Baby Shower!

Oh how I love baby showers! I was blessed enough to enjoy 2 baby showers for our princess. First baby shower I had was a surprise, prepared by our Basketball group friends/families, with my husband as part of the planning, and the 2nd one was not a surprise because I took part in the planning, inviting and preparing of decorations & souvenirs. And both occasions were really fun!

Make sure to include games in the shower as it will surely bring tons of laughter. Here's a helpful link for planning what games to play. http://www.babyshower101.com/baby_shower_games.html


I just want to share some of the decors and cakes which we had during both showers for ideas.

B-A-B-Y S-H-O-W-E-R

Searched for coloring book-style onesies from the internet, and typed in each letter, then printed on a pink cardboard. Bought some pink/white ribbon as clothes string and used clothespins to hang the printed onesies. 

BALLOONS

This was a gift and made by our friend. So cute! 

3-TIER DIAPER CAKE

This is what mommy had accomplished (and I really felt proud of what I did, haha!). It was easy to make, thanks to so many ideas from the Internet, and for the earlier gifts received, especially the packs of diapers.

IT'S A GIRL PINK CHIFFON CAKE

Given by a friend from church. Tastes as good as it looks.

WELCOME BABY GIRL CHOCOLATE CAKE

Yummy as well..

IT'S A GIRL CHOCOLATE CAKE

Too bad Mommy can't go on eating all these cakes or else, baby would get so big inside her tummy

Baby Bible verses

When I was planning for our 2nd Baby Shower (1st one was actually a surprise from our Basketball group friends), I wanted to use some Bible verses/quotes for our baby.. and so, here is my compiled and loved verses which I would use later on if needed.. Got it from the internet of course..

1 Samuel 1:27–28
"I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD." (NIV)

Psalm 127:3
Children are a gift from the LORD; they are a reward from him. (NLT)

Psalm 139:13
You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. (NLT)

Jeremiah 1:5
"I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart ..." (NLT)

James 1:17
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. (ESV)

Sweet sleep:

When you lie down, you will not be afraid; Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet.
~ Prov. 3:24 from NKJV

Mother’s womb:

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.
~ Psalm 139:13 from NIV

Woman in labor:

A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.
~ John 16:21 from NKJV

Blessing upon child:

The LORD bless you and keep you; The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.
~ Numbers 6:24-26 from NKJV

Wonderfully made:

I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made
~ Psalm 139:14 from NKJV

In the womb:

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you...
~ Jeremiah 1:5 from NKJV

Prayed for this child:

For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him.
~ 1 samuel 1:27 from NKJV

Heritage from the Lord:

Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward.
~ Psalm 127:3 from NKJV

Every good gift is from above:

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above
~ James 1:17 from NKJV

One blessing after another:

And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.
~ John 1:16 from NKJV

Lord has called me from the womb:

The LORD has called Me from the womb; From the matrix of My mother He has made mention of My name.
~ Isaiah 49:1 from NKJV

An answered Prayer!

Let me share with you our story and my testimony in our Bible study group on how God blessed us with a darling baby to love..

Praise God for his faithfulness and perfect timing. As our pastor said before, indeed, there is power in prayer. And now more than ever, I've come to realize that it is true because of our personal experience. And not only that, but God really works in His own, different way.. far from what we have thought of.

To give you a background about us.. Me and my hubby got married last 23rd December of 2009 in Oman. He knew what I wanted, which was not to have a baby immediately as I told him I want to enjoy "us" first within our 1st year as husband and wife.. Little did I know that it really didn't work that way, that we can say let's not have a baby or let's have a baby because it doesn't depend on us, but on God's perfect will in our lives. And so, we made the most out of our first 6 months as a married couple, even went home to Philippines for our 1st ever vacation. After having spent time with our families and kids back home, and due to the fact that I really do love and adore kids (me, my older sister and mother used to babysit as part time job when we were still studying highschool in Oman :), it then hit me. I told my husband that I changed my mind, I want to have our own baby starting now (knowing that it would take some time to work on). So my original plan (as if I really had the decision or control on whether I'll have a baby or not, and when.. haha) was gone and we found ourselves trying to conceive in the succeeding months.

Days and months passed by, until we celebrated our 1st year anniversary, but still, there was no bun being baked in the oven, and all the while I thought it was going to be easy, haha. Honestly, I really reached the point where I got frustrated at myself (for the idea of using contraceptives and the fact that I was the one who actually "planned" that we should not have a baby before we complete 1 year). The pressure was on especially when you're on facebook where you'd see from your left and right of ultrasound photos, status of friends announcing what they're expecting, and so much more. It was just too much to bear, and especially when I think that somehow it is unfair.. that some unmarried couples who didn't plan on having a baby ended up conceiving before marriage, and yet here we were where everything seemed perfect - we were married, financially stable, and ready for that next phase - parenthood, but how come we were still not blessed?

We tried the advices of family and friends who already have children (well, not all, but almost all that we could do), but still, nothing proved to be effective. I even wasted around 5 pregnancy test kits before, because there were some months that I was really hoping and got too excited.. Hoping and wishing! Each time I would confess to my husband that I tested but it came out as negative, he would always have a sermon ready for me because I was too advance, and thus getting disappointed everytime.

Attending bible studies really helped us - especially the prayers of our brothers and sisters in Christ since they knew that this was our heart's desire. We knew that everyone was praying for us, and we really are so thankful to all of them for always keeping us in mind.

After 1 year, we then consulted an OB (which was my 2nd time only to visit her since I got married) just to check how I was doing down there, and so she did some tests for me and for my husband as well. Thanks God, all results were normal.

Then time came when I finally gave up the idea and reminded myself that all we can do is to lift it to God in prayer. The more we tried with that goal in mind, the more we got disappointed. We just continued our life without expecting this time, worry-free since we know that worrying wouldn't help as well. If its not yet the time that God has planned for us, then we believe that we just have to wait... patiently.

Whenever people would ask us why we still don't have a baby, our automatic answer is that we're waiting for God's perfect timing.

Now here is a recap of the dates which became memorable for us and the start of our answered prayer..

Oct 18, 2011 - was my first day

Oct 22 - I dreamt that I was pregnant. I only told my dream to our friend Ate Mimi because I didn't know if I was just (and still) obsessed with the idea or it was really part of God's plan to reveal to me in my dream. I told another Christian friend so that if its true, then we'll know that God really has revelations through our dreams.

Nov 17 - I was blessed by Tita Mayet's sharing about healing, not to pray for complete healing but claim that you already received it, and so I did the same that night, claiming that we will have our baby. Both of us are also shy especially when speaking in large crowds or sharing our testimony, but I prayed to God to give us a testimony worth sharing to show His glory, and so now, we are here testifying of His goodness.

Last week, I kept singing "Walang imposible sa ating Diyos" (Nothing is impossible with our God) and everytime I did, I can really feel that the song's lyrics is true, and God proved it to us.

Nov 19 - I still went out for my usual 1-hr aerobics, although I wasn't feeling well that day because of colds and constant sneezing, but still I told myself that I have to continue my usual activities, and if in case I was pregnant, I prayed that God will protect me and my baby, and somehow that day, I really felt that something was there, so I didn't put much effort on my exercises.

Nov 20 - I was still reporting as temporary CEO's secretary, and then an HR report was handed over to me for getting CEO's signature. I read the report, just in case he would ask me something about it, so I would be aware. The report was about a new scheme for our medical insurance coverage, and as I read the report, I was so happy because it will now cover maternity (for female staff and wives of Senior managers). So I made sure that CEO would sign it that same day. I told myself, wow.. God is really great! He's already preparing for our future baby and it will really be a big help to lessen our expenses.

Nov 21 - Hubby was in Salalah (around 10-11 hrs drive from Muscat, but only 1 & 1/2 hrs by plane) for some work inspection. I, on the other hand, was cleaning so much and hadn't eaten at all that night because I was so busy and wouldn't want to be interrupted since I was also enjoying. Then I thought to myself, my baby (if there was one already) would be suffering just because her Mommy's too lazy to even eat. Then remembering that I still had kept 1 pregnancy kit in my drawer, I decided to test that night, but before I did, I prayed first.. I told God that whatever the result was, I was ready (I should be, since I was already used to getting negatives before, so getting a negative result now meant nothing to me anymore, I was already used to it, haha). I waited for some seconds without excitement, but then.. the result came as positive. I really cried in our toilet that night and really praised God! I used a different kit so to make sure, and because of my new excitement, I even googled that kit to make sure that I was reading the result correctly. I could not explain my joy and I wanted to surprise my hubby and see his reaction when he returns from his trip the following day. But knowing me, I could not contain the excitement and I really had to share it to my husband. So I called him up that evening and told him the good news. I knew he was happy, but didn't show much as I think he wants to confirm it first. I told him to buy at least 2 more different kits on his way home. :)

I knew that that was already God's answer to our prayers, and to the prayers of many.

Thanks to all friends, families, brothers & sisters in Christ for all the prayers. And I really thank God that He has blessed me with a husband that loves and takes care of us.

God has allowed this weakness so that in our weakness, God may be glorified. It is only Him who gave us this baby and we believe that He will keep this baby.

I even told God in my prayer, "Lord, wala ng bawian ha". :)

Picture on top was the first test I made which was last November 21, 2011. Now, I'm currently on my 36th week of being pregnant, praise God! A few more days and we're close to hugging and cuddling our little one! To God be all the glory!