This is the season of.....

... giving

... receiving

and simply pure happiness...

We didn't expect to receive plenty of gifts for Sean and Sophia. Their wardrobe is full already for the next few weeks/months and we haven't opened most of the gifts yet. I'll post pictures later when we have finally taken our family picture beside the Christmas tree. :) This Christmas season, we experience a lot of firsts... first trip to tha mass, lunch out and malling with Sean and Sophia and first time I saw Sophia holding her bottle tightly.

This holiday season, everyday is pure bliss albeit the hardship and the sacrifices. We received the best gift of all... our adoring twins, Sean and Sophia!

Merry Christmas to all!

Goodies for Sean and Sophia

We got another bag full of clothes and shoes for Sean and Sophia. Our 'super' ninang (we call her 'super' because she's SUPER generous!) came from the US and was kind enough to bring Sean and Sophia pasalubong. Among them were: 2 dresses for Sophia (one was super cute that she can wear for Christmas or her 2nd wardrobe at their Baptism reception), a pair of knit wear for Sophia and a Santa suit for Sean (yet too big for him and may fit only by next year's Christmas). And lastly, our uber favorite are the Converse shoes. We got a pair of Converse newborn socks which looks like a cute hi-cut Converse when worn and these pair of shoes they could wear in a few months.. Cute!

We texted our ninang to say 'thank you' and she replied there are still more to follow. Aww!

We are indeed very lucky with all the gifts we have received even without any occassion yet. We actually don't need to buy stuff for Sophia as her wardrobe is full already until she reaches 2yrs. No kidding. We just need to buy for Sean but have to admit that there are very limited choices for boys. I went to Greenhills last weekend and there are soooo many cute clothes for girls that I am controlling myself from buying.

Updates

• We went baby shopping again in Bel-air. We must stop!
• Our household help for about a month now, left us again. She was the companion of the household help of my parents who left some weeks earlier. I thought they wouldn't last long since both of them have kids (youngest less than a year old). I was saddened when she informed me that her father wanted her home although she still doesn't want to go. If she was to decide, she will stay. But I guess her husband was the one who's really eager to have her back. She's now with my parents and she'll be leaving this Friday. So, good luck to me and Che who will have to deal with household chores again. Sigh.
• We have a rat! Oh, not just a mouse, a big rat! Geez... We are sensing that we have a stranger in the house for the last few days and he's always targetting our cabinet full of groceries but I didn't see him only till last night! He left some bad traces this morning eating up part of the cabinet so he can get in. He was successful (despite us blocking the cabinet with the water dispenser)! Wise rat! He ate the spaghetti sauce, catsup and coconut powder in tetra packs. We will be staying at our in-laws till Sunday and I hope he's dead when we're back. As if! But I'm deeply scared to go back home because of that stranger! We will deal with him next weekend! Damn it!
• My pain in the groin/crotch area is worsening lately. During my doctor's visit a week ago, I told her about this pain especially after lying or sitting and she said it's normal and it's due to the weight being pushed down to the lower part of the uterus. Now I do understand why pregnant women waddle. I saw this in the internet:

In early pregnancy, pain in the groin area is due to stretching of the round ligament (the ligaments that anchor the uterus to the wall of the abodmen). In later pregnancy, groins pain or crotch pain is due to the weight of the baby pushing down, the constriction of the uirinary bladder (being pushed up by the uterus), and the stress on the pubic bones.A warm shower, or a heating pad should help.

• Because of the round ligament pain, I would prefer to always sit down or lie in bed. Lazy me! Last night, Che massage my feet and it was such a relief having my feet elevated on top of his leg while he massage it with my favorite foot lotion from Body Shop. I asked him to do it everyday. Spoiled.

Bagged!

Finally, I already bought the Avent feeding set at Amazon.com.

1) Avent IQ 24 Steam Sterilizer
- It comes with 2 9oz bottles

2) 6 pcs 4oz bottles and 9 pcs 9oz bottles

The items will be delivered later this month to my friend's house in LSA. Her mom will be home this Sept 9 and she will carry these for me. Yehey! I can't wait for my friend's confirmation when she finally receives the package!

Oh, did i tell you all of above costs USD120 only?! More than half the price if you purchase it here! IQ24 at P9000 and bottles at P500 each. Even with 20% off, it's still crazy expensive!

It's my first time purchasing from Amazon.com but I trust it works fine. No charges reflected in my credit card yet. Well, I guess it deserves another blog entry in case I do encounter problems. I hope not.

Some Updates

Our first purchase of baby stuff

Yesterday, on our way home from my parent's house in QC (we were passing by Edsa travelling North to South), I asked Che if we can drop by at Zodiac St. in Bel-Air to check some baby stuff. I have been eager to go there for the last 2 weeks or so to check what they have there. The place is too small but i love the stuff! I don't have the pictures of what we bought. I was too restless and took a nap immediately when we headed home. I controlled buying too many, besides, we still have 3 more months to go. We bought the following:

- 8 pcs of onesies/bodysuit (Carters mostly)
- 6 pcs white sidesnapper sleeveless tee (we got mostly medium size so we need to get the smaller ones later)
- 2 pcs sleeper (of course one in pink and another in blue)
- 2 pcs blankets (one pink and one blue)
- 4 pcs Disney hats (love them! It's Winnie the Pooh design. We got one pink and one blue)
- 2 pairs of pink mittens (they run out of stock for the blue mittens)

Above costing us only P1500 in total!

They have plenty of design to choose from. Some bodysuits are still in hangers with plastic covers. I think it's definitely cheaper than if you get it at the mall. I like the fabric also. I think it's practical to buy it here than having to purchase it in US (which I initially was exploring).

My doctor's appointment at 6months

Sniff, I was very disappointed when I stepped on the scale. I gained 8lbs in a span of 4 weeks. The secretary, my husband and my OB said I shouldn't worry, I'm simply carrying twins! I think it was due to my one week buffet feast. Tsk.

Anyways, my OB said, my tummy is getting really big (like a full term already for singleton). She may ask me to take a rest as early as 33 weeks (that's early to mid October already). She will be happy if the baby comes out at 36 weeks. We do pray of course that my twins will hold on to it until then.

I didn't get to see the result of my OGCT. My OB said, they will just get it. I didn't hear from her since Saturday so I assume the results were normal.

The AVENT hunt

For the last few days, I have been wanting to purchase the Avent IQ 24 sterilizer, 9oz bottles and 4oz bottles. I checked out Baby & Co in Podium and SM Department store and it's way more expensive here than if you buy it in US. I have seriously considered buying it at Amazon.com but the only concern is the power voltage which I believe is 110v. However, adding the transformer, it is still cheaper than if you get it here. So when I am already decided to purchase it this morning, it's can only be delivered in 4-6 weeks time. Tsk. That is way beyond the departure date of my mom's friend who will be leaving next week already.

I have consulted Che about my search for feeding stuff and he was quite confused on why I am only inclined on getting the Avent brand. He asked what's the need for an electric steam sterilizer when there are stainless steel for oven heating that are available in the market. Well, I think I was convinced because of the several positive reviews I saw on the net, the convenience for us to have sterilized bottles ready anytime of the night, the safety of not having to burn the bottles if you sterilize it in the oven and of course the anti-colic features of the Avent bottles. Well, enough of those excuses. :)

Cute!

I saw these pictures of fraternal twins (girl and boy) at http://multiples.about.com/ and I can't help but be very excited to see and dress up our twins! Oh, and i like the pink and blue combination! :)

We got another gift! We were told that Che's cousin in the US already bought the twins the tandem stroller. :)

I am already so tempted in buying baby clothes. Last weekend, after our lunch at Jack's Loft, we went to the infact section of SM department store together with mom and sisters. Oh, how I already wanted to grab a pair of pink and blue hooded towels, mittens, sleepwear etc! They are screaming 'Please get me!'

Baby Names and a Wardrobe for our Little Girl

Had a doctor's appointment last Saturday and my OB (who's also a sonologist) agreed with the ultrasound pictures that indeed they seem to be a boy/girl. :)

Since we learned about out twin's gender, i can't help but think of baby names. Here's what I instantly had in mind:

Racquel Sophia M. San Gabriel

Raniel Sean M. San Gabriel

All of Che's siblings and the next generation (nephew and niece) have names that starts with R and ends with an L (Rommel, Rhoel, Ronnel, Raphael, Rusell and Rosell). My friends and sister didn't like the first name especially Racquel but my choices are somehow limited. We'll see.

A friend suggested Reese and i actually like it. My sister also had the same name in mind. I saw from the internet Reese Sophia Ashley. And i find it cute! But, that is too long and i don't want to punish my kids with having to write long names so maximum two names should do. But Sophia and Sean are still top of my list. Sophia means 'wisdom' and Sean means 'God is glorious'.

After knowing that we might be having a girl, my sister-in-law gave me a box full of various items for our little girl which she has been keeping and reserving for us for months now. Those were hand me downs from our US relative to our only niece Sachi and now passed on to our little girl! The clothes were really nice and from brands that i like (Gap, Old Navy, Osh Kosh, Carters etc)! Some are new and some slightly used.

The box contains 8 pairs of shoes, a dozen dresses, blankets, 3 swimwear and several casual wear. If you notice, half of them are tickly pink! :)

Among my favorites are the following:

...Ralph Lauren 2 pc swimsuit (Isn't it cute? I can't wait to bring our twins to Boracay summer of next year!)

...Old Navy pink jacket with bib and a shirt that says 'Princess' :) I should find something similar in blue that says 'Prince' for our little boy just to be fair. Haha.

...A formal dress we can use for special occassions. This was actually used once by our niece during our wedding last year (matching our pink and gree motiff)

...Some cute dresses and casual wear to be used from 6-18months

...Cute infant wear and 8 pairs of shoes

I can't wait to do some more shopping!