My First Dad's Day as a Dad

Isa na ako sa mga nakakatanggap ng Father's Day greetings. Para siyang yearly certificate of accomplishment or recognition for passing paternal courses. For me, I guess makakakuha ako ng good grades sa Baby Diaper Changing 101, Baby Supplies Buying 101 at Baby Feeding 101. Medyo kinaya naman ang puyatan kahit "overnight classes" ang mga ito.

So sa lahat ng mga tatay dyan, isang pagbati sa inyo this coming June 20, and we really deserve more than a mug on that day. =)

Our Ayel has Arrived!

May 23, 2009

10am - Mahal and I planned to go to Robinsons to buy additional baby stuffs, but after going to a specialty clinic referred by my mom to check for their maternity package (though we have agreed to go to New Era Hospital when the time comes).

11am - We arrived at Drueco Specialist Clinic and registered at the nurse station so we could have a record and an initial check up by the Ob-Gyne doctor on duty. This was when we found out that Mahal was already in labor and her cervix had opened na pala @ 3cm! So we have to postponed our shopping.

12noon - Mahal was admitted while I got back to our house to get extra clothes for her and our baby (thanks sir Toyie for the baby gifts last December).



1pm - She went to active labor. Hindi ko maisip ang sakit na nararamdaman ng isang nagli-labor. All I know is I had to be strong and must convince her to be strong as well for our baby. Though she tried to tell me how painful it was:





7pm - Mahal was transferred to the Delivery Room after mag-8cm siya.

On this moment, I was overwhelmed by mixed emotions, same feeling when I was about to get married.

8:10pm - May narinig na akong iyak ng baby!



Ayel was taken out of the Delivery Room and I got to see my son for the first time...




Tatay na ako. =)




Definitely, this is just the end of the beginning of a wonderful journey called parenting.

Argh! Ugh!

Almost 3 hours kami pinaghintay ng bago sanang OB-Gyne ni Mahal. N'ung una kinausap lang kami sa cellphone at kumatulong na lang ng isang doktor na kamukha ng mga cast ng japanese horror Infection. Ngayon naman nagpa-antay ng isa't kalahating oras at pagbalik namin, namuti na ang mata namin at wala pa rin siya. 1-3 ang schedule niya, so 3:30 umalis na kami.

***

Biglang na lang nag-"no network coverage" yung SIM ko kahapon. Pucha akala ko magpapalit na naman ako ng SIM eh wala pang limang buwan nung nasira yung dati kong SIM. Buti na lang bumalik sa normal kagabi. Malas lang, kinain na yung load ko.

Dugs

Feeling Employer: Ano n'ang nangyari sa pinapa-update ko?
Empleyado: Ay ma'am, na email ko na po sa inyo.
Feeling Employer: Kaya nga tinatanong ko sa 'yo kasi hindi pa ako nakakapagbukas ng computer.

Papaano maiisa-isa ni empleyado ang laman ng Excel file na pina-update sa kanya, at anong mapapala ng Feeling Employer kung isa-isahin sa kanya yun? Abangan!

Our Ayel's Development: Week 37

Foetal development during week 37 of being pregnant - Ayel's head may engage, dropping right down into the cervix ready for birth.

My Wife

Mahal may have a sudden urge in the last few weeks to decorate, bake or even start patchwork cot covers, this is known as 'nesting' but not all women experience this. She may feel hot all the time, because your body is working extremely hard. You have more blood circulating and are burning more calories.

-- Exactly what I've been noticing to her this week. Kaya todo bantay siya sa paggawa ng kuwarto ni Ayel kahit pinagbabawalan ko sumilip nang matagal dahil umaamoy yung pintura.

Tapos kagabi kelangan ko itutok yung aircon sa kanya dahil init na init daw siya. So ayun... kaya pala. =)

Ayel

He is now much plumper and his lungs are ready for the birth. As birth approaches, the amniotic fluid inside Mahal's womb has begun to diminish and Ayel is growing to fill the space. His head may engage, dropping right down into the cervix ready for birth. He should settle with his head facing down and tummy facing your back.

Research suggests it's Ayel's hormones that kick-start labour. When he is ready to emerge his brain will trigger the production of hormones that stimulate the uterus to encourage contractions. His face is filling out, and now has eyelashes. His neck is now thickening and his eyelids can now open and close easily.

Infos courtesy of http://www.askbaby.com.

PacMania

HappySlip Greeting for Manny!

Commuter woes

Banned dapat ang mga taong ito sa mga public AUV/Garage Service:

1. Humihikab nang bukang buka ang bibig at may tunog pa.
2. Pasahero sa gitnang upuan na alam namang may sasakay e hindi pa agad uusog hangga't hindi mo bubuksan ang pinto.
3. Mga nagpipilit sumandal, kahit balikat mo na mismo ang maipit.

***

Trivia on online videos

What to know what's the most viewed videos over the web? Here's a news clip from Yahoo News.

Visible Measures, which measures the use of online videos across more than 150 video-sharing sites, has compiled a list called the "100 Million Views Club" which is of online videos that have topped the 100 million viewership.

Topping the list is a music video by rapper Soulja Boy of "Crank That," which recorded 356 million hits, followed by a trailer for the vampire movie "Twilight" with 267 million clicks.

In third and four places, with 230 million and 197 million views respectively, came Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body" music video and a user generated video by American ventriloquist and stand-up comedian Jeff Dunham called "Achmed the Dead Terrorist."

Boyle, who performed on "Britain's Got Talent," was in fifth place with 186 million views.

It pays to ask

Or it saves to ask, to put it literally; and better if you ask the right person.

Galing kami sa MegaClinic ni Mahal kahapon para magpa-Urine C/S G/S. Nakapag inquire na kami sa fee which is around 700 pesos. Buti na lang naisipan ni Mahal ko na bumisita sa HMO office para magbaka-sakaling covered siya ng benefits. Dati kasi sinubukan namin humingi ng request for Urinalysis pero nasopla kami nung nurse o OJT yata yun na hindi raw mako-cover kapag pregnancy related.

Buti na lang iba ang naka-duty kahapon. So nagtanong ulit si Mahal. Nung nalaman nila na buntis ang magre-request, sinabi lang na kelangan muna ma-assess ng accredited doctor kung ipapa-cover sa HMO yung particular lab test.

Wala pang 5 minutes, approved na yung request namin at nakatipid kami ng Php700 for the Urine C/S G/S. Buti na lang 85 pesos lang ang Urinalysis, kung hindi, ha-huntingin ko yung mga nagmarunong na HMO attendant na yun!

Hospital Hopping

Last night we went to Hope General Hospital, a private health care establishment to find out their maternity packages. Their normal delivery service costs around Php15K-17K while CS without complications ranges from Php35K-40K. These are actually the usual prices that we also learned from relatives and friends. We also checked out their maternity rooms which I would say comfy enough for us. Its Php800/day is sure ok and within the budget.

Next stop: Novaliches General Hospital. They have this Php7K maternity package promo displayed at their building's facade so we inquired about it. Unluckily, one should have gotten enrolled to this program first during her first to fifth month of pregnancy to avail it. Their normal delivery is Php25K-30K and CS at Php50K-60K.

Last Stop: New Era General Hospital.
Normal - Php25K and up
CS - Php45 and up
The Billing Attendant was kind enough to explain to me how much Philhealth would cover some expenses, depending on various cases. Too bad we are quite far from this hospital.

I guess we'll hope for the best maternity care at Hope.