Mama Said There'd be Days Like This...

Well, my Mom would be much more likely to say something like "buck up and stop whining". After playing phone tag with my OB, it turns out that I have a bladder infection (and have since last Wed). I guess the good news for this is that there is a REASON I have been feeling pretty off all week and that there is modern medicine to help me recover quickly:)

It is a grey and gloomy day here in Chicago so I plan on diving in to Starbucks on the way to my first kid. Still contemplating if I am going to get a shower in today..... I did not sleep well last night (yeah heartburn!) and Allan is gone till Friday night at a conference in St Louis. I hope he gets to see Game 7 and a hometown win! On other happy news, River is still "recovering" from boy's weekend with Allan and is flatulant with gastric distress - to put it mildly. I guess it is time to get both of our systems back on track for the weekend!

East Coast Baby Shower/32 weeks

I was in NOVA (Northern Virginia) this past weekend for my "East Coast Baby Shower" which was hosted by my Aunt Edith and cousins Elizabeth and Sarah. My Aunt Edith lives in a beautiful house on the Chesapeake Bay. I loved everything from the invitations (shaped like baby bibs) to the food to the company. There were no games (thank goodness) but an activity where people wrote messages on diapers for Allan and I to read while changing the baby at 2:00am. I am sure the diapers and messages will come in handy in the near future!

It was fun to see family and friends that I don't see as often since I live in the midwest. I am constantly amazed by the generosity of my family and friends. It is overwhelming to me at times how much I have received in the past year. I have always tried to be honestly generous with my time and money, this year, I feel that generosity has come back to me tenfold. Feeling truly blessed may be the biggest gift of all. My only real regret is that I did not get a picture of myself with my hostesses. Instead I am going to post one of me and my desserts!:)

The other major highlight of the weekend was seeing my sister's new house in Arlington. To say that I have house envy is an understatement, but I am going to work to be happy with what I have (which is A LOT).

My parents left for two weeks in Paris the night of my shower and I am thrilled that they are spending time in such a fabulous city. If I could have a second home anywhere in the world, it would be in Paris. Love, love, love.

In other pregnancy news, I gained a pound this week (as of 10/25) and am up to 14lbs gained for the pregnancy. I changed OB's and feel really comfortable with my new choice. After seeing my medical records from my previous OB, I am considering my options. At best, there was some negligence involved and I need to do some research on where to direct a letter. I know that nothing will happen for me, but if something happens to someone else in the future, I want my concerns to be on record. Even with scripts for zofran prescribed by the new Dr. I am still sick almost every other day an have issues with nausea. At this point, I figure I can deal with 8 more weeks.

Rainy Thursday

Not much going on. Worked like a dog yesterday, still working to get over this cold, lost 2lbs since Monday. grrrrrr Off to work on my indoor "to do" list. grrrrrr

Juice for Dinner

So it might look gross, but I am sick of wasting produce and was not in the mood to eat anything for dinner tonight. Since drinking is easer than eating, I decided to make some juice. The above was made with a few apples, two lemons, a few apples, a bunch of carrots and some leftover lettuce. The good news is that I have enough for breakfast tomorrow, I am getting in fruits and veggies, somewhat cleaned out the fridge and am feeding "the dean"!

I'd like to get some 30 week pictures to post but Allan has been MIA lately (leaving before I get out of bed and coming home after I am in bed). While this is not hard given how much I am sleeping, I hope to get him, me and a camera in the same room tomorrow!

Monday/30 weeks

Yeah Monday!

I need to learn to get up with Allan in the morning when I am "up". While I think I did a lot today and am pretty happy with everything, I wish I had gotten up with him and gotten EVEN more done!:) The good news is that the house is ready for the cleaning lady tomorrow.

Did some errands, saw some kids, normal Monday. The bummer is that I only gained .02lbs this week. I am now on the VERY low end of weight gain for the pregnancy. I hope to gain a pound this week to stay on track. The baby is kicking a lot though and my stomach is getting lots bigger so I guess all is well.

The highlight was dinner with my neighbor A. We walked into the square and had dinner at Trattoria Trullo. With the help of my trusty zofran, I ate a piece of bread and FOUR ravioli! woot! It was really fun to sit and catch up with a good friend. I really appreciate my friends (more and more) and am so thankful for them.

Facebook

I have been MIA lately. Things have been a little rough and I tend to only post happier things. Given that my blog readership is about 3, I think I need to use it more as intended, as a journal.

Anyway, I got home from Michigan last night to an email that really upset me. A facebook "friend" had taken a photo from a friend's blog and posted it on her wall with a nasty comment. Honestly, I could not believe it. First, this person has no room to throw stones in her glass house. Second, I just don't understand why you would even put that out there. Yes, I have my bitchy moments, and will own them, but really try not to every say something hurtful to others in a public forum. I actually even try not to put things in email or print so that they could not be forwarded on/misinterpreted by others.

Again, I am NOT perfect and have certainly said hurtful things to others (behind their back and unintentionally to their faces). I will say though, I have made a REAL effort in the past few years to keep my thoughts positive and give people the benefit of the doubt. My motto lately has been "always choose love". I don't care what others do or say, I can only control myself and to some extent my impact on others.

This is just bring up an ongoing issue with Facebook that I have been thinking about more and more. In the past year, I have hidden people who have hurt my feelings by posting about parties and events that pretty much my entire social scene (except me) were invited to attend. I have hidden people who seem to have nothing good to say about anything. I used to get drunk and go through my friends and delete a bunch of people I decided I did not care about and did not want poking around my business. The problem is that not I don't get drunk anymore.

So here is where I stand now. Do I:
1. Close down and delete my facebook account.
The pros to this are: more time, less drama in my life, no more worries about privacy issues.
Cons: I do like it as a way to keep up with family and friends who I don't see much. It is a good way to contact people I would otherwise be unable to contact.

2. Spend the time and make some real "lists" not that facebook has changed format. I could then do a better job of managing who sees what and what I see of others.
pros: better management - not throwing out the baby with the bathwater
cons: more time needed, not a perfect situation

Hmmmm - will ponder this today and make a decision soon. I think I will start with lists and see if it makes me happier with facebook overall.

I am still bothered though the whole situation.

Michigan, October 2011

This weekend we headed up to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to see some of Allan's family and get in some hiking (or more to the point, walking). Allan's family house is EIGHT hours away. The good news is that this trip, we made it up and back with no major delays either way. It is the first time that I have not been ready to kill Allan after one leg of the trip.

We got in late Friday night (after 11) and saw this..... apparently there had been a giant windstorm right before we arrived and a huge tree fell over the road. The good news about the UP is that there always seem to be guys around with pickup trucks, chains and chainsaws. The delay was less than 30 minutes and we got to the house and fell into bed, twin beds.....Lucy and Desi style!:)


After breakfast the next morning, we headed out to Mountain Stream Falls. The wind had blown down lots of trees so we had to do some of off roading to get there.


When we got there, we sat for awhile and ate lunch. I needed a break after the hike. Apparently, these falls are in the top 10 most beautiful waterfalls in Michigan. Did I take a picture? iroll


We walked down via the road (I could not have made it back by the trail) and headed back to the house where we took a nap and rested up for family dinner! Again, we fell into bed but had trouble sleeping because it was HOT!!? When it is in the upper 70's in northern Michigan in October, there is really no other evidence needed for climate change in my book.

Sunday we were up fairly early and then headed out as a family to "the narrows" via row boat. This was Allan's mom's favorite fishing spot and she had wanted it to be the place where we scattered her ashes. I am glad that we were able to respect her wishes. We then headed out for a hike around a lake (or walked 30 minutes or so an then turned around). Again, the weather was beautiful: sunny, warm, with beautiful leaves. The UP really is a beautiful place.

We headed out by 12:00 and were home by 8:30! Yeah! Weekend!