Yep, it snowed...

It's going to be a White Christmas. I do love having snow. But, I don't like it when it ruins an entire weekend of plans. Honestly, it snowed all day on Saturday and then went on to ruin roads for Sunday and Monday. The Wisconsin DOT advised no driving... The roads are still coated in snow. I don't remember what pavement looks like. The sidewalks are all icy. I also realized that I don't have a pair of gloves. Oops. And I am missing my brush and scraper in my car... dang it. Don't you hate it when you realize these things are missing when you need them the most?

Luckily, Ricky shoveled this time. But, the shovel bent and broke. Seriously, that much snow. We received about 8 or 9 inches. My parents only an hour north have about 15 inches. The whole state of Wisconsin is snow covered. But, I am happy that it is now out of the system and maybe travelling for all the Christmases that we need to attend will be good. Some sun and maybe some temperatures above 6 degrees would be nice. Thanks.



The picture doesn't show it real well, but to top it all off - we were without power from about 4 am to 3 pm. And didn't get our internet or cable back til 7:00pm. So, that Charter Commercial about counting on them in storms is a BIG FAT LIE!!!! In the picture, you can sort of see that a utility pole fell down. Gotta love a ton of snow and then 40 mph gusts. And then two days of temperatures below zero. Oh, what a great week.

HDBD: 28 Weeks

Sorry, a day late in my usual fashion. But, that is me in all my glory. And I realized in this photo that our mirror really needs cleaning. It is all I can look at when I see it. I am sure you are all staring at my gorgeous baby bump. But, I don't. Probably cause I stare at the bump every day thinking about my baby girl inside.

Anyway... bending down and getting things from the floor is now a definite chore. And I am having a rather interesting day dropping many things. I broke a plate putting the dishes away. I dropped some butter when making macNcheese. It just keeps going and going... I think I will spend the rest of the day in bed. Good choice before I burn the house down.

I finally got the call from the hospital about the class dates. But, I have already forgotten them. I will ask again - though I am 90% sure it is January 29th. I can't wait! It seems like so far away... but I know it will be here in no time. Just like the holidays creeping up. Crazy!

Craving: Nothing really. Amazing, I know. But, I am just not a big fan of food right now. And it has nothing to do with nausea or being sick... I just stare at the cupboards and fridge and can never find something to eat. It is frustrating.

Best: Feeling the movement all the time! It is so awesome. Sometimes feels really weird like she is trying to escape... but I still love it.

Worst: The heartburn. Still awful. I am combating with Milk, Tums, and Zantac. But, some days it feels like the stomach acid has completely eroded my esophagus and it HURTS LIKE A BITCH.

100% Chance of Snow

As you can see, Wisconsin is going to have a white Christmas. And all the snow seems to be coming on the weekend this year... which frustrates me. I have had to skip going to my parent's one weekend already because of ice and now I might miss more. There is a 100% chance of snow tonight. No shit... cause it is already snowing.

BLIZZARD WARNING; WINTER STORM WARNING

That is what the Weather Channel says at the top when I type in my zip code. Oh goody. Even the radar is fun colors. Right now it keeps switching between winter mix and snow... which is the worst. I am stuck inside and don't know what to do. I guess blogging won out right now.



Kind of wish I would have waited to put together all the gift baskets for Christmas for a day like this. But, they are all done. Actually, besides three people who I have to order for - our Christmas shopping is all done. Gotta love being organized. Which is a must have considering Ricky and I have a Christmas to attend the next three weekends...

By the Numbers and Diet - GD

GD. No, it doesn't stand for God-Damned... but it should. I am a little late with this post and should have done it on Tuesday when I had my doctor's appointment, but as you could probably tell from my other posts I tend to do this a lot. It has nothing to do with not having the time, mostly I sometimes can't find the words. Or the words don't get my fingers. However... here are the numbers from my one week of taking blood sugar.

Tuesday: B - 82, S - 97
Wednesday: F - 71, S - 96
Thursday: F - 79, S - forgot...
Friday: F - 75, S - 94
Saturday: F - 85, S - 86
Sunday: F - 77....then I ran out of test strips.

(F = Fasting, B = 1 hour after Breakfast, S = 1 hour after Supper)
I am using the Bayer Contour and it only came with ten strips. So, I had to wait until my doctor finally called in the prescription (cause those things are super expensive to be buying on their own). But, these were enough numbers to show my doctor that I am doing well with the diet!!! Yay!

New Testing Goals: Must test 2 full days a week. That means F, B, L, and S.

New Diet Goals: None really, I have been sticking to it with minor mistakes. Like the cheesecake I ate last week in two days. Woops. I also am still craving donuts.

Weight Update: 208 lbs. WOOOO!!! That means I only gained 1 lb in two weeks. My goal is gain 1/2 - 1 lb a week during the pregnancy. All is 100% going wonderful.

**Hope all the other ladies on the March 2011 board with GD can manage as well as me, I know there are many levels of GD and I know we can all do it. March is just around the corner!**

Learning Experiences: The Placenta

Okay, so there isn't a picture to go along with this post.. because I made the mistake of googling and well, not too pretty. I was going to find pictures of it encapsulated, but no such luck. Either way, it has come to my attention that I needed to learn a little about the placenta and the benefits of eating it. Yes, I said eating it. Most all mammals... excluding humans, eat the placenta when their babies are born. I won't be doing it. My boyfriend asked if I would and that was an absolute no. I have no need to protect my baby from predators and I don't need the extra hormones to love my baby... so my conclusion is I don't need it.

However, I have come to realize that many women do choose to do this and I went on a Google Adventure to find out why. I am bored. I am curious.

- It can help improve lactation. A study showed that most women improved their milk output by taking in the nutrients of their placenta through capsules.

- Shown in rats... it apparently reduces pain or soreness.

- Has a positive effect on postpartum depression. Women experience less and feel better in general after the birth of their baby.

- Good source of Iron and can replenish a woman's iron supply after birth and prevent a deficiency.

Still not going to do it. But, it is interesting to read about the benefits and extremely interesting to read why we view the eating of our placenta's culturally disgusting. I guess I am just going with the crowd... or just what I grew up believing. Not that anyone sat down and told me it was disgusting - but, no one told me it was necessary either.

Another Ultrasound!

So, because of my bad experience I decided to get an elective ultrasound through Stork Vision in Madison, Wisconsin. Sure, it was an hour drive away and there was a snow storm coming... I didn't care. I went and I had a blast. Ricky's mother and sister came with me to the hour long appointment where I was able to watch my little girl on the screen for 43 minutes. She is so beautiful... and so perfect. I just can't wait until March when she is in my arms!



Today is also my ticker change day! I am 27 weeks along and officially into the Third Trimester. That is the home stretch. It is hard to believe that in just 10 weeks I will be full term. Course... it is still 13 weeks until being 40 weeks. But, a healthy baby can be born anywhere after 37 weeks. She moves all of the time and I love her so much already. Ricky and I watched the DVD from the session last night and it was so much fun talking about our little girl.

Heartburn is worse than ever. I am craving cookies and chocolate so bad.

Alina Joy is coming soon!!

Sewing Corner: Baby Clothes

I have a sewing machine. Yes, and I sometimes use it. Mostly I need to tend to Ricky's clothing because he likes to wear things even after they get holey and then expects me to fix them. Yeah.. okay. Since I had gone through the trouble of making a terrible mess of getting the sewing machine out I figured I would make a few extra things. And, if you know me I always start something new. I have patterns cut out from a few months ago - it didn't interest me now. I also have a baby quilt that I made for a friend almost 2 years ago that hasn't been finished... yeah I should get on that.



The above hat and baby panties (that is what the back says and I can't think of a new word... I suppose bottoms work for me) that I made a couple months ago when Hancock Fabrics had a ridiculous sale. I got patterns for 89 cents each!! I know!! And then also a ton of fabric. However, these items are made out of fabric that I have... because I like to waste old fabric the first time I try out patterns. The hat ended up huge - the next one I make will be smaller.




These pants are what I worked on today. This is the medium size from the pattern. I guess I could have gone with small. This was just another thing just for fun. I will probably redo the waistband because I didn't have the right size elastic... but only I know that. The snowflakes are hand sewn on. I think they are cute. Maybe they will fit my baby next winter - or I will give them away. Or make a matching hat. Yeah... we will see about that.

Hump Day Bump Day - 26 Weeks

So, I know I have been slacking at this. Sorry. I don't always look presentable to the public. Okay, wait. I never look presentable - however, today I am in a careless mood... so here you are. You get a bump photo. And it is even Wednesday!!

The whole GD thing has been going okay. My numbers have been well beyond perfect and I only have to test my blood sugar twice a day. So, I am incredibly thankful for that. This Friday I have an elective ultrasound scheduled and this person I am paying to find out the gender - so I shouldn't have the same awful experience I had with the the big anatomy scan. I am extremely excited... even if I do have to drive an hour to get there.