18 Weeks + It's a BOY

On Valentine's Day Robert and I headed to our doctor's office to find out our little one's gender. We were both pretty anxious, and had been counting down the days for about 3 weeks. I had been back and forth since we found out we were expecting, never quite deciding if I thought it was a little girl or boy....until a week before our appointment. Both Robert and I were absolutely convinced it was a girl. I had always heard if you don't really start showing early on (around 12-13 weeks) it's more than likely a girl. False!

When the ultrasound tech finally took us back and showed us (very clearly) that we were going to be having a little boy I could hardly believe it! We didn't have a preference wether it was a boy or girl, so we were of course very,very excited. It was a really good experience for the both of us. Finding out the gender definitely made us both feel much more connected to the little bell pepper (it's "fruit size") and I am pretty sure Robert and this little man child already have a special bond.

I guess my theory of all of us Wixom girls only having boys is proving true thus far (I only have sisters, 5 actually. Right now there are 4, almost 5 grandkids and they are 5 for 5, boys!). 

Cravings/Aversions:

Since I have gotten out of the "sickness" stage I wouldn't say I have strong cravings, but more aversions. There are just certain things that don't sound appealing, at all! Breakfast has become a big deal to me, and when I usually have the biggest cravings. At the beginning I was on a toast/bagel with cream cheese phase, but starting about week ago I have been on a smoothie kick. There is just something about liquid sweetness that sounds so appealing all the time. Now that I think about it, it may be a sign that I need to drink more liquids. Whoops. 

Books:

One thing about this whole birth and pregnancy business that I am admit about is being prepared. I know there are a lot of things that are out of my control when it comes to this whole birthing and raising a child thing, but being unprepared is not going to be one of them. Over the past 3 months I've read What to Expect When You're Expecting, Babywise, Your Girlfriends Guide to Pregnancy and am currently reading Bringing up Bebe. I have a list of about 8 more books I plan to read. So far my favorite pregnancy book has been Girlfriends Guide and baby book has been Babywise. I am not done with Bringing up Bebe yet, but I am LOVING it. (Highly recommended) 

Exercise:

For those of you who know me pretty well, exercise (running & cross fit) have always been pretty important to me. I have cut down running to about 20-25 miles/wk, added lower impact exercises, and lift 3 days/wk. I figure once my belly gets a little bit bigger I will have to make modifications, but so far it's been great! 

Concerns/Worries:

Right now my biggest concern is not knowing where we are going to be having this baby! Robert and I are still deciding what school he should accept, and thus our moving and birthing plans are on hold. It stresses me out a little, but making the wrong decision stresses me out more, so I am all for us taking time. Also, I know baby boy is healthy, but it concerns me a little bit that I'm still not really showing (this dress shows more than my normal clothes do). 

Baby:

Little boy is now the size of a bell pepper, has fully functioning ears and weighs 7 oz. During ultrasounds he is practically using my body as a little gym, but I have yet to feel him wiggling around (and anxiously awaiting to feel him!). 

I heart food

So let me just be real. I love food, probably too much. Cooking it, eating it, playing with it (bad habit) and ruining my clothes with it (yep, still a 5 year old).

During school Robert would always beg (really, though) me to let him cook so that I would have more study time, but I always declined his offer- not because he doesn't have mad cooking skills but because I find cooking therapeutic. There is just something about making something, not only edible, but absolutely delicious out of random things in our pantry that I found so profoundly satisfactory. So at the end of a long day, the first thing I want to do is whip up a nice well rounded dinner for my dear rubbertoe and I.

And in honor of my food obsessed brain today (and making a bomb.com meal tonight) , here are a few of my favorite go-to dishes. Are they healthy? That's relative. Do I have a major sweet tooth? No. Do I love ethnic food and spice? Yes. With those precautions, here you go- a list of my favorite foods that I think everyone needs to try because they rock my world:

My favorite well-rounded, feel-good, "clean"  meal:
Last week my sister and I were talking about how much we love well rounded meals when we feel clean, light, and satisfied afterwards, so this is mine!

• Salmon. There are a few recipes that I like, and I always seem to go back to my mom's marinade or a nice herb crusted salmon. 
• Mashed Cauliflower. My sister(s) Micah and Collette first taught me how to make this, and I make it differently every time. I did find a similar recipe that I have used a few times and enjoy. Mashed potatoes go well here, too.
• Spinach Salad. 
• Jim Lahey's No Work Bread. My sister and I found this recipe a few years back in my cooking bible How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman. I have finally figured out how to use Robert's sourdough start (yes, his Christmas present) with it, and let me tell you, it makes a KILLER sourdough artisan bread. Divine.

Go-to Desserts:

• Cherry Slab Pie 
• Deep Dish Cookie Pie I 1/4 this recipe and it was perfect for Robert and I (and probably a 3rd person). I also found that you could probably cut the sugar down by about half and still have it be too sweet. 
• Pierre Mineral Water + Crushed Ice + Stevia's Flavored Sweetners

Breakfast-ish:

• Peanut Butter-Banana Bread This was a Cooking Light recipe I found a few moons ago. I ended up cutting down the sugar down and adding more banana because bananas are so sweet. 
• Peanut Butter Cup Baked Oatmeal We literally have this for breakfast 5 times a week. 

Main Dishes:

• Homemade Indian Naan
• Sopa Tarasca (Bean and Tomato Soup) My sister first introduced us all to this soup from NPR's Kitchen Window at our Christmas Eve Palooza. Rocked my tastebuds.
• Tomato Basil Creme Pasta

And so there it is. A list of my favorite foods that may or may not make me want to weep because they are just that good.

Happy Sunday!

the bitter truth

A while ago my mom saw this clip on CNN, and shared it with me. Since I am a promoter of all things health (if you remember from my 23 1/2 hours post), feel free to watch and share this with your friends. I found this clip absolutely fascinating, considering it's not just "fat" that makes our cholesterol levels go up, and the way sugar affects our brain. Anyway, enjoy! 

Have a happy and above average Thursday :)

Dress-up

A while back I mentioned that I was in the middle of becoming a certified fitness/aerobics instructor. Today I taught an aerobics class for a "special population"; my special population of choice was expecting (expecting a baby, that is) and postpartum mothers. My teaching parter is expecting, but for this rest of us, a balloon sufficed. It was probably the most fun I have ever had teaching a fitness class. 

It may or may not have given most of the people in my class baby fever. 

The class after mine had the "special population" of elderly. We danced oldies music the whole time; I'll be honest, I had a little bit of age envy. I'd be down with getting a velvet jumpsuit and boogieing to "Build me Up, Buttercup" any day. 

Moral of the story: You're never too old to pretend play.

Weeping.

There are something in life that just makes me want to weep, and then weep again:

leaving London, 

waking up at 5 minutes before my alarm goes of at 4:57 knowing I can't go back to bed, 

wearing sandals when it starts to snow in May,
being hungry (but that is just a whole other story)
having a runny nose

and- oh yeah,

  midterms 

(when every professor feels the need to throw an exam and project at you)

That's all.

Other than that- life is good. (once this week is over)
Especially since after this lovely week, we get to plant our garden.

Three cheers for garden composts and fresh veggies.

Twenty-Three and a Half Hours

I love going to school. There is just something about diving in and learning everything about something you love; for me, that is our body: both Anatomy & Physiology (but preferably physiology)  health, exercise, and nutrition. I have loved getting into the upper level classes for this very reason.

Did I also mention Robert-o also loves this kind of stuff? (Since we are both in the same field of study, it would make sense :) Sometimes I feel like we can get a little nerdy when our conversations hold excitement about what we learned in our Physiology classes that day.

Last week I stumbled across this video and fell in love. This doctor did extensive research and came up with the following. It is pretty much common knowledge, but I like the way that he puts it. Especially since 1/3 of Americans are obese, over 1/2 are overweight and another half are at risk of Cardiovascular disease.
Enjoy!




I am pretty much out on a campaign for everyone in the world to see this video- so please, share with your friends. :)