Friend: "I set up my kid's email address, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Snapchat account as soon as she was born."
Me: "That's nice."
Friend: "Did you? You should, you know."
Me: "No. I only registered her domain name."
Friend: "I set up my kid's email address, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Snapchat account as soon as she was born."
Me: "That's nice."
Friend: "Did you? You should, you know."
Me: "No. I only registered her domain name."
It’s funny how Jollibee becomes a big part of a parent’s life as soon as their child reaches 2.
Since Gabby now adores Jollibee, I just got her a Talk & Blush Doll. It costs me P420, a Happy Meal, and later on, three AA batteries.
A cousin gave us one of Jollibee’s older plush toys. This new one looked exactly like the older version, except that this could speak in English and could say more phrases. Definitely Gabby Approved. And if Gabby approves, Mommie approves.
Oh and yes, it’s Talk & Blush — not Talk & Plush. The doll talks, but it definitely doesn’t blush. Thankfully no one really cares about the names of these toys. I have no idea why I even do.
Here’s a photo of the toddler with Jollibee
I used to wonder why tribal women don’t wear any clothes on top. For me, it was scandalous.
Only when I started breastfeeding did it occur to me that our culture have over sexualized the boobs that we have forgotten that its primary function is to feed.
I wish public breastfeeding is easy. I wish all babies won’t mind breastfeeding with a cover on their heads. I wish people will stop staring.
I wish I would stop being conscious.
But its my job to feed. And so I shall.
My little girl is going to baby school!
We paid a visit to The Little Gym, and found out that they have a class for her age group called “Bugs.”
Can you tell how excited I am? I’m honestly running out of activities for our 8 month old. Plus I’m an insecure mom who always worry that the baby is getting bored.
Huge! One half of the place has floor mats, balance beams, parallel & uneven bars. The other half is dedicated to a room outfitted like a classroom, supposedly for their preschool classes.
White people! When we arrived, the Birds class were in session, and almost all the students were foreigners!
We’re taking a trial class in the next couple of weeks, but we’re already pretty sure we’re enrolling for the full course. The teacher we met was an absolute darling, and Gabby loved the new place (meaning, she banged her hands on every little object).
I’m soooo happy that The Little Gym is not in a mall. No offense to Gymboree lovers, but there’s just something about malls & babies that stresses me out.
And it gets better: The Little Gym is actually just a block away from where we live. Mommy can push the little munchkin in her stroller! Hah!
In line with Breasfeeding Month, St. Luke’s Global City is having a seminar on breastfeeding. Entitled Breastfeeding 101, it is going to be held on August 8, 2015, 1:00 to 4:00 pm, at the Henry Sy, Sr. Auditorium, 5th Floor, St. Luke’s Medical Center-Global City.
I wished I attended a seminar like this. I gave birth 2 months earlier than my due date, and was only able to attend one breastfeeding class. It wasn’t a good one either. I attended the one hosted by the House of Medela, where I braved the traffic and the long walk due to the lack of parking.
To make it worse, there was a “surprise” speaker (meaning, it wasn’t part of the publicized agenda) by StemCord Philippines. The speaker gave a talk for over an hour on why we should go into stem cell banking. Cramped space + mono block chairs + pregnant + bad sound system + long sales talk … you get the drill.
If I had to do it all over again, I would attend something like this — a talk strictly on breastfeeding, and not a commercialized one with a bunch of topics, sponsors, etc.
If only :)
“I’m breastfeeding. Period.”
I must’ve really sounded resolute — or maybe my doctors got tired of my incessant calls to their clinics — but after a couple of months, they finally agreed to stop my medications so I could breastfeed my baby.
Ironically, my lactation consultants weren’t optimistic. I didn’t breastfeed for the first few months, and my attempts at pumping were futile. They said I practically had to “re-lactate” myself. I literally produced five teeny weeny tiny drops of milk after thirty minutes of pumping.
But I wasn’t the type to give up. And I’m glad I didn’t. I’m still not at the 750 to 1,000 ml recommended pump volume per day, but I’m almost there (650ml). And that’s a big feat for someone who had to “re-lactate.”
You know the usual disclaimer, that every woman is different, and what worked for me may not work for you, blah blah blah. But here’s what I did to increase my milk supply:
Other things I took, but I’m not sure about their effectiveness:
What I should’ve done but didn’t do:
Let me mention that I’m not allowed to breastfeed. Barely 24 hours after I’ve given birth, the doctors immediately began my Lupus treatments. .
I still plan on pumping though. Even if I can’t feed the baby my milk. Hopefully I could pressure my doctors to stop all my treatments, at least until my baby is out of the NICU.
Ergo, I am presenting to you my official unboxing of the Medela Pump In Style Advanced, which in my opinion is the best double electric breastpump in the world.
I bought the Medela Pump In Style Advanced from Amazon.com because this model is not available in the Medela House here in the Philippines. There are some who claim that this model has been discontinued, but none of my research backed up this claim. I’m guessing our local Medela House simply sources their supplies from Medela Europe, and not Medela US.
By the way, if you buy a breastpump (or any electronics for that matter) in the US, always make sure that you get an AC adaptor or a transformer so that it would work in the Philippines. For my breastpump, the one I got is the NeneSupply Replacement 9V AC Adapter for 9V Medela Pump-in-Style Breast Pump — which is also conveniently available from Amazon.com.
Here are the photos, for your viewing pleasure:
[wpbgallery id=1276]
Just to be clear: I don’t force my friends to buy me gifts. My ideal baby shower gifts are pre-loved stuff, mainly due to the amount of garbage people usually accumulate as soon as their kids outgrow their things.
However, my family, relatives, and friends have been bugging me what else I need … so …
Now that I got that out of the way …
The baby registry of Amazon.com sucks BIG TIME. Please, avoid it if you can. At least until they’ve fixed it:
I’ve already deleted by Baby Registry from Amazon and ported it over to Wish Lists. Peace of mind. Finally.
Something weird happened when I became pregnant. I started hating a lot of pregnant women. As in a lot.
Well, not all. But the ones who are so hung up on their pregnancy & symptoms that they need to share & complain about every single damn thing to the entire universe.
I was weird. I was crazy. I started calling them Prinsesa ng mga Kabuntisan (Pregnant Princess).
I mean:
Of course, later on I realized I was sounding like a bitter and crazy woman, always grumbling about all the pregnant princesses that I even remotely encounter.
I was probably a tad jealous, too, because I felt as if I don’t have the right to celebrate nor complain, with all these other health complications, responsibilities at work, etc.
Right now, I’m already in my third trimester — when all the discomforts of pregnancy are at its highest level. Yes, expect me to complain as loudly as I can. Because I gave everyone six months of silence. It’s my frickin turn.
I will be spoiled. I will refuse to drive. I will demand food.
Royal baby lang po ang peg.
I’ve always been curious about Thirty One Gifts’ Zip Top Organizing Utility Tote. A lot of moms seem to be using it as their diaper bag of choice. I now understand why!
Buy it here:
Thirty One Zip Top Organizing Utility Tote Black Parisian Pop