What Makes A Good Doctor?

What makes a good doctor... specifically, a good pediatrician? Is it the way she treats her patients? Is it the friendship that she builds with her patients' parents as well as their other family members? Is it the way she guides you on how to take care of your child during their "sick times"? Is it the many free medicine samples she gives you every time you come to her for your child's check-up? Is it about the discount she gives you from her PF?

Honestly, I don't really know! I don't even have the slightest idea. I just had my first baby and ever since I gave birth to my son, Enzo, Dra. Cynthia Padilla was the only pediatrician who took care of him. I never really met a pediatrician before her. Of course, there are the other residents at the Cardinal Santos Medical Santos who looked after my Enzo when he was hospitalized. I also cannot forget to mention Dra. Kitty Gayo, Dra. Padilla's associate, who also checks on Enzo if and when Dr. Padilla is not available, and who, by the way, is also a very, very good pediatrician. But generally, it was Dra. Padilla who technically "guided" me and my husband in taking care of Enzo so we really owe her a lot, so to speak.


Yesterday, Enzo was scheduled to see his Endocrinologist, Dra. Ludivina Garces, for his monthly monitoring of his TSH and FT4 levels. While we were in Dra. Garces' clinic, she mentioned that Dra. Padilla was scheduled to leave for the US... for good! I felt panic, worry, and most of all, sadness all at the same time. I wondered why she had to go. Luckily, Enzo had an appointment with Dra. Padilla on the very same day. I can't wait for us to get to her clinic to confirm the sad news.


When we arrived at her clinic at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center, I immediately asked Marivic, Dr. Padilla's very friendly and "very fashionista" secretary, if the news is true. Deep inside, I was hoping she'd say that, "No, she's not leaving for good. She will just be on a vacation". But instead, she asked me where I got the news and told me to just talk to Dra. Padilla about it.


Since it was a Saturday, the line in Dra. Padilla's clinic was like trying to see a blockbuster movie. It took us like 2 & 1/2 to 3 hours until we got our turn to see her. And during those long hours of waiting, I felt restless. I wanted to see her at once but I had no choice but to wait for our turn. And so after finishing "Tarzan" and half of "Peter Pan", we finally had our turn to see her. I asked her at once about the news... and so it really was confirmed. Their "green card" was approved so she & her husband, Dr. Sito Padilla, had to go. This time, I really felt like crying already. But I had to stop myself kasi nakakahiya naman to pour out in front of her and Mennen and also my husband. But I really, really felt like crying na talaga.



Instead, after she finished checking on Enzo, I just asked if we could have our picture taken with her for a souvenir. I've been meaning to ask her way before pa for my scrapbook but I always forget to do so. And so we did have our first, and hopefully not the last, picture taken with her. And when it was time to leave her clinic, I felt a lump in my throat again and this time, my eyes were watery na. I wanted to give her a hug while thanking her but I couldn't even look at her kasi I knew my tears will start to fall already (in fact, as I am writing this, I feel like crying again). So we just bid her goodbye and wished her the best of luck.



This out pour of sadness made me wonder: why do I feel this way for my son's pediatrician? She's not rendering her services to us for free, anyways, so why get so emotional about her leaving? The answer: she's sincerely concerned with our dear Enzo. She helped us save our son's life. Our Enzo did not course through a normal life especially in his first year but with her help and concern, we managed to get Enzo out of danger. I know other doctors would have done the same thing for our son for it is their duty to save lives but she was the doctor we were blessed with and so we will be forever thankful to her.


So to you, Dra. Padilla, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you very, very much! From the time we met you, we knew our son was in good hands and you proved that to us. Looking at our son now, we knew we wouldn't have gotten him in his better condition right now without you. You are such a wonderful doctor and you always have a way to make us feel assured that everything will be okay even at times when our Enzo couldn't seem to recover from his poor health. You will surely be missed. I'm sure we are not the only parents who are feeling this way about your leaving. We hope that you will find it in your heart to come back here in the Philippines (soon) and stay for good.


So what makes a good doctor? For me, it's all about Dra. Cynthia Padilla... : )

The Reunion...

Wow! It's been a while since I last posted a blog and I totally missed it! I've been pretty occupied with uploading my gazillion collection of pictures on shutterfly.com (http://www.prettycielo.shutterfly.com/ and http://www.prettycieloandfriends.shutterfly.com/) and I was really into it for the past few weeks. Still, I haven't finished uploading all of my treasured photos. Blame it on the digital camera technology. Taking photos now is like talking on the phone. ; )


Anyways, today was quite a surreal experience. After so many, many, many years, I've come to see my relatives again... from my mom's side. Well, only some of them because most of my cousins and aunts and uncles now live and work abroad.


My cousin Mia and her family went home for a vacation from Canada. She thought of meeting all her relatives and I must say, her idea was good. So she set a birthday party for her son Ian/family reunion in Jollibee Greenmeadows at 1PM today.


Me and my siblings never really had contact from them (mommy's side) for so many years now for reasons that are not-so personal to list (because our life story is quite an open book to everyone) but too many to mention. In short, several not-so-fortunate circumstances made us stray away from each other!


But despite everything that has happened over the years, I realized that, somehow, I missed my relatives, too. And it disheartens me that we (my siblings and I) never really had a chance to be close with my mommy's side. When I was on my way to the venue, I was expecting some awkward moments to take place during the occasion. But surprisingly, it was a warm gathering. No hang-ups, no dramas, no nothing! Just a fun and wacky get-together.


I hope that this is a start of a renewed relationship with our mommy's side relatives... = D

Ngarag!

Kakatapos lang busy April, 1st few days pa lang ng May, a lot of things happened already!


Enzo was just recovering from his asthma when my Ricky got sick naman...


5th of May, Monday. It was just a regular Monday morning for my hubby. He got up, showered, dressed up then drove his way to work. A few hours later, about 11AM, he called me and told me that he'll be home earlier than usual. Around 8PM daw. He usually comes home kasi mga 12 or 1 AM na. I was just planning pa lang what to cook for dinner for him when someone rang the doorbell. It was Ricky na pala. It was just 2PM. He looked so sick. As in he's maputla but his eyes were kind'da red and he looked so tired. He was complaining of having a hard time urinating and feeling chills. I touched his forehead and he has fever pala. I took his temp and it was a whooping 40 degrees! Talk about hot!


I immediately called Ate Ruby and asked her to take care of Enzo for a while. When she arrived, I rushed Ricky to the hospital na. At the ER of CSMC, they immediately took his BP, his temp and took blood and urine samples from him. They also put IV on him na. After two and a half long hours of waiting in the ER, the doctor told us that he needs to be confined ASAP because he has UTI and that high levels of bacteria were found in his blood! That being said, they immediately bombarded Ricky with high doses of antibiotics.


We later on found out that the bacteria on his blood reached 24,000 or so and according to Dr. Carreon, it was way beyond normal so high doses of antibiotics were again given to him. His fever should not go up again because if it does, he will have to stay longer in the hospital. Buti na lang his fever didn't come back na. And so he was released na rin on the 8th.


Ay, grabe! Nakaka-ngarag ang mga ganitong events! Sana wag na maulit kasi ang hirap... hirap humanap ng temporary yaya for Enzo; hirap mag-alala; ang HIRAP SA BULSA!!! Buti na lang my sis Dione was kind enough to take care of my Enzo the whole day nung Tuesday so I was able to spend time with my hubby in the hospital. Then nung Wednesday naman, Enzo was scheduled for check-up so we were able to stop by and on Thursday, Ricky was back to normal na so he settled everything at the hospital by himself. We just waited for him na lang at home.


I was really happy to see Ricky home but I guess Enzo was much happier. He kept on playing with his Dad the whole day. As in halos hindi sya sumama sa akin. Then he cries when his Dad would go out of the room, which he normally does not do. Ang cute! Siguro Enzo knew that his Dad was not around for a few nights.


Hay... life is really full of surprises!

The Fast and The Furious APRIL 2008...

Awww... April is now over! Time literally flies so fast! In just 30 days, a lot of things happened already...


On the 5th, our youngest bro, Mark, graduated from college... finally!


Then, during the last week of last month, my brother, Patrick, and his then girlfriend, Nikole, were asking me on the how-abouts in going to Hong Kong Disneyland. But due to lack of time in preparation, they ended up going to Palawan. They stayed there for like 3 days or so, during the 1st week of April.


After their trip, I was just nagging Nikole in coming with us to see a new movie this end of April. She said she can't because she is scheduled to leave for Ireland on the 30th of April. Sad! Because she won't be around for the next 6 months or so.


And then during my son Enzo's 7th month birthday celebration on April 18, the lovebirds, Nikole and Patrick, were asking me questions as about getting married. Made me wonder... Ho-hum...


A few days later, April 19, to be exact, Patrick and Nikole was literally forcing us to go to my sister Dione's house for dinner. I kind'da knew what it was all about but refused to give in to their request because my husband and I were having a blast at my bestest friend Aya's house celebrating the baptism of their first-born, Janus, and the birthday of her loving hubby, Vhic.


But of course, we gave in to their request. I knew what it was all about. And yeah, she is pregnant. Yahoo! She's 2 months preggy at that time. Ang saya kasi I know my bro was waiting for it to happen. And so we all rushed to help them get married. And so they did! They wed at the QC Hall on the 25th of April. It was a very simple civil wedding but it was all fun!


And of course, my baby wouldn't let them steal the limelight from him. He had asthma the day after so we rushed him to the CSMC, as always. Thank God it wasn't that bad because home medication was ok.


I've been complaining how idle my life has become since I got pregnant and until now, but, come to think of it, it is not! My daily routine seems to be predictable but sometimes, it just could be so perplexing!

Answer This!

One fine, sunny, lazy, afternoon, my niece, Nadine, asked my Dad:


"Lolo, Jesus Christ is the son of Almighty God, right?"


My Dad answered, "Yes, He is. Why do you ask?"


Nadine replied, "Then who is the wife of Almighty God?"

My Dad was caught off-guard. He didn't know how to answer the question from a seven-year-old-girl... the question that my Dad, himself (and even I), doesn't know the answer to!

So my Dad just told Nadine that he really does not know the answer to her question. Good thing Nadine didn't have a follow-up question on that.

How about you, how would answer her question? Tell me... ; p

I Still Love My Ex-Boyfriend...

I just got an e-mail from my Tita Louie from Hong Kong. It's an article from Bo Sanchez. It's interesting. An article detailing on how you can make your marriage work.


Bo Sanchez discussed how he and his wife was able to make their marriage work. He said it's not a thing you should wish for, you have to DECIDE on making things work!


And it hit me. It made sense because when you wish for something, be it a successful marriage, being rich or slimming down, you tend not to do so much about it. It seems that you just wait for it to happen. But when you DECIDE on making it work, you will do all you can to make it happen.


My husband (who is my ex-boyfriend) and I have been married for five (5) years now. I know it's too early to write about it but, hey, five years is five years. Today's generation seems to find it easy to get in and out of marriage. And besides, we've been boyfriends for six (6) years before we got married so that makes eleven (11) years of constant togetherness. Such a long time, I must say!


But anyhoo, after reading the article, I gave a long thought of how things are between us now. Yeah, we see each other everyday. We talk. We eat together. We do stuff together and all, but, are we really ok?


You see, my husband is kind'da frigid. Sometimes, I feel like he is ignoring me, like he doesn't care. Even when he was still my boyfriend (and up until now), we would often argue about it. He is not as spontaneous as he should be. Sometimes, I feel like he would prefer sleeping than talking to me. And that really infuriates me!


I, on the other hand, always find fault at everything. I would question him for not being spontaneous, for not talking to me, for not keeping the room clean, etc., etc., etc.! I will walk out on him when I am mad and ignore him completely. I am always at rage.


But with all these differences, how do we make things work? I guess it's an unconscious effort for us. We have accepted and loved each other that we DECIDED to make things work, even without telling each other to do so. It's a mutual thing, I must say. We exert efforts in making things work...




We still go out on dates. We make it a point to spend time alone together. A movie, a dinner, an ice cream, an arcade, an out-of-town trip... whatever! Just as long as we go out and have fun together. Though for now we can't afford to be alone together because of Enzo, we still go out and date but this time, it's a triple date!


We still hold hands. While walking, lining up at the grocery's cashier or simply sitting down on our couch, we still hold each other's hands as much as we can. It has always been our way of communicating without words.


We still talk. One will talk, one will listen. No yelling. Whether or not we are fighting, that's how it is for us. We try to communicate as effectively as possible to avoid conflicts. We discuss practically almost everything. And we try not to humiliate each at all times, especially in front of other people.


We still say "I Love You"... and mean it! It's a normal thing for us. We say I Love You to each other at all times... verbally, through phone conversations, through text messages, through e-mail, through IM, before going to bed, when waking up, before leaving the house and back. We tell it to each other as often as we can (and we will make sure Enzo will be so used to saying it, too, and meaning it, of course).


We still kiss. We still embrace. Apart from fornicating (which is now quite seldom because of Enzo. hehehe...), we still give each other quick kisses and quick hugs just about anywhere... mall, park, car, cinema. No, we don't do P.D.A. (public display of affection) but it's just in us. It's also our other way of communicating without words.


With all the aforementioned, you may think our marriage is just perfect. NO! It's way too far from being perfect. We still argue, we still get upset at each other, we still sometimes hurt each other with hurtful remarks. But we work hard everyday on keeping our marriage strong. Giving up on each other is not an option.


But of course, it's not just us. We pray. We give thanks. We ask for strength. We ask for acceptance. We ask for peace of mind. And when we do pray, we realize that all the sugar and spices in our daily life helps make us firm in our DECISION...

Ang INIT!!!

Argh! Ang Iniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt!!!


Grabe ang weather lately. It's excruciatingly HOT! Hassle lumabas, ang sakit sa balat!


Bakit nga ba super mainit lately? Every year na lang, the weather gets worse. Effects ba ito ng Global Warming?!?!? Kaso mo, 'di ako masyadong knowledgeable sa Global Warming achuchuchu na yan! Ang alam ko lang, sobrang mainit ang weather lately at hindi ko sya ma-take!


This is the time that I wish we were in Baguio! At least there, parang wala lang ang summer. Slightly mainit din doon, yes, pero not this humid! I think my Enzo would love the weather there. Sensitive siya sa init ng sun eh. Maarte din parang ang Mommy niya. Wehehehe...


But maarte or not, super mainit talaga. I think everybody will agree with me naman, 'di ba?


Pero this is the best time naman for you to really appreciate halo-halo, ice cream, popsicles, ice candy, "ice tubig", mais con yelo, saging con yelo, yelo con yelo, at lahat-lahat ng may yelo! Thirst quencher talaga lalo na yung ice-cold water! Hay... ginhawa!


Masarap din naman mag-swimming at mag relax-relax sa pool or sa sea. Pero syempre masarap lang dun sa resort na walang masyadong people. Magulo kasi pag madaming tao, 'di ka rin mare-relax.


But still, I love summer naman. I can't wait nga for the next summer kasi that wil be the first time na we will bring Enzo out for a swim. First family outing, ba. I'm sure ang saya nun! = D