Tease me, Tease me Tease me, Tease me baby Till I lose control

I should count myself lucky Morgan doesn't talk yet, otherwise she'd be swearing at me for pestering her and picking on her.

This is what happened yesterday evening:

I can't help but laugh every time it happens!  I do help her out, mind you, but at times I like to watch her and see if she manages by herself.  There are times when she is actually successful!

Today, the same thing happened, and this time, she actually grabbed it with her hand!  At first she grabbed it between  her middle finger and her ring finger, then when i gave it to her, she grabbed it with her whole hand and threw it on the floor.

I'm uber-pleased, to say the least!

Morgan has been rather quiet all day, slept quite a bit too, meaning I could get things done. I'm officially putting away her small bottles, as we have now upgraded to 160ml every feed - even though I'm mixing 4 scoops of milk to 150ml of water to reduce her spewing.  I'll go for the actual dosage of 5 scoops once her stomach accepts the fact she's drinking more.

On a side note, I'd like to wish a happy birthday to Paul - the mastermind behind "Malta's Amateur Youtubers, Bloggers, Vloggers and Artists". Here's a happy Morgan just for the occasion:

How To Register Your Child's Birth: Part One.

When a child is born, their birth needs to be registered within 5 working days, according to Maltese Laws. In the eventuality that both parents are to be listed on the birth certificate, one or both parents would need to physically go to the Public Registry Office - located on the 1st floor at Evans Building, Merchants Street Valletta - with BOTH parents' Photo ID (National ID Card or Passport).

If the child's parents are married, and the marriage occurred abroad, the original marriage certificate needs to be taken along - and this needs to be in either Maltese or English.

Should there be a legal separation or annulment, the original contact/court sentence documents need to also be taken along.

If the child is born out of wedlock, you're better off making a phone call before you go to the Public Registry Office. Their contact numbers are 22209100 and 22220920.

The opening hours are Mon-Fri 07:30 - 14:00. On Wednesdays, they are also open between 15:00 and 18:00 and on Saturday between 07:30 and 11:00.

At hospital, you're given a form on which the midwife assisting your birth giving process writes down the time and date of your baby's birth, along with your name and ID Card number and some other details, and ultimately signs it. On that same form, you then get to write down your baby's name(s) separated by commas ( , ) unless you want all names written down to appear on your child's ID Card when they grow up (e.g. If your child is to be called Mark Anthony Charles Philip Elton, but you only want Mark Anthony to be on their ID Card when he grows up, you'd need to write Mark Anthony, Charles, Philip, Elton) as well as some of your own personal details (and the father's, if his name is to appear).

Now, this is where the fun part (i.e. Confusion) begins. If the child's father is to be left out, in spite of knowing who he is, he is very tastelessly listed as "Unknown Father" - however this _can_ be changed at a later date. How? That is what I'm trying to find out.

When I called the Registry people, I spoke to a manager who told me the Father would have to speak to a lawyer and get an Act issued from Court that would then enable the Birth Certificate to be changed.
On the other hand, when I physically went to register Morgan's birth, I asked about this again and got told a different story. _This time_, I was told that both parents would need to physically go to a _Notary_ along with the child's birth certificate and get the Notary to draw up some legal document that will allow the Birth Certificate to be changed.

Since I have no intention of wasting money talking to lawyers and/or Notaries needlessly, I'm going to ask about this another 3 times. The first option to be mentioned to me three times in total will be what I consider to be correct information until proven otherwise.

Oh, and you have to pay €2.33 as a registration fee. The reasoning behind this is a mystery to me. I wonder how impossible life would be for someone whose parent[s] opt not to register their birth because they don't agree with said charge. I know it is a highly unlikely scenario, but can you imagine never having existed to the world? Location would probably be key to how easy/difficult life can be for you.
The birth certificate can then be picked up within 10 working days from the Public Registry Office, or requested online via www.certifikati.gov.mt. There seems to be yet another charge to obtain the actual birth certificate via the website. If you request just an extract, the charge is €2.33, but if you request the full birth certificate, the charge is € 9.32.

Since there are a few details I still need to obtain confirmation about, as mentioned earlier, I will write up Part 2 of this blog once the certificate itself is ready for collection.

In the meanwhile, enjoy this - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KANI2dpXLw - whilst I snuggle up to Morgan once more.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone from GO Mobile

Help! I Need Somebody!

Mistakes and accidents are part of life - a very important one too! The younger we are, the more valuable and useful the experience will be.  Somewhere further down the line, a lot of people stop learning from their own mistakes, which leads to their getting hurt over and over again.

When faces with a crisis, quite a few people panic and end up making an even greater mess out of the situation than what it would originally have been.  Children learn a lot of the basics by mirroring other people's actions - which is why it is a very common scenario to see a child getting hurt, and only burst into tears when the person supervising them panics.  Fussing about causes the child to realise that something is wrong, and they should have a negative reaction to it.

One thing that I feel every parent should consider is learning Basic First Aid Skills.  It not only could save someone's life, but it will also help you learn how to implement Emotional Damage Control and lessen the amount of unnecessary stress you cause to the injured person, and any other person who happens to be around them - yourself included.  Knowing what to do, and who to refer to, will help you have a clear head and improve your Crisis Management Skills, as well as educate your child that just because something negative has happened, it is not the end of the world.  It will allow them to learn about the whole "silver lining" of the proverbial "cloud".

I had attended a First Aid course about 10 years ago, and never did a refresher meaning I'm not considered to be a qualified First Aider nowadays.  I do plan to rectify this as soon as I afford to [both when it comes to investing time in it, as well as the finances].  Locally, courses are provided by St John Ambulance and they have courses starting every month - which should make it easier to commit to.  If you don't have the time or money this month, look at next month, or the month after!

In the meanwhile, another good source of First Aid Skills can be Natural Remedies/Alternative Healing.  There are plenty of items in your own home that can double as emergency medication, for example.  Garlic and Honey happen to be two foods that can work wonders! 

Clicky here, here and here to scare Vampires and other Nasties away, and here, here and here, for information about the Liquid Gold that is Honey.  Please proceed to read about adverse effects as there may be information in there that is extremely important.

Most importantly, know your emergency contact information and teach it to your child.  It is extremely important to include an Emergency Contact card in your Child's personal belongings - be it a school bag, a wallet, or simply to attach it to their pushchair/pram, for example.  This will ensure that should something happen, and you're not around - either because your child gets lost, for example, or the something actually happened to you! - the child is able to get the assistance required.

Write down their name, surname, your name and surname, your contact telephone numbers as well as an Emergency Contact Person's details as well.  I wouldn't recommend to include a home address as it could produce an adverse effect.  Teach your child what your local Emergency Services number is [in Malta, it would be 112] so that if they are the one to place a phone call, they will know who to contact.  Always teach your children their full name, as well as your own full name.  A lot of children end up believing their Mum is actually called Mum.

If you think I'm being too dramatic, check out this video:

The Blood is The Life

I am pierced and tattooed. I have suspended from hooks that were pierced through the skin on my back.  And yet, I have this tremendous phobia - I can't bear the idea of someone sticking a needle in my vein and either sucking out, or injecting fluids.

Whenever I go to the dentist, I'm in tears. Literally.  If I need to have blood taken, I'm in tears.  And if I need to get vaccinated, I'm in tears.

And yet, I plan to donate blood as soon as I can.

The thought has been running through my head for quite a few months now - it seems like the fact that my Creature might someday need a blood transfusion has done the trick for me.  I've made him/her my Number 1 priority - so I am willing to face my fears in order to help him - and anyone else whose life might depend on a pint of my lifejuice.

For the past 3 days, there have been articles published on local newspapers trying to bring to everyone's attention that BLOOD IS URGENTLY NEEDED - in particular Type O Positive and Type O Negative.  Much to my horror, on the first article I read there were people posting comments as to why they are "boycotting the system" and "refuse to donate blood".  Three days later - and no one has answered to the appeals.

SERIOUSLY?! Are you really willing to allow another person to die just because you want to defy the system?! What sort of person are you??

Yes, there are some restrictions which are archaic and stupid within the blood donation system.  In fact, I am hoping that I will be allowed to donate blood.  I'm O Positive - meaning I'm a Universal Donor.

I'll briefly explain the differences in blood types:

There are 4 blood types - and each blood type can be said to be either positive [ +ve] or negative [-ve].  These are Type A +ve/-ve, Type B +ve/-ve, Type AB +ve/-ve and Type O +ve/-ve. 

• Blood group AB individuals have both A and B antigens on the surface of their RBCs, and their blood plasma does not contain any antibodies against either A or B antigen. Therefore, an individual with type AB blood can receive blood from any group (with AB being preferable), but can donate blood only to another type AB individual.
• Blood group A individuals have the A antigen on the surface of their RBCs, and blood serum containing IgM antibodies against the B antigen. Therefore, a group A individual can receive blood only from individuals of groups A or O (with A being preferable), and can donate blood to individuals with type A or AB.
• Blood group B individuals have the B antigen on the surface of their Red Blood Cells [RBCs], and blood serum containing IgM antibodies against the A antigen. Therefore, a group B individual can receive blood only from individuals of groups B or O (with B being preferable), and can donate blood to individuals with type B or AB.
• Blood group O (or blood group zero in some countries) individuals do not have either A or B antigens on the surface of their RBCs, but their blood serum contains IgM anti-A and anti-B antibodies against the A and B blood group antigens. Therefore, a group O individual can receive blood only from a group O individual, but can donate blood to individuals of any ABO blood group (i.e., A, B, O or AB). If a patient in a hospital situation were to need a blood transfusion in an emergency, and if the time taken to process the recipient's blood would cause a detrimental delay, O Negative blood can be issued.

- quoted from Wikipedia

So, what does +ve and -ve mean?
This refers to something called the Rh [Rhesus] blood group system.

Wikipedia describes it as follows:

"The system (including the Rh factor) is one of thirty current human blood group systems. Clinically, it is the most important blood group system after ABO. At Present, the Rh blood group system consists of 50 defined blood-group antigens, among which the 5 antigens D, C, c, E, and e are the most important. The commonly-used terms Rh factor, Rh positive and Rh negative refer to the D antigen only. Besides its role in blood transfusion, the Rh blood group system, the D antigen, in particular, is a relevant cause of the hemolytic disease of the newborn or erythroblastosis fetalis for which prevention is key."

- from Wikipedia's Rh blood group system article.

How is this relevant to my pregnancy?
If you notice the last sentence in the above paragraph, it is quite important actually! Hemolytic Disease of the newborn or Erythroblastosis Fetalis occurs when there is an incompatibility between the blood types of the mother and the fetus. There is also potential incompatibility if the mother is Rh negative and the father is positive. When any incompatibility is detected, the mother receives an injection at 28 weeks gestation and at birth to avoid the development of antibodies toward the fetus. These terms do not indicate which specific antigen-antibody incompatibility is implicated. The disorder in the fetus due to Rh D incompatibility is known as erythroblastosis fetalis.

The above explanation is extracted from Wikipedia - for more details, clicky here.

How do I know whether I can donate blood in Malta?
Most of the information you need can be found here.  There may be restrictions not listed on the website [sexual orientation, stupidly enough, being one of them] - however there is no harm in trying to donate.

To keep, to give up, or to get rid of?

This morning, a very lovely lady I have the pleasure of knowing posted on Facebook a quote, and later a scanned image, of an article featured on one of the local newspapers.  It emerged that this article was based on an British health agency's study.  Same article can also be found on Yahoo! News.

To bring you up-to-date on the situation locally, Abortion is not legal over here.  However, anyone wishing to abort only has to jump on a catamaran or a plane and pay for it in one of our neighbouring countries.  They will not be turned away, since their money is as good as others'.

"Are you pro-life or pro-choice?" you might be thinking.  The truth? I am pro-using-your-own-brains-to-make-the-most-suitable-decision-whilst-assessing-things-on-a-case-to-case-basis.  Simply put, I will not object to someone undergoing abortion, but neither will I recommend it.  If keeping the child, or giving him/her up for adoption, is a more feasible choice, then to me, that person should choose one of these other two options.  If on the other hand, neither keeping, nor giving up the child, is a feasible solution, then so be it.  Abortion will be the lesser of all evils in that scenario.


The one reason I do not call myself pro-choice, in truth, is because I would not wish Abortion as an experience upon my worst enemy.  Yes, medically, there is no mental health risk linked to it.  There is, however, heartbreak, guilt, and a generic feeling of violation.  As if someone has ripped your very essence out of you.  It is like an extremely amplified combination of mourning the death of a loved one, and having your heart broken by the love of your life.  Needless to say, it is a big deal.  One that you will have to carry with you for the rest of your life.


Different countries have different regulations indicating until when an abortion can be conducted.  Whilst discussing the topic with a French friend of mine who lived for about 3 years in the UK, she explained to me one of the oddest things ever.  The law in the UK makes it legal to have an abortion during the first 24 weeks of pregnancy so long as certain criteria are me, though in special circumstances, it is legal to have an abortion until later on. The Abortion Act 1967 covers the UK mainland (England, Scotland and Wales) but not Northern Ireland. The law states that:

• abortions must be carried out in a hospital or a specialised licensed clinic
• two doctors must agree that an abortion would cause less damage to a woman's physical or mental health than continuing with the pregnancy 

The law states that an abortion is legal after 24 weeks:

• if it is necessary to save the woman's life
• to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman 
• if there is substantial risk that if the child were born, it would suffer from physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped. 

Here is what perplexed me - Premature babies, born as early as 23-24 weeks, can be revived should the parents express the wish to attempt a resuscitation, after discussing it extensively with their doctor.  Premature babies born from 25 weeks onwards are resuscitated without the parent[s] needing to request for it.

Basically, the lines blur across one another.  There is a time through the pregnancy where one can decide to abort - but if there is preterm labour, once the child is here, the doctors would be obliged to try and save his/her life.

So yeah. Personally, I think that the very latest that abortion should be carried out is within the first 12 weeks.  Basically, as long as it is still referred to as an embryo, not a foetus, then I find no moral objection.

On the subject of men and their being opinionated about the whole thing - I mean this in the most loving of ways - You guys will never ever have to deal with this experience in the same way as your ladies might have to.  At the end of the day, it is her decision, not yours.

Before you jump at my throat saying I'm being too harsh - let me attempt to rephrase that.

Under no circumstances do I see it fitting for a man to tell his pregnant partner that she should abort, unless she expresses the justified feelings herself.  She will be the one to have to deal with its consequences - not you.  If you are able of finding an alternative to abortion, please do let your lady know about it.  Discovering you're pregnant is quite a traumatising thing - even when planned.  So be supportive.    At the end of the day though, if she is still of the opinion that she should abort, then it is up to her.  I'm sorry you will have to deal with a decision you do not agree with, but that is what you would need to do 0 deal with it.

I know, you probably are still hating me.  There is no sugar-coated way I can put it to make it sound less harsh, so just think it over.  I tend to be rather blunt in my words, so struggle to put something nicely when I don't really see the need to.

One more thing I wanted to point out is - the morning-after pill is not available in Malta either.  Should the Powers That Be decide to legalise it and introduce it in Malta, I would say to price it at some ridiculous price which is still affordable - Let's say, 10 or 20 euros.  That will ensure that it will not be used as a contraceptive but rather as a remedy for an emergency situation.  Condoms break, and rape happens.  Having friends who work, or have worked in pharmacies, tell me about the number of Language School students [i.e. foreigners coming over to Malta to learn English, usually during summer] they have to break the news about the morning after pill not being available and see their life crumble away, has enforced my opinion that it should be introduced.  After all, these students would have been able to obtain the pill were they back home.  Instead, they now will have to face a possible unwanted pregnancy and all the consequences related to it.

To conclude - no one can ever really be pro-life, nor pro-choice, unless they have to face the situation themselves.  I have known pro-lifers opt for an abortion, and pro-choicers choosing to keep the baby.  Finding out you're pregnant is the one thing that will bring things into perspective - and just because you chose to, or not to, abort once, does not mean you will make the same choice again in the future.