Category: FOOD

hearts and hugs day.

hearts and hugs day.

by Joanne ♥ 3 Comments

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Don’t tell the boy…

As grumpy as I am most of the time, I have to admit that I absolutely love Valentine’s Day. The boy is not a big spoiler/gift-giver, but this is one of the few days in the year where I know he’s going to get me something, and I get so excited in anticipation. He always does well in the presents department; I’m not easy to buy for, and while he agonizes quite a bit before making a decision and/or purchase, he nails it every time.

I spoil him quite a bit the rest of the year. Every month, on the 26th (to commemorate the date that we met), I give him a card to remind him how much I love him. Sometimes he gets a gift (usually clothes or cologne) or I treat him to dinner. Today, in spite of my size and weight, I slaved over a hot stove for literally hours, hoping to pull off a lovely gourmet-inspired meal that was kind of out of my culinary league.

One of the dishes I made was braised beef in a red wine reduction, which required a day of pre-marinating, and about three or four hours of cooking time. Just before the final hours of slow-roasting in the oven, I invited him to taste a little bite of the meat – for flavour, not texture, mind you. He tentatively took a bite, and then replied, “it’s chewy, babe. Can I offer a suggestion? Next time, boil the beef before you cook it…” Read more ›

missing you.

missing you.

by Joanne ♥ 2 Comments

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I’m going to get someone to bring me a whole platter of this THE MINUTE SHE IS OUT OF MY BODY.

Was out to dinner with the boy on Saturday. Navigating restaurant menus has become tricky, because my first inclination is to either order steak or salmon. I like (nay, love) my steaks rare (warm and bloody, really), which is a no-no during pregnancy. Salmon isn’t on the always-avoid list, but because the mercury can be harmful to the little one, I’ve just not eaten any in the past nine months. At this point, I don’t think it would harm her, as she will be, as of this coming Friday, A FULL TERM BABY (woot) — but why take any chances?

I miss eating Brie. And all soft, unripened cheeses. I so miss sushi – salmon sashimi in particular. I miss drinking a full glass of Jacob’s Creek moscato (oh, who’m I kidding? I can easily polish off a bottle of that sweet elixir) and having a cigarette after a good meal. Yes, I’m a former smoker. We’ll see what happens with that. I know it’s a disgusting vice, and I’ve made it the last 200-odd days without one, so how hard can it be to continue on the path? I’ve got to say it’ll be a lot easier to maintain non-smoker status as the boy quit last summer…and if I’m planning on breastfeeding, the drinking and the smoking will have to remain a negative, Batman.

Know what I also miss? Exercise. Never thought I’d say that in a million years! I can’t wait to get back to doing Insanity and ZWow and all of my other HIIT. Exercise also includes salsa/bachata – and any dancing in general. I’ll likely have another 6-8 weeks after Aisha is born to be able to even THINK about moving with any intensity, but oh, how I dream about being active again.

Don’t get me wrong; I’ve enjoyed having pregnancy as an excuse to pretty much eat and sleep with some abandon, but I also have to say I can’t wait until she’s here so I can get back to some semblance of the me that was.

I miss being able to see my toes. 😦

my daily bread.

my daily bread.

by Joanne ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

ice-cubes
…is actually more like my nightly ice.

I’m often asked if pregnancy has brought out any weird food cravings. My response is largely a no – I have been eating more sweets and junk than usual, but nothing out of the ordinary, save for one honey-drizzled hamburger occurrence. If anything, being pregnant has heightened and increased my food aversions (chicken, cucumber, oranges), although I can say that there has been one notable – somewhat strange – habit that I’ve picked up seemingly out of the blue.

For the last month or so, it has been my regular pre-bed ritual to get the biggest glass I can find, and pack it full of ice cubes to crunch. Sometimes I add water, and other times I don’t…the only must is that there be a TON of ice.

I’ve read that this is a common practice among pregnant women. It’s called Pica – an uncontrollable craving to eat non-food items. Ice cravings are also common in anemics; and while I’ve dealt with low blood iron for most of my life, I’ve never craved ice this way before.

Actually, prior to getting pregnant/my third trimester, I was never a fan of ice/ice water or even cold drinks. I prefer my beverages room temperature. I think that has to do with the fact that I am always cold. I won’t eat ice cream in winter for the same reason.

Because ice is just water, I’m not at all concerned about any ill effects on my health. I do worry about how all of this ice crunching will affect my teeth. I can only tolerate the cold on the right side of my mouth; the left side is extremely sensitive to cold and sweet.

I brought it up to Dr. Freedman, and she told me that as per my research, it’s a pretty normal thing that will likely dissipate once the babe arrives.

Until then, I’m staying crunchy, my friends.

(post) week(end) wrap-up: blessings.

(post) week(end) wrap-up: blessings.

by Joanne ♥ 3 Comments

I’ve been a bit incognegro these last few days. I had a rather big writing assignment to complete, as well as a few engagements, and then there was my un-shower…so I had good reason for not blogging. Or, at least, that’s what I’m telling myself. And you.

first things first…
Last Friday marked 34 weeks. My little peanut is actually the size of a honeydew melon (finally, produce that I enjoy eating!) and will prolly remain about that size for the next two weeks or so. She has been transverse breech for the majority of this pregnancy, but lately has taken to basically standing upright (footling breech) in the womb, feet kicking my bladder. Fun.

high tea at the Windsor Arms…
What more can I say? It was High Tea. At the Windsor Arms. And it was lovely. We wore fascinators. And took pics. We looked great! We had canapés and mini-sandwiches, and quiches with fancy stuff in’em. The scones were OFF THE CHARTS (though I really could have done without the desserts. They were only “meh.”) My girls surprised me with a little mom-to-be evening out, including a GC for a mani and pedi. Aw. I’m not a spa-girl, but I will haul my heavy backside out to Bayview Village and get my F&Ts done.

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The fabulous five and their four fascinators.

Read more ›

repeat offender.

repeat offender.

by Joanne ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

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This time, it ain’t my baby that ails me.

I just got back home from being in hospital – again! This makes visit number five since September.

I went in yesterday evening for sharp, stabbing pains at the top right of my abdomen. It’s been ongoing since Peanut dropped sometime on Thursday night, and I worried (briefly) that it might be placental abruption. There has been no bleeding and no nausea, chills or fever, so I was pretty sure I wasn’t in the throes of anything serious. However, the area was tender to the touch, and since my name is not Doc McStuffins, I thought it would be better if I made a visit to Labour & Delivery to get checked out.

The nurses at L&D at my home hospital are more than familiar with me, so admission was a breeze. Besides, it’s rare that anyone wanders into L&D after 10pm, so it was a light night. I was set up in a bed in triage, asked to give a urine sample and squeeze into the netting that holds the various monitors required to assess me, and was told that a nurse would be in momentarily.

I was hooked up to sensors to follow Peanut’s heartbeat and movement, and after about 30 minutes the printouts from the machine led the nurse to determine that the baby was fine. Since I’d come in complaining of abdominal pain, she wondered if it might not be some kind of heartburn? And perhaps if I took sodium citrate I might feel better? Read more ›

things i didn’t consider.

things i didn’t consider.

by Joanne ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

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One good thing about taking little ones out for Hallowe’en: getting to steal monitor their stash.

Today is Hallowe’en, and someone casually remarked how next year, I’ll have my own adorable little Trick or Treater to wrangle candy from unwitting strangers.

As one who hates the day (the kids are cute, but only the really little ones. I also generally find the hype annoying), this comment made me think about all the other dreadful activities will I have to participate in because I am now part of the Parents’ Club?

The boy and I already agreed that he would do (translation: take her to) all of the sports-related activities. If she’s in any sort of skating, running around on a field after a ball, or anything that involves waking up super-early or standing out in the cold, he’s on-duty. I volunteered for any sort of Mommy & Me classes, painting, dancing, tumbling, or things that take place indoors appeal to my artsy side. Read more ›

constant cravings.

constant cravings.

by Joanne ♥ 1 Comment

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The pregnant lady wants what she wants.

Throughout different times in my pregnancy, I’ve craved different things.

In the very early stages, I wanted all kinds of dairy (yogurt and milk – chocolate milk in particular, and process cheese slices. Do those even count?). I developed an affinity for condiments on everything I ate, especially ketchup – something I wasn’t very fond of prior to becoming pregnant. There was also a hankering for meat. Beef and pork were the flesh of choice; I was never a huge chicken fan before, and something about the smell and taste of it completely turns me off now.

I have always had a well-developed sweet tooth, and pregnancy has only served to heighten this. I eat a candy bar about twice a week, usually a Twix or Wunderbar, and in the absence of chocolate, a personal-sized mini-tub of Hagen Dazs dulce de leche does the trick. Read more ›