After my miscarriage last year, I was very apprehensive when I got pregnant again. My main concern was that it might happen again. With the second pregnancy, we had no idea that the heart stopped beating at 12 weeks so with the next pregnancy, I was always worrying about what’s happening inside.

To ease my mind, I purchased a fetal doppler from ebay. It surely helped a lot because it allows me to listen to our baby’s heartbeat everyday. It was always reassuring to hear the familiar thud, thud, thud. Now that I’ve been feeling our baby move for several weeks now, I’ve almost stopped using it. I only use it when it’s the end of the day and I realize that I barely felt the baby move.

When I purchased it, some doctor friends even inquired where I got it especially since medical equipments, even one as small as a fetal doppler, can be quite expensive. During my search for an affordable doppler I could buy, I came across many suppliers and manufacturers of medical equipments. They usually offer hospital grade fetal monitors as well and other monitors used in hospitals like the GE Dash 3000, GE Dash 4000, and the GE Mac 1200 EKG. Considering that they can be quite expensive if purchased locally, I even told Ramil that it would have been a great find if we’re putting up a clinic or a small hospital.

Anyway, I don’t plan to get rid of my fetal doppler any time soon. I considered selling it especially since I got it for a low price but I figured that we just might be blessed with a third child in the faraway future or I could always lend it to friends or to my sister when they get pregnant.

As I’ve mentioned in my previous post, we cleaned the house yesterday. I initially ‘recruited’ my sister to babysit Mateo so that Ramil and I could peacefully clean the house. But since she woke up late and we were ready to start cleaning, we had no choice but to let Mateo join the fun.

Ramil and Mateo cleaned the play mats from Mateo’s play area. Our little boy was more than happy to arm himself with his own toothbrush and do some serious brushing. If only he’d continue to be as helpful when it comes to cleaning when he’s a little bit older already then I wouldn’t need a wrinkle cream a few years from now.

Despite his efforts to clean as much as he could, he gave up with a “I’m so tired, I’m sorry” after around 30 minutes. Nevertheless, it was good enough for us.

So…. our summer break has officially begun! And what have I got to show for it? A clean house! Woohoo! I feel so relaxed and at peace knowing that we finally got around to cleaning the house. Well, I still have several areas to finish tomorrow and on Sunday, like the two bathrooms and the wash area outside. But I’m very happy with what we’ve accomplished so far.

I’ve also gotten hold of two additional online earning opportunities. I signed up once again, this time with a different SEO company, to write articles. The pay is very slightly higher than what I used to earn in my previous writing stint with another SEO company and the topics are different so I have more ideas for articles. The other online work I got is a transcription job. It’s a mindless job and at least I get to earn without thinking about what to type because all I have to do is type what I hear. The combination of these two work opportunities would do great for me because I can choose which one I want to do at a particular time of the day. When I feel like using my brain and thinking then I write articles but when I feel a bit lazy or if I’m having a block with my writing, then I transcribe. Either way, I earn money!

Mateo, on the other hand, has been keeping us busy as well. He seems to want someone to do things with him all the time. It’s not surprising though because I assume he’s getting bored staying home for several days now. My sister has been getting bored as well. Although she won’t be needing any murad for  acne caused by lack of sleep, she mentioned earlier that she’s bored already.

So it’s going to be a challenge trying to keep ourselves preoccupied for the whole month of April. Well, at least for me it would be trying to keep Mateo preoccupied so that I can earn more money, hehe!

With my weight, that is. I hope to gain only around 30 pounds, which is the amount of weight gain I had when I was pregnant with Mateo. Although I haven’t been making too much of an effort to control my food intake, I think I’m just right on track. What I try to do instead is to think carefully about WHAT I’m eating and not how much.

I’ve been snacking so much on fruits so I guess that’s a good thing. This past weekend though, I had a diarrhea-like day. I initially welcomed it after being constipated for days (constipation is one of the drawbacks of pregnancy) but after several trips to the comfort room, I thought about the connection between colon cleansing and weight loss because it surely felt like that. I was even worried that baby might not be getting enough nutrients because I couldn’t keep anything in.

Anyway, I still have a few months to go so I’m hoping I don’t have any drastic weight gains so that I can safely reach my maximum weight gain goal of 30 pounds.

This is the all-natural body product line that I’ve been blogging about. My sister and I are converts of this brand! I signed up as a dealer not just because I want to earn because I think I’d need to sell A LOT for the profit to be significant. However, since we see ourselves using the products for a long time, we might as well enjoy the discounts of a dealer. Our purchases alone would qualify for the minimum amounts a dealer has to sell in a month.

So far, we’ve been switched our shampoos, conditioners, insect repellants, lotions, moisturizers, facial washes, and hand sanitizers. My sister and I have also fallen in love with their body butter. My mom was asking me whether they have anti wrinkle creams but right now, the best I could offer to her is a facial wash for mature skin and moisturizer. I also wish they’d develop a deodorant because I’ve never been a fan of any commercial deodorants. I know how much chemicals are in them and I would love an organic option.

So anyway, I love the products! It would be an added bonus if we earn a significant amount of money from being dealers so if you’re interested in knowing more, shoot me an email or leave a comment below

My dad might be leaving again soon. His small restaurant business is not doing so well and he’s thinking of boarding a ship again to augment and improve his business. Although we were all expecting him to stay home for good ever since he got back a year ago, I know that there’s really nothing we can do right now. I’m just hoping that if he does leave again, then he would stay home for good upon his return. Who knows, his small restaurant business might be greatly improved upon his return. He might be able to expand the restaurant, put in several airconditioners, or purchase an ls2208. I’m praying that it becomes more successful in the next few months.

I know Mateo will miss his papu very much, as do the rest of us. I’m also a bit sad that he won’t be around when I give birth to his first granddaughter. I’m just looking forward to spending more time with him in the next few weeks and even more time when he comes back home.

Ramil and I try to be environmentally-conscious as much as we can. Aside from our own personal advocacies, we teach in a school that promotes such ideals. We haven’t gone as far as richard willich who donates trees for planting but if we have the money maybe we would.

It’s one of the reasons why we love living in Antipolo and why we see ourselves staying here for decades. The city is within reasonable distances from the business districts and from our families in Quezon City.

Right now, we try to use products that are good for the environment. It’s one of the reasons why my sister and I signed up as dealers of an all-natural body product line. We are slowly eliminating products inside our house that are not organic and natural.

Aside from this, we do our groceries with eco-bags. We almost never buy anything anymore without using our eco-bags. The only drawback is we don’t have plastic bags to use as trash bags anymore, hehehe! Ramil has likewise sold his motorcycle and now prefers to bike going to school because he won’t be contributing to air pollution.

We are also trying to bring up Mateo to be more conscious of how he takes care of the environment. He now says ‘wawa’ whenever he sees a tree that’s cut down or uprooted. We’re teaching him to bring home his own trash especially if there are no trash cans around. Hopefully, our little boy will grow up making efforts to protect the environment in his own little ways.

Since my sister and I don’t have any fixed salaries this summer, we’re on the hunt for earning opportunities. I have been blessed with several online earning opportunities just the other day and I’m looking forward to working hard for the money while staying here at home and enjoying the summer. I’ve likewise shared with her my discoveries so that she could try them out as well.

It would be so easy if we have some money for some investment. If we do, we’d definitely buy gold coins. There has been a significant increase in the price of gold and the US dollar has been declining. Trend has it that gold prices behave inversely with the US dollar so many are expecting gold prices to steadily climb. The increasing gold consumption of China also contributes to the optimistic speculations with regards to the price of gold.

Unfortunately, we’ll be needing all the extra money we will be earning in preparation for the coming of our second baby.