Baby's kicks

Baby is 21 weeks 6 days today. He's supposed to be 28cm and 425g. I love feeling the kicks from him because they tell me he is well and active.

I realised there are 2 kinds of movements. One kind is when baby rolls around or toss and turn, I can feel it like something rolling against my insides. In the earlier days, I felt this kind of movement most often and I often mistaken it for stomach growling. Now, as baby grows and the movement is stronger, I know very well, its my baby turning around inside. Another kind of movement is sharp kicking. Baby rarely do this but when he do it, it's much stronger than the first kind and I felt my stomach bulge up more. Often, when I am sitting upright or standing still, he kicks the lower organs and caused some discomfort. Maybe because my uterus is vertical, baby tend to be in a vertical position as that gives him more space. Sometimes he kicks my bladder and makes me want to pee!

My body is adjusting better to the changes. I learn to adjust my life habits to suit the pregnancy symptoms. Thank goodness I'm not working now, so I could sleep past 10am most of the days. When I manage not to eat anything before 10am, the nausea and vomiting do not trouble me. However, if I don't eat well or if I eat too full or am hungry for too long, the nausea came back and its upsetting. I will feel tired and bloated and feel like vomiting the whole day. That was what happened yesterday. I ate my breakfast too late. I have to wake up at 10am for breakfast or else... Sometimes, I also get diarrhea. There's no predicting when it would happen. I just had diarrhea. Felt much better now and baby is kicking me again as I am typing this :)

Appetite wise, I am eating much more and not as choosy with food as in first trimester. Its near July now, and I am moving into third trimester in August. Just a few weeks more. I am talking to baby everyday, singing nice songs and reading meaningful scriptures to him. I am so looking forward to my baby boy's arrival!

Hubby said he wants to smell baby everyday before he goes to work and before he turns in to bed. He wants to put baby on his chest and let him sleep. I am so happy that I have a loving husband and a soon-to-be-born cute baby.

I do not want baby to be the smartest, the wealthiest, the highest achiever, the best in everything. I want him to be happy, healthy, mentally strong, and with all the right virtues to become the future leader of our world. As natural resources in our world depletes, the elitist and materialistic mindset of our current generation will no longer be adequate for survival. In a world like that, our future generation has got to be more open-minded, more flexible, more creative, and have more love in their heart in order to lead a happy and fulfilling life. That is what hubby and I believe in and that is what we will prepare our younger generation for.

Mid way into the pregnancy

Yesterday, we had a detail scan of baby done at Dr Ho's clinic at Mt Alvernia. I was really looking forward to this scan. We will be able to understand whether baby is normal and healthy, confirm the sex of baby, and we can see baby for a longer time on the screen.

Baby is doing well. They checked everything from head to toe. I kept hearing him say "stomach seen, kidney seen, heart etc etc..." Dr Ho say baby is normal, no abnormalities detected from the scan. We were relieved. In my first trimester, we were asked to take further testing after the Oscar scan because the result wasn't satisfactory. It seems Oscar scan was not accurate, and amniocentesis wasn't necessary at all. We were glad we did not take the 1% miscarriage risk that comes with amnio and saved up $900+ which is the cost of the test.

Thank God for the blessing!

I am very happy that I feel baby's movement and sometimes stronger kicks everyday. They usually come when I sit still or when I am lying down.

Mid way into the pregnancy, I am feeling much better. I had headache and slight nausea in the morning. Today, I vomited a bit of gastric juices after brushing my teeth. Other than that, I am able to function quite well. I can't imagine how I live through the horrifying first trimester. I felt like I had been sick for 3 whole months! Now, I am appreciating good health even more.

Hmm gan jie and I have yet to register for yoga class and the hospital tour and the antenatal classes. We should start that soon... So far, the only exercise I have been doing is the weekly swim. Swimming is not only good for my body, it keeps my mind calm too. I have not swam for ages and when I started that last month, my phobia of water came back. Yup, I have a phobia for water. I used to have panic attacks whenever I swam to the middle part of the deep pool where water is the deepest. Perhaps I had drowned in one of my past lives? I learnt to overcome it :) All phobias can be overcome! We kept to the mid depth pool as pregnant women tend to have more frequent leg cramps and we don't want to risk it. The more I swim, the more I am used to the rhythm and the less afraid I am. It is always mind over matter. Currently, I am enjoying the swim very much.

One thing to be thankful for is that the rashes have almost disappeared. I felt some itchiness sometimes but its not serious is its not an extensive skin area. I bought a tube of the medication just in case but I hope I never had to open it. I guess the good rest, relaxed mood and the chlorine from the swimming pool helps? Kill bacteria. Haha.

With the new flat renovation starting and lots of activities for my spiritual classes, life is getting busier, and I need to manage my time and stress level well during this critical period of pregnancy. The most important is to maintain a positive attitude and an open heart. I'm sure I will not be alone in this journey. Appreciate the kindness and good company from family and friends.