Sticking to a Schedule

This week is passing by in a swift. Today is Thursday already and by tomorrow, I'm ready to embrace the weekend again. One of the things I look forward to weekends is bonding time with the boys (besides being able to do so much chores and things for myself because Kali is around). I love waking up on Saturday mornings with the three of us tucked in the same bed. Yep. You read it right, three of us since Inno won't sleep in his crib by three in the morning. That's a consistent thing. He won't stop crying until we transfer him to the big bed. He also already developed a morning schedule and I'd like to stick with that. He'll wake up at around five to half past five and would start to play with his dad. He's the reason why Kali's been leaving the house quite late than he would back then, but still I appreciate his effort of spending time with Inno. After he leaves for work, I will then send the little boy to sleep so I could prepare his bath time essentials. If he doesn't want to sleep, his Tita Asa or Lola May would bring him downstairs first to give me time to eat and ready his things. Before, Ate Jem would be the one to carry and bring him downstairs, but since she's not around and Tita Carol don't come that early, it's a good thing that in-laws are there to lend a hand. By the time they leave for work, I'm all ready to do mommy duties.


You may ask how I was able to keep this routine. Well, it's all about consistency. A routine won't become a routine unless it is consistent. To give you an outline, let me share some points on how I make a schedule for Inno. 


1. Have a schedule in mind. It all starts with plotting a workable schedule based on your baby's time . Write it down or save it on your phone and practice it. If things don't workout as planned, don't be hard on yourself but rather keep on trying until you finally discover how your baby works out his time.


2. Do not do a routine that is based on your time frame. During Inno's first month, it was actually hard for me to wake up by the time he is up, what I do is I try to send him to sleep again so I'd have more time to slumber but things only turn wild. Inno will start to cry for attempting so hard to sleep again. I've learned from that and whenever he's up, I try to wake up and give him attention. The same with feeding, not all babies actually feed on exactly every two hours. If she begins to tell signs that she's hungry, don't delay feeding just because you think you have to wait for time to be precisely two hours. 


3. Take cues from her actions. Deciphering what your baby wants is quite frustrating especially if you are a new mom. But don't worry because as your baby grows, it will be easy to tell what she likes. When doing a schedule, take in consideration signs that tell if she's tired and wants to sleep like yawning and rubbing of eyes. Note or remember those cues and the time as well and observe if she does that the following day on the same time. 


4. Be consistent. Just like what I've said, routine won't become a routine unless it is done consistently. In order for your baby to understand time and recognize her schedule, you should atleast try to do it in a repetitive manner day by day. I was guilty of this back then. Before, I'd bathe Inno late in the morning and then early the following day. It was actually confusing for him since everything he's supposed to be doing like taking a nap after bath time is adjusted again and again. That experience made him fussy and that meant hours of non-stop unconsolable crying. With consistency also comes strictness but in a gentle way. I try to be strict with Inno (and his dad) when it comes to playtime at night. I always tell Kali to lessen playtime by night. 


5. Be open to changes. As your baby grows, expect that she'll have adjustments with her daily routine and be open with that. If you think that your baby has been skipping routines in a row, take note of that and try to adjust as well. My experience with Inno's sudden routine changes was every time he is on a growth spurt. Feeding becomes an hourly thing and he sleeps most of the time. What I did was I observed what time of the month he usually go under this spurt. By his second month, I was able to recognize it and adjusted with him.


6. Try to set a different environment for each routine. Offering different environments per routine is helpful. During the day, we let Inno sleep on the big bed to teach him that sleeping on the big bed is only during daytime. At night, we let him sleep on his crib, lessen bright lights and noise. We usually spend most of the time inside the bedroom. So for playtime, we put his toys in the big bed and remove them when it's time to nap. As with bathtime, we put his bathing essentials on the bed and remove other things like his toys.


There you go. I hope this would be of help to new and young moms like me. The key is experiment things for your baby. Ditch things that don't work out and try again. Don't be scared to learn. You are mom enough, you just have to believe and be good at it. :)

Inno's Christening

I'm baaaaaaaaack!

The week after mother's day was indescribable. Oh yes, it was hectic with all the errands we had to do for Inno's baptism. There was the clubhouse lady who said there were chairs and tables available for rent which turns out, they actually didn't own them and the true owner was doing some maintenance, we had to find another supplier. Since Papa and Tita Carol weren't here yet that time, we only get to finalize the menu by mid-week. Good thing that Tita Carol already have in mind her list of dishes. Hmmm, what else? Um, of course you all know that I practically still stay at home to watch over Inno while I look for a new job, and since mommy tasks are too crippling to do other tasks, I had to wait until weekend before I could put my hands on the preparations. 

Saturday came and everyone was already busy with their roles. Tita Carol and Ate Jem went to the market, Papa and Kuya Tots hit the grocery, Mama was cleaning the house since Ate Jem can't attend to the chores. Kali was busy looking for a new chairs and tables supplier while I on the other hand, was doing mommy duties. Oh yeah, what's new? Afternoon came and we went to the mall to buy Inno his outfit. We found a nice set of barong which fitted him perfectly. Sadly though, he can't wear it again with the rate that he is growing. Mama came with us and that made Kali very happy because she paid everything that we bought for Inno. Hahaha. We also purchased some decors because the venue was too plain. By evening, it was a challenge sending Inno to sleep, I ended up doing the decors late. Good thing that Ate Mika was around to help. 

We woke up early came Sunday. Hit the church for the 10AM Mass followed by the baptismal rites. I'm glad to see family and friends from Laguna. Anyhoo, I'm posting a few pictures below. :) 

My love in his barong. :)

Stage Daddy 

Fussy :)

Ninong Aaron

HS Barkada Represent! Rae, Lots and Melle

Nursing time :)

Still fussy we had to take his barong off. 

With Father ________. Haha!

Ninongs and Ninangs

Lolos and Lolas

Ninang Melle and Ninang Lots

Family from Laguna :)

Ninang Anne and Ninang Jois

Daddy Lolo and Mumc Lola

Mommy + Inno :)

Like a Boss :D

Great Gwamies! :)

CHEERS! :)

With Mama :)

Sibs :)

Gifts :)

Family :)

Overall, the day was tiring but super fun. :) I couldn't wait for Inno's first birthday party.

Month Two: Felipe Inno

My Love! :)

Here are compiled photos of Inno on his second month. :) 


I could not wait for him to grow up some more. :)

Mother's Day Weekend

How was your weekend?

Mine was great. I got special treatment over the weekend with Kali doing all the cooking from morning till night. Woke up last Saturday with a big breakfast. Ham, Beef Tapa and Egg with Cheese plus a plateful of pancakes. Inno on the side, had his usual morning rituals and slept the rest of the morning before we headed to his pedia for his monthly checkup. I, on the other hand, did some chores after breakfast since Ate Jem is not around. Lunch came and I was surprised that Kali and Ate Mika came up with a Pork-Chicken dish broiled in herbs and spices. The smell was inviting but when we tasted it, it almost don't have a taste at all. Tasteless in short. But we just made laughs out of it and asked Kali to revamp it for dinner which he really did. He transformed it to what he called "Adobado", an almost-fried Adobo less the sauce (sabaw). Since he put so much effort on it, I didn't say anything about it. Good thing because there's pork and beans on the side. And I must say, it (PnB) saved our appetite. Hehe.

Heavy Breakfast courtesy of the husband :)

After lunch, we went to Inno's doctor for his due vaccines. I think I'm already used to seeing Inno being injected with his drug essentials. I actually don't have a choice but endure his tears since he had to feel that I'm there to calm him down. It sends me to tears every time he cries after each injection. I know it's still painful for him. He drifted to sleep after crying for half an hour (or was it the effect of the vaccine?)

Last Saturday was also Inno's second month. He blew his birthday cake (courtesy of DBPhos). Hehe. And as usual, I had to restrain myself for consuming a whole slice.

Pardon our "Morning Look" :) 

Felipe Inno at two months :)

Me and Inno waiting for our his pedia. :)
The four pics were taken Sunday morning :)

 

Sunday came. Happy Mother's day... to ME! Kinda felt awkward with all the greetings that flooded my inboxes being a new mom that I am, but I'm touched. Years back, I was the one who always did surprises and wrote sweet messages for my mom, but now it's different when you're part of the crowd already. Well, the fact that I'm a mom doesn't change the other fact that I am still and will always be a daughter.

So, to the woman who I will always look up to, Happy Mother's day!

Mumc has always been there to witness my joys and sadness, success and failures. She let me be ME and for that I will always be grateful, because she never controlled me to live by her expectations rather she pushed me to discover myself and be the person that I am now. I love her because she never dictated what I should do, but taught me to make my own decisions and stand by them. With everything that she taught me, I would always live up with this one: Kahit anong bagay na mabigat, gumagaan kapag niyayakap ng buo, ng mahigpit, ng buong puso.


She will always be my wonder woman. :)

How about you? What is that one lesson from your mom that you would alway live up to?

Yan

Home Alone Friday

I was almost home alone the entire day. Papa and Mama together with Ate Jem went home to Lubang Island for Nana's 40 days. Almost because Kuya Tots surprisingly came knocking on our room in the middle of the day. Had to admit I kind of panicked when I heard the knock because I didn't actually expect he'd come home at that hour. Kuya Tots usually is the last person to go home every night. 

But anyways, I'm relieved that I survived this day with just me, myself and Inno. It was a challenge looking over the house with a small dependent human creature with me. Thankfully, he participated most of the time by sleeping (even if it were mostly catnaps) and feeding less the fuss. The downside though of being alone at home was rushing everything, from eating, bathing, doing number two and even as simple as going downstairs especially when the kiddo is wide awake. 

Mid-day came and finally our wedding albums and DVD's arrived in the doorstep. The long wait is over. We have something to give our parents since they've been bugging us about it for the past months after our wedding. The photog group apologized for the delay and made up for it by sending a box of Chocolat Dark Chocolate Cake together with the albums. The cake was so in time. Kali is happy he need not buy a cake for Inno's 2nd month mini-celebration tomorrow. He's excited to eat the cake already but told him to wait till morning because I can't eat it tonight with him. You know. Chocolate mixed with the breastmilk makes a hyper, alert, fussy baby. Been there, done that. So I wouldn't really try eating anything chocolate again beyond 12 noon. Back to the albums, I was overly excited to open and see the photos. It was a compilation of the best shots during our wedding. And of course, my excitement did not spare the DVD's which turned out to be my biggest mistake today. I opened it and guess what? My eyes swelled up, I felt like I was back on our wedding day again. What's worse is that when Kali arrived home, he wanted to see the videos too. He tried playing it using Macario but the CD port won't work (I guess Macario's already deteriorating), so we had no choice but to watch it on the widescreen downstairs. We ended up laughing, well Kali did laugh most of the time while I on the other hand, felt a downpour from my eyes while I watch my mom's message for us that day. I told Kali to scan and skip that part but he wanted Inno to hear it, so he made fun while I was in tears. Oh yes. The drama queen in me. 

I'm glad that finally the weekend is here. I wish I could snag some more sleeping time and that these colds would leave me already. Inno will have his monthly checkup tomorrow and we also have some errands for Inno's baptism next Sunday. Excited to get my hands working on some DIY stuff. Wuhoo!

I hope you'll have a good weekend, guys! :)

PS

WIll try to post pictures from our wedding album on my next blog. :)

Yan

My Felipe Inno

His smiles, coos and giggles are the best rewards and
I could not ask for more :)

My little boy is growing up so fast. When he was less than a month old, everything was frustrating to me. He cries a lot to the point that I don't know how to soothe him at all. I end up calling my mom back home asking her what to do. There would also be those times that I'd caught myself crying out of disappointment with myself. I feel like a bad mom for not even knowing how to stop whatever is causing his tears and wails and for scolding him at times for crying too much.

 When he reached his sixth week though, things started to change. He began showing his true smile and responds every time I talk to him through his coos and giggles. It was nice waking up to his cries now because I know, I could soothe him now and that I'll be seeing him smile again.

Nothing else matters. Even the tired-some routine of bathing him, changing his dappies now and them, washing his bum and other things that I do for him is rewarded with the joy of seeing that once-straight lips curve into a smile. Everything is just worth it. The baddest hair dayS, the pee-and-poop soiled bed and the sleepless nights, I could say hello to them everyday now and still feel goody good at the end of the day. 

It's true then when they said that life makes a 360-degrees turn when you enter motherhood. And you know what? I wouldn't wish to take a turn back to my old life and old self, even if it means having my own money to spend, shopping sprees, luxurious travels and those other single-y stuff because there's just MORE things to look forward to and discover with Inno (and of course, Kali) by my side. 

In a few days time, Inno would be turning two months old and I can't wait to learn more things about him and unveil more of myself as a mom. :) And for that, I would always be grateful... to Him. :)

Saving My Milk

As I'm writing this post, the little man is currently sleeping on his daddy's side of the bed. Since he's been sleeping after his morning bath and only wakes up to eat, I'm quite convinced that he's actually on a growth spurt. He's been feeding frequently too. From his usual every two hour schedule, he actually shifted to an every hour routine which also happened the week before he turned one month old. Kali don't actually believe my conclusion but I'm sticking to it and will continue to observe it up until the next month to prove it. And since Inno is turning two months already by the end of this week, I've decided to increase my milk supply... big time. There's actually no problem with my supply for Inno but since Kali is already asking me to try looking for a job soon, I thought that I should start storing milk for Inno and learn to use the pump which Ella and Imon lend us. I've tried using it before but since Inno was just on his first week back then, I thought that there's still no need to do some pumping since his stomach is not big yet. By the end of March, I wanted to know how much milk I have so I expressed milk manually. During that time, I only got one to almost 1.5 ounces for both breasts almost filling the Medela storage container that we have. I've read in some articles that the amount of milk a mom has for every pumping session is actually enough to meet the needs of her baby. Two weeks ago, I tried expressing manually again and was surprised when I almost filled a 4-oz feeding bottle. However, when I pumped earlier today, I noticed that I didn't even get to fill a 2.5-oz container and that worries me now since Inno is almost two months already and for sure his feeding needs will increase as well. I haven't told Kali about it because I know he'll worry too. To drop the anxiety, I decided to order some lactation cookies online baked by Paola Loot, the mom behind Mommy Treats. Before I could purchase these treats, I had to undergo some discussions with Kali which I actually looked forward to. Alongside my lactation cookies, I also ordered a cup for cupfeeding, an organic lactation tea and a box of milk storage bags via BabyMama. Kali has been telling me to start teaching Inno how to bottlefeed which I refuse to do so to keep Inno's sucking pattern the same. To be honest, it's quite hard to convince Kali to try innovations and alternatives. He thinks that I read to much mommy information that I end up wanting to try them all. Well, I wouldn't deny that. Hehe. But seriously, I want to really jump into cupfeeding instead of the classic bottlefeeding method. Inno was able to finish a meal using a cup the second time I tried to cupfeed him (he went wild during our first try!). I know I just have to be patient with him while he learns to lap on the cup. 


I'm on my way to my breastpumping journey soon. I really want to succeed on breastfeeding that's why I'm exploring all possible ways to help keep my milk supply high, Inno's sucking pattern the same thru alternative feeding methods and storing ample milk for him while I'm away. 

Hello there!

Welcome!

Surprise! That's what the two lines on the pregnancy kit told me the first time I learned I was pregnant. At first, it wasn't actually easy accepting the fact that I'm on my way to being a mom. Maybe because in the Philippine society, getting pregnant outside marriage is surely a family issue, you know, the how-do-you-tell-your-parents stuff is like seeing yourself in a drama TV series where your dad yells at you and disowns you, mom slaps you, drags you out of the house with all your things while you cry pleading them to forgive you. Luckily, that didn't happen to me. I'm proud to say I've got understanding and supportive parents and I have an ex-boyfriend-now-husband who's very supportive and loving as well. He has a pair of cool parents too. 

But anyways, I'd like to welcome you to my blog. Allow me to share with you my experience being a young wife and a newbie mom.  Don't worry because this would be more than a journal of my life but an informative tool for other moms too (or atleast I'd try). Hehe. 

Being a mom is not easy, I've learned that the moment I conceived Inno. There are a lot of things to learn and a lot of sacrificing to do. Sleepless nights, the uncomfortable leaking milk and letting down, changing diapers and doing the laundry. If you are one of those moms who have the same experience or even worse, then let me tell you that you are not alone.

Allow me to help you keep cool with being a young mommy who still knows how to enjoy life in every possible way. 

Enjoy and feel free to comment and share your thoughts as well.

Happy reading! 

Yan