Bila nak bersalin ni?

I've passed my 38th week now, and still no signs of labour, be it pain, show or regular contractions. Or so I think. Read through a few websites regarding twins, and mostly say that multiple pregnancies will always be delivered early. Or so they say. Guess I'm one of those extraordinary homo-sapiens (among the few percentage of women worldwide) who do not.

But since my last checkup last Tuesday, I can feel the difference within my occupied-belly. The weight, especially! According to the ultra sound scan results, Twin 1 is already 2.8kg, and Twin 2 has reached 3 kg!! That's almost 6kg, people! (assuming the readings given were accurate) Allah, help me be strong. Today has been particularly difficult for me, somehow I felt my body is a huge magnetic metal bearing the positive charge, and everything that I step on (earth, mainly) will be the negative charge. My weight seems to want to stick to the ground! Lifting a feet is such a struggle; lifting more than a few almost made me shed a few tears. That's why today I could not bring myself together to be strong for Dini, and let the bibik and my MIL look after her most of the time. I simply lied down, sleep off the pain away. For the first time, I didnt feel guilty for doing so. I find myself always thinking.. "bila nak bersalin ni?" It's gonna become a reality sooner or later, and today, I wanted it to be sooner than I thought. I was even willing to go through everything alone, without my hubby (if God does not permit), as long as I can get the boys out of me. True enough it's always better for the babies the longer they are in the womb; for natural development can take place. Caring for babies who are born prematurely can be more demanding and challenging. Allah knows best, surely. Whatever it is that I am going through, must be best for me and my family.

Twin 1's head has always faced downwards (Cephalic, or also termed as Vertex).. but twin 2 has not. Fortunately, he has turned himself to the same position as Twin 1 last week.. probably getting ready to face the world soon. When they're both in this sort of position, it would be easier for the mother (me) to deliver them normally. Lets hope they both stay that way until the right time comes. We sure would want to avoid any unnecessary complications, especially since the risk is much, much higher when involving twins delivery. According to Twins Pregnancy and Beyond, by around the 36th week of twin pregnancy, the positions of twins in the womb will not likely change. Generally because of the sheer lack of space to move around. Ya ALlah, please make it easy for me.

Sleeping also is becoming more strenuous these days. With Dini insisting on my company everytime she sleeps makes it even worse. Every toss and turn I make in order to find the most comfortable position to sleep on is deeply excruciating. To change from turning one side to the other, feels like 10kilos of weight strapped all around my waist, and having to move it ever so slowly using only the few active muscles left in.. lets see, just my tummy. My legs seem numb, my hands seem useless (for all my 10 fingers cant be bent at all nowadays!), other parts are just so exhausted from being awake since morning till night. Sigh... so this is how it feels to be carrying twins. I wonder how those carrying triplets or more do it. They must have had help... a LOT of help.

I miss my home.. I miss PJ.. I miss Ikea.. I miss Italiannies.. I miss the movies.. I miss shopping.. I miss meniaraping. :-((

Ya, ya.. sabar banyak2, tau.. saje nak express sikit, tak boleh ke? :-(

Peek-A-BOO!

Dini now has a new nickname, given by her Mok Usu - it's BOO! (after the character named Boo in Monsters Inc.), a 2001 computer animated comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios. I felt annoyed at first, but later think it is quite adorable. Do you see the cute similarities? Ok, probably Dini's eyes are not as big as Boo's, but still.. with the two ponytails, the way she walks, moves her head and babbles while walking, you'll understand why. Other happy pics of Dini while playing the ball here in KB...

Here's Dini in a pail of water... she gets so excited being in it! We have to remember to always empty it, though, to avoid fatal accidents. Na'uzubillah.

That nasty makcik was absent yesterday at the hospital. Darn! I wanted her to see me with my father-in-law!!! Ceh...

Blogged too soon

This morning I woke up with two large swollen feet and two much-chubbier hands, hahaha. Funny sight, yet scary too. Such signs can only mean... "it's NEAR!" I think I look like Marge Simpson now, only with black hair and brown skin. Hehe.

I spoke too soon about the weather here. It's getting to be warmer and less bearable since yesterday. Hopefully it gets better by the end of this month.

Had a good read few days back; and I wud especially like to share the "Top 10 Worst Tech Predictions of All Time"

1. "Next Christmas the iPod will be dead, finished, gone, kaput." - Sir Alan Sugar, 2005
2. "No need for a computer at home." - Ken Olsen, founder of Digital Equipment, 1977
   
3. "Nuclear-powered vacuum cleaners will probably be a reality within ten years." - Alex Lewyt, president of Lewyt Corp vacuum company, 1955
4. "TV won't last because people will soon get tired of staring at a plywood box every night." - Darryl Zanuck, 1946
5. "There will never be a bigger plane built." - Boeing engineer, 1933, after the maiden flight of a ten-seater Boeing 247
6. "We stand on the threshold of rocket mail." - US postmaster general Arthur Summerfield, 1959
7. "Nobody would ever need more than 640 kilobytes of memory on their personal computer." - Bill Gates, 1981, allegedly
8. "The Americans hae need of the telephone, but we do not. We have plenty of messenger boys." - Sir William Preece, chief engineer of the British Post Office, 1878
9. "Spam will be solved." - Bill Gates, 2004
10. "X-rays will prove to be a hoax." - Lord Kelvin, president of the UK's Royal Society, 1883

(Reader's Digest, May 2009)

 

Altogether now... "YEAH, RRRRIIIIGGHHHTT!!!!"

Tomorrow's my next appointment with the doctor at HUSM. Hmmm.. lets see if that same makcik will be nasty to me again  ;-)

Governed up!

Dini with Tok Wan Mama (my mother-in-law)

Two weeks have passed since I arrived in Kota Bharu, Kelantan - the so-called Serambi Mekah of Malaysia. I expected it to be much warmer here compared to PJ and KL, but thankfully, it's cooler. Life has been very static lately... coz for one, I've not much strength left to move about too much or drive around and two, it's KB we're talking about here ;-) No offense.

The only thing 'colourful' I wud say so far wud be my experience at a government hospital, namely HUSM. I never knew it wud tickle me this much. Luckily I manage to laugh about it, and not frown or be pissed off. A few complaints here and there which I intentionally did not make any attempt to hold back.

Before I cud finally meet eye-to-eye with my new gynae (Dr. Nik Hazlina), first I had to register at the registration counter (first-timer). They look like they have a system in place, kena ambik nombor, etc. The crowd was massive, I had to wait for more than 40 people until it is my turn. I honestly thought there were many first-timers like me. But NO, apparently, those who have already registered, even if it's their 1000th visit at the hospital even just for an appointment with their doctor, they have to register! Okay, takpe... trying to practice centralised registration, an attempt that shud be given credit for.

Then, I was asked to proceed to the O&G department and guess what... another counter! Kena ambik nombor lagi pulak tu! But this time, tak ramai orang. So it was quite fast, nasib baik. Kalau tidak, memang aku nak kutuk kow-kow dah. Then I got my number, and was told to do a urine test. As I went in, believe it or not, there's ANOTHER counter! (Mayah, for the first time in my life, I felt like implementing ISO at that place, become the MR with you as my assistant and the document controller hehe; so that I can abolish all those redundant processes!) Ok, masa untuk mengutuk. Belum sempat kutuk dalam hati, suddenly my name was announced thru the PA system. I was asked to go back to the front counter. Rupa2 nya diorg lupa nak chop something (ek eleeennnnn...) Tengah aku mengutuk dalam hati, I made my way to the counter inside again. Baru nak tanya one staff nurse there (already a makcik) whether or not I should register at the counter she was sitting at, dia dah bukak mulut dulu..

"Hoh! Dio royak suruh buat gapo sakni?" [Ha, dia suruh buat apa tadi?]

"Teh air kecing" [Test air kencing]

"Doh tu? Serupo lah nge sakni nyo" [Dah tu? Sama la dengan tadi]

Mak datuk! Debey nok maPUUuhhh!!! I actually giggled, nonetheless. Becoz I find it unnecessary to talk to a 'lost' patient like me. Why was she acting such a way? She must be bored, or going thru menopause, or she feels powerful over someone muka kesian seposen macam aku ni. But I debey-ly responded to her..

"Dok laaa, mano tahu buleh timbey duluuuu" [Takde la, mana tau boleh timbang dulu] - coz the weighing machine was right at the counter, and I saw a few people queuing up to weigh themselves there

"Dok, dok.. gih, gih ambik air kecing dulu" [Tak, tak.. pegi ambik air kencing dulu]

(Baik lah... boooosssss!) I felt the strong urge to yell that to her face, despite being all giggly.

In the toilet... ok, takde kena ambik nombor (phew!). Tapi, kena beratur, ada dua je toilet (darn!). Satu toilet duduk, satu toilet mencangkung. Everyone wants the duduk-toilet; orang mengandung, what do u expect? I told myself to calm down, and be patient. I saw one big pile of washed urine cups, everyone was taking from that pile before entering the toilet... I suddenly wondered if they're really clean... hmmmm... dah la takde penutup. I cud see everyone was covering the cup with tissue, malu punya pasal kot.

After that, I carried my own cup to the counter, and deliberately asked ANOTHER nurse (not the irritable makcik) where to put it. I was ushered into a room labeled "Utiliti Kotor" and entered. There was a young lady waiting inside. She said...

"Letok cawey atah mejo tuh" [Letak cawan atas meja tu]

So I did. Then she put a stick into it with her gloved hands, took one glance at the stick, and threw the it into a rubbish bin. Then she said...

"Ok, tohok air kecing tu dale bekah tu (while pointing to a large white bowled-sink) pahtu basuh bekah situ (pointing to another sink)" [Ok, buang air kencing tu dalam bekas tu lepas tu basuh bekas kat situ]

Again, I giggled while thinking what?? Kena basuh sendiri??!!! How hilarious is that?? Hahahahaha. Diorang ni pemalas ke apa? Ok, to think positively, maybe they're being hygienic (overly hygienic, if u ask me). But, hey, you're paid, man! And you've got your gloves too, helloo! Ugh, whatever...

Oh yes, on that day, I had to be warded for one night, to monitor my babies' progress (I took it as a punishment for kutuk-ing a lot of the hospital). The ward reminded me so much of days in UTM, like a dormitory. Everyone goes to the toilet carrying their toothbrush and paste, shampoos, shower creams, towels on their shoulder, and a pair of clean clothes. In the shower room, I can see clothes hanging on the door. Hehehe. Such a familiar sight.

I also forgot that government hospitals ada ramai student. During the rounds the next morning, more than 3 doctors wud stop by each bed and ask the patients similar questions to the doctors before them (which got to be irritating at one point to me!). I somehow think they just want to show they know a lot depan2 patients... tak baik nya aku. Entah2 they really want to learn.

There was a group of ladies who came later, with one lady as their leader, her voice being more dominant than the others. As they approached my bed, the leader asked her students (I presume she's sort of a lecturer), "ok, ini pulak kes apa?" One of them explained, "twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome". Then the leader sort of clapped her hands once, and loudly said "OK! Apakah ciri-ciri twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome? Who can tell me? Come on, come on". Erk... confirm cikgu dengan anak murid nih. Lawak pulak rasanya. I spontaneously took my mobile phone and snapped their pic. All of them were shocked, but laughed. The lady said "ini tak boleh jadi ni, selalu kita yang ambik gambar patient. Jangan letak dalam youtube sudah". I just smiled, but secretly thought "no, ma'am. just my blog". Hehehe. (Malangnya, terlupa nak bawak USB cable for the phone, tak dapat lah nak upload dalam blog ni)

Yesterday, I went for a second checkup. And guess what? Makcik debey tu sound aku lagi! Apparently my number was called (baru sekali je rasanya), but I was not aware. Then she suddenly called out my name. I quickly stood up. She saw me and said...

"Tok dengar ko nombor keno panggil?!" [Tak dengar ke nombor dipanggil?]

"Tok perase" [Tak perasan]

"Allaaahhhhh.. duk wak gapo dio... bla bla bla bla" [Allaahhhh.. duk buat apa? ********* (whatever!)]

Then my imagination starts... marah2 dia, tarik tudung dia, pecat dia, komplen pasal dia kat Tok Guru Nik Aziz... mmmm.. yum yum!

But alhamdulillah, it turned out that the twins are alright so far, both weigh more or less the same. As of yesterday, twin 1 was 2.26kg and twin 2 was 2.47kg. I still have to wait for normal labour signs... which seems to take forever especially when it is anticipated too much. Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock... 

I can hardly hold my tears as my hubby went back for the second time. Being apart is much harder than I expected. I'm beginning to understand how 'incomplete' feels. I initially thought with Dini around, things wud be slightly different. Sigh... it's not.