Halloween on Belveldere St.

So, this was truly amazing. Saw the cutest kids, and inventive costumes, especially some adults.

Here are some photos from this evening. One house even set up dancers dressed as Madagascar characters to dance in their windows with a backdrop of islands. Amazing house I tell ya.

Top costumes in my opinion were: 1)mom, dad and son. Mom was in wet suit with blood and bandages, son was a shark and dad was a fisherman with all yellow gear on with blood smears on his jacket. 2) Mom as chef and baby as lobster in a pot.

My boobies

I just wanted to reiterate. My boobs are kicking some butt right now. They look like implants, but feel like hell.

And I am nauseous.

Saturday 10/31

Happy halloweenie, as my mom always says!



I just power wrote this blog up until now (4 hrs of writing) and I am finally caught up. Hope you all are enjoying my pregnancy journey and hope you become avid followers. Please don't hold me to writing every day, I hope to, but I may not end up like that girl on Julie and Julia. I may fall off the writing wagon, but I have a sneaking suspicion I won't.


So (A) and I are going to Pampered Girl today to get mani/pedi's and then I am going to her hood to see the cute kids run around Cole Valley (Baby central, SF) in their costumes. I will take pictures so I get ideas for next year.



Some names I have come up with so far:

Andrea Rose (will call her Drea)
Madison Rose
Malory Faye
Daria
Domonic Gianni
Mason Reyes

Till later....

Friday 10/30

Nauseous but did not vomit. That actually may be worse. I sat around a trash can for 2 hrs and when I did walk around I was sure to be near the bathroom.

More freaking gas...mainly burping. I wonder if this will be a sign that I am going to get heartburn. I sure hope not. You know, heartburn is another one of those amazing side effects that nobody cares to share with you until you are pregnant.

Saw all the daycare kids walking around in their Halloween gear. Super cute! And just think, next year, my baby will be around 4 mos (wait, I need to start talking baby talk....16 weeks old) and I am going to be doing the same thing next year.

By the way, I have looked into the daycare here at work. They accept 7 infants and according to mommies at my work (S) and (K), there is at least a 1 year wait list. So, I have contacted them, and will have a tour of the place next week and get put on the wait list. It is a reasonable price of $1250/mo. OKAY I have to be crude here....HOW THE FUCK AM I GOING TO PAY FOR THIS????? Well.....I guess no more shoes for mommy.

So, speaking of money, I decided to drop $201 to join the JCCSF today. Going to start swimming again. They had a deal for the rest of the year it was $1/day until 2010. So that is $30/mo plus the $200 initiation fee. It is a month-to-month membership, so no contract! After the 1st, it is $100/mo. I know, I know, it is pricey, but damn, this gym is nice. It is also on my bus line to/from work so way more convienent than skank or should I say Scant 24 Hr Fitness! It will be worth it for me and the baby.

Really craved a burger so I bought some burger meat at Le Beau, my local market, and some fresh Acme bread, and went out on a limb and bought an avocado.
Made the burger, it was amazing, did not get sick from the avocado, so that one last weekend must have been bad.
Watched "He's just not that into you," good flick and funny. And you know what, I am just not that into baby daddy right now. That may change, but right now, I am only into my lentil size bean growing in my belly right now. WORD UP!

(K) came over, smelling of the booze from happy hour....amazing how my sense of smell is out of control! We talked and I tried to clean the kitchen, but the congealed burger fat in the grill pan just about did it for me. A good 20 minutes of nausea there.

Slept successfully on my side this night with the 2 pillows between my legs. (K) suggested I hold onto another pillow while doing this and that helped. Thanks (K)

Thursday 10/29 Beginning of Week 6 of pregnancy

Well, the bible was freaking dead on. They say morning sickness is supposed to start around week 6. Guess what? I am right on target. This is my first day of vomiting. Banana and Jasmine green tea. Yum, right? Well, I never said this blog was going to be pretty did I? Our women's bathroom also smells of mildew sewage the closer your face gets to the toilet. Freaking A. Anyhow, that just came out of nowhere and glad nobody stopped me as I power walked to the bathroom clear across the building. Not to sure I will make it every time.

Trashcan next to desk now= Check!

And, I told my Dad today. He is happy but disappointed that I am not married....let's not get into that.


Day 2 of PT:

They are really excited to track me in my recovery and say that it is good that I came in when I did. The faster we can get my core ready the better! She recommends swimming for my recovery and pregnancy so I am going to look into JCCSF, that is the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, and NO you don't have to be Jewish (I asked!)


New rules: I can't sleep on my belly anymore b/c of back and soon enough b/c of baby. I have to sleep with 2 pillows b/w my legs on my side and 2 pillows under head. And I shouldn't wear flip flops (DARN IT!) I live in flip-flops....I may break this rule often.


Random Pain:

I also have this weird shoulder pain all week that I think I may have pulled a muscle carrying all that butternut squash home from the Farmer's Market on Sunday. I sure hope so, you know why? Well, one of my weekly emails "Your Pregnancy: Week 6" had a link to abdominal pain, and I looked at it, since I had some abdominal pain the other day (GAS!). Anyhow, it said signs of an ectopic pregnancy were:
If left untreated, an ectopic pregnancy can rupture and be life threatening. Call your practitioner immediately if you have any of the following symptoms: abdominal or pelvic pain or tenderness, vaginal spotting or bleeding (can be red or brown, copious or scant, continuous or intermittent), pain that gets worse during physical activity or while moving your bowels or coughing, or pain in the tip of your shoulder.

WTF???? How random is that? Abdominal pain with shoulder pain???? Freaking weird, but, I am not going to stress. I can't freak out about every little tiny thing that is going on in my body. I am just more in tune with it.



By the way, I really don't like that word, SCANT. It's weird.

Wednesday 10/28

Got to sleep in today cause I have my appointment with the sports medicine doctor about my back.

Go in and tell her whats going on and that I am pregnant. She is excited, says congrats, and then says "well everything that I would want to do to help I can't for another 9 mos." F'ing great!!!
So, its off to Pre-Natal Pilates Physical Therapy starting TODAY. I have to go 2x/wk for 8 sessions and go back to see her in 1 month.

By the way, I can't take any pain relievers except for Tylenol.

So PT it is, beginning with leg lifts and bridges and clams! Whoohoo.

Oh yeah, interesting side fact. My teeth feel awful in the mornings. Talk about funky!!!! I think I brush my teeth for 10 minutes at least.
I do get a metallic taste in my mouth as well, which is one of those great side effects of being prego according to some website online.

I signed up for some weekly email things that tells me all about the development of the baby from babycenter.com that was recommended from my other prego friend (KB).

Beginning of Week 2 knowing I am pregnant (Week 5-6 of Pregnancy)

Sunday 10/25:

Tried to eat an avocado and it made me ill. I am hoping it was just bad, because damn, that would suck to have that aversion.

Go to the Farmer's Market and get all kinds of good veggies to make some of my things in the Pregnancy cookbook I got. I figure, I am going to start feeling ill soon, if that damn bible is right.

Go to a movie alone. Couples Retreat. Funny. I figure, I won't have much alone time in 9 mos. so I better soak up as much of it as I can now.

Monday 10/26:

Clean the crap out of my house, and make the carrot soup from the prego cookbook and make a roasted chicken. Not interested in proteins so much right now. All I wanna eat are fruits and veggies. That's a good thing I think.

Weighed myself today, and I thankfully dropped 2 pounds. I was carrying that 3-4 lbs heavier weight that I normally get before my period....you know that bloat/water weight. Well, that crap wasn't changing over the last few weeks and I was getting scared I was having to start this pregnancy at a heavier weight. I am no little girl, so the more weight I have on now, the less I can gain. I already feel like a fat cow. Phew, dropped a bit....could be that I have not had a drink in 11 days! Whoop, whoop.

Note: I do wish I knew that Thursday night October 15th would be my last drink for awhile. At least it was my favorite beer, Big Daddy......how fitting?!?!?!

Carrot Soup Recipe:

2 tablespoons of Olive Oil
1 Medium Sweet onion, chopped
1 medium Yukon Gold potato, peeled and chopped
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon peeled and grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon of ground coriander
1 teaspoon of curry powder
1.5 lbs of carrots, peeled and chopped
4 cups of chicken stock

Cook onions, potato, garlic, ginger, coriander, and curry powder until onions are soft, 5-8 min. Add carrots and stock and bring to boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the carrots are tender.
Puree in a blender and season to taste with salt and pepper. Swirl in heavy cream if desired, and garnish with chives.

S0 this looks like baby food, which gave me the idea. I think I am going to make my own baby food.

Tuesday 10/27:

All results from my blood tests came back fine. I have no antibodies to Toxoplasmosa, which means it is likely my cats do not harbour this parasite since I have been scooping their poo for 11 years now, I am sure I would have been exposed if they did, OR I am just a super being and can ward off parasites. WORD.

Oh and.....Yup, I am pregnant. The blood work showed my hCG levels are between 5-6 weeks pregnant.

Part 2: Week 1 of knowing I am pregnant (Week 4-5 of pregnancy)

A couple of things that happened this week that I would like to share. I am trying to catch up on these posts so I can post them daily or every other day depending on how interesting my life is that day! I don't want to bore you to death, I wanna make you laugh and smile because I am laughing and smiling.

1) I told my mom I was pregnant. She is happy, but scared. Understandable. However, she did call the next day stating that grandma was calling. Super cute.

2) I made my OBGYN appointment. It is Nov 16th. New doctor since my current gyno isn't an obstetrician.

3) Got blood work done to make sure for the 4th time I was pregnant. They also did the whole pre-natal screen, HIV, HEP C and I requested the Toxoplasmosis since I have 2 wonderful cats who I have to clean up after since I am all alone at this point.

It is suggested that you do not change the litter box while pregnant because you may expose yourself to the Toxoplasma gondii parasite in their poop and it can cause fetal blindness and brain damage. It is normally transmitted to cats by eating dead birds and mice and then excreted in their feces. SO, being that my cats have never been outdoors, nor even thought about killing mice or birds, I think I am straight. However, I have taken the precautions of wearing gloves while changing the litter and washing my hands often. Here is more information on Toxoplasmosis.

4) My BOOBS are killing me. My nipples are constantly hard and feel like someone rubbed sand paper all over them. They are definitely perky though - that's a plus.

5) Gas, gas and freaking more gas. Burping in my sleep!

6) My back is starting to hurt again. For those that don't know I have two bulging discs at the L5-S1 and L4-L5 discs in my back. I have a history of back problems all starting from a horseback riding accident when I fell off a horse and got a hairline fracture in the vertebrae right at this location when I was 10 or so. So anyhow, this is freaking me out a bit with the pregnancy. I was on corticosteroids when I conceived, methylprednisolone. That made everything better, but it looks like it was only a temporary fix. However, my pain is not constantly now, it is intermittent. Not too worried about the effects, I did a PubMed search and even though there is not a lot of research on pregnancy and the effects on the fetus, it has been used a lot on pregnant women and is used in extremely high doses at the end of difficult pregnancies to fast track the development of the fetus' lungs.
Anywho, made an appointment next week with my doctor to go over what is next in my treatment.

7) Keep going to the gym and increasing my walking everywhere. Can't get started fast enough.

Part 1: Week 1 of knowing I am Pregnant: (Week 4-5 of Pregnancy)

So I am reading my pregnancy bible and freaking out a bit. There are two things that come to mind as I am reading this book.



1) Is there some kind of button the baby pushes as you squeeze him/her out of your vagina that erases all of the bad pregnancy symptoms that you experienced in the 9 mos. that makes you forget everything and makes you tell all other woman and people that "Pregnancy is the best gift ever. The most amazing experience I have had!" Cause Sh*t, I am reading this Bible so to speak, and this does not look like it is going to be the best experience of my life. Well, emotionally maybe, but physically? It just sounds damn gross to me. However, I am already pretty nasty, so increased gas, flatulence, and moodiness is the name of my game, so now I just have an excuse. SWEET!



2) If anyone read this book prior to having sex all together, YOU WOULD NOT HAVE IT. I think that Sex education classes in middle school should pass this out as suggested reading. Those 12 years old girls won't be getting started any time soon.

A history Lesson: Day 3, 4 and 5

Saturday 10/17:

Well what better timing for my cousin (B) to be in town to run the Woman's Nike Marathon in SF!
We were supposed to meet up in the AM to do brunch but he canceled because he was getting sick and needed to get some rest for the race. We were to meet up at 4 pm that evening for the inspirational dinner.

I am in bed all day watching the tube because of all days damn it, today I can! OH yeah, I forgot to shave one leg in the shower. Beginning of the forgetfulness!

Team in Training for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society hosts this Inspirational dinner the night before the race and serve carbs, carbs and more carbs. Well, I wasn't running 26 miles the next day, but I still carb loaded. We cheered in 6000 runners at the beginning and that was quite cool. On our way home, I tell him I am prego.

Sunday 10/18:

(B) races in the marathon and I go to Glide Memorial Church to get some inspiration on. (A) and her dad meet me there, and it was an off day at Glide. A day that actually made me think I may not go back for a bit. I feel like they actually may be becoming more secular than I care for. If you know me well, I am a bit weary of the whole church thing. I think it is cultish in ways and it just freaks me out. I am in no way Atheist, I guess I would have to be agnostic. I definitely believe in GOD and that GOD, whether it is an actual man/woman or dolphin, or statue I don't know, makes decisions for our lives for the better. Maybe GOD is just an aura around people and when you get in contact with those aura's you see, or feel GOD. Okay, enough, this is supposed to be about my pregnancy, not my spiritual beliefs.
So (A) and her dad and I go to the little dinner next to glide, and get breakfast. I get my usual: Vegetarian omelet with egg whites, hash browns, and sourdough toast. I am still going to keep it light now that I am prego, since I am really not eating for two quite yet!

Meet up with cousin (B) and he has the most amazing energy. He just ran a darn marathon and he is ready to take on the Castro. So we begin our journey for the day. We walk up market street after the street car decides to crap out on us. He is starving, I just ate, but we stop at Zuni Cafe for a bite to eat. So you know, I already spent all day reading about what I shouldn't eat. And gosh, that list is ridiculously long. But, I figure, most people still don't know they are prego at this point, I was just super ahead of the game. I am going to ignore the "do not eat list" one last time. I want me some Oysters. Guess what? I am fine! I didn't get sick and I got to enjoy my last taste of the amazing filter eater at one of the best places in SF to eat them.

As we are sitting outside Zuni, (B) is getting waved at by fire fighters, and smiled at by all cute gay men passing by. At this point, I think. Man, I wish I was a gay man. Nope, you are a prego woman....

Ok, well we window shop and I see this amazing book, Baby-Gami: Baby Wrapping for Beginners. So I am definitely going to do the sling thing with little baby I got growing in me. I can't wait. So this book also details how to wrap a baby in a road map just in case you have an accident on the road. Too funny!

We continue on our day/night by going tot he celebration dinner and dipping out because it was so crazy and (B) had had enough. We took the street car to Fisherman's Wharf, ate Clam Chowder out of a Boudin's Sourdough Bread bowl, and just talked. It was great!

Went to a store across the way to buy me a black North Face Fleece. So I am trying this jacket on, a men's medium, and it hits me. F*ck, I have to think about my belly in a few months. Will this jacket fit me???? ARGHHHHH.....
Well, cousin (B) and I improvised. I took my other jacket, rolled it into a ball and stuffed it on my tummy and zipped up the other fleece. Well, it looks like it will fit in 8 months (let's freaking hope!).

Monday 10/19:

Go to brunch at Dottie's True Blue Cafe after waiting for 1 hour. So worth the wait. Go to Border's after to purchase my first baby books. I get "What to expect when your Expecting" and "A Well Rounded Pregnancy Cook Book." As we are in line getting the books, and (B) gets the Playboy with Marge Simpson on the cover, a toddler is having a serious tantrum and as I look down at the books in my hand, (B) says "God I hate kids," and I just say "F*ck!"

Thanks Cousin (B) for making my weekend great. It was impeccable timing and well needed!!!! laughs!

Just a little history lesson: Day 1

October 16th 6:00AM I run out of bed because I have to pee soooo bad. As i reach the toilet, I think,"Hum, I have that extra prego test in my drawer from last month when I bought a two pack, and I should have gotten my period yesterday (maybe..irregularity for the past 6 mos.) maybe I should just pee on the sucker and forget about it. So I rip open the foil packet as i do the happy pee dance with cloudy eyes, start to launch Niagara falls into the toilet and try to only hit that 5 cm stick and definitely get the 5 second stream they recommend. Well, 30 seconds later, NOT the three minutes they say to wait, there are 2 lines. TWO LINES. So I have never seen two lines before...only the one, so I think "Well, maybe I peed on the window?" But I knew right then and there, that it was right. I am Pregnant. And I smile...

6:20AM I called my sister (M) immediately since it was 6 freaking AM, and nobody here is up that early. So, east coast=9AM=people awake that I can tell. So she knows immediately that something is up, and I tell her, and she is happy.

7:15AM On my way to work and boy am I am nauseous on the bus. Anxiety nausea, but just giving me a heads up for whats to come.

9:00AM Go to Walgreen's to buy 2 more tests, digital ones I might add, to make sure I don't have a false positive. Go to bathroom at work, squeeze out some drops (definitely not the 5 seconds they recommend) and then watch this high tech digital sand clock flip back and forth and back and forth for the 3 minutes and then Bam the words PREGNANT pop up. Actual words so you can't think that the double line is not real since one line is fainter than the other. 12:00PM Go out for a celebratory lunch with my crew since we kicked some butt on an inspection the week before. I had already boosted to the guys that they can go home after the lunch and therefore we can all have a beer together. Well guess what, NOT ME anymore. I had to turn down a beer and tell my first fib of the pregnancy, "I am not feeling that well today."

2:00 PM Okay, this is a imaginary time since I am trying to post info from 3 weeks ago. I tell my friends A and K what is going on.

5:00PM I go talk to baby's daddy (BD) and let him know what is going on. Mind you, he is totally mad at me from the day before (fight via text messaging). I am not going to go into details on this blog about the negative aspects of this pregnancy since I don't what to begin my child's life in drama. I am trying to stay as positive as possible during this situation.  Here is the beginning of the dialogue: G: Hey what's going on? BD: Nothing, what's up? G: I just wanted to see how you are? BD: Fine, what's up? G: Weeeelllllll.... hum BD: You're pregnant. G: Yes. I will not continue the dialogue as it was not good. Let's just say, telling him was the only thing I was afraid of that day. I wasn't afraid that I was prego at all. My fear was instinctual, and I was right, he was not happy about it. He drives me home, we don't talk. He gives me a hug when I get home, and he leaves. This is the last time I talk to him.

Just a little History Lesson: The day before

October 15th 6:00 PM I went out to have drinks with two of my girls, A and K, to vent about a fight that I had just gotten in with my significant other over text messaging that day. First I do want to say, fighting over text messaging is the most ridiculous thing ever and why we adults do this is beyond me. We have fallen into this world that we can hide behind a computer or LCD screen and think that what is happening really isn't cause it is not face to face. Anywho, we have a few beers, and I feel better and it's time to go home. Sweet K is kind enough to drive me home but we decide to make a pit stop at Burger King. This is when I should have known! I have not eaten fast food in I don't know, 3 years? Wait, wait, I may have had a McDonalds Egg McMuffin somewhere in that time (but those don't count- even nutritionists on morning talk shows say that the Egg Mcmuffin is your safest bet at McD's!) Sorry for the 2nd digression.I get a Whopper Jr. and it actually was freaking disgusting! So I get home, go to bed and then....