I cant believe that I am a Singaporean and yet be in such a need (or should I say, want?) for a new phone upgrade???!!! I cant even remembe the last time I had a new phone!! Maybe a year ago? Whatever happened to my Singaporean sense of photo-savvyness and the capability to keep up with the techno and stuff? I mean, I dont even have a pic upload capability from my darn phone. What is wrong with me???!!!

Let me tell you what is wrong. Life!! and its demands! When u have to choose between pampering yourself with an Iphone or making sure that you stay within a monthly budget that you had set for yourself and your family.. the latter has to win! Like it or not is another thing hence I am still using my MotorolaRazor Phone (thank God its hot pink.. gives me some creditability for being updated right??!). Just called my phone provider whom we have been with for 3 years or more to see if we qualify for a free one of those "top-of-the-line", latest, Broadband phone that'll practially allow me to even build a bomb shelter with a press of a button and of coz, we qualify!!! For a small price. Now to be fair, its not that expensive for us to really plunge in and upgrade but to make the phone usable to its fullest potential, you then of coz need an internet service and all that razzle-dazzle apps too and by the time all is said and done, it would have been rather costly on a monthly basis.

I tell Mark.. why do we need an internet phone? I am at home all the time with the laptop on and u are a software programmer. Seriously, why do we need one? Because we want to be be hip and be like the rest of the world.. walking around and building their lives around this one gadget, I supposed. For me, I have a reputation to keep. I come from a nation that has the highest cell phone turnaround rate per user!!

Oh well.. I found out tonight I had to change our price plans. We have been going over our minutes quite a minutes since the many years ago we got our phone.. thanks to many more friends and events going on in our individual life. Not much changes in terms of money but can I admit that it hurt still?

I so wish I am a millionaire now! Shoot!

Here I am sitting, right beside the window with the cool wind blowing in from outside, sipping my first cup of caffeine, waiting for both of my men to wake up from their morning nap. Granted, both Mark and I had restless sleep last night due to Seth's "lethal" combination of having the Cold and him Teething at the same time but I feel like I am wasting time here. We need to get up and go to the Pumpkin Patch and the Greek Festival today while its still sunny, cool and beautiful outside!! AARRRGGGHH!

Okay, for those of you who have read my status update on FB this morning, yes, I have been in a foul mood. Which is another reason why I am sooo eager to go outside and enjoy the day. I need the cool, refreshing wind to be a form of distractions to my emotions and to "sweep the foul mood" away. I have just been under a lot of stress lately. Events surrounding Seth's recent "developmental needs" (not going into details so pls dont ask), the inconclusive and the dreading wait to hear about this house that we intended to get, my need to get things moving before the next one comes etc etc.. all is wearing down on me. Yes, yes.. ppl tell me not to fret and not to worry but if I dont, things dont move around here. I feel like sometimes, I am the ring master here. I have to strike the whip to get things moving and its hard to manage that on top of everything else that I am going through. Yes, Mark is a great source of support and help but only after I had to remind him and ask for help! Why cant he sometimes do it on his own initiative???

Anyway, I am calling it a day for my foul mood today! I have a splitting headache right now and really, all I want is a nice and relaxing vacation before the next mayhem happens. I dont think I am in much luck for the latter but maybe a nice day out will work its magic for me.

Shoot! I am just going to drag the boys outta bed now!!!!

Its a girl!! Its a girl!!!

It still feels surreal esp since we have already psyched ourselves since the last OBGYN's visit that we are going to have another boy. So its kinda weird to be told that "your boy" is now "a girl" but I think I ought to believe the three different sonogram technicians and the specialist who looked and confirmed 3X that its a girl rather than an ancient old sonogram image from my OBGYN, right? Man.. it still so surreal!
I had to ask my specialist yesterday if he was sure and if that meant that I should go wild shopping for a girl and he wisely, told me that its always a good idea to keep my receipts but yes, I can start shopping!!!

I asked my husband if he was happy and he revealed to me that he was already excited when we were told last week that its a good 80% chance that its going to be a girl. I was like, "What??!!! How come I cant detect the excitement??!!!" That's what happens when u married a man with stoic expressions. You can never tell. Its going to be interesting seeing Mark with a girl. I really hope that he doesnt spoil her too much. I dont want her to be evil, haha.

So... we are going to have a daughter soon. A son and a daughter! Woah...

Its going to be both a busy and exciting day for me.

I am going back to my specialist today to do another gender check on my "modest" child. The idea is for me to drink buckload of tea before I go so that we can get that child of mine jumping and opening his/her legs wide throughout the day. I also have to bring Seth to a dear friend of ours who has graciously agreeded to bbysit him for me. It'll be pushing his noon nap time and all so I hope that Seth will behave until at least I come back with the verdict!

Also, tonight, we are going to meet with our realtor to discuss the possibility of putting in a contract for a house that we had found. I am really thrilled with the prospect of finally finding a place that will be big enough for the 4 of us + 2 dogs but am not thrilled about the idea of packing and actual relocation. Hopefully, it will all work out well before the bb comes.

I am going to be done by the end of tonight but its great to see how my Life is moving along. Two more weeks and 4 more mths before we will have another child on our hands. Its amazing how Time flies.

Will update more. Keep us in prayers!

Ha Ha Ha ......


I dont even know what to say about what had happened over the last two days. Nothing major but just interesting enough for me to wanna talk about it.

So yesterday, there was this huge consignment sale in town for parents. It's really awesome because I mean, its a sale over 4 days, starting Thursday, with a bonus 50% discount off remaining items on the weekends. As of yesterday, I was still under this huge impression that we are going to have another boy so I wasnt really geared to spend alot. I went with the intention of finding a double stroller, if I could, and maybe a couple of educational toys for Seth. I lucked out! I saw a Graco Duo-Glider for $60 (normal retail close to $200) and bought it in an instant!! I mean, where else can I find it for such a great price??!!1 I bought a few more items and left; envious of my galfriend who is currently also pregnant, with a girl. She picked out some really cute outfits for her girl and the two wind breaker that I picked for Seth just didnt yield the same kind of "wow" factor for me.

So today, early in the morning, our whole little family went to see our little No 2 again. Okay, at this point I needed to kinda tell the story.

When I first found out I was pregnant, I went to my regular OBGYN who has the lousy-est ultrasound machine they ever could have. This thing must be at least 10 years old. The resolution is poor and half the time, when the pics of your baby gets printed out, you dont even know what u are looking at!
So during my first visit, my OBGYN, just based on what his pathetic machine was showing him, told me that he couldnt see a fetus in my egg sac. He thought that its either the poor resolution of his machine or that maybe, I am still too early to really show! That, of coz scared the crap outta us and we immediately thought that we had another case of "blighted ovum" on our hands but thankfully, he did also give us the options of either coming back again next week or be sent to a specialist, who obviously, would have the "top of the line" ultrasound machines to do what he does. Naturally, we picked the latter to see later that day and was then told that there is our baby, breathing and beating away and .... it leads us to our story today.

So we went to the specialist this morning and, mind you, I was all prepared to be told that I am having another boy. After measuring the heart and the brains etc, the technician told me that baby isnt in a good position to "tell'. I was of coz disapppointed and frustrated by that time. We tried shaking it and poking it, hoping it would move and finally we managed to have a somewhat valid spot although not perfect. I told the lady what my OBGYN had told me during my last visit and what I had saw and she shook her head. She debated that she couldnt really see the "pee pee" at all and based on the position and what she can detect, it's a girl!
We tried for the longest time to get bb to move to a better position. I even got up and started walking abit but because we werent looking at the private parts exactly, but more btw the legs.. she concluded that its a GOOD 80% chance that its a girl!!!

So here I am.. all confused again. I am not bummed because its a girl or a boy whatever.. I am just upset that I dont know for sure if its a girl so I dont know if I should take advantage of the weekend sale to let my inner shopaholic diva out!!!!! Its so irritating!!!! Why must this happen to be?

My friend asked me what my gut was. To be honest, I have always thought that it might be a girl because of the way I feel this time during the pregnancy. with Seth, i was back to being normal by the second tri and I was eating and happy and enjoying every moment of this but with this one; there are still days when I could barely eat and I am moody, stressed and depressed all the time! Also, I realised (when I was looking at Seth's pics today) that when he was 17 weeks, around the same time as I am today, I could see his "pee pee". It was huge and straight as a lighting pole but really, we didnt see anything btw the legs today. Okay okay.. I know I was very sure the last time I blogged that I thought I saw it but I realised that this baby has its umbilical cord rather close to its body, unlike Seth. So maybe what I thought was a "pee pee"was a loose, hanging cord? I saw the cord today too but realised that it was higher up the body and more evident than Seth so maybe the mistake.

I dont know.. I am scheduled for another "gender checkup" next Tuesday and I am going to make sure that I drink lots of coffee. I want to make that baby move!! And know for sure!

The weather has turned cold finally. Its beautiful on most days.. the Sun is out but the air is cool and crisp. I have been holding out on buying Seth new winter clothes and today, when the morning temp went down to the 50s F, I realised that I have to start buying my man some new long pants and long sleeved shirts.

The result?? A whooping painful $137 out of the pocket. Okay, granted on this bill included some toiletries for myself, 3 outfits for myself but the rest, all his. I have to say, I got at least around 6 items for him and even though, they are all less than $10 each, they slowly creep and adds up. Well, at least now, I know that he will be warm enough for the coming Winter.

I am going to see the Doc on Friday. At this point, I am hoping that it stays a boy because the alternative would have me racing to the stores to buy those most adorable winter dresses I saw in Target tonight! Yikes!!!

Its 2pm and its a rainy afternoon and I should be down for a nap together with Seth but I am not. I know I am going to regret staying up to post this but my urge to talk about it is overtaking my present threshold of sanity within me.

We went to OBGYN yesterday to see 15 week old baby. We were told that it might be way too early but if we are lucky enough, we might be able to walk out of there knowing if its going to be a boy or girl. Firstly, its butt was in our face and we were told that its facing inwards. The Doc pointed the essential parts like the arms, the beating heart etc and then he moved to the bottom of things; right between the legs. I was holding my breath and was praying for him to tell me, "There it is!! The 3 lines indicating that u are going to have a girl!!" but instead I saw this really OBVIOUS white tip "arrowhead" between the legs! I, infact, was the first one to point out the obvious and even though, the Doc thought that I was right, he refused to validate it stating that its still early but it did give us a 70% chance of it being true.

So sigh.. no fun girly shopping for me!!! We went to Old Navy last night and they were having a further 50% off on their baby/toddler clearance stuff and I was disgusted and disappointed that they were mostly girls stuff. I was shooting Mark my "dagger eyes" the whole entire day and blaming him! HAHAHA!
The funny thing was the first thought that came to my mind after I saw the obvious was, "Shoot!! Looks like I will have to go thru morning sickness again for the 3rd time!!" And even then, its a 50/50 chance. All I know is that Mark better do his job RIGHT the next time and GIVE ME A GIRL!!!!

Pressure!

Everything aside, I know I will love this child the same as I love Seth and might eventually be thankful that its a boy because I know that Seth will enjoy his playmate alot more and today, I am actually in a place of acceptance.
We will have a more detailed visit with my specialist on Oct 2nd and I am holding out on the 30% chance of a miracle! LOL... update ya'll more on that!

Today my baby turns 15 mths. No more of a baby but a toddler. Turning 15 mths is no biggie except that we also set up his own toddler bed today. It's our first steps in preparing him for the arrival of his brother/sister. Until we find another bigger place (in the process but that is another story), the two kids would have to share rooms. I hope it works out.

Here are some pics of my "little big boy" and hey, if you have any ideas of how I should decorate the other side of the wall.. let me know. It's not totally done yet as you can see but the theme will run along "Transportation".





Daddy setting up the teeny weeny bed. It's so tiny, its adorable. Even I cant sit on it and it would be hard for me to remember that!




He looks excited. I hope he will stay in it.





I had Mark sit right next to it to show the scale of the bed. We have yet to put up his themed "transportation" comforter set and his part of the room really isnt done yet.





My little hippie pooh

We are stranded from Church this weekend again.

Its always something or another. Two weekends ago, it was the "hand foot and mouth" virus that Seth caught and then it was Labour Day in Texas and this week, it was the dreaded, seasonal cold shared btw Seth and I. You dont know how much a child can affect you until your social life gets put on hold because of all these minor colds and "bugs".
If it's not the "bugs" then its because they want to nap after you had painstakingly dressed yourself to look somewhat presentable to go to the stores and is about to leave the door. Yes, at the final last minute, they want to take a nap.

Oh well.. I guess I'll spend another lazy day indoor with my sleepy and "green snotty" son.

Its sad that I rarely come to LJ and air my thoughts anymore. Chalked it to lack of time, lack of energy, inspiration or just being plain laziness to have to think out the words to string my thoughts but yeah.. I've neglected this old friend of mine.
Also, I have facebook which I find it easier to sum up my "status" with my thoughts and my mood for the day etc with those few words but oh well, I am here again; trying to revive my blogging skills again.

Most of you would know through Facebook but for those of you who dont.... Mark and I are pregnant again! Yes, even though we had planned to try again for No.2 after Seth's bday, it was still a huge surprise because we didnt expect ourselves to "hit the jackpot" within 2 mths. It came as a very pleasant surprise and then after a few days, reality hit me!! What am I going to do with a brand new baby and a barely 2 year old in a few mths time. I panicked initially, being the worry-wart that I am but I've been told over and over again, that this time would be easier because we would be seasoned. Okay, I will take heed to that.

I am entering into my 15th week as we speak. Its amazing to see how much I am already showing compared to how flat my tummy still was when I had Seth at this same time. Yes, I blame it on the fact that everything has been "expanded and enlarged" thanks to my son. I think I was already wearing maternity bottoms within the first week of finding out. It's bloody depressing!!!
Then morning sickness came and this time, it kicked me in the butt hard. I think its due to the fact that unlike the first time, I have Seth to watch in the daytime therefore I dont have the leisure to sleep and rest when I want. I was rather functionable in the daytime but when evening came, I crashed and I crashed hard. For a good mth, I really thought I was going to die!!! I couldnt eat and I couldnt think of food but I was HUNGRY!!! No, I was FAMISHED!!!! all the freaking time so put being famished and yet cannot put anything in your mouth because Food suddenly took on a weird taste and texture for you. It was TORTURE!!!
I told Mark that if this is going to be a girl and if the delivery is going to even 5% harder than Seth's, we are done!!! DONE DONE DONE!!!

Speaking of gender, we of coz, dont know what its going to be yet but the last ultrasound, the technician said that if she had to guess, it looked like its going to be a girl. Of coz, this means nothing but yes, I do want a girl. I want one with curly curls, big blue eyes and fair porcelin skin. Yah.. way to be wishful, Laura. The plan right now, if we still are in this apartment when wee have the child is for the two kids to share a room. A part of me wants to have a boy so that Seth can share the room with a brother; has a brother for a playmate and for practicality, I dont have to buy anything but a part of me wants to go and buy cute, pink girly butterflies and fairies and ladybug stuff!! We'll see....

Now that my morning sickness is waning off, I am getting more excited about the prospect of having an addition to the family. This might be it to complete our family.
I cant believe that my little Sethie pooh is going to be a big brother soon. I hope he is prepared to share his toys, ha!

More later...