Matti's first month

As I post this, Matti is looking at me (as he plays with his laway) as I rock his rocker. He had been so cooperative that I get to update my blog. It's been more than a month since my last entry, and yes, I've been dying to keep it as updated as possible. Matti celebrated his second month last November 3 and I'm still writing about his first. I want to be generous enough to share Matti's milestones to everyone (especially to the whole Aldub nation) since you have been there even before he was born. :)

Five things about Matti this month:
1. Average hours of sleep: 18 hours. Yes he sleeps a lot. At first I get bothered that he'll be up the whole night since he's sleeping the whole day, but no! He wakes up just to have my milk.
2. He loves to latch. A LOT. He wakes up when I try to remove my breast from him.
3. He smiles even when latching. In the middle of sucking, he stops and smile. Such a cutie pie!
4. When it's time to poop and he's still latching, he stops sucking and removes my nips. When he's done, back to latching! (this one is quite funny)
5. He only cries when hungry. A very well-behaved baby.

I thank God for a month of bliss because of Matti. :)


much love,
Niki

Welcome to the world Juan Mateo Mendoza-Catalan :)

Wait wait.. Before anything else, let me shout Woooh (in a Regine Paolo voice)!!! Finally after almost two months of not posting anything, I am back! *confetti* Actually, I am torn between sleeping (since my bubba is sleeping now and I know I need a lot of energy tonight) and updating my blog. I am surprised to see increased views and I think I owe it to my sister aka Yaya Dub. :) I'm pretty sure there are first time moms who have read my blog, and I hope you can relate to the yays and nays of this journey. Okay, first things first, for now, I want to share my birth story. As you all know, I already gave birth to my little munchkin. I have no words to explain how painful it is to give birth via caesarian section, but seeing this cutie pie made me realize that everything is bearable! So here's my story.

September 1-I had my prenatal check up. According to my OB, I am only 1 cm. That means I'm far from delivery! I am 39 weeks and 3 days back then, and I am just so excited to give birth so I asked her to help me to give birth asap! She did something painful during my IE, I already forgot what is that called, but after that I started to feel back pain. After my check up, hubby went to work, and I decided to walk. I went to Market Market alone. After 20 minutes of walking, the pain is getting worse so I decided to go to a coffee shop and relax instead. When we arrived home, the pain is starting to distract me from doing anything.

September 2-Around 10 in the morning, I can no longer tolerate the pain. I asked John if we can go to the hospital to have myself checked already. I took a bath, packed my bag and went to the hospital. We arrived there at around 10. According to the resident doctor, I'm only 2 cm (still far from delivery), and I said I think I am already having labor pains! So I was admitted in the labor room that day. It's the longest day in my life as I look at the ceiling, the letters in the wall, the oxygen tank, and all the nurses as they monitor my contractions. The whole day I am in pain, until 12 midnight came and I asked the nurses to call my husband as I feel like I am dying. According to my ob, she put something (sorry I already forgot the medicines hehehe) in my dextrose to open my cervix. When my husband came, I can no longer recognize him. I was screaming and telling people to inject anesthesia as it was the most painful slate in my entire existence! No joke ang sakit talaga! The next time I realized, they broke my BOW and I am lost. I am half awake-half asleep when they brought me to the delivery room. 

September 3-At around 5:33 AM, I just heard my OB shouting, baby is out, thank you Lord! I heard my son's first cry. And then the anes said, ang puti ah? And the rest was history. Hubby is there the whole time, as he promised that he will not leave me and my son during my delivery. The next time I realized, I was already in the recovery room with numb legs. I asked the nurses if I can see my baby. They gave me Matti and I tried latching. I failed, so I just let him feel my breast. I was transferred to my room after.

So folks, meet my little bubba, Juan Mateo Mendoza Catalan. :)

So that's my birth story. It's an achievement for me to come up with this entry now that I am taking care of my clingy bubba! I will try my best to update as soon as possible as I want to share a lot of things already! I miss blogging!

 PS. They told me my son had a double cord coil during the delivery. That might be the reason why my labor is not progressing. When I still don't know about this, I felt bad that I had to undergo a caesarian operation despite the fact that I am aiming for a normal delivery. But when they told me that, I have nothing but thanks to the Big Guy up there for guiding the medical team during the process. Kung hindi, baka wala akong milk monster na kasama ngayon! Thank you Lord!

much love,
Niki-the happiest first time mom in the world

Bulaga pa more!

Hello aldub fans! I know you've all been waiting for some news regarding our encounter with EB hosts last Wednesday so I'm sharing you some pictures that I used using my phone. :)

Saka na yung story behind the meeting the parents episode with Alden. Kelan? Sa tamang panahon. :P 

Team yaya dub all the way!:)

Please forgive my tummy and bochog face. I'm nine months pregnant! :P hahaha

We also met Asha, the girl who hated lola Nidora!:)

Thank you sir Joey and Tito Sen :)

Hi Ryzza!

Our princess Dub!

I honestly want to share the whole story to everyone who is reading my blog. But please bear with me, I am in the middle of back pains and last minute work before I pop! Hopefully I can share it soon! For now, just enjoy these pictures. :P

PS. Please do not grab any photos without any of my permission. thank you!:)

much love,

Niki xx

Biophysical Profile and Non-stress Test at MDCare OB Gyne Clinic

Yesterday, I decided to take a leave from work in exchange of some peace of mind. Matti has never been active or should I say hyper as he is lately, and it is making me anxious. I have been reading some real-life pregnancy stories and it's making me sick. So I told my husband our little munchkin is not moving as he is before and as always, he said I should not worry. But I am just persistent that I've sent a message to my OB gyne, asking her opinion. She said if Matti will not move more than two times after meal, I'd have to take my BPP and NST. So yesterday, we went to MD Care to have these tests done.

MD Care is located in E. Rodriguez. It's just in front of Burger King so we did not have a hard time looking for the clinic. We arrived there at around 11 in the morning. My husband told me that he liked the place because there's a big lounge inside. I was asked to fill up a form and so I did. There are only a few patients when I arrived so I waited for just ten minutes. 

(thank you hubby for the documentation!haha)

The receptionist asked me to go to the ultrasound room and wrapped this elastic thing in my tummy. She also attached something (which according to her will monitor my baby's heartbeat and contractions. She asked me to click something when I feel our baby moving. And for the first five minutes, I never felt the baby move. John is with me inside the room and I told him see? See? Matti is not moving! He told me to relax and after quite some time, our baby finally moved! Nakakaloka ka anak! Pinakaba mo muna talaga ako?! Then the doctor came and checked the monitor. He told me, malikot naman si baby ah? Okay naman. Another sign of relief! After that, I was asked to transfer to another room for the ultrasound. 

After a few minutes, we got the results! Fist bump my little man, we got 10/10! Here's the results. :) I was okay until I saw and realized that he's already 6.8 lbs! And I still have more or less a month to go! I know I am super matakaw, but it's quite surprising that I didn't have any weight gain problems during my first and second trimester, and now I should control myself from eating! Bakit kasi ang sarap kumain! And I am always hungry! Oh well, I will try oatmeal this time to at least increase my fiber intake.

Thank you MDCare for a very pleasant experience!:) I highly recommend this clinic for all the soon to be moms out there. :) Oh, and we paid 1,700 pesos for the ultrasound and test. According to the other moms to be, it is reasonable enough so I must say we got a good deal already.

That's all for now. I'm back to the waiting game. and before I forger, big THANKS to the Guy up there for taking good care of me and Matti. We owe it all to You Lord.

much love,

Niki-the super excited mom

My first Lazada experience.

Ever since mobile phones and text messages existed, I had been an avid gadget fan. I follow trends and into exploring different mobile phones. In fact I can't even count how many phones I've owned! (oops not to brag, I do buy and sell so I get to use some of them before selling.) I just love to explore new mobiles and I have this little dream of being a tech blogger so I get to review the newest mobile phones in the market. Oh well.

In connection to that, I am a huge fan of Samsung lately. I got to try their recent top of the line models and Samsung got me this time. I am amazed by their front camera and fast charging feature! Mabilis talaga sya magcharge! But the thing is, the battery gets easily drained that I should always have a powerbank with me. My friends know me well, I never leave the house without my powerbank. I had been using my trusted Bavin powerbank for quite sometime and I can vouch for its durability. But the thing is, it's not compatible with my phone. Super bagal nya magcharge. Like 1% every 10 minutes, and I cannot use the phone or else magbabawas pa yung battery nya. So I tried looking for an alternative. I've read several reviews and found out that the Xiaomi powerbank is an option so I purchased the 16,000mah pb. But it's just too heavy for me! Good thing, my sister is looking for a good powerbank, so I just gave mine to her. Another suggestion is the Asus Zenpower. I had been a lurker online, and I found out that Lazada is having flash sales for this item. Unfortunately, I was not able to make it at first. But when I found out that they are selling yesterday, I grabbed the chance!

So I placed my order at around 2 in the afternoon. (of course I got the pink one, it's pink or nothing.) I had the order confirmation immediately and they informed me that the item will be delivered in a week. To my surprise, one of their agents called me earlier to inform me that my item will be delivered today! Hooray! I availed the COD option just to try.

Special delivery!!:)

Thank you so much Lazada!

The powerbank is wrapped in a bubble wrap with a Lazada return form.

And here's an addition to my pink addiction!:P (sorry that's the most artistic photo that I can take!:P)

I am really satisfied with my first Lazada purchase. I am really hesitant to get something from them at first because I have been reading reviews about their deliveries but I am thankful that I didn't experience any! Please bear with me, I will be trying the powerbank soon and hopefully I can post another review about it soon! 

Thanks for reading!

Our Menggay a.k.a. Yaya Dub! :)

Just a little commercial from my journey to motherhood. :) Apart from being a wife and a soon-to-be mom, I am also the eldest sister to my brothers and sisters. And with this, allow me to dedicate (naks parang dj lang?) this post to my dearest sister who is starting to finally do what she loves. (and I know she's doing good at it! Of course biased ako, ate kaya ako nyan!) Maybe most of you have encountered the "dubsmash queen" or Eat Bulaga's latest dabarkads "yaya dub!" Yes, she's my sister!

Please allow me to boast a little, that my sister had been living the life and reaching for her dreams. I know she wants to be an actress, but nobody is paying attention to that! I remember our parents laughing about it. Until dubsmash happened. One day in the office, she's alone, bored and tried to make fun of herself. Little did she knew that this will be the start of her life-long dream! A lot of agencies are sending their inquiries, asking if she can endorse their product, random people are asking for photos with her, talk about the life of a celebrity! I couldn't be happier for her!

In fact, sometimes I still can't believe that we just used to watch Eat Bulaga during lunch time. And now we're seeing her doing her stints in that noontime show! Well, she deserves it. Our "Menggay" as how we fondly call her is one of my most thoughtful siblings. She also had been my confidante when I feel down, I tell her almost everything! Who would have thought that I'll be talking to the next celebrity now??:P

It also surprises me that I gain some followers everyday (obviously because of her.) People are sending me messages that they want my sister to notice her. Well folks, believe me, she gets a lot of messages, requests and all that (AS IN A LOT) that she didn't get the chance to reply to each of them. But like what I have posted in my twitter account, she may not thank you all individually, but if she can, she will. :) busy ang yaya nyo kay lola Nidora! (pati na din kay Alden!lol)

So here's a little treat to those who had been checking (and digging up) her old posts, some of her old photos, when she's still wishing and praying for the life that she has now.

Yup that little girl is yaya dub!

JNC Babymoon/my 30th week!

hello everyone! After more than half a month of busy days, thank God I had the luxury of time to update. So what's new except from my growing belly? Well, my blouses are starting to fail me, I know I am getting bigger and bigger each day. I also get a painful back every morning, which is quite ironic because I should be getting some rest when I sleep right? I am also having a hard time sleeping. I wake up to pee and to tell my husband to move because I am big and I can't fit in our bed anymore. :P The list is endless though. It is true when they say that third trimester will make you feel awful literally and figuratively. But please don't get me wrong, I will forever be thankful of this little man growing inside my belleh. I will endure all the pain just to see him healthy, normal and alive ten weeks from now. (So baby please don't come out yet, you still have time to be healthy there, okay?)

And because of these 'painful' and unattractive stage in my pregnancy, my husband is sweet enough to organize a mini-babymoon for us. I've been telling him that I miss traveling (I am such a lakwachera) because we have to cancel a trip to Bangkok last January and let go of all the promo fares because of little Matti. Of course I obliged, our baby is and will be our priority right now. So imagine how happy I am when he told me that he booked an out of town trip just for the two of us.

We went to Punta de Fabian last weekend. It was just an overnight trip, but I really had time to relax and spend time with my husband.

We had a short dip in the pool (I'm not sure if I can swim long) and had a little DIY photoshoot after. I will be sharing some photos in my next blog entry. :) Anyway, I must say that I am indeed thankful for having a very sweet husband. Pregnancy had been a roller coaster ride of emotions and everything in between, but I am just so happy that he booked this trip for us.

Punta de Fabian verdict: 7/10: The place is good. The place is wonderful and rooms are clean. I also loved the infinity pool and the peaceful surroundings. However, I am disappointed with the selection of food. They only have two dishes in their menu every meal and their kitchen are closed earlier than usual. My husband even begged the staff to serve us dinner because it will be hard for us to go out of the resort just to eat, considering the fact that I am pregnant. 

That's all folks!

much love,

Niki xx