A Bunch Of Duckies!!!

We bought a bunch of duckies for Lucas, which just costs us HK$28!!!

Aren't they cute? They will go bathing with Lucas everyday!!!

Magnum ice cream bar

I had just finished a Magnum Vanilla ice-cream bar. Jeff also had one. It tasted so divine.

However, I worry I will gain excess pounds over this weekend because I ate quite a lot of snack. I should do some exercise.

We have already started to pack up our stuff to move back our parent-in-law's home. Remember I wrote a piece of diary one year ago about the Independent Day - the day we moved out from the parents' house. Jeff and I had a really nice time this 12 months in our own net.

Now, we decide to move back to our big family, we do it for the sake of our little baby.

Maybe, one day, we will find a new place and build our little cozy net again, but by that time we will bring along our little kid!!

他會發夢嗎?

今個星期係第27周, BB的大腦發育已經進入高峰期, 遇到強光和聲音,他都會有反應去踼Matrix.
例如用手電筒照Matrix的腹部, BB的頭會轉向光源, 這些反應表示他的視覺神經己經開始運作.

BB 的腦部發展可簡分兩階段,3-6個月是第一階段,主要是係腦細胞體積增大和神經纖維增長. 到第二階段,即7-9個月,腦細胞和神經樹突分支會不斷的增加,但此階段最重要係"結合"成為突触接合, 突触是神經與腦細胞間傳導信息的接觸點,就好似network既router咁重要. 一般腦神經科學家認為人的智力, 神經細胞的網l絡發展比腦細胞數量僅更重要. 這亦符合人工智能-Artificial Neural network中的理論,多D neuron唔一定work,架構最重要!

究竟BB會發夢?好有可能會,因為bb的大腦皮質(cortex)此時已成長並有活動,而發夢都係同大腦皮質活動有關. 哈哈!吟佢乜夢呢? 我唸點都唔係飲奶同去公園玩. 其實起Matrix 裹邊已經好夢幻!發夢同現實又有可分別呢?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain

Chatting with a stranger

Tonight Jeff and I treated ourselves a great dinner in Dan Ryan. A gwailo sit next to us kept looking at me. Suddenly he started a conversation with us. He asked me how many month of my baby, when I told him I was already in the 27 weeks, he was surprised and said I still looked very nice! It's great to have a compliment from someone you don't know.

I guess he himself is a daddy, because he said now would not be a difficult time for us until our baby in 1 or 2or 3 years old... Yeah, we know it absolutely, we have two nephews in this age range. They could be an angel in this moment, and then turn into a monster in the next second.

Today I had a meeting with the clients, we talked about the research study in Guam. It is very hard to find an agency in Guam which provides service in low cost. The client suggested me to fly over there to set up everything and conduct the fieldwork, it may help them to save the cost. Frankly, I hope I could have chance to do it, but I will have my maternity leave very soon, and the fieldwork is supposingly be started around July. So at that time who would feed Lucas if I fly to another side of the planet? I worry that after the trip, my baby won't remember me anymore and treat me as a stranger.

And the most crucial point is, I don't think I can return to my original body shape in July, so how can I wear those little vest, top tank and mini skirt in that lovely tropical island? Not to mention squeezing myself in a little bikini. Of course, I am so professional and I will concentrate on my job instead of spending the time wandering around pool sides and beaches, but I do think I have one or two days break to enjoy the sunshine there.

Well, no more day-dreaming, should think about how to get a better quote from other agencies...

Lucky Girl

Surely I am the luckiest pregnant woman and all expecting mothers are jealous on me... Because I have a mommy who knows how to make clothes tailor-makes lots of maternity wear for me!!! She made several skirt and dresses for me in this winter. The quality is great and the craftwork is blatantly fantastic, each piece is so impressive.

Currently, mommy is making the 'spring and summer' collection for me!! She read many fashion magazine to get the inspiration and my beloved sister and cousin helped me to select the fabric. I could not wait to see the 'products'.

THANKS MOMMY!!! AND ALSO THANKS MY SISTER AND COUSIN!!

Throw up

Last Sunday I saw the movie 'Munich' with Jeff, but after an hour during the film, I threw up.

Then, I kept throwing up right after the meals in these two days, seems that I started to experience the morning sickness which mostly happens in the first trimester instead of the third one.

The situation is becoming better today, but I still have stomachache. Maybe I am quite stressful and busy these two weeks, you know, I am going through the peak season of my tracking project again.

Lucas becomes more and more active and he seems sleeping is not in his schedule.

Hope I won't be that tied up after the second week of March.

By the way, where is the my writing partner of this blog? Supposing, this is a co-authored on-line diary!!

Prenatal Yoga

Last week I went to the yoga centre for a prenatal class. After that I got a sore throat and running nose. I had these sydrome also right after the last time visit 2 months ago. At that time, I even developed flu and cold and should take rest at home for 2 days.

My doctor suggested me not to attend the yoga class again. He said he had doubt of the benefits of prenatal yoga which being claimed and advertised, and there is no clinical proof so far.

Thanks god that I could leave office before 7pm and could take a better rest tonight. After all, I am pregnant, and I deserve to have a better rest, damn the demanding work!!! Damn the bosses of their unreasonable expectation and timeline on me!!!

A Nightmare

Last week I had a horrible dream, I dreamt I was going to deliver the baby, I was so panicked and didn't know how to do.

Jeff was holding my hands and everyone asked me to stay still and calm down. My mother-in-law told me that my mom was rushing to see me, I left the bed immediately and wanted to catched up my mom. However my brother-in-law asked me to be a nice girl and stayed in the bed and listened to my sister-in-law what I should do.

Then I woke up, sweating.

There is one nightmare I had more than 2 times, I saw myself losing lots of hair and started to have a bald head.

Oh both are so horrible, should unwind myself, I guess I am too pressurized these few weeks.

Sleepless in Hong Kong

Don't know why Lucas is extremely active during mid-nights. He kicks me heavily every time when I am almost falling asleep, or during the deep sleep.

But, in the daytime, he is comparatively quiet and his kicks are quite subtle.

By the way, we still have lots of chocolates and candies left in the candy boxes, which we supposed to serve our visitors during the Chinese New Year, but I don't think we could finish them up after the New Year, otherwise I would gain 50 pounds of fat from empty calories if I intended to eat them all up by myself.

Maybe I should bring some to my parents or my friends some days. You know, there is really a risk there, pregnant women always feel hungry suddenly and I would be trapped in this fat-gain-crisis when I was starving during mid-nights.

Silly Dream

I had a silly nightmare yesterday. In the dream, my boss came to me and said I was worthless and it would be unreasonable to raise my salary because I was not important to the company at all.

I burst into tears and woke up in the mid night.

And then I felt really bad around 4-5 o'clock today, I was working very hard but felt very sleepy at the same time.

Hope such instability of my emotion was merely caused by the fluctuation of hormone level.

However, when I came back home, as I found my beloved husband had prepared the dinner for me, I believe I am a very lucky girl actually.

And I should not limit my future to the this company, don't I tell myself always that I have lots of potentials and have lots of chances and different ways to develop my career and my life?

After the yoga practice, I remind myself to let the blue go, let my disappointment go.

I am sure my family provides me strength to face all difficulties.

Thanks Jeff, thanks Lucas.

Full up

Well, 7 minutes later, my pregnancy will step into the 6th month.

My tummy is pumping up in extraordinary fast speed. My colleague are surprise to see it grows so big after the Chinese New Year holiday, provided that they haven't seen me for 4 days only.... But Samantha said she was scared because I always said I was scared by the size of my belly. She said, after all, I am a real pregnant woman, it is normal to see the tummy bumping up.

Lucas keeps kicking as usual, and now even at the area above my belly button, I can tell that he grows so fast these few days.

My snacks today included an egg, a half pack of 'Lifesaver' fruit candies, an a cup of milk. I should watch my weight carefully and don't want to gain unnecessary stones.

Oh, 7 minutes have past before I finish this diary, I am in my 6th month, hurray!

The Year of Dog

Happy new year everyone!!

I've a slightly different new year in 2006. I've already received red pockets from others to my little unborn baby!! People are so generous!!

We have lot of family gathering in these few days. We had a re-union dinner on Saturday and celebrated the first day of new year on Sunday. The house was filled with kids' laughing and screaming and another 2 new babies had joined the family in 2005.

Lucas will be the new member to join this family in 2006. Wow, we do contribute a lot to the birth rate of Hong Kong in these years.

Jeff felt so angry when he witnessed that no body offered me a seat in KCR, even I did not wear any jacket and let the curve of my belly showed in the air. Some people just looked at me from head to toes with weird look but did not bother to move their butts off the seat. Well, I did not wear a traditional type one piece maternity wear, but I was sure I looked totally like a pregnant women, people could not pretend that they did not figure out this point. Anyway, I told Jeff that this was not uncommon especially in KCR, the situtation might be better in MTR (at least I met a nice gentleman who asked me to take his seat), but guess what, I was super fit and it was okay even I should stand from Fo Tan to Tsim Sha Tsui, maybe those young men or nosy women needed the seats more than me!!

Jeff said he would definitely educate Lucas to offer seats to others when he commutes in public transport means in the future.

Strong side kick

Lucas is kicking strongly in my tummy. Yes I know you are awake, I feel you.

Little baby boy Tin Lok showed his tummy to people and said he is also pregnant. When I asked him how many month of his baby, he said 3 months. I guess he believes everyone can be pregnant.

And last Sunday when he saw I was playing my big Blythe doll, he asked me how come Blythe did not have tummy. I told him that Blythe did not love to eat and stayed so skinny and no tummy could be developed.

Prenatal Yoga again

Ok, I tried it, twice.

I bought a prenatal yoga VCD last week. It is surprising high quality. There are 4 parts for the whole lesson - The meditation and panayama, The standing work, The floor work, and finally the bonus part - body massage for pregnancy women - the audience of this part is the husbands, because it is a great time for them to share the pregnancy joy and reward their wife!

After the practice, the feeling was graceful, I'm sure my little baby also sensed the tranquility in my body!

It is getting huge!!

Now is almost 22 nd week, my tummy is growing in fiercely high speed!! It is bigger at night than in the morning. Now I started to look like a real pregnant woman. I don't mean I seemed fake, but it is really really showing a fact that somebody is in my body.

Yesterday when I came back home by MTR, I had the first experience that being offered a seat. A middle-age gentleman asked me to take his seat in his Mandarin accent. Wow, the feeling is complicated, I felt happy but a bit embarrassed at the same thing. After I sat down, I wanted to laugh loudly but kept biting my lips and hiding my head into the book I was reading.

Luckily I am still in good shape. I don't have swelling and my limbs and face are still okay, at least not expanded. It is hard to tell I have a big belly if I sit behind a table.

I bought a pre-natal yoga VCD yesterday, I will try tonight. From the description behind that VCD box, it sounds that this is a gift that every expectant women should have, the workout can help you:

• To increase your energy and stamina,
• To build strength, flexibility and balance,
• And to EASE LABOUR AND DELIVERY(?!)

Is it really true? Alright, let me try and tell ya!!!

Does he practice kick-boxing?

I feel that my baby practice kick-boxing in my womb these few days.

This afternoon, when I attended a phone conference with my boss, Jelly, an Australian gwai lo with not so heavy Australian accent (as he spent more than 20 years in Asia and traveled the planet all the time, you can't tell where he comes from by his accent), the bab kicked me with rhythm when Jelly was speaking without a single stop to the phone.

I started not to have very sound sleep in recent days, because this young boy was quite active inside my body. I could not feel him during sleeping, but significantly I feel less energizing when I wake up these couple days.

By the way, still no one gives me a seat in when I travel by MTR, it is understandable because I always cover my belly under jacket. You know, if you are the passenger, will you offer a seat to a lady who looks only not that slim and wears a thick jacket? If she is not pregnant, I am sure she will slap your face because of your 'courtesy'!!!

是基因的問題嗎?

生男生女的主動因素是決定於精子所含的X或Y染色體,X是女,Y是男. 理論上機會係一半一半.
但且看以下案例;

      /-> S1 ->S11,S12
GF-> F -> S2 ->S21,D22
      \-> S3 ->S31

GF=祖父
F= 父
S=仔
S11=S1的兒子,D=女
由GF開始共有9次生產, 共8男1女,其生男機率係88.88%,女是11.11%.如果在農村,此家族定可分到一條街.
究境係統計上sample不足?還是基因的問題呢?有請遺傳學和統計的專家賜教.

Important Announcement

I would like to announce that our baby is a XY i.e.BOY!!!

Manki and I both feel exciting about this news.

We give him the name 'Lucas', a Latin name which means light.

"Lucas" are often see as a surname , such as George Lucas , Henry Lucas (Lucasian Professor), a famous mathematician called Edouard Lucas. It is also fine to use as a first name.

Chinese name will be "天朗", it means he has an open mind. It also matches the English "L" voice, and the meaning is "Sunny".

Now, we should work hard on Lucas's room renovation and other the preparation for his arrival.
Guess what, this little baby has had an email address already, you could leave your blessing to him at lucas.yuen@gmail.com

Thanks a lot!! =)

King Kong

Hi my dearest baby,

Do you know that when we saw the 'King Kong' movie yesterday, you were so energetic at the beginning, when the music started, you had a lot kicking and pushing. But once those aborgines and King Kong came out, it seemed that you were scared and didn't move.

This Wednesday, we will know if you are a baby boy or a baby girl, can't wait!! We can start to do the prepartion of your room. What colour do you love?

P.S. Daddy is creating a CD for you with different kinds of music, we hope you will love it.

Music List (update#1)

I created a playlist in my iTune for baby, here are the list. I will keep it growth. (update 01)

Prelude No. 1 from Three Preludes Yo-Yo Ma G.
Gershwin The Essential Yo-Yo Ma (Disc 1)

Concerto No.4 "L'inverno", RV 297; II. Largo Janine Jansen Antonio Vivaldi
{1687-1741} Vivaldi - The Four Seasons

Concerto No.1 "La Primavera", RV 269; I. Allegro Janine Jansen Antonio Vivaldi
{1687-1741} Vivaldi - The Four Seasons

Concerto No.3 "L'autumno", RV 293; I. Allegro Janine Jansen Antonio Vivaldi
{1687-1741} Vivaldi - The Four Seasons

Jesus, Bleibet Meine Freude (Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring) Yo-Yo Ma J. S.
Bach The Essential Yo-Yo Ma (Disc 1)

"The Swan" from Carnival Of The Animals (Chamber Version) Yo-Yo Ma C. Saint-Saens The
Essential Yo-Yo Ma (Disc 1)

J.S.Bach:Suite No.1,MISCHA MAISKY MISCHA MAISKY Johann Sebastian Bach Masters
of the CELLO (Disc 1)

J.S.Bach:Suite No.2 Sarabande;PIERRE FOURNIER PIERRE FOURNIER Johann Sebastian
Bach Masters of the CELLO (Disc 1)

J.S.Bach:Suite NO.3 in C-Bourrees;JANOS STARKER ANOS STARKER Johann Sebastian
Bach Masters of the CELLO (Disc 1)

J.S.Bach:Suite No.5-Allemande;LYNN HARRELL LYNN HARRELL Johann Sebastian
Bach Masters of the CELLO (Disc 2)

J.S.Bach:Suite No.4 in E flat,Courante;MAURICE GENDRON MAURICE GENDRON Johann
Sebastian Bach Masters of the CELLO (Disc 2)

J.S.Bach:Suite No.6 in D-Gigue;ANTONIO MENESES ANTONIO MENESES Johann Sebastian
Bach Masters of the CELLO (Disc 2)

Serenade in G major,K.525"Eine kleine Nachtmusik"第1楽章:Allegro Vienna Mozart
Ensemble Wolfgang Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Serenade in G major,K.525"Eine kleine Nachtmusik"第2楽章:Romance.Andante Vienna
Mozart Ensemble Wolfgang Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Serenade in G major,K.525"Eine kleine Nachtmusik"第3楽章:Menuetto.Allegretto-Trio Vienna
Mozart Ensemble Wolfgang Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Serenade in G major,K.525"Eine kleine Nachtmusik"第4楽章:Rondo.Allegro Vienna
Mozart Ensemble Wolfgang Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Clarinet Concerto in A major K.622: Allegro Wolfgang Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang
Amadeus Mezart Mozart: Clarinet/Fute Concertos No.1 & No2

Clarinet Concerto in A major K.622: Adagio Wolfgang Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang
Amadeus Mezart Mozart: Clarinet/Fute Concertos No.1 & No2

Clarinet Concerto in A major K.622: Rondo Allegro Wolfgang Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang
Amadeus Mezart Mozart: Clarinet/Fute Concertos No.1 & No2

Divertimento in D major,K.136(125a)第1楽章:Allegro Vienna Mozart Ensemble Wolfgang
Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Divertimento in D major,K.136(125a)第2楽章:Andante Vienna Mozart Ensemble Wolfgang
Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Divertimento in D major,K.136(125a)第3楽章:Presto Vienna Mozart Ensemble Wolfgang
Amadeus Mezart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Preludium A-dur op. 28 nr 7 Dubravka, Tomsic, Piano Fryderyk Chopin Piano
Classics

Rimsky-Korsakov: The Flight of the Bumble-bee;MAURICE GENDRON/Peter Gallion,Pia MAURICE
GENDRON Nikolay Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov Masters of the CELLO (Disc 2)

Brahms: Sonata #2 in F, Op. 99 - Allegro Molto Yo-Yo Ma, Emanuel Ax Johannes
Brahms Classic Yo-Yo

Brahms:Sonata No.1 in E minor,Op.38-Allegretto quasi minuetto;HEINRICH SCHIFF/G HEINRICH
SCHIFF Johannes Brahms Masters of the CELLO (Disc 2)

Chaconne, from Partita No 2 (BWV 1004) Jascha Heifetz Johann Sebastian Bach Jascha
Heifetz - The Supreme [Disc 1]

Schafe Können Sicher Weiden (Sheep May Safely Graze) Yo-Yo Ma J. S.
Bach The Essential Yo-Yo Ma (Disc 1)

Wachet Auf, Ruft Uns Die Stimme (Sleepers Awake) Yo-Yo Ma J. S. Bach The
Essential Yo-Yo Ma (Disc 1)

Beethoven:Sonata in F,Op.5 No.1-Rondo-Alldgro vivace PABLO CASALS Ludwig
Van Beethoven Masters of the CELLO (Disc 1)

Andante Cantabile For Cello Solo And String Orchestra, Op. Posth. Yo-Yo Ma P.
Tchaikovsky The Essential Yo-Yo Ma (Disc 1)

"Moonlight Sonata" Beethoven

Imagine John Lennon