Massages for Preggers

Prenatal massage helps me a lot. During my pregnancy with Xavier, my hubby used to massage me EVERYDAY, especially my feet. It helps me relax and feel good after. It improves the circulation of my blood thus making me sleep better and helps my chronic headache too.

My advise is to ask permission from your OB first, get a well-trained therapist, and learn about the body parts you should avoid massaging.

Of course you cannot lie facedown anymore and it's not a good idea to lie on your back too (the weight of your uterus puts pressure on the vein that returns blood from your legs to your heart) so I suggest you lie on your sides. 

Make sure you know the person massaging you. Some therapists here in Manila would just say they know prenatal massage but actually lacks the knowledge. If possible, get recommendations only from your friends who has personally tried them while pregnant. I have been turned down by some therapists before because they lack the necessary training for that. I'm at least thankful for the honesty. Some therapists will even ask clearance first from your doctors.

A well-trained therapist knows the areas to avoid but in my case I never let her touch my belly part. I let her massage my feet (with minimum pressure), legs, arms, hands, back and head. Change sides every now and then to avoid discomfort from staying on one side too long. 

I know for a fact that you should totally avoid the saunas and hot tubs. It can overheat your body and your baby inside. 

I only do my massages at home because I want to sleep right away. The cost of home service massage is around Php250-300/ per hour but it depends if they will charge you differently because you're pregnant. If you want to try the spas, I know that The Spa is offering prenatal massages for Php2,700/ 1 hour and 45 minutes. Yeah, that's a bit expensive but it's a good reward you can get from carrying your baby (babies, in my case) for 9 months! So ahead pamper yourself because you deserve it! 

My Second Pregnancy with TWINS!

First of all I would like to answer your question if twins run in our family - NO. I guess I started it then! :)

Xavier is now one year and three months old. I know some of you might be surprised that my second pregnancy came too fast considering the fact that I delivered CS the first time. It was actually planned. Last February I was diagnosed with Endometriosis and one of the major complications of that is infertility. To our panic, Nash and I immediately did our homework.... 

...and viola!

What came as a surprise though was the twin pregnancy. Never would I imagine I'd be carrying two babies. My tummy was bigger this time and I repeatedly joked about having twins inside. 

The feeling of seeing them during my TVS was like a roller-coaster ride. I was super happy, scared, shocked, in-denial - all in an instant! I was worried with so many things like can I carry them, how risky it is, will I hire another yaya, can we manage three kids, when are we moving to a new house, how do I breastfeed them, what would be the genders, names etc. etc.. All of a sudden this planned pregnancy made me panic. 

Then I remembered everything about Xavier. How we managed the whole pregnancy that turned out so perfect. I remember how blissful it felt the moment I saw him and every single day of my life I'm still thankful we were blessed with such happiness. It was all worth-it. Now I can just wait and be hopeful about this pregnancy.

So how different is this twin pregnancy from my first?

For one I have a super big tummy. Everyday I am just shocked how big it is already. I'm only on my 4th month but my tummy looks like I'm on my 7th month already!

I have the worst morning sickness though my appetite is uncontrollable! I definitely feel uglier and I hate fixing myself. I feel more tired. I have headache almost everyday. I have frequent asthma attacks and most of all I miss carrying Xavier. I really miss that. 

Whatever lies ahead, I know that God planned this for our family. He will help me through this and I can do this! So please help me pray for a safe twin pregnancy. 

Xav's First Year Birthday

I'm glad to have celebrated Xav's 1st birthday party with ease. I think the hardest part for me was choosing the theme. I was choosing between "Outback Adventure" or "Baby Chef". The later requires heavy on cooking  or baking activity for the kids which is fun but not appropriate to younger ones. So I'm saving that theme to some other time. 

When it comes to organizing a party I'm glad that my hubby leaves it all to me! Heaven. Ideally it's nice to celebrate in a big venue like clubhouses but we chose to celebrate in a restaurant instead. We want to limit the number of suppliers to contact because we want it to be "hassle-free". 

Outback Libis offered a good price for kiddie parties. The theme, food, ambiance, service, space and location was just the one we were looking for. I also happen to like the party organizer assisting us - Nika. She was very accommodating, professional and nice! Then what's nice is that Outback let us order other food from outside like lechon from Lydia's and Nestle ice cream station. 

For the complete party entertainment and decorations we only got Creative Minds Event Management as our supplier. I was able to find the most affordable package that includes all the balloon decorations, entrance standees, big customized backdrop, party host, magician with live animals, ventriloquist, face painting, candy buffet and balloon twisting. The guests loved the magician so much and the kids really enjoyed the show!

For our photobooth, there's only one option - Shot Top Photo Booth! Owned and operated by my best friend Raymund Robles. You should try their service as you will love how professional and creative they are! They were actually already in the venue 2 hours before the party and they will give you the complete pictures in DVD and upload all pictures in FB before they leave. Yes, that fast! 

Over-all we had a great first birthday party experience for Xavier. Lots of kids, great food, fun games and shows, prizes etc. And what's best was that Xavier really enjoyed the party especially when he was clapping his hands and loving it while everybody sang "Happy Birthday" to him. Hay priceless!