End of year update

As the end of 2014 approaches, I thought it was time for a return to the type of post I was writing previously, to wit, my experiences here in the Philippines. As I have mentioned before, it is unfair to make direct comparrisons between my life now and how it was before I arrived here, however that doesn’t mean I can’t at least comment on the things that in turn amuse, annoy, frustrate and infuriate me, I hope you enjoy.

Prior to moving out to the Philippines, I made extensive use of on-line shopping including eBay, the Canon UK refurbished items site Ocado, Tesco and Sainsbury’s online for groceries and of course Amazon. I mention this for a number of reasons, not least of which is to illustrate that I didn’t actually visit retail establishments to do my shopping as much as I do now, that and there is also more of a shopping mall culture here than here, the closest I came to that was visiting Guildford town centre or scarily Bicester Village (which I did for work not pleasure).
It should be said that in the hotels and catering industries here, the customer service is generally of a very high standard, with staff looking after the customers and ensuring they are well looked after. This however does not necessarily carry over into other retail outlets, I shall cite some examples of what I mean:-

• If you can’t find something and ask the staff whether they have it, the answer is often “out of stock” and that is all that they say.
• When an item is out of stock, my next question is normally “when do you expect it to be in stock?” which is often met with a blank look, prompting the follow up of “have you ordered any?” which is also met with a blank look as if I had asked for something impossible or unusual.

It occurs to me that if you have sold all of something and people are asking for it, then there is a demand, therefore you should really try and get some more. I don’t know what the issue is, but the shop staff don’t seem to be motivated to be proactive and either ensure the item has been ordered, or find out if the electronic inventory system has a re-stock date, maybe it’s an empowerment thing.

• On some occasions I have been informed that although there is no stock in this particular branch, there might be elsewhere, finding out if this is the case can be problematic, asking for it to be shipped to where I am is like getting blood from a stone, although to be fair, National Bookstore did get a book for me from a store 40km away, but it took 3 weeks.
• Recently we saw the launch of two new  cellphones (4 in the end to be accurate) the Apple iPhone 6 (and the 6+) and the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (and the Note Edge). I visited several allied resellers for both brands to enquire about release dates and prices in the Philippines as I was interested in buying one or the other of these and even as close as 10 days prior to the local launch this information was not available to the staff in the shops; this was even more annoying when the information was available for the Galaxy Note phones on the Samsung.ph website, why don’t they cascade this information???? 

I earlier mentioned online shopping, something I used to do a lot in the UK, but not so much here due to the difficulty in paying for things or enquiring whether a particular item is in stock (common thread here??). Many companies do have an online presence here, however their websites are often just a single page, or if they do show more, there is a shortage of information. For example, one of the major appliance retailers has a site which doesn’t even include much more than a thumbnail picture and a price, there are no further details on the specification, size or other useful facts about the item.

• Many sites have an enquiry email address, however having used several, I have found the majority not to be monitored (I think of the 18 or 20, only 2 have responded), any questions sent to the info@xyz.com or enquiries@xyz.com mailboxes often go unanswered, which doesn’t instill any confidence in the website.
• I recently tried to take out a contract for an upmarket phone using one of the 3 main player’s website to enter my details, having completed the entry of information I was presented with a pop-up promising a contact from them in 24 to 48 hours. Some 4 days later, I had heard nothing; to keep a long and complex story short, I visited one of their shops some 10 days later and was informed that using the web portal was frankly a waste of time, we then started the process making use of a paper application form all over again.
• There is a lack of secure online payment methods here in the Philippines, I am not sure why this is, since Visa and Mastercard are associated with most of the debit and credit cards issued here. The preferred method for payment is for the customer to be provided with the vendor’s bank details and then to visit a branch of said bank and deposit either cash or a cheque for the full amount (and also pay any fees for the privilege) taking the deposit slip, scanning this and then emailing (or MMSing) it to the vendor to demonstrate payment has been made, cash on delivery is also sometimes available. Direct bank to bank transfers, whilst possible are not the norm despite the relative convenience this would offer. 

Kat and I have been in our new house now for something over 6 months, at the time of writing this, we are still getting our electrical supply via a jury rigged connection from the back of the swimming pool filter room, as this is the most stable supply available and we specifically asked for a clean supply due to the number of AC units and the fridge all being inverter powered and therefore a bit sensitive to current fluctuations. We have been looking forward to having a proper supply, so imagine our delight when the local distributor installed power lines and poles around our house. However, it's not that simple, a whole bunch of documents need to be provided not only to the distributor, but also to city hall before we can get our supply connected. It turned out that we needed a number of building permits (water, electrical and construction), none of which had been even applied for, and to get these the city engineer required 9 full sets of architects drawings, each of which needed to be signed in the original by both myself and Kat as well as the architect and construction engineer on all pages! Suffice it to say, we are still living with the temporary supply with no idea of when this may change.

Well, that's enough for now, we have another visit to the OB before the year end to see how the baby is coming along, but that apart there is nothing exciting to report.

A short break before we get to the last trimester

Since we are just shy of 6 months in the pregnancy, we decided to take a quick trip to Singapore for a weekend before Kat was no longer allowed to travel. Surprisingly although there is quite a lot of choice regarding airline and departure time, it is a popular route and therefore not as cheap as I might have thought despite being a short flight. The good news is that Singapore and Manila are in the same time zone, so there are no problems with changing watches and the like.

Before starting on this, I should say that it would be unfair to m



ake a direct comparison between Singapore and The Philippines as they have taken different developmental paths since the end of their colonial era and there are also significant cultural differences, but it is impossible not to be impressed by the orderliness, cleanliness and feeling of security when out and walking the streets. Also the mass transit systems (MRT and busses) work well and on time with fast and easy access to the trains although they can get busy especially during rush hour.

Our departure from Manila was pretty much as expected, we had checked in online and so were able to shortcut some of the process at the desks, although needed to show our ID documents and demonstrate we had the correct papers and I needed to obtain an Emigration Clearance Certificate (seems like an excuse to charge us foreigners money to travel) there was an express lane fee, despite there being only one lane and nobody in front of me, I was still charged P500 on top of the terminal departure tax fee!!

NAIA 2 is somewhat better than T1, the one that has been labelled the worst or nearly worst airport in the world, by dint of being newer, although it has a long way to go before rivalling Hong Kong or even T4 at Heathrow, let alone T5. There is little space for shops and so most passengers just sit around and wait, something of a lost opportunity I think.

We arrived a little after 1pm, and once clear of immigration (a stress free process for both of us) we withdrew some cash from an ATM and then took a cab to the hotel, which was down near the docks. The ride was smooth and traffic free, Kat remarked on the width of the roads and the absence of jeepneys and tricycles, she also noted the regulations regarding the taxi fares and the penalties for not paying them (6 months in gaol and or S$1000). We were checked in and offered an upgrade to our room, which meant we were on a higher and more exclusive floor, the view was interesting if not overly scenic being of the commercial harbour area.

After a short rest we made our way via the MRT to the Orchard Road area for our first experience of shopping. I had a particular item in mind and having done some research had identified a number of shops where I could avail myself of this device at a good price. The shop was a considerable walk from the MRT station, but the signposts were plentiful and clear so we didn’t have a problem finding it. After a short negotiation with the shop keeper, who was trying to sell me accessories as well as the phone I had bought, his offer was “But already I am not making a profit on the deal”, mine was rather more absolute “That’s all the money I have with me!” so we agreed to disagree and I didn’t buy the additional cover……

I had made a reservation at a bar/restaurant a short distance away near Clarke Quay (a couple of MRT rides away, it is very similar to the London Underground, making use of RFID cards which you load with a cash value and tap in and out to get through the turnstiles, I didn’t see any paper tickets). We arrived at our chosen restaurant, which we had seen on a TV programme a few weeks earlier and decided we should check it out, a little early so I took advantage of the wait to have a couple of pints of their own micro-brewed beer, the first of which was something like 7.5%ABV, rather more than the 4% of SM Light that I am now accustomed to. Our table was next to a small canal area, which provided a cooling breeze, the food was excellent, my burger was cooked to my liking and the chips (French Fries) were soft inside but crispy on the outside. I had by now switched to a much lighter beer since I really can’t handle it like I used to.

On the Saturday there was a bit more shopping to be done before we went off to do some sight seeing, we had a full agenda for the day, including visiting Little India for lunch, the marina area and hopefully the Singapore Flyer later on, maybe in time for sunset. Once again we made use of the MRT to get across town, although we didn’t hit quite the right part of Little India, we had a good look around and bought lunch of a biryani and chicken curry from a vendor we had watched making naan breads, something I have since tried and found harder than it looks. After lunch we went over the marina area. The Marina Bay Sands Hotel really is quite impressive with the structure on the roof housing the garden and pool area, we didn’t go up there as I thought it was a bit expensive just to get a view and have a drink at over S$20 pp. Instead we took some photos and went to the Gardens By The Bay for a look around. We unfortunately arrived just as it started to rain so some areas were shut down for safety, but we did get to see quite a lot, visiting the Cloud Forest (which you would expect to be really hot and humid as it is a huge greenhouse, but it isn’t and was very comfortable!). We then visited the Shoppes by the Bay (yes shoppes!) that is a very high-end mall adjacent to the Bay Sands hotel. It was a bit like Bond Street in London with many items un-priced and you know what they say about that don’t you – if you have to ask the price, you can’t afford it!! 


After a cup of most refreshing Earl Grey tea, we walked over to the Flyer; although it was visible, it turned out to be almost 1km away and by now both of us were suffering from sore feet which turned out to be small blisters. We made it to the Flyer and were able to board almost immediately, a little too early for sunset, but as it turned out with more rain on the way we got one of the last flights for some time. The view was great from the gondola; Kat is not a fan of heights and so sat in the middle for most of it, odd when you hark back to her delight at the parascending during our honeymoon. It was only then that I realised we had been walking on the track for the Singapore GP as you could see some of the markings from above.

Afterwards we had dinner, much like lunch, from a vending stall, but this time Chinese in the form of crispy duck and rice and a large Tiger beer for me!! We thought we could get the MRT back to Tanjong Pagar, the station near our hotel, but finding the Promenade station near the Flyer was more difficult that we had anticipated in the dark, a



nd by now, rain. Eventually on the advice of some people we stopped to ask (yes, I have now stopped by such an English man, refusing to ask for directions) for help, they suggested the Esplanade Mall station, which was by now closer. However on reflection of the discomfort I was feeling and Kat was obviously feeling as she was limping, I offered to get us a taxi instead, she eventually agreed.

Sunday was a bit of a wash out, the weather was atrocious with torrential rain most of the day. We stayed in to watch some TV in our room (a total waste of being in Singapore, but then it was more about time together than running around shops and stuff). We popped out for lunch and to top up our cash reserves, food and drink are quite expensive in Singapore. It was at this time that I bought a copy of Top Gear magazine and realised there is a huge tax on owning a car on the island. Something like a minimum of S$70,000 (£34,460 or PHP2.43M) for a Certificate of Entitlement, which is valid for 10 years, then you have to re-register the vehicle, or get another. Now I ask you, who is going to spend £35,000 licencing a 10-year-old car??? And that is on top of any import duty and costs of shipping. It explained the lack of old cars and vans on the roads, however not the relative lack of motorbikes etc. this must mean the MRT is an effective public transport system.

Later in the day we set off to meet Don a friend of Kat’s who I had last seen almost 4 years earlier and Kat probably not for 3 years. He is now working in Singapore and is enjoying life with Vanessa his new fiancée. We met up at Harry’s bar in the Esplanade mall, where we had been only the night before; I had a couple of cans of proper Guinness, which was really nice for a change. Don guided us outside to an area where vendors sold food from small stalls; you can pick and choose what you want from any of them with no assigned seating. The food was excellent and it was great to catch up after so long. After dinner we walked down to the bay side and watched the light show before we parted company for Kat and I to return back to the hotel.

The next morning we got up early for breakfast and to get to the airport for our 10:30 flight. The journey was easy, even on a Monday morning with light traffic on the roads. The airport itself is clean and tidy with a good selection of shops and food outlets both ground and airside. Check-in was simplicity itself with no terminal fees or other taxes to pay separately (why can’t NAIA just abandon the fee rather than all this messing about trying to integrate it into the ticket price?) I managed to buy a couple of small items to use up the majority of my remaining S$, after buying couple of drinks I have only $5 left, total result!!

As we waited for boarding, Kat asked me whether I would like to return to Singapore some time, on reflection of the short time we were there, I have to say that I would like to do so and experience those bits we didn’t get to see in the 3 days we were there and also to shop more. I very much liked the orderliness, cleanliness, sense of safety despite the apparent lack of visible police presence, the total ease of getting from place to place and the sheer range of shops and gadgets on sale, a sharp contrast to the Philippines and Manila in particular. However, having said that, there is a lot of SE Asia that we haven’t seen yet and so unless there is a compelling need (work for example) Singapore may have to drop down the list whilst we experience Japan, Hong Kong, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and China and don’t forget we still have to visit the UK with our little one sometime too…….

We got back to Manila, arriving a little after 2pm, our driver picked us up and we made our way back home, a journey of perhaps 60km which took us almost 2 hours, the majority negotiating our way onto the SLEX toll-way. It was a great break, we thoroughly enjoyed it, but it was nice to be back in the insanity that it the Philippines, after all, it’s our home and “it’s more fun in the Philippines!”

Almost halfway through the pregnancy, finding out whether B2 is a boy or girl......

Kat and I have been fairly busy over the past month. I made a brief foray back into a work environment, taking part in a management systems training event in Manila as part of the delivery team. It was quite a lot of fun and I was even described as “an expert” in one particular field; whilst I am grateful for such a high level of trust, I am not entirely sure that I would put myself on the expert shelf….

In the meantime Kat has continued working, although she has cancelled some clinics so that she can take some rest. We have also been continuing the on-going battle with her blood sugar levels, having had a consultation with an endocrinologist who prescribed a different insulin treatment protocol we have been getting close to the more ideal levels. You will notice I say close to, as we are both guilty of relaxing control occasionally, although I have to say that Kat quite stubborn sometimes and has a larger portion of rice or potatoes than she should. We noticed something quite odd, some meals which would be thought of as being high in sugar or starch, don’t always have a bad effect on her blood sugar, one such is Bon Chon Chicken, which it would seem she can eat a whole serving of and still have a CBG reading of less than 140mg/dl, meanwhile a bowl of muesli (and only 80g) can cause it to shoot up to around 160. Of course this does not mean that she can eat fried chicken all of the time despite the fact that she might like to.

All of this is of course to benefit our soon to be born baby, B² who is now (at the time of writing this) 18 weeks, so nearly half way through the pregnancy. We have had another consultation with the OB at Asian Hospital, she is much happier with Kat’s blood sugar as mentioned earlier. As we had the consult at just over 16 weeks, we took a chance and asked for another ultrasound scan; with the hope that we could see the gender of our baby. Our OB had just returned from a trip to Europe, where she had attended a conference and also run a marathon, after some small talk, she commenced the scan, warning me that I was not allowed to video the procedure, sadly. After only a few moments she was able to see that we were having a boy, she pointed out the area on the screen and marked the image capture. Both Kat and I were very happy, not just because we are having a boy, but knowing the sex is going to allow us to plan the nursery and other purchases that we are going to make over the next few months. Kat’s parents were ecstatic, especially her dad as he has wanted a boy for ages having four daughters, we suspect that his new grandson maybe a little spoiled….

Now that we knew that B² is a boy, we had to discuss names a bit more seriously. We had both suggested some earlier, a couple of mine had been shot down in flames straight away, I mean what’s wrong with Edwina?? But seriously, we both want to honour our parents or other names, which have been in the family for some time. I also had a lesson in how Filipino names are constructed, the “second name” is not necessarily the one after the first or Christian name, but is in fact the one before the surname and is, by convention your mother’s maiden name. Not only that, but if you are female, when you marry, your middle name changes from your mother’s maiden name to your original surname; thus Kat went from being Katherine Tayag Reodica to now being Katherine Reodica Byrne and has dropped the Tayag. The upshot of all this was that we have decided upon Patrick Edward which uses two names which have been in my family, Edward from my father’s side and Patrick to commemorate my mother Patricia. It is also possible that B² could be born on or around St Patrick’s Day on the 17^th March (due date is the 15^th), which would be cool. I am hoping (like most parents have in the past and probably pointlessly) to avoid the traditional Pinoy nickname thing, which tends to be a repeated name, such as Noy Noy, Bong Bong or Pret Pret so I am making sure that Paddy is the name everyone knows him by in preparation for this.

B² is now at the stage where Kat can feel sometimes feel him moving. We are taking the opportunity when in bed at night to play some soothing music, Enya or classical mostly. He is not yet big enough from me to feel his movement, but I am hoping it won’t be much longer before I can.

On Monday Oct 13^th we had a scan just to check the heart rate, as Kat has many friends and colleagues it is easy to get a quick scan done on demand. Although not using the most modern equipment at this particular clinic we are able to see several details including B²’s nose, cheeks and knees (knobbly), all of which are distinctly Caucasian, which makes Kat very happy as she wants a little me; I am not so sure since I have memories of what a little scamp I was and I don’t fancy having to deal with all the associated grief. In fact the closer it gets, the more worried I am that I shall have to go through the same trouble my parents had, maybe that is karma or something like that.

I am continuing to develop my culinary skills, progressing now to omelettes and poached eggs now, which I can apparently do quite well despite not eating eggs myself. I have also experimented with meatballs in tomato sauce rather than a straight Bolognaise type of sauce with meat, it is actually quite interesting and very flavoursome. I guess I am spending too much time watching cooking programmes on TV. Kat is loving all this, even if she is not allowed to eat too much of it as she is on a more controlled diet, even though she sometimes goes off plan….. and I am the one called naughty!!

A beneficial side effect of all this more healthy cooking is that I am loosing weight, I am now below 80kg for the first time in many years and am hoping to hit 75kg by the time Patrick is born, which is a more ideal weight for my height and build. Kat is worried that I am becoming too slim, but I still have a bit of a belly so I am not too worried about that.

Something I am grateful for, at least for the next two years, is that I can delay the start of the Christmas season in the Byrne household until sometime around the end of November. Here in the Philippines the Christmas season starts at the end of August (at the beginning of the “ ‘ber “ months) and we already have carols being played in the malls and Christmas decorations are on sale in many of the shops. However, I am keenly aware that once Paddy becomes more aware that my respite will be over and I shall have to suffer the interminable never ending “Season of Goodwill” for 4 months. I am going to enjoy the relative peace and quiet for as long as I can and yeah, “Bah humbug” ;-)

September update on life and being an expectant father......

First a little social commentary:-

I don’t know whether the British have a good deal with their banks and I know a lot who would complain about the service and miss-selling of all sorts of products, but life seemed a lot simpler when dealing with the retail banking industry back in the UK than it is here, so I guess we were certainly spoiled. I will provide some examples of the things that stump me here:-

• Bank branches here are treated as separate entities, if I want to pay money into my own account, which is held in Carmona at any other branch they will charge me P100 for the privilege (around £1.40).
• Cut-off times for branch-to-branch transfers differ depending on the bank you visit, but can be as early as 1pm, which means that the money, even if paid in cash will not be credited the next day.
• Withdrawals and credit card usage is severely curtailed, I am able to withdraw only P20,000 per day on my ATM card and only P10,000 at one time (approx. £130).
• Despite huge government efforts to ensure the correct taxes are paid, making any sort of payment using electronic means is complex, internet payments are no different and this encourages a cash economy with the obvious opportunities for ‘discounts’ and for tax not to be paid. There are stories of people buying cars valued at several million pesos in cash, with envelopes or bags full of notes.
• Cheques (or checks for our more American English readers) are commonly used, especially post-dated ones for on-going payments.
• Standing orders and direct debits are almost unheard of here, requiring cell phone accounts, utility bills etc. to all be paid monthly in person.
• Debit cards making use of chip and PIN are only now being introduced, many are still without.
• On the good side, some banks are open on Saturday, although these tend to be in shopping malls.

Pregnancy update…

At the time of my last post Kat was around 10 weeks pregnant and we had decided that after several scans it was time to go public with the news, although quite a few people already knew or suspected as she was forced to make some changes to the way she dealt with patients who might have an infectious disease like measles or chickenpox. The realities of being a father are still sinking in and I am not expecting them to fully manifest until I am holding B² for the first time around the middle of March, or maybe a little earlier if the OB decides that is best.

Living with a diabetic wife who is pregnant is challenging at best. I have to say that Kat has done very well in moderating her diet, cutting down on rice and starchy foods, significantly reducing her refined sugar intake and eliminating almost all soft drinks (sodas) and all caffeine containing products. The result of this is that her blood pressure is now normal, although we need to keep monitoring this and she has not gained much weight (actually she has lost several kg since our wedding).

All this, however has not come without cost, I am forced to be the conscience and to monitor portion sizes and also to stop her when she wants something sweet. On the plus side, I too have lost some weight and am slowly getting back down to having something close to a healthy BMI. To achieve this we have been eating a much healthier diet and are eating out at local fast food places a lot less; the convenience of living much more centrally to her clinics makes this so much easier. I have also been working on my culinary skills with our new kitchen equipment, although I think the deep fat fryer may be under utilised for the next few months.

The pregnancy itself is moving along nicely, we have been having regular scans and consultations with the obstetrician, mainly due to the high risk nature of Kat’s pregnancy, both to her and the baby. All seems well, the last scan at 13 weeks indicated that the baby is developing normally and in fact may be a little large for its age. Much to Kat’s delight, it would seem that B² has a more Caucasian nose, or at least that is what the scans are suggesting when the little scamp stops dancing around and stays still long enough to get a good look at him/her. B² also seems to have inherited my knobbly knees, although this one I am hoping is just an artefact of the scan.

We are hoping to see an OB friend and colleague near the end of September to have a scan where we can determine the gender; I don’t have a preference either way, boy or girl, both will provide huge amounts of pleasure and challenges. I know that Kat’s dad is hoping for a boy, but he too will be happy with a healthy grandchild either way; I know he is hoping to get B² a bicycle and to go for rides together, although in the short term he is going to have to settle for a buggy or something like that.

I am determined to try and bring up the child in an environment of self-determination, I will not make him or her play with dolls or boys toys based on gender, I would like it if he/she is happy and interested in what they are doing. I will of course be delighted if we are lucky enough to have a technically interested child as I will be able to relate more, I have a certain dread of having an arty kid as I have no personal knowledge to impart, but perhaps that could be a learning opportunity for both of us.

One thing is for sure; I hope to make use of the opportunity of our child learning both Tagalog and English to help my language skills, especially in Tagalog. I will also have to learn to let go of any pedantic thoughts I may have with regards to ‘American English’ and accept all of the incorrect spellings that accompany it, especially the use of the letter ‘z’ where I would expect an ‘s’ or ‘ss’. I suspect that some things will slip through though, Filipinos talk of things like “equipments”, “furnitures” and “sheeps” when in my version of English such items use the same word for the singular and plural e.g. “a piece of equipment” and “there is a lot of equipment in the room”. I anticipate that B² may end up being scolded by the teacher during lessons if she/he tries to correct the teacher or insists on “But that’s how my daddy says it, and he’s English so he should know!”

I keep on teasing Kat that we (B² and I) are going to get a project car to rebuild over several years, I am not sure whether it is the thought of a rusty old heap of junk slowly rotting away in the corner of the garden or the idea of us spending hours getting all dirty and greasy that puts her off the idea, either way I am going to have to give it some thought once B² is big enough to decide whether they want to do that, after all, it could become their first car……

Breaking news update, going be be a daddy!!!

The past 2 months have been a bit of a trial for both Kat and myself; back in June she arrived home from a clinic she had been holding locally, but didn’t immediately get out of the car. I was curious, but thought she was maybe answering a phone call or something like that, after all there is little or no peace when you are a doctor, even when you get home from work. After a few minutes, she got out and came over to the house with what I can only describe as a confused expression on her face “What do you think?” she asked me, showing a pregnancy test stick to me. There were two lines, the control line was thick and clearly present, the result line was a little less defined, but still there. “Looks like you are pregnant” I exclaimed, somewhat surprised but happy with the outcome, Kat still wasn’t convinced so she sent me out to get a number of additional tests from a friend’s pharmacy. To cut a long story short, over the next few days all of the tests, including one done in a certified medical laboratory came back positive, although all indicated that this was an early pregnancy.

Since Kat had miscarried a year earlier, we had some concerns about this pregnancy, following the advice of friends sought a consultation with a maternal/foetal specialist obstetrician at Asian Hospital in Alabang. After a brief history was taken, Dra. Reyes conducted an ultrasound scan; frustratingly the results were inconclusive with only a couple of follicles being visible on one ovary. The interpretation was that we had caught this really early, something like 3 to 4 weeks, which explained the weak response of the pregnancy tests. We were asked to return in 2 weeks for a repeat scan, Kat and I were also admonished for not monitoring her blood sugar and pressure since she suffers from diabetes and hypertension. Suitably chastened we arranged to visit her diabetician early next week.

The time between the first and second scan seemed to drag on, we were both very anxious about any twinge or discomfort that Kat was feeling, this was exacerbated by the battle to get her blood sugar to within the limits set by Dr Hingzon after our consultation, including the need to monitor her blood sugar and to administer insulin injections. I started a spreadsheet to record the results so we could easily identify any trends by plotting the results on a chart.

Eventually it was time to return and see Dra. Reyes, she was somewhat surprised by my chart, suggesting it was a bit OTT (obsessive she actually called it) as all she wanted was a notebook with the numbers; I maintain that I am doing the right thing and besides it makes me feel more a part of the whole thing. She was not overly impressed with the numbers and asked us to try harder. The scan this time showed that we had an embryonic sac, but it was too early to see whether the embryo was viable or not, she estimated again that this was around 5 weeks, supporting the earlier finding that we had detected the pregnancy early. We were sent home again with a request to return in two weeks.

Two weeks later and an early start we returned to Asian Hospital, armed with further results of Kat’s blood sugar and pressure, the latter of which was now better than mine as she has stopped consuming caffeine in all forms and especially in Coke etc. the blood sugar results were still a bit outside Dra. Reyes guidelines, but the general trend was much better. The all important scan this time was an overwhelming experience, we could see the embryo, although it was very small, something like 1.5cm crown to rump but the kicker was the heartbeat which we heard for the first time, it was a little fast at 169 bpm but I couldn’t help but have a little tear in my eyes at the sound of our babies life force being confirmed. We also now had a better idea of the age of the pregnancy at 7 weeks 1 day and a due date of 24^th March, 3 months after my birthday! Dra. Reyes asked us to return in two weeks and also alter the monitoring protocol of Kat’s blood sugar, rather than immediately before a meal, she wanted it done 2 hours afterwards; this was to prove troublesome in almost all respects…

Following our consultation with Dra. Reyes, we headed off to Kat’s parents to share the happy news and to show them the sonogram pictures. It was also around now that we shared the news with close friends and family, mindful of the fact that it was around 7 weeks that we lost the last pregnancy, although Dra. suggested that now we had a heartbeat and an implanted embryo that another miscarriage was less likely. We also scheduled another consultation with Dr. Hingzon since the new regime of post prandial monitoring of blood sugar was throwing up some quite scary numbers, this led to an adjustment in the insulin dose, increasing it slightly and to monitor after 1 hour, not 2 as this was more likely to give a better number.

In the intervening two weeks Kat and I have been dying to tell more people that we are expecting but we agreed to keep schtum to all but some additional friends and colleagues who needed to know so Kat wouldn’t be exposed to patients with infectious diseases like measles and chickenpox.

We returned to Asian Hospital the other day, only to discover that we had all forgotten that 21^st August is a public holiday here in the Philippines, this meant no scan or consultation. We were however fortunate that an OB Sonologist was to be at one of the clinics where Kat needed to carry out ward rounds later that day, so we arranged to get a quick scan done for peace of mind and check the heart rate. This was an even more emotional moment if that is possible than the last scan as not only did we get the heartbeat again (still a little high) but we also were able to see the baby moving a little, we decided that he/she has the same sort of sense of rhythm that I have, i.e. not much. The baby’s age differed slightly from that determined earlier, but only by a few days so well within the error inherent in the measurement technique, around 10 weeks.

Kat’s blood sugar is still causing us some concern as measuring it before a meal is easy, but we have forgotten to do the measurement on time after a meal and it fluctuates wildly because of this even worse to hit the marks requested by both Dra. Reyes and Dr Hingzon she can drift into hypoglycaemia a couple of hours later if we are not careful, symptoms of this are cold sweats, trembling and a feeling of overall malaise. Accordingly Kat takes some fruit or crackers with her to clinics and we have made arrangements to have a consultation with a dietician so that we can get a menu plan and better understand what is happening; I shall be taking my spreadsheet with me just in case it is useful….