Lack of Israel/Jordan Pictures

A couple of people have asked me about these, and the simple truth is, since I first became sick while on my trip, looking at or even thinking about sand, the desert, or any related things instantly makes me sick. It's unfortunate, and I really hope it passes soon, but I just can't stand the thought of looking at them now.

I have been home for about 3 weeks, and I've looked at the pictures exactly once, to post some really quickly on Facebook, mostly so I would have a picture of me next to a camel as my profile picture:), and even those brief glances were tough. When I feel better, I will place some pictures on here.

Cravings!

The whole gauntlet of pregnancy symptoms-nausea, vomiting, fatigue, cramping, increased sense of smells, etc., etc.-started at about 6 weeks.

For about 2 weeks, from Weeks 7-9, the smells were almost unbearable. I couldn't go into a grocery store or make dinner (lucky Charly!). I had to hold my breath while around anyone wearing cologne or perfume, and the wonderful smell of coffee, usually one of my favorite things in the world, was too much to bear.

However, through all of this, including what feels like a month long stint of the stomach flu as I am nauseous all day, every day, in varying degrees, I have been overtaken by incredible food cravings and aversions. I forgot just how strong they could be, but I know recall going through the same thing with Max.

First of all, I can never plan ahead for meals because I never know what will sound good. What I am craving at 2 p.m. might become my worst enemy and make me gag by dinnertime. At any given meal time, there are only 2 or 3 things that possibly sound good, and then I crave them like I will DIE if I don't get one of them.

The cravings are also very brand/restaurant specific, another aspect I had forgotten about. I have to have Kraft cheese, and no other brand will do. One day, when I was particularly sick, the only thing in the world I could imagine eating was Banquet fried chicken. Logically, it didn't sound like a good choice for vomiting, but it ended up being the only thing I kept down that day. Another time, I just HAD to get the Chicken and Gnocchi soup, salad with Italian dressing, and breadsticks from Olive Garden-no other soup would cut it. One day, I woke up from a nap, still tired, but so thirsty for a strawberry limeaid from Sonic that tired or not, I had to go. I truly felt like nothing else would quench my thirst.

Throughout all of my (and Charly's jaunts) to various grocery stores and restaurants for certain items, I keep thinking how every pregnant woman needs a variety of stores and restaurants within convenient driving distance. The nearest grocery store is 7 blocks away. Any restaurant craving is within 2-3 miles. All of which is convenient because I will never know what will sound good in the next 30 minutes. Once something does not sound good-I can't even look at it or think of it without wanting to gag, so when those 2 or 3 items start calling my name, I just have to go for it. How can any pregnant woman live without these choices???

Now with these cravings comes some guilt. I have not been eating a perfectly balanced diet. My veggies I usually love, have, for the most part, not tasted very good, replaced instead with cravings for all things protein, particularly dairy, and regular protein is one of the only things that keeps my nausea at a manageable level.  Right now, I just have to eat what I can, keep a stock of carry out menus handy, and hope I will be able to eat better next trimester!

Is it a Boy?

Every who reads this knows by now I'm pregnant, so this will be no surprise:)

At the end of my pregnancy with Max, I heard about Intelligender, which kind of sounds like a robot, but is really an at home gender predictor test. I was skeptical, and still am, but since I am one of the most impatient and curious people in the world, I thought I would try one for this pregnancy. I am 10 weeks and 1 day pregnant, and the earliest it is supposed to work is 10 weeks. See, I'm impatient! I took it mostly for fun and was excited in the first minutes when it appeared to be a girl color but at the official 5 minute mark, switched to the color indicating a boy. Now, I just have to wait another 8-10 weeks for the ultrasound!

It's no surprise Charly and I are hoping for a girl, as this will very likely be our last baby, so I was hoping I would get a "girl" result, but even if I had, I would be dubious. I know exactly 2 people who have tried this test: both had "boy" results, and one was right while the other was wrong. So, 50% odds aren't too good. In looking at the site online, there seem to be a lot of accurate cases, but in those that were wrong, there was a much higher tendency for the "boy" predictions to be wrong. So, I'll just have to wait and try to have patience.

Max at nearly 23 months

• He learns new words every day and speaks in sentences up to 5 words.

• He likes to do things his way, as most toddlers do. Heaven forbid I try to help him with his shirt or comb his hair for him, when he can do it, thank you. 

• He will steal/beg for food off of anyone's plate-the boy always wants to eat.

• Right now, everything is "Mine", and he is very enthusiastic about his use of "Yes" and "No". I see his father's and my stubbornness in him every day:)

• He is BEYOND obsessed with balls, cows, his brother, and grandpa. All I hear, all day, every day, are things like, "Mama, side (outside), play ball!", "Mama, watch black cows" (we watch cows mooing on You tube, over and over, and yes, he prefers black cows. He plays with some sort of a ball (soccer, basketball, football, all throughout the day, and we have our big, driveway basketball hoop attached to the garage for the warm days, with a small, plastic Fisher Price one in our living room, so the child never has to be more than 10 feet away from a hoop. He's at the point, he even wants to sleep with his ball; maybe he's a future pro athlete!

•  Also, everything belongs to his brother. He'll pick up something and say, "Brother's ball" or       "Brother's shirt", and when Alex is here, he pretty much follows him around, trying to do everything he does.

• He also really loves his Papa, who watches him every Monday. When we're driving, he'll say, "Mama, drive car Papa's house", which of course means, he wants to see Papa and he wants to see him now. If he sees a car that even resembles Papa's, he'll say, "Papa's car!" in a really excited voice. And at home, in his little Cozy Coupe car which is now parked in our living room, he'll get inside, and begin to "drive" away by going, "Vroom, vroom, bye, bye, Mama!", while blowing me kisses. When I ask him where he's going, every single time, he says, without pause, "Papa's house!". Of course, silly I should ask.  

• He really, really seems to like his "school" as we call it. When he switched we stopped calling it daycare because with the separate rooms (Art Avenue, Science Street, even a Gym), school seemed like a better fit, and all of the employees are known as teachers. Plus, if all goes well, he will be continuing there through preschool, so it seemed like a good time for a name switch. Each morning, including the weekends, he asks if he's going to school to see his friends and teachers, in an excited voice. He loves all teachers, and they all seem amazing, but Miss Kayla appears to be his favorite. The smile he gives her each morning is amazing. Also, he has his special friends, Josh, Carter, and Jackson, and he will talk about them ALL night! He seems really comfortable there, which of course, makes us comfortable, and all of the teachers are incredibly nurturing and supportive-just what we were looking for. I love how every single teacher, whether he or she works in his room or not, knows Max by name and will stop to talk to him in the hallway. He is so excited to go there in the morning, and as Charly, who usually takes him, is guiding him out the door, Max will give me a quick hug and kiss before quickly running to the door, saying, "Bye, Mama, teachers, school". I'm glad he enjoys it so much, even if it means he seems happy to leave me:)

Charly's 7th Year Remission Anniversary

This is long overdue, but on February 13th, Charly reached his 7th anniversary of chemo/radiation completion. As the years go by, I actually forget about it; that is, until his biannual check-ups arrive, for which I'm still thankful they are so diligent about scheduling. Here's hoping for another 50!

Israel - Day 1

We haven't been here long as the two flights were VERY long and tedious. After arriving in Tel Aviv, we had an hour long bus ride to our current city, and we're all tired after getting very little sleep on the plane. I can't wait to see the view from our hotel tomorrow, as we are right on the Mediterranean and we can hear and smell the water.

It was interesting going through Israeli security while still in Atlanta-they are thorough! Our hotel is nice but I am astounded by the small stature of everything-even the ceilings are incredibly low, and our t.v. is not much larger than a postcard.

I'm already enjoying trying new foods; I've never had carrots seasoned with curry before.

Tomorrow is a busy day, and I will have pictures!

Off to the Middle East I Go!

In 3 days, we will leave for Israel and Jordan. While there, I will try to post pictures!