Week 35 Pregnancy Update

Oops I skipped the Week 34 update. Oh well. Still pregnant.

This week things have been okay, but I’m definitely feeling pretty uncomfortable and cranky as I mentioned in my last post. I know it comes with the territory and I’m trying my best to just accept this as the “new normal”.

Last night I was blessed with an incredible night of sleep and it is amazing how much better I feel when that happens. For the most part sleep has been pretty choppy- waking up to pee, or dealing with rolling over which is very painful due to my pelvic and hip pain.

We’ve also been traveling quite a bit over the holidays and I’ve been sleeping in different beds and trying to navigate my way to different bathrooms in the dark. It’s not fun, but it’s worth it in the end to be able to see family over the holidays. We’re trying to keep all of our traditions this year because we don’t know what next year will bring.

In other news, I’m currently running out of outfits and maternity wear, but I don’t want to buy anything else. I think I may have to break down though and buy a few more casual shirts. Mostly things are just getting short and sometimes I’ll catch a glimpse of myself in a mirror and realize that I look absolutely ridiculous.

Joe has been so wonderful helping me out with things I can no longer manage. For example, grocery shopping . The lifting of heavy bags in and out of the car and up the stairs in my house is now painful so he is going to handle that for now, or we’ll go together.

Week 35 bump (enormous):

Other Stuff:

Baby Positioning: As of my appointment last night, the doctor thinks she is back to being head down, but she isn’t 100% sure. I have to schedule an ultrasound for next week to double check. Fingers crossed.

Baby Clothes: I’m doing really well with baby clothes. I went with my stepmom 2 weekends ago and she bought me the baby’s layette (all the things she needs for the first few months!) It was incredibly generous and SO FUN! My mom also got me some really cute things for Christmas and also helped by taking tags off of everything (I really hope that gender scan was accurate), and washing all of the clothes.

Nursery: Really coming together- check out the pics!

Closet is still being worked on, and doors will go back on

Cravings: Chocolate, Luna Bars, Grocery Store Salad Bar Salads (with blue cheese crumbles (pasturized) and sunflower seeds on top), Spicy foods (loving Thai and Vietnamese food, I honestly could eat a big bowl of Pho with tons of Sriracha every single night and be a happy lady).

I’ll be 36 weeks on Sunday and then 1 more week until full term! Wowza!

For Previous Weekly Updates click HERE.

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Things on my mind (warning:lots of complaining)

I hope everyone had a nice holiday! I had a great time visiting family in Connecticut and NY and trying to enjoy and cherish one last Christmas as a family of two. Not that much else going on in my world right now, although I still somehow feel really busy. I think it’s just my mind racing and the fact that being 9 months pregnant (well just about), makes me a bit too lazy to do anything about my “to-do” list.

Here is a little rundown of what’s been going on lately. Please excuse my whining.

1. I hit a squirrel on my way to work this morning and I’m devastated. I cried the whole way to work and probably look like an even bigger mess than I usually do.

2. I’m cranky. And that doesn’t make for the friendliest receptionist at the office. Well okay, I’m still kind of friendly, but just don’t talk to me for more than 5 minutes. Also, if all male employees could refrain from engaging me in conversations about labor and delivery, I’d appreciate it.

3. I feel gross. I’m tired of living in this extra large, sore, slow and tired body.

4. But I don’t want it to be over. While I’m tired of my current state, I don’t want to rush ANYTHING. I’m scared of what’s to come, and I know I’m going to really miss my pregnancy.

5. I’m conflicted about blogging. Sadly, and aquaintance of mine is currently dealing with some scary privacy issues in her personal life. It made me fearful of blogging and was a slap in the face to remind me how scary it is to have your personal life out on the internet. I want to keep blogging, but I’m also torn.

6. I’ve become weight loss focused- yet I can’t stop eating. I’m thinking ahead to the challenges I will face after delivery of losing this baby weight. I’ve gained more than the reccomended amount but additionally, I know I won’t be one of those women where the weight just falls off. I’m going to have to work at it. So with that in mind, I should really be focused on limiting weight gain (besides what is the actual baby) in this last month. But lately, between Xmas treats, a growing appetite, lots of travel and not a lot of home cooked meals, I’ve been a little out of control.

7. I’m having anxiety over life in general. Do you ever freak out about how fast time is flying? Lately I have little bouts of anxiety about how quickly life is passing by and I want it to slow down. It’s silly to worry about things you can’t control, but I can’t help it.  Note to self: Watching MTV and feeling old doesn’t help this problem.

Sometimes I like to listen to this song when I feel this way.

 

So that’s what’s up with me. What’s on your mind these days?

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Roasted Tomato Bruschetta and a quick catch up

I’m very excited to share this recipe with you because it is so good and really easy too. I can’t take credit for it because my mother-in-law gave it to me, and she actually got it from Joe’s aunt (who may have gotten it from somewhere else).

I’ve eaten this dish a few times but this is the first time I made it myself. I brought it in for my office holiday party and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I hope you enjoy it too!

Ingredients:

2-28 oz. cans of Redpack whole tomatoes (this brand is the best, the tomatoes are large and plump)
1 cup of olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons of dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of salt.
fresh garlic minced
basil
goat cheese
1-2 baguettes sliced crosswise and toasted

How To:

Preheat oven 250 degrees.  Pour 1/2 cup of olive oil into 9×13 baking dish.  Cut the tomatoes in half and arrange them in the dish cut side up.

Drizzle with remaining 1/2 cup olive oil, dried oregano, sugar and salt.

Bake for 1 hour then turn tomatoes over and bake 1 more hour or until soft. (Mine took about 2.5 hours total)

This is what they look like when done- very soft and pruny

Transfer tomatoes to a new dish and drain out the oil into a bowl/measuring cup. (I served them in this same pan so I cleaned it and then put the tomatoes back in the same dish)

Drizzle some of the olive oil from the baking dish on the tomatoes.  Add garlic (I used about 4 small cloves diced very small) and let them sit on the tomatoes while they were still warm to melt into the tomatoes and get mild and sweet.

After cooling a little, add ribbons of basil and goat cheese to taste.   (Sorry this picture is so dark, I actually took it when it was already in my bag on my way to work.)

 

Serve with the toasted bread in a basket on the side.

 

Oh and in other news:

I got a manicure for the first time in….I have no idea how long. I also got a pedicure and it was amazing. OH and the most exciting part of my day….I got jury duty! Happy Holidays from Montgomery County, PA.

I also realized I’m at that ridiculously large pregnant stage. The manicure lady asked if I was having twins. No. I’m not. But if I did have twins, I would ask them both to help me paint my hideous blue bathroom.

Not much else to report, hence the lack of posting lately. Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the holiday season!

Does your company have a holiday party? What’s it like?

When’s the last time you had your nails done?
Ever served jury duty? I haven’t- I was summoned once but didn’t have to report.

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Week 33 Pregnancy Update

Hi everyone!
Greetings from week 33. This week has been a little bit of a doozy just like last week, but fortunately there was no hospital visiting!

 

This past weekend was wonderful, my mom hosted my final baby shower. My mom hosted a small get together at my house with some close friends and a little bit of family. My mother in law, mom, and sister handled everything and it was so much fun and completely relaxing for me!

I spent most of my time hanging with friends and opening even more cute gifts!

My awesome friends Sarah (in the middle), and Rachel (pregnant with twins!)

 

 

My mom and sister even worked late into the night on Saturday doing laundry and helping me set up the nursery. It looks beautiful! I plan to reveal it in the next week or two. I just want to finish a few last things.

At the end of the weekend Joe and I wanted to relax and decided to indulge in some cheesesteaks (complete with spicy hot cherry peppers on top)

They were so good….until around 3am when I woke up feeling really sick. I thought it was just heartburn, but soon enough I was throwing up.

 

I felt a little better in the morning so I went to work. By 11am I was running to the bathroom again and felt super sick. I went home and got there just in time. By that point I was basically laying on the floor in the bathroom and started to get chills. I knew I was also running a fever (which actually ruled out food poisoning, it seemed I had some kind of stomach bug).

At about 3pm, Joe called and said he was feeling terrible too. He came home on the early side and we both spent the evening wrapped in blankets in misery and tried to choke down english muffins for dinner. Trying to sleep was interesting- and we were both exhausted in the morning but feeling better. I spent the day at home but Joe went to work. Ultimately we’re fine now, but it was a pretty horrible 2 days!

 

In other baby news we went to the doctor last night and she thinks the baby is still breech. As a result, at my next visit I was advised to schedule a c-section. If she turns before then I don’t have to have the c-section, but this is just what she advised.

 

The doctor also told me there is a non invasive procedure that they can perform at the hospital to try and turn the baby manually (50-60% success rate).

 

I have to admit that I’m a little upset about the thought of a planned c-section. I guess I just always pictured that traditional "I’m going into labor" moment and not a scheduled surgery on the calendar. It’s not a guarantee that the baby won’t turn (I still think she will), it’s just a reality that I need to face a little sooner than I thought.

 

I’ll keep you posted.

 

Lastly- I wanted to show you a cute gift I received in the mail from the lovely Mindy at Finding Silver Linings. Two adorable headbands for baby from her boutique. How sweet is that?? Thanks Mindy!

Other Stuff

Baby Size: 17 inches (pineapple), 4.25 inches

Cravings: White chocolate (so random for me), spicy things (until the stomach virus), chicken salad

Symptoms: Very vivid dreams (I read this is common from hormones), the other night I dreamt that a huge scorpion jumped on my arm and I screamed out loud "GET OFF ME!!" and woke both Joe and I up. Oops.

Things that are easy that now seem hard: Wrapping presents while sitting on the floor, grocery shopping

 

Any moms out there have a breech baby that turned at the end?

Check out the previous weekly updates HERE!!

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Salad Fever

In the past few weeks I’ve been really into salads. I’ve been bringing one for lunch almost every day and really have been enjoying them. My usual salad contains a bed of baby spinach, cucumber, cut up sugar snap peas; maybe some defrosted frozen veggies, and a protein source. Lately I’ve been using veggie protein (a boca chicken patty, or Morningstar burger) because I’m lazy. That’s the truth.

Sometimes I’ll add some goat cheese, beets, or walnuts to the salad too, for a flavor boost.

As far as dressing, I usually bring oil and vinegar although I mostly just use the oil since I find vinegar to be on the strong side. I have tried my share of bottled dressings but haven’t ever found one that I’m in love with. I mean, I’m sure I’d be in love with the super fatty honey mustard ones, but they sort of defeat the purpose of a healthy salad.

A few weeks ago I was asked to try out and review Marzetti’s new line of dressings called Simply Dressed. I gladly accepted the offer because I’ve wasted a lot of money trying bottled dressings, and hey, this time they were paying. I went for the balsamic and I have to say, it’s good! The ingredients are pretty darn basic which is probably why it tastes yummy. It’s not overloaded with lots of seasonings and it’s not too vinegary or overly oily. I also like that it is pre-blended. It’s not a vinaigrette where the oil sits on top and you have to shake the hell out of it and then still end up with only oil and no flavor.

I actually shared it with some friends at the office the other day and they liked it as well. And even Joe gave it a seal of approval the other night.  It’s not diet dressing- but you don’t need a lot to coat the salad and add flavor. Since I bring my salad in Tupperware, I put a little on top, close the lid, and shake that baby up to coat everything.

If you’re looking for a new way to add flavor to your salad, I’d recommend this. I think it would also work well in a pasta salad or as a marinade for chicken. If you try it out, let me know what you think!

I was one of the bloggers selected by T. Marzetti Company and Clever Girls Collective to host a Marzetti Simply Dressed review. They provided me with product to test myself and compensation for my time. However, my opinions are entirely my own.

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Week 32 Pregnancy Update – A little scare

Happy Friday everyone!

I’m coming to you with a quick pregnancy update. Sorry I’ve been MIA, it’s been a crazy week.

On Tuesday I had a little bit of a scare. I went to the bathroom at work in the morning and noticed I was having some spotting. I hadn’t had anything like this before, and I was really scared. Earlier that morning I had also been having some back pain and menstrual like cramps – all things that I had not previously had. I immediately called my doctor who told me to get to the hospital ASAP.

I tried so hard to compose myself and stay calm. It’s a 40-45 minute drive to my hospital and I needed to be safe getting there. Joe works in the opposite direction of my office and even though he offered to take me, I just wanted to get there as fast as I could and I was comforted knowing that he was also on his way.

I checked into the labor and delivery triage unit and they quickly had me hooked up to machines to monitor both me and baby. An ultrasound was also done to check on the baby, the fluids, and the placenta. All looked good except that my little girl is now breech (the doctor that felt my belly last Thursday told me she was head down). An internal exam showed that I was not showing signs of preterm labor (thank goodness).

The doctor monitoring me decided to give me fluids through an IV because she thought maybe I was dehydrated and that the fluid could stop some of the contractions I was having. After one bag of fluid, no such luck. I was continuing to have contractions, so I received an injection of medication to stop the contractions. It made me feel like I had drank 300 cups of coffee (heart racing, hands shaking), but it apparently did the trick. About an hour later I was sent home. EXHAUSTED.

The rest of this week I’ve been trying to take it easy, but it’s been hard. On Wednesday the nursery furniture was supposed to arrive, but they forgot one of the pieces. Now they are coming back on Saturday. My mom is also throwing me one last little shower at my house on Saturday so there’s been a lot of planning and preparing and stressing about that. I’ve had a ton to do, and all I really want to do is crawl into bed and put pillows all around me.

But alas, I think the time with family and friends will help get me out of my funk.

 I didn’t take a picture of this week’s bump yet, but I’ll update this post later to add it.

Other Stuff:

Size of Baby: 16.7 inches (large jicama), 3.75 lbs

Cravings: None really, except for a large glass of wine which I did not indulge in

Times I’ve cried over various things (good and bad): Probably 10 or so. It’s been mood swing/emotional city over here. My hormones are certainly raging.

Previous Updates:

You can find previous weekly updates on my new weekly update page. The list was getting long, so I figured I make one place to put them all.

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A Fun Holiday Dessert Idea

Thanks to Duncan Hines for sponsoring my writing. There’s no limit to the baking possibilities, so grab your favorite Duncan Hines mix and Comstock or Wilderness fruit fillings and Bake On! www.duncanhines.com.

It’s December, so you know what that means! Before you know it, you’ll be hearing about all kinds of marathon bake-a-thons and cookie swaps and the treats will be everywhere.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. Who doesn’t love a good Christmas cookie?

The thing is, I’m not much of a baker. Yes I’ll bring the occasional baked good to a party, but chances are, it came from a box. Baking for me is always very messy and requires some ingredient that I don’t have. The other thing I struggle with while baking is taste testing. Inevitably I end up eating a good portion of cookies or brownies before I even get them anywhere.

My most recent dessert adventure is going to be a little different. Next weekend I’m having one final small baby shower at my house. This shower is mostly just my good girlfriends and is going to be very low key. Since most of them live in the Philly area, traveling to Connecticut (for my mom’s shower) or to Pittsburgh (for my mother in law’s shower), was just not happening.

Therefore, we’ll have a little laid back girly get together. For dessert and a favor, I decided to whip up some chocolate covered pretzels. It seemed like an easy enough project.

I think these pretzels are a fun and sweet treat that the ladies will enjoy. They were also so easy that I also think they may be a new holiday dessert staple. To keep in the holiday spirit (and also make dipping very easy), I used this tall holiday mug to melt the chocolate. I did my melting in the microwave in 30 second intervals on 50% power.

Once dunked, I used festive sprinkles and a white chocolate pink drizzle.

To modify them for the holidays you can totally switch up the pink drizzle for red, green, or blue and the sprinkles come in every color under the sun. Or what about rolling them in crushed candy canes?! I was also thinking that it would be yummy to add some peppermint extract to the while chocolate drizzle as well.

If you’d rather give these as gifts instead of serving them at a get together, you can actually find special bags at your local craft store. They are perfect and all you need is a cute piece of ribbon to tie at the bottom.

And finally, I’ll leave you with another recommendation…that I personally tried out this afternoon. Dip your pretzel in a mug of warm hot cocoa! I swirled mine around in this cup of almond milk cocoa and it was melty, chocolatey, heaven. A dessert and drink duo made for one another.

What holiday treats are you making this season?
Any fun get togethers on your calendar?

Remember to check out Duncan Hines’ website www.duncanhines.com to find some great recipes for your holiday get-together! I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective.

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Nasoya Giveaway Winner!

Congrats justaudrey!

 

I will send you an email to confirm your info.

Thanks to everyone that entered, have a great weekend!

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Week 30/31 Pregnancy Update- Another Baby Shower!

These past two weeks have been awesome! I really have been enjoying this part of my pregnancy quite a bit. I’m cherishing the last few months that I have to spend in this once in a lifetime experience. Yes I hope to have more kids, but there will never be a first time again where it’s all so new and exciting.

I have to admit that I’m also starting to freak out about actually being a Mom pretty soon. I know that I’ll be fine, but it’s still scary. I need to stop reading random things on the internet.

The main pregnancy highlight of this week (I guess it was technically last week) was my second baby shower! My mother in law hosted it on the Saturday after Thanksgiving at a tea room in Pittsburgh. The tea room is a beautiful venue perfect for girly events. My bridal shower was held there as well.There were 55 women at the shower but it didn’t feel overwhelming. It was a fun and warm environment and everyone seemed to be having a good time.

One of my favorite aspects of the shower was the amazing cupcake centerpieces that Joe’s aunt brought. They were so beautiful and SO DELICIOUS! You could smell the buttercream just sitting near them. There was white cake and banana cake. I had a banana cake with chocolate frosting. Ohhh yeah.

I was completely showered with tons of gifts and gift cards, and I’m feeling so excited now that I have so many of the baby necessities. I truly feel so blessed and lucky to have such supportive family and friends.

Other Stuff:

Size of Baby: Length: 16.25 inches (four navel oranges), Weight: 3.3 lbs.

Baby’s Position: I found out last night at my appointment that our little girl is head down! Woohoo!

Exercise:I am continuing with yoga and it has been such a blessing. I took both a beginner class – basic, not an active flow class(where they helped me modify certain moves), and a prenatal class. I actually liked the beginner class even better than the prenatal because it stretched me out more and the room was slightly heated.

Tuesday I got a little overzealous and tried a Zumba like on-demand workout (that was SO FUN) along with some weights. Unfortunately, I ended up in a lot of pain every day since. As much as I loved the sweat and have been craving the cardio, I think I’ve officially thrown in the towel. AGAIN.

Food: I’ve been doing really well with food lately. By “doing well” I mean that I’ve been able to eat healthy nutritious foods and stay away from a lot of the extra sugary snacks I was consuming mindlessly. I’m not depriving the baby of any calories, just making smarter swaps in hopes of keeping my weight and health in check.

Random Things: In my email this morning I got a coupon for a product called “Udder Covers” It’s really just an apron like thing that you can wear so that you can nurse in public (although they aren’t exactly inconspicuous) and um, they are called Udder Covers. I’ve heard the not so fun comparison of breastfeeding moms feeling like cows, but I think I’ll steer clear of the “Udder Cover”.

source

Previous Updates:

Week 29

Week 28

Week 27

Week 26

Week 25

Week 24

Week 23

Week 22

Week 21

Week 20

Week 19

Week 18

Week 17

Week 16

Week 15

Week 14

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Does anyone still care about Thanksgiving?

Have you entered by Nasoya Tofu U giveaway?- it ends tomorrow!

How is everyone this morning? It’s Thursday, and a week ago we were celebrating Thanksgiving. I’m late to the game with these pictures, but thought I would still go ahead and do the ‘ol photo recap for your viewing pleasure.

Without further ado…

Mom and I (we don’t look alike at all..)

Joe and I in our horizontally striped attire

Deep Frying turkey (we have 3 turkeys and one is deep fried)

Carving 2 out of 3 of the turkeys

The entire spread of food

My favorite dish- Joe’s mom’s sweet potatoes with crunchy topping

Joe’s Uncle’s homemade Syrian bread

Seating for 35 people

Beautiful leaf cookies on the dessert table

Something even sweeter! A picture with Nana (my mom) and Grandma (Joe’s mom)

It truly was an amazing and festive Thanksgiving. I feel very blessed and overwhelmingly thankful for my family, Joe’s family, and the family we are currently creating.

What is your favorite Thanksgiving dish?
Are you still eating Thanksgiving leftovers? We didn’t have any since we were guests, but after looking at these pics, I’d kill for a turkey sandwich and some more sweet potatoes!

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