Rants, Recipes, and Running

I pause to bring you a brief intermission from happy posts to invite you to my pregnant pity party.  Remember that whole pandemic thing that's going on? Well, it wins again!  Tomorrow is my 20-week ultrasound. I have been holding on for this moment for weeks for a variety of reasons: 1. I am anxious to see our baby. I haven't had an ultra sound since 10 weeks. 2. I am anxious to make sure that she is developing well, and everything is okay.  3. I was told on August 1, when the appointment was made, that I would get to bring my spouse with me!  When that appointment was made, I also had to make an appointment to see a genetic counselor due to a clotting disorder I have. I already had that appointment and was able to bring Ryan. No one batted an eye when he accompanied me.  These 2 appointments are occurring at a hospital I am not delivering at (because they have better sonography equipment) The hospital I'm having these tests at I've been an employee at for a cum...

 As a post to someday looks back on...here is an update.  I am 19 weeks and some change, and I can finally say that the nausea is mostly gone! Sometimes if I change positions too fast in the middle of the night, it sends me into a violent spin of nausea where I have to rush into the other bathroom. But that is manageable...a 2 am Saltine cracker helps.  ( Have I mentioned how sick of saltine crackers I am? Very. )  But I only had 1 or 2 bad nights last week...compared to before where I was sick 24/7. I call this is massive progress!!  Let's talk baby-bump.  I feel like I'm sort of letting people down, because people will ask about my bump or say " I can't wait to see your baby bump!" And then I see them, and they respond with "Oh...you don't even look pregnant!" Honestly, I'd rather just look pregnant at this point! (I know I'll eat these words when I'm 36 weeks haha! Kind of like when I said at 7 weeks "I wish I'd feel a little ...

When people ask me about my pregnancy, once of the questions I often receive is "What are you craving?"  Unfortunately, despite how much of a foodie I am, my answer is "a day where I don't vomit?".   I am very grateful that last week, mid-week 16, nausea seemed to lift. I still have my ugly moments (like this morning) - but they are few and far between. Thank you, Baby Namaste!!  During my 1st trimester, I ate probably the most unhealthy I've ever eaten in my life. I lived on bread, crackers, tortilla chips, french fries, potatoes, and more toast. I could hardly stomach a salad or roasted vegetables, and that worried me that 1) Baby Namaste was not getting the right nutrients and 2) This is the moment I return to my old childhood nickname of "Flabby Abby".  But I was assured on more than 1 occasion that prenatal vitamins are good coverage. And you just need to eat what you can. Carbs are good for a growing fetus!  Finally...as I am starting to feel...

Dearest Baby Namaste,  One of the interesting topics of the first months of carrying you was "the reveal". Who are you going to tell? How are you going to tell them? When are you going to tell people? What if people find out?  This is a big topic I had minimal understanding of until I saw those 2 lines on the pregnancy test. For the instant I realized I was pregnant, I literally wanted to climb onto the rooftop and tell the entire world. I was bursting with excitement.   Nowadays revealing this exciting news carries great pressure. You cannot simply tell people, "Hey guess what? We're finally going to have a baby." There seems to be this need to make it a production, a parade, an entourage, maybe a video montage? Definitely tshirts.   In case you didn't know this....the reveal is your 1st test of " What kind of parent will you be? "  Will you be the Mom that sends your child to school with a non-GMO organic lunch where the sandwich is in shapes of ...

I used to do these "Currently" updates, which I stole from my sister Lisa. But I think it's kind of a fun way to recap your current "season".  Reading : Oh, 3 pregnancy/parenting books. I sort of jump from 1 to the next. 'Sh!t they don't tell you have pregnancy", "Sh!t they don't tell you about the 1st year as a mother", and "Expecting Better". Honestly, these all are amazing books and I would highly recommend them to anyone expecting! The 1st 2 are absolutely hilarious and have a huge amount of raw honesty - which I appreciate with my humor. Thinking : About the baby nursery. I kind of want to do an under-the-sea theme because we love scuba diving. It would be cute to have little octopus and mermaids to decorate the room. The other theme is outdoors - and have cactus, javelina, and tortoises?  Although we are having a girl - I do not want a pink room.  Feeling : I sound a little like a broken record, but I have been feeling ...

I thought I'd do a little blog post to recap my accounts on running and fitness through my 1st trimester. One, so I can look back on this someday and realized "Oh, I did get fast again" and also as a comparison for the next time I'm pregnant.  **Disclaimer - I do NOT expect anyone to read this, as it is probably boring with statistics. I just would love to document each trimester, so I can look back at this!** Running has also been a really pivotal and important part of my sanity throughout this journey. As I've expressed in too much detail, I've been sort of consumed by nausea. People may be saying "Well, why are you running then?" And that is a conversation for me, my husband, and my OB :). Running and exercise actually makes me feel better - because it gets my blood flowing, digestive system working, oxygen, and provides me with some social time. My OB told me directly "You keep running until you don't feel like you can run anymore."...

 Dear Baby Namaste, **Warning, moderately graphic and mildly offensive story ahead** But this is how I cope with discomfort...finding humor in it. I return to letters to you, after my pause to discuss all things career-related and school. Your mama has had quite a day, but as long as I stay super distracted, nausea seems to stay away. So I am writing to you to continue my distraction.  I write this letter to you as a lesson, and maybe someday you'll wake up on the wrong side of the bed and want to throw up your hands and say "forget this day!". And I can tell you, don't. Don't let those first few minutes dictate your attitude for the whole day.  I have a pretty solid example for you. And I think it also is proof of how much I already love you. Of all the things in this world your mom avoids and hates, it is vomiting. She would rather sit in fetal position feeling nauseated for days before she chooses to just throw up.  Yesterday was a tough day. I was nauseated an...