Food Thoughts

Food and I currently have a love hate relationship. I still have the same calorie needs (at least 2700) but very little room in my stomach to take them in. I now know the feeling of being full, but still hungry.

I am surprised how each pregnancy has been different in my eating habits. With Kaia, I was all about eating hamburgers. With all 3 pregnancies I have loved Tabasco sauce and continued eating spicy foods. This time around, I'm surprised by seafood.

Normal me doesn't eat much seafood. As in not much, I mean that canned tuna, dungeness crab, and breaded fried shrimp and fish are all I eat. That has really changed the past few months. On July 1st I went to a bridal shower, where the cook (a lawyer in town that has also been to culinary school) made paella. I was nervous about taking much as it had salmon, shrimp, tilapia and some other fish in it. I am big on trying new things, so I grabbed a decent sized serving, and figured I could at least pick out the fish if needed (I was hungry after all). I didn't need my back up plan, because I really enjoyed it.

Then on August 1st, I went to the wedding. They had 3 chilled entrees with sauces. Pork, chicken, and salmon. The servers were trying to have everyone taste all 3 dishes. I asked for a small serving of the salmon, and was surpised by what was considered small. I spooned two healthy sized dollops of the cucumber dill sauce to the side of it. Then I surprised myself by finishing every bite.

Finally we went to the beach, where I couldn't wait to eat fresh dungeness crab! And I did, but I also indulged in grilled prawns, baby shrimp on a salad, and breaded fried shrimp as a main course.

Now I'm wondering, will my taste for fish last past this pregnancy? It would be nice to be able to enjoy it at get togethers in the future, but I'll just have to wait 45 days to find out.

Yes, 45 days or less and the boys will be in our arms! I am excited to meet them, see their faces and give them lots of kisses, as is Dana and the kids. I am also looking forward to a few other things. Like a good chef salad. Brie on french bread. A margarita on the rocks, and having a beer while watching football. Yes, in a short time, I'll have so much to enjoy!

Be sure to visit Friday to see some nursery photos and some of the new gifts the boys have received.

The Cost of Getting Sick

At our home, there is one thing we always seem to share: colds and flus. The typical cycle is Kaia gets sick, then she shares it with Mo, he shares it with me, and I may or may not pass it on to Dana.

This last bout with a cold that turned into sinus infections for Dana and I was a bit different. Dana got sick, then I got sick, then Mo, and finally Kaia. This last bout also got me to thinking how quickly a little cold became an expensive venture.

Here are the costs involved:
Dana missed 2 days of work due to the sinus infection. I'm not going to give an exact figure, but that is more than $150.
2 boxes of tissues (cloth is what I use for regular nose blowing, but when we're sick, we use tissues) $3.40
2 packages of psuedoephedrine: $9
An ER visit for me after being awake in pain all night: $0, but only because I have supplemental coverage through the State right now. Otherwise it would have cost $75.
A trip to my family doctor: $30 copay
Antibiotics and Pain meds for Dana and I: $40
2 night's of takeout because we were both too sick to fix dinner: $35
A bag of Vitamin C throat drops: $1.40
Diflucan for the yeast infection that follows a round of antibiotics: $2

Total out of our pockets: $270.80

The boys will be born during cold and flu season, so the key this year will be prevention! The cost of prevention is much better too!

Hot Water: $5 a month? I suspect that is a high number, as our highest water bill has never been over $45 a month, and that is during the summer when we are watering the lawn and garden.
Soap: $1 This is also a high number as I have a huge bottle of antibacterial soap in the kitchen that only cost $1.50 and we've owned it since before Mo got sick with pneumonia. The other sinks have free soaps from hotels.

Total out of our pockets: $6

I think with some good handwashing, and not sharing cups in our home we can definitely save ourselves some money, and feel better!

First Day of First Grade

It's hard to tell who is more excited. Kaia, or the rest of the family?

Kaia's t-shirt was on clearance at the Osh Kosh outlet for $3.99 and the shorts were $7.99. She really wanted a spaghetti strap top, which wasn't school appropriate. The $4.99 shorts we found that matched the t-shirt were not in her size, and then she found these jean shorts with embroidered flowers on the pockets and it was a good compromise.

No News Means Good News

Hopefully no one was worried about where I disappeared to. I didn't mean to not post for an entire week. I wanted to post. I had ideas in my head, a head that was so clogged and painful with a sinus infection that simple tasks like typing and making sentences were too great a challenge.

Even now it's a stretch. I'd love to say I'm feeling better, but really I'm not. I've had an ER trip at 4 a.m. Sunday morning after being up all night in pain, a doctor's visit Monday, after almost no sleep Sunday night, and I have taken my entire Z-Pak. Relief should be around the corner... I pray!

Wednesday was the boys' growth scan, and while the travel was exhausting, the news was fantastic! Bryce weighs in at 2 lbs 8 oz and Brendon weighs in at 2 lbs 5 oz. The doctor said that between the growth, the fluid levels, and the doppler numbers you cannot even tell the boys needed surgery for TTTS! That's right, it's like they were never sick they are doing so well.

Now the consulting begins between my 3 doctors to determine at how many weeks they should be delivered, and my local doctor's comfort with the delivery. And I need to take a 3 hour glucose test because I failed the 1 hour pretty miserably. All looks good though for an October delivery of 2 healthy boys!

Thank you so much for all your prayers! God has really worked some miracles here, and I'm still looking forward to more. Adding these two to our household will really stretch and already stretched budget. But, I know things will work out. We'll find a way to get finances in order and our family will thrive, even in the abundance of dirty diapers and spit up cloths that will become our new normal.

2 little heads sitting down in my pelvis.

Show & Tell: Benchmark 2, Baby Belly, and Baby Clothes

It's here! Today is week 28, and benchmark #2 for pregnancy. I made it, and plan to keep going. I've told the boys they can come in October, now we'll see if they listen.

As for my belly... Well I've outgrown my comparison shirt, but I put it on to show you.



And I promise there are stretchmarks on the belly, they just don't show up well in photos. In person, you can see them. I'm not one of those pregnant ladies with perfect skin, I wish I were, but I'm not.

And for the wrestlers in my growing belly, I received these items this month.

Preemie Baby Gowns my mom found at the Carter Outlet

Preemie Baby clothes

Now just pray with me that the boys will fit some preemie clothes. Kaia and Mo were both 8+ pounds, and I'm worried about having 2 boys that weigh more than 6 pounds each. That would be 12 pounds of baby in my belly!

Last my aunt and uncle brought by the boys' first Halloween costume. Too cute!


Thanks for stopping by! Please visit Kelli's for more Show & Tell!