BIRTH

Announcement: Our little prince, Isaac Kok has arrived to this world on 16 Oct afternoon!

Here is my labour story:

Our exciting day starts at about 5am, we woke up and prepared ourselves for the big day.

630am – Reached Thomson Medical Centre and checked in into labour ward No. 7. Hubby proceeded to register admission at the counter while a nurse attended to me. After changing into the hospital gown, was strapped to the CTG machine.

650am – I was shaved and given anema to clear the bowel.

715am - Strapped to the CTG machine again and put on the drip for induction

725am – Antibiotic given through the drip.

735am – Gynae came, did the VE for me and broke my water bag. I was about 1.5-2cm dilated, expected to deliver by 3-4pm. Requested for epidural as suggested by Dr. YC earlier on due to the “complication” of my pregnancy. Frequent contraction started, but the nurse was shocked by my pain threshold as I did not feel the pain at all.

810am – Anesthetist came and Epidural given. The “long” waiting game started.

910am – Breakfast served. Haha…finally can eat as I have starved from the midnight before.

1152am - Nurse did VE again and commented that I was progressing well with 5cm dilated already.

1200pm – Felt very hungry but my request for lunch was rejected. Started to encourage and psycho my baby to come out asap, as mommy going to faint from hunger soon! Haha…

110pm – Gynae came to do VE again. To my surprise, she said it is time to push! Doc and nurse went ahead to prepare for the arrival of my baby Isaac. I shivered non-stop after that (side-effect of epidural), probably too excited to meet my boy! Hee…My bottom was numb due to epidural, but with guidance and helps of nurses, we did some practice on pushing. Gynae and nurses commented I pushed very well. Hubby kept encouraging me, asked me not to worry and do my best, he was with me!

120pm – Gyane and nurses ready, and the real battle started. After quite a number of unsuccessful pushes, my baby was distress and heartbeat dropped below 100. Gynae decided and arranged to suck out baby Isaac.

130pm – Finally baby Isaac was out after two pushes with the help of kiwi vacuum!!! J Next, daddy followed the midwife for cleaning and measurement time.

After delivery, we finally found out the reason/answer for my small baby. My placenta and baby’s umbilical cord’s diameter is very small, only half the size of those in “normal” pregnancy! My gynae said my placenta looks like a toy to her! Aiyo! She is glad that we can come so far for my pregnancy, and my baby Isaac was born healthy with natural delivery! Really thank god!

Welcome to the Kok Family.....

Baby Isaac was very alert and could not wait to open his eyes after being roughly cleaned up.

Baby Isaac was sleeping soundly in the ward.

Baby Isaac at Day 2 - Feeling satisfied after breastfeeding.

VERDICT

The verdict is finally out! I will deliver baby Isaac on 16th Oct 08!

Hm…Last Friday’s and today’s scan results showed that my naughty boy’s growth has reached plateau. Thus, Dr. YC advise to deliver him soon, latest by this Friday. Since both gynae and hubby prefer 16th Oct, and yes that will be my big day to induce and deliver our little precious! My waiting game comes to the end, and we are getting more and more excited now! Hee…we are going to meet and cuddle my boy real soon!

I am requested to admit on Thu early in the morning, around 630 am for inducement. Dr. YC also advises me to opt for epidural upon admission for my special case. According to her, the chances of my bb to distress and poo inside me during labour are high! If touchwood, this really happen, with epidural effect, I can be wheeled to operating theater immediately for emergency caesarean, instead of C-sec under General Anaesthetic (GA). This to make sure both hubby and I can witness the arrival of our baby Isaac! Although this against my initial plan of natural w/o epidural, guess I have no choice but to listen to my gynae. Meaning that I have no chance to experience the labour pain lay! Anyway, as long as my boy can be born healthy, mode of delivery is not an issue at all! Hoho…need to do some final preparation for the arrival of our prince lay!

Daddy has set up the baby cot and playpen to welcome his prince!

Btw, my sweet hubby has decided to upgrade me to single-bedded room, for privacy and comfy reasons. He hopes that I can have a good rest/recovery after deliver, so touched! Thanks dear!

YEAH!

Had a “false alarm” on Sunday night! *Blush* Had stomach cramp since 9pm (Sun), and it did not go away even after I visited toilet few times. It started with mild menses cramp but lasted throughout the night. This has caused some concern for us, we can’t help but wondering is our baby Isaac doing fine? We decided not to take any chances, and rush down to gynae’s clinic on Monday morning.

Upon reaching the clinic, I was hooked up to the CTG machine to check the contraction and bb’s well being. Thankfully, my baby Isaac was doing very well and no contraction was detected. Ultrasound scan further confirmed that my bb and placenta condition, as well as the water level are very good! My cramp may just cause by stomach upset, muahaha….think I have over-eaten during the weekend! Hoho!

Anyway, we have a piece of good news to share! My baby Isaac gained 200g within 4 days! Dr. YC was pleased with his growth/progress, and we do not need to induce him out by this week! YEAH!!! YEAH!!! YEAH!!! Well done baby, keep up the good job, mommy will also continue to eat more and rest well! Super duper happy that our efforts paid off! We tried our best by providing him with nutritious diet, playing classical music and singing to him, hoping that a happy baby can absorb nutrients better! Hubby also joined me in psycho-ing little Isaac, encouraged him to grow better inside me almost everyday! 3 cheers to baby Isaac and daddy!

Well, gynae said I may go into labour as early as next week, since VE showed that my cervix has slightly dilated. Another piece of good news for me, meaning that I can deliver my baby naturally! Hm…I would say we have more or less prepared for the arrival of bb Isaac, hopefully he can continue to gain more and arrive with good weight! Dr. YC has issued me the admission letter. The waiting game started, hubby and myself are getting more and more excited le! Will definitely enjoy the last lap of my pregnancy, am sure I will miss the feeling of a baby kicking and moving inside of me after delivery.

Will see my gynae again on this coming Friday! Hoho, have burnt a big holes in our pocket as I am required to do CTG monitoring on every visit due to the “special size” of my baby! Nevertheless, so long my little Isaac is all right, we are not in hurry to get him out and more than happy to pay for it! Hee….

ANXIETY

I may deliver my baby real soon, probably on next Thu/Fri!

Sigh…the check-up on Thu showed little Isaac not gaining weight again. His mummy has already tried her best to eat more, and gained 1.3kg within 10days, but only 100g goes to baby Isaac. Hm…this is not very good, according to Dr. YC, although my precious’s heartbeat still very strong at above 140. As usual, Dr. YC said she is not too worried about my bb’s condition, as he is very active and already hit 2kg. Just that since my boy’s growth seems to reach plateau, is better to deliver him early and feed him externally, rather than wasting time inside me. Hoho…we have not prepared for his early arrival lay!

Anyway, we will definitely listen and follow gynae’s advice. Having mixed feeling now, coz I still enjoying my precious kicking/moving inside me everyday, this is really an indescribable experience. Hope can keep/nurse him longer inside me. After all, it is not too bad to have little Isaac in our arms slightly earlier right? I also eager to cuddle him and meet him soon! I will reach my 37 weeks on next Tue, baby Isaac will considered full term by then. Only his weight will be a little concern to us, not sure whether he need to be kept in NICU after delivery? Will discuss with Dr. YC on next visit.

Well, verdict will be out on next Tue. If my boy gaining some weight, we may still able to hold him for another 1-2weeks, else…he will arrive next week! Stay tuned!

PHOTOSHOOT

Nowadays, the maternity shot has become a hot trend for mums-to-be to capture their one of the most beautiful moments in the life! I am also very tempted to preserve my pregnancy memories by taking a professional photoshoot. Sigh…However, as I mentioned before in my previous posts, my facial have changed after expecting my little precious, hoho…I look uglier with bigger and rounder nose. Thus, it sounds unworthy for me to pay a few hundreds for the photo shooting.

Still….I would like to have some “simple” photos, as the “memento” for this special journey in my life. After “disclosing” my thoughts with my dear hubby, he volunteered to be my photographer! *Hurray* I am extremely pleased by his full involvement in this pregnancy, thank you so much dear!

We had a great time during our mini-studio session, it was real fun and enjoyable! The photos’ quality, of course not fantastic, but I am more than happy with it!

Baby Isaac is here!