January snow

Akhirnya London bersalji jua :)

Seperti biasa, tak lebat & tak tahan lama. Sebab tu bila salji turun semua umat jadi teruja semacam. Hehe..

Kejadian pertama berlaku pada 14 Januari, lepas tu 18 Januari, terakhir turun pada 20 Januari. Sekarang dah mencair dan tak ada tanda-tanda salji akan turun lagi dalam masa terdekat.

Gambar-gambar yang sempat diambil keliling rumah;

Not a walk in the park

My pregnancy is not a walk in the park. Though I tend to keep negative stories to myself, sometimes I feel like I need to let it out.

I am pregnant with fibroids. Huge ones. And they are not getting any smaller due to the pregnancy hormones. And to make matter worse, they started degenerating a few months ago and have caused severe pain. I was on cocodamol (a combination of codeine and paracetamol). When cocodamol did not work anymore, I was given a higher dose of codeine to be combined with paracetamol. Codeine causes severe constipation, nausea and sleepiness.

For all the side effects, I was given lactulose (to help with constipation) and cyclizine (to combat nausea induced by codeine). But cyclizine also makes me sleepy and drowsy (team that with codeine and you'll see how drowsy I can be when I am taking these two).

My phd progress has not been great for these past few months since I have taken many days off school - stressing me out to the max. The graduate school is also putting on a lot of pressure, monitoring the attendance record and what not, though I am thankful that my supervisor is super understanding (at least for now).

Taking those drugs does not mean that I can function normally or be totally pain free. Most nights I'd be wide awake for hours due to pelvic pain from degenerating fibroids, leaving me totally drained by morning.

Fyi, degenerating fibroids don't get any smaller. The centre is degenerating because it has outgrown its blood supply due to its rapid growth, but the whole fibroid is in fact still growing due to pregnancy hormones. How complicated can things be?

I have two fibroids near the neck of the womb (near the cervix), and the doctors did mention the possibility of a c-section, but we'll see how things are at 36 wk (9 mo). I am now at 27 wk 5 d, almost 7 mo. There are also risks of early labour and heavy bleeding following delivery.

If you are wondering, the fibroids won't be removed during c-section. They are highly vascularized (full of blood vessels) and any attempt to cut them from the uterine wall will cause massive blood loss. If they're to be removed, it will be done a few months after delivery.

So for those commenting on me not gaining so much weight, I hope the reason is clear. I am actually unwell. For the days that I can walk, pain-free, I will put on a wide smile, go to school, or walk around the city with dear husband - snap some pictures for memory sake, be happy. On the days when things do not go so well, I stay at home and rest.

I am grateful that my husband is super helpful and caring. From massaging my back, doing the laundry, grocery shopping alone, and attending to my every need - I can't thank him enough. Alhamdulillah for one of the most precious gift in my life.

Overall, I am more positive these days. There are people who went through worse. I am in a far better situation. At least my baby is healthy and kicking! :) My husband & I (not to mention our family) are praying hard for everything to go smoothly, for both mommy & baby to be safe. InsyaAllah..

Cari ketam

.. di Rasa Sayang, Chinatown

Pie tee sebagai starter. Taklah sedap sangat pie tie ni, auntie kantin sekolah dulu buat lagi sedap

Yang ditunggu-tunggu.. Singapore chili crab!

My husband had the winter promo menu - teh tarik, king tiger prawn char koay teow & cendol

Konon nasik putih & ketam mak buyung sorang lah yang punya

Surprise!! Bila sampai di meja, ketamnya lagi besar dari muka saya. Hahaha.. Mampuss

Dah mengah tersandar, dear husband tolonglah tolong. Tak laratt

Ini lah rupa orang mengah. Nak bangun pun rasa berat

Mintak waiter bungkuskan ketam yang tak habis. Cendol pulak sampai. Masa ni masing-masing dah tak excited tengok cendol sebab perut dah meraung penuh

Ok, sampai tahun depan kot rasanya takkan teringin nak makan ketam lagi. Kot lah. Hehehe :P

Since 2002

Bila kawan-kawan sejak zaman berhingus sama-sama di UPM (Doctor of Veterinary Medicine 2002-2007) berjumpa di London, meriah kau! Perjumpaan orang Malaysia wajiblah bertemankan makanan dan aktiviti makan-makan. Sebenarnya kami berjumpa dua kali, gambar-gambar ni masa perjumpaan kedua di Tukdin Flavours of Malaysia (9/1/2013). Kali pertama penyertaan lebih meriah, di Satay House, Paddington (7/1/2013). Sayangnya masa perjumpaan pertama tu kita tak bawak kamera lah pulak, pencahayaan di Satay House pulak macam dalam gua. Sedih..

Che Dah & Faris Rayyan. Che Dah ni sama-sama buat masters dengan Ayu di Utrecht dulu. Masa degree pun kami roommates. She's one of my close friends. Kalau sesiapa yang dah lama baca blog ni, kenal lah Che Dah. Anaknya dah umur setahun lebih dan sangat cerdik

Sekarang Che Dah sambung program phd di University of Edinburgh, dia mula awal beberapa bulan dari Ayu. Tak ada rezeki nak ber-phd di university yang sama kali ni. Kalau tak, mesti lagi meriah :)

Fazlan (suami Che Dah) & Hj Ihsan. Hj Ihsan ni course mate DVM jugak. Dia baru mulakan program phd di Imperial College pada November tahun lepas. Bertambah koleksi kawan-kawan rapatku di kota London. Hik hik sukaaa

Starters malam tu - satay goreng & keropok udang. Makan sambil borak-borak, tunggu my husband datang join. Dia habis kerja jam 8.45 malam dan boleh jalan kaki (7 minit) je ke Tukdin

Kami semua sepakat nak makan nasi dengan lauk-pauk. Order punya order dah penuh semeja. Ikan siakap rasa khas, ayam masak merah, daging salai masak lemak cili api, sambal udang tomato, telur dadar & pasembur. Tu diaa masing-masing punya selera. My husband sampai just in time sebelum starters dibawak lari waitress. Hehe..

Sayangnya malam tu nasi putih untuk 5 orang dibagi dalam mangkuk kecik ni, portion memang tak cukup. Kena mintak tambah & waitress tanya "nak nasik tambah untuk berapa orang lagi?" I was quite surprised sebab selalunya kalau kami laki bini order nasik putih, nasik yang diletak dalam pinggan kami memang cukup. Tak sangka pulak bila dibagi dalam mangkuk ni portionnya kedekut. Walau apa pun, makanan di Tukdin sangat sedap. Satay House punya makanan tak sedap. Satay yang sepatutnya jadi specialty Satay House pun tak boleh lawan satay goreng Tukdin.

Gambar selepas makan. Meja pun dah dikemas bersih. Muka masing-masing macam orang sembelit sebab banyak sangat meratah lauk-pauk. Hehe

Nak balik dah. Masing-masing menuju ke stesen bas Lancaster Gate. Jalan laju sebab sejuk. 

Tak balik tangan kosong. Che Dah & suami hadiahkan macam-macam untuk baby. Kata dorang, takut tak dapat datang jenguk lepas bersalin nanti. Alahai terima kasih banyak-banyak, terharuu... :)

A date

Bila sihat, panjanglah langkah. Ini kejadian pada 5 Januari lepas.

26 minggu, bersemangat nak keluar jalan-jalan setelah berhari-hari memerap dalam rumah

Tempat dituju: The Lounge at Odeon Whiteleys, Bayswater. Tempat terbaik untuk menonton wayang. Kerusi boleh baring, makanan boleh order. Tapi tak boleh selalu :P (botak laki aku). Ini gambar fried squid with rocket salad & English breakfast tea

Tengok The Hobbit in 3D. Sebenarnya laki bini prefer tengok 2D sebab masing-masing berkaca mata. Tapi apa nak buat, 3D je yang kena dengan jadual, hentam sajalah.. Alkisahnya, ini kali kedua tengok The Hobbit. Kali pertama, tengok di Odeon dekat rumah saja. Tapi tak sampai 30 minit filem mula, kami keluar & balik rumah terus. Bini dia mabuk & muntah-muntah sebab masa tu dapat seat yang sangat dekat dengan skrin. Hehe.. Kali kedua ni langsung tak pening. Tqvm dear husband! :)

Nak? Buat sendiri!

Nasib badan..

Nasi kerabu & daging bakar

Laksam

Makan sampai puas. Sampai nak tengok pun tak lalu. Ambik kau.

Lepas ni nasik dagang la pulak kot? :P