She is teething but does it cause so much of feeding difficulties? We have been scouring the internet for answers but can’t find any useful ones.

I really hope that the situation will improve soon. It is worrying the bell out of us . Fortunately, it is a holiday week making caring for her a little less stressful.

Sigh!

Then the doctor tells us, “do you want the MMR/MMRV “? These days everything comes in combinations, even our foods as well!

Most would have thought that it would be Hobson’s choice. One less injection for your baby is a good thing isn’t it? Of course, the doctor was advocating it. After all, he has ordered his vaccination stocks.

Initially, I thought , great, one less visit to the doctor is good. The doctor made little attempt to explain more when we probed on the safety, merely brushing aside our questions as silly , over worried parents.

We went ahead with it. The first week was fine and we were relieved we made the decision for the combined vaccine.

After a week, Charlize started developing fever and some rashes. We thought could it be due to the vaccination? We thought probably not as it has already been a week since the injection.

Only then did we do a search and found to our horror that the risk of fever and febrile seizures were much higher with the MMRV vaccine rather than a split dose. This was clearly not mentioned to us by the doctor, when we were making a decision.

Gladly, nothing untoward happened and Charlize is back to her usual self.

The lesson, “do your own research before any decision. Sadly never believe that your doctor is telling you everything.” This is the irony, isn’t it?

She can crawl and grab objects quite well. She can also stand with assistance but still cannot walk. She seems quite docile and prefers to sit most of the time.

She likes watching a particular type of baby video “Your Baby Can Read”. This series seem to be able to hold her attention long enough for us to have a break and write this entry.

At this point, whatever she holds is hers and she refuses to allow you to take it away until her attention is diverted to something more interesting.

We are still trying to find a solution to her aversion for milk. It does not really depend on the type of formula. Everything that smells milk is disliked. Even feeding her cereal or porridge is a daily challenge.

Our weekends are now fully occupied and there is hardy any time to do other things.

The challenge of being parents is fully felt now. Sometimes the frustration tells. At this time any thing more than one child is deemed ridiculous.

Let’s hope that Charlize ‘ s eating habits will improve in the next few weeks.

Her feeding pattern is changing and she now appears to dislike her milk, often refusing to finish her bottle. It appears that this problem is rather common at this age. We have tried to change the milk formula several times but these expensive efforts were in vain. If ever you have tried baby formula, you will then understand the aversion to the milk. It certainly does not taste pleasant at all!! Can milk manufacturers make something that tastes better??

As we scour through books, the internet and friends, we realise that the most important thing is to enjoy the process of the baby growing up. Sure she has some feeding difficulties, but she is still growing and is very active. We are now trying some semi solid foods and it appears that she is getting better at feeding.

It can be very energy sapping taking care of babies. Makes you wonder how single parents handle their children!!

The constant expressing of breast milk is now part of the daily routine. It appears she is too small to suckle directly from the breast. She now takes in 60 mls of milk almost clockwork every 3 hours.

Her jaundice did worry us initially. The visiting nurses urged us to bring the baby in earlier. So with little choice, we brought our appointment forward. At the same time, we tried to give her more sunlight. What a relief, when we got the blood results came back normal.

Oh yea, mum cried when baby Charlize was poked. I guess mum felt the pain when the tiny heels were poked for blood. The technicians were very professional and reassuring, which is commendable.

Charlize still sleeps most of the time, waking only for her feeds. I suppose she needs all the energy to grow.

But what a week it was. The new beginning has finally begun.

Despite reassurances that the baby is term and the fact that I myself have told this to women umpteen times, skepticism rules. How sure can they be? Are they right? Afterall my baby is still small at about 2.2kg. Could we have gotten the dates wrong? Questions swirling like a whirlpool.

I know I have to trust the obstetrician that this is indeed the best and correct decision.

Knowing the perils of a Caesarean, the adage that ignorance is bliss holds so very true. Can I even be in the theater itself, even if the doctors allow me? Can I take the sight that my wife will be cut up layer after layer?

Our child, the still unknown face, will be seeing us today for the first time. I can only at this moment, imagine the joy that she will bring to my wife and I. I believe that this fact and only this fact alone is keeping both of us going. The love we are going to shower this child, after all the trials of pregnancy and surgery, will undoubtedly be immense!

God, help us and take care of us.

However, the process of surgery is certainly a harrowing experience. After months of preparing for a vaginal delivery, this news is certainly not totally expected.

Apart from the surgery, the other worry is the baby. At 36 to 37 weeks, the baby should be mature enough to do well. Her weight is low at an estimated body weight of 2.2 kg. However, the reasons for low liqour volume is not certain at this time. The list of possible causes are long and will only end up being more worrying. So I have decided not to tell my wife about all the possible causes.

My only hope now is that the surgery will go well and that baby will be fine.

The monitoring of the baby will now be much closer. Now our concern is the baby. With an estimated weight of 2.1 kg, she should be fine at 36/37 weeks.

Attending antenatal classes has jolted some sense of reality. Despite having taken care of many antenatal patients spanning more than 4 years in primary care, there is a sense of being lost in this episode. Now I am at the receiving end and I have never thought that there would be so much uncertainty. It used to be a mundane routine every time mothers see me. Now I realise how much reassurances from a doctor mean. That is in fact the best part of a consultation, with the doctor telling us that everything is just fine.

Now it is just finding a suitable name for her!

Next year will be a year like never before. Many will say that expecting a child means getting your wings clipped, for the next few years! In many ways, I still feel ill prepared to usher in a new life. Imagine having your sleep disturbed by wails and getting your hands dirty with poop! The thought of having to plan everything with the baby in mind can be unsettling. For once, you have to put your own plans on hold, and soon realise that control is beginning to slip from your grasp.

My resolution at least for now is to get a healthy baby. Knowing the fact that a million things can go wrong is certainly not helpful.

However, the joy of seeing a child, of your own, is indescribable. The true miracles of nature starts to unfold in front of your very eyes. The disbelief that this new life was created by your actions makes the experience so surreal.

You will soon start to realise that life will no longer evolve around you but that of the new life. The energy and finance will soon be invested into this ‘unknown’ entity.

Indeed life will be different this coming year.