The First Year of Her Life

I was about the celebrate my 23rd birthday last year when I found out I was carrying a beating heart in my womb. I used two pregnancy test kits just to be sure. I was a little in doubt of its result because I was only a month delayed. I never thought I'd be able to detect my pregnancy that early. But I was already showing signs - being sleepy, nauseating, becoming a picky eater. There would be times also that I don't feel okay wearing a certain shirt when in fact it was one of my favorites! (Blame the hormones!)

It was just like yesterday when my belly started to get bigger and bigger each day! My husband and I would marvel on how our baby would make my tummy look fluid. I envy him for being able to hug my tummy and for kissing it. Hahaha! How I wish I could bend my neck so I can kiss my baby as well!

This would be the last ultrasound photo of my daughter. I had 4 ultrasounds during my pregnancy! The first one was the transvaginal ultrasound. I was shocked by its procedure! Hahaha! But it was cute seeing that little thing "moving"! My OB couldn't hear the heartbeat using her Doppler machine during that time so she requested for that procedure instead just to be sure if my baby was alive! Thank God she is! :) The 2nd and 3rd ultrasounds I had were supposed to determine the sex of my baby and to report of her position. She was in a breech position and was never letting us see her genital! Hahaha! But these 2 ultrasounds depressed me because I feared of giving birth through CS. On my 8th month, I moved back to Bulacan and so I have to change my OB as well. When I had my checkup with my new OB, he said that the baby is in a cephalic position already - meaning, she's not in a breech position anymore. Hooray! But I just got to be very sure about this so I had my last ultrasound (the picture above).

I had 14 hours of labor. It was so painful that I threw up once and was saying foul words a lot of times! I was brought in the delivery room at around 12:00 midnight. At about 5:00 a.m. I wanted to call for my husband and request for CS delivery instead. But I had urges to push until the nurse told me there's the "bulging" of the head already. That gave me hope! I pushed when there's the contraction but my baby was having a hard time to come out. One nurse helped me by pushing just below my chest area! I thought I'd pass out because of that pressure but one long push brought my baby out to this world! She was placed above my tummy and wasn't crying in the beginning so the midwife had to tap her butt! When she cried I had mixed emotions! I didn't cry but I fell in love right at that moment! While she's being cleaned up, the midwife noticed that I was just watching everything she's doing with my baby. She said: "Your mommy's watching you intently that's why I can't even carry you for just a bit!" I was smiling.

This is the very first photo of my daughter with her father. While I was being stitched (and watched by interns!), the midwife handed my baby to my husband. My hubby was a little struck. He couldn't believe it's his baby! Haha! And as he was just warming up with his daughter, my mother took her "apo" from him. Hahaha!

Our first family picture

Her first Cerelac :)

Her signature smile :)

I was able to breastfeed her for the first 2 months. I ran out of milk when I started working full time. She likes milk! Hahaha! Just a few days before she turns 2 month-old, she weighed 6 kilos! That's when the pedia stopped her intake of multivitamins. She just continued her Vitamin C. She's not a sickly child. We didn't have any major problem when her first tooth erupted. She only had low-grade fever when she had her DPT vaccines.

On Sunday, we're going to celebrate her first year! :) I'm so excited! And I'm happy my baby survived that first crucial year of her life. :)

Keep smiling baby because the world lightens up when you do! :) I love you!