One more month to go...

I'm now officially having mixed emotions regarding our son soon becoming a toddler.

*SIGH*

Zye turned 11 months yesterday. Next month he will be celebrating a year of blessings and good health. He is no longer a baby.

How it makes me smile to see our boy growing up well. I have some fears but seeing how God's goodness has worked since the day I conceived him erases all my worries. I know our son is going to be just fine. No, I believe our son is going to do great!

Have you ever wondered why all the memories of yesterday just seem to flash before your eyes whenever you watch you kid sleeping? Well, that is why I have posted here pictures of Zye sleeping. From his first few days here on earth when he was so tiny ( I think he can fit in a big shoe box!) to his latest chubby cheek picture. Our son has definitely come a long way. Ha! I talk as if my son will be graduating from college soon.

Of course, I am excited more than ever to seeing more of his teeth. I am anxious to see him walk on his own without support. I know I'd be running as well when he starts to run but by that time, I'm sure that I am all set to catch him if he runs away from my side.

There will still be no big, fancy celebration. But we will be partying our hearts out in our own special way. I'm preparing for it as well. We love you Zye!!!!!!!!!!!! Happy 11th month sweetie! Let's scout for a new rubber shoes. Your all grown-up now.

Over and out

This is Zye after his stressful day. Mental note: Stress = eat + drink milk + whine + play + crawl over the place + imitate someone who sneezed + clap + dance + sing (which is more like shouting) + throw the remote control.

The Bee encounter

Last Sunday, March 9, 2008, Zye attended his first birthday party. Dong and I were excited as well because it was the first kid's party that we got invited to since we have become parents. Of course, our son won't be able to enjoy the whole experience but the sight of balloons, kids running around, party hats and banners were enough to make our baby boy kick and squeak.

I'm ready to party!

What's that Tita Owie???

Cool!!!!!! Where's the Disney Channel?

While waiting for the party to start, Zye and my sister Owie were playing around. Dong and I on the other hand were busy taking pictures of Zye. The games started and Zye was still bus in his own little world, oblivious to his environment simply enjoying his Tita Owie's T.V. phone. We were looking forward to Zye's reaction when Jollibee comes in. Will he cry? Will he laugh? Will he stare blankly and wonder why this creature is bigger than everyone else. We were about to find out. Unfortunately, before the big happy Bee arrived, Zye snoozed out. I think his excitement exhausted him too much. Oh well, better luck next time.

My sister, Owie, Me, Dong, Birthday girl Anne, Zye and Anne's mom, Buena

Party pooper...hehehe.

Paint a picture

They say a picture paints a thousand words. Well, in this case, Zye definitely painted a thousand words and expressions. Come to think of it, I think he painted a story out of each picture. Hay, so kulit our baby boy!

5 and up

Zye turned 5 last Tuesday, March 4. Nope...not 5 years old. Just 5 months, hehehe. But for sure, there are a lot of milestones to look forward to. Right now, he makes more sounds than the usual, talks to his toys more often, and laughs out loud every now and then. He enjoys seeing himself in the mirror. He absolutely hates being left alone in the crib when he is awake and he knows that I'm not doing anything (such a smart kid!) He sings himself to sleep, drools more often than not, kicks faster now and he is heavier than ever. I've upgraded his shirts to large because the medium sized ones are a bit fit already. He stares at the T.V. as if he understands what's going on and follows me and his dad as if always wanting to find out where we are going. Sometimes, I feel he is a 5 year old kid trapped in a 5 months old body.

Naahh...that's just exaggerating it.

Priority One

Our life changed a lot when Zye was born. Our priorities certainly changed since he came out. Below is a list of the things that changed the most in our life before and after Zye's birth:


BEFORE: Check out sureseats.com for the latest movies
AFTER: Check out babycenter.com for updates on baby's growth

BEFORE: What am I going to buy this pay day?
AFTER: When is the next time that I should buy milk and diaper?

BEFORE: Starbucks coffee whenever I want.
AFTER: Buy NAN1 milk 900g every 10 days.

BEFORE: Sleep late. Wake up late. Especially during Saturdays.
AFTER: Sleep when Zye is sleeping. Wake up when Zye starts crying.

To my hubby whenever he fetches me from work:
BEFORE: "Malling tayo!" ("Let's go malling")
AFTER: "Uwi na tayo, miss ko na si baby" ("Let's go home. I miss our baby.")

BEFORE: Wedding Monthsary.
AFTER: Zye's monthly birthday

BEFORE: Listening to Chico and Del's Morning rush
AFTER: Listening to different kid's songs and nursery rhymes
(I love you, you love me, we're a happy family...)

BEFORE: Shopping of bags, shoes and clothes during mall wide sale
AFTER: Buying something for Zye whenever I pass by the mall

My usual answer to the question "How are you?"
BEFORE: "Okay naman. Enjoying married life"
AFTER: "Okay naman. Eto naku ang bilis lumaki na ni Zye!" (Okay. Zye's growing up so fast!)

And these are just some of my Before and After stuff. There are still a lot that I probable just don’t remember right now. I bet this same list will change once Zye is already a year old. Oh well, until then….

Zye’s First Quarter

Today, Zye is 4 months old. Amazing how time flies. A few months ago he was so tiny (he was a premature baby) and now I can’t carry him too long because my arms hurt. To celebrate his 4th month, I compiled his first quarter milestones:

1. Big boy now.
From a mere 1.8 kg (3.96 lbs), his check up last January 16 registered him to 5.2 kg (11.44 lbs). I’m excited to see how he will weigh on his next check-up.


2. More than milk.
Zye is no longer limited to the taste of milk and water. His menu now includes calamansi juice! This would mean that soon enough he will start eating solids and that would be another milestone to blog about.

Starting our with 1 ounce of milk....

He now finishes 4 oz every 2 hours!

3. Sights and Sound
Our baby now responds well to different sounds and smiles whenever somebody talks to him. It brings us a great deal of joy hearing him say his goo-goos especially when he imitates the sounds that he hears. It makes everyone crazy whenever he smiles or giggles. It excites us even more to think that soon he will be crawling around.

From just sleeping.....

He now interacts with people...

Stares wildly at the T.V....And makes funny faces...

4. Small no more.
His diaper size chronology: newborn – small – medium. Yes, he is now wearing a medium size diaper. I never thought that being able to buy a medium size diaper would make me feel so proud…I wonder how proud I would feel once my baby can wear briefs!

3 days old Zye in his newborn size nappies

Zye now 4 months old

5. Church is his second home
Maybe it was because I was active in our church’s music ministry when I was conceiving him that made him love hearing praise and worship songs. Why? It’s because whenever praises start, he dozes off! Yup! The banging of the drums and the beat of the music actually puts him to sleep. That’s why we don’t have any problem whenever we have visitors…he loves noises!

Parenthood, no matter how tiring it can get, is so rewarding. You see your fruit growing, learning new things, enjoying life. Seeing our son smile and kick and reach for his toys are worth all the sleepless nights and the hard work.

I so love being a mom.

Dedicating our little man

God has always been so good to us. In spite of difficulties, there will always be opportunities where He will show His love and kindness. Two and a half weeks in the hospital equates to quite a sum of money and yet He gave us ways to see through it all. As if that was not enough, we even had some money to spare for our son’s dedication. *Sigh*. How blessed can we get.

Zye was dedicated last December 29, 2007 together with my mom-in-law’s 50th birthday. To add to that double celebration is our first year wedding anniversary. Things could not get better than this. 3 different occasions in one celebration: Celebrating new life, celebrating the fullness of life, celebrating life together.

The dedication ceremony that Pastor Bing prepared was so touching. Like the vows in a wedding, he had us recite an affirmation to Zye. The affirmation had it all: emphasizing our love, responsibility and promises to our son. The grandparents had their share too. They gave their affirmation as well not to Zye though, but to us. They assured their support and the promise that they will respect our decisions as Zye’s parents.

It wasn’t a well attended affair and to think we had a very limited guest list due to budget constrain. But the small turn out was the least of our thoughts that day. We are just happy that Zye have been dedicated to our Lord and we pray that we be able to guide him well in his life’s journey in life.

The story of our first born

As promised, this is how it happened...why Zye was born on the 4th of October instead of the 29th of November:


Sept 24, 2007:

It was 5:30 in the morning and I woke up with a discharge of bright red blood. I told hubby about and he immediately told me to send a text message to my OB telling her about my condition. I was told by my OB not to go to work anymore and go on a complete bed rest. Fortunately I was on leave since it was my birthday and I thought I’d have a day off from work. Well, the purpose was not really to enjoy the day but to actually take care of a few important documents that I need. Of course, my itinerary for the day changed completely to a whole day of eating and sleeping.

By 8:30 PM, the only change that happened is that the bright red blood turned into brown. There was still a lot of blood and so hubby and I decided to go to the hospital. My OB told me that I was having contractions (even if I did not feel anything) and that the baby was already at stage zero. (Stage 1 is the start of labor) I was confined that same night. The bleeding had to stop otherwise I may have premature labor. Going to labor was not an option since our baby is only 30 weeks old. He still has a long way to go.

Sept. 27, 2007:
The discharge did not completely go away. I was still experiencing some spotting but my OB already allowed me to go home but to still stay in bed until further advised. She prescribed a handful of medicines and told me to be back for a check-up after a week.


Sept 29, 2007:

12 midnight. I woke up and was about to turn to my right side when I felt that I was soaked in something. I raised my hand only to see it covered with blood. My hubby who was then sleeping soundly woke up to find out that our bed was soaked in blood. He told me not to move and he woke up my mom and they asked help from our neighbors since I had to be carried with the use of a blanket. They did not want to risk having me move around. I, on the other hand, kept my eyes closed waiting for the baby to move and praying to God that he is still okay. Thank God because my baby was still moving normally inside my tummy.

We arrived at the hospital to find out that my cervix was already 3 cm open if the bleeding doesn’t stop, I may need to undergo an emergency CS. I was under observation until the next morning. I was relieved that the medicine to prevent contractions worked and I was advised to stay in the hospital until the baby reaches his 36th week.

Oct.3, 2007:

I was feeling quite uneasy because my tummy felt as if it was contracting even if there was no bleeding and pain. The stiffness of my tummy lasted the whole day. I was feeling optimistic but I was asking our baby to hold still since he is still not yet ready to come out.

Oct. 4, 2007:

At around 1:00 AM my labor pains started. Actually, I wasn’t sure I what I was having was indeed labor pains so I monitored the intensity of the pain and its intervals for one hour. By 2:00 AM, I told my hubby to call the nurses station and report to them that I was having labor pains. This time I was bleeding too much again and my already ordered that I will undergo CS by 6:00 AM.

7:24 AM when they took Zye out of my womb and I already heard him crying so loud. Thank you Lord...our baby was okay. He didn't even have to be in an incubator. He was strong and healthy. It was the biggest blessing for this year. The miracle of life -- our baby boy Zye. It turned out I had placenta previa but was not detected in the ultrasound because the placenta’s tail was tucked behind Zye’s back.

Is that a story or what? Well it was quite an experience. But it was all worth it when I saw our baby. Now, I'm enjoying motherhood -- the sleepless nights, the changing of diaper, the figuring out why baby is crying, the thousands of photos stored in our laptop --- I wouldn't trade this feeling for anything else.

Cheers to all the moms who underwent (and will undergo) labor. Kudos as well to the dads who stood by there side every step of the way.

Zye's schedule

I have observed for the past few weeks that our baby, Zye, has developed his routine. He is usually up and kicking between 2:30 to 4:00 PM and 10:30 PM to 12:00 AM. Unless I ate something really sweet (which by some reason always wakes him up), those are the hours that he is active and really giving a strong thug in my tummy. Yesterday, I have concluded that
our baby will be a food lover as well because he kicks everytime I click on the stove to cook food. I bet he knows mommy is going to eat that's why he makes his presence felt.

Dong loves it. He waits until he feels Zye just to talk to him and give him his kisses.

How lovely it is to have your man kissing your tummy. Makes pregnancy a piece of cake.

***SIGH***