Busy Monday

It was such a busy day!

We went to up town this morning. We took a jeepney on our way to Gaisano Main. Xomi liked the ride. She got to see different people. She was particularly interested in people passing the fare to the driver! It was something new to her.

I bought some more tulle for the new tutu I'm making for Xomi. Jep and I agreed that a one-color tutu is more attractive than the multi-colored one I made.

I also bought different sizes and colors of satin ribbon, new pjs for Xomi, some pretty toys for the prizes for Xomi's birthday party games, and more! I don't want to recheck the receipt; I'm sure I bought more!

While Xomi was taking her afternoon nap, Jep and I were busy preparing the props for our make-shift studio!

Jep was cutting out the figure 1 from the illustration board and covering the number with a carnation pink construction paper while I was inflating the balloons and tying it up on the stick.

I prepared Xomi's clothes. We only thought of the concept for Xomi's birthday tarpaulin last night. Good thing we bought her a crocheted hat yesterday. I was putting a pink flower on the hat last night when Jep suggested that a crocheted flower would look best with the crocheted hat. I maybe artistic and good at crafts, but crocheting is simply out of my artistic capacity.

I gave the living room a glance and voila! I saw Janice's crocheted table center piece. I could turn that into a flower for Xomi's hat!

When Xomi woke up from her nap, we set up the make-shift studio and got her dressed! It took us a while to let Xomi sit on a blanket full of confetti. She must be thinking it was dirty, “why on earthy I was forcing her to sit on it”! hahaha

But nonetheless, we get to achieve what we were conceptualizing. The photos turned out to be great!

Home Alone

Xomi is now in my mother's house. I get updates every now and then as to what my little girl is doing. She's taking her afternoon nap now.

Jep's in Ayala with the family to do the grocery. And he left his phone. He forgets to charge the battery of his phone. Around dawn, I must've heard its warning beep indicating a low battery.But I only realize it now that it was his phone.

I'm home and working. I went out and grabbed the box of Van Houten's whole almonds coated with chocolate. This is starting to be addictive!

An hour earlier, I was browsing Flickr for photo ideas for Xomi's tarp when I saw some inspiration. I called Jep and showed it to him. We've always like Florabella's texture

Now, I remembered why we didn't have it. It was expensive! And the photos I was viewing weren't just edited using Florabella's texture. I was actually looking at the photos of the owner of Florabella.

Her photos are fantastic! I soooooo love it! It’s extremely inspiring! She perfectly defines “photography” in her photos! 

Sundays

Waking up on the wrong side of the bed is one of the oldest cliché, and the most appropriate to describe my current state.

Xomi spends Sundays at my mother's house. I told Jep to wake me up at 9am, so we can drop off Xomi at my mother's place.

I woke up at 10 a.m., and Xomi was already taking a nap!

I would be thrilled at Jep's intention of letting me sleep in some other day. I just couldn't bring myself to be grateful now. I'm extremely irritated. My mother must be sulking that she started her day early, so she could accomplish her honey-do list and spend time with Xomi.

I woke up with 3 missed calls from her and a number of SMS looking for her granddaughter. I understand how she hurried off to the market and sprinted just to finish everything off. Only to learn that Xomi would be at her house in time for lunch! We stole a few hours of her time with her granddaughter. She’s not pleased at all.   

I’m waiting for Xomi to wake up from her morning nap.

Chocolate-Coated Almond

It's weekend! Ideally, weekend means end of work week. In a perfect world it is. But in a real world setting, it's just another working day!

I could't figure out if I spent more time editing posts (work) or editing Xomi's birthday-related stuff in Photoshop.

As per Janice's request, I uploaded Xomi's photos in Facebook. I'm up-to-date with the uploads, or am I? I might have a few photos I have't transferred to the pc from the camera.

It's past midnight. I think I've accomplished a lot today. I deserve a break! Hmmm Van Houten Almond Chocolates and Gossip Girl! I can't remember which episode I've seen last.

Unlike my husband, I don't have a sweet tooth, and chocolate is something I can live without, but I love nibbling this chocolate-coated almond!

Random Updates

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I'm not really big on TV. In the same manner, I don't want my daughter to be a sofa spud. I don't let her watch TV because it's not interactive, and it never captured her interest.

Jep was putting Xomi to sleep and The Backyardigans was playing on the tube. Xomi was dancing with the Backyardigans!

The following day, I let her watch a portion of The Backyardigans from my netbook. To my surprise, she was really watching it and sways as the Backyardigans sings!

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Xomi has a new trick! When you ask her if she poops, she'll make a sound like she's pooping! I was thinking she was actually pooping, but it is one of her newest tricks!

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Jep finished the invite for Xomi's birthday! He just has to download a Photoshop strawberry brush for the invite's background.

The invite Jep made is pinkishly amazing! It's “berry” beautiful. I love it. I wish I could post it here, but I'm sure he wouldn't like the idea of posting his unfinished project.

I can't wait to start sending and giving out the invite! Oh stwobewi!

It's a Girl Thing

When I woke up this morning, Mama told me we were going to the pedia for Xomi's ear piercing. I was sure Mama didn't want to put it off it any longer, fearing Jep would change his mind about the whole thing. She wouldn't risk it, sensing Jep's hesitation yesterday.

I didn't have the time to eat breakfast nor take a shower. Xomi and I changed clothes, and we were all set for the big event!

Despite the rain, we went to the pedia's clinic. To my surprise, there were no patients. The rain must have kept the patients home.

Xomi was babbling as always, my bubbly-curly baby.

Good thing Jep was at work and didn't witness how her little princess screamed and cried from being restrained. Had he accompanied us to the clinic, we'd end up going home without accomplishing the long awaited "pointless cosmetic procedure."

Papa was holding Xomi's arms; the secretary was holding Xomi's face. Xomi was kicking her pedia, so I had to hold her legs to keep her from kicking. And that made her angrier!

In the middle of the procedure Jep called. The pedia said not to let the daddy hear Xomi crying, we might not get the whole thing done. She was aware how adamant Jep was about Xomi’s ears getting pierced.

More than anything else, Xomi hated being restrained. After the gun pierced her earlobes, and we let go of her, she stopped crying at once.

It was a simple procedure, and we got it all done without a hitch! I know what other parents who are dead set against infant ear piercing would say; it's all about the parents' vanity.

But hey, this wasn't my idea in the first place. I couldn't say I wasn't please with the outcome though.

Lunch!

At past midnight, I got an SMS from my very good friend Poxy. She was asking if I was still up, and If I wanted to go out and grab something to eat.

I wasn't hungry, but I wanted to go out. I miss Poxy and Magz's company. And I miss hanging out with them. I miss having lunch with these two girls at dawn! A BPO terminology--lunch at whatever time of the day! Lunch at 6 a.m., 9 a.m., 2 p.m., 9 p.m., 1 a.m., 3 a.m. Practically, anytime of the day!

So, I pulled my old blue jeans on, tied my hair and waited for their call. We went to AA's in Lahug and had a full meal at 1 in the morning!

As always, I had a great time. I had to get home before Jep headed for work; I took his keys. It was drizzling when they dropped me off. I called Jep to pick me up at the gate.

It's past 2 a.m. I have to get back to proofreading, time to edit posts. I don't know how long I can keep my eyes open. 5 a.m.? We'll see about that.

My Sociable Xomi

Xomi is very sociable. She likes being with people. She always says “hi” or wave “hello” to people in the elevator; she always tries to strike a conversation with other babies/kids. Conversation-slash-babble in her own cute ways.

But being sociable has its downside. We have visitors in the house tonight. She's very sleepy, but she’s fighting it off. It‘s past her bedtime!  She was wailing when we tried to put her to sleep in the bedroom. She wanted to be where the action is. She enjoys seeing people, listening to their conversation, and she loves the attention!

She only slept when all the guests left. She dozed off at almost 10 in the evening! Having a child with a well-developed social skill has its disadvantages.

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Xomi can turn the AC on in in the other room!

Eleven

Xomi turns 11 months today! We have a monthly celebration every 27th. She blew the candle on her 11th cake. She learned to blow a candle before she turned 10 months.

She touched the sparkling wick of the candle on top of the cake, and her eyes lit up. The reaction on her face was surprise rather than hurt. She didn't cry after touching the candle. The heat must've caught her by surprise! My brave little girl.

We bought her a balloon. And she loved it! She kept on smiling while she was holding the balloon stick the whole time we were in the mall!

My fanged-angel, you make mommy the happiest with your most beautiful toothy smile and amazing antics!

Happy 11 months!

Xomi Almost Had Her Ear Pierced Today!

Since Xomi was a month old, Mama keeps on insisting to have Xomi's ears pierced. Jep didn't want to subject Xomi with the unnecessary pain.

He couldn't even stand watching Xomi flinch on her vaccinations how much more for ear piercing which for him is a pointless cosmetic procedure. Xomi proved to have a high tolerance for pain. Maybe a level higher than her dads!

No matter how much Mama insists on her plea, Jep's conviction never changed. He even got Papa's support against having Xomi's ear pierced. They both agreed that ear piercing is simply not a choice as of yet. Xomi had a habit of grabbing her ears when she's cranky.

But Mama never gave up. Every time she saw a baby with earrings on their earlobes, she'll go ranting about Xomi's dad not allowing the procedure and how Xomi can be mistaken for a boy. Jep doesn’t care. He’d always say beauty has nothing to do with accessories. With or without jewels on her ears, Xomi is always beautiful.

I had my ear pierced when I was 4 or 5 years old. I'm not exactly pro ear piercing for infants nor against it. I just don't mind. And I support my husband's decision.

As a birthday gift to Mama, Jep granted his permission to have Xomi’s ear pierced! Today, Jep came home early. He's having second thoughts about the ear piercing thing. He couldn't stand the thought of Xomi getting hurt.

It's been raining since I woke up. Mama postponed our trip to the pedia for Xomi's ear piercing activity. It would have been nice to have Xomi’s ear pierced today, her 11^th month. But I guess, the heavens heard her daddy’s silent prayers.

I doubt if Jep won't change his mind about the whole thing tomorrow. I'm sure he can find some more excuses postponing it.

Birthdays

I'm extremely tired. I slept at past 4 in the morning, and I woke up at 8.30 when I heard Xomi started crying while Papa was trying to put her to sleep.

I was sure she wanted to play. I went out to check on her then she started crying and calling mom when she saw me going back to the room.

I took her in the room, and let her play. Moments later, Jep came home. I was intending to go back to sleep, but I have to update Xomi's birthday checklist and finalize a few things. I also exchange email with the event coordinator for some updates.

We had lunch at SM for Mama Lilia and Lola Cita's birthday. We then met Poxy and Rica in Ayala. We stayed in Ayala the entire afternoon. We were checking out some stuff while waiting for Poxy's phone being serviced in one of the cell shops. Poxy had to leave for her 3p.m. shift.

I wanted to log at least 5hours of proofreading tonight. But after dinner, I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer. I lay down with Jep and instantaneously drift off to lalaland. When I woke up, it's past 10 p.m., and all the visitors were gone!

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I bought Xomi a new book today. We were in Toy Kingdom, and I gave her a book to see if liked it. She won't let go of the book. It's a book of sounds. I ended up buying it for her.

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I taught Xomi the concept of hugging. She started hugging her favorite stuffed animal. And I started transitioning the hug to people. She started hugging me when I ask her to hug mom. This afternoon, I told her to hug Daidy, and she gives Daidy a tight hug. Dad was super ecstatic!

Tuesdays and Floodwaters!

Xomi and I woke up this morning at half past six. I'm not used to waking up early. I usually sleep at 2 - 3 a.m. I have to work while the pretty-fanged-baby is asleep. My eyes were half-closed while feeding Xomi her Raferty's dry cereals. And good thing, she likes her new food. New to her taste buds.

After her bath, we played and watched the heavy rain pouring outside. The thunder roared loudly but Xomi didn't cringe or get scared at all. She just looked at me, and I gave her a smile. We took a nap while the rain continued to pour.

We woke up to pick up Daidy who got stuck in the road. It was flooding everywhere. We picked him up somewhere in Radisson Blu. The flood was knee-high somewhere in SM. We went to the port to pick Mama Lilia up. It was no longer raining; in fact the sun was scorching.

On our way home, the water somewhere in the SM area rose! It was waist-level! There were several vehicles which are stranded because of the flash floods. That was the first time I witnessed an aftermath of the rain in that degree! I can't remember a flood similar to that one. It only rained for less than 2 hours, and the gravity of it was immensely destructive.

We couldn't go home because of traffic. We ended up going to Park Mall for lunch. I was on my pjs, and Xomi was fabulous as always. I could easily pass as her nanny. I was holding Jep's hand while he carried Xomi to give people some notion that I was otherwise.

It was almost 3 in the afternoon, and we left home before 11 a.m. I didn't bring Xomi's survival kit; I was thinking we would only be gone for a maximum of an hour! We decided to leave the mall before Xomi started crying for milk. In the car, she was started getting cranky. We all knew it was time for milk; I ended up giving her something to nibble - siakoy!

The trip home took us 30 minutes, and before we got to the compound's gate, she already dozed off. The first thing I did before anything else was to prepare her milk.

Lesson learned: Never leave home on your pjs, even if you never intended to go out of the car. You’ll never know when’s the next flood/traffic will take you.

Finally!

We went to Xomi's pediatric endocrinologist, and she was finally discharged from the clinic. Her thyroid gland is functioning well. No traces of hypothyroidism. Xomi is developing really well! No more painful blood extraction every now and then!


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A friend told me about Raferty's and Promina. From the pedia's clinic, we went straight to Fooda and got Xomi her supplies. I want to give Xomi some variety with her food since it's starting to be a struggle to feed her.

For the past 4 months, I've been looking for a teething cookie for xomi, and today I finally found one! We bought Xomi her first real teething biscuit as a treat for being discharged from the clinic!  

And guess what? She loves it!

Sunday Date Night

Jep and I established that Sunday is a movie date night. We pick out a movie to watch online.

Last Sunday, he was too sleepy to watch a movie. I didn't force him; Xomi was sick, and that was understandable. We just took the much needed rest.

Tonight, while I was finishing up something while buffering the movie, I heard him snoring! I was tempted to sleep, but I wanted to do something with my time. I opened the fridge, put some M&M's on a bowl, and sat in front of my netbook and watch The Social Network.

The movie was superb, and I love the humor!

It would have been lovely if we watched it together!

Friday!

It's Friday, and Xomi is rash free! 

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Xomi went out with her grandparents for some errands to Ayala. Jep went to SM for a haircut. I was too lazy to do anything. I was working, burning posts. The bed was beckoning me for an afternoon nap. But I wanted to go to the mall to buy something for Xomi. 

I turned off my netbook and took a quick shower. Then I headed to SM. We bought something for Xomi (a pricey dress), and Jep and I ended up eating cheap. But the food was good! We could take the cab home, but many people were lining up for a cab. All the route home were full. We took a PUJ to North Terminal, intending to get another ride home. It would take us forever if we wait for a jeepney, so we ended up walking home. 

We were holding hands and talking. And we were just thinking that it was an evening walk in the park. It was fun despite the dust my hair and face accumulated. It didn't matter. We enjoyed the walk and the conversation.

Thank You, God!

Xomi had elevated TSH when her newborn screening result came out. We were all pretty shaken when we received the initial call from the hospital informing us about the newborn screening result. Hypothyroidism can lead to mental and growth retardation if untreated.

I have hyperthyroidism, and I was on medication half the time I was pregnant with Xomi. I was given the mildest and safest medication there is to keep my thyroid function normal during my pregnancy.

I knew deep within me that everything was perfectly fine with my daughter. She's an answered prayer. She's a proof of God's faithfulness in our lives. It was just the medication I took that temporarily suppressed her thyroid function.

We had her rescreened and consulted a pediatric endocrinologist, the only in Cebu. The rescreening result came out fine, and her thyroid levels are within the normal range. She was tested for FT4 and TSH at 7 days old. She was very fragile and innocent to be subjected to needles and blood extraction. It broke my heart seeing her in pain, hearing her cry. Her sobs and shriek were daggers in my heart. Again, the result came out fine.

At 2 months, she went through another round of needle pricking and blood extraction. It was like thousands of daggers stabbing my heart throughout the whole ordeal. At 6 months, she had another lab test to check her FT4 and TSH levels. This time, she was starting to understand cause and effect. She felt we betrayed her. After her blood extraction, she wouldn't smile to any of us. She was sulking. Without the slightest doubt in my mind, all her tests came normal.

But the endo wouldn't discharge her yet. He wanted to have her tested on her 10th month. This time, it was more difficult since Xomi is very active and hates being restrained. She cried more from being restrained than when the senior med tech inserted the needle in her veins. We learned to always ask for a senior med tech when we had her lab test.

Jep and I were having palpitations before and during the lab test. We knew it would be difficult. We knew it would hurt us seeing her cry and experience pain. I was fervently praying that it would be the last.

Tonight, I checked her results online, and everything is within the normal range! No more tourniquet and needles, no more restraining! Thank you, God!

Rash After-Three-Day Fever

When Xomi's fever broke off, pinkish-red rashes started coming out of her body. It started on her belly, her trunk, back, neck, and today it's all over her face!

Xomi's ped informed us that if it's roseola, when the fever subsides, a measle-like rash will come out. But the moment I saw Xomi's rashes, I couldn't help not to panic, even if we were forewarned about this.

Poor little girl, her pretty face is covered with the rash. Roseola is not supposed to be itchy, but she woke up in the middle of her sleep scratching and started crying.

Today, the rashes are fading. Soon enough, you’ll get back to your rash-free skin, and we can start your pictorial for your birthday invite!

Tuesday

Pick up Daidy from work with Mom and Wowo

Joyride with Dad and Mama Lilia to COMELEC

Cuddle time with Bea while my measle-like rashes are spreading all over my face and body. It's called roseola.


Meet my new stuffed teddy bear. Daidy says, Bea is pronounced as Bē with long E, like pea.

She Always Comes First

Jep and I were itching to go out and join the multitude of people on the streets. We wanted to eat street food and just felt the excitement of Sinulog with every beat of the drums.

At around 4 p.m., we both decided that we’d go out. But then, we were hesitant to leave the little girl behind. After dinner, we attempted to go and watch the fireworks. We were fully dressed, and then we changed our minds. We just couldn’t bring ourselves to go out and enjoy, while Xomi hasn’t fully recovered yet.

The three of us just spent quality time, playing and cuddling on bed. We just let the Sinulog passed. Xomi always come first before anything else, and anyway, there’s always next year to enjoy Sinulog.

Sinulog Fever

I started noticing Xomi was warm to the touch on Friday morning. I checked her temperature, and it was 38 degrees Celsius. I gave her paracetamol. She was still active and very playful. No hints of being sick at all.

The next day, Saturday, I woke up to find out her temperature was 38.2 degrees. We went to her pedia to have her checked. Her lungs were clean, and she had a slight cold.

It might be viral or roseola. Typically, the fever only lasts for 48 hours. Everytime I checked Xomi's temperature was beyond 37.5 degrees; my eyes welled up in tears. Every parent would be worried and uneasy when her child is sick.

Sunday, while everyone was on the streets celebrating the festivity of Sinulog, we all stayed home. True enough, her fever only lasted for 48 hours.

Lord, thank you for always keeping my child and for taking care of her! Thank you for your faithfulness.

My Little Actress

Today, I wanted to start blogging again. My relationship with blogging is more like a yoyo- an on-off kind of thing. I'd get so impassioned about it one day and completely nonchalant about it the next.

Xomi is taking a nap. I’ve been trying to put her to sleep for more than 2 hours, but we ended up playing. I taught her how to pose for the camera, pouting her lips and putting her hand on her head. She’s my little actress!

A 10-month old posing like a pro, how’s that? That's just one of the many things she can imitate. But I wasn’t able to take her photo with that pose. After all, I was trying to put her to sleep.

Her daddy had to help me out to put the little actress to sleep.