Team Blerg

February 28

Since this blerg feeling Teresa has going on seems to indicate a healthy noob, I am totally happy that my wife is sick.  On the few occasions she hasn’t been feeling blergy, I find myself worrying.

Whenever Teresa says she’s not feeling well, a little voice in my brain pumps his fist and goes, “Yesssss!”

Sure, I feel bad about feeling good about Teresa feeling bad.  I would definitely prefer she be pregnant and not feel sick.  But as long as it’s an indication that the noob is still growing, I’m on Team Blerg.

Wherein I defend myself about the dolphin thing

February 28

Ok, so I think it was the part where he said we would visit it “sometimes”.   I just imagined the poor dolphin all alone and wondering why its parents won’t visit and isn’t it awful that we couldn’t live with our child….etc.

I told Danny that I realized it was irrational that I was sad about the dolphin being abandoned and us only visiting it sometimes.  I even made fun of myself for getting sad about it.   So, it’s not like I got all mad and started crying or anything, I just said “Well now the stupid hormones are making me genuinely sad about our lonely dolphin baby.”

So there.

Pregnant ladies don’t find me funny.

February 28

On the way to work today, Teresa remarked on how the ultrasound is Friday and we’ll finally get to see what’s inside.  She said she hopes it’s a monkey.

I decided to play along and randomly say “I hope it’s a dolphin.”  Which puzzled Teresa (because a monkey is so damn logical.)  She didn’t like the dolphin idea because we don’t have a bathtub large enough to accommodate a dolphin.  I said we could donate the dolphin to the aquarium and visit it sometimes.

This deeply saddened Teresa.  For real.  Not in the fashion of the cute game we were playing.  She was sad that I would be fine with seeing our hypothetical dolphin child only sometimes.  She was questioning my love of a baby that does not, will not, can not exist.

So…to set the record straight:  I do not hope we have a dolphin baby.  I we DO have a dolphin baby, I promise to be an active participant in the care of said dolphin baby.

…

Even though the aquarium would CLEARLY be the best option for the care of our dolphin baby.

Blerg II, the Re-blergining

February 27

So, very little nausea today, but all sorts of wooziness and lightheadedness.  And apparently eating food that has a flavor is not a thing I will be doing for a while.   That delicious pot roast in the fridge is probably all Danny’s now.

Blerg

February 26

Really not feeling well today. Ginger is taking the edge off, but this whole afternoon and evening I’ve been feeling crappy.  😛

Ginger to the Rescue

February 24

Today I stopped at Hy-Vee and bought out their ginger candy isle.   I had been contemplating lunch and realized that if I didn’t do something about my sad, sad tummy I would probably skip lunch like I did yesterday–and that’s not good for anyone.  So, here is what I got:

Newman’s Own Ginger Mints

These are the only ones I’ve tried so far, and I gotta say I’m pretty happy about them.  They taste pretty much like straight up ginger, but I like ginger so that’s a plus.  I sucked on one from Hy-vee to Pancheros (about a block) and by the time I was in line for my tacos my tummy decided it was hungry!  On my way out I popped another one and I didn’t get my usual after food yuckies either.  So, yay!

I have not needed to test these yet, since the Newman’s were so effective.  I think I’ll use one a day all scientific like and report back my findings.

The Ginger People’s Gin Gins

These are much less GINGER than the Newman’s, more candy-like.  I still like them though.  They are a sucky-candy and come in individual wrappers, which will make them easy to put in pockets and take with me.  I’m sure Max will get a kick out of them, he loves playing with candies in wrappers.

The Ginger People’s Ginger Chews

I really like these.  They seem to have a much stronger bite than the other two, but that could be because they are chewed instead of sucked.  They are a soft, sort of caramel-like texture and are just the right amount of chewy to firm.  Num num num.  Also individually wrapped and easy to take along.   I don’t know if I’ll have these with me too often though, I think I might be more inclined to just snack on them rather than use them therapeutically.  With 20 calories per chew they are among the most caloric of the options, so it might be best to save them for special uses.

Reeds Crystallized Ginger

You really don’t get much more basic than this–just ginger and sugar.  I already knew I would like this so I got it, even though it’s not individually wrapped.  I guess I could keep it in a baggie to carry around with me, but I could also make it my “at home” remedy too.   A couple in bed right before I get up would probably help me through the morning.  Yes…good idea me!

What I had originally gone to the store looking for was:

Reeds Ginger Chews

Dan and I have been known to make a trip to New Pi in Iowa City to bring back cases of this stuff.   I was all set to bemoan Hy-Vee no longer carrying it, but then I tasted the Ginger People chews.  I think I’ll live.  🙂

Arrite, I guess that’s that.  I totally forgot I had potroast waiting for me until I was leaving work and trying to think of what to cook.  When I got home the smell just hit me—mmmmmmmmm!  Can’t wait until Dan gets home so we can EAT!

A Healthier Danny

February 23

My parents were pretty great parents.  But like all parents, they made mistakes.   Now that it’s my turn to make mistakes, I’d like to not make the same ones they made.  I can fuck up for myself, thank you very much.  No, I haven’t made a list of all the stuff my parents did wrong.  That would be kinda dickish.  It would be a comparatively short list, anyway.

But I’m going to start avoiding a big one right now by trying to take better care of myself.  My brother has the looks of a Fairchild and the body shape of a Hanson.  I have the looks of a Hanson and the body shape of a Fairchild.  I do not want the Fairchild body shape.  That’s the fatter body shape.  Sorry, Fairchild family members who read this, but compared to the Hansons, it’s true.  Like me, my dad started life beanpole thin then plumped up in a big way.  I don’t think I’m as fat as my dad was by this age, but if I don’t do something, I will be.  Then comes the diabetes, then the heart problems.  Then you know…death.  But hey!  Thanks to Hanson genes, at least I’ll probably keep all my hair.

My dad didn’t take very good care of himself and I think I have the same weakness for foods- the same sweet tooth and cravings for delicious, delicious fat.  My dad died of a heart attack several years ago.  I would like to see my child’s wedding and college graduation (though I suppose it’s at least partially MY fault Dad didn’t see my graduation since I took the long way around.)  I’d like to meet my grandkids.

Boy.  This is kind of a downer of a post so far, eh?

Anyway, I am going to get healthier.  I have a membership at the Y and today I’m going to use it.  I’m going to try swimming.  I like swimming and it is great exercise.  I’m also going to eat healthier and eat less.  I will stop eating when I’m no longer hungry instead of eating until I can hardly friggin’ move.  I will still drink, but I will cut back.  I will have a few beers on our karaoke night and a few drinks on the weekend, but no drinks during the week unless there’s a special occasion or we’re guests.  I gained a sense of portion and calorie control back when I dropped 20 pounds to play Andy Warhol.  So I know when I’m being naughty.  I just need to care about being naughty again.

I thought about doing this thing where as Teresa takes pictures of how big her belly gets, I’ll take pictures of how small mine gets.  But I don’t expect to lose weight at a fast enough rate for it to be a stunning comparison.  I’m not tying this to a weight loss goal.  I’m just going to try to kick some bad habits and develop good ones.  When I played Warhol, I was able to keep up my healthy eating habits for a little while after the part was over, but within a year, since I’d reached my goal and didn’t care any more, all the weight was back and then some.

Weight loss will come, but that is not my goal.  My goal is to live longer than my dad who died at age 58.

Update:  I swam today and it was good.  I liked it.  When I was a kid I used to live at the swimming pool, even in the winter.  It’s fun and relaxing.  But holy shit am I out of shape.  One lap and I was panting pretty good.  Secondary goal:  Stop being such a pussy.

Ultrasound scheduled!

February 23

I saw the doctor Monday to confirm my knocked-up-idness and they said that I was in fact with child.  (I’m trying for euphemisms today)  They were a little confused about things–turns out when I called them last month to let them know I miscarried no one bothered to cancel my 12 week appointment.  Yeah, anyway.

So I had to explain how Dan has super-sperms and hit the mark without me even having a cycle, and Joyce (my NP) got all “I’d like to believe you but I’m a medical professional and know that people lie” and wanted to make sure that I had actually miscarried before.  I told her about all my symptoms and she felt my belly and said she could feel my uterus and that it was about 6 weeks full, which is about right.  I wanted to feel it too, so she showed me where to press, but all I felt was guts.  Good thing I’m a web developer.

Joyce thought that it would be a good idea to have an ultrasound sooner than usual for this one, which we are calling “The Noob”, so we scheduled it for next Friday.  NEXT FRIDAY!  That’s so soon!  I’m super excited.

Bleagh, I’m also nauseated all the time now.  Well, not all the time, just when I haven’t eaten for a while, or I just ate, or I smelled something or looked at moving stuff.  Or the wind blows funny.  But when I’m asleep I’m A-Ok.  Joyce said, and I had heard elsewhere, that nausea is a good sign of a healthy pregnancy, so I’m pretty ok with it.  Then again, I haven’t ralphed yet, so we’ll see how long my “pretty ok” keeps up.  I did bring a toothbrush and toothpaste to work, just in case.

Oh, I’m also developing a very love/hate relationship with food.  When I’m not actively nauseated I am actively horny for food.  I WANT IT IN ME.  But then, about 3/4 through whatever I’m eating, I am suddenly actively not feeling good and have to push the food away and not look at it.  It’s the weirdest damn thing.

Yay, sperm!

Written 2/21/11.

Teresa’s pregnant again! Woot! Apparently my swimmers were all like, “Aw, hell naw!  Turn us loose!” and immediately got to work making a new one. But since our parents know about this blog, I’m holding off on publishing this post until we go public. Looks like Teresa has the same idea.  I reckon this time we’re going to wait a bit longer before we share the good news. Wait until we’re closer to a point where a miscarriage is less likely to happen. No need to drag EVERYBODY through the shit storm should the reset button get pushed again. As far as I know, the only people who know what happened are our parents and a friend who got suspicious and was getting all excited that Teresa might be pregnant despite our assurances to the contrary. So instead of keeping her in suspense and risk her sharing her suspicions, we went ahead and burst her bubble and told her Teresa miscarried.  Then said friend totally felt like a dick for pressing for pregnancy information.  So…you know…bonus!

But anyway. We’re in the process of getting our house on the market and looking for a new home for our family. Looking at houses is a lot like surfing porn. In fact it’s exactly like surfing porn. Or maybe it’s more like online dating since you can actually arrange to see the ones you like. Here’s what we’re looking for in a home:

1. Charm. That’s a bit subjective, but to us it means an old house that’s been well taken care of. A lot of woodwork- hardwood floors, bannisters, built in shelving- that sort of thing.
2. Flow. We want a place where we can entertain. Our current house is terrible for that. Everybody just gets in everybody’s way.
3. Coziness. A home needs to be warm, welcoming, and embracing. We should be happy to be home.
4. More space than we have now. At least two bedrooms, preferably three. Two bathrooms would be nice, but can live without it.
5. I would really like a porch or a deck for enjoying a nice evening and cocktails with friends, family. Or…you know…fer whit’lin on. Maybe when I’m older I’ll sit on it and tell the damn neighbor kids to get off my lawn.
6. It would be really great to find a house where we would not have to move again, EVER! Moving is just terrible. It’s the worst thing. The. Worst. Thing. You know who moved a lot of stuff? The Nazis.
7. Mostly it’s just a matter of “Can I see us raising kids here?” Can I see my kids being excited for Christmas, birthdays, etc. here? Can I see teaching them about the stars and how to ride a bike here? Can I see myself putting a bandaid on a skinned knee before sending them back outside to play? Can I see them slamming their bedroom door as hard as they can because we’re just the worst parents EVER!  All that shit. All that wonderful, wonderful shit.

Yay, pregnant again!

February 21

Yay! Since my parents told me they were completely not picking up on my pregnant signals last time, we aren’t telling anyone for a bit longer this time. And since the doctors appointment was mostly pointless last time, except for them telling us the exorbitant cost of prenatal care, waiting a little longer for that too. But I’ll post some posts in draft form and make them live after we tell our families again. Yay!

So this one really feels like a keeper. I’m getting almost all the same symptoms as last time, twingey ligaments in my abdomen, achy boobs, organs feel like they are moving around, waking up at 6am, but also I’m getting occasional nausea. Yay, nausea! It’s not really bad, feels like mild motion-sickness without the dizziness. But apparently nausea is a sign that hormone-wise the pregnancy is going fine, so I’m pretty ok with it. Also, here is some TMI, read at your own risk:

Highlight below for spoiler: I don’t have the horniness like last time, but hopefully that’s on the way! Also, if you are a girl, remember when you were just getting your boobs and your areolas like were all puffy? I got that hard core.

I am also way thirsty. Know how it’s a bad idea to go grocery shopping when you are hungry? I came back from the store with 5 different types of sparkling water, and one single I pulled out of a cooler walking into the store and finished on my way home. Understandably, I am doing quite a bit of peeing.

Also I’m having hot flashes or whatever. During the night I’ll throw my covers off and just sleep under the sheet, and then after a while pull the covers back on. This happens quite often and I do not like it.

Oh, hey, remember last post where I said my momentous occasion was played on my favorite podcast, Jordan Jesse Go? At the time I was surprised that they would play it, since they are two dudes and a pregnant lady didn’t seem like it would be super exciting to them…. But today on their podcast they announced that Jesse’s lovely wife Theresa has been pregnant for a few months too. So, that all made more scene to me when I heard that.