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37 weeks

Hello full-term! :)

Starting to feel quite uncomfortable. A couple of days ago my ankles and fingers got swollen and that's how they've been ever since. Got my blood pressure checked yesterday and it's normal, so.. guess I just have to put up with these stupid swollen fingers.Thankfully it is Labor Day holiday on Monday and I have a pretty slow week at work next week.

Scored a GREAT DEAL at Target online yesterday! Ordered a Medela Pump in Style for $202, including free shipping. A nice $50 savings from the regular price. :) I hear it sells for $700 in Singapore... whaaaat??? Also finally got our stroller and carseat, although they are still sitting in the garage. And my dear handy husband also put our glider+ottoman together and I've been having fun rocking and reading in it. Feels good to prop my legs up.

Had two baby showers last week, one from my coworkers and one from Troy's. Everyone's been soooo generous, and so we got lots more stuff off our list. Like a Boppy pillow, bathtub, play gym, etc. etc.

And of course, THE GREAT MINNESOTA GET-TOGETHER! It's been our tradition to go to the State Fair every year and I wasn't going to let a huge 37-week belly stop me from getting my deep fried alligator, corn on the cob, hot apple dumpling and vanilla ice cream, elephant ears, potato skins, and... sushi. Ha.

Next time I update, baby will probably be here!

32 weeks!

I am getting BIG. I have had quite a few comments from parents these last two weeks, so I guess I must be looking obviously pregnant and not just is-she-or-isn't-she anymore. Actually a 10-year-old boy with Autism told me last week "You have a big tummy", and a 5-year-old asked me if I was pwegnant. The best part about being pregnancy is hearing all the funny things kids have to say about it. I almost died laughing when a 6-year-old boy stuffed balls down his shirt so he could have a baby in his tummy like me. ;)

Had an ultrasound last Wednesday, and thankfully everything looks good. My OB wanted me to have an ultrasound to check on baby's size because she was concerned he might be small. Well, turns out he is not only NOT small, but measuring two weeks ahead. Whaaat?? He has somehow managed to go from 25th percentile at 20 weeks to 78th percentile at 32 weeks. So now I'm worried he'll be too big. :P

Mostly I still feel pretty good. Third trimester has been a bit more uncomfortable than second tri, but still manageable so far. Starting to panic a bit because there are still a lot of things I have to purchase, like a stroller, glider, diapers, etc. I am strongly considering cloth diapers, yes I am. But I have yet to take the plunge and actually buy them. I did order a Pack N Play from Amazon today for $20 off. AND I signed up for free Amazon Prime for 3 months so I get 2-day shipping on everything. It's pretty sweet.

BUT on the bright side, we did find a daycare provider, which is a big relief. I was starting to panic because its very hard to find openings for infants and some of the ones we toured we just atrocious. Anyway, we found a very nice in-home licensed daycare for a price of $150 per week, which is the norm around here.

Also found a newborn photographer! I saw her photo of my ex-coworker's baby on FB and decided it was the cutest picture ever.

Come on, HOW CUTE IS THAT? Her baby is half White half Asian too. Totally worth $250 right. (Trying to justify it to myself).

Eight more weeks, yikes!

21 weeks

It's a boy!!!!!!!

Yes, we had my anatomy scan last week @20 weeks, and the prediction @13 weeks was confirmed. As usual, I worried myself silly the night before, but the ultrasound went well and no red flags came up. PHEW. I really should stop reading online horror stories about all the things that could go wrong with the baby. The tech said the baby measured in the 25 percentile, which is just splendid. Troy had a hard time believing it because he was a freaking 10 lbs baby, but hey, this baby is half-Asian after all.

So, after finding out that it's a boy, I hit several baby stores and garage sales... and ended buying NOTHING. Why, you ask. Uhh, because there are about 25 million baby products available and I get SOOO overwhelmed by all the options. Most of the time I have NO idea what the product is even for! Do I need a swing? Bouncy seat? Exersaucer? Pack N Play? Bassinet?? Who the heck knows?!

I'm definitely getting bigger and bigger! My tummy is starting to become a little bit of a hindrance. These days it's been a bit tricky for me to get up from sitting on the floor, carry kids, and have kids on my lap. Coworkers tell me I'm starting to get a cute little bump! But, I still get frequent comments that I don't look pregnant. I told several people this past week and they were all completely shocked. Ummm okay. Troy says its because Minnesotan women all have big guts and now I just look normal. ;)

19 weeks

Hello! Still feeling pretty normal, yay! Bought some more new clothes for the growing bump. Not maternity clothes, just regular clothes in bigger sizes. Love people telling me how small I look. Yes, I am in De-ni-al.

CRAZY busy at work these few weeks. Sucks. One of the speechies quit a few weeks ago, and guess who ended up with lots of her kids?! We've hired someone who is very nice and awesome, however since she's still new and training.. looks like I still have busy busy May ahead. And then it'll be summer, which will be just as crazy. Fun times. On the bright side, work has been much happier since some XXX people left the company. :)

Hubby and I went to Red Wing last weekend, just to chill out, rest, and relax. Left the puppy at the dog hotel for two days, where he had the time of his life and could barely move for 3 whole days after. He is still sleeping like a good dog now. :) Totally worth the $80 right.

Have to renew my green card soon. Can you believe I've been a PR here for almost TWO YEARS? Time flies.

Oh, and Troy got a new job, yay! Better pay, and more flexible hours. Planning ahead for when Baby G gets here. Speaking of which, I finally get to find out if its a boy or girl in..  10 days!!!

Going to big baby sale today. Hoping to pick up some good deals, we'll see. Have hardly bought anything so far. Like I said, still in denial.

15 weeks

Hey, almost half way there!

Had my 2nd OB appointment today. Nothing much to report. She felt my belly, we heard the heartbeat, answered one question, drew blood for the quad screen. Whole appointment took about.. um, 15 minutes, which I'm sure I'll get charged $250 for. Thankfully my insurance has been covering everything 100% so far, and I have yet to fork out a penny. Yay for health insurance!

I've been feeling pretty ok. Some discomfort at night, cramping every now and then. I've put on 8 lbs (!!) so far, but OB still says I'm tiny. Everyone at work still tell me I'm not showing but I feel sooooooo fat. Oh well at least the baby won't have low birth weight, which recent research shows is linked to Autism. There is NO END to the things I have to worry about in pregnancy. :(

Guess what?

Ever since I found out 2012 is the year of the Dragon, I decided that I really really REALLY wanted a dragon baby. Not that I am actually that pantang, but, how cool does a dragon sound?! Waay cooler than a snake. Besides, I won't really have to worry about the competition etc. over here.

Thankfully, things did go as planned, and I'm pleased to announce...

Baby G, arriving September 21, 2012!

It has been quite hard keeping it a secret these last few months. ;) But now that we heard the heartbeat and actually saw it on ultrasound, plus I am ALMOST in 2nd tri, guess I can finally announce it to my faithful blog readers! I'll tell work and the rest of the fb world on Monday.

My journey so far:
4 weeks - Mid Jan, POSITIVE! Took a traditional test plus a digital pg test since Troy wasn't convinced the faint line was actually a real line. ;)

4-5 weeks - Nothing. Hoped I was one of those lucky women without morning sickness.

6-10 weeks - No such luck. Didn't actually throw up but felt queasy ALL THE TIME. Wished I wasn't pregnant. Decided I wasn't having any more children. Complained non-stop to poor hubby. Wanted to die.

7 weeks - Had blood drawn for a bunch of tests. Attended a class at obgyn' office, which was totally dumb and learned nothing.

10 weeks - First appointment with a REAL DOCTOR! Unlike in Singapore where pg ladies apparently get doctor's appointments and ultrasounds every other week (or seems like it, from my fb friends' posts), over here they won't even see you until 10 weeks unless you have complications or are high-risk. Which I guess I am thankful that I'm neither.

Ob-gyn was very nice! Had a physical exam and heard heartbeat of 160!!! RELIEF! She said everything looked good, I am super healthy. Then she said I can pretty much eat whatever the heck I want because I'm so tiny (by American standards, I'm sure), so we went for McDonald's right after the appt. :))

11-12 weeks - Starting to feel better! Just REALLY REALLY hungry. ALL THE TIME. But since the doctor gave the go-ahead.. I haven't really been feeling guilty that I eat 3 meals and about 10 snacks a day. Nom nom nom.

12 weeks - Woke up one morning to ENORMOUS bump. Yikes!!!!! Didn't think I would be showing so soon. Went to Motherhood and bought some nice skinny jeans for $30. Sales lady said I was soooooooo tiny (I am still XS in maternity wear), and I said, are you kidding!!! She comforted me by saying it's because I'm so thin that I'm showing sooner, and it'll eventually even out. Made me feel a bit better.

13 weeks - Optional NT scan for genetic abnormalities. I opted for it only because otherwise I would have to wait till 20 weeks! Yes, prenatal care in the USA apparently consists of only ONE ultrasound at 20 weeks! Ridiculous. By this point I had worried myself into thinking my baby had no skull or was missing an arm or a leg, or that I was carrying multiples, so I really wanted to SEE something.

Again, big RELIEF that everything appeared well. Only ONE baby, thank goodness, and with a skull and everything. (Very worried about baby not having a skull ever since I read about it online) We even got the cute picture above, and two other ones that are not as cute so I won't post them. In fact I think the 3D one looks too gross for words. During the ultrasound, I kept telling Troy and the tech that baby looks like an alien.

I think she said heartbeat was 145, which is normal, and the fold was under 2.5mm, also normal. We'll get the full results next week, hopefully. Then she asked if we wanted to know (absolutely!!!!), and she took a guess of 70-80% sure it's a.... BOY!!!

We both have no preference for boy or girl. I just really want to know so I can start buying some too-darn-cute clothes!!! Of course, it's still a guess at this point, won't know for sure until the big ultrasound at 20 weeks. But I'm thrilled!!!!! Slightly disappointed that I can't buy cute girl dresses, good thing they also have lots of cute boy stuff these days. In any case, I'm going to stay mostly gender-neutral for the big things like stroller, crib, etc. for future recycling.

Although I feel a lot better now that I've seen baby, still plagued by worry every now and then. Doesn't help that I work in an environment where I'm reminded daily of all the things that could possibly go wrong with my child. Guess this is pretty typical feelings of first time parents? *Praying for a healthy baby!*

新年快乐！

5th year without a traditional CNY celebration. Booo. BUT the plan is to go back next CNY, if all goes well. Looking forward to strolling around Chinatown, all the goodies, meeting up with people, new clothes, even family gatherings with all the auntie unkers. Heh.

So, I made a couple of New Year's resolutions this year. One of them is already met, check! The rest.. 1) Going for Floortime/DIR training (for work), 2) finish decorating master bedroom, 3) finish decorating guest bedroom. I think that's it.

祝大家身体健康，龙马精神！

Happy 2012

Photo updates from the last few months of 2011:

Very proud of my very first jack-o-lantern. Forced puppy to take a picture with me.

Equally proud of my table setting..
and Thanksgiving dinner! All by myself! *brag* Merry Merry Christmas! Don't think my giftwrapping skills are that bad, but hubby's puts me to shame every year. :P