Motherhood

I am back

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Preparations...

Over the weekend, I packed my hospital bag. We are 37 weeks tomorrow and it's already considered full term, meaning I can deliver the baby with a good chance of being healthy and no complications. Thank God.

See, he still insists covering his face with his hands. All his monthly photos are like these despite my OB "stressing and pushing" him. Haha. He said it looks like we are raising a strong willed baby. 

We are extremely excited to see him and we are praying that I deliver next week. God willing.

So what are in my hospital bag?

 Top on my list are my books. Yes. Better be ready for the waiting time than be caught empty handed.

Then the essentials. My hospital has provided a list of what to bring for me and for the baby so it was pretty easy. No brainer. I just had to compartmentalize everything so my bantay won't mess my bag when I am drowsy and unable to give instructions. Thanks to Ziploc.

Today, I have to photocopy all the required documents. Unlike in the Philippines, here you have to bring your passport, marriage certificate, OB and insurance related documents. Although we have already received the preauthorization from our insurance and my OB clinic have sent it to the hospital, it's still better to have those papers with us. Of course we don't like to shell out 23,000 AED just because we failed to exercise some prudence and foresight.

Despite having delivered three babies, I am still being attacked with anxiety every now and then . I dread the unfathomable pain, the cramps and every pain during labor and after the delivery. It helps that I have a very calm and compassionate OB. I ask, he answers. He encourages me to express my fears and my uncertainties. He is Greek and I intentionally chose him because based on my research he specializes in high risk pregnancy. Though I am not under high risk, I still consider myself one because of my age. 

Today is Sunday and the start of the week in the Middle East so everyone is in their own businesses.

Hope you guys have a pleasant Sunday with your families.

Stay happy!

We are getting close...

My angel has begun washing the baby stuff.

Tomorrow, I have to pack my hospital bag. I'm soon approaching my 37th week and that means I have to be on my toes for anything and everything. I am hoping the baby doesn't come out later than 40 weeks. I want an October baby :)

I am glad I am in control of my weight. Actually, it's my OB and my endocrinologist who are strict. I don't like to be scolded during my check ups. Kidding. Seriously, I would like to eliminate the possibility of a CS which is inevitable if gestational diabetes is not taken cared of. And I hate taking any form of medication brought about by my GD. So I have no choice but to get rid of sweets and lessen my carb intake. Anyway, old routine will be back this November. Can't wait.

By the way...

Last year, we finished our "little luxury wishlist" like watches, bags, vacation and a big car here, etc. We accomplished it first because it was our way of getting ourselves adjusted to our new environment. Or perhaps, it was our effort to drive away our homesickness and loneliness. 

But before the year ended, we plotted our goals for 2015. You see, as an OFW you have to have a direction/schedule where you wanted to spend your hard earned money. After all, working in another country is definitely not a joke. Besides, there is no security of employment if you are not in your homeland. Dubai is a city of temptations and you have to master the art of self control. And oh, if possible don't be too vulnerable on getting a loan here. I heard there are a lot of Filipinos who are having troubles in the UAE because of their loans. 

Top priority on our list was firming up our emergency fund (and totally forgetting that we have it in the bank because it shouldn't be touched unless extremely needed). I got it from watching On the Money in ANC. Next was the repair and renovation of our house in the Philippines (done!) but fencing and expansion will be in it's own time. Third was being absolutely debt free this year so full payment of our car loan was done last April (we got that Honda sedan back in 2013) and now we are saving up for the full payment of our housing loan this December. And after all the pagtitipid and "no luxury policy" we are optimistic we will be able to meet our deadline this year. Thank God.

Secondary on our list this year is investing. Since we are quite illiterate on stocks we agreed not to dip our hands on something we are not knowledgeable about, however tempting it is. We decided instead to start collecting gold. I am not into jewelries. My mother is and unfortunately or fortunately ( I am not sure) I didn't acquire that trait. But  we were advised by friends and relatives to invest in gold while we are in the Middle East. If others are glued on how their stocks are behaving, we, on the other hand is constantly checking the price of gold. 

 This is one of the places we frequent during weekends if price of gold is low. There are gold markets here in the UAE (gold souk) but since I am unable to do lengthy walking now, those gold souks will have to wait. 

There are also a lot of diamonds here, exquisitely cut and beautifully designed. They are expensive but they go on sale up to 70%. However, it's not in my radar yet. Jewelries for me must serve it's purpose. It must be an investment. You won't get your ROI in diamonds in the Philippines because there, we put more value in 22 carats gold. For those who are in jewelry business, diamonds are just for fashion. No money in diamonds. hehehe

We only bought a pair of earrings for our dear daughter for her birthday last August and yes, she is truly loving it. Diamond is truly a girl's best friend. Diamond is beautiful and it glitters esp. if it's color and clarity are high (and there is such a thing as accreditation in diamond). But that's it. :) I still have my eyes and heart on golds. I remember my mother, who I told you is so passionate about jewelries, would always tell us that what saved us during our college years were her jewelries which she pawned and sold for our school fees and allowances. So I am thinking, she must be right, I can enjoy my gold and if emergency arises, I can still profit from it. 

And 2016? It's all beefing up our kids' college fund. 

But I still want another bag. Churi. Can't really give up a bad habit.  Tsk... tsk... tsk...

But this time, not the expensive one. I want LV's classic Speedy Bag in medium size. Oh! One day...

Haha.

So, I hope everyone has a lovely Sunday. I wish you a blessed and safe week ahead!

Yes, its expensive but...

I woke up from my deep sleep this morning around 3:00 am with a loud sound. When I looked around, our corridor light was off and there was no sound coming from the A/C. Brown out! I woke up Dar and we immediately went down to check our electric cabinet, but when I looked at our window, I saw the DEWA (electric and water supply company) car passing our street.  After a few minutes of figuring out what might have happened with our electric supply, I checked the surroundings outside through our window and there I saw the substation across our house being inspected by the DEWA staff. We went out and this kabayan informed us that one of the cables caused the power outage. Ok! Relieved that it was not only us.

Around 4:00 am, I saw 4 white SUVs across the road and inspecting the substation. Around 5:00 am, my husband told me that there were trucks outside all lined up on our road. Around 6:00 am, temporary power was supplied to the household with these powerful generator sets:

I told our helper that if something like this happened in the Philippines at an unholy hour, I am sure we all have to wait all day before we could be attended, and power supply will depend on the extent of the damage. And NO generator sets will be provided to the consumers. Yes, services here are not cheap. In fact there was a time when I almost went crazy (that's exag, of course) because we were informed by my husband's company that our monthly water and electricity consumption had gone up to 7,000 AED. But now, I realized that if this is the quality of service that one would get I don't think consumers would mind paying that much. 

Well, this is just one of the "comfortable things" you'll find when living in Dubai that's why I don't wonder anymore why there are so many expats from Europe and US who don't like to leave this place anymore. Me too is getting used to the comforts and easy life, not to mention the safety and security Dubai is quite known for. But sooner or later, we will have to say goodbye. :)

Anyway, power was restored before noon and roads were cleared now. Back to normal programming. :)

Have a blessed Sunday!

hands off from gadgets

But only for a while. 

Yesterday was the beginning of Eid holiday in school but as early as Saturday, I had to fix the "schedules". Tuesday is assignment day and if there is no homework, the two boys had to play their violin, and after that they have to do something productive. 

They started their homework Monday night and woke up a bit early to finish them off. I promised McDo delivery for lunch (the smile on their faces!) and in the afternoon they could tinker with their gadget (wider smiles came).

While waiting for lunch, they busied their hands with these:

Anjo made this painting for me. Obvious ba na para sa akin talaga to? I asked her if she could do LV because currently it's in my wishlist. But she said Chanel fits me more perfectly and it has been in her mind for quite sometime already. Thank you Anjo! Now it's on display on our bedroom. I told her it would surely gives my handsome roommate nightmares because it is a reminder of my expensive "passion"and his much detested one. Hahaha.

I have my playlist in my Samsung tablet, but you see, that damn tablet has been a headache for a month now. It's automatically shutting off when battery reaches 60% and to think that we bought it just several months ago. My husband was even proud when he gave it to me because he said it's the latest and it has the best camera resolution ek ek. Ok fine. Now, he asked me if I wanted to buy another one! Not Samsung anymore. If ever, that would be my 3rd Samsung tablet so please... NO!

So I asked the two boys if its possible to download songs to iMAC (without charge) and they said yes. So there you go. I have 22 songs for my bebe boy. Thank you Kuyas!

And now and until Friday, these guys will be on their gadgets all day long. Not willing to be disturbed. haha. 

Oh tomorrow is Thursday. I love Thursday! It's like Friday for the rest of the world.

Keep smiling!

Just today ..

...when the day was so much better than yesterday.

I went downstairs a little past 1pm because I felt my tummy grumbling. And I was thrilled to see this for lunch.

Paksiw na Tilapia. I wished it was a little more sour but it was already a delight. I just requested the angel to add a little apple cider and it would then be perfect.

And since I am feeling comfortable today, yes, every day is different, I decided to prepare our dinner.

Grilled salmon in oyster sauce. A guaranteed hit sa mga bagets.

Then I went a step further. I made brownies.

And made a milky banana smoothie minutes before the kids arrived. It's their favorite.

That's how my Monday went. Hope you had a beautiful Monday too.

Cooking , eating and a little emote

If you want me to wake up and start a day on a wrong note don't bother to clean the kitchen the night before. I love seeing an organized kitchen first thing in the morning. When I didn't have a helper, I would never leave my kitchen stinky. Although my kids would dishwash, I still made sure that everything in the kitchen was in their proper places. And yes, this was also the primary instruction that I gave our helper now. And she religiously follows. I'm glad.

Our place is relatively new and I am so relieved that not a single cockroach (no eggs, no poop, no baby cockroach) is seen in our house. It's true. And I would like to maintain this squeaky clean condition until we have to leave this house.

Our kitchen is also my place to go when I feel a little melancholic. I cook whatever I could find in our cupboards. 

 Those instant puto are yummy. Cravings satisfied!

This chocolate frosting is for that cheesecake. It's a new product that we saw from Nanay Betty Crocker. I got pasado award from my employers. :)


Oh, these are not pan de sal pipol! These are my chicken cordon bleu.

It wasn't that bad, but not that good either. It's tasty but dry. Also, I think I should have followed the recipe by using Swiss cheese. I used cheddar because I have lots of it inside the fridge. Adik sa cheese. Next time, bawal na ang pasaway at pag eeksperimento. But the kids loved it anyway.

And I still have some biya here from Pinas. During my first trimester, I would cook dried fish and pusit. 

But not anymore now. Too salty for pregnant woman.

Ohhh foods! 

Today is Saturday, but I am forced to stay home because the discomfort of walking is already too much for me nowadays. Kids and their Papa are having their flu shots. 

I must admit I am becoming emotional the past few weeks. Perhaps because of being unable to enjoy going out, esp. buying those little happy stuff. My husband said if not for my bump, my weight loss will be a lot evident. I am excited to have another bundle of joy to cuddle and take care of, but the pain, the difficulty of sleeping, the boredom are already taking its toll on me. 

But this is just temporary I know. Six more weeks and I will be going to be slowly physically normal again. 

Oh well. More injections of happiness and positivity, and everything will be fine.

I wish everyone a happy weekend and a blessed Sunday.

Back to quotes

Here we go again!!! I am back to being "pushy" parent. Well, in a good way I guess. Hope so.

I am expecting their academic schedules will be finalized by next week, but I could see that homework (yes, now my two younger kids have their "mandatory"homework!) are already piling up. DJ is no longer alone in his struggle. Haha

When I saw Abi and Anjo's subjects, I shook my head in disbelief. Humanities, Designs, Spanish/French (and there is Arabic). I told them that those are university subjects. Now, they can empathize with their Kuya. No more easy life, right guys?

So, I am also in the look out for quotable quotes. Have to put a little humor, though. Life must not always be serious.

Harry Potter may set the tone.

Or they might find Natalie Portman beautiful and be captivated by her wit and intelligence, coz I am. If I had to be born again, I still want to be me but I would like to go to Harvard too.

Oh, to be a mother of growing kids in a complicated environment. Definitely, not easy. That's why I try to keep the house simple, silent and orderly. Somehow, kids need to find sanctuary and solace in their homes. 

Tomorrow is Thursday, meaning the next day is a weekend. Thank you Lord.

He looks like who?

This is the latest photo of our utoy. Can't wait to see this little munchkin.

Pretty much on his own and can survive if he chooses to be born now. But I prefer not.  Let's wait a little more baby boy! Shooo pre term labor.

Weight under control

I am 32 weeks exactly today and yes, seven to eight weeks before finally seeing this active baby carrot inside me. I have to be honest, I am wishing that tomorrow is my 40th week so I could go back to my old routine, move normally without pain and aches, and yes to be allowed to eat chocolates and ice cream again. But I have to tell myself to be patient and to be optimistic about everything.

Since controlling my sugar intake, I have become more attached and more experimenting on fruits. In fact, because of my change in eating habits, my weight is going down, from 59.8 kls. I am down to 59.3 kls. And water in my placenta has improved and is now within the normal level. My personal goal is not to exceed 60 kls. by the time I give birth.

Last weekend, I bought peaches. Funny, but I didn't know how to eat this fruit- should I peel it or eat it with skin? Our angel here said I just had to wash it thoroughly and I could eat it with skin. I chose to peel it instead. I ate it with yogurt and a peanut butter sandwich for my lunch.

Surprisingly, peaches were delicious. Crunchy like apple but a lot sweeter. I love it. Gotta buy some more this weekend!

Maybe I should try making peach smoothie too instead of just having apple, strawberry and kiwi for my afternoon snack.

Talking more about the coming baby, last weekend we also decided to buy some baby furnitures because baby shops were on sale.

This is a pack and play crib. Ours before was just a simple crib, we didn't even buy it because it was just a gift to us by a kind soul. This one has additional features like changing bed, toys and music.

Dar was having a hard time putting parts together since this was his very first time to buy stroller, car seat/ carrier. Never had one like these,though. Life for us was a lot simpler then. But it was just perfect.

I also decided to keep these biggies back to their own boxes. It's impossible for me to carry them around anymore. It weighs me down. Bye for now. Praying that hubby will heed my prayer for a smaller purse :)

Excuse my maternity underwear peeping though my maternity pillow, the pregnant woman in me is so clumsy and careless. Although, I am secretly wishing I'd stay in that bust size forever!

Today is Monday, hoping everyone out there will have a gorgeous week ahead!
Positivity everywhere please!

And the school begins

My children began going to school yesterday and I felt some sadness when they were gone. They won't be in their rooms anymore when I wanted to have some talks with them. They may be young but those three already talk with sense. They know a lot that I don't.

But I have no choice.

As we were waiting for the school bus outside, I had the time to observe how the heat of Dubai  affected my plants. Our careless gardener killed 4 of my potted plants and as much as I would like to reprimand him, I chose not to. He is of different race and only God knows how he would react if scold him.

Our once sturdy plant is now dead.

But these bougainvilla plants surely know what survival means.

Now that we are approaching September (yehey), I am beginning to feel excited for the cold months. They call it winter here, but sorry to burst your bubbles guys, it's just like our January-February in Baguio City. But that's alright. It's already a relief for us in the Middle East.

And of course, cold months means we have an additional member in the family. Still looking for a name, though. I am thinking of naming him Gabriel, Matthew, Joshua (like DJ) and Benjamin (because he is the youngest). Let's see then...

For now, let's find happiness in every good things that come however tiny they might be for us.

29 weeks

This morning was my appointment with my endocrinologist and I got a passing mark. You see, two weeks ago I was asked to test my blood sugar 4x a day and although the needle was so tiny, the frequency of getting blood sample was felt by all of my fingers except my thumb. May excuse letter ang thumb, ang kapal ng skin nya kasi, ha ha! So, this time the good news was I will just be required to test once, of course if I wanted to do more testing, that's  up to me. The good thing about having gestational diabetes is I am able to watch what I eat, thus my weight has also been put under control. And the baby's!

My OB Gyne explained to me that my GD was the reason why my tummy was so big during my 6th month. And I always felt stressed because it was tight all the time. Aside from eating a lot of sugary/starchy foods, I was also guilty of not hydrating myself enough which also elevated my GD. Now, I am slowly being educated on how to handle diabetes and after I give birth I still plan to continue and improve my diet plan. 

I am now on my 7th month, 29 weeks to be precise. 

However, during my last visit, I have been cautioned by my OB to listen to my body more at this point. There is still frequent tightness esp. when standing up or walking which is not normal. His request is for us to cross the 32nd week safely. But the goal is for me to go full term of course. Getting pregnant at my age is definitely challenging - the aches, the discomfort, house arrest, sleepless nights, skin patches etc. But I am sure there God has his own sweet reason why we were given this miracle of life.

I am looking forward to my 40th and to our Christmas with my baby peanut!

Finally, weekend

Days move so slow when you are going through something. Right? I am on my 28th week and I am not feeling any better. Aside from the discomfort which is totally new to me because I never had this thing during my previous pregnancies, I am also diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Upon reading, I found out out that this is quite common to women who get pregnant later in their life. This weekend, I will be seeing an endocrinologist to check my condition further.

Anyways, I am relieved tomorrow is a weekend and by Sunday or Monday, our househelp will be with us already. Her legal documentations are on the final stage, thanks to her former employer who willingly cooperated with the process.

So! How do I end this week? I'd like to show some pictures of our last day in the Philippines. But before that, I'd like to share how we ended staying in a hotel day before our departure.

We were on our way to Terminal 3 on July 30 when we discovered that our flight schedule was actually July 31 and not July 30. We thought all along that we booked our flight to Dubai on the 30th. 

We all ended up laughing. So we just decided to check in somewhere rather than go back to Laguna. That's the reason why we were able to spend the night in Hyatt City Of Dreams. It was worth it. After a stressful day of last minute packing and cleaning the house that day, it was a great great relief to finally have a "respite".

If there would be one hotel I would like to go back to next time we are home, it's Hyatt.

The room was spacious. Abi slept in that day bed you see in that corner.

The bed gave me and the little peanut inside me our much needed comfortable sleep. We requested for additional mattress where Anjo and DJ shared that night.

They had this a walk in closet where I kept all our luggage. That made our space clean and organized.

And, what I loved the most? Their Toilet. Huge.
Too bad, I didn't get to enjoy their bath tub. Next time.

There was a He & She sink.

Shower room was big. Can you see? Three could fit in. I swear.

We stayed in the suite room due to unavailability of our other preferred room. But no regrets. Those who were staying in that floor had an exclusive lounge where we got to enjoy snack all day. My kids had a feast on their popcorn, gummy bears, marshmallows, fish crackers, fruits and juice.

We decided not to go to their dinner buffet because I couldn't eat that much due to my condition, so I promise next year, I will indulge. But we had a sumptuous lunch in APU, a Filipino themed restaurant and it was excellent. The children didn't have the chance to explore the DreamPlay but they were able to swim during the morning.

Except for some shortcomings which we already sent feedback to the management through their online comments (i.e no welcome fruits/sweets, slow service, sleepers, and water in the rain shower was running low) our overall experience was pleasant. But don't expect too much in their buffet breakfast, not as much as Sofitel's Spiral, but much better than Mandarin (when it was still there) or that of Marriots. 

I can't wait to go back next summer. See yah!

So this is it. Happy week end everyone. Stay dry!

I am back but I am missing her

Every time we are home, Sarah stays with us. But every time we leave, I get this separation anxiety. I still cry when I think of her. She sleeps with us, yes on our bed. She just jumps there, much to the disgust of hubby. Hahaha.

Whenever we think of the possibility of going back to the Philippines for good, my heart is always looking forward of having her permanently again. 

I am back

After a good three week break from the heat of Dubai, now I am back. Much to my relief, though. Most of my my three weeks in the Philippines were spent inside our rented house (but still close to our home) because I was experiencing terrible backache and tight belly. My two high school buddies managed to arrange a meet up with me in Nuvali when I was still a little bit well. I hope next year we would be able to go far as a family and spent some really fun time in the Philippines.

So what did we do instead? We decided to make major major repairs in our house. Since, we brought almost all our furnitures to Dubai, it was relatively easy to do repairs because the house was literally empty. 

We changed the  floors of the entire house. The first floor used to have synthetic granite but now it has the ceramic tiles although we maintained the size. Upstairs, we removed the vinyl tiles and changed it to natural wood colored tiles, the effect was brighter rooms and lighter ambience. 

The interior was also repainted and our installed cabinets and granite countertops were likewise removed to give way to our planned cabinets next year during our phase 2 renovation. For this year, we just focused in our living and dining area make over.

When we were "envisioning" our would be concept, kids insisted that I do away from "old school" furnitures. So this means, no more too much carvings and that colors must not be too brown or too dark. So ok, we decided to have the "modern look".  

On our way to Tagaytay to search for a round table, we chanced upon the store which we used to frequent in Paseo de Sta. Rosa. It's were we bought our dining table cloth which we would always get compliment from guests, our nice wall clock that looked expensive due to its gold color and vintage design and our christmas ornaments two years ago. We got off our car and there inside we changed our mind, we will do "country style". 

Less carvings: Check! Light colors: Check. Chic and young: Check. Furniture sizes: Check.

The staff called the owner and when he arrived, we immediately closed the deal. What followed were series of emails and text messages. It was smooth because both owners (one was assigned in creative and design, the other is into cost) were easy to transact with and they understood that we needed to finish it just within days. They did everything. All we had to do was to approve and pay. 

I saw this nude colored sofa in their showroom and both me and dar were drawn to it. It fits perfectly in our small space and the color was just right to our taste. This distressed coffee table was chosen by the owners and for us it was lovely. All the decors that you'd see were chosen by them including the drapes. 

I didn't see this console table and mirror in their showroom, but I love how it turned out to be in that corner. 

This accent chair was originally floral blue. But I think they remember how I fell in love with their red couch on display so they called me if I wanted to change the accent chair from blue to red. I said yes immediately. 

 Abi said he loved everything except this frame. He found it creepy. Haha.

And this is my favorite corner. My dining area. The table which has hand painting on top is again a distressed one. Haha. Parang pinaglumaan na ng panahon. I am excited to scout for country style plates and cups here in Dubai for my beautiful cupboard. Wow! Dream came true for me. Just when you didn't expect good things to happen. 

Now, the only remaining trace of our former Italian themed house was our chandelier. Well, I told the kids it will stay there no matter what. :)

This is the advantage of having a small space, it's easy to change the over all look. You just have to have a concept in your mind and you have to strictly stick to it. No impulse buying please.

Next year, we hope to finally organize our mess in our kitchen extension by installing floor to ceiling cabinets. I am leaving it all to my husband with just one request- I need a storage cabinet that would serve as a pantry. I am excited.

So if you want to sneak peak the "store" where we got these stuff, you can visit their fb page Lucina Home. Their Nuvali showroom is opening anytime now and if you have time you can check what they have there. 

Happy Monday everyone!

just anything

This is one of my favorite things to do on a lazy weekend afternoon, when husband is sleeping and the kids are just in their rooms doing their own thing.

I feel so peaceful and happy when we are all complete in the house doing our own individual "businesses". The house is quiet and I feel so safe and secured. No amount of shopping can equal that heavenly feeling.

But its entirely different when hubby leaves for work. I feel the anxiety. Yes, until now. And its over a year since we have been in this kind of set up. And to "cure" my anxiety, I usually cook, kahit walang kumakain. At least, when I cook half a day is gone without me feeling sad.

This is my nth time to try baking pudding. 

I think I got the taste right, but the center portion was still soft. 

I didn't listen to my instinct that it needed little more time in the oven.

Yes, this is pork adobo. My 2nd time to use my elementary classmate's recipe. 

I just wished I cooked it longer, parang for me kulang pa sya sa lambot. 

Nowadays, I am busy packing our clothes for our Phil.vacation. It's really effort for me because of my bulging tummy and my aching ligaments. In fact, I didn't buy pasalubong this time. Just didn't have the energy. Anyway, next year I'm sure I will be very excited to go home again with my little bundle. Bawi na lang sa summer of 2016. Yay!

I will just be bringing my two preloved dresses that I promised my high school bestie. When I looked at it now, I am wondering if I could ever go back to my Small size, with all these pounds in my waist. Saklap 'day!

I will have to meet her in Nuvali because I wouldn't be able to travel very far at this point.

As of now, I have yet to put my clothes (so few) in our suitcase. Also my husband's pala. Kids' are done last weekend, thats the most tedious kasi. And off we go.

But first, I have to wash all our bed sheets. :)