Best if Delivered By....

You know how you have a pantry full of items, ketchup, mustard, soup, jello that all have stamps that read "best if used by" and then there's a date printed next....well I feel like I'm walking around with a big stamp on my belly that reads "Best if delivered by x/x/xxxx."

And maybe it would be better if we did have a date that was a deliver by date instead of a "due date." You know my belly button is popping out like those meat thermometers that pop out of your Thanksgiving turkey when its done...does that mean I'm done?

Considering, none of my clothes fit comfortably and/or cover all of me, including my maternity collection, walking, sleeping, sitting and standing are monumental events; getting dressed requires assistance, these all seem like indications that its time to deliver this baby and give me my body back.

Of course this is my second child and I now know that you don't actually get your body back, not the original, no you get the "rental car version" you know the kind that might look like the original in some ways but has a lot more miles on it and probably experienced some extremes during the rental.

Currently, I feel like my body has been taken over by a body snatcher. We go to the doctor today and due to the size of the baby he's planning on inducing in a few days, because "its best if I'm delivered by...."

So what am I feeling? Relief, exhaustion, fear, panic, excitement, denial and everything in between. I would have though that with this being our second child the emotions wouldn't be as intense, the fear of delivery would be less and we'd feel more prepared, but there are times when I feel less prepared. And these emotions hit you like a hurricane, they slam into you and then they swirl around and continue to rain like the aftermath of the storm.

We are blessed. We are so lucky to have a healthy toddler and in the next three days we'll have a baby. Plus, we're lucky enough to be blessed with a boy and a girl, the best of both worlds.

Morning Sickness a Total Misnomer

If you ask me about being pregnant I'll tell you I fear and loathe the symptoms. Well maybe not all of the symptoms, but definitely morning sickness. Morning sickness is a total misnomer and a cruel joke for women that become pregnant and expect to be glowing and beautiful.

I intend to tell the truth about pregnancy. Although, if someone had tole me the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth about pregnancy, well, I might have missed out on the greatest joy of my life, MC and being a parent.

Morning sickness for me is a 24/7 experience, a traumatic experience. Now, for some this is me being melodramatic, but my friends know that I don't do "sick" very well. And that means any kind of sick, a fever, earache, cold, anything that lasts more than 24 hours and I'm ready to be done with it. BUT nausea and vomiting, I'm afraid of those symptoms. I can't stand to be nauseous and well once the hurling has begun, I get scared. I don't really have an explanation for the fear, but its real and its present.

I have friends that ask, "what's morning sickness like?" Well that question is almost impossible to answer because if you haven't experienced it then you can't understand it. I remember my mom saying she had morning sickness with me and again with my brother and that she was miserable, experiencing symptoms for each of the nine months. And now that I know what she's experienced, I wonder why I wasn't an only child.

Morning sickness should be called the "pregnancy curse." Its worse than PMS, its worse than Aunt Flo, its worse than my worst hangover. And as of right now there's not currently a drug that is totally safe for you and your unborn child that will make the symptoms go away.

When I was pregnant with MC, I felt like I had a bad case of the flu for three months. I spent most of the time on the couch, staying as still as possible, hoping that if I didn't move I wouldn't be sick. And then I realized that if I ate every 2 hours like clockwork then I could keep the nausea and vomiting in check. But I couldn't eat just anything, it had to be french fries, or small McDonald's burgers, or plain waffles, some cereal, etc. My husband would always ask me if I was sure that's what I wanted when I'd send him on a Mickey D run for the burgers. You see I never eat Mickey D's. I would joke that eating anything from McDonald's was a definite confirmation I was pregnant.

But this time around, we're at the seven week mark and well what worked before isn't working this time. I can eat every two hours and still be sick. I've tried ginger ale, coke without ice, saltines, etc. but nothing seems to work. And unlike before I'm having cravings. Yesterday, I wanted a chicken breast from Popeye's and strawberries. Oh and I wanted them right away. Strange.

With MC the morning sickness had disappeared by around week 14 and life was easier. I'm hoping that it will disappear sooner this time or that I'll discover a way to master it, the one things that will keep it in check and make the next 7 weeks bearable.

If you're reading this and think you have a solution, well by all means share, even if it doesn't cure my problem, maybe it will help someone else with theirs.

MIB-Missing in Blogosphere

Alright, so the number of blogs I post decreased and then just ceased pretty suddenly, and I guess some people figure I've given up, ran out of things to write about, went out and got a life or just got swallowed by the black hole lurking in the blogosphere.

Nope, none of the above. If I'd won the lottery, it would have been posted within minutes of confirming my win. And if I had gotten a life, well I'd need to blog about it to someone. Me, run out of things to write or talk about, not likely.

Instead I've become victim to the first trimester of pregnancy. Now, please don't misunderstand, I'm ecstatic we're expecting our second child. But it seems the fatigue and morning sickness have run me over like a bulldozier. One minute I was happy, active pregnant woman taking joy in my ability to remain active and exercising and then BAM! I'm sick, exhausted and down for the count.

Today, I'm feeling slightly more energetic and hope that will continue and I can resume blogging at least once a day. While you'll find me talking more about my pregnancy in an effort to document this experience for my little one, something I didn't do very well for MC, I'll also try to keep other topics going and regain a focus on saving money and bargain hunting.

Thank you for your patience, support and loyalty during my absence.