Neil Yan Dot Com

One of the best investment Sheila and I have recently made was not on the stock market, or bond market, or even supermarket. It was at the LAZYBOY Superstore in Markham!! We needed a new sofa for our living room and we searched for months. Then one day, I received a “special” invite to the Grand Opening (actually, more like RE-Grand Opening) of the new LazyBoy Superstore in Markham. If we stop by the store just to browse, we’ll get a free Tim Horton’s gift card. Well!! What do we have to lose? If we buy nothing, we get to go to Timmy’s on LazyBoy.

We couldn’t refuse a good deal. In the end, after spending about an hour in the store and trying all the sofas and rockers, we decided to invest in a LazyBoy!! It comfortably fits 3 people, and it reclines at both ends. Ah, the lazy life!

Here’s Ben in the new LazyBoy:

I think we have this baby thing sort of figured out, and I use the words “sort of” very loosely. Ben has very few needs; 1) boob food, 2) clean diaper and 3) the need to be burped. We’ve come to learned that he needs the occasional 4) holding/walking/rocking and 5) dad’s karaoke voice and those strange noises that resemble no other creature nor object in this world. I blame American Idol for the karaoke sounds.

Training his parents have come pretty easy for Ben. Ben’s living the life! He get’s changed every 2-3 hours. He get’s fed every 1.5-2.5 hours. He gets a bath every 2 days. Every time he has visitors, he gets presents!! I’m looking forward to the day he changes my diaper every few hours. It’ll be divine retribution; I’ll make sure of it. I don’t need him to bathe me.

I’ll have to say, changing him in the middle of the night has one advantage these 2 weeks. The Australian Open is on LIVE!! Since Melbourne is 16 hours ahead, all the tennis matches start at 10PM EST on TSN. BONUS!! So, getting up at 2AM over the past week I’ve been able to watch Nadel, Federer, and Djokovic play. Now, with the semi’s and the final just a few days away, I’m looking forward to seeing Ben at 3:30AM!!

For live stats at the Aussi Open, click here.

It’s the year of the OX and we couldn’t be more happy that Ben is celebrating it with his entire family. His grandmother, like clock-work, starting baking a few days ago, and finished off dinner today after cooking up a storm all day. The great thing about Ben, he’s good with everyone holding him. That’s the way we like it!

So, what can we expect in the year of the Ox? Here’s what they say:

The OX year is a conservative year, one of traditions and values. This is not a year to be outrageous. A slow but steady year. This OX year will bring stability and growth where patience and diligence pays off. This is a year of Harvest – when we reap what we have sown. Take care of business this year, do not let things slide.”

While we were waiting for Ben to arrive over 2 weeks ago in the maternity ward, we wandered the halls aimlessly to get the Pitosin going. On the wall of the hallways were a lot of pro-breast-feed posters; the hospital is VERY pro-breast! We like that! But one poster that caught my eye was the diaper change poster. It basically outlined the number of wet/crappy diapers your infant will go through in the initial few weeks. For example, 1 “very crappy” diaper in the first day, 2 crappy diapers in the second day, 4 wet diapers by the 5th day, and then an average of 8-12 mixed diapers per day for THE REST OF HIS LIFE!! (or what would seem like the rest of our life ).

If Ben were to be graded based on this chart, he would get a “way above average”!! His teacher mom would give him a big happy sticker! His dad would enlist is the “fastest diaper change” contest and would probably rank in the top 3 finalists (I’ve got it down to under 2 minutes if I’m in a rush…and that includes a dry clean bum with the warm wet towel treatment!).

A few things I’ve learned over the past 2 weeks with changing an infant boy:

1. keep his pecker down ALWAYS! Even in his diaper, otherwise, when he pees, he’ll pee all over himself
2. work FAST!! You never know when he’s going to pee and crap/fart! Dire consequences can present itself once one of these unforeseen bodily functions occur
3. do not lean over his pecker while changing him. Again, you don’t want to “drink from the fountain” unexpectedly!
4. use a soother when necessary. A crying baby on the change-pad takes longer to change. A calm baby is super easy to change. We try to do it immediately after feeding him.
5. keep him WARM!! We have a diaper wipe warmer…what a God-send!! He’ll pee on you if he feels that initial cold wipe on his ass!! You spend a little on the warmer, but it pays off in the end…usually.

To recap, the anxiety level is reduced significantly once the diaper is on. So, the quicker you put it on, the safer it is for you.

All the doctors and nurses said it was going to happen. It might take 6 days, it might take 2 weeks, but in the end, it will happen. Some babies take longer, others not so long. Our only main concern was to keep it dry. KEEP IT DRY!! And when it does happen, you’ll know it. For most, when it does happen, it’s anti climatic. Not a lot of excitement or hoopla. It’s just there. For Ben, I could have helped it along the night before. But instead I choose to let mother nature take its course. What if I helped it along? Can it get infected? What if I did it wrong? Would I do more harm than good? It’s going to happen soon anyways. That’s what all the professionals say; it’ll happen sooner or later. For Ben, it took 12 days. I guess that’s average. It wasn’t too quick, and yet it didn’t take an eternity. It just happened. In my sleep-deprived state as I’m changing his diaper yesterday morning. IT JUST HAPPENED!!

Ben’s umbilical cord fell off!

I heard there was a litmus test for new parents; if their newborns make it past one week, they’re great parents!! Well, Ben is 1 week and 2 days old!! That makes us great +2!!

Life has changed tremendously for the both of us. For those of you who have gone through this, you know what I mean. We’re on a 2-3 hour schedule, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. That means Ben needs feeding every 2 to 3 hours all day. So, suffice to say, Sheila doesn’t get much rest. She’s finally breast feeding (4 days into Ben’s life), so she’s got to be up for feeding time. Myself, well, Sheila’s fantastic to let me sleep through most of the night; except for 3AM. That seems to be the mutually agreed time that I get up, change Ben, burp him and then wander around our condo aimlessly until Ben falls asleep. It gives Sheila at least 1 hour of deep sleep without worrying about every little movement from Ben’s bassinet (new mother syndrome).

So, in about a week, Ben has manage to control every movement and thought of each of his parents. Nothing has happened in the past week that didn’t involve him. Isn’t parenthood wonderful?!!!

Loving every minute of it!!

Here are some pictures. More will be posted regularly on the “Photos” link above.

After a nine month journey, Ben has finally reached his destination; Women’s College Hospital. It was a pretty crazy trip along the way, but his final 24 hours were the most exciting for him and his new parents. Here’s how it went down (note: times are close approximates, due to lack of sleep and pen and paper):

Thursday, January 8th (our scheduled induction day with Dr. Herer)

8:00am – we get a call from Dr. H’s office. “It’s a slow day at the hospital today, so take your time, have breakfast and then come in” is what we’re told. So, we have breakfast, read the newspaper, and watch some morning TV.

10:00am – “So, are we ready to have a baby today?”, Sheila asks. “It’s a perfect day to have a baby!”

10:30am – We arrive at Women’s College Hospital. We travel the route planned on google maps (see previous blog)

10:35am – Triage visit on the third floor was 3 minutes. They moved us directly into ROOM 5 in the maternity ward. They were right, it was pretty quiet. I think there were 3 other rooms (out of 10) that were occupied. On the whiteboard was the message “Friday Jan 1, 5 Girls, 1 Boy”.

11:15am – Pitocin (oxytocin) was administered to induce labour via an IV drip. Now the waiting game begins.

12 noon – Dr Herer tries to break Sheila’s water. Something comes out, but the waiting game continues.

4PM – The waiting game is getting tiresome. We walk the halfway like mice on a treadmill hoping something is going to happen soon, but nothing. Just drips from the IV. So, Dr Herer tries to break the water again. This time, IT GUSHES!! I’ve never seen the Dr. jump out of the way so fast.  She gives me a dirty look for that comment. The waiting continues from here. Sheila’s 2cm dilated. They estimate 1cm per hour until she reaches 10cm. Yes, Ben should be here by midnight; cross our fingers!!

5PM – The contractions are about 3 minutes apart. We hook up the TENS machine (read the blog about Dr. HO!) that we rented from the hospital. Initially, we attach it to just her legs on low frequency to get the endorphines flowing. So far so good. The waiting continues. The iPod comes on.

9PM – The contractions are a little closer and a bit more intense. So, we move the TENS machine to the next level; her back. The dual frequencies are set; HIGH during each contraction, LOW in between. Sheila has the “Jeopardy” clicker in her hand to switch between the two settings. It REALLY WORKS!! No drugs for now. We’re still on track to do this naturally. The waiting continues.

9:15PM – Coming from the next room, a woman is screaming like the world is ending. “My God!! The PAIN!! Please help me! I can’t do it. It REALLY HURTS!! Oh, my God! OH, PLEASE HELP ME!!”. That went on for about 30 minutes; which is how long it take the epidural meds to kick in. A few hours later, I hear a baby cry from her room. Sheila and I are a little uncomfortable about what to expect with this natural birth thing. The intensity of the TENS machine is increased slightly to adjust for the increased pain of the contractions. The waiting continues.

11PM – The TENS machine is no longer affective. The lady next door has planted a seed in Sheila’s head. THE PAIN WILL BE UNBEARABLE!! It’s already very painful. “Babe, you don’t have to be a hero!”. “GET ME THE EPIDURAL!!”.

11:15PM – The EPIDURAL is inserted! The pain is getting worst (now that even the TENS machine is removed; no Jeopardy button). We participate in the “Do smaller epidural needles (20G vs 16G) prevent headaches” research study. We’re randomly given one of the needles but not told which size. We find out accidentally a few hours later that we got the smaller needle! YES! It’s shown so far 60% fewer patients get headaches after the epidural treatment.

11:40PM – The epidural meds kick in. NO PAIN!! Ah, we love drugs!!

12 Midnight – Sheila is 5cm dilated. What?!! What happened to 1cm/hour?!! HE SHOULD BE HERE BY NOW! The contractions are getting closer; one every 2.5 minutes. And we’re only half way there.

3AM (FRIDAY) – Sheila is 9++cm dilated!! That’s great. We get to start pushing; well, SHE GETS TO START PUSHING!! With the aid of Maria (the night nurse), we both grab a leg and we coach Sheila to “take a deep breathe, push down, hold her breathe, release…and do it again.” This happens at every contraction…FOR THE NEXT 3.5 HOURS!!!

6AM – We can see part of Ben’s scalp “in there”. He’s right there!! Not fully “crowned”, but at the door step. Sheila is determined to push this kid out!! Fatigue is setting in. The doctors are somewhat confident that it can be done. Ben is facing up. He needs to turn 180 degree down and come out. He’s not turning. He’s comes out with each push, but slides back in slightly every time. The bugger doesn’t want to come out.

6:15AM – We decide to have a c-section. Sheila is completely drained. WHAT A TROOPER!! I would have given up months ago..and that’s with the epidural!!

6:59AM – In the O.R., Ben Yan is delivered by C-Section. Healthy, a little groggy, but beautiful! The mother is all drugged up and tired beyond belief! The dad…no words can describe it!! Even after the 20 hour ordeal, and 23 hours of no sleep, the event was surreal!!

I’m going to make this a short blog, as I need to get back to the hospital to hang out with my new son! YES, BEN HAS ARRIVED! Our boy was delivered by c-section on Friday, January 9th, 2009 at 6:59AM. His solid frame came in at 7lbs 12oz. He’s 48cm tall and for those out there who know me, his cranium is a normal 35cm in circumfrance  (he doesn’t have his dad’s head).

More information and one wild ride of a story to come!

Thanks in advance for everyone’s well wishes. I will respond to each and every one of you once I get some sleep. 

For the longest time, I told myself that I didn’t want to live in the city anymore. The “burbs” was where I wanted to live and work. Now that I live in the heart of downtown Toronto, I LOVE LIVING IN THE CITY!! Everything is within walking distance. The Metro (formally Dominions) is next door (and open 24 hours!). Shoppers is across the street and another one a block away (also open 24 hours!). The Eaton Centre is 2 blocks away. The subway is next door. So, once I get home from my 30Km commute, the car is rarely used.

One of the best things about the delivery is that our hospital is a 5 minute walk away!! It’s a block and a half walk to Women’s College Hospital from where we live. Just to make the case, I installed GOOGLE EARTH to see how far it was. It’s 600 METRES from our front door to the hospital. You know how far that is? It’s a lap and a half around my old high school running track. But I’m going to assume, when tomorrow comes (if not earlier), that will be the longest 600 metres I will every walk…and the slowest!

If you’ve never tried Google Earth, I definitely recommend it. Supposedly the new version (4.3 Beta) has a 3D option. I’ve also installed Microsoft’s LiveSearch Map, which has the 3D option. It’s pretty cool to see the building we live online at street level.

Here are the links to each application:  Google Earth  Microsoft LiveSearch

Here is my planned route to the hospital using both applications: