rawakramblings

After 2 weeks of trying to turn Baby L around, yesterday was an anxious moment for me. Mr's final advise to me is to make a nazar (nadhr - a vow to Allah) and so during my Zuhur prayers, I made a nadhr, to give out a certain-certain amount of charity over the weekend if Baby L turns.

Alhamdulillah, Baby L turned, and it was such a relief! It was like the greatest news I've heard for quite some time!

It felt like a heavy burden is being carried away from my shoulders.

And now, I'm all set - just waiting for the time. It's time to focus on the right mind set for the labour day. Lots of dua, lots of positivity. Lots of dhizkir and quran. Bismillah! #36weeks

My baby's 5 months now and we went for a detailed scan with Dr Delaila last 2 days. She started from the skull, measuring the circumference of the head and then moved on to see the lips, to check if it has crooked lips (sumbing) and then she measured the thickness of the neck to check if it has down syndrome .and then she went on to check on the spine, to see if it has hunchback, and then she calculated the fingers, all 5 on both sides..and she went on and on and on.. and then she reached the legs and said..

"Okay so now you see the legs, is there anything in between?"

"Hmm...no..?"

"So.. it's a girl! Congratulations!"

Mr. wanted a boy so it took him 2 seconds to absorb the news (hihihi) but I smiled instantly :) :) :)

Then suddenly he started talking about 'daddy's little girl' and how cute the baby looked in the screen and then started imagining the first moment he will meet her and read the Azan to her. You should know that Mr likes to imagine the future a lot. He has already planned how he should position the camera in the labour room and how he should pose while I deliver! - although I'm very sure that all that will not happen hehe.

Can you see the eyes & nose & the really buncit tummy?

You should also know that earlier during the scan, the baby's head was on the left and then suddenly it just flipped to the other side. Having fun?

Alhamdulillah - everything about the baby girl is looking good. Should we start naming her baby rawakramblings? or maybe little miss?

We haven't even found a real suitable name for her yet! I'm looking for something short and sweet.

Everyone else have already felt their baby kicking: my three pregnant colleagues, my two pregnant cousins. Except for me! I know I'm the junior one, but I've been waiting...and wondering how will it feel like.

And then last two nights, as I was lying down to sleep, I felt like a really strong heartbeat from inside my tummy. I thought that it might be the baby's heartbeat, but it wasn't regular. It went on twice, and then I told Mr, "Yanggggg! I think the baby's kicking?". He rightaway sat up and placed his palm on my tummy....and then BOM! A strong drum beat just hitting my tummy!..like telling his daddy, "Yes, this is me!"

Mr. got so excited, "I felt it! I felt it!" and I smiled widely....Yay! I finally felt it! My baby's first kick! :D :D

Screenshot from my ipad's Sprout Lite apps. It gives me weekly updates.

People keep on asking me, "Are you sure you're pregnant? There's no bump!" that it made me ask Dr Delaila the other day, "Is it normal that I don't LOOK pregnant?" and she giggled, "Don't worry dear! It's your first pregnancy and the truth is, those gaining weight at this period of the pregnancy are actually gaining their own weight! Not the baby's!" Fuhh...such a relief. She also told me that losing 1-2kgs during the first trimester is normal. Now that I'm entering my second, I should be eating more.

This week, my appetite's been increasing! Last two nights, I went to the kitchen for a bowl of koko krunch and cold milk at midnight because I was too hungry I could not sleep. Yesterday, I was already hungry for lunch at 11am and ate a whole plate of rice - usually I can only eat half portion.  By 4pm, I was hungry again.

So today, I decided to bring some supply of healthy snack to keep myself full in between meals. Other than a box of Sunmaid raisins, oatmeal cookies, breads and a box of milo drink, I also did this yummy fruit salad:

Other than those two days, I've been doing great! I feel nausea and lethargic sometimes, but that's just it. I haven't been vomiting since.

I've learned a few tricks to help my body control the nausea. Different people have different ways and different stages of nausea. For me, these seem to work:

• Drink juice! Orange or apple works for me because of the slight sour taste. 
• Cold Lipton Ice Lemon Tea!
• Always ensure that my tummy is filled up. When I'm hungry, the gas in the tummy can really lead to vomiting. 
• Don't eat too much. 
• Get my mind occupied. When in the office and I'm all focus on work, somehow I don't feel like vomiting that much. 
• Avoid crowded stuffy places. 
• Always remember to rest. 

I'm feeling much much better today. After 2 days of throwing out everything I ate, doctor gave me the rest of the day yesterday to rest and gain back some energy. I came back home, slept for 3 hours straight. Woke up and forced myself to eat.

It was really really hard for me to eat. I had to chew the bread slowly and then forced them through my throat. And it didn't feel nice at all! After one bite, I rest for a few seconds, then I had another bite. After 5 bites, I stopped. Drank 100Plus to restore back all the energy lost, and then had some more rest. I was very very weak. All that time, I said to myself  "Is this how its going to be the coming month? How do I cope with this?" Whatever it is, I had to force myself to eat, for me and the baby!

However, thank God, I gained back my appetite during dinner and so I ate whatever I can take, drank all the fluids that I've lost and today, I woke up feeling much much better. I had the energy to go through the day at work smoothly. Alhamdulillah!

I even had the crave to eat kari daging that the minute we reached home around 6pm today, I went to the kitchen and cooked it rightaway! We had lamb curry for dinner today! Hah amik kauuuu!

Last 2 weeks, I tested positive on the home pregnancy test, however when we visited a nearby family clinic, the doctor could not see any sac (i.e space) in my uterus. I was supposed to be 5 weeks then. The possibility of a false positive test is very low, and we did the urine test twice - both showed positive results. However, there was also a possibility of a miscarriage. So i was quietly worried.

"Come back next 2 weeks, and we'll do another ultrasound scan on your tummy," said the doctor.

So we left the clinic, not too sure if it was good or bad news. However to both our parents, positive urine test is of course good news! So you can imagine all the 'what-to-eat' and 'what-not-to-eat' warnings I get. "Make sure you don't jump around too much, don't go to the gym! Swimming is okay. Don't go up the stairs too many times...yadda yadda yadda." Truth is, the first trimester is the most sensitive period of the pregnancy, where 30% end up in miscarriages.

So, reluctantly, I followed their advices. It seems that everyday, I learn something new that I CANNOT do or eat. But I trust them, as they're more experienced than I am. Petua nenek moyang, ada baiknya kalau diikut! 

I started having constipation and fatigue - but I was eating well alhamdulillah. However, last 2 days, the  nausea and vomiting started. I vomited every thing I ate. So today, I was totally flat out.

This morning, we had our first appointment with the gynecologist at Sime Darby Medical Center (SDMC). I chose Dr Delaila Ahmad as I've heard a lot of good feedbacks about her! I was praying hard that everything was okay, that the doctor could see the embryo in my uterus.

Turns out that I have inverted uterus. Which is why nothing can be seen through the abdominal ultra scan. Dr Delaila conducted a vagina scan and we saw the baby, with a heartbeat! 7 weeks today :) :) :)

That dark area is the sac. And the embryo is in the small white circle area.

Many of my family members and close friends have learned of this good news. Some are telling me that I shouldn't tell everyone else until I pass the first trimester, the most sensitive part of the pregnancy.

I've decided to write about it here. I'd like to keep this as a diary. If you'd like to spread the news, go ahead. I will not be officially announcing it, whoever knows, knows then :)

Please pray both me and my baby will go through the first trimester fine. I put my faith in Him.

Oh my, motherhood coming soon!