On-line Help for a First Time Nanay

Since I recovered from my first trimester horror (bleeding and all), I was able to come in the office and surf the web.  The web has been a great source of knowledge for someone as excited as me to finally be a mom.  There are so many things I should know and thanks to these sites, I think I have a pretty good start.

Pinoy Baby
This blog is the most recent resource I found and is a huge help for me.  The author is so organize and practical in the information she shares about pregnancy and preparing for the baby.  It also helps that our due month is the same, if not very close.  *I especially like the entry when she shared her shopping list and the prices of the items.  We are both on the nesting stage now, so I can totally relate.*

1. Parenting Weekly
2. Baby Gaga
3. Welcome Baby Home
As of today I subscribe to a total of 3 pregnancy-to-parenting update sites.  I just can’t help but want to know so much about my baby’s development every week.  These sites give updates weekly about the baby on the womb, the mother’s body, and so many more helpful articles that we as parents-to-be ought to know.  I have 3 because each site has its strengths and weakness.  For instance, welcomebaby.com shows a weekly 3-D image of a baby.  So cute to look at!

Boy or Girl? Old Wive’s Tale
Even at the start of the pregnancy, we so wanted to know whether our baby is a boy or girl.  So when I had my hands on a computer (just about in my 4th month), I took this on-line funny test to determine the baby’s gender.  The Westerner’s term this as old wive’s tale.  If your preggy and up to it, taking the test is fun!  And ei, it got mine correct – baby boy it is!

Boy or Girl? Chinese Lunar Calendar
The Old Wive’s Tale test still wasn’t enough for me.  So through the Chinese Lunar Calendar, I checked again whether our baby is really a boy (just as we prayed for).  Viola – it’s a BOY!  (Though it’s not until my 24th week that our OB announced that we are having a boy and was confirmed on the 27th week.)  Hmmm… will these sites guess your baby’s gender too?

There are more sites I visit but Pinoy Baby blog has actually more of these helpful sites and pinoy tips.  If you are an expecting Filipina mom, I strongly recommend you read her blog.

Still in my 7th month, and I am already losing sleep due to excitement…  With more readings, help from the web and with God’s grace, time will fly and soon our healthy baby boy is in my arms.

 

Love. A Very Simple Message

I received this forwarded email from a friend; that I think all of us should read.  Its message is so straightforward and simple, but it’s something we often neglect.  The message is authored by George Carlin.  He is a Grammy-winning American stand-up comedian, actor, and author.  I hope his message will strike you, as much as it struck me.

Subject:     Take a Moment to Enjoy the Simple Things in Life

What a difference a sad event in someone’s life makes.
GEORGE CARLIN (His wife recently died…)

Isn’t it amazing that George Carlin – comedian of the 70′s and 80′s – could write something so very eloquent…and so very appropriate.

A Message by George Carlin:

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider Freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life. We’ve added years to life not life to years. We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We’ve done larger things, but not better things.

We’ve cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We’ve conquered the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We’ve learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete…

Remember; spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.

Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.

Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn’t cost a cent.

Remember, to say, “I love you” to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.

Give time to love, give time to speak! And give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

If you don’t send this to at least 8 people….Who cares?

George Carlin