Dearest Skyler,

Wow! You're out, Skyler! And you're a beautiful baby!

This is going to be a long letter, little baby girl, because we went through so much this past week!

Mommy and Daddy went into the Kandang Kerbau Women's and Children's Hospital on Tuesday, 27th December morning because your water bag had broken. This is supposed to be an indication that you're ready to come out, Skyler. Anyway, we got there quite early and were admitted for observation. The problem was, it became a super long wait!

We hung around in the Delivery Suite for a very long time as there was no more sign that you were coming. The wait ended up being an overnighter as it was too dangerous for you and Mommy and Daddy to go up to our assigned room as Mommy needed to be observed. Mommy also had to be put on an IV drip and take antibiotics because Dr Kang Wee was afraid that you would get an infection since you no longer had any protection provided by your water bag. As you were supposed to be due anytime, Daddy was too afraid to leave Mommy alone so we ended up sharing Mommy's meals. This was okay then as Mommy wasn't hungry and Daddy was too worried to eat.

Daddy had to sleep on a Lazy Boy seat. It's a chair where the bottom and top parts can be extended so that the whole chair becomes flat. There was no space for anything else. It wasn't the most comfortable thing to sleep on as the top part kept threatening to close on me when I shifted around.

Mommy was also very uncomfortable because she couldn't move due to the IV drip that was going into her hand. She couldn't move very much because of it. And she had sensors attached to her belly so that the nurses could monitor your heartbeat and the contractions that Mommy was experiencing.

We kept on giving ourselves false hopes that you would come out quickly. Daddy found out from the nurses how to read the graph that monitored the contractions. From it, we could see how frequent and strong the contractions were. On Tuesday afternoon, it looked like the contractions were coming quite regularly and more frequently. However, they soon petered out in both frequency and intensity. The nurses and Dr Kang came in to check on Mommy every now and then and they told us to be patient. It ended up that we had to stay in that room until the next morning before they would decide on the next step.

It was so difficult to sleep that night. The nurses would come in every now and then to take Mommy's temperature, check on the readings on the machines - your heartbeat rate, the contraction rate, Mommy's blood pressure, etc. Every time one of them came in, we both would wake up. They also kept on asking if Mommy was suffering from any pain. Disappointingly, Mommy had to say 'no' each time. It was disappointing because if Mommy had experienced some pain, it would mean that you were ready to come out.

So, it turned into Wednesday morning, 28th December 2005. As Dr Kang was worried that you would suffer due to the water bag having been broken, she decided that Mommy should be given Oxytocin so as to induce stronger contractions. It was administered from 6 am in the morning. Then it was a continuation of the waiting game.

At about 8.45 am Mommy started feeling some pain from the contractions. Thus, she asked for some pain relief. It came in the form of a drug called an epidural. This was a common drug used by pregnant women to lessen the pain from the contractions. Mommy was given a whole list of what the side-effects could be of being given this drug and it was scary. The anaethetist also cautioned Mommy to not move at all when she was inserting the catheter into Mommy or else she would experience a severe headache for days. It was all so scary. But THANK GOD, everything was okay.

And then, we waited some more. Mommy didn't feel any more pain after that, though it wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world. The waiting then carried on ...

Throughout the rest of the day, the nurses continued to monitor Mommy. Daddy also just sat around and watched the monitor to see how close the
contractions were getting and how strong they were. As Mommy couldn't see it, Daddy constantly updated her on the readings. Otherwise, we would both fall asleep as we were so tired from both the lack of proper rest and the tedium of waiting. In between these activities, we would play cards. We played 'Blackjack' as it was the one that needed the least amount of effort. Daddy would also read to Mommy from one of her favourite books, 'Chocolate' by Sandra Boynton.

Closer to the evening, just after 6 p.m. Dr Kang came to check on Mommy and found that Mommy's cervix had opened up to about 8 cm or so. (The target was 10 cm for pushing to begin.) The nurse on duty then, Senior Staff Nurse Linda, was very encouraging and kept on talking about how that was such a great improvement and that Mommy was practically ready to deliver you. Both Mommy and Daddy thought that Dr Kang still felt that the labour was progressing too slowly and that she wanted to carry out a Caesarian Section to help deliver you sooner (we could be wrong because Dr Kang had been avoiding that the whole time). However, we think that what Linda said gave Dr Kang some hope that you could still come naturally so she decided to wait and see for a while more. It was also during that time that Dr Kang decided that Mommy shouldn't be given any more epidural. We found out that the dose was already depleting so the decision was to not give Mommy another dose.

As the epidural and its effects wore off, Mommy started feeling the strong pains from the contractions. She asked the new nurse on duty to look for Dr Kang but the nurse that was supposed to be with Mommy was actually with another pregnant woman who was giving birth then. So, we got some other nurse to help look for Dr Kang. There was another nurse who chanced by and we asked for her help. She said that she would try to look for Dr Kang but I think she never found her. Mommy was increasingly in pain so Daddy went out and looked for any nurse who could help. The nurses outside were very busy with their own charges so they could not really help us. And the nurse that was in charge of us was still busy with her other charge who was already going through active pushing.

In the end, Dr Kang came back to our room on her own and she was perturbed by how she had not been called by the nurses as Mommy had already entered this phase of such pain. Dr Kang decided that it was time for Mommy to begin active pushing too. However, as this stage would still take up some time, she asked another nurse to assist Mommy by giving Mommy 'old-style' encouragement to push - i.e. nothing more than telling Mommy to push when the time came.

The nurse that was tasked to do this was very distracted as she had just helped to deliver another baby by another Mommy who was under her charge. Thus, she kept on popping out to look for her 'own' baby and left Mommy and Daddy alone to figure out what to do on our own. This was very discouraging for us as you are our first baby - what did we know about what to do then? Anyway, Dr Kang then came in and was shocked to see that there was no one assisting us after a while. She asked if the nurses had been 'encouraging' Mommy with the pushing. Daddy didn't know what to say so I turned away and did not say anything. Mommy told her that we were the only ones who were doing anything as the nurse was not around.

Soon, the nurse that was actually in charge of us finally turned up as she had completed the delivery of the other baby. Now, we actually had a nurse with us who could guide us. We had been struggling with the process in the meantime. So, we spent the next hour or so trying to get you out, Skyler. Mommy spent a lot of effort pushing and there was some progression in getting you closer into the open but you were quite stuck at the last part. Dr Kang again warned us that if you had not come out by 9 p.m., she might have to perform a Caesarian Section on Mommy to get you out as it had already taken you too long to come out.

We were worried that she would actually carry it out as she'd been worried about how long you'd taken for quite some time. Mommy renewed her efforts in pushing but to no avail. Thank God Dr Kang then found that you were almost out and that she might be able to get you out 'naturally' using a vacuum extraction method. Thus, she ordered the nurses to prepare the equipment.

Daddy was then told to step out while she performed the extraction. I still cannot understand why I couldn't stay and watch you come out but I wasn't going to argue with the doctor then. While I was outside the room, I was so worried about you that I kept on praying that both you and Mommy would be okay. After failing to tolerate the pacing up and down the corridor, Daddy decided to go back into the delivery room and stand just behind the curtain to wait for your arrival. Thus, when you were finally out at 9.36 p.m., I could hear Dr Kang telling the nurses that "the Daddy can come in already" so I walked right in.

You had already come out and Mommy was lying on her bed totally exhausted. She looked so poor thing! And there you were, quickly turning reddish and with blood and other stuff all around you. Daddy was so upset - they did not allow me to stay and watch you come out or be with Mommy all the way. I had waited with Mommy for so long and when the final moment came, they sent me out of the room! Aarghhh! But never mind, Mommy says that I had come in immediately after you'd come out - within seconds so I guess I did not miss very much. But it still upsets me when I think about it. :(

After that, a lot of things started happening. The nurses had to clean you up and carry out some tests on you. Wow! Your APGAR scores were so high! You were given 9 out of 10 in both the 1st and 5th minute of birth! So HEALTHY! :)

Anyway, after the initial rush was over, we had to wait another two hours or so before they would allow us to go up to our Ward. This was because of the vacuum extraction. You had to be checked by a baby specialist to ensure that you were okay from the procedure. However, he was very busy as there was another baby who had been born just before you and that baby was very very small. The doctor had to take that baby to the Intensive Care Unit for observation and he had to spend some time there. After almost three hours, he was able to come and carry out some checks on you.

Once again, THANK GOD! He found you totally well, so all of us trooped up to the ward to rest - we went to our room (Ward 82 Room 17) and you went to the nursery for overnight observation. You were out, Skyler. You are now someone that we can hold in our arms and love!

Welcome to the world, Sweet Baby Girl!

Mommy and Daddy love you!

Dear Skyler,

You're 38 weeks old already. Mommy and Daddy are simply waiting to see you. :)

You've been very nudgy all this while. Mommy's sleep is constantly being disturbed by your moving around. We're totally thankful that you're so active. Dr Kang (as I mentioned previously) says that your being active is good. But, will you be able to cooperate? :) Mommy says that you're nudgy when she's trying to sleep but when she's moving around, you stop! Hmmm... so naughty! You must let Mommy rest! She needs all the energy she can store up to deliver you. :)

Mommy and Daddy are so waiting to see you. Everytime we do something, we have to plan contingencies in case you decide to come out. We went for a back-to-back movie screening (Perhaps Love followed by Wallace and Gromit and the Curse of the Were-Rabbbit - the first show was disappointing, the second was better.) on Friday night (eve of Christmas eve) and we had to think about what we would do if you decided to signal your intention to come out! :)

Anyway, it's so difficult for Mommy to walk around for long distances nowadays, so we decided to not go for our Christmas service this year. This has been our practice for years! Well, it can't be helped. You'll be joining us next year - no matter how sleepy you get! :) We usually go for the Midnight Eucharist - it's great! The church will be packed with people in the yuletide mood and we'll sing Christmas carols and we'll celebrate the birth of Jesus! It'll be a good experience for you. :)

We're also spending Christmas Day at home as well. A very quiet Christmas all around. Uncle Victor and Aunty Li San wanted us to visit their new home but it's just so difficult to move around. We promised them that we would visit when it was more convenient.

But, Mommy and Daddy are quite enjoying this quiet Christmas. Your Mommy and Daddy are so in love with each other that we just enjoy spending time with each other. We hope that you'll come to experience the same kind of relationship with your own loved one in the years to come.

Merry Christmas, Skyler. See you soon.

Mommy and Daddy

Dear Skyler,

Mommy and Daddy went to visit Dr Kang once more on 19th Dec. She conducted an examination and told us that you are already lying quite low and Mommy's cervix is already quite soft. Basically, you're due anytime. We're quite excited about this. We simply can't wait to see you.

And it's not only we who are anxiously waiting. Your grandmas and grandpa are also waiting. Both your grandmas keep on telling us about how cute you'll be and how great it'll be for them to see you and to play with you and how the little girls they see around them remind them that you are well on your way.

Mommy and Daddy were also told by our colleagues and (ex-)students that we must remember to tell them when you are delivered so that they can come and visit you.

So, when are you coming? :)

Mommy and Daddy celebrated their 13th Anniversary on 20th December. It's the anniversary of our coming together. For us, it's a day that we see as almost as important as our wedding anniversary. You'll be a part of our celebration next year!

We love you!

Daddy and Mommy

Dear Skyler,

You're 37 weeks old already. Officially, you're considered full term! You can come out any time now and be totally healthy. :)

Mommy and Daddy went to a park near our place. We couldn't believe that we've lived here for this number of years and we had never been there. Especially since it's so close to our place!

Well, we went around it and decided that it's quite a nice place and that we will bring you there often just for a walk. It's next to a school though, so it may be a bit noisy, but otherwise, it should be quite nice. It has lots of greenery. It's not very big but it is big enough for us. It has a playground for kids and exercise equipment for senior citizens and for people not so old. :)

We're really excited about your coming, Skyler. There're so many places that we want to bring you to and so many new things we want to teach you. Be healthy and strong, okay? We love you!

Daddy and Mommy

Dear Skyler,

Christmas is COMING!!! Yes, it's 9 days to Christmas! Will you be coming out before then? :)

You may not know what Christmas is right now but you will - it's one of the most important days in Mommy's and Daddy's calendar! It's the day that we celebrate Jesus's birth among Man as a human being. Both of us are always looking forward to this day! And you will too! :)

Mommy has not been sleeping well recently. She can't get to sleep longer than 2 to 3 hours at a stretch. On average, Mommy can only get about 6 hours of sleep in 24 hours or more. Mommy's very poor thing. And Daddy is also affected to some extent because Daddy has to make sure that he gets food for Mommy when she's awake. So, Daddy sometimes follows Mommy's sleeping pattern. But, Daddy sometimes sleeps so much that he leaves Mommy very hungry. :(

Mommy and Daddy just completed another big project! This whole holiday has been spent carrying out projects. Mommy has completed putting together selected photos of our wedding into special albums so that we can see the highlights of our wedding easily. Daddy has also been scanning all the old photos of our families so that we can have digital copies of all these photos and we can then distribute them to all. Otherwise, we'd only have one copy and if it's lost, we won't have any photos of the past anymore.

We also put together a video of Uncle Victor's and Aunty Li San's registration of marriage. It took us many many hours to put it together because we had to edit the video clips and photos and then put them all together in a video format and then choose the background music and so on. But we feel such a great sense of accomplishment!

It was important for us to do this because we love our families, Skyler. Even though it took so much time, we are very happy to do it because it would make our families very happy. Remember, Skyler: we can't live alone and our families will always be there for us. So, it's important that we remember our families, always thank God for them and always think of ways to make each other feel loved.

We love you, Skyler!

Daddy and Mommy

Dear Skyler,

We went to see Dr Kang again yesterday. That was our 8th visit to her. As usual, she did an ultrasound scan of you and asked the usual questions.

You're quite a good size, Skyler. Must be all the rest and more or less stress-free life that Mommy has been leading since she stopped schooling. :) Dr Kang thinks that you're about 3 kg now. Mommy asked her if your being so active was a good sign and she said that the more active you were the better. The main worry is whether you're active enough! This means that you're very healthy, Skyler. Thank God!

But Dr Kang is thinking that you may become so big that it'll be difficult for Mommy to deliver you. So, we're monitoring the situation to see how things go.

We bought a camera yesterday, Skyler, so that Mommy and Daddy have a camera to bring along to take photos of you and track your growth and activities. We went through a bit of research before deciding on it and we think we got a very good deal on it. Well, make sure you look at it often and SMILE when we take photos of you.

We love you!

Daddy and Mommy

Dear Skyler,

Mommy and Daddy had to ask Mommy's Mommy (your Grandma) and Uncle Victor and Aunty Lisan to help take care of our bunny because we are afraid that her fur may cause you to suffer from asthma.

The bunny's female and her name is "Bambi". It is a chinchilla-coated local bunny. This means that she is simply lusciously coated. We bought her from a store in United Square. She was so cute! She fit in the palm of our hands then. She's two-and-a-half years old now. We had some difficulty training her to not run under our sofa and stuff. She also loved to chew live electrical wires which we thought was quite suicidal of her. We finally succeeded in training her to obey our voices and we hardly have that problem after a while. It was the same with her urinating and pooping in the wrong places (the right place being in her cage).

In the first few months she was with us, she started developing a kind of growth on her nose. It totally freaked us out and we brought her to the veterinarian. He told us that it was a simple case of mites that most rabbits had due to the way they were caged by pet shops when new-born . He gave her an injection and soon after, the growth dropped off. She's been totally healthy ever since!

We have to leave her with Grandma for a few days and Uncle Victor and Aunty Lisan for a year or more after that. You are due soon and Mommy and Daddy don't want you to suffer from asthma which is a high possibility due to the fur that Bambi sheds. It was a sad day for Mommy and Daddy to leave her at Grandma's. Mommy and Daddy were so afraid about what she would think - she'd never been left by Mommy and Daddy for more than a day before. Mommy and Daddy were worried that she would not be able to adapt to the new environment. Thankfully, Grandma loves little animals and has been taking care of Bambi very well.

Mommy and Daddy love you!

Dear Skyler,

You're into Week 36 now!

Mommy's still having to endure the weight you've put on her frame. It's getting even harder for her to walk any distance now. Tried to take a walk downstairs last night and Mommy only made it maybe fifty steps in one direction before she had to give up.

We're so close to your birth, Skyler. And even though the school holidays still have three weeks to go, Daddy keeps on feeling as if time is running out. Daddy has to be around for the first couple of weeks to take care of Mommy and you, so please make sure you come out by the 21st of December, okay? :)

Mommy and Daddy are so determined to be the ones who will teach you almost all that you need to know as you're growing up. We're going to bring you to all the places that we can to show you things and make sure that you know about the things around you. We're going to avoid having nannies or maids or confinement ladies as much as possible.

Mommy and Daddy are going to spoil you, Skyler. But you cannot be spoilt, okay? :)

Mommy and Daddy love you!

Dear Skyler,

Hi! Have been wanting to tell you this for some time but just didn't get the opportunity. Mommy and Daddy have decided that your Chinese name will be 吴恺恩. :) As Christians, to us 恺 means "the Joy of the Lord" and 恩 means "the Grace of God". The name was chosen by Mommy and Daddy likes it very much. We think it's a great name! :) People have said that it sounds nice. Anyway, it means a lot to us, Skyler, that you embody the meaning of that name and be a witness of God to all around. :)

We're still busy preparing for your imminent arrival. We just set up your playpen in our room. You're going to sleep with us in our room for the first few months until you're old enough to sleep in your own room. This will make it easier for us to take care of you the first few months that you're with us. Your playpen takes up such a big space in our room! Good thing our room is as big as it is. :)

We've also already brought your stroller down to the car. It's in the boot now. We'll install your car seat soon.

We're going to be as ready as we can be for your arrival. Come out soon! Mommy really really finds it difficult to walk with you being as heavy as you are now.

We love you.

Daddy and Mommy

Dear Skyler,

We just visited Dr Kang Wee again on Monday. This was our 7th visit. She was so impressed by Mommy's ability to walk again. She also did a scan of you and said that you were about 2.6 kg! Wow! You're so big already. She also said that you were very active. :) And you were! All of us saw how much you moved around in Mommy's belly! :)

After the scan, we asked Dr Kang if you could be delivered in December and she said that she doesn't think you would wait until January anyway. So, we're totally expecting you anytime now. It was at that moment that it really struck me how soon you'll be here with us for us to cherish and love face-to-face! It's so exciting!

Dr Kang then asked Mommy to go for this thing called a CTG scan. It basically measures your heartbeat and you've got a good and healthy heart, baby girl! A healthy 160 heartbeats a minute! :) While Mommy was undergoing the scan, she experienced two Braxton Hicks contractions and they appeared in the chart as spikes! The nurses and Dr Kang commented on it. Wow! That also just makes me so aware that you're coming out soon.

After all this, we had to book a room in the hospital for when you actually do come out. We decided to book an 'A' class room so that Daddy could stay over with Mommy during the whole delivery period. Daddy doesn't want to leave Mommy alone in the hospital at all. Daddy also wants to be with you in your first few days in this world. :)

You've become so heavy! Mommy finds it so difficult to move around for long without suffering from aches in her belly. Even so, she still wanted to go out and we finally ended up at Ngee Ann City because we wanted to look at new cameras just so we can take photos of you when you're with us. She was so tired at the end of the day because you ARE just SO heavy. So, please come out soon, okay?

It's such a strange thing - this pregnancy. Mommy keeps on getting women coming up to her to share their pregnancy stories. A fruit juice stall operator came up to us while we were having lunch to talk about you and she shared with us her story. A lady sat next to Mommy at Ngee Ann City while she was resting and also shared her story. She was already in her sixties and her son was already 30 odd years old but she still remembers her story so well. We also had our airconditioner serviced and the husband and wife team shared with us their story as well. (I think I mentioned this before.) It's almost like women's version of National Service stories in Singapore. :)

Since we're so aware of your imminent arrival, Mommy and Daddy made final preparations in packing the necessary things for the trip to the hospital last night. We've got two big bags full of stuff - including a digital video camera, a digital still camera and a film still camera! And chargers! We're really living in the technology age! Sure hope we can charge up our equipment batteries in the room! :)

We love you, baby girl!

Take care! Be a joyful person! :)

Daddy and Mommy

Dear Skyler,

Mommy and Daddy went down to Marina South one evening to try out the steamboat there. We'd heard from our students that they went there often and as we'd not had steamboat for some time, we decided to give it a try. It was a fairly long journey as we're talking about travelling all the way from the north to the south of Singapore!

We had no idea which one was the more popular place until we got there. It seemed as if the only place that was open was this particular outlet where there were tonnes of people eating! They had so many tables and almost all were occupied.

Anyway, we had to figure out what the system was before we could settle down to eat. As we did not want to smell of the place, we decided to sit further away from the main place. This meant that Daddy had to walk a very long way to get food and stuff! :)

We were given live prawns and crabs as part of the deal! We'd never cooked live food before so Daddy was a bit apprehensive about what to do with them! :) Anyway, Daddy watched what other people did and finally learnt how to chop up live crabs and clean them! We barbecued the crabs and they were quite nice. :) We just dumped some of the prawns to boil and barbecued a few as well. Anyway, there was so much food that Daddy ended up walking back and forth a few times to get what we wanted.

We also asked them to change the aluminium foil that they used twice as it kept on getting burnt! We saw other people just continuing to cook their food on the burnt foil! It was so unhealthy and disgusting! :) The burnt parts form something called carcinogens that can result in cancer! So, I don't understand why so many people like to eat burnt food! Don't do that in the future, okay?

We also saw a couple who brought a young baby with them to the place to eat. We decided that we would not do that with you, Skyler, because it would so uncomfortable for you. It's hot and smelly because of the barbecued food. You wouldn't be comfortable there at all.

The only good thing about that place compared to somewhere similar but in an airconditioned place like Seoul Garden is that it is open-air so the smell does not get stuck in the room thus making us totally smell like the cooking! :)

It was so tedious doing all the collecting of food and cooking that it took us 2 hours to complete our meal! :) Mommy and Daddy decided that this experience was enough to last us for a while. I guess the next time we do something like that, you will be old enough for us to bring you along. :)

It's getting closer to your delivery date, Skyler. We're so excited to hold you in our arms. We love you!

Mommy and Daddy

Dear Skyler,

Mommy's so much better now. She can walk around the house with hardly any problems! But she can't really walk for long because her right hip will hurt. You're really big and heavy now so you're making it difficult for Mommy to move around so much.

Thank God that we know about chiropractic treatment and Dr Wasserman. If we'd been ignorant and depended on advice from western-trained doctors, we'd have been told to just bear with the pain and that there was nothing that could be done. Dr Kang wanted us to visit an orthopaedic surgeon. From what we've heard, practitioners of this branch of medicine are equivalent to being the butchers of medicine. They usually just want to cut open their patients in a surgery just to see what is wrong rather than knowing what is wrong before performing a surgery to repair the problem. Anyway, the result would have been the same - nothing useful or effective would have been done.

At least with chiropractic treatment, Mommy can walk on her own now without any support. She's still not in the best of conditions but she's so much better! I'm so proud of Mommy. Even Dr Wasserman said that Mommy was the one who helped herself recover! Daddy and Mommy really thank God for healing Mommy! =)

We've also put up window grilles in the house, Skyler. They're all for your sake. We're so afraid that you may play and climb out the windows, which is a very dangerous thing to do. They managed to install them quite quickly, Thank God! And they weren't very noisy either. They don't look too bad overall.

Mommy and Daddy actually didn't want window grilles because they block our view through the windows but now we have no choice. :) We must be careful with your safety.

Daddy's on semi-holiday now so Daddy can spend more time with Mommy. It's very important to us that we have this time together, Skyler. This means that Daddy can take care of Mommy more and feel your movements more often and watch you grow day by day. Of course, we still can't see you but we can see your movements when you move around Mommy's belly. :) It's always so exciting to feel you move and listen to your heartbeat!

Grow well! Be a good and healthy and strong Christian!

Mommy and Daddy