Little Lady Mom

For the recently preggy out there, if there are any of you reading this, this is about being pregnant and some of those weird side effects it brings. Pregnancy is divided into three trimesters. The First Trimester: You may not know that you're pregnant until you realize you haven't had your period since.. maybe you can't remember.  Maybe a little test kit confirmed it for you with a faint pink line next to a clear pink line. What you might feel: -constant sleepiness, sluggishness and general laziness, this will probably show on your face too -a frequent need to pee -feeling bloated -weird mood swings, being weepy or irritable -"morning sickness" not necessarily in the morning.  This doesn't happen to everyone.  For some it lasts longer, for others its a vomiting episode or two, and some just feel obligated to feel vomity. -your boobs might be sensitive or achy -your sense of smell may be at par with your dog.  You smell everything and not everyth...

I don't like going to work.  I don't like leaving my kids at home and spending only 3 waking hours a day with them but work I must so I trudge to work five days a week, 10.5 hours a day + roughly 3 hours in transit. I love my job.  It gives me some measure of independence, the people I work with are nice, and it pays good.  I just don't like leaving my kids at home.  To you stay at home mommies out there, I envy you.  I hope that one day I can find a source of income that will allow me to actually be a full time mom to my kids. Some days are tougher than others.  Some days I'm happy I have an excuse to be out of the house, dress up, and eat out.  Most days though I just miss my boys and think of how much time with them I'm missing or how much more advanced they would be if I had the time to teach them.

Happy New Year! It's a new year, everything feels fresh and before getting back into the daily grind, I would like to write.  My first topic this year: The Mommy Hospital Bag 2017 for me seemed to be the year of the buntis, with batchmates and friends popping up kids or announcing kids on the way, with twins and triplets even! One of my dearest and oldest friends asked me to text her what she should pack so here is my no frills hospital bag checklist/s with the "why's" for each item: For Mommy: ID, Philhealth card, MDR or Member Data Record from Philhealth (download then print), and your Admitting Orders from your doctor - have these ready in an envelope  Glasses if needed Phone and charger!!! (I'll post a separate blog on useful apps for moms-to-be)  pack your earphones too A light jacket - hospital air-conditioning is generally sleepy-cold temperature Hair ties / head bands - at least 3 hair ties since you might lose them, these are just to keep ...

Breastfeeding is a reality I never thought of while pregnant.   I was too focused on keeping myself and the baby inside me healthy, giving birth, budgeting, picking a hospital etc etc..  I thought it would come naturally, didn’t think of how long I would breastfeed my baby and never knew that there are so many technicalities to it.  The proper hold, the proper latch, pumping, what to eat and vitamins to take and so on.. I’ve been back at work for about a month now and am proud to say my 2 month old baby is exclusively breastfed =)  Well, almost exclusively.  We give him 4 ounces of S26 Gold everyday just so he can still get whatever nutrients and extra formulated growth boosters formula may have.  This is at the insistence of my mother and hubby.  I was overruled. Direct breastfeeding was no walk in the park for me, my nipples got sore. Feeding time was painful but necessary and I had to do it 8 to 12 times a day?!  Plus kiddo is...

Its been a little over 2 months since I gave birth to my healthy little boy.  I haven't had much time to blog or do anything else aside from take care of our little newborn.  It really is a full time (and more) task. I'll blog separately about my birthing experience.  I know a first-time-mom-to-be's foremost concern would be the cost of giving birth.  To give you an idea, we spent 60k for normal spontaneous delivery.  I opted for the "painless" option and I'm very happy that I did.  The 60k includes use of the hospital facilities, room (2 nights), doctors' fees and baby's initial tests.  I gave birth at Medical Center Paranaque. I'm really happy we stayed well within budget.  We were able to use the leftover funds for baby's bassinet, breastpumps (more on that later), and initial supplies like milk and nappies.  We even had enough to cover for car insurance and repairs hehehe..   Goodluck to all moms to be out there!  I hope your ...

I'd like to share the hospital room rates Medical Center Paranaque gave me and some room rates of nearby hospitals in the south.  Medical Center Paranaque (where I will be giving birth anytime now) Honestly the hospital looks old and tired and if my doctor hadn't assured me that the staff are capable I wouldn't think twice about scrapping it from my list.  I do know that a lot of the doctors here are also doctors who have clinics at the pricey Asian Hospital though.  The staff are in their late 30s and 40s unlike the young staff at Asian and St. Luke's.  Its old, stuffy, the parking is not well planned at all and they are currently renovating some parts which makes the place look even more tired what with all the cut out holes in the ceiling but it was recommended by my doctor and it fits the budget.  This is also the hospital where my brother would go way back when he would have asthma attacks some 15 years back.  Private Room 2 (Newly Renovated): 2...

We had our 37th week ultrasound last Monday.  We were so excited to find out the baby's gender and could hardly keep ourselves from asking while the doctor took the baby's measurements.  Finally baby is in the correct position for birth!  =)  I guess the sloshing down of lots of water, stretching, talking to the baby (and bribing him or her with toys if we save money from doing a normal delivery instead of c-section and of course prayers worked.  After all the measurements, the doctor then proceeded to determine the baby's gender by scanning the top part of my tummy.  He moved the ultrasound wand over the area several times, tried shaking the area (which was a little painful) and tried waiting for the baby to move but alas.. baby decided to cross his or leg just enough so we couldn't really tell! After a 10 minutes of shaking, and squirming around we gave up.  At less than 3 weeks away, it'll just feel like an eternity waiting t...

Froggy and I researched hospitals and rates back when I was 4 months on the way.  Most of the research was done online since because it was convenient.  I learned that rates vary widely depending on the hospital. One could give birth for as low as 10k to as high as 250k depending on preferences and complications. A friend of mine gave birth 3 years ago and spent less than 20k at a lying-in.  I found this crazy since she bought an electric breast pump at 16k.  She said the experience was fine, it was near her home and her doctor was attentive.  Her husband was allowed to stay and video the whole thing (to Froggy: no you are not allowed.  You may only stay at my side and watch what happens from the top of my head to my waist.) I’m quite the scaredy-cat as I’ve never been confined or had surgery in my life so I really wanted to give birth at a hospital.  I finally settled on Medical Center Paranaque as this was the hospital recommended by my doc...

 5 months I've never been the type to gush over kids. I don't volunteer to hold babies and I get irritated when I find myself in the midst of noisy, yelling kids whose parents can't seem to keep them under control or aren't even trying. In the back of my head I've always thought I'd like to have my own little family someday, with a loving husband, 2 kids, 2 dogs, a cat, and of course an efficient yaya.. but I used to think this would be something sooo far away. I couldn't see myself as a mom.. and I most especially didn't see myself in maternity clothes! I thought they looked funny with the elastic waist bands for pants, gigantic floral prints, very synthetic fabrics and limited styles. I dreaded having to put anything that looked buntis on. I felt this way up to my 5th month of preggyness and continued to wear my old clothes simply because they still fit. Then came the 6th month and all of a sudden I looked like I swallowed a soccer ball. I...

My friends surprised me with a baby shower last Saturday.  I had no intentions of throwing one though I wanted to.  Froggy and I are saving up so a baby shower seemed like a frivolous idea.  I guess one of the sweetest surprises you can get is when your friends decide to throw you a baby shower =) My oldest friend whom I've known for half my life or more planned it all and orchestrated to have everyone show up at Mary Grace in Alabang Town Center.  She shopped for gifts on her own too!  Everything was in a soft yellow which I love.  Plus its gender safe since we still don't know whether we're having a mini-Raymond or a mini-Niki. We snapped pictures, tore open presents and tinkered with all the adorable baby stuff over pasta, hot chocolate and a variety of cakes that will surely be converted into cellulite.  There are a lot of ways to throw a baby shower, I've seen some friends host it at a spa, in their homes over tea and cupcakes, over...

At 6 or 7 months prego I was bit by the nesting bug and started to panic and get giddy over getting things for my little one.  My mom has this thing about getting baby stuff before the baby is born.  I'm not sure if this is out of superstition or if she just wants to stop me from overshopping and running out of baby-delivery money.  In any case, this, along with some practical resistance on Froggy's (my husband) part has probably saved me from being buried in debt.  Anyway, this baby's going to be born on a budget since he or she was a bit of a surprise so I have to shop smart.  I started hunting for a crib with no real idea on how to go about it.  I read up online and took a look at the available options in the market.  I went to Binondo (don't bother they don't have so much), looked online (for hours and hours) and scoured the malls (Baby Company still comes out on top).  I eventually found a playpen I loved at HMR along SLEX.  It got it ...