Doctor's Visit - 33rd Week

We just spent the weekend enjoying our Babymoon. I will post some photos as soon as I get them organized. Meanwhile, it's time for another Bi-weekly doctor visit!

• Even though we ate so much over the weekend, Amy registered zero weight gain over the past 2 weeks! But Dr. Chen's comment was that Amy has already gained 20 pounds since the pregnancy, and it's okay if there was no weight gain over the past two weeks
• Dr. Chen pressed against Amy tummy to confirm that Little Piggy's head is now completely facing downward... basically the baby is ready and waiting!!
  
• Dr. Chen also used the Doppler to measure Piggy's heartbeat and it registered 146 beats per minute.
• Other than these routine procedures, Dr. Chen reminded Amy with a few basic signs of 'go straight to the hospital' scenario
• Our next visit is in another 2 weeks. The schedule will be changed to weekly-visit from that point on
• It's getting closer and closer!

PS. Once again, pictures from our Babymoon are coming soon!

So where exactly are we going for our Babymoon?

For those who lives around Los Angles and/or Orange County, here are some photos that will reveal the secret location of our Babymoon! This is photo-journey through the eyes of Amy, as she photos her journey to her(our) first Babymoon location. As mentioned, she had no idea where we were going! Click through the photos to find out!

Weekend Getaway - Babymoon

I’m typing this post as I’m flying back to Los Angles from a business trip in Orlando. Yes, Orlando as in the Walt Disney World! It has been a very busy 10 days because we just celebrated by Brother’s wedding this past Saturday, and I immediately flew out to Orlando on Monday, while many visiting relatives were still in-town. Most importantly, I’m leaving behind Amy and the Golden Little Piggy, which I have been told that he/she has been kicking harder and stronger by day!

Tomorrow, I have planned a surprised weekend getaway with Amy. A surprised because she has no idea where I’m taking her, but all she knows is that we are going to our first, or probably final, Babymoon!

We have learned that newly weds have honeymoon, and parents-to-be should plan for a Babymoon before the baby arrives. Basically, this Babymoon is going to be our last opportunity to go on a trip, without the worries (or hassle) of our kid(s). For those who know us, Amy and I love to travel. But with the arrival of our baby, I’m sure that the opportunities for traveling will be significantly lessen, and the type of traveling will never be the same.

To those who wonder what is the destination of this Babymoon trip, just check back at this site during the weekend. I do plan on a post or few during the stay. The truth is, Amy can’t fly because she is in her third trimester. And a drive even to Las Vegas is considered too long for a pregnant woman at this stage. Therefore, it is simply somewhere local for a weekend stay. Stay tuned!

Doctor's Visit - 31st Week

Yesterday, we had our, now, bi-weekly doctor's visit. It was the first time that we walk into the doctor's office with no one sitting in the waiting room! We got called-in almost immediately. We went through the usual urine test, weight, and blood pressure measurement. Everything was normal!

When we met up with Dr. Chen, we told him that Amy has been having abdominal pain in her lower right tummy. Then, Dr. Chen held Amy's hand and press really hard into the tummy, and that was Amy's first time feeling the baby's head! Dr. Chen explained that it was the baby's head that is pressing against some nerves, which is why Amy is feeling the pain.

We also told Dr. Chen that Amy had cramps on her left leg the night before, and Dr. Chen recommended us to pick up some over-the-counter calcium supplement.

Dr. Chen also used the Doppler to measure the Baby's heartbeat. This time it was 143 beats per minute!

Also, due to the excitement of the ultra sound images from our last visit, we have totally forgotten to find out Amy's Glucose Tolerance test result. Yesterday, we finally had the chance to find out how did Amy do on the test. Dr. Chen said everything came back normal, and told Amy that she is now authorized to eat more sweets and ice-cream! Yeah!

Last but not least, Dr. Chen told Amy that she needs to take more rest, and went ahead to give her a bed-rest order for Amy to bring it back to work.

The Due-date is getting closer and closer. We now have less than 2 months to go! But before the Due Date, we also have a very important event coming up. This weekend is my brother's (soon-to-be Uncle Chris) wedding ceremony! It's going to be a big party with relatives from all over the world visiting. It's going to be a fun and busy weekend!

Doctor's Visit - 29th Week

Today, we went to our, Bi-weekly now, Doctor's visit, and here's an update:

• Dr. Chen started our session by running an ultrasound scan on the Baby
• He first measured the circumference of the Baby's skull, and the result, as you can see from the image below (see FL), is equivalent to a 30weeks old fetus
• Which means that the Baby is right on track for the head size
• He then measure the belly of the baby (see AC), and the measurement came back as a 32weeks old fetus!
• With another click on his machine, it calculated that the baby is currently weight-in at approximately 4-pounds
• Dr. Chen than told us that the computer estimated that the baby will weight approximately 7-pounds when born
• He told us that the Baby's is already in a Vertex position (head-down, legs-up), and the Baby is currently facing sideway of Amy
• He told us that everything looks good and he told Amy to make sure to continue her vitamin medication
• As I'm typing this post, I realized that we have forgotten to ask Dr. Chen about the result of Amy's Glucose Tolerance test that she did 2 weeks ago!
  
• This is partly because we were too excited to see the ultrasound images on the screen, which we are sharing with you below
• Please feel free to click on the image to enlarge for better viewing
• And don't forget to continue reading the next post, and cast your vote!
• Until next time, take care and thanks for reading our blog!
  

Guess the Gender... Again!

As mentioned, Dr. Chen spent a great deal of time running some ultrasound images on our Little Piggy. As always, we gave him the warning of "Don't tell us the gender!" But this time, he asked us over and over again if we are sure that we do not want to know. He even bribed us with: "Labor Day is coming and there will be lots of Sales at the department store, are you sure you don't want to know, so that you can shop for the Baby?" We insisted, but before we concluded our consultation session, he gave us this image and told us that the answer to the gender of the baby is in this ultrasound image below!

Since you all know that I was professionally trained as an OB-GYN, I really didn't want to see the scan in the beginning. But soon after Amy took a peek at it, she told me that there's no-way I can tell. I decided to take a look... and guess what, Amy is right! I guess my OB training from reading the New England Journal of Hustler wasn't enough!

Well, the next decision for us is, shall we post this image? Since most of my friends are all OB major back when they were in school, I'm afraid that they can tell too! Well, let's challenge them to find out!

• The 2 images you see below are basically the same
• I overlay-ed a grid on top of the 1st image to create the 2nd image
• This is because I want to hear from you!
• First, I would like you to cast your vote
• The voting from within this post is DIFFERENT from the voting as appear on the side bar, to the right of this site
• Once you have voted, I want you to leave a comment in this post to tell me, based on, for example, Cell G5, I think the baby is a boy!
• You may click on either image to enlarge the image for a better view
• Have fun! And I look forward to hear from you!

PS. Personally, I think cell F2, F3, & G3 combined together is the umbilical cord.
PPS. I also rotate the image to view it from a different angle. It didn't help for me, but if you think it might help you, just rotate your monitor!

Doctor's Visit - 27th Week

Today, we went to our Monthly Doctor's visit, and here are the highlights:

• Amy didn't do too well with her Glucose Tolerance blood test last month, and she has to re-do the 3-hour version today (as opposed to the 1-hour version).
• Knowing how much Amy likes sweets (that's why she likes me so much!), I asked Dr. Chen what happens if she fails this 2nd test? Dr. Chen said he will refer Amy to a specialist, to put her on a special diet, and medication. Nothing to worry about... at least for now, according to Dr. Chen.
• We did the Doppler again, and this time the Baby's heartbeat was 156!
• Dr. Chen also changed our visitation from once a month to twice a month!
  
• Surprisingly, Amy's weight gain is also under control! An increase of 4-lbs since last visit. Exactly 4-lbs per month, which is right on schedule!
• We still didn't get an ultra-sound during this visit. That's why we don't have any picture to show our readers. (Besides, we are already late for the blood test!)

Other than these, the baby has been kicking a lot! We learned from the Prepared Child Birth class that Amy needs to do more exercise to get the baby to face towards the spine, as opposed to the tummy, to ease the pain during birth. We started swimming in these past few weeks, hoping that we can train the next Matt Biondi (Janet Evans, if it's a girl!) for the olympics. At first, I wanted Amy to swim so that she will get some weight off her tummy. But the nurse in that Child Birth class told us that swimming is actually an excellent choice of exercise for pregnant women. (Provided that Mom can swim!)

As of this posting, there are only 80 days left in this pregnancy! It's getting close!

Driving Directions to the Hospital

We have a few family members inquired about the driving directions to Torrance Memorial Medical Center.

Here's the information:

Address:
3330 Lomita Blvd.
Torrance, CA 90505

Phone:
(310) 325-9110

Click here for a satellite aerial image of that I prepared. It shows you how to get to the hospital entrance, parking, visitors entrance, and more.

Click here for a PDF version of a 3D Map of the Hospital, for printing.

Click here for look for our baby's picture once he/she is born!

Click here if you want to send us an email while we're in the hospital.

Click here if you want to learn more about the Family Birth Center at Torrance Memorial.

That's all the information I have. If you want more, tough!

We Captured our Baby's First Smile!

Tomorrow, is the beginning of a new Premiership season. My team, Liverpool, is playing Aston Villa tomorrow, and the game is broadcasted live, via satellite, on cable channel!

I've been so excited and eager to watch this game, until 2 days ago, I realized that I have a 2-day long pregnancy class, BEGINNING TOMORROW at 8:30am! :-(

I've heard a lot about how parents sacrifice for their children. You know what, mark this down as my first sacrament for my child!! (Wiping tear off the corner my eye now.)

This class that we are attending tomorrow is called Prepared Childbirth. Believe it or not, it runs from 8:30am to 5:30pm, on both Saturday and Sunday! (Did I mention that Manchester United's game is also on TV, on Sunday morning?) Anyway, 2 days of 8-hour class? I would think by then, I would qualify to carry the letters M.D. after my name! Oh, also, we have to bring our own snacks? Goosh! That's worse than going to work! Anyway, if I'm not too tired by tomorrow night, I'll post some highlights of the class tomorrow. That is of course, assuming that I remember the stuff I was being taught!

Last but not least, lots of friends and family members have been asking me how big is Amy's tummy? The pictures below should give you an idea! We also want to take this opportunity to thank Aunt Amy for sending us some stretch mark correction cream. (Yes, that's the stuff in the picture!) Not only did the cream work on Amy's tummy, it also works on mine too!

Until next time, Happy 26th week!

Men can breast feed too!

Although I kept telling my wife that those are muscles, she insists that the cause of my expanding chest size over the years is due to the increase in body fat gathering under the skin around my chest. But I still think they are muscles. It's just that the gravitation force has outperformed my pair of chest muscles (pectoral muscles, I believe they are called) in the recent years.

Anyway, did you know that men have mammary glands as well? Below is a 6:30 minute documentary titled 'Milk Men', that talks about Male Breastfeeding.

**Not Suitable for Work! Nothing graphics, nor violent. It's just borderline for viewing at a workplace

Disclaimer: No, I'm not considering breastfeeding myself. My 6 nipple piercings are absolutely choking hazards! Besides, it does look weired as you can tell by watching the video.

30 Something ways to guess the Baby's gender!

Last Friday, July 27, marks the beginning of the 3rd trimester! As of today, there are only 93 more days to go before we arrive at the Due Date. Ninety Three Days! That's only a little bit more than 3 months! Wow!

A quick look at the "Gender Poll" shows that 14 readers have voted for Boys, and 12 voted for Girls. Granted that some of them are friends and family members who get to see how Amy is carrying the baby, and made the prediction based on the profile of her tummy, it is still a rather close split of 54%/46% with the advantage going to a Boy!

With that thought in mind, I just want to share something with you.

According to iVillage.com, if the Baby is a Boy...

• You didn't experience morning sickness in early pregnancy (Yes, she did)
• Your baby's heart rate is less than 140 beats per minute (It's 150+ every time we measured it)
• You are carrying the extra weight out front (She looks to me that she's carrying extra weight, not only out front, but out back, out top, out bottom, and out-within! Actually, she does carry extra weight out front)
• Your belly looks like a basketball (Her belly looks to me like that giant rock in Indiana Jones! Yes, her belly does looks like a basketball.)
• Your areolas have darkened considerably (Looks the same to me!)
  
• You are carrying low (Looks right in the middle to me!)
• You are craving salty or sour foods (Negative!)
• You are craving protein -- meats and cheese (Yes! Specifically Chicken and Cheese.)
• Your feet are colder than they were before pregnancy (I thought cold feet only happens right before marriage! Anyway, her feet are actually warmer.)
• The hair on your legs has grown faster during pregnancy (Negative)
• Your hands are very dry (Negative)
• Your pillow faces north when you sleep (I have no idea what this means!)
• Dad-to-be is gaining weight, right along with you (Duh! The Dad-to-be has been gaining weight uncontrollably even before Dad met Mom!)
• Pregnancy has you looking better than ever (What else am I supposed to say here? Of course she is looking better than ever...)
• Your urine is bright yellow in color (Negative! It's more like neon purple with a hint of silver color!)
• Your nose is spreading (Negative.)
• You hang your wedding ring over your belly and it moves in circles (I need to buy her a wedding ring first before I can run this test!)
• You are having headaches (Yes! All the time!)
• You add your age at the time of conception and the number for the month you conceived and the sum is an even number (Yes! 138.2 is a even number, isn't it?)
• Dad-to-be has dreams of driving a BMW M5 (Yes)
  

So, it looks like I got 7 hits for the Boy-test.

Now, if it's a girl...

• You had morning sickness early in pregnancy (Yes)
• Your baby's heart rate is at least 140 beats per minute (Yes)
• You are carrying the weight in your hips and rear (No)
• Your left breast is larger than your right breast (Since I'm banned from touching them, they look the same to me!)
• Your hair develops red highlights (No)
• You are carrying high (I supposed this is a 'Yes')
• Your belly looks like a watermelon (No)
• You are craving sweets (Duh! Ever since we met, we both crave sweets!)
• You are craving fruit (... And when we ran out of ice-creams...)
• You crave orange juice (Not really)
• You don't look quite as good as normal during pregnancy (No way!)
• You are moodier than usual during pregnancy (Women are not moody by nature. I don't know why the author thinks women could be moody.)
• Your face breaks out more than usual (Negative)
• You refuse to eat the heel of a loaf of bread (Not if I put ice-cream on it!)
• Your breasts have really blossomed! (psi - pound per square inch!)
• Your pillow faces south when you sleep (I still have no idea what this means)
• Your urine is a dull yellow color (Did I mention that I'm color-challenged?)
• You hang your wedding ring over your belly and it moves from side to side (Note to self: I really need to start looking for a wedding ring for her.)
• You add your age at the time of conception and the number for the month you conceived and the sum is an odd number (Negative)
• Dad-to-be has dreams of driving a Porsche 997 GT2 (Yes)
  

And the result for the Girl test is 6!

Interestingly, a 7:6 split also comes out to be approximately 54%/46% split! So what does it mean?

A Message to my Child...

Dear Son (or Daughter),

Today is your Dad's birthday!

A year from today, I expect you to sing 'Happy Birthday' to me, and go shopping with Mommy for a birthday gift for me. And it better be a nice gift!

And if you need to raise money to buy me a gift, asking your Grandma would be a good starting point.

Oh, one more thing... I don't like fruits on my cake and I prefer chocolate flavor!

love,
Daddy

Pregnancy Update

Here's an update on what had happened since we last posted an update:

• Yesterday marked the beginning of the 24th week of our pregnancy!
• We had our monthly doctor-visit this past Monday (I immediately flew out to Orlando right after the appointment for a week-long business trip. Hence the late update to this blog.)
• During the doctor visit, Dr. Chen once again used the doppler to measure the heartbeat of the baby. This time it was 155 beats per minute! "Very healthy!" The Doctor said.
• The Doctor was also satisfied with Amy's weight control. (However, he didn't comment on my weight.)
• We no longer have to visit Dr. Kenneth Chan since our last visit
• And Dr. Chen didn't perform any Ultrasound this time. Therefore, no pictures to post!
• Amy has been awaken by the Baby's kicks throughout the night, especially during the morning hours.
• Almost certain, is that whenever Amy had ice-cream, the Baby will start kicking right away.
• Last but not least, we only have 3 more months to go!
  

How (not) to teach your kids to stay away from drugs

With Fourth of July just around the corner, I want to wish everyone a Happy July 4th holiday!

Meanwhile, here is an enlightening report for your holiday reading...

An American man who injected his sons with heroin and cocaine so they would understand how he felt when he used drugs has been sentenced to 10 years' jail, Associated Press (AP) reported.

Stephen Pickle, 39, was sentenced for injecting the boys - aged 12 and 16 at the time - with the drugs.

His younger son contracted hepatitis C as a result of the injections in 2005, AP reported.

According to AP, Pickle's lawyer, Joel Schwartz, said that Pickle was "incredibly remorseful" about what he had done.

The court heard argument that Pickle destroyed the boys' childhood.

Prosecutor Teresa Bomkamp said Pickle also injected his daughter with drugs that year, but was not charged because the girl was 18.

Here's the link.

A Ferrari for my Baby

"Not Type-Approved for the USA" is what it says on the Ferrari Store web site. But if it's designed for Ferraris, and meant for Ferrari owners around the world, I'm confident that it is safe enough for my daily commute in my 328i.

If you ask: "How do you know this is meant for Ferrari owners around the world?" Just check out the price tag! €1,166.67 ≈ US$1,582.35!

Besides, I'm not too sure about this 'side-way' layout (instead of the more common 'child facing forward' type).

Just in case if there are any parents-to-be, who want to try this out but with uncertainties, I do not mind to offer my help for an in-depth product review, if such unit is delievered to my address.

Here's the link so that you can skip Googling it.

Child Left in Stroller at Disney World

From Central Florida News' web site...

A mother and father are facing child neglect charges after deputies say they left their young child in the hot sun at Disney World.

According to the Osceola County Sheriff's Office, Juan and Dannette Rodriguez left the 3-year-old sitting in a stroller in the sun while they went on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.

The little girl was there for 45 minutes.

By the time anyone noticed, the girl was unresponsive due to heat exhaustion and had to be revived by paramedics.

The parents were arrested without incident.

The girl was placed with relatives.

Deputies and the Department of Children and Families continue their investigation.

Note to self:

• Try not to take rides that have a wait time greater than 45 minutes
• If wait time is greater than 45 minutes, use FastPass
• Keep child away from sunlight while left alone

Baby's Fourth Photoshoot

Dr. Albert Chen

It's been another month, and we had our rounds of Doctors' Visit again today!

We first went to Dr. Albert Chen for our 10am appointment. Unfortunately, we were left waiting until 11am before we were called in for the consultation. It looks like Dr. Chen was really backed-up this morning! Although we saw the Doctor walking around (meaning he did show up to work today), there weren't that many people leaving the exam rooms while we were waiting.

Anyway, as soon as we met up with him, he told us that he had 2 emergency cases this morning, that got squeezed in to the top of the queue. (Apparently, those were both bleeding cases!) Which is why all the appointments got pushed back today.

So, the very first thing that Dr. Chen asked of us, was to provide him with an update. We told him that Amy felt some high-frequency-type vibration in the past few days. He looks shocked and asked Amy to further described what the vibration was like. After further demonstration, he looked puzzle, and began to open up 'our file' to check out the details.

"Oh! You're only in your 5th month! Then this is normal! By just looking at your tummy, I thought you are already in your 8th month."

It turns out that Amy had gained almost 10 pounds since her last visit. Immediately, Dr. Chen asked us some questions about our diet. (Sadly, he didn't believe that I eat so small in portion.) Dr. Chen wants Amy to control her diet and weight gain, and told us that he only wants to see Amy to gain another 4 pounds when we visit him next month. (While I should probably drop some weight from 4 pounds to any power of 4 pounds.)

He then took out a tape to measure Amy's tummy vertically. According to the measurement, her tummy size is equivalent to a tummy that is 22-weeks pregnant. (We're just approaching our 20th week.)

Finally, he used his Doppler to listen-in on the Baby's heartbeat. It was beating at 150 beats per minute. "Very healthy!" Dr Chen said.

The only instruction given to us, was to watch our/her diet. He wants us to cut-down on carbohydrates.


Dr. Kenneth Chan

By the time we arrived at Dr. Kenneth Chan's office, we were already 45 minutes late. The nurse told us that Dr. Chan has left the office and rescheduled us to return in 2 hours. Amy and I took this opportunity to go grab lunch and the 2 hours went by quickly... because there was good food around!

As mentioned in my previous post here, the 2nd trimester blood test came back with flying colors! We were told that the primary purpose of this visit is to check on the Baby's heart.

Once again, we informed Dr. Chan that we don't want to know the gender yet, should he happened to notice. After quite a bit of measurements on various locations like brain, skull, arms and legs, heart, etc., all results came back normal! Interestingly, all measurements came back in-sync with our pregnancy term - at approximately ~20weeks, +/- 5days. I asked Dr. Chan if the size of Amy's tummy is normal. He refused to answer because he considers such question is a form of WMD (look it up if you don't know what WMD means!) He sees it as the same question as 'Does my wife looks fat?'

Dr. Chan told us that everything looks perfect! He told us to enjoy the remaining term of our pregnancy, and there should be nothing else for us to worry about!

Yeah! (And we don't even have to visit Dr. Kenneth Chan again from now on!)

Finally, here are a few Ultrasound shots that were captured today. This first 2 shots below are a scan of the skull / face. (Click to enlarge)

These 2 shots below show the Baby's head and upper body. You can see very clearly from the very last shot that the baby is pointing his index finger upward. I guess he is already 'pointing his/her finger' at his/her parents, before he/she was even born! Fortunately, it's the wrong finger! (Click to enlarge.)
During the ultrasound scan, we can clearly see the baby turning his/her head, and swallowing.

Last but not least, for those who wants some inside-information on the gender of this baby, Dr. Albert Chen made a comment that, his guess, by looking at the size and shape of Amy's tummy, is that it will be a boy! This is totally unscientific. Dr. Chen has not performed an ultrasound on Amy since our first visit, which the gender of the baby was yet to be determined. And he is very well aware that we do not want to find out the gender until the baby is born.

Well, I think this is a long enough update for you all! Thanks for reading!

Oh, if you have yet to subscribe to our mailing list for updates, please do so by providing your email address to the box on right side of this page. Don't forget to 'confirm' your subscription by responding to the email in your email inbox!

The 19th week!

Today marks the beginning of the 19th week of our pregnancy. According to all the books, magazine, and blogs that we've read, this is what the Baby has been doing so far...

• Fingernails, toenails, and his/her own set of fingerprints are all done!
• He/she may already be sucking his/her thumb. But suck it all he/she wants while he/she is still in her Mommy's tummy. Because once I've cut the umbilical cord, there will be no thumb sucking allowed!
• The Baby has grown to about nine inches long
• The Baby's skin is now red and wrinkled
• And the Baby's weight is just under one pound

Coming Monday, 6/18, we have another round of our monthly doctors' visit. Maybe we'll have some more ultrasound scan to share. So remember to check back often!

Best T-Shirt Contest

Nominee #1: Gerber Baby

Nominee #2: Playground Pimp

Nominee #3: Pro-Choice

Nominee #4: Shake Me!

Nominee #5: Tore Mommy a New One

Nominee #6: Are You My Dad?

Nominee #7: Bigger Than Yours!

Nominee #8: Blowjob

Nominee #9: Daddy Drinks Beer

Nominee #10: Dad's Lil' Squirt
Now cast your vote!

I can finally afford a Porsche... not!

A Porsche Stroller - US$690
A Porsche Bassinet - US$190
An opportunity to be a Porsche owner - Priceless

For US$880, I get the opportunity for owning a 3-wheel Porsche. Technically speaking, it's a Porsche Cabriolet! And it only comes in Grey color. No leather interior, no anti-lock brakes, and no airbags. The softtop needs to be manually opened and closed. Oh, and there's no air-conditioning either.

But this opportunity does not just limited to me! For you readers, you can also get the chance to give a Porsche as a gift (to me!) Opportunity like this (to tell your friends that you just bought a Porsche and gave it away) does not come around often. Grab it before someone does!