At times, I remember those working days back in the Philippines. Not that I miss going back to work, hehe. I think my life being a housewife and a new mom right now is something that I would like to enjoy. But yeah, looking back, I think payday advances would have helped if it were applicable in our company back then. It may sound crazy but it’s a common thing to stretch our budget even a week before our next payday comes. Literally, living from paycheck to paycheck. It worked fine back then since I was single and responsible of no one. But it just made me compare how different my life back then than here in the U.S.

We were given a newspaper with the baby’s footprints as souvenir at the hospital where I gave birth. I think it was cool and I’m going to keep that to remind me of what’s happening on other parts of the world when my little one was born. As I was browsing through the paper, I saw a brochure inserted that looks like a medical resume and a hospital directory in our town which list a number of physicians from all different kinds of fields. I thought that was pretty handy. In case we need a medical professional in the future, I don't have to look anywhere else but at that list. Good.

After 9 long months of having him in my tummy, we were able to finally meet him at last! On December 8, 2010 at 7:56 a.m., I gave birth via an elective C-section to a healthy baby boy at Baxter Regional Medical Center. The surgery was a tough ordeal for me, Jeff and my family. If I had a choice, I would have wanted a normal vaginal birth. So why elective, you might ask? It was an informative wise option presented to us by our doctor. I didn't jump at it right away since I didn't want surgery in the first place. My younger sister and some friends went through that and I know how hard it can be to take care of a newborn then recuperate from a major abdominal surgery at the same time. But the situation presented at that time was not favorable. I was a few days past my due date. I was not showing any signs of labor. My pelvis is narrow, I was not dilating and still carrying the baby very high. The doctor knew from experience that I was going to have a big baby. Induction of labor of course was also part of the option but my cervix was unripe to break the bag of water and if we opted to go for induction, 85% chance that I would still go through a cesarian section, not to mention the stress of labor I and the baby will have to go through only to find out in the end that I still won't be able to deliver him vaginally. We were given some time to decide. We didn't feel pressured by our physician but we knew what was at stake then. With Jeff and my family's support, we went for a planned surgery. Indeed, the baby was big! He was 8 lbs. 4 ounces and 20 1/2 inches long with a head diameter of 14 1/8 inches. The surgery didn't take long but the recovery will be. My sister and a family friend drove from Illinois to be with me at the hospital. I was so thankful she was there. She's my only family here and it was a great comfort to have her there knowing she too had gone through the same experience as mine though hers was an emergency c-section.

The first time they had me walk to the bathroom with assistance on the second day of my hospital stay, it was hell for me. It felt like all my guts would fall off. The incision was throbbing but they say I had to do it because it will help with my speedy recovery. It has been almost 2 weeks since the surgery. I can say I feel better as far as pain from the incision is concerned. I am trying to breastfeed right now and it has been a challenge because of the operation. But I'm managing it pretty well I guess. I am losing weight which I think is awesome, hehe! I am no longer taking pain meds. I can walk with no assistance now. I haven't healed perfectly yet but with God's help and time, I'll get back to my normal self. After everything that I've been through, I'm just so thankful that the surgery was a success and that I was rewarded with the joy of seeing our little boy.

Like most of us, I love taking pictures. Not necessarily for art or a hobby but just to keep remembrance of the things that matters and people I care about. With the influx of different kinds of smart phones in the market, people were saying the very handy and convenient point and shoot digital cameras are in danger nowadays. I can understand that. Fancy cellphones like IPhone has a nice camera feature so why would IPhone users bother to carry another item when in fact they can have it all in one small powerful gadget. But I would say it depends on the user actually. Some people might still prefer the reliable digital cameras than cellphones, but they better be justified with a difference in prices to say the least, otherwise digital cams might be off the competition.

One of the things that keeps us busy lately is getting the nursery room done. Jeff and I had fun putting up all those Winnie the Pooh and Friends stickers and plush hangings on the wall. We tried to keep it simple but cute. We painted those wooden letters ourselves instead of buying pre-decorated hanging letters online which could be a little bit pricier. I have ordered some coordinating wall border stickers from Amazon but it hasn't arrived yet. Since we bought a new king-size bed in our bedroom a couple of months ago, we thought of moving this old queen-size bed of ours in the baby's room which I think is a great idea. The baby can stay in his crib while we sleep in the same bedroom with him. It will be convenient if we stay close with the baby especially since we have yet to establish some routine in taking care of him. Everything is all set and ready. We're just waiting for the little bundle of joy to arrive.

Now that winter is here and the cold weather is out to destroy the grass and leaves in the front and back yards, I thought I would get a break from the whirring sounds of high-powered lawn mowers in the neighbor’s yard. But I thought wrong! Even with practically nothing to mow, I swear this old guy across from us still ride on his mower at least 3 times a week every morning. It drives me nuts. Those things use powerful ATV Tires and engine so it’s almost impossible to drown the sound out especially when you’re trying to sleep in in the morning. Oh well, he's retired and he's got nothing better to do but to keep his place looking neat and tidy, hehe!

I made a terrible mistake when I once filled out an online form inquiring about auto insurance quotes. Immediately, we were bombarded with ads, mails, letters, brochures, invitations, quotes and phone calls from telemarketers. At first, it was just fine since we asked for it anyway. But it’s just annoying when people don’t take NO for an answer. We weighed the pros and cons and we made a decision so there's really no need to send in more offers and quotes. It's just a waste of time, effort, and paper, hehe! But anyway, that's how they sustain their business. I'm just glad that we can block unwanted calls and paper ads go straight to the garbage without even opening them.

HGTV’s House Hunters is one of the TV shows that I’d like to watch when I have the chance. Jeff hates it though, lol! He thought most if not all, that were featured in that program are filthy rich and not really middle class for them to be able to afford some of the ridiculously-priced houses that are for sale. He’s probably afraid that if I keep on watching that show, my standards in looking for a house would be difficult for him to afford, hehe! But, of course, it’s far from the truth. I just enjoy getting a glimpse of the pretty houses in the suburbs but I'm still realistic when it comes to setting a budget range. I hate it though when the buyers turn out to be overly critical on small things. Like even a door knob wouldn't be spared from their scrutiny. On the other hand, I understand that since they are gonna be investing that much, they have to pay attention to every detail or probably they are just like that because they know they are on camera, lol!

I was amazed on how selfless I was when I did my Thanksgiving shopping last week. I did both mall and online shopping in different stores during that week. Would you believe I didn’t buy even one item for myself? Haha. I shopped for Jeff for his birthday, some for my sister and her family and most stuff are basically for my unborn baby, lol! But my personal Santa asks me what I want for Christmas and that’s when I started thinking that I should make a wishlist now. I actually have just two items on my list this Christmas. And I wouldn’t even be heartbroken if I don’t get them because I really don’t need them at all, hehe. Gosh, I find it hard to believe it’s me talking like this. But anyway, I’m just probably too excited with the future baby that I can’t really think about Christmas gifts and stuff. But yeah, just for the heck of having something to put on my list, I have asked for an IPod dock speakers and a Nokia C3 prepaid GoPhone unit. It's not something I can't live without really but I can't think of anything to ask for Christmas.

I was kinda frustrated when we went to see the doctor yesterday. I was hoping he would tell me something new. I don’t know maybe I was hoping he’d tell me I could have the baby that day or something, lol! The waiting is killing me! The closer I am to my due date, with no signs of labor besides the irregular contractions every once in a while, cervix has not dilated nor effaced, baby is still riding up high and being told every time that my narrow frame/pelvis might not be able to accommodate a big baby, I am quite certain that I may have to take the CS route. I don’t like it of course, but whatever, lol! I just want some developments in this pregnancy. It feels like I’ve been pregnant forever. I want to see and hold my baby already. Anyway, he told us to come back in his office on Friday. So until then I really don’t know what could happen. To take my mind off the stress of anticipation, we went to Walmart right after the appointment and bought more baby stuff. I need a messenger type diaper bag and I saw one in Walmart that I like at an affordable price. We got some more baby wipes, diapers, Aveeno baby wash and fragrance-free Aveeno Baby Daily Moisture Lotion. I stopped by the skin care section and saw all different kinds of acne body wash and facial products but had to remind myself that I don't need them anymore since my face is actually clearing up on its own.

I may just be the only one among us three siblings that hasn’t worn scrubs and probably wouldn't ever have the chance to. Our youngest sister is in 4th year Nursing now and she has been wearing nursing uniforms since freshman. It won't be long before she'll start wearing nursing scrubs, God-willing. My other sister who's currently in the dental field has been wearing dental scrubs as her everyday get up for work. I find that some scrubs have cute designs and fit that would actually make it less boring to wear them.

Many would go for cheap scrub sets, which I think seems practical. But some are more concerned with the fitting and style so they wanted a set that would make them feel good about themselves while wearing them on a day to day basis. Well, BlueSkyScrubs is the perfect place to look for both. They sell all different kinds of medical scrubs for all different types of health care profession. So if you're looking for cheap but great looking scrubs, check out their website and enjoy the variety of attractive and colorful looking medical scrubs in the market today.

Christmas is just around the corner. Many have started setting up their artificial christmas tree to create a festive and holiday spirit at home. On my first Christmas here in the U.S., hubby suggested to get a real tree and decorate it to our liking. But I liked the idea of an artificial tree better so we ended up getting a 7-foot Christmas tree instead. We had fun decorating it. This year, I am not that eager to put up a tree since it takes effort to do it and as you all know, I’m ready to pop anytime now and we’ll be so busy attending to our newborn by the time Christmas comes. But hubby insisted that we should still put up the tree and he will decorate it himself, hehe. Hmm, I’m not really sure about that! I still think it will be easier on us both if we skip decorating this year.

In the past, I had a long time struggle with keeping my acne problems at bay. Just when I quit caring about it because I can no longer use chemicals when I got pregnant, a little miracle happens. My face started to clear up on its own. I’m sure there are more people out there who are dealing with all types of skin issues besides acne, like eczema for example. I don’t have enough knowledge about this skin disease but I had a cousin who suffered from it before. It made her life miserable. So even back when I was at the height of my own acne problems, I still felt lucky that I didn't have to go through what she went through with her eczema problems. But thankfully, every problem has a solution. Eventually, she found the perfect cure and now is enjoying a life free from skin troubles.

Since any day now I could possibly go into labor, we decided not to spend Thanksgiving dinner with Jeff's dad and relatives. For the past 2 years, we've always celebrated Thanksgiving with them. I find it convenient since we didn't have to cook or prepare anything which was cool, hehe! It was a long drive to their place though which I really didn't mind at all back then since we love road trips. But that has changed because of my condition. I am now 39 weeks far along and we couldn't risk taking a 4-hour drive. So we thought of just making our first Thanksgiving memories together in our home. We didn't have guests but still we prepared a little something for us to enjoy together. We have so much to thank for this year. A grand wedding of my dreams was made into reality on the early part this year. I went back to the PI for the first time and see my family again after 2 long years of being away from them. Apart from all the material things that we get to enjoy, the most precious gift of all is having our future bundle of joy in the next few days or so. Life has been really treating us well and I thank God for that. The cooking and baking part was kinda tiring but it was a whole new experience for me and we had fun spending some time together in the kitchen. The kitchen was a mess after the preparation but it was all worth it. We had another wonderful "us" memory that we could look back as we get older. Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Trees do not only provide beauty, shade, a feeling of tranquility and serenity to people and environment, but they also provide environmental benefits by moderating climate, improving air quality, conserving water and harboring wildlife. There are so many different tree species that are native to the U.S. As a matter of fact, I always find it a pleasure to visit arboretums whenever we travel to other states. While most people like to have trees in their back and front yards, some might find it more of a nuisance than an asset.

Some trees need care. Proper trimming and pruning are essential to increasing a tree’s health and strength. That’s why in North Carolina, there are companies which provide great tree services for everyone to enjoy. One good example is tree service Durham NC, which basically offer trimming, pruning, or even stump removal and grinding. Like some states, North Carolina experiences a wide variety of damages from varying inclement weather conditions so it might be a wise decision to acquire professional tree removal Raleigh NC services to avoid the nasty possibility of a tree falling down in your yard, or on your car. If you live in Cary, NC, don't you fret none because you can also get an equally efficient tree removal Cary NC service from the same reputable company. I know tasks like these are time consuming and requires skills and expertise, but there's nothing to worry anymore. You don't have to do it yourself, hire someone whose an expert. It will give you some peace of mind.

I remember somebody told me before that wherever you are in the U.S., you can always find a Filipina. This is true! For the past 3 years, we've lived in small towns with a population of 3,000 or less. I was so sure back then that I'd be the only Pinay in our area but I was wrong. Filipinos are everywhere. I'm glad that I have my own circle of friends here in our area and most of them are Bisaya. Cool!

Last month, they gave me a surprise visit at home. They brought lots of food and some baby stuff. Hubby and I thought it was so nice of them to do that for me. We actually don't entertain much because both of us are shy so they are the first group of friends that we've had in the house. I was quite nervous but I really had a great time. We ate, chatted a lot and watched a Tagalog movie. I've met and bonded with them before and I feel like we've grown much closer after the visit. I am happy to have found a group of Pinays that get along well.

Pinobre style na kaon...gutom na kaau ug mga hitsura ay, hehe!

Picture-picture dayon kay busog na man...

Never had this much vehicles in our driveway before, lol!

Below are some photos back when I first met them. Thank you so much guys for the wonderful friendship!!!

Have you done your Christmas shopping yet? I think Thanksgiving weekend would be the perfect time to start looking for the perfect gift for your loved ones. Most stores have wonderful Black Friday deals and you can get huge discount savings on your favorite items such as ipods, laptops, video games and so much more. We want to do our shopping before Black Friday though. I don't want to join the huge crowd in the malls because of my condition so we're driving to Battlefield Mall in Springfield this weekend and do our shopping there. This might be my last mall shopping for a while as we will be taking care of a newborn real soon. So I should make the most out of this, besides I need the exercise, hehe!

I am really getting closer and closer to my due date. Wohoo! Today, I am 37 weeks pregnant. Yep, that's right. In 3 weeks (a week after Thanksgiving), we will be welcoming a precious addition to our household. We are very excited and nervous about it. There's so much to learn but I guess our parental instincts would just kick in once we have him in our lives. I know it's going to be a big change and we're willing to make sacrifices for the little one.

Anyway, the last few weeks will be spent preparing for his arrival. The baby's room is not quite done yet, although I'm pretty sure we're gonna have that covered in 2 weeks. We pretty much have everything ready. We just have to do a little bit more tweaking as far as arranging, getting rid of some stuff in the room and probably making the room a little bit more colorful. My sister recently purchased a very nice Graco baby swing for the baby and some diaper organizer depot and had it delivered site-to-store in our Walmart branch. Thanks a lot, sistah! Then last weekend, we finally bought a much-needed swivel glider for feeding times. We have enough newborn diapers that would last us at least a month. I know we need more but I want to compare first whether Pampers Swaddlers Dry Max is better than Huggies Little Snugglers with U-shaped umbilical cord opening. Both have earned very good reviews but still I wanted to test them on our baby as far as softness, comfort, less leakage are concerned and decide which one to buy more.

In addition to preparing for the baby's immediate needs, I am also trying to condition myself for the upcoming challenge of labor and birth. While I prefer vaginal delivery anytime, I try to be flexible and open-minded on the possibility of having a C-section. Considering the size discrepancy between mine and hubby's, my doctor always forewarns us of a possibility of a big baby. We're not gonna force a vaginal birth if it will put the baby's life and mine at risk. When crunch time comes, we trust that our doctor must use discretion to decide whether a caesarean is necessary. All I could do really is to hope and pray that everything is going to turn out fine. From our last week's appointment, doctor told us that I'm still carrying high and that the baby hasn't dropped yet which he said usually is a sign of a big baby. He has moved into the head down position though. Next Friday, he will conduct an ultrasound to check how much the baby weighs right now and see if everything looks healthy and normal.

I just recently packed our hospital bag. I should have done this a while back but I'm such a procrastinator, lol...so anyway, uncertain how many days will my hospital stay be, I packed a few sets of newborn clothes and receiving blankets. In our birthing class, we were told that the hospital will basically provide everything for the baby...from blankets, hospital gowns, diapers, clothes, disposable undies, sanitary pads and more, but I still wanted to bring my own just in case. I definitely would just use the hospital gowns because I don't want to bleed on my favorite night gowns and undies, but it wouldn't hurt to still bring my own stuff, hehe.

The empty side is for my personal stuff
(gowns, socks, robe, nursing bras and going home maternity clothes)

I'm having second thoughts about bringing these nice, striped comfy socks for fear of getting them dirty and tinged with blood, hehe, so I might just leave them home and bring those cheap white socks instead.

sanitary pads, disposable breast pads and
lanolin breast cream
(the hospital might provide for these but like I've said, it wouldn't hurt to bring my own stuff)

Fluffy pink slippers for walking during early stages of labor and my nursing pillow

All packed and ready to go!

One of the good effects that this pregnancy had on me is an end to my seemingly futile battle against acne. I had acne problems pre-pregnancy and it even came to a point where I needed some aesthetic care intervention. I had tried all different kinds of acne products but to no avail. Although they had controlled mostly the problem area but they still keep coming back no matter what I did. I was amazed when I noticed that on my second trimester of pregnancy, my face started to clear up even when I had stopped using acne medication. Could it be the pre-natal vitamins I am taking or just simply the pregnancy hormones? I don’t know for certain but I am really glad that my face has taken some break from acne flare-ups. I hope this would be a permanent thing already because it sure feels wonderful not having to worry about constant breakouts anymore.

Something crazy happened to me today. I went to check on our potted plants which I placed in the back of the house. These are not indoor plants and I figure they will eventually die anyway because of the cold weather. But still I wanted to see for myself, maybe I could water them a few more and help them survive for a few more days. But anyway what happened was, I locked myself out of the house. They use one of those cheap door lock accessories in the back screen door and for some reason, it just locked on its own leaving me stuck out in the cold. Grrr! I can’t use the front door either because we always keep that one locked as well. Then I thought about using our garage door opener inside our car which was parked in the driveway. It was a blessing in disguise that hubby forgot to lock the car doors the night before or else I would have been stuck outside until he comes home at 5:00 p.m. That would have been a disaster huh!

I must admit I don’t keep up with the cell phone technology. We have a very efficient landline with great features so I don’t see the need of paying monthly cell phone bills since I stay at home all the time. Hubby calls me from work during break times using landline. I communicate with friends and family through instant messaging, Facebook, and of course landline phones. So the only time that I would probably need a cell phone is when we travel. And for those few occasions when we have to leave home and go someplace else, I carry a prepaid cellphone with me. I bought it at Walmart at a very cheap price. I’ve been keeping it for 2 years now. I can only count with my fingers how many times I have put it to use but nonetheless, it had served the purpose when we’re away from home. I still have plenty of minutes left and to think it’s been like almost a year now since I bought a $25 dollar prepaid load, hehe! That’s why I really don’t care much about the fancy cell phone updates and stuff. But of course I have heard about Droids, iPhones, Blackberry and the like. To keep up with the stiff technology competition, they seem to have new product features and updates every single week. Okay, I’m probably just exaggerating but yeah it drives me insane watching all those fancy cellphone commercials. Recently, I have heard about this iphone recovery spy data stick. It looks like an ordinary USB flash drive that can recover deleted text messages, calls, contacts, appointments and pictures. At first glance, it seems promising but as I’ve read on, they talk about popularly using it to catch cheating spouses and monitoring other people’s cell phone activities. Whoa! Isn’t that scary? That’s completely invasion of privacy, right? But anyway, it probably depends on how a person uses it. Generally, I guess it’s another wonderful product feature that you can use on an iPhone.

Have you been getting junk mails in your mailbox on a regular basis? We have, and I’m too lazy to sort and toss the mails right away so I end up with a pile of paper crap cluttered either on our kitchen table or Jeff’s computer desk. I finally had the motivation to take care of them the other day, and I was surprised on how much paper junk mails we have accumulated for the last month or so. I am not an environmentalist or something but when I throw a whole bunch of paper junks like that, it made me think these businesses were just wasting their time and of course they’re not helping for a clean and green environment either by using so much paper and randomly sending them to people like us who sometimes never even bother to read what they are selling or advertising. Some advertisers get even fancier with their advertising by using door hangers which I must say look good but like what I’ve said, we don’t usually get sucked in by those product advertisements especially pre-approved credit card offers which we have been getting every week, so I think they are just wasting both their time and ours.

This was taken last October 27th at our 3rd Anniversary dinner date. Yes, we have been married for 3 wonderful years now. We've known each other for 5 years if we were to count the first time we've met online. It took 10 months before we finally met in person. Then he made 2 trips to the Philippines to see me before he proposed. And the rest, they say is history!

A lot of great things have happened since then. We were married twice. One wedding was a simple church wedding in the U.S. Two years after, my dream wedding was made into a reality when we had a grand Catholic church wedding in the Philippines. And now as we continue further on our journey together, we're expecting a baby boy! We feel so blessed and everything just seems to fall into place.

Marriage is a continuous adjustment process. You learn both good and bad things about your partner each day. But I think that's what makes the whole relationship exciting. It would have been so boring if both of you were created perfect, or if you share ALL the same interests in life. Of course we have some common interests and quite a few differences, but I'd say we're very much compatible which makes it so much easier to adjust to each other's individuality. As long as both parties are willing to put forth the effort to make the marriage work, there's no strong storm in life that you can't face. After all, you have God and each other to lean on and draw strength from.

I find it strange to talk about smoking on my blog for two reasons. First, because I don’t smoke and second is I am pregnant and it’s a definite no-no, but of course, I have known people that smoke. I’m not going to talk about the hazards of smoking because it’s really a personal preference. To each his own. It’s just that a friend of mine happened to mention that she sometimes visit cigar auction sites to find the best cigars in the market. She obviously likes to smoke and she’s into cigars lately. I bet cigars are more expensive than cigarettes. There must be a big difference between the two because she seems to like cigars better.

When a person desires to lose weight, she would try anything possible in this world to achieve just that. Some are lucky with the type of fitness and diet regimen they’re using but others might find it hard to find the one that works for them. I have heard from people who get frustrated because there seems to be no effect on their battle against weight loss. I guess a friend of mine just got lucky because after just a year of using a certain pill, it had worked for her immediately. It probably takes more than just a pill though to achieve that but she was quite happy to share her diet secret. You can click here to learn more about it.

Looking for a perfect gift this Christmas? Check out some ncstar binoculars for sports, marine, and hunting enthusiasts. NcStar had been around for 12 years and has provided excellent optics options for a number of leading brands. Binoculars come in handy when you need superior depth effect, allowing the viewer to use both eyes when viewing distant objects. There are a few important things to consider when you look for binoculars. Optic Sale website would be the perfect place for that.

Facebook is really a great social networking medium to reunite with old friends and relatives. Just recently, I found an old friend’s profile and added her to my friends’ list. It has been a while since we last kept in touch and it was really exciting to catch up and communicate again. I was totally surprised with how much different she looks right now though. She lost so much weight which actually made her look very sexy and good. Asked about her secret, she was quick to tell me she’s been using phentermine diet pills. Well, I’m glad it worked for her. She said she’s too lazy to exercise so she chose the easy way. I didn’t probe more since I’m not really interested with diet pills anyway, but it was really good to see her back.

While some people have acne and age spots as their skin concerns, I’d say mine right now are the nasty stretch marks. Yes, I have been getting them already. Mine are mostly on my sides. It doesn’t itch yet but it just looks unsightly. I know it’s quite normal for most pregnant women to have them. I’ve read that there are creams and oils available to make them fade at least. I’m thinking of trying some and see if it works. But if it won’t, then I guess it’s just alright. Anyway, I don’t wear two-piece bikinis or anything revealing since I don’t have a nice body to flaunt with in the first place, lol!

Easy access to online shopping has its perks. But it could be stressful to a point especially if the items you’ve ordered weren’t really the way you expected them to be. Just recently, I have ordered winter maternity clothes since it’s almost impossible for me to go out in my summer outfits anymore, not in this weather. I have also gotten some flat winter boots from a friend online but to my dismay some of the clothes and the boots that I’ve ordered didn’t fit right, so I’ll have to return them by mail. Some have hassle-free return policy but others are just a pain in the buttocks to deal with. I hope I won’t need an anti wrinkle eye cream when this is over. I try not to be upset about it since it’s my decision in the first place to risk getting clothes and shoes online. I think I've learned my lesson well.

How are tea tree oil and eczema related? As we all know, eczema is associated with a common skin condition called atopic dermatitis. It is an inflammatory skin disorder and usually characterized with reddish, flaky, itchy, scaly, and painful skin. It can be a hereditary skin condition but it can also be caused by many irritants including feathers, metals, wool, plants and animal hair, soaps and detergents, bubble bath, cosmetics, fabric dyes, etc. Recent research shows that tea tree oil seems to be an effective option in the treatment of this skin disease. I have a cousin who used to suffer from this condition and I saw how bad it was affecting her social life. She's all better now, thanks to an excellent dermatologist in the PI.

I have not been getting enough sleep at night lately. At first, I blamed it on my short naps during the day. But if I don’t nap, I’d only get an average of 3 hours sleep every night. It bothers me to a point but I have read from pregnancy books that it is quite normal later in this pregnancy to experience insomnia. I have noticed the baby is quite active when I’m ready for bed. I mean he just keeps on doing somersaults, kicking me everywhere which sometimes puts some uncomfortable pressure on my bladder. I can feel and see my tummy doing some wavelike motions and it’s just amazing to look at. Braxton Hicks contractions happen frequently. It’s painless alright, but it sure is uncomfortable. Shifting positions and using lots of pillows sometimes help but I guess when the tummy gets this big, you hardly find a comfy sleeping position. Oh well, I've got only like 6 more weeks to go, so I guess I'll just have to be tough so I could make it to the most awaited moment of giving birth.

Many people choose to stay at home and venture into some kind of small businesses. With the rise in popularity of social networking websites, these entrepreneurs find a medium to market their products and services. Some may just be a hobby and not really getting much from it, but there are actually the lucky ones who own successful home business and manage to take care of their family needs as well. Though I'm sure it takes more than just luck to make it big in the home business industry. It's a good venture to think about but I guess you'll have to be ready for its demands and possible outcome.

You don’t have to go to the gym to keep fit and healthy. Now you can do it in the comforts of your own home. It doesn’t have to cost a fortune to acquire exercising equipments these days since some places sell refurbished fitness equipment at a lower price. From elliptical trainers, treadmills, stationary bikes, rowing machines, abs coasters, and other cardio equipments, you can get them at reasonable prices. Your dream to lose weight and become healthy is no longer out of reach. Toss away those non-working diet pills and stick to the proven, natural way of losing weight.

As we all know, the skin is the largest organ of our body. If we don’t take good care of it, we could get different kinds of skin diseases which may or may not be easy to treat. I was glad that my acne problem had stopped when I’ve reached my second trimester of pregnancy. I had so much trouble controlling them prior to pregnancy. Anyway, I’m thankful that I didn’t have to deal with other serious skin problems such as eczema. I remember a cousin of mine was feeling desperate to find an effective eczema treatment that will work for her. I’m sure it was a tough ordeal for her at that time. Her skin looks swollen, irritated and itchy. She eventually end up seeing a good dermatologist who was able to prescribe her an effective medicine.

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We’ve been going to childbirth classes lately. It runs for five weeks and it pretty much covers the most important aspects of 3rd trimester pregnancy, labor, delivery and taking care of a newborn. As first time parents, we were eager to go into these classes as it’s one way of knowing what to expect and how to deal with the challenging situation of childbirth. We may not come out as experts when the classes are over, but it sure helps to know in advance what could happen inside the labor, delivery, operating and recovery room. The OB Nurse who handles the class was very knowledgeable and tried to be thorough in sharing all the information that we need to know. We have been given access to a website that shows several informational videos, which I enjoyed the most. Some women shared about their weight loss success stories after giving birth just by breastfeeding. Next week, we’re going to take a tour of the hospital and look inside the actual OB and nursery rooms. I'm pretty excited about that. By the way, I am already 34 weeks far along. Belly is getting heavier and heavier each day. My doctor's appointment are done on a weekly basis now. Blood pressure and blood sugar level are monitored closely. My BP readings have not been that ideal lately but the doctor doesn't seem to be overly concerned about it as he sees no signs of toxemia on me. I try not to stress too much about it myself but will do my best to limit my salt intake. The weekly doctor's visits will help keep my mind at ease. The closer I get to my due date, the more excited I get but at the same time I feel scared and nervous. I guess it's just normal to feel this way. I just hope and pray that everything will come out just fine.

It amazes me sometimes how a lot of people could come up with different kinds of ideas on how to supposedly get rid of unwanted fats and bad cholesterol. The latest I’ve come across is guggulsterones. My initial reaction? Weird name, lol! Based on an unfamiliar website, these are compounds derived from a traditional medicinal plant preparation in India, and they are supposed to be beneficial in decreasing fats as well as bad cholesterol level, and are now being used as a special compound on some diet pills in the market. Well, if you’ve been a regular on my blog, I’m sure you already know what’s my take on diet pills. I haven’t tried any and have no plans to start at all despite my desire to lose weight. I still prefer the natural way.

It’s almost the end of the year. Time really flies, doesn’t it? It’s probably the best time right now to start shopping Christmas gifts for loved ones. If you want to avoid the shopping madness rush, it might be a good idea to start gift shopping. I was actually thinking of doing that myself. I won’t have the energy and the time to do it if I wait too long since I am getting heavier each day. I don’t think I’ll have the time after I give birth as well since the baby is going to demand so much of our time and attention. So we might start hitting the stores for gifts next week. I remember last year, video console games were a hit. Lots of people have been getting xbox, playstation and WII as gifts. As a matter of fact, I got a WII and DS Lite from hubby that year. It’s one of those forms of entertainment for me especially now that I don’t work and is expecting. I can play hours and hours on WII. I’m currently crazy with Rune Factory Frontier right now. It's just so much fun. Have you thought of what to get for your kids this year yet?

I have always heard the cliché from people that you can’t get rich if you’re only employed. That if you want to be successful and rich, you need to venture into feasible business opportunities. At some point, this could be true. Although at this present global economic crisis, most businesses might find it hard to prosper, let alone survive. Just the other day, a small hardware business in town has closed for good. Hubby wanted to get some stuff for his woodworking but was disappointed when he found out the only hardware store in town is out of business. I’d say the success of a business venture depends on a number of things. I find it safe to just be employed rather than run the risk of losing everything in a snap.

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It’s a given, most women like to shop, while men love to tinker around the shop/garage. When hubby is not on the computer, he’s out in the garage keeping himself busy with small mechanical and woodworking stuff. It’s a hobby and I definitely support him on that all the way. As long as he still spends quality time with me, which he does, so I don’t see any problem if he spends some of his spare time enriching himself. I wish he has a real working place to work on though. The house comes with a shop but it’s not properly ventilated and lit, so we're using it as our storage shed and he's currently using a little space in our garage to do his thing. I know some places sell pre-engineered steel buildings for small shops, warehouse and even a garage, but we don't want to make house improvements since we're only renting the place right now. It's definitely something to consider though when we get to move in to our own house.

The thought of being a mom scares me sometimes. But ready or not, I guess in 8 weeks, I’m going to be an official “momma”, God-willing. Yes, I am excited with this new chapter of our lives, however, I have this nagging thought sometimes whether I'd be a good mom or not. I mean let’s face it, it’s going to be a tough job. It could be equally demanding when you compare it with the jobs outside the house. But I consider not having to work a blessing. I couldn’t imagine myself being a working mother, yet. Well, in a few years time maybe, but right now I feel very blessed that I didn’t have to work. At least, I get to concentrate on how to become an ideal mother for our future angel.

One of the important things to decide on when expecting is whether to breastfeed or formula-feed the baby. I have decided, of course with hubby’s support, to give breastfeeding a try. I have heard from other nursing mothers that it can be tough so we thought it might help to know more about breastfeeding. So last night, hubby and I went to a breastfeeding class. It was a 2-hour class which basically talks about the basics of breastfeeding. There was a film clip shown. Small snacks and beverages were served. The place was cozy and homey. I noticed they were using matouk table linens on the kitchen table. The instructor, who was an OB nurse for 20 years was very nice and knowledgeable. They gave us handouts and an access to a website that has lots of useful tips, info, video, PDF files and such about breastfeeding. I would say it was worth it. I’m sure the real thing is not gonna be that easy but it’s better to learn the basics before dealing the real thing. I just hope and pray that it will work for me as well. There are tons of benefits of breastfeeding for the baby and me so I really hope everything will work out fine on my part.

I guess I could say I’m nesting. As my due date approaches, I feel the need to make sure everything in the house is ready when the little one arrives. I have this surge of energy that prompts me to do some cleaning. But I know I should take it easy for the last thing I would want is to exhaust myself or get hurt or the baby so I sought for hubby’s assistance. He was more than willing to help. We decided to do general cleaning one room each weekend. We did the bathroom first. I took care of the sink and the floor while hubby was in charge of the hard to reach areas and of course, scrubbing the bathtub. I’ve always hated the tedious task of bathtub scrubbing so being pregnant lets me off the hook. Hubby did a pretty good job getting all the scum and grime off. I was impressed with his work so I told him if I can hire him to clean the tub all the time, hehe, and he replied I already have and made sniffing sounds, lol! I wonder if hot tub covers used at spas would help minimize the accumulation of dirt and soap scum. We have a daily clean shower spray but we're not very good at using it everyday.

Expecting a baby can be one of the most exciting events in one’s life. There are so many things to look forward to and so many occasions to celebrate it with your little ones. One of the earliest special occasions to give to your baby is church baptism. I’ve been to a few in the past and I think it’s important to share this Christian celebration to your loved ones. Although the baby won’t remember any of it when they grow up, but there are always special photos, cute and lovely Baptism invitations, wonderful stories and happy memories that the parents could share with the little ones. Ironically, I don't have old photos of my baptism though. I think we lost all of them due to typhoons and moving from one place to another. Anyway, I'll just have to take my parents word for it, besides I have a good relationship with my godparents and I have my baptism certificate to prove that I was indeed baptized.

Drug addiction, sad to say, is quite common anywhere in the world. What might start out as a curiosity could lead into something grave and fatal. We’ve heard serious cases of substance abuse in rich and famous, local and international celebrities or even in just a typical teenager which happens to be a friend or a family member. Anyone could get stuck into this nightmarish predicament. Substance abuse can cause profound changes in brain and body chemistry, so sometimes an addicted person might find it physically overwhelming to withdraw. That’s when detox centers come into place. One of the priorities in recovery from addiction is to detoxify from toxic chemicals and their byproducts. If everything else seems to fail, seeking some professional help may be the only way out.