From the Peanut Gallery- Week Eight: The Kidney Bean

Here I am, 8 weeks pregnant, and experiencing the typical first trimester.  Nausea, vomiting, exhaustion.  Lather, rinse, repeat.  I am SO fortunate to work part-time!  I have been lucky enough to nap each afternoon, and be taken care of by a wonderful, loving husband each evening.

What is new this week?  Crying.  The pregnancy hormones are in full effect.  We went to T.G.I. Friday's for dinner this week.  I saw that Oreo Madness, my once favorite dessert that had since been removed from the Friday's menu, had miraculously returned!  And I cried.  Then later on, I cried again, still just overjoyed that the Oreo Madness was back.  Mind you, I didn't order it.  I felt too sick to eat it.  I was just happy that I now had the option for Oreo Madness to be back in my life.

And the MOST AMAZING part of week 8?  I FINALLY had my first OB appointment!!  HUZZAH!!

Those pesky hormone levels of mine came back to haunt us for a moment.  The doctor was fearful what with progesterone levels as low as mine, that the baby may not have grown like she would like to see.  She even went so far as to be skeptical as to whether or not the baby would have a heartbeat.  Needless to say, J and I were on pins and needles waiting for the ultrasound.  Turns out, our little peanut is a serious fighter.  Progesterone, schmogesterone.  Baby measured three days AHEAD of schedule, and had a strong, steady heartbeat of 169 beats per minute.  Take that, doctor!!

After seeing the ultrasound results, the doctor is no longer concerned in the slightest.  AND, we have baby's first picture!

Baby's fingers and toes grew out of those itty bity hands and feet this week, and her little brain was busy forming lots of neural pathways.  And good news!  That tail of hers is just about gone.

Yep, it's been a good week.

Free To Be

Now I realize that I am in a highly emotional state these days, what with the raging hormones and all...but I saw a Target commercial the other day that brought on the tears!

When I was little, I had a record that I played over and over again.  My parents eventually replaced it with a tape.  And finally, as an adult, I bought it on CD for my classroom.

Are there any other children of the 70's or 80's that had a love affair with "Free To Be, You And Me" like I did?

How I loved that album.  I listened to it over and over again.  I longed for William to get that doll, and for Atalanta to win the race, and for Dudley Pippin to catch a break.

This new Target commercial shows some little tykes heading off back to school, while in the background the title track plays.  When I heard it, it stopped me mid-sentence and instantly brought me back to my childhood, laying on the floor in front of the record player, chin propped up on hands, feet swinging back and forth to Marlo Thomas and Friends.

Ah, nostalgia.

Thank you, Target, for bringing me back to those simple days.

Like I needed another reason to love Target, right?

Say it ain't so!

Can this possibly be true??

I recently read an article about food trends (yes, apparently I even like to keep up with trends in the culinary world) that are on their way out.

Number one on the list?  Cupcakes.

I am choosing to believe that the author of this article was misinformed.  Cupcakes are the most whimsically delicious of the dessert treats, if you ask me.  And ever since Carrie and Miranda enjoyed those confectionary delights from the Magnolia Bakery on Sex in the City, lots and LOTS of people seem to agree with me!

Cupcake shops are in booming business all over the place.  In fact, even here we have a cupcake "boutique", The Cupcake Shoppe.  I have personally sampled their cupcakes, and just as you'd expect- nothing short of delectable.  And dainty.  And cute.  A dessert girl's dream come true.

So I say pooh-pooh on you, cupcake haters.  In my humble opinion?  Cupcakes are here to stay.

Remember these?

Oh, 80's.  You were such fun.

I found this little slide show to be delightful!  If you are a child of the 80's, and you cared AT ALL about keeping up with the trends, you will certainly remember some of these.

And if you are a teacher...this will help you remember that our slap bracelets were certainly as annoying- if not more so- than Silly Bandz.

Enjoy!

From the Peanut Gallery- Six Weeks: The Lentil

Well, there's this thing called Pregnancy Brain.  I officially have it.  So sorry to have posted Week 7 info before Week 6 had been posted.  Forgive my mushy mind!

Q: How are you feeling?
A: Ask and ye shall receive.  All. nausea. all. the. time.  It hit me on the 4th of July- the REAL beginning of morning sickness.  The occasional waves that were hitting me the past few weeks were nothing compared to what I am now experiencing.

Don't get me wrong- I'm still happy about this.  ESPECIALLY since we haven't seen the doctor yet!  For now, this is the only reassurance I have that all is right with baby.


Q: What are you eating these days?  Any of those crazy pregnancy cravings?
A: The simple answer is that I'm eating very little.  Basically enough to give peanut some sustenance, but not much more.  Anything other than a small snack just doesn't sit well with me.  Apparently digestion just doesn't work as well during pregnancy.

Also, absolutely nothing sounds good to me.  Until something very specific suddenly does, and I must have it immediately.

Saltines and ginger ale are my diet staples.  I've actually lost two pounds!  I'm sure I'll make up for those later in the pregnancy, though...


Q: What's new with baby this week?
A: Her ears, nose, and mouth are forming!  And she has arm and leg buds!  So basically, she looks like a little alien, but an ever so slightly more human alien.  Also, brains, muscles, and bones are busily forming away.

Q: Tired yet?
A: And speaking of all this baby forming- remember when I said I hadn't had the so-tired-it's-like-I've-been-hit-by-a-truck feeling?  Yeah, well the truck hit me this week.  I am most certainly asleep by 9:00 (if not earlier), and if I'm not working, I'll get up around 7:00 to eat a few crackers for my nauseous stomach, then go back to sleep for another two or three hours.  Then I'll need an afternoon nap.  Yep, tired.

That's all for this week, folks!

From the Peanut Gallery- Seven Weeks: The Blueberry

Wow!  A blueberry!  That's like so big you can see it and everything!  And look!  The whole quarter fits in he picture this week!

Q: So, what's new?
A: Throwing up.  That's new.  Favorite pregnancy moment of the week?  I get home from work, not feeling hungry at all, because I feel so sick, but knowing that I MUST eat something, because I feel so sick.  I open the pantry, and the mere sight of the food contained within sends me booking it to the sink.  Good times!
**Yes, I know, I asked for this...what was I thinking?

Q: Whatcha' eatin'?
A: Randomness.  I left the store yesterday with Life and Rice Krispies cereal, Spaghetti-O's, vegetable soup, strawberries, bananas, and Eggo's.  These are all things that have sounded good to me at some moment or another over the past week.  But really, still not loving food so much.

Q: And the peanut?
A: Baby had a growth spurt this week!  She doubled in size!  Again, amazing what this little peanut is doing right now.  Big development?  Little webbed hands and feet emerged from her little arm and leg buds.  And a bunch of internal organs, like the liver, pancreas, and intestines, are all formed and working away!

Yep, I've officially run out of energy to continue typing.

From the Peanut Gallery- Five Weeks: The Sesame Seed

Yep, the peanut is the size of a sesame seed this week.  Still pretty tiny, huh?

I've decided to take a Q & A approach to these weekly updates, so if you have any Q's, lemme know, and I'll give you an A!


Q: What symptoms, if any, have arrived this week?
A: Slowly but surely, this baby is making her presence known (and yes, I already refer to the peanut has a her, so get over it).

I am having waves of nausea every now and again, but they seem to be picking up in frequency.  So far, no actual dash to the bathroom, but I am thinking about it more and more often.  I have found that eating something small every two hours really helps!

By the way, all of the nausea is MORE THAN WELCOME here.  I will gladly take it.  I worked really hard to make this baby!  I just want it to stick around.  The illness tells me my hormones are raging away, which is a good thing.

My other symptom of note is my incredibly heightened sense of smell- I call it my "Spidey Sense."  My Spidey Senses have told me that I no longer care for the smell of bacon, corn, or ranch dressing.  However, as of now, I can still eat these things...I just don't want to smell them.  I was also keenly aware that one of our waiters on vacation had been smoking the marijuana, because to me, he reeked of reefer (although no one else could smell it...cool, huh?)

Q: How's your energy level?
A: I'm slowing down a little.  I've always been a napper, but now I find them a little more necessary.  However, I have yet to feel that I'm-so-tired-it's-like-I've-been-hit-by-a-truck feeling.  Except one night on vacation when my eyelids were closing on their own accord at the restaurant...at 7:30.  Yeah, I'm a little tired.

Q: Now that you're pregnant, what do you miss the most?
A: Nothing, so far!  I found out on vacation that O'Douls actually tastes like real beer, and makes me feel like I'm still part of the grown-up crowd.  And the bleu cheese they put on my favorite burger at Ruby Tuesday is made with pasteurized milk, so I can still eat it!  HUZZAH!

Q: What's happening with baby this week?
A: Well, the peanut looks more like a tadpole than an actual human baby.  Tail and all.  BUT, its little rudimentary heart starts beating (in a completely uncoordinated manner) this week.  Baby is also busy growing the beginnings of all her other internal organs.  Exciting, no?

Until next week!