Today is my birthday! My birthday used to mean so many things....namely when I could drink and stay up til wee hours of the morning. I would call it my birthday week, and I would get together with all my friends and drink and play games......ahhh. The good life. Funny how things change when you can't drink and you need a nap every day and still require a 10 or 11 bedtime. However, I still had a wonderful day, mostly because it is a rule with my family that whatever you say on your birthday can be met with no objections or suggestions and if someone dares to do such a thing, you say, "It's my birthday." This hushes any critics and immediately ends any disagreements.
So today Brian made me blueberry pancakes for breakfast, and then we took Foxy on our usual morning walk. Then came home, packed up, and headed for Hayward to do some tubing down the river. After tubing, we made dinner with my dad (grilled homemade veggie burgers, corn on the cob, and a bean salad) and then had strawberry shortcake for dessert. My dad also had made me a lemon poppyseed cake, which he's been making for me for as long as I can remember as my birthday cake, and as I'm about to try a small slice, he says, "Can you eat that while you're pregnant?" Well hell. I don't know. So I look it up and of course text my brother. "If I eat poppyseed cake will I turn my baby into a drug addict or kill it?" He laughed at me and said no. Regardless, I don't think I'll be eating more of the cake (that is so, so sad yet probably good because no one needs to eat a cake basically by themselves) and it will be shared with those who will appreciate it.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Creepy Dream
I wasn't sure I should share this dream but Brian said that he thought I should. I can't do the gestures and expressions that really need to go along with the story, but use your imagination. This was my weird -and hopefully not one little bit true- dream.
I was returning from somewhere and I had left my baby with someone while I was gone. When I came in the house, that person said, "Your baby wouldn't eat!" Apparently I must have been gone awhile, because I became very upset and rushed into a back bedroom to find her. I opened the door and in the kind of dark room there is a bed and on the bed is this "creature" who is my baby. She was like a feral child who was scurrying around on the bed in a crouched, animal like position and when she looked at me she had crazy eyes. You know those eyes where an animal is cornered and even worse than that, one eye kinda looked up and out so that both eyes weren't even looking at me. (At this point I told Brian that I can't remember if I was scared in my dream or if I was just scared when I woke up thinking about it.) So then I am saying to her, "Come on honey, you have to eat," and she is just scurrying around the bed, looking at me all crazy-eyed. Since she isn't coming to me, I pull out my boob (sorry! but it's part of the dream) and she looks at it and basically like launches herself from the bed, attaches herself to my boob, and starts drinking. At this point I look down and I'm holding a beautiful (not feral) baby girl. Then I woke up.
WTF!!! I'm assuming with more hormones surging through me there will lots more f*d up dreams, but that one was just a bit to creepy not to be shared.
I was returning from somewhere and I had left my baby with someone while I was gone. When I came in the house, that person said, "Your baby wouldn't eat!" Apparently I must have been gone awhile, because I became very upset and rushed into a back bedroom to find her. I opened the door and in the kind of dark room there is a bed and on the bed is this "creature" who is my baby. She was like a feral child who was scurrying around on the bed in a crouched, animal like position and when she looked at me she had crazy eyes. You know those eyes where an animal is cornered and even worse than that, one eye kinda looked up and out so that both eyes weren't even looking at me. (At this point I told Brian that I can't remember if I was scared in my dream or if I was just scared when I woke up thinking about it.) So then I am saying to her, "Come on honey, you have to eat," and she is just scurrying around the bed, looking at me all crazy-eyed. Since she isn't coming to me, I pull out my boob (sorry! but it's part of the dream) and she looks at it and basically like launches herself from the bed, attaches herself to my boob, and starts drinking. At this point I look down and I'm holding a beautiful (not feral) baby girl. Then I woke up.
WTF!!! I'm assuming with more hormones surging through me there will lots more f*d up dreams, but that one was just a bit to creepy not to be shared.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Confession
Might as well get this out now so I don't have to try to be nice about it later....I think the process of "being" pregnant is gross. I know there are lots of people who say pregnancy is a beautiful, amazing thing-even a miracle. Well, I whole-heartedly disagree with the beautiful part. Several recent events prompted this confession. The first is that I have several (well, more like 6) pregnancy apps that I've added to my phone to get as much info as I can since I really am not starting with much. One of said apps sends you an update at the beginning of each new week. On Wednesday I received my 5 week update which I unknowingly opened and in addition to information on what the baby is like at 5 weeks and what is happening to me, there were pictures. They were small and I couldn't really tell what they were of, so I clicked on them. Big mistake. I instantly felt like gagging and handed the phone to Brian. "Look at that!!!!" Brian looks at it, is quiet for a minute and then says, "It has a tail."
I was at Barnes and Noble reading about this whole process and there was an actual story of a woman's labor and I had to put the book back and leave the building before I got sick. Physically ill, I tell you. And today, I'm talking with my friend Sarah, who is due with her first child in September, and she was trying to ease my mind about the "movements" I would be experiencing. Very kind of her to try to do, but as she was talking I had a flashback to a friend who was pregnant and I was looking at her while she was talking and her stomach suddenly bulged and rippled. I was speechless and horrified. "That was an elbow," she said. Does that not seem VERY much like the movie Alien to you? It certainly does to me. I was just waiting for it to burst out of her belly and start looking for something to eat.
I can't explain it but something about the thought of this weird looking creature living inside of me just completely grosses me out. I don't know why. Maybe it was something from a past life. I'm sure (or at least I'm really hoping) these grossed out feelings will ease as I go. But until then, I'll be careful of what I read and what movies I watch.
I was at Barnes and Noble reading about this whole process and there was an actual story of a woman's labor and I had to put the book back and leave the building before I got sick. Physically ill, I tell you. And today, I'm talking with my friend Sarah, who is due with her first child in September, and she was trying to ease my mind about the "movements" I would be experiencing. Very kind of her to try to do, but as she was talking I had a flashback to a friend who was pregnant and I was looking at her while she was talking and her stomach suddenly bulged and rippled. I was speechless and horrified. "That was an elbow," she said. Does that not seem VERY much like the movie Alien to you? It certainly does to me. I was just waiting for it to burst out of her belly and start looking for something to eat.
I can't explain it but something about the thought of this weird looking creature living inside of me just completely grosses me out. I don't know why. Maybe it was something from a past life. I'm sure (or at least I'm really hoping) these grossed out feelings will ease as I go. But until then, I'll be careful of what I read and what movies I watch.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Busy Bee
My Dad and I tend two big, beautiful gardens at his house in Hayward. Well, I guess they are mostly his, but I go there pretty often to plant, weed, thin, harvest, and process veggies. Yesterday and today were spent down there harvesting beets, green beans, peas, cauliflower, basil, eggplant, dill, and lettuce. There is usually such a big crop of everything that we tend to give it away to friends (if you need anything and are around here let me know!), eat what we can, and then process the rest. So far, processing has been relegated to freezing what we can. Enter hot water canning! Dad got me the stuff I need and we tried it out last night and today. I used the green beans to make Dilly Beans (something I was introduced to by my friend Racheal) and beets to make Pickled Beets (a family favorite). We usually make these every year but then have to keep them in the fridge since they haven't been officially canned. This really limited the amount we could make because those jars took up a lot of space in the fridge. So after a long, hot 5 hours, we ended last night with 12 pints total.
This morning we went to Bayfield to harvest raspberries. We go to Blue Vista Farm in Bayfield and they have tons of awesome berries. (We go back in a few weeks to pick blueberries next!) We each picked almost 10 pounds of berries and then headed home to make and can raspberry jam. Lots of the raspberries were frozen but we also came away with 11 pints of jam.
At this point I am about getting ready to leave to head home when I realized I needed to pick the peas and some lettuce before I left. Dad and I go out to the garden and are picking the peas when I feel something on the back of my leg, right behind my knee. Assuming it was a mosquito, I lifted my heel up to squish whatever it was. Dumb idea. It was not a mosquito but something that had a stinger. So I look at Dad and say "Something just stung me" (which really to be fair I totally stung myself, but whatever). Now this wouldn't be a big deal except that I am allergic to hornets and wasps. I carry an Epi-Pen for just such occasions. First thought, "Are you f***ing kidding me?" Second thought, "Can I take Benadryl if I'm pregnant?" Next thought, "What happens to a baby if I have to use my Epi-Pen?" We drop everything and go inside to look up if Benadryl is ok (which it says it is, thank goodness) and then to call my brother, Dr. Ben, to see what he thinks. I tell him I just got stung but am not sure by what. He asks all the right doctor questions and then concludes I'm probably going to be fine, just take a Benadryl and have another handy in case you start to get worse, and if things do get worse, use your pen. He was absolutely right. It must have been a bee or something little that stung me cause nothing really happened. Whew.
Moral of this story..... 1) don't squish something with a stinger into yourself and 2) there is so much I don't know about being pregnant so thank god for the internet....and my brother. =)
This morning we went to Bayfield to harvest raspberries. We go to Blue Vista Farm in Bayfield and they have tons of awesome berries. (We go back in a few weeks to pick blueberries next!) We each picked almost 10 pounds of berries and then headed home to make and can raspberry jam. Lots of the raspberries were frozen but we also came away with 11 pints of jam.
At this point I am about getting ready to leave to head home when I realized I needed to pick the peas and some lettuce before I left. Dad and I go out to the garden and are picking the peas when I feel something on the back of my leg, right behind my knee. Assuming it was a mosquito, I lifted my heel up to squish whatever it was. Dumb idea. It was not a mosquito but something that had a stinger. So I look at Dad and say "Something just stung me" (which really to be fair I totally stung myself, but whatever). Now this wouldn't be a big deal except that I am allergic to hornets and wasps. I carry an Epi-Pen for just such occasions. First thought, "Are you f***ing kidding me?" Second thought, "Can I take Benadryl if I'm pregnant?" Next thought, "What happens to a baby if I have to use my Epi-Pen?" We drop everything and go inside to look up if Benadryl is ok (which it says it is, thank goodness) and then to call my brother, Dr. Ben, to see what he thinks. I tell him I just got stung but am not sure by what. He asks all the right doctor questions and then concludes I'm probably going to be fine, just take a Benadryl and have another handy in case you start to get worse, and if things do get worse, use your pen. He was absolutely right. It must have been a bee or something little that stung me cause nothing really happened. Whew.
Moral of this story..... 1) don't squish something with a stinger into yourself and 2) there is so much I don't know about being pregnant so thank god for the internet....and my brother. =)
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Parasite
Originally I was going to name this blog something like Hosting a Parasite, in honor of my belief that pregnant women are really just hosts for this thing living inside them, feeding off of them, and basically just using them to further their development. Sounds like a parasite to me. However, I decided that when my kid is old enough to understand things and it finds out that I've been posting on the internet and calling it my "parasite," it may have some sort of detrimental effect on it's self-esteem.
Brian is also on-board with my parasite theory and he used this when telling his mom (Joyce) the other night that I was pregnant. Brian had been kayaking in the Boundary Waters near Ely and stopped at his mom's house in Babbit to say hi, chat, and then head home. Here is the account of the conversation.
Joyce - "How's Lori feeling?" (Side note: For those of you who don't know, my stomach has had some difficulties this last year and I've felt like crap more often than not. A mystery illness really. No one has a clue and nothing worked....not even waving a magnet over my back and the woman telling me to let go of my anger.)
Brian - "She's infected."
Joyce - "What? What's wrong?"
Brian - "She has a parasite."
Joyce - "A parasite! Where did she get that? On your backpacking trip? The Boundary Waters?"
Brian - "From me."
Joyce - "Nooo, it's not from you."
Brian - "Yeah, I gave it to her."
Joyce - "What do you mean?
Brian - "I don't need to explain it to you . You already know the process of reproduction."
Joyce - "What?"
Brian - "She's pregnant."
At this point Joyce can't even be fully excited because she is so confused at what just happened. She ended up calling me last night to express how excited she is and relay her version of this story.
Brian is also on-board with my parasite theory and he used this when telling his mom (Joyce) the other night that I was pregnant. Brian had been kayaking in the Boundary Waters near Ely and stopped at his mom's house in Babbit to say hi, chat, and then head home. Here is the account of the conversation.
Joyce - "How's Lori feeling?" (Side note: For those of you who don't know, my stomach has had some difficulties this last year and I've felt like crap more often than not. A mystery illness really. No one has a clue and nothing worked....not even waving a magnet over my back and the woman telling me to let go of my anger.)
Brian - "She's infected."
Joyce - "What? What's wrong?"
Brian - "She has a parasite."
Joyce - "A parasite! Where did she get that? On your backpacking trip? The Boundary Waters?"
Brian - "From me."
Joyce - "Nooo, it's not from you."
Brian - "Yeah, I gave it to her."
Joyce - "What do you mean?
Brian - "I don't need to explain it to you . You already know the process of reproduction."
Joyce - "What?"
Brian - "She's pregnant."
At this point Joyce can't even be fully excited because she is so confused at what just happened. She ended up calling me last night to express how excited she is and relay her version of this story.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Why not Facebook?
Well, here it is. My attempt at keeping you informed of what is happening in my life. I have to put a few warnings out so that you know what you are getting yourself into......
1) I type how I talk. So it will probably be rambling and may digress but it will be just like you were listening to me.
2) There may be the occasional swear word. It's just who I am.
3) I'm learning how to blog as I go, so if it seems pretty unsophisticated- it is.
A very short history on why I even decided to do this is because I got pregnant. I have said for years (my entire life really except for the last year) that I would never have kids. Well, biology got the best of me and last year started feeling warm and fuzzy when I saw babies rather than feeling grossed out. So I went off of my pill (thank you Ortho-Tricyclen) on June 22, 2011 and what do you know, I got pregnant. Apparently I am pretty fertile. After realizing how many people would be pretty amazed by this news, and trying to do emails and calls, I thought a blog might be better. Especially, with everything else that is going on (building a new house, second year at my new job, expanding the garden) I figured a blog would be a way to journal what an amazing (crazy) time it is for me and Brian (husband), Foxy (dog), and Circe (cat) right now.
Several of you may be wondering why I just don't keep people updated by joining Facebook. I don't want to. There just seems to be too much pressure with Facebook and I have enough going on so I'm going with the blog instead. Plus, not EVERYONE is on Facebook so those people who might want the updates (especially on the impending baby) wouldn't have access.
Getting the blog going took way longer than I thought partially because every name I could think of was taken so thanks to Charlotte and my brother (who I must say came up with some very good and very bad ideas-which the very bad ideas were very funny) "Cultivate" came to be. So here it is, I hope you enjoy it and once I figure out how to do more with it, there will be pictures and hopefully a running list of name possibilities. *Although, names like Frompton and Malkovich are immediately disqualified.
1) I type how I talk. So it will probably be rambling and may digress but it will be just like you were listening to me.
2) There may be the occasional swear word. It's just who I am.
3) I'm learning how to blog as I go, so if it seems pretty unsophisticated- it is.
A very short history on why I even decided to do this is because I got pregnant. I have said for years (my entire life really except for the last year) that I would never have kids. Well, biology got the best of me and last year started feeling warm and fuzzy when I saw babies rather than feeling grossed out. So I went off of my pill (thank you Ortho-Tricyclen) on June 22, 2011 and what do you know, I got pregnant. Apparently I am pretty fertile. After realizing how many people would be pretty amazed by this news, and trying to do emails and calls, I thought a blog might be better. Especially, with everything else that is going on (building a new house, second year at my new job, expanding the garden) I figured a blog would be a way to journal what an amazing (crazy) time it is for me and Brian (husband), Foxy (dog), and Circe (cat) right now.
Several of you may be wondering why I just don't keep people updated by joining Facebook. I don't want to. There just seems to be too much pressure with Facebook and I have enough going on so I'm going with the blog instead. Plus, not EVERYONE is on Facebook so those people who might want the updates (especially on the impending baby) wouldn't have access.
Getting the blog going took way longer than I thought partially because every name I could think of was taken so thanks to Charlotte and my brother (who I must say came up with some very good and very bad ideas-which the very bad ideas were very funny) "Cultivate" came to be. So here it is, I hope you enjoy it and once I figure out how to do more with it, there will be pictures and hopefully a running list of name possibilities. *Although, names like Frompton and Malkovich are immediately disqualified.
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