What u doing Mama?

When Sarah first came to know of breastfeeding in those days of Tasnym, she had once lifted up her t-shirt to offer her chest to breastfeed when Tasnym cried!!

She must have forgotten those breastfeeding days cos this time round at the hospital when ut was time to feed Daniah, she asked me... "where's the container to make milk?" esp since she had offered her services to help make milk for the baby when the baby arrives to the granny's amusement... like the granny said "you dun even know how to make your own milk!"

Tasnym was more horrified at the process "Dun mama dun! Dun let the baby eat your tummy!!"

Confine Me ...NOT!!

What's the idea behind the one month confinement anyway? Well the initial few days I understand... with the pain, the aches and the sores... you wouldn't want to get out of the house anyway. I can even understand why baby should be kept more at home as their vulnerable systems are being protected from the ravages of pollution outside... not that we live in a bubble and can protect her that much anyway from being at home.

Thank God my family does not enfore the confinement ideology on me... probably realising the futility of doing such... I would have gone stark raving MAD!! Imagine staring at walls all day as you deal with a screaming infant... someone tell me again the rationale behind the confinement...

I think it has got to do with allowing your body to rest and probably protect you from germs outside too... just dun get it why people enforce it soooo strictly... a walk in the park or thru the shopping centre during off peak hours is not gonna harm anyone... cos if it does, whole nations of westerners would have been wiped out already!!

It's No walk in the Park

Who says breastfeeding was easy? And how come no one warned me that it was not before I had my first child? To spare me all the stress.. All I had was visions of me feeding a baby at my breast thinking that well since it was biological, it must be easy.... says who??

You deal with sore nipples, sore backs, sore shoulders, leaking breasts and an eternity of time with baby at the breast... and everyone else just wanting to hand over the baby to you at the slightest whimper or cry... regardless of the fact that you just finished feeding ... this old ladies have the theory that if the baby suckle at their finger, the baby must be hungry... hmmm... haven't they heard of the reflex psysiological response in babies to just do that, whether they are hungry or not? And comments like "You didn't give enough milk?", "You should give bottled milk then they will feel more full" " You should eat more, then you will have more milk" all those does not help.

I dun think I would have given up total breastfeeding so easily for Sarah or been so stressed out if I had been well prepared... I even started feeling like a failure as a mother as I just could not have enough milk. Well one thing I've learnt is that its ok if you can't, its ok to supplement... yes it might reduce your supply and yes breast milk is the best but I definitely think that its better to keep your sanity and not end up bashing up the baby cos you had a nervous breakdown from dealing with the rigours of feeding!

Now with Daniah, I'm better prepared and better able to know what I need to do... but all the sore stuff.. its still there!

Hey Charlie!

Yes the third angel is out... to complete the set and complete it is.


We did not even reach the 31st Dec... I was kind of having the feeling by the 20th that it was going to be much faster and when the doc confirmed that yup the baby is waaay down south, the wait began and we waited and waited and waited but she didn't turn up even after I turned into a true penguin!! Izad was ever so worried that he may not make it in time to the hospital considering how low the baby was sitting but waited she did.


We went for another appt on the 27th Dec and was so surprised to learn that I was already 4-5 cm dilated!! I wasn't even having any pains yet and completely had no show or any signs yet..
But by the time I reached the delivery ward, the pains began and I calmly asked for an epidural despite the doc's insistence that it was not going to take long... like I cared to know! And boy, I dun regret my decision as the pains began in earnest later and I could feel the intense pain despite the epidural... as my hubby so kindly pointed out as he watched Harry Potter... I would not have been so quiet otherwise... I am NOT a screamer.. thank you very much!

Well, the nurse kept checking in on me asking whether I felt any urge to push and seriously I didn't... that epidural must be working way to well.. the nurse got worried when the baby's heartbeat kept disappearing on the monitor and called the doc which luckily she did way in time... as the baby's head was actually already out!! And we didn't even realise it! So after 4.5 hours labour, which should have been much shorter, Daniah Ariesah was born...

A week later, I can't even finish this blog entry... trying to manage the Charlie's Angels and freelancing as a cow on the side... the joys of motherhood? more like the greatest challenge!