What not to say to a pregnant woman with 9 weeks left to go...

...and how I wish I could respond to such inappropriately annoying comments...  (forgive me in advance for ranting.)

Comment #1:  Upon hearing my due date: "You're so big!"

Dream Response #1:  Gee, thanks.  Thanks for reminding me that I already feel like a whale, and I have NINE MORE WEEKS TO GROW!  And for the record, I'm not actually that big.  You should have seen me with my other two children, particularly the one that came out weighing 10 pounds.  THAT was big.  This is not.

Comment #2:  "You look like you're ready to pop!"

Dream Response #2:  Really?  That's nice, except that I'm nowhere near my due date.  I have NINE MORE WEEKS TO GO!  If you think I look ready to pop now, what do you think I'm going to look like then?  Does this mean I have to spend the next nine weeks looking like I'm ready to pop?  And what exactly does "ready to pop" mean?  My stomach is going to randomly explode and a baby is going to pop out?  Gee, what a pleasant thought.  Thanks, but no thanks.  (In case you can't tell, I absolutely HATE this comment.  It's a real conversation killer, too.  Exactly how is someone supposed to respond to this?!)

I'm sure there are more things that people have said to me that they really shouldn't have, but these are two that I heard yesterday at church that really drove me crazy.  I've also decided that I need to wear a sign that says, "No, we did not find out if it's a boy or a girl."  Not that it's rude for people to ask if we know or not, I'm just getting really sick of talking about it.  I should be thankful for something to make small talk about since I hate making small talk so much, but it does get tiring to have to say the same thing over and over again.

Some further remarks:  If you've ever said one of these two comments to a pregnant woman or even just wanted to say it, please reconsider your words.  What I find interesting is that both these comments came from women with children, so theoretically they would know how it feels to be pregnant and huge and not really wanting to be reminded of one's large girth.  Something more appropriate to say would be, "You look great!" (even if she doesn't...)  Pregnant women have enough issues with the way they look.  Please don't contribute to these issues by making ridiculous comments about their size and reminding them of just how big they might be.

Stepping down off my soap box...  Until the next annoying comment...

Third Trimester

Third trimester is kicking my butt.  I don't remember noticing this much of a difference in my fatigue level with my other pregnancies, although that could be because my iron levels are apparently quite low this time around.  Seriously, there are days I can barely make it up the stairs, and of course, those are usually the days I end up having to go up and down them two or three times in a row because I keep forgetting something up there.  Even now, I can barely keep my eyes open at the keyboard, and I'm pretty sure I slept fairly well last night.  How long is it supposed to take for me to notice that the iron supplements are working?

I'm having a hard time thinking of anything else particularly interesting to say.  I'm really only posting because it's been over two weeks since I posted last, and I was starting to feel like if I don't post something soon, it's just going to keep getting harder to find something to say.  You might start ending up with a whole bunch of boring pregnancy updates. 

That said, we're down to single digit weeks until my due date.  Gah!  I'm so not ready.  I still need to get Kaylee out of the crib and into a bed before the baby comes, more because I don't want to make that transition after the baby is here than that we need the crib, although that's a bit of it, too.  I have to go through my boxes of baby clothes to dig out the newborn stuff.  The only reason I have newborn diapers in the house is because Kaylee was so big when she was born that she didn't fit them, so I still have half a package from when she was a baby!

Well, that's about the end of what I can think of to say, so I'm going to go now.

One of those days

Today is one of those days. 

And it's only 7:30 in the morning.

The kids were up at quarter after six after another long night of interrupted sleep.  We've been dealing with a miserable cold/cough for a number of days now, and I've lost track of how many nights in a row I haven't slept for longer than two hour chunks at a time before being woken by one or other of the kids crying out in their sleep because their nose is plugged or running or they're coughing and it hurts.  In fact, a two hour chunk of time to sleep sounds glorious right about now because some nights it's been every hour, if not every 15 minutes.

I'm tired.  And I'm cranky.  And I don't know how much longer the Vitamin C I've been religiously taking is going to be able to keep me from getting sick, too.

But the sun is shining in glorious from the window in the front entranceway.  It slants through the living room and casts a beam of light over the dining room table where I'm sitting.  It's brightness brings warmth to my heart and hope for the day.

And it reminds me to focus my gaze on the true Light, that one who (once again) is going to be the strength that gets me through the day because, by golly, I sure can't do this on my own.

I'm tired.  But He is my strength.

I'm cranky.  But He is my joy.

We're all fighting a nasty cold.  But He is the Healer.

Thanks be to God for providing all I need and being all that I need.  Because today is just one of those days.

A post of nothing

Lest you think I've given up on getting up early and doing the morning blog thing, I figured I'd try to at least post something today.  Do you have any idea how long I sat at my laptop yesterday morning trying desperately to find something inspired to say?  My pregnancy brain misses its morning coffee.

This morning isn't a whole lot better, but I thought I'd try just sitting and typing and seeing what comes as a way of attempting to break through the block.  I was actually working on my menu plan for a while, and it seems I can't even come up with enough ideas for that either.  I've got five nights over the next two weeks that I just can't seem to figure out what we should eat, or more accurately, what I might feel like making.

So here I sit, unable to come up with a good idea for a blog post, and still trying to figure out what we're going to eat for supper.  Maybe another day will be more inspiring...

Day Three

The lights are on at the construction site behind the house where the men continue to work on the long-awaited and past-deadline rec centre.  There's a haze outside this morning that promises of one very hot March day and hints of summer rather than spring.  The tea kettle rumbles and grumbles behind me, and I miss my coffee.  Vanilla rooibos tea just isn't cutting it for me these mornings.

It's day three of getting up with the kids, and boy, I forgot how hard this is.  It's my own fault for getting out of the habit, and I keep telling myself it would be easier if I had a steaming cup of coffee waiting for me, which I know probably isn't true, but it does give me something to look forward to once these months of pregnancy are over.

And "Click!" goes the kettle.  My kettle doesn't whistle when it's done.  It kind of annoys me.  All I get is a "Click!" as it shuts off and pray that I actually hear it so I get up and pour the water while it's hot instead of having to reboil it when I finally remember that I was waiting for it.

So I'm going to continue on, and you'll get some disjointed blog posts, somewhat like this one, until my mental faculties return to their former non-pregnancy-hormone fogged state, and in a few months, I'll have the benefit of caffeine to assist me in providing added clarity through the fatigue.  I can see a difference in my moods already; not that I can attribute that to my own strength.  Lord, no, but He is faithful to provide grace for each day when we but turn to Him and ask.  Praise Him for His faithfulness!

Back to a new thing?

Well, people, you'll never guess it: I actually got up with the kids this morning instead of sending them downstairs to watch TV while I go back up to sleep.  I know.  It's a miracle.  It sucks, though.  I'm stuck with tea instead of coffee, and it's just not the same.

I've been feeling more and more lately like this pregnancy has turned me into a miserable monster, and I'm getting sick of it.  So in an effort to bring more of God back into my day, I'm going to try to get back into the habit of getting up with the kids and spending time reading all the inspirational and encouraging blogs that I used to back before I got walloped with ridiculous morning sickness.  Thankfully, most to all of my nausea and vomiting has abated, and I'm actually starting to feel a modicum of inspiration to write again, so if I can keep this up, you might even get a few more blog posts out of the deal.

(Wow, look at all those big words!  See, it's working already...)

I have to say, I was highly amused to log in to Blogger this morning and check my stats.  I couldn't believe that I've actually managed to maintain a steady readership, even though my posting has been sporadic and infrequent.  Get this: I've been pinned on Pinterest!!  I know!!  Crazy!!  Apparently, some of the recipes I've posted have caught some attention, how cool is that!

Anyway, that's about all I have to say for now.  I don't want to get too long and lengthy as I have much catching up to do on my blog reading after months of not doing much of it.  I will say this: the kids have been totally confused this morning by my getting up early.  They've gotten used to me going back to bed for about an hour after they get up, and now they're all like, "I guess you couldn't sleep, Mommy."  "What are you doing awake, Mommy?"  "What's going ON?"  Poor things.  I tried to remind Reuben that this is what I used to always do, and I think he gets it.  We'll see if I can get back into making this the habit or not...

Thoughts through the fog

I was sitting at the table this morning, eating my raisin bran and reading from my Christmas present "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voskamp.  It's one of those slow reads that work better when you take in a little bit at a time so you can spend a while turning it over in your brain and taking the words to heart.  Hence the reason I haven't finished it yet, and it's been two months since Christmas.

Today's reading had a line in it that really struck me: "...and I know all our days are struggle and warfare (Job 14:14) and that the spirit-to-spirit combat I endlessly wage with Satan is this ferocious thrash for joy." 

...this ferocious thrash for joy...

These words somehow managed to pierce through the pregnancy-induced fog that seems to surround the thinking part of my brain these days, and I almost couldn't believe how perfectly Ann has described this constant daily battle to see God's glory and grace in our fallen world.  (Except that I know from reading her blog that she always seems to find the right way to put into words the way I feel about life.)

I find it particularly interesting to be reading about finding God's gifts even through the trials of life from Ann, while at the same time, the lesson I just worked on last night for our women's Bible study was talking about what we do when we can't explain what Jesus is doing.  The study we're doing is Beth Moore's "Beloved Disciple", and it focuses on the disciple John.  Last night's lesson looked at Jesus' crucifixion through his eyes, and she finished the chapter by asking if we would stay close to Jesus when He doesn't stop a tragedy, or if we will walk away from Him when it seems as if He is weak and defeated.

In earlier chapters, she talked about how God uses difficulties and assignments in our lives to teach us lessons, and that often, we don't learn all the lessons from those experiences until after we've gone through them and are able to look back on them and reflect.

Finding God's gifts and daily graces through the trials of life.  God teaches us lessons through difficulties.  Staying close to Jesus when things don't seem to make sense.  All timely and essential reminders to me during this time in my life.

When I try to think about this pregnancy rationally, it feels like I'm being unfair to call it a "trial".  It's not as if this is a time of extreme grief or sorrow or mental anguish (although the ridiculous amount of time it's taking me to put together a simple blog post might prove that last one is actually accurate).  But I have to say it, I am not one of these women who just breezes through pregnancy and loves every minute of it.  Those first 14 weeks of debilitating "morning" sickness and all-day nausea were a trial.  I survived that first trimester only to have to face the reality of this steadily growing new life taking up all the space in my body that was previously reserved for my vital organs, which are now all being shoved up into my rib cage and making it difficult to both take a deep breath and eat a large meal in one sitting.

By golly, this counts as a trial for me.

But that's no excuse for me to just sit down and wallow in self-pity, which is why I am grateful for these reminders in Ann's book and in Beth's study.  God's grace is here, in this daily "ferocious thrash for joy".  It is in life's trials that we need to cling to Him even tighter.  Little by little, day by day, He gives me the strength to keep going and persevere.

(And I'm really looking forward to the day when my hormones go back to normal, and I can drink coffee again, and I can put together a blog post in less than an hour...  Yeesh...)

Crock Pot Bread

So I've got this really great slow cooker recipe book, but I hardly ever use it.  For some reason, I remembered today that I once read a recipe in it for white bread that seemed fairly easy, and I had a craving for freshly baked bread, so I thought I'd give it a try.  I was really pleased with how well it turned out.  The recipe really was very simple, and I'd definitely make this again.  Here's the recipe for anyone interested.





Slow Cooker White Bread

Ingredients:
2 tsp granulated sugar
1 1/4 c. warm water
envelope active dry yeast (1 scant tbsp)

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 tsp salt

1 cup all purpose flour

Start by stirring the warm water and 2 tsp of sugar together in a large mixing bowl.  Sprinkle with the yeast and let it sit for 10 minutes.  After the 10 min, stir to dissolve the yeast.

Then add the 2 c. flour, 2 tbsp sugar, oil and salt.  The directions said to "beat", so I used my hand mixer, and that seemed to work okay.  Basically, beat on low to moisten, and then beat for 2 minutes on high.  After that, work in the remaining 1 cup of flour.

You'll need to grease the bottom of your crock pot, preferably a 3 1/2 quart size one.  I'm not sure what would happen if you tried to use a bigger one.  Dump the dough into the crock pot.  Layer 5 paper towels between the top of the crock pot and the lid.  Note that this does not say between the dough and the lid.  You don't want the paper towel on top of the dough, but resting on top of the pot.  Now put a wooden match or other thin object between the paper towel and the lid to allow steam to vent.  I used two round toothpicks stacked on each other, and it worked just fine. 

Cook on high for 2 hours, but apparently you're not supposed to open the lid for the first 1 3/4 hours.  I'd recommend checking it at the 1 3/4 hour mark as I think the full two hours was almost slightly too long.  One side of my loaf ended up just a touch crispier than I like my bread.  When it's done, loosen the sides with a knife and turn it out to cool on a rack.  I also brushed the top of it with butter because I like the taste of it, and it helps to keep the crust soft.

The only drawback, and it's more an aesthetic thing than anything else, is that the top of the bread doesn't get browned.  I'm actually discovering that I like this because I always find that homemade bread crust is really crunchy, but this way, it's not.  Also, you'll end up with a round loaf, but that doesn't bother me.

Here's the final product:

The taste is good, like bread.  The consistency has a slight cake-like quality to it, but not so much that you feel like you're eating cake instead of bread.  I found it almost a bit sweet tasting, so I think next time I would use slightly less sugar and maybe a bit more salt.  I'm pretty sure you can get store-bought bread that's just as sweet, if not sweeter, than this, so it's definitely not too sweet.

Overall, I was quite pleased with the outcome, and I'm looking forward to trying the whole wheat version, as well as maybe some of the other breads/cakes that are in this book.  If any of you try it, I'd love to hear what you think!

I miss coffee...

Well, I figured it was high-time I posted at least a little something so that those faithful few who keep checking back here will know I haven't died from morning sickness.  What follows will probably be some pretty random thoughts, mainly because pregnancy hormones have the unfortunate effect on me so as to pretty much completely destroy all creative and coherent thought.  Hence the lack of posting.

Anyway...here goes...

As a major answer to many prayers, my morning sickness actually seems to be easing off.  *knock on wood...a lot...*  In response to this, I've backed off on my Diclectin, and I'm only taking it in the evenings before bed now.  Maybe this is why my brain feels clear enough to post today.  Hmm...  I hadn't dared hope that I'd start feeling better before at least week 20 because that's how long it took with Kaylee, but here we are, week 15, and I think it's been almost a full week since I've had to make that mad dash for the toilet first thing in the morning.

I'm trying a new recipe for supper tonight.  Further proof that my stomach is cooperating enough that I actually feel like eating something other than mashed potatoes.  Huzzah.  It's a turkey casserole, which we've never had before in this house, so we'll have to see how it turns out and what the response is from the peanut gallery.  I don't have high hopes on the children liking it much.  Oh, well.  I tried.

Tim's run has undergone some slight changes so that he should be home every other weekend now.  Numerous benefits from this, but the one I can think of now is that he'll actually get to come to church with us on occasion.

Well, there goes the timer for supper, so the randomness ends here.  Oh, and the reason for the title?  I really miss my morning coffee, but this pregnancy has totally changed all my tastes around, and the very thought of coffee is enough to make me feel slightly nauseated.  *sigh* 

Long, long overdue

Well, my friends.  I'm sorry for the extreme lack of posting.  I realize it's been almost three weeks since my last post, and that is almost inexcusable.  I say "almost" because I think I have a pretty good excuse.

I'm pregnant!

Yay!

How does that equal an excuse for not posting?  Well, as some of you may already know, I am cursed to be one of those women who suffers from something called "morning sickness".  Honestly, I'd like to take the idiot who called it "morning" sickness out back and shoot them because they had no idea what they were talking about.  I think "pregnancy sickness" or "all-day-and-through-the-night sickness" might be more accurate.

I feel extremely nauseous all.the.time, not to mentioned exhausted from making body parts all day, and my lovely friend, Diclectin, my anti-nausea medication, only adds to my drowsiness.  (For those who are unaware, particularly any American readers, Diclectin is a morning sickness medication that is available here in Canada.  Unfortunately, it is not approved in the U.S.)  Said combination of nausea and fatigue have made my desire for posting -- or doing anything other than laying on the couch-- non-existent.  I am woefully behind on even reading any of the blogs I normally follow, sad but true.

I wish I could tell you that the situation will improve, and I'll magically start posting more frequently now that I've come clean regarding my reason for not posting.  However, I don't know if that's going to be the case.  Pregnancy hormones wreak havoc on my mental status, and I haven't been particularly struck with anything inspirational to say.  The Diclectin has taken the edge off the nausea, but I'm not finding it as effective this time around.  I spend most of my days trying to remember to keep eating to prevent the nausea from getting worse, but it is a constant battle, and one that I tire quickly of fighting.  I hate being so obsessed with my stomach.

I wish I could tell you I've been a tower of strength, leaning on my Lord for all my daily needs and relying on Him to carry me through, but that wouldn't entirely be true.  In all honestly, the past week or so, I've done a really good job of wallowing in self-pity and allowing myself to sink down into the mire of feeling miserable.  It's easy to do when you feel crummy all the time, but no more forgivable.  I'm trying to do better at this, and I would appreciate your prayers.

So there you have it.  I will try not to take so long to post again.  Maybe I can get in a better habit of posting at least once a week.  It's not quite the frequency you're all used to from me, but until I start feeling a little better, you'll all just have to make do.  Thank you for your understanding, dear faithful readers.