Who's your favorite movie couple?

Posted by The Queen | Labels: , , , | Posted On Thursday, December 2, 2010 at 12:09 PM

Babysickness

Posted by The Queen | Labels: , , | Posted On Friday, December 11, 2009 at 6:06 PM




Okay, separation anxiety is the proper term. But whatever you want to call it, the feeling is getting worse by the day.



As I was dancing and singing for Paolo just now, I realized I won't be able to do much of that anymore once my maternity leave is up. I am seriously going to miss my baby. It hurts so much just thinking about it.



I was the only one there when Paolo first smiled. It was the day after he was born. He was so tiny! I was trying to nurse him, telling him about the days when he was still inside my tummy. He was sleeping then but he smiled. It was the most precious smile I've ever been blessed to see on anybody.



I was also there when he first lifted his head. When he first tried to roll over (and almost succeeded!). When he first tried to communicate. When he first laughed.



I've seen many of Paolo's firsts. And as he grows older, there are going to be many more. It pains me to accept the reality that I may not be there when he says his first words (I'm trying to make him say "love you"), when his first tooth starts to show, when he crawls for the first time, when he takes his first step.



It's a huge sacrifice all working moms have to make for their loved ones. So on behalf of my fellow working moms, WE ROCK!

The Green Door

Posted by The Queen | Labels: , , , , | Posted On Monday, November 9, 2009 at 2:21 PM



My husband’s already shared his experience outside the delivery room. Here’s what happened to me inside.
--
“There’s blood in my underwear again. We have to go,” I told my reluctant husband. I couldn’t blame him. It had only been three days since we’d rushed to the hospital only to be told it was a false alarm.

But a husband’s got to do what a husband’s got to do and so he gave in to my request. An hour later, I was back in the labor room.

“Do you feel pain besides what you feel in your lower abdomen? Masakit ba yung likod mo at balakang?” a resident doctor asked me.

“No,” I answered. “Medyo masakit lang ang puson ko.”

“For you to be in active labor, you need to feel those symptoms,” she told me. I was disheartened. Even more so when she told me my cervix was still 3 cm dilated, the same as it was when we had the false alarm. (It has to be 10 cm for the baby to come out.)

My OB wasn’t in yet so the resident doctors advised me to walk around the room while we were waiting. By noon, my OB arrived and gave me an internal exam—and these beautiful words:

“Maganda ang dilation ng cervix mo. Four cm ka na. Mataas lang siguro threshold mo for pain that’s why you don’t feel much pain yet. Would you like to be admitted?”

Yes, yes, yes! Baby ko, I’m going to meet you in a few! Woohoo!!!

Moments later I was no longer rejoicing. Once I entered into active labor I could no longer say much besides “Aaaargh!” “Ang sakit sakit po!” “Tama na po!” It was pain like I’ve never experienced before. I’ve always had really bad dysmenorrhea, but labor was a million times worse. It was like my lower abdomen was breaking. Like it was being torn apart from different directions. Like a freshly stitched, really, really big wound was being punctured—slowly and repeatedly.

After almost three hours of intense pain, I was given another internal exam to check how much more my cervix had dilated. “One,” said the doctor. “Two… three… four… five… six… table!”

I was relieved; the pain would be over soon.

I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Once I was in the delivery room, the pain got even more intense. “Ang sakit sakit!” “Where is the anesthesiologist? Gusto ko na magpa-injection!” “Tama na, please!” “I-Caesarean section niyo na po ako!” I screamed and screamed and screamed. But since my cervix was dilating properly, performing a C-section wouldn’t have been the ethical thing to do. And administering an epidural would’ve made pushing even harder because the pain would serve as the signal for me to push.

“Mommy, relax ka lang. You can do this!” I was told.

“It’s. Not. Easy,” I tried to say calmly. And then my loudest and most agonizing scream—

“AYOKO NA!!!!!”

A few minutes later, my cervix dilated fully at 10 cm and I was told to start pushing on cue. “Okay, Mommy, inhale, hold your breath, then push! One, two… ten, exhale. Again!”

At first I kept doing it wrong. “Mommy, wag kang i-ire through your mouth. Sa pwet dapat ang pwersa, parang pag constipated ka. Or imagine you’re doing sit-ups,” they advised me.

After about three or four tries, I finally got it right. And after the fourth push, I felt something big coming out of me. Then I heard my son cry.

“Baby,” I cried. And then I was out.
--
I first saw my baby about four hours after I gave birth to him. My heart was bursting with so much love. What labor pains? I’d go through all the pain in the world over and over again for my son. Was it love at first sight? I wouldn’t say so. I didn’t need to see my baby for me to start loving him. I’ve loved him from the moment my pregnancy test turned positive. It’s amazing how the more people you welcome into your family, the more love you have in your heart.


The Real Ruler of Blogdom

Posted by The Queen | Labels: , | Posted On Friday, November 6, 2009 at 10:29 PM


You may have heard of the ruler of blogdom, written by someone who calls himself "The Blog King." Well, that's my husband. Ergo, I am the real ruler of blogdom.