Energy Potion

This will probably sound hilarious to people who have been moms for years, but I recently did some research to determine why I am so tired all of the time. If I sit down to read at all (like when Isaac is napping) I always fall asleep. I really cannot stay awake unless I'm standing. Sometimes it even happens if I'm reading at 10:00am -- right after I've had my coffee -- and after only being awake for three hours. It's not that I'm disinterested in life; it's that my entire body feels completely wiped out -- like I've just finished a race.

 

 

So, before self-diagnosing it as anemia, chronic fatigue, or cancer; I read this article, which was helpful. I've also been reading this book, which mentions iron deficiency as a big cause of fatigue. (That would explain the red meat cravings.) What I didn't know is that one's body only absorbs about 10-15% of the iron he consumes. Nor did I know that calcium may inhibit iron absorption by up to 75% if taken during the same meal; and that Vitamin C aids absorption of iron. (Don't look at my coffee with half and half.) Additionally, I didn't realize that a half cup (uncooked) of oatmeal has 10% of one's daily iron needs, the same amount of protein as an egg, and 15% of one's fiber needs. It's super heart-healthy too! Oatmeal is just amazing, really. It has become a go-to for breakfast for us this year and has made a huge difference in my levels of energy. In fact, I may have too much fiber now, but that's another post...

Read More

Coffee Ritual

 

Here is a sample of our morning ritual.

 

 

 

 

 

In other news: It snowed last night. Actually, it's still snowing. Isaac is watching it and saying "snow." Unfortunately, we have little colds right now,  so this is how close I'm getting to the snow until we feel better. We need to see family and go to a wedding this weekend too. So, any prayers for a speedy recovery are greatly appreciated.

 

 

 

 

I think it's pretty clear how we contracted whatever-this-illness-is. Isaac is teething. His fingers and mouth are all over everything -- all the time. There is only so much bleaching and washing I can do. At the end of the day, he still sucks on his fingers and shoves them at our faces. (He is very fast.) And we still need to wipe his nose, change his diapers, and wash him.

 

 

 

On the lighter side, Andre seems to be growing pretty well. So far, I've gained 8 pounds and am about 21.5 weeks. He moves around a bit, but is sleeping a lot lately. His growth rate has slowed, but at this stage, any growth is really noticeable. So, it seems like he's growing much more than earlier in the pregnancy. I'm excited to find out what he's like -- what he looks like and acts like. We are now in the waiting phase.

 

Rich keeps telling me that I get credit for all of the "working out" I do lifting Isaac and doing housework. I think that those things have helped keep the weight down during this pregnancy so far. We just joined a gym to help us keep up with the running/walking. It's just too cold this month to do any of that outside. I was happy to discover that my mile walk is more like 17 minutes than 20 minutes, which it used to be. Then I realized, yes, all of this "housework" and "momming" sure has put me in better shape! So, here's to a healthy rest of the pregnancy and a smooth labor and delivery.

 

 

Read More

Evil Prenatals

Thankfully this pregnancy my nausea has been much better than in my last pregnancy. The doctors told me this time to be sure to balance proteins and carbs. During my last pregnancy, I ate entirely too many carbohydrates ... and craved ice cream. This pregnancy I discovered Greek yogurt and crave red meat. I've also been keeping track of my carb, protein, and fat intake. I still felt nauseated most days for 8 weeks in the first trimester; but it was a milder form of nausea.

Unfortunately, the prenatal vitamins recommended have given me headaches and, in some cases, caused vomiting, even when taken with food. So, my OB agreed that a regular daily multi Vitamin with addition folic acid (800 mg per day -- CDC recommended for preggos) and additional calcium and Vitamin D would be just fine, provided that I take them every day. There's a little bit of spacing that I have to do so that my body actually metabolizes them (take them two hours apart). I've talked this process through with several nurses, though, who have said that it's adequate.

The nutrition is almost exactly the same:

Box in front is the "prenatal." Bottles in back are my supplements. There's a folic acid bottle you can't see here.

However, I feel kind of guilty for not taking something that says "prenatal" on it. So when the doctor's office gave me four packets of FREE Similac over-the-counter prenatals last week, I had to try them. I ate them with a decent-sized snack. Within five minutes my body was overcome with nausea. So I ran to the bathroom and emptied my stomach. Not. Much. Fun. This isn't the first time I threw up as a direct result of taking vitamins in pill form (sometimes it was because I didn't eat at the same time, though now I always eat with pills). I'm quite turned off of the "prenatal" label. It seems that something that causes one to vomit can't be good for her (although, then that would rule out pregnancy altogether. Yes, I realize my faulty logic.).

My question to moms out there is: how important is it to have a "prenatal" vitamin as opposed to a multi vitamin if you are also adding the folic acid and calcium? (The multi also had plenty of Vitamin D.) And what is the big deal with fish oil? Thoughts?



Current vitamins.

Read More

Toddler Tidbits

Rich went to get his shoes and found two limes mixed in with them in his closet. Hmmm...

 

 "Peaz, Dada" is his most famous phrase. From what I can tell, it means "please give me something, whose name I can't say." I wonder how "Dada" became synonymous with "what I want"... 

 

 

 

Sweet moments of affection are peppered throughout the days, including hugs, book reads, and kisses.

 

 

Isaac loves to pound his hammer on this work bench. (Thank you, Aunt Roxane!)

 

 

 

 

 

He is also really obsessed with the garbage truck. He hears it coming and shouts, "BUS!" every morning. It's a really big part of our day.

 

 

He also wants to "help" with everything: dishes, dinner, laundry, sweeping. I keep telling myself that one day the "help" will look like real help, like his dad's help.

 

 

 

He frequently helps me make coffee. This one is relatively painless. We have a good system going. He pulls a chair into the kitchen, stands on it, helps put beans into the grinder, presses the grind button, and helps pour the beans into the coffee maker. This means a lot to him. If he hears the coffee grinder going in the kitchen without him, he runs in and says, "help, peaz!" ("Help, peaz" is used both when he needs help and when he wants to "help.")

 

 

 

He also continues to show a great deal of interest in learning about different shapes, sizes, and colors. These bowls are a huge hit.

 

 

 

...as are boxes of any shape or size.

 

 

 

Balloons are such a big hit with him that Rich bought him another one last weekend.

 

 

 

His level of activity is really quite impressive. My self-consolation is that having a little brother to play with may make a big difference.

 

 

 

 

 

Read More

Meet Andre

We are super excited to have received a clean bill of health at our 20 week sonogram this morning! The baby is definitely a boy. From what I can detect so far, here are a few of his interests:

 

1. bouncing off the walls of his small living space;
2. showing off his goods (We trust this will change after he's born.);
3. and consuming red meat (a boy after my own heart!).
    

 

The radiology tech could not get a good 3D image of Andre because of the way he was positioned. So we have these blurry 2D images of him. He was super-cute, though, and I thought he looked like Rich. We shall have to wait and see for sure...

 

 

Read More

Misty Morning

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read More

Friday Food Finds!

Pardon me for blogging about food again. Writing about it makes me slow down and assess (have to make time for that with a toddler now). Also, it's really nice to look back over the year and see everything I've learned. Though far from a professional chef, I'm a lot better at cooking than I was when I got married. :)

 

Most of these are from Cooking Light's Jan/Feb '13 issue and may be googled by their names (you may have to wait an extra couple of weeks). But really, you should buy a subscription if you cook a lot. It's less than $2.00 an issue and offers lots of healthy, varied, and tasty recipes!

 

Spicy Shrimp Noodle Soup

(just like pho -- loved!)

 

 

 

Spicy Thai Basil Chicken

(bland -- but didn't have basil...)

 

 

 

Lemon-Garlic Swiss Chard

(I had no idea chard could taste good -- yum!)

 

Okay, the Parmesan shavings helped the taste A LOT!

 

 

Browned-Butter Gnocchi

with Broccoli and Nuts

(I skipped the pine nuts -- too expensive for my taste. It was bland, though. Also, don't be like me and take too much. Gnocchi is super-dense. I had forgotten. We probably won't make it again.)

 

 

 

BBQ  Chicken with Fresh Mozzarella

and Pickled Jalapenos

(This one gets an A++! Use the fresh cream-filled mozzarella if you like a more authentically-Italian taste. We LOVED it. I has quite a few more calories than the veggie one from CL, but is worth it if you need a change and can spare the extra points. Oh, and I skipped the jalapenos, but they would've paired well with this cheese.)

 

 

 

Apple-Toffee Hand Pies

(This was the biggest win of the week! The prepared pie crust doesn't taste prepared here. It was much faster to make these than a regular pie. And, the size allows you to remain within the confines of 143 calories. Rich loved them. I loved them. Isaac loved them. Also, I used a dash of nutmeg in each and caramel sauce instead of toffee chips because that's what we had on hand.)

 

 

 

Isaac loved exploring the texture and the taste. He shouted that it was "GOOT!" several times. :)

 

 

 

Meyer-Lemon Chicken

(This is my new favorite chicken recipe! It's on the cover of this CL issue. The sauce is excellent. Everything gets sauteed, which does a LOT for the flavor. But using cooking spray keeps the calorie count down: 327 per serving. I didn't use *Meyer* lemons for this round because they weren't available when I went shopping.)

 

Read More

MAX!

While most people at my parents home feel this way about the dog,

Too much dog hair.

 

 

 

Max has somehow won the hearts of both Aunt Maria and Isaac. Every day since we've been back in VA, Isaac tells me a story about how Aunt Maria ("An MEE") has a dog named "MAX" and we went up in an "AIR pay" to see them.

 

 

 

The sentence comes out more like random shouts of "An MEE" and "MAX," but we know what he's saying.

 

Read More

Resolution

One of my resolutions for 2013 is to read the entire Bible. I've heard it from cover to cover, read most of the Gospels on my own, and had to read various books for classes. But I pay more attention and get more out of it when I read it on my own time and at my own pace. There's a handy book that breaks up the Bible into 365 days worth of readings.

So far I've learned:

1. The band Avenged Sevenfold's name was inspired by Genesis. (Or did I learn that from Rich?)
2. The "curse of Eve" is written in language a lot more severe than I remember. Eg. " 'I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children.' " (Emphasis mine.)  (Thanks, Eve.)
3. Rich does not think of me as submissive at all. Upon reading the rest of the curse ("... your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you."), Rich said, "yeah, that would never work with you. You would never let me rule over you."

So, I am learning all kinds of things over here.
 

Read More

Wishing You a GOOT New Year!

Read More