I am Thankful

Thanksgiving is almost upon us, and with it being one of my favorite holidays, a thankful post is much needed...Becky Style.

I am thankful for a husband that gets mad at me sometimes. A good friend once told me that while I am not a very emotional person (except when I was pregnant), I can be, what he called "hard to deal with". I am not about to deny that fact. I can get absolutely frantic, completely crazed...you get the idea. Often times what I need in these situations is a swift kick in the pants. Daniel is just the pants kicker I need, sensitive when needs be, but willing to be tell me when I need to knock it off.

I am thankful for a daughter that is very often cranky. She is a happy baby, if she has your constant attention. Trying to accomplish things can be, at the very least, frustrating. She constantly tests my patience. I am grateful for the patience I am gaining, but most of all I am glad that her crankiness helps me to keep my priorities straight. Family should come first, and when she screams as I try to do the laundry (or other things), it reminds me of that fact.

I am thankful  for a best friend that lives nearly 200 miles away from me. Since Savanna and I became friends, she has lived both near and far. All over Utah, and several places in Idaho. At times we go long stretches without seeing one another. It is sad and I miss her often, but I am grateful that through the distance we remain close. The mileage just helps me realize what a great friendship we have. (She is, however, visiting this Saturday, and I am sooo excited!)


I am thankful that I am poor. Soon after finding out I was pregnant, I quit my job. I know many people thought I was crazy. Who quits a job right as you need more money? Money is tight at times, and sometimes it stresses me out, but I am so grateful that instead of  working and having a cushion of money, I get to spend my days with a beautiful baby princess.
 

I am thankful that people don't always like me. I can, as I have mentioned, be hard to deal with. I can also be fairly blunt and opinionated. Not everyone gets along with me, and I am grateful for that. It makes me realize how many people I have in my life who love me, for me, personality flaws and all. 

I am thankful that we must live with the consequences of our decisions. I know that our sins can be forgiven, because of the atonement, and I am so grateful for that, but I am also grateful that our consequences don't just go away. I have learned a lot of things from mistakes I have made. I am thankful I made those mistakes, and I am thankful for the lessons the consequences have taught me. I would not be who I am without every one of them.

I am thankful that my plans don't work out the way I want them to. I like to make plans. I am not one of those spur of the moment type of people. Even small changes can make me frantic. We all make plans for our life, and quite often those plans don't turn out. My life is nothing like I planned, and while plans being changed would normally throw me into a hissy fit, I am grateful. I know that this plan (God's plan), is better than mine could have ever been.


I am thankful for opposition. After all, isn't that what this whole post has been about? I am grateful and things aren't easy. I am thankful that I have trials. This is what life is about, working through the hard things. The tests which we will feel the best about passing, are the ones that really made us work. Life is a test, the greatest test of all. One, that if we pass, will bring us everlasting joy. I am grateful it is tough, it means the payout will be great. I am thankful for opposition, for if we can get through it, we can live with God again.


I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder Day Saints. This post reflects my beliefs. If anyone who reads this would like to learn more, visit mormon.org.

All Hallows Eve

Halloween has come and gone. :( I must say, I'm a little sad it's over. Since it was Juliet's first Halloween, we had to make sure she did all the normal Halloween traditions.

She decorated a pumpkin.

Yes, I did dip my six month old's hands in paint.

She wore Halloween clothes.

You've seen her like this before, but it's still cute.

She ate orange food.

Eating carrots for the first time on Halloween.

And she dressed up as a terrifying monster.

Cultist mommy and daddy with Cthulhu Juliet.

Cutest scary monster ever? It's quite possible. Everyone loved Juliet's costume. I'm sure most people had no clue who she was supposed to be, but she looked cute. I better start coming up with a creative idea for next year. I refuse to be run-of-the-mill when it comes to costumes. Until Juliet can say "I want to be a princess.", she plays by my rules. Some may say I'm crazy, but who else has an awesome Cthulhu baby? Until next year, Happy Halloween!

P.S. More pictures to come to Facebook.

Juliet has cereal

I've been planning to start Juliet on cereal at 6 months. She has been quite interested in food for awhile now, reaching towards everything we eat, driving my family crazy (since we are currently living with them). I'm going to be pretty strict about giving my baby food, because of my many nutrition classes. I did, however, give in and let Juliet have cereal a whole SIX days earlier than I planned, mainly so Daniel could be there for her first time.

Juliet thought food was fantastically awesome. Pictures? Why yes, I do have pictures.

We weren't fast enough, so she tried to take over.

This is my favorite.

On a non-cereal related topic-My sister mentioned that she has more cute Juliet pictures on her blog than I do on mine, whoops. So here are some other random pics of my cutie.

I thought Juliet was ready to wake up for the day, apparently not.

Aren't those lips just so kissable?

Wishing Daddy's friend Trevor a Happy Birthday.

Starting new baby trends of only wearing one sleeve.

As of August 22, 2011...

School started

AND

Juliet turned 4 months old!

We know that 4 months is a little young to start school, but in this day in age you have to start your kids out early if you want them to be a success.

Alright, Juliet isn't actually going to school; Daniel and I are. Daniel is a full time (12 credit hours) student/full time employee, because he is awesome. I am a full time mommy/part time (9 credit hours-online) student, because I get stressed out easily and didn't want to overload myself. I guess you could say that Juliet is going to school, since she watches my lectures with me, sits with while I'm reading my books, and gives me screams of encouragement during quizzes. School and a baby is going to prove to be most interesting. Though, I must say, I am extremely grateful for the online option. Juliet is so sweet, I would have a hard time leaving her. (A really hard time, the little stink won't take a bottle).

Speaking of Juliet, did you hear she is 4 months old now!? Crazy isn't it? She is still pretty little (11 pounds, exactly, at her appointment last Tuesday), but getting smarter and cuter all the time. She is ahead of the game as far as milestones go. The doctor was impressed by her amazing rolling skills. She reaches out to grab things now too, like the doctor's stethoscope that she grabbed and put in her mouth. That could possibly be the cause of her runny nose this week..who knows where that thing has been.

So, in case any of you are thinking: "Oh great, school started, the already neglected food blog will become even more neglected". To the contrary dear friends, I cook MORE when I'm stressed out.

Scrambled Thoughts

Remember how I am on a Facebook fast? It's going well. I haven't even been tempted to cheat or anything. (I did log on once, for about 30 sec to cancel e-mail updates from a group, I had over 200 e-mails because of it; it was a necessary action). I do, however, have a few things floating in my mind that probably would have ended up on there had I not been fasting. Soooo, the thoughts get to end up on here instead.

Juliet has become a master rolling machine. For those of you who don't know, Juliet has HATED tummy time. She would scream like it was the worst possible thing I could ever do to her. Since she can roll now, it's no longer a problem. I put her on her tummy and she rolls over while giving me a look as if to say "ha ha mommy, I'm in control now!" She will even roll onto her stomach and be okay with it for a while. When she gets fed up, she just rolls over again. It is beautiful.

Today, as you can see above, Juliet rolled underneath the bouncy chair. That takes talent my friends.

An update about the honey burn: It's really just my thumb that is burnt, with a few tiny splash mark burns elsewhere. I have one large blister and 3 or 4 small ones. I think it's a combination of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd degree burns, mostly 1st. The 3rd degree is only a tiny portion on my knuckle where I don't have feeling anymore. It's is my left thumb, so I have been able to most everything normally. I'm hoping the scar looks cool and I am able to use it as a kitchen safety story in the future.

Juliet was blessed on Sunday. I made a pasta trio for the after party. I almost made a 4th pasta. It's a good thing I didn't. Daniel took the last of the leftover pasta to work today. There weren't a ton of leftovers, but enough for us to live off of for the past few days. It was delicious by the way, if you didn't come, you missed out.

I added Daniel as a contributor. Has anyone noticed that? Post comments encouraging him to write something awesome! It should prove to be most entertaining. (Especially after this post, which was pretty boring. Besides the cute baby picture, who could think that is boring!?)

It could have been way worse.

I'm going on a Facebook fast this week. I've done it before, so I can do it again. It's just nice to take a break sometimes. Does that mean more blogging will happen? Yup, hopefully on both blogs.

Had I not been on a Facebook fast, I probably would have posted a status saying:
I just burnt my hand with boiling honey.

Since I am on a Facebook fast, you good people get the whole story instead.

Monday is my bread baking day. (Well, usually every other Monday). I started to make my honey whole wheat bread, but I didn't have very much honey. The honey I did have was crystallized. Honey is literally the only food that will never spoil. When it crystallizes, all you need to do is heat it up a little and you are good to go. I made a few mistakes heating my honey. I heated it too long, to the point that it was boiling, and then I tried to open the honey bottle...bad idea. Apparently boiling honey explodes everywhere when the top is open.

Boiling honey spewed all over me and my kitchen. I screamed (it was really freakin' hot), ran to the sink and washed my hand in cold water. I think I acted quick enough that the burn won't be too bad, though it is still a little early to tell. I thought my thumb had taken the brunt of the explosion, until I woke up Daniel.

I had started looking in my first aid kit for something to help burns. when I say (yell) to Daniel to wake up because I burnt my hand with honey. He looks at me concerned and says "Did you burn anything else?" "Uh, no." "Okay, good." He went and took care of the screaming baby while I found and applied some weird burn thing. I dropped something, so I looked down to get it and discovered I was completely covered in honey. No wonder Daniel thought I burnt more than just my hand.

I'm sitting here, typing one-handed while Daniel finishes the bread ( He didn't know how to knead, that was pretty funny),  just being grateful that it wasn't any worse. Juliet was no where near the explosion, and even though my hand is burnt, the rest of me isn't, even though the honey was everywhere.

I wanted a boy, but I needed a girl.

Reader Beware: this one is lengthy and revealing (not the naked kind of revealing, get your mind out of the gutter, sheesh) .

For as long as I can remember I have wanted my children to be boys. Strapping young men to help with the myriad of animals I wish to someday acquire . Some people might question why I would want boys over girls, but I have several reasons.

I grew up in a family of five. Three girls, and two boys. My two sisters are the eldest, followed by my two brothers. We aren't one of those " a kid every two years" families, so my sisters are approximately 11 and 13 years older than I am. My brothers however are only 5 and 3 years older than I. I love my sisters, but I mostly grew up with my brothers. You get used to being with what you grew up with, and I grew up with boys, so I wanted to have my own.

My eldest sister was married a few months before I turned 9, and they welcomed their first child, a boy, 13 months later. Two years later they had a second child, another boy. My first baby experiences were with those two little guys. Once again, you want what you know, so there's another point towards wanting boys.

I've never been great at comforting people...and well girls tend to be emotional. Need I say more?

There are probably more reasons, but I think you get the point. I have always wanted boys. Remember this post? I even thought Juliet was a boy. However, I am in no way disappointed that my first child is the opposite gender of what I have wanted for years. One reason for this being that the more I think about it, the more I realize that while I wanted a boy, God knew I needed a girl and let me tell you why.

Not too many years ago (though sometimes it feels like a lifetime) I had a bit of a mental breakdown. A breakdown that lasted far too long, for no real reason. I had terrible body image, terrible self worth and horrible depression. I fell into some pretty bad habits during this time, habits that are hard to shake. Many of you may know, and many of you may not, that an eating disorder was developed during this time. Eating disorders are not something that are easily taken care of, and many people who have them will tell you that they are a lifelong disease. Even when I am doing well, the thoughts still haunt me.

God knows all of our struggles, and he knew mine. He knew even though I had control of the monster (instead of it controlling me), that I needed a little push to keep me strong. Strong enough to be able to resist the little voice that comes calling telling me to put down the fork and walk away. God knew that best thing he could do for me was to have my first child be a daughter instead of a son.

I never want Juliet to feel the way I did. I want her to think highly of herself. I want her to be happy with herself. I never want her to think she needs to lose weight to be beautiful, or that she has to fit in a certain dress size before prom. In order for this to happen, I need to be her example. I need to not care about my pants size, or what weight I am at, as long as I am healthy.

God knew that a daughter was the one thing that would keep me constantly motivated to resist temptation. He knew I needed a girl as my first child so that I would stay strong post-pregnancy when I realized I would probably never fit in my pants again, because my body had changed. He knew a daughter would help me in ways I could never imagine.

I am so glad that God does not give us what we want, but instead gives us what he knows we need. I may have wanted a boy, but I know now that I needed a girl.

My baby is skinny.

Juliet had her 2 month check-up today. It would have been last week, but our Doctor was on an Alaskan Cruise or something to the sort. Her stats were as follows:
Height 22 1/4 in-30th percentile
Weight: 9.75 lbs (9 lbs, 12 oz)-25th percentile
Head circumference: 38 cm-25th percentile

The only one that surprises me is the height, her legs seem so long. That must just be where all her height is, like me. Tiny torso. Her weight and head being a little on the small side seems right. She looks skinny. Doctor said her growth is great, she just happens to be on the smaller side of things, but have you seen Daniel? He is pretty skinny (and he complains he has a tiny head..).

This appointment was also our first set of shots (besides the one they gave her in the hospital). She has been a champ so far. I think she cried more because she was mad that she was naked than because of the actual shots. She did wake up from a nap screaming. I figure her legs hurt. It has totally got to be worse for the skinny babies whose little legs don't have as much fat for the giant needles to penetrate.

When the Doctor was checking her, she complimented Juliet's head shape, said she could tell we gave her plenty of tummy time. Other people have complimented her head shape too. I really think most of that is the fact that she was excised instead of pushed out.

It's hard to believe that my baby is over 2 months already. The doctor said that too. She knows us pretty well, since she was my pediatrician from the time I was about 5. Anyway, enjoy this picture of my pretty baby.

All ready for my cousin's wedding reception.

Like Mother like Daughter version 2.0

Baby Burrito

Mommy Burrito

Daniel thought it would be fun to wrap me like he does the baby. I begrudgingly let him. The baby burrito is much more adorable, plus she actually likes it in there. Not having access to your arms and legs isn't fun for adults. 

Without You

Juliet has been a bit of a fussy girl the past few nights, because of that I was inspired to write this poem. Enjoy! (I know I did, I cried writing the last part, the good tears).

It’s six o’clock in the morning,
And I have been up with you since two,
Times like this I try to remember,
What life was like without you.

I got a shower nearly every day,
I would match my outfit with my shoes,
 And my hair was almost always cute,
Since I had the time to lose.

My apartment was much more tidy,
Dinner was a much more extravagant faire,
I remembered to wear my apron,
And much less gunk ended up in my hair.

I spent less time in my pajamas,
I always took my time getting dressed,
Searching for that perfect top,
To compliment my then much smaller chest.

I did crazy things like skydive,
I spent much more time with friends,
I went shopping because it was relaxing,
Plus I had more money to spend.

Back then I had time to myself,
I even think I was more smart,
But I didn’t have those deep blue eyes,
That always melt my heart.

I didn’t have a mother’s love,
My heart was much more mean,
Because I hadn’t met the prettiest little girl,
That I have ever seen.

I didn’t have that toothless grin,
To warm me to my soul,
Or those perfect little baby cuddles,
For when I feel I’ve lost control.

  

I didn’t have that adoring face,
That can tell I’m her mom,
That beautiful little baby girl,
Who wants me when things go wrong.

It’s now six-thirty in the morning,
And I have been up with you since two,
Times like this I start to wonder,
How I ever lived without you.

Like Mother like Daughter

Daniel took this picture of me sleeping the other day. Apparently I suck my lip in like that pretty often. I had no idea. This itself is not interesting.

The interesting part is this:

Juliet doing the exact same thing the same day. With how much I think she looks like her daddy, it's good to see she takes after me in something.

Daniel the Daddy

Daniel is a great little daddy and he says some pretty cute things. I thought I would share a few.

After a long night of baby screaming he says to me "It's hard being a daddy...you wouldn't know, you're the mommy."

Yesterday I was waking up from a nap and heard the following "conversation"
"There you go little girl, I changed your diaper. Are you happy now?"
higher pitched voice "Why thank you, you are the best daddy in the whole world"
"Ah, I'm not the best in the WHOLE world"
higher pitched voice "Yes you are daddy!"
"Ah, well if you say so."

Hiccups

This is Juliet's first case of hiccups. Maybe we are lame, but we think it's pretty cute. She has had them several times since then, but we just had to document the first time.

A few Pictures

A Baby Story

I'm sure you all know by now, that our baby is here! I thought I would share a few details of how our beautiful Juliet Noel Spencer came into the world.

Last Thursday my friend, Savanna, came over to hang out while her husband was at a class. She is moving to Idaho today and was really hoping the baby would be born before she moved. Savanna couched me through some "get the baby out" exercises. We did squats, a little bouncing around and some toe touches. It's not like we expected it to actually work, but hey, it was worth a shot.

I went to bed at about midnight that night not expecting anything to actually occur, after all I was only 38 weeks along. Either Savanna is an expert labor inducer, or it was a just a huge coincidence, but my water broke at around 4:30 that night (morning, whatever). I wasn't totally sure that was what actually happened, so I told Daniel, who then proceeded to tell me to Google it. The internet assured me that I probably hadn't just peed my pants, so we packed a bag (No, we hadn't packed yet, we are bad, I know), and headed to the hospital. Though we didn't go directly there. Daniel was pretty hungry, so we stopped and got him a Beto's burrito on our way. Don't worry, I told him he could.

When we got to the hospital, we checked in and took a seat. Two more ladies checked in right after me, both looking in way worse shape than I was in. It wasn't long before they took me back to a room and made sure I was leaking amniotic fluid and not some other strange liquid. Once that was confirmed they told me they would send Daniel to come be with me...half an hour later he showed up. They were really busy that morning and apparently forgot to tell him. Contractions had started getting pretty good at that point, so I was glad to see him.

The next few hours were a little bit of a blur. I was told that my Midwife was out of town and would have to have a different midwife attend to me, it was a bit of a bummer. Daniel called a bunch of people to let them know that it was baby day. My mom works at the hospital, and she was at work at the time. We asked the nurse how to contact her, and she came over to my room right after she got off work. Daniel's mom came up a little while after that.  Apparently if your water breaks they like to make sure you give birth fairly soon, I was administered drugs to help me go faster and went fast they did. I got my epidural and not long after it was time to push. Both sets of our parents were at the hospital now, along with Daniel's brother and his wife. They all went out of the room to wait for what we thought would be about an hour. Well, I ended up pushing for over 2 hours with no avail. They tried everything they could think of to get the baby out, but nothing worked, not even the vacuum.

They decided the only way she was coming was going to be by C-section. I had not wanted to have a C-section, I mean who really does? I knew they were longer recoveries and can also make it harder to deliver normally in the future. At this point, however, them telling me I was going in for a C-section was music to my ears. They call it labor for a reason. I was exhausted. Daniel got to watch the whole thing, and he loved it. He likes watching surgeries and such. Being cut open isn't the most fun thing in the world, but I did find out I have nice abdomen muscles. The Doctor complimented me on them and asked if I did crunches, uh no, but thanks. Once they had cut through everything, they pulled the baby out and lifted her over the curtain that was blocking my view. I started to cry. She was here, and she was beautiful.

They cleaned up little Juliet and Daniel was able to hold her while the sewed me back up. We went back to my hospital room, and in my very drugged up state I was able to hold my baby for the first time. I was very groggy pretty much just falling asleep, but holding her was sublime. It was a long day, but for Juliet, I would gladly do it all again.

We spent the next few days in the hospital and were able to go home on Monday. We had some not so fun nights because of the bililights that Juliet had to be on for her Jaundice. She hated them with a passion, but she is doing great now. She no longer needs the lights and is much happier because of it.

Pictures don't want to post right, so I will put them on their own post. We think she is quite the cutie though.

The Importance of a Fully Stocked Pantry...

Especially when you are pregnant.

We often hear church authorities tell us to build a 2 year supply of food storage. I think having food storage is an excellent idea. If tough times hit (a natural disaster, a loss of job, etc.), you will be able to survive because you have built up a food storage. That in itself is a wonderful reason to have a fully stocked pantry. Now, don't get me wrong, I have enough food that I could survive for awhile if I needed to. Not 2 years, but I'm young and still trying to build up my food storage. However, one important aspect of pantry stocking I realized this weekend is variety. You aren't going to want to eat the same foods over and over again even if you are in disaster, so it is good to have a variety of things. Okay, I'm sure you are all wondering where this wonderful post is going. I had to give a little background before I could start my story and let you know of another really important reason to keep your pantries fully stocked. That reason being..Pregnancy Cravings.

Friday night I had some cravings for Easter Sweettarts and a sharp cheddar cheeseball. Daniel had the car at work, so I didn't really have a way to obtain them. I contemplated walking to the store, alone, in the dark, to go buy some, but quickly realized that wasn't a good idea. My logical side was working pretty well that night and I told myself it was just a silly craving and would likely pass fairly soon. Even though I would still like to find some Easter Sweettarts, the immediate need for them passed within a few hours and I was fine. What happened on Saturday was a different story.

Once again, Daniel had the car at work. Even though I had cravings the night before, I didn't think much of it. Daniel couldn't ride the train Saturday nights since it doesn't run Sunday mornings when he gets off work. I haven't had too many cravings anyway, so striking two nights in a row would  be rare. I thought I would be perfectly fine without the car.

About half an hour after Daniel left I started feeling like I wanted to bake something. I couldn't really put my finger on it for awhile, but then it hit me: Homemade Gingersnaps! I started to look up a recipe online when I came to sad realization. I had no ginger, and no molasses. I don't know why I don't have any ginger. I want to use it in things all the time. I often go to my spice rack while making Asian-inspired dishes looking for ginger, only to come out empty handed, wondering why I haven't bought any yet. Molasses is somewhat understandable. Not a whole ton of people have molasses, but still, variety people, variety. I was quite disappointed by my realizations and started to think of other cookies I could make.

NO other cookies sounded good, not a single one. I browsed recipes about an hour trying to find something that I would be okay with, but nothing. I text my brothers to see if they would bring me ginger and molasses (they will usually bring me things if I ask, they are great that way), but they were both busy. I thought maybe my friend Savanna would have them, but then I remembered that she was in the same position as me. Her husband was at work with the car. I didn't know what to do anymore, so I broke down crying. Not just little tears here and there, full blown sobs. My logical side wasn't really working for me at all that night. I kept browsing recipes, through my tears, hoping some other cookie, somewhere, would be good enough.

After I calmed down a little and I e-mailed Daniel about my predicament. His suggestions were everything I had already tried. Ask my brothers and Savanna for the ingredients. After telling him I had already tried. he told me to make another kind of cookie. I started crying again. I didn't want any other kind of cookie. Why couldn't anyone understand that? I moped around for a few hours waiting for a molasses miracle, but one never came. At this point I decided I might as well make another kind of cookie. It would at least be better than nothing. I asked Daniel what kind of cookies he would like and he suggested chocolate. I mournfully made some chocolate cookies. When they were done, I ate about 4, and I started to feel much better. Hmmm...maybe I should have just done that in the first place.

The moral of the story here is this: keep a fully stocked pantry. You never know when ginger and molasses will become (what seems to be at the time) a life or death situation. Needless to say, they are both on my grocery list for my next shopping trip.

There has been a bit of a delay..

In case you haven't noticed, there has not been a recipe posted on the food blog yet. This is not an "I'm a slacker post" it's an "I really do have valid reasons" post. I was planning on making my butternut squash ravioli on Sunday, and then posting the recipe that night.

The first hitch in the plan happened Saturday night when it started to snow. I had gone to a birthday party for my brother-in-law, Sam. The snow was falling pretty heavy, and I opted just to stay at my parents house that night instead of making someone take me home. Daniel was headed to pick me Sunday morning, after he got off work. It was snowing again at that point and the roads were pretty bad. He ended up sliding off the road. He called me, let me know about the situation and said he would get me after the tow truck came and pulled him back onto the road. After the tow truck came, the weather was even worse. He told me to stay at my parents, and that he would teach primary by himself. (I'm not really sure how well that went..) I eventually made it home, but not until about 8:30 that night. Obviously, no pasta was going to be made, so I figured I would just make it today (Monday) instead.

I slept in this morning, and woke up about 10:30 (I didn't get a nap yesterday after all). I planned on roasting the squash nice and early; I was going to cube it up and stick it in the oven around noon. Life had a bit of a different plan for us today. About 11:30 I had one of my now fairly routine bathroom breaks. However, this time around was not routine in the fact that I found blood (and it was not coming for the hemorrhoid I had a few weeks ago, too much information? Maybe, but oh well). Panic ensued, especially as I realized that I hadn't felt the baby move that day. I yanked Daniel out of bed and we went to the hospital. I was doing pretty good at staying calm, until anyone asked me how far along I was. "30 weeks" I would mutter out trying my best to not have a complete break down.(For those of you that don't know, pregnancy is supposed to be 40 weeks, and they want you to make it to at least 37 before you give birth.) I got to ride in wheel chair and I waited for someone to take me back to a room.

The CNA/OB Tech was the person to get me and take me back. "Hello, my name is Hope" she said as she was wheeling me away. Hope? Are you serious, that was possibly the best name anyone could have at that moment in time. She brought be back to a room, talked to me a little about the hospital gown and peeing in a cup. She then asked the dreaded question "How far along are you?" I lost composure as I said "30 weeks". Hope: "Is it a boy or girl?" Me: "girl" Hope :"Aw, do have a name?" Me "Juliet." Hope "Well, I'm sure Juliet will be just fine. Let's get you changed and figure out what's going on. It's okay if you need to cry." This girl was really good at her job. She even called me pretty later on.

The nurse was the next person to journey into my room. She asked me a bunch of things like "Have you done illegal drugs?" and such that apparently Daniel wasn't allowed to hear, hence they wouldn't let him come in yet. She put a monitor on my belly (which the baby decided she didn't like, she was kicking it within a minute of it being on my stomach) to track the baby's heartbeat (which was perfect by the way, hallelujah) and asked if  was cramping (uh, no) and check to see if I was dilating or still bleeding (nope again). They said they were going to monitor me for awhile and then call the midwife to see what we wanted to do. Well, my midwife is apparently not available today, go figure. They called another doctor from my center and had her consult with them instead. "Have you had sex in the past 48 hours?" Uh, no. I had been trapped at my parents house for the past 48 hours. Sex during pregnancy can make you bleed? Good to know I guess.

They watched me pretty carefully for a few hours (well, mostly they just monitored the baby, which was fine by me, that's who I was concerned about) and decided that I was good to go home. They said a number of things could have caused the bloody discharge, but everything looked good with me and baby. I'm supposed to monitor myself pretty closely today and take things easy. If anything seems out of the ordinary, I am to call, or if it seems really strange go back to the hospital. They ensured me I did the right thing by coming in, because there was no way to tell if everything was alright unless I had come in. Since Daniel works tonight, I'm heading up to my parents house again tonight, just in case something is off and I have to go the hospital again(we only have one car).

So, obviously no pasta is being made today either. I'm sure after reading all this this, that was by far the greatest concern on all your minds...just kidding, I really hope you didn't care that much. I have my normal appointment with Karen (my regular midwife) on Wednesday, so we will see what she says then. For now, I am just extremely grateful that all 3 of us (Daniel, the baby and I) have made it though the past few days alive and well. Maybe Daniel isn't completely well, he has to work tonight with virtually no sleep, poor guy. Luckily this is the end of his work week, so things should hopefully normalize in the next few days.

Now Introducing:

http://beckystastyfood.blogspot.com/

The food blog has been launched! No recipes as of yet, but that will change soon.

The results are in!

The results are in, and the score it tied...a lot of good that poll did me. Looks like it is all up to me now. So, look for the launch of a new food blog in the next few days. I will now take name suggestions for the food blog if you have any ideas.

Calling all readers.

For those of you who know me well, you likely know that I like to cook. If you are aware of this fact, you may also be aware of the fact I tend to be more of a recipe creator, or at the very least recipe modifier, than a recipe follower. One problem that comes with this is that I never write anything down. If I want to recreate something I have made previously, I have to rely on memory. This isn't so bad, because I can usually make my recreations pretty similar to the original product, but in an attempt to be a more organized cook I have thought of an interesting option: Start blogging my recipes.

If I start to blog recipes, I will be forced to start writing things down, helping me better recreate them in the future. What I am asking for from you, my blog readers (however many of you there may be) is to vote in the poll I created. Would you be interested in knowing my recipes? If so, how should I go about posting them? If your option is not in the poll, feel free to leave a comment on this post stating what you think would be the most viable option.

Just a little FYI, If recipes do begin to be posted, by whichever option, the first entry will be Butternut Squash Ravioli. I made it last month, and I am going to make it again this month, it was quite the hit with Daniel, and I never say no to squash.

Some Random Thoughts.

Sometimes I feel inclined to write a blog post. When I have these inclinations I usually don't have a particular subject matter in mind, and therefore, no blog post gets written.  Today I have an inclination, so instead of ignoring it and writing nothing, I bring to you a compilation of random things I have thought as of late.

• The only downside I see to naming my daughter Juliet (which will very likely happen) is that when reading Romeo and Juliet in school, the poor girl will always have to read the part of Juliet.  

• It's good for me when people challenge if I can do something. For those of you who are not aware, I had a professor tell me to drop out of his class because I am pregnant, and it would be too hard. While my initial feelings were anger, I have now been overcome by extreme motivation.

• I call my two pet mice "my girls". If I end up having another daughter after this one, it seems very likely that I will call them "my girls". In years from now I can just see two teenage girls telling their friends that their mother calls them the same thing she once called rodents.

• It is a good thing I am not a vegetarian; I currently have about 40 pounds of beef in my freezer.

• Have the parents of the Luna Lovegood doppelganger in my primary class read or seen Harry Potter? If they have, do they encourage her to act like that? 

• It's possible college students have never seen a pregnant person before, or so it would seem by the funny looks I get walking around campus.

• Though french fries are not from France, their name makes perfect sense to me. The way in which they are cut is called frenching. French toast, however, does not make sense. If it did not orginate in France, why does it have this name? 

• While I believe the bikini(among other woman's fashions that do not make sense) was invented by a man; Maternity clothes were almost definitely invented by a woman. Most comfortable pants I have ever worn.

I hope have enjoyed this episode of Becky's Blog. Today's post was brought to you by the number 8 and the letter S.