Best of Both Worlds

Timmy Said:

Tammy and I went for her now weekly ultrasound and OB appointment this afternoon. Its going to be any moment now, and we can’t wait to see our baby. Both hungry, we decided to have early dinner at our favorite Chinese resto in downtown Boston – a relatively cheap place called Victoria’s. We ate our favorite dish there, Spicy Squid, and reminiscing about home – we ordered rice porridge (aka Congee). It was ok, but I still prefer the one from Chow King.

I’ve been here nearly three years and sometimes I still have those moments where I feel as though everything happening is so surreal. This happened two days ago, when Tammy and I were in Stop and Shop, doing some shopping. It was like the feeling you had when you were in the supermarket of Duty Free or any PX stores. Double that feeling, and that’s the feeling you get when you go to a supermarket here. Things that you just see here – apricots, peaches, blueberries, raspberries, cherries (these are fresh – NOT CANNED), every cereal brand you want, fresh orange juice (hindi Tampico), steak (and not the chewy ones from Tagaytay). There are just too many choices…so much food to choose from.

Contrast that to today’s feeling, when we went to the Asian store to satisfy Tammy’s cravings. We bought halo-halo, Silver Swan soy sauce, Haw Flakes….and to top it off, a can of Ligo sardines. We didn’t really care that they had a 7x markup for that can alone, you just can’t put a price on eating something that your farm boys back home are probably sick of.

Tammy Said:

As Timmy mentioned, we went for another ultrasound and OB check up today. Nothing really beats the experience of seeing your unborn baby move, breathe, and do cute little antics even if these movements are just in 2d. I was a little tired and hungry but those feelings immediately vanished the moment her little figure appeared on the monitor. The 2d pics taken today are not as clear as the 3d pics we had done at 30 weeks but this time, she kept her little hands at bay and didn’t cover her face. Good girl there, our little Chamo.

After the ultrasound, we headed to my OB’s clinic which was surprisingly empty. It was good that it was a slow day as I was immediately put on the fetal monitor to have my weekly non-stress test. Our little girl was surprisingly active today so my OB was quite amused with her hyperactivity. She also had the hiccups which was funny! One thing I really, really hate about OB appointments though, are IEs. I know that this is a necessary procedure to check developments in one's cervix, but every time I undergo this, I just feel so…violated. No matter how much I tell myself that it doesn’t hurt, I still feel uncomfortable. I don’t know -- must be the natural prude in me? Still, I hope the medical field develops some sort of a non-invasive test to check cervical developments. I’m sure a lot of pregnant (and even non-pregnant) women will rejoice, and, I have a strong feeling, even OB-GYN’s will too.

Lastly, as Timmy mentioned, we decided to eat out after the check up. Oh the food was just good…and cheap! Shopping at the Asian store, Super 88, we ran into several Pinoys – a couple at the patis & toyo aisle who were debating whether they have enough de latas at home and another was a pinay who bought so many Snackus(about seven of them, I think). As for me, I just couldn’t resist the lure of halo-halo and the epitome of kajologan (according to my husband), Ligo sardines. Yes, yes, yes, I admit, so jologs, but sometimes, that’s all you need to feel that you’re home.