Guatemalan vs. Mexican

As many of you know, my side of the family is Guatemalan. Mark's side is mostly made up of two parts, Mexican and German, mainly Mexican. I have not had any crazy cravings, but what I've mainly been craving is Mexican food, Pozole, Huevos Rancheros, Menudo.... I don't want to eat Pozole or Menudo out, I'm afraid of getting sick. You never know how folks fix their stuff. So I asked my friend, Delia to teach me how to cook Pozole. She was gracious enough to assist with this project.

The pot in the back is the "stew" about ready for the chile that is cooking in the front.

After about 5 hours I was able to enjoy my hot bowl of Pozole....ahh!

What I have been craving from the Guatemalan side are tostadas. Now they are not anything like the Mexican kind, but they hit the spot!

I guess you can consider this the "poor man's" dish :)

I'm also craving platanos (fried bananas), black beans and white rice. This kiddo is a bit picky. It likes things made fresh, nothing from the can. I make my juices, black beans and chile at home. I think she/he gets that from his/her daddy.

Yay for the 2nd Trimester!

Month 3: I have started to enjoy the pregnancy and most things are back to normal. I'm back to cooking, the nausea has stopped, my energy is back and the evenings/nights of feeling sick are pretty much over, thankfully. I do find myself getting tired faster, going to bed earlier and most days having to wear maternity clothes . I'm not taking as many naps as in month 2 but every so often I get some shut eye. All in all, I feel like my old self plus the baby bump to show off.

This month's doctor's visit was a better one. I only gained 2 pounds, which is such an improvement. I have continued my "workout" routine. Mark and I usually walk 3-4 times a week for about an hour and once a week I swim for an hour. To my surprise swimming has been something I look forward to. Let's put aside the heat; I don't feel the baby weight while in the pool and I'm able to move like I use to. It has been very satisfying for me. I swim at the local city pool. Don't get me wrong, it's not an easy time. I do feel the workout and the hunger usually comes in right after, but while I'm under water it is very freeing.

This coming week will be the beginning of month 4. Within a few weeks we will hopefully find out the sex of the baby and see how much this "little" pea-pod has grown.

As you can see I'm in "full effect."

At 15 weeks (last week)

The baby has been pretty busy. Some days I feel him/her more than others. Last Friday my back was discovered for about an hour, but usually she/he likes to hang out at my lower left abdomen. This whole experience is such a miracle!

Houston, we have movement.

On Father's day, my sister-in-law (Judy) asked me if I had started feeling the baby move. Surprised by her question, I answered, "No, it's too early to feel that. That should be in my 4th to 5th month, right?" She explained that if I lay real still I may feel bubbles or butterfly-like movements. I had not heard that nor experienced it. The next day, June 22, 2009, mid morning I was laying on my bed, faced down. I believe I was reading a magazine or something. I turned to my side and then I felt a bubble come up from below my stomach line! I immediately thought of Judy and what she had told me the day before. I had never felt that before and knew that was the first time I felt any sort of movement from the baby.

The second time I've felt movement was a week after, June 29, 2009. I was in the same position, moved the same way and then I felt a wave-like feeling occurring below my stomach line. That again was a new experience for me. This time the movement/feeling was a lot stronger and undeniable.

Since then I've felt different things. Sometimes I just feel the weight of the baby and nothing more. Other times I feel my muscles working but with a different feel to them. It's almost as if I feel the baby "working." It's actually hard to explain the feeling, but it's obvious that it's a busy time for the pea-pod.

The couch and a good night's rest.

I'd never thought that the couch would be such a comfort for me during my pregnancy. There are times at night that I wake up and just feel uncomfortable in bed. I go to the couch and fall fast asleep and I can't understand why. There are times that I don't even wake up once while sleeping on the couch. I find it strange but at the same time I'm so glad it is there.

And of course my fearless companion at the foot of the "bed."

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?