Its Friday today. Baby Suraya has been such a fussy pot since 2 days ago. This morning, it seems like she has decided not to get fussy but its too early to tell.

The husband has been pestering me to train Suraya on feeding from the bottle as sooner or later she will have to adapt herself with it when I get back to work. The husband also would like to play a part in feeding Suraya.

So this morning, I pumped 4 oz of milk for her and gave her first bottle. According to a website, give the baby her bottle when shes half hungry so that she will be willing to try. I did just that...took me 10 minutes to get her use to the Avent nipple, she started to gag and squirm when she first tried it. But then she got the hang of sucking and finished 2.5 ozs of the milk (the other 2 ozs is in the fridge for the next trial feeding) and with her mommy's milk factory to satisfy her hunger (yes she has a huge appetite). So it was half a success! Maybe I shall give her the other 2 ozs this evening. Currently, my freezer looks like a Dairy Queen freezer with milk packs filling the top shelf!

Lastly, Eid Mubarak to all readers! InsyaAllah, we shall see Sam and Salizah this weekend at our house...looking forward to see you guys and lovely Alya too!

Here's Suraya with her favorite toy...like me, she loves looking at herself in the mirror!

Okay, so I typed this long winded posting with pictures and the laptop died on me. Can I rekindle what I wrote? Heck no, so I have decided to condense what I had written.

Last weekend had been fun. The visit to the mother in law's in Reno had been a good one. Weird for someone who had lived in Florida all her life and then moved to Reno eh? But her house has a beautiful scenery...surrounded by mountains (well, Reno's in the middle of nowhere) and very very serene.

So Suraya get to see her grandma Lynn and grandpa Leon for the first time. As usual, the munchkin had been a fussy pot since we got there (whatelse is new eh?). I thought newborns are fuss free and are oblivious to loud noises? Oooohhh, not this one. She also knows when to demand for her mommy for comfort. But it had been a good bonding time for Suraya and her grannies, not forgetting, the husband and her mom.

p.s. Next trip, to Florida to see the rest of the relatives in January.

Grandma Lynn

'Step' Grandpa Leon

Of course, must have 'pengantin' (bride and groom) pic ...look at my chubby cheeks.

Don't forget Kakak Mas...

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In the meantime...

Its been over 2 weeks since Suraya was born...but like I told my father in law in Florida, seems like I have had Suraya forever! She is one adorable baby and I can never get enough of her (except when she fusses and wants noone else but me! Can't even get bathroom break!).

This has been my first and longest breastfeeding success since my first baby. It surely was hardwork trying to breastfeed successfully...note : breastfeeding is for patient mothers only and I dare admit that I did not have patience at all when I had Mas 12 years back. The bond of having the baby latched on to me even in the wee hours of the morning has all been worthwhile to me. Its something that not even anyone else in the family could do...its like a private bonding or ...more like having her in my tummy again, you know what I mean?

Now lets talk about my physical factor. I have gained 40 lbs during the pregnancy. I have lost 14 lbs naturally and I need to lose 25 lbs more! Dilemma, some say not to diet until 4 weeks later as my body needs to recover and I need all the nutrients to produce milk. But I can't stand the flabs on my thighs, hips and everywhere. I feel like a deflated balloon! Last week, I had been doing the semi 'South Beach Diet' like no carbs and sugar BUT, it went on break when I went to Reno hahaha. Now I am back again. So, I'll see how this diet will affect my milk production. If it affects me, then I might have to go slow on this dieting deal. pssst...secretly, on the other hand, I kinda like my chubby face in that picture above hehehe.

Suraya has discovered that getting cleaned up is such a pleasure...like a bath and diaper changes. She loves warm baths and would cry when the bath is over...but would sleep for a long time after it. She would cooperate when she gets her diaper changed especially when it is paps' duty. She is a hefty eater and still gets temperamental and fussy at nights...grrrr!

After the last post, seems like the husband has been smiling gleefully with comments saying that the baby looks like him. I sent the baby's photo gallery link to all my co workers and they all said the same in their comments.

As a daddy, he is very proud upon hearing those comments. As for me, I am not at all offended cos well...if Baby Suraya doesn't look like me, she will look like him yeah? And also, Masturah is already a living replica of me and I don't think I would want another child to look like me. Like the asians say, if the child looks like mom, we tend to bicker a lot...which is oh so true. But hey, the truth still proves that Suraya will still look for me if her human 'pacifiers' do not do a good job, hehehe.

A little bit on Baby Suraya. We got her a couple of crib toys that she loves...


The soother really does its job well. Suraya loves the lights, waterfall and music and the moving animals in the toy. Keeps her quiet for 10 minutes.


The mirror is her all time favorite (like her Ibu who loves the mirror!). She makes baby sounds when she sees herself in the mirror (like her ibu too!) and could stare at herself and the stuff around it for ages.

It surely is amazing reliving early motherhood again. How I miss seeing my other 2 kids going through these stages of early learning and discovery. Like I told the husband, more fun to come as Suraya grows each day.

As for Mas, she had her Winter Band Concert/Flute Recital last night. Too bad, ibu could not attend the concert for the 1st time as Suraya had to stay away from the 'germ incubator' in the school. Paps went to her concert and documented the whole event. We are very proud of her as she played very well!

So we shall go to Reno this weekend to see the mother in law. I think I am feeling better. One thing which I have adamantly told the husband, that Suraya and I will stay indoors throughout our whole trip as the weather is freezing there now. So no snow scenes for me this time.

But we still have to do some shopping before the short trip. Mas needs a new winter jacket, paps needs his haircut and we need to get a Hanukkah/Xmas gift basket for the mother in law. Ibu shall bring her jamu and medications and her Essence of Chicken to keep her warm. Baby doesn't need anything as she has a truck load of clothes and as long as her milk machine (me lah) is with her, she is ready to go!

Daddy and 'squirmy'

Now I remember the word 'multi-tasking' when applied at home. To me, it means 'never ending' work. Laundry gets folded halfway, the house gets half cleaned and taking a shower will take up to 3 stages (from brushing of teeth to the real shower which could be an hour later!) having a baby at home. It's like when the baby cries, you just have to drop everything to tend to her needs. Tiring? Yes...but its been an enjoyable experience for me.

I am referring to the comments from my previous post...that baby Suraya looks like the husband. Sigh...yes she does. Its like the husband in diapers and girl clothes if I must be specific. But the husband insists that Suraya has my nose, eyes and mouth. And we do not know yet whos character she is taking after. Demanding attention, could be the husband's character for now.

Here's the daddy and 'squirmy' picture for comparison...

Note : Suraya has gained 1lb, making her 8lbs as of yesterday. Her umbilical cord 'dropped off' on Saturday, 12/16/06

Just a quick update. I think we have gotten ourselves a Christmas gift (although we do not celebrate christmas) this year. A brand new 2007 Mazda5 Touring. Thanks to our cousin, Abang Hadi, who gave us the idea of an ideal family car when we were back in Singapore last summer. This vehicle will be tested in snow when we go to Reno to visit the mother in law (if I am feeling better).

In the meantime, here's a picture of baby Suraya and tired looking, no make up and still bloated up...me. Suraya has learned to spit her mouthful of ibu's precious breast milk when she is done feeding. She also has learned to grunt when she's half annoyed and then flaaaaaaaaaaaaaare up into a huge cry when shes super annoyed. Kakak Mas is getting better in being a big sister. She learns that talking to the baby would calm her down (although she finds it uncool at first to do baby talk) and she learns other ways to calm baby Suraya when she cries. Paps is doing better in diaper changing. His face no longer turns green when he changes Suraya's poopy diaper and finds her to be lots of fun.

Today's the 2nd day being alone with baby Suraya. It was a weird but nice feeling at first. Weird to be by myself with the baby (as the husband had been by my side since Suraya was born) but nice as the house is so much more peaceful and Suraya gets to sleep longer...more time for ibu to rest!

I have not been feeling too well past 2 days. I think the delivery transition has caught on to me. I have been feeling feverish and sweaty all Wednesday night and the Dr says that it is normal...the same feeling like menopause (errr, never knew that). But Dr says to monitor my temperature and was told to see her immediately if I ever run a fever. Apart from that, my body feels achey all over...again Dr says that its normal. Well, I guess I have forgotten this 'dalam hari' transition?

I think baby Suraya has grown. I know...babies are suppose to grow but its such a joy to see her grow in front of my eyes and with my own milk! Its such an undrescriptive feeling of motherhood again.

I feel that my family has bonded even more with the arrival of baby Suraya. With what we had gone through last summer (just the 3 of us left in the family here), the baby has made us stay so cose together and never stop communicating among us. We have been paying very close attention to Mas, making sure that she is in our 'team' in raising Suraya and knowing that we love her even more each day. As for my son, all I can do is hope, that he will feel us from thousands of miles away. My love for my son will never ever die...thats also another beauty of being a mom.

Christmas is just around the corner. The husband must be so glad that I am anchored at home or I could singlehandedly do some damage to the Household Credit Union. As usual, we do not celebrate Xmas, neither do we celebrate Hannukah. But we do buy Xmas presents for the kids just for them to have. We might drive to Nevada to visit the husband's mom in Reno...but that depends on my health condition. Who wouldn't want a white Christmas eh?

Almost been a week since little munchkin Suraya was born. Hmmmm...how has it been? I can't give the amswer in just one sentence. Maybe in a thousand words and million words, it still will not be enough. Let me think...

Its different...having another kid while my other beloved kid is at the other end of the world. I wish my son was here so that I could do a complete kid count. My kids...3 in front of me, not 2 and one far away. I get to talk to my son when I was at the hospital. How I miss him. How I wish he was here ...don't know if he feels the same.

Anyway, back to the happy part. Having a baby is a re-live of 12 years ago, when Mas was born. But 12 years ago means that I was 12 years younger. Whats the difference?

The down side is that I am not as energetic and 'painless' as oppose to 12 years back. I had tonnes of energy and would still be able to clean the house and care for the baby when the baby was only 5 days old. And I do not hear the 'clinking' sound of my slightly arthritic knees when I climb up the stairs, while trying to bear with my healing loins. So in short, physical factor, habis aku kalah this time!

The upside? I am calmer and have more patience when the baby is fussy every night for 2-3 hours. My breastfeeding has been a success! Thanks to my patience of sometimes having to feed this hungry little monster every hour during the day. Thank goodness she feeds only every 4 hourly during the night which means that I did not really lose much sleep. One trick, she sleeps with me, hanging on to my breast till 2am, then she sleeps in her crib till her next feed and for the rest of the day. I try not to think of my messy kitchen and living room and even the bedroom and be ambitious to clean them cos I know that my body can't handle too any things at a time. I am also able to tolerate the stinking jamu 2x a day and swallow 15 of them in one gulp with no problem cos I know that if I don't take them jamu, my tulang reput will take me nowhere to recovery. I have not gotten post partum depression. Alhamdulillah, I think I am too old to get too worked up over the baby's fuss or maybe I have already gone through a great depression in the summer.

Okay lets talk about the baby. Suraya has been such a good baby so far. A good traveller, she doesn't cry in the car to and from the Dr's except for her 'udder'. She could recognize my voice very very well. She stops crying when she hears my voice and starts staring at me. She still does not fit most of her newborn clothes. She is so adorable, noones can resist her. Oh and she has grown 1.5 inches in length and gained a few ounces since born.

How aboout her older sister Mas? She is so happy to have a baby sister. This stops her misery of being the 'only' child which took months for her to re-adjust without her brother being with her. She loves carrying Suraya, but the problem is, every night Suraya has her fussy time and that makes it impossible for her sister to carry her. So Mas gets to kiss and smother the baby instead. Mas has been and will be a great big sister and her help around the house as lessen alot of burden on me and paps...thank you Mas for being a great daughter!

The daddy/paps? He is an emotional daddy. Very eager to do stuff, irritating the heck out of the baby with the flash of his camera. He has been by my side since the day the baby was born and will start working tomorrow. Before I gave birth, he promised that he would not spend that much time in front of the computer and would be by my side all the time and help with the housework...if only I could make turn his 'commitment' in writing. BUT but but...the husband has been a good help in keeping me sane by getting me stuff when I am rooted on the bed with the baby, help cook dinner, carry the baby when needed and alot of other stuff which I am not able to do. I really do appreciate his company for the past week and his attention for me and my needs. Thank you husband!

Eh, how about me? I am tired, with sore breasts with either a baby hanging onto one breast or have the electric breasts pumps on both breasts...not the most attractive scenario to think about eh? The husband dared not say anything when I was pumping for fear that he would get a semi permanent hand print on his cheek hehehe. My stitch has completely healed but my body still feel sore from the labor. Its amazing how you feel like crap days after labor. I am enjoying the baby and our newly expanded family. It was nice to see us rebond again with this bundle of joy.

3rd Day

We're home! And this is 'yours Truly' writing and not the husband.

Firstly, I would like to thank my beloved husband for being the media master for this truly memorable event...the birth of Suraya Eileen. Also to other beloved bloggers for spreading the word more efficiently than CNN and Bloomberg or if you live in the US, better than KRON4!!! The well wishes, I thank you. The husband actually made the point to print out the posting and the comments from you guys. Moved me to tears when I read them at the hospital.

So...I am sure you would like to know the Birth Story yeah?

In short, I say that the birth was peaceful and painless...thank you to Epidural and the inventor of this anaesthesia.

I was induced on Thursday, 12/07 at 2:30pm with a pill (which I do not know the name) put in my cervix to encourage softening. Just a quarter of the tiny pill for 3 hours and that started the labor. I was 2cm and only 50% effaced (softened) before the pill and after that, I was still 2cm and 80% effaced. I was also put on drip to keep me hydrated. They had to poke me 3 times to get the vein...uhhhmm, my veins are too small!!!

• Then the REAL DEAL began at 5:30pm. The Pitocin which started the labor and there was no turning back (means : cannot go home and say 'cancel' okay).
• By 6:30pm, the Dr requested for Epidural for me before she breaks my water bag. She wanted my labor and delivery to be comfortable. Good deal cos I was already practiicng my breathing while watching Seinfeld on TV.
• 7:15pm, got the epidural. One thing for sure, I HATE NOVACAINE SHOTS! Although it was such a small shot (twice, once when they put the IV in and once for the epidural), the pain was like stinging of a humungous bee, it burns...but by then, I was already dealing with the burn, I didn't realize the epidural inserted into my spine.
• 8:00pm, Dr Shu came, broke my bag...tonnes of water. Like Nazrah said, I will gush out lots of water like waterfall. By then my legs were bloated from the IV and numb from the epidural. No pain and I was still watching the 3rd series of Seinfeld. Dr told the husband, 'She will deliver around 3-4 am okay?'.
• 9-10pm, I was feeling whoozy from the epidural. The anesthetic went up to my ribcage and I was having difficulties breathing. I started to feel nauseated. They repositioned me by elevating the bed so that the anesthetic would run back down below my waist. It worked. Active labor, every minute. I did not feel a thing!
• 11pm, I was 4cm dilated. Received a call from Sam and Sal asking how I was doing. The husband gave some report.
• 11:30pm, the baby's heartbeat began to drop, a vital sign of baby going into transition, meaning : baby's head is coming down. Nurse checked my cervix, 8cm dilated and I could feel the baby's head between my legs. No pain.
• 1am, Dr came, she said she got 2 hours of sleep (she lives 2 mins away from the hospital) and she was so happy that I took a short time to have the baby. She was joking around, while putting my legs on stirrups.
• 1:05am, Dr still joking around. I told her,'Errr, I am pushing here and you're joking'. She says,'Oh, keep pushing...I am not done with my jokes'. It was funny. cos we were all taking this casually. When the baby started to come out, the Dr clapped and laughed so loud saying 'Keep pushing Ely, make the baby come out like Humpty Dumpty'....could you not laugh from that? I still laugh when I think about it hahahah.
• 1:12am, Baby Suraya came, in Dr's arms and she asked 'You wannit?' hahahaha. No pain!

Alhamdulillah, although the labor was about 10 hours, it was painless and easy with just 3 pushes for Baby Suraya to come into this world. And only one internal stitch 'down there'.

Right now, I am at home trying to get more rest. I feel like I just got run over by a truck and trying to recover.

I feel so bloated from the numerous IVs inserted during labor, my thighs are like a redwood tree trunk, my nipples are sore and full, and my 'down there' are also sore though not so bad now, together with the cramps to make up from the 9 months from being absent.

Thank you again for the wishes people. They mean a lot to my family...at least we know that we are close to your hearts :)

Day Two Update

Ely and little Suraya are still in the hospital, and both are doing well. Masturah spent the night with them, making for a "girls night out." Ely says it got a bit chaotic between 1 and 4am when baby got hungry, and Mas was complaining that she can't sleep with all the noise. Sorry I wasn't there, but I think this was the defining moment for our lives in the months to come.

I'm going to spend tonight at the hospital, and Mas will go off to her friend's house for the evening. Ely & Suraya will check out of the hospital in the morning, and I'll bring them straight home. Hope Suraya will like her new home. And I look forward to spending the next week at home, learning to be a daddy...

Introducing Suraya Eileen Greenfield...

NEW! ANOTHER UPDATE: I posted photos of Mas with her new sister... Click on this link to view the photo gallery!







(Posted by David, "The Husband")

Suraya Eileen Greenfield was born at 1:12am today, December 8. She weighed 6 pounds 13 ounces and measured 19 inches long. Ely is still in the hospital and will remain until Sunday morning. Friends and family are welcome to contact her via cell phone or e-mail. I will be traveling between home and hospital, and I will forward all messages to her...

Now...what is wrong with this flavor of cat food? These cats of mine have been so picky since their mommy has been staying home past month. They love Friskies but not this flavor. Some would sniff and give it a pass. Heck no...I would not comply and open another flavored can. I am just grunting over the fuss of these cats...grrr!

Sorry, I know that you would be expecting to see the baby picture instead of the can of cat food. Still no baby yet...and I am getting numerous calls from the office asking the same question. Nazrah...thank you for calling me, I was at the Dr's office when you called. Wish I had the energy to come online at night and chat with you as usual...but I have been so drained especially after Dr's appointment lately...sigh. But you know that I still love you to death!

So...Dr says that its still close but this little one is still not budging from where she's at. She says that I have created a very comfortable nest for this little one to stay longer. Well, with the cakes and cookies and food, no wonder she wants to stay longer! And guess what? I lost 1 freakin pound hahahaha. Must be the 'runs' that I have been getting lately. Whatever comes in goes out!

Like I have promised (now I sound like my Dr), the baby will come meet mommy and see the world by this week. Heh...will still not tell you when. Just lookout for this page okay? In the meantime, your prayers and thoughts for me will be greatly appreciated from the bottom of my heart.

I might update this page one or 2 more times before the baby comes, depending on how much I have to nag and grunt! *snort*

What the...

Friday, 12/01/06

• False labor AGAIN yesterday.
• Lost my mucous plug (google it if you don't know what it is) and had a sudden nagging menstrual like cramps and back pain, as if someone was stabbing my back every 5 minutes.
• Then the contractions came. Dr says do not call until its every 5 minutes per contraction that lasts 1 minute each for an hour (5-1-1). 6 hours later, called the Dr. Told Dr its the '5-1-1'.
• Went to the hospital in 20 minutes, Dr happened to be at the hospital checking on her patient.
• Got onto the examination bed guess what???????? The contractions stopped!
• Monitor indicated that there were teeny weeny contractions...still at 1cm dilation.
• Was observed for 45 minutes and it was 11pm, tired and sleepy, I wanted my own bed!
• Went to Starbucks on the way home, told the husband that his baby is such a faker.
• This one is one of a kind, she must be laughing in my tummy.
• Don't worry, we will pull her out of my tummy by the ear (or her nostrils if we need to) by end of next week...

Thank you Salizah for checking on me. My back was beginning to hurt at that time but hey, I AM STILL HERE hehehe...