Canada... ...

A weekend trip North to Canada... yes again... our 4th! It's a little treat for ourselves before the busy months ahead. Some photos @ Roadtrip - Toronto cum Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Light-headed

I got my haircut today! (Hmm... let me count... after 15 months since my last ;p) I think the hair-stylist chopped at least 15 inches off my hair... now my head feels light. In celebration of our 20 weeks milestone... the half-way mark of the pregnancy. :)

No longer a peanut :)

Our little peanut has grown! Finally got to catch a glimpse of him (yup, it's a boy) at the hospital on Monday. I remember the first time we saw Charis, a black-and-white image of her little face staring right at us... so unfamiliar yet so dear... at that point, I had such an indescribable desire to hold her, to know her and to love her. There were times when I wondered whether I would be able to love another child the way I love Charis. But on Monday, as I watched his little beating heart and saw how the little one has grown to be so accustomed and comfortable inside me, I knew that he is our baby, a precious gift from God to love and behold. As God gives, He also grants us the capacity to love, just as how He loves us ALL! We can't wait to see this active little fellow!

Here's a blurry glimpse of him, sucking his thumb?

Officially, we've also reached the half-way mark... hurray! Thank God we survived :) The big che-che cannot resist touching and kissing the "little fellow". She just loves saying hello to him each morning and patting him throughout the day. Well, she already knew it's going to be a di-di, so it was no big surprise when the ultrasound revealed it to us... such is her faith in her prayers!

Pittsburgh 250!

Pittsburgh celebrated it's 250th birthday yesterday and we managed to join in the "fireworks party" with some Singaporean friends last night. Took the Monongahela Incline up to Mt Washington to catch the panoramic view of the fireworks. They had them launched from 17 different points over the city, with some shooting out of the Ohio river. It was a pretty impressive display... unfortunately, we didn't get to hear the accompanying music from up there although we got to hear 2 ladies singing "Happy Birthday to Pittsburgh!" as the "finale" to the celebration.




Our latest night out ever since coming to Pittsburgh... and even caught a glimpse of Pittsburgh's night life while stuck in the traffic.

Cravings!

Don't remember craving any food in particular during my last pregnancy... but being away from home seems to bring about cravings for food from home (comfort food which sadly cannot be found here, sighz). I actually dreamt of them - fish noodles, ban mian, prawn noodles, popiah, just to name a few - almost every night during my 1st trimester! Maybe it's just my subconscious craving for the comfort of familiar faces and environment when I feel miserable ;p

Fortunately, baby seems to be just as satisfied with my "offering" of fruits - watermelons, strawberries, apples, pears, peaches, nectarines, bananas - in all forms (fresh, yoghurt smoothies, sorbet). They happened to be in abundance during summer, thankfully, and my hands were drawn to pick one of every fruit whenever I saw them at the grocery store. Probably nature's way of providing the nutrients I needed, except for the calories which I desperately lacked.

Thanks to the fruit cravings... I discovered the joy of eating home-baked banana muffins :) Never quite enjoyed banana-anything, other than goreng pisang I guess. But since having found my energy, Charis and I have baked 2 batches of it already!

Also thanks to the care packages from home... we finally had our yummy prawn noodles over the weekend! Goodness, I sound so greedy. Well, no more dreaming of food... hee... maybe I'll start dreaming of baby-Koh-the-second soon :)

4 pounds!

YES, I've finally gained 4 pounds (probably about 2 kg)! Although I'm still short of 2 pounds to my pre-pregnancy weight, it's an achievement... and I've 20 pounds more to go. Are you the "eat to live or live to eat" type of person? I must say that for me, eating in order to pile on the pounds is quite tedious. I'm persevering... and the baby bulge (or is it more fats?) is probably the best witness to my hard work... haha.

I thank God for the daily grace and strength that He gives, much more than I asked for. I'm almost half-way there. As Charis says... mummy's tummy is growing fat and she can't wait for baby to come out so that she will get to see what he/she looks like. Feeling the little flutters and bounces in my belly certainly brings me closer to the little one and encourages me to hang in there. :)

Storywalk once again!

An annual children's event in Pittsburgh... story booths, activities and craft, lots of fun and walking in the park :) Just a pity that the weather was a little unkind. But as always, Charis enjoyed it! She has grown to love nature... running on the grass, picking little fallen acorns and leaves and even playing on the sand.

One of the most popular amongst the children...
"Tattoo" that took days to go away...
Contributing to the huge poster...
Making a kite...