The scale is not a friend to a pregnant woman.

Last week was our monthly visit to the doctor's. Everything is looking good, but one small thing. My weight....Oopies! It turns out I'm a little more than where I should be, somewhere like double the weight. I explained to him (the doctor), that I get very hungry at night and I'm eating about every hour. Don't get me wrong, I'm not eating huge meals, they're snacks; snacks that do come with calories. I should be eating about every 2-3 hours and there are certain foods that I should eat in moderation due to high calories. Even though they are fruits and nutritional items, those foods (fruit juices, grapes, bananas etc.) carry a lot of natural sugar, which in turn equals CALORIES. Don't get me wrong I haven't been Ms. Perfect with my food intake either. Even though most of my cravings have been fruits and red meat, I have enjoyed one or two Big Mac's (and they were soooo good) and exercise has been a thing of the past.

Since last week's doctor's visit I have made some changes. I did ask the doctor what were some recommendations he had to help with "crazy" hunger surges. He recommended, that when I've had my dinner, then a snack and I was still hungry within an hours time to take a walk. Yup, a walk. I initially thought to myself, "This man wants to kill me." But I gracefully said okay and then later that night did as he exactly recommended. I later began to think, "Well, what could hurt? I'll go up and down the street a few times." To my surprise it worked. After the walk I wasn't hungry. Dr. Sanchez was right; is that so hard to believe?

Since I've been on break, I walk in the morning and then again later at night. The first time I went for a walk I felt like I had just ran the 5K again. My heart was beating so hard in my chest and I had never felt so exhausted. The worst thing is, I was only 1/2 done; I was really out of shape. That was a 20 minute walk. I can proudly state that I'm walking for over an hour in the morning. For those of you who have never been to my house, it is a very hilly area.

Here are a few examples...

This is Philadelphia from Painter Ave, up hill.

Still going up on Philadelphia, looking down, but half way up!

Hadley Ave. is my Everest, but I'm able to walk up it and without stopping. Hopefully, when I go back next month I'll get a better weight dx.

Dogs and mamas to-be...

For those of you who have never met our dog Marley, this is him. He has been with us for most of our marriage and as you can see he leads a very good life. He is completely in love with Mark. Mark is the Alpha in this pack and I've come to accept that realization. He is so much so the alpha, that Marley will pee on his command. I believe Marley looks at me as the maid. He knows that his bathroom, personal hygiene and eating needs are met through me. My relationship with him differs greatly compared to Mark. Marley will become very excited when Mark arrives from work, licks his legs clean and completely obeys his every command. As for me, on the rare occasion, he will jump with excitement when he sees me home from work. May lick my leg or knee once he notices some food in my hand and will usually give me a look or turn the other way when I call for his attention.

Since I've been pregnant Marley seems timid around me. About 90% of the time he will follow me around the house; that use to happen when he was a puppy. As he grew he would just put his head up to see whether or not I was going into the kitchen. If I'm on the couch he will not try to jump on my lap, just on Mark's and for walks he is not pulling on the leash. Even though he is a small/medium dog I've really had to work hard to get him to walk correctly. Each time we went for a walk we would fight for control; by the end of our walks he would follow my commands. This week we went for a walk since I've been pregnant, just he and I. I was so shocked how easy he made the walk. If the leash was tugged because he was walking too fast, he would stop and wait for me. So I ask you dog whispers out there, can dogs detect pregnant women?

X-Men?

So a couple of weeks ago I went for my annual eye exam. Dr. William tells me, "Guess what? Your vision has improved!" Completely shocked because I have never heard those words come from him, he adds, "it's because of the pregnancy." Huh? So it turns out that being pregnant may cause better vision.

So my smell, hearing and vision has improved since the little pea-pod. Could I be considered an X-Men?

Baby Bump and all...

We're now about to end the 10th week of the pregnancy. My pants no longer fit or are uncomfortable for me to use. There is an obvious tummy now. Folks who haven't seen me in a couple of weeks are surprised of the size of my stomach. It's common to hear, "You look like you're in your 4th or 5th month....twins?" I honestly don't know, but this coming week we have a doctor's visit and I'm sure we will get a better idea. It is so exciting, strange and a natural feeling to see my stomach and body change so rapidly. My mind has to catch up to what is physically happening to me.

My symptoms? A couple of weeks ago a started gagging. I could be having a conversation and then an "episode." Mark was kind of concerned because it would sometimes come out of no where and quite frequently. I definitely know that if I don't eat when I get hungry the gagging starts. The nausea comes and goes but it is starting to taper off somewhat. Some days I feel great and others not so hot. I am finding myself with spurts of energy, which is nice to feel again. At night is when I usually feel the worst. I did throw up twice last week and thank goodness that's all it has been. It is still a bit odd to me that I may feel hungry and crave a particular food, but as soon as I start biting into it make me sick.

Mark and I have started to look into baby items. We now venture into the baby/kids floor to see what's out there. Who knew a mobil was $5o.00 and cribs can later become beds. I know we are such novices at this. I saw the cutest little bikini set for an infant. It was pink with brown poke-a-dots. It was maybe for a 6 month old. I showed it to Mark with all of my excitement, he closed his eye and shook his head. At least he didn't storm out of there.

Will we find out the sex of the baby? My initial thoughts have been no. I completely understand the practicality of knowing before hand, but it is my opinion that, this type of "surprise" does not happen often and it would be nice to do it the old fashion way. On the other hand, Mark would like to know. He said the doctor could slip him the envelope and I don't have to worry about finding out. I really don't think it's going to last too long. So the answer is yes, we'll find out the sex of the baby.

Until next time!