it's been more than a year since my last post here. needless to say, i have been kept busy by my dear Chloe. it has been a pretty exciting adventure for me and zayd.
to share...
we experienced the colic episode for one night. actually i don't think i can qualify this as colic? maybe more of hunger pangs? haha! she was only two weeks old then and was feeding her 1oz milk every 2-3 hours. she cried non-stop and would only stop when fed. i cried because i wanted to sleep and she cried because she was hungry. we still were not co-sleeping with her and she was on a crib next to me. luckily, zayd took over and i fell asleep. we all woke up at around noon the following day. my mom suggested that we co-sleep with her because she thinks Chloe needs my warmth (and smell haha!) beside her. so I did! and if I may say so, that was the best advice ever! :-) would you believe at that young age she would sleep at least 6 hours straight? my pedia also suggested feeding her an ounce or two more before sleep, since that will buy me more Zzzz's.
we also had a nice evening ritual that signals it's time to sleep. i read this at babycenter.com.ph -- establish a routine. i give her a sponge bath, sing to her, dim the lights (yellow light works best!), and then poof! i have a sleeping baby! that same routing carries on until now. maybe the only difference is that we play now! i'd hide behind the clothes hamper (as if I really can hide there!) and she'd smile once she finds me. zayd and i try to tire her down, but in the process, we too get tired :)
when she had her ears pierced, I was only with yaya. zayd had work and could not sneak out. dear pedia Empress did the honors. i think i was more afraid of the procedure than Chloe. she cried just for a short bit but i think i was stained for life! i swear, the next girl i have, zayd will need to be the one to take her!
she also loves the camera! for a time i shifted back to my trusty Sony Ericsson K810i (the Cybershot phone) from the Sony Ericsson X1 (first Xperia out in the market) -- that for some reason, the LCD stopped working and it was a dang touchscreen phone -- anyway, back to my story; she figured out a way to take a picture of herself. she'd open the shutter, click on the joystick button, then turn the phone/lens to her direction! viola! her first picture!
amazing how kids are more techie these days.
on her seventh month, i had to go to Singapore for a month-long project. i had the separation anxiety. i left Chloe and yaya at my mom's and zayd's mom alternately -- para walang tampuhan hehe! anyway, my mom asked me to leave an article of clothing. ewan ko if successful. so ako din i brought along her blankie haha i ended up crying every night. i could not catch her online kasi when i got home, she was already asleep. anyway, the one month was a breeze, i ended up shopping a lot for her haha!
i also had her passport taken a few months before her first birthday! it was a good time then! we were on a priority lane and it was a breeze if she did not fall asleep in the middle of the picture-taking. we should have been done in 30 minutes. nevertheless i am still thankful. this is my second good experience in dealing with a government agency. anyway, we were able to use her passport twice already since January. we went to visit Tita Beng and Tita Elaine in Singapore. fun times!
zayd gave me an ipad for my birthday last year. guess who owns it now? yesssireee! Chloe does. my ipad now has tons of Nick Jr. cartoons. she just loves Team Umizoomi.
parang lahat masaya ano? haha! i don't want to dwell on the bad stuff, i am just so thankful she is healthy and smart. sometimes i wake up in the middle of the night and i just kiss her. (oh by the way, she knows how to kiss now!) i think i have never loved anyone as much as i do her :)
sigh. dati cheesy lang ako kay zayd, now kay Chloe na bwahaha!
i have been out of commission for GKW (God knows when). well, the reason for that was i already gave birth to Chloe, last Oct. 17, 2009. i was on my 39th week and 3 days.
on my 37th week, my blood pressure shot up. i immediately contacted my OB. i was told that i should prepare myself for delivery and was asked to see her the following day. called up my mom and told her i might be giving birth soon. (side story of my mom and ninang conspiracy to follow in the next post)
following day -- i was asked to take aldomet again to control the blood pressure, urinalysis, and a Biophysical Profile Score (BPS) just to check if baby is okay. if the urinalysis showed high content of protein, i am in danger of pre-enclampsia. a BPS result of less than 7 means that baby is under stress. both Zayd and I were nervous. fortunately, i had low protein levels and I got an 8/8 score on the BPS. we decided we can wait another week. i was also experiencing minor contractions. this went on until my 38th week. my cervix still was not dilating, or if it did dilate at 1cm it would not progress and would even close!
on my 39th week, i was again asked to do a BPS. the point of concern was now the baby's estimated weight. on the first BPS, she was already measuring big. if she reached the 3.4kg marker, this would mean i might have a difficult labor -- plus the fact that my cervix seems "hesitant" to dilate. Zayd no longer wanted to wait till my 40th week so we decided to go into trial labor that same night; if it does not push through, i would undergo c-section.
that same night, October 16, i was admitted to the hospital. i was induced, but to no avail. i was already at 1cm but when the nurses IE'd me, my cervix closed! since my BP was posing a risk, I was scheduled for CS at 8am the following morning.
at precisely 8am of October 17, 2009, they prepped me up for the caesarian operation. i was already shot with something that made me so sleepy - thank God, coz I was not able to sleep the night before. i was too nervous, preoccupied, and praying that Chloe was alright.
flashes of memory now follows.
i remember them wheeling me in to the operating room. i remember the anesthesiologist asking me to curl up so she can inject the anesthesia on my spine. after that everything was a blur. i remember hearing music -- it was Sailing by Christopher Cross.
i remember dra. david (anesthesiologist) asking me if i can feel anything, i tell her no. then i suddenly remembered my friends' horror story! she told me that when the doctor asks if you can feel her pinch you, they were already actually cutting you up! OMG! i said a prayer to my guardian angel that he watch over me and Chloe starting now. i prayed and i prayed hard.
my next memory was seeing a nice, long, and very white baby. well pinkish. i heard tita baby saying, "Weng, ang puti ng baby mo!" i looked at her and all i could muster was a murmur and a smile. and i was out. i could not remember if they let me hold her or what.
my weirdest memory now follows. i am being wheeled out of the operating room, i saw some big guy waving at me and a small person behind him crying. it turns out that it was Zayd and my mom.
i woke up about three times in the recovery room. the nurses were asking me to wiggle my toe and raise one leg. all i could think of was that i wanted to be back in my room with Zayd and my mom and most of all see Chloe!
i woke up on Saturday afternoon, Zayd was beside me. i heard voices of my family and friends who visited me but i was still knocked out. when i woke up Zayd, showed me pictures of Chloe and she was soooo cute! he was telling me i did a good job in keeping her inside me and that all was well. APGAR was perfect. i was not allowed to talk yet, so Zayd and I communicated through SMS (but not actually sending them hahaha)
the next day i was already out and about. considering i am a CS patient, this was a breakthrough. i went to the nursery to try and breastfeed Chloe. i cried when i saw her. she was so beautiful.
Thank you Lord for helping me make it through 39 weeks and 3 days!
here is Chloe's first picture ever!
and here i am, walang kamuwang muwang that i was gonna experience all these in the next 12 hours or so... at nag pose pa talaga sa kama hahaha!
we are on the homestretch people!
i am currently on my 36th week and 1 day. which means that i am 6 days away from being full term. which means that Chloe can already come out!
imagine, from an EDD of October 21 it can now be as early as September 30!
i've already packed my hospital bag last weekend, arranged all my medical files and SSS/Philhealth forms.
the only thing i am lacking now are diapers (i don't know what size to get and how many) and maternity pads (i can't seem to find one!)
our room in BF is being prepped for the arrival of this little princess and this weekend (OUR ANNIVERSARY WEEKEND!!!!) Zayd will be putting some of our stuff in the room already. I will be watching by the sidelines and cheering him on (or maybe walking just for exercise hehe)
my officemates also threw me a surprise baby shower last Tuesday at Gerry's Grill at Insular. i was on emergency leave that day (oooppsss sorry boss!) but still made it a point to be there for dinner since i promised my team that we will be having our quarterly dinner. much to my surprise, a lot of them showed up bearing gifts. stupid me -- well, more like blind! -- i came inside the restaurant and the staff was busy preparing this long table with cupcakes and such, i did not notice the cupcakes had some text on it which read "It's a girl!" hahahaha! I arrived earlier than they did and i was just too pooped to even bother taking a closer look hahaha! 
Chloe got a nice Winnie the Pooh comforter -- which matches Erin's pillow from last weekend (*hugs mare!*) -- and a nice grooming kit -- which was actually part of the list i was supposed to buy this weekend.
thanks again you guys! i am deeply touched!
so that's it for me, i do hope Chloe still listens and stays for six more days then we can finally cuddle and kiss her! :)
Taken at Im My Womb, Glorietta :)
let's face it, knowing that you are pregnant really is exciting. think of all the clothes and other neat stuff you can buy for your baby. it's like having a real-life baby doll!
however, there are still things i wish my married friends told me prior to having a baby... like:
... how a transvaginal ultrasound works.
... having to pee every so often, including waking up in the middle of the night just to do it. luckily i only experienced this a few times, the problem is, i find it very hard to go back to sleep!
... the "pamahiins" that go with pregnancy (some are really outrageous I tell you!)
... you cannot go and have a facial anymore. same with massages and hair treatments. in short, you will be ugly hahaha! (hope that the old wives' tale when you are carrying a girl, you still look pretty will apply to you)
... all the lab tests you are required to take to ensure that you and baby are okay. the top of my most hated tests is the OGTT. (think: save the cheerleader, save the world!)
... attend a breastfeeding fair or seminar probably in your first or second trimester; though it is okay to do it in your third, the uncomfortable feeling is there already, i.e. you have to pee all the time and baby kicks more often now. the person beside you looks at you as if you are a crazy person every time you feel your baby move and you wince to yourself. better bring your husbands :D haha!
this is all i have for now :) will probably add more when i think of something
i am on my 33rd week now :) Chloe and I have made a deal already, since she kicks so effin' hard nowadays like she's raring to go out. i asked her to wait 5 more weeks, when it's safest for her to go out. i just hope and pray (HARD!) that she listens to me :)