Most especially for newborn moms, I'm pretty sure the answer is every day. Well, I felt that way when my twins were born. I honestly felt like no one can ever understand what we're going through as everyone had singleton babies and here we are, trying to learn the ropes of parenthood x 2! I got to admit that there were nights when I would burst out crying and it's not the kind that you would cry yourself to sleep because..well... you don't get to sleep! I was just overcome with so much exhaustion, fear and anxiety. I just wanted to do things correctly from the way I breastfeed my babies down to making sure that I get to keep them alive and healthy.
I got to say though that Paul has played a huge role in keeping me sane. He never left my side and I'd say that it's because of him that I didn't fell into depression but to all new moms about there, believe me when I say that the struggle is indeed very very real. So we've survived a month with the twins which consists of leaving them behind in the hospital after I was cleared to go home because they had to stay in the NICU, it just felt so weird that unlike most moms, I left the hospital empty-handed. We went home and saw the empty crib and we didn't know what else to do but to unpack our bags and wonder if our twins were doing ok. Well, guess what?! We ended up heading back to the hospital just right after dinner because we just can't bear the thought of not seeing them before we go to bed that night. That continued on for 2 more weeks until they were finally ready to go home. It was such a joyous occasion to finally have L and J with me 24/7. Then, another roadblock happened. Their yaya (nanny) left us. Just when I thought she was the one, she had to lie and went AWOL a week after the twins came home.


It makes sense after all, like babies has to sleep at least for 8 hours during the day and 8 hours at night. That's a total of 16 hours out of 24 hours in a day. This lessens as a child gets older but up until now, we value sleep so much that my twins are trained to take their afternoon naps for at least 2 hours every day. I do believe that the brain develops during sleep which is why we also noticed that kids are more alert after a good night's sleep or when they have sufficient naps.

As for Healthy Food, it's a no-brainer that babies need proper nourishment to grow healthy. In fact, we were very strict with this like not giving the twins anything with salt or sugar all throughout their first 2 years of life. My twins have not had snacks like chips or peanuts yet until now because I'm scared of choking, MSG and possibility of developing allergies. When they're hungry, we offer fruits, Nosh rice crackers or their favorite yogurt drink as a snack. During meals, we make sure it's home-cooked and it always has protein, carbs and we're teaching them to take more veggies. It's not easy. L still refuses anything green and leafy but with J, he's starting to like them so we're taking it slow. However, L is such a fruit monster! On days when she's being extra fussy, she'd be happy with a huge bowl of cut-up fruits which I think contributed to her having really nice skin. Most fruits, after all, is high in water so she's always well-hydrated especially with the amount of fruits she eats daily.


With the ongoing MECQ, Cetaphil Baby also recently brought their Mommy Dialogues online through a one-hour Facebook Live session at theAsianparent Philippines Facebook Page. This time, they had two doctors on board -- dermatologist Dr. Gaile-Robredo Vitas and pediatrician Dr. Cristal Laquindanum and our favorite host, Candice Venturanza. A lot of moms asked their questions given that it's so hard to just head to the hospital for the littlest medical concerns so I think being able to interact with these two distinguished doctors was a great idea.
Wish Cetaphil Baby would have more of their Mommy Dialogues sessions in the coming weeks. It sure feels good that someone is there to support you especially during this very challenging time in our lives. Here's my last word of advice, mommies. No matter how the going gets tough, remember to take care of yourself. You baby do not need a perfect mom but rather, he/she needs one who's mentally and physically healthy.
So to all moms out there, know that you're not alone and you got an entire army of moms behind you all the way. 💙
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