Our beautiful, healthy son has arrived on May 21, 2013. He is absolutely perfect and brought so many tears to our eyes.

I am in absolute awe that my body held this little guy for 10 months. We now have a family, what I have always wanted.

We enjoyed every moment of pregnancy (even when I felt bad) and ever pain during labor, delivery and recovery was worth it. We love out Ollie so much!

He looks so much like my husband but almost exactly like me when I was born. I can’t wait to see what he’ll look like when he’s grown up.

This will be the only pictures I will post on my blog publicly. All pictures will be in a protected posts with password only. If you are a close friend of mine (IRL or Internet blog friends) please ask me for the password by email. And those that already know my protected posts password, it’ll be the same.

We are so blessed with our son. I can’t wait to share the story of labor and delivery. (It wasn’t what I had planned and it was scary!) and also the first few days of recovery and bonding. I’m in love. So in love.

Every single day last week I thought it could be the day! My doctor told me that Boram will be early and I can’t blame her. Every checkup I had showed that he is lower, I’m more dilated and effaced and I even had my membranes swept.

We really thought yesterday was the day since I had real contractions all morning. Then it went away (pain wise) later even though my belly has been hard ever since.

And today is my due date and my FIL’s birthday! I hope he comes out today, I’m losing a lot of sleep in excitement and anticipation.

Come out Boram! We can’t wait to meet you!

Another date for the hubs and I, we managed to squeeze one in on one of his days off. We wanted to try something new so we tried out Azul Tapas Lounge on Ferguson Lane in the Former French Concession. 

Be advised that the elevator will take you to the 7th floor, then you have to walk up a flight of stairs. Normally this wouldn’t be a problem but for this preggo, it wasn’t easy. I imagine with a baby and stroller, it’ll be even more difficult. Just FYI.

With that said, when we walked in, we were pleasantly surprised by the modern decor and the fresh feel. We absolutely loved it and thought that the rooftop would be an excellent day when it’s nice weather or night time drinks.

They gave us some warmed bread with olives and homemade hummus. The hubs wasn’t impressed by the hummus but I liked it, it was light and fresh. I got the mango ice tea, which was a bit sour for my liking but all the while, refreshing. The hubs got coffee (which was really espresso, most places don’t serve Americano unless it’s espresso + water) with steamed milk. It was strong coffee, he loved it!

We both got the lunch set and can I just say… WOW. That was a LOT of food and we were surprised since lunch sets are usually pretty small. The hubs ended up getting the Cesar salad, it was delicious and I just love that ham they put on there. I ended up paying a little extra to get the blackened tuna taco. Don’t let the picture fool you, it was quite large. Although it was delicious, it was a bit salty for my taste but blackened things are usually salty. (And I’m very light handed when it comes to salt)

The entrees were crab linguine for him, it was SO GOOD. I love a good light (sauce) pasta in the warmer weathers and the crab flavor was so refreshing. I got the beef chimichurri sandwich and it came on a ciabatta bread. The sandwich was delicious but kept falling apart since the bread was so soft, I think it would have been easier to eat if the bread were toasted. But I can’t deny that it was finger licking good!

And of course, I can’t pass up dessert… I pretty much ate all of it! We got the key lime pie and the berry pana cotta. Highly recommend both as they are not too sweet and the perfect ending to our lunch. Fair warning… we were stuffed and probably could have gone with the two course versus the three but…. omg. So worth it.

If you feel like trying something new for lunch, give Azul a try. We’ll definitely be back to try the other dishes on their lunch menu!

I also want to give a special shout out to my friend Vivian!!! Happy birthday Viv!!!!!!! We love you so much and can’t wait till you visit us in August! <3<3<3<3 

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Azul Tapas Lounge
8/F, Ferguson Lane, 378 Wukang Lu (Former French Concession, Puxi)
5405-2252

It’s our 39th week! I’ve been having some sharp pains and contractions this week. It feels like a knife is going through the top of my belly but it isn’t frequent enough to be labor.

We had our 39th week appointment (or getting close to due date appointment!) on Wednesday. Everything looks good, Boram’s head is engaged and even lower but Dr Kong said she thinks we still have a few days. She also mentioned she’s pretty sure it’ll be before our due date, which is this Monday (my FIL’s bday!). 

I’ve been super tired these days, feeling heavy (total weight gain is now 24lbs) and I have some pains in my hips, right where my legs attach. But I hear that’s completely normal.

While at the doctor’s I asked about getting mammograms and getting vitamins for my postnatal time. All of which Dr. Kong can do for me, which I am absolutely thrilled about since I love her to pieces. The reason I brought up mammograms is because breast cancer runs in my biological family. Though I no longer have contact with them, I still think it’s smart that I am cautious of this now, while I’m on the younger side. Better to be safe than sorry.

I have to say, especially this week has been hard for me. Not emotionally, body wise… I am just so beat! My MIL has been working so hard at taking care of me that I feel so thankful that she is here. She’s been going to the grocery every day, making me Cantonese foods that I like to eat and drink, telling me not to worry about anything and she’ll do it for me. I feel guilty that she’s doing so much, I feel rather lazy. 

And despite the differences that the in laws and I have, I realize that in the end we just come from two (or three) very different cultural and generational backgrounds. And I’m starting to realize that even if we have very different opinions and we disagree on quite a few things… in the end, they don’t hold a grudge or hold it against me. I think I’ve been sensitive because I wish they could inch my way a bit but they already have by taking care of me. And in the end, regardless of whether or not we fully “get” each other… the only thing that matters is that we care for one another. I’m really glad they’re here to take care of me… especially with the cooking because I have no energy left these days.

What else, what else…

I woke up to a voice message from my niece Claire saying good morning auntie in Cantonese. Heart melted. If I’m this over the moon in love with my nieces, what am I going to do with myself when I meet my own son? I’m going to be a total mush.

Ok little Boram… come on out! We are anxiously awaiting your arrival! But if you take your time, that’s ok too… it’s just that mommy’s body is SOOOOO tired. haha (Sigh, I know… I’ll be MORE tired when he’s actually out)

I used to blog for Weddingbee, way back in 2006-2007 and I’ve made so many wonderful friends through it. A lot of the bees and I have transitioned from wedding to marriage and pregnancy (or fertility issues) and children. It’s an amazing community of women who have always been supportive of one another, offering advice and an ear whenever anyone needs someone.

My bee friend May (lovebird) has been keeping in touch with me and checking in on me all the time and she’s already been so generous with gifts for me during pregnancy! To my surprise, I woke up to a package from her and it brought so many tears to my eyes. 

She knew how homesick I have been, how much I miss my friend and America… she organized a package of cards, pictures, gifts and photos of some of the bees babies and sent them to me in a heart shaped box. Tears started to flow from my eyes as I opened each card, reading all the love from my weddingbee friends. All the bees are from all over America so they sent their cards/gifts/photos to May, who then sent the package to me. 

Each card was wishing us luck, love and much happiness and a lot of them said such wonderful things about me. I honestly don’t know what I did to deserve all of this. May, thank you so much for going out of your way to plan all of this for me! 

I will treasure these cards forever and show Boram how many people already love him. My heart melted.

And of course some gifts from the girls too! A book from May (Lovebird), toys from Kristin (Quiche), clothes from Stephanie (Hydrangea), and lovely stationary set from Nellie (Canary). 

The first page of the book May sent says this:

“I wanted you more than you ever will know, so I sent love to follow wherever you go.”

<3 I can’t wait to read this to my son. Thank you Weddingbee sisters, and especially to you May. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Since I’m so close to my delivery date, the hubs and I took a date night a couple of weeks ago. We always wanted to try Bistro Burger, friends have recommended it to us but we always went to Gourmet Burger in Shanghai Center instead. Shanghai Center is quite close to our apartment but we are always down to try new places so date night is the perfect night to try a new place, no?

According to Smart Shanghai: “Bistro Burger is a gourmet burger concept from Eduardo Vargas, with a range of Craft beers, spiked milkshakes, and burgers of all persuasions.”. It’s a cozy place and decorated really nicely and perfect for a date night in my opinion. It was busy but we didn’t have to wait for table, yay!

The burger menu ranges from 60-80RMB from the simple to the extra fancy. There were other non-beef burgers but I really wanted to eat a really delicious, juicy hamburger. And of course… all the fixings.

The hubs had a nice frosty beer, very refreshing on the humid, hot day that we went. I miss beer… 

To my surprise, it was Lady’s Night when we went! On Thursday nights, ladies get a free milk shake and I was QUITE happy. They even have spiked milkshakes but of course, being pregnant, I just got a regular one. The hubs and I were saying that we need to always come here on a Thursday night because of how much I enjoyed the milk shake. 

We ordered a plate of chili cheese fries. The fries were thick cut, extra crispy and the chili was a thick meat sauce with a kick. We loved it! We haven’t had chili fries that were very good in Shanghai so far, so we highly recommend this if you’re craving some. The chili didn’t have too much cumin (or maybe it had a small amount) and we liked that since sometimes chili can smell a bit like body odor to us. And BO just doesn’t smell that great when you’re pregnant. (Ok.. it never smells good)

I got the Hawaiian burger which had deliciously grilled pineapple, spam on a burger with cheese. It was surprisingly not salty! I completely expected it to be super salty but it was the perfect balance between slightly salty and sweet with a tomato-oregano salsa. I got the burger well done and it was extra juicy and tasty, great quality burgers really make the difference no matter how well done they are cooked.

The hubs got the Argentine Gaucho burger, which has chorizo, cheddar and mozzarella cheeses with a chimichurri sauce. The hubs said it was really delicious, salty (especially from the chorizo) and while it was absolutely heavenly… it was too much meat for him. Though, at the same time he doesn’t regret it! If you’re a meat lover, this is the burger for you. 

Both burgers came with a choice of fries or salad and we opted for the salad since we ordered chili fries. I can’t wait to go back after we have our baby so I can eat it medium rare and order some of the burgers that have some cheese that I can’t eat during pregnancy. 

So what do I think of Bistro Burger? 

My favorite place to grab a burger, fancy or not… the quality is amazing. Definitely going in my favorites.

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Bistro Burger
A Mansion, 1/F, 291 Fumin Lu, near Changle Lu
Puxi

Hellllllo! We are ending our 38th week of pregnancy and it’s been a dooooooooooooozy. I started to get swelling in my feet and fingers and they HURT a lot! So I was originally put on semi bed rest and told that it was probably a recent change in diet the past two weeks. The culprit is salt, which the hubs and I felt was true because my MIL has been cooking and it has been more flavorful and saltier than when I usually cook. So we have asked my MIL to have a lighter hand when cooking since my body clearly isn’t taking it well. I was told that it should go away with the lighter salt and probably after birth.

Had our weekly appointment on Saturday and was told quite a few things! I am currently 1cm dilated, by the looks of it I’m probably going into labor this week! AHHHHHHHHH am I ready? I can’t wait to meet him but I love being pregnant. AHHHHHHH! 

I was told to walk a lot now to help with labor and my contractions. This week the contractions started getting painful and very frequent. I can’t tell you how uncomfortable it is, my belly hardens like a bowling ball and then I get these pains. I have trouble breathing because I feel like my lungs are being squished and it lasts much longer now. 

The non-stress test told us that Boram is PERFECT. Dr Kong told us that he’s a good boy and that everything is looking optimal for birth. The funny part is, he is so active and I think very picky because he absolutely hates that test! He keeps moving away from the belts I wear for the test or kicking it repeated. “Get this off of me!” is what I imagine him saying.

My FIL asked me what we plan to name our baby and I responded with “Oliver”. He then said “ok… why? What’s the meaning of the name?” and I said that we just both liked the name a lot. Then it was complete silence. So awkward, haha. Then he asked the middle name and we decided that the hubs first name would be Oliver’s middle. Then of course the FIL asked why again and I said that we  both liked it and it’s not a common (or weird) name and thought it would be a nice tough. No response again. I am still not used to this personality/cultural difference because most people would respond a little more excited or delighted? But absolutely NOTHING from him. haha Will I ever get used to this?

The hubs and I are looking forward to little baby boy to come into the world! I can’t wait to see his chubby little face. So… it may be this week! AHHHHH! So excited. Whenever he pops into the world, I’ll be sure to post a picture under a protected post so you can meet him! 

Please wish us luck/pray/send loving thoughts our way especially this week! I really hope for a smooth, fast, safe and healthy delivery and recovery. <3

This past Sunday was a gorgeous day in Shanghai and my friends called me up for an impromptu lunch. We usually eat Asian food with this couple but our friend suggested a new Italian restaurant that opened up in Hong Kou. We ate at La Tagliatella, a super nice looking Italian restaurant that was perfect on a beautiful sunny day. We opted to eat outside and loved it… other than a guy smoking, which sadly blew right into my face with the wind. Sigh.

They gave us bread for free, it was toasty and delicious. I wish we could have gotten more than just 3 breadsticks but we also didn’t ask. Alina and I ended up getting soup: I got the cream of pumpkin with mozzarella and she got the minestrone. (48RMB/58RMB)

The interesting thing about this place is that they have an array of pastas and sauces, so it’s almost a pick and match sort of deal. On average the pastas are around 88RMB, which is a lot in my opinion for pasta but the portions were rather large. I think one pasta dish can be shared amongst two hungry persons. 

I got the pappadelle pasta with pesto, Alina got the spaghetti with the pescatora (salmon, seafood, tomato, cream, chopped onions and peppers) sauce. Both were excellent and extremely filling. Our friend Kin got the Pizza Rustica (fresh tomato, mozzarella, black olives, mushrooms and tuna fish – all in separate sections). While the pizza was good, thin crust… I wasn’t really impressed by it. 

Alina and I were so impressed by the decor inside that we just had to take a picture… and since we are both pregnant (me at 38 weeks, her at 32) we were excited to take a pic with our pregnant bellies!

And since it was absolutely gorgeous inside and really did remind me of the short time I lived in Italy, I wanted to snap some pictures to show my readers how lovely it was. But then one of the workers gave us a lecture and wouldn’t let us take pictures saying it was copy righted and that he was afraid we would use the pictures to open our own restaurant. 

I get it dude… but seriously? Sigh. So although it was delicious food, that guy pretty much ruined it for me. But if you’re not planning on taking pictures like I do, head over there. The food is nice and if it’s nice weather you can eat outside or enjoy the beautiful dining area indoors.
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La Tagliatella
138 Ruihong Road 
Hong Kou, Shanghai

http://www.latagliatella.cn

After living here about 1.5 years I can say that I’ve come a LONG way in terms of understanding the culture and language in Shanghai. 

I remember when we first got here… I absolutely hated it. Not so much the people, the city or just being here but the fact that it was so foreign to me. I couldn’t understand anyone (which happens of course, in a new country) and some of the mannerisms caught me by surprise. 

Then as I learned the language, I began to communicate more and saw a whole different side to Shanghai. I started to explore more, understand the culture and fell in love with the city which is now my home. There is so much good in Shanghai and I’m so glad that my eyes have been opened. 

I hung out with some local friends recently and I honestly can’t tell if this is a personality thing or a cultural thing. But nearly every single time I hang out with them this is the typical conversation that happens:

Me: Aww thanks for inviting me out guys! It’s so nice that you think of me.

Friend: It’s not like you have any friends here or any plans so we know you’re free.

Ha. I can’t help but to laugh… it’s just so funny that they assume that I don’t have any plans, don’t have friends and that I’m just sitting around my home waiting for someone to call me. It’s so far from the truth, maybe when I first moved here I was free and bored but these days I’m actually settled in and quite busy. 

So… yeah, I can’t quite tell if it’s a cultural difference or their personality.

Here’s another convo:

Friend: What language are you going to speak to your baby?

Me: Probably Korean and English. I think the hubs will speak Cantonese and English and we figured since we’re in China, he’ll pick up a little Mandarin just from living here and going to school here.

Friend: Your baby is never going to talk, he’ll be so confused and it’s bad that you think he’ll be able to understand all those languages. I think you’re wrong.

Me:  Um… I grew up with multiple languages in my home and I was just fine.

Another instance is when I talk to a friend about how I want to wash my hair during the 30 days after birth and how it’s much easier to dry now that it’s short. My Hong Kong friends say it’s ok to do that because the non-hair washing tradition was because ladies had long hair and didn’t have a way to dry their hair quickly before they got cold again. So as long as I blow dry it quickly it’s fine.

My local friend here FLIPPED out on me when I told her that I want to wash my hair. 

Her: NOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YOU CAN’T WASH YOUR HAIR YOU WILL GET SICK. YOU ARE GOING TO RECOVERY TERRIBLY, IT’LL BE YOUR FAULT!

I’m not exaggerating. This was all yelling and placing the blame is something I am quite familiar with in the Chinese culture. 

My in laws have told me about certain foods being good for recovery and certain ones being bad. They have told me multiple times that if I don’t take care in what I eat that I can only blame myself in the recovery. 

Example:

Seaweed = bad because it lowers your inner body temperature, it is a “cold” food. Not physically cold, the digestive process of seaweed will lower my yin-yang balance and I shouldn’t have “cold” foods. 

Ginger = Good, cleanses and keeps your body temperature “warm”.

That’s just two examples. Now what makes me sad is that seaweed is in the “bad” category. As you know, I am Korean and one of the most prized and honored tradition is eating Korean seaweed soup. A lot of women eat this after birth to replenish their iron, help with their breast milk and nourish the mother. After a discussion  with the in laws I have decided not to eat it. Not because I don’t want to, I really do. But because they kept telling me how awful my recovery will be and that if I want to, they’ll make it for me but to keep in mind everything they said about my recovery with seaweed. 

If I happen to have a bad recovery, I don’t want them to blame the soup that my people eat so I figure… eh, 30 days and honestly, it doesn’t taste the same when a non-Korean makes the soup. So I’ll let my MIL do what she knows best and cook Chinese. I won’t deny I am a bit sad about not having the soup but I think this is better in the end of it all. 

And of course my in laws are only doing what they know is best in their culture and eyes. So I understand it’s not personal… it’s cultural. It’s still hard to grasp sometimes for me, being non Chinese and being told all these things that I should and shouldn’t be doing. They do have a tendency to believe that their culture is right in everything (food, beliefs, health, medicine, etc). So it makes it hard to have a solid discussion about my culture and how they really don’t know too much about it but make comparisons. I can’t tell if this is cultural or if it’s a combination of them being old and cultural to be so pushy and opinionated.

But in the end, they are good people… and I want to stress how much they are helping us here. My MIL buys all the groceries, runs errands, get things that she thinks I’ll like to eat and she does the cooking and dishes. They do a lot for us and I am so thankful for that.

So yes. Cultural differences… still getting used to it. Be it Shanghai or my Cantonese in laws. I love both but I wonder if I’ll ever “get it” fully. 

On Chinese New Year our family friends cooked a hearty traditional Cantonese meal for us and we were stuffed! The next day they wanted to grab dim sum in Shanghai (since the parents were from out of town) and they took us to the new K11 Mall on Huai Hai Road. 

The decor is very reminiscent of Hong Kong and the food was great! Now that my in laws have been here, the hubs and I wanted to take them out for some quality dim sum since they haven’t been too pleased with the dim sum in Shanghai.

Some of the things we ate include the pictures that I’m posting. The quality is excellent, piping hot and the atmosphere is very nice. My Cantonese in-laws even say how authentic the selections and tastes are. I personally love the turnip cake (I love turnip!) and the shumai. 

Here are some of my other favorites that we ate: an adorable panda bun with sweet filling, beef balls and scallion dumpling (though looks more like a pancake! I liked the shumai so much, I guess I’m posting it twice!

While it is extremely delicious and a very nice place to eat… It is on the pricier side compared to other places in Shanghai. So it’s not going to be a weekly thing for us (or a daily thing for my in-laws) because it’s expensive compared to Hong Kong.

But if you’re looking for a nice place to treat yourself and your family, I think it’s a great place for a special occasion to go out and have some delicious dim sum!

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Super Star Seafood Restaurant 
300 Huaihai Zhong Road (Puxi)
K11 Shopping Art Center Shop No. 405-501