an ode.

...to cheese danish and orange juice.

(Walmart) Cheese danish, you are the reason I get up at 7 AM with no complaining. 

Thank you for always being moist and sweet with just a little hint of cream cheese. 

My only complaint is that I go through a container a day.  Is there anyway you could become bigger, my dear cheese danish?

It makes my heart (and stomach) hurt when I wake up to empty containers :(...

Just What I Needed.

After a horrible morning, I was pretty excited to get home, feed Maeve lunch and get her to bed so I could crash. And that's just what we did. She slept for about 2 hours, which allowed me to get in a quick nap and read a little bit. After nap time, Maeve woke up super sweaty so I thought an "after-nap-popsicle" would be perfect. (Ryan had to make a midnight run last night for watermelon popsicles- and yes, he found watermelon!) So Maeve and I sat on the front porch for about a half hour just eating popsicles... she was making me laugh and today, that is exactly what I needed. I took a million pictures... there's something about diaper booty babies eating messy popsicles that is SO CUTE :)








I couldn't convince her to hold the popsicle by the stick- so she just took a hold of the whole thing :) We usually eat those popsicles from the plastic so I think she's used to being able to grip it anywhere... oh well, made for messier, cuter pictures :)

Dog Days.

Ohhhhhh my goodness. I think instead of nicknaming this baby the "turkey" it should be named the "hot dog." I have developed this insane, over the top craving for hot dogs. Which means, weekly (sometimes bi/tri-weekly) trips to the "DOG HOUSE." Maeve knows it so well now, that she starts woofing like a dog when we pull up... omg. I'm still only at 1 hot dog per trip (although I told Ryan this could be increasing soon) but the problem is, I also eat fries & rice pudding. It really is a horribly fattening meal that I can only get away with eating while I'm preggo. The thing is, apparently hot dogs aren't the best thing to eat while pregnant- nitrates or something or other is in them which isn't great for the baby. That is the ONLY reason that I am limiting my intake of the dogs to once or twice (sometimes three) times a week. I am assuming my hot dog, french fry and pudding consumption is also the reason why my maternity capris are starting to tighten around my tummy. I could also account the 4 lbs. I've gained in the past month to my dog diet. Anyways, I thought I'd document this intense craving. exciting stuff around here, eh? :)

Stuck in a RUT.

UGH time has seemed to drag by lately. I am getting really ticked about the weather- yes, there have been some sunny days, but its cold outside! I'm sick of bundling Maeve up in MAY!! And then there's my never ending headache- really- its been here since last Friday night (today is Wed... so that's 6 days of a headache). And before any of you think its my blood pressure- rest assured, I had it checked and its 106/68. So its def. not that. My midwife thinks its allergies- so once again I'm on a cocktail of meds... claritin & sudafed. I am SO not one for medication, but if this combo doesn't knock it out, then I have to be on a prescription... and I really want to avoid that. So I've been taking the mixture daily... and to be honest, its not really helping. The headache isn't bad- its just always there... lingering... annoying.

One thing that I've been doing a whole lot of lately is READING. I've always been a reader, but it has become my favorite thing to do when Maeve is napping or sleeping at night. Instead of laying in bed with my eyeballs wide open trying desperately to sleep, I've been sneaking into the bathroom at 3 in the morning and reading. It's way better than lying there, wondering why in the world I can't sleep. I've been finishing a book about every 4 days or so... its kind of crazy :) It was getting to be a rather expensive hobby so I finally started buying used books, which is of course, WAY cheaper. I can't rent library books because I take my books into the bath/shower with me (yes the shower... we have a seat in it, and I aim the water straight down so its like a steam room :) and obviously, can't risk getting a library book wet.

OH! I forgot to post about mothers day- it was really a nice day- I just felt awful- between the headache and morning sickness, I kind of just wanted to pass out all day. Instead, Ryan took me to breakfast at Cracker Barrel- it was nice but I felt sick so I ate toast and toast and toast... then we went to the zoo in Battle Creek- again nice, but it was super cold and windy... then it started to rain, so we left after only being there an hour or so. We also had dinner with my family at Olive Garden (probably my last choice right now..) so I ate a LOT of bread sticks and some soup. Ryan got me some beautiful hydrangeas, an ice cream cake (that I did manage to eat 2 pieces of) and super nice cards- one from him, one from Maeve. He had Maeve color and draw all over the card- its definitely a keeper.

Well, tomorrow I am OUT of the first trimester. I'm excited about that... but still, time seems to be dragging on. I can't wait to find out what this little turkey is- we've already talked about names... I have 2 for sure girl names, and 1 maybe boy name... but we've got time. My mind has been swirling with whether or not its a boy or girl- I've had a dream it was a boy... but the pregnancy has been the exact same as Maeves. The heartbeats are exactly the same, my morning sickness, my headaches, etc... all the same! I am craving fruit and sweets, just like I did with Maeve- well except orange juice- that was my liquid gold with Maeve... this time around I couldn't care less about it. Also, I have been really into fast food (when I'm up for eating) and with Maeve I didn't really start to enjoy fast food until my 3rd tri. Hmmm... what do you all think it is? :)

One more thing I guess I should update you all on- not that its important or anything, but I think its kind of entertaining... I've had an obsession with CHEESE. Any kind, doesn't matter- as long as its deli sliced cheese. I go through over a lb. a week- by myself. Its pretty bad! I guess this baby wants some dang calcium or something! I kind of remember wanting cheese with Maeve too- so I guess its just a pregnancy thing. But WOW, I am plowing through the cheeses!!! For lunch, most days I stack a pile of cheese on a plate... I might have some crackers, but mostly its just a LOT of cheese... oh and water. It will be a miracle if I don't weigh 200 lbs. by November... yikes.