Christmas Vacation

Still feeling pretty sick and tired.  At 15.5 weeks, that second trimester rebound can start ANY time now!   In the last few days I've been able to take less Zofran but that may be because I'm home on vacation until January 2nd and Lily is in daycare, so my days are pretty relaxed.   I'm able to nap if I want to.  It's a good thing.

We had a fairly low key Christmas around these parts.   The tragedy in Newtown put a bit of a damper on festive holiday spirits, plus I really haven't been up to my usual degree of decorating and holiday preparation. Our tree got lights but no ornaments and the rest of our seasonal decor.  I was pleased that I managed to sew a pair of special Christmas pajamas for Lily (I ran out of time to sew the matching PJ pants for Mark and me, though).   I don't have a picture of them but will take one when I do laundry.

I'm doing some little crafting things in my remaining time off work.   Lily likes to kick her sheet and blanket off while she sleeps and I've been saying that she needs a sleep sack with holes for feet to help keep her warm overnight - enter a McCall's pattern that I picked up for 99 cents during a sale six months ago.  It has sizes that range from ~6-9 months up to 4.   I sewed size 2 for Lily and it's HUGE on her but I'm very pleased with how it turned out.  It has a separating zipper and knit ankle cuffs; I could have added sleeves but chose not to for the first one.   It was a lot less expensive than buying a toddler sleep sack and I was able to pick a pretty fleece print.   Excuse my floor; I didn't sweep it after my sewing afternoon!

I've also made lotion bars - they look like bars of soap but when you rub them (dry) on your skin, they melt slightly and moisturize.  They're supposed to be great for eczema (which Lily has had since she was a baby) and for grown-ups' dry winter skin.   It's super easy - equal parts by weight of coconut oil, cocoa butter, and beeswax, melted in a double boiler with essential oils mixed in, then poured into molds to cool.   I used some silicone muffin liners because I don't have a fancy soap mold and they turned out really nicely.   I put one in each bathroom in a little dish so I can moisturize my hands after washing them.   Lily likes using them too.

In-progress is my first attempt at homemade hair clips.  All you need is ribbon and a hot glue gun, but there's a definite learning curve - especially to sealing the ribbon ends so they don't fray.   Lily's way into bows and clips right now so hopefully I'll figure it out soon.

Laying low

I've been keeping a low profile because I've been busy gestating!   Lily will become a big sister in mid-June.

Pregnancy is different after the first baby.  The first time around I could get home from work and collapse on the couch and have a Lean Cuisine for dinner if I ate at all - now there's an active 2 year old to take care of.  Mark's work schedule makes it more stressful since I handle the parenting solo four weeknights and all day Saturday.  He takes over on Sundays and on Monday evening so I can get a little break but many nights I'd get Lily home from daycare, throw up, cook chicken nuggets or mac & cheese for us, and then let her watch Sesame Street or Signing Time.  I'd get her in bed and then wind up on the couch where I inevitably fell asleep by 8 PM, only to be woken up when Mark got home - and then I'd be asleep in bed within a half hour!   The house's level of cleanliness was getting shameful and none of us were eating nutritious foods for a while there.   The fatigue situation is still pretty significant but is slowly improving.    I have pretty severe nausea again, actually worse than when I was pregnant with Lily.   Thankfully my OB got me on Zofran at my first prenatal visit.   It doesn't take the nausea away totally, but it does take the edge off and reduces vomiting (I went from 3+ times a day down to once and sometimes none).

I admit that I sucked at work in various degrees from around 6 weeks until, well, now.  On many occasions I abruptly left a meeting to go throw up and I dozed off at my desk more than once.  I spent numerous afternoons sitting at my desk clenching my jaw and concentrating on NOT hurling.  Once we got Zofran on board I found myself a lot more able to get work done and be productive.   I also needed to avoid spending time in the lab and at our test facility unless really necessary due to the presence of radiation sources and potentially teratogenic chemicals.   While the radiation sources are very safely shielded and I don't use the really nasty chemicals I still prefer to not even go near any of it during my first trimester.   Just like last time I haven't told anyone at the office and so it's taken some creative pawning-off of work onto others.   I've ended up calling out sick or going home early a few times because I felt so crummy.   I think some of my colleagues have become suspicious (probably since I've been in maternity pants since 10 weeks and have now started maternity tops because they're actually long enough to cover the panel).   I plan to tell my boss in the next week and then whoever finds out will find out.

Things with dates were a little weird but worked out in our favor.  I went for my first OB appointment at what we thought was 8 weeks 4 days and found out I was actually 9 weeks 2 days.   While my dates were solid, my cycle is shorter now than it used to be and I must have ovulated early because the baby was measuring big, and I wasn't going to say no to fast-forwarding five days! I had my NT scan earlier this week and the maternal fetal medicine doctor measured the kiddo right on schedule with the new due date so we're sticking with it.

Early/mid October was full of some crazy emotional stuff for us and our families.  First, Mark's dad's companion of 10+ years passed away after a hard fight with cancer.   I found out I was pregnant 10 minutes before leaving to go to her wake.   Saying goodbye to someone who had been a de facto mother-in-law and a grandmother figure to our daughter was very difficult.   At exactly 4 weeks (since LMP) my maternal grandmother passed away.   While we were not close, my parents flew to Michigan for the funeral, leaving their dog with us.  And a week after we found out about the pregnancy I developed a major infection around my dental implant which prompted a trip to the emergency dental clinic (and a call to my OB to find out what the heck was safe to do/prescribe) and several visits to my own dentist, including two weeks on pretty large doses of amoxicillin.   Because of all of the upheaval and craziness I was terrified that something would go wrong with the pregnancy - I don't know why, it just felt like we were waiting for the other shoe to drop.    Fortunately I've had no signs of a problem and have had two ultrasounds now which show everything looking great with the baby.  

Another slow cooker recipe...

Because I'm too darned tired to come up with anything more significant!

I've taken to making this homemade applesauce with some frequency - it was great when I ate fairly strict paleo, because there's no need to add any sugar.   I tend to buy a large bag of Pink Lady or Macoun apples at BJ's and just go to town.  You can get fancy and mix apple varieties or add a few pears to add some depth of flavor, though!

Slow Cooker Applesauce
4 pounds of apples (or an apple/pear combo), peeled and cored
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 cinnamon stick or a generous sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker, cook on low for 6-8 hours.   Remove cinnamon stick (if used).  After cooking, process apples with a potato masher for a chunkier texture or an immersion blender for a very smooth texture.  Enjoy!