Yeah!

I am guessing I am not the only one who hates to check on mail box. Everything is online nowadays, and oh, those junk mail, can we request a stop to that already? These days, the hatred is still there but there are a couple of things I was anxiously waiting to receive: my renewed driver's licence, some bill, and USCIS correspondence related to my Adjustment of Status application. After two weeks of not checking in, I gather myself to the box.

And....the so called green card is here via USPS! I am officially a permanent resident of the US of A! No more fear of deportation when my work permit expired or when company decides to tank me. No more! Baby Boddler K wouldn't need to worry about his mom got shipped out back to her native land.

What sweet is that what I have is not a conditional greencard. And since I am married to a US citizen, in three years I am eligible to be naturalized. Should I change citizienship then? I like the perks such as serving in jury duty (Law & Order naivette) and having a voice in the political arena (not). Well, who knows. We will think of it when the time comes.

Our timeline (here just imitating what people out in immigration forums posted, not that I am a member of any of those):

• November 8 - Filing form I-130 (Hubbostrich's Petition for Alien Relative) and I-485 (my Adjustment of Status) together by ourselves
• Mid November - Receipts for form I-485
• Late November - USCIS requests for more documents pertaining to my legal status as of
• December 10 - Biometrics appointment at supporting office
• January 31 - Interview at field office
• February 1 - Approval notice for I-130 and I-485, green card starting date all the way to 2023
• Early February - Actual card received thru USPS

Three months just past by like that. You have to love the government when things like this befall on you, specially, after reading all the horror stories of the internet.

Thank God.

What's next? Changing my last name so we all have the same name? Nah, I like my name.

Shorties

Electroshock Theraphy

Mommy: "Killian here just squished finger food if they are not the right consistency. 'Oh, it's banana, let me squish it instead of putting it in my mouth.' What can we do to fix this, Daddy? I'm afraid he's never going to move beyond puree..."

Daddy: "We can send him to electroshock therapy...it's probably not gonna fix it but we can try..."

Mommy: "???"

***

Engineer Mommy

Mommy: "OMG, Killian only has five diapers left..."

Daddy: "Mommy remembered to check for (car engine) oil status but forgot to get baby's diapers..."

Mommy: *face palm*

***

You Don't Know Where that Finger Has Been

Mommy: "Daddy, I'm going to bed with Baby Boy, could you get me some water with in this glass, and don't forget to wash your hands first..."

Daddy: *looks violently patronized* "No, I'm not going to wash my hands, I'm going to give you a surprise instead."

Mommy: "OK, you go lay down with Killian, I'm not outsourcing things important to me to people with questionable intentions. I saw you pick your nose a lot with that finger and you didn't wash it!"

Daddy: "No, I'm going to get you that water....with a surprise..."

Mommy: "Daddy!!!"

***

Russian Roulette

Mommy: "Daddy, what are you thinking about?"

Daddy: "Nothing.."

Mommy: "What, what?"

Daddy: "OK, it's about Russian Roulette. When I'm having a party I'm going to have a Russian Roulette explained to the nerds who are coming....You probably don't understand, you probably didn't even know what a revolver is."

Mommy: "What? I don't know what a revolver is. Such an insult. We watched that movie about Russian Roulette together. Anyway, with real guns? You are going to kill yourself?"

Daddy: "We're just gonna shoot it to the ground."
Mommy: "It still can richocet when it hits some stones on the ground..."

Daddy: "This is why guys don't say out loud  what they are thinking all the time, cause you women just don't understand us."

***

Character Assasination


Mommy: "Daddy! You're supposed to interact with Killian instead of with your laptop! No wonder he's on ASQ3! We need remedial remediation. Pronto!"

Daddy: "Character assasination!"

Birthday Morning

This morning, Boddler K woke up without a crying preamble. An improvement, Baby Big Boy? He immediately smiled as soon as he rose from his sleeping position to a sitting position.

 "Good Morning, Baby Boy, and Happy Birthday!" I said. He smiled back at me. Like any overjoyed parent I took an Instagram picture of him and shared it with the world on FB. PS: his first three teeth are erupting. Two on the bottom, one up.

We then went to the kitchen where I prepared stuff and made tea for Hubbostrich and myself. I gave K a couple of graham crackers while he sat on his high chair. I sneaked him a serving of vitamin D with a spoon and gave him some orange juice from a mini Coke glass.

After, I dressed him up for school in a Batik shirt. This shirt was way to big for him back when his ompung boru, my mom, gave it to us this time last year. Today, I can barely button it down on him without causing him to suffocate. Baby Boddler K wears it unbuttoned with an undershirt.

While I got ready some more, I let K loose on the floor where he immediately reached for the book case and took book by book down. He then went to his school bag and took the blue food bag out. Pictorial evidence below. What a naughty 1 year old.

Finally, we had decent pictures of the Birthday Boy with Daddy Boy. Isn't Baby Boddler  K the most handsome "Pak Lurah" ever?

That Little Card that Could

Hubbostrich and I have been married for almost three years before we finally put our feet down to apply for an adjustment of status for a permanent residency for me. I have always been maintaining a student visa or a working visa thru my stays in the US of A. I am legal like that.

For this adjustment of status, the amount of paperwork needed was daring and mounting. But two Saturdays and a couple of melt downs later, we finally got them done and sent both applications and pertinent back up documents overnight to Main Office.

You get to tip your hats off to the government for our case. Original applications were sent out to State X, they then got assigned to State Y, before finally ended up at State Z, where we are. It's amazing things did not get lost in the mail. Also, by the end of the third month (which is today), we already got our interview done with the agent at our local field office. The interview was relaxed. We were both under oath. We showed requested documents, he marked stuff on the application form. Hubbostrich showed him a picture of Baby K. We talked about streets named after WW II heroes. It was just random.

At the end of the interview the Agent said "I intend to approve your application but I just need to perform one security check by the end of today. If everything cleared, you should receive your card in 30 days."

Agent couldn't confirm to the specific of this check but one resourceful individual could always Google, correct? My speculation that it should be this one. For all tend and purposes, one can only hope the result will be a "No Record". Vaya con dios.

Let's see where we are in the timeline when I finally get a card issued (or not). I am reaching a point of desperation like never before for a green card which, of course, will be a subject of another post.

Hey Ho, Let's Go

Epilog:
Hey ho, let's go! The spider webs here are seemingly beyond cleaning. But one can always try.


Main entry:
What was that on the last post? The birth story? Time flies fast and what was a very hungry little baby is almost a year old boddler and his mom is planning a partee! So, even if you are not a caterpillar, you're still invited, if you can make it!

I am channeling my inner EO with this party. When was I had this much fun? Oh yeah, for the wedding in 2010. It is only about time. This past year has been full of ups and downs (sometimes, it feels there are more downs than the ups) and what's better to celebrate than a little colorful party in the eve of Lunar New Year. It is for the baby and for us, his parents.

Theme for party is based on K's natural predisposition to a certain giant board book:

Apparently, parents can go crazy throwing a party with this theme. Google it yourself but be careful. To this mommy, it is like opening a can of worms. I am excited. I am overwhelmed and have to revert to breathing techniques from time to time. I am not half as crazy.

Let's see how the actual b-day party unfolding.

Update:
Spread Sh*t of the preparation. Bonus item: Daddy's Superbow(e)l menu. Go 49-ers!

The Birth Story

Every mom has her own birth story. This is mine and mostly just an account for myself.

Baby K was due on Superbowl XLVI Sunday. We knew he won't be coming that day based on conception day calculation, but we couldn't help to try to bring him out closer to due date. A "shot" of prostaglandin that Saturday apparently works. LoL.

My hospital only performs pre-natal check ups every two weeks from 36 to 40 weeks of pregnancy. On the 38 weeks check up, I was 3 cm dilated and 70% effaced. On 40 weeks check up, the Monday after his due date, I was 4 cm dilated and 90% effaced. What was alarming on that check up was my high blood pressure 150s/105s. I had normal blood pressure through out the course of my pregnancy. Urine dip showed no protein. The doctor made a decision to admit me to labor and delivery. At first, it was just a) to perform a Non Stress Test on the baby, b) to check if I am not further dilated, and c) to check my blood work. The situation changed fast and they decided to induce even before my blood work came back. It turned out I wasn't having pre-eclampsia but instead gestational hypertension.

I had a bloody show while I was waiting to be admitted to labor & delivery. They strapped me to IV and monitored my blood pressure and the baby's heart beat. Hubbostrich rushed back from work and grabbed my hospital bags at home. My brother came and accompany my mom. I requested to have a last meal anticipating a long labor. My brother & mom brought us Hawaiian barbeque. He also brought this lovely rose arrangement.





Finally at 8:30 PM that night, I was hooked to pitocin drip. It was a slow progress of dilation if any at all. It was working to my advantage because I had a chance to rest and move around (mostly to the bathroom to empty my bladder) with my IV and pitocin drip running on battery. My blood pressure in the mean time was back to normal.

On Tuesday at 5:00 AM, one of the attending doctors swipped my membrane. At 6:30 AM, I heard two internal pops and I felt my water break. I yelled at Hubbostrich to alarm the doctor about my progress. As soon as the water break, the pain escalated. I requested epidural right away, so much for natural, no pain medication labor. By this time, I was already at 7 cm. The annesthiologist came and did his procedure on me. I was pain free in less than 20 minutes.

At 10:30 AM, I was ready to push but I couldn't feel the pressure due to the high dose of epidural. They decided to tone down the epidural and wait another hour so that I can feel the contraction pressure not pain.

At 11:30 AM, the nurse asked me to push rythmically in a group of 3. I had confidence on her as she seemed to know what she was doing. I found that she is a proponent of natural birth and minimum medical intervention. I shared my fear about c-section and she assured me we are far from that.

Hubbostrich was in charge of pushing my other leg. At first, I had no idea how this pushing business works. They kept encouraging me that I did a good work. The nurse even offered a mirror to see my progress which I totally refused. They gave me a couple of minutes rest. After about 10 times pushing (the doctor took over to coach me on the last 3 of the pushing), at 12:44 PM, Baby K was born. All 9 lbs and 2 oz of him. He has a set of thick black hair and was the cutest thing ever. I felt a sharp burning sensation down there.

No one ever suspected that the baby was going to be that big. Here is me on 34 weeks and 38 weeks. Overall, I gain about 35 lbs, which in my opinion is a too much weight gain for my frame.





Baby K was immediately put on my breast for skin-to-skin contact. The doctors and nurse did a good job to follow my birth plan. We were waiting for the delivery of my placenta. The pitocin did its job again. However, I had quite a tear and was losing about 1 liter of blood. They stiched me up even considering blood transfusion. I, on the other hand, was feeling just fine.

The epidural slowly phased out and I started feeling some pain in my stomach. It feels like when you have an empty stomach because you are too hungry. But they couldn't give me food just yet just in case they need to do some more procedures. After 30 minutes all was cleared up and I was okayed on food. The pain however wasn't going away. Apparently, it was the side effect of one of the medications. The doctor gave some other medication for this stomach pain.

Within one hour, the baby and I were transferred to Mother & Baby room where we boarded for the next two days. I gained my healthy appetite soon. My mom stayed with us during the day and came home at night. She is an expert burper. Also nice to know that my colostrum production was fine.





Finally, the three of us were discharged on Thursday. Baby K was already circumsized and underwent a lot of required newborn tests by this time. Here's a shot of the happy family.

Can't wait to meet you

Dear Baby,
Mommy and Daddy can't wait to meet you. Don't you feel the same way too?
February 5 is your estimated due date. Is it too soon, Baby?

Third Trimester Already?

And time for pregnancy updates in bullet points:

• Belindy passed screening test for Trisomies 18, 21 , and neural tube defect
  
• Mommy passed screening test for gestational diabetes mellitus
  
• Belindy has been kicking hard all day every day. Kick count cards average 10 minutes for 10 movements!
  
• Mommy's weight gain is uncontrollable..blaming year end festivities including Thanksgiving, Daddy's Birthday, Christmas and New Year's
  
• Belindy's aunts J and T organized a shower when we were in TX for Thanksgiving, you have a lot of stuff; Your aunt Y bought a luggage full of baby clothing for you, I only have to get a few more things!
  
• Daddy got a job with more vacation than Mommy, we're not going to worry when you're sick and can't go to daycare!
  
• We're moving to a bigger place
  
• Belindy's opung bought her plane ticket and will be here Jan 23rd, Belindy's uncle U will be moving to B-town 40 miles from us for his new job
  
• Mommy and Daddy have been to three baby moons: Las Vegas, Chicago and TX
  
• Mommy and Daddy have been to so many classes for baby's impending coming, if only Mommy can remember everything she learns in class, state of pregnancy brain is deteriorating

Our homeworks:

• Move and unpack
  
• Buying baby gadgets and stuff; we got a DSLR as our first baby gadget, LOL
  
• Do whatever we can to keep you, Baby, from premature birth
  
• Birth plan and practice those exercises and breathing techniques
  
• Managing Mommy's anxiety of giving birth

What an eventfull year 2011 is. Can't wait for 2012!

Always Sunny in Berkeley

It was another sunny Sunday in Berkeley today. The last time I was at this campus was when @inokathome visited Bay Area two years ago. Today, Hubbostrich and I were on a trial drive for his upcoming Thursday interview. We left the house 10:30-ish and arrived within an hour to cover that 42 mile distance.



Morgan Hall, the home of UC Berkeley's Nutritional and Toxicology Department.

The post-doc candidate posing in front of Morgan Hall.

The lovely pregnant wife. LoL. #CongratsYouReAWhale.

I think I found the picture and the get up do me justice on being 22 weeks pregnant here. Finally.

We've heard the raves about an Indonesian restaurant in Berkeley. We were definitely trying it out today for lunch. It took us a 10 minute deliberation on what to order, the bule couple behind us took only 30 seconds. We got the following:

Mie Tek-tek (stir fried, the have boiled version too). I don't think I have ever tasted this particular noodle dish back home so I don't know how it tastes compared to the "original". Surprisingly, I like it better than any Chinese restaurant noodles I have ever had.

Udang Goreng Mentega. Not my favorite, but Hubbostrich enjoyed it so much, specially, after it's been sitting a while and got marinated.

Nasi Bungkus, a weekend special. It was a decent rice dish that comes with a trifecta of ayam goreng kuning (fried chicken), gudeg (jack fruit and tofu in sweet sauce) and rendang (beef curry, Indonesian style). It was also served with a hard boiled egg and green chili. Coming from Sumatra, the Jayakarta Nasi Bungkus comes a little less adventurous for my hot and spicy palate. Hubbostrich tends to agree with me. We like Southbay's Bay Leaf's Nasi Rames better since it comes with kale curry and spicier green chili.

and....Es Teler! I had a special request to add tape (fermented cassava) to this sweet concoction of jack fruit, shredded coconut, and jelly on coconut milk. The owner was so kind not to charge extra for it.

Bonus picture. Hubbostrich cranking the bird up on me because I took too many pictures of him and can we eat already? I used the spoon and the straw to frame his sweet adorable face and I got the bird? He's lucky I still shared that Es Teler with him. He loved it so much and sipped it till the last drop.

Please join Belindy and I in wishing Daddy Hubbostrich luck on his interview. You can do it, BB!

Made with Real Cheddar Cheese

While watching The Great Food Truck Race finale on On Demand last night,

BB: Babe, can we change it? We watched this before...

I gave him the (pinky) finger and the following respond

Pregnant Wife: Do you want me to eat this?

It was Club & Cheddar sandwich crackers from Keebler. The crackers were merely gross to his standard because almost half of the calories per serving is coming from fat, and as you all know, I've been complaining about weight gain incessantly. I can't help it, it's so yummy! And it is made with Real Cheddar Cheese (really? LOL)!

BB: Is this what our relationship turn into? Bribing yourself to not to eat
something in order for me to not do something. Put down the remote or I'll eat
this. LOL.

PW: Whatever it takes.

Masterbaker

There are reasons why couple ends up with other. In most cases, opposite attracts, in Hubbostrich and I case, it is the opposite. We are just so alike, except maybe temperature wise. If one is cold water, the other is a bit warmer. One significant example of being alike is that we are both enablers specifically in the field of gastronomy. The following examples are just covering today. But the readers should get the idea on how it goes most of the time in the N****n household.

Case 1, at the house

BB, I gained like 10 lbs now.

Oh, good.

Good,10 lbs? I still have 18 weeks or so to go.

Oh...Babe, you get to cut the sugar. Savory...I mean, I know you can't stop baking, it'll make you go crazy. So make something savory, a quiche! Yes, that should be your next project. There's a lot of fat but at least there are a lot of proteins too. You know you just need to eat a little portion of it.

Case 2, at the grocery store, walking down the dairy aisle

I need sweets.

Sweets? No!

My palate needs sweets after all those pizza you baked. Do you want ice cream? They're on sale!

Hmm...what about malted milk shake? Do we have chocolate syrup?

[Kiss him on the cheek]



Masterbaker, with his pizzas today. There were 1 supreme, 1 Hawaiian, and 2 pepperoni mushroom pizzas.



He made yummy meat pies yesterday.







One thing for sure, no cooking next week!

B3LLY P1CS!

We started taking pictures on 12 weeks and then approximately every 4 weeks after. Here they are so far.

Every pregnancy is different. Every body shape is different. I joke to Hubbostrich that I can be one of those celebrities who conceal their pregnancies until late term.

More postings is imminent to journal Belindy's prenatal growth. Next post...ultrasound pictures? We'll see...

But before that, I have some concern on my weight gain. Beware of CPL/spreadsh*t maker in action. See chart below.



Based on data up to 20 weeks, I did great on the first trimester and half of second trimester. And then, I started to gain about 1 lb/week at weeks 18 and 20. With this weight gain rate, projected weight gain at full term (let's say 38 weeks) is a whopping 28 lbs. Based on this guideline, I was only planning to gain 20-25 lbs--I already fell into the overweight category pre-pregnancy. 28 lbs is still tolerable. But wait, here is a what if scenario. What if the weight gain rate reaches, say, 2 lb/weeks, this will result in megatron weight gain of 46 lbs! Both Belindy and I are doomed!

What do I do to prevent this from happening? I have tried to stay active every other day with a gym, yoga, or swimming. But some weeks I slipped from committing, blaming work, being lazy and just circumstances. Next is to control my diet, this is proven to be not quite so stellar. You should see how many cakes and snacks have I been making the past 2 weeks. Pure no self control. Forgive Mommy, Belindy. Hope you're not going to be macrosomic.

Tips for Interview

For whatever reason, I am on the board of finding a new person to employ at work. I am sorry to say there is a decline in professionalism these days.

Let's take a look at the definition of professional (adjective) as defined here.

c (1) : characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical standards of a profession

(2) : exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner in the workplace

Instead what I have observed is that people seem to be in it just for the money, nothing else. Am I too altruistic? Don't people want to grow with their job? Second, this is California. There is an 11.8% unemployment rate at the moment I am writing this post. Regardless of location, it did not scare you that there are that many candidates out there and that many could possibly better be than you? Carpe diem, seize the day!

Hopefully, the following list will serve a note-to-self and a quick check for somebody out there who is going to be on an interview(s).

1. Be prepared
This is only a job interview not the end of the world but you still should be prepared. Take a look back on memory lanes and revisit your previous job functions and experience and also try to learn about the job you are applying for beyond the listed announcement. Anticipate questions.

2. Gain as much knowledge about the company you are applying for
Many times candidates give a blank look when we ask them if they know anything about our company. Most of them recited the lack of time for them to prepare about this interview. Look at point 1 above.

3. Resumegenic
Many many times, a candidate looks impressive on paper, in person a complete disaster. An extreme example would be like asking a plhebotomist with 10 years experience the function of clotting agent and he/she would reply, "you got me on that." Isn't that terrible? Again, look at point 1 above.

4. Dress conservatively
Men, wear at least a pair of slacks and button down long-sleeve shirt. Women, keep those low cut tops for bar trips and minimize make up and accesories.

5. Behave professionally
I don't want to get unsolicited information on your marital status and the ages of your children and your weekend adventures from you. We will know you better when we actually offer you the job.

6. Be enthusiastic about the job you are applying for and yet be sincere

7. Ask questions
We want to know if you are really interested on the job and willing to perform to the best of your ability to improve the state of the company

8. Money is not everything
Don't ever mention about pay scale much less about money being your only goal in life. It's universally accepted as taboo.

That's all for now. I will add when inspiration strikes.

Rambles

Yawn. Life at work is relatively boring these days. I am reminded on how I am not content to be immobile behind a computer while waiting for machines to perform measurements. I prefer the hustle and bustle of running around like a headless chicken around the lab to perform multiple tasks. I am afraid this inclination is not in line with my aspiration to be a somekind of a manager. Oh, well!

Belindy and I are more comfortable with each other on the second half of this first trimester. There are less hunger pangs and more energy for the host/incubator. We are good. On our second prenatal check, Dr. W pulled out a Doppler ultrasound and we got to listen to Belindy's 175 bpm heart beat. Wow, that is where the energy goes.

Hubbostrich is pretty happy too since I now show less symptom of CPL. For those of you who are not aware of this, it's a mental condition associated with an expecting mother. Crazy Pregnant Lady. Although in my defense, my CPL is less than some others I know. I am raising a glass (of milk) to my fellow pregger friends.

Hubbostrich and I made a costum t-shirt to commemorate our 12 weeks of pregnancy and to announce the impending coming of Belindy to the world (by world I mean Faceb**k). Last Saturday, we went to a kiosk at the mall, sketched a simple designed and let the guy worked his best to modify what could be copyright infrigement images. We had the t-shirt done for two Hamiltons and a Washington and only for 30 minutes of our time. Not bad, not bad at all.

Here is the finished product and its model. I think this is the brightest idea I had so far with this pregnancy brain: just let the walking billboard boy do his job and collect congratulations and well wishes. Thank you, everyone!

Hey, look who's drinking for three? Beer for Daddy, martini for Mommy and little shot glass (of milk) for Belindy!

Now, if only Hubbostrich is willing to go to lunch at the cafetaria at work...it would be so much easier to spread the news. For now, I just scotch-taped a black and white print of the picture on my white board at the cubicle. Any idea how to let people at work aware of one's pregnancy? I am not even showing yet.

One last thing. I have just enlightened to the fact if Belindy is not messing up with his/her estimated delivery date of February 5 (Superbowl baby?), he/she would be a water dragon. My dad was a water dragon. Oh, what a serendipitious moment.

Spreadsh*t Victim

Even Belindy is a victim of spreadsh*t.

Here I just wanted to chart fetus crown to rump length (CRL) measurement compared to those of "average" fetuses, data taken from here. From its first ultrasound, Belindy is pretty normal, I conclude.



After GDM, there's another thing that has been occupying the back of my mind. It's Down Syndrome screening test. We are scheduled for an ultra sound and a blood test tomorrow.

This 7-11 week ultrasound will be also used to determine the fetus' nuchal translucency (NT). Here's a graphical explanation of NT I grabbed from this website.



This nice study (I need to find the exact source and link it) nicely summarizes the correlation for Down Syndrome obtained from the so-called combination test. The test consists of a blood test and ultrasound from the first trimester and another blood test from second trimester. PAPP-A is measured from the first trimester blood test. Alpha fetoprotein, estriol, HCG and inhibin A are measured from the second trimester blood test. Only HCG data (not fetoprotein, extriol and inhibin A) along with CRL, and NT length are shown in the table.



Out of these 16 cases, cases 8 and 11 are the only two that are worry-free from Down Syndrome.

My heart is palpating. I hope Belindy is having an NT not higher than 3 mm and that I have a close to 1 MoM PAPP-A tomorrow.

Wish us luck!

GDM

I found out that I (and so is any other pregnant woman) have to undergo a glucose screening test aka glucose challenge test. The test is aimed at screening for the development of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). If one tested "positive" on this first screening test, a glucose tolerance test then will be administered to determine if one really develops a GDM.

GDM itself is a type of diabetes developed during pregnancy. It occurs when a woman's body is not regulating enough insulin and/or having insulin deficiency. Insulin is a hormone that regulates the use and the storage of blood glucose as glycogen in the liver and muscle cells. Elevated glucose level in the blood could be observed when level of insulin is abnormal.

Some literature suggests that gestational diabetes is a pregnancy condition that tricks the body to ensure supply of glucose for the growing fetus. To put it simply, when a pregnant woman has low insulin sensitivity and high blood glucose, most of these glucose molecule will be transferred to the fetus via placenta. The fetus will grow abnormally larger (macrosomia) and possibly will develop health conditions such as low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), jaundice, respiratory problem, etc.

Enough of the background.

Why do I worry on my chance of developing GDM? First, diabetes runs in the family, on both sides nonetheless. Second, I am not exactly living a super healthy live style: over indulgence, mostly on food, is always the case and I don't think I exercise enough (although, with Hubbostrich as my personal trainer, we try to balance a cardio to weight lifting exercise) most days of the week.

Learning my lessons from another post (which I still owe at this point), I steer away from pregancy forums. This type of information exchange is not reliable as there are so many instances of pregnancies which varies from case to case. Instead, I sourced information right from peer reviewed journals.

I came across the abstract of this article. With its straight forward title, this one hit my attention. Please note, I came across the article on Friday and the test was the next day.

My action plan was to mimic the experimental method they used (i.e., the prolonged exercise) in hope of increasing my damaged muscles tissue consumption of blood glucose the next day. Provided that I don't have insulin resistance in the first place (type II diabetes), this exercise should lower my blood glucose. In short, I do exercise most days of the week but that Friday I trippled my usual routine. I kept my diet the same.

On the day of the test, the lab technician brought me a chilled orange concoction that contains exactly 50 g of glucose. The drink was to be consumed in 5 minutes and my blood was to be drawn an hour after. I made sure I didn't consume a lot of carbohydrates with high glycemic index and high sugar drink the day of the test. I went walking just before the test and in the first 30 minutes I went walking up the stairs of the hospital, just to maximize my metabolism level.

Today, I had the result in. My heart beep faster as I scroll down the result online. My blood glucose is 102 mg/dL. The cut off for a "positive" is a > 139 mg/ dL. I took a congratulatory deep breath. I might not even have a high blood glucose without the Friday exercise in the first place. I should be worried when the number was closer to the cut off even with the prolonged exercise.

Let me conclude. At first, I had an ulterior motive to find ways to "cheat" the glucose screening test (one should not cheat in the first place, if you have the condition you should be treated). At the end, my literature finding actually change my point of view. It increases my awareness of the importance of diet and exercise and other healty life style in life. Not necessarily of fighting GDM, but on the overall quality of life.

Ultimate Vegetarian Nachos

We finally finalize our vegetarian nacho recipe. This week's nacho night is the best one yet. It's the addition of cilantro and the fresh ground cumin that makes the difference. What happened was that we were out of cumin and had to grind the seeds on the spot. Don't forget to put the ground cumin back to fridge because once they air dried, they are not that flavorful.

We love nacho night because it's actually a well balanced meal. You get vegetables, carbs, fat and protein. Well, maybe we need to work on portion control because it is still a lot of calories. You can probably use reduced fat version of the dairy products used here and low sodium corn tortilla chips.

As usual, I forgot to take picture. Use your imagination!

Viva la comida.

---------------------------------------------

INGREDIENTS

-for fresh salsa

1 serrano pepper
1 jalapeno pepper
1 pickled jalapeno pepper
1 tomato
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup onion chopped medium size
2 tbs cilantro
1/2 lime
2 tbs pickle solution (from the jalapeno pepper pickle)
1 tsp fresh ground cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
salt
pepper


-for main assembly

40 corn tortilla chips
1 cup Mexican cheese blend (Monterey Jack, Mild Cheddar, Queso Blanco, Asadero)
1/2 cup black beans

-for finishing

cilantro
1/4 cup plain yogurt


DIRECTIONS

Heat oven to 400F
Mix all salsa ingredients together in a bowl
Cover a flat baking pan with some vegetable oil
Assemble tortilla chips on the pan
Pour salsa over the chips
Distribute black beans and cheese over the chips and salsa
Bake for 15 minutes
Take it out and cool down for a couple minutes
Distribute cilantro and yogurt on top

The Martini Glass

Dear Belindy,

Yes, Belindy was our code name for you, a portmanteau of your father and my names. And the following is a little early story of you.

We were planning for your conception towards the end of 2011. I, your mom, was an avid advocate of basal body temperature method (along with some other symptomps) to pin point my fertile time of the cycle. This way we can hopefully, God willing, time your arrival when the right time comes for all of us to start a family.

As an engineer, I believe in measured quantity and in interpreting data. The past three months before your conception, though, your father and I were renegades. I was not recording my temperature as dilligently as can be observed on the two data point (some times one point) charts. Your father, bless his heart, straight up believed my words that we were "safe" just based on my historical data from last year.

Early June 2011, we had bought tickets to a two back-to-back weekends wine tasting festival up in the Santa Cruz mountain. By that Thursday, I still did not get my period and were not observing that it will start anytime soon. What a long cycle, I thought, which I had attributed to stress at work and travelling. FYI, we were just got back from Texas that second week of May for your father's PhD graduation.

Being responsible people, your father and I went to get a home pregnancy test. If we were pregnant, we did not want to poison a developing embryo. As I am not a trained aimer, I opted to collect my urine sample in a clean cup. The problem was that we did not have any clean cup for this purpose except for the two extra disposable martini glasses we had for our New Year Eve 2011 at Lake Tahoe. By the way, your crazy bubbly Aunt Antonia was there celebrating the New Year evening with us. If you happened to be a girl, you were going to be named after her.

I was not drinking a lot of fluid that morning except for my 16 oz french press coffee. It was not surprising that my urine was in dark yellow hue and "thick". Your father upon seeing this filled martini glass pronounced that we were pregnant with you (and that I should drink more water). The next five seconds and three minutes were not necessarily the longest three minutes of our lives. Your father then lifted the aluminum cover that he used to cover the test stick. And there it was with two strong pink lines and the word pregnant we were full of mixed emotion. Your father kissed me and said "Congratulations, Mommy."

Darling, it was not sinked in on us for the next few days that we were going to have you. Part of the reasons it that we were worried because we thought it was not the perfect time to start a family yet. Ultimately, we believe in God and everything is going to be okay.

We were not officially announcing to the world about your impending coming. We wanted to pass the 12 weeks mark or after we observed your heart beats. Only a handfull of our closest friends and immediate family knew of this development. You have to read the next story I have for you to see why.

Stranger with a Strange Heart

Really, one should easily accept that music is influential and ubiqutious as a meliflous background to one's everyday life. I, on the other hand, can go for months not listening specifically to anything. Forget about work these days, there's never enough time to listen to the internet while I am too busy moving and thinking. Then, you would think that time at home affords you the chance and the entertainment. But save for watching occasional VH1 reminiscing countdown shows with Hubbostrich (and clicking on links from friends to "one hit wonders" on Yo*t*be), it's pretty much a barren desert of music in my world.

In the car, though, while talk radios occupy 90% of my ten minute driving each way to and back from the work place, I occasionally scan the radio and usually ended up at one psychedelic channel that is Stanford radio KZSU. This morning, I heard this song for the first time there and have been playing it over and over with a smile in my face. I do believe there's no more tricks up my sleeve and although the good old days have passed, the good times are definitely coming.

20 years of schooling, I just never learned the math
That 1 and 1 don't equal 2, they often equal half
While I've tried to live the high life, the best that I know how
And I bought my share of debonair, parlayin' it on the crowd

Oh I, I do believe that there's no more tricks up my sleeve
Oh, the good old days have passed and the dip turns after that
And slowly I've become undone, a stranger with a stranger heart

Well, I plan to hit the bottom, the bottle then the top
And I pray that something quits me before I got to stop
'Cause the masquerade is over but I was barely there
The masks come off the gilded clock, yet I'm just barely here

Oh, and I, I do believe that there's no more tricks up my sleeve
Oh, the good old days have passed and the good times after that
And slowly I've become undone, a stranger with a stranger heart

Oh I, I do believe that there's no more tricks up my sleeve
Oh, the good old days have passed and the good times after that
And slowly I've become undone, a stranger with a stranger heart

I do believe that there's no more tricks up my sleeve
Oh, the good old days have passed and the good times after that
And slowly I've become undone, a stranger with a stranger heart

I do believe that there's no more tricks up my sleeve
Oh, the good old days have passed and the good times after that
And slowly I've become undone, a stranger with a stranger heart

--"Stranger" by Dr. Dog from the album Shame, Shame (2010)

Baby PhD

What can I say, I miss Hubbostrich so much. He spent a week after defense in College Station to finish up some lab work and now he is visiting his family. Yes, he is a Mr. Dr. N now!

On behalf of my sanity and health, I can't wait until he gets back here Wednesday. Sleeping with the light on and eating junk food are recurring old habit I need to rid of, all while I am nursing a cold. Although, I am enjoying driving his SUV to work everyday and that working late is not such a sorrow with no one to come home to.

Yesterday, I texted him a couple times, I didn't get any reply. I then sent him a picture message of me doing an impersonation of Hannibal Lecter just to relay a message that I was getting a little bit annoyed, I still didn't get any reply. As last resort, I called him twice in a span of one hour but they went straight to voicemail. I know he knew I was ringing him. After all those my only conclusion is that the biatch is ignoring me for reason I have no clue what, which is more annoying than the ignoring itself. Gosh. What a resourceful wife to do? Call her father in law of course!

"Who is this person?" says FIL.

"Aw, I am bored and lonely here. You guys are having fun without me!"

"Oh, you're about to miss this kid more, I am about to beat the s*it out of him!"

"What happened?"

"Well, since he's a PhD now, he thinks he's the smartest person in the world...he is actually pretty ignorant."

"Aww, you're the dad of the PhD, of course you are smarter! It's only paper work."

"I know, I just don't have the credentials."

Now I know where Hubbostrich get his "confidence" from.

Hubbostrich was handed the phone. He told me that this father and son are having the highest time of their 33 years career as a-father-and-son. They have been talking for hours on anything and everything. There were a lot of beer drinking involved and a lot of leaving the tables from disagreement on some X, Y, and Z topics. Taking my calls or responding to my texts is simply wasting time and out of place. The nerve!

"OK, Babe, just don't get those guns out. It will be one heck of a Law & Order: Criminal Intend episode."

Hubbostrich to his dad, "X says that we should not drink and be near guns."

His dad in the background, "Tell her, there are three just laying around in the table, and a couple knives scattered around the room."

Hubbostrich then says, "Even Goren couldn't figure this out, one person got a gun shoot, another has knife on his eye, what are you gonna describe to 911?"

"Yeah, when Goren looked at your dad's background...a former *** agent...and your background...a doctorate degree in Chemical Engineering...what is going on here?" I added.




And then I broke Hubbostrich the reason why I insisted on talking to him that instant.

"My mom just called and she is wondering why we are not pregnant yet. Are we doing the best we can? We need to remember that I am about to wither on my 31 years of existence in the world."

This is so inline with what my sister put in my Facebook status when I announced to the world that Hubbostrich passed his defense.


All I need to say to busy bodies (and to myself from time to time) is this quote from where else but my favorite Ecclesiastes 3:

There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heavens.