When the Lord writes your birth plan

Towards the last trimester of my pregnancy, I have read that it is essential for me to write my own birth plan that I could discuss with my OB. Contrary to planning for an event, writing a birth plan is definitely a technical task for me since I really don't have a medical background. But according to BabyCenter.com, although I can't control every aspect of my labor and delivery, writing a birth plan is more like writing a wishlist on how you want your baby's birthday to be handled. Since I was having a pretty cool pregnancy, yet low pain tolerance, my delivery wishes are clear: Normal Delivery with the use of Epidural for pain management, and more importantly, I want to be awake when my little one comes out. I have discussed these things with my OB and I'm glad she supported it. She wrote these carefully into my admitting order slip, in case I need to take that trip to the ER.

On Tuesday, December 3, although I was not having regular contractions, I had this feeling that Matt will come out anytime real soon, so I made sure my hospital bags are all set. True enough, when I woke up from an afternoon nap that day, I had this feeling that my water bag might have ruptured already. I waited for about 2 hours to see if the leaking persists, and it did! Finally at 5:00 PM, I informed Papa and Lloyd that I want to be brought to the hospital. In case this is false alarm, at least I won't have any regret. 

We arrived at the Emergency Room of Marian Hospital at around 6:15 PM. After informing the nurses and resident doctor on duty about my situation, an internal exam was done and I was just at 1cm dilation. The doctor-on-duty called on my OB, and my OB instructed that I should be admitted right then! My labor would have to be induced since Matt would have to be delivered within the next 12 hours, or before I run out of amniotic fluid. If induction would give good results, we could go ahead with my birth plan. Otherwise, I'd have to give birth under Ceasarian Section. Oh, big word!

After accomplishing the hospital papers, I was brought to the Labor Room to start the process. They hooked up a Fetal Heart Rate monitor on my tummy to monitor the contractions and baby's heart rate.  My stay at the Labor room were the longest and most painful hours I'd have to wait. That was also the time I prayed the hardest.  I'm thankful that most of the nurses who assisted me were Singles For Christ members, I know that I am assisted with utmost care and concern. Jeff, one of the nurses, even joked "pray-over na ba natin si Ate Mei?" hehe. I'm also glad they allowed Lloyd, Mama and Nanay Mila to come inside the labor room to have a few minutes with me. Their words of encouragement were the things I needed first. 

At around past 10 PM, one of the nurses injected a pain reliever into the dextrose, and informed me that I will be dizzy with that. And I did! Since then, I have been asleep until Matt came out, except for several times they woke me up.

Around 12:00 MN, Dra Altea, my OB, woke me up. Lloyd was also there. She informed me that I finally have to go CS, since my labor has not improved for the past 4 hours. After inducing me with oxytocin since 8pm, I'm still at 2-3cm dilation. They have also detected that Matt's heart rate has gone irregular, that he may be distressed, and that we wouldn't want this to persist. Since Lloyd was already informed and has agreed, I put my trust on my doctor. 

They woke me up again to let me know they are about to start the operation. I was brought to the Operating room. I checked the wall clock in the room, it was 1:00 AM. The anesthesiologist introduced himself, discussed with me the process, and gave me instructions. They then had me lie down on my left side so they could inject epidural. I'm very, very thankful that Lyeo, Lloyd's brother was there the entire time (and yes, with complete documentation of the event, video included). He held my hand while I was enduring pain, and that helped me a lot! After the anesthesia thing, I was down and asleep again. The next thing I knew, my little prince charming is already beside me! He's out at 2:30 AM of December 4, 2013.

Out! time check: 2:30!

first kiss!

Things may have not turned out the way they were planned, but I know that it is the Lord who moved entirely. I'm grateful that He blessed the medical staff with wisdom to carry out everything successfully.  The umbilical cord was coiled into his neck twice, thus causing him the distress while I was in labor. What's more, I was already out of the hospital when I learned that Matt pooped right after he was brought out of my tummy. Could we have been a little late, Matt may have eaten that dirt and may have caused serious infection. We're blessed that he was allowed to be roomed-in a few hours after delivery, and that we were discharged 3 days after. 

What am I most thankful for? I couldn't thank the Lord enough for Matt's good health. We now have the results of his newborn screening, and everything's A-OK! He is getting stronger every single day, and I just looove every second of being with him. 

My new boss!

The Big Day will soon be here!

The third trimester page from my Anmum mother's book

Hello 3rd trimester! I'm down to my last 3 months of this joyful journey and will soon unfold the Lord's wonderful gift for me, my husband and our family. 

My baby boy has been moving A LOT, which I am really happy about, though it could be painful at the same time. But hey, these pains are worth enduring as long as I know baby's alive and kickin' (well yeah, literally) down there in my tummy. My feet are now growing bigger, a state which books call "edema", or "manas" in Filipino layman's term. But yesterday, I just saw my OB for my monthly check-up, and she confirmed that everything's normal with my BP, weight gain and lab tests. Baby and I are healthy and I got a "very good" thumbs up from Doc. Weeee.

I know that the next 11 weeks, or could be less, will be crazier and busier too. We got a few weeks to prepare the nursery and the baby stuffs (I'm thankful I can have some of my nephew Amiel's stuffs). And I still have to prepare my endorsements at work before my much awaited two-month leave. And I bet there'll be a looot of baby kicks and jabs along the way. 

But all in all, I'm joyful. I have never been this joyful my entire life. My officemate once commented "I'm sure you'll have a happy baby. Ibang iba yung tawa mo ngayon eh. buong-buo!". I'm thankful that my husband has played a big part in making my pregnancy a happy stage (for those who know how a comedian he is, you know what I mean). I'm sure he'll be a good dad, too. 

And as an advanced birthday gift to my baby's dad, my husband (it's his birthday tomorrow), thank you for taking care of me throughout this journey. I appreciate you coming me with on my monthly check-ups, and even giving me a foot massage after long walks. Thank you for preparing me healthy meals, and for bringing home my favorite Jollibee spaghetti when I craved for it. I may not have a birthday gift for you, but here, in my tummy, is the best gift we have received. Are you ready to share more sleepless nights with me? Let's do this! 

So, what shall we name you, little boy? It's a secret for now, as we're still praying for it. More important than your name, I pray that everything will be healthy and normal for both of us, dear. In Jesus' Name, I claim things will be OK.

Oh, Boy!

While in the Ultrasound room,

Doc: Ano po ba gusto nila?

Me: Girl po.

(The doc gave me a sheepish smile)

Me: Syempre gusto ng husband ko, boy.

Doc (in a very calm tone): Ahhh. Boy po ah.

The bottom left pic shows the "pututoy ni baby boy" :)

I was all smiles while looking at the ultrasound monitor, seeing his head, his tiny heart beating like crazy, and most of all, his "pututoy." :) I wanted to touch him, but that would just have to wait. Although I wanted a girl, I'm blessed to have a boy as my eldest. I believed that's just ideal. Ahh, my joy just can't be contained. :) :) :)

Hello, utoy! You are mom and dad's joy and love. Can't wait to see you on December!

Patiently waiting....

"Utoy ka ba o Ineng?!"

I keep asking this question whenever I rub my tummy. And everyone asks the same, too. Officemates, friends, my in-laws, almost everyone I bump into, would ask me, "alam mo na 'yung gender?!"

I'm now on my 22nd week, and during my check-up two weeks ago, my OB said I can actually have my ultrasound already. But just to be sure, we should wait until my next check-up, when I'm on my 6th month mark. Ang tagal naman!!!

There are just a lot of things I want to start doing now, but I just can't since we don't know the gender yet. I want to plan how our room will look like, to shop for baby stuffs, and of course, to give him/her a name! For now, we just call him/her, "Baby", or "Utoy" or "ineng", but wouldn't it be nice to finally call him/her with a name he'll/she'll live with forever?

But I guess, this goes with the joy of pregnancy. You patiently wait and wait, for weeks and for months. You prepare yourself, and your baby, to be healthy and normal. This is by far the most joyful anticipation I've ever had. Each day, I would wake up to baby's kicking and movements, and I just couldn't help but smile (kahit na nagigising ako in the wee hours of the night due to baby's kicks). Isn't it amazing how a miracle is actually happening inside your body?

People say, mas blooming ako ngayon, so baka daw lalaki. Others say that it might be a girl kasi hindi ako manas. I wanted to believe them (I want a girl, by the way. and Lloyd wants a boy), but I didn't want to expect too much too. I'd always say, "kahit ano po Lord, basta normal."

For now, I get myself busy with reading pregnancy and birth stories. I have also installed pregnancy apps in Lloyd's mobile phone, so we both know how we are progressing (I also let him read the daily updates so he's informed). Nakakakaba pala magbuntis and nakakatakot especially when thinking about giving birth, but I know that something really really beautiful is coming our way in a few months time. We just have to take utmost care, be joyful and prayerful, and be patient, and be patient, and lastly, be patient. :)

Will you be a makulit na bugoy? Or a kikay na prinsesa? Kahit ano baby, kasi love na love ka namin ni daddy. :)

So here's my baby bump pic on my 20th week. boink! :)

You are the perfect gift!

I just turned 26 recently. Wow, I'm already 26, yet baby na baby pa rin ako ng parents ko. 

I'm 26 and in love. Happily in love. 

I'm blessed, overwhelmingly blessed. Last ILC I attended, God affirmed me that He is bigger than all my plans and fears. 

Before I turned 26, I had a crazy birthday wish: A ring. An engagement ring. I know I didn't need one because Lloyd and I will get married anyway, but I just drooled for one. Or maybe I wanted a concrete proof of our love for each other. 

Wish granted

 A few days before my birthday, I unwrapped an advance birthday gift. We found out that I'm already carrying a little one inside me. I tried on a home pregnancy test one morning, and it gave me a "positive" result. Inside me is a concrete proof of our love. We are a family now! I called Lloyd at once, we both trembled with fear. But we're both happy and excited. We both know this is untimely. We originally set the wedding for next year because we didn't have that much savings yet. Now, this! We agreed to let our families know on my birthday. We have a family outing on April 20, and we thought this news might ruin the fun, so we decided to hold it until the 21st. 

So came the family outing. Both our families are there. We enjoyed the entire day, and I really felt this is the most special birthday I've ever had. Amidst the fun, I prayed and thought how will they react when they find out that we'll soon have an addition to the family. Will they get mad at us, because the baby is outside the wedding vows? Or will they be excited for another "bugoy"? 

Accepted

We separately let our parents know. For Lloyd, it was easy, 'cause this is the first apo, if ever. But it was tough for me. Being the unica hija/bunso, you understand why. Lloyd's parents, as soon as they knew, really got excited. They immediately decided to go to our place so we can discuss this. Meanwhile, my mom took it lightly. She just said, "ah, ok! Ok lang!" I bet it was tough for my dad, because I have always been the Papa's girl. But nevertheless, he's excited, too. 

So my birthday was celebrated with an instant pamamanhikan. I just admired how Lloyd did all the talking all throughout. Nanginginig, but humble, straightforward, and he just showed that we wanted this and we do not regret this.  Define kilig, plus joy, plus excitement! Wow! We knew we've always dreamed of this, and now here it is. 

First encounter

I guess it goes along with the pregnancy that I could really be emotionally stressed. Fears and worries are trying to eat me. But two days ago, I had my first check-up, and my first ultrasound. While waiting for my turn, I kept talking to myself "babe, are you still there? hold on tight, ok? Mommy and Daddy love you!" So to relieve me from my fears, I was allowed to listen to the baby's heartbeat. OH IT'S SOOO AMAZING I SWEAR! I couldn't help but cry right there. This is just sooo sweet. 

there you are!

The wedding preparations are now on. Though pressed with time and budget constraints, we're excited. We just got another big reason to really strive hard at work. And this also taught me to take care of myself more. I'm thankful how everyone in the family is taking good care of me. And I'm sure everyone is so excited and would love to see you, little one, soon, in December. :) 

Just one favor, please? After you read this, can you please pray for me and for my little one? So we'll both be healthy until the time we see each other? Salamat ng madami! :)