In My Psyche

Need Clean Air

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:58:00 +0000

And it's not just the obsessive compulsive office girl in me that has been awakened, my inner Bree Van de Kamp and Charlotte York are also in the house. Combine my normal obsessive compulsive behavior with my nesting instincts and the house is bound to be sparkling clean! But that's not the case; this fatigue and monitoring my blood sugar is getting the best of me. I'm not about to push myself to my limits anyways. I don't want to complicate my condition by going through pre-term labor, NO!

I'm not as uptight as Bree (who perfectly made the bed before driving her late husband to the emergency room for suffering a heart attack), I've learned to just go with the flow. Thanks to Don't Sweat the Small Stuff and for my friend Apple for recommending it to me and to myself for buying it as a "gift to self." Thanks to the hubby too, who gives me good training for having kids; he's a big kid himself. Anyways, the only thing that's really bothering me is our ventilation. I can't seem to get rid of all the cooking odors (fish odor removal austin comes to mind) and the dust that I imagine have accumulated over the winter and my hibernation. But no matter how much I want to, I can't do much about it now, can I? I can sure use some help from fresh air duct cleaning austin and probably buy some green carpet cleaning products austin for the hubby to use. Hopefully, we'd find a way to air the house out and welcome baby home with real fresh air.

Home Office

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:31:00 +0000

It started a couple of weeks ago while I was finishing up some supporting schedules and reports for filing our taxes, I realized that I needed some office supplies for keeping records of my earnings & expenses. It's ironic; just when I'm giving up my husband's computer table (slash my work station slash home office) to make room for baby's stuff, I begin to seriously setup an office.

Well, I've only purchased a few things. There's more organizing going on than shopping, which is good. But there's still a little shopping list in my head. Since I turned my office mode on, I've been thinking of getting personalized stuff. I remember wanting my own checkbook, my own address labels, even my own stationery, perhaps. Anyways, that's just a thought; those things are ordered in bulk and I'd surely be wasting a lot of them. I would probably be better off just making some myself just to satisfy my longing for them. Haha! I even checked out a Label Maker already... Oh, the OC in me is sooo back!

Thoughts of Thanks

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 17:47:00 +0000

Would you say I'm totally messed up if I told you that when I heard the phrase "Texas truck accident lawyer" all that sunk into my head was the word "Texas" and I automatically thought of barbeque? I'm crazy like that, ha!

This diabetes thing is really getting to me. The more I realize that I'm not supposed to eat certain foods, the more I want to eat them!

We always want what we can't have.
The things that tastes/feels good are the ones that are bad for you.
... most of the time. - just by me ;p

But here's a thought that's not crazy at all: I'm thankful that last week was celebration week; I got a break from preparing my own food because the hubby wanted to go out most nights and we dined out a lot - for the first time after a very long time. I'm also glad we visited the in-laws this weekend because we came home with a couple of home-cooked dishes and I can just reheat those for the times that baby and I have appointments at the hospital, that way we won't be rushed and stressed.

Things are going smoothly so far, I just wish this goes on until the baby's finally here... I love this and I'm, as always, psyched! (gawd, I love that word!)

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 16:35:00 +0000

I slept well last night, almost until the alarm went off. Not too early to wake up to and watch all the paid programming (you know those P90X and hydroxycut infomercials?) and not too late to find myself cramming in the kitchen to prepare my husband's breakfast and lunch. I didn't even wake up at 3 am to use the bathroom. That's rare these days when the little one inside me seems to have a messed up schedule like mommy. LOL! Just thought I'd share that with you today.

March Wrap Up - Week 5

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 20:57:00 +0000

Whew! March is a looong month... And this last week has been quite eventful too:

March 28, Monday - Hubby and I celebrated our 3rd anniversary! Yay! (My weeks have been starting on Mondays since I got pregnant because I usually get my periods on Mondays; very convenient, huh? especially that my organizer starts its weeks on Mondays too!)
March 29, Tuesday - My second take on behind-the-wheel driving test = FAILED! Boo! We watched Sucker Punch to make up for Monday's movie night. It kinda sucked.
March 30, Wednesday - Hubby and I celebrated our 13th BF/GF anniversary. Yay again! We went to see Limitless
March 31, Thursday - Hubby's promotion ceremony. First time he has a tacker from the family, and that's me and baby! Wee! Congratulations, Papay!
April 1, Friday - Had another appointment with Antenatal Testing Unit. Good news: baby's doing great! Bad news: thought we weren't gonna receive any compensation (almost checked out cash advance payday loans), Good news: Happy April Fool's Day!

March Wrap Up - Week 4

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 01:41:00 +0000

After procrastinating for almost half the month, I'm finally done with all the requirements to file our tax papers. It's my first time to file taxes because my writing gig has been just a little too lucrative to be considered merely a hobby anymore. So now I'm a business woman and I'm planning to take business-related things more seriously now (for a moment, thinks if dvi to hdmi cables could be tax deductible if I'd use it for Skype and blog about it). Looks like I'm gonna use my accounting degree after all.

The Pen is Mightier than the Keyboard

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 01:23:00 +0000

While I am helping a friend set up her blog, I was reminded of the greatness of the pen and paper. My friend, she would jot down her thoughts on a notebook then just post those as blog entries when she goes online. That's an effective strategy that I have long forgotten.

Whenever I'm offline, I'd often fail to even jot down a thought so I could blog about it later. Instead, I play games on my iPhone or call friends or get some shut-eye. With me being so forgetful, the thoughts expire ans there goes what would have been a good blog post.

So this is the purpose of my iPhone's battery being so weak that I'm bound to conserve it's energy for important calls, so I can rediscover the joys of marking paper with ink or lead. I'm getting the most of my bulky organizer now and I think I;m gonna need new pens.

My GDM - Gestational Diabetes for March (Part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 01:12:00 +0000

The Good Part

Having seen two different nutritionists and talking to several nurses in my frequent visits (I'm being monitored twice a week) to the hospital, I've collected quite an amount of health advice to best deal with my GDM and the change in lifestyle that following these have brought about has made a tremendous and evident change in the way my body works as well.

I'm now gaining weight, good weight, I hope. I'm sleeping better at night and less at daytime - hey, I haven't seen home TV shopping and enzyte ads for a while now because I'm sleeping through late-night TV. I've also been quite productive because my energy levels seem to be going back to normal; and with that, I'm making hubby happy with some home-cooked meals, less clutter and some savings from not dining out and going on movie dates as often as we used to.

My GDM - Gestational Diabetes for March (Part 1)

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 00:55:00 +0000

The Hard Part

I thought that being diagnosed with gestational diabetes and waiting for a nutritionist to call to enlighten me about my condition is stressful enough; but keeping a balanced diet for baby, avoiding hunger and cutting back on carbs all at once turned out to be an even bigger challenge for me. So that's why gestational diabetes is in "The Complicated Pregnancy" chapter of What to Expect When You're Expecting. All the good stuff for baby: fruits, vegetables, milk and most other things have carbs. If I was to avoid all that, my baby would be all fat and protein. I never saw this day coming, when even fruits would become an indulgence. I wish that after I give birth, the GDM would go away so I can really savor the fruit baskets that guests might be bringing. (As if!)

March Wrap Up (an Intro)

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 00:35:00 +0000

It's been a busy, busy month for hubby and baby and me - as you can see, my blogging career has a taken the toll. It's been eventful, probably too eventful for me to even chronicle and share all the events here.

I remember having several to-do lists written - for the month, for the week, for the day and so forth. I just have too much in my hands to remember everything. These lists proved to be helpful and my pens and papers have been my BFFs this month. I'll tell you all about it later, OK. Right now I have to read about english riding boots; don't ask why.

TY Special - Part 2 (Cruz Cousins' Reunion)

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 20:11:00 +0000

Most of my cousins on my father's side of the family have gone past the age of 25 and have sought better jobs or lives abroad (myself included). Without meticulous planning and just by plain coincidence, maybe, two of my cousins - one coming from China and one from Dubai - happened to have their vacations to our hometown at about the same time that the hubby and I were visiting too. Thus we picked a date and celebrated our reunion with a pot lock at our grandparents' house - where we, as kids, used to see each other every Sunday. Only one of us missed the gathering but we made sure to take lots of pictures to make him feel as if he was there too.

Get Ready, Mom!

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 16:01:00 +0000

Tomorrow, I'll be on my 32nd week of pregnancy and I feel like there's still a lot to be done to prepare for baby's arrival. I had to shift my focus towards gestational diabetes for the past three weeks. I know, that's also for baby's health but it's taking the time that I should be spending for other things. I am at the doctor's more often than I expected so scheduling for classes is tougher. At home, instead of nesting, I spend a lot of time in the kitchen preparing food and checking labels, counting carbohydrate grams.

If the baby decides to come now, I would be the least prepared. But I'm praying against that, it's too early.

I've already prepared baby's nappy bag last week when the tsunami and earthquake alerts came out but I have yet to prepare my own labor-and-delivery bag. What would happen if I'm rushed to the hospital without my stuff? Would the nurses lend me their scrubs or nursing uniforms when it's time for me to go home? The clothes that I came in wearing? I'd hate to wear the same thing on the way home.

I'm also thinking about what time of day I would like to start on labor. Would it be best to start labor :

during the day, when the hubby's at the hospital working and all he has to do is toss his lab coat and rush to my side? (There's just one problem with that, I gotta have a driver's license, or a speedy taxi cab.)
at night when the hubby's home? (but tired and sleepy... and a long labor would make us both more tired and sleepy)
during weekends when the hubby doesn't have to go to work? (but there's a chance we might be at the in-laws' and that's in a city an hour away from my doctor)

Looks like no matter what I do, I wouldn't be a hundred percent prepared for this... Leaving it to the Almighty now. He knows what's best for our little family anyways.

Smurf-ing A Lot

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 04:39:00 +0000

It's probably the reason why my phone's battery is already acting up although I've only been using it for two years; maybe it's due to the high-resolution graphics and continuous movement of object on the screen when this game application is open. I'm talking about the Smurfs game.

I've never been a fan of Farm Ville and similar games but when I accepted a friend's invitation to try this game, I was hooked right away.

It's similar to Farm Ville but it's a lot faster and easier to play because, for one, it can be played without internet connection; two, Papa Smurf gives certain commands, so the player knows what to do next and not just plant whatever kind of crop comes to mind. It also has room for creativity since players build their own villages. They can put up mushroom houses, bridges and use flowering plants and rocks for landscaping. There are also Picnic Tables and other wood furniture to choose from.

So what brought about this sudden review feature of my favorite game of the moment? It's been helping me deal with my gestational diabetes - I plant cucumbers while taking 15-minute walks (they can be harvested in exactly 15 minutes) and play with all the mini games to pass time.

GT - Lurve Song

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 13:19:00 +0000

Hmmm... We're going back to cheesiness this week sharing the music or songs that make us fall in love over and over again...

Although I'm terribly late for this week's GT, I could not just pass up for this. Besides, I owe this post to her awesomeness, BQG's Kaye because this would answer her question regarding my "cheesy" entry last month. Curious much? Going back and forth is always allowed... Read here.

I fell in love with this song while trying to compile a CD (sorta like a mix tape) for our wedding that was three years ago. It's not our theme song but I love it anyways. With no further ado... Hit the play button, will you?!

Took a long time for me to finish writing this post because I had to watch the video and sing along. LOL! You're lucky you can't hear me, so enjoy!

Credits to The Tantalizing Eyes for the video. And apologies to my girls for not being able to visit your blogs just yet; been very busy lately...

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 12:54:00 +0000

Have I mentioned that the hubby got interested in joining a marathon? He said it was a goal that he wanted to set for himself so he could get fit. Something to prepare for, something to look forward to, something like that. Well, I would have supported him if he hadn't chosen the one that's happening right next to our baby's due date. I'd even be happy to follow and take pictures of him while he crosses the Golden Gate Bridge. At least it's not wrestling singlets I'd be laundering too. That would be too ambitious of him at this age.

how about eyewear for a gift?

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 12:44:00 +0000

We are expecting baby very, very soon (not too soon though, babe) but I am not about to make the mistake of neglecting my first baby, my husband. And since our third anniversary is coming up, I took the liberty of browsing through the limitless pages of the world-wide web to look for the perfect anniversary gift. This endeavor gets challenging every year, or even every occasion, because material gifts pile up and the hubby is the sentimental type so he doesn't just let go of past gifts, even if they are from last century, too tiny to fit, or have become totally useless. That's why we've been spending time on major decluttering as a part of nesting for baby.

So this year (or always), I want to give him a gift that he can use. He mentioned that a colleague accidentally sat on his glasses while he was on temporary duty in Texas so I searched through Zenni optical for cheap eyeglasses. I've written about Zenni and their unique approach to selling prescription glasses and I'm not the only one impressed by their strategy. You may want to look at this great review about them along with my previous posts about them.

I'm pretty sure the hubby won't mind how much I got his gift for. I've also been longing to give him prescription sunglasses so maybe I'll order more than one pair. There's only one problem now, where's his prescription?

Friends, Married Life, Babies

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 11:20:00 +0000

Last Sunday, I had a short chat over the phone with a very dear friend. Since she has been my friend since high school, the conversation included nonsensical stuff but also because we're growing older by the day, we talked about mature stuff like life insurance plans too.

Now that we're expecting our first child, it's a welcome idea to browse through and think about getting life insurance plans for me and hubby too. It's amazing how we seem to mature abruptly when we're opening a new chapter in our life and expecting kids.

As for my friend, I feel like there's a lot of catching up for us to do before she moves in with her boyfriend in another continent to tie the knot and start her married life. I sure hope we both find time to do that over the phone at least, if not in person.

Satellite

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 00:42:00 +0000

While my sister-in-law and I were on our way to their home in the city the other day, we passed by that road (again) that's lined with apartments proudly sporting Direct TV satellite dishes. They never fail to remind me of our frustration to switch TV service providers and how we don't seem to be lucky enough to get that.

I was already sinking in envy when my mind was taken off the subject of Satellite TV and I suddenly realized that I forgot something at home. I left my water bottle and I realized that when we were about 5 minutes away from destination. See what a crappy memory I have these days?

Another satellite was cheerfully shining that night, the moon was beautiful so we didn't mind visiting the store after quite a long drive to pick up some bottled water instead.

GT - Music I Loathe

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 05:58:00 +0000

GT goes musical this month. And after we went afloat last month with our cheesy theme, we are starting this month with a hate fest. We are sharing music that we hate most.

As for me, I don't hate a particular song, more like a genre... I tend to hate novelty songs. The type that is played on the radio about 20 times per day. The type that don't make any sense at all. Like the Magic Carpet Ride or The Ketchup Song. They're all gibberish to me. I still can't find an understandable reason for creating these songs. All I know is that they remind me of Shaider's arch enemy, Ida who endlessly plots attempts to ruin the world using contagiously trendy stuff like toys, gadgets and songs like the ones mentioned above. So if Ida would pull off one of her tricks through a novelty song in the real world today, I would be the last person she'd conquer, I can probably join Shaider & Annie in saving the world.

Accounting for Baby

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 22:48:00 +0000

There's still an accountant in me somehow because when I was supposedly completing a simple checklist for baby, I ended up conducting an inventory of her stuff. An inventory I say because I came up with a list of all the things that we bought for her, with the quantity, prizes and merchants. I was even fighting the urge to write down discounts. Next thing I know I'm adding everything and planning a baby budget from these initial buys. I'm now thinking of where we could cut down on our expenditures aside from R&R, insurance (we've had cheap car insurance for years now) and other avoidable expenses.

Pregnancy Update 3

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 08:23:00 +0000

This has got to be the most excruciating 12 hours of this pregnancy. I went through the first sugar test yesterday and failed miserably because I didn't go fasting prior to that; not long enough, at least. So now I have to take the second one, the glucose challenge test, and haven't been allowed to have anything since 10 pm (time check: 12:14 am) because I may start taking the test at 8 am tomorrow. I probably have to drink some sugary stuff again and then wait another 3 hours before they draw some of my blood for testing. And then I still have to wait for hubby's lunch break before I can reach home and raid the fridge. I may have to live on water, crackers and fruits till then. I just felt my first hunger pang and I know there's gonna be more every two hours or so.

I am one woman who would prefer taking adapexin or some other diet pill to lose weight rather than starve myself or work out like a horse... So that gives you an idea how this feels like punishment to me.

Hang in there, baby... We have to wait only 11.5 hours more (time check: 12:22 am). I better just sleep on it.

GT - In the Name of Love

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 07:29:00 +0000

Oh yeah! In Capital K's words - GT is rocking its brand-spanking-new badge! Lemme post the huge one this time... It ain't obvious that I'm a fan of Kaye's, eh!?

The love month indeed feels shorter than it already is with this last installment of GT's February theme. In the past weeks, we talked about our experiences, things we've already done for love's sake; now, for the grand finale, let's all imagine our future and think about what else we are willing to do for our lovey dovies.

Having been married just about 3 years ago and being an expectant, first-time mom now, I know that the hubby, I and our baby have a lot of things coming our way. And my readiness to face that future with them, regardless of the uncertainty and my personal fears comes from the love that I have for them.

I've committed my life and myself to my husband for a long time now but, I must admit, sometimes, the ups and downs of married life shake me and make me wanna skip the "down" part. But now that we're having a baby, I find more reasons to love the hubby. I do not only love him as my lover, my partner, my husband and my friend, but now also as the father of my child. More love means willingness to go the extra mile.

I am willing to embrace him as he is (if he doesn't change for me and the baby, LOL!), all the wonderful and awful things that he is. I am willing to forgive him for the mistakes that he would be bound to commit, the hurt feelings that he would cause me in the future and stick to this marriage no matter what, for as long as I can. I am willing to be there for him when he gets old and suffers from extenze side effects *wink* and can no longer take care of himself. I am willing to support him in fulfilling his dreams even if that means sacrificing my own. I am willing to find more ways to become a better wife while learning to become a mom. I am willing to take his hand and together, brave the world that our little family is going to face.

I guess that's all for now. Those are general things anyways... Ask me a few months from now if I'm willing to deliver more of his offspring. Happy GT!

Somebody Fix My Bio Clock!

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 23:37:00 +0000

It's gob-smackingly crazy how even while I am pregnant and doing everything for two, it's still too easy to mess with my biological clock. Take for example, right after our vacation from the PI, I'd be up at about 4 am because I feel the need to eat. Although I am not at all a morning person, I loved the consistency; I loved that I can actually set a routine, do a certain thing at a certain time. I loved that I woke up and felt hunger like clockwork. It didn't take much to change that though. Took just a weekend of late nights and I'm back to sleeping late, wanting to get more sleep in the morning and finding it hard to get up even when I'm starving.

There are also times when I can get so preoccupied that I unconsciously ignore my hunger. I've started to train my body to look for and accept food and drinks every 2 hours because the doctor has been waiting for months for me to fatten up but all it took was a day without snacks and my body also stopped wanting to eat every-so-often. It's so easy to mess up one's metabolism. No wonder there are countless products out there claiming to be the best diet pills for women that leave us wondering which would really work for us.

I'd love to have control over everything so I can have a major lifestyle change but something tells me that with the baby coming, it may not be the best time to do that. I'd just do whatever's in my power and the rest, leave it to nature to prepare me for what's to come.

Mars equals Chaos

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 20:47:00 +0000

Starting to feel that getting my Martian to understand that this Venusian needs a neat and orderly environment to thrive is a lost cause. Been trying to make that one stick for years now but still feel like we're just going in circles. I can hear myself saying the same things over and over again and am getting tired of it. How come none of those lectures were retained? How can simple requests be ignored and turned down so easily? I wish I can just make him swallow some substance concealed as an hgh releaser maybe and turn things around. It would be a nice change to get my way sometimes.

Pardon the bitterness, blame pregnancy hormones and deadlines.

Sinking thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (peppermayo) — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 16:49:00 +0000

I was thinking fast forward the other day while I was before our stainless steel kitchen sink and was taken by my playful thoughts to the day when our little one wouldn't be so little anymore and would be needing a room of her own. That's when I set a goal for myself that before the baby needs that room and more, we should be financially ready to purchase our own home. I now loathe packing and moving and unpacking so I wish the next time we'd do that would be the last one. I also got excited about being able to have everything customized, like get new and more stylish stainless steel kitchen sinks.