Toes!

I seriously want to dip them in chocolate.

the yogi baby has arrived!

Ramona Sabine!
Six weeks ago...
I know.
Shameful!
But I'm going to be better I promise! I'm going to at least post a picture every week. Mainly so I can stop bombarding my family and friends with pictures every week.
I'm also going to be using this blog for my crafting, knitting, sewing needs. What does that mean? I have no idea. I may post links to patterns that I'm working on, ideas that I have, and definitely finished projects. Ira got me a sewing machine for my birthday and I am so excited to start making Ramona some clothes and some things for her room.
So, I promised the birth story...
My doctor decided that I needed to be induced 11 days past my due date. So on October 24th, we arrived at the hospital around 9am. The doctor came around 11am to check me, I wasn't dilated at all. So he induced me at that point. We waited around all day with friends in our suite. It was pretty fun, playing cards and eating snacks. Although, if I had known what the next 2 days held I would have SLEPT! The doctor came back at around 6pm and checked me again. Nothing. So the plan was that a resident would come back around 1 am or so and give me another suppository. So Ira and I stayed up til about 10:30 playing cards and watching the Gilmore Girls. Less than an hour later, I started contractions. So we were up all night. The resident did come to check me and I was about 2cm dilated and when the doctor came back in the morning, nothing had changed. So frustrating! All that pain for nothing. The rest of the day was rough. Lots of pain and no breaks between contractions for rest or sleep. I finally gave in and decided to get an epidural once I realized that I wouldn't have the energy to give birth. It was actually a really good experience. The anesthesiologist was amazing. She put me at ease and was incredibly skillful. She made me feel better about getting it. She said most women wouldn't make it to 8cm after 18 hours of labor. It was worth it just to be able to stay in one position and rest. I thought I would want to be able to move around while I was in labor, but I didn't count on not having any downtime between contractions. I guess this is a common problem for women who get induced. I went down to the delivery room around 9pm, pushed for 25 minutes, and there she was! Beautiful from the minute she arrived. She wasn't a squished up newborn, haha. She didn't cry and fuss like the other babies in the nursery, she was very observant and quizzical. Still is...She has changed so much over the past weeks, but there is still a lot of that personality she had the moment she entered the world.

Cairo Baby Shower

Here are some pictures from our baby shower in Cairo. It was a boy/girl shower (gasp!) thrown by Amanda and Gordana. All of our friends were there and it was a wonderful day! We feel very lucky to be bringing the baby into such a wonderful group. By the way, one month left! I'm 36 weeks today, I can't believe it...

Scaredy Pants??

I've been working on these GREAT pants for the baby for a couple of weeks. I picked out the yarn months ago, a pretty forest green color. They were pretty simple to knit, I plan on making more in the future. I was really excited when they were finished, so was Ira, he wants a grown up pair. But then something dawned on me. Why did these pants look so familiar? And then I remembered a Dr. Seuss story that used to scare the, ahem, pants off of me when I was little. Do you know the one??
I can remember not even wanting to turn to that page in the Sneetches (which is my FAVORITE kid's story)


I mean, come on, those are some SCARY pants! How weird that I would choose to make these pants the same color?? Hopefully the baby won't be scared, too!

Meal of the Week

So I'm going to try and make this a new feature on the baby blog. It seems like I have week long cycles of meals that I like to eat morning noon and night. This week it's peanut butter and jelly club sandwiches. Weird cravings, or genius?! I brought back some amazing strawberry jam from Paris and I have gone through almost half the jar this week thanks to these babies. I know the picture isn't the best, but that's peanut butter, jelly, and bananas. Oh yeah, and 3 slices of bread. Meal of the week.

more knitting for baby

Here is the sweater I was working on this week. It knit up very quickly and I think I'm going to be addicted to making baby sweaters now! The pattern is from Ravelry and it's the "baby yoda" sweater. There were a couple of glitches with the pattern but I worked it out and I think it came out cute! It's a wrap sweater and it's made out of hand dyed cotton. The pictures aren't the best, but it's a pretty orange color in real life. Pretty close to the first close up picture. Ira said we should wear it on the baby when we come home on the plane in december!
Other then knitting, things have been going well. It's been good for me to rest this week and not do a lot of walking in the heat. My feet and ankles have returned to normal and I can actually see the bones in my feet which is exciting. I never thought I would care about such a thing! The only things I can really complain about are heartburn at night and I have a lot numbness and tingling in my hands. The tips of my middle and ring fingers on my left hands have been numb for weeks now. It's just annoying more than anything else. The baby is moving ALL THE TIME. I see things in my baby books about "counting kicks" and I think that if I did that I wouldn't get anything else done! I would kindly appreciate it if someone would move their cute little feet away from my rib cage, however!

handmade baby

I've been making things for the baby for the past couple of months. I probably would have started the second I found out I was pregnant, but I had other darling babies to craft for. So the first thing I made was a "kicking bag". It fits right under the baby's armpits and is stitched at the bottom. It's kind of like a sleep sack without arms, which I thought would be better for this climate. I've also been embroidering onesies. I don't have any pictures because they went along in the shipment. I have a couple that I'm working on here and I'll post pictures when they are finished. I'm also working on a sweater! I've always loved making things for others, but these projects have been the most fun. I can't wait to see the baby in them!

I think I might be pregnant

Haha, that's been my ongoing joke, that I'm sure Ira is now tired of at this point. Here I am at 31 weeks, standing in front of the tree that Ira and I stood in front of and exchanged our vows. Aw....
I know this is a tease, but I'm going to have to leave it at that. We have limited internet right now and I keep getting thrown off. So all is well and I will update again soon!

bye bye Cairo (for now)

Tomorrow the baby and I leave for the States (waaay to early for mama's liking) for 2 months. Today will be filled with packing, cleaning, last minute gift shopping, and spending some time with Amanda before I head out. I will still post while I'm home, but they may be few and far between! I promise I'll post another picture next week since it's been almost a month since the last one. Have a wonderful day!

Big News!

Ira felt the baby kick for the first time!! It was so cute and true moment of joy for both of us. He wanted so badly to feel a kick before he left for Congo and I'm so glad his wish came true...

22 weeks

Still lots of kicking and carrying on from this little one! Ira hasn't been able to feel it from the outside yet, but we're hoping that maybe in the next few days he will before we part ways for a month :( I'm feeling lazy, so I'm just going to lift right from the Baby website to tell you what's going on this week..."At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily." Here's a link to a picture of a spaghetti squash because if you're like me, you may have no idea what that looks like. : )

Maadi House

Here are some pictures of where I like so spend my weekend days with Amanda...and sometimes her Brit, Pete.
1. The pool 2. pretty red trees that are all over Maadi right now 3. The ghost of Amanda

21 Weeks

The baby is the size of a carrot this week, or as long as one I should say. Let's hope he/she is wider than a carrot! I have been feeling movement non-stop. It's a lot of fun. I'm trying to be aware of the times of day when the baby is moving, they say this can indicate the baby's patterns as a newborn. This picture was taken at the 20 week ultrasound last week. I know it's a little washed out, but because of the, ahem, activity level of this wee one, the ultrasound tech had a hard time getting a good image. Still feeling well, but the heat is getting to me more and more. I had a moment where I almost fainted last week from the heat. I've been trying to stay out of it as much as possible and stay super hydrated when I do have to be outside. Again, looking forward to going home and being able to take walks in some cooler air...

20 Weeks

Well, here I am! Halfway! Hard to believe. I've been feeling pretty good this week. After the initial shock of the feet swelling incident, I got over it. And it hasn't happened since, so that's good! Not much else to report other than we are in full swing with end of the year madness. Parties, preparations, the works. We have a doctor's appointment tomorrow so hopefully I can post an ultrasound picture!

Bummer

There things about pregnancy that I really think are not going to happen to me. I know, I know, I am a naive first time mom. But it actually helps me panic a little bit less if I live in my delusional state as long as possible. One of the things I was convinced was going to pass me by was swollen feet. I figured the yoga, all the walking I do, and (stupidly) that my feet and ankles have always been on the bony side (and my high arches have actually been causing me a lot of foot pain lately) would somehow protect me from this "inevitable" side effect. Yesterday I got my wake up call. I spent a lovely day at the pool with Amanda and Pete and then with the Westmorelands later in the day. I love being in the water these days, it feels great on my legs and sore feet. Afterwards, I walked to the market, and then back home. I made dinner and then Ira and I were playing a game of cards. I was sitting in a chair in lotus, like I always do. I got up to get a drink and it felt like my feet were falling asleep. Not entirely uncommon when I forget how long I've been sitting like that. Anyway, I looked down and my toes. The area just below my toes, and the toes themselves were all puffy! What?!! Not me! So I took a shower, rubbed on some peppermint foot lotion and decided to lie down with my legs up the wall. It seemed to help a little bit. This morning, they still felt a little funny, but looked better. I did a little online research and the one thing they tell you to avoid? Being outside in hot climates. Great. Well, I guess I'm going to have at least 3 more weeks of swollen feet. I wonder what's next?! Yikes!

Hey 19!

A little Steely Dan reference for you. And this baby will be forced to learn all the words to all the Steely Dan songs, just as I did had to as a child. By "force" I mean it was on all the time so I had no choice! Anyway, 19 weeks, 21 to go. The baby is the size of a "large heirloom tomato" this week, very specific! The belly is growing and changing for sure. It's becoming more and more prominent and looking more like a basketball every day (another sign it's a boy?) This week the senses become more developed so I'm going to be singing and reading and playing music a lot from here on out. I can't tell if I'm feeling the baby yet or not. I'm feeling things for sure, but I just don't know if it's the baby. In the next couple of weeks things should be more clear. The next doctor's appointment is next week, another ultrasound so hopefully the little stinker will be still long enough to get some good shots!

A little scare...

So a few days ago, while doing my typical bakery/market run I had a bit of a scare. I walked to the bakery and everything was fine, it was hot, but I was ok. Then, walking to the market from the bakery, which is a little longer, I started to feel my heart beating really fast. I didn't panic, but I walked a little faster to get to the market and into the AC. I hurried through the store and then while walking back home, it just got worse. I came home and called my mom (an RN), she asked me some medical questions and then told me what I thought just wouldn't happen to me. I need to slow down. I'm almost halfway through the pregnancy now and my body is working harder to support me and the baby. That coupled with the heat makes it really hard. So later that night while walking to teach yoga, I slowed my pace down and I was fine, no palpitations. Sigh. So this is it. I'm a real pregnant lady now. Everything else is ok, still getting those obnoxious allergy attacks and headaches every few days, but I'm kind of used to them now. Just trying to sty cool til I go home in 27 days! The belly is getting bigger, but I'm going to wait until next week when I hit the 20 week (20 WEEKS!?) mark to post some pictures. Stay tuned!

18 Weeks

I can't believe that in 2 weeks, I'll be halfway there. I think the 2nd half will go even faster than the 1st half since I'll be home for 2 months of it (June 14th!) The baby is 7 ounces and 5 and 1/2 inches long, as big as a bell pepper. I'm sure he's still moving around like crazy in there, but I can't feel anything yet. There are lots of times I think I feel something, but I'm just not sure. I know it takes first time moms longer, so we'll see! Feeling pretty good, but still getting some NASTY headaches. Hard to tell if it's the baby or the air outside...

fruit

I feel like this pregnancy's theme is fruit. The website that I look at each week that tells me how big the baby is, often compares him to fruit. And that's all I feel like eating. More on that in a second. Last night's sleep was the worst it's ever been. You can read about it here. I know there are a lot of friends and family who read both blogs so I don't want to be redundant. Anyway, back to my obsession of the moment. I just can't get enough. All of my meals and snacks are 80%, if not 100% fruit. Especially peaches. They are really good right now and I think what I'm craving is the juiciness of them more than anything. It's not the greatest thing to be craving, honestly. I know it's a very healthy thing to be craving, but in terms of "stocking up" it's just not that practical. I'm going to say that I eat somewhere between 25 and 30 peaches a week. That's at least 4 trips to the market each week to get fresh fruit. And that doesn't include the apples, bananas, locuts, and strawberries, nor the occasional dried apricots and prunes. I'm sure once I get back to the States next month, it'll be all sushi, pizza, and Domani Star, but for now I'm happy with my fruit.

17 weeks

I can't believe I'm 17 weeks already! There have been moments of this pregnancy that have dragged a bit but things have been picking up lately and I know it'll only be a matter of time before I can feel this little guy (I think it's a guy) kicking and swimming around in there. I can't wait! The baby weighs about 5 oz. and is the size of a turnip. The lower part of my abdomen has been getting harder and if I lay on my back it's REALLY hard. Some things have been getting difficult. I had to drop one of my beginner yoga classes because it's getting too hard for me to demonstrate things. After I teach I tend to have a sore lower back from adjusting people during class. Sleeping has been awful. My mom thinks it's my 2nd trimester energy going haywire. Whatever it is, it's annoying. I'm not even that big yet and I can't seem to get comfortable. I'm up at least once a night for a couple of hours (that doesn't count all the times I'm getting up to pee) I'm just trying to roll with it and get sleep when I can, that's what I'll have to do after the baby is born, right?! In other news, the sandstorms are so bad for my sinuses that it's been an indoor week so far. Sigh. I'll get out again someday!

16 Weeks

Ok, I've been a big time blog slacker! Here's the catch up...
Greece was amazing. I loved being there and being pregnant there was great, no trouble at all. I had tons of energy and ate as much amazing food as I could! We went on hikes and walks, swam in the cold sea, played lots of games, and had lots of laughs. The baby loved every minute of it. I still needed some naps, I'm not going to lie, but I felt up for most everything we did.
Now that we're back I've been focused on what we're going to need when this little one arrives. I've been working on our registries and trying to figure out what we can and can't get here. I've been feeling very "allergic" since we've been back. And actually, I've had some nausea spells which is weird. I thought all that was over, oh well. So the allergies are bad. I don't know if it's city grossness or trees and flowers that my body doesn't recognize, but it's bad. I haven't been sleeping that well either. Between the frequent bathroom trips and just being uncomfortable at times, I'm averaging about 3 or 4 hours a night. Not good. I try and catch up during the day, but it's so silly because I have energy now and I don't want to sleep!! Sigh.
I'm also getting the itch to make things for the baby. I really want a sewing machine!!

13 Weeks

I had a doctor's appointment tonight. I've decided to switch doctors and I think the new one (Dr. Tareq) is a better fit for me. He examined my belly and tried to hear the heartbeat. No luck, but he said he could hear the baby moving around in there, so I guess that's good! This week the baby is the size of a medium shrimp (?!) not really sure what that means...anyway, he or she has fingerprints, and is less top heavy as the body is catching up with the head. We have another appointment in 3 weeks for the "triple test". There won't be a posting next week because baby and I will be in Greece eating good food and breathing fresh air. See you when we get back!

12 Weeks

The fig has grown to a lime. The baby is starting to have reflexes this week and the face looks "human" (we hope). I can now feel the top of my uterus when I push on my belly. My energy is getting better, but the naps are still necessary. The nausea has gone away but so has my ravenous appetite. I guess that will come back soon enough. Hoping to get another doctor's visit in before we leave for Greece next week!

11 weeks

Well, here's the photographic evidence of this baby's exciting life. Or soon to be exciting life. I was thinking today that before this kid is even born he or she will have been back and forth between the States and Cairo 3 times, to various parts of Egypt, spent 10 days in Greece...and that's just the travel! This week baby is as big as a fig (my new favorite nickname) and although I can't feel it, fig is swimming around like crazy and enjoying all that room in there while they still can! I'm feeling better and haven't been too nauseous lately. My energy is still on the low side and naps are a must most days. Looking forward to getting back to my ashtanga practice once I hit the 12 week mark in a few days! I'll be sure to post some good pregnant yoga pics!

10 Weeks

So the baby has grown from a grape to a kumquat! Although from the outside, I don't look any different. In fact, I think I may have lost some weight this week. Either that or things are shifting. I'm back in jeans that stopped fitting a month ago! Still very tired and the new bedding we got this week is not helping me get out of bed! The nausea is dying down a little bit. Mornings can still be tough, and if I let my hunger go for too long. Looking forward to Laurie's visit in a few days! I'll be excited to see if she thinks I look any different...

9 weeks

Wasn't that the name of a dirty movie? Close enough. Anyway, the baby is the size of a grape! This week the heart will finish dividing into 4 chambers, and the little thing already has brain waves. Crazy.

It's me, I'm just over here now, too.

Well, here it is. The dreaded Mommy Blog. If I wasn't already feeling like puking all the time I would go all 80's and say "Gag me with spoon". I know there are a lot of really awesome mommy blogs out there, and I have high hopes that this will be one of them. I just want to avoid the "Junior spit up 4 times before lunch" entries. And even worse, the pregnancy ones. As far as I'm concerned my OBGYN and myself are the only ones that need to know about my cervix, thank you. So rest assured, I will give the boring updates that my friends and family require but do my best to be entertaining to strangers as well.
I'm nearing the end of week 8. It's been a doozy (since I don't think that's a real word I'm not going to worry about the correct spelling) I woke up the first day of week 8 and felt so sick I couldn't get out of bed. All week I've had nausea and just been exhausted. It's like I have a hangover. You know when you're hungover and you feel like you're going to puke but you can't but you know if you did you would probably feel better? Well, apparently my body thinks I drank a 6 pack every night. I know that this is typical of week 8 and I should be happy that the pregnancy is progressing as well as it seems to be. In other news, if you read my other blog you already know, but I had to leave the apartment because of toxic fumes. Which, by the way, I'm pretty sure are PCB's(!!!!) Yes, the chemical that has been outlawed in the west since the 70's, those PCB's. I have sufficiently freaked myself out by reading all kinds of journals online about possible birth defects from said toxins. Awesome, let me tell you.
Other than that, I'm still teaching 5 classes a week (6 this week). It's going well but I find myself having to make adjustments for my adjustments. When I'm assisting people in a posture I now have to be more aware of my body and figure out how to make it all work! So, that's about it for now. I promise to make at least weekly entries, unless something truly exciting happens...