My friends call me Sweet Tooth

membranes

2012-01-27T10:28:00.001-06:00

Went to the doctor this morning. She said I'm dilated "about 3 cm" and that my cervix feels much better this week. I'm translating that to mean "more likely to open all the way and get this dang baby out."

While she was in there, she stripped my membranes. This was a non-enjoyable experience and a little painful. From what I can read online, that basically means she ran her finger around the opening to try to get it to separate. Sometimes it helps progress labor, sometimes not.

Because the baby is so big, she said if I do go into labor and it doesn't progress quickly, we aren't going to try anything crazy like a big push of pitocin or labor for 12 hours.

She also told me to wait until Monday to go in to labor because she's not on call this weekend.

38 weeks

2012-01-26T11:34:00.001-06:00

Yes. I am in the bathroom at work.
I weighed in at 242 this week. I'm having more and more contractions every day but they are still inconsistent and not painful.

Letters on the wall

2012-01-24T18:21:00.000-06:00

At my "friends" shower, everyone was asked to bring a letter to help decorate the nursery. Most of these came from shower guests, whether they made it to the actual shower, or sent the letter before or after. The hubs and I did decorate a few ourselves because we were missing just a couple. We also painted a few because they came plain and we wanted to jazz it up a bit.

I've had them on the dining room table for a few weeks now, debating the best layout. Then I moved them to the floor and taped out the exact area of the wall space I had to work with. To hang them, I started with the E at the top, and worked my way over and down on both sides, then filled in the middle - eyeballing as I went. I'm still waiting for that letter Y (I painted it at the correct size because we just haven't seen that friend to get it yet), but you get the idea.

Here are some shots of the nursery ready and waiting.

Gross.

2012-01-24T15:44:00.001-06:00

I was talking to a labor and delivery nurse about how to get ready for labor and she told me to try to eat something before I come to the hospital. Most likely, I will not be able to eat once I get here. Then, she says "but don't eat White Castle, okay? Because we'll know that you did."

Current stats

2012-01-20T14:46:00.001-06:00

My weight: 241
Gestation: 37 2/7
Baby's weight: 8lb 5oz
Average # of hours of sleep at a time: 1.5
Dilated: 2 cm

37 weeks - and now we wait.

2012-01-18T17:09:00.000-06:00

My little monster is officially full term. I've been ready for about two weeks now to "no longer be pregnant." I have BBH (BIG Braxton Hicks) contractions all the time now, and they are really starting to be uncomfortable (not painful though). But, I guess it's not really my call. I have an ultrasound scheduled in two days, and hopefully after that I'll know how big he is and if I'll be induced.

I'd really rather not be induced. As much as I don't want to be pregnant, I'd rather wait until my body does it's natural thing and get this baby out on its own. I've heard so many horror stories of long, painful births for moms who are induced. However, if I have a medically necessary c-section, then I'm all for it.

To try to urge him out, I've been walking, cleaning and organizing. I don't really feel the nesting instinct yet though. I've just been doing those things in hopes that he will want to come on out!

Craft time!

2012-01-08T20:59:00.003-06:00

At my friend shower, part of the plan was to have everyone decorate a onesie. Well, due to the high amount of people and the smallness of my house, combined with fact that we ran out of time, we didn't decorate any onesies. Katie had bought all the supplies already, so today she and her hubs came over for craft time (really, the boys watched football while we crafted). I snapped a shot of each one so you can see the detail.

We basically used fabric with iron-on backing or fabric markers to make our own creations. I'm terrible at sewing, so I might ask my mom to fix those buttons on the supposed-suspenders.

35 weeks

2012-01-05T14:12:00.001-06:00

This morning I weighed 240lbs. I'm so ready to have this baby. I read in one of my books that sometimes when the baby drops, it's worse for mom and sometimes it's better. For me, it's much worse. I am going to the bathroom non-stop. My hips hurt so I can't sleep. The pressure on my pelvis is painful whenever I stand up. The doctor did say that his head is fitting nicely into my pelvis right now, so I'm guessing that means he's coming out the va-jay-jay for now. I'm keeping my mind open on c-section or regular birth so I'm not upset either way.

The baby app on my phone says my son (now called MoMo the Monster for his kicking habits) should be gaining one ounce of weight per day. If that's true, he now weighs 7lb 7oz. Our bag is packed and ready for the hospital. Now, we wait.

Seven pounds?

2012-01-01T16:51:00.001-06:00

Merry New Year!! (The pic is of the hubs and me NYE at dinner. Not the best belly shot, but a cute photo of us.)

After a week off work, I'm ready to go back. Last week was amazingly awesome to get everything ready for the baby's arrival (I even have most of my bag packed!) and spending time at home with the hubs. However, at my ultrasound on Friday, I learned that my son already weighs (an estimated) 7lbs. I still have six weeks to go!! That is crazy!

They also told me that he is "engaged" or head-down and in the "ready to go" position. I'm definitely experiencing more intense and often braxton hicks contractions, and some minor pains below my uterus, but I'm not sure if any of those things means anything yet. I go back to the OB Tuesday, so I'll find out more then, hopefully!

(The poor dog has been staying up with us all day instead of sleeping his normal 8 hours while we are at work. By NYE, he was ready for some serious slumber!)

34 weeks

2011-12-28T12:33:00.002-06:00

We have a break from our weekly NST appointment this week for good behavior (and it's the holidays). I do have a growth ultrasound on Friday to check the fluid levels and see how big this baby is. My guess is 6lbs if he's gaining at the rate the books say he should be.

We still need to finish decorating the nursery and washing his clothes. I also need to pack a bag and buy a b-milk pump. But honestly, if he decided to come out tomorrow, I'm ready. Dad's ready. The dog? Not so much, but he's going to have to deal with it. I've been sitting in the recliner chair in the living room lately to get the dog used to me sitting there and him not on my lap. So far, he likes to sit at my feet and whine when I'm in that chair.

A convo with the OB's nurse

2011-12-23T12:47:00.000-06:00

Her: How are things going lately?
Me: pretty good. I think I might have a rash on my stomach though. I have tiny red blotches all over.
Her: Oh honey, those are just your stretch marks starting to come in.

Great.

Nursery progress

2011-12-17T12:26:00.001-06:00

It's starting to look like an actual nursery in there, but we still have some work to do finding new homes for all of the stuff we used to store in that room.

That rug is on a trial basis. It doesn't match, but I'm just seeing if I like the idea of putting a rug there.

And a peek of what it really looks like when the closet doors are opened...

The only stuff baby-related in that closet is what is hanging in the organizer thing. Everything else is ours (including all the books on that bookshelf that need to go somewhere else.)

Coming home outfit

2011-12-13T21:49:00.001-06:00

As I'm getting everything washed and put away from the shower, I'm on the lookout for the cutest "coming home" outfit for my son. The hubs wants him to come home in something Fighting Illini, but the smallest Illini outfit we have is 3-6 mos and it's second-hand and looks worn. Right now, I think a cute monkey onesie is the top choice, but I might do some shopping still.

Anyway, while I was looking at all this cuteness, I found a sleeper thing that someone gave us that says "Born in 2011." While I do hope that's the case sometimes, I really don't think that's the best option for the youngster.

Shower part #2

2011-12-11T10:10:00.001-06:00

Yesterday was my "friend" shower. It was a great time and I have to give props to my friend Katie for planning everything down to the smallest detail with absolute cute-ness. I think everyone had fun and enjoyed themselves.

Katie made that It's a Boy! sign! She's so crafty.

This salad was awesome to eat and looks good too!

The cupcakes were delish too, but I think I liked the cake pops better. I didn't get a photo of those...

A cute Cardinals outfit!

These are washcloth cupcakes all the way from Dallas!

This might be my favorite onesie of the day. Dirty Dancing is one of my favorite movies.

After the shower, I was absolutely exhausted, but stayed up until 10:30pm. I did not MOVE from where I fell asleep until 630am! That has not happened in MONTHS. I usually have to get up for a bathroom break at least twice.

31 weeks

2011-12-08T20:26:00.001-06:00

I forgot to post that last week I weighed 236 and today I weighed 238. The little man is growing up a storm and all his hair is giving me some serious heartburn! My hips hurt. My back (only on the left side) hurts and my arches hurt if I don't wear tennis shoes all day.

He's a little swimmer, kicking and throwing his arms every which way, at all times. Even during fetal monitoring yesterday, he was moving the entire time and the Dr. came in to say "wake him up, he's not moving enough." After that, he decided to move away from the heart rate monitor and I could not find it again for the next 10 minutes. Such a brat already!!

Too much fluid

2011-12-05T18:14:00.001-06:00

Last week at the OB appointment, I found out I am carrying too much amniotic fluid. She didn't seem to make a HUGE deal out of it, but at the same time, wants to monitor me weekly from here on out. So I was shuffled into another room to be hooked up to the same monitors you wear when in labor. I sat there for 30 minutes sans contraction, so I was free to go. I'm not sure what will happen if I do have a contraction while sitting there (I have Braxton Hicks all the time now) but I definitely know to bring more entertainment than just my phone next time.

From what I gather, too much amniotic fluid can cause preterm labor or for the cord to come gushing out when my water breaks and be under the the baby's head, which would cut off his oxygen = instant c-section. He could also wrap himself up in the cord and get all tangled.

30 weeks

2011-11-30T09:50:00.001-06:00

This has been a busy week for us baby-wise. I put together the stroller and car seat, and picked up the crib. The dresser is almost ready to come back in from being stained in the garage. I had an ultrasound yesterday and was able to get some 3D images of our little man.

He has tons of hair and I'm pretty sure he has my mouth! I had this fear that he would look exactly like the hubs and people wouldn't even know I was part of this process.

We are also attending birth class this weekend. I know the hubs is really looking forward to that one!

29 weeks

2011-11-23T10:42:00.001-06:00

I weighed in this morning at 234. At my last doctor visit I weighed 235 on her scale Nov. 3. I am pretty pleased with myself the past few weeks. However, it is getting more and more difficult to sleep for more than a few hours at a time due to all of the hip and back pain, and pillows in the bed.

I think the only one of us who likes all of the pillows in the bed is the dog!

Nesting project #2

2011-11-20T17:43:00.001-06:00

Because our house was built in the late 1990s, we had a plethora of brass finishes when we moved in. We have slowly been updating them to more modern styles, and the fireplace was no exception. This is what it looked like before - actually on the day we moved in.

This is not a huge project, but my mom and I both needed to paint the brass off of our fireplaces, so we split a little can of high-heat black paint. Before painting, I scuffed up the brass with an SOS pad.

Here's what it looks like now.

While it may not look that different online, it makes me happy to not see the dated brass every time we are in the living room.

(And I did wear a mask while painting and had a fan on to keep the fumes to a minimum.)

28 weeks

2011-11-16T11:06:00.001-06:00

This morning I weighed in at 231. That's down a pound in case you are keeping track!! I'm hoping that's just from all of the walking I've been doing every night. I have a route around our neighborhood that is 1.6 miles. I'm not moving very fast, but at least I'm trucking along.

I had my first shower last weekend and we now have a queen-sized bed full of baby things. I'm scared to open them/put them away because I'm not sure what I should keep versus what I should return. So, for now, they will stay in piles according to their gift receipt. After my next shower, I'll evaluate and make decisions. Speaking of decisions, I'm finding it more difficult to make them. I'm usually pretty quick to decide what I want, but there are just too many options out there for everything!! I've spent the last two evenings crawling the internet, reading reviews and searching for the best price on a car seat/stroller travel system and a pack'n play/bassinet combo. I know that I want to have a two-fer if it's available so I don't have to buy as much stuff (and then store it later). So a pack'n play with a bassinet can pull double duty and not have me buy a bassinet at all. Seem silly if you are only going to use it for a few months to purchase two things.

On another note, this weekend is our 5-year wedding anniversary!! I wish I could celebrate with some wine, but we are already planning a trip to stay at a winery that has cabins next spring, so I'll just have to wait.

27 weeks

2011-11-09T11:09:00.002-06:00

I weighed in this morning at 232. I have been on the treadmill most days after work and I lifted 2x this week with my 8lb hand weights to begin working my guns up to carry my XL baby around. Next week begins the third trimester!

Rough week

2011-11-04T14:39:00.001-05:00

At 26 weeks, I weighed in at 232 lbs. The doc told me I've now gained all that I was allotted to gain during the entire pregnancy. She told me to not drink soda (I don't), not eat fried foods (I don't) and not drink much juice (I only drink it to take my daily dose of fiber for necessary reasons).

In addition to that bad news, she also told me I will have to take the glucose test again in 6 weeks to make sure I haven't developed gestational diabetes.

I'm not having a good time this week.

Don't hate me...

2011-10-30T16:09:00.000-05:00

But I'm really not a fan of being pregnant. I do think I'm one of the lucky ones who doesn't have a terrible pregnancy, but I thought for years that I would just LOVE being pregnant. I thought I'd love feeling the baby move, have a growing belly and all the attention. The truth is, I don't like any of those things. I feel like a bad mother already saying that I don't like to feel him move, but I really like it better when he's asleep and still. I don't like all the banging around and pushing on my bladder. I don't like being able to see his movements through my shirt.

As we approach the third trimester, I'm already looking forward to giving birth and being done with this process. I think the next few weeks will go by quickly and then the holidays always fly by. So, by the time it's Jan. 2, I'll be ready to do this thing. And, that week will be 37 weeks, so maybe he will be ready too.

The sugar

2011-10-25T17:18:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, I went to the outpatient lab for my glucose test. You know I have a sweet tooth, so I actually didn't find the super sugary drink too terrible. I'm not a huge fan of orange soda, but it was alright. The part that I didn't like was not being able to drink water for an hour, and I felt like I had eaten too much. I didn't really feel like puking (and wouldn't risk re-doing the test!) but just sort of icky afterward.

Luckily, my results are normal, so I don't have the 'betes or the sugar (whichever slang term you prefer) aka gestational diabetes.

As a coworker says, now I can eat that donut if I want to.

Crazy kid

2011-10-17T08:33:00.001-05:00

Last night was a crazy sleep for me. I went to bed after watching the Cardinals win (go birds!) and fell asleep without any problems. Around 3:30 a.m., I woke up to what felt like a seizure/temper tantrum going on in my stomach. I've been feeling the baby move for several weeks now, even on the outside. But this, this was nutso behavior. I got up and walked around a bit (a glimpse into my future, I bet) to see if he would chillax. I think he was mad because I went to bed hungry. He seems to be more active when I'm hungry.

He finally went back to sleep, and so did I. The next time I woke up, it was after a crazy dream. Basically, I was solving Law and Order SVU crimes in the hospital where I work. Just call me Olivia Benson.

Missing my waist

2011-10-14T13:10:00.001-05:00

I took this photo as a "before" of our master bath. I should really post about how it looks much better in there now (with simple hardware and lighting upgrades) but instead I am missing that waist and those legs!!

I feel like a bad momma thinking these thoughts, but I'm ready to have my body back. Everything is so mushy nowadays. I can't wait to seriously work out again. I know that many preggo women continue to work out while pregnant, but I'm lacking motivation and flexibility, and I'm so dang tired (and yes I would like cheese to go with my whine).

23 weeks

2011-10-12T09:24:00.001-05:00

I had a rough week last week. Trying to fight a cold while pregnant is not a good time. Actually, I'm finding that doing a lot of things while pregnant is not a good time. I am starting to not be able to bend over easily, so cleaning the house (don't worry - they hubs does all of the "chemical cleaning" so I don't breathe in the fumes) or even putting on my shoes is a pain - literally. Last night, I was trying to vacuum under the fridge to get all of the dust off the vent down there. I had to get flat on the floor because sitting and leaning forward was so uncomfortable. And the sad thing is, I know it's going to get much worse!!

Other than that issue, I'm feeling great still. I can eat whatever I want (for the most part I don't have any cravings or food aversions) and this week I started feeling the baby move on the outside. So far, one friend and my sister have been able to feel it. For some reason, the idea of this grosses out my baby daddy, so he's staying away for now. Maybe he'll come around once he can SEE him moving around in there. :)

Nesting project #1

2011-10-02T21:23:00.001-05:00

To make room for the baby, I'm slowly cleaning out the current guest bedroom. We had a garage sale this weekend and I sold a bunch of clothes and the nightstand from that bedroom, as well as a lot of "junk." I was pretty pleased with $161 for all of my junk. My parents and sister, and even my grandma, brought over some of their junk to sell too, and total we made about $370. I was proud of that until I talked to the family across the street and found out they made $1,000!!

Anyway, in my cleaning out process, I found some of our wedding stuff. I've been holding on to every RSVP card and every congratulations card that came with a gift for the past five years. The hubs told me it was okay to let them go. I threw away the RSVPs, but I saw on pinterest an idea for a project involving the cards. Some other blogger had made a map of the places they went together, cutting out the map from colored scrap paper. I decided that my wedding cards could easily serve as scrap paper.

So, I sorted all of the cards into a "pretty" and "usable" pile (on the left) and the rest of them for the recycle bin (on the right).

Then I traced a map from an atlas and cut it out, then traced again on the cards and cut those out - similar to the blogger's instructions. I bought a canvas (with a 40% off coupon so it was only $8) and painted it with some paint I had left over from another project.

Then I glued with mod podge on the bottom and covered with two thin layers on top. I glued some fun squares as the places-we've-been-already markers ($2.99 in the glitter/bedazzle section)

I'm still considering putting some kind of working on there, but I don't really like "Oh the places we'll go" so much. I'm open to suggestions. Obviously, we need to work on our western states a bit.

21 weeks

2011-09-30T12:28:00.001-05:00

I thought you might want to see an updated photo.

Weighed 221 this week and am obsessed with all things pumpkin. Or "punkin" as I like to say it.

That boy is big!

2011-09-28T21:13:00.003-05:00

In addition to finding out we are having a boy, we also found out that our boy is already running big. Not quite too big, but close. So, I have to go back for another round of ultrasound measurements in three weeks. Based on the measurements they took last week, little Zeus (his current nickname) weighs 14 oz, but should only weigh 10 oz at 20 weeks.

I'm not sure if gestational diabetes is suspected already, but it is known to cause bigger babies. I'm hoping that's not the case. I'm thinking it's just two big people making one big baby.

It's a boy!! (for real)

2011-09-26T19:58:00.000-05:00

In case we aren't friends on facebook, it's a boy!! The hubs is obviously over the moon. I'm happy about it too, but I really didn't care either way. I did buy an adorable Illini hat to wear home from the hospital (since it will be the middle of winter) last weekend, along with a fighting Illini onesie. My sister already bought him a set of cars/trucks onesies too.

Now that we know it's a boy and my shower dates are set, a few of my friends are asking about registries. I can tell you where I want to register, but I have no idea what to register for. None. I did end up starting two registries today, but I mostly picked out adorable things like baby loafers and cute outfits. I also registered for cloth diapers because I know I will need those. Other than that, I'm officially open to suggestions.

The unofficial answer is: BOY

2011-09-20T17:28:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow will change our lives forever. I want to go to sleep for the night right now. I know once I get to work, 2pm will come quickly. It seems like we've been waiting for this a long time, so I'm super excited to find out if I need to shop pink or blue for the next few months!

It seems like everyone has been asking me lately, “Are you going to find out, or wait to be surprised?” I am a planner by nature, and while I think surprises are fun and certainly have a place in this world, this is not one of them.

In preparation for the official test, I’ve been scanning the web for other unofficial tests to determine the sex of my first child. Some are well-known, while others seem completely off-the-wall and outrageous.

A friend shared this chart with me to compare all of the “old wives tales” related to the sex of the baby. For me, it says I’m having a boy (my husband will be so happy). I filled it out with my answers, and I’ll let you know next week after the ultrasound if this thing is accurate.

*Myth Description / Question*	*Response*	*Gender*	*Boy*	*Girl*
Are you carrying low in the “stomach”, or high?	Low	Boy	x
	High	Girl
Are you carrying all out front, or all around your waist?	Out Front	Boy	x
	All Around	Girl
Does your belly look like a watermelon or a basketball?	Basketball	Boy		x
	Watermelon	Girl
Is your fetal heartbeat above or below 140? The heart rate does in fact change at labor.	Below 140	Boy		x
	Above 140	Girl
Hold a pendant / needle / ring over your hand / belly / wrist. In which direction does it swing?	Circular	Boy	x
	Back and Forth	Girl
Is your husband putting on weight with you, or is he staying the same?	Even	Boy	x
	Gain	Girl
Are you craving salty foods or sweet?	Sour / Salty	Boy	x
	Sweet	Girl
Do you crave OJ every day, or do you not need it?	Not Daily	Boy	x
	Daily	Girl
What does the Chinese Birth Chart Say? (Age at time of conception and month)	See Chart	See Chart	x
Is the combination of your age at the time of conception and the month you conceived even or odd?	Even	Boy	x
	Odd	Girl
Has your chest grown significantly in size, or has growth not been so dramatic?	Normal Growth	Boy	x
	Dramatic Growth	Girl
Is your face full and round, or not?	Normal	Boy	x
	Round / Rosy	Girl
Are you looking good during pregnancy, or not	Good	Boy	x
	Not Good	Girl
Do you have more acne now than before you were pregnant?	Clear	Boy	x
	Acne	Girl
Is your skin dry or soft?	Dry	Boy		x
	Soft	Girl
Is your hair more full-bodied and shiny, or thinner and dull?	Full-bodied & Shiny	Boy	x
	Thinner and Dull	Girl
Does your leg hair grow faster than before you were pregnant?	Faster	Boy	x
	Slower or Equal	Girl
Did you have morning sickness in your first trimester?	Not Sick	Boy		x
	Sick	Girl
Are you getting more headaches during pregnancy than before?	Headaches	Boy		x
	No Headaches	Girl
Do your pupils dilate after staring in the mirror for at least 1 minute?	Dilate	Boy		x
	Do not Dilate	Girl
Are your feet colder now than before, or do they get colder more quickly than before?	Colder	Boy		x
	Not Colder	Girl
When asked to show your hands, do you show them palm up or palm down?	Palms Down	Boy	x
	Palms Up	Girl
Which side do you lie on when sleeping?	Left	Boy		x
	Right	Girl
What color is your urine?	Bright Yellow	Boy		x
	Dull Yellow	Girl
Are you more moody than before?	Not Moody	Boy	x
	Moody	Girl
Do you eat the heel of the loaf of bread?	Heel	Boy		x
	No Heel	Girl
Does the maternal grandmother have gray hair, or not (natural or dyed)	Gray	Boy	x
	Not Gray	Girl
Has your nose changed shapes during pregnancy?	Wider	Boy		x
	No Change	Girl
How do you pick up a key?	Bottom, Round	Boy	x
	Thinner Portion	Girl
Do you pick up a mug with the body or the handle?	Handle	Boy	x
	Body	Girl
Are you performing better or worse with regards to working memory and spatial ability?	Better performance	Boy		x
	Lower performance	Girl
When you eat garlic, does it seep out of your pores, or can you not smell it?	Seeps Out	Boy		x
	No Smell	Girl
What do you think you are having?	Boy	Boy	x
	Girl	Girl
*Total Responses*	Boy	21
	Girl	13

19 weeks

2011-09-14T18:39:00.003-05:00

This morning, I weighed 214. Here's a belly shot with the tripod!!

Not the best shot ever, but you can see there's definitely a bump. I also sort of feel like people don't walk up to me yet because I look like I might have just given birth and not lost the weight yet. Kind of a in-between phase of large belly-ness.

I still feel really good - except for the minor ear stuffiness - and am loving the way the baby moves around. It usually happens driving to and from work. Not sure if it likes the bass or that I am usually hungry or have just had breakfast.

I can't wait to find out what it is next week so we can assign it a name!! We've had our names picked out for probably four years now, so the decision is made on our part. We just need an ultrasound to tell us which name to use.

18 weeks

2011-09-08T21:01:00.000-05:00

At my checkup this week at the OB's office, the baby's heartbeat was in the 140s - lower than it has been. It was in the 160s last time, so I guess that means it's developing? I gained nine - yes nine - pounds in the last four weeks according to her scale* and she said that was "a perfect weight gain so far" so I'll take her word for it. :)

She was shocked that I can feel the baby moving already - and have been for a couple of weeks now. I think the hubs' explanation says it best "He's strong like bull."** If it is a boy, and if he's anything like his daddy, he will be naturally super strong and my poor organs better watch out in the next few months.

On my own scale at the house, I weighed 212 this morning. I'm mostly posting this here as a way to keep track of my weight gain for my own personal knowledge - not because I think you all want to know. Some of you have been reading this forever, and know that weight is an issue for me, so I'll continue to post about it. I'm sure it will be much more of an issue next spring when I'm trying to lose it all! Right now, it's just part of the process. After the baby is born and I have the go-ahead to work out again, you can bet my butt will be focused.

*I was wearing corduroy pants - those things weigh more than most pants!!

**The hubs has been calling the baby "he" for a while now. We do not know this for a fact. We find out in two weeks.

Treats!!

2011-09-04T10:58:00.002-05:00

I rarely eat anything from a gas station (or fast food for that matter) but when we go on a road trip, sometimes even the best planners don't have enough snacks. I love getting the Golden Graham treat bar on a road trip - it's my prize for sitting in the car that long, right? (I took this on our way home from Dallas in May - that was about a 12-hour car ride)

On Pinterest, I saw a recipe for making these treats at home and immediately had to make them last night.

Source: macaroniandcheesecake.blogspot.com via Sarah on Pinterest

They are so awesome!! I highly recommend you try these.

Bedding!

2011-09-03T12:54:00.001-05:00

Everyone has been asking me how I'm going to decorate the nursery - almost since day one. I really had no idea and I was trying to wait to see if the boy/girl decision (Sept. 21) gave me any inspiration. I went to Babies R Us a few weeks ago with a friend because she needed to pick up something. While we were there, I decided to peruse the bedding to see if anything jumped out at me.

Most of it was too "baby" looking for my tastes - lots of pastel colors and cutsey animal prints. I just didn't really like most of it. I was walking away pretty disappointed - not to mention SHOCKED at the prices. This miniature bedding is more expensive than the king-sized stuff I bought for our bed!!

Then, as we were walking toward the door, we spotted the clearance section. I found it. I loved this pattern and it was on clearance. I sent a pic to the hubs to get his approval and bought it.

The set came with a comforter, diaper holder, bed skirt, fitted sheet (the polka dot) and bumpers. I love the classy colors and that it's gender-neutral. I can add pink or blue to make it more girly or manly. The bunny's are cute, but not too overly baby-looking.

Eating habits

2011-08-31T07:09:00.000-05:00

One of the things I was not prepared for was the way some things just do not taste or sound good to me. For example, chicken looks and tastes gross. We used to eat it almost every night. Clif bars don't taste very good - when I used to love them and bought a box from Sam's right before I got preggers. My sweet tooth is out in full force, and I'll be honest, I don't have the willpower I used to. I ate a Hershey bar yesterday and it wasn't even that good. I don't really like plain Hershey bars. I would not have done that without all these hormones running around!!

I do want to eat steak or red meat - something I rarely ate before. Luckily, we have that half a cow in the freezer so I'm good to go. I have some nice NY strips thawing for dinner tonight.

16 weeks

2011-08-25T16:44:00.000-05:00

I've lost my husband to his new teaching job and football practice, so I'm back to taking these photos myself.

This week, I weighed 207. Still a little higher than I'd like but at least not such a drastic increase.
The "bump" is definitely here. Yesterday at work, someone asked me if I were pregnant for the first time without any prompting or prior knowledge. She said she could tell.
My ear is still clogging up all the time. Almost every day now.
The skin at the top of my stomach is starting to stretch - I have an itchy dry patch that seems to go away when I lotion it up in the mornings. Hopefully that will prevent additional stretch marks to the ones I earned in college.
I can feel the baby moving!!! Such a strange sensation at first. I didn't really know what to expect, but it's super odd. Today I was wearing tight pants (my own pants, with the hair tie as a clasp) and I think the little nugget didn't like that so much. Whenever I sat down, I imagined it pushing back out because that's when I could feel it.

Two more strange things

2011-08-18T07:34:00.000-05:00

I forgot one on my list!! My ear doing this strange clogged feeling, where my hearing sounds muffled in just the right ear for a while, then it will go away. I asked the OB about it and she said no big deal - all mucus membranes are expanding and producing more mucus. Great.

I started sleeping with a humidifier to see if that helps. So far, it's not, but it probably helps the hubs and his morning sneezing ritual, so I'll keep using it anyway.

Here's my 14 week picture - a different shot of my other weird thing. I'm finding this is so much easier than my belly band for now. I can just use a hair tie to keep my pants on. You can see that I'm not that much bigger, because the clasp is only about an inch and a half from it's original hook, but no way is it going to meet with its partner. Everyone is saying I'm starting to show - just a bit.

Strange things

2011-08-14T19:09:00.000-05:00

Maybe you've heard that pregnant bodies do all sorts of things, maybe you haven't. Here are some of the weird things I've noticed so far:

I have a strange rash/bumps on my upper arms. I think some people have these all the time, but I don't so it's weird to me. They don't itch, are not red or pimples, just bumps.
I have a lot of dreams. Last night's dream was about an awesome food buffet. I was having a great time until the hubs woke me up.
I am starving. When I get hungry, I can usually wait a while until I eat. Now, I start to get shaky and a lil nauseous if I don't eat pretty soon. I also can't eat very much. If I eat too much, when I burp I throw up in my mouth a bit (gross, I know.) but that's apparently because the valve that closes at the top of your stomach gets loose.
I can't walk fast. I used to walk super fast to get to a meeting at work. Now, I'm the slow poke holding everyone else up. It's really annoying to start panting immediately.

Rockin' the radio

2011-08-12T20:16:00.000-05:00

The baby websites and books tell me that the squirt can hear muffled noises. We recently bought a mom-car SUV so I have a pretty sweet Bose stereo system now. I mean, that thing can bass. So, I've been exposing the squirt to some nice rap music on the way to and from work. I like to turn it up so you can actually feel the bass, not just hear it. I'm going to love it when the baby comes out singing some serious beats.

13 weeks

2011-08-12T08:23:00.000-05:00

As you can see, the hubs is now on board to take the photos. I didn't bother to fix my hair or put on makeup so this is what the baby will see me look like all the time.

The damage is beginning

2011-08-11T07:16:00.000-05:00

Written Friday, August 5, 13 weeks pregnant

I'm having a really hard time accepting this whole weight-gain thing. I don't really feel pregnant yet. Other than being beyond hungry every couple of hours and peeing twice as much as that, I feel pretty normal now. We did get to see the little squirt the other day for about an hour at my 12-week ultrasound, so I know it's in there. But, I just feel like I've gained several pounds and that I need to quit eating and work out more. I know HOW to lose weight and there's this little internal battle almost daily about should I eat more - no I should stay hungry longer, then the other side of me reminds myself that there is, in fact, a wee little baby (about 2 inches tall) rolling around inside my stomach and is probably hungry too.

I really don't want to gain more than 30 lbs. I started this journey at 195-ish, but we'll go with that. At 13 weeks, I weigh 202. One of the charts online says I should only weigh 200 next week at 14 weeks, so I'm already ahead of the chart. And I'm not happy about that.

11 week shot

2011-08-10T09:33:00.000-05:00

Written July 24, 11 weeks

I meant to do this every week, but I guess I didn't think there was much to show for progress because I missed three weeks. The husband says he'll start taking these photos now.

I've also been reading that a lot of women take every photo in the same shirt, so I'm going to try to stay in this shirt. I like it and it's pretty stretchy. :)

Pregnant at work

2011-08-09T08:58:00.002-05:00

Written Saturday, July 23 (11 weeks pregnant)

I started telling people at work last week. I wouldn't say I'm "showing" but I definitely look like I've gained a few pounds, and some of the people I used to work out with all the time were starting to stare at my midsection (or I'm just paranoid, not sure which is the truth). And I hate the rule that you have to wait til the end of the first trimester. The hardest part for me was being at work feeling miserable and pretending like nothing is going on.

Luckily, I never did throw up at work (or at home for that matter) but it was something that I constantly thought about and hated the idea of a three-hour meeting. That meant I was trapped without bathroom access and without food to keep the waves at bay.

8 weeks shot

2011-08-06T09:29:00.000-05:00

This photo is still horrible, but I took it one morning in a hurry before work. You get the idea - not much going on in the belly.

I almost told the hairdresser first.

2011-08-05T07:01:00.000-05:00

written Thursday, June 30 (8 weeks pregnant)

The day I should have had my period, I got my hair cut and highlighted. I was thisclose to telling my hairdresser that I was probably pregnant. I was thinking about that last night while eating my 2am snack of saltine crackers. It's amazing what people will tell the hairdresser - or anyone really who isn't close to their friends or family. Maybe it's an outside perspective, or maybe it's the freedom of knowing they won't tell anyone else. But I didn't. One baby shower I went to had a game with questions. One asked the baby momma "who was the first person you told?" and I didn't want my answer to be the hairdresser.

This morning we had some dude in our kitchen measuring for new countertops (ya know, so we can do all of the things to the house we wanted to do before we are too busy changing diapers and not sleeping). I came out of the bedroom to find out my hubs had already told this stranger that we were expecting. Not that it bothered me - just noting that baby daddys do this too.

7 weeks shot

2011-08-03T09:18:00.000-05:00

I know some people take photos of their progress weekly. I'm going to do my best. The husband says "I'll take these pictures later when you are showing." So, I guess you'll know when "I'm showing" because they won't be terrible photos like this:

The nausea settles in

2011-08-02T12:42:00.000-05:00

written Saturday, June 11 (5 weeks pregnant)

This is probably TMI. Read on if you want to be grossed out.

I went to the doctor yesterday. I had and continue to have a problem of nausea, but not so much throwing up, and issues with it going the other way. At one point this week, I'd irritated my hemorrhoid to the point of the toilet being full of red water. I alerted my OB as the internet said to do. She referred me to my primary care provider (or PCP), who said I should go to the ER or that she could see me July 13. I said that's bullshit and not happening. So I reported back to the OB what the PCP said and she says to come to her office at 9am the next morning to see the nurse practitioner. Deal. I also need to bring a sample with me... oh.

I immediately leave work because there's no way I can collect said sample at work, and I didn't feel so hot anyway. It's always nicer to be at your own house with your own toilet paper and comfy pants in these situations.

I go in and explain everything. They say not a huge deal unless I have a fever. The sample says I do have rectal bleeding, but not the kind that is up high in the GI tract (which = more serious problems). She prescribes me some high-powered butt foam that has a numbing agent to make my bottom less painful (turns out that stuff was $45 so I told the pharmacy they could keep that 5-day prescription) and I'm on my way.

I have my "real" first appointment with the OB next week - at 6 weeks.

Minor procedure

2011-07-29T07:13:00.002-05:00

written Saturday, June 25 (7 weeks pregnant)

This week (at 7 weeks) I had to have a minor procedure done "down there." Apparently I've been carrying around a polyp on my cervix for a while now, and my OB wanted to get it out of there before the baby gets any bigger - mostly because she said it will eventually bleed and scare me. And, the baby came out of the right side of my lady parts, whereas this little bugger was on the left, so it did not interfere with anything baby-related, yet.

While it only took about 15 minutes to get the polyp out, it was the strangest thing because it was like the OB was controlling crazy-hard period cramps with every pull on this polyp. It turned out to be more painful that she said it was going to be, but also bled much less afterward. She gave me a monster pad to wear the rest of the day, and all I really needed was a liner.

In other 7 week news, I've found several strange things happening already to this pregnant body:

I can smell all kinds of things - luckily none of them have made me nauseous, but the folks in my office need to step up their coffee-breath prevention, stat.
For some reason I like two pillows when I sleep... I've always liked one very flat pillow. Now, I want two. I don't get it.
I need a nap every day. Do not come near me if I haven't had it yet. Not only do I feel more sick the closer to the end of the day, but I feel like I just cannot go on without a nap.
I already feel fat. I'm trying my best to know that it's because of the baby, but that is not an easy mindset. I want to stop eating and work out more but I know that's not going to happen.

Two lines on a stick

2011-07-27T15:41:00.000-05:00

Written Saturday, June 4 (4 weeks pregnant)

We got back from Dallas on a Tuesday. I should have started my period on Wednesday. Thursday morning, I took a pregnancy test. Positive, but just barely. The second line was thinner that the first. The hubs says "I'm sure you'll start your period tomorrow." Friday morning, I took a pregnancy test. Positive, for sure this time. The hubs says "I'm sure you'll start your period tomorrow."

At this point let me explain that a while ago, I ordered 40 ovulation strips from amazon for $9 (compared to 7 for $13 at the store). They came with 10 free cheap-looking pregnancy tests. The hubs says these are unreliable.

Saturday morning, I took a "real" pregnancy test. Positive.

At this point, we are both in shock. We had been trying for several months with no luck, but with the hubs still not having a job, we decided to hold off for a while. Then boom. It happens. So not only were we unprepared emotionally for this news, I'm really mad at myself for having two glasses of wine in Dallas. For MONTHS I had been so good, not taking any chances on the weekends with alcohol. Of course, the one time I decide to go for it, I'm actually pregnant.

My favorite breakfast

2011-07-18T19:40:00.000-05:00

I've probably mentioned this before, but I love eggs in a basket. I usually only eat them at cracker barrel, but the other day I decided to make them at home. I'd already had a piece of toast for breakfast about 7am, and it was close to 11 and I didn't want any more toast, so I made them with English muffins instead. The "basket" part was a little too small, so the eggs overflowed into the pan, but they were still really tasty. Plus, I could control the amount of butter (none) and where the eggs came from (here).

My favorite part is dipping the extra piece in the yolk - so good!!

New countertops!!

2011-07-16T10:29:00.001-05:00

The hubs finally broke down and let us get new countertops in the kitchen. They are solid surface - similar to corian brand, but from a different company.

I LOVE them already. The kitchen feels bigger somehow - I think because the backsplash is much thinner on these babies compared to our old formica countertops. We still need to paint around the edge where the old countertops did a little damage when we ripped them out. I just spackled so that's why they are white.

In case you don't remember what they used to look like, here's that same piece of countertop when we first moved in two years ago - white appliances and all.

I hated the green-on-green look, so we replaced the floor last winter and finally updated the countertops. You can just barely see the new floor in the top picture.

Awesome smoothie!

2011-07-15T07:29:00.000-05:00

I found some frozen fruit in my freezer that I bought months ago at Trader Joes and forgot about. It was a mixture of pineapple, papaya and mango. I let some defrost to eat and made some into a smoothie. The defrosted pineapple was good, but the other two were mushy and gross. Smoothie is the way to go. I mixed the frozen fruit with half a fresh banana (frozen probably would have been better though), a scoop of vanilla protein powder and some orange juice. It was really good and something different from my typical mixed berry smoothie.

Farmer's Market

2011-07-09T10:43:00.000-05:00

This morning I forced myself to get up and dressed so I could run to the farmer's market closest to my house. I came home with a few goodies, but I really need to make the effort to get up earlier and go farther to a better one. My friend Katie says the one by her house is awesome, but that's 45 minutes from me. I guess we'll have to plan ahead. Even the farmer's market at work during the week is better than the one I just went to.

Here's what I came home with:

I have my own tomato plants in the garden, but they aren't quite ripe yet, so I just bought one to tide me over. I haven't seen my FIL's garden in a while so I'm not sure if he planted sweet potatoes again this year or not, so I got two of those and then since we have been eating corn so often lately, I stocked up.

I also visited the Amish bakery booth - love them. I picked up a tasty raisin sweet bread - that actually turned out to be really dry and perfect for french toast.

It turned out great! The hubs even high-fived me after breakfast.

My hammies hurt!!

2011-07-07T06:06:00.000-05:00

Because I take yoga at work, at noon, on my lunch break, sometimes it just doesn't work out. Two weeks ago, I only made it to the second half of class because a meeting ran long and I scrambled just to make to the last 30 minutes - figuring 30 minutes is better than zero minutes. Then last week, I missed it completely due to another all-day meeting. This week, I blocked out my calendar and made it for the entire hour and gave it my all.

My hamstrings would like to say "thanks."

Zucchini Chips

2011-06-23T18:46:00.000-05:00

I saw some zucchini chips on pinterest today and came home to make them for dinner. Of course, the hubs wanted no part of these things and had canned green beans instead. I thought they were okay, not amazing, but might be better dipped in some ranch dressing - if you like that sort of thing.

I dipped them in fat-free milk, then a mixture of bread crumbs/shredded parmesan/garlic salt. I didn't measure, so just do what you think looks good. I put too much salt, so go easy on the salt. Then bake at 425 for 30 min.

Ignore my classy green-lid photography. I just grabbed a tupperware lid because I didn't want to throw them on the bare table.

I'm around...

2011-06-20T21:30:00.002-05:00

Just not here. I don't mean to neglect you, but I'm sorry to say that I've been a bad blogger lately. Please forgive me.

Makes me smile

2011-06-09T13:39:00.001-05:00

My favorite orange flowers are blooming at the house! I think they are tiger lilies but not quite sure.

Plate of food

2011-06-08T07:15:00.000-05:00

Have ya'll seen the food plate yet? It's Michelle Obama's revamped food pyramid. I don't hate it, except for the fact that I think the bigger issue is portion control. The plate doesn't say that it's only 8 inches, or however big a normal plate should be. It doesn't say how big that glass of dairy is. It might help some who are really struggling to understand the food pyramid because I do think it is a simplified version. I know where I work (in health care) that our diabetes patients who have a low reading ability are taught what they should eat on a similar set up. They have a plate and are taught to fill it with the correct portions of fruit/veggies/grains/meat on a computer - almost like a game of Tetris. They try to fit the correct food group into the corresponding slot.

What are your thoughts? Is this plate going to help the obesity epidemic? My guess is not much.

Back from Dallas!

2011-05-31T21:30:00.000-05:00

The hubs and I spent the weekend visiting friends in Dallas last weekend. We made it a two-fer trip by visiting another two baseball stadiums (as part of our life-long goals of seeing a game at every stadium) and spent time with friends we don't get to see often. Because we went to two games in two days, I ate two hot dogs in two days. I know that's not a huge deal, but I don't LOVE hot dogs the way I love other things. However, I wanted to try the dogs in various locations to see which ones I like better. While it's been a few years since our last baseball trip (to both Chicago stadiums and Milwaukee), I think the Dallas hot dog was the best so far. I can tell you with certainty that it is better than the Houston hot dog.

The other interesting thing about both ballparks is the other food available. Houston had mac n cheese, while Dallas had a Sweet Baby Rays station. I wanted to try both, but I didn't want to overdo it. I knew we'd be in the car for most of this trip so that limits my work out times.

In Dallas, we went to a breakfast place called Ham and Eggs that had monster portions, including this biscuit that came with the hubs' omelet and fried potatoes, as a side dish.

Everything is bigger in Texas.

Pineapple Lites

2011-05-25T22:04:00.000-05:00

These cupcakes were almost a bigger hit than the cookies and cream cupcakes last week. And they are semi-lite, as far as cupcakes go anyway. The ingredient list is so simple, I just took a photo:

then combine:

and bake according to the instructions on the box.

I decorated them with a chunk of pineapple on top and as you can see, they sort of fall apart. They are pretty moist and were gobbled up - even by the husband who hates anything "diet."

The cupcakes and the weekend

2011-05-22T18:46:00.001-05:00

I spent most of the day Saturday baking cupcakes to take to our friends who were having a dedication ceremony at their church. Take 2 of the frosting worked. I let the ingredients sit out for 2 hours and then didn't use any heavy whipping cream. Just cream cheese, vanilla, butter, powdered sugar. We stayed at the father-in-law's who just put in a new pool - I'm super excited about this.

Pinterest and cupcakes

2011-05-21T08:46:00.000-05:00

At Easter, the hubs' cousin was telling me all about her new favorite site and how I just HAD to join and see what it's all about. She sent me an invite later that night, but I didn't join right away. I had to check it out first. If you've never been on Pinterest, you should really get in the know. It's a seriously cool site and I love it already. It's basically an online bulletin board that you "pin" links to stuff you like. I read a lot of food blogs, so I think it's a great way to gather recipes in one place, as well as save random stuff that I want to buy but don't "need" so it's also a way to have a "birthday list" ready to go when my mom calls and asks what I want. I think of stuff all year and then when my birthday or Christmas comes along, I can't think of a darn thing to tell her.

So, while roaming Pinterest, I found this recipe for cupcakes. While this is not diet friendly, I had to bake a "practice run" before we go to our friends' party this weekend (and good thing I did!). The cupcakes turned out AMAZING, but I am not good at frosting. I've tried three times now to make it from scratch and every time it does not turn out well. However, everyone at work said my non-fluffy, drizzle frosting was still really good and that they wouldn't want much more because it was sweet enough already.

A little overboard

2011-05-16T20:23:00.000-05:00

Today, I saw one of my kettlebell buddies at a personal training session today at 11. Those usually last an hour. Then, she came to kettlebell at 4:30. That lasts 30 minutes. I went back upstairs after kbell (I work above they gym at work) to finish up some stuff and walked back downstairs about 5:25. I saw her on the elliptical machine, sweating like crazy.

Maybe I'm a wimp, but I was thought the amount of her workouts in one day were a little overboard. I try to go with a little bit more of the "balance" approach - working out and eating healthy but also still enjoying myself and enjoying life. I don't like it when we go out to eat and I'm "that girl" who won't touch a fry or dessert at ALL. It's all about moderation people!!

Now, could I stand to work out a little bit more, and indulge a little less? Of course. Obviously, I'm not dropping tons of weight with my 30 minutes of working out today, but I'd rather come home and make dinner (eggs, bacon, hashbrowns and asparagus) with my husband.

WHAT is that?

2011-05-13T15:02:00.002-05:00

I'm pretty sure that is a callous from my hard work in kettlebell class this week. I work at a computer all day so it's pretty rare from me to get one of those babies.

Funny hits

2011-05-12T15:01:00.000-05:00

Similar to "kids say the darnedest things," I think it's funny that people searching the "goog" search for the darnedest things.

These folks all visited my blog after searching:

bacon tooth sweet tooth
big tooth sweet tooth 5k july, 2011
break a sweet cycle
pictures of praying mantis teeth
how to draw almonds
good morning sweaty

I hope you found what you were looking for.

Derby party!

2011-05-10T19:58:00.000-05:00

Last weekend, the hubs and I made the trek to Columbus, GA to visit some friends there and attend their Kentucky Derby party. While the weekend was not good for my diet, it was awesome to spend time with friends and the weather was beautiful. I did manage to go for two quick runs around the park near their house. I really wish we lived close enough to walk to a park here, and from the discussions we've had lately, I doubt that will happen any time soon.

I did want to share a few of the food photos I took from the party. Jess is an amazing cook and I always look forward to eating her concoctions. The first night we were there, she made pasta with asparagus and tomatoes, a great spinach salad and the boys grilled chicken on the Weber. I didn't take any photos, but take my word for it that it was really tasty.

I didn't get to the bacon-wrapped little weenies fast enough - those things are like crack!

Three kinds of mac n cheese - Jess was testing recipes. I liked "plain" the best. Other options were chipotle and Italian.

The dessert/Jimmy John's spread.

The appetizer spread.

This was by far my fav - marinated cheese. Cheddar and cream cheese soaked overnight with olive oil and some fresh herbs and some other stuff.

Strawberry Trifle

A new cupcake entered my life - the Hummingbird. Apparently it's a southern thing, but was basically banana bread mixed with pineapple and nuts of some kind with cream cheese frosting. I loved it.

Mashed Cauliflower

2011-05-03T19:12:00.000-05:00

My sister and her husband like to do the "no carbs" diet. While I whole-heartedly disagree with this lifestyle (because you cannot sustain it!!), she did tell me about a new veggie dish to try.

It seemed pretty easy, so I bought a head of cauliflower, boiled it, and put it in the food processor with a bit of cream cheese (about 1T), some shredded parmesan (about 1/3 c) and a teeny bit of garlic (1t).

It was awesome!!! And pretty tasty with some pork tenderloin. Seriously. Go try it.

I introduce: My Second Pie

2011-05-01T14:53:00.001-05:00

The first pie I made completely from scratch (that includes crust too) was Alton Brown's apple pie recipe.

It was amazing, but a LOT of work. That was November 2007. As you can see, I didn't even have a proper pie plate or pie bird back then.

I made my second pie from scratch this weekend. I was skimming Cooking Light and found a recipe for Mexican Chocolate Pie. It looked good and I had almost everything on hand (I had to run out for graham crackers and 2 percent milk). If you know me, you know I don't do anything spicy hot, so I left out the red pepper and espresso because I didn't want to buy any just for the pie.

I think I might have cooked the milk too hot or too fast because it turned out a little lumpy, but other than that it's pretty tasty and the hubs even likes it. Mine doesn't photograph nearly as well as Cooking Light's version, but I didn't have a food stylist to make mine look perfect.

Organic yogurt find

2011-04-26T14:12:00.002-05:00

My first taste of organic yogurt. I haven't been buying any yogurt lately because they all have sucralose (splenda) or aspartame in it (among other chemicals). I've been looking at organic yogurt for a while, but it seems like the craze is all about greek yogurt right now, which I didn't care for.

But this, this was good. Texture was a little thin compare to other yogurts and a little more sour in taste, but I really liked it. It's on sale this week for .99 cents at my local grocery store. Is that a good price?

Oatmeal Bites

2011-04-24T20:19:00.002-05:00

Last weekend, I made some of Roni's oatmeal "bites" because I was hankerin' for a cookie, but decided to try something semi-sweet to feed my sweet tooth. Honestly, these didn't really work for that purpose, but they were pretty tasty and turned out to be a good snack or even a quick breakfast on the go.

Here's a couple of pics I took of the process. The "batter" (I added some molasses, which is why it's so dark in the pumpkin mixture bowl. Then the bites prior to baking. I smushed them to be more cookie-like in shape. Then after they came out of the oven.

Tornado time

2011-04-19T20:36:00.002-05:00

Riding out the storm in our walk in closet. That's what happens when you don't have a basement.

Kick it up a notch

2011-04-18T21:46:00.000-05:00

I'm thinking it's time for double workout duty. I'm not really dropping any LBs or motivated to stop eating, which is the best way for me to lose weight fast. I know this about myself, yet I continue to have little willpower - especially when it comes to sweets. Today, we had a birthday at work and I ate a piece of lemon cheesecake-y stuff (I don't even like lemon!).

To make up for that, I went to both kettlebell and yoga class today. My legs were already shaky from kbell, and to do warrior pose in yoga was amazingly difficult, but it felt good at the same time.

Tomorrow, I hope I can make yoga on my lunch hour (as long as no meetings come up at work) and then either run outside or go to spinning if it's rainy out. I do hope it rains though, we put down some sod as part of our Project Curb Appeal this weekend.

Bandana's BBQ

2011-04-17T18:53:00.000-05:00

After another weekend of working in the yard, we decided to get take out. We usually eat out on Friday or Saturday nights but don't usually on Sunday. Last night, we stayed in so I didn't feel so bad about eating out tonight. Especially considering we worked outside all day on our curb appeal and burning some of the bushes we cut down last year. After last weekend's monster bush was added to our "burn pile" we are starting to become "those people" so we had to work on burning some of it.

I'm rambling.

The point is that we ordered Bandana's for dinner and I was super impressed that the calorie count was listed next to every item on their carry out menu!!

I had already decided on my choice (turkey platter with corn and green beans) but it validated that I know what I'm doing when making food choices. I will happily support any business that decides to post calories willingly. I know it's required in some places like NYC, but here in the midwest that is a rare practice.

5k slacking

2011-04-10T20:29:00.002-05:00

Wow. Last week was rough for me emotionally. The combination of stress at work and stress at home made for a unproductive week as far as working out goes. I only ran one time (usually three) and went to one kettlebell class (I usually go twice a week) and one yoga class (normal).

The hubs and I did spend most of the weekend working on our curb appeal by digging out a big mound of dirt that the previous owner had neglected into a big pile of weeds. While we've attempted to keep as few weeds from growing there as possible for the past two years, we finally tackled the task of digging out the roots. We were both sunburned and sore from that project, but we were tough today and tackled another. We bought a pole saw attachment for the hubs' weed-wacker and went to town on a monster thorn bush that was next to our front porch. It took about 6 hours of cutting down limbs and then dragging them to the backyard fire pit pile of wood to get that thing out of our lives. The true challenge was to bleed as little as possible from the thorns. A high-quality photo illustration is below. I took this photo two years ago when we first moved in, so image two more years of thorn-ified growth on that bia. We took out the other FOUR bushes to the left of the front door last fall.

And this is what it looks like tonight, with three new bushes ready to move in - two boxwoods and an azalea.

Needless to say, I did not run yesterday or today. Tomorrow is kettlebell, and I have a "park date" after that to walk with one of my marathon-running friends, so maybe I can convince her to run with me. ;)

Cabbage Rolls

2011-04-04T20:52:00.000-05:00

Cabbage rolls, aka stuffed cabbage, is what we had for dinner tonight. Most recipes I checked out said to cook the meat after rolling, but I thought it would be faster if I browned the beef, then rolled and just heated in the oven for 20 minutes. It was a pretty simple recipe, but took me over an hour from start to finish. I also used beef from our cow instead of ground turkey.

Here's what I did:

12 cabbage pieces, boiled

Combine for filling:

1 lb ground beef (or turkey) - browned

3/4 c. brown rice, cooked

1/2 c. shredded carrot

2 T. italian seasoning

1 egg

2 T tomato soup

Combine for sauce:

14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (undrained)

10 oz can condensed tomato soup

2 T cornstarch mixed with 1/2 c. water

2 T vinegar

The cabbage is boiling. I couldn't separate it nicely pre-cooking, so I threw the whole darn thing in the water. I'd recommend that, but then put it back in after you peel a few layers off. The inside was still raw.

Obviously, this is the filling.

This is right before going in the oven.

This is fresh out of the oven.

Oatmeal talk

2011-04-02T20:49:00.000-05:00

One of our (being Americans, not me and mine) favorite fast food joints is McDonalds, right? I know they've had oatmeal on the menu for a few months now, but as a rule I don't eat at the golden arches. I just read a pretty good article summarizing my thoughts on the oatmeal at McDonalds.

Unfortunately, my hubs still does occasionally eat McD's when he's in a rush. I say it's not worth it, but that's another story. When McD's came out with oatmeal, he attempted to get me to eat them one morning. I didn't even need to set foot in the store or place an order to know that would be a poor choice. Along with everything else in that "restaurant" I knew it would be full of chemicals and unnatural ingredients. I was 100 percent sure they could screw up something so simple as oatmeal.

I also just saw a recipe for PB&J oatmeal, which I'm going to try soon. I think the hubs might like it too. I usually eat plain oats with some honey or fruit added, but he still eats the packets from the store. While some would say that's a poor choice, it's certainly better than anything from McD's - and cheaper too!

Getting there...

2011-03-31T19:24:00.000-05:00

After five weeks of 5k training, I can definitely tell a difference. I can run farther and without as much whining before I get on the treadmill. However, I still don't really enjoy it yet. I'm not sure I'll ever get there, but HGTV seems to entertain me for the 30 minutes I force myself to run.

The training program I'm doing gradually builds up to running 30 minutes straight - probably because most people can finish a 5k in about 30 minutes. It's pretty easy to follow (no counting every 90 seconds) and I'm up to running 18 of my 30 minutes. Sometimes I break up the minutes into equal segments - six times three = 18. Other times I run a mile straight (12 minutes at 5.0 on the treadmill) and then run the rest later. I've been finding that I can run faster than 5.0 with my long legs, but that my knees are extremely sore the next day. So, until I build up my knee-strength (or whatever needs to happen), I'll keep it at 5.0 so I'm not discouraged to run with another excuse.

I deserved it.

2011-03-28T21:44:00.001-05:00

Kettlebell class AND treadmill time for the 5K training is what I get for eating meat all day Saturday and two pieces of apple pie Sunday. In my defense, I did run Saturday morning. And the pie was homemade from the hubs' grandma. How could I say no to that?

No more meat.

2011-03-27T22:26:00.000-05:00

The hubs and I spent most of the day yesterday at Fast Eddie's Bon-Air in Alton, IL. If you've never been, it's a pretty awesome time - lots of drink options, lots of live music and great people watching. On of our friends reported that he saw a poor kid turning 21 that was puking at 2:30 p.m. Then we later saw him being carried out with a trash bag as a bib by three of his friends. Obviously, he had a really great morning.

Part of the awesomeness at Fast Eddies is the dirt-cheap menu and free popcorn. The downside is also the menu. Your options are cheeseburger, fries, shrimp (that smelled too shrimp-ey for me and I was turned off) or a variety of meats on a stick. I think we sampled all flavors of meat on a stick, and they were all very delicious. However, by the end of the day, I was tired of salty meats, and I'm still not really interested in eating any meat 24 hours later.

ABCs of me

2011-03-24T18:40:00.000-05:00

Age: 29
Bed size: King - and I will never go back.
Chore you hate: almost all of them, but toilets and dirty dishes are the pits.
Dogs: yes. I have one.
Essential start to your day: a shower.
Favorite color: lately, everyone tells me I look good in green, so I'm going with that.
Gold or silver: Silver. never liked gold.
Height: 5'11. i think yoga made me stand up taller.
Instruments that you can play: in middle/high school I played clarinet, but I know how to play both the sax and flute, and one hand of the piano at a time.I'm not very good at any of them.
Job title: public relations coordinator
Kids: none, yet.
Live: I guess I'm an Illinoisan now. I am wearing a "chief" shirt right now.
Mom’s name: Kathy
Nicknames: sweet tooth or my maiden name
Overnight hospital stays: i've never even been an out-patient.
Pet peeve: people who say "warsh" instead of "wash" and micro-management
Quote from a movie: Nobody puts baby in a corner.
Righty or lefty: Righty.
Sibling: I have a sister. she's three years younger and now that we don't live together, we get along great.
Time you wake up: 6:46 is when my alarm goes off. I get up around 7.
Underwear: yes.
Vegetables you dislike: green peppers, onions (in any form), don't really care for peas either.
What makes you run late: not knowing what to wear.
X-rays: I think a few - I know they did one on my wrist for carpel tunnel
Yummy food you make: it's not often, but my baked goods are usually pretty good.
Zoo favorite animal: I love the big cats and the penguins.

Bad News Bunnies

2011-03-21T21:54:00.000-05:00

Last year, I didn't get around to planting the garden until it was too late to plant spinach and lettuce. I planted it anyway, but we only had about two weeks worth of production before it got too hot. This year, I am ready. I have my seeds. I cleaned up last year's garden (yeah, I'm the lazy neighbor who just left the tomato plants to rot all winter. Think of it as my version of composting). I got out the manual tiller. I'm ready to work.

And then I found a litter of rabbits under some leaves/twigs. About 5 itty bitty adorable baby rabbits rolling on top of each other, probably blinded by the light of being out in the open. They scared the bajeezus out of me, so the hubs comes running outside after my screeching. And we decide we just can't kill the bunnies.

After reading online about the whole baby rabbit-birthing-nesting experience, it seems we have a few more weeks before these things un-inhabit my garden. I guess I won't be planting my seeds right away - especially since spinach and lettuce sound a lot like "rabbit" food.

Kettlebell = Kick in the Butt

2011-03-15T19:57:00.004-05:00

I tried Kettlebell class for the first time last week, and again last night. After the first class, I posted this on Facebook:

kettleball class = do 5,000 squats while swinging a baby 10lb ball around.

I felt okay during the class, but afterwards, my legs were on FIRE!! I took the class in the same building that my office is located, and I went back upstairs to gather my stuff before leaving for the day. I almost fell down the stairs on the way back out the door. That's how tired my legs were.

Last night was much better, and today I was able to continue with my 5k training. Last week, I wasn't able to run until Thursday because my legs were still sore four days later. I guess that shows you how little I had been working my legs lately.

Trip to Indy

2011-03-13T20:05:00.001-05:00

The hubs and I just returned from our weekend getaway in Indianapolis. Neither one of us had ever been, so we thought the big10 basketball tourney was a good excuse to check out a new city. The pic below is the view from our room at the Sheraton. I sort of feel like we were ripped off by the Sheraton, but that's another $500 story.

We always try to eat local when in a new city, so I emailed a friend who lives there. She recommended a German place called the Rathskeller. Combine beer, sauerkraut and mustard and you have a meal meant for my husband. He was in food heaven, and a food coma afterward. I always try to not overeat, especially on vacation. To me, that is one of the worst feelings in the world.

So my plate is the closer one, a turkey reuben with a side of creamed spinach. It was seriously delish!! The hubs had a brat with sauerkraut, spaetzel noodles (tasted like dumplings with gravy - I was not a fan, but he loved it) and a potato pancake. Also, that mustard looks friendly enough, but it was making his eyes water and his cheeks turn red. I found that hilarious.

To walk off some of the food we went to check out the WWII memorial building. It always amazes me to see the architecture of older buildings up close. I feel like we just don't put the effort into buildings like this anymore. It's all about saving money. This can't be done on the cheap.

And to give you some perspective as to how tall that building is, here's a six foot-tall woman standing in front of it.

Baked Apple Oatmeal

2011-03-07T20:19:00.002-06:00

Late last night, too late in fact, I made some baked oatmeal. I'm tired of english muffins and green monsters for breakfast, but I don't really want to wake up an earlier to cook oatmeal and then eat it. I prefer to eat on the run during my 30 min commute. I decided I could compromise with myself by making oatmeal ahead of time so it won't take as long. It just needs to reheat instead of being fully cooked.

Here's my tweaked recipe:
2 c oats
2 c chopped apples
1 c raisins
1 c bran cereal (I didn't have wheat germ or flax seed, which would have been my first choice)
2 c milk
2 c water
1 t cinnamon
1 t butter
1/2 c brown sugar

Melt everything but the oats/bran/fruit together, then stir in the "dry apple" group. Dump into a casserole dish and bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

It was very easy and awesomely delicious. I stirred in some chopped pecans this morning for extra crunch. You could bake them in there, but my hubs requested no nuts so he could eat this too.

I can smell it

2011-03-01T20:03:00.002-06:00

Spring is almost here. It's so close, I can almost smell it. I can't wait to ditch the heavy coat and want to run outside every day after work. In my job, I have to walk outside several times a day to get to another building where I often have meetings. It's such a pain to wear my coat and/or carry an umbrella all over the place. I did finally purchase some wellies so at least I'm well-prepared for the rainy season. They basically look like this:

During the winter, I just want to curl up on the couch and watch tv. Lately, I've been a little bit more motivated to do things around the house after work, so I'm sensing the change. It probably helps that it's still light out at 6pm when I pull in the driveway.

On the agenda for this weekend: 5K training, plant lettuce in garden, work on painting trim in the house.

I didn't mean to post a big rant about winter, but there you have it.

The opposite of healthy

2011-02-27T20:24:00.000-06:00

This weekend, we went to visit some friends in Springfield, IL. All we did was drink, eat and sleep. In that order. We had a pretty fantastic time, but it was not easy on the waistline. I came prepared somewhat - I had a bag of almonds/dried berries in my purse. I also made the guys pick up some oranges for me when they went on a beer run. Oranges are probably my favorite travel fruit because it won't get ruined in my purse (like a banana) and does not need to be kept cold (I prefer my apples chilled).

I didn't take photos of the horseshoe my husband ate, but just know that it's a pile of fries, toast, cheese and meat of your choice. Most people say they are amazing, but I don't like it when my food touches and I really hate soggy fries or bread. So, I opted for a cheesey-potato soup and salad.

Our first stop was the Cozy Drive In for a corn dog or four (I had grilled cheese and asked for it "dry"). Our friend's kid calls it "Cuddly Wieners" because of the logo.

The next morning, we woke up early to get to JP Kelly's for bloody mary's. You probably know that I don't like spicy, so I mooched the olives and cheese from the hubs' bloody mary fixin's.

We also ate at Buffalo Wild Wings, but I'm sure you know what that looks like. And then we went to another bar for more drinks. Tomorrow = broccoli-for-lunch-detox.

Cheesy spinach

2011-02-24T19:29:00.000-06:00

The hubs always cooks a great meal, but doesn't always remember to add a green veggie into the mix. Tonight, he made rib-eye steaks with potatoes (regular for him, sweet for me) and a salad. For some reason, I'm just not into salads in the winter, so I opted to cook some fresh spinach instead.

I just threw a large handful of spinach in a pan with a bit of EVOO and cooked it down. When it was almost finished, I added a garlic laughing cow wedge. It was such a good combo!! And you'll be pleased to see that I actually remembered to take a photo of it!!

Taco idea

2011-02-23T17:40:00.000-06:00

Last night the hubs made an awesome dinner. He made shrimp tacos (shrimps marinated in hawaiian sauce, then cooked + creamy coleslaw that he made from scratch) that I should have taken a picture of, but failed.

Just thought you might want to have shrimp tacos for dinner soon.

5K and no soda update

2011-02-22T18:14:00.000-06:00

I took a minor hiatus from the 5K training. After the first week, my back started hurting from working on re-doing the kitchen floor, so I didn't think it would be a good idea to run when it hurt just to stand up for any period of time. Then, last week I was just lazy. I have no excuse. I did not motivate myself from the couch any night after work. Instead, I read the Girl Who Played with Fire - which I highly recommend if you haven't read it yet.

I did run week 2 of the 5K business yesterday and today. So, I'll consider myself back on this temporary track. As the husband likes to remind me, I tend to start high-quality workout regime, and then quit after two weeks when I get bored.

In case you were curious, I have not had a soda since Jan. 3. I did have one small sip of the hubs' soda about a week ago because I had a gross taste in my mouth. I figure I didn't earn any cancer-causing thingies just from that one drink.

Babies galore!!

2011-02-14T20:46:00.000-06:00

In the next two months, I have not one, but four baby showers to go to and that means I have four friends giving birth in the next few months. If I said that all this baby stuff isn't affecting me, it would be a lie.

I've been shopping for shower gifts and everything is just so. darn. cute. I plan on visiting at least two of those lovely ladies in the hospital after they go through the traumatic event that we won't discuss here. That most likely means buying more cuteness.

I kind of want to buy little baby clothes and dress up my pug. But I know that would just cause him to freeze in that position and not move until I take it off. And really, what kind of life would that be for a dog?

New food for us

2011-02-10T20:38:00.000-06:00

I've tried two new things that I thought you might want to read/see.

The other night I made tuna "burgers" which are basically a can of tuna, an egg, some garlic salt and bread crumbs mixed up. They turned out super delish!!

When the husband is at night class, I try to cook things I know he won't eat. I bought quinoa a while ago, but have been hesitant to cook it. I decided to finally grow a pair and try it. I made it very plain so I could really taste the flavor of the quinoa itself. I just cooked it and then threw in some roasted broccoli on top. The next day for lunch, I did the same thing but threw a leftover turkey burger in the mix. I liked it both times. It does have a strange flavor that I'm not used to, but it wasn't bad. I can see why the blogosphere loves it's protein-ey goodness.

Week One Complete

2011-02-06T13:44:00.000-06:00

Last weekend it was semi-nice outside, so I took advantage of the 32+ degree weather and went for a run/walk outside. I thought it was a good idea to start a couch-to-5k running program. My plan was to run on Monday and Thursday during the week, but a massive snow storm forced me indoors to the boring treadmill. I didn't run on Monday, but did on Tuesday and Saturday. So, I'll call that week one.

I feel like I should register for an actual 5k to have a set deadline, but I don't really care about running a race. I'm really doing it to drop a few lbs and see if I can get myself into a running mode before spring hits. I'm pretty good at being motivated during the warmer months, but the winter makes me want to sit by the fire and read - the opposite of working out. Hopefully, this plan will keep me on track. I'll let you know how it goes.

What's your motivation to work out during winter?

10 years.

2011-02-04T16:36:00.001-06:00

I was talking to my dad last night about my blog and how my mom says "nothing on here interests her." I'm sure that's the case because she's always been naturally thin, and eats well. I think she weighed 105 lbs when she got pregnant with me, but unfortunately didn't pass along those thinny genes. During this conversation, though, we realized that mom used to read my blog all the time back when I started blogging - ten years ago. I can't believe it's been that long!!

So, I'll have to do something special on my 10-year-blogiversary. Mark your calendars for Dec. 9, 2011.

Chicken wings at home

2011-02-02T13:49:00.001-06:00

The hubs and I love to eat at wing places (like BWW). Really, I only like chicken with BBQ sauce, but the hubs loves wings. Lately, instead of going out to eat wings and fries, we have been steaming/baking chicken wings for big sporting events (for example, the super bowl) at home. The hubs follows an Alton Brown recipe for cooking chicken wings, which is a long process, but definitely worth it. We made some yesterday for dinner (the hubs' favorite team was playing) and I didn't even eat mine with any sauce - they were that good!!

We also had baked sweet potato fries with the wings, so by baking the wings and eating baked sweet potatoes instead of fried, we saved 829 calories and 60 grams of fat for 1lb of wings and 6 oz of fries (we shared both). I also had some broccoli to make sure I ate something green.

New Veggie Quest

2011-02-01T11:58:00.000-06:00

The other night, my frequent commenter Katie came over and we made roasted kale chips!! If you haven't tried them, I encourage you to do so tonight! I bought a monster bag of kale because it was all I could find, so I've had kale chips twice now. They were better the first time (with Katie) because I might have burned them a little the second go-round.

I also roasted some mushrooms, which were good, but I love the crunch that roasting gives broccoli and kale and that just doesn't happen to mushrooms. I've also tried asparagus (awesome) and still plan to try green beans (they are waiting patiently in the fridge).

New teeth... NOT

2011-01-22T11:44:00.000-06:00

This post has nothing to do with being healthy, so if you are looking for a healthy tip today, look elsewhere.

When I was in the third grade, I was running out of the auditorium from a dance recital (maybe dress rehearsal?) with my tap shoes on. At some point between the door and the car, I tripped and fell on my face - chipping the bottoms of my two front teeth. Since then, I have had them patched with what is probably similar to the gunk they put in a cavity hole. They put the smelly stuff on there, then turn on that light until it beeps - you know the drill. Well, in the past few years, I've noticed a very distinguished line between real tooth and patchwork. Food was getting stuck in the crease often, and it really just bothered me. So, I asked the hubs if I could have my two front teeth for Christmas this year.

Three weeks ago, I had the majority of the prep work done for my new veneers (porcelain teeth caps) and have been walking around with temporary (obviously fake-looking) front teeth while my new ones were made. Yesterday, I went to have my new teeth put on, and they looked so awesome!! They were a little bit smaller than my real teeth, so I have less of a "horse" mouth with two long front teeth. The color perfectly matched my other teeth - they "distress" veneers to look look like your imperfect, natural teeth. The dentist tried them in my mouth and I loved the way they looked. She then passed them to her assistant and went to work to start cleaning my teeth and getting them ready for the final cementing.

Then he dropped one of my new teeth on the floor and it broke in half.

So... I have the temporary teeth back in, and hope to get my Christmas present next Friday.

Need new veggies. STAT.

2011-01-18T19:16:00.000-06:00

I need some new roasted veggie ideas. I love the ease and simplicity of throwing a teensy bit of olive oil and garlic salt on them before putting it in the oven and setting a timer. The result is awesomeness in my book because the veggies are tasty, reheat well and are good for you.

I've done broccoli (my fav), carrot (meh), brussell sprouts (close runner-up) and butternut squash (I used cinnamon instead of garlic salt. boring, but edible). I have been eating broccoli a LOT lately and I'ms starting to get burnt out.

So, what do you roast?

Finding the balance

2011-01-17T19:18:00.000-06:00

I don't know about you, but this week and next week are somewhat crazy for me at work. I don't know if everyone was getting back into the swing of things after the new year, and are now plowing full steam ahead, but it's just madness.

That said, I have not had a soda in two weeks. I'm still trying my best to stay away from artificial sweeteners - which has its pluses and minuses. I feel better about what I'm putting in my body, but at the same time, I know it's more calories. So, having to balance those two things is a real challenge for me - especially considering my sweet tooth. I'm already heavier than I was before the holidays (oh hi, tight pants) and I don't like feeling guilty about the extra caloric intake.

What are your thoughts on natural versus artificial sweeteners? How do you find the balance?