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March 31, 2007
hey ya
puppy feet
so i'm actually feeling pregnant in the belly region, especially after any reasonable amount of food. there is a reason they say to eat 5-6 small meals. a normal size meal makes me feel so stuffed, which makes me feel huge. i don't think the baby is big enough to be really crowding my stomach, but damn, do i feel stuffed now after what use to be a normal amount of food. though that really isn't stopping me from from having thin mints as dessert. so yummy.
my belly is poofing, which is weird just b/c i haven't gained any more weight since monday, but i definitely feel more pregnant. though we've eaten out a ton this past couple of days so i probably put on some weight since wednesday. ben says that i am obbsessed about my weight. of course I am. after years and years and years of trying not to gain weight, it is hard to see the scale going up. though i know that it should, i just don't want to gain more than the recommended amount for health/complication reasons.
we had bbq for dinner. it was awesome. we drive to evanston for it and it is totally worth it.
we are dog sitting emily's dog this weekend. her dog, bailey, is awesome. pepper, on the other hand, is crazy. she just don't have any dog skills. she wants to play all the time. they have gotten a lot better and by they i mean ben and i. it took us a while to get use to the playing that involved pepper's head ending up in bailey's mouth. we didn't understand that bailey's growling is part of the playing and that we should just let them be and they are fine (good advice for a lot of things besides them). they played a lot this afternoon until pepper passed out on top of me while i was napping. i take naps when i read on the couch. my reading on the history of bureaucracy obviously is riveting.
the dogs are amusing. bailey is obsessed with the cat. it is quite funny. he will just stare at the cat for hours. he has never been around a cat, which explains the obsession.
Posted by christina at 9:19 PM | Comments (0)
March 26, 2007
knocking on your door
seriously.
in the mornings, ben leaves for work, and I work out. The puppy goes to bed. She sleeps in her crate at night, but loves loves loves to sleep in the bed. She loves going back to bed in the morning no matter what else is going on. and one morning last week i walked in after my shower to find her like this. on her own. she is so funny.
it is so warm here. i love it. okay. it was a little warm yesterday, but i am love with this little burst of flip flop weather. it is like june. the only problem is that the dr's office was burning up as their building hadn't turn on the air conditioning yet for the year. it is march. i don't blame them.
so i gained 2 lbs in the past two weeks. ha ha, really this past weekend. as my appetite has returned and i want to eat everything. rachel the sister was here this past week, which was awesome for many reasons, one being her matching desire for egg mcmuffins. dude. i love egg mcmuffins.
so yes, the doc is happy that my weight is on the up and up. i am happy because it does seem that it is lactose intolerance that was causing all my ills (and weight loss). Who knows why it just appeared. I guess it isn't uncommon to have late onset. but my theory is that I am bothered my lactose, but not b/c i don't have the enzyme, but b/c i did get sick and now my body has an immune response to lactose. of course, this is not supported by any medical personnel, just my own crackpot theory. i just know that i am feeling a lot better since i switch my cereal from milk (w/ lactaid) to soy juice. oooooh so i just found this website (medical) that supports my theory.
and i've gained 2 lbs. solely in cupcakes as it was ben's b-day saturday. i told him his present was the sack of organs growing inside me. he was happy with his present.
Posted by christina at 8:58 PM | Comments (0)
March 22, 2007
think i'll go for a walk outside now
me and the puppy doing our favorite thing...napping.
actually, i'm not a big napping fan. but i find myself taking them lately. the puppy, on the other hand, loves napping, especially if there is someone to curl up with.
so it is spring break (officially) and i've totally enjoyed my past two days of utter laziness. The weather has turned warm. The flu has tapered to a cold. I've spend a lot of time on the couch. Rachel the sister is in town. Jenny, her friend, joined us yesterday. Rachel brought her cat and it has been quite amusing watching her interact with pepper and izzy. She is actually quite intimidated by izzy. probably the big blue collar.
It was great to see liz in houston, sucks that i was so sick, but really we probably would have laid around even if i was well.
My first day at the internship went well. They really do need the help as it is a big push for energy conservation section of a bill. I like helping. I like being able to go in on the first day, figure things out fast and leave them with three major things they needed this week. I'm working Mondays and Fridays. I also really enjoy working downtown. and spring is the best time to commute downtown.
Posted by christina at 12:22 PM | Comments (0)
March 18, 2007
i dream i'm falling down
pic of my recovering kitty, requested by rachel. notice the her right ear. yum.
well, it seems that the worse has past. my fever is gone. the constant cough as slowed. the congestion remains. in the mist, we still managed to meet jose and sarah out for dinner. i was quite pleased to meet jose and really liked him. my friends, mostly seem to find really great guys.
i'm off for home this evening. a late flight as i had planned on spending all of monday laying around at home, but instead i went and got an internship at the environmental law and policy center. i am "working" there part time for through july. it is a great opportunity to do some nonprofit policy stuff while still being able to be done when i am huge and it is hot. it is going to make the upcoming quarter busy, but i was really thinking that i study too much anyways. : )
Posted by christina at 11:22 AM | Comments (0)
March 17, 2007
pop goes my heart
well, i feel better after a morning of napping. my fever is way down (meaning it is not spiking right before I am due for more tylenol). and i am hungry. all good signs. ben had lunch with his dad today and mentioned I was sick. his dad said it was probably the flu (i just this morning decided it was the flu and hadn't told ben yet). his dad said the only year he got the flu was the year he got the flu shot. so i am back on bored on my long standing theory that the flu shots just make you sick. though i'm glad i go it as i would feel bad if i didn't and then got the flu. at least tried to avoid the flu. the main problem is that everyone has to go to finals wether they have the flu or not. and so they spread their germs.
1:30 pm
.........
i got a flu shot in december specifically to avoid getting the flu. i've never had the flu, but with the baby and all i got the shot. and now I have THE FLU. i've never been this sick. my fever has peaked at 102 causing me to freak out because of the baby, but I'm in the second trimester, so i'm assured my nurse mom and the internet that the baby is okay. and I can take some cold meds, though they DON'T WORK.
Mainly I am living on cough drops. Passing the time between tylenol doses and just hang out. Thankfully liz and i are chill so we just chill. she is great.
Posted by christina at 9:48 AM | Comments (0)
March 15, 2007
beware the ides of march
how we studied for finals
i cannot let today go by without saying it is my favorite holiday - the ides of march.
it has been a good ides of march being that i flew first class to houston. (thank you frequent flier miles). first class is nice. they give you a lot to drink, which is nice since i woke up yesterday with a sore throat and today it feel like razor blades every time i cough, which is getting more frequent as the mucus has moved in, much like those commercials on tv. i finally got some cough and decongestant stuff approved for baby incubators by webmd/baby center. i spend a lot of time reading on the internets about sickness and pregnancy since it has been a bad two and a half weeks. currently, not a fan of being pregnant. though i did get to see a quick glimpse of the baby on monday. it actually looks like a baby!
Posted by christina at 7:31 AM | Comments (0)
March 13, 2007
i will be good enough
January 30, 2007
8 weeks.
Today was our first OB appt. It was a long wait. I was not happy, though loved my OB, so was okay. I think that is just how things are. I was excited b/c they did end up doing an ultrasound. The Dr. found the baby really fast with the external probe. My full bladder helped. It is the little peanut in the middle of the picture. We saw the heart beat, which was weird, but good. There is like a real heart in there. It is still early, but everything looks good. I was excited to have scientific data. : )
Posted by christina at 1:18 PM | Comments (0)
March 11, 2007
crazy crazy
i really should be studying from my econ final, but instead i am totally distracted by crazy people.
I have found in my old age, especially since i came down with the baby, that i really don't care what random people think of me. that has been a nice perk. i also really don't care what other people do, except when they live in my building. i love our condo building and we all get along quite well. Problems arise in condo building when you have a someone or two that aren't that busy. and one of them is sick. which i am sure makes her crazy.
she wrote a long rambling e-mail this morning about how she should get to keep her double stroller in our small common area b/c she buzzes the fedex and ups people in. despite the by-laws specifically prohibiting strollers being left in the common area, everyone has put up with the double stroller b/c she has cancer and can't get the stroller up and down the 5 stairs everyday. perfectly understandable.
now, i admit, i get annoyed by the stroller. it takes up a lot of the entry way. but because i understand the cancer thing, i've just let it go. at the last condo "board" meeting, her husband asked if he could clean out the storage closet that is right there to put the stroller in. i said that would be a great idea b/c technically the stroller isn't suppose to be in the common area. i only knew this because i had just read the by-laws to see how much the condo association was suppose to pay for a pipe problem in their apartment. i was just supporting his idea. i wasn't complaining, but some how the whole building gets a long rambling e-mail about how the previous tenants said they kept their stroller in the common area and no one care (first, they did not keep the stroller out there, and second, the building is full of totally different people). and how she does all these things like picks up advertisements and papers from in front of the building. and how she buzzes the package people in. because "this is the neighborly thing to do". sigh. the thing is that everyone does this. ups and fedex buzzes all the apartments when the person they want isn't home. i've let lots of packages in, including hers.
i know she is sick and so i vent here. i did write her back and tell her why i said something. i was nice and sweet, even though i just wanted to be rational with her. but i guess nice and sweet is the rational choice here. you can't be rational with crazy people.
Posted by christina at 11:08 AM | Comments (0)
March 9, 2007
big eyed fish
January 18, 2007
Well, I had my first everything sounds really gross but pizza moment last night. I had felt so tired all day and was pretty nauseous by the the time ben got home. I just couldn't bring myself to even think about cooking, so pizza it was. A specific type of pizza. though it is not just the pizza, but also the awesome salad I get with the pizza. (it takes one slice to qualm my craving, so the yummy salad makes up the rest of the meal.)
i love cooking, so i hope that this does not become a trend.
January 20, 2007
So the days pass and life goes one. That is the strangest part about being pregant - that life still goes on. You think that the moment you find out that you are pregant everything changes. It does not. You live your life. You go to class, read your readings, and study for tests. Life does not stop. Life does not even change that much. Yeah, I'm restricted to the elliptical when there is any chance of slipping. I feel not great alllllll the time. And i do not like to think about how this all ends. I want a baby, but not one to come out of my body. Already I'm wanting my normal body back. The one that use to run even with it might be icey or freezing. One the sleeps through the night. One that doesn't try to faint. One that feels normal. I haven't gained really any weight to speak of (like 2-3 lbs and i think it is just water from the bloating). I fit the same in all my clothes, but i am just uncomfortable. I think it will get better once I really believe it is a baby and not just that I am dying.
Posted by christina at 5:46 PM | Comments (0)
March 7, 2007
quicksand
so i am finally doing the thing which shelby tagged me with.
"ten weird little known facts about yourself"
1. the moment i got a dog, i finally felt like a grown-up. The cat, getting married, paying taxes, none of those things made me feel so much like a grown-up as rushing home from UC to take the dog to the vet right after we got her b/c I was afraid she had pneumonia.
2. i was not the smartest nor the most likely to succeed (or even close) in my high school class of 120. I was near the top, but not one of my classmates, i bet, would have predicted that I would now have a Ph.D. in science/engineering
3. i keep my certificate of completion of the aforementioned Ph.D. on my refrigerator. I (FINALLY) got my diploma last week, but i so much more like the certificate as the dog just got one to match from puppy class.
4. once i have this baby in sept, i will have spent the previous 365 days finishing my Ph.D., completing enough work for a masters, getting married, getting a dog, and growing and birthing a child.
5. on april 21, i will be a bridesmaid in my best friend from high school's wedding. i ordered the dress in october. of course it is the size of my wedding dress. one of my biggest stresses so far with the baby growing is being able to fit in that dress. considering my stomach flu has erased the few lbs i have gained, i think it is going to be okay. it has room in the belly as it is a very cute a-line dress.
6. i hate the snow. okay, so that is not little known, but i bet you didn't know that it snowed an inch and a half last night. WINTER GO AWAY!!!!
7. i'm a closest baby story watcher. actually this is as new habit (well, i did watch it a some in high school). it comes on at 8 am. if i am still working out then, i watch it. it also comes on at 8:30. so if it is friday and i've been lazy and got up later, i watch both.
8. i always thought that i was all about the epidural. now i'm not so sure. i am pro it, but i think i might try it natural. but then again..why pain?
9. i knew that ben and i were going to be married 6 weeks after i met him.
10. if i could do it all over again (maintaining the puppy, the kitty, and the boy), i would be a forensic scientist.
Posted by christina at 2:27 PM | Comments (2)
March 4, 2007
there's room inside for two
January 12, 2007
Well, I'm feeling less crampy. In fact, I feel fine. So fine that I am worried. I spend a lot of my time worried about whether I am actually pregnant. Or that it is some weird medical condition. Or that I'm not pregnant anymore. We haven't been telling the world, but we have had to tell a couple of people beside our fams. People that we see everyday and that need to know why we are trying to faint or why we can't go to the smokey bar for drinks. and with every new person i am sure that i am going to regret telling people. it is so early. so early. so so so early. but how to not tell people? it is exciting. you want to tell people that you are close with. people that you would want to know that something bad happened (if something bad happens). i've told one person that doesn't exactly fall into that category, but i still talk to every day. i feel like i am testing fate. and i get really angsty when ben says things like i have a feeling that it is going to stick. TESTING FATE!!!!!!! Though i know (and believe) that there is nothing that fate or I could have done or not done (i.e. my 5 miles runs) to prevent something happening, it is more about managing expectations.
I feel like until I hear a heart beat i will not actually believe that i am pregnancy and until, oh, march, i'm not going to be zen about it. Though, i am zen about it. b/c stress and caffeine do matter. and i've cut the later out, and working on the former.
Posted by christina at 11:41 AM | Comments (0)
March 3, 2007
we've been on the run / driving in the sun
alright. enough with the snow. this is the random building across the street from us.
it snowed another two inches since thursday. i don't care if it gets warm, i just don't want anymore snow.
i have the stomach flu. not. fun. i am still trying to do my work as finals start a week from Monday.
The worst thing about this "flu" is that it conflicted with our trip to see a live taping of This American Life on Thursday. It was awesome. I was miserable, but still enjoyed it. I love Ira Glass's voice. One of the acts was clips from the show they are doing on Showtime which premieres March 22, if you have showtime. It looked really good. Too bad we don't have Showtime.
though i feel bad (my bad is also killing me today), i feel worse for the cat. her ear is soooo big and she just doesn't understand. At least I know (hope) that i'll get better at some point, she just doesn't know.
Posted by christina at 3:32 PM | Comments (0)
March 1, 2007
componet curve
January 7, 2007
well, we told our families on wednesday.
i had seen my internal med doc that morning. it was a funny feeling going into a college health center pregnant. i felt like i should assure everyone that this was a really good thing. i doubt it normally is. they did another pee test, and with the 4th confirmation we decided to tell our families. Though i had to temper everyone's excitement b/c it is still really really early, it really helped to get the news out of our heads.
I also told my friend at school emily, which was good b/c i almost fainted at the end of class friday. it was really scary. she was really good. she has a diabetic brother in law and totally recognized it as low blood sugar and starting feeding me all their fruit she had in her bag.
I have never come close to fainting b/c of low blood sugar. it wasn't like i had skipped a meal. i had my normal pre- and post- run breakfasts. Though you really aren't suppose to be increasing one's diet at much at this point, i'm going to have to insert a lot more fruit in the snacks.
the problem with me and the fainting is that i am convinced something really bad is happening and it is going to end up with me and the paramedics.
it makes me a little nervous to run, but i have a clementine in the pocket mid run snack plan that should make a run all okay. though that all become a nonissue if winter ever come back. the 30-40s makes it prefect running weather. once it gets into the 20s and/or it ices, i'll be back in elliptical land.
Posted by christina at 10:06 AM | Comments (2)