Ask Christina: The Pregnancy Expert

Oh, oh mommy!

2010-04-13T23:10:00.000-07:00

I know parents out there have been in this situation where you ask your child do you have to go pee? Of course at that moment they do not, so "No" would be the answer.

Today we had a photo shoot at a State Park and the restrooms were going to be a distance. We hauled everything we needed to the spot which was absolutely gorgeous today. Next thing, my daughter did the dance...that famous hopping one leg to the other one. So I panic and remembered I had an extra emergency maxi pad. I put it in my daughters panties and told her it was okay to pee because this was mommy diapers. Was I very wrong....from her we heard a "Oh,oh mommy!" I saw the pee dripping down her leg and all I could do is scream...."Oh no!" What do you do? The photographer and the model were so nice to turn around and not let her see them laughing. It was truly a site to see! We took her panties, tights and leg warmers off and she was fine. Luckily she had a skirt that hid her little booty.

Why does this always happen to me?

photo: peeing girl in Brussels, Belgium

"We should buy a lottery ticket!"

2010-03-12T20:00:00.000-08:00

My daughter is about to start kindergarten in the fall. Now for parents who has no children in school yet can definitely agree with me. How stressful it is to get your child in a great school. My parents didn't worry about this, we just went to the school nearest to us. Today parents are trying to get their children in a school that has a good reputation. So I did my research...I asked my friends and strangers what school their child goes too and what they thought out it. Here where I live they have Charter Schools. They are public schools but they do things a little differently. I have only heard good things about them and so my husband and I signed up to hopefully get our child into one nearby.

First of all you have to know that there are only 60 spots for kindergarteners each year at this school. You secure a spot by winning the lottery. We had to sign up and they give us a number for the lottery drawing. The day of the drawing there was no parking nearby so we had to walk a ways, the multipurpose room was standing room only, people were spilling out of the place, and those standing was 3 people deep. My daughter and I found a spot in the back up against the wall. I was truly getting a little clusterphobic in there. The numbers were put on poker chips and randomly picked. So the first numbers were children of founding parents...that took 16 spots. Then there were the low-income which took another 12 spots. Next were any children of board members and faculty which was one. So now were up to 29 spots taken and 31 left. Then came siblings of those who were already in the school. When that was done there were only 12 spots left for the rest of those in the school district. I heard there were 300 people wanting to get a spot.

So the principal began the picking of the final 12 spots, if you didn't get that you were put on a waiting list and if something happens to a spot you may get a call to fill it. They finally got to spot number 59. The said the number and I didn't realize it but I let out a great big Uggggh. People around me asked if it was my number and I said no. I guess I was so stressed that my daughter's number wouldn't get picked and now what am I going to do. So the last number was called....number 187. I screamed my head off and the whole place looked and me and some were laughing too. I was so ecstatic and my daughter looked at me wondering what was happeing. Oh was I on a high!

We walked back to the car and I thought to myself, we should totally buy a lottery ticket it might be our lucky day!

Don't eat raisins and drive!

2010-03-12T00:55:00.000-08:00

Such a strange combination...you all know "Don't drink and drive" but for me I don't eat raisins and drive anymore. I use to work 12 hour nightshifts and have to commute an hour home. You are really tired most of the time after those shifts. So I tried many things to keep me awake when I felt so exhausted and sleepy on the way home. There was eating ice...I got so cold doing that, opeing the window same thing, blasting music, slapping my face, screaming while I was singing. Some worked but I was always up for something new. So one morning I thought I would snack on a pack of raisins on the long ride home. So I started eating them and they actually worked. I was driving in the fast lane with no traffic in sight. Finally I got to the bottom of the box where most of you know, they stick to the bottom. I was intent on getting those. I was really concentrating on those few at the bottom, when all of a sudden I heard rocks kicking up under my car. While I was so intent on getting those last few raisins, I veered into the shoulder on the left. I looked into my rear view window and saw all the car behind me had hit their breaks and started to slow down. I got back into the fast lane dropped the attempt with my raisins and drove all the way home freaked out enough to stay awake. So I warn those who do eat raisins and drive....forget the ones on the bottom or have someone get them for you. To day the thing the keeps me awake in those situations....sour candy, you should try it!

Spiderman...sort of

2009-12-29T01:11:00.000-08:00

When my brother and I were still growing up he had a fear of spiders. We did not have a big spider problem where we lived, there were the occasional daddy long legs in the corners of the house. Pretty harmless but to him not so much. I remember his method of killing these spiders. It consisted of a lighter and some kind of aerosol spray, usually hairspray. Not a good combination, it is a surprise that he did not burn our house to the ground. He would go around and if he found a victim, he aimed, sprayed with the lighter in front. Those spiders did not have a chance with him. What was funny though was if you were a guest in our home some of the corners in the house would have a few black stains....that was the mark of arachnophobic on a killing spree. He was not good at hidding his tracks.

My brother lived with me for about a year and I did not notice until he left that I had not seen any spiders during his stay. He says he has gotten over that fear and has changed his killing method but I know somewhere he is still that little kid afraid of spiders...the most ironic thing to me was his favorite comic book hero was Spiderman.

The Floating Head!

2009-12-24T15:49:00.000-08:00

I think everyone is addicted to something either drugs, alcohol, gaming, facebook or any multiple things. It took me a long time to realize it, just like most addicts. We do not know we are addicts for years and sometimes never realize it. Until you do and you truly want to beat this addiction you will never be able to beat it. So, my name is Christina and I am a shopper addict!

My aha moment, as Oprah puts it, is one day when I went into Target to buy a CD that was on sale for $9.98, then walked out with over $200 worth of items that were mostly on clearence (nothing I really needed, mostly just in case items "you never know I could find a use for this"). People in my life had been amazed at the way I would shop and use to tell me that I had a problem...mostly my parents, my husband and my business partner. I use to think "no way could you be addicted to shopping", you can only be addicted to sex, drugs and alcohol because they had doctors and groups that help them out. Knowing is half the battle and I work hard everyday to beat this addiction. It has been hard but what has really helped is my floating head!

You must be asking, "Whose head is it?" Well in my head it is like the Oz in the movie the Wizard of Oz, but not so green and scary and more of my business partner's head. When I am shopping for anything and I mean anything, she seems to appear telling me, "Do you really need that, can you do without that, how many do you need of this or do you really have the money for this right now?".

She did not realize that I did that until a couple days ago. I had been buying supplies at Office Max for the office and found her head asking me, "Do you need the heavy duty, more expensive sheet protectors or the less cheaper ones for our paper?". I bought the cheaper one then off to Target and I found a white Christmas tree for our office decor next year at 50% off. I heard the head talking say,"$124 is still not a deal, you can finally get a cheaper one if you hold out". I have really wanted to have a white tree for the last 2 years so I hoped if I talked to her she would overrule the floating head. You guessed it she said, "I thought you were gonna say it was like 60 bucks, no maybe if you wait for the after Christmas sale." The floating head is really in sync with it's original.

So if you might see me out there shopping, just know the reason why I look so intense when I am looking at a item I want to buy....the floating head is conversing with me!

Frohe Weihnachten!

2009-12-16T21:21:00.000-08:00

Facebook is a great tool to reconnect with old classmates. I just did with someone I went to high school with. We caught up on what we had been doing since graduation and about being in the military, the awful stuff and of course the good things too. The conversations brought back such wonderful times I had when I was stationed in Deutschland (Germany). I spent a couple years there but they have to be one of the most cherished times for me.
Christmastime was the most memorable days for me there. Christmas in Germany is very different compared to an American one. Here, we are all caught up in buying presents, as they say the commercialization of it, trying to get all the lights up and the cards sent. But in Germany, where everything closes at 4 everyday and Sundays were closed for family time, Christmas was about the meaning of the season and enjoying it with family and friends.
What was most enjoyable were the Christkindlmarkets. Cities had a market in the center of town, where you would enjoy little kiosks with food, drinks and things to buy, with music playing, rides and the square all decorated for the Christmas season. They sold Gluhwein which is warmed and spiced wine for the holiday. They also sold these heartshaped cookies you put around your loved one's neck and it would usually say "Ich Liebe Dich" which meant I love you. What I usually like to buy were glass ornaments made in Europe. They were beautiful and could be molded into anything. From my love of those ornaments, I started a collection of holiday ornaments from all the places I have traveled to. Each ornament brings back a memory of the place and my daughter loves to hear about the places they came from. From Delft pottery (Delft, Netherlands), to Murano Glass (Venice, Italy), to Waterford Crystal (Waterford, Ireland), to glass ornaments of the Space Needle (Seattle, Washington) and a Hawaiian Shirt (Hawaii) to Cinderella's coach (Disneyland) my collection brings me great joy each year they are taken out and hung on a tree.
I can still remember the scents, the scenes and the merriment of the holiday. And every holiday season I long to spend it back in Europe. I hope one day I can bring my daughter there to experience this wonderful time in a farawayland. To all Frohe Weihnachten....Merry Christmas.

Arkansas Farting Game.....

2009-12-15T00:58:00.000-08:00

You must be wondering what in the world is an "Arkansas Farting Game"? Well it is something I learned in college. When I was going to nursing school I had gotten an Army ROTC scholarship that helped paid for most of my schooling. Being in ROTC and nursing classes together you get very close to each other. We spent so much time together in class and out in the field (sleeping out in the wildernesses of FT Hunter Liggett) that bodily noises and issues were nothing to us. Also I, who had lived with a brother, knew better than most how dirty boys are sometimes. When they get on a roll of being gross, it just gets grosser!

One night we as a group had decided to go out and eat. That was another lesson I learned, never get in the way of food and hungry ROTC boys or sit at the same table in a Chinese restaurant. You will never get any food! Well after dinner we all got into cars to head back to school, I made sure I was not in the car with all guys and one girl. The poor soul that night was our friend Carrie. She got in the back seat of a 2 door civic. First mistake, get in the car with all guys, second mistake, not sit in the front seat!

Well they introduced her to the game. This is what goes on: you lock the doors, roll up the window, turn up the heat, then you start farting! We were watching in the car next to them and all I remember seeing was her through a foggy window yelling "HELP"!

So this is my warning to all....Don't get into cars with boys who might be a little drunk and very gassy, unless you can hold your own!

Bad Hair Day!

2009-12-11T22:02:00.000-08:00

My daughter is in a new phase of wanting to cut up paper and then tape or glue them into something. Everyday there are large, small and tiny pieces of paper everywhere from my desk to her room, to the kitchen table, to the bathroom, to my room. I know all her creative juices are flowing but pieces of paper with tape attached to my bottom, come on! Well that is really not what I worry about, it is actually her love of cutting which has resulted in a hair cut.

My daughter was born with some hair, not a lot and thin too. Thanks to daddy of course. It took a long time to even get her hair in pig tails let alone a cute pony tail. Her hair has been a topic of discussion for a while, with how thin it is and people mistakening her for a boy when she was little , to my mother cutting some hair here and there without asking me. So my daughter, after few days of staying at my parents house, I greeted her with a large hug and kiss, I realized there was a chunk of hair that was cut short and sticking up in the back. I was so livid with my mother since I had told her to stop cutting her hair. She snap back with ,"She did that herself." What? My daugher looked at me with those scared eyes to see what was in store for her. To her surprise I laughed so hard I was almost in tears. I could see her thinking, "Okay that is not what I expected but cool she isn't mad at me!"

When I was in kindergarten I remember my mom and I went shopping for the supplies I needed for class. I got those fat crayolas, glue, a ruler, scissors, pencils and erasers put in a box. I was so excited. We learned to use all the supplies. I loved coming home to draw and create my own works of art. So I must have had a facination with scissors too, because I could remember it so clearly. My grandma was taking care of me one day while my parents were out running errands and I was cutting things up. For some reason I thought it would be a great idea to cut all my hair off on the right side of my head. Let's just say when I was done I kind of looked like 1983 Cyndi Lauper with long hair everywhere with a shaved side. When my parents got home my mother ran right up to me mortified and to see what I had done and scolded me. But I didn't understand what the problem was....well let's just say that was the week we were going to get our school pictures taken. So as you can imagine, what were they going to do with my hair? First my father tried to salvage my hair by cutting it shorter and trim what I had done then my mother took the hair on the left side and pulled it over as much as she could to my right side to cover up my bad haircut and put a clip on to hold it. What else would you have done? I didn't think it was that bad until my husband (while we were dating) had come across my school photos and asked, "What the hell is up with you hair?"

photo: My kindergarten picture Kaimiloa Elementary School, Ewa Beach, Hawaii 1978

I Scream for Ice-Cream and Ritz Crackers!

2009-12-10T23:20:00.000-08:00

For as long as I can remember, I love ICE-CREAM. Chocolate is my absolute favorite and my memories stem from childhood nights right before bedtime. My father would sometimes break out with a gallon of chocolate ice-cream and we would share spoons full of the cold dessert in front of the television in the kitchen. This was our time together to talk about events of the day, memories of the past or just ideas to discuss. This was father-daughter time to me and they were some of my most favorite moments. Sometimes it does not feel like bedtime until I have had a couple spoons of ice-cream.

Once my father created this concoction of chocolate ice-cream, milk and Ritz crackers. I was a skeptical girl but I tried it and it was the best thing I had ever tasted. To this day everytime I see a Ritz cracker I crave chocolate ice-cream with just a little milk (like a milk shake but thick enough you cannot drink it from a straw) and those salted crackers. Everyone who loves ice-cream should try this. It will leave you hooked!

So tonight before bed, I will continue this tradition of chocolate ice-cream and maybe I will introduce that little concoction my father had made with Ritz crackers. I hope this will lead to many nights of mother-daughter talks. ....Let's all scream for Ice-Cream!

The Truth About Santa...

2009-12-08T00:02:00.000-08:00

I am reminded by the season of when I was growing up in the Aloha State and was always curious to know about this man name Santa who brought gifts while I slept. I am a Navy brat born in Hawaii and spent the first 10 years of my life there. It is a different world from the Mainland (the rest of the country as us Locals called it), we do not have seasons and Christmas trees are not native to the islands. I could not even comprehend what a reindeer was and how they could fly.

I remember one paticular Christmas Eve when I was about 6 and up late waiting for Santa. My parents wanted me to go to bed. I asked my mother how does Santa get in the house if we lock all the doors and we do not have a chimney in our home. I had never been in a home with a fireplace, it just did not exist in my island world. I think I caught her off guard and she just spit out, "We let him in!" It is sad to know that this was the epiphany that all kids come to sooner or later that Santa is mommy and daddy. This was the culmination for me when I finally put everything together. For the past 2 years I had asked Santa for a Barbie Doll Dream house. I wrote to him each year, but nothing came from Santa.

I wish I had a couple more years of believing in Santa, but now I understand the reason for having children. You can feel that way again when you see their eyes on Christmas morning when Santa brings them a gift. The facination they have when a cookie is half eaten and the cup of milk is half empty. This is what I always wanted for Christmas...to see the magic of the season in the eyes of my daughter.

"How do you boil eggs?"

2009-12-03T22:41:00.000-08:00

Tonight my daughter wanted to eat a type of Filipino dessert that requires her to make little dough balls. She loves "Play Dough" so this is an added bonus to making Bilo-bilo (a dessert consisting of a warmed soup of coconut milk, sugar, jack fruit and rice flour balls).
I am amazed how much she loves to help my dad cook and I am also happy she has a love for cooking. This Christmas she even asked for a Easy Bake Cupcake maker. Now when I was growing up I rarely took intrest in the kitchen. So when I got married it was a surprised to me when my husband came home from work and asked what was for dinner? All I knew how to cook at that time was Top Ramen, Pancakes, Cake from the box and eggs cooked in the microwave. Hello I was a college student for the last 4 years! My husband said, "If you don't learn how to cook I'm gonna divorce you!" He sounded serious so I cried all the way home to my father and had him teach me how to cook some of my favorite Filipino dishes. I am sure my husband would not have divorced me for the lack of skills, but I am grateful for that incident because I learned and fell in love with cooking.
Cooking helped me when I got stationed in Germany. Besides having a home cook meal that is my parents receipes, I got to share and introduce Filipino cooking to my friends there. One even said,"You must have been cooking all your life, this is so good!". I surprised her to tell her I only learned a year ago but it is a compliment because my father taught me and he is a wonderful cook. Boy did I think I was the best cook ever with all the compliments...then one day I was at home and wanted to make deviled eggs, one of my favorites. Then I realized I didn't know how to boil eggs. I called my dad from Germany and he laughed! "What, you don't know how to boil eggs, are you kidding me?" He thought it was so ovious....me too until you boil the water too hot and the egg breaks and there is white stuff floating around in the water. It didn't look like the eggs my parents would boil? I do have to say I do know how to boil eggs now...took a few broken ones to figure it out.
I had gotten that chef hat she is weaing in the picture from a woman (Chef Bambino) who has cooking classes for kids. I love that my daughter takes initiative to be in the middle of the kitchen when someone is cooking and she always wants to help. Again a parent dreaming that their child will be the next....Julia Childs...bon appetit!
photo: My daughter the future chef

My secret to destressing....

2009-12-02T23:13:00.000-08:00

Being a mom, a wife, a registered nurse and a business owner I definitely feel stress more than most. As a medical professional I understand what stress can do to a person physically and mentally and through the years I have tried to learn how to deal and decrease this awful sickness. I have learned a few ways to help with reducing stress for me over the years. One is a passion of mine, traveling, but it can get very costly, another is watching my favorite sitcom, F.R.I.E.N.D.S, it is a good thing I have it on DVD because you never know when you will need them...but the one stress reliever I try to hide from people is my love of CLEANING. Why do I hid it, well everytime I share my stress reliever there is always a look of disbelief or a big laugh. I understand the reason for this reaction, because I take cleaning to a whole new level! I actually enjoy cleaning toilets and bathrooms the best. Finding a new cleaning product to test is like finding a great purse to me. When my husband asked one year what I wanted for Valentine's Day, I researched it and made sure it was well rated on Consumer Reports. The gift that says I love you, a vacuum cleaner. We got home late, the night we got it and I had to vaccum the whole house before we went to bed. If I could I take a whole entire day once a week and clean my house top to bottom, I would. That is complete joy to me.
I remember my dear friend Beth wanted to give me a gift anyone would have thought to be a really wonderful Christmas gift, having someone come and clean my entire house for me. She was smart to ask before she actually got it for me because I could not accept the gift. It meant I had to give up one of my favorite things. It even stressed me out the thought of someone else taking my happy away...she laughed and decided to get me something else that Christmas. Beth has always laughed at my strange little quirks, so I wanted to share with her one of my loves. I remembered she had always told me she hated cleaning and even has a cleaning lady that comes and cleans her home weekly. I told her that maybe if she had an organized caddy with the right cleaning products and utensils, she would find it rather fun to clean. She laughed again. So that Christmas, I got her a cleaning caddy with the my favorite utensils and products wrapped in celophane and tied with a pretty ribbon. I made sure to make it pretty and presentable that it would definitely motivate even her. Fast forward a year later, the caddy was still the way I had given it to her, celophane, bow and all.
Today had been stressful so I decided to clean the bathroom...boy do I really feel high, on life not cleaning products!...shhhh don't tell anyone.

Got Butt Sweat?

2009-12-01T23:37:00.000-08:00

Today I was working out and realized how sweaty I had gotten. It brought me back to my college years. I was a cadet in the Army ROTC program at the University of San Francisco and the 4 years consisted of many hours of PT (working out: running like a mad person to the top of Twin Peaks or past the Buffalos to the breakers at Ocean Beach, pushing dirt until you physically couldn't do it anymore and flutter kicks until your abs burned). One of my classmates Ollie, loved working out and ran like the wind. Now to this day my most favorite Ollieism and there are a few, is that "you haven't really worked out until you have achieved Butt Sweat!" Now when you really think about it, it does stand true. The best workouts do consist of butt sweat where you can see it through your clothes. So my workout buddy is thinking about using the phrase "Got Butt Sweat?" for his company t-shirt (it really does go with what his business is all about). So now when you think about working your ass off...well then butt sweat will now be in your vocabulary!

(picture of Ollie and I, November 2009)

The Making of a Beauty Queen....

2009-11-29T16:54:00.000-08:00

Everyday I am amazed at my daughter as most moms are. I try my hardest to help her find herself as she explores her creative side. What has threw me off has been how girly she is. I grew up with a dad who could do anything (I mean fix and build most anything) and a brother who liked boys stuff. My mother was a working mom but I don't ever remember her trying to dress me up or anything. So I found myself playing with Hot Wheels, Star Wars figures and Legos, never dressing up or putting on make-up as a child. To my surprise I find her in my mom's or my makeup drawer with crazy lipstick lips and evil eyebrows on.

One day we were on the Carousel at Pier 39 in San Francisco and like most moms I sat on the horse next to her. It was a weekend and the place was filled with lots of tourists and a crowd watching the kids go around. The carousel began it's circular ride and to my surprise my daughter had put her arm up and started that beauty queen wave to everyone. I first thought it was a wave to my parents but she just enjoyed the reaction from people in the crowd that she continued until the ride ended. I was floored, who taught her how to do that, can I raise a girly girl and what will raising a beauty queen consist of? I knew I was freaking out for nothing, I knew what the real fear was. I was a really shy child that I use to hid in my room when my parents had company over. All of my cousins are and were shy kids. No one I knew was this out going. She is truly a challenge for me with an unexpected personality I have never known. Everyday I learn to embrace what she is and to keep an open mind of what she can be...Let the journey begin (as you imagine her doing that famous beauty queen wave).

photo: My daughter as Belle at Disneyland 2009

In Search of Thanksgiving Food....

2009-11-26T01:50:00.000-08:00

I am a first generation Filipino and I grew up on a lot of adobo and pancit. I have to give props to our culture, we have some great dishes and it sure is a blessing to have a father who is also a wonderful cook. Now it is true you never know what you are missing until you end up in a foreign country with no family and no Filipinos around (at least ones who cook traditional food). After college I was commissioned into the US Army and found myself living in Germany by myself. I wasn't able to come home for over a year, but that was a blessing in itself. So I found myself without any plans on the very first Thanksgiving I would spend away from family. Luckily a co-worker was also without a family but was invited to one of our Nurse Practioner's home. She invited those without anywhere to go for the holiday to her place for a good old fashion Thanksgiving dinner. So I tagged along and really did not know what to expect. I just thought it was going to be a pot luck (that's how all the parties that I have ever been too did it... Filipino Style with the plate you fill up and eat on your lap). Not even close. We sat around a round table with my friend, her boyfriend, the host, and 2 others that worked with them. She lite the candles in the middle of this beautiful German home with antiques she had been collecting since she got stationed in Landstuhl. When it was time to eat, we actually sat down all together with our own real dishes (no disposable ones) and silverware. The dishes came out one by one in the beautiful Polish pottery everyone seems to collect while they are there. First some stuffing, green bean casserole and cranberry sauce. I had never really knew or seen these dishes before. Then sweet potatoes, no marshmellows on them this time, but I have grown to love them both ways. Then the mashpotates, gravy and the star of the show....the big juicy Turkey! I savored every bite of that feast, each was just bursting with flavors I had never experienced before. This is the first time eating became an experience, not just a meal. I understood at this moment the reason why in Europe we enjoyed eating out, it was always an EXPERIENCE!
To this day, I try to find a real holiday meal because the last one I spent with my family (my mother's side of the family) my cousin bought a turkey and it found itself just a centerpiece to be admired not eaten. They even ate my aunt's layered jello that I thought wasn't edible just a decorative piece.
Thanksgiving 1998 will always be a memorable date for me...and I am forever in search for real thanksgiving food. Wish me luck!

Belly Wrapping Good Day Sacramento!

2009-11-23T18:06:00.000-08:00

What a great way to introduce our Spa to everyone. Thanks to Good Day Sacramento we familiarized everyone with Belly Facials and Belly Wraps. Our esthetician, Danielle, and massage therapist, Venie, helped Lisa get her belly wrapped and our pregnant mom, Karen, with her belly facial. It was a fun morning with the Good Day Crew, Lisa Gonzales, Stefanie Cruz and their camera man, Shawq (not sure about the spelling but it sounded like SHOCK) was such a funny guy! We hope this will be a great edition to Pregnancy Journey.
photo: Lisa Gonzales, Stefanie Cruz, Christina Marapao and Beth Aragona

Greetings to all!

2009-11-22T22:59:00.000-08:00

My daughter has found an interesting way to greet people. She saw her cousin Selena in a play, where she played Malificent from the story "The Sleeping Beauty". She loved the play and idolizes her older cousin. So for the last few weeks this is her greetings to all!