Friday, May 30, 2008

Update - What I (Didn't) Accomplish

We all know what they say about best laid plans. I did some dishes but decided not to run the dishwasher because it's so hot today. We'll run it overnight. I watched the news and wrote a few thank you notes, then went to the store to get something to eat for lunch, a new pint of ice cream, and a noodle for the pool. While I ate lunch I started watching season one of Sex and the City (thanks to Kate for lending them to me a million years ago). I watched 2 episodes then went to the pool. The Minion really enjoyed the pool, I guess the cold water woke him up. It felt awesome to be in the water, I can't wait to go back tomorrow.

I came home from the pool and thought briefly about my original plan to clean out the fridge, then decided to watch 4 more episodes of SATC and read through the Baby magazines that have been piling up. It was an enjoyable day off.

Summer Day #1

I've been up since 6 - apparently I no longer have the ability to sleep late. I'm currently watching the news and enjoying a strawberry frosted pop-tart that I bought in a 2-pack at work yesterday. I'm sure it's full of all kinds of non-natural ingredients, but I restrained myself from looking at them and sent the wrapper through the work shredder as soon as I opened it. Right now it's the tastiest thing in the world.

I had a few things planned today, one of them being to finally post about my awesome baby shower and put up the updated pictures of Baby Charlie's room. Unfortunately I discovered that Charlie took the camera to work with him today, so neither one of those will get done. I had a whole list of things to possibly fill my day with, but I've narrowed it down to having a few relaxing hours in the morning, cleaning out the fridge around 10 or 10:30, going to the post office to buy some stamps, then hitting the pool for the afternoon where I will finish writing my thank you notes and read a bit until I get too hot to stand it, after which I will float around in the water for as long as I can get away with. It's going to be 85 and humid today. Ew. I can't wait to feel 20 pounds lighter again. Everyone I know who had a baby in the summer tells me how awesome it feels to be in the pool.

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

30 Week Appointment & Summer Hours

Up another pound, very uneventful appointment, but that's good. We don't need any excitement at this point. I was also reminded just how much I love my OB practice. All of the doctors and midwives are fantastic. There are two that I'm really hoping will be on call when I go into labor, but the other three are also great and I'd really be happy with any of them. I passed my glucose test, thank whatever higher power you subscribe to that I don't have to give up my ice cream or my weekly caramel lattes from Dunkin (which is actually slowly turning into a two or three times a week thing).

In other news, my company has decided to start a "summer hours" program, where we work an extra hour four days a week and then get to take a full day off every other week. I'm really really excited about this and I've got all sorts of plans for how I'm going to use my days off this summer. It really only amounts to 7 extra days (probably only 5 for me, depending on when Baby Charlie makes his appearance), but I'm looking forward to having the extra time to get some things done and lounge around by the pool. My first day off is this Friday and the forecast is 80 degrees and sunny. I'm planning to clean out the fridge and call some pediatricians in the morning, then head to the pool by 1:00 to do some reading. Fun reading, not school reading. Whee!

Sunday, May 25, 2008

30 Weeks and Everything But The...

30 Week Picture:



As my American Pregnancy Association email reminded me this morning, I'm at the 70 day mark. It sounds like a lot of time but I know it's really not. Luckily, I found the detailed list I painstakingly put together a few weeks back that I managed to lose (I think I blogged about that, but in case you need the recap, I made a very detailed list of everything we need to do before Baby Charlie makes his appearance, including notes from my research, names, phone numbers, all kinds of stuff. In true pregnancy brain form, I lost it the next day) and we made significant progress on the baby's room, so I think we're doing just fine. We found a bookshelf at IKEA that matches the crib and dresser perfectly so we put that together, hung curtains, and did some organizing yesterday. Pictures to follow shortly. It's actually been a productive holiday weekend, but I'm glad I still have tomorrow because I've procrastinated reading for class yet again and I have a presentation to give on the material this Wednesday.

On to the ice cream - unfortunately circumstances led to me once again standing in the freezer section at Kroger cursing whoever decided to scale back the Ben & Jerry's selection. I ended up with "Everything But The..."



Chocolate & Vanilla Ice Creams with HEATH® Bar Chunks, White Chocolatey Chunks, Peanut Butter Cups & Chocolatey-Covered Almonds

Whenever we visit our scoop shops we notice our friends combining their favorite flavors to create cool new combos. And we thought what a great idea! So we took your favorite Ben & Jerry's and swirled them together to invent some twisted new flavors. Now you get more of everything!


Sounded promising, but didn't quite deliver. I'm not a big fan of white chocolate. I know, I should have just ignored this flavor to begin with, but I figured that the other chunks would make up for it. Unfortunately, the white chocolate chunks (which are freaking HUGE) completely dominate the landscape. There are hardly any almonds or heath bars, the two additions I was really looking forward to. The upside of this flavor is that I've discovered that I do like peanut butter cups in my ice cream. It never sounded like something I'd enjoy, so I was pleasantly surprised when I liked the one that ended up in my spoon.

I'll have to start shopping elsewhere if I have any hope of finding 10 more flavors that sound appealing.

Thursday, May 22, 2008

S'Mores

Ham Porter: Hey, you want a s'more?
Smalls: Some more of what?
Ham Porter: No, do you want a s'more?
Smalls: I haven't had anything yet... so how can I have some more of nothing?
Ham Porter: You're killing me, Smalls! These are s'mores stuff. Okay, pay attention. First you take the graham. You stick the chocolate on the graham. Then, you roast the mallow. When the mallow's flaming, you stick it on the chocolate. Then you cover it with the other end. Then, you stuff.

Bonus points to anyone who knows what awesome movie that's from.

Charlie was kind enough to go to the grocery store while I was in class last night, and he picked me up this week's pint of Ben & Jerry's. He decided to go with S'Mores. I've been unable to find a picture of the pint, but while perusing the Vermontians website I found out why.

Here's our fond toast to a notoriously silly refrain that people love repeating, even though some have no idea what it really means. And because even we couldn't help ourselves, we tweaked and re-tweaked this flavor's classic mix of ingredients to make it more irresistibly campy. That way, when you realize you can't get over how fabulous it tastes, you'll understand why you can't shut up about it either. Enjoy, enjoy! Flavor formerly known as "Marsha Marsha Marshmallow."



I don't know why they decided to change things around, I liked it just fine the way it was before. Even odder still, there once was a S'Mores flavor that got a place in the Flavor Graveyard. I guess Marsha Marsha was too old-school for the new generation. Anyway, it's still a tasty treat, but I would prefer actual chunks of graham crackers as opposed to the "graham cracker swirl" that just seems to get lost in the mix. The marshmallow definitely works with the large chunks of chocolate, it's a very satisfying textural experience. Unfortunately, because Charlie bought it for me I have to share. Boo for sharing!

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

29 Weeks

I figured I should post my 29 week picture before too much time passes and I'm at week 30.



In other exciting news, we found out yesterday that Becky & Wesley are having another BOY!! That will make four grandsons, three within a year of each other. I can't wait for family get togethers! They'll never be able to complain about being bored. Congratulations you guys!

Charlie and I were talking last night about my trip and it dawned on me that I had pizza three out of the four nights I was there. Yum! Two nights it was Linden, the best pizza in the world. Doesn't it look tasty? I know you're jealous.



Of course, the pizza doesn't even begin to compare to the wonderful food that my family put together for my baby shower. I don't have time to do it justice right now, so the shower post will have to wait another day.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Minion Visits the Ballpark

If I told you that Andy Pettite struck out three batters in the top of the first and Jeter followed in the second with a 2 run homer you'd probably think that the Yankees played a good game and didn't disappoint me in my last trip to Yankee Stadium. If I said that Giambi and Abreu also hit solo home runs and Pettite struck out a total of 7 batters you'd probably think even more that it must have been a great game to watch. Unfortunately for me and the Minion, you'd be pretty wrong. The Yankees have never lost a game when I've been in the Stadium, and unfortunately they decided that this would be the time to have the wheels fall off. I'm still glad we got to go and had a great time with Auntie Ann. It could have been a good game, close and exciting, but then Girardi decided to put Nuke Farnsworth in for the 7th and he immediately gave up two homers for a total of three earned runs, putting the game all but out of reach. In the interest of maintaining a PG rating I won't tell you how I really feel about him.

Anyway, I'm glad that Baby Charlie got to visit Yankee Stadium, even if he'll never remember it. I even fed him a hot dog.



I hate the look on my face here, but this is how I try to fake smile when the Yankees are down by four runs after Farnsworth implodes. Should have taken the pictures before the game went downhill.

Just because no post about a Yankee game would be complete without a picture of Jeter



In case you're wondering about the progress of the new stadium - it will be beautiful, even though I hate it.

It's Been a Long Time

A whole week - I would have posted during my trip, but it was a busy one. Unfortunately I'm walking into a train wreck at work and I procrastinated reading my book for class so I need to do that at lunch, but I'll catch you up one story at a time. Trip was great, made it back in one piece :)

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

What Brings You Here?

I was playing around with Google Analytics and perusing the list of search terms that bring visitors to my blog. Interestingly, most of the search terms involve food, including some toffee cookies that I've never tried. That is exactly why quotes are your friend when Googling information.

toledo nesties
hair chopped
imagine whirled peace
yankee universe
"cloth diaper samples"
"imagine whirled peace" review
"university of cincinnati"
baby yankees room pictures
ben and jerrys image whirled peace
blog who-cakes
how to make whocakes
ihop whocakes
imagine whirled peace ban and jerry's
imagine whirled peace ben & jerry
imagine whirled peace review
oatmeal cookie chunk
photo alice bearcat
toffee cookies fresh market
vermonty python
whirled peace review
whirled peace review ben jerry
whocakes
yankee diapers
yankees universe hoodie


People have visited my blog from as far away as the UK, Netherlands, France, and Germany, all places, BTW, who have much more family-friendly work policies than we do here. Lucky for you I'm not in the mood to have a sociological family policy debate right now.

Not surprisingly, most of the US hits are from Ohio and the NY/NJ/PA Tri-State area.


As the Ohio map clearly shows, most of my traffic comes from two particular cities - Cincinnati and Toledo:

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I <3 my Toledo Nesties :)

Monday, May 12, 2008

Update from 28 week appointment

Had my glucose test today - that was some seriously nasty stuff to drink. I figured out that if I took a huge gulp then quickly sipped some water after I swallowed the glucola but BEFORE I breathed I wasn't able to taste it. My OB works under the "no news is good news" framework, so here's to hoping that I don't get a phone call with bad test results. The worst part was having to fast for 3 hours before drinking it. My appointments are usually on Monday mornings but they couldn't get me in until 2:00 today. I had to drink the grossness at 1, so it was a loooooong morning and afternoon with no food.



I've actually lost 1/2 pound since my last appointment. No clue how that happened, I feel like I'm eating all the time. I am eating less at each feeding time though, so maybe it's all evening out somehow. They're happy that I don't have any swelling or other issues to speak of. I was given a copy of my medical records, a pamphlet on "Traveling While Pregnant," and instructions to get up and walk around every 45 minutes while waiting at the airport and on the plane, so I'm all set for my trip East. I only hope the Yankees are kind enough to win on Saturday, for what will 99.9% likely be my last trip to THE Yankee Stadium. I'd be so sad if my visits to that hallowed ground ended on a sour note. It's a good thing this isn't a Yankees blog, otherwise you'd need a censor for my language, given the current state of things. That's all I'm going to say about that.

Sunday, May 11, 2008

28 Weeks and an Ice Cream to be Named Later

28 week picture:



No more headless wonder! Also no need to adjust your monitor, yes, I'm a little pink and so is the belly. Yesterday was so beautiful that we sat out on the deck all day and I decided to let the minion get some sun (apparently they can react to light and dark now). I was only out there for a short period of time, but I got a little pink on the belly and in the face. No more snow blinding white skin, though I'm not sure which is worse. I also ended up with my hair chopped off shortly after we took this picture, but that's what I get for being cheap and going to Supercuts. It was getting way too long, hence the perpetual ponytail. Charlie swears it looks ok, but only time will tell.

I didn't get an ice cream today for 3 reasons - one, I haven't finished the last of my Turtle Soup. Two, tomorrow is my glucose test, and why take the chance of not being able to have any ice cream at all for the next 12 weeks? Three, in 4 days I'll be back on the east coast with a whole new freezer section to check out, hopefully including some flavors that aren't available to me here (Magic Brownies, anyone?!?!). I'm planning a sleepover with my sister on Saturday night, so we'll make it a pint night and I'll share it with her and tell you all about it. Whee!

Saturday, May 10, 2008

We Have a Chair

Mom bought me my glider as a combination Mother's Day / Baby present. She and Charlie dragged it up the steps on Thursday night, they were hoping to have it here before I got home from class as a surprise, but I ended up getting home early.

We really like it, it has pockets for "stuff" on the sides, the top of the ottoman comes off for storage, and the whole slipcover is removable and washable. Very convenient!



We need to rethink the layout of the room a bit. I really want the chair by the window, but I'm not sure it's the best location for where everything else would have to go in relation to it. Thankfully we still have 12 weeks to figure it out. In case you're wondering, no, that's not a Yankee maternity shirt, I can still (barely) fit into my Bernie Williams shirt.



I wouldn't have bothered, except for this:



I can't leave the house without equal representation. But we love each other anyway, see? :)

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Pregnancy Haikus

There was a thread on the Nest yesterday about pregnancy haikus, so I thought I'd share my creativity with the rest of you.

1.
I do miss my toes
Painted Margarita Red
One of those sounds good

2.
Cute lil baby bump
Migrated down to my butt
Cellulite - be gone

3.
Ice cold draught Blue Moon
Orange slice floating around
Can't wait till August

4.
My favorite stall
I pee there every hour
Third one on the right

5.
Stretch marks stay away
I've no need for a road map
Know my own way, thanks

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Forgot to Mention

As of Saturday we are officially in the third trimester. On my loooong list of things to do the only one I managed to cross off last week was signing up for the hospital classes. I'd like to think that this week will be more productive, but who am I kidding? I'll already be up late tonight working on my class presentation that's due tomorrow.

I also realized how silly it was to get a pedicure, considering I never get to see my toes anymore, so I took a picture that I can look at every day to see how pretty my feet are.

Monday, May 5, 2008

27 Weeks and Turtle Soup

We had a very nice visit with Charlie's family this weekend. It was great to see everyone and I'm amazed at how big "Little" Marcus has gotten since we saw him after Christmas. He's such a happy, smiley, cuddly baby! It made me even more excited to meet our little minion.

27 week picture:



I took out my belly button ring last week. I was originally going to get a pregnancy piercing but the guy at the piercing shop said it would be a waste of money because I've had it for 10 years. He promised a free re-piercing if it ends up closing. I hope I can just pop a new one right back in, that was some serious pain.

To the ice cream - the selection has really been thinned so this week I decided to go with Turtle Soup.



If you ever needed a reason to come out of your shell, this is it! Our ice cream tribute to turtles includes all the chocolatey-chewy-nutty stuff so classic to turtle cluster treats, sure to soothe just about anybody's cashew yearnings.

Speaking of turtles, Charlie found one in our backyard while he was mowing the lawn yesterday - a cute little box turtle with orange stripes on his shell. He seemed to be upset at being disturbed and hissed at Charlie when he tried to relocate him. Unfortunately I didn't get a picture, but I'm planning on going back out to look for him one evening this week.

Anyway, back to the ice cream. I don't know if this is going to be chocolately enough for me this week, but it's definitely a good combination. I like it that Ben & Jerry include caramel in so many of their ice cream flavors. It's one of the most underrated add-ins. It's even healthy ice cream, because it has cashews, which provide good healthy fats and proteins (never mind the fact that the cashews are drenched in chocolate). I'm sure my OB will be happy to hear it.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Paint on the Walls

Yay for accomplishing something last weekend!

We finished painting Baby Charlie's room and moved the furniture into position. We also hung up two Yankee pictures so he can get his learn on about baseball greatness from an early age :)







We still have a lot to do - need to get the crib mattress, buy a chair, bookshelf, and table lamp, and we'd like to put in a ceiling fan to replace the ugly fixture that's in there right now. I'm going to attempt to sew my own not-ugly tablecloth for the round table, but C is betting heavily against that actually happening :) We also need to get a few more things to hang on the walls. Since we're not going with a themed decor I've decided to get some prints from children's books, so we're going to get scenes from Where the Wild Things Are and Rainbow Fish, and hopefully one or two more that we haven't been able to decide on yet. There are just so many great children's books that we've both loved for so many years that it's hard to choose.

We're going to Cleveland this weekend to visit Heather, Marcus, and Baby Marcus, then hitting up the outlet mall on the way home. I'm also working on a side project that has me pretty swamped until next Friday, so don't fret if I don't get to the weekly picture or ice cream of the week this Sunday.

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