The pregnancy so far

Baby likes to kick the right side of the belly. He stops when people are around and expect him to. One of my friends think it's performance anxiety. Hah. Filmmakers make shy baby. The irony.

I remember the first time we noticed him moving, we found the kicks cute, but a little hard to identify - kinda like shooting stars on a clear unpolluted-by-artificial-lights sky. Now they're like meteors on Armageddon - painful, frequent, and a sign of the end of days.

The doctor told me "Buntis na jud ka" ("You're definitely pregnant now") as if I wasn't to begin with. But I know what she means. I've had it relatively easy til now. Suddenly, my feet are ballooning, my bump is a basketball, and I feel like yoga can wait for a few more hours days. Cats gestate for less than 3 months. Maybe I am a cat, and I really HAVE only begun to be pregnant. As much as the first trimester felt like a bitch because of mood swings, why do I have a feeling these remaining months are going to be the longest in my life?


There was a time in grade school when I lived in my grandmother's house with an uncle's family. At night, I'd scare myself shitless listening to big bats screeching through the night. My uncle's wife was pregnant, and I was told the sounds were made by Wakwak (local vampires), lured by the smell of the unborn's blood. 

In retrospect, I think the legend of the Wakwak is just some indigenous cover up for hilot-aided abortions. That, or these vampires can't stand the city. Probably think the night sky's too bright for their nocturnal flights.

Maternal lola was trying to convince me that bathtub trumps kiddie pool. I suspect this discussion was more to make her feel less guilty about the indulgence. But it's her money and bathroom, so who am I to complain?

Meanwhile, paternal lola's been asking us throughout the pregnancy if there's anything she can buy for the baby over in the land of milk and honey.

Man, I don't know. I've never needed to shop for a baby before. I have a hard time shopping for myself as it is. I'm the sort of buyer who needs to know exactly what to get before going to a store, complete with researched reviews etc. By the time I've made the purchase, I end up convincing myself that it wasn't worth it. I like value for money, I think less is more, and I can't handle having too many things or else it easily ends up becoming a godawful mess.

What DO babies need? I saw Thomas Balmes' documentary, Babies, and have come to the conclusion that all babies need are neon colored onesies that say "DONT STEP ON ME" and boobs. I turn to the father for help and he says the baby needs a Gibson guitar - one for daddy to play lullabies to baby on. Paternal lola seems to have gotten drift that we have no idea, so she's taken liberties.

We've been told we at least need a crib, not for the baby to sleep in because we'll miss out on this:

... but so that we have a place to keep the kid in the mornings, when we're up and about and our hands are tied.

Paternal lola is getting us a sling tho, so the crib's a backup. We're getting a bamboo one made, but father's convinced it's too early for the guy to get started, considering labor takes only 2 days.

Friends have gotten us stuff too. So far, we have a buttload of second hand baby clothes from a mom-friend from college (the darned things look like doll clothes, they're soooo cute!), and an actress I worked with some years ago for this (warning: NSFW) gave me a brand new baby bath net.

The kid is kicking now. The end is nigh, and I can hear Illidan booming in my head:

Ahak, wakwak man diay nis Illidan.