Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Thinking about blogging
All the would be writers now have an outlet: blogs. So why don't I write one? Hmmm...
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Nursing at 4:56am
The sound of newspapers hitting driveways and the delivery car's dull acceleration between houses...reminds me of insomnia and being pregnant. Makes me think about the suburbs. Retirement. How lucky we are.
I sent this pic to Dan today and said, "Don't tell anyone, but I think we won the baby jackpot."
I sent this pic to Dan today and said, "Don't tell anyone, but I think we won the baby jackpot."
Monday, September 26, 2011
Who has time to blog?
Just read "Three Baths a Week" and was inspired. She's hilarious and some of her posts are just one pic. I can do that! Here's J doing an impressive pushup. 
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
birth story
Almost 2 months later, here I am. The baby came on May 21 at 3:18am. 7lbs 14oz and 21.5 inches of love. We named her Jane Rose Nestojko.
My birth story. It was Thursday night and I was going on 2 weeks overdue, scheduled to be induced on the following Monday. I decided to take someone's advice to have a beer with some spicy pizza, and I went to bed relaxed and happy. A strong urge to pee woke me up at 2am. I went to the bathroom and my water broke in the toilet. Didn't realize that was what it was at first, but then became pretty obvious. I said "Dan, my water broke." He said "Are you sure?" and turned on the lights. I remember being giddy and excited as I got ready and on the drive to the hospital. It was all happening!
We got to the hospital before 4am and got checked into a nice room in the back of the labor and delivery unit. I was having manageable contractions. We ate breakfast and I drank tons of water. Contractions got worse after breakfast and were pretty intense until lunchtime. The midwife said she had a call in for our volunteer doula. During a contraction, the only thing that sounded good to me was bouncing on the exercise ball. Being in bed during a contraction was not an option; it made the pain so much worse. So Dan would stand behind me and hold my shoulders and help me breathe through them. I had the remote (telemetry) fetal monitor belt on so we could hear the baby's heartbeat and watch the intensity of the contractions print out. Jane tolerated the contractions very well, no signs of distress.
Around noon, I was feeling pretty thin, especially after I realized I was only at 4cm. I asked the midwife about pain options and she reminded me I could get some IV pain medication, as a first option before going to the epidural. Nubane for pain and Fenergan (sp?) for nausea, and I'd sleep for awhile. They gave me the drugs when (I think) our parents were all in the room, at least the moms were there. As soon as the drugs hit me, I fell asleep. Dan slept next to me on a fold out cot. About 2 hours later, I was up again. The contractions were back, not quite as strong, but they built up as the drugs wore off. From 2pm - 5pm, we labored hard. I was told there were no volunteer doulas available. I was throwing up. I didn't scream or moan. I had read about "finding your monkey" meaning, to get primal and tap into that energy during labor. But you just do what feels right to you, and to me, being quiet and bouncing felt right. Eventually I threw up green bile. Intense pain. But Dan told jokes and kept me laughing. He said he wanted the epidural. And that I'd better hurry up or he'd miss his tee time. When they checked me again around 5pm, I had only progressed a tiny bit, almost to 5cm. I looked at Dan and said, "I think I want the epidural, is that okay?" Not sure why I asked permission. We had agreed that I'd try to go natural, drug-free but hadn't ruled out drugs. I mean, who knows what it's going to be like when it's your first time? So I asked the midwife for the epidural. The nurse who was with me was so sweet and really rushed the anesthesiologist in there. The whole experience of putting it in was easy & painless. Maybe 5 minutes. He told me I had a curvature in my spine. Within a few minutes, I was numb from the waist down and my legs felt like dead trees. It was a huge relief and I wanted to hug the anesthesiologist.
More to come...
My birth story. It was Thursday night and I was going on 2 weeks overdue, scheduled to be induced on the following Monday. I decided to take someone's advice to have a beer with some spicy pizza, and I went to bed relaxed and happy. A strong urge to pee woke me up at 2am. I went to the bathroom and my water broke in the toilet. Didn't realize that was what it was at first, but then became pretty obvious. I said "Dan, my water broke." He said "Are you sure?" and turned on the lights. I remember being giddy and excited as I got ready and on the drive to the hospital. It was all happening!
We got to the hospital before 4am and got checked into a nice room in the back of the labor and delivery unit. I was having manageable contractions. We ate breakfast and I drank tons of water. Contractions got worse after breakfast and were pretty intense until lunchtime. The midwife said she had a call in for our volunteer doula. During a contraction, the only thing that sounded good to me was bouncing on the exercise ball. Being in bed during a contraction was not an option; it made the pain so much worse. So Dan would stand behind me and hold my shoulders and help me breathe through them. I had the remote (telemetry) fetal monitor belt on so we could hear the baby's heartbeat and watch the intensity of the contractions print out. Jane tolerated the contractions very well, no signs of distress.
Around noon, I was feeling pretty thin, especially after I realized I was only at 4cm. I asked the midwife about pain options and she reminded me I could get some IV pain medication, as a first option before going to the epidural. Nubane for pain and Fenergan (sp?) for nausea, and I'd sleep for awhile. They gave me the drugs when (I think) our parents were all in the room, at least the moms were there. As soon as the drugs hit me, I fell asleep. Dan slept next to me on a fold out cot. About 2 hours later, I was up again. The contractions were back, not quite as strong, but they built up as the drugs wore off. From 2pm - 5pm, we labored hard. I was told there were no volunteer doulas available. I was throwing up. I didn't scream or moan. I had read about "finding your monkey" meaning, to get primal and tap into that energy during labor. But you just do what feels right to you, and to me, being quiet and bouncing felt right. Eventually I threw up green bile. Intense pain. But Dan told jokes and kept me laughing. He said he wanted the epidural. And that I'd better hurry up or he'd miss his tee time. When they checked me again around 5pm, I had only progressed a tiny bit, almost to 5cm. I looked at Dan and said, "I think I want the epidural, is that okay?" Not sure why I asked permission. We had agreed that I'd try to go natural, drug-free but hadn't ruled out drugs. I mean, who knows what it's going to be like when it's your first time? So I asked the midwife for the epidural. The nurse who was with me was so sweet and really rushed the anesthesiologist in there. The whole experience of putting it in was easy & painless. Maybe 5 minutes. He told me I had a curvature in my spine. Within a few minutes, I was numb from the waist down and my legs felt like dead trees. It was a huge relief and I wanted to hug the anesthesiologist.
More to come...
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
todo mi paciencia
Yes, I'm a patient person. But it gets harder every day to keep waiting to meet this new person in our lives! Today I am officially 41 weeks + 2 days pregnant, so 9 days overdue. I'm told that even the midwives won't let me go past 42 weeks without some kind of intervention (likely meaning induction - which I'd prefer not to do, but whatever). So in all likelihood, we will have a baby before Sunday...
I kept thinking today would be the day. Tuesday, May 17 - a nice, cool, rainy day. Everyone was feeling it. I woke up at 5am, just wide awake. Watched a little tv, read some Baby 411, watched some baby-led breastfeeding videos & made coffee for Dan to take to work. But it's 9:16am now and nada. Okay, back to the to-do list.
I kept thinking today would be the day. Tuesday, May 17 - a nice, cool, rainy day. Everyone was feeling it. I woke up at 5am, just wide awake. Watched a little tv, read some Baby 411, watched some baby-led breastfeeding videos & made coffee for Dan to take to work. But it's 9:16am now and nada. Okay, back to the to-do list.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
raw kale salad
Made this tonight, highly recommend. Easy way to get some raw goodness into your diet and the lemony, cheesy dressing is fantastic. I added a handful of dried cranberries and some sliced purple radishes. The Whole Foods version uses pine nuts and sliced, quartered tomates. Very versatile, you get the picture.
RECIPE:
1 bunch kale (I used a purple, smaller variety from the farmer's mkt)
1/2 garlic clove
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus a pinch
1/4 cup (or small handful) grated pecorino (or parmesan) cheese, plus adiitional for garnish
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for garnish
Freshly squeezed juice of one lemon (scant 1/4 cup or ~50ml)
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Trim the bottom few inches off the kale stems and discard. Slice the kale into ribbons, mine were 1/4 inch. You should have 4 to 5 cups. Place the kale in a large bowl.
Mince the garlic and mash it with 1/4 teaspoon of salt into a paste. Transfer the garlic to a small bowl. Add 1/4 cup cheese, 3 tablespoons oil, lemon juice, pinch of salt, pepper flakes, and black pepper and whisk to combine. Pour the dressing over the kale and toss very well (the dressing will be thick and need lots of tossing to coat the leaves). Let the salad sit for 5 minutes, then serve.
Prep time: 10 min - Cook time: 5 min
Adapted from (sorry, trouble with link) http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/raw-tuscan-kale-salad-recipe.html
RECIPE:
1 bunch kale (I used a purple, smaller variety from the farmer's mkt)
1/2 garlic clove
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus a pinch
1/4 cup (or small handful) grated pecorino (or parmesan) cheese, plus adiitional for garnish
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for garnish
Freshly squeezed juice of one lemon (scant 1/4 cup or ~50ml)
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Trim the bottom few inches off the kale stems and discard. Slice the kale into ribbons, mine were 1/4 inch. You should have 4 to 5 cups. Place the kale in a large bowl.
Mince the garlic and mash it with 1/4 teaspoon of salt into a paste. Transfer the garlic to a small bowl. Add 1/4 cup cheese, 3 tablespoons oil, lemon juice, pinch of salt, pepper flakes, and black pepper and whisk to combine. Pour the dressing over the kale and toss very well (the dressing will be thick and need lots of tossing to coat the leaves). Let the salad sit for 5 minutes, then serve.
Prep time: 10 min - Cook time: 5 min
Adapted from (sorry, trouble with link) http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/raw-tuscan-kale-salad-recipe.html
let's just start at the beginning
Hello blog. I'm 41 weeks pregnant today...and waiting. It's 4am and I'm up drinking herbal tea, imagining that labor has already begun. (Yes, I'm a little bit crunchy.) And I love using parentheses.
My intention for this blog is to share pictures, musings, recipes. If I had to guess, my most common topics will be "BABY!" and "FOOD!"
So, baby!
We decided to not find out the sex so that's adding to the overdue suspense. At this late stage, my money is that it's a boy, though most everyone else is convinced it's a girl. We do know this baby currently has a full head of hair, which was floating around in the last ultrasound. The ultrasound tech told me to bring a comb and some bows (just in case) to the hospital.
Okay, baby - here are some reasons to come out. Look at your cute nursery! And look at this dog who can't wait to lick your face and nuzzle up next to you!
My intention for this blog is to share pictures, musings, recipes. If I had to guess, my most common topics will be "BABY!" and "FOOD!"
So, baby!
We decided to not find out the sex so that's adding to the overdue suspense. At this late stage, my money is that it's a boy, though most everyone else is convinced it's a girl. We do know this baby currently has a full head of hair, which was floating around in the last ultrasound. The ultrasound tech told me to bring a comb and some bows (just in case) to the hospital.
Okay, baby - here are some reasons to come out. Look at your cute nursery! And look at this dog who can't wait to lick your face and nuzzle up next to you!
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