Waiting for Oliver

My maternity leave started on 4 April 2022, even though my estimated due date is 15 April 2022 (Good Friday). That gives me a good 2-week wait, during which Oliver could choose to make his appearance in the world at any time. I am not a patient person by nature, and when it's something I'm excited about, the wait gets worse. 

The discomfort increases as each day goes by. The aches get worse. My boredom at home also increases exponentially. I keep looking out for signs of labour - contractions, bleeding, water bag breaking. I've had multiple false pains - stuff like stomachaches, weird tightening feelings, diarrhoea - but they all go away after a short while. I've been clocking my 10k steps per day, getting my squats and exercises in, doing all sorts of household chores to try and encourage the boy make his descent into my pelvic region. He seems way too comfortable in my belly, though it is proving to be quite a squeeze as he gets bigger and moves around more. 

My Dear Boy Oliver,

Mummy is trying her best to wait patiently for you to be ready so that you can make your grand entrance into this world. Daddy and Mummy have gotten your room and cot ready. We've also stocked up on all sorts of books and toys for you to play with when you're out. We are emotionally and mentally prepared to parent you and bring you up so that you will be well taken care of, and also to nurture you in your faith so that you will walk closely with the Lord. We've been reading the bible to you every night for months now, and we will continue to do the same once you're physically with us! Don't be afraid of this world, because we will protect you and keep you safe (for now), till you feel that you're ready to explore it on your own. God will give us the wisdom to know how to best include you in our little family. You're our firstborn, and we will definitely make many mistakes along the way. But know that we love you very much and we always want the best for you! We are very excited for you to join us soon, and we hope that you are equally excited to meet us too :) It's our prayer that you grow in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man, just like Jesus did. 

Love, Mummy

COVID Home Recovery: A pregnant woman's tale

Cough, flu loss of taste and smell - this was the order by which the symptoms arrived. It started with a dry cough and itchy throat that I didn't think too much of. I drank more water, ate lozenges, but the cough didn't go away. By the fourth day I had this symptom, I took my ART test and well, it ended up showing a positive mark. Damn. 

At this point in time, I was 18 weeks pregnant and am currently still under 35 years old. I had also been fully vaccinated with Moderna. Hence, I qualified for home recovery (thank God, I really didn't want to have to go to some community care facility). At first, the symptoms were mild. On the first day, my cough sort of went away, but I started to have this blocked nose instead. Sleeping at night was difficult with a blocked nose (but it's not worse than the usual type of blocked nose). However, that's when the most dreaded symptom set in. I realised that I couldn't smell or taste anything. It wasn't just the ordinary reduced senses that people get when they have flu. There was nothing. I had a really strong diffuser in the house but I couldn't smell it at all. Even if there was smoke from a cigarette or incense, I couldn't detect it either. When food was being cooked (even when it was beef), it was odourless to me. With my sense of taste, I could still taste when something is sweet, salty, sour or bitter. However, I couldn't tell the sweetness of an apple or the sweetness of a grape apart. They both just tasted the same to me. For someone with a normally keen sense of smell and taste, this was horrifying. I felt crippled when I cooked, and it felt dangerous to me. For someone pregnant, I had to watch my diet closely because I shouldn't be eating fruits that are spoiled, and I should not inhale any secondhand smoke from my neighbours when my windows are opened. But I couldn't detect any of these. Most people lose their appetite when they can't taste or smell something. Honestly, so did I. I mean, it didn't quite matter what I was eating since I couldn't taste it right? However, being pregnant also meant that I had to ensure that I had sufficient nutrition so that my baby could continue to grow and develop properly. Rather than bother about taste, I cared more about the nutritional value of the food I was eating. 

I am very thankful for the vaccination. Without that, I'm not sure how severe the symptoms would have been. I did not get fever or body aches throughout the entire time, and I could see visible improvements to my condition on a daily basis. My oxygen saturation still hovered between 98-99% using the pulse oximeter given by the government. I only had to take one zyrtec throughout the entire week. It took me exactly 7 days before my ART showed up as negative, and since I'm vaccinated, I'm also deemed as non-infectious by the 10th day. While my sense of taste and smell are still reduced (at least I got them back though!) and I still have remnant bits of mucus left to clear, I can pretty much go about my normal life without much of an issue. I also have no problems breathing or speaking. I read about the statistics of pregnant women requiring oxygen or ICU because they weren't vaccinated and I'm thankful that I'm not one of them. I'm also really thankful that though I wasn't able to self-isolate from my husband, he did not contract COVID at all (he remained well and ART negative all the way). 

The moral of the story is this: get vaccinated, and then COVID will not be much of an issue. 

Also, trust God. Prior to getting COVID, I thought about it and completely freaked out because I was afraid of how it would affect me and the baby. But when I actually contracted it, prayer really helped me set my mind on God and trust Him, and inexplicable peace came upon me throughout the entire week. 

Kurashiki Bikan: Historical town in Okayama

We selected Kurashiki as our "stopover" between Hiroshima and the Kansai region, mainly because it is a historic city, and we liked how it's just a small town. Kurashiki only requires a half-day trip, so you don't have to stay the night. We stayed with an Airbnb host in the Kurashiki City itself - it was quite difficult to get to, so the host will pick you up from a nearby station. But we loved it because of the homely feel, ability to make new Japanese friends and also the traditional home-cooked breakfast spread the next day! 

Kurashiki Bikan is basically a place where you can just chill and walk around to explore the area. There are many small shops around and a canal flowing through the little town. It is like the "Venice of Japan", as some people call it. The architecture there is from the Edo period, when it used to be warehouses since it was an important rice distribution town. Today, the facade of the warehouses has been preserved but they have transformed into little shops, cafes, restaurants, art galleries etc. 

How to get there: 

Take the Shinkansen to Okayama Station and then take the local train to Kurashiki. From there, Kurashiki Bikan is a short walk away. 

Things to do:

1. Take a gondola ride along the canal

If you really want a taste of Venice in Japan, you can take the gondola ride, which brings you around the area through the canal. We weren't so interested in paying for a boat ride as we preferred to walk on foot!

2. Visit Ohara Art Museum

This is a western fine art museum, which seems pretty out-of-character for a historical town, but it apparently houses an impressive art collection, so if you're into art you might wanna check it out!

3. Chill at Ivy Square

This is a pretty cool European-style square that has a small cafe, fountains etc for people to chill. They also have some souvenir shops. We enjoyed a peach ice cream and muscat wine here! Apparently it used to be a cotton mill. 

6. Take pretty pictures along the street

5. Kojima Jeans Street

I really wanted to go to this street as it's the birthplace of denim in Japan, but alas, it didn't quite fit into our schedule and wasn't really on the way. But if you have time, please go and check it out! It looked pretty cool from what I saw on the internet. 

I think Kurashiki Bikan is basically slightly off-the-path sort of place. There are way less tourists here as it's not a big or famous location, which is why we chose it. It's good to spend the afternoon there just walking around and has a very European yet historically Japan feel to it, so the vibes are very unique!