倫敦～愛字意

Monday, 21 April 2014

Saturday, 15 February 2014

Second trimester 31 October

13 weeks - 03 Nov. 2013 still excited about the scan knowing there is a small human being growing in my belly its just so amazing! This week we shared the news with few more friends.

I decided to tell friends in person not just a random tweet on the social network.

Apart from my best friend who lives in the State, since we can only meet up every 2-3 years and another girl friend in China who has been giving me endless tips of how to have a healthy body when trying to conceive.

Week 14, 10 Nov. 2013 - hair cut

Week 15, 17 Nov. 2013
very moody, but very fit and comfortable to a point I was doubting is there anything happening in my rounded belly.

Week 16, 24 Nov. 2013 - My birthday week!!!

Belly is definitely growing nicely and very noticeable in the afternoon. Not sure is because I have been sitting on my office chair for too long, but around 4/5 o'clock my belly will be 'out' there like a very bloated tummy after a huge meal even that is always before my snack time at about 5pm. Normally I leave office around 6.45- 7.15 + roughly an hour journey to get home, by the time we have dinner will be at least 8.30. Sometime I just can't bear the hunger to that hour so I give myself an excuse to have either some cereal, fruit or few slices of biscuits to tide me over between late lunch and late dinner.

Week 17, 01 Dec. 2013

Week 18, 08 Dec. 2013

Week 19, 15 Dec. 2013

Week 20, 22 Dec.2013 - Christmas holiday
Half way point! We made it to the half way point and the best thing is we are on our Christmas holiday in Dubrovnik when I received the notification from BabyCentre!
I think I can feel Piggy wiggle properly now and no more imagining or guessing if that little bubble in the tummy is what they call gentle butterfly feeling in the womb. Very excited to have this sensation especially during a nice relaxing holiday abroad.
這星期很明顯的感覺到身體開始釋放賀爾蒙，讓身體骨頭關節開始放鬆，為生產而做準備。難怪屁股兩邊有刺又酸的好像被針扎到，一陣又ㄧ陣的反覆。

Week 21- 29 Dec 2013, Braxton Hicks!!!!

Well I certainly know what is the feeling of Braxton Hicks!! On the return flight I started feeling a bit of cramp on lower part of belly/ groin area, it comes and go now and then from 4pm till we arrived home I had a quick change to my pj and jump straight to bed till dinner was ready. 8.30pm decided to call mid wife for advices. To no avil I called NHS helpline to ask if my cramp frequency is normal? after hundreds of questions and 10 mins later, I was told that I could be in labour so they are sending an ambulance straight away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Gosh... I stopped myself and asked if this is necessary? within the next 10 mins, 3 medical crews arrived with bags of equipments and stretcher as they didn't know what to expect and its just normal procedure to carry all the first aid stuffs. I was approached by a female medic to check what was the problem, as I tried to explain we just came back from a week long holiday on a short flight and my belly harden up every 15-20 mins, but I was feeling fine and willing to go to the hospital myself (not waste the resources of much needed ambulance ). To my surprise, they insisted to bring me to the maternity ward to have a check up.

After waiting in triage for about 2 hours and Dr. told me to go home. Everything is fine and I was not in labour.

Week 22, 05 Jan 2014. Exciting new year ahead.
Went to Harrods during weekend to have a look at the Stokke Sleepi for the first time, still my top choice for the baby cot bed at the moment.
Belly is growing fast!!

Week 23, 12 Jan 2014. Shocking truth of Weight gain
Start feeling numb and crump on my stomach, weird burning sensation like a sun burn inside my top right hand side of the stomach... not nice. After checking out on the internet, I think that is called 'muscle separation' as uterus growing bigger - above the belly button now!!! it create a gap between stomach and uterus?? not sure the layout of a human body, but it just sounds weird and when I read the part that there is nothing much you can do (apart from suffering and burring pain) I shall just leave this as is for now.
Also realised that I have gained 2.5 - 3Kg since Christmas!!! need to watch out my diet!!!

Week 24, 19 Jan 2014, Happy V.day.
GP appointment 23 Jan. 2014 - all fine and normal. GP was looking for piggy's heart beat during check up, but before she even find one she saw piggy was wiggling inside the tummy from outside. lol
V. Day = Viability Day means if baby born prematurely at 24 weeks and there is a 39% chance survival rate

Week 25, 26 Jan 2014. Happy Chinese New Year - the year of Horse
very active piggy .. seems like a routine, start from 5.30pm... a gentle reminder to tell me start moving around as I would have been sitting on the chair straight after late lunch or perhaps he is just excited that we are going home soon.. after dinner, piggy will be nudging here and there especially if we both sit on the sofa watching TV.

31 Jan 2014 - First day of the Horse year! went to work as usual, had a good celebration meal at the Jade cottage near work with hubby and we were truly spoiled with all the meaty dishes, even enough left over to take for the lunch and dinner next day.

01 Feb 2014 - Gender Revealed - Surprise!!
Have been waiting for this day for one month now! finally I can reveal Piggy's gender to hubby!
I prepared a scratch card and Yoda baby grow…. and he loved it!!! The excitement of this revelation could be equally as excited as when we saw that extra line on the pregnancy test.
Dear hubby is very happy to know we are expecting a boy. I am 100% sure he would also be so thrilled if we are expecting a girl now.

Week 26, 02 Feb 2014. less than 100 days to go……
on 26+6 - got the biggest tickle from piggy ... I was laughing and asking 'what was that about?' it was such a funny sensation like 5 fingers running across my tummy vertically …

Week 27, 09 Feb 2014. St. Valentine's Day. ….. + baby hiccup
one big argument with hubby and so silly that I cried because I felt so guilty that this might affect Piggy's emotional development somehow in the future.. :-(
Despite a busy week at work preparing the bracelets/ earrings for the catwalk show this weekend.
Dear hubby bought us a nice little selection of snacks and tea as Valentine's presents which is very sweet of him x

Piggy is practicing 'hiccup' in my tummy and it feels like he is shivering … or vibrating?

Thursday, 13 February 2014

Parsnip, sweet potato & apple soup

Finest parsnip (6 small one or 2-3 large size)

Sweet potato (1medium size)

Onion (1 small/ medium size)

Yellow spilt lentil (4 table spoons)

Red apple (large crispy & sweet)

Curry powder (mild, 1 table spoon)

Cumin seed (1 tea spoon)

Ground ginger (1tea spoon)

Organic vegetable stock powder (optional)

Salt

Light olive oil/ rice barn oil

1. Peel parsnip, sweet potato, onion. Cut to small chunk of any shape.

Fry onion in low heat till edge is turning brown, sprinkle cumin seeds & ground ginger in the pan after 2 mins, add parsnip, sweet potato and curry powder.

2. Rinse and wash lentil, soak in cold water for 10 mins.

3 . Add water (twice the amount of the content in the pot) to simmer until boiling point then add lentil in. Continue to boil for 15 mins in medium heat.

4. Peel & cut apple to small chunk, use a very good quality apple that has strong fruity fragrance!

5. Adding more water and apple into the pot, simmer till lentil is soft enough to eat, but not marshy.

6. Season with a bit Himalayas pink salt and vegetable stock powder. I only add the saltiness at the end so the soup will not be too salty.

7. Cool down a bit and use hand held blender to liqudise the vegetable slightly. As I like it with a little bits in my soup and not totally smooth.

Thursday, 31 October 2013

懷孕第一期-數饅頭過日子的兩個月

Weeks 5, sad & worried - brown discharge time to time

Debating if I shall contact GP, but I know brown discharge and bleeding is normal in the very early pregnancy and there is nothing much they can do apart from resting and relaxing. Sometimes I wished I didn't find out that I am pregnant this early, be a bit thick and slow so I don't have to start worry about it so early!

Week 6, faith & hope. We saw a sac and heart beat!!!

I just couldn't bear the thought of not knowing what is going on and non stop worrying what is happening and why I still have that annoying brown discharge after a week waiting patiently for it to go away! GP called and said the only thing they can do is to send me for a scan at EPU (Early pregnancy Unit) in the hospital. 2nd time here and basically just feel so sorry for the people waiting or even working there. How many bad news they needed to bear everyday and how many people will be in tears waiting in that sad little corner? Hobby told me to relax and try to cheer me up by telling me something funny, but I just feel that's a place laughing is not allowed! We also need to respect the people next to us no matter they are waiting for a good news or bad news! You just never know why they are there? For what reason? The nurse was really appologetic about my messed up appointment as they did't have my contact number from my GP.

After been called to the scanning room, lying there with my heart weighted like a cold stone. Less than a min later, we saw a tear drop shape sac on the screen with a white dot shinning like a little star! That is it! That's the heart beat of our lil yoke - a live sac and a live pregnancy!

Could not believe what we just saw and shortly while waiting in that now very enclosed corner, someone came to me and gave me the scan result and said if I decided I want to be look after by this hospital I can go to the antenatal unit to register myself!?!? Or I can talk to my GP and think about if I want to go to other hospital.

Me and hubby were just over the moon and both agree that we like this hospital and straight away we were heading to Antenatal department to book myself in for the next appointment!!!

As we had to pay for the parking, hubby told me this is the first time he actually feel the parking is well worth it or well spent it.

Week 7, positive & car sick feeling. Law of attraction, asking the universe to help and asked for prayer and blessing.

8 weeks- excited and relieved we made it to another stage, first appointment with mid wife on 8 October. Had blood test done. Weight and height checked. 50 kg, BMI 20.

Week 9, busy with other investment projects happening this week. Keep my mind occupied with current events.

Got the keys to a better future.

Week 10, bloated and sleepless first 2 days, had 11 hrs sleep and did some house work. Defrosting fridge, changing bed sheet, hubby hovered the whole place and bath room cleaned. Even discarded all the withered flowers on the balcony.

Week 11, slightly worried about the dating scan next week. But that is also the one thing to keep me going and think of all the positive thoughts. Whatever the result will be, we made it. I am keeping the little bean inside me safe and longer than last time.

Week 12, our guest arrived to pray with us! Hubby's really good friend who is studying as a seminarian in France. We told him the good news and asked him to pray for us during a phone conversation, but instead of saying a prayer in the service, he offered to pay us a visit and pray WITH us.

Apart from our parents and siblings, We haven't tell anyone yet and to know someone is making such an effort for us and lil bean, the blessing and appreciation is just beyond measure. We must be blessed!

Of course we invited our guest to the scan on 30th October, even though he is not allowed to be in the examine room, but we feel he was as nervous as we were while waiting to be call in.

It was such a hair raising moment waiting for the sonographer to find that lil heart beat! When she said - there you are! And we we were hearing the most amazing sound to my ears!!!! Lil bean's heart pondering strongly ... With 2 arm/hands waving at us, 2 legs nicely placed in my womb. Lil bean looks like a very chilled out baby! We asked to buy 2 photos from the scan and we shown it to our guest-B as soon as we left the exam room, hubby and B were just 'studying' that small black and white image we have been given while I went for blood test (NT Screening). When I returned, hubby told me I think it's a BOY! Because he was doing 'high5' to us >.<

I think little bean it's a girl because the chin looks rounded like hubby's face ;)

We decided to call this lil bean - Piggy!

Hello Piggy, we are so excited to have you in our life and welcome you to our family <3