Visits to various hospital

You have visited almost all the private hospitals in 1.5 months. How come? Here's what happened:

a. Thomson Medical Centre - You were borned here.

b. Mt Elizabeth - That's where Dr Belinda's clinic is.

c. Gleneagles - That's where your PD surgeon clinic is. You had a Hernia and digestion problem and here is where Dr Cheah checked you.

d. Mt Alvernia - That's where Dr Cheah did your Hernia operation.

What an experience right, Baby?

And Then There Were Three: A Father’s Journey Into Pregnancy

Now that you’re out and about (6 weeks old at the time of writing), perhaps it’s time to reflect on the last ten months…

When Mummy and Daddy realized you were on the way, we couldn’t wait to tell the whole wide world. Eventually caution prevailed and we told ourselves to wait till after the first trimester before telling anyone. But this kind of good news is really hard to hold back. One fine Sunday we broke the news to your grandpas and grandmas. Soon after, friends and colleagues also partook in the happy news.

The first few months was a bit of a roller coaster. First was the less-than-stellar results of the Oscar test. Then came the agonizing wait till you were old enough for the Amnio test. And after that, another two weeks before the results set our minds at ease.

However, in between all this there were also the magical moments…hearing your heartbeat for the first time, being there for the first scan, feeling your little kicks on Mummy’s tummy.

But the thing that was topmost on Daddy’s mind all throughout the nine months was to be there for Mummy. Ever since I missed one of the appointments with Dr Chua, I told myself to be there for all the subsequent visits, so I could share all the news…good or bad…with Mummy. I made sure to join Mummy for prayers, to be there when she needed a massage, to accompany her for pre-natal classes, to help pick out your pram and cot.

Finally we settled into a routine and patiently waited for the day to come. Strangely 40 weeks came and went, and you were still comfortably nestled in Mummy’s womb. After 43 hours in the labour ward, and seeing countless other mums-to-be give birth, we decided it was your turn, nevermind the fact that you had to take the side door (caesarean section).

The time was 1740hrs. Mummy and you were wheeled into the delivery ward, and I was left to put on a set of overalls while fumbling with the video camera. 1755hrs and all I could hear was “C’mon, the baby’s waiting!!” In no time at all, I was seated next to Mummy (who was quite awake) and filming the entire sequence…all 5 minutes of it.

Thereafter when the Docs were busy taking care of Mummy, I was given some quiet time with you. More pictures and video taking, and wondering if you could even see me??? No matter…what was important was that you were now safely with us.

So welcome again BB Joie :) The Tan family is now officially a threesome. Life will never be the same again…just better!

Life inside the womb

Shall we start our story with your life inside the womb? Your existence was confirmed by 2 test kits and double-confirmed by Dr Eunice Chua. I remembered your heartbeat was very strong throughout the whole pregnancy. But Mummy's life was not a bed of roses. You were classified to have 1 in 235 chance of being a Down Syndrome baby. My heart sank. An amniocentesis test was done and thank God you were cleared. That was during the second trimester. At the third trimester, you were growing bigger than normal and labelled a "Dua Jia" baby. Must have been the few rounds of durians Mummy ate. Your size plus your activeness was a "killer" for Mummy. I could hardly sit and sleep as you were constantly kicking beneath my skin. The same kind of kicking stunts you perform now. At times, your kicks were so powerful that it drove me to tears.

However, you were an angel when it came to keeping Mummy's weight down. You did not make Mummy crave for food nor make me hungry every other hour and you absorbed whatever I ate. At the end, Mummy only put on 8kg while you weighed an astonishing 3.985kg.

We had a hard time trying to meet you for the first time. As a first-time-mum, I was not able to distinguish a real real contraction so perhaps we went to the hospital too early. We were there for 43 hours before we finally met you. You did not get a chance to pass through the birth canal though. Daddy did not have a good time too. The space around Mummy's bed was too limited for him and he did not have proper sleep for 2 nights.

9 months of expectation and finally you joined the Tan family on 19 Nov 2010. You were the perfect gift for our 10th year anniversary. Welcome Baby!