Oh yeah, by the way "we're" pregnant...

Except that if you're been in touch with us, this is old news by now - especially as I'm now 30+ weeks along so Baby's official due date is less than 10 weeks away. I'm really hoping it's less than 10 weeks... like maybe the earliest possible date for a full term baby.

And yes, we do know the gender, and no, we're not keeping it a secret - but some of our friends (including my midwife) have expressed the desire to not know, so out of respect for those people I still call the little one Baby Snare instead of "he" or "she" although I have let it slip a few times now.

Names are all picked too - that one IS our little secret til Baby's born.

Why do guys get to say "we're pregnant", anyway? WE'RE? Who decided that? Shouldn't it be "she's"? I know James has the important job of fetching me Milo or ice cream almost every night, but that is seriously nowhere near as tough as carrying this little tyke around in my belly daily! :P

But at least he bought me a nice, modern rocking chair! They're called gliders these days. And I'm sitting in it right now!

Okay, well not in the photo itself. But you get the idea. The matching footstool glides in time with the chair too - ultra-cool!

Manila Musings

I feel tall and medium here, a far cry from my short and little situation in Australia. I’m at least half a head taller than most of the local women – that makes me “tall”. Jeans sizes in stores start at around 25… I am a size 27 – that makes me “medium”. I am sure that I’ve seen Filipinas that could be a size 24 or even 23. I think many of them would be unable to purchase clothing in their size in Australia, except perhaps in the children’s departments.

***

They think I’m Filipino. People here keep speaking to me in Tagalog. This used to happen to me a lot when I lived in Hong Kong too so that didn’t surprise me. However, what I do find funny is that the locals keep talking to me instead of James. After finishing our lunch at one restaurant, James asked for the bill. The waitress confirmed this request by asking me, “do you want the bill?” When she returned with the bill, she handed it to me. I passed it to James and he paid for it. The change was then promptly returned to me. Is it because they think I’m Filipino, or because the females usually take care of the bills in this culture? I’m not sure.

***

Being Asian, I dislike being overcharged… immensely! Whilst I recognise that prices in the Philippines are cheap by Australian standards, there is an innate part of me that is unwilling to pay a Peso more than I believe I’m supposed to. This is one of those things that reminds James and I that we actually do possess cultural differences within our characteristics - Western James thinks to himself, “so what if I’m being overcharged, it’s only 5 dollars!” whereas I think, “a local would be paying only half this much, how dare they try to take advantage of us!”

***

We met not one, but two honest taxi drivers. I am used to Malaysian taxi drivers trying to rip us off – Filipino taxi drivers seem to be more honest than their Malaysian counterparts. Both offered us their services to the airport for P2000, but upon learning our departure time, advised that we take the bus (P300 per person). Had we been in Malaysia, the taxi drivers would most definitely have attempted to convince us that the bus would be too slow, traffic on the bus route would be shocking, and we would inevitably miss our flight if we didn’t choose their reasonably-priced taxi services and make use of their knowledge of the much faster back route.

Fi's Picture Perfect Day Off

Before I attempt to describe my perfect day off, I must also preface that I am not so unreasonable to believe or expect that what I am about to describe could possibly come true. But for the purposes of this post, let's assume we live in a world where I can edit the parameters of reality however I please.

I would start my perfect day off sleeping in until 10am, but being able to rewind time to 6am so that I could get in a morning run, weights workout, shower and do my hair and makeup all in time to head off for a massive day out shopping by 9am.

I would be having a perfect hair day, my makeup would look fabulous with very little effort and it would not rub off, wear out or smudge in the slightest. The weather would be perfect - warm enough for me not to have to bring a jacket but cool enough not to induce sweat. Definitely sunny, and definitely no rain or wind. My outfit would not only look great in, but be perfectly comfortable, including my stiletto high heels. After a full day of walking around in stiletto heels I would not have sore feet in the slightest.

I would head to an imaginary suburb somewhere in Melbourne which contained a street filled with all my favourite stores. They would all be having massive, never-to-be-seen-again sales. On that particular day, every store would have just received a shipment of their latest season, so not only would there be lots of great stuff, they would actually have my size in stock during the sale period, for once!

I would proceed to shop til I dropped because a billionaire would have given me a credit card to make purchases on for that day, and that day only. I would purchase items at bargain prices, including but not be limited to Nike sportswear, several pairs of ASICS runners, at least 2-3 evening gowns (not dresses... gowns!) complete with matching shoes and coat, a designer watch and several jewelery items containing the best quality diamonds ever (e.g. a diamond ring, tennis bracelet and gorgeous earrings and necklace to go with my new evening dresses).

Food that accompanies such a perfect day could only be -

Breakfast: Nut & Seed Muesli with Flaxseed Oil & Natural Yoghurt OR a Vanilla Protein-powered cherry shake whizzed up using a Bamix (or if I didn't have a Bamix yet, this would definitely be one of my purchases).

Lunch: Salad consisting of lots and lots and lots of veggies, salmon, avocado, and some cheese

Dinner: I would meet James at one of the best restaurants in town where we would enjoy the most stunning cuisine (probably Duck or some form of exquisitely prepared red meat). I would even have dessert - the richest, naughtiest chocolate cake ever topped with thick, rich King Island Dairy cream, and it would be perfectly okay to eat this because on this perfect day chocolate cake is actually good for you and filled with lots of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and all sorts of other healthy things (and the calories in the cake would not count for some extraordinarily unexplainable reason).

After dinner we would watch a movie at the cinemas, probably Gold Class style. In fact, this would actually be where we had dessert (but the dessert would not be from the Gold Class kitchen it would be from the restaurant where we had dinner) and I would not have to focus on not dropping cake in my lap, it just magically wouldn't happen. We would watch a Romantic Comedy and it would be a good one.

I would be transported everywhere I went by Limousine, and I would wear one of my new evening dresses to dinner because the restaurant would require Black Tie attire only. And everywhere I went an invisible professional photographer would be following me, to take photos to document my perfect day in the most beautifully presented photo album ever.

Oh, yeah... somewhere in my day I would somehow squeeze in a Hot Air Balloon ride, sometime right before sunrise. James would definitely be there with me on the balloon ride. I would probably do all the shopping without him though - it makes a perfect day for me but would be a horrific experience for him.

Of Men and Multi-tasking

Who says men can't multi-task?

Right now, both James and I are studying. Or should I say, I am supposed to be studying right now. We both study part-time ~ a law degree for James, a personal trainer certification for me ~ which means right now he's trying to learn a bunch of law-related stuff and I'm taking a brief break from learning the names and actions of every muscle in the human body.

My study environment:

• Room: the study
• Location: the desk
• Noise levels: it's quiet (so I can concentrate - music just distracts me)
• Conclusion: I am alone with my thoughts, my textbook, and the colouring pencils I am using to help my identify various muscle groups.

James' study environment:

• Room: the living room
• Location: in front of the TV
• Noise levels: audio commentary on tonight's football game
• Conclusion: James is alone with his thoughts, his textbook, and the commentators and spectators live from the football stadium
  

Who says men can't multi-task?

I must concede though, that James has learnt a few things in our 2.5yrs of marriage... thanks to my wonderful influence by example of course.

For example, most of us women like to do something productive in front of the television, such as folding laundry, ironing, or even scrapbooking for the more creative ladies. Men, on the other hand, like to sit in front of the television and do nothing else, claiming that they must focus 100% on it because they "can't multi-task".

James, on the other hand, has been known to occasionally be productive whilst watching TV ~ this typically occurs when he's re-watching one of his favourite movies or watching his newest Smallville DVD purchases.

I can only draw two possible conclusions from James' odd behaviour:

1. After 2.5yrs of marriage, James is still trying to impress me
2. James is some sort of modern day super-man, able to do what no other man can do
   

Her Movies

Now this may not be the case with all girls, but it is with this one - most of the time, the content of the movie itself is not necessarily so important as the entire experience of "going to the movies". I mean, of course the movie choice plays a part (as you'll see mentioned later) because it contributes to the experience. But there is just so much more to movie-going... I mean, we pay so much these days for a single movie ticket, so we should make the best of it!

So, yes, James, guys and girls probably do have very different approaches to movies. For me, the five (5) most important things about "The Movies" are:

5. Entertainment value. Movie choice is definitely important. After all, did you ever go see a movie you didn't enjoy at all and come out thinking what a great time you just had?

Side note: I personally do not go to a movie to write a critique, or check out a director's directing skills, or monitor a story-writer's ability to write a riveting plot that links all the bits together in a way that artfully ties fiction in with enough reality to satisfy my sense of being. No. I go to the movies for one main reason: to have a good time. To enjoy myself. To be entertained. I don't want to know the details right after the movie because if I then discover that maybe it wasn't really that well put together, it can dampen my sense of how entertained I really was. James.

Side note 2: If you are good at figuring out the major plot point of a movie only 5 minutes into it, don't tell the person you are at the movies with just so you can prove that you figured it out before it was revealed. Maybe you'll prove your skill but other people won't enjoy it so much anymore. James.

4. Climate control. The cinema should be not too hot, yet not too cold. Shivering may cause us to expend more energy whilst sitting in our seats, thus enabling us to eat more popcorn and chocolate... but this is not enough to make up for the decrease in enjoyment factor. I find that even in summer, a jumper is a great thing to add to my cinema-kit.

3. Snacks. I've said it before, I'll say it again - it's all about the experience. I mean, what is a movie experience without the savoury aromas of popcorn, the sweet taste of M&Ms that melt in your mouth and not your hand, and the cool feel of a choc top sliding effortlessly down your throat?

2. Comfortable seats. James very well knows that there are particular cinemas I don't enjoy going to as much, even if they are cheaper (which normally appeals to my Asian, penny-saving heritage), simply because the chairs are too old and sunken to be the slightest bit comfortable enough to endure for over an hour.

1. Good company. Let's face it, what is the point of the entire experience - the big screen, the popcorn, chocolate and ice-cream, the large comfy seats - without someone to share that experience with?

10 things James is good at

In no particular order:

**Making me laugh

**Being very (very, very!) patient with me

**Lying on my side of the bed just before bedtime to warm it up for me, and also making me a hot water bottle

**Karaoke ~ 12 out of 10 for stage presence, 20 out of 10 for enthusiasm

**Accidentally hurting me without even trying

**Forgetting to turn the oven off ~ at least 4 times in 2006 we discovered that James accidentally left the oven on, sometimes for as long as 3 days

**Telling lame "Dad" jokes (the scary thing is, he's not a Dad yet!)

**Adding enthusiasm to anything, even the most boring task in the world

**Being a good sport, as opposed to me, the sore loser (I don't know how he puts up with playing games with me; I'm often not happy because I dislike losing and he usually wins, so ironically it can become a lose-lose situation. I'm getting a *little* better though, promise!)

**Being the best husband in the whole wide world!

Her Shopping

I love shopping! For most people, shopping may mean spending a lot of money. For me, that is not necessarily the case ~ money-spending may be involved, but lots of it? Forget it!

I love a bargain! It is a great feeling to pick up an item of clothing at a bargain price. I will hunt high and low for an item of clothing or an accessory that not only fits me well, but fits my budget too. One of my favourite purchases this year was a magazine entitled Bargain Shoppers Guide to Melbourne 2006. Doesn't that say it all?

In order to find such a bargain, time is required. Sometimes I have a specific item (and price) in mind, and other times the search for a bargain buy can take longer because I'm "just looking around". Both forms of shopping have their advantages and disadvantages.

Some people might see shopping as a waste of time. But for me, it is therapeutic. When I am having a stressful day (or week, or month) shopping gives me an outlet to work off some of that pent-up stress.

There is someone else I know who enjoys shopping ~ my brother! Growing up, we used to peruse the markets and street vendors of Hong Kong together. So when I married James, I naturally assumed that he would enjoy shopping. Much to my surprise and dismay, our shopping sprees had the opposite effect on James to me ~ they caused him stress!

Two years and three months of marriage later, we are getting better at working together on this issue. James will tell you that he doesn't enjoy shopping, but I know he does... I've witnessed him spending time at the comic book store perusing the shelves for ages, finally walking away with one or two choice comics. Maybe he doesn't call that shopping, but I certainly do!

So, James, we may be different, but in some ways we are also strangely alike. It's just about finding your niche.