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 ...

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 ...

I'm going to be a mom.  Its like someone hit me with something on the head.. or has been hitting me for the past seven months, and hitting just a bit harder as we go along. I never really thought about being a mom until it was an inevitable round reality staring me in the face.  Don't get me wrong, I'm excited, thankful, anxious, giddy.. all the things expectant moms are.  However, there's so much to learn!  There's so much to plan and think about just for this special little person coming into our lives. So here's what I've learned so far: Useful Apps: I use my phone a lot.  Its my alarm clock, music player, entertainment center, camera, gallery, storage device.. oh and it makes calls too. I'm Expecting - This app updates you on the bodily changes you go through as well as the baby's development week by week.  It also has a weight tracker to tell you if you're gaining too much or not enough.  Of course, nothing beats asking the doctor ab...