Gian on food cravings

Claudia has always been a girl with a lot of "food craving" above all french fries. So, I was expecting a dramatic increase during her pregnancy. But I should say that she is not behaving that bad. Actually last Sunday night she had this peanut butter ice cream desire and, thank’s god, we live in Rome (full of Americans), so there are some bar with peanut butter ice cream.

I should also say that last week I was trying to find a can of beans in the house. We always put beans in the highest drawer, that means I have either call Claudia or take a chair or jump trying to grap the can (once the can hit my head). So usually I get the chair. So I got the chair and guess what I found hidden behind the cans? A bag of Doritos (editor's note: they weren't Doritos, I wish!)!!!!!!

The following day I was throwing some rubbish into the litter when I found a big tube of Paprika Pringles. Actually (I love this word) it was Wednesday and we (me, Claudia, Marco Sindaco & Enrico) ate a Paprika Pringles tube in the previous Sunday during the derby Lazio–Roma. So I thought it was impossible, we didn’t throw the garbage til Wednesday. So I realize that morning she bought another tube and hate the whole tube. And when I questioned her, guess her answer? "Damn, I forgot to throw it away downstairs." So now I realize she really crave chips, but she hides it from me……

But I should also state that she is in a good shape!!!!

11 week photo shoot

I kinda look the same...but for the sake of consistency, here are my weekly photos:

Today I learned

2 things...

1. That the traditional position women give birth in western countries is not the correct way to give birth, and was invented by MALE doctors (again, just like with the pregnancy test) so that the doctor could sit comfortably at vagina height and wait for the baby to crown. This way the doctor was comfortable and had a perfect view. However, this is neither natural or comfortable for the woman, as it puts pressure on the lower back and takes much more effort. The natural and most effective positions to give birth are either on all fours (but I would not be inclined to be in this position in front of a room full of Italians seeing all of my Netherlands, plus the baby would be born face down...isn't that weird?) or the other natural position is in a pop-a-squat, like you are peeing in an alley or pooping in a rice field position. Now THAT I can get down with.














2. BEING PREGNANT MAKES YOUR GUMS BLEED. At least for me it is. I floss every day, but my gums are swollen and red. It sucks. But I will take this over morning sickness any day.

11 weeks!!!

Just 3 more weeks and I am out of the first trimester!

Reason number 42345453412 why I hate supermodels and celebrity moms

"I think a lot of people get pregnant and decide they can turn into garbage disposals. I was mindful about what I ate, and I gained only 30 pounds." -Giselle

Well gee when you can afford a special chef that can sprinkle delicious magic on grilled chicken breast and boiled spinach without making it the least bit fattening and leaving it to taste like heaven, I imagine it must be pretty easy to "only gain 30 pounds".

Don't you realize you are making the real moms out there suffer? Go back in hiding with Tom Brady like you were when you stole him from his first baby momma. I don't wanna see anymore post baby body pictures of you on the cover of Us, People, OK!, etc.





PS-I don't really hate supermodels, I'm just jealous.

Poop

I took Romolo for a walk yesterday. He pooped, as dogs do, and it was something stinky. He had gotten into our trash last night and ate the left over cabbage. If you have ever had cabbage, then I am sure you are able to form an idea of what I was dealing with.

So, as I was bending over to pick up the poop, with a plastic bag, I started dry heaving right there. Like full out gagging, flexing and flaring all the muscles in my back and stomach but nothing came out (luckily) because I had just taken my thyroid medication, which needs to be taken on an empty stomach, thank god!

I couldn't pick it up (back to the poop). I had to put the plastic bag on top of it and walk away (by the way, I ALWAYS pick it up no matter how much I want to vomit but I pulled the pregnancy card today because my senses are on overload and the closest trashcan was so far away that I would have to walk by the bar below my house, which just couldn't happen because I was carrying a bag of lethal dog poop and they know me, I buy my milk from them).

My point is that I hate poop. I mean, I HATE POOP. More than the ordinary person. And as I tossed in bed last night, I just kept wondering "how in the world am I ever going to be able to change my baby's diaper." I honestly don't think that this motherly instinct will EVER kick in, and I'm not really sure I want it to kick in, either. I am pretty content with my dislike for poop.

Is this normal? I mean I know the answer to that...no it's not.

10 weeks=30 weeks left!

I am so happy these days and am really looking forward to seeing our baby again at the 12 week sonogram! 2 more weeks! Gianfrancesco's mom is an obstetrcian/midwife and she wants me to come down for some tests at the 12 week mark. So, I am flying down to Bari by myself. It will be sad and difficult to not have Gian by my side, but he has to work, so looks like it's just me and the southern Italians! It should provide for some interesting blogging. After this appointment, I will resume seeing my doctor in Rome for all the remaining prenatal care and the birth.

Lately, most people keep telling me they think I am having a girl. Italians think they can tell just by looking at you. I will be happy with a healthy boy or girl, but I just know inside of me that this tiny baby inside of me is a girl...

10 week photo shoot

US AT 9 WEEKS:



US AT 10 WEEKS (big change!):




Keep in mind I have always had a bit of a buddha belly, so the pudge isn't all baby :)

10 weeks front shot:

We're Jammin

I am not always worrying. When I am with Gian, I am usually calmer and laughing and he kisses and rubs my little baby belly for good luck. I also have moments when I am alone with my belly and I am happy and worry free. The other day I was driving home from Michelle's house and the sun was so strong, I had all the windows down, zero traffic, and Bob Marley came on the radio. I started to sing along, "Ooh, yeah! All right! We're jammin'" when I thought "God I hope my baby grows up to like Bob".

I smiled, looked at my belly, rubbed it, and sang the rest of the lyrics on the top of my lungs, with one hand on my baby...

"I wanna jam it wid you.
We're jammin', jammin',
And I hope you like jammin', too.

We're jammin' -
To think that jammin' was a thing of the past;
We're jammin',
And I hope this jam is gonna last

We're jammin' (jammin', jammin', jammin')
And we're jammin' in the name of the Lord;
We're jammin' (jammin', jammin', jammin'),
We're jammin' right straight from Yah"

Fears

I have so many fears right now. I just keep worrying about my baby. What if it is deaf, of blind, or a hermaphrodite. Yes, I worry about my baby being a hermaphrodite, and not finding out until he/she is like 12 because he/she is going through crazy mood swings because of too much progesterone or estrogen and then he/she will have to make a decision to be a boy or a girl and that is just too much emotional distress for a 12 year old...my mind wanders ALL day and night. Literally EVERY possibility has run through my head. But there is a new fear that has been bugging me, keeping me up at night, making me cringe: the fear of my belly button popping.

I HATE BELLY BUTTONS. They gross me out. I have never seen the bottom of mine and I don't wish to, EVER. And my belly button is so deep, you could stick a pencil in there and order me to do 5 jumping jacks and it would still be sticking out straight.

This picture is not of my belly button (yet):




Speaking of belly's, I keep wondering when this being pregnant thing is going to come to my advantage. I find myself arching my back, and pushing my belly out with a bit more emphasis so that I can receive the few perks we pregnant women are entitled to, like an empty seat on the tram, jumping the bathroom line, or, I don't know... free gelato? Anything? I mean don't we get anything? I haven't. I even got kicked out of the "fast" lane at the pool the other day (they weren't even going that fast)! This nerd stopped me UNDERWATER mid-lap, removed his nerdy goggles, and said "Questa parte è per i Master swimmers" (pronounced Mas-teerr sweem-merrs). So I climbed (with great fake difficulty) the ladder, popped my stomach out, rubbed my belly for emphasis, put one hand behind my lower back as if in support, and waddled my way over to where the 9 year olds were swimming laps (this was all for dramatic effect, I can walk just fine).

I hope he went to bed with guilt for kicking a pregnant lady out of the "Mas-teerr sweem-merrs" line at the pool. Although, I doubt it. Sigh.

Words of Wisdom from Gianfrancesco

Sometimes I wake up in the morning and I think it’s funny Claudia is pregnant, and she is so into it. When she does something she really does…she bought maybe 9-10 books with pregnancy subject (editor's note: I didn't buy any, they were all gifts. Thank you Michelle, Tasha, and Kat!). She has the pregnancy bible, a scientific manual, a laughing book (that I’m actually reading) and other stuffs. American are so good in this. And you know guys, u should read this stuff in order to know how to manage the rollercoaster mood of your partner.

Yesterday Claudia got into her 9 weeks. Sunday, Claudia was walking with our friend Marco when suddenly (thanks Marco…great idea!!!!!) he bought a rose to Claudia. Can you imagine? She started complaining about me not buying flower for St.Valentines day blab la bla. My idea about it is this one: flowers is something you have to buy when you don’t have to!!!!

So yesterday I was close to home when I tought to take my revenge. I went to a florist and I realize that buying 9 roses for the 9 weeks event would help me to get some points. So I ask the guy "How much for 1 white rose" (apparently now she also like roses, but only white,the most expensive of course)…he told me XX euro (and guys, it was a lot. I’m not that cheap but I’m trying to save money for Claudia & the baby, so I changed my 9 weeks event into a "u are getting into 3 months event" and I bought 3 white roses. I Know 9 weeks are more close to 2 months than 3 months but I’m generous…so I went for 3.

It’s not a question of how much you spend, but what matters is the tought. And I'm always thinking about you, Claudia!!



p.s. I know Claudia is such a great writer despite my bad English but I don’t like to correct so I write what I think.

9 weeks!

Today fagiolo/la and I are entering our 3rd month!!! So far, no vomiting or crazy food cravings...this pregnancy is just too easy. The hardest part is not being able to have a nice cold alcoholic beverage as the weather gets nicer.

One day soon enough (after breastfeeding).

PS: Not twins! Just one baby!

First Belly Pics!

The first trimester of pregnancy is not fun for many reasons, mostly because we do not look pregnant, just fat. My complaints about fatigue, back pain, etc. are often responded by with "Oh shutup, you aren't even that pregnant" (ehmm, Daniela!!).

Here are our first belly pictures...at 9 weeks pregnant (3 months!!!).

Pregnancy Dreams

No one ever told me about pregnancy dreams, accept for Jenny McCarthy. She has such a good book to prepare you for all the funny, scary, and gross things about pregnancy (thanks Tash!). Now I, even when not pregnant, ALWAYS have the craziest and most detailed dreams...every. single. night. I wake up every morning and tell Gian my dreams, he usually thinks I am really weird or really a big liar. But it's true, I just have incredibly weird dreams, and if they are particularly sad or scary and troubling, they usually stay with me throughout the whole day.

When I was really little I remember I had a dream where I had two moms: my real life mom, and a dream mom. And at one point in the dream, I had to choose between the two. I was on the deck in our old house (which we moved out of when I was 3 so I am suprised I remembered it enough for a dream) and on the side of the deck which I was on, I was with the dream mom. My real life mom was on the other side of the deck. I wanted to get to the other side of the deck because I had chosen to be with my real life mom, but in between us were piles and piles of snakes and the only way to get across was to step over them. I always wake up before the dream is resolved, by the way, and so I don't know if I ever got to the other side. But that morning I ran to my mom crying and told her the dream and that I didn't want to choose between her and anyone else, blah, blah, blah. This became a joke between the two of us and my mom brings it up randomly when I am mad at her.

Point being, when I read Jenny McCarthy's chapter on pregnancy dreams, I knew some interesting stuff was coming my way. Finally, last night, I had TWO:

Dream no.1:
It was the first night after I delivered my baby and we were in the US at my parents house. I feel asleep on the bed with my newborn GIRL (I dreamt she was a girl and before I told this dream to Gian he rolled over and said "today I feel like it is a girl") in my arms. I woke up in the morning and she was gone. At first I thought I had suffocated her (this is one of my biggest fears for when she is born, I keep playing it over and over in my head after hearing horror stories) or that I had rolled over her. But then I saw someone had put her in her crib. But at closer inspection she was a 4 year-old-dark-skinned-maybe-Peruvian-looking girl. And she had crumbs in her hair, which grossed me out. I quickly ran downstairs to tell my mom (when I told Gian this part of the dream he got mad at me for not waking him up first). She was doing the dishes as I told her what I had just found: a 4-year old Peruvian girl in place of my new born baby. My mom just kept doing the dishes and didn't even look at me saying "Claudia, that IS your daughter. You are being silly, that is what she looked like when she was born". "She has a full set of TEETH mom!" She just kept denying it and so I knew she was hiding something.

Eventually she fessed up and said that she had given my newborn to her co-worker and given me her co-workers daughter instead, "because her co-worker wanted a newborn and I couldn't just say no, now could I?" YES, you could have said no! I kept saying that I had carried this baby in me for 9 months and how could she just give her away and that she better get me back my baby. She said "don't you feel sorry that no one wants the Peruvian girl?" I told her she was no longer my mom, cut out of my life and that she better get my baby back here by noon or I was calling the cops. She told me I was being dramatic and that it "wasn't that big a deal".

I ran upstairs to tell my dad. He was laying on his stomach (details, right cricket?)and I was like "Dad, mom switched out my bay for a 4 year old Peruvian girl." He goes, "Yeah I know, she asked me if I thought that was alright and I told her I thought it was completely fine, she could go ahead and do that." I was so mad I started screaming and then Antonio came in the room carrying laundry and I KNEW he would understand, because they don't do this in Italy, right? But as I was telling him, the real life Gian snored so LOUD he woke me from the dream. The issue was never resolved....

Dream no.2:
I caught my dad on the floor of our kitchen smoking crack cocaine out of a homemade pipe made of a straw and tin foil.

We had an 8 week sonogram on Easter weekend...

but I am waiting for Gian to scan the pictures before I talk about THAT experience...

Too tight, too soon?

YES! My clothes are quickly becoming too tight, too soon. I keep hearing that expecting moms don't really start to show until they are 4 months along. Well at the rate I am going, I may be ready to deliver this baby by month 4. I don't know what is going on. I am not really craving anything but milk, and I drink low fat milk. I am eating pretty much exactly as I was before, sans the heavy workout routine (which I plan to resume at a moderate pace tomorrow) so why is my tummy so pudgy? And it is not just my stomach, but my boobs are HUGE. My clothes are tighter at the top than at my tummy.

I went for my second job interview at a university today. I wore this beautiful dress that use to fit quite comfortably. Well, it was anything but comfortable today. It has buttons on the back of the dress, and they were almost popping on my upper back area because my boobs have grown so much. I could hardly breathe, and it was so hot but I had to keep my blazer on or my interviewer would see my buttons popping. I don't know how long I am going to be to hide this pregnancy, if I do get the job.

My mommy friend Michelle says I am just sprouting. Did anyone else out there in blog-land sprout this early on? Or am I just fat?

Off to the pool to swim some laps...

Does anybody read this blog?

It doesn't matter anyways; I think it's therapeutic.

Gianfrancesco says...

In these days when auditors & balance statement give me some break I use it to google (I can believe is a verbe now) some aspect of pregnancy. Most of the results end with some advertising of therapist books, pilates video, etc, etc. What I learnt is that the mom normally swing her mood because her body is changing. But what about the father…I’m freaking too!! Maybe I’m just freaking out for sympathy towards Claudia…but really Claudia, do we need to be that worried? Your grandmama grew up I don’t even know how many people in that house? When I born my mom was still leaving in a students house…and I did not suffer at all. What we really need when we born is not more square meters more but the love and the attention. It seems stupid and not the original words but I think is true.

Editor's note: I just paste exactly what Gian writes, without correcting it, because it is more genuine...but I have to say he speaks better than he writes! Also, square meters is not the only thing I am worried about...