Donita expecting 1st baby

"I’m pregnant!" proudly declares Donita Rose. "I’m not just fat!" Then, pointing at her tummy, she tells me, "Tao ang nasa loob ng tiyan ko! Basta–hindi taba!"

Married for almost eight months now, Donita and husbsand Eric Villarama, didn’t plan on having a baby this soon. "Our plan was to wait for two years," says Donita. (She is three-and-a-half months on the way now).

But then, she began to miss her period–"and I don’t normally miss my monthly period," she points out.

To find out once and for all, she took a home pregnancy test in their flat in Singapore and to her shock, it was positive. "I was totally surprised. Mali ba ang basa ko? Nananaginip ba ako?" I was in denial for 30 minutes. And then I took the test again, and again, it was positive. This is impossible–I told myself. Something is wrong. And then, I realized, oh no, I’m really pregnant!" relates Donita. She then cried like she has never cried before.

Her initial reaction to her pregnancy is understandable. After all, she has her career to think of–product endorsements, and international movie and yes, her return to MTV. (Everything was set for her comeback in MTV Asia).

She had barely collected herself when she decided to call Eric on the phone. He was jubilant. "Way to go!" he said on the phone, almost screaming. But she was sad on the other line–even crying.

After she had cried her heart out, it suddenly dawned on her that this was a blessing from the good Lord. "I just realized that God allowed this to happen," says Donita. "I may have my own plans, but my plans are different from God’s plans and His plans are definitely better than mine."

A little embarrassed, she began apologizing and asking for forgiveness from her husband. To that, Eric said, "I will forgive you if you ask forgiveness first from God." With sincerity, Donita said, "I’m sorry, Lord. I’m sorry I didn’t trust You."

Next step was for Donita to ask forgiveness from the baby. Looking down at her tummy, Donita said, "Sorry, Baby, sana patawarin mo ako. Excited naman kami na mabuo ka. Excited kami about your coming into this world. Wala kaming regrets, Baby."

With that done, Eric told his wife, "Okay, I forgive you," "From that point on, Eric and I have been so excited about this new stage in our married life," volunteers Donita.

After putting the phone down, she realized she still had to make another important call — this time, to her manager, Angeli Pangilinan-Valenciano.

To Donita’s relief, Angeli screamed with joy about the news of her pregnancy. "I was surprised with her reaction. Initially, I thought she was going to say, "I thought you were going to wait for two years? What will happen to your contracts?! But Tita Angeli is really more of a mother than a manager. She was simply overjoyed. It was the same thing with Tita Gina," reveals Donita (Tita Gina is Gina Valenciano-Martinez, who also manages Genesis, the talent agency that also runs the careers of Gary Valenciano, Nanette Inventor and other big name stars in the entertainment profession).

"After talking to my husband, my managers and all these people, naginhawahan talaga ako and I felt so at peace. I know in my heart now that this is God’s will and it’s something we should be rejoicing about."

However, Donita is not exactly jumping up and down with joy about the changes in her body and in her system now that she is on the family way. "I throw up constantly at parati akong inaantok," she complains.

A big sacrifice she has to endure is not to be able to take her medicine for her migraines. "Tinitiis ko talaga ’yung headaches because it’s supposed to be bad for the baby," claims Donita.

A fastidious housekeeper who keeps their Singapore flat forever neat, Donita also has to stay away from cleaning agents. "It’s so frustrating because I cannot touch those products. Eh ako pa naman, obsessive-compulsive! I want everything clean."

On the part of Eric, he claims that he also has to make some sacrifices now that his wife is on the way. "I have to get used to her waking up five times in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom — and I’m a light sleeper. Every time she moves, I say, ‘It’s okay sweetheart.’ But for me to go back to sleep, it’s quite hard," reveals Eric, who has to report to work every day at a design firm in Singapore where he is senior art director.

To his surprise, he is also craving for food he never liked to eat before. "Grabe!" shrieks Donita. "He eats a pint of ice cream (chocolate fudge) a day now. He usually doesn’t like sweet stuff. Pero naglilihi siya ngayon."

Donita, of course, has her share of cravings too. One time, she even dreamt about her favorite dish as a kid — pork cut into small pieces, fried to a crisp and eaten with rice, alamang, tomatoes and onions. She eats a lot of that now — plus macaroni and cheese.

A constant source of quarrel between them is when Donita starts throwing up and Eric follows suit just by watching her. They fight on who gets to throw up into the toilet bowl first. Just like silly quarrels, really.

Donita, in spite of her initial reaction to her pregnancy, says that she is very happy at the moment. She‘s quite contented with her married life — to begin with. The offers are still there (including product endorsements) — all waiting for her until after she gives birth. This includes the international movie, which starts grinding in September. (The only problem she foresees is how to lose all the weight she’ll be gaining during her pregnancy in time for the film’s shoot).

Everything is really working in God’s plan. In His perfect plan.