Preggo Dreams...

They say with all the extra hormones floating around in your body during pregnancy, you tend to have weird dreams.

Boy, are they right!

Though I'm sure the boost in hormones has a lot to do with the vivid dreams I've been having lately, another cause of all the strangeness is probably all the excitement and fear that us mamas feel about the changes that will soon come with having a baby to look after. On the months leading up to my wedding, I also woke up to some crazy dreams (i.e. Mathew and I got married at Brad Pitt's mansion but I left right after the ceremony because my mom and I wanted to go to a huge Macy's sale), so stress and anticipation are definitely other contributing factors.


Anyway, I thought it'd be fun to jot down all the weird pregnancy related dreams I've had and will probably have in the next few months... So I'll be updating this entry more frequently the closer we get to Baby's arrival:


- Matthew gives birth: For some reason, Matthew was the pregnant one and he went into labor. There were no doctors around, so I helped deliver the baby. When the baby came out, it was Matthew youngest sister, Miranda (as a baby, of course)!

- Baby is 3-inches long: Our baby was born and I love it so much (not sure of the baby's sex)! There's a party at our house, so I was showing our baby around to everyone, but it was only 3-inches long. It was probably only 3-inches long in my dream because at that point of my pregnancy it was only 3-inches long in my belly. Because it was so tiny, I could put the baby in my pocket instead of having to carry it around. However, at one point, I got distracted and forgot that I put the baby in a box in the closet (no idea why I did that) so I ran over to make sure it was all right. The baby was safe, but when I woke up, I was terrified! I am such a forgetful person, my biggest fear is forgetting about my baby....


- I'm a Baby Whisperer: Matthew and I had two toddlers -- a 3 year old girl, and an 18-month boy. The girl ran to Matthew while I picked up the boy who was very in love me. He was blonde with blue eyes and I was holding him while I was with family. I was somehow really good with the baby -- I knew how to carry him, how to comfort him, and he cried when he was with anyone else. In real life, I don't think I'm really great with kids. I didn't grow up with many of them around, and I don't think I've ever really properly held one, so it was really strange seeing me do so well with that little boy!

- Showering in a Public Location: I'm not sure why, but for some reason, in this dream I had to shower in the middle of a Costco, while there were other patrons who obviously could see me... naked and pregnant. But for some reason, I didn't mind and was actually very proud of my body. People weren't grossed out by me either and some just stood and watched. This dream was very strange to me because I have soooo many body insecurities that there would be no way in the world I would ever be comfortable being naked in front of all those people!


(To be continued as more strange dreams happen...)



This Warmed My Heart...

(Originally posted 1/19/11)

I saw this video the other day and cried a little. Perhaps it's the preggo hormones, but I thought this was the sweetest thing ever.

Kind of reminded me of the days my dad and I would sing together while I was a little girl.


I don't know if my future baby will share in my interest of singing and music, but just in case, I think I might try to learn how to play an instrument so I can do something like this in the future...

Week 17...

(Originally posted on 1/17/11)

New format for my weekly picture updates! The "Pictures" page was becoming too crowded with all the text and thumbnails, so I've decided to remove most of the words and instead create a blog entry for every new week! Exciting, right? Yeah, not really... Anyway, here we go!

How far along?: 17 weeks, 2 days

Baby's Size: about 5.6 inches (the size of a sweet potato), and 6.7 oz

Bellybutton: Still in!

Stretchmarks: None, but I know it's still early

Maternity Clothes: Still in "regular" clothes

Gender: No idea, 2.5 more weeks until we find out!

Movement: Trying to pay more attention to any 'quickening' feelings, but haven't felt anything in a few weeks

Sleep: A-OK! Sleeping most on my left side or on my tummy.

Symptoms: Energy is good, mild headaches every now and then, and morning sickness about every other meal. Also, no matter how I feel, every time I enter a public restroom, my body has been conditioned to throw up. I try not to use public bathrooms unless absolutely necessary.

Food Aversions: Salad seems yucky to me

Food Cravings: Oranges and grapes

What I miss: I miss eating sushi -- I can't wait to have a Rainbow roll in July!

What I am Looking forward to: Feeling Baby's first kicks!

Milestones:

Matthew and I are getting closer to narrowing down Baby's name... We are down to about 10 finalists (for each gender), but we probably won't reveal anything until we decide for sure.

Also, I told 2 more coworkers about my pregnancy. I'm not really planning on formally announcing it to everyone, but if the conversation comes up organically, I don't plan on hiding it. In this situation, my coworker noticed I was wearing flats (as opposed to the heels I usually wear) and commented on them. I had to explain that family has been getting on me for wearing heels during pregnancy, so I had to invest in some flat options.

Matthew, on the other hand, has told a total of 1 coworker. I guess guys don't really talk about babies much, huh?

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Since I didn't use this format prior to this week, here are the little snippits I wrote for the previous weeks:

Weeks: 8-11

Ok, so we missed a few weeks, but really my belly didn't change much the first few weeks


Week 12:

Then all of a sudden, a larger belly popped out of nowhere. All pregnancies are different, and usually women who were skinny to begin with don't start showing until week 15, but holy cow, look at me! I've had horrible morning sickness since week 5 and haven't been able to keep my food down, plus, the scale claims that I've lost some weight (from where, who knows!?) so that can't be from the food I'm consuming... are there triplets in there?!?!


Week 13:

I'm officially in my 2nd trimester now, but none of my first trimester symptoms have gone away completely...


Week 14:

Merry Christmas!!! Our baby's Christmas in utero was filled with lots of love and laughs!


Week 15:

Happy New Year!!! No better way to start off 2011 than with a Raider win! It's going to be a good year for sure :)


Week 16:

I think my morning sickness is coming to an end.. FINALLY! Did I mention that I felt "quickening" the other day?!?! Amazing...

If Filipino Superstitions Are True...

... then my baby will look like an orange.

I subscribe to the belief that superstitions are silly (sorry if I offended any superstitious people out there). Maybe it's because I grew up around uber paranoid relatives who truly believed in the things they were saying, and when I became old enough to do things on my own, I realized that some of the things I was taught to believe when I was younger were kind of ridiculous and rarely came true.
There are tons of webpages out there that list common supersitions, but here are some specific examples of the superstitions that my Filipino elders thrusted upon me while growing up:
- If your palm itches, you should buy a lottery ticket or go to the casino because this symbolizes good luck. (Personally, I think this was just an excuse concocted by my relatives to go to a casino! Ha!)
- Do not give shoes as a gift, or else the recipient will end up walking all over you. If you do give shoes as a present, the receiver must give you money in return (even a quarter will do) to reverse the bad luck
- Toss coins around your house on the day of your house warming to bring good luck and properity. (You should also do this at every new year)
- If you have a mole on your back, you are a lazy person (because you like to lay on your back)... Oh wait. I have a HUGE mole on my back and I actually AM lazy... maybe this one IS true!


Anyway, there's this one pregnancy superstition that my mom swears by -- the concept of "lihi". Lihi is basically the condition in which a pregnant woman craves strongly for something, usually food, but can also refer to pregnant women becoming especially fond of something/someone only during pregnancy.


The superstition attached with lihi is that the pregnant woman's offspring will closely resemble whatever its mother craved during pregnancy. When a child resembles an animal - for example, a monkey - it is said that during the gestational period, the mother enjoyed looking at that particular animal...


Interesting, right? Well... my mom said when she was going through lihi while pregnant with my brother, she loved jicamas, which is why my brother is so light-skinned. Disregard the fact that my mom is light-skinned... Ryan is only light because of the jicama - ha! My mom loved bing cherries when she was preggo with me, which explains why I am of a darker complexion, and maybe the fact that my face is round like a cherry!


My paternal grandmother while pregnant with my dad, continuously stared at her Jesus statue, so she believes that is the reason my dad's nose is pointy like Jesus', unlike some of his other siblings who have flatter and rounder noses. Oh - that's also why my dad has a cleft chin...

I don't believe in this superstition, but it is very intriguing to think about! Lately, I've been on an orange binge. I've eaten 3 oranges this morning alone, and everyday I have to have at LEAST one orange. (Side note: This kind of takes me back to freshman year of college when I was on a strict orange and spinach diet that I made up. I only at those two things for 3 months and lost a ton of weight.. which I gained back the moment I ate real food)


So... does this mean Baby will have orange skin? Or maybe he/she will have a round face like Mommy!


However, a few weeks ago, I was all over 2% Milk! I'd have 2-3 glasses of milk every night before going to bed... This is a huge deal for those who know me. I normally hate milk.

So, does this mean my baby will have a super round face like an orange, but white skin like milk!?! Doubt it...

But just in case, maybe I'll stare at some pictures of Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens for a while. Can't hurt, right?!

Am I Still Pregnant?

(Originally posted on 1/12/11)

Yay - after 10 weeks of non-stop morning sickness, I am happy to report that my nausea has ceased and I am finally able to enjoy food again!

*golf claps*


It's funny because a couple hours after I eat a meal, I sit in anticipation of the uneasy stomach feeling I've been accustomed to experiencing and prepare myself to rush to the restroom... but for the last few days nothing has happened! Baby is finally able to absorb all the vitamins and minerals from the cupcakes I've been ingesting... What? Cupcakes aren't nutritious? You mean I'm supposed to be eating vegetables and stuff?!?! Oh... OK... Duly noted for future meals.

But seriously, I'm happy this part is all over -- which means that sooner or later I am going to start feeling the baby kick and can start bonding with the baby in a different way...

So for now, my energy is back and my eating is back to normal (minus the deli meat, caffeine, sushi, caesar salad, and a bunch of other stuff I totally miss).

Aside from my ever-growing belly, I don't even feel pregnant anymore!!! It's frustrating actually because I'm at this weird stage where I don't look pregnant enough for people who don't already know to comment on my pregnancy in fear that they'll offend a non-preggo fatty, I don't have any of the first trimester symptoms anymore, and I haven't felt the baby move yet!!! To try to curb my craziness, I go to different baby store sites to start our registry, but then I can't add anything because we don't know the baby's sex (our appointment for that is on 2/4) so we can't pick the colors/themes for the items we plan on purchasing! I'm in a lose-lose situation here, people!


Sometimes I have this irrational fear that the baby somehow fell out and that's why I don't feel pregnant anymore... I am THIS close to calling my OB-GYN to schedule an ultrasound, but my logical side convinces me that I'm just being crazy and that I should just wait until my next appointment, which is on the 27th.

I don't like being patient. I have a lot of patience, but I hate using it.


OK - end of rant. I know my complaints are really silly and there are so much more important things to worry about in life. I'm sure in a month when the baby is kicking non-stop, climbing up my ribs, and causing me insane discomfort, I'll look back at this post and laugh at my naive little self....


For now, I'm just going to continue poking at my belly in hopes that it will elicit some sort of movement that I can feel... Wish me luck!

Boobie-do...

(Originally posted on 12/28/10)

Boobie-do: A woman whose stomach sticks out farther than her boobies do (via urban dictionary)

I am officially a boobie-do... and for the first time in my life, I can say that with pride!

Though I've always been on the heavier side, I have been blessed/cursed with an ample "rack", so achieving boobie-do status would require a lot of cheetos on my part.


For a while, I was really close to being a boobie-do pre-pregnancy, so I had to train myself to walk around with my gut sucked in constantly, while I tried to remediate the weight gain.


It is SUCH a relief not to have to worry about this anymore, though I must say it has been quite an adjustment learning to just let it all hang out...


The weirdest part of it all is that I haven't gained a single pound from this pregnancy so far! I've actually lost over 10 lbs (which none of you probably believe from the pictures.. but ask the doctor, it's true!). I know most of the weight loss has to do the morning sickness I've been experiencing (yes... I'm STILL running to the bathroom after meals) and I'm sure I'll be gaining all of it back soon enough, but what I'm wondering is why I seem to be getting lighter, when my belly is obviously getting larger! The doctors say baby is perfectly healthy, so I'm definitely not going to complain. (I've read articles about other women losing 40 lbs during their pregnancy -- sign me up for that, please!)


Anyway, the point I'm making is that I am super happy to embrace my boobie-do, as it's a constant reminder that baby is growing and is that much closer to entering this crazy world of ours.

We *think* it's a...

(Originally posted on 12/17/10)

Kudos to all of you out there who have the patience and self-control to wait until the baby is born to find out the baby's sex...



Unfortunately, Matthew and I are not patient and are dying to find out what we're having. Not that it would matter... we would love to have either and eventually hope to have at least one of each in the future. However, it would be really awesome to know if it's a boy or a girl so we can stop referring to baby as "it" and use an actual pronoun... AND so we can start buying lots of cute blue or pink clothing and painting/designing the nursery! Plus, we're having the toughest time figuring out names for this baby, and not knowing the gender makes it doubly hard since we can't seem to agree on a name for either one!


Enter, the Intelligender - Gender Prediction test:

For $29.99, you can get this over the counter test that claims to be 80% accurate in predicting your baby's gender once you're at least 10 weeks pregnant. Basically, you mix your morning urine with these chemicals that comes with the kit and wait 5 minutes. If the mixture turns a dark green, you're having a boy. If the mixture turns orange, then you're having a girl. If you go to the official website, the test was featured on a bunch of shows and seems pretty legit.


I was a little skeptical, too, but I didn't think it would hurt to do the test anyway. I promised myself that I wouldn't get emotionally invested in the results should they prove to be wrong later on... and I wouldn't start buying gender specific baby items until we get the official word from our doctor at 20 weeks.


I bought the test on Christmas Eve and did it on Christmas morning...

Wanna see the results?!?

Looks pretty green to me and totally matches the Boy label versus the Girl label!


So, according to Intelligender, we are having a BOY!!!!!


Man, I wish I knew whether this test was really accurate! I am THIS tempted to buy another test to have one of my preggo friends who knows their baby's sex test it out for themselves...


But for now, I think I'll just bask in the thought of having a mini-Matthew in my arms in a few short months :)