It's A GIRL!!!!
We officially have a little girl growing in my belly! :-D We both decided on the name Ana Leigh (pronounced "AH-na LEE"; not Aaaanna) - think "Puff the magic dragon." ;-D This post will likely have many smiley faces and excited gibber-jabber.
I know I've been bad about adding into my blog, but I'm going to chalk up my lack-of-presence to my state of mind for the past month; and my resurgence into the baby-blogdom as the breaking of my tired/sick/anti-social period. I finally broke the morning sickness at 19wks, and have a renewed sense of energy and happiness. I finally feel (mostly) comfortable with this whole being-pregnant thing...minus the prickly heat. OMG, I want to strangle small squirrels when it comes to that. I haven't itched this bad since chicken pox when I was eight....and nothing fixes it other than being naked and bags of ice cubes. I've taken to wearing maxi-dresses and sun dresses regularly. I'm done with jeans & pants! HOORAY! NO PANTS!!
Aside from stress of life-events, having to move this week, and getting through morning-sickness and prickly-heat, things are starting to look very happy and up. I'm pretty sure that's all due to finding out this past Friday that we have a little girl and can stop calling Sprog an "it". It's kinda amazing how it doesn't feel quite real until you can pin a specific detail to it...like girl/boy. Plus, I'm sure sitting there for an hour+ while she bounced around in my stomach for the sono-tech helped make it more realistic. She dances like crazy ALL the time! lol! I love it! My little Bump-App on my phone has a kick counter and I can't even begin to count the kicks, because she's simply in constant movement.
T & I went baby-registry-creating after the sono & although he reeeeeally wanted a boy, it was adorable to see how excited he was with picking out little girl things. I was so tired and beat by the end of it that I just let him pick most of the necessity things. He got into my everything-PURPLE! mood on his own and helped to pick out some really pretty & cute things that are very much influenced by the both of us. :-) Flowers & Butterflies....and BUNNIES!! :-D The rest of the weekend, he's pampered me with yummy foods, relaxation, and we managed to pack a little. (stress) * I'm trying to not let the move thing stress me out too bad - it'll get done one way or another - and we have all week to finish packing...so I'm breathing - Ohhhhhhhhmmmm....
NOW I get to make sure initial baby shower-fun-planning is in place...I was thinking bunnies - but I decided Friday that I really want a luau party. :-D The shower is going to have to be last weekend of July (29th/Sunday) or the following weekend Aug 4th (Saturday) - so outside might be out-of-the-question with the heat....as hot as I've been already without it even being 1 week into May. But I have an amazing friend & planner (plus some amazing deputies to help plan)....so I just have to come up with the theme & the list and let it all happen! :-D So luau baby shower with a hawaiian bunny cake! :-D Sounds perfect to me!
And little Ana Leigh is dancing around in my belly - which means I'm hungry, thirsty, or just need to stretch my legs. Hopefully I will be posting a lot more frequently now that I get to have fun with being preggo! :D
Toodles!!
~The-Mommy~
PS. Check out the updated registries!!! :D
Adventure-Progress
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Updates & NAMES!!!! :D
Nothing really important to say right now...It's been a very stressful couple of weeks, but things are progressing quite swimmingly. (haha...get it? sprog..swimming...goo)
Last check-up was 2 wks ago, Mom went with me & we got to hear the heartbeat (158-160bpm) which was quite comforting given the stress and a small scare (brown spotting = nothing to worry about - for those who might need to know).
I keep having the oddest most vivid dreams, though. I wake up and wonder what day it is, if the things I just dreamed really happened...take for instance last night's show: My friend Ang & I were both pregnant, only our babies randomly dissolved - and they were on the same ultrasound as just little heads...the bodies were gone...so then there was this obsessive need to get a hold of my dentist right now! to find out why they dissolved and how to replace the dissolved baby...although Ang was relieved hers had dissolved in my dream. Very strange. Can I have my normal vampire/zombie/recurring-tornado dreams back, kplsthnx.
So...I'm 15 weeks now (WOOHOO!!!!) and SUPER excited!! I have the appointment/meeting with the midwives at the Northern Virginia Birth Center in Chantilly this week!! I'm finding it amusing that I set up this appointment to figure out whether I wanted to switch to them or stick with my OB, and by the time I get to that appointment, I'll have already made up my mind. I've done a bit of obsessive research into pros/cons for both places, including testimonials on both the positive & negative side, and pretty much those all helped make it obvious that the Birth Center is for me....definitely NOT the Birthing Inn @iNoVa. Having come to that conclusion, I no longer feel afraid to delivery little sprog; but excited and at peace and happy!! :D Bring it on!!! I say.
Ok, so note to self - in prep, need to actively start going to yoga on Thursday nights & Bri (sis-in-law) told me that my niece's ballet school does an intermediate adult ballet class. I'm totally in. :D No pointe for me, though. I have a feeling my floppy ankles would lead to falling which would not be so great for sprog...although I have perfected grace-in-falling.
2nd note - evening-sickness has switched over to morning-sickness for 2nd trimester. Please, Please, PLEASE don't let this be a full 2nd-trimester thing....I'm hoping it's just stress....and maybe my body's way of saying "we want more fruits and veggies!!" I can't stomach the thought of ANY foods before about 3pm for the past 3 days. :( Today, I went to Wegg's and picked up a baguette, some brie (thank GOD brie is pasteurized!), grapes, tomato, edamame-hummus, carrots, veggie gyoza, and shrimp summer rolls. This sprog must be a veggiesaurus. The thought of bacon/eggs/heavy meats is enough to make me yack lately - even though I nom'd down a piece of bacon this morning...and that steak Tim made me last week was absolutely to die for...and the burger Dad made last night was also amazing. But then, I get 1/2 way through my meals and I can't stomach another bite and it needs to be out from in front of me NOW. Makes meal-planning even harder than before. So, I've decided I'll be veggiesaurus for a while until sprog decides it wants something else.
Frozen grapes = the best sweet treat in the WORLD! :-9 yum!
OH YES!!!!! Major MAJOR update!!
*****WE HAVE NAMES!!!*****
Girl: Áine Lynn
Boy: Chase Allan
WOOHOO!!!!
Now we just have 5 more weeks before we figure out which one little sprog is. :-)
Monday, March 12, 2012
It's All in the Delivery...
So, I seem to be having a very difficult internal struggle with my decision of Midwife/Birthing-Center vs. OBGYN/Birthing-Inn/Hospital. For the longest time, I've really reaaaaaally wanted to do water birth - the whole thing, in the little pool. I'm a fish. I love water. I'm most comfortable and relaxed in the water. Aside from that, I've done rather extensive research on the benefits of water birthing vs. on a table flat on your back, legs in the air. I've also done plenty of research that leads me in a no-questions-about-it decision of wanting natural vs. drugs for the delivery - which also leads right back to the awesomeness of water birthing. (Scary factoid: 40% of Northern Va hospital births end up in cesarean section.)
The dilemma here is threefold:
1) This is my first pregnancy and I have no idea what to expect. Everything is going normal as of now, all of my bloodwork and tests are "boring" according to the OBGYN I'm currently seeing. However, I still have 6 months to go...well, 6-7 depending on how long I incubate this little sprog. Anything could happen. I have no past experience to go off of to determine if my body will react normal or weird to this whole pregnancy thing.
2) The OBGYN I'm seeing currently is really awesome; however, they work with the Loudoun Birthing Inn which is off of Loudoun County Hospital - which does not allow full water birth. They allow you to sit in a nice warm bubbly tub for the laboring part, but then you have to get out and lay on the slab to actually birth the child. So you get part of the benefit at least, but the whole idea is that water birthing allows for a less traumatic transition from mommy-belly to real-world, plus less risk of tearing. The facilities are nicer than a hospital, yet still look semi-hospitalish (the same uncomfortable bed and the "sleep-chair" for the spouse looks less-than-comfy), but you are expected to stay over-night - which I kind of like for monitoring the first 24 hours. They also have people to assist with first-24-hr feeding so new-mommy can rest, and they have a super secure facility and nursery. Also, if anything does go wrong, the hospital is right there, and there's a nic-u for baby-emergencies. If an emergency arises, I know minutes mean the difference between safe and not.
3) The Birthing Center/Midwife: There's only one full-on birthing-center in this area - Chantilly. They have 4 rooms with real furnishings: Queen sized bed, couches in the rooms, chairs, your own bathroom, a birthing tub IN the room where you can do the full complete birth and after-birth relaxation in the tub. You're not separated from your baby after birth, you're allowed to have whomever and as many people as you want with you (friends/family - I'm sure there's a limit, but they mention 4-5 people like it's nothing - not that I'd want an audience), you are encouraged to bring your own snacks/drinks and to ingest fluids throughout labor and move around rather than being strapped to an IV and continuous monitoring system (they do incremental monitoring). All of this is supposed to help further the natural process of childbirth. It sounds perfect for me. But I'm still scared....it's 8 min from the hospital, it's my first pregnancy....granted, it's my first pregnancy and a hospital-setting is the farthest thing from relaxing & happy to me...and I should be comfortable and this experience should be magical...but is the risk high enough to warrant forgoing comfort? Oh, and the whole process leads to the mommy not staying overnight - you leave within a few hours of birth (which I'm not too sure about - I like the idea of monitoring for 24 hrs before release).
I would definitely welcome any educated advice from mommies out there on this decision. (Please don't read that as needing advice on natural vs. medicated child birth - I've already had more people than not try to push me and tell me I dont want that...no, no...I'm pretty sure I know what I want and why - I just don't know where.)
The dilemma here is threefold:
1) This is my first pregnancy and I have no idea what to expect. Everything is going normal as of now, all of my bloodwork and tests are "boring" according to the OBGYN I'm currently seeing. However, I still have 6 months to go...well, 6-7 depending on how long I incubate this little sprog. Anything could happen. I have no past experience to go off of to determine if my body will react normal or weird to this whole pregnancy thing.
2) The OBGYN I'm seeing currently is really awesome; however, they work with the Loudoun Birthing Inn which is off of Loudoun County Hospital - which does not allow full water birth. They allow you to sit in a nice warm bubbly tub for the laboring part, but then you have to get out and lay on the slab to actually birth the child. So you get part of the benefit at least, but the whole idea is that water birthing allows for a less traumatic transition from mommy-belly to real-world, plus less risk of tearing. The facilities are nicer than a hospital, yet still look semi-hospitalish (the same uncomfortable bed and the "sleep-chair" for the spouse looks less-than-comfy), but you are expected to stay over-night - which I kind of like for monitoring the first 24 hours. They also have people to assist with first-24-hr feeding so new-mommy can rest, and they have a super secure facility and nursery. Also, if anything does go wrong, the hospital is right there, and there's a nic-u for baby-emergencies. If an emergency arises, I know minutes mean the difference between safe and not.
3) The Birthing Center/Midwife: There's only one full-on birthing-center in this area - Chantilly. They have 4 rooms with real furnishings: Queen sized bed, couches in the rooms, chairs, your own bathroom, a birthing tub IN the room where you can do the full complete birth and after-birth relaxation in the tub. You're not separated from your baby after birth, you're allowed to have whomever and as many people as you want with you (friends/family - I'm sure there's a limit, but they mention 4-5 people like it's nothing - not that I'd want an audience), you are encouraged to bring your own snacks/drinks and to ingest fluids throughout labor and move around rather than being strapped to an IV and continuous monitoring system (they do incremental monitoring). All of this is supposed to help further the natural process of childbirth. It sounds perfect for me. But I'm still scared....it's 8 min from the hospital, it's my first pregnancy....granted, it's my first pregnancy and a hospital-setting is the farthest thing from relaxing & happy to me...and I should be comfortable and this experience should be magical...but is the risk high enough to warrant forgoing comfort? Oh, and the whole process leads to the mommy not staying overnight - you leave within a few hours of birth (which I'm not too sure about - I like the idea of monitoring for 24 hrs before release).
I would definitely welcome any educated advice from mommies out there on this decision. (Please don't read that as needing advice on natural vs. medicated child birth - I've already had more people than not try to push me and tell me I dont want that...no, no...I'm pretty sure I know what I want and why - I just don't know where.)
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Ode to the Granola-Mom....
First off, you need to check out this blog entry from a reformed "perfect mom". It's amazing on its own, but actually inspired me to write as well.
Done reading? Ok...
I know as we get older, we get wiser. And for those who don't get wiser with age, well, there's parenthood. I feel very fortunate that I've had the chance to wait this long to have kids and gain a decade of maturity and self-awareness above the average twenty-something. I get to skip the growing pains from wearing those amazing un-adulterated idealistic goggles of young-parenthood; or at least in part. I'm eternally an optimist, so I know there's still going to be hurdles and adjustments.
When I was younger and wanted kids, I did the same things this other mom did in judging parents I saw out and about. "I'll never let my kids watch TV until they're 3-4 yrs old, and even then, only 3 hours a day! TV prohibits interpersonal growth and development that can't be replaced from one-on-one interaction." While I still believe in this concept, I know there's gray areas. I also know that a parent (or even two) can't be the center of a child's attention for 15 hours straight. I've adapted a certain realism to my philosophies. I like to think this denotes maturity. I'm also perfectly accepting that my philosophies might change further as I gain experience in parenting...I'm adaptable that way. At this point, I'd be happy with 3-4 hours of educational, yet not completely creepy and annoying, kid's shows and the remainder one-on-one interaction. We'll see how that gets adjusted with time. There's so many different mediums to entertain children other than TV that also prove entertaining for the parents though, it really makes TV a non-necessity in my mind.
When it comes to setting a healthy lifestyle with food, many parents lose their ground as their time gets cut short. It's soooo much easier to hit the fast-food, especially after a long day at work - especially if you're like the average household where both parents have to work (or are a single parent). I have two thoughts on this, and as with the others, I'm sure they'll adapt over time; however, I have seen the extreme difference with healthy eating vs junk food in my body, mood, and overall quality of life. I grew up with the not-so-healthy and have adjusted on my own to gain control over that part of my life. It's amazing and empowering. I think these life changes can only become more concrete with having kids rather than loose as I want to create the best environment and start for them possible.
My secondary thought on food relates to "who rules the roost." I read a really interesting article about a month ago on the differences between European and American parents on who rules the relationship. Not-surprisingly, American parents have adopted this form of "keep the child happy and quiet" approach: less rules, less consequences; less parental dictatorship. Sticking strictly to the food portion of this topic (because other topics are too expansive for right now), as I was growing up, we were very much a "you eat what you get" household. We were also a "finish what's on your plate or you don't get dessert" household. I've seen more parents these days who structure their lives and routine around what [Johnny] won't eat. This has to start early enough that the child realizes that they have control over the parent, just my thought. If a kid is never taught that it's ok to be picky and they're expected to eat (or at least try) what they think they don't like, they become a lot more open to possibilities. I do actually have friends with kids who insist on at least trying-once anything new put in front of them and I've seen it work. So naysayers :-p
Without delving into my other philosophies (and hearing the across-the-interwebz sigh of "yeah right" coming from my screen), there's plenty I still feel strongly on and know that it takes experience to understand. Screaming children in stores still drive me crazy, but I know that one day - it'll be me. I still have no idea how I'm gonna handle that one. I'll figure it out along the way. People who leave dirty diapers on restaurant tables astound me - I don't care how comfortable I get with being a parent and changing diapers, I will always know that not everyone is, and it's not anyone else's duty to have to deal with my kid's poop. I dive into this experience whole-heartedly, with open eyes and mind, and I expect to grow and adapt with the experience. I also can't wait to re-read this in a year or two and catalog what's been "adjusted". ;-)
~Cheers~
PS Hooray!! Morning sickness subsides (for the most part). Mexican and chocolate cravings persist. :D
Done reading? Ok...
I know as we get older, we get wiser. And for those who don't get wiser with age, well, there's parenthood. I feel very fortunate that I've had the chance to wait this long to have kids and gain a decade of maturity and self-awareness above the average twenty-something. I get to skip the growing pains from wearing those amazing un-adulterated idealistic goggles of young-parenthood; or at least in part. I'm eternally an optimist, so I know there's still going to be hurdles and adjustments.
When I was younger and wanted kids, I did the same things this other mom did in judging parents I saw out and about. "I'll never let my kids watch TV until they're 3-4 yrs old, and even then, only 3 hours a day! TV prohibits interpersonal growth and development that can't be replaced from one-on-one interaction." While I still believe in this concept, I know there's gray areas. I also know that a parent (or even two) can't be the center of a child's attention for 15 hours straight. I've adapted a certain realism to my philosophies. I like to think this denotes maturity. I'm also perfectly accepting that my philosophies might change further as I gain experience in parenting...I'm adaptable that way. At this point, I'd be happy with 3-4 hours of educational, yet not completely creepy and annoying, kid's shows and the remainder one-on-one interaction. We'll see how that gets adjusted with time. There's so many different mediums to entertain children other than TV that also prove entertaining for the parents though, it really makes TV a non-necessity in my mind.
When it comes to setting a healthy lifestyle with food, many parents lose their ground as their time gets cut short. It's soooo much easier to hit the fast-food, especially after a long day at work - especially if you're like the average household where both parents have to work (or are a single parent). I have two thoughts on this, and as with the others, I'm sure they'll adapt over time; however, I have seen the extreme difference with healthy eating vs junk food in my body, mood, and overall quality of life. I grew up with the not-so-healthy and have adjusted on my own to gain control over that part of my life. It's amazing and empowering. I think these life changes can only become more concrete with having kids rather than loose as I want to create the best environment and start for them possible.
My secondary thought on food relates to "who rules the roost." I read a really interesting article about a month ago on the differences between European and American parents on who rules the relationship. Not-surprisingly, American parents have adopted this form of "keep the child happy and quiet" approach: less rules, less consequences; less parental dictatorship. Sticking strictly to the food portion of this topic (because other topics are too expansive for right now), as I was growing up, we were very much a "you eat what you get" household. We were also a "finish what's on your plate or you don't get dessert" household. I've seen more parents these days who structure their lives and routine around what [Johnny] won't eat. This has to start early enough that the child realizes that they have control over the parent, just my thought. If a kid is never taught that it's ok to be picky and they're expected to eat (or at least try) what they think they don't like, they become a lot more open to possibilities. I do actually have friends with kids who insist on at least trying-once anything new put in front of them and I've seen it work. So naysayers :-p
Without delving into my other philosophies (and hearing the across-the-interwebz sigh of "yeah right" coming from my screen), there's plenty I still feel strongly on and know that it takes experience to understand. Screaming children in stores still drive me crazy, but I know that one day - it'll be me. I still have no idea how I'm gonna handle that one. I'll figure it out along the way. People who leave dirty diapers on restaurant tables astound me - I don't care how comfortable I get with being a parent and changing diapers, I will always know that not everyone is, and it's not anyone else's duty to have to deal with my kid's poop. I dive into this experience whole-heartedly, with open eyes and mind, and I expect to grow and adapt with the experience. I also can't wait to re-read this in a year or two and catalog what's been "adjusted". ;-)
~Cheers~
PS Hooray!! Morning sickness subsides (for the most part). Mexican and chocolate cravings persist. :D
Monday, February 20, 2012
Pregnancy = Superpowers!!
The pregnant woman is her own variety of superhero - who would've known, right?? You always think of "Moms" as super-heroes: able to multitask 10 things at once; always prepared with a zillion crazy things necessary for daily life with kids; keeping her cool and leaping tall buildings in a single bound!! But what about pre-Moms? As with every superhero, there are a few strangely acute changes and heightened senses which are countered by the various responsibilities, curses, nemeses, and those dreaded-pesky-weaknesses.
Super-Smell!! This is definitely both a blessing and a curse, and more often a curse. Saying that suPer-mom (capital "P" for Pregnant) has heightened smell doesn't quite depict the level of acuity we're afflicted with. It'd be amazing if the world was made up of flowers and fresh breezes, but sadly, that's not the case. When caught in the same room with stomach-turning foods, cigarette-smoking-fiends, and ghastly trash goblins (keeping in mind that we also have a side of morning-noon-night sickness already pushing our stomachs into our throats), it's a wonder all pregnant women don't lose 10 pounds in the first trimester.
On the plus side, I can smell a cigarette burning from 3 floors away; I can smell if foods are bad even without an expiration date; and who needs smoke alarms when the slightest smell of burning can wake you from a catatonic sleep? And, that's all through the 2-months of sinus funk I've been constantly breathing through. I got into the elevator last night after another guy got off, and yeah...totally smokin' the bud...I never would've guessed had I not smelled that green, grassy smell. Maybe I should go apply at the airport; I could be a freakin' drug-sniffing-dog if I needed to be right now.
"With power comes great responsibility" - and foes, and weaknesses: The obvious down side to super-smell I covered briefly above...trust me, you don't want the explicit detail (cigarettes smell like rotten peanut butter). But, there are many more things un-thought of that rival the suPer-mom on a daily basis: nemeses, kriptonite, and even keeping a healthy disguise in certain situations.
The disguise is definitely necessary in the first trimester for a few reasons: waiting until the "safe period" is over; not letting work know too early in case they decide to find replacements for you earlier than expected; and even simple pride - that desire to still be able to do everything you did before being pregnant. "I can totally still go on that hike this weekend!"...(ffw 3 hrs).../wheeze/dizzy/cough/"water!!", annnnnd maybe not so much. Keeping up this disguise in the face of morning-noon-night sickness is about as easy as hiding that red cape under a business suit.
Weaknesses: migraines, fatigue, super-smell (also counts as a weakness, even though it's our super-power), uncontrollable volcano of emotions, fatigue, and more (mentioned in previous posts). I don't think these really need detail...plus I'm getting tired of writing. Did I mention fatigue?
Nemeses: People who smoke & eat stinky foods otherwise perfectly acceptable by normal society; Sappy commercials, movies, and tv shows which completely blind us by watery-eyes ("curse you!!!" /fist to the sky/); Idiots (because they help perpetuate the volcanic explosion of "GRRRRf#*%@*^!!!", which in turn perpetuates migraines & fatigue); and our bladders (because they seem to work overtime in our sleep causing us to get 3 hrs at a time between mid-night potty breaks).
Responsibility: Through all of this, pregnant women face the added responsibility of keeping themselves healthy, vitamin-rich, and emotionally-happy/low-stressed so that the internal bubble of baby is encouraged to grow big and strong. There's numerous tricks and tools: multivitamins, yoga, special-food-lists, baby-Mozart, etc. I'm planning on singing a lot more and listening to more relaxing music starting next week to balance out the stream of obscenities, "RAWR", and Taco Bell I've already afflicted on this poor little sprog. Note to self: go to yoga next week, work on music & singing, sing when angry instead of yelling or holding it in, start going to the pool to relax, and finally - breeeeeeathe....and buy flowers so breathing doesn't offend the nose so much.
Monday, February 13, 2012
♪♫ If I Only Had a Brain ♫♪
Oh brain, how I miss thee...
Your witty charm, your quick response-time...
Your keen focus and ...something....
...something something...
That's about the short of it...
I swear I have NO focus lately - today is the worst yet...and go figure it's the day that nothing mechanical is going right (and not because I mucked it up - it broke on its own & I just have to figure it out). So the other day, I had forgotten that it's been 2 months since I've had any caffeine...and I subsequently drank 2 glasses of RC-Cola and was bouncing-off-the-walls-WIRED for a good 3 hrs until I got some awesomely heavy yummy pasta in me....which leads me to my 3 topics of today: Cravings-Gone-Wrong; pADHD; and ...what was that other thing??....right! More weird changes.
Preliminary happy update!! - went to the Doc's on Thursday!! :D I'm officially 8wks and 2 days (as of today) - my uterus is the size of a grapefruit, approximately; and my bloodwork all came back today checking out good - aside from a pesky uti and needing Vitamin D....antibiotics and vitamins for me woohoo! :D It does wonders for the mood to find out you're ok tho. It's like getting a report card that's AWESOME when you're 7 yrs old. I also got quite a few new tops I can wear throughout and after baby - awesome pretty flowy hippie tops! :D AND a baby bag. I had to get it - it was the only one and it was staring at me from the top shelf!! :D
brain...train of thought...where'd I leave that thing?....
...right: CRAVINGS- GONE-WRONG!!
Egg-salad sandwich sounded so good. ESS with BACON sounded even better!! (and lettuce, tomato & mustard) I ate about 1/2 of it and my "OOO! YUM!!" quickly turned to: "blaaaaaah, get it away from me!" So sad.
This brings up an interesting facet to the whole "cravings" part of pregnancy, though. It's not a simple matter of black/white, want/disgust. There's definitely an area of "MUST HAVE NOW" which instantly switches into "OMG, I'm gonna yack!" Discoveries in error thus far:
- Egg-salad-sandwich with bacon, lettuce, and tomato
- Steak and Cheese w/ added mushrooms and other slimy gooey gross things which would normally be amazing!
- Velveeta Shells & Cheese & Turkey (amazing until the texture gets to you)
Texture seems to be a huge factor in this whole pregnancy thing. Stuff I would normally love has turned out to be disastrous. Cravings are on a daily/hourly/minute-basis...aside from fruit and veggies....I seem to always be able to handle those. I swear I'm gonna become a veggie-saurus again just by way of what I physically can/can't eat right now....oh yeah, other typcially-safe-food: Easy Cheese & Crackers. :)
next topic was....
pADHD! (Pregnant Attention Deficit Disorder)
Did I mention the caffeine episode 2 days ago? Yep...there it is...right in the first paragraph...So I'm at work, things are blowing up around me, I'm multitasking like usual - or what seems like usual - until I realize that it's almost been 10 hours of work and I haven't documented anything I've done today. CRAP! What did I do today? There was that thing....and that other thing....
I do so miss my brain. Does this get better in the 2nd trimester like the morning-noon-night-sickness? I'm somehow doubtful.
...we'll just skip this section for now - I can't focus on it much...it's almost time to go home...
More Weird Changes:
So today - for about 4 hours, then a break after I ate a lot, then again now for 2-3 hours, I feel like my skin is crawling. It's the most irritable, horrible, insatiable sensation I've ever felt and IT HAS TO GO AWAY NOW!!! Omg...I'm gonna strangle something....or punch something...It's making me more hyper and unfocused...and did I mention irritable? I think I need to wrap myself in plastic wrap with some lotion or something....I googled it: plenty of people saying that we (pregnant women experiencing this) must be crazy or have something wrong and should contact the doctor immediately! (thank you yahoo answers) because they never experienced it so it has to be weird and crazy.....but then there's that comforting handful of equal-crazies-like-me so I don't feel so bad. I am going to chalk it up to hormones....and drink water...and go home and get hubz to rub lotion all over me. He needs to do more of that anyways. ;-)
This concludes today's update!! :D
Your witty charm, your quick response-time...
Your keen focus and ...something....
...something something...
That's about the short of it...
I swear I have NO focus lately - today is the worst yet...and go figure it's the day that nothing mechanical is going right (and not because I mucked it up - it broke on its own & I just have to figure it out). So the other day, I had forgotten that it's been 2 months since I've had any caffeine...and I subsequently drank 2 glasses of RC-Cola and was bouncing-off-the-walls-WIRED for a good 3 hrs until I got some awesomely heavy yummy pasta in me....which leads me to my 3 topics of today: Cravings-Gone-Wrong; pADHD; and ...what was that other thing??....right! More weird changes.
Preliminary happy update!! - went to the Doc's on Thursday!! :D I'm officially 8wks and 2 days (as of today) - my uterus is the size of a grapefruit, approximately; and my bloodwork all came back today checking out good - aside from a pesky uti and needing Vitamin D....antibiotics and vitamins for me woohoo! :D It does wonders for the mood to find out you're ok tho. It's like getting a report card that's AWESOME when you're 7 yrs old. I also got quite a few new tops I can wear throughout and after baby - awesome pretty flowy hippie tops! :D AND a baby bag. I had to get it - it was the only one and it was staring at me from the top shelf!! :D
brain...train of thought...where'd I leave that thing?....
...right: CRAVINGS- GONE-WRONG!!
Egg-salad sandwich sounded so good. ESS with BACON sounded even better!! (and lettuce, tomato & mustard) I ate about 1/2 of it and my "OOO! YUM!!" quickly turned to: "blaaaaaah, get it away from me!" So sad.
This brings up an interesting facet to the whole "cravings" part of pregnancy, though. It's not a simple matter of black/white, want/disgust. There's definitely an area of "MUST HAVE NOW" which instantly switches into "OMG, I'm gonna yack!" Discoveries in error thus far:
- Egg-salad-sandwich with bacon, lettuce, and tomato
- Steak and Cheese w/ added mushrooms and other slimy gooey gross things which would normally be amazing!
- Velveeta Shells & Cheese & Turkey (amazing until the texture gets to you)
Texture seems to be a huge factor in this whole pregnancy thing. Stuff I would normally love has turned out to be disastrous. Cravings are on a daily/hourly/minute-basis...aside from fruit and veggies....I seem to always be able to handle those. I swear I'm gonna become a veggie-saurus again just by way of what I physically can/can't eat right now....oh yeah, other typcially-safe-food: Easy Cheese & Crackers. :)
next topic was....
pADHD! (Pregnant Attention Deficit Disorder)
Did I mention the caffeine episode 2 days ago? Yep...there it is...right in the first paragraph...So I'm at work, things are blowing up around me, I'm multitasking like usual - or what seems like usual - until I realize that it's almost been 10 hours of work and I haven't documented anything I've done today. CRAP! What did I do today? There was that thing....and that other thing....
I do so miss my brain. Does this get better in the 2nd trimester like the morning-noon-night-sickness? I'm somehow doubtful.
...we'll just skip this section for now - I can't focus on it much...it's almost time to go home...
More Weird Changes:
So today - for about 4 hours, then a break after I ate a lot, then again now for 2-3 hours, I feel like my skin is crawling. It's the most irritable, horrible, insatiable sensation I've ever felt and IT HAS TO GO AWAY NOW!!! Omg...I'm gonna strangle something....or punch something...It's making me more hyper and unfocused...and did I mention irritable? I think I need to wrap myself in plastic wrap with some lotion or something....I googled it: plenty of people saying that we (pregnant women experiencing this) must be crazy or have something wrong and should contact the doctor immediately! (thank you yahoo answers) because they never experienced it so it has to be weird and crazy.....but then there's that comforting handful of equal-crazies-like-me so I don't feel so bad. I am going to chalk it up to hormones....and drink water...and go home and get hubz to rub lotion all over me. He needs to do more of that anyways. ;-)
This concludes today's update!! :D
Monday, February 6, 2012
I miss food....(and other changes)
Well....I'm officially 7wks2days pregnant...I was feeling nauseous before and it's only getting more fun, let me tell ya. There's common known changes pregnant women are expected to go through: weight gain, morning sickness, mood swings, cravings...Those are all simply words on a page until you get to fully experience their deep, intimate meanings.
What they don't tell ya:
Morning sickness: doesn't necessarily reside only in the mornings. In fact, mine appears to be all day long, after every meal, and gets worse into the evening. In the movies, pregnant lady gets sick in the morning, yacks once, and then goes about her business like nothing happened. Right now, I want to string up whomever dubbed it "morning"-sickness.
Cravings: don't simply stop at ice cream & pickles. They're intricately wound around what the stomach can handle at the moment without the sight/smell making the crave-ee want to yack, yet again. That spinach dip and crackers sounded and tasted completely awesome...until I realized after that when making it, my taste buds were in pregnant-mode and added WAY too much garlic...which now lingers in my mouth and stomach like the Pit of Eternal Stench. Thank God for the awesome admin who has a handy stock of gum at her desk. One thing that doesn't ever make me feel ill that I crave ALL the time: fruit & ice-water! :-9 yum!
Mood Swings: Crying at silly AT&T commercials, happy one minute and overly-cranky the next....that's to be expected. Crying/upset because you got sick and had to push someone away to do so; Balling because of a happy commercial on tv; Or falling apart because your pregnant-brain* couldn't make simple connections it normally would without all the hormone overload, in turn, making you feel like a complete idiot; Crying because you're crying....that's the reality of it.
* Pregnant-Brain: Seriously??? I'm smart...I *love* my smart-brain. I've worked YEARS to get my brain to where it is. I've done plenty to break it down as well, but then rebuilt it. It's an awesome little organ. WHY didn't anyone mention that you go instantly dumb when a little thing the size of a blueberry starts growing inside of you? I mean, I know I'm blonde - I'm used to occasionally being overcome by moments of ditsy...but ongoing ditsy things that just word-vomit out of my mouth uncontrollably and leave me (and everyone else) shaking their heads....I'm about to just post a sign on my forehead that says, "Please disregard anything that comes out of my mouth for the next 7 months." I miss my brain.
Pool of Never-ending Mucus: I thought I had allergy problems before. I was quite familiar with random colds/sinus infections. 2 months of constantly draining sinuses with no relief = more than just a tad annoying and only adds to the lovely morning-shower-sickness. When trying to hold down food isn't enough, getting through a morning shower without the daily need to wrestle the shower curtain in time to get the toilet seat up only adds more fun to the day. At least my abs are getting a good workout. I was educated by my friend who recently had a baby that the body builds up more mucus during pregnancy - further research explains:
"Higher amounts of estrogen during pregnancy can contribute to swelling in the mucous membranes lining the nose and even cause you to make more mucus. What's more, the amount of blood in your body increases during pregnancy, which may cause swelling in the tiny blood vessels in the lining of your nose and congestion in the surrounding tissue. "
Sleepy-Time: Every day at precisely 5pm-about 8pm, I get this wave of overwhelming exhaustion...sleepy-time. It'd be great if I could take a nap every day, but my work schedule is from 1pm-11pm. There's got to be something dietary to fix this. I typically forget to eat much before about 4pm. At that point, after I eat and deal with the nauseous post-food-blech, I seem to cycle into this sleepy-time thing. I think I need to try and wake up with crackers or something...and make sure to eat on my way to work. On the positive side, when I get home and relax for about an hour or so, I'm completely ready to go to bed and I typically pass right out and sleep through the night (give or take a trip to the bathroom to pee once or twice). Hooray for no longer needing sleep-aids. :D
In short, I miss food - I miss my brain. I need more than 1 yoga session a week to combat this attack on my little happy bubble, me thinks. Or possibly a strawberry milk-shake....and maybe some pickles w/ easy cheese on them....obviously not together - that'd just be gross.
*Note to self: Get some of THESE!!!
And thanks to my awesome friend Terry, get THIS book:
What they don't tell ya:
Morning sickness: doesn't necessarily reside only in the mornings. In fact, mine appears to be all day long, after every meal, and gets worse into the evening. In the movies, pregnant lady gets sick in the morning, yacks once, and then goes about her business like nothing happened. Right now, I want to string up whomever dubbed it "morning"-sickness.
Cravings: don't simply stop at ice cream & pickles. They're intricately wound around what the stomach can handle at the moment without the sight/smell making the crave-ee want to yack, yet again. That spinach dip and crackers sounded and tasted completely awesome...until I realized after that when making it, my taste buds were in pregnant-mode and added WAY too much garlic...which now lingers in my mouth and stomach like the Pit of Eternal Stench. Thank God for the awesome admin who has a handy stock of gum at her desk. One thing that doesn't ever make me feel ill that I crave ALL the time: fruit & ice-water! :-9 yum!
Mood Swings: Crying at silly AT&T commercials, happy one minute and overly-cranky the next....that's to be expected. Crying/upset because you got sick and had to push someone away to do so; Balling because of a happy commercial on tv; Or falling apart because your pregnant-brain* couldn't make simple connections it normally would without all the hormone overload, in turn, making you feel like a complete idiot; Crying because you're crying....that's the reality of it.
* Pregnant-Brain: Seriously??? I'm smart...I *love* my smart-brain. I've worked YEARS to get my brain to where it is. I've done plenty to break it down as well, but then rebuilt it. It's an awesome little organ. WHY didn't anyone mention that you go instantly dumb when a little thing the size of a blueberry starts growing inside of you? I mean, I know I'm blonde - I'm used to occasionally being overcome by moments of ditsy...but ongoing ditsy things that just word-vomit out of my mouth uncontrollably and leave me (and everyone else) shaking their heads....I'm about to just post a sign on my forehead that says, "Please disregard anything that comes out of my mouth for the next 7 months." I miss my brain.
Pool of Never-ending Mucus: I thought I had allergy problems before. I was quite familiar with random colds/sinus infections. 2 months of constantly draining sinuses with no relief = more than just a tad annoying and only adds to the lovely morning-shower-sickness. When trying to hold down food isn't enough, getting through a morning shower without the daily need to wrestle the shower curtain in time to get the toilet seat up only adds more fun to the day. At least my abs are getting a good workout. I was educated by my friend who recently had a baby that the body builds up more mucus during pregnancy - further research explains:
"Higher amounts of estrogen during pregnancy can contribute to swelling in the mucous membranes lining the nose and even cause you to make more mucus. What's more, the amount of blood in your body increases during pregnancy, which may cause swelling in the tiny blood vessels in the lining of your nose and congestion in the surrounding tissue. "
Sleepy-Time: Every day at precisely 5pm-about 8pm, I get this wave of overwhelming exhaustion...sleepy-time. It'd be great if I could take a nap every day, but my work schedule is from 1pm-11pm. There's got to be something dietary to fix this. I typically forget to eat much before about 4pm. At that point, after I eat and deal with the nauseous post-food-blech, I seem to cycle into this sleepy-time thing. I think I need to try and wake up with crackers or something...and make sure to eat on my way to work. On the positive side, when I get home and relax for about an hour or so, I'm completely ready to go to bed and I typically pass right out and sleep through the night (give or take a trip to the bathroom to pee once or twice). Hooray for no longer needing sleep-aids. :D
In short, I miss food - I miss my brain. I need more than 1 yoga session a week to combat this attack on my little happy bubble, me thinks. Or possibly a strawberry milk-shake....and maybe some pickles w/ easy cheese on them....obviously not together - that'd just be gross.
*Note to self: Get some of THESE!!!
And thanks to my awesome friend Terry, get THIS book:
Sunday, January 29, 2012
This Baby Wants MEXICAN!
We are all well aware that pregnant women are known for their cravings. There's plenty of information on what these cravings could mean physically and nutritionally (one article's findings posted here), but it's also fun to research and find out what specific cravings could mean in relation to the sprogling* growing inside....
For instance, I can't get enough Mexican food!! OMG. I'm normally a relatively good health-nut. But right now, all my brain says is "SCREW the healthy, GIVE ME NACHOS!"...and tacos...and taco salad...and pupusas...but mainly NACHOS!!! I can't get enough of em. Let's see what google has to say about that...just that there's a lot of other women out there who crave the same.
Ok, so maybe there isn't a wealth of food-craving-divination out there...but it is amusing to see the old-wive's-tales out there such as cravings = gender of the sprogling. (Here is a good article on pregnancy gender myths.) According to myth, I'm gonna have a hairy girl. Of course, with one myth comes countering myths. I'm gonna go with my dreams and get back to those nacho cravings...
My food quote of the day: "I have salad and cheesecake! It's the perfectly balanced meal!" :D
*Sprogling: the result of sprogging...having sex with the intention of creating babies.
For instance, I can't get enough Mexican food!! OMG. I'm normally a relatively good health-nut. But right now, all my brain says is "SCREW the healthy, GIVE ME NACHOS!"...and tacos...and taco salad...and pupusas...but mainly NACHOS!!! I can't get enough of em. Let's see what google has to say about that...just that there's a lot of other women out there who crave the same.
Ok, so maybe there isn't a wealth of food-craving-divination out there...but it is amusing to see the old-wive's-tales out there such as cravings = gender of the sprogling. (Here is a good article on pregnancy gender myths.) According to myth, I'm gonna have a hairy girl. Of course, with one myth comes countering myths. I'm gonna go with my dreams and get back to those nacho cravings...
My food quote of the day: "I have salad and cheesecake! It's the perfectly balanced meal!" :D
*Sprogling: the result of sprogging...having sex with the intention of creating babies.
Crazy Dreams...
So, as it turns out, weird dreams are one of the major oddities that afflict pregnant women. Now, my normal dreams are far from "normal", typically involving zombies, vampires, or tornadoes. But this....this is just wierd.
I have a nice little app on my phone which allows me to catalogue weight changes, moods, cravings, etc. And there is a space for further comments...but after 2 weeks of diligently taking notes to remember my hormonal-neurosis, I have decided that these things need to be shared. Keep in mind, these won't be censored. You've been warned. ;-)
Enter: The Dream Zone..../insert creepy Twilight Zone music here/
Last night's dreams:
1) For some reason or another, it was deemed necessary to cut out the lens of my right eye. I've had Lasik so this isn't all together freaky for me, until the cutting is done by those little gnarly cuticle trimmers. With each little "clip! clip!" I flinched. With the lens cut off, and me holding it in my left hand, I was told I had to rinse my eye out. /rinse-rinse/ I then looked around and noticed everything was blurry out of my right eye. The mystery Peanuts-adult-voice then told me I had to put the lens back in and blink so it could heal. "CRAP!" I dropped the lens...."wait...there it is!" With a little hassle, it went back into my eyeball like a contact lens. "Quick! Blink and let it heal before you wake up!" I tell myself in the dream /blink-blink/....and then I wake up.
2) Back to sleep after weird eye-ball dream, and I'm having sex with Husband in a car at my old high school - in the parking lot back by the band room (yes, I was in band...insert appropriate band-camp jokes here). To clarify, we're our age now in the dream...not high school age. All of a sudden, he has to pee. I'm watching him pee outside the car and it makes me have to go really bad but I can't hold it. In a rather gross moment, I decide to pee on the back seat...only it doesn't come out and go all over the seat - the seat somehow makes it vacuum back into my girl-parts, which causes severe cramping and bloating. Just as I'm wondering in the dream if I've caused some sort of catastrophic internal issue, I'm waking out of the dream and have a rather strong cramping sensation (common, btw) and have to pee like a racehorse. Guess I should drink less water before bed.
I have a nice little app on my phone which allows me to catalogue weight changes, moods, cravings, etc. And there is a space for further comments...but after 2 weeks of diligently taking notes to remember my hormonal-neurosis, I have decided that these things need to be shared. Keep in mind, these won't be censored. You've been warned. ;-)
Enter: The Dream Zone..../insert creepy Twilight Zone music here/
Last night's dreams:
1) For some reason or another, it was deemed necessary to cut out the lens of my right eye. I've had Lasik so this isn't all together freaky for me, until the cutting is done by those little gnarly cuticle trimmers. With each little "clip! clip!" I flinched. With the lens cut off, and me holding it in my left hand, I was told I had to rinse my eye out. /rinse-rinse/ I then looked around and noticed everything was blurry out of my right eye. The mystery Peanuts-adult-voice then told me I had to put the lens back in and blink so it could heal. "CRAP!" I dropped the lens...."wait...there it is!" With a little hassle, it went back into my eyeball like a contact lens. "Quick! Blink and let it heal before you wake up!" I tell myself in the dream /blink-blink/....and then I wake up.
2) Back to sleep after weird eye-ball dream, and I'm having sex with Husband in a car at my old high school - in the parking lot back by the band room (yes, I was in band...insert appropriate band-camp jokes here). To clarify, we're our age now in the dream...not high school age. All of a sudden, he has to pee. I'm watching him pee outside the car and it makes me have to go really bad but I can't hold it. In a rather gross moment, I decide to pee on the back seat...only it doesn't come out and go all over the seat - the seat somehow makes it vacuum back into my girl-parts, which causes severe cramping and bloating. Just as I'm wondering in the dream if I've caused some sort of catastrophic internal issue, I'm waking out of the dream and have a rather strong cramping sensation (common, btw) and have to pee like a racehorse. Guess I should drink less water before bed.
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