My bubsy

 As bubsy's first birthday approaches, I am reminded of how quickly time all went by. From the very moment of his conception, until his birth, and up to his first birthday. What have we done all this time? What were bubsy's significant milestones and achievements? What were the memorable moments that we shared together?

Here's a snapshot of bubsy's life since conception -

              I discovered that bubsy was a 'boy' on this very day at the Perth Radiological Clinic

I wanted a hospital close to home, but I heard horror (and good, but mostly horror) stories of Joondalup Hospital's (JHC) midwives. As we lived north of the river, Osborne Park Hospital (OPH) was another option. However, after it was reported on the news that 2 babies had died there in early 2011 as the mothers were turned away or told to wait due to shortage of beds, I re-considered. King Edward Memorial Hospital (KEMH) was Perth's largest major maternity hospital. However, due to bed constraints, they only accepted at-risk or complicated pregnancies. For example, mothers expecting twins, or babies with health concerns. My GP initially referred me to JHC. However,  I hated it so much that I returned to my GP, Dr Hansen, and asked for another referral. She referred me to KEMH, but said that KEMH will refer me back to JHC or OPH as my baby was healthy and my pregnancy was normal. I was adamant. Guess what? The obstetricians at KEMH were so professional and good that they actually detected a teeny problem with bubsy, which JHC did not even realised - bubsy was having ectopic heartbeats. The obstetrician immediately sent me down for a scan and further investigations. All this on my very FIRST appointment at KEMH. Why didn't the obstetricians at JHC detected that? My obstetrician decided to keep me at KEMH rather than transferring me to OPH. I was so glad that I chose to leave JHC. I had 3 obstetricians during my appointments at KEMH - Dr Saunders, Dr Nina, and Dr Bennett. I must say that Dr Bennett was the best obstetrician I've ever known. She was so friendly, professional and smart. She knows what she's doing, and provided great advise and care for first-time mothers (like me). I was really glad that I wasn't transferred to OPH. My Vietnamnese friend at work had a baby girl, named Sapphire, at OPH recently. The staff was so rough in handling Saph. When drawing out Saph's blood, instead of carrying her out of the cradle to do it, the nurse was so lazy and just pulled her leg out and over the cradle. Saph's hip twisted and broke as a result and had to undergo surgery on both her hips. I felt so sorry for Saph.

I still remember clearly the events leading up to bubsy's birth. Bubsy was due on the 23rd of July 2011. However, we just waited and waited, and finally, I went back to see Dr Bennett, and she wanted to do an induction of labour. The consent form was signed, and the labour room was booked for 4th August 2011. However, before I left, I opened my big mouth and told hussy that we should hurry leave as my mum and sister was waiting in the car. Parking was so expensive at Subiaco and we didn't want to pay for parking so they just waited in the car. Anyway, right after I said that, Dr Bennett asked where we were going after this, and I said "Ikea". I was very superstitious, so I waited until the last minute, right until before his birth, to buy the essential baby things like his cot. When Dr Bennett knew that I was going to Ikea, she made me lie down to check my cervix - she wanted to make sure that I did not go into labour at Ikea!!! hahaha. Good ol' Dr Bennett! When she checked my cervix, she realised that I was 4cm dilated. She said that it's the beginning of labour. However, I was sure that it was the beginning of nothing. So she said that this can't wait until August, and she re-scheduled the induction to 8am the next day, on the 30th of July 2011. Bubsy was one week late! I can already see that he will always be late - just like me =)

Guess what?

Just before the clock struck midnight on the 29th of July, my waters broke. I was certainly not prepared. Heck, we were in the middle of dinner! My mum was at work (she's a nurse doing the night shift). Hence, my sister rang 000 for the ambos (Aussie word for "ambulance"). Hussy went to prepare my labour bag (I was going to prepare that after dinner). Until this day, I still can't believe how calmed and nonchalant we all were. In fact, I even told my sister to tell the ambos to take their time to arrive, and attend to other emergencies first. I expected them to come an hour later, but they came in 20mins! I was still eating my Italian baked rice!!

When the ambulance arrived at KEMH, I was about to get up and walk in on my own. However, the paramedic told me that since I arrived with the ambos, I had to be wheeled in on the stretcher.

Midwife Carly helping me to breastfeed bubsy. On my left was a student midwife from Curtin University (you can see her gloved hand^^)

Resting after the delivery

Bubsy home for the first time :)

Bubsy was just a teeny weeny little baba, who simply adored going out for walks or to the shops.

Wearing his fluffy present from Aunty Nurul, his birthday gift for being born in winter!

 Bubsy trying solids for the VERY first time! He turned exactly 6 months old on that day. Look at him eying the spoon suspiciously, thinking "That's not milk!"

Give me a break!

We later tried giving him different food textures and flavours. His favourites were avocado, banana, pears, and grapes. He liked strawberries too, only if it's sweet :)

Bubsy makes this hilarious face whenever he tries new flavours, like apple or pumpkin.

Finally, they've stopped torturing me!

Bubsy eats everything. Even if he made that awful face (above), he would still open his mouth wide when offered the same food again. The only food he feared is spicy food! I'm glad I don't have a fussy eater ^^

Sitting up for the first time -

I'm blessed to have a son who loves to smile. Since birth, he'd always been so photogenic in front of the camera! I'm sure that all parents say the same thing, but it's true, my son's born to be a star ^^

Bubsy has his grumpy days too. When he throws tantrums, I would call him "Mister Grumpy".

Bubsy would frown (above) or pout his lips (below) when he is getting grumpy...

There was a time when bubsy loved sucking his thumb, and eating paper. His favourite type was newspaper!!! However, I'm glad that he grew out of that really fast. In fact, he stopped those bad habits after just 2 months!!

Eating paper

Then when he realised that he has got fingers and hands, he developed a new-found love for grabbing everything - from fans, tables, chairs, curtains, just everything!!

Reaching out to grab the table in-front of him~

Through all the ups and downs, bubsy was always there for me. When I was sad, he gave me joy. When I was down, he lifted me up. He may only be a few months old, but he is already my superhero.

I love you bubsy.

Enjoying the taste of paper in his mouth^^

I love the way he sleeps!

Visiting the child health nurse