Top of the Morning: Heart Evangelista Wants to Get Pregnant in January 2017

 1. Heart Evangelista eyes January 2017 to get pregnant

"I am already pushing it,” said Heart. “I’m [turning] 32 in February. So, I think I’ll get pregnant in January," the actress and artist said at the press con of her bag and art exhibit Carry Your Heart. Heart says that she's had everything in her life scheduled, getting pregnant included, adding that she’s on a strict diet now to prepare her body for pregnancy. Heart and husband Senator Chiz Escudero had been building their new home, which Heart hopes to move into before she becomes pregnant. She says that there's no pressure to get pregnant from Chiz, who is already a dad to twins with his ex-wife, and that it was she who picked the month to get pregnant. (pep.ph)


2. Watch: Scarlet Snow knows how to read!

She's not even two years old yet but Scarlet Snow, the adorable daughter of Vicki Belo and Hayden Kho, can already recognize a handful of letters. A video posted on her Instagram account shows her dad writing letters as the little girl identifies them. She needed just a tad bit of help. "We just started our lessons on reading. This looks hard but with practice I'm sure this will become easy. Pretty soon I'll be able to read all your comments! Yippee!" the caption read. What dad Hayden wrote spelled "arms up" and Scarlet was also able to follow the instruction. Another Instagram video that had been posted on mom Vicki’s account showed her counting from one to ten. Keep up the good work, Scarlet!


3. Sunshine Dizon warns bashers on Instagram

SCREENCAP Pep.ph

Sunshine Dizon warned her bashers on Instagram that she's not the woman to mess with -- even online. "Fair warning: Be careful what you say here on my page, kilala ko na kung sino ka, kayo. Wag mo akong pilitan dagdagan kaso mo, nyo. May naka file na ko sa cybercrime division." she commented on one of her posts. Details of the two cases Sunshine filed against her estranged husband Timothy Tan after she discovered his alleged affair with Clarisma Sison had not been made public due to a gag order by the court. Some of the bashers' comments attack Sunshine's character; others raise an eyebrow on why she allegedly asked for spousal support. Several of her fans also defended her from the negative comments. (pep.ph)


4. One-stop service for OFWs now open
The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) opened its first one-stop service center on Monday, August 15. Located at the POEA office in Mandaluyong City, it aims to speed up the processing of documents overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) need to secure to be able to work abroad. The 11 government agencies involved in making the center a reality is also looking into extending the services offered to weekends and holidays. This initiative is in line with President Rodrigo Duterte's order to streamline government processes and have documents released within 72 hours upon application. (spot.ph)


5. Zika linked to babies' joint deformities
Brazilian researchers suspect that the Zika virus, which has been linked to microcephaly and other neurological conditions in newborns, may also cause arthrogryposis in babies. Arthrogryposis is the result of either too tight or too flaccid muscles, which cause hip, knee, ankle, elbows, wrist and/or finger deformities. Brain scans show that Zika attacks the babies' nerve centers in the brain, which may cause abnormal muscle development. The virus, which has no cure or vaccine yet, has been spreading across the Americas. It has also been previously linked to the rare condition Guillian-Barre syndrome, or weakening of the nerves, in adults. (bbc.com)