A Couple Quick Notes...

1. Something you probably didn't know about pregnancy unless you've been pregnant before:

"Blood Volume increases progressively from 6-8 weeks gestation (pregnancy) and reaches a maximum at approximately 32-34 weeks with little change thereafter... Hormonal changes to the mucosal vasculature of the respiratory tract lead to capillary engorgement and swelling of the lining in the nose, oropharynx, larynx, and trachea. Symptoms of nasal congestion, voice change and upper respiratory tract infection may prevail throughout gestation. " (from Oxford College site)
What that means to regular people is this...bloody snot (as my friend Sheena calls it) or sometimes bloody noses. This was a huge problem for me in early pregnancy since few things increase nausea like the faint taste of blood in the back of your throat. Ewww.

Yesterday, however, it became a different problem. My in-laws gave me a gift card to Old Navy for my birthday and I decided to go there after scouts looking for a swim suit. While in the dressing room in a swim top and totally different bottoms (over my regular undies) I got a bloody nose. Normally this is not a problem because I usually have a tissue or six in my bag. No tissues in my bag. No small pieces of paper. No anything! I am standing in the Old Navy dressing room trying to stop my nose from bleeding all over clothes I don't own. Finally I had to use my black shirt I had been wearing that day to hold against my nose and wipe myself off. It was disgusting, especially since I had to wear that shirt after I changed back out of the swim suits. So fun.

2. As noted in the story above, I went to Old Navy yesterday and there I found out they are having a sale on all dresses and skirts making them $15!!! Old Navy is where I got my flow-y purple dress we used in the preggo pictures. If you are pregnant or freakishly tall and skinny (the only 2 groups of people who look good in that style of dress) you should go pick one up.
3. An addendum to the story about Greek/Roman Fashion Show. I've been thinking about that year of school ever since I wrote that story yesterday. That was also the year I was really skinny and some girls were just starting to actually look like girls. I remember praying the following:

I would rather be a little chubby and have boobs and nice knees (for some reason knees were really important to me that year) than to stay skinny with little boobs and knobby knees. Ahhh the issues that come with getting what you asked for.

Donatello

Ok quick note: We went to White Water Bay for Nate's birthday and I am planning on posting about it but I haven't got the pics from my sister, Beezer, yet. So stay tuned...
In other news, last night Nate had to run to the store really quick and asked if I wanted anything. I told him I wanted a snow cone. He brought me back a huge cup full of freezy ice stuff and syrup. It was like 8 times what I expected but really good. It was green apple and I got a purple straw so Nate told me it was the Donatello snow cone- he's so funny some times.
We'll move on to bed time when I'm brushing my teeth. I'm trying to do an extra good job because I had a dental appt. scheduled for 8am this morning. One problem...my tongue is still green no matter how hard I scrub it! I was seriously a little stressed I was going to have to go to the dentist with a green tongue.
Luckily this morning my tongue was back to normal color. :)

PS Had to throw in this pic I found while looking for Donatello drawings. Super cute!!!

Peanut

Ok these are so blasted cute!

Whoo hoo!!!

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON trailer in HD

Hot and Fat

Ok so I feel like I've been ranting a lot lately and I swear it's less out of anger and more out of laziness- I can't get up the energy to write unless I'm really irritated. So if you're tired of my whing-iness feel free to skip this post, I won't be offended...

I am all about people not judging so much on looks. As you can tell from my previous entries I don't think anyone but your doctor, and possibly a very brave spouse, should have anything to say about your weight ever.

I grew up with a naturally skinny mom who made tons of comments about my weight and how she wishes I had gotten her skinny body type. I remember a time when my friend's step-dad made some comment about me being fat and when I told him to shut up my mom took his side and told me I couldn't see my friend again until I apologized to him (this was the first big example of my stubbornness being way greater than my mom ever expected- I never did apologize to him and my friend and I are still very much friends). I remember an aunt sending me a letter my first year of college telling me she had seen recent pictures and to watch out, because I was getting really fat.

Guess what...none of these comments ever made a difference on my weight. I definitely felt worse about myself but I didn't get skinnier. The skinniest I've ever been was when I worked hard to eat good food because I liked it and I found exercising I enjoyed. I didn't weigh myself and I ignored every comment made to me about weight or my looks- even by well-meaning friends/family. I was at my healthiest and happiest.

Note to well-meaning friends/family: You're don't help. Fat people know they're fat. There's a reason they're not skinny. It could be laziness or glandular or snacking or hate of exercise etc but they know.

However to get on with my hypocrisy I share the following:

There's an older lady at work I really struggle with. She talks loudly and constantly. She has to 'know' everyone like those people in LA who always 'know' this or that D-list star. And I'm constantly having to listen to totally inane stories about her kids's finances, her husband leaving her several years ago and then coming back, the food she ate, her 2nd job work schedule etc. She drives me crazy!

The other thing she constantly complains about is the heat in the office. The lady behind me has a space heater under her desk year-round, all the other women wear thick sweaters and I wear a sweater daily and have a blanket on my legs. And yet she complains about how hot she is. Guess why she's hot??? Because she's fat. She has plenty of insulation to keep her warm while the rest of the office is freezing.

That is my hypocrisy. Every time I'm wrapped up (while pregnant mind you) in a blanket and sweater at my desk and she complains about being hot I want to tell her to either shut up or lose some weight.

Now I know I'm a bad person and now you know I'm a bad person but somehow I feel better.

Dancing in the car with Peanut...

Peanut loves this song so we listen to it on the way home from work a lot.

Jamiroquai - Canned Heat

Can't Figure Out How to Say it Aloud???

My sister, Hilly, sent me a link to this site. Awesome!

Why thank you for your kind observations...

Last night while at church a woman asked me how far along I was. I told her that I was just over 20 weeks. She looked slightly confused so I clarified that I was around 5 months along. She then asked when I was due and proceeded to look confused as if the math wasn't right (1st note- I'm not an idiot I know how far along I am and when I'm due). She then made some gesture to my belly and asked if' I "was sure there's only one in there" (Note 2- of course I'm sure we've had 2 ultrasounds...oh I get it, you're just telling me you think I'm fatter than I should be- well thanks for the information). My mother-in-law made some supportive comment about how I just show more because I'm short waist-ed (Note 3- she's nice). I walked away a little taken aback but by the end of the night I was really irritated. Why does any person other than my doctor think they have any business talking to me about my weight? (Note 4- just so you know I have not gained too much weight. In fact I'm still under what I'm supposed to have gained and my doctor is paying close attention. Only the fact that I made progress this last month kept me from getting the stern talking to at my visit Wednesday that I got the month before).
Later that evening another girl at church who's just about 2 weeks behind me in pregnancy said she was glad I was showing because it made her feel better about the fact she's showing so much. Apparently she's getting plenty of well-meaning health comments from people too. So ...

Dear People Other Than a Pregnant Woman's Current Doctor,

I don't care what your opinion on my weight is. I don't care what your opinion on how much I'm showing is- unless of course, you want to tell me how beautiful I am as I carry another human around on my 5'3" frame. This applies to you whether you are or have been: a mother, a doctor, a nurse, President of the US, an aunt, an uncle, a friend of some girl that got really fat when she was pregnant, a friend of some girl who stayed really skinny when she was pregnant, an avid triathlete, a dietrician, etc. I have a doctor and nurse I pay who weigh me every month and are monitoring my growth. They will let me know if there is a problem. Thank you for your concern but learn to shut your mouth. I assume you are also the same people who will try to tell me, unsolicited, how to raise my children. Just stop now- I am uninterested in what you have to say.


I must now come up with a standard phrase to deal with these comments. I'm thinking something like:
Or
Blog Readers you are welcome to weigh in...

Save me from little boys...

Why is it since the minute I found out I was having a boy that all little boys I've encountered have been much more annoying?
Seriously I'm usually pretty easy going about most things little boys do- I like bugs and snakes spiders and slimy animals, I don't care if they get dirty as long as they don't mind me spraying them with a hose, doesn't matter to me where they wipe their buggers as long as it's not on my person, complaining about hunger leads me to tell them things like 'eating grass is totally healthy for 7 year olds', I think sticking out your tongue is funny etc. This lack of care has helped me deal with Cub Scouts when I really have no idea what I'm doing.
However, since I found out I'm pregnant with a boy, every little boy has gone out of his way to annoy me. I have 2 things I still have very little patience with- whining and rude comments (especially to me). Look I lived through Jr. High; I shouldn't have to hear any brat kids say rude things to me.
Last night it was as if every boy I ran into exemplified these two characteristics. They were all whiny and rude. One little boy literally asked dumb people to raise their hands and then came over to me and raised my hand. Is it natural that it was only pregnancy laziness that kept me from smacking him while standing in the church kitchen?
I remember once a kid at our house was being quite a jerk to everyone. At one point he came up behind me and put me in a choke hold. I leaned forward and pulled on his body and he ended up on the ground on his back. He didn't give me much sass after that. What age difference makes that unacceptable? Can I do it now? I really think little boys would be nicer to me once I got to pound them a time or two- after all it worked on my sisters when they were younger...

Friendship more interesting than Romance

Don't make fun but I got super excited when I saw this poster. New Moon was probably my favorite book in the series. Even though Bella was at her whiny-ist I was just so excited to explore a different relationship than the of-course-they're-going-to-get-together-in-the-end romance. I can't help it. While I knew Edward and Bella were going to end up together I preferred the happy Jacob to the brooding Edward- my choice of husband is proof of that. I know in the movie they'll up-play the 5 minutes Edward was in the story but I'm excited anyway.

Songs I'm in the Mood for:

Counting Crows - Round Here


For the Live version- very excellent but long go here.

I know I stole this from Juno but it's the song I sing to Peanut when we're driving home.

Cat Power - Sea of Love

from Not Always Right...

why do I find this soooooo funny???

Unhappily Ever After

Call Center | Maryland, USA

Caller: “I want to check the status of my form to withdrawal my account.”

Me: “I’m sorry Sir, but you gave conflicting information on the form. In the section where it asked if you were married, you marked both ‘Yes’ and ‘No’.’

Caller: “…and?”

Me: “Well, sir, that is conflicting information, so it was kicked out of the system.”

Caller: “So, what should I mark?”

Me: “Well, are you married or not?”

Caller: “I’m married… but I don’t like her.”

Me: “It sounds like you’re separated, but just to check, are you legally married?”

Caller: “Yes, but I don’t feel like I’m married.”

Me: “If you aren’t legally divorced, you’ll need to mark that you are married.”

Caller: “But I don’t LIKE her!”

Yes I am fat...

It's true. You try squeezing a fetus into around 3 inches of space from your belly button to bikini line. There is no where for him to go except out. I don't mind much though- he hasn't moved into my lung area yet. :). So here are some pics:

Yes, he does seem to be saying, "Look what I did"

You tell me that if life was fair I would be the one carrying this child!

This is what happens when I asked Nate to do a picture of him *kissing* the belly/baby:

Yes it's true- we're pretty happy about the whole thing.

You Got It Going On

Just in the mood for this song. You got it going on!

Hump Day

It's my Pregnancy Hump Day!!! I am halfway through (assuming due date correctness) my pregnancy. Whoo hoo. It's been fun so far- with all the vomiting and wetting my pants and ultrasounds and cravings and exhaustion and being kicked from the inside.

We went from this... to this... to this... I can only imagine it gets better and I'm ready for it!

As a special treat I have provided a fractions worksheet for you to complete. Just print it out and enjoy. You know you want to spend 5 minutes doing math you actually understand- if you need help ask the nearest 6 year old. Have fun!!!

And they eat me...

Still regularly covered in the bug bites symptomatic of a Californian living in Oklahoma. Randomly wondering if all this bug saliva in my blood will lead the child to be extra allergic to bugs or totally oblivious to them the rest of his life...

Need to remember to find this (it's the only thing that works without covering myself in DEET):

Happy Mother's Day!!!

For Mother's Day this year Gibson gave me my first definite poke in the gut. He proceeded to do it several times Sunday, a couple times yesterday and pretty much all this morning. Nate seemed concerned when I poked back- but you have to start discipline early! (just kidding it was just more fun to poke back). I have a feeling when this gets stronger it won't be nearly as cute.

Nathaniel Gibson Mitchell

everything looked good although he was moving around a ton so it was hard to get the important pics like to see the 4 chamber heart and kidneys etc. :)

New Background Corresponds to Certain Announcement...

It's a Boy!!!

pictures to come...

Totally Rational

Yesterday Nate asked me if I wanted to go to the town council meeting. And, if I didn't, if I would mind him going. I answered with uncontrollable crying. Good thing I'm completely rational and not suffering from any crazy pregnancy hormones...

(PS Don't worry I calmed down, we compromised and had a very nice evening)