28 Weeks update- Welcome to the 3rd trimester!

Latest bump pic. I couldn't get O to tear himself away from the NBA playoffs to get a good pic so it's me in the mirror. Not the greatest and I'm totally rocking the double chin. 

Funny pregnancy moments- You really have to just have a good sense of humor about your pregnancy. It's better to laugh rather than cry. I've had some major baby brain moments lately. I've been in conversations and completely responded as if I wasn't listening at all- which I wasn't and everyone keeps making fun of me for it at work. One of the worst baby brain moments was a few days ago. I was walking through a mall and realized I needed to buy some new shampoo. So I walked into Sephora and bought shampoo. I walked to the next mall (Singapore is just a big city of interconnected malls) and I thought, "I need shampoo", so I walked into Watsons and picked up shampoo and went to pay. Only then did I realize that I HAD JUST BOUGHT SHAMPOO. Ooops. Got home and realized that I don't even need shampoo, there is plenty in the bathroom.

How are you handling the heat?! Everyone has been asking that lately. I'm starting to get noticeably hotter these days. I've never really minded the heat here- growing up in Texas summers prepares you for living on the Equator. But with all this extra blood running through my body, yeah, it's fuggin' hot.

Weight gain: 10 lbs total since the start of pregnancy or as O says "That's it?!" I swear the scale is broken at the dr. office. 

Maternity clothes- It's actually really surprising that I can still fit into some non-maternity clothes. I've been told that depending on what I wear, some days I look "super pregnant" and some days I just look "normal". Whatever that means, I feel super pregnant all the time. 

Stretch marks- Surprisingly not yet. 

Cravings: Orange juice every day and ice cream occasionally.

Miss anything? Sleeping on my stomach and back. Being able to bend down without the belly getting in the way. A cold beer on a Friday afternoon. Oh, and cookie dough. 

Kicks/movement- ALL the time! Day and night, when I'm sitting or walking around, doesn't matter. With a new scan each month, it's nice knowing exactly what position he is in so I can tell if he's kicking or punching. He punches more than he kicks. Gonna be a boxer!

Belly button- still in, but barely

Sleep: It's getting harder to get comfortable some nights. Thinking about getting one of those body pillows. I've basically created a body pillow with 5 of our pillows but I have to rearrange it every time I get up to go to the bathroom. Also, O is sad he's just down to 1 pillow now. He guards it like a hawk.

Happy or moody: Mostly happy, but just don't ever eat a pregnant lady's food. Ever. 

Looking forward to: June 7- last day of school. Freeeeedom!!

Latest scan: I went in to the Dr this past week because I had a fever. Same story- lots of fluids, rest, paracetamol (Tylenol to Americans) to keep the fever down. Whenever I go in, the dr always does a scan to check to make sure everything is okay with the baby and also to "brighten up my day" as she says. Technology is amazing. With one click of a button, she showed me a 4D scan of the baby! It's a strange/awesome thing. Here's a pic of his face. 

Restaurants of the week

Al Qasar in Holland Village

 Holland Village is a large area of restaurants and shops about a 15-20 minute walk from our place. Decent lebanese food, but after living in the Middle East we are spoiled. First of all, it's over priced, but I think everywhere here would seem overpriced compared to the Middle East. Secondly, it's decent Lebanese food, not amazing Lebanese food. But I guess that's what happens when you've been to Beirut and had your mind blown with their amazing hummus.

La Salsa at Dempsey Hill

So we were going to try a new restaurant at Dempsey Hill- a large area of restaurants about a 15 minute walk from our place. We always say we will try a new place.....But once we saw our favorite place, we had to stop. It's "fancy Mexican" and what makes it even better is we get 50% off with our AMEX card. Yes, I said 50, which makes the price seem decent. It's one of the best Mexican places here and no it doesn't compare to Mexican in Texas, but it's still a weekly fave. They usually have a band playing on Friday nights which adds to the experience. 

more books.

Not baby books.... but here is an update of books I've read the past few months...

This book was super weird. And not in a good way. I read this around the same time as the Newtown murders and I couldn't help but think of how this book is about this weird loner just like that crazy guy. To be honest, I didn't really like it. 

You've probably considered quitting your job and traveling for a year, or maybe you've done it. More and more people are doing this. O and I talk about where we would go and what we would do in a year. I think the main thing would be being able to go to different regions of the world at the "ideal" time of year. Being able to go trek Nepal in October, avoiding all the monsoon seasons, etc. This couple quits their jobs, packs their bags and heads off to explore the world and all it's culture and get out of their comfort zone. First stop, Fiji. Wait, what the what? You're first stop is Fiji? Wow, super lame. Next stop, New Zealand. Come on! Explore! Isn't that the point of your wander year? While Fiji and NZ seem amazing and I can't wait to visit both places, they are places I will take my young kids because they are EASY and COMFORTABLE. The book was incredibly disappointing, although well written and at least short, they purposely avoid India because they "aren't ready for that kind of culture shock".  Come on! I want to hear about all your crazy adventures and how you had so many amazing experiences you would never expect. The most annoying thing was that they packed everything they needed into their 2 big backpacks and then also brought 3 suitcases. Don't say you're backpacking when you aren't. Thank God, the book was less than $3 on the Kindle. 

 LOVED this book! Amazing story, and sooo well written. Read this book. It's unbelievable that this is a true story. A must read!

As I've mentioned before, I love Peter Moore's books. He's the "traveler's traveler". So he wrote this after The Full Moctezuma where he travels around Central America with the GND(girl next door). A hilarious book that highlights the highs and lows of traveling with a new love for the first time. Obviously that didn't go well, and he's left broken hearted and decides to go to Africa. He goes from Cape Town to Cairo mostly overland. Having been to many of these places, it sparks lots of memories. A fun read, as always expected from Peter Moore. 

Another Peter Moore- maybe one of his first books? Not sure. He has been living in London and decides to head home to Australia overland. Can he do it? You have to read to find out if he can make it to Australia overland through some very tricky border crossings. I especially liked his description of Singapore. One of my favorite Peter Moore books. 

Well, you had my attention with the title alone. Western woman living in the middle east? Gotta read it. Also, it was less than $5 on the Kindle. This chick goes to live in Saudi back in the 80s and has to deal with all the extreme sexism and crazy religious laws. I enjoyed her perspective and I think I would have felt the same emotions seeing the injustice towards women and wanting to change it rather than just accept it as "part of their culture". She befriends several Saudi women and tries to help them change their social situations. They are very frightened to speak up, but a few do. Which leads me to her next book....

While living in Saudi, she befriends one of the princesses and writes her biography hoping to help improve the lives of women there by telling their stories. I loved this book as well. However, it hasn't helped my rage every time I see a lady dressed in full burka next to her husband who is in a singlet and board shorts. There are 2 more books about her life and the lives of other Saudi women which I can't wait to read. Highly recommend. 

products i like.

Some stuff I use and love from Sephora....

Since being pregnant, I've switched to as many Organic products as possible. Organic deodorant that works is basically impossible to find, but this one from Sephora actually works and smells good too.  I like the vanilla one.  

 This conditioner doesn't contain sulphates and all that other stuff so it's more natural. The smell is really strong but it works so well. I use it about 2 twice a week.

Love this eyeshadow from Urban Decay! My favorite color is called "Sin". 

This is my anti-stretch mark lotion. It's expensive, but so far no stretch marks. I like the smell and it's a great lotion regardless. 

Baby books review

Of course I've read a few baby books. Here are some I've read and what I think about them. 

 This is that classic book. It's good, but I find more information on the internet. You have to be careful about using the internet though- don't ever read advice from a forum. There are crazy people on the internet and they all make their crazy-ass comments on forums. Make sure the websites you read are from doctors and hospitals.

I liked this one more than the first one even though it's very similar information. This one has lots of pictures which I like. They give good advice and even exercises you should do. I like the organization of this book at bit better. It's a heavy read though- literally the book weighs a lot. 

This was good for a good laugh and I'm glad I read it in the very early stages of pregnancy. She does talk about all the things your doctor won't tell you. It's a little weird though because she gives relationship advice and tells stories about her husband who is now her ex-husband. AND her ex-husband is Jimmy Lovine from American Idol- you know, he's that producer that gives advice to the singers. 

This was from Suzanne- Thanks! It's a good laugh. But again she talks about her husband who is her ex-husband and how she was so crazy during her pregnancy. Also, it's weird to know now that her son has autism and so when she makes statements like "I never ate anything healthy during my pregnancy", I can't help but think there might be a link there. 

Babymoon #2 - Thailand

Is it babymoon #2 or honeymoon #6? We had an awesome time in Thailand, as usual. It's just such an easy place to go and only an hour away by plane. It was so relaxing and just what we needed. It was great to see the Simons too. Always a good time with those guys. 

 Who doesn't love towel animals?

 quiet beach

 The pool.

the view from lunch

look at this guy! 

The tide was out one night before dinner so we went for a long stroll along the beach. The villas where we stayed are just behind us. And as usual, we were already planning our next vacation before we had left.... quite a few ideas were thrown around for Christmas and Chinese New Year!

What the what ?!

When we decided to get married, I realized that I knew nothing about planning a wedding. I spent about 6 months researching weddings before we could even start planning ours. Then it took another 6 months to plan it. Now with a baby I'm even worse. I had no idea about babies or even anything about being pregnant at the beginning. I've had a lot of surprising moments in the last few months. Here are a few things I've learned:

• You can't just eat anything you want. What!? Yeah, there's a big list of no-nos for pregnancy like soft cheeses, deli meats, poached eggs, pre-made salads, rare meat, certain types of fish, sushi, etc. I've never been a picky eater so it was really hard to be a picky eater when eating out. 

• It's not weird when people start rubbing your belly. I was a little worried about this one, but for some reason it's not that weird. It doesn't even feel like your stomach anymore, it's stretched out and not really "you". 

• It's also not weird when the baby starts kicking. Which is weird that it's not weird. At first it just feels like gas, then it feels like strong gas, then it's like Mummy Tummy gas, then it's like an alien is kicking inside you. But since it doesn't really feel like your stomach anymore, it's not that weird at all. 

• I know why pregnant women rub their own belly. I was really wondering about this one. You know how you see a pregnant lady and she's occasionally rubbing her own belly? Well, I found myself doing this and now I know why. At first, I wanted people to know I'm pregnant. You don't just rub your beer gut, so I would rub it when people would give me that look of "Is she...?" Now I find myself rubbing my belly because it itches. If I sit there scratching, it looks a bit funny but if I just rub it when it itches, fewer people stare. 

• Everyone gets out of your way and wants to help. This especially applies to men. I love being at work and everyone will help me carry things, open doors, etc. I can't carry more than a book and people will ask if they can help. 

• "Eat like a baby, act like an old lady" I really like this advice from our doc and it's true! I feel so much better when I eat small meals all day long and go slow. You can't just do everything you normally do, and you have to slow down. 

• Your body changes in bizarre ways. Like really really bizarre. Like your ribs are being stretched apart and the ligaments in your hips are becoming detached from your body.