Smiley, Smilier, Smiliest!

First Clear Smiley Shot

Jordy, circa 7 October 2008

Phew! After almost a week of smiling, this is still the closest we've come to capturing the Squirmy One in the act. Ah well, we'll keep trying!

Anyway, I'm typing this as the Squirmy One is fussing at being put down for his afternoon nap. It's tough listening to poor little thing fret but I figure I'll wait a few minutes to see if he'll settle...

He's been wonderful the past few nights though. Take last night, he went down at 7pm, and we had to wake him at around 10ish to feed him again! This evening quiet time is really precious to me and D, and last night we managed to watch two episodes of Gilmore Girls (last two episodes of Season Four, amazing stuff) AND the new season of the Amazing Race! Heh heh...

Ok - don't think he's settling, poor thing. He now cries these big ploppy tears when he's upset. Heartbreaking I tell you! Am off to play a bit of Mozart to calm him down - today's piece of the day, Minuet from Don Juan (he really likes the tune).

My Dad, the Active Ager Infocomm Champion (aka Jordy's First Evening Soiree Under the Stars)

My Dad, the Active Ager Infocomm Champion 2008. I nominated him for this award and am so proud that he was selected as the winner! Yay to him :)

Date: Saturday, 4 October
Time: 6.30 - 9.00 pm
Venue: Cavenagh Bridge, Colonial District, Singapore
Event: Active Agers Awards 2008

I am so super proud of the men in the family:

* My Dad - for showing that age is no barrier to rocking the cyberworld (he went from self-confessed IT dinosaur to master blogger!)

* Jordy - for being a PERFECT gem the entire evening (blissfully snoozing through speeches, amped-up performances by Rahimah Rahim and Max Surin, and host Brian Richmond's antics!), then sleeping peacefully during the car ride home, and more, and just being a all-round champ!

* David - for toting Jordy around all evening in his Ted Baker shirt, and looking like a cross-between a Baby Bjorn ad, and new campaign for MCYS' father of the year... What an amazing duo they make!!


What a lovely evening we had, the venue on Cavenagh Bridge was inspired, the food from Fullerton Hotel was AMAZING (right down to the bread rolls), entertainment was apt and cross-generationally enjoyable, and it was so awesome to see my dad announced the winner Oscars style! Right down to zoomed in live footage, haha.

The family :) Just realised we are all colour coordinated! Thanks also to my wonderful mum who held Jordy when D needed a break and I had to go get my nominator's prize - an Osim U-Trek! heh heh...

Oh and I am going to be a bit immodest and say I'm proud of myself too - after our afternoon walk, we had 40 minutes to a) bathe Jordy, b) feed Jordy, c) dress Jordy in his soiree outfit, d) have a shower for me, e) get ready and slap on some make up to hide those dark rings under my eyes. Am pleased to say I managed to do it all and that my hair didn't turn out like a rat's nest despite my just washing it and running out the door while it was still wet! haha! Only depressing thing is that red dress is the only thing that fits comfortable post-baby. Oh well, that Osim U-Trek I got given for nominating my dad will come in handy! It simulates a hike on a nature trail in the comforts of your own living room apparently. PERFECT...

If you scroll down really fast, it's like watching a film!

D took these of Jordy on Tuesday morning, right after he got up. He's real squirmy alright!

We HEART Hort Park

Jordy and I took a wonderful afternoon walk to nearby Hort Park yesterday. He loved the fresh air and exercise, and the cool swing ride with mum in the shade. Can't wait for him to be able to try out the many amazing playgrounds there - think it's going to provide much entertainment in the months to come!

Oh and have I said how much he enjoys music? Here's us at our usual post-breakfast morning ritual. He seems to enjoy Bach and Beethoven most. Still trying to get him used to Gershwin but he tends to get squirmy. He's a little hobbit in the making though, judging from his response to the LOTR theme tune!

Jordy Turns Seven Weeks, or A weekend of Walks, Bouncers and Ukeleles

We had a relatively restful weekend, though the same can't be said for Singapore, which is going completely crazy with Grand Prix fever. As I type, D is watching the final laps of the race (I still cannot fathom the allure of watching identical looking cars go round a track 61 times! Tho I must say the organisers made Singapore look real pretty at night).

We took Jordy to McCafe for a laid back lunch on Saturday. He fretted a bit halfway through (Great World was slightly manic) but was good as gold once we popped him in the Baby Bjorn. Did a great big grocery shop, and then came home and went for a lovely walk - it was Jordy's first time in his ultra-funky sun hat that his Mama Maree got him. I'm sure all his NZ rellies will be proud that their little boy is sun smart!

We also got Jordy a baby bouncer at Great World. So far, he seems to enjoy it. This morning he sat in it for a good length of time - enough for me to make lunch and for D and I to sit with him and eat, picnic-style in our living room!

Little Jordy reaching for one of the itsy bitsy spiders on his bouncy chair toy bar. Is it me, or is there a sparkle of mischief in those eyes?


Another milestone this weekend - our first Sunday dinner back at my parents' place! We hadn't been since the BIRTH! Gosh, feels like seven months and not seven weeks! Jordy loved being with his cousins, aunties, grandaunty and grandparents. He especially loved it when his ah gong played the ukelele to him. He fell right to sleep with a smile on his face! And he even got a free rocking service courtesy of his youngest cousin Baby T :)

Wonder what this next week will bring? Can't wait!

He SMILED!

Jordy smiled most absolutely and truly today! Just as we were leaving for my former CEO's place to hang out with her daughter and four-month old granddaughter! This was what I managed to capture seconds after the smile - the after-smile if you will.


Jordy also managed a teeny tiny cat nap at my CEO's place. What a little gem!

A Day of Firsts!!!

All of us by the Singapore River

Historic day in the Turnip household! Today's firsts include:

1. Jordy's first bus ride - bus no 175, then on the 100

2. Jordy's first MRT ride - Harbourfront to Clarke Quay

3. Jordy's first social appointment - afternoon tea at Ya Kun with a visiting group of travellers from Dunedin, who are all into trains! Long story about how this happened, in a nutshell, my sis got to know one of them after she and her family came over to Dunedin for our wedding in March 2005, seeing as the boys are all train afficionados!

4. Jordy's first outing where he was solely in the Baby Bjorn, no stroller or car seat for him, thank you very much!

Us on the MRT! Sorry Jordy, only managed to get the top of your head, but what a lovely head.

All in all, very successful day. Jordy was a little gem the whole trip and only started a little "eh-eh-eh-ing" just as we were opening our front door three whole hours after we had first ventured out! Well done Jordy :)

The Top 100 Books

Here are the Top 100 Books as rated by the Telegraph (thanks to Lauren for blogging about this). For some reason, I'm rather heartened that most of my favourite books are listed there (like the sublime Cloud Atlas), and that I've read 69 out of the 100, and the ones I haven't read, I probably will never get through (sorry, have tried to get into Moby Dick at least three times and never got past the first few chapters).

I have just started Great Expectations though - so in a few weeks (my reading pace has slowed down since a certain little friend arrived in our lives!) I can check 70 of the list!

The happiest inclusion for me must have to be The Faraway Tree series by Enid Blyton. I still recall vividly the land of eat-all-you-want. That chapter partially shaped my world view. I mean... they got to have their seven cakes and eat them all!

Part Baby, Part Sour Squirm (Episode 2)

Bath time. Jordy gave a few almost-smiles! No crying at all, despite him being like the last little piggy - i.e. crying all the way home from the hospital today (mummy's turn for a check-up this time)! Poor Mama Daisie was quite heartbroken!

Jordy really is rather hard to photograph, what with all the squirming! Think he gets that trait from his mum :(

Let's try again! Err, nope, not quite...

Heaven is...

a napping baby...

This is an old pic, but since Jordy is napping this afternoon with scarcely anything on save his diapers, I thought I'd use a more modest picture.

Major milestones today:

1. Driving alone with Jordy for the first time while he was doing his signature rattly cry at the top of his lungs. I discovered that singing my favourite a capella songs loudly to him managed to
calm him and put him to sleep (songs that worked include James Taylor's "Lonesome Road", Billy Joel's "And So It Goes", Scottish folk song "The Water is Wide", Buddy Holly's "Everyday" and The Beatles' "Here, There and Everywhere")

2. Managed to put dinner on (chicken stew on the slow cooker) while being on my own with Jordy. Phew!!! Am slowly realising that it's ok to sometimes just let him cry a bit for a few minutes if I need to attend to things...

3. First post-mama Maree leaving day. Jordy was really missing his mama Maree today (especially her finger that he loves to grip while in the car)... his parents were too :( I tried to sing the songs she sings, but only she can do them the way Jordy likes, so had to think of a new repertoire of lullabies!

What goes on in between photos

My first post-Jordy swim at the club! H-E-A-V-E-N. Thanks to the two mamas and ah kong who took turns looking after Jordy. But turns out he didn't need much looking after as he slept peacefully through our swim and dinner!

Like a motion picture, where only a fraction of the total footage makes it on screen - carefully edited, set to music that resonates with the content - looking at the photos we've taken so far, it would seem that parenthood is one big fun ride!

Jordy's first cultural experience - the "Post Doi Moi - Vietnamese Art After 1990" at the Singapore Art Museum. He was so good and even allowed mum and mama maree to have a lovely lunch after at Dome!

HAH! Of course, what doesn't make it to the blog includes the diaper mountain that we are sadly contributing to the landfill (sorry, convenience wins this round, but we do not use air con at home so I guess that lessens our carbon footprint?), the crying and resulting rocking sessions, the marathon feeds, and of course, the seemingly endless household chores that need to be done!

The whole family at Jumbo Seafood - Jordy's first night out! He was good despite the clanging cutlery, regular crunch of crab shells, and bad karaoke emanating from the so called "private" dining rooms!

But honestly, in totality, the last few weeks (Jordy turns six weeks old tomorrow) have gone by in a tumultous blur, sometimes manic (think feeding baby, ringing the bank, and sipping a milo all happening at the same time), frequently joyous (when Jordy opens his big wide eyes and stares seriously at us, or when he does something new), occasionally upsetting (usually when exhaustion in parents and crankiness in baby collide) but always challenging!

With moments like these, who needs Minties?

I'm still trying to figure out this mummy business, but if it allows me moments like the ones captured here, then I guess it can't be all that bad :)

A to Z, by Jordy

"I like to sit in my thinking chair and ponder..."

A is for Ah Kong, who'll teach me fun songs
B is for Booby, my favourite (and only) food source!
C is for Crying, err, right now the main way I communicate when I'm not frowning or wide-eyed
D is for Daddy, who loves me just the way I am (even when I'm squirmy!)
E is for "Eh-eh-eh", my favourite phrase when I'm tired or uncomfy,
F is for Fenugreek, the funny herb my mum takes to make more food for me!
G is for Gilmore, the girls my mum watches some times when she feeds me (I like the theme tune!)
H is for Humming, lullabies especially make me happy
I is for Islands, Singapore and New Zealand
J is for Jordan, the river, the country, and my namesake
K is for kisses, which make me all squirmy, but I'm sure I'll grow to love
L is for Love, which everyone showers on me
M is for Mama, my two favourite ladies in the world (after mummy of course!)
N is for New Zealand, my other home
O is for outing, my favourite past time (when I'm not eating that is!)
P is for piano, Bach please, and hold the Gershwin
Q is for Quiet, which I'm told I can be, especially when I'm watching the world go by
R is for rattle, or rather my rattly cry which I've been told is both heart rending and cute at the same time!
S is for smile, which I'll bestow on my fans only when I'm ready!
T is for Tummy, which is growing in girth every day!
U is for Umbilical Cord, which fell off on the 5th day after I was born (the nurse told me I was a clever boy to do that)
V is for Volume, my lungs are getting stronger day by day
W is for Walkies, which I look forward to every afternoon
X is for X-factor, which I'm pretty sure I possess
Y is for Ye Jie, my heroic Chinese name
Z is for Zzzz, my other favourite past time (though I don't do it quite as often as I should!)

Jordy: Part Baby, Part Sour Squirm

As a tribute to my favourite gummy candies (sour squirms of course!), I hereby declare my son gold medal material in any squirmathon. It took us a few tries just to get a decent shot of him this afternoon, and it still didn't do him (or his cute organic cotton outfit bought from Invercargill, New Zealand) justice!

10 Tell-Tale Signs That We've Become New Parents

Tired as anything, but Labrador Park still elicits smiles all round (ok maybe not for Jordy but at least he stopped crying!)

1. Our days (and nights) are broken up according to three-hourly feeding cycles.

2. Our dining table has disappeared under two waterproof mats, and three different packets of diapers.

3. We've traded in The Economist and the newspapers for books with great big black and white pictures and NO words.

4. We can sustain a ten-minute conversation around the frequency and consistency of Jordy's poo.

5. I can't remember what toting around a little handbag feels like.

6. We've started mapping out accessible toilets and changing stations in all places of interest.

7. "Dimly-lit" is now a major factor in choosing which cafe to frequent - all the better to hide my hooters when I feed I say. (ps: Thanks to Sheri for lending me her Hooter Hider - I'm getting rather adept at using it! Last count: KK Hospital's Delifrance, Cafe Beviamo, Home during Jordy's one month party, and at Coffee Bean in Great World City today)

8. We take naps at 8.30pm on a Saturday night (!)

9. Our TV volume is permanently down low.

10. Our lullaby repertoire has greatly expanded!

25 Days and Counting

"What a circus the American presidential campaign is turning into. Morgan Freeman for president I say!"

The little man is 25 days old today. As a tribute to us getting this far as a new family, thought I'd upload some photos showing him in his various guises.

"Though I haven't been to Egypt, I can still walk like an Egyptian!"

Little Jordy has had a busy few days - milestones include first ride in car with his mum driving, a trip to IKEA to look at furniture for his room, a good walk on the Southern Ridges walkway, and this afternoon, a very exciting trip to Island Creamery for his first frozen dessert experience, made all the more special with Uncle Andy (who is in Singapore competing in the Singapore Ironman) visiting from New Zealand.

"If it wasn't for my trusty bat mobile, I would be stuck at home all day!"

"Finally! Some fresh air. Hey, show me some speed here, Mama Maree!"

A Tale of Two Grandmas

Once upon a time, there lived a wee man named Jordy. One morning, Jordy's mum woke up and declared, "We simply must go out today and purchase a musical mobile and play gym for little Jordy. He is not being stimulated enough!"

Alas, Jordy's mum was not at her best and was too exhausted to drive herself to the land of Robinsons. So she clicked her heels twice, twirled round thrice with Jordy and wished for his grandmas to appear.

And lo and behold, Mama Maree from New Zealand was spirited away from her hometown of Dunedin to the tropical kingdom where Jordy ruled, and Mama Daisie from Singapore came whizzing round as fast as she could!

The two grandmas delightedly picked Jordy up, and before you could say "where's the 20% discount section?" had transported him, buggy and all to the land of Robinsons! It was wee Jordy's first trip out on the town, and with the help and love of his two amazing grandmas, had a lovely day.

Isn't Jordy a lucky thing? His mum thinks so!

Growth Spurt for the Little Squirt?

OK thought I'd give all an insight into life with JR. As you can see, we've moved into the nursery temporarily to facilitate feeding. Sleep, when we are blessed with it, is a miracle. I don't think I ever could've imagined how exhausting the first few weeks could be! It makes me think back in nostalgia and awe at how we used to think nothing of spending a lazy Sunday in bed reading, then going for a leisurely brunch at Beviamo. Haha! How things have changed.

I think Jordy is going through a growth spurt as well - he was rather calm and easy to settle the last few days, then cue last night. Refused to go down at 7pm despite being fed the baby equivalent of a gastramonical feast, and had to be fed almost every hour from 11pm onwards till this morning! Yipes! I'm trying to tell myself - it's great he's growing, growth spurts are exactly how they sound - an onomatopoeiac mess of crying, pooping, feeding, and noisy sleeping.

Needless to say D and I are more than zombies - but do not you worry, all these stories will come in handy at the appropriate time (i.e. Jordy's 21st maybe? haha).

Ah well, he's taking a cat nap now and I'm taking these quick minutes to reconnect with the outside world... HELLO! Oh and one fantastic thing about breast feeding? Taking the long feeding sessions to put up my legs and watch The Gilmore Girls! Finished Season 1 - supremely fantastic show. Haven't enjoyed anything this much since The West Wing :) Thanks to Jordy's Godma C for lending me all seven seasons!!! Woo hoo...

The Two Men in My LIfe

"Whatchu lookin' at?"

Ok! So I did it! I gave birth to a barracuda disguised as a human! But breastfeeding woes aside (what can I say, little Jordy is born to feed...), the last 10 days have been the most surreal of my life. Especially when I'm confronted with my own thoughts night after night while I feed Jordy. Sometimes I'm flipping through trashy mags (for this bounty I have S and Z to thank heartily), and other times I'm religiously filling in the breast feeding chart from KK Hospital, marvelling at how I've gone from freaking at the thought of baby's poo to rejoicing when I see (or hear!) the evidence of a good feed. It's amazing, the human brain...

Will skip any gory details of the labour and birth, but suffice to say that the epidural is God's true gift to womankind (sorry but epidural beats Adam's ribs any day) and that I actually had a very relaxed and happy birth! Despite the fact that a) Jordy wasn't reacting well to being induced (after my waters burst at 6am on Sunday), b) his heart rate kept decreasing everytime they upped the Oxytocin (medicine to induce labour), c) I might have had to have a C-Section (but thankfully my trusty old body responded and I was able to do get things myself), and d) his umbilical cord was wrapped once round his neck which meant they had to use forceps (a big OUCH if not for said miracle called epidural).

Anyway he came out in his 39th week at 3.35kg, 50 cm long (which my friend Yvonne joked was a third of her height! haha) and really rather a beautiful baby (truly I am not biased! he is rather cute!)

Stay in hospital was a bit longer than expected as I had nausea, bad headaches and a high fever (ALL AT THE SAME TIME!). Poor Jordy, when mum was crook, he had to be cup fed some formula. But things worked themselves out and here we are at home now (today marks our one week anniversary of returning home!) and D and I are getting SLOWLY into the swing of things.

One thing though, I will unabashedly proclaim my husband D to be the world's best new Dad and partner-in-poo. They say to cherish these early days - I think we're too zonked to even register what we're doing at 3am every night - but I know that I'm gong to look back and marvel at how supportive and caring D has been - hugest hugs go out to him from me and Jordy!

And there's a definite difference when Dad baths Jordy than when Mum does! heh heh... Something about big strong Daddy hands cradling a little body. Anyway, I know I'm rambling but I'm allowed given I'm surviving on like 4-5 hrs of sleep a day! It'll all get better and calmer soon I'm sure but just wanted to say a big Hi from zombie mummy land :)

Thanks for all the messages and keep them coming - they are of great comfort to me, esp in the wee hours of the morning...

Happy Birthday Singapore (But Not Zorgy)!

OK, so my hopes for a national day baby are mostly dashed (unless I go into labour and deliver within the next three hours - I WISH!). So Zorgy hasn't arrived, and is still perfectly content imitating a lava lamp in my belly (who can blame him really, if he's anything like his mum, he wouldn't want to come out to this 33 deg humidity). Good news is that D and I took this quiet "calm before the storm" time to do some good ol couply things, like catch a morning movie today.

In the spirit of the Beijing Olympics (and wasn't the opening ceremony a stunner, I was so impressed with China and the visual spectacle they gifted to the world), we watched a most wonderful documentary by Singaporean broadcaster turned filmmaker Pek Siok Lian called Mad About English, which traced the country's obsession with learning English in time for the Olympic Games. The film profiled a few characters, from an earnest Beijing cabbie who was cramming for a conversational English test that would decide whether he would be allowed to drive his cab during the Olympics, to a spritely 74-year old retiree whose dream was to be a volunteer during the Olympic Games, to the language teacher equivalent of a TV evangelist who has been tasked with teaching over 1 million Chinese proper English.

What came through after watching this marvellous documentary was the sheer determination and grit of the Chinese people leading up to the Games, and how, despite whatever motivations they articulated for learning English, the one common thread that brought them together seemed to be their immense pride and loyalty to China, and a genuine desire to showcase their country to the world. I was actually very touched watching this - thinking how in Singapore, we're so cynical and almost embarassed by our country and countrymen. Guess with Singapore hosting the Youth Olympics in 2010, we have quite a lot to learn from the plucky Chinese.

Oh and did anyone else think that the only downer to the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony was the truly freakish sight of droopy and post-plastic surgery Sarah Brightman trying to reprise her Amigos Para Sempre glory? And what about the dude singing with her? What in the world was he thinking? Turning up in what looked like lounge-at-home clothing? Completely jarring when juxtaposed against the majesty of the 2,008 drummers chanting Confucius and that absolutely funky rolling scroll thing. My favourite bit? The lighting of the Olympic flame by the flying gymnast.

Oh and of course, the geek in me loved seeing all the countries come in one by one - Where or what is the Netherlands Antilles? I want to go there!

OK, I'm going back to what's left of our couple existence now. Will update all once junior makes an appearance and turns our lives upside down!

National Day Baby Anyone?

National Day Rehearsal Heart-Shaped Stunts Courtesy of the Singapore Airforce Fighter Pilots (View from our room at Swissotel Stamford).

Less than two weeks out to the official expected delivery date of le petit Turnip, aka Zorgy, I'm feeling a mixture of impatience, and "enjoy this quiet while it lasts".

After finishing off the biggest event of the year at work less than a month ago, it's been a little less manic and hectic for me. D and I checked into a rather luxurious weekend at Swissotel Stamford couple of weeks back, went for swims everyday (or rather for me, walks around the pool) and I experienced a most blissful Swedish pregnancy massage.

Last few weeks have been a lovely mix of catching up with friends, doing little arts n crafty things (I'm making up these ginormous flash cards for Zorgy a la the Glenn Doman "teach your baby to read" system), went into nesting mode and over a few days, printed out all our digital photo prints dating from 2004 onwards (so far have printed out over 1,500 photos! Thank you Harvey Norman 19cent print sale), have discovered Snapfish much to my delight, and also reading up on some baby books. Went to Carrefour and did a huge shop to stock up on cleaning product and toiletries (I am not kidding when I say we have about 30 bars of Palmolive soap in our cabinets at the moment), made the most of the Robinson's sale, and then today, went for a much-needed pedicure (I have OPI 118 on right now).

Just put a big pot of beef goulash on the stove (am trying to make some freezable dishes to tide us over the next few weeks) and am now sitting in our air-con study listening to the Indigo Girls and typing this. Really rather contented at the mo.

Will keep all posted re the GREAT ARRIVAL. Doctor's visits every week means things are getting rather exciting. Though I'm not leaving on a jet plane anytime soon, all my bags are packed and I'm ready to go!

Zipped through this one...

Yay, am back in literary land again! This came highly recommended by D's mum and we both just zipped through it! For those of you who have read Tremain's other stuff, you'll know she's more a historical fiction kinda person. I've only read "Music and Silence" and "Restoration" before, and enjoyed them immensely, but this is a total departure, and a welcome departure it is, too.

Set in present day Britain, The Road Home traces the journey of Lev, an immigrant from an unnamed (fictitious?) Eastern Euporean country in search of work. With nothing left to lose except the few pounds he raised to make the journey to the UK, Lev's story is one which hundreds of people make across the EU, and the world, everyday.

Tremain explores the different motivations people have for leaving all that is familiar to them for the allures of the city or more developed countries. Of course, the bright lights of the city are more mirage than reality, and Lev soon comes face-to-face with the gritty, often bewildering situations that London living entails.

In Lev, you have an Everyman whom you want to have end up a success story. The future he eventually carves for himself is also very gradually hinted at, and the choices he makes and the people he meets are realistically and compellingly portrayed, though you are aware that here is an ordinary man who is leading, or going to lead, a rather extraordinary life.

Highly recommended if you are looking for an accessible story to lose yourself in.

A Time for Rest and a New Lexicon

Moonrise over Telok Blangah Hill, taken from our living room.

Finally, a Sunday spent at home! We've been recovering from a steady stream of visitors, and all the associated eating, drinking and merry-making that goes with hosting friends and family. Was a fantastic few weeks, and I guess now we (and Zorgy) are ready for a bit of rest.

In between having visitors, we also managed to run a whole bunch of Zorg-related errands, and think we're now 85% ready for our new flatmate. Nobody ever tells you that preparing for baby requires absorbing a whole new lexicon - from wonderful words like layette, onesie, receiving blanket, to scarier sounding sci-fi terms like meconium, vernix and episiotomy. Oh and I'll never view the word "show" in the same light again.

I've also found it strange how I am finding it increasingly difficult to settle down to read a book. My bedtime ritual has now shifted to reading one page of the pregnancy bibles What to Expect when you're Expecting and What to Expect: The First Year, or to completing a quick puzzle in a magazine. The last book I managed to read in its entirety (over two months ago now) was Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. An immensely satisfying novel about the Nigerian civil war (and the quest for an independent Biafran state) of the 1960s. Attempted to read a few other books (I'm one or two chapters into Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, A Spot of Bother and A True History of the Kelly Gang) after that, but nothing seemed to compare and hence, it's been a weird time of non-fiction and bits and bobs.

Ah well, I'm now into my 30th week and counting! Weight gain so far: 11.8kg! Yikes. Stuff accumulated, one-cot size worth of necessary accessories. Still to come: baby bedding stuff and DVDs for mom to tide her through the first few months of breastfeeding. Am thinking all (however many) seasons of The Gilmore Girls, and the new Battlestar Galactica (sounds like the closest thing to The West Wing yet). Any suggestions and parenting tips welcome!