(2013/11) November 2013

totorodino: i am paying $450/mth coz she has experience in other countries. The filippino maids i interviewed range about $500-550.

littleprince: thanks! i been through the website and it is super detailed.. but i am wondering if i need to translate the timetable to their language? i dont think my maid can understand very well...
 


sheepsdream & linxiaober> i just met my preggie friend for lunch and she said her kiddo gave her combo kicks too! the thought of them wrestling inside is quite funny isn't it? hee

littleprince> crosses fingers that your maid comes earlier! must agree that hiring maids are quite cumbersome..i am hiring a nanny, but the flip side is that nannies are really very ex! at the very least, maids can do housework and take care of babies at night if hub and i are too tired...if only maternity leave can be longer! hee
 
Little Prince, i salute u.. cos i know i will be a bitch if i ever have to divorce. i know it's no gd but i still wanna bitch.. hahaha..

Val, yup that's the bad thing abt gg to the master to count names. anyway ppl ask me how to write my sons' names, i will say i dunno. :p chinese is really not my best subject. haha.

Re: baby movement
yeah will get more painful and uncomfy as u get bigger. i like it amusing and try to figure it out if it is their hands or legs moving..

Febie, my fren that had to deliver at 36 wks plus was a combi of water bag bursting and contractions.. so no choice had to deliver but her baby is huge lor.. takes after his dad cos his dad was 4.2kg at birth.. crazy!

Sheepsdream, yup that's the urine test to check for sugar in ur urine. :) if u pass, i dun think u have to worry. sometimes doctors just want us to do these tests just so to rule out some stuff. Latest for bb to be heads down shd be 34-35 wks.

LV, erm why choose c-sec? u rather pain longer? what makes u so sure u can tahan the pain? i did both natural and c-sec before and i can tell u i will take natural, not just natural but WITHOUT epidural, over c-sec anyday man. the pain during labour is nothing compared to the constant pain aft the c-sec. u can't even sit up without pain. u can't bf ur bb well initially.. u can't squat and stand without some pain. if u are the hands on mom, then u really have to delegate a lot of things to other ppl. i personally hated that cos i chose to be a mother so i shd bear the responsibility! in the long run ur c-sec scar can develop scar tissues both internal and externally. if externally, ur scar itches unbearably.. if internally, it can adhere to other organs like ur bladder. so why take this risk? if u scared of pain then just go for epidural.
 
gelobean: hahaha ya its interesting to think of wat they are doing inside.. but by the end of the day.. i will feel tired.. hahaha dan i will complain slightly to him.. the next day start again..

i think i overdose my sugar level liao.. had bubble tea on friday, sat and sun plus just now.. all 25% which adds up to 100% liao.. =='''' bad mummy.. hahaha
 
kayliz, you explain to her in English and give her an exercise book to write in her own language then repeat to you. i did that for my Myanmar maid (English supposedly poorer than Indos) previously and she was ok. But, you need to be very patient.

gelobean, i will have to have a maid lor coz i want to still be able to focus on #1's school work and at times go on couple dates with hb, won't be able to do so without helper coz i don't have any village support (in laws, parents etc).

fuzzybear, LOLLL!!!
 
sighs, i would like the convenience of maids but i dun have someone to look after the maid. PLUS the fact that I stay in Punggol and there are always countless banglas and PRCs lurking around at my void deck and neighborhood area coz of the construction going on. being the paranoid me, i am scared that the maid will bring some random men up to my place or neglect the kiddo when she goes downstairs and chats up with the men. in the end, we decided on the option of having a nanny.
 
gelobean: i have the same concerns as u too.. i stay in boon lay and there are tons of banglas and foreign workers too, esp Sat nights they will have picnic gatherings at any empty grass patch near the MRT station. somemore mine is permanent because it's near the industrial areas where the workers live... i am going to install a CCTV in the hall just in case.. but now maid is coming in so soon, not so nice to install when she is at home leh.
 
PRCs are overtaking the whole country loh. Even in my new estate in TPY, I have PRC neighbours. I assume they are new citizens, otherwise how to buy new HDB flats?

Kayliz and littleprince, you will let your maid take care of the baby alone?
 
totorodino: my mum will come over in the day until i reach home after work. actually given my mum's character i'm also worried.. she probably will find it boring after a period of time and request to have the maid follow her home with the kids.. on the day i told her i am employing a maid, she even told me (in a demanding tone) "i tell you, i will expect u to bring her to my place once a week to do my housework." i am not comfortable with it since it is against the law.. even if it is completely legal, it is so unfair to me. Coz when i suggested to share the cost of a maid to stay in their house with my bro (who stays with my parents & also expecting a baby soon), they refused, saying wanting to put their child in IFC. Now i am paying for my own maid, why should i let them take full advantage of her?

thus, we are waiting for #1 to have a slot in CC.. Then once we find the maid ok maybe after 6mths - 1 yr, we might start to let her handle the baby alone (fingers crossed). then i never have to rely on my mum. coz she is the only one helping, she knows she is very "important" to us and as and when makes things difficult for us.
 
kayliz, yea, your maid can complain to her embassy or MOM if she has to go over once a week to do your mom's housework. maybe once in a blue moon, still can close one eye. i think it's your SIL who doesnt want your mom to take care of her baby not your brother haha. Did your hb ever suggest for your mil to take care instead since i recall your mil is very free and likes to visit you often and stay until very late?
 
fuzzybear, to deliver at week36 with such a good weight, I think both parents and gynae dun have to worry so much too... :)

kayliz, just keep finger crossed that you got a good maid... dun worry too much.
my mum is staying at boon lay and i'm at jurong west... I will be telling my helper that she has to vaccum and mop at my mum pl...
only clean my pl on Sat plus ironing... of cos I will try to give her slightly extra else how?? whole day do nothing at my mum pl??
some helper ok lor... maybe muz make her sign agreement with you etc?
 
Finally back in action! Been so tired recently cos haven't been sleeping well, plus sinus or a cold coming in. Zzzzzzzzz.

Fuzzybear, wah the way u describe c sections, gulp, never knew it could get so bad. #2 better come out natural delivery like #1.

Kayliz, my mum buys a Eng/(foreign Lang of maid) dictionary so she and the maid can define simple instructions. She'll write in simple Eng, the maid will write in her language, then these notes will be pasted on the walls where required. I guess this way the maid can't give any excuses.

Pinky, wah ur friend really went thru super long labour. Even with epidural, can't imagine being stuck on the bed for 24 hrs. Yes yes, start on the long slow walks. I walked a lot while pregnant with #1, partly due to my job nature then. Even the day before delivery I was still walking to and fro the market which was nearly 1 KM away. I've always thought all that walking contributed to a faster and smoother delivery.
Eh, nobody should be exempted from fire drill leh. I used to work in building management, there is no code that allows exemption. But must say sales staff always seem to be very on about outdoor sales on same day as fire drill, hmmmm.

Happy baby, yep yep, breastmilk still the best for babies. As a very experienced PD ever said to me, cows drink cow milk, humans drink human milk :). Just take note if you need to use formula milk, u may have to go thru several brands before settling on one that is most suited for your baby.

Gelobean, up till now I'm still complaining to #1 how she used to kick me while in the tummy until one time my whole body shook! Yep, got the combo kicks too with #2, dunno what's so exciting inside.

SN, don't be surprised in future if our so called Singapore born and bred kids marry first or second generation citizens. My gal's kindy is already like the UN; Americans, Filipinos, Chinese, and of course Singaporeans. So long as they are upright folks, it's ok la.
 
fuzzybear - i am on bad asthmatic background so cant take the risk on this. i might have the attack in the middle so gotta go on c section ~_~
 
Finally back in action! Been so tired recently cos haven't been sleeping well, plus sinus or a cold coming in. Zzzzzzzzz.

Fuzzybear, wah the way u describe c sections, gulp, never knew it could get so bad. #2 better come out natural delivery like #1.

Kayliz, my mum buys a Eng/(foreign Lang of maid) dictionary so she and the maid can define simple instructions. She'll write in simple Eng, the maid will write in her language, then these notes will be pasted on the walls where required. I guess this way the maid can't give any excuses.

Pinky, wah ur friend really went thru super long labour. Even with epidural, can't imagine being stuck on the bed for 24 hrs. Yes yes, start on the long slow walks. I walked a lot while pregnant with #1, partly due to my job nature then. Even the day before delivery I was still walking to and fro the market which was nearly 1 KM away. I've always thought all that walking contributed to a faster and smoother delivery.
Eh, nobody should be exempted from fire drill leh. I used to work in building management, there is no code that allows exemption. But must say sales staff always seem to be very on about outdoor sales on same day as fire drill, hmmmm.

Happy baby, yep yep, breastmilk still the best for babies. As a very experienced PD ever said to me, cows drink cow milk, humans drink human milk :). Just take note if you need to use formula milk, u may have to go thru several brands before settling on one that is most suited for your baby.

Gelobean, up till now I'm still complaining to #1 how she used to kick me while in the tummy until one time my whole body shook! Yep, got the combo kicks too with #2, dunno what's so exciting inside.

SN, don't be surprised in future if our so called Singapore born and bred kids marry first or second generation citizens. My gal's kindy is already like the UN; Americans, Filipinos, Chinese, and of course Singaporeans. So long as they are upright folks, it's ok la.

I go for daily walks too with my #1. A lot of aunties said slow walks are good for labour and my mum said it will help the pelvic bones to open up during labour?? so I walk around 1 km plus around my neighborhood back then... now with #2 i started walking after 22 weeks.

How long was your labor for #1 ankh? Mine was 6 hours.
 
fuzzybear - i am on bad asthmatic background so cant take the risk on this. i might have the attack in the middle so gotta go on c section ~_~

Most of us here will advocate natural birth because the healing time is faster and definitely have more benefits compared to the hassle of c-sect, but at the end of the day, just do what is best for you and your child.

Whether natural or c-section, epidural or non-epidural, the best advice is to listen to what your gynae recommends because every women is different. If c-sect is what your gynae says you should opt for, please go for it, method of delivery is not that important, more important is both mother and child will be safe.
 
ankh, at least your girl's kindy still has singaporeans. A friend posted on FB that her son's kindy all foreigners or other races and he's the only singaporean chinese. so weird.
 
Fuzzybear,
Lol!! I used to score A but has since returned to the teachers already. Anyway, my kids chinese name are really easy to write and pronounce la. At most 9 strokes per character. I dun believe in having diff to pronounce and write names.

Re: maid
I nv believe in having a maid either. I rather i xin ku and do the things myself.

Kayliz,
Yes. If ur maid wanna sabo u she can go complain MOM n u will kena. Tts wat happened to a friend of mine. She was banned from hiring maid for 6mths. Wat another of my friend did was to pay her extra whenever she helps out with the housewk at her mum's.

Lv,
Ur asthma sounds v bad. Ur kid will have a higher chance of inheritting respiratory probs.
 
Hey, here's an excellent article for reading.. i have to agree with the writer: Singaporean kids are becoming more bratty and what's worse are the parents who agree and condone their kids' behaviour! http://limpehft.blogspot.ch/2013/08/a-singaporean-recipe-for-disaster.html

Re: foreign talents
Actually hor, i think there's a need for them. How many of u want ur kids to be be construction workers? or rubbish collectors? No right? We want our kids to be lawyers, doctors yet the truth is we are very dependent of such migrant workers. if u can't find a suitable HDB flat, u grumble and expect HDB to build more.. but to do so u need more FT.. i do find that in general we complain a lot but can't find a solution when i ask my frens for one. haha.. Don't get me wrong. there are some companies that would rather hire FT because they are cheaper when we Singaporeans can do the job. but seriously i find FT a lot hungrier than us.. i know of young scholars who tell me they don't work late or work on wkend cos of work life balance. I am not saying that it is solely one problem we are tackling here. it is the combined effect of being more productive, generate higher GDP, wanting a better life for our kids and still want our cake and eat it. I teach an undergrad class and they have all sorts of aspirations and objections to a lot of policies. but when questioned, most cannot defend their choice, other than the government is not thinking right. I sound like i m pro-govt hor? actually i m not.. i see the hard work they do to get consensus and really have to give credit where credit is due. :p

fuzzybear - i am on bad asthmatic background so cant take the risk on this. i might have the attack in the middle so gotta go on c section ~_~
LV, erm if u have pre-existing health conditions, did u ask ur gynae for his opinion? seriously, none of us here are doctors. best to listen to ur doc and trust him. if ur doc is confident u won't have an asthma attack or the risk is low, then i would still go for natural. i can't imagine the pain when an attack comes post c-sec. And since u have asthma, it will be the best that u bf ur bb to minimise his/her chances of getting asthma too.

Ankh! haven't seen u around hehehe.. poor thing u.. hope u get better soon.. my turn to have reflux.. keep burping up acid! Bleah.. ya c-sec is horrible.. hahah i still haven't really made up my mind abt going for another c-sec cos the last one is still fresh in my mind. haha.. dunno if i shd risk VBAC.

Re: maid
I m very upfront with my maid abt the need of her having to do basic housework at my parents' place. i checked with the agent and they said i can state it explicitly in the contract. seriously what my maid does in my parents' place benefits me.. like cooking MY dinner, washing the floor cos my kids walk and lie on it. of cos my parents do not push their housework, like ironing to my maid. a line is drawn lor. If my maid is willing to do extra, my mom ALWAYS compensate her with extra cash. this sweetens the deal for them and most of them would rather earn more to send home too. Plus it also means they are complicit to the agreement.

If u don't have anybody at home to jagar the maid then it is best u send ur kid to IFC. Nanny wise, u can't be sure they won't ill treat ur bb.. but some nannies are really wonderful.. hehe..

Kayliz, u very poor thing.. sometimes i think parents cause more harm then help.. sigh.. will i be such a parent when my kids grow up? :p can only tell myself not to be a bitch.
 
fuzzybear, I agree with your sentence - parents can cause more harm then help... but not all lah... some maybe...
For me and my mum, we can voice out easily and drama in front of my boy... we sometimes fight to get things acrossed too...
but imagine if me and my mil?? guess either one of us will run away from hm.... hahhaa...
 
Febie - agree with you. own mom can just quarrel upfront. mil? think i will go crazy first.

ankh - the peak lor. those flats opposite Philips.

im not against FTs who do the jobs that Singaporeans dont want to do. But I just cant stand how PRCs are populating the whole earth. you see them everywhere! argh!
 
pinkyloving, preggy also need to go for fire drill haha... although we are supposed to take the lift and slowly walk to the assembly point 10min earlier with a buddy... but I don't want to stand in the hot sun so rather walk down with everyone else :p

fuzzybear... I feel u... the memory of my #1 csec is still fresh in my mind, especially the painful recovery process but no choice I have to go through it again...

maid issues: Both me and hb are uncomfortable leaving maid at home alone with and without baby, so we already agreed we will not get a maid this time round and put #2 in infantcare instead... but I guess IFC will have it's own set of problems...

My girl's childcare are mostly Singaporeans and only have a few PRC... maybe because it's those old HDB type, I think the rich FTs will put their kids in the more atas schools since they can afford it :p
 
not to be biased here. but if you realise, alot of the social problems reported in the news are caused by FTs. Recently, the murder at CCK was commited by PRC. The husband (58yrs old), killed his PRC wife (41 yrs old). and guess what? my parents live in the unit below, just adjacent. My mom heard a woman screaming "救命啊!!!" at 430am and she thought it was a ghost! Then in the morning when my mom went to the market, she saw lots of police cars and on the same day, the news reported it was a murder. The flat was rented out to the PRC couple who then rent it out to a few other PRCs. On the night of the murder, the other PRC tenants were in the house but no one bothered to save the woman cos they taught it was a normal domestic quarrel between husband and wife. wah lao.
 
pinkyloving, preggy also need to go for fire drill haha... although we are supposed to take the lift and slowly walk to the assembly point 10min earlier with a buddy... but I don't want to stand in the hot sun so rather walk down with everyone else :p

fuzzybear... I feel u... the memory of my #1 csec is still fresh in my mind, especially the painful recovery process but no choice I have to go through it again...

maid issues: Both me and hb are uncomfortable leaving maid at home alone with and without baby, so we already agreed we will not get a maid this time round and put #2 in infantcare instead... but I guess IFC will have it's own set of problems...

My girl's childcare are mostly Singaporeans and only have a few PRC... maybe because it's those old HDB type, I think the rich FTs will put their kids in the more atas schools since they can afford it :p

haha. My friend put her son in PAP sparkletots. She said all other races and FTs.
 
SN, ahhaha.. that's why I will nv consider my MIL to look after my kids...
at least I dare say my #1 is properly brought up... seeing my hb really lack the simple manners, i'm glad that my #1 is not like him...
and my mil always say her son is right etc....
The way I brought up my boy still earn praise from her, so hopefully she knows that me and my mum can teach those necessary manner lor...
I was telling my friends if my boy was brought up by my mil, think I will commit suicide and there wont be #2 for sure... hahahaa...
and now this make me a bitch!!! :p
 
Sei, I did GT at TMC. Same thing, nobody call me. I suppose no news is good news la :D

Naming baby. Hiaz, I find it hard to name this little one too. Like no nice name around to choose from. Also, for chinese name. May I know which "Shi Fu" will you go to name him/her? For my previous 2, I used Yiu Rong Zi. But I find him too commercializ these days and most of the time not him but his son is now serving the customer. Can someone recommend a good Shi fu?

As I typed this msg, my colleague suddenly ask me if I plan to eat my own placenta!!!! I was like WHAT???? apparently she said it's getting very common now as placenta is so rich in vitamins and she ate her own placenta!!!!
 
gelobean, i also live in Punggol leh. you don't intend to install a CCTV? my hb just chgd the installation appt fm tmrw to Thu coz he is busy tmrw. *grumble grumble. still asked me so when exactly is maid coming? i said you want to wait till maid come then do the installation is it? i also don't dare to chase agent in case maid comes and CCTV not installed yet. :mad:

maid woes, i don't have an option that is for the best of all worlds lor. maid will take care of baby at home when i return to work, but hb doesn't go to work early and hours can be erratic at times, and my office is 10 min drive fm home so if i suspect anything, can do surprise checks. will also supervise with CCTV (got audio and night feature) and i have neighbors who are very helpful and friendly with me and offered to help lookout too so hope all these will help. and, i believe there are good helpers around too so just have to supervise and monitor.

kayliz, febie, my gf stays with her mum and #1 currently on wkdays, intend to put #2 and maid staying there on wkdays too and all come home on wkends. when she shared this with maid over phone interview (she didn't tell agency beforehand), agency told her maid can only do chores at 1 place only. with so many regulations now, maids are smarter and may be more calculative so its either you make it clear right at the beginning to the maid and see if she is willing to work under such conditions or else, you may run the risk of maid quitting on you after 1-2 mths. if you make things clear, i think its fine?
 
Fuzzybear, two words - strawberry generation! LOL! But it's true la, adversity quotient in general drops with each succeeding generation. Ten yrs ago I used to travel to China. The people there, especially the Shanghainese, were very very hungry for success. It's how Singapore was in the 70's and 80's. Now, aiyo, I talk to my cousin who is only about 8 yrs younger than me, and I can already feel a generation gap. I don't see the hunger in her as I did in the Chinese ten yrs ago, and that makes me scared. If our kids continue living a cushy life, we can only hope we'll be fortunate like Dubai to be rich enough to rely on FT. If not, mati liao.
Ew, hope your acid reflux will subside soon! I'm at 30 weeks now, think no more heartburn already, indigestion also easing up.

SN, oh yeah, forgot the peak. Hubby and I went up there before construction technically finished. We oohed and aaahhed at the views lol. Hey, u can send your kids to the hokkien huat kuan Chinese classes opposite in future. So convenient! Thumbs up for their classes. On par with Berries. Actually for their K2 class, the standard may be higher than Berries. Mostly SG teachers. Even admin staff are locals speaking in well enunciated Mandarin. Hubby n I always headache talking to them cos our Chinese cannot pass P1 already.
Hehe, maybe your friend's kindy is the more atas type? That's why more foreigners. My gal's kindy not so atas leh.

Attigal, my labour for #1 was 7.5 hours. Not too long, not too short. Best part, by the time I wanted epidural, it was too late. Time to give birth!

Bless mum, er no, no placenta makan for me. To me it's like a filter. All the good AND bad stuff found inside, akin to liver. And I'm not a liver fan.
 
Hello all! Back from check up today and baby is 1.16kg at 27wks! Doc says baby is a bit on big side and is asking me to moderate my weight gain.

I just did some calculations, give birth in sg really nt cheap! I counted for csec at tmw, single ward with 2 visits from gynae and 2 visits from pd, bill is as much as $8k plus after medisave!
 
Mumagain, i oso heard my coll said abt eating own placenta. Say is good for youth. There is this company which will make the placenta into pill form. So e mummy will eat it. In chinese, they call it "yang tai su" good for beauty. I nv considered abt it cos it sound so gross!

ankh/sei, i tink my co ppl v busy & lazy ppl? So far i nv attended any firedrill before. Somehow there will b insider news tt what time is e firedrill, n roughly it will last 45 mins. So some ppl will go tea break before e drill but majority will b still at e office slogging..."burnt in e fire"... haha... I always stay in e office to work & tolerate tt long & loud sound drilling. I cant imagine myself walking e stairs from level 30 to ground level lo... i tink i will faint 1st before i got "burnt". lol..

re: Stomach pain/cramp
Mummies, im in my 27 weeks & yst i felt my whole stomach having cramp w pain. I cant walk straight w e cramp at my whole stomach. I read online said is contraction? It went off after i sit down. But it came again within an hour. I hav no bleeding. Jus stomach cramp/pain like tt for e whole area. So it is normal?
 
ankh, hehe. nope, my friend sent her son to PAP kindy. The FTs there are the PRCs and South Asians. I think the more ATAS kindies have French and Spanish expatriate kids instead. hehe. why must send to hokkien hui guan for chinese lessons? Childcare already teach chinese leh. haha. maybe i havent reach the kiasu stage yet. #1 still young. If i join the hui guan, does it mean i get priority in some primary schools? LOL.

pinkyloving - as long as the contraction is not as regular as a few minutes apart, should be ok i think.

placenta - errrr i think it's so gross to eat it!!!!!!!! ewwwww. even if it's full of nutrients, i wont dare to eat.

angie - yes, giving birth is so ex, especially if it's C-sect! plus my gynae has increased his delivery charges. I calculated that if i stay in 1 bedder and Csect at GlenE, I will have to pay 9k plus AFTER medisave. wah lao. If i stay 2bedder, i will only save around 1.5k. On one hand, i feel that i have already spent so much money already, might as well stay 1 bedder. on the other hand, 1.5k can do alot of things loh.
 
wah so many different topics going on here...

RE: foreign talents/ foreign workers
actually to me, definition of FTs are those who hold high/ mgmt positions. the rest of the construction workers, manual workers i term them as foreign workers (job hazard of a HR), but i know most pple just call all foreigners as "foreign talent". i agree that foreign workers are necessary in sg, being in a f&b industry previously and now retail industry, u can't find any locals who are willing to commit non-office hours. to be honest, i wouldn't want to work non-office hours too. so sometimes i empathise with the foreign workers when they are being the topic of "debates", plus they are usually not very well paid, but are willing to work hard+long hours, so even tho i'm also quite biase against PRCs, sometimes still really gotta give them the basic respect, unless they step on my toes/tails. haha.. as for those higher paid/ higher position FTs, no comments on them yet for now. haha...

RE: walking for easier labour
i actually enquired about this with my gynae during my recent appt, cos being in wk30 i felt that i should get started on the walking already. but my gynae advised me to only walk more after wk36, if not might trigger early labour.

RE: placenta
ya i heard of the "yang tai su" thing also, think we can make our placenta into powder/ capsule form to be consumed. supposed to be nutritious but when i imagined it i feel abit turn off also. i heard of pple even buying goat/sheep's placenta made into capsules to be consumed as health supplements/ tonic?

pinkyloving: think that's ur braxton hicks contractions? i get that quite often also, almost every morning i wake up with a hard tummy then cannot walk straight. but after a while it gets ok le.. i think my baby is not a "morning person". lol... like wat SN says, as long as it doesn't happen alot of times in an hour it's ok. that's wat my gynae said too.
 
morning mommies! Didn't slp well at all last night.. first was too hot.. woke at up 2am to turn on the aircon.. then abt 3am i heard my son whimpering cos he was freezing. But i was still so damn hot.. no choice had to switch the aircon off.. then he kept kicking me.. zzzz really tired today.. luckily on half day again. :p

Ankh, strawberry generation? ya i agree our kids nowadays are not as hungry. what they want, they just ask their parents and usually parents try to oblige. I know i do it sometimes cos i feel so guilty for working long hrs.. i know my hb obliges too because he doesn't want my son to feel left out. getting all these freebies and rewards for doing things that they are already supposed to be doing for the good of themselves just perpetuate the effect of instant gratification. i also dunno not to give in so easily (already i think i m pretty strict about such things). haizzz..

SN, haha those PRCs that do the dirty jobs for us need to stay some where.. just that S'poreans are super smart lah.. they rent their flats out to these ppl and buy private property. Actually, if u think abt it, we all have roots in China (if u are a Chinese). May be they do need time to get used to our culture and we to get used to them.

Pinky, eh if ur tummy is very painful then u might wanna call ur doc.. BH is usually painless. I had pains last night too but tummy was soft so i think it was just gas.

Re: placenta
Well it is nutritious but hor, it is also very high in hormones. :) not sure if those hormones will affect bf-ing or not. anyway i feel like it is eating ur own booger!
 
pinkyloving,
tat sounds serious to me,
maybe u can call up your clinic and ask the nurse to check with gynae whether this is normal and do u need to go down for a checkup?
 
Morning mummies,

My car gave out a weird sound fm the air con blower area yesterday when I was on my way home so no choice, had to send to service centre to check this morning. I drove all the way fm office to service centre, 30 to 45min drive (luckily no traffic jam) and guess what? Technician said likely a leave or paper flew into the blower and when he turned on full speed, the leave or paper " flew " away! Argh! Wasted my time to drive all the way down! Anyway, asked the technician to double check inside the air con area just in case. Don't want to make another trip down again! :mad:
 
Totorodino: yeah I also realise nt much diff if I stay 2 bedder! But I will stay want to stay in 1 bedder cause hubby can stay over and I am also a light sleeper! We would have gone through labour aso deserve a little reward right?;p
 
kayliz, yea, your maid can complain to her embassy or MOM if she has to go over once a week to do your mom's housework. maybe once in a blue moon, still can close one eye. i think it's your SIL who doesnt want your mom to take care of her baby not your brother haha. Did your hb ever suggest for your mil to take care instead since i recall your mil is very free and likes to visit you often and stay until very late?

lol.. yea maybe u r right. from the "patterns" my mum gave me when she helped me with #1, think my SIL also scared... my MIL works full time, she visits me often on weekends, and when i had #1 she comes after work (about 5pm+) and stays until late. But once i casually asked hb.. do u want ur mum to quit her job and help us instead?? He said he rather not.. coz she is earning a steady income, not worth the sacrifice..

kayliz, just keep finger crossed that you got a good maid... dun worry too much.
my mum is staying at boon lay and i'm at jurong west... I will be telling my helper that she has to vaccum and mop at my mum pl...
only clean my pl on Sat plus ironing... of cos I will try to give her slightly extra else how?? whole day do nothing at my mum pl??
some helper ok lor... maybe muz make her sign agreement with you etc?

i talked to my mum lor. i said if the maid takes initiative to help, then fine. If not, then the max extra tasks she should ask her to do is to vacuum, mop, wash dishes/bottles/baby clothes or fold laundry. For my own house there is nothing much to do especially if she keeps it clean daily. Now the only thing is i hope my maid will really be a good help. But i will also make it clear to my maid.. sigh! got maid also problem, no maid also problem.. whichever problem it is, everything involves $$$.
 
Morning mummies! Have been out of action the past 2 weeks dues to illness and work. Was down with flu, cough, then followed by diarrhoea and fever. And of course, in between, trying to battle acid reflux. Sighs... it's been tough. And I'm only at 26 weeks plus. Not even 3rd trimester. Yikes... really dunno how to survive it when I start gaining more weight in 3rd tri. Even now, I already feel very heavy. And cos I can't sleep lying flat, have to be on my sides, both my arms would ache when I wake up. ARGH.... :eek:

littleprince, did you have to pay for the quick servicing then?

eh... the thought of eating the placenta is a bit yucky...
 
littleprince> nope, we are not installing CCTV as the hub's aunt will be the kiddo's nanny. since she is a relative, we don't intend to do that. i would have installed a CCTV if i were in your shoes. it's so much safer that way...gd that u can still pop back to do "surprise visits"! i wish i can do that! but i work in raffles place and won't be home till evening. sighs..the woes of a FTWM!

anw, i just went for my class with Mrs Wong Boh Boi yesterday and asked her if softeners are required. she said best not to use softener. as for baby lotions/ moisturisers, she said we should just leave the baby alone and not apply anything unless there is dry and flaky skin. fyi ok?
 
gelobean, what about sunblock? my colleague applies sunblock for his infant daughter and he doesn't allow her to be out in the sun. his theory is that the later you let infant be exposed to the sun, the lower the chance of developing skin cancer...
but i tot a bit of sun would be good. got vit D..
 
wah so many different topics going on here...

RE: foreign talents/ foreign workers
actually to me, definition of FTs are those who hold high/ mgmt positions. the rest of the construction workers, manual workers i term them as foreign workers (job hazard of a HR), but i know most pple just call all foreigners as "foreign talent". i agree that foreign workers are necessary in sg, being in a f&b industry previously and now retail industry, u can't find any locals who are willing to commit non-office hours. to be honest, i wouldn't want to work non-office hours too. so sometimes i empathise with the foreign workers when they are being the topic of "debates", plus they are usually not very well paid, but are willing to work hard+long hours, so even tho i'm also quite biase against PRCs, sometimes still really gotta give them the basic respect, unless they step on my toes/tails. haha.. as for those higher paid/ higher position FTs, no comments on them yet for now. haha...

RE: walking for easier labour
i actually enquired about this with my gynae during my recent appt, cos being in wk30 i felt that i should get started on the walking already. but my gynae advised me to only walk more after wk36, if not might trigger early labour.

RE: placenta
ya i heard of the "yang tai su" thing also, think we can make our placenta into powder/ capsule form to be consumed. supposed to be nutritious but when i imagined it i feel abit turn off also. i heard of pple even buying goat/sheep's placenta made into capsules to be consumed as health supplements/ tonic?

pinkyloving: think that's ur braxton hicks contractions? i get that quite often also, almost every morning i wake up with a hard tummy then cannot walk straight. but after a while it gets ok le.. i think my baby is not a "morning person". lol... like wat SN says, as long as it doesn't happen alot of times in an hour it's ok. that's wat my gynae said too.

xu4n, actually walking now should be ok if your pregnancy is not the complicated kind. because at our stage we can only do limited exercise and walking is one of the safe ways. Slow and relax walk, not fast walk and not for a long time, I take a slow walk around 20 mins each day. My gynae also encourage me to exercise, not so much for easy labour, more for health.

I rem when I still havent give birth at 38 weeks, I don't just walk, I do squats even! but #1 was very stubborn and Daddy's boy (really listen more to my hb then me) and only come out after my hb "talk" to him.
 
i remember i ever came across a website teaching u how to prepare your own placenta, make into powder and fill into empty capsules.. then u eat it like pills..
 
Good morning mummies!

It seems like a number of us are feeling tummy pain, this week especially for me, feel like gas, feels nausea, hubby read that Apple Cider Vinegar may help, so I drank it diluted with warm water, and got better the next day. My baby girl is very active, and would make my tummy so hard, and like going to explode, like no space to expand kind of feeling. Sitting is not comfortable, walking also feel restricted, I used to be able to walk very fast, but now will feel Pain in the pubic area and groin area if I walk too fast.

tequila_sunrise>
I initially chose 2-bedder because I thought my hubby or kids will not stay in, since its not school holiday, so can save some $, then my church mates was sharing the inconvenience of sharing, especially, if our babies not co-operative, if the other party has a lot of visitors, another mummy shared her room mate was first time mum, instead of resting, she called many friends, and repeated her birth story, so she cannot rest, and babies milk time is different, so may end up waking up, eventhough its not your baby whom the nurses bring in. both my previous 2, I stayed in single ward, also worried I cannot get used to sharing room. Now must pray that on actual day, there is single room , as I understand single rooms are lesser, and in demand.
 
Totorodino: yeah I also realise nt much diff if I stay 2 bedder! But I will stay want to stay in 1 bedder cause hubby can stay over and I am also a light sleeper! We would have gone through labour aso deserve a little reward right?;p

I had the same thought when I had #1. We have gone through labour so i deserve a single room. But come #2, my mindset has changed a little.......more concerned about saving money for future usage haha. And previously, gynae's charges were lower and I had a natural birth, so after CPF medisave, I only paid around 6k plus for single bedder.
 
Totorodino: yeah I also realise nt much diff if I stay 2 bedder! But I will stay want to stay in 1 bedder cause hubby can stay over and I am also a light sleeper! We would have gone through labour aso deserve a little reward right?;p

I also opt on 1 bedder - in fact I insist on it. Because I don't want to be disturb by the other patient's visitors when I want to rest.. some of them can be really loud! also I prefer the privacy and the freedom of having baby sleeping with me.
 
gelobean, what about sunblock? my colleague applies sunblock for his infant daughter and he doesn't allow her to be out in the sun. his theory is that the later you let infant be exposed to the sun, the lower the chance of developing skin cancer...
but i tot a bit of sun would be good. got vit D..

I think your colleague should read up a bit more about sun exposure and skin cancer before drawing that conclusion. The best time to get some sun without risk of sunburn is early morning and late evening time. Lack of sun exposure will lead to vit D deficiency. Vit D is essential to the absorption of calcium (which I didn't know till I was hospitalized and discovered to have vit D deficiency) So I made it a point to have some sun exposure during the week. it need not be everyday, but some sun is better then no sun!
 
kayliz, febie, my gf stays with her mum and #1 currently on wkdays, intend to put #2 and maid staying there on wkdays too and all come home on wkends. when she shared this with maid over phone interview (she didn't tell agency beforehand), agency told her maid can only do chores at 1 place only. with so many regulations now, maids are smarter and may be more calculative so its either you make it clear right at the beginning to the maid and see if she is willing to work under such conditions or else, you may run the risk of maid quitting on you after 1-2 mths. if you make things clear, i think its fine?

little prince ya I will make known to her and the agency lor. I dun mind to fork out a small sum just for this to make her happy lah...
those things like for new born like washing bottles, hope she auto lor...
lol.. yea maybe u r right. from the "patterns" my mum gave me when she helped me with #1, think my SIL also scared... my MIL works full time, she visits me often on weekends, and when i had #1 she comes after work (about 5pm+) and stays until late. But once i casually asked hb.. do u want ur mum to quit her job and help us instead?? He said he rather not.. coz she is earning a steady income, not worth the sacrifice..



i talked to my mum lor. i said if the maid takes initiative to help, then fine. If not, then the max extra tasks she should ask her to do is to vacuum, mop, wash dishes/bottles/baby clothes or fold laundry. For my own house there is nothing much to do especially if she keeps it clean daily. Now the only thing is i hope my maid will really be a good help. But i will also make it clear to my maid.. sigh! got maid also problem, no maid also problem.. whichever problem it is, everything involves $$$.

kayliz, just keep fingers crossed. this sat I'm goin to the maid agency. my #1 wants to be involved too.... which I think also since we have an additional head in the family where he has to face too...
 
Good morning mummies!

It seems like a number of us are feeling tummy pain, this week especially for me, feel like gas, feels nausea, hubby read that Apple Cider Vinegar may help, so I drank it diluted with warm water, and got better the next day. My baby girl is very active, and would make my tummy so hard, and like going to explode, like no space to expand kind of feeling. Sitting is not comfortable, walking also feel restricted, I used to be able to walk very fast, but now will feel Pain in the pubic area and groin area if I walk too fast.

tequila_sunrise>
I initially chose 2-bedder because I thought my hubby or kids will not stay in, since its not school holiday, so can save some $, then my church mates was sharing the inconvenience of sharing, especially, if our babies not co-operative, if the other party has a lot of visitors, another mummy shared her room mate was first time mum, instead of resting, she called many friends, and repeated her birth story, so she cannot rest, and babies milk time is different, so may end up waking up, eventhough its not your baby whom the nurses bring in. both my previous 2, I stayed in single ward, also worried I cannot get used to sharing room. Now must pray that on actual day, there is single room , as I understand single rooms are lesser, and in demand.

Hmmm Thirdtimemum, now you are making me think of single room again. I was telling my hb that the sharing of toilet will be quite gross cos both mommies will be having lochia.... i didnt really think about the part of baby feeding timings not the same. I recall, previously i was really tired from the 3hrly feeding. Imagine if share room, means the nurse will come in every other hour for two different mommies. wah lao. how to sleep.
 


mawanab> i didn't enquire about that, but i also think it's good to expose baby to the sun, especially for kids diagnosed with jaundice..

re: hospital stay, i am also opting for a single bedder mainly coz the hub can stay in and the baby can sleep in the same room with us as well. according to mrs wong, it's good to have the baby sleep with the parents for the initial stage. hahaha, seems like i am her avid fan huh!
 

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