on being thankful

More often than not, it is easier to pinpoint the things we're lacked off and start worrying about them than being grateful for the things we have. With this pregnancy, you could say my worry-o-meter is just spinning out of control most of the time, if not all the time. I don't know if this is common for all mothers to be,  to be worried all the time. I worry about the baby's health and progress, I worry if I'm not taking good enough care of myself that will affect the baby and I worry about Oli's well being (he is great, by the way). Then, there are financial matters. There are a lot of baby preps to do and stuffs to get i.e. car, bassinet, new baby wardrobe, clothes, diapers, strollers, baby car seats etc. and more. And all these cost us a lot of money. And well, I am frustrated because I just wish I could contribute something just to help minimize some of the financial load. So yeah, this had been one of my bigger concerns. I thought, I should have save more even prior to pregnancy, not spent on things like new clothes or new pair of shoes that I really didn't need. Maybe we should have not travelled as much as we do, heck, maybe babymoon was not a good idea and just a lot of maybes. But the more I think about it, I  guess, along the way I just stopped and told myself, hey, what's done is done and you know what, I should really focus on being thankful. So, to not drown myself in worryville, I start counting my blessings, no matter how simple or small it is, because in the end, they really do matter.

Oli for one. Every morning, I just thank God for blessing me with an amazing husband, who provides so much for our growing family. The way he already loves and cares for the baby in me by giving a lot of thoughts into a lot of things and just wanting the best for Baby Tse.  And again, for putting up with me because well, pregnancy hasn't been easy on me and he did it with so much love and care that at the end of it, I felt a mixture of guilt (for being helplessly demanding) but at the same time, I kinda enjoy it. Like the babymoon, for instance. Even though it wasn't really necessary considering that we could have save and all, we actually did have a really great time. I think it was one of the best vacations we had and in a way, we both needed it. I was at the point of pregnancy where I felt good, no more morning sickness, rashes gone and not too big yet. Oli got a break from work. We got a break from Germany's crazy spring weather. It rained all the time in Kaiserslautern. And so we went to Conil de la Frontera (I like how it rolled in my tongue) in Spain. It was a packaged tour that included return train ride to and fro Frankfurt, return flight, hotel transfer, and 5 days 4 night hotel accommodation with breakfast and dinner. The hotel was situated on top of a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The beach was just few meters away. Everyday day, we slept in, woke up and got ready, went down to the hotel cafe to enjoy awesome spread of buffet breakfast, walked along the beach, visited the nearest town about 3 km walk, swam in the pool, enjoyed the jacuzzi, sunbathed under palm leaves canopy or by the beach, had awesome dinner (we ate a lot and i mean (a lot) of fresh seafood- fish especially), and after dinner, just in time to watch the sun set at about 9-ish pm. After that we'll be lounging at the lobby, Oli with his espresso, me, with my mocktail and enjoyed fast internet connection. Haha, we're Asian like that, we need our wifi connection.

Just a couple of pictures.

Cooling ourselves with ice chocolate and ice coffee

sandy beach + blue sky + not so many people= My kinda beach

This was after our afternoon swim at the pool and we were so hungry. So we headed down to the sunset bar.

Sun was just about to set. 

The beautiful color.

Oli back from his swim. He said the wave defeated him.

Just sun basking. And say hello to 24 week baby bump!

It was a worthwhile, sort-of last trip just the two of us before we welcome Baby Tse. Although, I can't wait to travel with our little one and show him the world.

Another thing I'm thankful for is our families. Especially our parents. God knows how much they have blessed us just with their support and love even virtually across the ocean. Just knowing that they are there is comforting. If i can choose, I'd like to be close to my mum. I don't know, maybe it is just this thing about becoming a mother and being new at it, there are so many questions and things I want to ask her. Of course, she's only a phone call away. Okay, I admit, perhaps, I don't mind being spoilt by her. I am after all, their little girl. :D

But what we're lacking off, we are blessed with awesome friends here in Kaiserslautern who are like our second families away from home. I'm just glad and thankful to know these bunch of people from our church and friends of friends who because friends of ours. 

Ladies who threw me baby shower

Shana who has been a great spiritual sister and friend.

Tim and Andreea who we had the pleasure to travel with a couple of times.

Livengoods and Masons. oh, we miss the Masons because they just moved back to the States a few weeks ago. :(

All I can say is God is good. He has blessed and surrounded me with wonderful people. And for that, I am eternally grateful.

Preparing for Baby Tse: Updates

Hello! I know I haven't written in a while. I've been too busy being pregnant. Not a really good excuse. :) Anyways, I am currently in my 28 gestation week. Just the beginning of the third trimester. So far, I'm feeling good. Baby bump is getting bigger and rounder. I was worried for a bit at the beginning of second trimester because I wasn't really showing at 20 + weeks, but oh boy, there's no complaining now. I do get a bit of heartburns every now and then but only when I had something spicy prior to it. So, I had to cut down on spicy food. There was a period of time where I got leg cramps a couple of nights in a week but it's been a while now since I had it. What else? Oh, one thing that I tried to avoid but to no avail are stretch marks. They made their debut sometime towards the end of my second trimester. I don't know what to feel about them. I definitely don't welcomed them with open arms but I wasn't devastated. In a way, I sort of expected them because so far, I have yet to escape from any expected symptoms for pregnancy i.e. nausea, leg cramps, breakouts, skin rashes (Perioral dermatitis) etc. So, when it appeared, I was like oh well, I just have to deal with it and hopefully from what I read, the stretch marks would lighten post pregnancy. 

In terms of preparing for the baby's stuff, my friends from church threw me a baby shower two weeks ago. I'm just so blessed to have these really loving and supportive friends who showered me or should I say, Baby Tse with so many wonderful gifts. We received all kinds of stuff i.e. clothes, diapers, books, baby bath tubs, diaper bin, bibs, medical kit and more. So, yeah, we're just really thankful. We also got a baby cot which is attached to our bed for convenience. We did our research and read the pros and cons about having the baby sleep in our bedroom as opposed to sleeping in his own crib in another room and we decided to do the former. I'm sure different parents have different preference. But we'll see how this works for us. Oli just set up the shelves that comes with drawers and changing pad in the nursery and as I am typing this out, I'm doing my rounds of laundry for the baby clothes. I think they have a name for this. Nesting period? Where parents-to-be are in full swing mode preparing for the coming of the baby. So, yes, we are pretty excited. 

So, that's it for now. Write soon. Maybe.