Sleepless Nights

Author: Veronica

  • Good News!

    Great news! Nan’s main tumour has shrunk by more than half (from 23x26mm to 16x9mm) and the smaller secondary nodules (that weren’t targeted by the radiation) have also shrunk (from 7mm to 5mm and 7mm to 6mm).

    So the lifestyle changes, dietary changes and everything have all contributed to a really positive result. They don’t want to see Nan for another 2 months, because at this point in time she is healthy and well and they don’t want her to have treatment that will make her sick until she needs it.

    So the next appointment will be in 2 months time!

    Looks like we are going to have a great Christmas!

    (Also, a photo post will be up shortly, just so I can annoy Lotus, hehe. You hear that hun?)

  • Cravings

    It’s funny, I haven’t really had any cravings this pregnancy. Sure I occasionally say to Nathan ‘I could definitely eat some …. if we had some’ but it’s never dire enough to make me beg him to go to the supermarket for me.

    Not that begging for a supermarket trip would work, seeing as how the closest one is a bit over 30 minutes drive away. Sigh.

    I drink a lot of milk and I’m a little worried if I run out of chocolate, but that’s nothing that I didn’t do before I was pregnant. I also eat a lot of fruit and salad, but again, nothing that I don’t do when I’m not pregnant. I didn’t crave much with Amy’s pregnancy either. I ate a lot of egg and bacon sandwiches, but I like eggs and bacon anyway so I don’t think it was that unusual.

    The only strange thing is I will eat Vegemite when I am pregnant and normally I detest the stuff. Generally with butter on Saladas (dry biscuits) *shudder*

    But it got me thinking, what kind of things do other pregnant women crave?

    So, I did some googling.

    [If someone got to your site by googling ‘pregnant cravings’ or something similar, Hi! *waves* That was me.]

    So my [oh so scientific] research has turned up lots of different cravings. Women saying that they craved Hungry Jacks or McDonalds, chocolate paddle pops, coke, fizzy drinks, lollies etc etc.

    It makes me wonder if we use pregnancy as an excuse to eat more junk food than we normally would? Especially as a lot of women seem to be confessing that they still ‘crave’ the junk foods even though they aren’t pregnant anymore.

    Not that I am judging, I’m just wondering is all.

    However, an equal amount of women are saying that they craved fruit, milk, salad, steak and vegetables and really healthy stuff. Goes to show how pregnancy affects us all differently!

    Now for some slightly unusual cravings…

    – One women says her friend craved Radiant Washing Powder. Yuk! Instead of eating it (which she wanted to do apparently) she washed all her curtains in it and hung them up to dry inside so the smell went through the house. Definitely a much safer way to deal with a washing powder craving!

    – Gravel. Ugh. Can you imagine how it would feel in your teeth?

    – Belgian Chocolate ice cream and chives. Together. Very um, interesting?

    – The smell of cumin. She said she carried a little tin of cumin around so she could sniff it during the day. Now that is interesting!

    – raw red onion slices dipped in honey mustard.

    – squashed up mars bars with pickles

    – French fries and ice cream

    And last but not least…

    – “I craved air fresheners especially the orange and lemon ones. I used to just stand in a room and spray and smell”

    Hey, at least her house would have smelt good!

    So I’m curious, did you crave anything when you were pregnant? Anything weird? Any stories to share? I promise I won’t mock you!

    And if you’ve never been pregnant (because a pregnant Xbox would be interesting to say the least) do you find yourself craving foods sometimes?

    ***

    Thanks to Yahoo Answers for most of these cravings.

  • Pleading Insanity

    So I wasn’t going to join NaBloMeHo this year. I had no intention of blogging every day in November, because hell, it’s hard enough to blog every second day at the moment.

    And then I realised. I don’t have to join NaBlo.

    I am STILL a member.

    So I clicked over and had a look around all the stuff I had left undone from last year (old blog address: check! old feed address showing someone else’s feed: check! outdated photos and about me: check) and started updating things, you know, just in case.

    Then I thought about it some more. Sure I don’t think I could blog here every day for a month. Not unless you all want to be bored to tears of me. But I could blog over at my food blog every day for a month.

    Seriously, how hard can a month’s worth of recipes be? I have THOUSANDS of recipes in my head that I adore, picking 30 to share throughout November can’t be that hard, right?

    So, I will be here about as regularly as I ever am with the normal stuff, but you will also be able to find me over at my food blog every day in November.

    Sure, there isn’t much up there at the moment and don’t expect me to post anything until Saturday, but at least there I’m not going to bore you all to tears!

    Oh and somehow the code for the NaBloMeHo badge refuses to work for me. You can find me HERE if you are participating too.

    Add me as a friend (if they ever get the add friend thing fixed), stalk me, leave me silly comments, whatever you like. Hehe.

  • NOT the spider that was in my cleavage.

    So today I was sitting on the couch with Amy, reading my book and sharing her 2 minute noodles (don’t judge me here).

    When! All of a sudden! A GINORMOUSLY HUGE SPIDER crawled out from behind a picture. Luckily, said picture was on the opposite wall to Amy and I, so we were able to observe the spider.

    My thoughts?

    ‘Geez that is a big spider. That is one big fucking spider. I don’t think I have seen a spider quite that big for a while. My word am I glad it is on that wall, not this wall. Uhmmmmmm “Natty?!!! Come here please and rescue us?” from the ginormously huge spider that looks like it could eat my face.’

    Amy’s thoughts?

    ‘Look! Mummy! Spidey! Spidey Mummy, LOOK! Spidey! Dere! Big Spidey! LOOK! LOOK! LOOK! Can you see? SPIDEY MUMMY!’

    Yeah, I think I passed my total lack of fear onto my daughter. All she wanted to do was get close enough to touch it!

    So I made Nathan come inside and rescue the spider from our toddler. What? Me? I wasn’t going near the thing! I might not be *scared* of spiders, but I am not going to taunt one into jumping on my face and nomming on me!

    A container was procured and said spider was captured with a minimum of fuss. If you don’t count Amy REALLY wanting to touch the thing.

    Then? Nathan went and released it near our boundary fence, away from toddlers, pregnant partners and cats. It can go about it’s business without fear of toddler attack.

    But – before Nathan released it, I totally photographed it to share with you. I hope *someone* at least squeals.

    HUGE GINORMOUS SPIDER.

    And honestly, no joking, this spider was at least as big as my hand when all my fingers are splayed out. And no, I don’t have small hands in the slightest. This spider could give my cats a run for their money. Actually, if I had to put money on it, I would bet on the spider walking away while the cats nursed injuries.

    It was that big.

    And yes, I watermarked it so that no one could steal the image and use it without my permission. Somewhere, someone out there is googling for GINORMOUS SPIDER IMAGE. I don’t want them pinching mine.

  • Pokey feet, strange weather and spiders

    So since the last lot of stress, everything seems to be going fine. The little one is kicking like a trooper (read: it hurts like a mo’fo at times) I am getting progressively fatter by the day (sort of maybe, I’m not sure) and things are happening the way they should (ie: I am not having my baby yet).

    On the subject of getting progressively fatter, here’s the thing: I don’t really feel that much bigger than I was a fortnight ago. Actually, I don’t feel any bigger. I know from my last appointment that I was measuring small (nearly a month behind where my uterus should be).

    I’m not that fussed about it considering I measured small with Amy during the entire pregnancy – I went and found my antenatal records for her pregnancy and I measured anywhere between 1 and 6 weeks behind at any given appointment – so I think that this pregnancy is probably going to follow in the same vein.

    I can tell you that the baby is DEFINTELY getting bigger if his pokiness is anything to go by. Naughty poky baby.

    He is grounded by the way. No ice cream, chocolate or lollies for him for a year after he arrives. Not to mention he won’t be allowed out to party with his friends or given access to the car keys either.

    And anyway the less chocolate my children eat the more there is for me.

    *****

    It’s hot.

    October is not meant to be a hot month. Warm, yes, but not hot. Not 30C hot (that is 86F for all you Americans. Seriously, when are you going to convert to the metric system like civilised people?)

    I’m quite pleased though, for all the heat that we put up with yesterday, my ankles didn’t swell even a little. So proud. Who knew that one could be proud of her ankles? But I am. No water retention over here.

    Now watch Murphy shoot me down in flames and make me swell like a balloon for the next 12 weeks.

    Heh.

    Amy has done quite well with the heat. Helps that she is only 2 and can run around naked without anyone looking at her oddly (although, I wonder would Nathan have a problem if I adopted Amy’s approach? Maybe the belly would mess with the aesthetics of it though…).

    She has discovered the joys of icypoles. Unfortunately she is finicky as hell and hates being sticky. 2yo + icypoles + heat = lots of sticky water and an incredibly pissed toddler.

    ‘Wash HANDS mummy! Wash HANDS NOW please?’

    ‘Baff time? Yes? Now? Please baff time? Need baff Mummy!’ (Bath)

    ‘Need novver one? Can haff novver one please?’

    Sigh.

    *****

    Signs I am not having enough sex:

    I found a spider lurking in my cleavage. Thank god he was only small. Now I’m thinking though, it’s been much too long since Nat and I ‘got it together’ if I’m finding spiders in my boobs. What’s next, cobwebs in my underwear?

    Seriously though, it’s been WEEKS, possibly even MONTHS. We made the executive decision to not have sex after the first scare with the baby (but hadn’t gotten around to it for weeks before that anyway). Recurrent issues have shown us that we did indeed make the right choice. The last thing my cervix needs is any kind of bumping.

    However, I’m thinking that our decision might just kill us in the long run. Sure there are plenty of other things we could do, none of which involve my cervix, but seriously, creativity is not my strong point when I am pregnant.

    And then there is the whole reciprocating thing. Sigh.

    It’s all just too much work you know?

    ****

    Oh yes, I am working on a birth plan to share with everyone eventually and I will get Nathan to take a belly shot soonish to share too. Okay?