My past 2 weeks of maternity leave have been spent with twice-a-day 20min yoga sessions, coupled with cardio (treadmill & elliptical) at the gym 3-4 times a week. It sounds like a lot for a, *ahem*, “heavily pregnant woman” (as I now officially am!) but to be honest, it feels damn good when I get moving since I always feel crappy if I sit on the couch for extended periods of time. Fortunately I still have a lot of energy so I can keep up all my exercise.. and I’m banking on it to help ensure I’m a healthy mother and can birth a healthy baby *prays very hard*.

Speaking of which, he is still merrily snuggled up in me! My due date is 19 Jan but women can give birth any time within 2 weeks before/after that date. So at least I know my firm ‘deadline’ is 31 Jan or so. If I don’t pop in the next 2 weeks from today, I’ll be induced. Induction is not ideal but sometimes it’s better to have that than a really giant baby (which will increase my chances of a dreaded Cesarean). Plus, I’ll probably be desperate for it by the end of this month anyway 😉

The great thing about being on maternity leave is that I’ve been doing a ton of brunches and going out with fellow girl friends that aren’t working as well. That means girly pampering sessions galore, and loads of brunches that go on for hours 😛 Oh, and shopping, of course! I haven’t taken photos or blogged of stuff I’ve bought recently because 1) it hasn’t really been that much since I’m a lot more interested in baby-shopping now and 2) too lazy to take photos and/or blog 😛

But I finally got off my bum and took pics of this preeeeeeetttttyyyyy Eastern Accents tourmaline & pearl necklace I bought recently! I love their boutique in Taikang Lu – everything is gorgeously displayed and the quality of the gems are super. I like how delicate the necklace is, and how it can be doubled/tripled up, and also worn as a bracelet.

Eastern Accents tourmaline & pearl necklace

It matches up nicely with the Flying Lizard Designs pearl & gemstone necklace
that I bought whilst on my USA trip!

And, my favourite of all…. some clothing from another boutique in Taikang Lu called Shokay. They sell the softest clothing, ever. Softer than the loveliest cashmere!! The secret is that it’s made with Tibetan yak down, sourced directly from Tibetan herders. They also use only raw fiber (which is zero pollution, and is naturally shed once a year, preserving the yaks indigenous to the Himalayan region). Best of all, they also give back and re-invest in the Tibetan community. Plus, did you know that Yaks only produce 100g of yak down each year? It’s way more rare than the best of cashmeres! I never knew that. And the quality really shows because the material of the clothing is so so so so so thin, yet it’s so warm and soft and snug.

I can’t really describe how mad-soft the material is… kind of similar to a cashmere-and-silk blend, but much thinner and finer and softer. You have to touch it to realise how nice it is! Anyway, Shokay sell online at their link above and ship internationally – I highly recommend their products and they’re not just for cold countries because the fiber is so comfortable it can be worn in warmer climates too.

I bought the 2 items below because I figure I’ll be spending months-on-end mostly at home and need really soft comfy clothes for winter and spring 🙂

Shokay lounge hoodie with Tibetan yak down.

Shokay lounge pants with Tibetan yak down