An Email From Stranger

You know how in Facebook you can join all sorts of available groups kan? When I tested positive, I came across the International Mother and Baby Group Oslo (IMABAGO) and joined them shortly afterwards. I was a silent member but until recently, I decided to post this there:

I received lots of positive feedback from mothers who actually gone through successful natural birth - hypnobirth or not, at the hospital mentioned. None of them replied with any negative birth stories at all, which made me so relief (oh, you have no idea how relief I am actually). Most of them encouraged me to apply for ABC (Alternative Birth Care) section of the hospital where water birth and acupuncture or water for injection as pain relief are made possible but I just think that they're too fancy for me. I have nothing against it but it's just a matter of preference.

What almost send me to tears was, an email I received from a complete stranger who is also an advocate of hypnobirth that's so inspiring that I just have to share it here.

Hi M,

I hope all is well with you.

I am so passionate about hypnobirthing and so wish i had the time to give you the full course but i'll try to give you some of the main tips that i hope can help you and also tell you about my experiences and what i feel is important to know.

HypnoBirthing is all about conditioning your mind to having a positive birth experience. One of the most important things you can do for you and your baby right now is to disregard any of the horror stories that you hear surrounding birthing. If someone starts to say something negative please just say you are hypnobirthing and you would prefer not to hear any negative stories. It serves no purpose to you or your baby. Birth is completely natural and our bodies are so amazingly clever and have been made in such a way that we can give birth to our babies with little or no pain in a very relaxed and natural way. I have done it twice and so i absolutely assure you it is possible.

Can you get a copy of the hypnobirthing book and rainbow relaxation cd from emily on barneting? If not let me know and i'll try to get back the copies that i gave out to my first couple that i taught.

You need to read the book, in particular read about the function of the uterus and you need to read about the different breathing techniques. You have to practice the breathing techniques and you have to listen to the rainbow relaxation CD every single day. It's ok to go to bed with your earphones in listening to it, download it to your ipod it doens't matter if you fall asleep while listening to it. It will be going in to your subconcious and conditioning your mind in a VERY positive way. When i felt my first surge (surge is a contraction, hypnobirthing uses softer language when talking about birthing) i immediately went in to the slow breathing and kept this going the entire birth until i needed to change to birth breathing which is when you breath the baby down the last leg of the journey. i was completely relaxed and got more and more relaxed with each surge despite them getting stronger. It is because i practiced it so much that this type of relaxation became second nature to me.

Learn how to do the different breathing and when you are feeling stressed or have a pain try the slow breathing its amazing how the pain will disappear and you become so relaxed. When you go to the toilet to poo practice the birth breath or slanted j breath, they sometimes call it in the book because this is the breathing you switch to as the baby is about to emerge. Try it and you will see how the poo is naturally expelled using the bodies own natural expulsion reflex and this is the same as when the baby is breathed out (not pushed out) breathed out. The body will naturally expell the baby if it is allowed to do so in its own time.

In norway there are many midwives who are familiar with natural birth and i was very fortunate in my second birth to have such a midwife. She asked me what my preferences were and i said i wanted to be left alone as much as possibble in a dark room and for it to be very peaceful and she sat and observed me and only came to me to help ease the baby out in the last 10 minutes. She knew that i had switched to the birth breath and it was such a quiet subtle change but she knew and that was incredible for me and her.

My first experience was different as the hospital midwife told me when i was on a visit beforehand that she had been a midwife 25 years and there is no other way for a baby to come out unless you push it out - this is absolute nonsense and i wish i had the courage to stand up to that midwife becuase i truly believed it was possible to do it without forced pushing but because it was my first i thought what do i really know. This is where the birthing partner comes in, they have to keep negative influences away from you during hte birth. In my case i had my husband prepped to tell midwives to be quiet if they were disturbing me, i didnt want to hear loud chatting, i didnt want to be disturbed if i was in my zone of relaxation. they tried so many times and it was incredibly frustrating but luckily as the birth progressed my husband stopped them disturbing me more and more.

The course is given to both the mother and birthing partner. The birthing partner has a very important role to play. As i keep repeating birthing naturally is completely achievable but to do it in a relaxed way without feeling the pain takes a lot of practice but its so worth it. Studies show that calmer births do result in calmer babies, The baby is completely affected by their own birthing experience. There are some texts in the book that the birthing partner can use to get you in to a deeper state of relaxation. If you can practice with your partner and get your partner to read some of these to you, in a slow relaxing way (you'll fall about laughing the first time) but if you can do it seriously this is an invaluable tool that your partner can bring with in to the birth to use when needed. For example if you just have some niggling back pain, or you have been distrubed or if you need to go deeper in to relaxation the book gives the scripts that the partner can read to you.

During the birth you can have the rainbow relaxation CD playing. i used this for much of the time as i had conditioned my mind so well to it that as soon as i heard the music and voice i completely relaxed.

The main principal of hypnobirthing is if you are relaxed then your body can use its natural endorphin which are a million times more powerful than any medicated pain relief. Your uterine muscles are made to rotate in harmony with your slow breathing during birth. If you are tense then these muscles tighten and adrenalin kicks in which takes the much needed blood flow aaway from the uterine muscles and cause the flight or fight response. the muscles you need for birth tense up and everything works against you. So, keep calm, if you feel pain don't stress breath slower, deeper, relax more.

Water birthing is fabulous for relaxation and using in combination with hypnobirthing.youtube natural water births and hypnobirths and see for yourself how calm and relaxed these women are its empowering to see.

Wow, there is so much more to tell you, like i say i wish i could help more. if you have more questions please don't hesitate to drop me an email.

I guess the main thing is practice the relaxation!!!

Wishing you a wonderful happy calm hypnobirthing birth for you and your baby.

Sending all positive energy your way.

Best wishes Hannah

If you haven't give hypnobirthing a thought, maybe it's time you do. After all, it's how the nature intends the birth of a child should be.

Sending positive vibes, thoughts and affirmation to all new mothers to be. We can do this!

Berpantang

Few days ago my husband questioned me about how effective is the Malay traditional routines during the confinement period that every new mothers have to go through, be it 30-days, 44-days or even 60-days. The most common period is I believe, is 44 days.

Until I'm pregnant, those confinement routines like bertungku, bertangas, bekung seem like a foreign language to me. But of course, being a first born, I've seen Mother gone through it all but I didn't really comprehend the logic behind all those rituals.

When I found out that I was pregnant, the first question that everyone seems to ask was, how am I going to go through the confinement period? Is there anyone coming to help me (and us) after the delivery? I haven't give much thought on it till people were asking about it as I didn't expect that I will go through (strict) confinement rules giving the condition that we're in, living 10,000 kilometers away from our parents.

Being away from family means I have to take charge and have to look at the berpantang period from a different angle. I'm planning to take this time as a rejuvenation period, as in the time to gain back energy and be healthy so that I can take care of the baby better. I also plan on eating as much as nutritious food as possible and not to focus much of the weight that should be shed. After all, a happy mom is equal to a happy baby and thus, a happy family. Lately, I've been compiling few nutritious-laden confinement recipes for H for him to cook and prepare them during his 2 weeks paternity leave. Sometimes I wonder why most people often associate confinement period as being boring because when I look at the menu, you will be spoilt for choice. You have turmeric chicken, chicken soup, black pepper beef, steamed and grilled fish etc. Man, I'm salivating already!

The funny thing about Malay traditional confinement menu is that, it differs from one family to another. In my family, new mothers can basically eat all sorts of protein - beef, (white) fish and chicken. Seafood and egg are forbidden as they are deemed "gatal". Most vegetables and fruits are allowed except those that are deemed "gassy or windy". I've heard people saying that confinement rituals should be followed strictly since it'll affect the bodily performance & functions in the future. What got me thinking is that, how about the after confinement period? Don't you have to take care of your body as well? Or your body only precious to you during the short 44 days period?

My husband and I had an interesting conversation on food that the Malays forbid during the confinement period. We know that in science, a hypothesis is proposed explanation for a phenomenon. For a hypothesis to be scientifically hypothesis (in this case, since such food will affect the bodily functions in the future, I take that we need more scientific evidence to make it more concrete), the scientific method requires one to test it. When no scientific evidence is produce, a hypothesis will just remain - well, a myth.

Am I right or wrong here?

Stretchmarks

I know it's inevitable not to have stretch marks during the pregnancy, but at least a good stretch marks cream/lotion can help to lessen and alleviate its appearance and itchiness that comes with it. I've been looking for an all natural or organic stretch mark cream/lotion to use since the beginning of the pregnancy and my first choice would be the Natural Stretch Oil from Earth Mama Angel Baby but sadly it is not available in Oslo.

Upon reading, I came across Burt Bees Mama Bee Belly Butter and based on the many reviews, I was sold. The price might be on the high side at 429 NOK (RM230) but it lasts long. Bought mine when I was at week 13 and despite religiously applying it to my tummy (almost) every day, a container can last me even till week 40 (or more!). The texture is thick so a little application goes a long way. It has cocoa butter, shea butter and vitamin E, the 3 important components that you should look for when purchasing a stretch marks cream/lotion.

I bought Tanamera confinement set and this set comes together with the highly raved virgin coconut oil (VCO) and since then I've been alternating between these two products. Normally, during the day I use the Belly Butter and at night I apply the vco because I'd smell like a coconut cookie afterwards. Hehe.

I love both products because they are easily absorb by the skin, leaving no oily residue and yet your skin feels very moisturized afterwards. But then a good stretch marks cream won't help much if you gain weight rapidly and too much during the pregnancy because your skin will stretch out too much, hence leaving a mark. So in order to combat that, the weight gain progress must be slow and steady and at the same time applying cream that is high in vitamin E (shea & cocoa butter) helps in making the skin more elastic.

At 33 weeks so far, I have yet to see any stretch marks appear buutttttt, I'm praying hard that it won't appear AT ALL. Or even if they decided to make an appearance, I pray that it won't be that severe and ugly.

Sounds impossible? Huhu.

Stuff

How I managed to pack these (and another half) in an 29" luggage is beyond my understanding. I guess it took years of packing skills and determination to do it. We did most of our shopping for the baby when we were back in Malaysia last July because of the cheaper price (compared to Oslo) dan lagi satu sebab barang-barang berpantang macam set bersalin, pati ikan haruan & minyak untuk baby macam telon ke yuyi etc. tu memang sah-sah la tak jual sini kan.

Kebetulan pulak, hujung bulan 7 tu ada baby expo jadi memang haruslah ambil kesempatan disitu dan agak memudahkan kerja jugaklah sebab tak payah nak survey sana sini. Mula-mula ingat nak beli barang penting macam storage bottle/plastic, swaddle, receiving blankets etc. tapi orang cakap dah alang-alang semua benda ada situ baiklah beli terus which explained kenapa nail clipper, thermometer & berus botol pun kena angkut sekali macamlah Oslo ni takde jual. Hikhik. Jangankan berus botol, oral care baby pun aku angkut sekali ok. Gigih sangat mak ni tau kata anak aku.

During the expo, I didn't go crazy over clothes because I'm gonna have an autumn/winter baby and most of the clothes sold in Malaysia are not suitable for it. Tapi ada jugakla beli 3 sets of newborn tops, pants & leggings from Fiffy because they're dirt cheap at RM6/piece. Other than that, most of the baby's clothes are bought here (during sale or jumble sale). Talking about jumble sale, few months ago, we went to a jumble sale organized by Oslo International School. Pretty clothes (and branded!) are abundant tapi malangnya we were not crazy at that time sebab masa tu I think I was still 4 months pregnant jadi taknakla excited sangat over baby preparation ni. Ambil langkah berjaga-jaga orang kata. But yeah, those moms yang gila shopping memang akan rambang mata. Walaupun baju-baju tu mostly second hand tapi masih nampak baru tambah-tambah baju branded macam Carter's, OshKosh B'gosh, Zara, Petit Bateau, Polarn O. Pyret etc. yang memang high quality tu. Tapi depends on orang jugak, ada orang geli nak pakai baju second hand but as for me, I don't mind at all. Lepas beli basuhlah bersih-bersih lagipun in this case, baju baby bukan pakai lasak macam baju orang besar kan.

Speaking of basuh baju, I plan to start doing the laundry when I hit 36 weeks tapi bila dengar Jaja bersalin masa week 36, tiba-tiba rasa cuak pulak. So most probably will do the laundry in another 2 weeks depending on how rajin I am at that time. Heeehee.

Oh no, so much to do yet so little time!

32 weeks

Ok, I am slowly joining the bandwagon of those preggers who can't stop updating about their pregnancy journey. Until the baby comes out, please bear with me. HAHA.

I had my 32 weeks check up yesterday and everything was normal except that the midwife detected a bacteria in the urine but since it was not my first pee of the day and I hadn't experiencing any pain while peeing, she assured me not to worry about it and advises that I must bring my own sample during the next check up for more accurate result. Apart from that, blood pressure, protein and hemoglobin level are normal. The OGTT result came and alhamdulillah, I need not to worry about that. I know that I have been careful with what I eat and the test was actually a precaution as my family has a history of diabetes so when the result was a OK, I was relief.

The midwife that I'm seeing works at the hospital that I am registered so we discussed a bit on the birth plan. I am glad that the hospital is pro-natural birthing and if I require an alternative birthing for example water birth and whatnot, I need to write them a letter stating my birth preferences and they'll refer me to a special unit called, Alternative Birthing Care (ABC). If not, I can discussed the birthing plan when D(elivery)-Day comes. I don't have much request to begin with actually, my only request are that;

• no frequent vaginal examination
• no artificial breakage of water bag
• no pain killers (but I'll keep this in view. As much as I know I have high pain threshold, we never know what's going to happen when the day comes)
• immediate skin to skin contact 
• birth partner to be present throughout labor progress and be allowed to cut the cord
• no immediate washing/rubbing of the vernix caseosa of the baby
• episiotomy only if necessary and only after discussion
• be allowed to move freely or any position deemed to ease the labor

Ok, that's all that I could think right now. In a way, I am a hypnobirthing convert. HAHA.

We also discussed the possibility if I am past the EDD and what action should be taken if I had one. Lucky in Norway, expected mothers are given 10 days allowance before any medical intervention taken place, be it   artificial birth induction or Cesarean. That, if the mothers are having normal and healthy pregnancy. But according to her statistically, most expectant mothers give birth within week 38-week 40. Now, lets hope that this lil bub of mine contributes to that statistic.

8 weeks (or less) to go people! Can you believe it?!

What's In A Name?

Before we found out that I was pregnant, I already have few baby names that I like. These names were acquired even before I was married. Among all the names that I like, I always love these 2 names combination in particular that if I were to have a girl, she will be named that.

However, I also like my maternal grandmother's name who passed away when I was merely a year old that in tribute to her, I would also love to name my girl after her.

Nenek Madina and I circa 1984

But H has been so adamant with his strictly one-name-only policy that sometimes I just wish I can strangle the idea out of him. You see, my husband has probably the longest and hard to pronounce first name that sometimes I think it frustrates him when people can't pronounce it correctly that he mostly goes by his second name. And out of this frustration, I reckon he's more adamant with his policy than ever. We have shortlisted few names since the beginning of my pregnancy and been calling the baby the name that we picked since I was in the second trimester. Initially H was unsure on the idea of adding a second name but after much coaxing, he finally agrees to it and now, I can proudly say that we already have the name for our little bub. I love simplicity and the meaning of the names and hopefully s/he will live up to her/his name. Insya Allah.

I am still keeping the gender of our baby a secret but has recently spill the beans to some of my close friends, our relatives and #chanteks. Hopefully they will keep mum on this or else, I know whom I shall look for if the secret is out in the open.

HAHA.

31 Weeks

I'm entering 31 weeks yesterday and alhamdulillah, pregnancy so far has been a bliss. My tummy has finally appeared pregnant-ish at this stage though people have been telling me that I'm small for a 7+ months pregnant lady. I don't know whether it's the genes (but mom had huge belly when she was carrying for my siblings, as far as I could remember), the baby is small (but s/he is progressing accordingly to the growth chart) or the fact that I only gained 6-7 kg at this stage. But whatever the reason is, as long as every thing progressing accordingly and healthily, doesn't matter if I'm big or small.

30 weeks

Macam tagline Godzilla, size doesn't matter. Or was it, size does matter? Can't exactly remember. Hehe

I have about 9 weeks till the baby comes but to date I haven't had any birth plan yet. I'm having another routine check up next week at the usual helsestasjon and I do hope that I can discuss the preferred birth plan with the midwife then. From the feedback that I received, when it comes to birth plan, the Norwegian tend to do it the natural way. Meaning no c-sect intervention unless it's medically necessary. I'm not sure about epidural but they do offer other alternatives such as laughing gas and acupuncture to relief contraction pain. I'm still vague on the details but definitely will ask the midwife about it soon. Another interesting experience that I think worth sharing is that, the hospital will let you in ONLY IF you're at least 6cm dilated. This is not an urban legend and in fact, a kakak told me that she was refused 2 times by the hospital because she was not dilated enough to be warded. I think the reason they are doing this is to minimize the patient in the ward as health care and hospitalization are free to eligible citizen, so prioritization is important.

We haven't go to any antenatal class yet mainly because H deemed that it's ridiculously expensive, pricing at 1000 NOK (RM600) per couple. We're still contemplating on going or not but I am eager to go especially when I need to know what is there to know about birthing. Not that I'm being kiasu but I prefer to have some knowledge on what about to happen and what can I do when it happens. Orang cakap tengok YouTube pun boleh tapi somehow I hate watching birth videos on YouTube especially minah-minah saleh tu semua sebab, I can't stand jeritan diorang tu. Macam over pulak sampai aku boleh sakit hati. So not YouTube birthing video for me.

As per friends suggestions, I started to read on hypnobirthing. Very intriguing I must say as I like the idea of the power of mind concept. I always believe the concept of mind over matter and somehow hypnobirthing really get me. There's still much to read so I'll give you my take on it later.

To end this entry, I would like wish all Malaysians,

HAPPY 55TH INDEPENDENCE DAY

doesn't matter if you're Malay, Indian, Chinese or Indegenious as we are together in the same boat and being Malaysian means unity.

Freebies Galore

Bila sebut tentang freebies or free stuff, jarang ada orang tak suka kan? I know that preparing for a baby can be costly especially when you're a first time mother and let's face it, not only you're lacking experience, you definitely can't resist looking (and end up buying) at those cute stuff they made for babies.

Lucky that in Norway, there a numbers of websites that offer you a welcome package (barnepakke) for free if you are pregnant or having children. Some websites require you to sign up (for free) to be their member while some don't. The signing up didn't take too long, all you gotta fill in is your details and EDD. Then, you'll receive an email notification stating that your application has been successful and that you need to print out the notification to redeem your package.

To date, I had signed up with Libero (a diaper brand), Rimi (supermarket chain), BabyBox (the package is to be redeemed at Apotek1) and Babyverden (the package is to be redeemed at Vitusapotek). The package from BabyBox and Babyverden can be redeem immediately (subjected to availability) at respective pharmacy chain. As for Libero and Rimi, a voucher will be send at least 3 weeks prior to the EDD till 3 months after birth and can be redeemed at selected channel of redemption.

The other day, I went and redeemed both barnepakken from Babyverden and BabyBox.

Shall we look at what's inside?

From BabyBox:

1. Decubal hand cream 2. A-Pro Vitamin A cream 3. Dr. Greve zinc salve (for nappy rash) 4. Sebamed liquid bodywash 5. Dettol hand sanitizer gel 6. Sebamed baby bubble bath 7. Bepanthen salve 8. Avent feeding bottle 9. Avent nursing pad 10. Blenda Sensitive detergent 11. Baby wipes 12. Fisher-Price wrist toy 13. Pampers sample diapers (newborn & 2+ months) 14. Avent pacifier 15. Always Ultra Dry Night pad 16. Always Ultra Dry panty line 18. Romper from Lindex 19. Parenting magazine and product catalogues

From Babyverden:

1. Sebamed baby bubble bath 2. Bepanthen salve 3. A-Pro vitamin A cream 4. Estelle & Thild body cream baby & child 5. MAM pacifier 6. Baby wipes 7. ACO cream shower & moisturizing body milk 8. Libero newborn/2+ months diapers 9. Product catalogues, vouchers & parenting magazines


I was deliriously happy when opening these barnepakken because they are seriously loaded with some awesome freebies! I personally think that such welcoming package should be made available or be introduced in Malaysia too as most of the stuff given are really useful for the baby later. It's also a good way to promote the products to new mothers. I'm still waiting for another 2 barnepakken from Libero and Rimi and hopefully they are as awesome as these!

Mati Semut Kerana Gula, Mati Orang Kerana Diabetes

Last week, I had my 28 weeks check up at the nearby helsestajon or health clinic, it's something like our version of Klinik Kesihatan. I decided to go to helsestajon instead of going to my doctor because I feel no connection with my GP and based on feedback from few friends here, service at helsestajon is much better because you're served by experienced midwives. This 28 weeks check up was a rescheduled check-up since I absent-mindedly missed the 24th weeks check-up a week prior to our trip to Malaysia.

During the check-up, the midwife measured the fundal height, blood pressure, urine test etc. you know, the usual stuff. She then asked if my parents or family have a history of diabetes. Unfortunately, my parents were recently diagnosed with minor diabetes and since it runs in the family and on top of that I'm of Asian ethnicity, I was required to undergo an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) at a nearby hospital.

So today, we arrived there around 9-ish, took a number and within 5 minutes, my turn was up. The nurse withdrew 3 small tubes of blood sample and I was asked to produce urine sample. Then, the dreadful part came. With smile on her face, the same nurse brought along chilled 300ml glucose drink for me to drink. I didn't know what to expect but thank God, it was lemon flavoured and surprisingly wasn't as sweet as I thought it would. But, the aftermath was worse. I'm not a sweet tooth person and normally when I eat or drink something sweet, I had to wash it down immediately with water so imagine how awful it was having have to wait for 2 hours before I can finally drink some water. So wait I did.

At one point, I swear my baby was getting sugar high that s/he can't stop moving. I was almost getting restless myself. Then my turn was up. Took another 3 tubes of blood and urine sample. Unfortunately I can't get immediate result but they will give me a call if anything is unusual. Hopefully the test result comes out ok.

*crossing fingers*

Overall, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I imagined that the glucose drink would taste much worse and has a glycerine-like texture tapi nasib baiklah sedap. Cuma naturally, I will not drink anything that sweet jadi bila nak kena habiskan 300ml tu dalam masa 5 minit agak struggle and the after taste tu yang tak best sebab you can still feel the sweetness at the back of your throat. Masa menunggu tu tak boleh minum air maka bertambah-tambahlah rasa mual sebab manis tu. Bila dah selesai semua, 3 gelas air aku minum semata-mata nak hilangkan rasa manis tu. 

Over kan? Over tau. Kbai.

Second Trimester

Yesterday (read: 8th August - kantoi perap entry dalam draft) marked the first day of my third trimester and before I forget, I better jot down my second trimester milestones.

Since I had a smooth sailing first trimester, the second trimester was a bit urmm, challenging in a way. I experienced a painful heartburn that made eating felt like a chore. The pain would start at around 3pm and would last past dinner. I read up a lot on home remedies on the Internet because I didn't want to rely on taking antacids but none seems to work. I even tried cutting down food that can trigger heartburn but failed because I was craving for Malay food a lot during the second trimester that avoiding food with chillies is inevitable. After everything else fails, it suddenly dawned on me that the cause of all these might be the organic all vegetarian multivitamin that I was on because during our trip to Spain, I forgot to bring the supplement and boy, my stomach never have felt better. So, I took a couple of days off and just like that, heartburn was gone. Since then, I was off the supplement and couldn't be any happier.

Apart from that, I also experienced:

• lush thick hair. I used to shed a lot of hairs around the house like an old cat that it freaked H a lot. Now, hello gorgeous commercial-like hair!
• bigger boobs. I finally got the boobs that I always wished for. HAHA
• very prominent linea nigra that it feels like someone just lined it with a marker
• glowing skin. No SK-II and the likes is needed. I can just splashed water and dab on some moisturizer and that's all I need to look and feel good.
• baby's kicking! For a moment when I first felt her/his movement, my heart was filled with rush of emotions. It can make even me, the most un-maternal person gushed!
• edema due to long hours flight from Oslo-Amsterdam-KL and I didn't rest much after that. The feet were swollen that I couldn't fit into most of my shoes. A tip that my mom gives: elevate your feet with a pillow when you're sleeping. It helped as my feet shrunk to their normal size few days after that.

So far, I haven't notice any stretch marks but, I know that they'll appear sooner or later. For now, I am hoping that the Burt's Bee Mama Bee Belly Butter that people been raving about that I'm using since the beginning will work its wonder but even that you can't be sure. Still, I'm crossing fingers that they won't appear at all!

Unfortunately to date, I haven't taken any close-up picture of my bump and the closest that I or we can get are these pictures taken during our short holiday in Malaysia last month.

At 24 weeks

If you don't have it, fake it

via Cathy Thorne

If you're among those pregnant women who "glow" during their pregnancy, then you're lucky. I don't know if I fall under that category but Alhamdulillah, I am loving every bits of beautiful skin that I'm experiencing throughout the pregnancy.

While some may be blessed with a clear skin, I was sadly not. Zits will never fails to visit me every month during THAT time of the month no matter how diligent I took care of my skin. I have a sensitive and dry skin (sometimes eczema) so apart from relying on external skin care, I took Evening Primrose Oil (EPO) supplement too. It helped but I had to wean it off when I found out that I was pregnant because upon reading, I came across an article that EPO can help induce labour. Though it might not have enough scientific research to prove it, but the fact that I experienced a slight menstruation-like cramps during the early stage when I was still on EPO was legit enough for me.

As mentioned, alhamdulillah, I have clear skin that I always wanted throughout the pregnancy and I couldn't be happier though I'm still doubtful about the "glowing" remarks that I've been receiving because truth to be told, I've been faking it all this while.

The "weapons"

The secret is not exactly a rocket science. I've been using BB Cream, that I normally put on after moisturising, Bobbi Brown compact powder and the ultimate weapon, bronzer! If you have not been introduced to a bronzer, maybe it's time for you to do so. You'd be amaze with how only few swipes of bronzer will give your face that sun-kissed glow. I would usually swipe the bronzer lightly on places that the sun would normally hit the face for example cheeks, jawline and at the temple instead of all over so that you won't end up looking like you've been 2 hours too long under the sun.

So mommies-to-be, I know that it's inevitable that when you're pregnant you feel like a slob but it doesn't mean that we have to be one. So, if you don't have it, start faking it now!

Say Hello!

It's been a while since I last talked about my pregnancy progress. I had my second ultrasound appointment at the hospital at my 21 weeks. Alhamdulillah, the baby is growing well. The sonographer has taken all the necessary measurements and based on it, she predicted that the baby was around 19 weeks old (at the time it was done, I was at 21 weeks) so my EDD will be in November 2012 instead. With the new EDD, I'm now in my 21 week instead of 23. This time we also get to double confirm its gender and yes, it was still the same as before.

We were also stoked because this time (after much coaxing) our little ones cooperated and got in the right position (albeit initially didn't wanna show his/her profile and covered it with its tiny little hands) so we got to bring home his/her picture and excited grandparents were ecstatic and thrilled to see the first pictures of their future grandchild via Skype.

Say hello to our little ones!

Stroller

Or buggy or pram. Whatever you want to call it.

When we first found out that I was pregnant, we were excited because we finally have the reason to buy Stokke Xplory stroller. It was love at the first sight. I love the stylish and sleek look and let's face it, any mommies will look hot with a Stokke and I secretly wanna be that hot mommy.

Then we learned and read more about the practicality, usage and the technical part of a stroller that the idea of owning a Stokke becoming more and more distant. Before we even begin to look for a stroller we listed out our (living) conditions & needs:

Must be durable in rough terrain & snow
We don't own a car here so most of the time, it's either walking or using public transportation. Winter in Norway is long and harsh and can easily reach up to -20C (even during daytime). In addition to that for 6 months of the year Norway is covered in snow so finding a stroller that can be manoeuvred in thick snow and can withstand rough terrain such as cobblestone or pavement is IMPORTANT.

Yet must be compact to fit in a car boot
Having said that, although we do not have a car, we would like to bring back the stroller to Malaysia later so it must be able to fit in our car boots.

These are the 2 criteria that we're looking for. Simple yet hard to fulfil because most of the strollers build for criteria #1 are bulky. Those that have criteria #2 are simply not suitable for usage during winter.

Emmaljunga, a Swedish brand is one of the strollers that is popular here. It's sturdy, stable and has a good wheel suspensions for rough terrain and for rocking baby to sleep in their bassinet. Yes, you'll find a lot of mother rocking their baby in their strollers here. But, we're not keen on its bulky design and it's not practical for usage in Malaysia later.

Emmaljunga Mondial 3 in 1 with carry cot & seat unit

After countless trips to various baby stores, feedbacks from respective sales persons & friends, countless hours spend on reading, surveying and YouTube-ing, we finally narrow down our search to Brio, Hartan and Teutonia. Brio is a Swedish brand while Hartan and Teutonia are German brands.

We are eyeing on the following models: 

Teutonia Cosmo

Brio Go

Hartan Lite XL

It might be odd to you but stroller here (or what they called duovogn or duo wagen) comes in 2 - a carry cot (for usage from 0-6 months) and a seat unit (from 6 months or when the baby is able to seat - 3 years). Carry cot is very cosy during winter as well as summer because the material is breathable. During winter, you can add foot muff or sheep rug for that extra warmth and comfort.  

We haven't decide on which one we like best but we have seen and tried them all but as for me, Brio Go and Teutonia Cosmo are definitely on my top list. They're both light (I used the term light here loosely, please don't compare it to other strollers such as Combi or MacLaren), compact when folding and most importantly, it's suitable on rough terrain and snow. The front wheels can also be locked which is important especially when you're pushing in snow. 

One important note that we learned is that, there is no such thing as THE PERFECT STROLLER out there but there is one that's perfect for you. Everyone has their own criteria and needs so learn and understand your own needs before you go and purchase brand XY or XX stroller just because it's in trend or every one seems to have one. 

A good stroller can last years and is an investment so make sure that you choose wisely.

Half-way cooking

Via Cathy Thorne

Or baking (taking the spin on there's a bun in the oven).

I'm already half-way there hitting 20 weeks this week. We had our first ultrasound scan at the hospital on my 19th week on 20th May. Do you know the feeling of meeting your crush on your first date? And that's exactly how I felt. Nervous, giddy, excited all jumbled into one pot that is emotion.

H being an eager father (to-be) that he is, baru sonographer tu letak gel atas perut dah sibuk tanya gender. Sabar jelah aku. Alhamdulillah, the ultrasound turned out to be good. The sonographer showed us everything that the baby has for now - limbs, feet, set of kidney, head, spine and of course heart. We even get to hear the heartbeat! Ok part ni memang agak noob cos I don't know about this. I almost got teary eyes tapi disebabkan mak buyung ini kontrol macho maka takdela sampai menangis. Teehee. I have an active baby cos its little feet can't stop kicking that I laughed uncontrollably seeing it. Hmm, ikut siapa la tu. Ahem. But since the baby was in weird position, it was impossible to take the picture so we were scheduled to come back in another 2 weeks for another round of ultrasound scan.

Oh yes, we already know the gender but we're keeping it a secret for this time being.

Ssssh.

Baby Bump

During our weekly phone conversation, my mom being a first time grandmother was so excited to see latest picture of me and wanted to see my baby bump. According to her, she was already spotted with baby bump when she was pregnant with me, as early as 3 months.

I am entering 15 weeks today and lately I noticed that my tummy is slightly growing. But instead of looking pregnant, I looked like I just had 3 plates of rice and bloated. Yikes. Apart from that, I can still pretty much fit most of my skinny jeans, pre-wedding. Sounds too good to be true? Yes, tapi part nak membutang tu memang seksa, so I just secured it with hairband tricks that I read on BabyCenter. Jimat pun jimat dan tak payahlah nak  buang duit beli waist expander (?) ke ape ntah tu. When I first wore it, H had that bewildering look on his face that he instantly offered to buy me a maternity jeans. But I said well, if the clothes still fit there's no need for a new wardrobe.

And this is me at 14 weeks. I don't think I'm showing, yet but maybe I'm just in denial. LOL. So ladies, at what weeks does your belly starts to show?

First Trimester

Alhamdulillah. My first trimester was a smooth sailing and breezy one. I probably was among the lucky pregnant mothers who didn't experience much difficulties. Tapi bak kata Huda, it doesn't mean that I am less pregnant than anyone. Even though I didn't experience any severe nausea, vomiting or food aversion, I had other pregnancy symptoms as well such as fatigue, heartburn, breast tenderness and slight nausea but I think it's pretty normal to experience such symptoms so it's no surprise there.

I only had slight nausea that happened randomly but not to the point of vomiting. For example, one day out of blue I felt nauseated by my husband's perfume sedangkan sebelum ni, it was my favourite scent of his. To combat this feeling, I would normally chew a chewing gum and it works for me because the strong minty flavour will overcome the nauseating feeling. Certain people would eat asam boi but since I'm not fan of asam or jeruk lagipun mana kau nak cari asam boi tengah-tengah Oslo ni, I would keep chewing gum handy in my handbag. And I think chewing gum is healthier than asam, no? And at home, I also drink peppermint tea as I read in Babycenter.com that it'll help to overcome the nausea.

On food aversion pulak, I can basically chow down everything but on few occasions I was very put off and squeamish by the thought of cooking chicken earlier on that we had beef, lamb and fish only for few weeks. Kalau orang lain masak, I'll eat but if I were to cook the chicken by myself, I can't eat it. So cannot do anything about it since I'm the cook in the house. And lately, I was put off by grilled salmon. Only grilled salmon pulak tu, kalau masak kari ke, asam pedas ke, sweet sour ke ok pulak. Over tau, benci.

I didn't crave for anything yet but if you've seen my tweets on Twitter you might think otherwise. I don't know whether you can call it craving but I like to think that the reason why I want to eat those was partly because I was bit home sick and being away 10,000 km from your motherland doesn't help much either.

I try to cook whatever I wanted to eat and H had been so sweet trying to accommodate to my heart's desire but I know that I got to make do what I have. I am lucky because Oslo has 2 Asian supermarkets that sell Asian cooking ingredients so that's a relief. Kalau setakat teringin nak makan masak lemak cili padi atau sambal petai tu insya Allah, they have all the ingredients tapi kalau nak makan makanan exotic sikit macam kerabu perut dengan umbut kelapa atau gulai rebung dengan tulang ikan talang tu memang harus kena lempang (eh? rhyme? lol). Takkan aku nak kena bercucuk tanam kelapa dengan rebung pulak. Jadi kalau nak mengidam tu kenalah berpada-pada dengan keadaan. Kesimpulannya bak kata orang Melayu, ukur baju di badan sendiri.

Amboi, digress sudah aku.

First Appointment

As I mentioned before, we found out that I was expecting as early as week 5 but in Norway generally, first check-up is usually done between week 8-week 10. Some doctors will see you immediately so it really depends on your doctor. In Norway, any individual that is eligible under the National Insurance Scheme is entitled to a free personal general practitioner, pregnancy check-ups and delivery. Our doctor won't accept any pregnancy check-up below 10 week so my first check up was only done when I was at week 11.

During the first check-up the doctor will filled out every sort of forms. One is the Helsekort For Gravide which is equivalent to "buku pink" in Malaysia. The Helsekort For Gravide is to document all information taken during every check-ups and is a link between your doctor, midwives and hospitals, so that everyone will get the same information. The form is kept by us and is expected to bring to every check-ups.

The doctor then filled out a form for hospital registration for the delivery. We had our eyes on Ullevål Sykehus (Ullevål hospital) which is 10 minutes away from our apartment and has one of the best maternity wards in Oslo. Another hospital is Rikshospitalet which is the official hospital for the Norwegian Royal Family. Rikshospitalet is a bit far from where we live so we would just settle with Ullevål Sykehus.

My first check-up was breezy and simple. After filling out necessary informations, I then had my blood pressure measured & pulse and heart beat checked. After that, I was ushered to their lab to had my blood taken for test (HIV, Hepatitis B & C, Rubella, blood group and rhesus, etc.) . Upon arriving at the clinic, I had to submit my urine for infection and protein test. I had no ultrasound scan whatsoever as the scan will only be done at week 17- week 20 at the hospital later.

The full result of the blood test will be released by the clinic only after 2 weeks but after 1 week, I received an SMS from my doctor stating that my vitamin D level was low. I was advised to take 20 microgram of vitamin D supplement for a month before having my blood checked again. I was not given any extra supplement because the daily multivitamin that I have been taking religiously pre-conceiving was enough. I was advised that if I wanted to, I can take Omega-3 supplement once I enter second trimester.

Edited: Based of the feedbacks that I got, Norwegian doctors and midwives tend to have relaxed approach when it comes to pregnancy. The doctor will not give you any advice unless you raised your concerns. Few mothers in Norway that I met online suggested that reading pregnancy books on your own will help you more than relying solely on your doctor and midwives. 

In the name of God, most Gracious, most Compassionate

Alhamdulillah. Praise to God.

I am in my second trimester and currently 13 weeks pregnant.

Lets do a recap on it, shall we?

I knew that something was up as my period was always on the dot and I was already a week late before I did the UPT. To confirm my suspicion, we bought the UPT home kit at nearby pharmacy. I did the test, took a shower and while I'm in the shower, H peeped in and asked what double pink lines mean. I grinned and excitedly told him that I'm pregnant. Blame the cliché breaking the I'm-pregnant news scenes as overly being depicted in the movie, I'd imagine that when our time finally comes, it would be a joyful celebration with us hugging and jumping with ecstasy but nada, we just stood there in the bathroom like a bunch of idiots, grinning from ear to ear. So much for ruining a romantic moment. Sorry baby but your parents are uncool like that, right from the moment we knew of your presence.

Then it's the breaking the news to the parents time. They knew about the news after like 5 minutes. Ok, I am exaggerating but they knew shortly afterwards. I planned to hold the news until I'm in my second trimester but H couldn't hold it any longer, so we made a phone call to both parents and we broke the news. They swore to secrecy but we highly doubted they will be able to do it. Ngeeh. But so far, I guess the news is a well kept secret as no one in the extended family know about it, yet.

And lastly, this is utterly disgusting and cheesy but sorry, can't help it.

Dear baby, in case many years later if you unluckily stumbled upon my blog, this is the proof of the UPT that I took to confirm your presence.

See that? Double pink lines at week 5

Surprised? I bet you do. Lol.