Latest food fixations

1. Lemonade
2. Thai Red Curry from Asian Mint
3. Spinach salads with dried cranberries
4. Any format of Mexican food
5. Ice cream, especially Paciugo

My obsessions with avocados and red meat have faded significantly. Breakfast cereal is still almost a daily requirement, but it doesn't make me dizzy with delight like the items above currently do.

Also, my life-long moderate aversion to raw onions has risen to new levels of intensity. I'm still indifferent to them when cooked, but now the raw ones make me want to run away to some small country that has never heard of onions. This has had a negative impact on my guacamole consumption, but I'll just have to make my own without the offending onion.
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Another year, and so many changes!

It's been a busy month! I'm officially 34 today and it's the busiest time in my whole life, I think.

A couple of weeks ago we found out that the previous sono was wrong..it's a BOY! Anyone have name suggestions? We are so excited.

Our house has not sold yet, though we have had a few more showings. Keep your fingers crossed!

Here we are at 17 weeks...I can't believe how time is flying by!



To be honest, I am really loving being pregnant. I haven't felt the slightest bit sick, I'm eating well and getting tons of sleep and I'm still exercising. I am probably healthier than I've ever been, and it feels great. I know, I know, I'm really lucky!

Just to keep the series of photos complete, here's one that we took at 15 weeks (please ignore the awful frizzy hair - bad hair day):


In other news, the big kids started 4th grade this week. I was really ready for school to start again. The summer schedule had worn out its novelty and the kids were restless. Matthew has started a new medicine and is also going once a week to occupational therapy, which we are hoping will help him focus better in school. It's too soon to know if either is helping, but its good to have new resources to try.

Cheers!
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13 weeks

We're still working on how to get clips of our sonogram video posted, but in the meantime, here are some new belly pics:

above: 10 weeks

above: 13 weeks

Clearly, we are now a fan of stretchy pants. And more naps.

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And you thought we were crazy before...

Now we begin the countdown to the day we get to meet the little person I'll tentatively call "Baby Guacamole."

We're off to a great start. Early on the doctor was able to confirm for us that it was only one. This was the source of some anxiety for us up to that point, as you might imagine.

At 8 weeks, we got to hear the surprisingly strong heartbeat and see the outline of our baby. I can't even describe how surreal, amazing, and terrifying that experience was. Suddenly the distant and abstract notion of a baby became very real, accompanied by a wave of vulnerability and protective mama-bear-ness.


On the left you can see the baby, head pointed right, with little shadows of the beginnings of arms and legs just barely visible. On the right is the heartbeat, something I will never forget.

So with all green lights on the medical side, we're thrilled and excited and very very busy. We're going to try and move before the due date, which is sometime between January 31 and February 3. As much as we love this house, it's not well-suited for adding another person to the equation, so we got to work immediately getting the house on the market.

The big kids are really excited, of course.

To my pleasant surprise, I'm feeling great. I haven't had any morning sickness at all, other than a couple of moments of light-headedness when I let myself get too hungry. And wow, let me tell you about the hungry. I'm hungry almost all the time. I snack constantly, I've discovered an unparalleled drive for guacamole, and my previously vegetarian self now attacks beef fajitas with frightening gusto.

Despite the dent I've been making in the world's avocado supply, it doesn't really show up in the photographic evidence yet. Princess Pupule, I promised you belly pics:

above: 4 weeks, and the home test results

above: 8 weeks

So we are setting in to a nice pattern of lots of guacamole, naps, ice cream, more naps, and only occasionally still looking at each other and saying "are we out of our minds?"
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Fresh Starts for Spring

Simple, minimal-expense ideas (other than the basic spring-cleaning) for some fresh-starts this spring:

Home:
- buy or make some new dish towels. take the grubbiest of the old ones and repurpose them as rags or craft supplies.
- change out the photos in some of your frames around the house, and/or re-arrange where they are.
- put a comfy chair and a throw blanked near a window. take at least 5 minutes a day to just sit and look out.

Body:
- add one small positive thing to your daily routine, like a walk, a vitamin, or flossing.
- take away one small negative thing, like staying up too late or too much coffee.
- make an appointment for a check-up if you have been putting it off (like me).

Mind:
- put a small notebook and pencil near your bed. every morning when you wake up, write 5 words about anything: how you feel, how you want your day to go, what you dreamed, etc. every evening, write another 5 words: what you want off your chest before you sleep, things you're grateful for, hopes and dreams, etc.
- think of someone in your life that you admire and appreciate, and find a way to tell them so.
- read something new: a book, a blog, or a magazine that is different from what you would normally read.

Children:
- find a child (any child you know, not just the ones related to you) and tell them something about them that you are grateful for. do this often.
- ask a child to tell you a story about what spring is, and listen attentively.
- spend time outside with children observing birds, leaves, seeds, mud puddles, and other spring changes.
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"Twins"

Do you remember that movie "Twins" with Arnold Schwarzenegger & Danny DeVito? This is the dog version. Arnold = Elwood, my dog. Danny = Troy, my mom's dog.


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Something I worked on that is mostly cool.

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