Maternity Clothes = BROKE

I've been trying to fit in into my "singles" clothes for the past months, but 4days shy of 17 weeks; I was bursting at the seams . Finally, I had to bite to the bullet and fork over some dough of maternity clothes. Putting on my jeans felt like I was trying to stuff myself on a sausage (but my shirts still fits).

Part of me was looking forward to the experience of shopping for clothes that would flatter my preggy figure, and the other part of me was certainly NOT looking forward to the cost of adding pieces to my wardrobe that would only work for a few months. And the fact that it will add a tremendous amount of excess baggage once I move back to BCD.

So I decided quite early on, that I will not be buying most of my clothes from the maternity department. I wanted to buy something that I can still wear when I regain back my old figure hehehe. It's kind of hard to balance the cost of looking good and at the same time feeling comfortable, and working with my clothing budget.

I bought some of my maternity clothes from Gingersnaps, but I was not really happy with their designs and sizes. At size 1, the clothes were still too big for me and as for the designs, well, they're more mature and the colors were kind of dull. Great Expectations another maternity shop has lots of very interesting designs and the colors are more happy and playful. I wanted to visit the store around May when I already have the time. While searching for more clothes that will fit me, I luckily discovered this random boutique at Power Plant Mall. There were many different styles that flatter my figure, a lot of color selections and trendy styles. I tried every dresses and colors and much to my surprise I can still fit on the XS and S department. I was so happy because this would mean that these dresses can still fit me after giving birth! Recycling!

Note, there are lots and lots of maternity clothes in some department stores, but I'm just a little bit picky. Those in the department stores are affordable ones, and on the average one can really buy them at random selection. But it is my choice to refuse to wear something that was that will make me look 10 years older and ten sized too big for the sake of saving a couple of bucks.

Searching for maternity clothes is something new to me, hard and at the same time exciting. But live and learn right? Ces la vie!

You-Tee-Ai

I started to take my medicine last Friday for my UTI. Of course, I wasn't surprise at all when my OB gave me the news that I have an infection. Prior to my pregnancy, I used to have an unhealthy lifestyle, so I guess, this is just a slap-on-the face for not taking good care of my health.

Having a UTI is such a nightmare. I used to go to the bathroom every 10 minutes, and at night, I have to wake up every 3 hours because of the frequent urge to urinate. It's even worst when I could feel that pressure or sharp pain in my lower abdomen. It is important that pregnant women suffering with UTI should be treated immediately as to avoid infection to your baby and risk of miscarriage.

Some things that I have been doing ever since I found out I have one (aside from taking antibiotics):

* 10-12 glasses of water a day
* Intake of "buko" or coconut juice
* Cleaning the area 3 times a day to avoid infection
* Avoiding wearing tight jeans (wear something made of 100% cotton)

So it's been three days, I have never slept so soundly. I hope this infection is just a simple bladder infection. I told myself that from now on, I have a much greater responsibility now for myself and for my baby... so I really have to life a healthy life.

16 Weeks

Here I am at 16 Weeks and my belly is getting bigger and bigger!!

I've never felt more relaxed and happy. I regained my overall sense of well-being. Since I have passed the first trimester, I'm less anxious now of a miscarriage. Though I've been loosing appetite to eat, I'm enjoying much of myself now, feeling more energetic and comfortable with my pregnant look. Nausea has eased up, but I still have those occasional migraine attacks.

How agonizing it is to count the days to meet Pumpkin! I'm looking forward for next month where Pumpkin's dance and kicks are strong enough for Momma to feel.

14 Weeks

Today, I am not as tired and as sick as I had been for the past weeks. I met with my OB today. Upon arrival, the secretary weighted me, 108lbs! Yay! And then waited in the queue until it was finally my turn.

Dr. Perona checked my blood pressure and checked my weight again. I asked her if I'm gaining too much or too little but she says that it's ideal since I've gained 4 lbs for the last 4 weeks (ideally, one should gain 1 lb a week). Next she checked my baby's heartbeat. This time around, she didn't have any difficulty looking for the right spot. Right away, we can hear the baby's heartbeat. It was louder this time. I was very very happy, it seems that baby is doing well and have a very strong heartbeat. Praise be to God for this!

Dr. gave me OB Smart and Ferrous Sulfate for supplements and iron. Another month of pampering myself and taking each vitamins religiously.

I can't wait for my next checkup, by then I'll be 18 Weeks and the gender of the baby can be determined by an expert sonographer. Though I have no preference really, but it's nice to know if you're going to have a boy or girl right ahead so you can look for baby names and be able to find the right stuff for him or her when she's finally out on the world to meet me and B.

13 Weeks - Big Bad Belly Shots

It's my 13th week of pregnancy and end of my first trimester! Yahooo! My belly is not that big yet, but I wish it'll grow bigger because it just looks like a "puson" as of the moment.

My baby's development:

1. My angel starts to inhale and exhale inside my womb.
2. Hands are becoming more functional. Baby is starting to play with those little fingers.
3. The genitals begin to take on the proper gender characteristics. (I wonder if angel is a boy or a girl?? Still can't be seen on the ultrasound though).
4. Heard my baby's heartbeat for the first time! That was the most beautiful sound I've ever heard.

What have I been feeling so far:

• Fetal movements!!! Hahahaha... the best. I love it when baby moves.
• Frequent headaches
• Trouble sleeping (I've been thinking too much lately, and there's that frequent visit on the bathroom).
• Growing hip line. My pants won't fit anymore so I starting buying some preggy dress. Actually they're not pregnancy dresses hahaha.
• Occasional vomiting, due to fatigue. This is the reason why I haven't gain enough weight despite my increase in appetite.
• Cravings for food. I crave for mango.. mango fruit, mango shake, mango juice.
• Increase in appetite. This morning I had 1 longanisa rice, one hashbrown, one sausage mcmuffin... then after 30mins, I threw it all!

Hold on tight baby, and keep growing. We still have a looong way to go.

11 Weeks

After a few weeks of straight work (10-11hrs a day), I'm beginning to feel the fatigue and stress for the very first time.

You see, my team is back for another design, and we've been spending 8hrs a day daily on the conference room for brainstorming, specification and design review. One day, I come home with a bad headache. It was so painful that I didn't get to eat, and sleep well. The headache lasted for a week. It was really scary, a migraine attack during my first-trimester where every thing is so delicate. The one thing that probably caused my headache was the glare of the projector during our meeting so I was advised to stay home and rest.

I've read that if you suffered from migraine attacks in the past, it is more likely strike more frequently during pregnancy. A pregnant woman should be prepared for dealing with migraine attacks preferably through prevention. If you know what brings the attack, you should try to avoid the culprit. Here are a few of those:

• Stress
• Chocolates
• Cheese
• Coffee
• Red Wine

To ease up migraine, do one or more of the following:

• Splashing the face with cold water or applying a cold cloth or ice pack
• Avoid noise, light and odors by lying down in a darkened room for two or three hours with eyes covered
• Don't read or watch TV

Since I've suffering from these attacks before, I didn't bother calling my OB. I just rested and PREVENTED drinking pain killers (harmful for the baby) and paracetamols (according to my OB, it's safe).

Houston, we have a heartbeat! (10 Weeks)

It was my first visit at my OB's clinic at Medical City. I was tremendously happy meeting Dr. Perona. I immediately like her, felt completely at ease and comfortable with her. In fact, I like her better than my OB in Bcd. She's very friendly, more like a mom. She listens to every thing I say to her and always have a piece of advice. She jokes around and shares her experiences with me at the same time.

She ordered me to lay on the bed, put out my belly. Then took this small radio sized machine and put some oil on it. It's called the Doppler, a machine they use to listen for a heartbeat of a baby in the womb. It took her around 5 minutes to finally get to the perfect spot. She needs to poke on my stomach to get the baby to move closer to the Doppler. At first we only heard the sound of my pulse, then out of nowhere there's this faint sound, a beat that's so much faster than my pulse. Dr. Perona said that that's the heartbeat of the baby and asked if I can hear it clearly. I was overjoyed. It was a good strong heartbeat! It only lasted for a split second because the baby seems to be moving.

The sound of my baby’s heartbeat was the best thing I have ever had the pleasure of listening to. All those questions have truly been answered: I am totally pregnant and it is for real! It was the first real assurance that there is in fact a real person (a super tiny person) living and growing inside me. It is an experience that I will never forget.