Jar Entry #108 – Happy Birthday, Mom!

72 years ago, Dr. Leonor T. Rosero, my mom, was born. She passed away due to cancer a few months after her 65th birthday on Sept 14, 2011. But she will forever be remembered for her humility, her achievements, her wisdom, her patience, and her love.

I see a lot of her in Nixi, especially when I look at her cheeks, arms, and legs. Maybe someday we’ll see more of her when she starts to talk, study, and achieve.

Maybe Nixi will be as studious as her grandma and her mom, both Cum Laudes in their respective fields. Perhaps the image below will inspire Nixi as well (look for Leonor N. Tripon, “N.” is supposed to be “M.”).

I’m glad I was able to hear mass today so I could pray for her. It’s a small gesture but it greatly resonates with me.

We truly miss you, Mom. Thanks for visiting me in my dreams once in a while. We love you!

Jar Entry #81 – Nixi’s 8th Month!

Dear, dear Nixi! You’ve grown so fast! Already able to stay standing up with some assistance, and often smiling! Continue to be the adorable, beautiful, intelligent, happy child that you are. You make our lives so much better, and we will strive to make yours as joyful as can be. We love you, Harmonie Roxanne Marie!

My Health Advocacy Part 23

The first trimester is considered by many to be the most difficult, with the third trimester being less difficult only because there, it ramps up towards the last month instead of building up in the first month. In Hazel’s case, the hormones kicked in on the second month, with her being inexplicably angry at her sister, Jamie for a whole week. Must be why some people say Nixi looks like Jamie.

My Health Advocacy Part 14

While waiting for a few days to see if Hazel was pregnant, we were invited by her Aunt Laurie to go to Pico De Loro on the weekend. You see, Hazel’s cousin Armay and her friends, Rupal and Neel, were visiting the Philippines then and they were taking them to different tourist spots. Pico De Loro is a very exclusive resort that was great for relaxation and exploration. There was a beach, hiking nearby, and a bar for those who enjoy the nightlife.

My Health Advocacy Part 13

 

While waiting for the next ovulation cycle so we could proceed with the IVF procedure, we were contacted by the mom of Rhea, Hazel’s best friend in high school. She had heard of our plans to undergo the procedure and, being a devout Catholic, suggested that we pursue a better alternative: Naprotechnology.

Jar Entry #62 – Safe Sharing

With Nixi safely in the care of Mamita and Auntie Jamie, Hazel and I went to dinner at Abe Restaurant in Bonifacio Global City. It was there that we met with our caring group, affectionately called “Coolto”. Why Coolto? Nothing to do with a cult or anything. It’s just a contraction of the words “cool” and “ito” (this). Translated, it literally means “This is cool.” The ones who made it besides us were Toh, Anne, Mara, Sam, Peter, Gail, and Nic. And so began an evening of empathy, laughter, encouragement, triumphs, gratitude, worship and prayers.

Creating Futures

 

Today, I attended the Feast Makati Legaspi, with my good friend Toh Relova speaking as the primary builder for the first time. The baton was recently passed to him by Randy Borromeo who is the regional builder in the Makati/Taguig area.

Jar Entry #60 – My Health Advocacy Part 11

In vitro fertilization. IVF. According to Wikipedia, is a process by which an egg is fertilised by sperm outside the body: in vitro (“in glass”). The process involves monitoring and stimulating a woman’s ovulatory process, removing an ovum or ova (egg or eggs) from the woman’s ovaries and letting sperm fertilize them in a liquid in a laboratory. The fertilized egg (zygote) is cultured for 2–6 days in a growth medium and is then transferred to the same or another woman’s uterus, with the intention of establishing a successful pregnancy. But that’s not why it’s a controversial subject, especially here in the predominantly Catholic Philippines.

Jar Entry #59 -My Health Advocacy Part 10

Later in 2014, Hazel’s friend, who will go unnamed of course, referred us to a doctor whose office is in Binondo, Manila, a.k.a. Chinatown. Knowing the traffic situation in Metro Manila, we scheduled our appointment on a Saturday morning. This will allow us to leave early and be accommodated quickly. And when we got to talk to the doctor, let’s call her Dr. S, we were given an interesting and unusual way to go about treating fertility.