A Moment of Panic

We went for the last of the antenatal classes on Tuesday. These are classes Daddy and Mommy are taking to prepare for your arrival in the world.

(Yes, there is no button to push whereby you just conveniently slip out of me in 3 seconds.)

Anyway, this last class was on "Pain Relief & the Process of Labour".

I think many mommies in the class changed their birthing plan after this session from "No epidural" to "Please pass the epidural or I'm bringing my own supply of Morphine".

An epidural, by the way, is a form of local anesthetic that's injected into the spine to numb the lower part of Mommy's body from pain. It's supposed to help Mommy give birth to you without a lot of screaming and harm to daddy.

I know Mommies and Daddies are supposed to be strong enough to face anything and everything. But you're coming out of a pretty tiny hole in Mommy's body. And even though it's meant to automatically stretch, there are cases where the muscles there are stiff.

(This is where Mommy might yell in pain.)

Sometimes the gyneacologist will do an "episiotomy" - or a cut - to help the hole expand more for you to come out. This requires stiching up after you're well and truly out of Mommy's tummy.

(These are two possible situations whereby Mommy could yell, too. And maybe cry and dig my nails deep into Daddy's Biotherm-softened skin.)

At this point, even Mommy wishes that a stork really delivers babies to the doorstep of parents' homes. But don't let anyone tell you that it's "sissy" to be scared. Fear is a natural defense mechanism for human beings that helps us make choices for survival. It is unnatural to not be afraid sometimes. Even for superheroes (just watch Batman with Mommy).

Anyway, after that lesson, the nurses took us around the Maternity and Labour rooms. Daddy felt his knees go weak when he saw the demonstration of how the pregnant Mom would lie on the bed.

I hope he doesn't faint because that would mean Mommy has two babies to take care of! Yet, deep inside, I know your Daddy would end up being inquisitive and ask the gynaecologist lots of questions as he and the midwives bring you out.

Hello, Baby

So this is kind of what you look like.

Wow. And to think you were just a little bean sac not too long ago :).

I'm thanking the Lord that you're kissing my placenta like it's the tastiest buffet you've ever had. Because that just means it's giving you what you need.

One set of your grandparents - that would be Mommy's parents - have seen this picture of you (yes, you have two sets). But both sides are so excited about you. Daddy's parents think about you everyday and call him just to tell him that. And mine are buying little button-down bodysuits for you.

Dr. Guna says you've got a long femur. So that could mean you're going to be a basketball player. Or a male model. Daddy's praying hard you will be the former.


I'm just over the moon that all your main internal organs are looking normal: Your brains, heart, kidney, lungs, bladder, lips. Although of course, your lips aren't exactly an internal organ. Apparently, some babies develop a cleft which makes eating quite a challenge for them, poor things. And some develop a hole in their hearts. Anyway, we'll pray for them together.

Dr. Guna also says that your movements will be erratic at best for now. This must explain why you were doing a lot of Cirq de Soleil moves last week but just a lot of pirouettes this week. I'm supposed to monitor your movements more closely next week which means keeping an eye and ear out for your thumping and kicking.

For today, your movements are as such:
9.10am - 5 little kicks.
2pm - 2 faint little knocks.
6.45pm - 3 little prods.
7.30pm - 2 little kicks.
9.30pm - 1 little push.
10.30pm - 2 little knocks.

Looks like you're going to be a nightowl.

Bringing You Up Isn’t Just a Sunday Affair

What a week it has been!

Mommy’s partner (and Boss) was away so I couldn’t go home early.

This means no exercise for the past 7 days.

Not good.

I promise to make it up to you this week, ok? I know when I exercise, both you and I benefit: You get a healthier environment to grow in and Mommy doesn’t balloon into a whale and get into all sorts of difficulties while giving birth to you.

Yesterday, Mommy had a very interesting experience at a Positive Parenting workshop with Aunty Hsian and Uncle Srihari.

This “Children Are From Heaven” workshop was again Aunty Hsian’s idea (you’ll meet her and discover what a fun Aunt she is when you’re born).

Your dad was on house-chores-and-visit-parents duty so he wasn’t with us.

Anyway, it was a 9am till 6pm session and Mommy learnt heaps of ways on how to bring you up properly.

First of all, you’ll be happy to know that nothing about a cane or feather duster was mentioned.

We might show you what they look like, though, so you know what Daddy and I have gone through before.

You see, when we were younger, your grandparents would cane us for a variety of reasons. Mostly, it was for lying about being Top 5 in class (sometimes we were 8th or 9th!) and trying to kill our brothers. But generally, it was for being naughty.

How times have changed.

In fact, these days you’re allowed to make mistakes, be different, want more things, be emotionally negative, and even say “No” if, let’s say, you’ve been asked to clean your room. Of course, this is only as long as you know that both Daddy and Mommy are the Bosses. What does that mean? Well, simply that sometimes there’s no negotiation, and you just have to do what we ask you.

Isn’t that cool?

You’ll also be happy to know that we believe that every child should have room to be naughty and mischievous. You’re just trying to learn what you can do and what you can’t. But see, that’s also why Daddy and Mommy need to teach you what is right and wrong.

Doing what is right can give joy to yourself and other people.
Doing what’s wrong can land you in jail.

There are no toys in jail. No friends. And no pizza, either. Think about that before you chuck a fit and your dinner at Mommy’s or Daddy’s face.

At the end of the day, just know this: We love you very much. And so does God Who decided to give you life (and your parents a chance to nurture and shape that life). And it’s only because of love that we hope you’ll grow up well adjusted, well mannered, and happy. (With no criminal record.)

Your First Gear

Saturday, 11 October 2007.

Saturdays are your dad's "beached whale" days. This simply means he needs to know he's in control of Time.

(In short, he's going to be super lazy.)

But you and mommy need to remember this particular Saturday. Because he was actually excited about doing our first shopping spree for you at 1 Utama.

(We normally go shopping to stock up on his grooming products or scope around Mooks, Nike and Borders. So it's always nice to shop for someone else instead).

We stopped first at Jusco - always cheaper than the specialty stores! - where we got milk bottles, teats and a bottle steriliser. Our friends recommended "Avent" for ease of use and colic control, so hopefully you won't be attacked by an uncomfortable tummy.

We then moved on to Mothercare - good example of expensive specialty store - but could not resist buying two bodysuits with adorable messages on them: "Probably the cutest turtle on the beach" (blame your dad!) and "I love my Daddy & Mommy" (ok, ok, that was me).

[By the way, since you'll be a dad one day, too, remember that front-button bodysuits are better than the slip-over-the-neck ones which are harder to manoeuvre around a newborn's soft neck and head. :)]

T-shirt messages aside, it's important for you to know that love comes before wealth and intelligence. I'm not sure if you can hear mommy repeating this mantra to you even as you somersault and do little backstrokes in my womb. But yes, a man who loves is more powerful than a man who has all the money and smarts in the world but does not know how to be weak in the presence of another person.

Anyway, this must seem like heavy stuff to you, depending on when you read this entry. But you'll know exactly what I mean when you're old enough to marry the girl of your dreams (unless you end up being a priest, of course).

After Mothercare, daddy and mommy dropped by Chicco in the Old Wing, where we had a look at strollers. Typical of daddy, his eyes went to some Star Trek looking contraption - those PetPeregos that look really sturdy and can be manipulated many ways. We've heard that these are really good, though. And you should know that every parent wants the best for his/her child even if we may not be able to afford the best sometimes.

(If you turn out anything like mommy, you're going to argue a lot with us over this "what's best for you" phrase when you're a teenager. Trust me. But we'll work it out together, somehow - preferably without alcohol abuse.)

Just like this super advanced stroller, daddy is also fancying a Gracco cot-cum-playpen-cum-changing-table for you because it's adjustable and has lots of mesh wire so you stay cool.

Daddy, you must also know, is a man of exceptional quality who also seeks products of exceptional quality. And this just simply means he goes for expensive things. So if you turn out more like daddy, be ready for mommy to say "No" to a RM350 pair of shoes that you like which look exactly like the last RM350 pair of shoes you've got.

Right after a stroll around the other babycare shops in the New Wing, you started asking for some food. So daddy and mommy shared an Orange Julius hotdog.

We didn't stay long after that but guess how much all three of us "walked" that day -5 good hours. Which explains the picture of daddy you see on this entry. As an act of appreciative love, Mommy made a cup of tea and a foot-soak for him with some peppermint salts, right after I made one for myself and you.

It was a cool day.

And nope, we aren't referring to the little thunderstorm that occured in the evening.

Your Name Means A Lot

Everybody loves to name a baby. It's one of the first things the parents do once they know they're expecting.

Your dad and I are no different.

In fact, as far as a year before you came into existence, we were sharing our favourite boy and girl names with each other. When it came to girl names, daddy and I were quickly in agreement - Eden Inez Pereira. "Eden" after God's paradise in the book of Genesis. And "Inez" after St.Inez.

It wasn't so easy with the boys' names.

Mommy, being a fan of Christian Bale (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Rescue Dawn, The Prestige - and many other good movies - in case daddy tries to tell you otherwise) was planning to call you Christian John Pereira. This desire was further encouraged by the coincidence of our birthdays falling on the same date, of course (30 Jan).

(John, you should know, is mommy's favourite gospel from the Bible, and translates to "God's grace". )

I was also moved by strong Biblical characters like Isaac. And Caleb wasn't bad either. Neither was Hector, although this was more of a Greek mythological hero's name than anything.

Then, mommy found out that Isaac was taken by two of daddy's friends' newborns. And calling you Caleb was equivalent to calling you a dog. I absolutely love dogs and daddy will tell you how crazy I am about them. But this was a whole different kettle of fish.

Meanwhile, daddy had other ideas. Influenced by music (especially soul), he itched to name you Curtis. Or Lopez. Or Quincy.

Names are quite important, you see. They are supposed to express the parents' (that's us) hopes and dreams for their child (that's you). They also give you an identity. And they stick with you from cradle to grave.

I wasn't sure you wanted to be stuck with a name like Curtis. Or go to the grave being known as Lopez, or Quincy.

Finally, after a long-drawn stalemate, we decided to look at the list of saints. Hoping the Holy Spirit would guide us into finding the perfect name for you.

The answer: St. Aidan of Ferns.

Aidan is of Celtic origin and it's supposed to mean "Little Fire" (now you know for sure that this blogsite really was started with you in mind). But the saint with this name was known for being generous and kind to people, as well as his love for animals. It is said that he made a stag invisible in the presence of a vicious hunting party.

So, if you're wondering how you got your name, well, you now know the story. I hope your teachers manage to pronounce your name right. Failing which, we hope you won't get mad at us.Remember, it could've been worse.

It could have been Dog.

And You Appeared

Dear Aidan,

Aunty Hsian, mommy's close friend since 2000, gave me a good idea yesterday.

She suggested I started a blog for you to read when you get older.

Like "Notes to My Unborn Child".

This way, she said wisely, you would be able to share mommy's experience before you were born and of course, after.

So.

Ta-dah.

You've been in my tummy for 5 months now.

I remember watching the pregnancy kit stick go positive on the 20th of June this year - in other words, you simply appeared on my radar. I quickly took a picture of the stick (and the results) and texted it to your dad.

I wrote, "Congratulations Papa" and he was so excited that he had to go smoke a cigarette.

(We'll talk about why cigarettes are bad when you're older.)

Anyway, it was a blessed day for both of us.

Mommy is 35, not young, and it had crossed my mind that it may not be in God's plan for me to be a parent.

Your conception means mommy was wrong.

(We'll also, later, talk about how human beings make mistakes, even adults.)

Doctor Guna, the gyneacologist I see, estimates your arrival date to be 23rd February 2009. However, Uncle Alvin, my Godfather, has placed a bet for 14 February. We'll see.

Both your dad and I are really looking forward to meeting you. So we pray for your health, growth and happiness everyday in my womb. Hope it's not too tight in there.