Incredible Edible

I'd like to spout off here a moment about food. It seems like such a simple part of our daily lives.

Not so, ladies and gentlemen, when one is pregnant!!

You have cravings, upsets, aversions, reflux, heartburn, retention, release, cramping, bloating and shall I go on? Unfortunately, it is one of the most well known of all symptoms from expectant ladies.

In my first few months, I didn't have many cravings except one:

Atomic Fireballs.

And not any imitation would do. It had to be the original nostalgic favorite introduced to the masses in the 50s. If you know me at all, you'd know I don't like fireballs. I don't even normally like heavy artificially flavored cinnamon confectioneries (reference Aftershock Incident).

However, I could eat no meat. Meat in all it's glorious types made me turn about face and wrinkle my nose in disgust. It was a challenge to find alternative sources of protein but it was possible for someone as desperate as me. Ken suffered the worst as he is a meat man and here he just became husband to a meatless wife. It was not pretty, folks.

These days, I'm back to eating meat (thankfully). No quirky cravings yet. I have since stopped craving Fireballs. Now I have terrible heartburn and must be reminded to eat every 2 hours. How? I've gotten a digital watch with a timer that beeps and glows indiglo when it's time.

I'm 18 weeks and 3 days today. Since I posted the wrong information last time, here's a little about baby (taken from The Bump and Baby Zone).

Baby is now the size of a sweet potato and becoming amazingly mobile (compared to me, at least), passing the hours yawning, hiccuping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking and swallowing.

I've been feeling movement now for the past few weeks. Not Body Snatchers like but more akin to internal cuddling ... there doesn't seem to be any good description to completely capture how it feels physically or what a woman feels emotionally each time. It's an oozing effervescent radiance enjoyed in unexpected moments. These moments also help heal part of the soul that no parent should ever have injured.

Only 2 more days until Friday's long awaited appointment to check if baby will let us know if she's a she or if he's a he :)  Stay tuned for updated ultrasound pics!

Watching Me Grow

It is increasingly difficult to ignore the baby as the weeks pass us by as my belly is moving outward. The Bump says the baby is now the size of a cantalope! Kind of a jump from last week's mango ... no?

We're enjoying the cooler weather and the abundance of everything apple! Apple pie, apple crisp, caramel apples, candy apples, apple cider, apple juice and even fresh, plain ol' apples too :)

Since the baby's ears are now fully formed (so I've read), Ken suggested we try to use some headphones and blast some classical music through the womb. Not sure if he is worried about baby's smarts ;)

This goes to our other idea of getting a prenatal monitor. Have any other moms ever gotten one? And what do you think about the headphones?

I also just got my first baby item! A bassinet!! I wasn't planning on buying one personally since babies never use this for long or even at all but someone I knew was giving hers away so I jumped on it! Her daughter never used it (didn't want to!) so it's in brand new condition!

I'm also starting to pattern out my baby's crib quilt. I've got all the fabrics laid out on my ironing board and wondering how I'll cut and sew these together! I love all things homemade!

Small things excite these days ... like the caramel apple I have waiting in my fridge for later ...

Sleepless Nights ... Sleepier Days

I'm feeling a lot better in terms of nausea, dizziness and overall adjustment ("growing") issues. However, now that Baby is now eating and peeing more, so am I. Unfortunately, since the little one has no concept of time and won't for quite some time, this means hunger pangs and bathroom trips at all hours of the day AND night. I've resigned to leaving several snacks like trail mix, crackers and cereal by the bedside table along with the bottles of water to wash down the handful I may have at 2:30a.

This is a pretty accurate self-portrait (clipartguide) of me at work during the day since my fairly new night schedule has started. I've become Costanza and wondering who I can hire to build my custom sleep cubby underneath my desk.

Five Months In!

Hard to believe that we're already five months into the journey! It doesn't seem too long ago that we were just finding out and wondering what to expect.

Let's do a quick recap so far:
Month One: Disbelief and Excitement.
Month Two: Fatigue and Sickness.
Month Three: Maternity Clothes and Reality.
Month Four: Energy and Eating.

Baby has grown to approximately the size of an avocado (The Bump):

Tiny bones are forming in baby's ears which means he/she can now hear my voice. Eyebrows, eyelashes and hair are starting to come in and taste buds are forming. Baby is emptying his/her bladder every 40-45 minutes (yes, I can confirm this!).

Constantly remembering to eat has become quite the issue only because I tend to forget until poor Baby Hamilton is wondering What gives?

Hunger is almost constant since I don't and can't eat much in one sitting. I go to work with a full lunch bag of fruit, bread and extra snacks to sustain me through the day. This becomes especially troublesome during meetings.

I also cannot control my body temperature at any given time and run hot to cold (and vice versa) A LOT. This has taught me a couple of things: Wear deodorant every day, dress in layers but always with a tank style top and keep a hair clip handy. Even as I'm writing this, I'm thinking I'd like a fan and an ice pop.

Oh and I love (crave?) potatoes. Any kind of potatoes, folks. Sweet potato, baked potato, roasted potatoes, mashed potatoes, french fries, potato chips, home fries and shall I go on? Mmmm ... PO-TA-TO ...

Korean BBQ, Butterfingers & Nutty Buddys

It should go without saying that my boy has got a good appetite (which I like) but these days, I'm not sure who the pregnant one is because he CRAVES Korean BBQ every single dang week! I don't mind Korean food (obviously) but since it's just the two of us if we go to a restaurant, the minimum order for BBQ is 2 ... which means I end up getting meat each time too!

We had dinner with my folks on Saturday night and guess what was on the menu ... KOREAN BBQ! Now that my mom knows that Ken loves the stuff, she has become the enabler! (Just kidding, mom!)

Lately, I've been klutzy to the extreme. Just dropping things left and right and wondering if my brain can't tell my hands to keep it's grip! Just this morning while pumping gas, I dropped the nozzle (yes, seriously) and I was afraid it would start spraying all over the place (think Zoolander gas hosing scene)!

Then a few nights ago, I've been wanting those old school favorites we used to love from school cafeterias and ice cream trucks ... the Nutty Buddy. Does anyone remember those? I never much liked them as a kid but felt myself wanting a taste of the chopped peanuts and chocolate filled cone. Needless to say, Ken wasn't allowed to come back home without them last night. And yes, it was DELICIOUS!

Calgon ... Take me away!

It's been one of those weeks at work and I'm finally looking forward to a little down time with my favorite people (hopefully all fun in the sun). We've rented a waterfront beach house in the Cape with some friends for our annual joint family vacation. The kids really have a great time together and so do all the parents! I probably won't be able to stay awake for long stretches and no alcohol but that's not the only reason people go on vacation ;)

No laptops on the beach (I'm determined for both of us to live ANTI-WORK next week) but we will both have our Blackberrys ... guess we just can't drop all of our geek gadgets for that long!

Btw - I had something spicy last night for dinner for the first time since I experienced horrendous heartburn a few months ago and I think it may have receded!! Or I just got lucky! Either way, I was relishing dinner!

Thanks to Nana Susan for her thoughtful card (we just got it yesterday) and Grandma Mary for calling to check in on us (sometimes we need it!).

Vacations always have a way of whizzing by so I'll be back with updates and a few pictures before you know it! We're also looking forward to our next doctor's appointment that Friday we return because we just MIGHT be able to see if Baby Hamilton is a boy OR a girl!