Rui's First Haircut

Quick post today! I just wanna share Rui's milestone:

Her very first haircut!

We opted to have it done at Peppermint kids salon & spa at SM Aura. They have very nice interiors complete with toys and activities for kids, plus even a private room (that photo above was taken there).

Here's another one of Rui enjoying her convertible car :)

Anyway before Peppermint, Dada and I each cut off a bit of Rui's hair for pamahiin's sake (don't ask me, nakisunod lang ako lol).

On to the haircut. Line was fast, we were third in line - after 2 sisters. The ate was already getting her hair cut while the *bunso was having second thoughts. The assistant ushered us to their private room for before photos since we got the 1st haircut package, which includes a certificate with before and after photos plus a lock of hair (although I already have a lock of her hair on a tiny ziplock bag from our haircutting earlier). After that, its on to the hair cutting area for Rui. She sat, actually stood on a small red plane. When the cape was put on her, she became fussy for a bit but her attention was then caught by the nursery rhymes playing on the TV nearby. As can be seen here:

Successful first hair cut for Rui! My brave girl is now sporting a bob :)

Peppermint's haircut rates for children below 5 yrs old is 450, and 350 for children above 6 yrs old. For first haircuts, you can add a package for the certificate with photos and lock of hair for 220. Overall, our trip costs 670. Peppermint is located at the Basement level of SM Aura.

*The bunso got her haircut in the Lego area while playing :)

So what's up with Sophie?

I saw a former client and IG friend post Sophie when she bought her for her baby and it reminded me how Rui (and I) loved Sophie. So friends, this is Sophie the Giraffe:

When I was still pregnant, Dada and I decided to each purchase a "first" toy for Rui. Dada wanted a "security" dragon, while I decided on Sophie - which I saw in one of the mommy blogs I follow way before I even got pregnant. Unfortunately, we were not able to purchase either until the last minute - before checking in at Asian Hospital during our "practice" run (see here). So I got Sophie, and Dada got Puff the dragon.

Some things I love about Sophie:

She's the first toy Rui recognized and reacted to. Don't ask me why, but when we introduced her to Rui on her second month, Rui began smiling and "talking" to her after a few days. Soo kyut. See here:

When a friend visited us with her 1 year old kiddo, she loved Sophie too and played with her!


Sophie went through a lot with Rui.

From licking:

 To baba holder:

Biting:

To getting foot massages:

They're best of friends :)

After all that she's been through, Sophie's rosy cheeks lightened na compared to when we first got her. But she's still not losyang naman in any way.

The only thing I don't like about Sophie? The price. She retails for about PhP 1,000 - mahalia. We got her from Rustan's but I also saw her and her friend (she has a smaller friend who is also cheaper) in Mothercare.

But I have no regrets, and I'm definitely keeping her (but no I won't stick her on Rui's scrapbook).

Rui's Monster Smash DIY Details

Our pretty little monster Rui turned one last July 28, and to celebrate, our little family went out for a date at SM Aura where we had lunch at Lugang Cafe plus cupcakes for dessert. We also visited the Chapel at the 7th floor to give thanks for Rui and our first year as parents.

We then held a Monster smash party for her last Saturday (Aug. 2) with our family and friends. The plan was to hold a small DIY party, and I think we succeeded with that. Although the husband and I had  a number of sleepless nights just to accomplish all the DIYs. And considering the prices of some kiddie party details - na at times can be considered highway robbery, I think DIY is the way to go. Here are just some of the things we did:

1. Party hats: basic cone shaped party hats at Chedengs cost around PhP 150 for a pack of 8pcs. And since our motif/theme was not character-related (I think these cost around PhP 80 for a pack of 8 pcs.), having Hello Kitty or Disney princess hats would be out of place. So we came up with our own monster hats made from cartolina and board paper:

Dada made templates for the eyes, mouth, and horns, which I then traced and cut from cartolina - which I think is way too soft and thin compared to the cartolina I used as a kid. The headbands were supposed to be made from cartolina too but we changed it to the more expensive board paper because the cartolina just wouldn't hold. Price? I'm not good in math but considering we did not encounter any monster hats anywhere, we're happy with it as it goes with our theme. And here they are in action (dear friends, please don't kill me).

They know all the hard work we did so they had no choice but to wear it! Tenchuuu!!

2. Pinata. I saw a ready made pinata from Celebrations party central and asked how much it was. The answer: tumataginting na PhP 1,900. Good thing they don't have a monster pinata or I'd be tempted (yeah right). They had generic shapes of a ball, a star, and I think one for a nautical theme. At home we recently installed steel shelves in our bathroom and it came in a huge rectangular box, perfect for...

a monster pinata! Covered it with manila and crepe paper, then asked Dada to draw a face to go with it. Price = around less than PhP 500, excluding the sweets that went into it. Good thing also that we went for a monster theme (good luck naman to make a Hello Kitty or a Princess Sofia one). Here he is in action:

He's not bulag in one eye ha. Lumipad lang.

3. Decors. Before I got a coupon that included balloons, we planned to decorate the venue with balloons and flower pompoms. Flower pompoms cost PhP 100 each at Celebrations party central. There are a lot of YouTube videos on how to do it so I decided to make some. One pompom is made of 1 pack of japanese paper which costs PhP 17 at National Bookstore. Cheap diba. Here they are:

Dada also stuck eyes on them to make them monsters (unfortunately I don't have photos of them). We also added those paper lanterns we got from Saizen.

We also saw that our venue's wall is panget na, and at the same time, I've been having sleepless nights about how our backdrop will look. So on the night before the party, we did this:

A balloon wall! It's supposed to be a monster too but I think it looked more like a clown. We pumped balloons the whole Friday afternoon and then taped them directly into the wall until 1am (the guard had to ask us to leave lol). Thanks to Ninang Irish for the letter balloons.

4. Signs and prizes.

I made loom bands for prizes and we got Lego toys for the kids, which Dada wrapped and also made into monsters (yes, naaliw siya sa theme).

Dada also posted signs using chalk and illustration board for our party booths and around the venue. This is the only photo I have of this, which was taken after the party.

So that's it. Eyebags and sleepless nights aside, we had a lot of fun with all the party preps and diys. So much that last weekend after the party we were a bit surprised that we had no errands or anything to do lol. But I don't think I can do this every year.

A big thank you to all our friends who helped out before and after the event. Rui owes each and every one of you a big kiss :)

Online Shopping Wins & Fail

When I started working from home, I thought I'm excused from window shopping and impulse purchases. Turns out, this is untrue especially as I spend most of my time online. Instagram and Facebook are no help at all to curb impulse buys either. Overall though, I am happy with most of my online buys. Here are just a few:

One thing I love about having an iPhone is the uber cute and diverse cases available in the market. And I could not pass up this Chanel-inspired matryoshka case from Crowned Velvet. While I don't normally like stuff with screaming logos, I just had to make an exception with this matryoshka doll. Price is not bad and I think it's even cheaper than some cases from Greenhills.

Turkish evil eye and morse code chained bracelets from Heart and Bolt. I've been using these bracelets ever since I got them. The morse code chained bracelet can be personalized and of course, mine says "Rui." Unfortunately, while I loved the design, I don't know if what I got was a fluke as the bracelet just fell off my wrist one day - broken, boo. I have yet to ask the seller about it, but the good news is, the evil eye bracelet is still alive and well.

Unfortunately, not all of my online shopping turned out to be a success. As evidenced below:

That above is the advertised item. While this below is the actual item I received:

Err what happened right? Although I'm not sure if this can be considered an online shopping fail as this was not procured directly from an online seller. I got this from a group buy. For those who don't know what a group buy is, here are a few quick points (take note, I'm also a newbie but here's what I learned):

•  There's a closed Facebook group dedicated to group buy. In a group buy, accredited purchasers post item photos and interested buyers will post "slots." Buyers will then pay up and the purchasers will then order the items straight from the supplier.
• Why participate in a group buy? The items generally come out cheaper as they are purchased directly from the supplier in bulk. One downside though is the long waiting time as most items have to be shipped (via air or sea), and like in this group buy, the items were really delayed as some participants failed to deposit their payments within the allotted time. Hence, late deposit of payments resulted to late shipping of items.

Needless to say I was very much surprised with how the items turned out, as both the design and quality are very much different from the one advertised. Another disappointing fact is that the purchasers failed to inform the buyers of the items that the actual items' quality and design are way below what anyone expected. Safe to say that this group buy thing is just not for me at all.

Hello hello

Surprise surprise. I fell off the blogging bandwagon again, but with good reason.

Seriously, how can anyone blog much less work with that fez? Kidding aside though, much of my time these days are devoted to chasing this pretty little monster all over or working on my mac til the wee hours of the morning - and also nursing in between.

It is an understatement to say that a lot has happened in the past few months, and in just a few days more, we will be celebrating another big milestone - Rui's first birthday! So aside from motherhood and household chores plus online work, a bulk of our time (including Hubby's) is spent on DIY stuff for the party. The party however begs another entry by itself.

But yes, we are still alive and well. And to celebrate my return to blogging (sayang naman the domain), I'll share some of Rui's photos taken at Baby Love Studio when she was around 6 mos old.

Yes, that's Jappy (the teddy bear) and Olaf (c/o Pop Junk Love, they have the cutest, handmade plushies, go get some :)) with her. Rui was not really all smiley smiley in the photos because of stranger anxiety I think, but personally I find that they still turned out well (or maybe I'm just biased).

Thoughts on Breastfeeding

I'm not the healthiest person around. I don't like nor eat vegetables. And perhaps this is one of the main reasons why I'm proud to say that Rui is exclusively breastfed from the start. And now that she's nearing the 6th month mark, here are some thoughts on our breastfeeding journey.

Breastfeeding is hard. Especially during the first weeks. Rui's first day was mostly spent sleeping. But her first night was another matter. She cried almost every hour and the only way to pacify her was to nurse her. So this meant almost no rest for me. But even then, the husband and I never considered na she's not getting anything from me - may mali ba sa amin? We asked the OB if this is normal and she said it is, since an infant's stomach is the size of a calamansi palang. So it makes sense na mabilis siya mabusog and mabilis din magutom.

Again for the first weeks, I dreaded every feeding because it was painful. As in. Even taking a shower was painful. Perhaps my breasts were not yet used to all that activity, but there were times when I wanted to resort to bottle and formula na. What prevented us from doing so was the fact that we weren't able to ask the pedia for a formula milk recommendation - haha. Plus, while I was unable to read up much on breastfeeding before I gave birth, I had much more free time when I did and Google on my fingertips that I eventually did read up on it. One of the things that made me decide to forge on was studies that breastfeeding reduces risks of allergies. I'm allergic to almost everything (including my own sweat) and I don't want that for Rui. Another thing that gave me hope is that Google contains a lot of testimonies that it is painful but that it will get better in the long run. Marami pala akong karamay! So yey din for Google.

By around Rui's third week, I accepted the fact that she's entirely dependent to me and she's the boss I can never ignore (buti nalang she's a cute boss). I think this mindset helped me cope up with the almost hourly feedings. All my activities - including taking a bath were scheduled right after her feedings, so that I'll be available again for the next. I tried pumping around the second week (which I now know is a no- no) so I can leave her at home while I go for my checkup. I got less than an oz of milk - so I just took her with me. Inisip ko nalang mas nakukuha niya kaysa sa pump- which I now know is true.

Breastfeeding got a lot easier by Rui's first month. Personally, it is easier than washing and sterilising bottles, bringing bottles everywhere, and magtimpla every time she asks for it. But I was sleepy most of the time since I get up to nurse her during the night. The husband was a zombie too as he's a big help from the start - as he also wakes up during the night to burp her after every feeding. A co-worker advised me to try nursing her in a side-lying position and also to join in on a Facebook group dedicated to breastfeeding. I did and the group is a big help and very informative. By Rui's third month, we do the side-lying position na when she nurses at night time - this way, plakda na kaming tatlo haha. After every feeding, I just roll her on top of me to burp - all this while both of us are asleep. This again beats getting up to get a bottle for her.

Another thing I love is when she's fussy and has sumpong, I can calm her better than anyone can - haha secret weapon lang ang peg. Plus nothing beats the secret smiles we share during nursing time.

I am by no means a "breastfeeding nazi." To each her own I say. But I think lang na some people overthink breastfeeding - this plus the million Filipino myths about it, and it becomes harder than it really is. If an oldie is with us, baka binatukan na ako because ginawa ko na ata lahat ng bawal. This includes:

I eat ice cream by the mug-fulls ever since I gave birth, I drink cold water too - and yet my milk is still the right temperature for Rui. Never siya naging malamig - maybe because I'm not cold-blooded. To date, Rui also never had coughs or colds *knock on wood.

I nurse Rui kahit na pagod or galing sa labas. Err we're new parents, palagi kami pagod. And yet she doesn't mind it, nor does she seem stressed or pagod after feeding. In fact, happy siya after because she's full na ulit.

These days, Rui has her lunch and meryendas din. At dahil siya ang priority, may times na we nurse na medyo gutom ako. And no, hindi siya nahahawa sa gutom ko. Again, happy padin siya after :)

Perhaps I'm lucky enough to be blessed with sufficient supply. My goal in the beginning was to breastfeed as long as kaya, and I'm happy na kinaya namin until the 6th month mark. Still, I plan to continue as long as she wants and kaya.

I'd like to share that one of the best advices I read about childbirth and breastfeeding is to trust your body as it knows what to do and is built to do it. This held true for Rui's birth as we waited for her to meet the world on her own. And I'm glad to say that it also held true for us for breastfeeding. Yes I did drink supplements, but overall I just did what I had to do - which was to latch her every time she wants it and trust in my ability to nourish her.

Another challenge awaits us: solids or Baby led weaning. I can't wait haha.

Bebe and Books

If there's one thing I miss doing now that I'm a new mom, its reading all day. Truly, reading is a luxury right now especially when I'm with the bebe 24/7. I used to just curl up in bed/couch all day with a good book, and just keep going until I finish it. Good luck naman gawin ito now with the little boss.

I'm currently reading The Hobbit since curiosity got the best of me especially with the movies coming out. I wanted to see if the onscreen adaptation is also good, just like what they did with the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, and so far, I'm not disappointed. I started reading it in my phone's iBooks, but over Christmas, one of the husband's gifts was:

And it's illustrated! Yuck parang bata lang. I resolved then and there to read it instead of the ebook copy but between taking care of the baby and work, where do I even find the time to just pick it up and curl with it. Haay. So bottom-line is, balik ebook ang beauty ko - because my phone is always nearby and its easier to handle especially when breastfeeding - which is basically the only time I can also read (talk about multi-tasking). Good thing the ebook version I have is also illustrated. Although these days, the little boss also gets easily distracted and would peer into my phone while nursing - tsismosa lang ang peg. But aside from time and ebook/book handling, who can read with this:

Seriously diba? Who can work much less read when you can cuddle, play, and even watch her sleep all day long. So Bilbo, sorry nalang but the winner in this case is of course, #Ruitotski.

Holiday Shopping with the Bebe

We have no yaya. Albeit we do have someone who comes in everyday to help out with the household chores and Rui especially when I'm working. But during Sundays, when we go out, and for the most part this Holiday season, its just the three of us - which is fine with me as with our shoebox of a home, there's not much of a privacy to go around. But what can be a bit of a challenge is when we go out with Rui. So far, most of our outings to date involve both me and the husband - I have never tried going out with just the 2 of us. Anyway, what made our Holiday shopping a success with Rui in tow is baby wearing. Whoever invented this concept is pure genius.

I have to admit it was not as easy as I first thought as I was afraid of hurting her or "pilay" (is this even true?) whenever we tried it out when she was smaller. But after watching countless videos in You Tube and reading how-to's, the first one we mastered was Indigo Baby's pouch.

I love it because:

1. Wear it, shoot baby's butt and you're good to go. No more straps to adjust or anything.
2. When Rui was smaller, I liked doing the kangaroo front-facing position with her in this, as parang mas naaaliw siya because she can see a lot.
3. This is waaay easier to learn compared to the ring sling.
4. Rui has no problems sleeping while on it.

On the other hand, it has downsides:

1. As the pouch is not adjustable, now that she's bigger we can't do some of the positions anymore, such as the front-facing one. From the start we can't do the cradle carry either as Rui is a bit long/tall and its a tight fit.
2. The pouch comes in different sizes for the wearer. So the husband cannot wear this as it will be a tighter fit.
3. The material can be hot and stuffy for both of us.

On her third or fourth month, we have successfully worn the ring sling (at last!). In most of the videos I watched, most of them says that the ring sling has a steep learning curve. And it does. But I think using it successfully depends on the confidence of the wearer - that he/she will not hurt the baby haha. And I became much more confident nalang to use it when Rui was much older na and mas mukhang hindi na mababali.

The ring sling's plus points for me are:

1. Its adjustable. So I can see us using this for a long time - well hopefully haha.
2. I can use the "tail" or the remaining fabric as a cover during breastfeeding, and when it gets too windy or maaraw
3. Rui also has no qualms sleeping while on it (see how sleepy she is in the above pic)
4. The husband can also use it - yey!

While the downsides are:

1. Adjusting the fabric can be a bit challenging, especially if you are a newbie or have a fussy baby.
2. It has a very steep learning curve haha. But seriously, practice is required. A lot of practice.

There are also times when this is how we roll:

I find the stroller useful when we have a lot of shopping and during eating out (we can set Rui on it and eat - when she's not fussy). But it can also be a hassle to navigate in crowded malls. Not to mention that most malls here in Manila are not stroller-friendly - I'm scared to even try going up and down an escalator using a stroller. We've also tried using it in the grocery. All was well until Rui became fussy and wanted to be lulled to sleep. No way can the husband navigate both the stroller and the grocery cart while I carry the bebe. So I had to lull Rui to sleep in one corner in the grocery with the stroller. After that incident, we just baby wore her when out shopping.

Needless to say, baby wearing saved us from achy arms during our lakwatsas.

Waiting Game with Rui

-- Also known as my birthing story. Since this blog is mainly about #ruitotski, what better way to start the New Year then to share how she came into this world.

No worries, this blog post does not have blood, sweat or tears - well not literally, as the actual event involves quite a bit of all three. I have decided to write and share this so that I have an actual record of Rui's arrival. And since I'm no novelist, the story will be told by the numbers as I remember them.

1. Jul13 - We went for our regular OB checkup, this is also the first time my OB does an IE. We almost missed her but good thing she waited for us for a bit. Found out I'm 4cm and she advised us that we can check in at the hospital already as I can give birth that evening, but she also advised me to walk around for a bit. As we didn't have our stuff with us - we were actually planning to pack our hospital bags after that check-up, we called my mom to bring Rui's stuff to the hospital. We then had lunch first at ATC and walked around. My main concern during this time was my water breaking at the mall - kakahiya diba. Buti nalang that did not happen and when it became too painful to walk around, we then went back and checked in at the hospital.
2. At the hospital we stayed at the Genesis center where I was strapped in for monitoring. I had regular contractions but I stayed at 4cm. We were then transferred to our room as I was not progressing.
3. Second day at the hospital, we decided to induce labor via IV drip (I can't remember the actual name na). Nothing happened. We rested for 6 hrs and did a 2nd round. Again, nothing. All this time I had regular high (based on the monitoring) contractions and all the nurses kept telling me to just call if I need an epidural. It was painful but bearable. I stayed at 4cm. Rui was also monitored all the time and she does not seem to be bothered or stressed by any of it (I think everyone was stressed out except for her).
4. Third day we were like zombies na with all the waiting. It was very stressful as the hospital would not discharge us as I was already dilated and having regular contractions. We don't want to opt for a CS unless absolutely necessary. We decided to rest for the day - no more inducements and just wait and see. That night, we decided to just wait it out at home. Our OB assured us that Rui is strong and CS at that point is unnecessary. We would just have to come in for foetal monitoring checks every 3 days. We got discharged the following day - 4th day.
5. The husband got permission from his office to work at home. I also continued to work at home. We went out on dinner and movie dates and walked our asses off. We also went in for monitoring and check-ups. We had a couple of false alarms when Rui was quiet, so we rushed to the ER, only to have her kicking when we got there. I still had regular contractions, but the pain was bearable.
6. July 27 we again went to the OB for our checkup. I was still 4-5cm. Since I was due on July 30, we decided then that if Rui still does not come, we will check-in at the hospital on the 30th and undergo CS on the 31st (I picked this date so she'll have the same birthday as Harry Potter haha). We then did our grocery, watched a movie and went home.
7. I stayed up till midnight chatting with my friends at Line haha. I slept for a bit and woke up with a very painful tummy at around 1am. Woke up the husband and we decided to go to the hospital na to be sure. We arrived at the ER around 2am and I was already 8cm. I was wheeled directly to the birthing room and was in so much pain. I also learned that the nurses in the Genesis center call us 4-ever, because I was stuck at 4cm. We met their full shift of nurses and doctors na during our practice run.
8. Got an epidural and we slept for a bit waiting for the OB. She arrived at around 5am and I was fully dilated (I think). Rui arrived on Jul28, 6am.

Looking back, I was thankful that we waited it out and did not opt for a CS. I love our OB for not pressuring us and instead did all she can for us to have a normal delivery. Rui came unexpectedly in our lives and I'm just happy that we gave her the chance to meet the world in her own time and terms - walang pilitan haha.