Good Night No More

It is now 4:35 am.

While my heavy eyelids are telling me to get some sleep, the rest of my body simply refuse to co-operate, with the main culprit being the brain.

Other than that, the rest of tonight has been progressing quite typically so far.

Typical is briefly defined as follows ever since the grand arrival of Junior.

Needless to say, the 2 to 3 hourly feeding is enough to drive any sleep-deprived mother insane. On top of that, I am usually treated to the "Tang Symphony No.9" with Junior whining or wailing on my left and The Man snoring on my right. Not sure if it is in D minor or C major but it does vary a little from time to time. I must say they do a pretty good job synchronising without a conductor.

The feeding can sometimes be tranquil with both Junior and myself dozing and nodding off to dreamland unconsciously for a few seconds only to realise we have unfinished business on hand.

At other times, feeding can get into an intense physical and verbal battle with Junior's knees and elbows all over my bruised body while I struggle to adjust myself to yet another awkward position which I would later regret.

As if that is not enough, there is also the occasional pooping event. Junior somehow prefers to do his mega poop during the night before, during or after his feed. In fact, "prefers" is an understatement because I believe to a certain extent it is some sort of conspiracy especially when it is followed by pee or even more poop while a new diaper is still being put on. Trust me, the sight of his whole bum smeared with **** and watching the live action of more **** flowing out like a fountain is definitely not for the faint-hearted.

So these days when The Man and I wish each other Good Night at bedtime, it no longer holds the same meaning as before. I think a more appropriate thing to say would be Good Luck.

It is now almost 5am.

By now, my brain is finally convinced that some sleep, however little, is required before Part II begins... let me see... in about an hour's time maybe.

My Three Motherhood Helplines

Forget about those 1800 numbers or those never ending lists of motherhood web forums. Who needs them anyway when I have 3 great friends who are just a phone call or sms away for real-time advice and references.

Firstly there is Justin's Godma. Having three kids of her own, she is able to share with me her valuable experiences and perspectives to what works for the different situations encountered, which brands are better, what are the more essential items to prepare in larger quantities and what are the items that might just end up as white elephants. Beyond that, I also look upon her as a source of motivation, whose energy level I can draw upon. If she can juggle three young kids with a demanding job, I should have no excuse with just one, especially given the kind of help I have around me.

Of course there is my good old friend XH, whose baby Claire is just 2 weeks older than baby Justin (who also suffered in the same labour ward and rested just a few maternity ward away). Never did we imagine eighteen years back when we were seated in the same classroom that we would go through pregnancy and motherhood together! As our juniors are just 2 weeks apart, it always feels reassuring to seek reference and compare notes with each other throughout our pregnancy days and now, our baby's development and our "confinement woes".

Then there is BC, the walking encyclopaedia. It is truly amazing how much she knows and she is like this huge knowledge database that can be tapped on for anything from A to Z. Being an extremely warm and helpful person as she is, I have been at the beneficial end of receiving all sorts of tips, "do"s and "don't"s as well as useful advices since the start of pregnancy till now.

I would have been running around like a headless chicken without all the precious lessons learnt from these three amazing young mommies.