The Race is ON!

Ready! Set! GO?

The race is ON! Alright so maybe the race really began back in December when we learned I was pregnant but now we're racing to the finish line at full speed. And the reminders are everywhere.

Seriously I can't leave the house and run into someone without hearing the following comments: "You're ready to pop!", "Any day now you're going to have that baby", "Better get ready, he's coming." Hello? Do you think between my duck waddle, the persistent and feistier kicking and the doctor's appointments once a week that I've forgotten and need these reminders?

I'm going to make it a point to never say to anyone, friend, acquaintance, total stranger, "you're about to pop!." It doesn't matter if you don't mean anything by it, when you're big and have been dealing with all of the symptoms that come with being pregnant you just don't want someone to remind you.

But with the clock ticking, the calendar days passing by and the constant reminders we're rushing around making sure we're ready. Wait, maybe that's incorrect, the only one running around like a crazy person making lists, packing bags, taking inventory is me. I seriously think my husband is in denial. Just like when we had our daughter, 21 months ago, and I was settling into the hospital room, the nurse asked him so are you ready to be a dad? (and thought are you giving him an option, because its kind of too late for that) and I hear him say, "it really hasn't sunk in yet."

So....we're at the hospital, my water had broken a few hours before, contractions were 3 minutes apart and, what hasn't sunk in? I guess its just different for men. But this time around I would think the reality would be hovering around him like those pesky summer flies.

I mean it seems like I'm the only one with any sense of urgency. This is normal right? It does make life easier if all of the clothes are washed and organized, the bottles are sterilized and stored for easy access, diapers are on the changing table with wipes and accessories, hospital bags are packed, the swing is down from the attic and in place. Or have I become obsessed?

Speaking of obsessed...have any of you, if any of you are reading this, found that this "nesting phenomenon" also creates a need to shop? I find myself scoping out the latest baby products, buying extra swaddle blankets, wash cloths, bottles, pacifiers, nipples etc. And I'm amazed and the new producst that have been introduced in just the last 21 months since we had our little girl.

Don't misunderstand, I'm not buying just for the sake of shopping. I'm going through her things and seeing what we needed that we didn't have for her, re-stocking items like diapers, wipes, etc. And as I'm buying, ordering, organizing, I'm also dreaming of putting away the maternity clothes and getting rid of them.

So are we ready? Do we really have three weekends left? I remember being pregnant with MC and everyone focused on the due date. But here I am at 36 weeks and this time people keep reminding me the "baby will be here anyday."

Any day? Well then I will spend today continuing to get the nursery, the house and my family ready for his arrival. But are you ever really ready?

It's Not Easy Being Green or Preggo

It's not easy being green or preggo and for some people like me, they are one in the same on most days. And while this pregnancy has been a bigger challenge than my first, I'm so very grateful that we are expecting our second child. There are so many things and reasons to be grateful for, but there are also the side effects and complications that plague me which just come with my body handling pregnancy.

We're thankful God blessed us with another child without having to go through the draining, complicated and expensive process of fertility treatments. We're blessed that our ultrasounds and doctor's appointments have been full of good news. Both of us are ecstatic that in August we will have a family of four, with a son and a daughter or family of 6 as my hubby likes to say because he counts our dogs too. I'm grateful that I'm not confined to a bed or having certain restrictions to follow.

However, being preggo puts a tremendous strain on my body. I'm unable to work a full/part-time job other than being a SAHM Mom to my 18 month old rambunctious toddler. I can't walk for miles or work-out everyday. And while I am exercising my willpower to be more disciplined about what and how much I eat there are days when I crave junk and give in to the cravings. I don't sleep well, have frequent, vivid nightmares and need at least 1 nap per day. Between rampant hormones and vitamin deficiencies I get weak, dizzy, woozy and sometimes very afraid when experiencing these symptoms and prefer not to be alone.

The Braxton Hicks started early and will continue to plague me at various times throughout the remainder of my pregnancy. I have no bladder capacity and know where every public restroom within 10 miles of my house is located. I don't glow, I'm not toned and in shape and being pregnant does not make me beautiful. By the end of the day I'm exhausted, grumpy, hungry and not much fun to be around.

BUT these symptoms are not my fault. Given a choice I'd love to have the energy and ability to work a job while pregnant, to exercise almost every day and stay thin and toned, to clean the house, cook dinner and teach my child to read while eliminating the need to nap, run back and forth to the bathroom and eat frequent small meals. But no one has offered me that choice.

So I'll do the best I can everyday. I'll wake up and hope I have enough energy to care for and entertain my little girl. Chores and tasks will be completed as my time and body allows. And I'll try not to complain too much about the contractions, the nausea, exhaustion, swelling, compulsions, etc.

Here's what I ask of you: please don't blame me for being sick, I didn't order morning sickness and don't enjoy it nor have any control over it

-don't offer me pie, cake and cookies every time you see me and remind me "I'm eating for 2", those pounds have to come back off after the baby and that's not easy

- don't say you weren't meant to have children or "well I guess you shouldn't have any more because you don't do pregnant well", again this is not something I have any control over and those are my decisions not yours

-don't compare me to yourself and how you worked 40 hours a week on your feet even on your due date and were just fine, that just makes me feel like a failure and then I push my body to do more which can lead to problems

I'm writing this because I know I'm not the only one that wants to have the perfect pregnancy but instead feels like they're struggling to get through the days and the stages. We'd all like to have the perfect pregnancy but please don't blame us if we don't but instead support and encourage us to enjoy the good days, rest on the bad and be grateful for the experience.

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.