Week 5 - Just finding out the big news!

It is crazy looking back at how small the baby was and how large (s)he is now! It is fun knowing how much closer we are to meeting baby now too! So this is fun to be able to to go back re-post these 12 weeks later!

Size of the baby?  

Orange/Apple Seed, teeny tiny.

Total Weight Gain/Loss?  

starting weight so, yay, up zero. I'm sure that will be the last time I get to say that for 9 months. 

Maternity Clothes?  

Nothing yet!

Stretch marks?  

Nothing yet! I am going to start oiling up that belly ASAP though.  

Best Moments?  

Telling Ross the big news! Even better that I got to do it on Father's Day! It was also one of the last days in our first home so it was fun to have one last really special memory there!

Movement? 

Nope, a long way to go for that!

Food Cravings?  

No, but everything is starting to smell, like a lot. And I no longer want breakfast foods, ever. I want lunch right away.

Anything making you queasy or sick? 

Last week I was on a lot of elevators which made me really woozy.  

What I miss?  

Summer shandy, and the champagne we bought to celebrate moving into our new house this week.

What I'm looking forward to?  

Telling our family and friends, and getting to finally post this post!

Nausea/Vomiting?  

Nope. 

Symptoms? 
I can smell EVERYTHING! I couldn't even read the paper yesterday because it was too smelly! The day I was supposed to get my last period I was sure it was coming all day and night because I had cramps just like I normally do, but it never came...I am crying at the tip of a hat though. I cry about everything. That's new for me. I am not a crier and don't like it one bit!

Labor signs?  

Clearly not... 

Gender? 

We have decided to find out. I don't want to tell anyone else though and Ross does.

Belly Button In or Out?  
Innie, hopefully forever!

Wedding rings On or Off?  

On, but tight already.

Sleep?  

I totally have insomnia, I hope that goes away because it is tiring. I haven't gotten the sleepies yet like they say you do in the first trimester, so I'm sure that is coming. I also haven't had some of the other symptoms like the tender breasts. 

Wisdom?
I bawled when I told Ross about the baby. I was so scared and exhausted from keeping the secret that everything just finally came out. I am so lucky that Ross is just such a perfect husband and totally had me comforted and back to normal in no time!

Oh Baby - Week 16

Now that the cat is out of the bag I can finally post my weekly bumpdates. I will do two per week until I'm caught up to the current week. 

Total Weight Gain:
Not sure, but up a couple for sure. This belly is growing by the day!

Maternity clothes:
Just bought some this week! We stopped at two Motherhood maternity stores and I loaded up on tops. I am not ready to buy pants yet.  Holy crap maternity clothes are spendy!!

Stretch Marks:
Nope.

Best moments:
Getting to tell all my girlfriends in person, finally! It took us awhile to get together but it was worth the wait!

Movement:
Nope, any day now though! I can't wait for that moment. All the former preggos I talk to tell me that's the one thing they miss after labor so I hope I get to experience it soon!

Food Cravings:
Not really anything that I can think of. But I did polish off two pieces of cake at my friend Jenni's wedding this weekend!

Food Aversions:
Nope.

What I miss:
WINE! Jenni's wedding was wine themed and they had it flowing by the bottle. It was devastating not to be able to partake.

Nausea/Vomiting:
Nope!

Symptoms:
Back aches but nothing I can't deal with.

Labor signs:
No, thank goodness

Gender:
Two weeks until the big ultrasound!

Belly Button:
Innie.

Wedding Rings:
Getting much tighter. I am also getting a nice rash from the tightness. Thank you very much.

Sleep:
Not too bad. My back hurts if I sleep on it too long.

Wisdom:
Track down everyone you want to tell on your own time. Some people feel comfortable telling right away (which I probably will next time) but I definitely wanted to wait until the second trimester. I was just so nervous about miscarrying that I wanted to be sure before telling the world. It is really hard to feel pregnant when you don't really have the traditional "symptoms" of pregnancy. So I waited. Now I have a feeling that this baby is being super easy on me and maybe my body just likes being pregnant, I don't know.

Also, buy a clarasonic. I had one before getting pregnant but hadn't used it for a couple months because it needed a new brush head. I got one a couple weeks ago and it is MAGIC for my pregnant skin. It cleared up most of my acne in a jiff!

Also, I started going back to the gym this week and it was the other best decision I have made for this pregnancy. It gives you so much more energy and makes your ever expanding body feel so much better.

Sunshines and Creeps

• Sunshine to a short week! I can't wait to leave for our friend's house on Friday and for a really special wedding on Saturday! 
• Creep to getting some really sad news last night.
• Creep to washing my sheets and finding my phone in there with them when I went to put them in the dryer. There could be no worse noise on the face of the earth than a loud thunk in a washer full of sheets and knowing instantly what it was. (But praying to God, seriously I did, that it was the TV remote and not my irreplaceable iPhone)
• Sunshine to the lack of phone causing me to get crazy amounts of sorting done and getting through a lot of the boxes in the garage. I have a few left. I thought I put away all my shoes, but Ross pulled out another bag. This woman has too many shoes!
• Creep to the lack of phone meaning I couldn't make my really wanted trip to Fargo to see Kristen, Josh and Caleb. That was a real bummer.
• Sunshine to this weekend, seriously I couldn't be more excited. It will be the first weekend seeing my friends in too long and the first weekend with my hubby in over a month! I am chomping at the bit for Friday already!

Oh Baby Week 13

Total Weight Gain:
No weight gain.

Maternity clothes:
Just the normal clothes, and they're fitting almost the same.

Stretch Marks:
Nope.

Best moments:
Getting to tell my Aunt Candy and Grandma. That was lots of fun. I had to do it over the phone but it was still a fun moment.

Movement:
Nada

Food Cravings:
Nothing really.

Food Aversions:
Still just meat, or anything too heavy

What I miss:
I could have gone for some actual sushi this week. We went out with friends and I had to settle for the California roll instead of the delicious regular sushi I get.

Nausea/Vomiting:
Pretty Good this week. Nothing to speak of.

Symptoms:
My legs seem to be getting swollen a lot more lately.

Labor signs:
Nope

Gender:
Getting closer...We find out September 21 (How is that for an anniversary gift)

Belly Button:
Innie, but starting to look a little distorted.

Wedding Rings:
On!

Sleep:
Still just kind of sleeping on and off all night.

Wisdom:
I have given up on my pregnancy apps and books and just have been doing what feels right (or  good) because it was getting to be too stressful to try to keep up with the "recommended diet" etc. I found it made me worry all the time. I have been so much better off now that I just go with things and just try not to overdo anything. It is easy to overload on information when you're preggers and it just isn't worth it when you stop enjoying yourself and the experience.

Sunshines and Creeps

• Sunshine to my hubby and I going on a lunch date to get new driver's licenses. And he paid ;) The joys of moving!
• Sunshine to the beautiful weather this week! It has made it easier to get outside for exercise but harder to be at work all day!
• Creep to my Sophie baby being sick last night and this morning. She is just like a sick kid who just wants to snuggle with mama when she isn't feeling good.
• Creep to the week ahead, Ross warned me his work schedule is about to get even worse :(
• Creep to all of my non-work commitments all starting up again this week. It has been busy and will get even busier from here on out!
• Sunshine to September coming up! I have something every weekend but they're all fun stuff!
• Sunshine to venting to my best girlfriends this week. It was much needed!

Happy Weekend!

Sunshines and Creeps

• Sunshine to a beautiful week this week. The weather is cooling down and it is finally nice enough to be outside again!
• Sunshine to closing on our old townhouse today...FINALLY! (also, creep to being very sad to see it go. we had a lot of amazing times there, after all it is where Ross and I met, and where I brought my Sophie baby home to) but DOUBLE Sunshine to the new owner, she is wonderful and I hope we stay in contact because she and her whole family are wonderful!
• Creep to staying out too late last night and being very tired this morning, BUT sunshine to getting to go to a very fun Shriner's parade with Ross's friend Disa and their 5 children (yup 5, they have quadruplets!)
• Sunshine to a fun weekend ahead, we are going out with Disa and her hubby Trevor for his birthday tomorrow. We are headed to a Japanese hibatchi grill and the Bourne movie after. 
• Sunshine to Ross & my dad blowing insulation in our garage attic last weekend, it is SO much cooler in there now. Creep to how much that cost, plus we bought our garage heater so we're in the poor house now!
• Creep to not seeing Ross & my pups enough lately. Now that summer is winding down, sadly, all of my meetings are coming back in full force and I am one busy gal! 
• Sunshine to a fun September coming up! Ross and I are headed to a friend's wedding on the 8th and then to MSP later in the month to see the Yankees take on the Twins and to celebrate our anniversary! I can't believe he has been mine for a whole year already! We have had a great year...

Fried Green Tomatoes

Golden fried deliciousness

Last night I made Ross and I some fried green tomatoes. These take me back to nights at the farm with grandma frying them up in her skillet outside (just by the dinner bell to be exact).

I have attempted these before but have never really been overly successful. Last night that all changed! I found a great recipe here and they turned out great.

I would say that you need to schedule lots of time to do these because you can only put 4 in at a time. I would also tell you not to plan to do this in an electric skillet on your deck when it is starting to rain outside, this will result in you holding an umbrella over your electric skillet so your house and deck don't burn down in an electrical fire (and also you looking like an idiot because you will have to stare at the wall of your house holding an umbrella while your neighbors look on.)

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 4 large green tomatoes
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 quart vegetable oil for frying

Directions

1. Slice tomatoes 1/2 inch thick. Discard the ends.
2. Whisk eggs and milk together in a medium-size bowl. Scoop flour onto a plate. Mix cornmeal, bread crumbs and salt and pepper on another plate. Dip tomatoes into flour to coat. Then dip the tomatoes into milk and egg mixture. Dredge in breadcrumbs to completely coat.
3. In a large skillet, pour vegetable oil (enough so that there is 1/2 inch of oil in the pan) and heat over a medium heat. Place tomatoes into the frying pan in batches of 4 or 5, depending on the size of your skillet. Do not crowd the tomatoes, they should not touch each other. When the tomatoes are browned, flip and fry them on the other side. Drain them on paper towels.