Julianna Alyssa @ 2 months old

Milestone at 2 months old:

1. Can already recognize voices.
2. Listens attentively.
3. Can now socially smile back at you. She really smiles and laughs a lot.
4. Replies with her coos and little laughs.
5. She knows who her mom and dad is.
6. Can appreciate colorful things around the house.
7. Can grasp on things like her lampin and sometimes your fingers whenever she poops.
8. Can raise her head a little from time to time from lying in chest position.
9. Watch TV sometimes when in sitting position.
10. Discovered her hand at 6 weeks old. Sucking them when she’s already bored or about to be fed.
11. She have this distinctive yell whenever she’s looking for me or her daddy.
12. Loves taking her bath but still cries when we shampoo her hair (hay dilemma!)

Baby Janna is now 2 months old. There were nights of colic attacks and insomia moments but still we so dearly love our unica hija. No matter how many times she would pee on us, how many times she would demand for us to carry her all through the night … she’s still our little princess that we’ll gonna love for the rest of our lives.

One Word Tag

Thanks Mommy Mai for the tag.

Here’s the game: you have to answer the question with ONE WORD only and then you have to tag 4 people.

1. Where is your cell phone? TABLE
2. Your significant other? PARTY
3. Your hair? SHORT
4. Your mother? LOVING
5. Your father? SUPPORTIVE
6. Your favorite thing? CELLPHONE
7. Your dream last night? NONE
8. Your favorite drink? COKE
9. Your dream/goal? TRAVEL
10. The room you’re in? BEDROOM
11. Your hobby? READING
12. Your fear? DEATH
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? ABROAD
14. What you’re not? SLIM
15. Muffins? DELICIOUS
16. One of your wish list items? DSLR
17. Where you grew up? BULACAN
18. The last thing you did? FEED
19. What are you wearing? SHORTS
20. Favorite gadget? CELLPHONE
21. Your pets? DOGS
22. Your computer? HP
23. Your mood? SLEEPY
24. Missing someone? FRIENDS
25. Your car? FORD
26. Something you’re not wearing? EARRINGS
27. Favorite store? BABY
28. Like someone? HUBBY
29. Your favorite color? BLUE
30. When is the last time you laughed? TODAY
31. Last time you cried? YESTERDAY

I’m tagging Rhea, Nikki, Irene, and Chie.

Enfant, A Couple’s Day Out and Christening Preparations

My mom can’t get enough of Enfant… dati cloth diapers lang binibili niya, ngayon pati wardrobe bumibili na. Ang mahal mahal ng damit dun for crying out loud. Maya-maya lang malalakihan din ni Janna yung mga damit. Hay o hay … pero di ko siya masisisi, para sa unang apo, gagawin niya lahat hehehe. I’m planning to buy stuffs din naman from there kaso hindi muna ngayon kasi di pa naman ganun ma-a-appreciate dahil she’s too little pa. Pag may special occasions bibili ako ng dress diyan. Actually, I saw ahat na so pretty na sa tingin ko bagay sa kanya. Pwede gamitin sa malalamig na lugar like sa mall and sa Tagaytay at Baguio.

Well, my mom’s already showing early signs of being a stage lola. The reason why she bought all this stuffs for Baby Janna dahil gusto niya isali sa SM Star Baby. Susme, is it too early for Baby Janna to join such contest? hehehe … I myself wanted my Baby Janna to be Enfant’s Baby of the Month. Kaso si mom sa SM Dept. Store bumibili ng Enfant products, counted pa kaya yun if mag-apply ako sa sjop nila mismo? Tutal, sila naman nagdidistribute ng items sa dept. store di ba? Siguro naman papayag sila. Am I showing early signs of being a stage mom? Hahahaha! Ang bilis ng karma!

Eto pa, mom bought this Baptismal Gown from Purple Candy. It’s on sale kaya she grabbed it agad. It’s so pretty, di ko nga maintindihan bat di namin nakita ito ni Jason last time we went there. Nakabili tuloy kami ng simple white dress from St. Patrick sa Landmark, Trinoma. Maganda din naman pero nung nakita kasi ni mom yung gown, binili na niya. After the ceremony nalang daw suotin ni Baby Janna yung binili namin na dress.

Last Sunday, Jason and I went for a Baby Janna-free day. Siya din naman ang reason kaya kami lumabas nung Sunday kasi on a hunt nga kami ng baptismal gown niya. We went to our parish church first to request a letter of permission para sa christening ni Baby Janna sa Twin Hearts. Kaso kulang naman ang requirements namin kaya wala din kami nakuha, pero mabait naman yung nasa office ng parish church namin, mabilis lang naman daw gawin yun at makukuha naman daw namin agad.

Off we went to Landmark Trinoma, papunta namin sa childrens section … my God lumuwa ang mata ko sa dami ng mga damit. Pero wala pa din kaminakita na size niya except sa St. Patrick. Ilang beses na namin nilagpasan ang St. Patrick eh dun din naman pala kami babagsak hehehe. Binili na din namin yung socks and shoes niya, pati headband … oo headband … para makita nila na babae anak ko hehehe. After nun nagliwaliw na kami sa mall. Naalala ko na anniversary pala namin ni Jason as boyfriend and girlfriend. 9 years na kami magkakilala (7 years na kami nung nagpakasal kami). Nag-celebrate kami sa CPK … would you believe na first time ko kumain dito? And I must agree, masarap pala ang food dun, even ang ice tea. Suggest ko nga kay bunso na dun kami mag-celebrate ng birthday niya in August. At least that time makakasama na si Baby Janna kasi nabinyagan na siya nun. hehehe and she’ll turn 3 months na rin in a few days.

In two weeks, bibinyagan na ang baby ko. Everything’s all set na, documents and full payments nalang. We set a meeting with Ging Lorenzo on July 19. Para ma-discuss na yung mga gagawin at mga gusto namin mangyari sa day ng Christening ni Baby Janna. Na-eexcite na ako, sana madami magawnag shots si Ms. Ging. And I’m praying hindi maging cranky si Baby Janna because of a lot of people carrying her and not to mention the diapers she’s wearing hehehe.

Marunong na Magtipid…

Baby Janna already know the art of “pagtitipid” … or was it just coincidence? Coincidence because she had diaper rash a week ago. And since she’s using diapers from day 1, my mom told us that she needs to wear “lampin” for the time being … hanggang mawala lang daw yung kanyang diaper rash.

Until now Jason haven’t bought any diapers … nakakatipid na kami dahil mas pinili na ni Baby Janna for her to use cloth diapers. Goodluck to us pag time to visit her pedia, baka ayaw na niya mag-diapers huhuhu. Kahit kasi sa gabi ayaw na niya mag-diaper. Blame it on our very humid climate this past few days.

She uses 4 dozen of lampin a day … thank God for maids … they washed up all Janna’s soiled lampin regularly … every morning, afternoon and night. Oh di ba nakatipid nga kami sa diaper, pero mukhang mataas ang bill namin sa tubig this coming month hahaha.

Initially, we bought only 2 dozens of cloth diapers. Last week, mom bought additional 2 dozens … and planning more to buy dozens of it. Sale ang Enfant, natuwa ang lola kaya bili ng bili.

Another thing, she doesn’t want herself stuck in an aircon room. Kahit mainit na at init na init na kami lahat sa bahay, ayaw pa rin niya na naka-aircon. Hindi siya makatulog at sa tingin ko mana siya sa mom ko na ginawin. Ayan tuloy, my asthma and skin asthma has been eating me up this past few weeks. Dahil nasanay ako mag-aircon lalo na nung pregnant ako sa kanya, konting bahid lang ng init eh nag-aallergy ako. Wala naman ako magawa, hindi naman matutulog ang anak ko pag nag-aircon kami. O di ba, bawas sa bill ng kuryente?

Eversince Jason told Janna na ubusin ang kanyang milk every feeding, lagi siyang ubos. Hindi siya nagtitira. Kaya kahit mahal ang formula niya eh natutuwa naman kami pag inuubos niya ang milk niya.

Hay … love talaga namin si Baby Janna, kahit nagkakandahirap na kami para sa kanya ok lang … wish lang namin na tumigil na ang pagiging iyakin niya lalo na sa gabi!

Question of the Week 22

I was invited before to join but don’t have the time to do so. So here I am joining for the first time. You can also join us here…

1. When you have food cravings, is it usually for something sweet, salty, greasy, or creamy? SWEET
2. Have you ever barf or fart in a public and blame it to someone else? NOPE
3. You’re stuck in an airport, what do you do? NO IDEA, I’LL TELL YOU ONCE I GET A CHANCE TO RIDE ON A PLANE HEHEHE.
4. You fall in line, where are you? IT’S EITHER FROM THE 3RD OR FIFTH PLACE.
5. Which of the following would your friends say you are? Shy, Clumsy,Pessimistic or Behind the times? PESSIMISTIC (AT TIMES)
6. Can you play a musical instrument? What is it? BEFORE I COULD PLAY AGUITAR
7. How do you feel today? DEPRIVED (OF SLEEP, SOCIAL LIFE, SHOPPING SPREE, TIME FOR HUBBY)
8. What movie have you watched the most? SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE (I THINK I ALREADY MEMORIZED THEIR LINES HEHEHE)
9. If you could have any car in the world, what would it be? A BEETLE (VOLKSWAGEN), ITS MY DREAM CAR NEXT TO RAV4. BUT SINCE MAHAL NA ANG GAS, A MITSUBISHI ESTRADA WOULD DO
10. What do you think about tattoos? Do you have any? Would you ever get any? TATTOOS ARE FORMS OF ART CARVED OR WRITTEN ON SKIN. SOMETHING I’M AMAZED TO SEE BUT DON’T HAVE THE GUTS TO HAVE ONE FOR MYSELF.

Happy Father’s Day 2008

Today is a joint celebration for dad and my hubby. At day, Jason and I took turns on taking care of our little princess… for mom and dad went to Tagaytay to have their own celebration of Father’s Day (ang daya di kami kasama hehehe!). Dinner was spent at home with 2 buckets of KFC (yummy!) since we can’t go out with our little one just yet.

To all Dad’s out there … Happy Father’s Day!

Credits:
Fairy Dust Princess Magic Maker Father’s Day QP Bragbooks

Julianna Alyssa @ 1 Month Old

Your baby may gurgle, coo, grunt, and hum to express his feelings. A few babies also begin squealing and laughing. Be sure to coo and gurgle back, and talk to your baby face to face. He’ll enjoy holding your gaze now.

If you have things to do, your baby will still enjoy hearing your voice from across the room. And don’t feel silly about talking baby talk — babies are particularly attuned to this high-pitched, drawn-out way of communicating that can actually teach your baby about the structure and function of language.

SOURCE: www.babycenter.com

We celebrated Julianna’s 1st month birthday twice. One was last Sunday with her Lola Perly and Tito Jade, and yesterday with the Recta Family. She’s getting bigger already, according to her pedia. May weight target kasi kami for her na dapat in two weeks mag-gain siya ng 600 grams. Pero nalampasan pa niya yun, she gained 900 grams weeee … galing talaga ng baby ko. She still looks like her dad, as everybody else says … pero she’s getting prettier. Siyempre anak ko yan, siya pinakamagandang nilalang sa mundo, walang kokontra ha, bubuhusan ko ng acido … joke lang.

We just ordered food nalang from Goldilocks. Last Sunday we had Sotanghon Guisado, Kare-kare, Double Dutch Rolls, Lumpiang Shanghai … but yesterday, we only cooked spaghetti and mom bought a cake from Red Ribbon … sa kasawiang palad, wala din photos kahapon dahil tulog ang birthday celebrant. Ayaw makisama sa camera hehehe.

Here’s our first ever family picture… susme, ang putla ko diyan halatang walang tulog. Kulot-kulot pa buhok ko ano ba yan hahaha! Kailangan ko na magpagupit waaaaahhhhh!

Credits: Ribbon Frame, Promise Collection by: Shabby Princess

What her name means

Julianna, Origin: Latin; Meaning: Down-bearded youth

Alyssa, Origin: German; Meaning: Noble kind, of the noble sort; Additional Info: Alyssa might also be derived from the flower alyssum’s name. Actress Alyssa Milano is a famous bearer.

Credits:
In The Grove Album QP by: Shabby Princess
Early Summer Alpha by: Akizo

Baptismal Preparation Updates
Jason and I decided to move Julianna’s Christening from Sept. 13 to July 26, 2008. Para mapasyal na namin si Julianna na hindi na kami magwoworry na mauusog siya or what. Alam mo na mga kasabihan ng mga matatanda. Good thing some of our prospect suppliers are still available on the said date. Jason already booked the church and reception venue. I’ll gonna get Ging Lorenzo as our photographer for the event. I’ll coordinate with her pag plantsado na yung oras na napa-reserve namin on both locations. Although we’ll gonna get the baptismal package from the reception venue, I’m thinking of making some DIY stuffs for Julianna. Mai voluntered to help me on making her invites and guestbook. I so love her, I know she’s good when it comes to digiscrapping kaya alam ko maganda ang kalalabasan. Ngayon palang, salamat Mai sa iyong tulong.

Colicky Baby

Colic is a term used to describe uncontrollable crying in an otherwise healthy baby. If your baby is younger than 5 months old and cries for more than three hours in a row on three or more days a week for at least three weeks (phew!), chances are he’s colicky. Colic isn’t a disease and won’t cause your baby any long-term harm, but it’s a tough thing to go through for both babies and their parents.

Colic most often shows up when a baby is around 2 or 3 weeks old (or two or three weeks after the baby’s due date, if he’s a preemie).

While babies normally cry when they’re wet or hungry or frightened or tired, a baby with colic

If your baby has colic, his belly may look enlarged. You may notice that he alternately extends or pulls up his legs and passes gas as he cries. cries inconsolably and excessively, often at the same time of day, frequently in the late afternoon or evening.

Colic is one of the great mysteries of baby life. About 20 percent of babies become colicky. The condition is equally common among firstborn and later-born, boys and girls, breastfed and formula-fed. No one knows why some babies are more prone to it than others, but theories abound. And there may well be more than one cause.

Your baby may have colic because his digestive system is a bit immature or sensitive. (In fact, the word colic comes from a Greek word, kolikos, which roughly translates to “colon.”) A newborn’s digestive tract contains very few of the enzymes and digestive juices needed to break down food, so processing the proteins in breast milk or formula can lead to painful gas.

The act of screaming itself can cause your baby to swallow a lot of air and that, too, leads to gassiness. If your baby has colic because of tummy trouble, you may notice that his symptoms get worse after a feeding or before a bowel movement.

Some experts believe that long bouts of colicky crying are a physical release for overwrought babies. Your baby might be easily overwhelmed if he’s sensitive by nature, for example, or if he’s recovering from a difficult birth or was born prematurely and his nervous system is still developing. By the time evening rolls around, these babies just can’t handle any more sights, sounds, or sensations, and they cry to blow off steam.

Source: www.babycenter.com

After ending my battle on breastfeeding (I failed huhuhu!) eh eto nanaman ang bagong dilemma namin mag-asawa (actually kasama ang lolo at lola niya). We just found out na colicky baby pala si Julianna. The reason why she’s so cranky and fussy at night is because of colic. Grabe malapit na ako mag-breakdown, kasi hindi namin alam paano maso-soothe ang nararamdaman niya. She’s crying a lot and sleeps shorter talaga. Pag napa-hele mo na siya at naibaba sa crib, after an hour gigising nanaman siya just to cry out loud. Ilang araw na kami napupuyat … halos nagiging umaga na ang gabi sa amin. Zombie na nga ako eh. Kasi ako naman ang pwede magstay-up ng matagal dahil lahat sila may trabaho, ako SAHM lang.

Tips naman diyan kung paano mapapatulog si Julianna sa gabi ng matagal, para lahat kami makatulog din ng maayos sa gabi.

Lord, please give me more strength to do all this mommy duties to Julianna. I know that it’s not that easy, but I need Your constant guidance so that we can get through all this in a nice manner na walang napeperwisyo … thanks!

Something bought, something new

Jason bought his new toy a week after I gave birth to Julianna. It’s Julianna’s first car. We call it Frodo … for it is a Ford Ranger. Looking forward to build good memories with it. Welcome to the family, Frodo!

The Baby Couture Bag was Jason’s gift for me on Mother’s Day. Na-delay ng two weeks ang gift niya sa akin hehehe. Nagamit ko na siya last time we went to visit Jlianna’s pedia. Sa lahat ng nagpa-check up, ako lang may kikay na bag hehehe. I bought this from a fellow N@wie, Morning. I also bought additional bottles for Julianna dahil super malakas siya mag-feed ngayon. Much better if I have lots of bottle na naka-abang kaysa wala.

This one naman I bought from Jing. It’s a drying rack and powder formula container from Munchkin. I so love Munchkin products, can’t wait to buy some more by the time Julianna starts to eat solid foods.

And last … this is a gift from one of our Ninang, Tita Beth. Nung nalaman niya na nanganak na ako eh humanap na daw siya ng gift niya for Julianna. Since wala pa masyado toys si Julianna, perfect ang gift ni Tita Beth hihihi. Maraming salamat po.

I’m now starting to plan for Julianna’s Christening. Medyo matagal pa naman ang kanyang dedication… it’s on September 13 pa. It’s a mutual decision between me and Jason kasi medyo genetically small pa si Julianna and pinapalaki pa namin siya with the help of her pedia and our tender loving care. Sana nga ma-achieve namin yung additional 600grams on her weight bago mag June 7. Help us, Lord. Make Julianna more healthy.

BCG Shot, Newborn Screening and Sacral Pit

Last Saturday was Julianna’s sched for Newborn Screening and BCG Shot. Naku parang sinusumpa ko yung Newborn Screening … susme, halos super namula talaga si Julianna nung ni-prick na yung heel niya, she was crying so hard dahil mega piniga yung blood niya sa heel para mapuno yung 4 circles sa filter ng blood sample niya. Pero strong talaga ang baby namin, umiyak lang siya during the procedure. Pero after that natulog na siya ulit, parang walang nangyari.Nung BCG shot din niya, umiyak lang siya nung tinurok na sa kanya yung needle, pero after nun natulog nanaman siya hahaha.

Our baby’s pedia did her routine check-up on Julianna. And when she looked at her back, she saw a dimple near Julianna’s butt. She asked me if I already saw this before. Sabi ko, ngayon ko lang din nakita yun. She calls it a sacral pit. Usually daw yung mga newborn babies na kulang sa timbang nagkakaroon ng sacral pit. The doctor advised us to go to another doctor, a pediatric neurologist, to clear whether the sacral pit is on the safe side or not.

After seeing my OB for my post partum check-up, we headed to the pedia neuro to check on Julianna. Based on her test, all of Julianna’s reflexes were normal. And when she saw the dimple, she said that na malayo naman pala sa spinal cord. Pero para makasiguro, she advised us to have her sacral ultrasound just to make sure na walang problema. Sabi ni Pedia, we should do it in 2 weeks time. Para sa next check up ni Julianna eh may result na ang ultrasound. Kaya we need your prayers, na sana ok naman at walang maging problema sa aming prinsesa.

Ano nga ba ang sacral pit?

A sacral dimple or sacral pit, also known as a pilonidal dimple, is an indentation or little hole in the crease between the buttocks and the base of the tailbone. This dimple generally develops as the spinal column is forming inside the mother’s womb. To put it simply, if the inner tissues of the neural tube that forms the spinal column become malformed, the outside layer of tissue including the skin may not be smooth. This could mean that the outside layer formed with some dimples in it, which have no effect on the inner layers; or there could be a malformation of the inner layers, which have no effect on the outer layers. So a dimple in the lower back along the spine may be a simple divot in the skin, causing no problems whatsoever, or it may be the sign of malformation in lower tissue layers including the spine and spinal cord.

Most sacral dimples are harmless. However, some sacral pits continue deep inside and may even connect to the spinal canal or even the colon or large intestine. In the latter case, bits of stool can leak out through the opening causing a chronic rash. This type of dimple needs to be closed. Other signs that may indicate an abnormality in the lower spine include large or deep sacral dimples or dimples that are covered by hair or a birthmark.

Most spinal cord defects signaled by a sacral dimple may be adequately investigated by doing a thorough physical exam and, if needed, an ultrasound. For those in which there is a very high suspicion of a spinal cord defect, an MRI is usually performed. If these tests detect a problem affecting the spinal cord, the child may require surgery.

If you notice a deep or an unusual-looking sacral dimple on your infant, be sure to discuss it with your pediatrician.

Some things your pediatrician will look for include:

* Can the floor of the pit or dimple be easily seen? When the bottom portion of a divot can’t be seen, this may be an indication of a neural tube that never closed completely.
* Does the pit have hair growing from it? This again makes a pit suspicious for deeper involvement.
* Is the neurologic exam normal? If there is significant involvement of the spinal column, there may be weakness in the legs.
* How high up on the back is the dimple? Most dimples very low on the back (just above the buttocks) are of little concern. The higher the dimple is, the more likely it is to be associated with defects in deeper tissues.
* Are there signs of any other defects? The brain, spinal column, kidneys, as well as other structures form at the same time the neural tube closes. Therefore, if there are any malformations in any other parts of the body, it becomes more probable that the neural tube may be involved as well.

After doing an exam, your child’s doctor will discuss what, if any, treatment is needed.

SOURCE: https://www.akronchildrens.org