Emma Jeanne Lan Nguyen

After much eager anticipation & waiting, Emma Jeanne Lan Nguyen was born on January 11, 2010 at 2:26pm at Thomson Medical Centre in Singapore.  She weighed 7.8 lbs and was 20 inches long. 

In typical Rubin-Nguyen fashion, Emma entered the world at her own pace and in her own way.  Dr. Paul Tseng used a vacuum to assist in the delivery, but all was well and Emma's cone head has since subsided. :)  Becky and Emma were discharged from the hospital Wednesday afternoon and last night was our first night home.  What seemed like a calm Emma while at the hospital was not the case last night.  I'm amazed how such a tiny being can produce cries as loud as Emma did last night.  Obviously, we have a lot to learn from each other, but last night, Emma was not a happy camper from 1:30am to 4:30am.  After many attempts to sooth Emma, Grandma Barb came in to help.  It took granny's magic touch to bring Emma's blairing cries to a few whimpers within minutes and then completely knocked out on Barb's chest.  Albeit the small spat last night, we already have some great memorable moments, which brought laughter, smiles, and even left us a little verklempted.  Emma is truly a gift and even though we have not gotten much sleep, her grace, beauty, and sheer presence remind us how wonderful life can be! Here are some shots over the last few days:

A proud papa and his daughter!

Granny and Emma's first meeting.

The newest member of the Nguyen family...

Emma certainly knows how to sleep in style

Tuff reading to Emma for the first time

Tuff has been coming home during lunch everyday to give Becky & Barb a "breather"

Happy New Year!

2009 has come and gone in a blink of an eye.  Time sure does fly!  We've had some great memories this past year which include discovering Becky was pregnant, our 1st trip to Japan, my back fully healing, friends coming to visit us in Singapore (Carrie & Jeremy, Mandy & Kelly), family coming to visit us (Barb, James & Angela), going to Vietnam with James & Angela, to mention a few.  We are excited about the next year and new decade, which we hope will bring  much happiness, peace, and good health.  More importantly, we are thankful to have our wonderful family and friends by our side to share in the experiences and we wish each and every one of you good health, peace, and happiness for 2010.

Barb made it into Singapore safely on Dec 29th and celebrated New Year's eve with us and our good friends, Mike and Mary Jo.  The night was filled with good laughs, lots of wine (for everyone but Becky) and some heated board games.  The New Year started with fireworks from Marina Bay, which we were able to enjoy from our balcony. 

So baby Nguyen decided not to be a 2009 baby and looks like no tax deduction for us.. shucks :).  Becky is getting closer and closer so it's only a matter of days (we hope!). 

Here's a youtube video that Becky can't get enough of.  This kid is too cute for words: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErMWX--UJZ4

Enjoy the long weekend and we hope to see you all very soon!

Becky & Tuffli

Singapore Baby Shower

We are so blessed to have wonderful friends on both sides of the globe. This past weekend we were given another amazing shower for the peanut. Our friends planned a wonderful shower and BBQ! There were games, fun, and wonderful friends. Everyone's gifts were so thoughtful and amazing. We even received a book that is made especially for the baby, using her Vietnamese name and everything. Then to top it all off, at the end of the evening we were presented with an amazing gift, a Rocking Chair. It has already gone to good use, and we know that it will when she comes! Thanks to everyone for the shower, and to Li and Mary Jo for organizing it all!

What a beautiful Cake!

Becky and Tuffli arriving at the shower.

 A wonderful card filled with all sorts of heartfelt messages!

 

That evening; Mary Jo, Mike, Rupert, Roger, Meg, Andrew, Li Chin, and Becky

Awwww what a cute couple- Roger and Meg

Rupert manning the grill, it was all delicious!

Later that evening. Around the circle starting on the left- Li, Rupert, Meg, Roger, Mike, Vikram, Padma, LiChin, Andrew, Becky, and Tuffli- and we are missing the photographer- Mary Jo.

 

 

Even later that evening, Tuffli preparing the rocking chair!

36 Week Check Up!

Well, two more weeks have gone by...the peanut is continuing to grow at a healthy rate! We are very pleased. In this ultrasound she even was sucking her thumb, guess she takes after her mom on that front! The image is a bit hard to see, but if you look in the center of the picture you may be able to see her side of the face and her fingers in her mouth. We will see Dr. Paul on the 23rd of December for our next check up, and we are anxious for Barb's arrival on the 29th. It will be a race to see who will arrive first, either the grandmother or the grand-daughter. Either way we will be excited to see them both. 

First Half Marathon

Last Sunday, December 6th, I completed my first half marathon in Singapore, the longest distance (to date) I've ever done.  Although the race course was considered fast and flat, it was one of the most physically & mentally challenging things I've done.  I felt great after 18 km, but then it quickly went downhill for me.  It didn't help that I ran past every drink station available on the course and relied solely on my fuel belt (32 oz of Gatorade), which I didn't completely finish.  Becky is still a bit peeved at me for this.  Needless to say, the last few kilometers felt like an eternity, but I tried to focus on the finish line and kept my legs churning.  3 months of training left me with a finishing time of 2 hours and 18 seconds, which I'm pretty happy about.  My worst case target time was 2 hrs 10 mins. Here's a pic of me towards the finishing area with a painful look on my face.

If that wasn't enough, here's a link with video of my finish:  http://www.marathon-photos.com/scripts/event_entry.py?event=Sports/2009/Singapore%20Marathon;match=40084

If that wasn't enough, here's a link on how I faired up against the rest: http://www.runpix.name/sin09/00/finord.php?LastName=40084&lan=&aset=0&dist=21

I think I'll stick with 10km runs for a while now, but I'm sure I'll find the half marathon (or even full marathon) itch in the future.

Week 34 Check up- she shows her face!!!

Hello all, we hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. We certainly have a lot to be grateful for! We went for our 34 week check up, and Dr. Paul is please with the baby's growth. He even commented that she is going to be tall- judging by the length of her thigh bone- I guess she takes after her dad! Much to our delight, our little one showed her face today. Previously she has been shy and stayed away from the limelight, but not today. As the scan proceeded Dr. Paul moved the sensor- and there she was! We even got to see her blink and stick out her tongue. So all and all a good Doctor's visit!

So who do you think she looks like??? :-) 

32 week check-up

Greetings from Singapore! After a wonderful, albeit seemingly short trip to the US, we have been back for just over a week. We had our 32 week check-up/scan this week. The peanut is doing well, her heart rate is good and her growth is normal (She now weighs two kgs). In this scan you can see her head on the left and her back on the top of the picture. Dr. Paul is pleased with her growth, and we now will begin to see him every two weeks! It is amazing how quickly time flies. Mommy is feeling well and is very excited that she can continue to workout; in fact Dr. Paul said that it is very good for the labor process. We continue to feel so blessed by everyone's outpouring of concern and love and we are anxiously awaiting the birth of our first daughter!