1+1=

Me + Kat = Kate

Not sure who she looks more like, but i'm guessing its my wife

First sunbathe, 3-day old Kate

Jan 30,2007

Here's Kate getting some sunshine. We learned that Kate had a slight jaundice and elevated bilirubin levels when she was discharged. Sunlight exposure is supposed to break down the bilirubins on her bloodstream which are still not processed properly by her young liver.

We did this as the doctor advised for the next two days. However, our follow-up checkup with the paediatrician the next day revealed her bilirubin had not got down to an acceptable range. The doc advised us to have a photo UV treatment for Kate.

We initially intended to go to Thomson Medical Centre for that but we thought their rates for a simple UV treatment and ward is rather unreasonable. We went to KK hospital instead. To our relief, Kate only had to stay at KK overnight since her B levels went down the next day.

The UV photo treatment involves exposing a baby under a UV lamp for 24 hours or more, with their eyes covered, much like what you do when you're sunbathing. The only difference is the light from these lamps is not hot like sunlight. So no sunburns.

Sometimes the baby would require 2 set of lamps, top and bottom while they lie on a transparent container, depending on how elevated their B levels are.

Jan 31,2007

Here's a snap of mommy and Kate before she was checked in. Kat was still having a hard time getting up from a chair. It's only her fourth day after delivery.

KK = Kandang Kerbau Hospital

For me, its Kat and Kate hospital. :) Apt.

First face to face

Jan 27, 2007

Kat and Kate

And there she is.

Jan 27, 2007

Here are the very first pictures of Kate outside the womb. She was delivered by Dr Eunice Chua from TMC in Thomson with the help of two other nurses (which i didn't get the names). Kate was born under assisted delivery, which means a suction device was used to gently pull her out while the mother is pushing during contractions. Doc Chua recommended the device after a couple of attempts to push out the baby were unsuccessful. Kinda nifty device i must say.

And then Kate was out. Doc and nurses then agreed on why Kat was having difficulty in pushing. She was big. 3.9kg to be exact. I thought it was the gas that made Kat high.

Kat=wife | Kate=daughter

Contractions

Here are photos of Kat taken three hours apart.

1. Tiny contractions. That's Spongebob Square Pants on the telly. Recommended for parents-to-be in the delivery room.


2. Not so tiny contractions. This is when she started using the gas mask connected to the wall. Can't remember what gas that was but she became high after a few whiffs.

After i've taken this photo, one of the Thomson nurses told me that i should be refraining from taking photos or videos once Kat starts pushing out the baby. I was actually intending to video the event, however, the nurse said my assistance might be needed hence i should keep my hands and mind free from other things. She said I can resume taking pictures after the baby is given the all clear and gets transferred to the thermal mat. So even if i wanted to, there will be no pictures of the actual delivery.

Inton inside

Since i started my first post with a current picture of Kate (and myself), i guess most of you will be asking where are the pictures three months back? Well, starting from here, i'll be posting some of the pictures me and my wife have taken since January 27. Here's Kat, 5 hours before D-day (or hour). She can still smile at this point since the contractions haven't gone into full swing.

Welcome Kate!

Hi all, it's been almost 3 months since our journey to a new life of parenthood started. I know i should've started making this chronicle much earlier but as you know, having a baby can be busy. Not to mention that neither me or my wife Kat grew up with the habit of making journals or writing blogs. We're visual artists for a reason, and that's to avoid math and writing. :) In any case, i guess it makes perfect sense not just to show you pictures of our baby, but tell you as well the story and experience behind each image. I'm not usually very good at keeping journals, but hey, there's always the first time. Like parenthood. :) We've got three months backlog of pictures to share, hence i'm not exactly sure where to begin. I haven't decided yet.

Nonetheless, here's our first post on this blog, meet our precious, Kate Justine Inton.