Stuff for Baby Number 2

I'm on my last week of a two-week bedrest as advised by my OB-GYN. I had spotting two weeks ago and when we came back for another ultrasound, it appeared that the Subchorionic Hemorrhage has grown bigger instead of disappearing. My emotions are all mixed up these last few days, with worry about Baby Number 2's condition, the stress of having to render additional leaves without pay at work as I've already used up all my sick leaves while all my vacation leaves are already plotted for the rest of the year, my patience is being tested with Johan wanting me to be by his side all the time instead of letting the new yaya take care of him so I can get that much needed rest. Ahh, the joys of being a mom. :)

Anyway, to keep me sane these days, I enjoyed the pretend plays that Johan and I have shared,  I have surrendered to the great invention called cable TV, I played games on my Android phone and I window-shopped online.

With nearing four months along in this pregnancy, I thought I should be listing down all the things that we would be needing before Baby Number 2 arrives. So, here's a short list:

We definitely need a new crib. Johan's old crib was a hand-me-down from his cousin and it has long since seen it's full potential. 

With two kids soon to ride with us, a carseat is a must for the baby. Johan's at this age that he cannot sit still and has to tinker with buttons or the compartment or worse, the door so there should always be a grown up holding on to him while in the car. I simply cannot hold the baby on one arm while trying to wrestle Johan with the other. This is why a carseat is necessary.

We need more storage space for the baby's clothes. Our existing storage cabinets are nearly full and cannot simply hold any more clothes and bedsheets and towels.We really need a new one for the baby's stuff.

A bathtub for the baby. I haven't seen Johan's old one for a long time so I am guessing that it was given away or was already broken.

A bottle sterilizer. I'm looking into this Farlin brand as this is the one being used for my niece's bottles. It is also cheaper compared to other brands which is great as we do need to save as much money as we can these days.

New feeding bottles. Johan is still drinking milk from his bottles and looks like it will take a little more time before we can convince him to stop. 

For now, those are all I can think of in addition to the other necessities like towels, cloth diapers, diaper covers, baby clothes and toiletries. It's a good thing that I have stored Johan's old stroller and it is still in mint condition so there's no need for us to buy a new one, also I know that I wouldn't have a problem with regards to clothing as I have a few pieces in storage and I can easily ask my relatives for old ones.

Having a new baby surely means a lot of expenses but we know with it along comes great joy and more love for our now growing family.

The Anticipation, the Fears and the Joys of Having Another Baby

After I gave birth to Johan, I've been very vocal about not wanting to have another child. Or at least not anytime soon. When Johan turned three, that's when people started telling me it's about time we give him a sibling. The age gap between them would be perfect. But I was apprehensive - we're still paying for the car, Johan will be starting soon, we have plans on building our own home after paying for the car and so on and so forth.

I know my reasons are practical, it just didn't look like the right time yet, financially, for another addition to our family. Yet, I stopped the pill, I prayed for another child and hoped for two pink lines back in January when my period was delayed.

When the test appeared negative, I gave the go signal to the husband to finally start the renovation to the house. We need to make our room bigger as the three of us could hardly fit inside, we wanted a dirty kitchen built outside to make our living room and dining area spacier to make it easy going around, we planned to purchase a bigger bed because our double-sized mattress could hardly fit all three of us. So, the renovation started. And then we found out, two weeks ago that we are pregnant.

And all of my fears made a reappearance. We have more money going out because of the renovation, the dirty kitchen isn't finished yet, we haven't painted the room, we haven't bought a bed, Johan will be starting school, we are set to get a new auto insurance in June in addition to the monthly car mortgage, we recently hired a Yaya and I am going to deliver via Caesarian Section again according to my OB. And now, I am on bedrest again for threatened abortion.

Financially, I know this will be a hard year for our family. I'm not sure if we'd be able to save enough for my delivery come November and I'm not sure if we'd be able to finish the renovations as planned. But I know that everything will turn out alright. We can always apply for a loan or something if in case we didn't have enough saved for my delivery, maybe we'll hold off buying a bed for now and just settle with the one that we have. Everything will work out fine. Repeat 10x. :)

On the good side, Johan and the rest of our families are pretty excited with Baby Number 2. Johan wants a baby girl, I want a baby girl, too but if the baby turns out to be a boy, I will not be disappointed. I just want a healthy, normal baby. Plus, I'm looking forward to the baby shower that my sisters and my bestfriend have been talking about. I repeat, I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO IT kaya Lhai, RK and Mhy, ipush natin yan! Hahahaha!

Now, that I am on bedrest for a week, I decided to think of the positive than the negative implications it will bring. I know that by the end of this week, I'd probably have only three sick leaves left but then I have a week to really take care of myself and Baby Number Two, I have a week more to spend with Johan, I can oversee the rest of the renovations being done and I can surf the net for baby stuff, pin more baptism ideas and search for possible baby names.

I know that I will always worry about the future. I've always been like that. I want things to work out quite the way I envisioned them to but I also know that sometimes, things don't happen the way we think they should and I have to accept that.

I just need to concentrate on the things that truly matter, be thankful for the people that are always there to support us and praise the God who I know will never ever abandon me.

Prayers please for a healthy pregnancy.