Taipei - Day 2

Tried to fit as much as I could into Day 2 cos I knew the last day would be jam packed - had to get all my shopping done! But first things first: back to my old law firm Pamir to have lunch with ex-colleagues. Was so lovely seeing them all again, brought back all the memories of gossiping around the kitchen and eating breakfast toghether.

Ahhhh...  my old boss Nick (whose tummy is still bigger than mine) and my partner in crime Juan:

Lawyers & secretaries:

Betty, always the model office manager. Yup, they're fake glasses haha:

Oh my goodness, look at that! I'm still on the Pamir wall :D

MUNCHTIME!!! Nick took us out to a Shanghainese banquet. All this, just for me??? *beams*:

Golly, I haven't had any good Chinese food for over a year. Sorry Korea, you guys just can't make it the same:

Not done yet! Must have more bubble tea, curly ice cream cones, and spend 4 HOURS at Guang Hua Shang Chang (computer land) doing stupid shit with Rebecca hahaha. Btw her flip flops broke before we went in, but she's such a trooper and somehow managed to last the entire time with a broken shoe!!! Oh my dear 傻妞, how I've missed you hahahahaha...

4hrs and all I got was my phone did, ipad covers, DVD series and piano books. LOL. Btw that picture in the bottom right corner is us proudly showing our reciepts, which got us free ice cream (as if we hadn't had enough):

Next stop, ICE MONSTER!!! That was one of the VIP items on my food list, so even though we were struggling to get it down, it was still damn good:

Still not done yet. Had to make sure I dropped by Breeze and got all my designer goodies - and also got super treatment from a gay salesperson @ Dior who proceeded to tell me about his entire traumatic relationship with a Korean guy. Funny at first, but *yawn* after 20mins....

MUNCHTIME again!!! Kept everyone waiting 40mins @ Thai restaurant Jolly (soooory!) but anyhoo they started without us so I didn't get to eat any entrees :(

Lovely group picture:

Back to Angela & William's house for drinks and finally some pictures of Tangyuan with her gifts from me!! Juan looks disturbed...

She's so tiny and already 1 years old!! What a little polly pocket ♥

Arrival of the FROG!! He didnt even set his bags down before a whisky was handed to him, so you can guess how the rest of the night went. I was given plum juice but they all looked the same and I accidentally DRANK OUT OF THE WRONG CUP!!!! Omg first taste of alcohol in 6 months!! As soon as I realised I spat it straight back into whoever's cup it was hahahahaha... but I look pretty excited in the picture:

Stuff I gots... 

I'm so hungry right now! My new cook just started today, and whatever she's making smells sooooo good, I can't wait to eat some homecooked meals FINALLY!!!!

xxoo

Trip to Taiwan - Day One!!

Eeeek I just had a look at all the pictures that I've been tagged on facebook and there are like 300 of them from the Taiwan trip! How am I gonna compile all of them... I'm so behind booo hisss!!

Ok, will do this one day at a time cos there is too much to get through. Day One will be the shortest, hooray!

Was really anxious about flying after being warned by everyone that it wasn't a good idea. But I didn't care, I missed my friends SO MUCH!! I risked my life for your girls!!!

Upgraded myself to business class and showed the airline the letter from my doctor. In Korea, they just got a suited man to follow me around everywhere holding my carry-on and duty free shopping, but in Taiwan they actually got me a wheelchair HAHAHA. I thought it would be embarressing at first, but then I realised there's a disabled counter at customs which means you get to bypass all the lines! Plus I'm not allowed to go through x-rays so I didnt have to line up for that later. They just frisked me in my chair. Fun! Felt like a QUEEN~~ hehehe.

Angie was there to pick me up at arrivals with her camera all ready:

As you can see, I was the first out cos I'M DISABLED :P

On the drive home, they pointed out the ferris wheel where Steve proposed to me. A flood of memories came back and I decided that I really missed Taiwan and wanted to move back there to be with my friends :*(

My lame attempt at capturing the ferris wheel:

Got to Angela & William's house and it was so nice! I had my own room, own bathroom, and Angie did just a great job with the decorations.

(L to R) My room, walkway, living room, study:

The best thing about her place was little Tangyuan, her miniature poochie that fits in my pocket. Pics of her later from Day 2!

In the morning, the first thing I did was go get my hair did. Angie made sure to book me hairdressers that were all on the first level so that I never had to climb any stairs - awww. And Rebecca was my suited man that day, carrying all my stuff hahaha. 

I was an hour late meeting Rebecca (oops, sorry! You know how it is with hair) and I wanted bubble tea RIGHT AWAY. After the first one, I felt so happy that I got a second one. In fact, I think I got about 3 that day. And then beef jerky, and then played with a dog. Story of my life!!

Ahhh....

I had a list of all the food that I wanted to eat, and the first one was the pho on a lane off Da'an Lu. I used to go there all the time, and they make it realllly good, nothing like the crappy al dente ones with shoddy soup you get here in Seoul.

Look how happy I am hehe!! :P

YUmmikins! Wasn't allowed to walk too much, so we went and did our nails for the baby shower. Rebecca wanted baby-themed nails so she decided that baby bottles were the way to go.

Look how happy she was when she saw the picture the girl drew for her hahahaha:

 Finished result. Her nails look SO GOOD! Mine (botom right) are crappy in comparison:

My next request was going to Shi Da markets and buying bath'n'bodyworks products and eating the food there. We had "lu wei" (looooove) and frogurt and I tamed the hand & bodywash monster in me - hooray!

All pictures courtesy of Betty, Rebecca & Angela :)

xxoo

Ange's Visit :)

I'm so behind right now... The whole placenta issue had me quite worried (and all my friends & family too) and right now we are trying desperately to find a replacement for me at work so that I can leave asap and rest at home. I'm no longer allowed to carry anything, move too much, exercise, have sex, or even drive (which I've still been doing)... ergh!! It's so sad :(

Taiwan was an absolute delight though, and I think it really did a lot for me emotionally to be with such great friends, have a baby shower, and be back in an environment that I love where I can communicate with everyone. I was soooo sad to go - but more on that later!

Remember when I mentioned Ange was doing the 7 day bag challenge when she was here? Well, she didnt quite make it - on the 7th day she just brought her own but I dont have a picture of it.

So anyway, the amended "6 bags in 6 days Challenge":

YAY! Great choices, I must admit. They all look better on her than they do on me - of course, she's still slim & gorgeous and NOT pregnant.

These are all pics from Ange's new camera. It's super cool, like a DSLR for dummies. She took heaps of touristy & food pics, but I have taken them all out and just made collages of a summary of what we did each day.

Day 1 didnt count, so Day 2 - shopping in Myeongdong:

Day 3 - Namdaemun & Dongdaemun markets, where we ate this terrible thing on the street that almost killed me. I'm sorry Ange, will never do that to you again...

Day 4 - strolling in Cheongdam & Sinsa's "garosugil" - always mine and now her favorite place too ;)

Day 5 - oops no, I retract that. Her favorite place is Hongdae's Hello Kitty cafe....

Kitty getting eaten step-by-step:

Day 5 continued - the doggy cafe and brazilian bbq for din din:

Day 6 & 7 - Ange went shopping by herself during the day while we were at work. We had chicken soup & 50c ribs at night. She was so excited hahaha:

That pic in the corner is one she took of me with my doctor right before I found out that I had placenta pervia :( After that night, I was so depressed... especially cos I found out there was no more Santorini or dessert after every meal. I still tear up just thinking about my new sunhats and holiday outfits that will never get worn...

 

At least Ange made me Red Velvet cupcakes with cream cheese icing in the middle of the night, just so I could take it to work for my colleagues the next day. Awwww!!!! ♥

Look at that! How amazing is it, and it was so delicious - everyone at work thought I had bought them and didn't believe that my friend had made them!

Did I mention the doggy sling is my favorite gift? You can wear it in 3 different ways and Noodle is perfect for practising. Not that I can do that anymore, since I'm not allowed to carry anything... *dies*

I'm getting tagged in all sorts of super-duper pictures from TW on facebook atm. After I compile them all I will write up a post. From now on, I wont have anything interesting happen in my life anymore.... :*(

xxoo

I have placenta pervia *sniff... :'(

BAD NEWS. My 20week scan this morning showed that I have placenta pervia :( It means that the placenta is too low on my cervix and depending on the situation, it can be high-risk and means that I will have severe bleeding during labour and it could be life-threatening to me and Nugget. SAD!!

I even went to another doctor for a second opinion but she said the same thing. Basically, there are 3 stages - marginal, partial and total. Total placenta pervia is the worst case which means there is very little chance of it lifting up and correcting itself, and that's where I am almost at. I also now have a 1 in 10 chance of getting placenta accrete, where the placenta is implanted too deeply and does not separate easily at delivery. So the risks are that if I start bleeding I might need a blood transfusion and hysterectomy, have to deliver a premature baby, or die. Boo. For those with partial and marginal, most will correct itself and only 10% stay that way. But for me, there's very little chance.

Whatever it is, I can't have a natural birth anymore, which I'm gutted about cos I was really keen to give it a shot without an epidural. I'm praying that it might change so I still can, but its most likely that I will have to get an elective c-section.

The saddest news is that I can't go to Santorini next month anymore. I'm so depressed!! I was looking forward to that so much, got my new clothes and maternity swimwear, sunhats and everything *cry*... UNLESS the situation corrects itself soon (unlikely), we will have to cancel all our pre-booked flights and probably lose a lot of money too. Also if it's still like this I will have to be put on bed rest. NOOOO!!!! But all of that doesn't matter - the thing that worries me the most is that I can't carry the baby to full term and there are so many complications with premature delivery. Our pastor's baby was preterm and only lived for 3 months... *tear*

The good news is that the scan showed a completely healthy Nugget, oblivious to all of this. In fact, he started kicking from 18weeks and is so active - I can feel him turning and punching all day long. It's strange cos my other friend who is further along hasn't felt much, but I must just have a really active boy. Also according to the nurse, I am thinner so I am more sensitive to the movements.

Which totally goes against what the Dr said cos he told me I'm gaining too much weight *hides* and he's put me on a low-carb diet thing (pfft). I'm not supposed to eat sweet stuff either but as if that's gonna happen - Ange & I have been having different desserts every day and last night she baked me red velvet & cream cheese cupcakes - YUM!! But now that I already have a complication, I don't wanna get gestational diabetes on top of it so maybe I should be more careful...

I'm still going to Taiwan tomorrow cos I think a short flight shouldn't be too bad. I know other people in this situation get all upset and depressed (I read forums about it and they make it so terrifying) but I believe that God is going to take care of me, so I'm gonna just do it.

Please pray for me & Nugget everyone!! I was so worried today that I didn't even take the scan of Nugget from the clinic so I have nothing to show.

I'm also not really supposed to exercise, have sex, or lift anything. Hope I'll be alright traveling tomorrow cos Steve is not joining me there til Fri.

Online sites all say different things, but when it's a total placenta pervia it always says the same :( Here's some info on placenta pervia from babycenter.

xxoo

The Dress Me Pretty girls reunite!

Yup, Ange is here and that means lots of shopping and eating. I went out shopping 3 full days in a row with her - I'm so proud of myself!! 5 months preggas and still did it, albeit the back pain and leg cramps.

She took heaps of photos and is on the "borrow 7 bags from Gracie in 7 days" challenge - its pretty funny, she brings a different bag each day from my collection, and they all look better on her cos I look so fatty right now. ALMOST at the point where I cant take pictures anyore - argh!!!

Other great news is that she bought me super great gifts from Sydney and lugged all the maternity wear I bought from Sydney, also my new kaftan and an ipad hooray!! The books are from Jack, im very impressed that he's actually taking this godfather duty seriously.

My diaper bags, and some new stuff. The 10yr anniversary B bag came, but I must say I'm not impressed with the colour. Apart from the lining, there is nothing special about it.

Love these the best - Baby dior bottles, pacifier and music box:

Btw here's Noodely in her new bed. I'm addicted to G-Market!!

Ange did my hair in a Carrie bun today. It's so pretty, hope I can learn to replicate it on my own later - unlikely. 

The dressing table and wall stickies are from G-Market too hehe...

xxoo

Ugly baby NO NO

Terry took me to some yummy spots lately - its so great cos she knows everything and can teach me about trendy places that I would never know about otherwise.

Like this place - Steak & Wine something in Yangjae:

Seriously good steak and pasta. But nothing like this other joint C Four, which is a really famous place for patbingsu (Korean shaved ice). Now dont be mistaken - this is not like every other shaved ice dessert you can get in Chinatown. In fact, I would say it's even better than Ice Monster in TW...

The texture is super soft and milky, and tastes like it's not really made of ice but creamy ice cream. It comes in original (which is what we had) and milk tea flavours and its just delicious! I'll have to go back there, maybe with Angela this week.

Another place I've discovered is Cafe74, a pretty popular place for cool people. It has a nice terrace, but they wouldn't let Noodle out of her bag so sadly, she was hidden the whole time :(

I forced Froggie to go with me, even though he hates Cheongdam-dong cos he thinks the people are pretentious and portions too small, but it just happens to be exactly what I like - TOO BAD! Apparently, you can have sex in the toilet here - I didnt go in so dont know how that works, but maybe it has a bed in there...?

Hmm... liking this Dior ensemble. Yes? Would it work with belly?

My pancakes:

Ok... portion a little small, a little too expensive, and not as good as Oasis. And I dont have any other pics cos I got mad at Froggie and didn't want to be snap happy when I'm supposed to be angry. Had to stay in character.

Btw God, can I please look like this when I'm 55 with no surgery??

Speaking of looks, I've seen so many pics of good looking parents with ugly babies, its terrifying!! I know they change when they get older, but I want other people to like my baby...

Plz plz plz let Nugget look more like me when he comes out.

Amen.

xxoo

Week 19 Photoshoot ;)

We've moved into our new place finally! I have pretty much set it all up, bought all new furniture plus a piano, and it definately feels just like home now :) This apartment is on the 19th floor with massive views and 4 bedrooms. I love it!!

The only bad things are:
1) It's too big for 2 ppl. We can't ever find Noodle (or each other!)
2) It's bigger than any of Steve's colleague's apartments, and even bigger than his boss' house... which makes it kinda seem like we are super greedy. Which we are.
3) There are too many white walls, and I have to get big frames and print photographs to fill up the space.
4) It's a lot more work for the maid, and she does enough already
5) If I'm home alone I get scared...

The good things are that the extra closet and storage space really helps, and I can create a nursery from scratch yay. Also, its great for entertaining and we have had guests over for dinner non-stop since we moved and they all had a good time :)

Meanwhile, I haven't been too motivated to blog lately. It's becoming more and more of an effort to take pictures, and I'm really wondering if I can keep doing this after Nugget is born. I did, however, get my photographer friend Al to take one last set of pictures for me before he leaves Korea and here are (some of) the results.

Setting up.You can see my new couch and tables here. Haven't had time to do any curtains yet, but we have a mini chandelier :)

Moments...

Some of my faves :)

Ok that's a lie. My faves are actually not shown here at all cos Froggie made me take them off Facebook - he's "not comfortable" with me putting up half-nude shots on the internet. BOO!!! They were really nice and artistic. Oh well, at least my friends saw them and if you missed it then send me a message and I'll email to you :P

4 more sleeps til Ange arrives! She'll be bringing new maternity clothes for me, baby gifts, another kaftan, and an ipad. Excitement!!!

xxoo