important thing is we like the name. My mother-in-law also prefers 宇聪 so we got full support from her too.

This name will well follow Baby Chan's whole life and we wish that he will like it as much as we do~~

Baby Chan = Renzo Chan

So after knowing Baby Chan's gender from the full scan that Feli had on 1st Apr, it was time to come up with a name... Something unique (i presume all parents say that... even Tom, Dick and Harry's dad & mum) that makes him stand out from the crowd. My parents did a great job... 26 years and I haven't met another Winson, though I have countless friends by the name of Zhixiang(志翔), though admittedly, I'm the only one with those 2 characters...

Anyway, so Feli and I tasked it in a simple and fair way, I was to come up with an english name for Baby Chan, and she will think of a chinese one, well... we didn't have much choice either, considering I haven't written anything in chinese since my 'O' Levels and the fact that I got a C6 for my mandarin didn't help either.

Thinking of name is something I do pretty often... I play games all the time and naming characters is mandatory for most games to even start. But naming my baby is a whole lot different. I mean, I can't be naming my kid 'Hellscream' or 'Ghosteer' eh? Well, I did initially want to name him 'Ronix' (named after 'Xyronix', one of my 5427892 game characters)... but to violent objections from various parties, most notably my dear brother Wilson, whom immediately googled it and retorted that naming babies after wakeboarding manufacturers ain't the wisest move. And yeah.. something in me agreed with my bro and thus I was thrown back into the spiral of alphabets that by then had all been flashing in my mind in all sorts of permutations. So after days of careful consideration (self-proclaimed), and brain-storming with friends and colleagues, I shortlisted three names.

1) Xavier

2) Dominic

3) Renzo

Xavier is a name that Feli have been liking for a while and because both of us wanted a name with either an 'X' or a 'Z' in it (cos it looks cool.. LOL) it was shortlisted.

Dominic was a suggestion from my favourite colleague, Kelly Chia (as oppose Feli's sister Kelly Cao). Kelly has a lovely daughter by the name of Chloe, and she told me that when she was preggie, she picked Chloe as the name for a girl and Dominic for a boy. Thumbs up for uniqueness and +1 to shortlist.

Lastly came Renzo, which was a name that I kinda remembered from either a Japanese show or a Japanese game and it ringed in me. Not only that, it was also a Louis Vuitton Graphite Damier bag that I have been eyeing on. Kelly was the one who suggested that it was quite a unique name, which I personally agreed.

The eventual winner was Renzo because when I smsed Feli about it, both her sister and her loved it. I guess it might be subconsciously due to the fact that it is an LV bag's name (though she claims that she didn't know it was...=P)

A simple look up on babyname websites revealed that the name Renzo is of Italian and Japanese Origins. It is the short form for a city in southern ancient rome and in Japanese, it means "Third Link", which is pretty fitting, considering Feli and myself are the first two links..=P

So Renzo Chan it is... up next, a pretty chinese to match... feli, kao ni le~!