First Baby Shopping Trip, Gifts, and Parenting Mistake

Throughout my pregnancy, people always told me and the husband to wait until after our baby showers before buying things for the baby. Family were also quite superstitious and suggested we buy stuff on the eighth month. Thankfully, we followed everyone's advice. Over the past few months and during our baby showers, we found that we wouldn't have to buy much. We received enough gifts and hand-me-downs from family and friends to get us through the first days, and for that, we're extremely grateful.

Our First Baby Shopping Experience

The weekend before last was only the first time we went to actual stores to buy things for the baby. It was also my first time at the mall in maybe eight months, because with everything that happened to me during this pregnancy, I've been forced to stay home or within the confines of our neighborhood the entire time. We only made it to two stores -- Baby Company and SM Department Store -- because that's how far my energy lasted, but it was enough. A and I were so overwhelmed with all the baby stuff we didn't know about and had to make decisions on! We thought it was best to just buy the few things we need for the hospital and then just research more about all the other things that we will need once the baby is born. Here's what we got:

Preggo Fun: Is your baby a boy or a girl?

There are so many old wives' tales and myths surrounding baby gender. Some say if your nose gets bigger during pregnancy or your skin gets dark or pimply you're having a boy. If you're glowing and looking prettier than ever then you're having a girl. Others say if your belly looks round you're having a boy, but if your belly is wider you're having a girl. Then there are others who say if your baby's heartbeat is less than 140, you're having a boy, but if it's greater than 140 you're having a girl.

There are many other sayings out there, but I can tell you, it seems completely random! As you might already know, we already found out what our baby is. It's a boy! And let me tell you -- almost everyone, even total strangers who came up to me or people I talked to in forums, thought I was having a girl. Also, I have a friend who was pregnant almost at the same time as me, and we had completely opposite symptoms -- yet we're both having boys.

Well, recently, Tiny Prints emailed me about this little quiz they've come up with that helps you predict the sex of your baby, just for fun. I thought it was really cute and took it to see if it would match up with ours.

What do you know, it did! Whether you're expecting and you can't wait to find out what your baby is, or you've found out like we do, or you've already had your baby, you might want to check it out.

  Did the quiz get it right? Let me know what result you got in the comments!

Pregnancy Update: 32-35 Weeks

Hi! Here's my latest pregnancy update. I would like to remember this special time, so I'm documenting it! The past month was hectic, plus I got sick, which was why I wasn't able to update much. I turn a new week every Wednesday (my apps moved up for some reason). I'm actually on the first day of my 36th week now, so let's catch up shall we? Here's the first ever pregnancy update, and you can find all the pregnancy updates in this tag.

32-35 weeks!

Our Baby Showers for Little Boy Blue

"Little Boy Blue, come blow your horn. The sheep's in the meadow, the cow's in the corn. But where is the boy who looks after the sheep? He's under a haystack, he's fast asleep." - Old nursery rhyme

Our 33th week was crazy busy because that weekend was filled with baby showers thrown by our family and friends. That Saturday, Aleq's family threw us a baby shower and also celebrated the hubby's birthday. Then the next day on Sunday, my cousin Lek and friend Clang organized a shower with family and friends. We had both events at our place, since I really haven't been able to venture far during my entire pregnancy due to my condition. Thank you everyone for sprinkling our baby with so much love!

Our Maternity Photo Shoot at 30 Weeks

We had a super quick and casual maternity shoot at home a couple of weeks ago, when I was at 30 weeks. Aleq and I have been so focused on the serious side of pregnancy that we never thought of doing one until my cousin Sheila texted me one day saying she was coming over to take pics. She went to our place one Saturday and we just did a 30-minute shoot here. It was fun. If it wasn't for her, we wouldn't have these photos to remember this time in our lives, so thank you so much, Shell! 

As for our Little Boy Blue, we're so excited to see you soon, baby! <3 p.s. Thanks to our friend Jing for the baby's shoes and onesie + our sis Ate Weng for my dress! Okay, without further ado, here go the pictures. 

Pregnancy Update: 30-31 Weeks

Hi! Here's my now bi-weekly pregnancy update. I would like to remember this special time, so I'm documenting it! I turn a new week every Wednesday (my apps moved up for some reason), so I'm trying to do these posts during the middle of the week. Here's the first ever pregnancy update, and you can find all the pregnancy updates in this tag.

30 and 31 weeks!

Pregnancy Update: 28-29 Weeks

Hi! Here's my now bi-weekly pregnancy update. I would like to remember this special time, so I'm documenting it! I turn a new week every Wednesday (my apps moved up for some reason), so I'm trying to do these posts during the middle of the week. Here's the first ever pregnancy update, and you can find all the pregnancy updates in this tag.

26 and 27 weeks!

Pregnancy Update: 26-27 Weeks

Hi! Here's my weekly pregnancy update. I would like to remember this special time, so I'm documenting it! I turn a new week every Wednesday (my apps moved up for some reason), so I'm trying to do these posts during the middle of the week. Here's the first ever pregnancy update, and you can find all the pregnancy updates in this tag.

26 and 27 weeks!

Public Service Announcement: Help Kids Through World Vision's Bags of Hope

If you live in the Philippines, you've probably heard of World Vision one way or another. It's the world's largest international children's charity and it does a lot of good in the country, helping more than 100,000 poor children along with their families and communities. I'm interrupting regular blog programming today for a good cause -- I want to help get the word out about this project that World Vision is doing with Robinsons Supermarket and Unilever. What's interesting about it is that by simply shopping at the supermarket, you can help World Vision kids.

Pregnancy Update: 25 Weeks

Hi! Here's my weekly pregnancy update. I would like to remember this special time, so I'm documenting it! I turn a new week every Wednesday (my apps moved up for some reason), so I'm trying to do these posts during the middle of the week. Here's the first ever pregnancy update, and you can find all the pregnancy updates in this tag.

25 weeks!

Pregnancy Update: 24 Weeks

Hi! Here's my weekly pregnancy update. I would like to remember this special time, so I'm documenting it! I turn a new week every Friday, so I'm trying to do these posts during the middle of the week. Here's the first ever pregnancy update, and you can find all the pregnancy updates in this tag.

24 weeks!

Midori Traveler's Notebook Setup 2016

Hey all! I'm finally finally finally getting around to this long-requested update on my Midori Traveler's Notebook! I really have no excuse, except the usual -- life happened. (How many times have I said that here?) Seriously though, a lot of stuff has happened since last year when I first got it. We moved, and now I'm pregnant! Those are huge life changes, so I guess I really have an excuse, huh? 

Anyway, if you've been reading this blog, you would know that I got my Midori Traveler's Notebook last year. It was my husband's Valentine's Day gift to me. I did a massive post on my setup then, so it's about time I did an update, since it's a new year and all. Actually, the first part of the year is over, so I've been using my book for more than a year now. Okay, enough of my rambling. Here we go. 

Pregnancy Update: 23 Weeks

Hi! Here's my weekly pregnancy update. I would like to remember this special time, so I'm documenting it! I turn a new week every Friday, so I'm trying to do these posts during the middle of the week. Here's the first ever pregnancy update, and you can find all the pregnancy updates in this tag.

23 weeks!

Pregnancy Update: 22 Weeks

Hi! Here's my weekly pregnancy update. I would like to remember this special time, so I'm documenting it! I turn a new week every Friday, so I'm trying to do these posts during the middle of the week. Here's the first ever pregnancy update, and you can find all the pregnancy updates in this tag.

22 weeks!

Pregnancy Update: 21 Weeks

Hi! Here's my weekly pregnancy update. I would like to remember this special time, so I'm documenting it! I turn a new week every Friday, so I'm trying to do these posts during the middle of the week. Here's the first ever pregnancy update, and you can find all the pregnancy updates in this tag.

21 weeks!

Pregnancy Update: The First Trimester to Mid-Second Trimester

Hi! I am finally 20 weeks today! This is a major a milestone, because it's the halfway mark! It feels like it's been a million years since I found out I'm pregnant, and yet also super fast at the same time. Like I said in my life update, I would like to document this special time in my life, so here's my first pregnancy update! I wasn't able to do it before now because I haven't been well, but now that I'm feeling somewhat better, I can start doing it. Fair warning though -- this is going to be a long post because I'll be recapping all of my pregnancy journey so far. Here goes...

The Happy Planner 2016-2017: Sugar & Type

Today I got some happy mail, and it's a really good one! This is the 2016-2017 18-month Happy Planner by Me & My Big Ideas. It starts from July 2016 all the way up to December 2017. I also ordered the Hello Magnetic Page Clips to go with it, and everything's too pretty for words.

Going Natural Part 2: Bath and Body

One of my last posts was about my move to natural beauty products. I started off with makeup, and today, I'll be talking about bath and body stuff. Like I mentioned in my last Life Update, I'm currently pregnant, which made me switch to things that don't have too many chemicals in them just to limit what goes into my body at this point in time. Here go the deets!

Life Update: We're Expecting!

The Force just got a little stronger in our family. Coming soon... in a galaxy not so far away.

Yes, my husband and I are expecting our first baby! I'm currently 17 weeks (4 months and 1 week). It's a very exciting and special time for us, and though we finally announced it a week ago, I figured I should also document it here on my blog.

Going Natural Part 1: Makeup

Hello there! Yes, I'm alive. I just haven't been blogging because of circumstances beyond my control, but I'll save that for another post. For now, I'm going to try to take this one step at a time and get back into the swing of things.

So what have I been up to lately? Obsessions-wise, I've been into a ton of things as usual, but I thought I'd start with makeup. I've recently made the move to start using only natural products. It's been quite the adjustment, to be honest -- I can't just go for any makeup that catches my fancy anymore. I've also found that a lot of natural products have very herbal or very floral flavors and scents, and I'm a citrus and musk kind of girl. I'm not sure this will last forever, considering I have yet to become completely comfortable with this, but for now, I feel that it's the healthier choice for me. This is mainly because at the moment, I'm trying to limit contact with chemicals as much as possible.

Now, this the first time I've consciously tried to find natural products. I've been haunting the beauty aisles the past months, taking note of what's out there. I noticed that a lot of them are pretty pricey, and I've decided that for now, while I'm still trying things out, I won't be splurging much until I've done my research, and until I've gotten to know what I like and what I don't like. I think it's also important to note that I know about greenwashing, but there aren't a ton of natural products available in the Philippines, so for now, I'm just going with the most natural products I can find. Not all of them are 100% natural or organic, but I feel that they're at least better ingredients-wise than regular cosmetics.

I'm also trying not to put on too much makeup these days, so I just went for the bare essentials. A little powder on my skin, a little color on my face, and I'm good to go. I might still have to find me some BB cream, and maybe an eyebrow pencil. Here's a rundown of my current arsenal of natural makeup.

The Starbucks x Moleskine Planner: My 2016 Work Planner

TGIF! The first work week of the year has just ended, so it only seemed appropriate for me to post about my 2016 work planner -- the Starbucks x Moleskine Planner.

Last year, I used the Starbucks Planner as my work planner. This year, I'm doing the same. I didn't plan on it (pun not intended, heh), but ever since I started collecting this planner I always wished Starbucks would collaborate with Moleskine. This is the year that it finally happened, and I couldn't resist. I had to get it.