BEEN GONE FOR SO LONG

I know. I've disappeared from the face of the earth again. I just had so much on my mind (not in a good way) it's a miracle I didn't develop a split personality (yet). I don't know if it's the hormones, the unknown future or whatever uncertainties I have but I just lost track of my blogging life. Which I miss now.

Anyway, before anything else, I just want to say, I MISSED YOU! Okay... updates.

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I'm still pregnant. And it's weird because I thought I was due in October but apparently I miscalculated and according to the 3 ultrasound tests I had, I'm due sometime September 10 or 11 (first utz said Sept 10, second was Sept 11 and the third Sept 10 - so I guess it's going to be a September baby). This means given a few weeks we'll be seeing our baby. The gender, you ask? Well, we're all wondering about that too. Because the baby's legs were so tightly folded and closed the doctors couldn't tell. Which means, we have to wait a few more days before finding out if we're having a girl (at last!) or a boy (again!). Anyway, other than that, the baby is perfectly fine. Been kicking and moving a lot though and I have to go to the bathroom to pee like every 30 minutes which is pretty bothersome because I'm really not a bathroom person. My tummy is so big too. Can't imagine it being this big before but then again, I may be suffering from "pregnancy amnesia". Here's a photo Ruther took of me a few weeks ago...



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It's been raining a lot these days which is a relief from the heat, definitely. I am loving the cool weather and so glad that the summer is waaay over. Just have to be wary of mosquitoes though. Don't want the boys to have dengue or some sickness. A friend of mine had to have her son confined at a hospital because of dengue. And she said that she never imagined it would happen to them. We just have to be real careful, I suppose.

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I finally finished my TEFL (Teach English as a Foreign Language) course! Yay! That's another reason why I didn't have time to blog. I wanted to accomplish everything without procrastinating and I did it! Now I could rest easy. I've been browsing the 'net for some jobs in Japan for wannabes like me and hopefully, after I give birth I could try that. Who knows, I might get hired. I really wouldn't want to try it here in Manila because the pay is so measly. It's like 1/6 of what I would be getting if I work in Japan. It just would not be worth it being away from the kids and earning so little. Of course, I have to talk this over with Ruther but with the way our finances are heading, I just can't sit around anymore. It's scary and I know it's going to be tough but I guess I gotta do what I gotta do...

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It's so hard picking baby names!! Ruther and I have been picking our brains trying to come up with nice possibilities and it's giving me a headache! We do have ideas but it's pretty hard when we have no idea what the sex of the baby is yet. So we're just trying to pick the best ones and maybe decide once we know for sure. It was a breeze picking Nikki's and Ethan's names!

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I started preparing my hospital bag and the baby's bag too. Ruther has been paranoid about getting things ready. He wasn't with me when I gave birth to Nikki at the hospital (he was in Saudi Arabia then) and when I delivered Ethan, he was with me but we had it at a lying-in clinic. So this will be the first time for him to have the birthing at a hospital and although it's only 7 minutes away, he wants everything ready. I'm hoping that this time around there won't be any problems with the birthing and we'll be able to bring the baby home very soon. Nikki and Ethan had to stay a few days longer at the hospital because Nikki had some blood problems and Ethan had to take antibiotics. Am hoping now, it would be a different story...

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I have decided to try to breastfeed the baby. I was unsuccessful with Nikki and Ethan but now, I want to try it out. I'm saying "try" because I don't want to promise to be successful in this endeavor. I might eat my words later on. Anyway, I have been reading on it and have already learned so much. I have yet to read my second breastfeeding book and hopefully that will be very informative as well. I have some friends who are breastfeeding their kids and are willing to help me and provide me with tips and advice and I know I'm going to need their assistance. So yeah, I'm pretty excited! :D

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It's wonderful having Ruther with me while I'm experiencing this pregnancy. He was not with me at all when I had Nikki and he only experienced the last few weeks of my pregnancy with Ethan because he had a project in Japan then. But this time, it's nice to see him interact with the baby by talking and rubbing my tummy. I guess the baby senses it because it moves around so much when we talk to it or when we rub the bumps on my tummy. So cute. Even Ethan is warming up to it. At first he couldn't care any less (especially when my sis would ask him, "Where's the baby?") but once he started feeling the movement, he became quite interested. So now he rubs and kisses my tummy a lot. Can't wait to see the boys with the newborn in a few weeks' time! :D

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Oh yeah, Ethan turned 7 last June 12 and I am now 34 (my birthday was last July 10). Ruther and I also got to celebrate our 10th year anniversary last June 11. Just some of the celebrations we got to experience recently. :D