The belly is getting bigger. A co worker who just came back from the Philipines after 2 weeks says that I have grown huge…even my butt has grown huge too! Funny? Not really cos my tummy feels so tight, I cant sit up straight but sit back. I cant eat a full meal, only half a meal cos my tummy is squished by the baby. The baby moves all the time except when I am sleeping (thank God!).

Good thing is, I have not been constipating nor having leg cramps. The cravings for cakes are oh my God…so strong. Cakes with fresh cream ooooohhh….lagi sedap!

Today will be the last day that I am able to wear my Miracle Pants…the pants that are marketed as the 'most versatile' as it has a belt and you can fasten it as your pregnancy progresses. Well………….hows this, I can't use the belt and I cant zip it up as my belly's too huge. So I am left with 3 pairs of pants. That’s okay, 2 more work week to go and then I can wear my mumus (batik dress lah) at home.

The other night, I was rolling on the bed, stretched my hand to pick up the remote control on the floor, and then I got stuck! The baby decided to shift and I could not pull myself back to the bed. As soon as the husband 'towed' me back to the bed, my tummy was 'slanted' as the baby was somewhat diagonal. Yes, very very pregnant ladies do get stuck in the weirdest position. Another time was when I was picking up stuff from the floor, no, I did not squat and pick but bent over to pick…but my body was stuck in a 'rukuk' position for a few seconds before I was able to stand back up. Sometimes I have to call the the husband to 'unstuck' me. Poor me!

Walking has indeed been a task for me. Feels like a huge rock is sitting on my pelvic bone. No more speed when I walk, more like 1 mile an hour, unless I am crossing the road, then it will be 1.1 mile an hour.

Now I am worried, if the baby's 'newborn' size clothes will not fit her if shes a huge baby! I hope Sam and Salizah will not be shocked by the size of my belly when they see me tomorrow.

In the meantime, I have my birth plan ready for now. Yes, after 2 kids of braving the childbirth pain, I opting for epidural this time round. I do have others listed in my plan too. Until I moved here, I didn't know that I can indeed have a birth plan! Now I need to start preparing my 'hospital bag'. But I told the husband, by any chance if I did't get the chance to prepare my hospital bag, do not worry, I can still have the baby without my toothbrush and toothpaste as long as I have my makeup in the purse, thats all that matters!

Happy weekend everyone!!!

Eid Mubarak and Happy Birthday to me...

Today is Hari Raya. Eid Mubarak to everyone reading this.

Received a call from Sam and Salizah last night, how wonderful and heartwarming.

Today, I received a call from Singapore, Uja called and sang me a Raya song. She is always bursting with energy. You never fail to cheer me up.

Thank you Uja and Ajun for calling me. Oh and I also received your jamu, box still intact.

At least someone from there are thinking of me.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Tomorrow's my birthday. I always receive my gifts the night before my birthday, like tonight. Got my year's supply of Womens Eternity perfume which I have run out of, a JBL iPod docking station and a Coach wallet/purse (which Mas says that Paps bought the wrong one for me). A handmade Birthday Card from London also came with the gifts. At least this time the husband knows that he would not get me the same card like 2 years back (yes, the same birthday card 2 years in a row!).

Thank you for the gifts Mas and Paps. I am now waiting for my cake from Dianda's!

Listed the ingredients for cooking today.
Went to the asian supermarket, dragged the husband, he knows that Ely's on a Hari Raya grocery shopping spree. Exciting, they have finally imported the Kara santan in the box! Got the ingredients for kuah lodeh and rendang and sambal goreng pengantin. Decided to make my own kerisik...no problem.

Hmmm, today's menu will be kuah lodeh, sambal tumis and lontong is boiling in the pot. Husband says, don't forget to cook the chicken, he must have meat...so I might make ayam goreng for tonight.

Rendang and sambal goreng will be cooked on Friday night for potluck at Sam & Sal's. Talk about Sal, just sneaked a peek at Alya's blog, got kueh raya, best nya! No kueh raya for us this year. This cook here has no energy to be a baker. Oh and thank you for the lovely Alaya Raya card and the Alya stamp...adorable. And we have also received your gift from Babys R Us...big thank you! I know we owe Alya something nice :)

It is Hari Raya for us tomorrow, Monday, 10/23/06. We paid our tithe. So tonight we will have the big dinner...

Yesterday was our hospital tour. It was refreshing for me, seeing tiny babies always lifts my spirits. I tend to compare the size of the rooms when I delivered at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore...still can't beat the large delivery room there but this will do. Then we went to 3 different megastores and finally decided on a stroller. the worst part, after deciding, they were out of stock...thanks to internet shopping, we got our stroller! Then we spent hours on the net looking for a crib comforter set for the munchkin...have decided on a Hello Kitty set but still bookmarking possibilities.

I have been emotional past days. Miss my son, anger over the whole scenario. I feel for my daughter. Somehow or rather, I think my daughter has been hit emotionally the most as she has lost a sibling who was with her everyday of her life. We all try not to talk about Raya...all I can do is cry and then recover, cry and then recover. Allah must have given me so much strength to have stayed sane and have my baby to be delivered in a few weeks...Subhanallah...only He knows how I as a mother feel right now.

To my husband, thank you for being here for me. The pain, the sorrow, the tears and the heartache, you are here.

Raya this year will be just like any other year. Since it will fall on a Monday for us, I will do my masak masak on Sunday. Nothing much really, just kuah lodeh and lontong and sambal tumis for that day. The big masak masak will be next weekend when we have potluck at Sam and Sal's house. My piece will be rendang and sambal goreng pengantin…I LOVE to cook so I am really looking forward to it.

This year, hari raya will just be the 3 of us. The husband, the daughter and me. We will be in our respective offices and school on Monday. Yes…no holidays and I know someone at the other end of the world always says that we do not respect Syawal just because we are working on that day (oh come on!).

As raya approaches, it gets harder for me. As it is, the year had not been that happy for me. This day only adds more sorrows in my heart and my daughter's…my husband always takes on more sorrows when his 'ladies' are in sorrow moods. This is my first year not listening to any raya songs for sanity sake. My daughter and I just had a huddled crying session over the emotions that she is going through (never mind ibu, I can keep my emotions). My daughter is still trying to get use to not having her brother with her all the time and running out of ideas on how to amuse herself. Sometimes we wonder if anyone on the other side of the world would even wonder how we're feeling. Sigh…

But life goes on, at least we will have a big meal on Sunday, insyaAllah go to the nearest mosque to pay tithe and be part of the celebration. The next weekend will be with our friends and then the weekend after too…with home improvements in between.

My mother in law is also moving from Florida to Reno and there will be more reunions to come. Some friends have been contacting us, some living in Sacramento, to meet up with us before I deliver. Yup, they love last minute meet ups.

To those who are with their families, please treasure your family, especially your beloved kids. They are the diamonds in your heart and irreplaceable. We always do not re

Selamat Hari Raya to all my readers, Maaf Zahir Batin and thank you for your kind wishes :)

If my son is reading this, everyone is thinking of you here.

Now where should I start? So much to talk about as usual.

Remember I told you before that I would be working all the way till the baby decides to pop? I was very adamant about it, saying that I would really be okay? Well, I lied. As of Saturday, I realized that I am REALLY beginning to S-L-O-W...down. The need for a bench or a chair is so great after every 20 minutes of walking. The constant trips up and down the aisle in tbe office is enough to make me huff and puff when I reach a co worker's workstation and then only to yawn and almost fall asleep as we are talking about work. I get tired at any time of the day and my bladder gets tickled by the little munchkin even when its empty and laying in bed when I am home. When I sit down, the tummy feels crunched up and the baby would stretch for more space, cramping my ribcage. Fun? Can't comment on that!

So what has been pre-determined as I reach 36 weeks of pregnancy? That I will go on early Disability to stay home and wait for the egg to hatch. I have no choice as I know that my body will denfinitly not allow me to run around that much. At least that will give me the chance to be home, in bed, get our bedroom+nursery ready and the only exercise I would get might be the constant visitations to the mall (what? I could hear the husband yelling at me saying 'Give me those credit cards!!!').

The boss is ready for my early take off. Maybe cos he can't stand seeing me waddling and yawning each time I see him. He is also learning to delegate tasks to his 2 other assistant managers so that I could 'dissolve' slowly while being cross trained.

In the meantime, I can't count how many times we have visited Ikea in the past 3 weeks. Can I say 3 times? Yes 3 times. From getting some essential furniture, to the baby's dresser, dining chairs, etc etc. As for the last visit last weekend, it was hard for me not to sit down when I was trying my best to complete my round at the showroom. It was HARD. The discomfort is not on the back or hips but more on the tummy, the weight of the tummy throws me off balance and gives me the stitches. Even the trip to Costco was such hardship for me, only to feel better when I told myself that I could be eating the Kosher hotdogs at their Deli after paying for the groceries!

So we have decided not to change the flooring for the bedroom but just call Stanley Steemer again to steam the carpet. Then we're going to set up the baby's dresser, crib and the husband's new computer desk. With the early disability leave that I intend to take, the room should be ready to go by the time the baby arrives. Oh and we're also going to put an old rocker in the bedroom and a glider in the living room. My new 'butt resting' nests after the husband's comfortable new living room chair!!!

Like this one...please ignore the red chairs to my right, they will be out of the house by this weekend!

Such a sucker for personal goodness I am! Especially when I in a 'round the clock discomfort'.

I was at the Hair Salon promptly at 10am. Le, my hairdresser was already busy doing someone's hair. 'A few more minutes okay'...she yelled to me and I said okay. I went to the store and got myself a bottled water and then sat on the only available chair in the waiting area, holding my Life & Style magazine...ahemm, wanted to show Le... Jennifer Lopez's picture, to look like her...eh no, to have the same haircolor like her!

While I was flipping the pages, a 4 year old who sat next to me asked,'Excuse me, could I have that magazine when you're done?' Eh eh budak nih...so I said,'Well, I need this magazine to show to the hairdresser how I want my hair to look like'. Thinking that I am some kind of nut, she said 'Ohhhhhh, okay' but she kept poking her head in front of me to see the pages as I was flipping through them. NO...I am not giving her my magazine!

Le's few minutes turned into 30 minutes. Not that I really care...I could see her straightening this 4 year old mom's hair, and then said hold on to her and took in another customer to do her eyebrows and then went back to the mom. Busy busy busy.

Then it was my turn, and at the same time, a regular customer nyonya came in and said that she needed her hair colored and wanted it quick. This lady is always there when I am. But Le, attended to me first, I showed her the Jennifer Lopez picture, dark base color with skinny streaks. I told her 'I want this haircolor but you really do not have to make me look like her!'. To make the story short, the whole process was about 2.5 hours, which I did not mind at all.

I loved my hair and scalp being massaged, my head put into that hairdryer bubble thingy that almost put me to sleep. Then the manicure/pedicure girl came up to me and asked me for the 6th time when I am due to deliver (she asks me each time I come by) and asked me if I would like a pedicure while my head is in the bubble. No, I really could not spend more money!

By the time I was done, the manicure/pedicure girl was on her way to selling me a ceramic straightening iron that costs $100...errr...'No sister, I really do not need that iron as I have one at home' (though not as good as hers lah).

But I left the place happy, feeling pampered and having the haircolor like Jennifer Lopez...and a substantial amount of money poorer.

At least when I was at a gf's birthday party after that, they all said that the haircolor looked great!

Remember the last time I colored my hair at the salon in Singapore with Makcik Hopes? Well, I have grossly outgrown on the color and the roots have grown up to 4 inches in length and I surely do look like a skunk. Time for me to spend the money on a different color and highlights again! Of course, it will not be as cheap as when I did it back in Singapore.

The husband was asking why I am not coloring my hair out of the box like I use to do. My answer? Cos I am pregnant and this is the only way for me to make myself feel that I am trying to make myself look better. Well it is not a lame excuse right right right? I do need to feel good about myself especially during the last few weeks of this pregnancy when I am feeling fat, full and heavy. Also, I know that the husband will be taking tonnes of pictues when the baby is born so hopefully, the colors and highlights will not be outgrown and my hair would still look perfect when the time comes!

So I have made the appointment to see Le, my hairdresser. 10am Saturday morning. I am excited!

Everyone's talking about raya preparation especially when you are living back home I have read some bloggers posting about Roti John, kueh Badak Berendam, Kueh keria and all. And some bloggers are already posting about how much they have covered for raya preparation. Baju raya warna aper, kain sampin warna aper. And me??? All I talk about is work and pregnancy eh?

Sigh...it is surely different when you live in another part of the world. Life goes on of course, puasa tetap puasa (not me lah but the rest of my family members), buka tetap buka. But no bazaar, no baju raya (I can't fit into mine) and maybe plans to visit a few friends on that raya weekend. Very quiet ramadan and very quiet Eid for us. Sometimes if Eid falls on a weekday, I do go to work and the kids go to school (of course this does not sit well with one of my parents who think that we do not respect Eid).

Do I wish now that I would be home to celebrate Eid? Not this year. With happenings back home, I also sometimes wonder why I went back 2 months ago, only to come home with hurt and depression.

Now that we're busy preparing our home for this little munchkin, I have to avoid from feeling depressed for fear of pre-term labor. 8 more weeks to go, I am always 10 days early so can I say that I have 6 more weeks to go? We'll see...

To readers back home and anywhere in the world, happy preparing for raya okay. Ingatlah daku ketika makan rendang dan lontong tuh. Don't worry, rendang and lontong will be on our table on raya, not forgetting sambal goreng too!

ps : ooooh, I know that I have to call our friends here to meet up for buka puasa. Sorry ladies, insyaAllah, I will call soon, just need to find time and put my Swiffer duster and garbage bags away!

Is this nesting too?

Like I mentioned in my previous post, the home improvement stops on weekdays and we really mean it.

But my progression of being cross trained in 3 job skills within a time period of about 8 weeksn from now, is 1/3 off the ground. I have completed the training in cashiering, now I am going to the 2nd stage of cashiering. That would take me 2 weeks to complete (as its more complicating) and then proceed to another job skill which is totally different but involves money too.

Imagine me, a person who never carries more than $100 in cash (only ATMs and credit cards please) being trained at the front line to receive cash everyday, sometimes large amounts to balance at the end of the day. I thought I was going to be a nervous wreck when I started doing it but seems like I was enjoying it. Counting money which is not mine and not having to think on how to spend it (hahahahaha...!), and then putting them into the huge safe.

But what amazes me is being in my last trimester of pregnancy, with huge tummy hanging out and with a bad bad bad memory (pregnancy brain) and keeps dropping her pens and papers expecting co workers to pick them up for me, but can still absorb and learn new skills. Of course, I have to write them ALL down, every step and procedures.

Forgetfulness...it is so bad that

• I forget to go lunch with a co worker and went with another instead

• forget to order business cards for the new office which opened last week, only to remember 2 days before opening (boss had to bite his tongue and he knows I have the pregnancy brain but he was pissed as hell!)
• forget to water my office plants a few times that some leaves turned yellow (but they decided not to die)
• and guess what...even forget to take my 15 minutes coffee breaks!

My co workers jested saying that I will forget what I have learned just as fast. But God help me please....I hope not!

I guess I am nesting at work too eh?

The nesting begins...

I have approximately 9 more weeks before the baby arrives. Yes...9 more weeks. So much to do and so little time.

We are 95% completed on the hard wood flooring project in our living room, with just the wood siding to be fixed. The husband painted the living room with a very warm orange. We brought down all the wall deco and are going to start over including the drapes. We need to change the futon mattress to a fluffier one. Then we need to get 2 armchairs to complete the furnishing. We also need new lighting.

And then we have our bedroom to change the floorings on, maybe paint it, buy a new king sized bed and then baby furniture.

Realistically, we do not do home improvement on weekdays. So we're down to about 8 weekends...thats 16 days in total. Do you think we can complete all these in 9 weeks?

We'll see...

Firstly, RAMADAN MUBARAK TO ALL MY READERS here. Didn't mean to ignore such a much gifted month from Allah at all. But the spa experience was too much for me to miss blogging about :)

3rd day of Ramadan here. So far so good. Being 7.5 months pregnant, I would be lying if I say that I have been fasting. But I shall not go into further details to give respect to those who are fasting.

It has been a quiet Ramadan. Unlike in Singapore or even Malaysia where gerai makan would be opened after zuhur to let the muslims be feasted their eyes on food, food and abundance of food. Not until I moved here when I realized that you can literally swim into a reservoir of food during Ramadan and Eid. Except unless we visit our Arabic foster parents when we get the dates, samosas and dessert from them.

The husband doesn't cook dinner till 30 minutes before Iftar. Simple dinner tonight, pasta. Maybe pasta for Sahur as well. Then the daughter would go back to her books, she has a Science quiz tomorrow and the husband looking at the living room walls...trying to think if he should paint the living room walls tonight or maybe not. Seems like the answer is the latter one.

In the meantime, work has been unkind and kind to me at the same time. I have exactly 10 weeks before the baby arrrives and I have those 10 weeks to be cross trained before I go on maternity leave. In order for me to move to another office and run it, I would have to be able to know the functions of the office. 3 job skills in 10 weeks, mainly something that has to do with CASH apart from the insurance skills that I already have.

Easy? Today was my first day being cross trained. I was put with the cashiers, taking insurance payments, run credit cards and observe balancing of cash. After 2 hours of observation, I was already taking in payments. I was excited! I am always excited with changes. Some people might think that I am nuts but hey...I love changes. By the time it was 2pm, I was tired. My brains were tired, too much fun, too much laughing, too much figures.

It's 8pm now and I have Stinky the cat climbing on my shoulder, Puffy nudging his head on my elbow asking for love and Pinky sitting in front of me, waiting till I am done with the laptop to give her attention. How more relaxing can this be?

ps, just reminded Uja that she needs to come back in 12 weeks so that she could come visit me when I have the baby.

The best Anniversary ever...

No really, I did not expect anything from dear husband when this day approached this morning. 'Just another day, the day that we were married'. Like previous years, the husband would suggest to take the kids for our anniversary dinner which I usually reminded him that it is our anniversary and not theirs. Last year, we managed to go out alone at a Thai restaurant when my close co worker walked in on us and we ended up at their house!

But Friday night, before I went to bed, he said that he would be taking me somewhere special and we had to be there at 8am. My overwhelming curiosity was too much that I didn't have twist the husband's arm to tell me what was up his sleeves.

Its a prenatal spa...no wait...a LUXURIOUS Prenatal Spa at Huntington Hotel on Nob Hill . Ooooooooooooooooh...I was very excited! Maybe that was why I slept like a baby.

Got there at 7:45am, luxurious hotel which we knew that we would never afford to stay a night at this hotel. The husband checked me in and the lady walked me through the spa. Aaaaah, of course, yours truly has never been to a luxurious spa like this before. I was assigned a locker to keep my stuff and a nice robe and slippers. Slipped into them and waited at by the Facility Room (see the picture above) to wait for my masseuse, drinking decafed tea by the heated pool, with a couple of other ladies (pst, they're asians too hehehe) sitting on their own lounge chair waiting for their masseuse.

Helen, my masseuse, came promptly at 8am and we went into a private therapy room. Very quiet, very dimmed with songs of nature. Of course, she couldn't make me lay on my tummy but to my side with all the stylo mylo special pillows for pregnant women, very nice...surrounded by pillows. Then there was this pregnancy therapy oil (dont ask me what it was) which smelled so good.



The 50 minute massage was HEAVENLY. Not like the Mak Joyah and Mak Minah's massage at home smelling of minyak gosok. But very relaxing, I almost fell asleep. Helen really found the tender points of pregnant women, the legs and the hips! Sedaaaaaaaaap! By the time she was done, I was not ready to leave...hello!



Oh heck, I left the therapy room and went for my shower, weighed myself (yeah i gained 4 lbs past 4 weeks), and was contemplatng if I should sit in the steam room, just so to say that I did it. But no, I had my shower and the husband was already waiting. But the whole process of getting dressed with the music playing and the quiet ambience...heavenly.

By the time I saw the husband, I sounded so mellow and happy! Got home at 9:40 and guess what I did? Went back to sleep with numerous pillows surrounding me and imagined that I was still at the Spa.

What did I get for the husband? I can't afford that Spa for him, maybe on his birthday eh? But got him a couple of stuff that he needed, 1/4 of the price that he paid for my spa!

Next time when if I were to go there, I would plan for another massage, a medicure and pedicure and maybe with a facial. Ahemmm...hear that husband? Hehehe...

But the day was not over yet. We went to Trader Vic's in Palo Alto for a late dinner or should I say berbuka puasa. This restaurant is Hawaiian influenced serving fusion asian food.

The atmosphere of the restaurant was splendid, good for a mellow, pleasant and long dinner. The food is overpriced, but I guess we were paying for the atmosphere eh? Nice seafood and jumbo shrimp!

By the time it was 9:30pm, we were stuffed and tired and I was ready to sleep...now that's a sign of age and that our marriage has matured...hehehehe.

Thank you husband for the lovely day. You know that I could not have enjoyed it without you :)

Dearest Best Friend...

Us...5 years ago

Another year…has gone by
5 years since you became my best friend
5 years since you came into my life
5 years since we said our vows

But the time has not changed my love and trust for you
If they have, the feelings are just even stronger.

Thank you for being a wonderful husband and stepdad

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO US…my best friend!

Love you always…your wife.

Do you believe in standing up for your own rights when you feel that your rights have been violated or are you a pushover (let others push you around)?
Would you do it only to the people closest to you or are you a natural when it comes to this?
Do you feel guilty when you stand up for your rights or do you regret after that?

Just some points to ponder upon...

To me, I am 'yes' to all except for the last one. Don’t ask me how I adopted this behaviour but it is definitely not through being married to an american (or so people say that I might have picked this attitude from him). I dare say that I married an american due to my behaviour! I have been like this since I was in school. I stuck out like a sore thumb just because I 'said my piece' (besides that 'new wave' hairdo and that ala 'Pretty in Pink' outfits…so not malay!) and then I feel good about it. But not every 'standing up' works for me. Some backfire but that’s when we learn to understand others better. Do you believe that I tend to 'stand up' for someone else too? Call me busybody but it bugs me to no end when I see someone gets trampled upon.

But don’t get me wrong, this does not mean that I am quarrelsome. I can be the most rational person to work and get along with. Just don’t catch me whining at the wrong time hehe.

So…why am I talking about this in this posting? Cos I feel good about standing up for my rights now and and still standing up for it.

Do I sound like a rebel yet?

ps : maybe these Dansko clogs on my feet makes feel like I 'stand' 2 inches taller hahaha.

My Danskos!

Finally, finally, FINALLY, I own a pair of Dansko Clogs!!!

I know, some of you might be asking if I am insane, happy to buy a pair or Danish Clogs for US$114.

Here are some reasons as to why I decided to buy a pair for myself:
- Cos I am pregnant. Comfort is the ultimate priority right now.
- I know that I can't wear kitten heeled boots due to my fat ankles especially when pregnant, so need to make up for the 'loss'.
- I bought a pair of dark gold ballet flats, love them but still need more comfort.
- Bought myself a pair of Skechers Mary Janes, love them too, but still need another indulgence.
- Bought myself yet another pair of Scholls Airpillow sandals, which are so comfortable but...
- Fall is coming, errr no, summer in San Francisco is like fall, what am I talking about...so I need to cover them toesies.

Enough reasons/excuses already? These pair of clogs are so comfortable! Took me a few weeks to justify if I would really spend that much for a pair of clogs. A co worker who owns the clogs says that these clogs last for years (well, at least 2 years). She's never pregnant but it really is a pair of comfortable shoes that could add to her boots collection.

Well anyway, Ely needs to stop her excuses for buying a pair of US$114 clogs (guilty babe!). Here's another pair of Danskos that I would die for...maybe for the next fall.

My gem...

Sometimes being a mom, you do not know what kind of gem you have given birth to regardless of how many kids you have. No… let me rephrase that. Every kid is a gem to a mom. You can have 20 kids but each and every one of them is different and special in every ways and you love them all the same, but in a unique way yeah?

My daughter has so far been my strength and will to drive to positivity in life. She has shown such loyalty and love towards me. Her attention to me and her efforts to keep me happy had always been felt from her.

She once told me when we were going through hard times…that she will never turn her back on her ibu. She will stay loyal to her ibu no matter what. I like to not take her seriously and say,'Yeah yeah, you're just saying it! Then you forget ibu just like that!'

When I am down and crying, she will make fun of me and say 'Alah, dia nangis pulak! Dah lah ibu, don't cry! Stop being a cry baby!' then I would start laughing. But there are also times when she would just tell me 'Ibu, its not your fault okay. Things happen and theres nothing we can do. Other people can be so stupid you know! Feel better okay!'.

I remember when she was only 9 and I was sick. She just moved to San Francisco and when she came home from school, she saw me sleeping in bed. She came up to me, kissed me on the cheek and pulled the covers on me and said,'Feel better ibu!' and checked on me every hour to see if I was still breathing.

You know, sometimes we do not realize how good we get from our kids until we sit down and think of them. How they also tend to be as nurturing as how we have been to them. Only this time, it’s the other way round, that they can also love us the same way as we love and care for them.

Thank you Masturah, thank you for being such a wonderful friend and daughter to me. You have been my strength and my light of hope for your paps and me.

Sympathy pregnancy...on the internet, psychologists say that this is due to husbands trying to take the pain away from their wives. It is also said that this is bonding time between, the husband, wife and the baby.

Why did I even mention sympathy pregnancy? Cos it is getting more apparent now that the husband is growing more than me. The circumference of his tummy is 3 inches larger than mine. Some friends are beginning to ask if it was him whos pregnant or me. Cos it also seems like he is the one whos craving instead of me and he was the one feeling so 'out of the weather' in my first trimester compared to me. (ps. I am craving for apple pie now!).

So yesterday the husband asked,'So in December, my weight should go away when the supposedly sympathy pregnancy is over right?' and I said,'Well, I lost 27 lbs before I got pregnant but you didn’t. I am sure I would lose my weight after I give birth, don’t know about you!'.

Theres nothing much to update about my physical factor right now besides feeling depressed of not being able to buy more clothes just cos I don’t fit into the regular clothes. Can't buy them fall boots cos I am too clumsy for them, can't even walk in the mall for too long cos I would feel lightheaded and would prefer the bed instead. Bed? Can't sleep in one position for too long as my hips and legs would hurt. And the queen sized bed is definitely too small for us and the cats now that I have been nagging for a bigger bed!

Am I whining too much already? Wait I have more...I waddle and can't walk fast but I can surely walk long distance. This means that my body is telling me to slow down. I am also due for a 'promotion' (ahemm) which needs to be done before I go for my maternity leave as I would be moved to a totally new office in the city when I come back to work. Which also means that I have to be moved to a totally new section and learn new things. We will be interviewing the lady who supposedly will be replacing me this week and I would be included in the panel interview. The boss told me that I will be fully responsible in looking for the 'perfect replacement' for him and he does not want any skill glitches when I move to another section. Actually, I know secretly he does not want me to move but he has no choice and needs me in another office to be his 'eyes and ears'. Besides the 'pregnancy brain' (absentmindedness) that I am having, I am sure learning new things at this time will be oh so dandy!

Enough of pregnancy talk, we had a good time last weekend. Besides grocery shopping and potential bed shopping, we went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium to see the great white shark which is in captivity. Nothing great about it...this little guy was tiny. Yes…little…I think the sea turtle was bigger than this one! Here are some pictures. No sun by the ocean…just some fog as usual until we reached Gilroy.

Anchovies!

We took similar picture at the same spot 5 years back, before we were married hehe!

Do I look big yet?

The child has spoken…Mas wants to go to a musical High School in 2 years. This would be her 5th year playing the flute and she wants to study music full time.

Hmmm…that leaves paps and me thinking, does she really want to do it? We also told her that if she were to go to a music school, it will be Chamber Music…classical and not the Singapore/American/Whatever country Idol and not a punk rock music school either. We know that she is going for guitar lessons this fall and we told her that she surely is not going to play rock guitar if she were to go to that school as she will be auditioned on her best talent. She says 'Okay, I'll go!'.

Next comes the cost. Over here, the school will be called the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. It’s a wholely private school where the students range from high school kids to post graduates. They will also be academically educated with music being the main major. Sounds good? Lets look at the tuition fees….

US$26k per year which breaks down to about $2.2k per month. A lot? YES…but according to the website, 80% of the students are either on scholarship/aided or on loan to go through the courses. Hmmm…we also have the 'jewish granny' scholarships if we tried hard eh?

First things first, Mas will not be going to high school until the year 2008. By then she would then have made the decision of going to the Conservatory or not. Whichever choice she might choose, we're here to fully support her decision. I remember 3 years back when she was in soccer, her soccer coach told me that from Mas' movements and agility, she is musically inclined and should go to the Conservatory. How did he know that? Our optametrist said the same thing too. Maybe someday she will be the flute version of Vanessa Mae or even an artist. Some girl she is…

The boy? He has other dreams. He is more inclined in sports and academic. He is the more 'matter of fact' kind of person who would fit being either a sports star, an accountant or a scientist. He loves being challenged, that’s his cup of soup…or so he says.

The baby? Too early to tell. With the jewish blood that she will be carrying, hopefully she will start a family business in 20 years.

27th week today. According to Alya's mommy, I really do not look that big. But I do feel big, huge, heavy and breathless.

Last Friday was the gynae appointment. Had the Glucose Tolerance Test and I gained a whopping 8 lbs past 4 weeks! Yeah...got yelled at by the Dr, she says 'Cannot...must gain only 4 lbs per month okay! All these weight goes on to the baby you know, big baby can be harder to give birth'. Love this Dr so much! She says that doing the South Beach Diet is okay as long as I drink 3 cups of non fat milk each day. Aiyoh, I so cannot gut too much meat this time, all I want is rice, noodles, and other carbs! She says that she will look at my Glucose result and if I do have gestational diabetes, yours truly will have to go on that South Beach Diet!

Its a holiday today. Need to hit the mall, need more maternity pants!

This is what we did yesterday...at Alya's, Sam's and Sal's place. Thank you for the lovely time. Alya never fails to amaze me :)

I really need this. I know it will cost at least US$75 for an hour session but I am sure it will be worth it. The thing is, once I get it started, I might want more!

Heck, its all about me now right right right???????????

Maybe I need to touch up my roots in a few weeks time too, and I need some nice pedicure just to have someone rub my feet and cut my toenails since I can hardly see that part of the body these days.

Heck, its all about me now right right right???????????

HAVE A GREAT LONG LABOR DAY WEEKEND Y'ALL!!!