Maya Sling

Penny seems to like the Maya sling. We haven't tried the Ergo carrier yet.

The Emperor

Penny was sitting in her bouncer in our new black sling and I immediately thought of this.

New mom support group

I signed up for a new mom support group coordinated by the hospital. I'm excited to take Penny and meet other new moms. We may do another group for new parents at DayOne and I also joined the San Mateo Mother's Club which organizes events and play groups. I figure that I need all of the support that I can get since I don't have many friends with kids nearby. I think that it is very important to keep social and not get isolated at home.
Next step will be a mom and baby fitness class...

Visitors and outings

Penny has been a popular baby. We have had Minkz's mom visit many times, my parents and grandmother came over, and she has also met a few friends. Trixy and Dustin, Jenny and Tina, and Dave, Jason and Anita came over to see her. We also had our post natal visit with our doula, Felissa (in pic above).

We have taken Penny out of the house on little trips, too. The first trip was to the pediatrician on Wednesday. Then, we stopped by my parents house. We've gone on errands to the breast feeding center and Day One and we've gone out to a few casual restaurants and ate while she slept.

Adventures in parenthood

They send you home from the hospital with your baby and some instructions. The instructions include basic information about diapering and feeding, The rest is up to your instincts. Minkz and I have been learning a lot and developing our parenting style. We have become good swaddlers and soothers. We know what the baby needs most of the time. With the disadvantage of not having breastmilk, Minkz has learned some useful tricks to soothe Penny, like the blow dryer with pinky pacifier, which seems to work instantly. But, I have to admit that part of the fun of new parenthood is being unsure of what to do and then figuring it out together as a team. We are cherishing each moment and watching her change and grow daily.

Penny caught smiling in her sleep

I know it's cheeseball of us to post stuff of things small little things that Penny does, but I can't help it, haha. Here's one of her smiling in her sleep. She doesn't really respond to anything with a smile yet - and I can't wait for that day.

Penny on Flickr

If anyone is interested in more pics, including some from the first moments of Penny's life, see this set on Flickr

We are surviving

Not sure if anyone still checks this but I wanted to post a short update. We made it home from the hospital on Monday and we have been enjoying family time and surviving the crazy schedule of eat, sleep, poop. The baby is healthy and I am recovering well. I'm having a hard time sleeping when the baby sleeps, as everyone tells me to do, but I will get it someday soon. It will be very different once Minkz goes back to work (he only planned to take two weeks). Right now, the main challenge we are having is with breast feeding and Penelope's tight frenulum... will post more later.

mini Penny videos

Hiccup


Grunt

Daddy's little girl

A pic of Minkz loving fatherhood

Going home from hospital

Penelope Hana Ngo

Birth of our baby

Penelope Hana Ngo was born March 21 at 5:35am after a long, long labor. The experience was the most physically and emotionally demanding thing that I have ever done. If you count from the beginning of early labor (regular contractions), it lasted about 31.5 hours. We were admitted to the labor and delivery at 1:30pm and didn't get finished until the next morning. There was a lot of drama such as the baby's position not being ideal, me not having a natural urge to push (until later) and eventually, the pushing stage lasting too long without enough progress. I was told that i broke a record for longest time pushing and that i would have been sectioned if i were anywhere else. I was exhausted and running on no sleep and little food and there were times where I didn't think I could do it. The labor didn't turn out as I had envisioned (non-medicated with few interventions), but I know that we did everything possible for the best birth for both of us and we are a happy family now.

The day has come!

We are in the hospital in Labor and Delivery. Follow us on http://www.twitter.com/babyngo for up-to-the-hour updates.

False alarm?

I really thought that labor had started last night. I was wide awake (and the baby was, too) and feeling contractions semi-regularly from 12am-3am. But, it wasn't regular enough to wake Minkz or call my doula. So, I tried to relax and eventually fell asleep until morning. Today I have felt some contractions, but again they are sporadic. I guess it is just good 'ol Braxton-Hicks. At least I am starting to recognize the sensations now. Although, these are painless and the real ones will be much more intense.
On another note, boy votes are outnumbering girl votes now and that seems to be the feedback that I am getting in general lately.

Update

It seems like the baby's growth has really slowed down because I haven't gained weight for a couple of weeks now (I can't say that I mind!). He/she just wants to stay in the cozy belly. Dad-to-be is hoping that he/she holds out until after March Madness games on Thursday. We'll see about that...
Here is what the baby's room looks like. We hope he/she likes the tropical jungle theme because that is what many things have ended up being.

How to encourage labor

I believe that the baby will come when its ready. My due date is not for another nine days and first time moms usually go past the due date. But, I've started glancing at this list of how to encourage labor from my midwives. None of these things are proven to work, though.
-Get a whole body massage
-Get an acupuncture treatment
-Have sex
-Scrub the kitchen floor
-Red raspberry leaf tea
-Evening primrose oil capsules

Back to basics

Information can be a good thing, but too much of it during pregnancy is annoying, to say the least. You can get carried away with what is good/bad for the unborn baby if you believe everything that you read and hear (especially w/ the power of Google). For example, my friend was trying to tell me that eating mangoes was bad during pregnancy, the day after I had eaten a whole bag of dried mangoes - great, thanks. I was surprised when I got pregnant that my ObGyn did not have more instructions for me on what not to do during pregnancy. When I asked about things that I heard that I should avoid, the Ob often laughed them off as rumors.
Pregnancy is a time for a woman to really try to get in tune with her instincts. Unfortunately, we have been trained to listen to our minds and the information that is presented to us. I am convinced that labor will be a process that will rely on instinctual and primal sensations and behaviors. Even if I forget all of the information that I was told, the baby and I will know how to get the job done. It is impossible to do everything the right way in pregnancy, parenting, and life in general. The best we can do is what feels right at the time. The key is learning to trust your instincts.

Third week of waiting

This is the beginning of week 3 that I have been off from work (and the 38th week of pregnancy). I should be thankful to my baby for allowing me to enjoy this rest and relaxation because if he/she arrives before the due date, then I just lose the pre-birth partially-paid time-off. But, I am beginning to feel ready to stop being pregnant now. We have gotten everything we need ready for the baby and I am becoming increasingly tired during the day. I have been working on finding parent's groups in the area so that we are not isolated and have people to network with when it comes time to look for childcare, preschools, etc. I only know a few other pregos and moms and nobody that is in my immediate area.

My hips and baby's head

I had an appointment with the midwife today and she was asking about my ethnicity and Minkz's. She concluded that the best combo would be if I have Austrian hips and the baby has a Vietnamese head. According to her, Vietnamese babies tend to have smaller heads than Japanese or Caucasian babies. Hmm.. I'm pretty sure my hips have an German/Austrian influence, so hopefully the baby's head won't be big like daddy's!

Slowing the roll..

It's been a challenge adjusting to being home with less activity. I have been going on hikes, going out to lunches with friends and going to prenatal yoga class. I'm trying my best to rest and store up energy for the big day and beyond, but I can't just sit at home and do nothing. It's a weird feeling to be awaiting such an unpredictable event. It can happen anytime between 37 weeks and 42 weeks and we are at the end of the 37th week now.