Shows.

Being pregnant limits your activities. We have tried to see as many shows and movies as we could. 

 This was amazing. If you have never seen a Cirque show, you are completely missing out. Make sure you make every effort to see one sometime in your lifetime. I also highly recommend getting as close to the stage as possible. We splurged for 5th row tickets. I can't recommend this enough.

I had to go see this with the girls. The dancing was great, the acting not so much. But to be fair, the cast was from South Africa and they were desperately trying to maintain their American accents. Highly inappropriate for kids which there were far to many of there. 

This was our last show before baby comes. It was good, not amazing or anything surprising. Great to go out with friends afterwards though. We are definitely enjoying our nights out as much as we can. 

Will our baby be Singaporean?

We get asked that a lot from people back in the US and Canada. The answer is no. I found this article explaining this. Here are some key points from the article. (We are EP pass holders)


"You can be a tourist here or on an EP pass or be a Permanent Resident and give birth in Singapore and your child will not be classified as a Singaporean.

An oxymoron surely? You must take on the nationality of the place where you are born?

Ordinarily and in many other other countries in the world yes but not in Singapore.The irony is of course that Singapore has the lowest fertility rate in the world which is one of the main reasons that foreigners have to be imported here to fill jobs. That in turn is one of the main reasons why Singaporeans are increasingly anti-foreigner and believe that foreign workers should be second to infrastructure development to cope with population growth.

I have tried to find out why this is the case and can only conclude that the policy is designed to stop people from poorer neighbours like the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia from just hoping over the border to visit Sentosa and having a baby here at the same time and gaining all the benefits.

However this overlooks the small fact that there is virtually no welfare system here. Born here does not give you any benefits unless you really are on the poverty line.

Even then the reason why so many older Singaporeans work in fast food outlets (way past any age they would do so in the West) is because there are no freebies, no safety net beyond your child looking after you (they must do so legally but if you have no family it becomes a problem).

The UK and US could learn much in this context from Singapore. They are billions in debt while Singapore is billions in surplus mainly due to welfare bills for the two western countries. As PM Lee recently said foreigners should be welcome as long as they integrate and contribute to society."

I think it makes perfect sense for us to not be able to claim Singaporean citizenship.

hazy dayz

Just another typical day in Cairo Singapore. Wait, what? 

Any time from May to October, Indonesian farmers in Sumatra set forests on fire to clear land for farming. Yes, you read that correctly. This causes a massive haze to blow over Singapore and making it unsafe to be outside for prolonged periods of time. Here's an article about it. 

I was planning on walking over to my prenatal yoga class, but not today. More indoor time means more blogging. No one is sure how long the haze will last. 

So what's new? School is out which means we are off traveling..... Nope, not this year. First time to ever stay in the city we live in for more than a weekend. Which means we are going crazy enjoying the peace and quiet. There's plenty to do in Singapore and we are "treasuring our alone time" as everyone says to do. We've eaten out almost every day trying new restaurants and going to see lots of movies. We've done lots of baby shopping. I went to the US Embassy yesterday. I could have called them with my questions, but thought I'd just go in. Pretty straight forward with getting a passport for the baby. And there's even a changing table and nursing area in the women's bathroom. USA! USA! 

O went to Beerfest with the boys and I made some more pictures for the baby's room. We went to the Aquarium one day. I know, it's so much excitement, we can really only have one activity a day. 

Other exciting things to look forward to:

go on hospital tour

write a birth plan

fix the printer to print out the birth plan

figure out how the baby monitor works

figure out how to use breast pump

sterilize all baby things

attend baby first aid class

go see the new pandas at the zoo

get a new couch cover from Ikea

O is going to take his Singapore driver's license test

count how many onesies our baby has We have 87 onesies! 

look up ways to induce labour

Baby Shower

Just realized that I never posted this!! 

My amazing friends, Cara, Teresa and Gemma threw me the bestest baby shower ever. 

Who doesn't love a diaper cake?

These little onesies were up and everyone had to guess the baby's name....

 and how much he will weigh....

and of course, his head size! 

These balloons were everywhere- so cute! Afterwards, we gave them to some little kids at the restaurant. 

This was so cute. Everyone had to draw a picture of what they thought baby Lebourdais would look like and then write their best advice. Teresa also got pictures from my mom and O's mom of us as babies. 

 Such an awesome group of ladies! 

So many great gifts! Teresa contacted my mom who sent baby stuff from when I was a baby.  Everything from the outfit I would have been brought home in from the hospital if I was a boy to the booties my mom wore from the hospital when she was brought home from the hospital. 

Before I was pregnant, I had maybe a diet coke every other day. Since I was trying to cut back on caffeine, I stopped drinking them. I've splurged on our babymoons and had a few "real" cokes, you know the ones made from sugar cane in the glass bottles in Thailand- yum! Other than that, I haven't had any, and I can say I haven't wanted any soda at all. I'm told that it's such an "American" thing to drink soda during the day without alcohol.

32 weeks

Best pregnancy moments- I love how being pregnant creates a bond for women. I'm loving my girls nights/days out and talking with friends who have had babies recently and sharing all of their joys and nightmares of having a newborn. I feel like they are really preparing me for a tough first 3 months, but giving me the real deal of how hard it is at first. Oh and a body pillow. If you are ever preggers, guuuurl you gots to get one! 

How are you handling the heat?! It's hot. About 88-93F for the high each day. The pool is nice at night and I keep the AC on more than we usually do. 

Weight gain: I spoke too soon about not gaining that much weight and I've started packing on the lbs! Gaining about 2lbs a week! 

Maternity clothes- H&M has some cute maternity clothes- good shorts are hard to find, but I've finally got some. Also, still obsessed with Old Navy maternity clothes. I've been given some maternity clothes from Singapore and some of the brand names are "Plump" and "MilkyWay". Gotta love their sense of humor. 

Stretch marks- Surprisingly not yet. 

Cravings: I craved chocolate for a week, but then got over it. Still craving lots of juice- mostly orange juice and cranberry juice. And I'm so obsessed with popcorn. Oh, and ice cream. Let's just say I like to eat. 

Miss anything? Being able to just touch my toes and gracefully get out of bed. 

Kicks/movement- Getting stronger every day! He kicks me under my ribs now. Oh, and the weird thing is you can actually see the movements! 

Belly button- completely flat, but I don't think it's ever going to stick out. 

Sleep: I get up about 5 times a night- drinking water (I go through 1 liter at night!) and then obviously peeing and then flipping over trying to get comfy. However, I'm taking 2 hour naps on the weekends. 

Happy or moody: Pretty happy

Looking forward to: Holding the baby! 

Latest scan: The last few scans have been 4D pictures, but lil baby keeps his hands covering his face so we can't get any good face shots. Everything is all good, head is down, and he was 1.9kg (4.18lbs) at the last appt. He's got very chubby cheeks and yes, a very large head. We now go in every 2 weeks to see the dr and get a scan.

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. 

Restaurant of the Week.

We checked out Salt Grill this week. This is normally a quite pricey place, but since it's Restaurant Week again here they have a set menu which is cheaper more affordable. The view was amazing and the service was surprisingly really good for Singapore. That's the one thing that Singapore really lacks- good service. It's a steak place, but I went with the vegetarian options and they were really good. Highly recommend if you have some money to burn. 

http://www.saltgrill.com/

Restaurant of the week

Everyone who has recently had a baby has been telling us that we need to enjoy our moments together before the baby gets here. We've decided that we would try a new restaurant each week for as long as we can. There are thousands of restaurants in Singapore so this will be quite easy to do. Here's where we went this week:

Original Sin

http://originalsin.com.sg/

It's located in Holland Village which is about a 20 minute walk or 5 minute bus ride away from us. Just seeing the sign for Mediterranean cuisine, I begged O to stop here. It's a bit pricey for a Saturday lunch, but we decided to splurge. ($26 for a pasta dish) We had no idea it was a vegetarian place, but it was delicious! The food was prepared in light olive oil with no heavy creams and a perfect amount for a lazy afternoon lunch. I can't wait to go back.

I didn't take the pic, it's just from their website. We sat at basically the table where this pic was taken. 

22 weeks

I love how Miss Tweedle has her pregnancy all set out on her blog. She's much more organized that I am. I don't think I'd be able to update every week, but I really like how she writes down her cravings, feeling, etc. I get asked that a lot so maybe I'll try to give a lil update a la Tweedle style:

Maternity clothes- Yes, please. So grateful to a friend who has given me all her maternity clothes, but I'm still holding on to as many non-maternity things I can fit into. You only need "summer" attire here in Singapore though so that makes it pretty easy. I've also become obsessed with Old Navy maternity clothes- so cheap!!

Stretch marks- No, but I'm sure I'll get them. I'm only writing about stretch marks now because I don't have any and this will probably be the last I ever mention the word. I have ordered a very expensive lotion that swears you won't get stretch marks, if that works I'll let you know. If I don't mention it, you better not even ask.

Cravings: At first it was all about the french fries and pasta. I seriously couldn't get enough. Then it was oranges and bananas. Now it's junk food: doritos, cheetos, mac&cheese, ice cream, etc. (I just ate a pint of Hagen Dazs for breakfast- no joke.) I was quite concerned with our last dr appointment when they make you get on a scale. I'm not afraid of gaining weight, but I've been eating non-stop and was afraid they might say something about my insane weight gain. Luckily, I've only gained 5 lbs since the start of pregnancy which is either a miracle or their scale is broken.

Miss anything? Hell, yeah, it's called alcohol.

Kicks/movement- Yup, getting stronger. They are happening more at work these days which is really weird when you are in a meeting and you kinda want to shout out "OMG! The baby is kicking!!" but then realize that no one else cares that much.

Belly button- it's in for now. I have a feeling it's going to be pushed out quite soon. Again, another topic I would rather not discuss as outies gross me out.

Sleep: This has always been my favorite. Now I can do more of it with less judgement.

Happy or moody: Depends. This can change in a millisecond.

Gender: According to our last scan, still a boy.

Looking forward to: A week in Thailand next week!

Latest scan: 20 week scan
We are so lucky here in Singapore to get a scan with each dr. visit. I could go get a scan right now if I wanted. The hospital is just a 20 minute walk down the road and our doc loves the scans as much as I do. And yes, I've already had an "unnecessary" scan just for fun. Our friends have said they had about 15 scans by the end of pregnancy and stopped getting the picture printed out. I can't imagine that, I love looking at these pics.

and the winner is....

Yes! I knew you all had good taste and wanted to go with the Safari theme. The problem was convincing O that this was a better choice than Sports. In order to convince him that this was what he wanted too, I knew I had to break it down to show that it wouldn't cost an arm and a leg to decorate a bedroom baby room. Luckily, I had a day off this week and created this plan with my ole trusty Mac: 

I also went with the persuasive thought of "we met in Africa, and we got engaged in Africa...." It might be more of an "African/travel" theme, but I'm excited about getting little stuffed elephants and giraffes. That's really my motivation for it all. O loves it and I think it also helped that I found these:

I'm sure there will be plenty of "sports" in this house. 

the baby room choices....

Sports theme?

Safari theme?

Babymoon #1

So I guess after you find out your pregnant, you don't get to go on honeymoons anymore. It's now Babymoon time. Here's one of our early scans- proof there's a baby and it's not just a beer gut! I'm not quite sure what a babymoon entails, but here's how our first one went.

Off we went to Bali for Chinese New Year with Jamie and Brent. We started in northern Bali in Lovina at a beautiful private villa with an awesome pool. I think lots of relaxing needs to take place during Babymoons. 

a nice little sunset....

 Somewhere in the rice fields...

 Time by the pool is essential during Babymoons. After a few days, we went back down south to Ubud. It's our 2nd time to Ubud and I still love it. Bali is probably not quite what you imagine, but a beautiful place to visit. It was great to run into Jade and Jacki one night and hear about the Green School. It's been crazy how many times we've run into friends from our Egypt days.

A Balinese dance. 

We enjoyed walking through rice fields several times which are surprisingly peaceful. 

We are getting ready for our next Babymoon with the Simons in Thailand in 2 weeks. Should be pretty much the same, but maybe more beach time. Life is rough.